5063 research outputs found
Sort by
The campus library: supporting research and scholarship since 1886
Get PDFhttps://scholar.utc.edu/exhibition-records/1001/thumbnail.jp
Analysis of the soil lead contamination issue of South Chattanooga
Get PDFChildhood lead poisoning is an ongoing health threat despite actions taken by governmental bodies to remove lead from gasoline, paint, and other various household objects in which lead is found. In South Chattanooga specifically, lead has been found in the soil at such a level it is considered a public health threat, especially to children under the age of six. This situation has caused the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to name the South Chattanooga area as a Superfund site known as the Southside Chattanooga Lead Superfund site. This designation has resulted in multiple community meetings between EPA officials and Chattanooga residents, as well as door-to-door canvassing and mailing of information to affected households. Despite all of these measures being taken, the awareness levels regarding soil lead contamination in the community has been historically low as shown by previous survey data and data collected through this study. To combat this low awareness level, this study used Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) in the community in an attempt to get the community members’ insight on how to rectify this issue. While the modified CBPR process was not as effective with this community as hoped, a survey developed and implemented during this study provided useful information from the East Lake community and can be used in the future. Most survey respondents showed similar trends in awareness to what has been found in past surveys with 50% reporting they did not previously know about the lead contamination and 75% reporting they were not asked about testing their soil. In regards to access forms, most had no idea why community members would not sign the forms. Survey data also indicated that community members are more likely to receive news about their neighborhood through television and social media. Using these avenues of information distribution, those working in these areas can better inform affected community members about the situation
Through the elementary school years: self-regulation predicting social competence with student-teacher relationships as mediators
Get PDFUsing a longitudinal, nationally representative dataset, ECLS-K:2011, research was conducted to determine the predictive relationship between Self-Regulation in kindergarten and first-grade years and Social Competency in the third- and fourth-grade years of elementary school. Along with this, Student-Teacher Relationships were studied to determine if they could mediate the relationship between Self-Regulation and Social Competency. These aspects have been extensively studied individually in previous research, but this study looks at how these aspects work together and the implications that these relationships have. The current study documented that a) Working Memory predicts indices of Behavioral Engagement and Internalizing Behavior Problems in the classroom, b) Prosocial Behavior is predicted by closeness in Student-Teacher Relationships, and Loneliness is predicted by conflict in Student-Teacher Relationships and c) Prosocial Behavior is predicted by the degree of closeness in Student-Teacher Relationships through Self-Regulatory aspects of cognitive flexibility, attentional focus, and working memory in kindergarten. The findings of the current study highlight the importance of early and close Student-Teacher Relationships and how these relationships can mediate the aspects of self-regulation and social competency
Erasmian humanism and the utopias of Thomas More and John Milton
Get PDFThe thesis examines the influence of Erasmus’s Christian Humanism on the political thought of John Milton and Thomas More, and argues that Milton’s politics was utopian like More’s. In true Erasmian spirit, their utopias blend classical ethics and Christian beliefs and emphasize education and training in virtue. However, virtue was significant to their utopian models for different reasons: More encourages virtue as a corrective and advocates a collectivist culture which restricts individual liberty; Milton, on the other hand, champions individual liberty and argues that only through freedom true virtue can be attained
Three-dimensional hydrodynamic model set-up: a case study of middle Tennessee River
Get PDFThe Environmental Protection Agency\u27s (EPA) Environmental Fluid Dynamics Code (EFDC) is a widely used hydrodynamics model that is no longer up to date with modern technology. As part of this research, an automated MATLAB based structured grid generator for EFDC was developed and was tested by developing a test model for Tennessee River near Chattanooga area. The test model was developed for a 9.92 km long segment of the Tennessee River starting from the downstream of the Chickamauga dam to upstream of Moccasin island. The model was calibrated against measured water flows, velocities and gage heights from January 1 to June 27, 2008. The Nash-Sutcliffe coefficients for velocities and gage heights were 0.788 and -6.61 respectively. Overall the model could simulate the field condition effectively. However, a detailed bathymetry is required, and the current limitation of the grid generators manual adjustments need to be addressed to produce better simulation results
The relationship between instructor course participation, student participation, and student performance in online courses
Get PDFOnline learning has become ubiquitous with higher education and has catalyzed many changes in teaching and learning, particularly in academic technology. However, foundational frameworks for supporting learning in a virtual environment argue that learners need very similar, if not more, instructional engagement and support as the traditional classroom. Moore’s (1989) three types of interaction and Garrison & Akyol’s (2013) community of inquiry theoretical framework opine the importance of social engagement on the part of instructors and students in the online classroom, further asserting that learner-to-instructor interactions are essential to supporting student satisfaction and learning. Nevertheless, there are few studies, particularly quantitative studies, that examine the relationship between instructor participation in online courses and student participation and achievement. This study analyzed the relationship between select forms of instructor participation, including course announcements and discussion board posts, and student participation and achievement, represented by student course accesses, clicks within a course, time in a course, discussion board posts, and final course grade. The researcher utilized data available in the learning management system (LMS) log files from over 500 online master’s degree courses delivered at a private nonprofit university in the Northwest United States. The results of the multiple regression and multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) analyses on the data from the logs showed significant relationships between instructor participation and student participation as well as student participation and achievement within an online course. No significant relationship was identified between instructor participation and student achievement. Potential explanations for this discrepancy and opportunities for future research are also discussed
Exploring the Perceptions of Occupational Therapy Among Physical Therapists
Get PDFUsing a survey design, this pilot study aims to determine the knowledge physical therapy practitioners have of the field of occupational therapy regarding education, skill set, and contribution to improving client outcomes
Cryptographic accumulators
Get PDFIn computer science and engineering, set membership tests are used in many applications; database, authentication and validation systems. Cryptographic accumulators are data structures used to perform space and time efficient set membership tests
Computational investigation of airflow dynamics in human airways
Get PDFAerosolized drug delivery in human airways is important for treatment of several pulmonary ailments such as asthma, cystic fibrosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, pulmonary infection, etc. A targeted and preferred regional deposition of the inhaled drugs is key for maximizing the efficiency and minimizing the side effects of inhaled drugs. While advancements in radiological imaging has allowed to obtain valuable information about anatomy and subsequent selection of treatment procedure, the available information is still limited. To this end, computational tools can provide further insight to assist in improving efficiency of aerosolized drug delivery-based treatment procedures. However, flow within such biological systems has wide range of features such as separation, recirculation, shear layers, transition to turbulence, complex geometry, aerosol dynamics, etc., which makes their investigation a challenging task. The ongoing study is focusing on establishing a computational approach for investigation of airflow and aerosol deposition within realistic human airways. In this talk, some preliminary results are reported for the airflow dynamics within the extrathoracic airways
Bathymetric digital elevation model for the Tennessee River
Get PDFA seamless digital elevation model (DEM) of Chattanooga, TN containing the Tennessee River bathymetry was needed for a hydrodynamic modeling project. Geospatial bathymetric data for the Tennessee River was not available in digital form. Depth contour maps downloadable as a PDF files were the only readily available data. A strategy was thus developed to create a GIS of the contour maps and “burn in” this bathymetry data into USGS DEMs which lack information on river depth. Two PDFs were digitized pertained to “Nickajack Lake” and “Chickamauga Lake.” Each PDF contained multiple pages of maps that split up bathymetric data for different sections of the river. Each page was georeferenced using the software ERDAS Imagine. Georeferenced maps were imported into ArcGIS Pro and contour lines were traced as point shapefiles with stored depth data. A polygon of the Tennessee River was created covering the extent of the point depth data to be used as a mask for geoprocessing. Depth point data were converted to raster through the Topo to Raster spatial interpolation tool for burning into the DEM. The Raster Calculator tool was then used to stitch the DEMs together. The resulting raster seamlessly combines the Tennessee River bathymetry data with the original USGS DEM and can be used for hydrodynamic modeling