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Use Of Carbon Dioxide (Co2) And Its Congeners For The Synthesis Of Small Value Added Chemicals Utilizing Chlorostannoxane Catalysts, Sharon Pulla

Theses and Dissertations

Carbon dioxide (CO2) is an abundant, environmentally benign and renewable source of carbon. Use of CO2 may potentially end the use of other toxic C1 synthons, such as phosgene, carbon monoxide, and isocyanate. However, the extreme inertness of CO2 presents great difficulty for its use in organic synthesis. In Chapter 3, the synthesis of cyclic carbonates from corresponding epoxides under low pressures of CO2 (300 psi), relatively mild temperature (130 oC) using chlorostannoxane catalysts is discussed. Activities of the catalysts have been optimized in the pressure range of 100-700 psi, temperature range of 100-130 oC, with reference to propylene oxide. …

Localization And Functional Analysis Of Dictyostelium Discoideum Gtpases, Rabs And Rab2, Katherine V. Maringer

Theses and Dissertations

Dictyostelium discoideum is a simple eukaryotic amoeba that has proven useful in studying various aspects of endosomal and lysosomal membrane trafficking, as well as development. The Rab family of small molecular weight GTPases has been implemented in several cellular processes to include various vesicle trafficking roles, cell-cell signaling, and development. This study focuses on the localization and function of two Dictyostelium GTPases, RabS, and Rab2 which we hypothesized to both localize to the Golgi, and the contractile vacuole system. Expression of GFP-tagged DdRab2, and DdRabS proteins revealed similar localization to ER-Golgi membranes as well as the contractile vacuole system. Microscopic …

Geophysical Applications For Levee Assessment, Hussein Khalefa Chlaib

Theses and Dissertations

Levees are important engineering structures that build along the rivers to protect the human lives and shield the communities as well as agriculture lands from the high water level events. Animal burrows, subsurface cavities, and low density (high permeability) zones are weakness features within the levee body that increase its risk of failure. To prevent such failure, continuous monitoring of the structure integrity and early detection of the weakness features must be conducted. Application of Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) and Capacitively Coupled Resistivity (CCR) methods were found to be very effective in assessing the levees and detect zones of weakness …

A Heterogenous Thermal Environment Enables Remarkable Behavioral Thermoregulation In Uta Stansburiana, Maria Goller, Franz Goller, Susannah S. French

Biology Faculty Publications

Ectotherms can attain preferred body temperatures by selecting specific temperature microhabitats within a varied thermal environment. The side-blotched lizard, Uta stansburiana may employ microhabitat selection to thermoregulate behaviorally. It is unknown to what degree habitat structural complexity provides thermal microhabitats for thermoregulation. Thermal microhabitat structure, lizard temperature, and substrate preference were simultaneously evaluated using thermal imaging. A broad range of microhabitat temperatures was available (mean range of 11°C within 1–2 m2) while mean lizard temperature was between 36°C and 38°C. Lizards selected sites that differed significantly from the mean environmental temperature, indicating behavioral thermoregulation, and maintained a temperature significantly above …

Statistical Analysis, Modeling, And Algorithms For Pharmaceutical And Cancer Systems, Bong-Jin Choi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The aim of the present study is to develop a statistical algorithm and model associ- ated with breast and lung cancer patients. In this study, we developed several statistical softwares, R packages, and models using our new statistical approach.

In the present study, we used the five parameters logistic model for determining the optimal doses of a pharmaceutical drugs, including dynamic initial points, an automatic process for outlier detection and an algorithm that develops a graphic user interface(GUI) program. The developed statistical procedure assists medical scientists by reducing their time in determining the optimal dose of new drugs, and can …

Self-Control Depletion And Nicotine Deprivation As Precipitants Of Smoking Cessation Failure: A Human Laboratory Model, Bryan Heckman

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The need to understand the reinforcing properties of smoking and potential precipitants of relapse is exemplified by evidence that relapse rates exceed 95%. The Self-Control Strength model, which proposes that self-control is dependent upon limited resources and susceptible to fatigue, may offer insight into the relapse process. Indeed, there is empirical support that engaging in a task that requires self-control, relative to a comparable control, results in performance decrements on subsequent self-control tasks. The primary goal of the current study was to test whether self-control depletion (SCD) may serve as a novel antecedent for cessation failure, using a validated laboratory …

A Simple And Effective Method For High Quality Co-Extraction Of Genomic Dna And Total Rna From Low Biomass Ectocarpus Siliculosus, The Model Brown Alga, M Greco, Ca Sáez, Mt Brown, Mb Bitonti

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

The brown seaweed Ectocarpus siliculosus is an emerging model species distributed worldwide in temperate coastal ecosystems. Over 1500 strains of E. siliculosus are available in culture from a broad range of geographic locations and ecological niches. To elucidate the molecular mechanisms underlying its capacity to cope with different environmental and biotic stressors, genomic and transcriptomic studies are necessary; this requires the co-isolation of genomic DNA and total RNA. In brown algae, extraction of nucleic acids is hindered by high concentrations of secondary metabolites that co-precipitate with nucleic acids. Here, we propose a reliable, rapid and cost-effective procedure for the co-isolation …

Collaboration In Cambodia: Are Anti-Trafficking Agencies Working Together?, Heather Richardson

Capstone Collection

This study examined the presence and effectiveness of partnerships among anti trafficking agencies in Cambodia. Local NGOs and government ministries were questioned on a variety of topics including the scope of their agencies strategic goals as well as the number of partnerships they hold. I applied a biology based theory, Systems Theory, to my research in order to highlight the importance of collaboration. Based on a lack of respondents to my questionnaire, the information gathered from participating agencies, and literary research, I conclude that partnerships among stakeholders in the anti trafficking field in Cambodia are deficient, but that is not …

Long-Term Impacts And Outcomes: Sit Study Abroad, Marianne Mcgarrity

Capstone Collection

This capstone reports on the results of the SIT Study Abroad Long-Term Impacts and Outcomes survey, a research project designed to investigate how alumni would self-report impacts of their study abroad experience with regard to academic, personal, and professional outcomes. The principal question the study sought to answer was “How and to what extent do SIT Study Abroad programs impact alumni in the long term?” This paper focuses largely on the career outcomes of the alumni who participated in this research. A large percentage of SIT Study Abroad alumni report that impacts to their career choices were significant and that …

Looking Through A Different Window: Chronic Disease Management In Public Health. Application Of Symbolic Interactionism And Institutional Ethnography, Yuliya Knyahnytska

The Qualitative Report

Chronic diseases are defined as illnesses that are prolonged, do not resolve spontaneously and are rarely cured. They constitute 46% of the global burden of diseases and are responsible for 59% of deaths in Canada, tallying billions of dollars in annual medical expenditures. Regardless of the variety of available treatments, a vast majority of patients with chronic conditions report they do not receive the care they need or expect. The efficacy of chronic disease management (CDM) has been proven effective for the general population; the focus of this paper, however, is around populations who are less responsive to mainstream behaviour …

Chinese Biology Teaching Assistants' Perception Of Their English Proficiency: An Exploratory Case Study, Xuan Jiang

The Qualitative Report

Many Chinese graduate students are teaching assistants (TAs) in mathematics, science and engineering departments in the U.S. universities. TAs’ English proficiency has been a subject of concern or even criticism for years in the U.S. However, only one research has been found around international TAs’ English proficiency per discipline. No research has been found about Chinese TAs’ English proficiency. None has been done on Chinese TA’s perception of their English proficiency in biology. With this gap noticed, I deployed interviews to explore what the three biology TAs perceived as to their English proficiency. The study found that their perception was …

Importance Of Library To Lawmakers: Case Study Of Edo State House Of Assembly., Bolanle Clifford Ishola

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

ABSTRACT

The research concern of this study was to find out the importance of libraries to lawmakers. The objectives of the study were to: To find out the importance of libraries to effective legislation; To state the indispensability of information for effective, quality and meaningful representation by the lawmaker.; To find out the reasons for the lackadaisical attitude to the use of libraries by lawmakers; To examine the state and the total organization of the libraries. Edo state House of Assembly provided the data and the institutional setting. Survey research method was used for the study. The major findings were …

Defining Desires And Dangerous Decisions = 界定慾望與危險抉擇, Amber Hollibaugh

《新自由主義下的新道德》研討會 NEO-MORALISM UNDER NEOLIBERALISM INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE

The power of desire and its often dangerous consequences are among the most important of human experiences, directing many of the choices we make throughout much of life. They mark and shape us, open us up in directions we never imagined possible, possess significance and hidden meanings we struggle with lifelong. Sometimes our desires lead to consequences we would never have chosen. But sex, and the ability it has to move and explode with a fierce power, is also one of the most precious and remarkable gifts we possess as human beings.

人類其中一種最重要的經驗，便是體現慾望的力量，以及承擔往往隨之而來的危險後果。這些經驗主導了我們人生大部份的抉擇，在我們身上留下印記，形塑我們，向我們展示我們從未想像過的路向，也在我們一生中，佔有重要但不易彰顯的意義。這些意義也需要我們一直與之協商；有時候慾望所帶來的後果並非我們原初以為選擇了的，但是性相 (sexuality) 特有的爆烈與撩動人心的力量，正是我們生而為人最寶貴、最卓越的天賦之一。

Habitat Suitability And Bioenergetics Of An Invasive Marine Fish (Pterois Volitans) In Biscayne Bay, Florida, Nicholas Andres Bernal

Open Access Theses

As many successful invasive species display varying degrees of plasticity across spatial and temporal habitats, it is often difficult to assess the impacts of a nascent biological invasion on native flora and fauna. Using empirically supported environmental variables (e.g., temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, rugosity, and benthic substrate), we created a comprehensive habitat suitability model for invasive lionfish (Pterois volitans) in Biscayne Bay, Florida. The use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) as a platform for the modeling process allowed us to quantify correlations between temporal (seasonal) fluctuations in the above variables and the spatial distribution of discrete habitat classes, whose ranges …

Deafdigest: Gold Edition, May 25, 2014, Barry Strassler

DeafDigest Gold 2014

No abstract provided.

Equine Arteritis Virus Does Not Induce Interferon Production In Equine Endothelial Cells: Identification Of Nonstructural Protein 1 As A Main Interferon Antagonist, Yun Young Go, Yanhua Li, Zhenhai Chen, Mingyuan Han, Dongwan Yoo, Ying Fang, Udeni B. R. Balasuriya

Veterinary Science Faculty Publications

The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of equine arteritis virus (EAV) on type I interferon (IFN) production. Equine endothelial cells (EECs) were infected with the virulent Bucyrus strain (VBS) of EAV and expression of IFN-β was measured at mRNA and protein levels by quantitative real-time RT-PCR and IFN bioassay using vesicular stomatitis virus expressing the green fluorescence protein (VSV-GFP), respectively. Quantitative RT-PCR results showed that IFN-β mRNA levels in EECs infected with EAV VBS were not increased compared to those in mock-infected cells. Consistent with quantitative RT-PCR, Sendai virus- (SeV-) induced type I IFN production was …

Thoughts On Islam, Gender, And The Hizmet Movement, Semiha Topal

Consensus

No abstract provided.

Low Noise, High Detectivity Photodetectors Based On Organic Materials, Fawen Guo

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Organic photodetectors (OPDs) are potentially useful in many applications because of their light weight, flexibility and good form factors. Despite the high detectivities that have been frequently reported for OPDs recently, the application of these OPDs for weak light detection has been rarely demonstrated.

In this thesis, low noise, high gain photodetectors based on organic and ZnO nanoparticles were proposed and demonstrated for highly sensitive UV light detection. The nanocomposite photodetector works in a hybrid mode of photodiode and photoconductor with the transition controlled by the UV light illumination. The nanocomposite detector shows two orders of magnitude higher sensitivity than …

Containing The Facade, Tatara Anne Siegel

Theses

What do we choose to see? Do we see what others tell us to see? If I were to tell you that something is what it isn't, would you believe me? Would your level of belief be based on our level of acquaintance? It appears that we, human beings, have developed a highly acute set of skills, which enable us to believe what we choose, whether based on fact or fiction. Our perception is dictated by what we learn and what we experience. When what we learn is controlled or influenced by others around us, and we loose sight of …

A Working Paper On Genderphobia In Southeast Asian Cinema = 東南亞電影中的性別恐懼初探, Mikee Inton

《新自由主義下的新道德》研討會 NEO-MORALISM UNDER NEOLIBERALISM INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE

In this paper, I intend to look at the cinematic portrayals of male-bodied queerness in gay-themed films from the Philippines, Thailand, and Indonesia. All three contexts have a similar long history of gender-bending and gender-crossing traditions, which still exist in contemporary forms today: the bakla from the Philippines, the kathoey of Thailand, and the waria of Indonesia. The paper will attempt to inter-reference these gender performances with each other, as well as articulate how concepts of genderphobia and homophobia operate within cinematic discourses from across this region.

本文將分析菲律賓、泰國及印尼以男同志為題材的電影中，在男性身上體現的酷兒特質。菲律賓、泰國及印尼這三個國家均有悠長的性別跨越傳統，而這些傳統亦隨著歷史演變，在現代社會以獨特的形態呈現：菲律賓的bakla、泰國的kathoey、及印尼的waria族群。透過三地例子的相互對照，本文嘗試探討不同的性別操演策略及性別體現，以及勾勒出性別恐懼及恐同意識如何透過電影影響該地區的主流性別論述。

Commencement 2014, Taylor University

Commencement

The program of the 2014 Annual Commencement of Taylor University, May 24, 2014.

Paying Tribute To The Life Of Ryan Malone, Tina Hahn

University of Mississippi News

Parents commit gifts to assist students majoring in exercise science

Predicted Causality In Decision Making: The Role Of Culture, C Dominik Guess, Bernadette Robinson

Psychology Faculty Research and Scholarship

In the wider sense, decision making is embedded in the problem-solving process and its many stages (Davidson and Sternberg, 2003; Güss et al., 2010). In the narrow sense, decision making is understood as the ability to select one of several alternatives and to act accordingly (Güss 2004). Previous research has often focused on decision making in relatively predictable environments with clear goals (e.g., expected utility theory of von Neumann and Morgenstern, 1944). In recent decades the focus has been on decision making heuristics, i.e., strategies or rules of thumb, applied in uncertain situations (e.g., Tversky and Kahneman, 1974; Simon, 1979; …

Safety Of Infusing Rituximab At A More Rapid Rate In Patients With Rheumatoid Arthritis: Results From The Rate-Ra Study, Charles H. Pritchard, Maria W. Greenwald, Joel M. Kremer, Norman B. Gaylis, William Rigby

Dartmouth Scholarship

As recommended in the current prescribing information, rituximab infusions in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) take 4.25hours for the first infusion and 3.25hours for subsequent infusions, which is a burden on patients and the health care system. We therefore evaluated the safety of infusing rituximab at a faster rate for an infusion period of 2hours in patients with RA.

Who Participates In An Internet-Based Research Program For Mothers Of Infants? A Secondary Prevention Research Study Among Low-Income Families, Edward G. Feil, Kathleen Baggett, Betsy Davis, Craig Leve, Susan H. Landry, Lisa B. Sheeber

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate the participation rates and factors associated with nonparticipation among mothers living in low-income households who were invited to join a parent-education and -support research program delivered via the Internet with professional support.

Methods: Four hundred and seventy-seven mothers of infants were contacted via a variety of recruitment methods, including presentations at clinics/classes, direct mailings, print advertisement, and Internet posts. Research staff attempted to contact these mothers by phone, to assess their eligibility, and interest in participation. For those who were eligible but declined participation, we assessed reasons for declining and collected …

Reintegration Work: Parental Support In Foster Care, Whitney Davidson

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

The world of child welfare is a challenging one. In order to ensure long-term stability, a worker must be committed, caring, and flexible. It is important to look at each case individually, to remember that they are not just cases but children and families who have been separated. Workers must ensure they are providing all available resources to facilitate successful reintegration, but that they are also teaching independence and lifelong skills. Children and families need ways to cope with their past and present trauma along with methods to healthily deal with future traumas. The ultimate goal is to send a …

Is It Time To Do More Homework On The Impact Of Childhood Obesity On Academic Achievement?, Shreela V. Sharma

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

Purpose: To provide commentary on the research article “Impact of Pediatric Obesity on Grades in Elementary School,” by Craig A. Johnston, Jennette P. Moreno, Sandra A. Stansberry, and Deborah Woehler .

Findings: In this cross-sectional study the authors examine the association between weight status and math, science and reading grades among 798 2^nd grade children in Texas. The authors show that academic performance, specifically math grades are lower in obese students compared to normal weight students. Finally, the authors propose several physiological and psychological mechanisms including the potential for teacher bias and lower expectations from children who are obese. …

The Path To Effective Child Maltreatment Prevention Strategies, Philip V. Scribano

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

The burden of child maltreatment in the U.S. remains a substantial problem with life-course implications, yet systematic efforts to prevent its occurrence and the associated impairments have been limited. The review of universal and targeted child maltreatment prevention interventions to address child physical abuse by Nelson and Caplan provide a thoughtful critique of the child maltreatment prevention efforts and a recognition of the importance of developing a public health framework to address this problem. An overriding prevention strategy should be derived from a systems level approach, which embraces the socio-ecological, and public health frameworks (with integration of policy and practice). …

Contact In Foster Care: Bridge Or Collision Between Two Worlds?, João M. S. Carvalho, Paulo Delgado

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

This study aims not only to analyze the contact in foster care in Portugal compared to results collected from other studies but also to define the implications of its practice so as to propose improvements to the child protection system. It involves 289 foster children from the District of Porto whose results were obtained from official records. Subsequently, this study discusses the insights and practical consequences, the importance of maintaining up-to-date information on the changes of the biological family, the need to improve specific skills in social workers, and how to overlook the negative results of visits regarding the advantages …

Family Well-Being: A Complex Challenge Worth Pursuing, Susan H. Landry

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

Issue Editor, Susan Landry's point of view and summary of the articles in Family Well-Being and Social Environments.