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Texasweed (Caperonia Palustris (L.) St. Hil.) Interference And Management In Drill-Seeded Rice, Rakesh K. Godara

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Field research was conducted from 2006 to 2009 to study Texasweed [Caperonia palustris (L.) St. Hil.] interference and management in Cocodrie rice. Texasweed interference at 10 plants/m2 caused 24 to 31% rice yield reduction. The maximum possible yield loss was estimated to be 81%. Rice yield reduction was primarily due to a reduction in culms/m2 and filled grains per panicle. For maximum yield, Texasweed must be removed by two weeks after emergence and managed until permanent flood establishment. Shade had no effect on Texasweed emergence but significantly reduced growth and reproduction. At 100 days after emergence, 50, 70, and 90% …

Conceptualizing The Consumer-Brand Relationship As A Truly Dyadic Process, Jamye Foster

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The consumer-brand relationship (CBR) has gained interest in recent years, but as currently conceptualized, it is limited to a parasocial relationship where the role of the brand is not acknowledged. In order to better understand the CBR, we have to ask several key questions: (1) What is the CBR? (2) What are consumer-brand interactions (CBIs)? And (3) How can we measure CBIs? The objective in Essay 1 is to develop a better understanding of the conceptual foundation of the CBR. This was accomplished through extensive review of relevant literature, which highlighted the need to consider the CBR as a truly …

"It's Not Just About The Buildings, It's About The People": Architecture Practice, And Preservation In Post-Katrina New Orleans, Bethany W. Rogers

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Drawing on the legacy of architectural studies in cultural geography, this dissertation integrates traditional approaches to built environments that take seriously the physical form and presence of buildings with more recent scholarship that employs performance and practice theory to address the embodied, contingent, and ongoing practices through which buildings are endowed with meaning by those who use, inhabit, or identify with them. Using ethnographic and architectural-documentation methods to carefully apprehend the interrelationships between architecture and embodied practices, this dissertation presents a set of ethno-material case studies – four buildings and their community of users that were central to New Orleans’ …

Readiness For Lifelong Learning Of Volunteers Affiliated With A 4-H Youth Development Program In The Southern Region Of The United States, Kenneth Kimani Kungu

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore and determine the level of readiness for lifelong learning of volunteers affiliated with a 4-H youth development program in the southern United States. Based on a literature review, readiness for lifelong learning was conceptualized as incorporating aspects of response to triggers for learning, self-directed learning readiness, and a readiness to overcome deterrents to participation in learning. The Readiness for Lifelong Learning Survey, a 75 item Likert-type scale, was developed and administered online to 1815 adult volunteers who had provided usable emails in a enrollment database system. The final response count was 277 …

Modeling The Impacts Of Pulsed Riverine Inflows On Hydrodynamics And Water Quality In The Barataria Bay Estuary, Anindita Das

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Eutrophication and coastal wetland loss are the major environmental problems affecting estuaries around the world. In Louisiana, controlled diversions of the Mississippi River water back into coastal wetlands are thought to be an important engineering solution that could reverse coastal land loss. There are concerns, however, that freshwater diversions may increase nutrient inputs and create severe eutrophication problems in estuaries and wetlands adjacent to the diversion sites. My dissertation research concerns modeling the effects of the observed and hypothetical freshwater diversion discharges on the hydrodynamics, salinity and water quality in the Barataria estuary, a deltaic estuary in south Louisiana. This …

Jennifer Higdon's Oboe Concerto: The Composition, Transformation, And A Performer's Analysis, Janice Elizabeth Crews

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This monograph presents a formal examination of Jennifer Higdon’s Oboe Concerto in its various forms. Jennifer Higdon has garnered international success, yet few in-depth studies of her music exist. In this document, personal accounts from commissioners illustrate the unusual commission of Oboe Concerto. Likewise, the composer, a conductor, and soloists for premiere performances highlight unique aspects of the concerto, particularly its unusual form, multiple versions, and the potential challenges in preparing the work. Higdon’s concerto showcases the lyrical capabilities of the oboe, with an emphasis on melody and sustained tone. The transformation of the concerto illustrates Higdon’s skills of self-promotion, …

Dynamic Acromiohumeral Interval Changes During Scapular Plane Arm Motions, Melissa Deen Thompson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This purpose of this dissertation is to explore changes in the acromiohumeral interval during dynamic motion in the scapular plane. All of the experiments were completed in the Football Operations Athletic Training Room at Louisiana State University. The first experiment which investigated dynamic acromiohumeral interval changes in baseball players during a loaded and unloaded scaption exercise from 0°-75°, has been accepted for publication by the Journal of Shoulder and Elbow Surgery (in press, 2010). The mean acromiohumeral interval (AHI) for unloaded and loaded scaption decreased significantly (p<.001) from the arm at the side until 45° and loaded scaption narrowed AHI at 60° (p=.005) and 75° (p=.003). The second experiment investigates AHI and scapular upward rotation (SUR) changes in baseball and softball players during scaption exercises from 0°-75°. Significant load related narrowing of the AHI at 45°(p=.005), 60°(p=.001), and 75°(p<.001) and a significant load-position interaction (p=.001) at 0° and 75°was observed for all subjects. No gender differences in SUR or AHI were found. AHI and SUR displayed moderate positive correlations at 30° for both the unloaded scaption (r=.648, p=.001) and the loaded scaption (r=.445, p=.038) however, no significant relationships were present at 0°, 45°, 60° or 75°. The third experiment compared dynamic acromiohumeral interval and scapulohumeral rhythm changes in trained and untrained females during scaption exercises from 0°-90°. In general, AHI was maximal with the arm at the side and declined significantly (p<.001) during arm elevation until 60°, but increased significantly (p<.001) between 60° and 90°. Significant load related narrowing of the AHI at all positions (p<.05), a more negative SUR at 0° (p<.001) and a more positive SUR at 90° (p=.009) was observed for all subjects. Female athletes had significantly stronger external rotators (p<.001), larger overall AHI (p=.003) and more SUR (p=.008) than untrained females. Significant positive correlations (p<.05) between AHI and SUR were observed at 0°, 30°, and 60° during both loaded and unloaded scaption.

The Influence Of Program Participation In Business Education Courses On Standardized Test Performance Among Secondary Students In Louisiana, Debra A. Wilkerson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The primary purpose of this study was to compare the academic achievement, as measured by scores on the English and math portions of the Graduate Exit Examination (GEE), of public high school students in Louisiana by whether or not they were identified as business education students. The GEE is a high-stakes test that is administered to high school students in Louisiana. Students must pass specific portions of the test to obtain a diploma. Academic achievement data on the GEE was obtained from the Louisiana Department of Education. The sample for the study was all 10th and 11th grade students enrolled …

Optimization And Toxocologic Effects Of Cancer Immuno-Electrogene Therapy Using A Tumor-Targeted Interleukin-12 Gene Construct, Scott Douglas Reed

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation includes a comprehensive current review of reversible electroporation (EP) and other related physical gene transfection techniques; an overview of results of electrochemogene therapy (ECGT) used to treat naturally occurring spontaneous neoplasms in dogs; and the results of comprehensive, pre-clinical toxicology testing of electrogene therapy (EGT) of a tumor-targeted version of interleukin-12 (IL-12) in mice. Intralesional bleomycin (BLM) and feline interleukin-12 (fIL-12) DNA injection combined with trans-lesional EP resulted in complete cure of two recurrent oral squamous cell carcinomas and an acanthomatous ameloblastoma in a series of six cases of spontaneous neoplasia in pet dogs. The three remaining dogs, …

The Illumination Of E. E. Cummings' Poetry In J. A. C. Redford's "Love Is The Every Only God", Amy Louise Aucoin

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The choral work love is the every only god, composed by J. A. C. Redford, was published in 2001, placing it among the initial choral concert works published in the twenty-first century. love is the every only god is a song cycle for divisi mixed chorus with piano accompaniment based on six poems by E. E. Cummings. The work is organized into six movements with two interludes and lasts approximately twenty-five minutes. Beyond his regard for the art of poetry and care in choosing a text, Redford sees himself as an illuminator of the text, providing the listener with a …

A Study Of The Interactions Of Lipid Bilayers And Dendrimers Using Small Angle X-Ray Scattering And Freeze Fracture Transmission Electron Microscopy, Derek R. Dorman

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Lipids are fundamental to all life forms, a key component of cell walls, and essential to proper respiratory function. They are amphiphilic molecules and readily form bilayers. Dendrimers are designer molecules that can be tailored to provide a variety of endgroup moieties, sizes, and charges. The interaction of liposomes and dendrimers can provide information on how medicine interacts with cells and an array of unique structures can be imagined from their assembly into superstructures. Polypropylenimine tetraamine (DAB-Am) and 1-directional arborol dendrimers have been studied in different molar concentrations with 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DOPC) bilayers. One-directional arborols are amphiphilic dendrimers with a hydrophilic …

Front Matter, Volume 35, Number 2, University Of Dayton

University of Dayton Law Review

No abstract provided.

Challenging Ohio's Adam Walsh Act: Senate Bill 10 Blurs The Line Between Punishment And Remedial Treatment Of Sex Offenders, Daniel J. Schubert

University of Dayton Law Review

No abstract provided.

Crossroads And Signposts: The Ada Amendments Act Of 2008, Jeannette Cox

School of Law Faculty Publications

Although the apparent purpose of the 2008 amendments to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is solely to broaden the ADA 's protected class, the manner in which the amendments achieve this purpose erodes the statute's explicit textual support for understanding persons with disabilities as a politically subordinated minority. The amendments also strengthen the statutory link between the biological severity of a person's disability and that person's right to sue for ADA accommodations. Accordingly, for some courts, the amendments will reinforce the perception that the ADA differs from traditional civil rights law.

Federal courts' understanding of the ADA 's relationship …

The Auxiliary System Of Typically Developing Children Acquiring African American English, Brandi Lynette Newkirk

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This study’s purpose was to examine the acquisition and use of BE, DO, and modal auxiliaries by African American English (AAE)-speaking children. The impetus for this work was the lack of information regarding the developmental trajectory of these auxiliary types and their use, in AAE relative to what is known about auxiliary acquisition and use in Mainstream American English (MAE). The study used two datasets of language samples: one that contained 48 language samples from 3 ½-year-old children and one that contained 36 longitudinal language samples of five children who were between 18 and 51 months of age. Results from …

Antimicrobial Susceptibility, Genotypic Characterization, And Molecular Detection Of Vibrio Parahaemolyticus And Vibrio Vulnificus From Louisiana Oysters, Feifei Han

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Members of the genus Vibrio are Gram-negative, halophilic bacteria that inhabit warm coastal and estuarine waters worldwide. Among pathogenic vibrios, Vibrio parahaemolyticus is the leading cause of seafood-related illnesses and Vibrio vulnificus causes the highest number of seafood-related deaths in the United States. Moreover, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the incidence of infections of the two vibrios due to the consumption of oysters has shown a sustained increase since 2001, indicating further measures are needed to prevent human Vibrio illness. In this dissertation research, a total of 622 Vibrio isolates, consisting of 252 V. parahaemolyticus …

Upland Nesting Waterfowl Population Responses To Predator Reduction In North Dakota, Matthew R. Pieron

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Population growth for mallards (Anas platyrhynchos), and presumably other upland nesting ducks, in the Prairie Pothole Region is most sensitive to nest success, and nest success is most strongly influenced by predation. I evaluated the efficacy of reducing predator populations to improve nest success and increase local breeding populations of upland nesting ducks on township-sized (93.2 km2) management units in eastern North Dakota, USA, during 2005−2008. I also examined potential territorial limitations on local population growth for mallards. Trappers annually removed an average of 245 predators per trapped site. I monitored 7,489 nests on 7 trapped and 5 nontrapped sites, …

Sonata No.1 For Violin And Piano, Op. 80,By Sergei Prokofiev: A Guide To Interpretation, Boris Blagoev

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Sergei Prokofiev was an extremely prolific composer whose career brought him success throughout Europe and the U. S. as well as Russia and the Soviet Union. He wrote for nearly every genre, and his most popular works today include operas, ballets, symphonies, and concertos. As a pianist, most of the concertos and sonatas that Prokofiev wrote were for the piano. However, his contributions to the violin repertoire are significant. Prokofiev wrote two concertos and two sonatas for solo violin. Of these, Sonata No. 1 for Violin and Piano, Op. 80 is unique for many reasons. The piece took Prokofiev eight …

In Vitro And In Vivo Evaluation Of A Brucella Putative Hemagglutinin, Lauren E. Duhon

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Brucellosis, a zoonotic disease caused by Brucella spp., presents both health and economic difficulties for livestock, wildlife, and humans. While brucellosis is nearly eradicated in the United States, the disease remains detrimental in many countries worldwide. Attempts to produce a safe and effective small ruminant vaccine have been met with limited success. The current vaccine for bovine brucellosis in the United States is B. abortus RB51. This strain transiently colonizes the host and induces a cell-mediated immune response. Levels of protection have not been demonstrated in goats and thus it is considered a relatively poor caprine vaccine that probably does …

An Evaluation Of The Preceptions Of Board Development Needs In Non-Profit Organizations In Louisiana, Gail A. Hollins

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the perceptions of board members of non-profit organizations in Louisiana on board development. According to the literature review, boards of directors play a pivotal role in the life of non-profit organizations. Thus, it is essential that they operate effectively. Provision of a continuous development program promotes board and organizational performance as board members augment their knowledge, skills and abilities of their roles and responsibilities, and cultivate board, staff, and stakeholder relationships. The target population for this study was board members of non-profit organizations in Louisiana. A total of 267 non-profit organizations were …

Characterization Of Rock/Fluids Interactions At Reservoir Conditions, Dayanand Saini

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In this study, interfacial phenomena of spreading, wettability, and rock/oil adhesion interactions in complex rock/oil/water systems were characterized at reservoir conditions of elevated pressures and temperatures. Capabilities of both ambient and reservoir condition optical cells were used for measuring the oil/water interfacial tension and dynamic (the water-receding and the water-advancing) contact angles for various complex rock/oil/water systems. Well known sessile oil drop volume alteration method was successfully used in this study for evaluating the applicability of the modified Young’s equation for characterizing the line tension in complex rock/oil/water systems at reservoir conditions. This appears to be first time when rock/fluids …

Dissolution Of Chitosan In Ionic Liquids For Acylation Chemistry And Formation Of Cellulose-Chitosan Blends, Cristina Stefanescu

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Dissolution of chitosan in ionic liquids was accomplished. It has been shown that 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate (BMIMAc) is a better solvent than 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride (BMIMCl). Dissolution of chitosan in BMIMCl required a prior regeneration of chitosan from 1% acetic acid solution. In the case of BMIMAc, both dried chitosan and regenerated chitosan from acetic acid solution have been dissolved in a relatively short amount of time. While concentrations up to 2 wt% of chitosan in BMIMCl could be obtained, concentrations of 10 wt % of chitosan in BMIMAc were realized. Homogeneous phthalation and benzoylation of chitosan were achieved in these ionic …

Effect Of Resistant Starch On Microbial Content Of The Intestinal Tract, Reshani Nisansala Senevirathne

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Resistant starch (RS) increases beneficial gastro-intestinal bacterial populations simultaneously increasing short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) such as butyrate. Butyrate acts as energy source for epithelial cells of colonic mucosa which stimulates intestinal cell proliferation and has been implicated as important in reducing obesity, diabetes and cancer. The Lactobacillus spp, Bifidobacterium spp, Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron, Clostridium cluster IV and Clostridium cluster XIV are mainly involved in the production of butyrate by fermenting RS in the large intestine. With age there is a decline in these gut bacteria, but in the present study RS and diet restriction both enhanced the bacteria involved in butyrate …

The History Of Holy Rosary Institute, Don J. Hernandez

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

ABSTRACT Holy Rosary Institute began as an industrial school for African American young women in Galveston, Texas, during the last quarter of the nineteenth century. In 1913 it moved to Lafayette, Louisiana, and in 1947 began admitting males as well as women. It closed in 1993. Through much of its history, this secondary school was staffed primarily by the Sisters of the Holy Family, the second oldest order of African American nuns in the United States, and the Divine Word Missionaries, one of the earliest groups of Catholic priests to accept African American candidates for the priesthood. In 1992, Gerard …

Approximation Of The Jacobi Polynomials And The Racah Coefficients, U. Elias, H. Gingold

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Ephemeral Media, Persistent Action: Public Pedagogies Of Collective Resistance, Jessica Ketcham Weber

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In Ephemeral Media, Persistent Action: Public Pedagogies of Collective Resistance, I argue that representations of contemporary activism against corporate globalization, as analyzed in three different sites of commercially-driven media texts—newspapers, film, and websites—teach people to move away from public forms of collective activism and towards privatized and institutionally-sponsored forms as part of the larger project of neoliberalism. Specifically, this dissertation focuses on the representations of, and responses to the representations of, two events—the protests against the World Trade Organization Ministerial Conference in Seattle, Washington in 1999 and the protests during the Republican National Convention in 2004 in New York City—as …

The Theoretical Learning Impact Of A Summer Engineering Program Curriculum For Underrepresented Middle School Students, Vaneshette Teshawn Henderson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This mixed methods, exploratory and confirmatory study was designed to evaluate the theoretical learning impact of a innovative summer engineering program curriculum would have on its audience, middle school minority students. Several theories were used to develop the innovative curriculum including Human Constructivism, cultural learning styles of African Americans, visual spatial learning and graphic design learning. This study was completed in two phases: evaluation of existing middle school summer engineering program curriculum for best practices and development of innovative curriculum and expert evaluation of the innovative curriculum. Three existing programs from across the country participated in this study. Five engineering …

East Meets West? Determinants Of Chinese Firms' Response To Pressures Towards International Corporate Governance Standards, Zhengjun Wang

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The diffusion of corporate governance standards globally has received special attention from researchers in an increasingly globalized economy. This topic is particularly significant in emerging economies as they encounter both economic pressures to adopt international governance standards and pressures to conform to local institutional resistance to change in governance. Drawing on multi-theoretical perspectives including agency theory, resource dependence theory and institutional theory, this study examines the role of CEO and board characteristics, ownership structure, prior firm performance, and firm’s selection of accounting standards and auditing firms in determining Chinese publicly listed firms’ responses to pressures to adopt international governance standards. …

Retrotransposon-Mediated Genomic Dynamism, Thomas Joshua Meyer

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Retrotransposons, a class of mobile elements, generate new copies in host genomes using RNA intermediates and reverse transcribing new copies into new loci. As such, the copy numbers of many active retrotransposon families increase dramatically over time. For example, ~42% of the human genome is comprised of retrotransposon sequences. The insertion activity of these elements, and the high degree of identity existing between the copies, have been shown to significantly impact the structure and stability of genomes, contributing in various ways from exon shuffling to inversions and from non-allelic homologous recombination to altering gene regulation. The two most successful mobile …

Social Change, Social Capital, And Civic Community: A Qualitative Study Of The Long-Term Effects Of Industrial Restructuring On A Coastal Community, Timothy C. Brown

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation examines the link between economic restructuring and patterns of social capital and social control. Although social capital literature frequently examines the consequences of social capital on a variety of outcomes, the key theoretical contribution of my dissertation is a framework to explain how community structure conditions social relations among local residents. Specifically, I examine the effects of changes in economic structure on social capital. Using nine South Louisiana community case studies, I evaluate the effect of restructuring in the offshore oil industry on the development of weak ties among local residents. My central finding is that population turnover …