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2017

University of Texas Rio Grande Valley

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Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Stable Solution To L 2,1-Based Robust Inductive Matrix Completion And Its Application In Linking Long Noncoding Rnas To Human Diseases, Ashis Kumer Biswas, Dong-Chul Kim, Mingon Kang, Chris Ding, Jean X. Gao Dec 2017

Stable Solution To L 2,1-Based Robust Inductive Matrix Completion And Its Application In Linking Long Noncoding Rnas To Human Diseases, Ashis Kumer Biswas, Dong-Chul Kim, Mingon Kang, Chris Ding, Jean X. Gao

Computer Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

Backgrounds

A large number of long intergenic non-coding RNAs (lincRNAs) are linked to a broad spectrum of human diseases. The disease association with many other lincRNAs still remain as puzzle. Validation of such links between the two entities through biological experiments are expensive. However, a plethora lincRNA-data are available now, thanks to the High Throughput Sequencing (HTS) platforms, Genome Wide Association Studies (GWAS), etc, which opens the opportunity for cutting-edge machine learning and data mining approaches to extract meaningful relationships among lincRNAs and diseases. However, there are only a few in silico lincRNA-disease association inference tools available to date, and …


Pulsar J1411+2551: A Low-Mass Double Neutron Star System, J. G. Martinez, K. Stovall, P. C.C. Freire, J. S. Deneva, T. M. Tauris, A. Ridolfi, N. Wex, F. A. Jenet, M. A. Mclaughlin, M. Bagchi Dec 2017

Pulsar J1411+2551: A Low-Mass Double Neutron Star System, J. G. Martinez, K. Stovall, P. C.C. Freire, J. S. Deneva, T. M. Tauris, A. Ridolfi, N. Wex, F. A. Jenet, M. A. Mclaughlin, M. Bagchi

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications and Presentations

In this work, we report the discovery and characterization of PSR J1411+2551, a new binary pulsar discovered in the Arecibo 327 MHz Drift Pulsar Survey. Our timing observations of the radio pulsar in the system span a period of about 2.5 years. This timing campaign allowed a precise measurement of its spin period (62.4 ms) and its derivative (9.6 ±0.7) ×10 -20 s s -1 ; from these, we derive a characteristic age of >9.1 Gyr and a surface magnetic field strength of <2.6 ×10 9 G. These numbers indicate that this pulsar was mildly recycled by accretion of matter from the progenitor of the companion star. The system has an eccentric (e =0.17) 2.61 day orbit. This eccentricity allows a highly significant measurement of the rate of advance of periastron, . Assuming general relativity accurately describes the orbital motion, this implies a total system mass M =2.538 ±0.022 M o . The minimum companion mass is 0.92 M o and the maximum pulsar mass is 1.62 M o . The large companion mass and the orbital eccentricity suggest that PSR J1411+2551 is a double neutron star system; the lightest known to date including the DNS merger GW170817. Furthermore, the relatively low orbital eccentricity and small proper motion limits suggest that the second supernova had a relatively small associated kick; this and the low system mass suggest that it was an ultra-stripped supernova.


First Low-Frequency Einstein@Home All-Sky Search For Continuous Gravitational Waves In Advanced Ligo Data, B. P. Abbott, R. Abbott, T. D. Abbott, F. Acernese, K. Ackley, C. Adams, T. Adams, P. Addesso, R. X. Adhikari, V. B. Adya, C. Affeldt, M. Afrough, B. Agarwal, K. Agatsuma, N. Aggarwal, O. D. Aguiar, L. Aiello, A. Ain, B. Allen, G. Allen, A. Allocca, P. A. Altin, A. Amato, A. Ananyeva, S. B. Anderson, W. G. Anderson, S. Antier, S. Appert, K. Arai, M. C. Araya Dec 2017

First Low-Frequency Einstein@Home All-Sky Search For Continuous Gravitational Waves In Advanced Ligo Data, B. P. Abbott, R. Abbott, T. D. Abbott, F. Acernese, K. Ackley, C. Adams, T. Adams, P. Addesso, R. X. Adhikari, V. B. Adya, C. Affeldt, M. Afrough, B. Agarwal, K. Agatsuma, N. Aggarwal, O. D. Aguiar, L. Aiello, A. Ain, B. Allen, G. Allen, A. Allocca, P. A. Altin, A. Amato, A. Ananyeva, S. B. Anderson, W. G. Anderson, S. Antier, S. Appert, K. Arai, M. C. Araya

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications and Presentations

We report results of a deep all-sky search for periodic gravitational waves from isolated neutron stars in data from the first Advanced LIGO observing run. This search investigates the low frequency range of Advanced LIGO data, between 20 and 100 Hz, much of which was not explored in initial LIGO. The search was made possible by the computing power provided by the volunteers of the Einstein@Home project. We find no significant signal candidate and set the most stringent upper limits to date on the amplitude of gravitational wave signals from the target population, corresponding to a sensitivity depth of 48.7 …


First Narrow-Band Search For Continuous Gravitational Waves From Known Pulsars In Advanced Detector Data, B. P. Abbott, R. Abbott, T. D. Abbott, F. Acernese, K. Ackley, C. Adams, T. Adams, P. Addesso, R. X. Adhikari, V. B. Adya, C. Affeldt, M. Afrough, B. Agarwal, M. Agathos, K. Agatsuma, N. Aggarwal, O. D. Aguiar, L. Aiello, A. Ain, B. Allen, G. Allen, A. Allocca, P. A. Altin, A. Amato, A. Ananyeva, S. B. Anderson, W. G. Anderson, S. V. Angelova, S. Antier, S. Appert Dec 2017

First Narrow-Band Search For Continuous Gravitational Waves From Known Pulsars In Advanced Detector Data, B. P. Abbott, R. Abbott, T. D. Abbott, F. Acernese, K. Ackley, C. Adams, T. Adams, P. Addesso, R. X. Adhikari, V. B. Adya, C. Affeldt, M. Afrough, B. Agarwal, M. Agathos, K. Agatsuma, N. Aggarwal, O. D. Aguiar, L. Aiello, A. Ain, B. Allen, G. Allen, A. Allocca, P. A. Altin, A. Amato, A. Ananyeva, S. B. Anderson, W. G. Anderson, S. V. Angelova, S. Antier, S. Appert

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications and Presentations

Spinning neutron stars asymmetric with respect to their rotation axis are potential sources of continuous gravitational waves for ground-based interferometric detectors. In the case of known pulsars a fully coherent search, based on matched filtering, which uses the position and rotational parameters obtained from electromagnetic observations, can be carried out. Matched filtering maximizes the signal-to-noise (SNR) ratio, but a large sensitivity loss is expected in case of even a very small mismatch between the assumed and the true signal parameters. For this reason, narrow-band analysis methods have been developed, allowing a fully coherent search for gravitational waves from known pulsars …


Oxidation Of Dibenzothiophene To Dibenzothiophene-Sufone Using A Molybdenum (Vi) Oxide Catalyst: A Kinetic Study Testing Solvent Dependency And Mole Ratio Efficiency, Tomas Trevino Jr. Dec 2017

Oxidation Of Dibenzothiophene To Dibenzothiophene-Sufone Using A Molybdenum (Vi) Oxide Catalyst: A Kinetic Study Testing Solvent Dependency And Mole Ratio Efficiency, Tomas Trevino Jr.

Theses and Dissertations

Oxidative desulfurization (ODS) is currently a solution to hydrodesulphurization. Currently, industrial usage of hydrodesulphurization (HDS) is the common source for petroleum purification. Unfortunately, HDS comes with environmental and economical ramifications. Due to the problems and potential hazards being presented with HDS, ODS has become a topic of interest in research development. A kinetic study using molybdenum (VI) oxide as a catalyst was used in oxidative desulfurization. Factors such as mole ratio and solvent dependency were tested for efficiency. As activation energy was calculated to show maximum efficiency with respect to temperature and concentration. Gas Chromatography, FT-IR, and Mass Spectroscopy were …


Phylogeography Of An Estuarian Calanoid Copepod; Acartia Tonsa In The Texas Gulf Of Mexico, Nicole J. Figueroa Dec 2017

Phylogeography Of An Estuarian Calanoid Copepod; Acartia Tonsa In The Texas Gulf Of Mexico, Nicole J. Figueroa

Theses and Dissertations

The calanoid copepod, Acartia tonsa is one of the most abundant and well-studied estuarian species. However, the idea that this cosmopolitan species has unrestricted dispersal and high gene flow has been challenged. In this study, a more holistic picture of the phylogeography of A. tonsa was developed using the mitochondrial gene cytochrome oxidase one (mtCOI). Multiple new lineages were found in the Texas Gulf of Mexico that are basal to Northeastern Atlantic lineages. Connectivity was also observed between Brazil and the Texas Gulf of Mexico. The revised phylogeny shows a clear pattern of cryptic speciation as the species made a …


Remediation Of Trivalent And Hexavalent Chromium Ions From Aqueous Solutions Using Titanium Dioxide Polymorphs, Yvette Cantu Dec 2017

Remediation Of Trivalent And Hexavalent Chromium Ions From Aqueous Solutions Using Titanium Dioxide Polymorphs, Yvette Cantu

Theses and Dissertations

Three titanium dioxide (TiO2) polymorphs were synthesized and used for the removal of chromium (III) and chromium (VI) from aqueous solutions. Various solution parameters were studied to determine the effects of pH, temperature, time, possible interfering ions, and capacities on the binding of Cr(III) and Cr(VI) to all three polymorphs. pH assays determined the optimum pH for the binding of both Cr(III) and Cr(VI) to each polymorph. Adsorption isotherms determined that the adsorption of Cr(III) was non-spontaneous for the three polymorphs with ΔG values ranging from 6.03 to 12.89 kJ/mol. Furthermore, the binding of Cr(VI) to anatase was also non-spontaneous …


Development Of An Innovative Observational Astronomy Class For High School Students In Collaboration With The University Of Texas/Rio Grande Valley, Alan W. Hendrick Dec 2017

Development Of An Innovative Observational Astronomy Class For High School Students In Collaboration With The University Of Texas/Rio Grande Valley, Alan W. Hendrick

Theses and Dissertations

The vision presented by the National Academy of Science Standards is for all students to spend more time ‘doing’ science in order to develop science literacy and be better prepared not only for college but also in understanding and participation in global current events. A course in observational Astronomy is just that, an opportunity for student to “do ‘science by collaborating with actual scientists in real research. The course follows a path in which students learn foundational knowledge and apply this knowledge to complete a successful celestial observation, interpreting the results by making inferences and predictions. This paper begins with …


Hydrodesulfurization Of Dibenzothiophene Using Lanthanum Doped Comos2, Carolina Valdes Bracamontes Dec 2017

Hydrodesulfurization Of Dibenzothiophene Using Lanthanum Doped Comos2, Carolina Valdes Bracamontes

Theses and Dissertations

Hydrodesulfurization (HDS) is a technique used in petrochemical industry for the removal of sulfur from crude oil. Using dibenzothiophene (DBT) as a target molecule and CoMoS2 catalysts doped with various concentrations of lanthanum were studied for catalytic activity in the removal of DBT from solution. Catalysts were synthesized using ammonium tetrathiomolydate, cobalt chloride and lanthanum nitrate under a solvothermal decomposition in decalin at 350 °C with H2 gas at 160 psi. To evaluate decomposition effects, a second set of catalyst precursors were decomposed in a tube furnace at 450 °C under a constant flow of 10%/90% H2/Ar. Characterizations of the …


Synthesis Of Tetraethyl ((2-Amino-1,4-Phenylene)Bis(Methylene)) Bis(Phosphonate): An Intermediate In The Synthesis Of Amino-Substituted Conjugated Materials, Ariel Ivan Torres Burgueno Dec 2017

Synthesis Of Tetraethyl ((2-Amino-1,4-Phenylene)Bis(Methylene)) Bis(Phosphonate): An Intermediate In The Synthesis Of Amino-Substituted Conjugated Materials, Ariel Ivan Torres Burgueno

Theses and Dissertations

Discussed here are the syntheses of the phosphonate precursors for the Wittig-Horner synthesis of poly-phenylene vinylene (PPV) and distyrylbenzene (DSB) derivatives and their respective distyrylbenzene analogs containing amino moieties. The synthesis of the different compounds was achieved through bromination, Michaelis-Arbuzov reaction, reduction of the nitro group with a commercial cobalt sulfide catalyst and sodium borohydride. Preliminary evidence for the synthesis of amino substituted distyrylbenzene and of nitro/alkoxy substituted poly(p-phenylene vinylene) was obtained. Characterization of the products was performed by 1H-NMR. Preliminary results of the synthesis of a novel amino-substituted distyrylbenzene (DSB) are presented. The luminescence of the new DSB was …


Estimating The Contribution Of Dynamical Ejecta In The Kilonova Associated With Gw170817, B. P. Abbott, R. Abbott, T. D. Abbott, F. Acernese, K. Ackley, C. Adams, T. Adams, P. Addesso, R. X. Adhikari, V. B. Adya, C. Affeldt, M. Afrough, B. Agarwal, M. Agathos, K. Agatsuma, N. Aggarwal, O. D. Aguiar, L. Aiello, A. Ain, P. Ajith, B. Allen, G. Allen, A. Allocca, P. A. Altin, A. Amato, A. Ananyeva, S. B. Anderson, W. G. Anderson, S. V. Angelova, S. Antier Dec 2017

Estimating The Contribution Of Dynamical Ejecta In The Kilonova Associated With Gw170817, B. P. Abbott, R. Abbott, T. D. Abbott, F. Acernese, K. Ackley, C. Adams, T. Adams, P. Addesso, R. X. Adhikari, V. B. Adya, C. Affeldt, M. Afrough, B. Agarwal, M. Agathos, K. Agatsuma, N. Aggarwal, O. D. Aguiar, L. Aiello, A. Ain, P. Ajith, B. Allen, G. Allen, A. Allocca, P. A. Altin, A. Amato, A. Ananyeva, S. B. Anderson, W. G. Anderson, S. V. Angelova, S. Antier

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications and Presentations

The source of the gravitational-wave (GW) signal GW170817, very likely a binary neutron star merger, was also observed electromagnetically, providing the first multi-messenger observations of this type. The two-week-long electromagnetic (EM) counterpart had a signature indicative of an r-process-induced optical transient known as a kilonova. This Letter examines how the mass of the dynamical ejecta can be estimated without a direct electromagnetic observation of the kilonova, using GW measurements and a phenomenological model calibrated to numerical simulations of mergers with dynamical ejecta. Specifically, we apply the model to the binary masses inferred from the GW measurements, and use the resulting …


Remediation Of Lead And Copper Ions From Water Solutions Using Transition Metal Sulfides, Jesus M. Cantu Jr. Dec 2017

Remediation Of Lead And Copper Ions From Water Solutions Using Transition Metal Sulfides, Jesus M. Cantu Jr.

Theses and Dissertations

Heavy metal contamination in water solutions has been a major concern since many transition metals don’t play a role in any biological function and are actually detrimental to human health. There have been several techniques that have been implemented for the remediation of heavy metal contaminants. For this project, three metal sulfides—Fe7S8, ZnS, TiS 2—were synthesized and studied for their capabilities to remove Pb(II) and Cu(II) from water solutions. Several parameters were investigated to determine the effects of pH, time, temperature, binding capacities, and interfering ions. The room temperature adsorption capacities ranged 6.23–333.3 mg/g for Pb(II) and 1.31–250 mg/g for …


The Public’S Perception Of Humanlike Robots: Online Social Commentary Reflects An Appearance-Based Uncanny Valley, A General Fear Of A “Technology Takeover”, And The Unabashed Sexualization Of Female-Gendered Robots, Megan K. Strait, Cynthia Aguillon, Virginia Contreras, Noemi Garcia Dec 2017

The Public’S Perception Of Humanlike Robots: Online Social Commentary Reflects An Appearance-Based Uncanny Valley, A General Fear Of A “Technology Takeover”, And The Unabashed Sexualization Of Female-Gendered Robots, Megan K. Strait, Cynthia Aguillon, Virginia Contreras, Noemi Garcia

Computer Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

Towards understanding the public’s perception of humanlike robots, we examined commentary on 24 YouTube videos depicting social robots ranging in human similarity – from Honda’s Asimo to Hiroshi Ishiguro’s Geminoids. In particular, we investigated how people have responded to the emergence of highly humanlike robots (e.g., Bina48) in contrast to those with more prototypically-“robotic” appearances (e.g., Asimo), coding the frequency at which the uncanny valley versus fears of replacement and/or a “technology takeover” arise in online discourse based on the robot’s appearance. Here we found that, consistent with Masahiro Mori’s theory of the uncanny valley, people’s commentary reflected an aversion …


On The Progenitor Of Binary Neutron Star Merger Gw170817, B. P. Abbott, R. Abbott, T. D. Abbott, F. Acernese, K. Ackley, C. Adams, T. Adams, P. Addesso, R. X. Adhikari, V. B. Adya, C. Affeldt, M. Afrough, B. Agarwal, M. Agathos, K. Agatsuma, N. Aggarwal, O. D. Aguiar, L. Aiello, A. Ain, P. Ajith, B. Allen, G. Allen, A. Allocca, P. A. Altin, A. Amato, A. Ananyeva, S. B. Anderson, W. G. Anderson, S. V. Angelova, S. Antier Dec 2017

On The Progenitor Of Binary Neutron Star Merger Gw170817, B. P. Abbott, R. Abbott, T. D. Abbott, F. Acernese, K. Ackley, C. Adams, T. Adams, P. Addesso, R. X. Adhikari, V. B. Adya, C. Affeldt, M. Afrough, B. Agarwal, M. Agathos, K. Agatsuma, N. Aggarwal, O. D. Aguiar, L. Aiello, A. Ain, P. Ajith, B. Allen, G. Allen, A. Allocca, P. A. Altin, A. Amato, A. Ananyeva, S. B. Anderson, W. G. Anderson, S. V. Angelova, S. Antier

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications and Presentations

On 2017 August 17 the merger of two compact objects with masses consistent with two neutron stars was discovered through gravitational-wave (GW170817), gamma-ray (GRB 170817A), and optical (SSS17a/AT 2017gfo) observations. The optical source was associated with the early-type galaxy NGC 4993 at a distance of just ∼40 Mpc, consistent with the gravitational-wave measurement, and the merger was localized to be at a projected distance of ∼2 kpc away from the galaxy's center. We use this minimal set of facts and the mass posteriors of the two neutron stars to derive the first constraints on the progenitor of GW170817 at the …


The 13th Data Release Of The Sloan Digital Sky Survey: First Spectroscopic Data From The Sdss-Iv Survey Mapping Nearby Galaxies At Apache Point Observatory, Franco D. Albareti, Carlos Allende Prieto, Andres Almeida, Friedrich Anders, Scott Anderson, Brett H. Andrews, Alfonso Aragón-Salamanca, Maria Argudo-Fernández, Eric Armengaud, Eric Aubourg, Vladimir Avila-Reese, Carles Badenes, Stephen Bailey, Beatriz Barbuy, Kat Barger, Jorge Barrera-Ballesteros, Curtis Bartosz, Sarbani Basu, Dominic Bates, Giuseppina Battaglia, Falk Baumgarten, Julien Baur, Julian Bautista, Timothy C. Beers, Francesco Belfiore, Matthew Bershady, Sara Bertran De Lis, Jonathan C. Bird, Dmitry Bizyaev, Guillermo A. Blanc Dec 2017

The 13th Data Release Of The Sloan Digital Sky Survey: First Spectroscopic Data From The Sdss-Iv Survey Mapping Nearby Galaxies At Apache Point Observatory, Franco D. Albareti, Carlos Allende Prieto, Andres Almeida, Friedrich Anders, Scott Anderson, Brett H. Andrews, Alfonso Aragón-Salamanca, Maria Argudo-Fernández, Eric Armengaud, Eric Aubourg, Vladimir Avila-Reese, Carles Badenes, Stephen Bailey, Beatriz Barbuy, Kat Barger, Jorge Barrera-Ballesteros, Curtis Bartosz, Sarbani Basu, Dominic Bates, Giuseppina Battaglia, Falk Baumgarten, Julien Baur, Julian Bautista, Timothy C. Beers, Francesco Belfiore, Matthew Bershady, Sara Bertran De Lis, Jonathan C. Bird, Dmitry Bizyaev, Guillermo A. Blanc

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications and Presentations

The fourth generation of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS-IV) began observations in 2014 July. It pursues three core programs: the Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment 2 (APOGEE-2), Mapping Nearby Galaxies at APO (MaNGA), and the Extended Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (eBOSS). As well as its core program, eBOSS contains two major subprograms: the Time Domain Spectroscopic Survey (TDSS) and the SPectroscopic IDentification of ERosita Sources (SPIDERS). This paper describes the first data release from SDSS-IV, Data Release 13 (DR13). DR13 makes publicly available the first 1390 spatially resolved integral field unit observations of nearby galaxies from MaNGA. It …


Search For High-Energy Neutrinos From Binary Neutron Star Merger Gw170817 With Antares Icecube And The Pierre Auger Observatory, A. Albert, M. André, M. Anghinolfi, M. Ardid, J. J. Aubert, J. Aublin, T. Avgitas, B. Baret, J. Barrios-Martí, S. Basa, B. Belhorma, V. Bertin, S. Biagi, R. Bormuth, S. Bourret, M. C. Bouwhuis, H. Bró¢Nzaåÿ, R. Bruijn, J. Brunner, J. Busto, A. Capone, L. Caramete, J. Carr, S. Celli, R. Cherkaoui El Moursli, T. Chiarusi, M. Circella, J. A.B. Coelho, A. Coleiro, R. Coniglione Dec 2017

Search For High-Energy Neutrinos From Binary Neutron Star Merger Gw170817 With Antares Icecube And The Pierre Auger Observatory, A. Albert, M. André, M. Anghinolfi, M. Ardid, J. J. Aubert, J. Aublin, T. Avgitas, B. Baret, J. Barrios-Martí, S. Basa, B. Belhorma, V. Bertin, S. Biagi, R. Bormuth, S. Bourret, M. C. Bouwhuis, H. Bró¢Nzaåÿ, R. Bruijn, J. Brunner, J. Busto, A. Capone, L. Caramete, J. Carr, S. Celli, R. Cherkaoui El Moursli, T. Chiarusi, M. Circella, J. A.B. Coelho, A. Coleiro, R. Coniglione

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications and Presentations

The Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo observatories recently discovered gravitational waves from a binary neutron star inspiral. A short gamma-ray burst (GRB) that followed the merger of this binary was also recorded by the Fermi Gamma-ray Burst Monitor (Fermi-GBM), and the Anti-Coincidence Shield for the Spectrometer for the International Gamma-Ray Astrophysics Laboratory (INTEGRAL), indicating particle acceleration by the source. The precise location of the event was determined by optical detections of emission following the merger. We searched for high-energy neutrinos from the merger in the GeV-EeV energy range using the Antares, IceCube, and Pierre Auger Observatories. No neutrinos directionally coincident …


Evolutionary Adaptations Of Biofilms Infecting Cystic Fibrosis Lungs Promote Mechanical Toughness By Adjusting Polysaccharide Production, Kristin Kovach, Megan Davis-Fields, Yasuhiko Irie, Kanishk Jain, Shashvat Doorwar, Katherine Vuong, Numa Dhamani, Kishore Mohanty, Ahmed Touhami, Vernita D. Gordon Dec 2017

Evolutionary Adaptations Of Biofilms Infecting Cystic Fibrosis Lungs Promote Mechanical Toughness By Adjusting Polysaccharide Production, Kristin Kovach, Megan Davis-Fields, Yasuhiko Irie, Kanishk Jain, Shashvat Doorwar, Katherine Vuong, Numa Dhamani, Kishore Mohanty, Ahmed Touhami, Vernita D. Gordon

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications and Presentations

Biofilms are communities of microbes embedded in a matrix of extracellular polymeric substances, largely polysaccharides. Multiple types of extracellular polymeric substances can be produced by a single bacterial strain. The distinct polymer components of biofilms are known to provide chemical protection, but little is known about how distinct extracellular polysaccharides may also protect biofilms against mechanical stresses such as shear or phagocytic engulfment. Decades-long infections of Pseudomonas. aeruginosa biofilms in the lungs of cystic fibrosis patients are natural models for studies of biofilm fitness under pressure from antibiotics and the immune system. In cystic fibrosis infections, production of the extracellular …


Functional Predictions Of Microbial Communities In Soil As Affected By Long‐Term Tillage Practices, Janani Hariharan, Aditi Sengupta, Parwinder Grewal, Warren A. Dick Dec 2017

Functional Predictions Of Microbial Communities In Soil As Affected By Long‐Term Tillage Practices, Janani Hariharan, Aditi Sengupta, Parwinder Grewal, Warren A. Dick

School of Earth, Environmental, and Marine Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Core Ideas

  • Microbial function is important but difficult to assess in soil.
  • An omics‐driven tool, PICRUSt, was used to characterize functions of soil microbial communities.
  • No‐tillage compared with plow tillage was functionally enriched for most nutrient cycles.
  • Many other functions integral to soil health can be explored by the PICRUSt omics approach.

Soil microbial communities affect the soil's biological, chemical, and physical properties, but there is still a knowledge gap regarding the long‐term impact of tillage practices on soil microbial dynamics. Additionally, the accurate identification of belowground microbial functions is a topic of active interest. In this study, microbial community …


Ph Effect On The Formation Of Thm And Haa Disinfection Byproducts And Potential Control Strategies For Food Processing, Yen-Con Hung, Brian W. Waters, Veerachandra K. Yemmireddy, Ching-Hua Huang Dec 2017

Ph Effect On The Formation Of Thm And Haa Disinfection Byproducts And Potential Control Strategies For Food Processing, Yen-Con Hung, Brian W. Waters, Veerachandra K. Yemmireddy, Ching-Hua Huang

School of Earth, Environmental, and Marine Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Chlorine-based sanitizers have seen wide spread use in food sanitation. The reaction of chlorine species with organic matter is a concern for two reasons. Available chlorine can be “used up” by organic compounds resulting in a lower amount of chlorine available for disinfection. Another concern is that some forms of chlorine can react with some organic compounds to form toxic halogenated disinfection byproducts (DBPs). Many studies have been conducted to evaluate the role of hypochlorous acid (HOCl) and hypochlorite ion (OCl−) in the production of DBPs with a particular interest in the production of trihalomethanes (THMs) and haloacetic acids (HAAs). …


Nanoenergetic Gas Generators Based On Metal Hydroxides, Srbuhi Yolchinyan Dec 2017

Nanoenergetic Gas Generators Based On Metal Hydroxides, Srbuhi Yolchinyan

Theses and Dissertations

The metal oxide based nano thermites have been studied extensively, yet another closely related systems based on metal hydroxides were surprisingly overlooked. For the first time, the thermodynamic calculations using HSC Chemistry-7 and Thermo software, were performed for a collection of 22 novel nano-thermite systems based on aluminum and metal hydroxides, and four representative systems based on bismuth, copper, cerium and nickel hydroxides were characterized using differential scanning calorimeter, scanning electron microscope, and pressure discharge dynamic evaluation. The strongest performance was recorded in Al-Bi(OH)3 system with about 4.9 MPa peak pressure for 0.2 g charge mass. Bismuth oxide and hydroxide …


Enterprise Social Media Use And Impact On Performance: The Role Of Workplace Integration And Positive Emotions, Murad Moqbel, Fiona Fui-Hoon Nah Dec 2017

Enterprise Social Media Use And Impact On Performance: The Role Of Workplace Integration And Positive Emotions, Murad Moqbel, Fiona Fui-Hoon Nah

Information Systems Faculty Publications and Presentations

Organizations struggle to find ways to improve employees’ performance. To date, little research has empirically examined the relationship between enterprise social media use and knowledge workers’ performance. Using social capital theory and the broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions as our theoretical framework, we investigate the relationship between enterprise social media use and knowledge workers’ performance. We tested our research model by collecting data from employees working for a large information technology firm in the Midwestern United States and analyzing the data using a structural equation modeling approach. The results suggest that enterprise social media use can increase workplace integration, which …


Metasurface-Assisted Phase-Matching-Free Second Harmonic Generation In Lithium Niobate Waveguides, Cheng Wang, Zhaoyi Li, Myoung Hwan Kim, Xiao Xiong, Xi Feng Ren, Guang Can Guo, Nanfang Yu, Marko LonäAr Dec 2017

Metasurface-Assisted Phase-Matching-Free Second Harmonic Generation In Lithium Niobate Waveguides, Cheng Wang, Zhaoyi Li, Myoung Hwan Kim, Xiao Xiong, Xi Feng Ren, Guang Can Guo, Nanfang Yu, Marko LonäAr

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications and Presentations

The phase-matching condition is a key aspect in nonlinear wavelength conversion processes, which requires the momenta of the photons involved in the processes to be conserved. Conventionally, nonlinear phase matching is achieved using either birefringent or periodically poled nonlinear crystals, which requires careful dispersion engineering and is usually narrowband. In recent years, metasurfaces consisting of densely packed arrays of optical antennas have been demonstrated to provide an effective optical momentum to bend light in arbitrary ways. Here, we demonstrate that gradient metasurface structures consisting of phased array antennas are able to circumvent the phase-matching requirement in on-chip nonlinear wavelength conversion. …


A Class Of Transformations Of A Quadratic Integral Generating Dynamical Systems, Paul Bracken Nov 2017

A Class Of Transformations Of A Quadratic Integral Generating Dynamical Systems, Paul Bracken

School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

A class of transformation is investigated which maps a quadratic integral back to its original form but under a redefinition of free parameters. When this process is iterated, a dynamical system is generated in the form of recursive sequences which involve the parameters of the integrand.

The creation of this dynamical system and some of its convergence properties are investigated.

MR3724632


A Geometric Formulation Of Lax Integrability For Nonlinear Equationsin Two Independent Variables, Paul Bracken Nov 2017

A Geometric Formulation Of Lax Integrability For Nonlinear Equationsin Two Independent Variables, Paul Bracken

School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

A geometric formulation of Lax integrability is introduced which makes use of a Pfaffan formulation of Lax integrability. The Frobenius theorem gives a necessary and suffcient condition for the complete integrability of a distribution, and provides a powerful way to study nonlinear evolution equations. This permits an examination of the relation between complete integrability and Lax integrability. The prolongation method is formulated in this context and gauge transformations can be examined in terms of differential forms as well as the Frobenius theorem.


Double Neutron Stars: Merger Rates Revisited, M. Chruslinska, Krzysztof Belczynski, Matthew Benacquista Nov 2017

Double Neutron Stars: Merger Rates Revisited, M. Chruslinska, Krzysztof Belczynski, Matthew Benacquista

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications and Presentations

We revisit double neutron star (DNS) formation in the classical binary evolution scenario in light of the recent Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO)/Virgo DNS detection (GW170817). The observationally estimated Galactic DNS merger rate of RMW = 21+28 −14 Myr−1, based on three Galactic DNS systems, fully supports our standard input physics model with RMW = 24 Myr−1. This estimate for the Galaxy translates in a non-trivial way (due to cosmological evolution of progenitor stars in chemically evolving Universe) into a local (z ≈ 0) DNS merger rate density of Rlocal = 48 Gpc−3 yr−1, which is not consistent with the …


Magnetic Sensing Potential Of Fe3o4 Nanocubes Exceeds That Of Fe3o4 Nanospheres, Arati G. Kolhatkar, Yi-Ting Chen, Pawilai Chinwangso, Ivan Nekrashevich, Gamage C. Dannangoda, Ankit Singh, Andrew C. Jamison, Oussama Zenasni, Irene A. Rusakova, Karen S. Martirosyan Nov 2017

Magnetic Sensing Potential Of Fe3o4 Nanocubes Exceeds That Of Fe3o4 Nanospheres, Arati G. Kolhatkar, Yi-Ting Chen, Pawilai Chinwangso, Ivan Nekrashevich, Gamage C. Dannangoda, Ankit Singh, Andrew C. Jamison, Oussama Zenasni, Irene A. Rusakova, Karen S. Martirosyan

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications and Presentations

This paper highlights the relation between the shape of iron oxide (Fe3O4) particles and their magnetic sensing ability. We synthesized Fe3O4 nanocubes and nanospheres having tunable sizes via solvothermal and thermal decomposition synthesis reactions, respectively, to obtain samples in which the volumes and body diagonals/diameters were equivalent. Vibrating sample magnetometry (VSM) data showed that the saturation magnetization (Ms) and coercivity of 100–225 nm cubic magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) were, respectively, 1.4–3.0 and 1.1–8.4 times those of spherical MNPs on a same-volume and same-body diagonal/diameter basis. The Curie temperature for the cubic Fe3O4 MNPs for each size was also higher …


On The Finite W-Algebra For The Lie Superalgebra Q(N) In The Non-Regular Case, Elena Poletaeva, Vera Serganova Nov 2017

On The Finite W-Algebra For The Lie Superalgebra Q(N) In The Non-Regular Case, Elena Poletaeva, Vera Serganova

School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

In this paper, we study the finite W-algebra for the queer Lie superalgebra Q(N) associated with the non-regular even nilpotent coadjoint orbits in the case when N = nl, and the corresponding nilpotent element has Jordan blocks each of size l. We prove that this finite W-algebra is isomorphic to a quotient of the super-Yangian of Q(n).


Yang Mills Theories, Paul Bracken Nov 2017

Yang Mills Theories, Paul Bracken

School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Yang-Mills gauge theories have become an important way in which to describe matter at a fundamental level. This book explores some of the aspects of their structure, quantization applications and formalism in detail. The subject matter is approached from a number of different points of view. The path integral technique is used to study and quantize the theory. Some solvable low dimensional models are introduced as well.


Multi-Type Branching Processes Modeling Of Nosocomial Epidemics, Zeinab Mohamed, Tamer Oraby Oct 2017

Multi-Type Branching Processes Modeling Of Nosocomial Epidemics, Zeinab Mohamed, Tamer Oraby

School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Nosocomial epidemics are infectious diseases which spread among different types of susceptible individuals in a health-care facility. To model this type of epidemics, we use a multi-type branching process with a multivariate negative binomial offspring distribution. In particular, we estimate the basic reproduction number R0 and study its relationship with the parameters of the offspring distribution. in case of a single-type epidemic, we investigate the effect of contact tracing on the estimates for R0.


Observations Of The First Electromagnetic Counterpart To A Gravitational-Wave Source By The Toros Collaboration, M. C. Diaz, L. M. Macri, D. Garcia Lambas, C. Mendes De Oliveira, J. L.Nilo Castellón, T. Ribeiro, B. Sanchez, W. Schoenell, L. R. Abramo, S. Akras, J. S. Alcaniz, Rodolfo Artola, M. Beroiz, S. Bonoli, J. Cabral, R. Camuccio, M. Castillo, V. Chavushyan, P. Coelho, C. Colazo, M. V. Costa-Duarte, H. Cuevas Larenas, D. L. Depoy, M. Domínguez Romero, D. Dultzin, D. Fernández, J. García, C. Girardini Oct 2017

Observations Of The First Electromagnetic Counterpart To A Gravitational-Wave Source By The Toros Collaboration, M. C. Diaz, L. M. Macri, D. Garcia Lambas, C. Mendes De Oliveira, J. L.Nilo Castellón, T. Ribeiro, B. Sanchez, W. Schoenell, L. R. Abramo, S. Akras, J. S. Alcaniz, Rodolfo Artola, M. Beroiz, S. Bonoli, J. Cabral, R. Camuccio, M. Castillo, V. Chavushyan, P. Coelho, C. Colazo, M. V. Costa-Duarte, H. Cuevas Larenas, D. L. Depoy, M. Domínguez Romero, D. Dultzin, D. Fernández, J. García, C. Girardini

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications and Presentations

We present the results of prompt optical follow-up of the electromagnetic counterpart of the gravitational-wave event GW170817 by the Transient Optical Robotic Observatory of the South Collaboration. We detected highly significant dimming in the light curves of the counterpart (Δg = 0.17 ± 0.03 mag, Δr = 0.14 ± 0.02 mag, Δi = 0.10 ± 0.03 mag) over the course of only 80 minutes of observations obtained ∼35 hr after the trigger with the T80-South telescope. A second epoch of observations, obtained ∼59 hr after the event with the EABA 1.5 m telescope, confirms the fast fading nature of the …