Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Towards A Better Understanding Of The Hydrology Of The Tigris- Euphrates System And Its Marshlands, Christopher K. Jones

Masters Theses

Rising demands for fresh water supplies are leading to water management practices that are altering natural flow systems world-wide. One of the most devastated of these natural systems is the Tigris-Euphrates watershed that over the past three decades has witnessed the construction of over 60 engineering projects that eliminated seasonal flooding, reduced natural flow and dramatically reduced the areal extent (1966: 11000 km² ; 2002: 750 km²) of the Mesopotamian Marshes downstream. We constructed a continuous (1964 to 1998) catchment-based rainfall runoff model for the entire Tigris-Euphrates watershed (area: one million km²) using the SWAT …

Biochemical Characterization Of Disease-Causing Mutation In N-Terminal Wilson Protein Domain Six, Patrick Ochieng

Masters Theses

Wilson protein (ATP7B) is a copper-transporting P-type ATPase that regulates copper homeostasis and secretion of copper-containing enzymes in the liver. In hepatocytes, ATP7B delivers copper to apoceruloplasmin and mediates the excretion of excess copper into bile. Mutation in the gene coding for Wilson protein leads to Wilson disease. Several mutations in Wilson protein have been identified and of particular interest, mutations affecting the N-metal binding region significantly interfere with the ability of Wilson protein to transport copper to its target in the copper-trafficking pathway. In an attempt to characterize the disease-causing mutation (G591D) in Wilson protein domain 6 (WLN6), we …

Transcriptional Regulation Of Glucose-6-Phosphate Dehydrogenase (G6pdh) By Glucose, Pramod U. Thekkat

Masters Theses

In liver, insulin and glucose regulate the expression of important genes for lipid and carbohydrate homeostasis. Studies on the effects of glucose and insulin, including effects on cell signaling, are vital since deficiencies in glucose utilization in cells and/or insulin secretion contribute to conditions like obesity and diabetes. In liver, the pentose phosphate pathway is one of the primary pathways that can utilize the excess carbohydrate. Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH) is an important rate limiting enzyme in this pathway. Our laboratory has shown that both insulin and glucose induce the expression of G6PDH, although the mechanism by which this transcriptional regulation …

Stratigraphy And Organic Carbon Contents Of Glacial Deposits In The City Of Portage, Michigan, U.S.A., Nathaniel A. Barnes

Masters Theses

The objectives of this study are to characterize the stratigraphy of the glacial drift in an area located in Portage, Michigan using four complete rotasonic cores, and to determine the variation of organic carbon content in the drift that may explain the high iron concentrations in the groundwater typically obtained in moderate to deep wells in southwestern Michigan. The four cores were characterized in detail in terms of lithology, textural and statistical analyses, gamma ray logging, S¹³C variation and organic carbon analyses. Clay minerals were characterized using X-ray diffraction analysis.

Results of this study identified two main diamicton …

Development Of Scanning Electrochemical Microscopy For Studying Electron Transport In Lipid Monolayers And Gold Nanoparticle Films, Violeta Stoycheva

Masters Theses

The focus of this thesis is the scanning electrochemical microscopy (SECM) investigation of the electron transport in lipid monolayers and in films of gold nanoparticles. The quality and stability of lipid monolayers were characterized by various analytical techniques such as fluorescence microscopy and spectroscopy, contact angle, and electrochemistry using a monolayer modified electrode. In the SECM measurement, the monolayer electron transport was not detected. The microscopic monolayer quality turned out to be not suitable for studying the electron transport.

The conductivity of mono layer protected gold clusters (MPCs) with different core sizes (1-3 nm diameter) were investigated using SECM. These …

Heterogeneous Formation Of Hono On Hno3 Pre-Conditioned Hydrophobic, Hydrophilic And Ionic Surfaces At Various Relative Humidities, Dustin S. Wier

Masters Theses

Nitric acid (HNO₃) is a major sink for NO_x (NO+NO₂ ) and is known to be removed from the atmosphere as a result of wet and dry deposition where it is then deposited on various surfaces in the environment. As these surfaces are photolyzed HONO is produced which affects the overlying troposphere. This study examines the amount of HONO (Nitrous Acid) produced by the photolysis of adsorbed HNO₃ as a function of changing relative humidity on hydrophobic, hydrophilic, and inorganic ionic salt surfaces. The amount of HONO produced was measured in long path cell using …

Management Of An Intelligent Argumentation Network For A Web-Based Collaborative Engineering Design Environment, Man Zheng

Masters Theses

"Conflict resolution is one of the most challenging tasks in collaborative engineering design. In the previous research, a web-based intelligent collaborative system was developed to address this challenge based on intelligent computational argumentation. However, two important issues were not resolved in that system: priority of participants and self-conflicting arguments. In this thesis, two methods are developed for incorporating priorities of participants into the computational argumentation network: 1) weighted summation and 2) re-assessment of strengths of arguments based on priority of owners of the argument using fuzzy logic inference. In addition, a method for detection of self-conflicting arguments was developed"--Abstract, page …

Screening New Cytokinesis Genes And Investigation Of Regulation Of Hof1 In Cytokinesis, Jung Eun Park

Masters Theses

"In 1996, a complete sequence of the budding yeast genome was completed and numerous studies begun to discover the function of genes. A primary concern of this study was to identify genes that may function in cytokinesis. Seven candidate genes were chosen, which were previously shown to localize to the bud neck, the site of cytokinesis, or interact with a protein that is involved in cytokinesis. Six of those uncharacterized genes, YHR149C, YLR187W, YOL070C, YMR124W, YPL158C, and YOR304C-A, were identified by data generated by GFP tagging of the yeast proteome. Data from a large-scale two-hybrid screen was used to identify …

Physicochemical Properties Of Individual And Mixed Oxides Of Sio2, Al203, Tio2‚ And Photocatalytic Behaviour Of Organosilane Modified St Samples, Kalyani Gude

Masters Theses

A variety of oxides such as silica, alumina, titania and mixed oxides such as silica/alumina (SA), silica/titania (ST) and alumina/silica/titania (AST) are investigated by TGA and FTIR. These mixed oxides are analyzed because of their applications as catalysts. Thermogravimetric analysis is done on all the samples to determine the temperature at which the weakly adsorbed water is lost and the surface is left with only surface hydroxyls. TGA data showed the loss of most of the adsorbed water at around 100°C.

From the diffuse reflectance FTIR spectra taken at 200 and 300°C the silanol content is estimated from the 3740 …

Numerical Approximations Of Differential Equations And Applications In Maple, Joyce Zimmerman

Masters Theses

The primary purpose of this work was as an aid for students taking an elemenentary differential equations course, or for students that may be trying to find approximate solutions to a differential equation without solving it. This work covers numererical methods of approximating differential equations. There are three types of methods covered, Euler's method, Runge-Kutta method, and Picard method. Also, in each of these sections there is a biography to introduce students to the various mathematicians covered. In the Appendix, there are several Maple worksheets that can be implemented into a differential equations course. These worksheets contain some programming language …

Zinc(Ii) Incorporation Into Porphyrin Cytochrome C As A Function Of Temperature, Urea Concentration And Zinc(Ii) Acetate Concentration And The Urea And Guanidine Hydrochloride Induced Unfolding Of Porphyrin Cytochrome C, Sireesha Potula

Masters Theses

The objective of this thesis is to address the question of whether the removal of the native iron(II) ion in cytochrome c (cyt c) and substitution by a different metal ion affects the overall structural stability. We have studied the incorporation of zinc(II) into metal-free porphyrin cytochrome с (H2cyt) and investigated the structural stability of cyt c in the absence of the iron(II) ion and in the presence of the zinc(II) ion by different spectroscopic techniques. Compared to H2cyt, zinc-substituted cytochrome c (Zncyt) has a significantly different absorbance spectrum, so we monitor over time the change in absorbance upon addition …

Metal-Substituted Cytochrome C: Manganese (Ii) Incorporation Kinetics And Structural Stability Studies Of Native Iron Cytochrome C, Porphyrin Cytochrome C, Zinc Cytochrome C And Manganese Cytochrome C, Vineela Gundala

Masters Theses

Metalloproteins have the capacity to bind various metal ions. In spite of this seemingly diverse choice of cofactors, metalloproteins generally bind only their cognate metal in vivo. Cytochrome c (cyt c) binds Fe porphyrin in vivo. The main objective of this thesis is to investigate why nature selects Fe porphyrin as the prosthetic group in heme proteins and how removal of the native Fe in cyt c and substitution by different metal ions affects the local coordination environment, overall structural stability, and biological function. Our goal is to prepare and characterize metal-free cytochrome c, socalled porphyrin cytochrome c (H2cyt), and …

Casimir Effect In Quantum Physics, Matthew James Urfer

Masters Theses

The Casimir Effect while over 60 years old, still holds profound implications for several branches of Physics, including but not limited too, Quantum Field Theory, Mathematical Physics, and Cosmology. This paper offers a review of Casimir Physics in regard to Quantum Physics.

A Light-Weight Middleware Framework For Fault-Tolerant And Secure Distributed Applications, Ian Jacob Baird

Masters Theses

"This thesis outlines the design, implementation, and performance of a lightweight middleware framework for interprocess communication with an update log propagation algorithm. The system was designed and implemented using a point-to-point based lightweight middleware framework and compared to a similar system implemented utilizing CORBA--Abstract, page iii.

Sensor Network Coverage And Data Aggregation Problem: Solutions Toward The Maximum Lifetime, Li Yin

Masters Theses

"In the coverage problem, an optimal solution is proposed for the maximum lifetime sensor scheduling problem, which could find the upper bound of a sensor network's lifetime. This research reveals the relationship between the degree of redundancy in sensor deployment and achievable extension on network lifetime, which can be a useful guide for practical sensor network design"--Introduction, page 4.

Toward Improving Performance Measurement In Public Sector Organizations, Matthew Thomas Kutz

Masters Theses

"The objective of this research is to investigate various means of improving the performance measurement methods for public sector organizations. A case study is conducted using data from the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT). As a government organization, MoDOT must publish measurements of its performance for the general public and for the legislators who provide funding. Currently, MoDOT produces a quarterly publication, called the Tracker, for performance measurement reporting. This research hypothesizes that the Tracker is not an effective performance measurement system and stakeholders of MoDOT would benefit from a more concise and pointed report of MoDOT performance. A software …

Antimicrobial Activities Of Aldehydes And Ketones Produced During Rapid Volatilization Of Biogenic Oils, Aruna Lamba

Masters Theses

"The overall objective of the research presented in this thesis was to evaluate the antimicrobial properties of commercially available neat compounds in order to validate the analytes which were found in the smoke generated during rapid volatilization of biogenic oil esters and mineral oils. To attain this objective various analytes were selected from the analytical data provided for the smoke, and neat compounds were purchased. A special desiccator was designed to conduct experiments. Simultaneously vapor phase concentration of the neat compounds was determined to establish relation between neat compounds and the analytes found in smoke. Other part of the thesis …

An Open Framework For Highly Concurrent Hardware-In-The-Loop Simulation, Ryan C. Underwood

Masters Theses

"Hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) simulation is becoming a significant tool in prototyping complex, highly available systems. The HIL approach allows an engineer to build a physical system incrementally by enabling real components of the system to seamlessly interface with simulated components. It also permits testing of hardware prototypes of components that would be extremely costly to test in the deployed environment. Key issues are the ability to wrap the systems of equations (such as Partial Differential Equations) describing the deployed environment into real-time software models, provide low synchronization overhead between the hardware and software, and reduce reliance on proprietary platforms. This thesis …

Physical Analysis Of Human Hair, Lea Marie Dankers

Masters Theses

"Physical analysis of human hair has been performed to determine the effects of chemical treatments on hair samples. Five samples including an untreated sample were analyzed using various methods. The methods included differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and carbon-13 cross polarization/magic-angle spinning nuclear magnetic resonance (¹³C CP/MAS NMR)"--Abstract, page iii.

Supramolecular Usefulness Of Hexamethylenetetramine, Philias Daka

Masters Theses

Because non-covalent contacts are important to the design and construction of materials with functional applications, efforts that seek to uncover chemical features responsible for the assembly of multimolecular arrays hold current interest. The building-block approach is one strategy that has been successfully employed for the construction of molecular assemblies. By designing molecular components with complementary functional groups, the construction of predictable supramolecular motifs is possible. Although various modes of molecular alignment have been generated using this strategy, the extension of low dimensional motifs (discrete and 1-D patterns) to 2- and 3-D patterns remain a current challenge.

Studies Directed Toward The Diastereocontrolled Synthesis Of Heritol, Prashanth K. Padakanti

Masters Theses

3,3-Dichloro-4-indanyloxetan-2-one was synthesized and its double ring expansion in the presence of the Lewis acid magnesium bromide was investigated, which resulted only in a trans-fused butyrolactone in 25% yield. Of the natural products containing butyrolactones fused to 6-membered rings, trans is more common. This method of double ring expansion can be applied to the synthesis of the natural product heritol, whose core structure contains the butenolide moiety. A model study of the double ring expansion was performed with 3-chloro-4-indanyl-3-methyloxetane-2-one B6, but this study was not completed.

In order to apply the double ring expansion methodology to synthesize heritol, the preparation …

An Exploratory Study Of The Videoblogger's Community, John Warmbrodt

Masters Theses

"Videoblogs (vlogs) have emerged as a new form of virtual community. The goal of this study was to explore and understand the videoblogger community by studying the community's structure and the motivations of vloggers"--Abstract, page iii.

A Quantitative Study Of Gene Identification Techniques Based On Evolutionary Rationales, Cyriac Kandoth

Masters Theses

"Current gene identification (GI) techniques typically rely on matching biological or chemical properties of specific genes, specific species, specific ecotypes, etc...In this thesis, a new automated GI technique is proposed, and compared against another computer-based technique proposed earlier. Both methods utilize EST data available from NCBI databases to discover previously unknown genes. The newly proposed method identifies one gene family at a time and is based on a distinctive negative selection pattern (NSP) of differences, which is seen between the coding regions of gene family members. The other technique, called ESTminer, attempts genome-wide gene family identification for any organism, by …

Expression And Characterization Of Hyperthermophilic Aqujfex Pyrophilus Flagellin Protein In Mesophilic Bacterial Systems, Srivani V. Mukkamala

Masters Theses

The structural protein flagellin, FlaA derived from hyperthermophilic Aquifex pyrophilus, a rod shaped eubacterial species that grows near hydrothermal vents at an optimum growth temperature of 85 °C forms elongated thermostable flagella nanotubes. FlaA was successfully over-expressed for the first time using pET28c plasmid in E. coli BL21 cells at 37 °C. The protein was isolated from inclusion bodies that were solubilized by alkaline pH, refolded by dialysis and purified by chromatographic techniques. The FlaA was characterized by fluorescence, light scattering and circular dichroism. The FlaA was not in the correct folded form to form flagella as efforts to …

Thermodynamics Of Metals Adsorption Onto Uranium Dioxide, Koi Ling Lim

Masters Theses

Wastes and pollution containing uranium are released to the environment through mining, ore processing, industrial manufacture of nuclear fuel and weapons materials, and the disposal of spent nuclear fuel. There are a wide variety of processes that can affect UO₂ stability. This research focuses on the surface reactivity of UO₂ in reducing aqueous solutions, with an emphasis on assessment of the pH-dependent surface charge, reactive surface area, and the adsorption of dissolved lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), lanthanum (La) onto UO₂ particles. A surface complexation model was used to explain the adsorption and titration phenomena of UO_{2 …}

Synthesis And Characterization Of Inosamines, Sing Raj Gurung

Masters Theses

This project is concerned with the preparation of scyllo-inosarnine hydrochloride 6, a biologically active compound, which bears six successive stereogenic centers. The synthesis of this compound would help elucidate the involvement of inosamines in biological nitrogen fixation. myo-Inositol served as the starting material to synthesize target compound 6. Regioselective protection and deprotection of myo-inositol provided azide 43 as key intermediate. In the final steps deprotection of five benzyl groups and reduction of azido group was achieved by catalytic hydrogenation. scyllo-Inosamine hydrochloride 6 was fully characterized by m.p., ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR, IR, EA and via …

Characterization Of Fracture Systems In Sublette County, Wyoming Using P-Wave And C-Wave 3d Seismic, Keith R. Johnson

Masters Theses

Birefringence of seismic shear waves has proven to be a useful tool for identifying fracture intensity and orientation in the subsurface. Naturally occurring fractures have been shown to contribute to the deliverability of natural gas production in some reservoir formations in Rocky Mountain sedimentary basins. A multicomponent 3D 3C seismic survey acquired on the southeastern end of Pinedale Anticline in Sublette County, Wyoming was mapped to characterize fault systems within the sedimentary section. The tectonic and depositional history in the study area was determined by literature search and by one-dimensional backstripping. Compressional and wrench fault systems were observed and mapped. …

Field Studies Of Hydrophobic Filter Pack Performance In Free Product Monitoring And Recovery, Nathan J. Brandner

Masters Theses

Multiple field experiments were conducted to determine the performance of hydrophobic filter packs, compared to the hydrophilic industry standard filter pack in free product hydrocarbon recovery. Laboratory and field studies have been previously performed in support of enhancing free product hydrocarbon recovery with the use of hydrophobic filter pack designs. This study was an attempt to test the efficacy of using hydrophobic filter pack materials to enhance free product recovery.

Six recovery wells were installed at three field sites, each site utilizing a pair of recovery wells, one hydrophobic and one hydrophilic, to compare their performances. Fine-grained hydrophobic filter pack …

Coordination Environment: A New Approach To The Sensing Of Lead (Ii) Itself, Kristina Marie Nespechal

Masters Theses

Lead(II) is a silent poison that has plagued society since 3800 B. C. The average intake of lead in the United States alone is 50 μg per day, which is approximately 100-1000 times greater than that of prehistoric lead levels. Regardless of the banning of lead in paints and gasoline, lead poisoning prevails as a major environmental health risk. Science has the ability to address the concern with this environmental contaminant. The future production of an economical and reliable test kit for lead(II) relies on the luminescence of the heavy metal itself.

The absorption and emission spectra for a series …

Sedimentology And Stratigraphy Of The Pennsylvanian Saginaw Aquifer, Central Lower Michigan, U.S.A., Niah B. H. Venable

Masters Theses

The Saginaw Aquifer is an important bedrock aquifer serving the needs of over 400,000 people in the Tri-County area of the Central Lower Peninsula of Michigan. The aquifer is comprised of the Pennsylvanian Grand River and Saginaw Formations. This study focuses on expanding existing knowledge of the general sedimentologic and stratigraphic characteristics of these units using conventional geological methods including core analysis, local log to core correlation, local and regional log to log correlation, and biostratigraphy. Analysis of new core from the study area examines facies and depositional environments given cursory coverage in outcrop studies by past researchers.

Incised valley …