Digital Commons Network^™

Transmitter Optimization In Multiuser Wireless Systems With Quality Of Service Constraints, Danda B. Rawat

Electrical & Computer Engineering Theses & Dissertations

In this dissertation, transmitter adaptation for optimal resource allocation in wireless communication systems are investigated. First, a multiple access channel model is considered where many transmitters communicate with a single receiver. This scenario is a basic component of a. wireless network in which multiple users simultaneously access the resources of a wireless service provider. Adaptive algorithms for transmitter optimization to meet Quality-of-Service (QoS) requirements in a distributed manner are studied. Second, an interference channel model is considered where multiple interfering transmitter-receiver pairs co-exist such that a given transmitter communicates with its intended receiver in the presence of interference from other …

Organ Donation In Japan: A Longitudinal Study Of Quality Of Life Of Living Liver Donors, Etsuko Soeda

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Japan is a highly developed country with a gross national product second only to the United States. Yet in the field of organ transplantation involving organ donation from victims who died from trauma such as automobile accidents and brain hemorrhage, Japan is behind all western countries and many developing countries. Removing organs from deceased donors was prohibited in Japan until 1997.

Currently cadaveric organ donation remains minimal and, as a result, patients in need of heart transplantation must often pay for surgery performed abroad. One of the saddest sights on Japanese streets is a child standing on the street with …

Mothers Behind Bars: The Lived Experience, Annette Weiss

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Purpose

Few research studies have been conducted by nurses that focus on incarcerated women. In fact, there are a limited number of research studies with a focus on the incarcerated female by any individual group of health professionals. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the lived experience of the incarcerated woman as a mother, and to obtain an increased understanding of the meaning of her experience.

Background

The United States has the highest per capita rate of incarcerated persons of all countries. Women are the fastest growing group of inmates and are being incarcerated at double the …

Correct Diagnosis; Wrong Cure: A Response To Professor Suk, Joan C. Williams

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Complete Plastome Sequences Of Equisetum Arvense And Isoetes Flaccida: Implications For Phylogeny And Plastid Genome Evolution Of Early Land Plant Lineages, K. G. Karol, K. Arumuganthan, J. L. Boore, A. M. Duffy, K. D. E. Everett, J. D. Hall, S. K. Hansen, J. V. Mandoli, D. F. Mandoli, B. D. Mishler, R. G. Olmstead, K. S. Renzaglia, Paul G. Wolf

Biology Faculty Publications

Background Despite considerable progress in our understanding of land plant phylogeny, several nodes in the green tree of life remain poorly resolved. Furthermore, the bulk of currently available data come from only a subset of major land plant clades. Here we examine early land plant evolution using complete plastome sequences including two previously unexamined and phylogenetically critical lineages. To better understand the evolution of land plants and their plastomes, we examined aligned nucleotide sequences, indels, gene and nucleotide composition, inversions, and gene order at the boundaries of the inverted repeats. Results We present the plastome sequences of Equisetum arvense, a …

Solution Approximation For Atmospheric Flight Dynamics Using Volterra Theory, Ashraf Mohammed Kandeel Omran

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation introduces a set of novel approaches in order to facilitate and enrich Volterra theory as a nonlinear approximation technique for constructing mathematical solutions from the governing relationships describing aircraft dynamic behavior. These approaches reconnect Volterra theory and flight mechanics research, which has not been addressed in the technical literature for over twenty years. Volterra theory is known to be viable in modeling weak nonlinearities, but is not particularly well suited for directly describing high performance aircraft dynamics. In order to overcome these obstacles and restrictions of Volterra theory, the global Piecewise Volterra Approach has been developed. This new …

Active Control Of Shocks And Sonic Boom Ground Signal, Bedri Yagiz

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

The manipulation of a flow field to obtain a desired change is a much heightened subject. Active flow control has been the subject of the major research areas in fluid mechanics for the past two decades. It offers new solutions for mitigation of shock strength, sonic boom alleviation, drag minimization, reducing blade-vortex interaction noise in helicopters, stall control and the performance maximization of existing designs to meet the increasing requirements of the aircraft industries. Despite the wide variety of the potential applications of active flow control, the majority of studies have been performed at subsonic speeds. The active flow control …

Quasi-Preemption: Nervous Breakdown In Our Constitutional System, Geoffrey C. Hazard Jr.

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Esl Teacher Motivation In Sri Lankan Public Schools, Sujeewa Hettiarachchi

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Drawing on in-depth qualitative data from fifty-four surveys and five interviews, this study investigated the elements of motivation and demotivation reflected in Sri Lankan ESL (English as a Second Language) teachers. The participants were a convenience sample of English teachers currently employed in Sri Lankan public schools. The results of the study revealed that students themselves, the act of teaching students, and the prestigious social position for English teachers in Sri Lanka are main motivators for teachers. The main demotivators for the participants included limited facilities for teaching and learning in schools, inefficiency of school administration and zonal education offices, …

Dispositions, Capacités Et Pratiques De Sst Dans Les Petites Entreprises : Opinions De Patrons, D'Employés Et D'Intervenants En Sst Au Québec, Danièle Champoux, Jean-Pierre Brun

Études primaires

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Duration Of Selected Music As An Intervention On Postoperative Pain In Open-Heart Surgery Patients During Chair Rest On The First Postoperative Day, Tzu-Ting Shu

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to test the effects of selected music on reducing postoperative pain and use of pain relief medications in open-heart surgery patients during chair rest on the first postoperative day.

This study was conducted using a pretest-posttest experimental design. A convenience sample of 13 open-heart surgery patients from a metropolitan hospital in southeastern Michigan were randomly assigned to the music group (n = 6) and the control group (n = 7). T-test analysis showed that pain scores (numeric rating scale, NRS = 0-10) were lower in the music group than the control group after 30, …

Roots: Agrarian Movements And The Importance Of Ground Within The Philosophy Of Communication (A Synecdoche), Maryl Roberts Mcginley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This work looks at the way in which an agrarian philosophy communicates the meaningful connection between cultivating land and being attentive to the philosophical notion of ground. It tells the story of agrarian movements from the last century with special attention to what about the philosophy has durability. This work outlines the possibility of an agrarian framework as a potential alternative to modernity. Each chapter is attentive to a different voice in the movement, exploring his engagement with an agrarian philosophy and connection to the philosophy of communication.

Wyeth V. Levine And Agency Preemption More Muddle Or Creeping To Clarity?, Ashutosh Bhagwat

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Yes, And: Core Concerns, Internal Mindfulness, And External Mindfulness For Emotional Balance, Lie Detection, And Successful Negotiation, Clark Freshman

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Community Fabrication, Stephanie Falkers

Landscape Architecture Theses

This thesis set out to design for multiple people and their particular uses. To combine the desires of many and influence the way that they all use the space. Each user has defined different outcomes for the area, with no common goal to be found. Through this design, an investigation and solution will be discovered striving to combine the desires of multiple users. This thesis will not only consider the user within, but commuter and the area around it. This will require investigation into a variety of different strategies and resources.

Analyses Of Highway Project Construction Risks, Performance, And Contingency, Mohamed F. Diab

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Past studies have highlighted the importance of risk assessment and management in construction projects and transportation industry, and have identified cost and time as the most important risks that transportation professionals want to understand and manage. The main focus of this study is to comprehensively analyze transportation construction risk drivers and identify the correlation of the significant risk drivers with project characteristics, cost growth, schedule growth, and project contingency. This study has adopted 31 relevant and significant programmatic and project-specific risk drivers from different past studies. These risk drivers have been analyzed and evaluated using survey responses from professionals in …

Corporate Social Responsibility: A Roadmap For Georgia, Tamar Kvaratskhelia

Communication

Today, more than ever, business companies are held accountable and judged for their business practices. They are expected to work in ways that make a positive impact on the environment and the society. Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is often conceptualized as companies intentionally exceeding their primary responsibility of making profit in order to support the common goal of creating secure, just, and productive communities while protecting the environment. Although CSR is widely practiced in Western countries, the concept is still relatively new and emerging in Georgia, a country with a transitional economy and democracy. Current CSR practices are less stable …

Military Marriages: A Look At Dialectical Tensions, Deployment, And Military Life Through Navy Wives' Eyes, Erienne Lee Fawcett

Communication

This qualitative study explored the lived military relationships of eighteen Navy wives whose husbands were stationed on the Naval Air Station Whidbey Base in Oak Harbor, Washington. The researcher performed interviews to better understand how internal dialectical tensions- autonomy-connection, novelty-predictability, and opennessclosedness - were manifested throughout deployment, and what strategies were used to cope with those tensions. Results suggested that a variety of tensions characterized these marital relationships throughout the course of a deployment. The tensions that coincide with military lifestyles were often addressed by using the reframing coping strategy. A military/non-military external tension emerged from the data that influenced …

Extending The Diffusion Model In Risk Communication: A Case Study Of Risk In A Public Health Campaign, Kimberly A. Beauchamp

Communication

Everett Rogers' (2003) diffusion model provided a theoretical framework through which to measure change among publics. However, use of Rogers' diffusion model can lead to research shortcomings such as lack of consequence research, change agent tendencies, proinnovation bias, and inadequate research methods. Through new model development, the current study introduced a specific data analysis process that distinctly measured and merged a relationship between communication, outreach, and scientific effects. The application of a public health campaign served to test the new model's ability to overcome previous diffusion research shortcomings. Using an integrated approach of diffusion and gap analysis, the study investigated …

The A3 Report As Knowledge-Accomplishing Activity: A Practice-Oriented Analysis Of Situated Organizational Problem Solving, Angela Yvonne Hatton

Communication

The A3 report is a lean practice innovated by Toyota motor company. The A3 report, a growing trend in organizations, is promoted as a communication tool, but it has not been studied from a communication perspective. In this study I interview twelve professionals who use A3 reports in their work and identify the ways in which A3 reports enable and constrain organizational communication. This study illustrates the communicative enactment of knowing and identifies how the A3 report structures organizational problem solving and creates knowledge-accomplishing activity. The A3 report constrains information through its concise 11 by 1 7 inch paper size …

Entertainment Media's Satirical Effects On Teenage And Adult Attitudes Of Political News Organizations., Joseph Lawrence Chianak:As

Communication

This study explored the effect of satire in persuasion by comparing attitude changes between adults and teenagers. It revealed that satire was effective in changing attitudes and that satire had a greater effect on changing teenage attitudes than adult attitudes. In this study, participants rated the trustworthiness and competency of political news organizations and then watched comedic segments from entertainment media that satirized the political news organizations. After the satirical segments, participants re-evaluated the trustworthiness and competency of political news organizations. The satire proved to be effective in negatively changing the perception of trustworthiness and competency among political news organizations, …

Corporate Communication On Facebook: A Multi-Method Approach To Corporate Use And Stakeholder Perceptions Of Social Media, Kathryn Marie Hedberg

Communication

This study looked at how corporations are currently using Facebook and what stakeholders' perceptions are of current corporate Facebook usage. A content analysis of nine corporate profile pages was conducted. Pages were coded for the presence or absence of relational development strategies under the categories of information dissemination, disclosure and involvement. A survey was also distributed to the fans of the nine corporate profiles in order to gain the fan perspective. Results showed that while corporations include disclosure and information dissemination strategies, they rarely use involvement strategies. This lack of interactivity is inconsistent with the fan perspective of corporate profiles, …

The Role Of Cyber And Face-To-Face Verbal Bullying On Adolescent Victims, Laura Catherine Farrell

Communication

The purpose of this study was to examine adolescent verbal bullying across communication media (e.g., face-to-face [F2F], cyber, both). Media Richness Theory (MRT; Daft & Lengel, 1984; 1986) and hyperpersonal communication (Walther, 1996) are the guiding theories in this study. Results suggested three of the four emotional outcomes [happiness, self-esteem, and peer satisfaction] were not significantly different across verbal bullying media, while the fourth emotional outcome [relational victimization] was significantly different. Results also suggested differences in frequency of bullying communication types between bullying media. There was a significant difference in the frequency of bullying type and grade level; however, there …

Chevron's Power Of Human Energy: A Case For Corporate Social Responsibility As Identification Inducement, Michelle Marie Roers

Communication

With corporate social responsibility (CSR) emerging as an inescapable business priority around the world, organizations are developing elaborate CSR campaigns to highlight their good deeds and influence important stakeholders. Despite its potentially powerful persuasive influence, however, we know surprisingly little about the actual messaging used in contemporary CSR campaigns. Accordingly, this study investigates a major multinational-and controversial-company's CSR campaign to examine CSR messages' propensity for inducing positive organizational identification. A case study applying Cheney's (1983b) organizational identification inducements reveals that Chevron's Power of Human Energy CSR campaign extensively and strategically uses CSR messaging to induce identification. This study thus suggests …

Virtual-Experiment-Driven Process Model (Vedpm), Chin Aik Lua

Computer Science

Computer simulations are the last resort for many complex problems such as swarm applications. However, to the best of the author's knowledge, there is no convincing work in proving ''What You Simulate ls What You See'' (WYSIWYS). Many models are built on long, subjective code that is prone to abnormalities, which are about corrupted virtual scientific laws rather than software bugs. Thus, the task of validating scientific simulations is very difficult, if not impossible. This dissertation provides a new process methodology for solving the problems above: Virtual-Experiment-Driven Process Model (VEDPM). VEDPM employs simple yet sound virtual experiments for verifying simple, …

Post-Deployment Key Management In Heterogeneous Wireless Sensor Networks, Paul Edward Loree

Computer Science

Many wireless sensor network applications require secure communication between nodes in the network. However, establishing pair-wise keys between nodes to provide security is challenging due to the limited resources in sensor nodes and the hostile environments in which they are deployed. Many key establishment schemes have been previously proposed for wireless sensor networks. However, most of these schemes were designed to work in a homogeneous network environment in which the nodes all have similar capabilities. Our work establishes that better performance can be achieved in a heterogeneous sensor network environment. We present a key management scheme for establishing pair-wise keys …

Smart Robotic Arm Control Through Autonomous Object Detection And Retrieval, Vicky Ramnath Mahodaya

Computer Science

This paper outlines the design and development of a robotic arm that can automatically detect and locate an object within its working envelope, reach to the object, grab the object with the aid of force feedback, bring it back to the user and transition back to user-control mode. A smart robotic arm like this can be used to control a brain computer interface (BCI) enabled prosthetic arm. This could be done by controlling the arm's coarse motion using BCI signals to the arm in manual mode while the fine motion control required for object capturing and retrieval could be performed …

Graduate Student Progress Tracking System, Pramodh Kumar Thalloji

Computer Science

In this paper, I propose and implement an application to track the graduate student progress in various Computer Science and Software Engineering graduate programs. This application will provide lists of students who in a given year or semester did not fulfill any of the numbered requirements of their programs. It will provide a list of students who passed the comprehensive or qualifier exams in that year or semester. It will also list the students who have taken longer than the time limit mandated by the Graduate School to complete their plan of study. This application was developed with the assumption …

An Architecture For The Implementation And Distribution Of Multiuser Virtual Environments., Benjamin James Dischinger

Computer Science

JavaMOO is an architecture for creating multiuser virtual environments focusing on domain-specific design and rapid development. JavaMOO components use best practices and extensible design for system configuration, client-server communication, event handling, object persistence, content delivery, and agent control. Application dependencies such as database and web servers are embedded, promoting wide dissemination by decreasing management overhead. The focus of this thesis is the design and implementation of the JavaMOO architecture and how it helps improve the state of multiuser virtual environments.

Alternative Clustering Algorithms In Sensor Networks, Divya Gupta

Computer Science

A wireless sensor network is composed of a large number of tiny sensor nodes that can be deployed in a variety of environments like battle fields, water, large fields, and the like, and can transmit data to a Base station (BS). In a clusterbased network organization, sensor nodes are organized into clusters and one sensor node is selected as a sensor head (SH) in each cluster. Each SH denotes a facility and sends useful information to the Base Station (BS) through other SHs via the shortest path. In this paper, we study two clustering techniques, namely kmedian clustering and k-center …