Arts and Humanities Commons^™

The Effect Of Hydrogen On The Optical, Structural Properties And The Crystallization Of Gete2 Thin Films Prepared By Rf Magnetron Sputtering, Ke Cao

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Thin films of GeTe₂ were deposited on glass substrates using RF magnetron sputtering with various hydrogen flow rates in the growth chamber. Transmission data of deposited films were taken and used to determine optical constants: refractive index (n), extinction coefficient (κ), and absorption coefficient (α)) and the energies: E₀₄, E₀₃, Tauc band gap E[subscript]Tauc and Urbach energy E[subscript]U. An increase of these energies was observed with increasing hydrogen flow rate. This increase is interpreted on the basis of the density of state model proposed by Mott and Davis. An increase of network disorder due to the inclusion of hydrogen into …

Flavonoids As Modulators Of Amyloid Precursor Protein Metabolism And Alzheimer Disease Pathology, Kavon Rezai-Zadeh

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Alzheimer disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder pathologically characterized by deposition of ß-amyloid (Aß) peptides as plaques in the brain. Central to this AD pathology is mismetabolism of the amyloid precursor protein (APP). Recent studies suggest that flavonoids, a class of secondary plant metabolites, may be useful for the prevention and treatment of a variety of neurodegenerative diseases. The studies detailed herein, investigate the ability of two such classes of flavonoids, green tea derived catechins and 5,7-dihydroxyflavones, to modulate APP metabolism in "Swedish" mutant APP (APP_sw) models of AD. Studies showed that green tea derived (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) …

Quantitative Phase Imaging Microscopy With Multi-Wavelength Optical Phase Unwrapping, Nilanthi Warnasooriya

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation presents a quantitative phase imaging microscopy technique that combines phase-shifting interferometry with multi-wavelength optical phase unwrapping. The technique consists of a Michelson-type interferometer illuminated with any of three types of light sources; light emitting diodes, laser diodes and a ring dye laser. Interference images are obtained by using a 4-frame phase shifting method, and are combined to calculate the phase of the object surface. The 2π ambiguities are removed by repeating the experiment combining two and three different wavelengths, which yields phase images of effective wavelength much longer than the original. The resulting image is a profile of …

Evaluating The Efficacy Of The Developing Algebraic Literacy Model: Preparing Special Educators To Implement Effective Mathematics Practices, Sharon N. E. Ray

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

For students with learning disabilities, positive academic achievement outcomes are a chief area of concern for educators across the country. This achievement emphasis has become particularly important over the last several years because of the No Child Left Behind legislation. The content area of mathematics, especially in the higher order thinking arena of algebra, has been of particular concern for student progress. While most educational research in algebra has been targeted towards remedial efforts at the high school level, early intervention in the foundational skills of algebraic thinking at the elementary level needs consideration for students who would benefit from …

Three Wittgensteins: Interpreting The Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus, Thomas J. Brommage Jr.

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

There are historically three main trends in understanding Wittgenstein's Tractatus. The first is the interpretation offered by the Vienna Circle. They read Wittgenstein as arguing that neither metaphysical nor normative propositions have any cognitive meaning, and thus are to be considered nonsense. This interpretation understands Wittgenstein as setting the limits of sense, and prescribing that nothing of substantive philosophical importance lies beyond that line. The second way of reading the Tractatus, which has became popular since the 1950s, is the interpretation which most currently accept as the early Wittgenstein's view; for this reason I refer to it …

Minding The Gap: What It Is To Pay Attention Following The Collapse Of The Subject-Object Distinction, S West Gurley

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Contemporary studies of the phenomenon of attention uncritically suppose that the only way to go about observing attention is as a modification of consciousness. Consciousness is taken to be always intentional, i.e., distinguished by reference to an object-whether physical or not-toward which it is directed. Observers of attention therefore assume that attention is an intentional modification of consciousness. Such practices of observation, in virtue of the kinds of practices that they are, take for granted that the fundamental constituents of reality are subjects and objects. Edmund Husserl and Martin Heidegger (and Maurice Merleau-Ponty after them) discovered that belief in the …

Resiliency In Academically Successful Latina Doctoral Students: Implications For Advocacy, Katherine M. Fuerth

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Research indicates that the Latina/o population is growing in the United States, and more Latina/os are attending college, many do not continue their education beyond the undergraduate level, much less beyond the Master's level. Latinas in particular continue to be underrepresented in professional roles due to the small number of Latinas who obtain doctoral degrees. Although many Latinas do not continue their education or drop-out throughout their graduate schooling, some Latinas do thrive forward and are academically successful. This study aimed at identifying elements that fostered resiliency in academically successful Latina doctoral students, as well as identifying challenges or barriers …

Luminex Microsphere Immunoassay Offers An Improved Method In Testing For Antibodies To Eastern Equine Encephalitis Virus In Sentinel Chicken Sera, Kelly Ann Fitzpatrick

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Eastern Equine Encephalitis virus has a human mortality rate of 30% of those cases diagnosed, while 30% of those surviving infection remain with neurological sequelae for life (CDC.gov, 2007).

The use of sentinel chickens for surveillance of arboviruses that are known to use birds as a reservoir host, such as St. Louis Encephalitis (SLE), West Nile (WN) virus, Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) and Highlands J (HJ) virus, in Florida began with the Sentinel Chicken Arboviral Surveillance Network in 1978 (Day and Stark, 1996). This network enables the activation of an early warning system for citizens, as well as, county epidemiologists …

Multilocus Virulence Typing Of Clinical And Environmental Vibrio Vulnificus Isolates, Katrina V. Gordon

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The bacterium Vibrio vulnificus is an autochthonous inhabitant of estuarine waters and also found in shellfish such as oysters. It is a human pathogen of importance in the seafood industry, and can also infect recreational water users. Currently, recognized methods of detection rely upon isolation of pure cultures which requires at least 24 hours. To reduce the time needed for identification of the pathogen and simultaneously ascertain the virulence potential of the strains present, real-time PCR assays and sample processing procedures were developed (Chapter 1). These assays discriminate between type A (environmental, generally lower virulence) and type B (clinical, higher …

Regards Sur L’Être Et Le Paraitre Dans Trois Portraits Du Xviie Siècle, Martine J. Landis

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Introduced in French Salons as a parlor game, the literary portrait appears in mid Seventeenth-Century. It is similar to the literary portraits inserted in Roman à clé but it does not hide the identity of the subject behind a pseudonym, it depicts the individual as is. In a self-portrait subjects look at, observe, evaluate then describe themselves. They offer themselves to the gaze of others and propose a true reading of what they are. The self-portrait attempts to harmonize the appearance and the inner being, to render visible the essence of the person. However, in the Seventeenth Century, people reinvent …

Factors Affecting Message Intelligibility Of Cued Speech Transliterators, Katherine Pelley

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

While a majority of deaf students mainstreamed in public schools rely on interpreters, little research has investigated interpreter skills and no research to date has focused on interpreter intelligibility (Kluwin & Stewart, 2001). This thesis is the second in a series of experiments designed to quantify the contribution of various factors affecting the intelligibility of interpreters (transliterators) who use English-based communication modes. In the first experiment, 12 Cued Speech transliterators were asked to transliterate an audio lecture. Two aspects of these transliterated performances were then analyzed: 1) accuracy, as measured as the percent-correct cues produced, and 2) lag time, the …

Active And Passive Microwave Radiometry For Transcutaneous Measurements Of Temperature And Oxygen Saturation, Thomas A. Ricard

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this work we explore two novel uses of microwave technology in biomedical applications. Introductory material on the electrical properties of biological tissues is presented to form the groundwork for the basic theory behind both techniques.

First, we develop a technique that uses 60 GHz signals to detect changes in blood oxidation levels. Several atmospheric propagation models are adapted to predict oxygen resonance spectra near this frequency. We are able to predict and observe the changes in these levels as the blood ages up to 48 hours. Identical testing procedures performed using arterial blood gas (ABG) calibration samples with controlled …

The Acceptability Of Treatments For Adolescent Depression To A Multi-Ethnic Sample Of Girls, Nicole Caporino

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

An efficacious treatment is diminished in value if clients will not seek it out and adhere to it (Kazdin, 1978). Thus, the acceptability of a treatment to consumers is an important indicator of the quality/effectiveness of the treatment (APA, 2002). The purpose of this study was to examine acceptability of treatments for depression to adolescent females and to explore factors that might be associated with acceptability. Sixty-seven high school students (36 Hispanic and 31 non-Hispanic White) were recruited from communities in New Jersey and Florida, and interviewed by telephone. Participants were presented with a vignette describing a depressed adolescent and …

Fate Of Volatile Chemicals During Accretion On Wet-Growing Hail, Ryan A. Michael

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Phase partitioning during freezing of hydrometeors affects the transport and distribution of volatile chemical species in convective clouds. Here, the development, evaluation, and application of a mechanistic model for the study and prediction of partitioning of volatile chemical during steady-state hailstone growth are discussed. The model estimates the fraction of a chemical species retained in a two-phase growing hailstone. It is based upon mass rate balances over water and solute for constant accretion under wet-growth conditions. Expressions for the calculation of model components, including the rates of super-cooled drop collection, shedding, evaporation, and hail growth were developed and implemented based …

Performance And Perception: An Experimental Investigation Of The Impact Of Continuous Reporting And Continuous Assurance On Individual Investors, Anita Reed

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study was designed to examine the impact of different levels of reporting frequency (periodic versus continuous) of financial information, both with and without assurance, on individual investors in a stock price prediction task. Reporting was manipulated at two levels: periodic and continuous. Assurance was manipulated at two levels: no assurance and with assurance. In addition, a base level condition was included. The experiment was designed to collect data regarding both the investors' performance and their perceptions. Period one of the experiment consisted of the base level condition for all participants. Independent variable manipulation was implemented in period two, using …

Benzene Related Hematological Disorders: Evidence For A Threshold In Animals And Humans, James Mccluskey

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Significant benzene exposure has historically been associated with the development of a host of hematological disorders in humans and animals. In particular, benzene is known to cause disturbances of the peripheral blood, aplastic anemia and cancer of the lymphohematopoietic system. In 1928, the first modern report of an association between cancer and benzene exposure was published. This case report was followed by additional reports from around the world. In most instances, ailments resulted from long term, high level exposure to benzene found in glues, and through accidental industrial spills. Throughout the 1960's and 1970's, case reports accumulated linking benzene exposure …

Stable Carbon Isotope Discrimination By Form Ic Rubisco From Rhodobacter Sphaeroides, Phaedra Thomas

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Variations in the relative amounts of ¹²C and ¹³C in microbial biomass can be used to infer the pathway(s) autotrophs use to fix and assimilate dissolved inorganic carbon. Discrimination against ¹³C by the enzymes catalyzing autotrophic carbon fixation is a major factor dictating the stable carbon isotopic composition (δ¹³C = {[¹³C/¹²C_sample/¹³C/¹²C_standard] - 1} X 1000) of biomass. Six different forms of ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase or RubisCO (IA, IB, IC, ID, II, and III), the carboxylase of the Calvin-Benson-Bassham cycle (CBB), are utilized by algae and autotrophic bacteria that rely on the CBB cycle for carbon fixation. …

Face To Face: English Uses And Understanding Of The Beard In Early Virginian Contacts, Jacqueline Colleen Barber

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Many historians agree that categories of human division underwent a drastic change due to European New World encounters. The shift from religious divisions to ones based on ethnicity and skin color gradually developed in early modern Europe. Hence, before natives became "red," and Europeans "white" a period existed where the differences between these cultures were utilized in a variety of means to prove similarity and difference.

One element signifying difference during the early contact period was that of the beard. Hair as an identifier has a long history: through the middle ages, wildness was conveyed by hair and at times …

The Cumulative Effects Of Victimization, Community Violence, And Household Dysfunction On Depression And Suicide Ideation In A Cohort Of Adolescent Females, Katherine Best

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Recent scholarly efforts have sought to examine the cumulative impact of deleterious adverse childhood exposures on various mental health outcomes. Lifetime prevalence rates for depressive disorders are approximately 20% among adolescents. Depression is ranked as the leading cause for disability and fourth leading contributor to the global burden of disease in the world.

The purpose of this study was to determine the cumulative impact of adolescent adverse experiences on outcomes of depression, suicide ideation, and overall mental distress in a cohort of 125 adolescent girls receiving public assistance. The adverse exposures studied were personal victimization, household dysfunction, and community violence …

Microarray Analysis Of Streptococcus Mutans And Actinomyces Viscosus In Homologous And Heterologous Cultures, Steven Andrew Horton

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The oral pathogen Streptococcus mutans is a known etiological agent for dental root decay and coronal caries. It has been hypothesized, but not yet proven, that S. mutans expression of virulence genes in dental plaque may be influenced by its interaction with co-aggregating partners, notably Fusobacterium nucleatum and Actinomyces viscosus. Investigation of the suitability of mixed cultures of S. mutans with F. nucleatum versus S. mutans with A. viscosus proved that A. viscosus was a better target in the present laboratory setting. Furthermore, A. viscosus, a causative agent of mandible osteomyelitis and endocarditis, has been shown to have …

Systematic Analysis Of Structure-Function Relationships Of Conserved Sequence Motifs In The Nadh-Binding Lobe Of Cytochrome B5 Reductase, Glenn W. Roma

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

NADH:Cytochrome b₅ Reductase (cb5r) catalyzes the reduction of the ferric iron (Fe³⁺) atom of the heme cofactor found within cytochrome b₅ (cb5) by the reduction of the FAD cofactor of cb₅r from reducing equivalents of the physiological electron donor, reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH). Cb5r is characterized by the presence of two domains necessary for proper enzyme function: a flavin-binding domain and a pyridine nucleotide-binding domain. Within these domains are highly conserved "motifs" necessary for the correct binding and orientation of both the NADH coenzyme and the FAD cofactor.

To address the importance …

A Cross-Cultural Transformation That Drew Boundaries: Matteo Ricci And His Mapmaking In Ming China, Suet Yee Shery Chanis

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the cartographic works of Italian Jesuit Matteo Ricci (1552-1610), who spent his last twenty-seven years in Ming China. In particular, by focusing on Ricci's 1602 map, I examine the broader significance of Ricci's cartographic production to understand how it reflected early modern Chinese-European exchanges. In addition to the 1602 map, I use Ricci's letters to construct a framework for his cartographic involvement. In his writings, Ricci revealed his rationale for mapmaking and explained his collection of information. Only one year after his entry into China, in 1584, Ricci compiled a world map in the Chinese language and …

The Channel For Gay America? A Cultural Criticism Of The Logo Channel’S Commercial Success On American Cable Television, Michael Johnson Jr.

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Logo currently holds a self-described monopoly as the "Gay Channel for America." Logo stands alone as the single most concentrated national-level vehicle of LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered) visibility in the post millennial television era. The Logo Channel has reaped financial rewards from its strategy as a business entity, as LGBT American television viewers embraced its presence as a signifier to America that gays and lesbians have finally "made it".

First, any claim to a monopoly deserves critical attention for its place in mainstream television, for its business practices, and for the power it holds in representing and targeting …

The Development And Validation Of The Perceived Workplace Civility Climate Scale, Raymond Charles Ottinot

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The goal of this study was to extend the concept of safety climate into the aggression research domain. In order to address this goal I developed and validated the perceived workplace civility climate scale (PWCC), which assesses the extent to which employees perceive the importance an organization places upon managing and preventing acts of incivility and verbally aggressive actions in the workplace. The factor analytic results produced three factors: (1) Intolerance, (2) Response, and (3) Policies and Procedures. All dimensions demonstrated adequate reliability and correlated significantly to hypothesized stressors and strains. Lastly, correlation results (i.e., convergence) between self- and peer …

A Survey Of Ncaa Division 1 Strength And Conditioning Coaches- Characteristics And Opinions, Jeremy Powers

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The role of the Strength & Conditioning coach (SCC) has increased dramatically in collegiate athletics over the past 30 years. The SCC now spends more time with the athletes than even the individual sport coaches do because of NCAA rules. Despite the importance of the SCC, little is known as to what makes a good SCC and what a typical SCC is like currently. Limited amounts of research have been conducted to determine the characteristics and opinions of this specific population.

The main role of a SCC is to enhance athletic performance of the athletes at a university. They achieve …

Service Utilization Among Bereaved Spouses And Family Caregivers, Elizabeth J. Bergman

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

For family caregivers, response to the death of the care recipient is marked by a high degree of variability. In recognition of this variability, a range of services and interventions is available to assist individuals in the adjustment to bereavement. The present dissertation, consisting of three related studies, was conducted to examine the utilization of bereavement services by family caregivers.

The first study examined the role of psychological distress in the utilization of bereavement services by spousal caregivers in the Changing Lives of Older Couples (CLOC) study. The second study examined bereavement service utilization among dementia caregiver participants in the …

Identity, Desire And Spectatorship: An Examination Of Germaine Dulac’S La Coquille Et Le Clergyman, Jennifer A. Melko

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Germaine Dulac's 1928 avant-garde film, La Coquille et le Clergyman, based on a script written by Antonin Artaud, presents the idea of the woman as an object of desire, subjected to the male gaze through the cinematic process. Not only is the lone female character the object of desire of her two male suitors on screen, but she also becomes the object of desire for the presumably male viewer of the film, who has become a silent character in the film. Rather than simply being the spectator, the viewer's own identity becomes entwined with that of the on screen …

Kandinsky’S Dissonance And A Schoenbergian View Of Composition Vi, Shannon M. Annis

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this study, I clarify the relationship between Wassily Kandinsky's move towards abstraction in painting and his encounters with the music and theory of Arnold Schoenberg. Prior studies have concentrated on the similarities in their theories, but I examine Kandinsky [sic] idiosyncratic understanding of Schoenbergian concepts and the evolution of his engagement with music theory over the period of 1909 to 1914. I identify dissonance as the aspect of Schoenberg's music and theory that Kandinsky found most relevant to his own developing compositional theory for abstract painting. In music, dissonance is commonly considered to be combinations of tones that sound …

Toward The Synthesis Of Designed Metal-Organic Materials, Jacilynn A. Brant

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Metal-Organic Materials (MOMs) are an emerging class of crystalline solids that offer the potential for utilitarian design, as one of the greatest scientific challenges is to design functional materials with foreordained properties and eventually synthesize custom designed compounds for projected applications. Polytopic organic ligands with accessible heteroatom donor groups coordinate to single-metal ions and/or metal clusters to generate networks of various dimensionality. Advancements in synthesis of solid-state materials have greatly impacted many areas of research, including, but not limited to, communication, computing, chemical manufacturing, and transportation.

Design approaches based on building blocks provide a means to conquer the challenge of …

Two Essays On Multiple Directorships, Chia-Wei Chen

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation includes two related chapters that investigate the value of multiple directorships. In the first chapter, I focus on potential tradeoffs between the costs and benefits of multiple directorships held by outside directors and attempt to determine how firm characteristics affect such tradeoffs. It is widely believed that outside directors of a firm play important functions of monitoring and advising. As a result, the basic hypothesis of the first essay is that multiple directorships by outside directors can have different implications for firms that have different levels of monitoring and advising needs. Consistent with this hypothesis, the evidence suggests …