Digital Commons Network^™

Fast Monte Carlo Simulations For Quality Assurance In Radiation Therapy, Yuhe Wang

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Monte Carlo (MC) simulation is generally considered to be the most accurate method for dose calculation in radiation therapy. However, it suffers from the low simulation efficiency (hours to days) and complex configuration, which impede its applications in clinical studies. The recent rise of MRI-guided radiation platform (e.g. ViewRay’s MRIdian system) brings urgent need of fast MC algorithms because the introduced strong magnetic field may cause big errors to other algorithms. My dissertation focuses on resolving the conflict between accuracy and efficiency of MC simulations through 4 different approaches: (1) GPU parallel computation, (2) Transport mechanism simplification, (3) Variance reduction, …

Investigation Of Neonatal Pulmonary Structure And Function Via Proton And Hyperpolarized Gas Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Nara Savoye Higano

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a modality that utilizes the phenomenon of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) to yield tomographic images of the body. Proton (1H) MRI has historically been successful in soft tissues but has suffered in the lung due to a variety of technical challenges, such as the low proton-density, rapid T2* relaxation time of the lung parenchymal tissue, and inherent physiological motion in the chest. Recent developments in radial ultrashort echo time (UTE) MRI have in part overcome these issues. In addition, there has been much progress in techniques for hyperpolarization of noble gases (3He and 129Xe) out …

Analysis Of Argonaute-Small Rna-Transcription Factor Circuits Controlling Leaf Development, John Steen Hoyer

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Experimental studies of plant development have yielded many insights into gene regulation, revealing interactions between core transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulatory pathways present in all land plants. This work describes a direct connection between the three main small RNA-transcription factor circuits controlling leaf shape dynamics in the reference plant Arabidopsis thaliana. We used a high-throughput yeast 1-hybrid platform to identify factors directly binding the promoter of the highly specialized ARGONAUTE7 silencing factor. Two groups of developmentally significant microRNA-targeted transcription factors were the clearest hits from these screens, but transgenic complementation analysis indicated that their binding sites make only a small contribution …

The Chemistry And Biology Of Iron-Scavenging Natural Products From Pathogenic Acinetobacter Baumannii, Justin Shapiro

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Multidrug resistant (MDR) Gram-negative bacteria represent a global health crisis. Traditional antibiotics create selective pressure and breed resistance, making our current drugs less and less effective. Targeting of bacterial virulence factors has gained interest as an alternative strategy to potentially circumvent this problem. Virulent Acinetobacter baumannii synthesize and secrete pre-acinetobactin, a small molecule metal chelator that scavenges life-sustaining iron and is critical for establishing infection. The work described herein sheds light on the unusual properties of a non-enzymatic isomerization from pre-acinetobactin to acinetobactin and proposes a siderophore-swapping mechanism by which A. baumannii expands its pH window for virulence. Knowledge from …

The Nets Of Style: Shaping Modernist Literary Narrative, Kelly Lynn Oman

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Literary modernism is often defined by a stylistic distinctiveness generated by experiments in subject and form. Given that these experiments necessarily break with convention, how are we to make sense of this style without those conventions to guide us? In “The Nets of Style: Shaping Modernist Literary Narrative,” I reveal how critical definitions of modernist style often rely on the individualist poses struck and critical pronouncements made by modernists themselves. My research is situated in a body of work in modernist studies that argue, as Paul Sheehan does in Modernism and the Aesthetics of Violence, that “modernism seeks to transform …

Co-Simulation Framework For Power Distribution System Analysis With Humans In The Loop, Victor H. Ayon

Mechanical Engineering ETDs

Recent developments in the area of power generation have led to an increased penetration of storage and distributed energy resources (DER) in power distribution systems. As a result, new and enhanced energy management systems will be necessary as the deployment of DERs, as well as the need to control loads, continues to increase in the coming years. Advanced management systems are especially important to achieve resilient power delivery during emergency situations. During a blackout for example, a section of a distribution feeder could island to operate as a microgrid to ensure critical services such as water, food, and medical care …

The Processing And Polarization Reversal Dynamics Of Thin Film Poly(Vinylidene) Fluoride, Noel Mayur Dawson

Nanoscience and Microsystems ETDs

Many ferroelectric devices benefit from the ability to deposit thin ferroelectric layers. Poly(vinylidene) fluoride (PVDF) is the prototypical ferroelectric polymer, but processing of thin film ferroelectric PVDF remains a challenge due to the formation of large voids in the film during traditional thin film processing. The research described in this dissertation starts by investigating the origin of these voids. The cause of these voids is found to be caused by vapor induced phase separation (VIPS). Guided by the thermodynamics of VIPS, a process is then designed to produce void-free ferroelectric PVDF thin films on polar and non-polar substrates. The films …

First Narrow-Band Search For Continuous Gravitational Waves From Known Pulsars In Advanced Detector Data, B. P. Abbott, R. Abbott, T. D. Abbott, F. Acernese, K. Ackley, Teviet Creighton, Mario C. Diaz, Soma Mukherjee, Volker Quetschke, Malik Rakhmanov

Physics & Astronomy Faculty Publications

Spinning neutron stars asymmetric with respect to their rotation axis are potential sources of continuous gravitational waves for ground-based interferometric detectors. In the case of known pulsars a fully coherent search, based on matched filtering, which uses the position and rotational parameters obtained from electromagnetic observations, can be carried out. Matched filtering maximizes the signal-to-noise (SNR) ratio, but a large sensitivity loss is expected in case of even a very small mismatch between the assumed and the true signal parameters. For this reason, narrow-band analysis methods have been developed, allowing a fully coherent search for gravitational waves from known pulsars …

First Low-Frequency Einstein@Home All-Sky Search For Continuous Gravitational Waves In Advanced Ligo Data, B. P. Abbott, R. Abbott, T. D. Abbott, F. Acernese, K. Ackley, C. Adams, Teviet Creighton, Soma Mukherjee, Volker Quetschke, Malik Rakhmanov

Physics & Astronomy Faculty Publications

We report results of a deep all-sky search for periodic gravitational waves from isolated neutron stars in data from the first Advanced LIGO observing run. This search investigates the low frequency range of Advanced LIGO data, between 20 and 100 Hz, much of which was not explored in initial LIGO. The search was made possible by the computing power provided by the volunteers of the Einstein@Home project. We find no significant signal candidate and set the most stringent upper limits to date on the amplitude of gravitational wave signals from the target population, corresponding to a sensitivity depth of 48.7 …

Enhancing Icvd Modification Of Electrospun Membranes For Membrane Distillation Through A 3d Printed Scaffold, Nicole Beauregard

Master's Theses

In this work, initiated chemical vapor deposition, iCVD, is used as a modification technique for electrospun membranes. Electrospun membranes are often hydrophilic and cannot be used in membrane distillation which requires high hydrophobicity. In membrane distillation, a thermal driving force is supplied to create a vapor pressure difference across a membrane allowing vapor molecules to pass through while rejecting liquid and solids. iCVD can be used to conformally coat the individual nanofibers with a hydrophobic polymer to render the membrane viable for the MD process. The standard coating procedure uses natural convective diffusion as the method of transport of the …

Impact Of Flow Direction On Local Flow Behavior In Biologically-Inspired Flow Passages, Derrick Dewayne Herrin

Honors College Theses

ABSTRACT

A computational fluid dynamics model was utilized to study the effect of flow direction on local flow behavior in biologically-inspired microscale flow networks. Biologically-inspired flow networks have been found to offer numerous advantages when compared with parallel flow networks, particularly in thermal management applications. Flow behavior was examined for a range of bifurcation angles and laminar inlet Reynolds numbers. The computational model was validated with existing theoretical solutions and verified for grid independence. As the bifurcation angle increased, the pressure drop, and thus pumping power, across the biologically-inspired flow networks increased. In addition, as the inlet Reynolds number increased, …

In Vitro Toxic Effects Of Reduced Graphene Oxide Nanosheets On Lung Cancer Cells, Ta Tabish, Mzi Pranjol, H Hayat, Aam Rahat, Et Al

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

The intriguing properties of reduced graphene oxide (rGO) have paved the way for a number of potential biomedical applications such as drug delivery, tissue engineering, gene delivery and bio-sensing. Over the last decade, there have been escalating concerns regarding the possible toxic effects, behaviour and fate of rGO in living systems and environments. This paper reports on integrative chemical-biological interactions of rGO with lung cancer cells, i.e. A549 and SKMES-1, to determine its potential toxicological impacts on them, as a function of its concentration. Cell viability, early and late apoptosis and necrosis were measured to determine oxidative stress potential, and …

A Comprehensive Evaluation Of Feature Selection For Gait Recognition Using Smartwatches, N Al-Naffakh, Nathan Clarke, P Haskell-Dowland, Fudong Li

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

Activity recognition that recognises who a user is by what they are doing at a specific point of time is attracting an enormous amount of attention. Whilst previous research in activity recognition has focused on wearable dedicated sensors (body worn sensors) or using a smartphone’s sensors (e.g. accelerometer and gyroscope), little attention is given to the use of wearable devices – which tend to be sensor-rich highly personal technologies. This paper presents a thorough analysis of the current state of the art in transparent and continuous authentication using acceleration and gyroscope sensors and an advanced feature selection approach to select …

Formation Of One-Part-Mixing Geopolymers And Geopolymer Ceramics From Geopolymer Powder, Yun Ming Liew, Cheng Yong Heah, Long Yuan Li, Nur Ain Jaya, Mohd Mustafa Al Bakri Abdullah, Soo Jin Tan, Kamarudin Hussin

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

No abstract provided.

Postmodern Social Control: Dividuals And Surveillance, Ernest M. Oleksy

The Downtown Review: An Interdisciplinary Journal Written and Peer-Reviewed by Mandel Honors College Students at Cleveland State University

As a society's foundational philosophy changes, so, too, will its forms of social control. By using the works of thinkers like Deleuze and Foucault as pivot points, the dynamic nature of social interactions and the agents to mediate those actions shall be investigated. This article includes findings from archival analysis written in a journalistic prose for simplicity of consumption.

November's Cross-Word For Puzzled Southeast Asian Nonbinary Femmes, Ashlyn Rowell

Fishladder: A Student Journal of Art and Writing

No abstract provided.

The Rail Rider's Almanac, Alice Billin

Fishladder: A Student Journal of Art and Writing

No abstract provided.

Ring Around Rosie, Kelly Brown

Fishladder: A Student Journal of Art and Writing

No abstract provided.

Identifying Impaired State For A Driver, Catherine Cardinal, Cliff Sze

Defensive Publications Series

Generally, the present disclosure is directed to improving driver safety by identifying impaired drivers. In particular, in some implementations, the systems and methods of the present disclosure can include or otherwise leverage one or more machine-learned models to predict a driver’s impairment state based on driving data.

The Imp Of The Perverse, John Emil Vincent

Criticism

No abstract provided.

Determining High-Level Topical Annotations For A Conversation, N/A

Defensive Publications Series

Generally, the present disclosure is directed to annotating a conversation with high-level topical annotations. In particular, in some implementations, the systems and methods of the present disclosure can include or otherwise leverage one or more machine-learned models to predict topical annotations for a conversation based on audio data from the conversation.

Determining Projection Format For A Video, N/A

Defensive Publications Series

Generally, the present disclosure is directed to determining one or more projection formats for a video. In particular, in some implementations, the systems and methods of the present disclosure can include or otherwise leverage one or more machine-learned models to predict a projection format for a segment of a video based on image data extracted from the video.

Recommending Items For Deletion Based On Item Quality And Usage, N/A

Defensive Publications Series

Generally, the present disclosure is directed to recommending items stored in a data storage system for deletion. In particular, in some implementations, the systems and methods of the present disclosure can include or otherwise leverage one or more machine-learned models to predict a likelihood of deletion for an item based on item data and user interaction data for one or more items.

Using Customer Support Interaction Data To Estimate Customer Satisfaction, N/A

Defensive Publications Series

Generally, the present disclosure is directed to using customer support interaction data to estimate customer satisfaction. In particular, in some implementations, the systems and methods of the present disclosure can include or otherwise leverage one or more machine-learned models to predict a customer satisfaction score based on customer interaction data.

Determining Priority Value Of Processes Based On Usage History, Neil Dhillon, Tanmay Wadhwa

Defensive Publications Series

Generally, the present disclosure is directed to determining optimal priority values for one or more processes in a computing system. In particular, in some implementations, the systems and methods of the present disclosure can include or otherwise leverage one or more machine-learned models to predict an optimal priority value for a process based on system data and/or process data.

Semi-Supervised Classification Using Object Metadata, Dave Feltenberger

Defensive Publications Series

Generally, the present disclosure is directed to classification of data objects (e.g. documents, images, graphs, etc.). In particular, in some implementations, the systems and methods of the present disclosure can include or otherwise leverage one or more machine-learned models to classify a data object based on object data and/or metadata associated with the object.

Optimizing Route Guidance To Preserve User Loyalty, Thomas Price

Defensive Publications Series

Generally, the present disclosure is directed to optimizing route guidance in a navigation or ride share service to preserve user loyalty. In particular, in some implementations, the systems and methods of the present disclosure can include or otherwise leverage one or more machine-learned models to predict likelihood of user abandonment based on user data and/or route data.

Classifying A User As Driver Or Passenger In A Vehicle Using Machine Learning, Thomas Price

Defensive Publications Series

Generally, the present disclosure is directed to classifying a user as driver or passenger in a vehicle using machine learning. In particular, in some implementations, the systems and methods of the present disclosure can include or otherwise leverage one or more machine-learned models to predict a user type based on device usage data and/or device sensor data.

Determining Optimal Dimming Of Displays, N/A

Defensive Publications Series

Generally, the present disclosure is directed to dimming a display to reduce power consumption and/or improve security of a device. In particular, in some implementations, the systems and methods of the present disclosure can include or otherwise leverage one or more machine-learned models to predictively dim a display connected to a device based on usage data and/or sensor data available from the device and/or signals derived from the usage data and/or sensor data.

Weighting Knowledge Sources To Facilitate User Input, N/A

Defensive Publications Series

Generally, the present disclosure is directed to weighting one or more knowledge sources used to determine user input. In particular, in some implementations, the systems and methods of the present disclosure can include or otherwise leverage one or more machine-learned models to predict a weight for a knowledge source based on user input data and/or output of one or more knowledge sources.