Digital Commons Network^™

Are American Women Turning To Reusable And Greener Menstrual Products Due To Health And Environmental Pollution Concerns?, Ann Borowski

Theses

This research investigates environmental and health concerns related to disposable tampons and sanitary napkins. Much like diapers, tampons and sanitary napkins are comprised of synthetic materials that do not readily decompose. A woman will menstruate for approximately 40 years of her life. During that time, a significant amount of disposable feminine hygiene products accumulate in landfills and at times wash up on the shores of local beaches. Additionally, during the manufacturing and bleaching process, there is potential for dioxin to be created which has both health and environmental impacts. From a health perspective, many women experience discomfort, infection, and in …

Security Of The Sha-3 Candidates Keccak And Blue Midnight Wish: Zero-Sum Property, Liliya Andreicheva

Theses

The SHA-3 competition for the new cryptographic standard was initiated by National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in 2007. In the following years, the event grew to one of the top areas currently being researched by the CS and cryptographic communities. The first objective of this thesis is to overview, analyse, and critique the SHA-3 competition. The second one is to perform an in-depth study of the security of two candidate hash functions, the finalist Keccak and the second round candidate Blue Midnight Wish. The study shall primarily focus on zero-sum distinguishers. First we attempt to attack reduced versions …

An Experiential Comparative Analysis Of Two Remote Usability Testing Methods, Erika Varga

Theses

Remote usability testing is a key tool for usability professionals. Several remote methods exist and it is often difficult to choose the appropriate method. Testing lower-fidelity prototypes often present unique problems because they provide minimally aesthetic and minimally interactive partial representations of a final product. This qualitative and experiential pilot study is an attempt to compare a remote synchronous (RS) usability testing method where the moderator and participant are displaced by space, and a remote asynchronous (RA) usability testing method where the moderator and participant are displaced by both time and space. An important byproduct of the comparison is the …

Service Level Agreements And Virtual Machines, Jordan Caminiti

Theses

Virtual machines (VMs) have been used for some time now, but only now with the newer and faster hardware that is being developed, now it is possible to consolidate many machines down to a single one running multiple instances of operating systems each with their own purpose. For as long as there have been users to use the servers, there has been the need for service level agreements. Now with the virtualization of services comes the need for a new breed of service level agreements. Service level agreements (SLAs) rarely exist for virtual servers unlike physical servers. Since this is …

Re: Sleep And The Family Doctor: Time To Lead, D. Bluestein, A. C. Healey, C. M. Rutledge

Ellmer School of Nursing Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Educating Advanced Practice Nurses In Using Social Media In Rural Health Care, Carolyn M. Rutledge, Michelle Renaud, Laurel Shephard, Michele Bordelon, Tina Haney, Donna Gregory, Paula Ayers

Ellmer School of Nursing Faculty Publications

Health care in the United States is facing a crisis in providing access to quality care for those in underserved and rural regions. Advanced practice nurses are at the forefront of addressing such issues, through modalities such as health care technology. Many nursing education programs are seeking strategies for better educating students on technology utilization. Health care technology includes electronic health records, telemedicine, and clinical decision support systems. However, little focus has been placed on the role of social media in health care. This paper describes an educational workshop using standardized patients and hands-on experiences to introduce advanced practice nurses …

Educating Advanced Practice Nurses In Using Social Media In Rural Health Care, Carolyn M. Rutledge, Michelle Renaud, Laurel Shepherd, Michele Bordelon, Tina Haney, Donna Gregory, Paula Ayers

Ellmer School of Nursing Faculty Publications

Health care in the United States is facing a crisis in providing access to quality care for those in underserved and rural regions. Advanced practice nurses are at the forefront of addressing such issues, through modalities such as health care technology. Many nursing education programs are seeking strategies for better educating students on technology utilization. Health care technology includes electronic health records, telemedicine, and clinical decision support systems. However, little focus has been placed on the role of social media in health care. This paper describes an educational workshop using standardized patients and hands-on experiences to introduce advanced practice nurses …

Coping Strategies Of Family Members Of Hospitalized Psychiatric Patients, Phyllis M. Eaton, Bertha L. Davis, Pamela V. Hammond, Esther H. Condon, Zina T. Mcgee

Ellmer School of Nursing Faculty Publications

This exploratory research paper investigated the coping strategies of families of hospitalized psychiatric patients and identified their positive and negative coping strategies. In this paper, the coping strategies of 45 family members were examined using a descriptive, correlational, mixed method research approach. Guided by the Neuman Systems Model and using the Family Crisis Oriented Personal Evaluation Scales and semistructured interviews, this paper found that these family members used more emotion-focused coping strategies than problem-focused coping strategies. The common coping strategies used by family members were communicating with immediate family, acceptance of their situation, passive appraisal, avoidance, and spirituality. The …

Evaluation Of The Iqa Delay Estimation Method, Yaye Keita, Mitsuru Saito

CUTR Faculty Journal Publications

The Incremental Queue Accumulation (IQA) method is the new delay estimation method for signalized intersections adopted for the Highway Capacity Manual 2010. Using a signalized intersection and a remote data collection facility, the IQA method was evaluated for its accuracy and for potential challenges that practitioners may encounter as they use the new method. The results were compared with delays obtained by the delay estimation models included in the Highway Capacity Manual 2000. It was found that the IQA method was promising and theoretically more robust than the current delay estimation model, but field data collection could be challenging. © …

An Optimisation-Based Framework For Complex Business Process: Healthcare Application, Waleed Abo Hamad

Doctoral

The Irish healthcare system is currently facing major pressures due to rising demand, caused by population growth, ageing and high expectations of service quality. This pressure on the Irish healthcare system creates a need for support from research institutions in dealing with decision areas such as resource allocation and performance measurement. While approaches such as modelling, simulation, multi-criteria decision analysis, performance management, and optimisation can – when applied skilfully – improve healthcare performance, they represent just one part of the solution. Accordingly, to achieve significant and sustainable performance, this research aims to develop a practical, yet effective, optimisation-based framework for …

Addressing The Fertility Needs Of Hiv-Seropositive Males, Brian A. Levine, Sahadat K. Nurudeen, Jennifer T. Gosselin, Mark V. Sauer

Psychology Faculty Publications

An increasing number of serodiscordant couples are utilizing advanced reproductive technologies to address their reproductive needs. Recent literature has demonstrated that it is not only technically possible but also safe to utilize sperm-washing techniques to allow for the creation of embryos, thereby preventing both horizontal and vertical transmission of HIV. This article addresses the strengths and weakness of various reproductive techniques and discusses our experience at Columbia University (NY, USA), the location of the largest HIV-focused fertility program in the USA.

Gera Conference Program [2011], Gera

Georgia Educational Research Association Conference

Conference program for 2011.

Moral Cleansing And Moral Licenses: Experimental Evidence, Pablo Brañas-Garza, Marisa Bucheli, Maria Paz Espinosa, Teresa García-Muñoz

ESI Working Papers

Research on moral cleansing and moral self-licensing has introduced dynamic considerations in the theory of moral behavior. Past bad actions trigger negative feelings that make people more likely to engage in future moral behavior to offset them. Symmetrically, past good deeds favor a positive self-perception that creates licensing effects, leading people to engage in behavior that is less likely to be moral. In short, a deviation from a “normal state of being” is balanced with a subsequent action that compensates the prior behavior. We model the decision of an individual trying to reach the optimal level of moral self-worth over …

(Bad) Luck Or (Lack Of) Effort?: Comparing Social Sharing Norms Between Us And Europe, Pedro Rey-Biel, Roman M. Sheremeta, Neslihan Uler

ESI Working Papers

We compare the determinants of individual giving between two countries, Spain and the US, which differ in their redistribution policies and their beliefs over the causes of poverty. By varying the information about the determinants of income, we find that, although overall giving is similar in both countries when subjects know the actual role of luck and effort, Spanish subjects give more when they are uninformed compared to American subjects. Using elicited beliefs, we find that this is due to Spanish subjects associating poverty with bad luck and Americans believing that low performers did not work hard enough.

Editing Sophia Peabody Hawthorne’S Travel Writing And The Conundrum Of Copies, Patricia Dunlavy Valenti

Documentary Editing: Journal of the Association for Documentary Editing (1979–2011)

For Sophia Peabody Hawthorne, living and writing were virtually synonymous. An inveterate letter-writer and journal-keeper, she was among the first American women to document her travels abroad. In December of 1833, Sophia Peabody departed for Cuba; she spent the next eighteen months on a coffee plantation, where her older sister Mary was a governess. In 1853, Sophia Hawthorne left the United States again, this time with her husband, Nathaniel Hawthorne, who assumed the post of United States Consul at Liverpool. During the subsequent seven years, Sophia traveled throughout England and Scotland. She and her daughters, Una and Rose, also journeyed …

“A Broad, Generous Stream Of Love And Bounty”: The Concord Sewing Circle And The Holley School For Freedmen, Mary Lamb Shelden

Documentary Editing: Journal of the Association for Documentary Editing (1979–2011)

Following her trip in October 1875 to the Women’s Congress in Syracuse, Louisa May Alcott spent November and December at Dr. Miller’s Bath Hotel in New York City. There, she spent time with Sallie Holley (1818–1893), who was a frequent visitor at the Hotel. The two spent six weeks “go[ing] about together”: on Thanksgiving Day, they took a carriage ride together in Central Park; another day, they went to tea at the home of a cousin of Holley’s.1 Holley was among the “notables” Alcott remarked on in her Journal, along with Henry Ward Beecher, Bret Harte, Ann Booth, and Moncure …

What’S In A Name? Cultural Onomastics And Other Scary Things About The Lincolns And Their Contemporaries, James M. Cornelius

Documentary Editing: Journal of the Association for Documentary Editing (1979–2011)

Let me engage in some speculative onomastics. Onomastics is the study of both what a person or a group calls himself, herself, or itself, and what others call that entity. It is the Lincolns’ names for themselves, and what others have called them, that is the main point of discussion for this talk. Many of their contemporaries underwent similar letter-adding or letter-dropping in their names. Again, this will be speculative. I am no more a cultural historian than the next person. Nor have I performed a thorough search of the scholarly literature on either nineteenth-century naming and spelling patterns or …

The Lion In Winter : Review Of Collected Works Of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Volume Viii: Letters And Social Aims Edited By Ronald A. Bosco, Glen M. Johnson, And Joel Myerson., Richard Deming

Documentary Editing: Journal of the Association for Documentary Editing (1979–2011)

The recent publication by Harvard University Press of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s Letters and Social Aims, Volume VIII of the Collected Works, is in many ways the most important contribution of this ongoing project, which presents scholarly editions of one of America’s most central literary and philosophical figures. Among all of Emerson’s books, Letters and Social Aims is without a doubt the most vexed in terms of textual questions, coming as it did so late in his life and at the dimming of his powers. However, the volume also represents some of the finest, most necessary thinking of this shaper of …

Changes Coming To Documentary Editing, Amanda A Gailey, Andrew Jewell

Documentary Editing: Journal of the Association for Documentary Editing (1979–2011)

This spring the Council of the Association for Documentary Editing (ADE), working with the Publications Committee, accepted our proposal to edit Documentary Editing, beginning with the 2012 issue; the Council also approved a change in the journal’s title to Scholarly Editing: The Annual of the Association for Documentary Editing. Our plan is to continue the fine traditions of the journal— essays about the theory and practice of editing, reviews of editions, and news pertinent to the ADE membership—while simultaneously taking the journal in an exciting new direction. Owing largely to a partnership with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Center for Digital …

Les Coûts Des Lésions Professionnelles : Une Revue De Littérature, Martin Lebeau, Patrice Duguay

États de la question, rapports d’expertise et revues de littérature

Cette revue de littérature s'inscrit dans la volonté institutionnelle de développer des indicateurs économiques de santé et de sécurité au travail, sur lesquels pourra s'appuyer le choix de priorités de recherche, en complément des indicateurs et autres informations déjà utilisés à l'IRSST.

Ce rapport vise plus spécifiquement à identifier, définir et classer les composantes des coûts des lésions professionnelles, ainsi qu'à répertorier les différentes approches économiques qui sont utilisées pour estimer les coûts des lésions professionnelles. Ce rapport ne vise donc pas à répertorier les montants réels ou estimés des coûts des lésions professionnelles que l'on retrouve dans la littérature. …

Analysis Of Heel Raise Exercise With Three Foot Positions, Kimberly J. Arnsdorff, G. Ken Limbaugh, Bryan L. Riemann

Health Sciences & Kinesiology: Faculty Publications

Prior research revealed activation differences between the medial (MG) and lateral (LG) gastrocnemius when performing heel raise exercise with neutral (N), internally-rotated (IR) and externally-rotated (ER) foot positions. Studying underlying biomechanics may help explain activation differences. The purpose was to compare ankle (AN), knee (KN), and hip (HI) contributions (initial joint angles) to attaining each initial foot position, ankle flexion-extension range of motion, ankle mechanical energy expenditure, repetition time, and percent cycle concentric-eccentric transition between N, IR, and ER foot positions. Twenty healthy subjects (11 male, 9 female) with resistance training experience performed twelve repetitions of free-weight (135% body mass) …

The Specter Of Nature, Stephanie Clark

Theses

The Specter of Nature is a photographic series that examines the tenuous boundaries between culture and Nature. Through this thesis, I address how, within culture, Nature is defined, distorted, fantasized and then realized through various forms of representation. To this end, Nature historically serves as a backdrop in culturally constructed fantasies and storytelling, as well as historically playing a role in the development of a female identity. The Specter of Nature,examines these concerns through staged photographs of settings created from fabrics and cutouts of decorative papers. By cutting along the patterns embedded in materials such as wrapping papers, wallpapers, scrapbooking …

Investigation Of The Effect Of Geometry And Surface Properties On Water Buildup In Pem Fuel Cell Gas Channel Corners, Cody Rath

Theses

Over the past few decades, polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cells have been gaining increased attention as a possible replacement for the internal combustion engine. Fuel cell vehicles are an attractive alternative because of the fact that they can operate without the use of fossil fuels, are more efficient than internal combustion vehicles, and have no harmful emissions with the only byproducts being heat and pure water. Managing this water has been shown to be a key area of research. In order for fuel cells to operate properly, there must be a certain level of hydration present in the membrane; …

Head-Start Juvenile And Adult Resident Eastern Box Turtles (Terrapene Carolina Carolina): Winter Ecology Including Microhabitat Selection, Temperature Tolerance And Philopatry, Amberly Moon

Theses and Dissertations

The Eastern box turtle (Terrapene carolina carolina) is one of the most common reptiles in North America, but is soon to be threatened due to increased urbanization, disease, and the pet and food trades. In order to assist resource managers in choosing suitable sites for relocation studies, more information on the winter ecology of this species is necessary. We examined the temperature tolerance, microhabitat and degree of philopatry to hibernacula for juvenile and adult E. box turtles for two consecutive winters in Charles City Co, VA. The turtles were tracked via radio telemetry to record point locations during the active …

Determining Impediments To Gene Flow In A Natural Population Of Cornus Florida L. Cornaceae, Using Integrative Landscape Genetic Techniques, Crystal Meadows

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the impact intervening environment has on gene flow in the insect pollinated understory tree, Cornus florida L., by combining GIS and landscape genetic techniques (Least Cost Path Analysis, Circuit Theory, and Conditional Genetic Distance). Traditional population genetic analysis indicated pair-wise relatedness was significantly correlated to distance (Pearson; r = -0.312, P < 0.001) suggesting a spatial component to offspring relatedness. Dispersal throughout the study site was non-random, exhibiting a high degree of pollen pool structure due to restricted gene flow (Two-Generation Analysis; Φft = 0.161, P = 0.001). Forest structure was quantified in GIS layers representing coniferous canopies, mixed hardwood canopies, C. florida canopies, open understory (roads), and open understory/canopy due to tree removal. Of these layers, landscape isolation for the roads layer provided the best-fit model for describing genetic differentiation among sampled pollen pools (Mantel; r = 0.542, P = 0.001). These data also suggest that improved biological inferences can be gained by examining a range of landscape isolation models.

Hindfoot And Forefoot Kinematic Differences Among Individuals With And Without Functional Ankle Instability, Cynthia Wright

Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: Following lateral ankle sprain, many individuals experience recurrent injury and symptoms of giving-way, known as Functional Ankle Instability (FAI). It has been proposed that altered joint kinematics during activity may contribute to instability in these individuals, however research findings have been inconsistent. Objective: To capture foot and ankle kinematic data during two common tasks (walking gait and jump landing) among three groups: individuals with FAI, healthy controls and copers. Design: 3-group observational cross-sectional study. Participants: Participants included 23 individuals with a history of ≥ 1 ankle sprain and at least 2 episodes of giving-way in the past year (FAI: …

Playing With Aesthetics In Art Museums, Susan Glasser

Theses and Dissertations

"Playing with Aesthetics in Art Museums" presents a strategy for using design thinking to mediate engrossing art experiences for adult museum visitors. Built upon a substantiated family resemblance between art and play experiences, the study synthesizes a typology of aesthetic theories, ten germane tenets of game design, and a psychographic portrait of the "archetypal" museum visitor to create a practical framework for delivering engrossing art experiences to adult visitors who typically enter museums with limited art historical knowledge. The interdisciplinary approach used is intended to replace the singular methodologies (whether art historical, pedagogical or aesthetic) that have informed museum practice …

Biochemical Evaluation Of Lignin-Like Molecules, Jay Thakkar

Theses and Dissertations

Current anticoagulants carry a serious risk of bleeding complications. In addition, narrow therapeutic index, drug interactions, immunological reactions, toxicity and high cost to benefit ratio limits the effective use of these drugs in patients with thrombotic conditions.Heparin is the most widely used anticoagulant. We hypothesized that one of the major drawback of heparins, its non-specific interaction with the plasma proteins arises as a result of negative charges. To reduce these non-specific interactions, our laboratory designed sulfated low molecular weight lignin (LMWL) like biomacromolecules, which were found to be direct inhibitors of thrombin and factor Xa, acting through a unique exosite-2 …

Children Of House, Grant White

Theses and Dissertations

A collection of poems

Changes In The Expression Of Thin Filament-Associated Proteins In Colonic Smooth Muscle From Mice During Inflammation, Reem Alkahtani

Theses and Dissertations

The contractility of smooth muscle in inflammatory bowel disease and experimental colitis is reduced due to inhibition of neurotransmitter release and a decrease in the response of smooth muscle to contractile agonists. We and others have shown that inflammation induced by TNBS treatment alters the expression and/or activity of signaling molecules involved in the regulation of Ca2+ mobilization, MLC20 phosphorylation and contraction in colonic smooth muscle. Although, thin filament- associated proteins such as calponin, caldesmon, tropomyosin and smoothelin do not directly participate in contraction, they regulate acto-myosin interaction and thus, muscle contraction. Calponin, caldesmon and tropomyosin inhibit actomyosin interaction and …