Digital Commons Network^™

Frequent Quizzing Versus Class Reviews, Kayla Daigle

LSU Master's Theses

This study was designed to identify an optimal strategy for increasing high school students’ mastery of science material, by comparing an approach that has been identified as effective in enhancing student learning to an approach commonly used in high school classrooms. Over the course of the 2014/15 school year, the investigator compared two different techniques commonly employed to enhance student understanding. Students in a traditional 10th grade physical science class and students in an honors 10th grade physical science class acted as both the control and experiment groups. The investigator provided a pre-test to determine the students’ prior knowledge of …

Active Versus Passive Control Of Arm Swing: Implication Of The Restriction Of Pelvis Rotation During Human Locomotion, Stephen Paul Canton

LSU Master's Theses

To date, it remains unclear how passive dynamics and active neural control contribute to arm swing during human locomotion. The passive hypothesis attributes arm swing to the passive transfer of energy from the legs to the arms via biomechanical linkages, while the active hypothesis states that arm swing is actively driven by muscles via neural mechanisms. The present study aims to investigate this phenomenon further by disrupting the biomechanical linkages, thereby directly challenging the passive hypothesis. Ten healthy individuals walked on a treadmill with and without an apparatus that constrained pelvis rotation at 3 different speeds (2 mph, 3 mph, …

Sexual Dimorphism In The Crania In A Norwegian Sample, Tonje Bakke Noack

LSU Master's Theses

Physical anthropologists strive to improve the accuracy of sex identification and to establish criteria of measurements within various populations. Different groups of native inhabitants show dissimilar results within cranial measurements and inaccuracies have been confirmed when comparing all populations to the common standard lineal measurements. This research examined 24 measurements on 120 crania from Norway and used statistical analyses to determine the sexual dimorphism between male and female crania. The study established the measurements with the most sexual dimorphism. These are the measurements of bizygomatic breadth, basion-bregma, biauricular breadth, glabella-opisthocranion, and upper facial breadth. The similarity of the values of …

Informal Landscape Architecture: A Tool To Improve Water Quality For Informal Settlements Along Waterways In Bangkok, Jidapa Chayakul

LSU Master's Theses

The canals of Bangkok were a vital form of infrastructure from when the city was founded in 1782 until the 1850s, when the road system was introduced. Built for agricultural irrigation, the canals served as the primary means of transportation and significantly influenced the form and orientation of Bangkok’s early settlements and public institutions. With the implementation of roads, new buildings were constructed to be oriented towards the streets and away from the canals. The canals and their communities subsequently decreased in visibility. Today, most of the land along the waterways is publically owned. As a result, the land adjacent …

Musical Explorations In Creation And Performance: A School's Alternative Approach To Music Education, Laterence Edward Varnado

LSU Master's Theses

Students have various opportunities to participate in school music. The large ensemble model that follows the Western Classical music tradition is the most commonly used model for music education in secondary schools; however, many students in secondary schools do not participate in school music. Recently, alternative approaches (i.e. popular music, world music, guitar, etc.) have been proposed as valuable music experiences that may increase student participation in school music. The aim of this study was to examine the philosophical foundations and pedagogical practices used at a secondary school that has implemented alternative approaches. I also explored student experiences with these …

A Study Of Mathematical Equivalence: The Importance Of The Equal Sign, Christy De'sha Duncan

LSU Master's Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate students’ understanding and knowledge of the equal sign, so that instructional resources could be identified to improve student’s conceptual understanding about mathematical equivalence. A test, consisting of a combination of items taken from previous studies, as well as items developed by the researchers, was designed to gauge students’ understanding of the equality symbol. The test was administered to 54 seventh-graders in Spring 2015. The results of the test indicated a significant number of students in our district have a limited understanding of mathematical equivalence. This papers ends with some suggested activities recommended …

Micro-Encapsulation Of Asphalt Rejuvenators Using Melamine-Formaldehyde, Max Abelardo Aguirre Deras

LSU Master's Theses

Self-healing microencapsulation in asphalt concrete is an emerging technology that would allow this particular material to resist cracking damage caused by vehicular and environmental loading. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the effect of an asphalt rejuvenator on asphalt binder in reversing the aging process and to develop a synthesis procedure for the production of microencapsulation of asphalt rejuvenators. Production parameters such as agitation rate, heating temperature and EMA concentration were varied to determine the effect on microcapsules properties such as size, shell thickness and morphology. Based on the results of the experimental program, it was concluded that …

How Local Nonprofit Organizations Can Use Narratives To Build Organizational-Public Relationships On Digital Media, Ryan Patrick Delaune

LSU Master's Theses

The nonprofit sector’s adaptation and implementation of digital media is one that has received surprisingly little exploration. While some research has been conducted in this area, these studies tend to generalize results across all organization types within the nonprofit sector. Often, these studies overlook specific advantages nonprofits of varying types, sizes, and locations may potentially have in regard to fostering relationships with their communities. This study explores how these differences may impact organizational use of digital media, and how organizations can potentially use these media to more efficiently achieve their goals. Specifically, this study focuses on the use of narratives …

Growing Pains: The Good, The Nasty, The Ugly, Sarah Porter-Liddell

Masters Theses

This thesis includes a collection of Slam and performance poems that examine issues of race, sexuality, religion, family, and life choices; including a critical introduction briefly explaining the oral roots of slam and performance poetry in which I relate the work of contemporary poets such as Alix Olson and Hattie Gossett to my own work, while explaining the effects of reading the work of contemporary poets in anthologies such as ALOUD: Voices of the Nuyorican Café, and how my poetry develops through the language of the poets included in these anthologies.

Woodlawn: A Collection Of Working Class Poems, Anthony Travis Shoot

Masters Theses

This thesis includes a collection of working-class poems that explore such issues as poverty, work, racism, family, and substance abuse through the lens of class. It also includes a critical introduction that gives a brief overview of the history and current state of working-class studies, specifically poetry. In this thesis I relate the work of contemporary poets such as Jim Daniels and Simon J. Ortiz to my own work, while explaining the themes of contemporary poets compiled in anthologies such as Working Classics: An Anthology and American Working Class Literature.

Yeah You Write: Authenticity And Authority In Katrina Literature, Terri Coleman

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

From Prairienet To The Cdi: Writing The History, Sally Van Der Graaff

Masters Theses

This paper, the companion to the written work I completed for the Center for Digital Inclusion (CDI) at the University of Illinois, will provide the background of the project and describe my involvement in its production. The project itself is a comprehensive history of the center's work in the field of information access, with particular emphasis on the digital divide. Insofar as gaining an understanding of digital divide theory was a necessary precursor to researching and writing this history, the companion paper will begin with an exploration of the literature on the digital divide debate and proceed with an analysis …

Unusual Unanimity And The Ongoing Debate On The Meaning Of Words: The Labor And Employment Decisions From The Supreme Court's 2013-14 Term, Michael Z. Green

Faculty Scholarship

During its 2013-14 term, the Supreme Court focused on labor relations, wage and hour law, whistleblowing, and employee benefits in several cases. The Court also addressed constitutional issues concerning the First Amendment, the Recess Appointments Clause, and affirmative action. The Court did not decide any employment discrimination cases during the term. Even without employment discrimination cases, the 2013-2014 term provided ten key cases of importance to labor and employment lawyers. Three of these cases involved distinctly different matters of concern for organized labor. Two cases addressed employee whistleblowing matters. Three cases focused on employee benefits. Two cases addressed issues tangentially-related …

The Blinding Color Of Race: Elections And Democracy In The Post-Shelby County Era, Sahar F. Aziz

Faculty Scholarship

Decades after passage of the historic Voting Rights Act, so much has changed. And yet, so much remains the same.

Racial minorities are registering to vote and turning out at the ballot box in record numbers. However, they remain under-represented in local elected positions and virtually excluded from national and state political office. Latinos, for example, are the largest racial minority in the U.S. at approximately 17% of the population, but only 3.3% of elected offices are held by Latinos. In states that until recently were covered by the Voting Rights Act (VRA), such as Texas, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana, …

Sub-Marine Sediment Instability Near Southwest Pass Of The Mississippi River: Evidence Of Mass Movements From Raciochemistry And Other Proxies, Gregory Paul Keller

LSU Master's Theses

Mass wasting events are an important geomorphic control on the Mississippi River Delta Front. Short multicores (<50cm) and longer gravity cores (<3m) were collected seaward of the Southwest Pass of the Mississippi River Delta and were analyzed to assess the frequency, extent, and potential causes of submarine mass wasting events. Cores were analyzed for radionuclide activity, grain size, and density at 2cm resolution. Short-term sedimentation rates calculated from 7-Be are 2-16cm/y, while longer-term accumulation from 210-Pb are only 1.3-7.3 cm/y. In most cores, 210-Pb activity steadily decreases downcore without displaying a “stairstep” nature. However, seven cores have layers of low 210-Pb activity stratigraphically above layers with higher activity. In a gravity core from a mudflow gully, 210-Pb steadily decreases for the upper 70 cm before stabilizing for the remaining 150 cm. Clay content generally ranges between 25-40% and sand ranges between 5-15% with silt making up the rest of each sample. Sediment accumulation rates derived from 210-Pb in the short cores indicate that proximity to the river mouth has stronger influence than depositional environment (mudflow gully, depositional lobe, prodelta). This finding may be explained by rapid sedimentation rates coupled with a reduced tropical cyclone activity over the delta in the last seven years (2006-2013) which is a known cause of mass wasting events. The regions of decreased 210-Pb activity may be evidence of scavenging effects of plume sedimentation because they do not correspond with decreases in clay fraction. The layer of homogenized activity below 70cm in the gully core corresponds with a layer of decreased density. This layer occurs at a depth equivalent to 9-18 years, indicating mixing on a decadal scale from mudflows. These results may be explained by a lack of recent mass failures corresponding with lulls in tropical cyclone activity over the delta, preceded by a period of more active hurricane-driven mudflow activity.

'Of Whims And Fancies': A Study Of English Recusants Under Elizabeth, 1570-1595, Michael David Lane

LSU Master's Theses

The following study examines the political, economic, social, and religious lives of a variety of lay Catholic recusants in the context of their relationship with the monarch and royal government. The thrust of this thesis is to explore how this relationship affected both the individuals and the continued existence and form of Catholicism in a Protestant country. The legislation and political maneuverings against English Catholics were not a unique experience for a minority faith during the 16th and 17th centuries. During Elizabeth’s reign, English Catholics faced inconsistent legislation, outright persecution, and disinterested government action against the practice of the Catholic …

Genetic And Transcriptomic Analyses Of The Rice Pathogenic Bacterium, Burkholderia Glumae, Reveal The Important Roles Of The Regulatory Gene, Tepr, For Bacterial Survival In Environmental Stresses, Jingyu Peng

LSU Master's Theses

Burkholderia glumae causes bacterial panicle blight in rice by producing the phytotoxin, toxoflavin, as a major virulence factor. Production of toxoflavin is negatively regulated by tepR, which encodes a sigma 54-dependent response regulator. In order to gain insights into the comprehensive biological functions of tepR, the genome-wide transcriptional profile dependent on tepR was analyzed through comparative transcriptome analysis between a tepR defective mutant and the wild-type strain, resulting in the identification of 238 differentially expressed genes (DEGs). Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment analysis indicated that genes involved in flagella assembly and stress response were highly enriched in tepR defective strain. Kyoto …

The Effects Of Emotion And Action On Binding In Memory, Kacie Mennie

LSU Master's Theses

The ability to successfully bind features and objects at different levels of abstraction is important for everyday functioning of memory. The current study examined how actions and emotional arousal influence item recognition and between-item binding across two experiments. According to the Arousal-Biased Competition Theory (ABC; Mather and Sutherland, 2011), binding can be enhanced by emotional arousal, depending upon what is the focus of attention within a scene. In the current study, participants viewed a series of slides, each of which depicted a person performing an action with an object, as well as an object that is not interacted with. All …

Motion Analysis Of Biotin Carboxylase-Driven Robotic Nano-Swimmers, Sima Hannani

LSU Master's Theses

The purpose of this study is to experimentally validate the hypothesis that the enzyme biotin carboxylase (BC) can behave as a bimolecular motor and propel nano-scale particles in fluidic environments. This hypothesis was proposed in the M.S. thesis “Toward the Development of Biotin Carboxylase Driven Robotic Nano-swimmer” by Rachel Yates (Yates, 2012). In (Yates, 2012), the nano-particle (called a nano-swimmer) is a Janus particle with BC molecules attached to one hemisphere. The idea is that in the presence of its substrates (i.e., fuel) BC will cause individual nano-particles to undergo non-Brownian motion by virtue of its conformational change. In order …

The False Idealization Of Heteronormativity And The Repression Of Queerness, Catherine Lynn Thurmond

LSU Master's Theses

In this thesis, entitled “The False Idealization of Heteronormativity and the Repression of Queerness,” I examine heteronormativity as a social structure that is idealized over, and against, queerness. In the first chapter, I define heteronormativity and queerness. “Heteronormativity,” here, is simply a set of standards that dictate what one must do with their gender and sexuality, such as having sexual relations with the opposite sex, getting married, or having children. Heteronormativity is visible, validated, and normalized in society. Conversely, “queerness” refers to the social structures that dictate what one must not do with their gender and sexuality. Thus, queerness is …

In The Shadow Of Big Oil A Media Content Analysis Of The 'Big Oil' Stigma, Camille Nicole Ivy-O'Donnell

LSU Master's Theses

This study examined media frames newspapers use in their coverage of the oil and gas industry. A content analysis was conducted to analyze if the oil and gas industry was portrayed positively or negatively in Louisiana newspapers compared to Texas newspapers and how the coverage between states differs. This comprehensive content analysis of print media coverage analyzed newspaper articles and provided a detailed explanation of results about how the oil and gas industry was portrayed over a five-year period of time as compared to other studies, which only analyzed the industry during a crisis period. Through categorization of the frames …

Site-Specific Habitat And Landscape Associations Of Rusty Blackbirds Wintering In Louisiana, Sinead Mary Borchert

LSU Master's Theses

The Rusty Blackbird (Euphagus carolinus) has gained notoriety in recent years as one of the fastest declining North American bird species, with a global population loss of as much as 95%. Causes of the decline are not completely understood, but the high rate of forested wetland change in the southeastern United States suggests that wintering habitat degradation may be a primary driver. To better inform management on critical wintering grounds, I surveyed 68 sites in Louisiana where Rusty Blackbirds had been known to occur to address how occupancy changes with habitat type and colonization and extinction rates vary with ground …

Design And Implementation Of A Passive Neurostimulator With Wireless Resonance-Coupled Power Delivery And Demonstration On Frog Sciatic Nerve And Gastrocnemius Muscle, Jose Aquiles Parodi Amaya

LSU Master's Theses

The thesis presented has four goals: to perform a comprehensive literature review on current neurostimulator technology; to outline the current issues with the state-of-the-art; to provide a neurostimulator design that solves these issues, and to characterize the design and demonstrate its neurostimulation features. The literature review describes the physiology of a neuron, and then proceeds to outline neural interfaces and neurostimulators. The neurostimulator design process is then outlined and current requirements in the field are described. The novel neurostimulator circuit that implements a solution that has wireless capability, passive control, and small size is outlined and characterized. The circuit is …

Hybridization And Population Structure Of Western Gulf Coast Mottled Ducks, Robert Joseph Ford

LSU Master's Theses

Rates of hybridization between species that do not normally interbreed have increased due to human impacts on natural environments, such as habitat alteration or introductions of non-native species. Human-induced hybridization can be detrimental to wildlife and contribute to species extinctions. In Florida, feral Mallards (Anas platyrhynchos) hybridize with endemic Mottled Ducks (A. fulvigula) at rates close to 9%. However, levels of hybridization between these two species have not been extensively examined in the western Gulf Coast (from Alabama to northern Mexico) despite the potential impact on the Mottled Duck lineage. In this study, I examined the degree of hybridization between …

The Unattainable Ideal: Walter Lippmann And The Limits Of The Press And Public Opinion, Amy Solomon Whitehead

LSU Master's Theses

Walter Lippmann’s classic work, Public Opinion, crystallized thinking about the dynamic relationship between the press and public opinion, and clarified the role of each in democracy. Evaluations of that book, however, tend to be one-dimensional. Public Opinion captured just one iteration of his thinking on the subject, not his final statement on the matter. A comprehensive survey of his writing reveals Lippmann’s views on the press and public opinion were not static, yet the attention Public Opinion receives continues to overshadow his other works; his evolving views on the press and public opinion are rarely mentioned. Although his views shifted …

Assessing The Use Of Concept Maps In The Science Classroom, Paige Russell

LSU Master's Theses

Graphic organizers have been used in the classroom since the late 1960’s. Several studies have been published on the effects of graphic organizers on cognitive learning and yet the traditional method of teaching in the science classroom still remains strongly focused on traditional lecture and note taking. This study shows that relative to traditional methods graphic organizers maintain equivalent learning gains, but increase excitement and engagement among the students. The purpose of this study was to assess traditional lecture vs. traditional lecture with the addition of concept maps to determine if concept maps affect learning gains in the high school …

A Comparative Assessment Of Ergonomic Risk Factors In University Personnel Using Rula And Reba Aiming To Study The Cause And Effect Relationship, Nabila Chowdhury

LSU Master's Theses

The aim of this research was to conduct an ergonomic assessment of working postures and the design of computer workstations of the employees in Louisiana State University. The purpose of the study was threefold- (1) to determine the major ergonomic issues in university employees while working on computer workstations, (2) to compare the two ergonomic assessment tools (RULA and REBA) to see how similarly or differently they assess the risks present in the same working condition and (3) to develop a model that correlates between working condition, work posture and computer workstation design with their effects on musculoskeletal system. This …

Saccharomyces Cerevisiae Tel1 & Tel2 Role In Dna Double-Strand Break Repairs, Tommy Nhan Trieu

LSU Master's Theses

Genomic DNA is constantly in danger of being damaged by endogenous cellular processes and exogenous agents. Eukaryotes have mechanisms, collectively termed the DNA damage response, that detect and repair DNA damage. After a double-stranded break occurs, protein complexes are recruited to the break site to promote resection. Two main protein kinases involved in DNA repair are the Tel1 and Mec1 proteins. Recent studies have found that the Tel2 protein binds to both the Tel1 and Mec1 proteins and a point mutation of TEL2 on the 129th amino acid disrupts this interaction. Since both of the Tel1 and Mec1 proteins are …

Sinking Of Crude Oil Amended-Model Oil Mixtures Due To Evaporative Or Dissolution Weathering On The Surface And Submerged In Water, Cameron Joseph Loebig

LSU Master's Theses

Despite the popular belief that crude oil is a mixture of hydrocarbons that floats on the surface of water, tar balls continue to wash up on beaches from the sea floor years after the Deep Water Horizon oil spill. This is because of the rarely studied weathering effects that occur during deep sea spills. While the evaporative weathering process of oil at the water’s surface has been studied, no currently implemented models assess the weathering effects of dissolution within the water column. The evaporative effects at the sea surface and the dissolution of soluble components within droplets located in the …

Effects Of Light Quality And Light Quantity On The Growth Kinetics Of A Louisiana Native Microalgal/Cyanobacterial Co-Culture, Jonathan Zell Barnett

LSU Master's Theses

One of the most important factors controlling the growth of microalgae is light. Light quality and light quantity have a dramatic effect on the production of biomass, lipids and pigments of microalgae. In this research, a native Louisiana co-culture containing Chlorella vulgaris (microalgae) and Leptolyngbya sp (cyanobacteria) was studied to determine the effects of various wavelength distributions and irradiance levels on growth kinetics. Growth rates, biomass levels, lipid contents and chlorophyll-a production was examined in batch cultures to determine which color light was optimum for cultivation. At 80 µmol/m^2-sec the species shifted from microalgae dominant to cyanobacteria dominant. The impact …