Document that details the conception, evolution and conclusions of a body of work consisting of seven prints executed in the printmaking technique of intaglio printing in the manner of the state print. The work is discussed by explaining the visual and conceptual associations that occur in an "Alice In Wonderland" manner, where the initial idea is paired with seemingly unrelated topics to establish a progressive visual language. This language is further supported by discussing a comparative of the state print with the idea of the sketchbook as a tool of thought generation and elaboration. The technical aspects of intaglio and the choice of techniques utilized are discussed to support this comparison. How the quality of the prints reflects the quality of the sketchbook and how these techniques combine with the conceptual reasoning, which result in the body of work. Findings for the work are based on three questions that deal with the progression of conceptual reasoning, predictability of recurring ideas and the intentions of the technical choices made.

Carbon nanotubes were synthesized in the laboratory using chemical vapor deposition at different methane concentration. I found that a methane concentration of 4 sccm was ideal for well recognizable carbon nanotubes. A higher concentration led to fewer nanotube growth and silicon carbide structure. Coating the sample first with Fe(NO3)3 created a catalyst base on the substrate for the nanotube to adhere and grow on.

Disaster or emergency situations have the potential for serious impact on the safety and security of both residents and staff in a nursing home. Furthermore, federal and state laws require that all nursing facilities be prepared in case of an emergency or disaster. The first part of this document is an introduction and rationale for the development of a nursing home disaster plan. The second part is a procedure manual developed for a nursing home in Oklahoma, outlining emergency actions and recovery procedures for various types of disasters, followed by a list of emergency telephone contacts of key personnel and services both inside and outside the nursing facility.

The focus of my graduate work was to find my own voice through my continued efforts in woodcarving. I proposed to produce six to eight wood carved sculptures for my thesis that would be dealing with a juxtaposition of struggle expressively portrayed by the figure between two-dimensional and three-dimensional worlds. I used these works to express my emotions about myself, and my interactions with others in a form of nonverbal communication with the viewer. The result of this process did lead me to find my own voice and with this voice I expressed three-dimensionally, not only my own struggles, but also those that many other women have experienced as well.

As the use of virtual environments (VEs) is becoming more widespread, user needs are becoming a more significant part in those environments. In order to adapt to the needs of the user, a system should be able to infer user interests and goals. I developed an architecture for user modeling to understand users' interests in a VE by monitoring their actions. In this paper, I discussed the architecture and the virtual environment that was created to test it. This architecture employs sensors to keep track of all the users' actions, data structures that can store a record of significant events that have occurred in the environment, and a rule base. The rule base continually monitors the data collected from the sensors, world state, and event history in order to update the user goal inferences. These inferences can then be used to modify the flow of events within a VE.

Due to the growing need of the Internet and networking technologies, simple, powerful, easily maintained distributed applications needed to be developed. These kinds of applications can benefit greatly from distributed computing concepts. Despite its powerful mechanisms, Jini has yet to be accepted in mainstream Java development. Until that happens, we need to find better Remote Method Invocation (RMI) solutions. Feasibility of implementation of Multicasting in RMI is worked in this paper. Multicasting capability can be used in RMI using Jini-like technique. Support of Multicast over Unicast reference layer is also studied. A piece of code explaining how it can be done, is added.

This research is the result of an effort to provide real-time machine recognition of hand-send Morse code through the use of the M6800 microcomputer. While the capability to recognize hand-send Morse code messages by machine has been demonstrated before on large scale special purpose computers, on minicomputers, and even on the M6800 microcomputer, the main contribution of this paper is to demonstrate it with relatively understandable hardware and software.

There is a natural tendency for biological systems to change as their environments change. The fittest in the biological systems survive, adapt to their environment, and multiply while the weakest in the environment diminish. There have been attempts in computer science to model the processes of natural selection and survival which occur in biological systems in order to obtain more efficient and effective machine-learning algorithms. Genetic algorithms are the result of these attempts.

This interface was bought to perform floating-point arithmetic and for its function capabilities such as SIN, COS, and e^x. My application required an integer truncation function that is not performed by this calculator, so i wrote a small assembly language subroutine to do it. A potentially irritating problem is that the calculator chip does not automatically convert to scientific notation if the numbers become too big to display in floating point. The control program must keep track of the display mode.

I wanted to see if I could affect the "unknown" by attempting to steer the subconscious. I kept a journal of events going on in my life, dreams, therapy sessions, or ideas for songs or short stories. In my studio, I kept a running list of ideas for titles of songs, stories, or paintings. In addition to this, I recorded narrative or metaphoric ideas that the paintings presented on the search for the final painting.

In my Problem in Lieu of Thesis I explored the use of analogy in my work. I searched for ways to heighten the difference or distance between the imagery within an analogous relationship and yet maintain meaningful similarities or relationships. An analogy, for the purpose of this paper is defined as the following: "a similarity or likeness between things in some circumstances or effects, when the things are otherwise entirely different."

The questions answered by this investigation are as follows: 1. Which silkscreens and stencils will work in screening flat and three-dimensional objects? 2. Which mediums and coloring agents will survive a glaze firing to produce an acceptable image? 3. How can the image be modified by screening during the different stages of a ceramic piece (wet, green, bisque, glazed)? 4. What glazes and glaze applications will be compatible? 5. Generally, what is the relationship between the image and the object?

I intend to explore various canvas sizes and many formal issues, focusing on space and the application of paint are paramount in my work. I used closely cropped photographs to aid in this study and my exploration addressed the following questions: 1) How does the speed of execution affect the spontaneity and authority of the piece? 2) How important is the unexpected for the success of my painting in regards to formal issues?

Through this study I intended to analyze and determine the significance of the recurring imagery that emerged as an integral part of my compositions. Furthermore, I attempted to discern the importance and over all the effects of the small scale upon my work and determine how vital is the spontaneity that is used to obtain each composition.

To emphasize the preciousness of these tools, I envisioned object-specific carrying cases, like a violin case or my grandmother's china cabinet. The object-specific case or cabinet is, like the tool it houses, special and singular inits utility and serves to underscore the ceremonial nature of the tool. Of all the examples of object-specific environments I've looked at, most have been constructed of fine woods; many have also been either covered or lined with various skins, silk, or velvet to reflect the preciousness of their contents.

The introduction to printmaking in most universities and college directs students to learn the basic techniques of intaglio using zinc. This continues throughout one's academic career, with little emphasis placed on experimentation with other metals. During my undergraduate and graduate studies I etched with zinc. I had wanted to use aluminium and magnesium in order to explore the similar and dissimilar qualities of the three.

My work has developed to the point where it exists within the grey area between painting and sculpture. These hybrid works necessitate the transition from creating objects to that work singularly to installations of various works that operate as a whole. The purpose of this study is to identify successful methods of making this transition through the use of the computer. The computer should provide new strategies to integrate sculpture and painting into a hybrid form.

I am interested, both from a personal standpoint and from a cultural perspective, in pursuing the meaning of thes eimages singly and as they combine with others. In turn, the results, I hope, will lead to the discovery of more images for my image encyclopedia. After this introduction subsequent chapters will explore my reasons for the combinations of images I choose and will place the finished drawings in their contemporary art context. My goal will be to note the changing meanings of the objects as they interact serially.

In pursuit of the project, I sought to address the following concerns: 1. Which intaglio processes, or their combination, proved to be the most useful in production of the book? 2. In establishing a concept for the book, what problems were encountered? 3. What is the visual relationship between the printed images, the book, and its container?

Feline images have been an element in much of my work since 1981. These cat images were usually included in self-portraits. As my work progressed, the feline images increased in importance until 1985, when I abandoned the self-portraits almost entirely and began working predominantly with the cats. Although the feline image has been an important aspect of my work for several years, I never attempted to discover what these images symbolized or meant. I rarely thought consciously about the content of my work, as i arrived at my images primarily in an intuitive manner.

For the problem in lieu of thesis, a series of ten works were created in which a male image replaced the female image; I continued to utilize the same materials, format, and centralized frontal figure. A record of the work was accomplished by maintaining a written and visual journal on progress and outcome. Some research was made into topics related to the work, and the findings from the literature comprise chapter two of the paper. In executing this body of work and researching related topics, I hoped to better understand my conscious and unconscious processes and motivations in creating both the self-portrait series and the new series.

I examined and evaluated three sets of gallery installations and related handmade books. The following questions were considered foremost: 1) Visually, how different from and how similar to the gallery installations are the books? 2) What verbal elements are adapted from the installations to the books? 3) How does the difference in format (that is, the books) alter or affect the content and meaning of the installations?

The primary purpose of this study was to investigate how imagery evolved in my work, in dealing with the relationship between body and landscape and the relationship between image and abstraction. Five paintings were created for the investigation of the evolution in my imagery. A journal of notes was kept concerning each piece while in progress and immediately following its completion. The analyzing method was a visual analysis of the structure and content, as well as the process through which the imagery evolved.

My problem was to investigate some of the possibilities which have arisen through my previous work by producing twelve fabric pieces and eight paper pieces. Specifically, the following questions were to be examined: 1. Are there traditional designs or techniques in quilts of the past that can be utilized in my own work? 2. Are the primary colors (red, yellow, blue) in manufactured unaltered fabric more effective than painted or altered fabric? 3. Is there a correlation between the color and imagery in the paper pieces and those of the fabric pieces? 4. Of the project pieces, is there a size that generally appears to be more successful than others?