Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Resolution Algorithms In A Parallel Processing Environment, Paula Beth Brandman Hencken

Masters Theses

An ever increasing number of processors are becoming available to the multiprocessor user. For faster response and efficient utilization of parallel processing systems it is necessary to develop parallel algorithms to solve a single problem.

This paper evaluates the complexity of resolution algorithms run in a parallel processing environment. An overview of parallel processing is presented along with a discussion of general resolution and resolution-refutation systems. An analysis of the complexity required by different control strategies to perform resolution programing is presented using both uniprocessor and multiprocessor systems.

An Improvement In The Performance Of A Learning System For Finite State Machines, Lea F. Fuller

Masters Theses

A learning system is examined which is capable of learning a finite state machine from a class of finite state machines based on the observed behavior of the machine. The size of the search space becomes very large as the number of states in the machine increases. The size of the search space quickly becomes the limiting factor in the size of the class of machines which may be learned. An investigation is made of methods to improve the performance of the learning system. The application of a depth first approach to the development of the search space is shown …

Learning Computer Logic Architectures On Apple Ii System, Falah Reda Al-Saffar

Masters Theses

For this thesis seven computer-assisted instruction packages have been designed to illustrate the design of electronic circuits of gates , the logic of combinational and sequential circuits, and integrated and magnetic core memories.

The programs in these packages have been written in the Pascal computer language on an Apple II microcomputer and stored on a double-sided floppy disk.

A Computer Aided Instructional System And Its Application Towards A Course On Snobol4 Programming Language, Abtin Edelji

Masters Theses

Computers are rapidly replacing humans in many tasks. Computer Aided Instructional System is an application of the computer in the teaching of a subject. Currently, a large number of educational Institutes use Computer Aided Instructional Systems.

The objectives of this thesis is to review some techniques in implementing such systems and to present a Computer Aided Instructional System called TEACH. The emphasis of this thesis is on the type of the directory used to minimize the search time for the TEACH System.

A Query-Processing Optimization Strategy For Generalized File Structures, Donna Marie Kaminski

Masters Theses

In processing a Boolean query against a non-inverted file, a subset of the query's keys must be selected. Only the records satisfying these keys need to be retrieved from the file. A dynamic programming algorithm, the Dual-to-minDF, is developed here for arriving at the optimum set of keys, i.e., the minimum number of external record retrievals. Previously suggested greedy methods yield feasible solutions which may or may not be optimal. This algorithm has exponential time complexity. However, it is useful for applications involving relatively short queries with duplication of keys within different conjuncts, and in cases where the files have …

Program Modeling And Control Synthesis For Robotic Manipulators, Ramiz Najib Ballou

Masters Theses

"The control and programming methodology of industrial robots is becoming increasingly important. The speed and accuracy of data generation, and the performance of the robot are considered the most important factors in robotics control.

This paper presents and discusses algorithms that solve for the inverse solution for a given point in space at a very high speed based on the top down abstract method. The algorithms are independent of any specific type of manipulator configuration or programming language. The algorithms were implemented or the IBM-PC using the FORTRAN language to control the Armdroid robot. The program generates 500 sets of …

Ciegen: A System For Testing Knowledge Base Compilation Heuristics On A Microcomputer, Jayne D. Ward

Masters Theses

"The expert system has proven itself to be a valuable aid in diagnosing and treating problems in domains requiring expertise. The commercial world has been alerted to this fact and the thrust is to make the expert system portable and available on small computers.

The goal of this research has been to lay the groundwork for a domain independent expert system builder on a microcomputer. The result of this effort was CIEGEN, a system consisting of a rule compiler, inference engine, and rule generator developed on the IBM PC. It is domain independent, responsible for transforming a knowledge base of …

A Focus Of Attention Algorithm For Expert Systems, Kevin W. Whiting

Masters Theses

"This research is primarily concerned with increasing the performance of expert systems. A refined focus of attention strategy and its affect on performance are discussed. Early expert systems used a brute force approach to process the knowledge base. Each production rule in the knowledge base was evaluated each cycle. More recently, processing efficiency has been increased by focusing the attention of the inference engine on a subset of the rules by "filtering" for further testing, only rules that could possibly fire given the current content of the context base. Focus of attention as developed in this research increases performance over …

The Optimal Trajectory Modelling Of Robot Manipulators, Mary Claire Miller

Masters Theses

"Greater robot capability can be achieved through the use of robot manipulator control systems. Crucial to the success of these control systems is the optimal trajectory modelling of the path traced by the end- effector. To create this optimal path the utilization of B-Spline curve functions will be investigated, and compared to Cubic Spline curve functions"--Abstract, page ii.

The Design And Implementation Of The Programming Language Natural, Alan L. Sparks

Masters Theses

"This paper reports progress on the development of the programming language Natural, currently under design by Dr. Thomas J. Sager at the University of Missouri--Rolla. Natural is a very high-level language with a mathematical flavor, and includes several concepts relatively uncommon in programming language design.

The text also discusses an implementation on the IBM Personal Computer of Mini-Natural, a subset of Natural, and presents examples of programs written in Mini-Natural"--Abstract, page ii.

Survey Of Routing Algorithms For Computer Networks, Lu Yu

Masters Theses

"This thesis gives a general discussion of routing for computer networks, followed by an overview of a number of typical routing algorithms used or reported in the past few years. Attention is mainly focused on distributed adaptive routing algorithms for packet switching (or message switching) networks. Algorithms for major commercial networks (or network architectures) are reviewed as well, for the convenience of comparison"--Abstract, page ii.

A Graphical Representation Of An Executing Program, Sherry A. Lile

Masters Theses

"This thesis describes the rationale for a computer program used as a teaching aid, as well as, the design, development, and implementation of that computer program. The program is a prototype that displays, line by line, a graphical depiction of a BASIC program being executed. Icons are used to represent FOR-NEXT loops, the contents of variables, I/O, and other programming elements. The internal logic associated with the Arithmetic-Logic Unit is also represented. The purpose is to produce an environment where the student may visualize the processes occurring in memory by viewing a symbolic portrayal of an executing program. The example …

A Simple Method For Organizing Nearly Optimal Binary Search Trees, Joy L. Henderson

Masters Theses

"Improving the efficiency of retrieving information concerns users of computer systems involved in many applications- One way of addressing this concern is to organize a sorted sequence into a binary search tree. Knuth's Algorithm K is a bottom-up organization algorithm that always constructs a binary tree which minimizes average search time. However, the cost of executing Algorithm K is prohibitive for a large tree. The aim of this work is to find a less costly method of organizing sorted sequences into nearly-optimal binary search trees.

We present a top-down organization method which yields better average search times than top-down methods …

An Experimental Study Of The Effects Of Modularity On Resource Consumption In Software Development, Alan D. Christiansen

Masters Theses

"Many authors have encouraged the use of modular programming techniques in software development. In fact, there is almost total agreement within industrial and academic circles that modularity is a desirable feature of any software package. Unfortunately, the desirability of modular design is almost always voiced without support from experimental evidence.

This thesis consists of an experiment comparing the resource consumption of programmers based on the modularity practices employed during the design and programming phases of software development. The experiment tests the effectiveness of modularity in reducing psychological complexity of software.

The results of the research show that in some cases …