Digital Commons Network^™

Applying Text Timing In Corporate Spin-Off Disclosure Statement Analysis: Understanding The Main Concerns And Recommendation Of Appropriate Term Weights, Aravindh Sekar

Masters Theses

"Text mining helps in extracting knowledge and useful information from unstructured data. It detects and extracts information from mountains of documents and allowing in selecting data related to a particular data.

In this study, text mining is applied to the 10-12b filings done by the companies during Corporate Spin-off. The main purposes are (1) To investigate potential and/or major concerns found from these financial statements filed for corporate spin-off and (2) To identify appropriate methods in text mining which can be used to reveal these major concerns.

10-12b filings from thirty-four companies were taken and only the "Risk Factors" category …

Medicaid Managed Care: Background, Issues, And Options, Julie T. Fralich Mba

Disability & Aging

Managed care is a fundamental shift from the historical fee-for-service payment systems. It provides opportunities for states to transform the delivery and financing of Medicaid financed services and promote and reward improved care outcomes. Implementation of such programs requires thoughtful planning, active stakeholder engagement and an effective administrative infrastructure to manage and operate in a value based purchasing environment.

Smart Grid Functionality Of A Pv-Energy Storage System, Nenad Damnjanovic

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Renewable Energy will be the key to preserving the Earth's remaining resources and continuing this surge of technological progress that we have experienced this past century. New philosophies of how/when/where energy should be consumed and produced are attempting to improve upon the current grid infrastructure. The massive advancement in communications, renewable and control systems will allow this new-age electric grid to maximize its efficiency while reducing cost. Renewable, "green" energy is now at the forefront of innovation. As the world population increases, there will be a need to free ourselves from natural resources as much as possible. Advanced Energy Storage …

Physical Activity Promotion Among School-Aged Children Using Pedometers And Rewards, Kari E. Ek

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Physical activity is important for children as many children are considered overweight or obese. The benefits of exercise have been demonstrated in empirical studies across all age ranges (Horne, Hardman, Lowe, & Rowlands, 2009; Kelly et al., 2004; Louie & Chan, 2003; Southard & Southard, 2006). In the current study, a multiple baseline design across participants was used to assess the effectiveness of goal setting, reinforcement contingencies, and pedometers that provide feedback to increase step count of 5 participants. During baseline each participant wore a sealed pedometer to assess the average steps the participants took per day. After baseline, each …

Tort Reform And American Political Economy, Ian J. Drake

Department of Political Science and Law Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

The expansion of tort liability throughout the last century was a unique period of American legal history. In the field of products liability the expansion was dramatic; so much that it can be considered revolutionary. Also, the reaction to this expansion was so forceful that it thwarted the larger goals of the expansionary movement. This paper will review the purposes of the expansion of tort law in the twentieth century and the purposes and effects of the reaction it spurred at the state level. In short, it is my conclusion that the expansion of products liability after World War II--the …

Risk Assessment For Conceptual Design Of Hydrokinetic Turbines, Praveen Kailkere Srinivas

Masters Theses

"Hydrokinetic energy is a relatively new concept in the field of renewable energy. The rotor of the turbine, immersed in water, uses the velocity from the flowing water to generate power. Thus the hydrokinetic turbines are also known as zero head turbines. These turbines can be installed in rivers, oceans and sea beds. The design of these systems depends on the site conditions, installation and maintenance costs. Since this technology has not been assessed for its potential power producing capabilities, not much research has been done in order to harness this form of renewable energy and to study the impact …

Pushing For The Injury: Tort Law's Influence In Defining The Constitutional Limitations On Punitive Damage Awards, Jill Wieber Lens

Hofstra Law Review

The limitations on a punitive damage award depend on the conception of punitive damages. Is it a private law remedy, limited to resolving the dispute between the parties? Or is it a public law remedy, capable of addressing public harm and achieving public good? The Supreme Court has not wavered from public law ideas of punitive damages - that the damages serve the state’s interests and are similar to criminal punishments. At the same time, the Court has focused on the actual injury to the plaintiff in its holdings and prohibited punitive damages from punishing harm to nonparties, indicating that …

The Future Of The Legal Profession: The New York City Corporation Counsel's Perspective On The Challenges And Opportunities Ahead, Michael A. Cardozo

Hofstra Law Review

No abstract provided.

Jennifer Tempfer V. William (Bill) Peterson Ii : Brief Of Appellant, Utah Court Of Appeals

Utah Court of Appeals Briefs (2007– 2019)

APPEAL FROM THE FOURTH DISTRICT COURT, MILLARD COUNTY STATE OF UTAH, FROM A CONVICTION OF BEING A STALKER BILL WAS ORDERED NOT TO GO TO RUTH'S HOME RUTH W. STEVENS IS HIS (BILL'S) FIANCEE BILL & RUTH ARE FRIENDS OF 65+ YEARS RUTH HAS ASSIGNED POA FOR HER TO BILL

The Limits Of Constitutional Convergence, Rosalind Dixon, Eric A. Posner

Book Sections

Globalization, some legal scholars suggest, is a force that makes increasing convergence among different countries' constitutions more or less inevitable. This Essay explores this hypothesis by analyzing both the logic-and potential limits-to four differe

Veille Bibliographique Sur La Surveillance Biologique De L'Exposition Aux Produits Chimiques En Milieu De Travail, Annie Bijaoui, Florence Pillière, Maryse Gagnon, Ginette Truchon, Michèle Berode, Aline Detorrenté, Aline Sager, Perrine Hoët

Vulgarisation

L’article présente les étapes de la mise en place d’une veille bibliographique (ou veille scientifique) thématique effectuée conjointement depuis 2005 par 4 institutions francophones du domaine de la santé au travail : l’INRS (France), l’IRSST (Québec), l’IST (Suisse) et l’UCL (Belgique). La thématique suivie est celle de la surveillance biologique de l’exposition aux produits chimiques en milieu de travail. Les données recueillies et mises en forme par les documentalistes servent aux chercheurs spécialistes du sujet non seulement pour suivre les nouveautés du domaine, mais aussi pour documenter des cours et mettre à jour des guides de surveillance biologique. Les différentes …

Pregnancy And Intimate Partner Violence: Risk Factors, Severity, And Health Effects, Douglas A. Brownridge, Tamara L. Tallieu, Kimberly A. Tyler, Agnes Tiwari, Ko Ling Chan, Susy C. Santos

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

The current study compares female victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) who were and were not victimized during pregnancy. Victims of pregnancy violence are more likely to report having experienced all forms of violence, particularly severe forms, and have higher odds of experiencing several postviolence indicators of severity and adverse health consequences. The significance of predictors disappears in a post hoc analysis controlling for proxies of battering behavior (i.e., repeated and severe violence), suggesting that victims who experience violence during pregnancy may be more likely to be in a current intimate relationship with an abuser who inflicts repeated and severe …

Effect Of School Racial Composition On Trajectories Of Depressive Symptoms From Adolescence Through Early Adulthood, Katrina M. Walsemann, Bethany A. Bell, Bridget J. Goosby

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

We investigate the effect of high school racial composition, measured as percent of non-Hispanic white students, on trajectories of depressive symptoms from adolescence to early adulthood. We also explore whether the effect of school racial composition varies by respondent race/ethnicity and whether adult socioeconomic status mediates this relationship. We analyzed four waves of data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health using 3-level linear growth models. We restricted our sample to respondents enrolled in grades 9-12 in 1994/5 who were interviewed at a minimum in Waves I and IV. This resulted in 10,350 respondents enrolled in 80 high schools …

Distress Among Indigenous North Americans: Generalized And Culturally Relevant Stressors, Melissa L. Walls, Les B. Whitbeck

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Stress process and life-course models of mental distress emphasize socio-cultural and historical processes that influence stress exposure and the impact of stress on mental health outcomes. Drawing from these theoretical orientations as well as concepts from the historical trauma literature, we examine the effects of culturally relevant and more generalized sources of stress on distress among North American Indigenous adults, and tests for the potential cumulative and interactive effects of stress on distress across the life-course via self-reported early childhood and adult/contemporary stressors. Results of OLS regression analyses reveal positive, significant associations between general stressors and distress as well as …

Variation In Distress Among Women With Infertility: Evidence From A Population-Based Sample, Arthur L. Greil, Karina M. Shreffler, Lone Schmidt, Julia Mcquillan

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND We examine variation in fertility-specific distress (FSD) and general distress according to different experiences of infertility among 1027 US women who have experienced infertility within the previous 10 years.

METHODS General distress was measured by a short form of the Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression. Multiple regression analysis was conducted on self-report data (based on a telephone interview) from a probability-based sample of US women aged 25–45 years. We compare women with infertility who have had a prior pregnancy (secondary infertility, n = 628) to women with infertility with no prior pregnancies (primary infertility, n = 399). We further distinguish …

Are Prior Pregnancy Outcomes Relevant For Models Of Fertility-Specific Distress Or Infertility Helpseeking?, Arthur L. Greil, Katherine M. Johnson, Julia Mcquillan, Naomi L Lacy

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Women with prior pregnancy but no live birth are inconsistently termed as either ‘primary infertile’ or ‘secondary infertile’ in psychosocial studies of infertile women. The goal of this study was to discover whether infertile women who had experienced pregnancies but no live births were more similar in attitudes and behavior to infertile women who had not experienced pregnancies or to those who had live births. We used the National Survey of Fertility Barriers (NSFB), which contains self-reported data from a probability-based sample of US women aged between 25 and 45, to accomplish our goal. In this cross-sectional analysis, infertile women …

Adipose Tissue Abca1 Contributes To Hdl Biogenesis In Vivo, Soonkyu Chung, Janet K. Sawyer, Abraham K. Gebre, Nobuyo Maeba, John S. Parks

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Background—Adipose tissue (AT) is the body’s largest free cholesterol (FC) reservoir and abundantly expresses ATP binding cassette transporter A1 (ABCA1), a key cholesterol transporter for HDL biogenesis. However, the extent to which AT ABCA1 expression contributes to HDL biogenesis in vivo is unknown.

Methods and Results—Adipocyte-specific ABCA1 knockout mice (ABCA1^−A/−A) were

generated by crossing ABCA1floxed mice with aP2 cre transgenic mice. AT from ABCA1^−A/−A mice had −^A/−A mice had a twofold increase in FC content, compared to WT mice, and failed to efflux cholesterol to apoA-I. …

Hydrogen Peroxide Probes Directed To Different Cellular Compartments, Mikalai Malinouski, You Zhou, Vsevolod V. Belousov, Dolph L. Hatfield, Vadim N. Gladyshev

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

Background: Controlled generation and removal of hydrogen peroxide play important roles in cellular redox homeostasis and signaling. We used a hydrogen peroxide biosensor HyPer, targeted to different compartments, to examine these processes in mammalian cells.

Principal Findings: Reversible responses were observed to various redox perturbations and signaling events. HyPer expressed in HEK 293 cells was found to sense low micromolar levels of hydrogen peroxide. When targeted to various cellular compartments, HyPer occurred in the reduced state in the nucleus, cytosol, peroxisomes, mitochondrial intermembrane space and mitochondrial matrix, but low levels of the oxidized form of the biosensor were also observed …

Targeted Deletion Of The Mouse Mitoferrin1 Gene: From Anemia To Protoporphyria, Marie-Berengere Troadec, David Warner, Jared Wallace, Kirk Thomas, Gerald J. Spangrude, John Phillips, Oleh Khalimonchuk, Barry H. Paw, Diane Mcvey Ward, Jerry Kaplan

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

Mitoferrin1 is 1 of 2 homologous mitochondrial iron transporters and is required for mitochondrial iron delivery in developing erythroid cells. We show that total deletion of Mfrn1 in embryos leads to embryonic lethality. Selective deletion of Mfrn1 in adult hematopoietic tissues leads to severe anemia because of a deficit in erythroblast formation. Deletion of Mfrn1 in hepatocytes has no phenotype or biochemical effect under normal conditions. In the presence of increased porphyrin synthesis, however, deletion of Mfrn1 in hepatocytes results in a decreased ability to convert protoporphyrin IX into heme, leading to protoporphyria, cholestasis, and bridging cirrhosis. Our results show …

A Review And Synthesis Of Bird And Rodent Damage Estimates To Select California Crops, Karen Gebhardt, Aaron M. Anderson, Katy N. Kirkpatrick, Stephanie A. Shwiff

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

A comprehensive literature review was conducted to identify the magnitude of bird and rodent damage to 19 economically important crops in California. Interviews with agriculture experts provided additional information about damages. Monte Carlo simulations were used to derive summary estimates of damages to each crop. A meta-analysis indicated that summary damage estimates from expert interviews were higher than estimates from field studies and surveys. It was also found that there has been a downward trend over time in damages to almonds and grapes. The results of our study indicate that damages from bird and rodents remain high for many crops …

The Effect Of Cooking On Diphacinone Residues Related To Human Consumption Of Feral Pig Tissues, William C. Pitt, Michelle Higashi, Thomas M. Primus

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

We examined feral pig tissues to determine whether the potential hazard of consuming meat from pigs previously exposed to diphacinone rodenticide baits was reduced by cooking. Residue levels were measured in cooked and uncooked tissues of feral pigs exposed to sub-lethal quantities of the anticoagulant rodenticide. Pigs were provided large amounts of baits or untreated food to consume, then euthanized prior to the onset of symptoms indicative of rodenticide poisoning or sickness. For analysis, we grouped pigs into three levels of mean diphacinone consumption: 0, 3.5, and 7.4 mg/kg. None of the pigs displayed obvious signs of toxicity during the …

Chapter Nine: Understanding Declines In Rusty Blackbirds, Russell Greenberg, Dean W. Demarest, Steven M. Matsuoka, Claudia Mettke-Hofmann, David Evers, Paul B. Hamel, Jason Luscier, Luke L. Powell, David Shaw, Michael L. Avery, Keith A. Hobson, Peter J. Blancher, Daniel K. Niven

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

The Rusty Blackbird (Euphagus carolinus), a formerly common breeding species of boreal wetlands, has exhibited the most marked decline of any North American landbird. North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) trends in abundance are estimated to be ‒12.5%/yr. over the last 40 years, which is tantamount to a >95% cumulative decline. Trends in abundance calculated from Christmas Bird Counts (CBC) for a similar period indicate a range-wide decline of ‒5.6%/yr. Qualitative analyses of ornithological accounts suggest the species has been declining for over a century. Several studies document range retraction in the southern boreal forest, whereas limited data …

Comparing A Bioenergetics Model With Feeding Rates Of Caged European Starlings, H. Jeffrey Homan, Randal S. Stahl, George M. Linz

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

We tested a bioenergetics model integrated within a mortality model that estimates numbers of European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) poisoned with the avicide, Compound DRC-1339 Concentrate. The bioenergetics model predicted daily metabolic rate. Accuracy and reliability of this variable is critical because other algorithms (e.g., toxicity regressions, feeding behavior) in the mortality model depend on metabolic rate to calculate the amount of DRC-1339 ingested per bird. We tested the bioenergetics model by comparing its estimates of metabolic rate with those generated from measuring feeding rates of caged starlings during a feeding trial conducted outdoors during January 2008. Over the …

Assessment Of Tannin Variation In Tamarisk Foliage Across A Latitudinal Gradient, Amanda M. Hussey, B. A. Kimball, Jonathan M. Friedman

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Certain phenotypic traits of plants vary with latitude of origin. To understand if tannin concentration varies among populations of tamarisk (Tamarix spp.) according to a latitudinal gradient, an analytical method was adapted from an enological tannin assay. The tannin content (wet basis) of tamarisk foliage collected from 160 plants grown in a common garden ranged from 8.26 to 62.36 mg/g and was not correlated with the latitude of the original North American plant collection site. Tannins do not contribute to observed differences in herbivory observed among these tamarisk populations.

Who Hits And Hoots At Whom? Potential For Interference Competition Between Barred And Northern Spotted Owls, Nicholas J. Van Lanen, Alan B. Franklin, Kathryn P. Huyvaert, Raoul F. Reiser Ii, Peter C. Carlson

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

The northern spotted owl (Strix occidentalis caurina) is a controversial species in the Pacific Northwest that is listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. The barred owl (Strix varia), a species historically restricted to eastern North America, has recently expanded its range to completely overlap that of the northern spotted owl. Recent evidence suggests that barred owls may compete with northern spotted owls and may be one cause for recent declines in some northern spotted owl populations. Our focus was to examine whether barred owls have the potential to competitively exclude northern spotted owls from …

Efficacy Of Erl-4221 As An Ovotoxin For Feral Pigs (Sus Scrofa), Dustin L. Sanders, Fang Xie, Richard E. Mauldin, Jerome C. Hurley, Lowell A. Miller, Michelle R. Garcia, Randy W. Deyoung, David B. Long, Tyler A. Campbell

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Context. The expansion of feral pig populations across the United States has increased the occurrence of damage and damage complaints.Newtechniques are needed to more effectively manage feral pig damage, including the development of fertility control agents.

Aims. We aimed to assess the ovotoxic properties of ERL-4221 as a candidate fertility control agent for feral pigs.

Methods. We conducted two palatability trials to determine ERL-4221 acceptance and one experimental trial with ERL- 4221 at the captive wildlife facility of Texas A&M University-Kingsville during 2008. Our experimental trial had three treatments, a control containing no ERL-4221, baits containing 16.0 …

The Need To Quantify Ecosystem Services Provided By Birds, Daniel G. Wenny, Travis L. Devault, Matthew D. Johnson, Dave Kelly, Cagan H. Sekercioglu, Diana F. Tomback, Christopher J. Whelan

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

What are the birds worth--what is their actual dollar value to human society? To most of us in the ornithological community, birds are invaluable. But in these times we need more specific rationales to convince policy makers and business leaders to include bird conservation in land-use and development decisions. Over the past two decades, awareness of our dependence on a variety of ecosystem services (natural ecological processes that benefit human society) and of their importance and prevalence has progressed toward the goal of making conservation a mainstream value. Building strategies for the protection of ecosystem services into conservation and land-use …

The Nebraska Deer Exchange: A Novel Program For Donating Harvested Deer, Aaron M. Hildreth, Scott Hygnstrom, Kit M. Hams, Kurt C. Vercauteren

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Populations of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) have become overabundant throughout their historic range, especially in developed landscapes. A variety of techniques, including controlled hunts in urban–suburban areas, are being used to increase harvest. Deer donation programs have been initiated in nearly all 50 states of the United States, and have been successful at providing venison to the hungry, but at significant costs to wildlife agencies and hunters. Our objectives were to: 1) develop a low-cost program to facilitate the exchange of excess harvested deer from hunters to recipients; 2) evaluate the attitudes of participating hunters and recipients; and …

Artificial Nest Cavity Used Successfully By Native Species And Avoided By European Starlings, Laura A. Tyson, Bradley F. Blackwelll, Thomas W. Seamans

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

We describe a weather-durable cavity design used successfully by cavity-nesting species native to the eastern USA and, although accessible, avoided by European Starlings (Sturnus vulgaris). The artificial nest cavity was constructed using 9.5-cm inside diameter polyvinyl chloride tubes cut to 27.5-cm lengths. The tubes were mounted horizontally with 5.1- cm entry holes drilled through one of the capped ends. Eastern Bluebirds (Sialia sialis), House Wrens (Troglodytes aedon), and Tree Swallows (Tachycineta bicolor) nested in 49 of 100, newly mounted tubes on utility poles in north-central Ohio, USA from April through June 2009. …

Vertebrate Species Introductions In The United States And Its Territories, Gary W. Witmer, Pam L. Fuller

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

At least 1,065 introduced vertebrate species have been introduced in the United States and its territories, including at least 86 mammalian, 127 avian, 179 reptilian/amphibian, and 673 fish species. Examples in each major taxonomic group include domestic cat, small Indian mongoose, red fox, goat, pig, rabbit, rats, house mouse, gray squirrel, nutria, starling, Indian common myna, red-vented bulbul, brown treesnake, red-eared slider, brown trout, tilapia, and grass carp. We briefly review some of these species and the types of damage they cause. We then review the basic types of methods used for control or eradication of each taxonomic group, including …