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2018

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An Analysis Of Commercial Oxidative Hair Dyes Using Raman Spectroscopy, Allyson Henke Jan 2018

An Analysis Of Commercial Oxidative Hair Dyes Using Raman Spectroscopy, Allyson Henke

Honors Theses

Here, we aim to further the potential use of surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) in analyzing hair dyes for use in forensic investigations. Current methods include light microscopy and thin-layer chromatography (TLC). However, these techniques can be destructive to the hair samples, do not have high discriminatory power, and have had problems with giving inconclusive results. Raman spectroscopy, on the other hand, is a fast, simple technique with a high discriminatory power. Previous work has shown that SERS can be used for in-situ analyses that is not destructive to the sample. This previous work also demonstrated that SERS could definitively differentiate …

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Raman Spectroscopic And Computational Study Of Hydrogen Bond Interactions Between Guanidine Hydrochloride, Trimethylamine N-Oxide (Tmao), Urea, And Water, Andrew Kamischke Jan 2018

Raman Spectroscopic And Computational Study Of Hydrogen Bond Interactions Between Guanidine Hydrochloride, Trimethylamine N-Oxide (Tmao), Urea, And Water, Andrew Kamischke

Honors Theses

Proteins are broken down in the body and produce water, CO2, and ammonia as by-products. Ammonia is toxic to cells, making it a priority to be excreted. Urea is the key route for the transportation of ammonia out of the body and is the main component of urine. Guanidine is another important nitrogen-containing molecule that is structural like urea and plays important biological roles in the stabilization of proteins. Guanidine hydrochloride and Urea are known to denature proteins and this functionality continues to be a topic of great interest. Urea and guanidine contain many hydrogen bonding sites and interactions with …

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The Path To Math: Analysis Of Student Mathematical Stories, Aurora D. Wallace Jan 2018

The Path To Math: Analysis Of Student Mathematical Stories, Aurora D. Wallace

Honors Theses

In this thesis, I address the issue of American students' dislike of mathematics. I explored this issue in two parts: distributing a survey to undergraduates of the University of Mississippi and then conducting interviews of students at the same university about their past feelings and emotions about mathematics. Interview data was analyzed and coded through Dedoose, a qualitative data program. Analysis of each interviewee's data set led to the establishment of different mathematical paths that students follow in their mathematics education. The five paths emerging from the data — Arrow, Improvement, Revelation, Sparkless, and Almost Revelation — provide a more …

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Assembly Of A Protein-Based Hydrogel As A Vehicle For In Situ Drug Delivery, Austin Carroll Jan 2018

Assembly Of A Protein-Based Hydrogel As A Vehicle For In Situ Drug Delivery, Austin Carroll

Honors Theses

The goal of this work is to develop a self-assembling, protein-based gel to deliver drugs at the site of chronic inflammation. There are two engineered protomers that comprise the gel; calmodulin- and M13- are their critical components. Numerous enzymes have been shown to undergo calcium-dependent regulation by calmodulin, an intracellular protein highly resilient to its chemical environment. One of these enzymes, myosin light chain kinase, contains a remarkable 26 residue portion known as the M13 peptide that has been demonstrated to bind to calmodulin in the presence of calcium through hydrophobic interactions. Because the extracellular space in vivo constitutes an …

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The Impact Of Social Wellness Integration On Fifth Grade Students' Positive Social Behaviors, Kathryn Harrison Jan 2018

The Impact Of Social Wellness Integration On Fifth Grade Students' Positive Social Behaviors, Kathryn Harrison

Honors Theses

In recent years, schools across the United States have encountered increased pressure to focus solely on academic performance (Dillow & Snyder, 2007). Therefore, time allotted to developing fundamental social skills needed to improve the well-being of children in elementary school has decreased. However, social skills are essential to educating the overall well-being of children (Clinton, West, and Wilson, 2017). Benefits associated with social wellness education include relationship skills, responsible decision making skills, and consideration of well-being of self and others. These are all important to lifelong success (Burrow, Patrick, Kyzer, & Mckelvey 2016). To address these concerns, this study examined …

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Social And Emotional Learning And Its Implementation In A Standard 9th Grade English Language Arts Curriculum, Mary Kathryn Barry Jan 2018

Social And Emotional Learning And Its Implementation In A Standard 9th Grade English Language Arts Curriculum, Mary Kathryn Barry

Honors Theses

The basis of the thesis is to examine effective teacher practices through the research of social and emotional learning, examining both teacher behavior and best teaching practices and how these two influences impact students' reception of the curriculum. The literature review will be divided in three parts: a pedagogical overview, the importance of critical reflection for teachers, and how empathy, in partnership with other thinking operations and qualities of character, effect student's capacity to connect to the curriculum. Following the literature review is a curriculum design. This curriculum design serves to demonstrate an example of how social and emotional learning …

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Purkinje Cell Morphology And Display Complexity In Manakins (Pipridae), Mary Harvey Jan 2018

Purkinje Cell Morphology And Display Complexity In Manakins (Pipridae), Mary Harvey

Honors Theses

Manakins are a suboscine, lekking bird of the tropical and subtropical regions of South and Central America that perform complex mating displays shaped by sexual selection. The complexity of the mating display varies greatly across species of manakins. Some manakins only perform a limited number of different motor elements, whereas others have elaborate displays that consist of acrobatic movements and mechanical sound production. The complexity of these displays has been found to be positively related to brain weight, brain volume, arcopallium volume, body weight, and tarsus size but shows no relationship to the nucleus rotundus or nucleus taeniae. The volume …

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Development Of A Gel Assay For Analysis Of Bovine Milk Casein, Masa Miscevic Jan 2018

Development Of A Gel Assay For Analysis Of Bovine Milk Casein, Masa Miscevic

Honors Theses

The main purpose of this research was to develop a gel assay for analysis of casein samples for ultimate application for studies of in vitro models for stomach and intestinal processing of dairy products in adults and infants. It is proposed that casein completely dissolves and is digestible in simulated gastric, and is somewhat soluble and digestible in simulated intestinal environments of adults and infants. The following experimental methods were devised to thoroughly examine behavior and properties of casein originating from different sources in range of solvents and varying pH values. First, casein was enriched in comparison to soluble materials …

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The Policy Evolution And Privatization Of Commercial Space Systems, Nestor Delgado Jan 2018

The Policy Evolution And Privatization Of Commercial Space Systems, Nestor Delgado

Honors Theses

From the Wright Brothers to SpaceX launching the Falcon Heavy, space systems, and the policies that govern these systems, continue to evolve at a rapid rate. However, as space travel becomes commercialized, the federal government is beginning to realize that it would be cost-ineffective to continue to manufacture, maintain, and operate space systems completely through their own agencies. In result of this, it would be proactive for policymakers to decide what policy tools would be most effective in regulating space systems and the space ports in which they travel. The purpose of this study is to present research on the …

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Purification Protocol Development And Analysis Of Binding Properties Of Calmodulin Collagen-Like Protein, Patrick P. Boddie Jan 2018

Purification Protocol Development And Analysis Of Binding Properties Of Calmodulin Collagen-Like Protein, Patrick P. Boddie

Honors Theses

Calmodulin is an intensely studied, intracellular, calcium-binding protein that is involved in diverse physiological processes. When bound to calcium, calmodulin undergoes a conformational change that allows it to bind specific target peptides with high affinity, one being the calmodulin binding region of myosin light chain kinase, herein called M13. This high affinity, calcium dependent association has made it a desirable choice for use in a biomaterial for drug delivery for non-steroidal anti- inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). Two artificial genes have been designed by our lab for use in the proposed biomaterial: calmodulin collagen-like protein (CCLP), a construct composed of two calmodulin …

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Philosophies In Action: A Personal And Analytical Look Into Reflective Teaching, Ryley Blomberg Jan 2018

Philosophies In Action: A Personal And Analytical Look Into Reflective Teaching, Ryley Blomberg

Honors Theses

In this thesis, I will address the implementation of reflective teaching into everyday practice and how this reflective teaching impacts teacher actions and decisions in classrooms and schools. I engaged in reflective teaching for a semester of my student teaching practicum experience, focusing extensively on my philosophy of education, its evolution, and its implementation. Additionally, I interviewed in-service teachers at a rural Mississippi high school on how they engage in reflective practice and implement their philosophies into their teaching daily. The research from both the journals and interviews was uploaded into a qualitative data analysis software where it was analyzed, …

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Post-Translational Modification Of Hypoxia-Inducible Factor Proteins By O-Linked -N-Acetylglucosamine In Breast Cancer Cells, Sean Williamson Jan 2018

Post-Translational Modification Of Hypoxia-Inducible Factor Proteins By O-Linked -N-Acetylglucosamine In Breast Cancer Cells, Sean Williamson

Honors Theses

One of the hallmarks of cancer is its ability to adapt its metabolism to survive and thrive despite needing to overcome significant energy barriers and low oxygen settings in order to do so. The hypoxia-inducible factor proteins (HIFs) play important roles in the processes in which cancer fulfills these requirements. The O-linked -N-acetylglucoseamine (O-GlcNAc) can be attached to cellular proteins through O-glycosylation, and is thus considered a potential target for anticancer mechanisms. HIFs are composed of (HIF-1 and HIF-2, respectively) and subunits. This research found that O-GlcNAc is able to attach to and modify the HIF proteins. This was accomplished …

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Connecting The Mind And Body In Ancient Greek Medicine, Taylor Ferris Jan 2018

Connecting The Mind And Body In Ancient Greek Medicine, Taylor Ferris

Honors Theses

I investigated Greek medicine and healing shrines in antiquity and focused on the issue of the mind-body connection and how this phenomenon was understood in antiquity. I researched the Athenian plague of 430-425 B.C., sleep and dreams, particularly in the Rites of Incubation, and Hippocratic medicine as well as religious medicine in order to understand more deeply the origins of Greek medicine and how the healing phenomena were practiced and understood. I have come to a greater understanding of this connection between the mind and the body and have come to redefine the placebo effect and argue that the mind …

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The Impact Of Expectations On Student Perceptions, Taylor A. Huey Jan 2018

The Impact Of Expectations On Student Perceptions, Taylor A. Huey

Honors Theses

The impact of expectations on student achievement has been researched for decades. My study began with the intention of researching and recording the impact of my own expectations on low-achieving students. However, the focus of my research evolved after meeting and building relationships with my students. After observing the exceedingly low standards my students held for themselves, my interest shifted to how expectations impacted students' self-perceptions. I recorded my observations of their attitudes, behaviors, and work ethic throughout the year; I also gave them an anonymous survey at the end of the year questioning them about their aspirations for the …

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Studying The Effects Of Hydrogen Bonding In 1h-1,2,3-Triazole And Its Derivatives, Leah Alexandra Wallace Jan 2018

Studying The Effects Of Hydrogen Bonding In 1h-1,2,3-Triazole And Its Derivatives, Leah Alexandra Wallace

Honors Theses

1,2,3-triazole is used as a building block in many pharmaceutical drugs. The molecule has several derivatives that are useful in other areas including treating fungal infections and in dealing with some environmental issues. One of its derivatives, benzotriazole, is commonly used as an inhibitor of corrosion through the formation of a copper-benzotriazole complex. One area of particular interest in studying triazoles is the ability of these molecules to tautomerize. The hydrogen atom can move from the 1H position to the 2H position and this transfer is thought to be affected by solvent interactions. Here, we study the effects of hydrogen …

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Cyber Security And Criminal Justice Programs In The United States: Exploring The Intersections, Brian K. Payne, Lora Hadzhidimova Jan 2018

Cyber Security And Criminal Justice Programs In The United States: Exploring The Intersections, Brian K. Payne, Lora Hadzhidimova

Sociology & Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

The study of cyber security is an interdisciplinary pursuit that includes STEM disciplines as well as the social sciences. While research on cyber security appears to be central in STEM disciplines, it is not yet clear how central cyber security and cyber crime is to criminal justice scholarship. In order to examine the connections between cyber security and criminal justice, in this study attention is given to the way that criminal justice scholars have embraced cyber crime research and coursework. Results show that while there are a number of cyber crime courses included in criminal justice majors there are not …

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Applying Polytomous Rasch Analysis To Validate Parenting Related Scales, Lei Huang Jan 2018

Applying Polytomous Rasch Analysis To Validate Parenting Related Scales, Lei Huang

All ETDs from UAB

This study applies Rasch analysis to validate two scales in the Parenting for the First-time project: Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II) and Parenting Stress Index (PSI). The main purpose of this study is to evaluate quality of the two scales by using Rasch analysis to examine the unidimensionality, reliability, fit statistics, group and time invariance, and optimal response categories. Meanwhile, this study also compares the results of Rasch model and Classical Test Theory (CTT) to assess the advantages of Rasch analysis. Result: Both Rach analysis and CTT show the evidence of unidimensionality of BDI-II in the three administrative periods: Prenatal, 6 …

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Examining The Relationship Between Teacher Beliefs, Prekindergartener’S Self-Regulation And Classroom Quality: Informing Professional Development Programs, Cailin Jane Kerch Jan 2018

Examining The Relationship Between Teacher Beliefs, Prekindergartener’S Self-Regulation And Classroom Quality: Informing Professional Development Programs, Cailin Jane Kerch

All ETDs from UAB

The purpose of this convergent parallel, mixed methods study was to examine and explore the relationship between subjective teacher beliefs, classroom quality, and pre-kindergartener’s self-regulatory abilities within a publicly funded pre-kindergarten program. Teacher subjective beliefs (beliefs of classroom management, classroom practice, and beliefs of children) were studied operantly using Q-Methodology, in addition to, audio-recorded focus groups to explore the lived experience of teachers within the sample (n = 20). Classroom quality was measured using the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS) and pre-kindergartener’s self-regulatory abilities were studied using pre/post proxy items from the Devereux Early Childhood Assessment for Preschoolers, Second Edition …

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Edge-Wave Formation During Multi-Stand Tube Mill Operation, Daniel Lerew Jan 2018

Edge-Wave Formation During Multi-Stand Tube Mill Operation, Daniel Lerew

All ETDs from UAB

Cold-Formed (CF), High-Frequency (HF), Electric-Resistance-Welded (ERW) tubing is manufactured using a continuous roll forming process where a flat steel strip is progressively formed into a round which is then passed through an induction coil to be heated prior to having the heated edges forged to make a weld. A somewhat common issue, particularly as the thickness decreases and outside dimension increases, is an elastic edge wave that ultimately sets into a plastically deformed strip edge that cannot be successfully joined into a welded tube. Many variables can cause or exacerbate this effect including strip not centered in the mill, significant …

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Multi-Generation Modeling Based On A Natural Gas Driven Internal Combustion Engine, Nnamdi Gabriel Okafor Jan 2018

Multi-Generation Modeling Based On A Natural Gas Driven Internal Combustion Engine, Nnamdi Gabriel Okafor

All ETDs from UAB

Science and technological advancement, environmental pollution, government policies and rising energy costs have long since begun redefining the way power is generated, distributed and utilized. Considering the much higher standards relative to common practices, distributed energy power generation has proven to be a viable alternative to centralized power generation due to the many advantages such as energy generation and control independence, lower greenhouse emissions and significant reduction in transmission losses. This research considers a natural gas-powered internal combustion engine with trigeneration capabilities or combined cooling heating and power (CCHP) as well as renewable energy incorporation including solar panels and possibly …

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Thermal-Mechanical Precast Concrete Panels Comprised Of Hybrid-Polymerized Sandwich Interfaces For High-Impact Projectile Resistance, Hector R Orozco Avalos Jan 2018

Thermal-Mechanical Precast Concrete Panels Comprised Of Hybrid-Polymerized Sandwich Interfaces For High-Impact Projectile Resistance, Hector R Orozco Avalos

All ETDs from UAB

In this study, the thermal resistance, flexural behavior, and impact resistance via hurricane impact loads of two-wythe precast concrete composite sandwich beams comprised of an intermediate carbon-fiber epoxy inter-facially bonded to a dual Hybrid Matrix Composite (HMC) were investigated as an affordable alternative for enhancing thermal and mechanical (debris-impact and flexural) properties. The study is a precursor to the design of Precast Concrete Sandwich Panels (PCSP). HMC is a chemical reaction between a thermosetting epoxy network and a fast-setting, yet highly reactive, isocyanate-amine system at a pre-polymerized stage. The interfacial reaction of HMC is a function of epoxy curing kinetics, …

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Bioprocess Development For Novel Anti-Cancer Therapies And High Value Biochemical, Jianfa Ou Jan 2018

Bioprocess Development For Novel Anti-Cancer Therapies And High Value Biochemical, Jianfa Ou

All ETDs from UAB

Cancer treatment is one of the most daunting challenges of human health improvement. Bioprocess development, or biomanufacturing, is an important step in anti-cancer therapy developments. Novel surface receptors were revealed by integrating proteomics data and live-cell characterization, and were used for antibody design with improved specific targeting. A high titer (>2 g/L) of monoclonal antibody (mAb) was produced by Chinese hamster ovary cells from fed-batch cell culture. Live-cell confocal microscopy imaging and flow cytometry analysis demonstrated the strong and specific binding of the produced mAb to cancer cell lines. The cancer treatment effect of mAb was enhanced through the …

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Multimodal Imaging In Schizophrenia, Kristin Lottman Jan 2018

Multimodal Imaging In Schizophrenia, Kristin Lottman

All ETDs from UAB

Schizophrenia is a heterogeneous psychiatric disorder that affects approximately 1% of the population. Due to its heterogeneity, critical gaps in knowledge about the disorder persist as the underlying neural mechanisms and etiology remain poorly understood. In order to fill this gap in knowledge, identification of an imaging biomarker characteristic of schizophrenia’s pathophysiology is critical in not only furthering understanding of the disorder, but also improving patient prognosis and outcome. Attempts toward filling this critical gap in knowledge and thus uncovering the neurobiological basis of schizophrenia are continually being made with neuroimaging and electrophysiological studies. The primary objective of this dissertation …

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Developing Novel And Effective Treatments For Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma, Aubrey Miller Jan 2018

Developing Novel And Effective Treatments For Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma, Aubrey Miller

All ETDs from UAB

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a highly aggressive tumor with a 5-year survival rate of 8%. Over 80% of patients are diagnosed with locally advanced or metastatic disease and undergo systemic chemotherapy with gemcitabine. Virtually all patients develop gemcitabine-resistant disease and median survival for these patients is ~6 months. Thus, identification of novel molecular targets and pre-clinical evaluation of therapeutics is essential to improving patient outcome. The bromodomain and extraterminal domain (BET) proteins are important regulators of transcription and have recently become a potentially effective target to treat PDAC. We have shown that the BET inhibitor JQ1 suppressed PDAC tumor …

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Clustered Networks Protect Cooperation Against Catastrophic Collapse, Gwen Spencer Jan 2018

Clustered Networks Protect Cooperation Against Catastrophic Collapse, Gwen Spencer

Mathematics Sciences: Faculty Publications

Assuming a society of conditional cooperators (or moody conditional cooperators), this computational study proposes a new perspective on the structural advantage of social network clustering. Previous work focused on how clustered structure might encourage initial outbreaks of cooperation or defend against invasion by a few defectors. Instead, we explore the ability of a societal structure to retain cooperative norms in the face of widespread disturbances. Such disturbances may abstractly describe hardships like famine and economic recession, or the random spatial placement of a substantial numbers of pure defectors (or round-1 defectors) among a spatially-structured population of players in a laboratory …

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The Fivethirtyeight R Package: ‘Tame Data’ Principles For Introductory Statistics And Data Science Courses, Albert Y. Kim, Chester Ismay, Jennifer Chunn Jan 2018

The Fivethirtyeight R Package: ‘Tame Data’ Principles For Introductory Statistics And Data Science Courses, Albert Y. Kim, Chester Ismay, Jennifer Chunn

Mathematics Sciences: Faculty Publications

As statistics and data science instructors, we often seek to use data in our courses that are rich, real, realistic, and relevant. To this end we created the fivethirtyeight R package of data and code behind the stories and interactives at the data journalism website FiveThirtyEight.com. After a discussion on the conflicting pedagogical goals of "minimizing prerequisites to research" (Cobb 2015) while at the same time presenting students with a realistic view of data as it exists "in the wild," we articulate how a desired balance between these two goals informed the design of the package. The details behind this …

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How Often Does The Best Team Win? A Unified Approach To Understanding Randomness In North American Sport, Michael J. Lopez, Gregory J. Matthews, Benjamin Baumer Jan 2018

How Often Does The Best Team Win? A Unified Approach To Understanding Randomness In North American Sport, Michael J. Lopez, Gregory J. Matthews, Benjamin Baumer

Mathematics Sciences: Faculty Publications

Statistical applications in sports have long centered on how to best separate signal (e.g. team talent) from random noise. However, most of this work has concentrated on a single sport, and the development of meaningful cross-sport comparisons has been impeded by the difficulty of translating luck from one sport to another. In this manuscript, we develop Bayesian state-space models using betting market data that can be uniformly applied across sporting organizations to better understand the role of randomness in game outcomes. These models can be used to extract estimates of team strength, the between-season, within-season, and game-to-game variability of team …

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The Dihedral Genus Of A Knot, Patricia Cahn, Alexandra Kjuchukova Jan 2018

The Dihedral Genus Of A Knot, Patricia Cahn, Alexandra Kjuchukova

Mathematics Sciences: Faculty Publications

Let K ⊂ S3 be a Fox p-colored knot and assume K bounds a locally flat surface S ⊂ B4 over which the given p-coloring extends. This coloring of S induces a dihedral branched cover X → S4 . Its branching set is a closed surface embedded in S4 locally flatly away from one singularity whose link is K. When S is homotopy ribbon and X a definite four-manifold, a condition relating the signature of X and the Murasugi signature of K guarantees that S in fact realizes the four-genus of K. We exhibit an infinite …

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Action Of The Symmetric Group On The Free Lanke: A Catalanke Theorem, Tamar Friedmann, Philip Hanlon, Richard P. Stanley, Michelle L. Wachs Jan 2018

Action Of The Symmetric Group On The Free Lanke: A Catalanke Theorem, Tamar Friedmann, Philip Hanlon, Richard P. Stanley, Michelle L. Wachs

Mathematics Sciences: Faculty Publications

We initiate a study of the representation of the symmetric group on the multilinear component of an n-ary generalization of the free Lie algebra, which we call a free LAnKe. Our central result is that the representation of the symmetric group S2n−1 on the multilinear component of the free LAnKe with S2n−1 generators is given by an irreducible representation whose dimension is the nth Catalan number. This leads to a more general result on eigenspaces of a certain linear operator. A decomposition, into irreducibles, of the representation of S3n−2 on the multilinear component the free LAnKe …

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Strong Comparison Principle For P-Harmonic Functions In Carnot-Caratheodory Spaces, Luca Capogna, Xiaodan Zhou Jan 2018

Strong Comparison Principle For P-Harmonic Functions In Carnot-Caratheodory Spaces, Luca Capogna, Xiaodan Zhou

Mathematics Sciences: Faculty Publications

We extend Bony’s propagation of support argument to C1 solutions of the nonhomogeneous subelliptic p-Laplacian associated to a system of smooth vector fields satisfying Hörmander’s finite rank condition. As a consequence we prove a strong maximum principle and strong comparison principle that generalize results of Tolksdorf.

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