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A Statistical Model For Long-Term Forecasting Of Strong Sand Dust Storms, Siqi Tan

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Dust elevated into the atmosphere by dust storms has numerous environmental consequences. These include contributing to climate change; modifying local weather conditions; producing chemical and biological changes in the oceans; and affecting soil formation, surface water, groundwater quality, crop growth, and survival (Goudie and Middleton, 1992). Societal impacts include disruptions to air, road and rail traffic; interruption of radio services; the myriad effects of static-electricity generation; property damage; and health effects on humans and animals (Warner, 2004).

In this thesis, we extend the idea of empirical recurrence rate (ERR), developed by Ho (2008), to model the temporal trend of the …

The Effect Of Early Environmental Manipulation On Locomotor Sensitivity And Methamphetamine Condition Place Preference Reward, Emily Hensleigh

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Early life stress has drastic effects on neurological development, affecting health and well-being later in life. Instances of child abuse and neglect are associated with higher rates of depression, risk taking behavior, and an increased risk of drug abuse later in life (Chapman,D.P. 2004; Dube,S.R. 2003). This study used repeated neonatal separation of rat pups as a model of early life stress. Rat pups were either handled and weighed as controls or separated for 180 minutes per day during postnatal days 2-8. In adulthood, rats were tested for methamphetamine conditioned place preference reward and methamphetamine induced locomotor activity. Tissue samples …

An Ecological Study Of Peregrine Falcons (Falco Peregrinus) At Lake Mead National Recreation Area, 2006-2010, Joseph Graham Barnes

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Peregrine Falcons (Falco peregrinus) represent an encouraging conservation biology success story in North America during the twentieth century. Their distribution and population size suffered major restrictions after the initiation of widespread application of the synthetic pesticide dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane (DDT) within the U.S. in the 1940s. The species was federally listed as endangered in the U.S. in 1969 and was then delisted in 1999 after DDT was banned in 1972. Herein, I present my ecological research of peregrines within Lake Mead National Recreation Area (LMNRA), concentrating on the years 2006-2010. This thesis is comprised of two chapters. In the first chapter, I …

Using Graphs To Represent Physical Phenomena In A Fourth Grade Classroom, Mehmet Fatih Dulger

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This study examined to what extent inquiry-based instruction supported with real-time graphing technology improves fourth grader's ability to interpret graphs as representations of physical science concepts such as motion and temperature. This study also examined whether there is any difference between inquiry-based instruction supported with real-time graphing software and inquiry-based instruction supported with traditional laboratory equipment in terms of improving fourth graders' ability to interpret motion and temperature graphs. Results of this study showed that there is a significant advantage in using real-time graphing technology to support fourth graders' ability to read and interpret graphs.

Peripheral Soldering Of Flip Chip Joints On Passive Rfid Tags, Md Syful Islam

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Flip chip is the main component of a RFID tag. It is used in billions each year in electronic packaging industries because of its small size, high performance and reliability as well as low cost. They are used in microprocessors, cell phones, watches and automobiles. RFID tags are applied to or incorporated into a product, animal, or person for identification and tracking using radio waves. Some tags can be read from several meters away or even beyond the line of sight of the reader. Passive RFID tags are the most common type in use that employ external power source to …

Teacher Gesture In A Post-Secondary English As A Second Language Classroom: A Sociocultural Approach, Natalie Hudson

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Vygotsky (1978) uses the example of gesture in a child, stating that finger pointing represents an interpersonal relationship, and only after this cultural form is internalized can an intrapersonal relationship develop. Language learning must be viewed in the context of social interaction, and the gesture of others, specifically language instructors toward their students, is a form of social interaction worthy of attention. Newman and Holzman (1993) discuss the idea of performance as a mode of semiotic mediation related to meaning making. Daniels, Cole, and Wertsch (2007) also discuss the concept of performance, stating that gestures are tools which assist performance. …

Chaucer’S Reading List: Sir Thopas, Auchinleck, And Middle English Romances In Translation, Ken Eckert

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Middle English romance has never attained critical respectability, dismissed as ―"vayn carpynge" in its own age and treated as a junk-food form of medieval literature or kidnapped for political or psychoanalytical readings. Chaucer‘s Tale of Sir Thopas has been explained as an acidly sarcastic satire of the romances‘ supposedly clichéd formulas and poetically unskilled authors. Yet such assumptions require investigation of how Chaucer and his ostensible audience might have viewed romance as a genre. Chaucer‘s likely use of the Auchinleck manuscript forms a convenient basis for examination of the romances listed in Thopas. With the aid of a modern translation, …

Bioavailability Of Arsenic, Cadmium And Chromium For The Deposit-Feeding Polychaete Nereis Succinea, Zofia Aleksandra Baumann

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

My dissertation addressed the issue of metal bioaccumulation in marine deposit-feeding polychaetes that may serve as a conduit for metals between sediments and benthic predators. The ubiquitous polychaete Nereis succinea was used as a model species to study bioaccumulation patterns and processes of arsenic (V), cadmium and chromium (III). Sediments used in my study were collected from three different sites - two in Chesapeake Bay and one in San Francisco Bay. Specific objectives were to understand the relative significance of metal uptake route (water vs. diet) contributing to the total metal body burden accumulated by the worm, and secondly to …

Multimodal Tagging Of Human Motion Using Skeletal Tracking With Kinect, Debaleena Chattopadhyay

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

Recognizing moves and movements of human body(s) is a challenging problem due to their self-occluding nature and the associated degrees of freedom for each of the numerous body-joints. This work presents a method to tag human actions and interactions by first discovering the human skeleton using depth images acquired by infrared range sensors and then exploiting the resultant skeletal tracking. Instead of estimating the pose of each body part contributing to a set of moves in a decoupled way, we represent a single-person move or a two-person interaction in terms of its skeletal joint positions. So now a single-person move …

Investigation Of Facet Joint Capsule Biomechanics Of The Lumbar Spine: A Finite Element Study, Denis Charles Evangelista

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

Low back pain is one of the most costly ailments in the world today. A key biological structure studied in the research of low back pain is the facet joint. The facet joint is thought to both play a role in the causation of low back pain through its response to noxious loading and in its relief through beneficial loading caused by spine manipulation. The purpose of these studies is to use a computational model to predict the biomechanical response of the facet joints to various loading parameters. This was accomplished using a linear 3D Finite Element model of the …

Evaluation Of Synthetically And Naturally Derived Polymers For Drug Delivery And Adhesion Reduction Applications, Christine Angelica Falabella

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

Polymeric materials have a wide application of use in biomedical applications. The evaluations of several polymers (synthetically and naturally derived) are presented in this dissertation as drug/protein delivery vehicles and solid adhesion barriers. A blended polymer matrix consisting of poly(ethylene glycol)-grafted-chitosan (PEG-g-CHN) and poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) was used to produce microspheres for therapeutic protein delivery. The release kinetics of a model protein was also investigated as PEG-g-CHN content was varied. A hamster cheek pouch microvascular model was utilized to evaluate the inflammatory potential of both the PEG-g-CHN/PLGA microspheres and released basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF). We found the protein release …

Cantos De La Nada, Ricardo Gallo

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

In conceiving Cantos de la Nada for mezzo-soprano and mixed chamber ensemble I went through a process of finding a direction to create original music inspired by folk songs from Colombia without using any specific material. Rather I adopted certain ways to conceive music that can be found in these traditional expressions. Two abstract musical elements that I draw from folk music and that I focused on for this piece are texture and form. Since melody, rhythm and even harmony reflect more directly specific kinds of folk music, I focused on elements that are not the primary materials of folk …

A Light-Sharing Approach To High-Resolution 3d Gamma-Ray Detection For Positron Emission Tomography, Srilalan Krishnamoorthy

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

Positron emission tomography (PET), on account of its non-invasiveness, exquisite sensitivity, and ability to perform longitudinal studies is becoming a very popular tool in both clinical and preclinical imaging. The increasing role of PET however, has placed increased demands on both spatial resolution and gamma-ray detection efficiency (sensitivity). Developing an efficient, yet high-resolution PET detector has been a fundamental challenge and most attempts to improve resolution make use of smaller scintillation crystals that sacrifice sensitivity. This dissertation aims to study and investigate in detail, the potential of a novel gamma-ray detector in providing a cost-effective alternative for high performance PET. …

The Environmentality Of Da-Sein's Individuation, Walker Malling

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

This thesis pursues the question of how the authentic possibility of being constant can arise for Da-sein out of its lost inauthenticity by investigating what will provisionally be termed the environmentality of Da-sein. In creating a space for interpretive leeway, the term environmentality will remain distinct from the existential structure of worldliness, and from any particular factor of being-in-the-world specified in Division One of Being and Time. In assuming this direction, environmentality has its sight set on, or is awaiting, the way in which its proper potentiality for being-its-self returns to Da-sein after its interminable period of exile. Da-sein's authentic …

Evaluation Of Electromagnetic Interactions Between Pet And Mri Systems For Simultaneous Mri/Pet Imaging, Sri Harsha Maramraju

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

Multi-modality imaging in clinical and pre-clinical settings promises to forge new vistas for better diagnostic interpretation compared to stand-alone imaging systems. For in vivo imaging studies, accurate interpretation of diseased conditions is possible if structural, functional and metabolic information of the region of interest is provided at the same time. At Brookhaven National Laboratory, a small animal positron emission tomograph (PET) detector was integrated into a Bruker Biospin 9.4 T microMRI scanner to perform simultaneous PET/MRI studies in rodents. The custom-built MRI coils were optimized for simultaneous PET/MRI studies. The feasibility of acquiring simultaneous PET/MRI data has been demonstrated that …

The Role Of Beta-1 Integrin In Oligodendrocyte Development And Cns Myelination., Tom Thanh Van Nguyen

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

Myelin is essential for proper human neurophysiology, but the precise molecular mechanisms underlying the myelination process remain poorly understood. One potential effector molecule, the b1 integrin, has been suggested to play a critical role in CNS myelination. In support of this, a6b1 integrin has been shown to modulate oligodendrocyte development in vitro and the loss of an integrin ligand, laminin, causes myelin defects in vivo. Here, we use transgenic mice (b1-CNSko) engineered to excise the b1 integrin gene at the neural progenitor stage to study how b1 integrin modulates oligodendrocyte development and myelination. Electron micrographs of the spinal cord and …

Low Intensity Vibrations Applied Locally Can Be Transmitted To The Alveolar Bone Thereby Enhancing The Quality Of The Bone In Adult Rats, Nirukta Patri

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

Oral bone loss is a major concern amongst a large population suffering from estrogen deficiency, osteoporosis and periodontal diseases. The clinical implication of oral bone loss is premature tooth loss. Mechanical loading has proven to be vital in maintaining the quantity and quality of the bone, particularly in impacted bone. Studies have shown that long bones (post-cranial) and alveolar bone (cranial) are both sensitive to mechanical environment through static and dynamic loading. It also has been suggested that whole body vibrations (WBV) at low-magnitude and high frequency are a non-invasive and non-pharmacological method to prevent bone loss, particularly in the …

Identification And Modulation Of Electrophysiological Markers Of Reward Sensitivity, Relevance To Drug Addiction, Muhammad Adeel Parvaz

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

Drug addiction is primarily a disease of the brain's reward system. The resulting compromise in reward sensitivity traces its roots to the striatal reward circuitry, where excess dopamine is released by the acute administration of the drug of abuse; chronic use is in turn associated with a hypodopaminergic state. In individuals with cocaine use disorder (CUD), these maladaptive changes in striatal dopamine are shown to be predictive of the choice for cocaine over other non-drug rewards. This deficit in reward sensitivity may therefore be bi-pronged, such that CUD manifest hyposensitivity to non-drug-related rewards (e.g. money) as well as hypersensitivity to …

On The Fringe Of Notch: Mapping O-Fucose And O-Glucose Glycans At Specific Sites On The Extracellular Domains Of Notch Receptors Using Nano-Lc-Esi-Ms/Ms, Nadiaa. Rana

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

Notch is an essential cell surface receptor whose proper functioning is critical during development in metazoans. Notch can be modified with two unique forms of O-linked glycosylation: O-fucose and O-glucose. Protein O-fucosyltransferase1 (Pofut1, OFUT1 in flies) and Protein O-glucosyltransferase (Poglut, Rumi in flies) are the glycosyltransferases that add O-fucose and O-glucose monosaccharides to Notch, respectively. Loss of Pofut1/Ofut1 or Poglut/rumi in mice or flies phenocopies Notch-null phenotypes, suggesting both forms of O-glycosylation are essential for Notch function. To gain insights into how these essential modifications impart functionality to the receptor, it is vital to identify sites of O-glycosylation, and structures …

The Role Of Laminin A2 In Oligodendrocyte Development And Cns Myelination, Jenne Liza Villaranda Relucio

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

The myelin-producing oligodendrocytes of the central nervous system are critical to normal brain function and physiology. The molecular mechanisms that influence oligodendrocyte development and CNS myelination, however, remain poorly understood. One potential factor that may regulate these processes is the extracellular matrix (ECM) molecule laminin. Children with mutations in one type of laminin - the alpha 2 subunit (LAMA2) - have defects in the size and shape of the forebrain and cerebellum, along with white matter abnormalities. However, it is not clear whether laminin a2 modulates oligodendrocytes in vivo, and if so, through which cellular signaling pathways. In this dissertation, …

Drama Therapy - Conscious And Creative Healing, Monica Nicole Rosell

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

In Chapter X of Plato's Republic, he describes the theatre as a barrier that blocks individuals from truth and knowledge. As a dramaturg, my life's work is based on the belief that theatre is a platform in which the truth about the human condition is expressed, through fictional characters and stories. As a theatre artist, I believe in the transformative aspect of theatre. As I contemplated Plato's theory, I thought about individuals who are suffering from severe psychopathologies, such as schizophrenia. These individuals live in their own unique realities. Could theatre be used as a way of showing these individuals' …

Thou Met'st With Things Dying, I With Things New Born From King Lear To The Winter's Tale: Tragedies Transformed, Jessica Schnepp

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

This paper looks back at King Lear through the lens of The Winter's Tale, not in the hopes of superimposing an alternate interpretation of King Lear as an individual play but of illuminating Shakespeare's own process of reevaluating and re-imagining his poetic project, his evolving understanding of theological truth, and his place during England's transition from the Medieval to Early Modernism. This paper will analyze the starkly dichotomous criticism of King Lear and, through detailed comparison with the plot, character, imagery and themes of The Winter's Tale, prove not only that a criticism of King Lear is incomplete without The …

The Effects Of Elevated Carbon Dioxide Concentrations On The Early Life History Of Bivalve Shellfish, Stephanie Carol Talmage

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

The combustion of fossil fuels has increased CO2 in the world's oceans and decreased pH. Ocean acidification may alter the growth, survival, and diversity of marine organisms that synthesize shells due to decreased carbonate ion availability. I examined the response of larvae and early juveniles from three species of commercially and ecologically valuable bivalve shellfish (Mercenaria mercenaria, Argopecten irradians, and Crassostrea virginica) exposed to past, pre-industrial levels (~250 ppm), present (~390 ppm), and future (~750, 1500 ppm) levels of CO2. Under higher CO2 concentrations, all three species experienced decreased growth, survival, and metamorphosis with C. virginica being the least affected. …

Coupling Ligand Binding To Ion Channel Gating In Nmda Receptors, Iehab Talukder

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

The NMDA receptor is a ligand-gated ion channel that mediates a fundamental component of excitatory synaptic transmission in the mammalian central nervous system. Aberrant NMDA receptor function causes and/or exacerbates multiple neurological and psychiatric disorders, thus creating the need for pharmacological modulation of its activity. The defining feature of ligand- gated ion channels is gating--the energetic coupling of ligand binding into opening of the associated ion channel pore. In an NMDA receptor subunit, gating is initiated in the extracellular ligand-binding domain (LBD) and is propagated via three linkers--S1-M1, M3-S2, and S2- M4--to the transmembrane domain (TMD) forming the ion channel. …

When Is Ketchup Just Ketchup? : Toward A Sociological Reading Of Paul Mccarthy's Early Video Art, Robin Frances Wolf

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

In much of the scholarship about Paul McCarthy's video and performance work, the artist's use of food has been described in terms of its anthropomorphic qualities-its ability to masquerade as excrement or blood. Paul McCarthy's historical moment, though, prompts a different understanding of his work, specifically his use of food. The mid-70's saw incredible changes in the ways food was bought, sold and processed. It is the purpose of this thesis to resist the impulse to sensationalize his antics or frame them in terms of their psychosis in order to analyze how in McCarthy's work functions as a critique of …

Computational Systems Analysis Of Deterministic Pair Rule Gene Network And Stochastic Bicoid Morphogen Gradient In Drosophila Melanogaster, Yu Feng Wu

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

Computational systems biology is an emerging field built upon advances in biological experimentation, computational tools, and joint interdisciplinary efforts from physical sciences to engineering. In this thesis, I solve two important problems in the developmental genetics of Drosophila melanogaster by means of two different computational systems approaches, one stochastic and the other deterministic. In the first problem I use exact simulations of a spatially extended Master Equation to analyze intrinsic fluctuations in the gradient of the Bicoid morphogen. These simulation results were in turn compared to quantitative experimental measurements of Bicoid levels performed in fixed tissue by immunostaining. We selected …

Migration Of Powers, David Weiner

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

This thesis is an exploration of my artwork throughout graduate school. It addresses my transformation from a formalist sculptor making objects, to an adventure artist creating mixed media installations. My thesis exhibition presented a multi-channel video and sculptural installation, examining energy exchange, scale and heroics. The paper investigates scientific, personal and theoretical concerns of my event-based creative practice including movement, physical forces, risk, faith, and endurance.

Il Paesaggio In Grazia Deledda, Angela Cortes

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

Abstract of the Thesis The utilization of landscape in Grazia Deledda. by Angela Cortes Master of Arts in Romance Languages and Literature Italian Stony Brook University 2011 Many authors and poets use landscape and nature to portray to the reader specific information regarding the characters, their feelings and thoughts, as well as the author's own frame of mind, and the historical time frame of the novel. Other authors may use the landscape as a physical representation, to portray feelings and thoughts which could not be represented otherwise. Grazia Deledda, awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1926, is one such …

Effect Of Aquastretch On Range Of Motion At Knee Joint In Total Knee Arthroplasty Patients, Raja Devinder Kochar

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The success of the Total Knee Arthroplasty (TKA) depends upon its functional outcomes of increase in reduction in pain, and gait ambulation and performing functional activities of daily living. Compromised range of motion, pain and weakness can reduce their ability to perform activities of daily living. Aquatic Physical Therapy may offer an alternative intervention to traditional Physical Therapy Rehabilitation and many studies have shown improvements in range of motion, swelling, pain reduction, stiffness and quality of life after TKA. AquaStretch, a relatively new form of aquatic therapy, claims to restore the functional mobility which is lost restrictions caused due to …

2011 May, Office Of Communications & Marketing, Morehead State University.

Morehead State Press Release Archive, 1961 to the Present

Press releases for May 2011.