Arts and Humanities Commons^™

A Vision-Based Approach For Unsupervised Modeling Of Signs Embedded In Continuous Sentences, Sunita Nayak

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The common practice in sign language recognition is to first construct individual sign models, in terms of discrete state transitions, mostly represented using Hidden Markov Models, from manually isolated sign samples and then to use them to recognize signs in continuous sentences. In this thesis we use a continuous state space model, where the states are based on purely image-based features, without the use of special gloves. We also present an unsupervised approach to both extract and learn models for continuous basic units of signs, which we term as signemes, from continuous sentences. Given a set of sentences with a …

One More River To Cross: The Therapeutic Rhetoric Of Race In The Post-Civil Rights Era, Nigel I. Malcolm

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The rhetoric of W.E.B. Du Bois contributed both to a sense of group failure among blacks and a sense of individual failure. Du Bois also created a need to explain the reasons for the failure of the group, as well as that of individuals within the group, specifically those within a segment of the black population deemed the talented tenth. Today the talented tenth is more generally spoken of as those occupying positions within the black middle class. Explanations for failure among blacks as a group are generally of two kinds. The first posits that the failure blacks experience as …

A Theoretical Description Of The Vibrational Sum Frequency Generation Spectroscopy Of Interfaces, Angela S. Perry

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Our work investigates theoretical approximations to the interface specific sum frequency generation (SFG) spectra at aqueous interfaces constructed using time correlation function (TCF) and instantaneous normal mode (INM) methods. Both approaches lead to signals in excellent agreement with experimental measurements. This work demonstrates how TCF and INM methods can be used in a complementary fashion to describe interfacial vibrational spectroscopy.

Our approach is to compare TCF spectra with experiment to establish that our molecular dynamics (MD) methods can reliably describe the system of interest. We then employ INM methods to analyze the molecular and dynamical basis for the observed spectroscopy. …

A Fuzzy Logic Based Controller To Provide End-To-End Congestion Control For Streaming Media Applications, Bay Pavlick

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The stability of the Internet is at risk if the amount of voice and video traffic continues to increase at the current pace. While current transport layer protocols do work well for most applications, they still present some problems. TCP is reliable, tracks the state of some network conditions and reacts drastically to an indication of congestion. TCP serves data-oriented applications very well but it can lead to unacceptably low quality for streaming applications by multiplicatively reducing the congestion window upon a sign of congestion. The other main transport layer protocol, UDP, provides good service for streaming applications but is …

Facial Strain Maps As A Biometric Source, Sangeeta J. Kundu

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Current two dimensional face recognition methods rely on visible photometric or geometric attributes that are present in the intensity image. In many of these approaches a technique called Principal Component Analysis (PCA) is extensively used. PCA extracts the maximum intensity variations from the set of input images in the form of "eigen" faces which are used as a feature vector. In these approaches the intensity images used were mostly that of the subject's frontal face, which yielded promising results after doing PCA. These approaches however fail in the presence of facial expression, unstable lighting conditions and artifacts such as make-up, …

Cervical Cancer Screening Disparities In An Ethnically Diverse Population Of Women Residing In The United States In 1999: A Secondary Analysis Of Data From The 1999 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, Chodaesessie Wellesley-Cole Morgan

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Black American women have the highest screening rates for cervical cancer among all the ethnic groups in the United States. Even though evidence from the literature suggests that the number of deaths from cervical cancer in the United States could be reduced by preventive screening, this particular minority population still suffers disproportionately higher mortality from the disease than the other minority and majority populations in the United States. This study was proposed to investigate cancer screening disparities among different subpopulations of women residing in the United States during 1999, and to recommend public health interventions that could potentially increase cervical …

Perceived Competency In Female Primary Caregivers Of Infants And Toddlers With Medical And/Or Developmental Disabilities, Berney J. Wilkinson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Research has clearly demonstrated that variables associated with the family, child, and utilization of social supports relate to parent perceived competency. However, the research has failed to demonstrate which variable best predicts parent perceived competency. The primary goals of this study were to identify those variables that account for the most variability in parent perceived competency, to examine the relative effects of child characteristics on parental psychopathology, and to evaluate the moderating effects of social support on parent perceived competency based upon various parental characteristics. Participants for this survey study consisted of a convenience sample of 91 female primary caregivers …

Analysis Of Statnamic Load Test Data Using A Load Shed Distribution Model, Sonia L. Lowry

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In the field of civil engineering, particularly structural foundations, low-cost options and time saving construction methods are important because both can be a burden on the public. Drilled shafts have proven to both lower cost and shorten construction time for large-scale projects. However, their integrity as load-carrying foundations has been questioned. The statnamic load test was conceived in the 1980s as an alternative method of testing these larger, deeper foundation elements. Performing a load test verifies that the load carrying capacity of a foundation is agreeable with the estimated capacity during the design phase and that no significant anomalies occurred …

Effects Of Using Graphing Calculators With A Numerical Approach On Students’ Learning Of Limits And Derivatives In An Applied Calculus Course At A Community College, Arumugam Muhundan

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the effects of using graphing calculators with a numerical approach designed by the researcher on students learning of limits and derivatives in an Applied Calculus course at a community college. The purposes of this study were to investigate the following: (1) students achievement in solving limit problems (Skills, Concepts, and Applications) with a numerical approach compared to that of students who solved limit problems with a traditional approach (primarily an algebraic approach); and (2) students achievement in solving derivative problems (Skills, Concepts, and Applications) with a numerical approach compared to that of students who solved derivative problems …

Sputum Induction Literature Review And Proposal For A Protocol, Indrek Melder

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Sputum induction by inhalation of hypertonic saline has been used for more than15 years. It has become one of the most intriguing methods to study airway inflammation. It is the only direct, non-invasive method for measuring airway inflammation indices.Sputum induction has been used in the diagnosis of many respiratory illnesses including asthma, chronic pulmonary obstructive disease, tuberculosis, chronic cough, lung cancer and Pneumocystis Carinii on patients who are unable to produce sputum spontaneously. There are currently many different methods used worldwide to induce sputum, but there is a lack of one generally accepted gold standard method.

The proposed protocols for …

Human Umbilical Cord Blood Cells Migration To Stroke Cns Tissue Extracts And The Potential Cytokines And Chemokines Involved, Mary B. Newman

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Human umbilical cord blood (HUCB) cells consist of a heterogeneous population of cells, rich in hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells. These cells have been used in the treatment of various nonmalignant and malignant hematopoietic diseases. With in the last few years HUCB cells have been used in pre-clinical animal models of brain and spinal cord injuries, in which functional recovery has been shown. The properties of cord blood cells that could be important in cell transplantation (repair or replacement) of CNS injury or disease are currently being evaluated. The major focus of this study was to determine whether HUCB cells …

The Relationship Between Professional Training Experiences And School Psychologists’ Work With Parents Of Children With Adhd, Rebecca Sarlo

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between several school psychologist variables and overall engagement in parent training/education activities with the parents of children with ADHD. Specifically, school psychologists were surveyed regarding their general attitude toward parent-focused activities, role profiles, intensity of training, perception of barriers/facilitators, and frequency of engagement in parent training/education activities.

Participants included 163 school-based school psychologists in Florida who were members of FASP. Data were collected through the use of an Internet survey. Hypotheses were analyzed using correlations and a backward multiple regression analysis.

Results indicated that school psychologists in Florida were engaging …

Topology, Morphisms, And Randomness In The Space Of Formal Languages, David E. Kephart

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This paper outlines and implements a systematic approach to the establishment, investigation, and testing of distances and topologies on language spaces. The collection of all languages over a given number of symbols forms a semiring, appropriately termed a language space. Families of languages are defined by interrelations among words. The traditional classification begins with the syntax rules or grammar of the language, that is, the word-transformations by which the entire language can be produced from a single axiom, or starting word. The study of distances between languages as objects and of the topologies induced by language distances upon spaces of …

The Rapid Unexpected, Daniel Pantano

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

These lyric poems were written between August 2003 and June 2005 and bear witness to the human condition in all its facets, from birth and the first taste of lemon ice to exile and suicide. Within a landscape that encompasses many locales, the poems included here attempt to portray the particular to denote the universal and are always confronted by the ineffable connection between the two.

Virtual Cadaver Navigation System: Using Virtual Reality For Learning Human Anatomy, Abhijit V. Lothe

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The use of virtual reality (VR) for visualization can revolutionize medical training by simulating real world medical training procedures through intuitive and engaging user interface. Existing virtual reality based visualization systems for human anatomy are based on 3D surface and volumetric models and simulative systems based on model libraries. The visual impact as well as facilitation for learning are inadequate in such systems. This thesis research is aimed at eliminating such inadequacies by developing a non-immersive virtual reality system framework for storage, access and navigation of real human cadaveric data. Based on this framework, a real time software system called …

Effects Of Adoptive Transfer Of Beta-Amyloid Sensitive Immune Cells In A Mouse Model For Alzheimer’S Disease, Daniel Shippy

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

One major therapeutic target for preventing and treating Alzheimer's Disease (AD) is removal of excess β-amyloid (Aβ) from the brain. Both active and passive immunotherapies targeting Aβ have proven effective in reducing brain Aβ levels and improving cognitive function in mouse transgenic models of AD. However, these approaches can induce adverse neuropathologic effects and immunologic over-activation. Indeed, clinical trials of active Aβ immunotherapy in AD patients were halted due to development of meningoencephalitis, apparently resulting from wide-spread neuroinflammation. Here we show that a more restricted and specific immune re-activation through a single adoptive transfer of Aβ-specific T cells can provide …

Performance Optimization In Three-Dimensional Programmable Logic Arrays (Plas), Supriya Sunki

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Increased chip size and reduced feature size has helped following Moores law for long decades. This has an impact on interconnect length, which is resulting in chip performance degradation. Despite the introduction of new materials with Low-K dielectrics for interconnects, their delay is expected to substantially limit the chip performance. To overcome this problem the need for new technology has arrived. One such promising technology is the three-dimensional Integrated chips (3D ICs) with multiple silicon layers.

In this thesis, three dimensional integrated chip (3D IC) technology has been implemented on programmable logic arrays (PLAs). The two-dimensional PLAs are converted to …

Investigating Affective Dimensions Of Whiteness In The Cultural Studies Writing Classroom: Toward A Critical, Feminist, Anti-Racist Pedagogy, Allison Brimmer

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation seeks to help teachers understand the ways that affect is tied to the dominant ideology of white supremacy in contemporary U.S. society. It argues that affect—the complex confluence of feeling and judgment—is bound intricately to racism, sexism, classism, heterosexism, etc. In this work I attempt to deconstruct the social construction of affect that fuels dominant white ideology— what some scholars call whiteness—in the context of white teachers and students in the cultural studies writing classroom. With the lofty yet ultimately empowering goal of effecting anti-racist change in the classroom and in the profession, I trace affective dimensions of …

Negotiating Curricular Boundaries And Sexual Orientation: The Lived Experiences Of Gay Secondary Teachers In West Central Florida, Jr., James B Mayo Jr.

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

There is little known about the daily lives of gay teachers at school. Studies have been conducted in this area, but the wide range of individual life experiences makes it difficult to define the gay teacher experience. Gay teachers geographic location, gender, age,and race, are a few of those factors that will have a direct influence upon their lives.Therefore, I believe more focused, regional or case studies will yield better understandings of the lives that gay teachers lead at school.

Until now, no other study had investigated the lives of gay teachers in West Central Florida. I decided to focus …

Design And Test Of Lead-Zirconate-Titanate Flexural Plate Wave Based Actuators, Sriram Akella

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Current MEMS development is driven by the need to develop various 'Miniaturized Total Chemical Analysis Systems ([mu]TAS), biological and chemical sensing, drug delivery, molecular separation, microfiltration, amplification, and sequencing systems. In this work, the use of flexural plate wave devices as an actuator has been investigated.

This research was done with the aim of developing a platform to build FPW devices for use in System-On-Chip applications. It is well known that acoustic forces generated by a flexural plate wave (FPW) device can cause fluid motion, by the principle of acoustic streaming. Also the proven ability of FPW devices to cause …

Role Of Stat3 In Regulating Hif-1alpha Expression And Tumor Angiogenesis, Jon J. Briggs

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Increased vascularization (angiogenesis) is a required adaptation for sustained tumor growth, and the primary mediator of de novo blood vessel formation is vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). The central transcriptional activator of VEGF is hypoxia inducible factor-1 (HIF-1), a heterodimeric transcription factor composed of an inducible HIF-1α subunit and a constitutively expressed HIF-1β subunit. In addition to HIF-1, it has recently been reported that signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (Stat3) is required for VEGF production and angiogenesis. Although it is known that Stat3 is an important mediator of many of the oncogenic signaling pathways that regulate HIF-1α, it …

Multi-Agent Workload Control And Flexible Job Shop Scheduling, Zuobao Wu

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In the make-to-order (MTO) industry, offering competitive due dates and on-time delivery for customer orders is important to the survival of MTO companies. Workload control is a production planning and control approach designed to meet the need of the MTO companies. In this dissertation, a multi-agent workload control methodology that simultaneously deals with due date setting, job release and scheduling is proposed to discourage job early or tardy completions. The earliness and tardiness objectives are consistent with the just-in-time production philosophy which has attracted significant attention in both industry and academic community. This methodology consists of the order entry agent, …

Measuring Transactional Distance In Online Courses: The Structure Component, Cheryl Sandoe

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Online or web-based courses have become prolific in our educational environment over the past several years. The development of these courses can be guided by systematic design models to ensure quality instructional design. Transactional distance, the theory that claims the distance an online student feels is more of a pedagogical distance than a geographic one, consists of three factors: structure, dialogue, and learner autonomy. Accurate measurement of these three factors is needed in order to substantiate its claims and to best determine the delivery implications. This study produced an instrument that measures the structure component of the transactional distance theory …

Iontophoretic Trans-Dermal Drug Delivery Through Sweat Glands, Vardan Ter-Antonyan

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Although an iontophoretic trans-dermal drug delivery is known as an effective means for drug transportation through the human skin, it is not widely used because of the various side effects that come to life due to a high applied voltage of up to 80V. This study introduces an alternative means of drug transportation through the skin by means of sweat gland activation and reduction of an applied voltage to ensure that the iontophoresis is safe. The skin conductance studies performed on the pulmar area using 50mM of NaCl showed that the activation of sweat glands led to the increase of …

School Experiences Then And Now: Are Parents' Perceptions Of Their Own School Experiences Related To Their Perceptions Of Their Child's Middle School?, Roxana M. Sanchez-Horn

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The current study explored the relationship between parents perceptions of their childs middle school and parents perceptions of their own school experiences. Additionally, it was important to research how these relationships differed among variables. The variables explored were (1) race, (2) parents own educational backgrounds (level of education), and (3) socio-economic status. Based on scales commonly used in the study of parent involvement, a survey (i.e., Parent Perceptions of Schooling) was developed. The survey consisted of two parts (i.e., Part I, How I Feel About My Childs School and Part II: Parents Own School Experiences Questionnaire) and a demographic section …

Dissertations: Past, Present, And Future, Matthew D. Barton

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Current policies and traditions regulating the dissertation process are responsible for a devaluation of dissertations and fail to recognize the economic and technological developments wrought by the emerging Internet. Some of the problems with the current process involve ideology, such as the insistence that dissertations be single-authored, original, and owned by someone. Others involve adherence to traditions that no longer serve a useful purpose, such as forcing authors to conform to a format better suited to a printed book than an online project. Finally, economical considerations such as the costs involved with purchasing and training authors to use advanced technology …

Robust Algorithms For Property Recovery In Motion Modeling, Medical Imaging And Biometrics, Yong Zhang

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The past two decades has witnessed growing interest in physics based techniques in computer vision, computer graphics and medical imaging. The main advantage of a physical model is its mathematical rigor and physical soundness, which makes it an ideal tool to study complex nonrigid motion. However, since a model based on continuum mechanics is computationally demanding, an idealized framework is often adopted where physical motion parameters are significantly simplified, which inevitably affects the accuracy and reliability of modeling results.

In this study, a new modeling approach is developed that features the reconstruction of actual material properties such as the Young's …

The Voices Of Sex Workers (Prostitutes?) And The Dilemma Of Feminist Discourse, Justine L. Kessler

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The existence of prostitution has been a longtime concern for many societies. It has also been a complicated issue within feminist discourse. Some women choose sex work as a viable economic option while others are forced into prostitution by traffickers and pimps and some are forced into it due to disadvantaged circumstances. The presence of sex work and prostitution is one of the occurrences that accompany a patriarchal capitalist system. Many feminists indeed argue that prostitution is a byproduct of a patriarchal capitalist system. The migration of women for sex work and the trafficking of women into prostitution cannot occur …

Gender And Generational Differences In The Self-Ratings Of Leadership Practices By Elementary School Administrators Within Four Florida Counties, Michele E. Polk

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Considerable research has been conducted over time on possible gender differences, with varying results regarding the existence and/or degree of differences. In particular, research on differences in leadership practices of men and women have abounded since the 1970s as women began to make their way into management and supervisory positions.

In todays work force, several generations can be found working together within a single work setting. Possibly, differences in leadership may be more generational than gender related; however, little research has considered both gender and generation as variables. This study adds to literature relating to the existence of gender and/or …

Exhaled Breath Nitric Oxide: Is There A Baseline Difference Due To Ethnicity?, Sunita I. Patel M.D.

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The air that humans exhale contains various chemical markers whose levels have been associated with various respiratory disorders. Therefore, measurement of these markers offers a potential method of examining airway disease status. Furthermore, exhaled breath offers the advantage of being easy to collect and non-invasive. Hence, these exhaled breath markers are potentially of significant clinical use in examining airways. Therefore, examination of exhaled breath has become the subject of intense study. Current research is targeting the development of methods and parameters for looking at these markers.

The goal of this cross-sectional pilot study was to consider the variability in the …