Theory and Algorithms Commons^™

Criticality Assessments For Improving Algorithmic Robustness, Thomas B. Jones

Computer Science ETDs

Though computational models typically assume all program steps execute flawlessly, that does not imply all steps are equally important if a failure should occur. In the "Constrained Reliability Allocation" problem, sufficient resources are guaranteed for operations that prompt eventual program termination on failure, but those operations that only cause output errors are given a limited budget of some vital resource, insufficient to ensure correct operation for each of them.

In this dissertation, I present a novel representation of failures based on a combination of their timing and location combined with criticality assessments---a method used to predict the behavior of systems …

List, Sample, And Count, Ali Assarpour

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Counting plays a fundamental role in many scientific fields including chemistry, physics, mathematics, and computer science. There are two approaches for counting, the first relies on analytical tools to drive closed form expression, while the second takes advantage of the combinatorial nature of the problem to construct an algorithm whose output is the number of structures. There are many algorithmic techniques for counting, they cover the explicit approach of counting by listing to the approximate approach of counting by sampling.

This thesis looks at counting three sets of objects. First, we consider a subclass of boolean functions that are monotone. …

An Algorithmic Approach To Creating Effective Study Groups Using A Smart Phone App, Kelvin J. Rosado-Ayala

Honors College Theses

For many students entering college, meeting new people and studying are a common struggle. Study groups are generally recommended, especially if the groups are comprised of members with complementary personality traits. But the challenge still remains, how do freshmen or transfer students find and form these heterogeneous study groups. In order to help alleviate this issue, an Android application was developed to automatically create study groups for students. Using basic information provided by students upon registration, the algorithm is able to automatically find matching group members. The application was designed using an agile life cycle model over the course of …

The Effect Of Endgame Tablebases On Modern Chess Engines, Christopher D. Peterson

Computer Engineering

Modern chess engines have the ability to augment their evaluation by using massive tables containing billions of positions and their memorized solutions. This report examines the importance of these tables to better understand the circumstances under which they should be used. The analysis conducted in this paper empirically examines differences in size and speed of memorized positions and their impacts on engine strength. Using this technique, situations where memorized tables improve play (and situations where they do not) are discovered.

Funqual: User-Defined, Statically-Checked Call Graph Constraints In C++, Andrew P. Nelson

Master's Theses

Static analysis tools can aid programmers by reporting potential programming mistakes prior to the execution of a program. Funqual is a static analysis tool that reads C++17 code ``in the wild'' and checks that the function call graph follows a set of rules which can be defined by the user. This sort of analysis can help the programmer to avoid errors such as accidentally calling blocking functions in time-sensitive contexts or accidentally allocating memory in heap-sensitive environments. To accomplish this, we create a type system whereby functions can be given user-defined type qualifiers and where users can define their own …

Understanding Natural Keyboard Typing Using Convolutional Neural Networks On Mobile Sensor Data, Travis Siems

Computer Science and Engineering Theses and Dissertations

Mobile phones and other devices with embedded sensors are becoming increasingly ubiquitous. Audio and motion sensor data may be able to detect information that we did not think possible. Some researchers have created models that can predict computer keyboard typing from a nearby mobile device; however, certain limitations to their experiment setup and methods compelled us to be skeptical of the models’ realistic prediction capability. We investigate the possibility of understanding natural keyboard typing from mobile phones by performing a well-designed data collection experiment that encourages natural typing and interactions. This data collection helps capture realistic vulnerabilities of the security …

Logic -> Proof -> Rest, Maxwell Taylor

Senior Independent Study Theses

REST is a common architecture for networked applications. Applications that adhere to the REST constraints enjoy significant scaling advantages over other architectures. But REST is not a panacea for the task of building correct software. Algebraic models of computation, particularly CSP, prove useful to describe the composition of applications using REST. CSP enables us to describe and verify the behavior of RESTful systems. The descriptions of each component can be used independently to verify that a system behaves as expected. This thesis demonstrates and develops CSP methodology to verify the behavior of RESTful applications.