Digital Commons Network^™

Flooding And Reequilibration Of A Series Of Pittsburgh Bed Underground Coal Mines, 1980 To 2015, David D. M. Light

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This study examines the water-level elevation history of selected flooding and flooded underground mines in the Pittsburgh coal basin of SW Pennsylvania from the time of closure until post-flooding pool-level reequilibration. Mines within this mining district developed pools with nearly steady-state groundwater flow within 10 to 50 years after closure. Equilibrated pool levels within each of the mines were controlled by various combinations of spillage to the surface or other mines, pumpage, and barrier leakage. In a study of flooding in the Clarksville, PA area, field water-level observations, mine geometry, barrier hydraulic conductivity, recharge rates, and late-stage storage gains were …

Covariance Expressions For Eigenvalue And Eigenvector Problems, Andrew J. Liounis

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

There are a number of important scientific and engineering problems whose solutions take the form of an eigenvalue--eigenvector problem. Some notable examples include solutions to linear systems of ordinary differential equations, controllability of linear systems, finite element analysis, chemical kinetics, fitting ellipses to noisy data, and optimal estimation of attitude from unit vectors. In many of these problems, having knowledge of the eigenvalue and eigenvector Jacobians is either necessary or is nearly as important as having the solution itself. For instance, Jacobians are necessary to find the uncertainty in a computed eigenvalue or eigenvector estimate. This uncertainty, which is usually …

The Effects Of Two Types Of Different Dynamic Warm-Ups And Static Stretching On Total Body Power And Speed, Ryan David Napoli

Health Nutrition and Exercise Science

Static stretching has often been found to decrease performance in power and speed activities, but dynamic warm-ups usually increase performance. We examined the effects of a mini-band warm-up, a medicine ball warm-up, and static stretching on 10m and 20m sprint times, as well as overhead medicine ball throw performance. A convenience sample of 24 Division I women’s soccer players participated, however 5 subjects dropped out due to sustaining injuries from a weekend soccer tournament. The subjects completed the three warm-ups and a control 5 minute jog condition on separate days and were tested on the 10m and 20m sprint times …

The Effects Of The Space Correction Kinesio Taping Method (R) On The Patellofemoral Joint Measured By Diagnostic Ultrasound, Kassiann Deen Keister

Health Nutrition and Exercise Science

Background: There is limited quantitative research on joint space measurements to support the use of Kinesio Tape Space Correction Method®. There is limited to no research regarding the use of diagnostic ultrasound to take a measurement of specific joint spaces. Methods: 32 subjects with bilaterally-healthy knees, no reported surgeries or reported allergies to Kinesio Tape®, reported their dominant knee to the researcher, who then measured their patellofemoral joint space with diagnostic ultrasound. Measurements were taken, the Kinesio Tape Space Correction Method® was applied, and left on for 10 minutes with the patient in a non-weight-bearing position. After 10 minutes, the …

Tissue Temperature Increase Using Immersion Therapeutic Ultrasound At 3 Mhz, 10 Minutes, 1.5 Cm Depth, With Varying Intensities Of 1.0 W/Cm2, And 1.5 W/Cm2, Keli Janice Poirier

Health Nutrition and Exercise Science

The purpose of this study was to examine the thermal effects of both 1.0W/cm2 and 1.5W/cm2 at 3MHz with continuous US while the triceps-surae is immersed in 37°C water. Intramuscular tissue temperature increases observed through the thermocouples at 1.5W/cm2 was compared to 1.0W/cm2. The study is needed to determine which intensity was most efficient at increasing intramuscular tissue temperature in the triceps-surae at a 1.5cm depth. Twenty college students, 10-males and 10-females (M=23.45 ± 1.986-years), participated in 2 sessions. A thermocouple measuring intramuscular temperature was inserted into the gastrocnemius muscle. There were no significant differences in intramuscular temperature increases at …

The Potential Impact Of Nutrition Education Courses Accepted By The Parent Aware Program On Nutritional And Physical Activity-Related Knowledge, Attitude, And Behavior Among Childcare Providers And Preschoolers' Parents Whom These Childcare Providers Serve, Rose Janet Prissel

Health Nutrition and Exercise Science

Recently Minnesota (MN) adopted Parent Aware, a childcare quality four star rating system. At the top-star rating, nutrition and childhood obesity prevention education is recommended. However, little is known of its impact on childhood obesity. The purpose of this study is to identify the impact of Parent Aware towards nutrition knowledge, behavior, and attitudes of childcare providers and the parents they serve. A quantitative analysis was conducted using a survey in 2015. Seven hundred and seven childcare providers responded to the questionnaire. The parent survey had 123 responders. There were no significant nutrition knowledge, attitude, or behavioral differences between childcare …

The Effects Of Caffeine On Neurocognitive Function, Erin Heine

Health Nutrition and Exercise Science

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of caffeine, as introduced by a popular energy drink, on neurocognitive function. Methods: Twenty-four male participants, 18-28 yrs old, completed two days of testing: baseline and post-consumption testing. Exactly 48-hours separated the two sessions. During the second day of testing, participants received treatment or control drink and waited 90 minutes before performing the ImPACT for post-consumption data. Results: Verbal Memory: (F[1, 22]=0.69, p=.416, η2=.03) Visual Memory:(F[1,22]=1.31, p=.264, n2=.056) Visual Motor Speed:(F[1,22]=.660, p=.425, n2=.029) Reaction Time: (F[1,22]=.015, p=.903, n2=.001) Impulse Control: (F[1,22]=.453, p=.508, n2=.020) Conclusions: Researchers determined caffeine from an …

The Effect Of Suspended Weight Resistance Training On Dynamic Balance, Muscular Strength, Muscular Power, And Agility In Collegiate Athletes, Samuel Paul Thielen

Health Nutrition and Exercise Science

Instability resistance training techniques are commonly used to increase athletic performance. The purpose of the present study was to analyze the effects of performing the squat exercise with suspended weight within a six-week resistance training program on dynamic balance, maximal strength, agility, and power in collegiate male athletes. Thirty-two male collegiate baseball players were randomly assigned to suspended (experimental) or conventional (control) training groups and completed 1RM squat, dynamic balance, vertical jump, and agility tests before and after a six-week resistance training program. The only difference between otherwise identical programs was the suspended group’s use of suspended loading on the …

Comprehensive Analysis Of The Atlantic Coast Natural Gas Transmission Line, William David Young

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

New energy sources are needed to sustain our constant need for energy as well as the development of the next generation. The Atlantic Coast Pipeline is over 600 miles in length and will provide consistent, clean energy to the energy consumers in Virginia and North Carolina from natural gas production in the states of West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Ohio. A detailed analysis was performed looking at modern pipeline construction as well as multiple studies to determine the economic, social, and environmental impacts of this transmission line. A theoretical study was also performed comparing how this transmission line would impact the …

Noise Monitoring Assessment Of A Northewest Fabrication Company., Amelia Rae Thurdekoos

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This report documents the findings, observations, and recommendations of the investigator's noise assessment survey, performed at a northwest company fabrication building located in Washington State. The assessment was performed at the request of the company's safety management staff and the fabrication building's industrial hygienist between June 6 and July 22, 2014. The goal of the noise assessment was to determine the risk of employees developing noise-induced hearing loss from their work at the company; to update the company's hearing conservation program; and to provide noise reduction recommendations. During the assessment, noise monitoring data was collected through the use of personal …

Shale Lithofacies Modeling Of The Bakken Formation In The Williston Basin, North Dakota, Shuvajit Bhattacharya

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The Bakken petroleum system (Devonian-Mississippian) in the Williston basin of North Dakota and Montana in the United States, and Saskatchewan and Manitoba in Canada is one of the largest unconventional oil plays in North America. The Bakken Formation consists of three members: upper, middle, and lower. Both upper and lower members are shale (source rocks), whereas the middle member (reservoir rock) is composed of mixed lithologies, including sandstone, dolostone, and limestone. Underlying the lower Bakken shale member, the Three Forks Formation is another target for hydrocarbon exploration.;Although the middle Bakken member along with the Three Forks Formation have been the …

Cholesterol Diet-Associated Changes In The Hippocampus - A Prelude To Alzheimer's Disease?, Sylwia W. Brooks

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

High serum cholesterol levels in midlife have been associated with an increased risk of developing Alzheimer's disease (AD) later in life. This thesis investigates a possible mechanism linking dietary cholesterol, which cannot pass the blood brain barrier, and AD-like hippocampal neuropathology. The first study tested the hypothesis that a high cholesterol diet increases the flux of the cholesterol metabolite 27-hydroxycholesterol (27-OHC) into the hippocampus. We found that a high-cholesterol diet increased levels of 27-OHC, a biologically active circulatory breakdown product of cholesterol, in hippocampal tissue. 27-OHC has been identified as an endogenous selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM) that affects estrogen …

The Effect Of Ignoring Statistical Interactions In Regression Analyses Conducted In Epidemiologic Studies: An Example With Survival Analysis Using Cox Proportional Hazards Regression Model, Kristina Vatcheva, Joseph B. Mccormick, Mohammad H. Rahbar

School of Mathematical & Statistical Sciences Faculty Publications

Objective: To demonstrate the adverse impact of ignoring statistical interactions in regression models used in epidemiologic studies.

Study design and setting: Based on different scenarios that involved known values for coefficient of the interaction term in Cox regression models we generated 1000 samples of size 600 each. The simulated samples and a real life data set from the Cameron County Hispanic Cohort were used to evaluate the effect of ignoring statistical interactions in these models.

Results: Compared to correctly specified Cox regression models with interaction terms, misspecified models without interaction terms resulted in up to 8.95 fold bias in estimated …

The Feasibility Of A Home Telenutrition Intervention For Weight Reduction In Men In West Virginia, Michelle Campion

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Background: West Virginia (WV) has one of the highest national rates of obesity, especially among middle-aged men, and one of the lowest Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) ratios per capita. Providing nutrition advice via teleconferencing may allow obese WV middle-aged men to overcome access barriers that are preventing them from overcoming obesity. However, before large-scale interventions can be effectively conducted, the feasibility must be assessed.;Objective: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the feasibility of a home telenutrition weight-loss program using videoconferencing among obese men in WV. Feasibility is assessed through technical difficulties tracked throughout the intervention and through a …

Encounters With The Avant-Garde: Four Case Studies In The Reception History Of Contemporary Flute Works (1971 To Present), Amanda Cook

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Using reception history as a historiographical lens, this study traces the development and maturation of critical language used to describe selected flute works from 1971 to present that include extended playing techniques in addition to theatrical elements specified by the composer. Only English-language documentation is examined, and the majority of these items are reviews. The works used as case studies are George Crumb's Vox Balaenae (1971), Toru Takemitsu's Voice (1971), Karlheinz Stockhausen's Flautina (1989), and Marcos Balter's Descent from Parnassus (2012).;The purpose of this study is two-fold: 1) Define the role of temporality in relation to the developmental arc of …

Comparative Analysis Of Uninhibited And Constrained Avian Wing Aerodynamics, Jordan A. Cox

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The flight of birds has intrigued and motivated man for many years. Bird flight served as the primary inspiration of flying machines developed by Leonardo Da Vinci, Otto Lilienthal, and even the Wright brothers. Avian flight has once again drawn the attention of the scientific community as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) are not only becoming more popular, but smaller. Birds are once again influencing the designs of aircraft. Small UAVs operating within flight conditions and low Reynolds numbers common to birds are not yet capable of the high levels of control and agility that birds display with ease. Many researchers …

Differences In School Climate Means: Exploring Contextual Factors Among A Sample Of Appalachian Youth, Shay M. Daily

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) provides a means for states to streamline current assessment systems and integrate multidimensional measures. The use of comprehensive measures (i.e. school climate) is important in understanding non-academic factors that influence the quality of a school. There are limited studies which describe how contextual factors influence the learning and behavior of students within demographically homogenous populations, especially from rural settings. Rural populations are characterized to have higher prevalence of multiple social, behavioral, and contextual characteristics that negatively affect their perception of school when compared to their urban counterparts.;The purpose of this study was to examine …

Effects Of Scattering And Absorption On Laser Speckle Contrast Imaging, Kosar Khaksari

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Laser Speckle Contrast Imaging (LSCI) is a real-time, non-invasive method in used to investigate blood flow and perfusion in biological tissues with high temporal and spatial resolution. A reduction in speckle contrast due to particle motion is the primary contrast mechanism in LSCI. Motion results in speckle fluctuations in time and reduces the contrast over a given camera integration period. There are a variety of parameters that effect contrast besides motion. The optical properties of the scattering medium are one of the parameters effecting LSCI values. Changes in blood hematocrit levels manifest as changes in optical properties. In this work, …

Wireless Implantable Magnetoelastic Sensors And Actuators For Biomedical Applications, Andrew Derouin

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Magnetoelastic sensors represent a low-cost wireless and battery-less method for monitoring parameters in embedded or implanted applications; however, some limitations still exist preventing their commercial implementation. Presented in this work are a variety of studies that are aimed at improving the feasibility of magnetoelastic materials for sensing and actuating applications. Magnetoelastic resonant sensors of non-standard geometries were investigated to determine if geometry could play a role on the sensitivity of the sensor response to mass loading. It was shown that a significant increase in sensitivity could be achieved by using triangular sensors rather than standard rectangular strips. A method for …

A Quality Management System Implementation Framework For Small-Sized Companies, Manish Avinash Sawant

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

A detailed framework is essential to facilitate quality system implementation. In this study, we have offered a cost effective do-it-yourself approach to quality management. We have proposed a quality system implementation framework for small-medium sized organizations to enable their transition from a no-quality system to an ISO 9001 quality management system. The proposed framework is validated using a case study of a small door manufacturing company. The findings reveal several setbacks experienced during quality system implementation and suggests means to overcome them using a proposed seven step framework. This study also advises an effective maintenance tool to facilitate continuous improvement …

Analysis Of Availability, Quality, And Price Of Food Options In Denver, Co Grocery Stores, Jesse Adam Lunsford

Health Nutrition and Exercise Science

In certain areas in the United States low-income, non-white populations have less access to healthy foods. This lack of access can manifest itself with higher costs, lower quality, or less availability of healthy food options. Research has shown a correlation between health status and ethnic and/or income status, which is related to negative correlations in health disparities and dietary intake. This study examined the Denver area grocery stores to identify if any populations had significant differences in food cost, food availability, or food quality. Thirty stores were randomly selected from Denver and analyzed using Nutritional Environmental Measure Survey for Supermarkets …

The Role Of Music Among Healthy Older Performance Musicians, Barbara Hutchison

Human Development and Family Science

This qualitative study explored the role of music in the lives of 18 healthy older performance musicians (PMs). PMs began music education in early childhood and developed music competencies of advanced, expert, and virtuoso by voice, instruments, and composing music. The phenomenology approach to data consisted of a 7-item demographic questionnaire, and an 18-semi-structured interview questionnaire. From the themes of community music participation, wellness, and happiness emerged 11 subthemes. The role of participating in community music validated PMs’ music identity. First, values and beliefs explained music was life and a livelihood; second, music participation continued for decades because conductors chose …

Effects Of The Early Risers Program On Children's Social Skills And Parents' Emotion And Cognition, Zhen Yang

Human Development and Family Science

The Early Risers Skills for Success Program provides comprehensive skills training to children with adjustment problems and offers parent training to their parents. The present study expects parenting training contributes to increases in parenting confidence and involvement and decreases in relational frustration of parents in the program compared with the control. We also want to know whether improving children’s social competence mediates the program’s effects on parents’ positive feeling and cognition. 114 early elementary school students and their parents received the intervention and training and 76 children and parents were in the control. Five waves of data were collected over …

Investigation Of Skin Temperature Increases With Rebound Diathermy, Eric Thomas Lundberg

Health Nutrition and Exercise Science

ReBound® Diathermy is a continuous shortwave diathermy device (CSWD) used as a portable heating modality. No studies have shown surface tissue temperatures of ReBound® treatments. The purpose of this study was to investigate if the ReBound® Diathermy unit produced skin temperatures in an ankle garment sleeve. The study called for 20 healthy, collegeaged (18-30 years) males to participate in a single treatment session. Surface thermocouples were placed following the anterior aspect of the ankle. The session included a 30-minute treatment in which skin temperatures were recorded at each site every 5 minutes. The ReBound® Diathermy unit did not produce an …

Statistical Analysis Of Paradigmatic Class Richness Supports Greater Paleoindian Projectile-Point Diversity In The Southeast, M. I. Eren, A. Chao, C. H. Chiu, R. K. Colwell, B. Buchanan, M. T. Boulanger, J. Darwent, Michael J. O'Brien

History Faculty Publications (Archived)

Ronald Mason's hypothesis from the 1960s that the southeastern United States possesses greater Paleoindian projectile-point diversity than other regions is regularly cited, and often assumed to be true, but in fact has never been quantitatively tested. Even if valid, however, the evolutionary meaning of this diversity is contested. Point diversity is often linked to Clovis "origins," but point diversity could also arise from group fissioning and drift, admixture, adaptation, or multiple founding events, among other possibilities. Before archaeologists can even begin to discuss these scenarios, it is paramount to ensure that what we think we know is representative of reality. …

Discussing Auschwitz, Scholarly Integrity And Governmental Revisionism: A Case Study In Academic Intimidation, Kevin Mccarthy

Journal of Hate Studies

In September 2015, I became embroiled in a controversial and confrontational media discourse that rapidly assumed a global context as external actors engaged in a hateful campaign of intimidation and threatening behavior. It was initiated by a letter I had published in the Belfast Telegraph, which included a reference that localised anti-Semitism was a factor in the Nazi decision to locate the Auschwitz-Birkinau extermination camp in Poland. It was a response to a letter thread that had included multiple mentions of Poland, Auschwitz-Birkinau, and hateful intimidation. However, a forensic examination of the letter suggests the confrontation had, in fact nothing …

Elements Of Bile: Placing Daniel Ottolengui (1836-1918) In The Heritage Of Hate, Sally Stokes

Journal of Hate Studies

Just east of Broadway, in 1846, Isaac D. Baker and Charles Scribner opened their publishing house on Nassau Street near Ann Street in lower Manhattan. By the time of the Civil War, Baker & Scribner had cemented a reputation for thoughtful and elevating texts. In 1867, the firm, now Charles Scribner & Co., having moved up to 654 Broadway and released a miscellany of Christian meditations, poetry by Robert Burns, and a translation of the Iliad, had picked up Henry Ward Beecher’s Norwood, or Village Life in New England. This lone novel by Beecher—orator, abolitionist, and minister of Brooklyn’s Plymouth …

Beyond Hate: White Power And Popular Culture By C. Richard King And David J. Leonard (Surrey, Uk: Ashgate, 2014. 200 Pp. $31.96. Isbn 978-1472427465)., Bianca Gonzalez-Sobrino, Matthew W. Hughey

Journal of Hate Studies

In Beyond Hate, C. Richard King and David J. Leonard present a critical, virtual ethnography that examines the relationship between popular culture, media, and white supremacy. Their efforts center on the exploration of the intersections of white power and popular culture in the virtual world as articulated in the context of the contemporary United States. In specific, King and Leonard explore how white nationalists come to utilize the digital realm of popular culture as a clarion call to cleanup a society “polluted” by the rise of nonwhite populations, the proliferation of liberal ideology and to the supposed demise of the …

The Nazis Next Door: How American Became A Safe Haven For Hitler's Men By Eric Lichtblau (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2014. 288 Pg. $28.00 Isbn 978-0547669199)., Monique Laney

Journal of Hate Studies

The Nazis Next Door is a follow-up to a breaking news story Lichtblau authored in 2010 when an unredacted version of a 600-page report chronicling the activities of the U.S. Department of Justice’s “Nazi hunting” Office of Investigations was leaked to the New York Times.2 The fact that the United States has been harboring Nazis, some of whom were war criminals, has not been news at least since the 1970s, but as Lichtblau explains in his 2010 article, the report “goes further in documenting the level of American complicity and deception,” especially the CIA’s involvement in using Nazis for postwar …

Nicotinamide Is An Endogenous Agonist For A C. Elegans Trpv Osm-9 And Ocr-4 Channel, A. Upadhyay, A. Pisupati, T. Jegla, Matthew Crook, K. J. Mickolajczyk, M. Shorey, L. E. Rohan, K. A. Billings, M. M. Rolls, W. O. Hancock, W. Hanna-Rose

Biology Faculty Publications (Archived)

TRPV ion channels are directly activated by sensory stimuli and participate in thermo-, mechano- and chemo-sensation. They are also hypothesized to respond to endogenous agonists that would modulate sensory responses. Here, we show that the nicotinamide (NAM) form of vitamin B3 is an agonist of a Caenorhabditis elegans TRPV channel. Using heterologous expression in Xenopus oocytes, we demonstrate that NAM is a soluble agonist for a channel consisting of the well-studied OSM-9 TRPV subunit and relatively uncharacterized OCR-4 TRPV subunit as well as the orthologous Drosophila Nan-Iav TRPV channel, and we examine stoichiometry of subunit assembly. Finally, we show that …