Engineering Commons^™

Exploring Solidworks Simulation And Structural Analysis Tools To Predict Real-World Physical Behaviors, Itay Rubin

Publications and Research

Computer Aided Design (CAD) Software can optimize the product design process prior to manufacturing. This project examines engineering solutions using CAD software called SolidWorks. It simulates how the product will behave under a variety of engineering constraints. These simulations allow designers to optimize performance, cost, and speed efficiencies. The project uses simulations and finite element analysis to replicate real world behavior. It presents high-level capabilities in the design process, exposing new engineers to simulation tools that are available and relevant in mechanical engineering design. This project required independent research to obtain an advanced understanding of the software interface and capabilities.

Designing Respectful Tech: What Is Your Relationship With Technology?, Noreen Y. Whysel

Publications and Research

According to research at the Me2B Alliance, people feel they have a relationship with technology. It’s emotional. It’s embodied. And it’s very personal. We are studying digital relationships to answer questions like “Do people have a relationship with technology?” “What does that relationship feel like?” And “Do people understand the commitments that they are making when they explore, enter into and dissolve these relationships?” There are parallels between messy human relationships and the kinds of relationships that people develop with technology. As with human relationships, we move through states of discovery, commitment and breakup with digital applications as well. Technology …

Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation On Parkinson’S Disease: Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis, Paloma Cristina Alves De Oliveira, Thiago Anderson Brito De Araújo, Daniel Gomes Da Silva Machado, Abner Cardoso Rodrigues, Marom Bikson, Suellen Marinho Andrade, Alexandre Hideki Okano, Hougelle Simplicio, Rodrigo Pegado, Edgard Morya

Publications and Research

Background: Clinical impact of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) alone for Parkinson’s disease (PD) is still a challenge. Thus, there is a need to synthesize available results, analyze methodologically and statistically, and provide evidence to guide tDCS in PD.

Objective: Investigate isolated tDCS effect in different brain areas and number of stimulated targets on PD motor symptoms.

Methods: A systematic review was carried out up to February 2021, in databases: Cochrane Library, EMBASE, PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus, and Web of science. Full text articles evaluating effect of active tDCS (anodic or cathodic) vs. sham or control on motor symptoms of PD were …

Glycocalyx Mechanotransduction Mechanisms Are Involved In Renal Cancer Metastasis, Heriberto Moran, Limary M. Cancel, Peigen Huang, Sylvie Roberge, Tuoye Xu, John M. Tarbell, Lance L. Munn

Publications and Research

Mammalian cells, including cancer cells, are covered by a surface layer containing cell bound proteoglycans, glycoproteins, associated glycosaminoglycans and bound proteins that is commonly referred to as the glycocalyx. Solid tumors also have a dynamic fluid microenvironment with elevated interstitial flow. In the present work we further investigate the hypothesis that interstitial flow is sensed by the tumor glycocalyx leading to activation of cell motility and metastasis. Using a highly metastatic renal carcinoma cell line (SN12L1) and its low metastatic counterpart (SN12C) we demonstrate in vitro that the small molecule Suberoylanilide Hydroxamic Acid (SAHA) inhibits the heparan sulfate synthesis enzyme …

Toward A Multimodal Computer-Aided Diagnostic Tool For Alzheimer’S Disease Conversion, Danilo Pena, Jessika Suescun, Mya Schiess, Timothy M. Ellmore, Luca Giancardo, Alzheimer’S Disease Neuroimaging Initiative

Publications and Research

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder. It is one of the leading sources of morbidity and mortality in the aging population AD cardinal symptoms include memory and executive function impairment that profoundly alters a patient’s ability to perform activities of daily living. People with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) exhibit many of the early clinical symptoms of patients with AD and have a high chance of converting to AD in their lifetime. Diagnostic criteria rely on clinical assessment and brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Many groups are working to help automate this process to improve the clinical workflow. Current …

An Archimedes' Screw For Light, Emanuele Galiffi, Paloma A. Huidobro, J. B. Pendry

Advanced Science Research Center

An Archimedes’ Screw captures water, feeding energy into it by lifting it to a higher level. We introduce the first instance of an optical Archimedes’ Screw, and demonstrate how this system is capable of capturing light, dragging it and amplifying it. We unveil new exact analytic solutions to Maxwell’s Equations for a wide family of chiral space-time media, and show their potential to achieve chirally selective amplification within widely tunable parity-time-broken phases. Our work, which may be readily implemented via pump-probe experiments with circularly polarized beams, opens a new direction in the physics of time-varying media by merging the rising …

Biomedical Applications Of Lanthanide Nanomaterials, For Imaging, Sensing And Therapy, Qize Zhang, Stephen O'Brien, Jan Grimm

Publications and Research

The application of nanomaterials made of rare earth elements within biomedical sciences continues to make significant progress. The rare earth elements, also called the lanthanides, play an essential role in modern life through materials and electronics. As we learn more about their utility, function, and underlying physics, we can contemplate extending their applications to biomedicine. This particularly applies to diagnosis and radiation therapy due to their relatively unique features, such as an ultra-wide Stokes shift in the luminescence, variable magnetism and potentially tunable properties, due to the library of lanthanides available and their multivalent oxidation state chemistry. The ability to …

Workforce Development Strategies In Additive Manufacturing, Mel Cossette, Ismail Fidan, Gaffar Gailani, Angran Xiao

Publications and Research

Additive Manufacturing (AM), also known as 3D Printing (3DP), is one of the newest manufacturing technologies with growing utilization in our daily life. Parallel to this growth, new materials, machines, and specific processes are being developed to produce parts in better-finished quality, at lower cost, and with shorter production time. However, workforce education in this evolving field has not advanced at the same pace as the technology, lacking proven curriculums, high-quality/accredited degree programs, and specialized advanced degrees. In this paper, some best practices established by the authors are introduced. The list is far from exhaustive but is proven to be …

Allocative Efficiency Of Grid Farming In Urban Green Built Environments, Aaryan Manoj Nair

Publications and Research

As of a 2019 study conducted by the National Urban Gardening Program (National Urban Gardening Program), urban farming accounts for approximately 19% of the total national farming output and is expected to triple to almost 45% by 2025. There is intensive research being conducted on aspects of reduced recidivism, communal health benefits, natural carbon capture systems, improved urban ecology and the necessity for reducing the carbon footprint of food, (informally dubbed “food miles”) there is little substantive research on optimization, and maximation of crop productivity in hyper-urban areas. The article attempts to study allocative efficiency in hyper urban built environments.

Inter-Subject Correlation While Listening To Minimalist Music: A Study Of Electrophysiological And Behavioral Responses To Steve Reich’S Piano Phase, Tysen Dauer, Duc T. Nguyen, Nick Gang, Jacek P. Dmochowski, Jonathan Berger, Blair Kaneshiro

Publications and Research

Musical minimalism utilizes the temporal manipulation of restricted collections of rhythmic, melodic, and/or harmonic materials. One example, Steve Reich’s Piano Phase, offers listeners readily audible formal structure with unpredictable events at the local level. For example, pattern recurrences may generate strong expectations which are violated by small temporal and pitch deviations. A hyper-detailed listening strategy prompted by these minute deviations stands in contrast to the type of listening engagement typically cultivated around functional tonal Western music. Recent research has suggested that the inter-subject correlation (ISC) of electroencephalographic (EEG) responses to natural audio-visual stimuli objectively indexes a state of “engagement,” demonstrating …

Messiness: Automating Iot Data Streaming Spatial Analysis, Christopher White, Atilio Barreda Ii

Publications and Research

The spaces we live in go through many transformations over the course of a year, a month, or a day; My room has seen tremendous clutter and pristine order within the span of a few hours. My goal is to discover patterns within my space and formulate an understanding of the changes that occur. This insight will provide actionable direction for maintaining a cleaner environment, as well as provide some information about the optimal times for productivity and energy preservation.

Using a Raspberry Pi, I will set up automated image capture in a room in my home. These images will …

Comparative Analysis Of 3d Printed Denture Resins With Traditional Denture Materials At The Micro Level, Aneeza Hussain, Caleb Beckwith, Gaffar Gailani

Publications and Research

The aim of this experiment was to evaluate and identify compression strength between traditionally manufactured acrylic dentures and additive manufacturing resin dentures. Specifically, the dentures produced by Uhler Dental, its Reveal line were compared against samples produced on the Formlabs Form 2 SLA, Stereolithography, 3D printer using their Denture Teeth A2 resin to test compression strength to assure they are compatible with the occlusal forces in the oral cavity. Using the ZwickRoell tensile testing machine, it appeared that the acrylic dentures were half as strong as the resin dentures. Then we went ahead to and did a comparative analysis under …

Plasmonic Field-Effect Transistors (Terafets) For 6g Communications, Michael Shur, Gregory Aizin, Taiichi Otsuji, Victor Ryzhii

Publications and Research

Ever increasing demands of data traffic makes the transition to 6G communications in the 300 GHz band inevitable. Short-channel field-effect transistors (FETs) have demonstrated excellent potential for detection and generation of terahertz (THz) and sub-THz radiation. Such transistors (often referred to as TeraFETs) include short-channel silicon complementary metal oxide (CMOS). The ballistic and quasi-ballistic electron transport in the TeraFET channels determine the TeraFET response at the sub-THz and THz frequencies. TeraFET arrays could form plasmonic crystals with nanoscale unit cells smaller or comparable to the electron mean free path but with the overall dimensions comparable with the radiation wavelength. Such …

Needle In A Haystack: Detecting Subtle Malicious Edits To Additive Manufacturing G-Code Files, Caleb Beckwith, Harsh Sankar Naicker, Svara Mehta, Viba R. Udupa, Nghia Tri Nim, Varun Gadre, Hammond Pearce, Gary Mac

Publications and Research

Increasing usage of Digital Manufacturing (DM) in safety-critical domains is increasing attention on the cybersecurity of the manufacturing process, as malicious third parties might aim to introduce defects in digital designs. In general, the DM process involves creating a digital object (as CAD files) before using a slicer program to convert the models into printing instructions (e.g. g-code) suitable for the target printer. As the g-code is an intermediate machine format, malicious edits may be difficult to detect, especially when the golden (original) models are not available to the manufacturer. In this work we aim to quantify this hypothesis through …

Inverse Kinematics Of The 6dof C12xl, Carl Liu, Lili Ma

Publications and Research

Industrial robotic manipulators are widely used in applications such as pick & place, welding, and assembly to perform repeated tasks in replace of human labor. Such tasks typically require fully autonomous mechanical arms that are capable of identifying the parts to operate, path planning, and trajectory generation & tracking. A robotic arm consists of a sequence of rigid links connected by movable components (the joints). Proper control of the arm’s motion requires the knowledge of inverse kinematics, which computes/outputs the joint variables, i.e., angles for revolute joints and displacement for prismatic joints, causing the robotic arm’s end effector (e.g., gripper, …

Dataset Of Concurrent Eeg, Ecg, And Behavior With Multiple Doses Of Transcranial Electrical Stimulation, Nigel Gebodh, Zeinab Esmaeilpour, Abhishek Datta, Marom Bikson

Publications and Research

We present a dataset combining human-participant high-density electroencephalography (EEG) with physiological and continuous behavioral metrics during transcranial electrical stimulation (tES). Data include within participant application of nine High-Definition tES (HD-tES) types, targeting three cortical regions (frontal, motor, parietal) with three stimulation waveforms (DC, 5 Hz, 30 Hz); more than 783 total stimulation trials over 62 sessions with EEG, physiological (ECG, EOG), and continuous behavioral vigilance/alertness metrics. Experiment 1 and 2 consisted of participants performing a continuous vigilance/alertness task over three 70-minute and two 70.5-minute sessions, respectively. Demographic data were collected, as well as self-reported wellness questionnaires before and after each …

Tailoring Plasmon Excitations In Alpha − T 3 Armchair Nanoribbons, Andrii Iurov, Liubov Zhemchuzhna, Godfrey Gumbs, Danhong Huang, Paula Fekete, Farhana Anwar, Dipendra Dahal, Nicholas Weekes

Publications and Research

We have calculated and investigated the electronic states, dynamical polarization function and the plasmon excitations for α − T ₃ nanoribbons with armchair-edge termination. The obtained plasmon dispersions are found to depend significantly on the number of atomic rows across the ribbon and the energy gap which is also determined by the nanoribbon geometry. The bandgap appears to have the strongest effect on both the plasmon dispersions and their Landau damping. We have determined the conditions when relative hopping parameter α of an α − T ₃ lattice has a strong effect on the plasmons which makes our material distinguished …

Physiological Processes, Chirag B. Raval

Open Educational Resources

Physiological Processes is designed to introduce fundamental concepts of physiology to biomedical engineering learners. Areas covered include: neural, muscular, cardiovascular, respiratory and renal system function; bioelectrical signals, capillary-level transport, organ-level exchange. Whenever possible, analysis will be quantitative in order to fulfill the course goals and to build the foundation for the subsequent biomedical engineering curriculum. This course is for Biomedical Engineering majors only.

During Natural Viewing, Neural Processing Of Visual Targets Continues Throughout Saccades, Atanas D. Stankov, Jonathan Touryan, Stephen Gordon, Anthony J. Ries, Jason Ki, Lucas C. Parra

Publications and Research

Relatively little is known about visual processing during free-viewing visual search in realistic dynamic environments. Free-viewing is characterized by frequent saccades. During saccades, visual processing is thought to be suppressed, yet we know that the presaccadic visual content can modulate postsaccadic processing. To better understand these processes in a realistic setting, we study here saccades and neural responses elicited by the appearance of visual targets in a realistic virtual environment. While subjects were being driven through a 3D virtual town, they were asked to discriminate between targets that appear on the road. Using a system identification approach, we separated overlapping …

No Ordinary Proteins: Adsorption And Molecular Orientation Of Monoclonal Antibodies, Ankit D. Kanthe, Andrew Ilott, Mary Krause, Songyan Zheng, Jinjiang Li, Wei Bu, Mrinal K. Bera, Binhua Lin, Charles Maldarelli, Raymond S. Tu

Publications and Research

The interaction of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) with air/water interfaces plays a crucial role in their overall stability in solution. We aim to understand this behavior using pendant bubble measurements to track the dynamic tension reduction and x-ray reflectivity to obtain the electron density profiles (EDPs) at the surface. Native immunoglobulin G mAb is a rigid molecule with a flat, “Y” shape, and simulated EDPs are obtained by rotating a homology construct at the surface. Comparing simulations with experimental EDPs, we obtain surface orientation probability maps showing mAbs transition from flat-on Y-shape configurations to side-on or end-on configurations with increasing concentration. …

Threshold Concentration And Random Collision Determine The Growth Of The Huntingtin Inclusion From A Stable Core, Sen Pei, Theresa C. Swayne, Jeffrey F. Morris, Lesley Emtage

Publications and Research

The processes underlying formation and growth of unfolded protein inclusions are relevant to neurodegenerative diseases but poorly characterized in living cells. In S. cerevisiae, inclusions formed by mutant huntingtin (mHtt) have some characteristics of biomolecular condensates but the physical nature and growth mechanisms of inclusion bodies remain unclear. We have probed the relationship between concentration and inclusion growth in vivo and find that growth of mHtt inclusions in living cells is triggered at a cytoplasmic threshold concentration, while reduction in cytoplasmic mHtt causes inclusions to shrink. The growth rate is consistent with incorporation of new material through collision and coalescence. …

Cmce 2351 Fluid Mechanics Lab, Course Outline, Rosemary Brybag

Open Educational Resources

This course studies the fundamentals of fluid mechanics including: properties of fluids, fluid statics, manometers, center of pressure, buoyancy, stability, principles of fluid flow, flow measurements, frictional head losses, conservation of momentum and energy, pump power and efficient, and open channel flow.

Association Of X-Ray Absorptiometry Body Composition Measurements With Basic Anthropometrics And Mortality Hazard, Nir Y. Krakauer, Jesse C. Krakauer

Publications and Research

Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) is a non-invasive imaging modality that can estimate whole-body and regional composition in terms of fat, lean, and bone mass. We examined the ability of DEXA body composition measures (whole-body, trunk, and limb fat mass and fat-free mass) to predict mortality in conjunction with basic body measures (anthropometrics), expressed using body mass index (BMI) and a body shape index (ABSI). We used data from the 1999–2006 United States National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), with mortality follow-up to 2015. We found that all DEXA-measured masses were highly correlated with each other and with ABSI and …

Assessment Of Creative Thinking In An Introductory Robotics Course Using Final Project, Lili Ma, Jose Reyes Alamo, Yu Wang

Publications and Research

This study describes development of an assignment (the final project) used for assessment of creative thinking in an undergraduate robotic course. Robotics inherently demands creativity, requiring exploration and investigation among several different methods to eventually generate a satisfactory solution. Assessment of students’ creative thinking fits naturally into our robotic course, which has a 2.5-hour lab session each week for students to work on physical/simulated robots. Students are asked to complete three projects over one semester. This paper describes the re-design and fine-tuning of the final project such that assessment of creative thinking can be incorporated into this robotic course as …

Development And Implementation Of An Assessment Model In A Sophomore Electromechanical Systems Design Laboratory For The Etac-Abet Accreditation, Lili Ma, Benito Mendoza, Lorrington A. Hamilton, Luis Alberto Aponte, Sergey Drabkin, Mauricio Cardena

Publications and Research

In the field of assessment in higher education, practitioners regularly mention two features as key for success at implementing a sustainable assessment model, i) it has to be faculty-driven, and ii) it has to become part of the curriculum. This paper describes an assessment model incorporating these features. The model was developed and implemented for assessing both the ETAC-ABET Program Criteria for an associate degree in Electromechanical Engineering Technology program and the new ETAC-ABET (2019-2020) student outcome (2), which regards students' ability to design systems, components, or processes for well-defined engineering technology problems appropriate to the discipline. This paper describes …

A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis On The Efficacy Of Stem Cell Therapy On Bone Brittleness In Mouse Models Of Osteogenesis Imperfecta, Lauren Battle, Shoshana Yakar, Alessandra Carriero

Publications and Research

There is no cure for osteogenesis imperfecta (OI), and current treatments can only partially correct the bone phenotype. Stem cell therapy holds potential to improve bone quality and quantity in OI. Here, we conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of published studies to investigate the efficacy of stem cell therapy to rescue bone brittleness in mouse models of OI. Identified studies included bone marrow, mesenchymal stem cells, and human fetal stem cells. Effect size of fracture incidence, maximum load, stiffness, cortical thickness, bone volume fraction, and raw engraftment rates were pooled in a random-effects meta-analysis. Cell type, cell number, injection …

Experimental Observation Of Topological Z2 Excitonpolaritons In Transition Metal Dichalcogenide Monolayers, Mengyao Li, Ivan Sinev, Fedor Benimetskiy, Tatyana Ivanova, Ekaterina Khestanova, Svetlana Kiriushechkina, Anton Vakulenko, Sriram Guddala, Maurice Skolnick, Vinod M. Menon, Dmitry Krizhanovskii, Andrea Alù, Anton Samusev, Alexander B. Khanikaev

Publications and Research

The rise of quantum science and technologies motivates photonics research to seek new platforms with strong light-matter interactions to facilitate quantum behaviors at moderate light intensities. Topological polaritons (TPs) offer an ideal platform in this context, with unique properties stemming from resilient topological states of light strongly coupled with matter. Here we explore polaritonic metasurfaces based on 2D transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) as a promising platform for topological polaritonics. We show that the strong coupling between topological photonic modes of the metasurface and excitons in TMDs yields a topological polaritonic Z₂ phase. We experimentally confirm the emergence of one-way …

Quo Vadis Lakes Azuei And Enriquillo: A Future Outlook For Two Of The Caribbean Basin's Largest Lakes, Mahrokh Moknatian, Michael Piasecki

Publications and Research

Lakes Azuei (LA) and Enriquillo (LE) on Hispaniola Island started expanding in 2005 and continued to do so until 2016. After inundating large swaths of arable land, submerging a small community, and threatening to swallow a significant trade route between the Dominican Republic and Haiti; worries persisted at how far this seemingly unstoppable expansion would go. The paper outlines the approach to a look forward to answer this question vis-à-vis climate change scenarios developed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). It uses numerical representations of the two lakes, and it examines how the lakes might evolve, deploying three …

On Communication For Distributed Babai Point Computation, Maiara F. Bollauf, Vinay A. Vaishampayan, Sueli I.R. Costa

Publications and Research

We present a communication-efficient distributed protocol for computing the Babai point, an approximate nearest point for a random vector X∈Rn in a given lattice. We show that the protocol is optimal in the sense that it minimizes the sum rate when the components of X are mutually independent. We then investigate the error probability, i.e. the probability that the Babai point does not coincide with the nearest lattice point, motivated by the fact that for some cases, a distributed algorithm for finding the Babai point is sufficient for finding the nearest lattice point itself. Two different probability models for X …

Acute Effect Of High‑Definition And Conventional Tdcs On Exercise Performance And Psychophysiological Responses In Endurance Athletes: A Randomized Controlled Trial, Daniel Gomes Da Silva Machado, Marom Bikson, Abhishek Datta, Egas Caparelli‑Dáquer, Gozde Unal, Abrahão F. Baptista, Edilson Serpeloni Cyrino, Li Min Li, Edgard Morya, Alexandre Moreira, Alexandre Hideki Okano

Publications and Research

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has been used aiming to boost exercise performance and inconsistent findings have been reported. One possible explanation is related to the limitations of the so-called “conventional” tDCS, which uses large rectangular electrodes, resulting in a diffuse electric field. A new tDCS technique called high-definition tDCS (HD-tDCS) has been recently developed. HD-tDCS uses small ring electrodes and produces improved focality and greater magnitude of its aftereffects. This study tested whether HD-tDCS would improve exercise performance to a greater extent than conventional tDCS. Twelve endurance athletes (29.4 ± 7.3 years; 60.15 ± 5.09 ml kg− 1 min− …