Digital Commons Network^™

Classification And Online Clustering Of Zero-Day Malware, Olha Jurečková, Martin Jureček, Mark Stamp, Fabio Di Troia, Róbert Lórencz

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

A large amount of new malware is constantly being generated, which must not only be distinguished from benign samples, but also classified into malware families. For this purpose, investigating how existing malware families are developed and examining emerging families need to be explored. This paper focuses on the online processing of incoming malicious samples to assign them to existing families or, in the case of samples from new families, to cluster them. We experimented with seven prevalent malware families from the EMBER dataset, four in the training set and three additional new families in the test set. The features were …

The Effect Of A Night Shift Nap On Post-Night Shift Performance, Sleepiness, Mood, And First Recovery Sleep: A Randomized Crossover Trial, P. Daniel Patterson, Cassie J. Hilditch, Matthew D. Weaver, David G.L. Roach, Tiffany S. Okerman, Sarah E. Martin, Charity G. Patterson, Leonard S. Weiss

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Objectives This study aimed to test the effect of a 30-minute nap versus a 2-hour nap opportunity taken during a simulated night shift on performance, fatigue, sleepiness, mood, and sleep at the end of shift and during post-night shift recovery. Methods We conducted a randomized crossover trial of three nap conditions (30-minute, 2-hour, and no-nap) during 12-hour simulated night shifts. We tested for differences in performance, fatigue, sleepiness, mood, and sleep during in-lab and at-home recovery. Performance was measured with the Brief Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT-B). Subjective ratings were assessed with single-item surveys. Results Twenty-eight individuals consented to participate [mean …

Emf Revisited, Art Davis

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

This paper was inspired by a recent publication by Redžíc (2018 Eur. J. Phys. 39 025205) which threw into bold relief the differences between the way Maxwell viewed the current and the way Lorentz visualized it. We make the assumption that for a circuit of laboratory dimensions current (and charge perturbation effects in general) can be assumed to propagate instantaneously around the loop. Our second fundamental assumption is the commonly accepted one that E is the force per unit charge on a stationary charge. We use these facts to make the usual definition of electromotive force more rigorous and to …

Association Of Dietary Adherence And Dietary Quality With Weight Loss Success Among Those Following Low-Carbohydrate And Low-Fat Diets: A Secondary Analysis Of The Dietfits Randomized Clinical Trial, Michelle E. Hauser, Jennifer C. Hartle, Matthew J. Landry, Priya Fielding-Singh, Cynthia W. Shih, Fei Fei Qin, Joseph Rigdon, Christopher D. Gardner

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Background: Eating a high-quality diet or adhering to a given dietary strategy may influence weight loss. However, these 2 factors have not been examined concurrently for those following macronutrient-limiting diets. Objective: To determine whether improvement in dietary quality, change in dietary macronutrient composition, or the combination of these factors is associated with differential weight loss when following a healthy low-carbohydrate (HLC) or healthy low-fat (HLF) diet. Design: Generally healthy adults were randomly assigned to HLC or HLF diets for 12 mo (n = 609) as part of a randomized controlled weight loss study. Participants with complete 24-h dietary recall data …

Navigating Enterprise Constraints: Building A Hybrid Multi-Modal Mobile Intelligent App, Ketan Malempati, Akshat Gupta, Kaikai Liu

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

The promise of artificial intelligence (AI) has prompted various industries to explore how it can enhance their businesses and improve customer experiences. However, the practical deployment of AI services faces challenges due to internal infrastructure limitations, data policies, and network restrictions. In this paper, we present our current project - a solution designed to empower mental health centers with AI tools while adhering to stringent data and network constraints. Our approach involves deploying AI services and data within internal enterprise networks, while the customer-facing mobile app resides in the public cloud. We introduce a custom AI agent system that monitors …

Cosmogenic Radionuclides In Meteorites From The Otway Massif Blue Ice Area, Antarctica: An Unusual, Well-Preserved H5 Chondrite Strewn Field, Kees C. Welten, Marc W. Caffee, Monika E. Kress, Marlene D. Giscard, A. J.Timothy Jull, Ralph P. Harvey, John Schutt

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

The US Antarctic Search for Meteorites (ANSMET) discovered a dense cluster of 88 ordinary chondrites with a total mass of more than 100 kg on a blue ice area (BIA) of 1.6 × 0.3 km2 near the Otway Massif, Grosvenor Mountains, Antarctica. The larger masses (weighing up to 29 kg) were found at one end of an oval-shaped pattern and the smaller masses (50–200 g) at the other end. We measured concentrations of the cosmogenic radionuclides 10Be (half-life—1.36 × 106 year) and 36Cl (3.01 × 105 year) in the metal fraction of 17 H chondrites, including 14 fragments of this …

Boxes And Tangled Tetrahedra, Hidefumi Katsuura

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

The twin tetrahedron of a given tetrahedron is obtained by circumscribing it by a parallelepiped. However, in general, it is not easy to construct a box that circumscribes a tetrahedron. Actually, constructing a box is equivalent of finding two tangled tetrahedra. We first establish a theorem to construct tangled tetrahedra circumscribed in a box with concurrent diagonals. This generalizes the idea of twin tetrahedra circumscribed in a parallelepiped. And we show that two tetrahedra are twins if and only if they are tangled with concurrent diagonals at the centroid of one of the tetrahedra. We establish a theorem in order …

Vehicular Traffic Flow Prediction Via Decentralized Federated Meta-Learning, Andrew Selvia, Ankur Singh, Wencen Wu

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Traffic flow prediction (TFP) has become a crucial problem for billions of people who rely on traffic predictions to optimize their travels every day. In this paper, we present a decentralized federated meta-learning (DFML) framework for traffic flow prediction. Within this framework, traffic detectors spread across a road system can form federations with nearby peers in order to predict traffic collaboratively. A node that assembles a federation assumes the role of receiver while the remainder are assigned as broadcasters. The broadcasters learn model parameters from local data and then broadcast those models to receivers, thereby enriching the available information from …

Lessons From A Professional Learning Community: Navigating Tensions While Moving Between Theory And Practice In Teaching Chemistry For Social Justice, Kathryn Ribay

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Maintaining a commitment to social justice teaching can be especially challenging when navigating the bureaucratic systems and ever-spiraling responsibilities of the education system. To better understand how social-justice-oriented educators navigate these tensions, this paper uses qualitative methods to investigate the social justice problems of practice identified by five chemistry teachers in a year-long professional learning community. By analyzing the challenges described in their problem-posing segments, I identify seven major themes that represent key sources of tension and possibility as teachers move from theory to practice in teaching chemistry for social justice. These findings indicate that the practical considerations of day-to-day …

Access To Digital Finance: Equity Crowdfunding Across Countries And Platforms, Saul Estrin, Susanna Khavul, Alexander S. Kritikos, Jonas Löher

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Financing entrepreneurship spurs innovation and economic growth. Digital financial platforms that crowdfund equity for entrepreneurs have emerged globally, yet they remain poorly understood. We model equity crowdfunding in terms of the relationship between the number of investors and the amount of money raised per pitch. We examine heterogeneity in the average amount raised per pitch that is associated with differences across three countries and seven platforms. Using a novel dataset of successful fundraising on the most prominent platforms in the UK, Germany, and the USA, we find the underlying relationship between the number of investors and the amount of money …

Emergency And Disaster Preparedness For Individuals Who Use Augmentative And Alternative Communication: A Pilot Study On Supported Planning Using A Toolkit, Andrea Barton-Hulsey, Miriam C. Boesch, Yoosun Chung, Tina Caswell, Amy Miller Sonntag, Wendy Quach

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Purpose: When emergencies or disasters arise, individuals who use augmenta-tive and alternative communication (AAC) are particularly vulnerable. It is critical that individuals who use AAC are supported to make decisions that impact their own lives and are able to communicate during such a crisis. Preparedness efforts that include a plan around communication needs and supports are necessary for ensuring that individuals who use AAC are able to understand options that ensure personal safety and express their needs during a time of crisis. Method: Qualitative methods were used to identify and describe the experi-ences of two young adults who use AAC …

Examining The Impact Of Registered Nurse Engagement In Medical Assistant Clinical Competency Development And Team Effectiveness In Ambulatory Care, Colleen Burckin

Doctoral Projects

Background

As ambulatory care grows in complexity, there is a growing need to ensure that staff possess a high level of competence and team effectiveness to provide safe, efficient, and cost-effective care. Leveraging the expertise and leadership skills of Registered Nurses (RN) to support the team of unlicensed, Medical Assistants (MA) will be incentivized. With limited knowledge of MA preparation to meet the rapidly changing demands, managers will struggle to build effective teams and look to the impact of RN- supported MA onboarding to bridge skill gaps.

Purpose

To examine this issue, a quasi-experimental, quality improvement study was done to …

The Role Of Nature As A Protective Factor In Father-Child Relationships, Sarah J. Barker

Master's Theses

The present study strived to understand how fathers spend time with their children outdoors and how this shared time together may positively influence their relationship within the Family-Based Nature Activities Theoretical Framework. The objectives of this thesis are to understand more about (a) Why fathers participate in outdoor activities with their children; and (b) How spending time outdoors with their children influences their relationship. Participants included 26 fathers (M=40.6 years old) and their children between the ages of 5-12 years old. All urban fathers resided on the West Coast, while rural fathers lived in the southeast United States. Participants were …

A Framework For Scientific Data Indexing, Searching And Sharing, Apoorva Mohite

Master's Projects

Scientific data continues to grow. Wildfire simulation experiments performed by the WIRC team at SJSU have generated over 138 TB of data so far and it is expected to keep growing. It becomes difficult for researchers to search through that data to find the data of their interest. This data is stored on an HPC cluster that external users do not have access to. The WIRC team also conducts experiments and publishes their research, but the size of data makes it difficult to share these datasets. This project introduces a novel solution to indexing scientific data, searching through the data …

The Impact Of Daylight Saving Time Transitions On Domestic Violence Call Volume, Quynh-Nhu Pham

Master's Projects

Daylight Saving Time (DST) is a longstanding practice in many countries, involving the seasonal adjustment of clocks by one hour forward in the spring, and one hour backward in the fall. Although DST was initially introduced to promote energy conservation and maximize daylight hours, it has become a subject of debate, given its impact on physical and mental health, cognitive performance, and criminal behavior (Kountouris & Remoundou, 2014).

In 2022, Colorado enacted a law adopting year-round DST, contingent upon a federal law enabling states to maintain DST throughout the year as opposed to ST, like Hawaii and Arizona (Chasan, 2024). …

Fine-Tuning Large Language Models For Folder Structure Generation, Likhith Nemani

Master's Projects

Starting a new project is a significant challenge in the software development world. Building a new project skeleton and configurations will require vast amounts of time and effort. This project aims to overcome the difficulty presented by this challenge using advanced large language models, specifically fine-tuning LLMs. Our initial focus with the implementation is to use the powerful capabilities of advanced modern models to simplify and accelerate the complicated process of getting new projects started. The solution process begins with a user posting a README file to a predetermined repository. This README file then is used as a source for …

Credit Score-Based Lending System On The Ethereum Platform, Mayuri Shimpi

Master's Projects

Traditional banking systems act as intermediaries, assessing risks and profiting from interest rate differentials. Credit scores, provided by trusted bureaus, are commonly used to evaluate the creditworthiness of borrowers. Cryptocurrencies have emerged as a significant and innovative medium due to their decentralized nature, operating without reliance on a central authority, such as a government.

This report describes a project to implement the Autonomous Lending system on the Ethereum Platform (ALOE), as proposed in [1], aiming to seamlessly integrate traditional credit scoring methodologies for evaluating a borrower's risk of default. The objective of this project report is to establish a robust …

Ml-Based User Identification Through Mouse Dynamics, Rakshit Gupta

Master's Projects

User authentication and identification plays a crucial role in ensuring the security and integrity of digital systems. Traditional authentication methods, such as passwords and biometrics, have inherent limitations that can compromise system security. This research proposes a novel approach to user authentication by leveraging machine learning techniques and behavioral biometrics, specifically mouse dynamics. The primary objective is to develop a sophisticated framework that can accurately identify individuals based on their unique mouse behavior patterns. The study explores and compares multiple deep learning architectures, including Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN), Long Short-Term Memory networks (LSTM), and Transformer models, to generate embeddings from …

Analysis And Application Of Adaptive Ml Algorithms For Malware Classification, Rashmi Boddukuri

Master's Projects

Malware classification is the process of distinguishing malware samples into categories of malware families that it is associated with and remains a critical step in the process of mitigating malware-related threats. In recent years, machine learning techniques have emerged as a powerful tool for such malware classification tasks. In this study, we explore the application of adaptive machine learning models to malware classification in order to analyze and determine how they compare in performance to similar but non-adaptive algorithms. The results achieved in this study share insight into the strengths and limitations of adaptive learning models when applied towards malware …

Distinguishing Chatbot From Human, Gauri Anil Godghase

Master's Projects

There have been many recent advances in the field of Generative Artificial Intelligence and Large Language Models, with GPT 3 or ChatGPT model being one of the frontrunners in this field. These large language models have become so powerful that it has become difficult to differentiate between text written by humans and machine-generated text. This paper proposes a solution to the problem of classification of the origin of data (human or chatbot) by using Machine Learning. In addition, the proposed solution also helps us analyze the text generated by such Language Models and understand the underlying patterns present in the …

Exploring Gender Bias In Large Language Models: Cross-Linguistic Comparisons And Evaluation Letters Analysis, Athira Kumar

Master's Projects

Large language models (LLMs) play a significant role in modern human-computer interaction. They have exploded in popularity recently, becoming widely used for various tasks. However, concerns persist regarding potential biases within these models. This project investigates gender bias in the popular LLMs - GPT-3.5, GPT-4, Gemini, and LLAMA. The first part of our study focuses on analyzing biases using ambiguous sentences across three languages - English, Malayalam, and Tamil. We evaluate the LLMs to see if they associate occupations with commonly held gender stereotypes, by using specific professions within our test sentences. Through the use of two low-resource languages, this …

California Carbon Sequestration And Carbon Dioxide Pipeline Regulation In An Era Of Climate Change: Technology And Policy, Robert A. Mason

Master's Projects

This report serves primary purpose of finding prospective policies that could be useful in CARB’s new carbon sequestration program as mandated by S. B. 905. The bill states program goals and provides several objectives that direct the California Natural Resources Agency (CNRA), the California Air Resource Board (CARB), and the California Geological Survey (CGS, or just Survey) with various responsibilities. Curiously, S.B. 905 does not mention the Office of State Fire Marshal (OSFM or CalFire), although it has primary responsibility for issuing permits for hazardous pipelines as an agent of the federal Pipelines and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA).

Pipelines …

Lexigen: Lexical-Driven Image Generation, Sangram Prashant Chincholkar

Master's Projects

This research project proposes a novel approach to user-driven image editing via natural language descriptions. The aim is an accurate change of certain features of an image with respect to the descriptive text while maintaining, with equal concern, the integrity of the remaining parts of the image not affected by the description. The task is particularly relevant for fields like content creation, personalized design, and automated image editing that require both coherence of a visual scene and textual description. We propose a generative model, LexiGen, which perfectly integrates natural language descriptions with their corresponding visual changes within an image. The …

Adaptive Metric-Driven Load Balancing For Specialized Clusters Using Nginx, Juhi Raju Malkani

Master's Projects

Adaptive Metric-Driven Load Balancer is an innovative two-tier load-balancing system that uses NGINX and Prometheus to optimize resource allocation in specialized cloud clusters. This framework is built to give great performance and flexibility and runs on Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE), but it may also be deployed on local cloud environments for added security. The first tier of our system uses an NGINX-based load balancer to route incoming requests based on content type, sending traffic to hardware-optimized clusters for processing requests through specialized hardware. In our algorithm, the second tier dynamically modifies load distribution throughout each cluster by calculating pod weights …

How Can We Do Better? Understanding Student Experiences And Support Needs During And After The Covid-19 Pandemic, Kevina M. Brown

Dissertations

This dissertation study aimed to provide opportunities for students at San José State University (SJSU), to share about their experiences during the Covid-19 pandemic and to provide feedback and recommendations regarding resources and culturally engaging supports on campus. The research inquiry involved survey and interview methodology to gain insights into student experiences pertaining to financial and mental health challenges and academic disruption and social isolation during the beginning, middle and end of the pandemic, as well as their engagement with resources and supports provided on campus. Recruitment was done by flyer distribution throughout campus and via email distribution to students …

In Their Words: Voices Of High School Graduates Who Were Labeled English Learners, Yolanda K. Jimenez

Dissertations

This research captures the experiences of high school graduates who were labeled English Learners while they were enrolled in a public high school in the greater Sacramento area of California. The study examined what these bilingual high school graduates report as beneficial and detrimental experiences faced while completing the course requirements for high school graduation. This study builds on research that includes secondary classroom teachers and their perceptions of English Learners, classroom teaching and learning, and experiences of emergent bilingual students. The study expands the body of research and informs praxis pertaining to supporting emergent bilingual students as they attempt …

Rocketship Education: An Exploratory Public Policy Case Study, Vladimir Gresham Ivanovic

Dissertations

This dissertation is an exploratory case study of the finances of the Rocketship charter school chain, especially those related to real estate. Rocketship is a not-for-profit charter management organization, one of the first in Santa Clara County, California. This study seeks to determine if the financial transactions related to Rocketship charter schools yield profits for investors, despite Rocketship itself being a non-profit entity, and if they do, how and where do they do so. In order to characterize fairly and completely the profits of Rocketship Education itself and Rocketship-related entities, this study uses publicly available documents to track money flowing …

Addressing Equity Gaps In Stem: A Self-Study, Prabhjeet Kaur Brar

Dissertations

The Hispanic/Latinx population is increasing nationwide and in the state of California; however, the Hispanic/Latinx population remains underrepresented in STEM professions contributing to a lack of diversity in STEM. To increase the academic success of the Hispanic/Latinx student population in STEM majors, high leverage research-based teaching strategies through the lens of historically responsive literacy were applied and examined throughout this research. The purpose of this mixed-methods self-study was to examine the impact of research-based effective strategies/high leverage practices on Latinx students’ success rates in my introductory biology classrooms. The study focused on two biology course sections with a laboratory. Each …

Embracing Mindfulness-Based Professional Development In Early Childhood Education, Drew Giles

Dissertations

There is a growing need for school districts to identify additional strategies to support the work-related stress and emotional labor ingrained in an early educator’s career. By orienting early childhood education (ECE) staff to mindfulness practices, education leaders may identify new approaches to assist early childhood educators’ well-being, building healthy work atmospheres, and activities to shift the culture in early childhood settings. This study employs a qualitative exploratory research design, specifically video documentary methodology to better understand how early childhood educators experience a mindfulness-based professional development (MBPD) program designed for ECE staff, explore what they say education leaders should know …

(Miss)Educated Latino Males: Academic Preparedness, Navigation, And Retention At 2-Year Colleges, Nannette Stephanie Regua

Dissertations

This study centers Latino males, first generation, first year students at four 2-year colleges in the Silicon Valley by understanding their experiences in transferable English 1A Writing Composition course and looking at the acts of instilling a sense of belonging and mattering by institutional agents and support services that are invaluable to student retention and success. The purpose of this study is to determine Latino male students’ perceptions of academic preparation, navigation, and success in higher education after the implementation of California Assembly Bill 705. My findings revealed important themes that map onto conceptual frameworks, most notably the Community Cultural …