Digital Commons Network^™

Using Freebase, An Automatically Generated Dictionary, And A Classifier To Identify A Person's Profession In Tweets, Abraham Hall

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Algorithms for classifying pre-tagged person entities in tweets into one of eight profession categories are presented. A classifier using a semi-supervised learning algorithm that takes into consideration the local context surrounding the entity in the tweet, hash tag information, and topic signature scores is described. In addition to the classifier, this research investigates two dictionaries containing the professions of persons. These two dictionaries are used in their own classification algorithms which are independent of the classifier. The method for creating the first dictionary dynamically from the web and the algorithm that accesses this dictionary to classify a person into one …

Development Of Nitrogen Concentration During Cryomilling Of Aluminum Composites, Clara Hofmeister

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The ideal properties of a structural material are light weight with extensive strength and ductility. A composite with high strength and tailorable ductility was developed consisting of nanocrystalline AA5083, boron carbide and coarser grained AA5083. The microstructure was determined through optical microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. A technique was developed to determine the nitrogen concentration of an AA5083 composite from secondary ion mass spectrometry utilizing a nitrogen ionimplanted standard. Aluminum nitride and amorphous nitrogen-rich dispersoids were found in the nanocrystalline aluminum grain boundaries. Nitrogen concentration increased as a function of cryomilling time up to 72hours. A greater nitrogen concentration resulted …

Automatically Acquiring A Semantic Network Of Related Concepts, Sean Szumlanski

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

We describe the automatic acquisition of a semantic network in which over 7,500 of the most frequently occurring nouns in the English language are linked to their semantically related concepts in the WordNet noun ontology. Relatedness between nouns is discovered automatically from lexical co-occurrence in Wikipedia texts using a novel adaptation of an information theoretic inspired measure. Our algorithm then capitalizes on salient sense clustering among these semantic associates to automatically disambiguate them to their corresponding WordNet noun senses (i.e., concepts). The resultant concept-to-concept associations, stemming from 7,593 target nouns, with 17,104 distinct senses among them, constitute a large-scale semantic …

A System Dynamics Model For Manpower And Technology Implementation Trade-Off And Cost Estimation, Hong Jiang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The U.S. Navy has been confronted with budget cuts and constraints during recent years. This reduction in budget compels the U.S. Navy to limit the number of manpower and personnel to control costs. Reducing the total ownership cost (TOC) has become a major topic of interest for the Navy as plans are made for current and future fleets. According to the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO, 2003), manpower is the most influential component of determining the life cycle cost of a ship. The vast majority of the TOC is comprised of operating and support (O&S) costs which account for approximately …

Recognition Of Complex Events In Open-Source Web-Scale Videos: Features, Intermediate Representations And Their Temporal Interactions, Subhabrata Bhattacharya

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Recognition of complex events in consumer uploaded Internet videos, captured under realworld settings, has emerged as a challenging area of research across both computer vision and multimedia community. In this dissertation, we present a systematic decomposition of complex events into hierarchical components and make an in-depth analysis of how existing research are being used to cater to various levels of this hierarchy and identify three key stages where we make novel contributions, keeping complex events in focus. These are listed as follows: (a) Extraction of novel semi-global features – firstly, we introduce a Lie-algebra based representation of dominant camera motion …

Study Of The Effect Of Surface Morphology On Mass Transfer And Fouling Behavior Of Reverse Osmosis And Nanofiltration Membrane Processes, Yuming Fang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Reverse osmosis (RO) and nanofiltration (NF) membranes are pressure driven, diffusion controlled process. The influence of surface characteristics on membrane process performance is considered significant and is not well understood. Current mass transport models generally assume constant mass transfer coefficients (MTCs) based on a homogeneous surface. This work evaluated mass transfer processes by incorporating surface morphology into a diffusion-based model assuming MTCs are dependent on the thickness variation of the membrane’s active layer. To mathematically create such a surface layer, Gaussian random vectors embedded in a software system (MATLAB) were used to generate a three-dimensional ridge and valley active layer …

Psychology And Human Flourishing : Gaining Knowledge For Psychology Through Both Philosophy And Science, Chad A. Houchin

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

No abstract provided.

Neurocognitive Performance In Youth With Prenatal Alcohol Exposure, Lisa A. Mccrea Jones

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

No abstract provided.

The Effect Of College Student Spirituality On Alcohol Use And Sexual Behaviors: A Comparison Of Faith-Based And Non Faith-Based Institutional Ncha Data, Kristen S. Miller

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

College-aged individuals have a significant impact on national health. People in this age group have the highest rates of engagement in many risky health behaviors, such as binge drinking, substance use, and engaging in unprotected sexual activity. The American College Health Association (ACHA) has been actively involved in the study of college health behavior and the initiation of information and services to college health care providers for the past decade. However, little research has been done in this area on sub-populations of the overall college population. This study aims to assess the sub-population of students who attend a faith-based institution. …

The Measurement Of Motivation: Examining The Measurement Properties Of The Motivation Assessment System, Daniel Schmerling

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The current study investigated the Pritchard-Ashwood (P-A) Theory of Motivation (Pritchard & Ashwood, 2008) by examining a measure of P-A Theory labeled the Motivation Assessment System (MAS). P-A Theory combines prior motivation theories such as expectancy theory, goal setting theory, justice theory, and needs theory and consolidates them into one integrated theory of motivation. In essence, P-A theory posits that one’s motivation is determined by four perceptions, including the extent to which one believes: (a) his/her actions will lead to results, (b) his/her results will lead to positive evaluations, (c) his/her evaluations will lead to positive outcomes, and (d) his/her …

Hjb Equation And Statistical Arbitrage Applied To High Frequency Trading, Yonggi Park

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this thesis we investigate some properties of market making and statistical arbitrage applied to High Frequency Trading (HFT). Using the Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman(HJB) model developed by Guilbaud, Fabien and Pham, Huyen in 2012, we studied how market making works to obtain optimal strategy during limit order and market order. Also we develop the best investment strategy through Moving Average, Exponential Moving Average, Relative Strength Index, Sharpe Ratio.

Nano-Particles In Multi-Scale Composites And Ballistic Applications, Jason Gibson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Carbon nanotubes, graphene and nano sized core shell rubber particles have all been extensively researched for their capability to improve mechanical properties of thermoset resins. However, there has been a lack of research on their evaluation for energy absorption in high velocity impact scenarios, and the fundamental mechanics of their failure mechanisms during highly dynamic stress transfer through the matrix. This fundamental research is essential for laying the foundation for improvement in ballistic performance in composite armor. In hard armor applications, energy absorption is largely accomplished through delamination between plies of the composite laminate. This energy absorption is accomplished through …

Defining A Stakeholder-Relative Model To Measure Academic Department Efficiency At Achieving Quality In Higher Education, Federica Robinson-Bryant

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In a time of strained resources and dynamic environments, the importance of effective and efficient systems is critical. This dissertation was developed to address the need to use feedback from multiple stakeholder groups to define quality and assess an entity’s efficiency at achieving such quality. A decision support model with applicability to diverse domains was introduced to outline the approach. Three phases, (1) quality model development, (2) input-output selection and (3) relative efficiency assessment, captured the essence of the process which also delineates the approach per tool applied. This decision support model was adapted in higher education to assess academic …

Dordt College 2013-14 Catalog, Dordt College. Registrar's Office

Academic Catalogs

Academic Catalog for 2013-14

Incorporating Value Judgment In Technology Forecasting Using Data Envelopment Analysis, Dong-Joon Lim, Timothy R. Anderson

Engineering and Technology Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

Technology Forecasting using Data Envelopment Analysis (TFDEA) has been employed to a wide range of applications because of its ability to model complex tradeoffs. The very name indicates that it is based on Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) which has strength that it doesn?t require fixed a priori weighting scheme. Instead, it adopts dynamic weighting scheme that each data point can choose their best possible weights. However, it is well known that this flexibility may result in extreme weights that may be considered unrealistic in certain applications and has been one subject of DEA researches. This paper extends the standard TFDEA …

A Comparison Of Control Charting Applications For Variable Sample Sizes In Service Processes, Alan Chow, Ameina Tressler, Kelly C. Woodford

Journal of Business, Industry, and Economics

Over the last several decades, quality improvement approaches and applications have expanded beyond the manufacturing floor to other areas of the operation. In more recent years, service industries have embraced the concepts of continuous improvement and six sigma as well. In applying the quality tools to service processes, challenges have developed in making the transition from factory volume production rates and the sometimes more variable activity rates of services

Adolescents With Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder: Program For Prevention Of Juveniles Entering The Criminal Justice System, Erin Sykora, René Warzecha

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Purpose: The purpose of the product is to provide adolescents with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) who are in a youth juvenile detention center the opportunity to participate in group sessions that will increase their functional occupational performance and decrease behaviors associated with their disorder.

Methodology: An extensive literature review was completed in order to determine the need for services and the information to include within the product. The authors looked at websites related to programming already implemented in Juvenile Centers to gather an idea of how to organize the product. A review of Cole’s 7 Steps was done in …

Physical And Sequence Stratigraphy Of The Late Cretaceous Chispa Summit Formation, Jeff Davis County, Texas, Patrick Thomas Dietzel

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The Late Cretaceous Chispa Summit Formation of west Texas has historically been of interest to the petroleum industry; with new technologies, this old, uneconomical play could prove significant, if not for energy resources, for educational purposes, but little work has been conducted on the formation. The Eagle Ford Formation of southern Texas is time equivalent to the Chispa Summit Formation and is a highly prolific hydrocarbon resource.

Located in western Jeff Davis County, Texas, the Chispa Summit Formation consists of marine shales interbedded with limestone beds and sporadically located siliciclastic beds, measuring a total of 610 m at the type …

A Qualitative Study Of Curriculum In A Developmental Reading At At Community College, Celina Uranga Gomez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This interpretive study examined the curriculum implemented in a developmental reading course at a community college. Approaching curriculum as a three layered construct, (Cohen, 1990; Hartell, 2012; Mendez, 2010; Page, 1991; Page, 1999), I described classroom lessons to understand how the formal curriculum was translated by students and teachers. This study offered a nuanced account of developmental education with a focus on classroom practice to garner a better understanding of how a developmental reading curriculum was enacted in daily classroom life.

This study focused on questions of culture, meaning and context (Erickson, 1986); therefore, I employed a qualitative approach to …

On The Perception Of Early Atonal Music: Finding Musical Meaning In The Work Of Anton Von Webern, Jonathan Schmieding

Holster Scholar Projects

No abstract provided.

Concert Recording 2013-11-22, Brielle Johnson, Denzel Rashard Washington, John James Forsyth, Jacob Louis Sklar, Pafoua N. Yang, Adam Richard Schoelz, Kyleen Marie Floyd, Nicole Johnson, Teana Delisa Herbert Rosales, Tomoko Kashiwagi, Joshua Brice Robertson

Concert Recordings & Programs

Baby it's cold outside / Frank Loesser -- On my own / Claude Michel Schonberg -- Silent night / Franz Gruber -- The music of the night / Andrew Lloyd Wever -- Bridge over troubled water / Paul Simon -- Rinaldo. Lascia ch'io pianga / G. F. Handel -- An die Musik / F. Schubert -- Vaghissima sembianza / S. Donaudy -- Vaga luna che inargenti / V. Bellini -- Dein blaues auge / J. Brahms -- Sebben crudele / A. Caldara --Vergin tutto amor / F. Durante -- An den mond / F. Schubert

Creative Writing Thesis: Poetry, Desmond Bonhomme

CMC Senior Theses

The title of this compilation of my own creative writings is Trees, Breathe, Paper. This unique collection of poetry, short stories and prose contains a range of work, composed from 2002-2012. The thematic goal of this undertaking is to ballast as many implicit and explicit meanings as are comprehensible, and to extrapolate a distinct spectrum of latent and straightforward explanations with discernible psycho-analytical accuracy. We all know poetry is truly formless and based on springs of natural inspiration. Thus, we derive our purest inspiration from the natural world and we prune it in its unfiltered, raw state. Poetry is an …

The Charter School Movement: The Impact Of School Form On Performance, Jeremy B. Wolff

CMC Senior Theses

Using data from the DataQuest and Ed-Data databases provided by the California Department of Education (2006-2012), this study assesses if charter schools provide a net benefit to students compared to non-charter schools. Further, it examines if charter management organizations improve the performance of charter schools. I find that charter schools have no net benefit across all grades. However, charter schools get significantly better performance on high school language arts tests. Minority and low-income students perform better at charter schools than traditional public schools, especially at the middle school level. Minorities in middle schools perform even better at CMOs than independent …

Sampling From The Hardcore Process, William C. Dodds

CMC Senior Theses

Partially Recursive Acceptance Rejection (PRAR) and bounding chains used in conjunction with coupling from the past (CFTP) are two perfect simulation protocols which can be used to sample from a variety of unnormalized target distributions. This paper first examines and then implements these two protocols to sample from the hardcore gas process. We empirically determine the subset of the hardcore process's parameters for which these two algorithms run in polynomial time. Comparing the efficiency of these two algorithms, we find that PRAR runs much faster for small values of the hardcore process's parameter whereas the bounding chain approach is vastly …

Trends In Pro Forma Reporting During The Great Recession, Dakota W. Mivshek

CMC Senior Theses

Pro forma EPS reporting is a fairly new accounting disclosure; it has since been modified in 2003 by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, to include additional disclosure and filing requirements. This “Regulation G” has been around for nearly a decade and since that time a major financial crises in the United States has occurred. This study attempts to analyze trends in pro forma EPS reporting within the S & P 500 constituents during the Great Recession, and speculate as to whether earnings management was apparent. This study provides evidence that there was a significant increase in the proportion of …

Invisibility: A Mathematical Perspective, Austin G. Gomez

CMC Senior Theses

The concept of rendering an object invisible, once considered unfathomable, can now be deemed achievable using artificial metamaterials. The ability for these advanced structures to refract waves in the negative direction has sparked creativity for future applications. Manipulating electromagnetic waves of all frequencies around an object requires precise and unique parameters, which are calculated from various mathemat- ical laws and equations. We explore the possible interpretations of these parameters and how they are implemented towards the construction of a suitable metamaterial. If carried out correctly, the wave will exit the metamaterial exhibiting the same behavior as when it had entered. …

The Synthesizer: Modernist And Technological Transformations In Film Sound And Contemporary Music, Dusin J. Green

CMC Senior Theses

The invention of the synthesizer meant the possibility of achieving virtually any sound in one mechanism, a superbly convenient device for musical creativity. Perhaps the perfect space for this approval of sound creativity was in the modern electronic film score. The synthesizer also flourished in popular music immediately following its emergence, but a common form began to solidify itself among synthesizer music. Shortly after, improvements in electronic instrument technology led to the democratization of electronic music and equipment, ultimately leading to electronic music as the new mainstream.

Choking Under Pressure On The Pga Tour, Madison Friedman

CMC Senior Theses

The productivity of individuals can be altered by cognitive environmental factors such as those that induce psychological pressure. The goal of this analysis is to determine the extent to which a selection of variables influences an individual’s perception of pressure and its subsequent effect on productivity. To do so, the performance of golfers under pressure on the PGA TOUR was proxied using the scrambling percentage statistic. Two regressions, one using data from players who were cut at the end of the second round and the other using data from players who were not cut at the end of the second …

Reducing Employee Turnover In The Big Four Public Accounting Firms, Erin L. Maclean

CMC Senior Theses

Employee turnover is extremely costly to any business in terms of training costs and loss of pertinent knowledge and experience. This paper explores the contributors to the high rates of employee turnover seen in public accounting by focusing on the Big Four accounting firms, Deloitte, EY, KPMG, and PricewaterhouseCoopers. Employee retention is a factor of corresponding employee motivation, as seen through the analysis of popular motivational theories and their applications to a career in public accounting. This paper also delves into the possible contributors to the differences in retention rates between males and females in this occupation. Lastly, an analysis …

A Question Of Values: Overpopulation And Our Choice Between Procreative Rights And Security-Survival, Megan T. Latta

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis analyzes the beliefs of population theorist Julian L. Simon through the creation of a harm principle. It specifically analyzes his argument that we value our freedom to choose how many children we want above all other values in the context of overpopulation and environmental destruction. The developed harm principle is meant to give us a method to decide how to balance our personal freedom with our security-survival. I begin with an overview of Simon’s work, as well as an exposition of other prominent population theorists. I then propose a principle that is a utilitarian alternative to John Stuart …