Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Android Drone: Remote Quadcopter Control With A Phone, Aubrey John Russell

Computer Engineering

The purpose of the “Android Drone” project was to create a quadcopter that can be controlled by user input sent over the phone’s Wi-Fi connection or 4G internet connection. Furthermore, the purpose was also to be able to receive live video feedback over the internet connection, thus making the drone an inexpensive option compared to other, equivalent drones that might cost thousands of dollars. Not only that, but the Android phone also has a host of other useful features that could be utilized by the drone: this includes GPS, pathing, picture taking, data storage, networking and TCP/IP, a Java software …

Implementation And Testing Of A Book Lookup System For The Robert E. Kennedy Library, Casey C. Sheehan

Computer Science and Software Engineering

The goal of this senior project centered around improving the quality of student and teacher experiences when visiting the library. The task of finding a book amongst the shelves is an arduous one, which I felt could be improved upon through implementation and testing of a Book Lookup system for the Cal Poly Robert E. Kennedy Library. Development for this project was done using a Python framework. Testing and earlier designs were also created using JavaScript and PHP. Repeated tests were conducted on the accuracy of the software and its ability to decrease user search-time when compared to conventional methods.

Review Classification, Balraj Aujla

Computer Science and Software Engineering

The goal of this project is to find a way to analyze reviews and determine the sentiment of a review. It uses various machine learning techniques in order to achieve its goals such as SVMs and Naive Bayes. Overall the purpose is to learn many different machine learning techniques, determine which ones would be useful for the project, then compare the results. Research is the foremost goal of the project, and it is able to determine the better algorithm for review classification, naive bayes or an SVM. In addition, an SVM which actually gave review’s scores rather than just classifying …

Ios Application For Inventory In Small Retail Stores, Andrea Savage

Computer Science and Software Engineering

Currently, small retail stores with low technology budgets such as those right here in San Luis Obispo are struggling to integrate new technologies into their companies. This mobile application built for iOS with a Firebase backend is seeking to remove their barriers to entry. I built this application to give small retail stores a customizable application that allows them to display products electronically to customers and maintain accurate inventory both in one place. The construction of this application hinged around three major design decisions: UI design of the color management views, organization of the database, and accessing the database with …

Compounding Fire Disturbance History Encourages Coast Redwood (Sequoia Sempervirens) Regeneration And Community Dominance, Matthew R. Brousil

Master's Theses

Disturbance is fundamental to forest ecosystem function and overall health, but climate change is likely to increase both disturbance frequency and intensity in the future. Forests subject to increasingly frequent and intense disturbances are more likely to experience compounding disturbance effects. Compounding disturbances may exert unpredicted, non-additive stresses on ecosystems, leading to novel conditions that may exceed the capacity for local species to survive and regenerate. I further hypothesize that compounding disturbances could create conditions misaligned with species’ adaptations by altering physical and chemical growing conditions in forest soils, affecting forest composition, structure, and, subsequently, function for many years following …

Elasticity Of Cylindrical Black Holes, Conrad Pearson

Physics

Black holes are regions of strong gravity, and are often regarded as behaving like drops of fluid. When this line of thought is applied to cylindrical black holes (black cylinders), a mapping can be made between known instabilities for black cylinders and ordinary fluid cylinders. However, this known correlation is increasingly less accurate for lower spatial dimensions, and I seek to correct this discrepancy in this thesis. By considering soft solids instead of pure fluids, elastic energy can be included, which brings us closer to a direct comparison. In improving this mapping, it becomes possible to better understand the behavior …

Field Emissions Of (Hydro)Chlorofluorocarbons And Methane From A California Landfill, Alexander H. Sohn

Master's Theses

A comprehensive field investigation was conducted at Potrero Hills Landfill (PHL) located in Suisun City, California to quantify emissions of twelve (hydro)chlorofluorocarbons (i.e. F-gases). The specific target constituents for this study included CFC-11, CFC-12, CFC-113, CFC-114, HCFC-21, HCFC-22, HCFC-141b, HCFC-142b, HCFC-151a, HFC-134a, HFC-152a, and HFC-245fa. The majority of the F-gas emission studies have been conducted outside of the United States and very limited field landfill emission data are available in the United States. Because of historical usage of blowing agents in insulation foams including CFC-11, HCFC-142b, HFC-134a, and HFC-245fa, models reported in literature predicted high F-gas emissions from a landfill …

A Comparison Of Solvent And Water-Borne Alkyd Coatings And The History Of Voc Regulations In The United States, Molly Elise Burns

Master's Theses

A Comparison of Solvent and Water-Borne Alkyd Coatings Abstract

Conventional solvent based alkyd coatings have gone out of favor due to concerns over volatile organic compound (VOC) content. However, due to recent focus on renewable raw materials, alkyds are making a comeback in waterborne form. Water based alkyd coatings are known to have poor shelf stability and corrosion resistance, as well as other problems during the formulation process. This project focused on comparing solvent borne to two types of water-borne alkyds, water reducible alkyds and alkyds emulsions. The purpose was to understand the differences between the three types of alkyds …

Whisk: Web Hosted Information Into Summarized Knowledge, Jiewen Wu

Master's Theses

Today’s online content increases at an alarmingly rate which exceeds users’ ability to consume such content. Modern search techniques allow users to enter keyword queries to find content they wish to see. However, such techniques break down when users freely browse the internet without knowing exactly what they want. Users may have to invest an unnecessarily long time reading content to see if they are interested in it. Automatic text summarization helps relieve this problem by creating synopses that significantly reduce the text while preserving the key points. Steffen Lyngbaek created the SPORK summarization pipeline to solve the content overload …

Musictrakr, Benjamin Lin

Computer Engineering

MusicTrackr is an IoT device that musicians attach to their instruments. The device has a start and stop button that allows users to record their playing sessions. Each recorded session is sent wirelessly to a cloud database. An accompanying website displays all of the recorded sessions, organized by date. After picking a specific date, the user can view graphs showing total practice time and average session length as well play back any recordings during that date. In addition, the user may add comments to any specific date or recording. Lastly, the user may tag a specific date with a color …

Prosense, Johnny Favazza Ii, Casey Glasgow, Matt Epperson

Computer Engineering

This project aims to gather advanced data sets from MEMS sensors and GPS and deliver it to the user, who can capitalize on the data. The once negligible half-degree difference of your board barreling down a wave can be recorded from a gyro and exploited for the perfect turn. The exact speed dreaded by longboarders where speed wobbles turn into a road rash can be analysed and consequently avoided. Ascertaining the summit of your flight using combined GPS sensors from the ski ramp allows for the correct timing of tricks. When it comes to pursuing excellence in professional sports, amateur …

Real-Time, Non-Contact Heart Rate Monitor, Daniel Blike

Computer Engineering

No abstract provided.

Raspberry Pi Radio Scanner Control Web Application, Jackson Marshall Strand

Computer Science and Software Engineering

In this senior project I design and develop software for the Raspberry Pi which allows the user to listen to and control a scanner radio anywhere in their home. The solution involves utilizing a Raspberry Pi 2 interfaced with the radio, a software package to communicate directly with the radio, and a web app hosting a web client providing the interface for user control. Audio streaming is achieved through the use of FFmpeg. Listening on the client is achieved by using an external software such as Video Lan (VLC) to open the audio stream. We provide an operable proof-of-concept with …

Raspberry Pi Vpn Travel Router, Daniel S. Pierson

Computer Science and Software Engineering

Consumers are increasingly relying on public wireless hotspots to access the internet from a growing number of devices. Usage of these hotspots has expanded from just laptops to everything from iPhones to tablets, which are expected to be internet-connected for full functionality. It has become common for one to check if there’s an open wireless hotspot connection available at places like coffee shops, hotels, restaurants, or even a doctor’s waiting room. The issue that arises is that these public connections present an inherent security risk, as anyone can connect and gain access to the network. For increased security, the use …

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Stamina Combat Overhaul, Richard Rattner

Liberal Arts and Engineering Studies

No abstract provided.

Visual Code: Breaking The Binary, Jacob Johannesen, Andrew Adriance

Liberal Arts and Engineering Studies

This project seeks to create an accessible programming language that is more visually based. Although some solutions exist, namely MIT’s Scratch, nothing has caught up to the mobile age. This proj- ect aims to reframe creating a game or app into the context of tell- ing a story, putting character creation first. By researching sto- ry-telling and how people learn, and by applying technical and user interface design knowledge, this project intends to deliver a soft- ware solution that opens introductory coding education to more people.

Quartz Crystal Preferred Orientation And Recrystallization Patterns From Naturally Deformed Rocks Under Constriction, Riley Quine

Materials Engineering

This study analyzes crystal preferred orientation (CPO) patterns within constrictional quartz-rich gneisses. Quartz deformation and CPO patterns are an area of interest because quartz is one of the most prevalent minerals in earth's crust. Understanding the typical way that quartz crystals reorient under different states of strain can provide geologists with an additional tool for understanding paleo-strain. Temperature and strain geometry are two dominant factors that control the orientation of quartz crystals within a rock. Temperature determines which slip planes are active and slip planes typically reorient so that they are perpendicular to maximum stress. Previous workers have suggested that …

Structure And Geochronology Of The White Fork Pluton, Southern Sierra Nevada, Ian Richard Mahaffey

Natural Resources Management and Environmental Sciences

The Sierra Nevada batholith represents an archetypal continental arc, although the style of deformation throughout the history of the arc is only poorly understood, in part due to the voluminous nature of Late Cretaceous magmatism that has overprinted earlier structures. The purpose of this study is to gain a better understanding of pre-Late Cretaceous deformation in the Sierra Nevada batholith through a structural and geochronological study of the Jurassic White Fork pluton. A Jurassic age for the White Fork pluton is indicated by its inclusion of numerous 148 Ma Independence dikes, and geochronology on the White Fork pluton is limited …

Spontaneous Parametric Down-Conversion In A Beta Barium Borate Crystal, Nicholas Williams

Physics

No abstract provided.

Black Holes Modeled As Fluid Droplets On Membranes, Anthony Bardessono

Physics

No abstract provided.

Metals Additive Manufacturing Powder Aging Characterization, Thomas Russell Lovejoy, Nicholas Karl Muetterties, David Takeo Otsu

Mechanical Engineering

The metallic additive manufacturing process known as selective laser melting requires highly spherical, normally distributed powder with diameters in the range of 10 to 50 microns. Previous observations have shown a degradation in powder quality over time, resulting in unwanted characteristics in the final printed parts. 21-6-9 stainless steel powder was used to fabricate test parts, with leftover powder recycled back into the machine. Powder samples and test specimens were characterized to observe changes across build cycles. Few changes were observed in the physical and mechanical properties of the specimens, however, there were indications of chemical changes across cycles. Potential …

Accelerating Hash Grid And Screen-Space Photon Mapping In 3d Interactive Applications With Opencl, Nikolai Shkurkin

Computer Science and Software Engineering

Achieving interactive and realistic rendering is only possible with a combination of rendering algorithms, rendering pipelines, multi-core hardware, and parallelization APIs. This project explores and implements two photon mapping pipelines based on the work of Mara et. al [5] and Singh et. al [7] to achieve interactive rendering performance for a set of simple scenes using OpenCL and C++ to work with a GPU. In particular, both a 3D hash grid and a screen-space tiling algorithm are parallelized to accelerate photon lookup in order to compute direct and indirect lighting on visible surfaces in a scene. By using OpenCL with …

Improvements To Digital Democracy's Transcription Tool, Andrew Reinman

Computer Science and Software Engineering

Digital Democracy is a website that hosts legislative court hearings along with their transcripts and other information. The current process for getting these videos onto the website is quite tedious. By improving the tool currently used, I will automate a lot of the current work in order to greatly reduce the time spent getting videos on our website.

An Investigation Into The Use Of Polymer Bound Boronic Acid For Glucose Detection In Paper Based Microfluidic Devices, Spencer A. Schultz

Master's Theses

Paper Based Microfluidic Devices (microPADs) are a new platform for point-of-care diagnostic assays for use in resource-limited settings. These devices rely typically on enzymatic assays to produce their results, which makes them susceptible to degradation when exposed to extreme environmental conditions such as high temperature. In order to overcome this limitation, this research project focused on investigating the use of polymers instead of enzymes to detect analytes on microPADs.

Polymer-bound boronic acid, a glucose and pH sensitive polymer, was incorporated into microPADs in order to develop a chronometric, paper-based glucose assay. The polymer was tested with both lateral and vertical …

Experimental Building Demonstration Model With Viscous Fluid Dampers, Blake Thomas Reeve, Brianna Jean Kufa, Aden Malek Stepanians, Sophie Carmion Ratkovich

Architectural Engineering

The Architectural Engineering major places a heavy emphasis on structural dynamics and the role of wind and seismic loading in building analysis and design. Buildings of high importance that are critical to community function, such as hospitals, often utilize supplemental damping devices like supplemental viscous fluid dampers or base isolators to reduce the overall demands on the structural system. The design and analysis of these dampers are typically not taught at the undergraduate level, and is frequently performed by mechanical engineers, in lieu of structural engineers.

To better understand and research building behavior with supplemental damping devices, our multi-disciplinary team …

Skewer: Sentiment Knowledge Extraction With Entity Recognition, Christopher James Wu

Master's Theses

The California state legislature introduces approximately 5,000 new bills each legislative session. While the legislative hearings are recorded on video, the recordings are not easily accessible to the public. The lack of official transcripts or summaries also increases the effort required to gain meaningful insight from those recordings. Therefore, the news media and the general population are largely oblivious to what transpires during legislative sessions.

Digital Democracy, a project started by the Cal Poly Institute for Advanced Technology and Public Policy, is an online platform created to bring transparency to the California legislature. It features a searchable database of state …

Processing Of Simulated And Experimental Images Of Closely Spaced Binary Stars Using Speckle Interferometry, Niels Smidth

Master's Theses

Theory and methods of processing speckle interferometry data from close visual binary stars are presented and implemented. The effects of the optical systems used for observing close visual binary stars are explained and simulated from both the geometrical and physical optical viewpoints. The atmospheric phase distortion and shot noise responsible for the observed speckle patterns are simulated. The deconvolution technique originally presented by Labeyrie is implemented to extract astrometric data from close visual binary stars. This method is applied to both simulated and experimental data from Kitt Peak National Observatory as validation. Parts of the deconvolution process are optimized to …

Lower Scotts Creek Floodplain And Habitat Enhancement Project, Benjmain O. Cook

Master's Theses

Scotts Creek, located in northern Santa Cruz County, maintains the southernmost persistent population of Central California Coast (CCC) Coho Salmon (endangered) in addition to CCC steelhead (threatened). Fisheries biologists believe overwinter mortality due to lack of refuge habitat is the primary factor limiting salmonid production. Instream rearing habitat may also be limiting, especially during drought years. The legacy effects of historic land use practices, including dredging, wood removal, and the construction of levees, continued to limit refuge and rearing opportunities. A restoration project was implemented to improve refuge and rearing opportunities for salmonids along lower Scotts Creek by removing portions …

After The Paris Agreement: How India Can Use Climate Financing To Implement A Sustainable Clean Cookstove Program, Hannah Kornfeld

Master's Theses

The burning of biomass for cooking purposes without proper ventilation and filters poses a massive health and climate risk. Health implications from exposure to household air pollution from this type of fuel impacts women and children in many developing countries, who spend many hours a day cooking and gathering fuel. Climate implications from burning solid biomass results in increased carbon dioxide and black carbon emissions, which contribute to global climate change. This thesis aims to explore the issues associated with biomass cookstoves in terms of both health and climate, and seeks to understand how a new national clean cookstove program …

Concatenative Synthesis For Novel Timbral Creation, James Eric Bilous

Master's Theses

Modern day musicians rely on a variety of instruments for musical expression. Tones produced from electronic instruments have become almost as commonplace as those produced by traditional ones as evidenced by the plethora of artists who can be found composing and performing with nothing more than a personal computer. This desire to embrace technical innovation as a means to augment performance art has created a budding field in computer science that explores the creation and manipulation of sound for artistic purposes. One facet of this new frontier concerns timbral creation, or the development of new sounds with unique characteristics that …