Digital Commons Network^™

Rickettsia Felis In Cat Fleas, Ctenocephalides Felis Parasitizing Opossums, San Bernardino County, California, Kyle F. Abramowicz, J. W. Wekesa, C. N. Nwadike, Maria L. Zambrano, Sandor E. Karpathy, D. Cecil, J. Burns, R. Hu, Marina E. Eremeeva

Environmental Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Los Angeles and Orange Counties are known endemic areas for murine typhus in California; however, no recent reports of flea-borne rickettsioses are known from adjacent San Bernardino County. Sixty-five opossums (Didelphis virginiana) were trapped in the suburban residential and industrial zones of the southwestern part of San Bernardino County in 2007. Sixty out of 65 opossums were infested with fleas, primarily cat fleas, Ctenocephalides felis (Bouché, 1835). The flea minimum infection rate with Rickettsia felis was 13.3% in pooled samples and the prevalence was 23.7% in single fleas, with two gltA genotypes detected. In spite of historic records of murine …

Race Bias In The Diagnosis Of Schizophrenia, Rose M. Fernandez

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Characterization Of Novel Extracellular Matrix (Ecm) Proteins (Mgp And Lumican) And Their Implications In Vascular Development, Angiogenesis, And Cancer, Bikram Sharma

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Traitorous Texting: Addressing The Methodological Issue Of Arousal In Romantic Jealousy Research, Rachel Rasley

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

2012-2013 All Committee Updates

NASIG Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Cpc Update: Mark Your Calendars Now!

NASIG Newsletter

No abstract provided.

December 2012 Full Issue

NASIG Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Unnecessary Evil: An Examination Of Abu Ghraib Torture Photographs As Postcolonial Resistance Rhetoric, Patrick Gerhardt Richey

Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation is to examine the rhetorical nature of visual artifacts in a postcolonial context. In order to examine the nature of visual artifacts as a form of resistance against static ideologies and prevailing power structures, the author uses both media and cultural artifacts created in response to photographs taken of abused prisoners at Iraq’s Abu Ghraib Correctional Facility. The dissertation adds to scholarly knowledge of communication by addressing the intersections of iconographic visual communication and postcolonial resistance rhetoric. The dissertation provides a scholarly review of the Abu Ghraib prison scandal, as well as of literature explicating …

Examining The Relationship Between Social Capital And Career Success Among Welfare To Work Participants In Louisiana, Dionne Marie Davis-Green

Dissertations

The study examined the relationship between social capital and career success among welfare to work participants in a Louisiana program from 2007 to 2009. Based on the high percentage who do not complete the Louisiana STEP program, outcomes from 2007 to 2009 suggest current STEP work activities may not prepare participants for career success and may neglect the development of social capital (e.g. networking skills). The purpose of this study is to determine the relationship between social capital and the ability to produce social resources and social network benefits for the attainment of career success as perceived by welfare to …

Determining The Individual, Organizational, And Community Level Outcomes Of A Community Leadership Development Program As Perceived By The Program Alumni, Susan Johnston Bush

Dissertations

The need for community leaders is increasing while the supply of community leaders is decreasing, leaving a gap in community leadership. Community leadership development programs (CLDP) are the most common approach to leadership development, yet the effects of CLDPs are rarely determined. In order to sustain programs that develop potential community leaders, program outcomes at the individual, organizational, and community levels must be identified.

This exploratory, non-experimental quantitative study used Black’s (2006) Leadership Program Outcomes Measure (LPOM) to determine CLDP alumni’s perceptions of the individual, organizational, and community level outcomes associated with participation in the CLDP; to describe the socio-demographic …

The Effectiveness Of A District-Wide Training Initiative On Determining Preparedness Of Educational Leaders In A Large, Southeastern Louisiana School System, Jeanne Bordelon Wagner

Dissertations

A nationwide shortage of qualified, experienced applicants to fill the roles of educational leaders has led to a hiring crisis among school districts across America. The diminishing pool of applicants, accompanied by a high turnover rate of practicing administrators and increasing accountability demands, has revealed the importance of recruitment and retention of educational leaders. As the roles of school administrators are constantly evolving and increasing in complexity, recruiting skillfully trained personnel proficient in all dimensions of school leadership is a catalyst for increasing student achievement and for reducing principal attrition rates. The purpose of this research was to reveal perceived …

Moral Foundation Theory And Marketing, Steve Lemay, James Coleman, Dave Mcmahon

Journal of Applied Marketing Theory

In setting the stage for Moral Foundations Theory (MFT), Jon Haidt (2004) identified five foundations of intuitive ethics: 1) harm/care; 2) fairness/reciprocity; 3) ingroup/loyalty; 4) authority/respect; 5) and purity/sanctity. Each foundation could have implications for the content of marketing messages, but this research is the first attempt to test those implications in specific markets with specific products. This research explores the practical, promotional uses of John Haidt’s Moral Foundation Theory. Haidt’s work shows a strong relationship between his moral foundations and political orientation. Since marketers can readily get political data at the county level in the United States, these foundations …

South Mississippi High School Seniors’ Perceptions Of Civic Duties And Responsibilities, Chelsea L. Lewis

Honors Theses

Former United States Representative Lee Hamilton once explained what it takes to be a citizen of the United Stated. He stated, “Citizenship requires both knowledge about government and the ability to be involved in governance. It means knowing how to identify and inform oneself about issues, explore and evaluate possible solutions, and then act to resolve problems. It demands that you know how to interact respectfully with others. And it asks that you accept responsibility for meeting your community’s and the nation’s challenges.” (Hamilton, 1) This quote comes from a well-known civics program used in American high schools today called …

Interpersonal Desirability Of The Self-Defeating Humorist, Ashley N. Barnes

Honors Theses

Humor is a multifaceted construct and can be defined in terms of the different ways people tend to use humor, which are referred to as humor styles. The present study examined the potential effects that the four different humor styles (Affiliative, Self-enhancing, Aggressive, and Self-defeating) have on other people’s perceptions of the individual producing the humor, and whether that impact was moderated by the attachment style of the individual perceiving the humorist. The goal was to investigate the interaction between the humor styles and physical attractiveness of a target in predicting how attractive a person is perceived and the degree …

Contemporary Manhattan Cartographies: Ephemeral Public Projects In New York, Andrew Wasserman

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

This dissertation considers the emergence of a cartographic public practice in both contemporary art and contemporary cities, attending to the ways in which ephemeral public projects create map-like objects that diverge from official urban projections. Rather than marking a single location, such projects structure networked connections between several sites, transforming undifferentiated urban spaces into legible urban places. Evaluation of this recent cartographic turn entails the triple consideration of placemaking, placemakers, and placemarkers as constructing spatialized identities for different neighborhoods and setting forth wayfinding strategies within these same neighborhoods. Focusing on Manhattan, the dissertation surveys how the borough has served as …

Alendronate And Pth Differentially Modulate Bone Quality And Reduce Adiposity In An Ovx Rat Model, Andrea Trinward Kwaczala

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

Post-menopausal osteoporosis is defined by a reduction in bone quantity and quality. Bone quality is an accumulation of factors including bone mass, structure, geometry, microarchitecture, tissue mineral density and chemistry. Currently, osteoporosis is treated with pharmaceuticals such as anti-catabolic bisphosphonates such as alendronate (ALN) which maintains bone mass by blocking bone resorption, or anabolic drugs such as parathyroid hormone (PTH) which increases bone mass by increasing bone formation. Due to their different modes of preserving bone, there may be differential drug-driven alterations to bone tissue quality which affect bone strength. Additionally, osteoporosis is associated with increased body mass and abdominal …

Robust Deadbeat Controller Design Using Pso For Positioning A Permanent Magnet Stepper Motors, Hazem I.

Iraqi Journal of Computers, Communications, Control and Systems Engineering

This paper presents an application of a robust deadbeat controller for permanent magnet stepper motor. This approach has been considered in order to assure robust stability and performance (disturbance rejection, reference tracking) with the presence of system parameters uncertainty. The Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) is used to tune the controller parameters by minimizing the cost function subject to H-infinity constraints. It is shown that the designed deadbeat controller presents simple, low order, and robust position control for a permanent magnet stepper motor. A two-phase motor is considered in this paper.

An Improved Data Confidentiality Protocol Based On Timestamp, Amer Kais

Iraqi Journal of Computers, Communications, Control and Systems Engineering

Security and data confidentiality has become a critical Issue for companies and individuals. In a classical client-server network, the access control management is performed on the server, relying on the assumption that the server is a trusted party. In this paper, we focus on how to strengthen the data confidentiality in client-server networks. We address the improving data confidentiality protocol by using symmetric encryption based on different secret keys for each session derived from timestamp. This key is generated in a local machine and without needing to exchange it between the client and the server for encryption decryption process. We …

Reward Effect In Reinforcement Learning Systems, Lubna Zaghlul, Zina Waleed

Iraqi Journal of Computers, Communications, Control and Systems Engineering

Learning Classifier Systems (LCS), are a machine learning technique which combines reinforcement learning, eVolutionary computing and other heuristics to produce adaptive systems. The system HRC (Human – Rat - Cheese) focuses in creating artificial creature (Rat) using computer simulation, and learning it how to choose between two different basic behaviors, (approach / escape) combining them to perform complex behavior, which represents the final response in changing environment. The HRC is built of two-classifier subsystems working together, each classifier system learns a simple behavior, and the system as a whole has as its learning goal the control of activities. Flat architecture …

Computing Nodes And Links Appearances On Geodesics In Networks Topologies Using Graph Theory, Siddeeq Ameen, Laith Jasim Saud

Iraqi Journal of Computers, Communications, Control and Systems Engineering

This paper proposes two important mathematical models related to network topology which helps in computing some of the efficiency or reliability factors of communication network as well as design purposes. Each of these models represents a topology property. The first (second) of these models is used to compute the number of appearances of any link (node) in the geodesics between nodes in a given network topology, and so can be used to help in uniformly distributing the data flow through links (nodes), as well as helping in measuring the degree of survivability of the network in case of failure of …

Genetic Algorithm Using Sub-Path Codes For Mobile Robot Path Planning, Mohamed Jasim

Iraqi Journal of Computers, Communications, Control and Systems Engineering

In this paper, a new method for finding global optimal path planning is proposed using a Genetic Algorithm (GA). A map of known static environment as well as a start node and a target node connecting an optimal path which is required to be found are given beforehand. The chosen nodes in a known static environment are connected by sub-paths among each other. Each path is represented by a series of sub-paths which connect the sequential nodes to form this path. Each sub-path radiating from each node is labeled by an integer. The chromosome code of a path is a …

Information Hiding In Image Based On Random Locations, Mohsin H.

Iraqi Journal of Computers, Communications, Control and Systems Engineering

Network Security for data transmission is the most vital Issue in modern communication systems. This paper discusses a new steganographic technique and the effectiveness of the proposed method is described through which the idea of enhanced security of data can be achieved. To hide data in a binary image, the proposed method focuses on the Least Significant Bit (LSB) technique in hiding messages in an image. The proposed method enhanced the LSB technique by randomly dispersing the bits of the message in the image and thus making it harder for unauthorized people to extract the original message easily.

Development A 3-D Mathematical Model For Network Topology Based On Graph Theory, Laith Jasim

Iraqi Journal of Computers, Communications, Control and Systems Engineering

Communication network efficiency depends upon many factors among which is the “Topology” which makes topology optimization an important Issue to care for. One important thing in optimization problems is the formulation of objective functions. For the case of topology design it is not a straightforward matter to develop an efficient topology model as well as objective functions to be used in the optimization process. An effective unconventional approach is needed. This paper is concerned with enhancing the already existing set of formulas, relating topology and topology properties modeling and topology design objectives, by proposing a 3-dimension way of modeling that …

Study Of The Influence Of Mechanical Parameters On The Behavior And Response Of Electromagnetic Servo Relay (Esr), Saad A-R., Ayad Ghazi Nasir Al-Shamary, Yaakob Karomy Hanna

Iraqi Journal of Computers, Communications, Control and Systems Engineering

The Relay is widely used in civil, industrial and military equipment. The Relay is considered to be one of the indispensable actuators for electric power and control flying objects and systems. Relays reliability strongly influences the system reliability. The mathematical model of the servo is introduced including the electrical, magnetic and dynamic parts. Simulations, using Matlab and Simulink, were performed. An improvement to the mathematical model has been carried through simulation which reflected on the results gained. Results of the effect and influence of magnetic materials and some important mechanical parameters like stiffness, viscosity, and copper insulator thickness, on the …

Pid Controller Configuration And Tuning Based On Genetic Algorithms, Mazin Z., Mohammed H. Al-Jammas, Salih M. Attya

Iraqi Journal of Computers, Communications, Control and Systems Engineering

In this work, the power of the Genetic Algorithms (GA) in searching for an optimal solution (in a pre-determined hyper space) is used to design the suitable configuration and parameters of the Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) controller. In most industrial plants, the PID controllers are configured either in cascade, feedback or in feed forward topologies. Besides, for each of these configurations the tuning gains have to be fixed in order to meet the required specifications. Therefore, GA is utilized efficiently to select the proper PID configuration in the context of signal following approach as well as the best tuning gains for the …

Iron Deprivation In Synechocystis : Inference Of Pathways, Non-Coding Rnas, And Regulatory Elements From Comprehensive Expression Profiling, Ma Hernández-Prieto, V Schön, J Georg, L Barreira, Et Al

School of Biomedical Sciences

Iron is an essential cofactor in many metabolic reactions. Mechanisms controlling iron homeostasis need to respond rapidly to changes in extracellular conditions, but they must also keep the concentration of intracellular iron under strict control to avoid the generation of damaging reactive oxygen species. Due to its role as a redox carrier in photosynthesis, the iron quota in cyanobacteria is about 10 times higher than in model enterobacteria. The molecular details of how such a high quota is regulated are obscure. Here we present experiments that shed light on the iron regulatory system in cyanobacteria. We measured time-resolved changes in …

Evaluation Of The Effectiveness Of Portable Variable Message Signs In Improving Safety For Motorists And Workers At Construction Zones In Abu Dhabi, Khalid Ismail Al-Zoubi

Theses

In March 2008, a single accident resulted in three people being killed and nearly 350 injured in a horrific crash involving over 60 vehicles on the Abu Dhabi-Dubai highway near Ghantoot. The cause of this crash was attributed to failure by motorists to adhere to severe weather conditions (fog). In response to the increasing number of accidents on Abu Dhabi roads, the Abu Dhabi Department of Transport (DoT) has deployed approximately 40 portable Variable Message Signs (PVMSs) throughout the main DOT's highway network as one of the strategies to control driver behavior and to improve road safety. The objective of …

Fuelling The Asian Growth Engine: Talent Challenges, Strategies And Trends, Mario Ferraro, Catherine Mudford, Karina Kuok, Saumya Sindhwani, Rebecca Siow

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

The emerging economies of Asia are increasingly playing a critical role in the global arena, even as there is continuing turmoil and uncertainty in other parts of the world due to economic, financial and political upheavals. While Asian economies are undoubtedly impacted by global headwinds, most of them have been buffered by their sound economic and policy fundamentals, healthy domestic demand and continued inflow of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). Meanwhile, Asia is undergoing its own transformation: many countries in Asia are experiencing greater economic prosperity and rising affluence, translating into higher demand for goods and services. As businesses flock to …

Parries To Parental Involvement In Kindergarten Activities From Perspective Of Kindergarten’S School Administration And Teachers In Al Ain, Shamsa Sultan Obaid Sultan Al Dhaheri

Theses

The current study aims at analyzing parental involvement barriers in kindergarten (KG) activities from the perception of school administration and teachers in AI-Ain Kindergartens. It identified, examined and analyzed the school administration and teacher perceptions on barriers that hinder parental involvement in kindergarten activities. A special focus had been paid to obstacles that prevent parents from participating in kindergarten activities based on four categories that included factors related to regulations, administration, teachers and parents. This study used a survey questionnaire to gain its data targeting a sample population of 329 respondents that includes all the teachers and administrators of Al …

Do Banks Monitor Corporate Decisions? Evidence From Bank Financing Of Mergers & Acquisitions, Sheng Huang, Anand Srinivasan, Ruichang Lu

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

We examine whether banks, in providing nancing for the deals, monitor rms mergers and acquisitions to the extent that will bene t acquirers shareholders. Incon- sistent with the conventional theoretical argument, we do not nd that bank- nanced deals are associated with better stock or accounting performance than bond- nanced deals or deals paid with internal cash. There is strong evidence instead that banks tighten up the loan contract terms in nancing the deals, such as cutting short the loan maturity and imposing higher collateral requirement and more covenant restrictions. However, bank- nanced deals are more likely to be terminated …