Engineering Commons^™

Overview: Space Security: Possible Issues And Potential Solutions, Ziad I. Akir

Online Journal of Space Communication

Space communication has become an integral component of our overall global telecommunication infrastructure. Satellites are being used for telecommunication, business, entertainment, education, Internet, navigation, remote sensing, imaging, and weather forecasting.

Satellites are also providing backup communication capabilities when terrestrial communication is interrupted in cases such as earthquakes or other natural (or unnatural) disasters. The September 11th events in 2001 demonstrated the value of redundant satellite systems in supporting rescue efforts.

Overview: The Increasing Threat To Satellite Communications, Sean Patrick Bain

Online Journal of Space Communication

Communication security has been a priority since the beginning of recorded history. The survival of human cultures has always relied on the use of accurate information transported over distances. The interception of this information, preventing its reception or its misuse, can alter the course of nations. As technology advances, so too does the threat to modern satellite communication. The methods of interfering with or intercepting satellite signals are numerous and need to be better understood.

As has been demonstrated by a small team of undergraduate students, the capability to intercept the nation's communication satellite signals is no longer limited to …

Issue 6: From The Guest Editor, Kathleen Sweet

Online Journal of Space Communication

Guest editor introduction.

Structural Reform For It Competitiveness In Japan, Kei Hata

Online Journal of Space Communication

Five years ago, in order to publicize the necessity for the Japanese government to have an Information Technology policy that until then was largely ignored, as a member of the House of Counselors of the Japanese Diet, I created an urgent proposal and presented it to Prime Minister Hashimoto.

Issue 5: Contributors, Bruce Elbert

Online Journal of Space Communication

List of issue 5 contributors.

Bridging The Digital Divide: Towards A New Paradigm, Virgil Labrador

Online Journal of Space Communication

My direct experience in the "digital divide" was when I was marketing director for a band-new state-of-the-art program origination and satellite transmission facility in Singapore seven years ago in 1996. Our first and anchor client was the highly successful Discovery Network--which housed in our facility the first all-digital channel to the Asia-Pacific market.

Bridge Over Troubled Skies: Satellite Broadband And The Digital Divide, Phillip L. Spector

Online Journal of Space Communication

A few years ago, at the height of the Internet boom, pundits often spoke of "Internet time." They meant many things by this reference, but certainly there was a recognition that a key strength of the Internet is the fast communications speeds involved. While the concept of "Internet time" has faded somewhat with the bloom on the Internet rose, it is still the case that ever-increasing numbers of Americans and others in the world have access to high-speed Internet services. Through this access, they are able to refer quickly to a myriad of resources that have made the Internet an …

The Digital Divide… Teach A Man To Fish!, Vince Waterson

Online Journal of Space Communication

Recently Kim Hak-Su, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) that co-organized the regional conference together with the Japanese Government and other collaborators, acknowledged that more work is needed. "The Tokyo Declaration is directional", he said. "We need more meetings".

Strengthening Access To Communications Policy & Regulatory Guidelines For Satellite Services, David Hartshorn

Online Journal of Space Communication

This work is designed to help bridge the "Regulatory Divide" that continues to thwart end users' efforts to obtain affordable communications. From tele-medicine to distance learning to rural telecenters to disaster recovery to enterprise networks, the satellite industry is offering not only telecommunications solutions for the "have nots", but also the regulatory tools to enable the public sector to fulfill their policy objectives.

Technological Issues: A Day In The Life Of A Satcom Engineer In Nigeria, Andy Hope

Online Journal of Space Communication

The day began early, like all African days.

Technological Issues: The Citizen Initiated Performance Assessment (Cipa) Initiative Through Wireless Technology, William Stowe

Online Journal of Space Communication

Many governments, including my own that serves a population of about 200,000 Central Iowans, have been reluctant to invest in technologies supporting e-government services. The operating assumption for this reluctance is that the "digital divide" delivers the benefits of e-government to the wealthiest and often most educated citizens, effectively diverting resources to constituencies traditionally less reliant on government services than the poor who are often left on the down side of the "digital divide". While "digital divide" considerations are and should continue to be a focal point in deciding allocation of scarce financial resources supporting technological improvements, reallocation of resources …

Technological Issues: Closing The Digital Divide Through Resource Allocation Techniques, Avi Barda, Zvi Ner, Shaul Laufer

Online Journal of Space Communication

It is only after access to technology is assured that computer literacy can begin. Access is not simply having access to up-to-date technology; it should also include access to qualified teachers, appropriate software and Web content. Vital to this issue is the quality and quantity of the access.

The optimisation of the bandwidth use, obtained by implementing bandwidth allocation schemes and suited protocol solutions, will allow providing improved quality of service and reduced cost of broadband Internet access. This technology will allow the provision of QoS-based broadband services in hazardous environments and in areas where the technological development is less …

Social And Cultural Issues: The Impact Of Digital Divide On Development And How Satellite Addresses This Problem, Robin Gambu Wani Latio

Online Journal of Space Communication

The paper examines the problem of inaccessibility to education by the vast majority in East Africa, the factors that contribute to education problems and how the digital divide further helps isolate people in the rural communities of the region.

The author proposes satellite technology as the solution to the digital divide and offers reasons to support this proposition. Technology use in Uganda is discussed as a case study to provide further evidence that satellite communications help close the digital divide gap.

Social And Cultural Issues: Information And Communication Technology Policy In Mongolia, Lkhagvasuren Ariunaa

Online Journal of Space Communication

In the networking age, every country needs the capacity to understand and adjust global technologies for local needs. In the mid-seventies, the Government of Mongolia was giving much emphasis to science and technology information, having State Committee on Science and Technology and research institutions underneath.

The main purpose of the State Committee was to focus on the provision of the science and technology information mainly received from academic institutions of former Soviet Union and socialist system countries. A number of the policy regulatory documents were developed to address the issues of the science and technology information.

Social And Cultural Issues: The Digital Divide In The Gobi Desert: Spatiality, The National Identity Collapse, And A Language Gap, Undrahbuyan Basaanjav

Online Journal of Space Communication

No research has been conducted to examine how people in the countryside of Mongolia use the Internet and what social and cultural influences the Internet bring to these people. This study focuses on the geographical and cultural aspects of the digital divide in the Gobi desert of Mongolia. In this paper, I argue that the Internet brings a sense of mobility to people in remote Mongolia, which lets them move through social spaces. In the Gobi Desert the Internet has begun to break the geo-spatial notion of local vs. global. People in the Gobi Desert already use instant and mobile …

Social And Cultural Issues: Social, Cultural And Economic Issues In The Digital Divide - Literature Review And Case Study Of Japan, Shuho Otani

Online Journal of Space Communication

The definition of the digital divide generally refers to unequal access to digital and network resources, including the Internet, and opportunities to learn using information and communication technologies. The gaps are usually concerned with economic, social and cultural issues, such as income, age, education, gender, ethnic background, and physical handicaps.

Current Development: Domestic Satellites Make Indonesia A Model Of Telecommunications Development, Saleh Gunawan

Online Journal of Space Communication

Our Palapa A Domestic Satellite System, named for a mythical fruit, was inaugurated on August 17, 1976, almost 30 years ago, and it was surprising how quickly our nation started enjoying the ease and speed of telephone connections from an affordable high quality direct distance dialed network. Prior to this, Indonesian inter-island public telecommunications were served mainly by way of High Frequency radio. Dependence on the ionosphere limited connections to a few hours a day. In addition to poor capacity and quality, anyone wanting to place a call had to make prior booking through human operators.

Current Development: Soiasia Project: A New And Effective Distance Learning Environment For Internet Developing Area Utilizing The Satellite Link, Shoko Mikawa, Jun Takei

Online Journal of Space Communication

This paper describes a distance learning environment using the Internet via satellite in Asian regions where Internet infrastructure is insufficient. The merit of distance learning is that students can receive cutting edge lectures from professors all over the world. For those areas with sufficient Internet infrastructure, there would be no problem receiving these kinds of lectures. However, it is difficult for countries with insufficient Internet infrastructure to receive them. The SOI (School of Internet) ASIA project proposes and demonstrates a distance learning environment utilizing satellite links as an Internet infrastructure that can be quickly installed with low cost for those …

Current Development: How One Faith-Based Organization Uses Satellite Technology To Bridge The Digital Divide, Jeffrey B. Roberts

Online Journal of Space Communication

From its founding in 1830, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has endeavored to fulfill the divine command to "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." Proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ throughout the world remains a daunting challenge even in modern times. How does a religious organization preach its doctrine to people of all nations, race, cultures, etc? How does it support its growing membership and provide the necessary training for new members and new leaders? How does it assure that its teachings remain consistent around the world? How does it …

Current Development: The Digital Divide - An Appalachian Ohio Perspective, John C. Hoag

Online Journal of Space Communication

The objective of this paper is to assess the role of satellite communication with respect to the Digital Divide in the United States. A secondary objective is to review the capabilities, capacity, and availability of current solutions in light of potential applications in other markets and situations.

This paper contains a review of the Digital Divide in general with additional attention to local Ohio developments and the use of satellite broadband Internet service. We then discuss different satellite-based solutions for residential and commercial Internet access.

Current Development: Satellite Newsgathering Crosses The Digital Divide, Eli Flournoy

Online Journal of Space Communication

Current developments in news gathering.

Current Development: Learning Without Boundary: Application Of Satellite Communication System On Distance Education, Hsin-Ho Tsao

Online Journal of Space Communication

Nowadays, the concept of global village has been developed over the world due to the development of communication technology. The information boundaries between areas and regions are gradually eliminated. People are able to have long-distance communication and information exchange, such as searching information via the Internet and making long distance calls that include images. The convenience of communication brought by the technology is applied to education as well.

Issue 5: From The Guest Editor, Bruce Elbert

Online Journal of Space Communication

This issue of the Online Journal of Space Communication focuses on a matter of social concern for which satellite technology is well-positioned to help overcome traditional communication limitations of terrain and distance. Literally the entire globe is within the reach of one satellite system or another, making it possible to extend telephone, television, radio, data and Internet communications to every corner and everybody.

Lightweight Speed Protocol, Zachary James Hardy

Computer Science and Engineering Senior Theses

In this project, we aimed to design and implement a network protocol, using existing C networking libraries as a foundational basis for expansion and elaboration. Our design, Lightweight Speed Protocol (LSP), aims to offer increased flexibility and adaptability for programmers utilizing our protocol compared to existing alternatives (such as TCP). LSP aims to offer these benefits by utilizing variable levels of encryption (specifiable by the programmer using our protocol) and customizable amounts of cache space to store these varying levels of encryption algorithms. In order to give developers as much flexibility as possible, we want to pass on to them …

Rethinking Noisy Label Models: Labeler-Dependent Noise With Adversarial Awareness, Glenn Dawson, Robi Polikar

Henry M. Rowan College of Engineering Departmental Research

Most studies on learning from noisy labels rely on unrealistic models of i.i.d. label noise, such as class-conditional transition matrices. More recent work on instance-dependent noise models are more realistic, but assume a single generative process for label noise across the entire dataset. We propose a more principled model of label noise that generalizes instance-dependent noise to multiple labelers, based on the observation that modern datasets are typically annotated using distributed crowdsourcing methods. Under our labeler-dependent model, label noise manifests itself under two modalities: natural error of good-faith labelers, and adversarial labels provided by malicious actors. We present two adversarial …

The Effects Of The Transient And Performance Loss Rates On Pv Output Performance, Chibuisi Chinasaokwu Okorieimoh, Brian Norton, Michael Conlon

Conference papers

Solar photovoltaic (PV) panels experience long-term performance degradation as compared to their initial performance, resulting in lower like-per-like efficiencies and performance ratios. Manufacturers of solar photovoltaic modules normally guarantee a lifespan of more than 20 years. To meet such commitments, it is important to monitor and mitigate PV module degradation during this period, as well as beyond, to recognize maintenance and repair needs. Solar PV modules degrade over time, becoming less effective, less reliable, and eventually unusable. The effects of transient and performance loss rates on the output performance of polycrystalline silicon (p-Si) solar PV modules are the focus of …

Case Studies Of Problematic Expansive Soils: Characterization Challenges, Innovative Stabilization Designs, And Novel Monitoring Methods, Anand J. Puppala

Abbett Distinguished Seminar Series

This presentation describes key research works on expansive soils, the methods employed to characterize them, and fallacies in the current characterization of expansive soils. Novel swell characterization models that account for hydro, chemical, and mechanical behaviors of soils are introduced and used in various case studies to improve expansive soil stabilization practices. An innovative design method for successful stabilization of expansive soil is introduced in one case study which incorporated both basic clay mineralogy and unsaturated soil behaviors, as well as performance-based durability studies. Sulfate soil stabilization works on medium-to-high sulfate soils are presented in another case study. The last …

Contested Landscapes, Disputed Realities: An Investigation Of Socio-Environmental Conflict From Mining In Northern Ecuador: An Honors Thesis, Ian F. Hirons

Student Works

For decades, Ecuador has been one of the preeminent petrostates in South America. However, in response to recent drops in global demand and pricing for oil products, the country has made serious commitments to further develop its mineral resources. By opening a new natural resource sector, Ecuador has firmly cemented itself as a primarily extractivist nation. In the process, the national government has frequently come into conflict with activist and community groups who protest the encroachment of extractive industry. This thesis explores the various dimensions of socio-environmental conflict created by large-scale mining projects in northern Ecuador with specific attention to …

Effects Of Whole Body Vibration On Inhibitory Control Processes, Bennett Alan Mortensen

Theses and Dissertations

Vibrations are often experienced in the workplace and may influence performance and executive function. Research has shown that vibrations may have an affect effect on drowsiness and tests related to inhibitory control. Previous work investigating whole body vibrations (WBV) and their effect was evaluated to inform the decisions for this study. WBV effects on cognitive abilities were examined and the different tests used in these studies were identified and compared. Electroencephalogram (EEG) and event related potentials (ERP) were selected to be used to measure inhibitory and cognitive processes. The N2 ERP, which reflects inhibitory control processes, was examined as well …

Extending Instantaneous De-Mixing Algorithms To Anechoic Mixtures, Swarnadeep Bagchi, Ruairí De Fréin

Conference papers

The AdRess algorithm separates sources that are mixed using stereo, pan-mixing in a computationally efficient way. Pan-mixing gives the sources a location in the stereo field by introducing a relative attenuation between the versions of the sources that appear on each channel. AdRess achieves separation by constructing only a frequency-attenuation matrix. We introduce a new algorithm called Delayed-AdRess (D-AdRess), where, in addition to the frequency-attenuation matrix, two other matrices namely, frequency-delay and time-delay are used to separate sources from anechoic mixtures. By anechoic mixtures, we mean mixing scenarios where both attenuation and delays are experienced by the source signals.