Digital Commons Network^™

Embellishing Text Search Queries To Protect User Privacy, Hwee Hwa Pang, Xuhua Ding, Xiaokui Xiao

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Users of text search engines are increasingly wary that their activities may disclose confidential information about their business or personal profiles. It would be desirable for a search engine to perform document retrieval for users while protecting their intent. In this paper, we identify the privacy risks arising from semantically related search terms within a query, and from recurring highspecificity query terms in a search session. To counter the risks, we propose a solution for a similarity text retrieval system to offer anonymity and plausible deniability for the query terms, and hence the user intent, without degrading the system’s precision-recall …

Pseudonym-Based Rfid Discovery Service To Mitigate Unauthorized Tracking In Supply Chain Management, Qiang Yan, Robert H. Deng, Zheng Yan, Yingjiu Li, Tieyan Li

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Unauthorized tracking of RFID tagged assets at the system level, where an adversary tracks movement of RFID tagged assets by eavesdropping network messages or compromising date center servers, has not been well recognized in prior research. Compared to the traditional unauthorized tracking by clandestine scanning at the physical level, unauthorized tracking at the system level could be even more harmful as the adversary is able to obtain tracking information on a global scale and without physical presence. This paper analyzes the threat of unauthorized tracking by a semi-trusted RFID Discovery Service which maintains a database of RFID tag location records …

A New Framework For Rfid Privacy, Robert H. Deng, Yingjiu Li, Moti Yung, Yunlei Zhao

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Formal RFID security and privacy frameworks are fundamental to the design and analysis of robust RFID systems. In this paper, we develop a new definitional framework for RFID privacy in a rigorous and precise manner. Our framework is based on a zero-knowledge (ZK) formulation [8,6] and incorporates the notions of adaptive completeness and mutual authentication. We provide meticulous justification of the new framework and contrast it with existing ones in the literature. In particular, we prove that our framework is strictly stronger than the ind-privacy model of [18], which answers an open question posed in [18] for developing stronger RFID …

Context-Aware Query Recommendations, Alexandros Ntoulas, Heasoo Hwang, Lise Getoor, Stelios Paparizos, Hady Wirawan Lauw

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Described is a search-related technology in which context information regarding a user's prior search actions is used in making query recommendations for a current user action, such as a query or click. To determine whether each set or subset of context information is relevant to the user action, data obtained from a query log is evaluated. More particularly, a query transition (query-query) graph and a query click (query-URL) graph are extracted from the query log; vectors are computed for the current action and each context/sub-context and evaluated against vectors in the graphs to determine current action-to-context similarity. Also described is …

A Biologically-Inspired Cognitive Agent Model Integrating Declarative Knowledge And Reinforcement Learning, Ah-Hwee Tan, Gee-Wah Ng

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

The paper proposes a biologically-inspired cognitive agent model, known as FALCON-X, based on an integration of the Adaptive Control of Thought (ACT-R) architecture and a class of self-organizing neural networks called fusion Adaptive Resonance Theory (fusion ART). By replacing the production system of ACT-R by a fusion ART model, FALCON-X integrates high-level deliberative cognitive behaviors and real-time learning abilities, based on biologically plausible neural pathways. We illustrate how FALCON-X, consisting of a core inference area interacting with the associated intentional, declarative, perceptual, motor and critic memory modules, can be used to build virtual robots for battles in a simulated RoboCode …

Developing Model Checkers Using Pat, Yang Liu, Jun Sun, Jin Song Dong

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

During the last two decades, model checking has emerged as an effective system analysis technique complementary to simulation and testing. Many model checking algorithms and state space reduction techniques have been proposed. Although it is desirable to have dedicated model checkers for every language (or application domain), implementing one with effective reduction techniques is rather challenging. In this work, we present a generic and extensible framework PAT, which facilitates users to build customized model checkers. PAT provides a library of state-of-art model checking algorithms as well as support for customizing language syntax, semantics, state space reduction techniques, graphic user interfaces, …

P2pdoctagger: Content Management Through Automated P2p Collaborative Tagging, Hock Hee Ang, Vivekanand Gopalkrishnan, Wee Keong Ng, Steven C. H. Hoi

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

As the amount of user generated content grows, personal information management has become a challenging problem. Several information management approaches, such as desktop search, document organization and (collaborative) document tagging have been proposed to address this, however they are either inappropriate or inefficient. Automated collaborative document tagging approaches mitigate the problems of manual tagging, but they are usually based on centralized settings which are plagued by problems such as scalability, privacy, etc. To resolve these issues, we present P2PDocTagger, an automated and distributed document tagging system based on classification in P2P networks. P2P-DocTagger minimizes the efforts of individual peers and …

Do Medieval And Renaissance Androids Presage The Posthuman?, Kevin Lagrandeur

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

In his article "Do Medieval and Renaissance Androids Presage the Posthuman?" Kevin LaGrandeur analyzes the relationships between literary images of artificial humans associated with medieval alchemists and alchemy, their modified reemergence in the Renaissance, and how such androids may forecast the idea of a posthuman subjectivity that is connected with their present-day descendents. For example, the talking brass heads in Robert Greene's two Renaissance plays, The Honorable History of Friar Bacon and Friar Bungay and Alphonsus, Prince of Aragon have their roots in Arabic sources, and the former derives specifically from legends concerning the thirteenth-century alchemist and philosopher Roger Bacon. …

A Consilient Science And Humanities In Mcewan's Enduring Love, Curtis D. Carbonell

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

In his article "A Consilient Science and the Humanities in McEwan's Enduring Love" Curtis D. Carbonell provides a reading of a Third Culture novel that foregrounds the relationship of the sciences and the humanities. In Ian McEwan's novel we see a perfect example of how literary thinkers are listening to the world of science and speaking to it in return. This article responds to Stephen Greenberg's ideas about how Neo-Darwinian themes in the novel point to social themes by arguing that what underlies both of these is a deeper structure: the tension between C.P. Snow's Two Cultures, which is only …

New Mexico Musician Vol 58 No 1 (Fall 2010)

New Mexico Musician

No abstract provided.

Compact Binaries In Star Clusters - I. Black Hole Binaries Inside Globular Clusters, J. M.B. Downing, M. J. Benacquista, M. Giersz, R. Spurzem

Physics & Astronomy Faculty Publications

We study the compact binary population in star clusters, focusing on binaries containing black holes, using a self-consistent Monte Carlo treatment of dynamics and full stellar evolution. We find that the black holes experience strong mass segregation and become centrally concentrated. In the core the black holes interact strongly with each other and black hole-black hole binaries are formed very efficiently. The strong interactions, however, also destroy or eject the black hole-black hole binaries. We find no black hole-black hole mergers within our simulations but produce many hard escapers that will merge in the Galactic field within a Hubble time. …

The Sensitivity Of The Parkes Pulsar Timing Array To Individual Sources Of Gravitational Waves, D. R.B. Yardley, G. B. Hobbs, Fredrick A. Jenet, J. P.W. Verbiest, Z. L. Wen, R. N. Manchester, W. A. Coles, W. Van Straten, M. Bailes

Physics & Astronomy Faculty Publications

We present the sensitivity of the Parkes Pulsar Timing Array to gravitational waves (GWs) emitted by individual supermassive black hole binary systems in the early phases of coalescing at the cores of merged galaxies. Our analysis includes a detailed study of the effects of fitting a pulsar timing model to non-white timing residuals. Pulsar timing is sensitive at nanoHertz frequencies and hence complementary to Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory and Laser Interferometer Space Antenna. We place a sky-averaged constraint on the merger rate of nearby (z < 0.6) black hole binaries in the early phases of coalescence with a chirp mass of 1010 M⊙ of less than one merger every 7 yr. The prospects for future GW astronomy of this type with the proposed Square Kilometre Array telescope are discussed. © 2010 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2010 RAS.

Facial Type Analysis Comparison Between Mri, Cbct, And Lateral Cephalometrics, Matthew A. Sanders

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Introduction: Single Cephalometric measurements are comparable between Cone Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT), Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRl) and Conventional Lateral Cephalometric (LC) imaging methods. This study evaluated the agreement between the three imaging methods in facial type analysis (using a composite of 5 cephalometric measures).

Methods and Materials: Twenty-two subjects participated in this study. Cranial images were generated via three modalities: LC, CBCT and MRl. Cephalometric landmarks were identified on the three images per subject and a facial type analysis performed. An equally weighted facial type calculation composed of 5 cephalometric measurements (facial axis, facial depth, mandibular plane, lower face height, …

The Use Of The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-Ii (Mmpi-2) In Pre-Employment Evaluations, Ana M. Gamez

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Psychological testing is an important facet in the selection and hiring processes of law enforcement and public safety personnel. Research in this area suggests that the MMPI-2 scales have been correlated with problematic behavior among police officers, poor job performance, and officer misconduct. This study examined the extent to which suitability for hire could be predicted by the MMPI-2 scale L (Lie), scale K (correction), Infrequency scale (F), scale 4 Psychopathic Deviate (Pd), scale 6 Paranoia (Pa), scale 7 Psychasthenia (Pt), and scale 9 Hypomania (Ma). It examined whether profile differences emerged as a function of suitability across gender, between …

Psychological Profiles In A Female Bariatric Surgery Sample, Aimee L. Donato

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Morbid obesity is an epidemic. Current literature suggests that people with morbid obesity tend to show increased levels of psychological dysfunction. This is especially pertinent to the clinicians who work with morbidly obese patients who seek bariatric surgery as the method for weight control. Surgery should be performed on patients who are psychologically ready to adjust to the stringent post-operative lifestyle.

The purpose of the present study was (1) to compare two groups of bariatric patients (a White group and a non-White group) on pre-surgery measures: specific scales on the Millon Behavioral Medicine Diagnostic (MBMD), the Beck Depression Inventory II …

Creating Prediction Models For Obstructive Sleep Apnea Based On Gender, Jeffrey Hwang

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Introduction: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common chronic disorder that is characterized by repetitive episodes of airflow cessation or reduction occurring during sleep as a result of partial or complete upper airway obstruction. These recurrent events have a tremendous impact on the cardiovascular system with a multitude of dangerous consequences. Numerous studies have been conducted determining etiological risk factors for OSA including anatomical predictors which have been observed with multiple imaging techniques. Cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) is a low-radiation mode of imaging that can be used to accurately identify anatomical landmarks and measure craniofacial relationships and airway dimensions. …

Microct Study Of Critical-Sized Defects Restored With A New Rhbmp-2 Carrier, Joanne S. Kim

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Introduction: Regenerating bone in critical-sized maxillofacial osseous defects remains a challenge. The utilization of recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein-2 (rhBMP-2) to form new bone has been shown to be a promising alternative to autogenous bone grafts, and the development of a carrier matrix to effectively deliver the rhBMP-2 has been identified as the critical factor necessary for the successful clinical application of rhBMP-2. The objective of this study was to perform a microCT analysis to examine the density of reconstructed bone using different rhBMP-2 carriers in critical-sized defects.

Material and Methods: Critical-sized defects (approximately 2.5 cm) were created in the …

Integration Of Action And Language Knowledge: A Roadmap For Developmental Robotics, A Cangelosi, G Metta, G Sagerer, S Nolfi, C Nehaniv, K Fischer, J Tani, T Belpaeme, G Sandini, F Nori, L Fadiga, B Wrede, K Rohlfing, E Tuci, K Dautenhahn, J Saunders, A Zeschel

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

This position paper proposes that the study of embodied cognitive agents, such as humanoid robots, can advance our understanding of the cognitive development of complex sensorimotor, linguistic, and social learning skills. This in turn will benefit the design of cognitive robots capable of learning to handle and manipulate objects and tools autonomously, to cooperate and communicate with other robots and humans, and to adapt their abilities to changing internal, environmental, and social conditions. Four key areas of research challenges are discussed, specifically for the issues related to the understanding of: 1) how agents learn and represent compositional actions; 2) how …

Framework For Development Of Clean Coal: Consultation Response, He Huppert, Mj Golding, Ma Hallworth, Et Al

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

We welcome the broad thrust of the draft framework for the development of clean coal. We are particularly pleased to note the emphasis on a diverse range of measures for mitigating climate change, the recognition that both market-based and regulatory approaches to encouraging the deployment of CCS are valuable, and the suggestion that the proposed requirement to demonstrate CCS should apply immediately. We make several suggestions on matters of detail in response to the consultation questions. Specifically, we suggest the establishment of a process of continual review of the realistic capacity of carbon dioxide storage reservoirs. We further suggest that, …

Quantification Of Localized Brain Iron Sources Using Magnetic Resonance Phase, Grant Alexander Mcauley

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Brain microbleeds (BMB), often present in cerebrovascular and neurodegenerative diseases and neurotrauma, are associated with both chronic and acute illness of significant social and economic impact. Because BMB present a source of potentially cyctotoxic iron to the brain proportional to the amount of extravasated blood, non-invasive quantification of this iron pool is potentially valuable both to assess tissue risk and as a biomarker to monitor disease progression, treatment efficacy, and inform treatment. Past efforts to quantify brain iron have focused on distributed (e.g., anatomical) brain regions. However, BMB represent localized sources of iron deposition. In addition, conventional "magnitude" MR images …

Natural Selection On Mrna Secondary Structure And Its Correlation With Protein Functional Groups, Suresh Solaimuthu

Dissertations

Natural selection may occur at multiple levels of the biological hierarchy, including at the molecular level. It may occur on any phenotypic trait that evidences variation and that is heritable. This research uses computational methods to investigate whether the stability of the secondary structures of mRNAs has been the subject of natural selection.

The DNA sequence that codes for a particular target protein is only partially determined by that protein, since the redundancy of the genetic code permits multiple possible synonymous codons for each peptide. An RNA transcript of a DNA protein template (gene) folds back on itself through complementary …

Design Of Novel Drug Delivery System And Optimal Dosage Regimens, Kwang Seok Kim

Dissertations

Three representative drug delivery systems were analyzed to emphasize the roles of mathematical models and computer-aided simulations in pharmaceutical research. In the first project, a protocol was developed so that the optimal regimen, consisting of the intravenous boluses and subsequent infusion of theophylline, could be obtained once information on the pharmacokinetics became available. The method was based on a two-compartment model of the human body. A module was created and posted on a website for free access. The second project dealt with the transdermal heat-assisted delivery of corticosterone. Heat conduction and drug diffusion through the patch and the skin were …

Study Of Magnetic Helicity In Solar Active Regions And Its Relationship With Solar Eruptions, Sung-Hong Park

Dissertations

It is generally believed that eruptive phenomena in the solar atmosphere such as solar flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) occur in solar active regions with complex magnetic structures. The magnetic complexity is quantified in terms of twists, kinks, and interlinkages of magnetic field lines. Magnetic helicity has been recognized as a useful measure for these properties of a given magnetic field system. Magnetic helicity studies have been naturally directed to the energy buildup and instability leading to solar eruptions. However, in spite of many years of study, detailed aspects of initiation mechanisms of eruptive events are still not well …

Mixed Effect Poisson Log-Linear Models For Clinical And Epidemiological Sleep Hypnogram Data, Bruce J. Swihart, Brian S. Caffo Phd, Ciprian Crainiceanu Phd, Naresh M. Punjabi Phd, Md

Johns Hopkins University, Dept. of Biostatistics Working Papers

Bayesian Poisson log-linear multilevel models scalable to epidemiological studies are proposed to investigate population variability in sleep state transition rates. Hierarchical random effects are used to account for pairings of individuals and repeated measures within those individuals, as comparing diseased to non-diseased subjects while minimizing bias is of importance. Essentially, non-parametric piecewise constant hazards are estimated and smoothed, allowing for time-varying covariates and segment of the night comparisons. The Bayesian Poisson regression is justified through a re-derivation of a classical algebraic likelihood equivalence of Poisson regression with a log(time) offset and survival regression assuming exponentially distributed survival times. Such re-derivation …

Shawn Mcmurran Tssa Fall 2008, Shawn Mcmurran

Teaching Skills Study Awards (TSSA) Reports

Enhances faculty's teaching by attending a conference devoted to university teaching, a high-impact practice, evidence-based practice or a newly developing teaching practice.

Potential Barrier Effects In High-Order Harmonic Generation By Transition-Metal Ions, M. V. Frolov, N. L. Manakov, Anthony F. Starace

Anthony F. Starace Publications

The experimental finding of significant enhancement or suppression of particular harmonics generated by the ionic component of laser-produced plasmas of transition-metal atoms is explained theoretically in terms of the standard three-step scenario for strong-field harmonic generation, taking into account the potential barrier effects that lead to a strong 3p → 3d electric dipole transition that dominates the photoionization cross sections of the outer subshells of those ions.

Monster In The Dark: The Ultraluminous Grb 080607 And Its Dusty Environment, Dieter H. Hartmann, D. A. Perley, A. N. Morgan, A. Updike, F. Yuan, C. W. Awkerlof, A. A. Miller, J. S. Bloom, S. B. Cenko, W. Li

Publications

We present early-time optical through infrared photometry of the bright gamma-ray burst GRB 080607, starting only 6 s following the initial trigger in the rest frame. Complemented by our previously published spectroscopy, this high-quality photometric dataset allows us to solve for the extinction properties of the redshift 3.036 sightline, giving perhaps the most detailed information on the ultraviolet continuum absorption properties of any sightline outside our Local Group to date. The extinction properties are not adequately modeled by any ordinary extinction template (including the average Milky Way, Large Magellanic Cloud, and Small Magellanic Cloud curves), partially because the 2175 A …

Architecture And Compiler Support For Leakage Reduction Using Power Gating In Microprocessors, Soumyaroop Roy

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Power gating is a technique commonly used for runtime leakage reduction in digital CMOS circuits. In microprocessors, power gating can be implemented by using sleep transistors to selectively deactivate circuit modules when they are idle during program execution. In this dissertation, a framework for power gating arithmetic functional units in embedded microprocessors with architecture and compiler support is proposed. During compile time, program regions are identified where one or more functional units are idle and sleep instructions are inserted into the code so that those units can be put to sleep during program execution. Subsequently, when their need is detected …

Flyer News, Vol. 58, No. 1 (Aug. 31, 2010), University Of Dayton

Flyer News

Student-run newspaper of the University of Dayton.

Education In The Environment: A Strategy For Continued Interagency Outdoor Education Programming Quarterly Progress Report: Period Ending August 31, 2010, Margaret N. Rees

Reports (PLI Education)

Highlights of the university’s focused efforts during the past three months include the following:

• One Families in Nature event was held, benefiting approximately 40 people.
• A media campaign has been developed for the Nevada Children’s Outdoor Bill of Rights.
• A total of 18 people are participating in the fourth cohort of the Nevada State Certification in Environmental Education and Interpretation.
• An RV has been purchased for the SNAP Mobile Exhibit and is in process of being retrofitted.
• Forever Earth was scheduled for 16 days and benefited 425 individuals.
• The National Park Service used Forever Earth as a mobile visitor center …