Digital Commons Network^™

Static Vascular Modeling Of Diabetes Progression, Andrea Skattenborg

Master's Theses

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of mortality in diabetic patients, and diabetes is one of the main causes of cardiovascular disease. Risk factors for cardiovascular disease result in structural and functional changes in the vascular wall. Arterial stiffness is a prominent structural change observed in the arterial wall that can be measured in clinical settings. The purpose of this thesis was to create a static model of the changes in arterial stiffness seen in diabetes. Elastic tubes with varying wall thicknesses were used to create artificial arteries for this purpose. Compliance (inverse of stiffness) of the arteries was determined …

Building Up Cal Poly Global Brigades Student Group: Reflections On Designing And Implementing One Undergraduate-Led Community Info Session, Caroline Nicole Smith, Jafra D. Thomas

Kinesiology and Public Health

Intro: Global Brigades, an international non-profit organization, trains college students and other pre-professionals in community-based health promotion by mobilizing community service trips around the world, which are taught and led by local community groups. Cal Poly’s Global Brigades student group was founded in 2018, and thus far, they have carried out three annual, medically-focused brigades to Honduras (two in-person, one virtual).

Purpose: The aim of this report is to present the findings of one experiential senior project to promote Cal Poly’s Global Brigades student group^[1] (conducted January to March 2023).

Methods: The student designed material for …

Recor-Diy, Maxwell W. Ferrer

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

RecorDIY is an affordable alternative to ordering Vinyl Records from a manufacturer in the form of an at-home record-cutting lathe. This report will cover the record cutting process from audio to physical, at home record lathes that are currently available, and the possible improvements that I plan to implement in order to make these devices a more viable alternative for small artists. Current models can only create low fidelity records, specifically they struggle with lots of “noise”, extra sounds such as static that make it harder to hear the actual audio. Another issue is record size, as current models can …

A Study Of The Accuracy Of Stock Feeding And Implementation Of Future Improvements: Project Reflection, Drew R. Tilton

Agricultural Education: Graduate Internship Reports

This report details the role of an assistant coach with responsibilities connected to animal welfare, stock management and feed program.

Analysis Of Arterial Compliance Using A Surrogate Arm Bench Top Model For The Validation Of Oscillometric Blood Pressure Methods, Christopher J. Cunningham

Master's Theses

A study was performed on a recently developed prototype of the Yong-Geddes surrogate arm design to collect compliance data of the various system components and determine the accuracy of measurements made through the bench top model. The study was performed to perceive the effectiveness of the model as a tool for validating non-invasive blood pressure detection monitors. Three stages of testing were performed to gather pressure and volume data from an artificial artery component, a sphygmomanometer, and the surrogate arm system to produce compliance estimations. Mathematical equations from supported arterial hemodynamics studies and clinical trials were applied to the pressure …

Aged 539 Project- Soledad High School, Jacob Torres

Agricultural Education: Graduate Internship Reports

This internship and project report includes documentation required in meeting the quality criteria for secondary-level programs of instruction in agriculture. The documents are concurrently used for the Agriculture Incentive Grant review process at Soledad High School conducted by representatives of the California Department of Education. The supporting material includes information to receive state and local funding, outline the goals and objectives of the program, along with an overview of Soledad High School, the agriculture program and the community.

Cybersecurity In Industrial Automation Lab Design For Ee 435, Jules Khalil Emile Hajjar, Emily Zhou

Electrical Engineering

This project involves the creation of an instructional laboratory aimed at teaching cybersecurity for industrial automation applications. Specifically tailored for Electrical Engineering students at Cal Poly, the experiment focuses on configuring the Modicon M580, a PLC from Schneider Electric, and serves to introduce students to relevant cybersecurity protocols and techniques. This project will be implemented into the EE435 (Industrial Power Control and Automation) course curriculum upon Cal Poly’s transition to the semester system.

Sky Survey Radio Telescope, Jack E. Mcguigan

Electrical Engineering

This document outlines the design of a radio telescope designed to perform hydrogen line sky surveys. The telescope produces radio images mapping the intensity and relative velocities of hydrogen concentrations to their sky coordinates. Over the course of a day, the telescope images the regions of space visible to it, allowing sky survey imagery to be updated daily. Sky survey images are comprised of an array of pixels corresponding to specific sky coordinates. Each 8-bit RGB pixel contains information on the concentrations of hydrogen in the brightness and relative velocity in the color. Radio images mapping the concentrations and velocities …

Directional Speaker, Gabriel Tramontina Ceribelli, Vincent Trevor Pierce

Electrical Engineering

Parametric Acoustic Arrays (PAA) are highly directional soundwaves whose attenuation and spread are much less affected by distance from the source as compared to traditional speakers. A well-known application for PAA is the directional speaker. Studies show that noise directly affects health and decreasing noise pollution can help improve the quality of life for millions of people. Directional speakers can revolutionize society by coupling space with sound. This project encodes audio into two RF-Pulse Width Modulated (PWM) waves to drive a transducer array. Each RF-PWM wave interferes with the other in air to generate a Single Sideband (SSB) frequency spectrum …

Thermal Inequity And Planning Practices: Uncovering The Linkages And Creating Equitable Mitigation Strategies, Elia Rosner

City and Regional Planning

This paper examines the ways in which historical planning practices have contributed to the unequal vulnerability of marginalized communities to extreme heat, resulting in thermal inequity. Historical planning practices including discriminatory policies and uneven resource allocation, have intensified the effect of the urban heat island (UHI), leading to increased exposure to extreme heat and its associated health risk. Understanding the correlation between planning practices and the UHI effect is crucial for developing effective strategies to mitigate extreme heat impacts and improve thermal equity. By analyzing the underlying factors and consequences of planning decisions, this research aims to inform policy makers, …

Boulevard Apartments - Long Beach, Ca, Daryl P. Hernandez

City and Regional Planning

The proposed development will provide Long Beach residents with more opportunities for housing. The project is located on lots 923 and 927 Long Beach Boulevard in Long Beach, California. Currently, the lots are underutilized and vacant with no existing development on them. The apartment complex will consist of 75 units that include studio apartments, one-bedroom apartments, and two-bedroom apartments. An additional four units will be for qualified, low-income residents. The purpose of this development is to provide quality housing for young adults and families located in the heart of Long Beach.

Storytelling And Racial Identity: How First-Generation Students Of Color Navigate Their Identities At Predominately White Institutions, Kimberly Garcia Cruz

Communication Studies

Utilizing the Narrative Paradigm (Fisher, 1984) and thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006) the present study seeks to explore and further understand the ways in which first-generation students of color navigate, and thus make meaning, of their race and class identities at a Predominantly White Institution (PWI). Through qualitative interviews with 14 first-generation students of color (henceforth, FGSOC), themes that emerged included: (1) being used to “it”, (2) financial differences cause a clash with belonging, and (3) cultural spaces bring welcoming feelings. Findings were consistent with previous research regarding barriers faced by first-generation students of color. The current study adds …

A Resource Guide For Historic Sundown Town Resolutions, Zoning Code Updates, And General Plan Policies, Anna Rago

City and Regional Planning

James W. Loewen’s book Sundown Towns: A Hidden Dimension of American Racism, released in 2005, calls out cities across the United States for their historically discriminatory practices of excluding Black and other non-white individuals from living within city borders, either through formal exclusionary policies or informal methods. Cities often enforced this exclusionary practice through violence and intimidation, leading to “all-white” communities throughout the United States. The belief was that these communities should be “sundown” or “sunset” towns, where people of color were not allowed after dark. Loewen’s book and the following movement awakened individuals, companies, and entire cities to take …

Evaluation Of Potential Surrogates For Listeria Monocytogenes In Fresh Citrus-Specific Validation Studies, Kimiko Grace Casuga

Master's Theses

The FSMA Produce Safety Rule (PSR) requires citrus packers to more closely assess, manage, and monitor food safety risks. Although there have been no foodborne illness outbreaks and only one recall in fresh citrus, the risk of pathogens coming in on the fruit and cross contamination during washing still exists. Packhouses have dynamic washing systems and in-plant validations may be the only way to demonstrate compliance with the PSR. In-plant validations use surrogates in place of pathogens, and none have been identified or validated for citrus. The aim of this research was to identify a surrogate for use in fresh …

Predicting Location And Training Effectiveness (Plate), Erik Rolf Bruenner

Master's Theses

Abstract Predicting Location and Training Effectiveness (PLATE)
Erik Bruenner

Physical activity and exercise have been shown to have an enormous impact on many areas of human health and can reduce the risk of many chronic diseases. In order to better understand how exercise may affect the body, current kinesiology studies are designed to track human movements over large intervals of time. Procedures used in these studies provide a way for researchers to quantify an individual’s activity level over time, along with tracking various types of activities that individuals may engage in. Movement data of research subjects is often collected through …

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Effects Of Mature Recombinant Gdf9 And Bmp15 On In-Vitro Maturation Of Bovine Oocytes And Subsequent Embryo Development And Effects Of Antioxidants On Blastocyst Re-Expansion Rates, Jamie Thompson

Master's Theses

In-vitro produced embryos (IVP) differ greatly from in-vivo derived embryos (IVD) in gene expression, metabolism, development, and cryotolerance which limit the widespread use of this technology. In-vitro maturation (IVM) is one of the most important components for successful in-vitro embryo development. Growth differentiation factor 9 (GDF9) and bone morphogenetic protein 15 (BMP15) have been found to be essential during oocyte maturation and thus female fertility. These proteins are oocyte secreted factors (OSFs) and are produced with pro- and mature protein regions where the pro-regions are thought to aid in protein folding and dimerization where heterodimerization the two proteins has been …

Child Sexual Assault Prevention And Intervention, Kira Peterson, Amaya Ibuna, Emily Valenzuela

Psychology and Child Development

In our paper, we discuss child sexual assault, its risk factors, short and long-term outcomes, as well as prevention and intervention programs that have been shown to be valuable. To limit research, our focus will be on children living in the United States who have been physically sexually assaulted. To spread awareness of child sexual abuse, we also developed a pamphlet (See Appendix) that will be distributed to CASAs, which stands for Court Appointed Special Advocates. The development of the pamphlet is described in the combined Method and Results section. We conclude our project and paper with a Discussion section …

Surface Characterization Of Low-Density Polyethylene Mulch, Risha Shah

Materials Engineering

Plastic pollution in aquatic systems has traditionally been highlighted in past and current research due to the increase in plastic production every year. Unfortunately, quantitative and qualitative data regarding plastic pollution on land systems such as agricultural mulch is limited. Agricultural mulch breaks down into macroplastics and then degrades into microplastics. The microplastics investigated in this study are all secondary microplastics: microplastics that form due to weathering of larger fragments of plastic. Weathering can occur due to a variety of factors; however, UV radiation and mechanical weathering have been the factors of focus on most current research in microplastic formulation. …

Maintaining Institutional Memory For Non-Commercial College Radio Fundraising, Samantha K. Riordan

Journalism

This paper outlines how to run a non-commercial, non-profit radio station fundraising program, commonly called a Pledge Drive. Cal Poly’s radio station, KCPR 91.3, hosts an annual Pledge Drive in the spring. KCPR staff, specifically the fundraising manager and marketing director, lead the KCPR team in raising funds that support our operations for the upcoming year. This paper will detail the strengths of past fundraising drives and potential improvements to fundraising drives in the future while addressing the question of: How do college radio stations create continuity in non-commercial radio fundraising to ensure success amid changing economic conditions and the …

Food Processing And Campus Market (Building 24), Ian De Vries

Fire Protection Engineering: Culminating Experience Project Reports

This report provides a prescriptive and performance-based analysis of the Food Processing Building located on Cal Poly’s campus in San Luis Obispo, California. Food science and nutrition classes take place at the facility where faculty and students manufacture food products such as chocolates, jams, and barbecue sauces. The finished products are offered for sale in the building’s mercantile area, known as the Campus Market, in addition to other retail locations around the city. The Food Processing Building is considered mixed use with portions of the building classified as moderate-hazard factory (F-1), moderate-hazard storage (S-1), business (B), mercantile (M), and assembly …

Dhf Conference Marketing And Branding, Anna Christine Haller

Graphic Communication

The focus for my GRC 462 Senior project is to dive into my role as Director of Marketing for the annual Women In Business conference. As the Director of Marketing for the event my goal is to develop visual branding and an event identity, develop a digital marketing strategy, create marketing collateral, and present promotional marketing to increase event sign ups. My role also includes managing a marketing creative team as well as marketing strategy team. I will also discuss how the branding and marketing initiatives reflect the Women In Business community values and add to the conference experience.

Perforated Groove Cam Lock, Matthew J. Redmond, Samuel A. Potter, Dylan Weiglein, Andrew Reese

Mechanical Engineering

NASA Artemis III astronauts need a way to attach and detach various tools to an extension handle to be used during lunar EVA sample collection. Because lunar dust is so harsh and abundant, mechanisms must be designed to function regardless of the number of contact particulates. Past designs used on the Apollo missions proved to be problematic for their operators, opening the door for innovative improvement. A new mechanism has been proposed that directly addresses the performance issues of the original handle extension mentioned in NASA’s Apollo mission reports. The new mechanism boasts an open design that promotes dust tolerance …

Moondoggie's Ad, Mia Horvath

Graphic Communication

I created a 2 minute ad for Moondoggies that defines the brands “attitude” as well as establishes its demographic, highlights the products they sell, and showcases the natural beauty of the region Moondoggies was founded in.

Rebranding Lauren Hope Photography, Lauren H. Toomey

Graphic Communication

Lauren Toomey has been building her business, Lauren Hope Photography, for the past six years. During this time, she has developed a website as well as a social media presence, but has yet to establish a clear brand identity. This project served as motivation for Lauren to define her brand identity, which allowed her to create branding guidelines that could then be implemented across print and digital media.

Barbershop Brand Redesign, Fady Tawfik

Graphic Communication

My friend Julz has been a barber for 6 years and I recognized the opportunity to assist him in rebranding his barber business. I faced challenges such as finding a brand identity that aligned with the business owner’s preferences while effectively representing the business to the target audience. Despite encountering some delays in completing initial deliverables, such as logo design and brand guidelines, these challenges were essential to ensure thorough research and crafting of a compelling brand strategy. The project encompassed redesigning the website, creating an enticing logo and brand identity, developing a cohesive color palette, and selecting appropriate typefaces. …

Openclosit Instagram Branding, Brenica Sipin

Graphic Communication

I currently work for a sustainable fashion rental company based in Santa Monica as their marketing and brand reachout lead. The company has a presence on TikTok and Instagram, but there is a lack of cohesion and consistency across all platforms and the overall brand. Throughout my classes in GrC, I wanted to incorporate the knowledge I gained about design and social media marketing into creating an Instagram rebrand and marketing strategy for OpenClosit. Throughout this project, I created three deliverables that will help drive the OpenClosit team to a more cohesive and branded marketing strategy.

Fourth Wave Feminist Magazine, Chase E. Iseley

Graphic Communication

The idea of feminism is often negatively misconstrued, and much of the controversy surrounding feminism stems from perpetuated stereotypes and misconceptions. Although feminism may mean something different to everyone, the advocacy of women’s rights and equality of the sexes should not be overlooked. This magazine will be a collection of articles which clarify misconceptions, define feminism, and highlight women and other supporters. This magazine is an opportunity to educate and inspire future feminists.

Plansplaining Ceqa: Explaining The Basics Of The California Environmental Quality Act, Eric Yu Wang

City and Regional Planning

The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) is a half-century old public disclosure law. In recent years, it has attracted public attention in its role in hindering essential developments such as affordable housing and other major public projects. Throughout its lifetime, CEQA has evolved from a simple public project disclosure law into a complex system. However, because of the spread of sensationalized media, CEQA has become frequently mystified and misunderstood by the public.

Through a six-video series called Plansplaining CEQA, the YouTube channel Plansplainer seeks to de-mystify California's unique and infamous public disclosure law. The videos are made to accessible …

Reservoir System For Tissue-On-A-Chip, Olivia Corvelli, Kyle Cekada, Ryan Adams

Biomedical Engineering

Dr. Christopher Heylman’s research laboratory needs an improved reservoir system for their microfluidic device that reduces flow variance, failures, and the physical footprint. Current microfluidic devices have various types of reservoir systems, including vials, 96-well plates, and other cylindrical wells. Several patents and standards must be considered when designing the reservoir system. To develop a prototype the following design process was used: product discovery, project planning, product definition, conceptual design, product development. Dr. Heylman expressed various customer requirements including increased time between cell media changes, reduced leaks and blockages, and reduced flow variance. These were then translated into engineering requirements. …

Notification System For Unity Openxr, Shae Li

Computer Science and Software Engineering

As the field of digital media continues to advance, innovative ways of experiencing and interacting with entertainment content are emerging. One such groundbreaking development is the advent of interactive entertainment, where virtual environments become the canvas for immersive experiences. In this realm, I have joined a captivating project that harnesses the power of Unity to create a virtual reality (VR) chemistry laboratory. This project is designed to revolutionize the way chemistry experiments are conducted by providing a realistic and engaging virtual environment. In the real world, there are many reasons why school-age middle or high school students may not be …