Digital Commons Network^™

A Formal Process For The Testing Of Servers, Scott Hancock

Theses

Not provided.

Detection Of Deformable Objects In A Non-Stationary Scene, Sherif Azary

Theses

Image registration is the process of determining a mapping between points of interest on separate images to achieve a correspondence. This is a fundamental area of many problems in computer vision including object recognition and motion tracking. This research focuses on applying image registration to identify differences between frames in non-stationary video scenes for the purpose of motion tracking. The major stages for the image registration process include point detection, image correspondence, and an affine transformation. After applying image registration to spatially align the image frames and detect areas of motion segmentation is applied to segment the moving deformable objects …

Genetic Algorithms Based Economic Dispatch With Application To Coordination Of Nigerian Thermal Power Plants, Ganesh K. Venayagamoorthy, G. A. Bakare, U. O. Aliyu, Y. K. Shu'aibu

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The main focus of this paper is on the application of genetic algorithm (GA) to search for an optimal solution to a realistically formulated economic dispatch (ED) problem. GA is a global search technique based on principles inspired from the genetic and evolution mechanism observed in natural biological systems. A major drawback of the conventional GA (CGA) approach is that it can be time consuming. The micro-GA (µGA) approach has been proposed as a better time efficient alternative for some engineering problems. The effectiveness of CGA and µGA. to solving ED problem is initially verified on an IEEE 3-generating unit, …

A Comparison Of Reputation-Based Trust Systems, John Folkerts

Theses

Recent literature contains many examples of reputation systems which are constructed in an ad hoc way or rely upon some heuristic which has been found to be useful. However, comparisons between these reputation systems has been impossible because there are no established methods of comparing performance. This paper introduces a simulation framework which can be used to perform comparison analysis between reputation models. Two reputation models, one from Abdul-Rahman and Hailes (ARH) [1], and one from Mui, Mohtashemi, and Halberstadt (MMH) [17] are implemented and compared with regard to accuracy, performance and resistance to deception. In order to improve performance …

Effects Of Body Size On Goose Behavior: Lesser Snow Goose And Ross's Goose, Jon Einar Jonsson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Body size is highly variable among geese, both at intra- and interspecific levels. Interspecific variation in several behaviors has been attributed to differences in body size in geese: incubation constancy, tendency to maintain family units, and time spent foraging. Body size has important physiological implications for birds, mostly because mass-specific metabolic rate is greater for birds of smaller mass. The Body-size Hypothesis predicts that smaller species deplete their energy reserves at relatively faster rates than do larger species. Hypotheses and conclusions concerning effects of body size on waterfowl behavior often are based on comparisons of species that confront different climates, …

Pursuing Enlightenment In Vienna, 1781-1790, Heather Morrison

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Radical transformations came about in Vienna during the 1780s, as intellectuals in the city embraced the Enlightenment and explored ways in which the movement could be spread. In 1781, Joseph II and his state reformed censorship. In an instant, the Viennese had access to the great scholarly works of seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Europe. In an instant, Vienna spawned a multitude of writers, publishing houses, reading rooms and all the accoutrements of a culture of print. The newly generated intellectual culture produced an amazing amount of pamphlets, an era termed the Broschürenflut in Austrian history. Public debate on the state, religion, …

Grouping Related Attributes, Santosh Dawara

Theses

Grouping objects that are described by attributes, or clustering is a central notion in data mining. On the other hand, similarity or relationships between attributes themselves is equally important but relatively unexplored. Such groups of attributes are also known as directories, concept hierarchies or topics depending on the underlying data domain. The similarities between the two problems of grouping objects and attributes might suggest that traditional clustering techniques are applicable. This thesis argues that traditional clustering techniques fail to adequately capture the solution we seek. It also explores domain-independent techniques for grouping attributes. The notion of similarity between attributes and …

Integration Of Micromachined Thermal Thermal Shear Stress Sensors With Microchannels - Design, Fabrication And Testing, Vinod Dilip Kulkarni

Theses

Rochester Institute of Technology, 2005 Includes bibliographical references (leaves 91-96) "The emerging picture of microvascular flow strongly suggests that local gradients in shear rate along the arteriole walls play an integral role in the ability of a microvascular network to regulate and modify blood flow. The methods to estimate shear stress from approximations of the velocity profiles determined by in vivo particle tracking experiments in the hamster and computational simulation are limited by assumptions made about the flow and experimental techniques. Right now, our ability to relate wall shear stress in microvessels to corresponding biological function is limited by our …

Digital Asset Management System For Small Graphic Design Operations, Levy Chandra

Theses

According to the 1999 data of the U.S. Census Bureau, more than 75% of graphic design firms are small, with no more than four employees. Currently, there is a limited amount of literature relating to digital asset management (DAM) in relation to this population. These graphic design firms work on various projects using multiple digital assets for each, such as text, images, and fonts. Some firms choose to use proprietary asset management software to manage, search, and backup their assets, while others set up workflows that utilize existing network systems and graphic software.

This research is a case study which …

O ( Circle Of Life), Keum-Taek Jung

Theses

Not included.

Business Graduate Studies In Croatia: An Exploration Of Educational Needs Of Working Professionals In The City Of Zagreb, Milena Kuznin

Theses

The particular attributes of an "ideal" business graduate program among middle managers in the city of Zagreb, Croatia were investigated. A mixed method of using both survey and indepth interviews was used to determine what specific educational needs the participants had. The results indicate that the majority of participants think the Republic of Croatia needs new business graduate programs designed in a way to develop new skills and deepen the knowledge in the new business economy. More specifically, they need programs offered by a reliable educational institution with expert professors and high face-to-face interaction. The opportunity for "networking" is stressed …

Is014001 And Oshas 18001, Effective Ehs Management Tools For Shoe Factories In Vietnam Case Study, Lam, Quang Anh Vu

Theses

With growing demand from stakeholders, Vietnamese shoe factories desperately need to effectively implement sound EHS management systems. The ISO14001 and OSHAS 18001 standards ("the Standards") have emerged as effective EHS management tools to serve those needs. However, the Vietnamese shoe industry has very limited experience in implementing those standards. They also do not understand the concept of cost-effectiveness and the challenges of implementation. Small medium enterprises anticipated difficulties in technology improvement required by the ISO 14001 due to resources limitation and all local companies concern about cost prohibited certification and no tangible market benefits (Greening Trade in Vietnam, 16). The …

Renewable Portfolio Standard: An Analysis Of Design And Implementation Issues, Tigran Parvanyan

Theses

The Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) is a policy tool that requires a certain percentage of renewable energy to be included in the portfolio of electricity resources serving a state or a country. The main purpose of an RPS is to foster the development of renewable energy market, increase the energy security by reducing the dependence on the imported energy sources (oil, etc.), and, to provide environmental benefits from using more renewable energy. There are different approaches to the design and implementation of RPS in different states in U.S. and the degree of achieving a success of the policy differs also, …

Measurement Of Lipid Peroxidation In Biology Models Using Gas-Chromatography-Aass Spectrometry, Madhavi Lokireddy

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

C2C12 mouse myoblast cells, grown in glass vials, were connected to a cryofocusing unit to trap volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The VOCs were eluted from the trap by capacitive discharge into a gas chromatograph with time-of-flight mass spectral capabilities (GC-TOFMS) and were found to include the lipid peroxidation product hexanal. The pro-oxidant cumene hydroperoxide elevated the levels of these lipid peroxidation products, whereas the anti-oxidant butylated hydroxy toluene (BHT) impaired their production. Derivatization of the aldehyde products of lipid peroxidation in the same myoblast cells with pentafluorobenzyl hydroxylamine hydrochloride (PFB) provided evidence for formation of non-volatile products of lipid peroxidation …

Standard Meteorological Measurements, Kenneth Hubbard, Steven E. Hollinger

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Instruments that measure weather variables have been invented and tested since the time of Leonardo de Vinci. The earliest instruments were crude by today’s standards and required manual observation and notation of the weather variable of interest. In recent years, the miniaturization of circuits–sensors and the use of electronic processors have made it possible to collect ever-increasing numbers of observations on scales not previously considered.

In many agricultural applications, the primary portion of the atmosphere that is of interest is the lower planetary boundary layer, or that layer affected by the earth’s surface. Accurate measurement of weather variables in the …

Effects Of Ph On Biomass Allocation In Acer Rubrum Seedlings, Marc C. Wingett

OTS Master's Level Projects & Papers

Through the analysis of the data collected from the uniform growing parameters across all control and treatment pottings, the following hypothesis was considered: 1. From a neutral pH of 7, there is a positive correlation between the lowered pH of precipitation and the above and below ground biomass allocation in Acer rubrum seedlings.

Change And Persistence In An Independent Nonprofit College: A Case Study, John Selmon

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Private independent nonprofit colleges and universities serve millions of students annually, yet very little is written about this group. Most of the literature and research concern large public institutions of higher learning. Davenport College, a private independent nonprofit college system in Michigan and northern Indiana, serving 15,000 students, was the focus of the case study that offers a historical view of how the college evolved and changed over the institution’s 134-year history. The study highlights the influence of the five leaders and significant environmental events that that led to change and persistence in Davenport College from its inception on January …

The Effect Of Pretense On The Creativity Of Storytelling In Preschool And Kindergarten-Age Children, Storm R. Ross

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Previous research suggests a link between pretense and the creative behavior of children, such as associative fluency. Most results show that children who engaged in pretense prior to an associative fluency task gave more nonstandard uses for play objects than children who engaged in imitation play or coloring. However, the effect of pretense play on other forms of creativity has not been extensively researched. One such form of creativity is storytelling.

The present study examined the relationship between pretense and storytelling. It was hypothesized that the stories a child tells after engaging in pretense play would be ranked and rated …

An Historical Retrospective On The Origin Of And Changes To The Worker's Compensation Insurance Industry, Gary Eure

Theses

Workers' compensation insurance companies have been at the vanguard of workplace safety initiatives maintaining laboratories, training facilities, intern programs, and hierarchical structures. Up until the late 1980's, risk control services were provided to clients as a customer service, with the costs hidden in the premiums. Many companies estimated 4-5 percent of the premium amount was devoted to risk control departments. The late 1980s brought about a change that some attribute to a misapplication of Deming's Total Quality Management (TQM) philosophy. Insurance companies tried to make the move to accountability, thinking that it would drive customer service to a "Deming" level …

New Readings, Gi Dong Lee

Theses

This thesis explores the search for a creative process for my photographic studies over the past two years at Rochester Institute of Technology. It explains the thought behind the artwork such as why I am interested in the genre of still life, inspiration, process, and my future artistic goals.

The subject matter of my thesis exhibition motivated me to explore the world of still life. By painting on an object, my imagery has evolved into a new reading that led to a new interpretation of the still life both physically and psychologically. My thesis images emphasize a new aesthetic experience …

Compact Realizations Of Embedded Filters In Organic Substrates, William Lambert

Theses

Making communication devices smaller, lighter, and cheaper has been the driving force behind the development of new technologies which have made the cellular phones and wireless networks we now take for granted possible. The frequent emphasis on miniaturization particularly has required the development of a variety of new approaches to creating communications circuits. One such technology that has attracted a great deal of attention in recent years is passives that are embedded into the package of communications integrated circuits. Using these devices reduces the amount of surface area required to implement a communications device, in addition to potentially improving performance …

Development Of Control Algorithm And A Simulation Tool For Self-Assembly Of Microsystems Based On Swarm Technology, Siddharth Mestry

Theses

"Chunxel" Technology is a novel concept of constructing 3-dimensional structures using a group of intelligent, autonomous, and cooperating micro robots. Chunxels are small robotic modules, cubical in shape, which are immersed in a tank containing a viscous fluid. The chunxels are propelled by the electromagnetic forces created by passing direct current through a set of large coils placed on each face of the tank and small coils embedded in the micro device. The chunxels follow a set of rules which mimic a swarm behavior and selfassemble in the liquid to form a 3-D structure. Swarm behavior is a dynamic problem …

An Investigation Of Verbal Versus Visual Persuasive Elements In Travel And Gambling Pop-Up Advertisements, Elizabeth Karras

Theses

Although pop-up advertisements generate ill will, these ads, have an above average clickthrough rate compared to other forms of Internet advertising such as the banner ad, illustrating the significance this form has in modern day advertising. Travel and gambling ads are analyzed in the following study. Previous literature includes studies on factors that play an integral role in the success or failure of an online advertisement, the effectiveness of internet marketing on internet users, persuasive appeals used in advertising, and experiential consumption. Research on pop-up advertisements has focused primarily on tactics, their effects on the consumer, and their failures and …

Coexisting, Hyun Jung Lee

Theses

This thesis describes the artist's sculpture and jewelry/wall composition, which uses figurative forms representing simplified and exaggerated parts of the human body. The author describes how this artwork expresses the themes of community and coexistence in the human condition.

Role Of Weak Zone Geometry And Rheology In The Generation Of Intraplate Seismicity, Abhishek Joshi

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

In intraplate seismic zones (e.g. the New Madrid Seismic Zone, NMSZ, in the southcentral United States), the source of stress that drives earthquake is very complex. Data from the NMSZ indicate 3 earthquake of magnitude M~7, occurring at an approximate interval of 500 years during the last 2000 years. One hypothesis that satisfies these conditions proposes that short-lived bursts of earthquakes may result from perturbations in the local or regional stress field. This causes relaxation of a lower crustal weak zone which drive repeated earthquakes. The number of earthquakes is dependent on the geometry and rheology of the weak zone. …

Quantification Of Surface Defects Using Primary Highlight In Diffuse Angle Gray Scale Images, Subburengan Ganapathiraman

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

The thesis presented is an effort to gather all possible information of one particular type of common paint defect the seed defect, from gray scale images of highly specular painted surface. The proposed approach in the thesis utilizes a white light source to illuminate the surface and utilizes a camera to capture its gray scale image at different diffused angles. While attempting to explain the physics of highlight formation in terms of location on the surface of a seed defect, the thesis also extends to utilize this information from gray scale images to accurately predict the parameters of seed defects …

Experimental And Analytical Study Of Friction Stir Processing, Basil M. Darras

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

Friction stir processing (FSP) has recently become an effective microstructural modifications technique. Reported results showed that for different alloys, FSP produces very fine equiaxed and homogeneous grain structure. FSP is considered to be a new processing technique and more experimental and analytical investigations are needed to advance the industrial utilization of FSP. Most of the work that has been done in the friction stir processing field is experimental and limited modeling activities have been conducted. Attempts to develop a predictive model to correlate the resulting microstructure with process parameters are scarce. In this work, commercial 5052 Aluminum alloy sheets are …

Automated Extraction Of Disease-Gene Relationships From Medline, Jennifer R. Paine

Theses

The increasing amount of scientific information available to researchers in the form of biomedical literature is beginning to bring about a need for the development of tools to extract information automatically from these sources. One segment of information of particular interest to researchers is the linkage information between genes and diseases. These linkages can help researchers interpret large-scale genomics studies as well as make logical connections between gene expression levels and certain phenotypes. To make the finding and collecting of this information practical, automated methods of information extraction are required. In this paper, I propose a method for the automated …

Using Sequential Imagery To Evaluate Aspects Of Seed Vigor And Germination, Manjul Dutt

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

A sequential imaging system using a flat bed scanner interfaced to a personal computer was developed to study seed germination and vigor. The utility of the system was demonstrated in studies relating aspects of seed vigor in impatiens seed lots and for dormancy release in two woody perennials. Impatiens seed lots were kept in storage for 6 months to obtain a range in vigor levels. The ability to see differences at the individual seed level was possible because of the development of the sequential imaging system. It was observed that seeds deteriorated both under optimum 4OC as well as 25OC …

Pltw/Cims Workcell Design, Brett Handley

Theses

Not included.