American Studies Commons^™

American Memorials: A Conceptual Model, Mona Doreen Greenberg

Graduate Student Dissertations, Theses, Capstones, and Portfolios

Reverence for the dead is a defining human characteristic. Pyramids are no longer in style, but a variety of memorials mark the American landscape, commemorating lives lost in war, exploration, storms, and most recently, lives taken by acts of terrorism. The study of American memorials differs as widely as do the reasons for building memorials. The development of a conceptual model lends insight to the nature of memorials and informs future scholars who may want to investigate this very human phenomenon.

A literature review identified 10 constructs that appeared to be universal to memorials: visitors, memory and meaning, grieving, education, …

Stress Analysis And Mechanical Characterization Of Thin Films For Microelectronics And Mems Applications, Patrick Waters

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Thin films are used for a variety of applications, which can include electronic devices, optical coatings and decorative parts. They are used for their physical, electrical, magnetic, optical and mechanical properties, and many times these properties are required simultaneously. Obtaining these desired properties starts with the deposition process and they are verified by a number of analysis techniques after deposition. A DC magnetron sputter system was used here to deposit tungsten films, with film thickness and residual stress uniformity being of primary interest. The film thickness was measured to vary by up to 45 % from the center to outer …

Peyton, Sunny E. (Fa 219), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 219. Paper: "Stirring Our Brew: A Halloween Fairytale" written by Sunny E. Peyton for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Davis, Sarah (Fa 224), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 224. Paper: "Derby Day" written by Sarah Davis for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Study Of Fpga Implementation Of Entropy Norm Computation For Ip Data Streams, Subramanya Nagalakshmi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Recent literature has reported the use of entropy measurements for anomaly detection purposes in IP data streams. Space efficient randomized algorithms for estimating entropy of data streams are available in the literature. However no hardware implementation of these algorithms is available. The main challenge to software implementation for IP data streams has been in storing large volumes of data, along with, the requirement of high speed at which they have to be analyzed. In this thesis, a recent randomized algorithm available in the literature is analyzed for hardware implementation. Software/hardware simulations indicate it is possible to implement a large portion …

Cobb, Sheila Marie (Fa 223), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 223. Paper: "[Folk Medical Beliefs]" written by Sheila Marie Cobb for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Hexing (Fa 228), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 228. Paper: "Hexing" Personal Experiences That Were Possibly 'Hexing' Episodes." Written for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class. Author's name withheld at time of donation.

Poindexter, Karen S. (Fa 225), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 225. Paper: "A Ghostly Experience in Breeding, Kentucky" written by Karen S. Poindexter for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Norris, Keith (Fa 226), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 226. Paper: "Superntaural Storytelling Session and Subsequent Events Which Occurred in Jefferson County, Kentucky" written by Keith Norris for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

A Monte Carlo Approach For Exploring The Generalizability Of Performance Standards, James Thomas Coraggio

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

While each phase of the test development process is crucial to the validity of the examination, one phase tends to stand out among the others: the standard setting process. The standard setting process is a time-consuming and expensive endeavor. While it has received the most attention in the literature among any of the technical issues related to criterion-referenced measurement, little research attention has been given to generalizing the resulting performance standards. This procedure has the potential to improve the standard setting process by limiting the number of items rated and the number of individual rater decisions. The ability to generalize …

Family Affairs Newsletter 2008-04-15, 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.

Glynn, Luanne Carol Aylesworth (Fa 229), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 229. Paper: "[Folk Medical Beliefs About Illness]" written by Luanne Carol Aylesworth Glynn for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Edwards, Jennifer L. (Fa 220), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 220. Paper: "Folk Medical Beliefs Concerning Colds or the Flu" written by Jennifer L. Edwards for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Cecil, Pam (Fa 222), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 222. Paper: "Thanksgiving" written by Pam Cecil for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Manatee Sound Localization: Performance Abilities, Interaural Level Cues, And Usage Of Auditory Evoked Potential Techniques To Determine Sound Conduction Pathways, Debborah Colbert

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Three experiments investigated the ability and means by which Florida manatees determine sound source directionality. An eight-choice discrimination paradigm determined the sound localization abilities of two manatees within a 360° array of speakers. Five conditions were tested including a 3,000 and 200 ms, 95 dB, 0.2-24 kHz signal, a 3,000 ms, 80 dB, 18-24 kHz signal, a 3000 ms, 110 dB, 0.2-1.5 kHz signal and a 200 ms, 101 dB, 4 kHz tonal signal. A sixth condition attenuated the level of the 3,000 ms, 95 dB, 0.2-24 kHz signal in 3 dB increments until accuracy reached 75%. Subjects performed above …

Grant, Erin M. (Fa 235), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 235. Paper: "Goal Posts and Parking Lots" written by Erin M. Grant for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Black Beauty As Antebellum Slave Narrative, Bonnie L. Blossom

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Published in November 1877, Black Beauty is one of the most popular and enduring works of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The book, in which the eponymous narrator relates his life's story, sold well following its publication in England and in the United States; by 1985, sales were estimated at over forty million. While usually regarded as entertaining, Black Beauty has a strong crusading purpose: Anna Sewell herself said she wrote to improve the treatment of horses.

This study springs from an intuitive notion. While reading the 1845 Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, I could not shake …

Effects Of Bilingualism On Speech Recognition Performance In Noise, Mitzarie A. Carlo

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the effects of bilingualism on speech recognition in noise performance of young normal-hearing Spanish-English bilinguals across several signal-to-noise ratios (SNR). The estimated signal-to-noise ratio needed for 50% correct recognition performance obtained for bilingual listeners was compared to young normal-hearing monolingual listeners of both English and Spanish. The estimated mean SNR needed for 50% correct recognition was significantly higher (i.e., poorer) for the bilingual than for the monolingual English listeners. The Spanish language performance of the bilingual listeners did not significantly differ from that of the monolingual Spanish listeners. The bilinguals were then divided into subgroups based on …

Role Of Culture In Economic Development: China Study Of China And Latin America, Amira Fellner

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of my thesis is to demonstrate the economic development of China and Latin America. My reason for choosing these two regions for my study is because they are both Third World Nations. My intention on writing this thesis is to prove that culture and the informal business networks of China are the major forces of what is driving the Chinese economy ahead of Latin America.

I will explain how the definition of culture ties in with the economic society of both regions. In writing about culture, I will attempt to explain if there really is a difference between …

Boundary And Longing: Narrative Modes In Mary Shelley’S Frankenstein And The Last Man, Marie Hendry

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Boundary and desire surround the relationships in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and The Last Man. The narrative modes of Captain Robert Walton relate his separation to the rest of the world and his need for companionship. Yet, not any companionship will satisfy his longing for connection with a human being; his search revolves around the need of common understanding. This further separates the character of Lionel in The Last Man from humanity in that he is unable to find anyone left on earth after a series of plague, war, and atmospheric anomalies apparently wipe out the human race. His survival …

Poetry And Ritual: The Physical Expression Of Homoerotic Imagery In Sama, Zachary Holladay

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Sufi poetry of the Abbasid Caliphate (750-1258 CE/132-655 AH) exhibited a particular penchant for highlighting the relationship between humankind and God with homoerotic language. While the homoerotic nature of Sufi poetry has received considerable scholarly attention, the ritual expression of such literature has not. The ritual of sama was a practice that occurred in the Sufi institutions and incorporated various elements of the poetry examined. By listening to the poetry, in the form of song and often with accompanying instrumentation, the mystics would experience transient moments of altered state experiences, usually interpreted as moments of union with God.

This thesis …

Secret Servants: Household Domestics And Courtship In Eliza Haywood’S Fiction, Marisa C. Iglesias

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In Eliza Haywood's fiction, as in eighteenth-century Britain, social restrictions repress the sexual desires of upper class women and men. Therefore, the secret desires of this social class often rely on a different group: domestic servants. Sometimes acting as confidants and other times as active players in the scheming, these servants are privy to the inner secrets of the households in which they live. In Haywood's Love in Excess (1719), Lasselia (1723), Fantomina (1725), and The History of Miss Betsy Thoughtless (1751), the servant class plays significant roles in the narratives.

Since the role of the servant is the central …

Crystal Engineering Of Flavonoids, Padmini Kavuru

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Crystal engineering is attracting attention in the pharmaceutical industry because the design of new crystal form of drugs can improve their stability, bioavailability and other relevant physical characteristic properties. Therefore, crystal engineering of nutraceuticals such as flavonoids by exploring their hydrogen bonding interactions can generate novel compounds such as pharmaceutical cocrystals. Flavonoids are polyphenolic secondary plant metabolites that are present in varying levels in fruits, vegetables and beverages. The "French paradox", low cardiovascular mortality rate in spite of high intake of saturated fat among the Mediterranean populations made flavonoids an appropriate target for therapeutic researchers.

The work herein deals with …

Creative City And Fields Of Cultural Production: Ethnographic Perspectives Of “The Arts” In Tampa, James Kuzin

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Stimulated by the economic theories of Richard Florida (2005), the City of Tampa established the Office of Creative Industries (OCI) to oversee efforts to strengthen the presence and visibility of "the arts." This thesis presents ethnographic research focused on practices, and perspectives among members of the OCI's service population. From July 2006 to July 2007, I conducted fieldwork among a diverse group of stakeholders possessing a unique connection to the aims of the OCI. The central problem addressed in this research looks at the degree to which cultural change occurs from participatory, grass-roots initiatives, rather than ones emanating from "the …

(Re)Defining Relationships In A Mediated Context: Graduate Student Use Of Synchronous Computer-Mediated Communication, Michael P. Nicholas

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study consists of qualitative interviews with 8 graduate students about the use of synchronous computer-mediated communication (SCMC), or instant message (IM), programs in their interpersonal relationships. Participants were interviewed twice, once via an instant message program and once in a face-to-face setting. They were asked about their frequency of use, their use of multi-tasking, and the types of conversations they have via IM. Results of the interviews are discussed, with a concentration on the paradoxical nature of IM communication as impersonal, but at the same time, conducive to personal disclosure and intimacy.

Attractions And Negotiations Of Film Noir In American Cinema And Culture, James Ricci

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

America's embrace of film noir came swift and furiously, the popularity of noir exists even in contemporary cinema. I would like to explore the implications as to why film noir has become one of the truest forms of American Cinema, perhaps even exceeding the western, as well as the reasoning as to why the American people have exalted a type of genre which is known primarily for its ties with human vice and depravity. In this investigation of the populations intrigue with noir I will address instances in select noir films that illustrate specific moments of the philosophical frame works …

The Abyss In Allen Tate’S The Fathers: What Can Be Seen In The Darkness Of American Literature?, Barry T. Wireman

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

There is a thread of darkness that seems to run through much of the canon of U.S. authors. There are, at the heart of us all, the questions we ask ourselves about who we are and what we mean to ourselves and others and to the places where we have lived. I believe that most of the body of writings produced in this country attempt to answer these questions in some form. Allen Tate wrote The Fathers in 1932, nearly seventy years after the Civil War, or the War Between the States. Perhaps one of the most critical moments in …

Isolation And Functional Characterization Of A Dioxin-Inducible Cyp1a Regulatory Region From Zebrafish (Danio Rerio), Gary T. Zeruth

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Cytochrome P4501A1 (CYP1A1) is a phase I bio-transformation enzyme involved in the metabolism of xenobiotics via the oxygenation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) including the carcinogen, benzo(a)pyrene. Induction of the CYP1A1 gene is regulated at the transcriptional level and is ligand dependent with the prototypical 2,3,7,8,-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) being the most potent known inducer of CYP1A1 transcription. This process is mediated by the AHR/ARNT signaling pathway whereby ligand binds AHR in the cytoplasm allowing its translocation to the nucleus where it binds with its hertrodimerization partner, ARNT and subsequently binds DNA at cognate binding sites termed xenobiotic …

Garden Doors: Tempting The Virtuous Heroine In Clarissa And Betsy Thoughtless, Jamie Kinsley

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Gardens in Eliza Haywood's The History of Miss Betsy Thoughtless, and Samuel Richardson's Clarissa, or a History of a Young Lady provide a place for the characters to gain knowledge; but without preparation to receive this knowledge - if restrained behind the veil of decorum - they come to harm, rather than constructive awareness. A fine line exists between innocence and experience in these works. The ways in which the characters negotiate this line illustrates the complexities involved in the eighteenth-century understanding of virtue and how society attempted to mediate this issue. This negotiation can be seen largely in …

Detecting Financial Statement Fraud: Three Essays On Fraud Predictors, Multi-Classifier Combination And Fraud Detection Using Data Mining, Johan L. Perols

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The goal of this dissertation is to improve financial statement fraud detection using a cross-functional research approach. The efficacy of financial statement fraud detection depends on the classification algorithms and the fraud predictors used and how they are combined. Essay I introduces IMF, a novel combiner method classification algorithm. The results show that IMF performs well relative to existing combiner methods over a wide range of domains. This research contributes to combiner method research and, thereby, to the broader research stream of ensemble-based classification and to classification algorithm research in general. Essay II develops three novel fraud predictors: total discretionary …