bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Environmental unpredictability and environmental harshness in early life : independent predictors of preschool boys' and girls' self-regulation
Authors:   , Squires Christina
Published: April 2021

Using multi-method multi-informant longitudinal data from the Early Head Start Research and Evaluation Project (N equals 966), this study explored the effects of early-life (between 0 to 36 months) environmental unpredictability and environmental harshness on preschoolers' cognitive, behavioral, and emotional self-regulation directly and indirectly through positive parenting at 36 months. Environmental unpredictability included number of maternal employment and marital transitions and residential mobility. Environmental harshness included average income-to-needs ratios, poverty status, and receipt of public assistance. Positive parenting practices included maternal warmth, supportiveness, and cognitive stimulation. Structural equation modeling revealed that early-life environmental unpredictability and environmental harshness make independent and unique contributions to preschoolers' self-regulation. Findings also suggest that the effects of environmental unpredictability, environmental harshness, and parenting practices on children's selfregulation are domain specific and do not operate equally across all children. Environmental unpredictability was directly and negatively associated with preschoolers' emotion regulation, while environmental harshness was indirectly and negatively associated with preschoolers' attention regulation through positive parenting. These associations were only significant for boys, suggesting that boys may be more susceptible to the influence of harsh and unpredictable environments early in life. Keywords: Self-regulation, Infancy, Early childhood, Environmental unpredictability, Environmental harshness
Stability and instability results for the 2D [alpha]-Euler equations
Authors:   , Vasudevan Shibi Kapisthalam
Published: April 2021

We study stability and instability of time independent solutions of the two dimensional a-Euler equations and Euler equations; the a-Euler equations are obtained by replacing the nonlinear term (u [times] [del.])u in the classical Euler equations of inviscid incompressible fluid by the term (v [times] [del.])u, where v is the regularized velocity satisfying (1 -[alpha]2[delta])v [equals] u, and [alpha] [greater than] 0. In the first part of the thesis, for the a-model, we develop analogues of the classical Arnol'd type stability criteria based on the energy-Casimir method for several settings including multi connected domains, periodic channels, and others. In the second part of the thesis, we study stability of a particular steady state, the unidirectional solution of the a-Euler equation on the two dimensional torus, having only one non zero mode in its Fourier decomposition. Using continued fractions, we give a proof of instability of the steady state under fairly general conditions. In the third part of the thesis we study various properties of a family of elliptic operators introduced by Zhiwu Lin in his work on instability of steady state solutions of the two dimensional Euler equations. This involves Birman-Schwinger type operators associated with the linearization of the Euler equations about the steady state and certain perturbation determinants.
Alternative applications of whole genome de novo assembly in animal genomics
Authors:   , Whitacre Lynsey
Published: April 2021

Genome sequencing is the process by which the sequence of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) residues that compromise the genome, or complete set of genetic materials of an organism or individual, is determined. Down-stream analysis of genome sequencing data requires that short reads be compiled into contiguous sequences. These methods, called de novo assembly, are based in statistical methods and graph theory. In addition to genome assembly, the research presented in this dissertation demonstrates the alternative use of these methods. Using these novel approaches, de novo assembly algorithms can be utilized to gain insight into commensal and parasitic organisms of livestock, genes containing candidate mutations for genetic defects, and population-level and species-level variation in a poorly studied organisms.
Curcumin regulates transcription in Dictyostelium discoideum
Authors:   , Swatson William S. III
Published: April 2021

Botanicals are widely used as dietary supplements and for the prevention and treatment of a myriad of diseases ranging from the common cold to depression. One in four Americans uses a botanical as part of their primary healthcare with billions of dollars spent annually. Curcumin, the active ingredient in turmeric, has gained a lot attention in recent years for its therapeutic uses and has been linked to a wide spectrum of pharmacological effects including anti-carcinogenic, anti-inflammatory, Alzheimer's prevention and antioxidant activity. Despite the large and growing interest in the use of botanicals such as curcumin in disease treatment and prevention, there is little evidence regarding their efficacy, safety and long-term effects. Importantly, the fundamental mechanisms associated with the cellular response to botanicals are generally not clearly understood, and there are often unknown off-target effects. This is supported by the bafflingly large number of effects associated with curcumin. The use of suitable model systems in pharmacogenetic analysis allows for the subsequent characterization of genes and their protein products to explain the mechanisms of drug action. Understanding the complex mechanisms associated with drug response is compounded by the use of mammalian models. In addition, the maintenance and care of such models, the large numbers of animals required for experimental study as well as ethical concerns have necessitated the use of simple and genetically tractable non-mammalian models. The social amoeba, Dictyostelium discoideum, has proven to be an excellent model for the molecular and genetic study of the mechanisms of action of drugs and their effects on the cell. D discoideum has been successfully used to find targets to improve efficacy of drugs used in psychiatry and cancer treatment. Those studies were subsequently validated in human cells. By taking advantage of this simple but powerful biological model and the molecular genetic tools available to us, we have started to investigate the complex effects of the botanical compound curcumin on cell growth, cell physiology and the underlying molecular mechanisms of action. Results from our studies revealed a rather complex pleiotropic response to curcumin including effects on proliferation, oxidative stress and a global regulation of gene expression at the transcriptional level. The relative lack of conclusive scientific evidence regarding the therapeutic benefits of curcumin, coupled with curcumin's possible deleterious effects as revealed by our research findings, underscore the importance of further research to establish curcumin's risks and benefits. Ascertaining the risk-benefits of curcumin with more conclusive scientific evidence would better equip consumers to make decisions about using curcumin, and in fact other botanicals, as part of their primary healthcare.
Merchant mothers and fishermen fathers : parental investment and subsistence work among the boat-dwelling Shodagor of rural Bangladesh
Authors:   , Starkweather Katherine E.
Published: April 2021

This dissertation addresses three general research questions. First, what are the socioecological conditions that lead Shodagor families to employ particular strategies in order to balance subsistence work and childcare? Second, why do Shodagor men and women pursue particular occupational strategies that are cross-culturally unusual while others divide labor in ways that are more in line with other societies? And third, how do Shodagor subsistence and childcare strategies, all of which are concentrated within the nuclear family and influenced by the constraints of the Shodagor socioecology, influence nutritional outcomes for children and parents? I find that the concentration of resource sharing and childcare duties within the nuclear family is associated with husbands and wives cooperating in order to fulfill a family's subsistence and childcare needs. I also find that specific aspects of the ecology -- how far an individual lives from a major market, and how far he or she lives from the Meghna River -- as well as a family's childcare needs play key roles in determining the specific strategies families will employ in order to meet those needs. Finally, I show that while some factors concentrated within the nuclear family influence Shodagor health outcomes within the family in accordance with theoretical and cross-cultural predictions, others do not. These findings have implications for human behavioral ecological theory, which are discussed.
Exercise participation : sleep quality in Thai older adults
Authors:   , Promnoi Chantra
Published: April 2021

Physical activity and social interaction may be related to sleep quality in older adults. This study aimed to explore differences in sleep quality among older adults who performed exercise at elder clubs, older adults who exercised at home, and older adults who did not exercise, as well as identify factors associated with sleep quality in this population. The Symptom Management Model was adopted to guide this study. Using a cross-sectional correlational design, three groups of participants (60 persons per group) who met inclusion criteria were recruited from senior clubs and communities from HatYai District, Songkha Province, Thailand. The Kruskal-Wallis test was used to analyze the differences in sleep quality as measured by the Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index and the Insomnia Severity Index among three groups. Logistic regression was used to estimate the extent to which health conditions, pain, depressive symptoms, social connectedness (social network and social support), and self-reported physical activity predicted sleep quality. No significant differences in sleep quality scores were found among the three groups, although the non-exercise group reported scores indicating poorer sleep quality, compared to the other two groups. Sleep quality was associated with number of health conditions, pain level, depressive symptoms, social connectedness (social network), and physical activity. The results of the logistic regression analysis showed that pain and depressive symptoms were significant predictors of sleep quality when controlling for age, gender, education, and marital status. The findings suggest that exercising can positively influence sleep. Healthcare providers should evaluate sleep quality in older adults within the context of their physical and mental health, as well as their social connections.
Resident assistant peer training : perceptions surrounding the use and effectiveness of experienced student leaders as trainers at one small private catholic university
Authors:   , Sheppard Tina F.
Published: April 2021

This qualitative case study of one small private Catholic university in the northeast examines the perceptions of experienced (i.e. second to third year staff) and inexperienced (i.e. newly hired staff) student resident assistants. Specifically, this study focuses on the observations and insights of experienced and inexperienced staff as it relates to peer presented training and the overall training curriculum. The university employees a traditional training timeline with large-scale trainings occurring immediately prior to the opening of fall and spring semesters and smaller onehour trainings occurring throughout each semester. The resident assistant staff likewise follows a common model employing a number of new, first year resident assistants as well as a smaller number of second and third year resident assistants called senior residents assistants (the word "senior" implies the student staff member has at least one year of experience; it does not reference the student's academic year). The student to resident assistant ratio is a comfortable 30:1 with students living in traditional and suite style residence halls as well as apartments for upper-division students and graduates. Overall, the residential program studied is very similar to any number of other residential programs across the country. The one possible exception is the use of experienced student staff (senior resident assistants) to train inexperienced student staff (resident assistants). While this training model is not unique to the university of study, there are data to determine how common this model is, nor has there been any research related to the student staff perceptions of the effectiveness of such a model. The results of this qualitative case study reveal the training impressions of nine resident and senior resident assistants with the aim of understanding how they experienced training, their thoughts related to the use of peer presented trainers, and how they saw peer presented trainers influencing the overall staff experience. Three themes emerged: the use of experienced student staff as teachers, mentors, and supervisors. In this study I conclude the use of experienced student staff as teachers and mentors is both appropriate in this setting and desired by both experienced and inexperienced staff. However, the use of the experienced student staff position as supervisors is not viewed as appropriate by either experienced or inexperienced student staff and is cautioned against.
Autophagy and ubiquitin-proteasome system during post-fertilization sperm mitophagy
Authors:   , Song Won-Hee
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] Maternal inheritance of mitochondria and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is a universal principle in developmental biology. Mammalian sperm-borne mitochondria are selectively degraded inside the fertilized oocyte. Our early observations established that post-fertilization degradation of sperm mitochondria is mediated by ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS), the major protein-turnover pathway that degrades proteins one molecule at a time. Others' recent studies suggested that a whole organelle sperm mitochondrion is degraded by autophagic pathway, which is referred to as sperm mitophagy. Based on this understanding, the first objective of this dissertation was to identify UPS determinants present in porcine sperm mitochondria. The second objective was to characterize the UPS-controlled porcine ooplasmic autophagy receptors that may regulate sperm mitophagy after fertilization. The interaction between UPS and autophagic pathway was revealed during post-fertilization sperm mitophagy. It was determined that the ooplasmic, ubiquitin-binding autophagy receptor SQSTM1 binds to ubiquitinated mitochondrial membrane proteins, targeting whole mitochondria towards autophagosome. Concurrently, protein dislocase VCP extracts ubiquitinated mitochondrial membrane proteins and transport them to proteasome. Collectively, these studies offer insight into the mechanisms guiding sperm mitochondrion recognition and disposal after fertilization, which assure normal preimplantation development and prevent a potentially detrimental effect of heteroplasmy.
Developing molecular docking methods to model protein interactions
Authors:   , Yan Chengfei
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] In many cellular processes, proteins carry out their functions through interacting with other molecules, such as small compounds (i.e. ligands), peptides or other proteins. Computational modeling of these interactions with molecular docking has great applications in mechanistic investigation of protein binding and therapeutic development. This PhD dissertation presents my studies on developing molecular docking methods to model protein-ligand interactions and protein-peptide interactions. The studies include the improvement of statistical potential-based scoring functions for evaluating protein-ligand interactions, the development of a docking-based method for predicting peptide binding sites on protein surfaces, and the development of a fully blind docking method for predicting protein-peptide complex structures. The scoring functions are implemented in our docking software, and the peptide binding methods are implemented in web servers. Finally, for future work, the existing methods for modeling protein flexibility in molecular docking are reviewed in detail.
Wearable energy-harvesting micro devices
Authors:   , Nguyen Quang Thanh Nhat
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] The focus of this dissertation is wearable energy-harvesting mircro devices. They are designed to harvest energy from the surrounding environment to supply power on the go for small electronic devices and sensors. We used low-cost and scalable fabrication methods that make them appropriate for mass production processes. There are four devices presented in this manuscript: the paper based ZnO nanogenerator using contact electrification and piezoelectric effects, the Teflon coated thread-shaped contact electrification fiber, the thread-shaped ZnO nanorod piezoelectric body sensor, and the silver nanowire transparent electrode for ZnO/TiO2 core-shell nanoparticle dye-sensitized solar cell. The demand of wearable electronic sensors for health monitoring has been increasing in recent years. However, the primary energy sources for these devices are still batteries that need to be replaced or recharged frequently. These batteries are also bulky and not easily incorporated into a garment. The devices presented in this manuscript are our efforts to address the problem of providing continuous power for wearable devices.
Exploring stress, self-efficacy, empowerment, and quality of life as outcomes of the social competence intervention : parent workshop
Authors:   , O'Donnell Rose M.
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] Autism Spectrum Disorders are increasing in prevalence (CDC, 2014), and can cause a number of negative outcomes for caregivers who raise these children. Most of what is known about Autism treatments focus on the children who have autism, but there are limited resources for their caregivers. However, because these caregivers are also experiencing significant problems, it is important to focus on focusing on their needs as well. Although workshops are often used as a way to share information with parents, there has been limited research that shows that parents benefit from these learning opportunities. This dissertation research focuses on working with caregivers on issues their children may experience as a way to make them feel less stressed about caring for their child, feel confident in their ability to address their children's needs, feel better physically and mentally, and to feel like they can advocate on behalf of their child. Overall, the results of this dissertation research show that while some parents may experience improvements in these areas, others did not. While the reasoning for the variability in response to this workshop is currently unknown, it does show that this is an area in need of more investigation in the future.
Analysis of cell signaling during floral abscission in arabidopsis
Authors:   , Taylor Isaiah
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] The shedding of plant organs is known as abscission. Floral abscission in Arabidopsis is regulated by two related receptor[negation symbol]-like protein kinases (RLKs), HAESA and HAESA[negation symbol-like 2 (HAE/HSL2). Double mutants of HAE/HSL2 are completely defective in abscission and retain sepals, petals, and stamen indefinitely. We have utilized genetic suppressor screens of hae hsl2 mutant to identify additional regulatory mechanisms of floral abscission. We have uncovered a series of gain-of-function alleles of the receptor-like protein kinase gene SERK1, as well as loss of function alleles of the gene MAP-KINASE-PHOSPHATASE-1/MKP1. We further show that mutation of two components of the endoplasmic reticulum-associated protein degradation system can suppress a weak hae hsl2 mutant, suggesting that the weak hae hsl2 mutant receptor proteins undergo ER-associated protein degradation. We further perform a number of experiments to examine the impact of phosphorylation on the activity of HAE. These results provide a number of important mechanistic details to our understanding of floral abscission, and suggest many lines of inquiry for future research.
Gold-catalyzed generation of vinylthionium ions and the development of an organocatalytic, asymmetric (4+3)-cycloaddition reaction
Authors:   , Topinka Michael
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] An allylic benzoate ester was prepared and used as a progenitor of vinylthionium ions for (4+3)-cycloaddition reactions. The chemistry was limited to 2-substituted and 2,5-disubstituted furans. In the case of 2-substituted furans, only Friedel-Crafts alkylation products were procured. In the case of 2,5-disubstituted furans, (4+3)-cycloaddition products were furnished in good yield. A catalytic, asymmetric variant using 2,5-dialkylfurans and chiral acids to procure cycloaddition products was unsuccessful. There was an opportunity to overcome the Friedel-Crafts alkylation problem that arose in a gold-catalyzed cycloaddition project. A sulfur-substituted unsaturated ester and alcohol were prepared, but silyl migration was a considerable problem upon activation by various agents. The problem of silyl migration was circumvented, but the target aldehyde was unreactive toward dienes in the presence of various Lewis acids. In further pursuit of an asymmetric (4+3)-cycloaddition reaction, 2-substituted furans were reacted with 2-tosyloxycyclopentanone in the presence of K2HPO4/H2O in perfluorobenzene as solvent and 30 mol% of an amino alcohol catalyst developed by David MacMillan. Enantioselectivities were modest for 2-alkylfurans and excellent for 2-arylchalcogenofurans (90% ee). 3-Substituted furans also work in this process.
Small-scale structures in planetary nebulae
Authors:   , Baldridge Sean P.
Published: April 2021

Two planetary nebulae (PNe) were studied in order to investigate small scale molecular structures in planetary nebulae, the survival of which affects the structure and composition of the interstellar medium (ISM) from which the next generation of stars is born. Molecular hydrogen (H[subscript 2]) was used a tracer for molecular emission and its excitation properties used as a probe of shock physics. Previous studies of several planetary nebulae have indicated a relationship between molecular hydrogen and cometary knots as a shielding mechanism allowing for continued survival and formation of the molecule. Our first PN studied, the Dumbbell nebula (NGC 6853), revealed not only H[subscript 2] bearing knots (similar to the Helix and Ring nebulae), but also regions of H[subscript 2] emission which were poorly sculpted or unstructured diffuse regions, unlike previously studied nebulae. The second PN, NGC 2392 has well documented cometary knots, however we find no detection of molecular hydrogen emission from the knots or otherwise making it an outlier among cometary knot bearing planetary nebulae. Both nebula studied in this research challenge current models of H[subscript 2] bearing small scale structures in PNe and indicate a need to expand our rather small sample of such objects so that we may begin to understand the processes behind H[subscript 2] formation, excitation, and its role in cometary knots of the PN as a whole.
Auditor style and common disclosure deficiencies : evidence from SEC comment letters
Authors:   , Baugh Matthew
Published: April 2021

Prior literature documents that auditor style increases financial statement comparability, implicitly making financial statements more useful to outsiders. Auditor style results from policies and procedures that centralize decision-making within the audit firm. A potential hazard of centralized decision-making is the propagation of decision errors throughout the entity. I predict, and find evidence to suggest, that auditor style is associated with a set of common disclosure deficiencies among clientele as measured by receipt of similar SEC comment letters. Clients also converge in both style and disclosure deficiencies as auditor tenure increases. Further, after changing auditors, clients appear to assume the style and disclosure deficiencies of the subsequent auditor. These results provide the first evidence that auditor style, while potentially a net benefit to users of the financial statements, has potential costs as well.
Mentor program delivery and accountability : a mixed methods study in southwest Missouri
Authors:   , Boyer Angela
Published: April 2021

Through a mixed methods approach, this research investigated the aspects of mentor program delivery and accountability across multiple districts in Southwest Missouri. A state-by-state review of mentoring by The New Teacher Center indicated Missouri did not meet the elements of program delivery and was not considered an exemplar example of program accountability. Both mentor program leaders and mentor teachers provided perspectives about delivery and monitoring of mentor programs, specifically concerning contact time, formative assessment, classroom observation, and mentor training. The findings showed 77% of respondents had weekly contact time with their mentors. Discussions between mentors and mentees about formative assessments most often occurred either weekly or monthly. The elements of classroom observation, mentor training, and monitoring data presented varying degrees of occurrence and resulted in three recommendations for further consideration. With a rise in mentoring programs and supports for new teachers since the 1990s, variations in the delivery and monitoring of mentoring programs offer cause for further discussion.
Mississippi Mau Mau : Medgar Evers and the black freedom struggle, 1952-1963
Authors:   , Henze Kristin R.
Published: April 2021

Mississippi Mau Mau expands upon existing historical analysis of the ideological connections between African liberation struggles and the Black Freedom Movement in the United States by concentrating on the ways in which American civil rights activists absorbed and utilized knowledge from anti-colonial movements. This dissertation focuses on the career of NAACP Field Secretary Medgar Evers and connects the growth and development of his approach to fighting white supremacy in Mississippi to his interpretation of the Mau Mau movement in British colonial Kenya. While Mississippi may have felt as though it was worlds apart from Kenya, Evers was profoundly influenced by the Mau Mau use of force and mass participation to compel political and social change. Mississippi Mau Mau explores how, after being introduced to the story of the Kenyan uprising in both the mainstream and African-American press, Evers examined the racial climate in Mississippi through a transnational lens and transformed his analysis into grassroots strategies for change through his work with the NAACP. In realizing the significance of grassroots mass participation, unremitting dedication to action in the face of massive retaliation, an emphasis on class unity, and the use of a publicity campaign to highlight select cases of discrimination for broadcast on the national and international stage, Evers sought to permanently cripple Mississippi's white power structure. His determination to achieve his and the NAACP's objectives sometimes led to his frustration with the reactions of the National Office to the movement's failures in Mississippi, as well as with the numbers of black Mississippians who did not participate due to pressure from state authorities and private organizations resolute in their mission to maintain white supremacy. Nevertheless, Evers' strategic efforts not only helped lay the foundations for a mass movement in Mississippi, but also positioned it at the heart of the global struggle for black liberation.
Target concept learning from ambiguously labeled data
Authors:   , Jiao Changzhe
Published: April 2021

The multiple instance learning problem addresses the case where training data comes with label ambiguity, i.e., the learner has access only to inaccurately labeled data. For example, in target detection from remotely sensed hyperspectral imagery, targets are usually sub-pixel and the ground truthing of the targets according to GPS coordinates could drift across several meters. Thus the locations of the targets corresponding to the hyperspectral image are inaccurate. Training a supervised algorithm or extracting target signatures from this kind of labels is intractable. This dissertation investigates the topic target concept learning from ambiguously labeled data comprehensively; reviews and proposes several methods that either learn a set of representative or discriminative target concepts. The multiple instance hybrid estimator (MI-HE) maximizes the response of the hybrid detector under a generalized mean framework and estimates a set of discriminative target concepts. MI-HE adopts a linear mixture model and iterates between estimating a set of discriminative target and non-target signatures and solving a sparse unmixing problem. MI-HE preserves bag-level label information for each positive bag and is able to estimate a target concept that is commonly shared among positive bags. Furthermore, MI-HE has the potential to learn multiple signatures to address signature variability. After learning target concept, signature based detector could be applied for target detection. The presented algorithms were tested in many applications including simulated and real hyperspectral target detection, heartbeat characterization from ballistocardiogram signals and tree species classification from remotely sensed data. The presented algorithms were proven to be effective in learning high-quality target signatures and consistently achieved superior performance over the state-of-the-art comparison algorithms.
An interventional informatics approach to development and evaluation of population-based health and web technologies
Authors:   , Kennedy Diana R.
Published: April 2021

Interventional informatics is the use of health information technology (HIT) that drives evidence-based and evidence-generating practices to inform an improved health delivery system. Current HIT lacks movement towards data-driven infrastructures designed to promote information gathering, sharing, and new knowledge discovery in several areas. This thesis undertakes three specific areas where gaps exist. First, in undertaking quality improvement initiatives aligned with fidelity to program models, a web-based practice exchange was designed, built, tested and launched. Second, a systematic review of eHealth technology instruments for outcomes and evaluation components geared towards patient outcomes was conducted, uncovering gaps in the availability of psychometrically sound measures to evaluate eHealth technologies. Third, a study was conducted to establish a baseline of satisfaction and usability among medical care providers with the current advance care planning process (ACP) and documentation within the electronic medical record (EMR). This study discovered barriers to use of the EMR to retrieve ACP documents and prioritization areas for improvements to begin.
Dr. Ron Shroyer : an historical study of his career and contributions to Central Methodist University
Authors:   , McLouth Ryan
Published: April 2021

Purpose: The purpose of this historical study was to document the teaching career and achievements of Dr. Ronald Shroyer at Central Methodist University in order to examine the contributions made by Dr. Shroyer to his students, the institution, and the music profession. Method: The following data was collected during this study: (a) interviews with Dr. Shroyer, (b) written surveys from his former students and colleagues, (c) interviews with former Central Methodist University President Marianne Inman, (d) observations of Dr. Shroyer's informal interactions with others, (e) scores from compositions that he wrote, (f) professional and informal writings that he composed, (g) letters collected from correspondences with others, and (h) concert programs in which he appeared as a performer or those that included his music. Organization Chapter 2 of this study begins the chronological examination of Dr. Shroyer's life from birth to the beginning of his career. Chapter 3 serves as a chronology of Dr. Shroyer's career while at Central Methodist University. Chapter 4 is a detailed examination of his musical compositional style, his work as an arranger, and his music performance skills. Chapter 5 documents Dr. Shroyer as a pedagogue, and his teaching style. His influence on the Central Methodist University community from 1976 to today is described in Chapter 6. Chapter 7 is a summation of the findings from the study as a whole. Conclusion: Dr. Shroyer was effective in many ways during his career. As a teacher, performer, composer, colleague, and administrator, he contributed to Central Methodist University and continues to positively influence teachers, students, and his community. He made a lasting impact on the institution through his role as an administrator and faculty member, and affected the lives of students who studied with him privately, in the classroom, and in ensembles. Dr. Shroyer also left his mark on the music profession as a composer. His music has been featured by many institutions, at conferences, and has been performed by professional musicians. He is highly regarded as a performer, one who possesses great versatility, and has impressed fellow players and audience members.
Rural Missouri high school principals' perceptions of highly effective teachers : does it align with national research?
Authors:   , Sankey Marcia
Published: April 2021

The purpose of this case study was to discover what rural Missouri high school principals perceive as the characteristics of highly effective teachers to compare to the national research on highly effective teachers. High school principals carry a great deal of responsibility for identifying and placing highly effective teachers in all classrooms and it is important to know if they are truly looking at the same characteristics as is identified in the extant literature. For the purpose of this study, the definition of a highly effective teacher is someone who has strong pedagogical knowledge, pedagogical content knowledge, and subject content knowledge to reach and teach all students. The design of this study was as a qualitative case study of eight rural Missouri high schools within a forty-mile radius. The average 9-12th grade student-body population of the schools was 365, with an average of 98% of the student body population identified as Caucasian. Eight rural Missouri high school principals participated in semi-structured interviews to identify their perceptions of the characteristics of highly effective teachers. The results of this study identify that rural Missouri high school principals focus on pedagogical skills, like classroom management and relationships, as well as pedagogical content skills, like lesson planning and student engagement, to identify highly effective teachers. There is little if any perception of teacher subject content knowledge by the principals as they observe current teachers and interview prospective teachers to hire. This oversight could be detrimental to identifying and placing highly effective teachers in every classroom. Highly effective teachers according to research have strong pedagogical skill, pedagogical content knowledge, as well as strong subject content knowledge.
Obsidian source distribution and mercantile hierarchies in Postclassic AztatlÃ¡n, West Mexico
Authors:   , Pierce Daniel E.
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] In Precolumbian Mesoamerica, trade was central to social organization, the spread of ideas, and the widespread distribution of goods across the landscape. For the AztatlÃ¡n tradition of Postclassic (AD 900- 1350) West Mexico in particular, far-reaching trade networks were a defining characteristic. One important trade item spread throughout the region was obsidian. While West Mexico features a wide array of excellent quality obsidian sources, they were differentially used in particular ways. In this study, I have macroscopically and geochemically analyzed over 14,000 total obsidian artifacts from seven different Aztatlan sites: San Felipe AztatÃ¡n, Coamiles, Chacalilla, Amapa, PeÃ±itas, Huistla, and Santiaguito. Through these analyses, I have identified differences in how various obsidian sources were utilized nonrandomly not only within sites, but also among them. Results indicate that while the source closest to the coastal plain was utilized for generalized reduction and expedient tool use, more distant and presumably more costly sources were likely imported as prepared cores and finished prismatic blades. These obsidian analyses are supplemented with a geospatial study in which I have proposed the most efficient trade routes from each site to the utilized obsidian sources using a GIS Least Cost Path. With this, I have also identified likely direct trade between the regional centers on the coastal plain and secondary sites in Western Jalisco As a result, I have argued that obsidian sources were utilized in a manner dictated by the ideological value of particular sources based largely upon exclusivity and cost. To explore this hypothesis, I have utilized tenets of Neo-Marxist archaeological theory and Costly Signaling theory. With these theoretical perspectives, I argue that the greater cost, in and of itself, would have incentivized individuals with more wealth and prestige to preferentially use more distant obsidians. This utilization may have served to bolster their elevated status within local communities through the demonstration of greater access to resources, allies, esoteric knowledge of foreign lands, and trade partners. In this way, obsidian provides a window into better understanding the sociopolitical organization of the AztatlÃ¡n tradition.
Transforming paradigms an a/r/tographical exploration
Authors:   , Ruopp Amy
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] Artists are researchers and teachers. As an a/r/tographer, I live my research through the three lenses of the artist, researcher, and teacher. These three interconnected identities create a complex mapping of experience, investigation and complicate ways of understanding. Tension becomes a site for diffraction and is a space of emergent new knowing. Knowledge, in my case, manifests through an intra-action of literacies, tensions and encounters. This three-article dissertation explores how knowledge and theory matter. The essence of this research rests in poststructural notions of knowing. As an artist in an academic setting, I have poured myself into making the illusive invisible of how something is known, seen. Artistic and research processes are complex investigations of questions and ideas. Illuminating the unseen yet to be revealed of process requires a different way of conceptualizing questions, data, and analysis. I am interested in the â€œhowâ€ of how a/r/tographical research unfolds and how theory develops. My intention is disrupt traditional notions of qualitative research and to invite readers/viewers into the process to discover new ways to know differently.
Retail work lives : precarity and belonging in Queens
Authors:   , Sickels Michael S.
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] This dissertation is an ethnographic study of retail work in Queens, New York. Through 10 months of fieldwork and 52 interview with retail workers, I look at how workers find meaning and belonging in precarious jobs. Retail capitalism depends on precarity, or a flexible and disposable workforce. Most retail workers are part-time with low wages and little job security. Though many popular and scholarly works depict corporate retail as a "bad job," retail workers themselves are diverse, competent, and form meaningful relationships. My dissertation examines the effects of precarity on one hand and the "work lives" of retail workers on the other. I find that retail workers use retail brands to construct personal identity, often contradicting the meanings intended by the retailers themselves. I also find that workers value intimacy and friendship at work, often more than they value the work itself. I argue that multicultural identity is particularly important to retail workers in Queens and other super-diverse cities. Retailers attempt to profit from this diversity through multicultural management, but generally fail to create a truly inclusive environment. My dissertation is important for anyone interested in work and labor, particularly low-status service jobs and other precarious work. It is important not to view workers as cogs in a machine, even in the most exploitative and temporary conditions. Precarious workers are active agents in constructing their work lives, though they may not always recognize the social and economic conditions that shape their world. By considering the forms of belonging that matter to workers--identity, intimacy, and inclusivity--we may be able to imagine forms of labor politics that energize a new generation of workers.
Email B2B sales negotiation : dynamic use of textual cues as influence tactics
Authors:   , Singh Sunil Kumar
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] In this dissertation, I develop measures for sales influence tactics based on verbal cues and examine their joint effectiveness on sales outcomes - buyer attention and contract award - during email B2B sales negotiations. To test the proposed conceptual framework, I use a field and a controlled setting. In the field study, I collect email data for 43 B2B sales contract negotiations conducted over the course of 2.5 years based on a retrospective, 360-degree capture of emails centered on the lead salespersons and buyers. The email data are augmented with in-depth interviews of sales managers and a survey to collect salespersons' perceptual, demographic and performance information. Results demonstrate that combinations of motivationally synergistic tactics such as promise and assertiveness as well as recommendation and information sharing not only draw buyer's attention but also allow salespersons to win contracts. On the contrary, motivationally distinct tactics, such as promise and information sharing, can have unintended consequences. The study also finds support for buyer's attention role as a mediator between sales influence tactics and contract award. In the controlled setting (100 B2B Buyers/Procurement specialists as respondents), I test the underlying mechanisms (compliance, internalization) for two key influence tactics (promise and recommendation). Results offer support for the promise tactic working through a compliance mechanism. Implications for research and practice are discussed.
Social preferences and willingness-to-pay for forest ecosystem services : implications for payments for ecosystem services schemes
Authors:   , Obeng Elizabeth Asantewaa
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] Progressively, there has been a substantial shift in emphasis with regards to forest governance and management. Forests management policies are directed toward conserving biodiversity and maintaining ecosystem services rather than the traditional approach of maximizing and sustaining yield. PES has therefore become an essential tool for achieving the new trend of managing forests for ecosystem services. Fundamental to any PES initiative, is the understanding of perceived economic values of services provided by forest ecosystems. Economic values of ecosystem services provide information on public demand for these services which serve as baseline information for designing PES programs. Notwithstanding, information on public perceptions and attitudes toward PES is still limited. The objective of this research was to better understand how environmental attitudes, beliefs, value orientations and preferences for ecosystem attributes affect willingness-to-pay (WTP) for forested watershed ecosystem services under PES programs. Survey data from 1002 individual U.S. residents were analyzed. The results revealed a relatively stronger predictive power of attitudinal variables on WTP than socio-demographic variables. The findings provided evidence of heterogeneity in individual preferences for different ecosystem services provided by forested watersheds. Increase water quality and improvement in habitat for threatened plant and animal species were found to be the highly preferred and valued ecosystem services among four ecosystem services assessed (water quality, flood control, landscape beauty and habitat for threatened plant and animal species). On average U.S. households were willing to pay between US$ 43.92 - 77.16 and 50.16 - 77.16 per year for five years for water quality and habitat improvement services respectively at a local residence level. The study further showed that U.S. households could be willing to participate in a PES program and pay on average, between US$116.82 to 123.21 per year in income tax to restore a distant degraded forested watershed in the U.S. and between US$ 137.14 to 148.39 for a distant tropical forested watershed outside the U.S. for improved ecosystem services. The findings of this study offer useful baseline information that can inform policy decisions on design and implementation of forested watershed PES programs.
Optical-faint compact radio sources
Authors:   , Brown Jacob
Published: April 2021

This work investigates a population of bright, compact radio sources that are very faint in optical, which has never been studied before in a comprehensive manner. The sample consists of 135 radio sources selected from the Radio Fundamental Catalog (RFC). These sources have accurate VLBI positions, have ultra-compact radio morphologies (less than 10 mas), are strong in radio (median flux density [about]100 mJy), and yet are completely invisible in the SDSS DR10 data. While it is natural to guess that the OFCORS are powerful AGN, their exact nature is unclear. This multiwavelength study was performed by obtaining deeper optical imaging with OSMOS, CFHT, and PanSTARRS, perform SED fitting to determine the sources properties, explore the K-z andW1-z relations, and determine the power law in the infrared and radio regime.
The bacterial type III-secreted protein AvrRps4 is a bipartite effector
Authors:   , Halane Morgan K.
Published: April 2021

Like humans, plants have an immune system to protect themselves against invading pathogens. Unlike humans, however, the plant immune system is inborn and genetically predetermined by resistance genes. Pathogenic bacteria secrete proteins (effectors) into plant cells which manipulate the host cell, often to the benefit of the pathogen. The proteins encoded by resistance genes in resistant plants can specifically detect these effectors and ramp up a potent immune response, often resulting in cell death. By studying these effector proteins and how hosts can recognize them we hope to generate novel, durable methods to protect economically important plants from devastating pathogens. With a rapidly growing population in the face of global climate change it is more important than ever to protect the plants which we all use for food, fiber, and fuel. The effector AvrRps4 is recognized by the protein pair RPS4/RRS1. After delivery into plant cells AvrRps4 is processed into two parts (AvrRps4N and AvrRps4C). AvrRps4C was shown to trigger a cell death response in turnip and has been the most well-studied domain of AvrRps4. My research shows that AvrRps4N is also a functional effector domain. In some plants, in the absence of AvrRps4C, it enhances bacterial virulence. In resistant plants it enhances immunity in the presence of AvrRps4C. Finally, I show that AvrRps4N alone can trigger cell death on some plants, further confirming its role as a bona fide effector domain.