ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS It has been a great privilege to be a graduate student in the Electrical and Computer Engineering department at the Texas Tech University and work closely with my advisor Prof. Dr. Kwong S. Chao. His keen insight into system and integrated circuit design is the key factor in the success of this research. I would also like to thank Prof. Dr. Sunanda Mitra, for her willingness...

OBJECTIVE To better understand the process and effect of social support exchanges within computer-mediated social support (CMSS) groups for breast cancer patients, this study examines (1) the dynamic interplay between emotional support giving and receiving and (2) the relative effects of emotional support giving and receiving on patients' psychosocial health outcomes. METHODS Data was collect...

This paper by John D. Keen and James E. Keen addresses a thorny subject. The numerical findings and commentaries in their paper will be disturbing to some readers and seem to defy logic and well established viewpoints. It may well generate angry letters to the editor. However such numerical analysis and reporting including civil discussion should be welcomed and are the basis for informed decis...

This study examines the relative contributions of giving versus receiving support to longevity in a sample of older married adults. Baseline indicators of giving and receiving support were used to predict mortality status over a 5-year period in the Changing Lives of Older Couples sample. Results from logistic regression analyses indicated that mortality was significantly reduced for individual...

Data collection in process industry yields a variety of data types. To maintain the knowledge about and to enable finding reusing them (FAIR data), common description with metadata is necessary. In project KEEN, ProMetaS – Process Engineering/Industry Metadata Schema was developed. It defines various categories adhering available standards. this article, ProMetaS, its implementation into KEEN p...

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS In response to concerns regarding physician-industry relationships, the Physician Sunshine Act of 2010 was passed in an effort to increase transparency and accountability. Our objective was to determine whether there is an association between industry support and scholarly impact among academic otolaryngologists. METHODS Faculty listings, academic rank, and fellowship tr...

The building-and-construction industry has been researched extensively over its life cycle regarding green and sustainable processes techniques due to major contributions towards energy consumption environmental impacts. Over the past decade, construction stage of a building is often criticized for overlooking or approximating impacts as compared other life-cycle stages building. This evident t...