Digital Commons Network^™

Feature Set Selection For Improved Classification Of Static Analysis Alerts, Kathleen Goeschel

CCAC Theses and Dissertations

With the extreme growth in third party cloud applications, increased exposure of applications to the internet, and the impact of successful breaches, improving the security of software being produced is imperative. Static analysis tools can alert to quality and security vulnerabilities of an application; however, they present developers and analysts with a high rate of false positives and unactionable alerts. This problem may lead to the loss of confidence in the scanning tools, possibly resulting in the tools not being used. The discontinued use of these tools may increase the likelihood of insecure software being released into production. Insecure software …

Reduction Of False Positives In Intrusion Detection Based On Extreme Learning Machine With Situation Awareness, Donald A. Burgio

CCAC Theses and Dissertations

Protecting computer networks from intrusions is more important than ever for our privacy, economy, and national security. Seemingly a month does not pass without news of a major data breach involving sensitive personal identity, financial, medical, trade secret, or national security data. Democratic processes can now be potentially compromised through breaches of electronic voting systems. As ever more devices, including medical machines, automobiles, and control systems for critical infrastructure are increasingly networked, human life is also more at risk from cyber-attacks. Research into Intrusion Detection Systems (IDSs) began several decades ago and IDSs are still a mainstay of computer and …

Davidson Honors College Students Prematurely Declare Major Studies Prior To Entering College, Noah P. Hill

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

Choosing a college major is one of the most important decisions a student makes during the course of his or her academic career. While local and national trends suggest that it has become popular for high school students to declare a major prior to entering college, it is unlikely that 17- and 18-year-old students are adequately prepared to make decisions that affect not only their college experience, but also their long term vocations. Data obtained from a small sample of graduating seniors at the Davidson Honors College at the University of Montana suggests students may benefit from waiting to declare …

Obesity In Postmenopausal Rural Women: Clinical And Psychological Prevention And Treatment Techniques, Julliette T. Lucas

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

Obesity has become increasingly pervasive in rural areas of the United States as access to high calorie food increases, access to nutrient-dense food decreases, and lifestyles become more sedentary. Effective and accessible treatment and prevention techniques for obesity are critical public health concerns that will persist into the future. As the global population grows older and more obese, treatments tailored to older adults will only become more important. As postmenopausal women have differences in physiology from both younger women and older men, treatments will need to be tailored to fit their specific needs. Populations of older women in the United …

Estimating Juvenile Recruitment Of Elk In An Occupancy Modeling Framework, Mateen A. Hessami

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

Juvenile recruitment is a key parameter in understanding ungulate population dynamics. Traditional methods in population composition surveys, such as estimating young: adult-female ratio’s, can be precluded by cost, safety, and feasibility. The use of remote cameras provides a potentially cutting-edge tool to apply to wildlife population estimation techniques. While the prevalence of remote cameras in ungulate studies has increased, few studies have used cameras to estimate vital rates, such as recruitment or survival. Here, we tested the potential of remote cameras to estimate calf: cow ratios and calf survival of elk (Cervus elaphus) using the Royle-Nichols (2003) occupancy …

Difference In Physical Traits Of Rocky Mountain Tailed Frogs In Burned And Unburned Streams, Daniel M. Franz

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

No abstract provided.

The Gamification Of Modern Dating: A Feminist Analysis, Hannah Travis

Scripps Senior Theses

My project gg is a digitally rendered 360° animation of a tech-filled bedroom, accompanied by a joystick that can be used to navigate the 3D space. A visual comparison between multimedia games and modern dating culture, the bedroom scene draws parallels between the prioritization of male perspectives in fine art and digital media and the social prioritization of “masculine” qualities like logic over emotional vulnerability in the initialization of interpersonal relationships. My project investigates human motivations for playing games, both in the literal and idiomatic sense, using stereotypically feminized colors and symbols, to reclaim the patriarchal world of gaming for …

Abecedario De Juárez, Alice Leora Briggs

Journal of Latino/Latin American Studies (JOLLAS)

In 2008 I traveled to to the now defunct Minutemen outpost on the King’s Anvil Ranch, just south of Tucson, to get a close-up view of extinction. As I drove through the gate, banners flapped in the breeze and proclaimed WELCOME MINUTEMEN in scarlet letters, but the self-appointed border guards had gone home. A lone caretaker loped across the yard to greet me and to share the biology of hundreds of rusting bicycles heaped against a nearby stucco building. He unfurled a tale about foiling alien bike riders while raising funds for Minutemen barbeques and beers. It went like this: …

Postfledging Habitat Selection And Survival Of Henslow’S Sparrow: Management Implications For A Critical Life Stage, Aaron C. Young, W. Andrew Cox, John P. Mccarty, L. Lareesa Wolfenbarger

Biology Faculty Publications

Conserving populations of species that rely on rare habitat requires that managers understand which habitat characteristics will best support population growth across multiple life stages. For songbirds, management is most often aimed at nesting adult habitat associations. However, habitat that meets adult requirements may not be similarly suited to requirements for other life stages. Henslow’s Sparrow (Centronyx henslowii) is a tallgrass prairie songbird listed as threatened or endangered in 13 states. We examined survival and habitat selection of Henslow’s Sparrow during the postfledging period. During the nesting seasons in 2015 and 2016, we attached radio transmitters to 46 nestlings in …

Multi-Negative Index Band Metamaterial-Inspired Microfluidic Sensors, Nantakan Wongkasem, Mark Ruiz

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Simple, compact and high sensitivity metamaterial-inspired microfluid sensors are developed to detect and classify dielectric fluids in the X-band regime using reflection coefficients. Multi-negative refractive index band metamaterial structure is specifically designed as a sensing enhancer, where the multi negative bands can effectively trigger the electromagnetic properties, as well as enhance the differentiation between the testing samples. The geometry of the metamaterial enhancer and its arrangement with the microfluidic channel and radiating patch antenna are optimized to reach the highest sensitivity of the samples' depiction. The proposed sensors were tested on methanol and ethanol traces, where sets of complex permittivity …

Estimation And Variable Selection In High-Dimensional Settings With Mismeasured Observations, Michael Byrd

Statistical Science Theses and Dissertations

Understanding high-dimensional data has become essential for practitioners across many disciplines. The general increase in ability to collect large amounts of data has prompted statistical methods to adapt for the rising number of possible relationships to be uncovered. The key to this adaptation has been the notion of sparse models, or, rather, models where most relationships between variables are assumed to be negligible at best. Driving these sparse models have been constraints on the solution set, yielding regularization penalties imposed on the optimization procedure. While these penalties have found great success, they are typically formulated with strong assumptions on the …

A Qualitative Research Synthesis Of Contextual Factors Contributing To Female Overweight And Obesity Over The Life Course In Sub-Saharan Africa, Ifeoma Ozodiegwu, Mary Ann Littleton, Christian Nwabueze, Oluwaseun Famojuro, Megan Quinn, Rick L. Wallace, Hadii M. Mamudu

ETSU Faculty Works

Objective: Adult women are disproportionately affected by overweight and obesity in Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries. Existing evidence on the sociocultural context remains unconsolidated. In this qualitative research synthesis, we aggregate research literature on contextual factors that potentially predispose adult women and adolescent girls to overweight and obesity to inform research, policies and programs over the life course.

Methods: PubMed, CINAHL, PsychInfo, ProQuest Central, EMBASE, and Web of Science were searched to locate qualitative research articles conducted in SSA countries beginning in the year 2000. After assessment for eligibility and critical appraisal, 17 studies were included in the synthesis. Textual data …

Environmental Monitoring Plan, July 2018 - June 2019, Tennessee. Department Of Environment And Conservation.

Environmental Monitoring Plans

The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), Division of Remediation (DoR), Oak Ridge Office (ORO), submits its FY 2019 Environmental Monitoring Plan (EMP) in accordance with the Environmental Surveillance and Oversight Agreement (ESOA) between the United States Department of Energy (DOE) and the State of Tennessee; and where applicable, the Federal Facilities Agreement (FFA) between the DOE, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the State of Tennessee.

Effect Of Some Immunomodulators And Zeatin On Susceptibility Of Wheat To Powdery Mildew, Alexander Babosha

Turkish Journal of Botany

The effects of zeatin, salicylic acid, and plant oligoadenylates on susceptibility of wheat seedlings to powdery mildew and the shape of dose-response curves for immunomodulation were studied. Salicylic acid and zeatin produced complex dose-responses with upregulation or downregulation of plant susceptibility. Under different experimental conditions, the dose-response curve for zeatin varied in shape from a curve with a maximum to a curve with a minimum of susceptibility to powdery mildew. More complicated curves with a resistance region framed with regions of increased susceptibility were also found. Plant oligoadenylates inhibited the development of powdery mildew at optimal concentrations. The increasing concentrations …

Contributions To The Hypericum L. Section Oligostema (Boiss.) Stef. (Hypericaceae), And Hypericum Turcicum Sp. Nov. As A New Species From Turkey, Mehmet Ufuk Özbek, Murat Koç, Ergi̇n Hamzaoğlu

Turkish Journal of Botany

Hypericum turcicum (Hypericaceae) is described and illustrated as a new species from Beypazarı in Ankara Province in Northwest Anatolia, Turkey. The new species belongs to the section Oligostema, and it is closely related to H. aucheri. Diagnostic characters, description, detailed illustrations, ecology, and pollen and seed morphology are presented in this study. In addition, this study evaluates H. kazdaghense, which was previously accepted as a synonym of H. aucheri, as a distinct species and discusses the similarities and differences between H. turcicum and H. aucheri.

Regulation Of Boron Toxicity Responses Via Glutathione-Dependent Detoxification Pathways At Biochemical And Molecular Levels In Arabidopsis Thaliana, Doğa Seli̇n Kayihan, Ceyhun Kayihan, Yelda Özden Çi̇ftçi̇

Turkish Journal of Botany

The fine-tuned regulation of the Halliwell-Asada cycle (ascorbate-glutathione pathway) in Arabidopsis thaliana under boron (B) toxicity was shown in our previous report. In this study, we investigated the expression levels of some members of the glutathione S-transferase (GST) superfamily, such as phi (GSTF2, GSTF6, GSTF7, and GSTF8), tau (GSTU19), and zeta (GSTZ1) classes in Arabidopsis thaliana that were exposed to 1 mM boric acid (1B) and 3 mM boric acid (3B). Additionally, the expression levels of genes for glutathione (GSH) and phytochelatin biosynthesis as well as miR169 and miR156 were evaluated in Arabidopsis thaliana exposed to 1B and 3B. Moreover, …

The Neuroethical Role Of Narrative Identity In Ethical Decision Making, Peter A. Depergola Ii

Philosophy, Theology and Religious Studies Faculty Publications

An increasingly blurred understanding of the moral significance of narrative identity for a robust perception of self, other, and community suggests a critical need to explore the inter-relationships shared between autobiographical memory, emotional rationality, and narrative identity, particularly as it bears on decision making. This essay argues that (i) the disintegration of autobiographical memory degenerates emotional rationality; (ii) the degeneration of emotional rationality decays narrative identity; and (iii) the decay of narrative identity disables one to seek, identify, and act on the good. After demonstrating that narrative identity is best understood as the product of autobiographical memory and emotional rationality, …

Mary And Martha: Putting First Things First In A College Education, Michael A. Scaperlanda

Faculty Articles

No abstract provided.

Spatial Repellency, Antifeedant Activity And Toxicity Of Three Medium Chain Fatty Acids And Their Methyl Esters Of Coconut Fatty Acid Against Stable Flies, Gwang H. Roh, Xiaaojie Zhou, Yansu Wang, Steven C. Cermak, James A. Kenar, Alexander Lehmann, Baoyu Han, David B. Taylor, Xiaopeng Zeng, Chung Gyoo Park, Gary J. Brewer, J.J. Zhu

Department of Entomology: Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Stable flies are one of the most detrimental arthropod pests to livestock. With changing climates and agronomic practices, they expand their roles as pests and disease vectors as well. Their painful bites reduce livestock productivity, annoy companion animals, and interfere with human recreational activities. Current management technologies are unable to effectively control stable flies. The present study reports new results concerning the contact, spatial repellency, and toxicity of a bio-based product, coconut fatty acid and their methyl ester derivatives of free fatty acids of C8:0, C10:0 and C12:0 to stable flies.

RESULTS: Three medium chain fatty acid methyl esters …

The Genera Of Agaocephalini (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Dynastinae) Of Colombia, With Description Of A New Species Of Lycomedes Breme, Jhon César Neita-Moreno, Brett C. Ratcliffe

Department of Entomology: Faculty Publications

The six genera of Agaocephalini in Colombia are distinguished in a dichotomous key and illustrated. Lycomedes enigmaticus Neita-Moreno and Ratcliffe, new species, is described and differentiated by character comparisons with other previously known Colombian species. Lycomedes lydiae Arnaud, 2012 is proposed as a new junior synonym of Lycomedes reichei Brême, 1844.

Los seis géneros de Agaocephalini en Colombia son incluidos e ilustrados en una clave dicotómica. Se describe Lycomedes enigmaticus Neita-Moreno y Ratcliffe, especie nueva y es diferenciada por comparación de caracteres con otras especies previamente conocidas de Colombia. Se propone Lycomedes lydiae Arnaud, 2012 como un nuevo sinónimo …

Bifenthrin Baseline Susceptibility And Evaluation Of Simulated Aerial Applications In Striacosta Albicosta (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), Débora G. Montezano, Thomas E. Hunt, Dariane Souza, Bruno C. Vieira, Ana M. Velez, Greg Kruger, Sarah N. Zukoff, Jeff D. Bradshaw, Julie A. Peterson

Department of Entomology: Faculty Publications

Striacosta albicosta (Smith) is a maize pest that has recently expanded its geographical range into the eastern United States and southeastern Canada. Aerial application of pyrethroids, such as bifenthrin, has been a major practice adopted to manage this pest. Reports of field failure of pyrethroids have increased since 2013. Striacosta albicosta populations were collected in 2016 and 2017 from maize fields in Nebraska, Kansas, and Canada and screened with bifenthrin active ingredient in larval contact dose-response bioassays. Resistance ratios estimated were generally low in 2016 (1.04- to 1.32-fold) with the highest LC50 in North Platte, NE (66.10 ng/cm²) …

Egg Albumin As A Protein Marker To Study Dispersal Of Noctuidae In The Agroecosystem, C. S. Tavares, Silvana L. Vieira De Paula Moraes, A. Valencia-Jimenez, Thomas E. Hunt, A. M. Vélez, E. J. G. Pereira

Department of Entomology: Faculty Publications

Knowledge of dispersal and spatial dynamics of pest populations is fundamental for implementation of integrated pest management and integrated resistance management.This study evaluated 1) the effectiveness of egg white albumin protein to mark larvae and adults of two polyphagous and highly mobile pests, Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith) (fall armyworm) and Helicoverpa zea (Boddie) (corn earworm) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), and 2) the sensitivity of polyvinylidene difluoride membrane (dot blot) in detecting albumin on marked insects. Laboratory and field experiments tested egg albumin as a protein marker, which was detected using two enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), microplate, and dot blot. In the laboratory, …

Environmental Law. Disrupted, Inara Scott, David Takacs, Rebecca Bratspies, Vasessa Casado Perez, Robin Kundis Craig, Keith Hirokawa, Blake Hudson, Sarah Krakoff, Katrina Fischer Kuh, Jessica Owley, Melissa Powers, Shannon Roesler, Jonathan Rosenbloom

Articles

The U.S. regulatory environment is changing rapidly, at the same time that visible and profound impacts of climate change are already being felt throughout the world, and enormous, potentially existential threats loom in the not-so-distant future. What does it mean to think about and practice environmental law in this setting? In this latest in a biannual series of postings and essays, the authors, members of the Environmental Law Collaborative (ELC), have taken on the question of whether environmental law as we currently know it is up to the job of addressing these threats; and, if not, what the path forward …

Molecular And Morphological Investigations Into The Evolution And Development Of Red Algal Parasites, Jillian Freese

Open Access Dissertations

Symbiotic relationships occur on a spectrum from mutualistic to parasitic. Parasitism— where one organism benefits greatly and the other is potentially harmed—is the most common type of symbiosis found throughout the tree of life. Most of the well-studied parasites have detrimental impacts on agriculture and human health as the causative agents of disease. However, these pathogens do not represent the diversity of parasitism. Most eukaryotic parasites have a photosynthetic ancestry but lost the ability to carry out photosynthesis at some point in their transition to parasitism. These parasites have undergone significant morphological and genomic changes as a result of their …

Ultrafast Coherent Spectroscopies And Laser Sources Based On Third-Order Nonlinear Optical Phenomena, Adam D. Card

Open Access Dissertations

This document is composed of four different research efforts. In the first chapter of this dissertation, I present my experimental work on seeded Yb-doped Q-switched fiber laser based on stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS). I began by experimenting with different types of fiber laser cavity configurations in order to find an ideal cavity that would successfully generate the free-running stochastic nonlinear SBS mirror as well as to reinforce the injected light mode. Experimentally, the ideal configuration involved a diffraction grating as the cavity back-mirror in the Littrow configuration with added cavity losses to enhance the SBS effect. Single SBS pulses exhibited …

Molecular Chains Under Tension And Torque: Activation Of Statistically Interacting Extension, Twist, And Contact Particles, Aaron C. Meyer

Open Access Dissertations

This study presents a statistical mechanical analysis of single molecular chains at thermal equilibrium subject to tension, torque, and contact with a fluid medium. Polymeric chains are modeled as one-dimensional, microscopic groups of monomers. The methodology treats the response of monomers to tension, torque, and fluid medium contact as sets of statistically interacting quasi-particles. Complex elastic behavior and structural transitions as observed in single-molecule manipulation experiments are successfully described using this methodology. Models pertaining to thermal unbending, linear elasticity, torque-twist characteristics, and structural transformations including effects of cooperativity are presented. Dynamic phenomena associated with fluid-medium contact are considered as an …

Therapeutic Targeting Of Relaxin Signaling In Ischemic Heart Disease, Siva Teja Vk Devarakonda

Theses and Dissertations

Ischemic heart disease is characterized by reduced perfusion of oxygenated blood to the myocardium, potentially resulting in infarction upon occlusion of coronary arteries. While prompt reperfusion and advances in in-hospital care have led to a decline in short term mortality, sustained damage to the ventricle, along with reperfusion injury, can lead to progressive deterioration in cardiac function. Limiting the extent of this initial ischemia-reperfusion injury and combating the course of adverse remodeling remains the scope of several preclinical studies geared towards improving cardiac health after MI. To this, relaxin-2 – the peptide hormone that regulates maternal hemodynamic function during pregnancy …

Glycosaminoglycan Mimetics For The Treatment Of Cancer And Lung Inflammation, Shravan Morla

Theses and Dissertations

Glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) are linear polysaccharides whose disaccharide building blocks consist of an amino sugar and either uronic acid or galactose. They are expressed on virtually all mammalian cells, usually covalently attached to proteins, forming proteoglycans. GAGs are highly negatively charged due to an abundance of sulfate and carboxylic acid groups, and are structurally very diverse, with differences arising from chain length, the type of monomeric units, the linkages between each monomeric unit, the position of sulfate groups, and the degree of sulfation. GAGs are known to interact with a multitude of proteins, impacting diverse physiological and pathological processes. In addition, …

Freedom And Prison: Putting Structuralism Back Into Structural Inequality, Anders Walker

All Faculty Scholarship

Critics of structural racism frequently miss structuralism as a field of historical inquiry. This essay reviews the rise of structuralism as a mode of historical analysis and applies it to the mass incarceration debate in the United States, arguing that it enriches the work of prevailing scholars in the field.

A Phenomenological Study Of Perspectives On Teacher Diversity And The Lived Experiences Of Black Public School Teachers, Michael Browner Jr.

Open Access Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the perspectives and lived experiences of Black public school teachers as related to the underrepresentation of Black teachers in the teaching profession. Data were collected through interviews with ten teachers who identified as Black and were employed by two school districts in northeastern Rhode Island. Through phenomenology as a methodology, and autoethnography as a method, this study sought to explore the lived experiences of Black teachers in contemporary public school settings and their perspectives on teacher diversity. This study provides an in-depth and intimate understanding of what it is like and what …