American Studies Commons^™

The Role Of Extracellular Matrix And Matrix-Degrading Proteases In Neonatal Hypoxic-Ischemic Injury, Christopher C. Leonardo

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Improvements in medical care over recent decades have increased the number of premature and low birth weight infants that survive hypoxic-ischemic (H-I) insults. Because there is a rising incidence in diseases associated with these events, it is critical to develop effective therapies to treat the various resulting neuropathies. Extracellular matrix constitutes the majority of brain parenchyma. Lecticans and matrix-degrading proteases including ADAMTSs (a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin repeats) and matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) exert effects on cell viability and may be associated with either protective or destructive processes after H-I. Both ADAMTSs (Cross et al. 2006; Tian et al. 2007) …

Framing In Leadership Communication: Strategies, Breakdowns And Outcomes, Slaheddine Mnasri

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examined framing practices used by leaders who participated in the Capacity Day 2007 event, which is organized by the World Bank Institute, as part of its Leadership Development Program. The study examined strategic uses of framing as a meaning-making tool. The framing strategies identified in this study were accomplished through the strategic use of language. Furthermore, the study recognized the implied negotiations of frames made by the skilled 'framers' and found that situations are continuously 'reframable'. Unsuccessful framing attempts were correlated with the contradictions between what was said and what was eventually understood. The positive outcomes that followed …

The Competencies For Community College Leaders: Community College Presidents' And Trustee Board Chairpersons' Perspectives, Anthony M. Hassan

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

At a time when strong leadership is needed to guide community colleges forward, a major crisis seems to be stirring (Eddy & VanDerLinden, 2006). According to some estimates, 45% of community college presidents will have retired by 2007 (Shults, 2001) and an even worse prediction offered by Weisman and Vaughan (2002) predict 79% of community college presidents will be retired by 2012. Echoing this view, Amey et al. (2002) assert that there is much work to be done in preparing the younger generations of community college leaders with skills and competencies necessary to meet this leadership challenge.

There were two …

Teacher Efficacy And Student Achievement In Ninth And Tenth Grade Reading: A Multilevel Analysis, Anete Vasquez

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

More than 8 million of America's middle and high school students are struggling readers. Two-thirds of all eighth graders read below grade level, and the reading scores of high school students have not improved since 1974. Low literacy levels affect learning in all subject areas and impede student opportunity for future success. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 and the accountability measures associated with the Act have heightened public awareness of the deficiency in adolescent literacy. School districts are choosing to respond in one of two ways. Some school districts are opting to invest in teacher-proof curricula that …

Family Affairs Newsletter 2008-06-01, Jean Vermette

Family Affairs newsletter (2004-2016)

FAMILY AFFAIRS was a free, twice-a-month, social activities newsletter for the GLBTQI (gay/lesbian/bisexual/trans/queer/intersex) community, sent out around the 1st and 15th of each month. It covered the State of Maine only. The list was begun and maintained for many years by Jean Vermette in Bangor, and later operated by Zack Paakkonen of Portland. Over the years it evolved from a social activities newsletter into a business directory, classified ad service, and community bulletin board.

Epifaunal Assemblage Of A Newly Established Oyster Reef With Two Substrates, Ian M. Dow

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

An artificial oyster reef constructed in Boca Ciega Bay, off of the War Veteran's Memorial Park, St. Petersburg, Florida, in 2005, was used to compare a mined shell material to the typical oyster shell substrate used in artificial reef projects as an alternative substrate and cultch material. Half of the reef's veneer was the fresh oyster shell and the other half was mined material. Experimental trays were deployed on top of the sediment along the leeward reef base and sampled quarterly to test the hypothesis that fresh shell is the preferential cultch material of the Eastern Oyster, Crassostrea virginica, promoting …

Error Related Negativity In Parkinson’S Disease: A Test Of The Validity Of Mesencephalicdopamine Contributions To Ern, Craig A. Siders

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A model proposed by Holroyd and Coles (2002) stating that error related negativity (ERN) is caused by a decrease in mesencephalic dopamine output to the ACC was tested. A group of individuals with Parkinson's disease (N = 16) and an age and education matched group free from neurological disorder (N = 16) completed a card guessing task where the magnitude of monetary penalties and rewards for incorrect and correct answers was varied by block. Individuals with Parkinson's disease were tested after an overnight washout from dopamingeric medications.

The amplitude of the mid-frontal negativity elicited by feedback was analyzed with spatial …

Utilitarian Approaches For Multi-Metric Optimization In Vlsi Circuit Design And Spatial Clustering, Upavan Gupta

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In the field of VLSI circuit optimization, the scaling of semiconductor devices has led to the miniaturization of the feature sizes resulting in a significant increase in the integration density and size of the circuits. At the nanometer level, due to the effects of manufacturing process variations, the design optimization process has transitioned from the deterministic domain to the stochastic domain, and the inter-relationships among the specification parameters like delay, power, reliability, noise and area have become more intricate. New methods are required to examine these metrics in a unified manner, thus necessitating the need for multi-metric optimization. The optimization …

The Effects Of Depressed Mood On Academic Outcomes In Adolescents And Young Adults, Robert Christopher Jones

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The following dissertation investigates the relationship between depressed mood and academic performance (measured in terms of grade point average) in U.S. middle and high schools.

Utilizing data from AddHealth, the dissertation establishes Ordinary Least Squares, Two-Stage Least Squares (2SLS), and individual and sibling fixed effect regressions that attempt to control for confounding factors, including student motivation, personality characteristics, and parental inputs that are unobserved but may influence both mental health and achievement.

Study findings indicate that students who report feeling depressed do not perform as well academically as non-depressed students. Additionally, the degree of GPA impact increases with the severity …

Beard, Tara (Fa 283), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 283. Paper: "Teenage Cruising and Hanging Out" written by Beard for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Foster, Jon (Fa 288), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 288. Paper: "[Cruising]" written by Jon Foster for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Growth And Characterization Of Nanocrystalline Diamond Films For Microelectronics And Microelectromechanical Systems, Sathyaharish Jeedigunta

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Diamond is widely known for its extraordinary properties, such as high thermal conductivity, energy bandgap and high material hardness and durability making it a very attractive material for microelectronic and mechanical applications. Synthetic diamonds produced by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) methods retain most of the properties of natural diamond. Within this class of material, nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) is being developed for microelectronic and microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) applications. During this research, intrinsic and doped NCD films were grown by the microwave plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (MPECVD) method using CH₄/Ar/H₂ gas mixture and CH₄/Ar/N₂ gas …

An Investigation Of The Online Learning Environment In Higher Education Through The Observations And Perceptions Of Students Of Color, Marie Adele Boyette

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A need exists to gain a better understanding of how the online learning environment found in higher education is perceived by students of color. The research completed for this dissertation explored student participation in the online learning environment in higher education by examining the observations and perceptions of students of color. Along the way, the process of the research journey drew attention to the lack of inclusion of students of color in the literature and data collected about online learning, and pointed to the existence of the digital divide and its impact on graduate students of color and their participation …

Adhesion Comparison Of Low Dielectric Constant Thin Films Using Four Point Bend And Nanoscratch Testing, Daniel Vilceus

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

As the semiconductor technology moves further into scaled down device structures, modern day complexities in the fabrication processes become more prevalent. This thesis focuses on the issues associated with mechaincal and adhesion failure in low dielectric constant (low-k) thin films. In this thesis the four point bend test and nanoscratch test method was used for evaluating adhesion of boro-phosphate-silicate glass (BPSG) and tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) low-k thin films to silicon subtrates. Nanoindation tests were also performed on the low-k films to evaluate material properties such as hardness and elastic modulus. The sample preparation and testing set up for the four point …

Leible, Ann (Fa 290), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 290. Paper: "Butterflies, Cyclones, and Jewelry Trees: My Family Folklore" written by Leible for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Koenig, Helen (Fa 292), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 292. Paper: "My Family Folklore" written by Koenig for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Hammers, Clark Porter (Fa 244), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 244. Paper: "The Porter Family of Butler County from 1736 to 1950" written by Clark Porter Hammers for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Maltry, Janet A. (Fa 250), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 250. Paper: "Reminiscence" written by Janet A. Maltry for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Badley, Kristie A. (Fa 267), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 267. Paper: "My Family Folklore: Functionary Mechanisms" written by Kristie A. Badley for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Webb, Andra R. (Fa 263), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 263. Paper: "Folklore in Its Everyday Life" written by Andra R. Webb for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Hodes, Jane Ellen (Sachs), 1918-2009 (Sc 1633), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Small Collection 1633. Correspondence between Jane Ellen (Sachs) Hodes, Oakland, California and librarians at the Kentucky Library & Museum related to photos and papers in the manuscript collection of Hodes's mother and author, Emanie (Nahm) Sachs Arling Philips. Includes a 1940s letter from Philips to Hodes.

Microwave Frequency Doubler Integrated With Miniaturized Planar Antennas, Suzette Marie Presas

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this thesis the development of a high efficiency harmonic re-radiator, consisting of a diode doubler and conjugate-matched receive and transmit antennas, is described. Diode-based frequency multipliers and rectifiers, coupled with antennas, are of interest for quasi-optical applications, for energy-scavenging and for sensing applications. The device studied operates by receiving an interrogating signal at a frequency of 1.3 GHz and re-radiating a signal at 2.6 GHz. The primary goal of this research was to develop a passive, miniature and effective frequency doubler integrated with planar antennas. The system is referred to as a frequency doubling reflectenna, (FDR). Prediction of accurate …

The Nature Of Questioning Moves Used By Exemplary Teachers During Reading Instruction, Melinda M. Lundy

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study examines and describes the nature of questioning moves used by two exemplary fourth-grade teachers during reading instruction. Questioning moves are defined in this study as the ways in which teachers use scaffolding questions to engage students in talk about text. Another point of interest in this study was to determine how teachers perceive the influence of instructional materials on the language they use to engage students in talk about text.

This study was situated within a constructivist paradigm of inquiry and drew from the case study tradition for its design. Naturalistic methods of data collection were employed including …

Hall, Candy (Fa 245), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 245. Paper: "[Supernatural Experiences in the Life of a Green County, Kentucky Woman]" written by Candy Hall for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Identifying Patients With Cancer At Risk Of Experiencing A Fall While Hospitalized, Joann M. Heaton

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Inpatient falls are the most reported incidents in the acute care setting. Symptoms associated with a diagnosis of cancer and treatment may increase risk for falls. The objectives of this study were to identify the risk factors, and the most common risk factors, of adult patients with cancer who fell while hospitalized. A retrospective, matched, case-control audit of electronic medical records and occurrence reports was conducted for 30 patients who fell and 30 patients who did not fall while under the care of the inpatient oncology unit in a community hospital. Fall subjects and controls were matched by cancer diagnosis …

Advancement And Optimization Of An Electrospray Injection Based In-Vacuum Patterning System For Macromolecular Materials, Andreas Stark

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Electrospray ionization is a technique widely used in mass spectrometry. Almost every material, specifically large molecules like proteins or polymers can be ionized directly out of solution. During the ionization process molecules are not fragmented. In this work a prototype apparatus for creating three-dimensional patterns in a ultra high vacuum environment using an electrospray ion source was optimized for higher ion currents hence deposition rate by improving the core component of the apparatus, an electrodynamic ion funnel. The major improvements are a redesigned heated vacuum inlet, modified gas flow inside the ion funnel because of sealing the ion funnel against …

Two Essays On Corporate Governance⎯Are Local Directors Better Monitors, And Directors Incentives And Earnings Management, Hong Wan

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Previous literature have documented that the independent directors play a crucial goal in corporate governance but the research on the firm value and board independence remains inconclusive. In my dissertation, I examine the impact of independent directors' geographic proximity to corporate headquarters on the effectiveness of corporate boards and the motivations of board directors. Using a large sample of directors trading, I show that independent directors who live close to headquarters ("local director") earn higher abnormal returns on their trades than other directors, and that this advantage is stronger in small firms. Further, I find an inverse relationship between the …

Police Officers’ Perceptions Regarding Persons With Mental Retardation, Danielle M. Eadens

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the attitudes held by police officers towards persons with mental retardation with regard to the domains of knowledge, social willingness, affect and contact. It also investigated relationships among group membership and perspectives towards mental retardation. An analysis of relationships between the four domains was also completed. A descriptive correlational design was employed to survey police officers, pairing the Social Distance Questionnaire with a researcher-designed instrument consisting of open-ended questions aligned with each domain. The sample included one hundred and eighty police officers from five different bureaus in one county in Central Florida.

Results of the study indicate …

Yeats, Eliot, And Apocalyptic Poetry, Nancy Helen Fletcher

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Yeats and Eliot merit comparison because they wrote poetry that has been described as apocalyptic in the same historical period and in the same general geographic area but described entirely different visions. These particular works of Yeats and Eliot are appropriate because they represent two widely varying viewpoints on the causes, nature and desirability of what each author felt would be the coming apocalypse. Therefore, more can be learned by comparing the very different outlooks of the poems than by considering each poem separately.

Yeats sees humanity as both the victim and the beneficiary of a series of inescapable historical …

Patch Reefs In Biscayne National Park, Fl: Sediments, Foraminiferal Distributions, And A Comparison Of Three Biotic Indicators Of Reef Health, Alexa Ramirez

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Coral cover remains highest on patch reefs at the northern end of the Florida reef tract. The reasons for this trend are not well understood, but may be related to the protection from extreme variations in water quality parameters provided by the near constant presence of islands at the north extent of the Florida Keys.

Three indices have been developed based on Foraminifera and sediment constituents. Two of the indices, the FORAM Index and the SEDCON Index, were developed to indicate the suitability of a reef environment for continued reef accretion. The third index, the Photic Index, is an assessment …