Development of a Cohesive Theory of Leadership

Previous assessments of leadership have failed to fully take into account what leadership is. Therefore, the goal for this study was to combine existing theories into one cohesive theory. In this study, undergraduate psychology students (N = 21), were placed in groups of 3 and recorded during a modified game of "20 Questions." During the game, participants were observed and exhibited "leadership behaviors" were documented. Participants identified as leaders exhibited more leadership behaviors, but only as the experiment went on and no additional "power" was given to followers. Implications of results and possible means of improvement are discussed.Lawrence, James - Faculty Mentor ; Corso, Gregory - Committee Member/Second Reade

Contralateral inhibition of click- and chirp-evoked human compound action potentials

Cochlear outer hair cells (OHC) receive direct efferent feedback from the caudal auditory brainstem via the medial olivocochlear (MOC) bundle. This circuit provides the neural substrate for the MOC reflex, which inhibits cochlear amplifier gain and is believed to play a role in listening in noise and protection from acoustic overexposure. The human MOC reflex has been studied extensively using otoacoustic emissions (OAE) paradigms; however, these measurements are insensitive to subsequent “downstream” efferent effects on the neural ensembles that mediate hearing. In this experiment, click- and chirp-evoked auditory nerve compound action potential (CAP) amplitudes were measured electrocochleographically from the human eardrum without and with MOC reflex activation elicited by contralateral broadband noise. We hypothesized that the chirp would be a more optimal stimulus for measuring neural MOC effects because it synchronizes excitation along the entire length of the basilar membrane and thus evokes a more robust CAP than a click at low to moderate stimulus levels. Chirps produced larger CAPs than clicks at all stimulus intensities (50–80 dB ppeSPL). MOC reflex inhibition of CAPs was larger for chirps than clicks at low stimulus levels when quantified both in terms of amplitude reduction and effective attenuation. Effective attenuation was larger for chirp- and click-evoked CAPs than for click-evoked OAEs measured from the same subjects. Our results suggest that the chirp is an optimal stimulus for evoking CAPs at low stimulus intensities and for assessing MOC reflex effects on the auditory nerve. Further, our work supports previous findings that MOC reflex effects at the level of the auditory nerve are underestimated by measures of OAE inhibition

Abundance analyses of helium-rich subluminous B stars

The connection between helium-rich hot subdwarfs of spectral types O and B (He-sdB) has been relatively unexplored since the latter were found in significant numbers in the 1980's. In order to explore this connection further, we have analysed the surface composition of six He-sdB stars, including LB 1766, LB 3229, SB 21 (= Ton-S 137 = BPS 29503-0009), BPS 22940-0009, BPS 29496-0010, and BPS 22956-0094. Opacity-sampled line-blanketed model atmospheres have been used to derive atmospheric properties and elemental abundances. All the stars are moderately metal-poor compared with the Sun ([Fe/H] ~ -0.5). Four stars are nitrogen-rich, two of these are carbon-rich, and at least four appear to be neon-rich. The data are insufficient to rule out binarity in any of the sample. The surface composition and locus of the N-rich He-sdBs are currently best explained by the merger of two helium white dwarfs, or possibly by the merger of a helium white dwarf with a post-sdB white dwarf. C-rich He-sdBs require further investigation.Comment: Accepted 2010 July

Analysis of on-orbit thermal characteristics of the 15-meter hoop/column antenna

In recent years, interest in large deployable space antennae has led to the development of the 15 meter hoop/column antenna. The thermal environment the antenna is expected to experience during orbit is examined and the temperature distributions leading to reflector surface distortion errors are determined. Two flight orientations corresponding to: (1) normal operation, and (2) use in a Shuttle-attached flight experiment are examined. A reduced element model was used to determine element temperatures at 16 orbit points for both flight orientations. The temperature ranged from a minimum of 188 K to a maximum of 326 K. Based on the element temperatures, orbit position leading to possible worst case surface distortions were determined, and the subsequent temperatures were used in a static finite element analysis to quantify surface control cord deflections. The predicted changes in the control cord lengths were in the submillimeter ranges

Assessing the Economic Impact of the 6th Annual Bikes, Blues, and BBQ Festival on the City of Fayetteville

This report presents the results of the surveys used to develop estimates of the economic impact of the Bikes, Blues and BBQ (BBBBQ) festival on the city of Fayetteville in 2005. In order to fully estimate the economic impact of the festival, its influence was assessed on three different constituent groups: Fayetteville residents, local businesses, and BBBBQ visitors. The visitor survey was developed by the Center for Business and Economic Research and was administered September 28-October 1, 2005 by University of Arkansas students who were hired and trained by the Center for Business and Economic Research. The resident and local business surveys were conducted during two weeks following the BBBBQ festival. The former was managed by phone using random digital dialing by the Public Policy Research Lab at Louisiana State University. The responses to the latter were submitted in response to an online survey, hosted by the Center for Business and Economic Research. All analysis of the survey results was performed by researchers at the Center for Business and Economic Research at the University of Arkansas

The Economic Impact of the 50-year Career of Frank Broyles at the University of Arkansas

Frank Broyles retired from the University of Arkansas on December 31, 2007, after a career in the athletic department of the school that lasted 50 years. First as coach and later as men’s athletic director, Frank Broyles had a profound impact on the state of Arkansas. His leadership skills led to tremendous unquantifiable benefits like personal mentorship of players and staff, notoriety, and philanthropy. His five decade long tenure at the University of Arkansas also led to demonstrable economic impact. The purpose of this study is to quantify and celebrate the economic benefits that have accrued to Arkansas because of the career of Frank Broyles. Two types of economic impact are evident from the coaching and directing of Frank Broyles. Those effects come from construction and renovation of athletic facilities, and attendance at Razorback sporting events. Both kinds of activities affect direct employment and payroll in the men’s athletic department at the University of Arkansas, but have much broader impacts on the state’s economy through indirect and induced effects. While many of the economic effects are a result of growth in the University and in the industry of college athletics, these dollars and jobs were generated under the leadership of Frank Broyles and are at least indirectly attributable to his efforts

On-orbit structural dynamic performance of a 15-meter microwave radiometer antenna

The on-orbit structural dynamic performance of a microwave radiometer antenna for Earth science applications is addressed. The radiometer is one of the Earth-observing instruments aboard a proposed geostationary platform as part of the Mission to the Planet Earth. A sequential approach is presented for assessing the ability of an antenna structure to retain its geometric shape subject to a representative onboard disturbance. This approach includes establishing the structural requirements of the antenna, developing the structural and disturbance models, performing modal and forced response analyses, and evaluating the resulting distortions in terms of the antenna's ability to meet stringent structural performance requirements. Two antenna configurations are discussed: free-flying and platform-mounted. These configurations are analyzed for a representative disturbance function which simulates rotation of the subreflector in order to perform a raster-type scan of the Earth disk. Results show that the scanning maneuver modeled would not induce antenna structural errors outside the specified limits