Yes / The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate: 1) that silent substitution stimuli can be used generate electro-retinograms (ERGs) that effectively isolate rod photoreceptor function in humans without the need for dark adaptation and 2) that this approach constitutes a viable alternative to current clinical standard testing protocols. Rod-isolating and non-isolating sinusoidal flicker stimuli were generated on a 4 primary LED ganzfeld stimulator to elicit ERGs from non-dark adapted participants with normal and compromised rod function. Responses were subjected to Fourier analysis and the amplitude and phase of the fundamental were used to examine temporal frequency and retinal illuminance response characteristics. ERGs elicited by rod isolating silent substitution stimuli exhibit low-pass temporal frequency response characteristics with an upper response limit of 30Hz. Responses are optimal between 5 – 8 Hz and between 10-100 photopic Td. There is a significant correlation between the response amplitudes obtained with the silent substitution method and current standard clinical protocols. Analysis of signal to noise ratios reveals significant differences between subjects with normal and compromised rod function. Silent substitution provides an effective method for the isolation of human rod photoreceptor function in subjects with normal as well as compromised rod function when stimuli are used within appropriate parameter ranges. Translational Relevance: This method of generating rod ERGs rod isolation can be achieved without time consuming periods of dark adaptation and provides improved isolation of rod- from cone-based activity and will lead to the development of faster clinical electro-physiological testing protocols with improved selectivity.

The timeless, lyrical poem of Ancient Greece, revered for its grand battles, supernatural forces and legendary heroes is a fading memory of a forgotten past. Many critics, scholars, and authors like Theodore Steinberg concur, “. . . “[the] twentieth-century epic” is oxymoronic, the epic died with Milton” (10). Yet, the echoes of the past resound in the present as the characteristics and literary conventions of the Homeric epic are easily found in contemporary genres, including fantasy, sci-fi, and dystopian fiction. What has emerged is not a repeat of the past, but something different, something new. The influence of science and technology is apparent even to the most relaxed reader. Contemporary writers have adapted forms of technology, communication, and modern science to perform as the traditional literary devices of the epic genre. In his book, Epic in American Culture, Christopher N. Phillips remarks that ,”Epic did not die with Milton . . . it developed new power and shape. . .” as writers dismissed the traditional formats to allow for artistic growth advancing the use and understanding of epic, “. . . the new insights, literary and cultural history that emerge once synchronic, monolithic definition of form are abandoned-the surprises in the archive of American literary engagements with the epic form are myriad” (4,10). This release of boundaries allowed space to create, one that intersects with specific moments in time and sociocultural influence, allowing the inclusion of modern understanding and experiences. I found a kernel in Catherine Morley’s book, The Quest for Epic, where she examines the influence of the epic on the American novel, and the means with which writers continue to approach and engage epic , “. . . compulsively and consciously appropriated and reinvented aspects of the antique and the modern European epic traditions to advance their own aesthetic designs” (13). Furthering the writer’s vision is only part of the epic’s adaptation, and the formulation of other genres, including sci-fi and fantasy, provide many reference points in its long evolutionary cycle. Why the need for new genres? What did writers have to address to warrant these spaces? Technology was one answer. Technological advancements placed a demand upon writers, stirring the authors to push against canonical boundaries. The cultural importance of the mythology surrounding the epic is infused, and the result is an expanded, (dare I say new?), technology rich, contemporary epic. Same genus, different species. So, what does this new cutting-edge insertion look like? How does it function? What role does technology play in contemporary figuration's of the epic? How does modern science perform in ancient conventions? Can they maintain the ethos of the traditional Homeric epic? This thesis will investigate through literary scholarship and theory, Homer’s classics, Iliad and The Odyssey, and two contemporary novels, David Mitchell’s Cloud Atlas and The Silent History by Eli Horowitz, Matthew Derby, and Kevin Moffett.

The Delton Silent Reading Test, Forms A and B, was developed as an alternate test for the Schonell Silent Reading Test which is currently used for screening the reading comprehension of special students. The aim of the Delton Silent Reading Test is to achieve greater consistency in mid-year and mid-program assessments for special students who were originally assessed with the Schonell Silent Reading Test. This study reports the development of the Delton Silent Reading Test and the validation process undertaken to determine the equivalence of content, readability levels, comprehension strategies, questioning strategies and student test scores on the Delton and Schonell tests. Results indicate that there is no significant difference between matched test items on the Delton and Schonell Silent Reading Tests for item content, readability levels and reading and questioning strategies. Results from correlations of student test scores indicated that test scores did not differ significantly. (r=.93,p<.000001) Results of correlations of teacher ratings of students' reading ability and student achievement on the Schonell Silent Reading Tests were inconsistent.(r=.76,r=-.09) / Graduation date: 1994

The present study investigated phonological encoding skills in children who stutter (CWS). Participants were 4 CWS (M=10;9years) and 4 children who do no stutter (CNS) (M=12;1 years) The groups were compared in phoneme monitoring and rhyme monitoring, with a tone monitoring task providing a neutral baseline for comparison. Both the phoneme monitoring and rhyme monitoring tasks were performed during silent picture naming. Results revealed that both groups were faster and more accurate when monitoring the rhyme than when monitoring the phoneme. Results further indicated that the children who stutter were significantly slower in both conditions. These findings suggest that there may be a later transition to incremental processing in both typically developing children and those who stutter and that children who stutter may be even less efficient than children who do not stutter. However, these results may have been compromised by a few key variables. / text

Polymer surfaces were modified by exposure to a silent discharge plasma, by exposure to UV radiation and by chemical functionalisation. Additionally, the silent discharge treatment of alkali halide disks was investigated. Employing XPS and IR, the silent discharge treatment of poly (phenylmethylsilane) and poly (cyclohexylmethylsilane) thin films was found to result in the formation of a carbonaceous SiO(_x) layer. Oxidation occurred faster and to a larger degree in the case of the aromatic polysilane. A XPS study of the UV irradiation of poly (phenyhnethylsilane) thin films in the presence of CCI(_4) vapour revealed the formation of a chlorinated silicon species. The analysis of aged samples showed that this initially formed product was unstable in moist air. The silent discharge treatment of alkali halide disks (KCI, KBr, KI) was studied in ambient air, as well as in dried and humidified gases (artificial air. He, N(_2), O(_2)). IR and XPS were used as analytical methods, hi most cases nitrate and halogenate were formed upon treatment in air. Depending on the reaction conditions treated KI disks sometimes showed the presence of nitrite as an additional or as the main product. In oxygen atmospheres halogenate was formed as the exclusive product. Treatments in the remaining atmospheres did not lead to product formation. The presence of water vapour in the feed gas increased the amount of product. Changes in the IR spectra of the nitrate species upon storage in a desiccator and after exposure to heat were found and monitored. Pentafluoropropionic anhydride was tested for its suitability as a vapour phase labelling reagent for hydroxyl groups on polymer surfaces. Derivatised films were analysed by XPS and IR. Using Polyvinyl alcohol as a model polymer the reaction proceeded fast and quantitative. Moreover, the cross-reaction with a number of polymers containing functionalities other than hydroxyl was studied. The reaction with nylon 6,6 was investigated m detail. The vacuum photodegradation of polyethersulfone upon irradiation with the full and a selected part of a Hg (Xe) lamp spectrum was studied. The volatile products were identified with in-situ quadrupole mass spectrometry. Monitoring the intensities of some products in subsequent irradiation phases provided evidence for a crosslinking process. In samples irradiated with the complete lamp spectrum crosslinkmg occurred faster. Additionally, the XP spectra of the corresponding samples revealed a stronger modification which became most obvious in the presence of a reduced sulfur species.

Neural plasticity is the process by which anatomical (structural) and physiological (functional) changes in the nervous system of an organism lead to alterations in behavior. This dissertation examines the structural and functional changes that occur during neural morphallaxis, a rare form of neural plasticity, in the annelid worm, Lumbriculus variegatus. Neural morphallaxis involves the reorganization of the animal's nervous system during segmental regeneration following injury. Here, I have examined neural morphallaxis of the giant fiber pathway, which mediates rapid escape reflex behaviors in Lumbriculus. Electrophysiological recording techniques, immunohistochemistry, and transmission electron microscopy were used to demonstrate that prior to injury and neural morphallactic regeneration, activation of the escape reflex neural circuitry is nonfunctional in specific regions of the worm's nervous system. Following body fragmentation, neural circuits underlying specific escape responses rapidly become functional. The speed of functional changes in sensory-to-giant interneuron physiology, less than 24 hours, did not coincide with significant anatomical changes to sensory afferent synapses, suggesting a role for the unsilencing of existing sensory synapses. Furthermore, I have discovered and described a sensory interneuron system that mediates sensory inputs via electrical synapses onto the giant interneuron pathway. This finding led to my hypothesis that the site of sensory plasticity during neural morphallaxis is not at the giant axon, but rather at the glutamatergic synapses between sensory neurons and their sensory interneuron targets. Results from this dissertation demonstrate that sensory inputs onto the giant interneuron pathway are functionally silent prior to neural morphallaxis and the awakening of ineffective synapses occurred rapidly, within hours, following injury. Neural morphallactic plasticity was determined to occur at glutamatergic synapses onto bilaterally paired sensory interneurons that were coupled to the giant interneuronal pathway. The early phase of morphallaxis is then followed by gradual structural and functional changes to enhance aspects of the escape response network. This research provides a foundation for future studies of the mechanisms underlying neural morphallactic regeneration in Lumbriculus variegatus and provides comparative insight into the evolution and plasticity of neural circuit underlying discrete animal behavior.

Thesis (M.M.) -- Florida State University, 2003. / Advisor: Denise Von Glahn, Florida State University, School of Music. Title and description from thesis home page (viewed 9-29-04). Document formatted into pages; contains 78 pages. Includes biographical sketch. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Toledo, 2007. / Typescript. "Submitted as partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Masters of Arts Degree in History." "A thesis entitled"--at head of title. Bibliography: leaves 141-153.

Thesis (doctoral)--Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Mainz.