Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

A C To Register Transfer Level Algorithm Using Structured Circuit Templates: A Case Study With Simulated Annealing, Jonathan D. Phillips

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A tool flow is presented for deriving simulated annealing accelerator circuits on a field programmable gate array (FPGA) from C source code by exploring architecture solutions that conform to a preset template through scheduling and mapping algorithms. A case study carried out on simulated annealing-based Autonomous Mission Planning and Scheduling (AMPS) software used for autonomous spacecraft systems is explained. The goal of the research is an automated method for the derivation of a hardware design that maximizes performance while minimizing the FPGA footprint. Results obtained are compared with a peer C to register transfer level (RTL) logic tool, a state-of-the-art …

A Three-Dimensional, Time-Dependent Circulation Model Of Utah Lake, Eric V. Callister

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Spatial and temporal variations of Utah Lake’s flow field were modeled using the Estuary Lake and Computer Model from the Centre for Water Research (CWR-ELCOM) at the University of Western Australia as part of an effort to increase understanding of the lake’s natural processes in order to restore the lake to its pristine, clear-water state and preserve the habitat of the June sucker, an endangered species. The model was validated using temperature measurements taken by sensors in 2007. The water temperature was a strong function of air temperature and incident short wave radiation, and was influenced to a lesser degree …

A Novel Technique Of Network Auditability With Managers In The Loop, Rian Shelley

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Network management requires a large amount of knowledge about the network. In particular, knowledge about used network addresses, access time, and topology is useful. In a network composed of managed devices, much of the data necessary can come from simple network management protocol (SNMP) queries. Other data can come from other databases, or analysis of existing data. In particular, layer-two network topology can be determined by analyzing the mac address forwarding tables of layer-two devices. The layer-two topology can be merged with a layer-three topology to generate a complete topology of the network. This information is useless unless it is …

A Novel Authentication And Validation Mechanism For Analyzing Syslogs Forensically, Steena D.S. Monteiro

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This research proposes a novel technique for authenticating and validating syslogs for forensic analysis. This technique uses a modification of the Needham Schroeder protocol, which uses nonces (numbers used only once) and public keys. Syslogs, which were developed from an event-logging perspective and not from an evidence-sustaining one, are system treasure maps that chart out and pinpoint attacks and attack attempts. Over the past few years, research on securing syslogs has yielded enhanced syslog protocols that focus on tamper prevention and detection. However, many of these protocols, though efficient from a security perspective, are inadequate when forensics comes into play. …

Application Of Resiliency Theory And Adaptive Cycles As A Framework For Evaluating Change In Amenity-Transition Communities, Scott L. Hoffmann

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In recent decades, many rural, natural resource-dependent communities have experienced ubiquitous and oftentimes substantial economic decline due to downturns in their commodity-oriented industries. In spite of this, communities with access to varying forms of natural capital have experienced an upsurge in activities such as recreation, tourism, second home growth, and retirement in-migration. If managed properly, amenity-oriented development has potential to reverse economic decline by attracting tourists, entrepreneurs, younger and more educated workers, and retirees, and may ultimately generate economic diversification, local growth, and an improved quality of life for residents. While there are literally thousands of potential measures of well-being, …

The Process Of Tracking In Mathematics In Box Elder School District, Megan Haramoto Bushnell

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Educational policymakers have used tracking to instruct students in a variety of subjects, including mathematics. Tracking, which has also been called ability grouping, is a process by which students in the same grade are placed into different classes based on academic ability. Few educators and sociologists have looked at the process by which students are placed in different mathematics tracks. The research design of this study focused on accumulating, evaluating, and reporting the understanding and observations of 12 teachers and 4 counselors as they discussed their knowledge and involvement in the mathematics placement procedures from the intermediate and middle school …

Intergranular Phases In Cyclically Annealed Yba2cu3o7-X And Their Implications For Critical Current Densities, Andrew Peter Clarke

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

We report changes in the intergranular material and grain morphology of YBa₂Cu₃O_7-x during cyclic anneals between 780 and 980 ºC in oxygen at atmospheric pressure. Two endothermic reactions were detected: (a) the eutectic reaction of YBa₂Cu₃O_7-x with CuO and BaCuO₂ at 900 ºC (enthalpy ∆H_a) and (b) the peritectic reaction of YBa₂Cu₃O_7-x with CuO at 950 ºC (∆H_b). During the first anneal, only reaction (b) is detected, and although it should only occur if there is an excess of CuO, …

Approximations To Continuous Processes In Hierarchical Models, Amanda Cangelosi

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Models for natural nonlinear processes, such as population dynamics, have been given much attention in applied mathematics. For example, species competition has been extensively modeled by differential equations. Often, the scientist has preferred to model the underlying dynamical processes (i.e., theoretical mechanisms) in continuous-time. It is of both scientific and mathematical interest to implement such models in a statistical framework to quantify uncertainty associated with the models in the presence of observations. That is, given discrete observations arising from the underlying continuous process, the unobserved process can be formally described while accounting for multiple sources of uncertainty ( …

Factors Related To Success And Participants’ Psychological Ownership In Collaborative Wildlife Management: A Survey Of Sage-Grouse Local Working Groups, Lorien R. Belton

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Declines of sage-grouse (Centrocercus spp.) across the western United States have prompted the formation of numerous collaborative stakeholder partnerships, known as local working groups. These voluntary groups create and implement local sage-grouse management plans and projects, often in the hopes that their efforts may help avert a federal Endangered Species designation for the bird. Using a mail survey of participants in 54 local working groups, I examined the importance of psychological ownership in working group dynamics. Psychological ownership is conceptualized as a latent, multidimensional variable consisting of responsibility, control, and caring elements. Multiple regression analysis showed early-stage group success, representative …

Two Highly Diverse Studies In Computing: A Vitruvian Framework For Distribution And A Search Approach To Cancer Therapies, Brian G. Smith

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Solid cancer tumors must recruit new blood vessels for growth and maintenance. Discovering drugs that block this tumor-induced development of new blood vessels (angiogenesis) is an important approach in cancer treatment. However, the complexity of angiogenesis and the difficulty in implementing and evaluating medical changes prevent the discovery of novel and effective new therapies. This paper presents a massively parallel computational search-based approach for the discovery of novel potential cancer treatments, using a high fidelity simulation of angiogenesis. Discovering new therapies is viewed as multi-objective combinatorial optimization over two competing objectives: minimizing the medical cost of the intervention while minimizing …

Sedimentology, Stratigraphy, And Organic Geochemistry Of The Red Pine Shale, Uinta Mountains, Utah: A Prograding Deltaic System In A Mid-Neoproterozoic Interior Seaway, Caroline Amelia Myer

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The Red Pine Shale (RPS; ~1120m thick), uppermost formation of the Neoproterozoic Uinta Mountain Group, Utah, is an organic-rich sedimentary succession interpreted as a marine deltaic system that delivered immature sediment from the north that mixed with mature sediment from the east. Multiple data sets suggest regional climate and sea-level changes associated with changing organic-carbon burial rates.

Six facies were identified and represent wave-, tidal-, and river-influenced parts of the distal prodelta to delta front in a marine system. These include the shale facies and associated concretion facies (distal prodelta), the shale-sandstone facies (proximal prodelta to delta front), the slump …

Perceived Crowding And Visitor Support For Use Rationing: A Reanalysis Of Existing Data, Jascha M. Zeitlin

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This thesis presents a reanalysis of data collected between 1999 and 2006 by the Institute for Outdoor Recreation and Tourism (IORT) at Utah State University. These data concern a variety of outdoor recreation sites in Utah, Idaho, and South Dakota, and were collected via intercept, mail, and, to a very limited extent, telephone surveys. Survey instruments contained questions related to visitor perceptions of crowding, overall satisfaction, support for use limits/rationing, and estimates of use density, in addition to other conceptually related factors.

Analyses consisted of multiple regression models for both perceived crowding and visitor support for use limits dependent variables …

Hydrological Characterization Of A Riparian Vegetation Zone Using High Resolution Multi-Spectral Airborne Imagery, Osama Zaki Akasheh

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The Middle Rio Grande River (MRGR) is the main source of fresh water for the state of New Mexico. Located in an arid area with scarce local water resources, this has led to extensive diversions of river water to supply the high demand from municipalities and irrigated agricultural activities. The extensive water diversions over the last few decades have affected the composition of the native riparian vegetation by decreasing the area of cottonwood and coyote willow and increasing the spread of invasive species such as Tamarisk and Russian Olives, harmful to the river system, due to their high transpiration rates, …

Understanding Unfolding Change And The Value Of Strategic Unification In Recent Usu Information Technology Functional Realignment, Eric S. Hawley

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This is a qualitative case study of the 2005-2008 Utah State University Information Technology reorganization from the perspective of key change advocates. The study identified and documented the unfolding change process involved in the reorganization in terms of dissatisfaction, executive changes, internal executive strategic planning, implementation and initial impacts, and continuous "in situ" strategic planning. The study also answered a set of supporting concluding questions indicating increased value to the institution in areas of customer service and confidence, organization, financial resources, planning and policy, security, and increased/improved services and service functions.

Threat Perception As A Determinant Of Pro-Environmental Behaviors: Public Involvement In Air Pollution Abatement In Cache Valley, Utah, Joshua D. Marquit

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Threat perception related to environmental issues such as air pollution may be a determinant of pro-environmental behaviors. Among the potential threats of air pollution, include the perceived impacts on the psychological, social, and economic wellbeing of a community. Because of rapid increases in population growth, urbanization, and the mountainous landscapes, the American West is extremely susceptible to the adverse impacts of air pollution.

A secondary data analysis was conducted using data from the Air Quality Perception Survey conducted in Cache County, Utah. The survey focused on the public perception of air pollution in Cache County and perceived impact on personal …

Synthetic Complexes Of Relevance To Ni(Ii)-Containing Enzymes, Katarzyna Rudzka

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The work outlined herein presents an investigation of synthetic model complexes of relevance to the active sites of Ni(II)-containing enzymes, particularly urease, glyoxalase I, and acireductone dioxygenase. The research focuses on studying the structural and reactivity features of nickel complexes with biologically relevant substrates. The anion of acetohydroxamic acid is a well-known inhibitor of urease enzymes, including those isolated from Klebsiella aerogenes and Bacillus pasteurii. A precursor to the acetohydroxamate coordination in ureases is proposed to be an interaction between Ni(II) and acetohydroxamic acid. By using a novel supporting chelate ligand capable of secondary hydrogen bonding interactions a novel …

Impact Analysis Of System And Network Attacks, Anupama Biswas

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Systems and networks have been under attack from the time the Internet first came into existence. There is always some uncertainty associated with the impact of the new attacks. Compared to the problem of attack detection, analysis of attack impact has received very little attention. Generalize and forecasting the kind of attack that will hit systems in future is not possible. However, it is possible to predict the behavior of a new attack and, thereby, the impact of the attack. This thesis proposes a method for predicting the impact of a new attack on systems and networks as well as …

Sources And Source Processes Of Organic Nitrogen Aerosols In The Atmosphere, Mark E. Erupe

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The research in this dissertation explored the sources and chemistry of organic nitrogen aerosols in the atmosphere. Two approaches were employed: field measurements and laboratory experiments. In order to characterize atmospheric aerosol, two ambient studies were conducted in Cache Valley in Northern Utah during strong winter inversions of 2004 and 2005. The economy of this region is heavily dependent on agriculture. There is also a fast growing urban population. Urban and agricultural emissions, aided by the valley geography and meteorology, led to high concentrations of fine particles that often exceeded the national ambient air quality standards. Aerosol composition was dominated …

Darboux Integrability Of Wave Maps Into 2-Dimensional Riemannian Manifolds, Robert Ream

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The harmonic map equations can be represented geometrically as an exterior differential system (EDS), ε. Using this representation we study the harmonic maps from 2D Minkowski space into 2D Riemannian manifolds. These are also known as wave maps. In this case, E is invariant under conformal transformations of Minkowski space. The quotient of ε by these conformal transformations, E/G, is an s=0 hyperbolic system.

The main result of our study is that the prolonged EDS, ε^(k), is Darboux integrable if and only if the prolonged quotient EDS, ε^(k+1), is Darboux integrable. We also find invariants determining …

Development Of A Post-Fire Monitoring Protocol For Evaluating Treatment Effectiveness And Cheatgrass Abundance Using Quickbird Imagery And Ground Observations, Gabriel Bissonette

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) manages 9.3 million hectares of land in Utah and has implemented an Emergency Stabilization and Rehabilitation (ESR) Program to protect life and property, combat soil erosion, and reduce the invasion of exotic/noxious weeds following wildland fire. In highly vulnerable sites, seeding treatments may be applied to establish an interim landcover to stabilize the soil and competitively exclude weed invasions. Monitoring treatment effectiveness is mandated through ESR guidelines and necessary for the submission of annual Accomplishment Reports for the first three years following fire containment. Ground monitoring has been the traditional approach to fulfilling this …

Automated Data Type Identification And Localization Using Statistical Analysis Data Identification, Sarah Jean Moody

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This research presents a new and unique technique called SÁDI, statistical analysis data identification, for identifying the type of data on a digital device and its storage format based on data type, specifically the values of the bytes representing the data being examined. This research incorporates the automation required for specialized data identification tools to be useful and applicable in real-world applications. The SÁDI technique utilizes the byte values of the data stored on a digital storage device in such a way that the accuracy of the technique does not rely solely on the potentially misleading metadata information but rather …

An Evolutionary Approach To Image Compression In The Discrete Cosine Transform Domain, Benjamin E. Banham

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This paper examines the application of genetic programming to image compression while working in the frequency domain. Several methods utilized by JPEG encoding are applied to the image before utilizing a genetic programming system. Specifically, the discrete cosine transform (DCT) is applied to the original image, followed by the zig-zag scanning of DCT coefficients. The genetic programming system is finally applied to the one-dimensional array resulting from the zig-zag scan. The research takes an existing genetic programming system developed for the spatial domain and develops DCT domain functionality. The results from the DCT domain-based genetic programming system are compared with …

Identification Of Subsoil Compaction Using Electrical Conductivity And Spectral Data Across Varying Soil Moisture Regimes In Utah, Jay Murray Payne

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Subsoil compaction is a major yield limiting factor for most agricultural crops. Tillage is the most efficient method to quickly treat compacted subsoil, but it is also expensive, increases erosion, and accelerates nutrient cycling.

The use of real-time electrical conductivity (EC) and near-infrared (NIR) reflectance values to differentiate compacted areas from uncompacted areas was studied. This method has potential to reduce monetary and time investments inherent in traditional grid sampling and the resultant deep tillage of an entire field. EC and NIR reflectance are both very sensitive to spatial variability of soil attributes.

The objective of this research was to …

Factors Affecting Landowner Participation In The Candidate Conservation Agreements With Assurances Program, Kendra Womack

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The United States’ Endangered Species Act of 1973 has been recognized as one of the most powerful laws enacted to protect endangered species in the world. Its protections for animal species extends onto private land, which has in some cases created conflict between the law, its enforcers, and private landowners. The Candidate Conservation Agreements with Assurances (CCAA) program was developed in 1999 to provide a regulatory incentive for private landowners to engage in pro-active conservation for sensitive species to preclude the need for listing under the ESA in the future. Since 1999, however, there have only been 17 CCAAs signed, …

Modeling The Electrodynamics Of The Low-Latitude Ionosphere, Christian Stephen Wohlwend

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The electrodynamics of the Earth's low-latitude ionosphere is dependent on the ionospheric conductivity and the thermospheric neutral density, temperature, and winds present. This two-part study focused on the gravity wave seeding mechanism of equatorial plasma depletions in the ionosphere and the associated equatorial spread F, as well as the differences between a two-dimensional flux tube integrated electrodynamics model and a three-dimensional model for the same time period. The gravity wave seeding study was based on a parameterization of a gravity wave perturbation using a background empirical thermosphere and a physics-based ionosphere for the case of 12 UT on 26 September …

Analysis Of Chemical Bonding In Clusters By Means Of The Adaptive Natural Density Partitioning, Dmitry Yu Zubarev

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Models of chemical bonding are essential for contemporary chemistry. Even the explosive development of the computational resources including, both hardware and software, cannot eliminate necessity of compact, intuitive, and efficient methods of representing chemically relevant information. The Lewis model of chemical bonding, which was proposed eleven years before the formulation of quantum theory and preserves its pivotal role in chemical education and research for more than ninety years, is a vivid example of such a tool. As chemistry shifts to the nanoscale, it is becoming obvious that a certain shift of the paradigms of chemical bonding is inescapable. For example, …

Forensic And Anti-Forensic Techniques For Object Linking And Embedding 2 (Ole2)-Formatted Documents, Jason M. Daniels

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Common office documents provide significant opportunity for forensic and anti-forensic work. The Object Linking and Embedding 2 (OLE2) specification used primarily by Microsoft’s Office Suite contains unused or dead space regions that can be over written to hide covert channels of communication. This thesis describes a technique to detect those covert channels and also describes a different method of encoding that lowers the probability of detection.

The algorithm developed, called OleDetection, is based on the use of kurtosis and byte frequency distribution statistics to accurately identify OLE2 documents with covert channels. OleDetection is able to correctly identify 99.97 percent of …

The Adaptability Of Langmuir Probes To The Pico-Satellite Regime, Andrew Jay Auman

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this thesis is to investigate whether it is feasible to use Langmuir probes on pico-satellites flying in low Earth orbit over mid- to low-latitude geographic regions. Following chapters on the expected ionospheric conditions and an overview of Langmuir probe theory, a chapter addressing the difficulties involved with pico-satellite Langmuir probes is presented. Also, the necessary satellite-to-probe surface area requirements in order to achieve confidence in pico-satellite Langmuir probe data, for the orbital regions of interest to this thesis, are stated.

Measurement Of Fine Spatial Scale Ecohydrologic Gradients In A Pinyon-Juniper Ecosystem, Matthew David Madsen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

With the dramatic expansion of pinyon-juniper woodlands over the last century, improved understanding of how these woodlands modify infiltration properties is needed, in order for land managers to make informed decisions on how to best manage their specific resources. However, current methods for measuring soil infiltration are often limited by low sample sizes and high experimental error, due to constraints associated with remote, non agricultural settings. This thesis first presents a scheme for automating and calibrating two commercially available infiltrometers, which allows collection of a large number of precise unsaturated infiltration measurements in a relatively short period of time. Secondly, …

Optimal Irrigation Management For Sloping, Blocked-End Borders, Jorge Jose Escurra

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A robust mathematical model of one-dimensional flow for sloping, blocked-end border irrigation was developed using the four-point implicit method to solve the Saint-Venant equations, the volume-balance solution method, and the implementation of new algorithms to avoid numerical instability and solution divergence. The model has the capability of successfully simulating all surface irrigation phases in blocked-end borders for a range of inflow rates (0.01 - 0.05 m³/s per m), longitudinal slopes (up to 1.00%), and border lengths (100 - 500 m).

To achieve numerical stability over the specified parameter ranges, the model was divided into three parts: (1) advance-phase …