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Articles 1 - 30 of 358

Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

On The Pursuit Of Developer Happiness: Webcam-Based Eye Tracking And Affect Recognition In The Ide, Tamsin Rogers Jan 2023

On The Pursuit Of Developer Happiness: Webcam-Based Eye Tracking And Affect Recognition In The Ide, Tamsin Rogers

Honors Theses

Recent research highlights the viability of webcam-based eye tracking as a low-cost alternative to dedicated remote eye trackers. Simultaneously, research shows the importance of understanding emotions of software developers, where it was found that emotions have significant effects on productivity, code quality, and team dynamics. In this paper, we present our work towards an integrated eye-tracking and affect recognition tool for use during software development. This combined approach could enhance our understanding of software development by combining information about the code developers are looking at, along with the emotions they experience. The presented tool utilizes an unmodified webcam to capture …

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Complexities Of Community Consultation In Chile's Lithium Industry, Isabella R. Whelan Jan 2023

Complexities Of Community Consultation In Chile's Lithium Industry, Isabella R. Whelan

Honors Theses

Echoed by November’s COP27 in Egypt, the climate crisis has become an increasingly pressing and global issue, with the need to move away from fossil fuels more urgent than ever. In attempts to decarbonize the global economy, many countries and companies have turned to electrification –particularly within the transportation sector, one of today’s largest contributors of greenhouse gasses. A crucial component of energy storage and batteries is lithium, now considered a “critical mineral.” Demand for lithium has skyrocketed in recent years and is only expected to continue growing. More than fifty percent of the world’s lithium supply is found within …

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Finding The Common Denominator: Understanding The Shared Experiences Of Female Math Majors, Abigail R. Rosenbaum Jan 2023

Finding The Common Denominator: Understanding The Shared Experiences Of Female Math Majors, Abigail R. Rosenbaum

Honors Theses

Despite efforts to increase gender diversity in STEM fields, women remain underrepresented in mathematics, especially in advanced academic and research positions. This study aimed to explore the experiences of female math majors as they attempt to navigate this male-dominated space. Through qualitative interviews with seven female math majors, two female math professors, and a focus group with education majors at Woodbridge College, small liberal arts college in the United States, several common themes were identified that define the experiences of female math majors. The findings suggest that math is held at an elevated status in society and that there is …

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Elliptic Curves Over Finite Fields, Christopher S. Calger Jan 2023

Elliptic Curves Over Finite Fields, Christopher S. Calger

Honors Theses

The goal of this thesis is to give an expository report on elliptic curves over finite fields. We begin by giving an overview of the necessary background in algebraic geometry to understand the definition of an elliptic curve. We then explore the general theory of elliptic curves over arbitrary fields, such as the group structure, isogenies, and the endomorphism ring. We then study elliptic curves over finite fields. We focus on the number of Fq-rational solutions, Tate modules, supersingular curves, and applications to elliptic curves over Q. In particular, we approach the topic largely through the use …

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Tracing North Atlantic Continental Erosion Events During The Mid-Pleistocene Transition, Cecilia T. Bowe Jan 2023

Tracing North Atlantic Continental Erosion Events During The Mid-Pleistocene Transition, Cecilia T. Bowe

Honors Theses

The Mid-Pleistocene Transition (MPT), which occurred between 1.2 and 0.7 Mya, is characterized by changes in the periodicity and intensity of glacial-interglacial cycles. Early research into this event found that it was not triggered by changes in orbital forcing, but rather by internal climate processes. Previous studies have constrained a probable two-step mechanism, in which erosion of regolith under ice sheets increased glacial volumes and contributed to increased carbon sequestration in the Southern Ocean. Additional research has built on this, suggesting that increased glacial erosion of cratons surrounding the North Atlantic preceded a major weakening of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning …

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Trends In Cyanotoxin Production Potential In China Lake: An Edna Analysis Of Microcystis And Dolichospermum And The Environmental Drivers Of Cyanotoxin Production, Gennifer M. Rubin Jan 2023

Trends In Cyanotoxin Production Potential In China Lake: An Edna Analysis Of Microcystis And Dolichospermum And The Environmental Drivers Of Cyanotoxin Production, Gennifer M. Rubin

Honors Theses

Episodes of cyano-harmful algal blooms (cyano-HABs) are hypothesized to be exacerbated by the effects of climate change. However, the dynamics of the interactions between elements of climate change and toxigenic cyanobacteria proliferation are not well defined. China Lake is the drinking water source for 7 municipalities in the Kennebec County and is one of many lakes in central Maine that has been subjected to high levels of cyano-HABs and microcystin toxin contamination in recent years. Monitoring the toxicity of these blooms in relation to various aspects of climate change may lead to identification of the major drivers of microcystin production …

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Detecting High-Lying Rydberg States Using Two-Step Electromagnetically Induced Transparency And Frequency Modulation Spectroscopy Techniques, Kate Jensen Jan 2023

Detecting High-Lying Rydberg States Using Two-Step Electromagnetically Induced Transparency And Frequency Modulation Spectroscopy Techniques, Kate Jensen

Honors Theses

Resonant optical excitation of high-lying Rydberg states in room temperature 85Rb was investigated using light from two homemade external cavity diode lasers (ECDL). This was done using a ladder schema of the Electromagnetically Induced Transparency (EIT) technique. The approximate EIT wavelengths used were 780 nm (the probe beam) to provide step-wise excitation of valence rubidium electrons from the 5S1/2 → 5P3/2 tran- sition, and then 482 nm (the coupling beam) to excite from the 5P3/2 state to a high-lying Rydberg nD state with an orbital angular momentum = 2. Successful excitation of the Rydberg states was observed using Frequency Modulation …

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Opening A Window To Evolution: David Angelini’S Research On Genetic Adaptation Gets Push From Mcvey Data Science Initiative, Christina Nunez Jan 2022

Opening A Window To Evolution: David Angelini’S Research On Genetic Adaptation Gets Push From Mcvey Data Science Initiative, Christina Nunez

Colby Magazine

Most people think of soapberry bugs as little more than a nuisance, if they think of them at all. Found across much of the southeastern United States, the oblong insect is harmless to humans and likes to hang out on plants native to the soapberry family, hence its straightforward name.

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Justice For Islands That Suffer Most: Stacy-Ann Robinson, Gerry Boyle Jan 2022

Justice For Islands That Suffer Most: Stacy-Ann Robinson, Gerry Boyle

Colby Magazine

Robinson grew up in Jamaica and has seen the destruction levied on the island by extreme storms. A human geographer and assistant professor of environmental studies at Colby, Robinson has also seen firsthand the challenges faced by Jamaica and places like it as they try to obtain resources needed to cope with the brunt of climate change.

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Nft Sneaker Marketplace Design, Testing, And Challenges, Chris Zhu Jan 2022

Nft Sneaker Marketplace Design, Testing, And Challenges, Chris Zhu

Honors Theses

This paper introduces the preliminary background and implementation of the NFT sneaker marketplace. Specifically, we build sneaker NFTs on top of ERC-20 within the Ethereum network and use a top-to-bottom design mechanism. Our website performs well in its functionality, compatibility, and performance. We discuss possible future steps for security implementation. In particular, we recommend using a cold wallet for clients' transactions and implementing multi-signature contracts to avoid spoofing and repudiation. Introducing the sneaker NFT marketplace will vastly reduce the costs of transactions and delivery time in the physical sneaker marketplace. We hope investors in the physical asset space can find …

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Analyzing The Free Energy Of Ions Sampling A Voltage Gated Sodium Ion Channel, Isabel Varghese Jan 2022

Analyzing The Free Energy Of Ions Sampling A Voltage Gated Sodium Ion Channel, Isabel Varghese

Honors Theses

Voltage gated sodium ion channels are implicated in cardiac diseases, seizures, etc., and they play a role in maintaining ionic homeostasis in cells. Computational studies use prokaryotic model because they are simpler but function similarly to human voltage gated sodium ion channels. This study uses molecular dynamics (MD) to study three specific questions regarding voltage gated sodium ion channels of Magnetococcus marinus. The first question in this study is how the free energy of sodium diffusion compares to that of calcium ion diffusion. We were not able to find any physically significant information due to poor sampling and a lack …

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Decomposing Manifolds In Low-Dimensions: From Heegaard Splittings To Trisections, Suixin "Cindy" Zhang Jan 2022

Decomposing Manifolds In Low-Dimensions: From Heegaard Splittings To Trisections, Suixin "Cindy" Zhang

Honors Theses

The decomposition of a topological space into smaller and simpler pieces is useful for understanding the space. In 1898, Poul Heegaard introduced the concept of a Heegaard splitting, which is a bisection of a 3-manifold. Heegaard diagrams, which describe Heegaard splittings combinatorially, have been recognized as a powerful tool for classifying 3-manifolds and producing important invariants of 3-manifolds. Handle decomposition, invented by Stephen Smale in 1962, describes how an n-manifold can be constructed by successively adding handles. In 2012, Gay and Kirby introduced trisections of 4-manifold, which are a four-dimensional analogues of Heegaard splittings in dimension three. Trisection diagrams give …

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Challenges Of Constructing Entrainment Map For Arbitrary Circadian Models, Yuxuan (Nelson) Wu Jan 2022

Challenges Of Constructing Entrainment Map For Arbitrary Circadian Models, Yuxuan (Nelson) Wu

Honors Theses

The entrainment map, developed by Dr.Diekman and Dr.Bose, is claimed to be a 1-dimensional map that produces a better prediction for phase-locking than methods than the phase response curve for circadian models. In his paper, he constructs the entrainment map for the two-dimensional circadian model, the Novak-Tyson model, and the other two higher-dimensional circadian models. For this thesis, we concentrate on exploring if it is viable to construct the entrainment map for other circadian models that are not included in his paper: the Becker-Weimann model and the Relogio model. In addition, we discuss the challenges of constructing the entrainment map …

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Representation Theory And Its Applications In Physics, Jakub Bystrický Jan 2022

Representation Theory And Its Applications In Physics, Jakub Bystrický

Honors Theses

Representation theory is a branch of mathematics that allows us to represent elements of a group as elements of a general linear group of a chosen vector space by means of a homomorphism. The group elements are mapped to linear operators and we can study the group using linear algebra. This ability is especially useful in physics where much of the theories are captured by linear algebra structures. This thesis reviews key concepts in representation theory of both finite and infinite groups. In the case of finite groups we discuss equivalence, orthogonality, characters, and group algebras. We discuss the importance …

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Apparatus Improvement And Characterisation For Experiments On Ultra-Cold Plasmas., Jakub Bystrický Jan 2022

Apparatus Improvement And Characterisation For Experiments On Ultra-Cold Plasmas., Jakub Bystrický

Honors Theses

Apparatus for creating ultra-cold neutral plasmas (UNPs) was improved and data on plasma expansion was collected. We increase the trapping efficiency of a quadrupole magneto-optical trap (MOT) by installing a tapered amplifier to increase the power of the cooling laser used to trap atoms. We achieve an improvement in density of trapped atoms from 1 x 1010 cm-3 to 2.5 - 4.5 x 1010 cm-3. In addition, to improve precision and decrease systematic error, the magnetic field induced by inductive current in the MOT's anti-helmholtz coils was suppressed. This was achieved by installing a KEPCO …

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Decoding Cyclic Codes Via Gröbner Bases, Eduardo Sosa Jan 2022

Decoding Cyclic Codes Via Gröbner Bases, Eduardo Sosa

Honors Theses

In this paper, we analyze the decoding of cyclic codes. First, we introduce linear and cyclic codes, standard decoding processes, and some standard theorems in coding theory. Then, we will introduce Gr¨obner Bases, and describe their connection to the decoding of cyclic codes. Finally, we go in-depth into how we decode cyclic codes using the key equation, and how a breakthrough by A. Brinton Cooper on decoding BCH codes using Gr¨obner Bases gave rise to the search for a polynomial-time algorithm that could someday decode any cyclic code. We discuss the different approaches taken toward developing such an algorithm and …

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"It's Not About The Polar Bears": Evangelical Christian Arguments For Environmentalism, Teresa D. White Jan 2022

"It's Not About The Polar Bears": Evangelical Christian Arguments For Environmentalism, Teresa D. White

Honors Theses

In recent history, white conservative evangelical Christians have formed an influential voting bloc of the Republican party in United States politics. Historically, conservatives have often denied the reality of human-induced climate change and have opposed climate change action and many environmental regulations. However, a number of conservative evangelical Christians have split from their traditionally conservative political views and have accepted the reality of climate change, becoming strong advocates for climate change action. This paper examines the arguments often presented by such advocates. I argue that evangelical environmental advocates craft specific arguments to convince fellow evangelicals to care for the environment …

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For Children’S Sake, Gerry Boyle Dec 2021

For Children’S Sake, Gerry Boyle

Colby Magazine

For three decades, Steve Nicholas has worked to create more sustainable cities. He tells videographer Reggie Huang why we must make progress on this urgent problem before it’s turned over to the next generation.

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Fighting Climate Change Is A Capital Idea: Graham Macmillan Sees Market Incentives As Powerful Tools, Gerry Boyle Dec 2021

Fighting Climate Change Is A Capital Idea: Graham Macmillan Sees Market Incentives As Powerful Tools, Gerry Boyle

Colby Magazine

In coming years, action on climate may come from what some would consider the least likely direction—capital markets. Where some people might consider the demands of capital markets to be at the root of social and environmental problems, Graham Macmillan ’97 sees market incentive as wielding powerful leverage to help bring about solutions to the world’s most vexing challenges.

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Ready, Willing, And Able, Gerry Boyle Dec 2021

Ready, Willing, And Able, Gerry Boyle

Colby Magazine

So what gives? How, after four years on Mayflower Hill, do these Colby alumni have an outsized impact in a fintech company that is focused on, for example, changing the way municipal bonds are traded? What makes them able to dive in and figure it out? “That’s part of the liberal arts education,” said Associate Professor of History John Turner, who taught Tagg Martin ’13, history major turned MarketAxess go-to analyst. “You’re always learning. … You are always going to be mastering something, as opposed to having mastered.”

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First Person, Colby College, Lokesh Todi Nov 2021

First Person, Colby College, Lokesh Todi

Colby Magazine

No abstract provided.

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Crash Course: Student Team Uses Statistical Modeling And Bigelow Partnership To Map Moose-Car "Hot Zones", Gerry Boyle, Max Slomiak Nov 2021

Crash Course: Student Team Uses Statistical Modeling And Bigelow Partnership To Map Moose-Car "Hot Zones", Gerry Boyle, Max Slomiak

Colby Magazine

The project began in 2004 when Alex Jospe ’06, a Nordic skier who traveled Maine roads to meets, decided to use skills learned in a GIS class taught by Associate Professor of Environmental Studies Philip Nyhus. Jospe used data supplied by state transportation officials to map moose-collision hot zones. On a trip to Vermont, the map came in handy. “She came back all excited and said, ‘I saw a moose right where my map said I would,’” Nyhus recalled.

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Counting Conjugacy Classes Of Elements Of Finite Order In Compact Exceptional Groups, Qidong He Jan 2021

Counting Conjugacy Classes Of Elements Of Finite Order In Compact Exceptional Groups, Qidong He

Honors Theses

Given a compact exceptional group $G$ and $m,s\in\mathbb{N}$, let $N(G,m)$ be the number of conjugacy classes of elements of order $m$ in $G$, and $N(G,m,s)$ the number of such classes whose elements have $s$ distinct eigenvalues. In string theory, the problem of enumerating certain classes of vacua in the string landscape can be rephrased in terms of the study of these quantities. We develop unified combinatorial algorithms based on Burnside's Lemma that can be used to compute both quantities for each of the five compact exceptional groups. Thus, we provide a combinatorial, alternative method to that of Djoković and extend …

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A Generalized Polar-Coordinate Integration Formula, Oscillatory Integral Techniques, And Applications To Convolution Powers Of Complex-Valued Functions On $\Mathbb{Z}^D$, Huan Q. Bui Jan 2021

A Generalized Polar-Coordinate Integration Formula, Oscillatory Integral Techniques, And Applications To Convolution Powers Of Complex-Valued Functions On $\Mathbb{Z}^D$, Huan Q. Bui

Honors Theses

In this thesis, we consider a class of function on $\mathbb{R}^d$, called positive homogeneous functions, which interact well with certain continuous one-parameter groups of (generally anisotropic) dilations. Generalizing the Euclidean norm, positive homogeneous functions appear naturally in the study of convolution powers of complex-valued functions on $\mathbb{Z}^d$. As the spherical measure is a Radon measure on the unit sphere which is invariant under the symmetry group of the Euclidean norm, to each positive homogeneous function $P$, we construct a Radon measure $\sigma_P$ on $S=\{\eta \in \mathbb{R}^d:P(\eta)=1\}$ which is invariant under the symmetry group of $P$. With this measure, we prove …

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Estimating Heading From Optic Flow With Neural Networks, Natalie T. Maus Jan 2021

Estimating Heading From Optic Flow With Neural Networks, Natalie T. Maus

Honors Theses

Humans have a remarkable ability to estimate their direction of self-motion, or heading, based on visual input stimulus (optic flow). Machines, on the other hand, have a difficult time with this task, especially when flow is introduced that is inconsistent with the motion of the observer. For example, when moving objects enter the field of view, their motion provides inconsistent flow data which often disrupts heading estimates of current heading estimation models. We investigate the ability of neural networks to estimate heading from optic flow data and the limitations of these models when different variations of inconsistent flow are introduced. …

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Mot-Based Lifetime Measurements Of Potassium-39 5p1/2 And 5p3/2 States, Huan Q. Bui Jan 2021

Mot-Based Lifetime Measurements Of Potassium-39 5p1/2 And 5p3/2 States, Huan Q. Bui

Honors Theses

This thesis presents measurements of the lifetimes of 5p1/2 and 5p3/2 of K39 via exciting a cloud of K39 atoms in a magneto-optical trap by a linearly-polarized pulse of 405 nm light followed polarization-specific, time-resolved fluorescence detection. We find that $\tau_{5p1/2} = $ 138.8 $\pm$ 1.6 ns, which is consistent with past measurements \cite{triumf}, \cite{berends} and calculations \cite{safranova}. The $\tau_{5p3/2}$ measurement is naturally more involved since quantum beats due to hyperfine and Zeeman effect are present. Our observation of $\tau_{5p3/2} =$ 137.6 $\pm$ 3.1 ns and $\tau_{5p3/2} =$ 136.0 $\pm$ 2.4 ns, obtained from two slightly different approaches, are compared …

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Visualizing The Range Of Glaciers: Science, Art And Narrative, Claire E. Waichler Jan 2021

Visualizing The Range Of Glaciers: Science, Art And Narrative, Claire E. Waichler

Honors Theses

Glaciers are sensitive indicators and data keepers of climatic change. The glaciers of the North Cascades, Washington, also have significant economic and cultural value as they are enmeshed in hydroelectricity generation, terrestrial and aquatic ecology, and human communities. My project approaches the current climate crisis by examining the past, present and future of the glaciers of the North Cascades through the two lenses of art and science. I review and contextualize the last century of glacier research in the North Cascades to identify patterns of glacier change and how this affects ecological and human communities. Overlaid upon my literature review, …

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Convolutional Audio Source Separation Applied To Drum Signal Separation, Marius Orehovschi Jan 2021

Convolutional Audio Source Separation Applied To Drum Signal Separation, Marius Orehovschi

Honors Theses

This study examined the task of drum signal separation from full music mixes via both classical methods (Independent Component Analysis) and a combination of Time-Frequency Binary Masking and Convolutional Neural Networks. The results indicate that classical methods relying on predefined computations do not achieve any meaningful results, while convolutional neural networks can achieve imperfect but musically useful results. Furthermore, neural network performance can be improved by data augmentation via transposition – a technique that can only be applied in the context of drum signal separation.

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Pollen: A Secure, Decentralized Wireless Communication Platform, Max Perrello Jan 2021

Pollen: A Secure, Decentralized Wireless Communication Platform, Max Perrello

Honors Theses

In this article, we detail an encrypted, internet-independent messaging platform, of which we built a prototype. This thesis also describes the challenges faced in the process, as well as potential future enhancements.

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Artificial Reefs: A History, A Science, A Technology, Mairead D. Farrell Jan 2021

Artificial Reefs: A History, A Science, A Technology, Mairead D. Farrell

Honors Theses

Over the past 60 years, artificial reefs have expanded beyond the definition of a technology, and in turn have developed into a unique branch of marine science. To better emphasize this growth and separation, a brief history of artificial reef development and usage in chapter two shows some of the key shifts over time in this technology’s purpose and the materials used to achieve that goal. Likewise, to indicate the scientific development of artificial reefs as a branch of marine science, their usage for discovery and research is recorded in chapter three, along with the exponential increase in published scientific …

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