Digital Commons Network^™

Wmu Board Of Trustees Formal Session Conference Call December 9, 2009, Wmu Board Of Trustees

WMU Board of Trustees Meetings

Minutes of the WMU Board of Trustees Conference Call December 9, 2009 include:

• Sabbaticals awarded

Investigation Into Contact Resistance And Damage Of Metal Contacts Used In Rf-Mems Switches, Kevin W. Gilbert

Theses and Dissertations

This research examines the physical and electrical processes involved in lifecycle failure of Microelectromechanical (MEMS) Radio-Frequency (RF) cantilever beam ohmic contact switches. Failures of these switches generally occur at the contact, but complete details of performance of microcontacts are difficult to measure and have not been previously reported. This study investigated the mechanics of microcontact behavior by designing and constructing a novel experimental setup. Three representative contact materials of varying microstructure (Au, Au5%Ru, Au4%V₂O₅) were tested and parameters of contact during cycling were measured. The Au4%V₂O₅, a dispersion strengthened material developed at …

An Empirical Methodology For Engineering Human Systems Integration, Nicholas S. Hardman

Theses and Dissertations

The systems engineering technical processes are not sufficiently supported by methods and tools that quantitatively integrate human considerations into early system design. Because of this, engineers must often rely on qualitative judgments or delay critical decisions until late in the system lifecycle. Studies reveal that this is likely to result in cost, schedule, and performance consequences. This dissertation presents a methodology to improve the application of systems engineering technical processes for design. This methodology is mathematically rigorous, is grounded in relevant theory, and applies extant human subjects data to critical systems development challenges. The methodology is expressed in four methods …

Tailored Systems Architecture For Design Of Space Science And Technology Missions Using Dodaf V2.0, Nicholas J. Merski

Theses and Dissertations

The use of systems architecture, following a set of integrated descriptions from an architecture framework, has been well codified in Department of Defense acquisition and systems engineering. However, in the Space Science and Technology (S&T) community, this guidance and practice is not commonly adopted. This paper outlines an approach to leverage the changes made in DoD Architecture Framework 2.0 (DoDAF2.0), and the renewed emphasis on data and support to acquisition decision analysis. After decomposing the Space S&T design lifecycle into phases, design milestones and activities using process models, a set of DoDAF prescribed and Fit-for-Purpose views are constructed into a …

Bisecting Document Clustering Using Model-Based Methods, Aaron Samuel Davis

Theses and Dissertations

We all have access to large collections of digital text documents, which are useful only if we can make sense of them all and distill important information from them. Good document clustering algorithms that organize such information automatically in meaningful ways can make a difference in how effective we are at using that information. In this paper we use model-based document clustering algorithms as a base for bisecting methods in order to identify increasingly cohesive clusters from larger, more diverse clusters. We specifically use the EM algorithm and Gibbs Sampling on a mixture of multinomials as the base clustering algorithms …

Talk To Me, I Am Listening, Larbi Sami Ben

Theses and Dissertations

An introductory conversation with a new person I just met usually goes like this: So, where is your accent from ? Are you American? Well, yes, .....but no. Not really. I do have American citizenship and I lived in the US for fifteen years but I grew up in France. Ok, so you’re French? Well, yes, but .....not totally. My mother is French but my father is Tunisian. Ok, so you’re Tunisian? Well, yes, but... not wholly. I don’t speak Arabic, so I don’t totally feel Tunisian. So what are you? American? French? Tunisian? With my work, I ask the …

Scholarships Allow Um Students To Work With Area Nonprofits, University Of Montana--Missoula. Office Of University Relations

University of Montana News Releases, 1928, 1956-present

No abstract provided.

Pirates Earn 2009 Nscaa Soccer Honors, Armstrong State University

Armstrong Athletics: Women's Soccer News (Archived)

Pirates Earn 2009 NSCAA Soccer Honors. The National Soccer Coaches Association of American (NSCAA) released their 2009 Division II awards today and several members of the PBC Tournament champion Armstrong Atlantic State Pirates were honored by the organization.

An Introduction To The Echo State Network And Its Applications In Power System, Jing Dai, Ganesh K. Venayagamoorthy, Ronald G. Harley

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Echo State Network (ESN) is a new type of Recurrent Neural Network (RNN) proposed in recent years. the training process of ESN is easier and requires less computational effort than regular RNN which has the same size. Due to its high modeling capability of complex dynamic system, ESN has been used in various power system applications such as power system nonlinear load modeling and true harmonic current detection, wide area monitoring, intelligent control of an Active Power Filter (APF), overhead conductor thermal dynamics identification, wind speed or water inflow forecasting, etc. This paper introduces the basic concept and the offline …

Large-Scale Distributed Coalition Formation, Daniel R. Karrels

Theses and Dissertations

The CyberCraft project is an effort to construct a large scale Distributed Multi-Agent System (DMAS) to provide autonomous Cyberspace defense and mission assurance for the DoD. It employs a small but flexible agent structure that is dynamically reconfigurable to accommodate new tasks and policies. This document describes research into developing protocols and algorithms to ensure continued mission execution in a system of one million or more agents, focusing on protocols for coalition formation and Command and Control. It begins by building large-scale routing algorithms for a Hierarchical Peer to Peer structured overlay network, called Resource-Clustered Chord (RC-Chord). RC-Chord introduces the …

Performance Analysis Of Live-Virtual-Constructive And Distributed Virtual Simulations: Defining Requirements In Terms Of Temporal Consistency, Douglas D. Hodson

Theses and Dissertations

This research extends the knowledge of live-virtual-constructive (LVC) and distributed virtual simulations (DVS) through a detailed analysis and characterization of their underlying computing architecture. LVCs are characterized as a set of asynchronous simulation applications each serving as both producers and consumers of shared state data. In terms of data aging characteristics, LVCs are found to be first-order linear systems. System performance is quantified via two opposing factors; the consistency of the distributed state space, and the response time or interaction quality of the autonomous simulation applications. A framework is developed that defines temporal data consistency requirements such that the objectives …

Analysis Of Expedient Field Decontamination Methods For The Xmx/2l-Mil High-Volume Aerosol Sampler, Brandon C. Laroche

Theses and Dissertations

The XMX/2L-MIL is a high volume air sampler used by the Air Force Bioenvironmental Engineering community to collect biological aerosols. Without a verified decontamination technique, however, the XMX cannot be used effectively. The objective of this study was to evaluate several proposed methods for expedient field decontamination of the XMX. This study centered on the inactivation of Bacillus atrophaeus spores and vegetative Erwinia herbicola organisms from the XMX inner canister. The goals in this investigation were twofold: 1) to verify the antimicrobial efficacy of a 10% bleach solution and 2) to determine if wiping the components with a bleach-soaked paper …

A Program Evaluation Of A Literacy Initiative For Students With Moderate To Severe Disabilities, Carrie F. De La Cruz

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Recently the National Reading Panel concluded that systematic and direct instruction in phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension that is informed by ongoing assessments of student progress results in positive student achievement (NICHHD, 2002). For students with moderate to severe disabilities and students with autism, reading instruction has historically focused on functional sight words. Unfortunately, very little research exists that has examined how the literacy achievement of students with moderate to severe disabilities can be impacted by a more comprehensive, data-driven instructional model.

A special education program that serves students with moderate to severe disabilities and students with autism …

Governance In Motion: Service Provision And Child Welfare Outcomes In A Performance-Based, Managed Care Contracting Environment, Bowen Mcbeath, William Meezan

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Examining the linkage between service provision and client outcomes is important in performance-based human service environments. Since most performance initiatives reward agencies for improving client outcomes rather than providing specific services, managers may have incentives to streamline workers’ efforts and reduce resources devoted to services considered nonessential. This article uses data from a performance-based child welfare initiative to examine the relationship between child permanency outcomes, the services provided by caseworkers, and the environment surrounding frontline service provision. Findings indicate that greater service efforts are required to reunify children with parents than to reach other outcomes, including adoption and placement with …

The Bates Student - Volume 139 Number 08 - December 8, 2009, Bates College

The Bates Student

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of First-Generation Status And Race/Ethnicity On Students' Adjustment To College, Cornelia T. Splichal

Open Access Dissertations

Little is known about the college adjustment of first-generation students, particularly those from various racial/ethnic groups. This study sought to describe the college adjustment of first-generation students from three different racial/ethnic backgrounds (White/non-Hispanic, Black and Hispanic) and to determine whether generational status and race/ethnicity jointly or separately affect college adjustment as measured by responses to the Student Adaptation to College Questionnaire (SACQ). A sample of 418 students (208 first-generation, 210 non-first-generation; 140 White, 138 Black, and 140 Hispanic) was drawn from a population of 4,718 degree-seeking, self-identified undergraduates at a research university in the Southeast. A 2 X 3 factorial …

Two Business Professors Selected For Thompson Scholar Award, Winthrop University

Winthrop News 2009

• The emerging technology is a powerful and quick way to collect market data linked to maps.
• The two faculty members envision their initiative will become a campus wide working group to promote more general cooperative efforts.

E-Content: Student Content Creators: Convergence Of Literacies, Joan K. Lippincott

Faculty Journal Articles

There is ample evidence that students are creating all types of digital content and disseminating it via the Internet. When they graduate from universities and colleges and enter such fields as business, education, government, medicine, research, or the arts, they will continue to produce digital content. Employers often select new graduates for positions in the expectation that they will take on technology-intensive assignments related to the Web presence of the organization. While in school, many students create digital materials without guidance from faculty, information technologists, or librarians, but such products are typically recreational and do not have the hallmarks of …

December 8, 2009, University Of Mississippi. Faculty Senate

Meeting Minutes

Minutes for the December 8, 2009 meeting of the University of Mississippi Faculty Senate.

Flyer News, Vol. 57, No. 19 (Dec. 8, 2009), University Of Dayton

Flyer News

Student-run newspaper of the University of Dayton.

December 8, 2009, Council On Teacher Education

Minutes

No abstract provided.

Spartan Daily December 8, 2009, San Jose State University, School Of Journalism And Mass Communications

Spartan Daily (School of Journalism and Mass Communications)

Volume 133, Issue 49

25 Year Club: 28th Annual Gala, Western Michigan University

25 Year Club

25 Year Club: 28th Annual Gala

December 8, 2009

• New Inductees
• Posthumous Inductees
• Members
• Retirees

Ua12/2/1 College Heights Herald, Vol. 85, No. 24, Wku Student Affairs

WKU Administration Documents

WKU campus newspaper reporting campus, athletic and Bowling Green, Kentucky news. Articles:

• Waggoner, Tabitha. Police Advise Caution After Murder – Martha Richmond aka Bettina
• Simpson, Mandy. Greater Expectations – ACT Admissions Standards
• Hicks, Billy. Bowling Green City Commissioners OK Needed for Projects – Downtown Redevelopment, Gordon Ford College of Business, Housing & Residence Life, WKU Police, Block 12
• Wilson, Laurel. Officials Release Plans for Student Apartments – Downtown Redevelopment, Housing & Residence Life, Student Life Foundation
• Thomas, Julia. A Thousand Words – Chris Manley, Amanda Manley, Traumatic Brain Injury
• Bilby, Tara. Student Government Association to Dine with Lawmakers – Dine …

Martik Brothers Inc V. Huntington National Bank

2009 Decisions

USDC for the Western District of Pennsylvania

Ua37/29 Gary Ransdell - Fed. Reserve Board - Ben Bernanke Q&A Session, St. Louis Federal Reserve Board

WKU Administration Documents

Email sent to members of the St. Louis Federal Reserve Board regarding the question and answer session following Bernanke's speech at the Washington Economic Club.

Egoviz – A Mobile Based Spatial Interaction System, Keith Gardiner, Junjun Yin, James Carswell

Articles

This paper describes research carried out in the area of mobile spatial interaction and the development of a mobile (i.e. on-device) version of a simulated web-based 2D directional query processor. The TellMe application integrates location (from GPS, GSM, WiFi) and orientation (from digital compass/tilt sensors) sensing technologies into an enhanced spatial query processing module capable of exploiting a mobile device’s position and orientation for querying real-world 3D spatial datasets. This paper outlines the technique used to combine these technologies and the architecture needed to deploy them on a sensor enabled smartphone (i.e. Nokia 6210 Navigator). With all these sensor technologies …

Staff Senate Minutes, 2009 December 8, Clemson University

Staff Senate Minutes

No abstract provided.

Building Community Among Older Oromo Women Struggling With Sadness In A Large Urban Setting, Fatuma Kotile

Theses and Graduate Projects

Older Oromo women who immigrated to the United States in the early 1990s have experienced several stressful life events including war, famine, acculturation, harsh northern climate, a new language (English), and multiple experiences different from those in their native country, Ethiopia. Coping with these new experiences, correlates with a high level of depressive symptoms that Oromo people call "sadness." The purpose of this project is to create and describe a transcultural model of nursing practice in community that aims to decrease sadness among older Oromo women by promoting community building and healthy life choices in the midst of change. A …

Terra-West, Inc. V. Idaho Mut. Trust, Llc Respondent's Brief Dckt. 36523

Idaho Supreme Court Records & Briefs, All

No abstract provided.