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Title: STRESS, FATIGUE AND WORKLOAD: DETERMINING THE COMBINED AFFECT ON HUMAN PERFORMANCE.
Creator: Mock-McLaughlin, Jessica, Crumpton-Young, Lesia, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This research generated a model that will help to predict, prevent, control and mitigate the occurrence of task related factors that negatively influence stress, fatigue, and workload; thus enhancing human performance. Past research efforts involving stress, fatigue and workload identified factors that influence a change in performance (Lan, Ji and Looney, 2003, and Hancock & Warm, 1989). Also, while some mathematical models have been developed within each respective area, however, there is...
Show moreThis research generated a model that will help to predict, prevent, control and mitigate the occurrence of task related factors that negatively influence stress, fatigue, and workload; thus enhancing human performance. Past research efforts involving stress, fatigue and workload identified factors that influence a change in performance (Lan, Ji and Looney, 2003, and Hancock & Warm, 1989). Also, while some mathematical models have been developed within each respective area, however, there is no evidence of an integrated model describing the combined affect of stress, fatigue and workload. To respond to this research gap, a quantitative model representing the state of stress, fatigue and workload experienced under task conditions was developed. This model was derived using fuzzy set theory with data inputs from both objective and subjective measures such as heart rate, NASA TLX, blood pressure and a variety of additional factors. The resultant mathematical model included both subjective and objective measures that can be collected in an occupational environment. Control rooms at the flight centers for large space craft were utilized to validate the quantitative model developed in this research. Data was gathered during launch simulation exercises. Fuzzy Set Theory was applied to develop the mathematical model to describe the changes in stress, fatigue and workload. FST provides a means to model many real-world environments.
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Date Issued: 2007
Identifier: CFE0001639, ucf:47231
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0001639

Title: Inside the United Nations: The American struggle against human rights..
Creator: Monthly review (New York, N.Y. : 1949)
Date Issued: 1951
Identifier: 2683250, CFDT2683250, ucf:5056
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FCLA/DT/2683250

Title: ACCIDENTAL INVERSION DURING 3D ROTATION WITH 2-DOF INPUT DEVICES.
Creator: Diaz, Derek, Sims, Valerie, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This dissertation focuses on a human operator's ability to perform rotational control of a three-dimensional object using two-degrees of freedom (DOF) interface devices. Although input devices designed specifically for 3D interaction exist, devices traditionally used for two-dimensional user interaction, such as a mouse or joystick, have become ubiquitous to computer tasks. This research examines a particular human-computer interaction issue that arises from stimulus-response...
Show moreThis dissertation focuses on a human operator's ability to perform rotational control of a three-dimensional object using two-degrees of freedom (DOF) interface devices. Although input devices designed specifically for 3D interaction exist, devices traditionally used for two-dimensional user interaction, such as a mouse or joystick, have become ubiquitous to computer tasks. This research examines a particular human-computer interaction issue that arises from stimulus-response compatibility between three-dimensional stimuli spaces and 2-DOF response sets. The focal point of this research is a phenomenon referred to here as accidental inversion. Accidental inversions occur when an operator erroneously moves a three-dimensional object in a direction opposite than was intended. Thus, the effect of accidental inversion results from a mismatch between the operator's intended and actual input. A key assumption in diagnosing the causal factors involved in the accidental inversion effect is contribution from both internal (i.e., having to do with the individual) and external (i.e., having to do with the environment) influences. Three experiments were conducted to study accidental inversion. The first examined population stereotype, a measure of a target population's natural response tendencies to particular stimuli for a particular task. Results indicated a strong population stereotype for horizontal rotations (i.e., yaw) and weak stereotype for vertical rotations (i.e., pitch). This effect was mediated by whether the task was in the context of flight or ground-based movement. The second experiment analyzed the subjective preference for two opposite input-response (I-R) mappings (i.e., how the system responds to different input into the controlling device) for a task requiring control over vertical rotation. Results indicated that subjective preferences for I-R mappings were not heavily polarized. The third experiment also focused on vertical rotational control and examined how subjective preference for a particular I-R mapping affected performance. Furthermore, this experiment also examined performance when interference was introduced in the form of a temporary interruption where the participant had to conduct the task using an opposite I-R mapping. Results indicated that, upon being interrupted with the opposite I-R mapping, the group who used the mapping they subjectively preferred did worse than the group who used the mapping they did not prefer. This research has implications for the design of human-machine systems requiring human-in-the-loop three-dimensional rotational control. Some human-machine systems can have significant consequences from even a single mistake caused by a human-operator accidentally providing the wrong input. Findings from this research lead to two primary recommendations to the design of human-machine systems: a) an easily accessible and clearly indicated method to select input-response mapping which is provided before beginning the actual task, b) be informed of the current input-response mapping in use.
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Date Issued: 2007
Identifier: CFE0001961, ucf:47454
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0001961

Title: An Investigation of High Anxiety Verbal Behavior.
Creator: Wright, John W., Taylor, Phillip, Social Sciences
Abstract / Description: Florida Technological University College of Social Sciences Thesis
Date Issued: 1973
Identifier: CFR0012240, ucf:53132
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFR0012240

Title: The Female Human Trafficker in the Criminal Justice System: A Test of the Chivalry Hypothesis.
Creator: Francis, Brielle, Huff-Corzine, Lin, Corzine, Harold, Pritchard, Adam, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: The involvement of women in human trafficking within the United States has received limited research attention. Human trafficking encompasses labor, sex, and organ trafficking (Roberts, 2012). In 2009 the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) reported that women play a significant role in human trafficking. Nagel and Johnson (1994) conclude that, historically, female offenders have stayed at the edge of the criminal justice system. Generally, theories about prosecution and...
Show moreThe involvement of women in human trafficking within the United States has received limited research attention. Human trafficking encompasses labor, sex, and organ trafficking (Roberts, 2012). In 2009 the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) reported that women play a significant role in human trafficking. Nagel and Johnson (1994) conclude that, historically, female offenders have stayed at the edge of the criminal justice system. Generally, theories about prosecution and conviction outcomes derive from the study of male offenders. Women can be involved in all aspects of the human trafficking organizations, from the recruitment, to the supervision of prostitutes and to the finances. Pulling from the chivalry theory framework, this study used data sourced from the FBI on human trafficking offenders and their sentencing outcomes to compare the discrepancies between men and women. The current research adds to the existing literature by examining the gender discrepancy on human trafficking case outcomes. The analysis measures how gender influences court-related decisions.
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Date Issued: 2016
Identifier: CFE0006302, ucf:51591
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006302

Title: Practical Issues in GPRAM Development.
Creator: Li, Yin, Wei, Lei, Wu, Xinzhang, Mikhael, Wasfy, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: In this thesis, two parts of practical issues in the GPRAM system design are included. The first part is the coding part. The sum-product decoding algorithm of LDPC codes has been refined to fit for the GPRAM hardware implementation. As we all know, communication channel has noise. The noise in telecom system is different from that in GPRAM systems. So the noise should be handled well in the GPRAM design. A noise look-up table was created for FPGA and those noises in the table are quantized....
Show moreIn this thesis, two parts of practical issues in the GPRAM system design are included. The first part is the coding part. The sum-product decoding algorithm of LDPC codes has been refined to fit for the GPRAM hardware implementation. As we all know, communication channel has noise. The noise in telecom system is different from that in GPRAM systems. So the noise should be handled well in the GPRAM design. A noise look-up table was created for FPGA and those noises in the table are quantized. The second part of the thesis is to convert perfect images in video stream to those similar to the coarse images in human vision. GPRAM is an animal like robot in which coarse images are needed more than the fine images in order for us to understand how to GPRAM progresses those images to generate as clear image as we experienced. We use three steps, Point Spread function, inserting Poisson Noise, and introducing Eye fixation movements to mimic the coarse images seen merely from our eyes at the retinal photo-receptor level, i.e., without any brain processing.
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Date Issued: 2014
Identifier: CFE0005200, ucf:50632
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005200

Title: IMPROVING BUSINESS PERFORMANCE THROUGH THE INTEGRATION OF HUMAN FACTORS ENGINEERING INTO ORGANIZATIONS USING A SYSTEMS ENGINEERING APPROACH.
Creator: Philippart, Monica, Karwowski, Waldemar, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Most organizations today understand the valuable contribution employees as people (rather than simply bodies) provide to their overall performance. Although efforts are made to make the most of the human in organizations, there is still much room for improvement. Focus in the reduction of employee injuries such as cumulative trauma disorders rose in the 80's. Attempts at increasing performance by addressing employee satisfaction through various methods have also been ongoing for several...
Show moreMost organizations today understand the valuable contribution employees as people (rather than simply bodies) provide to their overall performance. Although efforts are made to make the most of the human in organizations, there is still much room for improvement. Focus in the reduction of employee injuries such as cumulative trauma disorders rose in the 80's. Attempts at increasing performance by addressing employee satisfaction through various methods have also been ongoing for several years now. Knowledge Management is one of the most recent attempts at controlling and making the best use of employees' knowledge. All of these efforts and more towards that same goal of making the most of people's performance at work are encompassed within the domain of the Human Factors Engineering/Ergonomics field. HFE/E provides still untapped potential for organizational performance as the human and its optimal performance are the reason for this discipline's being. Although Human Factors programs have been generated and implemented, there is still the need for a method to help organizations fully integrate this discipline into the enterprise as a whole. The purpose of this research is to develop a method to help organizations integrate HFE/E into it business processes. This research begun with a review of the ways in which the HFE/E discipline is currently used by organizations. The need and desire to integrate HFE/E into organizations was identified, and a method to accomplish this integration was conceptualized. This method consisted on the generation of two domain-specific ontologies (a Human Factors Engineering/Ergonomics ontology, and a Business ontology), and mapping the two creating a concept map that can be used to integrate HFE/E into businesses. The HFE/E ontology was built by generating two concept maps that were merged and then joined with a HFE/E discipline taxonomy. A total of four concept maps, two ontologies and a taxonomy were created, all of which are contributions to the HFE/E, and the business- and management-related fields.
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Date Issued: 2008
Identifier: CFE0002445, ucf:47716
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002445

Title: HUMAN SEXUALITY EDUCATION IN THE MIDDLE GRADES CLASSROOM: A REVIEW OF CURRICULA IN A SAMPLE OF FLORIDA SCHOOL DISTRICTS.
Creator: Myrick, Melinda, Boote, David, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This study examined the extent to which human sexuality topics are covered in Florida middle school science classrooms and the process by which curricular decisions are made regarding human sexuality education on a county-wide basis. Primary data included interviews with county-level administrators who oversee curricular decisions related to the middle-grades science curriculum or health curriculum in twelve school districts within the state. These districts represented four geographic...
Show moreThis study examined the extent to which human sexuality topics are covered in Florida middle school science classrooms and the process by which curricular decisions are made regarding human sexuality education on a county-wide basis. Primary data included interviews with county-level administrators who oversee curricular decisions related to the middle-grades science curriculum or health curriculum in twelve school districts within the state. These districts represented four geographic locations and districts of various sizes. Administrators from four of the twelve studies in the sample chose to provide information regarding their human sexuality education curriculum. In two cases, teacher leads were identified and were interviewed to understand the implementation of the curriculum within the classroom. Additional data were collected from the district curriculum guides for human sexuality education and the adopted middle-grades science textbook for each county. The interview and documentary data were analyzed by comparison to established criteria for a comprehensive human sexuality education curriculum. The analysis revealed that the scope of human sexuality education varied considerably within the sample and that much of the curricula in place failed to include topics and activities that have been identified as important in a successful human sexuality education program. These findings are limited because few counties chose to fully participate. Additional research is clearly needed to examine the effectiveness of existing human sexuality education curricula in Florida. In addition, research is needed to understand the characteristics, values, and beliefs of successful human sexuality education instructors across the state.
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Date Issued: 2007
Identifier: CFE0001640, ucf:47233
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0001640

Title: DOES SAFETY CULTURE PREDICT CLINICAL OUTCOMES?.
Creator: Wilson, Katherine, Salas, Eduardo, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Patient safety in healthcare has become a national objective. Healthcare organizations are striving to improve patient safety and have turned to high reliability organizations as those in which to model. One initiative taken on by healthcare is improving patient safety culture--shifting from one of a 'no harm, no foul' to a culture of learning that encourages the reporting of errors, even those in which patient harm does not occur. Lacking from the literature, however, is an...
Show morePatient safety in healthcare has become a national objective. Healthcare organizations are striving to improve patient safety and have turned to high reliability organizations as those in which to model. One initiative taken on by healthcare is improving patient safety culture--shifting from one of a 'no harm, no foul' to a culture of learning that encourages the reporting of errors, even those in which patient harm does not occur. Lacking from the literature, however, is an understanding of how safety culture impacts outcomes. While there has been some research done in this area, and safety culture is argued to have an impact, the findings are not very diagnostic. In other words, safety culture has been studied such that an overall safety culture rating is provided and it is shown that a positive safety culture improves outcomes. However, this method does little to tell an organization what aspects of safety culture impact outcomes. Therefore, this dissertation sought to answer that question but analyzing safety culture from multiple dimensions. The results found as a part of this effort support previous work in other domains suggesting that hospital management and supervisor support does lead to improved perceptions of safety. The link between this support and outcomes, such as incidents and incident reporting, is more difficult to determine. The data suggests that employees are willing to report errors when they occur, but the low occurrence of such reportable events in healthcare precludes them from doing so. When a closer look was taken at the type of incidents that were reported, a positive relationship was found between support for patient safety and medication incidents. These results initially seem counterintuitive. To suggest a positive relationship between safety culture and medication incidents on the surface detracts from the research in other domains suggesting the opposite. It could be the case that an increase in incidents leads an organization to implement additional patient safety efforts, and therefore employees perceive a more positive safety culture. Clearly more research is needed in this area. Suggestions for future research and practical implications of this study are provided.
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Date Issued: 2007
Identifier: CFE0001924, ucf:47472
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0001924

Title: A MARXIAN CONCEPT OF HUMAN NATURE IN DEFENSE OF ALIENATION: A REVOLUTIONARY EXEGESIS OF A REVOLUTIONARY PHILOSOPHY.
Creator: Byron, Christopher, Jones, Donald, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Two long-standing and erroneous claims have plagued Marxism for the past century. First, Marx held no static view of human-nature. Second, Marx's theory of alienation was the naïve view of a young Marx, which was jettisoned in his wiser adult years. Both views are demonstrable false. Moreover, the validity of his theory of human nature, and alienation, are contingent upon the acceptance of each other. One cannot fully comprehend his view of alienation without understanding his view of human...
Show moreTwo long-standing and erroneous claims have plagued Marxism for the past century. First, Marx held no static view of human-nature. Second, Marx's theory of alienation was the naïve view of a young Marx, which was jettisoned in his wiser adult years. Both views are demonstrable false. Moreover, the validity of his theory of human nature, and alienation, are contingent upon the acceptance of each other. One cannot fully comprehend his view of alienation without understanding his view of human nature, and vice versa. Upon demonstrating Marx's theory of human nature, and defending it as a crucial bedrock for the theory of alienation, mainstream rejections of each will be considered, and critiqued. The constant misunderstanding of Marx's theory of human nature comes in his unique theory of essence. He is an essentialist, with a fluid conception of man's essence. One's historical essence is an ensemble of socio-historical reflections, dialectically interplaying off a historically transcending essentialism.
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Date Issued: 2012
Identifier: CFH0004149, ucf:44831
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH0004149

Title: SURVEY OF COMPARATIVE HUMAN AND NON-HUMAN OSTEOLOGY: COMMON FLORIDA SPECIES.
Creator: Dewey, Jennifer, Schultz, John, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Forensic anthropologists are tasked with the responsibility of identifying human remains in a forensic context. This includes differentiating between human and non-human osteological remains, and further determining a species-specific identification when presented with non-human material. Previous research has provided manuals that are typically limited to one class of animal and includes either photographs or descriptions of cranial or post-cranial skeletal elements. Further, the available...
Show moreForensic anthropologists are tasked with the responsibility of identifying human remains in a forensic context. This includes differentiating between human and non-human osteological remains, and further determining a species-specific identification when presented with non-human material. Previous research has provided manuals that are typically limited to one class of animal and includes either photographs or descriptions of cranial or post-cranial skeletal elements. Further, the available resources generally cover a limited number of species from Florida's diverse habitat. Therefore, the intent of this thesis was to compile a comprehensive comparative osteological guide of local Florida species that addressed both cranial and postcranial skeletal elements. The first aspect of this research was to identify the most common Florida species typically analyzed in a medicolegal context. At the same time, represented examples were identified at the class level for birds, reptiles, and marine mammals. Next, the analysis consisted of detailed photographic documentation of cranial and post-cranial skeletal elements at three collections. The Anthropology Department teaching lab at UCF and the Biology Department Vertebrate Collection as well as the University of Florida's Zooarchaeology Comparative Collection. The images were then edited to highlight the most diagnostic features exhibited among the different taxonomic families. These results were then complied into a series of guidelines to aid in a family and species-specific identification to be used during an investigation when presented with a whole skeleton, a single skeletal element, or fragmentary remains.
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Date Issued: 2013
Identifier: CFH0004518, ucf:45222
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH0004518

Title: DATA ENTRY ERROR IN MOBILE KEYBOARD DEVICE USAGE SUBJECT TO COGNITIVE, ENVIRONMENTAL, AND COMMUNICATION WORKLOAD STRESSORS PRESENT IN FULLY ACTIVATED EMERGENCY OPERATIONS CENTERS.
Creator: Durrani, Samiullah, Bush, Pamela, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: The diversity and dynamic nature of disaster management environments necessitate the use of convenient, yet reliable, tools for technology. While there have been many improvements in mitigating the effects of disasters, it is clearly evident by recent events, such as Hurricane Katrina that issues related to emergency response and management require considerable research and improvement to effectively respond to these situations. One of the links in a disaster management chain is the Emergency...
Show moreThe diversity and dynamic nature of disaster management environments necessitate the use of convenient, yet reliable, tools for technology. While there have been many improvements in mitigating the effects of disasters, it is clearly evident by recent events, such as Hurricane Katrina that issues related to emergency response and management require considerable research and improvement to effectively respond to these situations. One of the links in a disaster management chain is the Emergency Operations Center (EOC). The EOC is a physical command center responsible for the overall strategic control of the disaster response and functions as an information and communication hub. The effectiveness and accuracy of the disaster response greatly depends on the quality and timeliness of inter-personnel communication within an EOC. The advent of handheld mobile communication devices have introduced new avenues of communication that been widely adopted by disaster management officials. The portability afforded by these devices allows users to exchange, manage and access vital information during critical situations. While their use and importance is gaining momentum, little is still known about the ergonomic and human reliability implications of human-handheld interaction, particularly in an Emergency Operations Center setting. The purpose of this effort is to establish basic human error probabilities (bHEP's) for handheld QWERTY data entry and to study the effects of various performance shaping factors, specifically, environmental conditions, communication load, and cognitive load. The factors selected are designed to simulate the conditions prevalent in an Emergency Operations Center. The objectives are accomplished through a three-factor between-subjects randomized full factorial experiment in which a bHEP value of 0.0296 is found. It is also determined that a combination of cognitive loading and environmental conditions has a statistically significant detrimental impact on the HEP.
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Date Issued: 2009
Identifier: CFE0002828, ucf:48059
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002828

Title: Transparency and Communication Patterns in Human-Robot Teaming.
Creator: Lakhmani, Shan, Barber, Daniel, Jentsch, Florian, Reinerman, Lauren, Guznov, Svyatoslav, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: In anticipation of the complex, dynamic battlefields of the future, military operations are increasingly demanding robots with increased autonomous capabilities to support soldiers. Effective communication is necessary to establish a common ground on which human-robot teamwork can be established across the continuum of military operations. However, the types and format of communication for mixed-initiative collaboration is still not fully understood. This study explores two approaches to...
Show moreIn anticipation of the complex, dynamic battlefields of the future, military operations are increasingly demanding robots with increased autonomous capabilities to support soldiers. Effective communication is necessary to establish a common ground on which human-robot teamwork can be established across the continuum of military operations. However, the types and format of communication for mixed-initiative collaboration is still not fully understood. This study explores two approaches to communication in human-robot interaction, transparency and communication pattern, and examines how manipulating these elements with a robot teammate affects its human counterpart in a collaborative exercise. Participants were coupled with a computer-simulated robot to perform a cordon-and-search-like task. A human-robot interface provided different transparency types(-)about the robot's decision making process alone, or about the robot's decision making process and its prediction of the human teammate's decision making process(-)and different communication patterns(-)either conveying information to the participant or both conveying information to and soliciting information from the participant. This experiment revealed that participants found robots that both conveyed and solicited information to be more animate, likeable, and intelligent than their less interactive counterparts, but working with those robots led to more misses in a target classification task. Furthermore, the act of responding to the robot led to a reduction in the number of correct identifications made, but only when the robot was solely providing information about its own decision making process. Findings from this effort inform the design of next-generation visual displays supporting human-robot teaming.
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Date Issued: 2019
Identifier: CFE0007481, ucf:52674
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007481

Title: A STUDY OF FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO SELF-REPORTED ANOMALIES IN CIVIL AVIATION.
Creator: Andrzejczak, Chris, Karwowski, Waldemar, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: A study investigating what factors are present leading to pilots submitting voluntary anomaly reports regarding their flight performance was conducted. The study employed statistical methods, text mining, clustering, and dimensional reduction techniques in an effort to determine relationships between factors and anomalies. A review of the literature was conducted to determine what factors are contributing to these anomalous incidents, as well as what research exists on human error, its causes...
Show moreA study investigating what factors are present leading to pilots submitting voluntary anomaly reports regarding their flight performance was conducted. The study employed statistical methods, text mining, clustering, and dimensional reduction techniques in an effort to determine relationships between factors and anomalies. A review of the literature was conducted to determine what factors are contributing to these anomalous incidents, as well as what research exists on human error, its causes, and its management. Data from the NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS) was analyzed using traditional statistical methods such as frequencies and multinomial logistic regression. Recently formalized approaches in text mining such as Knowledge Based Discovery (KBD) and Literature Based Discovery (LBD) were employed to create associations between factors and anomalies. These methods were also used to generate predictive models. Finally, advances in dimensional reduction techniques identified concepts or keywords within records, thus creating a framework for an unsupervised document classification system. Findings from this study reinforced established views on contributing factors to civil aviation anomalies. New associations between previously unrelated factors and conditions were also found. Dimensionality reduction also demonstrated the possibility of identifying salient factors from unstructured text records, and was able to classify these records using these identified features.
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Date Issued: 2010
Identifier: CFE0003463, ucf:48382
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0003463

Title: HUMANIZING TECHNICAL COMMUNICATION WITH METAPHOR.
Creator: McClure, Ashley, Jones, Dan, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: This thesis explores how metaphors can humanize a technical document and more effectively facilitate user comprehension. The frequent use of metaphor in technical communication reminds us that the discipline is highly creative and rhetorical. Theory demonstrates that a technical text involves interpretation and subjectivity during both its creation by the technical communicator and its application by the user. If employed carefully and skillfully, metaphor can be a powerful tool to ensure...
Show moreThis thesis explores how metaphors can humanize a technical document and more effectively facilitate user comprehension. The frequent use of metaphor in technical communication reminds us that the discipline is highly creative and rhetorical. Theory demonstrates that a technical text involves interpretation and subjectivity during both its creation by the technical communicator and its application by the user. If employed carefully and skillfully, metaphor can be a powerful tool to ensure users' needs are met during this process. The primary goal of technical communication is to convey information to an audience as clearly and efficiently as possible. Because of the often complex nature of technical content, users are likely to feel alienated, overwhelmed, or simply uninterested if the information presented seems exceedingly unfamiliar or complicated. If users experience any of these reactions, they are inclined to abandon the document, automatically rendering it unsuccessful. I identify metaphor as a means to curtail such an occurrence. Using examples from a variety of technical communication genres, I illustrate how metaphors can humanize a technical document by establishing a strong link between the document and its users.
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Date Issued: 2009
Identifier: CFE0002948, ucf:47979
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002948

Title: THE EFFECTS OF MULTIMODAL FEEDBACK AND AGE ON A MOUSE POINTING TASK.
Creator: Oakley, Brian, Smither, Janan, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: As the beneficial aspects of computers become more apparent to the elderly population and the baby boom generation moves into later adulthood there is opportunity to increase performance for older computer users. Performance decrements that occur naturally to the motor skills of older adults have shown to have a negative effect on interactions with indirect-manipulation devices, such as computer mice (Murata & Iwase, 2005). Although, a mouse will always have the traits of an indirect...
Show moreAs the beneficial aspects of computers become more apparent to the elderly population and the baby boom generation moves into later adulthood there is opportunity to increase performance for older computer users. Performance decrements that occur naturally to the motor skills of older adults have shown to have a negative effect on interactions with indirect-manipulation devices, such as computer mice (Murata & Iwase, 2005). Although, a mouse will always have the traits of an indirect-manipulation interaction, the inclusion of additional sensory feedback likely increases the saliency of the task to the real world resulting in increases in performance (Biocca et al., 2002). There is strong evidence for a bimodal advantage that is present in people of all ages; additionally there is also very strong evidence that older adults are a group that uses extra sensory information to increase their everyday interactions with the environment (Cienkowski & Carney, 2002; Thompson & Malloy, 2004). This study examined the effects of having multimodal feedback (i.e., visual cues, auditory cues, and tactile cues) present during a target acquisition mouse task for young, middle-aged, and older experienced computer users. This research examined the performance and subjective attitudes when performing a mouse based pointing task when different combinations of the modalities were present. The inclusion of audio or tactile cues during the task had the largest positive effect on performance, resulting in significantly quicker task completion for all of the computer users. The presence of audio or tactile cues increased performance for all of the age groups; however the performance of the older adults tended to be positively influenced more than the other age groups due the inclusion of these modalities. Additionally, the presence of visual cues did not have as strong of an effect on overall performance in comparison to the other modalities. Although the presence of audio and tactile feedback both increased performance there was evidence of a speed accuracy trade-off. Both the audio and tactile conditions resulted in a significantly higher number of misses in comparison to having no additional cues or visual cues present. So, while the presence of audio and tactile feedback improved the speed at which the task could be completed this occurred due to a sacrifice in accuracy. Additionally, this study shows strong evidence that audio and tactile cues are undesirable to computer users. The findings of this research are important to consider prior to adding extra sensory modalities to any type of user interface. The idea that additional feedback is always better may not always hold true if the feedback is found to be distracting, annoying, or negatively affects accuracy, as was found in this study with audio and tactile cues.
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Date Issued: 2009
Identifier: CFE0002692, ucf:48188
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002692

Title: THE EFFECT OF RACE ON PARENTS' INTENT TO VACCINATE THEIR CHILDREN AGAINST HUMAN PAPILLOMAVIRUS.
Creator: Ruiz Aguilar, Ariana L, Weiss, Josie, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a sexually transmitted disease that often presents as genital warts, but may also lead to cancers, including those of the vagina, penis, mouth and tonsils. Despite three vaccines being currently available to prevent HPV, the HPV vaccine retains a low national average vaccination rate when compared to the Tetanus-Diptheria- Pertussis (Tdap) vaccine. Considering the need for improvement it is important to identify factors that may be contributing to this low...
Show moreHuman papillomavirus (HPV) is a sexually transmitted disease that often presents as genital warts, but may also lead to cancers, including those of the vagina, penis, mouth and tonsils. Despite three vaccines being currently available to prevent HPV, the HPV vaccine retains a low national average vaccination rate when compared to the Tetanus-Diptheria- Pertussis (Tdap) vaccine. Considering the need for improvement it is important to identify factors that may be contributing to this low national immunization rate, one of them being parental race. The purpose of this literature review is to identify whether race affects parents' intent to vaccinate their children against HPV. A database search of CINAHL Plus with Full Text, MEDLINE, and PsycINFO was conducted and a total of 13 articles were reviewed based on the relevance to the purpose of the literature review. While racial differences were noted, there were other factors that also affect a parent's intent to vaccinate their children against HPV. There is more research to be done when looking at how race may independently affect a parent's intent to vaccinate their children against HPV.
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Date Issued: 2018
Identifier: CFH2000304, ucf:45849
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH2000304

Title: SEX TRAFFICKING: FLORIDA'S RESPONSE TO THE INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZED CRIME.
Creator: Torres, Candice, Sadri, Dr. Houman, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Florida has the second-highest incidence of human trafficking in the country. Sex trafficking of women into and out of the state of Florida is defined by various terms from international, national and local terms. The United Nations defines sex trafficking in Article 3, paragraph (a) of the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children, Supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime as: "Trafficking in persons...
Show moreFlorida has the second-highest incidence of human trafficking in the country. Sex trafficking of women into and out of the state of Florida is defined by various terms from international, national and local terms. The United Nations defines sex trafficking in Article 3, paragraph (a) of the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children, Supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime as: "Trafficking in persons: shall mean the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation". This study explores the experiences of women who have been trafficked as well as the recruitment strategies by which women are trafficked and to what extent their life changes. This study aims to understand the extent to which local nonprofits in the state of Florida have tackled the issue as well as the international, federal and state government laws are enforced. The findings will provide useful guidelines to help nonprofits in the state of Florida work together to combat the issue as well as be used as an informative research proposal for the community to push stronger legislation and raise more awareness.
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Date Issued: 2011
Identifier: CFH0003857, ucf:44688
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH0003857

Title: HUMAN RESOURCES: A KEY ASPECT IN COMPANY INNOVATION.
Creator: Hall, Kristin, Danneels, Erwin, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Innovation is a key factor for companies. It is also essential on an individual scale for employees. To ensure they are utilizing employees to the utmost efficiency, companies must implement practices to ensure the attraction and retention of top employees. Human resource practices can help to define and explain essential techniques to help employees gain satisfaction from their work, creating intrinsic motivation, and allowing them to ultimately perform more efficiently and perhaps even...
Show moreInnovation is a key factor for companies. It is also essential on an individual scale for employees. To ensure they are utilizing employees to the utmost efficiency, companies must implement practices to ensure the attraction and retention of top employees. Human resource practices can help to define and explain essential techniques to help employees gain satisfaction from their work, creating intrinsic motivation, and allowing them to ultimately perform more efficiently and perhaps even creatively for the company, helping to generate significant profits. The intent of this thesis is to analyze human resource practices on an empirical study of eight companies (provided from a previous study by Erwin Danneels, Ph.D.) and to determine whether or not human resource practices can help predict a firm's ability to enter new markets and implement new technologies, ultimately leading to innovation. Companies are grouped depending on their residual values generated from Danneels' study and analysis. His research observes the ability to predict new market entrance and technology implementation through five company characteristics: constructive conflict, willingness to cannibalize, slack, learning from failure, and various types of environmental scanning. This thesis seeks to find positive relationships between human resource practices and the companies where the model proves to be a good fit. I define human resource practices by the following six categories, breaking them up into incentives and skill development: extra benefits, fitness incentives, social responsibility, and continuous learning, global opportunities, and rewards/opportunities for advancement. This analysis hopes to contribute to further research by generating an association between human resource practices and company innovation.
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Date Issued: 2011
Identifier: CFH0004097, ucf:44805
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH0004097

Title: An Agent Based Model to assess crew temporal variability during U.S. Navy shipboard operations.
Creator: Muhs, Kevin, Karwowski, Waldemar, Elshennawy, Ahmad, Hancock, Peter, Sjoden, Glenn, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description: Understanding the factors that affect human performance variability as well as their temporal impacts is an essential element in fully integrating and designing complex, adaptive environments. This understanding is particularly necessary for high stakes, time-critical routines such as those performed during nuclear reactor, air traffic control, and military operations. Over the last three decades significant efforts have emerged to demonstrate and apply a host of techniques to include...
Show moreUnderstanding the factors that affect human performance variability as well as their temporal impacts is an essential element in fully integrating and designing complex, adaptive environments. This understanding is particularly necessary for high stakes, time-critical routines such as those performed during nuclear reactor, air traffic control, and military operations. Over the last three decades significant efforts have emerged to demonstrate and apply a host of techniques to include Discrete Event Simulation, Bayesian Belief Networks, Neural Networks, and a multitude of existing software applications to provide relevant assessments of human task performance and temporal variability. The objective of this research was to design and develop a novel Agent Based Modeling and Simulation (ABMS) methodology to generate a timeline of work and assess impacts of crew temporal variability during U.S. Navy Small Boat Defense operations in littoral waters.The developed ABMS methodology included human performance models for six crew members (agents) as well as a threat craft, and incorporated varying levels of crew capability and task support. AnyLogic ABMS software was used to simultaneously provide detailed measures of individual sailor performance and of system-level emergent behavior. This methodology and these models were adapted and built to assure extensibility across a broad range of U.S. Navy shipboard operations.Application of the developed ABMS methodology effectively demonstrated a way to visualize and quantify impacts/uncertainties of human temporal variability on both workload and crew effectiveness during U.S. Navy shipboard operations.
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Date Issued: 2018
Identifier: CFE0007592, ucf:52549
Format: Document (PDF)
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007592

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