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An Investigation Of The Relationship Between Academic Achievement And High School Students' Perceived Level Of Satisfaction Of Needs In Selected Southeast Tennessee Schools, Michael Caraccio

Masters Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

“Lack of motivation is a real and pressing problem. Upwards of 40 percent of high school students are chronically disengaged from school” (Crotty, 2013, para. 3). This problem highlights the purpose of this research, which was twofold. First, the research was designed to develop an assessment to measure students’ level of needs satisfaction using Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Secondly, the assessment instrument was used to investigate the relationship between the level of satisfaction of needs and the academic achievement of high school students. The theoretical basis for this research was Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, which was classified as an aspect …

Mstroke: Methods Of Fall Detection And Data Storage, Austin Harris

Masters Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Stokes are the leading cause of disability in adults in the United States. Falls are preve- lant at all stages of recovery among post-stroke patients, and falls can cause serious or life threatening injuries. In this thesis, multiple fall detections methods are explored in order to minimize the faller’s wait time. This research is an extension to our research on mStroke, a reall-time and automatic mobile health system for post stroke recovery and rehabilitation. The proposed system consists of an application (mobile app) that is paired with bluetooth low energy (BLE) modular sensor devices. The sensors provide real-time accerlation, and …

Post-Fledging Habitat Use And Movements Of Worm-Eating Warblers In The Tennessee River Gorge, Holland Youngman

Masters Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Declines in Neotropical migratory birds have been observed over the past several decades. Species with particular habitat needs, termed ‘specialists’, are especially at risk given continual habitat loss. These downward trends have prompted researchers to investigate species’ life histories and associated habitats to better understand the necessary components for successful life stages. The Worm-eating Warbler (Helmitheros vermivorum; WEWA) is an interior specialist with little known regarding its post-fledging habitat needs. I used harness-attached radio transmitters to track fledgling WEWAs in the Tennessee River Gorge to study habitat components and daily movements. Results between fledgling location and random points indicate that …

Metastable-State Photoacids And The Related Photo-Responsive Polymers, Zhuozhi Wang

Theses and Dissertations

Metastable-state photoacid is a type of photo-sensitive compounds that can release large amount of protons reversibly upon visible-light irradiation. Since being developed by our group in 2011, metastable-state photoacid has been utilized to develop many applications that involve controlling proton transfer processes. Since proton transfer process is one of the most common processes in nature, metastable-state photoacid is a powerful tool to control various processes with light. A introduction of metastable state photoacid is described in Chapter 1. In Chapter 2, metastable-state photoacids with different substituents were designed to study the relationship between their structures and physicochemical properties. In Chapter …

Parametric And Non-Parametric Regression Models With Applications To Climate Change, Osita Eluemuno Onyejekwe

Theses and Dissertations

In this dissertation we have studied the climate factors that contribute to climate change using univariate and multivariate parametric methods as well as nonparametric models. In this study, we have three major contributions. First, the extent of mountain glaciers around the globe and their responses to climate factors are investigated using multivariate methods and we have proposed a predictive model to estimate the mountain glacier response to climate factors. Second, we have addressed the important problem of bandwidth selection in presence of correlated noise in nonparametric regression analysis. We have proposed a denoising method based on an ensemble bandwidth optimization …

Genetic Optimisations For Satisfiability And Ramsey Theory, Andrew Barnes

The Plymouth Student Scientist

The art of using evolutionary mechanisms for identifying satisfiability has produced a range of efficient solutions to this otherwise computationally challenging problem. Since their first use these evolutionary methods have been changed and adapted to produce increasingly efficient solutions. This paper introduces two unique alternatives to the optimisation of these methods, the first through the introduction of alternative mutation operators and the second through utilizing a grammatical encoding which has been proven to improve neuroevolution. The goal of this paper is to identify whether these two alternatives are candidates for future investigation in improving evolutionary satisfiability solvers.

Effects Of Predation Risk And Temperature On Foraging Behaviour Of Littorina Littorea, Sarah Curtin

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Predator-prey interactions are a fundamental feature of ecological communities. The majority of studies have focussed on the consequences of predators reducing the abundance of their prey through direct consumption (density-mediated interaction, DMIs). However, predators can also interact with prey by inducing costly behavioural and/or physiological defence strategies such as reduced foraging, anti-predator behaviour and investment in defensive structures. Evidence suggests that the cost of these phenotypic responses, termed trait-mediated interactions (TMIs), may be greater than that of DMIs. The strength of TMIs may depend on the environmental context in which prey must decide between food and safety. Because temperature can …

Undergraduate Research As A Form Of Learning, Amelia Welch

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Guest editorial: Amelia Welch, Final Year Student, Marine Biology, Plymouth University

Toll-Like Receptor 7: Expression Patterns Within Mammalian Trigeminal And Dorsal Root Ganglia And Its Selected Facial Innervation Target, The Tongue, Sara Kawamura

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are known to be expressed in the mammalian nervous system where they play an important role in the hosts’ immune defence against bacterial and viral pathogens. Recent studies have looked into the expression of a wide range of TLRs in various neuronal sub-populations of the central and peripheral nervous systems. However, the co-expression of TLRs within the sub-populations of neurons as well as the expression of TLRs in the terminals of various innervation targets are yet to be understood. In this study, Immunohistochemistry was used to quantify the expression of TLR7 with known neurochemical markers in two …

The Long Term Effects Of Social Deprivation On Black-Capped Capuchins (Sapajus Apella) Rescued From The Primate Pet Trade, Kate Bee

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Captivity is often physically and psychologically damaging to primates, who have complex ethological and social needs. It is widely agreed that primates do not make suitable domestic pets, however it is still legal to keep some species of primates as pets in the UK.The effects of the exotic pet trade on primate welfare are poorly documented. It is extremely likely that it will be detrimental towards their physical and mental health, especially when kept in isolation from other primates, but there is little evidence to show the long-term implications of social deprivation.This study observed the long term-effects of social isolation …

The Effects Of Turbulence On Vertical Distributions And Concentrations Of Phytoplankton In (Case Ii) Coastal Waters, Daniel Ford

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Estuaries are extensive habitats that are vulnerable to rising sea levels; a detailed understanding of biological and physical interactions is required to predict future change. Surveys were conducted in an estuarine system across contrasting tidal states, of neap ebb and spring flood, to evaluate how changes in vertical turbulent mixing affect vertical phytoplankton distributions. Profiles of temperature, salinity, irradiance, shear microstructure and fluorescence were undertaken at multiple stations along the Tamar Estuary, UK. Results confirmed that turbulent mixing was predominately controlled by stratification, with lower mixing occurring on the neap ebb tide. At stations where the average water column mixing …

Perceived Ideal Traits Of A Mentor As Viewed By African American Students In Science, Technology, Engineering, And Mathematics, Mary L. Smith

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine undergraduate students majoring in science, technology, engineering, and math disciplines perception of traits an ideal mentor should possess, and to determine if these traits had positive results on their identification with science. With a large number of workers in STEM disciplines retiring, there is a projected need for more underrepresented minorities to fill these positions. In order to increase diversity in the workforce, efforts must be made to retain underrepresented minorities in STEM education beginning at the undergraduate level and continuing throughout the graduate level. This intervention should begin as early as …

Development, Evaluation, And Application Of A Novel Error Correction Method For Next Generation Sequencing Data, Isaac Akogwu

Dissertations

Tremendous evolvement in sequencing technologies and the vast availability of data due to decreasing cost of Next-Generation-Sequencing (NGS) has availed scientists the opportunity to address a wide variety of evolutionary and biological issues. NGS uses massively parallel technology to accelerate the process at the expense of accuracy and read length in comparison to earlier Sanger methods. Therefore, computational limitations exist in how much analysis and information can be gleaned from the data without performing some form of error correction.

Error correction process is laborious and consumes a lot of computational resources. Despite the existence of many NGS data error correction …

Short-Term Memory Capacity And Recall Of Students With And Without Intellectual Giftedness: An Empirical Inquiry, Angela Foil Ellison

Dissertations

The goal of this research is to examine the differences of short-term memory capacity between intellectually gifted, general education, and students receiving special education services. Using foundations in memory and recall research by Atkinson and Shiffrin and Baddeley and Hitch, data was collected by replication of a previous serial position effect research design. Participants were children in grades four through six located in the southern portion of the United States. An ANOVA analysis found a statistical significance between students receiving special education and general education and gifted students. A failure to reject of the null hypothesis supported that short-term memory …

Race, Socioeconomic Status, And Implicit Bias: Implications For Closing The Achievement Gap, Elizabeth Schlosser

Dissertations

This study accessed the relationship between race, socioeconomic status, age and the race implicit bias held by middle and high school science teachers in Mobile and Baldwin County Public School Systems. Seventy-nine participants were administered the race Implicit Association Test (race IAT), created by Greenwald, A. G., Nosek, B. A., & Banaji, M. R., (2003) and a demographic survey. Quantitative analysis using analysis of variances, ANOVA and t-tests were used in this study. An ANOVA was performed comparing the race IAT scores of African American science teachers and their Caucasian counterparts. A statically significant difference was found (F = …

Escorting Of Mother-Calf Pairs Of Humpback Whales (Megaptera Novaeangliae) In The Colombian Pacific During The Breeding Season, Natalia Botero Acosta

Dissertations

Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) belonging to the “breeding G-stock” annually migrate from the Antarctic Peninsula and southern Chile to the southeastern Pacific to reproduce. Associations between mother-calf pairs and escorts were examined in the Gulf of Tribugá, northern Colombian Pacific, using photo-identification and behavioral/spatial sampling. Research hypotheses included: 1. The association between cows and escorts is short-lived, consistent with a male reproductive strategy, 2. The presence of escort(s) elicits a behavioral response from mother-calf pairs and, 3. The patterns of spatial distribution reflect the spatial segregation of maternal females. Groups were classified as mother-calf pairs (Mc), mother, calf …

Electrophilic Cleavage And Functionalization Of Polyisobutylenes Bearing Unsaturations In The Backbone And Synthesis Of Polymers For This Process, Christopher Campbell

Dissertations

In the first project, we demonstrated a new reaction, which is a subset of the Friedel‑Crafts alkylation reaction, in which the alkylating carbocation undergoes a cleavage reaction prior to reaction with the aromatic substrate. This reaction was discovered by the observation that when a PIB containing a large amount of coupled fraction was subjected to a mixture of protic and Lewis acids (HCl/TiCl₄) in the presence of an alkoxybenzene compound, the coupled fraction was quantitatively converted to its constituent monofunctional chains, which became functionalized by the alkoxybenzene.

In the second project, a commercial polymer, poly(isobutylene-co-isoprene) (butyl …

Evaluating Social Network Dynamics Of Bigg’S Killer Whales (Orcinus Orca) And Vessel Traffic Within A Transboundary Region: Implications For Conservation Management, Courtney Smith

Dissertations

The social lives of animals are defined by group dynamics based on the nature and strength of associations and movements between individuals, often resulting in highly complex and interconnected social networks. However, understanding of how environmental variables may shape this structure is poorly understood. Within the inland waters of Washington State and southern Vancouver Island, British Columbia, mammal-eating Bigg’s (transient) killer whales occur in relatively small, but stable social groups. Group size and occurrence in recent years has increased, coinciding with a growing whale watching industry. Given the central importance of the social network within killer whale population dynamics, such …

Sea Star Wasting Disease In Asterias Forbesi Along The Atlantic Coast Of North America, Caitlin Bucci, Madison Francoeur, Jillon Mcgreal, Roxanna Smolowitz, Vanesa Zazueta-Novoa, Gary M. Wessel, Marta Gomez-Chiarri

Arts & Sciences Faculty Publications

As keystone species, sea stars serve to maintain biodiversity and species distribution through trophic level interactions in marine ecosystems. Recently, Sea Star Wasting Disease (SSWD) has caused widespread mass mortality in several sea star species from the Pacific Coast of the United States of America (USA) and Asterias forbesi on the Atlantic Coast. A densovirus, named Sea Star associated Densovirus (SSaDV), has been associated with the wasting disease in Pacific Coast sea stars, and limited samples of A. forbesi. The goal of this research is to examine the pathogenesis of SSWD in A. forbesi on the Atlantic Coast of the …

What Lies Beneath: How Paranoid Cognition Explains The Relations Between Transgender Employees' Perceptions Of Discrimination At Work And Their Job Attitudes And Wellbeing, Christian N. Thoroughgood, Katina B. Sawyer, Jennica R. Webster

Management Faculty Research and Publications

With the recent public gender transitions of celebrities like Caitlin Jenner, greater visibility of transgender characters on television (e.g., Transparent), and controversial laws enacted in some U.S. states and cities banning transgender employees from accessing bathrooms that align with their gender identities, issues of gender expression have been thrust into the national spotlight. In order to promote greater awareness and acceptance of transgender people, greater knowledge of their life experiences is needed. Adding to a small, but growing, body of research on the work experiences of transgender individuals, the goal of the present study is to examine the cognitive …

Oxidation Of Dibenzothiophene To Dibenzothiophene-Sufone Using A Molybdenum (Vi) Oxide Catalyst: A Kinetic Study Testing Solvent Dependency And Mole Ratio Efficiency, Tomas Trevino Jr.

Theses and Dissertations

Oxidative desulfurization (ODS) is currently a solution to hydrodesulphurization. Currently, industrial usage of hydrodesulphurization (HDS) is the common source for petroleum purification. Unfortunately, HDS comes with environmental and economical ramifications. Due to the problems and potential hazards being presented with HDS, ODS has become a topic of interest in research development. A kinetic study using molybdenum (VI) oxide as a catalyst was used in oxidative desulfurization. Factors such as mole ratio and solvent dependency were tested for efficiency. As activation energy was calculated to show maximum efficiency with respect to temperature and concentration. Gas Chromatography, FT-IR, and Mass Spectroscopy were …

Remediation Of Lead And Copper Ions From Water Solutions Using Transition Metal Sulfides, Jesus M. Cantu Jr.

Theses and Dissertations

Heavy metal contamination in water solutions has been a major concern since many transition metals don’t play a role in any biological function and are actually detrimental to human health. There have been several techniques that have been implemented for the remediation of heavy metal contaminants. For this project, three metal sulfides—Fe7S8, ZnS, TiS 2—were synthesized and studied for their capabilities to remove Pb(II) and Cu(II) from water solutions. Several parameters were investigated to determine the effects of pH, time, temperature, binding capacities, and interfering ions. The room temperature adsorption capacities ranged 6.23–333.3 mg/g for Pb(II) and 1.31–250 mg/g for …

Aristotle, Redemption, And The Conquest Of The Americas, Luis Angel Buentello

Theses and Dissertations

The central question addressed in my thesis is the claim that the even though the conquest of the Americas by the Spaniards was a brutal and murderous process, the Spanish imperial project in the Americas, based on Aristotelian ideology, resulted in the most beneficial and least harmful form of conquest conceivable in comparison to the next great empire of the age, the British Empire.

The founding pillars of Spain’s overseas empire in the Americas, based on an Aristotelian framework, produced a synthesis of political thinking that brought about greater benefits to the native populations, and slave populations, subsumed under the …

Ojos Vendados: An Ethnographic Approach To Understanding How Immigration Status And Language Influence The Identity Of High School Students In The Rio Grande Valley, Ariana Garza

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined oppressive factors Mexican immigrant students, or children of Mexican immigrants, face throughout their lives in RGV. These factors, which are termed “blindfolds” throughout this paper, can have a great impact on these students’ identity. The purpose of this study was to expose students to the blindfolds give them an opportunity to remove them and move past the oppressive measures that may have shaped how they are.

Knowing the implications of these stereotypes can explain why students may choose to be certain ways or do certain things. We can use this information to our advantage as educators of …

Utilizing Accelerometer Telemetry Tags To Compare Red Snapper (Lutjanus Campechanus) Behavior On Artificial And Natural Reefs, Ethan T. Getz

Theses and Dissertations

The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Artificial Reef Program has deployed over 2,800 hectares of reefing area composed of petroleum platforms, steel vessels, and concrete. Artificial reefs have been shown to support many important reef fishes such as red snapper (Lutjanus campechanus), however, few studies have compared fish behavior on artificial reefs and natural habitats. We examined activity levels, behavioral patterns and habitat preferences of red snapper over natural reefs, oil platforms and submerged ships. Telemetry tags (Sonotronics model MTT) with tri-axial acceleration range, average depth, and average temperature were programmed to optimize data collection and tag life. …

Effect Of Land Use Change On South Texas Bats, Katharine Leigh Jones

Theses and Dissertations

Bats were acoustically recorded in South Texas over the summer of 2017. Nine species of bats were recorded and identified.

College Readiness Indicators Of First-Generation Hispanic High School Students In South Texas, William Morley

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if a relationship exists between first generation Hispanic student participation in an AVID program and college readiness. The dependent variable, college readiness, was measured by passing the Texas Success Initiative (TSI) Reading, Writing, and Math assessment. Predictor variables included Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) elective course participation, Advanced Placement courses taken, Advanced Placement Exams taken, Advanced Placement Exams passed, Dual Enrollment Courses Passed, and ACT Composite score. A factor analysis was performed on the predictor variables, resulting in three independent variables for the study: AVID elective course participation, Average of T-scores for …

Hormonal Influence On Female Consumption Of Revealing And Sexy Fashion Products, Ngoc B. Pham

Theses and Dissertations

This doctoral dissertation addresses the biological and psychological components of consumers’ decision-making processes. Particularly, it investigates the impact of female sex hormones on women’s consumption behaviors regarding fashion products. These hormones reach peak level when women are near ovulation, and this research examines how these hormones, when at peak level, influence women’s attitudes and purchase intention towards sexy and revealing fashion products.

The research is based on two theoretical frameworks: ovulatory shift hypothesis (OSH) and theory of reasoned action (TRA). Specifically, the OSH, based on the female ovulatory cycle postulates that women change their sexual preferences for men with perceived …

Synthesis Of Tetraethyl ((2-Amino-1,4-Phenylene)Bis(Methylene)) Bis(Phosphonate): An Intermediate In The Synthesis Of Amino-Substituted Conjugated Materials, Ariel Ivan Torres Burgueno

Theses and Dissertations

Discussed here are the syntheses of the phosphonate precursors for the Wittig-Horner synthesis of poly-phenylene vinylene (PPV) and distyrylbenzene (DSB) derivatives and their respective distyrylbenzene analogs containing amino moieties. The synthesis of the different compounds was achieved through bromination, Michaelis-Arbuzov reaction, reduction of the nitro group with a commercial cobalt sulfide catalyst and sodium borohydride. Preliminary evidence for the synthesis of amino substituted distyrylbenzene and of nitro/alkoxy substituted poly(p-phenylene vinylene) was obtained. Characterization of the products was performed by 1H-NMR. Preliminary results of the synthesis of a novel amino-substituted distyrylbenzene (DSB) are presented. The luminescence of the new DSB was …

Association Between Hispanic Parents' Attitudes And Knowledge Regarding Obesity And Their Children's Body Mass Index: Implications For The Development Of Obesity, Renee Starr

Theses and Dissertations

According to the World Health Organization (WHO, 2017), more than 1.9 billion adults age 18 and older are overweight and over 650 million are obese. Data collected through the Centers for Disease Control indicates the prevalence of U.S. adults who are overweight and obese is estimated at 36.5% and the national childhood obesity rate is more than 12.7 million (17%), with approximately one in six school-aged children reaching the obesity level (Ogden, Carroll, Fryar, & Flegal, 2015). Hispanic children have the highest levels of obesity among all racial/ethnic groups (21.9%) and obesity rates are especially prevalent among impoverished Hispanics residing …