Digital Commons Network^™

Refactoring Pipe-Like Mashups For End-User Programmers, Kathryn T. Stolee, Sebastian Elbaum

School of Computing: Conference and Workshop Papers

Mashups are becoming increasingly popular as end users are able to easily access, manipulate, and compose data from many web sources. We have observed, however, that mashups tend to suffer from deficiencies that propagate as mashups are reused. To address these deficiencies, we would like to bring some of the benefits of software engineering techniques to the end users creating these programs. In this work, we focus on identifying code smells indicative of the deficiencies we observed in web mashups programmed in the popular Yahoo! Pipes environment. Through an empirical study, we explore the impact of those smells on end-user …

Analysis Of Event Detection Delay In Wireless Sensor Networks, Yunbo Wang, Mehmet C. Vuran, Steve Goddard

School of Computing: Conference and Workshop Papers

Emerging applications of wireless sensor networks (WSNs) require real-time event detection to be provided by the network. In a typical event monitoring WSN, multiple reports are generated by several nodes when a physical event occurs, and are then forwarded through multi-hop communication to a sink that detects the event. To improve the event detection reliability, usually timely delivery of a certain number of packets is required. Traditional timing analysis of WSNs are, however, either focused on individual packets or traffic flows from individual nodes. In this paper, a spatio-temporal fluid model is developed to capture the delay characteristics of event …

Matchmaking: A New Mapreduce Scheduling Technique, Chen He, Ying Lu, David Swanson

School of Computing: Conference and Workshop Papers

MapReduce is a powerful platform for large-scale data processing. To achieve good performance, a MapReduce scheduler must avoid unnecessary data transmission by enhancing the data locality (placing tasks on nodes that contain their input data). This paper develops a new MapReduce scheduling technique to enhance map task’s data locality. We have integrated this technique into Hadoop default FIFO scheduler and Hadoop fair scheduler. To evaluate our technique, we compare not only MapReduce scheduling algorithms with and without our technique but also with an existing data locality enhancement technique (i.e., the delay algorithm developed by Facebook). Experimental results show that our …

A Regional-Scale Climate Reconstruction Of The Last 4000 Years From Lakes In The Nebraska Sand Hills, Usa, Jens Schmieder, Sherilyn C. Fritz, James B. Swinehart, Avery L. C. Shinneman, Alexander P. Wolfe, Gifford Miller, N. Daniels, K. C. Jacobs, Eric C. Grimm

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Faculty Publications

High-resolution paleohydrological reconstructions were carried out in five shallow lakes in the Nebraska Sand Hills across an east–west transect in order to 1) determine whether long-term droughts of the past 4000 years were spatially and temporally coherent across the region, 2) distinguish local variation in climate or hydrology from regional patterns of change, and 3) compare the paleolimnological results with the existing dune-inferred drought records. Diatom- inferred lake-level was reconstructed for all sites and compared with other regional records. Alterations between high and low lake-levels were frequent during the past 4000 years, which suggests that shifts between dry and wet …

Channel Coding Over Multiple Coherence Blocks With Queueing Constraints, Deli Qiao, M. Cenk Gursoy, Senem Velipasalar

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: Faculty Publications

This paper investigates the performance of wireless systems that employ finite-blocklength channel codes for transmission and operate under queueing constraints in the form of limitations on buffer overflow probabilities. A block fading model, in which fading stays constant in each coherence block and change independently between blocks, is considered. It is assumed that channel coding is performed over multiple coherence blocks. An approximate lower bound on the transmission rate is obtained from Feintein’s Lemma. This lower bound is considered as the service rate and is incorporated into the effective capacity formulation, which characterizes the maximum constant arrival rate that can …

Location Cheating: A Security Challenge To Location-Based Social Network Services, Wenbo He, Xue Liu, Mai Ren

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: Faculty Publications

Location-based mobile social network services such as foursquare and Gowalla have grown exponentially over the past several years. These location-based services utilize the geographical position to enrich user experiences in a variety of contexts, including location-based searching and location-based mobile advertising. To attract more users, the location-based mobile social network services provide real-world rewards to the user, when a user checks in at a certain venue or location. This gives incentives for users to cheat on their locations. In this paper, we investigate the threat of location cheating attacks, find the root cause of the vulnerability, and outline the possible …

A Current-Sensorless Mppt Quasi-Double-Boost Converter For Pv Systems, Christopher J. Lohmeier, Jianwu Zeng, Wei Qiao, Liyan Qu, Jerry L. Hudgins

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: Faculty Publications

This paper proposes a current-sensorless maximum power point tracking (MPPT) quasi-double-boost converter for photovoltaic (PV) systems. Instead of using sensors, the output current of the PV system is obtained from the measured voltage ripple in the input capacitor of the DC-DC converter. The estimated current is used by a hill-climbing (HC) MPPT algorithm to determine the optimal duty ratio for controlling the DC-DC converter. The operating principle, theoretical analysis, and design guidelines of the quasi-double-boost converter are provided in the paper. Simulation studies are carried out in MATLAB Simulink by using real solar radiation data obtained from the National Renewable …

Effective Capacity Region And Optimal Power Control For Fading Broadcast Channels, Deli Qiao, M. Cenk Gursoy, Senem Velipasalar

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: Faculty Publications

Transmission over fading broadcast channels in the presence of quality of service (QoS) constraints is studied. Effective capacity, which provides the maximum constant arrival rate that a given service process can support while satisfying statistical QoS constraints, is employed as the performance metric. The effective capacity region achieved with superposition coding and successive interference cancellation is identified and is shown to be convex. Subsequently, optimal power control policies that achieve the boundary points of the effective capacity region are investigated, and an algorithm for the numerical computation of the optimal power adaptation schemes for the two-user case is provided. Additionally, …

Wide-Area Multi-Object Tracking With Non-Overlapping Camera Views, Youlu Wang, Senem Velipasalar, M. Cenk Gursoy

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: Faculty Publications

We present a system for wide-area multi-object tracking across disjoint camera views. We employ a probabilistic Petri Net-based approach to account for the uncertainties of the vision algorithms (such as unreliable background subtraction, and tracking failure) and to incorporate the available domain knowledge. We combine appearance features of objects as well as the travel-time evidence for target matching and consistent labeling across disjoint camera views. 3D color histogram, Histogram of Oriented Gradients, object size and aspect ratio are used as the appearance features. The distribution of the travel time is modeled by a Gaussian Mixture Model. By incorporating the domain …

Reprogrammed Transcriptome In Rhesus-Bovine Interspecies Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer Embryos, Kai Wang, Hasan H. Otu, Ying Chen, Young Lee, Keith Latham, Jose B. Cibelli

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: Faculty Publications

Background: Global activation of the embryonic genome (EGA), one of the most critical steps in early mammalian embryo development, is recognized as the time when interspecies somatic cell nuclear transfer (iSCNT) embryos fail to thrive.

Methodology/Principal Findings: In this study, we analyzed the EGA-related transcriptome of rhesus-bovine iSCNT 8- to 16- cell embryos and dissected the reprogramming process in terms of embryonic gene activation, somatic gene silencing, and maternal RNA degradation. Compared with fibroblast donor cells, two thousand and seven genes were activated in iSCNT embryos, one quarter of them reaching expression levels comparable to those found in in vitro …

Coparental Communication, Relational Satisfaction, And Mental Health In Stepfamilies, Paul Schrodt, Dawn O. Braithwaite

Department of Communication Studies: Faculty Publications

This study tested a series of actor–partner interdependence models of coparental communication, relational satisfaction, and mental health in stepfamilies. Participants included 127 couples (N = 254). Results revealed 2 actor-oriented models whereby parents’ and stepparents’ coparental communication quality positively predicted their own (but not their partners’) satisfaction and mental health. A final model revealed that parents’ relational satisfaction mediated the effect of coparental communication on their own mental health. A similar pattern emerged for stepparents, although coparental communication continued to have a direct, positive effect on stepparents’ mental health. Importantly, parents’ coparental communication produced an inverse partner effect on stepparents’ …

A Novel Channel Probing/Scanning Scheme For Secure Fast Handoff In Ieee 802.11-Based Wireless Networks, Ye Yan, Yi Qian, Rose Qingyang Hu

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

With the proliferation of wireless networks for practical deployments in recent years, secure fast handoff has become significantly important to provide secured access while reduce the latency caused by handoff procedure. Channel probing/scanning delay has been a major contribution to the overall latency of handoff in IEEE 802.11 based wireless networks. In this paper, we present a novel secure fast handoff scheme that adopts network-assisted radio statement (NACS) to eliminate lengthy probing/scanning delay by taking advantage of the knowledge of network topology of neighboring nodes in the network. We apply an opportunistic mechanism to retrieve the channel condition from neighboring …

Priority Preemption For Real-Time Application Qos Guarantees In Cooperative Vehicular Networks, Ting Zhou, Hamid Sharif, Michael Hempel, Puttipong Mahasukhon, Tao Ma, Pradhumna Shrestha

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

Inter-vehicle and roadside-to-vehicle communications can contribute to a safer and more efficient driving experience by providing time-sensitive and location-aware information. However, its performance suffers from vehicle mobility, intermittent user connectivity, and wireless channel unreliability. In this paper, we propose a novel cross-layer optimization approach based on our Adaptive Distributed Cooperative Medium Access Control (ADC-MAC) protocol to guarantee the quality-of-service (QoS) of real-time applications. Markov chain based theoretical analysis show that our proposed priority preemption approach can improve the quality of a real-time application by guaranteeing its bandwidth and reducing its transmission latency.

Annual Outflow And Annual Inflow Of Water From/To Nebraska, 1950- 2010, Susan Olafsen-Lackey

Conservation and Survey Division: Faculty and Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

Nutritional And Anti-Nutritional Compositions Of Defatted Nebraska Hybrid Hazelnut Meal, Yixiang Xu, Milford Hanna

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Defatted meal of hybrid hazelnuts may have potential food and value-added industrial applications. The proximate composition, mineral elements, amino acid profile and anti-nutritional factors (total phenolics, tannins, condensed tannins and phytates) of defatted meals of ten Nebraska hybrid hazelnut genotypes were investigated. Excluding the amino acid profile, the nutritional and anti-nutritional compositions of the meals differed significantly, with high protein, carbohydrate, neutral and acid detergent fibre concentrations and energy value. Mineral concentrations were higher than those previously reported. K was the most abundant mineral element, followed by P, Ca and Mg. Seven essential amino acids accounted for approximately 27.8% of …

Composition And Sensory Evaluation Of Popcorn Flake Polymorphisms For A Select Butterfly-Type Hybrid, Jess C. Sweley, Devin J. Rose, David S. Jackson

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

The objective of this study was to identify and characterize different popped popcorn flake shapes, or polymorphisms, arising from a yellow butterfly popcorn hybrid (YP-213), and then to determine the impact of popcorn flake shape on composition and sensory characteristics. Kernels were popped using a microwave oven and visually sorted into three different polymorphisms depending on whether the appendages were expanded unilaterally, bilaterally, or multilaterally. When popped, 9.0 ± 3.1%, 71.2 ± 5.9% and 12.3 ± 3.8% of kernels were expanded unilaterally, bilaterally, and multilaterally, respectively, while 7.6 ± 1.4% of kernels remained unpopped. Expansion volumes for unilaterally, bilaterally, and …

Environment And Hybrid Influences On Rapid-Visco-Analysis Flour Properties Of Food-Grade Grain Sorghum, Joni K. Griess, Stephen C. Mason, David S. Jackson, Tom D. Galusha, Jeffrey F. Pedersen, Muhammad Yaseen

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Grain processors would benefi t from information about the production environment and the infl uences of the sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] hybrid on food-grade fl our properties. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of environment and hybrid on rapid-visco-analysis (RVA) fl our properties of commercially available food-grade sorghum. A randomized complete block experiment was planted in 12 environments, which included the 2004 and 2005 growing seasons and irrigated and dryland water regimes in eastern, central, and west central Nebraska, and a dryland, low-N environment in eastern Nebraska. The environment accounted for 71–85% of the total …

Evaluation Of Mold And Mycotoxin Contaminations In Hybrid Hazelnuts Grown In Nebraska, Yixiang Xu, Andreia Bianchini, Milford A. Hanna

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Hybrid hazelnuts are a potential oilseed crop for food and value-added industrial applications, but they are vulnerable to mold contamination. Mold and mycotoxin contamination were investigated in three forms (whole nut, kernel, and ground meal) of Nebraska hybrid hazelnuts. The nut was the most contaminated form, followed by ground meal and kernel. Penicillium was the predominant genus isolated from all three forms, and Alternaria and Cladosporium also were prevalent. In spite of presence of several toxigenic molds, all tested samples were mycotoxin free.

Barcoded Pyrosequencing Reveals That Consumption Of Galactooligosaccharides Results In A Highly Specific Bifidogenic Response In Humans, Lauren M. G. Davis, Ines Martinez, Jens Walter, Caitlin Goin, Robert W. Hutkins

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Prebiotics are selectively fermented ingredients that allow specific changes in the gastrointestinal microbiota that confer health benefits to the host. However, the effects of prebiotics on the human gut microbiota are incomplete as most studies have relied on methods that fail to cover the breadth of the bacterial community. The goal of this research was to use high throughput multiplex community sequencing of 16S rDNA tags to gain a community wide perspective of the impact of prebiotic galactooligosaccharide (GOS) on the fecal microbiota of healthy human subjects. Fecal samples from eighteen healthy adults were previously obtained during a feeding trial …

Suggested Improvements For The Allergenicity Assessment Of Genetically Modified Plants Used In Foods, Richard E. Goodman

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Genetically modified (GM) plants are increasingly used for food production and industrial applications. As the global population has surpassed 7 billion and per capita consumption rises, food production is challenged by loss of arable land, changing weather patterns, and evolving plant pests and disease. Previous gains in quantity and quality relied on natural or artificial breeding, random mutagenesis, increased pesticide and fertilizer use, and improved farming techniques, all without a formal safety evaluation. However, the direct introduction of novel genes raised questions regarding safety that are being addressed by an evaluation process that considers potential increases in the allergenicity, toxicity, …

Wild Buckwheat Is Unlikely To Pose A Risk To Buckwheat-Allergic Individuals, Julie A. Nordlee, Rakhi Panda, Joseph L. Baumert, Richard E. Goodman, Steve Taylor

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum) is a commonly allergenic food especially in Asia where buckwheat is more commonly consumed. Wild buckwheat (Polygonum convolvulus, recently changed to Fallopia convolvulus) is an annual weed prevalent in grain-growing areas of the United States. Wild buckwheat is not closely related to edible buckwheat although the seeds do have some physical resemblance. A large shipment of wheat into Japan was halted by the discovery of the adventitious presence of wild buckwheat seeds over possible concerns for buckwheat-allergic consumers. However, IgE-binding was not observed to an extract of wild buckwheat using sera from …

Dietary Selenium Affects Host Selenoproteome Expression By Influencing The Gut Microbiota, Marina V. Kasaikina, Marina A. Kravtsova, Byung Cheon Lee, Javier Seravalli, Daniel A. Peterson, Jens Walter, Ryan Legge, Andrew K. Benson, Dolph L. Hatfield, Vadim Gladyshev

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Colonization of the gastrointestinal tract and composition of the microbiota may be influenced by components of the diet, including trace elements. To understand how selenium regulates the intestinal microflora, we used high-throughput sequencing to examine the composition of gut microbiota of mice maintained on selenium-deficient, selenium-sufficient, and selenium-enriched diets. The microbiota diversity increased as a result of selenium in the diet. Specific phylotypes showed differential effects of selenium, even within a genus, implying that selenium had unique effects across microbial taxa. Conventionalized germfree mice subjected to selenium diets gave similar results and showed an increased diversity of the bacterial population …

An Experimental Live Chimeric Porcine Circovirus 1-2a Vaccine Decreases Porcine Circovirus 2b Viremia When Administered Intramuscularly Or Orally In A Porcine Circovirus 2b And Porcine Reproductive And Respiratory Syndrome Virus Dual-Challenge Model, Tanja Opriessnig, João C. Gomes-Neto, Michelle Hermann, Hui-Gang Shen, Nathan M. Beach, Yaowei Huang, Patrick G. Halbur, Xiang-Jin Meng

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Commercially available inactivated vaccines against porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) have been shown to be effective in reducing PCV2 viremia. Live-attenuated, orally administered vaccines are widely used in the swine industry for several pathogens because of their ease of use yet they are not currently available for PCV2 and efficacy. The aims of this study were to determine the efficacy of a live-attenuated chimeric PCV2vaccine inadual-challengemodelusingPCV2bandporcine reproductiveandrespiratorysyndrome virus (PRRSV) and to compare intramuscular (IM) and oral (PO) routes of vaccination. Eighty-three 2-week-old pigs were randomized into 12 treatment groups: four vaccinated IM, four vaccinated PO and four non-vaccinated (control) groups. …

Il-2 Limits Il-12 Enhanced Lymphocyte Proliferation During Leishmania Amazonensis Infection, Amanda E. Ramer-Tait, Christine A. Petersen, Douglas E. Jones

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

C3H mice infected with Leishmania amazonensis develop persistent, localized lesions with high parasite loads. During infection, memory/effector CD44^hiCD4⁺ T cells proliferate and produce IL-2, but do not polarize to a known effector phenotype. Previous studies have demonstrated IL-12 is insufficient to skew these antigen-responsive T cells to a functional Th1 response. To determine the mechanism of this IL-12 unresponsiveness, we used an in vitro assay of repeated antigen activation. Memory/effector CD44^hiCD4⁺ T cells did not increase proliferation in response to either IL-2 or IL-12, although these cytokines upregulated CD25 expression. Neutralization of IL-2 enhanced …

Glutaraldehyde-Modified Recombinant Fel D 1: A Hypoallergen With Negligible Biological Activity But Retained Immunogenicity, Serge A. Versteeg, Ingrid Bulder, Martin Himly, Toni M. Van Capel, R. Van Den Hout, Stef J. Koppelman, Esther C. De Jong, Fatima Ferreira, Ronald Van Ree

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

Background: Recombinant allergens are under investigation for replacing allergen extracts in immunotherapy. Site-directed mutagenesis has been suggested as a strategy to develop hypoallergenic molecules that will reduce the risk of side effects. For decades, chemically modified allergen extracts have been used for the same reason.

Aim: To evaluate whether glutaraldehyde modification is a good strategy to produce hypoallergenic recombinant allergens with retained immunogenicity.

Methods: Fel d 1 was cloned as a single construct linking both chains of the molecule and expressed in Escherichia coli and Pichia pastoris. After physicochemical purification, recombinant Fel d 1 (rFel d 1) was …

Internalizing Problems In Students Involved In Bullying And Victimization [Chapter 5], Susan M. Swearer Napolitano, Adam Collins, Kisha Haye Radliff, Cixin Wang

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

In this chapter, we will review the literature on internalizing problems in youth who are involved in bullying. Involvement in bullying occurs along a continuum (i.e., the bully- victim continuum), meaning that students can participate in multiple roles, including bullying others, being bullied, both bullying others and being bullied, witnessing bullying, and no involvement in bullying. It is clear that involvement in bullying is not defined by static and fixed roles in individuals. It is also evident that students involved in the bully-victim continuum experience greater levels of internalizing problems compared to students who are not involved in bullying. The …

Preface, Yong-Rak Kim, Amit Bhasin

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Faculty Publications

Over the last couple of decades there has been a significant shift from the use of empirical approaches toward the use of mechanics and materials science to characterize the performance of bituminous materials. The macroscopic performance of the asphalt composite depends on the fundamental physical, chemical, thermal, and mechanical properties of the constituent materials and the interaction between these materials at different length scales (nano, micro, meso, and macro).

A high level of complexity is introduced to characterize and model bituminous materials due to significant heterogeneity at different length scales and various forms of distress that are typically coupled with …

Impact Of Elliptical Trainer Ergonomic Modifications On Perceptions Of Safety, Comfort, Workout, And Usability For People With Physical Disabilities And Chronic Conditions, Judith M. Burnfield, Yu Shu, Thad W. Buster, Adam P. Taylor, Carl A. Nelson

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Faculty Publications

Background The popularity of elliptical training has grown in rehabilitation, fitness, and home settings as a means for improving fitness and walking, yet many people with physical disabilities and chronic conditions experience difficulties when trying to use elliptical trainers.

Objective The purpose of this study was to compare, for people with disabilities and chronic conditions, perceptions of safety, comfort, workout, and usability of 4 elliptical trainers before and after the development of a set of low-cost adaptations.

Design This study was a quasi-experimental repeated-measures investigation.

Methods Twenty adults with diverse medical conditions and functional abilities evaluated 4 elliptical trainers for …

Integrating Estimates Of Ecosystem Services From Conservation Programs And Practices Into Models For Decision Makers, Ned H. Euliss Jr., Loren M. Smith, Shuguang Liu, Walter G. Duffy, Stephen P. Faulkner, Robert A. Gleason, S. Diane Eckles

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

Most government agencies involved in land management are seeking consistent approaches to evaluate the effects of specific management actions on ecological processes and concurrent changes on ecosystem services. This is especially true within the context of anthropogenic influences, such as land use and climate change. The Conservation Effects Assessment Project—Wetlands National Component (CEAP–Wetlands) was developed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to evaluate effects of conservation practices on ecosystem services including carbon sequestration for climate stability, groundwater recharge, runoff and flood attenuation, water storage, nutrient and contaminant retention, and wildlife habitat. A primary purpose of CEAP–Wetlands is to provide …

Demonstration Of A Conceptual Model For Using Lidar To Improve The Estimation Of Floodwater Mitigation Potential Of Prairie Pothole Region Wetlands, Shengli Huang, Claudia Young, Min Feng, Karl Heidemann, Matthew Cushing, David M. Mushet, Shuguang Liu

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

Recent flood events in the Prairie Pothole Region of North America have stimulated interest in modeling water storage capacities of wetlands and their surrounding catchments to facilitate flood mitigation efforts. Accurate estimates of basin storage capacities have been hampered by a lack of high-resolution elevation data. In this paper, we developed a 0.5 m bare-earth model from Light Detection And Ranging (LiDAR) data and, in combination with National Wetlands Inventory data, delineated wetland catchments and their spilling points within a 196 km² study area. We then calculated the maximum water storage capacity of individual basins and modeled the connectivity …