American Studies Commons^™

Using Video Feedback To Improve Martial-Arts Performance, Angela Stefanie Benitezsantiago

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Video feedback has great potential to enhance performance in many settings. The following study used video feedback to enhance the martial arts performance of capoeira, an Afro-Brazilian martial art that utilizes acrobatic movements (revesado, au de costa, and macaco). A multiple baseline across behaviors was used for 5 participants where baseline conditions consisted of standard coaching consisting of instruction, modeling, rehearsal, and feedback and continued throughout the study. The intervention consisted of video feedback, in which the participants were filmed attempting a movement and immediately viewed the video afterwards, while receiving positive and corrective feedback from the instructor, using the …

The Role Of Lipoproteins/Cholesterol In Genomic Instability And Chromosome Mis-Segregation In Alzheimer's And Cardiovascular Disease, Antoneta Granic

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Several lines of evidence link Alzheimer's disease (AD) to atherosclerosis (CVD), including that elevated low density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol is a common risk factor. Development of genomic instability could also link the two diseases. Previous fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) analyses revealed a clonal expansion of aneuploid smooth muscle cells underlying atherosclerotic plaques. Likewise, cellular and mouse models of AD revealed tau-dependent mitotic defects and subsequent aneuploidy partly resulting from amyloid-beta (A&beta) interference with microtubule (MT) stability, and specific MT motors function. Moreover, AD patients develop aneuploid/hyperploid cells in brain and peripheral tissues, implicating similar mechanism that may lead to apoptosis …

Characterizing Wireless And Powerline Communication Channels With Applications To Smart Grid Networks, Sabih Guzelgoz

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Smart grid aims at improving the efficiency, reliability, security, and quality of service (QoS) of the current electricity grid by exploiting the advances in communication and information technology. In parallel to size of the electricity grid, smart grid communication infrastructure should cover a very large geographical area that may extend from remote generation sites to densely populated residential regions and inside buildings, homes, and electricity-power-system environments. In such an extensive communication network, different communication technologies operating on different communication medium are likely to coexist. Among the communication technologies available, wireless and power line communication (PLC) based solutions are comparatively attractive …

Design Issues In Magnetic Field Coupled Array: Clock Structure, Fabrication Defects And Dipolar Coupling, Anita Kumari

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Even though silicon technology is dominant today, the physics (quantum electron tunneling effect), design (power dissipation, wire delays) and the manufacturing (lithography resolution) limitations of CMOS technology are pushed towards the scaling end. These issues motivated us towards a new paradigm that contributes to a continued advancement in terms of performance, density, and cost. The magnetic field coupled computing (MFC) paradigm, which is one of the regimes where we leverage and utilize the neighbor interaction of the nanomagnets to order the single-domain magnetic cells to perform computational tasks. The most important and attractive features of this technology are: 1) room …

Magneto-Dielectric Polymer Nanocomposite Engineered Substrate For Rf And Microwave Antennas, Cesar A. Morales

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation presents the first reported systematic investigation on the implementation of multilayer patch antennas over Fe3O4-based polymer nanocomposite (PNC) magneto-dielectric substrates. The PNC substrate is created by the monodispersion of Fe3O4 nanopthesiss, with mean size of 7.5nm, in a polymeric matrix of Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS).

Recently, magneto-dielectric substrates have been proposed by several researchers as a means for decreasing the size and increasing the bandwidth of planar antennas. Nevertheless, factors such as high loss and diminished control over magnetic and dielectric properties have hindered the optimal performance of antennas. In addition, the incompatibility and elevated complexity prevents integration of conventional …

Selection And Implementation Of Technologies For The Re-Engineering Of An Existing Software System, Stan William Naspinski

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A major hurdle for any company to cross is the act of re-engineering software if they wish to stay relevant. With the speed that software and technology advances, it would be ignorant for any product to stagnate. With that comes the inherent difficulties of choosing which of the older technologies to keep (if any) and which newer technologies to employ in the re-engineered solution. Once that is covered, the actual implementation presents its own set of challenges to both the decision makers and developers in the process.

This thesis describes a case study, in particular the efforts put forth to …

Live Video Streaming From Android-Enabled Devices To Web Browsers, Justin M. Bailey

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The wide-spread adoption of camera-embedded mobile devices along with the ubiquitous connection via WiFi or cellular networks enables people to visually report live events. Current solutions limit the configurability of such services by allowing video streaming only to fixed servers. In addition, the business models of the companies that provide such (free) services insert visual ads in the streamed videos, leading to unnecessary resource consumption.

This thesis proposes an architecture of a real-time video streaming service from an Android mobile device to a server of the user's choice. The real-time video can then be viewed from a web browser. The …

Developmental Trajectories Of Self-Control: Assessing The Stability Hypothesis, James Vance Ray

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A key proposition of Gottfredson and Hirschi's (1990) self-control theory is the stability hypothesis which suggests that an individual's level of self-control, once established between the ages of 8-10, is stable over the life course. Empirical results from examinations of the stability hypothesis have been mixed. Prior tests of the stability hypothesis have employed aggregate assessment methods (e.g., mean-level and correlational analyses). Such approaches fail to take into account the possibility that individual developmental pathways may differ. This study employs individual longitudinal data over a four year period for 3,249 7^th to 10^th grade subjects to assess the …

Evanescent Wave Coupling Using Different Subwavelength Gratings For A Mems Accelerometer, Al-Aakhir A. Rogers

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A novel technique of coupling near-field evanescent waves by means of variable period subwavelength gratings (1.2 ìm and 1.0 ìm), using a 1.55 ìm infrared semiconductor laser is presented for the use of an optical MEMS accelerometer. The subwavelength gratings were fabricated on both glass and silicon substrates respectively.

Optical simulation of the subwavelength gratings was carried out to obtain the maximum coupling efficiency of the two subwavelength gratings; the grating thickness, grating width, and the grating separation were optimized. This was performed for both silicon and glass substrates.

The simulations were used to determine the total system noise, including …

Design, Synthesis And Test Of Reversible Circuits For Emerging Nanotechnologies, Himanshu Thapliyal

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Reversible circuits are similar to conventional logic circuits except that they are built from reversible gates. In reversible gates, there is a unique, one-to-one mapping between the inputs and outputs, not the case with conventional logic. Also, reversible gates require constant ancilla inputs for reconfiguration of gate functions and garbage outputs that help in keeping reversibility. Reversible circuits hold promise in futuristic computing technologies like quantum computing, quantum dot cellular automata, DNA computing, optical computing, etc. Thus, it is important to minimize parameters such as ancilla and garbage bits, quantum cost and delay in the design of reversible circuits.

The …

Log-Periodic Microstrip Patch Antenna Miniaturization Using Artificial Magnetic Conductor Surfaces, Ahmad Tariq Almutawa

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Microstrip patch antennas are attractive for numerous military and commercial applications due to their advantages in terms of low-profile, broadside radiation, lowcost, low-weight and conformability. However, the inherent narrowband performance of patch antennas prohibits their use in systems that demand wideband radiation. To alleviate the issue, an existing approach is to combine multiple patch antennas within a log-periodic array configuration [1]. These log-periodic patch antennas (LPMAs) are capable of providing large bandwidths (>50%) with stable broadside radiation patterns. However, they suffer from electrically large sizes. Therefore, their miniaturization without degrading the bandwidth performance holds promise for extending their use …

Smart Grid Functionality Of A Pv-Energy Storage System, Nenad Damnjanovic

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Renewable Energy will be the key to preserving the Earth's remaining resources and continuing this surge of technological progress that we have experienced this past century. New philosophies of how/when/where energy should be consumed and produced are attempting to improve upon the current grid infrastructure. The massive advancement in communications, renewable and control systems will allow this new-age electric grid to maximize its efficiency while reducing cost. Renewable, "green" energy is now at the forefront of innovation. As the world population increases, there will be a need to free ourselves from natural resources as much as possible. Advanced Energy Storage …

Physical Activity Promotion Among School-Aged Children Using Pedometers And Rewards, Kari E. Ek

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Physical activity is important for children as many children are considered overweight or obese. The benefits of exercise have been demonstrated in empirical studies across all age ranges (Horne, Hardman, Lowe, & Rowlands, 2009; Kelly et al., 2004; Louie & Chan, 2003; Southard & Southard, 2006). In the current study, a multiple baseline design across participants was used to assess the effectiveness of goal setting, reinforcement contingencies, and pedometers that provide feedback to increase step count of 5 participants. During baseline each participant wore a sealed pedometer to assess the average steps the participants took per day. After baseline, each …

Grouper: A Packet Classification Algorithm Allowing Time-Space Tradeoffs, Joshua Adam Kuhn

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis presents an algorithm for classifying packets according to arbitrary (including noncontiguous) bitmask rules. As its principal novelty, the algorithm is parameterized by the amount of memory available and can customize its data structures to optimize classification time without exceeding the given memory bound. The algorithm thus automatically trades time for space efficiency as needed. The two extremes of this time-space tradeoff (linear search through the rules versus a single table that maps every possible packet to its class number) are special cases of the general algorithm we present. Additional features of the algorithm include its simplicity, its open-source …

The Role Of Acculturation In Adolescent Mental Health And Academic Achievement: Mediational Pathways, Ariz Rojas

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated the different pathways by which acculturation may influence Hispanic adolescents' psychological functioning and academic achievement. Proposed mediational pathways included adolescent perceptions of mothers' and fathers' parenting practices, acculturative stress, self-esteem, academic support, and academic motivation. Participants included 116 9^th and 10^th grade students recruited from high schools and a parent for each student. Parents completed a measure of acculturation and rated their adolescents' psychological symptomology. Adolescents completed measures of perceived parenting (mother and father), a self-report of psychological symptoms, a measure of acculturation and acculturative stress, as well as ratings of academic support and motivation. …

The Performance Production Process Of An Outstanding High School Choir, Kathy K. Rolsten

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Despite the interest in and importance of producing high quality choral performance, the question "How is superior performance produced?" has not been addressed in a holistic and naturalistic way. A synthesis of previous research findings suggests that a combination of actions, interactions, relationships, and conditions produce superior choral performance. Yet a holistic examination of this multi-faceted production process has not been conducted. In order to identify all factors contributing to the production of superior performance and how these factors work together, I comprehensively examined an extreme case of superior performance. This extreme case of superior performance was one high school, …

Effects Of Solids Loadings And Particle Size Distribution On Siphon Ceramic Candle Filters, Danielle Renzi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In the rural areas of Madagascar only 29% of the population has access to clean water and 10% has access to improved sanitation. It has been estimated that environmental risk factors, such as inadequate access to clean drinking water and proper sanitation, are responsible for 94% of the diarrheal disease burden. This study was focused on testing a point-of-use technology called the Tulip filter, which is a siphon ceramic candle filter impregnated with silver. The purpose is to assess its feasibility for implementation in rural regions of Madagascar through a laboratory study performed at the University of South Florida.

The …

Decision Aid Models For Resource Sharing Strategies During Global Influenza Pandemics, Alfredo Santana Reynoso

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Pandemic influenza outbreaks have historically entailed significant societal and economic disruptions. Today, our quality of life is threatened by our inadequate preparedness for the imminent pandemic. The key challenges we are facing stem from a significant uncertainty in virus epidemiology, limited response resources, inadequate international collaboration, and the lack of appropriate science-based decision support tools. The existing literature falls short of comprehensive models for global pandemic spread and mitigation which incorporate the heterogeneity of the world regions and realistic travel networks. In addition, there exist virtually no studies which quantify the impact of resource sharing strategies among multiple countries. This …

The Relationship Between Statistics Self-Efficacy, Statistics Anxiety, And Performance In An Introductory Graduate Statistics Course, William Ray Schneider

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between statistics self-efficacy, statistics anxiety, and performance in introductory graduate statistics courses. The study design compared two statistics self-efficacy measures developed by Finney and Schraw (2003), a statistics anxiety measure developed by Cruise and Wilkins (1980), and a course performance measure. To view self-efficacy from two perspectives, the Current Statistics Self-Efficacy (CSSE) assessed student confidence in their ability to complete specific statistics tasks in the present, whereas Self-Efficacy to Learn Statistics (SELS) assessed student confidence in their ability to learn statistics in the future. The performance measure was the combined …

It Takes More Than A Whistle: Perceived Characteristics Of Effective School Based Coaches, Jenna Nicole Sage

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

School districts across the United States are moving toward tiered models of service delivery such as Positive Behavior Support (PBS) and Response to Intervention (RtI). A common practice in providing support for those initiatives is to develop leadership teams who are facilitated by an education-based coach. With a recent surge in hiring and transitioning of education-based coaches who support PBS and RtI it is increasingly important to understand the perceived characteristics of those coaches who are most effective at providing the social and academic outcomes associated with tiered models of service delivery. This dissertation will use a case study methodology …

Increasing Adolescents' Subjective Well-Being: Effects Of A Positive Psychology Intervention In Comparison To The Effects Of Therapeutic Alliance, Youth Factors, And Expectancy For Change, Jessica A. Savage

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated the variance in subjective well-being (SWB) of early adolescents (n = 54) exposed to a positive psychology intervention aimed at increasing positive affect and life satisfaction as well as decreasing negative affect through intentional activities (e.g., gratitude journals, acts of kindness, use of character strengths, optimistic thinking). Understanding how to increase SWB among youth is important because of its associations with positive indicators of psychological and academic functioning. However, prior research is limited regarding interventions targeting SWB in youth and excludes the relation of common factors of therapeutic change. Based on the literature regarding therapeutic change, youth …

A Sedimentary Record Of Regional Land-Use And Climate Change In The Manatee River, Manatee County, Florida, Patrick Schwing

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The Manatee River Watershed (Manatee County, FL) has experienced heavy anthropogenic development over the last 100 years and was relatively pristine previous to this development. The population growth within the watershed has surpassed the national trends and has doubled in the last 30 years. The heavy anthropogenic development has led to depletion in natural resources, nutrient loading, coastal erosion, and increased pollution. This study constructs records of sedimentological processes to compare the pre-development records to the past 100 years of anthropogenic development. The first portion of this study identifies specific changes in sedimentation attributed to anthropogenic activity in the Manatee …

Disciplinary Outcomes By Race And Gender In Schools Implementing Positive Behavior Support: Does Fidelity Of Implementation Reduce Disproportionality?, Therese Sandomierski

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Disparities in behavioral outcomes for minority students are a decades-old problem. Recently, the systems-level approach of school-wide positive behavior support (SW-PBS) and its growing research base have garnered attention as a possible remedy. Although SW-PBS has been shown to be effective in reducing a school's overall level of office discipline referrals (ODRs) and suspensions (OSS), and its success has been replicated in schools with large populations of minority students, effective outcomes across all groups of students within a school are not guaranteed. Some reports document increases in the magnitude of disproportionality even when ODRs and OSS decrease for the school …

Parent Involvement In Children's Schooling: An Investigation Of Measurement Equivalence Across Ethnic Groups, Heather Marie Scott

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Epstein et al.'s Theory of Overlapping Spheres of Influence focuses on the interaction and communication, or partnerships, among families, schools, and the community to bring the three closer together. The theory works in conjunction with Epstein's typology of parental involvement, which focuses on six types of involvement that are instrumental to a child's development and his/her school and educational success. These serve as the framework for the study and support the construct of parent's involvement in children's schooling.

The purpose of the current study was to conduct further validation analyses of an inventory designed to measure the construct of parent …

Computer Adaptive Rating Scales (Cars) For The Employment Interview, Greg F. Schmidt

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This research investigates the effectiveness of computerized adaptive rating scales (CARS) in comparison to the relatively more common behavioral anchored ratings scales (BARS) format. The current study sought to extend the body of psychometric research of CARS while investigating its potential for use in the employment interview. Using 43 videotaped interviews and supervisor job performance ratings, and constructing a new task-performance based CARS, it was hypothesized that employment interview ratings produced using the CARS format would yield significantly higher predictive validity coefficients than those produced by the BARS format. Results showed that while interview ratings produced in the CARS format …

The Impact Of Paternalism And Organizational Collectivism In Multinational And Family-Owned Firms In Turkey, Jennifer Schroeder

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This correlational study examined the influences of paternalistic leadership behavior (PL) and organizational collectivism (measured at the employee level) on employee reported LMX, job satisfaction and organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) in two types of organizations (family-owned firms and multinational organizations) in Turkey. Survey data were collected from (N = 154) employees in family-owned and (N = 159) employees in multinational firms (MNCs). Employees in family-owned firms reported significantly higher levels of PL, organizational collectivism, LMX, and OCBs. Further examination revealed additional differences by organization type, with the family-owned sample showing no significant relationships between study variables and OCBs, in contrast …

Analyses Of Language And Culture Beliefs And Reported Practices Of Pre-Kindergarten And Kindergarten Teachers Working With Dual Language Learners, Giselle Sanchez

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study explored the underlying factors involved in the Language and Culture Questionnaire (LCQ), a measure of lead pre-kindergarten and kindergarten teachers' (n = 119) beliefs and best practices for working with dual language learners (DLLs). The LCQ was found to have suboptimal reliability and all results herein should be interpreted with caution. The exploratory factor analyses suggested the LCQ weakly captures two factors, beliefs and practices. Frequencies of teachers holding the appropriate beliefs and implementing best practices were reviewed. The beliefs and practices scores exhibited a degree of relationship between each other. Finally, multiple regression designs were utilized …

Institutional Investors And Corporate Financial Policies, Ricky William Scott

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Institutional investors influence corporate payout and research and development (R&D) investment policies. Higher payouts are encouraged by institutional investors, especially in firms with high free cash flow and poor investment opportunities. They also positively influence stock repurchases, particularly in firms with high information asymmetry. The substitution of stock repurchases for dividends as a percentage of total payout is encouraged by institutional investors. Institutional owners persuade firm management to increase research and development (R&D) investment overall and specifically in firms with higher stock liquidity, higher information asymmetry, lower free cash flow, and better investment opportunities. Institutional investors decrease agency costs in …

A Multi-Methodological Study Of A Possible Syndemic Among Female Adult Flim Actresses, Candace Danielle Sibley

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Existing literature provides support for a possible syndemic among adult film actresses. Multiple studies emphasize that a combination of economic, social, and cultural issues work together in tandem to synergistically amplify HIV/STI risk in this vulnerable population. It is critical to acknowledge how the detrimental effects of the high prevalence of substance abuse, psychological distress, intimate partner violence, and childhood sexual abuse work together in a system to heighten HIV/STI risk among adult-film actresses. Additionally, issues including the retrogressive dynamic and unequal power and hegemony in the industry function as facilitators which lower the overall health profile of adult-film actresses. …

"Show Me The Money!": A Pecuniary Explication Of William Makepeace Thackeray's Critical Journalism, Gary Simons

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Scholars have heretofore under-examined William Makepeace Thackeray's early critical essays despite their potential for illuminating Victorian manners and life. Further, these essays' treatments of aesthetics, class, society, history, and politics are all influenced by the pecuniary aspects of periodical journalism and frequently expose socio-economic attitudes and realities. This study explicates the circumstances, contents, and cultural implications of Thackeray's critical essays. Compensatory payments Thackeray received are reconciled with his bibliographic record, questions regarding Thackeray's interactions with periodicals such as Punch and Fraser's Magazine answered, and a database of the payment practices of early Victorian periodicals established.

Thackeray's contributions to leading London …