Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

On The Quantification Of Complexity And Diversity From Phenotypes To Ecosystems, Zachary Harrison Marion

Doctoral Dissertations

A cornerstone of ecology and evolution is comparing and explaining the complexity of natural systems, be they genomes, phenotypes, communities, or entire ecosystems. These comparisons and explanations then beget questions about how complexity should be quantified in theory and estimated in practice. Here I embrace diversity partitioning using Hill or effective numbers to move the empirical side of the field regarding the quantification of biological complexity.

First, at the level of phenotypes, I show that traditional multivariate analyses ignore individual complexity and provide relatively abstract representations of variation among individuals. I then suggest using well-known diversity indices from community ecology …

Towards Aggregating Time-Discounted Information In Sensor Networks, Xianping Wang

Computer Science Theses & Dissertations

Sensor networks are deployed to monitor a seemingly endless list of events in a multitude of application domains. Through data collection and aggregation enhanced with data mining and machine learning techniques, many static and dynamic patterns can be found by sensor networks. The aggregation problem is complicated by the fact that the perceived value of the data collected by the sensors is affected by many factors such as time, location and user valuation. In addition, the value of information deteriorates often dramatically over time. Through our research, we already achieved some results:

A formal algebraic analysis of information discounting, especially …

Black Holes Modeled As Fluid Droplets On Membranes, Anthony Bardessono

Physics

No abstract provided.

Automated Sea State Classification From Parameterization Of Survey Observations And Wave-Generated Displacement Data, Jason A. Teichman

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Sea state is a subjective quantity whose accuracy depends on an observer’s ability to translate local wind waves into numerical scales. It provides an analytical tool for estimating the impact of the sea on data quality and operational safety. Tasks dependent on the characteristics of local sea surface conditions often require accurate and immediate assessment. An attempt to automate sea state classification using eleven years of ship motion and sea state observation data is made using parametric modeling of distribution-based confidence and tolerance intervals and a probabilistic model using sea state frequencies. Models utilizing distribution intervals are not able to …

Nonlinear Dynamics Of Filaments In Free Space And Fluids, Victoria Kelley

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

The purpose of this paper is to study a straight rod, held at both ends, with a known twist and tension or compression. We study the stability of this steady state when the system is dominated either by inertia or drag. In order to do this, we first replicate the work of Goriely and Tabor to look at the case with inertia, without drag. After conducting the analysis for that case, we then apply their framework to perform a linear stability analysis of a model that is without inertia, but with hydrodynamic drag. Our motivation is the study of locomotion …

Modeling The Influence Of The Heterogeneous Substrate On The Transport Of The Jet Fuel Solute Plume, Kirtland Air Force Base, Albuquerque, New Mexico, Hannah Sarah Gatz-Miller

Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs

A subsurface model was developed to characterize the influence of heterogeneity on solute phase plume migration of the Jet Fuel spill of Kirtland Air Force Base. Core –logs from KAFB boreholes were compiled, and lithology was interpolated across the study area using transition probability geostatistics (T-PROGS). High conductivity materials in the travel path resulted in a faster than average breakthrough time while, if low conductivity materials were placed in the travel path, particles were either forced to divert around the low K material, which added time and changed the direction of travel, or were forced by the hydraulic gradient to …

Mathematical Models For Infectious Disease Transmission With Stochastic Simulation Of Measles Outbreaks, Valerie Welty

Honors College Theses

As they are the leading cause of death among children and adolescents worldwide, it is of extreme importance to control the spread of infectious diseases. Information gained from mathematical modeling of these events often proves quite useful in establishing policy decisions to accomplish this goal. Human behavior, however, is quite difficult to recreate when using equations with pre-determined results, such as deterministic differential equations often used with epidemic models. Because of this, the focus of the research was to create a simulation of an outbreak, specifically of measles, by using an imaginary population experiencing simulated stochastic events on a discrete …

Enhancement Of Supercapacitor Energy Storage By Leakage Reduction And Electrode Modification, Tete Tevi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Supercapacitors have emerged in recent years as a promising energy storage technology. The main mechanism of energy storage is based on electrostatic separation of charges in a region at the electrode-electrolyte interface called double layer. Various electrode materials including carbon and conducting polymers have been used in supercapacitors. Also, supercapacitors offer high life cycle and high power density among electrochemical energy storage devices. Despite their interesting features, supercapacitors present some disadvantages that limit their competitivity with other storage devices in some applications. One of those drawbacks is high self-discharge or leakage. The leakage occurs when electrons cross the double layer …

Cloth - Modeling, Deformation, And Simulation, Thanh Ho

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This project presents the concepts of modeling cloth objects with different materials by using parameters such as mass, stiffness, and damping. This project also introduces deformation and simulation methods to present the movement and interaction of cloth objects. The implementation is developed using C++ for fast processing but the visualization is done by Maya, which is a professional 3D modeling and animation tool.

Integration Of Deterministic And Stochastic Models In A 1,4-Dioxane Contaminated Glacial Aquifer System, Washtenaw County, Michigan, Lena Kristin Pappas

Wayne State University Theses

Hybrid models incorporating stochastic variability within a deterministic hydrostratigraphic framework provide an effective way to assess uncertainty in flow and transport model predictions. This study evaluated the distribution of groundwater flow and contaminant transport pathways in two ensembles of spatially variable hydraulic conductivity (K) distributions. The models comprised a 360 ft-thick sequence of Pleistocene glacial sediments in in an approximately 8 mi2 area across Washtenaw County, Michigan. Conditioned K fields were generated using Sequential Gaussian Simulation (SGS) and Sequential Indicator Simulation (SIS) constructed using indicator classes based on natural gamma ray logs from 77 monitoring wells. K fields were modeled …

Quantifying The Locomotion Of C. Elegans And Their Response To Photo Stimulation, Ian Seddon

Honors Program Theses

Identifying the function of different locomotive genes in model organisms is crucial for genetics research. One popular approach is to analyze the behavior and motion of animals in hope of understanding subtle genetic or neural mechanisms. The nematode C. elegans has emerged as an increasingly popular organism for the study of sensory systems, specifically photo transduction, due to the fact it is still photosensitive without having eyes. Light stimulus has been shown to elicit evasive locomotive behavior in C. elegans, however little has been done to quantify this movement. Modeling the worm motion as a static sine wave, we used …

Homology Modeling And Molecular Docking Of Antagonists To Class B G-Protein Coupled Receptor Pituitary Adenylate Cyclase Type 1 (Pac1r), Suzanne Louise Stanton

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

Recent studies have identified the Class B g-protein coupled receptor (GPCR) pituitary adenylate cyclase activating polypeptide type 1 (PAC1R) as a key component in physiological stress management. Over-activity of neurological stress response systems due to prolonged or extreme exposure to traumatic events has led researchers to investigate PAC1R inhibition as a possible treatment for anxiety disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In 2008, Beebe and coworkers identified two such small molecule hydrazide antagonists and a general pharmacaphore for PAC1R inhibition. However, a relative dearth of information about Class B GPCRs in general, and PAC1R in specific, has significantly hindered …

From Fantasy To Virtual Reality: An Exploration Of Modeling, Rigging And Animating Characters For Video Games, Sarah K. Williams

Senior Independent Study Theses

In the last few decades video games have quickly become one of the most popular forms of entertainment around the world. This can be linked to the improvement of computer systems and graphics which now allow for authentic and highly detailed computer generated characters. This project examines how these characters are modeled and developed. The examination of game characters entails a brief history of video games and their aesthetics. The foundations of character design are discussed and 3D modeling of a character is explored in detail. Finally, rigging or skeleton placement is investigated in order to animate the characters designed …

Hydraulic Conductivity As A Proxy For Drainage System Connectivity In A Subglacial Hydrology Model, Jacob Z. Downs

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The link between subglacial hydrology and basal sliding has prompted work on basal hydrology models with water pressure and storage as prognostic variables. We find that a commonly used model of distributed drainage through linked cavities underpredicts winter water pressure when compared to borehole observations from Issunguata Sermia in Western Central Greenland. Possible causes for this discrepancy including unrealistic model inputs or unconstrained parameters are investigated through a series of modeling experiments on both synthetic and realistic ice sheet geometries. We find that conductivity acts as a proxy for the connectivity of the linked cavity system and should therefore change …

Modeling Of Structural Relaxation By A Variable-Order Fractional Differential Equation, Su Yang

Theses and Dissertations

In physical point of view, relaxation usually describes the return from a perturbed system into equilibrium and each process has its own characteristic relaxation time. In 1946, Tool first formulated the notion of fictive temperature to characterize the structure of a glass-forming melt. Since then, people used to simulate structural relaxation by first order model. Since fractional-based models have not widely applied in modeling the fictive temperature, I want to explore the the possibility of modeling structural relaxation by fractional differential equation.

In this thesis, I will first introduce the definitions of two different kinds of fractional derivatives: Riemann-Liouville fractional …