Digital Commons Network^™

Universal Wavefront Transmission Through Disordered Media, Jayson Robert Summers

Masters Theses

”When electromagnetic waves propagate through random dielectric media, they scatter in a predictable, deterministic way. The process is also fully reversible. If one sends an exiting wave backward through the same material, it will converge back to its original form and location in the same amount of time it took to originally propagate through the material. Due to this predictability, a great deal of research has went into studying these scattering processes in multimode fibers, diffusers, biological tissues, and other media. Scientists have turned random scattering material into focusing lenses, image transmitters, and highly transmitting media by controlling the impinging …

Computational Intelligence Methods For Predicting Fetal Outcomes From Heart Rate Patterns, Vinayaka Nagendra Harikishan Gude Divya Sampath

Masters Theses

"In this thesis, methods for evaluating the fetal state are compared to make predictions based on Cardiotocography (CTG) data. The first part of this research is the development of an algorithm to extract features from the CTG data. A feature extraction algorithm is presented that is capable of extracting most of the features in the SISPORTO software package as well as late and variable decelerations. The resulting features are used for classification based on both U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) categories and umbilical cord pH data. The first experiment uses the features to classify the results into three different …

Effect Of Variation Of Parameters On Biogas Production Using Aspen Plus & Dynamic Simulation Using Mimic, Shruti Shrikant Karambelkar

Masters Theses

"Design and management for Biogas production have gained significance in growing dependency on Renewable energy resources. This would need a detailed information on steady state and dynamic behavior of systems. In order to make this process environmentally ecofriendly, its needs a lot of improvisation on process simulation. Anaerobic digestion helps treat this inefficient water to be converted into water fit for effluent purposes.

Byproducts contain consists of organic, inorganic and wastes which lead to a high COD content and thus, cannot be discarded into the outlets. The anaerobic digestion process. A study of these effects with simulation need to be …

Cellulose And Sulfate Degradation In A Biochemical Reactor During Treatment Of Mine Drainage, Sweta Ojha

Masters Theses

"Seventy-two biochemical reactors were set up, and operated using a mixture of chip-bark, horse manure, and gravel as the biochemical treatment substrate. The simulated mine water containing sulfate (1000 mg/l) was pumped into each reactor at a flow rate of 0.5 ml/minute (approximate), giving an empty bed contact time of 8 days. The main idea is that the microorganisms present in horse manure would convert the cellulose in chip-bark into volatile fatty acids. The produced volatile fatty acid would enhance the metabolism of sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) initially present in horse manure, which would degrade (and eventually remove) the sulfate from …

Investigation Of The Information Provided By Light Touch For Balance Improvement In Humans, Anirudh Saini

Masters Theses

"This study investigates the information provided by Light Touch (LT) in improving human postural stability without mechanical assistance. Light Touch, an interaction force with a magnitude about 1 N, is known to improve postural stability in humans during quiet standing. However, the nature of the information from LT that helped improve balance is yet unknown. In this work, we hypothesized that LT provides information about one's body kinematics. We used a haptic robot to provide modulated, measurable light interaction force on the high back haptic location of humans to provide body kinematics-dependent information through LT. Standing balance experiments were performed …

Cellular Hitchhiking Via Injectable Microparticles, Daniel Smith

Masters Theses

"Tissue engineering is a process of developing new tissues in a host. Tissue engineering draws upon revitalizing damaged tissues that otherwise would not heal completely from the body's natural response. To augment the body's natural response to impairment, cells can be transplanted to the afflicted area to boost the healing response. Implementing these cells onto scaffolds and transplanting them into the body improves the healing response dramatically. Tissue regeneration improves when a biodegradable scaffold is used in conjunction with cells to augment the body's healing response. Microparticles provide a surface that can mimic the environment cells perceive in vivo, …

Numerical Modeling Of Capillary-Driven Flow In Open Microchannels: An Implication Of Optimized Wicking Fabric Design, Mehrad Gholizadeh Ansari

Masters Theses

"The use of microfluidics to transfer fluids without applying any exterior energy source is a promising technology in different fields of science and engineering due to their compactness, simplicity and cost-effective design. In geotechnical engineering, to increase the soil's strength, hydrophilic wicking fibers as type of microfluidics have been employed to transport and drain water out of soil spontaneously by taking advantage of natural capillary force without using any pumps or other auxiliary devices. The objective of this study is to understand the scientific mechanisms of the capability for wicking fiber to drain both gravity and capillary water out of …

Computational Investigation Of Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell With Nature-Inspired Fibonacci Spiral Flow Field, Suleyman Kose

Masters Theses

"Polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFC) are promising clean energy devices. The flow field design has crucial role in PEMFC performance for effective distribution of reactants and removal of products. Several nature-inspired flow field designs have recently been proposed in the literature. Common characteristics of these designs were sudden changes in the flow direction through sharp bends and flow field geometries restrained to areas having corners. In this thesis, Fibonacci spiral configuration, which is found in the nature from hurricanes to seashells, was considered for flow field pattern of a PEMFC. Contrary to the bio-inspired designs proposed in previous studies, …

Customized Multi-Group Cross Section Generation With Njoy For Discrete Ordinates Computed Tomography And Radiography Simulation, Steven Michael Wagstaff

Masters Theses

"The purpose of this work was to explore the creation of photoatomic multi-group cross section libraries to be used with a software package DOCTORS (Discrete Ordinates Computed TOmography and Radiography Simulator). This software solves the linear Boltzmann equation using the discrete ordinates method [1]. To create these libraries, NJOY2016 was used, creating both fine and broad energy multi-group cross section files. The cross section's accuracy was tested against an equivalent Monte Carlo simulation using MCNP6.

Two simulation geometries were used. The first, a cylindrical water phantom with a single source projection placed in front, simulating an X-ray radiography. The second …

An Investigation Into The Effects Of Ion Tracks On Α-Quartz, Bryant Alan Kanies

Masters Theses

"The passage of a swift heavy ion through a material can cause columnar, amorphous nano-structures known as ion tracks. Swift heavy ions are present in a number of applications ranging from nuclear reactors to nuclear waste storage and onboard spacecraft. The study of ion tracks has been ongoing since the late 1950s and has led to several technological advancements. In fact, ion beams have been used to enhance material properties and aid in the production of electrical components. Ion beams, and their resultant ion tracks, can therefore be seen as a method to purposefully alter material properties such as thermal …

Comparative Toxicology Of Nio And Ni(Oh)₂ Nanoparticles, Melissa Hope Cambre

Masters Theses

“Understanding the potential toxicity of nanoparticles (NPs) is important to ensure that these new products do not impose harmful effects to human and environmental health. Paper I is a literature review in which we discuss characteristics of nanomaterials, with an emphasis on transition metal oxide nanoparticles that influence cytotoxicity. Identification of those properties may lead to the design of more efficient and safer nanosized products for various industrial purposes and provide guidance for assessment of human and environmental health risk. We then investigate biochemical and molecular mechanisms of cytotoxicity that include oxidative stress-induced cellular events and alteration of the pathways …

Distributed Fiber Optic Sensors For Monitoring Spatially Continuous Strain And Quasi-Distributed Refractive Index Using Optical Frequency Domain Reflectometry, Sasi Jothibasu

Masters Theses

"This thesis is comprised of two papers and they describe distributed fiber optic sensing using an optical frequency domain reflectometry (OFDR) instrumentation system.

The first paper presents about distributed fiber optic sensor embedded within the layers of a composite laminates to monitor the continuous profile of strain using the optical frequency domain reflectometry (OFDR) system. The OFDR system was used to analyze the Rayleigh backscattered signal. The shift in the Rayleigh backscattered spectrum (RBS) was observed to be linearly related to the change in strain of the composite material. The continuous strain sensing using OFDR was demonstrated by an INSTRON …

“Aux Mères Heureuses”: Zola’S Compassion For Working Mothers, Elizabeth Emery

Department of World Languages and Cultures Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Zola's letter of support for La Société maternelle parisienne, published in a three-column letter to Le Figaro 1891, serves a point for reassessing his fictional depictions of women, particularly the working mothers of Les Rougon-Macquart, Les Trois Villes, and Les Quatre Evangiles.

Environmental Remediation And Its Discontents: The Contested Cleanup Of Vieques, Puerto Rico, Katherine Mccaffrey

Department of Anthropology Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Since protest forced the US Navy off Vieques Island, Puerto Rico in 2003, the US military has embarked on one of the largest environmental remediation projects it has ever undertaken. This article explores the way a narrowly conceived, technocratic cleanup process is translated onto an island with a deep history of grassroots mobilization and antagonism towards federal authority. The Restoration Advisory Board (RAB) is a crucible for considering the uneasy dynamics of cleanup. US law enshrines the RAB as the principal venue for "public participation" in the cleanup process. However, the prevailing technocratic framework, constrained by under-resourced bureaucratic agencies, clashes …

Uncovering The Lost Knowledge Of The Imagination In Films, Seda, Daniel A.

Journal of Conscious Evolution

Films have forever changed the way in which humans perceive reality and have provided significant opportunities to spread knowledge in ways that are both entertaining and deceptive. Uncovering the lost knowledge of the imagination shifts an individual’s perceptions of a shared experience and exposes film’s persuasive power to penetrate the psyche. This paper explores the constitutions of reality and how humans are able to tap into other realms of consciousness through mediums of creative expression. Topics such as the origins of life, the hidden knowledge of secret societies, and the burgeoning full disclosure movement for truth are discussed as a …

Local Law Enforcement's Ability To Transform Inputs Into Counterterrorism Outputs, Melissa S. Gresham

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Leadership within local police organizations should be able to, but do not, process information and create actionable strategies aimed toward proactive counterterrorism practices. This problem could lead to future terrorist attacks within the United States if police agencies do not adjust their tactics in response to growing terrorist threats. A possible cause of this problem is that leadership within local law enforcement agencies is reactive in nature and as a consequence, do not encourage officers to engage in proactive strategies. Using Easton's conceptualization of systems theory as the foundation, the purpose of this case study of a single law enforcement …

Parent, Teacher, And Principal Perspectives Of Parent Engagement In A Title 1 Elementary School, Valerie Anne Krage

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Parent engagement in education benefits a child academically and socially, regardless of a family's socioeconomic status. It is critical for school personnel to use effective outreach approaches to engage and support families in their children's learning. The purpose of this qualitative bounded single case study was to explore parent and school personnel perspectives of school engagement in preschool and kindergarten programs in an urban, midwestern Title 1 PK-5 school. The research questions focused on participants' definitions of parent engagement, parental motivation to participate in a child's learning, and the factors that may deter parental engagement. Hoover-Dempsey and Sandler's model of …

Association Between Body Mass Index And Depression On Hbaic Control Among Veterans, Opokua Osei-Yeboah

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The study investigated the association between body mass index (BMI) and depression based upon glycated hemoglobin levels (HBA1C) among United States veterans. Based on Bandura's social cognitive theory, a cross-sectional analysis examined the association between BMI and depression on HBA1C regulation, and if the interaction between BMI and depression affects HBAIC regulation among veterans. Multiple regression analysis was used to test the multivariate associations between depression and BMI on the outcome variable of HBA1C. Linearity, normality, and homoscedasticity were assessed using normal probability plots and residual analysis. Durbin-Watson statistics were used to test for autocorrelations, and variance inflation factor was …

Racial Attitudes In The Workplace Among Age Groups Of African American Women, Ladonna S. Cooper

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Limited research exists on the impact of racial attitudes upon varying age groups of African American women in the workplace. The factors of conformity, dissonance, resistance, and internalization among African American women of accumulated negative experiences may affect their performance in the workplace. The purpose of this comparative descriptive quantitative study was to use the PRIAS and OCB scales to examine the impact of generational status and racial attitudes on organizational citizenship behavior in a sample of African American women. The study was guided by the theoretical framework of Ajzen's theory of planned behavior. Participants in the study consisted of …

Educating Primary Care Nurses On Phosphorus Management In Chronic Kidney Disease Patients, Lilian Somuah

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Fifteen percent of adults in the United States have been diagnosed with chronic kidney disease (CKD). CKD is the slow, progressive, and irreversible loss of kidney function. The most effective means of controlling CKD is by managing dietary phosphorus intake. It is important that staff nurses be educated about effective patient education tools to improve dietary phosphorus management. The purpose of this project was to educate primary care nurses about phosphorus management in CKD patients through the introduction of the phosphorus pyramid as a visual tool. The project sought to understand if an educational intervention regarding phosphorus management in CKD …

Etiological Perspectives Of Abdl Behavior From Members Of An Online Abdl Community, Jennie Marie Hilleren

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Atypical sexual behavior is often viewed from a perspective of pathology and non-clinical samples are not typically used in research. The current exploratory research is a qualitative study that examined the etiological perspectives of Adult Baby/ Diaper Lover (ABDL) behavior from members of an online ABDL community. Archival survey data from an online sample (N = 1,795) of ABDL participants were used. The theories informing this research included attachment theory and the sexual health model. Research questions included an examination of: (a) what we can be learn from the way an ABDL individual perceives the origin of ABDL behavior, (b) …

Adolescent Sexual Risk Taking: The Distribution Of Youth Behaviors And Perceived Peer Attitudes Across Neighborhood Contexts, Tara D. Warner

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Purpose: Sexual activity is a normative part of adolescent development, yet early sexual debut and sex with multiple partners undermine health and well-being. Both structural (e.g., poverty) and social (e.g., norms) characteristics of neighborhoods shape sexual risk taking, yet scholarship remains focused on urban areas. Thus, this study explores sexually permissive attitudes and sexual risk taking across a wider expanse of neighborhood types. Methods: Among 8,337 nonsexually active respondents in Wave I (1994–1995 [ages 11–18]) of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health), a hierarchical linear model and a hierarchical generalized linear model were used to …

Tick–Tock Goes The Croc: A High-Density Eeg Study Of Risk-Reactivity And Binge-Drinking, John E. Kiat, Jacob E. Cheadle

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Links between individual differences in risk processing and high-risk behaviors such as binge-drinking have long been the focus of active research. However, investigations in this area almost exclusively utilize decision-making focused paradigms. This emphasis makes it difficult to assess links between risk behaviors and raw risk reactivity independent of decision and feedback processes. A deeper understanding of this association has the potential to shed light on the role of risk reactivity in high-risk behavior susceptibility. To contribute toward this aim, this study utilizes a popular risk-taking game, the crocodile dentist, to assess links between individual differences in decision-free risk-reactivity and …

Age Of Migration And The Incidence Of Cognitive Impairment: A Cohort Study Of Elder Mexican-Americans, Marc A. Garcia, Adriana M. Reyes, Brian Downer, Joseph L. Saenz, Rafael A. Samper-Ternent, Mukaila Raji

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Background and Objectives: To explore nativity and age of migration differentials in the incidence of cognitive impairment among older Mexican-Americans. Research Design and Methods: We employ maximum-likelihood discrete time hazard models to estimate risk ratios of cognitive impairment in a sample of 2,708 Mexican-Americans 65 and older who were cognitively healthy at baseline over a follow-up period of up to 20 years. Results: Late-life immigrant women have a 46% higher risk of cognitive impairment compared to U.S.-born Mexican- American women. Conversely, midlife immigrant men have a 29% lower risk of cognitive impairment compared to U.S.- born Mexican-American men. The incidence …

Life Expectancies With Depression By Age Of Migration And Gender Among Older Mexican Americans, Catherine García, Marc A. Garcia, Chi-Tsun Chiu, Fernando I. Rivera, Mukaila Raji

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Background and Objectives: Prior studies examining depression among older Mexican Americans suggest both women and immigrants are at higher risk of depressive symptomatology than males and U.S.-born Mexican Americans. We use data from the Hispanic Established Populations for the Epidemiologic Study of the Elderly to examine whether life expectancy with depression and without depression varies by nativity, age of migration, and gender.

Research Design and Methods: Sullivan-based life tables were used to estimate depression life expectancies among Mexican Americans aged 65 years and older residing in the Southwestern United States. Depression is based on the 20-item Center for Epidemiological Studies …

Red Pepper Seed Water Extract Inhibits Preadipocyte Differentiation And Induces Mature Adipocyte Apoptosis In 3t3-L1 Cells, Hwa-Jin Kim, Mi-Kyoung You, Young-Hyun Lee, Hyun-Jung Kim, Deepak Adhikari, Hyeon-A Kim

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Reducing the number of adipocytes by inducing apoptosis of mature adipocytes as well as suppressing differentiation of preadipocytes plays an important role in preventing obesity. This study examines the anti-adipogenic and pro-apoptotic effect of red pepper seed water extract (RPS) prepared at 4°C (RPS4) in 3T3-L1 cells.

MATERIALS/METHODS: Effect of RPS4 or its fractions on lipid accumulation was determined in 3T3-L1 cells using oil red O (ORO) staining. The expressions of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and adipogenic associated proteins [peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPAR-γ), CCAAT/enhancer-binding proteins α (C/EBP α), sterol regulatory element binding protein-1c (SREBP-1c), fatty acid synthase (FAS), and …

Asperger's Syndrome In African American Children, Suzette Bailey

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The prevalence of autism in the United States is 1 in 68 children. African American children are less likely to receive advance testing to confirm the diagnosis of Asperger's Syndrome (AS) compared to other ethnic groups. The purpose of this study was to determine if demographic factors (parental education level, family annual income, marital status of custodial parent(s), parent ethnicity, number of children in home, other children with disability, family location, mother age at time of birth, gender of child, birth status of child, adoption status and age, child order, and other disability) have any predictive relationship to AS diagnosis …

Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus Nss Protein Supports Infection And Systemic Movement Of A Potyvirus And Is A Symptom Determinant, Hernan Garcia-Ruiz, Sergio M. Gabriel Peralta, Patricia A. Harte-Maxwell

Department of Plant Pathology: Faculty Publications

Plant viruses are inducers and targets of antiviral RNA silencing. To condition susceptibility, most plant viruses encode silencing suppressor proteins that interfere with antiviral RNA silencing. The NSs protein is an RNA silencing suppressor in orthotospoviruses, such as the tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV). The mechanism of RNA silencing suppression by NSs and its role in virus infection and movement are poorly understood. Here, we cloned and tagged TSWV NSs and expressed it from a GFP-tagged turnip mosaic virus (TuMV-GFP) carrying either a wild-type or suppressor-deficient (AS9) helper component proteinase (HC-Pro). When expressed in cis, NSs restored pathogenicity and promoted …

Intermolecular Rna Recombination Occurs At Different Frequencies In Alternate Forms Of Brome Mosaic Virus Rna Replication Compartments, Hernan Garcia-Ruiz, Arturo Diaz, Paul Ahlquist

Department of Plant Pathology: Faculty Publications

Positive-strand RNA viruses replicate their genomes in membrane-bound replication compartments. Brome mosaic virus (BMV) replicates in vesicular invaginations of the endoplasmic reticulum membrane. BMV has served as a productive model system to study processes like virus-host interactions, RNA replication and recombination. Here we present multiple lines of evidence showing that the structure of the viral RNA replication compartments plays a fundamental role and that recruitment of parental RNAs to a common replication compartment is a limiting step in intermolecular RNA recombination. We show that a previously defined requirement for an RNA recruitment element on both parental RNAs is not to …

Metagenomic Analysis Of Viruses Associated With Maize Lethal Necrosis In Kenya, Mwathi Jane Wamaitha, Deepti Nigam, Solomon Maina, Francesca Stomeo, Anne Wangai, Joyce Njoki Njuguna, Timothy A. Holton, Bramwel W. Wanjala, Mark Wamalwa, Tanui Lucas, Appolinaire Djikeng, Hernan Garcia Ruiz

Department of Plant Pathology: Faculty Publications

Background: Maize lethal necrosis is caused by a synergistic co-infection of Maize chlorotic mottle virus (MCMV) and a specific member of the Potyviridae, such as Sugarcane mosaic virus (SCMV), Wheat streak mosaic virus (WSMV) or Johnson grass mosaic virus (JGMV). Typical maize lethal necrosis symptoms include severe yellowing and leaf drying from the edges. In Kenya, we detected plants showing typical and atypical symptoms. Both groups of plants often tested negative for SCMV by ELISA. Methods: We used next-generation sequencing to identify viruses associated to maize lethal necrosis in Kenya through a metagenomics analysis. Symptomatic and asymptomatic leaf samples …