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Variables Affecting Hand Sanitizer Use In Public Facilities, Amy Katherine Loukus

Theses

The following research was conducted to contribute to the greater understanding of the impact that most often utilized methods of public awareness and education have on behaviors relative to sickness and disease for the general public in terms of action toward prevention behaviors within a healthcare setting. The psycho educational approach is often considered an effective means to promote behavior change as it relates to preventative behavior, and in the clinical therapeutic setting has shown some relevance as an effective procedure. Unfortunately, no research as of yet speaks to the comparative effectiveness this approach may have over other approaches often …

All For One Or Every Man For Himself? What Is Left Of Solidarity In Redhibition, Elizabeth A. Spurgeon

Louisiana Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Suspension Theory: Hurricane Katrina Looting, Property Rights, And Personhood, Casey E. Faucon

Louisiana Law Review

No abstract provided.

Applying Critical And Creative Thinking In Teaching Buddhism, Doan Van Thua

Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection

This synthesis describes my journey preparing myself for teaching Buddhism in a way that moves beyond traditional approaches of transmitting information to students. I describe learning, teaching activities, tools, and methodologies using critical and creative thinking that can be applicable to Buddhist education. I describe some changes towards more interactive modes of teaching and progress in teaching I have made so far in my teaching Sunday school for children, in public teaching, and in giving instruction to Buddhist groups. Some further expectations and some defects in my teaching that need improvement are noted. A Buddhist is not a blind follower, …

Teaching Adult Students Who Are Apprehensive About Making Art, Donna M. Clement

Master's Theses

Many adults stopped making art while they were children and are now fearful and apprehensive of taking up art again. These individuals believe that only talented artists are allowed to create art. This study follows students through experimental art classes proving that they can learn art-making successfully. Difficulties and adaptations to teaching this population are discussed as well as the importance of teaching to the learning style of each student. From the history of how art began as a functional part of everyday life to how art exists today on a metaphorical pedestal is studied. All individuals who desire to …

Freedom In Middle French Enlightenment : Interpreted Through A Picturesque Garden., Ning Jia 1977-

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Freedom is a critical concept that helps shape the discourse of modern society and corresponding thoughts about people's private, public, cultural and spiritual lives. Standing at the fountainhead of the modern era, the Enlightenment was a critical period when this concept was defined, analyzed and debated in modern terminology with modern questions directed at modern problems. However, despite its importance, scholars in the twentieth century have disagreed about what to make of the Enlightenment liberal tradition. What was not fully discussed were the cultural sentiments and artistic expressions that interacted with the intellectual and political domains. To complement this, this …

Arsenic In Drinking Water Causes Gene Expression Changes In The Liver Related To Inflammation And Metabolic Dysfunction And Accelerates Atherosclerosis In Apoe-/-Mice, Matthew R. Zajack

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Arsenic exposure in drinking-water is a significant worldwide health problem. It causes adverse human health effects, such as cancer, increases the risks for others such as cardiovascular disease, and accelerates atherosclerosis. In this study, we analyze arsenic-induced gene expression changes in the liver of ApoE-knockout mice given 49 ppm arsenic in drinking-water. We hypothesize chronic arsenic exposure accelerates atherosclerosis by disrupting liver homeostasis, causing aberrant gene expression changes. Networks revealed hubs on 3 stress-response MAP kinase pathways, ERK, JNK, and p38. Pathways revealed mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative phosphorylation enrichment from the gene set. Transcription factor binding site analysis revealed specific …

A Major Role For Mammals In The Ecology Of Mycobacterium Ulcerans, Janet A. Fyfe, Caroline J. Lavender, Kathrine A. Handasyde, Alistair R. Legione, Carolyn R. O'Brien, Timothy P. Stinear, Sacha J. Pidot, Torsten Seemann, Mark Eric Benbow, John R. Wallace, Christina Mccowan, Paul D. R. Johnson

Biology Faculty Publications

Background: Mycobacterium ulcerans is the causative agent of Buruli ulcer (BU), a destructive skin disease found predominantly in sub-Saharan Africa and south-eastern Australia. The precise mode(s) of transmission and environmental reservoir(s) remain unknown, but several studies have explored the role of aquatic invertebrate species. The purpose of this study was to investigate the environmental distribution of M. ulcerans in south-eastern Australia.

Population Structure Influences Sexual Conflict In Wild Populations Of Water Striders., Omar Tonsi Eldakar, Michael J. Dlugos, Galen P. Holt, David Sloan Wilson, John W. Pepper

Biology Faculty Articles

In sexual conflict, aggressive males frequently diminish the long-term reproductive success of females in efforts to gain a short-term advantage over rival males. This short-term advantage can selectively favour high-exploitation males. However, just as the over-exploitation of resources can lead to local extinction, the over-exploitation of females in the form of harassment by aggressive males can yield similar consequences resulting in reduced female fecundity, increased female mortality and overall decline in mating activity. This outcome may often be prevented by selection acting at multiple levels of biological organization. Directional selection favouring aggressive exploitation within groups can be balanced by directional …

Genetic Analysis Of The Function Of The Drosophila Doublesex-Related Factor Dmrt93b, Diana O'Day

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

DMRT (Doublesex and Mab-3 related transcription factor) proteins generally associated with sexual differentiation in many organisms share a common DNA binding domain and are often expressed in reproductive tissues. Aside from doublesex, which is a central factor in the regulation of sex determination, Drosophila possesses three different dmrt genes that are of unknown function. Because the association with sexual differentiation and reproduction is not universal and some DMRT proteins have been found to play other developmental roles we chose to further characterize one of these Drosophila genes. We carried out genetic analysis of dmrt93B, which was previously found to be …

University Of South Florida St. Petersburg Faculty Handbook, University Of South Florida St. Petersburg. Office Of Academic Affairs

Miscellaneous Resources

The University of South Florida St. Petersburg's faculty handbook revised in August 2010.

Unique Functionality Of 22 Nt Mirnas In Triggering Rdr6-Dependent Sirna Biogenesis From Target Transcripts In Arabidopsis, Josh T. Cuperus, Alberto Carbonell, Noah Fahlgren, Hernan Garcia-Ruiz, Russell T. Burke, Atsushi Takeda, Christopher M. Sullivan, Sunny D. Gilbert, Taiowa A. Montgomery, James C. Carrington

Department of Plant Pathology: Faculty Publications

RNA interference pathways may involve amplification of secondary siRNAs by RNA-dependent RNA polymerases. In plants, RDR6-dependent secondary siRNAs arise from transcripts targeted by some microRNA (miRNA). Here, Arabidopsis thaliana secondary siRNA from mRNA, and trans-acting siRNA, are shown to be triggered through initial targeting by 22 nt miRNA that associate with AGO1. In contrast to canonical 21 nt miRNA, 22 nt miRNA primarily arise from foldback precursors containing asymmetric bulges. Using artificial miRNA constructs, conversion of asymmetric foldbacks to symmetric foldbacks resulted in production of 21 nt forms of miR173, miR472 and miR828. Both 21 and 22 nt forms associated …

Calcium/Magnesium Ratio And Water Potential Effects On Forage Quality And Pectin Concentration, Rishi Prasad

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Forage quality is an important parameter in animal nutrition and depends partly on soil fertility and moisture. Acidic soil pH and low soil moisture are known to decrease forage yield and quality. Liming is a common practice to correct the soil pH. Addition of lime not only improves the availability of nutrients but at the same time adds to the native calcium and magnesium present in the soil. Calcium and magnesium are identified as essential secondary macronutrients known to influence plant's physiological process. The objective of this experiment was to determine the effect of molar combinations of Ca:Mg ratio in …

Roosting Ecology Of Bats In A Disturbed Landscape, Joshua B. Johnson

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

In 2007 and 2008, I examined roost selection of forest-interior dwelling northern myotis (Myotis septentrionalis) maternity colonies in stands treated with prescribed fire (hereafter, fire) and in unburned (hereafter, control) stands on the Fernow Experimental Forest, West Virginia. Using radio telemetry, I tracked 36 female northern myotis to 69 roost trees; 25 in the fire treatment and 44 in the control treatment. Using logistic regression and an information-theoretic model selection approach, I determined that within the fire treatment, northern myotis maternity colonies were more likely to use cavity trees that were smaller in diameter, higher in crown class, and located …

Mitochondrial Dysfunction In The Diabetic Heart: Cardioprotection From A Novel Mitochondrially-Targeted Therapeutic, Erinne Rose Dabkowski

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Cardiovascular complications leading to heart failure are the leading cause of death amongst both type 1 and type 2 diabetic patients. Increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation due to hyperglycemia and an enhanced fatty acid environment has been suggested to lead to mitochondrial dysfunction. Mitochondria are particularly susceptible to oxidative damage because the inner mitochondrial membrane (IMM) is the main site of ROS generation. Mitochondrial dysfunction is complicated by the fact that two spatially-distinct subpopulations of mitochondria reside in the heart. The subsarcolemmal mitochondria (SSM) are located at the cell periphery, while the interfibrillar mitochondria (IFM) situate along the myofibrils. …

Escape From Stimuli Correlated With Transitions Across Lean And Rich Schedules Of Reinforcement, August F. Holtyn

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

On a multiple-schedule of reinforcement, when a rich component is followed by a relatively lean component, responding is interrupted by extended pausing. The present experiment examined whether the discriminative stimulus correlated with this rich to lean transition acquired aversive properties. Four pigeons were exposed to a compound schedule with two fixed-ratio components programmed on the center key. One component ended with the delivery of a rich reinforcer (7-s access to grain) and the second with a lean reinforcer (1-s access). Each component was correlated with a distinctive key color. At the beginning of some components, a side key was activated. …

Facial Expression Recognition System, Ewa Piatkowska

Technical Reports

This thesis describes the problem of facial expression recognition in the field of computer vision. Firstly, the psychological background of a problem is presented. Then, the idea of facial expression recognition system (FERS) is outlined and the requirements of such system are specified. The FER system consists of 3 stages: face detection, feature extraction and expression recognition. Methods proposed in literature are reviewed for each stage of a system. Finally, the design and implementation of my system are explained. The face detection algorithm used in the system is based on work by Viola and Jones [13]. The expressions are described …

What Is So Special About Intangible Property? The Case For Intelligent Carryovers, Richard A. Epstein

Coase-Sandor Institute for Law & Economics Research Paper Series

One of the major controversies in modern intellectual property law is the extent to which property rights conceptions, developed in connection with land or other forms of tangible property, can be carried over to different forms of property, such as rights in the spectrum or in patents and copyrights. This article defends the thesis that, once the differences in the optimal duration of patents and copyrights are taken into account, the carryover of basic property conceptions from tangible to intangible property should be much encouraged. In some instances, the property rights concepts applicable to land often work even better for …

Carbon Dioxide: Our Newest Pollutant, Richard A. Epstein

Coase-Sandor Institute for Law & Economics Research Paper Series

Ever since the controversial Supreme Court decision in Massachusetts v. EPA, carbon dioxide has been treated as a pollutant under the Clean Air Act. This article argues that this decision was wrong as a matter of statutory construction and sound as a matter of sound social policy: the CAA is the wrong vehicle to deal with either carbon dioxide of global warming. On the present state of the evidence, the case for strong restraints on carbon dioxide emissions has not been made. The evidence in favor of the close linkage between carbon dioxide and global warming has not been clearly …

A Phonological Description Of "Pet Talk" In Arara, Isaac Costa De Souza

Theses and Dissertations

The Arara people of Para, Brazil, as a whole, are remnants or survivors of some larger Cariban groups who descended from the headwaters of the upper Xingu to the mid and low areas of this river by the beginning of the nineteenth century. Now they live in three different villages: Maia, Cachoeira Seca and Laranjal.

The present thesis aims to describe thirteen different ludlings or "play languages" that elderly Arara people from Laranjal know and sometimes use in talking to pets. Play languages are linguistic forms that are purposely manipulated at some level. The strategies which the Arara people use …

The Glycoproteins Of Porcine Reproductive And Respiratory Syndrome Virus And Their Role In Infection And Immunity, Phani B. Das

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) is an economically important pathogen of swine and is known to cause abortion and infertility in pregnant sows and respiratory distress in piglets. PRRSV contains a major glycoprotein (GP5) and three minor glycoproteins (GP2a, GP3, and GP4) on the virion envelope, all of which are required for infectious virus production. To study their interactions amongst each other and with a cellular receptor for PRRSV, CD163, I cloned each of the viral glycoproteins and CD163 in various expression vectors. My studies have shown that while the GP2a, GP3, and GP4 are co-translationally glycosylated, …

Importance Of Flower Size And Yellow Coloration As Influencing Factors In The Reproductive Success Of Pleurothallis Sanchoi (Orchidaceae), August 2010, Elizabeth Ott

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

Reproductive success can be linked to pollination success because pollination is needed for plants to reproduce and put out seeds. Factors that affect pollination success include color, nectar, scent, flower shape and size. Past research on Pleurothallis sanchoi has indicated that of the three color morphs, yellow, purple, and yellow with purple petals (YPP), yellow is the most attractive color. This study examines the importance of flower size and color in attracting pollinators in P. sanchoi. A total of 51 individuals were observed and the number of days required for pollinia removal was noted. The flowers were measured with a …

Inflorescence Size And Butterfly Visitation In Lantana Camara (Verbenaceae), August 2010, Calli Thompson

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

Pollinators greatly influence the fitness of most tropical plants, and how effective plants are at attracting pollinators is key to their success. This investigation focuses on how inflorescence size of Lantana camara affects butterfly visitation. Naturally occurring inflorescence size was determined by counting how many flowers per inflorescence and how many inflorescences were in bloom per branch. The average number of flowers per inflorescence is 37 and the average number of inflorescences in bloom per branch is 2. To assess the impact of inflorescence size on butterfly visitation, five different sizes of L. camara inflorescences were created by bundling from …

Species Richness Of Epiphytic Vascular Plants Living On Catura And Híbrido Coffee Varieties In San Luís, Costa Rica, August 2010, Trevor Biggs

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

Coffea arabica is a widespread crop, existing both in monocultures as a cultivated variety of tree and in mixed organic farms in numerous varieties. This study takes place on an organic farm where the varieties host diverse species of vascular epiphytes. This study compares the species richness of vascular epiphytes on trunks and stumps of the cultivated variety known locally as caturra and also several closely related traditional varieties collectively known locally as híbrido. Results show that exposure to sunlight was significantly more influential than the type of coffee variety in determining the average richness per tree. However, the caturra …

¿Lo Que No Mata, Engorda?: An Exploratory Profile Of Elderly Nutrition In The Monteverde Region, August 2010

Monteverde Institute: Culture, Community, and Health

This research seeks to explore the nutritional profile of older generations living in and around Santa Elena and San Luis, Monteverde Region, Costa Rica as impacted by increased globalization. An additional goal of this study is to determine a baseline of factors that contribute to food selections among older generations. This research further seeks to understand generational changes in perceptions of food and to explore nutritional knowledge among older people in the region.

Age And Sex-Related Activity In White-Nosed Coatis (Nasua Narica), August 2010, Rachel Munro

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

The time allocation theory mentions that sociality increases an individual’s fitness because it cannot efficiently forage and watch for predators at the same time on its own, but if in a group vigilance can be shared and time to forage and participate in other activities can be increased, therefore increasing fitness (Caraco, 1979). White-nose coatis,Nasua narica, (Procyonidae) are diurnal and social mammals. Adult females and juveniles live together in bands whereas males are solitary and only join a band when mating. Because and individual cannot perform two activities at once, I studied how age and sex influence how coatis spend …

Comparison Of Nest Predation In Two Riparian Habitats, August 2010, Alexandra Kaye

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

Clearing of riparian habitat in Monteverde, Costa Rica is prohibited up to 50 meters from the bank of the waterway. Unfortunately, this regulation is often disregarded, and forests bordering streams are cleared for a variety of purposes. Deforestation creates edge effects where there once was continuous forest, and it has been shown that rates of avian nest predation are higher on forest edges. In this study, I examined the proportions of eggs removed or damaged from artificial nests in four riparian habitats. Two of the chosen sites were forested, and two had been cleared for human use. The artificial nests …

"A Good Sized Pot": Early 19th Century Planting Pots From Gore Place, Waltham, Massachusetts, Rita A. Deforest

Graduate Masters Theses

This thesis looked at the elite status of cultivating gentlemen at the site of the Gore Place greenhouse through the medium of planting pots. The goal of this thesis was to analyze the planting pot remains and to subsequently answer three questions: what kinds of activities were performed in the greenhouse, who was conducting those activities, and most importantly, how they played in to Christopher Gore's self presentation as having elite status. This project analyzed over 2,000 pot sherds found during the excavation of the 1806 Gore Place greenhouse. The outcome of a minimum vessel count of the planting pots …

A Smac Mimetic Reduces Tnf Related Apoptosis Inducing Ligand (Trail)-Induced Invasion And Metastasis Of Cholangiocarcinoma Cells., Christian D. Fingas, Boris R.A. Blechacz, Rory L. Smoot, Maria E. Guicciardi, Justin L. Mott, Steve F. Bronk, Nathan W. Werneburg, Alphonse E. Sirica, Gregory J. Gores

Journal Articles: Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

UNLABELLED: Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) cells paradoxically express tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL), a death ligand that, failing to kill CCA cells, instead promotes their tumorigenicity and especially the metastatic behaviors of cell migration and invasion. Second mitochondria-derived activator of caspase (smac) mimetics are promising cancer therapeutic agents that enhance proapoptotic death receptor signaling by causing cellular degradation of inhibitor of apoptosis (IAP) proteins. Our aim was to examine the in vitro and in vivo effects of the smac mimetic JP1584 in CCA. Despite JP1584-mediated loss of cellular inhibitor of apoptosis-1 (cIAP-1) and cIAP-2, TRAIL failed to induce apoptosis in KMCH-1, …

Costs And Benefits Of Variable Nest Density In Burrowing Owls: Effects On Predation, Ectoparasites, Egg Yolk Hormones, And Productivity, Justin Lamar Welty

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Nesting density in birds is influenced by a number of factors including food availability, predation, and breeding site availability. As a result of a species’ nesting density, individuals incur certain costs and benefits related to predation rates, parasite levels, and productivity. I evaluated hypotheses related to these costs and benefits in burrowing owls (Athene cunicularia hypugaea) that nested within the Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area in southern Idaho. I calculated territory overlap, an index of nesting density, of actual nests by creating a 200m radius buffer around each nest and measuring the percentage …