Digital Commons Network^™

Characterization And Analysis Of Supersonic Flow Through De Laval Nozzles At Varied Design Conditions, Sarah Baird

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

A combined numerical and experimental investigation of supersonic planar nozzles under different design conditions has been conducted. Supersonic planar nozzles are common geometries observed in supersonic wind tunnels and aircraft or rocket engines. For the important role they play in wind tunnel testing and aircraft propulsion, it is important to conduct a thorough numerical and experimental study to characterize their performance at different operating conditions. In this study, a de Laval nozzle was scanned to extract its contours and subsequently modeled to compare analytical and numerical performance expectations under design and off-design conditions. The nozzle was then installed in a …

Comparative Predictive Analysis Of Stock Performance In The Tech Sector, Asaad Sendi

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This study compares the performance of deep learning models, including Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM), Gated Recurrent Unit (GRU), and Transformer, in predicting stock prices across five companies (AAPL, CSCO, META, MSFT, and TSLA) from July 2019 to July 2023. Key findings reveal that GRU models generally exhibit the lowest Mean Absolute Error (MAE), indicating higher precision, particularly notable for CSCO with a remarkably low MAE. While LSTM models often show slightly higher MAE values, they outperform Transformer models in capturing broader trends and variance in stock prices, as evidenced by higher R-squared (R2) values. Transformer models generally exhibit higher MAE …

The Use Of Whole Blood In Increasing The Survivability Of Combat Wounded Troops From 1940 To 1953, Devin Sweet

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Humans have been experimenting with new ways to kill each other for millennia, and for just as long, doctors have been experimenting with methods to improve survivability of those wounded. The 20^th century was one of the bloodiest period in human history; war claimed over one hundred million lives. With the scourge of disease more easily managed, the medical communities came to address the one wound that historically cost most lives – bleeding to death. Shock and exsanguination can kill a person within thirty seconds to two minutes, and finding ways to mitigate that outcome has been the subject …

An Integrated Transformational Teaching Model For Empowering Undergraduate Psychology Students To Cultivate Self-Awareness, Wellness Practices, And Resilient Mindsets During Their Undergraduate Careers, Summerrae L. Arcemont

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This Narrative inquiry explored psychology students’ perceptions of self-awareness interventions and wellness training in undergraduate psychology coursework. Participants included seven undergraduate psychology majors who completed a psychology health and wellness course in the Fall 2023 semester at a regional university in the Southeast. Semi-structured interviews were conducted and examined to identify themes in the students’ stories regarding their journeys through the wellness course. The use of reflexive thematic analysis helped determine the following five overarching themes from the data: Roadmap for Navigating Wellness, Group Experience, Newfound Insight, Personal Growth and Transformations, and Moving Forward. The results of this study highlighted …

The Problem Of Scale: Professional Ballet Companies, Their Respective Preeminence, And Factors Outside Of Their Control, Katherine Hanson

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This thesis looks at professional ballet companies in the United States, the factors affecting a company’s preeminence or lack thereof, and whether it is possible in current conditions for large professional ballet companies to develop into preeminent ballet companies. What are the relevant factors historically involved in the growth of a professional ballet company into a preeminent ballet company in the United States? Are those factors still applicable or possible to attain for professional ballet companies today? Contributing categories of factors discussed include: budget, name recognition, numbers of productions and individual performances, touring, numbers of dancers, dancer salaries, union memberships, …

Exploring Auditory Thalamocortical Pathways In Autism Spectrum Disorder, Caitlin Dyer

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Thalamocortical tracts related to language have rarely been examined in autism spectrum disorder (ASD). We examined the medial geniculate nucleus (MGN), Heschl’s gyrus (HG), and planum temporale (PT) volumes, and the connections from MGN to HG and MGN to PT, using MRIs from 39 children with ASD (20 with receptive language impairment, 19 without) and 20 typically developing controls, aged 5-17 years. In children with ASD without language impairment, MGN volume was positively correlated with receptive language scores. Additionally, the thalamus was smaller in children with ASD with language impairment, correlating negatively with receptive language scores in this group. Left …

War In The Borderlands: St. Tammany Parish In The American Civil War 1861-1865, Nicholas Gagliano

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Killers, Queers, And Cowards: Suffering And Freedom In Jean-Paul Sartre’S No Exit, Aaron Brewer

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Throughout No Exit, Sartre’s mirror is key to understanding his characters and philosophy. It is his tool for exploring ideas that are limited by the time in which he lived. Here, the play does what all great works should do: it challenges the status quo and looks beyond what can already be seen. This thesis will use his established mirror metaphor and an expanded mirror metaphor to unearth the true nature of No Exit’s characters.

In setting down the characters’ path, Sartre asks questions that humans have considered for Millenia: Why are we here? Why am I suffering? How …

Temple Of Familiars, Madeleine Grace Kelly

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

My paintings, etchings, and installation explore encounters with mystery in the natural world, especially through the flora, fauna, light, and water of the swamps around the Atchafalaya Basin. My practice explores kinship, reverence, and awe as an antidote to estrangement from the spirit of the land. I am influenced by artists and scholars engaging with the places that they inhabit and that inhabit them with a reverence and mystery of approach. My work invites viewers to engage with the memory that the water carries of our interconnectedness, and to remember that we are not separate from the natural world.

Bedeviled Beauty: My Journey Through White American Theater Institutions, J'Aila C. Price

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Game console: Oculus Quest

World: American Theater Institutions

Player: Minority

Place: United States

Level: “Ain’t no way.”

This thesis explores the contrast between the Westernized philosophies ingrained in my education and my identity as a Black female artist. It sheds light on the difficulties of pursuing higher education in the arts and the gaps that arise from limited exposure to culturally diverse Black resources, revealing the systemic issues in Western performance education. The paper also discusses the insights gained from my journey as a Black female artist, focusing on my thesis performance of Blood at the Root, which is …

Blade Design And Validation Of Hydrokinetic Turbine To Harvest Water Current Energy, Setare Sadeqi

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

The innovative aspect of this research lies in the careful integration of cutting-edge technologies throughout the entire process of designing, fabricating, and testing the carbon fiber propeller for the 3-bladed horizontal axis ocean current turbine (OCT). SolidWorks software played a pivotal role in the initial design phase, enabling a meticulous and precise modeling of the propeller's geometry. The utilization of SolidWorks allowed for a detailed exploration of various design parameters, ensuring that the propeller's structure and form were optimized for performance in ocean current conditions. Moving beyond the realm of virtual design, the choice of carbon fiber as the fabrication …

"Black Diamond Champ Of Nawlins": The Importance Of Fred Caulfield And His Baseball Team, Sam Bruce

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Early twentieth-century American social culture was dominated by baseball, and the marriage of the sport and Jim Crow laws resulted in the birth of the Negro Leagues. During this period, Black baseball in New Orleans found its face in Fred Caulfield (1880-1941). Caulfield’s team was the “negro champion of New Orleans” and provided Black New Orleanians with a source of pride in a team who was always competitive in pennant races, and regarded enough to play against the best Black ball clubs in the country. This was all possible due to civic leader and successful business owner Fred Caulfield.

The Desegregation Of Schools In Thibodaux, Louisiana: 1954-1970, Shelby L. Thibodaux

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

The study of school systems in Thibodaux, the seat of Lafourche Parish, adds to research on school desegregation in Southern rural communities. This thesis highlights the untold story of the Black community's resistance to segregation in Thibodaux and efforts by white officials to maintain a segregated school system. Black resistance included a petition filed in 1955 and the Edward Hill v. Lafourche Parish School Board (1967) case. Partial integration began in 1966, but the parish did not establish a unitary system until the 1968-1969 school year. This research focuses on the Lafourche Parish public school system from first through twelfth …

Moral Dilemmas: A Phenomenological Exploration Of Military Members Experience Of War, Deborah Allsbrook Roth

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Due to increasing mental health concerns in combat exposed military members, including posttraumatic stress, there is a commiserate need for improved mental health services. Other mental health concerns include an increasing rate of suicide deaths in military members who have served during Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF), or Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). There is a need for mental health counselors to have a more nuanced understanding of the clinical needs of combat exposed military members. In more recent years the construct of moral injury has emerged as a potential explanation for the presentation of certain combat exposed military members. Moral injury …

An Investigation On The Aerodynamic And Vibration Characteristics Of A Dielectric Elastomer Membrane, Oluwatosin Ojo

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Dielectric elastomer membranes are materially electromechanical transducers wherein they convert mechanical energy into electrical signals and vice versa acting as both an actuator and a generator. In this study, the aerodynamic and modal characteristics of the membrane are investigated both experimentally and computationally. VHB 4910 with conductive material of carbon grease used as an insulator on both surfaces are the specimens examined. From the experimental testing of the material, the resonance properties of the membrane are found. Computational analysis using a structural finite element analysis is used to obtain the modal response and study the effect of voltage application. A …

Behavioral Health Professionals’ Perception Of Anxiety Disorders Amongst African American Clients, Chantel K. Gant

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

Anxiety disorders are frequent and increasing across the United States including for ethnically diverse populations (Carter et al., 2012). There is a need for education in the community on anxiety disorders about indicators of anxiety, severity and therapeutic approaches that would be beneficial (Johnson & Coles, 2013). It is imperative to know the variation in anxiety for African Americans to aid in therapeutic resources and counseling designed for this population (Hopkins & Shook, 2017). Prior research includes more of a focus on behavioral health professionals’ perspectives in conjectural situations rather than actual clinical practice (Joy & Bartholomew, 2021; Lawrence …

Chemical Composition, Fate, And Toxicity Of Dissolved Hydrocarbon Oxidation Products In High Latitude Aquatic Environments, Maxwell Louis Harsha

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Oil spilled in aquatic environments undergoes abiotic and biotic oxidation processes that produce hydrocarbon oxidation products (HOPs). HOPs rapidly diffuse in the water column, persisting and readily bioavailable to aquatic organisms. Characterizing HOPs is challenging because most of the mixture resides in the unresolved complex mixture (UCM). Understanding of the formation, fate, and toxicity of HOPs in high latitude environments remains limited. This research addresses these gaps through a comprehensive experimental approach, utilizing various analytical techniques including nonvolatile dissolved organic carbon (NVDOC) analysis, ultrahigh-resolution mass spectrometry, tandem mass spectrometry, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, and fluorescence excitation-emission matrix spectroscopy. Additionally, …

Muslim International Students’ Perception Of Islamophobia In Their Immigration Journey To The U.S.: A Case Study, Sheri Beyer

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This study serves as an impetus for universities to address improving pre-arrival services and procedures for Muslim international students and a resource for practitioners and lawmakers to examine current policies specifically through the lens of Critical Race and Critical Muslim Theory. Policymakers can examine the effects of Islamophobia on international students and how it affects higher education, communities, and the economies.

Caregiver Engagement In Their Child's Mental Health Rehabilitation Services: Utilizing The Hoover-Dempsey And Sandler Model Of Parental Involvement (2005) In Mental Health Counseling, Andrew Q. Holmgren

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Mental Health Rehabilitation (MHR) is a widely utilized community mental health service in Louisiana for low-income families. However, treatment adherence, including caregiver engagement for minor clients, is often low. There is still limited understanding of the barriers to caregiver engagement and few tools to assess these barriers and engagement behaviors. Clinicians, caregivers, and clients currently engaged in MHR services completed a modified version of the Parent Involvement Project Questionnaire (PIPQ) to determine if this scale and its associated theory, the Hoover-Dempsey and Sandler Model of Parental Involvement (2005), can be used in a mental health counseling format to assess for …

Breaking Through: A Study Of Educators In All-Male Classrooms And The Instructional Decisions They Use To Bridge The Gender Academic Achievement Gap, Kelly M. Clark

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

In reviewing academic achievement gaps across United States school districts, educational research samples show deviations between males and females with males statistically outperforming females in math while females typically outperform males in reading and language arts. With strict American educational policies set in place to promote equality and equity in the classroom, research and long-term results on the impact and possible benefits of male, single-sex classrooms in the American educational system are limited. This study seeks to explore educators’ best practices for teaching male students and effective strategies to cater to their different needs. By qualitatively studying the experiences of …

Investigation On The Effects Of Biofouling On The Boundary Layer, Adam N. Bacon

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This study is an investigation of the effect of biofouling on the boundary layer of a flat plate and a NACA 4-digit series foil. Three identical hydrofoils made of resin were placed in the Gulf of Mexico at Grand Isle, Louisiana, and observed and analyzed by marine biologists at the University of New Orleans for their species composition. The resulting biofouling that grew was primarily made up of barnacles and bryozoans. The foils were submerged in an open channel flume at zero incidence and subjected to a series of experiments whose arc-length Reynolds numbers ranged from approximately 13000 to 32000. …

Caribbean Christmas, Michael Krall

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

A simple Hallmark style Christmas script taking place in the Caribbean. Cole has developed an app used for the education of young students and moves to the Eastern Caribbean island of Saint Joseph, but his boss desires to use the app for data collection, threatening Cole's budding relationship and his new friends in community.

Towing Tank Trials Of Hydrokinetic Turbine Scale Model To Support Marine Energy System Verification, Shahab Rouhi

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

In response to the escalating demand for sustainable energy solutions and the critical reevaluation of conventional fossil fuels due to environmental concerns, this dissertation embarks on a comprehensive exploration of hydrokinetic energy as a promising alternative. The study delves into the underexplored domain of hydrokinetic energy, leveraging innovative methodologies for effective utilization and harnessing, particularly through the development and investigation of hydrokinetic turbines.

In the realm of hydrokinetic energy conversion, our research has exclusively concentrated on horizontal-axis turbines, distinct from other turbine configurations. Noteworthy is the adaptation of a conventional horizontal-axis wind turbine for water currents, revealing enhanced performance through …

Homelessness, Trauma, And Drug Use As Contributing Factors To Increased Sentencing, Elise N. Whitlock

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Mass incarceration has been a pervasive issue in American society with longstanding effects on individuals and their communities. Several factors have been shown to intensify these effects and contribute to the cycle of recidivism, such as homelessness, trauma, and drug use. The current study investigated the association between these and several other factors and the number of sentences an individual had received in their lifetime. A cross-sectional sample (N= 24,808, 25% female) of adult inmates from the periodic Survey of Prison Inmates was used to test these hypotheses. Exploratory factor analysis and subsequent regressions indicated a significant association between higher …

Development And Validation Of A Rule-Based Algorithm To Identify Periodontal Diagnosis Using Structured Electronic Health Record Data, Bunmi Tokede, Ryan Brandon, Chun-Teh Lee, Guo-Hao Lin, Joel White, Alfa Yansane, Xiaoqian Jiang, Elsbeth Kalenderian, Muhammad Walji

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

AIM: To develop and validate an automated electronic health record (EHR)-based algorithm to suggest a periodontal diagnosis based on the 2017 World Workshop on the Classification of Periodontal Diseases and Conditions.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Using material published from the 2017 World Workshop, a tool was iteratively developed to suggest a periodontal diagnosis based on clinical data within the EHR. Pertinent clinical data included clinical attachment level (CAL), gingival margin to cemento-enamel junction distance, probing depth, furcation involvement (if present) and mobility. Chart reviews were conducted to confirm the algorithm's ability to accurately extract clinical data from the EHR, and then …

Harnessing Eye And Face Movements: Bridging Technology And Human Interaction, Daniel Rubin

Master's Theses and Capstones

AbstractThe profound impact of non-verbal communication in the realms of psychology, virtual reality (VR), and automated systems; underscores, a critical inquiry: How can we effectively interpret and utilize non-verbal cues; for example, eye and head movements, to address current limitations in technology and ethics across various applications? This thesis explores the potential of eye and head movement techniques, as a transformative tool in enhancing diagnostic accuracy, user interaction, and ethical compliance in these fields. One significant contribution of my research is the identification and implementation methods of non-invasive diagnostic tools, in healthcare. Through, the advanced analysis of eye and head …

Exploring Player-Coach Relationships Through Competitive And Healthy Environments In Collegiate Sports, Westin Michaud

Theses and Dissertations

This study was designed to suggest ways to help create healthier player-coach relationships in collegiate sports by collecting data from student-athletes in the NCAA transfer portal. The student-athletes who were selected to participate have successfully transferred through the 2021-2022 Men's ice hockey transfer portal, which allows players to move to a new school and hockey program once in their NCAA careers. The study seeks to highlight the reasons student-athletes enter and eventually decide to transfer. Through the fundamental procedural leadership approach in Artifact Three, the findings will point to a healthier player-coaching relationship in collegiate environments by seeking to understand …

Dodea K-12 Student Perceptions Toward Adjusting To Math Curricula Discrepancies Among Base Schools, Jackie Zuiderhof

Theses and Dissertations

Students who are affiliated with the United States Armed Forces will transition every two to four years depending on their parents’ career. The students who move may have educational gaps in mathematics because of a United States Armed Forces move occurring in the middle of a school year. The problem of practice addresses the educational gaps that former students and teachers perceive occurring related to content knowledge and procedural fluency. The researcher used a mixed methods study to ask close-ended quantitative questions and open-ended qualitative questions. The research was conducted on the web-based platform of Facebook. The results of the …

Nurses' Perceptions Regarding Supportive Care In The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Brandi D. Garrett

Nursing Theses and Dissertations

NICU nurses are the primary supporters of NICU families and their infants, making it vital that nurses understand the impact of a NICU visit on families and how to improve the parental experience. The complex challenges begin at the NICU admission, where families are left bewildered and unprepared for the uncertainty that lies ahead. During the NICU stay, nurses support families by providing encouragement and empowerment as they navigate their new role as NICU parents. In addition, NICU nurses are advocates for supportive initiatives to help NICU families cope with challenges such as being away from their infant and better …

Electronic Health Records: Using Polarity Thinking To Explore The Relationship Between Technology And Nursing Practice, Debra Winckler

Nursing Theses and Dissertations

Building a robust information technology infrastructure has been recognized as integral in addressing national concerns about patient safety, healthcare quality, and healthcare costs. Federal efforts to promote the nationwide adoption and integration of electronic health records (EHRs) include the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act of 2009, which provided over $27 billion in federal incentives to healthcare organizations and providers to incorporate EHRs into healthcare practices. Medicare and Medicaid Electronic Health Record Incentive Programs, initiated in 2011, were enacted to expand EHR functionality, encourage EHR system upgrades, and establish nationwide use of certified EHR technology. Subsequently, …