Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

U.S. Drought Monitor, May 3, 2016, Brian Fuchs

United States Agricultural Commodities in Drought Archive

Drought map of U.S. for May 3, 2016 (5/3/16) plus: U.S. crop areas experiencing drought (map), Approximate percentage of crop located in drought, by state (bar graph), Percent of crop area located in drought, past 52 weeks (line graph) for: Corn, Soybeans, Hay, Cattle, Winter wheat.

Fluctuating Survival Selection Explains Variation In Avian Group Size, Charles R. Brown, Mary Bomberger Brown, Erin A. Roche, Valerie A. O'Brien, Catherine E. Page

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Most animal groups vary extensively in size. Because individuals in certain sizes of groups often have higher apparent fitness than those in other groups, why wide group size variation persists in most populations remains unexplained. We used a 30-y mark– recapture study of colonially breeding cliff swallows (Petrochelidon pyrrhonota) to show that the survival advantages of different colony sizes fluctuated among years. Colony size was under both stabilizing and directional selection in different years, and reversals in the sign of directional selection regularly occurred. Directional selection was predicted in part by drought conditions: birds in larger colonies tended …

Principles And Analysis Of Approximation Techniques, Evan Smith

Mathematics Undergraduate Theses

This thesis discusses numerical techniques for solving problems which have no exact solutions. In particular, it discusses techniques involved with solving differential equations and provides a numerical example of one such technique. It also investigates iterative techniques for finding approximate solutions.

The Relationship Between Time Of Day, Mood, And Electroencephalography (Eeg) Asymmetry, Morgan Tantillo

Honors Projects

Previous researchers have had success in finding a correlation between exercise and an increase in positive mood. Researchers have also found a correlation between time of day and mood. The current study will explore the relationship between time of day, mood, and electroencephalography (EEG) asymmetry. The study utilized a convenient sample of ten undergraduate students at Bowling Green State University. Participants had baseline EEG recordings taken, and then participated in moderate exercise, followed by another EEG recording. Participants’ mood was assessed through a self-reported mood questionnaire before the condition as well as immediately after. Due to multiple statistical tests, the …

Why Do Record/Replay Tests Of Web Applications Break?, Mouna Hammoudi

School of Computing: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Software engineers often use record/replay tools to enable the automated testing of web applications. Tests created in this manner can then be used to regression test new versions of the web applications as they evolve. Web application tests recorded by record/replay tools, however, can be quite brittle; they can easily break as applications change. For this reason, researchers have begun to seek approaches for automatically repairing record/replay tests. To date, however, there have been no comprehensive attempts to characterize the causes of breakages in record/replay tests for web applications. In this work, we present a taxonomy classifying the ways in …

Identifying Relationships Between Scientific Datasets, Abdussalam Alawini

Dissertations and Theses

Scientific datasets associated with a research project can proliferate over time as a result of activities such as sharing datasets among collaborators, extending existing datasets with new measurements, and extracting subsets of data for analysis. As such datasets begin to accumulate, it becomes increasingly difficult for a scientist to keep track of their derivation history, which complicates data sharing, provenance tracking, and scientific reproducibility. Understanding what relationships exist between datasets can help scientists recall their original derivation history. For instance, if dataset A is contained in dataset B, then the connection between A and B could be that A was …

Augmented Reality In The Classroom, Patrick Jb Foster, Sean Cunniff

Honors Thesis

Low vision can have an exceptionally negative impact on a student’s ability to learn, especially when subjected to the conventional education system. In this environment, students are expected to adhere to a lecture that delivers most information visually via a whiteboard or a projector screen. The goal of this project is to create a customizable application for a smartphone that implements selective processing in order to make it easier for visually impaired students to engage with and learn from lectures.

Specifically, this application is written in the Java language for the Android platform. The application uses OpenGL ES, a C-like …

Dynamics Of Prebiotic Rna Reproduction Illuminated By Chemical Game Theory, Jessica Anne Mellor Yeates, Christian Hilbe, Martin Zwick, Martin. A. Nowak, Niles Lehman

Chemistry Faculty Publications and Presentations

Many origins-of-life scenarios depict a situation in which there are common and potentially scarce resources needed by molecules that compete for survival and reproduction. The dynamics of RNA assembly in a complex mixture of sequences is a frequency-dependent process and mimics such scenarios. By synthesizing Azoarcus ribozyme genotypes that differ in their single-nucleotide interactions with other genotypes, we can create molecules that interact among each other to reproduce. Pairwise interplays between RNAs involve both cooperation and selfishness, quantifiable in a 2 × 2 payoff matrix. We show that a simple model of differential equations based on chemical kinetics accurately predicts …

Development Of A Surgical Instrument Prototype To Perform A More Precise Capsulorhexis, Kirk Haugen

Journal of Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Research

Performing capsulorhexis is often considered the most difficult part of cataract surgery. Not only is it difficult, but performing it correctly is important for refractive outcomes.⁴ Inaccurate capsulorhexes are associated with complications including posterior capsular opacification, capsular fibrosis, and capsular phimosis.⁶ This study investigates the possibility of a proposed surgical instrument producing more precise capsulorhexes as determined by the circularity index. 60 capsulorhexes were performed on cigarette paper laid over clay - half using the continuous curvilinear capsulorhexis (CCC) method, and half using the proposed instrument. The precision of the capsulorhexis was then measured using the circularity index. …

Innovative Synthesis Of Diltiazem/Clentiazem Analogs, Emelyn Magtanong

Journal of Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Research

Cardiovascular disease defines disorders of the heart and blood vessels, and is the number one cause of death in America. Diltiazem and clentiazem are common calcium channel blockers incorporated into drugs used to treat various cardiovascular diseases. Methods to synthesize 5-[2-(dimethylamino)ethyl]-8-hydroxy-2,3,4,5-tetrahydro-1,5-benzothiazepin-4-one, an analog of the core of diltiazem and clentiazem, using cost-efficient starting materials allows for affordable treatment and increased availability to affected individuals. N-(N,N-dimethylethanamine)-4-aminophenol can be oxidized to form a quineoneimine, which can be further reacted with 3-mercaptopropionic acid via Michael addition. Subsequent addition of a coupling reagent, N,N'-dicyclocarbodiimide (DCC),¹ produces 5-[2-(dimethylamino)ethyl]-8-hydroxy-2,3,4,5-tetrahydro-1,5-benzothiazepin-4-one, analogous to the core …

Inhibiting Fatty Acid Synthase In Rapidly Dividing Cells: Synthesis Of 5-(Alkylthio)-1h-Benzo[D]Imidazole-2,6-Diones, Andy Hausted

Journal of Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Research

Prostate and breast cancer are the number one and number two cancer sites, respectively, for male and females within the United States.1 Increased levels of the enzyme fatty acid synthase have been found in rapidly dividing cancer cells. This enzyme is responsible for the de novo synthesis of fatty acids in human cells, which are essential to cell growth and survival. The goal then for this research is to synthesize and design a new synthesis of 5-(alkylthio)-1Hbenzo[ d]imidazole-2,6-diones intended to successfully inhibit fatty acid synthase (FASN) by binding allosterically to the thioesterase domain of FASN. Thus by selectively inhibiting FASN …

Backend Challenges And Issues For Electronic Government, Salim Y. Alkindi

Information Technology Master Theses

The term electronic government (also called e-government, or eGov) refers to multidisciplinary projects that are complex in nature. Since the beginning of the Internet revolution many countries have adopted e-government as a step toward enhancing the delivery of public or governmental services to citizens by what are called e-services. A typical request for a service is initiated and passes through an electronic service (“e-service”) portal, or a front office. The term front office application usually system can be defined as designates software seen and used directly by an end user. This software provides the capabilities needed to collect the user …

Math Education: A Messy Problem, Gizem Karaali

Pomona Faculty Publications and Research

The current state of math education in America is certainly not ideal, writes Gizem Karaali, but mathematicians, researchers, policy makers and others are working on it -- and it is definitely a problem worth working on.

(Knight)3: A Graphical Perspective Of The Knight's Tour On A Multi-Layered Chess Board, Frederick Scott Neilan

Honors Program Theses and Projects

The Knight’s Tour is an interesting question related to the game of chess. In chess, the Knight must move two squares in one direction (forward, backward, left, right) followed by one square in a perpendicular direction. The question of the Knight’s Tour follows: Does there exist a tour for the Knight that encompasses every single square on the chess board without revisiting any squares? The existence of Knight’s Tours has been proven for the standard 8x8 chess board. Furthermore, the Knight’s Tour can also exist on boards with different sizes and shapes. There has been a lot of research into …

Conversion Of Cafo Manure Into A Slow-Release Fertilizer, Richard Allan Williams Iii

Honors Projects

Alginate polymer is known to form gel through the process of Ionotropic gelation. By use of extrusion and diffusion setting manure was encapsulated into gel beads. These beads were then tested to determine their potential for further testing as a manure treatment process. From the limited data in this preliminary study, it appears as though there is potential for further testing of alginate beads as a treatment process for manure. The treatment is potentially valuable because of the ease of filtration of the alginate beads, the low cost of transportation of the dehydrated beads, and because the limited data suggests …

The Laxarus Collection: What Has Been Found, Avonelle Combs

Honors Projects

The donated Bippus collection, comprised of over 15,000 specimens of gastropods and mollusks, has mostly gone unnoticed and untouched since its donation. These collections are known as ‘orphan collections’ which escape notice and are forgotten. However, this is not the only instance in which collections are kept out of sight. Museums, whether specializing in art or natural history, display only a small portion of their entire collection at once. The majority of collections found in museums are kept out of sight from the public for various reasons. Instead of keeping the Bippus collection out of reach for both the public …

Geological Bodies, Savannah Fulmer

Honors Projects

‘Geological Bodies’ is a series of character designs that were developed to personify the traits of nine different rocks. The artwork is accompanied with written documentation of the research and execution.

Anatomical Markers For Elevated Cognition In Dinosaurs, Thomas Gaetano

Honors Projects

Much research has been conducted on brain evolution within Dinosauria. Dinosaurs were originally believed to be incapable of any advanced cognitive abilities beyond the level observed in modern reptiles. This is likely true for many dinosaurs, but recent discoveries suggest that the non-avian maniraptor dinosaurs shared many physical characteristics with their bird descendants, including body feathers and neural adaptations for flight. By studying cranial endocasts (the braincase of fossilized skulls) using computed tomography (CT), paleontologists are beginning to understand the neural changes that took place across the dinosaur-bird transition. Most of these studies are focused on the development of flight, …

Uniform Stability In Nonlinear Infinite Delay Volterra Integro-Differential Equations Using Lyapunov Functionals, Youssef Raffoul, Habib Rai

Mathematics Faculty Publications

In [10] the first author used Lyapunov functionals and studied the exponential stability of the zero solution of nite delay Volterra Integro-dierential equation. In this paper, we use modified version of the Lyapunov functional that were used in [10] to obtain criterion for the stability of the zero solution of the infinite delay nonlinear Volterra integro-dierential equation

x′(t) = Px(t) + ^t∫ _−∞ C(t, s)g(x(s))ds.

"One-And-Dones": A Data Science Analysis Of The Impact Of Leaving College Early For The Nba On A Player's Career, Ruth C. Catlett

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

College basketball is a highly popular sport and, in the wake of March Madness, one wonders what will happen to key players next year. The National Basketball Association (NBA) currently restricts players from entering the draft until they are 19. This leads some players to enter college simply as a practice and "waiting area" for the NBA. These players - often termed "one-and-dones" - stay for a year and then at their earliest chance, enter the draft. I wondered if staying in college longer allows NBA-bound players more practice and experience playing under pressure, or if players were better off …

Wrinkled1 Rescues Feedback Inhibition Of Fatty Acid Synthesis In Hydroxylase-Expressing Seeds, Neil D. Adhikari, Philip D. Bates, John Browse

Faculty Publications

Previous attempts at engineering Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) to produce seed oils containing hydroxy fatty acids (HFA) have resulted in low yields of HFA compared with the native castor (Ricinus communis) plant and caused undesirable effects, including reduced total oil content. Recent studies have led to an understanding of problems involved in the accumulation of HFA in oils of transgenic plants, which include metabolic bottlenecks and a decrease in the rate of fatty acid synthesis. Focusing on engineering the triacylglycerol assembly mechanisms led to modest increases in the HFA content of seed oil, but much room for …

Enhancing The Reduction Potential Of Quinones Via Complex Formation, Binod Nepal, Steve Scheiner

Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty Publications

Quantum calculations are used to study the manner in which quinones interact with proton-donating molecules. For neutral donors, a stacked geometry is favored over a H-bond structure. The former is stabilized by charge transfers from the N or O lone pairs to the quinone’s π* orbitals. Following the addition of an electron to the quinone, the radical anion forms strong H-bonded complexes with the various donors. The presence of the donor enhances the electron affinity of the quinone. This enhancement is on the order of 15 kcal/mol for neutral donors, but up to as much as 85 kcal/mol for a …

Impacts Of Environmental Quality On The Demographics Of Three Nations, Emily Hummel

Honors Projects

This study will examine how the correlation between air and water quality and the population demographics of India, South Africa, and the United States. India is a country with a growing population, increasing income inequality, and gender roles that reflect its status as a developing nation. South Africa is much smaller in area and the population is beginning to level off, but South Africa’s income inequality is growing much faster than India’s and gender inequality is less of an issue in South Africa. The population of the United States is decreasing and gender roles are fairly equal, despite income inequality …

Comprehensive Tool For Calculation Of Radiative Fluxes: Illustration Of Shortwave Aerosol Radiative Effect Sensitivities To The Details In Aerosol And Underlying Surface Characteristics, Yevgeny Derimian, Oleg Dubovik, Xin Huang, Tatyana Lapyonok, Pavel Litvinov, Alexander Kostinski, Philippe Dubuisson, Fabrice Ducos

Department of Physics Publications

The evaluation of aerosol radiative effect on broadband hemispherical solar flux is often performed using simplified spectral and directional scattering characteristics of atmospheric aerosol and underlying surface reflectance. In this study we present a rigorous yet fast computational tool that accurately accounts for detailed variability of both spectral and angular scattering properties of aerosol and surface reflectance in calculation of direct aerosol radiative effect. The tool is developed as part of the GRASP (Generalized Retrieval of Aerosol and Surface Properties) project. We use the tool to evaluate instantaneous and daily average radiative efficiencies (radiative effect per unit aerosol optical thickness) …

Studying Solar Limb Darkening In H-Alpha With A Coronado Pst, Jessica N. Farrell, Jennifer Birriel

Celebration of Student Scholarship Poster Sessions Archive

No abstract provided.

Model Behavior: The Mathematics Behind Three-Dimensional Modeling And Animation, Kathryn Duff, Vivian Cyrus

Celebration of Student Scholarship Poster Sessions Archive

No abstract provided.

Progression Magazine, 2016 Spring, Coastal Carolina University

Progression Magazine

Magazine of the College of Science at Coastal Carolina University.

Place Events 2015-2016, Place

PLACE Historical Documents

This document describes PLACE events at Linfield College for 2015-2016.

Phosphonium/Phosphate Ionic Liquids As Lubricant Additives: The Synthesis And Testing Of Six Novel Ils, Matthew Scott Welmers

Graduate Theses - Chemistry and Biochemistry

In this study, ionic liquids (ILs) are defined as ionic materials with a melting temperature >100oC. ILs are characterized by their organic moieties which prevent crystallization, forcing the liquid phase. ILs are desirable as lubricant additives because of their ability to be fine-tuned by varying the identity of the cation/anion as well as the various organic functional moieties therein. Several novel phosphonium/phosphate ILs have been successfully synthesized via a simple, straightforward process. In this work a series of symmetric and asymmetric anionic phosphodiesters are developed and coordinated with two asymmetric alkyl phosphonium cations. These ILs are tested in SAE 10W30 …

Development And Validation Of An Empirical Temperature-Dependent Voltage Model For Diode Laser Characterization, Grant Matthew Brodnik

Graduate Theses - Physics and Optical Engineering

This work investigates the effects of temperature on the operation and performance of indium-phosphide (InP) based high-power broad-area laser (BAL) diodes operating in the eye-safe regime (1.5 μm – 2.0 μm). Low temperature (-80C to 0C) operation using a cryogenically cooled system enables investigation of temperature-dependent parameters such as threshold current, slope efficiency, diode voltage, and power conversion efficiency (PCE) of devices. Building upon established empirical models that describe threshold current and slope efficiency as functions of temperature, a key additional parametric model is developed to describe diode voltage incorporating a temperature dependence. With the inclusion of this temperature-dependent voltage …