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Dynamic Control For A Pneumatic Muscle Actuator To Achieve Isokinetic Muscle Strengthening, Kara Lynn Hall

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A pneumatic muscle actuator (PMA) is a device that mimics behavior of skeletal muscle by contracting and generating force in a nonlinear manner when activated. PMAs have a high power to weight ratio and possess unique characteristics which make them ideal for human interaction. Due to their nonlinear dynamics, PMAs are difficult to control, presenting challenges in system implementation. Despite these challenges, PMAs have great potential as a source of resistance for strength training and rehabilitation. The main goal of this work was to control a PMA for use in isokinetic exercise, potentially benefiting anyone in need of optimal strength …

Influence Of Design Parameters On Cup-Stem Orientations For Impingement Free Range Of Motion In Hip Implants, Dishita Prakashbhai Patel

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The objective of this investigation is to determine the optimum positions of the prosthesis in total hip arthroplasty that produce least amount of impingement. Theoretical ranges of six basic hip motions were determined under walking, stumbling, internal rotation at 90 flexion and external rotation at 0 extension with 15 abduction, using mathematical models and validated for impingement using finite element analysis. A generalized approach, where impingement does not occur, was developed in this study to understand influence of design parameters such as head-neck ratio, neck-shaft angle, oscillation angle, and stem offset on cup-stem orientations such as cup inclination, cup anteversion, …

The Relationship Of Personalized And Traditional Iats With Explicit Attitude And Behavioral Measures, Rebecca Rae Riffle

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Researchers suggest that the Implicit Association Test (IAT) is structurally flawed, allowing contamination of responses that are influenced by stereotypical associations. This research investigated the use of a personalized IAT (PIAT) to reduce extrapersonal associations. The IAT and the PIAT were adapted to measure unconscious gender bias in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. Explicit gender bias was measured by self-reports and a new measure, the Instant Uncontrollable Reactions (IUR) questionnaire. Partial support was found for the PIAT-explicit attitudes relationship reflecting less gender bias than the IAT-explicit attitudes relationship. It was expected that the PIAT-IUR relationship would show less …

Interoperability Between Awsome And Other Tools Using Model Driven Architecture, Chitra Srinivasan

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AFIT Wide Spectrum Object Modeling Environment (AWSOME) is built on an Abstract Syntax Tree (AST) which is the meta-model of AWSOME. Transformations happen internally in AWSOME to transform anything in abstract to concrete. Earlier efforts in AWSOME were focused on developing tools to work on the AST. The goal of this thesis is to make AWSOME interoperable with other available tools. To achieve this goal, the Model Driven Architecture (MDA) concept is used. MDA is a framework aimed at portability, interoperability and reusability among different tools. Among many tools that use MDA context, EclipseUML 2008 and Dresden OCL Toolkit were …

Quantitative Computed-Tomography Based Bone-Strength Indicators For The Identification Of Low Bone-Strength Individuals In A Clinical Environment, Bino Abel Varghese

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The aim of the current study was to develop quantitative computed-tomography (QCT)-based bone-strength indicators that highly correlate with finite-element (FE)-based strength. We perform a combined numerical-experimental study, comparing FE-predicted surface strains with strain gauge measurements, to validate the FE models of 36 long bones (humerus, radius, femur and tibia) under three-point bending and torsion. The FE models were constructed from trans-axial volumetric CT scans, and the segmented bone images were corrected for partial-volume effects. The material properties (Young's modulus for cortex, density-modulus relationship for trabecular bone and Poisson's ratio) were calibrated by minimizing the error between experiments and simulations among …

Exploring The Potential For Independent Control With The Nia/Brainfingers System - Is Independent Control Of Glance, Muscle, Alpha And Beta Waves Possible?, Jehangir Cooper

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BCI (Brain-Computer-Interface) devices on the market today, such as the NIA, have the capability to assign computer commands to specific channels (e.g., EMG, EOG, Alpha, and Beta) associated with different methods of control. However, the utility of this capability is dependent on the ability of users to selectively/independently control the specific channels. The NIA system was evaluated to determine if independent control of its channels is possible. Two users with varying levels of experience were used in this study. The users played pong using each of the channels to control the pong paddle, while the data on the activation levels …

Quantum Chemical Analysis Of The Pka's Of Alcohols And A Cellular Automata Model For The Distribution Of Gases In The Earth's Atmosphere, Edur Basha Boyinipalli

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Alcohols play important roles in many chemical and biological processes, and their acid/base behaviors are often important for these roles. In this study we ask the question, "Can the electronic properties of these compounds offer clues to the compounds' acid/base behaviors?" The study considers whether selected quantum chemical properties can be used to find correlations with the experimental pKa's of the alcohols (aliphatic and aromatic). Calculations were carried out for these alcohols using the semi-empirical RM1 method and the more advanced density functional theory (DFT) B3LYP/6-31+G* method. Significant correlations were found for several quantum chemical descriptors. It was also found …

Measuring Uncertainty Of Protein Secondary Structure, Alan Eugene Herner

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This dissertation develops and demonstrates a method to measure the uncertainty of secondary structure of protein sequences using Shannon's information theory. This method is applied to a newly developed large dataset of chameleon sequences and to several protein hinges culled from the Hinge Atlas. The uncertainty of the central residue in each tripeptide is computed for each amino acid in a sequence using Cuff and Barton's CB513 as the reference set. It is shown that while secondary structure uncertainty is relatively high in chameleon regions [avg = 1.27 bits] it is relatively low in the regions 1-7 residues nearest a …

Development And Evaluation Of An Interface Aid To Support Web Based Information Seeking For The Blind Research Study, Carissa Ann Brunsman-Johnson

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Information seeking on websites has become more and more challenging for people who are blind. Screen readers attempt to make that task easier by introducing new commands and functionality but there still exists a fundamental gap in the difficulty for people who are blind compared to their sighted counterparts. This research identifies the strategies used by people who are blind and sighted to create an information seeking model, develop the Keywords Expected for Your Search (KEYS) conceptual model for assisting task performance and evaluate a KEYS prototype of this concept for information search and retrieval.

This information seeking model was …

Real-Time Fault Diagnosis Of Automotive Electrical Power Generation And Storage System, Luis Farfan-Ramos

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Automobiles depend more and more on electric power. Analysis of warranty data by automotive OEMs shows that faults in the automotive electrical power generation and storage (EPGS) system are often misdiagnosed. Therefore, monitoring of the state of health (SOH) of the automotive EPGS system is vital for early and correct diagnosis of faults in it, ensuring a reliable supply of electric power to the vehicle and reducing maintenance costs. In this research project, a model-based SOH monitoring method for the EPGS system is developed without the requirement of an alternator current sensor. A model representing the dynamic relationship between the …

Distributed Fault Detection For A Class Of Large-Scale Nonlinear Uncertain Systems, Qi Zhang

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In the distributed large-scale system, the behavior of any subsystem is not only influenced by variables belonging to it (local variables), but also by the variables in other subsystems during its interaction with neighboring subsystems. The effect of the fault in one subsystem will be quickly propagated to other subsystems due to their interconnections. Currently, most of the fault detection and diagnosis schemes are focused on centralized system which do not consider the interaction terms and can not efficiently detect the faults.

In this thesis, a distributed fault detection scheme is developed for a class of large-scale nonlinear uncertain systems …

A User Centered Design And Prototype Of A Mobile Reading Device For The Visually Impaired, Robert B. Keefer

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While mobile reading devices have been on the market and investigated by researchers in recent years, there is still work required to make these devices highly accessible to the visually impaired. A usability test with one such device revealed gaps in the current state of the art devices. These gaps focus mostly on the user interaction and his or her ability to quickly consume written reading material. In this dissertation a voice user interface (VUI) is presented that improves the ability of a blind user of a mobile reading device to interact with written material. The image processing techniques required …

Multilevel Hadamard Matrices, Keli Siqueiros Parker

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Multilevel Hadamard Matrices (MHMs) have been examined by Trihn, Fan, and Gabidulin for constructions of multilevel zero-correlation zone sequences, which in turn have useful application in quasi-synchronous code division multiple access (CDMA) systems. Subsequently, Adams, Crawford, Greeley, Lee and Murugan introduced a construction of full-rate circulant MHMs and proved the existence of an order n MHM with n elements of distinct absolute value for all n, thus determining the maximum number of distinct elements permissible in an order n MHM to be the greatest possible. We give a survey of MHMs, in particular examining the circulant case and the methods …

Hsv-1 Infection In Keratinocyte Cell Lines Treated With Mitotic Inhibitors, Asma A. Abbas

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The hypothesis for this research was: Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) infection of murine keratinocyte cell lines (HEL-30 and PAM-212) treated with mitotic inhibitors leads to silencing of virus replication. At 0.1 (Multiplicity of infection) MOI, PAM-212 keratinocytes showed some cell lysis and viral plaques were seen in HEL-30 keratinocyte cultures. PAM-212 keratinocytes, infected at 0.01 MOI, were more susceptible to the lytic effect of HSV-1 than were HEL-30 cells. In this study, 5-fluoro-2'-deoxyuridine (FUDR) treatment of both keratinocyte cell lines permitted an increase survival of HSV-1- infected keratinocytes especially for PAM-212 cell line which was further examined for …

Computed Tomography Reconstruction: Investigating The Effect Of Varying Circle Diameter, William F. Sanders Iv

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In Computed Tomography (CT) reconstruction, several methods for determining the intensity of individual pixels from the back-projection of the scanned profiles exist. The standard reconstruction method uses linear interpolation between ray values to determine pixel intensity. This study quantifies the effects of varying circle diameter on the accuracy of an alternative method where the pixel is approximated as a circle and the area contributions calculated.

A library of 104 scans in 3 image families was created by a synthetic CT scanner and reconstructed with circle radii from 0.1 to 1.0 pixel in 0.1 pixel steps. Images were compared against a …

Framework For Cohesive Zone Model Based Multiscale Damage Evolution In A Fatigue Environment, Michael Andrew Thomas

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The focus of this research is to develop a framework to track damage evolution in a structural model subjected to a fatigue environment. This framework incorporates a micromechanical approach of continuous damage modeling, where damage in a homogenized representative microstructure is introduced at the continuum scale through the material constitutive matrix. In this research, damage in the representative microstructure is simulated utilizing cohesive zone models (CZM) whose properties are a function of the magnitude of applied stresses and the resulting separation. In order to minimize the mesh dependence of the cohesive zone model an adaptive meshing technique is employed. A …

Self-Calibrating Cricket Motes For Indoor Navigation, Yogendra Jayant Patil

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Global Positioning System (GPS) plays a vital role for providing localization to the autonomous robots. But the quality of the GPS signal degrades in an indoor location and hence GPS cannot be used for indoor localization. Cricket motes are location-aware system that can provide localization service to its users in an indoor location. Cricket motes apply the acoustic ranging technique to find distance between two points. But before a user can use this localization system, assigning coordinate system to the motes requires manual assistance. This project presents a novel algorithm for self-calibration of the cricket motes to a coordinate system …

The Kozeny-Carman Equation Considered With A Percolation Threshold, Lee Brenson Porter Ii

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A procedure has been developed for calculating permeability (k) from the Kozeny-Carmen equation, a procedure that links ideas from percolation theory with the ideas of Koltermann and Gorelick (1995) and Esselburn et al. (2011). The approach focuses on the proportion of coarser pores that are occupied by finer sediments and defines a threshold proportion. For proportions below this threshold, the unoccupied coarser pores percolate. Following the ideas of Koltermann and Gorelick (1995), the effective grain-size term in the Kozeny-Carman equation is calculated using the geometric mean if below the threshold proportion, and with the harmonic mean if above. Following ideas …

Persisiting Sensitization Of Depressive-Like Behavior And Thermogenic Response During Maternal Separation In Pre- And Post Weaning Guinea Pigs, Randi Lynn Schneider

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Early attachment disruption is thought to promote later onset of depressive illness through a process involving sensitization. Maternal separation in guinea pig pups (~21 days of age) produces depressive-like behavior and core body temperature fluctuations that appear to be mediated by proinflammatory activity. These responses are enhanced during repeated separations over several days. Here, enhanced depressive-like behavior and core body temperature responses were observed from the early pre-weaning to the periadolescent period (~10-40 days of age) and persisted for more than a week. The greatest temperature response was observed during the final separation. These results demonstrate persisting sensitization of behavioral …

Sex And Racial Differences In Socially Desirable Responding, Kathryn G. Van Dixhorn

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The purpose of this study was to examine the magnitude of sex and racial differences in faking behavior, specifically socially desirable responding, in a large (N = 295,517), applied sample. Results indicated that females are engaging in more intentional socially desirable responding, whereas males are engaging in more inadvertent socially desirable responding. However, these differences are not likely to influence selection. Caucasians are displaying more intentional socially desirable responding than African Americans (d = 0.55), Hispanics (d = 0.57), and Asian Americans (d = 0.29). Asian Americans - iii - engaged in less inadvertent socially desirable responding than Caucasians (d …

Synthesis Of Fluorinated Indenofluorenediones And Bis(2-Fluorophenyl) Substituted Ppv, Jeffrey D. Fogle

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The compound 2,5-di(ethoxycarbonyl)-3,4-di(2-fluorophenyl)cyclopentadienone was successfully synthesized and led to the synthesis of terephthalates, di(hydroxymethyl)s, di(chloromethyl)s, diacids, diacid chlorides and indenofluorenediones having the pendent groups null, hexyl and 2-(4-benzothiazolyl)phenyl. All new compounds were characterized by melting point, IR, 1H NMR, 13C NMR, 19F NMR, GC/MS and combustion analysis. Most of the forementioned compounds showed an indication of restricted rotation with the appearance of trans and cis diastereomers. The asymmetric compounds showed the occurrence of four isomers. In some spectra, signals corresponding to all four isomers were visible. Through-space 1H-19F, 13C-19F and 19F-19F coupling was observed for most compounds in 1H NMR, …

The Decision To Pursue Self-Interests: Cultural Implications At The Individual Level, Corinne Patrice Wright

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In the current study I examined the relationships between personality, culture, and the decision to pursue self-interests. Specifically, I proposed that conscientiousness, extraversion, idiocentrism, masculinity, and power distance would be positively related to the decision to pursue self-interests whereas agreeableness would be negatively related to the pursuit of self-interests. I also proposed an exploratory examination of interactions between personality and individual cultural values in predicting the decision to pursue self- interests. As predicted, idiocentrism and masculinity significantly predicted the decision to pursue self-interests. In addition, masculinity moderated the effects of both agreeableness and neuroticism on the pursuit of self-interests. Also, …

Bio-Functionalized Clay Nanoparticles For Wound Healing Applications, Christopher Anthony Vaiana

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Wound healing is a complex, multi-step process that can be summarized into three stages, namely hemostasis and inflammation, proliferation, and finally tissue remodeling. Battlefield wound healing demands rapid hemostasis using clotting or cauterizing agents to immediately limit blood loss, but this occurs at the expense of proper tissue repair beyond hemostasis. Layered silicate clays such as kaolin and montmorillonite (MMT) have been previously shown to induce blood clotting due to their ability to form charged interactions with clotting factors. The charge characteristics of sodium MMT (Na-MMT) also enable functionalization with active biomolecules. Herein we first functionalize three types of alumoinosilicate …

A Triangulation-Based Approach To Nonrigid Image Registration, Timothy R. Linden

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A triangulation-based approach to nonrigid image registration is presented. This method builds upon control point projective registration methods. Control points for this method are located using the Harris point detector. An analysis is presented for this detector to show its properties. Projective registration is used as the basis for this non-rigid registration method. Details of the projective registration method used are presented. Nonrigid registration is used to spatially align images of a 3-D scene taken from different views. Projective registration approximates the scene geometry as a plane. This nonrigid approach subdivides the images into small corresponding triangles, to improve the …

Changes In Avian Community Composition At Sugarcreek Metropark Between 1978 And 2010, Jennifer Lynne Hays

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Quantifying changes in forest avian diversity is a challenging, but necessary task for development of effective conservation plans. While small changes in diversity accumulate over time, these changes do not necessarily reflect overall long-term trends in species diversity. Long-term changes from established baseline conditions may be more interpretable because the changes in diversity are assessed over longer periods. In 1978, Dr. Reed Noss (1981) initiated a study of thirty-three breeding bird censuses at Sugarcreek Reserve (Metropark) in Southwestern Ohio and evaluated the species richness and composition during the breeding and post-breeding season to inform ecological reserve design theory. In 2010, …

Multidisciplinary Optimization Framework For High Speed Train Using Robust Hybrid Ga-Pso Algorithm, Veera Venkata Sunil Kumar Vytla

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High speed trains are the most efficient means of public transportation. However the speed of the train needs to be increased (> 350 km/hr) to cover large distances in a short time to make it accessible to large population. With the increase in speed, number of issues related to efficiency, safety and comfort like the aerodynamic drag, structural strength, as well as the noise levels inside and outside of the train etc. need to be considered in the design of the high speed trains. Hence making it a multi disciplinary design problem. There are a large number of parameters from …

Computational Investigation Of Optimal Heavy Fuel Direct Injection Spark Ignition In Rotary Engine, Asela A. Benthara Wadumesthrige

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The main objective of this computational study is to investigate the optimum injection and spark parameters for the direct injection spark ignition (DISI) Wankel rotary engine using diesel fuel. Currently only port fuel injected gasoline rotary engines are available in the automotive industry. Compared to reciprocating type engines rotary engine is mechanically simple, less vibrate, have higher power to weight ratio and achieve better performance at high rpm. Due to the inherent low fuel efficiency of rotary engine and increasing gas prices, application of the rotary engine in conventional automobiles is decreasing. This project seeks to introduce DISI technology to …

Weapon Engagement Zone Maximum Launch Range Approximation Using A Multilayer Perceptron, Brian Michael Birkmire

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This thesis investigates the use of an artificial neural network (ANN), in particular a Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP), to perform function approximation on truth data representing a weapon engagement zone's (WEZ) maximum launch range. The WEZ of an air-to-air missile represents the boundaries and zones of effectiveness for a one-vs-one air-to-air combat engagement [13]. The intent is for the network to fuse table lookup and interpolation functionality into a physically compact and computationally efficient package, while improving approximation accuracy over conventional methods. Data was collected from simulated firings of a notional air-to-air missile model and used to train a two layer …

Interrogation Of The Distal Gut Microbiota Of Healthy Adolescents And Those With Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Laura J. Rigsbee

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The human-associated microbiota has been the focus of much current research, with the microbiota inhabiting the gastrointestinal tract of particular interest. These organisms play many roles in human health and well-being. However, shifts in the composition of the intestinal microbiota have been associated with diseases such as irritable bowel syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease, and colon cancer. Several recent studies have reported on the distal gut microbiota composition of healthy adults and those with IBS, while there is a lack of studies devoted to adolescents. This study utilized a custom-designed Affymetrix Microbiota Array capable of detecting 775 phylo-species of intestinal bacteria …

Parallel Sorting On Multi-Core Architecture, Wei Wang

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With the limitations given by the power consumption (power wall), memory wall and the instruction level parallelism, the computing industry has turned its direction to multi-core architectures. Nowadays, the multi-core and many-core architectures are becoming the trend of the processor design. But how to exploit these architectures is the primary challenge for the research community. To take advantage of the multi-core architectures, the software design has undergone fundamental changes.

Sorting is a fundamental, important problem in computer science. It is utilized in many applications such as databases and search engines. In this thesis, we will investigate and auto-tune two parallel …