Digital Commons Network^™

Detecting, Segmenting And Tracking Bio-Medical Objects, Mingzhong Li

Doctoral Dissertations

"Studying the behavior patterns of biomedical objects helps scientists understand the underlying mechanisms. With computer vision techniques, automated monitoring can be implemented for efficient and effective analysis in biomedical studies. Promising applications have been carried out in various research topics, including insect group monitoring, malignant cell detection and segmentation, human organ segmentation and nano-particle tracking.

In general, applications of computer vision techniques in monitoring biomedical objects include the following stages: detection, segmentation and tracking. Challenges in each stage will potentially lead to unsatisfactory results of automated monitoring. These challenges include different foreground-background contrast, fast motion blur, clutter, object overlap and …

A Control Theoretic Approach For Security Of Cyber-Physical Systems, Haifeng Niu

Doctoral Dissertations

"In this dissertation, several novel defense methodologies for cyber-physical systems have been proposed. First, a special type of cyber-physical system, the RFID system, is considered for which a lightweight mutual authentication and ownership management protocol is proposed in order to protect the data confidentiality and integrity. Then considering the fact that the protection of the data confidentiality and integrity is insufficient to guarantee the security in cyber-physical systems, we turn to the development of a general framework for developing security schemes for cyber-physical systems wherein the cyber system states affect the physical system and vice versa. After that, we apply …

Mechanisms For Improving Information Quality In Smartphone Crowdsensing Systems, Francesco Restuccia

Doctoral Dissertations

"Given its potential for a large variety of real-life applications, smartphone crowdsensing has recently gained tremendous attention from the research community. Smartphone crowdsensing is a paradigm that allows ordinary citizens to participate in large-scale sensing surveys by using user-friendly applications installed in their smartphones. In this way, fine-grained sensing information is obtained from smartphone users without employing fixed and expensive infrastructure, and with negligible maintenance costs.

Existing smartphone sensing systems depend completely on the participants' willingness to submit up-to-date and accurate information regarding the events being monitored. Therefore, it becomes paramount to scalably and effectively determine, enforce, and optimize the …

Single Particle-Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry Technology Development For Metallic Nanoparticle Characterization In Complex Matrices, Yongbo Dan

Doctoral Dissertations

"As the rapid growing of nanotechnology, the release of engineered nanoparticles (ENPs) into the environment is inevitable. After entering the real environment, ENPs tend to react with different components of the ecosystem (e.g. water, soil, air, plants) and make their characterization difficult. Analyzing ENPs in these complex matrices still remains as a grand challenge. ENPs characterization is normally the first step of risk assessment. Current analytical techniques have shown some limitations in revealing the unique characteristics of ENPs in complex matrices and reliable analytical techniques are in urgent need. Single particle inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (SP-ICP-MS) is an emerging …

Dynamic Impact Of Ageing Dump Truck Suspension Systems On Whole-Body Vibrations In High-Impact Shovel Loading Operations, Saeid R. Dindarloo

Doctoral Dissertations

"Surface mining operations typically deploy large shovels, with 100+ tons per pass capacity, to load dump trucks in a phenomenon described as high-impact shovel loading operations (HISLO). The HISLO phenomenon causes excessive shock and vibrations in the dump truck assembly resulting in whole body vibration (WBV) exposures to operators. The truck suspension system performance deteriorates with time; therefore their effectiveness in attenuating vibrations reduces. No research has been conducted to study the impact of ageing suspension mechanisms on the magnitudes of WBV in HISLO operations.

This study is a pioneering effort to provide fundamental and applied knowledge for understanding the …

Thorium-Based Mixed Oxide Fuel In A Pressurized Water Reactor: A Feasibility Analysis With Mcnp, Lucas Powelson Tucker

Doctoral Dissertations

"This dissertation investigates techniques for spent fuel monitoring, and assesses the feasibility of using a thorium-based mixed oxide fuel in a conventional pressurized water reactor for plutonium disposition. Both non-paralyzing and paralyzing dead-time calculations were performed for the Portable Spectroscopic Fast Neutron Probe (N-Probe), which can be used for spent fuel interrogation. Also, a Canberra ³He neutron detector's dead-time was estimated using a combination of subcritical assembly measurements and MCNP simulations. Next, a multitude of fission products were identified as candidates for burnup and spent fuel analysis of irradiated mixed oxide fuel. The best isotopes for these applications were …

Spectroscopic And Spectro-Astrometric Analysis Of T Tauri Stars, Logan Ryan Brown

Doctoral Dissertations

"To understand our own solar origins, we must investigate the composition of the protoplanetary disk from which the solar system formed. To infer this, we study analogs to the early solar system called T Tauri stars. These objects are low-mass, pre-main sequence stars surrounded by circumstellar disks of material from which planets are believed to form. We present high-resolution, near-infrared spectroscopic data for the T Tauri stars DR Tau and AA Tau using NIRSPEC at the Keck II telescope. For DR Tau, a spectro-astrometric analysis was performed, obtaining sub-seeing spatial information on water emission. Alongside a disk model, we constrained …

Development And Evaluation Of A Coaxial Cable Sensing System For Co₂ Sequestration Wellbore Integrity Monitoring, Yurong Li

Doctoral Dissertations

"Downhole monitoring plays a crucial part in geological carbon dioxide (₂) sequestration. Various downhole monitoring technologies have been explored and applied, but they are either expensive or have system longevity issues. To address this issue, a robust and cost-effective downhole sensing system based on distributed coaxial cable sensors is developed and evaluated in laboratory, and a numerical simulation with staged finite element model is conducted to study the feasibility of using the coaxial cable sensing system for monitoring and evaluation of wellbore stability during CO₂ injection.

The real-time distributed sensing system is composed of Fabry-Perot interferometer based …

Palynological Studies Of Holocene Lake Sediments In The Missouri Ozarks, Robert D. Haselwander

Doctoral Dissertations

"Five small lakes in southeast Missouri (Frisco, Pine Forest, and Bray Area lakes [Phelps County], and Cypress and Blue ponds [Bollinger County]) were cored for paleolimnological studies. Cores were evaluated for their sedimentology, palynology, and geochemistry. In two of these lakes (Bray Area and Pine Forest lakes) the planktonic algae were also studied in the water column, along with ecological parameters. Algae in the sediments were compared to algae in the water to understand the resistance of different species to decay, and a suggested methodology for this work is described. Reconstructions of the past environments around each lake were created …

Studies On Flocculation Of Fine Mineral Tailings Using Novel Polyacrylamide Based Polymer, Simin Khatibi

Masters Theses

"One of the important features in managing or treating sulfide fine tailings is separating solids from liquid by settling test. This thesis presents results of studied conducted on flocculation of Kaolin suspensions (a model tailings) and sulfide mineral tailings. Two polymers (PAM and Al-PAM) were tested as flocculants. The zeta potential value of slurries was measured by Nano Zetasizer device.

Al-PAM was found to be more effective for flocculation of kaolinite samples and also sulfide samples while PAM with used concentration was not. This study represents the power of flocculation as a possible solution to deal with industrial tailings"--Abstract, page …

Whose Talk Is Walked? It Decentralizability, Vendor Versus Adopter Discourse, And The Diffusion Of Social Media Versus Big Data, Shaila Miranda, Inchan Kim, Dawei David Wang

Business and Information Technology Faculty Research & Creative Works

Discourse plays a central role in organizing vision and computerization movement perspectives on IT innovation diffusion. While we know that different actors within a community contribute to the discourse, we know relatively little about the roles different actors play in diffusing different types of IT innovations. Our study investigates vendor versus adopter roles in social media and big data diffusion. We conceptualize the difference between the two IT innovations in terms of their decentralizability, i.e., extent to which decision rights pertinent to adoption of an organizational innovation can be decentralized. Based on this concept, we hypothesized: (1) adopters would contribute …

Assessing The Accuracy Of Some Popular Dft Methods For Computing Harmonic Vibrational Frequencies Of Water Clusters, J. Coleman Howard, Jordan D. Enyard, Gregory S. Tschumper

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

A wide range of density functional theory (DFT) methods (37 altogether), including pure, hybrid, range-separated hybrid, double-hybrid, and dispersion-corrected functionals, have been employed to compute the harmonic vibrational frequencies of eight small water clusters ranging in size from the dimer to four different isomers of the hexamer. These computed harmonic frequencies have been carefully compared to recently published benchmark values that are expected to be very close to the CCSD(T) complete basis set limit. Of the DFT methods examined here, ωB97 and ωB97X are the most consistently accurate, deviating from the reference values by less than 20 cm^-1 on …

The Missouri Miner, December 3, 2015

The Missouri Miner Newspaper

No abstract provided.

Mixed-Criticality Job Models: A Comparison, Sanjoy K. Baruah, Zhishan Guo

Computer Science Faculty Research & Creative Works

The Vestal model in widely used in the real-time scheduling community for representing mixed-criticality real-time workloads. This model requires that multiple WCET estimates -- one for each criticality level in a system -- be obtained for each task. Burns suggests that being required to obtain too many WCET estimates may place an undue burden on system developers, and proposes a simplification to the Vestal model that makes do with just two WCET estimates per task. Burns makes a convincing case in favor of adopting this simplified model; here, we report on our attempts at comparing the two models -- Vestal’s …

Modeling Of Gas Production From Shale Reservoirs Considering Multiple Transport Mechanisms, Chaohua Guo, Mingzhen Wei, Hong Liu

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Gas transport in unconventional shale strata is a multi-mechanism-coupling process that is different from the process observed in conventional reservoirs. In micro fractures which are inborn or induced by hydraulic stimulation, viscous flow dominates. And gas surface diffusion and gas desorption should be further considered in organic nano pores. Also, the Klinkenberg effect should be considered when dealing with the gas transport problem. In addition, following two factors can play significant roles under certain circumstances but have not received enough attention in previous models. During pressure depletion, gas viscosity will change with Knudsen number; and pore radius will increase when …

Evaluation Of Non-Volatile Particulate Matter Emission Characteristics Of An Aircraft Auxiliary Power Unit With Varying Alternative Jet Fuel Blend Ratios, Prem Lobo, Simon Christie, Bhupendra Khandelwal, Simon G. Blakey, David W. Raper

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The aviation industry is increasingly focused on the development of sustainable alternative fuels to augment and diversify fuel supplies while simultaneously reducing its environmental impact. The impact of airport operations on local air quality and aviation-related greenhouse gas emissions on a life cycle basis have been shown to be reduced with the use of alternative fuels. However, the evaluation of incremental variations in fuel composition of a single alternative fuel on the production of non-volatile particulate matter (nvPM) emissions has not been explored. This is critical to understanding the emission profile for aircraft engines burning alternative fuels and the impact …

Biomaterial Compositions, Kathleen V. Kilway, Lynda F. Bonewald, Thomas P. Schuman

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

Biomaterial compositions comprising organosilicon monomers (such as silorane monomers) and chemical curing systems or dual chemical/light curing systems, in conjunction with optional tetraoxaspiro[5.5]undecanes (“TOSUs”) and/or fillers. The present invention is directed to biomaterial compositions, as well as methods for manufacturing the same, and methods of using the compositions. The biomaterial composition comprises one or more organosilicon monomers (such as a silorane) and a chemical curing system or dual chemicaVlight curing system for polymerizing the 10 monomer(s). The compositions may include one or more tetraoxaspiro[5.5]undecanes “TOSUs”) and/or fillers. Accelerators (such as photoacids), photosensitizers, and/or electron donors may also be included in …

Systems And Methods For Emergency Situation Communications, Sriram Chellappan, Srinivas Thandu, Patrick Sullivan, Levi Malott

Computer Science Faculty Research & Creative Works

A system for enabling communications during an emergency situation is described. A system may be configured to generate graphical user interfaces including a map displaying a location and a status of the one or more users located at the scene of an emergency situation. The graphical user interfaces may be displayed on a user's portable computing device. The graphical user interfaces may be displayed at a computing device located at a dispatcher site.

An Affective Tool To Assist In Designing Innovations, Rohan Lulham, Clementine Thurgood, Daniel Burton Shank

Psychological Science Faculty Research & Creative Works

While cognitive models of the design process have long dominated, many design innovation approaches advocate the importance of exploring affective concepts such as emotion, meaning and lived experiences in the creation of innovations. We suggest the capacity to think abstractly – to question, make connections and broaden understanding based on affect and meaning – is a fundamental skill for the abductive problem solving characteristic of expert designers. There are, however, few tools to promote questioning and reflection based on affect within the design innovation process. We see a need for such tools in design innovation workshops, particularly for non-designers who …

Bounds On Large Extra Dimensions From The Simulation Of Black Hole Events At The Lhc, Shaoqi Hou, Benjamin Harms, Marco Cavaglia

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

If large extra dimensions exist, the Planck scale may be as low as a TeV and microscopic black holes may be produced in high-energy particle collisions at this energy scale. We simulate microscopic black hole formation at the Large Hadron Collider and compare the simulation results with recent experimental data by the Compact Muon Solenoid collaboration. The absence of observed black hole events in the experimental data allows us to set lower bounds on the Planck scale and various parameters related to microscopic black hole formation for a number (3 − 6) of extra dimensions. Our analysis sets lower bounds …

Infinite-Noise Criticality: Nonequilibrium Phase Transitions In Fluctuating Environments, Thomas Vojta, José A. Hoyos

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

We study the effects of time-varying environmental noise on nonequilibrium phase transitions in spreading and growth processes. Using the examples of the logistic evolution equation as well as the contact process, we show that such temporal disorder gives rise to a distinct type of critical points at which the effective noise amplitude diverges on long time scales. This leads to enormous density fluctuations characterized by an infinitely broad probability distribution at criticality. We develop a real-time renormalization-group theory that provides a general framework for the effects of temporal disorder on nonequilibrium processes. We also discuss how general this exotic critical …

Library Assessment And Data Analytics In The Big Data Era: Practice And Policies, Hsin-Liang Chen, Philip Doty, Carol Mollman, Xi Niu, Jen-Chien Yu, Tao Zhang

University Libraries Faculty Research & Creative Works

Emerging technologies have offered libraries and librarians new ways and methods to collect and analyze data in the era of accountability to justify their value and contributions. For example, Gallagher, Bauer and Dollar (2005) analyzed the paper and online journal usage from all possible data sources and discovered that users at the Yale Medical Library preferred the electronic format of articles to the print version. After this discovery, they were able to take necessary steps to adjust their journal subscriptions. Many library professionals advocate such data-driven library management to strengthen and specify library budget proposals.

Radial Strain Behaviors And Stress State Interpretation Of Soil Under Direct Simple Shear, Xin Kang, Yao Cheng, Louis Ge

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Radial strain behaviors and stress state interpretation methods of silica sand consolidated at different K0 values under modified direct simple shear were investigated in this research. Consolidated drained triaxial compression test, direct shear box test, and wire reinforced direct simple shear tests were conducted, and the test results were compared and linked with the modified direct simple shear tests. Based on the observed testing data, simple shear specimens with constant lateral stress exhibited relatively small radial strain during shear, especially under small shear strains. After the peak shear resistance has mobilized, radial strain increased rigorously until the specimen failed. Confining …

Optimizing Macd Parameters Via Genetic Algorithms For Soybean Futures, Phoebe S. Wiles, David Lee Enke

Engineering Management and Systems Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

To create profits, traders must time the market correctly and enter and exit positions at ideal times. Finding the optimal time to enter the market can be quite daunting. The soybean market can be volatile and complex. Weather, sentiment, supply, and demand can all affect the price of soybeans. Traders typically use either fundamental analysis or technical analysis to predict the market for soybean futures' contracts. Every agricultural future's contract or security contract is different in its nature, volatility, and structure. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to optimize the moving average convergence divergence parameter values from traditionally used …

The Missouri Miner, October 29, 2015

The Missouri Miner Newspaper

No abstract provided.

Rans Modeling Of Stably Stratified Turbulent Boundary Layer Flows In Openfoam®, Jordan M. Wilson, Subhas K. Venayagamoorthy

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Quantifying mixing processes relating to the transport of heat, momentum, and scalar quantities of stably stratified turbulent geophysical flows remains a substantial task. In a stably stratified flow, such as the stable atmospheric boundary layer (SABL), buoyancy forces have a significant impact on the flow characteristics. This study investigates constant and stability-dependent turbulent Prandtl number (Prt) formulations linking the turbulent viscosity (νt) and diffusivity (κt) for modeling applications of boundary layer flows. Numerical simulations of plane Couette flow and pressure-driven channel flow are performed using the Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) framework with the standard k-ϵ turbulence model. Results are compared with …

The Missouri Miner, October 15, 2015

The Missouri Miner Newspaper

No abstract provided.

Water Network-Mediated, Electron-Induced Proton Transfer In [C5h5n·(H2o)N]⁻ Clusters, Andrew F. Deblase, Conrad T. Wolke, Gary H. Weddle, Kaye A. Archer, Kenneth D. Jordan, John T. Kelly, Gregory S. Tschumper, Nathan I. Hammer, Mark A. Johnson

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

The role of proton-assisted charge accommodation in electron capture by a heterocyclic electron scavenger is investigated through theoretical analysis of the vibrational spectra of cold, gas phase [Py·(H₂O) _n=3-5]^- clusters. These radical anions are formed when an excess electron is attached to water clusters containing a single pyridine (Py) molecule in a supersonic jet ion source. Under these conditions, the cluster ion distribution starts promptly at n = 3, and the photoelectron spectra, combined with vibrational predissociation spectra of the Ar-tagged anions, establish that for n > 3, these species are best described as hydrated hydroxide ions …

Code Of Standard Practice For Cold-Formed Steel Structural Framing, 2015 Edition, American Iron And Steel Institute

American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) Specifications, Standards, Manuals and Research Reports (1946 - present)

No abstract provided.

The Missouri Miner, October 1, 2015

The Missouri Miner Newspaper

No abstract provided.