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2015

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Articles 9511 - 9540 of 9578

Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Big Data -- A 21st Century Science Maginot Line? No-Boundary Thinking: Shifting From The Big Data Paradigm, Xiuzhen Huang, Steven F. Jennings, Barry Bruce, Alison Buchan, Liming Cai, Pengyin Chen, Carole Cramer, Weihua Guan, Uwe Kk Hilgert, Hongmei Jiang, Zenglu Li, Gail Mcclure, Donald F. Mcmullen, Bindu Nanduri, Andy Perkins, Bhanu Rekepalli, Saeed Salem, Jennifer Specker, Karl Walker, Donald C. Wunsch, Donghai Xiong, Shuzhong Zhang, Yu Zhang, Zhongming Zhao, Jason H. Moore Jan 2015

Big Data -- A 21st Century Science Maginot Line? No-Boundary Thinking: Shifting From The Big Data Paradigm, Xiuzhen Huang, Steven F. Jennings, Barry Bruce, Alison Buchan, Liming Cai, Pengyin Chen, Carole Cramer, Weihua Guan, Uwe Kk Hilgert, Hongmei Jiang, Zenglu Li, Gail Mcclure, Donald F. Mcmullen, Bindu Nanduri, Andy Perkins, Bhanu Rekepalli, Saeed Salem, Jennifer Specker, Karl Walker, Donald C. Wunsch, Donghai Xiong, Shuzhong Zhang, Yu Zhang, Zhongming Zhao, Jason H. Moore

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Whether your interests lie in scientific arenas, the corporate world, or in government, you have certainly heard the praises of big data: Big data will give you new insights, allow you to become more efficient, and/or will solve your problems. While big data has had some outstanding successes, many are now beginning to see that it is not the Silver Bullet that it has been touted to be. Here our main concern is the overall impact of big data; the current manifestation of big data is constructing a Maginot Line in science in the 21st century. Big data is not …


Cip10 Optimization For 4,4-Methylene Diphenyl Diisocyanate Aerosol Sampling And Field Comparison With Impinger Method, Silvia Puscasu, Simon Aubin, Yves Cloutier, Philippe Sarazin, Huu Van Tra, Sébastien Gagné Jan 2015

Cip10 Optimization For 4,4-Methylene Diphenyl Diisocyanate Aerosol Sampling And Field Comparison With Impinger Method, Silvia Puscasu, Simon Aubin, Yves Cloutier, Philippe Sarazin, Huu Van Tra, Sébastien Gagné

Études primaires

4,4-methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) aerosol exposure evaluation in spray foam insulation application is known as being a challenge because the spray foam application actually involves a fast-curing process. Available techniques are either not user-friendly or are inaccurate or not validated for this application. To address these issues, a new approach using a CIP10M was developed to appropriately collect MDI aerosol in spray foam insulation while being suitable for personal sampling. The CIP10M is a commercially available personal aerosol sampler that has been validated for the collection of microbial spores into a liquid medium. Tributylphosphate with 1-(2-methoxyphenyl)piperazine (MOPIP) was introduced into …


Development Of Platinum-Based Catalysts On Polyimide Films For Alcohol Electro-Oxidation, Rungnahpa Ruangsariyanon Jan 2015

Development Of Platinum-Based Catalysts On Polyimide Films For Alcohol Electro-Oxidation, Rungnahpa Ruangsariyanon

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

This research studied the preparation of highly dispersed platinum nanoparticles on polyimide films or Pt/PI by surface modification method. Firstly, polyimide film was hydrolyzed in basic solution, followed by being immersed in platinum-ion solution to allow ion exchange process. Platinum ions on the film were subsequently reduced using proper reducing agent to give Pt/PI. After that, morphological and other information of the Pt/PI was investigated by X-ray diffraction analysis, scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopy. Electrochemical performance of the Pt/PI for the electro-oxidation of alcohols was investigated by means of cyclic …


Development Of Dual-Bacterial Culture For Benzene Degradation And Biofilm Formation, Aiyarucht Techajindamanee Jan 2015

Development Of Dual-Bacterial Culture For Benzene Degradation And Biofilm Formation, Aiyarucht Techajindamanee

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

Dual bacterial culture is the technique using the different characteristic of two bacteria for support the bacterial culture ability. This study developed the dual culture of benzene-degrading bacteria and biofilm-forming bacteria, and optimized the culture conditions promoting their benzene degradation and biofilm formation for increasing benzene-removal efficiency and bacterial stability in benzene treatment systems. Acinetobacter sp. B36 was a benzene-degrading and biofilm-forming bacterium isolated from petroleum wastewater. The bacterial biofilm was promoted by dual-culturing with Pseudomonas sp. BF6 isolated from the same source. The optimum culture conditions were studied focused on co-carbon source, nitrogen source, oxygen and metal ion. The …


ประสิทธิภาพในการย่อยสลายน้ำมันดิบของกลุ่มแบคทีเรียที่คัดแยกจากดินตะกอนอ่าวไทย, ปิยะนุช อยู่คล้ำ Jan 2015

ประสิทธิภาพในการย่อยสลายน้ำมันดิบของกลุ่มแบคทีเรียที่คัดแยกจากดินตะกอนอ่าวไทย, ปิยะนุช อยู่คล้ำ

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

อ่าวไทยจัดเป็นศูนย์กลางทางด้านการท่องเที่ยวและอุตสาหกรรมหลักที่สำคัญของประเทศ จึงมีแนวโน้มในการปนเปื้อนของปิโตรเลียมไฮโดรคาร์บอนได้ งานวิจัยนี้มีวัตถุประสงค์เพื่อคัดแยกกลุ่มแบคทีเรียที่มีประสิทธิภาพในการย่อยสลายน้ำมันดิบจากตัวอย่างดินตะกอนบริเวณอ่าวไทย ทดสอบประสิทธิภาพของกลุ่มแบคทีเรียในการย่อยสลายน้ำมันในสภาวะแวดล้อมต่างๆ และศึกษาบทบาทของแบคทีเรียในกลุ่ม โดยจาก 45 สถานีตัวอย่าง ตรวจนับจำนวนแบคทีเรียย่อยสลายน้ำมันดิบได้มีค่าอยู่ในช่วง 2.3x105 - 1.10x107MPN /g น้ำหนักเปียก และแบ่งตัวอย่างตามลักษณะพื้นที่และลักษณะทางกายภาพได้เป็น 14 กลุ่มตัวอย่าง คือ G1-G14 ผลการทดลองพบว่าสามารถเพิ่มจำนวนแบคทีเรียที่ย่อยสลายน้ำมันดิบได้จากทั้ง 14 กลุ่มตัวอย่างด้วยเทคนิคเอนริชเมนท์ โดยกลุ่มแบคทีเรีย G11 ซึ่งมีประสิทธิภาพในการย่อยสลายน้ำมันดิบได้สูงที่สุด สามารถย่อยสลายน้ำมันดิบ 0.5% (v/v) ได้ 80 % ภายในระยะเวลา 5 วัน นอกจากนี้พบว่า G11 มีเปอร์เซ็นต์ความไม่ชอบน้ำของเซลล์สูงที่สุดประมาณ 74% และยังตรวจพบยีนที่เกี่ยวข้องในการย่อยสลายน้ำมันดิบได้หลากหลาย และการทดสอบประสิทธิภาพของ G11 ที่สภาวะต่างๆ พบว่า G11 สามารถย่อยสลายน้ำมันประเภทต่างๆ ได้แก่ น้ำมันดีเซล น้ำมันเตา น้ำมันหล่อลื่นเครื่องยนต์ดีเซลกึ่งสังเคราะห์ น้ำมันหล่อลื่นเครื่องยนต์เบนซินสังเคราะห์ น้ำมันแก๊สโซฮอลล์ 91 (E91) น้ำมันแก๊สโซฮอลล์ 95 (E95) ที่ความเข้มข้น 4,000 มิลลิกรัม/ลิตรได้ดี สามารถย่อยสลายน้ำมันดิบในช่วงความเข้มข้น 4-32 กรัม/ลิตรได้เกือบ 100% ระยะเวลา 12 วัน โดยมีอัตราการกำจัดน้ำมันดิบได้สูงสุด 6.75 กรัม/ลิตร/กรัมเซลล์/วัน ที่ความเข้มข้นน้ำมันดิบ 24 กรัม/ลิตร สามารถย่อยสลายเตตระเดกเคน เฮกซะเดกเคน และ PAHs ผสม ซึ่งได้แก่ แอนทราซีน ฟีแนนทรีน ฟลูออแรนทีน และไพรีนได้ นอกจากนี้ยังพบว่า G11 ยังสามารถย่อยสลายน้ำมันดิบ 0.5 % (v/v) ได้ดีในสภาวะที่มีการแปรผันค่าความเค็มในช่วง 20 - >100 ppt ช่วงพีเอชตั้งแต่ 3-9 และอุณหภูมิ 30-37 oซ ซึ่งจากการวิเคราะห์ประชาคมแบคทีเรียโดยการเพาะเลี้ยงและการไม่เพาะเลี้ยงพบว่าในทุกช่วงการย่อยสลายในทุกสภาวะ มี …


Spatio-Temporal Patterns Of Water Table And Vegetation Status Of A Deserted Area, Limin Duan, Tingxi Liu, Xixi Wang, Yanyun Luo Jan 2015

Spatio-Temporal Patterns Of Water Table And Vegetation Status Of A Deserted Area, Limin Duan, Tingxi Liu, Xixi Wang, Yanyun Luo

Civil & Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

Understanding groundwater-vegetation interactions is crucial for sustaining fragile environments of desert areas such as the Horqin Sandy Land (HSL) in northern China. This study examined spatio-temporal variations in the water table and the associated vegetation status of a 9.71 km2 area that contains meadowland, sandy dunes, and intermediate transitional zones. The depth of the water table and hydrometeorologic parameters were monitored and Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data were utilized to assess the vegetation cover. Spatio-temporal variations over the six-year study period were examined and descriptive groundwater-vegetation associations developed by overlaying a water table …


Interplay Of Porous Media And Fracture Stimulation In Sedimentary Enhanced Geothermal Systems : Red River Formation, Williston Basin, North Dakota, Caitlyn M. Hartig Jan 2015

Interplay Of Porous Media And Fracture Stimulation In Sedimentary Enhanced Geothermal Systems : Red River Formation, Williston Basin, North Dakota, Caitlyn M. Hartig

Theses and Dissertations

Fracture stimulated enhanced geothermal systems (EGS) can be installed in both crystalline rocks and sedimentary basins. The Red River Formation (Ordovician), which lies between 3.6 and 4.2 km depth in the Williston Basin, is a viable site for installation of sedimentary EGS (SEGS). SEGS is possible there because temperatures in the formation surpass 140° Celsius and the permeability is 0.1-38 mD; fracture stimulation can be utilized to improve performance. The main objectives of this project were 1) to determine the spatial variation of the intrinsic properties of the Red River Formation across the study area, and 2) to understand the …


The Effect Of Milling Additives On Powder Properties And Sintered Body Microstructure Of Nio, L. Jay Deiner, Michael A. Rottmayer, Bryan C. Eigenbrodt Jan 2015

The Effect Of Milling Additives On Powder Properties And Sintered Body Microstructure Of Nio, L. Jay Deiner, Michael A. Rottmayer, Bryan C. Eigenbrodt

Publications and Research

The evolution of powder particle size, crystal structure, and surface chemistry was evaluated for micron scale NiO powders subjected to impact milling with commonly employed milling additives: methanol, Vertrel XF, and amorphous carbon. The effect of the different comminution protocols on sintered body microstructure was evaluated for high temperature sintering in inert atmosphere (N2). X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy showed that NiO powder surface chemistry is surprisingly sensitive to milling additive choice. In particular, the proportion of powder surface defect sites varied with additive, and methanol left an alcohol or alkoxy residue even after drying. Upon sintering to intermediate temperatures (1100 ℃), …


Phenomenology Of A Toy Model Inspired By The Spontaneous Reduction Of The Spectral Dimension In Quantum Gravity, Patrick A. Greene Jan 2015

Phenomenology Of A Toy Model Inspired By The Spontaneous Reduction Of The Spectral Dimension In Quantum Gravity, Patrick A. Greene

Honors Theses and Capstones

Attempts to formulate a quantum theory of gravity have generated many sophisticated models. Though fundamentally different, they necessarily exhibit behaviors resembling experimental observations and standard theoretical expectations. Often, their similarities go no further. However many models unexpectedly predict a change in the spectral dimension of spacetime at very small scales (See [1] and references therein for examples). In particular, some of the models predict the spectral dimension changes from 4 to 2. This paper investigates the phenomenological consequences of a toy model that use Planck-scale 2D hypersurfaces, specifically triangles, embedded in 4D Minkowski spacetime. We randomly generated sequences of triangles …


Role Of Small Molecules In Rescuing Protein Folding Under Oxidative Stress, Mahmoud Fawzi Megahed Helal Khalil Jan 2015

Role Of Small Molecules In Rescuing Protein Folding Under Oxidative Stress, Mahmoud Fawzi Megahed Helal Khalil

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Increased levels of nitrosative stress intracellularly within the endoplasmic reticulum is a key factor involvled in the pathogenesis of both Parkinson's (PD) and Alzheimer's (AD) diseases. Previous in-vitro studies in our lab showed that increased levels of nitrosative stress lead to aggregation of misfolded proteins and formation of Lewy Bodies, the main biomarker of PD and AD diseases. Although this was mainly through nitrosylation of Protein Disulfide Isomerase (PDI), the chief endoplasmic reticulum (ER) resident oxidoreductase chaperone responsible for maturation of disulfide-bond-containing proteins, we demonstrate in this project that increased levels of nitrosative stress has an additional direct effect on …


Towards Analytical Techniques For Optimizing Knowledge Acquisition, Processing, Propagation, And Use In Cyberinfrastructure, Leonardo Octavio Lerma Jan 2015

Towards Analytical Techniques For Optimizing Knowledge Acquisition, Processing, Propagation, And Use In Cyberinfrastructure, Leonardo Octavio Lerma

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

For many decades, there has been a continuous progress in science and engineering applications.

A large part of this progress comes from the new knowledge that researchers acquire, propagate, and use. This new knowledge has revolutionized many aspects of our life, from driving to communications to shopping.

Somewhat surprisingly, there is one area of human activity which is the least impacted by the modern technological progress: the very processes of acquiring, processing, and propagating information. When we decide where to place sensors, which algorithm to use for processing the data – we rely mostly on our own intuition and on …


Synthesis Of Benzofused-P-Indolequinones From 1,4-Naphthoquinone And Selective N-Debenzylation By Dess-Martin Periodinane, Quang Huynh Luu Jan 2015

Synthesis Of Benzofused-P-Indolequinones From 1,4-Naphthoquinone And Selective N-Debenzylation By Dess-Martin Periodinane, Quang Huynh Luu

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

p-Indolequinones are important heterocycles since they display interesting bioactivities such as anticancer activities as well as the ability to trigger drug release in drug targeting research. Additionally, they are also useful in precursors for the synThesis of bioactive compounds. Over decades, many methodologies have been investigated for the synThesis of p-indolequinones. Among those, cyclization of quinones plays an important role in convenient synThesis of these compounds. However, the great majority of these methods only describe quinones as electrophiles in cyclization. In our research, we found an intramolecular nucleophilic attack of quinone to an in-situ generated carbonyl group and developed a …


Does Low-Level Arsenic Exposure Predict Blood Pressure In Children?, Tania Angelica Mayorga Jan 2015

Does Low-Level Arsenic Exposure Predict Blood Pressure In Children?, Tania Angelica Mayorga

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Background & Significance: Inorganic arsenic is a heavy metal naturally found in soil and human exposure to this heavy metal causes adverse effects. Exposure risks are particularly high in developing children. Arsenic is mainly found in bedrock. It is also a by-product of smelting, it is used in cement production, and historically is has been found in crop pesticides. Among other ill-effects, arsenic exposure in humans can cause respiratory diseases, peripheral neuropathy and liver fibrosis. In particular arsenic has been shown in many studies to be a contributing factor in the risk for hypertension in adults however no studies have …


High Performance Computing In Air Quality Models An Their Applications, Roberto A. Perea Jan 2015

High Performance Computing In Air Quality Models An Their Applications, Roberto A. Perea

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

High Performance Computing has become an important tool for many applications and services in the areas of Air Quality research. One important aspect is the use of computational technology in simulation and modeling of complex Air Quality models which makes it affordable in terms of data analysis, processing and speed. For this Dissertation, three projects using Air quality models were developed using high performance computing.

For the first project, ozone concentrations for the Paso del Norte Region are simulated using air quality models and compared against experimental data. For the second project, the Development of models and optimization of codes …


Framing The Question, "Who Governs The Internet?", Robert J. Domanski Jan 2015

Framing The Question, "Who Governs The Internet?", Robert J. Domanski

Publications and Research

There remains a widespread perception among both the public and elements of academia that the Internet is “ungovernable”. However, this idea, as well as the notion that the Internet has become some type of cyber-libertarian utopia, is wholly inaccurate. Governments may certainly encounter tremendous difficulty in attempting to regulate the Internet, but numerous types of authority have nevertheless become pervasive. So who, then, governs the Internet? This book will contend that the Internet is, in fact, being governed, that it is being governed by specific and identifiable networks of policy actors, and that an argument can be made as to …


Proceedings Of The 2nd Annual Cuny Games Festival, Robert O. Duncan, Joe Bisz, Francesco Crocco, Carlos Hernandez, Kathleen Offenholley, Maura A. Smale, Deborah Sturm, Cuny Games Network Jan 2015

Proceedings Of The 2nd Annual Cuny Games Festival, Robert O. Duncan, Joe Bisz, Francesco Crocco, Carlos Hernandez, Kathleen Offenholley, Maura A. Smale, Deborah Sturm, Cuny Games Network

Publications and Research

Proceedings of the CUNY Games Conference, held from January 16-17, 2015, at the CUNY Graduate Center and Borough of Manhattan Community College.

Health Games - Language and Composition - Design: Classroom Considerations - Games in the Physical Environment - Games and Behavioral Science - Play, Politics & Economics - Gaming Curricula, Disciplines & Programs - Gaming and History - Institutional Programming with Games - Philosophy and Roleplaying - Ed. Game Design: Strategy & Tactics - Repurposing Game Genres - Narrative, Storytelling & Games - Community & Social Justice - Extemporaneity - Personal & Social Transformation - Cognition, Design & Play …


Differentiability Of Correlations In Realistic Quantum Mechanics, Alejandro Cabrera, Edson De Faria, Enrique Pujals, Charles Tresser Jan 2015

Differentiability Of Correlations In Realistic Quantum Mechanics, Alejandro Cabrera, Edson De Faria, Enrique Pujals, Charles Tresser

Publications and Research

We prove a version of Bell’s theorem in which the locality assumption is weakened. We start by assuming theoretical quantum mechanics and weak forms of relativistic causality and of realism (essentially the fact that observable values are well defined independently of whether or not they are measured). Under these hypotheses, we show that only one of the correlation functions that can be formulated in the framework of the usual Bell theorem is unknown. We prove that this unknown function must be differentiable at certain angular configuration points that include the origin. We also prove that, if this correlation is assumed …


Automated Computation Of Scattering Amplitudes From Integrand Reduction To Monte Carlo Tools, Hans Van Deurzen, Gionata Luisoni, Pierpaolo Mastrolia, Giovanni Ossola, Zhibai Zhang Jan 2015

Automated Computation Of Scattering Amplitudes From Integrand Reduction To Monte Carlo Tools, Hans Van Deurzen, Gionata Luisoni, Pierpaolo Mastrolia, Giovanni Ossola, Zhibai Zhang

Publications and Research

After a general introduction about the calculation of one-loop scattering amplitudes via integrand-level techniques, which led to the construction of efficient and automated computational tools for NLO predictions, we briefly describe an approach to the reduction of scattering amplitudes based on integrand-level reduction via multivariate polynomial division also applicable beyond one-loop amplitudes. We also review the main features of the GoSam 2.0 automated framework for NLO calculations and show some of its application to Standard Model processes involving the production massive particles, such as the Higgs boson or top-quark pairs, obtained embedding of the virtual amplitudes produced by GoSam within …


The Next Generation Of Computational Science And Engineering, George K. Thiruvathukal Jan 2015

The Next Generation Of Computational Science And Engineering, George K. Thiruvathukal

Computer Science: Faculty Publications and Other Works

Editor-in-Chief message.


Romania's Participation To The European Assessment Project Titled Hyunder, Multi-Criterial Analyses Of Salt Cavern Locations, Ioan Iordache, Dorin Schitea, Adriana Marinoiu, Mihaela Buga, Mihai Balan, Ioan Stefanescu, Adrian Gheorghe, Mihaela Iordache, Viviana Cigolotti (Ed.), Chiara Barchiesi (Ed.), Michela Chianella (Ed.) Jan 2015

Romania's Participation To The European Assessment Project Titled Hyunder, Multi-Criterial Analyses Of Salt Cavern Locations, Ioan Iordache, Dorin Schitea, Adriana Marinoiu, Mihaela Buga, Mihai Balan, Ioan Stefanescu, Adrian Gheorghe, Mihaela Iordache, Viviana Cigolotti (Ed.), Chiara Barchiesi (Ed.), Michela Chianella (Ed.)

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

The scope of the work is to assess the potential, the actors and relevant business cases for large scale storage of renewable electricity by hydrogen underground storage in Romania. This presentation intends to provide a picture of the multi-criterial analyses of salt cavern locations in Romania.

The energy sector is facing with the necessity to store large energy quantities for short to long term in order to adapt to the increasingly intermittent renewable energy. The results of this presentation have originated from an ongoing European assessment project by the name of HyUnder (FCH JU, grant 303417) regarding utilization of salt …


Engineering Analytics: Research Into The Governance Structure Needed To Integrate The Dominant Design Methodologies, Teddy Steven Cotter Jan 2015

Engineering Analytics: Research Into The Governance Structure Needed To Integrate The Dominant Design Methodologies, Teddy Steven Cotter

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

In the ASEM-IAC 2014, Cotter (2014) explored the current state of engineering design, identified the dominate approaches to engineering design, discussed potential contributions from the new field of data analytics to engineering design, and proposed an Engineering Analytics framework that integrates the dominate engineering design approaches and data analytics within a human-intelligence/machine-intelligence (HI-MI) design architecture. This paper reports research applying ontological engineering to integrate the dominate engineering design methodologies into a systemic engineering design decision governance architecture.


Statistical Engineering: A Causal-Stochastic Modeling Research Update, Teddy Steven Cotter Jan 2015

Statistical Engineering: A Causal-Stochastic Modeling Research Update, Teddy Steven Cotter

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

In the ASEM-IAC 2012, Cotter (2012) summarized prior works that led to the proposal for statistical engineering, identified the gaps in knowledge that statistical engineering needs to address, explored additional gaps in knowledge not addressed in the prior works, set forth a working definition of and body of knowledge for statistical engineering, and set forth proposals of potential systems contributions the Engineering Management profession could make toward the development of statistical engineering. In 2014, the ASQ Statistics Division, DOT&E, NASA, and IDA co-sponsored a Statistical Engineering Agreement to jointly research development of the discipline of statistical engineering. The statistics community …


Learning By Doing - Energy Systems Management, Nima Shahriari, Adrian V. Gheorghe Jan 2015

Learning By Doing - Energy Systems Management, Nima Shahriari, Adrian V. Gheorghe

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

Climate change concerns have confronted energy policy makers by unprecedented challenges in the 21st century. Revolution of renewable energy technologies, as well as more efficient energy systems, has been promising in the context of global warming. However, these technologies are not maturing and chaning. Consequently planning for development of these resources requires dealing with various multidisciplinary research questions such as financial feasibility of renewable energy projects. Nevertheless, there is considerable lack of education programs offering multidisciplinary approach for addressing the current energy challenges. Based on the 21st evolving energy landscape, an interdisciplinary graduate certificate course work was designed at Old …


Current Practices For Product Usability Testing In Web And Mobile Applications, Spencer W. Black Jan 2015

Current Practices For Product Usability Testing In Web And Mobile Applications, Spencer W. Black

Honors Theses and Capstones

Software usability testing is a key methodology that ensures applications are intuitive and easy to use for the target audience. Usability testing has direct benefits for companies as usability improvements often are fundamental to the success of a product. A standard usability test study includes the following five steps: obtain suitable participants, design test scripts, conduct usability sessions, interpret test outcomes, and produce recommendations. Due to the increasing importance for more usable applications, effective techniques to develop usable products, as well as technologies to improve usability testing, have been widely utilized. However, as companies are developing more cross-platform web and …


The Toric Approach To F-Theory Model Building, Herbie L. Smith Jan 2015

The Toric Approach To F-Theory Model Building, Herbie L. Smith

Honors Theses and Capstones

We describe the theoretical motivation for F-theory as a non-perturbative generalization of string theory. The four complex-dimensional compactification spaces of F-theory, called elliptically-fibered Calabi-Yau manifolds, consist of the six compact dimensions of string theory, plus a two-dimensional fiber that describes the string coupling field as a function of position on the string theory manifold. The methods of toric geometry are developed and applied to construct examples of elliptically-fibered Calabi-Yau manifolds. We analyze in detail models in which the fiber is free of singularities as a test bed for a more general analysis.


Processing And Property Evaluation Of Tungsten-Based Mixed Oxides For Photovoltaics And Optoelectronics, Mirella Vargas Jan 2015

Processing And Property Evaluation Of Tungsten-Based Mixed Oxides For Photovoltaics And Optoelectronics, Mirella Vargas

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Tungsten Oxide (WO3) films and low-dimensional structures have proven to be promising candidates in the fields of photonics and electronics. WO3 is a well-established n-type semiconductor characterized by unique electrochromic behavior, an ideal optical band gap that permits transparency over a wide spectral range, and high chemical integrity. The plethora of diverse properties endow WO3 to be highly effective in applications related to electrochromism, gas sensing, and deriving economical energy. Compared to the bulk films, a materials system involving WO3 and a related species (elements or metal oxides) offer the opportunity to tailor the electrochromic response, and an overall enhancement …


Comparison Of Blood Lead Levels Between Children In An Urban Setting And Children In A Rural Setting, Juan Manuel Alvarez Jan 2015

Comparison Of Blood Lead Levels Between Children In An Urban Setting And Children In A Rural Setting, Juan Manuel Alvarez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Environmental heavy metal exposure is a public health problem that is of great concern because it is highly toxic for children. The urban setting in downtown El Paso is historically known to be contaminated through various sources of contamination of heavy metals. The goal of this study was to compare whether children in a historically contaminated urban downtown area had significantly increased levels of lead exposure as compared to children in a demographically similar rural area approximately 20 miles north of the urban center, while controlling for gender and age. Cadmium and mercury were also measured for comparison purposes. It …


Associativity Forcing Commutativity In Left Nil Rings, Md Al Masum Bhuiyan Jan 2015

Associativity Forcing Commutativity In Left Nil Rings, Md Al Masum Bhuiyan

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Our study in this thesis is concentrated on the AFC groups (Associativity Forces Commutativity) and observing the ring structure there. We are looking for abelian groups yielding ring structures (K) where associativity forces commutativity. We call them K-AFC groups.

We consider that the only conditions put on a ring multiplication are the distributive laws over the additive group addition. After [1], We say that an abelian group (G, +) is an AFC-group if (i) there exists a nonassociative and noncommutative ring (G, +, ˙) and (ii) all associative rings (G, +, ˙) are commutative.

We call a ring left-nil if …


Salt And Mineral Recovery From High Salinity Waters, Osvaldo Alejandro Broesicke Jan 2015

Salt And Mineral Recovery From High Salinity Waters, Osvaldo Alejandro Broesicke

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Natural salt springs in the Salt Fork Basin in Crosby County, Texas, result in the natural salt pollution of the Brazos River, rendering it unusable for most potable purposes. Previous research indicates that by intercepting the source of the pollution, water quality of the Brazos River can be greatly improved. This paper investigates and assesses two strategies for salt and mineral recovery using natural brine collected from the Salt Fork Basin, the first of which is presented in a separate work.

The research described in this paper evaluates the potential of a desulfation, soda-caustic softening, acidification/decarbonation, and evaporation process to …


Investigation Of The Natural Degradation Of Selected Endocrine Disrupting Compounds In Wastewater, Toni Carrick Jan 2015

Investigation Of The Natural Degradation Of Selected Endocrine Disrupting Compounds In Wastewater, Toni Carrick

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs) are a class of compounds that are of concern for their potentially adverse effects on fish, wildlife, and humans. They can cause developmental and reproductive anomalies at concentrations in the low ppb to ppt levels. Studies have shown the primary route of exposure of EDCs within the environment is through the discharge of effluent wastewater. Removal efficiencies of wastewater treatment plants have been studied extensively, however, in rural or developing areas, which often lack secondary or tertiary wastewater treatment, little is known about the stability of these compounds and the rate at which they degrade in …