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2012

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Water Quality Dynamics Of Low-Gradient, Headwater Streams In A Timber-Industry Dominated Watershed In Louisiana, Abram Atys Dasilva Jan 2012

Water Quality Dynamics Of Low-Gradient, Headwater Streams In A Timber-Industry Dominated Watershed In Louisiana, Abram Atys Dasilva

LSU Master's Theses

Timber harvesting can degrade the quality of adjacent water bodies, an important concern for Louisiana, nearly 50% of which is forested, and in which the forest industry is the second-largest manufacturing employer. To protect valuable freshwater resources in Louisiana, a manual of best management practices (BMPs) was published in 2000 describing techniques for limiting forestry-caused water quality degradation. While these BMPs are widely implemented, their effectiveness in protecting water quality is largely unknown. To determine the effectiveness of these BMPs, this thesis research conducted three studies to address timber harvest BMP effectiveness on protection of stream dissolved oxygen, metabolism, and …


The Role Of Music-Making In The Identity Construction Of Members Of An Adult Community Concert Band, Pamela G. Taylor Jan 2012

The Role Of Music-Making In The Identity Construction Of Members Of An Adult Community Concert Band, Pamela G. Taylor

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to ascertain how music-making and band membership contributed to the identities of members of the New Orleans Concert Band and how their identities influenced their behaviors. The musician role identity of members of the New Orleans Concert Band, an adult community band, was examined through the lens of identity theory using ethnographic methods. Findings were based upon interviews with 37 band members, observations of rehearsals and concerts, and an examination of the organization’s documents. Results indicated that members valued individual and group music-making, literature played by the band, and social aspects of …


Developing A Geospatial Protocol For Coral Epizootiology, Jennifer Anne Lentz Jan 2012

Developing A Geospatial Protocol For Coral Epizootiology, Jennifer Anne Lentz

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation explores how geographic information systems (GIS) and spatial statistics, specifically the techniques used to map, detect, and spatially analyze disease epidemics, could be used to advance our understanding of coral reef health. Given that different types of spatial analysis, as well as different parameter settings within each analysis, can produce noticeably different results, poor selection or improper use of a given technique would likely lead to inaccurate representations of the spatial distribution and false interpretations of the disease. For this reason, I performed a comprehensive review of the following types of exploratory spatial data analysis (ESDA): mapping and …


Entanglement, Uncertainty And Relativity In Fundamental Mechanics With An Application In Qkd, Christopher David Richardson Jan 2012

Entanglement, Uncertainty And Relativity In Fundamental Mechanics With An Application In Qkd, Christopher David Richardson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In this dissertation I will probe the innate uncertainty of quantum mechanics. After deriving the necessary tools I will tackle Popper's experiment, a long misunderstood thought experiment with recent experimental results. I will then discuss how uncertainty changes when making measurements from different relativistic reference frames and resolve some on the tension between quantum mechanics and relativity. Finally I utilize the practical aspect of quantum uncertainty and describe a practical quantum key distribution scheme.


Effect Of Instructional Methodologies On Student Achievement Modeling Instruction Vs. Traditional Instruction, Jacqueline Grace Barker Jan 2012

Effect Of Instructional Methodologies On Student Achievement Modeling Instruction Vs. Traditional Instruction, Jacqueline Grace Barker

LSU Master's Theses

ABSTRACT Different teaching styles can impact student learning in many ways. The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of Modeling Instruction on student achievement in a high school Chemistry course. Different tests were used to compare the data at the beginning of a school year and at the end of the school year. The tests used were to determine gains in chemistry content knowledge, abilities to reason scientifically, and attitudes about learning chemistry. The control group was taught by traditional instruction through the use of lecture, note-taking, and textbook guided assignments. The experimental group was taught by …


Hurricane Damage Assessment Process For Residential Buildings, Carol C. Massarra Jan 2012

Hurricane Damage Assessment Process For Residential Buildings, Carol C. Massarra

LSU Master's Theses

Assessing an affected area immediately after a severe natural hazard event and saving the resulting data are vitally important in any effort to reduce future economic losses from natural hazards. These data are used as a record of buildings performance and as a major component for statistical analysis and damage modeling studies. Since these data are used as input for these studies, the data must be assessed and collected in a scientific and standardized way. Despite this requirement, neither a systematic damage assessment process nor a standardized data collection protocol is currently available in the United States to ensure that …


Online Reviews And Consumers' Willingness To Pay: The Role Of Uncertainty, Yinglu Wu Jan 2012

Online Reviews And Consumers' Willingness To Pay: The Role Of Uncertainty, Yinglu Wu

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Empirical studies of online reviews have found that valence (average rating) has a consistently positive impact on consumers’ willingness to pay (WTP), but volume does not. Although two studies tried to explain this phenomenon using different perspectives (Wu and Ayala, 2012; Sun, 2012), neither study can fully accommodate the consumer behaviors observed by the other. This dissertation adopts a theoretical framework that can explain the consumer behaviors observed in both studies as well as the varying influence of review volume at the individual level. Specifically, several studies were conducted to investigate the relationship between bidirectional online seller reviews (e.g., the …


An Investigation Into The Moderating Role Of Fear Appeals On The Relationship Between Regulatory Fit And Persuasion, Nam Young Kim Jan 2012

An Investigation Into The Moderating Role Of Fear Appeals On The Relationship Between Regulatory Fit And Persuasion, Nam Young Kim

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

As one of the ways to persuade young people effectively, several scholars have indicated that using a tailored message that is consistent with individuals’ concerns and interests can influence their attitude and behavioral changes. Among diverse tactics to construct tailored health-messages, this research especially paid attention to individuals’ motivational goals (i.e., regulatory focus) that make them more inclined to a certain outcome. While promotion-oriented individuals primarily focus on how to achieve a desired ending, prevention-oriented individuals mainly focus on avoiding undesirable outcomes (Higgins, 1997; Higgins et al., 2001). Although numerous studies support the positive effects of the congruency between regulatory …


Making News In 140 Characters: How The New Media Environment Is Changing Our Examination Of Audiences, Journalists, And Content, Ashley Elizabeth Kirzinger Jan 2012

Making News In 140 Characters: How The New Media Environment Is Changing Our Examination Of Audiences, Journalists, And Content, Ashley Elizabeth Kirzinger

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This project answers the following questions: What does political reporting on social media look like? How is political journalists’ use of social media changing their relationships with sources and fellow political journalists? Triangulating qualitative and quantitative research methods (content analysis, social network analysis, and in-depth interviews) in an examination of Twitter, a social media platform popular among journalists, this project provides insight into how changes in media routines are affecting news content.


Unraveling Ecological Effects On Social Behavior. Insights From Tent-Roosting Bats, Maria Sagot Jan 2012

Unraveling Ecological Effects On Social Behavior. Insights From Tent-Roosting Bats, Maria Sagot

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Although group living has been associated with high fitness cost, multiple lines of evidence have suggested that it has evolved multiple times independently. Given the wide diversity of social systems, it appears that multiple explanations are necessary to understand this process. Although evidence indicates that multiple ecological and environmental factors might promote variation in cohesion of social organisms, studies investigating how these factors interrelate and shape social structure have been limited. In the tropics, there are at least 23 bat species that roost in modified structures called tents. These species present a wide diversity in social systems. Moreover, they have …


Experimental And Numerical Investigation Of Pilot Scale Microwave Assisted Transesterification Process For Biodiesel Production, Pranjali D. Muley Jan 2012

Experimental And Numerical Investigation Of Pilot Scale Microwave Assisted Transesterification Process For Biodiesel Production, Pranjali D. Muley

LSU Master's Theses

The goal of this study was to design and test a pilot scale process for biodiesel production using advanced microwave technology and develop a numerical model for investigating various parameters affecting this process. Dielectric properties of materials play a major role in microwave design of a process. The dielectric properties (dielectric constant ε’ and dielectric loss ε”) of biodiesel precursors: soybean oil, alcohols and catalyst and their different mixtures were measured at four different temperatures (30°C, 45°C, 60°C and 75°C) and in the frequency range of 154 MHz to 4.5 GHz. Results indicate that the microwave dielectric properties of almost …


Amd&Art: Performativity And Participation In Ecological Remediation, Travis Paine Brisini Jan 2012

Amd&Art: Performativity And Participation In Ecological Remediation, Travis Paine Brisini

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In this study, I examine and theorize AMD&ART, an artwork devoted to treating polluted water in Vintondale, PA. AMD&ART is much more than simply a water treatment facility, however. Each chapter of this document examines AMD&ART through the lens of a different body of scholarly literature: the literature associated with land art, Systems Theory, Network Theory, Companion Specieshood and others. The theoretical focus of this paper is the emergent importance of the concept of performativity—“that reiterative power of discourse to produce the phenomena that it regulates and constrains” (Butler, Bodies 2)—in the deconstruction of the binary division of “nature” and …


Effects Of Seeding Rates Of Perennial Ryegrass (Lolium Perenne L.) On Sediment Loading And Nutrient Transport Via Surface Runoff, Jason Robert Anderson Jan 2012

Effects Of Seeding Rates Of Perennial Ryegrass (Lolium Perenne L.) On Sediment Loading And Nutrient Transport Via Surface Runoff, Jason Robert Anderson

LSU Master's Theses

Sediment loading and nutrient losses from construction sites through surface runoff can have detrimental effects on nearby water bodies. Often cool-season grasses such as perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) are established for temporary coverage until environmental conditions are suitable for warm-season grass establishment. The purpose of this research was to 1) determine if higher seeding rates accelerate establishment thus reducing sediment loading and 2) determine if watering-in fertilizer applications reduces nutrient losses through surface runoff. In the first experiment trays were seeded at 0, 195, 390, or 585 kg ha-1 with 30-min rainfall simulations performed at 16.3 L per minute …


Performing Nostalgia: Body, Memory, And The Aesthetics Of Past-Home, Jade C. Huell Jan 2012

Performing Nostalgia: Body, Memory, And The Aesthetics Of Past-Home, Jade C. Huell

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Since its etymological beginnings, the meanings and usages of nostalgia have shifted markedly. In the shifting, nostalgia’s associations with the body and with the concept of home has diminished. This study of African American nostalgia for Africa uses genealogical inquiry, personal and autoethnographic narrative, and performance theories and practices to reinvigorate the relations between body, memory, aesthetics, past, and home. Attending to operations of time and space, I theorize the aforementioned relations in order to build a theory of critical nostalgia. Following Debbora Battaglia, I argue and illustrate that nostalgia is an act realized in performance, and I develop my …


Conformance Testing Of Peer-To-Peer Systems Using Message Traffic Analysis, John Wesley Burris Jan 2012

Conformance Testing Of Peer-To-Peer Systems Using Message Traffic Analysis, John Wesley Burris

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Peer-to-Peer architectures are used by a large number of distributed systems; however, the challenges such as maintaining a reliable and stable peer-to-peer network can make such networks undesirable for distributed systems. Peer-to-peer architectures are designed to be executed on systems with diverse hardware configurations, distant geographic locations, and varied, unpredictable Internet connectivity that make the software testing process difficult. This research defines a method for conformance testing peer-to-peer content distribution systems called “Method for Conformance Testing by Analyzing Message Activity” (MCTAMA). MCTAMA uses a common representation for describing the behavior of nodes during both design and deployment. ATAMA generates, evaluates …


The Impact Of 5s On The Safety Climate Of Manufacturing Workers, Siddarth Srinivasan Jan 2012

The Impact Of 5s On The Safety Climate Of Manufacturing Workers, Siddarth Srinivasan

LSU Master's Theses

The occupational injury rate in the manufacturing sector is higher than the average of all private industries, necessitating safety studies. Occupational safety can be measured through different approaches. Safety climate, a predictive measure of safety, studies the workers’ perceptions of safety of the workplace. This measure includes several dimensions of safety like management commitment, involvement and work place hazard evaluation and was chosen as a method of evaluation in this study. Even though occupational safety is an important concern, management often prioritizes reducing waste and cost. So, there is a necessity for some technique which reduces waste and simultaneously improves …


Microfabrication Of Conductive Polymer Nanocomposite For Sensor Applications, Chaoxuan Liu Jan 2012

Microfabrication Of Conductive Polymer Nanocomposite For Sensor Applications, Chaoxuan Liu

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation developed novel microfabrication techniques of conductive polymer nanocomposite and utilized this material as a functional element for various physical sensor applications. Microstructures of nanocomposite were realized through novel microcontact printing and laser ablation assisted micropatterning processes. Prototype devices including large-strain strain sensor and highly-sensitive pressure sensor were demonstrated showing distinct advantages over existing technologies. The polymer nanocomposite used in this work comprised elastomer poly(dimexylsiloxane) (PDMS) as polymer matrix and multi-walled carbon nananotubes (MWCNTs) as a conductive nanofiller. To achieve uniform distribution of carbon nanotubes within the polymer, an optimized dispersion process was developed, featuring a strong organic solvent—chloroform, …


Examination Of The Reliability And Validity Of A New Observation Measure For Autism Spectrum Disorders: The Autism Spectrum Disorder Observation For Children, Daniene Neal Jan 2012

Examination Of The Reliability And Validity Of A New Observation Measure For Autism Spectrum Disorders: The Autism Spectrum Disorder Observation For Children, Daniene Neal

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

With increasing attention being drawn to autism spectrum disorders (ASD), specifically with regard to early and accurate diagnosis and treatment, researchers and clinicians alike have placed emphasis on finding assessment tools that can aid in this goal. The purpose of this study is to examine the psychometric properties of a new observation measure for ASD, the Autism Spectrum Disorders-Observation for Children (ASD-OC). The ASD-OC was found to have good to excellent interrater reliability, and excellent internal consistency (ƒÑ = .96). As a result of these initial reliability analyses, nine items were removed from the scale. The resulting 45 item ASD-OC …


The Responsibility Of Clothing Slaves In The United States As Described In Slave Petitions, 1775 To 1867, Ryan Jerel Aldridge Jan 2012

The Responsibility Of Clothing Slaves In The United States As Described In Slave Petitions, 1775 To 1867, Ryan Jerel Aldridge

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The content analysis of eighteenth and nineteenth century slave petitions identified slave dress terms and descriptors by type and frequency and a descriptive analysis of slave dress petitions revealed the following themes: the expense and burden attributed to clothing slaves, slave dress neglect, hiring contracts that included slave dress, the use of slave dress as a reflection of the slaveholders character, compensation for slave dress provided by an individual other than the slaveholder, the quality of slave dress, the distribution of slave dress, and slave dress terminology descriptors. The most frequent specific provision request for slave dress items consisted of …


Seeing The Divine: The Origin, Iconography, And Content Of Santa Pudenziana's Apse Mosaic, Rebecca Franzella Jan 2012

Seeing The Divine: The Origin, Iconography, And Content Of Santa Pudenziana's Apse Mosaic, Rebecca Franzella

LSU Master's Theses

When Christian artwork expanded into the grand, newly constructed Christian basilicas of the fourth century, new iconography emerged. The apse was a focal point of the basilica’s interior and provided a novel space for artistic decoration. The church of Santa Pudenziana, located in Rome, contains the earliest surviving apse decoration in a Christian basilica. Shown here is a depiction of Christ surrounded by his apostles. This figural arrangement is familiar because of previously established pagan and Christian imagery. However, at S. Pudenziana, and for the first time in Christian art, four angelic figures and the Heavenly Jerusalem appear in the …


How Core Symptoms Of Autism Spectrum Disorder Predict Engagement In Specific Topographies Of Challenging Behavior, Sara Mahan Jan 2012

How Core Symptoms Of Autism Spectrum Disorder Predict Engagement In Specific Topographies Of Challenging Behavior, Sara Mahan

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Challenging behavior, such as aggression, destructive behavior, and self-injurious behavior (SIB), are common among people of all ages with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Numerous researchers have found that greater severity of ASD or a diagnosis of ASD is significantly correlated with greater levels of challenging behavior. However, there is dearth of information on how core symptoms of ASD (i.e., socialization deficits, communication deficits, stereotypies) predict the engagement of specific topographies of challenging behavior above and beyond other variables, such as developmental functioning. The purpose of this study is to extend the current literature base through examining how core symptoms of …


Reflections On En-Teaching: Dewey, Heidegger And Lao Tzu, Jie Yu Jan 2012

Reflections On En-Teaching: Dewey, Heidegger And Lao Tzu, Jie Yu

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Reflecting on my past two unsettling journeys of teaching in China and America produces questions about the teaching of truth in chapter one. The question of truth as it relates to the teacher’s role in the classroom raises not only issues of what and how we should teach, but challenges the very purpose of teaching. When I explored Martin Heidegger’s phenomenological perspective on (un)truth for insights into taken-for-granted assumptions about education and the purposes of teaching and learning, I noticed a strong resonance between his notion of “clearing” and the essential spirit of Taoism, “the Tao of inaction.” This led …


An Examination Of The Relationship Between Autism Spectrum Disorder, Intellectual Functioning, And Social Skills In Children, Kimberly Tureck Jan 2012

An Examination Of The Relationship Between Autism Spectrum Disorder, Intellectual Functioning, And Social Skills In Children, Kimberly Tureck

LSU Master's Theses

Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are the focus of a vast amount of research due to their recent rise in prevalence. Nonetheless, there is a dearth of research looking at how ASD and IQ scores impact social skills. The present study aimed to extend the literature in this area by evaluating how ASD and IQ scores are related to ratings on a measure of appropriate and inappropriate social skills. Two groups of individuals participated: children without ASD and children with ASD. Two dependent measures of social skills (adaptive/appropriate social skills and hostile/inappropriately assertive social skills) were obtained using the Matson Evaluation …


A Numerical Investigation Of Apéry-Like Recursions And Related Picard-Fuchs Equations, Maiia J. Bakhova Jan 2012

A Numerical Investigation Of Apéry-Like Recursions And Related Picard-Fuchs Equations, Maiia J. Bakhova

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In this work we investigate a generalization of a recursion which was used by Apery in his proof of irrationality of the zeta function values at 2 and 3. It is a continuation of the work of Zagier , who considered generalization of the first equation and numerically investigated it. The study is made for two generalizations of the second equation, one used the mirror symmetry idea from the theory of Calabi-Yau varieties and another worked with recursion. There were discovered connections between them.


The Effects Of Coping Strategies On Burden Among Louisiana Alzheimer's Disease Caregivers, Rhonda Lee Jordan Jan 2012

The Effects Of Coping Strategies On Burden Among Louisiana Alzheimer's Disease Caregivers, Rhonda Lee Jordan

LSU Master's Theses

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between three coping strategies—emotion-focused, task-focused, and avoidance-focused—and the perceived burden among Louisiana Alzheimer’s disease caregivers. This study was a secondary data analysis. The target population was Alzheimer’s disease caregivers in Louisiana. The design for this study was cross-sectional. The instrument was a survey consisting of a demographic section, the Revised Memory and Behavior Problems Checklist, the shortened Zarit Burden Interview, and the Coping in Task questionnaire. Most caregivers reported engaging in task-focused coping. Emotion-focused coping and avoidance-focused coping were positively related to burden. No significant relationship existed between task-focused coping …


Children's Representations Of Parenting Behaviors, Basic Negative Emotions, And Negative Self-Conscious Emotions In The Narrative Story Stem Technique, Loredana Apavaloaie Jan 2012

Children's Representations Of Parenting Behaviors, Basic Negative Emotions, And Negative Self-Conscious Emotions In The Narrative Story Stem Technique, Loredana Apavaloaie

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The current study examined middle childhood aged Romanian children’s representations of parenting behaviors, basic negative emotions, and negative self-conscious emotions in the Narrative Story Stem Technique (NSST; Bretherton, Ridgeway, & Cassidy, 1990). More specifically, the research objectives of the study were a) to identify the frequency of the representations that were reflected in children’s narratives, b) to identify the specific stories that elicited the greatest number of representations, c) to identify possible relationships among children’s representations, their age, and amount of time that parents spend with their children, d) to identify gender differences in representations, and e) to evaluate the …


Country Of Illusion: Imagined Geographies And Transnational Connections In F. Scott Fitzgerald's America, Charles Mitchell Frye Iii Jan 2012

Country Of Illusion: Imagined Geographies And Transnational Connections In F. Scott Fitzgerald's America, Charles Mitchell Frye Iii

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The two decades between World Wars I and II were a remarkably isolationist, xenophobic period in the history of American politics and culture. In the era’s literature, however, some US authors repurposed regional writing as a medium for rethinking conservative nationalism and for imagining their country’s place in the emerging global community. F. Scott Fitzgerald, whose career successes and failures mirrored the parabolic national pattern of Boom and Bust, was one such author. Though his works have seldom been interpreted through a regionalist lens, Fitzgerald lived in and wrote about every major American section, often planting tropes of transregional and …


Energy, Environment, And Sustainability: A Hierarchical Analysis Of South Louisiana, Matthew Korbel Moerschbaecher Jan 2012

Energy, Environment, And Sustainability: A Hierarchical Analysis Of South Louisiana, Matthew Korbel Moerschbaecher

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation details research into the sustainability of industrial, human, and natural systems in south Louisiana. Chapter 1 is a general introduction. Chapter 2 calculates the energy return on financial investment (EROFI) of oil and gas production in the ultra-deepwater Gulf of Mexico (GoM) in 2009 and the Macondo Prospect (Mississippi Canyon Block 252). I calculated a preliminary Energy Return on Investment (EROI) using a range of energy intensity ratios. The EROFI for ultra-deepwater oil and gas at the wellhead was roughly 0.85 gallons, per dollar. These estimates of EROI for 2009 ultra-deepwater oil and natural gas at the wellhead …


From The Viewbook To Facebook: A Content Analysis Of Universities' Facebook Posts To Measure Organization-Public Relationships, Aariel Roxanne Charbonnet Jan 2012

From The Viewbook To Facebook: A Content Analysis Of Universities' Facebook Posts To Measure Organization-Public Relationships, Aariel Roxanne Charbonnet

LSU Master's Theses

This study examined StudentAdvisor.com's top 25 social media colleges to determine the ways in which these universities communicated with their various publics on Facebook. Using Hon and Grunig's models of public relations as frameworks, a quantitative content analysis was performed. The study considered each individual post on the universities' Facebook walls (n=709) over the course of a three-week period. The study's research questions were based on whether the posts promoted Hon and Grunig's relationship indicators, as well as what public relations models the posts resembled. Results indicated that posts were least likely to resemble the two-way symmetrical model and seldom …


The Utilization Of Chemical Communication By Three Species Of Ghost Shrimp, Callichirus Islagrande, Callichirus Major, And Lepidophthalmus Louisianensis, And The Transport Of Chemical Cues Within And Between Burrows, Julie Emily Prerost Jan 2012

The Utilization Of Chemical Communication By Three Species Of Ghost Shrimp, Callichirus Islagrande, Callichirus Major, And Lepidophthalmus Louisianensis, And The Transport Of Chemical Cues Within And Between Burrows, Julie Emily Prerost

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

A multidisciplinary study of the factors affecting the potential use of chemical cues by three species of infaunal shrimp was performed in three parts. A set of modified y-maze choice experiments were performed to establish the ability of three species of ghost shrimp, Callichirus islangrande, Callichirus major, and Leptidophthalmus louisianensis, to detect conspecifics via chemical cue. The time budgets for the detection of conspecifics chemical cues differed significantly from controls (no cue) for both animal cues and odor only cues indicating that all three species were able to detect the difference in sex of conspecific chemical cues regardless of cue …