USFSP Digital Archive
Not a member yet
132282 research outputs found
Sort by
Crow\u27s Nest : 2023 : 9 : 11
No full text(Vol. 61, No. 1)https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/crows_nest/1889/thumbnail.jp
Proposed Design of a Triped Robot
No full textNature may be drawn upon as inspirations for robotic de- sign. Biomimetics is the term used when the goal becomes replicating biological mechanisms. This method leverages the evolution of a life form over the course of many iter- ations. The concept of “better than bio” has emerged in order to combat functional fixedness that can occur from biomimetics. The goal of design being to take a biologi- cally inspired base and then improve upon it with classical engineering methods.
This paper presents an analysis of the locomotion, energy consumption, and control of a tripedal robot. The aim is to gain insight into a perceived gap in evolution and ap- ply results to robotics design. This is achieved through the construction of a SimMechanics model of an 11 degree of freedom 2S4P triped robot, the characteristics of which are similar to the biped developed by Raibert et. al [18]
Climate Change Commitments and Challenges to Achieve Regenerative Tourism: A Case of Aotearoa New Zealand
No full textNew Zealand heavily relies on nature-based tourism for its popular 100% pure New Zealand brand. However, the country faces challenges in mitigating greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions due to the significant contribution of long-haul destination. Despite various environmentally friendly initiatives, the primary obstacle to achieving low-carbon and regenerative tourism lies in the fact that tourists must fly to reach New Zealand. In terms of per-capita aviation emissions, New Zealand ranks sixth for international and fourth for domestic aviation emissions among other countries. The tourism sector in New Zealand is particularly vulnerable to natural disasters, with a 54% increase in vulnerability. This leads to potential losses in terms of jobs, homes, lives, livelihoods, and hope for a better future. Global trends suggest a decrease in visitor numbers due to the impacts of climate change, making tourism one of the first industries to suffer during a disaster. Currently, New Zealand\u27s efforts to address climate change are rated as highly insufficient compared to other OECD countries. To protect the endangered 100% pure New Zealand brand, significant actions are necessary to promote the conservation and restoration of natural habitats. This paper highlights that the concept of regenerative thinking emerges as a potential solution to accelerate climate action in tourism by encouraging the private sector to re-brand, refocus, and enhance the capabilities of all stakeholders. However, reducing GHG emissions in the tourism industry poses challenges related to transparency, financing, and monitoring emissions, as the industry is predominantly driven by the private sector. While global commitments like the Glasgow Declaration serve as catalysts to increase urgency and the need for climate action in tourism, a transformative shift in the tourism system is required to empower stakeholders in transitioning to holistic regenerative tourism practices
Relationship Between Demographic Characteristics and Internship Participation of Senior Undergraduate International Students
No full textThe United States higher education institutions’ mission is to support students\u27 academic success and career development goals by preparing them to become globally competent citizens and workforce-ready graduates. With student workforce preparation at the core of their mission, there is concern that colleges and universities are not adequately investing in international students’ engagement in career-preparation practices (e.g., internships). As such, this quantitative, secondary-data study explored the relationship between senior international students’ demographic characteristics, the institutional environment (type and classification), and their internship participation behavior. Key variables were identified from three complementary theoretical strands, including Astin’s Input-Environment-Output (I-E-O) Model (1988, 1993a, 1993b, 1999), (2) the Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) (Lent et al., 1994), and the Experiential Learning Theory (Kolb, 1984). Data from the 2019 and 2020 NSSE surveys were analyzed employing descriptive statistics to determine the rates/trends of student internship participation and logistic regression analysis to make predictions on each independent-dependent variable relationship. From an initial sample of n=920, n=703 (78%) reported Planning, Done, or in progress of an internship, whereas n=191 (21%) reported Not done/not planning an internship; n=26 were missing data. The descriptive statistical analyses revealed that students from Africa/Subsaharan and Asia reported the highest internship participation rates, with 92.3% and 84.6 respectively. Students from Europe ranked third in Plan to do and Done or in Progress of an internship, at 83.2%. Except for the Computer Science and Civil Engineering majors, the logistic regression analyses revealed no statistically significant relationship between the variables of gender, nationality, institution type, classification, and internship participation. Thus, the study revealed that except for the Computer Science and Civil Engineering majors, gender, nationality, institution type, and classification does not affect senior undergraduate international students’ internship participation. The 78% internship participation rate and the relatively proportionate representation based on student and institutional demographics in this study could be due to several institutions requiring an internship for the three academic majors treated in this study. Another reason could be that international students often see STEM and business internships as opportunities to enhance their career preparation for transitioning to the U.S. and global workforce following graduation. The results of this study revealed a relative proportionality of internship participation representation among international students’ demographics and institutional characteristics while highlighting the need for U.S. colleges and universities to continue investing in addressing gaps. These results may be used to inform researchers and practitioners about the current internship participation trends and the relationship between international students’ personal and institutional demographic characteristics on their internship participation and present a foundation for future international student career preparation research and practice
What on earth are we doing (?): A Field-Wide Exploration of Design Courses in TPC
No full textThis study explores design related courses within the field of Technical and Professional Communication (TPC) to uncover programmatic trends in undergraduate courses at a field wide level. This applied study uses a mixed methods approach to understand the following questions: what do the range of design courses look like in the field of TPC, how are these courses taught, and what would an effective design course look like? To answer these questions, this study uses a mix of three types of data: (1) institutional data on courses, (2) interviews with faculty and administrators who have taught (or are currently teaching) these courses, and (3) course materials (syllabi and assignment sheets) gathered from administrators and faculty to understand the pedagogical context for how these courses are approached. Collecting institutional data allows for a better understanding of the types of courses across the field, while materials and interviews gathered from faculty and administrators uncovers the varying approaches and goals for these courses. The implications call for a sustainable approach to programmatic work in the field, specifically being critically reflective about how courses are developed. Additionally, this study provides examples of how effective courses could be designed with critical reflection in mind
The Driving Forces of U.S. Renewable Energy Consumption—a Longitudinal Analysis of Data from 1997 to 2019
No full textClimate change is a major challenge facing the United States today. Recent years have witnessed a surge of extreme weather events that brought devastating impacts on the economy and environment. One major contributor to climate change is CO2 emissions produced from fossil fuel consumption. Promoting renewable energy is one practical pathway to mitigate these emissions while also meeting energy demands. This study investigates the driving forces of U.S. renewable energy consumption. The data are a balanced panel that includes indicators for 50 states and Washington, DC, from 1997 to 2019. The time-series Prais–Winsten regression is adopted for statistical estimation. Results show that states consume more renewable energy when they have less carbon-intensive economies and suffer more climate change impacts. Also, the renewable portfolio standards represent an effective policy instrument to promote renewable consumption. The findings complement existing literature and carry policy implications. Notably, states become supportive of renewable energy when their economies are less intertwined with fossil fuels and relevant policies are in place to provide incentives for renewables
Airbnb purchase intentions: How familiarity and social media impacts millennials
No full textAirbnb is one of the most distinguished sharing economy platforms providing guests accommodations. Despite a high number of individuals who use Airbnb, current behavioral intention model, Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), cannot fully explain guests’ decision-making process to choose such accommodation. Especially, with little to no research being tested on the roles of social media influences and familiarity as information sources associated with the TPB model. The objective of this study is to examine the intentions of millennials to use Airbnb and to investigate TPB model with social media influences and familiarity as mediators on purchasing intentions. Through convenience sampling, a survey of 123 millennials were gathered and analyzed for this study. By employing ANOVA and Baron and Kenny’s Method for Mediation, this study found that both social media influences and familiarity have a mediating effect on the TPB model, and familiarity also playing a partial mediating role in the relationship between social media influence and behavioral intention. This study extends the application of the TPB model and is valuable for Airbnb and Airbnb hosts to understand the intention segments to better comprehend and develop effective marketing strategies towards consumers
Environmental chemical analysis method optimization and application to northwest Cuban marine sediment
No full textA method for gas chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS) in selected reaction monitoring (SRM) mode has been optimized to quantify 250 compounds of a variety of compound classes such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), oxidized PAHs, organochlorinated pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, biomarkers (hopanes, steranes, tri-aromatic steroids, and fecal sterols), aliphatic hydrocarbons, and plastic additives. This method was validated based on available QA/QC standards using several environmental samples, both sediment and biota, and standard reference materials. This contaminant-focused method can be used as a forensic geochemistry tool to evaluate oil contamination and other contaminant histories in future research studies. When applied to sediment cores, this method can be used to construct a history of contamination events ranging from oil spills to non-point sources such as agricultural runoff. The method was tested in offshore sediments from Cuba for a preliminary assessment of the contamination history in the area. The third chapter of this thesis outlines the steps taken thus far and presents preliminary data results for Cuba that can be added to in future studies. The optimization of the method was achieved by maximizing usage of time windows and the power of SRM mode on the GC-MS/MS. The application of this method to Cuban sediment cores reveals distinct changes in contamination inputs that are related to land-use changes over time
Improving the Subjective Well-Being of Autistic Youth Utilizing a Positive Psychology Intervention
No full textThis study utilized a single-case multiple-baseline design to analyze the effects of a ten-week multi-component positive psychology intervention, the Well-Being Promotion Program, on the subjective well-being of Autistic youth. This thesis addressed a gap in the literature regarding the effectiveness of positive psychology interventions when administered to Autistic middle schoolers. Three Autistic middle schoolers participated in this single-case design study. Dynamic decision-making was used to stagger intervention implementation across the three participants. Life satisfaction and positive/negative affect data were collected via a Qualtrics survey that was administered twice per week. Through visual analysis and Baseline Corrected Tau calculations, it was found that two out of the three participants reported gains in life satisfaction, and changes in positive/negative affect varied. Upon intervention completion, participants shared their thoughts regarding the Well-Being Promotion Program (i.e., usefulness, recommendations for change, acceptability) in an individual interview in order to report their experiences in part with the intent for the research team to make the intervention more accessible and useful for Autistic youth in the future. Sentiments included experiencing benefits from engaging in positive activities such as gratitude journaling and experiencing positive changes upon engaging in the Well-Being Promotion Program, with no consistent recommendations for change. Accommodations such as breaks, access to reinforcers upon session completion, access to fidgets, choices for completing positive activities, and advanced notice on schedule changes should likely be maintained when delivering the intervention to Autistic youth through individual counseling
Examination of Microplastics and Organic Contaminants in Tampa Bay’s Eastern Oyster (\u3cem\u3eCrassostrea virginica\u3c/em\u3e) through Visual and Chemical Analysis
No full textMicroplastic pollution is an increasingly alarming concern with widespread global distribution in aquatic environments. Filter feeding organisms such as bivalves, have a heightened risk of microplastic ingestion through free floating particulates in the water. This can lead to bioaccumulation moving up through trophic levels to apex predators and humans. Spatial and temporal differences in microplastic abundance were evaluated in the Eastern Oyster, Crassostrea virginica, at six sites within Tampa Bay. Oyster tissue was digested using 30% hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and microplastics were quantified using Nile Red dye and fluorescent particle excitement. A total of 3025 microplastics were found throughout six study sites over two seasons (winter 2021 and summer 2022) with varying site types and regionality. Microfragments (n = 2867) made up the majority of findings compared to microfibers (n = 158). Significant differences were observed among the sites studied, site type, and their location in the bay. Outflow and marina areas had significantly higher (p \u3c 0.01) amounts of microplastic compared to preserve areas, and the east bay had significantly higher (p \u3c 0.05) amounts than the west bay. Microplastic accumulation in bivalves can be associated with spatial differences and site type. Findings suggest microplastic contamination is associated with higher urbanization, proximity to drainage basins, and recreation.
Phthalate esters (PAEs), Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), organochlorinated pesticides (OCPs), ultraviolet filters, and fecal sterols were measured in 30 C. virginica samples collected through Tampa Bay, Florida to better understand trends in aquatic contamination and chemical leaching from microplastic ingestion. These samples came from a preserve area (Riviera Bay), marina (Bayboro Harbor), and outflow area (Big Bend Channel). Samples had varying levels of microplastic ingestion. Mantle tissue was freeze dried and went through solvent extraction before going through gas chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry (GC/MS/MS). PAHs, PCBs, OCPs, UV filters, and fecal sterols were used to determine PAE vector sources. PAEs were analytes of concern as they have the potential to be released from plastic degradation. Results show there is no significance regarding microplastic ingestion and chemical contamination. The only significant trend between sites organic compound groups showed higher PAHs (p \u3c 0.05) at Bayboro Harbor. Three of the six phthalate analytes were spatially significant (p \u3c 0.05) with dimethyl phthalate DMP having the highest concentrations of all analytes. Phthalate concentrations were strongly correlated with OCPs and UV filters indicating that phthalate contamination stems primarily from direct anthropogenic impact to bivalves in Tampa Bay