Digital Commons Network^™

Generality In Nanotechnologies And Its Relationship To Economic Performance, Fernando Gomez Baquero

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

In the history if economic analysis there is perhaps no more important question than the one of how economic development is achieved. For more than a century, economists have explored the role of technology in economic growth but there is still much to be learned about the effect that technologies, in particular emerging ones, have on economic growth and productivity. The objective of this research is to understand the relationship between nanotechnologies and economic growth and productivity, using the theory of General Purpose Technology (GPT)-driven economic growth. To do so, the Generality Index (calculated from patent data) was used to …

Al/Cuxo/Cu Memristive Devices : Fabrication, Characterization, And Modeling, Nathan Mcdonald

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Memristive devices have become very popular in recent years due to their potential to dramatically alter logic processing in CMOS circuitry. Memristive devices function as electrical potentiometers, allowing for such diverse applications as memory storage, multi-state logic, and reconfigurable logic gates.

Virus Capsids As Nanoscale Delivery Vessels Of Photoactive Compounds For Site-Specific Photodynamic Therapy, Brian Alexander Cohen

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The research presented in this work details the use of a viral capsid as an addressable delivery vessel of photoactive compounds for use in photodynamic therapy. Photodynamic therapy is a treatment that involves the interaction of light with a photosensitizing molecule to create singlet oxygen, a reactive oxygen species. Overproduction of singlet oxygen in cells can cause oxidative damage leading to cytotoxicity and eventually cell death. Challenges with the current generation of FDA-approved photosensitizers for photodynamic therapy primarily stem from their lack of tissue specificity. This work describes the packaging of photoactive cationic porphyrins inside the MS2 bacteriophage capsid, followed …

Micropatterned Electrospun Nanofibrous Substrates As Scaffolds For Engineered Salivary Glands, David Alexander Soscia

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The salivary gland is a complex organ exhibiting a branching, 3-dimensional structure made up of acinar (saliva-producing), and ductal (saliva transporting and modifying) epithelial cells. The high surface area of the gland allows it to efficiently provide the mouth with saliva, maintaining oral cleanliness and comfort. Salivary gland hypofunction, a significant clinical problem often caused by the autoimmune disease Sjögren's syndrome or head and neck radiation for cancer patients, affects millions of Americans and is characterized by a loss of function of salivary gland acinar cells. Chronic xerostomia, or dry mouth, arises as a result of salivary gland hypofunction and …

Bioengineering Embryonic Microenvironment For Exploring Stem Cell-Breast Cancer Cell Interactions, Nurazhani Abdul Raof

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Embryonic stem (ES) cells and breast cancer cells share similar signaling pathways that allow cells to proliferate and differentiate. However, signaling molecules in cancer cells are misexpressed. Cell microenvironments that consist of many factors such as soluble factors, extracellular matrices, and neighboring cells, play a pivotal role in determining cellular fate. The exposure of ES cell microenvironments to cancer cells may address the missing components in the tumor microenvironment, which could inhibit tumorigenesis or reprogram cancer cells into a less invasive phenotype. In this thesis, in vitro ES cell microenvironments have been engineered three-dimensionally via alginate hydrogel encapsulation and patterned …

Molecular Vapor Deposition Of Organosilanes, Sarah Kirsten Goulet

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Current strategies for low temperature bonding (<300 C) and 3D integration employ polymer interfaces (1-3 um) with low thermal conductivity which can result in poor heat transfer between bonded elements. The introduction of thinner interfaces to improve heat transfer is desirable; however, deposition of thin polymer films (<100 nm) for bonding applications can lead to reduced film uniformity and negatively affect bonding strength. Self-assembled monolayer (SAM) chemistries provide a potential solution and can yield nanometer control of the interfacial layer thickness without a significant effect on surface roughness. Siloxanes are one available option to realize these nanometer thin reactive layers. Due to their propensity to crosslink and form multilayers, careful control of the reaction conditions is required. Considering this, we have evaluated the molecular vapor deposition of siloxane precursors to generate molecular layers with reactive end-groups for potential use in bonding applications. Film stability, morphology, thickness, and composition were monitored after deposition using atomic force microscopy, ellipsometry and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy.

A Novel Fabrication Technique For Three-Dimensional Nanostructures, Ravi Kiran Bonam

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Three dimensional micro- and nano-structures are commonly used in the field of Photonics, Optoelectronics, Sensors and Biological applications. Although numerous physical models are developed, a major challenge has been in their fabrication which is commonly limited to conventional layer-by-layer techniques. In this dissertation, a novel method for fabricating three dimensional structures using Electron Beam Lithography (EBL) will be presented.

Surface Potential Measurements Of Reconfigurable P-N Junctions In Graphene, Yunfei Wang

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Manipulation and control of electron current in a graphene p-n junction (e.g. electron waveguiding, reflection, focusing) is directly determined by the spatial gradient of the Fermi level across the junction. Sharp Fermi level gradients are associated with negative index `lensing' of electrons in graphene while broader gradients are predicted to form reflective boundaries. Quantitative metrology of the Fermi level gradient at p-n junctions is thus essential to determine device performance, validate models for device design and switch architectures, and quantitatively determine the impact of defects on device function and leakage.

Test 2036: John Deere 5085m, Nebraska Tractor Test Lab

Nebraska Tractor Tests

ABOUT THE TEST REPORT AND USE OF THE DATA The test data contained in this report are a tabulation of the results of a series of tests. Due to the restricted format of these pages, only a limited amount of data and not all of the tractor specifications are included. The full OECD report contains usually about 30 pages of data and specifications. The test data were obtained for each tractor under similar conditions and therefore, provide a means of comparison of performance based on a limited set of reported data. EXPLANATION OF THE TEST PROCEDURES Purpose The purpose of …

New Change Impact Factor Estimation In Software Development, Murat Kahraman Güngör, Ersi̇n Elbaşi, James Walter Fawcett

Turkish Journal of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences

Change in software is always an essential part of software development and maintenance. Estimating a proposed change's effect on the later phases of the development helps project managers and developers with decision-making and predicting future progress. During development, on some occasions, speedy solutions are necessary to meet project schedules. Such quick changes may lead to major quality flaws in the long term, even though they solve local problems in the short term. Controlled management of change is achieved by being able to estimate the impact of changes. In this paper, we propose a new change impact factor estimation and present …

Abstract Feature Extraction For Text Classification, Göksel Bi̇ri̇ci̇k, Banu Di̇ri̇, Ahmet Coşkun Sönmez

Turkish Journal of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences

Feature selection and extraction are frequently used solutions to overcome the curse of dimensionality in text classification problems. We introduce an extraction method that summarizes the features of the document samples, where the new features aggregate information about how much evidence there is in a document, for each class. We project the high dimensional features of documents onto a new feature space having dimensions equal to the number of classes in order to form the abstract features. We test our method on 7 different text classification algorithms, with different classifier design approaches. We examine performances of the classifiers applied on …

Hybrid Feature Selection For Text Classification, Serkan Günal

Turkish Journal of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences

Feature selection is vital in the field of pattern classification due to accuracy and processing time considerations. The selection of proper features is of greater importance when the initial feature set is considerably large. Text classification is a typical example of this situation, where the size of the initial feature set may reach to hundreds or even thousands. There are numerous research studies in the literature offering different feature selection strategies for text classification, mostly focused on filters. In spite of the extensive number of these studies, there is no significant work investigating the efficacy of a combination of features, …

On The Degradation Of Ota-C--Based Cmos Low-Power Filter Circuits For Biomedical Instrumentation, Yasi̇n Özçelep, Ayten Kuntman, Hulusi̇ Hakan Kuntman

Turkish Journal of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences

In this work, we propose a degraded transistor-based circuit degradation simulation method to investigate the degradation effect in complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) biomedical devices. The method is demonstrated on an operational transconductance amplifier and capacitor (OTA-C)-based CMOS filter structure. First, we simulate the degradation of the symmetrical CMOS OTA by determining the degraded transistors in the structure. The simulation results are compared with the experimental results of our previous study. First- and second-order low-pass filter degradations are also simulated to demonstrate the accuracy of the proposed method. Finally, the degradation in the electroencephalogram band-pass filter and its effect on the …

Improved Computerized Evaluation Of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm, Semi̇h Utku, Hulusi̇ Baysal, Reyat Yilmaz, Aytaç Gülcü, Recep Alp Kut, Ahmet Yi̇ği̇t Göktay

Turkish Journal of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences

Accurate measurements of arterial anatomy are emerging as the most important determinants of endovascular abdominal aneurysm repair. It is quite difficult to define and measure arterial anatomy features quantitatively due to the complex structure of the aneurysm and insufficient visual feedback. During decision making, to assist operators in diagnosing abdominal aortic aneurysms, a specialized preprocessing Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Measurement and Evaluation Tool (AMET) was developed. AMET provides visual interfaces with broad measurement capabilities to generate a 3D model of the aorta for a better diagnosis and accurate stent selection. The accuracy and usability of the tool was tested with a …

Feasibility Of Integrating Natural And Constructed Wetlands In Roadway Drainage System Design, John S. Stansbury, Massom Moussavi, Tian Zhang

Mid-America Transportation Center: Final Reports and Technical Briefs

Stormwater from roadways could have negative effects on the environment and aquatic ecosystems. Typical highway runoff pollutants include solids; heavy metals, particularly cadmium, copper, and zinc; petroleum hydrocarbons; gasoline constituents; PAHs (polyaromatic hydrocarbons); oxygen demanding compounds measured as COD (chemical oxygen demand) and BOD (biochemical oxygen demand); and road salts. Roadway runoff falls under the legislation of the Clean Water Act (CWA) via the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES). CWA regulates discharge of nonpoint source pollutants, such as roadway runoff, by issuing permits to public entities which manage Municipal Separate Storm Sewer Systems (MS4s). Part of the Nebraska Department …

2012 Nebraska Water Monitoring Programs Report, Marty Link, Mike Archer

Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality: Reports

The following Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality staff have contributed to this report with their photos, maps, numbers, words, and editing. Their efforts are greatly appreciated and gratefully acknowledged here: Mike Archer, Ken Bazata, Dave Bubb, Ryan Chapman, Jason Garber, Patrick Hartman, Tom Heatherly, Dave Ihrie, Dan Inman, Greg Michl, Will Myers, Patrick O’Brien (NARD), Brad Routt, and Dave Schumacher.

Pore-Scale Characterization Of Biogeochemical Controls On Iron And Uranium Speciation Under Flow Conditions, Carolyn I. Pearce, Michael J. Wilkins, Changyong Zhang, Steve M. Heald, James K. Fredrickson, John M. Zachara

United States Department of Energy: Publications

Etched silicon microfluidic pore network models (micromodels) with controlled chemical and redox gradients, mineralogy, and microbiology under continuous flow conditions are used for the incremental development of complex microenvironments that simulate subsurface conditions. We demonstrate the colonization of micromodel pore spaces by an anaerobic Fe(III)-reducing bacterial species (Geobacter sulfurreducens) and the enzymatic reduction of a bioavailable Fe(III) phase within this environment. Using both Xray microprobe and X-ray absorption spectroscopy, we investigate the combined effects of the precipitated Fe(III) phases and the microbial population on uranium biogeochemistry under flow conditions. Precipitated Fe(III) phases within the micromodel were most effectively …

Quantitative 3-D Elemental Mapping By La-Icp-Ms Of A Basaltic Clast From The Hanford 300 Area, Washington, Usa, Sheng Peng, Qinhong Hu, Robert Ewing, Chongxuan Liu, John M. Zachara

United States Department of Energy: Publications

Laser ablation with inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) was used to measure elemental concentrations at the 100-μm scale in a 3-dimensional manner within a basaltic clast sample collected from the Hanford 300 Area in south-central Washington State, United States. A calibration method was developed to quantify the LAICP- MS signal response using a constant-sum mass fraction of eight major elements; the method produced reasonable concentration measurements for both major and trace elements when compared to a standard basalt sample with known concentrations. 3-Dimensional maps (stacked 2-D contour layers, each representing 2100 μm × 2100 μm) show …

Molecular Underpinnings Of Fe(Iii) Oxide Reduction By Shewanella Oneidensis Mr-1, Liang Shi, Kevin Rosso, Tomas Clarke, David Richardson, John M. Zachara, James K. Fredrickson

United States Department of Energy: Publications

In the absence of O₂ and other electron acceptors, the Gram-negative bacterium Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 can use ferric [Fe(III)] (oxy) (hydr) oxideminerals as the terminal electron acceptors for an aerobic respiration. At circumneutral pH and in the absence of strong complexing ligands, Fe(III) oxides are relatively insoluble and thus are external to the bacterial cells. S. oneidensis MR-1 and related strains of metal-reducing Shewanella have evolved machinery (i.e.,metal-reducing or Mtr pathway) for transferring electrons from the inner-membrane, through the periplasmanda cross the outer-membrane to the surface of extracellular Fe(III) oxides. The protein components identified to date for the Mtr …

The ‘Porin–Cytochrome’ Model For Microbe-To-Mineral Electron Transfer, David Richardson, Julea Butt, James K. Fredrickson, John M. Zachara, Liang Shi, Marcus Edwards, Gaye White, Nanakow Baiden, Andrew Gates, Sophie Marritt, Thomas Clarke

United States Department of Energy: Publications

Many species of bacteria can couple anaerobic growth to the respiratory reduction of insoluble minerals containing Fe(III) or Mn(III/IV). It has been suggested that in Shewanella species electrons cross the outer membrane to extracellular substrates via ‘porin–cytochrome’ electron transport modules. The molecular structure of an outer-membrane extracellular-facing deca-haem terminus for such a module has recently been resolved. It is debated how, once outside the cells, electrons are transferred from outer-membrane cytochromes to insoluble electron sinks. This may occur directly or by assemblies of cytochromes, perhaps functioning as ‘nanowires’, or via electron shuttles. Here we review recent work in this field …

A Thousand Tiny Pieces: The Federal Circuit’S Fractured Myriad Ruling, Lessons To Be Learned, And The Way Forward, Jonathan R. K. Stroud

IP Theory

No abstract provided.

Accelerating The Performance Of A Novel Meshless Method Based On Collocation With Radial Basis Functions By Employing A Graphical Processing Unit As A Parallel Coprocessor, Derek Owusu-Banson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In recent times, a variety of industries, applications and numerical methods including the meshless method have enjoyed a great deal of success by utilizing the graphical processing unit (GPU) as a parallel coprocessor. These benefits often include performance improvement over the previous implementations. Furthermore, applications running on graphics processors enjoy superior performance per dollar and performance per watt than implementations built exclusively on traditional central processing technologies. The GPU was originally designed for graphics acceleration but the modern GPU, known as the General Purpose Graphical Processing Unit (GPGPU) can be used for scientific and engineering calculations. The GPGPU consists of …

Synthesis And Evaluation Of Naturally Occuring Halogenated Bipyrroles In A Relevant Marine Species, Fundulus Heteroclitus, Kimberly Sheree Foster

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Halogenated dimethyl-2-2'-bipyrroles (HDBPs) have recently been discovered in seabird eggs and have been shown to bioaccumulate in trophic organisms. HDBPs are suspected to be biogenic in nature, derived from evidence of marine natural products that are persistent in the environment and widespread in the Pacific and Atlantic Ocean. The HDBPs exhibit chlorinated and brominated substitution patterns that closely resemble anthropogenic pollutants like the polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polybrominated biphenyls (PBBs), and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs). Environmental health concerns exists regarding these naturally occurring HDBPs because several of these analogs were shown to induce the cytochrome P4501A (CYP1A) gene through activation of …

A Fractal Analysis Of The Detection Of Glucose Molecules On Biosensor Surfaces, Lokesh Taneja

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A fractal analysis for the binding and dissociation of glucose molecules to different biosensor surfaces is presented. The sensors contain immobilized glucose oxidase enzymes that have an affinity for the glucose molecules in solution. Data for different modified biosensors is modeled and analyzed, and a single, dual or triple-fractal analysis is applied where adequate. The binding and dissociation kinetics coefficient where applicable are calculated for each of models along with the fractal dimensions. When both binding and dissociation phases are present, the affinity, K of the receptor to the glucose molecule is calculated and its variation with the fractal dimension …

Bacterial And Sediment Transport In An Artificial Sand Bed Stream During Unsteady Flow, Mary Alexandra Mccaskill

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Storms cause a substantial increase in the fecal indicator bacteria (FIB) concentrations in stream water. Causes for this concentration increase include FIB-laden stormwater runoff and the release of bacteria from stream-bottom sediments. Studies were carried out to quantify this second cause of water quality impairment. Coliform bacteria are a group of FIB, indicate the presence of pathogenic microorganisms, and have been shown to be transported in streams far from their source areas, especially during storms. FIB transport is dependent on several factors including water velocity, size and transport rates of bed sediments, and the FIB concentration in bed sediment. The …

Virtual Worlds And Conservational Channel Evolution And Pollutant Transport Systems (Concepts), Chenchutta Denaye Jackson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Many models exist that predict channel morphology. Channel morphology is defined as the change in geometric parameters of a river. Channel morphology is affected by many factors. Some of these factors are caused either by man or by nature. To combat the adverse effects that man and nature may cause to a water system, scientists and engineers develop stream rehabilitation plans. Stream rehabilitation as defined by Shields et al., states that "restoration is the return from a degraded ecosystem back to a close approximation of its remaining natural potential" [Shields et al., 2003]. Engineers construct plans that will restore streams …

Specializing Interfaces For Citizen Science Segmentation Of Volumetric Data, Michelle Vaughan, Cindy Grimm, Ruth Sowell, Robert Pless, Stephen Kobourov

All Computer Science and Engineering Research

Segmentation of 3D and time-varying volumetric (4D) image data is considered a time and resource intensive bottleneck in scientific endeavors. Automatic methods are becoming more reliable, but many data sets still require manual intervention. This can mainly be attributed to the characteristics of the image data not being amenable to automated methods, the existence of variations in or poor image quality, or the need for an expert to review and edit results from an automatic technique. Manually segmenting volumetric data is a challenge even for those more experienced. Understanding the 3D nature of the data and navigating through the 3D …

An Integrated Data Mining Approach To Real-Time Clinical Monitoring And Deterioration Warning, Yi Mao, Wenlin Chen, Yixin Chen, Chenyang Lu

All Computer Science and Engineering Research

Clinical study found that early detection and intervention are essential for preventing clinical deterioration in patients, for patients both in intensive care units (ICU) as well as in general wards but under real-time data sensing (RDS). In this paper, we develop an integrated data mining approach to give early deterioration warnings for patients under real-time monitoring in ICU and RDS. Existing work on mining real-time clinical data often focus on certain single vital sign and specific disease. In this paper, we consider an integrated data mining approach for general sudden deterioration warning. We synthesize a large feature set that includes …

Contact Pressure Distribution Of Osteochondral Defects Of The Knee: Effects Of Non-Vertical Walls, Scott Ensminger

Wayne State University Theses

Purpose: To examine the relationship between well-shouldered osteochondral defects and

defects of different geometries by studying their effects on rim stress concentration and

load redistribution in the human knee.

Methods: Ten fresh-frozen cadaveric knees were mounted at 30° of flexion in a materials

testing machine. Digital electronic pressure sensors were placed in the medial and lateral

compartments of the knee. Dynamic pressure readings were recorded throughout the

loading and holding phases as each knee was loaded to 700N and held for 5 seconds.

Artificial defects were created in each knee to simulate well-shouldered defects and

beveled-defects. Loading was repeated for …

Traumatic Brain Injury Induced Cerebral Blood Flow Changes - A Potential Role For Caffeine, Sharath Chandra Reddy Bandaru

Wayne State University Theses

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a global health problem with significant socio-economic costs. Closed head TBIs are one of the major causes of physical disability and cognitive disorder in young adults and a leading cause of death in children.

Alteration in cerebral blood flow due to an impaired autoregulation is one of the most common consequences of TBI. However, studies related to understanding the temporal changes in CBF following TBI in experimental models are limited. The few available studies report acute reduction in CBF following TBI; knowledge related to CBF changes at sub-acute periods extending to 7 days after TBI …