Digital Commons Network^™

Minimizing The Dimensional Change In Two Component Epoxy Based Thermoset Adhesives Through Adapting Mix Ratio And Initial Crosslink Density, Jefferson Peter Norman

Materials Engineering

Meissner Filtration uses amine-hardened epoxy as a high-performance adhesive to encapsulate hollow fiber membranes at the ends of rigid filter housings. Dimensional change of the epoxy while curing can result in residual stress formation that is detrimental to the manufacturing of the filter and causes structural integrity issues when the filter is used in industrial processes where heating and cooling cycles are implemented. The residual stresses can cause cracks, microscopic fractures, and delamination from the housing, resulting in failure of the filter. The goal of this project was to evaluate how changes in processing conditions could minimize dimensional variability due …

Graduate Internship Report - Hanford Agriculture Program, Dominica L. Clisso

Agricultural Education: Graduate Internship Reports

This internship and project report includes validation documents required in meeting the quality criteria for secondary-level programs of instruction in agriculture. The supporting material includes information to receive state and local funding, outline the goals and objectives of the program, along with an overview of the Hanford Agriculture Program and the community.

Urban Heat Islands: Causes, Impacts, & Mitigation, Megan Rupard

City and Regional Planning

The purpose of this project is to understand the factors contributing to the urban heat island effect and why it is important to consider when planning a city. This senior project will review the factors that contribute to an urban heat island, what kind of effects urban heat islands have on our city’s and their inhabitants, and how the effects can be mitigated and minimized. This project will review current mitigation strategies that have been developed to combat urban heat islands and analyze the benefits that can be attained from these mitigation strategies. Case studies will be used to understand …

Expierience, Lukas Suess, Caleb Biggers, Chris Pestano, Gabriel Nguyen

Computer Engineering

The goal of this project is to create a realistic diving simulation to allow users to see what it is like to dive beneath the Cal Poly Pier. As it is now, the simulation includes a model of the pier, a few species, and the framework for user movement. These features were created by the previous project teams. Our team will make additions to the existing project such as more creatures and life. Before any additions are added, the existing code must be optimized. This project will show users how scientific surveys can be conducted, so the ability to conduct …

Tidalsim Senior Project Report, Kent Zhang, Colin Vandervoort

Computer Engineering

Throughout the course of this project, our team helped the Cal Poly Biological Sciences department refine an intertidal zone simulator. The aim of this device is to allow any marine biologist to easily simulate a vast range of tidal zones in order to test animal behaviors within these zones. Another goal of this project is to make each simulation tank independent from the others by using a single microcontroller to handle all inputs and outputs of the system as well as logging all relevant data. The current system is set up so that a separate microcontroller handles dissolved oxygen and …

Interpolated Perturbation-Based Decomposition As A Method For Eeg Source Localization, Gabriel Zelik Lipof

Master's Theses

In this thesis, the perturbation-based decomposition technique developed by Szlavik [1] was used in an attempt to solve the inverse problem in EEG source localization. A set of dipole locations were forward modeled using a 4-layer sphere model of the head at uniformly distributed lead locations to form the vector basis necessary for the method. Both a two-dimensional and a pseudo-three-dimensional versions of the model were assessed with the two-dimensional model yielding decompositions with minimal error and the pseudo-three-dimensional version having unacceptable levels of error. The utility of interpolation as a method to reduce the number of data points to …

Evaluation Of Host Resistance And The Utilization Of Organic Amendments To Manage Macrophomina Crown Rot Of Strawberry In California, Jonathan W. Winslow

Master's Theses

The production of strawberries can be severely limited by soilborne plant pathogens, insects and weeds. Macrophomina phaseolina is a problematic soilborne fungal pathogen in California strawberry production inciting the disease Macrophomina crown rot. When established, the pathogen can cause extensive plant decline and mortality. Host resistance will be a critical tool for managing this disease and guiding breeding programs in the post methyl bromide era. Evaluation of host resistance in strawberry germplasm to M. phaseolina was evaluated through phenotypic assessments of disease incidence. A total of 90 strawberry cultivars and elite selections were included in a replicated field trial conducted …

Modifying Succession: A History Of Vegetation Alliances On Swanton Pacific Ranch, Jill Wilson O'Connor

Master's Theses

This thesis conducts historical research into Swanton Pacific Ranch in the County of Santa Cruz, an interdisciplinary facility for education and research managed by Cal Poly’s College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences. The study seeks to determine whether there have been discernable changes in vegetation alliances (communities), spatially or in type, within a 110-acre Study Area from the early twentieth century to the present day and how the changes compare with other similar historical analyses in California. Historical farming and ranching uses of the area are researched, and two family case studies are presented as paradigms of potential changes …

Development Of A Pediatric Model Of Nafld In Neonatal Iberian Pigs, Gabriella Veronica Hernandez, Victoria Alice Smith, Morgan Coffin, Daniel Columbus, Matthew Burd, Kimberly Sprayberry, Mark Edwards, Daniel Peterson, Darin Bennett, Robert Fanter, Christopher Kitts, Michael La Frano, Margaret Rice, Douglas Burrin, Magdalena Maj, Rodrigo Manjarin

Master's Theses

The prevalence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in children has increased over the past decades, creating a need for animal models that recapitulate the features of the pediatric disease. Iberian pigs have a leptin-resistant phenotype characterized by hyperleptinemia, hyperphagia, and extreme adipogenesis. We hypothesized that neonatal Iberian pigs fed a high fat high-fructose (HFF) diet will develop a pattern of liver injury resembling pediatric NAFLD. In addition, we sought to determine if a mixture of probiotics would prevent the disease. Animals were fed 1 of 4 diets containing (g/kg body weight × d) 0 g fructose, 11 g fat …

Graduate Internship Report - Hanford Agriculture Department, Dominica L. Clisso

Agricultural Education: Graduate Internship Reports

This internship and project report includes validation documents 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 Hanford Agriculture Department 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 Hanford FFA, the agriculture program and the community.

Portable Electrocardiogram Device And Signal Processing Design, Ryan F. Blaalid

Electrical Engineering

Full 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) measurements require inconvenient and time consuming adhesive electrode placement. This project proposes a design for a Bluetooth based ECG for remote patient measurement. The device is designed to measure up to 6-leads and utilizes 5 dry (non-adhesive) electrodes to accomplish this. The device delivers the ECG data to the user’s mobile smart phone and can then be sent to the patient’s doctor for analysis. Since the contact of the dry electrodes to the skin is not perfect, low-frequency noise called baseline wandering is introduced. A signal processing technique borrowed from image processing called morphological filtering is …

Protecting The Planet: A Case Study On The Sustainability And Conservation Practices Of The National Park Service, Mikayla Myers

Experience Industry Management

Sustainability and conservation practices are becoming increasingly more important for the health of the planet. Individuals and organizations implementing these practices can help stop the planet from degrading beyond a point of recovery. The purpose of this study was to examine the environmental sustainability and conservation biology practices of the National Parks Service. The organization’s website was the primary source of information in addition to third party sources including other organizations’ websites. Major findings and conclusions of the study include the National Park Service’s commitment to constantly improving the technology and techniques implemented, the organization’s dedication to sustainability and conservation …

How Grants Improve Public Health In Sanger, California, Emily A. Rudger, Tabitha J. Tolsma, Jamie L. Mosler

City and Regional Planning

This report analyzes public health needs in Sanger, California. Gathering research from the community and generating a background using Healthy People 2020, the project outlines potential grants the community could benefit from, now and in the future. The grant chosen focuses on parks, as physical activity is an important factor and need for the community.

Leaf Functional Traits As Predictors Of Drought Tolerance In Urban Trees, Sophia Huang

Master's Theses

The services that urban trees provide to human society and the natural environment are widely recognized, but urban trees are in jeopardy due to climate change and urban stressors. With drought as a major threat in many areas, it is important for the future of urban forestry to select species composition based upon performance under water stress. Certain leaf functional traits can help horticulturalists more accurately predict water usage of urban trees. Comprehension through rigorous experimentation is lacking, partly due to the thousands of mostly exotic species. Previous studies suggest that species whose leaves have a denser arrangement of smaller …

The Development Of Diving Capabilities In Weddell Seal (Leptonychotes Weddellii) Pups Throughout Early Ontogeny, Emma Weitzner

Master's Theses

Weddell seals (Leptonychotes weddellii) are among the deepest diving pinnipeds (i.e., seals, sea lions, and walrus) and one of the best studied marine mammals in the world; as such, these seals are considered a model species for the study of diving physiology and behavior. Adult Weddell seal dive physiology is rather comprehensively understood, yet previous research has excluded an examination of pups’ initial independent diving attempts, beginning instead with the diving capabilities of near-weaning individuals at four to five weeks of age. This is beyond the point many pups have attempted their first independent dives; pups begin to …

Simulating Epidemics And Interventions On High Resolution Social Networks, Christopher E. Siu

Master's Theses

Mathematical models of disease spreading are a key factor of ensuring that we are prepared to deal with the next epidemic. They allow us to predict how an infection will spread throughout a population, thereby allowing us to make intelligent choices when attempting to contain the disease. Whether due to a lack of empirical data, a lack of computational power, a lack of biological understanding, or some combination thereof, traditional models must make sweeping assumptions about the behavior of a population during an epidemic.

In this thesis, we implement granular epidemic simulations using a rich social network constructed from real-world …

Colloid Thruster To Teach Advance Electric Propulsion Techniques To Post-Secondary Students, Alexander M. Powaser

Master's Theses

Colloid thrusters, and electrospray thrusters as a whole, have been around since the 1960s. When they were first developed, the high efficiency and fine thrust control was overshadowed by the high power requirement for such a low thrust that the system provides. This caused the technology to be put on hold for aerospace applications. Now, as small satellites are becoming more prevalent, there has been a resurgence in interest in electrospray thruster technology. The recent advancements in tech- nology allow electrospray thrusters to use significantly less power and occupy less volume than their predecessors. As electrospray technology continues to advance, …

An Analysis Of Changes In Stream Temperature Due To Forest Harvest Practices Using Dhsvm-Rbm, Julia B. Ridgeway

Master's Theses

Forest harvesting has been shown to cause various changes in water quantity and water quality parameters, highlighting the need for comprehensive forest practice rules. Studies show a myriad of impacts to ecosystems as a result of watershed level changes, such as forest harvesting. Being able to better understand the impact that forest harvesting can have on stream temperature is especially critical in locations where federally threatened or endangered fish species are located. The overall goal of this research project is to assess responses in stream temperature to various riparian and forest harvest treatments in a maritime, mountainous environment. The results …

Compact Farms: A Step Towards Sustainability, Chad A. Porter

Agricultural Education: Graduate Internship Reports

This project report accounts for the potential benefits compact farms can have for agriculture and sustainability. The report details the design, implementation, and management of Whistle Stop Farm, a 1-acre, diverse farm producing vegetables, fruits, and gourmet mushrooms for direct markets in Atascadero, California. The farm focuses on economic and environmental sustainability. A large part of the farm revolves around soil science and how to manage soils to promote a healthy soil ecosystem.

Aged 539: Internship In Agriculture Education, Veronica Lemus

Agricultural Education: Graduate Internship Reports

This internship and project report includes validation documents 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 Fillmore 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 Fillmore High School, the agriculture program and the community.

Mòn Briyè Primary School Journeyman International, Leah E. George, Devin R. Williams

Architectural Engineering

Journeyman International (JI) is a non-profit organization that pairs emerging professionals in the architectural, structural engineering, and construction management industries with humanitarian projects in underdeveloped countries overseeing the design and construction process. The Mòn Briyè Primary School is a JI project led and funded by The 610 Project, an Alabama-based non-profit organization dedicated to the sustainable success of developing Haitian communities through education. This primary school will be located in Mornes Brieux, Haiti and consists of three buildings: one classroom building for first to fourth grade, one classroom building for fifth to eighth grades, and one building for administration. The …

Understanding Trauma And Victimization In Women's Incarceration: California's Treatment Response, Marissa Tuttle-Roache

Social Sciences

The purpose of this review is to provide an exploration of past research on women's pathways to incarceration, specifically discussing how this problem affects California women. Using research from various case studies, both quantitative and qualitative, this review examines the correlation between life experiences and incarceration for women. California laws and policies that mitigate the impact incarceration has historically had on women will be discussed. This research provides a better understanding of the treatment needs of incarcerated women and the programs that could provide them with some positive resources to succeed post incarceration and avoid recidivism.

Availability Of Microtrash Materials And Selectivity By California Condors, Marie G. Solis

Biological Sciences

California condors consume non-food items, including anthropogenic waste, and provision it to their young. Consuming “microtrash” can cause mortality, especially in nestlings. There are several hypotheses explaining why condors might consume microtrash. These hypotheses assume condors exhibit a preference for the type of material. Therefore, we test the assumption that when California condors take microtrash, they display material selectivity. We did this by sampling microtrash from roadside pullouts in the Los Padres National Forest. Those samples were compared to condor necropsy and nest microtrash data, categorized by material type: glass, plastic, metal, and other. We find that in our analysis …

Utilization Of Data Analytics In The Buyout Process, Andrew William Dowdle

Construction Management

This is a qualitative research project designed to analyze the feasibility of using data analytics in the buyout process. The research methodology for the paper is presented. A series of interviews with industry professionals were conducted to gather data for this paper. These interviews targeted various fields relating to the topic, including; data analytics, information systems, and construction management. Themes that emerged in these interviews include industry application, data collection, the buyout process, similar applications, and subcontractor evaluation. Insights into how data analytics in the buyout process would affect the industry are also present in this paper. These preliminary results …

A Case Study On The Use Of Drones On Heavy Civil Construction Projects, William Devers

Construction Management

Even though the construction industry is known for being behind the curve in adopting new technologies for change, construction professionals are constantly striving for ways to save money and improve efficiency. The emergence of drone technology in recent years has sparked new interest among these professionals for those exact reasons. These flying machines offer numerous benefits to construction companies such as bypassing traditional surveying methods, using photogrammetry to create 3D models used for estimating quantities, improving team communication, ensuring worker safety, increasing owner satisfaction, among other benefits. In this case study, personal interviews will be conducted on a single construction …

Eeg Classification Using Residual Neural Networks, Eren Esener

Electrical Engineering

There is a growing desire to understand the EEG (electroencephalogram) signals related with brain activities. In order to analyze EEG signals, they first must be measured by sensors, which induces a lot of noise; then these signals are classified to understand the intended actions. In many cases a neural network is used as the algorithms for classification. A residual neural network (ResNet) is an artificial neural network (ANN) of a kind that are related with the pyramidal cells in the cerebral cortex. The goal of this work is to investigate the viability of ResNets for classifying EEG signals for hand …

Photooxidation Of Biopolymers, Marlon H. Dieguez

Materials Engineering

The lack of degradation of plastic products have imposed problems in the preservation of natural environments and their ecosystems through plastic accumulation. This collection of plastics promotes toxin exposure to wildlife, finding its way into the food chain, affecting both land and marine ecosystems. The project goal is to understand the degradation mechanisms of biodegradable materials and other comparable materials through UV radiation testing. Polylactide (PLA) films and polycarbonate (PC) films will be compared for their relative deterioration from constant UV radiation in a Q-U-V accelerated weather tester for 28 days. Five 3” by 5” samples of 14 mil thick …

Optimizing Electrospun Ceramic Nanofiber Strength Through Two-Step Sintering, Michael Ross

Materials Engineering

Two-step sintering (TSS) consists of a high-temperature step and immediate cooling to a sintering temperature for an extended sintering time, where grain growth is suppressed by severe densification during the high-temperature step. TSS is adopted to enhance mechanical properties of electrospun ceramic nanofibers (CNFs), a class of porous ceramics used for environmental remediation, optoelectronics, and filtration. PVP and Ga(NO₃)₃ nanofiber mesh, provided by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, was shaped, oxidized, and two-step sintered to form a nanocrystalline β-Ga₂O₃ CNF tube using a high-temperature step of 1,000^oC. Sintering temperatures and times varied from …

A Paper-Based Elisa Device For The Rapid Detection Of Ischemic Stroke, Andrea Elisabeth Larsen

Master's Theses

Diagnosing an ischemic stroke quickly and accurately is essential for appropriate treatment and results in more effective management of the stroke, leading to better patient outcomes. Specifically, the determination of ischemic versus hemorrhagic stroke leads to critically different treatment paths, which would be potentially fatal if administered incorrectly. Currently, ischemic strokes are diagnosed through a series of tests, including a physical examination, CT scans, and a panel of blood tests to exclude hemorrhagic stroke or other similarly presenting conditions, in order to administer tPA (the main treatment) within the three hour window.

The discovery of biomarkers, molecules which are upregulated …

Evaluating Creative Choice In K-12 Computer Science Curriculum, Kirsten L. Mork

Master's Theses

Computer Science is an increasingly important topic in K-12 education. Ever since the "computing crisis" of the early 2000s, where enrollment in CS dropped by over half in a five year span, increasing research has gone into improving and broadening enrollment in CS courses. Research shows the importance of introducing CS at a young age and the need for more exposure for younger children and young adults alike in order to work towards equity in the field. While there are many reasons for disinterest in CS courses, studies found one reason young adults do not want to study CS is …