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Ensemble: 2006-08-06 – Chung Hsing Junior High School Orchestra

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Orchestra concert performed at the UNT College of Music Concert Hall
Date: August 6, 2006
Creator: Chung Hsing Junior High School Orchestra (Taoyuan, Taiwan)
Object Type: Sound
System: The UNT Digital Library

The Effect of Increased Collaboration Among the Library Media Specialist and School Personnel on Perceptions of the Roles and Responsibilities of the Library Media Specialist

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This study measured and explored changes in perceptions of the roles and responsibilities of the library media specialist when the level of collaboration increased. Seven library media specialists targeted four members of their educational communities with whom to increase collaborative activities. Before and after the collaboration began, the library media specialists, the teachers with whom they chose to collaborate, other members from the same educational community, and a control group that did not participate in increased collaboration were given a roles and responsibilities rank-order form. This form was used to measure changes in perceptions regarding the importance of the three roles and selected responsibilities related to the three roles before and after the collaborative experience. The library media specialists and the targeted teachers also kept reflection logs to record factors that enhanced collaboration, factors that inhibited collaboration, and any changes in their teaching style as a result of the collaborative experience. Results indicate that the participating library media specialists themselves experienced the most change. Role identification remains a problem as library media specialists seek to become teaching partners with classroom teachers yet still must keep the library media center aligned with school and district goals and move toward making it …
Date: August 1999
Creator: Beaird, Marilyn Miller
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

Comparative Mitochondrial DNA Sequence Diversity in Isolated and Open Populations of Southern Flying Squirrels

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Three populations of Southern flying squirrels were studied in the Ouachita Mountains of Arkansas to assess the impact of population subdivision-due to island formation--on the population genetics of Glaucomys volans. One island, one mainland, and one open population were investigated. A 367 nucleotide hypervariable region of mitochondrial DNA was sequenced in individuals from each population. Individuals and populations were compared to assess relatedness. Higher sequence diversity was detected in the open and island populations. One island individual shared characters with both the island and mainland populations. Results support the hypothesis that the mainland population may have reduced gene flow. Also, the island population may have been originally founded by at least two maternal lineages.
Date: August 1999
Creator: Cook, Melaney Birdsong
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

A Multimedia Atlas of Dissection for Comparative Anatomy of the Vertebrates

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Traditional methods of teaching the laboratory course for Comparative Anatomy of the Vertebrates could be improved by applying current computer technology to construct an interactive, multimedial atlas of dissection. Five specimens used in comparative anatomy courses at most institutions were chosen as representative members of the Phylum Chordata: amphioxus, lamprey, dogfish shark, mud puppy, and cat. Specimens were dissected according to the modified method of Wischnitzer, 1993, and each stage was photographed with a Kodak DC120 digital zoom camera. These images were processed on a Power Macintosh 7600 computer with Adobe Photoshop v. 5.0. The atlas was constructed from these images using Macromedia Authorware v. 4.0.3. Each image contains a series of interactive objects that display a highlight and descriptive text as the cursor passes over each object.
Date: August 1999
Creator: Curran, Anthony A.
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

Harbor: The Act of Autobiography

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This written thesis accompanies a sixteen-minute documentary video, Harbor, in which the filmmaker explores her relationship with her father who has suffered a stroke. Detailed accounts of the pre-production, production and post-production of the video allow the reader to understand the challenging and rewarding process of making an autobiographical documentary. Theoretical issues are also discussed, including the validity, criticisms, artistic nature and ethical concerns of autobiographical filmmaking. The filmmaker stresses the universality of her story, and how, despite the film's very personal nature, it is applicable for anyone who has dealt with the illness and/or disability of a parent.
Date: August 1999
Creator: Doeren, Catherine Wallace
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

Mercado de Fort Worth: Issues and Opportunities

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The Mercado de Fort Worth is a commercial area located between downtown Fort Worth and the "stockyards" entertainment district in a Hispanic neighborhood. Many of the buildings are vacant and in need of renovation. To promote area development, the City of Fort Worth has encouraged property owners to create a market area of Mexican-theme restaurants and shops. Property owners have expressed concern about potential returns on renovation investments. This study provides property owners with information regarding several similar projects across the country. The report finds that basic economic and site location principles are the main determinants of project success. The report also reviews local business training and assistance resources. Finally, the report provides information regarding "historic" building designations and associated tax incentives available to property owners
Date: August 1999
Creator: Hernandez, Gustavo
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

Animals-as-Trope in the Selected Fiction of Zora Neale Hurston, Alice Walker, and Toni Morrison

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In this dissertation, I show how 20th century African-American women writers such as Zora Neale Hurston, Alice Walker, and Toni Morrison utilize animals-as-trope in order to illustrate the writers' humanity and literary vision. In the texts that I have selected, I have found that animals-as-trope functions in two important ways: the first function of animal as trope is a pragmatic one, which serves to express the humanity of African Americans; and the second function of animal tropes in African-American women's fiction is relational and expresses these writers' "ethic of caring" that stems from their folk and womanist world view. Found primarily in slave narratives and in domestic fiction of the 19th and early 20th centuries, pragmatic animal metaphors and/or similes provide direct analogies between the treatment of African-Americans and animals. Here, these writers often engage in rhetoric that challenges pro-slavery apologists, who attempted to disprove the humanity of African-Americans by portraying them as animals fit to be enslaved. Animals, therefore, become the metaphor of both the abolitionist and the slavery apologist for all that is not human. The second function of animals-as-trope in the fiction of African-American women writers goes beyond the pragmatic goal of proving African-Americans's common humanity, even …
Date: August 1999
Creator: Erickson, Stacy M.
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

Peer Education: Building Community Through Playback Theatre Action Methods

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The primary purpose of this study was to use some of the action methods of playback theatre to facilitate the acquisition of knowledge through the experience of building community. The impact of action methods on group dynamics and the relationship among methods, individual perceptions, and the acquisition of knowledge were analyzed. The researcher suggested that playback theatre action methods provided a climate in which groups can improve the quality of their interactions. The Hill Interaction Matrix (HIM) formed the basis for the study's analysis of interactions. Since the researcher concluded there were significantly more interactions coded in the "power quadrant" after training, the researcher assumed that playback theatre action methods are a catalyst for keeping the focus on persons in the group, encouraging risk-taking behaviors, and producing constructive feedback between members. Based on session summaries, individual interviews, and an analysis of the Group Environment Scale (GES), the training group became more cohesive, became more expressive, promoted independence, encouraged self-discovery, and adapted in innovative ways. The experience of an interconnected community created a space where positive growth could occur. The researcher concluded that the process of community building is intricately connected with a person's ability to make meaning out of experiences. …
Date: August 1999
Creator: Kintigh, Monica R.
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

An investigation of the relationships between job characteristics, satisfaction, and team commitment as influenced by organization-based self-esteem within a team-based environment

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Team-based management is a popular contemporary method of redesigning jobs in order to more effectively utilize the human potential of employees. The use of such management techniques should result in increased satisfaction and team commitment; however, many research studies have failed to demonstrate increases in affective outcomes on the part of the employee. The research question examined in this study is, "What specific job dimensions and situational factors result in higher levels of satisfaction and team commitment?" The Job Characteristics Model (Hackman & Oldham, 1975) provided a basis for this study. The model was designed for individual contributors and has not been extensively used in team research. As expected it was found that within a team-based environment higher levels of the five core job dimensions of skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy, and job feedback were associated with increased satisfaction and team commitment. Organization-based self-esteem was found to mediate the relationship between the five core job dimensions and the affective outcome variables. Contrary to expectations, however, it was found that consultative team members experienced higher levels of satisfaction and commitment than substantive team members. In addition, consultative team members reported higher levels of two core job dimensions, skill variety …
Date: August 2000
Creator: Abbott, John B.
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

Emotional Health, Well-Being, And Religion as Quest

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This study examined the relationship between the religious orientation quest and well-being using the 1998 General Social Survey. In addition to the religious orientation quest the extrinsic and intrinsic religious orientations were also investigated. Analysis of the data indicated that there was a slight negative association between quest and general well-being, while also demonstrating a strong positive association between quest and inner peace. These results underscore the supposition that quest is an orientation that is complex and ultimately deserves further attention.
Date: August 2000
Creator: Alexander, Kimberly A.
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

Stretched Out On Her Grave: The Evolution of a Perversion

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The word "necrophilia" brings a particular definition readily to mind – that of an act of sexual intercourse with a corpse, probably a female corpse at that. But the definition of the word did not always have this connotation; quite literally the word means "love of the dead," or "a morbid attraction to death." An examination of nineteenth-century literature reveals a gradual change in relationships between the living and the dead, culminating in the sexualized representation of corpses at the close of the century. The works examined for necrophilic content are: Mary Wollstonecraft’s Mary, A Fiction, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights, and Bram Stoker’s Dracula and The Jewel of Seven Stars.
Date: August 2000
Creator: Angel-Cann, Lauryn
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

Inquiry-based science for high school students: a forensic unit

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This project constitutes an instructional unit for honors biology that involves the use of science in the field of criminal investigation and forensics. Before beginning the unit, the learners should have mastered basic laboratory skills, including use of the microscope. They should also have an understanding of the basic structure and function of DNA and its role in heredity and protein synthesis. The standard time frame is 24 days with 70-minute periods, but can be easily adjusted to meet classroom needs. Several instructional strategies enhance student learning and make science fun. The unit is inquiry-driven and activity-based. Students are surprised by the crime, gather and analyze evidence, and work towards proposing an explanation. This real world problem involves the use of cooperative learning and a variety of assessment techniques.
Date: August 2000
Creator: Apple, Kendra Kea
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

Characterizing the Municipal Solid Waste Stream in Denton, Texas

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Forty-two commercially collected dumpsters from DentonÂ’s Municipal Solid Waste Stream were emptied, sorted and weighed to characterize the material types and make preliminary recycling policy recommendations. The general composition of DentonÂ’s solid waste stream was not significantly different from the composition of the nationÂ’s solid waste stream. Fifty-eight percent of the observed waste stream was recyclable. Paper made up the largest portion of recyclable materials and the "grocery" source category had more paper than any of the other five categories. Based on these findings, an incrementally aggressive approach is recommended to reduce certain types of wastes observed in the waste stream. This would include a Pay-As-You-Throw Program followed by an Intermediate Processing Center that can be converted to a Materials Recovery Facility.
Date: August 2000
Creator: Brady, Patricia D.
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

Curriculum Analysis in Teacher Preparation Programs at the College of Basic Education in Kuwait

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Preparing quality teachers is a continuing issue and concern in discussions about the future of schools in many countries. This study described and compared the stated goals and perceived outcomes of teacher preparation programs at the College of Basic Education (CBE) in Kuwait. This information will assist educational decision makers in Kuwait to align teacher preparation at the CBE and decide what is needed to make the programs more effective. The study assessed the perceptions of knowledge, skills, and attitudes of student teachers, new teachers, and instructors toward the existing program at the CBE in Kuwait. The discussion of teacher preparation in Kuwait was used to set a cultural and historical context. The literature reviewed recommendations from the United States to develop a framework of five common standards for analyzing the teacher preparation curriculum: content knowledge, instruction, diversity, professional development, and field work. In addition, research and evaluation of teacher education programs were reviewed for perceptions of student teachers and new teachers about their preparation and for methodology. Document analysis techniques were used with current documents from four major teacher preparation programs in the CBE. Five standards from U.S. recommendations were also found in the CBE curriculum. However, the analysis …
Date: August 2000
Creator: Bufarsan, Fawzi A.
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

Relationship Between Flow Experience, Flow Dimensions, and the Equivalence of Challenges and Skills in the Web-Based Training Environment

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This study applied components of Csikszentmhalyi’s flow theory to the Web-based Training (WBT) environment. Specifically considered were how the equivalence of a learner’s perceived challenges and skills for an activity can effectively predict the emergence of flow in the WBT environment. Also considered was the ability of flow dimensions — defined in flow theory — to predict and model the occurrence of flow during WBT activities. Over a period of about one hour, students (n=43) from a southwestern US university engaged in WBT learning activities pertaining to on-line coursework or self-study. A special Web-based software installed on the students’ computers sporadically reminded them to complete a series of on-line questionnaires which collected data on their flow experience, learning activities, and flow dimensions. The data collection method employed by this study is effectively an electronic, Web-enabled version of, and functionally equivalent to, the Experience Sampling Method (ESM) used in other flow studies. This study employed questionnaires used in prior flow studies to collect data regarding respondents’ flow experiences and flow dimensions, and developed an on-line instrument to collect data on students’ learning experiences based on instructional events found in computer-based lessons from Gagné. Significant findings (p<.05) from this study suggest that, …
Date: August 2000
Creator: Catino, Robert J.
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

Jezebel's Daughters: A Study of Wilkie Collins and His Female Villains

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The term "feminist," when applied to Wilkie Collins, implies he was concerned with rectifying the oppression of women in domestic life as well as with promoting equal rights between the sexes. This study explores Collins the "feminist" by analyzing his portrayals of women, particularly his most powerful feminine creations: his villainesses. Although this focus is somewhat limited, it allows for a detailed analysis of the development of Collins's attitudes towards powerful women from the beginning to the end of his career. It examines the relationship between Collins's developing moral attitudes and social beliefs, on the one hand, and the ideas of Victorian feminists such as Josephine Butler and feminist sympathizers such as John Stuart Mill, on the other. This interaction, while never overt, reveals the ambivalence and complexity of Collins's "feminist" attitudes. Of the five novels in this study, Antonina (1850), Basil (1852), Armadale (1866), Jezebel's Daughter (1880), and The Legacy of Cain (1889), only one was published at the zenith of Collins's career in the 1860s. Each of the villainesses in these novels, their ideas and experiences, are crucial to understanding Collins's "feminist" impulses. Looking at them as powerful women who detest domestic oppression, one becomes aware that Collins …
Date: August 2000
Creator: Colvin, Trey Vincent
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

Comparative Analysis of Chronic Versus Acute Stressors and Their Influence on Distress Consequences at Work

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Workplace stress has been found to be a causal agent of psychological distress consequences in employees. Chronic stressors have been well researched, in particular, role conflict, role ambiguity, and work overload have been extensively studied. A meta-analysis was conducted in order to aggregate past research to gain a better understanding of the impact these stressors have on the psychological distress consequences of depression, tension/anxiety, somatic complaints, and generalized feelings of stress. Only role ambiguity was found to be a significant contributor to psychological distress, in particular to feelings of depression and stress. In general, however, effect sizes for all three stressors were moderate to large. While chronic stressors have been well researched, acute stressors have been widely overlooked. Since research in this area is limited, the Daily Work Hassles Survey was developed and validated in order to analyze the role daily hassles play in the workplace. The survey yielded two factors, Interpersonal Hassles and Task Hassles. The former of which was found to be significantly related to the distress consequences of depression, tension/anxiety, somatic complaints, and general feelings of stress. The ultimate goal of this project was to compare chronic and acute stressors. Results from the daily hassles study were …
Date: August 2000
Creator: Crawford, Julie Schwarz
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

Prevalence of Undiagnosed Dissociative Disorders in an Inpatient Setting

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This study examined the prevalence of undiagnosed dissociative disorders in a sample of 201 adult patients admitted to a private psychiatric hospital in a major metropolitan city in the south-central United States, over an eight-month period. A screening measure, two blind structured interviews, and a blind clinical interview were employed. The lifetime prevalence of dissociate disorders among the interviewed subjects was 40.8%. More specifically, 7.5% were diagnosed with dissociative identity disorder, 15.4% with dissociative disorder not otherwise specified, 13.4% with dissociative amnesia, and 4.5% with depersonalization disorder. Dissociative fugue was not found in this sample. Cohen's kappa reliability coefficients were computed between the three interview measures, resulting in significant findings for the presence of dissociative identity disorder and dissociative disorder not otherwise specified versus no dissociative disorder. The Cohen's kappa reliability coefficients were as follows: DDIS-DES-T = 0.81; SCID-D-DES-T = 0.76; Clinician-DES-T = 0.74, DDIS-SCID-D = 0.74; DDIS-Clinician = 0.71, and SCID-D-Clinician = 0.56. A meeting was conducted at the end of all subject interviews to discuss discrepant findings between measures. Four additional sub-analyses were performed between dissociative and non-dissociative subjects on DSM-IV variables. Patients diagnosed with a dissociative disorder had higher rates of comorbid major depressive disorder, borderline personality …
Date: August 2000
Creator: Duffy, Colleen
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

Loading the Problem Loader: The Effects of Target Training and Shaping on Trailer Loading Behavior of Horses in a Natural Setting

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The purpose of this study was to develop an effective method for trailer loading horses based on the principles of positive reinforcement. Target training and shaping were used to teach trailer loading behavior in a natural setting. Five AQHA mares were selected for this program. All five had been loaded before through the use of punishment. A two-horse trailer was used. Approximations to loading and inappropriate behaviors were the dependent variables. When intervention started the target was moved to various locations inside the trailer. Subjects started training on the left side of the trailer. After a subject was loading in the left side they were moved to the right side, then to loading half on the right and half on the left, then they were loaded by a different trainer, and into a different trailer. For one subject a limited hold was utilized, as well as a companion horse.
Date: August 2000
Creator: Ferguson, Dawnery
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

Multi-Agent Architecture for Internet Information Extraction and Visualization

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The World Wide Web is one of the largest sources of information; more and more applications are being developed daily to make use of this information. This thesis presents a multi-agent architecture that deals with some of the issues related to Internet data extraction. The primary issue addresses the reliable, efficient and quick extraction of data through the use of HTTP performance monitoring agents. A second issue focuses on how to make use of available data to take decisions and alert the user when there is change in data; this is done with the help of user agents that are equipped with a Defeasible reasoning interpreter. An additional issue is the visualization of extracted data; this is done with the aid of VRML visualization agents. The cited issues are discussed using stock portfolio management as an example application.
Date: August 2000
Creator: Gollapally, Devender R.
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

BioInformatics, Phylogenetics, and Aspartate Transcarbamoylase

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In this research, the necessity of understanding and using bioinformatics is demonstrated using the enzyme aspartate transcarbamoylase (ATCase) as the model enzyme. The first portion of this research focuses on the use of bioinformatics. A partial sequence of the pyrB gene found in Enterococcus faecalis was submitted to GenBank and was analyzed against the contiguous sequence from its own genome project. A BLAST (Basic Local Alignment Search Tool; Atschul, et al., 1990) was performed in order to hypothesize the remaining portion of the gene from the contiguous sequence. This allowed a global comparison to other known aspartate transcarbamoylases (ATCases) and once deduced, a translation of the sequence gave the stop codon and thus the complete sequence of the open reading frame. When this was complete, upstream and downstream primers were designed in order to amplify the gene from genomic DNA. The amplified product was then sequenced and used later in phylogenetic analyses concerning the evolution of ATCase. The second portion of this research involves taking multiple ATCase nucleotide sequences and performing phenetic and phylogenetic analyses of the archaea and eubacter families. From these analyses, ancestral relationships which dictate both structure and function were extrapolated from the data and discussed.
Date: August 2000
Creator: Cooke, Patrick Alan
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

The Application of a Health Service Utilization Model to a Low Income, Ethnically Diverse Sample of Women

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A model for health care utilization was applied to a sample of low income women. Demographic Predisposing, Psychosocial Predisposing, Illness Level, and Enabling indicators were examined separately for African American (n = 266), Anglo American (n = 200), and Mexican American (n = 210) women. Structural Equation Modeling revealed that for African American and Anglo American women, Illness Level, the only significant path to Utilization, had a mediating effect on Psychosocial Predisposing indicators. The model for Mexican Americans was the most complex with Enabling indicators affecting Illness Level and Utilization. Psychosocial Predisposing indicators were mediated by Illness Level and Enabling indicators which both directly affected Utilization. Implications of the results for future research are addressed.
Date: August 2000
Creator: Keenan, Lisa A.
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

Adherence and Haemagglutination of Moraxella Catarrhalis.

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M. catarrhalis is a gram-negative diplococci frequently associated with infections of the upper respiratory tract. During the past decade, some preliminary studies have attempted to elucidate mechanisms of adherence and haemagglutination of M. catarrhalis. These studies have reported, in many cases, inconsistent results. There are two purposes of this research. First, identify mechanisms that may potentially be associated with the adherence and haemagglutination of M. catarrhalis. Second, suggest research directions that may be fruitful in clarifying these mechanisms.
Date: August 2000
Creator: Kosterman, Edward, III
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library

Keyboard Innovation: Harry Partch's Contributions

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"Harry Partch's Keyboard Innovation" is a computer-assisted demonstration that introduces the tuning system used primarily by the twentieth-century American composer, Harry Partch. The multimedia product was developed in Director 6.0, and it includes sound and video clips from CDs and videocassettes of Partch's works produced by Phillip Blackburn and distributed by the American Composers Forum. The content of the demonstration involves a 43-tone microtonal tuning system and its application in the music literature. This demonstration will discuss the chronological order in which these prototypes were developed and also includes samples of the tuning of notes in Partch's scale that the novice can experiment with interactively. These tones were synthesized using the Csound scores shown in Appendix B. Materials for this demonstration are based on Harry Partch's Genesis of a Music.
Date: August 2000
Creator: Koh,Wee Lay
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library