Middle Tennessee State University
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Perceptions of Academic Dishonesty Among Undergraduate Students
No full textThe current study examined undergraduate students’ perceptions of academic dishonesty in digital and non-digital settings using scenarios. Relevant factors, such as participants’ self-reports of integrity and personality constructs, were explored. Perceptions of the scenarios were analyzed using a 2 (dishonest behavior: cheating/plagiarism) by 2 (setting: digital/non-digital) repeated measures design. While a significant interaction effect between the setting type and dishonest behavior regarding pervasiveness was not found, significant main effects for both setting (digital more common than non-digital) and behavior (cheating more pervasive than plagiarism) were found. A significant interaction effect between the setting type and the dishonesty type was found regarding perceptions of labeling. Additionally, a significant main effect was found for dishonesty type regarding perceptions of the student’s motivations for engaging in the dishonest behavior. Self-reported integrity was found to be a significant predictor regarding perceptions of the dishonest behavior being viewed as an act of academic misconduct.M.A
An Exploration of Mental Health Literacy, Stigma, and Masculinity Among College Athletes and Their Non-Athlete Peers
No full textMental illness has been a growing concern amongst psychologist, epidemiologist, and physicians. Mental illness is a strong concern amongst college-students specifically collegiate athletes. Though mental illness is a growing concern, there are many safe, effective, and inexpensive treatments that are available. However, many collegiate athletes identify as struggling with mental illnesses such as anxiety and depression, however, do not seek out professional help. Many psychologists and epidemiologist believe that this is due to the stigmatization of mental illness. Research suggest that stigmatization is related to a low mental-health literacy (MHL). While research suggest that men on average have a lower MHL score, they also report higher levels of stigma. There is a long history of research examining masculinity in sport. This current study examined the relationship between MHL, stigma, and masculinity in college students as well as student athletes. Through a survey methodology this study examined the correlation between the constructs of MHL, stigma, and masculinity. This study also conducted a Factor Analysis. Surveys were distributed to 150 college-students with 36 student athletes. There was a significant correlation between MHL, stigma, and masculinity in college-students as well as student-athletes (P<.001). Although there were no statistical differences in MHL, masculinity, or stigma between students and student-athletes. There were significant differences in regard to gender. Findings as well as practical implications for current and future researchers are suggested and discussed in this dissertation.Ph.D
THEORY OF SOME DISCRETE SEIR MODELS AND THEIR APPLICATION TO COVID-19
No full textIn this thesis we explore the mathematical theory of some epidemiological models that represent infectious disease and try to establish the mathematical properties of the differential equations representing the models. We describe the SEIR models we study with time varying transmission and recovery coefficients and constant latency and vaccination rates. We prove that the models satisfy the requirements such as existence and uniqueness of solutions and the continuous dependence of solutions on initial conditions. Using these properties we derive the long term behavior and the condition for an outbreak to occur of the solutions. This helps us to understand the biological implications and the control measures that can be applied. We also develop an implicit discrete formulation for the numerical algorithms to use data and verify that the model can be used on the COVID-19 data.M.S
APPLICATION OF GROUND-PENETRATING RADAR IN THE SUBSURFACE INVESTIGATION OF SILVER LAKE PLAYA IN NORTHWEST NEVADA
No full textThe focus of this study is the subsurface characterization of Silver Lake Playa in northwest Nevada, USA, by application of ground-penetrating radar (GPR) and integration of Geographic Information Systems (GIS). The nondestructive nature of GPR analysis is able to keep intact the geomorphological and potential cultural setting of the study area while supporting the selection of appropriate sites for further, more destructive investigations. GPR surveys revealed four distinct radar facies used to describe the subsurface within the study area. GPR datasets correlate with soil samples from auger holes (A1, A3, A5). GPR datasets reveal radar signatures that correlate to other studies of fan delta environments. GPR data from the playa-lunette at the southeastern margin of the playa is consistent with other studies of playa-lunette morphology. GPR appears to be an effective means of collecting data in low salinity playa environments.M.S
The Flower and the Serpent
No full textThis thesis explores film adaptations of Shakespeare’s work, accompanied by an original screenplay of an adaptation of Macbeth, titled The Flower and the Serpent. The introduction serves to further the viewer’s understanding of how source material is used in adaptations and what characteristics make them successful while maintaining a special focus on adaptations of Shakespeare's Macbeth alongside personal reflections of my screenwriting process. The screenplay works in tandem with the introduction with elements mentioned in the paper being implemented into the screenplay. The original screenplay brings Macbeth into the modern-day United States setting. It finds its footing on the political stage with ambition and intrigue playing a major role. It also features more inclusive characters in an effort to appeal to a younger audience. This thesis aims to expand the reach and admiration of Shakespeare's Macbeth by introducing it in a more contemporary environment with characters more reflective of today’s society
Application of Signal Processing and Deep Hybrid Learning in Phonocardiogram and Electrocardiogram Signals to Detect Early Stage Heart Diseases
No full textThis thesis describes a variety of projects on analyzing two common biomedical signals known as Phonocardiogram (PCG) and Electrocardiogram (ECG/EKG) to detect early-stage heart diseases. The projects include the design of prototypes to compress, denoise, segment, and classify PCG and ECG signals accurately. PCG signal is the graphical representation of heart sound which represents the mechanical activities of the human heart. PCG signal contains useful information about the functionality and the condition of the heart. ECG signal represents the electrical activities of the human heart. ECG signal has been widely used in hospitals and clinics to diagnose cardiac diseases. Analysis of PCG and ECG signals is critical in diagnosis of different cardiac diseases as they can provide early indication of potential cardiac abnormalities. Extracting cardiac information from PCG and ECG signals to diagnose heart diseases in the initial stage can play a vital role in remote patient monitoring. In this thesis, we have combined different signal processing techniques, Machine Learning (ML), and Deep Learning (DL) methods to compress, denoise, segment, and classify PCG and ECG signals effectively and accurately. First, PCG signals are compressed and denoised by using a multi-resolution analysis technique based on the Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT). Then, a segmentation algorithm, based on the Shannon energy envelope and zero crossing is applied to segment the PCG signal into four major parts: the first heart sound (S1), the systole interval, the second heart sound (S2), and the diastole interval. Finally, Mel-scaled power spectrogram and Mel-frequency cepstral coefficients (MFCC) are employed to extract informative features from PCG signals, which are then fed into a classifier to classify each PCG signal into a normal or an abnormal signal. We have combined traditional ML and DL approaches to develop Deep Hybrid Learning (DHL) models. A Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) is used along with seven traditional ML methods including Logistic Regression (LR), Random Forest (RF), K-Nearest Neighbors (KNN), Decision Tree (DT), Naive Bayes (NB), Support Vector Machine (SVM), and AdaBoost (AB) to build hybrid PCG classification models. Our experimental results have shown that significant improvements in the classification accuracy can be achieved by using DHL models compared to traditional ML and DL models. We have also applied the same methods to analyze ECG signals and got promising results. Besides providing valuable information regarding heart condition, our proposed signal processing and DHL approaches can help cardiologists to take appropriate and reliable steps toward diagnosis if any cardiovascular disorder is found in the initial stage.Ph.D
The Effects of a Powdered Post-milking Teat Dip on Mastitis and Teat Condition in Dairy Cattle in the Winter Months
No full textMastitis is disease that is very prevalent in dairy herds around the world. It has many effects on both the cow and the farm. The effects of a powdered post dip (Derma Soft n' Dry) on teat end health and somatic cell count (SCC) were observed over a 21-day period. Holstein cows (n = 8 per treatment) were randomly assigned to the control group (regular iodine-based post-milking teat dip) or the treatment group (powdered postmilking teat dip). Daily milk yield and activity levels were measured throughout the study using the Afimilk® parlor system. Milk samples were collected weekly to test for SCC and teat end scores were assigned prior to collection of the milk samples. Samples with a SCC of>250,000 cells/mL were cultured using a tri-plate agar to determine which bacterial species were present. There were no significant differences in daily milk yield, conductivity, SCC, activity time, or rest time between the control and treatment groups (P > 0.05). Teat end sores in relation to the treatment were not significantly different (P = 0.9794). Furthermore, the control and treatment group showed similar bacterial growth indicating that there was no significant difference by treatment. KEYWORDS: Dairy cattle; cattle; dairy; mastitis; post-milking teat di
Flooding in Bangladesh: A Race Against Time
No full textFlooding is the most common type of natural disaster and is a major problem in Bangladesh that especially harms the disadvantaged. People are uniquely vulnerable to flooding in Bangladesh due to its low elevation, numerous rivers, coastal location, and high rainfall intensity. I estimate the number of people vulnerable to sea-level rise by overlaying a raster of the population over a raster of elevation. The population of Bangladesh is then broken into five risk groups based on their elevation above sea level. Nearly 4% of the population of Bangladesh, over six million people, live less than one meter above sea level. This puts them in the highest risk group, and the sea will rise one meter in the not-too-distant future. High economic growth has made Bangladesh, previously one of the poorest countries in the world, able to take substantial action to address the flooding problem. Flooding;Bangladesh;Climate Change;Displacemen
Movement Through a Lyrical Lens: A Collection of Prose, Poems, and Photography
No full textKEYWORDS: Prose; poetry; photography; Ancient Greece; Paidei
BOLD OR BOXED?: TESTING FOR MORPHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN EASTERN BOX TURTLES (TERRAPENE CAROLINA) WITH INDIVIDUAL VARIATION IN BOLDNESS
No full textConsistent individual variation in behavior has become a well-known and recognized phenomenon across animal taxa and is commonly referred to as animal personality. As the number of animal species and populations exhibiting personality continues to grow, many researchers have turned their attention towards studying the proximate causes and fitness implications of personality traits. In behavioral ecology and evolution consistent differences in individual state (intrinsic and/or extrinsic) are often theorized to co-vary with animal personality traits. Relatedly, some research has suggested that animal personality may involve individual differences in coping styles (e.g., proactive vs reactive), pace-of-life, and behavioral plasticity. The eastern box turtle, Terrapene carolina, is a long-lived reptile that is relatively easy to track and recapture and may therefore present an interesting and accessible vertebrate model for studies of animal personality traits in the wild. Past studies on this species have suggested it exhibits boldness personality and that this trait may interact with temperature and shell damage but not sex, age, or morphology. This study sought to further explore boldness as a personality trait in wild T. carolina and these previously studied interactions in addition to body condition, pinch force, innate immunity, plasma triglycerides, steroid hormone concentrations, and gastrointestinal nematode loads. The results indicate that eastern box turtles display consistent bold personalities across individuals and suggests that less bold individuals tend to display higher levels of plasticity in their bold responses (emergence from the shell) than bolder turtles. Moreover, box turtles appear to have the ability to habituate to repeated handlings which may increase their likelihood to behave boldly in subsequent tests. Turtles that are consistently proactive in their use of active defenses during a potentially threatening encounter may be more vulnerable to predation as they appear less likely to tightly close the shell (had lower pinch force values). However, turtles with the inability to fully close the shell (regardless of boldness) may also suffer similar consequences. Interestingly, boldness appears to be largely independent of the short-term physiological variables considered in this study, although there was a negative trend between average eye emergence and body condition, suggesting turtles that emerge quicker (bolder) may have higher body conditions. Additionally, boldness appeared to be dependent on some short-term environmental conditions, such as cloud coverage and immediate shell temperature, but appears to be largely uncoupled from the daily temperatures experienced across several days. Lastly, daytime temperatures differed between sexes and negatively correlated with age, suggesting that turtles of these distinctions may thermoregulate differently. Daytime temperatures also exhibited nearly significant positive trends with shell injury scores and body condition meaning there could be differential consequences for thermoregulators and thermoconformers. Further studies are needed to better understand the implications of these interactions and their possible correlation with other potential personality traits like aggression and exploration.M.S