Digital Commons Network^™

Visualization Analysis Of Astrophysics N-Bodied Problem Using Image Morphological Processing Techniques, Thomas J. Borrelli

Theses

This project’s primary goal is to detect points of interest within the output data resulting from running a simulation of the Astrophysics N-Bodied problem (GRAPEcluster). Morphological Image Processing techniques will be applied to the visualized data in order to detect areas of interest within the original data. Several Morphological Image Processing techniques will be used and the results compared in the analysis. The final output of the VRAD (Visualization of Raw Astrophysics Data) System will be two-fold: first, the VRAD system will output a text file that contains the x, y and z coordinates of each region of interest in …

The Performance Of Group Diffie-Hellman Paradigms: A Software Framework And Analysis, Kieran S. Hagzan

Theses

A mobile computing environment typically involves groups of small, low-power devices interconnected through a mobile and dynamic network. Attempts to secure communication over these “ad-hoc” networks must be scalable to conserve the minimal resources of mobile devices as network sizes grow. In this project, the scalability of differing Group Diffie-Hellman security key generation implementations is examined. In theory, the implementation utilizing a data structure with the lowest theoretical run-time complexity for building the Diffie-Hellman group should prove the most scalable experimentally. A common modular framework was implemented to support generic Group Diffie-Hellman key agreement implementations abstracted from the underlying data …

Audio Watermarking Techniques Using Singular Value Decomposition, Joseph Kardamis

Theses

In an increasingly digital world, proving ownership of files is more and more difficult. For audio files, many schemes have been put into place to attempt to protect the rights of the digital content owners. In general, these techniques fall under the classification of Digital Rights Management (DRM). Audio watermarking is one of the less invasive schemes which embeds security into the data itself instead of in an outside layer meant to encapsulate and protect the data. There are many domains in which an audio watermark can be applied. The simplest is that of the time domain; often, however, other …

Approximation And Elections, Eric Brelsford

Theses

Any culture that requires that a decision be made within a group necessarily creates methods for aggregating each individual’s preferences. For instance, we see such a need in political elections, committees, and businesses. With the Internet and the increasing use of multiagent software systems, the general need for means of aggregating differing preferences has increased dramatically. Voting is one way to come to a single option (or small group of options) out of a larger pool of candidate options. Many voting systems exist, and criteria exist (within the field of social choice theory) for deciding which most fairly and accurately …

Challenges Of Implementing Rss Barcodes On Hospital Unit Dose Blisters, Rolando Quiles

Theses

Not provided.

Too Many Motions For Vacatur Of Commercial Arbitration Awards - The Eleventh Circuit Sanctions Unwary Litigants, Christopher Mckinney

Journal of Dispute Resolution

In B.L. Harbert Int'l. v. Hercules Steel Co., the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals seemed angered by what they deemed to be another frivolous appeal of a commercial arbitration award. Upon this provocation, the court warned litigants that future baseless appeals would be met with sanctions. By making sanctions a real threat, the court has attempted to promote some goals of arbitration, including finality, but any benefits derived may be offset by the increased confusion the holding has created. Further, the court's mandate represents a divergence from Eleventh Circuit precedent, as past decisions indicated a willingness to hear new arguments …

In-Water Spectral Radiative Transfer Modeling Using Photon Mapping, Adam Arthur Goodenough

Theses

In contrast to spectroscopic observation of deep ocean waters, measurement of coastal waters is often influenced by inhomogeneous surroundings. An accurate model of light propagation in coastal regions must therefore take into account spatially variant phenomena, such as the distribution of inherent optical properties in the water, bottom structure, in-water objects, and wind-driven wave surfaces. In order to account for the influence of these multi-dimensional structures effectively, this work adapts and develops efficient Monte Carlo based ray tracing techniques to simulate radiative transfer in natural waters.

The basis of this work is a two-pass ray tracing process that generates a …

Implications Of Reading Assessments: Investigating The Developmental Reading Assessment And Dynamic Indicators Of Basic Early Literacy Skills - Oral Reading Fluency As Related To The Terranova 2nd Edition Vocabulary And Comprehension Tasks For Third-Grade Students, Courtney Wheeler

Theses

The present study investigated the relationship between Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) Oral Reading Fluency and the Developmental Reading Assessment (DRA) as related to the TerraNova 2nd Edition Vocabulary and Comprehension. Historical test data gained from 46 third grade participants during 2004- 2005 school year from an urban elementary school was utilized. The DRA protocols were coded and correlations were run to determine the relationship between the three tests. Significant correlations were found consistently between the DIBELS scores with DRA Phrasing and Fluency and DRA Story Level. Of particular interest, the overall best predictor for DIBELS scores …

School Psychologists' Perceived And Ideal Role In Grade Retention Decisions, Sean P. Scott

Theses

This study examined school psychologists' reports of their perceived and ideal roles in retention making decisions. A random national sample of 231 school psychologists completed a questionnaire regarding their perceptions of the rates and trends of retention in their school, as well as their perceived and ideal role in grade retention decisions. The majority (86.6%) of respondents indicated that their school practices retention, whereas 1 9% noted an increase in the amount of retentions. The rate at which respondents agreed that school psychologists should be involved in retention decisions was significantly higher (91.5%) than the percentage of school psychologists that …

Online Structure, Parameter, And Utility Updating Of Bayesian Decision Networks For Cooperative Decision-Theoretic Agents, Iheanyi Umez-Eronini

Theses

Multi-agent systems, systems consisting of more than one acting and decision making entities, are of great interest to researchers because they have advantages for some specific tasks where it would be more effective to use multiple small and simple robots rather than a large and complex one. One of the major problems with multi-agent systems is developing a means to organize or control the overall behavior of the system. Typically, multi-agent control involves one of two structures. In some designs, there is a hierarchy with some robots being leaders and other followers. Other designs involve robot specialization towards one particular …

Selection Of Optimal Background Estimation Methods For Unstructured Detectors, Manuel R. Ferdinandus

Theses

Target detection algorithms determine the presence of a target in a pixel by comparing the spectrum of a given pixel to the both the target and an estimate of the background. Because of this target detection performance is particularly sensitive to the way that the background is characterized. We will investigate the performance of a number of Background Characterization Methods (BCMs) described by J. West by applying the S. Rotman target implantation method.

Our goal will be to determine which BCM works best for a particular image and a particular target when using the Generalized Likelihood Ratio Test (GLRT) target …

Effects Of Freezing And Thawing On The Structures Of Porous Gas Diffusion Media In Pem Fuel Cells, Joaquin A. Pelaez

Theses

Fuel cells are a very promising technology for transportation applications in the future. Many companies are performing research in order to make the implementation of fuel cell- powered vehicles more feasible. One issue that needs to be addressed is the fact that fuel cell vehicles will be used in sub-freezing climates. Vehicles undergo frequent shut-down and startup events, and as such, freezing and thawing effects on fuel cell components become important when the vehicle is shut off and left standing in cold climates. When shut off, fuel cells will maintain water in the membrane electrode assembly (MEA) and gas diffusion …

Determination Of The Fundamental Image Categories For Typical Consumer Imagery, Kenneth N. Fleisher

Theses

Many tasks in imaging science are image-dependent. While a particular dependency might simply be a function of certain physical attributes of an image, often it is closely related to the perceived semantic category. Therefore, a thorough understanding of image semantics would be of substantial practical value. The primary goal of this research was to determine the fundamental semantic categories for typical consumer imagery. Two psychophysical experiments were performed. Experiment I was a Free Sorting Experiment where observers were asked to sort 32 1 images into piles of similar images. Experiment II was a Distributed Experiment conducted over the internet which …

Gpsense: An Algorithmic Framework For Intelligent Sensing At Node Level In Wsn, Soujanya Soni

Theses

We proposed a new Genetic Programming algorithm termed GPSense for use in wireless sensor networks (WSN). Existing algorithms for pattern recognition and data mining in WSNs work offline, i.e. they query the WSN nodes, bring data to the base-station and the mining is done at the base-station. This increases the latency of decision making, enhances decision communication costs and generally leads to non-local decisions. It is generally believed that this paradigm is more powerefficient since sensor nodes are significantly constrained in terms of computing power (processor speed, low-power batteries, limited-memory). We believe that a distributed data mining approach can be …

Language Integrated Query In Java For Xml And Relational Database, Anurag Naidu

Theses

XML and relational databases are the most commonly used data-sources for numerous Java-based enterprise applications. The ever-growing dependence of Java-based applications on these technologies calls for developing a uniform means of querying these data-sources in the Java layer such that queries written for any of these technologies look similar and are in fact governed by a single grammar. This thesis implements a new backend system encapsulating querying capabilities over XML and JDBC based relational databases which would complement the translation of queries written using QuEL [1], a language extension to the Java programming language. The QuEL language extension to Java …

Energy- And Area-Efficient Dc-Dc Converters Fabricated In Low Temperature Crystalline Silicon-On-Glass Technology, Hans Christian Rotmann

Theses

The display industry is moving toward the development of system-on-panel (SOP) architectures to make increasingly compact small-format displays and reduce manufacturing cost. Presently, the voltages required by pixel drivers, row scan logic, and timing circuitry, are generated from a single supply voltage using charge pumps fabricated on a high voltage, monolithic integrated circuit mounted off the glass panel.

In this work, a new high-efficiency charge pump architecture for fabrication on display glass substrates is presented. The distinguishing feature of this work is the nestedclock timing scheme used to improve power efficiency and reduce output voltage noise without the use of …

The Integration Of Graphic Communication And Educational Tools For Children With Dyslexia, Amar Abdulla Behbehani

Theses

Design for education is an important approach in the graphic design field. The intention of this thesis is to conduct further research that can help educators and designers build healthier learning environments for children with learning disabilities. Learning environments are not limited to physical environments such as classroom designs or school architecture; they are extended to cognitive environments that are greatly affected by external influences such as sensory stimulation and learning methods. Children with special educational needs could benefit from effective design solutions for better information processing. This designer attempts to develop typographic solutions to facilitate the reading process of …

Property Rules, Liability Rules, And Immunity: An Application To Cyberspace, Keith N. Hylton

Faculty Scholarship

This Article sets out a theory of torts and cyberspace wrongs. My goal is to provide a sparse theoretical account of tort law and apply it to cyberspace torts, both negligent and intentional. I approach this goal by applying the framework of property rules and liability rules to cyberspace torts. That framework suggests that trespass doctrine is appropriate in instances of cyber invasions of private information resources, such as the breaking of codes to access private information on the web. However, trespass doctrine should play no role in cyber-invasions of public information resources, such as the sending of spam email. …

Tort Negligence, Cost-Benefit Analysis, And Tradeoffs: A Closer Look At The Controversy, Kenneth Simons

Faculty Scholarship

What is the proper role of cost-benefit analysis in understanding the tort concept of negligence or reasonable care? A straightforward question, you might think. But it is a question that manages to elicit groans of exasperation from those on both sides of the controversy.

For most utilitarians and adherents to law and economics, the answer is obvious: to say that people should not be negligent is to say that they should minimize the sum of the costs of accidents and the costs of preventing accidents. Under the economic formulation of the famous Learned Hand test, they should take a precaution …

Mostly Unconstitutional: The Case Against Precedent Revisited, Gary S. Lawson

Faculty Scholarship

In Part I of this Article, the author briefly recaps the argument against precedent that the author sketched in The Constitutional Case Against Precedent. Although the author’s purpose here is to refine that argument, the author still believes that the original argument is right in most particulars, and it still functions as a prima facie case against the use of precedent in constitutional interpretation. In Part II, the author surveys different possible grounds for the practice of precedent. In Part III, the author dismisses the possibility that the Constitution or some other controlling legal source affirmatively commands the use of …

Developing/Testing A New Approach For Assessing Rapid Visual Identification Of Hematological Cells Using Principles Of Visual Cognition: A Health Science Education Study, Deborah Elizabeth Fox

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was the development and testing of a novel method for assessment of white blood cell (WBC) identification skills used in the field of Clinical Laboratory Sciences (CLS). A dual format exam was administered to both novices (students) and experts (laboratory professionals). Format 1 was similar to current assessment formats, simply presenting a series of single WBC images for identification. Format 2 applied principles of visual cognition, grouping WBCs for identification by patient and presenting multiple example images from the patient before requesting identification of individual cells. This novel exam format was intended to: (a) provide …

Reservoir Characterization Of The Broom Creek Formation For Carbon Dioxide Sequestration, Justin J. Kringstad

Undergraduate Theses and Senior Projects

This engineering design is aimed at providing a thorough investigation on the potential of carbon dioxide (CO2) sequestration in the Williston Basin’s Broom Creek Formation. The objective of the design is to characterize the Broom Creek’s reservoir properties and provide detailed results of CO2 sequestration capacity, plume migration, and safety level. The methodology used to obtain results is an incorporation of geology, reservoir engineering, and injection operations. The reservoir simulation operations were conducted using Schlumberger’s ECLIPSE (Schlumberger, 2006).

Backward Stochastic Navier-Stokes Equations In Two Dimensions, Hong Yin

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

There are two parts in this dissertation. The backward stochastic Lorenz system is studied in the first part. Suitable a priori estimates for adapted solutions of the backward stochastic Lorenz system are obtained. The existence and uniqueness of solutions is shown by the use of suitable truncations and approximations. The continuity of the adapted solutions with respect to the terminal data is also established. The backward stochastic Navier-Stokes equations (BSNSEs, for short) corresponding to incompressible fluid flow in a bounded domain $G$ are studied in the second part. Suitable a priori estimates for adapted solutions of the BSNSEs are obtained …

Three-Dimensional Quantitative Analysis Of The Trajectory Of The Foot While Running, Thomas J. Cunningham

University of Kentucky Master's Theses

Exercising the leg in a manner similar to running is theorized to have the potential effect of increasing performance and reducing occurrence of injuries in running athletes. Development of an exercise device that can help facilitate this method of specificity training could be beneficial to the sports community and should be investigated. Understanding the trajectory of the foot during the running gait is primary to further pursue this concept. 26 running athletes of varying characteristics participated in this study. Each subjects sex, age, weight, height, leg length, activity level and participation amount in their respective sport was recorded. Retro-reflective cameras …

Shelf-Margin Delta Morphology As A Paleo Sea Level Indicator: Implications On Late Quaternary Relative Sea-Level Changes In The Northeast Gulf Of Mexico, Swati Ghoshal

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

A new technique to determine relative sea level history at siliciclastic settings is proposed in this dissertation. The clinoform break (defined as the topset-foreset transition point) of the modern Mississippi River Delta shows a direct relationship with sea level elevation. The analysis of Holocene lobes 8 and 9 belonging to the St. Bernard delta complex of the Mississippi Delta suggests that delta clinoforms can be significantly modified by post-abandonment processes, and hence a detailed stratigraphic evaluation is necessary to determine whether the clinoform geometry is a result of wave erosion or any other post-abandonment processes. The strategy was tested on …

Nest Success And Nest Site Selection Of Shorebirds In North Dakota, Darren Kirk Wiens

LSU Master's Theses

I compared nest success estimates for both shorebirds and Sharp-tailed Grouse between controls and 36 square-mile blocks that were trapped for intermediate mammalian predators. I also investigated shorebird nest site selection by comparing vegetation visual obstruction and species composition between nest sites and the surrounding field. Nest success (Mayfield estimate ± SE) was not different between trapped and control blocks for shorebirds (trap: 50.8% ± 6.3%; control: 69.1% ± 17.5%) or Sharp-tailed Grouse (trap: 61.3% ± 8.3%; control: 48.7% ± 10.0%). This indicates that trapping intermediate mammalian predators is not an efficient method of increasing shorebird or Sharp-tailed Grouse nest …

An Evaluation Of An Inshore Aquaculture Park For Sustainable Coastal Community Development, Vanesssa Maxwell

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation addresses applying industrial park concepts to the development of aquaculture parks in public waters specifically for off-bottom triploid Easter oyster, Crassostrea virginica, culture. The objectives are to identify the permitting process, relevant agencies, and legislation needed to facilitate development of aquaculture parks in the Gulf of Mexico states, and test and analyze off-bottom oyster culture for commercial production of triploid oysters. Off-bottom culture can increase oyster production, but fouling organisms can reduce growth and survival rates. The Adjustable Longline System (ALS), commercially used in Australia, allows oyster bags to be suspended in the water column and positioned for …

Responding To Nietzsche: The Constructive Power Of Destruktion, Francis J. Mootz Iii

Scholarly Works

As a student of Hans-Georg Gadamer, and later a translator and important commentator on Gadamer’s philosophy, P. Christopher Smith is widely acknowledged to be a leading hermeneutical philosopher. In a series of works, Smith has argued that Gadamer provides an important corrective to Nietzsche’s caustic critical challenges, but that Gadamer’s hermeneutics has no relevance for legal theory because law is just the manifestation of will to power. In this paper I argue that Smith misunderstands the nature of legal practice. Starting with a re-reading of the debate between Gadamer and Jacques Derrida about the legacy of Nietzsche’s philosophy, I argue …

Survival, Habitat Use, And Movements Of Female Mallards Wintering In Southwestern Louisiana, Paul Thomas Link

LSU Master's Theses

Little information is available concerning survival, habitat use, and movements of mallards (Anas platyrhychos) wintering on the Gulf Coast Chenier Plain (GCCP). Quantitative data on these parameters would be useful in making effective management decisions by GCCP waterfowl managers. Accordingly, I radio-marked 135 female mallards during winters 2004-2005 and 2005-2006 in southwestern Louisiana. My estimated survival rate for both winters combined was 0.68 ± 0.06 and did not differ by female age. Hazard ratios indicated that radio-marked females were 21-24 times more likely to die during hunted time periods than during non-hunted time periods. Estimated hunting and non-hunting mortality rates …

Feral Swine Action Plan For Oregon, Mark Sytsma, Arick Christopher Rouhe

Center for Lakes and Reservoirs Publications and Presentations

Feral swine are defined as free roaming animals of the genus Sus that are not being held under domestic management or confinement. Swine have spread from Europe and Russia to habitats around the world via human introduction. Currently, feral swine populations are established on every continent except Antarctica. Unlike other large mammal invaders, swine have a high reproductive capacity and are omnivorous, which allows for a quick assimilation into most habitats. Once a breeding population is established in an area, the population can quickly increase and negatively impact the ecosystem. A successful invasion of feral swine is difficult, and sometimes …