2019 UMKC Dissertations - Access Restricted to UMKC
https://hdl.handle.net/10355/68001
2024-03-28T19:29:49ZData-Driven Modeling of the Lake Chad Basin Hydrologic Systems
https://hdl.handle.net/10355/79703
Data-Driven Modeling of the Lake Chad Basin Hydrologic Systems
Djimadoumngar, Kim-Ndor
The drying of the Lake, located in Central Africa, is one example of a water crisis,
which requires more research and studies. The lake has been progressively shrinking since the
1960s due to climate change and anthropogenic activities. Consequently, the level of this vital
lake has rapidly fallen due to abrupt aridification. The scarcity of topographical, geological,
and hydrological data makes forecasting hydrologic systems in the basin difficult and hinders
advanced research and studies of the basin. This research is intended to identify the main
climate variables affecting river discharge, lake level, and groundwater level fluctuations and
to create data-driven models to predict them by using remote sensing climate data.
The climate variables employed for this study are air temperature, precipitation,
evapotranspiration, soil moisture, soil temperature, and specific humidity. We collected
precipitation data from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM). We downloaded
the data for the other climate variables from the Global Land Data Assimilation (GLDAS)
model. The river discharge data is monthly in-situ measurements collected at two stations in
the Logone River Basin (i.e., Bongor, Logone Gana), from January 2001 through December
2007. Lake level data is monthly data from 1993 through 2012. The groundwater data is daily
data from March 2015 through July 2018.
For river discharge and lake level analysis, we adopted the correlation coefficient,
cross-correlation analyses, and linear regression analyses using trigonometric regression
models to examine their relationships with the climate variables. For groundwater, we adopted
best subset selection, variable importance, sensitivity analysis, and neural network as
techniques.
According to the results, the strongest contributing variables for the prediction of river
discharge were soil moisture and precipitation. The best predictors of lake level are soil
temperature, precipitation, and soil moisture. The best four-variable model to predict
groundwater has soil moisture, specific humidity, soil temperature, and runoff. Soil moisture
is the most important input variable for groundwater. Neural network outperforms the linear
model in predicting groundwater fluctuations in R², but not in MSE.
Title from PDF of title page viewed January 25, 2021; Dissertation advisor: Jejung Lee; Vita; Includes bibliographical references (page 150-161); Thesis (Ph.D.)--Department of Geosciences and School of Computing and Engineering. University of Missouri--Kansas City, 2019
2019-01-01T00:00:00ZA Double-Blind Randomized Intervention to Reduce Distress from Perceived Cognitive Impairment in Multiple Sclerosis
https://hdl.handle.net/10355/69661
A Double-Blind Randomized Intervention to Reduce Distress from Perceived Cognitive Impairment in Multiple Sclerosis
Glusman, Morgan B.
OBJECTIVE: Up to 65% of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) experience cognitive impairment.
However, patients frequently overestimate the extent of their cognitive dysfunction, reducing their
overall quality of life. Exaggerated perceptions of cognitive impairment are predictive of future
decline and associated with depression, anxiety, and low self-efficacy. For the present study, we
developed a brief intervention for MS patients who perceive cognitive decline that is incongruent
with objective measures of cognitive functioning.
METHODS: The current study recruited 64 patients from an MS specialty clinic in the Midwest, and
randomly assigned 59 participants to a treatment or control group. Inclusion required: a) diagnosis of
MS by a board-certified neurologist based on established guidelines (Polman et al., 2005); (b) a total
score > 40 on the Perceived Deficits Questionnaire (PDQ); (c) score in the low average or better
range on a test of premorbid function; (d) performance on neuropsychological tests in the 16th
percentile or better (>low average); (e) average or better neuropsychological test scores that are no
more than one standard deviation below a test of premorbid function; (f) access to a computer and an
email account; (g) no severe sensory, motor, physical, or neurological impairment that would make
participation in the study insurmountable; (h) no history of nervous system disorder other than MS;
(i) at least 18 years of age; and (j) English-speaking.
The current study achieved the following aims:
1) Developed and assessed the feasibility and acceptability of a brief, single-session, computerized
intervention (cognitive feedback and psychoeducation; CFP) as part of a randomized controlled pilot
trial to reduce perceived cognitive impairment and distress associated with perceived cognitive
impairment that is incongruent with objective measures of cognition in MS patients.
2) Examined whether the intervention reduced distress related to perceived cognitive deficits. It was
hypothesized that patients in the CFP group would report less distress over their perceived cognitive
impairment compared to the control group immediately after and one week following the
intervention.
3) Examined patients’ understanding of factors that contributed to perceived and objective cognitive
impairment in MS. We hypothesized that patients in the CFP group would have an increased
understanding of the role that negative emotion, misattribution, and other secondary factors play in
the formation of perceived cognitive deficits compared to patients assigned to the healthy eating
habits (HEH) group.
RESULTS: The sample included 46 MS patients randomized to treatment or control groups (24 CFP
group, 22 HEH group). There was a significant effect of group assignment, suggesting that patients
assigned to the treatment group showed improved understanding of perceived and objective cognition
compared to the control group, F(1, 44) = 10.687, p = 0.002, η2 = 0.195. Exploratory analysis
indicated a significant effect of group assignment on a quiz assessing ability to differentiate between
factors associated with perceived and objective cognition, F(1, 44) = 16.100, p < 0.001, η2 = 0.268.
There was no significant difference in perceived cognitive impairment based on group assignment.
There was no significant difference in distress over perceived cognitive impairment based on group
assignment.
CONCLUSIONS: This was the first study to examine a psychoeducational intervention designed to
decrease exaggerated perceptions of cognitive impairment in MS. We developed a brief computer
based intervention including feedback on neuropsychological tests, expert testimony from healthcare
providers, and psychoeducation on perceived and objective cognition. The results of this study
suggest that neuropsychological feedback and psychoeducation can inform patients understanding of
perceived and objective cognition, but do not influence patients’ perceptions or level of distress
associated with perceived cognitive impairment. These findings emphasize the importance of
psychotherapeutic interventions when addressing patients’ perceptions about their cognitive abilities.
This highlights possible insufficiencies in clinical contexts where providers deliver feedback or
education without integrating therapeutic interventions, especially in patient populations where
emotional distress is prevalent. Results may inform future interventions aimed at modifying patients’
perceived inabilities. Future research may want to explore interventions integrating psychoeducation
and psychotherapy.
Title from PDF of title page viewed September 27, 2019; Dissertation advisor: Jared Bruce; Vita; Includes bibliographical references (pages 64-84); Thesis (Ph.D.)--Department of Psychology. University of Missouri--Kansas City, 2019
2019-01-01T00:00:00ZEmber for orchestra
https://hdl.handle.net/10355/70890
Ember for orchestra
Jing, Qi
Ember is a single-movement piece for orchestra which combines my years of compositional experience, the exploration of musical aesthetics, an experiment of adapting electronic music technique in acoustic writing, and a personal reflection on humanity. This piece is my own reflection after reading the fourteenth-century Chinese historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms (三国演义). Readers from the past to the present all enjoy the splendid tales of different characters and worship their great achievements in battle. However, I cannot disregard the fact that countless innocent people were scattered and disappeared during this heroic age. Their families and homelands had been ruined, and their names have long been forgotten. I therefore composed Ember with mixed feelings. It is a requiem for those innocent souls killed during the chaotic period, a reflection on the cruelty of warfare, and also an ode to hope.
Even with a specific inspiration, Ember is not based on any programmatic script. It is a mixture of impressions or scenes. There are two distinguishable “characters” in this piece. One is an innocent young girl who lives in a peaceful pre-war world. The other is a plaintive woman who survives the war and becomes destitute and homeless. Each character has a distinctive type of musical material. The young girl is represented by an imaginary ancient folk tone that is very simple and direct, while the plaintive woman is represented by step-wise, non-functional gestures.
The pitch material throughout the piece is mainly non-functional. However, I always emphasize a specific pitch center to ground the sonority and generate a texture. The structure of the piece is based on the development and alternation between the specific musical materials associated with the two characters. Rather than operating in clear-cut sections, Ember presents a continuous, unfolding of a soundscape with sensitive changes of color. Here, the harmonically non-functional material becomes tonal in order to represent resolution and hope. The ember could be a fragment left after the destruction, but it could also be a shred of hope.
Title from PDF of title page viewed January 8, 2020; Dissertation advisor: Chen Yi; Vita; Thesis (D.M.A.)--Conservatory of Music and Dance. University of Missouri--Kansas City, 2019
2019-01-01T00:00:00ZFrom Pan to Plate: Cased Images of the California Gold Rush, 1849-1865
https://hdl.handle.net/10355/86881
From Pan to Plate: Cased Images of the California Gold Rush, 1849-1865
Aspinwall, Jane Lee, 1967-
After President Polk’s announcement in December 1848 of the gold discovery in
California, thousands flocked to the region. Lured by the ready market of potential
customers, daguerreotypists also made their way. The daguerreotype quickly became an
important component of the gold rush experience. Using a personal research database
comprised of over 500 daguerreotypes and ambrotypes made in California from 1849 to
1865, this dissertation reveals previously unrecognized patterns in overall production.
Informed by this wealth of data, the following chapters incorporate primary and
secondary source materials that seek to identify or support patterns uncovered through the
database analysis. The first chapter provides an overview of the earliest daguerreian projects
completed in California by Robert H. Vance and J. Wesley Jones. The second chapter
surveys the notable California daguerreotypist working outside the studio in the gold fields.
The evolution of mining technology from individuals with a pickaxe, shovel, and pan; to
groups of men with rockers, long toms, and sluices; to large companies engaged in river
diversion and hydraulic mining is the subject of the third chapter. The fourth chapter explores
the mining contributions of American Indian, Chinese, and black (enslaved and free) miners and considers reasons for the lack of pictorial representation. California gold towns, the
subject of the fifth chapter, examines images of street views, housing, cemeteries, and distant
views, and investigates the population of those towns, including women. Miner studio
portraits with men in mining attire often holding a pickaxe, shovel, knife, or gold nugget are
the topic of the final chapter.
California gold rush daguerreotypes offer more than a simple documentation of a
major cultural and historical event. These images provide an extraordinary glimpse into the
transformation of the American West: a mass migration led to a complex mix of peoples and
culture, gold towns arose almost overnight, and mining technology altered the landscape.
While daguerreotypists found many ways to explore the reality of the gold rush, existing
images do not fully convey the experience. This dissertation focuses on what is visually
represented in California gold rush daguerreotypes, while addressing what tended to be
ignored
Title from PDF of title page viewed September 20, 2021; Dissertation advisor: Burton L. Dunbar; Vita; Includes bibliographical references (pages 446-462); Thesis (Ph.D.)--Department of Art and Art History and Humanities. University of Missouri--Kansas City, 2019
2019-01-01T00:00:00Z