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A Multicriteria Based Quantitative Framework For Assessing Sustainability Of Pile Foundations, Aditi Misra

Master's Theses

ABSTRACT

Civil Engineering is the major instrument of anthropocentric development over centuries through ever expanding infrastructure, cities and facilities.  Civil engineering processes are both resource and fuel intensive.  The building industry alone, during the construction stage, uses about 30-40% of the total resources used in the industrialized countries.  There is a growing consensus that delivering a sustainable built environment starts with incorporating sustainability thoughts at the planning and design stages of a project.  Geotechnical engineering is most resource intensive although this intensive consumption of energy goes unnoticed mainly because of the indirect nature of the energy used in the …

The Effects Of Nutrient Availability And Season On The Somatotropic Axis In Free-Ranging Alaskan Moose (Alces Alces), Amanda A. Parillo

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Delayed Auditory Feedback On Young Infants’ Crying, Sarah M. Sanborn

Master's Theses

Neural control of newborn crying has typically been considered to originate primarily in the lower brain centers, although support for this assumption is limited. To address this, the present study manipulated newborn infants’ perceptual experience during a cry bout through use of delayed auditory feedback (DAF). Atypical cry productions during DAF would suggest that newborn crying is under higher levels of cortical control than previously assumed. Infants’ spontaneous crying was recorded for 2 minutes at 4 weeks of age (n=16) and again at 8 weeks of age (n=17) using an ABA design, alternating synchronous feedback with DAF. Standard repeated-measures 2 …

Effects Of Embodiment On Perceptual And Affective Responses To Infant Crying, Jennifer B. Bisson

Master's Theses

Three experiments were conducted to investigate how changes in bodily states might be related to perceptions of infant vocalizations. In Study 1, participants were asked to hold a pencil between their lips, mimicking a smile, while listening to infant crying. Although there were no embodied effects for perceptual ratings, results indicated that this manipulation decreased participants’ self-reported, negative affect. In Study 2, participants were played both infant crying and birdsong while exposed to similar embodied manipulations, including activation of muscles related to approach and withdrawal behavior. There were no embodied effects for ratings of crying or for affect. Comparing Study …

Intelligent Planning And Assimilation Of Auv-Obtained Measurements Within A Roms-Based Ocean Modeling System, Benjamin J. Davini

Master's Theses

Efforts to learn more about the oceans that surround us have increased dramatically as the technological ability to do so grows. Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) are one such technological advance. They allow for rapid deployment and can gather data quickly in places and ways that traditional measurement systems (bouys, profilers, etc.) cannot. A ROMS-based data assimilation method was developed that intelligently plans for and integrates AUV measurements with the goal of minimizing model standard deviation. An algorithm developed for this system is first described that optimizes paths for AUVs that seeks to improve the model by gathering data in high-interest …

Parking Management For Silicon Valley–A Guide For Planners, Decision Makers, And The General Public, Tracy Wang

Master's Theses

The crisis of climate change has jumpstarted a renewed interest in environmental sustainability. The growing awareness of the problem and the ensuing intense search for solutions called for a scrutinizing reexamination of the relationships between transportation, land use, and greenhouse gas emissions. Major publications such as The High Cost of Free Parking by Donald Shoup in 2005, and Parking Management, Strategies, Evaluation and Planning by Todd Litman in 2008, have identified parking as a crucial link. Parking issues are intrinsic to planning because parking facilities are a major land use type that affects how we design and build our commercial …

Functional Reactive Musical Performers, Justin M. Phillips

Master's Theses

Computers have been assisting in recording, sound synthesis and other fields of music production for quite some time. The actual performance of music continues to be an area in which human players are chosen over computer performers. Musical performance is an area in which personalization is more important than consistency. Human players play with each other, reacting to phrases and ideas created by the players that they are playing with. Computer performers lack the ability to react to the changes in the performance that humans perceive naturally, giving the human players an advantage over the computer performers.

This thesis creates …

Physiologic, Psychologic, And Oxidative Stress Responses To Multimodal Exercise In An Endometrial Cancer Survivor Undergoing High-Dose Chemotherapy: A Case Study, Lauren E. Dinsmore

Master's Theses

Exercise training, as a rehabilitative strategy, may be a vital factor in combatting the noxious toxicities related to cancer treatment. Research employing mixed modality exercise consistently demonstrates health benefits ranging from enhanced aerobic capacity and muscular strength to attenuated psychological distress. The primary aim of this case study was to examine the effects of exercise training on physiological and psychological parameters in an endometrial cancer survivor undergoing high-dose chemotherapy. Secondly, believed to play a role in toxicity development and progression, oxidative stress has yet to be studied in cancer survivors. The second aim of this case study was to determine …

Assessing Potential Industry Growth For Economic Development In Oakland, Ca, Sonia Aery

Master's Theses

This study prepares a set of career ladders for the population of Oakland. Career ladders are long-term progression pathways to help individuals advance, particularly in high wage, high growth careers. Career ladders combine different statistics on the demographics of a population with statistics about the area’s economic vitality and potential. This combination helps to identify the potential to strengthen an area’s economy and enhance individuals’ qualifications and wages.

One of the main reasons that people and large firms are attracted to a given city is the potential for economic stability. A stable economy is the result of the availability of …

Water Quality Performance Of A Reciprocating Biofilm Reactor For Treatment Of Dairy Wastewater, Jason Patrick Kane

Master's Theses

Removal of organic matter and nitrogen from concentrated wastewaters is often a complex and costly process that is rarely implemented in animal agriculture, such as the dairy industry, despite regulatory pressures and the high cost of land for manure application in some regions. This paper describes results from the first implementation for treatment of dairy farm wastewater of the relatively simple ReCip® technology. ReCip® typically consists of two basins filled with rock aggregate through which wastewater is flowed in series. One basin is full of wastewater and the other is only partially full. Wastewater is alternately pumped between the basins …

Expression Of The Artemisia Annua Β-Caryophyllene Synthase In Synechocystis Sp. Strain Pcc6803 Results In Cyanobacterial Sesquiterpene Accumulation, Robert Eric Reinsvold

Master's Theses

The sesquiterpene β-caryophyllene is a ubiquitous component of many plant resins and has been used in the cosmetic industry to provide a woody, spicy aroma. Recent clinical studies have shown its potential effectiveness as an antibiotic, anesthetic, and anti-inflammatory agent. Additionally, there is significant interest in sesquiterpene accumulation in phototrophic microorganisms for the production of biofuels. Currently, the isolation of β-caryophyllene relies on purification methods from oleoresins extracted from large amounts of plant material. The design of a cyanobacterium platform that produces β-caryophyllene may provide a more sustainable and controllable means of production, allowing for an increase in yield without …

An Investigation Into The Use Of Color As A Device To Convey Memes During The Little Ice Age, Peter Allen White

Master's Theses

Color is used as a tool in visual communication to express ideas in a symbolic fashion. It can also be used as a guide to assist the viewer in the visual narrative. Artwork created in the period of time between 1300 to 1850 in northern and central Europe provides a comprehensive perspective in the use of color as symbol and color as an elucidative devise. This period of time is known as the Little Ice Age, the duration of which spans European history between the Medieval period and the Romantic era. The extreme climatic conditions of this era caused profound …

Utility Of Feeding Priority As A Measure Of Dominance In Garnett's Bushbaby (Otolemur Garnettii), Kyle Daniel Edens

Master's Theses

The current study examined dominance behaviors in bushbabies and examined whether feeding priority (i.e., first access to a food source) is a viable measure of dominance. Several measures of dominance were employed. Among the measures of dominance investigated were agonistic interactions, grooming, displacement, and deference of space. The results indicated that females initiated more agonistic interactions than males, but the other measures of dominance did not support the hypothesis that females were the dominant sex. The results were partially consistent with the hypothesis that feeding priority is a viable measure of dominance in that females obtained feeding priority in the …

Antrim To Ayrshire, Eric Jude Hatcher

Master's Theses

In the summer of 2007, I visited Scotland during a personal vacation. During that trip, I kept a private journal that later became the source of an interest in the genre of travel writing. In this thesis, I present a discussion of the genre, as well as, build a framework into which my writing can be placed.

Reproductive Life History Of Fundulus Jenkensi And Comparative Development Of Five Sympatric Fundulid Species, Eric Thomas Lang

Master's Theses

Fundulus jenkinsi is recognized federally and within the state of Mississippi as a Species of Concern. Little is known about the life history of this coastal killifish, but a detailed reproductive histology study of F. jenkinsi and a diagnostic key of the early life stages of select members of Fundulidae can provide the foundation needed to accurately identify it and quantify reproductive parameters in this rare species in need of conservation. Monthly gonadosomatic index (GSI) of male and female F. jenkinsi were documented, and spawning phases and oocyte stages were examined using reproductive histology. In addition, various stages of …

Development And Validation Of A Light Weight, Energy Dense, Ready To Eat (Rte) Bar, Jacob Wilhelm-Maria Heick

Master's Theses

DEVELOPMENT AND VALIDATION OF A LIGHT WEIGHT, ENERGY DENSE, READY TO EAT (RTE) BAR

Jacob Wilhelm-Maria Heick

Providing additional calories in the form of an RTE bar to endurance athletes will increase performance and muscle re-synthesis, reduce muscle breakdown, and shorten recovery time. An RTE bar containing a blend of dairy proteins and carbohydrates will create a product with superior functionality, including bioactive and immunity enhancing properties from dairy derived ingredients. The protein will provide benefits in the form of easily digestible calories, essential amino acids and physical satiate.

A formulation was developed and optimized, resulting in a final product …

No-Till Vegetable Production At The Cal Poly Organic Farm, Nathaniel Jay Harkleroad

Master's Theses

Tillage and subsequent bare soil have been linked to erosion, nutrient leaching, reduced biological diversity, loss of organic matter, and release of CO2 into the atmosphere (Brady and Weil, 2004). The usefulness of an organic no-till system for transplanted vegetables was explored over two growing seasons. In 2007-2008, in a randomized complete block design, treatments of tilled and no-till (T and NT, respectively) were seeded to a dense grain and legume winter cover crop. Tilled plots were mown and disk-ploughed two times; NT plots retained a mow-killed mulch on the soil surface. There were less weeds in NT plots. A …

The Development And Validation Of A Finite Element Model Of A Canine Rib For Use With A Bone Remodeling Algorithm., Scott J. Sylliaasen

Master's Theses

Studies are currently being performed to determine the effects of bisphosphonate treatments on the structure and density of bone tissue. One of the pathways for gaining a better understanding of the effects of this and other treatments involves creating a computer simulation. Theory suggests that bone tissue structure and density are directly related to the manner in which the tissue is loaded. Remodeling is the process in which bone tissue is resorbed in areas of low stress distributions, and generated in areas of high stress distributions. Previous studies have utilized numerical methods and finite element methods to predict bone structure …

Assessment Of Morphology And Hemodynamics In Normal And Remodeled Microvasculature With Parameter Sensitivity Analysis, Shilpi Ghosh

Master's Theses

The goal of this study was to compare the morphological and hemodynamic characteristics of normal and remodeled vascular networks in the mouse gracilis muscle. To this end, previously developed models to assess flows and vascular branching were used to assess the normal and remodeled microcirculatory networks. The analysis revealed that the average individual vessel flow rates for vessels of similar caliber and total volumetric flow rates in the networks do not change for vessels of the same caliber after remodeling. Connectivity changes and average diameters primarily change in the larger arterioles after remodeling. A few correlations could be made between …

Perceptions And Evaluation Of An Urban Environment For Pedestrian Friendliness: A Case Study, Elizabeth H. Lee

Master's Theses

Public health is an increasingly important issue addressed from both environmental and public health sectors for the future development of urban environments. From a planning perspective, one possible solution is to increase walkability throughout the cities. Many assessment methods are being developed and administered to evaluate the quality of existing urban environments to promote walkable cities/communities. The results from using these methods provide policymakers and stakeholders with valuable information regarding the existing physical conditions of the environment. Although several US cities started to develop and refocus plans toward pedestrian-oriented policies approaches, results from this particular study determined that the quality …

Comparisons Of Fish Species Inside And Outside Of Marine Protected Areas Off The South Central Coast Of California, David E. Rasmussen

Master's Theses

COMPARISONS OF FISH SPECIES INSIDE AND OUTSIDE OF MARINE PROTECTED AREAS OFF THE SOUTH CENTRAL COAST OF CALIFORNIA

David E. Rasmussen

From 2004-2008 and 2008-2009 Cal Poly University researchers conducted two separate tag and recapture studies of nearshore fish populations along California’s central coast. Three locations were sampled that have experienced different degrees of fishing pressure. Big Creek MPA has been closed to all fishing from 1993 onwards and is the farthest from port of all locations. Cambria lies closest to port of the three locations and because of this has the highest fishing pressure. Piedras Blancas lies midway between …

The Effect Of Calcified Plaque On Stress Within A Fibrous Thin Cap Atheroma In An Atherosclerotic Coronary Artery Using Finite Element Analysis (Fea), Ellerie Nagy

Master's Theses

Atherosclerosis causes hundreds of thousands of deaths in the US alone every year. Fibrous cap rupture is one of the leading causes of these fatalities. Thin cap atheromas are commonly regarded as vulnerable plaque, however the effect of calcium upon a thin fibrous cap with lipid pool is poorly understood. Some studies have shown that calcium adds to stability of the lesion, while others have proven otherwise. An article by Li et al. 2007 suggests location is the key factor. By varying the percentage of calcium and lipid within a defined region, the stress on the cap was estimated using …

Dietary Protein Intake, Body Composition And Self-Reported Physical Functioning In U.S. Adults, Kerri Beth Parker

Master's Theses

Sarcopenia is a growing health problem in this country as more Americans are living well into old age. It has been thought that a higher protein intake may be related to greater lean muscle mass as well as greater muscular strength and physical functioning. The purpose of this research was to examine protein intake and its relationship to lean body mass and physical functioning in a nationally representative sample of U.S. adults.

This research used cross-sectional data from the NHANES 2003-2004 to examine the relationship between protein intake, as an average from two 24h recalls, and dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) …

State Space Model Of A Light Weight Flexible Telescope, Chi-Yeh Hsu

Master's Theses

The accuracy of optical telescope in the past was dominated by the construction of the telescope body and the precision of optical surface. This thesis fits into a larger project with a goal of controlling a flexible telescope in order to help a cheaper telescope achieve higher accuracy. In order to understand the internal motion of telescope, the goal of this thesis is to build a state space model of a two-degree-of-freedom telescope using a known star location as feedback. The model presented in this thesis may be used for the telescope simulation and the control design in the future. …

Multi-Frequency Processing For Lumen Enhancement With Wideband Intravascular Ultrasound, Rory A. Carrillo

Master's Theses

The application of high frequency ultrasound is the key to higher resolution intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) images. The need to further improve the IVUS spatial resolution may drive the transducer center frequency even higher than the current 40 MHz range. However, increasing the center frequency may be challenging as it leads to stronger scattering echoes from blood. The high level of blood scattering echoes may obscure the arterial lumen and make image interpretation difficult. Blood backscatter levels increase with transmission center frequency at a much greater rate compared to arterial tissue. These different frequency dependencies provide a potential method to distinguish …

Picasso Interface For Horizon Simulation Framework, Brian E. Kirkpatrick

Master's Theses

The Horizon Simulation Framework, or HSF, is a modeling and simulation framework compiled from C/C++ source code into a command line program. Picasso is an interface designed to control the input files to Horizon by providing visual tools to create and manipulate the XML files used to define an HSF system of assets, their environment, and other simulation parameters. Picasso also supports the visualization of Horizon output in several different forms, and import mechanics from online space object catalogues.

The Other Race Effect : The Role Of Experience And Social Attiudes On Face Recognition, Emily Wheat

Master's Theses

The ORE is phenomenon whereby recognition for own race faces is better than recognition of other race faces. This study examines how non-perceptual factors—social context, attitudes, and experience—impact the ORE. Participants from three different racial groups (Caucasian, Black, Asian) completed a face recognition task screening faces for status-specific targets (baseline, perpetrator, victim), self-report measures of explicit bias and experience with members from other races and a measure of implicit bias. Results indicated that non-perceptual factors impact the ORE. Specifically, Caucasian participants revealed a reduced ORE for other race perpetrators in comparison to victims. Black participants revealed a reduced ORE for …

Photomicrography As An Artistic Medium, Nicholas James Eubank

Master's Theses

This thesis investigated the problems associated with artistically photographing patterns that exist within the microscopic world echoed on a larger scale throughout nature. Photographing these patterns at a microscopic level presented a number of difficulties not associated with photographing patterns through traditional photographic means. This thesis explored the problems associated with photographing subjects on a microscopic level, specifically the issues presented by lighting subjects. Experimental techniques with multiple light sources as well as light spectrum were explored. Also explored was the history of microscopy and popular processes for modern microscopy. Images were created utilizing either a compound microscope or stereomicroscope …

Teaching Adult Students Who Are Apprehensive About Making Art, Donna M. Clement

Master's Theses

Many adults stopped making art while they were children and are now fearful and apprehensive of taking up art again. These individuals believe that only talented artists are allowed to create art. This study follows students through experimental art classes proving that they can learn art-making successfully. Difficulties and adaptations to teaching this population are discussed as well as the importance of teaching to the learning style of each student. From the history of how art began as a functional part of everyday life to how art exists today on a metaphorical pedestal is studied. All individuals who desire to …

Creating Homes And Constructing Girlhood: Spatial Negotiations Of The Island In Girls' Castaway Novels, 1892-1989, Amy Marie Hicks

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.