Master of Science (MS), Wright State University, 2019, Computer Science

One hotly debated research topic is, “What is the best approach for modeling ontologies?”. In the earlier stages of modeling ontologies, researchers have favored the usage of description logic to capture knowledge. One such choice is the Web Ontology Language (OWL) that is based on description logic. Many tools were designed around this principle and are still widely being used to model and explore ontologies. However, not all users find description logic to be intuitive, at least not without an extensive background in formal logics. Due to this, researchers have tried to explore other ways that will enable such users to model ontologies intuitively. One such approach was the exploration of rule-based paradigm. For many users rule-based approach was more natural and intuitive way of representing knowledge. Hence, Semantic Web Rule Language (SWRL) became an extremely popular choice among researchers and naive users. However, one major problem with SWRL is that machines cannot readily process it. Therefore, researchers at Data Semantics Laboratory (DaSe Lab) created an interactive plugin, called ROWLTab, that efficiently converts rules into OWL axioms. This plugin allows a user to create ontologies using SWRL syntax and convert it into OWL axioms. However, the tool does not support translation of rules that contains a disjunction and existential quantifiers in the consequent. In this paper we will discuss the modifications that were successfully made to the existing plugin to support the translation of right-hand existential and disjunction rules. We posit that this modification gives the user the ability to model more realistic and complex ontologies. Lastly, our evaluation shows that the tool can add 89% of the rules that contains an existential quantifier and 65% of the rules that contains a disjunction. We also discuss why we were unable to insert the remaining rules more in detail

Committee: Pascal Hitzler Ph.D. (Advisor); Mateen M. Rizki Ph.D. (Committee Member); Yong Pei Ph.D. (Committee Member); Barry Milligan Ph.D. (Other) Subjects: Computer Science

Master of Arts (MA), Ohio University, 2016, English (Arts and Sciences)

This thesis is a collection of four stories and a critical introduction titled "Ferris Wheels in Winter." The introduction explicates the common theme uniting the various stories, that of the author's attempt to confront despair by writing about characters who struggle with belief, disillusionment, and disjunction between self and place. This thesis includes the following titles: "The Reality of the Provinces," "The Tourists," "Low-hanging Fruit," and "A Pilgrim's Notes."

Committee: Patrick O'Keeffe (Advisor) Subjects: Literature; Russian History; Slavic Literature; Slavic Studies

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2015, History of Art

Maarten de Vos was the preeminent painter in Antwerp from 1560 to 1600. At a time when debate raged over the function of religious images and many advocated their destruction, he produced hundreds of paintings for both Protestant and Catholic patrons and designed over a thousand prints that were disseminated throughout Europe. This body of work includes numerous prestigious altarpieces, as well as the only Protestant chapel from the sixteenth century whose complete pictorial program has survived. Despite this popularity, the serious and innovative character of de Vos's work has gone unrecognized by modern scholars, who have judged his art eclectic and derivative. My dissertation aims to redress this failure by focusing precisely on de Vos's idiosyncrasies, above all, his unprecedented deployment of pictorially devices that disrupt the illusionism and coherence of his compositions, creating a pictorially disjunctive image. Exploring these devices---from his depiction of architectural ruins with marginal figures to the proliferation of globes, doorways, oculi, and arches in his works---I show that de Vos conceived of the sacred image as a liminal object. In other words, he produced religious art, used in prayer and church ritual, that emphasized the role images played in mediating between the physical world of the viewer and the spiritual divine. I also demonstrate that de Vos actively sought to convey this liminality through his art, encouraging his viewers to become consciously aware of the image's mediating function. Connecting the artist's work to the written debates on religious imagery that proliferated in Antwerp following the Protestant Reformation and the mass destruction and removal of religious art in the 1566 and 1581 Antwerp iconoclasms, I argue that de Vos's work participated in an innovative rethinking of the ways that images structured the viewer's spiritual encounter with an unseen and inherently invisible divine. My project demonstrates that, far fro (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Barbara Haeger (Advisor); Christian Kleinbub (Committee Member); Karl Whittington (Committee Member) Subjects: Art History

Master of Science (MS), Ohio University, 2006, Environmental Studies (Arts and Sciences)

This study seeks to answer the following questions: (1) What is the current status of the Collinsonia verticillatapopulations in Ohio? (2) What site and vegetation characteristics are typical of the Ohio habitat of Collinsonia verticillata? Previously known populations were ground-checked to determine current population status. Plots were established within selected populations in order to record vegetation and environmental data. The Ohio populations of Collinsonia verticillataare stable, and four new sites were discovered over the course of the study. The habitat sites are on steep north to northeast-facing lower slopes on silt-loam soils with low pH. Associated tree species are white oak, sugar maple, and red maple. Viburnum dentatummay be an associated indicator species. Possible threats to the populations include invasive species, logging, and soil disturbance. Frequent monitoring and removal of invasive plants are needed. Location of additional populations in the future is likely.

Committee: Philip Cantino (Advisor) Subjects:

Master of Arts, Miami University, 2010, English: Creative Writing

This book of poetry interrogates (among other issues) identity formation within domestic spheres, particularly feminine selfhood within the social construct of marriage. The amalgamation of puns, odd quips, quirky asides, and minimalistic style are driven by an interest in the fashioning of the subject and the challenges of manifesting identity in poetry; the “brokenness” or formal disjunction in this work attempts to represent the resistant, fragmentary, and spasmodic nature of a specifically feminine identity. In engaging with these explorations, these poems hope to reclaim and empower feminist bodies and viewpoints.

Committee: Catherine Wagner (Committee Chair); David Schloss (Committee Member); Keith Tuma (Committee Member) Subjects: English literature; Gender