Engineering Commons^™

Difference Between Algorithmic Processing And The Process Of Lifeworld (Lebenswelt), Domenico Schneider

Computer Ethics - Philosophical Enquiry (CEPE) Proceedings

The following article compares the temporality of the life-world with the digital processing. The temporality of the life-world is determined to be stretched and spontaneous. The temporality of the digital is given by discrete step-by-step points of time. Most ethical issues can be traced back to a mismatch of these two ways of processing. This creates a foundation for the ethics of the digital processing. Methodologically, phenomenological considerations are merged with media-philosophical considerations in the article.

A Ulysses Pact With Artificial Systems. How To Deliberately Change The Objective Spirit With Cultured Ai, Bruno Gransche

Computer Ethics - Philosophical Enquiry (CEPE) Proceedings

The article introduces a concept of cultured technology, i.e. intelligent systems capable of interacting with humans and showing (or simulating) manners, of following customs and of socio-sensitive considerations. Such technologies might, when deployed on a large scale, influence and change the realm of human customs, traditions, standards of acceptable behavior, etc. This realm is known as the "objective spirit" (Hegel), which usually is thought of as being historically changing but not subject to deliberate human design. The article investigates the question of whether the purposeful design of interactive technologies (as cultured technologies) could enable us to shape modes of …

A Metacognitive Approach To Trust And A Case Study: Artificial Agency, Ioan Muntean

Computer Ethics - Philosophical Enquiry (CEPE) Proceedings

Trust is defined as a belief of a human H (`the trustor') about the ability of an agent A (the `trustee') to perform future action(s). We adopt here dispositionalism and internalism about trust: H trusts A iff A has some internal dispositions as competences. The dispositional competences of A are high-level metacognitive requirements, in the line of a naturalized virtue epistemology. (Sosa, Carter) We advance a Bayesian model of two (i) confidence in the decision and (ii) model uncertainty. To trust A, H demands A to be self-assertive about confidence and able to self-correct its own models. In the Bayesian …

Modeling The Economic Machine Using Bayesian Inference And Statistical Networks, And Optimal Portfolio Construction Using Operations Research, Richard Yang

ENGS 88 Honors Thesis (AB Students)

In this paper, we propose a network-based model to attempt to connect modern macroeconomic theory with real world economic observations and trends. We find that by extending macroeconomic theory with credit leveraging/deleveraging thresholds, we are able to explain economic cycles in addition to long-term growth. Furthermore, we specifically explore the growth-inflation view of the macro economy as a basis for optimal portfolio construction and efficient asset trading. Connecting our network-based macroeconomic model and our optimal portfolio construction algorithm, we create a novel macroeconomic asset-trading framework.

Mascoma River Greenway Extension, Isalys Quiñones

ENGS 86 Independent Projects (AB Students)

In July of 2018, the Mascoma River Greenway (MRG), a 2.2-mile rail trail extending from Downtown Lebanon, NH to Glen Road in West Lebanon, NH, was completed with the help of the MRG Coalition, the Friends of the Northern Rail Trail, Lebanon Recreation and Parks, and members of the City of Lebanon. Initially, this trail was proposed to extend from Downtown Lebanon to Downtown West Lebanon and White River Junction (WRJ). With pushback from the State of New Hampshire to lease the City of Lebanon recreational usage to the New Hampshire State Department of Transportation (NHDOT) owned rail corridor, the …

Highly Effective Geni Alloy Contact Diffusion Barrier For Bisbte Long-Term Thermal Exposure, Erdong Song, Brian S. Swartzentruber, Chowdary R. Koripella, Julio A. Martinez

Publications and Research

A GeNi alloy diffusion barrier for contacts on bismuth antimony telluride is proposed. Multiple gold contact diffusion barriers were tested at different thermal aging conditions in air and reducing atmospheres. Among all diffusion barriers, the GeNi alloy barrier shows the best performance for bulk samples with no substantial degradation of the contact resistance, no contact color change, and no change of thermoelectric properties. We observed DAu−GeNi = (9.8 ± 2.7) × 10−20 m2/s within the GeNi alloy barrier, which is 4 times smaller than DAu−BiSbTe. The presence of the initial Ge layer also proves to be effective in reducing nickel …

Challenges For Natural Hydrogels In Tissue Engineering, Esmaiel Jabbari

Faculty Publications

Protein-based biopolymers derived from natural tissues possess a hierarchical structure in their native state. Strongly solvating, reducing and stabilizing agents, as well as heat, pressure, and enzymes are used to isolate protein-based biopolymers from their natural tissue, solubilize them in aqueous solution and convert them into injectable or preformed hydrogels for applications in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. This review aims to highlight the need to investigate the nano-/micro-structure of hydrogels derived from the extracellular matrix proteins of natural tissues. Future work should focus on identifying the nature of secondary, tertiary, and higher order structure formation in protein-based hydrogels derived …

Challenges For Natural Hydrogels In Tissue Engineering, Esmaiel Jabbari

Faculty Publications

Protein-based biopolymers derived from natural tissues possess a hierarchical structure in their native state. Strongly solvating, reducing and stabilizing agents, as well as heat, pressure, and enzymes are used to isolate protein-based biopolymers from their natural tissue, solubilize them in aqueous solution and convert them into injectable or preformed hydrogels for applications in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. This review aims to highlight the need to investigate the nano-/micro-structure of hydrogels derived from the extracellular matrix proteins of natural tissues. Future work should focus on identifying the nature of secondary, tertiary, and higher order structure formation in protein-based hydrogels derived …

Neutronic And Cfd-Thermal Hydraulic Analyses Of Very-Small, Long-Life, Modular (Vsllim) Reactor, Luis M. Palomino

Nuclear Engineering ETDs

Neutronic and CFD-thermal hydraulic analyses are performed of the Very-Small, Long-LIfe, and Modular (VSLLIM) nuclear reactor. This reactor was developed at the University of New Mexico’s Institute for Space and Nuclear Power Studies (UNM-ISNPS) to generate 1.0 – 10 MW_th for extended periods without refueling. It offers passive operation and safety features and redundant control and would be fabricated, assembled and sealed in the factory. During nominal operation and after shutdown, the VSLLIM is cooled by natural circulation of in-vessel liquid sodium, with the aid of an in-vessel chimney and annular helically-coiled …

Meeting 2030 Primary Energy And Economic Growth Goals: Mission Impossible?, Matthew Kuperus Heun, Paul E. Brockway

University Faculty Publications and Creative Works

To meet climate change mitigation objectives, international institutions have adopted targets aimed at reducing or ending growth of primary energy consumption. Simultaneously, continued economic growth is forecasted to meet human development goals. Together, declining energy consumption and rising gross domestic product (GDP) is called “absolute decoupling.” However, absolute decoupling is unprecedented for the world economy as a whole (since at least 1971). Is absolute decoupling “Mission impossible?” Given the high stakes, we need a clearer understanding of the extent of future energy–GDP decoupling. To gain that understanding, we perform societal exergy analyses using a novel Physical Supply Use Table framework …

Keeping Anonymity At The Consumer Behavior On The Internet: Proof Of Sacrifice, Sachio Horie

Computer Ethics - Philosophical Enquiry (CEPE) Proceedings

The evolution of the Internet and AI technology has made it possible for the government and the businesses to keep track of their personal lives. GAFA continues to collect information unintended by the individuals. It is a threat that our privacy is violated in this way. In order to solute such problems, it is important to consider a mechanism that enables us to be peaceful lives while protecting privacy in the Internet society.

This paper focuses on the consumption behavior on the Internet and addresses anonymity. We consider some network protocols that enable sustainable consensus by combining anonymity methods such …

Legal And Technical Issues For Text And Data Mining In Greece, Maria Kanellopoulou - Botti, Marinos Papadopoulos, Christos Zampakolas, Paraskevi Ganatsiou

Computer Ethics - Philosophical Enquiry (CEPE) Proceedings

Web harvesting and archiving pertains to the processes of collecting from the web and archiving of works that reside on the Web. Web harvesting and archiving is one of the most attractive applications for libraries which plan ahead for their future operation. When works retrieved from the Web are turned into archived and documented material to be found in a library, the amount of works that can be found in said library can be far greater than the number of works harvested from the Web. The proposed participation in the 2019 CEPE Conference aims at presenting certain issues related to …

Swarm-Based Techniques For Adaptive Navigation Primitives, Nathan Metzger

Mechanical Engineering Master's Theses

Adaptive Navigation (AN) has, in the past, been successfully accomplished by using mobile multi-robot systems (MMS) in highly structured formations known as clusters. Such multi-robot adaptive navigation (MAN) allows for real-time reaction to sensor readings and navigation to a goal location not known a priori. This thesis successfully reproduces MAN cluster techniques via swarm control techniques, a less computationally expensive but less formalized control technique for MMS, which achieves robot control through a combination of primitive robot behaviors. While powerful for large numbers of robots, swarm robotics often relies on “emergent” swarm behaviors resulting from robot-level behaviors, rather than top-down …

On The Responsibility For Uses Of Downstream Software, Marty J. Wolf, Keith W. Miller, Frances S. Grodzinsky

Computer Ethics - Philosophical Enquiry (CEPE) Proceedings

In this paper we explore an issue that is different from whether developers are responsible for the direct impact of the software they write. We examine, instead, in what ways, and to what degree, developers are responsible for the way their software is used “downstream.” We review some key scholarship analyzing responsibility in computing ethics, including some recent work by Floridi. We use an adaptation of a mechanism developed by Floridi to argue that there are features of software that can be used as guides to better distinguish situations where a software developer might share in responsibility for the software’s …

A Machine Learning Approach To Predicting Alcohol Consumption In Adolescents From Historical Text Messaging Data, Adrienne Bergh

Computational and Data Sciences (MS) Theses

Techniques based on artificial neural networks represent the current state-of-the-art in machine learning due to the availability of improved hardware and large data sets. Here we employ doc2vec, an unsupervised neural network, to capture the semantic content of text messages sent by adolescents during high school, and encode this semantic content as numeric vectors. These vectors effectively condense the text message data into highly leverageable inputs to a logistic regression classifier in a matter of hours, as compared to the tedious and often quite lengthy task of manually coding data. Using our machine learning approach, we are able to train …

Composite Biomaterial Repair Strategy To Restore Biomechanical Function And Reduce Herniation Risk In An Ex Vivo Large Animal Model Of Intervertebral Disc Herniation With Varying Injury Severity, Warren W. Hom, Melanie Tschopp, Huizi A. Lin, Philip Nasser, Damien M. Laudier, Andrew C. Hecht, Steven B. Nicoll, James C. Iatridis

Publications and Research

Back pain commonly arises from intervertebral disc (IVD) damage including annulus fibrosus (AF) defects and nucleus pulposus (NP) loss. Poor IVD healing motivates developing tissue engineering repair strategies. This study evaluated a composite injectable IVD biomaterial repair strategy using carboxymethylcellulose-methylcellulose (CMC-MC) and genipincrosslinked fibrin (FibGen) that mimic NP and AF properties, respectively. Bovine ex vivo caudal IVDs were evaluated in cyclic compression-tension, torsion, and compression-to-failure tests to determine IVD biomechanical properties, height loss, and herniation risk following experimentally-induced severe herniation injury and discectomy (4 mm biopsy defect with 20% NP removed). FibGen with and without CMC-MC had failure strength similar …

Emt 1130 - Electromechanical Manufacturing Lab, Farjana Ferdousy

Open Educational Resources

No abstract provided.

College Of Engineering News, Georgia Southern University

College of Engineering & Computing: News & Publications (2010-2023)

• Rami Haddad, Ph.D wins Outstanding Engineering Educator Award | IEEE SoutheastCon 2019

Hypermongone C Accelerates Wound Healing Through The Modulation Of Inflammatory Factors And Promotion Of Fibroblast Migration, Sara E. Moghadam, Moridi Mahdi Farimani, Sara Soroury, Samad N. Ebrahimi, Ehsan Jabbarzadeh

Faculty Publications

The physiology of wound healing is dependent on the crosstalk between inflammatory mediators and cellular components of skin regeneration including fibroblasts and endothelial cells. Therefore, strategies to promote healing must regulate this crosstalk to achieve maximum efficacy. In light of the remarkable potential of natural compounds to target multiple signaling mechanisms, this study aims to demonstrate the potential of hypermongone C, a polycyclic polyprenylated acylphloroglucinol (PPAP), to accelerate wound closure by concurrently enhancing fibroblast proliferation and migration, promoting angiogenesis, and suppressing pro-inflammatory cytokines. This compound belongs to a family of plants (Hypericum) that traditionally have been used to treat injuries. …

The Post-Occupancy Digital Twin: A Quantitative Report On Data Standardisation And Dynamic Building Performance Evaluation, Bim Tudublin, Jonathan Rogers

Capstone Reports

As a process, originally defined by the UK Government, Level 2 Building Information Modelling (BIM) involves the creation of digital project information, following industry standard guidelines. Through the application of Level 2 BIM, the construction industry can now develop digital representations of physical assets. By combining BIM with digital technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), an opportunity is created to link integrated building sensors to these digital representations via advanced Computer Aided Facility Management (CAFM) systems. Successfully combining physical elements to digital elements through a CAFM system results in the creation of Digital Twins (DT), providing an opportunity …

A Critical Appraisal Of The Potential For Public Works Contracts’ And Design-Build Clients In Ireland To Leverage Benefits From Bim Processes, Bim Tudublin, Trina Turner

Capstone Reports

The zeitgeist of the Irish Architecture, Engineering, Construction and Operations (AECO) Industry is digital construction and collaborative processes. However, Clients don’t know what they want from BIM, and are confused about how to get what they need. This paper critically appraised the potential for public works contracts’ Clients to leverage the benefits from BIM processes. Key stakeholders were interviewed to establish where possible barriers and issues arise in order to enhance Client engagement throughout the capital/ delivery and operations phase of the built asset. A Toolkit, derived from the Literature Review, was investigated by the interviewees. This detailed research resulted …

Investigating The Rapid Curing Possibility Of Geopolymer Concrete, Ashlesh Banjara

Master's Theses

Recent studies of heat-cured fly ash based green geopolymer concrete have shown its suitability for fabrication of structural members. Fabrication of these structural members requires continuous moderate heating (145°F) for 24 hrs, and an oven essential, for a large member can quickly turn into an energy guzzler, potentially eliminating the green credentials of the product. The proposed research involves the development of a frontal polymerization (FP) method that achieves rapid curing of geopolymer at ambient condition after short-term heat application. Initial work shows thermal FP in geopolymer is a possibility and might be a solution to the problem. The process …

Surface Engineering Solutions For Immersion Phase Change Cooling Of Electronics, Brendon M. Doran

Master's Theses

Micro- and nano-scale surface modifications have been a subject of great interest for enhancing the pool boiling heat transfer performance of immersion cooling systems due to their ability to augment surface area, improve wickability, and increase nucleation site density. However, many of the surface modification technologies that have been previously demonstrated show a lack of evidence concerning scalability for use at an industrial level. In this work, the pool boiling heat transfer performance of nanoporous anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) films, copper oxide (CuO) nanostructure coatings, and 1D roll-molded microfin arrays has been studied. Each of these technologies possess scalability in …

Two And Three-Dimensional Models For Material And Cells Interaction, Nam H. Nguyen

Doctoral Dissertations

Three-dimensional (3D) cell spheroid model has been long considered a better model to mimic in vivo physiology compared to two-dimensional (2D) cell culture model. Traditional 2D cell models provide a simple, convenient and quick technique for drug screening but fail to simulate the complexity and heterogeneity of cells in the in vivo environment. The last few decades have remarked substantial progress toward the advancement of three-dimensional (3D) cell cultures as systems which better mimic cellcell and cell-matrix interaction in the in vivo physiology. Nowadays, 3D cell models have been emerging, not only as an important approach in drug discovery and …

Evaluation Of Carbon Footprint During The Life-Cycle Of Four Different Pipe Materials, Alhossin Alsadi

Doctoral Dissertations

As the world is moving to provide a better and cleaner environment for future generations, there is a critical need to quantify and try to reduce the environmental emission footprints of various industries. The construction industry, which emits a large amount of carbon dioxide (CO₂ ), is one of the targeted industries to decrease these emissions. Underground utility installations, especially in the development of residential communities in urban areas, are one of the largest construction projects across North America and, consequently, one primary source of emissions. Most of the pipelines in the U.S. are rapidly reaching the end of their …

Incentivising Multidisciplinary Teams With New Methods Of Procurement Using Bim + Blockchain, Bim Tudublin, Alan O'Reilly

Capstone Reports

This paper researches a potential method of incentivising AEC industry professionals to design to better than NZEB standards. Analysing the potential of a purposefully designed local microgrid storing excess energy generated by solar technologies embedded within the building envelope; the microgrid excess output is measured and recorded using a (Post Occupancy) “Blockchain” application and measured against the data provided at design stage on a (Predictive) “Blockchain” database. This paper researches how energy output predications at design stage, by multidisciplinary teams, may be enhanced by BIM + Blockchain Technology. The paper researches the potential of a digital twin (predictive versus post …

On The Inference Of The State Of Turbulence And Mixing Efficiency In Stably Stratified Flows, Amrapalli Garanaik, Subhas K. Venayagamoorthy

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Scaling arguments are presented to quantify the widely used diapycnal (irreversible) mixing coefficient Γ = ∈PE/∈ in stratified flows as a function of the turbulent Froude number Fr = ∈/Nk. Here, N is the buoyancy frequency, k is the turbulent kinetic energy, ∈ is the rate of dissipation of turbulent kinetic energy and ∈PE is the rate of dissipation of turbulent potential energy. We show that for Fr≫1, Γ ∝ Fr^-2, for Fr∼ O (1), Γ ∝ Fr^-1 and for Fr ≪ 1, Γ ∝ Fr⁰. These scaling results are tested using high-resolution direct numerical …

An Iterative Five-Point Algorithm With Application To Multi-Target Tracking, Jacob H. White, Randal W. Beard

Student Works

We present ReSORtSAC: Recursively-seeded optimization, refinement, sample, and consensus. ReSORtSAC is a novel algorithm that can be used to estimate the relative pose between consecutive frames of a video sequence. Relative pose estimation algorithms typically generate a large number of hypotheses from minimum subsets and score them in order to be robust to noise and outliers. The relative pose is often represented using the essential matrix. Previous methods calculate essential matrix hypotheses directly without utilizing prior information. These equations are complex to evaluate and can return up to ten essential matrix solutions for each minimum subset, all of which must …

The Homography As A State Transformation Between Frames In Visual Multi-Target Tracking, Jacob H. White, Randal W. Beard

Student Works

There are many applications where an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is required to visually track a ground-based target using an on-board camera. In these applications, successful target tracking often requires that past estimates of the target be transformed into the current image frame so that moving targets can be correctly identified [1]. If the target is moving on an approximately planar surface, then the coordinate transformation can be accomplished using the homography matrix.

Developing An Optomechanical Approach For Characterizing Mechanical Properties Of Single Adherent Cells, Ali Mehrnezhad

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Mechanical properties of a cell reflect its biological and pathological conditions including cellular disorders and fundamental cellular processes such as cell division and differentiation. There have been active research efforts to develop high-throughput platforms to mechanically characterize single cells. Yet, many of these research efforts are focused on suspended cells and use a flow-through configuration. Therefore, adherent cells are detached prior to the characterization, which seriously perturbs the cellular conditions. Also, methods for adherent cells are limited in their throughput.

My study is aimed to fill the technical gap in the field of single cell analysis, which is a high-throughput …