Digital Commons Network^™

Taphonomy And Sedimentology Of Two Miocene Vertebrate Fossil Sites On Fort Polk, Louisiana, Julie Lynn Hill

LSU Master's Theses

The discovery of a terrestrial mammalian fauna in the Miocene deposits on Fort Polk, Louisiana, fills a geographic gap in the Gulf Coast paleontological framework, but the provenance of the fossils, nature of the depositional environments, and relationships between the sites is still debated. This is especially true for the TVOR site cluster. TVOR SE has a mixture of marine and terrestrial vertebrates in association with a partly dissolved, in situ bed of articulated oyster shells, which stands in contrast to the fully terrestrial and freshwater assemblage at TVOR, and the indeterminate site TVOR S. Although limited outcrop may bias …

Identifying Historic Storm Surges And Calculating Storm Surge Return Periods For The Gulf Of Mexico Coast, Hal Needham

LSU Master's Theses

Tropical cyclone-generated storm surges inflict natural disasters that are among the most catastrophic globally. The surges observed along the U.S. Gulf of Mexico are among the highest in the world, second only to the Bay of Bengal. Storm surge activity along the U.S. Gulf Coast remains poorly understood, however, in part, due to the absence of credible research that accurately depicts the maximum height and location of historic surge events. This research addresses this gap in the scientific literature by creating a database of storm surge observations along the Gulf Coast between the years 1880 to 2009. A total of …

The Population Of Sap And Tsap Isomers In Cyclen-Based Lanthanide(Iii) Chelates Is Substantially Affected By Solvent, Kyle J. Miller, Ali A. Saherwala, Benjamin C. Webber, Yunkou Wu, A. Dean Sherry, Mark Woods

Chemistry Faculty Publications and Presentations

The square antiprism/twisted square antiprism ratio in LnDOTA-tetraamide chelates is a critical parameter in governing water-exchange kinetics and ultimately the utility of a chelate as a PARACEST MRI contrast agent. In LnDOTA-tetraamide chelates with tertiary amides, this ratio and the rate of interconversion between these two structural isomers are found to be dramatically dependent upon the solvent and possibly other local environmental factors.

Polymeric Paracest Mri Contrast Agents As Potential Reporters For Gene Therapy, Yunkou Wu, Christiane E. Carney, Michael Denton, Elaine Hart, Piyu Zhao, Daniel N. Streblow, A. Dean Sherry, Mark Woods

Chemistry Faculty Publications and Presentations

Gene therapy is a potentially powerful treatment approach that targets molecular remedies for disease. Among other challenges it remains difficult to monitor gene delivery and its downstream metabolic consequences. Approaches to MRI gene reporters have been reported but few have the potential for translation beyond isolated cell systems. Herein, we report a polycationic polymer MRI contrast agent that binds to DNA in a ratio of one monomer unit per phosphate group of DNA. Significantly, this binding event diminishes the MR contrast signal from the agent itself potentially providing a platform for imaging delivery and release of a gene into cells …

Cest And Paracest Mr Contrast Agents, Ileana Hancu, W. Thomas Dixon, Mark Woods, Elena Vinogradov, A. Dean Sherry, Robert E. Lenkinski

Chemistry Faculty Publications and Presentations

In this review we describe the status of development for a new class of magnetic resonance (MR) contrast agents, based on chemical exchange saturation transfer (CEST). The mathematics and physics relevant to the description of the CEST effect in MR are presented in an appendix published in the online version only. We discuss the issues arising when translating in vitro results obtained with CEST agents to using these MR agents in in vivo model studies and in humans. Examples are given on how these agents are imaged in vivo. We summarize the status of development of these CEST agents, and …

An Annotated Catalogue Of Selected Cuban Piano Works From The 18th-20th Centuries, Nikie Oechsle

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The piano music of Cuba encompasses a large body of valuable music that is yet to be explored fully on the international scene by performers and teachers. The purpose of this volume is to provide a guide that will enable performers and teachers to quickly reference, and more fully investigate the available music of Cuban composers. This is accomplished by providing description and levels of selected Cuban piano works from the eighteenth through twentieth centuries in catalogue format, as well as by providing descriptions of dances and dance forms found in the included literature.

The Ornamentation Of Brunelleschi's Old Sacristy Of San Lorenzo In Florence, Jessica Lynne Clinton

LSU Master's Theses

The Old Sacristy of San Lorenzo in Florence, Italy, was constructed during the years 1419-1428 and is considered one of the most influential buildings of the early Italian Renaissance. Brunelleschi's Old Sacristy, in its original design, was pristine and void of the architectural ornamentation that had come to characterize so many buildings that preceded it and which would come to be associated with the sacristy itself on account of later alterations. Indeed, the original sacristy was characterized by a purely articulated space free of additional ornamentation to the architecture. However, shortly after the termination of construction, the Old Sacristy became …

Synthesis And Characterization Of Rare Earth-Nickel-Gallium Ternary Intermetallics, Kandace R. Thomas

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The structural and physical characterization of several early and latter rare earth Ln-Ni-Ga systems, which include Ln2NiGa12 (Ln = Pr, Nd, Sm), alpha-LnNiGa4 (Ln = Y, Gd – Yb) and beta-LnNiGa4 (Ln = Tb – Ho) will be presented in this work. These systems are thermodynamically located within a copious, robust phase space and provide a rich understanding of how slight modifications to synthetic preparations can yield the adoption of different structure types in a Ga-rich regime. Each of these phases is made up of well-studied substructures which lend an additional angle of apperception as to how their structure and …

Constructing The Constitutional Canon: The Metonymic Evolution Of Federalist 10, Ian C. Bartrum

Scholarly Works

This paper is part of larger symposium convened for the 2010 AALS annual meeting. In it the author adapts some of his earlier constitutional theoretical work to engage the topic of that symposium: the so-called “interpretation/construction distinction.” The author makes two related criticisms of the distinction: (1) it relies on a flawed conception of linguistic meaning, and (2) while these flaws may be harmless in the “easy” cases of interpretation, they are much more problematic in the difficult cases of most concern. Thus, the author doubts the ultimate utility of the distinction as part of a “true and correct” model …

Non-Axisymmetric Instabilities In Self-Gravitating Tori Around Black Holes, And Solving Einstein Constraints With Superconvergent Finite Element Methods, Oleg Korobkin

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This thesis contains results on two related projects. In the first project, we explore non-axisymmetric instabilities in general relativistic accretion disks around black holes. Such disks are created as transient structures in several astrophysical scenarios, including mergers of compact objects and core collapse of massive stars. These disks are suggested for the role of cenral engines of gamma-ray bursts. We address the stability of these objects against the runaway and non-axisymmetric instabilities in the three-dimensional hydrodynamical fully general relativistic treatment. We explore three slender and moderately slender disk models with varying disk-to-black hole mass ratio. None of the models that …

Transit-Based Emergency Evacuation Modeling With Microscopic Simulation, Hana H. Naghawi

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Several recent mass evacuations, including those in advance of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans and Hurricane Rita in Houston, have demonstrated the effects of limited planning for carless populations. The lack of planning left a significant portion of the mobility-limited population of both these cities unable to flee in advance of the storms. Since 2005 however, both of these cities (as well as others across the United States) have developed transit assisted mass evacuation plans at various levels of detail. Since these plans are relatively recent and do not have a history of experience on which to base their performance, …

Pharmaceutical Compounds In Treatment Wetlands: Potential Removal And Effects On Microbial Processes, Jeremy Landon Conkle

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

active compounds (PhACs) have been detected in the aquatic environment as a result of loading from various sources. In Louisiana, USA, many municipalities treat wastewater using natural systems, such as lagoons and wetlands, rather than using conventional wastewater treatment technologies and may discharge PhACs into the environment. These treatment systems are not designed to remove PhACs from wastewater, nor is it currently a regulatory requirement. Research on the fate of PhACs in the environment is needed to understand impacts on Louisiana’s important coastal system. Wastewater sampling for PhACs at the Mandeville, LA wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) determined that this system …

Refugee Credibility Assessment And The “Religious Imposter” Problem, Michael Kagan

Scholarly Works

Credibility assessment in refugee status determination (RSD) poses unique challenges when the outcome of asylum applications turns on the question of whether an asylum seeker is actually a member of a persecuted religious minority. These cases require secular adjudicators to delve into matters of religious identity and faith that are, by their nature, subjective and beyond the realm of objective analysis. This Article explores practical means of addressing this challenge through a case study of the RSD interviews of Eritrean asylum seekers in Egypt who based their refugee claims on Pentecostal religious associations. Analysis of the interview methods used in …

Commonality, Competition, And Stereotypes: Can Whites, Blacks, And Latinos Play Politics Together In The United States, Betina Cutaia Wilkinson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The literature on racial attitudes and coalition formation has focused on Latinos and African Americans in the U.S. In this project, I present a theoretical framework exploring what whites, blacks and Latinos think of each other specifically examining perceptions of commonality, competition and stereotypes. The two major theories that I test are contact theory and the racial threat hypothesis. This project is unique in its comprehensive analysis of the precursors of coalition formation regarding African Americans, Latinos and whites and its adoption of quantitative and qualitative approaches to answer the main research questions. Moreover, very little research has explored the …

Experiential Learning Of U.S. Presidents In The Foreign Policy Decision-Making Context, Samuel Berwyn Robison

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation examines U.S. presidential learning—defined as a change in presidential operational code beliefs due to their experiences in office—in the foreign policy decision-making context. These beliefs are teased out from presidents’ representations of power relationships via verb usage in their speeches. A database of more than 4,000 foreign policy-related speeches obtained by the author was employed for this project, and with this data, I examine several potential dynamics of and influences on learning.

I look at trends in belief change over time, and examine the relative stability and interconnectedness of “core” versus “peripheral” beliefs. I then test the influence …

"To Liberate Communication": The Realist And Paul Krassner's 1960s, Terry Joel Wagner

LSU Master's Theses

Paul Krassner began publishing a small-circulation magazine called The Realist in New York City in 1958 because he believed there existed excessive restraints on speech in American culture. The publication began with a combination of earnest critiques and good-humored satires on such topics as organized religion, sexual mores, Cold War paranoia, and civil rights. By the mid-sixties, the magazine was enlarging the space not just for what opinions could be expressed but also for the way those opinions were expressed and, in the process, testing the boundaries of obscenity. As Krassner became a bitter opponent of the Vietnam War and …

Studying And Teaching “Law As Rhetoric”: A Place To Stand, Linda L. Berger

Scholarly Works

This article proposes that law students may find a better fit within the legal culture of argument if they are introduced to rhetorical alternatives to counter narrowly formalist and realist perspectives on how the law works and how judges decide cases. To support this proposal, the article describes and evaluates an upper-level elective course in Law & Rhetoric, which I have offered at two law schools since 2003.

The article makes a two-part argument: first, introducing law students to rhetorical alternatives allows them to envision their role as lawyers as constructive, effective, and imaginative while grounded in law, language, and …

Symposium, The Legal Writing Institute: Celebrating 25 Years Of Teaching And Scholarship, Linda L. Berger

Scholarly Works

This is the transcript of Mercer Law Review’s Symposium, The Legal Writing Institute: Celebrating 25 Years of Teaching & Scholarship. In this Symposium Linda Edwards, among other panelists, discussed the work that goes into producing scholarship.

Caring Attitudes Among Child Welfare Caseworkers: Associations With Client Participation In Services, Karen Faulk

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if there is an association between the caring attitudes and commitment toward clients of child welfare workers and their clients’ completion of a parenting education program. This line of inquiry is intended to expand the scope of research on caring attitudes associated with child welfare workers intent to remain employed. A logical extension of identifying characteristics associated with child welfare workforce retention is to determine if those characteristics are also associated with positive client outcomes. Part of the examination of worker caring attitudes involved testing the Child Welfare Inventory (CWI), a modified …

Fraction Competency And Algebra Success, Coretta Thomas

LSU Master's Theses

Abstract In this thesis, I investigated the importance of fraction competence to success in algebra. I studied 107 of the students whom I teach. These students were all enrolled in Algebra I. A fraction pretest and an algebra pretest were given at the beginning of the 2009-2010 school year. A comparison was done to study the connection between the fraction pretest score and the semester grade as well as the algebra pretest score and the semester grade. The strongest correlation was between the fraction pretest and the semester grade. This supported the theory that fraction competence is a strong predictor …

Knowledge Gap And Cable Music Television: A Survey Of Mtv, Bet, And H1 Target Audience Members, Katharine Claire Gavin

LSU Master's Theses

American youth and adolescents have the highest rate of teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections in the industrialized world. Entertainment media, the preferred genre of today’s adolescents, depicts sex, drugs, and alcohol use at a greater rate than any other genre of programming. What are health communication strategists doing to counter the widespread, inaccurate portrayals often depicted in this type of programming? With previous knowledge gap and health communication research failing to examine youth oriented and racial targeted entertainment programming, this study utilizes a survey to analyze BET, MTV, and VH1 audiences’ health knowledge, recall, and attitude toward PSAs to …

The Influence Of Two Estrogens On The Sex And Ovarian Development Of Eastern Oysters (Crassostrea Virginica) Maintained In A Closed Recirculating System, Wesley Michael Burnside

LSU Master's Theses

As a multi-million dollar industry, production of the eastern oyster Crassostrea virginica is significant to the economy of the nation’s coastal regions. The cost of commercial oyster aquaculture has higher inputs than the oyster fishery, but larger, better quality oysters can be produced for culture by the stable availability of triploid individuals.

The goal of this project was to determine if the use of an estrogen, estradiol-17β or estradiol-3-benzoate, at a consistent environmental temperature would increase the percentage of females in a population, as well as ovarian development of eastern oysters. Ultimately, this could be applied to triploids to increase …

The Effects Of Channel Stability On Benthic Macroinvertebrates In Southeastern Louisiana Streams, Peter Markos

LSU Master's Theses

Water chemistry, habitat quality, and channel stability interact to influence a stream’s biological integrity. The goal of this project was to assess how channel stability, together with other physicochemical stream measurements, are associated with the structure and abundance of resident macroinvertebrate communities. I recorded multiple physicochemical parameters and calculated a Pfankuch habitat stability index monthly for a year at potential reference streams in southeastern Louisiana. I assessed the relationships of channels stability with measured physicochemical parameters with multiple regression and principle components analysis. Mixed model multivariate analysis of variance was used to determine associations of habitat characteristics with resident macroinvertebrate …

The Returns And Volatility Of Agribusiness Stocks: How Do They Measure Up To Non-Agribusiness Stocks?, Benjamin Michael Clark

LSU Master's Theses

Little literature exists that analyzes the historical risk and return associated with investing in the US agricultural sector. However, several observable trends have recently made investing in the US agricultural sector an area of interest among investors. Stock price indexes are a commonly used tool for summarizing the historical performance of a specific sector. A market-capitalization weighted stock price index is created to represent the largest US agribusiness firms since 1970, using the US Census Standard Industrial Classification system and the Economic Research Service’s definition of agribusiness. Geometric returns, standard deviation, Sharpe Ratio, and beta values are calculated for one, …

"Teach Us Incessantly": Lessons And Learning In The Antebellum Gulf South, Sarah L. Hyde

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Before 1860 people in the Gulf South valued education and sought to extend schooling to residents across the region. Southerners learned in a variety of different settings – within their own homes taught by a family member or hired tutor, at private or parochial schools as well as in public free schools. Regardless of the venue, the ubiquity of learning in the region reveals the importance of education in Southern culture. In the 1820s and 1830s, legislators in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama sought to increase access to education by offering financial assistance to private schools in order to offset tuition …

Cooling-Off And Secondary Markets: Consumer Choice In The Digital Domain, Michael Mattioli

Articles by Maurer Faculty

This article studies the law and economics of cooling-off periods and secondary markets for online media. The discussion is fueled by a current debate: In July 2009, the online retail juggernaut, Amazon.com, remotely deleted literary classics from consumers’ portable “Kindle” reading devices. The public outcry and class-action lawsuit that followed have reinvigorated an ongoing debate about how much control digital media distributors should wield. Pundits and plaintiffs argue that too often, digital distributors like Amazon impair consumer freedom by misusing Digital Rights Management (DRM) software systems. However, these same systems could also provide significant benefits that have largely gone ignored. …

Renegotiation Of Cash Flow Rights In The Sale Of Vc-Backed Firms, Brian Broughman, Jesse Fried

Articles by Maurer Faculty

Incomplete contracting theory suggests that VC cash flow rights - including liquidation preferences - may be subject to renegotiation. Using a hand-collected dataset of sales of Silicon Valley firms, we find common shareholders do sometimes receive payment before VCs' liquidation preferences are satisfied. However, such deviations tend to be small. We also find that renegotiation is more likely when governance arrangements, including the firm's choice of corporate law, give common shareholders power to impede the sale. Our study provides support for incomplete contracting theory, improves understanding of VC exits, and suggests that choice of corporate law matters in private firms.

Inter-Judge Sentencing Disparity After Booker: A First Look, Ryan W. Scott

Articles by Maurer Faculty

A central purpose of the Sentencing Reform Act was to reduce inter-judge sentencing disparity, driven not by legitimate differences between offenders and offense conduct, but by the philosophy, politics, or biases of the sentencing judge. The federal Sentencing Guidelines, despite their well-recognized deficiencies, succeeded in reducing that form of unwarranted disparity. But in a series of decisions from 2005 to 2007, the Supreme Court rendered the Guidelines advisory (Booker), set a highly deferential standard for appellate review (Gall), and explicitly authorized judges to reject the policy judgments of the Sentencing Commission (Kimbrough). Since then, the Commission has received extensive anecdotal …

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 …

German Enemy Aliens And The Decine Of British Liberalism In World War I, Ansley L. Macenczak

LSU Master's Theses

After the start of World War I in 1914, the British government began internment of enemy alien men, disrupting the large German population settled in the country. This move seemed to be in complete contrast in comparison to the lax immigration laws during the long nineteenth century, when Great Britain had one of the most liberal immigration laws of any country in Europe. The British public was proud of this tradition and Britain’s image as an open haven for refugees and individuals seeking a better life. Foreigners were attracted to Britain by its liberal traditions, most clearly exemplified by the …