Digital Commons Network^™

The Biglasso Package: A Memory- And Computation-Efficient Solver For Lasso Model Fitting With Big Data In R, Yaohui Zeng, Patrick Breheny

The R Journal

Penalized regression models such as the lasso have been extensively applied to analyzing high-dimensional data sets. However, due to memory limitations, existing R packages like glmnet and ncvreg are not capable of fitting lasso-type models for ultrahigh-dimensional, multi-gigabyte data sets that are increasingly seen in many areas such as genetics, genomics, biomedical imaging, and high-frequency finance. In this research, we implement an R package called biglasso that tackles this challenge. biglasso utilizes memory-mapped files to store the massive data on the disk, only reading data into memory when necessary during model fitting, and is thus able to handle out-of-core computation …

What Help Do Faculty Perceive Is Needed To Improve Their Community Engagement Through Outreach?, Kiyomi D. Deards, Saundra Wever Frerichs, Patricia Wonch Hill, Julia Mcquillan

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

• A survey-based needs assessment at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, a research-intensive land grant university, explored ways to meet the goal of increasing science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) outreach
• 40% of surveyed faculty reported barriers to doing STEM outreach
• Over 50% of faculty reported an inability to individually resolve barriers to STEM outreach in ways that ensure broader community engagement in their research through outreach
• Using a sociological lens, the current study examined institutional-level barriers and enablers to faculty engaging in outreach
• Results suggest several institutional approaches to STEM outreach, including creating infrastructure with experts in science communication; providing science …

Infection And Persistence Of Zika Virus In Female Immune-Competent Gray Short-Tailed Opossums (Monodelphis Domestica), Oscar Quintanilla

Theses and Dissertations

Zika virus (ZIKV) is a class IV RNA virus transmitted by Aedes species of mosquitoes. It produces flu-like symptoms, but recent studies have associated additional, more severe pathologies with ZIKV like microcephaly. Currently, no effective treatment options or vaccines exist. This is partly due to limitations of current animal models. Monodelphis domestica (the gray short-tail opossum) may serve as a proper model for ZIKV research. Here we test the susceptibility of M. domestica to ZIKV infection. Female, immune-competent subjects were injected with live ZIKV and analyzed serologically and histologically for evidence of ZIKV replication. ELISAs performed on sera confirmed that …

The Importance Of Frontier Orbital Symmetry In The Adsorption Of Diiodobenzene On Mos2(0001), Prescott E. Evans, Zahra Hooshmand, Talat S. Rahman, Peter Dowben

Peter Dowben Publications

Evidence of a role of frontier orbital symmetry, in the adsorption process of diiodobenzene on MoS₂(0001), appears in the huge differences in the rate of adsorption between 1,3-diiodobenzene, 1,2-diiodobenzene and 1,4-diiodobenzene isomers on MoS₂. Experiments indicate that the rate of adsorption of 1,3-diiodobenzene on MoS2(0001) is much greater than that of the 1,2-diodobenzene and 1,4-diiodbenzene isomers. As the differences in calculated diiodobenzene isomer-MoS₂ system adsorption energies and electron affinities are negligible, frontier orbital symmetry appears to play a significant role in diiodobenzene adsorption on MoS₂(0001). The experimental and theory results, in combination, suggest …

Total Synthesis Of Cytotoxic Mansouramycins From Amino Acids, Beatriz Gamez

Theses and Dissertations

Natural products produced by plants, animals, and microorganisms are of significant importance in chemistry for being major sources of molecular scaffolds essential for new drug discovery. Mansouramycins are cytotoxic bioactive compounds containing isoquinoline skeletons with substituents on the quinone and pyridine rings that may be difficult to synthesize. Synthetic processes exist for compounds B and D, however, there exists an absence of simple synthetic approaches to all four alkaloids.

This project aims to provide a general total synthetic pathway to Mansouramycins A—D from amino acids for possible use in cancer treatment via these isoquinolinequinones. Preliminary experimentation suggests there may be …

A Python-Based Brain-Computer Interface Package For Neural Data Analysis, Md Hasan Anowar

Theses and Dissertations

Anowar, Md Hasan, A Python-based Brain-Computer Interface Package for Neural Data Analysis. Master of Science (MS), December, 2020, 70 pp., 4 tables, 23 figures, 74 references.

Although a growing amount of research has been dedicated to neural engineering, only a handful of software packages are available for brain signal processing. Popular brain-computer interface packages depend on commercial software products such as MATLAB. Moreover, almost every brain-computer interface software is designed for a specific neuro-biological signal; there is no single Python-based package that supports motor imagery, sleep, and stimulated brain signal analysis. The necessity to introduce a brain-computer interface package that …

Neural Network Development In An Artificial Intelligence Gomoku Program, David Garcia

Theses and Dissertations

The game of Gomoku, also called Five in a Row, is an abstract strategy board game. The Gomoku program is constructed upon an algebraic monomial theory to aid values for each possible move and estimate chances for the artificial intelligence program to accomplish a winning path for each move and rounds. With the utilization of the monomial theory, winning configurations are successfully converted into monomials of variables which are represented on board positions. In the artificial intelligence program, an arduous task is how to perform the present configuration of the Gomoku game along with the past moves of the two …

The Relationship Between Academic Performance And Student Mobility, Gender, Ethnicity, Socioeconomic Status And Number Of Moves, Juan C. Garza

Theses and Dissertations

This study analyzes the relationship between student mobility, reading and math scores, gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status (SES), and the number of moves by students during their academic years. Data were taken from four different high schools during the 2015-2016, 2016-2017, and 2017-2018 school years. The purpose of this study was to determine if student mobility when considering gender, ethnicity, SES, and number of moves impact a student’s reading and math scores. The study will provide educational leaders, community, and parents with valuable data to make informed decisions with regards to instructional adjustments and school changes for mobile students. The null …

Estimating The Age And Mechanism Of Boulder Transport Related With Extreme Waves Using Lichenometry, Maria A. Oliveira, Esteve Llop, César Andrade, Cristina Branquinho, Ronald Goble, Sónia Queiroz, Maria C. Freitas, Pedro Pinho

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Faculty Publications

Tsunamis and storms cause considerable coastal flooding, numerous fatalities, destruction of structures, and erosion. The characterization of energy and frequency associated with each wave contribute to the risk assessment in coastal regions. Coastal boulder deposits represent a physical proof of extreme inundation and allow us to study the effects of marine floods further back in time than instrumental and historical records. Age estimation of these deposits is challenging due to lack of materials (such as sand, shells, corals, or organic matter) that retain information about the passage of time. Lichenometry, a simple age estimation method, which is cost effective, quick …

Regulating Derivatives: A Fundamental Rethinking, Steven L. Schwarcz

Duke Law Journal

The conventional wisdom is that derivatives are exotic and uniquely risky, although innovative, financial instruments. That perception has given rise to a regulatory patchwork described as “confusing, incomplete, [and] contradictory.”1 This Article rethinks how derivatives should be regulated. It begins by demystifying derivatives. In contrast to the arcane industry-derived categories, the Article deconstructs derivatives more intuitively, by their economic functions, into two categories of traditional legal instruments—option contracts and guarantees. Being neither exotic nor uniquely risky, most derivatives should be regulated like those traditional instruments. The Article then explains why at least one subset of guarantees—financial guarantees with systemically important …

Assessing The Methodological Quality Of Aviation Research: A Content Analysis Of Articles Published In Subscription And Open Access Aviation Journals 2014-2016, Isa Tuncman

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to determine to what extent aviation research articles were consistent with commonly recommended research protocols. Using a purposive sampling strategy, two subscription and five open access journals published from 2014 to 2016 were targeted, and 139 articles were reviewed using a category based, researcher-developed coding form grounded in commonly accepted research practices presented in educational research methods textbooks. The form reflected models from the medical research community and employed a 3-point scoring rubric: 0 = Not Reported, 1 = Inadequate, and 2 = Adequate. At least two coders reviewed each article, and corresponding Krippendorff …

Who Should Get “Ineffective”? A Principal’S Ethical Dilemmas On Teacher Evaluation, Taeyeon Kim, Charles Lowery

Department of Educational Administration: Faculty Publications

School principals play a critical role in evaluating teachers and providing feedback, but high-stakes evaluation policies at the local and state levels can create ethical dilemmas for principals. In this case, an underresourced rural school principal has to report a certain number of “ineffective” teachers to meet a requirement from the district teacher evaluation, even though the principal does not think any teacher in his school deserves to receive an “ineffective” rating. This study can be used to help students unpack issues of dilemmas coming from consequential accountability policies that overlook the relational ethos of educators and leaders in school …

Mathematics That Clarify Slope & Scale, Help Set Standards, And Improve Interrater Agreement On Time-Series Graphs, Chad Erick Liming Kinney

Theses and Dissertations

This paper introduces new mathematic equations that clarify slope and scale and help overcome difficulties with visually interpreting slopes (or trends)--a significant culprit of poor interrater agreement (IRA) of graphed data. Three experiments tested applications of the equations and demonstrated the following results: (a) Graphic Variability Quotient (GVQ) manipulation strongly predicts viewer ratings (and accuracy) of behavior change, β = .895, R2 = .801, (b) mathematical standards that control the inherent variability in non-standard graphs can be empirically based (to facilitate reliable visual comparison), and (c) visual aids posted on graphs, such as angles of inclination and a simple slope …

Music Participation And Achievement Scores Among Middle School Students With Disabilities: A Causal-Comparative Study, Ashley Anne Gonzalez

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This quantitative, causal-comparative study examined the differences in reading and math achievement between students with disabilities who participated in music for two or more years and those who did not. This study’s purpose was to show if participating in music can impact the academic achievement of middle school students as measured by the State of Texas Assessment of Academic Readiness (STAAR). The covariate in the study was the reading and math STAAR scores from fifth-grade students in the 2015–2016 school year before they participated in middle school music. These students’ eighth-grade 2018–2019 math and reading scores were used to show …

Student Success Of Online Vs. In-Person Biology Courses At Virginia Community Colleges, Jennifer Claire Scott

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Community colleges have a significant role in preparing students for STEM-related careers through certificates, degrees, and transfers to four-year institutions. In addition, online education is a growing mode of higher education, particularly for community college students. However, community college and online students are both at a high risk of attrition and show a lower success rate for degree completion. The purpose of this study was to identify differences in attrition and success between students in online and in-person biology courses at Virginia community colleges. Also, this study addressed downstream effects of online education by examining course completion of second-semester biology …

First-Generation College Students' Lived Experiences In An Undergraduate Music Education Program: A Transcendental Phenomenological Study, Joseph Benjamin Earp

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study is to describe the lived experiences of first-generation college students (FGCSs) majoring in music education at a small, private university in the southeastern United States. Through understanding FGCSs’ experiences, university faculty and administrators can make informed decisions that can help this important sub-population of students. The self-determination theory (SDT) and the relationships motivation theory (SDT mini-theory) have guided this study exploring the central research question: How do FGCSs describe their lived experiences while majoring in music education? Sub-questions include (1) how do FGCSs majoring in music education describe challenges relating to self-determination while …

The Battle Against Coronavirus Disease 2019 (Covid-19) In The Kingdom Of Saudi Arabia: Public Health Perspective, Sultan T. Al-Otaibi

Saudi Medical Journal

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) which was initially reported in the Chinese city of Wuhan has now spread unprecedented all over the world, including the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). The World Health Organization declared this outbreak as a public health emergency of international concern during late January 2020 while the announcement of this viral infectious condition was made as COVID-19 disease during February 2020. As of late May 2020, the global death rate due to COVID-19 was 357,714 and 441 in KSA alone. This review provides an overview of COVID-19 and the public health measures adopted by KSA in the …

A Management Framework For Left Sided Endocarditis: A Narrative Review, Francesco Nappi, Cristiano Spadaccio, Marc R. Moon

Open Access Publications

Left sided endocarditis (LSE) can include the entirety or portion of mitral and/or aortic valve and the structures in their anatomical contiguity and represent a significant portion of emergency surgical activity. Literature and guidelines on the management of LSE relies mainly on observational studies given the difficulty in designing randomized trials in emergency settings. Heart teams (HT) are often called in to difficult decisions on the most appropriate strategy to adopted in case of LSE. Decision-making should take into account the localization and the extension of the infection, patient preoperative status and comorbidities, presence of a previous valve prosthesis and …

Rapid Implicit Diagonalization Of Variable-Coefficient Differential Operators Using The Uncertainty Principle, Carley Walker

Master's Theses

We propose to create a new numerical method for a class of time-dependent PDEs (second-order, one space dimension, Dirichlet boundary conditions) that can be used to obtain more accurate and reliable solutions than traditional methods. Previously, it was shown that conventional time-stepping methods could be avoided for time-dependent mathematical models featuring a finite number of homogeneous materials, thus assuming general piecewise constant coefficients. This proposed method will avoid the modeling shortcuts that are traditionally taken, and it will generalize the piecewise constant case of energy diffusion and wave propagation to work for an infinite number of smaller pieces, or a …

Diagonalization Of 1-D Schrodinger Operators With Piecewise Constant Potentials, Sarah Wright

Master's Theses

In today's world our lives are very layered. My research is meant to adapt current inefficient numerical methods to more accurately model the complex situations we encounter. This project focuses on a specific equation that is used to model sound speed in the ocean. As depth increases, the sound speed changes. This means the variable related to the sound speed is not constant. We will modify this variable so that it is piecewise constant. The specific operator in this equation also makes current time-stepping methods not practical. The method used here will apply an eigenfunction expansion technique used in previous …

On The Plastic-Free Path: Plastic-Free Living, Hannah Natzke

Honors Projects

What is living plastic-free like? This project explores the trials and triumphs of living a plastic-free life. Although this project is only mandates that the participant lives plastic-free for a month, it still investigates the challenges faced by longer plastic-free living.

Unmaking California’S Central Valley, Sayd Randle

Research Collection College of Integrative Studies

IN THIS YEAR of heat records and fire tornadoes, California faces another potential crisis: drought. In November 2020, more than 80 percent of the state’s land mass was classified as somewhere between “abnormally dry” and “extreme drought” by the United States Drought Monitor. The chances of the winter offering relief look slim, given what’s called a “La Niña climate pattern,” which is associated with arid conditions in much of California. The months ahead are, in general, far more likely to bring water worries than happy surprises.To longtime California residents, such fears are familiar. The state’s most recent drought began in …

Does The Fossil Fuel Divestment Movement Impact New Oil And Gas Fundraising?, Theodor Florian Cojoianu, Francisco Ascui, Gordon Clark, Andreas Hoepnner, Dariusz Wójcik

Research Collection College of Integrative Studies

This article explores whether increasing fossil fuel divestment commitments are related to the reduction of capital flows into the oil and gas sector, based on an analysis of syndicated lending, equity and bond underwriting across 33 countries from 2000 to 2015. We find that increasing oil and gas divestment pledges in a country are associated with lower capital flows to domestic oil and gas companies. This effect is enhanced in more stringent environmental policy regimes and diminished in countries which heavily subsidise fossil fuels. However, the divestment movement may have an unintended effect, insofar as domestic banks situated in countries …

Convolutional Neural Network On Tanned And Synthetic Leather Textures, Faadihilah Ahnaf Faiz, Ahmad Azhari

Knowledge Engineering and Data Science

Tanned leather is an output from complex processes called tanning. Leather tanning is an important step that used to protect the fiber or protein structure of animal’s skin. Another reason of tanning process is to prevent the animal’s skin from any defect or rot. After the tanning is complete, the leather can be applied to produce a wide variety of leather products. Thus, the leather prices usually more expensive because it takes longer time in process. Another way to get cheaper price is make non-animal leather that usually known as synthetic or imitation leather. The purpose of this paper is …

Simple Modification For An Apriori Algorithm With Combination Reduction And Iteration Limitation Technique, Adie Wahyudi Oktavia Gama, Ni Made Widnyani

Knowledge Engineering and Data Science

Apriori algorithm is one of the methods with regard to association rules in data mining. This algorithm uses knowledge from an itemset previously formed with frequent occurrence frequencies to form the next itemset. An a priori algorithm generates a combination by iteration methods that are using repeated database scanning process, pairing one product with another product and then recording the number of occurrences of the combination with the minimum limit of support and confidence values. The a priori algorithm will slow down to an expanding database in the process of finding frequent itemset to form association rules. Modification techniques are …

Robust, Fine-Grained Occupancy Estimation Via Combined Camera & Wifi Indoor Localization, Anuradha Ravi, Archan Misra

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

We describe the development of a robust, accurate and practically-validated technique for estimating the occupancy count in indoor spaces, based on a combination of WiFi & video sensing. While fusing these two sensing-based inputs is conceptually straightforward, the paper demonstrates and tackles the complexity that arises from several practical artefacts, such as (i) over-counting when a single individual uses multiple WiFi devices and under-counting when the individual has no such device; (ii) corresponding errors in image analysis due to real-world artefacts, such as occlusion, and (iii) the variable errors in mapping image bounding boxes (which can include multiple possible types …

An Efficient 3-D Stochastic Hie-Fdtd Algorithm For Investigation Of Statistical Variation In Electromagnetic Field, Kaikun Niu, Zhixiang Huang, Xingang Ren, Ke Xu, Minquan Li, Xianliang Wu, Ping Li, Lijun Jiang, Hakan Bagci

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

We propose a stochastic hybrid implicit-explicit finite-difference time-domain method (S-HIE-FDTD) to compute the mean and variance of the electromagnetic (EM) fields using a single simulation, given those of the conductivity and permittivity in the computation domain. The mean and variance field update equations underlying the proposed method are derived from the field update equations of the 'traditional' deterministic HIE-FDTD. The Courant-Friedrichs-Lewy condition of the S-HIE-FDTD depends on the spatial discretization sizes only in two dimensions; therefore, for computation domains with fine geometric features only in the remaining dimension, it uses a time step size that is larger than that of …

Improving Binary Classification Using Filtering Based On K-Nn Proximity Graphs, Maher Ala’Raj, Munir Majdalawieh, Maysam F. Abbod

All Works

© 2020, The Author(s). One of the ways of increasing recognition ability in classification problem is removing outlier entries as well as redundant and unnecessary features from training set. Filtering and feature selection can have large impact on classifier accuracy and area under the curve (AUC), as noisy data can confuse classifier and lead it to catch wrong patterns in training data. The common approach in data filtering is using proximity graphs. However, the problem of the optimal filtering parameters selection is still insufficiently researched. In this paper filtering procedure based on k-nearest neighbours proximity graph was used. Filtering parameters …

A Multiple Case Study Investigating Principles Of Design And Implementation Of Operational Safety Plans For Crises At Colleges, Universities, And Affiliated Institutions, Antonio Passaro, Jr.

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

In the wake of the 2007 Virginia Tech tragedy, the Virginia state legislature mandated that all college-affiliated institutions create an operational safety plan for natural and manmade crises. Previous empirical research has mostly focused on documenting faculty and students’ perceptions of campus safety, preparations for manmade crises over natural disasters, and enhancing specific aspects of emergency responses for future incidents. Thus, design and implementation “best practices” for higher education operational safety plan protocols is an understudied, yet burgeoning area of inquiry. To address this literature gap, a comparative case study of five institutions was conducted using a novel document analysis …

Enhanced Traffic Incident Analysis With Advanced Machine Learning Algorithms, Zhenyu Wang

Computational Modeling & Simulation Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Traffic incident analysis is a crucial task in traffic management centers (TMCs) that typically manage many highways with limited staff and resources. An effective automatic incident analysis approach that can report abnormal events timely and accurately will benefit TMCs in optimizing the use of limited incident response and management resources. During the past decades, significant efforts have been made by researchers towards the development of data-driven approaches for incident analysis. Nevertheless, many developed approaches have shown limited success in the field. This is largely attributed to the long detection time (i.e., waiting for overwhelmed upstream detection stations; meanwhile, downstream stations …