The dissertation seeks to rediscover Julius Schloss, a German Jewish composer victimized by the Nazis. Except for the promising start of his career in his early years, Schloss suffered a hard life as an exiled refugee. However, his unusual experiences inspired him to compose two Chinese Rhapsodies during his last years of exile in Shanghai, in which he synthesized Western composition techniques and Chinese folk materials, amalgamating influences from both Western and Eastern music cultures. Focusing on Schloss's First Chinese Rhapsody, the dissertation explores how Schloss links the new to the old, the West to the East, through an analysis of the way he employs Chinese folk song material and serial polyphonic voice-leading in his post-tonal musical language. Since the Rhapsody has both serial and polyphonic voice-leading aspects, both are analyzed, showing how they are integrated in the form.

In this work, we have performed comparative evolutionary analysis, functional genomics analysis, and machine learning analysis to identify the molecular factors that discriminate between multipartite and unipartite bacteria, with the goal to decipher taxon-specific factors and those that are prevalent across the taxa underlying the these traits. We assessed the roles of evolutionary mechanisms, namely, horizontal gene transfer and gene gain, in driving the divergence of bacteria with single and multiple chromosomes. In addition, we performed functional genomic analysis to garner support for our findings from comparative evolutionary analysis. We found genes such as those encoding conserved hypothetical protein DR_A0179 and hypothetical protein DR_A0109 in Deinococcus radiodurans R1, and Putative phage phi-C31 gp36 major capsid-like protein and hypothetical protein RSP_3729 in Rhodobacter sphaeroides 2.4.1, which are located on accessory chromosomes in both bacteria and were not found in the inferred ancestral sequences, and on the primary chromosomes, as well as were not found in their closest relatives with single chromosome within the same clade. These genes emphasize the important potential roles of the secondary chromosomes in helping multipartite bacteria to adapt to specialized environments or conditions. In addition, we applied machine learning algorithms to predict multipartite genomes based on gene …

The present studies determine the accumulation of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in three pinniped species, evaluate the relationship with relevant biomarkers of exposure, and calculate toxic effect thresholds. Stranded harp and hooded seals were found to be accumulating PBDEs at levels which could pose a based on threshold levels determined in this study. Northern fur seals are accumulating all three classes of POPs (PCBs, PBDEs, and OCPs) with significant relationships being seen with blubber percent lipid. Correlations between contaminant concentrations and expression levels of relevant biomarkers were seen potentially indicating an effect on multiple pathways. Overall risk can be hard to determine due to factors such as sex and age. Broad threshold response values and hazard quotients were calculated for toxic effect endpoints in pinnipeds. Overall these results suggest that certain populations of pinnipeds are at high risk of experiencing toxic effects due to POP exposure, but it is important to understand effects even at lower concentrations. The relationship between exposure, toxic effects, and other stressors, both environmental and physiological, can impact the overall fitness and survival of pinnipeds.

This research looks thoughtfully and deeply at the relationship between art education and signs, as defined by the French philosopher Gilles Deleuze (1964/1998). Signs, as articulated by Deleuze (1964/1998), are violent disruptions to our way of understanding the world, causing us to think again and/or re-consider what we once knew (or thought we knew). This study looks generatively at how these kinds of disruptive and disorienting moments might be mined for possibilities in art education and remind us of our own relationality. As a post-qualitative lived inquiry, it asks how might art education be-with apprenticeship to signs and what might art education do-with sign-encounters? Using the theoretical lens of transcendental empiricism and new materialism, this study considers how art educators might hold open the space of sign-encounters for oneself and one's students by turning towards the rhizomatic cut and staying with uncertainty. It is focused on the doing-with, making-with, and thinking-with of art, pedagogy, and philosophy/theory, investigating their deep entanglements in spaces of disruption and ultimately developing frame-works for engaging in this kind of work in the classroom. Drawing from Erin Manning and Brian Massumi's theory of research-creation, this research was experienced in an emergent, layered, and complex way over …

Article summarizing the past and present development of colonoscopy video analysis methods, focusing on two categories of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies used in clinical trials, (1) analysis and feedback for improving colonoscopy quality and (2) detection of abnormalities.

The purpose of this study was to collect design requirements from women engineers on artificial intelligence teammates such as Microsoft Teams, Slack, and Trello. A mixed methods research design was used for this study with an online survey and semi-structure interviews. The study results revealed design requirements from women engineers including solutions to sociotechnical issues that could arise from artificial intelligence teammates in the workplace. The results showed various ways women engineers collaborate in the workplace with and without artificial intelligence. Additionally, women engineers' attitude towards artificial intelligence was examined to identify if there was a correlation to self-efficacy. This research study fills a previous study gap that solicited design requirements from research scientists, by soliciting practitioners. Practitioners such as women engineers are underrepresented in the workplace, and they could benefit from an artificial intelligence teammate with their design requirements. Finally, this study contributes to the information science literature on collaborative information seeking, artificial intelligence design, and engineers' information seeking behaviors.

In his Art of Piano Playing, the renowned Russian pianist and teacher Heinrich Neuhaus asserts that the concept of an "artistic image" can give musical meaning to the score, help pianists to understand the musical content of a composition, and help students to find pianistic expression in the details. The concept of artistic image can be applied in pedagogy, guiding young pianists to learn content and organize their practice. The artistic image is the picture of a musical idea and the musical language, which comes from melody, phrasing, musical structure, and the emotional and poetic content. Twelve Children's Pieces of Medium Difficulty, Op. 31, is one of the important works for young pianists by Reinhold Glière (1875–1956). The set has emotional characteristics that allow intermediate young pianists to grasp its rich content and then develop technically. His piano works have been little studied by scholars as part of a pedagogical approach. This pedagogical guide uses the concept of artistic image in Glière's work to help young pianists, or their teachers, prepare this work thoroughly and perform it successfully on the stage.

This study investigated the associations between sleep patterns and singing voice quality in 231 adult singers of various skill levels across the United States. The four-part survey using a general questionnaire on demographics, musical background, vocal health, and three established survey instruments: the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), the Singing Voice Handicap Index-10 (SVHI-10), and the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) found that while scores were worse than normative values for the PSQI and the SVHI-10, a Pearson correlation between the two showed a moderate association. A linear regression also yielded that 8.9% of the variance in SVHI-10 scores could be predicted from PSQI scores. While further research is needed in this area, this study suggests that the amount of sleep needed for an optimal singing voice may be different from the amount needed to feel well-rested for some singers. Moreover, singers may overestimate the influence of sleep on their singing voices.

This thesis focuses on the recording challenges faced in biomedical systems. More specifically, the challenges in neural signal recording are explored. Instead of the typical synchronous ADC system, a level crossing ADC is detailed as it has gained recent interest for low-power biomedical systems. These systems take advantage of the time-sparse nature of the signals found in this application. A 10-bit design is presented to help capture the lower amplitude action potentials (APs) in neural signals. The design also achieves a full-scale bandwidth of 1.2 kHz, an ENOB of 9.81, a power consumption of 13.5 microwatts, operating at a supply voltage of 1.8 V. This design was simulated in Cadence using 180 nm CMOS technology.

Having a secure attachment to God may act as a buffer against stress. Secure attachment to God has been positively associated with adaptive outcomes following stress, such as higher levels of stress-related growth and fewer maladaptive symptoms including depression, prolonged grief, and traumatic distress. However, relatively few studies have empirically tested the relationship between attachment to God and resilience and posttraumatic growth. Thus, the current study explored the potential associations and pathways through which attachment to God is associated with resilience and posttraumatic growth in a sample of 303 suddenly and/or traumatically bereaved individuals. The current study found that (a) God attachment avoidance is a unique negative predictor of resilience and posttraumatic growth even when controlling for adult attachment, (b) self-compassion and meaning-making mediate the association between God attachment anxiety and resilience/posttraumatic growth, (c) secure attachment to God is associated with higher levels of resilience than insecure attachment styles, but not with posttraumatic growth, and (d) an increased number of secondary losses is associated with lower levels of resilience. I conclude by discussing my findings in light of the extant literature on attachment to God, resilience, and posttraumatic growth. By better understanding attachment to God and how it may relate …

Bad Paper follows the lives of former military service members, who have received an other-than-honorable discharge, but also have service-connected post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Due to the "suck it up" culture of the military, many of these veterans would not report any psychological troubles in fear of being labeled "weak" and potentially affecting their promotions. With no outlet for their PTSD, drugs and alcohol became a way of "self-medicating," which led to their dismissal from the service. A dishonorable discharge, commonly called "bad paper," from the military disqualifies veterans from receiving help from the VA. The process to overturn this status is arduous and veterans must navigate the bureaucracy of the Veterans Affairs (VA) administration as well as the individual military branches with virtually no help from either.

The Macedonian Campaign of World War I (October 1915-November 1918) traditionally remains one of the understudied theatres of the historiography of the conflict. Despite its vital importance in the outcome of the war, it is still considered as a mere sideshow compared to the Western Front and the Gallipoli Campaign. This dissertation presents a much-needed re-evaluation of the Macedonian Campaign's diplomatic and political origins within the war's early context. In doing so, this study first concentrates on a longue durée perspective and assesses the main historical events in the Balkans and Central Europe from the end of the French Revolution to World War I. In a perspective running throughout the entire nineteenth century, this dissertation integrates the importance of nascent nationalism in the Balkans and examine the Austro-Hungarian Empire's steady decline and subsequent diplomatic realignment toward the Balkans. Similarly, this work depicts the intense power struggle in Southeastern Europe between some of this story's main protagonists, namely the Austro-Hungarian, Russian and Ottoman Empires. This dissertation also evaluates the rise of new regional powers such as Bulgaria and Serbia and examines their connection to the European balance of power and general diplomatic equilibrium. In the first half of this dissertation, I …

Triweekly newspaper from Baytown, Texas that includes local, state, and national news along with advertising.

The transcriptions of Franz Liszt (1811-1886) and Anton Rubinstein (1829-1894) on Beethoven's "Marcia alla turca" serve as unique examples within the area of transcription since each of these important virtuosos transcribed the movement with drastically different results. Liszt's Capriccio alla turca (1846) is built on Beethoven's thematic materials although it is presented with a greatly embellished accompaniment providing countermelodies, expanded passages, and vigorous rhythmic features. In contrast, Rubinstein's Turkish March (1848) attempts to capture Beethoven's original (1811) as closely as possible adhering to the form and harmonies. Each composer's approach served to showcase new pianistic innovations capturing orchestral sonorities at the piano previously unimagined. This dissertation offers musical insight for two less well-known works from significant pianist-composers which should receive further attention. Additionally, this research provides greater documentation for the compositions of Rubinstein, supplementing the historical accounts of his abilities as a performer. Examination and comparative analysis of each transcription not only illuminates the creative approaches each composer employed in creating his transcription, but also serves pianists wishing to perform these neglected works.

The history of the United States' occupation and administration of the Philippines is a premiere example of the evolution of the American military's civil administrative approach as it evolved from simple Army security in 1898, through an evolving ‘whole-of-government' method, to what was practically the full military administration of the country by March 1945. The second liberation and subsequent administration of the Philippines by the United States Army was unique, not simply because of the physical characteristics of the operations, but more so because of the theater commander, General Douglas MacArthur. MacArthur used a rather self-reliant approach that rejected much of the direction from various authorities in Washington and adopted independently authored local solutions, but he took advantage of external resources when necessary. Ultimately the United States Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE) under his command had to accept external direction to gain external resources. The Army's civil administrative planning and execution in the Philippines in 1944-1945 was the direct result of the social, political, economic, and military relationships between Americans and Filipinos from 1898 to 1944, much of which involved MacArthur, and the institutional changes that developed from these interactions. The result was civil administration that met the …

As a large generation ages, the collective financial and ethical responsibility to prevent egregious bodily harm through fall prevention and gait assistant exoskeleton devices increases. Risk for falls increases with age and the severity of the fall does as well. To support this elderly population, motorized exoskeletons can both increase stability as well as respond faster to fall scenarios, but current models do not more around the existing biological framework. Giving participants a range of motion in key pelvic areas can closely approximate synchronous rotation around the femoral head, while limiting an increase in their sagittal profile. Utilizing 3D printed components while incorporating existing orthic methods provide short production times on modular designs. Although primarily mechanically based, these designs consider electronic requirements and are capable for supporting movement for a 200 lbs. user at a brisk walking pace for 1 hour.

The Dallas-Fort Worth International (DFW) Airport is located in a densely urbanized area with one of the fastest-growing populations in the U.S.A. The airport property includes a large tract of "protected" riparian forest that is unique to the urban surroundings. This dissertation explores variables that influence the benthic macroinvertebrate community structure found in urbanized prairie streams that were initially assessed by the University of North Texas (UNT) Benthic Ecology Lab during four, non-consecutive biomonitoring studies (2004, 2005, 2008, and 2014) funded by the DFW Airport. Additionally, land use analysis was performed using 5-meter resolution satellite imagery and eCognition to characterize the imperviousness of the study area watersheds at multiple scales. Overall, flow conditions and imperviousness at the watershed scale explained the most variability in the benthic stream community. Chironomidae taxa made up 20-50% of stream communities and outperformed all other taxa groups in discriminating between sites of similar flows and urban impairments. This finding highlights the need for genus level identifications of the chironomid family, especially as the dominant taxa in urban prairie streams. Over the course of these biomonitoring survey events, normal flow conditions and flows associated with supra-seasonal drought were experienced. Prevailing drought conditions of 2014 did not …

Female collegiate athletes have been identified as a group at risk of developing eating disorders (EDs) and unhealthy weight control behaviors. Interventions grounded in cognitive dissonance theory and those that incorporate mindfulness-based interventions have shown improved body image and reductions in internalization and ED symptomatology over time in female non-athletes. However, few studies have examined the efficacy of intervention programs among female athletes, and, despite early promising results, previous research has been limited in several ways (e.g., methodology, small sample size). The purpose of this study was to conduct a long-term (i.e., three years) qualitative follow-up evaluation of Bodies in Motion (BIM), an ED prevention program developed specifically to acknowledge the unique experience and needs of female athletes with respect to their bodies as women and athletes. Results indicate that, similar to their initial experiences, now-retired athletes reported increased awareness of sport and societal messages and their impact on body image, shifted perspectives in their view of themselves and their bodies, and ongoing use of skills to manage body image in their lives. Further, with the passage of time, athletes continued to report a positive experience in the program and the utility of Bodies in Motion as they navigated challenging …

Half of the students who begin college do not complete a degree or certificate. The odds of completing a degree are decreased if a student has a low socio-economic status (SES), is the first in a family to attend college (first-generation), attends multiple institutions, stops out multiple times, reduces credit loads over time, performs poorly in major-specific coursework, has competing family obligations, and experiences financial difficulties. Stopping out of college does not always indicate that a student is no longer interested in pursuing an education; it can be an indication of a barrier or several barriers faced. Institutions can benefit themselves and students by utilizing person-centered statistical methods to re-engage students they have lost, particularly those near the end of their degree plan. Using demographic, academic, and financial variables, this study applied latent class analysis (LCA) to explore subgroups of seniors who have stopped out of a public four-year Tier One research intuition before graduating with a four-year degree. The findings indicated a six-class model was the best fitting model. Similar to previous research, academic and financial variables were key determinants of the latent classes. This paper demonstrates how the results of an LCA can assist institutions in the decisions …

This research is focused on a group of vegan and vegan-curious individuals who are creating, building and maintaining a vegan community of practice in Houston, Texas. Through ethnographic methods, including participant observation, in-depth semi-structured interviews, surveys, quantitative analysis, and use of geographic information systems (GIS), this thesis considers motivations, group hierarchies, core and peripheral membership, practices, beliefs and construction of identity within the vegan community of practice. Further, concepts from the anthropology of religion are utilized in discourse analysis around conversion to ethical veganism, preaching, and religious-ethical beliefs around enlightenment and the principle of ahimsa. Utilizing subcultural studies and social movement theory, this thesis also shows how the vegan community of practice fits into vegan subcultures and the greater vegan lifestyle movement. Finally, as an applied project, deliverables to the client Vegan Society of PEACE includes both personal and structural barriers to veganism which are understood with respect to a race-conscious approach to veganism, and with special consideration given to the capitalist commodification of animals. Suggestions are given and strategies for growth of the community are highlighted at the end of this paper.

On May 18, 2018, a shooter entered Santa Fe High School, killing eight students and two teachers. Using ethnographic methods, this research examines the role of faith, rituals, language, and symbols in the trauma-affected community during the response, recovery, and resiliency efforts as perceived by the Santa Fe community and those impacted by the tragedy. Qualitative data collected from 100 individuals ages of 17-84 illustrated how historical trauma, community culture, and faith-based organizations impact community resiliency and how illusions of a homogenous view of the community left many feeling shocked, divided, forgotten or muted.

The implementation of professional learning communities (PLCs) has led to systemwide reform within school districts and campuses regarding how campus leaders support the teachers' collaborative work and continued professional learning. Current research emphasizes the importance of campus administrators cultivating an environment where PLCs can flourish and ensuring that PLC teams have the resources to work effectively. However, campus administrators simply putting these supports in place does not make them effective. This study sought to explore campus leader and teacher perceptions of administrator actions that support PLCs for teachers in core-content subjects at two suburban north Texas high schools. An explanatory sequential mixed methods research design was utilized, and three data collections tools were used: an electronic survey, interviews with campus administrators and teachers, and the analysis of campus and PLC artifacts. Survey data indicated that participating teachers had an overall positive perception of the current campus practices which support PLC teams. Teacher interview data revealed that teachers preferred that campus administrators take a neutral role in PLC team meetings, that administrators ensure PLC teams are meeting the established campus PLC expectations, and that administrators observe the team, listen, and ask questions to help the team. Campus administrators viewed their actions …

Ecological, health and environmental concerns are driving the need for bio-resourced foams for the building industry and for other applications. This is because insulation is one of the most important aspects of the building envelope. Global building insulation is expected to reach USD 27.74 billion in 2022. Conventional insulation materials currently used in buildings are made from nonrenewable products (petroleum, fiber glass). However, they yield increasing unrecyclable eco-unfriendly waste at the end of their lives; styrene and polyurethane generates over 100,000 kg of waste insulation in US alone yearly. This is because they are non-biodegradable and can remain as microplastics in the environment for 1000 years. Polyurethane contains the same amount of energy as coal. Additionally, most of the processing techniques and blowing agents used in this manufacturing of these foams are cancerous and injurious to health when inhaled. Because buildings and their construction together account for 36% of global energy use and 39% of energy-related carbon dioxide emissions annually, there is a need to develop eco-friendly foams that will serve as possible substitutes to the currently used petroleum-based foams. This dissertation examined the development and characterization of eco-friendly foams that were developed using the melt mixing technique of bio-resourced …

This thesis looks at how women journalists are now also digital influencers on Instagram. It analyzes the gendered expectations of women journalists that are also included on their professional Instagram accounts.