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Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

2014

Articles 1 - 27 of 27

Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Inferences In Log-Rate Models, Herbert C. Heien, William A. Baumann Aug 2014

Inferences In Log-Rate Models, Herbert C. Heien, William A. Baumann

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Log-Rate models are used in analyzing rates of individuals who are exposed to a risk of having a certain characteristic. The explanatory variables could be categorical or in a continuous scale. In finding a Log-Rate Model, parameters are estimated and goodness-of-fit are studied to carefully extract the best model to fit our data. Here we revisit three aspects of Log-Rate Models using the data set give at the end of the paper. The three aspects are parameter estimation, goodness-of-fit of the model, and marginal effect of the factors.

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Comparison Of Optimization Techniques In Large Scale Transportation Problems, Tapojit Kumar Aug 2014

Comparison Of Optimization Techniques In Large Scale Transportation Problems, Tapojit Kumar

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

The Transportation Problem is a classic Operations Research problem where the objective is to determine the schedule for transporting goods from source to destination in a way that minimizes the shipping cost while satisfying supply and demand constraints. Although it can be solved as a Linear Programming problem, other methods exist. Linear Programming makes use of the Simplex Method, an algorithm invented to solve a linear program by progressing from one extreme point of the feasible polyhedron to an adjacent one. The algorithm contains tactics like pricing and pivoting. For a Transportation Problem, a simplified version of the regular Simplex …

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An Economic Analysis Of Small-Scale Biodiesel Production: Implementation Of Ethyl Ester Production In A Job Shop Setting, Scott Haase, Benjamin Craig Aug 2014

An Economic Analysis Of Small-Scale Biodiesel Production: Implementation Of Ethyl Ester Production In A Job Shop Setting, Scott Haase, Benjamin Craig

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Biodiesel is becoming a demanded consumer automotive alternative fuel used in diesel vehicles today. An emerging trend is toward small-scale biodiesel production performed by the final consumer. A limited source of commercially available production systems exists and has resulted in many systems being designed and built by the user. Preliminary research conducted by the authors has shown biodiesel to be the least-cost alternative to petroleum diesel after as few as 8 months of system use. This study examines the economic viability of building and producing biodiesel using a small-scale production system versus buying consumer petroleum diesel. During production, measurements were …

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Comparison Of Sequence Alignment Algorithms, Tejas Gandhi Aug 2014

Comparison Of Sequence Alignment Algorithms, Tejas Gandhi

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

The fact that biological sequences can be represented as strings belonging to a finite alphabet (A, C, G, and T for DNA) plays an important role in connecting biology to computer science. String representation allows researchers to apply various string comparison techniques available in computer science. As a result, various applications have been developed that facilitate the task of sequence alignment. The problem of finding sequence alignments consists of finding the best match between two biological sequences. A best match can infer an evolutionary relationship and functional similarity. However, there is a lack of research on how reliable and efficient …

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Wireless Location Determination: Using Existing 802.11 Wireless Networks To Determine A Users Location, Travis Calvert Aug 2014

Wireless Location Determination: Using Existing 802.11 Wireless Networks To Determine A Users Location, Travis Calvert

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

The ability to determine a user’s location through an existing 802.11 wireless network has vast implications in the area of context-aware and pervasive computing. Such abilities have been developed mainly in the Linux environment to date. To maximize its usefulness, a location determination system was developed for the more dominant Windows operation system. While being able to operate outdoors as well as indoors, this system succeeds where traditional GPS (Global Positioning Systems) fail, namely indoor environments. This system could benefit the large number of existing wireless networks and requires no additional hardware; only a few simple software downloads. The ability …

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Bird Keeping And Lung Cancer, Andrew Tackmann, Jonathan Hellman, Jamie Johnson Aug 2014

Bird Keeping And Lung Cancer, Andrew Tackmann, Jonathan Hellman, Jamie Johnson

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Logistic regression is reviewed in estimating parameters and in making inferences about the parameters. A contingency table approach in computing goodness of fit in logistic regression is elaborated. An existing data on a sample of lung cancer patients and a control group is used to apply the procedures discussed. The data reveals that between the groups considered, the factors ‘bird keeping’ and ‘the number of years of smoking’ are significant as the causes for lung cancer.

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Campus Paper Waste, Joshua E. Randall Aug 2014

Campus Paper Waste, Joshua E. Randall

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

The fall of 2004 at Minnesota State University, a new program called MavPrint was introduced. The user submits a document to be printed at a computer, the expense is deducted from their account, and then their document can be retrieved from any MavPrint station. In years past printing had been free, but seeing how according to Bryan Schneider, the director of Technical Services at Minnesota State University – Mankato, from the year 2003 to the year 2004 the printing costs for the University rose 200 percent, they felt it was time to make a change. MSU students printed out over …

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Effects Of Brownian Motion On The Millikan Oil Drop Experiment, Eric Ehler, Aaron Hanson Aug 2014

Effects Of Brownian Motion On The Millikan Oil Drop Experiment, Eric Ehler, Aaron Hanson

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Brownian motion has a significant effect on small particles suspended in a fluid. Since the Millikan oil drop experiment involves measuring the rise and fall velocities of very small oil drops suspended in air, it stands to reason that the motion of these drops will be affected by collisions with particles of air. The result of this is that the measured rise and fall velocities of each drop will not be the same as if these drops were suspended in vacuum. The size of the effect of Brownian motion is related to the mass and the radius of the oil …

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Implementation Of A Segmented, Transactional Database Caching System, Benjamin J. Sandmann Aug 2014

Implementation Of A Segmented, Transactional Database Caching System, Benjamin J. Sandmann

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Research on algorithms and concepts regarding memory-based data caching can help solve the performance bottleneck in current Database Management Systems. Problems such as data concurrency, persistent storage, and transaction management have limited most memory cache’s capabilities. It has also been tough to develop a proper user- oriented and business friendly way of implementing such a system. The research of this project focused on code implementation, abstract methodologies and how to best prepare such an application for common business usage.

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Mathematical Modeling And Simulation Of Multialleic Migration-Selection Models, Chad N. Vidden Aug 2014

Mathematical Modeling And Simulation Of Multialleic Migration-Selection Models, Chad N. Vidden

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Population ecology is concerned with the growth and decay of specific populations. This field has a variety of applications ranging from evolution and survival at the environmental level to the spread of infectious disease at the cellular and molecular levels. Many ecological circumstances require the use of mathematical methods and reasoning in order to acquire better knowledge of the issue at hand. This study considered and analyzed multiple different mathematical models of population dynamics along with their purposes. This foundation was then applied in order to explore the migration of populations from one isolated region to another along with the …

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Developing Microsoft Word 2007 Add-On Applications, Peter L. Sonnek Aug 2014

Developing Microsoft Word 2007 Add-On Applications, Peter L. Sonnek

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

In 2007, Microsoft released a new version of MS Office that changed the file platform to a universal data format called Extensible Markup Language or XML. XML is meant to be simple, meaningful, and understood by all computer programs. Since Microsoft has moved its file format to XML, tremendous extendibility can be built by software professionals to link MS Office 2007 documents to data not held within the saved documents. This project tested the levels of interactive data between MS Word 2007 and several other XML data sources.

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Measuring Noble Gases In Coma Samples From Comet Wild 2, Jacob Simones Aug 2014

Measuring Noble Gases In Coma Samples From Comet Wild 2, Jacob Simones

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Since comets originated during the formation of the solar system, the processes of solar system formation can be better understood through compositional analysis of cometary material. A low density, silicon-based substance called aerogel was used by NASA’s Stardust spacecraft to collect coma samples from comet Wild 2. Aerogel not from the spacecraft (“non-flight”) was investigated to determine the possibility of measuring noble gases in Stardust samples. Gas evolved from heated, non-flight aerogel was measured initially using a residual gas analyzer, then a high-sensitivity massspectrometer. Levels of helium and neon isotopes observed from both instruments were sufficiently low that noble gases …

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Fluid Properties In The Formation Of High-Grade Iron Ore In Northern Minnesota, Elizabeth Drommerhausen Aug 2014

Fluid Properties In The Formation Of High-Grade Iron Ore In Northern Minnesota, Elizabeth Drommerhausen

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

The Mesabi Iron Range in Northern Minnesota has been a major producer of iron ore for over 100 years. Production has been from the 1.85 – billion-year –old Biwabik Iron Formation, an iron-rich sedimentary rock that is tilted gently to the south. Most of the known high-grade ore lies near the surface and has been already mined. Determining whether more high-grade ore may lie at depth could have significant economic impact on the mining industry in northern Minnesota. To evaluate the likelihood of finding more high-grade iron ore deeper underground, it is important to determine the source of the fluids …

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Improved Storm Data Processing Through Parallel Computing Approaches, Shauna Smith Aug 2014

Improved Storm Data Processing Through Parallel Computing Approaches, Shauna Smith

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

A previous research study conducted at Michigan Technological University by Dr. Deborah Nykanen and her colleague Dr. Daniel Harris analyzed storm data in order to develop algorithms that will allow coarse resolution rainfall forecasted by weather models to be optimally used in high resolution hydrology models with the goal of improving stream flow predictions and early detection algorithms that can be used to warn communities about potential flash floods. This research was performed by analyzing a series of independent radar images derived from Weather Surveillance Radar-1988 Doppler (WSR-88D) data obtained from Dr. James A. Smith at Princeton University using a …

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Characterization Of Fall Leaves As A Source Of Cellulosic Ethanol, Justin Burum Aug 2014

Characterization Of Fall Leaves As A Source Of Cellulosic Ethanol, Justin Burum

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Ethanol is becoming increasingly popular as a fossil fuel additive or substitute. However, current production of ethanol from corn impacts food prices and appears to have an overall low net yield. New sources need to be identified and new processes developed for ethanol production. Cellulosic ethanol is one such new source. Plant material contains a large amount of cellulose and other polysaccharides which are potential feed stocks for ethanol production. The purpose of this experiment was to characterize the polysaccharide, lignin, and ash content of fall leaves to estimate their potential for ethanol production. A slight modification of the NREL …

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Mathematical Modeling Of Tick-Borne Encephalitis In Humans, Amanda Kriesel, Michael Meyer, Geoffrey Peterson Aug 2014

Mathematical Modeling Of Tick-Borne Encephalitis In Humans, Amanda Kriesel, Michael Meyer, Geoffrey Peterson

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Tick-Borne Encephalitis is a virus that affects ones nervous system and is transmitted from tick to human through tick bite. In recent years, the number of cases of tick-borne encephalitis in Europe has been increasing. This mathematical biological model of Tick-Borne Encephalitis was created in order to further our understanding of such phenomenon, as well as study the relationship between vectors and their hosts. Specifically, we will investigate the population model of ticks in certain regions and its correlation to tick-borne encephalitis infections in the region.

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Choosing Between Parametric And Non-Parametric Tests, Russ Johnson Aug 2014

Choosing Between Parametric And Non-Parametric Tests, Russ Johnson

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

A common question in comparing two sets of measurements is whether to use a parametric testing procedure or a non-parametric procedure. The question is even more important in dealing with smaller samples. Here, using simulation, several parametric and nonparametric tests, such as, t-test, Normal test, Wilcoxon Rank Sum test, van-der Waerden Score test, and Exponential Score test are compared.

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On Sign-Solvable Linear Systems And Their Applications In Economics, Eric Hanson Aug 2014

On Sign-Solvable Linear Systems And Their Applications In Economics, Eric Hanson

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Sign-solvable linear systems are part of a branch of mathematics called qualitative matrix theory. Qualitative matrix theory is a development of matrix theory based on the sign (¡; 0; +) of the entries of a matrix. Sign-solvable linear systems are useful in analyzing situations in which quantitative data is unknown or had to measure, but qualitative information is known. These situations arise frequently in a variety of disciplines outside of mathematics, including economics and biology. The applications of sign-solvable linear systems in economics are documented and the development of new examples is formalized mathematically. Additionally, recent mathematical developments about sign-solvable …

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Modeling Student Engagement In The Classroom, Sarah Painter Aug 2014

Modeling Student Engagement In The Classroom, Sarah Painter

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Connections to Community is a multi-institutional study that looks at the influence of community on post-secondary, science and engineering students and their engagement in academic activity. This paper focuses specifically on student engagement within the classroom as a follow-up to a previous paper by Wendy Hoffman, Identifying Influential Variables of Student Academic Engagement (Hoffman, 2013). The goal of this work is to model student engagement in the classroom using classroom observation data that has been cleaned and then compare the results with those found in Hoffman’s paper which used pre-cleaning data. The cleaned data is used to create two data …

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Mental Health Awareness Building Via Android Application, James Faraday, Joshua Martin Aug 2014

Mental Health Awareness Building Via Android Application, James Faraday, Joshua Martin

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

The goal of this project was to create a tool that provides students at Minnesota State University, Mankato with mental health information through a freely available smartphone application (App). Our approach used a software engineering design process that focused on who our customers are, what resources are available, and how we can best connect the two to improve student lives. We identified the stakeholders involved and worked with campus mental health professionals to help shape our App. While there is a broad range of mental health topics, we have focused on materials related to depression. The first process of the …

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Effect Of Sweeteners On The Renin-Angiotensin System In Rats, Jacob Ball Aug 2014

Effect Of Sweeteners On The Renin-Angiotensin System In Rats, Jacob Ball

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Normal abundant dietary sugars such as fructose and sucrose can contribute to hypertension and other health issues. To avoid these health complications, many individuals use artificial sweeteners. An equivalent intake of some artificial sweeteners also can lead to hypertension. However, Stevia, a sweetener that is isolated from a Paraguayan plant, was shown in relevant literature to decrease blood pressure in both rat specimens and humans. The general purpose of this research project was to study the effect of Stevia, saccharin, and sucrose on the expression of two key components of the renin-angiotensin- aldosterone system (RAAS): prorenin receptor (PRR) and angiotensin …

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Verification Of Costless Merge Pairing Heaps, Joshua Vander Hook Aug 2014

Verification Of Costless Merge Pairing Heaps, Joshua Vander Hook

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Most algorithms’ performance is limited by the data structures they use. Internal algorithms then decide the performance of the data structure. This cycle continues until fundamental results, verified by analysis and experiment, prevent further improvement. In this paper I examine one specific example of this. The focus of this work is primarily on a new variant of the pairing heap. I will review the new implementation, compare its theoretical performance, and discuss my original contribution: the first preliminary data on its experimental performance. It is instructive to provide some background information, followed by a formal definition of heaps in 1.1. …

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An Automatic Dialog System For Student Advising, Brian Mcmahan Aug 2014

An Automatic Dialog System For Student Advising, Brian Mcmahan

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Automatic dialog systems are an implementation of natural language processing theory with the goal of allowing the use of natural sentences to communicate with a computer system. The general purpose of this project was to design and implement an automatic dialog system for augmenting university student advising. Student advising is a relatively narrow domain of possible questions and responses. The automatic dialog system focused on prescriptive advising rather than developmental advising to further narrow the domain to scheduling and registration matters. A student advisor was interviewed and recorded during a mock advising session in order to model the interaction between …

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Herd Immunity And The Necessity Of Vaccinations: Modeling The Effects Of Mmr Vaccinations, Caitlyn Cardetti, Katie Groskreutz, Melissa Zins Aug 2014

Herd Immunity And The Necessity Of Vaccinations: Modeling The Effects Of Mmr Vaccinations, Caitlyn Cardetti, Katie Groskreutz, Melissa Zins

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

The MMR vaccination is a two dose vaccine given to children between the ages of 12 – 15 months and the second dose between the ages of 4 – 6 years to prevent measles, mumps, and rubella. The objective was to mathematically model the effects of the MMR vaccinations in a hypothetical school through multiple compartment and spatial models. These models were based on each disease individually with their respective vaccine effectiveness and disease infection rates. These models demonstrated the limits of herd immunity. Herd immunity occurs when a high enough percentage of the population is immune or vaccinated to …

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Coexistence Of Multi-Allelic Polymorphism With Migration And Selection, Andrew Flick Aug 2014

Coexistence Of Multi-Allelic Polymorphism With Migration And Selection, Andrew Flick

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Population ecology is concerned with the growth patterns of populations. This field has many applications, ranging from survival at the environmental level, to the spread of infectious diseases at the cellular level. Mathematical modeling and computer simulation can be powerful tools in researching this area. I will be investigating the spatial patterns in populations (or gene frequencies) due to migration and selection. My research conditions are for the maintenance of polymorphism under a variety of migration schemes in discrete-space and continuous-time mathematical models. The results will be applicable from the ecological level to the molecular level. Some species are better …

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Statistical Models Of Self-Efficacy In Stem Students, Sarah Painter Aug 2014

Statistical Models Of Self-Efficacy In Stem Students, Sarah Painter

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Persistence through undergraduate education may be explained by self-efficacy. It is the belief in one’s self to persevere through challenges. Bandura stated four areas that are thought to influence self-efficacy: mastery experience, social persuasion, vicarious experience, and physiological state. In this study, we focused on general and academic self-efficacy in STEM students, in the hopes of learning more about the relationships between Bandura’s categories, demographics, and self-efficacy. Data was taken from two institutions: one, a large research focused university, and the other, a smaller teaching focused university. In the first phase, surveys on general self-efficacy were taken at both institutions …

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Silica Distribution In Oxidized Biwabik Iron Formation: Ore-Waste Cutoff Prediction, Ryan Rague Aug 2014

Silica Distribution In Oxidized Biwabik Iron Formation: Ore-Waste Cutoff Prediction, Ryan Rague

Journal of Undergraduate Research at Minnesota State University, Mankato

Oxidation of iron formation in the Mesabi Iron Range, Minnesota, has negatively impacted recovery of the main ore mineral, magnetite, by two mechanisms. First, magnetite has been partially or completely oxidized to hematite (martite), which is not magnetically separable. Second, silica has been remobilized during the oxidation process, and comprises a higher percentage of the ore concentrate than is desirable due to its altered grain size, making it difficult to grind sufficiently. Fluid inclusion data showed that fault-channeled, diagenesis-stage fluids (mean T homog = 154° C; mean salinity = 9.5 wt% NaCl equivalent) were responsible for early oxidation of iron …

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