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<p> BACKGROUND AND METHOD: Medical students are generally considered to be a unique group of experienced learners, functioning under high levels of stress and fatigue. The use of multimedia in digital environments has become a standard feature in most medical schools, but it has met with limited success. A study was designed to investigate the impact of stress and fatigue on general study resource selection, with particular interest in multimedia, and its limited uptake by medical students. A series of 58 focus groups with 107 third and fourth year medical students at the NYU School of Medicine was conducted in the spring of 2015. A survey instrument was also administered. Quantitative data analysis was conducted in SPSS-23; the qualitative data analysis was conducted through open coding and grounded theory procedures in ATLAS.ti. </p><p> FINDINGS: Results produced a model of stress and fatigue for third-year medical students, and showed a statistically significant increase in multimedia usage under fatigue but not under stress alone, and a statistically significant decline in textbook preference under conditions of stress and/or fatigue. Practice questions (i.e., &ldquo;question banks&rdquo;) and text-based websites (evidence-based, clinical decision resources related to diagnosis and case management) were the preferred study resources under all conditions. Further analysis of the qualitative data regarding multimedia&rsquo;s strengths and weaknesses under stress and fatigue produced a series of 12 multimedia design and implementation factors.</p><p> DISCUSSION While these findings are based on the specific medical student population, there may be significant implications for the general learner population, which is also confronting increased stress and fatigue. As on-line learners and other populations of learners start to look more like medical students &ndash; trying to study when they are tired, stressed, and under severe time pressure &ndash; it&rsquo;s worth considering that many of the suggestions for making multimedia resources more appealing to medical students might also have the same effects with other populations.</p>

<p> Information visualization offers a unique method to assist users in understanding large quantities of data, such as that which is found in social media. The recent surge in the use of social media platforms, the abundance of data generated, and the implications about what this data means has made it increasingly necessary to provide feedback to these users about what they and others are presenting online. Thus, it is critical for these individuals to access this information and gain some level of visual understanding regarding their own identities or that of a particular group. This dissertation is organized in the format of a three-paper dissertation. Chapter 1 is the introduction for the subsequent three chapters and provides background on information visualization and identity presentation in social media, while exploring theoretical approaches to visual perception and design. Chapter 2 demonstrates a variety of past and current multidimensional information visualization techniques that are relevant to social media data, as related to online identity presentation. The overview includes data portraits, motion-based visualization, music visualization, and textual structures. Chapter 3 introduces <i>CarrinaCongress</i>, an information visualization dashboard that affords users with the ability to compare two members of Congress in order to better understanding the elected officials&rsquo; tweets and external information. Chapter 4 presents <i> HadithViz</i>, a motion-based information visualization dashboard that borrows from video game interfaces and focuses on event-based tweets, as defined by hashtags related to sexism in the video gaming industry. Finally, Chapter 5 is the conclusion to this dissertation and will summarize the three individual studies, discuss limitations and implications, and provide recommendations that future work consist of simple, accessible visualizations that are based on existing visual languages and can be interpreted by a wide-ranging audience. </p>

<p> Unauthorized data removal and modification from information systems represents a major and formidable threat in modern computing. Security researchers are engaged in a constant and escalating battle with the writers of malware and other methods of network intrusion to detect and mitigate this threat. Advanced malware behaviors include encryption of communications between the server and infected client machines as well as various strategies for resilience and obfuscation of infrastructure. These techniques evolve to use any and all available mechanisms. As the Internet has grown, DNS has been expanded and has been given security updates. This study analyzed the potential uses of DNSSEC as a covert channel by malware writers and operators. The study found that changing information regarding the Start of Authority (SOA) and resigning the zone can create a covert channel. The study provided a proof of concept for this previously undocumented covert channel that uses DNSSEC. </p>

<p> This descriptive research study examined if the training for online class delivery that post-secondary faculty currently experience includes best practices for online design and delivery.</p><p> As of 2015 most colleges and universities had indicated that offering online course programming was necessary to achieve key strategic goals for their institution. Demand for online classes is strong, but enrollment and re-enrollment in these classes have not consistently increased since 2009. Dropout rates have increased and are reported at twice that of traditional classes with students blaming the school or faculty, and faculty and academic leadership blaming the student for lack of self-motivation, which is key to successful online learning. </p><p> As online programming has become ubiquitous, academic leadership is no longer wondering whether they should offer online courses, but rather have shifted focus to how to address and maintain the satisfaction of the online student. Faculty training in online delivery can impact student motivation and satisfaction. This study examined what type of training faculty experience and as a result, whether they were able to indicate knowledge of best practices in demonstrating Presence in an online class, understanding importance, and methods, of Interaction, whether they understood the best practices associated with the Design of an online class, how design can impact student motivation, as well as whether faculty felt confident in their ability to deliver an online class, or prepared to communicate virtually with their online students.</p><p> A self-report survey was administered to more than 2800 faculty and 254 responded. The majority of participants acknowledged having received some type of training and were more likely to indicate knowledge of best practices than those that had received no training at all. Those that indicated training that included both design and delivery of an online class were more knowledgeable in the best practices than those that had received training in the software alone. Finally, faculty that received training that included design and delivery elements were more likely to say they felt confident in their ability to deliver an online class and that they felt prepared to communicate virtually with their online students.</p>

<p> The need for cyber ethics continues to grow at a staggering pace within the federal government and the private industry&rsquo;s code of conduct. However, the practice of cyber ethics in these environments has presented many challenges for the organizations. A few of them include: cyber ethics training for IT professionals and employees, a lack of sharing information between the federal government and private sector; and the difficulty of creating applicable and legal standards concerning cyber ethics. These challenges prove there is a great need for further research to address these issues, and while the research presented in this paper is still in its infancy there have been documented methodologies which have shown promise. The limitations however include people are vulnerabilities of cybersecurity; a cyber-ethics training plan is critical for federal government and private sector employees and there is a lack of a global code of conduct on cybersecurity. The results of a more comprehensive study into these issues may help to better inform and influence decision making by the federal government, as well as by IT and cybersecurity professionals.</p>

<p> The research topic of this study is the impact of consumer security awareness on the adoption of the Internet of Things. The Internet of Things (IoT) is the emerging network of Internet connected smart devices. Several authors have predicted that adoption of the IoT will be hindered if security issues are not addressed. Other authors have noted that users often trade security and privacy for convenience. To better understand these two points of view, the main research question of this study is: to what extent does consumer security awareness impact adoption of the Internet of Things. To address the competing factors impacting adoption, the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) will be used as the base model of this study and was extended to account for the construct of security awareness. A quantitative non-experimental correlational study was designed to measure the impact. The population of this study is U.S. adult consumers of Internet connected smart devices. The sample frame was selected from the SurveyMonkey&trade; voluntary audience panel. Multiple regression was used as the statistical analysis to perform hypothesis testing and attempt to answer the research questions. The findings of the study showed that although there is a statistically significant impact of security awareness on adoption of the IoT, it is not the dominant factor. Other factors, such as performance expectation and effort expectation prove to be better indicators of adoption of the IoT at this time. Several recommendations are given to improve future studies in this area. The results of this study provide business managers, IoT device manufacturers and service providers with valuable information on the relation between awareness of security risks and adoption of the IoT.</p>

<p> Increased globalization and competition have forced companies to implement solutions at a rapid pace using new and evolving technology. As a result, companies are now initiating an increasing number of complex projects each year. Project management (PM) practitioners &ndash; the individuals responsible for leading a project team through the planning and implementation of these complex projects &ndash; need to understand the tools and techniques to implement a complex project successfully to meet the strategic goals of the organization. Emotional intelligence (EI) is a primary component of the leadership skills necessary to manage a complex project. The purpose of this study was to explore the EI competencies used by PM practitioners who managed a complex project as defined by Qureshi and Kang (2015). Using the Goleman model of EI, this study investigated 22 PM practitioners who managed a complex project and found the PM practitioner&rsquo;s ability to be adaptable, innovative, and trustworthy to be key personal competencies used in the management of a complex project. Furthermore, the ability to understand organizational politics and its effect on the team and the complex project, to maneuver around it, and to be influential, and deal with conflict are necessary social competencies when managing a complex project. These competencies are not limited to complex projects. This study also investigated EI competencies experienced in non-complex projects and found that trust, conflict management, influence, and political awareness were all EI competencies that held equal importance to PM practitioners when managing a non-complex project. People were the key. Findings from this study found that &ndash; although non-complex projects may not provide the innovative approaches or the need to adapt to change as found in a complex project &ndash; when people are involved, PM practitioners still need the ability to trust, resolve conflict, deal with and maneuver around the political climate, and influence the team.</p>

In recent years the concept of disruptive innovation has become central to business and innovation. A disruptive innovation can be defined as a product, service, technology, or business model that enters the market as either a low-end entrant, while simultaneously bringing some new attribute to the market; or as a new market disruptor that creates a distinct foothold in a previously undiscovered market. Much of the previous research into disruptive innovation has been through case study frameworks, and by selection of specific firms that fit the model. The question is, does the model have merits beyond expounding on past successes and failures across industries, and can it forecast successful disruptors? In this paper I analyze all Technology Sector firms that have entered the public markets between Jan 2002 - Dec 2013. I attempt to determine if a disruptive strategy leads to high growth performance for firms over a twelve quarter period. I also seek to find out if disruptive firms are market leading companies, in terms of having a high market capitalization. I find that a firm being a disruptor has a significant correlation to the growth factor across firms. I also find significance between a firm being a disruptor and holding a max market cap position above the 90th percentile in the sample. In a similar regression for the 80th percentile of firms, I do not find any significant correlation.

<p> Objective: To evaluate the utilization of computer decision support software by nurse practitioners and the effect on functional outcomes for patients with low back pain.</p><p> Design: The DNP project used a cohort study design utilizing a convenience sample of patients with nonspecific low back pain to evaluate the intervention. The study was divided into two phases. During each phase the patients completed the functional tools on initial treatment and then again at approximately six weeks. The initial phase measured outcomes following the clinicians&rsquo; current treatment model without benefit of support software. During the second phase, the computerized clinical decision support software was introduced and implemented. The results were compared of Phase I outcomes were compared to the results of Phase II to determine if the software indeed improved functionality with the patient.</p><p> Measurements: A change in the patient&rsquo;s functional outcomes judged whether the treatment plan was effective. The functional tools utilized in the study were the Oswestry Disability Index and the Roland-Morris Questionnaire. The computer decision support software utilized was <i>iOutcomes</i>. </p><p> Results: There were 249 patients verbally consenting for this study with 104 individuals electronically signing consent. Of the 249 participants, 104 individuals completed the written consent. Of the 104 individuals giving written consent, only 94 completed the entire registration process. Of the 94 individuals completing the registration process, only 37 completed the initial functional tools assessment. Of the 37 individuals completing the initial functional tools, only 34 completed the 6-week follow up functional tools.</p><p> The findings of the pre-treatment and post-treatment did not demonstrate a statistically significant difference with the introduction of the computer decision support software. The mean for the difference in the ODI and the difference of the RDQ was -1.65 (p = 0.177, SD = 6.96). There was no improvement demonstrated between Phase I and Phase II in regards to the introduction of the computer decision support software.</p>