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Title: A method for determining seed viability by electrical conductivity measurements
Creator: Fick, George L.
Date: 1924
Collection: Electronic Theses & Dissertations

Title: On the inheritance of flower color in alfalfa
Creator: Robinson, Brittain B.
Date: 1924
Collection: Electronic Theses & Dissertations

Title: Shrinkage of live stock in transit
Creator: Bovay, Arthur G.
Date: 1924
Collection: Electronic Theses & Dissertations

Title: The leaf spot disease of muskmelon
Creator: Cole, John R.
Date: 1924
Collection: Electronic Theses & Dissertations

Title: UNDERSTANDING THE ROLES OF INTERKINGDOM MICROBIAL INTERACTIONS, MICROBIAL TRAITS, AND HOST FACTORS IN THE ASSEMBLY OF PLANT MICROBIOMES
Creator: Liber, Julian Aaron
Date: 2021
Collection: Electronic Theses & Dissertations
Description: The community of organisms that associate with plants are vital to both the survival of the host plant but also the diseases which may kill it. The processes by which this community, called the microbiome, assemble and function can contribute to the traits of the host, including plants that humans rely on for food, resources, and ecosystems services. This thesis focuses on understanding the assembly of microbiomes at the scale of microbe-microbe interactions and traits of individual microbes,...
Show moreThe community of organisms that associate with plants are vital to both the survival of the host plant but also the diseases which may kill it. The processes by which this community, called the microbiome, assemble and function can contribute to the traits of the host, including plants that humans rely on for food, resources, and ecosystems services. This thesis focuses on understanding the assembly of microbiomes at the scale of microbe-microbe interactions and traits of individual microbes, as well as how characters of the host may change this process. I first address this by examining the in vitro and in planta interactions within small synthetic communities of root-inhabiting bacteria and fungi and with the plant host and viral disease of the host. While intermicrobial interactions in vitro were not predictive of in planta interactions, adding host disease or additional organisms to the system altered the assembly process. I then show the development and applications of the CONSTAX2 classifier, a taxonomic assignment tool for metabarcoding studies, which offers improved accuracy and ease of use for conducting metabarcoding studies exploring the diversity and structure of microbial communities. Last, I present a study testing which factors affected the composition of forest fungal communities to understand the ecology of litter-inhabiting fungi and improve methodologies for sampling leaf-associated fungal communities. The factors affecting the assembly of plant microbiomes are complex and varied but connecting individual interactions to community composition and ultimately function may improve our abilities to predict and manage microbiome processes.
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Title: Environments Effect on Mood : A Comparative Analysis of Environments on Mood Enhancement
Creator: Hayes, Jonah
Date: 2021
Collection: Electronic Theses & Dissertations
Description: Mental health is an issue that millions of people are suffering and struggling with, reconnecting with natural environments could be part of the solution to this problem. Although research demonstrated the significance of the healing properties of natural environments, little research compared natural environments to each other. This research explores which aspects of different natural environments have a positive impact on mood. Using survey questionnaires, two environments were tested. The...
Show moreMental health is an issue that millions of people are suffering and struggling with, reconnecting with natural environments could be part of the solution to this problem. Although research demonstrated the significance of the healing properties of natural environments, little research compared natural environments to each other. This research explores which aspects of different natural environments have a positive impact on mood. Using survey questionnaires, two environments were tested. The first being natural environments, where participant exposure to man-made or urban elements is limited and they are surrounded by natural elements. The second environment, urban environments, are spaces such as parks that are not separated from the urban environment. While in the urban environments’ participants were still able to perceive the urban elements that surrounds the space, such as cars, buildings, and roads. Participants were surveyed before and after using the spaces to allow the measuring and analysis of the change the participants experienced. Both the change in mental restoration, but also of the perceived variables of the space. Statistical analysis of the survey responses showed that a greater amount of change to the perceived variables, and mental restoration happened in natural environments, but both environments were restorative. This supports the idea that accessibility to a diverse set of environments and recreational elements will increase mental restoration. Therefore, policy practitioners, and designers should work to increase park space accessibility to a diverse set of environments and recreation amenities.
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Title: EPIDEMIC MODELS UNDER MOBILITY ON MULTI-LAYER NETWORKS
Creator: Abhishek, Vishal
Date: 2021
Collection: Electronic Theses & Dissertations
Description: We study epidemic spreading models namely, SIS and SIR models, under mobility on multilayer networks. In particular, we consider a patchy environment in which each patch comprises individuals belonging the different classes, e.g., individuals in different socio-economic strata. We model the mobility of individuals of each class across different patches through an associated Continuous Time Markov Chain (CTMC). The topology of these multiple CTMCs constitute the multi-layer network of mobility...
Show moreWe study epidemic spreading models namely, SIS and SIR models, under mobility on multilayer networks. In particular, we consider a patchy environment in which each patch comprises individuals belonging the different classes, e.g., individuals in different socio-economic strata. We model the mobility of individuals of each class across different patches through an associated Continuous Time Markov Chain (CTMC). The topology of these multiple CTMCs constitute the multi-layer network of mobility. At each time, individuals in the multi-layer network of spatially-distributed patches move according to their CTMC and subsequently interact with the local individuals in the patch according to SIS or SIR models. We establish the existence of various equilibria under different parameter regimes and establish their (almost) global asymptotic stability using Lyapunov techniques. We also derive simple conditions that highlight the influence of the multi layer network on the stability of these equilibria. We numerically illustrate that the derived model provides a good approximation to the stochastic model with a finite population and also demonstrate the influence of the multi-layer network structure.Next, we extend some of the results to the case of weakly connected networks. Here, we use the notion of strongly connected components and input to state stability to study the stability of equilibria. Finally, we consider a resource allocation problem to maximize the rate of convergence to an equilibrium. We show that under certain assumptions the problem can be formulated as a geometric program. We provide numerical illustrations to corroborate the results.
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Title: Keeping the Tradition Alive : Irish Traditional Music Sessions During COVID-19
Creator: Bobker, Andrew
Date: 2021
Collection: Electronic Theses & Dissertations
Description: In the spring of 2020, performers of traditional Irish music responded to pandemicinducedsocial distancing by creating a new variant of an old tradition: the virtual Irish session. Unlike conventional pub sessions, virtual sessions occur entirely in virtual space, facilitated by conferencing applications like Zoom or YouTube livestreaming. The move to virtual sessions presents numerous challenges to the traditional structure and norms of Irish traditional music. This thesis will explore the...
Show moreIn the spring of 2020, performers of traditional Irish music responded to pandemicinducedsocial distancing by creating a new variant of an old tradition: the virtual Irish session. Unlike conventional pub sessions, virtual sessions occur entirely in virtual space, facilitated by conferencing applications like Zoom or YouTube livestreaming. The move to virtual sessions presents numerous challenges to the traditional structure and norms of Irish traditional music. This thesis will explore the strategies and motivations of Irish musicians as they have adapted to the conditions of COVID-19 and isolation. Maintaining an authentic practice within the auspices of technological innovation involves the negotiation of geography, ethnicity, and selective tradition in a complex social space. This work is based in large part on ethnographic research conducted between March and December of 2020, including both in-person interviews and Internet ethnography. Interviews were conducted with musicians in Austin, Texas; Portland, Maine; Seattle, Washington; and Boston, Massachusetts.
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Title: The inheritance of yellow-berry in wheat
Creator: Brandes, Elmer W.
Date: 1915
Collection: Electronic Theses & Dissertations

Title: The design & construction of a power plant for the Marquette cement manufacturing company, La Salle, Illinois
Creator: Williams, George Whitney
Date: 1909
Collection: Electronic Theses & Dissertations

Title: Transplanting as a factor in growing plants
Creator: Boyle, Jesse G.
Date: 1914
Collection: Electronic Theses & Dissertations

Title: Bacterial soft rot of lettuce
Creator: Tisdale, Lionel E.
Date: 1921
Collection: Electronic Theses & Dissertations

Title: Inheritance of earliness in oats
Creator: Buchanan, Robert L.
Date: 1915
Collection: Electronic Theses & Dissertations

Title: A study of the effect of milk upon the bacterial flora of the intestinal tract
Creator: Tweed, Robert L.
Date: 1920
Collection: Electronic Theses & Dissertations

Title: A RISK BASED USER TOOL TO BUILD USER CENTERED LABELS FOR MEDICAL DEVICES
Creator: Estrada, Eric Joseph
Date: 2021
Collection: Electronic Theses & Dissertations
Description: Herein we develop a user-driven, risk-based tool to inform the design of a standardized label for use with medical devices. Researchers identified 11 labeling inputs found on commercial labels and organized the inputs into a “Device Facts” box at 3 risk levels: high, medium, and low. mock labels and commercial labels were objectively compared by healthcare practitioners using a forced choice methodology where accuracy and response time served as dependent variables. Results suggested that...
Show moreHerein we develop a user-driven, risk-based tool to inform the design of a standardized label for use with medical devices. Researchers identified 11 labeling inputs found on commercial labels and organized the inputs into a “Device Facts” box at 3 risk levels: high, medium, and low. mock labels and commercial labels were objectively compared by healthcare practitioners using a forced choice methodology where accuracy and response time served as dependent variables. Results suggested that pairwise comparisons between labels (mock vs commercial) within a given risk category (e.g. high) yielded statistically significant differences at a confidence level of 95% for time to correct response. For both medium (p=0.0016) and high risk information (p<0.0001), the mock labels yielded a quicker correct response than their commercial counterparts. Only for low risk information were the commercial labels faster (p<0.0001). The gains in speed made in high/moderate risk information were not attributable trade-off. Mock labels were at least as accurate as their commercial counterparts; low and high risk yielded no sign of significant difference when mock and commercial were compared and participants were significantly more accurate with questions requiring medium risk information for the mock labels.
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Title: Thermal Characterization and Crystal Growth of the Germanium Telluride-Tin Telluride System
Creator: Levental, Gill
Date: 2021
Collection: Electronic Theses & Dissertations
Description: Thermoelectric materials, which can create an electrical current from a temperature gradient within the material, are an important means of generating electrical power in very remote and harsh environments. However, their deployment in terrestrial environments has been limited, due to two primary factors: the high cost of thermoelectric materials and their low energy conversion efficiency- too low for economic use in almost all applications. One method by which thermoelectric material energy...
Show moreThermoelectric materials, which can create an electrical current from a temperature gradient within the material, are an important means of generating electrical power in very remote and harsh environments. However, their deployment in terrestrial environments has been limited, due to two primary factors: the high cost of thermoelectric materials and their low energy conversion efficiency- too low for economic use in almost all applications. One method by which thermoelectric material energy conversion efficiency may be increased is by reducing material lattice thermal conductivity, or a material’s ability to conduct heat through the vibrations of its crystalline atomic lattice, which are called phonons. In support of that objective, this work presents a characterization of fundamental material properties that influence the lattice thermal conductivity of the germanium telluride-tin telluride (Ge1-xSnxTe) system, a promising thermoelectric material. The properties characterized include composition-dependent coefficients of thermal expansion, speeds of sound within the material, and elastic moduli. These were characterized using high-temperature X-ray diffraction, resonant ultrasound spectroscopy, and high-pressure X-ray diffraction, respectively. This work also presents an account of the synthesis of bulk single-crystal ingots of several compositions within the Ge1-xSnxTe system, which will be used for an in-depth investigation of Ge1-xSnxTe phonon characteristics by collaborators using inelastic neutron scattering.
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Title: Cover crops and cover crop residues regulate rates of soil microbial decomposition and plant available nitrogen
Creator: Egboluche, Nzube Prisca
Date: 2020
Collection: Electronic Theses & Dissertations
Description: Changes in soil microbial community and activities can influence the nutrient cycling and its availability to plants. I conducted a one-year soil incubation study to: evaluate the effects of short- and long-term N additions on the soil microbial activities and how cover crop residue mixtures influence ecosystem functions. Two legume residues, Vicia villosa - hairy vetch (V) and Pisum sativum - field pea (P) with C:N ratio 12.8 and 10.5 respectively and two non-legume residues, Pennisetum...
Show moreChanges in soil microbial community and activities can influence the nutrient cycling and its availability to plants. I conducted a one-year soil incubation study to: evaluate the effects of short- and long-term N additions on the soil microbial activities and how cover crop residue mixtures influence ecosystem functions. Two legume residues, Vicia villosa - hairy vetch (V) and Pisum sativum - field pea (P) with C:N ratio 12.8 and 10.5 respectively and two non-legume residues, Pennisetum glaucum - pearl millet (M) and Lolium multiflorum - rye grass (R) with C:N ratio 37.8 and 14.3 respectively were used in this study. Soils amended with V and R had greater inorganic N compared to M and P residues while in soils with residue mixtures I observed non-additive synergistic (NAS) effect on inorganic N at the initial and final stage of the incubation period. Long-term N addition increased inorganic N but was apparent with short-term N fertilizer. Addition of both short- and long-term N increased [beta]-1,4,-glucosidase (BG), [beta]-D-1,4-cellobiohydrolase (CBH), phenol oxidase (PO), peroxidase (PER) and acid phosphatase (PHOS) with the exception of Leucine-aminopeptidase (LAP) and urease enzyme activities. There was non-additive antagonistic (NAA) effects on cellulase, total oxidase, [beta]-1,4,-N-acetyl glucosaminidase (NAG) and NAS effects on LAP, urease and PHOS enzyme activities. The addition of residues likely stimulated microbial growth, but the NAA effect of residue mixtures on C acquisition enzyme (cellulase and total oxidase) activities suggests development of C limitation.
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Title: Intra-household human capital measures and child and maternal health : evidence from Zambia
Creator: Faas, Simone Margaret
Date: 2020
Collection: Electronic Theses & Dissertations
Description: Zambia has one of the highest rates of childhood stunting in the world. Traditional health production functions model that good health quality for young children is dependent on the necessary inputs of parental influences, including parental health, parental education, and household wealth. Using data from a Feed the Future survey from rural Zambia and the Women's Empowerment in Agriculture Index, I examine the relationship between several measures of spousal human capital and the health...
Show moreZambia has one of the highest rates of childhood stunting in the world. Traditional health production functions model that good health quality for young children is dependent on the necessary inputs of parental influences, including parental health, parental education, and household wealth. Using data from a Feed the Future survey from rural Zambia and the Women's Empowerment in Agriculture Index, I examine the relationship between several measures of spousal human capital and the health outcomes of young children and women of child-bearing age. I find the ability to read and write of both spouses is highly correlated with positive changes in children's and women's health outcomes. Literacy and education campaigns which target both boys and girls should be heavily emphasized among rural and disadvantaged communities in southern Africa, as men's literacy and education as well as women's literacy are both important to improving future health outcomes for children and adults.
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Title: Cross-Cultural Comparison of Public Attitudes and Adverse Impact of Stuttering
Creator: Wozniak, Angelica
Date: 2021
Collection: Electronic Theses & Dissertations
Description: Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore potential links between public perceptions ofstuttering and the adverse impact of these perceptions on the experiences of individuals who stutter. This was completed by analyzing data from a demographic survey, the Public Opinion Survey of Human Attributes (POSHA), the Overall Assessment of the Speaker's Experience of Stuttering (OASES), and the Stuttering Perception Scale (4S). Data was collected from the United States and Australia. Methods:...
Show morePurpose: The purpose of this study was to explore potential links between public perceptions ofstuttering and the adverse impact of these perceptions on the experiences of individuals who stutter. This was completed by analyzing data from a demographic survey, the Public Opinion Survey of Human Attributes (POSHA), the Overall Assessment of the Speaker's Experience of Stuttering (OASES), and the Stuttering Perception Scale (4S). Data was collected from the United States and Australia. Methods: This was a qualitative study that involved 24 people who stutter from the United States and 22 people who stutter from Australia, as well as 45 people who do not stutter from the United States and 48 people who do not stutter from Australia (aged 18+) who were recruited via research registries, personal contacts, stuttering associations, and by word of mouth. A descriptive analysis was completed using the student’s t-test, the Chi Square test, and percentage ‘yes’ to determine the presence of significant differences in the data. Results: No significant differences were found regarding adverse impact and self-stigma between respondents from the United States and Australia. No significant differences were also found regarding public perceptions of stuttering between respondents from the United States and Australia. Conclusions: The following results can be interpreted as indicating that there are minimal differences cross-culturally for adverse impact and self-stigma in respondents who stutter, as well as minimal differences cross-culturally for public perceptions of stuttering in respondents who do not stutter.
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Title: Grouping Patterns and Decisions for School-Age Children Who Stutter
Creator: Zukowski, Danielle
Date: 2021
Collection: Electronic Theses & Dissertations
Description: Background. In the United States, the school system is one of the most common settings for stuttering intervention, yet adults who stutter report significant dissatisfaction with their prior school-based therapy experiences. In the schools, group therapy is the predominant service-delivery model for all students, but limited research is available regarding grouping practices, grouping decisions, or the impact of service-delivery models and group composition on students who stutter. Method....
Show moreBackground. In the United States, the school system is one of the most common settings for stuttering intervention, yet adults who stutter report significant dissatisfaction with their prior school-based therapy experiences. In the schools, group therapy is the predominant service-delivery model for all students, but limited research is available regarding grouping practices, grouping decisions, or the impact of service-delivery models and group composition on students who stutter. Method. The current study collected data on the factors clinicians consider when determining whether to use groups and how to form groups in therapy. The method involved the distribution of a questionnaire to speech-language pathologists (SLPs) working in public schools. Results. Analyses indicated that the choice of service-delivery model and group composition were influenced by student factors, such as stuttering characteristics, progress in therapy, and social dynamics, and clinician/workplace factors, including caseload size, workload, and scheduling restrictions. Discussion. Excess job expectations and limited time impact clinicians’ ability to implement individualized decision-making when choosing whether to use and how to form groups for students who stutter. By reducing barriers, school SLPs will be better able to align their clinical judgment with their grouping practices and more adequately meet the needs of students.
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