Digital Commons Network^™

Modularizing Crosscutting Concerns In Software, Nalin Saigal

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Code modularization provides benefits throughout the software life cycle; however, the presence of crosscutting concerns (CCCs) in software hinders its complete modularization. Traditional modularization techniques work well under the assumption that code being modularized is functionally orthogonal to the rest of the code; as a result, software engineers try to separate code segments that are orthogonal in their functionality into distinct modules. However, in practice, software does not decompose neatly into modules with distinct, orthogonal functionality. In this thesis, we investigate the modularization of CCCs in software using two different techniques.

Firstly, we discuss IVCon, a GUI-based tool that provides …

Decision Aid Models For Resource Sharing Strategies During Global Influenza Pandemics, Alfredo Santana Reynoso

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Pandemic influenza outbreaks have historically entailed significant societal and economic disruptions. Today, our quality of life is threatened by our inadequate preparedness for the imminent pandemic. The key challenges we are facing stem from a significant uncertainty in virus epidemiology, limited response resources, inadequate international collaboration, and the lack of appropriate science-based decision support tools. The existing literature falls short of comprehensive models for global pandemic spread and mitigation which incorporate the heterogeneity of the world regions and realistic travel networks. In addition, there exist virtually no studies which quantify the impact of resource sharing strategies among multiple countries. This …

Mining Associations Using Directed Hypergraphs, Ramanuja N. Simha

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis proposes a novel directed hypergraph based model for any database. We introduce the notion of association rules for multi-valued attributes, which is an adaptation of the definition of quantitative association rules known in the literature. The association rules for multi-valued attributes are integrated in building the directed hypergraph model. This model allows to capture attribute-level associations and their strength. Basing on this model, we provide association-based similarity notions between any two attributes and present a method for finding clusters of similar attributes. We then propose algorithms to identify a subset of attributes known as a leading indicator that …

Foraminiferal Assemblages On Sediment And Reef Rubble At Conch Reef, Florida Usa, Christy Michelle Stephenson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Benthic foraminiferal assemblages are widely used to interpret responses of the benthic communities to environmental stresses. This study compares epibiotic foraminiferal assemblages, collected from reef rubble, with those from reef sediments. The study site, Conch Reef, is the site of the Aquarius Underwater Habitat research facility and includes protected areas used only for scientific studies. Although a number of studies have enumerated foraminiferal taxa from the Florida reef tract, no projects have focused on the assemblages that occur at Conch Reef.

Sediment and reef rubbles samples were collected via SCUBA from a depth range of 13 to 26 m during …

A Novel Device For Cell-Cell Electrofusion, Justin T. Stewart

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Cell transplantation therapy is a potentially powerful tool and can be used to replace defective cells with healthy cells. This offers the possibility of alleviating the destructive symptoms for many diseases such as Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, stroke, spinal cord trauma, Type I diabetes and many more. While there are many diseases that could be positively impacted from cell transplantation therapy, the focus of this research is insulin dependent, Type I Diabetes.

The Islets of Langerhans are composed of various types of cells located in the pancreas and are responsible for a variety of biochemical functions. Specifically, the beta Islet …

Simplified Methodology For Designing Parabolic Trough Solar Power Plants, Ricardo Vasquez Padilla

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The performance of parabolic trough based solar power plants over the last 25 years has proven that this technology is an excellent alternative for the commercial power industry. Compared to conventional power plants, parabolic trough solar power plants produce significantly lower levels of carbon dioxide, although additional research is required to bring the cost of concentrator solar plants to a competitive level. The cost reduction is focused on three areas: thermodynamic efficiency improvements by research and development, scaling up of the unit size, and mass production of the equipment. The optimum design, performance simulation and cost analysis of the parabolic …

Modeling Direct Runoff Hydrographs With The Surge Function, Denis Voytenko

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A surge function is a mathematical function of the form f(x)=ax^pe^-bx. We simplify the surge function by holding p constant at 1 and investigate the simplified form as a potential model to represent the full peak of a stream discharge hydrograph. The previously studied Weibull and gamma distributions are included for comparison. We develop an analysis algorithm which produces the best-fit parameters for every peak for each model function, and we process the data with a MATLAB script that uses spectral analysis to filter year-long, 15-minute, stream-discharge data sets. The filtering is necessary to locate the …

Statistical Models For Environmental And Health Sciences, Yong Xu

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Statistical analysis and modeling are useful for understanding the behavior of different phenomena. In this study we will focus on two areas of applications: Global warming and cancer research. Global Warming is one of the major environmental challenge people face nowadays and cancer is one of the major health problem that people need to solve.

For Global Warming, we are interest to do research on two major contributable variables: Carbon dioxide (CO2) and atmosphere temperature. We will model carbon dioxide in the atmosphere data with a system of differential equations. We will develop a differential equation for each of six …

An Examination Of The Impacts Of Urbanization On Green Space Access And Water Resources: A Developed And Developing World Perspective, Heather E. Wright Wendel

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation addresses the impact of urbanization and land use change on the availability and accessibility of two urban amenities that are often inequitably distributed: green space and water features. Diverse methodologies were utilized in order to gain a better understanding of the role of these amenities in improving urban quality of life and integrated water management. Using an interdisciplinary approach, this research provides a unique perspective within both a developed and developing world context by evaluating aspects of urbanization to emphasize more sustainable and integrated approaches to development.

A preliminary analysis highlights potential drivers of green space revitalization in …

Alternative Statistical Methods For Analyzing Geological Phenomena: Bridging The Gap Between Scientific Disciplines, Joseph Frank Van Gaalen

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

When we consider the nature of the scientific community in conjunction with a sense of typical economic circumstances we find that there are two distinct paths for development. One path involves hypothesis testing and evolution of strategies that are linked with iterations in equipment advances. A second, more complicated scenario, can involve external influences whether economic, political, or otherwise, such as the government closure of NASA's space program in 2011 which will no doubt influence research in associated fields. The following chapters are an account of examples of two statistical techniques and the importance of both on the two relatively …

Optimization Of Proximity Judgment, Brian Day

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

As humans, we have evolved to see in three dimensions. Our ancestors developed two eyes that only look forward, which allows the visual area that can perceive depth to be most of the field of view. A variety of sensors have been developed which can determine depth in the environment. They range from producing individual points of depth to the depth of everything in the environment. These sensors have become cheap and can now reliably produce accurate depth. Research is needed to determine how to present the proximity information to the people using the sensors. Touch, sound, and vision have …

Smart Grid Functionality Of A Pv-Energy Storage System, Nenad Damnjanovic

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Renewable Energy will be the key to preserving the Earth's remaining resources and continuing this surge of technological progress that we have experienced this past century. New philosophies of how/when/where energy should be consumed and produced are attempting to improve upon the current grid infrastructure. The massive advancement in communications, renewable and control systems will allow this new-age electric grid to maximize its efficiency while reducing cost. Renewable, "green" energy is now at the forefront of innovation. As the world population increases, there will be a need to free ourselves from natural resources as much as possible. Advanced Energy Storage …

Lead Discovery And Optimization Strategies Towards The Development Of 4(1h)-Quinolones And 1,2,3,4-Tetrahydroacridone Analogs With Antimalarial Activity, Richard Matthew Cross

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The goal of our research endeavor was to successfully employ modern lead discovery and optimization strategies towards the development and identification of compounds possessing antimalarial activity. Preliminary data from in vitro screening at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research identified several chemotypes including 4(1H)-quinolones and 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroacridones to have potent antimalarial activities. Multiple synthetic routes were devised and implemented which enabled the rapid preparation and isolation of over 400 structurally diverse 4(1H)-quinolones and 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroacridones.

Our research towards discovering and optimizing antimalarials was inspired from the severe impact malaria has had on our planet especially on impoverished countries. There are over …

Guanidines, Amidines And Carbamides As Novel Sigma Receptor Ligands For Post-Stroke Therapeutics, Michelle Yolanda Cortes-Salva

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Stroke is the 3^rd leading cause of death in the United States. For this reason, it has become our goal to find a drug that is capable of reestablishing intracellular and extracellular Ca⁺² flux upon direct binding to the sigma receptor, which can be delivered easily and efficiently. Our active research focuses the development of guanidine analogues that can serve as therapeutic drugs which target sigma 1 and sigma 2 receptors having a direct effect on Ca⁺² levels on the cell. The use of symmetrical guanidine analogues such as N,N'-di-o-tolyl guanidine (o-DTG) as therapeutic drugs for ischemic …

Using A Focus Measure To Automate The Location Of Biological Tissue Surfaces In Brightfield Microscopy, Daniel Toby Elozory

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The study of microstructures in brightfield microscopy using unbiased stereology plays a large and growing role in bioscience research. Stereology enables objective quantitative analysis of biological structures within a tissue sample. A first step in the stereology process is to calculate the thickness of a tissue sample by locating the top and bottom surfaces of the sample. The aim of this project is to fully automate this location process by using the relative optical focus measure as an indicator of tissue surface boundary.

The current method for identification of focus bounding planes requires a trained user to manually select the …

Automated Quantification Of Biological Microstructures Using Unbiased Stereology, Om Pavithra Bonam

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Research in many fields of life and biomedical sciences depends on the microscopic image analysis of biological images. Quantitative analysis of these images is often time-consuming, tedious, and may be prone to subjective bias from the observer and inter /intra observer variations. Systems for automatic analysis developed in the past decade determine various parameters associated with biological tissue, such as the number of cells, object volume and length of fibers to avoid problems with manual collection of microscopic data. Specifically, automatic analysis of biological microstructures using unbiased stereology, a set of approaches designed to avoid all known sources of systematic …

A Modeling Analysis Of Dissolved Carbon Dioxide Discharged From Howard F. Curren Advanced Wastewater Treatment Plant, Dustin Capps

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Currently, the US Environmental Protection Agency primarily regulates the discharge of dissolved nitrogen and phosphorous from wastewater treatment plants in the United States. A recent study has shown that the treated effluent of many plants contains concentrations of dissolved carbon dioxide well above the expected theoretical equilibrium concentration of 0.6 mg/L, indicating that carbon dioxide may have been overlooked as a possible pollutant in receiving waters. For this reason, it is necessary to examine the possible presence of a discharge plume containing high levels of dissolved CO2 downstream from the outfall of a major wastewater treatment plant in Tampa, Florida. …

Generalizations Of A Laplacian-Type Equation In The Heisenberg Group And A Class Of Grushin-Type Spaces, Kristen Snyder Childers

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In [2], Beals, Gaveau and Greiner find the fundamental solution to a 2-Laplace-type equation in a class of sub-Riemannian spaces. This fundamental solution is based on the well-known fundamental solution to the p-Laplace equation in Grushin-type spaces [4] and the Heisenberg group [6]. In this thesis, we look to generalize the work in [2] for a p-Laplace-type equation. After discovering that the "natural" generalization fails, we find two generalizations whose solutions are based on the fundamental solution to the p-Laplace equation.