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Articles 1 - 30 of 79
Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Molecular-Level Investigations Combining Nanoscale Lithography And Atomic Force Microscopy, Chamarra Karmelia Saner
Molecular-Level Investigations Combining Nanoscale Lithography And Atomic Force Microscopy, Chamarra Karmelia Saner
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
In this dissertation, nanostructures of octadecyltrichlorosilane (OTS) and were prepared using particle lithography and evaluated using characterizations with atomic force microscopy (AFM). The nanostructures of OTS were used as a resist for patterning fibronectin, an extracellular matrix protein. Particle lithography provides a practical and reproducible approach to generate billions of nanostructures comprised of organic thin films or nanomaterials. A film of mesospheres can be applied as a surface mask to define the periodicity and size of nanopatterns using processes of self-assembly. A close-packed arrangement of mesospheres is produced spontaneously when monodisperse solutions of latex or silica are dried on a …
Gene Set Based Ensemble Methods For Cancer Classification, William Evans Duncan
Gene Set Based Ensemble Methods For Cancer Classification, William Evans Duncan
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
Diagnosis of cancer very often depends on conclusions drawn after both clinical and microscopic examinations of tissues to study the manifestation of the disease in order to place tumors in known categories. One factor which determines the categorization of cancer is the tissue from which the tumor originates. Information gathered from clinical exams may be partial or not completely predictive of a specific category of cancer. Further complicating the problem of categorizing various tumors is that the histological classification of the cancer tissue and description of its course of development may be atypical. Gene expression data gleaned from micro-array analysis …
New Strategies For The Synthesis Of Porphyrinoids, Moses Inyanje Ihachi
New Strategies For The Synthesis Of Porphyrinoids, Moses Inyanje Ihachi
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
ABSTRACT Chapter 1 describes the most stable isomer of porphyrin called porphycene. In this chapter photodynamic therapy (PDT) is explained, and the application of porphycenes in PDT is also described. Other biological applications and its uses in catalysis are also summarized here. The general chemical reactions of porphycenes are also explained. Chapter 2 involves the synthesis of pyrroles and bipyrroles. Functionalization of pyrrollic substituents is demonstrated using organometallic coupling reactions like Stille coupling and Grubbs olefin metathesis. The synthesis of divinyl bipyrroles is intended to provide an important precursor to porphycene synthesis via ring closing metathesis using Grubbs catalyst. Chapter …
Searching For New Gamma-Ray Sources Using Earth Occultation Imaging With The Cgro/Burst And Transient Source Experiment, Yuan Zhang
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
Earth occultation provides a means of monitoring gamma-ray sources over the entire sky. This technique has been demonstrated with the Burst and Transient Source Experiment (BATSE) on the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory (CGRO) active from 1991 to 2000, and is now being used with the Gamma-ray Burst Monitor (GBM) instrument on the Fermi mission. Although this approach provides a powerful wide field monitoring capability, the BATSE and GBM implementations of this technique have so far limited the analysis to a catalog of previously identified sources. In this dissertation, an indirect imaging method is described that permits searching for unknown sources …
Luminescence Studies : Part I. Lanthanide Nanogumbos Part Ii. Near Infrared Photothermal Nanogumbos, Jonathan Carver Dumke
Luminescence Studies : Part I. Lanthanide Nanogumbos Part Ii. Near Infrared Photothermal Nanogumbos, Jonathan Carver Dumke
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
Group of Uniform Materials Based on Organic Salts (GUMBOS) are a class of molten salts that have been focused to be specifically tailored towards applications. Primitively, from Davy to Walden molten salts were desirable for organic synthesis due to the properties. GUMBOS have been synthesized into nanoparticles (nanoGUMBOS) by various methods to be used for lanthanide luminescence and hyperthermal cancer therapeutics. Lanthanide photochemistry has been frequently studied for its high luminescence intensity, narrow emission band, and stable luminescent lifetime decay. Aerosol-derived europium nanoGUMBOS were characterized using electron microscopy (39.5 ± 8.4 nm), XPS, and spectroscopic techniques. Spectroscopic measurements indicated intense …
Strongly Correlated Ultra-Cold Bosonic Atoms In Optical Lattices, Kalani Hettiarachchilage
Strongly Correlated Ultra-Cold Bosonic Atoms In Optical Lattices, Kalani Hettiarachchilage
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
A major focus in condensed matter physics is to study the origin of exotic quantum phases such as coexistent and inhomogeneous phases, quantum criticality, and secondary ordered phases close to quantum critical points. Exotic phenomena in strongly correlated systems occur due to competing complex interactions of spin, charge, lattice, and orbital degrees of freedom. Complex quantum phases in strongly correlated systems are challenging, but they might be very useful due to their possible functionality to make advance devices. In order to understand, utilize, and optimize such behaviors, we need to improve our understanding of these systems. Studies in cold atom …
Coupling Between Spin, Lattice, And Charge At The Surface Of Complex Transition Metal Compounds, Guorong Li
Coupling Between Spin, Lattice, And Charge At The Surface Of Complex Transition Metal Compounds, Guorong Li
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
Understanding and controlling the complexity that develops in complex transition metal compounds such as high-Tc superconductivity, "colossal" magnetoresistance in manganites, and heavy-fermion compounds, is one of the grand challenges of the 21st century. The exotic properties displayed by these compounds are closely related to the coexistence of nearly degenerate states, coupling simultaneously several active degrees of freedom such as the charge, lattice, orbital, and spin. In this work, we have focused on two systems, one is the newly discovered Fe-based superconducting compounds ((Ba, Ca)(Fe1-xCox)2As2, FeTe1-xSex) and the other one is the doped Ruddleden-Popper (RP) ruthenates (Sr3(Ru1-xMnx)2O7). The materials community was …
Structural And Synthesis Studies Of The Pro¹⁴³ Region Skp1 In Dictyostelium Discoideum, Chamini V. Karunaratne
Structural And Synthesis Studies Of The Pro¹⁴³ Region Skp1 In Dictyostelium Discoideum, Chamini V. Karunaratne
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
In Skp1 of Dictyostelium discoideum (Dd), Pro143 is located at the N-terminus of an α-helix with four consecutive Glu residues immediately following Pro. Preceeding Pro143 is a segment of random coil. The proline residue undergoes post-translational modifications: hydroxylation and glycosylation. A cytoplasmic prolyl hydroxylase (P4H1) delivers a hydroxyl group to Pro143 and N-acetylglucosamine transferase 1 (Gnt1) transfers GlcNAc from UDP to Hyp143 of Skp1. The installation of the first GlcNAc residue in Skp1 in Dictyostelium is important for the organism to differentiate into a fruiting body to disperse spores. We describe herein some structural and synthesis studies of the Pro143 …
Studies Of Core-Shell Nanogumbos And Liposomal Ionogels, Ashleigh Renee' Wright
Studies Of Core-Shell Nanogumbos And Liposomal Ionogels, Ashleigh Renee' Wright
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
The work presented in this dissertation is a description of novel core-shell nanomaterials derived from a group of uniform materials based on organic salts (GUMBOS) and the synthesis and characterizations of novel liposomal ionogels (LIGs). These GUMBOS are an extension of ionic liquids (ILs) which are organic salts with melting points between 25 °C and 100 °C. Ionic liquids have high thermal stability, low vapor pressure, and tunable physiochemical and functional properties. All of the properties of ILs are controlled by the chosen cation and anion pair. Similarly to ILs, GUMBOS possess the same qualities; however, they have melting points …
Chemical Composition And Structure Study Of Surfaces And Ultrathin Films Of Complex Compounds, Yi Li
Chemical Composition And Structure Study Of Surfaces And Ultrathin Films Of Complex Compounds, Yi Li
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
Complex Materials, such as transition-metal oxides (TMOs) with exotic properties provide immense opportunities in condensed matter and materials science. The signature and challenge of these materials is the multitude of competing ground states that can be tuned or manipulated by doping, structural modification, strain induction, or the application of external stimulus. In the past few years, it is becoming increasingly clear that surfaces/interfaces, thin films, and heterostructures of TMOs, display a rich diversity of fascinating properties that are related to, but not identical to, the bulk phenomena. The fundamental issues for the understanding of these emergent phenomena include the structure …
The Development Of Capillary Electrophoresis Assays To Study Enzyme Inhibition, Sherrisse Kelly Bryant
The Development Of Capillary Electrophoresis Assays To Study Enzyme Inhibition, Sherrisse Kelly Bryant
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
New methods for studying enzymes and enzyme inhibition using capillary electrophoresis (CE) were developed and applied. Because CE is a separation technique, spectral interference is minimized by separation of substrates, products, inhibitors, and sample matrix components. Two types of CE enzyme assays were explored in this dissertation research. The first assay was based on optically gated vacancy capillary electrophoresis (OGVCE) with laser-induced fluorescence detection (LIF). This approach involves periodic photobleaching of fluorescent substrates and products. The initial goal of the study was to develop an assay for adenosine deaminase (ADA). A fluorescent ADA substrate was synthesized; however, the substrate was …
Refining The Characterization Of Projective Graphs, Perry K. Iverson
Refining The Characterization Of Projective Graphs, Perry K. Iverson
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
Archdeacon showed that the class of graphs embeddable in the projective plane is characterized by a set of 35 excluded minors. Robertson, Seymour and Thomas in an unpublished result found the excluded minors for the class of k-connected graphs embeddable on the projective plane for k = 1,2,3. We give a short proof of that result and then determine the excluded minors for the class of internally 4-connected projective graphs. Hall showed that a 3-connected graph diff_x000B_erent from K5 is planar if and only if it has K3,3 as a minor. We provide two analogous results for projective graphs. For …
Cyclic Block Copolypeptoids : Synthesis, Self-Assembly And Macroscopic Properties, Chang-Uk Lee
Cyclic Block Copolypeptoids : Synthesis, Self-Assembly And Macroscopic Properties, Chang-Uk Lee
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
This dissertation presents the first experimental efforts for synthesizing a new class of peptidomimetic polymers, cyclic block copolypeptoids, studying their self-assembly in dilute solution, and examining their macroscopic properties. Cyclic poly(N-methyl-glycine)-b-poly(N-decyl-glycine) (PNMG-b-PNDG) diblock copolymers were synthesized via sequential, N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC)-mediated ring-opening polymerization of NCA monomers with controlled chain length and compositions. Cryo-TEM shows that PNMG105-b-PNDG10 copolymers in methanol (1 mg/mL) form spherical micelles that organize to form cylindrical micelles over time. The formation of cylindrical micelles is attributed to the crystallization of PNDG chains, as revealed by SAED and microDSC analyses. Cyclic PNMG100-b-PNDG10 copolymers form thermo-reversible, free-standing gels at …
The Ring Theory And The Representation Theory Of Quantum Schubert Cells, Joel Benjamin Geiger
The Ring Theory And The Representation Theory Of Quantum Schubert Cells, Joel Benjamin Geiger
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
In recent years the quantum Schubert cell algebras, introduced by Lusztig and De Concini--Kac, and Procesi, have garnered much interest as this versatile class of objects are furtive testing grounds for noncommutative algebraic geometry. We unify the two main approaches to analyzing the structure of the torus-invariant prime spectra of quantum Schubert cell algebras, a ring theoretic one via Cauchon's deleting derivations and a representation theoretic characterization of Yakimov via Demazure modules. As a result one can combine the strengths of the two approaches. In unifying the theories, we resolve two questions of Cauchon and Mériaux, one of which involves …
Study On The Performance Of Tcp Over 10gbps High Speed Networks, Cheng Cui
Study On The Performance Of Tcp Over 10gbps High Speed Networks, Cheng Cui
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
Internet traffic is expected to grow phenomenally over the next five to ten years. To cope with such large traffic volumes, high-speed networks are expected to scale to capacities of terabits-per-second and beyond. Increasing the role of optics for packet forwarding and transmission inside the high-speed networks seems to be the most promising way to accomplish this capacity scaling. Unfortunately, unlike electronic memory, it remains a formidable challenge to build even a few dozen packets of integrated all-optical buffers. On the other hand, many high-speed networks depend on the TCP/IP protocol for reliability which is typically implemented in software and …
On-The-Fly Tracing For Data-Centric Computing : Parallelization, Workflow And Applications, Lei Jiang
On-The-Fly Tracing For Data-Centric Computing : Parallelization, Workflow And Applications, Lei Jiang
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
As data-centric computing becomes the trend in science and engineering, more and more hardware systems, as well as middleware frameworks, are emerging to handle the intensive computations associated with big data. At the programming level, it is crucial to have corresponding programming paradigms for dealing with big data. Although MapReduce is now a known programming model for data-centric computing where parallelization is completely replaced by partitioning the computing task through data, not all programs particularly those using statistical computing and data mining algorithms with interdependence can be re-factorized in such a fashion. On the other hand, many traditional automatic parallelization …
Investigations Into Alkene Hydration And Alkene Oxidation Catalysis, William Schreiter
Investigations Into Alkene Hydration And Alkene Oxidation Catalysis, William Schreiter
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
Bimetallic Ni complexes Ni21M and Ni21R and monometallic transition metal complexes were investigated as possible alkene hydration catalysts under a multitude of different reaction conditions. All attempts at performing this catalytic reaction failed to give any alcohol products. Catalytic screening experiments were conducted using a mixture of racemic-et,ph-P4 and meso-et,ph-P4, 1M and 1R, and various transition metals. These experiments gave several different products including 1-phenylethanol from styrene. During the course of the hydration experiments, an aldehyde product was identified from experiments conducted with the bimetallic complexes in air. Experiments have shown that the aldehyde is produced from the oxidative cleavage …
A Semigroup/Laplace Transform Approach To Approximating Flows, Ladorian Nichele Latin
A Semigroup/Laplace Transform Approach To Approximating Flows, Ladorian Nichele Latin
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
It is well known that all flows in a state space O induce a semigroup of linear operators on an appropriately chosen vector space of functions (observables) from O into a vector space Z (observations). After choosing appropriate continuity assumptions on the flow, the associated semigroup will be strongly continuous and will have a linear, infinitesimal generator A. The purpose of this dissertation is to explore approximation methods for linear semigroups and/or Laplace transform inversion methods in order to reconstruct the flow starting with the linear generator A . In preparing for these investigations, we collect some of the essential …
Incorporating Science-Based Approaches Into The Rapid Assessment Of Wetlands And Streams : Validation, Restoration Trajectory, And Method Development, Jacob Franklin Berkowitz
Incorporating Science-Based Approaches Into The Rapid Assessment Of Wetlands And Streams : Validation, Restoration Trajectory, And Method Development, Jacob Franklin Berkowitz
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
Human alterations within wetlands and streams have resulted in a decrease in ecological functions and associated benefits to society. The scientific literature highlights the functional benefits provided by ecosystems including flood protection, nutrient cycling, and habitat maintenance. Additionally, legislation and regulatory policy require mitigation and restoration as compensation for declines in ecological functions. As a result, the need for practical, repeatable, and technically sound ecosystem assessment methods remains essential to natural resource management. However, few studies determine the validity of rapid assessment approaches by applying quantitative parameters, especially with respect to biogeochemical functions. We assessed biogeochemical functions applied to restored …
Super-Aptamer Bio-Imprinted Hydrogels : An Investigation Into The Optimization And Characterization Of Cross-Linked Polymeric Materials Displaying Macromolecular Amplified Responses, Nicholas Alexander Gariano
Super-Aptamer Bio-Imprinted Hydrogels : An Investigation Into The Optimization And Characterization Of Cross-Linked Polymeric Materials Displaying Macromolecular Amplified Responses, Nicholas Alexander Gariano
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
It is becoming more important to detect ultra-low concentrations of analytes for biomedical, environmental, and national security applications. Equally important is that new methods should be easy to use, inexpensive, portable, and if possible allow detection using the naked eye. Detection of low concentrations of analytes generally cannot be achieved directly, but requires signal amplification by catalysts, macromolecules, metal surfaces or supramolecular aggregates. The rapidly progressing field of macromolecular signal amplification has been advanced using conjugated polymers, chirality in polymers, solvating polymers and polymerization/depolymerization strategies. The use of molecularly imprinted polymers is ideal for creation of novel sensors to meet …
A Multi-Scale Investigation Of Nutrient Dynamics In The Lake Pontchartrain Estuary And Basin, Eric Daniel Roy
A Multi-Scale Investigation Of Nutrient Dynamics In The Lake Pontchartrain Estuary And Basin, Eric Daniel Roy
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
Humans are responsible for global-scale alteration of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) biogeochemical cycles to support food production. Increases in N and P inputs into soils and waste-streams has resulted in excessive nutrient loading to surface waters, including the Mississippi River, leading to eutrophication. Here I investigated N and P dynamics occurring in the Lake Pontchartrain Estuary and Basin. I measured two biogeochemical processes using intact sediment core incubations and quantified their importance in the context of nutrient-rich Mississippi River flood diversions through the Bonnet Carré Spillway. I show that diffusion of nitrate-N into sediments accounts for a substantial magnitude …
Scanning Probe Investigations Of The Surface Self-Assembly Of Organothiols And Organosilanes Using Nanoscale Lithography, Tian Tian
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
Particle lithography and scanning probe lithography were applied to study the kinetics and mechanisms of surface self-assembly processes. Organothiols on Au(111) and organosilane on Si(111) were chosen as model systems for investigations at the nanoscale using atomic force microscopy (AFM). Fundamental insight of structure/property interrelationships and understanding the properties of novel materials are critical for developments with molecular devices. Methods using an AFM probe for nanofabrication have been applied successfully to prepare sophisticated molecular architectures with high reproducibility and spatial precision. The established capabilities of AFM-based nanografting were reviewed for inscribing patterns of diverse composition, to generate complicated surface designs …
Environmentally Persistent Free Radicals (Epfrs) In Pm₂.₅ : Their Contribution To Hydroxyl Radical Formation And Atmospheric Transformation, William Micheal Gehling, Jr.
Environmentally Persistent Free Radicals (Epfrs) In Pm₂.₅ : Their Contribution To Hydroxyl Radical Formation And Atmospheric Transformation, William Micheal Gehling, Jr.
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
Previous research demonstrated environmentally persistent free radicals (EPFRs) will form on particulate surfaces under combustion conditions (temperature range of 150-400 °C) from reactions of organic precursors with redox-active transition metals. With an understanding of how these EPFRs form, it is necessary to determine how they behave in a natural environment after emission. To better understand this, the nature of EPFRs in ambient PM2.5 under simulated atmospheric conditions was investigated. Ambient PM2.5 samples were collected at a roadside ambient monitoring site near heavy interstate traffic and major industrial activity. The EPFR concentration and general radical structure were determined with EPR spectroscopy. …
Decade-Scale Nutrient Enrichment Effects On Wetland Plant Community Structure, Function, And Stability, Sean A. Graham
Decade-Scale Nutrient Enrichment Effects On Wetland Plant Community Structure, Function, And Stability, Sean A. Graham
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
Human activities have increased the supply of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) to coastal waters worldwide, threatening coastal wetlands with excess nutrient loading and subsequent eutrophication. In this dissertation, I present results from two decade-scale fertilization experiments in a Sagittaria lancifolia dominated oligohaline marsh that examined the species-, community-, and ecosystem-level effects of nutrient enrichment. My objectives were to determine (1) which nutrient limits primary production, (2) how increased supply of the limiting nutrient affects plant community structure and function, both above- and belowground, and (3) whether nutrient over-enrichment compromises ecosystem stability. Overall, significant changes in plant growth occurred with …
Skein Theory And Topological Quantum Field Theory, Xuanting Cai
Skein Theory And Topological Quantum Field Theory, Xuanting Cai
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
Skein modules arise naturally when mathematicians try to generalize the Jones polynomial of knots. In the first part of this work, we study properties of skein modules. The Temperley-Lieb algebra and some of its generalizations are skein modules. We construct a bases for these skein modules. With this basis, we are able to compute some gram determinants of bilinear forms on these skein modules. Also we use this basis to prove that the Mahler measures of colored Jones polynomial of a sequence of knots converges to the Mahler measure of some two variable polynomial. The topological quantum field theory constructed …
Photometric Variability Of X-Ray Sources In The Galactic Bulge, Christopher Tillman Britt
Photometric Variability Of X-Ray Sources In The Galactic Bulge, Christopher Tillman Britt
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
The Chandra Galactic Bulge Survey (GBS) undertakes to find and classify X-ray sources in the Galactic Bulge. Of these X-ray sources, there is likely a significant minority which are Low Mass X-ray Binaries: systems containing either a neutron star or black hole that is accreting matter from a roughly stellar mass companion via Roche-Lobe overflow. I use optical time-series photometry from the Mosaic-II instrument on the Blanco 4m telescope at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory to identify counterparts to new X-ray sources in the GBS. Of those that are variable in brightness, I use the morphology of the changes and …
Crystal Growth And An Investigation Of Structural Stability: Synthesis, Structure, And Physical Properties Of Yb(Mn,M)Xal12-X (M = Fe, Ru; X < 2.5) And Lnmnxga3 (Ln = Ho-Tm; X < 0.15), Bradford Wesley Fulfer
Crystal Growth And An Investigation Of Structural Stability: Synthesis, Structure, And Physical Properties Of Yb(Mn,M)Xal12-X (M = Fe, Ru; X < 2.5) And Lnmnxga3 (Ln = Ho-Tm; X < 0.15), Bradford Wesley Fulfer
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
The contents of this dissertation describe the crystal growth, crystal structures, and physical properties of ternary intermetallic aluminides and gallides. These compounds are grown in an effort to determine how controlling reaction ratios using the flux growth method can impact chemical structure and physical properties. Three specific examples are given where slight changes in reaction ratios leads to crystalline products that adopt various structure types. LnMn2+xAl10-x (Ln = Gd, Yb) crystals adopt the CaCr2Al10 and ThMn12 structure types. We compare LnMn2+xAl10-x compounds adopting the CaCr2Al10 and ThMn12 structure types, and outline synthesis methods to obtain each polymorph. Magnetic susceptibility measurements …
Ecosystem Metabolism In Coastal Plain Streams Of Southeast Louisiana : Environmental And Watershed Effects, Jonathan L. West
Ecosystem Metabolism In Coastal Plain Streams Of Southeast Louisiana : Environmental And Watershed Effects, Jonathan L. West
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
Since its introduction in 1956, the use of open-system, diel dissolved oxygen curves for estimating the components of ecosystem metabolism in the lotic setting have been important in determining the current ecosystem theory of streams, both spatially among multiple systems and longitudinally within the same system, as well as identifying potentially impaired systems, especially when contrasted with streams considered unimpaired. Several factors have been identified as controls on both components of ecosystem metabolism and include light, nutrients, and stable substrates for gross primary production (GPP) and a source of organic matter (OM) for ecosystem respiration (ER). Stream size is important …
Reef Fish Demographics On Louisiana Artificial Reefs : The Effects Of Reef Size On Biomass Distribution And Foraging Dynamics, Kirsten A. Simonsen
Reef Fish Demographics On Louisiana Artificial Reefs : The Effects Of Reef Size On Biomass Distribution And Foraging Dynamics, Kirsten A. Simonsen
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
Understanding the role that habitat plays in the life history of reef-associated fishes is particularly significant given the dramatic increase in the number of artificial reefs deployed in coastal ecosystems over the past 50 years. In the Gulf of Mexico, the oil and gas industry has added a significant amount of structure to the Louisiana continental shelf, creating the largest de facto artificial reef deployment area in the world. Noting their usefulness as fish habitat, the Louisiana Artificial Reef Program was established to convert decommissioned platforms into artificial reefs. However, very little quantitative information exists on how these habitats affect …
Toward Digitizing The Human Experience : A New Resource For Natural Language Processing, Jerry Scott Weltman
Toward Digitizing The Human Experience : A New Resource For Natural Language Processing, Jerry Scott Weltman
LSU Doctoral Dissertations
A long-standing goal of Artificial Intelligence is to program computers that understand natural language. A basic obstacle is that computers lack the common sense that even small children acquire simply by experiencing life, and no one has devised a way to program this experience into a computer. This dissertation presents a methodology and proof-of-concept software system that enables non-experts, with some training, to create simple experiences. For the purposes of this dissertation, an experience is a series of time-ordered comic frames, annotated with the changing intentional and physical states of the characters and objects in each frame. Each frame represents …