Digital Commons Network^™

Educational Policies Committee Program Proposal, College Of Agriculture And Applied Sciences, May 18, 2012, Utah State University

Educational Policies Committee

The six departments in the College of Agriculture (COA) and the three departments in the College of Natural Resources (CNR) request the creation of a Sustainable Systems Minor.

Educational Policies Committee Program Proposal, College Of Natural Resources, May 18, 2012, Utah State University

Educational Policies Committee

The six departments in the College of Agriculture (COA) and the three departments in the College of Natural Resources (CNR) request the creation of a Sustainable Systems Minor. A committee of nine faculty members developed the concept and requirements of the minor outlined herein. These requirements were then reviewed and agreed to by the faculty of the nine departments. Students in any University major can declare the Sustainable Systems Minor at any point in their undergraduate program or when they submit their graduation paperwork. Diplomas of students meeting the requirements of the minor will include the title of their degree …

The African Cichlid Fish Astatotilapia Burtoni Uses Acoustic Communication For Reproduction: Sound Production, Hearing, And Behavioral Significance, Karen P. Maruska, Uyhun S. Ung, Russell D. Fernald

Faculty Publications

Sexual reproduction in all animals depends on effective communication between signalers and receivers. Many fish species, especially the African cichlids, are well known for their bright coloration and the importance of visual signaling during courtship and mate choice, but little is known about what role acoustic communication plays during mating and how it contributes to sexual selection in this phenotypically diverse group of vertebrates. Here we examined acoustic communication during reproduction in the social cichlid fish, Astatotilapia burtoni. We characterized the sounds and associated behaviors produced by dominant males during courtship, tested for differences in hearing ability associated with female …

The Effects Of Rhes, A Striatal Specific Protein, On The Expression Of Behavioral And Neuropathological Symptoms In A Transgenic Mouse Model Of Huntington's Disease, Brandon A. Baiamonte

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Huntington's disease (HD) is a neuropsychiatric disorder characterized by choreiform movement of the limbs, cognitive disability, psychosis and dementia. It is untreatable, incurable, and ultimately fatal. HD is invariably associated with an abnormally long CAG expansion within the IT15 gene on human chromosome 4. Although the mutant huntingtin protein (mHtt) is ubiquitously expressed in HD patients, cellular degeneration occurs only in neurons within the striatum and cerebral cortex. The Ras homolog Rhes is expressed very selectively in the precise brain areas affected by HD. Recent work using cultured cells suggests that Rhes may be a co-factor with mHtt in cell …

Votary, Mary Bamburg

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations: Hazards, Environmental And Health Risks As The Latent Products Of Late Modernity, Bryan R. Clarey

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

CAFOs raise tens of thousands of animals in confined cages and feedlots, feed them high calorie diets, and ship them to slaughter in record time. These factory farms (as they are sometimes called) devastate neighboring environments with the releases of toxic methane gas and animal waste. Progress in modernized agricultural production has enabled us to feed the growing population but unintended consequences for human health and neighboring communities are happening. This study examines environmental and human health impacts of CAFOs on Central Mississippi residents. Through analyses of existing studies and data and telephone surveys, the objectives will be met. Risk …

Are You Still Listening?, Alden Eagle

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Synthesis And Biological Evaluation Of Rigid Analogues Of Methamphetamines, Andrea N. Forsyth

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

A series of rigid azetidenyl-based methamphetamine analogs were synthesized from commercially available N-Boc-azetidinone. The benzylideneazetidine analogs were prepared via a Wittig olefination via the ylides generated from the corresponding triphenylphosphonium benzylhalide salts. The substituted benzylazetidine analogs were synthesized from the corresponding benzylideneazetidienes via hydrogention over palladium and platinum catalysts. The benzylideneazetidine and benzyliazetidine analogs were evaluated at monoamine transporters as a part of preliminary structure-activity study for the development of novel monoamine transporter ligands. The binding affinities of the azetidine analogs were determined at dopamine (DAT) and serotonin (SERT) transporters in rat brain tissue preparations. The preliminary in vitro …

Phylogenetic Relationships And Character Evolution Of The Neotropical Butterfly Genus Hamadryas (Nymphalidae: Biblidinae), Ivonne J. Garzon

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

The butterflies in the genus Hamadryas are popular and noticeable representatives of the Neotropical Lepidoptera fauna. After a thorough taxonomic revision, 20 species were acknowledged within the genus, however no hypothesis of their phylogenetic relationship was proposed. The present dissertation provides a step further into the understanding of this fascinating group of butterflies not only by proposing the first phylogenetic hypothesis for the genus based on morphological and molecular data, but also by exploring for the first time in a group of butterflies the potential effect of venation associated with an specific behaviour on wing shape. Furthermore, this dissertation provides …

The Food Court In The Magic Kingdom: Globalization, Cuisine And Attitudes In Saudi Arabia, Klaus Heyer

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

In the last twenty years, Saudi Arabia has been modernizing much faster and in a shorter period than in the majority of the world’s countries. This study seeks to examine factors that influence the diet of Saudi Arabians. Aside from language, one of the principal manifestations of culture is a country’s cuisine.

I sought to determine whether factors, such as exposure to other countries, an income increase, or simply the desire to diversify the palette have led to a change in diet.

This mixed-methods study employed 148 surveys looking at attitudes towards the United States and other countries, travel abroad, …

“All This Was My Life”: Constructing Textual Self-Identity In Diaries, Christie M. Jeansonne

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

The ordering and control of experience through fictive selves, constructed in consideration of an audience of the self and others, is part of the diary’s identity-building and meaning-making function. This thesis analyzes the process by which the diaries of Virginia Woolf, Sylvia Plath, and Janet Schaw construct multiple textual identities and conceptualize their public and private selves. The projection of these multiple selves in the diary text serve to justify the private individual experience as extraordinary and worth telling, as well as to connect with a public community experience, relating the self to a greater socio-cultural context.

Software For Estimation Of Human Transcriptome Isoform Expression Using Rna-Seq Data, Kristen Johnson

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

The goal of this thesis research was to develop software to be used with RNA-Seq data for transcriptome quantification that was capable of handling multireads and quantifying isoforms on a more global level. Current software available for these purposes uses various forms of parameter alteration in order to work with multireads. Many still analyze isoforms per gene or per researcher determined clusters as well. By doing so, the effects of multireads are diminished or possibly wrongly represented. To address this issue, two programs, GWIE and ChromIE, were developed based on a simple iterative EM-like algorithm with no parameter manipulation. These …

Traumatic And Healing Memory In Leslie Marmon Silko's Ceremony And Toni Morrison's Song Of Solomon, Ambata K. Kazi-Nance

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

A comparative analysis of Leslie Marmon Silko’s Ceremony and Toni Morrison’s Song of Solomon, with a focus on individual as well as collective memory work in historically marginalized indigenous and African-American communities, respectively. This represents a critical study of how the novels invoke progressive and redemptive models of remembering, as well as foreground the role of spiritual guides in the transformative process from trauma towards healing.

Enhancement In Degradation Of Environmental Pollutants: Fenton Degradation Of 2,4,6-Trinitrotoluene And Photodegradation Of Deepwater Horizon Crude Oil, Sarah M. King

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Pollution poses serious threats to both the environmental and the organisms that depend on their environment for survival. Due to the toxicity of most contaminants, there is a dire need for remediation of polluted sites. Remediation studies were conducted on two high priority pollutants: 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) and crude oil.

TNT was the most common explosive used in the 20^th century. Continuous contamination has resulted in an urgent need for remediation. Fenton reagent provides an advanced oxidation process that is capable of remediating recalcitrant explosives, such as TNT. One drawback of Fenton chemistry is that the reaction requires acidic pH …

A Comparison Of Profiles And Expenditures Between Volunteer And Leisure Tourists For The New Orleans Metropolitan Statistical Area, Ksenia Kirillova

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This research compared the expenditure patterns, profiles, and trip characteristics of volunteer and leisure tourists in New Orleans. Survey research methods were used to obtain a sample of voluntourists that was compared to a leisure tourist sample obtained from secondary data. Visitors’ expenditures across six types of spending, demographics, and travel information were collected. Data analysis included eight t-tests that revealed that voluntourists’ spending was lower in five out of six categories, total daily expenditures, and total trip spending. Voluntourists spent more on local transportation but preferred cheaper accommodations and dining, seldom gambled, shopped little at the destination, and rarely …

The Damage Done And Other Stories, Jamie Larson

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Codemakers, Dawn Manning

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Codemakers is a book of poems by Dawn Manning divided into three sections: "Topophilia," "Goodwill," and "Women's Work."

Fish Assemblage Dynamics And Red Drum Habitat Selection In Bayou St. John And Associated Urban Waterways Located Within The City Of New Orleans, Louisiana, Patrick W. Smith Mr.

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Bayou St. John (BSJ) and City Park Lakes and Lagoons (CPLL) are urban waterways in New Orleans, Louisiana. I studied habitat selection of red drum in BSJ, and fish assemblage change in BSJ and CPLL over 40 years. Temperature was found to be the best predictor of red drum habitat selection in Bayou St. John, while salinity and change in depth also were found to be good predictors for certain sites. Potential prey item abundance did not appear to influence habitat selection. Using data from 1971 – 2010, nearshore habitats in CPLL were affected by Hurricane Katrina, but have sense …

Perceptions Of The Ordinary, Natalie J. Tobacyk

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

This thesis explores the progression of my work through my graduate studies at the University of New Orleans. I examine the central psychological themes of the human experience. Through painting, drawing, printmaking, and sculpture, I investigate various ways of translating personal and universal experiences into open-ended visual allegories. These psychological narratives are intended to function ambiguously- allowing the viewer to develop their own ideas and responses to the work. Using the figure paired with symbols and also using mass-produced common objects to function as the figure; placing them in ambiguous environments, I juxtapose physical and psychological spaces that evoke …

Dimethylsulfoxide Exposure Modulates Hl-60 Cell Rolling Interaction, David Gee, Leslie Kate Wright, Jonathan Zimmerman, Kayla Cole, Karen Soule, Michelle Ubowski

Articles

Human leukaemic HL-60 cells are widely used for studying interactions involving adhesion molecules [e.g. P-selectin and PSGL-1 (P-selectin glycoprotein ligand-1)] since their rolling behaviour has been shown to mimic the dynamics of leucocyte rolling in vitro. HL-60 cells are neutrophilic promyelocytes that can undergo granulocytic differentiation upon exposure to compounds such as DMSO (dimethylsulfoxide). Using a parallel plate flow chamber functionalized with recombinant P-selectin–Fc chimaera, undifferentiated and DMSO-induced (48, 72 and 96 h) HL-60 cells were assayed for rolling behaviour. We found that depending on P-selectin incubation concentration, undifferentiated cells incurred up to a 6-fold increase in rolling velocity while …

Gasland: The Rhetoric Of Images In The New Media Landscape, Christopher T. Thaxton

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

Josh Fox's film Gasland, released in 2010, started the national debate concerning the process of hydraulic fracturing and launched the term "fracking" into the public consciousness. Gasland, nominated for four Emmy Awards, was the winner of the 2010 Environmental Media Award for Best Documentary, the Sundance Film Festival Special Jury Prize, and the Yale Environmental Film Festival Grand Jury Prize. Using the momentum from the film's popular reception, Fox and the Gasland team successfully established a grassroots movement that was responsible for helping create the Frack Act and a moratorium of fracking in the Delaware River Shed. …

Characterization Of Altered Epithelial Cell Turnover And Differentiation In Embryonic Murine Lungs That Over-Express Receptors For Advanced Glycation End-Products (Rage), Jeffrey Alan Stogsdill

Theses and Dissertations

Receptors for advanced glycation end-products (RAGE) are multi-ligand cell surface receptors highly expressed in the lung that modulate pulmonary inflammation during disease. However, the contributions of RAGE signaling are unknown during pulmonary organogenesis. In order to test the hypothesis that RAGE misexpression adversely affects lung morphogenesis, conditional transgenic mice were generated that over-express RAGE in alveolar type II cells of the lung. When RAGE is over-expressed throughout embryogenesis, severe lung hypoplasia ensues, culminating in perinatal lethality. Flow cytometry and immunohistochemistry employing cell-specific markers for various distal cell types demonstrated anomalies in key epithelial cell populations resulting from RAGE up-regulation through …

167th University Of Notre Dame Commencement And Mass Program, University Of Notre Dame

Commencement Programs

167th Commencement Program including Commencement Mass

May 18-20, 2012

Filipino Writing In The United States: Reclaiming Whose America?, E. San Jr.

Philippine Studies: Historical and Ethnographic Viewpoints

No abstract provided.

Gaceta Del Superior Gobierno: The First Philippine Newspaper, Maria Del Ortiz

Philippine Studies: Historical and Ethnographic Viewpoints

No abstract provided.

Murray Ledger And Times, May 18, 2012, Murray Ledger And Times

The Murray Ledger & Times

No abstract provided.

Debunking Misconceptions: Do Jury Instructions Influence Comprehension And Verdict Selection, Aryssa Z. Washington

Psychology Theses

The purpose of this study was to compare the efficacy of jury instructions that debunk common misconceptions versus standard instructions, with regards to verdict choice, comprehension of the legal standard, and reasoning used to support verdict decisions. A case summary was read by 159 participants who then listened to auditory instructions from a judge regarding the legal standards for second degree murder and voluntary manslaughter. They then completed measures assessing verdict, comprehension, and reasoning. While the results revealed that the legal instructions did not influence participants’ verdicts or comprehension of the legal standard, the data suggests that participants may have …

Validation Of 3'-Deoxy-3'-[18f]-Fluorothymidine Positron Emission Tomography For Image-Guidance In Biologically Adaptive Radiotherapy, Marian Axente

Theses and Dissertations

Accelerated tumor cell repopulation during radiation therapy is one of the leading causes for low survival rates of head-and-neck cancer patients. The therapeutic effectiveness of radiotherapy could be improved by selectively targeting proliferating tumor subvolumes with higher doses of radiation. Positron emission tomography (PET) imaging with 3´-deoxy-3´-[18F]-fluorothymidine (FLT) has shown great potential as a non-invasive approach to characterizing the proliferation status of tumors. This thesis focuses on histopathological validation of FLT PET imaging specifically for image-guidance applications in biologically adaptive radiotherapy. The lack of experimental data supporting the use of FLT PET imaging for radiotherapy guidance is addressed by developing …

The Current Volume 22 : Issue 29, Nova Southeastern University

Student Newspapers

No abstract provided.

Rooftop Cities, Tammi L. Mccune

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

N/A