Digital Commons Network^™

Value Of Mendelian Laws Of Segregation In Families: Data Quality Control, Imputation, And Beyond, Elizabeth M. Blue, Lei Sun, Nathan L. Tintle, Ellen M. Wijsman

Faculty Work Comprehensive List

When analyzing family data, we dream of perfectly informative data, even whole-genome sequences (WGSs) for all family members. Reality intervenes, and we find that next-generation sequencing (NGS) data have errors and are often too expensive or impossible to collect on everyone. The Genetic Analysis Workshop 18 working groups on quality control and dropping WGSs through families using a genome-wide association framework focused on finding, correcting, and using errors within the available sequence and family data, developing methods to infer and analyze missing sequence data among relatives, and testing for linkage and association with simulated blood pressure. We found that single-nucleotide …

Pathway Analysis Approaches For Rare And Common Variants: Insights From Genetic Analysis Workshop 18, Stella Aslibekyan, Marcio Almeida, Nathan L. Tintle

Faculty Work Comprehensive List

Pathway analysis, broadly defined as a group of methods incorporating a priori biological information from public databases, has emerged as a promising approach for analyzing high-dimensional genomic data. As part of Genetic Analysis Workshop 18, seven research groups applied pathway analysis techniques to whole-genome sequence data from the San Antonio Family Study. Overall, the groups found that the potential of pathway analysis to improve detection of causal variants by lowering the multiple-testing burden and incorporating biologic insight remains largely unrealized. Specifically, there is a lack of best practices at each stage of the pathway approach: annotation, analysis, interpretation, and follow-up. …

Risk Factors For Physical Violence Against Partners In The U.S., K. Daniel O'Leary, Nathan L. Tintle, Evelyn Bromet

Faculty Work Comprehensive List

Objective: To examine unique and relative predictive values of demographic, social learning, developmental, psychopathology, and dyadic variables as risk factors for perpetration of intimate partner physical aggression in a national sample of married or cohabiting individuals. Method: Men (n = 798) and women (n = 770) were selected from the public use data file of the 2003 National Comorbidity Survey Replication (NCS-R) which used a multistage cluster sampling design. Results: Eight percent of women and 5% of men reported perpetrating physical aggression in the past year. Based on multivariable regression analyses, among men, the unique risk factors for perpetrating physical …

Systems Theory As The Foundation For Understanding Systems, Kevin Macg. Adams, Peggy T. Hester, Joseph M. Bradley, Thomas J. Meyers, Charles B. Keating

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

As currently used, systems theory is lacking a universally agreed upon definition. The purpose of this paper is to offer a resolution by articulating a formal definition of systems theory. This definition is presented as a unified group of specific propositions which are brought together by way of an axiom set to form a system construct: systems theory. This construct affords systems practitioners and theoreticians with a prescriptive set of axioms by which a system must operate; conversely, any set of entities identified as a system may be characterized by this set of axioms. Given its multidisciplinary theoretical foundation and …

Where Are The People? The Human Viewpoint Approach For Architecting And Acquisition, Holly A. H. Handley, Beverly G. Knapp, Defense Acquisition Univ Ft Belvoir Va

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

The U.S. Department of Defense Architecture Framework (DoDAF) provides a standard framework for transforming systems concepts into a consistent set of products containing the elements and relationships required to represent a complex operational system. However, without a human perspective, the current DoDAF does not account for the human performance aspects needed to calculate the human contribution to system effectiveness and cost. The Human Viewpoint gives systems engineers additional tools to integrate human considerations into systems development by facilitating identification and collection of human-focused data. It provides a way to include Human Systems Integration (HSI) constructs into mainstream acquisition and systems …

Employee-Task Assignments For Organization Modeling: A Review Of Models And Applications, Cansu Kandemir, Holly A. H. Handley, S. Long (Ed.), E.-H. Ng (Ed.), C. Downing (Ed.)

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

In this study, we present a review of task assignment problems in organizations, an area that has become more important as tasks become more complex and personnel skills become more specialized. The challenge is to design task assignments that meet all requirements and result in the best organizational performance. The consequences of poor design include failed tasks, reduced efficiency, and inability to meet deadlines. Moreover, inequity of workload between employees can cause lack of job satisfaction, loss of motivation and also boredom.

In general, work processes in organizations consist of different tasks, which require different expertise. Personnel usually have various …

Religious Influences On Justice Theory, Daniel Maguire

Theology Faculty Research and Publications

No abstract provided.

Religious Motivation For Mitigating Human-Forced Climate Change: Scientifically Informed, Politically Astute, And Collaborative, Jame Schaefer

Theology Faculty Research and Publications

Purpose

– Religious organizations are among the non-government groups in the USA that are addressing climate change phenomena from their various faith perspectives and, despite the differences in their traditions and practices, are collaborating with one another to achieve their mutual goal – the establishment of policies that will mitigate the real and anticipated perils scientists are forecasting. If sufficiently motivated by their faith, informed by climate science, and politically astute, these groups may be reliable allies for climate change decision-makers to tap as they strive to achieve their mutual goal. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

– …

The Theological Virtues And Participation In Active And Passive Spiration, Robert M. Doran

Theology Faculty Research and Publications

No abstract provided.

Gaudim Et Spes And The Call To Justice: The Us Experience, Kristin Heyer, Bryan Massingale

Theology Faculty Research and Publications

No abstract provided.

How Corporations Manage Industry And Consumer Expectations Via The Csr Report, Sarah Bonewits Feldner, Kati Tusinski Berg

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

With increased stakeholder scrutiny, it is increasingly salient to consider how corporations make the case that their CSR activities are sufficient, appropriate, and successful. The CSR report is the vehicle by which organizations communicate the breadth of activities they engage in to make a difference in society. Using rhetorical analysis and surveys, we argue that the CSR report functions as a means by which corporations manage stakeholder expectations and seek to legitimate corporate behaviors. Our findings indicate that most reports are structured based on external guidelines but include the use of classic rhetorical strategies of ethos, pathos, and logos to …

Professionalising Organisational Communication Discourses, Materialities, And Trends, Jeremy P. Fyke

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

No abstract provided.

Cross-National Ongoing Crisis Communication On Social Media: A Comparative Analysis Of Twitter Regarding Asiana Airlines Crash Crisis In South Korea And Us, Young Kim, Myoung-Gi Chon, Andrea Miller

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

The purpose of this study is to help fill a gap in research that examines sustained cross-national crisis communication using social media. Using the 2013 Asiana Airlines crash crisis, a content analysis was conducted, analyzing the airlines’ 1,685 tweets and 1,386 public’s responses in terms of type of tweets, message strategies and publics’ emotions, communication tools (text, video, photo, hyperlinks, #hashtag, and conversation), and message tones. During the crisis, the organization used the same crisis response, a very passive response, as the US and Korean publics. As a result, the crisis response af ected different emotions of the publics based …

Dealing With “Prodromes” Through Social Media: Pre-Crisis Communication Of Hyundai Regarding Its Overestimated Gas Mileage Issue, Wonjun Chung, Young Kim

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

Compared to post-crisis communication, pre-crisis communication has received little attention in strategic communication research. As the population and use of social media platforms increase, so does the role they play in strategic pre-crisis communication. Based on a message framing approach, this study focused on examining how Hyundai Motor company (hereafter Hyundai) communicated with its publics through social media channels as a platform for their strategic pre-crisis communication response to the current technical issue, regarding its models’ overestimated Miles Per Gallon (MPG) flaw. A content analysis of 303 social media messages posted by both parties produced three significant findings: i) Hyundai …

High Fidelity Chemistry And Radiation Modeling For Oxy-Combustion Scenarios, Hassan A. Abdul Sater

Theses and Dissertations

To account for the thermal and chemical effects associated with the high CO₂ concentrations in an oxy-combustion atmosphere, several refined gas-phase chemistry and radiative property models have been formulated for laminar to highly turbulent systems. This thesis examines the accuracies of several chemistry and radiative property models employed in computational fluid dynamic (CFD) simulations of laminar to transitional oxy-methane diffusion flames by comparing their predictions against experimental data. Literature review about chemistry and radiation modeling in oxy-combustion atmospheres considered turbulent systems where the predictions are impacted by the interplay and accuracies of the turbulence, radiation and chemistry models. Thus, …

Reproductive Phase Determination In Male Meagre (Argyrosomus Regius, Sciaenidae): Testis Development And Histologic Corroboration Of A Gross Anatomical Scale, Nuno Prista, Leonel Gordo, José Lino Costa, Maria José Costa, Cynthia Jones

OES Faculty Publications

Reproductive stage determination of male gonads has received sparse attention in fish biology literature with few studies detailing the building of gross anatomical- and histologic scales. The meagre (Argyrosomus regius) is one of the world's largest sciaenids and supports a significant regional fishery in European and North African waters whose reproductive patterns are yet to be fully investigated. In the present study, we derive a macroscopic grading system for meagre testis using semi-quantitative graphs that feature the testis variability along the species size range and time of the year. We then describe the histological stages and reproductive phases of male …

Antenna Selection And Mimo Capacity Estimation For Vehicular Communication Systems, Nischal Adhikari

Theses and Dissertations

Vehicular communication is one of the promising prospects of wireless communication capable of addressing the issues related to road safety, providing the framework for "smart" or "intelligent" cars. To provide a reliable wireless link for vehicular communication extensive channel modeling and measurements are required. In this thesis a novel cost-effective implementation of vehicular channel capacity measuring system using off-the-shelf devices is proposed. Then using the proposed system, various channel measurements are performed. The measurement results are utilized to examine multi-antenna systems for vehicular communication.

The challenge in developing an efficient network between cars is to understand the nature of random …

Vocabulary Assessment: A Comparison Between Clinical And Academic Measures, Lindsay Mae Anderson

Theses and Dissertations

Researchers have shown vocabulary knowledge to be highly linked to reading comprehension, and ultimately a strong predictor of academic success. Therefore, students' vocabulary skills should be carefully monitored and assessed as the demands of education increase.

The purpose of this study was to compare 28 fourth grade students' vocabulary scores on the Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) test with scores on the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-4 (PPVT-4) (Dunn & Dunn, 2007) and Expressive Vocabulary Test-2 (EVT-2) (Williams, 2007), two clinically used vocabulary measures with established validity. Strong correlations would potentially allow for the use of the MAP vocabulary test when …

Design And Optimization Of Organic Rankine Cycle For Low Temperature Geothermal Power Plant, Kirtipal Barse

Theses and Dissertations

Rising oil prices and environmental concerns have increased attention to renewable energy. Geothermal energy is a very attractive source of renewable energy. Although low temperature resources (90C to 150C) are the most common and most abundant source of geothermal energy, they were not considered economical and technologically feasible for commercial power generation. Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) technology makes it feasible to use low temperature resources to generate power by using low boiling temperature organic liquids. The first hypothesis for this research is that using ORC is technologically and economically feasible to generate electricity from low temperature geothermal resources. The second …

Using Reanalysis Data For The Prediction Of Seasonal Wind Turbine Power Losses Due To Icing, Daniel Burtch

Theses and Dissertations

The Northern Plains region of the United States is home to a significant amount of potential wind energy. However, in winter months capturing this potential power is severely impacted by the meteorological conditions, in the form of icing. Predicting the expected loss in power production due to icing is a valuable parameter that can be used in wind turbine operations, determination of wind turbine site locations and long-term energy estimates which are used for financing purposes. Currently, losses due to icing must be estimated when developing predictions for turbine feasibility and financing studies, while icing maps, a tool commonly used …

Artificial Soil Formation And Stabilization Of Material Cycles In Closed Ecological Systems For Mars Habitats, Joshua D. Borchardt

Theses and Dissertations

Scientists are increasingly pressured to investigate novel ways in which to feed astronauts for the first mission to Mars in the 2030s. It is the aim of this thesis to conduct a preliminary investigation for soil formation of NASA JSC Mars-1A Regolith Simulant in an environmentally closed ecosystem to simulate plant growth within these initial habitats, and the prospect of soil formation from a Mars parent material for agricultural purposes. The rhizosphere and plant stress will be the main regions of research focus. It is hypothesized rhizosphere activity will determine the rate of stable soil formation adequate to support the …

A Feasibility Study On The Implementation Of Satellite-To-Satellite Tracking Around A Small Near-Earth Object, Christopher Joseph Church

Theses and Dissertations

Near-earth objects (NEOs) are asteroids and comets that have a perihelion distance of less than 1.3 astronomical units (AU). There are currently more than 10,000 known NEOs. The majority of these objects are less than 1 km in diameter. Despite the number of NEOs, little is known about most of them. Characterizing these objects is a crucial component in developing a thorough understanding of solar system evolution, human exploration, exploitation of asteroid resources, and threat mitigation. Of particular interest is characterizing the internal structure of NEOs. While ground-based methods exist for characterizing the internal structure of NEOs, the information that …

Evaluation Of Selected Spectral Vegetation Indices In Senescent Rangeland Canopy Using Landsat Imagery, Marla Collins

Theses and Dissertations

Grassland birds are diminishing more steadily and rapidly than other North American birds in general. The nesting success of some grassland bird species depends on the amount of nonproductive vegetation (NPV). To estimate NPV land managers are currently using the Robel pole visual obstruction reading methods. Researchers with the USDA Agricultural Research Service's (ARS) Northern Great Plains Research Laboratory in Mandan, ND, recently established statistical relationships between photosynthetic vegetation (PV), NPV and spectral vegetation indices (SVIs) derived from more sensitive and more detailed, but less accessible and more costly hyperspectral aerial imagery. This study is an extension of this previous …

American Exceptionalism And The Antebellum Slavery Debate, Travis Cormier

Theses and Dissertations

American exceptionalism is the idea that America is or was somehow unique or different compared to other nations throughout history. Many Americans also believed that America had a special mission to be an example to the rest of the world. Many politicians and intellectuals have debated America's exceptionality since the founding of the country. The debate over American slavery during the antebellum era was in many ways a debate over American exceptionalism. Could America claim American exceptionality while they held on to slavery? George Fitzhugh, an ardent supporter of slavery during the antebellum period, argued that America was not exceptional …

A Comparative Content Analysis Of Alcoholism Treatment Programs With A Focus On A Native Treatment Alternative, Mike J. Eshkibok

Theses and Dissertations

A historical account of Native American Indian culture is set forth to provide the antecedent events for understanding problems with and solutions to alcoholism among Native American Indians. Two 12-step alcohol treatment programs are explained, compared, and contrasted: Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and a Native 12-Step Program.

Qualitative analysis was used to collect information from 13 Native American Indian counselors in alcohol treatment programs and data was analyzed by coding transcripts of taped interviews, then grouping data into categories, determining themes from the categories, and drawing conclusions.

Three conclusions emerged from the qualitative data analyzed from Native American Indian alcohol treatment …

The Effects Of Whole Body Vibrations On Salivary Cortisol In Young Females In Squat Position, Rohini Gawande

Theses and Dissertations

Purpose: Despite the catabolic effect of cortisol on bone metabolism, and the potentially counteracting anabolic effect of whole body vibration (WBV) on bone, only a few studies have explored the effects of WBV on cortisol, the findings of which have

been inconclusive. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine the effect of an acute bout of WBV on salivary cortisol levels in women. Method: This study utilized a randomized cross-over design, consisting of two individual treatment days: the vibration

intervention (V) and the non-vibration control (NV), with a washout period of 2-3 days between the two. Participants consisted …

Assessing Student Learning: A U.S./U.K. International Comparative Study, Kristin Anne Garaas-Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

This research examines the role of assessments of student learning in the United States, specifically a school system in North Dakota, comparatively to that of a school system in Surrey, England. Using a conceptual framework that is influenced by the work of Stiggins, Arter, Chappuis, and Chappuis with the Assessment Training Institute (2011) and the Assessment Reform Group (2002) on creating effective, balanced assessments for learning, three questions guided my study:

1. What are secondary (students ages 14-18) educators' beliefs about what, why, how, and for whom school systems are assessing students' learning?

2. What is the difference between educators' …

A Brief Historiography Of The Opium Trade With A New Evaluation Of Dr. William H. Park's Opinions Of Over 100 Physicians On The Use Of Opium In China, Kimberly Gasparini

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis provides a brief historiography of the opium trade between Britain and China from the mid-nineteenth through the early twentieth centuries, followed by a reexamination of Dr. William H. Park's Opinions of Over 100 Physicians on the Use of Opium in China. While Dr. Park's compilation was critical in the fight to outlaw the legal opium trade, there were inherent problems with the document. R. K. Newman challenged the veracity of this document in 1995, but stopped short of offering an in-depth appraisal of the report. This thesis provides that critique, followed by suggestions for future utilization of this …

Employment Characteristics And Mental Health: A Quantitative Study, Keegan Charles August Hahn

Theses and Dissertations

Previous literature suggests that certain job characteristics may influence a person's mental health in a negative way. Work is an important part of every American's life. It is how they make money and can be how they identify themselves. This thesis examines that relationship further with new data and variables and also looks at the effect that the 2007 to 2009 U.S. recession had on increasing poor mental health among individuals. Americans' jobs were influenced by this national recession in multiple ways. This thesis explores the relationship between the national economy and how job characteristics impact American's poor mental health. …

Application Of Method Developed For The Identification And Quantification Of Polar Components In Organic Liquid Products Of Selected Crop Oils And Deciphering The Mechanistic Aspects Of Cracking, Ashwini Geetla

Theses and Dissertations

Pyrolysis is a fundamental thermochemical process that can be used to convert triacylglycerides (TGs) in crop oils into valuable chemicals that may replace petroleum products. Biofuels, complex mixtures containing hundreds of species, are generated by the pyrolysis of crop oils. Presence of fatty acids (FAs) will limit the applicability of plant oils as biofuels since they are corrosive and form wax-like crystals at a cloud point that would plug filters. However, short chain FAs have a high commercial value as byproducts of biofuel production. The understanding of mechanism of pyrolysis may reveal pathways for production of favorable products. These pathways …