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Development Of A Modular Dual Engine Hybrid Electric Vehicle Simulation Model, Kenan Baltaci

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Depleting resources of fossil fuel, climate change impacts, high oil prices, and strict emission requirements are leading to the research on efficient, environmentally friendly, and lowered fossil fuel dependent solutions in the transportation field. While a number of studies used computer modeling and simulation tools to investigate hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), very few attempted to model and simulate a dual-engine hybrid vehicle. Designing a vehicle engine to meet energy needs in the fully loaded condition is not an optimal solution for manufacturers and customers. The larger the engine, the higher the manufacturing costs for companies, and higher fuel consumption for …

Magnetic Compensation In The Bimetallic Oxalates And The Cerium Volume Collapse, Peter Leo Reis

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In this thesis the author reports his collaborative efforts on two distinct areas of research that has been conducted. The first part of the thesis pertains to the author and his collaborators research on a particular class of organic magnets called the bimetallic oxalates. The main theme of this research was to predict magnetic compensation (magnetization reversal) in unsynthesized bimetallic oxalate structures, motivated by experiments which showed that Fe(II)Fe(III) exhibited magnetic compensation. In addition it was known that a large amount of anisotropy was present in the bimetallic oxalate structure which resulted from the intermediate oxalate molecules between the transition …

Investigation Of Electroosmotic Flow Dynamics And Reproducibility In Capillary Electrophoresis, Funda Kizilkaya

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The goal of this dissertation is to investigate electroosmotic flow (EOF) and electric field dynamics during capillary electrophoresis (CE) experiments using methods based on periodic photobleaching of fluorophores added to the separation buffer at nanomolar concentrations. The methods provide time resolved EOF and local electric field information during an experiment, which can be applied to fundamental studies to provide better understanding of CE techniques. The potential of the EOF monitoring method to improve CE migration reproducibility was investigated in Chapter 2. The EOF monitoring method and four other methods from the literature were applied to the same electrophoretic separations, and …

C0 Interior Penalty Methods For Cahn-Hilliard Equations, Shiyuan Gu

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In this work we study C0 interior penalty methods for Cahn-Hilliard equations. In Chapter 1 we introduce Cahn-Hilliard equations and the time discretization that leads to linear fourth order boundary value problems. In Chapter 2 we review related fundamentals of finite element methods and multigrid methods. In Chapter 3 we formulate the discrete problems for linear fourth order boundary value problems with the boundary conditions of the Cahn-Hilliard type, which are called C0 interior penalty methods, and we carry out the convergence analysis. In Chapter 4 we consider multigrid methods for the C0 interior penalty methods. We present two smoothing …

Red Swamp Crayfish Procambarus Clarkii In The Atchafalaya River Basin: Biotic And Abiotic Effects On Population Dynamics And Physiological Biomarkers Of Hypoxic Stress, Christopher Paul Bonvillain

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Crayfish harvested from the Atchafalaya River Basin (ARB) represent the majority of Louisiana wild crayfish landings. However, excluding water level influences, it is difficult to elucidate inter-annual harvest differences and intra-annual population variability among habitats. This research investigated ecological influences on population characteristics of red swamp crayfish Procambarus clarkii in the southeastern ARB as well as physiological biomarkers of hypoxic stress in P. clarkii. Biotic and abiotic effects on P. clarkii populations were examined throughout the 2008 and 2009 commercial crayfish seasons. P. clarkii catch per unit effort (CPUE) at sampling locations increased nearly 600% between sample years despite similar …

Ecological Speciation Of King Rails (Rallus Elegans) And Clapper Rails (Rallus Longirostris), James Michael Maley

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Ecological speciation is a process involving adaptation to different environments leading to reproductive isolation between populations. Hybridization between Clapper and King rails (Rallus longirostris and R. elegans) is frequent but restricted to narrow bands of brackish marsh along the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic coastlines of North America. In the second chapter I used mitochondrial and nuclear sequences to infer phylogenetic relationships in this species complex. The complex falls out into three distinct groups: South America; western North America; and eastern North America and the Caribbean. My results indicate that R. elegans as currently recognized is paraphyletic, with birds of …

Dynamic Characterization Of Vocal Fold Virbrations, Zhenyi Wei

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

An emerging trend among voice specialists is the use of quantitative protocols for the diagnosis and treatment of voice disorders. Vocal fold vibrations are directly related to voice quality. This research is devoted to providing an objective means of characterizing these vibrations. Our goal is to develop a dynamic model of vocal fold vibration, and map the parameter space of the model to a class of voice disorders; thus, furthering the assessment and diagnosis of voice disorder in clinical settings.

To this end, this dissertation introduces a new seven-mass biomechanical model for the vibration of vocal folds. The model is …

Development And Characterization Of A Murine Model Of Rickettsia Parkeri Rickettsiosis, Britton Grasperge

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Rickettsia parkeri, a member of the spotted fever group of Rickettsia, is the agent of an emerging rickettsiosis in the southeastern United States and South America. Despite increased recognition of human cases, limited information is available regarding infection of invertebrate and vertebrate hosts for this emerging tick-borne disease. Towards development of a viable transmission model and to further characterize the pathology associated with R. parkeri infection, inbred mouse strains (A/J, Balb/C, C3H/HeJ, and C3H/HeN) were intravenously and intradermally inoculated with R. parkeri. The C3H/HeJ strain of mice were identified as the most susceptible to R. parkeri infection and were found …

Deductive Formal Verification Of Embedded Systems, Zheng Lu

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

We combine static analysis techniques with model-based deductive verification using SMT solvers to provide a framework that, given an analysis aspect of the source code, automatically generates an analyzer capable of inferring information about that aspect.

The analyzer is generated by translating the collecting semantics of a program to a formula in first order logic over multiple underlying theories. We import the semantics of the API invocations as first order logic assertions. These assertions constitute the models used by the analyzer. Logical specification of the desired program behavior is incorporated as a first order logic formula. An SMT-LIB solver treats …

Using Behavior Screening Data To Predict Scores On Statewide Assessments, Jeffrey Steven Chenier

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Federal and state initiatives (No Child Left Behind, 2001) require schools and districts to set high standards for student growth and achievement. Currently, student growth and progress are measured in Louisiana via statewide achievement tests. In 4th and 8th grades these assessments are considered to be ‘high-stakes’, as promotion and retention decisions are made based on how well students perform on these assessments. Making day-to-day decisions based on one assessment per year is not best practice (Jenkins, Deno, & Markin, 1979); therefore, screening instruments known as curriculum based measures (CBMs) were devised and tailored for school-based implementation. CBMs of academic …

Recurrent Novae And Type Ia Supernova Progenitors, Ashley Sara Pagnotta

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

We investigated two types of stellar explosions, recurrent novae (RNe) and Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia). SNe Ia are the most useful distance markers in astrophysics, but we do not know the identity of their progenitor systems. RNe are good progenitor candidates that consist of a white dwarf (WD) that accretes material from a companion star. The material builds on the surface of the WD until a runaway thermonuclear eruption is triggered, which ejects the accreted material and causes the system to brighten dramatically. We studied the demographics of the nova population and concluded that approximately 25% of classical novae …

Climate Change Displacement And Global Governance: A Case Study Of Three Intergovernmental Organizations And The Conflict Between The Member States And Bureaucracy, Andrea C. S. Berringer

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Climate change is a topic most often broached by environmental scientists and activists and its effects are discussed in terms of animal populations and atmospheric events. However, its direct effect on human life is yet to garner such attention. A changing climate will affect how people are able to use their environment, if at all. Sea level rise and desertification will force a shift in human habitation. How the world seeks to deal with this shift is yet to be seen. The global governance of climate change-induced displacement is currently at the stage of ad hoc development. Legal and conceptual …

Incorporating Neonicotinoid And Anthranilic Diamide Insecticides Into Integrated Pest Management Of Rice Water Weevil, Lissorhoptrus Oryzophilus, Srinivas K. Lanka

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Seed treatments with chlorantraniliprole and thiamethoxam have been used for the management of rice water weevil, Lissorhoptrus oryzophilus in the United States. Both insecticides being plant-systemic could potentially target multiple life stages of L. oryzophilus. The rational use of these chemicals as seed treatments in weevil management requires thorough understanding on targeted life stages of L.oryzophilus and, the relative persistence and potency of both chemicals. A series of greenhouse and laboratory experiments were conducted on weevils by culturing rice plants treated as seeds with different rates of chlorantraniliprole and thiamethoxam. Adult feeding assays on foliage from treated plants revealed divergent …

Ayahuasca Characterization, Metabolism In Humans, And Relevance To Endogenous N,N-Dimethyltryptamines, Ethan Hamilton Mcilhenny

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Ayahuasca denotes an Amazonian psychotropic plant tea obtained from Banisteriopsis caapi, which contains beta-carboline (b-carboline) alkaloids, chiefly harmine, harmaline and tetrahydroharmine. The tea usually incorporates the leaves of Psychotria viridis, which are rich in N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT), a psychoactive 5-HT2A agonist. The beta-carbolines reversibly inhibit monoamine-oxidase (MAO), effectively preventing oxidative deamination of the orally inactive DMT and allowing its absorption and access to the central nervous system. Despite increased use of the tea worldwide, easy to perform and validated methods for its characterization do not exist and the metabolism and excretion of DMT and the b-carbolines has not been studied systematically …

Composing A Method: Écriture Féminine As Performance Practice, Brianne Waychoff

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The overall aim of this project is to theorize and invent a method of performance based on écriture féminine. This method is meant to be useable, generative, and transferable to other practitioners. Following a heuretic practice of reading selected texts for what they suggest about making new texts, writerly method that invites expansion in future research is revealed. This project is but a beginning of an articulation and proposes only one path through these texts. The tracking of the process of reading and experimenting with performance provides a space for reflection that illuminates gaps to be explored in future work. …

Chinese Piano Music: An Approach To Performance, Xi Chen

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Since the piano was introduced in China, in the nineteenth century, many Chinese composers have composed specifically for it. As a result of greater communication and cultural exchange between East and West, Western pianists have begun including Chinese piano pieces in their repertoire. This paper will suggest approaches for the pianist to gain a greater understanding of Chinese piano music. These approaches will include a detailed analysis of each piece, addressing cultural aspects pertinent to an understanding of the music, as well as compositional background, harmony, texture, and piano technique. In addition, each piece will be provided with suggestions intended …

Synthesis, Cellular Studies, And Computational Analysis Of Porphyrin And Bodipy Conjugates With Affinity For Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor, Alecia Michelle Mccall

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Chapter 1 is a description of the basic fundamental concepts of porphyrins and BODIPYs, (including synthetic methodologies), a general mechanism of the processes of EGFR, and computational concepts that are elaborated upon in future chapters. Chapter 2 is a discussion solely on the porphyrins that were synthesized to be used as fluorophores for EGFR-targeted conjugates, both peptidic and non-peptidic. The porphyrins were primarily synthesized via the Lindsey method as well as by O-alkylation of tetrahydroxy porphyrins. Synthesis of PEG linkages are discussed as well through three methodologies. Chapter 3 is a presentation of the synthesis, characterization, cellular studies, and computational …

Comparing The Treatment Effect Of Conversational And Traditional Aphasia Treatments Based On Conversational Outcome Measures, Meghan Collins

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This prospective Phase I single-subject (ABABA) study repeated across 4 participants with quasi-randomized treatment order investigated the treatment effects of conversation and traditional stimulation treatments on conversational outcomes. Treatment was administered for 10 sessions (2 one-hour weekly sessions) per treatment type. Primary conversational outcomes included 6-minute conversations coded for pragmatic behaviors and percent Correct Information Units (CIUs). Traditional stimulation probes included auditory comprehension, lexical retrieval, and syntax probe performance. Secondary outcome measures represented the domains of the ICF (WHO, 2001) model with the addition of quality of life. These included the Western Aphasia Battery (Kertesz, 2007), the American Speech Language …

New Coding/Decoding Techniques For Wireless Communication Systems, Yonas Gebregziabher Debessu

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Wireless communication encompasses cellular telephony systems (mobile communication), wireless sensor networks, satellite communication systems and many other applications. Studies relevant to wireless communication deal with maintaining reliable and efficient exchange of information between the transmitter and receiver over a wireless channel. The most practical approach to facilitate reliable communication is using channel coding. In this dissertation we propose novel coding and decoding approaches for practical wireless systems. These approaches include variable-rate convolutional encoder, modified turbo decoder for local content in Single-Frequency Networks, and blind encoder parameter estimation for turbo codes. On the other hand, energy efficiency is major performance issue …

Measurement Of Pain, Pain Disability, And Pain Beliefs Of Morbidly Obese Adults, Brooke Louise Barbera

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Both obesity and pain are pervasive public health problems, contributing to significant disability in the United States and worldwide. Studies have demonstrated a positive association between obesity and pain, with increasing BMI related to increasing levels of pain intensity; however, the mechanisms underlying this relationship are not well understood. The present study assessed the presence of pain, pain-related disability, and pain beliefs in a morbidly obese (BMI > 40 kg/m2) sample participating in a medically-supervised, nonsurgical weight loss intervention. After controlling for demographic variables and depression, pain was reported in 36.7% of the sample (N = 390). Results indicated that greater …

Skill Assessment And Optimization Of The Third Generation Wave Models For Applications In Gulf Of Mexico, Seyed Mostafa Siadatmousavi

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Numerical phase-averaged wave models are the best option to obtain the spatial and temporal distribution of the wave energy over a large domain, such as the Gulf of Mexico. Parallel implementation of unstructured SWAN and WAVEWATCH-III were engaged in this research to evaluate the performance of third generation wave models for different conditions. Met-ocean data from a network of NDBC buoys and WAVCIS stations were used to assess the predictive skills of the wave models. Deep water wave energy dissipation formulations were carefully analyzed and modified to improve the accuracy of the bulk wave parameters. Moreover, the importance of the …

A Safety Elements Model For The Building Construction Industry, Cliff Dunlap Dunlap

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The Abstract was sent to Ms. McKenzie as an attachment to an e-mail

Out Of Site But Not Out Of Mind: Submerged Prehistoric Landscapes On The Northwestern Gulf Of Mexico Outer Continental Shelf, Amanda M. Evans

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Archaeological sites are more important than simply the artifacts they contain. Locations of human occupation and activity form a pattern that can provide information about perceptions of the landscape, decisions about resources, or preferences. Explaining this “perceived” environment is one of archaeology’s goals in explaining past human behavior. In order to address these goals, archaeologists must first identify elements of the “real” landscape, including the geographical environment, its resources, and evidence of human modification. Only after these real elements have been identified can the perceived environment be explored. On the outer continental shelf of the northwestern Gulf of Mexico, formerly …

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 …

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 …

Examining Perceptions Of Servant Leadership In Administration Of Selected Public Schools, Peggy Jane Dunn

Theses and Dissertations

The primary purpose of this study was to examine the impact of Servant Leadership in an organization using the following variables: valuing people, developing people, building community, displaying authenticity, providing leadership and sharing leadership. The study also examined whether or not a correlation existed between years of faculty service, education level, and faculty gender. The researcher administered the Organizational Leadership Assessment (OLA) designed by Dr. James Laub to three public schools; interviews were also conducted with three school leaders. This study suggests that a Servant Leader positively impacts an organization's overall success.

Stellar Spectral Classification Of Previously Unclassified Stars Gsc 4461-698 And Gsc 4466-870, Darren Moser Grau

Theses and Dissertations

Stellar spectral classification is one of the first efforts undertaken to begin defining the physical characteristics of stars. However, many stars lack even this basic information, which is the foundation for later research to constrain stellar effective temperatures, masses, radial velocities, the number of stars in the system, and age. This research obtained visible-λ stellar spectra via the testing and commissioning of a Santa Barbara Instruments Group (SBIG) Self-Guiding Spectrograph (SGS) at the UND Observatory. Utilizing a 16-inch-aperture telescope on Internet Observatory #3, the SGS obtained spectra of GSC 4461-698 and GSC 4466-870 in the low-resolution mode using an 18-μm …

Tools For School: Student Fluency And Perception Of Cell Phones Used For Learning, Mary Beth Humble-Thaden

Theses and Dissertations

Technology is changing the way society interacts, communicates, collaborates, and learns. Improved cell phone capabilities and an ever increasing amount of cell phone applications allow individuals to connect globally and afford almost instantaneous access to information inside and outside the classroom. The majority of students today possesses and uses cell phones and cell phone technology in most every aspect of their daily lives. Most schools enforce current policies banning cell phone use within classrooms during the school day.

The purpose of this study was to investigate current high school junior and senior academic standing students' mobile cell phone technology use, …

Separation And Use Of Oxygenated Byproducts From Non-Catalytically Cracked Triglycerides And Their Methyl Esters, Benjamin Travis Jones

Theses and Dissertations

The world is dependent on petroleum as its main source of fuels and chemicals. Supply limitations and global warming have generated a great deal of interest in research to reduce this dependence through renewal fuels and chemicals.

Non-catalytic cracking and subsequent distillation of triacylglyceride (TAG) oils and methyl esters derived from these oils (TMEs) produces an organic liquid product (OLP) that is rich in potential fuels and chemicals. A major fraction of the OLP is made up of oxygenated compounds, either short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) if TAG oil is cracked, or short chain methyl esters (SCMEs) if TMEs are …

The Secondary Shuffle: Special Educators As Tutors, Teachers, Or Both, Amy L. Jacobson

Theses and Dissertations

This study explored the perspectives and practices of six secondary special education teachers regarding role conflicts within their profession. Ideally, special education teachers are expected to work with students with disabilities in ways that promote the students' progress on individual learning goals as stated in their IEPs. In reality, special education teachers often spend the time set aside for working on IEP goals assisting the students with homework and tests that will allow the students to "pass" their required classes. Thus, students' IEP goals are often neglected. Three overarching assertions emerged from the data. The first assertion was providing support …