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- Title
- Exploring brand reputation in sustainable undergraduate enrollment at a public American university.
- Author
- Aboagye, Bright Da-Costa
- Abstract/Description
-
The decrease in the college-going population, along with the deregulation of the higher education sector has contributed to the consistent decline in undergraduate enrollment in several American universities and colleges, including the research site for this study. The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center (NSC Research Center, 2019) reported that the total enrollment of college students in the United States has decreased for 8 successive years (2011-2019), resulting in the closure...
Show moreThe decrease in the college-going population, along with the deregulation of the higher education sector has contributed to the consistent decline in undergraduate enrollment in several American universities and colleges, including the research site for this study. The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center (NSC Research Center, 2019) reported that the total enrollment of college students in the United States has decreased for 8 successive years (2011-2019), resulting in the closure or merger of some higher educational institutions. Scholars and strategic management professionals have proposed the use of strategic resources to help institutions achieve sustainable enrollment growth. Using a qualitative case study approach and the resourcebased view theory (RBV) as a theoretical framework, the study explored how select administrative stakeholders in a public university leverage brand reputation as a strategic resource for achieving sustainable undergraduate enrollment growth in the Southeastern United States. The RBV comprises four constructs (valuable, rare, inimitable, organize) that describe resources essential to distinguish an institution's brand. Eight participants were purposefully selected and interviewed. Findings from the study revealed that the administrative stakeholders employed several brand strategies including creating consistent brand messages, exploiting visual identity, highlighting high-impact practices, and leveraging the university's historic and geographic location to ensure sustainable enrollment. This study can inform higher educational leaders on how to strategically re-align their brand reputation management strategies to achieve long-term enrollment sustainability. Since this study's findings may be more relevant to public sector institutions, future studies can explore the same phenomenon among proprietary and faithbased institutions.
Show less - Identifier
- 1294314098, WFE0000771
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- The effects of box height on drop jump performance.
- Author
- Addie, Cameron Douglas
- Abstract/Description
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Depth jumps (DJ) are commonly implemented in plyometric training programs in an attempt to enhance lower extremity jump performance. However, it is unknown how different box heights affect jump height (JH) and ground contact time (GCT). PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to assess jump heights and ground contact time of depth jumps from various box heights. METHODS: Twenty college students who engaged in plyometric training (M = 13, F = 7; age: 22.80 ± 2.69 yr, height: 175.65 ± 11.81 cm,...
Show moreDepth jumps (DJ) are commonly implemented in plyometric training programs in an attempt to enhance lower extremity jump performance. However, it is unknown how different box heights affect jump height (JH) and ground contact time (GCT). PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to assess jump heights and ground contact time of depth jumps from various box heights. METHODS: Twenty college students who engaged in plyometric training (M = 13, F = 7; age: 22.80 ± 2.69 yr, height: 175.65 ± 11.81 cm, mass: 78.32 ± 13.50 kg) performed DJs from 30 cm (DJ30), 45 cm (DJ45), 60 cm (DJ60), 76 cm (DJ76), and 91 cm (DJ91). A 16 camera Vicon system was used to track reflective markers bilaterally to calculate JH (ASIS, PSIS), while a Kistler force plate was used to record GCT. JH and GCT were compared using a 2x5 (sex x box height) repeated measures ANOVA. RESULTS: There was no interaction but there was a main effect for sex where both JH (M>F) and GCT (F>M) showed a significant M bias. There was no box height main effect for JH DJ30 (.4934 ± .1126 m), DJ45 (.5003 ± .1134m), DJ60 (.4936 ± .1195 m), DJ76 (.4957 ± .1105 m), DJ91 (.4783 ± .1162 m) but there was for GCT where DJ30 (.3584 ± .0971 s), DJ45 (.3605 ± .10528 s) and DJ 60 (.3723 ± .1049) were not significantly different from each other but were all less than DJ76 (.3962 ± .1161) and DJ91 (.4209 ± .1154). CONCLUSIONS: Increasing box height beyond 60cm increased GCT but did not affect JH. Therefore, practitioners designing plyometric training programs that implement DJs in order to increase JH may stop at a box height of 60cm. This would keep GCT minimal which might play a role in other power and speed events.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2019
- Identifier
- 1145027700, WFE0000682
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Examining factors that influence student use of lecture capturing technology.
- Author
- Adrian, Todd Lee
- Abstract/Description
-
ABSTRACT: Higher education institutions implement lecture capturing technology (LCT) to provide students access to recorded course lectures. Consequently, institutions can experience barriers implementing LCT related to lack of student use of the technology. This study's purpose was to examine whether performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, and facilitating conditions influence undergraduate nursing students' decisions to use LCT after attending face-to-face lectures at a...
Show moreABSTRACT: Higher education institutions implement lecture capturing technology (LCT) to provide students access to recorded course lectures. Consequently, institutions can experience barriers implementing LCT related to lack of student use of the technology. This study's purpose was to examine whether performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, and facilitating conditions influence undergraduate nursing students' decisions to use LCT after attending face-to-face lectures at a state college in Florida. The unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) served as the theoretical framework. This study incorporated a quantitative correlational design and used a modified UTAUT survey instrument to determine if there are statistically significant relationships among the UTAUT constructs and LCT use. A linear regression was performed, and the results suggested there was a statistically significant relationship between the performance expectancy construct and use of LCT, r(116) = .647, p < .01, two-tailed; the effort expectancy construct and use of LCT, r(116) = .249, p < .01, two tailed; and the social influence construct and student use of LCT, r(116) = .255, p < .01, two tailed. A multiple regression analysis suggested performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, and facilitating conditions statistically significantly predicted student LCT usage, F(4, 113) = 21.32, p < .001. The R2 = .430 with a large effect size (f2 = .754). The results from this study add to the limited body of knowledge on LCT use and provide technology leaders with a better understanding of factors contributing to student use of LCT, which can be used for future research.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2019.
- Identifier
- 1127639386, WFE0000645
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Control of hybrid generation microgrids based on consensus algorithm.
- Author
- Albaz, Rakan Khaled Kamal
- Abstract/Description
-
Utility grid companies are currently facing many challenges. These challenges include energy management, efficiency, and power quality issues. It is well known that improving power systems' management, control, and quality results in better economic benefits, increased electronic device lifetime, and reduced power interruptions, leading to the satisfaction of utility and consumer. Many research efforts were done in the past decades focusing on power systems control, quality, and management....
Show moreUtility grid companies are currently facing many challenges. These challenges include energy management, efficiency, and power quality issues. It is well known that improving power systems' management, control, and quality results in better economic benefits, increased electronic device lifetime, and reduced power interruptions, leading to the satisfaction of utility and consumer. Many research efforts were done in the past decades focusing on power systems control, quality, and management. The need for more green energy resources has inspired these researchers to find ways to integrate renewable energy resources into the grid. The current grid is facing issues due to a number of reasons such as increased Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) types and number, increased loads' types and number, and the increased distance between the DERs, loads, and the grid. The study of this thesis aims at finding creative energy management and control solutions through observing and understanding the characteristics of the utility grid and implement these solutions in a simulation software called MATLAB/Simulink. Consensus-based control will be implemented in a hybrid generation microgrid which will support the grid and work on restoring voltage and frequency levels with optimum power sharing between the DER.
Show less - Identifier
- 1295678222, WFE0000777
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Influence of sand fence configuration on sand accumulation and wind flow.
- Author
- Allen Marley
- Abstract/Description
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Sand fences have become a standard use in beach management practices, and the relationship between sand fences, vegetation, and dune development has been widely studied. The New Jersey coastline has been the location for an extensive amount of sand fence studies and has provided a standard used by beach management along various coasts. However, the Florida Panhandle contains a different coastal environment to that of New Jersey but has not received as much focus. This study looks to assess...
Show moreSand fences have become a standard use in beach management practices, and the relationship between sand fences, vegetation, and dune development has been widely studied. The New Jersey coastline has been the location for an extensive amount of sand fence studies and has provided a standard used by beach management along various coasts. However, the Florida Panhandle contains a different coastal environment to that of New Jersey but has not received as much focus. This study looks to assess the relationship between local variables and fence configuration. The study will be conducted on The University of West Florida (UWF) beach property. The study site contained fifteen sand fences in five different configurations to monitor sand accumulation. Equipment used will include a weather station, anemometers, pre-constructed sand fences, and erosion pins. Once data has been collected, statistical analysis of trapping efficiency will occur. This study looks to expand the knowledge on sand fences by providing a narrow focus on the trapping abilities of various sand fence configurations. An expected outcome of the study is to gain a better understanding of the trapping efficiency of fence configurations in relation to local variables.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2019
- Identifier
- 1145028655, WFE0000683
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Trend features and additive feature selection methods for churn models under property and casualty insurance business paradigms.
- Author
- Anderson, Jacob Foster
- Abstract/Description
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ABSTRACT: The P&C Small Commercial Insurance industry presents a signiαcant policy retention challenge given the presence of independent intermediaries. Current retention models generally follow traditional relational marketing paradigms and therefore do not account for the complexities introduced by the presence of an independent intermediary. Given an anonymous policy dataset consisting of correlated, high-dimensional, and high-cardinality categorical/numeric data; current data mining...
Show moreABSTRACT: The P&C Small Commercial Insurance industry presents a signiαcant policy retention challenge given the presence of independent intermediaries. Current retention models generally follow traditional relational marketing paradigms and therefore do not account for the complexities introduced by the presence of an independent intermediary. Given an anonymous policy dataset consisting of correlated, high-dimensional, and high-cardinality categorical/numeric data; current data mining methods are used to construct a retention model with practical applications. Additionally, predictive features that capture intermediary-related information are engineered and designated as candidate features. Candidate features are selected for αnal model inclusion using various data mining approaches to feature importance measurement and feature selection.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2018.
- Identifier
- 1128024057, WFE0000646
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Arthur Penn and the doors of Avalon.
- Author
- Andrews, Zoe
- Abstract/Description
-
Fifteen-year-old Arthur Penn has had a rough week. Not only has her ghostly companion, Merlin, been disappearing and keeping more secrets than before, but the girl Arthur saved over the winter holiday from a dangerous encounter has attempted to take her own life. Unable to ignore her own guilt and sense of responsibility towards the girl, Mel-Rose, Arthur decides to visit her in the hospital, even if Mel-Rose can't respond. Only moments after arriving, a sudden blackout at the hospital is the...
Show moreFifteen-year-old Arthur Penn has had a rough week. Not only has her ghostly companion, Merlin, been disappearing and keeping more secrets than before, but the girl Arthur saved over the winter holiday from a dangerous encounter has attempted to take her own life. Unable to ignore her own guilt and sense of responsibility towards the girl, Mel-Rose, Arthur decides to visit her in the hospital, even if Mel-Rose can't respond. Only moments after arriving, a sudden blackout at the hospital is the perfect cover for a newly awoken Mel-Rose to lead Arthur to the hospital's basement. Arthur follows, only to discover that not only has Merlin possessed MelRose's body, but that something called a breach has opened in the hospital's basement, and Merlin needs Arthur's help fighting off the gremlins and plants which have appeared in order to close it. When all is said and done, Merlin finally explains what is going on to Arthur. Not only is she the reincarnation of the fabled King Arthur, but it is up to her and Merlin to shut the doors of Avalon before more magic spills into the world, polluting and mutating the world as they know it.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2019, 2019
- Identifier
- 1152882631, WFE0000687
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Transformative learning within social work diversity education: a mixed methods study.
- Author
- Anzaldo, Lauren Marie
- Abstract/Description
-
Recent societal shifts underscore the importance of preparing social work students for effective practice with diverse populations. Lack of cultural competence among social workers is a problem that can negatively impact communities (Sue et al., 2009). Diversity education is thus a fundamental component of accredited social work graduate programs. The purpose of this convergent mixed methods study was to explore the transformative impact of diversity education on the cultural competence of...
Show moreRecent societal shifts underscore the importance of preparing social work students for effective practice with diverse populations. Lack of cultural competence among social workers is a problem that can negatively impact communities (Sue et al., 2009). Diversity education is thus a fundamental component of accredited social work graduate programs. The purpose of this convergent mixed methods study was to explore the transformative impact of diversity education on the cultural competence of graduate social work students at a public university in the Southeastern United States. Transformative learning theory, which addresses the change process in education (Mezirow, 1991), offered a framework to explore emergent cultural competence for one cohort of 49 full-time social work students selected as a case study. A convergent mixed methods design with an embedded case study approach offered a multifaceted understanding of participant experiences. Extant field assessment data served as a quantitative data source. Classroom observation and interviews provided qualitative data. Data sets were analyzed then merged and compared. A paired-samples, two-tailed t test indicated a statistically significant difference in mean cultural competence scores on the field assessment between midterm (M = 41.43, SD = 8.12) and final (M = 47.18, SD = 9.63); t(27) = -5.9, p < .01, d = 0.65. Thematic analysis of qualitative data revealed themes of developing cultural competence as well as constructs and phases that are associated with transformative learning. Integration and interpretation of quantitative and qualitative data offered an expanded understanding of emergent cultural competence within social work diversity education.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2020, 2020
- Identifier
- 1233653956, WFE0000753
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Professional industry certifications as the guiding factor for cybersecurity course content delivery.
- Author
- Arenas, Victor Ramón
- Abstract/Description
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Cybersecurity faculty do not have the time to respond to the rapid and pervasive cybersecurity academic landscape. For faculty to respond to this challenge, they are expected to continuously adapt to remain competitive. The purpose of this descriptive phenomenological study was to explore the cybersecurity faculty's perceptions of their need to embark on an ongoing and sustained professional development to transfer commercial content in the form of professional certifications to the course...
Show moreCybersecurity faculty do not have the time to respond to the rapid and pervasive cybersecurity academic landscape. For faculty to respond to this challenge, they are expected to continuously adapt to remain competitive. The purpose of this descriptive phenomenological study was to explore the cybersecurity faculty's perceptions of their need to embark on an ongoing and sustained professional development to transfer commercial content in the form of professional certifications to the course content delivery at the Opportunity Learning Center (referred to hereafter as O.L.C.) in South Florida. This study's methods aligned with a qualitative descriptive phenomenological process supported by Carroll's (1963) degree of learning based on the concepts of opportunity to learn, quality of instruction, perseverance, and aptitude. The data I collected via interview described faculty's perceptions regarding these concepts to learn a pervasively changing subject. Five participants at O.L.C. perceived professional certifications as beneficial. Most professional certifications are valuable; besides, Florida's state's Department of Education encourages state colleges to include them. The data revealed that despite the likelihood of obtaining a certification, increases in faculty receiving high-level instruction, learning experience, and quality of teaching resources, faculty face a significant challenge in preparing and getting ready to obtain professional certifications. Despite the challenge, the study showed that faculty have no other option but to leverage various open educational resources to remain competitive. The study recommends expanding research to determine the correlation between the absence of professional development in the cybersecurity academic context and faculty's motivation to self-train to remain competitive.
Show less - Identifier
- 1294536245, WFE0000772
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Ground reaction force comparison between barefoot and shod single leg landing at varied heights.
- Author
- Arnett, Jocelyn Esther
- Abstract/Description
-
Landing is a common movement that occurs in many sports. Barefoot research has gained popularity in examining how shoes can alter natural movements. However, it is unknown how a single leg landing under barefoot conditions, as well as landing height, will affect ground reaction forces (GRF). PURPOSE: The purpose of this research was to examine the differences in ground reaction forces during a single leg landing under barefoot and shod conditions from various heights. METHODS: Sixteen female...
Show moreLanding is a common movement that occurs in many sports. Barefoot research has gained popularity in examining how shoes can alter natural movements. However, it is unknown how a single leg landing under barefoot conditions, as well as landing height, will affect ground reaction forces (GRF). PURPOSE: The purpose of this research was to examine the differences in ground reaction forces during a single leg landing under barefoot and shod conditions from various heights. METHODS: Sixteen female Division II collegiate athletes, 8 basketball (age: 19.88 ± 0.64 yrs; height: 1.77 ± 0.09 m; mass: 75.76 ± 12.97 kg) and 8 volleyball (age: 20.00 ± 1.07 yrs; height: 1.74 ± 0.08 m; mass: 72.41 ± 5.41 kg), performed single leg landings from 12 inches, 18 inches, 24 inches, and 30 inches barefoot and shod. An AMTI AccuGait force plate was used to record GRF. A 2 (condition) x 4 (box height) x 2 (sport) repeated measures ANOVA was performed to determine any GRF differences. RESULTS: There were no significant three way or two-way interactions for GRF (p > 0.05). There was also no main effect for sport (p > 0.05). There were main effects for footwear and box height (p = 0.000) where shod (2295.121 ± 66.025 N) had greater impact than barefoot (2090.233 ± 62.684 N). CONCLUSIONS: Single leg shod landing produced greater vertical ground reaction forces (vGRF) than during a barefoot landing. Current research continues to be contradictory on whether or not barefoot activities lower GRF; therefore, it is important to continue research in this area.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2020, 2020
- Identifier
- 1201541141, WFE0000709
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Infant mortality and structural determinants of health in Northwest Florida.
- Author
- Atwell, Ashley Lena Marie
- Abstract/Description
-
The Northwest Florida Counties of Escambia, Santa Rosa, and Okaloosa are connected by land and industry but possess very different public health outcomes. In this study, I examine the possible causes behind a greater-than national level infant mortality rate for two of the counties and why one of these counties possesses a much lower rate. Through semi-structured interviews and geospatial analysis, I examine indicators of health that contribute to higher infant mortality. A theoretical lens...
Show moreThe Northwest Florida Counties of Escambia, Santa Rosa, and Okaloosa are connected by land and industry but possess very different public health outcomes. In this study, I examine the possible causes behind a greater-than national level infant mortality rate for two of the counties and why one of these counties possesses a much lower rate. Through semi-structured interviews and geospatial analysis, I examine indicators of health that contribute to higher infant mortality. A theoretical lens of structural violence, habitus, and structural determinants of health brings attention to the invisible violence that is causing infant death within Northwest Florida. Research questions include the following: What factors are contributing to infant mortality in NWFL? How might health care access and literacy contribute to poor infant health outcomes? What interventions could help improve health literacy and health care access for those experiencing significant barriers to care in NWFL? Indicators that were found as possible contributors to higher infant mortality rates were poor health literacy, poor access to resources like health care, transportation, education, and poverty.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2019, 2019
- Identifier
- 1152891788, WFE0000688
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Decontextualized skill-cueing: teaching the overarm throw to music with counts.
- Author
- Atwood, Kym Yvonne
- Abstract/Description
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The overarm throw is a difficult multi-limb task because the overarm throw requires synchronized dexterity of the entire body. Research has determined that the inability to throw hinders children's participation in physical activities. The dynamic systems theory, which describes the interactions and processes that manipulate development, framed this quantitative study to investigate the effects of overarm throw instruction without a ball accompanied by verbal, directional cueing set to music...
Show moreThe overarm throw is a difficult multi-limb task because the overarm throw requires synchronized dexterity of the entire body. Research has determined that the inability to throw hinders children's participation in physical activities. The dynamic systems theory, which describes the interactions and processes that manipulate development, framed this quantitative study to investigate the effects of overarm throw instruction without a ball accompanied by verbal, directional cueing set to music with counts (decontextualized skill-cueing). A repeatedmeasures analysis of variance analyzed the process scores of the overarm throw for accuracy across three periods for 78 girls and boys in kindergarten and first and second grades. Data analysis found the main effect comparing the genders was significant, indicating a difference in the process scores between genders across the three periods. Descriptive statistics indicated the means for both sets of participants gradually increased after the pretest through the posttest and the retention test with the highest mean at retention test; yet, the means for the female participants were not as high on any test as were the means for the male participants. Further, the main effect between the control and treatment groups was also significant. Both groups' process scores increased over time from pretest to posttest; however, the control group's scores decreased during the retention test, as evidenced by the means and standard deviations. The study upholds the dynamic systems theory constructs that posit the body's multiple physiological components combine to create over-time skill variability in the body relative to the task, individual, and environment.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2021
- Identifier
- 1298724934, WFE0000797
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Postgraduation residency plans of sub-saharan African doctoral students in the United States.
- Author
- Ayivor, Sandra
- Abstract/Description
-
The international student population in the U.S. is rising annually. Upon graduation, the students make postgraduation residency decisions to remain in the U.S., return to their home countries, or move to a new destination. Research on international students' postgraduation plans points to various factors that influence a stay or go decision. However, research on postgraduation plans has not focused on doctorate recipients from sub-Saharan Africa. Consequently, educational, business, and...
Show moreThe international student population in the U.S. is rising annually. Upon graduation, the students make postgraduation residency decisions to remain in the U.S., return to their home countries, or move to a new destination. Research on international students' postgraduation plans points to various factors that influence a stay or go decision. However, research on postgraduation plans has not focused on doctorate recipients from sub-Saharan Africa. Consequently, educational, business, and government leaders lack information about this population that is crucial to address the effects of brain drain. This quantitative study adopted Lee's push-pull theory, which explains the push, pull, intervening, and personal factors that influence migration, to examine the postgraduation residency plans based on sex, age, marital status, dependent status, field of study, and economic classification of country. The responses to the Survey of Earned Doctorates (SED) were analyzed using Chi-square and logistic regression tests to answer the research questions. The results indicate that, on average, 60% of all sub-Saharan African doctorate recipients plan to reside in the U.S. postgraduation. Furthermore, the variables were statistically significantly associated with postgraduation residency plans. Age, marital status, dependent status, and economic classification of the country of origin were significant predictors of postgraduation residency plans of sub-Saharan African doctorate recipients. Leaders in sub-Saharan Africa and the United States can use the results for student support services and employment-related decisions. Future research should consider employing longitudinal research, mixed methods designs, and include other variables that may provide comprehensive knowledge of the factors that influence postgraduation residency plans.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2020, 2020
- Identifier
- 1201541186, WFE0000710
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Attitudes about menstruation: a qualitative study of implicit and explicit attitudes.
- Author
- Baldwin, Kaitlyn
- Abstract/Description
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Studies have been conducted to understand menstrual stigma, supporting the hypothesis that women internalize stigma and feel required to modify their behaviors to adapt to societal rules surrounding menstruation. Conflicting results have been reported regarding current attitudes toward menstruation, with some reporting that the stigma is still prevalent, while others have found no evidence of stigma. The purpose of the current research is to expand on these studies, further exploring the...
Show moreStudies have been conducted to understand menstrual stigma, supporting the hypothesis that women internalize stigma and feel required to modify their behaviors to adapt to societal rules surrounding menstruation. Conflicting results have been reported regarding current attitudes toward menstruation, with some reporting that the stigma is still prevalent, while others have found no evidence of stigma. The purpose of the current research is to expand on these studies, further exploring the prevalence of and reasons for menstruation stigma and to explore individual perceptions surrounding the discussion of women's menstrual cycles in college women and men. In a pilot study (Study 1) we found that, on a 7-point Likert scale, women and men self-report neutral to slightly positive attitudes toward menstruation, averaging slightly positive. In contrast, 87.7% of women and 76.9% of men have witnessed menstruation related bullying, and 52.3% of women have personally experienced it. These findings expose a discrepancy between experienced menstruation stigma and expected biases. As such, we modified our previous survey with more direct questions to better reveal the true attitudes of college students. The modified survey (Study 2) included questions regarding perceived stigma, internalized stigma, experienced stigma, and menstruation related stereotypes and an Implicit Association Task (IAT) to measure internalized menstruation stigma. We expected that Study 2 would replicate previous results regarding societal perceptions of menstrual stigma and personal attitudes toward menstruation trending positively. In addition, we expect to find that the IAT reveals participants to hold implicit negative associations about menstruation.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2020
- Identifier
- 1151766549, WFE0000684
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Unlocking "The womb of chaos": freedom and agency in Anna Letitia Barbauld's "A summer evening's meditation".
- Author
- Barcomb, Kyndall Jenee
- Abstract/Description
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Anna Letitia's "A Summer Evening's Meditation" exhibits a feminine poetics of space that portrays not only the poetic speaker but also the universe itself as distinctly feminine and feminist. This poetics genders the cosmos and permits the poetic speaker to express her longing to explore the universe just as it allows Barbauld to engage in the scientific discourse of astronomy. The speaker herself fulfills her longing as she exercises agency to explore and recreate space in terms of what...
Show moreAnna Letitia's "A Summer Evening's Meditation" exhibits a feminine poetics of space that portrays not only the poetic speaker but also the universe itself as distinctly feminine and feminist. This poetics genders the cosmos and permits the poetic speaker to express her longing to explore the universe just as it allows Barbauld to engage in the scientific discourse of astronomy. The speaker herself fulfills her longing as she exercises agency to explore and recreate space in terms of what Elizabeth Grosz identifies as a "freedom from" constraint or oppression and a "freedom to" respond with action (140). The poem's embracing "freedom to" is a radical move that eliminates the woman's need to attain freedom from an oppressor and instead urges her to perform her freedom through agentic action. Agency, in this sense, produces an embodied female subject and empowered female voice able to contribute to ways of knowing and being. As such, the action of "Meditation" functions metaphorically as a critique of eighteenth-century British culture that reinforced male control over scientific discovery, knowledge production, and agency. Reading Barbauld's "Meditation" through Groszean feminist theory re-envisions the poem as an argument for female freedom in its fullest, freest sense.
Show less - Identifier
- 1128868965, WFE0000647
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- The Haunting truth: crime mapping around cemeteries in New Orleans, Louisiana.
- Author
- Barrett, Elizabeth
- Abstract/Description
-
New Orleans, Louisiana is a famed tourist location in the United States. It is known for hosting elaborate Mardi Gras celebrations, creating mystery through the popularization of Voodoo, and calling itself home to major sports teams such as the New Orleans Saints. Alongside these claims to fame, New Orleans is also a city known for its high crime rate and elaborately designed cemeteries. Cemeteries are often a highly visited area within the city due to their unique history and architecture....
Show moreNew Orleans, Louisiana is a famed tourist location in the United States. It is known for hosting elaborate Mardi Gras celebrations, creating mystery through the popularization of Voodoo, and calling itself home to major sports teams such as the New Orleans Saints. Alongside these claims to fame, New Orleans is also a city known for its high crime rate and elaborately designed cemeteries. Cemeteries are often a highly visited area within the city due to their unique history and architecture. This project aims to educate tourists to the city about what crimes are most prevalent around the cemeteries in the city so they can stay safe while paying homage to the deceased of New Orleans. This project examines crime within a half mile radius of all New Orleans cemeteries from 2011-2018 by utilizing ArcGIS Pro to spatially examine the calls for service for the city during that time frame. By examining patterns of crime in these areas, tourists can be properly informed as to the crime they could experience while visiting the unique cemeteries in the city.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2020
- Identifier
- 1154769909, WFE0000705
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Constructions of Ramanujan graphs from classes of regular graphs.
- Author
- Beach, Ross Joseph
- Abstract/Description
-
In this paper, we are going to show the existence of Ramanujan graphs among different classes of graphs. The main areas of research surrounding these graphs consider their classification and existence for different degrees and orders. The focus of this body of work is to observe different classes of graphs, and to see if they fit the definition of Ramanujan graph under certain conditions. First, we examine whether all strongly regular graphs are Ramanujan. Then, different restrictions are...
Show moreIn this paper, we are going to show the existence of Ramanujan graphs among different classes of graphs. The main areas of research surrounding these graphs consider their classification and existence for different degrees and orders. The focus of this body of work is to observe different classes of graphs, and to see if they fit the definition of Ramanujan graph under certain conditions. First, we examine whether all strongly regular graphs are Ramanujan. Then, different restrictions are placed on the parameters of strongly regular graphs, and we explore whether those yield Ramanujan graphs. Some other results related to graph factors and some special graphs are observed as well.
Show less - Identifier
- 1298600893, WFE0000787
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Oral hygiene regimes: how oil pulling and conventional mouthwashes affect dental biofilms, focus on Cariogenic Streptococci.
- Author
- Bercier, Charles H.
- Abstract/Description
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This research addresses whether nontraditional oral hygiene regimes provide antimicrobial efficacy comparable to commercially available synthetic mouthwashes. A common interest among holistic communities is "oil pulling"--a practice originating in ancient Ayurveda oral hygiene. It consists of rinsing the mouth with vegetable oils, of which sesame and coconut oils are preferred, to enhance oral hygiene. This study focused on whether oil pulling reduces cariogenic Streptococcus mutans to the...
Show moreThis research addresses whether nontraditional oral hygiene regimes provide antimicrobial efficacy comparable to commercially available synthetic mouthwashes. A common interest among holistic communities is "oil pulling"--a practice originating in ancient Ayurveda oral hygiene. It consists of rinsing the mouth with vegetable oils, of which sesame and coconut oils are preferred, to enhance oral hygiene. This study focused on whether oil pulling reduces cariogenic Streptococcus mutans to the same degree as does common mouthwash. Volunteers above age 18 were to participate in this UWF-IRB-approved study. Participants would provide oral rinses of 20mL with sterile saline before and after treatments of Listerine®, or pulling oil; the rinses were transported to the lab to test for S. mutans and other oral bacteria. After the first round of treatments were complete, a 1-week "reset" period allowed normal microbial flora to re-establish, after which another treatment regime began; the cycle continued until all participants underwent all treatments. Samples were plated on a highly selective medium, favoring growth of S. mutans. Samples were also used to inoculate two broth dilution-tube series consisting of 1) a non-selective general medium TSB, and 2) a S. mutans-selective medium. Preliminary trials of this protocol showed that Listerine® reduced S. mutans and other oral bacteria by over 1-thousand-fold. Furthermore, almost all visible background growth was eliminated from the media plates after Listerine® treatment.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2020
- Identifier
- 1153936619, WFE0000704
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Increasing reading motivation among fourth-grade students in Title I elementary schools.
- Author
- Blake-Griffin, Crystal Dawn
- Abstract/Description
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Children's motivation to read decreases as they advance in grade level to upper elementary school. Only 35% of America's fourth-grade students achieved reading proficiency. There is a need for increased reading motivation; teachers can influence students' motivation to read with certain instructional practices. This qualitative interpretive case study explored how teachers increased students' reading motivation by implementing specific instructional strategies based on the constructs of the...
Show moreChildren's motivation to read decreases as they advance in grade level to upper elementary school. Only 35% of America's fourth-grade students achieved reading proficiency. There is a need for increased reading motivation; teachers can influence students' motivation to read with certain instructional practices. This qualitative interpretive case study explored how teachers increased students' reading motivation by implementing specific instructional strategies based on the constructs of the self-determination theory (SDT): autonomy, competence, and relatedness. According to Deci and Ryan (1985b), satisfying these three SDT constructs fulfills the basic psychological needs of students and determine their behavior as well as their motivation to complete tasks such as reading. The researcher conducted this qualitative interpretive case study in three Title I schools in one school district in the Southeastern United States. Participants were three fourth-grade teachers selected for exemplary implementation of motivational, instructional practices while maintaining achievement standards. The researcher collected qualitative data using two interviews with each teacher and two observations of instructional practices in each classroom. The researcher found that the a-priori strategies that addressed autonomy were choice, authentic tasks, and providing a rationale. Strategies that addressed relatedness were collaborative learning and relationships, and those that addressed competence were positive feedback, providing appropriate challenges with scaffolds, and time for self-selected reading. The emergent strategies were technology and reading, which addressed all three constructs. The researcher believes additional studies are necessary to learn more about how technology can address students' needs for relatedness, autonomy, and competence to motivate students to read.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2020, 2020
- Identifier
- 1233323326, WFE0000750
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Ropa, herramientas, y armas: comparison of the material assemblages of 16th-century Spanish probate records to the artifact assemblages at the Luna Settlement site and the Emanuel Point I Shipwreck.
- Author
- Bleuel, Casey Elizabeth
- Abstract/Description
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Probate records, documents including wills and estate inventories and auctions, are excellent tools for historical archaeologists who want to better understand the material possessions of past peoples. Probate and archaeological data are particularly amenable to comparison because they both quantify material culture. This thesis compares a sample of 76 16th-century Spanish probate records (both inventories and auctions) compiled in Spanish America to the archaeological assemblages of the 1559...
Show moreProbate records, documents including wills and estate inventories and auctions, are excellent tools for historical archaeologists who want to better understand the material possessions of past peoples. Probate and archaeological data are particularly amenable to comparison because they both quantify material culture. This thesis compares a sample of 76 16th-century Spanish probate records (both inventories and auctions) compiled in Spanish America to the archaeological assemblages of the 1559-1561 Luna Settlement site and Emanuel Point I (EPI) Shipwreck in Pensacola, Florida excavated by the University of West Florida. The probate records of a variety of Spanish individuals were chosen to reflect the types of people that would have inhabited the site including soldiers, sailors, carpenters, blacksmiths, doctors, artisans, women, etc. This work involves the transcription and translation of historical Spanish documents and the creation of a Probate Inventory Database and an artifact database. The primary goal is to demonstrate the utility of synthesizing material culture data from both the documentary and archaeological records as well as provide an analysis of the similarities and differences between these data sources using the Luna Site and EPI as case studies. An emphasis is made on the idea of "personal property" in 16th-century Spanish America. This project is a model for synthesizing quantitative data from documentary and archaeological sources.
Show less - Identifier
- 1298231842, WFE0000783
- Format
- Document (PDF)