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The Trust Factor between Meteorologists and Viewers and the Effects on Local Television Audience Retention
No full textConsumers have more options than ever when it comes to how they receive information pertaining to the weather, both locally and regionally. Because of the myriad of options, television and media managers across all markets in the United States are constantly fine-tuning their strategies to gain and retain viewers’ trust. For many of those managers, that strategy relies heavily on audience members’ impressions of the station’s meteorologists. Specifically, trust is one thing that evokes a person’s loyalty, leaving consumers with a positive impression. To understand the trust factor between the viewer and meteorologists in large media markets and how it impacts television managers’ hiring and programming strategies, this research examines the three components that can be used to create and maintain trust between meteorologists and viewers. This research also examined meteorologists and executives at NBC 10, WCAU-TV in Philadelphia, the nation’s fourth largest media market.M.S., Television Management -- Drexel University, 201
Engineering Nanoscale Polymers in Photovoltaics and Supercapacitors: Experimental and Theoretical Studies
Get PDFDye sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) and carbon-based supercapacitors are promising energy conversion and storage systems, respectively, because they can be made inexpensively, have good performance, and can be integrated into portable and flexible electronics. Both systems utilize nanostructured porous electrodes, leading to fewer diffusion limitations and higher active surface areas for interfacial processes compared to planar electrodes. A major drawback of the DSSC design is the use of a liquid electrolyte, since it is prone to leakage and evaporation--hindering DSSC applications, durability, and thermal stability. A polymer electrolyte (PE) can overcome these shortcomings; however, the integration of a PE within the mesoporous TiO2 photoanode of DSSCs with pore openings of 10-20 nm and photoanode thicknesses of ~10 µm is very challenging. Solution-based deposition methods such as spin coating and drop casting to deposit PEs has led to incomplete pore filling inside the mesoporous photoanode, resulting in lower than optimal efficiencies. To overcome these challenges, a solvent-free method called initiated chemical vapor deposition (iCVD) was adopted to deposit PEs within the porous TiO2 electrode. In iCVD, the monomer and initiator are vapors which easily penetrate into the porous electrode. By carefully controlling the iCVD processing parameters, complete pore filling of PEs into the TiO2 photoanode was achieved, leading to 50% improvement in conversion efficiency. Polymers with ether, ester, pyridine, pyrrolidone, imidazole and epoxy functionality were synthesized and integrated. The findings indicated that DSSC characteristics, including open circuit voltage, short circuit current density and fill factor, can be tuned by polymer chemistry. A promising approach to improve the energy density of supercapacitor electrodes is to integrate inexpensive conducting polymers (CPs), such as polyaniline (PANI). Unfortunately, most CPs are insoluble, and integrating CPs into tortuous electrode pores with aspect ratios of >10,000 while preserving the intrinsic pore structures, to retain the double layer capacitance, is very challenging. Therefore, similarly to the iCVD process, oxidative CVD (oCVD) was chosen to bypass the limited solubility of CPs to deposit thin conformal CP films onto porous electrodes. By controlling the oCVD deposition parameters, PANI films on the order of a few nm were integrated into carbide-derived-carbon (CDC) electrodes, leading to a doubling of the capacitance. This yielded a PANI-only capacitance of ~690 F/g, close to the theoretical value of 750 F/g. This work also combined experiments with first-principles modeling to develop a model-guided design and optimization framework, allowing for optimal device design and the intelligent selection of polymer chemistries with minimal experimental investigations. For example, to determine the effects of PE chemistry on DSSC processes, parameter estimation and parametric sensitivity studies were conducted which indicated that a shift in the conduction band of TiO2 and a suppression of the back electron transfer at the dye-TiO2-PE interface was induced by the side group PE chemistry. Furthermore, optimal design specifications for a PE DSSC were calculated using the model, and optimally performing DSSCs were subsequently fabricated and tested, validating the model.Ph.D., Chemical Engineering -- Drexel University, 201
Enrollment Management Strategies at Four-year Open Enrollment Institutions of Higher Education
Get PDFEnrollment management plans have been researched and documented for the last fifty years and literature verifies that the use of these plans has only become more relevant in the 21st century. Strategies and activities for managing enrollment have been defined and shared for most types of institutions, however, there is limited research on the best practices in four-year open enrollment institutions. An institution's admissions policy, such as open enrollment, may have an impact on the approaches used in strategic enrollment management plans. Performing a survey design study on enrollment management strategies and their availability, use, and effectiveness on achieving enrollment goals has helped to define best practices in developing or refining an enrollment management plan. It has also filled a gap in the literature surrounding the best practices of strategies that should be used in these types of institutions.Ed.D., Educational Leadership and Management -- Drexel University, 201
Spiritual Leadership and its Application in Faith-Based Organizations: A Phenomenological Study of Spirituality in the Workplace
No full textThe purpose of this study was to explore how spiritual leaders in faith-based organizations inspired their employees through the application of values and behaviors relating to spirituality that can produce either a negative or positive change in workers' behavior and environment. This phenomenological study explored how spirituality influences others through values, attitudes, and behaviors in a manner that integrates a sense well-being, "calling," and membership in the workplace. The three streams of theory, research, and practice that informed this study included spirituality, spiritual leadership, and faith-based organizations. The research sought to answer 3 overarching questions: (a) What is the essence of leading at a faith-based organization? (b) How does an individual incorporate his or her own spirituality into leadership practices? (c) How do leaders' values, attitudes, and behaviors integrate a sense of well-being, calling, and membership? A phenomenological research method was used, which involved interviews, observations, field notes, and artifact collection. Data were coded and analyzed. Four themes emerged from the results: (a) spiritual leaders have a deep commitment to utilizing positive spiritual practices to promote positive changes in the behavior of individuals or the culture of an organization, (b) spiritual leaders are influenced by their personal experiences through service to others in the workplace, (c) spiritual beliefs for both spiritual leaders and faith-based organizations are an essential component of functionality and longevity, and (d) spiritual leaders establish trust in the organizations they lead by using positive attributes associated with servant leadership and spirituality.Ed.D., Educational Leadership and Management -- Drexel University, 201
A Case Study Examining Undergraduate Public Health Student Experiences at a Large, Private, Urban Research University
Get PDFUndergraduate students represent a new but growing population at a school of public (SPH) health at a large, private, urban research university on the East Coast. This SPH has offered a minor in public health since 2010, and a major was initiated in 2014. The school also plans to offer an accelerated bachelor's-to-master's in public health (BS/MPH) beginning in 2017. Although enrollment in undergraduate public health programs has increased, with continued growth projected, the school has little knowledge of these students' experiences and levels of satisfaction with their respective programs. Public health has deep traditions in graduate study, and incorporating undergraduate education at the SPH has been challenging. Faculty at the SPH are unfamiliar with undergraduate teaching and advising methods or the unique set of challenges faced by students from diverse backgrounds. Gaining a better understanding of undergraduates' experiences can better inform the SPH about the quality of classroom instruction and School programming, while helping position the field of undergraduate public health for sustainable growth and development. This mixed-methods case study sought to understand undergraduate public health students' experiences at a large, private, urban research university. Using a sequential transformative approach, this case study collected feedback from undergraduate public health students through an electronic survey and a subsequent focus group. The study was further informed by the assessment of existing support services and formalized programming at other colleges and schools within the university. The study's major findings revealed that, although undergraduate public health students are satisfied overall with their experiences, programmatic challenges exist regarding course scheduling and infrastructure, cooperative learning experiences, and a lack of engagement and connection with the greater School community. Based on these conclusions, a five-year strategic plan will be developed for the undergraduate public health program in order to position it for continued growth and development. Recommendations include developing mentorship programs and connections between undergraduate students, graduate students, and faculty, and increasing opportunities for cooperative learning and related experiences.Ed.D., Educational Leadership and Management -- Drexel University, 201
Orchestral-Dialogues: Accepting Self, Accepting Others -- Translating Deep Listening Skills to Transformative Dialogue Skills
Get PDFOrchestral Dialogues: Accepting Self, Accepting Others (Orchestral Dialogues) was a pilot project with BuildaBridge International (BaB), an arts-intervention organization based in Philadelphia, PA. Fourteen children, ages 9 - 14 years, participated during the program's pilot year, 2016-2017. The Orchestral Dialogues project was a community music therapy (CoMT) endeavor that sought to teach both deep listening and transformative dialogue skills through participation in private lessons, rehearsals and dialogue workshops. This study asked the question, how do deep listening skills developed through the orchestral process relate to transformative dialogue skills in children? Ethnographic methods were employed to answer the research question including participant observations, facilitation of a focus group, ongoing informal conversations with participants, their families and staff, and a review of archival data. Data analysis incorporated artistic responses to theme development for the purposes of clarification. The themes identified were 1) adult modeling, 2) role playing, 3) orchestra as analogy for components of dialogue, and 4) community building through collaboration The findings showed that the children, though only in the initial five months of their learning process, understood the basic concepts of deep listening skills (awareness of self, awareness of others, awareness of music) and could translate these to transformative dialogue skills (self-reflexivity, self-expression, responsibility, affirmation, co-creation of a new reality). The findings showed the children described the skills of deep listening and transformative dialogue using musical language and concepts. Although they demonstrated an understanding of the skills, it was evident they required more time to implement the skills in their daily lives. The results of this study contributed to interdisciplinary research in CoMT and conflict transformation literature.Ph.D., Creative Arts in Therapy -- Drexel University, 201
Incidence and Risk Factors of Neonates with Vocal Cord Immobility after Cardiac Surgery
Get PDFBackground: Unilateral vocal cord immobility (UVCI) negatively impacts the ability to provide adequate and safe nutrition to neonates after cardiac surgery (Dewan, Cephus, Owczarzak, & Ocampo, 2012; Strychowsky, Rukholm, Gupta, & Reid, 2014). Purpose: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the incidence and risk factors of UVCI in patients (0-30 days old) undergoing cardiac surgery to promote earlier diagnosis, standardize management, safer feeding and decreased length of stay. Methods: This is a retrospective chart review of all infants who underwent cardiac surgery within the first 30 days of life during a one year period. Evaluation: Data was received de-identified from the PC4 database and analyzed. Descriptive analysis was utilized to determine incidence of vocal cord immobility. Results: The incidence of UVCI was 6.7%. There were no statistically significantly risk factors, although there was predominance in female infants (66.7%) and those with aortic arch involvement (88.9%). Birth weight, gestational age, age and weight at the time of surgery and length of stay were not found to be risk factors for UVCI. Clinical Implications: Without evaluating all patients, true incidence of UVCI cannot be determined. The lack of heterogeneity and insignificant number of patients with UVCI precludes risk factor identification. Future research should include prospective studies to reveal true incidence of UVCI, as well as standardizing the at management and future recovery of vocal cord function.D.N.P., Nursing Practice -- Drexel University, 201
Geospatial variation of ribbed mussel (Geukensia demissa) ecosystem services across the salt marsh landscape
Get PDFSalt marshes are a hallmark feature of the Atlantic coastline, where they provide a variety of ecosystem services such as: protection from flooding; nutrient and pollutant sequestration; economic uplift from recreational and commercial ventures; and habitat for a variety of finfish, birds, invertebrates, and mammals. Ribbed mussels (Geukensia demissa) are the functionally dominant animals of Gulf and Atlantic salt marshes, living in facultative mutualism with salt marsh cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora). The cordgrass provides habitat and attachment sites for mussels. In turn, the mussels, through the filtration of seston, provide nutrients for plant production through biodeposition. The magnitude of this pelagic-benthic coupling depends on ribbed mussel population density and the quantity and quality of seston. Since mussels are not evenly dispersed across the salt marsh landscape, their ecosystem services are geospatially variable which may have implications for resource managers interested in sustaining or enhancing mussel-mediated benefits. This dissertation’s objective was to quantify the annual variability in particle and nutrient filtration across three habitats of the salt marsh landscape: low marsh habitats along primary tidal channels; intra-marsh creek networks; and vast expanse of high marsh platform. Four representative salt marshes were selected for this study: Dividing Creek, Dennis Creek, and Maurice River in New Jersey along the Delaware Bay; and Coggeshall Cove in Rhode Island in the Narragansett Bay. The relevance of seston filtration data for understanding ecosystem services was demonstrated by estimating the spatial distribution and magnitude of net particulate nitrogen removal and the contribution of biodeposits to vertical marsh accretion. Clearance rates of water by ribbed mussels exhibited little spatial variation, but were dependent on seasonal temperatures. Filtration rates of seston varied with both space and time, since seston quantity and quality was variable at the same scales. Therefore, annual water processing rates can be extrapolated across regions that share similar temperature profiles, but local knowledge regarding seston variability is required to calculate particle filtration services. Annual gross filtration of total suspended solids (TSS) ranged between 4,500 & 11,000 kg ha-1 yr-1 at three locations in New Jersey and 3,800 kg ha-1 yr-1 at one location in Rhode Island. Filtration of particulate nitrogen (PN) ranged between 38 & 92 kg ha-1 yr-1 in New Jersey, assuming 60% of filtered nitrogen was either incorporated into somatic tissue or biodeposited, and 31 kg ha-1 yr-1 in Rhode Island, assuming 43% of filtered nitrogen was either incorporated into somatic tissue or biodeposited. This translated into contributions to vertical accretion between 39 & 93 mm in New Jersey and 26 mm in Rhode Island, if distributed evenly across the salt marsh landscape at the four study sites. The majority of mussel-associated ecosystem services were located in small, mussel-rich, creek networks of both New Jersey (74%) and Rhode Island (69%). However, large discrepancies in mussel density along the primary tidal channels between New Jersey and Rhode Island marshes, resulted in low service provisioning in New Jersey (3%) relative to Rhode Island (28%) in this “shoreline” habitat. The ability to understand the geospatial variation in mussel-mediated services provides natural resource managers with the ability to prioritize areas of high service value for conservation. Additionally, areas where services are underrepresented relative to regional potentials, presumably because of erosion or degradation, can be targeted for restoration or enhancement to maximize ribbed mussel biomass and service potential.Ph.D., Environmental Science -- Drexel University, 201
Shoulder Stiffness: Quantification of Overuse Injury in Competitive Swimmers
Get PDFPreviously a senior design group adapted a device developed for animal studies to measure shoulder stiffness in internal and external rotation in humans (Sarver, 2015). However, this device was incapable of capturing the full range of internal and external rotation; did not securely attach to the arm, and was excessively heavy. The objectives of this project, therefore, were to revise the shoulder stiffness device (STROM) and to use it to assess shoulder stiffness in swimmers before and after various forms of exercise. More specifically: Aim 1: Re-design STROM to suit the unique challenges of evaluating swimmers in a mobile testing set up. The following requirements were established to ensure the mobility of the device, comfort of the subject, and accuracy of the results: a) Testing must cause minimal discomfort and no pain b) Testing must take less than two minutes to occur c) Location of attachment site must be adjustable within minimum range of 18-32 cm. d) Device ROM must include up to 135o in either direction from vertical e) Device must be able to fit within a standard carryon bag, max linear dimensions 115 cm f) Maximum device weight is 10 kg g) Clamping mechanism must accommodate minimum of 6.4 cm thick table Aim 2: Use STROM to study shoulder stiffness in swimmers before and after swimming Given that swimming involves stretching of the tissues, and swimmers anecdotally report "loose" shoulders, it was hypothesized that: ROM, θmax, and θbreak, would all increase. Furthermore, as shown in fatigue testing (Wren, Lindsey, Beaupré, & Carter, 2003), repeated loading is expected to reduce stiffness, therefore, rotational stiffness, as well as the torque required to move a given amount was expected to decrease. Aim 3: Use STROM to study shoulder stiffness in swimmers before and after functional warmup The functional warmup consisted of stretches, body weight exercises, and other low intensity movements. Consistent with the increase in rotation, and decrease in rotational stiffness of the ankle in response to stretching (Morse, 2008), it was hypothesized that range of motion, maximum angles, and break angles would all increase, while stiffnesses and break torques would decrease. RESULTS: Aim 1: Verification tests showed that a) No pain or discomfort was experienced by test subjects b) Testing could be completed within approximately 90 seconds per shoulder c) The attachment site could accommodate forearms up to 36 cm in length, with no minimum d) The device can accommodate angles between +170o and -185o e) The device comfortably fit in a 35x41x24 cm suitcase for transport, giving a total linear dimension of 100 cm f) Weight was decreased by 2 kg giving a final weight of 4.5 kg. g) The clamping mechanism could accommodate tables up to 12 cm thick Aim 2: Two swim practices were used in the course of this study. In the combined analysis, the only statistically significant finding was a decrease in the internal break torque with swimming. Value Before (Mean ± Stdev) After (Mean ± Stdev) P Value τbreak, ext 0.95 ± 0.62 N-m 0.75 ± 0.46 N-m 0.004 However, on the second day significant decreases in both internal and external stiffnesses were found in addition to the decrease in internal break torque. The discrepancy is possibly due to variations in individual workouts or may have been obscured on the first day due to the large variation between individuals. Value Before (Mean ± Stdev) After (Mean ± Stdev) P Value Krot, int 0.16 ± 0.05 N-m/o 0.14 ± 0.04 N-m/o 0.041 K¬rot, ext 0.18 ± 0.06 N-m/o 0.14 ± 0.04 N-m/o 0.009 τbreak, ext 1.06 ± 0.70 N-m 0.73 ± 0.43 N-m 0.007 Aim 3: The functional warmup resulted in increases in both internal and external stiffnesses, increases in range of motion (biased towards additional internal motion), increases in the internal break and finally increases in the external break torque. Value Before (Mean ± Stdev) After (Mean ± Stdev) P Value ROM 185.0 ± 13.9 o 190.6 ± 14.6 o 0.003 θmax, ext 101.9 ± 11.3 o 106.1 ± 11.7 o 0.002 θbreak, ext 82.6 ± 10.4 o 86.7 ± 10.4 o 0.004 Krot, ext 0.15 ± 0.04 N-m/o 0.17 ± 0.04 N-m/o 0.027 K¬rot, int 0.13 ± 0.04 N-m/o 0.15 ± 0.05 N-m/o 0.013 τbreak, int 0.58 ± 0.33 N-m 0.91 ± 0.54 N-m <0.001 DISCUSSION: This was the first study to quantify changes in passive shoulder mechanics in swimmers following functional warmup and high volume swimming. The device met all design criteria, but the clamping mechanism would need to be revised to accommodate different types of exam tables. Also, further input from athletic trainers, an important stake holder, as well as feedback from subjects, should be evaluated to improve future versions. Both activities caused a significant change in rotational stiffness, with swimming decreasing it, and functional warmup increasing stiffness. Significant variability across individuals suggests the need for stricter inclusion criteria to allow clearer results, although different approaches to the data analysis are still being attempted. Future studies could examine more subjects, and examine changes in shoulder stiffness throughout a season. Finally, linking the stiffness data with medical history could begin to clarify the relationship between shoulder stiffness and should pain. Currently, we don't know if swimmers with stiff shoulders are more or less likely to suffer from an injury, or if there is any relation between stiffness and injury, however, this study indicates the device is sensitive enough so as to be able to ask such questions.M.S., Biomedical Engineering -- Drexel University, 201
Factors influencing opera company ticketing and programmatic structures
Get PDFDue to declines in arts subscribership and overall attendance, especially in the field of opera, the question of how to best maintain and attract audiences has come up (Iyengar 2012a). The seasonal programmatic structure, whether a traditional season, rotating programmatic structure, or a festival model is used, can affect attendance for opera companies. Phone interviews were conducted with marketing leaders from nine Opera America member companies from across the United States, with budgets between 15,000,000. These interviews gathered information on programmatic structure and audience development to determine which factors contribute to financial, reputational, and attendance success.M.S., Arts Administration -- Drexel University, 201