Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Theoretical Expressivity Of Self-Attention As A Model Of Binary Sequence-To-Sequence Functions And Other Explorations, Dustin Angerhofer

Theses and Dissertations

The self-attention mechanism lies at the heart of modern sequential modeling with deep neural networks, especially in the context of Large Language Models (LLMs). The basic role of self-attention is to capture pairwise interactions between tokens in a sequence. This allows token embeddings to be endowed with context-dependent information before further processing. Despite its widespread use, our theoretical understanding of self-attention is still nascent. In this work, we examine self-attention as a model of binary sequence-to-sequence (seq2seq) functions, which is the simplest non-trivial case to analyze. We find, using VC dimension and the Sauer-Shelah lemma, that in the limit of …

The Lookahead Transformer, Justin P. Olcott

Theses and Dissertations

Large Language Models (LLMs) are transformer models that generate text autoregressively in two stages: prefill and decode. The prefill stage processes all input tokens in parallel and caches them into the KV cache. The decode stage uses the KV cache, processes a single token at a time, and is generally memory-bandwidth constrained. Each decode step generates a token probability distribution, samples from it, appends the token to the cache, and repeats. This left-to-right, one-at-a-time generation paradigm has proven effective for language modeling in many domains; however, it also has limitations such as token permanence, constant compute per token generation, constant …

The Synthesis And Evaluation Of Thioxothiazolidin-4-One Compounds As Pim Kinase Inhibitors, Kelly Malzewski

Master's Theses (2009 -)

The Proviral integration site for Moloney Murine Leukemia virus (PIM) kinases belongs to the family of serine/threonine kinases consisting of three isoforms; PIM1, PIM2, PIM3. PIM kinase is involved in multiple cellular processes through the phosphorylation of several proteins within the JAK/STAT pathway, leading to cell proliferation, apoptosis inhibition, cell migration, transcription, and energy metabolism. However, disruption or overexpression of PIM within the cycle can have negative, tumorigenesis effects with increased fatality rates. Currently, there are no FDA approved PIM kinase inhibitors available for specific cancer target therapies, despite the growing need and high demand research interests. It is widely …

Detection Of The Presence And Growth Of E. Coli Bacteria In A Droplet-Based Microfluidic System Using Laser Induced Fluorescence, Oshira Peiris

Theses and Dissertations

Antimicrobial resistance is a biomedical event, wherein an infectious microbe becomes non-responsive to the dosage of a particular antibiotic due to previous overuse or overexposure. Currently, agar plate disc diffusion is used as the gold standard for detecting antimicrobial resistance. The possibility of miniaturizing and speeding up detection techniques for antimicrobial resistance is investigated in this thesis. Microfabrication techniques were used in developing two droplet microfluidic systems interfaced with laser induced fluorescence detection. Microfluidic devices were manufactured with different droplet generating geometries using poly-dimethyl siloxane, soft lithography and hydrophobic surface treatment. The microfluidic devices were tested for droplet quality using …

Bass Numbers Of Veronese Submodules And Lifting The Frobenius Trace, Taylor Jeffrey Murray

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

The first part of this thesis is inspired by the works of G. Lyubeznik, C. Hunkeke, R. Sharp, and L. Núñez-Betancourt on Bass numbers, associated primes, and injective dimension of local cohomology modules. In particular, we study the question: how do Bass numbers behave under the Veronese functors? We show for a positive integer n, a reasonably nice, graded, finitely generated algebra over field R, and a graded module M, that if the Bass numbers of M are finite over R, then so are the Bass numbers of Mⁿ/Rⁿ; this recovers …

Model Unification: A Systematic Approach For The Cluster Expansion, Kolten Barfuss

Theses and Dissertations

A systematic approach for model unification of cluster expansion models is developed and demonstrated. The method builds on previous work with the Manifold Boundary Approximation Method (MBAM) to identify supremal models. The work is motivated by the exercise of unifying cluster expansion models – characterized by Π matrices – for two binary alloys that share one atomic species to form a model for the ternary alloy. The result is the Supremal Π Algorithm, a systematic unification algorithm that relies on an MBAM-informed understanding of models and on the singular value decomposition. The algorithm yields ΠΛ, a Π matrix for the …

Development And Flight Of Stratospheric Missions For Hard X-Ray Polarimetry And Hard X-Ray Spectroscopy, Ephraim Gau

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

The recent launches of the {\it Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer} ({\it IXPE}\,) and {\it XRISM} have provided significant advances to the realms of polarization and high-resolution spectroscopy in X-ray astrophysics. However, both of these satellite missions conduct measurements in the soft X-rays, below 10 keV. To obtain a complete picture of any astrophysical source, we must extend these capabilities to the hard X-rays, above 10 keV, as well. Thus, in my graduate work, I have directed my efforts in these two regimes: measuring the polarization of hard X-rays with {\it XL-Calibur}, and improving the energy resolution of hard X-ray telescopes …

Some Closure On The Relation Between Cfg And Peg, Nathan J. Bulloch

Theses and Dissertations

We work toward a practical, unified language formalism for structurally recursive languages by expressing the mathematical theories underlying context-free grammars with lookahead (CFGLA) in the Rocq theorem prover and leveraging CFGLA semantics to analyze interactions between between recursion and negative lookahead. We give examples of grammars with left-recursive negation cycles for the parsing expression grammar (PEG) variant due to Medeiros et al. and for the translation from PEG to CFGLA due to Miyazaki and Minamide. To study the interaction between left recursion and negative lookahead in a PEG context, we introduce FPEG, a left-recursive extension of PEG with Fitting semantics.

Revised Draft Final Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit (Bpsou) Unreclaimed (Ur) Sites New And Mahoney (Ur-23) Construction Completion Report (Ccr), Pioneer Technical Services, Inc.

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

Revised Draft Final Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit (Bpsou) Unreclaimed (Ur) Sites New And Mahoney (Ur-23) Construction Completion Report (Ccr), Pioneer Technical Services, Inc.

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

Cohomological Support Varieties Along Ring Maps, Ryan Watson

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Inspired by Quillen’s geometric approach to study group cohomology, Avramov introduced the theory of support varieties to study finite modules over local complete intersection rings. Geometric properties of the variety encode important homological information, and this theory has been a useful tool in studying complete intersection rings leading to many advances in local commutative algebra. By the work of several authors, this theory has now been expanded to encompass any noetherian local ring. Notably, Pollitz developed the theory of cohomological support varieties over Koszul complexes and used them to answer a question of Dwyer, Greenlees, and Iyengar regarding the structure …

Histopathology Image Classification Using Machine Learning, Mohammed H. Alali

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Histopathology image classification is a critical component of cancer diagnosis. However, the gigapixel scale of Whole-Slide Images (WSIs) and the high variability in tissue staining and scanner quality across medical centers present significant computational challenges. This dissertation proposes a comprehensive machine learning framework to address these challenges, bridging the gap between theoretical models and practical clinical deployment.

First, to manage the massive dimensionality and noise inherent in WSIs, this research develops a robust feature extraction methodology. The pipeline implements a stringent tile filtering technique to eliminate physical artifacts and resolve severe class imbalances. It integrates ConvNeXt alongside an attention-based pooling …

Robust Thermodynamic Analysis Of Flexible Protein-Ligand Binding Using Statistical Mechanics, Mitchell Dulaney

Create@State

Understanding how proteins bind small molecules is essential for accurate computational modeling of biological systems. However, calculating binding free energy (delta G), enthalpy (delta H), and entropy (delta S) becomes unreliable when proteins are flexible, and ligands are between multiple binding positions. This motion causes traditional computational methods to produce inconsistent thermodynamic values.

A computational workflow was implemented that included docking to predict likely binding positions, molecular dynamics simulations to sample how the protein and ligand move over time, and statistical mechanics analysis to calculate thermodynamic quantities. A new theoretical framework was developed and implemented in a custom program to …

Ma(1) Or White Noise?, Orithea Regn, Ferebee Tunno

Create@State

This project provides an over of testing an MA(1) process confidence interval while keeping the margin of error to a minimum, even for small sample sizes.

Synthesizing Fluorescent 3,4-Dihydropyrimidin-2(1h)-Ones Using A One-Pot Synthesis Reaction, John R. Griggs

Create@State

In medical and pharmaceutical practices, Biginelli (3,4-dihydropyrimidin-2(1H)-ones) products have a number of potential uses due to their anticancer and anti-inflammatory properties.  In addition, they are a possible treatment for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). These compounds can be further modified to exhibit fluorescent properties. However, before using them in medicinal studies, it is useful to establish a procedure that can easily be modified and is synthetically accessible to allow for further optimization. The experiment was performed using the Biginelli compounds as a substrate, along with a variety of aromatic aldehydes and acids. After obtaining the products and purifying them with vacuum …

Laser Ablation-Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy Of Yttrium Plasma, Dawn Gipson

Create@State

Laser ablation is a widely used sampling method for elemental chemical analysis. Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) and laser ablation inductively-coupled mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) are the two most common implementations. Application of these techniques is found throughout the sciences, including analysis in archaeological settings, geology, and medical analysis of hard tissue such as teeth or bone. Many applications benefit from the microdestructive nature of the technique. However, the relationship between the laser-ablation crater and the analytical signal is poorly understood. Laser ablation-atomic absorption spectroscopy (LA-AAS) is used in our laboratory to determine the mass of material incorporated into the plasmas in …

Synthesis And Characterization Of Thiazole Derivatives As Potential Antitumor Agents, Kaylee Leddy

Create@State

Melanoma is the 5th most common cancer in both men and women in the USA. It originates in melanocytes, which make the melanin pigment that gives skin its color. While treatable in early stages, melanoma becomes nearly incurable once metastasized. Thiazole derivatives have been recognized in many pharmaceutical classes including anticancer, antimicrobial, antimalarial, anti-tuberculosis, and diuretics. They have long been researched for their natural pharmacological properties and have shown potential to inhibit melanoma cell growth. In this study, catechol-substituted thiazole derivatives were synthesized using the Hantzsch-Thiazole synthesis. A total of 13 novel compounds were made using 2-chlorodihydroxyacetophenone with various catechol-substituted …

Understanding The Relationship Between Morphometric Indices Of The Eleven Point River And Sediment And Nutrient Transport, Karimot Shobowale, Jennifer Bouldin

Create@State

Objective: To evaluate how watershed characteristics impact sediment transport and water quality parameters.

Spatial Computing With The Apple Vision Pro In Minimally Invasive Procedure Simulation: A Randomized Crossover Feasibility Study, Sydney Cooper, Aaron Kyle Jones, Rahul Anil Sheth, Koustav Pal, Bruno Odisio, Mark Blaylock, Shelita Kimble, Justin Bird, David Rice, Daniel Shoenthal, Emil Patel, Vipin Kamath, Sanjay Gupta, Jeffrey Siewerdsen, Joshua Kuban

Advances in Cancer Education and Quality Improvement

Purpose: This study aimed to evaluate the feasibility of wearing the Apple Vision Pro (AVP), a mixed-reality headset that integrates augmented and virtual reality, while performing minimally invasive procedures. While studies have demonstrated that spatial computing technology can improve surgical precision and reduce the risks of surgical complications, to our knowledge, no studies have specifically addressed the impact of the AVP on task performance during simulated image-guided procedures.

Materials and Methods: Thirteen diagnostic and interventional radiology residents performed image-guided central venous catheter placement, thoracentesis, and paracentesis on simulation models. Each participant completed a non-timed practice followed by the procedures once …

Inc3vits Model: A Hybrid Architecture To Accelerate And Reduce Complexity For The Deepvariant Model For Variant Calling, Mustafa Al-Saffar, Sura Z. Al Rashid

Karbala International Journal of Modern Science

Deep learning has revolutionized genomic variant calling, yet the computational cost of current systems continues to limit scalability. We present a controlled efficiency study of DeepVariant-style pileup architectures under identical training and inference conditions, comparing architectural downsizing with a hybrid CNN–local attention design. Inc3ViTs pairs a streamlined InceptionV3 stem with a lightweight local attention head based on patch tokenization and windowed self-attention, enabling a direct comparison with a CNN-only reduced Inception baseline. Across whole-genome and whole-exome short-read datasets, Inc3ViTs reduces training time by ~40–50% and reduces inference runtime relative to the original DeepVariant. The CNN-only baseline indicates that most speedups …

Method For Testing And Evaluating Intelligence Level Of Virtual Forces Based On Operational Experiments, Dayong Liu, Zhiming Dong, Weidong Zhang, Wenjun Zhang, Jiancheng Gao

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: The intelligence level of virtual forces is a key factor affecting the credibility and effectiveness of tactical confrontation simulations. To address the current lack of a testing and evaluation system, a method for testing and evaluating the intelligence level of virtual forces based on operational experiments is proposed. Guided by operational experiment theory, the method stimulates the intelligent behavior of virtual forces by constructing dynamic confrontation environments, and collects, calculates, analyzes, and evaluates their intelligence performance data according to a systematic process. The overall architecture, logical functional modules, and basic evaluation process of the method are designed. A "4M" …

Swosu Research And Scholarly Activity Fair 2026, Swosu Office Of Sponsored Programs

SWOSU Research and Scholarly Activity Fair Programs

On behalf of the University Research and Scholarly Activity Committee (URSAC) and the Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) at Southwestern Oklahoma State University, we are pleased to welcome you to the Thirty-Fourth SWOSU Research and Scholarly Activity Fair.

Signatures Of Vapor Evolution In Turbulent Convection Cells Recorded By K And Rb Isotopes In Chicxulub Impact Spherules, Courtney Jean Rundhaug, Martin Schiller, Martin Bizzarro, Zhengbin Deng, Hermann Dario Bermúdez

Department of Earth and Environmental Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

The Cretaceous–Paleogene boundary (∼66 Ma) records the Chicxulub asteroid impact, a pivotal event in Earth's history that affected much of the Earth's surface. While products of this impact have been widely studied, the thermodynamics of the plume and formation mechanisms of certain impact materials remain unclear. This study investigates conditions within the intermediate fraction of the Chicxulub impact plume (pyrocloud) using K and Rb isotope signatures of Gorgonilla Island impact spherules with published δ25Mg data to trace evaporation and condensation processes during ejecta dispersion. The δ41K and δ87Rb signatures vary from −1.18 ± 0.04‰ to 0.43 ± 0.09‰ and − …

Sustainability, Culture, And Higher Education: An Autoethnographic Sustainability Comparison Of The Sustainability Initiatives At The University Of Salzburg And Bowling Green State University, Madison Alt

Honors Projects

Human activity is already triggering damaging environmental tipping points (Lenton, 2020), emphasizing the need for sustainability in all aspects of development. Institutes of Higher Education (IHEs) have the power and responsibility to contribute to a more sustainable world (Parr et al., 2022). Bowling Green State University (BGSU) in Ohio, United States, and the Paris Lodron University of Salzburg (PLUS) in Salzburg, Austria are two IHEs with multifaceted sustainability programs. While living and studying at BGSU and PLUS, I used autoethnography, a personal narrative approach, combined with public sustainability information to compare the sustainability initiatives at each university, and determine what …

Development Of Cao-Based Heterogeneous Catalysts For The Production Of Palm Oil-Based N-Methyl Diethanolamine Esterquats, Haliza Abdul Aziz

Student Works (2020-2029)

Esterquats are cationic surfactants that are readily biodegradable and exhibit low aquatic toxicity. To produce esterquats via heterogeneous-catalyzed transesterification of methyl ester has become a preferred route to the conventional homogeneous catalysis as the approach can reduce the production cost through catalyst reuse and minimized water footprint through wastewater treatment. Many transesterification reactions catalyzed by pure calcium oxide (CaO) are attributed to its high basicity and it can be derived from a cheap, non-toxic, and environmentally friendly precursor. To enhance the performance and stability of CaO, a series of CaO-based catalysts were synthesized via a wet impregnation method. The catalytic …

Research On Control Of Coaxial Dual-Rotor Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Based On Improved Reaching Law, Xinhang Chen, Xiaodong Ling, Chengchang Lang, Shijun Zheng, Yiqi Tang

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: To address the issues of significant chattering, slow convergence speed, and large overshoot in the control system of a coaxial dual-rotor unmanned aerial vehicle, a control method based on an improved double-power and hyperbolic function integral sliding mode reaching law was proposed. A novel reaching law was designed to achieve fast convergence when the system state is far from the sliding surface and smooth transition when approaching the sliding surface, thereby enhancing the overall convergence speed of the system and ensuring that the system reaches the sliding surface within a finite time. The saturation characteristic of the hyperbolic function …

Designing, Integrating, And Evaluating Blockchain Assignments In The Undergraduate Computer Science Program, Karol Lejmbach

Dissertations (1934 -)

Blockchains as a technology rely heavily on a wide range of computer science topics. These topics include: algorithms, data structures, network communication, cryptography and many more. These topics align nicely with topics often covered in undergraduate computer science course. Blockchain technology offers an interesting opportunity for computer science educa- tors. Blockchains rely heavily on a wide range of computer science topics. These topics include: cryptography, networking, data structures, and algorithms. Many of these top- ics are explored in undergraduate computer science programs either in core or elective classes. This offers an opportunity for teaching students about emerging technologies, such as …

Large Language Model For X Language Simulation: Architecture, Key Technologies, And Typical Applications, Laichunyang Peng, Fei Ye, Xiaoming Guo, Jinglin Zhou

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: General-purpose large language models lack training on X language-specific corpora, and traditional fine-tuning methods lack targeted adaptation to the interdisciplinary integration and multimodule coupling of X language, resulting in problems such as non-standard syntax and semantic deviation in generated code. To address these issues, this paper systematically proposed the definition and integrated architecture of a large language model for X language simulation. Modeling subclasses were defined according to the disciplines and classes of X language, and dedicated adapters were constructed for each subclass. By merging their weights during the inference phase, the incremental integration of multi-domain modeling skills was …

Vehicle Routing Optimization For Underground Mines Considering Fuzzy Demand And Time Tolerance, Guorong Wang, Haishun Deng, Ziming Kou, Xuanxuan Yan, Zhixiang Huang

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: To solve the problem of material demand fluctuation and different time windows in auxiliary transportation of underground mines, a routing optimization method for material distribution considering fuzzy demand and time tolerance was proposed. Based on the fuzzy credibility theory, uncertain demand was constrained by fuzzy chance constraints, and a multi-objective routing optimization model for underground mine auxiliary transportation was constructed with the objectives of minimizing the total operating cost of vehicles and maximizing time tolerance. A multi-objective genetic algorithm with mixed dominance strength was designed to solve the model. By calculating the deviation difference of Pareto frontier solutions, …

Auv Path Planning Integrating Local-Global Strategies In Unknown Environments, Wenlong Meng, Yanbo Pu, Ya Gong

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: Existing path planning algorithms often struggle to efficiently explore and generate high-quality trajectories. To address this issue, this paper proposes a path planning algorithm that integrates local-global strategies. By employing the rolling window technique, the global one-time path planning problem is transformed into an iterative process of multiple local planning stages. During the global exploration phase, the rolling window is used to determine high-level path branches and to identify branch waypoints, thereby refining the calculation of local paths. In the local exploration phase, an improved RRT-Connect algorithm is proposed, which combines adaptive circular sampling with dynamic step length to …