Digital Commons Network^™

Cameron Decomposition Applied To Polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar Signature Detection, Sean Wininger

Theses and Dissertations

Cameron et al, have developed a method of decomposing scatterer scattering matrices based on Huynen’s scattering matrix decomposition parameters. Huynen’s decomposition parameters are not unique, in that certain transformation properties, such as the angle of symmetry itself, may misidentify a scattering matriix and therefore misidentify a particular geometric shape. Cameron decomposition derives these parameters by direct calculations from the scatterer itself so that they may not be inferred or interpreted. A detailed explanation of the foundations and method of Cameron decomposition is presented here. A description of how Cameron decomposition is implemented in Polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (PolSAR) signature detection …

Community Development And Development In Communities: Challenges To The Miami-Dade County Historic Preservation Ordinance, Max Adriel Imberman

Theses and Dissertations

In Miami-Dade County, Florida, historic preservation is most powerful at the county level. The county’s historic preservation office has the power of administration over most municipalities within its borders. In 2014, organized resistance against the county office was sparked by an attempt to declare a mid-century modern section of the town of Bay Harbor Islands as an historic district. Opposition to county management of historic preservation affairs in Bay Harbor culminated in an attempted amendment to the county historic preservation ordinance that would allow municipalities to opt out of county supervision. This thesis examines the arguments used by county preservation …

The Domestic Adoption Of International Human Rights Law: The Roles Of Regional And National High Courts In Latin America, Rebecca Ann Reid

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation addresses the question: under what conditions do regional and national high courts matter in the promotion and domestic incorporation of international human rights law? In order to address this question, I argue that domestic high courts can proactively adopt international human rights laws through their interpretation of the law and resulting case decisions. Regional courts promote international law, particularly through their requirement of domestic legal reforms in their judgments. I examine the extent of state compliance with these requirements, where compliance consists of these changes in the domestic legal system thereby institutionalizing international laws and transforming them into …

Teacher Perception Of Promoting Student Engagement Among Culturally Diverse Students Through The Use Of Culturally Relevant Strategies, Ivey Pearl Addison

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to investigate teacher perceptions of the impact culturally relevant pedagogy has on student engagement. The study explored the beliefs, attitudes and perspectives of four elementary school teachers. Observations and interviews were utilized to gather qualitative data for this study. Teacher lessons were used to achieve triangulation. The findings will provide teachers with a conceptual framework that can be adapted to improve academic achievement.

Neural Correlates Of Verb Argument Structure Processing, Svetlana Malyutina

Theses and Dissertations

Verb argument structure (VAS) is pivotal to sentence production and comprehension, since it determines participant roles, as well as their grammatical form and syntactic position in a sentence. Neural correlates of VAS processing have mainly been studied in terms of the number of arguments. Data on the neural and behavioral effects of other VAS characteristics are limited, whereas they would have implications for behavioral and brain stimulation treatments of language disorders.

The present research investigated behavioral and neural effects of three understudied VAS characteristics (number of subcategorization options, number of thematic options and number of number-of-argument options) in single-word-level and …

Closing The Revolving Door: A Preliminary Investigation Of The Efficacy Of A Community Of Practice Including A Same Subject Mentor Using Social Media In Increasing The Retention Rates Of Induction Year Secondary Mathematics Teachers, Beth Rexroad Oliver

Theses and Dissertations

Only recently, the well-documented shortage of secondary mathematics teachers is being attributed to retention. Wenger’s Communities of Practice (CoPs) and the provision of same subject mentors have been shown to provide teachers with support, opportunities to collaborate, and a reduction in their feelings of isolation – all factors known to impact retention positively. The rapid advancement and prevalence of online social media provide easily accessible, cost effective means to connect teachers with each other and with same subject mentors.

This study investigated the primary question: What, if any, is the relationship between the retention of first-year secondary school mathematics teachers …

Changing Cigarette Consumption Patterns And Their Relationship To Tobacco Control Policies In A Population Of Low-Intensity Smokers, Santosha Kamala Swayampakala

Theses and Dissertations

Tobacco use is the single most preventable cause of premature death and disability in the world. Every year six million people will die from tobacco-related diseases. To curb the growing tobacco epidemic, World Health Organization (WHO) adopted its first-ever global public health treaty, Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) that obligates ratifying countries to implement a range of tobacco control policies. Most of the evidence for the effectiveness of the WHO’s FCTC recommended tobacco control policies comes from high-income countries (HICs). This evidence suggests that as smoking prevalence declines in response to tobacco control policies and programs, the proportion of …

The Relationship Between Religiousness And Intimate Partner Violence Risk And Protective Factors, Peter Warren

Theses and Dissertations

This paper proposes an integrated model illustrating the mechanisms by which religiousness may serve to influence individual beliefs regarding intimate partner violence (IPV) and the potential for subsequent abusive behavior. Intimate partner violence is a serious public health issue in the US, affecting over 25% of women at some point in their lives (CDC, 2010; Tjaden & Thoennes, 2000). Religion is a near ubiquitous aspect of American culture, with over 80% of Americans reporting some kind of belief in a higher power (Gallup, 2008. Overall, the literature shows that religiousness typically serves as a protective factor against IPV, but digging …

The Fancy Trade And The Commodification Of Rape In The Sexual Economy Of 19th Century U.S. Slavery, Tiye A. Gordon

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research is to examine the Fancy Trade—the buying and selling of mixed-race enslaved women for the primary purpose of prostitution and concubinage—through an intersectionality lens. Therefore, I will explore a culture of rape through the lived experiences of fancy maids, the women who were sold as sex commodities in the 19th century domestic slave trade. Who was she? Using an intersectionality framework to answer the proposed questions will achieve the following. First, it will highlight the social constructions of race, gender, and sexuality within the 19th century southern context. Secondly, an intersectional methodology will explore the …

Fabrication And Characterization Of Graphene Based Biocompatible Ion-Sensitive Field Effect Transistor (Isfet), Rina Patel

Theses and Dissertations

Graphene, a two-dimensional material with a high surface to volume ratio, has drawn extensive research enthusiasm for applications in the field of electronic sensors. The special material properties that make graphene a highly promising material include its biocompatibility, very high mobility, low 1/f and thermal noise, modulation of carrier concentration and fermi level by electrical, optical, and chemical means. To exploit these properties for practical applications a large area high quality graphene, transferred on appropriate substrates, is required. In this work, high quality single monolayer graphene (determined from Raman spectroscopy) has been synthesized by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) technique for …

Tactical Encounters:Material Rhetoric And The Politics Of Tactical Media, Anthony Michael Stagliano

Theses and Dissertations

Tactical Encounters: Material Rhetoric and the Politics of Tactical Media articulates the concept of material rhetorical tactics, discrete rhetorical moves effecting political and social change, however ephemeral. I argue that material rhetorical tactics do not necessarily originate or conclude with a human subject, and that to understand this, we must reorient our conceptions of rhetorical action, agency, and, ultimately, its relationship to the demos, to include actions, actors, agents, and events that are not, in themselves, human. I build on recent work in rhetorical theory that has conceptualized the function and nature of rhetoric as involving agents human and nonhuman, …

Boundary Stones: Morbid Concretions And The Chemistry Of Early Nineteenth Century Medicine, Edward Allen Driggers Jr.

Theses and Dissertations

My dissertation is the story of communities of physicians seeking to understand the morbid concretion of the body using the new chemistry from the late eighteenth century. Morbid concretions, or calculi, were occurred in the urinary passages, lungs, joints, pancreas, uterus, and other areas of the body. At the turn of the nineteenth century, some physicians saw analytical chemistry, emerging out of the so-called chemical revolution, as applicable in understanding and treating stone-based diseases. However, some physicians and surgeons saw the treatment of stones with chemistry as evidence of the need to return to older practices of medicine, like humoral …

Adiponectin And Selenium Rich Diet Can Act As A Complimentary Medicine In The Treatment Of Intestinal And Chronic Inflammation Induced Colon Cancer, Arpit Saxena

Theses and Dissertations

Colon cancer is the second largest cause of cancer death in United States. Chronic inflammation and obesity predispose patients to colon cancer. Adipose tissue is a source of bioactive substances called adipokines. Adiponectin (APN), an adipokine has anti-inflammatory property and found at lower levels in obese patients. Selenium (Se), a trace mineral and a dietary supplement, is inversely associated with cancer risk and possess anti-inflammatory and anti-carcinogenic properties. The overall purpose of this dissertation is to determine if chronic inflammation leading to colon and intestinal cancer are regulated by APN or Se rich diet or both. The working hypothesis is …

Novel Drug 2-Benzoyl-3-Phenyl 6,7-Dichloroquinoxaline 1,4-Dioxide Induces Colon Cancer Cell Apoptosis Through Hif-1Α Pathway, Alexander-Jacques Theodore Sougiannis

Theses and Dissertations

Recent developments in the field of cancer genomics have shown transcription factor HIF-1α as a major player in the survival and proliferation of colorectal tumors. Hypoxia targeted drug engineering has led to significant advancements in cancer treatments as a method of directly utilizing the hypoxic regions against the tumor. Novel drug DCQ (2-benzoyl-3-phenyl 6,7-dichloroquinoxaline 1,4-dioxide) has shown promising anti-tumor results in-vitro and in-vivo. The purpose of this study was to utilize a tumor xenograft and genetic mouse model of colorectal cancer to investigate the safety, clinical effectiveness, and mechanism of action of DCQ. Methods: 10 week old Balb/c mice were …

The Influence Of Warmth And Competence Perceptions On Employees’ Attitudinal And Behavioral Responses In Casual Dining Restaurants, Diego Riva Humbert Bufquin

Theses and Dissertations

Employees in the hospitality industry continuously judge their peers and leaders in order to evaluate their work environment. Group and individual evaluations are systematic, as the restaurant industry is characterized by high labor intensiveness that typically involves substantial social interactions and task interdependence. As a consequence, employees come up with quick and broad conclusions about the characteristics of the people that they work with or for.

Along these lines, two of the most significant constructs that govern the social perceptions or evaluations of individuals and groups are people’s perceived warmth and competence. The warmth construct informs people whether a person …

Anarchic Wills: De Factoism And Its Discontents In Shakespeare And Milton, William Dean Clement

Theses and Dissertations

My dissertation explores the literary origins of de factoism – the political philosophy which considers any “right” to rule inconsequential to political legitimacy. My work introduces the concept of the “anarchic will,” my term for a literary character that recognizes the growing distance between an authority’s claim to power and the material fact of that power. I locate these figures in early modern drama and epic to demonstrate how their existence threatens the traditional power structures, both on the stage and in the streets of London. I argue that anarchic wills jeopardize political order at the most basic level, in …

Knowing In America: The Enlightenment, Science, And The Early Republic, Timothy K. Minella

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation analyzes practices of science and technology in the early United States as windows onto the American Enlightenment. Although scholars have emphasized the important impact of Enlightenment thought on the American founding, the historiography tends to argue for the decreasing influence of the Enlightenment on American culture as the nineteenth century progressed. In addition, scholars tend to see a decline in American science after Benjamin Franklin as nineteenth-century Americans began to focus primarily on the practical problems of everyday life. I question these interpretations by connecting scientific practice in the Early Republic with transatlantic Enlightenment thought and analyzing American …

Middle School Students' Perceptions Of Fairness And Trust In Assessment Scenarios, Corinne Elaine Jimenez

Theses and Dissertations

Fairness in assessment practices is an elusive concept which has been explored in some detail at the university level, but rarely with students in middle school. This study examines students’ perceptions of fairness on nine classroom assessment practices. It also studies if students’ perceptions of fairness, as well as student gender, could predict their levels of trust. Students were able to discern fair practices, as defined by alignment to best assessment practice literature, from unfair practices for most scenarios. They were more inclined to recognize interactional fairness deviations or promotions. The student’s ability to identify a fair or unfair situation …

Factors Influencing Level Of Implementation Of Physical Activity Interventions In Youth-Serving Organizations, Yuen Yan Lau

Theses and Dissertations

In the past decade, numerous interventions have been developed and tested to increase physical activity in children and adolescents. Among these interventions, those that reported higher levels of program implementation appear to have better program outcomes. However, relatively little is known about the specific factors that contributed to successful implementation in youth physical activity interventions. The overall purpose of this dissertation was to identify a set of core factors that are most important in explaining implementation of physical activity interventions in youth-serving settings. Three studies, an expert panel study and two prospective observational studies, were conducted to address the purpose …

Negotiating The Interconnections Of Sociality, Identity, Fan Activism And Connectivity Within The Twilight Community, Amy A. O’Brien

Theses and Dissertations

In my dissertation, “Negotiating the Interconnections of Sociality, Identity, Fan Activism and Connectivity within the Twilight Community”, I examine the ways in which women employed a shared interest in a cultural text to establish meaningful social relationships with other fans. Rather than focusing solely on consumptive pleasure, these fans of the Twilight series utilized the intense popularity of the franchise to engage in charitable activities. Through these common threads of identity, community, virtual technologies, and charity, I contend that the Twilight fandom represents a new form of fan community, which is trending upward and creating an impact beyond the traditional …

Environmental Exposures And Childhood Pulmonary Function, Pallavi Prakash Balte

Theses and Dissertations

Fetal origins of adult disease hypothesis states that adverse influences early in developmental period and particularly during intrauterine life can result in permanent changes in physiology which may lead to increased disease risk of chronic diseases in adulthood. Both fetal and adolescent period are critical time periods for development of lungs. Any adverse environmental exposures during these critical periods of lung growth is a form of programming which can have long term effects on pulmonary function. The purpose of this dissertation was to examine the association between different environmental exposures and pulmonary function in children and late adolescents. The first …

Ethnic Discrimination: Measurement And Associations With Smoking-Related Outcomes Among Arab Male Current And Former Smokers In Israel, Amira Osman

Theses and Dissertations

We evaluated the psychometric properties of two instruments used to assess ethnic discrimination among Arabs in Israel. The “Experiences of Discrimination” (EOD) scale was adapted to assess interpersonal ethnic discrimination (EOD-A) and a new measure was developed to assess perceptions of institutional group discrimination (IGD) against Arabs as an ethnic group. Then, we examined the association between each form of ethnic discrimination (interpersonal and institutional) and smoking outcomes among Arab men from Israel, and whether social support and coping efficacy moderate these associations. Data were analyzed from a cross-sectional study of Arab male current and former smokers, aged 18-64. A …

Beyond Grades: The Impact Of Race And Academic Disidentification On Social Functioning And Academic Outcomes Among At-Risk High School Students, Brian K. Colar

Theses and Dissertations

An extant literature has supported the notion that black students perform poorly in comparison to white students on frequently used indicators of academic functioning, known as the academic gap between races. Although previous studies have identified this academic inequity between White and Black high school students, there is a dearth of literature examining the context and processes which may contribute to this gap. The current study further examines this educational disparity by evaluating the role of students’ social functioning, the impact of race, and academic outcomes among at-risk high school students. Although analytical evidence reports a positive correlation between social …

Foundations Of Memory: Effects Of Organizations On The Preservation And Interpretation Of The Slave Forts And Castles Of Ghana, Britney Danielle Ghee

Theses and Dissertations

The historical understanding of a place is bent to the will of the passage of time, but is susceptible to the pressures of entities that lay claim to the space. The memory of forts and castles dispersed along the tropical shorelines of Ghana have been remembered, forgotten, and rediscovered several times over the span of five centuries. But how has their story been changed? What is privileged and created for the collective memory and what has been concealed? The buildings currently serve as memorials to the trans-Atlantic slave trade, but this understanding is complicated by the previous preservation motives and …

The Role Of Effortful Control And Cortisol In The Emergence Of Adhd, Asd, And Anxiety In Boys With Fxs, Marissa L. Robinson

Theses and Dissertations

ADHD, ASD, and anxiety are three of the most common co-occurring disorders in children with FXS leading to increased social, academic, and behavioral difficulties (Bailey, Raspa, Olmsted, & Holiday, 2008). Early identification and treatment of these co-occurring mental health disorders is essential to promote optimal outcomes; therefore, the study of early precursors and underlying mechanisms of these disorders within a developmental framework is warranted. The current dissertation includes two sequential and related studies investigating impaired effortful control as a precursor and HPA axis dysfunction (measured through salivary cortisol) as an underlying mechanism to the emergence of ADHD, ASD, and anxiety …

Characterization Of Stard4 And Stard6 Proteins In Human Ovarian Tissue And Human Granulosa Cells And Cloning Of Human Stard4 Transcripts, Aisha Shaaban

Theses and Dissertations

Progesterone is essential hormone for pregnancy, which is produced by the human corpus luteum in early pregnancy until the placenta assumes this function. Transport of the cholesterol from the outer to the inner mitochondrial membrane is the rate limiting step for the de novo synthesis of pregnenolone (the precursor to progesterone), a process mediated by STARD1. STARD1 contains a C-terminal lipid binding domain which binds cholesterol and an N-terminal domain targeting STARD1 to the mitochondrial membrane. Unlike STARD1, STARD4 and STARD6 proteins lack a mitochondrial targeting sequence; however, they can bind cholesterol and increase steroidogenesis in model systems. In this …

Applying The Analytic Hierarchy Process To Oil Sands Environmental Compliance Risk Management, Izak Johannes Roux

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Oil companies in Alberta, Canada, invested $32 billion on new oil sands projects in 2013. Despite the size of this investment, there is a demonstrable deficiency in the uniformity and understanding of environmental legislation requirements that manifest into increased project compliance risks. This descriptive study developed 2 prioritized lists of environmental regulatory compliance risks and mitigation strategies and used multi-criteria decision theory for its theoretical framework. Information from compiled lists of environmental compliance risks and mitigation strategies was used to generate a specialized pairwise survey, which was piloted by 5 subject matter experts (SMEs). The survey was validated by a …

The Effects Of Differentiated Instruction On The Achievement Scores Of Struggling Fourth Grade Readers, Carol Elaine Boges

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Identifying an effective instructional strategy to remediate struggling readers is a goal for educators. Differentiated instruction (DI) has received much attention as a possible strategy to rectify literacy problems, but quantitative research on its effectiveness is limited. This quantitative study used a quasi-experimental, nonequivalent, pretest-posttest design to determine if DI provided a significant difference in reading comprehension scores between struggling readers instructed with DI strategies and students instructed with whole group strategies. Philosophies grounded in cognitive constructivism constituted the theoretical framework for this study which examined the archival STAR reading assessment pre- and posttest instructional reading level scores of 120 …

The Effect Of A State Legitimation Process On Child Support Payments And Father-Child Relationships, Chalonda L. Smith

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

For noncustodial fathers, having legal rights and leaving an inheritance to their child or children are important aspects of being an active father. Georgia state law sees a difference between paternity and legitimation, and for some noncustodial fathers, although paternity is established and they are responsible for supporting that child financially and medically as deemed through child support enforcement, they have no legal rights to their children, nor can they petition the courts for visitation until legitimation is established. This correlational study examined the impact that the legitimation policy has on noncustodial fathers and their relationship with their child, as …

Nitrate In Private Wells:Knowledge, Oppinions,And Perceptions Of Stakeholders, Augustus D. Jaja

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine data describing nitrate concentration and cases of congenital cardiac defects. Residents with private wells and other stakeholders need data to make informed environmental decisions about the adverse health implications of nitrate contamination of private well water. Researchers have examined the exposure of nitrate in contaminated groundwater, but they have not examined nitrate levels in unregulated water systems. This gap in the literature highlighted the need to provide nitrate data for future research and private well users. Guided by the social ecological model, a quantitative, cross-sectional, nonexperimental design was used to survey …