This study created an ecological spatial model, using a geographic information system, to visualize the influence of hydrochory on restoration of the three dominant wetland communities of broadleaf marsh, wetland shrub, and wet prairie across the floodplain of the Kissimmee River. Primary parameters incorporated into the model included floodplain hydrology, seed characteristics of buoyancy and dispersal rates, and species flood tolerance. S²rensen's similarity index, comparing spatial agreement among model output and observed community data, resulted in values of BLM-BB = 0.10, BLM = 0.07, WS = 0.21, and WP = 0.36. The significant discrepancies between modeled and observed community spatial coverage indicated a need for incorporation of more stochastic variables of climatic disturbances, nutrient availability, and soil characteristics. More research on species flood tolerance across smaller spatial scales is also needed, and base data incorporated into the model should also be reliable and consistent if accuracy is to be achieved. / by Stevee Kennard. / Thesis (M.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2013. / Includes bibliography. / Mode of access: World Wide Web. / System requirements: Adobe Reader.

Lolita fashion is a small youth fashion that originated in Japan but is inspired by historical western clothing. The clothing is not sexual in nature. Most studies look at the style in Japan, but the fashion has also found popularity overseas. This paper takes an ethnographic approach to studying the Lolita community in the United States by comparing two regional communities, Houston and South Florida. The research found that the largest difference between the two groups was size and community involvement, with Houston as the larger group and the smaller South Florida group being more concerned with group activity. The study found that compared to the strong subversive element of the wearers in Japan, the United States community at large appears to be motivated by Lolita as a creative outlet. There was no support of the idea that aging played a role in what kind of Lolita fashion was worn. / Includes bibliography. / Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2017. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

The Arcadia Formation is a mixed carbonate-siliciclastic rock unit that existed as a shallow carbonate ramp to platform environment during the Late Oligocene to Early Miocene Epoch. It can be divided into two distinct, informal sections based on lithological properties: the upper Arcadia Formation and lower Arcadia Formation. The sections are part of a major, third-order sequence that can be further divided into four higher-frequency, lower magnitude sequences: ARS1, ARS2, ARS3, and ARS4. The sequence boundary separating ARS2 and ARS3 represents a drastic change in the depositional regime from a high-energy, inner ramp/platform to a lower-energy, deep outer ramp environment. ARS3 represents the period of maximum flooding and constitutes a major portion of the regressive system tract (RST) of the third order depositional sequence. In certain sections, the Arcadia Formation is heavily bioturbated including ichnotaxa from the glossifungites, cruziana, and scolithos inchofacies. Thalassinoides sp. burrows of the glossifungites ichnofacies were found to be commonly associated with firmground substrates and breaks in sedimentation. The lithofacies associations were grouped into paleodepositional environments that ranged from restricted marine to deep outer ramp with lithology ranging from grainstone to wackestone to mudstone with variable amounts of siliciclastic and phosphatic constituents. Each sequence boundary extends regionally south from Broward County to southern Miami-Dade County utilizing gamma-ray geophysical signatures unique to each sequence. / Includes bibliography. / Thesis (M.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2014. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

The study was born out of a deep concern that there have been missed opportunities to apply cultural intelligence to enrich leadership, instruction, and learning. In particular, direct interaction and observation of students from multicultural backgrounds have revealed the value in adjusting one’s mindset to creating a more inclusive learning environment. The purpose of the study was to examine the influence of cultural intelligence on faculty leadership. The problem addressed was the growing need for faculty to expand their cultural intelligence to enable them to demonstrate exemplary leadership in 21st century classrooms. The study measured the cultural intelligence of faculty using the Cultural Intelligence Scale (CQS). Faculty members’ leadership was measured using the Leadership Practices Inventory Self (LPI-Self). This quantitative study used associational and survey methods to predict scores and explain associations among variables. Overall, behavioral CQ and cognitive CQ had a greater influence on the following leadership practices: Model the Way, Inspire a Shared Vision, and Challenge the Process. For the private university, behavioral CQ had a greater influence on the following leadership practices: Model the Way and Inspiring a Shared Vision. The public university did not show preference for any of the five leadership practices. For the state college, cognitive CQ had a greater influence on all leadership practices, except for Model the Way. The results of this study confirmed that cultural intelligence significantly influenced leadership practices of faculty members. These findings provide important information for faculty development programs, curriculum development, and hiring practices. An urgent requirement for advancing teaching and learning in today’s higher education classrooms is a keen understanding of the underlying values, beliefs, and perceptions of students. These qualities affect students’ understanding and how they express themselves in the classroom. The decision to give instructional leaders leadership training in cultural intelligence is highly recommended. While faculty members showed preference for certain leadership practices, their preferences might be incorporated to develop a blended leadership style that may be more suitable for today’s diverse academic community. The association found between cultural intelligence and leadership practices confirms the value of faculty development in cultural intelligence. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2017. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

As top-level piscivores, Bald Eagles are a compelling subject for the study of territory dynamics and are highly representative of the distinctive suite of avian species that occupy Florida Bay. Despite successful recovery of Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus leuocephalus) throughout the species range, the population breeding within Florida Bay has not mirrored this trend. Beginning in the late 1980s, Florida Bay has suffered in its capacity to support species diversity and abundance as a result of extreme changes in hydrology related to altered flows of incoming freshwater. In fact, Bald Eagle territory use in Florida Bay has declined by as much as 43% as year to year variation and sensitivity to transitions between territory states have increased. Florida Bay’s populations of other large, conspicuous fish-eating birds, including Ospreys, Great White Herons, Roseate Spoonbills, and Reddish Egrets each exhibit a similar pattern of decline. The effects of environmental degradation throughout Florida Bay are magnified at higher trophic levels. The negative trend in territory occupancy is most pronounced in southeast Florida Bay whereas effects on territory occupancy in the northwest are minimal. The presence of spatial patterns in territory occupancy, despite regionally available breeding birds, suggests that individuals are evaluating differences in habitat quality for which certain territories are no longer considered viable. Building on our current understanding of the health of this population of Bald Eagles, we have successfully implemented modeling approaches that identify key territory breeding decisions. Loss of early breeding season activity (occupied and active territories) despite maintaining high breeding success indicates that changes in territory dynamics are the result of a failure to breed and not a reproductive failure. As such, future conservation actions should promote early breeding season activity (decisions by breeding pairs to initiate nesting) in areas of Florida Bay that were historically occupied but are now abandoned. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2017. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Stroke is the third leading cause of mortality in the United States, and so far, no clinical interventions have been shown completely effective in stroke treatment. Stroke may result in hypoxia, glutamate release and oxidative stress. One approach for protecting neurons from excitotoxic damage in stroke is to attenuate receptor activity with specific antagonists. Disulfiram requires bio-activation to S-methyl N, N-diethylthiolcarbamate sulfoxide (DETC-MeSO). In vivo, DETC-MeSO is further oxidized to the sulfone which is carbamoylated forming Carbamathione, a glutathione adducts. Carbamathione proved to be useful as a pharmacological agent in the treatment of cocaine dependence with the advantage that it lacks ALDH2 inhibitory activity. Carbamathione is a partial NMDA glutamate antagonist. The purpose of this dissertation study is to evaluate the neuroprotective effects of Carbamathione drug on PC-12 cell line and to understand the protective mechanisms underlying in three stroke-related models: excessive glutamate, hypoxia/reoxygenation and bilateral carotid artery occlusion (BCAO). Carbamathione was administered 14 mg/kg subcutaneously for 4 days with the first injection occurring 30 min after occlusion in the mouse BCAO stroke model. Mice were subjected to the locomotor test, and the brain was analyzed for infarct size. Heat shock proteins, key proteins involved in apoptosis and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress, were analyzed by immunoblotting. Carbamathione reduced both cell death following hypoxia/reoxygenation and brain infarct size. It improved performance on the locomotor test. The level of pro-apoptotic proteins declined, and anti-apoptotic, P-AKT and HSP27 protein expressions were markedly increased. We found that Carbamathione suppresses the up- regulation of Caspase-12, Caspase-3 and significantly declined ER stress protein markers GRP 78, ATF4, XBP-1, and CHOP. Carbamathione can down- regulate ATF 4 and XBP1 expression, indicating that Carbamathione inhibits the ER stress induced by hypoxia/reoxygenation through suppressing PERK and IRE1 pathways. Carbamathione elicits neuroprotection through the preservation of ER resulting in reduction of apoptosis by increase of anti-apoptotic proteins and decrease of pro-apoptotic proteins. Carbamathione can suppress the activation of both PERK and IRE1 pathways in PC-12 cell cultures and has no inhibitory effect on ATF6 pathway. These findings provide promising and rational strategies for stroke therapy. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2017. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

The current studies tested the hypothesis, that early exposure is sufficient for nativelike proficiency. Study 1 compared the English skill of 116 5 year olds who had been exposed to English and Spanish from birth with English monolingual and found that the bilingual children had significantly lower levels of vocabulary skill. Study 2 assessed 65 adult bilinguals, comparing them to 25 English and 25 Spanish monolinguals on a battery of language measures. The bilinguals had lower scores in Spanish in 7 of the 8 domains of language skill measured. The bilinguals were not different from the English monolingual speakers in most, but not all, aspects of language proficiency. These findings provide evidence that the monolingual-bilingual gap observed in childhood is no longer evident among adult bilinguals, but that despite early exposure and continued use into adulthood, second generation immigrants are not native-like in their heritage language skills. / Includes bibliography. / Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2017. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Ubiquitous media communications technology necessitates democratic and critical media literacy education for developing an active 21st century polity. This study analyzed the context of democratic and critical media competencies in national curriculum standards across Australia, England, and the United States. This, based on Lefebvre’s (1991) conception of conceived space, where standards operate as manifest educational policy and as a basis for establishing good practice. The study employed a multi-theoretical approach to textual analysis, within Bereday’s (1964) comparative structure of inquiry. A critical policy lens supported the contextualization of ideological influences that frame democratic and critical media literacies in standards, per Bay-Cheng, Fitz, Alizaga, and Zucker’s (2015) neoliberal subscales. A purposive sample of civics and citizenship, English/English language arts, and media arts/studies was employed. Differences across three main indicators were identified: socio-cultural and youth-based concerns, personal growth via media production and other skills development, and reasoning and communication skills improvement. The neoliberal influences on curricular standards were subsequently explored across three emerging themes: identity politics, problem-based and critical inquiry experiences, and the inclusion of digital new media in curriculum inquiry. Though recognized in the countries’ standards as multifaceted and complex, each obfuscates identity in some way. Both England and the United States inadequately confront race, class, gender, socio-economic status, cultural commodification, and youthbased issues. Though not overtly neoliberal, the Australian standards present identity hegemonically. The role of media is somewhat siloed from the curriculum’s conceptions of identity and active citizenship across all three countries. The English standards are least adept at developing learners’ understandings of the influence of media on identity development, whereas both England and the United States over-emphasize text to the neglect of new media understandings. An apolitical view of media literacy, accompanied by techno-economic terminology, is pervasive in U.S. standards. Despite a counter-critical approach to the framing of its curriculum priorities, Australia presents the most balanced view of democratic/critical media citizenship. England’s standards reflect neoliberal-communitarian citizenship and largely neglect critical questioning. Whereas the United States takes a similarly cosmopolitan view of citizenship to Australia and England, the standards fail to comprehensively explore the links between digital democracy and political engagement. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2017. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Florida H.B. 7087 (2006a), otherwise known as A++legislation, was created and adopted as a means to increase the rigor and relevance of a public school education, specifically at the middle school and high school levels. The anticipated result of the implementation of this bill was to better prepare middle school students for high school and thereby increase high school student performance and decrease the dropout rate. However, in increasing the promotion standards for middle grade students, interpretation and implementation have created additional barriers to grade level advancement. As a result, the possibility now exists for more students and especially those already at-risk of failure will be subject to higher retention rates. This may place them further at-risk of poor academic performance and of potentially dropping out of school, an opposite effect of the intent of the bill. This study was designed to evaluate the impact of the revised policies on middle school students. / by Mary A. Murray. / Vita. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2010. / Includes bibliography. / Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2010. Mode of access: World Wide Web.

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