This paper discuses the British Labour government's social, economic and military policies in Iraq between 1945 and 1948. The ability of the Iraqi monarchy to adapt to the British policies after World War II is discussed. The British were trying to put more social justice into the Iraqi regime in order to keep British influence and to increase the Iraqi regime's stability against the Arab nationalist movement.

This study sought to determine if and how television texts produced since September 11, 2001, reflect and address cultural concerns by analyzing patterns in their theme and narrative style. Three American television serials were examined as case studies. Each text addressed a common cluster of contemporary issues such as trauma, death, and loss.

Recital presented at the UNT College of Music Kenton Hall in partial fulfillment of the Master of Music (MM) degree.

Composer Michael Nyman wrote the one-act, minimalist opera The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, based off the neurological case study written by Oliver Sacks under the same title. The opera is about a professional singer and professor whom suffers from visual agnosia. In chapter 1, the plot and history of the opera are discussed. Chapter 2 places The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat alongside a selection of minimalist operas from Philip Glass and John Adams. Chapter 3 contains a history of the Fluxus art movement and shows where Fluxus-like examples appear in the opera. Chapter 4 includes Nyman's usage of minimalism, vocal congruencies, and Robert Schumann as musical elements that convey the drama.

This study examined the opinions of university students about the current situation of the headscarf dispute on the wearing of headscarves in Turkey. The influence of gender, the level of secularism, socioeconomic status and encounter with women wearing headscarves on opinions about the wearing of headscarves were analyzed in this study. The sample of this study was composed of 400 university students among whom there were 240 female and 160 male students. Moreover, the sample comprised university students from 50 universities from Turkey. The results indicated that the level of secularism and encounter with women wearing headscarves were distinguished as two determining factors of the diverse opinions of the university students on the topic. No association was found between the perceptions of university students about the issue and the independent variables of gender and socioeconomic status.

This study was designed to examine the opinions of Turkish immigrants living in the Houston metropolitan area about the conflict between secularism and Islam in Turkey. The study examined the role of the practice of religion on the opinions about the clash between secularism and Islam. A final sample consisted of 40 immigrants recruited through purposeful and snowball sampling. In-depth interviews and a survey including screening questions were conducted. The results indicated that practice of religion has a partial impact on the opinions of Turkish immigrants about the conflict between secularism and Islam. Future research should further examine if the experience of living abroad for a long period influence Turkish immigrants' opinions about the same issue.

Recital presented at the UNT College of Music Kenton Hall in partial fulfillment of the Master of Music (MM) degree.

Using the principles of systems analysis as a guide, this study compared two class schedule formats used by Behavior Management and Parenting Services (BMAPS) in order to address the following research questions: 1) What effects do 2 different class formats have on student attrition and appointment keeping? 2) What effects do 2 different class formats have on student outcomes on a pre and posttest assessment? 3) What effects do 2 different class formats have on staff procedures? BMAPS provides parent education to individuals referred by Child Protective Services. The current research included approximately 200 referred clients with an appointment or class scheduled with BMAPS between January 1, 2006 and September 22, 2007. Data was collected by reviewing client files for class attendance and performance records. Results of this study allow BMAPS to enlist the class format that is correlated with better attrition rates and client outcomes.

Behavior analysts have proposed a primary measure, the "learn unit," to evaluate educational effectiveness. Past research has indicated this is a useful approach. The benefits of "learn units" may also apply to family interventions in autism. The current analysis evaluated the rates of learn units in a naturalistic parent-training program to determine if (1) definitions of learn units previously described in the literature can be reliably applied to family interventions and (2) an increased number of learn units correlate with increased child responding and attainment of child and family goals. Results from the current analysis demonstrated that the rate of learn units increased from baseline to training for all parent-child dyads and the percent of correct child responses increased for all children. Teaching parents the components of effective education may increase the quantity and quality of interventions for children diagnosed with autism.

Singers and songwriters come to Nashville, Tennessee because they consider it the center of the country music universe and the best place to perform their songs as they try and break into the music business. Though few ever experience success in this competitive field, artists continue to arrive in Nashville and many don't have the commercial potential that would allow them the opportunity to perform anywhere but on the city's streets. The film, Street Chords and the Truth: A Street Level View of Country Music, focuses on these interesting performers and their music. Country music has been examined by a handful of ethnomusicologists and is often called the music of everyday life. Many recognize its dependence on ordinary singing styles, common phrasings, southern accents and traditional costuming as central to its identity and critical source of its value as a commodity. While many studies have been conducted focusing commercially popular country music singers and the music industry, few studies been conducted on singers who meet all the critical criteria for country music except commercial viability. This documentary examines country music more as a critical element of cultural identity and less as a commodity.

Many consider Gace Brulé (c1160-c1213) and Thibaut IV, Count of Champagne, (1201-1253) to have been the greatest trouvères. Writers on this subject have not adequately examined this assumption, having focused their energies on such issues as tracking melodic variants of individual works as preserved in different song-books (or chansonniers), the interpretation of rhythm in performance, and creation of modern editions of these songs. This thesis examines the esteem enjoyed by Gace and Thibaut in both medieval and modern times which derives from their exemplarity of, rather than difference from their noble contemporaries.

Recital presented at the UNT College of Music Concert Hall in partial fulfillment of the Master of Music (MM) degree.

The objective of this research is to investigate the use of laser direct writing to micro-pattern low loss passive optical channel waveguide devices using a new hybrid organic/inorganic polymer. Review of literature shows previous methods of optical waveguide device patterning as well as application of other non-polymer materials. System setup and design of the waveguide components are discussed. Results show that laser direct writing of the hybrid polymer produce single mode interconnects with a loss of less 1dB/cm.

In the preface to this collection, "Poetry and History: Finding 'What Will Suffice,'" I show how Czeslaw Milosz's "Dedication" and Jorie Graham's "Guantánamo" embody the virtues of philosophical meditation and the moral imagination to create a unique poetry of witness. These poems also provide American poets with an example of how they can regain the trust of an apathetic general reading audience. Tinder for the Bathhouses is a collection of poems in which I use the moral imagination to indirectly bear witness to events as far ranging as the Holocaust and the Iraq War. Using the family as a foundation, I show how historical narratives can provide a poet with the tools to think about larger metaphysical questions that poetry can raise, such as the nature of beauty and the purpose of art.

Recital presented at the UNT College of Music Recital Hall in partial fulfillment of the Master of Music (MM) degree.

Recital presented at the UNT College of Music Recital Hall in partial fulfillment of the Master of Music (MM) degree.

This study examined the relationship between interpersonal decentering and symptoms of psychopathology among 48 clients from the Psychology Clinic at the University of North Texas. The Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) and the Symptom Checklist 90-Revised (SCL-90-R®) instrument were administered to clients along with demographic packets. Interpersonal decentering was assessed using Melvin Feffer's Interpersonal Decentering Scoring System for the TAT. It was hypothesized that higher scores of global symptom severity would be associated with lower scores of interpersonal decentering. Higher scores of paranoid ideation, psychoticism, and hostility were also hypothesized to be associated with lower scores of interpersonal decentering. Results did not support these hypotheses. However, exploratory analyses revealed a significant correlation between higher scores of phobic anxiety and lower scores of interpersonal decentering. Results also provided information regarding the three methods for calculating interpersonal decentering summary scores.

Women have fought for their rights to equal opportunity employment for more than a millennium. Even now, in the 21st century the fight continues. Women at Work explores the experiences of three women who work in male-dominated blue-collar jobs and discuses their struggles and successes within their employment. Their career choices have required each to address their individual views on feminism and femininity, as well as views on education and family.

Researchers within the criminal justice field have examined recidivism to discover effective methods to deter criminals from re-offending. Typically, incarceration provided specific deterrence for offenders but recidivism after release proved problematic. Using secondary data analysis, the present study evaluates a cognitive behavioral therapy [CBT] program, Reasoning and Rehabilitation, which the state of Colorado implemented in 1995 among juveniles on intensive probation. The original research team collected the data through pre- and post-questionnaires and interviews with probation officers. The pre- and post-test data are utilized to specifically analyze certain variables including self-control, empathy and problemsolving abilities. The focus of the present study is to determine the level of change in these particular variables as an outcome of completing the CBT program. This analysis also explores the value of CBT programs and examines how the programs alter an offender's level of selfcontrol, empathy and problem-solving abilities thus reducing recidivism after completion.

The preface to this collection of poems, "Memory and The Myth of Lost Truth," explores the physical and metaphysical roles memory plays within poetry. It examines the melancholy frequently birthed from a particular kind poetic self-inquiry, or, more specifically, the feelings associated with recognizing the self's inability to re-inhabit the emotional experience of past events, and how poetry can redeem, via engaging our symbolic intuition, the faultiness of remembered history. Dawn in the Empty House is a collection of poems about the implications of human relationships, self-deception, and memory as a tool for self-discovery.

Recital presented at the UNT College of Music Recital Hall in partial fulfillment of the Master of Music (MM) degree.

The purpose of this study was to examine the association between engaging in minimum levels of physical activity as defined by ACSM and perceived quality of life. A total of 43 college students were included in a repeated measures, quasi-experimental design research study that produced an overall retention rate of 65%, which resulted in 15 students being placed in the treatment group, and 28 students being placed in the control group. Analysis of variance with repeated measures was used to compare the quality of life mean scores over three administrations of the Quality of Life Inventory (QOLI), which resulted in no significant main effects for either the time measure or the group measure, but did produce a significant interaction effect. Post hoc analyses showed there was a significant difference between the treatment and control groups' quality of life mean scores only during the second administration of the instrument. Further analysis showed that the control group had significantly higher quality of life domain scores for six of the 16 quality of life domains. There were no significant differences between groups across any of the physiological measures. These findings did not support previous research that increasing individuals' level of physical activity will …

Recital presented at the UNT College of Music Recital Hall in partial fulfillment of the Master of Music (MM) degree.

This thesis is a contribution to the work of the Texas Environmental Observatory (TEO), which provides environmental information from the Greenbelt Corridor (GBC) of the Elm Fork of the Trinity River. The motivation of this research is to analyze the short-term water dynamic of soil in response to the substantial rainfall events that occurred in North Texas in 2007. Data collected during that year by a TEO soil and weather station located at the GBC includes precipitation, and soil moisture levels at various depths. In addition to these field measurements there is soil texture data obtained from lab experiments. By comparing existing water dynamic models, water balance equations were selected for the study as they reflect the water movement of the soil without complicated interrelation between parameters. Estimations of water flow between soil layers, infiltration rate, runoff, evapotranspiration, water potential, hydraulic conductivity, and field capacity are all obtained by direct and indirect methods. The response of the soil at field scale to rainfall event is interpreted in form of flow and change of soil moisture at each layer. Additionally, the analysis demonstrates that the accuracy of soil characteristic measurement is the main factor that effect physical description. Suggestions for model …