Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Operational Performance And Safety Comparison: Roundabouts Vs. Traditional Signalized And Unsignalized Intersections

Stander Symposium Projects

As roundabouts become increasingly popular in Ohio, this study assesses their performance as a safe and functional alternative to traditional intersections. Focusing on three roundabout locations in Dublin, Ohio, the study compares accident reports with traditional intersections in the area as well as with the traditional intersections that existed before the roundabouts were installed.

Research Exercise: Dispense-A-Roll Project For Pm Company

Stander Symposium Projects

The current method of shipping receipt paper is very wasteful in regards of packaging and leads to inadequate storage. The inadequate storage of the rolls wastes time and energy when consumers have to reach in difficult, inaccessible places to refill the machine with a roll. The PM Company has contracted the University of Dayton Project Management Team to develop a roll dispenser. The Dispense-A-Roll dispenser will bring a convenient, sustainable, and cost saving method to dispense electronic transaction receipt paper rolls at the point of sale location for our client. The ease of use of the dispenser will allow for …

Disney's Adventure In Foreign Direct Investment: A Case Study Of Hong Kong

Stander Symposium Projects

This thesis analyzes the foreign direct investment in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region by the Walt Disney Company. Utilizing a unique cooperative partnership between the Walt Disney Company and Hong Kong Government, Hong Kong Disneyland represents a large service investment of the company in an attempt to penetrate the Chinese market. The case study of Hong Kong Disneyland as “greenfield” investment will evaluate the costs and benefits of introducing a large service product—initially produced in the home market (the USA) into the host market (Hong Kong SAR, PRC). Hong Kong Disneyland faced many challenges in penetrating the ‘amusement park’ market …

Does Time Fly Or Drag? Maybe It Depends On How Long You Think It Takes

Stander Symposium Projects

The question for this research was to determine whether or not manipulating perceived time progression (PTP) would influence how individuals performed on a vigilance task (sustained focus of attention on a perceptual or auditory task). Past research by Sackett et al. (2010) showed that when participants experienced a task in a shorter amount of time than expected, they would rate that time passed more quickly, and that the task was more enjoyable and engaging. However, when the task took longer than the time expected, the opposite would be found for each type of rating. Expanding upon this research, the purpose …

Identification Of Modified Nanomaterial Characteristics And Cellular Responses In Artificial Alveolar Fluid

Stander Symposium Projects

The rapid expansion of nanotechnology and inclusion of nanomaterials (NMs) into everyday objects have introduced benefits in many areas, including energy, electronics, cosmetics, medical procedures, and household items. It is due to their unique physicochemical properties, such as enhanced surface area to volume ratio and increased reactivity that make NMs attractive for these applications. Recently, however, concerns have been raised regarding the safety of NM exposure. To address these concerns, scientists and engineers have sought to identify the root cause of nano-bioresponses, with conflicting reports presented between in vitro and in vivo studies. While in vitro models retain the advantages …

Linguistic Factors Affecting The Socioeconomic Status Of Latino Immigrants In Dayton, Oh

Stander Symposium Projects

Using a sociolinguistic methodology, based on surveys and interviews, I will analyze how the social status of Dayton’s Spanish-speaking immigrants correlates with their levels of English. My research will benefit the Dayton Hispanic community in that it will identify the dominant linguistic factors that contribute to the definition of their social status. This information will empower the Hispanics with the knowledge of what hinders them linguistically as well as offer the community tools to better integrate them, which is the overall goal of the recently adopted Welcome Dayton plan—an effort to inspire immigrants to invest and remain in the indebted …

Students Who Serve: A Study Of Undergraduate Students' Experiences In Community Services

Stander Symposium Projects

Undergraduate students who participated in sustained community service through the Fitz Center for Leadership in Community were volunteer informants in a qualitative exploration of the meaning they make from being engaged in the Dayton community. The research team (five women and four men who were professor and eight doctoral students in educational leadership) were generously granted access to students associated with the Fitz Center. We were drawn to study “students who serve” because of our interest in student sub-cultures as well as the center’s model of sustained community engagement. Fourteen students were interviewed on or near campus. Unstructured open-ended interviews …

The Effect Of Temperature On Self-Reported Isolation

Stander Symposium Projects

Embodied cognition is the idea that the human body influences thoughts and vice versa; physical heat should cause a decrease in loneliness (“social coldness”) reports while physical coolness should cause an increase. Answering questions on an impersonal computer should increase loneliness reports relative to answering questions on paper. So far, 67 of a planned 150 undergraduate students have participated, completing the UCLA loneliness scale and evaluation questionnaire after holding a heated or cooled therapeutic pack. Preliminary results revealed a main effect of questionnaire type, no main effect of pack temperature and no interaction of questionnaire and pack temperature. If embodied …

A Novel, Elastically-Based, Regenerative Break And Launch Assist Mechanism

Stander Symposium Projects

This project involves a spring-based mechanical regenerative brake and launch assist system to increase vehicle fuel economy. When a vehicle slows, traditional brakes waste the kinetic energy by dissipating it to the environment as heat. Regenerative brakes, by comparison, store this energy for later use. A novel mechanical system has been designed that stores the energy in a spring and then uses that energy to later propel the vehicle. Hybrid electric vehicles have a successful electrical regenerative braking system but it is only beneficial for hybrid and electric vehicles, about 3% of the market. The proposed mechanical system could be …

A Novel High Quality Factor Tunable Band-Stop Filter For Microwave Applications

Stander Symposium Projects

A band-stop filter is used to remove a narrow band of frequencies from the signal path of a receiver or a transmitter. For a conventional notch filter, the maximum attenuation (notch depth) occurs at a single frequency midway between the specified edges (3dB) of the lower and upper pass-bands, and the selectivity can be described as the ratio of the notch depth to the bandwidth between the edges of the pass-bands. The unloaded quality factor Q (Qu) of the filter's resonators limits both notch depth and selectivity. This proposal suggests an optimized version of varactor-tuned microwave band-stop filter designed using …

Research Exercise: Betting Against Beta: A Low Volatility Investment Strategy For Market Period 2008-2012

Stander Symposium Projects

The objective of this study is to examine the risk/return relationships of "style/size" ETFs over the period 2008-2012. The ETFs are (1) Large cap growth, (2) Large cap value, (3) Mid cap growth, (4) Mid cap value, (5) Small cap growth, (6) Small cap value. The measure of risk used in this study is beta. Typically, higher beta ETFs are expected to outperform in up markets and underperform in down markets. Conversely, lower beta ETFs would perform best in a down market and underperform in an up market. The overall period of analysis is 2008-2012. The following three sub periods …

Design And Assembly Of A Spring-Powered Engine Starter Prototype

Stander Symposium Projects

Automotive starting systems require substantial amounts of mechanical energy in a short period of time. Lead-acid batteries have historically provided that energy through a starter motor. Springs have been identified as an alternative energy storage medium and are well suited to engine-starting applications due to their ability to rapidly deliver substantial mechanical power and their long service life. This project involves the development of a prototype of a spring-powered starter for a motorcycle engine. The focus was on the design and assembly of the complete system, including the design challenge of interfacing the starting mechanism with the motorcycle, designing the …

Design And Characterization Of Photo-Responsive Supramolecular Aggregates

Stander Symposium Projects

A supramolecular assembly is a complex of molecules held together by noncovalent interactions. The process by which supramolecular assemblies are formed is called “molecular self-assembly”, during which the molecules spontaneously aggregate in a specific manner, acquiring new properties. Incorporating photoisomerizable molecules into supramolecular assemblies offers considerable opportunities in developing new smart materials. Using UV-Vis and CD spectroscopy, we explored the propensity for a dicarboxylic acid derivatized azobenzene photoswitch (ADA) to form supramolecular aggregates and investigated the photochemical behavior of the system. ADA was shown to undergo cis-trans isomerization when irradiated in aqueous solution with visible and UV light. Upon reduction …

Growth Kinetics Of Carbon Microcoils

Stander Symposium Projects

Carbon is one of the most versatile materials of the periodic table and exists in various allotropic forms and shapes including fullerene, carbon nanotube, graphene. Coiled carbon filaments exhibit very attractive morphology and properties such as absorption of electromagnetic waves and high conductivity because of their shape and carbon structure. Bidirectionally grown double helical carbon microcoils (CMCs) are one type of coiled carbon filaments with unique catalytic activity. In this study, CMCs were synthesized using a chemical vapor deposition method. Growth mechanism of CMCs was explained by a simple exponential catalyst decay model.

Human Re-Identification In Multi-Camera Systems

Stander Symposium Projects

This research involves live human re-identification on multi-camera systems. Each frame of multiple cameras needs to be captured and analyzed with image processing methods. First, a histogram of oriented gradients (HOG) is performed to identify a person in each frame. Next, Local Binary Pattern (LBP) descriptors are used on each person to determine certain set features about then. Lastly, a red, green, blue (RGB) color histogram is performed on a specific body mask. Each body is then given a label based on their LBP and color histogram information and that label will be sent to a database. This label should …

Mis, Om And Decision Sciences, Political Science

Stander Symposium Projects

A LiDAR point cloud is 3D data which contains millions of data points represented in the form I (x, y, z) that stores the spatial coordinates and possibly RGB color information. This method of data collection is especially useful in collecting large scale scene information. The goal of this project is to develop a self-adaptive and automated methodology to extract features which effectively represent object regions, specifically man-made objects and vegetation regions. The point cloud will be initially segmented using a strip histogram grid approach. Once significant features are extracted, region refinement by surface growing will be performed. Finally after …

Job Design: A Human Approach Through Catholic Social Teaching And Job Design Theories

Stander Symposium Projects

Job design theories outline jobs that help a company design jobs that are efficient and productive for a laborer to do. Catholic Social Teaching enlightens humanity that above all it is important to respect human dignity. Do Catholic Social Teaching and job design theories agree or are they at odds with each other? “Job Design: A Human Approach” looks at the story of each starting with Fredrick Taylor in 1911 and Pope Leo XIII in 1891 and identifies similarities and differences. Finally, the thesis uses the stories of each to look forward into the modern world of the jobs yet …

Preparing Pre-Service Teachers To Work With English Language Learners

Stander Symposium Projects

English Language Learners (ELLs) can be misidentified as students with special needs. Teachers often watch these students struggle in school and assume they have a cognitive delay, when in reality; they may just be struggling with their language delay. To be identified as needing special education services, these students undergo assessments to test their abilities. These assessments were created for students who speak English. Studies have shown that “Familiarity with Standard English accounts for more than 50% of the total test variance on IQ and achievement test measures for fourth graders and 60% to 90% of the variance for seventh …

Research Exercise: Research On Technology In P-12 Classrooms

Stander Symposium Projects

Standards for the teaching profession emphasize the importance of awareness, understanding, and integration into practice and current research in education. The goal of the EDT 110-H1 poster is to discuss both the positives and the negatives associated with the evolving use of technology in the classroom

Research Exercise: Research On Single Gender

Stander Symposium Projects

Standards for the teaching profession emphasize the importance of awareness, understanding, and integration into practice of current research in education. The goal of the EDT 110H1 class project was to present syntheses of related literature on pertinent topics to p - 12 education, specifically the benefits of single gender environments on student achievement.

The Impact Of Social Awareness, Empathy, And Confidence On Blindness To Change In Facial Emotions

Stander Symposium Projects

Change blindness (CB) is an inability to detect changes in a visual stimulus. For example, Simons & Chabris (1999) used videotaped scenes depicting a gorilla walking across the screen, typically unnoticed by observers. The present research investigated blindness to changes in facial indications of emotion. Previous studies have shown that gradual changes of facial emotion produce substantive levels of CB when assessed by verbal report (David et al., 2006). It has also been noted that observers express high levels of confidence in their ability and accuracy to detect a change in a stimulus if it were to take place, even …

Research Exercise: The "Genocide" Of Timor-Leste: A Study Of Human Suffering And International Ignorance

Stander Symposium Projects

The Indonesian occupation of Timor-Leste in 1975 resulted in the deaths of an estimated 200,000 Timorese, which accounted for more than a quarter of the territory’s total population. Unfortunately, this terrible injustice went almost completely unrecognized by the international community. Even more disturbing, there is evidence to suggest that the United States was not only aware of these injustices, but perhaps encouraged the Indonesians’ violent invasion. A mass killing of this magnitude is normally dubbed ”genocide.” However, the situation that occurred in Timor-Leste has never been labeled as an actual “genocide,” most likely due to the involvement of the United …

Reseach Exercise: The "Genocide" Of Timor-Leste: A Study Of Human Suffering And International Ignorance

Stander Symposium Projects

The Indonesian occupation of Timor-Leste in 1975 resulted in the deaths of an estimated 200,000 Timorese, which accounted for more than a quarter of the territory’s total population. Unfortunately, this terrible injustice went almost completely unrecognized by the international community. Even more disturbing, there is evidence to suggest that the United States was not only aware of these injustices, but perhaps encouraged the Indonesians’ violent invasion. A mass killing of this magnitude is normally dubbed ”genocide.” However, the situation that occurred in Timor-Leste has never been labeled as an actual “genocide,” most likely due to the involvement of the United …

We're Here To Help: Accessing The Needs Of Transfer Students.

Stander Symposium Projects

The need to assist transfer students is particularly important because transfer students enter into new institutions with unique needs, perspectives, and experiences compared to non-transfer students. Many orientation programs do not address the needs of transfer students and focus on freshman students. Little is known about the correlation between transfer students and orientation attendance. Therefore, this study aimed to identify transfer student needs, increase their attendance of orientation programs, and to provide effective programming for them. Participants were asked questions regarding barriers to program attendance and institutional support. This qualitative study focused on eight undergraduate students at a private, midsized, …

Research Exercise: S&P 500 Sector Weights: The Case For Inverse Relative Price Strength

Stander Symposium Projects

In this study, I used a relative price strength model called the Inverse Relative Price Strength (IRPS) to develop a portfolio of 10 sector exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and then compared their performance to the overall market. I used the IRPS model as a proxy for the return risk optimizing process developed by Markowitz et, al. The hypothesis that I am testing is that sectors with lower relative prices compared to the market will have higher excess returns. The hypothesis is tested over the period 2008-2012. This particular period is highly volatile with large swings in both actual and relative prices. …

Models For Improving Patient Throughput And Waiting At Hospital Emergency Departments, Jomon Aliyas Paul, Lin Li

Jomon Aliyas Paul

Background: Overcrowding diminishes Emergency Department (ED) care delivery capabilities.

Objectives: We developed a generic methodology to investigate the causes of overcrowding and to identify strategies to resolve them, and applied it in the ED of a hospital participating in the study.

Methods: We utilized Discrete Event Simulation (DES) to capture the complex ED operations. Using DES results, we developed parametric models for checking the effectiveness and quantifying the potential gains from various improvement alternatives. We performed a follow-up study to compare the outcomes before and after the model recommendations were put into effect at the hospital participating …

Gender Differences In Perceptions And Self-Reported Driving Behaviors Among Teenagers. (Poster), Gavin C. Barr Jr. Md, Kathleen E. Kane Md, Robert D. Barraco Md, Timarie Rayburg Do, Lauren Dugan Do, Chadd K. Kraus Do, Mph, Marna R. Greenberg Do, Mph, Facep, Valerie Rupp Rn, Bsn, Kimberly Hamilton, Bryan G. Kane Md

Kathleen E Kane MD

No abstract provided.

Photodynamic Cancer Therapy A Study Of The Photolysis Reaction Between Porphyrin And 9,10-Diphenylanthracene, James Z. Akins

Honors College Theses

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a method of combating cancerous tumors. PDT works when certain molecules called photosensitizers absorb light and transfer that energy to dissolved oxygen in solution. Next, this singlet oxygen will interfere with nearby molecules that are necessary for cancer cells to function. This research focuses on the kinetics (rates) of the reaction with respect to the photosensitizer, light, and the target molecule. A laser set at 514nm was used in photolysis with the photosensitizer 5,10,15,20-Tetrakis(2,3,5,6-tetrafluorophenyl)porphyrin (TPP). To mimic cancer cells and monitor the effectiveness of the chosen photosensitizer, 9,10-Diphenylanthracene (DPA) was used as the target molecule. In …

New Perspectives In Ecosystem Services Science As Instruments To Understand Environmental Securities, Ferdinando Villa, Brian Voigt, Jon D. Erickson

Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources Faculty Publications

As societal demand for food, water and other life-sustaining resources grows, the science of ecosystem services (ES) is seen as a promising tool to improve our understanding, and ultimately the management, of increasingly uncertain supplies of critical goods provided or supported by natural ecosystems. This promise, however, is tempered by a relatively primitive understanding of the complex systems supporting ES, which as a result are often quantified as static resources rather than as the dynamic expression of human-natural systems. This article attempts to pinpoint the minimum level of detail that ES science needs to achieve in order to usefully inform …

13th Annual Undergraduate Student Symposium, Farquhar Honors College

Undergraduate Student Symposium

The Undergraduate Student Symposium, sponsored by the Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences, presents student projects through presentations, papers, and poster displays. The event serves as a “showcase” demonstrating the outstanding scholarship of undergraduate students at NSU. The Symposium is open to undergraduate students from all disciplines. Projects cover areas of student scholarship ranging from the experimental and the applied to the computational, theoretical, artistic, and literary. They are taken from class assignments as well as from independent projects. The projects do not have to be complete; presentations can represent any stage in the concept’s evolution, from proposal and literature …