Texas A&M University-Kingsville: AKM Digital Repository
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Secure auditing and data deduplication in the cloud
No full textCloud computing technology has developed immensely over the past decade and data outsourcing to the cloud storage service has become a common trend, benefiting customers by saving data maintenance efforts for data management and data integrity. Users can decrease the burden of maintaining large files by uploading them to cloud servers. Existing cloud storage is not entirely reliable, and there are security concerns about how the cloud data can be deduplicated during the integrity check. From the perspective of the cloud service provider, data deduplication methods are needed in order to lower costs for the large cloud data storage system. Due to the complex nature of data in a remote storage network, data integrity with a monitoring strategy that facilitates user’s dynamic data operations is required along with decreasing storage costs and data management in dynamical data activity for cloud service providers. In this research, a mechanism is proposed to handle the data integrity checking and eliminating redundancy in cloud data. The proposed method in this work contributes to the cloud computing field by performing secure and efficient data deduplication and auditing using Blowfish encryption. This work compared Blowfish with AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) for several different file sizes and showed that Blowfish performs, on average, 80% more efficiently for auditing and deduplication of data
Professional development in job satisfaction for kindergarten teachers in Texas: a qualitative phenomenological study
No full textProfessional development and job satisfaction a topic of great interest for all those who involved in the field of early childhood education. Professional development is closely related to organizational development, both representing a result of continuous changes in education. At a personal level, professional development has an internal purpose, but it is conditioned by the new obligations of teaching and learning activity. An important variable is also the teacher’s professional satisfaction.
The main objective of the study is to determine the level of job satisfaction of teachers from kindergartens in Texas, and professional development opportunities. The purpose of this study was to study lived experiences and perceptions of Texas kindergarten teachers about the role of professional development in job satisfaction. The findings of this study may advance knowledge pertinent to teacher turnover, teacher education, and professional development for early education teachers. This study may also make practical implications that contribute to kindergarten or early education teachers and their students. The themes to emerge from this study could also provide practical insights for local decision makers, school leaders, who design and select professional development, policymakers
Some mollusks of the Texas coast
No full textA lack of information on classification and a personal interest in mollusks of the Texas coast has resulted in this study. The late Mr. John Kern Strecker, of Baylor University, Waco, Texas, has compiled the most complete checklist to date. The available data on the mollusks of this region is relatively scarce. Four of the five classes of Mollusca, including seven orders, approximately fifty-five families and seventy-five genera are represented; however, this work is not as complete as the writer would like for it to be
Development of a neurological disease detection framework for brain tumor segmentation using auto encoder regularization
No full textVarious scanning techniques like computed tomography (CT) scans and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans are used to image brain tumors. Automatic segmentation is useful for diagnosis, treatment planning, and monitoring the tumor segmentation. Time can be saved by using automatic segmentation and providing a precise reproducible solution for further brain tumor analysis and monitoring. There are many machine learning techniques that are used to perform brain tumor segmentation from MRI. Amongst these, deep learning methods are being used to detect and segment the brain tumor because of their self-learning nature and efficient processing of the large data of MRI scans. In this work, the auto-encoder technique based on an encoder and decoder architecture of a convolutional neural network is developed and implemented for brain tumor segmentation. A variational auto-encoder is used for reconstructing the original images, it regulates the model and prevents the model from over fitting as well. A morphological closing operation is also performed in this method to remove gaps, holes, and other unwanted unnecessary structures from the images. This method for brain tumor segmentation has an average accuracy of 0.91, measured as a Dice coefficient, which is higher than previous standard methods
American development of petroleum resources in Saudi Arabia
No full textArabia -- a magic work - arousing thoughts of mysticism of Aladdin and his fabulous lamp--a word that brings to the reader's mind scenes of a romantic desert life and the alluring aroma burning incense! However, i is doubtful if Aladdin, his Genie, and his wonderful lamp themselves could have produced the wonders that have occurred there in the past two decades -- magic wonders created by the genius of the American Petroleum Industry. It is a far cry from the familiar surroundings of modern American to the desolate sands of Arabia. The ordinary layman, upon going there, would be greatly surprised. To an eye accustomed to the scenes of Western civilization, Arabia would appear as a virtual wasteland of sand and mountainous rock. In places Arabia presents a desert as barren as any man has ever looked upon. IN other sections Arabia presents a rugged, wild, and mountain backdrop. For the present, let us explore the desert lying many miles east of Britian's Suez and washing its torrid shores in the azure waters of Persian Gulf
Mathematics in high school chemistry: a systematic classification and typical solution study of the problems in the chemistry course of Port Neches High School, 1947-1948 /|cby John Dudley Pickens.
No full textFor the past fifteen years, 1934-1949, the writer has been actively engaged in teaching science and mathematics in Texas schools. During this period of time, numerous occasions have been arisen at which the time difficulties which students encounter in science and mathematics courses, particularly chemistry, in the high school have been discussed. For example, conversations with students on the registration day have contained statements similar to these: 'I can't pass chemistry; the problems are too hard for me,
Albizu Campos and the movement for independence in Puerto Rico
No full textAbout six years have passes between the first vague resolution some day to write this thesis and the final writing. On July 13, 1944, the S.S. Cuba docked along on of the many wharves found on the Mississippi River. Wension Pan High among the soldiers who had been waiting impatiently for two weeks for "our ship to come in." it was rumored, and services men were quite good at making and believing rumors, that the Cuba would take us to our destination. In fact, that night we were notified to get ready because we would sail the following morning
A two culture study of school progress; Santa Rosa, Texas, 1947-1948
No full textThe data in this thesis were obtained from the records of the Santa Rosa School, Santa Rosa, Texas. The writer was Superintendent of Schools at this city for two years, 1946-1947 and 1947-1948; thus, he had first hand information about the pupils used in this study. The purpose of this thesis is to make fair and unbiased comparisons of the two cultures as conditions existed the year the study was made
Factors of ocelot occupancy in South Texas
No full textThe Rio Grande Delta and surrounding rangelands of South Texas have become one of the fastest urbanizing regions in the United States over the last 35 years. Coupled with rapid urbanization, this region is noted for productive agriculture and rangeland while retaining the distinction as a richly biodiverse region in Texas. Since the early twentieth century, the conversion of woody cover for agriculture and human development has become one of the main drivers of the decline of endangered ocelots (Leopardus pardalis), and the extirpation of jaguars (Panthera onca) and jaguarundi (Puma yagouaroundi) in South Texas. About 80% of the known breeding population of ocelots (Leopardus pardalis) in the United States occurs exclusively on private rangelands in northern Willacy and Kenedy counties in South Texas. These private ranches support several large contiguous undisturbed patches of thornshrub which is home to a diverse carnivore community that also includes bobcats (Lynx rufus) and coyotes (Canis latrans). Over the last 37 years, past studies have suggested ocelots in South Texas select for woody patches that contain extremely dense thornshrub (i.e., 95% canopy cover and 85% vertical cover) and require large patches of woody cover to survive. However, information on occupancy dynamics of ocelots over time relative to landscape- and site-level factors and interspecific competition has yet to be described in this region. Furthermore, I have yet to understand largescale processes that have driven land cover change in the Rio Grande Delta and surrounding rangelands since the late 1980s and project in the future until 2050. To address these broad questions, I initiated this four studies: 1) Quantified different rates of land cover change from 1987-2016 and used housing density scenarios to project changes in the amount and spatial distribution of woody cover until 2050 and its potential impact of wild felid habitat; 2) Assess colonization-extirpation dynamics of ocelot occupancy relative to site-level and landscape-level factors, and 3) Examine interspecific interactions and examine potential resource partitioning among coyotes, bobcats, and ocelots on the East Foundation’s El Sauz Ranch from 2011 to 2018; 4) Quantify the predictive performance of using high-frequency GPS telemetry data to inform an ocelot species distribution model on private rangelands in northeastern Willacy and eastern Kenedy counties in South Texas.
From 1987 to 2016, woody cover increased from 3.9% along with patch density and edge density, while mean patch area, and Euclidean nearest neighbor decreased. Closer inspection revealed that woody encroachment of small patches (<1 ha) was the leading cause of woody cover increase by a magnitude of 4, with an observed significant skewness and kurtosis in the frequency distribution of patch size across years. By 2050, urbanization will be the dominant landscape type (39.9%) and at least 200 km2 of woody cover may be lost. From 2014-2017, 8 ocelots were captured on the East Foundation’s El Sauz Ranch in Willacy and Kenedy counties, Texas. Two-hour fix rates have similar performance to 12 hr fix rates and might represent the optimal fix rates for researchers trying to obtain as much GPS data over longer periods as possible while avoiding serial autocorrelation. Probability of ocelot presence was greatest in mixed woody canopies which is important in determining ocelot presence on the Coastal Sand Plain of South Texas. This study shows that accounting for serial autocorrelation among step lengths at different fix rates can enable researchers to use highfrequency GPS data within MaxEnt without potentially biasing occurrence data. From 2011 to 2018, initial occurrence of ocelots was positively influenced by cooler temperatures in woody areas and similar humidity as compared to non-woody areas. Colonization-extinction dynamics were influenced by the spatial structure of woody land cover. Ocelots were more likely to colonize areas with a greater woody percentage and patch density, and farther Euclidean distance (<9 m). However, decreasing mean patch area and increasing shape index of woody cover positively influenced extirpation rates. I also found strong evidence of seasonal mutual coexistence among ocelots, bobcats, and coyotes and observed a species specific seasonal trend in detection. Seasonal coexistence patterns were also explained by increasing distance from a high-speed roadway.
These results have important ecological implications for wild felid populations and planning ocelot recovery in the rangelands and adjacent Rio Grande Delta of South Texas. By 2050, urbanization will be the dominant cover type in the region and the largest tracts of woody cover will only occur in private lands in northeastern Willacy and eastern Kenedy counties. In these private lands, as woody patch density increases, these patches will coalesce over time and form larger woody aggregates, which will promote ocelot occurrence, colonization, and persistence. Brush management needs to be strategic as patch area and shape index are a limiting factor to promote ocelot persistence on private rangelands. Furthermore, the co-occurrence study indicates mutual coexistence among ocelots, bobcats, and coyotes, but we were unable to find clear evidence of resource partitioning, which may indicate the niches of these species may be too discrete for interspecific competition. Further research may provide a better understanding of the ecological mechanisms that facilitate coexistence within this community. As road networks in the region expand over the next few decades, large private working ranches will remain the key to ocelot recovery into the future
Thermal ecology of white-tailed deer on southwestern rangelands
No full textTemperatures are increasing worldwide, while human activity is removing thermal cover from the landscape. Despite these changes, wildlife and livestock are challenged with maintaining a stable body temperature during extreme temperatures. Behaviors, such as seeking shade, are less energetically costly to animals than physiological responses; shade can reduce radiant heat gain by 30%. However, behavioral changes may lead to competition with other animals on the landscape. Furthermore, all shade is not of equal quality because natural vegetation often produces dappled shade. I used global positioning system collars and operative temperature models in both field and captive experiments to evaluate the relationship between temperature, animal behavior, and woody cover or shade. In chapter 1, I investigated resource selection of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and cattle (Bos spp.) during summer and assessed deer-cattle competition for shade. I found selection for woody cover throughout the day differed between deer and cattle. Deer and cattle used the same shade resources but avoided each other temporally. In chapter 2, I manipulated shade quality in a captive setting, using woven shade cloth to vary solar obstruction and quantified deer shade preference as temperature fluctuated. Deer selected higher quality shade during hotter temperatures, but shade quality preference was not clear until ambient temperature was ≥ 29℃. In chapter 3, I evaluated the effects of mechanical brush management on deer movement and quantified resource selection within the treatment area over time. Brush management had minimal effects on deer movement. Deer selected for root-plowed strips during midday compared to brush strips and brush mottes. However, deer selected for brush strips and brush mottes over root-plowed strips at night. In conclusion, shade is important to animals because it decreases operative temperature. Animals use shade to mitigate heat stress during daily temperature extremes, and there is potential for competition with other animals if shade is limited. Understanding the relationship between landscape characteristics and temperature and how animals use the landscape during hotter periods will improve our ability to mitigate the effects of heat stress through management decisions. Land managers should consider thermal cover and wildlife-livestock relationships when designing management plans