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Impact And Management Of The Mexican Rice Borer (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) In Bioenergy Crop Agroecosystems, Matthew Travis Vanweelden

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The Mexican rice borer, Eoreuma loftini (Dyar) (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) is an invasive stem borer pest of sugarcane, rice, corn, and sorghum, and poses a threat to the production of dedicated bioenergy feedstocks in the U. S. Gulf Coast region. Studies were conducted to assess insect-plant interactions between E. loftini and bioenergy and conventional cultivars of sugarcane and sorghum, including yield response, oviposition preference, and host suitability. In addition, the efficacy of select cultural and biological control tactics to manage E. loftini in these crops was assessed. Bioenergy sugarcane (energycane) and sweet sorghum exhibited reduced E. loftini injury; however, these crops …

Self-Assessed Health In The Context Of Daily Life, Allyson S. Graf

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Little research has examined short-term change in self-assessed health (SAH), limiting what is known about the influence of daily life on these personal health evaluations. Investigating short-term change in SAH can add to our understanding of the ways in which SAH relates to future health outcomes. Therefore, the current study sought to examine change and stability in SAH across the day and across the week in an age-diverse community sample (n = 57, ranging in age from 25 - 71 years, 52.6% female). Age, gender, and neuroticism were hypothesized to systematically influence short-term fluctuation in SAH. Daily hassles and uplifts …

Social And Pragmatic Language In Autistic Children, Hannah Li

A with Honors Projects

Two research studies, one pinpointing difference in areas of the brain used in pragmatic language activities between neurotypical and autistic children, and the other examining pragmatic language development in children with autism over time are summarized and compared.

Renal And Hematological Effects Of Clcf-1, A B-Cell-Stimulating Cytokine Of The Il-6 Family., Virginia J. Savin, Mukut Sharma, Jianping Zhou, David Gennochi, Timothy Fields, Ram Sharma, Ellen T. Mccarthy, Tarak Srivastava, Jos Domen, Aurélie Tormo, Jean-François Gauchat

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

CLCF-1 is a cytokine known for B-cell stimulation and for neurotrophic properties. We have identified CLCF-1 as a potential injurious factor in the human renal disease focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS). We investigated its effects on renal cells and renal function in in vitro and in vivo studies. Methods include measurement of the effect of CLCF-1 on phosphorylation of target molecules of the JAK/STAT pathway, on cytoskeleton and cell morphology in cultured podocytes, on albumin permeability of isolated rat glomeruli, and on tissue phosphorylation and urine albumin after acute or chronic CLCF-1 injection. In addition, cell sorting was performed to determine …

Allergen Immunotherapy For Allergic Asthma: Protocol For A Systematic Review., Sangeeta Dhami, Ulugbek Nurmatov, Ioana Agache, Susanne Lau, Antonella Muraro, Marek Jutel, Graham Roberts, Cezmi Akdis, Matteo Bonini, Moises Calderon, Thomas Casale, Ozlem Cavkaytar, Linda Cox, Pascal Demoly, Breda Flood, Eckard Hamelmann, Kenji Izuhara, Ömer Kalayci, Jörg Kleine-Tebbe, Antonio Nieto, Nikolaos Papadopoulos, Oliver Pfaar, Lanny Rosenwasser, Dermot Ryan, Carsten Schmidt-Weber, Stan Szefler, Ulrich Wahn, Roy-Gerth Van Wijk, Jamie Wilkinson, Aziz Sheikh

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

BACKGROUND: The European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI) is in the process of developing the EAACI Guidelines for Allergen Immunotherapy (AIT) for Allergic Asthma. We seek to critically assess the effectiveness, cost-effectiveness and safety of AIT in the management of allergic asthma.

METHODS: We will undertake a systematic review, which will involve searching international biomedical databases for published, in progress and unpublished evidence. Studies will be independently screened against pre-defined eligibility criteria and critically appraised using established instruments. Data will be descriptively and, if possible and appropriate, quantitatively synthesised.

DISCUSSION: The findings from this review will be used …

Unrealized Expectations : A History Of Christian Union Mission And World Gospel Mission's Work Among The Nembi And Melpa People Of Papua New Guinea, Ruth Ann Tipton

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Modeling Risk For Child Abuse And Harsh Parenting In Families With Depressed And Substance-Abusing Parents, Michelle L. Kelley, Hannah R. Lawrence, Robert J. Milletich, Brittany F. Hollis, James M. Henson

Psychology Faculty Publications

Children with substance abusing parents are at considerable risk for child maltreatment. The current study applied an actor–partner interdependence model to examine how father only (n=52) and dual couple (n=33) substance use disorder, as well as their depressive symptomology influenced parents’ own (actor effects) and the partner's (partner effects) overreactivity in disciplinary interactions with their children, as well as their risk for child maltreatment. Parents completed the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D; Radloff, 1977), the overreactivity subscale from the Parenting Scale (Arnold, O’Leary, Wolff, & Acker, 1993), and the Brief Child Abuse Potential Inventory (Ondersma, Chaffin, Mullins, & …

Do Black Lives Matter? Race As A Measure Of Injury In Tort Law., Alberto Bernabe

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Courts should not recognize an injury for wrongful birth or wrongful life based on the race of the child. In Cramblett v. Midwest Sperm Bank, the petitioner contracted with a sperm bank to be artificially inseminated from an anonymous sperm donor. The petitioner selected a donor with blond hair and blue eyes. The sperm bank accidentally inseminated the petitioner with sperm from a different donor. Petitioner gave birth to a mixed-race baby girl. Two years after the birth, petitioner filed a lawsuit against the sperm bank alleging wrongful birth. The court dismissed her case, nonetheless the issue remains whether race …

Looking At Levels Of Medicalization In The Institutional Narrative Of Substance Use Disorders In The Military, Chase Landes Mccain

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research is to examine the institutional narrative of substance use disorders (SUDs) in the U.S. military and the extent to which it reflects the medicalization process. Three general research questions guided my analysis of the narrative surrounding SUDs in the military: (1) How does the military characterize the problems and resolutions of SUDs? (2) How and to what extent does this narrative reflect medicalization? (3) What are the limitations inherent in the institutional narrative of SUDs in the military? In order to address these questions, I draw on three conceptual lenses: (1) The work of Loseke …

Chemical Ecology Of The Coffee Berry Borer, Hypothenemus Hampei Ferrari (Coleoptera: Scolytidae): The Role Of Two Spiroacetals In The Insect-Host Communication System, Teresiah Nyambura Njihia

All Master’s Theses

The Coffee Berry Borer, Hypothenemus hampei Ferrari is the most important pest of coffee worldwide. The predominant method for the pest control is application of broad spectrum pesticides, but they are often toxic to humans and pollute the environment, hence the need to search for safer alternatives. Spiroacetals represent a group of semiochemicals often used to manage various pests through manipulation of their behaviour. This study which was carried out between January 2013 and December 2013 sought to investigate the effect of two synthetic spiroacetals viz. brocain (1,6-dioxaspirol[4.5] decane) and frontalin (1,5-dimethyl-6,8-dioxabicyclo[3.2.1] octane) obtained from volatiles of coffee berries on …

Chemical Composition Of Ocimum Kilimandscharicum And Ocimum Americanum And Their Bioactivities Against Sitophilus Zeamais, Davis R. Mathu

All Master’s Theses

The maize weevil, Sitophilus zeamais (Motchulsky), the lesser grain borer, Rhyzopertha dominica (Fabricius), and the Angoumois grain moth, Sitotroga cerealella (Oliver), are serious pests of stored grain in Kenya. The control of these insect pests relies heavily on the use of synthetic insecticides by better off farmers; but there is an increasing cost of application and erratic supply in developing countries. In addition, small-scale farmers cannot afford these commercial products and there increasing cases of resistance development by the pests. In contrast with synthetic pesticides, the traditional uses of plants-derived pesticides are usually simple, eco-friendly, cost-effective and accessible to communities …

Adsorption Of Heavy Metals From Aqueous Solutions Using Mangroves From Kenyan Coast, Fidelis Ngugi

All Master’s Theses

In this study, adsorption of heavy metals (copper, lead, zinc and cadmium) from aqueous solutions was investigated using mangrove biomass from the Kenyan Coast. The efficacy of mangrove biomass on the removal of divalent metal ions from aqueous solutions was investigated in single state in batch mode. Batch experiments involved the study of the effects of initial pH, temperature, initial concentration of the metal ion, adsorbent dosage and contact time on metal ions adsorption. The roots showed highest ability for the uptake of heavy metals (Cu, Zn, Cd and Pb) from aqueous solutions and were therefore used for all subsequent …

The Role Of Social Capital In Malaria Control In Nyabondo, Western Kenya, David Mensah

All Master’s Theses

By 2015, target 8 of the United Nations Millennium Development Goal number six aimed to have halted and began to reverse the incidence of malaria and other major diseases. One of the strategies through which this target was expected to be achieved is to increase the proportion of the population in malaria risk areas who use effective malaria prevention and treatment measures. Malaria is one of the most common vector-borne diseases widespread in tropical and subtropical regions, including parts of the America, Asia, and Africa. Over half of all malaria cases are known to occur in five African countries, including …

Adverse Outcome Pathways Can Drive Non‐Animal Approaches For Safety Assessment, N Burden, F Sewell, Me Andersen, A Boobis, Jk Chipman, Mtd Cronin, Th Hutchinson, I Kimber, M Whelan

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

AbstractAdverse Outcome Pathways (AOPs) provide an opportunity to develop new and more accurate safety assessment processes for drugs and other chemicals, and may ultimately play an important role in regulatory decision making. Not only can the development and application of AOPs pave the way for the development of improved evidence‐based approaches for hazard and risk assessment, there is also the promise of a significant impact on animal welfare, with a reduced reliance on animal‐based methods. The establishment of a useable and coherent knowledge framework under which AOPs will be developed and applied has been a first critical step towards realizing …

Developing Students’ Energy Literacy In Higher Education, D Cotton, W Miller, J Winter, I Bailey, S Sterling

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

No abstract provided.

The Acute Toxicity Of Thallium To Freshwater Organisms: Implications For Risk Assessment, Kristi Tatsi, Andrew Turner, Richard D. Handy, Benjamin J. Shaw

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

No abstract provided.

Foraminifera Of The Fal Estuary (Cornwall), Including Taxa Associated With Maerl Beds, Mb Hart, K Cartwright, B Fisk, Cw Smart, C Consolaro, Jm Hall-Spencer

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

No abstract provided.

Adversarial Science, Sanne H. Knudsen

Articles

Adversarial science—sometimes referred to as "litigation science" or "junk science"—has a bad name. It is often associated with the tobacco industry's relentless use of science to manufacture uncertainty and avoid liability. This Article challenges the traditional conception that adversarial science should be castigated simply because it was developed for litigation. Rather, this Article urges that adversarial science is an important informational asset that should, and indeed must, be embraced.

In the ecological context, adversarial science is vital to understanding the ecological effects of long-term toxic exposure. Government trustees and corporate defendants fund intensive scientific research following major ecological disasters like …

Robotics And The Lessons Of Cyberlaw, Ryan Calo

Articles

Two decades of analysis have produced a rich set of insights as to how the law should apply to the Internet’s peculiar characteristics. But, in the meantime, technology has not stood still. The same public and private institutions that developed the Internet, from the armed forces to search engines, have initiated a significant shift toward developing robotics and artificial intelligence.

This Article is the first to examine what the introduction of a new, equally transformative technology means for cyberlaw and policy. Robotics has a different set of essential qualities than the Internet and accordingly will raise distinct legal issues. Robotics …

In Vitro Fertilization And The Law: How Legal And Regulatory Neglect Compromised A Medical Breakthrough, Steve P. Calandrillo, Chryssa V. Deliganis

Articles

The rise of assisted reproductive technology like in vitro fertilization (“IVF”) as a method of human reproduction represents a remarkable medical achievement. Live births and success rates have increased dramatically in the past decade, so much so that many fertility clinics now “guarantee” a baby to clients who sign up.

But with successes come inevitable downsides. Everyone knows that the price tag is steep, but given the demand, relatively few individuals are deterred. More insidious are the increased birth-defect risks associated with reproductive technologies. For some time it was assumed that these risks were due to the fact that individuals …

The Effect Of O Antigen Loss On The Protein Composition And Inflammatory Response Elicited By Klebsiella Pneumoniae, Bethaney Cahill

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Klebsiella pneumoniae is a Gram-negative pathogen associated with numerous infections. Like all Gram-negative bacteria, K. pneumoniae naturally release outer membrane vesicles (OMVs) during all stages of cellular growth. OMVs are composed of the outer membrane components such as lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and outer membrane proteins and contain cytosolic and periplasmic proteins in the lumen. K. pneumoniae is often found to lack an O antigen. The absence of the O antigen has been reported to alter the protein content of the membrane which may further alter the immune response elicited by K. pneumoniae. Therefore the purpose of this study was to …

Infection And Dissemination Of Tav-Gfp Tagged Sindbis In Aedine Mosquitoes And Cell Lines, Jason J. Saredy

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Arthropod-borne-viruses (arboviruses) pose a global threat due to their ability to be transmitted by hematophagous insects to vertebrate hosts resulting in a range of serious infectious diseases. Sindbis virus (SINV) is the prototype arbovirus of the genus Alphavirus in the family Togaviridae. The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of a fluorescent tagged reporter virus in both in vitro and in vivo environments. The fluorescent protein GFP was inserted between the Capsid and PE2 in the genome of TR339; SINV TaV-GFP (Wm. Klimstra Lab). This virus construct should have the same infectivity and virulence as wild type …

Neuropsychological, Cognitive And Physiological Implications Of Barefoot Running On Working Memory, Shelley Ann Floyd

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The aim of the present study was to compare the effects of barefoot versus shod running on working memory. I recruited exercise science students from the University of North Florida who exercised recreationally. Participants ran both barefoot and shod while hitting targets (poker chips) on a running track and without targets. I measured working memory using backward digit recall and also recorded participants’ heart rate, speed, and target accuracy. The main finding from this study was that working memory performance increased in the barefoot condition when participants hit targets (poker chips). This result supports the idea that additional attention is …

Non-Lethal Methods For Assessing Reproductive Status In Bonnethead Sharks (Sphyrna Tiburo), Brenda Carol Anderson

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Reproductive biology is a necessary element for the management of elasmobranch fisheries. Traditionally, characterization of elasmobranch reproduction has involved lethal sampling to examine gross reproductive structures and development of embryos. However, this method is counterproductive to the conservation of shark populations. One non-lethal alternative is the measurement of serum hormones, which often vary according to reproductive events. Radioimmunoassay (RIA) has been used to measure hormone concentrations in reproductive endocrinology, but can be problematic for researchers. Alternatively, chemiluminescence immunoassays (CLIA) are routinely used for measuring circulating hormone concentrations in low-volume, non-extracted human serum samples. However these assays have not been previously …

Parental Self-Efficacy: Development Of A Measure To Reduce Children’S Contaminant Exposure, Lauren James

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Indoor environmental contaminants (ECs) such as lead, mold, mercury, radon, and bisphenol A (BPA) are prevalent in American homes and have dire consequences to children’s development, especially for children under six. To optimize the efficacy of programs aiming to prevent exposure to ECs, it is necessary to investigate parental factors that influence behavioral change. Parental self-efficacy is one such psychological construct which could help explain why and for whom an intervention is effective. The current study presents a measure developed to assess parental self-efficacy for preventing children from being exposed to ECs, the Parental Self-efficacy for Contaminant Exposure Prevention (PS-CEP). …

Effects Of The Exotic Red Imported Fire Ant (Solenopsis Invicta) On The Growth And Survival Of The Threatened Hooded Pitcher Plant (Sarracenia Minor), Edward Marques

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Plants and insects are some of the most biodiverse groups in the world and are constantly interacting. One unique interaction that has been observed occurs between carnivorous plants and insects; some plant species are capable of capturing and digesting insects for nutrients. Despite preying on these insects, there are cases where such interactions can been viewed as mutualistic. For instance, a nectar reward is produced by the plant to attract insects, and during visitation insects may fall prey to these plants. Additionally, carnivorous myrmecophytic plants may receive an added indirect benefit in the form of reduced herbivory, since ants have …

The Federal Courts And Marriage Equality: Who Decides, Susan Gluck Mezey

South Dakota Law Review

No abstract provided.

Legislating Love: Ancillary Issues Arising From South Dakota's Refusal To Recognize Same-Sex Marriage, Tyler Haigh

South Dakota Law Review

No abstract provided.

A Multi-Agent Emotional Society Whose Melodies Represent Its Emergent Social Hierarchy And Are Generated By Agent Communications, Alexis Kirke, Eduardo Miranda

School of Art, Design and Architecture

No abstract provided.

Real-Time Hallucination Simulation And Sonification Through User-Led Development Of An Ipad Augmented Reality Performance, Alexis Kirke, Joel Eaton, Eduardo Miranda

School of Art, Design and Architecture

The simulation of visual hallucinations has multiple applications. The authors present a new approach to hallucination simulation, initially developed for a performance, that proved to have uses for individuals suffering from certain types of hallucinations. The system, originally developed with a focus on the visual symptoms of palinopsia experienced by the lead author, allows real-time visual expression using augmented reality via an iPad. It also allows the hallucinations to be converted into sound through visuals sonification. Although no formal experimentation was conducted, the authors report on a number of unsolicited informal responses to the simulator from palinopsia sufferers and the …