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Visualization Of Time-Varying Data From Atomistic Simulations And Computational Fluid Dynamics, Bidur Bohara

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Time-varying data from simulations of dynamical systems are rich in spatio-temporal information. A key challenge is how to analyze such data for extracting useful information from the data and displaying spatially evolving features in the space-time domain of interest. We develop/implement multiple approaches toward visualization-based analysis of time-varying data obtained from two common types of dynamical simulations: molecular dynamics (MD) and computational fluid dynamics (CFD). We also make application case studies. Parallel first-principles molecular dynamics simulations produce massive amounts of time-varying three-dimensional scattered data representing atomic (molecular) configurations for material system being simulated. Rendering the atomic position-time series along with …

Applicability Of Periodization To Orchestral Audition Preparation On Trombone: A Case Study, Christopher Evan Green

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The process of auditioning can seem daunting because of the high standards of performance required to win. Brass players have a finite amount of time they can practice each day because of the small muscles of the embouchure. Despite the vast amount of information available on preparing for a brass orchestral audition, little has been written on how to organize a practice schedule leading up to the audition. An analysis of literature in the major brass journals confirm which strategies have been considered to be most important when preparing for an audition, but an important component from the world for …

Linking Nitrogen Biogeochemistry To Different Stages Of Wetland Soil Development In The Mississippi River Delta, Louisiana, Kelly Marie Henry

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Extensive wetland loss and nutrient-enhanced eutrophication occur across the Mississippi River delta and include newly emergent landscapes, in the early stages of ecological succession, and older landscape formations, with fully developed ecological communities. Here I tested how the anthropogenic effects of a climate-induced vegetation shift, an oil spill, and nitrate-enrichment regulate the principal environmental factors controlling nutrient biogeochemistry in wetland soils at different stages of development throughout the Mississippi River delta. In the older, transgressing Barataria basin, there was no clear effect of the climate-induced species shift from Spartina alterniflora Loisel to Avicennia germinans L. on soil nutrient chemistry. Observed …

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 …

Single-Molecule Detection Of Molecular Beacons Generated From Ldr On Thermoplastic Microfluidic Device For Bioanalysis, Zhiyong Peng

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Current clinical techniques for nucleic acid detection and analysis often involve PCR, lacking adequate specificity or sensitivity to meet the stringent requirements in certain applications. This research aims to develop an innovative molecular assay and the associated hardware to rapidly signal the presence of certain targets using reporter sequence found in their genome without requiring PCR. This assay coupled the sensitivity of single-pair fluorescence resonance energy transfer (spFRET) with the specificity of ligase detection reaction (LDR) to provide near real-time readout of target biomarkers. Heightened concerns on potential bioterrorism threats, such as rapid dissemination of pathogenic bacteria or viruses into …

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 …

Nitrogen And Carbon Export To The Gulf Of Mexico By The Atchafalaya River, A Major Distributary Of The Mississippi River, April Elizabeth Bryantmason

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Summer hypoxia in the Northern Gulf of Mexico has been attributed to large nutrient inputs, especially nitrate-nitrogen, from the Mississippi-Atchafalaya River system. The 2008 Gulf Hypoxia Action Plan calls for river corridor wetland restoration to reduce nitrate loads, but it is largely unknown how effective riverine wetland systems in the lower Mississippi River (MR) are for nitrate removal. This dissertation research examined nitrate and carbon export from the Atchafalaya River (AR) to: (1) determine nitrate processing by a river swamp basin under varied seasons, (2) investigate nitrate retention and processing in the AR during a major flood event, and (3) …

Calling For Justice In The Goldfields Of Tanzania, Madoshi H. Makene, Jody Emel, James T. Murphy

Geography

Tanzania is the third largest gold exporter in Africa, thanks in part to the liberalization of the mining sector which started in the early 1990s. Neoliberal mining reforms promised a win-win situation in which government, investors and local host communities would benefit through export earnings, profits, local employment, andcorporate social responsibility initiatives (e.g., the building of schools and clinics). While the rising price of gold and foreign investments in mining activities have delivered on some of these promises, many residents in mining regions have not benefited socioeconomically. Worse still, their communities have unjustly borne the brunt of the environmental, social, …

Impact Of The Four Brain-Essential Learning Steps On Preschool Teachers In The Development Of Instructional Strategies To Create A Positive Learning Environment, Andrea Seidman

Abraham S. Fischler College of Education ETD Archive

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the ways in which the use of the Four Brain-Essential Learning Steps (4BELS) may impact preschool teachers in the development of instructional strategies that create a positive learning environment. For the purpose of this study, a positive learning environment was defined as emotionally safe, of high quality, and using differentiated instructional strategies.

This study sought to answer the following research questions:

1. What factors should be considered when exploring the ability of preschool teachers to implement new instructional strategies using the 4BELS to create a positive learning environment?

2. What …

The Effect Of Test Design On Student Motivational Strategies For Learning And Student Retention, Jeanne Carol Samuel

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Large numbers of students attending community college lack essential college success skills (motivation and study strategies). Many of these students do not complete their degree programs. Identifying learning and teaching methods that promote the development of lifelong learning skills in addition to content acquisition is essential. This quasi-experimental research design study examined the effect of alternative multiple-choice question design on student motivational strategies for learning and retention. Participants were 59 students enrolled in a Microsoft® Office applications course at a public gulf coast community college. The discrete-option multiple-choice (DOMC) test was designed to limit cheating and guessing on tests. The …

Adaptation As Anarchist: A Complexity Method For Ideology-Critique Of American Crime Narratives, Kristopher Mecholsky

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Particularly through their relation to ideology, crime narrative adaptations expose the conflict between individuals and communities on one side and the State on the other. Adaptations take the already defamiliarizing effect of narrative and continue to defamiliarize, creating a narrative cubist effect through various audiences and discursive orderings of events. Hence, they question the ideological prefiguring that lies at the foundation of narrative understanding. Insofar as ideologies are simplified ways to legitimate actions and project images of identity, the fact that a society’s narratives necessarily inherit ideology from the State obscures that society and State’s inevitable deviations from their self-images. …

An Investigation Into Technology And Motivational Influences On Creativity And Product Output In Apparel Design Students, Charles Freeman

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the application of a social psychological theoretical framework to the study of creativity in apparel design, with a focus on technological engagement and motivational factors. A sample of 32 apparel design students from two major southeastern universities were selected to complete a self-report instruments regarding motivation and technological engagement. Students completed the Abbreviated Torrance Test for Adults (ATTA) as well as a design brief. Design illustrations were evaluated by a panel of expert judges in the field of apparel design using a consensual assessment technique (CAT). Results indicate levels of technology and …

A Critical Ethnography Of The Myrtles Plantation In St. Francisville, Louisiana With Ruminations On Hauntology, Holley Ann Vaughn

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This study examines how ghosts perform and are performed in southern Louisiana, particularly in the eclectic Baton Rouge enclave of Spanish Town and at The Myrtles Plantation in St. Francisville. Although The Myrtles, considered “one of the most haunted locations in the United States,” served as the genesis for this project, I explore the continuities and discontinuities of the histories and historicities of these two distinct places and my journeys between them over a five year period. Using critical ethnography as a grounding framework, the study draws from literature in tourism studies, performance studies, and other related areas of research, …

Phenotypic And Niche Evolution In The Antbirds (Aves: Thamnophilidae), Gustavo Adolfo Bravo

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

A pervasive goal in evolutionary biology has been to address why some clades are richer in species or phenotypic diversity than others. The Thamnophilidae is a large family of insectivorous passerine birds that provides great opportunities to study variation in species and phenotypic diversity. It comprises ca. 220 species that are mostly restricted to the lowlands and lower montane forests of the Neotropics. Its species are diverse in body size and shape, and the family exhibits high species richness, especially in Amazonian forests, where as many as 40 species may co-occur. Therefore, the fundamental research goal of my dissertation is …

Equipped To Serve Our Youth: A Phenomenological Study Of 4-H Extension Youth Educators' Perceptions Of The Value Of Mentoring, Allison Ann Bruchhaus

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Challenging economic times and increasingly complex social contexts intensify the demand for organizations to focus on areas of human resource development that positively contribute to developmental relationships of employees. One such method is the implementation of a formal mentoring program. Mentoring is especially important for 4-H youth educators. Youth educators are usually specialized in program development among other areas and plan, implement, and evaluate programs with the intent of bettering the quality of life for youth. The dynamics of working with today’s youth mandate effective professional development and developmental relationships for career enhancement. This study was developed for the researcher …

What Does The ¹⁴C Method For Estimating Photosynthetic Rates In The Ocean Really Measure?, Shaofeng Pei

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The ¹⁴C method has been used extensively by both limnologists and oceanographers to measure photosynthetic rates in aquatic systems, and the large database of ¹⁴C measurements that now exists is the ground truth with which satellite algorithms for estimating marine photosynthetic rates on a basin and global scale have been calibrated. However, disconcerting uncertainties still remain with respect to whether and under what circumstances the ¹⁴C method provides an estimate of net or gross photosynthesis, or something in between. My study combined batch and continuous culture studies to clarify this ambiguous issue. The batch culture work with …

Habitat Use, Movements, And Ecology Of Female Mottled Ducks On The Gulf Coast Of Louisiana And Texas, Bruce Edward Davis

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Mottled ducks (Anas fulvigula) are the most abundant breeding waterfowl in the coastal marshes of Louisiana and Texas. Mottled ducks are non-migratory and heavily dependent on coastal marsh habitats; they must satisfy all of their annual resource needs from within the Gulf Coast region. Coastal marsh habitats are being rapidly lost or degraded in Louisiana and Texas. The hydrology of many coastal marsh habitats has been altered by anthropogenic activity and natural factors. Parameters related to Mottled Duck habitat use and movements in this altered environment are poorly understood, and managers need information on vital rates of Mottled Ducks in …

Communicating While Stimulated: The Effects Of Sensory-Processing Sensitivity On Behavior And Relationships, Christopher Charles Gearhart

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In light of claims made by Aron (1996, 2000; Aron & Aron, 1997), this dissertation tested the influence of sensory-processing sensitivity on communication via two sets of research questions. First, are highly sensitive persons more easily aroused by stimulation, and if so does this necessarily cause a decrease in affect recognition? Results of an experimental study (N = 342) indicate that highly sensitive persons (HSPs) were more distracted by audio stimulation, causing more errors in accuracy judgments on non-verbal decoding tests, most noticeably for facial expression detection. The implication is that, when aroused by stimulation in their environment, HSPs may …

An Experimental Investigation Of The Role Of Small Hydrocarbons And Combustion-Generated Nanoparticles On The Formation And Growth Reactions Of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons During The Pyrolysis Of A Model-Fuel And Hydrocarbon Gases, Nimesh Bharat Poddar

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) are an important class of environmental pollutants formed during fuel combustion or pyrolysis. Therefore, an experimental study has been undertaken to better understand the formation and growth pathways of PAH.

To investigate the efficacy of C₃ species as PAH growth agents in the context of solid fuels, pyrolysis experiments have been performed in an isothermal quartz flow reactor in the temperature range of 700–1000 °C and a fixed residence time of 0.3 s. Experiments are performed with the C₃ hydrocarbon, propyne; with catechol (ortho-dihydroxybenzene), a model-fuel representative of aromatic moieties in coal …

Portraits Of Adolescence/Juvenile Delinquency: Something Written, Something Said, Something Constructed, Something Read, Marianne Fry

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this research is to examine the dominant narrative of adolescence/juvenile delinquency and to question what makes this discourse possible. I use a poststructuralist perspective that thoroughly questions, dismantles, reveals, and analyzes this discourse in order to uncover hidden or obscure motives that shape how we understand adolescent individuals. Keeping in mind that everything is a construction, I investigate how the discourse works rather than what it means, and in the process I search for whether or not power or some type of oppression is involved. While conducting the interrogation and analysis procedure of the dominant narrative, I …

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 …

John Collier, Thomas Edison And The Educational Promotion Of Moving Pictures, Amanda R. Keeler

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

No abstract provided.

Comparison Of Alumni Donors And Alumni Nondonors On Selected Demographic, Educational And Involvement Factors, Arlette Barbara Rodriguez Rodrigue

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This study compared College of Agriculture (COA) alumni of a research university (RU/VH) in the Southern U.S. on selected demographic characteristics and contact information by whether or not the alumni are donors to the university. The target population was COA graduates from 1862 Land Grant Universities located in the Southern portion of the United States. The accessible population was Louisiana State University (LSU) COA alumni graduates. The sample was alumni who completed their degree program from the years 1950 through 2000. The instrument used was the Tiger Advancement Information Lookup System (TAILS) database. Universities have become burdened by financial instability …

Strategies For Real Time Reservoir Management, Yuanyuan Shuai

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Real–time reservoir management is developed to manage a shrinking labor force and rising demand on energy supply. This dissertation seeks good strategies for real–time reservoir management. First, two simulator–independent optimization algorithms are investigated: ensemble–based optimization (EnOpt) and bound optimization by quadratic approximation (BOBYQA). Multiscale regularization is applied to both to find appropriate frequencies for well control adjustment. Second, two gathered EnKF methods are proposed to save computational cost and reduce sampling error: gathered EnKF with a fixed gather size and adaptively gathered EnKF. Finally, oil price uncertainty is forecasted and quantified with three price forecasting models: conventional forecasting, bootstrap forecasting …

No Halos For Sex Offenders: An Examination Of The Effects Of Appearance And Gender On The Perception Of Sex Offenders, Adam Charles Austin

Theses and Dissertations

For the last couple of decades, sex offenders have been stereotyped into being strangers to the victim and "dirty old men." However, recent research has shown that the public is no longer endorsing those stereotypes (Fuselier, Durham, & Wurtele, 2002; Levenson, Brannon, Fortney, & Baker, 2007). Instead the public is realizing that there is no stereotypical sex offender and most victims of sex offenses know their assailant to some degree. The purpose of the current study is to look at the judgments made about a teacher being accused of criminal sexual contact with a student, where gender and attractiveness of …

Assessing The Biophysical Naturalness Of Grassland In Eastern North Dakota With Hyperspectral Imagery, Qiang Zhou

Theses and Dissertations

Over the past two decades, non-native species within grassland communities have quickly developed due to human migration and commerce. Invasive species like Smooth Brome grass (Bromus inermis) and Kentucky Blue Grass (Poa pratensis), seriously threaten conservation of native grasslands. This study aims to discriminate between native grasslands and planted hayfields and conservation areas dominated by introduced grasses using hyperspectral imagery.

Hyperspectral imageries from the Hyperion sensor on EO-1 were acquired in late spring and late summer on 2009 and 2010. Field spectra for widely distributed species as well as smooth brome grass and Kentucky blue grass were collected from the …

Second Grade Students' Cognitive Understanding Of Heart Rate Monitors And Pedometers, Carolyn Lee Tozer

Theses and Dissertations

Childhood obesity has become a significant health problem in the United States (Dietz, 1998, Blair et al., 2007, Robinson, Wadsworth, 2010). In children, obesity is defined as being at or above the 95th percentile for BMI according to age growth charts (Carroll, 2006). There are several approaches to combating the epidemic of obesity. In physical education classes, teachers are using are heart rate monitors and pedometers to assess the students' levels of physical activity (Blair et al., 2007). However, it is uncertain if elementary students better understand the results from the pedometer, or the heart rate monitor. A study of …

Testing The Gefion Family As A Possible Parent Body For The L-Chondrite Meteorites, Jessica Ronnie Blagen

Theses and Dissertations

The L-chondrite meteorites are the most abundant meteorites falling to Earth. Identifying a parent body for them has been an important goal of asteroid science for more than thirty years. A link between the two could help to decipher the history of thermal regimes and evolutionary processes that occurred in the early solar system. A plausible or probable parent body can be identified based on two main criteria. A plausible body will either be located favorably to deliver the relevant amounts of meteoroids to the Earth, or will possess a surface mineralogy compatible with that of the L-chondrite meteorites. A …