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Title: I'M EVERY WOMAN: COLLEGE WOMEN'S PERCEPTIONS OF "REAL WOMEN" IN PRINT ADVERTISEMENTS.
Creator: Gualtieri, Marie, Carter, Dr. Shannon, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: In the American capitalist society, the media is often an agent used to perpetuate ideals and to inform consumers of products that they can purchase by using multiple advertising techniques. In an attempt to counter the thin body ideal for women, some companies have begun advertising their products by using plus size models, such as the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty. The purpose of this research is to examine college women's perceptions of the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty, an advertising...
Show moreIn the American capitalist society, the media is often an agent used to perpetuate ideals and to inform consumers of products that they can purchase by using multiple advertising techniques. In an attempt to counter the thin body ideal for women, some companies have begun advertising their products by using plus size models, such as the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty. The purpose of this research is to examine college women's perceptions of the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty, an advertising campaign whose goal is to reverse the stereotypical body ideal for women and broaden the definition of beauty. Some sociologists have criticized Dove for sending conflicting messages. This study is the first that focuses on women's perceptions about this potential conflict. Through the use of both quantitative and qualitative methods, this study examined if, how, and when women changed their initial perceptions toward the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty based on two separate scenarios brought to their attention. This is important because the findings suggest how consumers can change their perceptions regarding a company, in this case one that is a part of a multi-million dollar parent company, based on how a company advertises its products.
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Date Issued: 2012
Identifier: CFH0004144, ucf:44822
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH0004144

Title: WHEN LOVE TURNS LETHAL: A CONTENT ANALYSIS OF INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE IN PRINT MEDIA.
Creator: Maddox, Ashley, Jasinski, Jana, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: The current study conducted a content analysis of newspaper articles in a Florida newspaper, the Orlando Sentinel. The study spanned across a five-year time period from 2004-2009, featuring 198 articles on domestic violence homicide. The current study is a replication of previous research conducted using the same newspaper during 1995-2000. Victim blame, tone, and descriptions of the perpetrator and victim were among several items of interest. Findings reveal a slight increase in victim...
Show moreThe current study conducted a content analysis of newspaper articles in a Florida newspaper, the Orlando Sentinel. The study spanned across a five-year time period from 2004-2009, featuring 198 articles on domestic violence homicide. The current study is a replication of previous research conducted using the same newspaper during 1995-2000. Victim blame, tone, and descriptions of the perpetrator and victim were among several items of interest. Findings reveal a slight increase in victim blaming statements and a larger increase in positive portrayals of the victims of domestic violence homicide.
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Date Issued: 2010
Identifier: CFE0002998, ucf:47937
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002998

Title: PRESSURE DROP AND ENDWALL HEAT TRANSFER EFFECTS OF POROUS TURBULATORS IN A RECTANGULAR CHANNEL.
Creator: Pent, Jared, Kapat, Jay, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This study examines the local and averaged endwall heat transfer effects of a staggered array of porous pin fins within a rectangular channel. The porous pin fins were made from aluminum and had a pore density of 10 pores per inch (PPI). The pressure drop through the channel was also determined for several flow rates and presented in terms of the friction factor. Local heat transfer coefficients on the endwall were measured using Thermochromic Liquid Crystal (TLC) sheets recorded with a...
Show moreThis study examines the local and averaged endwall heat transfer effects of a staggered array of porous pin fins within a rectangular channel. The porous pin fins were made from aluminum and had a pore density of 10 pores per inch (PPI). The pressure drop through the channel was also determined for several flow rates and presented in terms of the friction factor. Local heat transfer coefficients on the endwall were measured using Thermochromic Liquid Crystal (TLC) sheets recorded with a charge-coupled device (CCD) camera. Static and total pressure measurements were taken at the entrance and exit of the test section to determine the overall pressure drop through the channel and explain the heat transfer trends through the channel. Results are presented for Reynolds numbers between 25000 and 130000 and a blockage ratio (blocked channel area divided by open channel area) of 50%. All results were compared to the corresponding results obtained using solid pins. All experiments were carried out in a 150 mm by 500 mm channel with an X/D of 1.72, a Y/D of 2.0, and a Z/D of 1.72 for the porous pins. It was found that for the range of Reynold's numbers tested in this study, the porous pin array consistently resulted in a larger friction factor, and therefore greater losses than a geometrically similar array of solid pins. The friction factors for the solid pin array were between 9.5 and 10.5, similar to the results found in the literature. For the porous pins, however, the friction factors were significantly increased as the Reynold's number increased, reaching as high as 15.3 at the highest Reynold's number tested. The heat transfer enhancement for the porous pins was found to be between 150 and 170% while the solid pins resulted in a heat transfer enhancement between 190 and 230%.
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Date Issued: 2009
Identifier: CFE0002819, ucf:48085
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002819

Title: A FRAMEWORK FOR EFFICIENT DATA DISTRIBUTION IN PEER-TO-PEER NETWORKS.
Creator: Purandare, Darshan, Guha, Ratan, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Peer to Peer (P2P) models are based on user altruism, wherein a user shares its content with other users in the pool and it also has an interest in the content of the other nodes. Most P2P systems in their current form are not fair in terms of the content served by a peer and the service obtained from swarm. Most systems suffer from free rider's problem where many high uplink capacity peers contribute much more than they should while many others get a free ride for downloading the content...
Show morePeer to Peer (P2P) models are based on user altruism, wherein a user shares its content with other users in the pool and it also has an interest in the content of the other nodes. Most P2P systems in their current form are not fair in terms of the content served by a peer and the service obtained from swarm. Most systems suffer from free rider's problem where many high uplink capacity peers contribute much more than they should while many others get a free ride for downloading the content. This leaves high capacity nodes with very little or no motivation to contribute. Many times such resourceful nodes exit the swarm or don't even participate. The whole scenario is unfavorable and disappointing for P2P networks in general, where participation is a must and a very important feature. As the number of users increases in the swarm, the swarm becomes robust and scalable. Other important issues in the present day P2P system are below optimal Quality of Service (QoS) in terms of download time, end-to-end latency and jitter rate, uplink utilization, excessive cross ISP traffic, security and cheating threats etc. These current day problems in P2P networks serve as a motivation for present work. To this end, we present an efficient data distribution framework in Peer-to-Peer (P2P) networks for media streaming and file sharing domain. The experiments with our model, an alliance based peering scheme for media streaming, show that such a scheme distributes data to the swarm members in a near-optimal way. Alliances are small groups of nodes that share data and other vital information for symbiotic association. We show that alliance formation is a loosely coupled and an effective way to organize the peers and our model maps to a small world network, which form efficient overlay structures and are robust to network perturbations such as churn. We present a comparative simulation based study of our model with CoolStreaming/DONet (a popular model) and present a quantitative performance evaluation. Simulation results show that our model scales well under varying workloads and conditions, delivers near optimal levels of QoS, reduces cross ISP traffic considerably and for most cases, performs at par or even better than Cool-Streaming/DONet. In the next phase of our work, we focussed on BitTorrent P2P model as it the most widely used file sharing protocol. Many studies in academia and industry have shown that though BitTorrent scales very well but is far from optimal in terms of fairness to end users, download time and uplink utilization. Furthermore, random peering and data distribution in such model lead to suboptimal performance. Lately, new breed of BitTorrent clients like BitTyrant have shown successful strategic attacks against BitTorrent. Strategic peers configure the BitTorrent client software such that for very less or no contribution, they can obtain good download speeds. Such strategic nodes exploit the altruism in the swarm and consume resources at the expense of other honest nodes and create an unfair swarm. More unfairness is generated in the swarm with the presence of heterogeneous bandwidth nodes. We investigate and propose a new token-based anti-strategic policy that could be used in BitTorrent to minimize the free-riding by strategic clients. We also proposed other policies against strategic attacks that include using a smart tracker that denies the request of strategic clients for peer listmultiple times, and black listing the non-behaving nodes that do not follow the protocol policies. These policies help to stop the strategic behavior of peers to a large extent and improve overall system performance. We also quantify and validate the benefits of using bandwidth peer matching policy. Our simulations results show that with the above proposed changes, uplink utilization and mean download time in BitTorrent network improves considerably. It leaves strategic clients with little or no incentive to behave greedily. This reduces free riding and creates fairer swarm with very little computational overhead. Finally, we show that our model is self healing model where user behavior changes from selfish to altruistic in the presence of the aforementioned policies.
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Date Issued: 2008
Identifier: CFE0002260, ucf:47864
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002260

Title: Narrative Transportation and Virtual Reality: Exploring the Immersive Qualities of Social Justice in the Digital World.
Creator: Raffel, Sara, McDaniel, Rudy, Jones, Natasha, Salter, Anastasia, Rettberg, Jill, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This dissertation explores the potential applications for virtual reality (VR) stories in support of social justice causes, examining whether digital games historically been successfully leveraged for social justice purposes, and determining which components of VR technology can most encourage narrative transportation of participants in VR stories.The first chapter examines theories of simulation, virtual reality, narrative, and interactivity, as well as concepts of immersion from various...
Show moreThis dissertation explores the potential applications for virtual reality (VR) stories in support of social justice causes, examining whether digital games historically been successfully leveraged for social justice purposes, and determining which components of VR technology can most encourage narrative transportation of participants in VR stories.The first chapter examines theories of simulation, virtual reality, narrative, and interactivity, as well as concepts of immersion from various disciplines and settles on narrative transportation, a theory from cognitive psychology, as the most useful in measuring the effect of VR stories on participants.The second chapter examines ethnographic practices, activist games, and modes of reclaiming digital spaces as a way to encourage digital social justice and ensure traditionally marginalized communities have meaningful access to technology(-)or, the tools to use it, create with it, and critique it.The third chapter presents the result of a play study conducted to measure participants' transportation in a recent VR narrative and finds VR interactive narratives to be more transportive and engaging than their two-dimensional counterparts.The fourth chapter interrogates some of the fears of VR technology, namely that it will be used to further current societal injustices and as a potentially powerful propaganda tool.The final chapter presents five recommendations for designers seeking to experiment in virtual reality narratives. The ultimate aim of this work is to encourage scholars, designers, and participants to make ethical decisions in the creation and use of virtual societies.
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Date Issued: 2018
Identifier: CFE0007080, ucf:52015
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007080

Title: Whatever Happened to Blackwater RD.?: A Visual Documentary Concerning Achievement in the Face of Failure.
Creator: Stephenson, Michael, Stoeckl, Ula, Sandler, Barry, Shults, Katherine, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Whatever happened to Blackwater RD.? is a feature length documentary thesis film created and cultivated by Michael E. Stephenson to fulfill the requirements of the Master of Fine Arts degree in Entrepreneurial Digital Cinema while attending the University of Central Florida. Whatever happened to Blackwater RD.? has met these criteria of the School of Visual Arts and Design, in the College of Arts and Humanities, by being a feature length digital film with a budget no larger than $50,000. This...
Show moreWhatever happened to Blackwater RD.? is a feature length documentary thesis film created and cultivated by Michael E. Stephenson to fulfill the requirements of the Master of Fine Arts degree in Entrepreneurial Digital Cinema while attending the University of Central Florida. Whatever happened to Blackwater RD.? has met these criteria of the School of Visual Arts and Design, in the College of Arts and Humanities, by being a feature length digital film with a budget no larger than $50,000. This film is the efforts of the filmmaker to trace the failure of his original narrative thesis film Blackwater RD., attempting to discover where everything went wrong while trying to recover from such a crushing defeat. Assembled from behind the scene videos and interviews, this film represents a collected effort to discover a way to make digital cinema from multiple sources, ranging from digital cameras to smartphones, while still crafting a singular vision. Digital cinema allows for films to be made in a collage-like effort to explore how narrative can be manipulated and how a director may steer it, even in the documentary field. Through the exploration of his own failings the filmmaker has discovered perhaps the most important lesson of both academia and film: failure is always an option. To fail is a life worthy experience that one should learn from and utilize in accomplishing future tasks.
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Date Issued: 2018
Identifier: CFE0007104, ucf:51950
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007104

Title: Long-term Carbon and Copper Impact on Nutrient Removal via Green Sorption Media in Dynamic Linear Ditch Environments.
Creator: Ordonez, Diana, Chang, Ni-bin, Randall, Andrew, Sadmani, A H M Anwar, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Nutrient-laden stormwater runoff causes environmental and ecological impacts on receiving water bodies. Biosorption Activated Media (BAM) composed of the sand, tire crumb, and clay have been implemented in stormwater best management practices due to its ability to efficiently remove nutrients from stormwater runoff, such as in roadside linear ditches, via unique chemophysical and microbiological processes. In this study, a set of fixed-bed columns were set up to simulate some external forces...
Show moreNutrient-laden stormwater runoff causes environmental and ecological impacts on receiving water bodies. Biosorption Activated Media (BAM) composed of the sand, tire crumb, and clay have been implemented in stormwater best management practices due to its ability to efficiently remove nutrients from stormwater runoff, such as in roadside linear ditches, via unique chemophysical and microbiological processes. In this study, a set of fixed-bed columns were set up to simulate some external forces in roadside linear ditches and examine how these external forces affect the performance of BAM. In our experiment, scenario 1 simulates the impact that animals such as tortoises, moles and ants produce conduits on the top layer of BAM. Scenario 2 simulates the presence of animals on BAM, together with external compaction. Finally, scenario 3 simulates external compaction such as traffic compaction alone. Furthermore, two baseline conditions were included to sustain the impact assessment of these three scenarios, respectively. They are the long-term presence of carbon in stormwater as carbon can be transported by stormwater runoff from neighboring crop fields, and the long-term presence of copper ions in stormwater as copper depositions can also be found because of electrical wiring, roofing, stormwater ponds disinfection and automobile brake pads in transportation networks. This systematic assessment encompasses some intertwined field complexity in real world systems driven by different hydraulic conditions, microbial ecology, Dissolved Organic Nitrogen (DON) reshape/removal, and long-term addition of carbon and copper (alone) on the effectiveness of total nitrogen removal. The removal efficiencies are substantially linked to varying microbial processes including mineralization, ammonification, nitrification, denitrification, and even dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium, each of which is controlled by different dominant microbial species. The identification of DON compounds at the molecular level was done via a Fourier Transform Ion Cyclotron Resonance Mass Spectrometry (FT-IR-MS) whereas the quantitation of microbial species was done by using quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (qPCR). The results from the interactions between microbial ecology and DON decomposition were compared to the external forces and baseline conditions to obtain a holistic understanding of the removals efficiencies of total nitrogen. With the aid of qPCR and FT-IR-MS, this study concluded that the long-term presence of carbon is beneficial for nutrient removal whereas the long-term copper addition inhibits nutrient removal.
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Date Issued: 2019
Identifier: CFE0007847, ucf:52816
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007847

Title: Theoretical and Experimental Studies for Tailoring the Electromagnetic Surface Properties of Conductive Materials.
Creator: Jennings, Jeffrey, Vaidyanathan, Raj, Kar, Aravinda, Coffey, Kevin, Challapalli, Suryanarayana, Brisbois, Elizabeth, Yu, Xiaoming, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Induction in leaded, implanted medical devices exposed to radio frequency (RF) magnetic fields during magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) produce Joule heating in adjacent tissues causing various issues, including death. Given the importance of MRI as a diagnostic tool and the growth in leaded device-related treatments, identification of a solution ensuring their compatibility is of great interest. Electromagnetic (EM) surface property tailoring in lead materials to change their inductive...
Show moreInduction in leaded, implanted medical devices exposed to radio frequency (RF) magnetic fields during magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) produce Joule heating in adjacent tissues causing various issues, including death. Given the importance of MRI as a diagnostic tool and the growth in leaded device-related treatments, identification of a solution ensuring their compatibility is of great interest. Electromagnetic (EM) surface property tailoring in lead materials to change their inductive response by adding functionally-graded, heterogeneous surface layers is a possible solution. However, non-uniform EM properties introduce two challenges: the added complexity of analyses and characterization of the graded region. This dissertation addresses these complexities.An Helmholtz coil and other loops positioned in a coaxial array were used to create and monitor inductive fields that were mathematically related to the induced current in closed, circular loops with electrical conductivities ranging from 1.0 to 57 megaSiemens per meter. Magnetic flux densities up to 14 microTesla at frequencies from 30 to 100 MHz were evaluated for specimens with varying loop and wire diameters. Induced current results show a linear relationship with flux density and strongly depend on the sample geometry, but not on conductivity. Trends within the data matched well with those predicted by theory that considered such a loop.An equivalent length, semi-analytical approach modeled induced current through a graded EM property region and considered effective conductivities. Predicted results for transmissivity through Pt-doped titanium foils and effective conductivity in round wire Sn-modified Cu samples show good agreement with experimental data. The Joule heating experiment used for wire testing also demonstrates a means for characterizing conductor surface properties. Two new technologies derived from this research including an RF magnetic field imaging technique and a contoured loop array for applying therapeutic controlled RF magnetic fields are also described.
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Date Issued: 2018
Identifier: CFE0007756, ucf:52378
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007756

Title: Adsorption Capacity Assessment of Advance Green Environmental Media to Remove Nutrients from Stormwater-Runoff.
Creator: Elhakiem, Hanan, Chang, Ni-bin, Sadmani, A H M Anwar, Yu, Haofei, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Best Management Practices (BMPs) in stormwater treatment are a suite of treatment alternatives to deal with pollutant removal problems from stormwater runoff. Biosorption-activated media (BAM) are green sorption media consists of recycled materials have shown excellent nutrient removal as an effective BMP by enhancing physicochemical and microbiological processes. In this study, Iron-Filling Green Environmental Media (denoted as IFGEM-3) and Advanced Green Environmental Media 1 and 2 (denoted...
Show moreBest Management Practices (BMPs) in stormwater treatment are a suite of treatment alternatives to deal with pollutant removal problems from stormwater runoff. Biosorption-activated media (BAM) are green sorption media consists of recycled materials have shown excellent nutrient removal as an effective BMP by enhancing physicochemical and microbiological processes. In this study, Iron-Filling Green Environmental Media (denoted as IFGEM-3) and Advanced Green Environmental Media 1 and 2 (denoted as AGEM-1 and AGEM-2) were produced and tested for their adsorption capacities as well as removal and recovery potential for phosphate, nitrate, and ammonia against natural soil (baseline) collected from a stormwater retention basin in Ocala, FL. A set of isotherm and column tests were conducted at room temperature with varying contact times. Two media with the best adsorption performances were further tested to determine their life expectancy. The green sorption media characteristics and adsorption behaviors were further analyzed and realized by using a few existing isotherm models. The collected data on physical properties such as hydraulic conductivity, porosity, surface area, and density help justifying the comparative results. The results showed that AGEM-2 has the highest average nitrate removal efficiency (76.55%) when compared to IFGEM-3 (39.0%) and AGEM-1 (33.67%). Furthermore, IFGEM-3, AGEM-1 and AGEM-2 achieved the highest phosphate removals after only 30 minutes of contact time. It is indicative that IFGEM-3, AGEM-1 and AGEM-2 media all produced ammonia and the rates of production consistently increase as contact time increases. However, AGEM-2 generated an average of 35.22% more ammonia than IFGEM-3 and AGEM-1 suggesting it can be further utilized as a soil amendment. Natural soil showed no nutrient removal, however. The maximum adsorption capacities (qmax) derived by the isothermal test at high influent concentrations of 2mg/L phosphate and 2mg/L nitrate were found to be less than the qmax obtained from the column tests for IFGEM-3 and AGEM-2 with respect to nitrate. IFGEM-3 and AGEM-2 were further tested with respect to nitrate for their maximum adsorption capacities and their life expectancies based on column tests. The results indicated that AGEM-2 has a longer life expectancy and a higher adsorption capacity than IFGEM-3, in terms of nitrate removal, which is consistent with isotherm results. It is recommended that AGEM-2 be selected for nutrient removal in future stormwater treatment based on its better adsorption performance and recovery potential. ?
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Date Issued: 2019
Identifier: CFE0007800, ucf:52332
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007800

Title: PERCEPTIONS OF REALITY.
Creator: Dombrowski, Matthew, Hall, Scott, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: My thesis explores the relationship between the human psyche and the perception of reality through the use of computer generated media. In a society in which we are bombarded with multimedia technology, we must look inside our selves for a true understanding of our past and memories. Rather than it acting as an escape from reality, my art becomes an opening for truth in reality.
Date Issued: 2008
Identifier: CFE0002103, ucf:52847
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002103

Title: NUTRIENT REMOVAL FROM URBAN STORMWATER USING FLOATING TREATMENT WETLAND SYSTEM.
Creator: Islam, Md. Kamrul, Chang, Ni-bin, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Despite the technology advancement, degradation of water quality due to stormwater continues to be a significant threat to the water and ecosystems due to the exponential growth of industries and agricultural enterprises that discharge stormwater. These anthropogenic activities are the sources of high nitrogen and phosphorus quantities in stormwater, which is responsible for eutrophication phenomena and deterioration of public health. Floating Treatment Wetlands (FTWs) are a potential...
Show moreDespite the technology advancement, degradation of water quality due to stormwater continues to be a significant threat to the water and ecosystems due to the exponential growth of industries and agricultural enterprises that discharge stormwater. These anthropogenic activities are the sources of high nitrogen and phosphorus quantities in stormwater, which is responsible for eutrophication phenomena and deterioration of public health. Floating Treatment Wetlands (FTWs) are a potential solution to this problem. Both microcosm and mesocosm level studies were conducted for the effective removal of nutrients in stormwater wet detention ponds with different sorption media under varying nutrient concentrations and weather conditions. Water depth, percent area coverage of the FTWs and littoral zone emergent plants were varied in order to determine nutrient removal efficiency before implementing in an actual pond. Focus has also been placed on the observations of macrophyte-epiphyte-phytoplankton interactions in order to understand temporal characteristics of ecological phenomena. Water quality parameters included Total Nitrogen, Total Phosphorus, Orthophosphate, Nitrate-Nitrogen, and Ammonia-Nitrogen in addition to in-situ parameters such as pH, Dissolved Oxygen, Temperature and Chlorophyll-a. Results clearly indicate that an FTW filled with sorption media of 80% expanded clay and 20% tire crumb can significantly promote the biomass growth. Different levels of nutrient concentrations did affect the plants' growth and cold temperature in late winter was detrimental to growth. To make the system more viable irrespective of the seasonal weather conditions, the adoption of mixed vegetation is highly recommended in the FTWs implementation. It is also recommended that, the positioning of the floating wetlands should not be in the vicinity of the outlet of the pond as assimilated nutrient under the mat might increase the nutrient concentration in the discharged water. Finally, One-way ANOVA test is performed to check whether or not these grouped microcosms and mesocosms with differing experimental setup can be deemed statistically significant.
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Date Issued: 2011
Identifier: CFE0004013, ucf:49171
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0004013

Title: The Visual Divide: Islam vs. The West, Image Peception in Cross-Cultural Contexts.
Creator: Akil, Hatem, Mauer, Barry, Scott, John, Gleyzon, Francois-Xavier, Janz, Bruce, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Do two people, coming from different cultural backgrounds, see the same image the same way? Do we employ technologies of seeing that embed visuality within relentless cultural and ideological frames? And, if so, when does visual difference become a tool for inclusion and exclusion? When does it become an instrument of war? I argue that we're always implicated in visuality as a form of confirmation bias, and that what we see is shaped by preexisting socio-ideological frames that can only be...
Show moreDo two people, coming from different cultural backgrounds, see the same image the same way? Do we employ technologies of seeing that embed visuality within relentless cultural and ideological frames? And, if so, when does visual difference become a tool for inclusion and exclusion? When does it become an instrument of war? I argue that we're always implicated in visuality as a form of confirmation bias, and that what we see is shaped by preexisting socio-ideological frames that can only be liberated through an active and critical relationship with the image. The image itself, albeit ubiquitous, is never unimplicated - at once violated and violating; with both its creator and its perceiver self-positioned as its ultimate subject.I follow a trace of the image within the context of a supposed Islam versus the West dichotomy; its construction, instrumentalization, betrayals, and incriminations. This trace sometimes forks into multiple paths, and at times loops unto itself, but eventually moves towards a traversal of a visual divide. I apply the trace as my methodology in the sense suggested by Derrida, but also as a technology for finding my way into and out of an epistemological labyrinth.The Visual Divide comprises five chapters: Chapter One presents some of the major themes of this work while attempting a theoretical account of image perception within philosophical and cross-cultural settings. I use this account to understand and undermine contemporary rhetoric (as in the works of Samuel Huntington and Bernard Lewis) that seems intent on theorizing a supposed cultural and historical dichotomies between Islam and the West.In Chapter Two, I account for slogan chants heard at Tahrir Square during the January 25 Egyptian revolution as tools to discovering a mix of technology, language and revolution that could be characterized as hybrid, plural and present at the center of which lies the human body as subject to public peril. Chapter Three analyzes a state of visual divide where photographic evidence is posited against ethnographic reality as found in postcards of nude and semi-nude Algerian Muslim women in the 19th century. I connect this state to a chain of visual oppositions that place Western superiority as its subject and which continues to our present day with the Abu Ghraib photographs and the Mohammed cartoons, etc. Chapter Four deploys the image of Mohamed al-Durra, a 3rd grader who was shot dead, on video, at a crossroads in Gaza, and the ensuing attempts to reinterpret, recreate, falsify and litigate the meaning of the video images of his death in order to propagate certain political doxa. I relate the violence against the image, by the image, and despite the image, to a state of pure war that is steeped in visuality, and which transforms the act of seeing into an act of targeting.In Chapter Five, I integrate the concept of visuality with that of the human body under peril in order to identify conditions that lead to comparative suffering or a division that views humanity as something other than unitary and of equal value. I connect the figures of der Muselmann, Shylock, Othello, the suicide bomber, and others to subvert a narrative that claims that one's suffering is deeper than another's, or that life could be valued differently depending on the place of your birth, the color of your skin, or the thickness of your accent.Finally, in the Epilogue: Tabbouleh Deterritorialized, I look at the interconnected states of perception and remembering within diasporic contexts. Cultural identity (invoked by an encounter with tabbouleh on a restaurant menu in Orlando) is both questioned and transformed and becomes the subject of perception and negotiation.
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Date Issued: 2011
Identifier: CFE0004084, ucf:49144
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0004084

Title: THE ROLE OF WEB 2.0 AND SOCIAL MEDIA COMMUNITY IN EDUCATION AS A FORM OF TEACHER PERSONAL PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT.
Creator: Smith, Brandi, Gunter, Glenda, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Teachers are facing greater technological demands. They are expected to use and teach their students to use various forms of collaborative technology (Partnership for 21st Century Learning, 2010). Personal professional development is professional development that teachers seek on their own, strictly on a voluntary basis, so that they can meet the needs of their students or address issues that are unique to their classroom. This study used a survey to examine the relationship between how...
Show moreTeachers are facing greater technological demands. They are expected to use and teach their students to use various forms of collaborative technology (Partnership for 21st Century Learning, 2010). Personal professional development is professional development that teachers seek on their own, strictly on a voluntary basis, so that they can meet the needs of their students or address issues that are unique to their classroom. This study used a survey to examine the relationship between how teachers' reported using social media community in education for personal professional development and the criteria for effective professional development, teachers' integration practices, teachers' frequency of collaboration, and teachers' ability to communicate with colleagues. The results revealed a relationship between the criteria that a professional development be content specific and coherent and integrated with teachers' daily lives and whether or not teachers report using social media community in education as a form of professional development. There was also a statistically significant relationship between the frequency of technology integration, the reported level of technology integration, and the feeling of growth based on whether or not teachers used social media community in education to enhance professional practices. A statistically significant relationship was found between the frequency at which teachers report collaborating on technology integration projects with colleagues in social media communities in education and whether or not respondents use Social media community in education connect with other educational professionals. Finally, a statistically significant relationship was found between how comfortable participants are giving technology integration advice to colleagues in social media communities in education based on whether or not respondents use social media community in education to share materials and ideas. Based on the findings of the study, several implications can be made regarding the use of social networks for personal professional development. First, the use of social networks for personal professional development is best when there is content specificity and cohesion with teachers' personal and professional goals. Secondly the users of a social network for personal professional development must purposeful in their reasons for using the social network, users must perceive themselves as capable of learning and they must have the willingness to commit to learning. Another implication is that increased levels of ownership for the material in social media communities in education would result in greater frequency of collaboration. Finally, teachers' perceptions of their integration abilities will determine if teachers will use social networks to communicate professionally with colleagues.
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Date Issued: 2011
Identifier: CFE0004027, ucf:49179
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0004027

Title: THE NEWS MEDIA AND PUBLIC OPINION: THE PRESS COVERAGE OF U.S. INTERNATIONAL CONFLICTS AND ITS EFFECT ON PRESIDENTIAL APPROVAL.
Creator: McCullough, Kristen, Fine, Terri, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: A standing phenomenon exists in the fields of both political science and communication studies regarding the impact that the news media have on public opinion. This study recognizes the average American citizens' reliance on the press to gain information about international conflicts. Hence, it is theorized that news reports on a political occurrence could very well influence the mass-level opinion of an event such that positive news stories generate positive public opinion, and vice...
Show moreA standing phenomenon exists in the fields of both political science and communication studies regarding the impact that the news media have on public opinion. This study recognizes the average American citizens' reliance on the press to gain information about international conflicts. Hence, it is theorized that news reports on a political occurrence could very well influence the mass-level opinion of an event such that positive news stories generate positive public opinion, and vice versa. Since foreign crises define a presidency in the public's minds, presidential approval ratings determine the degree to which the news media manipulate public opinion. Specifically, news media coverage of two international conflicts, the Vietnam and Persian Gulf Wars, are analyzed in light of their effect on American citizens' public opinion of Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and George H. W. Bush, respectively.
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Date Issued: 2009
Identifier: CFE0002701, ucf:48167
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002701

Title: NUTRIENT AND PATHOGEN REMOVAL IN A SUBSURFACE UPFLOW WETLAND SYSTEM USING GREEN SORPTION MEDIA.
Creator: Xuan, Zhemin, Chang, Ni-Bin, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Due to environmental health and nutrient impact concerns, the conventional on-site sewage collection, treatment, and disposal systems are no longer able to meet the nutrient reduction requirements for wastewater effluent and may represent a large fraction of pollutant loads. The loads include not only nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P), but also pathogens such as fecal coliform and E. coli which indicate the presence of other disease-causing bacteria flowing into aquatic system that adversely...
Show moreDue to environmental health and nutrient impact concerns, the conventional on-site sewage collection, treatment, and disposal systems are no longer able to meet the nutrient reduction requirements for wastewater effluent and may represent a large fraction of pollutant loads. The loads include not only nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P), but also pathogens such as fecal coliform and E. coli which indicate the presence of other disease-causing bacteria flowing into aquatic system that adversely affect public health. A subsurface upflow wetland, which is an effective small-scale wastewater treatment system with low energy and maintenance requirements and operational costs, fits the current nutrient and pathogen removal situation having received wide attention throughout the world. Within this research study, a subsurface upflow wetland system (SUW), including four parallel SUW (three planted versus one unplanted), were constructed as a key component of the septic tank system receiving 454 liters per day (120 GPD) influent using the green sorption media along with selected plant species. It was proved effective in removing both nutrients and pathogens. During a one month test run, the planted wetlands achieved a removal efficiency of 84.2%, 97.3 %, 98.93 % and 99.92%, compared to the control wetland, 10.5%, 85.7 %, 99.74 % and 100.0 %, in total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP), fecal coli and E.Coli, respectively. Denitrification was proved to be the dominant pathway for removing N as evidenced by the mass balance and real-time PCR analyses. A simplified compartmental dynamics simulation model of constructed subsurface upflow wetlands was also developed to provide a dependable reference and tool for design of constructed subsurface upflow wetland.
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Date Issued: 2009
Identifier: CFE0002967, ucf:47964
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002967

Title: NEAR-FIELD OPTICAL INTERACTIONS AND APPLICATIONS.
Creator: Haefner, David, Dogariu, Aristide, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: The propagation symmetry of electromagnetic fields is affected by encounters with material systems. The effects of such interactions, for example, modifications of intensity, phase, polarization, angular spectrum, frequency, etc. can be used to obtain information about the material system. However, the propagation of electromagnetic waves imposes a fundamental limit to the length scales over which the material properties can be observed. In the realm of near-field optics, this limitation is...
Show moreThe propagation symmetry of electromagnetic fields is affected by encounters with material systems. The effects of such interactions, for example, modifications of intensity, phase, polarization, angular spectrum, frequency, etc. can be used to obtain information about the material system. However, the propagation of electromagnetic waves imposes a fundamental limit to the length scales over which the material properties can be observed. In the realm of near-field optics, this limitation is overcome only through a secondary interaction that couples the high-spatial-frequency (but non-propagating) field components to propagating waves that can be detected. The available information depends intrinsically on this secondary interaction, which constitutes the topic of this study. Quantitative measurements of material properties can be performed only by controlling the subtle characteristics of these processes. This dissertation discusses situations where the effects of near-field interactions can be (i) neglected in certain passive testing techniques, (ii) exploited for active probing of static or dynamic systems, or (iii) statistically isolated when considering optically inhomogeneous materials. This dissertation presents novel theoretical developments, experimental measurements, and numerical results that elucidate the vectorial aspects of the interaction between light and nano-structured material for use in sensing applications.
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Date Issued: 2010
Identifier: CFE0003095, ucf:48318
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0003095

Title: An Investigation of Media Coverage of a Local Crisis: The Courts, the Orange County School Board and the Community.
Creator: Rupp, Evelyn S., Fedler, Fred, Social Sciences
Abstract / Description: Florida Technological University College of Social Sciences Thesis
Date Issued: 1974
Identifier: CFR0011949, ucf:53101
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFR0011949

Title: A Quasi-Experiment Examining Expressive and Receptive Vocabulary Knowledge of Preschool Head Start Children Using Mobile Media Apps.
Creator: Vatalaro, Angela, Culp, Anne, Szente, Judit, Hahs-Vaughn, Debbie, Levin, Judith, Goodman, Jill, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: The American Academy of Pediatrics (1999, 2011) recommends no screen time for children under two years and limited screen time for three- and four-year-olds. Despite these recommendations, most young children have easy access to various types of screens. In particular, children's use of mobile media, including tablets and other touch screen devices, is increasing (Common Sense Media, 2013). Even though scholars have highlighted positive uses for mobile media (Christakis, 2014; Radesky,...
Show moreThe American Academy of Pediatrics (1999, 2011) recommends no screen time for children under two years and limited screen time for three- and four-year-olds. Despite these recommendations, most young children have easy access to various types of screens. In particular, children's use of mobile media, including tablets and other touch screen devices, is increasing (Common Sense Media, 2013). Even though scholars have highlighted positive uses for mobile media (Christakis, 2014; Radesky, Schumacher, (&) Zuckerman, 2015) and there are recommendations in place for using mobile media with young children in active, open-ended ways (NAEYC (&) Fred Rogers Center, 2012), there has been very limited research conducted on the impact of mobile media on young children's development. What is more, as early childhood professionals are beginning to incorporate mobile media into their classrooms, they are struggling with the ability to use these devices in developmentally appropriate ways (Marklund, 2015; Nuttall, Edwards, Mantilla, Grieshaber, (&) Wood, 2015). The primary purpose of the present study was to examine the efficacy of using different types of mobile media apps to increase the receptive and expressive vocabulary development of preschool children living in economically disadvantaged communities. Children and teachers in four Head Start classrooms participated in the quasi-experimental study, which included an eight-week intervention in which the children interacted with one of two types of apps: one classroom used direct instruction vocabulary apps (n = 16) and one classroom used open-ended vocabulary apps (n = 15). Two classrooms served as control groups (n = 18; n = 14) which used apps that were chosen by the Head Start program with no specific instructional method. Children's vocabulary was assessed pre- and post-intervention. To assess receptive vocabulary, the PPVT-4 (Dunn (&) Dunn, 2007) and an iPad Receptive Vocabulary Assessment (Vatalaro, 2015a) were used. To assess expressive vocabulary, the EVT-2 (Williams, 2007) and an iPad Expressive Vocabulary Assessment (Vatalaro, 2015b) were used. Using a repeated measures analysis of variance with split plot analysis, children who used direct instruction apps performed statistically significantly higher on the PPVT-4 than children who used open-ended apps. Children in the direct instruction app group also performed statistically significantly higher than both control groups on the iPad Receptive Vocabulary Assessment. There were no statistically significant differences between groups for receptive vocabulary as measured by the EVT-2. However, when children were credited for describing a function instead of the iPad vocabulary word, the analysis of the iPad Expressive Vocabulary Assessment revealed that the children using direct instruction apps performed statistically significantly higher than children using open-ended apps and the children in one of the control groups. A secondary purpose of the present study was to examine the use of apps in mobile media by Head Start teachers. The teachers in the two intervention classrooms participated in weekly meetings with the primary researcher for support in using mobile media in their classrooms in order to ensure that the child intervention was carried out with fidelity. After analyzing data from teachers' self-report daily logs across the eight-week intervention, it was determined that the children received instruction on the assigned apps in both intervention classrooms. Although caution is given to the findings due to some limitations such as the quasi-experimental choice of a research design and the number of participants, the present study contributed to the early childhood research literature with the findings that interactive, animated apps which provide the meanings of vocabulary words in a direct instruction manner may have the ability to increase a child's receptive vocabulary, and to increase a child's descriptive definitions of iPad functions. This information increases the chance that teachers in Head Start will begin using direct instruction apps, in the hope of increasing a child's vocabulary knowledge.
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Date Issued: 2015
Identifier: CFE0005896, ucf:50859
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005896

Title: Consumer Engagement in Travel-related Social Media.
Creator: Li, Xu, Wang, Youcheng, Robinson, Edward, Kwun, David, Nusair, Khaldoon, He, Xin, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: The term of (")consumer engagement(") is extensively used in the digital era. It is believed that engaged consumers play an important role in products/services referral and recommendation, new product/service development and experience/value co-creation. Although the notion of consumer engagement sounds compelling, it is not fully developed in theory. Different interpretations coexist, resulting in confusion and misuse of the concept. This study attempts to define consumer engagement and...
Show moreThe term of (")consumer engagement(") is extensively used in the digital era. It is believed that engaged consumers play an important role in products/services referral and recommendation, new product/service development and experience/value co-creation. Although the notion of consumer engagement sounds compelling, it is not fully developed in theory. Different interpretations coexist, resulting in confusion and misuse of the concept. This study attempts to define consumer engagement and develop a conceptual framework of consumer engagement, addressing antecedents of consumer engagement in online context. Moreover, some situational and social media usage-related factors are incorporated into the framework. A set of propositions are presented based on literature review and the conceptual framework to illustrate the relationship between consumer engagement and related factors. To provide empirical evidence for the conceptual model, an online survey is conducted. Participants complete the self-administered survey by answering questions concerning their online experience with the travel-related social media website they visit most. Two-step structural equation modeling is employed to analyze the data. The results show that both community experience and community identification have significant and positive relationship with consumer engagement. Community experience is also a strong predictor of community identification. Attitude toward using social media and travel involvement influence the relationship between consumer engagement and its antecedents.With focus on the interactive and experiential nature of consumer engagement, this study expands current understanding of consumer engagement and provides insights for hospitality and tourism businesses regarding how to engage consumers through travel-related social media.
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Date Issued: 2013
Identifier: CFE0004878, ucf:49657
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0004878

Title: Chemophysical Characteristics and Application of Biosorption Activated Media (BAM) for Copper and Nutrient Removal in Stormwater Management.
Creator: Jones, Jamie, Chang, Ni-bin, Bohlen, Patrick, Wanielista, Martin, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: For high groundwater table areas, stormwater wet detention ponds are utilized as the preferred stormwater management throughout the state of Florida. Previous research has found that accumulations of nutrients, algae, heavy metals, pesticides, chlorophyll a, fecal coliform bacteria and low concentrations of dissolved oxygen (DO) are common characteristics of stormwater wet detention ponds. Although these pollutant levels are not regulated within the ponds, states are required to compute the...
Show moreFor high groundwater table areas, stormwater wet detention ponds are utilized as the preferred stormwater management throughout the state of Florida. Previous research has found that accumulations of nutrients, algae, heavy metals, pesticides, chlorophyll a, fecal coliform bacteria and low concentrations of dissolved oxygen (DO) are common characteristics of stormwater wet detention ponds. Although these pollutant levels are not regulated within the ponds, states are required to compute the pollutant load reductions through total maximum daily load (TMDL) programs to meet the water quality requirements addressed by the Clean Water Act (CWA). In this study, field sampling data of stormwater ponds throughout Florida are presented to identify concentration levels of the main contaminants of concern in the discharge of wet detention ponds. Sampling was done to identify possible sources, in addition to possible removal mechanisms via the use of specific sorption media. Nutrients were found as a main problematic pollutant, of which orthophosphate, total phosphorus, ammonia, nitrate, and total nitrogen were targeted whereas heavy metals exhibited minor concerns. Accumulation of high nutrient concentrations may be mitigated by the adoption of best management practices (BMPs) utilizing biosorption activated media (BAM) to remove phosphorus and nitrogen species through physical, chemical, and biological processes. This study aims to increase overall scientific understanding of phosphorus removal dynamics in sorption media systems via Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms and column studies. The removal of phosphorus (P) was proven effective primarily through chemophysical processes. The maximum orthophosphate adsorption capacities were determined under varying conditions of the media within the columns, which were found up to 0.000534 mg-P adsorbed per gram BAM with influent concentrations of 1 mg?L-1 orthophosphate in distilled water and 1 hour hydraulic residence time (HRT). When using spiked pond water under the same conditions, the adsorption capacity was increased about 30 times to 0.01507 mg-P?g-1 BAM presumably due to the properties and concentrations of ions affecting the diffusion rate regulating the surface orthophosphate reactions. These equilibrium media uptake values (q) were used to calculate the life expectancies of the media under varying HRT and influent concentrations of treatment. Chemophysical and biological removal capabilities of the media for total nitrogen, ammonia, and nitrate were effective in columns using 1100 g of BAM. In flow-through column conditions, ammonia had a consistent ~95% removal while effluent nitrate concentrations were highly variable due to the simultaneous nitrification-denitrification processes once an aerobic-anaerobic environment was established. Batch column experiments simulating no-flow conditions within a media bed reactor resulted in orthophosphate removals comparable with the continuous flow conditions, increased total phosphorus effluents indicative of chemical precipitation of orthophosphate, decreased ammonia removal, and increased nitrate removal. Due to a biofilm's sensitivity to even low copper concentrations and accumulation in ponds, a copper sorption media mix of (")green(") materials was generated. Freundlich and Langmuir isotherm tests concluded a successful mix resulting in copper removal efficiencies up to 96%.
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Date Issued: 2013
Identifier: CFE0005009, ucf:49995
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005009

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