bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Predictors of attrition and weight loss in obese treatment-seeking males and females
Authors:   , Bellace Dara Lauren , Wadden Thomas A. , Lowe Michael R.
Published: July 2021

An estimated 64.5% of the United States population is currently overweight, and 30.5% are obese. These individuals are at risk for numerous medical conditions, including hypertension, dyslipidemia, and type II diabetes. Behavioral treatment produces medically meaningful weight losses that are maintained, with continued treatment, for up to one year. Unfortunately, the mean rate of attrition from behavioral treatment is approximately 22% within six months of treatment. It would therefore be useful for clinicians to be able to identify patient characteristics that are associated with weight loss success. However, reliable predictors of attrition and weight loss have proven elusive to date. The proposed study investigated the ability of pre-treatment levels of self-efficacy, binge eating, depression, emotional eating, stress, hunger, disinhibition, and dietary restraint to predict attrition and weight loss in a sample of 179 males and females undergoing 40 weeks of group behavioral weight loss treatment. Cross-v alidation regression analyses revealed dietary restraint as a significant predictor of weight loss, in both derivation (n = 92) and confirmation (n = 87) samples. Analyses of the full sample revealed the consistent ability of restraint to predict both attrition and weight loss. Logistic regression analyses revealed that individuals who reported higher levels of restraint at baseline were 17% less likely to drop out of treatment. Those who were less depressed at pre-treatment were 11% less likely to drop out than those who were more depressed. We also discuss the potential utility of enhancing certain psychological variables (e.g., restraint, self-efficacy) during treatment in an effort to decrease attrition and increase weight loss in obese individuals.
Modeling of high-speed wireline and wireless network traffic
Authors:   , Yu Jie , Petropulu Athina P.
Published: July 2021

Wireline data traffic, as opposed to traditional voice traffic, has been shown to be selfsimilar and impulsive. Both characteristics can degrade network performance by causing large delays, packet dropping and by requiring large buffers. Traditional teletraffic models are short-range dependent, thus cannot capture the true traffic characteristics, nor adequately predict network performance. Realistic models that capture these characteristics have been subject of extensive research. With the increasing demand for wireless Internet access and the fast evolution of wireless techniques, various high-speed multimedia services (e.g. video, teleconferencing, Internet access, voice communications, interactive applications) will soon be provided via wireless networks. To date there have not seen any convincing studies to determine whether wireline traffic characteristics can propagate to the wireless networks. In this dissertation, we first develop a constructive model for wireline traffic, namely the Rate-Limited Extended Alternating Fractal Renewal Process (rate-limited EAFRP). This model captures the distinctive two-slope behavior of the log-log survival function of real multi-user traffic. As the number of users increases the model results traffic that is Gaussian, which is consistent with real network measurements. We also provide a queuing analysis of the proposed model, which achieves a closer approximation to the observed reality than previous models. Second, assuming seamless connectivity between wireline and wireless networks, we study analytically the propagation of self-similar traffic through a gateway that interconnects wired and wireless networks. Our analysis concludes that under certain conditions the self-similarity can be preserved through the gateway, while in cases such as non realtime variable-bit-rate (nrt-VBR) multimedia traffic, the self-similarity maybe disappear. We derive bounds of packet processing time in the gateway when fed with self-similar traffic.
Development of a polymer/ceramic composite scaffold for bone tissue engineering
Authors:   , Khan Yusuf M. , Laurencin Cato T.
Published: July 2021

The current gold standard for traumatic bone injury is autograft. Harvesting this graft material requires additional surgery, leading to potential complications and added pain and discomfort for the patient. As an alternative, allografts, or tissue taken from cadavers, have been used but also possess additional concerns of potential disease transmission. Tissue engineering has shown great promise as a viable alternative to current bone graft solutions due to its use of biocompatible, biodegradable scaffolds as support systems for cellular attachment, proliferation, migration, and maintenance of normal phenotypic expression. Towards this end, a biodegradable composite scaffold has been developed from poly(lactide-co-glycolide) and calcium phosphate in which calcium phosphate was synthesized in situ within the scaffold. Several parameters were investigated to control microsphere formation, calcium phosphate synthesis, and scaffold structure. Calcium phosphate synthesis within the forming microspheres was largely dependent on solution pH and polymer:ceramic ratio, but less so on duration of mixing and temperature of solution. Scaffold structure and strength were found to be dependent on temperature of microsphere formation and heating time of microspheres to form the scaffold. In vitro degradation studies demonstrated the mechanical integrity and bioactivity of the scaffold through its ability to encourage mineral deposition on its surface. Scaffolds delivered calcium ions to the surrounding solution which in turn influenced the overall mass of the scaffold, pH of surrounding fluid, and reprecipitation of calcium phosphate on the scaffold surface. Cellular evaluation demonstrated this scaffold to be biocompatible and osteoconductive, with evidence of cellular proliferation and migration throughout the scaffold, early alkaline phosphatase and osteocalcin expression from cells seeded on composite scaffolds, and evidence of type I collagen synthesis. In vivo animal studies in male New Zealand white rabbits showed that composite scaffolds provided a suitable structure for new cellular infiltration throughout the scaffold pore structure. Composite scaffolds also supported the vascularization of new tissue within the defect site, as well as newly mineralized bone tissue at the margins of the defect. The work described herein provides strong evidence for the potential of this composite scaffold as a bone graft substitute, and paves the way for future developmental work.
Development of a cancer specific body-image instrument
Authors:   , Croff Rebecca Conboy , Nezu Arthur M.
Published: July 2021

Cancer and its treatments have been shown to have a negative psychological effect on many patients. One effect of cancer that is often described anecdotally is body image disturbance. A moderate amount of research has been conducted on the relationship between body image and cancer. However, the results of these studies are limited because until recently a psychometrically validated measure designed to assess body image disturbance in cancer patients did not exist. Instead, when assessing body image disturbance, many researchers used measures intended for other populations or they have created a few questions for their study to assess body image which typically lack standardization and have not been validated. This paper discusses relevant theories of body image and scale construction. Through the use of the literature an empirically-driven body image instrument was developed for use in those who currently have cancer or have a history of cancer. In addition, tests of validity and reliability were conducted to determine the usefulness and factor structure of the measure. Initially, a panel of experts and cancer patients were asked to generate relevant items for a body image measure, resulting in 64 test items. Those items were reviewed by a separate panel of experts and rated on necessity, relevance, and clarity. The total number of items was reduced from 64 to 39 during this step. Convergent and discriminant validity was tested by comparing the new measure to other measures of body image and depression and anxiety. As hypothesized, the new measure demonstrated strong correlations with the other measures of body image and modest correlations with the measures of affect. Stability of the measure was examined through the use of test-retest methodology. Breast cancer patients were asked to complete the measure twice over a two week timeframe. The new measure demonstrated excellent stability (alpha=.96). Finally, a factor analysis was conducted, yielding a seven factor measure. The results of this step are considered preliminary because the study population isn't entirely representative of those the measure is designed to assess. Furthermore, a larger study population is typically used for a factor analysis.
Plasmodium falciparum enzymes involved in redox balancing of nicotinamide nucleotides
Authors:   , Eren Devrim , Vaidya Akhil B.
Published: July 2021

Because nicotinamide nucleotides play a central role in numerous metabolic steps, the ratio of their reduced and oxidized states needs to be tightly regulated. We are particularly interested in the regulation of NAD/NADP levels in malaria mitochondria. Biochemical and bioinformatics data suggest an absence of the standard complex I NADH dehydrogenase in malaria parasites. Instead, we have identified an NADH dehydrogenase gene in Plasmodium falciparum that greatly differs from its mammalian counterpart. Unlike Complex I of mammalian mitochondria with ca. 43 subunits, P. falciparum NADH dehydrogenase (PfND) is a single-subunit enzyme with no obvious proton translocation capability. Sequence analysis indicated that this 533 amino acid protein has an N-terminal mitochondrial targeting signal sequence. This is analogous to Saccharomyces cerevisiae , which has been shown to be deficient of complex I but possesses three single subunit NADH dehydrogenases (NDI-1, NDE-1 and NDE-2). We are attempting to complement yeast mutants deficient in these enzymes with P. falciparum gene. In order to optimize expression in yeast, we synthesized the entire PfND gene with yeast codons, using 40 nucleotide long oligomers. In addition, we have also identified an energy-transducing enzyme, nicotinamide nucleotide transhydrogenase (PfTH), in P. falciparum . Transhydrogenases transfer hydride ions between NAD(H) and NADP(H) with concomitant proton translocation across a membrane. The protonmotive force alters the affinity of the transhydrogenase for substrates and shifts the equilibrium of the reaction towards NADPH production. This reaction is also reversible, the enzyme can produce a proton gradient by consuming NADPH. Our evidence indicates that PfTH mRNA is not expressed during the asexual erythrocytic stages of malaria parasites, but is present in gametocytes. Proteomics data also indicate that the protein is expressed in sporozoite stage. However, the antibodies we raised against PfTH-domain III were unable to detect TH in sporozoites by immunofluorescence. We have expressed the soluble NAD(H) and NADP(H) binding domains as a single polypeptide from both Plasmodium falciparum and Entamoeba histolytica . Cyclic reaction catalyzed by the soluble domain III+I fragment of P. falciparum enzyme appeared very similar to that of E. histolytica enzyme. We also constructed knock out clones for P. falciparum and P. berghei transhydrogenases. However, our initial transfections have revealed no indication of gene disruption. At this point, whether the TH function is essential to parasitic survival remains elusive.
Polymer-filled nanoporous membranes
Authors:   , Raghav Sunil , Elabd Yossef A.
Published: July 2021

Recent studies in our laboratory have demonstrated the effect of nanostructure on proton conductivity. In this study, oriented nanostructured polymer membranes were fabricatedby conjoining an ion conductive polymer with nanoporous host membranes, which have uniform pores aligned normal to the plane of the membrane. The hypothesis of research is that by orienting the ionic nanostructure of an ion conductive polymer, the ion transport will therefore increase. A number of strategies were employed to maximize pore-filling efficiency and control the thickness of the resulting composite membrane. For example, track-etched polycarbonate and porous alumina membranes (both of which have straight and cylindrical pores aligned normal to the plane of the membrane) werefilled with sulfonated polystyrene using various physical sorption techniques at a varietyof pore sizes. The structures of these membranes were characterized using SEM, and the proton conductivity was studied using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Transport structure-property relationships were analyzed based on these results.
Handheld technology and nursing education
Authors:   , Cornelius Frances Haider , Haslam Liz
Published: July 2021

This study investigated the benefits of introducing handheld computer technology into undergraduate nursing education as a means to enhance the development of clinical decision-making skills in undergraduate nursing students. It explored how handheld technology can be used in nursing education to develop clinical decision-making skills and evaluated the effectiveness of using the Gerontological Reasoning Informatics Project (GRIP), a PDA-based assessment tool, to accomplish this goal. This case study used qualitative and quantitative methods, including field observations, 'on-the-spot' informal interviews and a follow-up phase of in-depth interviews. During phase one, clinical faculty identified and recorded the top three nursing care priorities of all patients prior to giving student assignments. Students conducted assessments for assigned patients utilizing the GRIP tool and also identified the top three nursing care priorities. The researcher conducted assessments, also recording the top three nursing care priorities. This data was analyzed to identify similarities between the three groups. Twenty-six senior nursing students and two clinical faculty participated in this study, assessing a total of 212 patients. Data collection also included in-depth interviews with 21 students and 2 faculty and field observation notes. The results suggest that handheld technology, equipped with a tool such as GRIP, effectively develops clinical competency and clinical decision-making skills in undergraduate nursing students. Students identified the top three nursing care priorities at a level of expertise that compared favorably with faculty experts however the exact relationship between the use of the PDA and the student ability to correctly identify these priorities remains unclear. About two thirds of participants reported that the PDA was a barrier to the nurse-patient interaction. Additional findings support the need to closely re-examine the GRIP tool, give serious consideration to modifying the tool to improve design and functionality and to build a web interface to support a virtual learning community of GRIP users.
Symmetries and relaxations in non-equilibrium thermodynamics
Authors:   , DeSimone Anthony Joseph , Gilmore Robert
Published: July 2021

Static thermodynamic susceptibilities obey symmetries that have been known for a very long time. These are the Maxwell relations. Less well-known are the symmetry properties that are consequences of a certain type of perturbation. These are the Le Chatelier reciprocal relations. These involve relaxation of thermodynamic extensive and intensive parameters to new static equilibrium values after a sudden perturbation. Since time-dependent thermodynamic properties are governed by the fundamental equations of nonequilibrium thermodynamics, we expect the time constants of these relaxations to be governed, to some extent, by Onsager's kinetic coefficients. In this work we address the time scales and symmetries of these relaxation processes which have not been previously addressed. We explore the relation between the static susceptibilities (Maxwell relations) of equilibrium thermodynamics, the symmetries of the Le Chatelier reciprocal relations, as contained in the Le Chatelier matrix, the symmetries of the kinetic coefficients, which govern the relaxation dynamics of nonequilibrium processes, and the symmetries of the Fluctuation-Dissipation theorem.
Bibliometric patterns in an historical medical index
Authors:   , Lussky Joan Patricia , Drott M. Carl
Published: July 2021

The newly digitized Index Catalogue of the Library of the Surgeon-General's Office, United States Army (IndexCat) provides powerful opportunities for the application of bibliometric techniques to support research in the history of medicine. It far exceeds any other medical bibliographic tool in its total number of documents indexed, span of decades represented in the publication dates of the indexed documents, international inclusiveness, and breadth of subject indexing. The work presented here will explore the viability of the IndexCat as a dataset for bibliometric research and as an adjunct to contemporary, qualitative research on the history of medicine. A bibliometric analysis of the subject headings and title words within the IndexCat demonstrates that they can be combined to link developing theories of disease causation with developing understandings of specific diseases. Furthermore, these bibliometric patterns compliment and enrich contemporary, historical accounts of the research on specific diseases.
Polymer thin film colorimetric gas sensor for lung cancer analytes
Authors:   , Neustein Michelle Elizabeth , Schauer Caroline L. , Wheatley Margaret A.
Published: July 2021

Cancer, the out-of-control growth of abnormal cells, is a major killer throughout the world. The type of cancer, which causes the most deaths per year, is by far lung cancer. However, early detection of this disease can lead to more treatment options resulting in increased survival rates. Since ancient times, it has been postulated that diseases could be detected by the aroma of the patient's breath. In modern times, scientific studies have shown that normal human breath contains hundreds of volatile organic compounds caused by circulatory system's metabolic changes. When this is disrupted, as often happens resulting from certain diseases such as lung cancer and diabetes, the concentrations and types of exhaled compounds vary. Specific compounds, which can be used as biomarkers for lung cancer, were first independently determined by H. J. O'Neil and Michael Phillips in 1988 and 1992. Subsequent studies have shown that the biomarkers for lung cancer are predominately alkanes (CxH(2x+2)) and benzene (C6H6) derivatives. Breath sensing systems for alcohol levels and chemical warfare agents are commercially being developed. Various methods have also been investigated to develop a sensing system for breath detection of lung cancer, with limited success. In our method, colored polymer thin films are used as a sensing platform for detection of vapor analytes. The vapors cause changes in the optical properties of the films due to changes in thickness and/or the index of refraction. Sufficient shifting of the reflectance pattern causes the color of the film to visually change. This color change results from the presence of a specific vapor(s), and an array of these films could be made into an easily read sensor. This study was to identify possible polymers, which can be fabricated into colored thin films with some sensitivity to some of the specific breath biomarkers of lung cancer.
The ability of social problem-solving to mediate the relationship between breast cancer severity and posttraumatic stress symptomatology
Authors:   , Stoll Jeffrey G. , Nezu Christine M.
Published: July 2021

The current study evaluated the importance social problem solving (SPS) in determining posttraumatic stress symptom severity among breast cancer survivors. The foundation for this study is consistent with the problem-solving model of stress and coping. It is proposed that SPS likely functions in two separate manners in the presentation of PTSD. First, it is a part of the appraisal process in PTSD presentation, and second, it has a role in determining how effectively traumatized individuals utilize there social resources. It was hypothesized that SPS would mediate the relationship between cancer severity and PTSD symptomatology. Forty-three women who were 1-year post cancer diagnosis completed self-report questionnaires. Results found that global scores of SPS do not mediate the relationship between cancer severity and PTSD symptomatology; however, negative problem orientation predicted caner-related PTSD symptomatology and was found to mediate the relationship between cancer severity and PTSD symptomatology. These results suggest that negative problem orientation (a mechanism of appraisal) likely has a significant role in determining caner-related PTSD symptomatology. Rational problem-solving skills did not predict cancer-related PTSD symptomatology. These results support the concept that appraisal is a significant aspect of PTSD, but that the performance skills of SPS may not have a direct role in the presentation of PTSD-symptomatology. The clinical and research implications of this study are discussed in the context of the limitations of this cross-sectional study.
Optomechanical behavior of embedded fiber Bragg grating strain sensors
Authors:   , Mastro Stephen A. , El-Sherif Mahmoud
Published: July 2021

Fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs) can provide extremely sensitive strain measurements for various materials and structures. The main functionality of the Bragg grating is along the fiber's main axis, where changes in the grating's spacing can be converted into strain measurements. Previous work from a number of researchers has identified bifurcation and broadening of the Bragg signal under transverse loading. The work presented in this thesis highlights efforts to relate transverse loading to changes in index of refraction in the fiber core cross section, and then ultimately to predicted changes in Bragg signals. The background of FBGs, their application, manufacturing, and operation is outlined. In addition, background on the general concept of photoelasticity, the relationship of stress and index of refraction, in glass materials is presented. A theoretical analysis was performed for uncoated silica fiber to calculate the stresses within an optical fiber core under transverse loading. The transverse loading profile ranged from pure diametric point loading to a more distributed profile. The stresses calculated were translated into changes of index of refraction and FBG signal values. The analysis was then simulated utilizing a numerical model, calculating stress, change of index of refraction, and change in FBG signal with various transverse loading profiles. In addition to an uncoated fiber, a polymer coated fiber system was analyzed. The model was verified by performing a laboratory experiment where FBGs were loaded transversely and their signal monitored. A special loading rig was designed and fabricated to impart transverse loading to the fiber while monitoring the compression load and deflection of the loading plates. The laboratory experienced showed reasonable agreement with the numerical model. The data show that side loading of the FBG caused a bifurcation of the signal, and that this effect can be predicted by the theoretical model. The modeling work completed provides a useful tool in predicting effects on FBGs of potential transverse loading scenarios, whether these effects are undesirable, or sought after.
An environment for comprehending the behavior of software systems
Authors:   , Salah Maher M. , Mancoridis Spiros
Published: July 2021

Modern software systems are often large, distributed, written in more than one programming language, and developed using pre-built components (e.g., dynamically-linked libraries). The characteristics of such systems pose unique challenges to software comprehension, where the current practice typically involves the manual inspection and possibly static analysis of the system's source code. Our research addresses the characteristics of these systems by developing a software comprehension framework that facilitates dynamic analysis, feature-driven analysis, and tool integration. The framework is instantiated as a software comprehension environment that supports the dynamic analysis of distributed systems, multi-langauge systems, and systems that use binary components. The environment supports an extensive collection of dynamic views, which are derived from the runtime data collected during the execution of the software system undergoing scrutiny. The environment is implemented as a set of integrated tools consisting of three subsystems: data gathering, data repository, and analysis/visualization. The key issues addressed by our environment include: (a) the development of a data repository for storing static and dynamic data from distributed and multi-language applications, (b) the construction of a distributed profiler that collects runtime data from components that are distributed across a network, (c) the development of a software modeling query language that facilitates data retrieval, modeling, and analysis to create software views, (d) the development of an extensive set of software views to assist engineers in the comprehension of software systems, and (e) the decoupling of the environment's subsystems to enhance the extensibility and ease the integration of new tools. The software views produced by our environment include feature-interaction, featureimplementation, and feature-similarity views, as well as remote-interaction, thread-interaction, structural, and class-usage views. To demonstrate the effectiveness of our environment, a case study involving three significant software systems was conducted (i.e., the Mozilla web browser, the Jext text editor, and the TechReport technical report archiving system).
The implications of resource management in La Parguera, Puerto Rico
Authors:   , Hertler Heidi , Spotila James Robert , Kreeger Danielle
Published: July 2021

A recent rezoning of La Parguera, southwest Puerto Rico, as a tourist zone has resulted in an imbalance between development and appropriate resource management. Development associated with tourism is destroying the sub-tropical dry forest and adding pressure on the marine resources through increased boat traffic and marine structures. Declining water quality and benthic community health are two of the impacts seen in La Parguera associated with these land use changes. This study is three-fold. First, I evaluated the effect of houseboats on the benthic community. By comparing seagrass vigor under houseboats and in control areas, the houseboats were not found to be damaging seagrasses through shading nor were they reducing water quality. In fact, these boats may have positively impacted the local marine system by creating an artificial reef environment. However, it was found that seagrass beds had significantly decreased in all areas since the last quantitative benthic study in 1979. Second, I examined the effect of land use changes on water quality. Declining water quality is a concern to the local town's people who depend on the resource. Elevated chlorophyll-a concentrations indicated a source of nutrients entering near the waste treatment facility. Total suspended solids were significantly higher in reas near new development as compared to upstream and downstream sites (31.78 mg/l). Boat ramps were a point source for this material as well as trace metals. Third, I examined the distribution of seagrass beds near La Parguera. Seagrass beds were reduced or absent near development, and where they were found elevated epiphyte loads were associated with reduced productivity. Sediment composition was not significantly different in areas devoid of seagrasses, suggesting that seagrass might be able to recolonize if other impacts were reduced. Lower water quality and seagrass vigor in areas near recent development suggest that the changes in local zoning and lack of planning have measurably contributed to reduced water quality. Rapid changes in land use in La Parguera without consideration for best management techniques to control stormwater and nutrient runoff is causing deterioration of water quality, and, in turn, deterioration of the benthic community of this marine system.
Long-term follow-up of cognitive behavior therapy for social anxiety disorder
Authors:   , Nolan Elizabeth Mintzer , Herbert James D.
Published: July 2021

Cognitive-behavior therapy has been proven effective for the treatment of social anxiety disorder in numerous studies. Generally, studies focus on a relatively short time frame in which they examine outcome, including typically a several month follow-up period, if they include a follow-up assessment at all. Recent literature has emphasized the need for longer-term follow-up periods for treatment outcome studies. The current study was designed to replicate and extend previous findings by Heimberg, Salzman, Holt, and Blendell (1993). Eighteen participants who had previously completed a brief cognitive behavioral treatment for social anxiety disorder were evaluated 3 to 5 years post-treatment. Level of current functioning and predictors of outcome were examined. Assessments included several self-report measures, an interview, and a behavioral assessment. Results indicated the maintenance of treatment gains on five out of six self-measures. Additionally, an insignificant trend toward continued improvement was found on several of the measures. The behavioral assessment indicated maintenance of treatment gains on self-rated anxiety. Predictors of treatment outcome, including avoidant personality disorder diagnostic status, mood disorder diagnostic status, and fear of negative evaluation were also examined, although findings were limited due to low statistical power. Overall, large effect sizes were found from pre-treatment to long-term follow-up. The results are considered consistent with those presented by Heimberg et al. (1993). Limitations of the study and suggestions for further research are discussed.
Novel sol-gel nanoporous materials, nanocomposites and their applications in bioscience
Authors:   , Sun Zhengfei , Wei Yen
Published: July 2021

Transparent, nanoporous silica materials have been prepared successfully via the acid-catalyzed hydrolysis and condensation of tetramethyl orthosilicate using the nonsurfactant templated sol-gel process. The synthetic conditions have been systematically studied and optimized. The effects of template and synthetic process, especially template removal steps on pore structure, have been investigated. The composition and pore structures were thoroughly characterized with various spectroscopic and microscopic methods such as IR, TGA, SEM, TEM and BET. The obtained nanoporous materials usually exhibit high surface area, large pore volume and narrowly distributed pore diameter. The porosity can be fine tuned to a certain extent simply by adjusting the template concentration. The convenient synthesis, as well as the distinctive structure and physical-chemical properties, render these sol-gel materials suitable for a wide range of potential applications, such as chemical and biological sensors, catalysts, drug delivery and functional coatings. Because of excellent biocompatibility of this novel sol-gel technology, the method was used to study behaviors of encapsulated biospecies in silica matrix within a confined space. We call such nanoporous materials "rigid matrix artificial chaperone" because they mediate protein folding process in many aspects like a chaperone. In the studies included in this thesis, cytochrome c, hemoglobin, myoglobin as well as amyloid [beta] peptide were encapsulated in sol-gel nanoporous silica matrix with controlled pore size. Then their folding-unfolding and aggregation behaviors were investigated by a variety of analytical methods, such as fluorescence spectroscopy, circular dichroism and resonance Raman spectroscopy. It was found that the size of pore had great effects on the folding and aggregation process of those encapsulated biospecies. In the second part of this thesis, the synthesis, processing and characterization of hybrid nanocomposites and their applications in dental materials are described. Two approaches have been developed to achieve homogenous hybrid nanocomposites: the first approach involves the use of vinyl modified silica nanoparticle as inorganic component and the other one employs nanoporous silica particle as inorganic filler. The materials synthesized by both of these two approaches demonstrated promising potential in dental applications.
Essays on foreign direct investment and information technology
Authors:   , Zhu Lei , Jeon Bang Nam
Published: July 2021

This dissertation studies how the evolution of information technology could facilitate bilateral FDI activities, the channels for international R&D spillovers, and which exchange rates matter for FDI. Applying an IT-augmented gravity specification to bilateral FDI data from 1980 to 1997, the first chapter finds that distance is an important impediment to bilateral FDI. The joint development of IT in the home and host countries encourages FDI by saving communication costs. IT has greater impact on FDI activities from G7 countries to OECD countries, compared to non-OECD countries. In addition, it suggests that IT encourages more FDI by reducing the perceived distance in the 1990s than that in the 1980s. When the distance between two countries is beyond a threshold range, the home country might be motivated to outsource through arm's length contract to countries with well-established IT infrastructure. With the rapid pace of economic integration, the productivity growth in a country depends on both its own R&D and foreign R&D. The second chapter examines three channels of international R&D spillovers: trade, FDI and information technology. Using panel cointegration analysis, this research finds that trade remains an important conduit for international R&D spillovers. Although bilateral FDI is found to be positively related to R&D spillovers, their impact on productivity growth is relatively small at the national level. It shows that the development of IT has played a more important role in international R&D spillovers in recent years. While theory suggests that exchange rate behavior has different implications for FDI depending on the type of FDI, empirical work suffers greatly from the aggregate nature of available FDI data. Using disaggregated Japanese FDI data, the third chapter studies how different measures of exchange rate are empirically related to FDI flows. It is found that the widely used bilateral exchange rate volatility does not have explanatory power on FDI decisions. Industry-specific competitor-weighted exchange rate outperforms other exchange rate measures. Industry level analysis provides evidence that high exchange rate volatility decreases FDI share in electrical and farming and forestry sectors, while raising FDI in the textile and transport sectors.
Chemotaxis-based spatial self-organization algorithms
Authors:   , Bai Linge , Breen David E.
Published: July 2021

Self-organization is a process that increases the order of a system as a result of local interactions among low-level, simple components, without the guidance of an outside source. Spatial self-organization is a process in which shapes and structures emerge at a global level from collective movements of low level shape primitives. Spatial self-organization is a stochastic process, and the outcome of the aggregation cannot necessarily be guaranteed. Despite the inherent ambiguity, self-organizing complex systems arise everywhere in nature. Motivated by the ability of living cells to form specific shapes and structures, we develop two self-organizing systems towards the ultimate goal of directing the spatial self-organizing process. We first develop a self-sorting system composed of a mixture of cells. The system consistently produces a sorted structure. We then extend the sorting system to a general shape formation system. To do so, we introduce morphogenetic primitives (MP), defined as software agents, which enable self-organizing shape formation of user-defined structures through a chemotaxis paradigm. One challenge that arises from the shape formation process is that the process may form two or more stable final configurations. In order to direct the self-organizing process, we find a way to characterize the macroscopic configuration of the MP swarm. We demonstrate that statistical moments of the primitives' locations can successfully capture the macroscopic structure of the aggregated shape. We do so by predicting the final configurations produced by our spatial self-organization system at an early stage in the process using features based on the statistical moments. At the next stage, we focus on developing a technique to control the outcome of bifurcating aggregations. We identify thresholds of the moments and generate biased initial conditions whose statistical moments meet the thresholds. By starting simulations with biased, random initial configurations, we successfully control the aggregation for a number of swarms produced by the agent-based shape formation system. This thesis demonstrates that chemotaxis can be used as a paradigm to create an agent- based spatial self-organization system. Furthermore, statistical moments of the swarm can be used to robustly predict and control the outcomes of the aggregation process.
Understanding user interaction patterns in health social media
Authors:   , Chuang Katherine Y. , Yang Christopher C.
Published: July 2021

Internet users are becoming increasingly social in their online information behavior, as shown by a growing trend of social media adoption in the past decade. Social interaction patterns in this new space are governed by the technological affordances in the infrastructure and membership to the community, yet at times also by individual emotional needs for seeking social support. In the consumer health domain, social networking technology and consumer health information needs combine to show that even within the same community, relationships are not expressed in the same manner across various computer mediated communication (CMC) formats. The motivation for this research comes from an increasing need to understand the patterns of social interactions online, especially of e-patients using the Internet as a health resource. Frequently, e-patients use social networking platforms to teach each other about conditions and treatments (Civan and Pratt, 2007; Wright and Bell, 2003). Social networking sites are predicted to increase in popularity as a way for people to socialize online as an extension of their physical environment. Online community tools include the popular text-based communication formats such as posting status updates, discussion boards and profile pages. While many previous studies of online support communities identified sociability factors such as types of social support (i.e. informational support, emotional support) exchanged in online support groups and health outcomes, there is a gap in research literature concerning the design of software interface architecture. The central focus of this research investigated the impact of software features on online supportive communication behavior across multiple computer-mediated communication (CMC) formats. This research contributes insights to opportunities for design and implementation of social media technologies for online health support communities; scholarly literature regarding online support communities, and inform policy makers who determine parameters for both design and management of online health support communities. The outcome of this study can contribute to improving online intervention programs by targeting specific functions of social network sites.
Carbide-derived carbon films for integrated electrochemical energy storage
Authors:   , Heon Min , Gogotsi Yury
Published: July 2021

Active RFID tags, which can communicate over tens or even hundreds of meters, MEMS devices of several microns in size, which are designed for the medical and pharmaceutical purposes, and sensors working in wireless monitoring systems, require microscale power sources that are able to provide enough energy and to satisfy the peak power demands in those applications. Supercapacitors have not been an attractive candidate for micro-scale energy storage, since most nanoporous carbon electrode materials are not compatible with micro-fabrication techniques and have failed to meet the requirements of high volumetric energy density and small form factor for power supplies for integrated circuits or microelectronic devices or sensors. However, supercapacitors can provide high power density, because of fast charging/discharging, which can enable self-sustaining micro-modules when combined with energy-harvesting devices, such as solar cell, piezoelectric or thermoelectric micro-generators. In this study, carbide-derived carbon (CDC) films were synthesized via vacuum decomposition of carbide substrates and gas etching of sputtered carbide thin films. This approach allowed manufacturing of porous carbon films on SiC and silicon substrates. CDC films were studied for micro-supercapacitor electrodes, and showed good double layer capacitance. Since the gas etching technique is compatible with conventional micro-device fabrication processes, it can be implemented to manufacture integrated on-chip supercapacitors on silicon wafers.
Transmission line modeling for the purpose of analog power flow computation of large scale power systems
Authors:   , St. Leger Aaron , Nwankpa Chikaodinaka Okechi Dike
Published: July 2021

This thesis proposes methods for modeling electric power transmission lines for the purpose of analog power flow computation of power system networks. Theoretical and applicable circuit models for analog transmission lines are presented with a focus on power-flow studies which concentrates on the steady state or static behavior of electrical power transmission lines. With this approach the wave propagation and reflection is not as much of a concern as the steady state line voltages and current flows. Because of this lumped circuit equivalent line models are utilized. The primary goal is to develop a computational alternative for power system analysis that overcomes obstacles currently faced by traditional digital computation methods. Analog computation is proving to be a viable alternative and has notable advantages over digital computers. In order to contrive a practical analog emulator precise models for power system components are required. Specifically this thesis develops a realization of an electric power transmission line model for such a purpose. The transmission line model traditionally utilized in power-flow computation is a lumped parameter pi-model equivalent circuit. In digital computation the shunt elements and sometimes the series resistances are often times neglected in order to simplify the power flow equations and subsequently speed up the calculation times. Prior research in analog computation for power flow analysis also utilized these simplified line models. A fully reconfigurable pi-model is presented here for an analog computation approach. No components have been neglected resulting in a more accurate line model with fast computation times. The ability to remotely reconfigure each component on the line model makes this model universal. The design could easily be fabricated to an integrated circuit to represent a large scale network and configured to match a real world system. In addition, the model is easily expanded to form a distributed parameter line model by interconnecting multiple components in series. This allows for computational analysis of the power system states throughout the transmission line which is traditionally not done in digital power flow computation due to computational restraints.
3D printed medical imaging data
Authors:   , Kirk Jason T. , Wagner Michael G.
Published: July 2021

This thesis proposes the application of 3D printed medical imaging data as a supplement to current visualization techniques employed by doctors for the purpose of patient communication and consent gathering. Contemporary visualization techniques are limited by two dimensional display formats, consequently restricting the efficacy of visualization aids provided to patients during the decision making process. This research leverages modern medical imaging modalities with 3D printing technology to generate physical replicas of individual patients' cardiac anatomy. An outline of the processing techniques involved is explained, and an overview of relevant 3D printing applications within medicine is given. The research project described was assessed using qualitative analysis by a panel of 7 physicians and clinicians from diverse medical disciplines. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with the panel in regard to the efficacy of 3D printed cardiac models as used to facilitate Doctor/Patient communication.
A survey of forensic mental health professionals with experience conducting criminal responsibility evaluations
Authors:   , Murphy Megan Jean , DeMatteo David S.
Published: July 2021

Forensic mental health professionals have conducted criminal responsibility (CR) evaluations for decades; however, relatively little is known about the specific methodologies employed when conducting such evaluations. The current study surveyed 135 forensic psychologists and psychiatrists, examining components of CR evaluations, the use of psychological tests, time delay between offense date and evaluation date, and relationship between evaluator experience and opinions about CR evaluations. Results suggest very few differences between professional disciplines relating to reliance upon collateral records, number of collateral interviews conducted, and use of psychological assessment measures. Psychiatrists reported typically including a recognized psychiatric diagnosis in reports significantly more than psychologists. Respondents from both disciplines reported lengthy time delays between offense date and evaluation date, with time delays from respondents' most recent evaluations averaging almost 10 months. Experience conducting CR evaluations was positively correlated with higher levels of confidence in ability to conduct accurate CR evaluations and greater knowledge of legal standards. The vast majority of respondents reporting that they felt they could detect when an examinee was malingering. Implications and future directions are discussed. Keywords: Criminal Responsibility, Mental State at the Time of Offense