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Addressing Social Isolation And Loneliness In Older Adults: A Person-Centered Approach, Samantha K. Koyama

Social Sciences

The older adult population in the US is drastically increasing, but the country is not adequately prepared to handle all of the growing needs that come with this demographic change. A large reason for this being the general population’s lack of understanding of the various experiences that older adults go through. This paper aims to provide a thorough review of existing literature on the subject of social isolation and loneliness, especially as it pertains to the older adult experience. I also highlight the role the COVID-19 pandemic has played in exacerbating such issues. I discuss the difference between social isolation …

Indispensable Homes In Third World Countries: Constructing A Home In Tijuana, Mexico, Myles Hubers

Construction Management

This project was created to explore a way in which poverty around the world could ultimately be reduced. The way in which this project intends to demonstrate a method used to reduce poverty is by building a home for a specific family in Tijuana, Mexico. In doing so, this home will act as a model home for a manual, comprised of steps that should be taken to construct similar homes throughout any third world country. The goal of this project is to highlight the importance of poverty in the world while also creating a buildable solution in order to reduce …

The Effects Of Covid-19 On A Commercial Construction Company: A Case Study, Dylan Reynolds

Construction Management

The COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 and 2021 resulted in many states issuing stay-at-home orders and closing businesses. In some states, construction was deemed essential and allowed to remain open. Dempsey Construction, Inc. is a Southern California commercial construction company that was permitted to continue operation with the exception of a brief lockdown in March and April of 2020. Despite being permitted to remain open, the company had to face many direct and indirect challenges resulting from the worldwide pandemic. In addition to schedule adjustments, daily cleaning on jobsites and in the office, and increased material prices and lead times, Dempsey …

The Use Of Virtual Reality In Construction Safety Training, Matthias S. Guegler

Construction Management

The emergence of virtual reality has seemingly limitless possibilities in the construction industry. One of the most significant applications of this technology in construction, is its use in virtual reality safety training, as it allows for more immersive and retainable training programs. Construction VR training programs have been developed to allow workers to train in a safe working environment and develop the necessary skills in recognizing hazardous jobsite situations. The purpose of this study is to measure the effectiveness and potential of virtual reality construction training as it compares to traditional industry training through attitudinal research. To this end, a …

Analyzing Student Experience On Group Work With The Application Of Different Group Allocation Approaches, An Yee Tan

Management and HR

Working as a group can be as challenging as working by oneself. Common issues like ineffective group work, unequal work contribution, and poor communication are believed to be the reasons why many students preferred to work individually. The purpose of this study is to understand if there is a disparity in student experience on group work by implementing different methods of group formation, which are, intentional group formation and random assignment. Topics around team well-being, team communication, and team effectiveness are the main focus of this study. The second emphasis of this study is students’ opinions on whether or not …

Associations Between Maternal Technology Use, Perceptions Of Infant Temperament, And Indicators Of Mother-To-Infant Attachment Quality, Shawnee Alvarez Guitierrez, Alison K. Ventura

Kinesiology and Public Health

Background: Previous research suggests parents' use of technological devices, such as TV and mobile devices, within family contexts may decrease the quality of parent-child interactions. During early infancy, mothers report engaging with technological devices during infant feeding and care interactions, however, few studies have explored potential associations between maternal technology use and the quality of mother-to-infant attachment.

Aim: To examine associations between maternal technology use during mother-infant interactions and indicators of mother-to-infant attachment during early infancy.

Study design: Cross-sectional survey.

Methods: Mothers (n = 332) of infants aged 2 to 6 months were recruited via MTurk, a crowdsourcing platform, …

Factors Leading To Structure Loss On The Thomas Fire, Rodolfo Uribe

Master's Theses

The recent surge in fire activity and the extent of displaced communities as a result of wildfire has increased awareness of wildfire issues nationwide (Syphard et al., 2017). Climate change, population growth, and continued development in the wildland urban interface (WUI) has contributed to a growing body of research into the underlying causes of this continued destruction (Kramer et al., 2019). There is no doubt that statewide policies, such as defensible space or building regulations, are associated with home survival (Keeley & Syphard, 2019). However, the relative effectiveness of wildfire mitigation depends on a myriad of factors specific to individual …

Condition Monitoring And Fault Detection Of Blade Damage In Small Wind Turbines Using Time-Series And Frequency Analyses, Luke H. Costello

Master's Theses

Condition monitoring systems are critical for autonomous detection of damage when operating remote wind turbines. These systems continually monitor the turbine’s operating parameters and detect damage before the turbine fails. Although common in utility-scale turbines, these systems are mostly undeveloped in distributed, small-scale turbines due to their high cost and need for specialized equipment. The Cal Poly Wind Power Research Center is developing a low-cost, modular solution known as the LifeLine system. The previous version contained monitoring equipment, but lacked decision-making capabilities.

The present work builds on the LifeLine by developing software-based detection of blade damage. Detection is done by …

The Effects Of Wort Oxygenation Scenarios On Fermentation Performance, Volatile Flavor Compound Development, And Flavor Stability In High Gravity Brewing, Ben Jabson

Master's Theses

High gravity (HG) brewing has become the most used strategy for maximizing fermenter productivity in commercial brewing. While HG brewing has many benefits, the additional stress placed on the yeast due to the higher concentration of fermentable sugars in the wort can negatively impact fermentation performance and flavor compound formation. A proper dissolved oxygen (DO) level is vital to guarantee adequate yeast performance during HG fermentations. Dissolved oxygen is vital to yeast viability throughout the fermentation process, as yeast requires oxygen to synthesize vital cell membrane components needed for continued anaerobic growth and cell division. Previous research has demonstrated the …

Biological Semantic Segmentation On Ct Medical Images For Kidney Tumor Detection Using Nnu-Net Framework, Andres Bergsneider

Master's Theses

Healthcare systems are constantly challenged with bottlenecks due to human-reliant operations, such as analyzing medical images. High precision and repeatability is necessary when performing a diagnostics on patients with tumors. Throughout the years an increasing number of advancements have been made using various machine learning algorithms for the detection of tumors helping to fast track diagnosis and treatment decisions. “Black Box” systems such as the complex deep learning networks discussed in this paper rely heavily on hyperparameter optimization in order to obtain the most ideal performance. This requires a significant time investment in the tuning of such networks to acquire …

Adaptive Laboratory Evolution Of Scenedesmus Obliquus For Increased Carbohydrate Content And Biomass Productivity, Nahel Ali

Master's Theses

The economics of microalgal bioproduct commercialization would benefit from increased accumulation of energy storage compounds, such as carbohydrates and lipids, and increased biomass productivity. This thesis explores two adaptive laboratory evolution strategies for improving Scenedesmus obliquus: single UV-mutagenesis and low light cultivation at a high dilution rate to produce cultigens with greater carbohydrate content and iterative UV-mutagenesis and selection under outdoor conditions in a raceway pond at a high dilution rate to increase biomass productivity.

Two cultigens were generated with the goal of increased carbohydrate content: K5 and K7. Both were mutagenized for 5 seconds and cultivated in 50-mL …

The Effect Of Focused Ultrasound On Altering The Diameter Class Of Nerve Fibers Contributing To A Compound Evoked Potential, Analyzed Using A Perturbative Decomposition Technique., Megan Wurden

Master's Theses

Peripheral neuropathies are disorders that involve the damage of peripheral nerve fibers, affecting the ability of different parts of the body to communicate. A differentiating factor in diagnosis between various clinical conditions can be which size class of nerve fibers are affected. A nerve conduction velocity test can be used to assess the viability of the nerve but is a single-parameter test and gives no information about the population characteristics of the remaining active fibers. A method developed and previously reported by Szlavik (2016) utilizes a mathematical perturbed decomposition to determine the normalized frequency of each size class of fiber …

Early Wildfire Detection With Line Sensors, Virginia Yan

Master's Theses

Over the last few years, wildfires have become more devastating to communities as the fires are inevitably destructive to many homes, businesses, and ecosystems. Frequent wildfires also pose a significant threat to power grids and nearby residents as they can damage transmission lines and other electrical equipment, which in turn can cause major power shutdowns. Especially in western U.S., severe drought conditions and weather variability cause residents to become more vulnerable to wildfire disasters as their safety is threatened. We are incompetent to control the wildfires effectively despite existing advanced technologies. Hence, an algorithm based on energy conservation and heat …

Development Of A Robust Methodology To Obtain And Assess Myogenic Precursor Cells For Their Use In Regenerative Therapies, Ricardo Lasa

Master's Theses

Peripheral arterial occlusive disease (PAOD) is characterized by buildup of atherosclerotic plaque in peripheral arteries that leads to an occlusion that can interrupt the supply of blood to the peripheral tissue, causing downstream tissue ischemia/hypoxia. PAOD is estimated to affect over 200 million patients worldwide. Current surgical revascularization treatments can be effective in about half of the patient population, leading to a significant number of patients with no treatment options beyond pharmacological intervention and lifestyle modification. The decrease in blood flow downstream of the occlusion leads to increased blood pressure gradient in the microvasculature, specifically in vessels that connect arterial …

Development Of Novel Hardware And Software For Wind Turbine Condition Monitoring, Ryan A. Zhan

Master's Theses

With the increased use of wind turbines as sources of energy, maintenance of these devices becomes more and more important. Utility scale wind turbines can be time consuming and expensive to repair so an intelligent method of monitoring these devices is important. Commercial solutions for condition monitoring exist but are expensive and can be difficult to implement. In this project a novel condition monitoring system is developed. The priority of this system, dubbed the LifeLine, is to provide reliable condition monitoring through an easy-to-install and low-cost system. This system utilizes a microcontroller to collect acceleration data to detect imbalances on …

Gyroscopic Human Balance Device, Randy Lam Hau, Spencer Ross, Yael Farkash

Biomedical Engineering

This project’s sponsor, Charlie Guitierrez, has decades of experience building assistive walking devices for the wheelchair bound population. During his work, he noticed that many of his clients retained some ability to balance themselves and so theorized that they would be able to walk independently if given some form of assistance. This assistance could potentially be in the form of a wearable gyroscope. Gyroscopes are commonly used to stabilize objects subjected to instability, such as bicycles, motorcycles, and ships. Thus, a wearable gyroscope would assist its user in maintaining overall stability by imparting reactive torques and forces if the user …

Best Practices For Bridge Crane Implementation And Installation: A Case Study, Sterling D. Treloar

Construction Management

Overhead Cranes, which are more commonly referred to as bridge cranes, provide a substantial amount of flexibility with respect to the user’s ability to move material and heavy equipment throughout a factory or manufacturing facility. Oftentimes, the client is not aware of the benefits of implementing bridge cranes rather than using mobile gantry cranes. The client may not be aware of the benefits of bridge crane installation occurring at the beginning of a project or in fact, including it in the initial design of the project, rather than considering it in the middle of the project. This case study will …

Bilingual Training Course For Redwood Residential Fence Company, Adriana Bernabe Martinez

Construction Management

The Hispanic population has been increasing in the US over the past twenty years, and made up 42.9% of the construction workforce in 2018 (Data USA, n.d.). Because of this population increase, it’s expected that 1 in 4 persons will be of Hispanic descent by the year 2050 (Canales, 2009). Due to this increase, many language barriers exist that can create serious issues in construction. Language barriers cause productivity to decrease and increase concerns for the workers’ safety. Although OSHA trainings are available in Spanish, the opportunity to take these courses vary from company to company and it is rare …

Risk Management In Response To Covid-19: Comparative Case Study, Justin Hong

Construction Management

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected many aspects of the construction industry. Construction industry members such as owners, developers, subcontractors have experienced varying degrees of impacts because of COVID-19. It is important for companies to adopt risk management strategies to mitigate risk and reduce potential injuries. Due to new rules and regulations mandated by the government, companies had to change the way they operate. This comparative case study focuses on how the pandemic has affected large and small residential companies and compare the risk management strategies set in place by different companies. It was determined that most residential companies were not …

Net-Zero Homes, The Homes Of The Future, Primo Guseppi Facchini

Construction Management

Net-Zero homes are the homes of the future (Holmes, 2018). What makes Net-zero homes unique is they rely on solar power, opposed to all standard housing that relies on the power grid. These homes use solar instead of other forms of energy generating technology because it is more affordable and better for the environment. California has blazed the trail for the rest of the United States and the world to follow with their Net-Zero housing proposition. Starting January 2020 California will require all residential buildings to be net-zero homes. Net-Zero homes are important because it is no secret that our …

Common Issues Of Compliance With Personal Protective Equipment For Construction Workers, Alexandra N. Gattuso

Construction Management

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is an essential component to the safety of workers on construction jobsites. Construction is ranked one of the most dangerous industries to work in, with the highest reports of fatal work injuries. For this reason, it is required that construction employees wear PPE to keep them safe during work. Despite this requirement, many workers neglect to wear PPE, exposing themselves to high risk of injury and death. A survey was conducted on thirty-three (33) construction workers in California to gain a better understanding of issues with PPE and reasons for non-compliance. The survey found that only …

Case Study: Infection Control On The Arroyo Grande Community Hospital Emergency Room Expansion And Remodel Project, Daniel E. Romero

Construction Management

California hospital and healthcare projects typically involve California’s Office of Statewide Health Planning and Department (OSHPD) which is governed by the state of California and the Fire Marshal. Along with OHSPD as the governing organization, healthcare and hospital projects often must incorporate infection control practices. The Arroyo Grande Community Hospital Emergency Room Expansions and Remodel project incorporated infectious control practices. Qualitative research was conducted through semi-structured interviews of the project management team along with primary and secondary sources. The tools and practices used on this project included negative air machines, temporary walls with sound barriers, zip walls with fire rated …

Possible Use For Recycled Disposable Face Masks In Concrete, Lauren Douglas

Construction Management

Disposable face masks are one of many single use products that are detrimental to the environment. The construction industry has been introducing new ways to incorporate recycled products into their materials. This paper addresses one possible way to use more environmentally friendly materials in the construction industry. 16 concrete cylinders were prepared using 4x8 forms. The mix was manipulated to test the impact of incorporating varying levels of disposable shredded face masks. Compressive strength and workability were measured in these cylinders. Eight cylinders were prepared for the control batch. Four cylinders were prepared using 10 oz. of shredded face masks …

Effect Of Prenatal Lifestyle Intervention On Maternal Postpartum Weight Retention And Child Body Massindex Z-Score At 36 Months, Suzanne Phelan, Chantelle N. Hart, Elissa Jelalian, Karen Muñoz-Christian, Noemi Alarcon, Angelica Mchugh, Alison K. Ventura, Rena R. Wing

Kinesiology and Public Health

Background/Objectives We previously reported results from a randomized trial showing that a behavioral intervention during pregnancy reduced excess gestational weight gain but did not impact maternal weight at 12 months. We now examine the longer-term effects of this prenatal intervention on maternal postpartum weight retention and toddler body-mass-index z scores (BMIz) over 36 months.

Subjects/Methods Pregnant women (N = 264; 13.7 weeks’ gestation; 41.6% Hispanic) with overweight or obesity were randomized into usual care or prenatal intervention. Anthropometric assessments in mothers and toddlers occurred at baseline, 35 weeks’ gestation and after delivery at 6, 12, 18, 24, and 36 …

Academic Senate - Agenda, 02/23/2021, Academic Senate

Academic Senate Agendas

No abstract provided.

As-911-21 Resolution On Faculty Choice Of Modality, Executive Committee

Academic Senate Resolutions

Extending AS-903-20 and AS-904-20 through Summer 2022, allowing instructional faculty to select their teaching modality as face-to-face or virtual

Academic Senate - Agenda, 02/09/2021, Academic Senate

Academic Senate Agendas

No abstract provided.

Academic Senate - Minutes, 02/09/2021, Academic Senate, Academic Senate

Academic Senate Minutes

No abstract provided.

The Future Of Organic Insect Pest Management: Be A Better Entomologist Or Pay For Someone Who Is, David H. Headrick

Horticulture and Crop Science

Insect pest management in certified organic production systems presents considerable challenges for growers. The Federal National Organic Program (NOP) guidelines list acceptable tactics, but their effective use requires a considerable knowledgebase in entomology. The range of tactics allowed by the NOP are viewed as limiting by many growers and there are important elements missing from the list such as pest monitoring and identification. Educational programs must consider utilizing instructional methods and additional means of outreach that introduce new pest management tactics that are individualized, regionally appropriate and emphasize grower adoption and collaboration with local professionals. This review describes the challenges …

Comparative Effects Of Chemical And Physical Sunscreen On Fertilization Of Purple Sea Urchins (Strongylocentrotus Purpuratus), Marilla Lippert, Maurice Codespoti Goodman, Nikki Adams

Biological Sciences

Organic compound-based “chemical” sunscreens dominate the commercial sunscreen market, but recent research has revealed the ingredients of these products are detrimental to the health of marine organisms. This revelation has led to increased popularity of mineral-based “physical” sunscreens, primarily containing zinc-oxide (ZnO), as environmentally safe alternatives. While they are marketed as environmentally safe, these claims are largely untested, and it is important to consider potential effects of ZnO-based sunscreens on the development of marine organisms. Though Zn is a necessary micronutrient in the ocean, excess Zn is released into marine environments from anthropogenic sources has negative effects on marine life. …