Digital Commons Network^™

The Relationship Of Women's Magazines And Their Websites: A Comparative Analysis Of Print And Web Content, Allison Walker Ruff

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

With the digital expansion of magazines, it is essential to determine how a magazine's online and digital content compares to its print content. The editorial strategy for print content versus Web content could make a difference in consumers' brand attachment and loyalty to a magazine. Magazines must have a dynamic online strategy that offers a different experience than printed material in order to gain new relationships and strengthen those relationships people already have with the brand. A comparative analysis of the print content versus the online website content of four separate women's publications can help determine if each magazine is …

Flight Period And Species Composition Of Sirex (Hymenoptera: Siricidae) And Associated Deladenus (Nematoda: Neotylenchidae) Within Arkansas Pine Forests, Danielle Keeler

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The European woodwasp, Sirex noctilio F. (Hymenoptera: Siricidae), which is a known destructive pest of pine in the southern hemisphere was recently discovered in the eastern United States. Before we can understand how S. noctilio may affect pine forests throughout the United States, we need a better understanding of native Sirex and the role they play in the ecosystem. The objectives of this research were to 1) determine species composition and flight period for native Sirex; 2) confirm presence of parasitic nematodes, Deladenus (Nematoda: Neotylenchidae), within adult Sirex; 3) investigate Deladenus parasitism rates; 4) verify the number of Deladenus species …

Groundwater Quality Assessment From Domestic Water Wells In The Fayetteville Shale Gas Play Area In Central Arkansas, Anna Marie Nottmeier

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study establishes a spatially distributed domestic water well groundwater quality data set, throughout the Fayetteville Shale Gas Play (FSGP) in central Arkansas. The data set facilitates characterization of the geology and groundwater quality across the study area, benefits residents who may have concerns about the potential impacts on their well water quality, and provides a groundwater quality basis to which complaints can be compared and resolved. The assessment included: research of the study area, site reconnaissance, water sampling and collection, interviews with owners of the property, analytical analysis, Quality Assurance and Quality Control, and groundwater data interpretation.

The study …

Comparison Of Various Pipelined And Non-Pipelined Scl 8051 Alus, Jingyi Zhao

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This paper describes the development of an 8-bit SCL 8051 ALU with two versions: SCL 8051 ALU with nsleep and sleep signals and SCL 8051 ALU without nsleep. Both versions have combinational logic (C/L), registers, and completion components, which all utilize slept gates. Both three-stage pipelined and non-pipelined designs were examined for both versions. The four designs were compared in terms of area, speed, leakage power, average power and energy per operation. The SCL 8051 ALU without nsleep is smaller and faster, but it has greater leakage power. It also has lower average power, and less energy consumption than …

Taak In Sutik (I Want To Return), Jose Lopez Bribiesca

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this film is to have four descendants of the Maya tell their stories and through them, explain four difficult concepts facing the 21st century contemporary Maya:

* How do Mayan languages influence a worldview different than the westernized, globalized worldview?

* How do the media, especially through movies, portray the Maya and other indigenous groups unfairly?

* How have the descendants of the Maya coped with adapting to modernity while keeping their traditions intact?

* How will the four protagonists ensure the protection of their language and their culture when they return home?

An Extension To Particle Polarizability To Predict Coupling Behavior In Periodic Nanoplasmonic Arrays, Drew Dejarnette

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Plasmonic nanoparticles organized in arrays interact to create spectral patterns which are amplified by individual particle polarizability. It was hypothesized that particle polarizability could be used as a predictor of spectral behavior from far-field interactions within the array. Inter-particle coupling produced an extraordinary peak in extinction efficiency at wavelengths equal to or larger than the single particle plasmon resonance peak. Interactions that produced constructive coupling were found to mimic changes in the particle polarizability model. Testing of the hypothesis was performed using the coupled dipole approximation with parametric characterization of array geometries, giving specific particle size and lattice constant combinations …

Phase Control In Atomic Coherence, Utsab Khadka

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this thesis, atomic coherence is used to enhance nonlinear optical processes in multi-level atoms. The multi-photon transitions are driven resonantly, and at the same time without absorptive losses, by using electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT), thereby allowing the study of χ⁽³⁾ and χ⁽⁵⁾ nonlinearities using weak driving fields. The coherently modified probe beam(s) and the atom-radiated signal fields arising from four- and six- wave- mixing (FWM and SWM) processes are measured in the spectral, temporal and spatial domains.

In a three-level ladder-type atomic system, multiple peaks having spectral asymmetries are observed in the EIT window as well as …

Studies Toward The Total Synthesis Of Antascomicin B, David Ross Clay

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The following dissertation describes synthetic efforts toward the synthesis of the C21-C34 fragment of antascomicin B. Our initial enzymatic approach is detailed as well as an asymmetric transfer hydrogenation (ATH) strategy that will be used in the eventual total synthesis of the molecule. Several investigations into anomalies observed during (ATH) reactions are also discussed.

Flexible Circuits For Aerospace Applications With Special Emphasis On Rf Connectors, Abhishek Nareshraj Singh

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The current work focused on the study of flexible electronic circuits for use in aerospace applications with emphasis on RF Connectors. The electrical and mechanical performance of the flexible circuits was studied and compared to a standard coaxial cable for feasibility study in avionics space. Also, Anisotropic Conductive Films (ACF) are studied for connecting the flexible RF connectors and their performance studied for electrical and mechanical behavior with change in bonding parameters.

Purchasing Power: The Effects Of Foreign Investment On Political Development In Kazakhstan, William Curtis Sullivan

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the effects of foreign direct investment on Kazakhstan's political growth. Kazakhstan's transition to a market economy was plagued by corruption, and heavy investment in the oil industry generated resource dependency concerns. The regime later began to exert control over the oil industry through renegotiated contracts and legislative changes. This enriched and empowered the regime. As a result, Kazakhstani presidentm Nursultan Nazarbayev, was able to consolidate control over the state by employing "soft authoritarian" tactics and by rewarding political supporters. The regime was able to employ these tactics because of the wealth that foreign investment created. Thus, control …

Gendered Effects On The Child Welfare Agency Decision-Making Process, Brandon Crawford

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Previous research on child abuse and neglect suggests that there may be gendered relationships between child victims and case outcomes. Specifically, although agency practices may generally regard most male and female children as equally vulnerable, agency attributions regarding the culpability, need, and suitability of parents may be highly differentiated based on gender. Explanations for this pattern may lie in the cultural ideologies and organizational beliefs that distinguish between the perceived rights, responsibilities, and relative importance of mothering and fathering roles. That is, one function of Social service agencies is to uphold Social constructions of parenting and promote our larger cultural …

Fabrication And Characterization Of Thinner Solid-State Nanopores, Denis Forbi Tita

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Solid State nanopores that are fabricated by the ion beam sculpting process and electron beam drilling have shown great promise as a sensing device for DNA and protein molecules. Even though biological pores such as the alpha-Haemolysin have been in use for quite some time, the use of solid state Nanopores in single biomolecule detection has been on the rise since the mid 1990s. Solid State nanopores have an advantage over biological pores in that they are more robust, stable, and can be sculpted to any desired size for use in translocation experiments. One of the major challenges in Nanopore …

Concurrent And Dual Credit: The Bridge To Postsecondary Education For First-Generation College Students, Todd Arron Loftin

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

One of the most significance Social challenges facing the United States is increasing the number of students entering postsecondary education and having them persist to degree completion. To accomplish this undertaking, more first-generation college students must matriculate and find academic success. Considerable research exists concerning the barriers first-generation students must overcome; however, little research exists regarding the benefits of participating in dual and concurrent credit coursework as a way to increase confidence and prepare for the rigors of higher education.

The purpose of this correlational, quantitative, exploratory study was to consider the impact of dual and concurrent credit on the …

Performing Literacy: How Women Read The World In The Late Eighteenth-Century British Novel, Amy Hodges

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation explores the intersection of sensibility, Social identity, and literacy practices among representations of women readers in four late eighteenth-century British novels. Through an analysis of the authors' use of identity constructs which shaped and were shaped by reading practices, this study documents the rise of Social identity formation as mutually constitutive with the history of reading. The first chapter reveals how Charlotte Lennox's The Female Quixote uses Arabella's follies as education for readers about the corresponding processes of reading their society and reading novels. The second chapter argues that Frances Burney's Evelina considers women's ability to read others …

Development And Implementation Of It-Enabled Business Processes: A Knowledge Structure View, Rick Brattin

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

As competitive pressures mount, organizations must continue to evolve their business processes in order to survive. Increasingly, firms are developing new IT-enabled business processes in response to rising competition, greater customer expectations, and challenging economic conditions. The success rate of these projects remains low despite much industry experience and extensive academic study. Managerial and organizational cognition represents a potentially fruitful lens for studying the design and implementation of IT-enabled business processes. This view assumes that individuals are information workers who spend their days absorbing, processing, and disseminating information as they pursue their goals and objectives. Individuals develop cognitive representations, called …

Annual Leave - 2300

Human Resources Policies

The purpose of this policy is to define the guidelines for the use and approval of annual leave while encouraging the University's efforts toward work/life balance for employees.

Guardians Of The Countryside Public Choice Theory And The Farm Lobby In The Eu's Common Agricultural Policy, Amy J. Costa

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

Through various waves of reform, the European Union's Common Agricultural Policy remains inefficient without meeting all of its stated goals. The MacSherry reforms of 1992 resulted in the opposite of what leaders intended: higher spending and a growing bureaucracy. Later in the 1990s, Agenda 2000 slashed its originally planned cutbacks after farmers protested. Though support exists for reducing spending on agriculture, market intervention remains.

This thesis explores the problem through the use of public choice theory. -Consumers make too large a group to organize effectively or inform themselves about the issue, while farmers consist of a smaller group with well-defined …

Parenting And Feeding Behaviors Associated With School-Aged African American And White Children, Michele Polfuss, Marilyn Frenn

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

Pediatric obesity is multifactorial and difficult to treat. Parenting and feeding behaviors have been shown to influence a child’s weight status. Most prior studies have focused on preschool-aged White children. Additional complicating factors include parents’ inability to accurately identify their child’s abnormal weight status. Parenting and feeding behaviors used by 176 African American and White parents of school-age children were examined. Assessment included (a) identifying what behaviors were reported when parent expressed concern with child’s weight and (b) the relationship of these behaviors on child’s body mass index percentile (BMI%), considering ethnicity, socioeconomic status (SES), and parent’s body mass index …

Eliciting A Sensemaking Process From Verbal Protocols Of Reverse Engineers, Adam R. Bryant, Robert F. Mills, Gilbert L. Peterson, Michael R. Grimaila

Faculty Publications

A process of sensemaking in reverse engineering was elicited from verbal protocols of reverse engineers as they investigated the assembly code of executable programs. Four participants were observed during task performance and verbal protocols were collected and analyzed from two of the participants to determine their problem-solving states and characterize likely transitions between those states. From this analysis, a high-level process of sensemaking is described which represents hypothesis generation and information-seeking behaviors in reverse engineering within a framework of goal-directed planning. Future work in validation and application of the process is discussed.

Harding School Of Theology 2012-2013 General Catalog, Harding University

Harding Academic Catalogs

Academic catalog for the graduate program in Bible and religion.

The Place Of Fantasy In A Critical Political Economy: The Case Of Market Boundaries, Jason Glynos

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Symposium: Fantasy And Markets

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Laughing Out Loud: Art, Culture, And Fantasy, Henrietta L. Moore

Cardozo Law Review

What makes art valuable? Why in times of crisis do people buy contemporary art? This Paper discusses whether or not investment in art can ever be seen as rational, and explores how the contemporary art market is expanding to include not just works of art, but art as a form of cultural practice. Audiences are no longer content simply to visit museums, galleries, and other cultural institutions. They want to participate, but why are art fairs, biennials, and museum events so popular? The contemporary art market has always been segmented, and reputation and display have been important motivators for rich …

Expertise, Lab Lit, And The Fantasy Of Science Free From Economics, David S. Caudill

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

"Perverts," "Terrorists," And Business As Usual: Fantasies And Genealogies Of U.S. Law, Penelope Pether

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

A Study Of Factors Related To Teacher Attrition, Leslie Ann Beaugez

Dissertations

This study examined factors related to teacher attrition. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the level of teacher satisfaction that could motivate a teacher to remain in the profession in a national sample could be predicted from selected factors. Furthermore, this study examined teachers’ perceptions of worry/stress based on student performance on state and/or local tests.

The participants in the study were in two groups: teachers in a national sample that responded to items on the 1999-2000 Schools and Staffing Survey and certified teachers from a southeastern school district who also responded to one of the items …

Efficacy Of A Basic Public Speaking Course Delivered Via A Virtual Community College, Stephen Bradley Bailey

Dissertations

The purposes of this study were to: (a) determine if taking the basic public speaking course in face-to-face, hybrid, and online format statistically significantly reduces public speaking anxiety; (b) determine which course format, if any, reduces public speaking anxiety to the greatest extent; (c) determine if students’ satisfaction with learning is statistically significantly different in the three course formats; (d) determine faculty’s perceptions of students learning in the basic public speaking in the three course formats.

Pre- and post-data were collected from 263 participants taking the basic public speaking course in a virtual community college in January 2012 and in …

Perceptions Of Mentoring, Dropout Rates, School Attendance, And Academic Achievement In Core Subject Areas Among Students In The Various Branches Of Jrotc, Michael Joseph Weaver

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions of cadets in the Army, Navy, and Air Force JROTC program regarding their beliefs about mentorship and how it affects students’ perceptions. Funding for education is constantly under review and programs that are considered unnecessary are facing increased scrutiny. Schools are held accountable for educating students and this accountability includes both the quality of the program provided by the district and also the commitment among students to be successful in life.

Haveman, Wolfe, and Wilson (2001) reported that graduating from high school provides benefits to society both socially and economically. …

Social Networking Systems As A Vehicle To Promote Sense Of Community And Performance In Online Classes, Jonathan Mark Woodward

Dissertations

Academicians are navigating through the intersection of information technology and social change. The path that educators choose will help determine the future of higher education in traditional and online settings. The journey of teachers is clouded by the abundance and rapid creation of emerging technologies, but the trends of Net Generation students offer direction. Among Web 2.0 applications, social networking systems (SNSs) offer students a new approach to communicating, learning, and collaborating.

The sociocentric view of knowledge and learning and the theories of Vygotsky and Dewey are helping to drive educators to look for a solution to a missing link …

Regional Differences In Relational Aggression: The Role Of Culture, Katherine Amanda Czar

Dissertations

It is becoming increasingly clear that relational aggression has just as much potential to cause harm as overt verbal and physical aggression. Though the literature base on relational aggression is growing, far fewer studies have been conducted with late adolescents and adults as compared with children and early adolescents. Moreover, the role of culture in relational aggression has received limited attention. The current study aimed to examine the potential impact of one aspect of culture on relational aggression by focusing on North-South regional differences in the United States. Differing norms and expectations for social behavior between Northern and Southern U.S. …