Despite the inclusion of a variety of time-related or 'temporal' datatypes in the SQL-92 standard, vendors of commercially-available Relational Database Management Systems (RDBMS) have universally elected to not fully comply with the standard. Perhaps even more frustrating is the fact that each vendor has chosen to include a different subset of temporal datatypes than their competitors, with most vendors adding a proprietary twist to their datatypes not even contained within the standard. This lack of conformity has left users of these database products faced with a difficult choice: either avoid temporal functionality within their database applications or develop and manage complex and often convoluted code to insert, maintain, and query this important data. Industry is replete with examples of both choices; not all of which have happy endings. This project demonstrates some of the options available to RDBMS users who choose to employ temporal functionality in their applications. Alternatives are presented using a conceptual human resources application deployed via internet. Data is stored in a commercial RDBMS product. Solutions to temporal storage and query issues are presented.

Middleware is a software layer between the applications, services and the operating system that provides an abstraction to the application programmer. It masks the heterogeneous nature of the network and provides such services as remote calls, naming service, transaction process abilities, and security services. Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA) is a middleware design that is implemented through the use of Object Request Broker (ORB), which is a software component that,allows communication between the remote objects and applications that use them in a distributed environment. CORBA applications can run on almost any platform, operating system, and support different languages. There are many types of distributed object middleware on the market such as Sun's Java 2 ORB, Inprises's VisiBroker for Java, IONA's ORBacus for Java, and IONA's Orbix 2000 for Java. Because of these various products, it is difficult to select the product that will provide the specific requirements for one's application. The goal of this project is to evaluate the above-mentioned implementations of the CORBA standards and, additionally, CORBA was compared to LAMIMPI for efficiency. The results of this project should provide developers and novices studying distributed systems the necessary data to evaluate and select the most efficient CORBA product to meet their specific design requirements, and provide a methodology for further evaluation.

This study was conducted in response to the growing need for an alternative to traditional assessment instruments in schools. Standardized tests no longer adequately measure a student's knowledge. Curriculum and teaching methods continue to change, and educators are demanding an assessment method which reflects not only what, but how, a student learns. In response to America 2000, a national plan for school improvement, several states have already adopted more "authentic" methods of assessment, portfolio evaluation being one of the more common. The Florida Department of Education is currently considering various alternative assessment methods, and the implementation of a state portfolio program seems imminent. This project was designed to help those educators who are unfamiliar with the concept of portfolio assessment to implement a successful program. First, on the basis of a thorough review of the literature, concerns associated with portfolio assessment were identified. Then, specific strategies for addressing these issues were recommended, in order to offer a design for a manageable portfolio program.

Renaissance creativity and obsession with classical traditions spawned a new form of horsemanship called the manege in sixteenth-century Europe. This study deals with England's rejection of the courtly horsemanship despite the dismal state of the nation's equestrian affairs. Tudor and Stuart monarchs utilized royal influence to attempt change - from legislative refmms to the horses - but no specific monarchical effort proved immediately effective. The significance of royal influence is seen in the continued importation of quality stock and in royal support for equestrian-related sports. Both enriched equine bloodlines and promoted the development of sporting tradition in England. While, with royal encouragement, the manege and its 'dancing' horses enjoyed a brief acceptance in England, both were spurned in favor of sports and the developing Thoroughbred horse. English horsemen of the 1600s found their own voice regarding horsemanship in the written works of Blundeville, Markham, Astley, and Clifford. These English authors criticized the manege as 'violent.' Furthermore, such riding was considered futile in warfare and impractical for riding in the open English countryside. The majority of aristocratic riders became obsessed with the new riding styles made popular by racing and other histories have given attention to the emerging group of horsemanship writers in England, this thesis deals with the aristocratic rebuff of the manege and its proponents. English nobles even disregarded their own reputable horseman, William Cavendish, whose teachings reveal a diligent manege master with a competent understanding of the equine mentality. By 1620, the associated 'violence' in manege training waned as a second generation of riding masters - largely French - advocated greater humanity and patience in methodology. However, the English had already charted their own course in horsemanship and had no use for the 'frivolous' riding. English renunciation of the manege is but one expression of the country's isolationism during the period, and its focus internally is congruent with a growing nationalism that favored things 'uniquely British.'

Segregation is a large and incompletely understood problem in modern American society. By recognizing some of the ways segregation is perpetuated through print media we can gain more of an understanding into why the problem persists. This study of advertising for new subdivisions appearing in Jacksonville, Florida's major daily newspaper from 1960 through 2000 examines the use of potentially exclusionary messages such as use of the Equal Housing Opportunity logo or tagline, the race/ethnicity of human figures, and messages and images associated with particular socioeconomic statuses. Using both quantitative and qualitative data analysis this paper finds that exclusionary messages persist, though they can take subtle forms. Symbolic cues alert readers of the newspaper that that some neighborhoods are affluent and potentially racially exclusive. The content of these cues, and the locations of the neighborhoods they describe, change over time and across place. Concluding remarks situate this study within the larger literature on segregation and propose directions for future research in the field.

Included is a skills development curriculum unit for secondary English students which encourages the use of non-sexist language with creativity within the content area. The study contains lists of objectives, writing, reading and group activities, an attitude survey for students and an evaluation checklist for teachers. Classroom discussions, films, fairy tales and skills development exercises are used to help students recognize and find alternatives to sexist language. The rationale for the teaching of non-sexist language is based on the theory that how we speak stems from how we think, and visa-versa. If sexism in reading and writing is identified and avoided, stereotypical attitudes would be less likely to occur. The study's intent is to challenge teachers and students to employ non-sexist language so that its usage becomes more familiar and acceptable in every day life.

This qualitative study analyzed the experience of parenting within Filipino Overseas families as perceived by adult children. The impact of overseas workers is invaluable to the Philippine economy. The current study explored the dimensions of having a parent, mother or father, who is an overseas worker, acknowledging that there are clear challenges of parenting children with the barriers of geographical distance. International long distance telephone interviews were conducted with adult children of Filipino overseas workers. Results from consensual qualitative research analysis (C. E. Hill et al., 2005; C. E. Hill, B. J. Thompson, & E. N. Williams, 1997) indicated two significant themes: parental work overseas was for the family benefit and the communal nature of childrearing.

The Fibonacci sequence and Cantor's ternary set are two objects of study in mathematics. There is much theory published about these two objects, individually. This paper provides a fascinating relationship between the Fibonacci sequence and Cantor's ternary set. It is a fact that every natural number can be expressed as the sum of distinct Fibonacci numbers. This expression is unique if and only if no two consecutive Fibonacci numbers are used in the expression--this is known as Zekendorf's representation of natural numbers. By Zekendorf's representation, a function F from the natural numbers into [0,0.603] will be defined which has the property that the closure of F(N) is homeomorphic to Cantor's ternary set. To accomplish this, it is shown that the closure of F(N) is a perfect, compact, totally disconnected metric space. This then shows that the closure of F(N) is homeomorphic to Cantor's ternary set and thereby establishing a relationship between the Fibonacci sequence and Cantor's ternary set.

The intent of this project was to research and analyze the changes in college mathematics curricula and to establish the need for a change in the current college-preparatory mathematics program. The research indicates that colleges are emphasizing computer applications, statistics, and discrete mathematics.

A large number of patients do not follow medical advice for reasons generally unclear to the health care provider. Significant morbidity and mortality can be outcomes of noncompliance. The purpose of this naturalistic inquiry was to study and clarify from the patient's perspective, issues identified as influencing the ability to comply with provider recommendations. Data collection and analysis occurred simultaneously as a fluid process of organizing and synthesizing qualitative material into categories or themes that emerged to illuminate a phenomenon. Seventy-six percent of participants described themselves as 100% compliant though they did not take medications as prescribed or failed to follow through with other recommendations, such as lifestyle changes. Participants listed positive perceptions when the provider: related to them, listened, addressed concerns, and included them in the plan of care. The provider behavior of listening was important to patients but was not the only aspect identified with a potential influence on compliance levels. Unexpected study findings included connections between symptomatology and medications, control issues between patient and provider, and the patient's perceptions of office personnel attitudes.