Digital Commons Network^™

Feature-Specific Penalized Latent Class Analysis For Genomic Data, E. Andres Houseman, Brent A. Coull, Rebecca A. Betensky

Harvard University Biostatistics Working Paper Series

No abstract provided.

Digital Commons Presentation For Chemistry Department Faculty, Paul Royster

Department of Chemistry: Department Information

Why you should put your publications and other work online; how the Digital Commons can help you do that; copyright status of your publications; policies of publishers; policy of American Chemical Society.

A Comparison Of The Danish And The Virginia Secondary Teacher Education System: Their Values And Emphasis On Mathematics Content Knowledge, Bettina Dahl

The Mathematics Enthusiast

In this paper I will first examine an example of secondary mathematics teacher education in the USA, namely Virginia, then compare it with the secondary teacher education in Denmark. The purpose is both to investigate how much mathematics the students get in the respective systems and secondly to see what this type of teacher education communicates about the values emphasized in the various countries’ education systems. I spent more time on explaining the Danish education system than that of the USA and the single states since it is assumed that the reader is familiar with these systems. One cannot necessarily …

Problem Solving And Problem Posing In A Dynamic Geometry Environment, Constantinos Christou, Nicholas Mousoulides, Marios Pittalis, Demetra Pitta-Pantazi

The Mathematics Enthusiast

In this study, we considered dynamic geometry software (DGS) as the tool that mediates students’ strategies in solving and posing problems. The purpose of the present study was twofold. First, to understand the way in which students can solve problems in the setting of a dynamic geometry environment, and second, to investigate how DGS provides opportunities for posing new problems. Two mathematical problems were presented to six pre-service teachers with prior experience in dynamic geometry. Each student participated in two interview sessions which were video recorded. The results of the study showed that DGS, as a mediation tool, encouraged students …

Tme Volume 2, Number 2

The Mathematics Enthusiast

No abstract provided.

Flow Lookup And Biological Motion Perception, Nicholas Howe

Computer Science: Faculty Publications

Optical flow in monocular video can serve as a key for recognizing and tracking the three-dimensional pose of human subjects. In comparison with prior work using silhouettes as a key for pose lookup, flow data contains richer information and in experiments can successfully track more difficult sequences. Furthermore, flow recognition is powerful enough to model human abilities in perceiving biological motion from sparse input. The experiments described herein show that a tracker using flow moment lookup can reconstruct a common biological motion (walking) from images containing only point light sources attached to the joints of the moving subject.

Supporting Individual Time Management Through The Capture And Display Of Temporal Structures, Dezhi Wu

Dissertations

This thesis work examines the time management strategies of individuals in an academic institution and gathers information on the complex temporal structures they experience and manage. Its focus is on understanding the relationship between the quality of individual time management and an individual's understanding and use of temporal structures. This work consists of an exploratory field study to gather data on how people use temporal structures with electronic tools. It is followed by a survey that is given to a larger group of respondents in the same subject population examined with the field study. The survey examines the hypotheses developed …

Electronic Capture And Analysis Of Fraudulent Behavioral Patterns : An Application To Identity Fraud, Benjamin Ngugi

Dissertations

The objective of this research was to find a transparent and secure solution for mitigating identity fraud and to find the critical factors that determine the solution's acceptance. Identity fraud is identified as a key problem with total losses exceeding fifty two billion dollars (Javelin Strategy and Research 2005). A common denominator in most identity-fraud-prone transactions is the use of a keypad; hence this research focuses on keypad data entry and proposes a biometric solution. Three studies develop, evaluate and investigate the feasibility of this solution.

The first study was done in three stages. Stage one investigated the technical feasibility …

Keynote: Emerging Era Of Cooperative Empowerment: Grid, Peer-To-Peer, And Community Computing, Dr. Javed I. Khan

International Conference on Information and Communication Technologies

In this paper we discuss an emerging trend in high performance computing-the social or community computing. The emergence of screensaver computing, grid computing, peer-to-peer systems, and their demonstrated ability to garner computing power as potent as the supercomputers seems to be auspicious. In this paper we discuss the new phenomenon of community computing-including their potential applications in solving a new set of grand challenge problems. We also discuss the previously uncharted technological challenges architects of these new paradigms are addressing.

Keynote: The Segmentation Problem In Arabic Character Recognition: The State Of The Art, Ahmed M. Zeki

International Conference on Information and Communication Technologies

Arabic characters are used in several languages other than Arabic, despite to this fact; Arabic Character Recognition (ACR) has not received enough interests by researchers. Little researchprogress has been achieved comparing to the one done on the Latin or Chinese and the solutions available in the market are still far from being perfect. However, recent years have shown a considerable increase in the number of research papers. The cursive nature of Arabic writing makes the process of recognition a very challenging one. Several methods to segment the Arabic words into characters have been proposed in the past two decades. This …

Electrochemical Remedy And Analysis For The Environment Based On The New Polymer-Dna Composite Material., Noor Feuza Hussain

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this work a new material, the conducting polymer-DNA composite, has been reported for the first time due to its promise in micro extraction, transfer, and release of cations under controlled potential conditions by using electrochemically assisted solid phase micro extraction (SPME). The Polypyrrole/DNA composite can be formed easily by oxidation of pyrrole monomers in the presence of chromosomal DNA by electropolymerization. Environmental significant pollutants such as Cd, Pb, Hg, Co, Zn, Cu, and Bi metal ions can be extracted from the aqueous solution and are able to be transferred to another medium defined as the release solution where the …

Effects Of Information And Machine Learning Algorithms On Word Sense Disambiguation With Small Datasets, Gondy Leroy, Thomas C. Rindflesch

CGU Faculty Publications and Research

Current approaches to word sense disambiguation use (and often combine) various machine learning techniques. Most refer to characteristics of the ambiguity and its surrounding words and are based on thousands of examples. Unfortunately, developing large training sets is burdensome, and in response to this challenge, we investigate the use of symbolic knowledge for small datasets. A naïve Bayes classifier was trained for 15 words with 100 examples for each. Unified Medical Language System (UMLS) semantic types assigned to concepts found in the sentence and relationships between these semantic types form the knowledge base. The most frequent sense of a word …

Information Search Patterns In E-Commerce Product Comparison Services, Fiona Fui-Hoon Nah, Hong-Hee Lee, Liqiang Chen

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

The presentation of product information is very important in e-commerce websites. In this research, we study how disposition styles can influence users‟ search patterns in product comparison services of e-commerce websites. Our results show that people are inclined to use feature information paths in vertical disposition style and product information paths in horizontal disposition style. The results also indicate that there are more feature paths than product paths in the earlier stage of product comparison, and more product paths than feature paths in the latter stage of product comparison. Based on Gensch‟s two-stage choice model and the results of our …

Effectiveness Of A Motion-Activated Laser Hazing Systemfor Repelling Captive Canada Geese, Scott J. Werner, Larry Clark

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Effective management techniques are needed to disperse Canada geese (Branta canadensis) and reduce the human–wildlife conflicts associated with high population densities. We evaluated the effectiveness of a motion-activated laser hazing system for repelling captive Canada geese. The system decreased occupancy of 8 pairs of geese on the treated subplot by 83% during habituation trials. When an additional pair of geese were added to the experiment, occupancy of the treated subplot decreased .92% during each of the 20 nights of the extended habituation test. Avoidance (conditioned during the test) remained ,80% of pretreatment levels during the 2 days immediately following the …

Evaluation Criteria For Information Systems Development Methodologies, Keng Siau, Xin Tan

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

The evaluation of information systems development methodologies is becoming increasingly important. The lack of a commonly acceptable set of criteria for evaluation, however, hinders aggregating knowledge from field studies. Our study attempts to fill the gap. To reduce the effects of subjectivity, we surveyed the opinions of a group (28) of experienced IS researchers. Fifty-one criteria were generated from the research participants. A systematic content analysis technique will be applied for grouping the unique criteria into general categories. Upon completion, our study can make both academic and practical contributions in evaluating ISD methodologies.

Impact On Open Source Software Performance: A View From Social Structure, Y. Long, Keng Siau

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Open source software (OSS) has drawn increasing attention from both practitioners and researchers in recent years. However, few empirical studies have investigated the interaction process of OSS teams during OSS development. This research has two primary objectives. The first is to study the social structure of OSS teams. The second is to investigate the factors impacting the social structure of OSS teams as well as the effects of the social structure on OSS performance. Based on the social structure and social network theory, and group-related theories, this paper first presented a general research framework, then discussed research methodology, and finally …

Towards A Theoretical Framework Of Information Systems Development Success, Y. Long, Keng Siau, M. Ling

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Information systems development (ISD) is a complicated process involving interconnected resources, objects, and outcomes. The importance of ISD has attracted long-term interests from both researchers and practitioners. Based on the input-process-output model, this paper developed a conceptual framework of ISD success through a systematic literature review. The paper argues that ISD is a comprehensive and interactive process among individuals, teams, and organization. These factors impact ISD process, and further affect ISD success.

Toward Practical Measures Of Complexity In Real-Time Modeling Methods, J. Erickson, Keng Siau

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Systems development methods have become more complex, concurrently with many of today’s systems. UML has been criticized for its complexity. Using Rossi and Brinkkemper’s (1996) complexity metrics, Siau and Cao, (2001) completed a complexity analysis of UML and other modeling techniques, finding that UML is more complex than other techniques. Siau, Erickson and Lee (2002) proposed that Rossi and Brinkkemper’s metrics present the theoretical maximum complexity, as opposed to a practitioner-based complexity, that must be less than the theoretical maximum. Erickson and Siau (2004) proposed that a subset of UML (a kernel) composed of the most commonly used constructs, could …

An Investigation Into The Continued Use Of Unified Modeling Language (Uml) In Information Systems Development, Keng Siau, X. Tan

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

As the de facto standard for object-oriented modeling language, UML is expected to play an increasingly important role in information systems development. The long-term viability and eventual success of UML depend, to a great extent, on the continued use by UML users such as developers and analysts. Systematic investigations on UML’s continued use have been missing from contemporary discussions. Our study attempts to fill this gap in the literature. We developed a research model, which is primarily based on the Expectation Disconfirmation Theory (EDT). According to this model, UML users’ perceived discrepancy between pre-adoption expectation and post-adoption perceived performance, which …

A Semiotics View Of Modeling Method Complexity – The Case Of Uml, Keng Siau, Y. Tian

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Unified Modeling Language (UML) is the standard modeling language for object oriented system development. Despite its status as a standard, UML’s formal specification is fuzzy and its theoretical foundation is weak. Semiotics, the study of signs, provides us good theoretical foundation for UML research as UML graphical notations are some kinds of signs. In this research, we use semiotics to study the graphical notations in UML. We hypothesized that using iconic signs as UML graphical notations leads to more accurate representation and arouses fewer connotations than using symbolic signs. Since symbolic signs involve more learning efforts, we assume that expert …

Introduction: Human-Computer Interaction Studies In Management Information Systems, Fiona Fui-Hoon Nah, P. Zhang, S. Mccoy

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Human-computer interaction (HCI) is a critical area of research and practice that spans several disciplines, including industrial engineering, management information systems (MIS), computer science, information science, psychology, sociology, and anthropology. HCI research within the MIS discipline has distinct features shaped by the evolution and current state of MIS. Originating as applied computer science in the 1970s, MIS gradually transformed into a more social science–oriented discipline (Baskerville & Myers, 2002). MIS is broadly defined as “the effective design, delivery, and use of information systems in organizations” (Keen, 1980, p. 14). The two distinguishing features of MIS compared to other "homes" of …

Geogdl: A Web-Based Approach To Geography Examination, Ee Peng Lim, Dion Hoe-Lian Goh, Yin-Leng Theng

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

The traditional educational approach with students as passive recipients has been the subject of criticism. A constructivist learner-centered approach towards education has been argued to produce greater internalization and application of knowledge compared to the traditional teacher-centered, transmission-oriented approach. Nevertheless, contemporary instructional design models argue for the use and integration of both approaches especially in complex learning tasks. This paper describes GeogDL, a Web-based application developed above a digital library of geographical resources for Singapore students preparing to take a national examination in geography. GeogDL is unique in that it not only provides an environment for active learning, it also …

Peer-To-Peer Discovery Of Semantic Associations, Matthew Perry, Maciej Janik, Cartic Ramakrishnan, Conrad Ibanez, I. Budak Arpinar, Amit P. Sheth

Kno.e.sis Publications

The Semantic Web vision promises an extension of the current Web in which all data is annotated with machine understandable metadata. The relationship-centric nature of this data has led to the definition of Semantic Associations, which are complex relationships between resources. Semantic Associations attempt to answer queries of the form “how are resource A and resource B related?” Knowing how two entities are related is a crucial question in knowledge discovery applications. Much the same way humans collaborate and interact to form new knowledge, discovery of Semantic Associations across repositories on a peer-to-peer network can allow peers to share their …

An Efficient Consistency Algorithm For The Temporal Constraint Satisfaction Problem, Berthe Y. Choueiry, Lin Xu

School of Computing: Faculty Publications

Dechter et al. [5] proposed solving the Temporal Constraint Satisfaction Problem (TCSP) by modeling it as a meta-CSP, which is a finite CSP with a unique global constraint. The size of this global constraint is exponential in the number of time points in the original TCSP, and generalized-arc consistency is equivalent to finding the minimal network of the TCSP, which is NP-hard. We introduce _AC, an efficient consistency algorithm for filtering the meta-CSP. This algorithm significantly reduces the domains of the variables of the meta-CSP without guaranteeing arc-consistency. We use _AC as a preprocessing step to solving the meta-CSP. We …

Establishing Public Confidence In The Viability Of Fingerprint Biometric Technology, Nathan Alan Green

Theses and Dissertations

The most common personal authentication techniques used for identity management employ a secret PIN or password that must be remembered. The challenge, for a given user, is that a multitude of such codes must be recalled over the course of the day for transactions involving distinct computer applications. Password mania prevails. Fingerprint biometric technology is an ideal alternate solution to this password recall problem. In spite of their availability for nearly thirty years, fingerprint biometric systems still remain uncommon in public sectors of industry such as education, government, and technology. Technology has improved sufficiently that false acceptance and rejection rates …

Interactive Preferences And Decision-Theoretic Planning, Derek Williams, Kyle Bailey, Alex Dekhtyar, Judy Goldsmith, Beth Goldstein, Raphael Finkel, Joan Mazur

Computer Science and Software Engineering

We introduce a suite of interlinked software tools for eliciting preferences, doing decision-theoretic planning, and displaying the plans. The software allows a user to walk through possible trajectories, adjust preferences, and compare potential trajectories. This paper focuses on the elicitation process, the plan display, and interactions between the two.

Santa Clara Magazine, Volume 47 Number 1, Summer 2005, Santa Clara University

Santa Clara Magazine

9 - A MOGUL IN THE MAKING By Larry Sokoloff J.D. '92 While working toward his business degree, SCU sophomore Tyler Dickman runs a multimillion-dollar business based in Florida.

10 - TOP OF THE CLASS: FOUNDATION HONORS INNOVATIVE SCU PROFESSORS By Kim Kooyers. This year's winners of the Louis and Dorina Brutocao Award for Teaching Excellence and the Brutocao Family Foundation Award for Curriculum Innovation are examples of the SCU's outstanding teaching scholars.

14 - A GLOBAL ETHIC: A CONVERSATION WITH HANS KUNG By Rita Beamish '74 Hans Kung, scholar, Roman Catholic priest, and author of some 50 books on …

Validating Human–Robot Interaction Schemes In Multitasking Environments, Jacob W. Crandall, Michael A. Goodrich, Curtis W. Nielsen, Dan R. Olsen Jr.

Faculty Publications

The ability of robots to autonomously perform tasks is increasing. More autonomy in robots means that the human managing the robot may have available free time. It is desirable to use this free time productively, and a current trend is to use this available free time to manage multiple robots. We present the notion of neglect tolerance as a means for determining how robot autonomy and interface design determine how free time can be used to support multitasking, in general, and multirobot teams, in particular. We use neglect tolerance to 1) identify the maximum number of robots that can be …

Loss, Attachment, And Place: A Case Study Of Grand Isle, Louisiana, David Burley, Pam Jenkins, Joanne Darlington, Brian Azcona

Reconstruction: Studies in Contemporary Culture

This study examines how residents of a Louisiana barrier island think about place in light of slow and rapid onset of coastal land loss. The island community has always faced change due to hurricanes, development, and erosion. Today the island, as well as the region, is faced with great environmental change due to coastal land loss. This paper uses a phenomenological approach to examine how change, caused by a range of environmental factors, is transmitted and understood by residents of Grand Isle, Louisiana. Residents convey a heightened awareness of place attachment, communicated through elements of fragility and uniqueness, that we …

Polydesigns And Causal Inference, Fan Li, Constantine E. Frangakis

Johns Hopkins University, Dept. of Biostatistics Working Papers

In an increasingly common class of studies, the goal is to evaluate causal effects of treatments that are only partially controlled by the investigator. In such studies there are two conflicting features: (1) a model on the full cohort design and data can identify the causal effects of interest, but can be sensitive to extreme regions of that design's data, where model specification can have more impact; and (2) models on a reduced design (i.e., a subset of the full data), e.g., conditional likelihood on matched subsets of data, can avoid such sensitivity, but do not generally identify the causal …