Digital Commons Network^™

An Investigation Of Paranormal Beliefs And Science Motivation Among Psychology And Biology Students, Eric Prichard

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Samples of introductory psychology students, advanced psychology students, and advanced biology students completed the Revised Paranormal Beliefs Scale (R-PBS) and the Science Motivation Questionnaire (SMQ). Results indicated that introductory psychology students reported having more paranormal beliefs than either advanced psychology students or advanced biology studnets. The advanced psychology and biology students did not differ from each other in paranormal beliefs. The biology students reported higher levels of science motivation than the psychology students at all levels. Subsequent exploratory analysis indicated that science motivation than psychology students at all levels. Subsequent exploratory analyses indicated that science motivation predicts lower levels of …

Characterizing Coaggregation Among Strains Of Human Gastrointestinal Bacteria, Lindsey Kolar

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

No abstract provided.

Socio-Moral Disgust And Its Relation To The Disgust System, David Sparkman

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

No abstract provided.

Challenges And Opportunities With Big Data 2011-1, Divyakant Agrawal, Philip Bernstein, Elisa Bertino, Susan Davidson, Umeshwas Dayal, Michael Franklin, Johannes Gehrke, Laura Haas, Alon Halevy, Jiawei Han, H.V. Jagadish, Alexandros Labrinidis, Sam Madden, Yannis Papakonstantinou, Jignesh Patel, Raghu Ramakrishnan, Kenneth Ross, Cyrus Shahabi, Dan Suciu, Shiv Vaithyanathan, Jennifer Widom

Cyber Center Technical Reports

The promise of data-driven decision-making is now being recognized broadly, and there is growing enthusiasm for the notion of ``Big Data.’’ While the promise of Big Data is real -- for example, it is estimated that Google alone contributed 54 billion dollars to the US economy in 2009 -- there is currently a wide gap between its potential and its realization.
Heterogeneity, scale, timeliness, complexity, and privacy problems with Big Data impede progress at all phases of the pipeline that can create value from data. The problems start right away during data acquisition, when the data tsunami requires us to …

Identification And Analysis Of Common Bean (Phaseolus Vulgaris L.) Transcriptomes By Massively Parallel Pyrosequencing, Venu Kalavacharla, Zhanji Liu, Blake C. Meyers, Jyothi Thimmapuram, Kalpalatha Melmaiee

Cyber Center Publications

Common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) is the most important food legume in the world. Although this crop is very important to both the developed and developing world as a means of dietary protein supply, resources available in common bean are limited. Global transcriptome analysis is important to better understand gene expression, genetic variation, and gene structure annotation in addition to other important features. However, the number and description of common bean sequences are very limited, which greatly inhibits genome and transcriptome research. Here we used 454 pyrosequencing to obtain a substantial transcriptome dataset for common bean.

Mechanism For Pre-B Cell Loss In Mutant Ali/Ali Rabbits, Gregory Robert Robbins

Dissertations

Pre-B cell receptor (pre-BCR) signaling is a critical checkpoint in B cell development in which B-lineage cells expressing functional μ-chains undergo selective expansion. My dissertation work used a rabbit model system to study how VH structure affects the early stages of B cell development in the bone marrow (BM). Developing B cells in mutant ali/ali rabbits predominantly utilize VH4 during VDJ gene rearrangement. However, most of the VH4-utilizing B cells encounter a severe block early in B cell development. In contrast, wildtype rabbit B cells predominantly rearrange VH1, a gene >90% identical to VH4, and develop normally. We hypothesized that …

Molecular Expression Of Neuroprotective And Neurodestructive Signaling Systems Following Axotomy-Induced Target Disconnection: Relevance To Als, Melissa Marie Haulcomb

Dissertations

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is the most common adult motoneuron (MN) degenerative disease. Discovery of a portion of familial cases with a mutation in the gene superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) gene led to the development of a transgenic mouse model. Pre-symptomatic SOD1 mice show no symptoms well into adulthood, however once symptom onset has occurred they display pathological hallmarks of ALS. The initial pathological event is loss of neuromuscular junctions in the lower limbs and therefore the die-back theory of ALS, suggests disconnection from the target musculature leads to MN degeneration. Our lab utilizes a peripheral nerve injury model to …

Conflict Of Norms Or Conflict Of Laws?: Different Techniques In The Fragmentation Of International Law, Ralf Michaels, Joost H.B. Pauwelyn

Faculty Scholarship

One of the most pressing topics in current international law is fragmentation. Traditionally, most constructive attempts to deal with fragmentation have been based on analogies what one of us, in an earlier book, called "conflicts of norms" - those rules in domestic law that deal with conflicts of norms within one legal system. In this article, we assess under what circumstances a different approach, based on an analogy to conflict of laws - those rules in domestic law that deal with conflicts of norms between different legal systems - yields a more adequate structure. The result is that public international …

Neuroendocrine Consequences Of Binge Alcohol Exposure During Peri-Puberty On Functioning Of The Hypothalamo-Pituitary-Adrenal (Hpa) Axis, Magdalena Malgorzata Przybycien-Szymanska

Dissertations

Binge alcohol (EtOH) exposure in adolescence is a fundamental health concern. In 2005, over 20% of teenagers between ages 15 and 17 reported binge drinking behavior within a one month period preceding the survey (Dept. of Health and Human Services: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration). Binge drinking is defined as consuming enough alcohol within a 2.0 h period to bring blood alcohol concentration above 0.08%. In the adolescent population, this type of alcohol exposure tends to be repeated. In adults, alcohol abuse has been correlated with increased incidence of mood disorders and these disorders are characterized by dysregulation …

The Role Of Sdf1/Cxcr4 Signaling In Opioid-Induced Hypernociception, Natalie Wilson

Dissertations

Opioids currently represent the best treatment option for severe and chronic pain conditions. Opioids while effective at controlling pain states also come with a number of side effects such as respiratory depression, urinary retention, dependence, tolerance, and opioid-induced hypernociception (OIH). OIH is a phenomenon in which opioids induce pain and this pain is often experienced at a site separate from the site of injury. Much research has been conducted investigating the mechanism of OIH, but the mechanism remains unsolved. One potential mechanism that has yet to be adequately explored is chemokines. Chemokines role in OIH is warranted given recent studies …

Patriarchy, Christianity, And The African Hiv/Aids Epidemic: Rethinking Christian Marriage In Light Of The Experiences Of Hiv Positive Women In Tanzania, Melissa Danielle Browning

Dissertations

Given that women and girls carry the heaviest burdens of the African HIV/AIDS epidemic, their lived experiences should be the starting point for any pedagogy of prevention. In light of this claim, this dissertation project uses qualitative fieldwork with HIV positive women living in Mwanza, Tanzania to ask why marriage is an HIV/AIDS risk factor. By beginning with women's experience as a hermeneutical lens, this dissertation seeks to establish a creative space where African women can imagine new alternatives to HIV/AIDS prevention that would promote human flourishing and abundant life in African communities. The aim of this dissertation is to …

Mechanisms Of Adenovirus Membrane Permeabilization, Oana Maier

Dissertations

For a successful infection to occur, a virus must first penetrate host cell membranes to access intracellular sites of viral replication. Currently the mechanism through which adenovirus, a non-enveloped, dsDNA virus, disrupts the endosomal membrane during cell entry is not well characterized.

Recent studies suggest that adenovirus protein VI, which is released from the interior of the capsid during cell entry, has all of the in vitro membrane lytic activity of the virion. We found that protein VI binds membranes via an amino-terminal 80 residue α-helical domain. Critical to this interaction are conserved hydrophobic and basic lysine residues within this …

Cofactors In Coronavirus Entry, Ana Shulla

Dissertations

Viruses have evolved complex ways to penetrate host barriers and cause disease. One of the most important barriers the virus has to cross is the cellular membrane. Enveloped viruses accomplish this task by viral glycoprotein-mediated binding to host cells and fusion of virus and host cell membranes. For the coronaviruses, viral spike (S) proteins execute these cell entry functions. In my dissertation research I focused on understanding the coronavirus spike proteins as well as other cofactors required for S-mediated entry into cells.

The S proteins are set apart from other viral and cellular membrane fusion proteins by their extensively palmitoylated …

The Impact Of Treating Major Depression During Pregnancy On The Postpartum Phase, Jamie Kent

Dissertations

Major depression during pregnancy is a risk factor for postpartum depression (PPD). Medically acceptable treatments for depression during pregnancy and postpartum are limited and many women are turning to complementary and alternative treatments. The current project examined whether treatment of major depression during pregnancy reduced the risk for PPD and explored predictors of PPD in this high-risk sample. One hundred twenty women were clinically assessed using the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD17), the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II), and the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID) at ten weeks, six months, and nine months postpartum following random assignment to one …

Professional And Personal Lives Of Psychologists: Spillover, Family Functioning, And Life Satsiafction, Pedja Stevanovic

Dissertations

Two-wave, longitudinal data from a national, web-based survey of doctoral psychologists was used to examine work life, spillover, family, and personal lives. A measure of spillover, Stressors and Enhancers for Psychologists, was also evaluated. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated two negatively correlated dimensions of work spillover: positive spillover termed family enhancers and negative spillover termed family stressors. This measure was significantly related to a widely used, more general measure of positive and negative spillover and demonstrated high temporal stability. Respondents reported a significantly higher incidence of family enhancers than family stressors at both data collection points. Consistent with previous research, the …

Black Club Women's Purposes For Establishing Kindergartens In The Progressive Era, 1890-1910, Jean Marie Robbins

Dissertations

Little literature exists that examines black people's efforts to educate their young children during the Progressive Era. It was the period in which early childhood education in the form of kindergarten began to flourish in the United States and around the world. Even in the abundance of literature about kindergarten's successes and its potential to transform impoverished families, the overwhelmingly poor black population remained invisible to the great majority of researchers writing about the progress of that movement.

Yet primary historical documents, such as the National Association of Colored Women's Clubs (NACW) records, manuscripts, and Progressive Era newspapers, reveal that …

Biodiversity And Ecosystem Function In The Gulf Of Maine: Pattern And Role Of Zooplankton And Pelagic Nekton, Catherine L. Johnson, Jeffrey A. Runge, K. Alexandra Curtis, Edward G. Durbin, Jonathan A. Hare, Lewis S. Incze, Jason S. Link, Gary D. Melvin, Todd D. O'Brien, Lou Van Guelpen

Graduate School of Oceanography Faculty Publications

This paper forms part of a broader overview of biodiversity of marine life in the Gulf of Maine area (GoMA), facilitated by the GoMA Census of Marine Life program. It synthesizes current data on species diversity of zooplankton and pelagic nekton, including compilation of observed species and descriptions of seasonal, regional and cross-shelf diversity patterns. Zooplankton diversity in the GoMA is characterized by spatial differences in community composition among the neritic environment, the coastal shelf, and deep offshore waters. Copepod diversity increased with depth on the Scotian Shelf. On the coastal shelf of the western Gulf of Maine, the number …

Effects Of Nitrogen On Temporal And Spatial Patterns Of Nitrate In Streams And Soil Solution Of A Central Hardwood Forest, Frank S. Gilliam, Mary Beth Adams

Biological Sciences Faculty Research

This study examined changes in stream and soil water NO3−and their relationship to temporal and spatial patterns of NO3−in soil solution of watersheds at the Fernow Experimental Forest, West Virginia. Following tenfold increases in stream NO3−concentrations over a 13-year period (1969–1981) on untreated WS4, concentrations have declined through 2006. Followingfourfold increases in stream NO3−on treatment WS3 from pretreatment levels to a 1998 maximum, concentrations have declinedthrough 2006, despite additions of N. Concentrations of soil water NO3−were consistently lower for WS4 compared to WS3.Data for soil water NO3−on WS3 versus WS4 followed patterns of net mineralization and nitrification for these watersheds.Nitrogen …

Governance In The United States Columbia River Basin: An Historical Analysis, Eric Thomas Mogren

Dissertations and Theses

Political and institutional leaders in the Pacific Northwest have struggled over how best to manage Columbia River Basin development and the implications of that development since the early 1900s. Their efforts present a seeming paradox: whereas prominent political and institutional leaders believed some form of regional governance system was necessary, those same leaders refused to establish systems with the decision-making authority necessary to resolve the issues that led them to create the systems in the first place. This study examines the historical record at the institutional level to determine why. This study found twenty-six governance systems proposed since 1933 of …

Eastern Michigan University Undergraduate Catalog, 2011-2012, Office Of The Registrar

Undergraduate Catalogs

No abstract provided.

Eastern Michigan University Undergraduate Catalog, 2011-2012, Office Of The Registrar

Undergraduate Catalogs

No abstract provided.

Reverse Settlements As Patent Invalidity Signals, Gregory Dolin

All Faculty Scholarship

Over the last decade a new type of settlements, commonly referred to as “reversed payment settlements” or simply “reverse settlements,” emerged in litigation over patents covering pharmaceutical products. What differentiates these new settlements from their traditional counterparts is that whereas traditionally, the alleged trespasser on someone else's rights pays the rights-holder to settle the litigation, in these new settlements it is the rights holder that pays the alleged trespasser. These settlements are a direct consequence of the various incentives provided by the Hatch-Waxman Act - an Act designed to increase competition between brand name and generic manufactures of pharmaceutical products. …

3-Substitued Indoles: One Pot Synthesis And Evaluation Of Anticancer And Src Kinase Inhibitory Activities, V. Kameshwara Rao, Bhupender S. Chhikara, Amir Nasrolahi Shirazi, Rakesh Tiwari, Keykavous Parang, Anil Kumar

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

An efficient and economical method was developed for the synthesis of 3-substituted indoles by one pot three-component coupling reaction of a substituted or unsubstituted benzaldehyde, N-methylaniline, and indole or N-methylindole using Yb(OTf)3-SiO2 as a catalyst. All the synthesized compounds were evaluated for inhibition of cell proliferation of human colon carcinoma (HT-29), human ovarian adenocarcinoma (SK-OV-3), and c-Src kinase activity. The 4-methylphenyl (4o and 4p) and 4-methoxyphenyl (4q) indole derivatives inhibited the cell proliferation of SK-OV-3 and HT-29 cells by 7077% at a concentration of 50 μM. The unsubstituted phenyl (4d) and 3-nitrophenyl (4l) derivatives showed the inhibition of c-Src kinase …

Dynamic Light Scattering And Zeta Potential Of Colloidal Mixtures Of Amelogenin And Hydroxyapatite In Calcium And Phosphate Rich Ionic Milieus, Vuk Uskoković, Roselyn Odsinada, Sonia Djordjevic, Stefan Habelitz

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

The concept of zeta-potential has been used for more than a century as a basic parameter in controlling the stability of colloidal suspensions, irrespective of the nature of their particulate ingredients – organic or inorganic. There are prospects that self-assembly of peptide species and the protein-mineral interactions related to biomineralization may be controlled using this fundamental physicochemical parameter. In this study, we have analyzed the particle size and zeta-potential of the full-length recombinant human amelogenin (rH174), the main protein of the developing enamel matrix, in the presence of calcium and phosphate ions and hydroxyapatite (HAP) particles. As calcium and phosphate …

Targeted Decorin Gene Therapy Delivered With Adeno-Associated Virus Effectively Retards Corneal Neovascularization In Vivo, Rajiv R. Mohan, Jonathan C. K. Tovey, Ajay Sharma, Gregory S. Schultz, John W. Cowden, Ashish Tandon

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Decorin, small leucine-rich proteoglycan, has been shown to modulate angiogenesis in nonocular tissues. This study tested a hypothesis that tissue-selective targeted decorin gene therapy delivered to the rabbit stroma with adeno-associated virus serotype 5 (AAV5) impedes corneal neovascularization (CNV) in vivo without significant side effects. An established rabbit CNV model was used. Targeted decorin gene therapy in the rabbit stroma was delivered with a single topical AAV5 titer (100 μl; 5x10^12 vg/ml) application onto the stroma for two minutes after removing corneal epithelium. The levels of CNV were examined with stereomicroscopy, H&E staining, lectin, collagen type IV, CD31 immunocytochemistry and …

Court Review, Volume 47, Issues 1-2 (Complete)

Court Review: Journal of the American Judges Association

Articles

4 Fact or Fiction? The Myth and Reality of the CSI Effect (Steven M. Smith, Veronica Stinson, & Marc W. Patry)

8 Studying Juror Expectations for Scientific Evidence: A New Model for Looking at the CSI Myth (Donald E. Shelton, Gregg Barak, & Young S. Kim)

20 Should Judges Worry About the “CSI Effect”? (Simon A. Cole & Rachel Dioso-Villa)

32 High-Profile Cases: Are They More Than a Wrinkle in the Daily Routine? (Robert Alsdorf)

38 Ten Tips for Judges Dealing with the Media (Steve Leben)

46 Proposed AJA Bylaws Changes

Book Review

42 On Courts and Communication Strategies: …

Fact Or Fiction? The Myth And Reality Of The Csi Effect, Steven M. Smith, Veronica Stinson, Marc W. Patry

Court Review: Journal of the American Judges Association

Anyone who has been to a crime lab or experienced the presentation of forensic evidence in open court knows that there is a disconnect between the way forensic science is depicted on popular television programs and the reality of criminal investigations. The number of forensically themed television shows and popular entertainment has exploded over the last decade, and shows such as Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) and its related spin-offs are among the most popular shows in North America. Indeed, CSI is consistently among the top ten shows in a given week, and CSI: Miami was rated the most …

A Compensatory Liability Regime To Promote The Exchange Of Microbial Genetic Resources For Research And Benefit Sharing, Jerome H. Reichman

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

What Is The Emperor Wearing? The Secret Lives Of Ecosystem Services, James Salzman

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

The Prospects For Family Business In Research Universities, Alex Stewart, Anne S. Miner

Management Faculty Research and Publications

Family business shows the promise of becoming a respected scholarly field in research universities. However, success is not a given. We inquire about its prospects, with reference to the sociology of science. A key requirement for success that has been met is identification with an important and distinctive domain of inquiry. This domain is at the intersection two phenomena - of kinship and business - but more attention has been paid to enterprise than to kinship. We suggest that this creates important windows for theoretical development, an important requirement for a core presence in research universities. We further suggest additional …