Digital Commons Network^™

Synthesis Of Dual Rod-Coil Brush Polymers And Their Solution Properties, Xixian Ye

Master's Theses

Dual rod-coil brush copolymer [Polynorbornene-graft-Poly(3-hexylthiophene)]-block-[polynorbornene-graft-Poly(ethylene oxide)] [(PNB-g-P3HT)-b-(PNB-g-PEO)] (P3HT-PEO) was synthesized via Grignard Method, click chemistry and Ring Opening Metathesis Polymerization to observe nanostructures. However, due to the unknown reason, early degradation was occurred disabling formation of architectures in the melts. Unique hollow nanoband was observed in DCM and Methanol solution, which may result from a coeffect of π-conjugated aggregation and microphase separation. And a clear transition between J- and H- aggregation occurs when changing solution mixtures in dual brush copolymer system.

Mechanical Behavior Of Hybrid Glass/Steel Reinforced Epoxy Composites, Amanda Mcbride

Master's Theses

Our nation’s deteriorating infrastructure demonstrates the need for a new class of multifunctional materials that alleviate the shortcomings of traditional materials. Conventional fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) composites have served as an alternative material in civil structures for the past three decades. They offer high strength and stiffness, low weight, and corrosion resistance, however, lack ductility and the ability to absorb energy before failure.

To address these shortcomings for structural composites, research was conducted to investigate the capabilities of fiber hybridization. Varying volume fractions of thin steel reinforcement were introduced into typical glass fiber reinforced epoxy composites. This hybrid FRP may address …

Financial Development And Growth In India, Anek Grewal

Master's Theses

In this paper I look to analyze whether bank loans have the ability to promote productivity for firms and also whether banks are more effective relative to other sources of lending such as the government. Using a panel dataset of 26,000 firms over the time period 1997-2014 I carry out multiple two-time period lagged OLS regressions with proxy variables for firm productivity as well as some control variables to observe the differences for bank against non-bank loans. The results yielded illustrate that non-bank loans did not have a positive relationship and that perhaps there is some form of zombie lending …

Increased Delta As A Compensatory Strategy During Working Memory In High-Performing Patients With Schizophrenia, Faith Steffen-Allen

Master's Theses

Working memory (WM) impairment is a core cognitive deficit in schizophrenia and has been linked to dysfunction in the gamma, alpha, and theta bands. However, successful WM performance in high-performing patients is less well characterized. This study aims to investigate modulation of the EEG signal during successful WM performance in schizophrenia and to examine how that modulation differs from controls.

Patients with schizophrenia (n=7) and controls (n=9) had scalp EEG recorded during a modified Sternberg WM task with two difficulty levels. The task was subdivided into four stages (pre-trial baseline, encoding, retention, and probe). Task-induced amplitudes were computed for the …

The Effects Of Ion Substitution On Perovskite Film Degradation In Controlled Humidity Environments, Eric David Grulke

Master's Theses

The demand for clean, renewable energy grows constantly as time progresses and harvesting solar energy has been identified as one of the key pieces in solving this puzzle. Through ambipolar diffusion and high absorption characteristics, perovskite based solar cells have seen a large jump in device efficiency over a short amount of time. Perovskite cells are also appealing due to their low cost and ease of manufacturing, with the potential of competing with silicon based solar cells in the future. However, stability issues due to environmental factors, such as reactivity to atmospheric moisture, have plagued perovskites. These issues often lead …

The 2013 Boston Marathon Attacks: An Experimental Investigation Of Worldview Change Following Film Re-Exposure To Mass Trauma, Ian A. Gutierrez

Master's Theses

Models of meaning making and post-traumatic growth contend that traumatic events are catalysts for significant and long-lasting change in a person’s worldview—that is, their beliefs about social, metaphysical, theological, and political reality. Nearly all tests of this contention have employed retrospective and cross-sectional methods. However, the limitations inherent in these designs preclude causal conclusions. The current study represents the first longitudinal, laboratory-based experimental examination of belief change following trauma exposure using the trauma film paradigm. Findings reveal that the trauma film paradigm can successfully induce posttraumatic affective responses with live news coverage of a mass trauma (i.e., the 2013 Boston …

Study Of Rehydration Properties Of Powder Produced From Chelated Skim Milk, Kristina Ellice Tan

Master's Theses

Poor rehydration properties of skim milk powder (SMP) can impact processing efficiency and functionality in finished product applications. Rehydration can be split into four stages: wettability, sinkability, dispersibility, and solubility. Previous work has suggested that chelator addition during SMP manufacture leads to higher solubility compared to SMP without chelators. This study focuses on the addition of ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA) or sodium citrate dihydrate (SCD) at concentrations of 5, 10, and 15 mM to skim milk prior to evaporating and spray drying. The objective of this investigation was to determine the effects of the chelator additions on each SMP …

Superalloy Metallurgy A Gleeble Study Of Environmental Fracture In Inconel 601, Alan C. Demmons

Master's Theses

At temperatures above 0.5 Tm and in aggressive atmospheres predicting alloy performance is particularly challenging. Nickel alloys used in regimes where microstructure and properties are altered dynamically present unique requirements. Exposure may alter properties with unexpected early failure. The Gleeble is a valuable tool for investigation and simulation of thermo-mechanical properties of an alloy in various regimes up to the threshold of melting. In this study, four regimes of temperature and strain rate were simulated in an argon atmosphere to both investigate and document normal and abnormal failure modes. Commercial Inconel 601 was tested in selected regimes and in two …

The Impact Of A Smarter Lunchrooms Makeover On Children's Food Choice And Consumption, Polina Zhuzhina

Master's Theses

Childhood obesity has tripled over the past three decades and poses a serious public health problem. The Smarter Lunchrooms Movement aims to increase healthy eating by incorporating low-cost to no-cost alterations to the school lunchroom in an effort to increase consumption of healthier foods, such as fruits and vegetables, by making them more attractive and convenient.

Our study implemented Smarter Lunchrooms interventions at two primarily Hispanic elementary schools in Paso Robles, CA. The interventions focused on increasing the appeal of the salad bars, including installation of age-appropriate signage highlighting fruits and vegetables, as well as branding of fruits and vegetables …

The Use Of Lactic Acid Bacteria To Control The Growth Of Foodborne Pathogens On Fresh-Cut Fruits And Sprout Vegetables, Franca Gabriela Rossi

Master's Theses

Growing consumer awareness of the health benefits associated with fruits and vegetables and demand for easy to prepare products has prompted the development of a wide variety of minimally processed fruits and vegetables. Minimally processed fruits and vegetables are often peeled, cut, or diced which compromise the produces’ natural protective barriers, exposing a nutrient rich medium and providing an ideal environment for the growth of microorganisms, including foodborne pathogens. The germination conditions of sprout vegetables consisting of relatively high temperatures and humidity, low light and abundance of nutrients are also conducive to the proliferation of foodborne pathogens. Recent outbreaks and …

Subsystem Failure Analysis Within The Horizon Simulation Framework, Ian M. Lunsford

Master's Theses

System design is an inherently expensive and time consuming process. Engineers are constantly tasked to investigate new solutions for various programs. Model-based systems engineering (MBSE) is an up and coming successful method used to reduce the time spent during the design process. By utilizing simulations, model-based systems engineering can verify high-level system requirements quickly and at low cost early in the design process. The Horizon Simulation Framework, or HSF, provides the capability of simulating a system and verifying the system performance. This paper outlines an improvement to the Horizon Simulation Framework by providing information to the user regarding schedule failures …

An Investigation Into The Use Of Polymer Bound Boronic Acid For Glucose Detection In Paper Based Microfluidic Devices, Spencer A. Schultz

Master's Theses

Paper Based Microfluidic Devices (microPADs) are a new platform for point-of-care diagnostic assays for use in resource-limited settings. These devices rely typically on enzymatic assays to produce their results, which makes them susceptible to degradation when exposed to extreme environmental conditions such as high temperature. In order to overcome this limitation, this research project focused on investigating the use of polymers instead of enzymes to detect analytes on microPADs.

Polymer-bound boronic acid, a glucose and pH sensitive polymer, was incorporated into microPADs in order to develop a chronometric, paper-based glucose assay. The polymer was tested with both lateral and vertical …

Design And Testing Of A Novel Adhesion And Locomotion Method For Wall Climbing Vehicles, Jim R. Stefani

Master's Theses

The objective of this project was to design, construct and test a wall climbing vehicle which uses a novel vacuum tread system for both adhesion and locomotion. The design and manufacturing of this proof of concept vehicle is detailed with particular emphasis on the design decisions that proved most impactful to the performance of both the vehicle and the tread system. Adhesion performance was characterized by a series of tests that validate the concept, but also identify improvements and design recommendations for future embodiments of the adhesion/locomotion system.

Policy & Privilege In Photovoltaics: A Community Level Analysis In San Diego County, Rose M. Kelly

Master's Theses

This research investigates the demographic and local government permit characteristics of communities with high levels of solar adoption in the San Diego Region. Utilizing a statistical model, this research illustrates which communities have been able to benefit from the current solar incentive programs in a robust market with an abundant solar resource. In San Diego, zip codes with large proportions of people over 65 have the highest correlation with high levels of residential solar adoption. This potentially illustrates that the life changes associated with retiring, including accumulated wealth, stable homeownership, and a fixed income, make residential solar systems accessible and …

Complex Filters As As A Cascade Of Of Buffered Gingell Structures: Design From From Band-Stop Constraints, Samuel Robert Johnston

Master's Theses

This thesis presents an active Complex Filter implementation that that creates a transfer function with with a single real pole and a complex zero. The two-input/two-output network developed in in this thesis responds differently based upon upon the relative phase difference of of the two inputs. If a negative ninety-degree phase difference occurs between the two inputs, the filter will exhibits a bandstop response. While a positive ninety-degree phase difference exhibits a bandpass response. This topology is relatesd to to Gingell’s RC-CR polyphase topology but because of of the use of of op-amps, can be cascadedd without without suffering loading …

Evaluating The Myth Of Allelopathy In California Blue Gum Plantations, Kristen Marie Nelson

Master's Theses

It is widely accepted that allelopathy is not only significant, but more or less singular, in the inhibition of understory vegetation in California Eucalyptus globulus (blue gum) plantations. However, there is no published documentation of allelopathy by blue gums against California native species. Here, we present evidence that germination and early seedling growth of five California native species are not inhibited by chemical extracts of blue gum foliage, either at naturally-occurring or artificially concentrated levels. In the greenhouse, seeds were germinated in field-collected soil from mature blue gum plantations and the adjacent native, coastal scrub communities. In petri plates, seeds …

Regrowth Of Chlorella Sorokiniana On Recycled Media With Replenished Nutrients, William H. Spence

Master's Theses

Growth media recycling during algae cultivation is necessary to increase the efficiency and reduce the cost of biofuel production from algae feedstocks. Without recycling media, the cost of algae based biofuel production would be prohibitively high and large scale algae based biofuel production would not be economically viable. The ratio of media recycled to media wasted assumed for algae farms is generally calculated to maintain salt concentrations below growth inhibitory levels, ignoring the influence of secondary metabolites which might decrease productivity. Secondary metabolites, which include allelopathic or auto-inhibitory biological contaminants, might lead to the accumulation of growth-inhibiting compounds in recycled …

Influence Of Chelating Agents On Proteolysis Of Micellar Casein Slurries, Azucena Becerril Diez

Master's Theses

ABSTRACT

Influence of chelating agents on proteolysis

of micellar casein slurries

Azucena Becerril Díez

The focus of this research was to analyze the effect of Ca chelators on the proteolytic activity of rennet during ripening of a micellar casein slurry. This research was divided in two phases. During the first phase, preliminary studies were performed to understand the behavior of rennet and the milk system in the presence of chelating agents. A solution of reconstituted skim milk at 10% (w/v) was prepared. Individual samples of this solution were divided in two study groups, samples with chelators and rennet and samples …

Arc Fault Circuit Interrupter Development For Residential Dc Electricity, Cassidy Alan Aarstad

Master's Theses

The following technical report describes the development and testing of an arc fault circuit interrupter (AFCI) for DC circuits operating primarily at 48 volts. We have identified an effective method for determining when arcing is occurring. Our method is primarily based on comparing the frequency spectrum of current flowing through the circuit during an arcing event to a known characteristic spectrum. Once an arc has been identified, our interrupter is capable of responding adequately to eliminate the arc. Hardware tests show the AFCI developed in this thesis responded, in all test cases, within 2 seconds of an arc fault occurrence. …

Ncma Groundwater Model Using Usgs Modflow-2005/Pest, Brian Matthew Wallace

Master's Theses

A numerical model for the NCMA aquifer complex is presented. The objective of the study is to develop a numerical groundwater model for the NCMA aquifer system to enhance the understanding of subsurface groundwater flow. Infiltration, streamflow, pumping, and return flows are implemented to characterize the aquifer complex over time. The numerical model is calibrated to municipal and monitoring well data, average monthly water balances, and hydraulic contours. Transient aquifer inflows and outflows are assessed in the results of the study and are compared to balance terms from previous studies. The 2007 Todd Engineers Study subsurface inflows and outflows generate …

Astro – A Low-Cost, Low-Power Cluster For Cpu-Gpu Hybrid Computing Using The Jetson Tk1, Sean Kai Sheen

Master's Theses

With the rising costs of large scale distributed systems many researchers have began looking at utilizing low power architectures for clusters. In this paper, we describe our Astro cluster, which consists of 46 NVIDIA Jetson TK1 nodes each equipped with an ARM Cortex A15 CPU, 192 core Kepler GPU, 2 GB of RAM, and 16 GB of flash storage. The cluster has a number of advantages when compared to conventional clusters including lower power usage, ambient cooling, shared memory between the CPU and GPU, and affordability. The cluster is built using commodity hardware and can be setup for relatively low …

The Effects Of Latency On 3d Interactive Data Visualizations, Allen Korenevsky

Master's Theses

Interactive data visualizations must respond fluidly to user input to be effective, or so we assume. In fact it is unknown exactly how fast a visualization must run to present every facet within a dataset. An engineering team with limited resources is left with intuition and estimates to determine if their application performs sufficiently well.

This thesis studies how latency affects users' comprehension of data visualizations, specifically 3D geospatial visualizations with large data sets. Subjects used a climate visualization showing temperatures spanning from the 19th to the 21st century to answer multiple choice questions. Metrics like their eye movements, time …

Concatenative Synthesis For Novel Timbral Creation, James Eric Bilous

Master's Theses

Modern day musicians rely on a variety of instruments for musical expression. Tones produced from electronic instruments have become almost as commonplace as those produced by traditional ones as evidenced by the plethora of artists who can be found composing and performing with nothing more than a personal computer. This desire to embrace technical innovation as a means to augment performance art has created a budding field in computer science that explores the creation and manipulation of sound for artistic purposes. One facet of this new frontier concerns timbral creation, or the development of new sounds with unique characteristics that …

Automating Self Evaluations For Software Engineers, Jonathan Rodrigo A. Miranda

Master's Theses

Software engineers frequently compose self-evaluations as part of employee perfor- mance reviews. These evaluations can be a key artifact for assessing a software engineer’s contributions to a team and organization, and for generating useful feed- back. Self-evaluations can be challenging because a) they can be time consuming, b) individuals may forget about important contributions especially when the review period is long such as a full year, c) some individuals can consciously or unconsciously overstate their contributions, and d) some individuals can be reluctant to describe their contributions for fear of appearing too proud [24].

UNBIASED, Useful New Basic Interactive Automated …

Bim And Communication: Implementation Of Building Information Modeling Into An Integrated Project Delivery Contract To Encourage Project Teams To Communicate, Kathleen Worden

Master's Theses

The objective of this thesis is to explore BIM, IPD and their implementation into a building project contract. The Integrated Delivery Processes is comprised of a collaborative team of Designers, Constructors, and Owners working side by side to create a successful project. BIM has been introduced as a technology into the industry, as a tool that these parties can use for better understanding the project.

Through case studies of IPD projects using BIM are observed, it was determined that although BIM was used, one problem faced is the lack of BIM standards included initially in a contract for in an …

Design Of An Integrated Acceleration Acquisition Subsystem To Satisfy High-Speed And Low-Area Requirements For Cubesats, Ryan J. Rumsey

Master's Theses

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo’s PolySat team is designing the Multipurpose Orbital Spring Ejection System (MOSES) in order to record acceleration data during the launch of CubeSats as well as to provide GPS coordinates to locate the position of CubeSats once they are injected into orbit. This work focuses on the design and development of the acceleration data acquisition (DAQ) subsystem of MOSES. This subsystem is designed around the need for a high-speed sampling system of at least 200 kHz across four channels of data, plus low-area limitations in the MOSES form factor which is roughly half the size of …

Pianote: A Sight-Reading Program That Algorithmically Generates Music Based On Human Performance, Drew Schulz

Master's Theses

Sight-reading is the act of performing a piece of music at first sight. This can be a difficult task to master, because it requires extensive knowledge of music theory, practice, quick thinking, and most importantly, a wide variety of musical material. A musician can only effectively sight-read with a new piece of music. This not only requires many resources, but also musical pieces that are challenging while also within a player's abilities.

This thesis presents PiaNote, a sight-reading web application for pianists that algorithmically generates music based on human performance. PiaNote's goal is to alleviate some of the hassles pianists …

Anex: Automated Network Exploitation Through Penetration Testing, Eric Francis Dazet

Master's Theses

Cyber attacks are a growing concern in our modern world, making security evaluation a critical venture. Penetration testing, the process of attempting to compromise a computer network with controlled tests, is a proven method of evaluating a system's security measures. However, penetration tests, and preventive security analysis in general, require considerable investments in money, time, and labor, which can cause them to be overlooked. Alternatively, automated penetration testing programs are used to conduct a security evaluation with less user effort, lower cost, and in a shorter period of time than manual penetration tests. The trade-off is that automated penetration testing …

Graph-Based Data Visualization In Virtual Reality: A Comparison Of User Experiences, Paul Andrew Sullivan

Master's Theses

Virtual reality is currently in the spotlight, attracting intense scrutiny by the press, technology companies, and consumers. After twenty years of dormancy, the technology has experienced a renaissance following advancements in both hardware and software. Most of these developments, and thus press attention, have been centered on entertainment. However, if the technology is going to continue to grow, it must be useful in a wide variety of situations. This paper explores the effectiveness of visualizing data in virtual reality in comparison to traditional presentations.

In this thesis, we present an approach to displaying data in a virtual reality environment. We …

Investigating Novel Approaches For The Integrated Control Of The Soilborne Strawberry Pathogens Macrophomina Phaseolina And Fusarium Oxysporum F. Sp. Fragariae, Mel Carter

Master's Theses

Macrophomina phaseolina (Mp) and Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. fragariae (Fof) are emerging soilborne pathogens causing crown rot and Fusarium wilt, respectively, in commercial strawberry production in California. Fungicides representing eight active ingredients from four different mode of action groups (FRAC groups 1, 3, 7 and 12) were evaluated for their efficacy against each pathogen in vitro and each disease in planta. Fungicide active ingredients were evaluated for their ability to inhibit mycelial growth of both pathogens in vitro. Half-strength potato dextrose agar was amended with six different concentrations (0.01, 0.1, 1.0, 5.0, 10, 50 µg …