Digital Commons Network^™

Drawing Place Field Diagrams Of Neural Codes Using Toric Ideals, Nida K. Obatake

Master's Theses

A neural code is a collection of codewords (0-1 vectors) of a given length n; it captures the co-firing patterns of a set of neurons. A neural code is convexly realizable in dimension two if there exist n convex sets in the plane so that each codeword in the code corresponds to a unique intersection carved out by the convex sets. There are some methods to determine whether a neural code is convexly realizable; however, these methods do not describe how to draw a realization, that is, a place field diagram of the code. In this work, we construct toric …

Pretty Maps: Evaluating Gis Adoption Of Cartographic Design Standards And Best Practices In Professional Publications, David Medeiros

Master's Theses

The nature of GIS maps, as tools designed for visual communication, puts them in the realm of art that is in many ways unique among scientific tools. As a visual form of communication, maps are responsive to methods of visual design, affecting the map’s appeal and function. Through cartography, a well established body of standards and best-practices exists to help GIS users avoid common design errors and create effective and meaningful maps that support their work. This research examines the adoption rate of those standards amongst professionals using GIS software for creating maps for journal publications. A selection of 80 …

Geometric Control Theory: Nonlinear Dynamics And Applications, Geoffrey A. Zoehfeld

Master's Theses

We survey the basic theory, results, and applications of geometric control theory. A control system is a dynamical system with parameters called controls or inputs. A control trajectory is a trajectory of the control system for a particular choice of the inputs. A control system is called controllable if every two points of the underlying space can be connected by a control trajectory. Two fundamental problems of control theory include:

1) Is the control system controllable?

2) If it is controllable, how can we construct an input to obtain a particular control trajectory? We shall investigate the first problem exclusively …

Women Business Leaders In Biotech And Hi-Tech, And Related Industry Cluster Factors, Jessica White

Master's Theses

Women entrepreneurs are on the rise and their numbers have grown at one and a half times the rate of small enterprises generally over the last 15 years. In spite of this, women are underrepresented in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Women face additional barriers when forging careers within these fields and obtaining startup capital. This study examines female business ownership within the fields of hi-tech and biotech, and the factors that support startups by women throughout the state of California. As both of these industry sectors are known to cluster geographically around sources of venture …

Evaluation Of A Silica Hydride-Based Undecynoic Acid Stationary Phase For High Performance Liquid Chromatography, Veena Menon Kozhikote

Master's Theses

Undecynoic acid (UDA) attached to a silica hydride surface has been found to exhibit weak cationic exchange properties and an aqueous normal phase (ANP) type of retention. ANP is a mechanism similar to normal phase chromatographic retention, except for the use of a polar solvent such as water in the mobile phase. In ANP, the retention of a polar molecule is increased with a higher concentration of the non-polar mobile phase solvent (usually acetonitrile). Non-polar molecules exhibit retention behavior as in reverse phase (RP) chromatography. The goal of this research was to characterize the chromatographic retention pattern of an undecynoic …

Design And Analysis Of A Low-Power 8-Bit 500 Ks/S Sar Adc For Bio-Medical Implant Devices, Ehsan Mazidi

Master's Theses

This thesis project involves the design and analysis of an 8-bit Successive Approximation Register (SAR) Analog to Digital Convertor (ADC), designed for low- power applications such as bio-medical implants. The sampling rate for this ADC is 500 KS/s. The power consumption for the whole SAR ADC system was measured to be 2.1 uW. The novelty of this project is the proposal of an extremely energy efficient comparator architecture. The result is the design of a final ADC with reasonable sampling speed, accuracy and low power consumption. In this project, all the different subsystems have been designed at the transistor level …

Studying Globular Clusters In The Dwarf Galaxy Ngc 247 Using Subaru Hyper Suprime-Cam Imaging, Vakini Santhanakrishnan

Master's Theses

While globular clusters (GCs) are among the most ancient stellar systems in the universe, there are still lingering questions about how and where they formed. There is relatively little known about GCs in spiral galaxies beyond the Milky Way. We analyzed confirmed GCs, examined putative GC candidates, and looked for new GCs around the nearby dwarf spiral galaxy NGC 247 at about 3.5 Mpc away in the Sculptor group, based on wide-field imaging data from the Subaru Hyper Suprime-Cam (HSC), with a 1.5 degree field of view. The extremely wide-area coverage, depth, and image quality of HSC provide great potential …

The Role Of The State, Multinational Oil Companies, International Law & The International Community: Intersection Of Human Rights & Environmental Degradation Climate Change In The 21st Century Caused By Traditional Extractive Practices, The Amazon Rainforest, Indigenous People And Universal Jurisdiction To Resolve The Accountability Issue, Marcela Cabrera Luna

Master's Theses

Local, national and international conventions that protect indigenous sovereignty and their territories, where many of the resources are extracted from by multinational corporations (MNCs) particularly oil, the number one commodity of the world and cause of climate change, continue to be jeopardized because of the lack of a clear international legal framework that can protect them and potentially hold multinationals accountable for their actions. These practices are causing not only environmental issues to the indigenous and surrounding communities, but climate change is in fact, the real human rights issue of the 21^st century and it affects everyone. By using …

Photooxidation Reactions Of Small-Chain Methyl Esters, Aerosol Photoelectron Spectroscopy, And The Photodissociation Of Ethylenediamine, Giel Muller

Master's Theses

Research conducted at the University of San Francisco is presented within this masters thesis, including the Cl-initiated photooxidation reactions of methyl propanoate, methyl butanoate, and methyl valerate (pentanoate), the aerosol photoelectron spectroscopy of isoprene and gamma-valerolactone, and the TPEPICO investigation of ethylenediamine. Experiments were conducted at the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab Advanced Light Source (ALS), the National Synchrotron Radiation Research Center in Hsinchu City (NSRRC), and the University of Stockton in California, respectively.

The Ecological Importance Of Brachiopods Versus Bivalves In The Paleozoic: Taphonomy, Biomass, And Energy Use, Shannon (Shin-Nan) Hsieh

Master's Theses

Brachiopods have commonly been considered more important than bivalves in Paleozoic ecosystems due to their greater global diversity and greater abundance in many fossil assemblages. New sampling-standardized diversity curves verify that brachiopods were more diverse than bivalves at the global level in the Paleozoic; they declined in the Permian-Triassic extinction, largely recovered, then faded away later in the Mesozoic. However, the subordinate ecological status of bivalves within local Paleozoic ecosystems has been challenged on two fronts. First, bivalve abundance may be underestimated due to preferential dissolution of aragonitic shells. Second, bivalve contribution to ecosystem function may be underestimated by abundance …

Adaptive Pi Control To Realize Sinusoidal Ripple Current Charging In Battery Charger Systems, Jen-Guey Chen

Master's Theses

This thesis proposes the adaptive PI gain control to regulate sinusoidal ripple current (SRC) in battery charger systems. The SRC charge method is suited for fast and efficient charging. Y.D Lee (2015) propose that SRC charge method can reduce the charging time, decrease the charging temperature and improve the charging efficiency by applying optimal frequency to charge the battery. In order to determine optimal frequency for charging, the swept frequency is required in SRC charge method. Therefore, in order to perform SRC charge approach, the battery charger systems have to be capable of handling swept frequency input and regulating high …

Effect Of Electrical Stimulation On Muscle Recruitment As It Relates To Maximal Voluntary Contraction, Kelly Stratton

Master's Theses

Regeneration of complex muscle tissue, particularly at the interface between distinct tissue types such as muscle and tendon, remains an intricate and challenging issue. One approach recommended for regeneration is electrical stimulation (ES), which involves delivering an electrical pulse into the body to induce muscle contraction. Despite its well-documented effectiveness in both clinical rehabilitation and tissue engineering, little is known in terms of monitoring direct muscle response to stimulation. The recruitment mechanism for muscular contraction with stimulation is unclear, and to understand the muscle capabilities, it is necessary to filter out the electrical stimulation pulses from electromyographic (EMG) muscle activity, …

Density-Based Clustering Of High-Dimensional Dna Fingerprints For Library-Dependent Microbial Source Tracking, Eric Johnson

Master's Theses

As part of an ongoing multidisciplinary effort at California Polytechnic State University, biologists and computer scientists have developed a new Library-Dependent Microbial Source Tracking method for identifying the host animals causing fecal contamination in local water sources. The Cal Poly Library of Pyroprints (CPLOP) is a database which stores E. coli representations of fecal samples from known hosts acquired from a novel method developed by the biologists called Pyroprinting. The research group considers E. coli samples whose Pyroprints match above a certain threshold to be part of the same bacterial strain. If an environmental sample from an unknown host animal …

Analyzing General-Purpose Computing Performance On Gpu, Fanfu Meng

Master's Theses

ABSTRACT

Analyzing General-Purpose Computing Performance on GPU

Graphic Processing Unit (GPU) has become one of the most important components in modern computer systems. GPUs have evolved from a single -purpose graphic rendering hardware to a powerful processor that is capable of handling many different kinds of computing tasks. However, GPUs don’t perform well on every application, and it takes a lot of design effort to get good performance on a GPU.

This thesis aims to investigate the relative performance of a GPU vs. CPU. Design effort is held minimum for both CPU implementations and GPU implementations. Matrix multiplication, Advance Encryption …

Spatial Variability Of Soil Velocity Using Passive Surface Wave Testing, Daniel Raymond Wagstaffe

Master's Theses

Lifelines such as highways, pipelines, telecommunication lines, and powerlines provide communities with vital services, and their functionality is dependent upon the foundation soil that supports them. However, when designing the infrastructure, it can be difficult to know where to test the soil in order to give spatially representative sampling, particularly for long, lifeline structures. Finding this distance requires knowledge of the spatial correlation and/or the spatial variability of the soil parameter (stiffness, cohesion, etc.). But this correlation distance is not typically found in practice because it requires large amounts of data and the costs of retrieving that data can be …

Consumer Complaints And Protection: Stable Analysis And Design Patterns, Vishnu Sai Reddy Gangireddy

Master's Theses

The concept of consumer complaints and protection has numerous applications across various domains. Using traditional methods of modeling design patterns is a tedious and costly task. The Software Stability Mode (SSM) is a more efficient and effective modeling method. In this thesis, the differences between the traditional method and the SSM is addressed. Then, several patterns are developed using the SSM to deal with consumer complaints. Each area, Advice, Appraisal, Commitment, Complaint, Compliance, Deed, Guideline, Gratification, Judgment, Model, Need, Ownership, Promotion, Rate, Review, Selling, Support, View, and Violation, is explored and the core knowledge of the concept of consumer complaints …

An Evaluation Of The Disposition Of R941000, A Tetrazolone-Telmisartan Analog: A Case Study Of The Suitability Of Tetrazolone As A Carboxylic Acid Bioisostere, Ryan Brant Murray

Master's Theses

Carboxylic acids are ubiquitous in medicinal compounds, such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories, statins, hypertensives, and anticoagulants. Despite their prolific use, unfavorable characteristics such as metabolic instability, poor membrane permeability, and toxicity have been associated with this moiety in some instances. Bioisosteres have been employed to attenuate these issues. However, bioisostere use can alter drug potency and disposition. Recently, our company demonstrated the feasibility of the tetrazolone moiety as a carboxylic acid bioisostere for the angiotensin II antagonist telmisartan. R941000 (telmisartan-tetrazolone analog) was a potent in vitro inhibitor of angiotensin II and possessed a similar disposition to telmisartan. To the best of …

A Statistical Model For The Prediction Of Dissolved Oxygen Dynamics And The Potential For Hypoxia In The Mississippi Sound And Bight, Andreas Moshogianis

Master's Theses

Hypoxia events occur when dissolved oxygen concentrations fall below the minimum threshold (dissolved oxygen concentrations < 2 mg O₂ L^-1) necessary to avoid respiratory distress among aquatic organisms. In the Mississippi Sound and Bight, hypoxia is most prevalent from late-spring through late summer. Since hypoxia events can have dramatic effects on coastal fisheries, the spatial and temporal magnitude of hypoxia presents a clear threat to the productive fisheries in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Long-term hydrographic data were collected from eight sampling stations on a monthly basis from January 2009 to December 2011 along a cross-shelf transect from the mouth of …

Open Source Toolkit For Reentry Object Modeling, Christopher Lloyd Ostrom Ii

Master's Theses

Predicting the mass, position, and velocity of an object during its reentry are critical to satisfy NASA and ESA requirements. This thesis outlines a 3-D orbit and mass determination system for use on low earth orbit as applicable to general objects, of various material and size. The solution uses analytical models to calculate heat flux and aerodynamic drag, with some basic numerical models for simple orbit propagation and mass flow rate due to ablation. The system outlined in this thesis currently provides a framework for rough estimates of demise altitude and final mass, but also allows for many potential accuracy …

Three Degree-Of-Freedom Parallel Actuator Telescope Mount, Garrett Daniel Gudgel

Master's Theses

This thesis contains the design, implementation, and testing of an original, small-scaled two degree-of-freedom telescope mount and a medium-scaled three degree-of-freedom telescope mount inspired by the six degree-of-freedom Stewart-Gough platform telescope mount. The end product is intended to achieve research-standard resolution of targeted sky coverage for binary star research. The scaled prototype was carried through concept design, manufacturing, software development, and testing. The mount software development and electronic design is applicable to a full-scale mount as the drivers have been designed to be easily adapted to different actuator configurations. It is recommended that this design be implemented into a telescope …

Production And Harvest Of Microalgae In Wastewater Raceways With Resource Recycling, Alexander Colin Roberts

Master's Theses

Microalgae can be grown on municipal wastewater media to both treat the wastewater and produce feedstock for algae biofuel production. However the reliability of treatment must be demonstrated, as well as high areal algae productivity on recycled wastewater media and efficient sedimentation harvesting. This processes was studied at pilot scale in the present research.

A pilot facility was operated with nine CO₂-supplemented raceway ponds, each with a 33-m² surface area and a 0.3-m depth, continuously from March 6, 2013 through September 24, 2014. The ponds were operated as three sets of triplicates with two sets continuously fed …

Structural Damage Assessment Using Artificial Neural Networks And Artificial Immune Systems, Arthur Q.X. Shi

Master's Theses

Structural health monitoring (SHM) systems have been technologically advancing over the past few years. Improvements in fabrication and microelectronics allow the development of highly sophisticated sensor arrays, capable of detecting and transmitting an unprecedented amount of data. As the complexity of the hardware increases, research has been performed in developing the means to best utilize and effectively process the data. Algorithms from other computational fields are being introduced for the first time into SHM systems. Among them, the artificial neural network (ANN) and artificial immune systems (AIS) show great potential. In this thesis, features are extracted out of the acceleration …

Digestibility Of Two Complete Pelleted Diets By The Horse (Equus Caballus) As A Model Animal For Nondomestic Hindgut Fermenters, Emily M. Schwartz

Master's Theses

Estimating nutrient and energy requirements of exotic animals is a necessary component of nutrition management in zoos and other wildlife facilities. In the absence of species-specific data, domestic animal models are often referenced. Herbivorous hindgut fermenters, such as horses, zebra, and rhinoceros, rely on microbial fermentation in the cecum and colon to utilize dietary structural carbohydrates. The study objective was to measure the digestible energy of two (LOW, HIGH) complete pelleted diets by the horse as a model for nondomestic hindgut fermenters. Seven, individually housed, adult Quarter Horse (Equus caballus) geldings were assigned to one of two diets as 100% …

Automated Multi-Modal Search And Rescue Using Boosted Histogram Of Oriented Gradients, Matthew A. Lienemann

Master's Theses

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) provides a platform for many automated tasks and with an ever increasing advances in computing, these tasks can be more complex. The use of UAVs is expanded in this thesis with the goal of Search and Rescue (SAR), where a UAV can assist fast responders to search for a lost person and relay possible search areas back to SAR teams. To identify a person from an aerial perspective, low-level Histogram of Oriented Gradients (HOG) feature descriptors are used over a segmented region, provided from thermal data, to increase classification speed. This thesis also introduces a dataset …

Sparse Aperture Speckle Interferometry Telescope Active Optics Control System, Matthew Clause

Master's Theses

A conventional large aperture telescope required for binary star research is typically cost prohibitive. A prototype active optics system was created and fitted to a telescope frame using relatively low cost components. The active optics system was capable of tipping, tilting, and elevating the mirrors to align reflected star light. The low cost mirror position actuators have a resolution of 31 nm, repeatable to within 16 nm. This is accurate enough to perform speckle analysis for the visible light spectrum. The mirrors used in testing were not supported with a whiffletree and produced trefoil-like aberrations which made phasing two mirrors …

Cost-Based Decision Making Model For Regional In-House Versus Outsourcing Logistics, Henrik Darren Lee

Master's Theses

This thesis proposes a model for selecting between insourcing logistics for local distribution and outsourcing these functions to a third-party logistics (3PL) company. Supply chain optimization, as well as global supply chain management, are topics that are now well-covered; local distribution, despite its integral function in an organization, is much less researched. Models exist for network design and optimization, but the practical application of these network models may call for decisions and considerations that are not covered in these optimization models.

A breakeven analysis selection model between using in-house logistic system and 3PL is derived, considering various regional parameters. The …

Identifying And Predicting Rat Behavior Using Neural Networks, Jonathan A. Gettner

Master's Theses

The hippocampus is known to play a critical role in episodic memory function. Understanding the relation between electrophysiological activity in a rat hippocampus and rat behavior may be helpful in studying pathological diseases that corrupt electrical signaling in the hippocampus, such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. Additionally, having a method to interpret rat behaviors from neural activity may help in understanding the dynamics of rat neural activity that are associated with certain identified behaviors.

In this thesis, neural networks are used as a black-box model to map electrophysiological data, representative of an ensemble of neurons in the hippocampus, to a T-maze, …

Syneresis And Rheology Mechanisms Of A Latex-Heur Associative Thickener System, Travis Bruno Smith

Master's Theses

Rheology modifiers are used in paints and coatings to ease their application to a surface, prevent sagging once applied, and allow the leveling of brushstrokes, among other benefits. The early rheology modifiers were hydroxyethyl celluloses (HECs), a type of non-associative thickener that is relatively inexpensive and synthesized from cellulose, which is abundant. However, coatings that are modified with HECs tend to suffer from poor leveling and syneresis (phase separation). HECs have since been replaced with associative thickeners (ATs). These thickeners, when properly formulated, produce stable dispersions that have improved rheological properties, yet, unlike HECs, are sensitive to changes to the …

Looking Backward, Moving Forward: The Experiences Of Indo-Fijian Immigrant Women In California, Ambrita Nand

Master's Theses

This study helps address gaps in knowledge concerning the lives of Indo-Fijian immigrant women in California and offers a space for their voices to be heard. The subsequent chapters investigate the lives of five Indo-Fijian immigrant women and their experiences upon migrating to Modesto, California. Using a qualitative research approach, data were collected through participant observations, semi-structured in-depth interviews and informal conversations. The data are presented as anthropological silhouettes, a form of life-writing (the recording of events and experiences of a life), which explores each individual woman’s experience with life in Fiji to her eventual migration and transition to life …

Design Of An Attitude Control System For Spin-Axis Control Of A 3u Cubesat, Alexander Joseph Westfall

Master's Theses

This paper describes the design process of developing a spin-axis control system for a 3U CubeSat, a relatively small satellite. Design requires the CubeSat to de-spin after deployment and direct its antenna to track Earth nadir position. The one degree of freedom controller is developed for the TechEdSat, which is a CubeSat with a payload that allows for the assumption that rotation pitch and yaw rates are sufficiently close to zero. Satellite torqueing disturbances are modeled with reaction wheel noise for a more complete system analysis. Sensor noise is unmodeled. Frequency domain and time domain analyses are presented; the entire …