American Studies Commons^™

Quebrada Communities In The Palmarejo Valley, Northwest Honduras, William A. Klinger

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The spatial relationships that exist between ancient and modern settlement and natural resources have the potential to suggest ways in which humans organized themselves into communities. This study evaluates the applicability of the concept, "quebrada community," for understanding human-environmental relationships in northwest Honduras during the Late Classic period (AD 650-900). Existing archaeological, quantitative, and geological evidence for quebrada communities are linked with spatial data on two contemporary local communities, Palmarejo and Palos Blancos. A geographic information system (GIS) is constructed and implemented in order to achieve this goal. It is argued that there are specific relationships that exist between ancient …

Rational Synthesis Toward The Design Of Functional Metal-Organic Materials, Jarrod F. Eubank

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Design of targeted functional solid-state materials for desired applications remains a scientific challenge. To overcome this hurdle, numerous synthetic strategies have been devised. It has been shown that molecules and/or clusters with pre-selected shapes, molecular building blocks (MBBs), can be utilized as units of chemical construction toward a final structure composed of those units.

Typically, in metal-organic structures metal-ligand directed assembly of the MBBs, via coordination chemistry in situ, leads to the final structure. The strength of the MBB formed and, consequently, the overall rigidity of the framework are essential in their use as porous materials for applications. Lack …

Brca1 185delag Mutant Protein, Brat, Amplifies Caspase-Mediated Apoptosis And Maspin Expression In Ovarian Cells, Joshua D. O'Donnell

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Ovarian cancer is a deadly disease that kills an estimated 15,000 women annually in the United States. It is estimated that approximately 10% of ovarian cancers are due to familial inheritance. The most commonly mutated genes in familial ovarian cancer are BRCA1 and BRCA2. It has been reported that cells carrying the BRCA1 185delAG mutation undergo an enhanced caspase-3 mediated apoptotic response. Here, we report on the transfection of cDNA coding for the putative truncated protein product of the BRCA1 185delAG mutant gene into BRCA1 wild-type human immortalized ovarian surface epithelial (IOSE) cells and ovarian cancer cells. Cells transfected …

A Comparison Of Community-Based Centers Versus University-Based Centers In Clinical Trial Performance, Cynthia R. Stockddale

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The success of a clinical trial is largely dependent on the clinical sites that enroll the subjects, complete the follow-up visits, and collect the data. Many clinical trials are conducted using multiple site locations. Choosing such sites to participate in a clinical trial is an important aspect of study implementation. In the past, multi-center clinical trials were conducted mainly using university-based centers. In the last few decades, private practice, or community-based, centers have been included more often in clinical trial research. As more community-based centers participate in clinical trials, it is crucial to examine how these centers might differ from …

Association Among Neonatal Mortality, Weekend Or Nighttime Admissions And Staffing In A Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Leisa J. Stanley

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the time of admission to a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and its association with in-hospital mortality among a cohort of neonates at a regional perinatal center. Two different time points were considered: admissions on the weekend versus the weekday and admissions during the nighttime shift versus the day shift. The secondary purpose of the study was to investigate if registered nurse staffing affected this association between NICU admission day or admission time and in-hospital death.

Three separate databases were used which contained information on NICU admissions, hospital deliveries and nurse staffing. …

Coburn, Rhonda (Fa 212), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 212. Paper: "Famous Ghost Legends at Western Kentucky University" written by Rhonda Coburn for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project

Forecasting Models For Economic And Environmental Applications, Shou Hsing Shih

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The object of the present study is to introduce three analytical time series models for the purpose of developing more effective economic and environmental forecasting models, among others. Given a stochastic realization, stationary or nonstationary in nature, one can utilize exciting methodology to develop an autoregressive, moving average or a combination of both for short and long term forecasting. In the present study we analytically modify the stochastic realization utilizing (a) a k-th moving average, (b) a k-th weighted moving average and (c) a k-th exponential weighted moving average processes. Thus, we proceed in developing the appropriate …

Framing Environmental Messages: Examining Audience Response To Humor, Shock, And Emotional Treatments, Kelly Diedring

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine individual reactions to environmental messages based on three message frames. The frames include shock or fear, humor, and emotional frames. The intent of the study was to document, through the use of pre- and post-questionnaires, individuals' reactions to the three types of messages by measuring attitude or perception change, credibility of the message, and importance of the issue.

In this study, baseline knowledge levels and beliefs about environmental issues were examined using a pre-questionnaire. How variable treatments affect attitudes or create perception change with regard to the environmental messages were explored. This …

Factors Influencing The Perceived Credibility Of Public Relations Message Sources, Titilola O. Epega

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study establishes a link between research done in the field of public relations on source credibility, communicator gender, message strength, and source affiliation. Research has established that source credibility is one of the most important factors influencing the acceptance of a message. For this study, source credibility was measured using three main dimensions: expertise, trustworthiness and attractiveness. Similar to many studies focusing on source credibility, this study focuses on the various attributes of the communicator or message source. This study uses an experimental procedure to investigate the relationships between source credibility, message strength, source affiliation, and communicator gender. Based …

Surface And Interface Magnetism In Nanostructures And Thin Films, Natalie A. Frey

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Nanostructured systems composed of two or more technologically important materials are useful for device applications and intriguing for the new fundamental physics they may display. Magnetism at the nanoscale is dominated by size and surface effects which combined with other media lead to new spin dynamics and interfacial coupling phenomena. These new properties may prove to be useful for optimizing sensors and devices, increasing storage density for magnetic media, as well as for biomedical applications such as drug delivery, MRI contrast enhancement, and hyperthermia treatment for cancer. In this project we have examined the surface and interface magnetism of composite …

“To Know Where I Have Got To”: The Postmodern Chronotope In Beckett’S Malone Dies And Coetzee’S Foe, Brian J. Mcallister

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study addresses two works of fiction--Samuel Beckett's Malone Dies and J. M. Coetzee's Foe--and is separated into two chapters. The first chapter analyzes the indeterminate nature of postmodern space within the two novels as related to M. M. Bakhtin's idea of the chronotope found in his work The Dialogic Imagination. The second chapter addresses the self-reflexive creation of this postmodern space within each novel's hypodiegetic narratives and discussions of narrative creation within each respective diegetic narratives.

In each novel, characters as authors create or discuss "inner" narratives that reflect upon the way chronotopes are created in fiction …

Cost-Effectiveness Of Epidural Steroid Injections To Treat Lumbosacral Radiculopathy In Chronic Pain Patients Managed Under Workers’ Compensation, Sheila Mohammed

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

No conclusive evidence exists to determine that epidural steroid injections (ESIs) provide lasting improvements in chronic pain due to herniated discs, in the Workers' Compensation population. Recently, an article by Armon et.al was published by the American Academy of Neurology, which stated that the routine use of ESIs is not recommended and that further studies are needed to elucidate this controversy (Armon, Argoff, Samuels, & Backonja, 2007).

In 1998, back pain in the United States was estimated to have incurred total health-care expenditures of $90.7 billion. Medicare part B. claims in 1999 for 40.4 million individuals amounted to $49.9 million …

Counting Or Discounting Television Information: An Examination Of Viewer Perceptions About Old-Age From A Cognitive Processing Perspective Of Cultivation Effects, Lynda Pasteur

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Cultivation theory (Gerbner & Gross, 1976) suggests that the cumulative effect of heavy exposure to television's underrepresentation and negative portrayal of people 65+ as sexless, insignificant, and comical can cause people to assume such television-like perceptions of the age group in the real world. This study's purpose was to explore not only television's cultivation effect on viewers' perceptions of the number and nature of people 65+, but also the psychological processes that are expected to mediate this effect. As an extension of Shrum, Wyer, and O'Guinn's (1998) study on the role of source discounting in cultivation, this quasi-experiment employed three …

Victorian Perspectives On The Supernatural: The Imaginary Versus The Real In Two Brontë Novels, Crystal Sidell

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The Victorians obsessed over the supernatural and this fascination with the otherworldly emerges in the literature of the day. With this thesis, I look at two nineteenth century novels that exhibit supernatural phenomena: Charlotte Brontë's Villette (1853) and Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights (1847). Both novels, I propose, utilize this aspect of the gothic tradition to enhance their characters' psychological realism.

With Villette, I examine the supernatural as a fabricated experience. First, I study the protagonist's psyche and show how her emotional state directly contributes to the appearance of fantastic material. Specifically, I examine Lucy Snowe's childhood experiences in Bretton …

Population Densities Of The Cuban Treefrog, Osteopilus Septentrionalis And Three Native Species Of Hyla (Hylidae), In Urban And Natural Habitats Of Southwest Florida, Teresa Piacenza

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The Cuban treefrog, Osteopilus septentrionalis, is an invasive species in Florida that may be negatively impacting adult and larval native treefrog species through competition via direct predation. The purpose of this study was to determine the abundance and distribution of O. septentrionalis in urban, semi-urban and natural habitats. The distribution and abundance of native treefrogs within the study area, Hyla cinerea, Hyla femoralis and Hyla squirella, were also estimated and compared to that of O. septentrionalis. Treefrogs were captured using PVC pipes with two internal diameters, 1.9 cm and 4.45 cm, hung on three tree types, …

Digitally Implemented Interactive Fiction: Systematic Development And Validation Of “Mole, P.I.”, A Multimedia Adventure For Third Grade Readers, Denise Haunstetter

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

"Interactive fiction" has been used to describe many of today's multimedia products. In reality, there is not a universal understanding of what interactive fiction is or what it should entail. The meaning of "interactive" is often interpreted in different ways. Many stories are considered to be interactive because they are placed on the computer. Meanwhile, such stories may lack most of the essential qualities for good literature. Interaction fiction should be upheld to the same standards as traditional texts. Following this belief, this research covers the underlying theories of interactive fiction, examples of misleading "interactive fiction" studies, and guidelines for …

Organizational Culture In Children's Mental Health Systems Of Care, Jessica Mazza

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A cohesive organizational culture has been linked to positive outcomes in child-serving agencies, such as improved child-level outcomes and positive organizational climate (Glisson & Green, 2006; Glisson & Hemmelgarm, 1998; Glisson & James, 2002; Hemmelgarn, Glisson, & James, 2006). Although isolated studies of organizational culture have been conducted in individual agencies (child welfare and juvenile justice), no study has examined the organization culture of successful, holistic systems of care that involve the coordination of multiple agencies, such as child welfare, juvenile justice, mental health and education. Data collected from the three system-of-care sites selected for participation in Case Studies of …

Comparing A Low-Volume Piezometer To Traditional Wells In Evaluating Hydraulic Lag Caused By Low-Permeability Sediments, John M. Spencer

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Traditionally-constructed wells are commonly used to measure hydraulic head in all saturated systems, even in fine-grained sediments. Previous studies (Hvorslev 1951, Penman 1961) have shown that time lag in response to head changes between traditional wells and the surrounding fine-grained sediments can be a significant source of error. Time lag is caused by the time required for water to flow into or out of the well to reflect the appropriate change in head.

A low-volume piezometer was constructed to measure changes in hydraulic head without requiring a change in fluid volume within the piezometer by directly measuring pore pressure in …

The Benefits Of Interleaving Different Kinds Of Mathematics Practice Problems, Kelli M. Taylor

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In most mathematics textbooks, virtually all of the problems in each set of practice problems, or in each practice set, relate to the immediately preceding lesson - an arrangement described here as the standard format of practice. Alternatively, the problems within a shuffled practice set are drawn from numerous lessons. With the shuffled format, each practice set has two distinguishing features: within-session spacing, in which problems of the same kind appearing in a single practice set are separated by some period of time, and mixed practice, in which different types of problems are interleaved. Although previous studies …

Electoral Abuse In The Late Roman Republic, Howard Troxler

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Escalating abuse of elections was a hallmark of the collapse of the Republic that governed at Rome for nearly 500 years before it was swept away and replaced by emperors and Empire. The causes of the Republic's fall are well-explored, but electoral abuse was one of the agencies by which it was brought low - a "how" that helps explain the "why." The abuse of regular electoral form, practiced by all parties, inured the Romans to further and ever-widening abuse. In the end their elections - and the Republic - lost both meaning and independence. This is a controversial claim …

Cysteine Based Pna (Cpna): Design, Synthesis And Application, Sung Wook Yi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This report mainly discusses the development of the cysteine based PNA (CPNA), which is an analogue of PNAs. Peptide nucleic acids (PNA), a pseudopeptide DNA mimic, was discovered by Nielsen and his coworker in 1991. PNA is proved to sequence-specifically form a very stable duplex with complementary DNA and RNA strands through Watson-Crick base paring, and it is also capable of binding to duplex DNA by helix invasion. These intriguing properties of PNA implicated great potential for medical and biotechnical applications. Therefore, PNA has attracted many scientists in the fields of chemistry, biology, medicine including drug discovery and genetic diagnostics, …

A Place In Time: Maria Osborne And Her Daughters, Waterville, Maureen Elgersman - Lee (Ed.)

The Griot

No abstract provided.

Allan Bérubé: A Visionary Historian, John D'Emilio

Center for LGBTQ Studies (CLAGS)

I first met Allan in the spring of 1979. In the two preceding years, in the time he carved out from the odd jobs that kept him afloat, he had systematically pursued leads from Jonathan Ned Katz's Gay American History, in the process amassing his own trove of queer historical documents. One thick line of research especially delighted him. To his surprise, 19th-century San Francisco newspapers ran extended stories, amounting at times to almost mini-biographies, of "women who passed as men."

The John Muir Newsletter, Spring 2008, The John Muir Center For Environmental Studies

Muir Center Newsletters (1981-2015)

John Muir Newsletter University of toe Pacific, Stockton, CA Vdlume,18, Number 2 Spring 2008 _EI Reflections on Muir's 1868 Walk from Oakland to Gilroy A Study in Literature and Environment Howard Cooley Belmont, California "See how God writes history. No technical knowledge is required; only a calm day and a calm mind. " Yellowstone National Park Atlantic Monthly, April 1898 John Muir wrote extensively about his 1869 walk to Yosemite from Snelling in the Central Valley of California, and this was the story that was published as My First Summer In The Sierra in 1911; thus it is also the …

Family Affairs Newsletter 2008-04-01, 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.

Art As Propaganda In Revolutionary America And France: A Comparative Analysis, Megan Blair

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Historians should not limit themselves to studying political, economical, and social aspects of the American and French Revolutions, but should observe cultural factors, such as art, as well. Though wary of art as potentially corrupting, revolutionaries in both cultures employed it as propaganda, though focusing on different genres. In America, where formal art had not advanced either technically or in popularity, artistic propaganda was primarily exhibited through political cartoons, though a few examples of propagandistic portraiture do exist. Here, tradesmen, not trained artists, produced art. Contrarily, while there was an equally productive culture of political cartooning and pornography in France, …

The Design Of An Autonomous Recycling Robot, Eric Davidson

Grace Allen Scholars Theses

For my thesis project, I worked in a team with five electrical and a mechanical engineer, to design and build an autonomous robot. This robot needs to be able to locate, collect, sort, and store to recycle beverage containers to be able to compete in the 2009 IEEE Southeast Conference Hardware Competition. The robot consists of a U-shaped base, with a robotic arm with a front-loaded shovel connected to the arm. Ultrasonic pings are then used to find and position the robot towards the container. Then front sweepers are used to sweep the container into the shovel. To realize that …

Equality News (Spring 2008), Matthew R. Dubois

Equality news / EqualityMaine (2004-2008)

No abstract provided.

Review: The Monster Who Did My Math, Sharon Mitchell

Georgia Library Quarterly

Review of the children's book "The Monster Who Did My Math," written by Danny Schnitzlein and illustrated by Bill Mayer.

Review: The Death Of A Confederate Colonel: Civil War Stories And A Novella, Crystal Renfro

Georgia Library Quarterly

Review of the short story collection "The Death of a Confederate Colonel: Civil War Stories and a Novella," by Pat Carr.