Browsing by Subject "Thesis"

Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
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    Fighting Powers
    (2021) Dobouni, Leena; Winship, Andrew
    Fighting Powers analyzes Leena Dobouni’s body of installation artwork as it relates to concepts of socio-political imbalance between the Middle East and Western powers. The West’s systemic degradation of the Middle East is examined through the theories of the post-colonial / imperial gaze, psychological myopia and social dominance theory. The thesis poses that historical events during the early 20th century set the stage for the current rapport that the West has with the Middle East. T. E. Lawrence, Mark Sykes and Francois Georges-Picot are three main players in the instigation of the inequitable relations between the West and the Middle East. Investigation of these ideas and events support the presented viewpoint that socio-structural marginalization of the “other” in Western communities is irrefutable and that the idea of the “lesser” is born out of “othering." Dobouni’s unique experiences as a Muslim of mixed Iraqi-American heritage in the Western and imperial gaze has allowed her to observe distinct narratives of political tension between the two sides of her upbringing.
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    Studies in pressurized Planar Electrochromatography
    (2011-08-19) Woodward, Scott D.; Muhoberac, Barry; Nurok, David; Sardar, Rajesh
    This thesis describes separations performed by Pressurized Planar Electrochromatography (PPEC), which is a chromatographic method developed at IUPUI. In PPEC the mobile phase is driven by electroosmotic flow, while the system is pressurized to allow temperature control. This results in a highly efficient chromatographic system that has several attractive attributes including the ability to separate multiple samples simultaneously. The first three chapters of the thesis describe the relationship of PPEC to other forms of chromatography, the theoretical background of PPEC, the PPEC apparatus, including the plate holders used, and the different manipulations involved in preparing a plate for a PPEC run. The fourth chapter describes two short studies. The first demonstrates that a very fast separation of steroids on a high efficiency sorbent layer can be effected by PPEC. This is illustrated by the separation of six steroids in three minutes on a Superspher layer, with an efficiency of over 100,000 plates per meter. The second study attempted to improve the efficiency of separation by imposing a temperature gradient. The study was not successful, possibly due to Joule heating within the layer overriding the temperature gradient. The final chapter of the thesis describes two different studies on separating peptides by PPEC. The first study was performed on a bonded C18 sorbent layer that was treated with Brij-35, which is a non-ionic surfactant that prevents irreversible adsorption of the peptides to the sorbent surface while allowing electroosmotic flow. The variables involved in preparing the plates by soaking in a Brij-35 solution were investigated as well as the variables for PPEC (temperature, pressure, electrical potential, and mobile phase composition and pH). It was possible to separate six peptides in eight minutes using this approach. The second study used monolithic sorbent layers prepared by Dr. Frantisek Svec of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Separations were by conventional PPEC on charged monoliths and by electrophoresis on neutral monoliths. The same variables for PPEC, listed in the above paragraph, were investigated for the monolith study. It was possible to separate six peptides in two minutes on neutral monoliths and in one minute on negatively charged monoliths.
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    Traditional Versus Immersive Video-Based Referee Training Methods and How They Affect Situational Confidence Levels in Intramural College Basketball Officials
    (2022-09) Feller, Kevin Arthur; Krohn, Brian; Pierce, David; Sherman, Geoffre
    The number of sports officials around the United States and world has been slowly declining. The average age of sports officials keeps rising year over year, meaning younger officials are leaving their jobs at a high rate. The goal of this study was to compare training methods, traditional and immersive video-based, specifically RefReps training, to see how this training method affects officials’ confidence level at performing their duty as college intramural basketball officials. The study included college level intramural basketball officials from different universities in the United States (N = 34). A pre-test survey asking about confidence level was administered to each participating official prior to training for the upcoming intramural season. A control group (N = 13) used the university’s traditional training as their only form of training, while the test group (N = 21) trained using RefReps immersive video-based training. A post-test survey was given with the same confidence level questions for the participants to answer. The results showed that the RefReps group showed a greater increase in confidence in their ability to possess the most extensive knowledge of the rules compared to anyone else at the game and an increase in confidence in their ability to determine if a foul or violation had been committed.
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    Volumetric dimensional changes of luting cements
    (2014) Alobaidi, Eassa Ali E.; Platt, Jeffrey A., 1958-; Haug, Steven; Bottino, Marco C.; Levon, John A.; Brown, David T.
    The luting agent is a crucial factor in the outcome of cemented fixed restorations. A new water-based cement, Ceramir C&B (CM), approved to be marketed in the US, is composed of calcium aluminate and glass ionomer. CM is a luting agent indicated for permanent cementation of cast restorations, all-zirconia or all-alumina crowns, and prefabricated metal and cast dowel and cores. The manufacturer claims that the cement has demonstrated favorable biocompatibility properties when tested in vitro and in vivo and has proven to be bioactive. The objective of this study was to evaluate volumetric dimensional changes and the amount of Ca2+ released by the new luting agent. Twenty specimens of each material, namely calcium aluminate glass ionomer, resin-modified glass ionomer, and two resin luting agents, were fabricated and weighed. The 20 specimens for all materials were divided into four groups (five samples in each group) based on storage conditions: silicone oil at 22°C and 37°C and distilled water at 22°C and 37°C. Using the manufacturers’ instructions for each material, cylindrical specimens were prepared with dimensions of 7 +0.1 mm in diameter and 2 +0.1 mm in height. A 0.01-mg resolution balance was used to determine volumetric dimensional change using an Archimedean equation. Measurements were made 30 minutes after mixing, and at the time intervals of 7 days, 14 days, 21 days, and 30 days, and after total dehydration of the specimen. Chemical analyses of the solutions were performed using atomic absorption spectroscopy to determine the Ca+2 ion concentration. Moreover, the pH values were measured to determine the OH–concentration in the solutions. The results showed that CM had the most expansion among the tested luting agents in distilled water at 22°C and 37°C, and significantly increased at higher temperature. In silicone oil, resin-modified glass ionomer shrank the most and also shrank more with the high temperature. The result of the ion concentration analysis indicated that Ca+2 and OHion release increased with increasing time and also significantly with temperature rise. In conclusion, calcium aluminate-glass ionomer exhibited the most significant dimensional change when stored in water storage. The solubility of the tested luting agents should be evaluated in the future because they were not evaluated in this study. Furthermore, to evaluate the clinical effect of the dimensional changes, the impact on the gap formation at tooth-crown margins should be determined in future work.