Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Virtual Personal Assistants In A Pervasive Computing World, John F. Bradley, Brian R. Duffy, Gregory O'Hare, Alan Martin, Bianca Schoen-Phelan

Conference papers

Computing paradigms are constantly evolving-from mainframe to desktop, and on to ubiquitous computing. With a wide variety of devices, each with varying constraints, it would be quite difficult to develop services that would operate in a uniform manner across all platforms. With this in mind we offer an agent based solution. Agent attributes of autonomy, adaptability and mobility make them highly suitable for use in pervasive computing environments. Agent Chameleons illustrates a framework for Virtual Personal Assistants (VPA) for the information age. This paper briefly outlines some of the technologies and concepts that underpin the functionality of a VPA.

An Analysis Of Case-Base Editing In A Spam Filtering Systems, Sarah Jane Delany, Padraig Cunningham

Conference papers

Because of the changing nature of spam, a spam filtering system that uses machine learning will need to be dynamic. This suggests that a case-based (memory-based) approach may work well. Case-Based Reasoning (CBR) is a lazy approach to machine learning where induction is delayed to run time. This means that the case base can be updated continuously and new training data is immediately available to the induction process. In this paper we present a detailed description of such a system called ECUE and evaluate design decisions concerning the case representation. We compare its performance with an alternative system that uses …

An Assessment Of Case Base Reasoning For Short Text Message Classification, Matt Healy, Sarah Jane Delany, Anton Zamolotskikh

Conference papers

Message classification is a text classification task that has provoked much interest in machine learning. One aspect of message classification that presents a particular challenge is the classification of short text messages. This paper presents an assessment of applying a case based approach that was developed for long text messages (specifically spam filtering) to short text messages. The evaluation involves determining the most appropriate feature types and feature representation for short text messages and then comparing the performance of the case-based classifier with both a Naıve Bayes classifier and a Support Vector Machine. Our evaluation shows that short text messages …

Analytical Separations Using Packed And Open-Tubular Capillary Electrochromatography, Constantina P. Kapnissi

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The goal of the research reported in this dissertation is to develop packed and open-tubular capillary electrochromatographic methods for improved achiral and chiral separations of various classes of analytes. The first part of this research involves the separation of seven benzodiazepines by the use of the packed mode of capillary electrochromatography (CEC) and a 40 cm packed bed of Reliasil 3 μm C₁₈ stationary phase. Optimal conditions were established by varying the mobile phase, the amount of organic modifier, the buffer concentration, the applied voltage, and the column temperature. The second part of this research focuses on the open-tubular …

Progress At The Heidelberg Ebit, Jose R. Crespo Lopez-Urrutia, Jean Pierre Braun, Gunter Brenner, Hjalmar Bruhns, Christina Dimopoulou, I. N. Draganic, Daniel Fischer, Antonio J. Gonzalez, A. Lapierre, V. Mironov, Robert Moshammer, R. Soria Orts, Hiroyuki Tawara, M. Trinczek, Joachim Hermann Ullrich

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

Two years after the relocation of the Heidelberg EBIT, several experiments are already in operation. Spectroscopic measurements in the optical region have delivered the most precise reported wavelengths for highly charged ions, in the case of the forbidden transitions of Ar XIV and Ar XV. The lifetimes of the metastable levels involved in those transitions has been determined with an error of less than 0.2%. A new, fully automatized x-ray crystal spectrometer allows systematic measurements with very high precision and reproducibility. Absolute measurements of the Lyman series of H-like ions are currently underway. Dielectronic recombination studies have yielded information on …

Renormalization-Group Analysis Of The Generalized Sine-Gordon Model And Of The Coulomb Gas For D > 3 Dimensions, I. Nandori, Ulrich D. Jentschura, Kornel Sailer, Gerhard Soff

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

Renormalization-group (RG) flow equations have been derived for the generalized sine-Gordon model (GSGM) and the Coulomb gas (CG) in d ≥ 3 of dimensions by means of the Wegner-Houghton method, and by way of the real-space RG approach. The UV scaling laws determined by the leading-order terms of the flow equations are in qualitative agreement for all dimensions d ≥ 3, independent of the dimensionality, and in sharp contrast to the special case d=2. For the 4-dimensional GSGM it is demonstrated explicitly (by numerical calculations) that the blocked potential tends to a constant effective potential in the infrared limit, satisfying …

Effects Of Localization And Amplification On Intensity Distribution Of Light Transmitted Through Random Media, Alexey Yamilov, Hui Cao

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

We numerically study the statistical distribution of intensity of light transmitted through quasi-one-dimensional random media by varying the dimensionless conductance g and the amount of absorption or gain. A markedly non-Rayleigh distribution is found to be well fitted by the analytical formula of Nieuwenhuizen et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 74, 2674 (1995)] with a single parameter g′ . We show that in the passive random system g′ is uniquely related to g , while in amplifying or absorbing random media g′ also depends on the gain or absorption coefficient.

Highest-Quality Modes In Disordered Photonic Crystals, Alexey Yamilov, Hui Cao

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

We studied the modes of the highest-quality factor Qm in disordered photonic crystals. by varying the strength of disorder, we identified five different scaling regimes of the ensemble averaged (Qm) with the system size. For sufficiently large systems, (Qm) reaches the maximum at some finite degree of disorder, where its value is comparable to the quality factor of an intentionally introduced single defect at the center of a photonic band gap. Near this optimal degree of disorder, we predict a superexponential increase of (Qm) with the system size, due to migration of the frequencies of the highest-quality modes toward the …

Kinetics Of Binary Nucleation Of Vapors In Size And Composition Space, Sergey P. Fisenko, Gerald Wilemski

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

We reformulate the kinetic description of binary nucleation in the gas phase using two natural independent variables: the total number of molecules g and the molar composition x of the cluster. The resulting kinetic equation can be viewed as a two-dimensional Fokker-Planck equation describing the simultaneous Brownian motion of the clusters in size and composition space. Explicit expressions for the Brownian diffusion coefficients in cluster size and composition space are obtained. For characterization of binary nucleation in gases three criteria are established. These criteria establish the relative importance of the rate processes in cluster size and composition space for different …

Order-Parameter Symmetry And Mode-Coupling Effects At Dirty Superconducting Quantum Phase Transitions, Rastko Sknepnek, Thomas Vojta, Rajesh Narayanan

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

We derive an order-parameter field theory for a quantum phase transition between a disordered metal and an exotic (non- s -wave) superconductor. Mode coupling effects between the order parameter and other fermionic soft modes lead to an effective long-range interaction between the anomalous density fluctuations which is reflected in singularities in the free energy functional. However, this long-range interaction is not strong enough to suppress disorder fluctuations. The asymptotic critical region is characterized by run-away flow to large disorder. For weak coupling, this asymptotic region is very narrow. It is preempted by a wide crossover regime with mean-field critical behavior …

Smeared Phase Transition In A Three-Dimensional Ising Model With Planar Defects: Monte Carlo Simulations, Rastko Sknepnek, Thomas Vojta

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

We present results of large-scale Monte Carlo simulations for a three-dimensional Ising model with short-range interactions and planar defects, i.e., disorder perfectly correlated in two dimensions. We show that the phase transition in this system is smeared, i.e., there is no single critical temperature, but different parts of the system order at different temperatures. This is caused by effects similar to but stronger than Griffiths phenomena. In an infinite-size sample there is an exponentially small but finite probability to find an arbitrary large region devoid of impurities. Such a rare region can develop true long-range order while the bulk system …

Study Of Structural And Magnetic Properties Of Iron-Rich Mixed Rare-Earth Nddyfe (17-Y-X)Coxsiy Compounds, Kishore Kamaraju, Jinbo Yang, William B. Yelon, Oran Allan Pringle, M. S. Kim, Qingsheng Cai, William Joseph James

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

A series of NdDyFe(17-y-x)CoxSiy solid solutions with = 2 and 3 and = 0.5 1.0 and 1.5 were prepared by induction melting stoichiometric amounts of high-purity elements. The postannealed samples consist of two phases belonging to the space groups R3 m and P63 mmc . The lattice parameters and the unit cell volumes were calculated from the refinements of the magnetic and structural unit cells using the FULLPROF version of the Rietveld program. For a fixed content of Co, the maximum Curie temperatures (305 C to 405 C) were observed in samples with = 1 and having two phases, a …

Traversal Times For Random Walks On Small-World Networks, V. M. Kenkre, Paul Ernest Parris

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

We study the mean traversal time tau for a class of random walks on Newman-Watts small-world networks, in which steps around the edge of the network occur with a transition rate F that is different from the rate f for steps across small-world connections. when f>>F, the mean time tau to traverse the network exhibits a transition associated with percolation of the random graph (i.e., small-world) part of the network, and a collapse of the data onto a universal curve. This transition was not observed in earlier studies in which equal transition rates were assumed for all allowed steps. …

Ultraviolet Photonic Crystal Laser, Alexey Yamilov, Hui Cao, Robert P. H. Chang, Xiaohua Wu, Xang Liu, Shuyou Li, Vinayak P. Dravid

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

We fabricated two-dimensional photonic crystal structures in zinc oxide films with focused-ion-beam etching. Lasing is realized in the near-ultraviolet frequency at room temperature under optical pumping. From the measurement of lasing frequency and spatial profile of the lasing modes, as well as the photonic band structure calculation, we conclude that lasing occurs in the strongly localized defect modes near the edges of photonic band gap. These defect modes originate from the structure disorder unintentionally introduced during the fabrication process. ©2004 American Institute of Physics

Variational Considerations In The Study Of Carrier Transport In Organic Crystals, V. M. Kenkre, Paul Ernest Parris

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

A variational approach is used to investigate consequences of electron-phonon interactions between a charge carrier and multiple (specifically two) phonon branches. Phase diagrams are obtained and the nature of the transition from undressed to dressed phases of the carrier is studied with their help. No sharp transition between singly dressed and doubly dressed phases occurs. The effective carrier bandwidth, reduced by strong coupling to the high-frequency branch is found to be stable with respect to small to intermediate values of additional coupling to the low-frequency branch. This finding lends support to transport calculations based on the idea that carriers in …

Asymmetry Of Above-Threshold Ionization Of Metal Clusters In Two-Color Laser Fields: A Time-Dependent Density-Functional Study, H. S. Nguyen, A. D. Bandrauk, Carsten A. Ullrich

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

A spherical jellium model and time-dependent density functional theory for two-color ultrashort laser pulses as a function of phase difference between two fields were used to calculate the above threshold ionization (ATI) spectra of small metal clusters. ATI spectra and the ionized electrons fluxes were obtained in the two opposite directions of the linearly polarized laser fields. It is found that ATI spectra has long energy plateaus, with cutoffs up to 30-40 times the ponderomotive energy Up. However, no extended plateaus were observed in high-harmonic generation spectra.

Optimisation Of John The Ripper In A Clustered Linux Environment, Christian Frichot

Theses : Honours

To aid system administrators in enforcing strict password policies, the use of password cracking tools such as Cisilia (C.I.S.I.ar, 2003) and John the Ripper (Solar Designer, 2002), have been employed as software utilities to look for "weak" passwords. John the Ripper (JtR) attempts to crack the passwords by using a dictionary, brute-force or "other" mode of attack. The computational intensity of cracking passwords has led to the utilisation of parallel-processing environments to increase the speed of the password-cracking task. Parallel-processing environments can consist of either single systems with multiple processors, or a collection of separate computers working together as a …

Natural Regeneration Of Native Vegetation On Abandoned Agricultural Land In The Fitzgerald Biosphere, Nerilee Boshammer

Theses : Honours

Much of the natural landscape in the south-west of Western Australia has been severely modified as a result of past and current agricultural activity. One of the most conspicuous changes has been the large scale clearing of native vegetation, The evidence of the negative impacts of this vegetation removal on the natural environment is now extensive, particularly in the south-west region of the State. In order to prevent further degradation of the landscape of the south-west and subsequent loss of endemic species, strategic revegetation within the agricultural landscape is required. Native vegetation corridors can be established, linking areas of remnant …

Influence Of Solar Luminosity Over Geomagnetic And Climatic Cycles As Derived From Speleothems, Y. Shopov, D. Stoykova, L. Tsankov, M. Sanabria, D. Georgieva, D. Ford, L. Georgiev

International Journal of Speleology

We observed cycles presented in a luminescent solar insolation proxy record from a speleothem from Jewel Cave, South Dakota, US. We found cycles of orbital precession with periods of 23 and 19 ka and of obliquity of 41 ka and many others from non-orbital origin in this sample. We determined the Solar origin of the cycles with durations of 11500, 4400, 3950, 2770, 2500, 2090, 1960, 1670, 1460, 1280, 1195, 1145, 1034, 935, 835, 750 and 610 years. It was done by their detection both in proxy records of speleothem luminescence, Δ¹⁴C and the intensity of the geomagnetic …

Surface Cover Infiltration Index: A Suggested Method To Assess Infiltration Capacity For Intrinsic Vulnerability In Karstic Areas In Absence Of Quantitative Data, Levent Tezcan, Mehmet Ekmekci

International Journal of Speleology

Karst is a hydrogeological environment of importance not only for its water resources potential but also for its scenic and economic potential, thereby increasing the intensity of human impact. The uniqueness of karst in this regard stems from its high sensitivity and vulnerability to imposed pressures and its distinctive response to these pressures. Therefore, a clear definition and formulation of the concept of ‘intrinsic vulnerability’ is essential for the design of vulnerability and/or management criteria of the karstic system as a resource. In this regard, the recharge rate, the amount of water passing through the unsaturated zone into the aquifer, …

Dissaggregation Modelling Of Spring Discharges, Elena Kirilova Bojilova

International Journal of Speleology

Disaggregation models are basically divided into three main groups: temporal, spatial and temporal-spatial. The focus of this paper is the application of temporal disaggregation models to disaggregate the seasonal flow in some large time intervals to sub-seasonal flows in some shorter time intervals. Two basic models are applied: the original model of Mejia and Rousselle and the corrected extended Lin model one-stage disaggregation. The flow totals from some karstic springs are used. Data for five springs in different areas of Bulgaria for the aims of the study are executed. The synthetic data generation for the chosen spring stations for a …

Comparative Estimate Of Resistance To Drought For Selected Karstic Aquifers In Bulgaria, Tatiana Orehova

International Journal of Speleology

Effective management of water resources requires adequate knowledge of groundwater system including the influence of climate variability and climate change. The drought of 1982-1994 in Bulgaria has led to important decrease of springflow and lowering of water levels. Therefore, groundwater demonstrated its vulnerability to drought. The purpose of this paper is to determine relative resistance of selected aquifers in Bulgaria to a prolonged decrease of recharge to groundwater. The drought resistance indicator has been defined for some karstic aquifers based on the method proposed in report of BRGM. The data from National Hydrogeological Network located in the National Institute of …

Paleocollapse Structures As Geological Record For Reconstruction Of Past Karst Processes During The Upper Miocene Of Mallorca Island, P. A. Robledo Ardila, J. J. Durán, L. Pomar

International Journal of Speleology

Paleocollapse structures and collapse breccias are one of the major features for paleokarst analysis and paleoclimate record. These are affecting the Llucmajor and Santanyí carbonate platforms. These platforms, of southern and eastern Mallorca respectively, are a good example of progradation reef platform in the western Mediterranean. The Santanyí platform is constituted of two sedimentary units, both affected by paleocollapse structures: (1) The Reef Complex attributed to the upper Tortonian-lower Messinian; (2) Santanyí Limestone attributed to the Messinian. There are abundant paleocollapse outcropping in the Reef Complex and Santanyí Limestone units. These structures have been produced by roof collapse of caverns …

Deviance Information Criterion For Comparing Stochastic Volatility Models, Andreas Berg, Renate Meyer, Jun Yu

Research Collection School Of Economics

Bayesian methods have been efficient in estimating parameters of stochastic volatility models for analyzing financial time series. Recent advances made it possible to fit stochastic volatility models of increasing complexity, including covariates, leverage effects, jump components, and heavy-tailed distributions. However, a formal model comparison via Bayes factors remains difficult. The main objective of this article is to demonstrate that model selection is more easily performed using the deviance information criterion (DIC). It combines a Bayesian measure of fit with a measure of model complexity. We illustrate the performance of DIC in discriminating between various different stochastic volatility models using simulated …

Structural Studies Of The Role Of Iron Oxide In Environmental Catalysis, Aisha Ali Saif Rashid Al-Nayeli

Theses

This thesis presents several fundamental studies of structure-reactivity relationships between pure iron oxides, supported and composite oxides specifically in relation to the decomposition of carbon tetrachloride, CCI₄. A series of iron oxides were synthesized and characterized using infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy to establish their composition spectroscopically, using BET surface area measurements to determine their surface areas and X-ray diffraction powder (XRD) experiments to measure their structural parameters.

A new method was then developed to decompose CCl₄ at a lower temperature than previously found, choosing the optimum catalyst. The effects of varying the temperature on the CCl₄ decomposition …

Editorial Board & Iowa Academy Of Science Officers And Directors

Journal of the Iowa Academy of Science: JIAS

No abstract provided.

Front Matter

Journal of the Iowa Academy of Science: JIAS

No abstract provided.

Flow Cytometry Used To Assess Genetic Damage In Frogs From Farm Ponds, Bartholomew L. Bly, Melinda G. Knutson, Mark B. Sandheinrich, Brian R. Gray, Dean A. Jobe

Journal of the Iowa Academy of Science: JIAS

Flow cytometry (FC) is a laboratory method used to detect genetic damage induced by environmental contaminants and other stressors in animals, including amphibians. We tested FC methods on three species of ranid frogs collected from farm ponds and natural wetlands in southeastern Minnesota. We compared FC metrics for Rana clamitans between ponds with direct exposure to agricultural contaminants and reference (unexposed) ponds. Concentrations of atrazine in water from our farm ponds ranged from 0.04 to 0.55 ppb. We found that R. clamitans from exposed ponds had DNA content similar to frogs from unexposed ponds. Pond-averaged C-values (a measure of DNA …

Theoretical Considerations For Geosynchronous, Earth-Based Gravity Wave Interferometer, William Griffin

Honors Program Theses

We investigated theoretical considerations in the design of an Earth-based laser interferometer for detecting gravitational waves. Our design envisages a ground-based tracking station in communication with two geosynchronous satellites. We assumed linearized gravitational waves in a Schwarzschild spacetime geometry outside the Earth. Our initial calculations show that such a design is sufficiently sensitive to successfully detect gravitational waves near Earth.

The Role Of Soil Water Availability In Potential Rainfed Rice Productivity In Bangladesh: Applications Of The Ceres-Rice Mode, Rezaul Mahmood, David R. Legates, Mark Meo

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Soil water stress and its impact on the monsoon season potential rainfed rice productivity in Bangladesh is investigated. A crop growth simulation model, CERES-Rice, is applied to 16 locations representative of the major rice growing regions of Bangladesh to determine the impact of soil water stress on the regional scale potential yield for four transplanting dates: 1 June, 1 July, 15 July, and 15 August. A quantified estimate of potential yield loss for four regions and for Bangladesh as a whole is calculated for water stress during flowering and maturing stages. For example, in Bangladesh, average potential yield for 1 …