Digital Commons Network^™

Evaluation Of The Regional Drug Deposition Of Nasal Delivery Devices Using In Vitro Realistic Nasal Models, Mandana Azimi

Theses and Dissertations

The overall objectives of this research project were i) to develop and evaluate methods of characterizing nasal spray products using realistic nasal airway models as more clinically relevant in vitro tools and ii) to develop and evaluate a novel high-efficiency antibiotic nanoparticle dry powder formulation and delivery device. Two physically realistic nasal airway models were used to assess the effects of patient-use experimental conditions, nasal airway geometry and formulation / device properties on the delivery efficiency of nasal spray products. There was a large variability in drug delivery to the middle passages ranging from 17 – 57 % and 47 …

Assessing Acquiescence In Surveys Using Positively And Negatively Worded Questions, Amy C. Hutton

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of acquiescence on both positively and negatively worded questions, both when unidimensionality was assumed and when it was not. To accomplish this, undergraduate student responses to a previously validated survey of student engagement were used to compare several models of acquiescence, using a priori goodness-offit statistics as evidence for model fit, in order to develop a model that adequately accounted for acquiescence bias. Using a true experimental design, undergraduate students from a variety of classes at a large, urban university were randomly assigned to one of three versions of the …

Distant Electric Vision: Cultural Representations Of Television From “Edison’S Telephonoscope” To The Electronic Screen, Ivy Roberts

Theses and Dissertations

Do inventions that exist only on paper have less credibility than functional technologies? How has the meaning and significance of audiovisual media and technology changed over time? This dissertation examines historiography and methodology for media history, arguing for an interdisciplinary approach. It addresses methodological issues in media history—media in transition, media archaeology, and film history—through an examination of television’s speculative era. It tackles moving-image history through an historical investigation of Victorian and Machine age “television”.

Because the concept and terminology of “television” changed dramatically during this period, I use the phrases “distant electric vision” and “seeing by electricity,” to define …

Exploring The Role Of Culture In Online Searching Behavior From A Cognitive Perspective, Sara Chizari

Theses and Dissertations

This research investigates differences in Web search behavior from a “cultural cognition” perspective, which was introduced by Nisbett and Norenzayan (2002). To explore the impact of culture and thinking styles on searching behavior is the objective. The overarching hypothesis is that there are cultural differences in cognitive styles and that these differences may lead into different searching behaviors. The findings help search engine designers provide an adaptive navigation support to users from different cultural backgrounds and cognitive styles. The fundamental research question underpinning this research becomes what are the relationships between users’ cognitive styles and cultural background, and their Web …

El Lugar De La Memoria, Entre La Verdad Y La Emoción: Re-Lectura Del Exilio Español De 1939, Jinmei Chen

Theses and Dissertations

Drawing on the testimonial character of the memory of Spanish exile of 1939, this project contributes to the study of cultural memory, in dialogue with other scholars who examine memory in contemporary works. It focuses on the intersection of exile and memory, and demonstrates that cultural memory means a connection between collective and individual memories. The three primary works examined in this project are conceived before, during and after each author’s exile respectively, thus, they together give a comprehensive view of the massive exile of 1939: Ramón J. Sender’s El lugar de un hombre (1939), Eulalio Ferrer Rodríguez’s Entre alambradas: …

Circling The Reality Of Public Institutions Anchoring Gentrification: An E-Delphi Study Of Information, Culture, And Community Stakeholders Voicing The Way Forward In Detroit, Michigan, Celeste L. Welch

Theses and Dissertations

Information, culture, and memory centers increasingly anchor urban redevelopment projects in historically marginalized communities challenged with contemporary social and economic disparities. This dissertation situated libraries, archives, and museums within a socio-cultural context and examined the role of cultural heritage institutions in gentrification. Librarians, archivists, curators, and community advocates in Detroit, Michigan shared their viewpoints and experiences of gentrification in a legacy city. Using a modified Delphi process, the e-Delphi panel explored the need for assessing policy, service delivery, and programming in a city of color at-risk to gentrification-induced displacement.

This mixed research study used a concurrent triangulation design. A panel …

Speaking Out Despite White Noise: Examining The Leadership Of African American Female Technical College Presidents And Vice Presidents, Ashley Morris

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this phenomenological, qualitative study was to explore the experiences of African American female leaders in higher education. More specifically, this study examined the experiences of these leaders who assume the role of presidents and vice presidents at Georgia technical colleges. The study contextualized the experiences of these leaders and illustrated how those experiences influence their leadership methods and the establishment of their leadership presence. The results of this study form a context for understanding the leadership methods of African American female leaders.

Female Art And Artisans In Edith Wharton’S The House Of Mirth, The Custom Of The Country, And “Roman Fever”, Julia B. Welch

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

In early twentieth century old and new New York social circles, the marriage market’s commodification of women acted as the controlling factor for relationships, female power, and personal identity. When considering Wharton’s works for the first-hand viewpoint that she provided of the marriage market, it becomes clear that her interest in art plays heavily into the way women comport themselves within her novels. In order to discuss this relationship in Edith Wharton’s works, I’ve created terms that delineate the various ways female characters respond to the pressures of the marriage market. The best way to analyze Wharton’s women is by …

“I’M Not Good At Math”: Mathematical Illiteracy And Innummeracy In The United States, G. Wesley Rogers

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Why do we view mathematics the way we do in the United States and how have these views created an environment where we consider mathematical illiteracy and innumeracy socially and culturally acceptable when a lack of this knowledge and ability can function to enslave, exploit, restrict, and oppress. Throughout this investigation, I have explored some of the possible reasons for why we view education, mathematics, and the learning of mathematics the way we do and the impact of these views on our motivation and desire to learn mathematics. Using my over 20 years of teaching experience and the review of …

Wild-Growing Rosa Heckeliana Tratt.: Phenolic Constituentswith Cytotoxic And Antioxidative Properties, Nursen Çoruh, Ni̇zametti̇n Özdoğan

Turkish Journal of Biology

Rosa heckeliana, as one of the wild-growing species of the family Rosacea, has a wide use in the folk medicine; however, scientifically there is very little known about it. Our objective was to examine the antioxidative and antiproliferative properties of Rosa heckeliana root extract and its phenolics. The phenolic constituents, namely catechin, caffeic acid, and ellagic acid, were obtained by the methods of extraction, fractionation, and purification through column chromatography. The DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging assays and total flavonoid content analysis were employed as the current antioxidant methods over the crude extract and fractionated parts. Among the extracts/fractions, the …

Improvement In Androgenic Response Of Borage (Borago Officinalis L.) Cultured Anthersusing Antibrowning Agents And Picloram, Mohammad Reza Abdollahi, Zahra Chardoli Eshaghi, Mohammad Majdi

Turkish Journal of Biology

Given the importance of borage (Borago officinalis L.) as a medicinal herb, androgenic studies are necessary in order to speed up the breeding programs of this plant species. In this work, we evaluated the effect of silver nitrate, activated charcoal, ascorbic acid, and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), previously described as antibrowning agents and promoters of androgenesis. Adding silver nitrate at a concentration of 5 mg L-1 significantly enhanced the androgenic responses of cultured anthers up to ~2-fold for total calli production (53.33%) and up to ~2.5-fold for embryonic calli and embryo formation (30% and 0.3 embryos/anther, respectively) compared to control culture medium. …

In Vitro Evaluation Of Plla/Pbs Sponges As A Promisingbiodegradable Scaffold For Neural Tissue Engineering, İrem Ayşe Kanneci̇ Altinişik, Fatma Neşe Kök, Deni̇z Yücel, Gamze Köse

Turkish Journal of Biology

In tissue engineering, the use of poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA)/polybutylene succinate (PBS) blend for the construction of scaffold is very limited. Moreover, polymeric sponges fabricated from PLLA/PBS have not been studied for neural tissue engineering. In the present study, the potential of the utility of PLLA/PBS polymeric sponges seeded with Schwann cells was investigated. PLLA and PBS were blended in order to increase the processability and tune the crystallinity, porosity, and degradation rate of the resulted polymeric sponges. These sponges were then seeded with Schwann cells. Porosity analysis showed that there were no significant differences between different compositions of PLLA/PBS blends; …

Spectrum 2017, Saint Mary's College Of California

The Undergraduate Spectrum

No abstract provided.

Understanding Pro-Environmental Behaviours Of National Park Visitors, Kourosh Esfandiar

ECU Posters

Visitors’ inappropriate behaviour (e.g. littering) will impact nature-based tourism sites such as National Parks which play critical roles in mitigating climate change. This study examines what are the antecedents of national park visitors’ pro-environmental behaviours? Is there any difference between individualistic and collectivistic nations in terms of PEB amongst national park visitors? This study proposes using “An Integrated Pro-environmental personal norms Model (IPM) as the proposed research model based on Schwartz’s NAM to examine the above questions.

Networking The Rule Of Law: The Canadian Bar Association’S Abandoned Intervention In Chevron V Yaiguaje, Rebecca Jaremko Bromwich

Journal of Law and Social Policy

This article looks at public debates surrounding how a network of Canadian lawyers disrupted an amicus curiae intervention in the recent Supreme Court of Canada case of Chevron Corp. v Yaiguaje. Analysis of this case study troubles assumptions about where and how law is made and suggests possibilities for successful activist engagement. Working together on a variety of points on a spectrum as advocates, counsel, interveners, and activists, lawyers leveraged their professional networks to influence and govern a multinational corporation by affecting what arguments were raised inside the court. I analyze the public debate about intervention in the Yaiguaje case …

Finding Voice, The Body Speaks: Original Work And Counter-Hegemonic Performance And Practice, Matthew Paul Thornton

Theses and Dissertations

Graduate study in theatre has allowed me to understand my work as an artist and educator from a critical academic perspective. I have researched Butoh as a model for original work that employs multiculturalism against hegemonic control of personal identity. From my own training experience, I am recognizing Capoeira, Contact Improvisation, and Devising processes (co-creation or collaborative creative process in dance) as counter-hegemonic forms and techniques that share a physical/philosophical emphasis on communal engagement, improvisation, circularity and repetition. Looking at them together provides points of intersection for me to examine them as an artist, while posing questions for cross-cultural investigations. …

Designing For Divorce: New Rituls And Artifacts For An Evolving World, Yang Soon Ju Ms.

Theses and Dissertations

Our interactions with objects build cultural codes, reflecting lifestyles, values, and identities beyond functional expectations. With open connectivity in the contemporary consumer environments, we have access to homogenized material cultures not only for daily activities but also for ceremonies and rituals to mark important events, such as birth, marriage, and death. What will happen to our cultural codes and diverse traditions when various cultural norms meet, exchange, clash, hybridize, and evolve?

In this research, globalized material cultures were investigated to discover metaphoric comparisons, to formulate conceptual frameworks, and to develop informed design, which can address evolving cultural conditions appropriately, in …

Yi, Observational Documentary Aesthetics, And The Identity Politics Of Transcultural Migrancy, Jiacheng Xu 4159187

Theses and Dissertations

There is a moment in Edward Yang’s acclaimed film Yi Yi (2000) in which a young boy in a conversation with his father observes that he cannot see what his father sees and that his father cannot see what he sees, prompting two questions: “How can I know what you see?” and “Can we only know half of the truth?” Unable to provide adequate answers, his father instead offers his son a camera. Later in the film, the same boy presents his uncle with a picture he took of the back of his head. When asked why, the boy responds …

Más Allá Del Turismo: La Piel Quemada (Dir. Josep Maria Forn) A Través De Los Estudios De La Movilidad, Eugenia Afinoguénova

Spanish Languages and Literatures Research and Publications

No abstract provided.

The Bystander Intervention In Bullying Survey: An Examination In An Elementary School Sample, Kirsten Taylor

Masters Theses

Researchers and school administrators have recognized the importance of peer bystanders in bullying situations, but there are very few studies that examine this phenomenon within Latané and Darley's (1970) bystander intervention model. The five sequential steps in this model include: notice the event, interpret the event as an emergency that requires assistance, accept responsibility for intervening, know how to intervene or provide help, and implement intervention. Nickerson, Aloe, Livingston, and Feeley (2014) created the Bystander Intervention in Bullying Survey based on Latané and Darley's model. Nickerson and colleagues and Jenkins and Nickerson (in press) have found evidence of reliability and …

Getting The Upper Hand: Natural Gesture Interfaces Improve Instructional Efficiency On A Conceptual Computer Lesson, Shannon Bailey

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As gesture-based interactions with computer interfaces become more technologically feasible for educational and training systems, it is important to consider what interactions are best for the learner. Computer interactions should not interfere with learning nor increase the mental effort of completing the lesson. The purpose of the current set of studies was to determine whether natural gesture-based interactions, or instruction of those gestures, help the learner in a computer lesson by increasing learning and reducing mental effort. First, two studies were conducted to determine what gestures were considered natural by participants. Then, those gestures were implemented in an experiment to …

Hippieland: Bohemian Space And Countercultural Place In San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury Neighborhood, Kevin Mercer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the birth of the late 1960s counterculture in San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury neighborhood. Surveying the area through a lens of geographic place and space, this research will look at the historical factors that led to the rise of a counterculture here. To contextualize this development, it is necessary to examine the development of a cosmopolitan neighborhood after World War II that was multicultural and bohemian into something culturally unique. It was within this space that a wellspring of drop-out culture evolved from a combination of psychedelic drugs, experimental lifestyles, and anarchistic thought. The contention of countercultural place was …

Communism's Futures: Intelligentsia Imaginations In The Writings Of The Strugatsky Brothers, Elizabeth Tammaro

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Arkady and Boris Strugatsky were the most popular science fiction writing duo in Soviet Russia from the 1960s through the 1980s. Examining their imaginative fictional worlds against the background of wider changes in the Soviet Union allows scholars to gain insights in the world of the Soviet intelligentsia, the educated bearers of culture. As members of this group, the Strugatskys expressed the hopes, frustrations and fears, of their peers, vindicating their intellectual and emotional life. I support the argument that the Brothers occupied a middle ground between conformity and dissident, dubbed the "lost" intelligentsia by Lloyd Churchward. I demonstrate this …

Mobile Learning Technology Acceptance Among Saudi Higher Education Students, Talal Mohammed Alasmari

Wayne State University Dissertations

The rapid development of technology has encouraged Saudi universities to establish initiatives to improve learning. Mobile learning technology is one of the technologies targeted by eLearning and distance education deanships among Saudi universities. However, few studies have been done in investigating mobile learning technology acceptance in the Saudi context. This study aims to provide policy and decision makers in the Saudi higher education with reliable data in order to employ mobile learning technology in learning process. Therefore, this study modified Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) to investigate students’ acceptance of mobile learning technology. To this end, …

'Strange' Lands Of Opportunity - Representations Of Moral, Social, And Economic Profit In Late Medieval And Early Modern Literature, Lisa Marie Kanniainen

Wayne State University Dissertations

ABSTRACT

‘STRANGE’ LANDS OF OPPORTUNITY – REPRESENTATIONS OF MORAL, SOCIAL, AND ECONOMIC PROFIT IN LATE MEDIEVAL AND EARLY MODERN LITERATURE

By

LISA KANNIAINEN

MARCH 2017

Advisor: Dr. Jaime Goodrich

Major: English (British Literature)

Degree: Doctor of Philosophy

This dissertation pursues the link between late medieval and early modern texts and the thoughts of the developing middling class and the New Men. Adding to scholarship regarding travel literature, colonization, and propaganda, I claim that the selected texts offer insight into medieval and early modern concerns regarding moral, social, and economic profit. Employing contemporary economic constructs as a base, this enterprise investigates …

Affective Dissonance: (Post)Feminism And Popular Cultural Expressions Of Motherhood, Judith Lakämper

Wayne State University Dissertations

In “Affective Dissonance: (Post)feminism and Popular Cultural Expressions of Motherhood,” I argue that motherhood in the so-called post-feminist age is structured by a conflicted relationship between affective expectations raised by public discourses of motherhood and the material, embodied experience of maternity, inflected by race, class, age, and sexuality. While recent feminist scholarship has engaged questions of (bodily) materiality, and popular medial discourses increasingly critique unrealistic ideals of motherhood, my dissertation considers these approaches together. Juxtaposing representations of motherhood from various sources – memoirs, digital media, art photography, and television – I demonstrate how the postfeminist rhetoric of female empowerment and …

A Computational Study Of Vegf Production By Patterned Retinal Epithelial Cell Colonies As A Model For Neovascular Macular Degeneration, Qanita Bani Baker, Gregory J. Podgorski, Elizabeth Vargis, Nicholas Flann

Biology Faculty Publications

Background: The configuration of necrotic areas within the retinal pigmented epithelium is an important element in the progression of age-related macular degeneration (AMD). In the exudative (wet) and non-exudative (dry) forms of the disease, retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells respond to adjacent atrophied regions by secreting vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) that in turn recruits new blood vessels which lead to a further reduction in retinal function and vision. In vitro models exist for studying VEGF expression in wet AMD (Vargis et al., Biomaterials 35(13):3999–4004, 2014), but are limited in the patterns of necrotic and intact RPE epithelium they can …

Corpus Stylistic Analysis Of Thomas Harris' The Silence Of The Lambs, Eman Adil Jaafar

Khazar Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences

This paper aims to employ one of the corpus stylistic methods to analyze Thomas Harris's novel, The Silence of the Lambs. Recently, technology has invaded our lives. To put it differently, researchers depend highly on computers to access and gain information about certain data. Thus, it is crucial to keep up with the up-to-date developments concerning computational methodologies and toolkits. Corpus stylistics helps to find certain features that cannot be understood without using the techniques of computers. In order to achieve this goal, a quantitative and qualitative methodology is applied. Corpus stylistics helps to analyze lengthy texts more efficiently. This …

Ineffable: Latency In Symbolic Languages, Sirah Yoo

Theses and Dissertations

The design process demands comprehensive knowledge of visual signs and symbols with a focus on visual literacy; it is related to visual syntax, semantics, and the pragmatics of contexts. My work is an interdisciplinary investigation into how designers integrate polysemantic signs into their design process for particular and highly individualized audiences. By analyzing the role of signs in specific contexts across the spectrum of arts, society, literature, and semiotics, a designer's understanding of the cyclical nature of interpretation and reinterpretation in complex environments creates an avenue for cultivating a new schema that provides further levels of interpretations and different access …

Effect Of Calcium Citrate In Calcium Carbonate Nanoparticles On Hk-2 Cells In Acidic Environment, Tipagorn Udomsinsirikul

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

Metabolic acidosis exerts several cellular and tissue dysfunctions, such as increases mineral bone and protein degradation, induces inflammation, oxidative stress and cell death. These complications lead to multiple organ failure, including chronic kidney disease. Sodium bicarbonate and Shohl's solution are commonly used to treat metabolic acidosis. However, these agents cause frequent gastrointestinal adverse effects. Hence, we invented the new calcium carbonate nanoparticles to use as a drug delivery system for carrying citrate to renal cell which we hypothesize to reduce adverse effects of metabolic acidosis. We studied the physical characteristics and pharmacological effects of calcium citrate nanoparticle (Cacit) and calcium …