Digital Commons Network^™

Agile Modeling, Agile Software Development, And Extreme Programming: The State Of Research, John Erickson, Kalle Lyytinen, Keng Siau

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

While there are many claims for the successful use of extreme programming (XP) and agile modeling (AM), and the proponents can often be vocal in the extreme regarding their supposed benefits, research evidence supporting proponents' claims is somewhat lacking. Currently, the only research appearing to investigate the phenomena consists of two prominent streams. A small number of case studies and experience reports that generally promote the success of XP in various development environments, and a well-established stream of research into pair programming has generated results that in part support the idea of XP. Research into AM appears to be even …

Informal Animation Sketching With K-Sketch, Richard C. Davis

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Animation is a powerful medium that is accessible to few, because current animation tools are extremely complex. This complexity arises partially from current tools’ focus on precise, often unnecessary details and partially from the difficulty of finding a small but sufficiently powerful set of tool features. We are designing K-Sketch, an informal 2D animation tool that uses sketching and demonstration to radically reduce the time needed to create an animation. Our field studies investigating the needs of current anima-tion tool users and would-be users are helping us to mini-mize complexity by showing us how to prioritize the many possible tool …

Nil Is Not Nothing: Recognition Of Chinese Network Informal Language Expressions, Yunqing Xia, Kam-Fai Wong, Wei Gao

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Informal language is actively used in network-mediated communication, e.g. chat room, BBS, email and text message. We refer the anomalous terms used in such context as network informal language (NIL) expressions. For example, “஧(ou3)” is used to replace “ᚒ(wo3)” in Chinese ICQ. Without unconventional resource, knowledge and techniques, the existing natural language processing approaches exhibit less effectiveness in dealing with NIL text. We propose to study NIL expressions with a NIL corpus and investigate techniques in processing NIL expressions. Two methods for Chinese NIL expression recognition are designed in NILER system. The experimental results show that pattern matching method produces …

Comparative Effectiveness Of Total Population Versus Disease-Specific Neural Network Models In Predicting Medical Costs, Albert G. Crawford, Joseph P. Fuhr Jr., Janice Clarke, Brandon Hubbs

College of Population Health Faculty Papers

The objective of this research was to compare the accuracy of two types of neural networks in identifying individuals at risk for high medical costs for three chronic conditions. Two neural network models—a population model and three disease-specific models—were compared regarding effectiveness predicting high costs. Subjects included 33,908 health plan members with diabetes, 19,264 with asthma, and 2,605 with cardiac conditions. For model development/testing, only members with 24 months of continuous enrollment were included. Models were developed to predict probability of high costs in 2000 (top 15% of distribution) based on 1999 claims factors. After validation, models were applied to …

Faculty Tenure Report, Fall 2005, University Of Northern Iowa. Office Of Institutional Research.

Institutional Effectiveness & Planning Documents

Statistical report showing the number of faculty that are tenured, on the tenure track, or not on the tenure track, broken down by college, department, gender, minority status, and if full or part time.

Uni Schedule Of Classes, Fall 2005, University Of Northern Iowa

UNI Schedule of Classes

A listing and schedule of the courses being taught as well as policies and procedures concerning attending classes at the University of Northern Iowa.

I, Robot: You Gotta Have Heart, Richard C. Trussell

Journal of Religion & Film

I Robot is a rousing sci-fi action story which explores Artificial Intelligence and its consequences. Deep philosophical themes abound, such as existential crisis and identity-defining choice, the nature of personhood, purpose in life, cognition and mental interpretive structures, faith vs. reason, divine command theory, and freedom vs. determinism. It also brims with biblical symbolism, including the fall, messianic figures, the exodus from bondage, theophany, ambiguity of the feminine, sacrificial death and the trinity. Finally it is about personal and collective redemption, making a clear statement about the heart and emotions as the seat of will, faith, and morality.

The Finding Of Echinostoma (Trematoda: Digenea) And Hookworm Eggs In Coprolites Collected From A Brazilian Mummified Body Dated 600–1,200 Years Before Present, L. Sianto, Karl J. Reinhard, M. Chame, S. Chaves, S. Mendonça, M. L. C. Gonçalves, A. Fernandes, L. F. Ferreira, A. Araújo

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

The identification of parasites from ancient cultures expands our list of parasites infective to extant humans. A partially mummified human body from the archeological site of Lapa do Boquete, Minas Gerais State, Brazil, was recently discovered. It was interred between 600 and 1,200 yr ago. Dietary analysis showed that the mummified body was from a society that had a mixed subsistence of agriculture and gathering of wild foods. Coprolites from the body contained numerous helminth eggs. The eggs were identified as those of Echinostoma sp. and hookworm. Hookworm infection in pre-Columbian populations is already established, but this is the first …

Gauss-Hermite Integration For Reliability Calculation And Sensitivity Analysis, Nilesh K. Borade

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

In the real world, many applications are subjected to uncertainty. A simple illustration would be a structure like a bridge where magnitude and the speed of the loads acting on it are continuously changing. Therefore it becomes essential to study this stochastic or random nature. The thrust of this research is to develop an efficient reliability and sensitivity technique based on stochastic response surfaces (polynomial chaos expansions) constructed using Gauss-Hermite integration. The focus is on calculating the uncertainty propagation using less number of function evaluations since the stochastic response surface needs to be reconstructed at each design cycle. Using the …

Contemporary-Classical Sequential Loop Design With Parameter Uncertainty, Donghyuk Jeong

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Standard sequential loop closure design based on Evans root migration concepts is a well accepted, insightful and effective technique for meeting nominal performance objectives and traditional gain-phase stability margin requirements. Unfortunately, assessment of closed-loop variations resulting from parameter error is a post-process, implying an undesirable design-assess-redesign procedure is necessary if variations are found unacceptable. Further, the modem parameter uncertainty assessment framework is often inconsistent, both quantitatively and qualitatively, with the redesign task. Specifically, the parameter uncertainty assessment variables are not readily apparent in the sequential loop design framework, and these variables provide little guidance for the redesign strategy. Therefore, enhancing …

An Analysis Of A Finite Element Human Brain In Low Speed Rear Impact Automobile Collision Comparison, Model Development And Study Using Tno Rear Impact Dummy, Mangesh S. Kadam

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

According to the National Safety Council, rear-end collisions are the most common types of collisions with approximately two and a half million cases reported every year. Crash tests indicate a change of vehicle velocity of 4km/h (2.5 mph) may produce occupant symptoms. Vehicle damage may not occur until 14-15km/h (8.7 mph) (Davis CG, 1998). Occupants, in rear-end vehicle impacts sustain a motion associated with whiplash, where the head snaps backwards quickly, resulting in linear and/or angular acceleration forces acting on the brain. This angular motion tends to subject the brain to shear deformations from rapid rotation. This study is a …

Development And Application Of A Gg-Irms Reductive Pyrolysis Reactor Interface For The Δ34S Determination Of Sulfur In Individual Organic Compounds, N. Deborah Hewlett

Chemistry & Biochemistry Theses & Dissertations

The incorporation of sulfur into sedimentary organic matter is an important aspect of organic carbon preservation. A better understanding of the sulfur cycle and the formation of organo-sulfur compounds are necessary if we are to better understand the interaction of biogeochemical cycles of C, N, O, H. and S. Currently, the determination of ³⁴S/³²S in organic matter is limited to bulk organic samples. The sulfur isotopic analysis of individual organo-sulfur compounds within the sediments should allow for a more complete understanding of the sulfur cycle and the processes which lead to sulfur incorporation into organic matter. This …

Sonic Boom Prediction Using Euler/Full Potential Methodology, Isik Ali Ozcer

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Sonic Booms of two different bodies, a double cone configuration and a modified F-SE aircraft, are predicted using Euler solvers for the near field, and a Full Potential Propagation method for the far field. The problem is considered inviscid since viscous effects in high Reynolds number flows are negligible in Sonic Boom propagation. To enhance the accuracy of the predictions, elaborate shock fitting and grid adaptation routines are developed that can handle complicated shock topologies. The far field propagation code using the full potential equation is the first three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics code in literature that can march the solution …

Validation Of Finite Element Beam Models, Pavan R. Madhineni

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Finite Element (FE) methods these days are becoming very popular to predict the responses of structures in industries, such as the aerospace and automobile industries. When there is a new design or modification of an existing design, the product must be tested to fulfill the criterion projected by the industry or external agencies before it can be launched. The product must be checked for each and every aspect, and every minute detail of each of the external forces. Hence, it becomes very important to carry out the model validation on the product.

This thesis describes validation of finite element (FE) …

Shape And Size Sensitivity Analysis Of Geometrically Nonlinear Laminated Composite Plates, Nitin R. Mane

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Since major applications of composite laminates involve large deformation, the nonlinear strain-displacement relation in the Von Karman sense has been incorporated here with the first order shear deformation to study bending analysis of composite laminated panels. The finite element model constructed here is an extension of the MIN3 element which is a displacement based element developed by Hughes and Tessler. The element avoids shear locking in the thin bending regime and achieves computational efficiency. The resultant nonlinear matrix equation is solved for analysis of composite panels by using the Newton-Raphson iterative method. Based upon the nonlinear matrix equation, the shape …

Complexity Measure Of A Product Or Process By Application Of Fuzzy Multi-Attribute Utility Theory, Shrikant Chandrakant Nagpure

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

During the early phases of design, the development cost of complex products or systems is very difficult to obtain because of the uncertainties related to their work breakdown structures and the wide choice of manufacturing technologies with no historical data specific to these products. This thesis presents a method to derive a complexity index to capture the non-additive property and inherent uncertainty, i.e. fuzziness, of the technologies that could be used for complex objects. This complexity index can then be used as a cost index for comparing various candidate manufacturing processes.

Macros are written in Microsoft Excel to establish a …

New Methodology For Robust Control System Design And Analysis For Single Parameter Uncertain Systems, Charles J. Player

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Due to the conservative nature of the standard singular value robustness tests there is ambiguity in the results that they provide. The tests only establish a sufficient condition and therefore provide little insight to the stability robustness of a system that fails the test. However, for a single parameter uncertain system that is modeled using structured uncertainty, an Evans root locus can be derived that shows how system closed-loop poles change with the magnitude of the single parameter uncertainty. This technique provides clear stability robustness insight. Further, another Evans root locus can be derived that shows how system closed-loop zeros …

Computational Analysis And Validation Of The Hans Head And Neck Support, Kapil Tyagi

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

One of the major causes of racing fatalities is basilar skull fracture from excessive head motions and neck loading in a frontal impact. There are many head/neck restraints available in the market but HANS head and neck support has proved to be the most efficient one in sled testing. This paper evaluates and compares the performance of the HANS device in MAthematical DYnamic MOdel (MADYMO) software with the sled testing. The tests were conducted for the frontal impact motions, with a crash pulse of 45 G's.

The goal of the tests was to evaluate the performance of HANS without the …

Pascal Was No Fideist, David J. Baggett

SOR Faculty Publications and Presentations

No abstract provided.

Fourier Transform Analysis Of Terahertz Radiation, Chikaodira N. Okpo

Electrical & Computer Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Advances in terahertz radiation (T-rays) technology have great promise in various technological areas ranging from medical technology, imaging technology and accelerator technology. At Thomas Jefferson Laboratory, the Free Electron Laser division (FEL) produces very powerful beam of laser light by accelerating electrons in bunches along a beamline. This laser light absorbs and releases energy at various wavelengths. The new FEL upgrade led to the production of very bright terahertz (THz) radiation with an average power of 1 00watts which is about 100,000 times brighter than those produced elsewhere. These T-rays have very significant applications in the Laboratory. The most significant …

Ozone Concentration In An Atmospheric Pressure Air Plasma Jet, Srinivas Reddy Suddala

Electrical & Computer Engineering Theses & Dissertations

A stable micro-plasma jet in air was generated from a direct current discharge between two molybdenum electrodes (0.25 mm thick) that were separated by an alumina insulator of the same thickness. The after-glow plasma jet was generated by blowing air through the space between the electrodes. A change from laminar to turbulent flow was observed at a gas flow rate of 140 ml/min. The length of the plasma jet increased with flow rate in the laminar mode to approximately 15 mm and decreased in the turbulent mode.

Increasing the gas flow rate up to 200 ml/min at a constant discharge …

Avoid Cold: A Brief Look At Tibetan Medical Practice And Ideals Compared To Modern Allopathic Medical Treatment Through A Study And Analysis Of The Essential Tremor, Graham Brant-Zawadzki

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

For hundreds of years, western science understood the material world as a set of individual objects assembled into an impossibly large and complex machine. This mechanistic ideology, dubbed reductionism, finds its roots in the mathematical theories of Newton, the philosophy of Descartes, and the methodological approaches proposed by Francis Bacon. The culmination of these ideologies lead to the belief that all complex systems could be understood and ultimately mastered by reducing them to their basic elements. Some texts, including Fritjof Capra's The Turning Point argue that once classical physicists established this type of thought, the other sciences, including medicine, simply …

Drowning Shangrila: Balancing Environmental Protection With Development In China, Tessa A. Vennell

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

No abstract provided.

The Role Of Tibetan Buddhism And Culture In Sustainable Development (A Case Study Of Yubeng Village), Frazer Lanier

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

During a lecture by Li Bo, of CBIK (the Center for Biodiversity and Indigenous Knowledge a Chinese NGO), I was given a glimpse into the role that culture plays within poverty alleviation and environmental conservation. While poverty alleviation aims to develop community economies, this goal is usually seen as being in conflict with environmental conservation because it requires the use of environmental resources. This is a common misperception. According to Gou Jing’s article Gateway between Culture and Nature， “man’s touch bestows nature with culture” (Guo Jing 12). The interaction between nature and humans is the foundation for culture and the …

Coral Reef Tourism And Conservation In Bocas Del Toro: An Analysis Of Ecotourism And Its Tour Guide-Based Components, Rebecca Kayes

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Tourism of the coral reefs in Bocas del Toro is an important economic activity but also potentially harmful to the environment, creating an ecologically and economically unsustainable situation and doubts that the region engages in “ecotourism.” Coral reef tourism was analyzed with a specific emphasis on tours, tour guides, tourist motivations, tourist education and conservation-related activities. Research methods included participant observation in the tourism world in Bocas, interviews with guides, tourists and community members, and a tourist survey. Though local popular opinion disagrees, data collected shows tourism in Bocas does not emphasize reefs or reef conservation, a potentially catastrophic situation …

The Survival Of The Central American Squirrel Monkey (Saimiri Oerstedi): The Habitat And Behavior Of A Troop On The Burica Peninsula In A Conservation Context, Liana Burghardt

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The conservation status of Central American Squirrel monkeys (Saimiri oerstedi) on the far southern coast of Peninsula Burica in Panama was assessed over the course of a 13 day study period. Four troops of squirrel monkeys (67 individuals) were located on the southern coast of Peninsula Burica. Using information from local sources it can be estimated that up to 7 troops (157 individuals) live in the 7-8 km2 study site. These troops are sharing an estimated 80 ha of habitat which compared to past studies is a fairly low amount of habitat.

One troop of squirrel monkeys which is fed …

Periodismo Medioambiental, Peter Weisberg

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

INTAG is a community run, environmental newspaper that serves the county of Intag on the western slopes of the Andes in northern Ecuador. For the month of November 2005, I worked for the newspaper, writing articles and researching ways in which the paper can increase communication among different organizations that formed over the last eleven years of resistance to proposed mining. After interviewing eleven community leaders, I conclude that the paper can 1) do more to elicit the participation of groups that are currently inactive and 2) maintain its ecological position while gaining credibility by constructively criticizing the anti-mining community …

¿Qué Vale Más: El Agua O El Oro? Las Implicaciones De Y Reacciones Al Proyecto Minero Pascua Lama, Leni Wolf

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The mining project Pascua Lama has attracted much attention for a variety of reasons. First and foremost, the location of the project is such that any type of environmental problems, whether it be contamination of the water or destruction of the masses of ice that lie in the project zone, could have detrimental affects on the entire valley and the 70,000 people who live there. However, there are many other important aspects of the project, such as the question of economic growth, the process of citizen participation in its evaluation, and the relations among the various actors involved and affected …

Análisis Del Desarrollo Sustentable En La Industria Del Salmón En Chile, Theresa Mohin

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The focus of this independent study project is sustainable development, in the context of the Chilean salmon industry. The project centers on the environmental impacts of the salmon business, from its introduction as a fledgling industry in the eighties, to its arrival as one of the most important exporting markets in the Chilean economy. The discussion focuses on the economic history of the salmon industry, its environmental consequences, and the role of the government in environmental regulation, to discover whether or not current environmental programs in place are in fact sustainable. I conclude that while the efforts of the Chilean …

Sub-Femtosecond Correlated Dynamics Explored With Antiprotons, J. Ullrich, A. Dorn, Daniel Fischer, R. Moshammer, B. Najjari, Michael Schulz, A. B. Voitkiv, C. P. Welsch

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

Ionizing collisions of antiprotons with atoms or molecules at energies between a few keV up to about one MeV provide a unique tool to explore correlated dynamics of electrons at large perturbations on a time scale between several femtoseconds (1 fs = 10^-15 s) down to some tens of attoseconds (1 as = 10^-18 s). Exploiting and developing many-particle imaging methods - Reaction-Microscopes - integrated into a novel ultra-low energy storage ring (USR) for slow antiprotons will enable to access for the first time fully differential cross sections for single and multiple ionization in such collisions. Moreover, the …