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Examining the Relationship between Variability in Acquisition and Variability in Extinction (open access)

Examining the Relationship between Variability in Acquisition and Variability in Extinction

Using the "revealed operant" technique, variability during acquisition and extinction was examined with measures of response rate and a detailed analysis of response topography. During acquisition, subjects learned to emit four response patterns. A continuous schedule of reinforcement (CRF) for 100 repetitions was used for each pattern and a 30 min extinction phase immediately followed. One group of subjects learned the response patterns via a "trial-and-error" method. This resulted in a wide range of variability during acquisition and extinction. Only one subject emitted a substantial amount of resurgent behavior. A second group of subjects was given instructions on what keys to press to earn reinforcers. This group had less variability in acquisition and extinction and resurgent responding was prevalent.
Date: December 1997
Creator: Neff, Bryon (Bryon R.)
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
Minimality of the Special Linear Groups (open access)

Minimality of the Special Linear Groups

Let F denote the field of real numbers, complex numbers, or a finite algebraic extension of the p-adic field. We prove that the special linear group SLn(F) with the usual topology induced by F is a minimal topological group. This is accomplished by first proving the minimality of the upper triangular group in SLn(F). The proof for the upper triangular group uses an induction argument on a chain of upper triangular subgroups and relies on general results for locally compact topological groups, quotient groups, and subgroups. Minimality of SLn(F) is concluded by appealing to the associated Lie group decomposition as the product of a compact group and an upper triangular group. We also prove the universal minimality of homeomorphism groups of one dimensional manifolds, and we give a new simple proof of the universal minimality of S∞.
Date: December 1997
Creator: Hayes, Diana Margaret
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
Site Directed Mutagenesis of β-Ketoadipate Succinyl-Coenzyme A Transferase II from Acinetobacter Calcoaceticus (open access)

Site Directed Mutagenesis of β-Ketoadipate Succinyl-Coenzyme A Transferase II from Acinetobacter Calcoaceticus

The role of specific amino acid residues in β-ketoadipate succinyl-coenzyme A transferase II from Acinetobacter calcoaceticus was investigated. A 1412 base pair BamiHI-EcoRI fragment carrying the catIJ genes was amplified by polymerase chain reaction and inserted into pUCl9 to generate the plasmid pCATEl9. Escherichia coli DH5α (pCATEl9) carrying only the catlJ genes expressed 3-fold higher enzyme activity than the parent strain. Two mutants were constructed by site directed mutagenesis so that glutamate was replaced by a glutamine at positions Gln155 and Gln193 in the ß subunit of the primary amino acid sequence of the CoA transferase. Both mutants produced transferase that was catalytically active suggesting that Glu155 and Glu193 do not participate directly in catalysis.
Date: August 1993
Creator: Sheng, Mei
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Effects of Modeling, Roleplaying and Feedback on the Performance of Teachers of Children with Autism (open access)

The Effects of Modeling, Roleplaying and Feedback on the Performance of Teachers of Children with Autism

Teachers providing treatment to children with autism are responsible for implementing numerous procedures. Teacher training has not been addressed extensively in the literature. This study employed a multiple baseline design to evaluate the effects of a training package incorporating modeling, roleplaying and feedback on teacher performance. Results indicated that the teacher implemented correct teaching episodes following training. Changes in teacher performance were only observed when the training package was applied to each setting and skill area. As a result of changes in teacher behavior, the child demonstrated an increase in the number of desired responses. Results are discussed in the context of generalization, training package components, cost-benefit of single-subject designs, and limitations of the study.
Date: August 1999
Creator: Edwards, Carla Ward
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
Nesting Ecology and Reproductive Correlates in the Desert-nesting Gray Gull Larus Modestus (open access)

Nesting Ecology and Reproductive Correlates in the Desert-nesting Gray Gull Larus Modestus

General objectives of my study were to describe the reproductive ecology of gray gulls in the large Lealtad colony, with emphasis on demographic parameters and physiological adaptations of eggs and chicks, which would complete some original objectives established in the early 1980's by Guerra and Fitzpatrick. Specifically, my study focused on describing, then comparing with other desert and non-desert nesting larids, interactive effects of ambient physical conditions and nest-site predation on eggs and chicks.
Date: May 1993
Creator: Aguilar Pulido, Roberto E. (Roberto Eric)
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
Analysis of Thermoplastic Polyimide + Polymer Liquid Crystal Blends (open access)

Analysis of Thermoplastic Polyimide + Polymer Liquid Crystal Blends

Thermoplastic polyimides (TPIs) exhibit high glass transition temperatures (Tgs), which make them useful in high performance applications. Amorphous and semicrystalline TPIs show sub-Tg relaxations, which can aid in improving strength characteristics through energy absorption. The a relaxation of both types of TPIs indicates a cooperative nature. The semicrystalline TPI shows thermo-irreversible cold crystallization phenomenon. The polymer liquid crystal (PLC) used in the blends is thermotropic and with longitudinal molecular structure. The small heat capacity change (ACP) associated with the glass transition indicates the PLC to be rigid rod in nature. The PLC shows a small endotherm associated with the melting. The addition of PLC to the semicrystalline TPI does not significantly affect the Tg or the melting point (Tm). The cold crystallization temperature (Tc) increases with the addition of the PLC, indicating channeling phenomenon. The addition of PLC also causes a negative deviation of the ACP, which is another evidence for channeling. The TPI, PLC and their blends show high thermal stability. The semicrystalline TPI absorbs moisture; this effect decreases with the addition of the PLC. The absorbed moisture does not show any effect on the degradation. The addition of PLC beyond 30 wt.% does not result in an improvement …
Date: May 1998
Creator: Gopalanarayanan, Bhaskar
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
AIDS Preventative Behavior Among Taiwanese University Students (open access)

AIDS Preventative Behavior Among Taiwanese University Students

This study used the Health Belief Model to examine the predictors of AIDS preventive behavior. The independent variables were the variables of individual perception, modifying factors (psychological variables), and likelihood variables. The respondents, the Taiwanese students of the University of North Texas, were influenced both by Chinese sexuality and Western values in their AIDS-risk behavior. The results revealed that 90% of the respondents were misinformed on the availability of AIDS vaccine. In addition, a majority of the students were either abstaining from sex or practicing monogamy. Using Pearson's correlation coefficient and multiple regression analysis, this study found that the psychological variables rather than cognitive variables significantly influenced the respondents' AIDS preventive behavior. Finally, suggestions were made for future research on AIDS, and for AIDS preventive behavior campaigns.
Date: May 1997
Creator: Wang, Ya-Chien
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Qualitative Study of Nine Elementary Principals Providing Inclusion for the Differently Abled (open access)

A Qualitative Study of Nine Elementary Principals Providing Inclusion for the Differently Abled

This is a qualitative description of the decision making processes that nine elementary principals use in determining campus level services for the differently abled and of how their administrative styles and values impact those decisions. Both the literature on leadership and on special education inclusion are reviewed. This review creates the framework in which the research questions are examined and structures the reporting of the findings. The defining attributes of leadership styles in conjunction with the defining attributes of inclusion are the heart of this study. Audiotaped interviews with each principal provide the data related to questions of leadership style, decision making, philosophy and autonomy. Separate site visits in which teachers from both regular and special education are queried as to the actual practices on their respective campuses and to their reactions to program changes involving the differently abled students. The combination of data gathered from the principal interviews, from the site visitations and the use of triangulation of data provide the basis for the findings.
Date: December 1994
Creator: Hastings, Cloyd L. (Cloyd Lee)
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Relationships of Text Structure and Signaling in the Foreign Language Reading of Female Junior College Students in Japan (open access)

The Relationships of Text Structure and Signaling in the Foreign Language Reading of Female Junior College Students in Japan

The effects of top-level text structure and signaling on the reading recall of Japanese female junior college students studying English as a foreign language were investigated in this study. One hundred thirty-two subjects were selected from a private female junior college in Tokyo. The students were divided into three groups—high, average, and low reading comprehension levels—based on the results of the Test of Reading Comprehension. The instrument used to measure students' recall ability was developed from expository passages taken from a biology textbook. The passages were rearranged to show identifiable top-level structure, collection of description, causation, problem/solution, or comparison. Each passage was divided into two versions: a with-signaling version, in which top-level structure was explicitly stated by signaling words or phrases, and a without-signaling version, where signaling words or phrases were omitted. After the students were stratified on reading comprehension, they were assigned to eight different versions of text—two of each of the four top-level text structures, one with- and one without-signaling. In the recall test, students were instructed to read the text and to remember as much as they could.
Date: August 1994
Creator: Kano, Noriko
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
Experimental and Theoretical Studies of Polycarbocyclic Compounds (open access)

Experimental and Theoretical Studies of Polycarbocyclic Compounds

Part I. Diels-Alder cycloadditions of 1,2,3,4,9,9-hexachloro-1α,4α,4aα,8aβ-tetrahydro-l,4-methanonaphthalene (32) and 1,2,3,4,9,9-hexachloro-lα,4α,6,7- tetrahydro-l,4-methanonaphthalene (33) to 4-methyl- and 4-phenyl-l,2,4-triazoline-3,5-dione [MTAD and PTAD, respectively] and to N-methylmaleimide (NMM) have been studied. The structures of several of the resulting cycloadducts were determined by X-ray crystallographic methods. The observed stereoselectivity of each of these Diels-Alder reactions was further investigated via application of theoretical methods. Thus, semiempirical (AMI) and ab initio molecular orbital calculations were used to calculate relative energies. Ab initio calculations were employed to perform frontier molecular orbital analyses of diene-dienophile interactions.
Date: May 1998
Creator: Shukla, Rajesh, 1964-
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Role of Workstation-Based Client/Server Systems in Changing Business Processes: a Multiple Case Study (open access)

The Role of Workstation-Based Client/Server Systems in Changing Business Processes: a Multiple Case Study

Although several studies question information technology's contribution to productivity, organizations continue to invest in client/server systems (CSSs) particularly as enablers of business process reengineering (BPR). These efforts may be wasted if they do not improve business processes. This study focused on business processes and investigated the role of workstation-based CSSs in changing business processes. A multiple case study of workstation-based CSS databases in three organizations was performed with the proposition that they moderate the relation between managerial action and changes within business processes. The research framework suggested that changes to business processes are achieved by reducing uncertainty. In order to measure change in business processes, this study categorized business process change into: (1) compressing sequential tasks across functions, (2) compressing tasks vertically within the managerial hierarchy, (3) eliminating slack resources, (4) reducing the distance between the point of decision and the point of information or eliminating intermediaries, (5) reconfiguring sequential processes to operate in parallel, and (6) linking parallel activities during the process. Data collected from questionnaires, interviews, and observations from three case studies were used to construct network diagrams, relationship matrices, reachability matrices, and task tables of business processes. The results of this research partially support the proposition that …
Date: December 1995
Creator: Nik Hassan, Nik Rushdi
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Power of One: Bonnie Singleton and American Prisoners of War in Vietnam (open access)

The Power of One: Bonnie Singleton and American Prisoners of War in Vietnam

Bonnie Singleton, wife of United States Air Force helicopter rescue pilot Jerry Singleton, saw her world turned upside down when her husband was shot down while making a rescue in North Vietnam in 1965. At first, the United States government advised her to say very little publicly concerning her husband, and she complied. After the capture of the American spy ship, the U.S.S. Pueblo by North Korea, and the apparent success in freeing the naval prisoners when Mrs. Rose Bucher, the ship captain's wife, spoke out, Mrs. Singleton changed her opinion and embarked upon a campaign to raise public awareness about American prisoners of war held by the Communist forces in Southeast Asia. Mrs. Singleton, along with other Dallas-area family members, formed local grass-roots organizations to notify people around the world about the plight of American POWs. They enlisted the aid of influential congressmen, such as Olin "Tiger" Teague of College Station, Texas; President Richard M. Nixon and his administration; millionaire Dallas businessman Ross Perot; WFAA television in Dallas; and other news media outlets worldwide. In time, Bonnie Singleton, other family members, and the focus groups they helped start encouraged North Vietnam to release the names of prisoners, allow mail …
Date: August 1999
Creator: Garrett, Dave L.
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Relationship between Parental Empathy and Parental Acceptance and the Effect of Filial Therapy Training on this Relationship (open access)

The Relationship between Parental Empathy and Parental Acceptance and the Effect of Filial Therapy Training on this Relationship

This study was conducted to determine the relationship between parental empathy (PE) and parental acceptance (PA) and the effect of filial therapy training (FTT) on this relationship. Filial therapy training is a parent education program in which the goal is the development of PE and PA. The Measurement of Empathy in Adult-Child Interaction (MEACI) and the Porter Parental Acceptance Scale (PPAS) are two widely used instruments in filial therapy studies to measure PE and PA, respectively. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between parental empathy and parental acceptance, and the effect of filial therapy training on this relationship. Specifically, this study was designed to investigate the correlations between the MEACI and the PPAS.
Date: May 1998
Creator: Poon, Wai-Chi Samuel
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
Graduate Students' Perceptions of the Effectiveness of a Two-Way Audio/Video Distance Learning Session and of Its Effects on Graduate Students' Comfort Level (open access)

Graduate Students' Perceptions of the Effectiveness of a Two-Way Audio/Video Distance Learning Session and of Its Effects on Graduate Students' Comfort Level

The purposes of this study were to (a) determine graduate students' perceptions of the effectiveness of the delivery system and their level of comfort with the delivery system, (b) determine graduate students' perceptions of the effectiveness of the delivery system and their level of comfort with the teacher, (c) determine graduate students' level of comfort with the delivery system and their level of comfort with the teacher, (d) determine differences in graduate students' ratings of the effectiveness of the delivery system before a distance education session and after a distance education session, and (e) determine differences in graduate students' level of comfort with the teacher before a distance education session and after a distance education session.
Date: December 1995
Creator: Bangpipob, Savanee
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
Effects of Instructional Methods on Student Performance in Postsecondary Developmental Mathematics (open access)

Effects of Instructional Methods on Student Performance in Postsecondary Developmental Mathematics

This study examined success rates and end-of-semester grades for three instructional methods used in developmental algebra and college algebra. The methods investigated were traditional lecture, laboratory, and computer mediated learning. The population included the 10,095 students who had enrolled in developmental algebra and college algebra at Richland College in Dallas, Texas, for five semesters. Success was defined as earning a grade of A, B, C, or D in a course.
Date: May 1999
Creator: Hernandez, Celeste Peyton
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
Intellectuals and National Socialism: The Cases of Jung, Heidegger, and Fischer (open access)

Intellectuals and National Socialism: The Cases of Jung, Heidegger, and Fischer

This thesis discusses three intellectuals, each from a distinct academic background, and their relationship with National Socialism. Persons covered are Carl Gustav Jung, Martin Heidegger, and Eugen Fischer. This thesis aims at discovering something common and fundamental about the intellectuals' relationship to politics as such. The relationship each had with National Socialism is evaluated with an eye to their distinct academic backgrounds. The conclusion of this thesis is that intellectuals succumb all too easily to political and cultural extremism; none of these three scholars saw themselves as National Socialists, yet each through his anti-Semitism and willingness to cooperate assisted the regime.
Date: August 1995
Creator: Stewart, Richard M. (Richard Matthew)
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Two Semester Life Science Syllabus for Use in Texas Public Schools with Seventh Grade Students (open access)

A Two Semester Life Science Syllabus for Use in Texas Public Schools with Seventh Grade Students

The problem of using a state adopted textbook written to apply to a large body of students with varying interests and needs was overcome by using a detailed syllabus that arranged course content in a meaningful sequence that appealed to student interest. The outlined syllabus prepared a two semester life science curriculum to be used by the teacher to guide lesson planning. Both semesters were divided into three units each. Materials included in the syllabus were given to actual student groups in real classroom settings. Since hands on learning was an important part of classroom instruction, two laboratory sections were included in the appendices to be used with the syllabus.
Date: May 1995
Creator: Edwards, Gail G. (Gail Graham)
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Comparison of Adult Children of Alcoholic Families with Adult Children from Non-Alcoholic Families: a Replication (open access)

A Comparison of Adult Children of Alcoholic Families with Adult Children from Non-Alcoholic Families: a Replication

The purpose of this study was to re-examine the issue of whether adult children of alcoholics experience more depression, anxiety, and lower self-esteem than do children of non-alcoholic families. This study is a replication of the study of David Dodd, entitled A Comparison of Adult Children of Alcoholic Families with Adult Children from Non-Alcoholic Families. 1990. The measures used in this study were as follows: Children of Alcoholics Screening Test, the Beck Depression Inventory, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, the Coopersmith Adult Self-Esteem Inventory, and a questionnaire developed by this writer designed to obtain family history regarding not only alcoholism, but other issues of family dysfunctionality as well. The subjects for this study were 231 students enrolled in the counselor education program at this university, all aged 19 or older. Of the 230 subjects, 31 were male and 199 were female. Eleven males identified themselves as children of alcoholics, as measured by the Children of Alcoholics Screening Test, and 60 females identified themselves as children of alcoholics. Thus, a total of 71 subjects in this study were identified as children of alcoholics. T-tests were conducted to see whether any differences existed between the male and female groups. No significant differences were …
Date: August 1996
Creator: Dooley, Sandra Y.
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
Echoes of Eugenics : Roe v Wade (open access)

Echoes of Eugenics : Roe v Wade

Traces the inter-related histories of the eugenics movement and birth control, with an emphasis on abortion. Discusses Sarah Weddington's arguments and the Supreme Court's ruling in Roe v Wade. Straws the eugenic influences in the case and asserts that these influences caused the decision to be less than decisive.
Date: August 1995
Creator: Wunderlich, Jo (Jo Parks)
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
In Nomine Domini (open access)

In Nomine Domini

In Nomine Domini is an eighteen-minute composition for two chamber orchestras with two soloists using real-time interactive signal processing techniques. The first chamber orchestra is scored for flute (piccolo), English horn, trumpet in C, trombone, two percussionists (cowbells, wood blocks, tenor drum, suspended cymbal, gongs, tam-tam, temple blocks, tambourine, snare drum, timbales, and bass drum), horn in F (soloist), viola, and string bass. The second chamber orchestra is scored for oboe, clarinet in Bb (bass clarinet in Bb), bassoon, tuba, two percussionists (crotales, two marimbas, vibraphone, chimes, and tom-toms), piano (soloist), violin, and cello. Real-time interactive signal processing techniques are achieved through the use of a stereo multiple-effects signal processor and a personal computer running MIDI interactive software. The work is based upon the four-hundred and seventy-five year old in nomine composition tradition begun by John Taverner in the Benedictus of his Mass Gloria tibi Trinitas (1520) and continued in over one-hundred and fifty Renaissance settings. In Nomine Domini consists of three movements: "Taverner* derived from the Benedictus of the Mass Gloria tibi Trinitas (1520), "Byrd" derived from the Benedictus of William Byrd's Five-voice Mass (1592), and "Tye" derived from Christopher lye's In Nomine XIII "Trust" (1578). In Nomine Domini …
Date: August 1995
Creator: Crowley, Timothy R. (Timothy Robert)
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
Age/Cohort Differences in Aspects of the Self-System (open access)

Age/Cohort Differences in Aspects of the Self-System

Age/cohort differences in several aspects of the self-system were investigated utilizing a sentence completion paradigm. Eighty-eight adults over age sixty and one hundred eight adults under age forty served as subjects. Subjects were asked to complete 30 self-referent sentence stems which were pre-structured to elicit information from the self-system. Responses were subjected to a content analysis utilizing a coding system which contained concepts used by subjects in their self-representations. Contents were coded for dimensions conceptually related to Physical Health, Autonomy, Self-Evaluation, Depression, Spirituality, and Altruism. Frequencies of codings were counted and subjected to statistical analysis for performing age group comparisons.
Date: May 1994
Creator: Hanselka, Larry L. (Larry Lynn)
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
An Examination of Strain Among Community Police Officers in Northumbria, England (open access)

An Examination of Strain Among Community Police Officers in Northumbria, England

This paper examines some causes of strain and frustration among police officers. Previous research suggests that police officers sufferfromthe lack of communication and support from their community. The failure of communication has caused turmoil in the past between communities and their police. A possible solution is community policing. Community policing is supposed to establish communication between the public and the police. Causes of strain and frustration among the police are discussed along with the possible benefits of community policing. Research has shown that community police officers suffer less strain and frustration than their brethren. On this premise a quantitative examination a police force in Northumbria, England was conducted. The quantitative analysis focuses on two groups; community police officers and police officers not involved in community policing.
Date: May 1994
Creator: Humburg, Joel D. (Joel David)
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
Elizabeth Barrett Browning: Quest for the Father (open access)

Elizabeth Barrett Browning: Quest for the Father

This dissertation explores Elizabeth Barrett's dependency on the archetypal Victorian patriarch. Chapter I focuses on the psychological effects of this father-daughter relationship on Elizabeth Barrett. Chapter II addresses Barrett's acceptance of the conventional female role, which is suggested by the nature and the situation of the women she chooses to depict. These women are placed in situations where they can reveal their devotion to family, their capacity for passive endurance, and their wish to resist. Almost always, they choose death as an alternative to life where a powerful father figure is present. Chapter III concentrates on the highly sentimental images of women and children whom Barrett places in a divine order, where they exist untouched by the concerns of the social order of which they are a part. Chapter IV shows that the conventional ideologies of the time, society's commitment to the "angel in the house," and the small number of female role models before her increase her difficulty to find herself a place within this order. Chapter V discusses Aurora Leigh's mission to find herself an identity and to maintain the connection with her father or father substitute. Despite Elizabeth Barrett's desire to break away from her paternal ties …
Date: December 1996
Creator: Yegenoglu, Dilara
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library
Anti-Semitism and Der Sturmer on Trial in Nuremberg, 1945-1946: The Case of Julius Streicher (open access)

Anti-Semitism and Der Sturmer on Trial in Nuremberg, 1945-1946: The Case of Julius Streicher

The central focus of this thesis is to rediscover Julius Streicher and to determine whether his actions merited the same punishment as other persons executed for war crimes. Sources used include Nuremberg Trial documents and testimony, memoirs of Nazi leaders, and other Nazi materials. The thesis includes seven chapters, which cover Streicher's life, especially the prewar decades, his years out of power, and his trial at Nuremberg. The conclusion reached is that Streicher did have some influence on the German people with his anti-Semitic newspaper Der Sturmer, but it is difficult to ascertain whether his speeches and writings contributed directly to the extermination of the Jews in World War II or simply reflected and magnified the anti-Semitism of his culture.
Date: August 1997
Creator: Bridges, Lee H. (Lee Hammond)
Object Type: Thesis or Dissertation
System: The UNT Digital Library