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Item Economic Benefits of Precision Agricultural Technologies(North Dakota State University, 2022) Jahan, MohsinaThe purpose of this research was to build a model of profitability that can be used by individual farmers to calculate the net benefits of using precision agricultural technologies on their farms. Three case farms were selected. Partial budgeting analysis is used to calculate the net profit effect of adopting precision agricultural technology bundles. Two scenarios were compared: farms adopting precision agricultural technologies and farms not adopting. Revenues and costs that differ between the two scenarios are included in the model. A six-step process was employed and @Risk was used to account for risk. Results show that adopting PA is profitable for farms with moderate input use variability and this is amplified with higher input prices.Item Psychological Stress, Stress Reactivity and Blood Glucose Metabolization During Pregnancy(North Dakota State University, 2020) Strahm, Anna MarieGestational diabetes mellitus impacts between 3-10% of pregnancies, and increases the risk of pregnancy complications and lifelong health effects for mother and child (Bellamy, Casas, Hingorani, & Williams, 2009; Ross, 2006; Ryser Rüetschi et al., 2016). About half of cases occur without an evident risk factor (American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), 1994; Dode & Santos, 2009). The present study was designed to examine possible psychophysiological connections linking psychological stress and stress reactivity, the magnitude of an individual’s response to stress, to blood sugar metabolization during mid-pregnancy between 24-28 weeks gestation. Participants were recruited from Sanford Health in Fargo, where patients underwent routine Oral Glucose Tolerance Testing (OGTT) a diagnostic assessment in which higher results indicate less blood sugar metabolization. They also completed a Virtual Trier Social Stress Task while psychological and physiological markers of stress reactivity were assessed. Additionally, maternal stress and stress reactivity were assessed using psychosocial questionnaires. There was support for proposed psychophysiological connections, including models in which positive associations between OGTT and maternal stress and anxiety were moderated by psychological stress reactivity. Results suggest that both the presence of stress and a women’s responses to that stress are influential over blood glucose metabolization during pregnancy. Continuing research in this area may have implications for improving outcomes of women at higher risk of GDM and other adverse pregnancy and perinatal outcomes.Item Hot Electron Effect in Ultrathin Photovoltaic Junctions(North Dakota State University, 2012) Mihaylov, Deyan IvovThe focus of the research work described in the following thesis is increasing the efficiency of photovoltaic devices by reducing hot carrier thermalization losses. In principle this can be achieved by reducing the size of the absorber down to lengths comparable to the thermalization length for hot carriers. With the use of ultrathin absorbers hot carrier can be collected before they have reached thermal equilibrium with the lattice. The theoretical work on the subject is comprised of improving the empirical relationship developed in the most recent publication on the topic by. By making the assumption that the energy loss rate fits the exponential decay model, an expression for the energy as a function of absorber thickness was developed. The experimental work consist of fabricating devices with different absorber thicknesses and testing their ability to show change in performance due to collection of hot electrons.Item NDSU's Back on TRAC Program: Policy Recommendations(North Dakota State University, 2010) Gonzales, Carmen CaitlinAlcohol and other drug use by college students has been considered by college administrators to be problematic for many years, but strategies in place were not effective or were being under-utilized. Data taken from both the NDSU CORE Survey on Alcohol and Other Drug Use as well as the national CORE survey indicate that many students use alcohol as their drug of choice; 71 % of those surveyed reported using alcohol within the 30 days prior to survey administration. In 2006, North Dakota State University was selected as a pilot institution for the Back on TRAC program. Back on TRAC utilizes a holistic approach based on the drug court model and public health and combines this approach with rewards and sanctions for compliance with program requirements to provide treatment for substance abuse to college students. The program was implemented in 2008, and since then, 8 students have participated in Back on TRAC at NDSU. Based on the Back on TRAC program used at NDSU, three recommendations have been made to increase the provision of services to program participants. These recommendations were developed using information collected about the program currently in place at NDSU, as well as information collected about the Back on TRAC program at Colorado State University, Oklahoma State University, and Texas A&M.Item A Professional Development Plan for Educators Working with Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder Transitioning into Standard Childcare Settings(North Dakota State University, 2022) Reiser, Jennifer LeeStandard childcare centers are continuing to become more inclusive to individuals of all abilities. Transition plans from specialized services such as Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) often include discharge criteria and a discharge transition plan for the child, but often do not include any training or development plan for educators in a standard childcare setting. Due to the limited number of plans available, transition plans vary greatly in how comprehensive they are as every organization creates their own plan or transitions children into the childcare setting without an identified plan. This paper proposes a professional development plan for educators working with children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) transitioning into a standard childcare program. The program includes staff training and support, and collaboration partnerships.Item New Old Stock(North Dakota State University, 2012) Lippert, NicholasThis project, Detroit’s New Workforce: A Detroit Renewable Energy Workforce Training Center, examines how and where the sense of place exists within a construction. From that conclusion, it will investigate how sense of place lives within a new environment. The proposed 29,000 square foot commercial building in downtown Detroit sits on the site of a recently demolished building. The new construction will continue the previous sense of place to make the it more significant culturally.Item The Psyche of a Building: An Exploration of how Buildings Relate to the Human Psyche Through a Renovated Farmstead(North Dakota State University, 2020) Kingston, VeronicaFarmsteads have been steady reminders of how this country got its start. Hard work, family, faith, and community were all aspects of farm life. Each home was built with the help of neighbors, children learned how to do chores early in life, people respected the land and knew how important it was to the survival of the family. Now as people move into the cities for the comforts of modern day living the old farmsteads are falling into disrepair or torn down for land development. The cost of repairing the old buildings seems like a daunting task, one that many people deem unimportant. What are we losing with this line of thinking? Buildings not only have their own psyche; they also contribute to ours. How we interact and what happens within a building adds to our emotions. Think of your favorite place to be, is it big or small? Spacious or intimate? Dark or light? How did you feel in that space? Attics, basements, corners, all of these are connected to our consciousness. This project explores these situations through the texts of Gaston Bachelard and Anne Bordeleau, while situating these inspirations within the renovations of a farmhouse and surround structure in the rural Mid-West.Item The Boundaries of Social Entrepreneurship in Higher Education: A New Framework(North Dakota State University, 2016) Reid, Michele McFaddenSocial entrepreneurship (SE) incorporates the more ethical dimensions of innovative business practices in the pursuit of financial sustainability in the advancement of societal goals, and is intended to empower all participants while bringing about positive changes in communities and society at large. An increasing number of colleges and universities are now embracing SE to stay competitive in the higher education market, find new sources of income in times of fiscal constraint, and align with their public service missions. However, despite the interest in SE on the part of the academic community, there is no broad or consistent understanding regarding what actually constitutes SE in higher education settings (SEHE), or about how it is being carried out in the institutions that have adopted SEHE. A multi-case study design explores a proposed initial SEHE framework developed from the literature through a qualitative analysis of the experiences of five higher education institutions recognized for their adoption of SE practices. This qualitative approach utilizing the lens of structuration theory enables the development of a complex understanding of SEHE as a multifaceted social phenomenon derived through the examination of its actors in their structural context. The revised SIEHE framework, informed by the experiences of these exemplar institutions, is intended both to advance scholarly understanding of the elements and process of SIEHE, and to serve as a model for those undertaking or considering SE implementations at other colleges and universities. The framework sheds new light on the definitional and operational aspects of SE, and translates concepts that have previously been largely confined to the business literature to other disciplines, enabling their adoption by scholars and practitioners in such diverse areas as education, the social sciences, and the liberal arts. While allowing for a broader scope of the types of socially beneficial projects that could be undertaken by agents, including faculty from a larger range of disciplines, SIEHE’s emphasis on financial sustainability should also be attractive to administrations for enabling access to alternative funding sources.Item Parallel Particle Swarm Optimization(North Dakota State University, 2016) Manne, PriyankaPSO is a population based evolutionary algorithm and is motivated from the simulation of social behavior, which differs from the natural selection scheme of genetic algorithms. It is an optimization technique based on swarm intelligence, which simulates the bio-inspired behavior. PSO is a popular global search method and the algorithm is being widely used in conjunction with several other algorithms in different fields of study. Modern day computational problems demand highly capable processing machines and improved optimization techniques. Since it is being widely used, it is important to search for ways to speed up the process of PSO, as the complexity of the problems increase. The paper describes a way to improve it via parallelization. The parallel PSO algorithm’s robustness and efficiency is demonstrated. This paper evaluates the parallelized version of the PSO algorithm with the use of Parallel Computing Toolbox available in Matlab.Item Surface Property Modification of Coatings via Self-Stratification(North Dakota State University, 2010) Pieper, Robert JosephBiological fouling occurs everywhere in the marine environment and is a significant problem for marine vessels. Anti-fouling coatings have been used effectively to prevent fouling; however, these coatings harm non-targeted sea-life. Fouling-release coatings (FRC) appear to be an alternative way to combat fouling. FRC do not necessarily prevent the settlement of marine organisms but rather allow their easy removal with application of shear to the coatings surface. These coatings must be non-toxic, non-leaching, have low surface energy, low modulus, and durability to provide easy removal of marine organisms. Here the goal is to develop FRC based on thermosetting siloxane-polyurethane, amphiphilic polyurethane, and zwitterionic/amphiphilic polyurethane systems. A combinatorial high-throughput approach has been taken in order to explore the variables that may affect the performance of the final coatings. Libraries of acrylic polyols were synthesized using combinatorial high-throughput techniques by either batch or semi-batch processes. The design of the experiments for the batch and semi-batch processes were done combinatorially to explore a range of compositions and various reaction process variables that cannot be accomplished or are not suitable for single reaction experiments. Characterization of Rapid-GPC, high-throughput DSC, and gravimetrically calculated percent solids verified the effects of different reaction conditions on the MW, glass transition temperatures, and percent conversion of the different compositions of acrylic polyols. Coatings were characterized for their surface energy, pseudobarnacle pull-off adhesion, and were subjected to bioassays including marine bacteria, algae, and barnacles. From the performance properties results the acrylic polyol containing 20% hydroxyethyl acrylate and 80% butyl acrylate was selected for further siloxane-polyurethane formulations and were subjected to the same physical, mechanical, and performance testing. Amiphiphilic copolymers based on PDMS molecular weight and the addition of PEG based polymer blocks on the properties of acrylic-polyurethane coatings were explored. The key properties screened were surface energy, determined by contact angle measurements using water and methylene iodide, dynamic water contact angle, and pseudobarnacle adhesion properties. The data from all of the biological assays indicates that the novel coatings were able to resist fouling and have low fouling adhesion for the broad variety of fouling organisms tested.