Digital Commons Network^™

Membership On Committees, Task Forces, And Councils

Academic Affairs Policies

The policy was implemented regarding the appointment of committees, task forces, and councils to promote effective communication within the University and to ensure proper assignments for personnel.

Localization And Security Algorithms For Wireless Sensor Networks And The Usage Of Signals Of Opportunity, Gustavo Andres Chacon Rojas

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In this dissertation we consider the problem of localization of wireless devices in environments and applications where GPS (Global Positioning System) is not a viable option. The _x000C_rst part of the dissertation studies a novel positioning system based on narrowband radio frequency (RF) signals of opportunity, and develops near optimum estimation algorithms for localization of a mobile receiver. It is assumed that a reference receiver (RR) with known position is available to aid with the positioning of the mobile receiver (MR). The new positioning system is reminiscent of GPS and involves two similar estimation problems. The _x000C_rst is localization using …

The Hard Decisions: A Qualitative Study Of Marital Reconciliation, Hannah Pearce Plauche

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The topics of marriage and divorce have been studied extensively, especially in recent decades; however, the topic of marital reconciliation has been scarcely researched. Seven couples (N = 14) participated in a qualitative investigation of marital reconciliation. Each couple had filed a petition for divorce in the state of Louisiana between the years 2000-2010. Before the required 12 month period of living apart were complete, each couple decided to discontinue the divorce proceedings and reconcile their marriages, and have lived together continuously for a period of more than three years. A purposive, convenience sample was solicited due to the specific …

Predictors Of National Broadcast And Cable Television News Coverage Of The Members Of The U.S. House Of Representatives, Jeremy Padgett

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation examines how institutional, individual, and situational variables work to influence the volume of national broadcast and cable television news coverage members of the 109th, 110th, 111th, and 112th U.S. Houses of Representatives received. Analysis combines public data on House structure, member characteristics, member effort, and member circumstances with original computer-aided content analysis of the 38,430 transcripts in which members spoke and the 243,205 statements members made on ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC between January 3, 2005 and January 3, 2013, the full terms of these four congresses. The results presented in this dissertation yield important …

Joseph Joachim Raff: A Biographical Sketch And A Conductor's Analysis Of His Sinfonietta, Op. 188, James Fuller Lyon Iv

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Despite its obscurity, Sinfonietta, Op. 188 by Joachim Raff (1822-1882) is an important chamber work for winds and should find its place more frequently on the concert programs of university wind ensembles. In order to test this hypothesis, I investigate Raff’s biography for evidence that might explain its obscurity while leaving the door open to question that status. Furthermore, I investigate the Sinfonietta from a conductor’s perspective and apply a critique of its artistic merit. Several factors explain Raff’s fall from acclaim; none of them relegate his music to permanent obscurity. Based on the composer’s historical significance, analytical results, and …

Characterization Of A Water Soluble, Non-Ionic, Helical Poly(Α-Amino Acid), Wayne Huberty

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

A water soluble, non-ionic, rodlike polymer, PEGL, was synthesized and characterized in efforts to synthesize a novel model polymer to study stiff polymers in solution. The rodlike system is likely stiff due to a high relative percent helicity in water up to 50 °C, measured by circular dichroism, the observation of liquid crystalline domains in water, and from the slope measured from conformation plots supplied by GPC/MALS; however, it also apparent the system is aggregating in both a 2 mM azide solution and a buffer (200 mM NaNO3 + 20 mM NaH2PO4 + 2 mM NaN3), in corroboration of negative …

Untangling Earth System Responses Recorded In Sulfate's Sulfur And Oxygen Isotopes At The Dawn Of Multicellular Life And Today, Bryan Alan Killingsworth

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Major Earth system perturbations in the deep past and today are recorded in sulfate sulfur and oxygen isotopes, as examined here in three cases. (1) Sedimentary sulfate record of the “Marinoan Oxygen-17 Depletion” (MOSD) event, implies ultra-high CO2 atmosphere at ~635 Ma after global glaciation. MOSD duration is constrained by correlating its most complete record to radiometric dates. Barium sulfate layers in South China sediments show the MOSD in lower layers but persistently absent up section. Carbon-13 correlation locates the MOSD within dated intervals from other sites, yielding a 0 - 0.99 Myr duration. Thus, sedimentary constraint on this non-steady-state …

Advanced Control Of Small-Scale Power Systems With Penetration Of Renewable Energy Sources, Shaghayegh Kazemlou

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Stability, protection, and operational restrictions are important factors to be taken into account in a proper integration of distributed energy. The objective of this research is presenting advanced controllers for small-scale power systems with penetration of renewable energy sources resources to ensure stable operation after the network disturbances. Power systems with distributed energy resources are modeled and controlled through applying nonlinear control methods to their power electronic interfaces in this research. The stability and control of both ac and dc systems have been studied in a multi-source framework. The dc distribution system is represented as a class of interconnected, nonlinear …

Coworking: Crafting Lives Alongside Each Other, Claire Frances Taylor

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Coworking is a form of alternative work arrangement in which communities of individuals share common office and work space but are most often employed by different employers within different fields/industries (Foertsch, 2011). Despite its growing prevalence, coworking is nearly absent from the organizational literature. The present mixed methods study introduced and defined the construct of extent of coworking. Extent of coworking is conceptually defined in this research as the degree to which an individual spends her/his workweek coworking. Qualitative literature review was conducted to establish this construct, and qualitative interview data provided support for the definition. Using job crafting and …

The Influence Of Colorism And Hair Texture Bias On The Professional And Social Lives Of Black Women Student Affairs Professionals, Rhea Monet Perkins

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The Influence of Colorism and Hair Texture Bias on the Professional and Social Lives of Black Women Student Affairs Professionals “If it was so honorable and glorious to be black, why was it the yellow-skinned people among us had so much prestige?” Zora Neal Hurston (1942) understood the privilege and oppression associated with colorism. “Colorism is the allocation of privilege and disadvantage according to the lightness or darkness of one’s skin” (Burke, 2008, p. 17). Colorism is the systematic preference for lighter skin tones over darker tones and stems from larger racial systems impacting education, income, marriageability, job placement, housing …

Understanding The Impact Of Motivation On The Effectiveness Of Various Content Delivery Methods In Training Program Development: A Mixed-Methods Evaluation, Serena Lynn Fisher

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to evaluate an online training program designed for part-time undergraduate Desk Assistants (DAs) employed by Louisiana State University’s (LSU) department of Residence Education. The evaluation of the training program included a comparison of video and lecture versions of a training program with comparable content to determine the effectiveness across a set of four outcomes: motivation during training, motivation after training, satisfaction, and learning. Additionally, this research contributed to the understanding of the impact of technology-mediated learning in training by examining factors that may differentially benefit or challenge the effectiveness of the training delivery method. …

Screening Ted: A Rhetorical Analysis Of The Intersections Of Rhetoric, Digital Media, And Pedagogy, Joseph Alan Watson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The presence of expertise resonates across our daily lives. Experts are called upon to consult us about which candidate is ideal for office, which type of wood is the best choice for a carpentry project, which scientist has optimal data on the effects of air pollution, which speech teacher is the best one to take for proper credit hours, and more. An expert is typically conceived as an individual who knows more about a given topic and can create stronger identification than an average person. The struggle to achieve expert status is one that is fundamentally tied to power and …

Analysis And Modeling Of Manual Traffic Control For Signalized Intersections, Scott Alexander Skip Parr

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Manual traffic control is a common intersection control strategy in which trained personnel, typically police law enforcement officers, allocate intersection right-of-way to approaching vehicles. Manual intersection control is a key part of managing traffic during emergencies and planned special events. It is widely assumed that the flow of traffic through intersections can be greatly improved by the direction given from police officers who can observe and respond to change conditions by allocating green time to the approaches that require it the most. Despite the long history of manual traffic control throughout the world and its assumed effectiveness, there have been …

Structural And Kinetic Investigations Of 15-Lipoxygenase-2, Matthew James Kobe

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Evidence suggests that 15-lipoxygenase-2 (15-LOX-2) plays an important role in the progression of atherosclerosis. Due to the medical need to discover isoform specific inhibitors of 15-LOX-2, a novel human enzyme, our goal was to determine the 3-dimensional structure. Using bacterial expression, we were able to obtain a usable quantity of enzyme with a sufficient amount of the catalytic iron bound to the enzyme, however it was sensitive to cleavage by proteases. This led to a ratio of roughly 1:1 of cleaved and uncleaved protein after the final step of purification. Solving the crystal structure revealed the reason for the protease …

Extremal Problems In Matroid Connectivity, John Tyler Moss

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Matroid k-connectivity is typically defined in terms of a connectivity function. We can also say that a matroid is 2-connected if and only if for each pair of elements, there is a circuit containing both elements. Equivalently, a matroid is 2-connected if and only if each pair of elements is in a certain 2-element minor that is 2-connected. Similar results for higher connectivity had not been known. We determine a characterization of 3-connectivity that is based on the containment of small subsets in 3-connected minors from a given list of 3-connected matroids. Bixby’s Lemma is a well-known inductive tool in …

The Pulpit And The Nation: Clergymen, Political Culture, And The Creation Of An American National Identity, Spencer W. Mcbride

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation examines the politicization of clergymen during the American Revolution and explains the direct impact this process had on the development of a national polity and a distinct American national identity in the early republic. Both during and after the Revolution, clergymen utilized providential rhetoric and biblical symbolism to assign greater religious and moral significance to political events. Focusing on the period between 1775 and 1800, this dissertation describes and analyzes the extent to which national political leaders relied on local clergymen when securing independence and thereafter inventing a new nation. Ultimately, it argues that clergymen were essential to …

A Perfomance Guide To Anthony Brandt's Creeley Songs, Penny Reid Shumate

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this document is to provide a performance guide to composer Anthony Brandt’s Creeley Songs, a song cycle consisting of six poems by Robert Creeley set for soprano and piano. In addition to biographical information about the composer and poet, this document contains details regarding the creation of the cycle as well as analysis and performance suggestions with supporting musical examples for each song. Appendices include the composer’s works list, the composer’s program notes for Creeley Songs, transcripts of interviews with Anthony Brandt, and letters of permission.

Safer To Steal Than Score : Press Coverage Of Financial And Sexual Scandals, And Electoral Outcomes, Chance York

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation examines communication processes surrounding political scandal. It demonstrates that scandal coverage is improperly calibrated to the severity of scandal accusations, with trivial but salacious sex scandals tending to receive inordinate amounts of press attention while deeper forms of financial corruption go unreported or underreported. Patterns of scandal coverage, in turn, result in real-world effects on public perceptions and electoral outcomes. Specifically, sex scandals generate such intense media scrutiny that accused officials often resign their offices rather than generate unwanted publicity. Financial scandals are often downplayed, resulting in little or no ramifications for the accused. Recognizing basic differences in …

A Mixed Methods Investigation Of Post-Secondary Students' Long Bone Anatomy Knowledge Retention Through Constructivism And The Works Of Vesalius, Jennifer F. Tynes

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Understanding human long bone anatomy is an important concept to master for post-secondary students that major in medical fields since skeletal structures assist in locating a pulse, conducting clinical procedures, and identifying injection sites. Skeletal anatomy is also used to name structures associated with other organ systems like veins, arteries, and nerves. This explanatory mixed methods study explores post-secondary students’ knowledge retention and perception of various constructivist activities that utilize historical approaches based on the works of Vesalius, the Father of Modern Anatomy to teach long bone anatomy. Three treatment groups and one controlled comparison group (n= 92) were provided …

Revealing The Jewishness Of Hannah Arendt, Jennifer Richard

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Hannah Arendt, one of the most important political thinkers of the twentieth century, passed away before finishing her final statement on politics. Because her political theory is incomplete, scholars have adopted many means for interpreting her work. In this dissertation, I adopt a phenomenological approach to understanding Arendt by engaging with the phenomenological method Arendt, herself, used—narrative. I specifically employ the Passover narrative as a metaphorical framework alongside which Arendt’s political theory is traced. In this approach, four elements of Arendt’s theory emerge to distinguish her thought from the Western political tradition: the role of the mental activities, the definition …

Multivariate Generalizability Of Writing Curriculum-Based Measurement (Cbm): An Examination Of Form, Occasion, And Scoring Method, Katherine Hunter Chenier

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Curriculum-based measurement (CBM) is an assessment technique that has become increasingly popular in schools, gaining importance with the recent national emphasis on school and teacher accountability for student achievement. CBM is used to monitor student performance to provide an indicator of which students are at-risk of not achieving grade level standards and thus are in need of intervention. CBM is easy to administer, utilizes standard procedures, and provides measures indicative of general achievement in various domains. The utility of CBM to measure student ability in writing has been well-established. However, there is a paucity of technical adequacy research for writing …

Presidential Profiles: Race, Leadership Orientation, And Effectiveness, Jerry M. Whitmore Jr.

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation study examined racial differences in leadership orientation and effectiveness at United States four year, public colleges and universities as self-perceived and as perceived by presidents, as a means to contribute to the literature on race leadership orientation and effectiveness. The quantitative study design is to determine significant relationships among University or College Presidents or Chancellors (UCPC) pertaining to their leadership frames and effectiveness using (Bolman and Deal 1991a, 1991b, 2003) four-frame leadership theory and Quinn (1988) competing values model. The study attempts to understand any distinct observations that may be present. This study will not be an attempt …

Improved Synthesis, Separation, Transition Metal Coordination And Reaction Chemistry Of A New Binucleating Tetraphosphine Ligand, Ekaterina Kalachnikova

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The first chapter of this dissertation involves discussion of alkene hydration and oxidative cleavage reactions catalyzed by late transition metal complexes. Previously reported results are summarized here. Mechanistic aspects of alkene hydration catalyzed by late transition metal complexes are also explained. The second part of Chapter 1 focuses on motivation for using bimetallic nickel phosphine complexes as possible catalytic precursors for alkene hydration. Chapter 2 describes studies into alkene hydration in the presence of catalytic amounts of dinickel phosphine complexes based on linear tetraphosphine ligand, PEt2CH2CH2(Ph)PCH2P(Ph)CH2CH2PEt2, et,ph-P4. Under conditions tested no alcohol products were detected. However we have observed formation …

Modeling Of Foam Flow In Porous Media For Subsurface Environmental Remediation, Seungjun Lee

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Among numerous foam applications in a wide range of disciplines, foam flow in porous media has been spotlighted for improved/enhanced oil recovery processes in petroleum-bearing geological formations and shallow subsurface in-situ NAPL (non-aqueous phase liquid) environmental remediation in contaminated soils and aquifers. In those applications, foams are known to reduce the mobility of gas phase by increasing effective gas viscosity and improve sweep efficiency by mitigating subsurface heterogeneity. This study investigates how surfactant/foam process works fundamentally for environmental remediation purpose by using MoC (Method of Characteristics) based foam modeling and simulation techniques. It consists of two main parts: Part 1, …

The Hidden Layer Of Buyer-Seller Relationships, Stephanie Marie Mangus

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Using social capital theory (SCT), this research conceptualizes trusted advisor relationships (TAR) and empirically tests the implications of such intense relationships on important performance outcomes. Essay 1 was conducted to offer an in-depth analysis of the conceptualization of trusted advisor relationships. A hermeneutical phenomenological approach was used to interpret the data derived from fourteen in-depth interviews with professional salespeople and their business-to-business (B2B) clients. These data supported the development of a conceptual model and definition of TARs. Essay 2 was conducted to explore the measurable components of trusted advisor relationships and solidify an operationalization of the construct for used in …

Analysis Of Multi-Platform Mobile Application Development, Courtney B. Thaden

Theses and Dissertations

The variety of mobile devices and their operating platforms has rapidly increased. With this increase come separate standards, programming languages, and distribution markets. Typically developers want to deliver their products to a variety of users encompassing various platforms; however choosing to develop using a native program for a platform can delay the development and release on another platform. Multi-platform development applications were created in order to deploy applications to various platforms in a more timely and cost efficient manner by using a single code base.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the multi-platform development applications MoSync, Appcelerator, and …

The (In)Visible Road Map: The Role Of Mentoring For First-Generation Black Female Doctoral Students At Predominantly White Institutions, Takea Vickers

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Although women’s status in higher education has vastly improved over the past decades, invisible barriers remain that disenfranchise first-generation Black female doctoral students at predominantly White institutions (PWI). Specifically, the sparse literature base constricts existing knowledge and understanding about the mentoring relationships of first-generation Black female doctoral students and the barriers they face in the academy. Using the theoretical framework of intersectionality, this study sought to address the ways in which first-generation Black female doctoral students navigated the academy through mentorship and the ways in which mentoring relationships were formidable to construct. Five first-generational Black female doctoral students and two …

Spectrum Sensing, Spectrum Monitoring, And Security In Cognitive Radios, Erfan Soltanmohammadi

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Spectrum sensing is a key function of cognitive radios and is used to determine whether a primary user is present in the channel or not. In this dissertation, we formulate and solve the generalized likelihood ratio test (GLRT) for spectrum sensing when both primary user transmitter and the secondary user receiver are equipped with multiple antennas. We do not assume any prior information about the channel statistics or the primary user’s signal structure. Two cases are considered when the secondary user is aware of the energy of the noise and when it is not. The final test statistics derived from …

Promoting Self-Determined Motivation For Exercise In Stroke Rehabilitation: The Role Of Autonomy Support, Emmanuel Afawuah Akowuah

Theses and Dissertations

Rehabilitation Interventionists (RIs) usually spend a great deal of time and effort trying to improve the functional abilities of stroke patients. Stroke rehabilitation through current studies has been recognized as an important and effective modality in the treatment of stroke. Despite the known benefits of SR to stroke patients, a number of them drop out resulting in a decline the benefits from the program.

Objective: To examine the predictive relationship between perceived autonomy support provided by Stroke Rehabilitation Interventionists, and the participants' subsequent stroke rehabilitation program attendance rate. The study also examines the predictive relationship between participants' perceived autonomy support …

Statistical Analysis Of The Effectiveness Of The 'You're Hired!' Program At Changing Students' Attitudes Towards Engineering, Kristin Michelle Brevik

Theses and Dissertations

With the growing need for qualified employees in STEM-based careers, it is critical to develop activities for middle and high school students to increase their awareness of opportunities in these areas. With proper design, increasing awareness of STEM-based careers in conjunction with overcoming current stereotypes can lead to a change in attitudes towards these various careers. As part of this research project I have developed `You're Hired!', a program providing middle and high school students a hands-on, authentic experience in various engineering roles while assessing the change in a student's attitude towards the engineering profession. Project design also incorporates an …