Electrical Engineering

ABSTRACTLee, Yi-Mu. Breakdown and reliability of CMOS devices with stacked oxide/nitride and oxynitride gate dielectrics prepared by RPECVD. (Under the direction of Professor Gerald Lucovsky)Remote-plasma-enhanced CVD (RPECVD) silicon nitride and silicon oxynitride alloys have been proposed to be the attractive alternatives to replace conventional oxides as the CMOS logic and memory technology node is scaled beyond 100 nm. This dissertation is focused on the degradation and breakdown of RPECVD s...

English

ABSTRACTMASSEY, KATHRYN REBECCA. Shattering the Empty Vessel: Absence and Language in Addies Chapter of Faulkners As I Lay Dying. (Under the direction of Nick Halpern.)When Faulkner centers Addie Bundrens monologue both symbolically and literally in As I Lay Dying, her presence in the novel is complicated by the fact that she is also the embodiment of absence. Correspondingly, Addies monologue works to expose a similar paradox, which lies at the core of language itself: she insists that each wor...

Aerospace Engineering

Two approaches for the autonomous control of aerospace vehicle formations are developed. The development of the approaches relies on fundamental work in the areas of distributed control; specifically modal, robust, optimal, and decentralized control. The algorithms are shown to satisfy five separation principles that simplify design and enable the algorithms to be implemented reliably. The autonomous controllers uniformly dampen the modes of the formation (global control) using a decentralized a...

Entomology

AbstractBORCHERT, DANIEL MICHAEL. Oriental fruit moth phenology in North Carolina apples and ecdysone agonist activity on oriental fruit moth and codling moth. (Under the direction of James F. Walgenbach and George G. Kennedy).Oriental fruit moth, Grapholita molesta (Busck) and codling moth, Cydia pomonella (L.), are internal fruit pests of apple. Codling moth is recognized as a pest of apple, but until the last several years, oriental fruit moth was considered primarily a pest of peaches. Elimi...

Biological and Agricultural Engineering

The purpose of this research was to determine the percentage of nitrogen excreted that needs to be land applied and the effects of three factors, facility type, geographic location and lagoon loading concentrations, on the quantity of nitrogen available for land application following anaerobic treatment and storage. This quantitative research was conducted on data collected from 1995 - 1997 to determine if a correlation exists between the lagoon inflow nitrogen concentration and the percentage o...

Sociology

The modern hospice movement began in the 1960s as a response to the rationalization of care for the dying. Ironically, however, hospice organizations have themselves become increasingly rationalized over time, with the advent of Medicare certification and conventional accreditation practices. Despite this, contemporary hospice practitioners must still attempt to follow the holistic philosophy which originally made hospice unique. Thus, they encounter a dilemma of trying to enact an alternative p...

English

While much has been written about Eve

Zoology

MUIZNIEKS, BRITTA DACE. Population Viability Analysis of Puerto Rican Parrots: an assessment of its current status and prognosis for recovery. (Under the direction of Dr. Jaime A. Collazo.)Despite 34 years of recovery efforts, the Puerto Rican Parrot continues to face a high risk of extinction. In 2002 the population count was estimated at 20-24 individuals, similar to post-hurricane Hugo counts (23) and close to the all time low count of 17-19 individuals in 1973. In light of this situation, co...

Economics

The purpose of this research is to analyze the dynamic response of an industry to production subsidies and to trade restrictions on a competing product. Specifically I examine the U.S. sheep industry and compare the effects of a production intervention similar to the Wool Act and to a tariff-rate quota. I begin with a dynamic profit function and derive an Euler equation. I use the iterated generalized method of moments to estimate the demand for slaughter lambs, the Euler equation, and the deman...

Electrical Engineering

In this thesis, we propose a theoretical as well as practical framework to combine geometric prior information to a statistical/probabilitstic methodology in the investigation of a denoising problem in its generic form together with its various applications in signal/image analysis.<p>We are able in the process, to investigate, understand and mitigate existing limitations of so-called nonlinear diffusion techniques (such as the Perona-Malik equation) from a probabilistic view point...

Mathematics Education

The purpose of this literature review is to examine the role that reasoning and geometric proof play in the teaching and learning of mathematics. Specifically, I explore four questions: 1) What reasoning capabilities do students need to be ready for proof? 2) What evidence is there to show that high school students are not successful with proof and hold misconceptions about the nature of proof? 3) How can teachers beliefs and understandings contribute to students proof abilities? 4) What can be ...

Textile and Apparel, Technology and Management

The purpose of this research was to analyze how a niche strategy can be used by US textile and apparel companies to compete with lower priced imports. With the increasing globalization of the industry, it has been suggested that companies focus on products that offer a competitive advantage over commodity products (Standard and Poors, 2003). One way of doing this is to focus on specialized, or niche, products.The conceptual models used in this study provided a framework for specialization within...

Microbiology

Viral myocarditis may be caused by a number of different viruses, and the mechanisms of pathogenicity can be both immune mediated and/or due to direct cytopathic effect. While extensive research has been done regarding immune-mediated mechanisms, the mechanisms of direct cytopathic effect remain largely unexplored. Reovirus induced murine myocarditis is not immune mediated, providing for an excellent disease model. Reovirus induction of, and sensitivity to, interferon-beta (IFN-ß) has p...

Mathematics

Victor Kac and Robert Moody independently introduced Kac-Moody algebras around 1968. These Lie algebras have numerous applications in physics and mathematics and thus have been the subject of much study over the last three decades. Kac-Moody algebras are classified as finite, affine, or indefinite type. A basic problem concerning these algebras is finding their root multiplicities. The root multiplicities of finite and affine type Kac-Moody algebras are well known. However, determining the root ...

Biomathematics

Multiple disease susceptibility alleles, genotype errors, or missing genotype data can create problems when testing for association between alleles or genotypes at a genetic marker and a dichotomous phenotype. I used likelihood methods to study the impact of each of these factors on detecting association. In the presence of multiple disease susceptibility alleles, I found that power of the likelihood ratio test (LRT) declines less when based on haplotypes made up of tightly linked single nucleot...

Psychology

AbstractMARASCA, ERIN KATHLEEN. Long-term Effects of Pediatric Cancer on Siblings: A Qualitative Analysis. (Under the direction of Ann C. Schulte, Ph.D.)Eleven siblings of pediatric cancer patients between the ages of 15 and 18 and their parents participated in a qualitative study of siblings long-term adjustment to pediatric cancer. The qualitative design included two methods of data collection from the same informant (i.e., individual interviews and group interview with siblings), and two diff...

Electrical Engineering

In previous studies, device quality Si-SiO2 interfaces and dielectric bulk films (SiO2) were prepared using a two-step process; i) remote plasma-assisted oxidation (RPAO) to form a superficially interfacial oxide (~0.6 nm) and ii) remote plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (RPECVD) to deposit the oxide film. The same approach has been applied to the GaN-SiO2 system. After a 300 oC remote N2/He plasma treatment of the GaN surface, residual C and Cl were reduced below Auger electron spectros...

Crop Science

Gene flow from transgenic crops to wild relatives resulting in transgenic hybrid populations is a possible outcome of the utilization of genetically modified crops. In order to develop a transgene flow model, canola (Brassica napus) was transformed with two GFP constructs, mGFP5er (GFP) and pSAM 12 (GFP linked to a synthetic Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) cry1Ac gene). GFP fluorescence was analyzed during leaf development, and was variable at each leaf position over time and among different leaves ...

Entomology

<CENTER><B>ABSTRACT</B></CENTER><BR>Hill, Hilary Nan. Phylogenetic Utility of Two New Nuclear Genes, Opsin and CAD, within the stiletto flies (Diptera: Therevidae) (Under the direction of Brian M. Wiegmann).<BR><br>A need for multiple phylogenetic markers to reconstruct evolutionary relationships is increasingly apparent within both the Therevidae and insect systematics as a whole, especially marker...

Mathematics

The purpose of this research is to determine some topologicalcharacteristics that may be used to classify a Hausdorffcompactification of a topological space as a complex compactification,within the lattice of compactifications. The Stone-Cech compactificationis the supremum of the lattice, the Alexandroff one-point compactificationthe infimum. We look to characteristics that the Stone-Cech compactificationholds and whether or not those properties are found in compactifications "close"t...

Computer Science

Bounds violations or <i>buffer overruns</i> have historically been a major source of defects in software systems, making bounds checking a key component in practical automatic verification methods. With the advent of the Internet,buffer overruns have been exploited by attackers to break into secure systems as well. Many security violations ranging from the 1988 Internet worm incident to the AnalogX Proxy server vulnerability have been attributed to buffer overruns. Pr...

Higher Education Administration

MORRISSEY, SHARON ELIZABETH VANHOOK. Female Community College Presidents Career Development Processes: A Qualitative Analysis. (Under the direction of Dr. George B. Vaughan.)The purpose of this study was to gain a better understanding of female community college presidents career development processes and of the experiences that influenced their decisions to become community college presidents. Although more women than ever are moving into the highest positions of leadership in community college...

Horticultural Science

<p class=MsoNormal style= text-indent:.5in;line-height:200% >The flowers of 9cultivars, 4 F<sub>1</sub> hybrid plants, and one F<sub>2</sub> hybrid plant ofstokes aster <span style= mso-bidi-font-weight:bold >[<i>Stokesia laevis</i>(J. Hill) Greene]</span> were analyzed using high performance liquidchromatography (HPLC) to determine pigment composition.<spanstyle= ...

Food Science

<p><META [NAME="keywords" CONTENT="bacterial-pathogens, bacteriocins, Citric acid, EDTA, foodborne illnesses, formulation, growth curve, nisin, poultry, Salmonella, salmonella typhimurium, Salmonellosis, shelf-life, shelflife, simplex search algorithm, treatment optimization" NAME="copyright" CONTENT="© Sarid M. Shefet 1994"]><b>SHEFET, SARID M.<br><p><p><p&...

Food Science

<p><META [NAME="keywords" CONTENT="aseptic, sterilizers, flow, particulates, food, food-particles, heat-transfer, heat transfer, flow-visualization, flow visualization, visualization" NAME="copyright" CONTENT="© Sarid M. Shefet 1998"]><b>SHEFET, SARID M.<br><p><p><p>     Presently, conventional continuous pasteuriza...

Zoology

<p>The mechanism of sperm transfer and sperm organization inside the spermatheca was investigated in two grasshoppers, (Scudder) and (DeGeer). The spermathecae were examined histologically from females whose copulations were interrupted at various prescribed intervals, either during their first or subsequent mating. Sperm organization inside the spermatheca from 24 to 120 hours after copulation had terminated was also investigated in . Scanning and transmission electron microscopy ...

Chemical Engineering

<p> </HEAD><BODY><P>Poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) is widely used as a barrier packagingmaterial for several food and beverage products. However, PET does not havesufficient barrier properties for many food and beverage packaging applications.The shelf life of these products can be compromised by the migration ofsmall molecules such as oxygen, water, or organic flavor molecules throughpackaging materials. Copolymerization of PET with po...

Forestry

<p>HALL, KAREN RENAE. COMPUTERIZED DENDROLOGY: The identification and natural history of the pine trees of southeastern North America. (Under the direction of Richard R. Braham.) A computer database of the pines of southeastern North America was developed using hyper-text markup language. This interactive program allows users to learn about bark, buds, leaves, reproductive structures, geographic range, climate, and natural history of pines. Audio files pronounce the scientific and ...

Industrial Engineering

<p>An improved lower bound on Lmax is developed for the N-job, M-machine job shop scheduling problem. Improvements occur particularly on problems that are defined by a specific due date range. The procedure allows preemption on all but one machine and then identifies other delays in the processing on that machine. When a delay is found it affects the earliest starts of the remaining operations on that job and the latest finishes of the preceding operations. The delays are found by ...

Computer Science

<p>In this research we study the problems associated with dynamic reconfiguration of broadcast WDM networks.Adaptability to the changing traffic conditions is viewed as one of the key features of multiwavelength optical networks, and this is the first comprehensive in-depth study of this problem area.Our contribution consists of identifying the three main questions related to network reconfiguration: a) how to balance the load across multiple wavelengths; b) deciding when it is bes...

Industrial Engineering

<p>As a means of handling the problem of input modeling forstochastic simulation experiments, we build upon previous workof Wagner and Wilson using Bézier distributions. Wagner andWilson proposed a likelihood ratio test to determine how manycontrol points (that is, parameters) a Bézier distributionshould have to adequately model sample data. In this thesis, weextend this input-modeling methodology in two directions. First,we establish the asymptotic pr...

Applied Mathematics

<p>Numerical methods, LQR control, an abstract formulation andreduced basis techniques for a system consisting of a thin cylindrical shellwith surface-mounted piezoceramic actuators are investigated.Donnell-Mushtari equations,modified to include Kelvin-Voigt damping and passive patch contributions,are used to model the system dynamics. The voltage-induced piezoceramicpatch contributions, used as input inthe control regime, enter the equations as externalforces and moments. Existenc...

English

<p>(Under the direction of R. V. Young.)<BR><BR><BR> Contrary to critics who assert that Elizabethan and Jacobean poets can be categorically differentiated from each other according to their philosophical outlook and style, Sir Philip Sidney shows them to be contiguous and continuous innovators in the Petrarchan love lyric. <BR><BR>Both terminates with Astrophil trapped within the conditions he has defined. &...

Forestry

<p> The purpose of this research is to generate forest stands for sampling simulations on anoperational level. In this research, a simulated forest stand consists of x and y coordinates ofstems and their attributes. One-acre stem maps are mapped stem locations and attributes from thefield. The simulation procedure is a two step process. The first step is to create discrete samplesfrom a one-acre stem map. Secondly, the discrete samples are selected randomly withreplacement and plac...

Computer Science

<p>We study a class of circuit switched wavelength routing networks with fixed or alternate routing, with or without converts, and with various wavelength allocation policies.We first construct an exact Markov process and an approximate Markovprocess which has a closed-form solution for a single path. We alsodevelop an iterative decomposition algorithm to analyze long paths with orwithout wavelength converters effectively. Based on this algorithm, we thenpresent an iterative path d...

Entomology

<p>The purpose of the research has been to further the understanding of the seasonal occurrence of tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV) and the insect vector, Frankliniella fusca, in relation to North Carolina peanut production. Emphasis was placed on 3 Virginia-type peanut genotypes, NC-9, NC-V11, and NC-12C, which were included in field and greenhouse experiments to determine relative disease and thrips levels and their interactions. These are components of a larger strategic goal to...

Computer Science

<p><body><b>ABSTRACT</b><p align=left>ABHIJIT N. HAYATNAGARKAR. On Realizing Traffic-driven Security AssociationEstablishment for IPSec. (Under the direction of Dr. S. Felix Wu.)</p><p>The rapid growth of the Internet in the past few years has led to anexponential increase in the network traffic. As more and moreorganizations connect to the Internet, the security of the network andthe applications t...

Civil Engineering

<p>The purpose of this research is to demonstrate a methodology for quantifying the variability and uncertainty in emission factors and emission inventories. Emission inventories are used for various policy-making purposes, such as characterization of temporal emission trends, emissions budgeting for regulatory and compliance purposes, and the prediction of ambient pollutant concentration using air quality models. Failure to account for variability and uncertainty in emission inven...

Material Science and Engineering

<p>CASTRO, SUSANA PATRICIA. Characterization of the Boron Doping Process UsingBoron Nitride Solid Source DiffusionThe purpose of this research has been to develop an optimum process for the borondoping of implants and polysilicon gates of metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) devices.An experimental design was constructed to determine the effects of diffusiontemperature, time, and ambient on characteristics of the doping process. A temperaturerange of 800 to 1000 degrees Celsius was stud...

Biological and Agricultural Engineering

<p>Eighteen lots of shelled corn were tested for aflatoxin contamination. The variability and distributional characteristics associated with the aflatoxin testing procedure were investigated. The total variance associated with testing shelled corn was estimated and partitioned into sampling, sample preparation, and analytical variances. All variances were found to increase with an increase in aflatoxin concentration. Using regression analysis, mathematical expressions were develope...

Chemical Engineering

<p>SHAY, JENNIFER SUSAN. Aqueous Colloidal Dispersions with GraftedPoly(Ethylene Oxide) Chains: Synthesis, Microstructure, and Rheology. (Underthe direction of Saad A. Khan.)<p>Water-based coatings are an environmentally benign alternative to thesolvent-based systems traditionally used in industry. Water-based systems containcolloidal particles dispersed in an aqueous medium and are typically stabilizedthrough electrostatic means. Widespread acceptance of water-based ...

Statistics

<p>Zaykin, Dmitri V. Statistical Analysis of Genetic Associations.Advisor: Bruce S. Weir.There is an increasing need for a statistical treatment of geneticdata prompted by recent advances in molecular genetics and moleculartechnology. Study of associations between genes is one of the mostimportant aspects in applications of population genetics theory andstatistical methodology to genetic data. Developments of these methodsare important for conservation biology, experimental populat...

Operations Research

<p>AKSAKALLI, VURAL. Heuristic Methods for Gang-Rip Saw Arbor Design and Scheduling. (Under the direction of Dr. Yahya Fathi).This research considers the problem of designing and scheduling arbors for gang-rip saw systems. Such systems are typically used within the furniture manufacturing industry for processing lumber, where lumber boards are first ripped lengthwise into strips of different widths, and then, cut to the required lengths to be used in manufacturing.A saw with multip...

Physics

<p>GROSSMANN, CHRIS ALLEN.Complete Spectroscopy of P.(Under the direction of Dr. Gary E. Mitchell and Dr. John F. Shriner, Jr.)<p>Angular distribution measurements of the P reaction were used to assign quantum numbers of levels in P.This research was performed at the High Resolution Laboratory (HRL) at Triangle Universities Nuclear Laboratory (TUNL).Resonances were measured at five different angles using a High-Purity Germanium detector. The measured angular distribut...

Technical Communication

<p>Electronic publication brings a wide range of questions regarding how our lives will change. An area of great change has been electronic scholarly publication. One question this change has brought about is how we can prepare undergraduates as professionals prepared to meet this challenge. To this end, in 1996 I and the Center for Communication in Science, Technology, and Research began a two-year experimental online journal to publish "excellent" undergraduate research...

Horticultural Science

<p> The goal of this research was to develop and assess the effectiveness of the press extraction method (PEM) for nutritional analysis of bedding plant plug substrates. Conventional testing methods for soilless substrates are either unsuited for plug production or interpretive standards have not been published for pH, soluble salts, or specific nutrients. With the PEM, the rooting substrate is irrigated to container capacity and after a period of one hour the plug surface is press...

Comparative Biomedical Sciences

<p>Benzene is an industrial solvent and a ubiquitous environmental pollutant that induces hematopoietic damage; although, the mechanism by which this damage occurs is uncertain. The hematologic effects of benzene vary widely among different mouse strains, and intermittent exposure of mice to benzene is more highly toxic and carcinogenic than low, constant exposure. The goal of the research described in this dissertation was to investigate the sensitivity of two genetically engineer...

Occupational Education

<p>SCALES, ALICE YOUNG. The Effect of Learning Style, Major, and Gender on Learning Computer-aided Drawing in an Introductory Engineering/Technical Graphics Course. (Under the direction of Dewey A. Adams and Barbara M. Kirby)This correlational descriptive study examined factors that might affect students achievement in learning computer-aided drawing and engineering/technical graphics concepts in introductory classes at North Carolina State University. The study involved 38 subject...

Nuclear Engineering

<p>Successful implementation of advanced electrical power generation technology into the global marketplace requires at least two fundamental ideals: cost effectiveness and the guarantee of public safety. These requirements can be met by thorough design and development of technologies in which safety is emphasized and demonstrated. A detailed understanding of the many physical processes and their synergistic effects in a complicated fusion energy system is necessary for a defensibl...

Statistics

<p>Conventionally, values of nuisance parameters given in a statistical design are often erroneous, thus may result in overpowering or underpowering a test using traditional sample size calculations. In this thesis, we propose to use Fisher Information data monitoring in group sequential studies to not only allow an early stopping in a clinical trial but also maintain the desired power of the test for all values of nuisance parameters. Simulation studies for the simple case of comp...