Digital Commons Network^™

Interpretation Of Cone Penetration Tests In Cohesive Soils, Kwang Kyun Kim, Monica Prezzi, Rodrigo Salgado

JTRP Technical Reports

This report focuses on the evaluation of the factors affecting cone resistance measurement during cone penetration in saturated clayey soils and the application of the result to pile shaft capacity analysis. In particular, effects of drainage conditions around the cone tip were studied. Rate effects related to both drainage and shear strength dependence on loading rate were studied. In order to investigate the effects of drainage during penetration, penetration tests were performed with various velocities in the field and in a calibration chamber, and the obtained data were analyzed. For the field tests, two sites which have homogeneous clayey soil …

Curriculum Of Imagination Beyond The Walls Of Standardization, Robert Lewis Lake

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation is a theoretical inquiry into ways of seeing, knowing, and learning that are frequently excluded in this present climate of standardized practices in the field of education. In this study, I explore how imagination permeates every aspect of life experience and helps develop personal and political awareness in students to look beyond what they take for granted, to question the normal, and to develop various ways of knowing, seeing, feeling, and acting upon positive social and educational change in an era of accountability. This is accomplished by tracing the historical and contemporary evolution of the concepts of imagination …

Captured Artifacts, Charles Pearson Burch

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

My art examines the possible existence of an unknown civilization through the presentation of sculptural art objects within the conventional practice of displaying artifacts in a public institution. Historically, artifacts have served as visual records of journeying to and returning from a far-away land, unknown territory, alien soil, or enemy battlefield. Whether that place is tangible or is a fabrication of our subconscious, the presence of an artifact represents validation of the existence of that place. When displayed, artifacts offer a pleasurable challenge to the viewer by evoking the possibilities of a lost civilization or adventurer's journey. I employ these …

Analysis Of Retention Factors That Influence Georgia's Secondary Career And Technical Education Teachers To Remain In The Teaching Profession, Hope Jackson Morris

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The research study on the retention influences of Georgia's secondary career and technical education teachers was conducted to determine why the teachers chose to remain in the teaching profession. Participants included all program areas of career and technical education in the state of Georgia. Data were gathered to analyze the demographics, personal retention influences, and professional retention influences of the career and technical education teachers. The quantitative study was conducted by an on-line survey. Approximately 700 e-mails were sent, and 154 participants responded. Demographic results suggested that the typical career and technical education teacher respondents had 21 plus years of …

How Georgia Suburban Middle School Principals Work With Teachers To Enhance Student Achievement In This Era Of Standardized Testing, Robert Charles Minter

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine how Georgia middle school principals work with teachers to enhance student achievement in this era of standardized testing. This study became the focus of the researcher's attention because of the increased level of accountability for school systems, schools, and administrators in regard to student achievement. Each school is held accountable for the academic success of students, and the No Child Left Behind Act, which is federal law, requires that each state set high academic standards and implement student testing. However, while conducting a review of literature in the area of standardized testing …

Finite Element Analysis Of Low-Profile Frp Bridge Deck (Prodeck 4), Siva Kumar Boyapati

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

FRPs (Fiber Reinforced Polymers) are lightweight and an innovative alternative to conventional materials like steel and concrete in Structural engineering. Pultruded FRP bridge decks have many advantages compared to conventional concrete decks especially in bridge engineering. In this study a finite element model of a 4"-thick low profile FRP bridge deck made of E-glass fiber and vinyl ester resin, having a fiber volume fraction of approximately 50% and weighing about 10 lb/ft2 is developed using the finite element software ANSYS. The bridge deck modeled is subjected to a central patch load, and the finite element results such as deflections, strains …

The Effect Of Student Self -Described Learning Styles Within Two Models Of Teaching In An Introductory Data Mining Course, Matthew A. North

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This dissertation examines the roles of learning styles and teaching methodologies within a data mining educational program designed for non-Computer Science undergraduate college students. The experimental design is framed by a discussion of the history and development of data mining and education, as well as a vision for its future.;Data mining is a relatively new discipline which has grown out of the fields of database management and data warehousing, statistics, logic, and decision sciences. Over the course of its approximately 15 year history, data mining has emerged from its genesis within the academic and commercial research and development arenas to …

Development Of Fpga Based Low-Power Digital Pulse Height Fitting, Santosh Hooli

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Energetic ion analyzers and mass spectrometers commonly produce electronic pulses whose amplitude and time depend on the energy, mass, and direction of an incoming ion. Analysis of the nanosecond scale timing and amplitude of these approximately 10-12C charge pulses has required complex, fast analog electronics. Given recent advances in digital electronics, it seems likely that converting much of the analysis to digital form will result in a simpler, lower cost, and lower power electron package. The aim of the thesis is to develop an algorithm to fit a 500 ns long noisy voltage pulse obtained from an ion analyzer to …

Multiple Message Broadcasting And Gossiping In The Dynamically Orientable Graphs, Gayane R. Goltukhchyan

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This research investigates the problems of gossiping and multiple message broadcasting in dynamically orientable graphs of different network topologies. These are new problems never attempted before. Dynamically orientable graphs and six different network topologies are considered: paths, cycles, stars, binary trees, complete trees and two-dimensional grids. Information dissemination in graphs that are dynamically orientable requires that number of messages sent in each direction along an edge be balanced and therefore necessitates a different approach in gossiping and multiple message broadcasting.;The obvious upper bound for gossiping and multiple message broadcasting in dynamically orientable graphs is twice the best known time for …

Model-Based Risk Assessment, Walid M. Abdelmoez

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

In this research effort, we focus on model-based risk assessment. Risk assessment is essential in any plan intended to manage software development or maintenance process. Subjective techniques are human intensive and error-prone. Risk assessment should be based on architectural attributes that we can quantitatively measure using architectural level metrics. Software architectures are emerging as an important concept in the study and practice of software engineering nowadays, due to their emphasis on large-scale composition of software product, and to their support for emerging software engineering paradigms, such as product line engineering, component based software engineering, and software evolution.;In this dissertation, we …

Multispectral Iris Recognition Analysis: Techniques And Evaluation, Christopher K. Boyce

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This thesis explores the benefits of using multispectral iris information acquired using a narrow-band multispectral imaging system. Commercial iris recognition systems typically sense the iridal reflection pertaining to the near-infrared (IR) range of the electromagnetic spectrum. While near-infrared imaging does give a very reasonable image of the iris texture, it only exploits a narrow band of spectral information. By incorporating other wavelength ranges (infrared, red, green, blue) in iris recognition systems, the reflectance and absorbance properties of the iris tissue can be exploited to enhance recognition performance. Furthermore, the impact of eye color on iris matching performance can be determined. …

A Methodology For Software Performance Modeling And Its Application To A Border Inspection System, Paola Bracchi

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

It is essential that software systems meet their performance objectives. Many factors affect software performance and it is fundamental to identify those factors and the magnitude of their effects early in the software lifecycle to avoid costly and extensive changes to software design, implementation, or requirements. In the last decade the development of techniques and methodologies to carry out performance analysis in the early stages of the software lifecycle has gained a lot of attention within the research community. Different approaches to evaluate software performance have been developed. Each of them is characterized by a certain software specification and performance …

Nondestructive Evaluation Of Frp Wrapped Concrete Cylinders Using Infrared Thermography And Ground Penetrating Radar, Shasanka Shekhar Dutta

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The objectives of this research are: (a) to investigate the feasibility of using Infrared Thermography (IRT) and Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) for detecting debonds in Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) wrapped columns, and (b) to study the effect of the debonds on reduction in compressive strength of FRP wrapped columns.;All laboratory tests were conducted on concrete cylinders of size 6" x 12" (152.4 mm x 304.8 mm) in which air-filled and water-filled debonds of various sizes were inserted. Air-filled debonds were made by cutting plastic sheets into the desired sizes whereas water-filled debonds were made by injecting water in custom made …

Impact Of Optimally Placed Var Support On Electricity Spot Pricing, Ramesh Kumar V. Khajjayam

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

In view of deregulation and privatization processes, electricity pricing becomes one of the most important issues. The increases in power flows and environmental constraints are forcing electricity utilities to install new VAR equipment to enhance network operation. In this thesis a nonlinear multi-objective optimization problem has been formulated to maximize both social welfare and the maximum distance to collapse point in an open power market using reactive support like Static Var Compensator (SVC). The production and consumption costs of reactive power are intended to provide proper market signals to the electricity market agents. They are included in the multi-objective Optimal …

Alumina Waveguide Characterization And Sparrow Biosensor Modeling, Pavan Kumar Samudrala

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Sensors based on evanescent wave techniques have the potential to detect minute change in refractive index arising from surface modifications. The biosensor device architecture evaluated in this work is the SPARROW (Stacked Planar Affinity Regulated Resonant Optical Waveguide) structure. This architecture can operate as a biosensor through the change in the coupled optical power resulted from antigen bonding to the bio-layer. Its stacked film arrangement with no lateral patterning offers a potentially less complex structure for fabrication. This thesis describes the process developed to optically characterize the alumina waveguides of the SPARROW device and investigates waveguide film quality as a …

Quantifying Effects Of Vehicle Weight And Terrain On Emissions, Fuel Economy, And Engine Behavior, Corey M. Strimer

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

On-board emissions measurement for heavy-duty vehicles has garnered greater significance because 2007 marks the beginning of gaseous emissions monitoring for in-use vehicles in the United States [1]. Emissions compliance must be shown in a "not to exceed" (NTE) zone that emphasizes engine operation at higher power. An over-the-road 1996 Peterbilt tractor was instrumented with the West Virginia University Mobile Emissions Measurement System (MEMS) to determine how often the truck entered the NTE, and the emissions from the vehicle, as it was driven over varying terrain at multiple test weights. Distance-specific NOX emissions increase by approximately X/2% for an X% increase …

Design, Development And Qualification Of Compact Mobile Emissions Measurement System (Cmems) For Real-Time On-Board Emissions Measurement, Aseem Tiwari

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The objective of this study was to design, develop and qualify the Compact Mobile Emissions Measurement System (CMEMS) for real-time on-board measurement of exhaust emissions from heavy-duty diesel vehicles. This study was aimed at developing a system more compact and lighter with respect to the existing Mobile Emissions Measurement System (MEMS), so that the entire system could be mounted on the tail pipe of the test vehicle in order to reduce installation time, power requirements and manpower requirements. This was achieved by judicious selection of commercially available compact solid-state gas analyzers, and development of a sampling system which was significantly …

Hygrothermal Effects On Free Vibration Characteristics Of Rotating Composite Beams, Sandeep Vennam

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Free vibration characteristics of a rotating composite cantilever beams subjected to a hygrothermal environment is studied using the finite element analysis. The problem is formulated using a First Order Shear Deformation theory (FSDT) for composite materials. The finite element formulation is based on variational principles and the equations are solved by a code generated using MATLAB. Hygrothermal effects are incorporated using empirical relations degrading the material stiffness property of the matrix depending on the temperature and moisture concentration. The dynamic analysis of a rotating composite beam are validated by comparing with that available in literature and the hygrothermal incorporation is …

Development And Integration Of An Organization's Information Systems And Enterprise Web Applications Via Enterprise Portals Of Sap, Ankit Jain

Masters Theses & Doctoral Dissertations

This Project uses an enterprise portal which integrates organizations applications and information for different sets of users, enabling employees and managers to carry out there routine tasks from anywhere and anytime, serving as a single point of information for an organization's employees, customer or partners and helps them access a company's services as per their individual access levels. This project also develops an enterprise application which allows employees to file their benefits enrollment online. The application developed is then displayed with in the organizations enterprise portals. The project uses SAP provided development tools and supported technologies and is developed for …

Legacy Migration Application Inventory, Mark L. Dykstra

Masters Theses & Doctoral Dissertations

As CNA Surety migrates its legacy mainframe systems off the mainframe and onto a different platform, it is necessary to have an accurate inventory of database tables, batch and on-line programs, reports, flat files (non-database files accessed by batch jobs). Staff members have been working on compiling documentation about each and every on-line program and Cobol program and batch job, and there is a need to store this information in a centralized place. All of this information should be available to developers who work on CNA Surety's mainframe systems, and should be available to designers ofreplacement systems. This project describes …

Product Grading Management System, Ben Condol

Masters Theses & Doctoral Dissertations

Product Grading Management System (PGMS) is a comprehensive, statistical and stand-alone, control process application. This PGMS is web based and the first version being developed that will be utilized to define industry standards. Considering a broad array of products, the control process application in scrutiny is designed and deployed for two specific products: tomatoes and spinach. The company used in this paper is fictional; however, the examples are based on real scenarios experienced during a two year stint in the Supply Chain Management & Manufacturing industry. Product Quality Grading requires recording, tracking, managing and displaying quality data that is collected …

Inventory Management Of Medical Drugs, Srinivas Jujjavarapu

Masters Theses & Doctoral Dissertations

Inventory Management is the active control program that allows the management of sales, payments and purchases. Inventory Management are quite complex in nature and involve nonlinear, chaotic and unpredictable behavior thus requiring highly innovative quantitative techniques in order to model their structure. The aim of this project is to explore a relatively new and integrated approach to manage Inventory. This approach can be used successfully for managing models from any discipline. The new system provides detailed inventory information and reference resources to department personnel. It is easy to integrate easily with other applications such as order management and financial management.

Equipment Tracking And Management System, Nita Shenoi

Masters Theses & Doctoral Dissertations

Description: An online interface was created to enter details of equipment from off site and remote locations. There ids tracking of asset tags, software license and lease expiration maintenance amongst various other uses. The system is being used to • send alerts upon expiry of licenses; • help in planning or buying and maintaining new equipment; • help keep details of PC's and/or laptops loaned to employees for telecommuting; • store issue of items like ergonomic keyboards, headphones and so on; • Track tickets issued for PC and other systems related problems, date fixed and user feedback. The following modules …

Order Processing System, Sandeep Modugu

Masters Theses & Doctoral Dissertations

Developing business demands high technology needs for performing its basic operations. Processing of orders and maintaining consistent data has been the major focus through years. This report is a mere representation of a system, which allows a high-end Order Processing System. Maintaining consistent data, ease of use system for managing and recording transactions and transformation of incoming order flows has been the major focus behind its development. This has been accomplished using tools provided by the .Net Framework such as ADO .Net for talking to database and ASP .Net for processing electronic orders, both using C# language. Thus, we have …

Corrective Action Tracker, Kranthi Chigullapally

Masters Theses & Doctoral Dissertations

The Correct Action Tracker application is a web based application which stores all the details of the Issues. Corrective Action tracker provides an automated structure to track document and resolve the Issues that impact product quality, product build and product Fulfillment. The objective of The infrastructure is to serve as a knowledge base for all the Operation related issues that impact the manufacturing Life cycle of Brocade products. It focuses on Manufacturing related Issues and Resolution Process. The project report gives an outline of the entire project. The Background of the problem, System overview and Objectives of the project described …

Error Tracking System Using Remote Object, Omar F. Azad

Masters Theses & Doctoral Dissertations

In recent years there is a trend in software market where more and more organizations are using standard customized software for their different operational needs. Error Tracking System using Remote Object is a special type of application software to track error where manufacturer of these customized software wants to track error in their software which is used by other companies. In other words Error Tracking System using Remote Object is a special type of solution to address specific situation. The ideal situation for this system is where a large application is running for different client but the owner of the …

Project Content Management Tool, Ravikanth Reddy Singavaram

Masters Theses & Doctoral Dissertations

Yash Solutions is an emerging leader in enterprise and datawarehousing solutions that facilitate corporations to operate more efficiently, implement IT solutions quickly keeping minimum system downtimes and enable to achieve their business objectives rapidly. The main problem for the employee who is working on different projects in a company is they get the email from their project members regarding the project start date, updates regarding the project and project end date. The employee needs to keep track of all the mails what he gets in order to be in touch with the other employees, if he needs to contact with …

The Art And Artistic Legacy Of Louis Agassiz Fuertes, Paul A. Johnsgard

Nebraska Bird Review

Perhaps some Nebraska birders will not immediately recognize the name Louis Agassiz Fuertes, as he died almost 80 years ago. Yet he influenced the art of bird painting as much as did John James Audubon, and provided wonderful artwork for many major state bird reference books. He also personally tutored George Miksch Sutton, the Nebraska-born artist and biologist who provided the NOU with its Burrowing Owl logo, and who contributed greatly to American ornithology, especially that of the southern Great Plains.

It is interesting that, like John James Audubon, Roger Tory Peterson, and George Miksch Sutton, we would never think …

Modulational Instability In A Layered Kerr Medium: Theory And Experiment, Martin Centurion, Mason A. Porter, Ye Pu, P. G. Kevrekidis, D. J. Frantzeskakis, Demetri Psaltis

Martin Centurion Publications

We present the first experimental investigation of modulational instability in a layered Kerr medium. The particularly interesting and appealing feature of our configuration, consisting of alternating glass-air layers, is the piecewise-constant nature of the material properties, which allows a theoretical linear stability analysis leading to a Kronig-Penney equation whose forbidden bands correspond to the modulationally unstable regimes. We find very good quantitative agreement between theoretical, numerical, and experimental diagnostics of the modulational instability. Because of the periodicity in the evolution variable arising from the layered medium, there are multiple instability regions rather than just one as in a uniform medium.

An Energy Efficient Mac-Phy Approach To Support Distributed Source Coding In Wireless Sensor Network, Wei Wang, Dongming Peng, Honggang Wang, Hamid Sharif, Beata J. Wysocki, Tadeusz A. Wysocki

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: Faculty Publications (to 2015)

Distributed Source Coding (DSC) based signal processing applications are ideal candidates for multirate transmissions in Wireless Sensor Network (WSN). In this paper, we propose a novel MAC-PHY approach in WSN to achieve energy efficiency using multirate desirable for the DSC based signal processing applications. Our approach is different from the common multirate research in link adaptation, the focus of which is to increase throughput based on rate adaptation derived from variable channel conditions. In the proposed approach, the redundant and inefficient communications are eliminated, yielding significant improvement of energy efficiency in WSN. Here, the minimum desirable transmission power can be …