Digital Commons Network^™

Seasonal And Interannual Variability Of Phytoplankton Abundance And Community Composition On The Central Coast Of California, Alex Barth, Ryan K. Walter, Ian C. Robbins, Alexis Pasulka

Physics

Variations in the abundance and composition of phytoplankton greatly impact ecosystem structure and function. Within the California Current System (CCS), phytoplankton community structure is tightly coupled to seasonal variability in wind-driven coastal upwelling, a process that drives changes in coastal water temperatures and nutrient concentrations. Based on approximately a decade (2008-2018) of weekly phytoplankton measurements, this study provides the first characterization of the seasonal and interannual variability of phytoplankton abundance and composition in San Luis Obispo (SLO) Bay, an understudied region within the CCS. Overall, the seasonality of phytoplankton in SLO Bay mirrored that of the larger CCS; diatoms dominated …

Comparative Analysis And Best Practices Of Experiential Marketing, A Look Into Sensory Marketing, Cameron J. Bielat

Experience Industry Management

As the experiential marketing industry has begun to take precedent over prior marketing methods, organizations are learning to capitalize on customer immersion and relationship development, done so through sensory marketing. This review works to evaluate and measure multiple large experiential conferences within their respective industries. The purpose of this study is to examine the sensory-activating marketing practices, also known as sensory-marketing activations, present within the emerging experiential marketing industry, with a highlight on the best practices within major organizational conferences. Within this study there is a detailed instrument that is used as a guideline to evaluate key experiential marketing tactics. …

Cal Poly Rodeo Ag 243 Rodeo Class, Serth Chance Niederhauser

Agricultural Education: Graduate Internship Reports

This report details the role of an assistant coach with the Cal Poly Rodeo program with the responsibilities of revising the AG 243 rodeo course.

Audio Loop Station, Samuel M. Lopez

Electrical Engineering

A digital loop station is an electronic device that takes an analog audio signal, samples it with an Analog-to-Digital converter, stores it digitally in a system memory, and repeatedly outputs the content to a Digital-to-Analog converter. The signal is controlled by use of a microcontroller and amplified by external circuitry. The purpose of a digital loop station is to record and store an audio sample in real-time then playback the stored signal and superimpose additional audio signals over it. This project details a 16-bit digital loop station that samples at a rate of 44.1 kHz which is the industry standard …

Cal Poly Supermileage Dynamometer, Jacob Randall, Nate Deffenbaugh, Kyle Milgram

Mechanical Engineering

Our senior project involves designing a chassis dynamometer capable of simulating variable loads for the Cal Poly Supermileage Vehicle (SMV) team. The chassis dynamometer we are developing uses an alternator to develop additional resistance that the vehicle will have to overcome while testing. To implement a control system for the variable load, we use an Arduino Nano paired with multiple sensors and drivers. This control system allows the user to select different levels of resistance that correlate with different road grades. We designed a custom Printed Circuit Board (PCB) that will contain all the electrical components needed for the control …

Use Of Body Composition Imaging To Calculate 3-D Inertial Parameters For Inverse Dynamic Analysis Of Youth Pitching Arm Kinetics, Dalton James Jennings

Master's Theses

The objectives of this study were to 1) calculate participant-specific segment inertial parameters using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) data (referred to as full DXA-driven parameters) and compare the pitching arm kinetic predictions using full DXA-driven inverse dynamics vs scaled, DXA mass-driven (using DXA masses but scaled centers of mass and radii of gyration), and DXA scaled inverse dynamics(ID) (using the full DXA-driven inertial parameters averaged across all participants), 2) examine associations between full DXA-driven kinetics and body mass index (BMI) and 3) examine associations between full DXA-driven kinetics and segment mass index (SMI). Eighteen 10- to 11- year-olds pitched …

Web Conference Summarization Through A System Of Flags, Annirudh M. Ankola

Master's Theses

In today’s world, we are always trying to find new ways to advance. This era has given rise to a global, distributed workforce since technology has allowed people to access and communicate with individuals all over the world. With the rise of remote workers, the need for quality communication tools has risen significantly. These communication tools come in many forms, and web-conference apps are among the most prominent for the task. Developing a system to automatically summarize the web-conference will save companies time and money, leading to more efficient meetings. Current approaches to summarizing multi-speaker web-conferences tend to yield poor …

Thermal Ecology Of The Federally Endangered Blunt-Nosed Leopard Lizard, Kathleen N. Ivey

Master's Theses

Recognizing how climate change will impact populations can aid in making decisions about approaches for conservation of endangered species. The Blunt-nosed Leopard Lizard (Gambelia sila) is a federally endangered species that, despite protection, remains in extremely arid, hot areas and may be at risk of extirpation due to climate change. We collected data on the field-active body temperatures, preferred body temperatures, and upper thermal tolerance of G. sila. We then described available thermal habitat using biophysical models, which allowed us to (1) describe patterns in lizard body temperatures, microhabitat temperatures, and lizard microhabitat use, (2) quantify the …

Design And Implementation Of Stewart Platform Robot For Robotics Course Laboratory, Trent R. Peterson

Master's Theses

A Stewart Platform robot was designed, constructed, and programmed for use in Cal Poly’s ME 423 Robotics: Fundamentals and Applications laboratory section. A Stewart Platform is a parallel manipulator robot with six prismatic joints that has six degrees of freedom, able to be defined in both position and orientation. Its purpose is to supplement parallel robot material covered in lecture. Learning objectives include applying and verifying the Stewart Platform inverse kinematics and investigating the Stewart Platform’s operation, range of motion, and limitations. The Stewart Platform geometry and inverse kinematics were modeled and animated using MATLAB. The platform was then built …

Host-Galaxy Morphology Of 14 Local Active Galaxies As Imaged By The Hubble Space Telescope, Tomas Henry Snyder

Physics

Active galactic nuclei (AGNs) are galaxies with super-massive black holes, that are undergoing accretion, at their centers. The study of these objects provides us with a deeper understanding of how the black holes evolved along with their host galaxies since black hole mass is highly correlated with bulge mass. A sample of 66 AGNs were imaged using the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and 14 of those are analyzed in this paper to determine their structure, bulge luminosity, and bulge type. The program GALFIT is implemented to determine these parameters, that will be used in further research in the future. These …

Residual Strength Of Franciscan-Derived Clay, Yingyi Xu

Master's Theses

In February of 2017 after a period of heavy rainfall, a slope destabilized behind Fremont Hall on the campus of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. The geology of this slope stability failure is the Franciscan Complex. The Franciscan Complex, when weathered in place, results in clay soil that makes up the typical soil mantle on the hills throughout the region. Peak strength is the typical parameter tested to assess the strength of the soil. For the Franciscan-derived clay, the residual strength is the focus of this study to understand slope failure since the clay is the weakest portion of the …

Diy Incubator, Aryan Zia, Grace Spurlock, Garrett Janney

Biomedical Engineering

This project report provides detailed information on designing and building a DIY Incubator. The device is indicated for growing and maintaining BSL-1 mammalian or bacterial cell culture with a temperature control in the range of 25-45°C ± 1°C. The device is made fully programmable via an Arduino, and is structurally designed to fit two T75 cell culture flasks at a time. The device is able to return to a specified temperature set point within 10 minutes and maintains 5% CO2 partial pressure conditions. The incubator has a small physical footprint, with an overall dimension of 22in x 16in x 15.5in …

Sin City Platforms: A Comparative Analysis On The Social Media Practices Of Select Hotels On The Las Vegas Strip, Kaitlin Beuschlein

Experience Industry Management

Social media has become a popular form of communication in recent years due to the prevalence of mobile devices. This has prompted companies to implement platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter into their marketing strategies to better reach customers. The purpose of this study was to compare and contrast the social media marketing strategies of select hotels on the Las Vegas strip. The Cosmopolitan and The Venetian hotels were selected for this study. The study strategically analyzed the Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter pages for both hotels utilizing a comparative analysis guide developed by the researcher. It was concluded that …

Dynamic Procedural Music Generation From Npc Attributes, Megan E. Washburn

Master's Theses

Procedural content generation for video games (PCGG) has seen a steep increase in the past decade, aiming to foster emergent gameplay as well as to address the challenge of producing large amounts of engaging content quickly. Most work in PCGG has been focused on generating art and assets such as levels, textures, and models, or on narrative design to generate storylines and progression paths. Given the difficulty of generating harmonically pleasing and interesting music, procedural music generation for games (PMGG) has not seen as much attention during this time.

Music in video games is essential for establishing developers' intended mood …

Solostand, Hau Nhat Doan, Sydney Gray, Celina Dioso

Biomedical Engineering

The purpose of this scope of work is to highlight the progress and development of SoloStand sponsored by Derek Herrera, chief technical officer and founder of SpinalSingularity. SoloStand is an attachment to a wheelchair that will benefit paraplegics that use wheelchairs. A portable and customizable attachment to a wheelchair will allow the user to do everyday tasks without transferring into a separate standing wheelchair and travel more easily. This document outlines everything that has been done in fulfillment of our senior project requirements.

Cal Poly Supermileage Vehicle Braking System, Gabriel Levy, Anneka M. Cimos, Ian M. Kennedy

Mechanical Engineering

The Cal Poly Supermileage Vehicle (SMV) team has requested this team to design the braking systems for the 2021 Supermileage vehicle in accordance with the 2020 Shell Eco-marathon rules, weight restrictions, and team budget. A braking system consists of the front brake pedals, front pedal mount, cable management to the brake calipers, and the rear caliper mounts. This report outlines the concept design that our project group has developed for the redesign braking systems. Background research, objectives, and concept design developments, final design, manufacturing notes, and design verification testing data are documented for the project sponsors.

Supermileage Vehicle Drivetrain Design, Griffin M. Kraemer, Kai Meter, Arya Mahdavian

Mechanical Engineering

The current Cal Poly Supermileage team has faced issues regarding the efficiency and durability of their SMV vehicle’s drivetrain. After conducting research to solve their current issues, we developed a final drivetrain configuration that will improve the performance and life of the vehicle. This report outlines some of the completed research including: a table of designs used by other teams, a table of patents that can be applied to our design, and a list of technical literature we can use to better our design. It also summarizes our goals and objectives, including a table of the engineering specifications of the …

Left Atrial Appendage Printing Process, Areli Reyes, Brandon James Mukai, Mia Noelle Von Knorring

Biomedical Engineering

The left atrial appendage senior design team aims to assist in closing off the left atrial appendage that is susceptible to coagulation due to non-valvular atrial fibrillation. Coagulation in the left atrial appendage (LAA) can be life threatening as it can lead to a stroke. Dr. Chris Porterfield performs a procedure that uses the Boston Scientific Watchman to close the appendage. He finds that sizing the Watchman properly is difficult with limited visuals from live CT scans. He proposed converting the CT scans into a 3D printed model of the left atrial appendage and left atrium so he can visually …

Integrity Testing Of Gas Permeable Silicone Filters, Maggie M. Baker, Thomas P. Humann, Kevin J. Yerina

Biomedical Engineering

This report investigates the most reasonable, cost efficient, and reliable ways to integrity test a filter made from a permeable silicone membrane for future biomedical and pharmaceutical applications. The goal of the project was to create a fixture that a pharmaceutical company can use to quickly and reliably test the integrity of the filter. A variety of methods are outlined to test the integrity of the filter, after a series of quantitative tests, a single method was established that meet the requirements most thoroughly. The method that was determined to be most effective involves a series of components including a …

Utilization And Standardization Of Beverage Based Containers, Michael T. Bobke, Jack C. Maughan, Kenia Vargas

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

The purpose of this document is to formally describe and explain all of the decisions associated with the data collection and analysis for this Cal Poly Senior Project. Throughout the project, we will utilize and hone the skills that each team member has developed during our time in Cal Poly's Engineering program. In addition, this document will briefly describe some of Blue Diamond’s history as one of the biggest almond companies in the world. The statement of work will introduce and describe the current status of the beverage base container process and international beverage container design. Next it will discuss …

Rebar Impalement Safety, Spencer C. Nefores, Steven M. Hoover

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

This project is sponsored by Webcor with the purpose of finding a better solution to rebar impalement safety. The current rebar impalement safety caps being used by Webcor were found to frequently fall off after being installed. This results in workers being exposed to the hazard for longer than desired. The research that has been done by the team showed that rebar impalement is a serious hazard and results in injury or death every year. Site visits and interviews were performed to aid in understanding the problem and designing solutions. The customer needs, current state of the problem, existing solutions, …

Parklets San Luis, Owen Kenny, Preston Jag Stebel, Leonidas Goodman, Lukas Braun

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

Downtown San Luis Obispo has been a popular destination for tourists, students, families, and roadtrippers. However, according to Ryan Betz, Interim Assistant to the City Manager, foot traffic and retail business revenue has been decreasing. Downtown SLO does not have enough free public spaces. Recent projects such as sidewalk bump outs and lighted crosswalks have aimed at making SLO more pedestrian accessible, but they have not actually made downtown more pleasurable. These projects have not seemed to drive any more business or traffic downtown. There are a myriad of ways to rectify this; studies show that having a free place …

Insulative (Direct Current) Dielectrophoretic Foul-Less Filtration In Microfuidic Systems, Matthew A A Whitman

Master's Theses

Filtration is a technology that is used almost ubiquitously in society from uses raging from filtration of macroparticles from water to pharmaceutical grade filtration products to remove anything larger than a protein. However, with such a wide range of uses, most filtration products have the same issue; membrane clogging (fouling) that prevents continuous use and requires frequent maintenance. This thesis hypothesizes that by applying a direct current (DC) to an insulating array of posts, they will create a foul-less insulative dielectrophoretic filter (iDEP) that does not clog since particles will levitate above the insulating array.

This thesis tested an inherited …

Electricity Price Forecasting Using A Convolutional Neural Network, Elliott Winicki

Master's Theses

Many methods have been used to forecast real-time electricity prices in various regions around the world. The problem is difficult because of market volatility affected by a wide range of exogenous variables from weather to natural gas prices, and accurate price forecasting could help both suppliers and consumers plan effective business strategies. Statistical analysis with autoregressive moving average methods and computational intelligence approaches using artificial neural networks dominate the landscape. With the rise in popularity of convolutional neural networks to handle problems with large numbers of inputs, and convolutional neural networks conspicuously lacking from current literature in this field, convolutional …

A System Architecture For Phased Development Of Remote Suas Operation, Eric Ashley

Master's Theses

Current airspace regulations require the remote pilot-in-command of an unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) to maintain visual line of sight with the vehicle for situational awareness. The future of UAS will not have these constraints as technology improves and regulations are changed. An operational model for the future of UAS is proposed where a remote operator will monitor remote vehicles with the capability to intervene if needed. One challenge facing this future operational concept is the ability for a flight data system to effectively communicate flight status to the remote operator. A system architecture has been developed to facilitate the implementation …

Patterns In Size Distribution And Catch Of Rockfish (Sebastes Spp.) In Fisheries-Independent And Fisheries- Dependent Hook-And-Line Surveys On The Central Coast Of California, Rose Elizabeth Dodgen

Master's Theses

Stock assessments are statistical models which characterize the state of a population of fish. Data for stock assessment models of West Coast nearshore groundfish come largely from fisheries-dependent sources. Incorporating fisheries-independent data would increase data availability. A potential source of fisheries-independent data which is comparable to existing fisheries-dependent data is the California Collaborative Fisheries Research Program (CCFRP), a Marine Protected Area (MPA) monitoring study. We are interested in understanding the context in which CCFRP could be implemented into assessments of nearshore groundfish, specifically rockfish. To investigate this, we used management-relevant metrics to examine three questions concerning the implementation of CCFRP …

Custodians Of Memory: A History Of American Archival Science With Suggestions For Future Digital Preservation Efforts, Courtney Thompson

Master's Theses

The archive and the historian are symbiotically dependent on one another. The archive relies on the historian to make use of the records it houses, and the historian looks to the archive to reconstruct history. But can a historian responsibly reconstruct history when the archive is fraught with relativity and bias? This thesis serves two purposes; one, pulling from seminal archival science and collections management texts, it chronicles the monumental, intellectual changes to American archival sciences, theories, and institutions, and two, it shows how these early conversations pertaining to archival theories are both not far removed from digital preservation efforts …

Prosthetic Thumb, Allison M. Sigdestad, Sahil Sharma, Cale Foreman

Biomedical Engineering

The Prosthetic Thumb Project is a senior design project completed by Biomedical Engineering Undergraduate students at California Polytechnic State University. This senior design project is aimed at designing a prosthetic thumb for a Cal Poly Pomona student who lost their thumb in an accident last year. The patient has ultimately lost between 30-40% of functionality of his left hand, and so we would like to give him that mobility back. Originally, the patient was worried about having a prosthesis, and wanted something more stagnant that would resemble the look of the thumb he lost. However, after working with him, we …

Esophageal Temperature Mapping And Monitoring Sheath, Nicole M. Rogers, Hillary Johnson, Alexander Silva

Biomedical Engineering

The purpose of this document is to provide a product development summary for an accessory device that joins an esophageal temperature probe and a mapping catheter together to be used during cardiac ablation. Catheter ablation therapy is performed in the left atrium, utilizing extremely hot or cold temperatures to create scar tissue and treat atrial fibrillation and other arrhythmias. The close positioning of the left atria adjacent to the esophagus presents a large risk as the extreme temperatures used during ablation can lead to esophageal damage or fistulas. This device is designed to integrate correlate data from the temperature probe …

Housecalls Mobile: Virtual Stethoscope/Otoscope, Julia Kelley, Cullen Mcgee, Eduardo Uribe-Saldana

Biomedical Engineering

At the start of the project, our initial deliverables were to add a low cost camera into virtual otoscope and to add a pediatric attachment to the stethoscope. However, about half way through the first quarter (1.5 months into the project), our deliverables changed to the following: to design a housing unit for the selected otoscope camera and to increase battery life to allow for 12+ battery life. To accomplish our deliverables, we divided up the responsibilities as follows: One person headed the mechanical design, one person headed the electrical design, and one person served as a liaison between the …