Digital Commons Network^™

Inducing Ni Sensitivity In The Ni Hyperaccumulator Plant Alyssum Inflatum Nyárády (Brassicaceae) By Transforming With Cax1, A Vacuolar Membrane Calcium Transporter, Rasoul Ghasemi, Hoorieh Share, Roza Sharif, Robert S. Boyd, Nishanta Rajakaruna

Biological Sciences

The importance of calcium in nickel tolerance was studied in the nickel hyperaccumulator plant Alyssum inflatum by gene transformation of CAX1, a vacuolar membrane transporter that reduces cytosolic calcium. CAX1 from Arabidopsis thaliana with a CaMV35S promoter accompanying a kanamycin resistance gene was transferred into A. inflatum using Agrobacterium tumefaciens. Transformed calli were subcultured three times on kanamycin-rich media and transformation was confirmed by PCR using a specific primer for CAX1. At least 10 callus lines were used as a pool of transformed material. Both transformed and untransformed calli were treated with varying concentrations of either calcium (1–15 mM) or …

The Effect Of Destoning And Enzymatic Pretreatments On The Biofuel Production From Olive Cake, Patrick Tai

Master's Theses

More than 16,000 tons of olive cake was produced in the United States in 2017. Olive cake is a by-product of olive oil extraction, which has limited animal feed potential, and poses an environmental threat when landfilled due to its high organic load and polyphenol content. This residue has potential for biofuel (bioethanol and biomethane) production because it is rich in polysaccharides such as pectin, hemicellulose, and cellulose. Yet, olive cake contains olive stones that can impede its conversion to biofuel. Therefore, two methods of destoning, centrifugation and screening by horizontal screw press, were first compared. Both methods removed an …

Beyond Human Intelligence: Redefining Intelligence, Jens Pohl

Architecture

The digital revolution driven by global connectivity, computing as a utility, artificial intelligence, and information sharing on an unprecedented scale is forcing the redefinition of intelligence in a broader context that extends beyond human intelligence. This paper addresses the principal characteristics of biological intelligence, as it exists on planet Earth and the form it may take in an extraterrestrial context. Human intelligence, as the most evolved form of biological intelligence on Earth, is treated as the aggregation of multiple intelligences that cannot be encapsulated in a single metric such as an Intelligence Quotient (IQ). The concept of a postbiological civilization …

Deep Learning For Automated Image Classification Of Seismic Damage To Built Infrastructure, B. Patterson, G. Leone, Maria Pantoja, Anahid A. Behrouzi

Architectural Engineering

The amount of structural damage image data produced in the aftermath of an earthquake can be staggering. It is challenging for a few human volunteers to efficiently filter and tag these images with meaningful damage information. The proposed solution is to automate post-earthquake reconnaissance image tagging activities by training a computer algorithm to classify each occurrence of damage per building material and structural member type. The approach is based on deep learning (DL), a subset of machine learning loosely based on the operation of a biologic neural system, which aims to learn and extract accurate representations from large data sets. …

Photo Tagging Tool For Rapid And Detailed Post-Earthquake Structural Damage Identification, Anahid A. Behrouzi, Maria Pantoja

Architectural Engineering

A significant task in earthquake reconnaissance is to conduct rapid and accurate assessments of damage to built infrastructure. This can be accomplished, in part, by analyzing the large volumes of high-resolution image data collected after a seismic event. However, detailed image tagging remains a task for trained human volunteers, which is both time-intensive and error prone. The authors developed a software tool to simplify and standardize the process of assigning damage and structure pairs to sub-regions of images. The goal of the tool is to facilitate the tagging of thousands of images from historic and recent earthquakes to train a …

Software Toolset To Enable Image Classification Of Earthquake Damage To Above-Ground Infrastructure, Anahid A. Behrouzi, Maria Pantoja

Architectural Engineering

A critical task after a significant earthquake is determining the extent of damage to infrastructure networks. The decision-making process to dispatch emergency, repair, and in-field reconnaissance teams depends on whether road/railways and bridges are passible. Another concern is the rapid identification and resolution of physical disruptions to large-volume gas and water pipeline systems. After large seismic events, citizens, amateur photographers, and journalists now post thousands of photographs to formal/social media platforms. In the past, these images would have had to be reviewed by trained volunteers or expert engineers to evaluate whether: road/rail ways were significantly impacted by ground fracture, heaving, …

Hosting The Third Annual Young Women In Agriculture Career And Leadership Seminar, Emma E. Morris, Madyline J. Braught

Agricultural Education and Communication

Agriculture has traditionally been a male-dominated industry; however, recent years have shown a significant growth in female presence. Women are beginning to take leadership roles both on the farm and within advocacy, lobbying, and business entities in the industry. According to the latest agricultural census data from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), in 2012, women farmers controlled seven percent of the nation’s farmland (Census, 2014). Additionally, women held leadership roles in 14 percent of the nation’s two million farms (Census, 2014). This data is several years old, and likely the numbers have grown since the last census was …

An Evaluation Of Ultrasonic Shot Peening And Abrasive Flow Machining As Surface Finishing Processes For Selective Laser Melted 316l, Rhys Gilmore

Master's Theses

Additive Manufacturing, and specifically powder bed fusion processes, have advanced rapidly in recent years. Selective Laser Melting in particular has been adopted in a variety of industries from biomedical to aerospace because of its capability to produce complex components with numerous alloys, including stainless steels, nickel superalloys, and titanium alloys. Post-processing is required to treat or solve metallurgical issues such as porosity, residual stresses, and surface roughness. Because of the geometric complexity of SLM produced parts, the reduction of surface roughness with conventional processing has proven especially challenging. In this Thesis, two processes, abrasive flow machining and ultrasonic shot peening, …

Analysis Of Potential Vermicompost Market In California, Jason Alan Thomas

Master's Theses

Vermicompost transforms agricultural waste into a high quality soil amendment, though market acceptance remains in its infancy. This study examines how growers’ willingness to pay for vermicompost is affected by grower’s crop, region, income per acre, knowledge level of vermicompost and compost, previous use of compost, and the willingness to pay for compost. The survey results pulled together 223 responses from California growers. It was discovered growers’ had less knowledge of vermicompost than compost but were willing to pay more for vermicompost. There was statistical difference amongst the responses. It was shown the market value per ton of vermicompost lies …

Cuoricino Thermal Pulse Classification By Machine Learning Algorithms, Joshua Mann

Physics

Many of the various properties of neutrinos are still a mystery. One unknown is whether neutrinos are Majorana fermions or Dirac fermions. Cuoricino and CUORE are experiments that aim to solve this mystery. Noise reduction in these experiments hinges on the ability to discern among alpha, beta and gamma particle detections using the thermal pulses they create. In this paper, we look at Cuoricino data and attempt to classify pulses, not as alpha, beta or gamma particles, but rather as signal, noise or calibration data. We will use this preliminary testing ground to examine various machine learning algorithms' abilities in …

Old Belief And The Balance Of Red And Blue: How Old Believers Managed Cultural Infringement, Joseph K. Van Den Berg

History

This paper covers the spread of the Old Believers into Western society, studying how they changed and evolved during the Cold War. The paper focuses on two communities, using them to compare the different attitudes Old Believers had towards differing host cultures. Using a litany of newspapers and the work of a few dedicated anthropologists, "Old Belief and the Balance of Red and Blue: How Old Believers Managed Cultural Infringement" shows the vast array of responses to a small group of Russian sectarians establishing themselves within Western Cultures of differing size and values.

An Analysis Of The Life Safety And Fire Protection Features Of A New Hotel On California’S Central Coast, James Henahan

Fire Protection Engineering: Culminating Experience Project Reports

This report examines the fire protection and life safety features of a new, 3-story plus basement, hotel on California’s Central Coast. These features are examined from both a prescriptive, code-driven perspective, as well as from a performance-based design point of view.

The prescriptive analysis includes exit configuration and capacity, the NFPA 13 sprinkler system, the NFPA 72 fire alarm system, and the building construction types. All were found to be acceptable when compared against the applicable codes the building is subject to, with the exception of some of the load- bearing exterior walls.

The performance-based component examines the affect two …

How Representation Of Game Information Affects Player Performance, Matthew Paul Bryan

Computer Science and Software Engineering

The goal of this small experiment was to see if it could be determined whether or not user interface design and the way information is portrayed in a game can affect a player’s performance in that game. During this study, 26 anonymous participants selected one design of a timer from three different categories to be used in a simple, objective-based game. 10 different participants were then run through three levels of that game, with each level corresponding to a different version of timer. The amount of objectives completed were recorded, as well as their thoughts on which version they preferred …

Cal Poly Mustang News Ios App, Monica Chavez

Computer Engineering

This project was made in collaboration with Mustang News, Cal Poly’s campus news group. The goal was to create an app for Mustang News that would help them reach a broader audience and readership. The app will present stories found in the Mustang News newspaper and website in a mobile friendly format.

Passive Balancing Battery Management System For Cal Poly Racing's Formula Sae Electric Vehicle, Alvin Joseph Ha

Electrical Engineering

This senior project aims to replace the current battery management system (BMS) on Cal Poly’s Formula SAE electric vehicle with a more versatile, advanced, and reliable system. A BMS manages a rechargeable battery by ensuring the battery device operator’s safety, protecting battery cell integrity, prolonging battery lifetime, maintaining functional design requirements, and sending optimal usage information to the application controller. Passive balancing maximizes a battery pack’s capacity by dissipating excess energy through heat to regulate cell state of charge.

High-Bandwidth Iop Sensing Backscatter Transceiver, Mark Manuel

Electrical Engineering

This document describes the design and build of a mobile phone attachment that communicates with an ASIC embedded smart contact lens. The portable device enables patients and clinicians to conveniently and instantaneously measure intraocular pressure (IOP). The device replaces bulky and expensive benchtop RF synthesizer and signal analyzer machines required for communication to the smart contact lens into a portable and convenient device. The transceiver transmits VHF ISM band radio and can capture reflected backscatter On-Off-Keying modulated message signals at bandwidths from DC to 130MHz.

Microgrid Protection Student Laboratory: Human-Machine Interface And Scada Database, Nathan P. Martinez

Electrical Engineering

The electric utility system, a ubiquitous and fundamental component of modern life, has changed more in the last 20 years than the last 100. With more homes and businesses installing distributed energy resources (DERs) such as solar panels, battery storage, and other intermittent sources, massive changes need to take place in the electric transmission and distribution systems. Engineers must develop a new skill set for a modern utility industry. This project summarizes a component for a new laboratory class aimed at power engineering students at Cal Poly which supports the laboratory through the creation of a human-machine interface (HMI) and …

Career Path Web Application, Annamarie Roger

Computer Science and Software Engineering

This web application provides a new approach to organizing career advice. It allows a prospective student to outline career priorities and receive suggestions drawing from a repository of reports from professionals in their respective fields. This gives the student access to advice from individuals who do not know the user personally and aims to remove the possible bias that may exist on that level. Furthermore, the system is periodically updated to include recent reports.

Theatrical Turntable, Liam R. Martinez, Isaac Becker, Robert R. Reed, Caroline A. Whelan

Mechanical Engineering

No abstract provided.

Iot Power Bank And Control System, Dannick Liudzius

Computer Engineering

The project aims to target the growing Internet of Things (IoT) market with a lightweight and cost effective IoT control system with a mobile power bank. Currently there are no easy to use battery-powered systems set-up for Internet of Things interactions. This project is an iteration of such a system that would be able to be installed in a desired home or business environment even if the location is not in reasonable distance from a power outlet. The rapidly expanding IoT market is ideal for the development of a device that can be molded for use with various chosen peripherals, …

Effect Of Bioaugmentation Product Biowish® Aqua™ On Nitrogen Removal In Wastewater, Patrick Cassidy Kalvass

Master's Theses

Biological nutrient removal (BNR) from wastewater, and specifically nitrogen removal, is a growing concern to wastewater dischargers such as municipalities. Excess nutrients in effluent can create problems such as eutrophication, toxicity to aquatic life, and dissolved oxygen depletion in receiving waters. BNR systems have been installed in many locations with success, but their operation presents operational and financial demands greater than conventional biological treatment. Nitrogen removal is typically performed in sequential autotrophic nitrification and denitrification, which increases needed energy input, operational complexity, and therefore cost. Simultaneous nitrification-denitrification (SNdN) achieved in a single system has also been successfully implemented, however operational …

Strategic Selection Of Training Data For Domain-Specific Speech Recognition, Daniel Girerd

Master's Theses

Speech recognition is now a key topic in computer science with the proliferation of voice-activated assistants, and voice-enabled devices. Many companies over a speech recognition service for developers to use to enable smart devices and services. These speech-to-text systems, however, have significant room for improvement, especially in domain specific speech. IBM's Watson speech-to-text service attempts to support domain specific uses by allowing users to upload their own training data for making custom models that augment Watson's general model. This requires deciding a strategy for picking the training model. This thesis experiments with different training choices for custom language models that …

Jupyterlab_Voyager: A Data Visualization Enhancement In Jupyterlab, Ji Zhang

Master's Theses

With the emergence of big data, scientific data analysis and visualization (DAV) tools are critical components of the data science software ecosystem; the usability of these tools is becoming extremely important to facilitate next-generation scientific discoveries. JupyterLab has been considered as one of the best polyglot, web-based, open-source data science tools. As the next phase of extensible interface for the classic iPython Notebooks, this tool supports interactive data science and scientific computing across multiple programming languages with great performances. Despite these advantages, previous heuristics evaluation studies have shown that JupyterLab has some significant flaws in the data visualization side. The …

Enhanced Detection Of Corrosion And Coating Aging Mechanisms Using Core-Shell Quantum Dots, Raymond Thai

Master's Theses

Understanding aging mechanisms in coatings during their servicable life is complicated, due to the inherent stochastic nature of exposure profiles, service environments, and rare weather events. Thus, the development of improved test methods for service life prediction and accelerated weathering relies on the availability of infallible degradation and exposure data, delivered as a function of cumulative time in service. In a related application, non-destructive evaluative methods rely on the premise of being able to probe or monitor in situ mechanisms within a coating system without interfering with actual aging mechanisms. Ultimately, quantumdots can be utilized as in situ sensors for …

Assessing The Photoprotective Effects Of Fluorescent Sphingomyelin Against Uvb Induced Dna Damage In Human Keratinocytes, Rebecca Marie Kandell

Master's Theses

Non Melanoma Skin Cancer (NMSC) affects 3.3 million Americans each year and results from Ultra Violet Radiation (UVR) damage to DNA in the form of pyrimidine dimers and photoproducts [1]–[5]. Cells directly detect the damage and initiate apoptosis, cell cycle arrest, or DNA repair by modulating p53 and p21 levels [6]–[9]. Current methods of photoprotection include sunscreen, but controversy over safety of some active ingredients necessitates research into more natural alternatives [10]–[12]. In particular, 24 hour incubation with bovine milk sphingomyelin (BSM) has demonstrated photoprotective potential by reducing p21 and p53 levels in keratinocytes (KRTs) after UV radiation [13], [14]. …

Tessellated Voxelization For Global Illumination Using Voxel Cone Tracing, Sam Thomas Freed

Master's Theses

Modeling believable lighting is a crucial component of computer graphics applications, including games and modeling programs. Physically accurate lighting is complex and is not currently feasible to compute in real-time situations. Therefore, much research is focused on investigating efficient ways to approximate light behavior within these real-time constraints.

In this thesis, we implement a general purpose algorithm for real-time applications to approximate indirect lighting. Based on voxel cone tracing, we use a filtered representation of a scene to efficiently sample ambient light at each point in the scene. We present an approach to scene voxelization using hardware tessellation and compare …

Study Of The Effect Of Biowish Aqua On Simultaneous Nitrification And Denitrification In A Membrane Aerated Bioreactor, Joelle Arakaki

Master's Theses

This research entails the investigation of the effects of a bioaugmentation product from BiOWiSH^® called Aqua, referred to as “Aqua” for the remainder of this paper, on the nitrogen removal rate in a membrane aerated bioreactor (MABR). This research was conducted using a MABR design that consisted of a silicone membrane and continuous flow airline with compressed air. The membrane system was designed to supply oxygen, creating an aerated layer at the membrane-biofilm interface and an anoxic layer at the biofilm-water interface. Laboratory experiments were conducted to compare the nitrogen removal rates of natural bacteria alone to natural bacteria …

Effects Of Raceway Pond Water And Nutrient Recycling On Microalgae Production And Harvesting, Christian A. Bowen

Master's Theses

To be environmentally sustainable, algae biofuel production requires extensive recycling of water and nutrients during algae cultivation. Such recycling can be in the form of reuse of external wastewaters, such as from municipal sewers, but, to achieve significant biofuels production, internal recycling at the algae farms is also needed. A potential difficulty with internal recycling is the accumulation of auto-inhibitory compounds in recycled algae pond water. An additional concern is that nutrients in the residuals from algae biofuel manufacturing will be only partly bioavailable. Both these factors can limit the extent of internal recycling. Ultimately, combining external and internal recycling …

Effects Of Using Clay Nanoparticles As A Soil Amendment To Remove Nitrate From Stormwater, Megan P. Abutin

Master's Theses

Development of urban areas continues to increase, disrupting the natural ecosystem and the pathways for water to drain into downstream water bodies. As the amount of impervious area increases, pollutants can accumulate on the surface and enter the water cycle by stormwater. In most cities, the stormwater flows into a storm drain that is discharged into a water body. Low Impact Development technology has been developed to treat stormwater prior to discharge downstream. A bioretention cell is used to treat stormwater pollutants such as nitrate, phosphorus, total suspended solids, and metals. Past research has indicated that the removal efficiency of …

Finite-Difference Modeling Of The Batch Process Smoldering Combustion Of Wastewater, Laura H. Kawashiri

Master's Theses

A MATLAB model was developed for the smoldering combustion of wastewater in the context of a decentralized residential wastewater treatment appliance. Data from a batch process sewage smoldering experiment was simulated using implicit finite-difference approximations, assuming one-dimensional transient conductive heat transfer. The time-dependent temperature profiles within the column represented the main parameters of interest and were used to verify recoverable heat energy estimations. Given that the modeling method used for this thesis represents a unique approach, the assumptions and limitations of this model are thoroughly described in the context of reproducing results for other smoldering setups. A lack of convergence …