Previous research has shown that creative insight problem-solving is distinct from systematic analytical problem-solving. Behaviorally, a positive mood has shown to facilitate insights but without knowing the processes that are fundamental to insight, the mechanisms as to how a positive mood facilitates insights have remained unspecified. Here, we investigate the...
This thesis discusses the synthesis, self-assembly, and conductivity properties of novel oligothiophene derivatives with an emphasis on how molecular structure effects the assembly. In order to facilitate self-assembly in conjugated molecules, specific non-covenant forces were included into the molecular design of several derivatives. First, an amphiphilic oligothiophene derivative consisting of...
The work described in this dissertation focuses on the development of a general approach to create nanoscale transition metal chalcogenide materials and new methods for controlling architecture of gold pyramidal structures. In the former, we used chemical nanofabrication, a combination of top-down patterning and bottom-up solid-state synthesis, to achieve control...
Predictive modeling has emerged as a new research subject that studies a broad range of modeling techniques to provide confident prediction of the phenomenon of interest by integrating scientific principles together with both computer models and observed physical experiments. Motivated by overcoming the existing challenges, the objective in this dissertation...
Why do the institutional outcomes of armed separatist conflicts vary? Separatist conflicts have diverse institutional effects. Though many separatists hope to create sovereign states, few achieve their aims. More often, their conflicts lead to forms of intra-state autonomy, independent but unrecognized de facto states, or territories under foreign occupation. These...
This is a study of the conduct and consumption of statistical medical research HIV/AIDS clinics in the context of the expansion of domestic and international clinical research and evidence-based medicine. Evidence-based medicine is the most recent and most successful attempt at subjecting medical decisions to statistical measurement and control. The...
The advent of computers brought a profound change in the way the practical problems in the physics of materials are addressed. Within the last decade, a rapidly evolving area of research is oriented towards interfacing the existing numerical tools in an optimized way, by explicitly taking advantage of the specifics...
Legitimation is a fundamental social process that describes the solidification of disparate practices, meanings, and material structures into a coherent, stable institution.
In this dissertation, I study the legitimation of casino gambling as it expanded from 1976 to 2006. While scholars have tended to approach the legitimation process from one...
This dissertation reviews the contexts and conditions for the appearance of monuments in the upper and middle St. Johns basins of peninsular during the Mt. Taylor period. Beginning with an attempt to determine if mortuary monuments built of shell could be distinguished from shell middens, the archaeology of four preceramic...
Classifying patients to diagnose and treat disease, ensure access to medical care, adhere to standards of quality, contain costs, and fulfill contractual obligations is critical to the delivery of healthcare. While classification is a fundamental standardizing process in healthcare, as a social process it is the product of negotiations, organizational...