Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Applying Information Visualization To Computer Security Applications, Robert Bruce Whitaker

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This thesis presents two phases of research in applying visualization to network security challenges. The first phase included discovering the most useful and powerful features in existing computer security visualizations and incorporating them into the AdviseAid visualization platform, an existing software package. The incorporation of such a complete feature set required novel resolution of software engineering, human factors, and computer graphics issues. We also designed additional novel features, such as plugin interfaces, allowing for rapid prototyping and experimentation with novel visualization features and capabilities. The second phase of the research focused on the development of novel visualization techniques themselves. These …

Diffusion Monte Carlo Studies Of Quantum Solvation: Finding Nodal Functions Of Wavefunctions Using A Genetic Algorithm, Christina Hansen Howell

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Solvation is important in many chemical reactions since most reactions occur in solution. Recently, progress has been made using helium-4 nanodroplets as the solvent at temperatures close to absolute zero. Because helium-4 is a superfluid it solvates dissolved molecules much differently that does a conventional solvent. This opens up the possibility of performing new types of chemistry in the superfluid environment. However, the nature of the interaction of the dissolved species with the solvent remains poorly understood. The basic question to be answered in this project is: how does the quantum solvent perturb the rotational dynamics of the solute particles? …

Bracketing The Age Of The Great Gallery Rock Art Panel In Horseshoe Canyon, Utah By Osl Dating Of Associated Alluvial Terraces, Melissa S. Jackson

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Barrier Canyon Style rock art (BCS) is a unique rock art style indigenous to the middle Colorado Plateau that is of an unknown age and formed by a combination of wall preparation, rock pecking, and application of multiple pigments. It is characterized by broad-shouldered, mummy-like figures that commonly lack limbs and facial details but are accompanied by animated and realistic representations of animals. The age of BCS art remains unknown in spite of attempts to radiocarbon date accessory brush fibers in the mineral-based pigment. Yet a range of age hypotheses exist, from as young as 1600 AD to as old …

Field And Smog Chamber Studies Of Agricultural Emissions And Reaction Products, Derek J. Price

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Agricultural emissions are an important contributor to atmospheric aerosol. These emissions include nitrogen containing organic compounds, primarily as amines, which have not been well investigated to date. Although there have been several studies that have looked at the emission of gas phase amines, there are only a few studies that have focused on ambient amine-based aerosol. There have also only been a handful of smog chamber studies that have investigated amine aerosol chemistry. Kinetic studies have looked at the reactions of amines with OH and ozone. However, amine reactions with nitrate radical (NO₃) are not well understood. Several …

High-Resolution Holocene Alluvial Chronostratigraphy At Archaeological Sites In Eastern Grand Canyon, Arizona, Erin Margaret Tainer

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Understanding the nature of Colorado River deposits in Grand Canyon helps reveal how the river responds to changes in its Colorado Plateau tributaries and Rocky Mountain headwaters. This study focused on Holocene alluvial deposits associated with archaeological sites excavated near Ninemile Draw in Glen Canyon and at Tanner Bar in eastern Grand Canyon. Two previously-developed conceptual models of deposition were tested based on previous work. Previous researchers have suggested that Holocene alluvial deposits in Grand Canyon are a series of inset aggradational packages that correlate to valley fills and arroyo-cutting cycles in Colorado Plateau tributaries and are laterally consistent throughout …

Hopping Conductivity And Charge Transport In Low Density Polyethylene, Jerilyn Brunson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The properties and behaviors of charge transport mechanisms in highly insulating polymers are investigated by measuring conduction currents through thin film samples of low density polyethylene (LDPE). Measurements were obtained using a constant voltage method with copper electrodes inside a chamber adapted for measurements under vacuum and over a wide range of temperatures and applied fields. Field-dependent behaviors, including Poole-Frenkel conduction, space charge limited current (SCLC), and Schottky charge injection, were investigated at constant temperature. These field-dependent mechanisms were found to predict incorrect values of the dielectric constant and the field dependence of conductivity in LDPE was not found to …

Intercomparison Of Prism And Daymet Temperature Interpolation From 1980 To 2003, Rebecca A. Scully

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

As ecosystem modeling becomes increasingly integrated with Geographic Information Systems (GIS) there is a rise in demand for spatially and temporally continuous meteorological data. But in order to justify management decisions or to provide robust scientific insights, the accuracy of meteorological data used as model input must be thoroughly quantified. Current methods to create spatially continuous climate data from discrete weather station data include inverse distance weighting, geostatistical techniques such as kriging and splines, local regression models such as Parameter-Elevation Regression on Independent Slope Model (PRISM) and Daymet, and regional regression models. For the conterminous United States, PRISM and Daymet …

Ecology And Seasonal Habitat Use Patterns Of Columbian Sharp-Tailed Grouse In Northern Utah, Ron D. Greer

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Columbian sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus: hereafter sharp-tailed grouse) populations have been declining. These declines have been attributed to a number of factors, including habitat loss due to agriculture, habitat fragmentation, overgrazing by livestock, and the loss to fire.

To gather information about their status in northern Utah, I radio-marked sharp-tailed grouse in 2003 (n=15) and 2004 (n=20) in two research areas. The study areas were located on the south end of Cache County and in eastern Box Elder County. In the Cache study area, I monitored 7 males and 1 female in 2003, and 6 males and …

Computer-Aided Detection Of Breast Cancer Using Ultrasound Images, Yanhui Guo

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Ultrasound imaging suffers from severe speckle noise. We propose a novel approach for speckle reduction using 2D homogeneity and directional average filters to remove speckle noise. We transform speckle noise into additive noise using a logarithm transformation. Texture information is employed to describe the speckle characteristics of the image. The homogeneity value is defined using texture information value, and the ultrasound image is transformed into a homogeneity domain from the gray domain. If the homogeneity value is high, the region is homogenous and has less speckle noise. Otherwise, the region is nonhomogenous, and speckle noise occurs. The threshold value is …

Critique Of A Wildlife Habitat Evaluation Method Applied To Residential Open Space, Sarah Rigard

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

To this date, little research has been done evaluating the quality of wildlife habitat provided by open space in residential areas. Quality wildlife habitat for the purposes of this study is defined as those areas which contain the physical and biological characteristics necessary to support native wildlife species of the region. This thesis critiqued a wildlife habitat assessment method used in a nationwide study of residential open space for the purpose of better understanding the research conducted by the study and to inform similar, future habitat evaluations of landscapes altered by human activity to accommodate residential land use. The methodology …

A Singular-Value-Based Semi-Fragile Watermarking Scheme For Image Content Authentication With Tampering Localization, Xing Xin

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This thesis presents a novel singular-value-based semi-fragile watermarking scheme for image content authentication with tampering localization. The proposed scheme first generates a secured watermark bit sequence by performing a logical "xor" operation on a content-based watermark and content-independent watermark, wherein the content-based watermark is generated by a singular-value-based watermark bit sequence that represents intrinsic algebraic image properties, and the content-independent watermark is generated by a private-key-based random watermark bit sequence. It next embeds the secure watermark in the approximation subband of each non-overlapping 4×4 block using the adaptive quantization method to generate the watermarked image. The image content authentication process …

The Effects Of Spruce Beetle (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) On Fuels And Fire In Intermountain Spruce-Fir Forests, Carl Arik Jorgensen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In spruce-fir forests, there are many biotic and abiotic disturbances that can alter stand structure and composition. Many of these disturbances can produce high percentages of tree mortality at different scales. Spruce beetle has been considered a devastating disturbance agent, capable of creating high levels of mortality that will alter fuel complexes that may affect fire behavior. For comparison, stand data were gathered in endemic (near Loa and Moab, UT), epidemic (near Loa and Fairview, UT), and post-epidemic (near Salina and Loa, UT) condition classes of spruce beetle activity. Generally, fine fuels were higher during the epidemic and returned to …

A Comparative Study To Identify Factors Affecting Adoption Of Soil And Water Conservation Practices Among Smallhold Farmers In The Njoro River Watershed Of Kenya, Steven P. Huckett

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Natural resource conservation is important for human well-being, especially in fragile environments of developing countries. This study occurred in 2006 among 6,500 smallhold farmers residing along a 25-km segment of a heavily utilized river. Research objectives were to determine use and adoption constraints for 14 soil and water conservation practices (SWCPs). Farms were reportedly contributing to a decline in river water quality via soil erosion. Recent occupation of the upper watershed by immigrants magnified concerns that resource degradation could escalate. A multi-method approach incorporating quantitative surveys, qualitative interviews, and participant observation was used to interpret constraining factors within the biophysical …

Goodness-Of-Fit And Change-Point Tests For Functional Data, Robertas Gabrys

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A test for independence and identical distribution of functional observations is proposed in this thesis. To reduce dimension, curves are projected on the most important functional principal components. Then a test statistic based on lagged cross--covariances of the resulting vectors is constructed. We show that this dimension reduction step introduces asymptotically negligible terms, i.e. the projections behave asymptotically as iid vector--valued observations. A complete asymptotic theory based on correlations of random matrices, functional principal component expansions, and Hilbert space techniques is developed. The test statistic has X²-square asymptotic null distribution.

Two inferential tests for error correlation in the …

Pulsed-Laser Excited Photothermal Study Of Glasses And Nanoliter Cylindrical Sample Cell Based On Thermal Lens Spectroscopy, Prakash Raj Joshi

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The research in this dissertation presents Pulsed-Laser Excited photothermal studies of optical glasses and cylindrical sample cell.

First, a study of a photothermal lens experiment and the finite element analysis modeling for commercial colored glass filters is done. The ideal situation of a semiinfinite cylinder approximate model used to describe the photothermal lens experiment requires the boundary condition that there is no transfer of heat from the glass to surrounding when the glass is excited with a laser. The finite element analysis modeling for photothermal signal with coupling heat with surrounding shows the thermal heat transfer between the glass surface …

The Effect Of Explicit Timing On Math Performance Using Interspersal Assignments With Students With Mild/Moderate Disabilities, Fangjuan Hou

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Explicit timing and interspersal assignments have been validated as effective methods to facilitate students' math practice. However, no researchers have explored the combinative effect of these two methods. In Study 1, we extended the literature by comparing the effect of explicit timing with interspersal assignments, and interspersal assignments without timing. Generally, participants' rate of digits correct on easy and hard addition problems was higher during the explicit timing condition than during the untimed condition. However, the participants' rate of digits correct decreased after initial implementation of the explicit timing condition.

Motivation plays a crucial role in maintaining performance levels and …

Examination Of Deformation In Crystalline Rock From Strike-Slip Faults In Two Locations, Southern California, David H. Forand

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Damage zones adjacent to or associated with faults are important to the geologic community because of their implications to hazards and their ability to preserve evidence for, and show history of, slip, fluid flow, and deformation associated with large strike-slip faults. We examine two fault zones in southern California where fault zone damage is expressed. We revisit the drilled crystalline core from the Cajon Pass California drill hole, 4 km northeast of the San Andreas fault (SAF), and 1 km north of the Cleghorn fault, to perform a systematic structural analysis of deformation and alteration associated with strike-slip faulting at …

Classical Foundations For A Quantum Theory Of Time In A Two-Dimensional Spacetime, Nathan Thomas Carruth

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

We consider the set of all spacelike embeddings of the circle S1 into a spacetime R1 × S1 with a metric globally conformal to the Minkowski metric. We identify this set and the group of conformal isometries of this spacetime as quotients of semidirect products involving diffeomorphism groups and give a transitive action of the conformal group on the set of spacelike embeddings. We provide results showing that the group of conformal isometries is a topological group and that its action on the set of spacelike embeddings is continuous. Finally, we point out some directions for future research.

Library Synthesis Of Anticancer And Antibacterial Agents Via Azide Chemistry, Jianjun Zhang

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Various anticancer and antibacterial agents have been synthesized via azide chemistry by taking advantage of carbohydrate. Starting from the synthesis of 14 glycosyl azides, a library of carbohydrate-oxazolidinone conjugates and a library of carbohydrate-cyclopamine conjugates with biological interests were synthesized based on a highly efficient "click reaction" assisted by sonication. Some of the conjugates have improved solubility and enhanced anticancer activity.

A library of neomycin B derivatives with various modifications at the 5" position has been synthesized. Two leads exhibit prominent activity against both methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE). Antibacterial activities were measured when combined with other …

Dancing With Heretics: Essays On Orthodoxy, Questioning And Faith, Darren M. Edwards

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

While much has been written about the conflicts, supposed or actual, between logic and faith, science and religion, few accounts of the personal turmoil these conflicts can cause exist. Likewise, many of these nonfiction accounts are written from a distinctly polarized place leaning either to science or faith.

In this thesis, I mix research and history with memoir and a sense of poetry to explore my personal experience with this conflict. At its outset, I hoped for this project to capture my struggle as an orthodox member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) in dealing with …

Planning For Closure Of The Logan City/Cache County Landfill And Surrounding Landscape, Kristofor Lee Kvarfordt

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Planning for closure requires in depth analysis into many operational, environmental, and social factors. Ideally, the planning process should resolve as many of the technical, social, and aesthetic requirements as possible by systematically addressing the various elements that influence the final design. This research identified the significant issues related to planning for the end use of the current Logan landfill after it reaches capacity in 18-20 years and the associated lagoons and wetlands. The current closure plan calls for simply recontouring the landfill to stabilize the slopes, then revegetating. The location of the site has serious implications for environmental impact …

Investigating Small-Scale Dynamical Features In The Mesopause Region, Deepak B. Simkhada

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Utilizing analyses of observational data, we performed a detailed study to investigate short-period atmospheric gravity waves and ripples, and instabilities in the mesopause region. Recent coordinated measurements from Haleakala Observatory, Maui, HI via airglow wave imaging, meteor wind radar, and Na wind temperature lidar have provided a unique dataset for this study. Gravity waves generated in the lower atmosphere propagate energy upwards into the mesosphere and lower thermosphere region where they modulate the airglow emissions, and later break and deposit their momentum, causing significant perturbations in winds and temperatures. Ripples, on the other hand, are likely generated by localized shear …

Random Forests Applied As A Soil Spatial Predictive Model In Arid Utah, Alexander Knell Stum

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Initial soil surveys are incomplete for large tracts of public land in the western USA. Digital soil mapping offers a quantitative approach as an alternative to traditional soil mapping. I sought to predict soil classes across an arid to semiarid watershed of western Utah by applying random forests (RF) and using environmental covariates derived from Landsat 7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) and digital elevation models (DEM). Random forests are similar to classification and regression trees (CART). However, RF is doubly random. Many (e.g., 500) weak trees are grown (trained) independently because each tree is trained with a new randomly …

Evapotranspiration Of Kentucky Bluegrass, Lynda L. Fenton

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Rapid population growth in arid regions of the western US is placing increased demand on water resources. Variability in precipitation and common occurrence of drought have promoted scrutiny of water use in urban lawns and gardens. However, few reliable measurements of water use of these landscapes exist. Quantifying the amount of water used vs. required by landscapes such as turfgrass would allow significant water conservation. Evapotranspiration (ET) is affected by biophysical factors such as: available energy, turbulent mixing, saturation deficit, soil water, and stomatal conductance. In order to simulate the water use by turfgrass, the relative importance of these processes …

Electron-Induced Electron Yields Of Uncharged Insulating Materials, Ryan Carl Hoffmann

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Presented here are electron-induced electron yield measurements from high-resistivity, high-yield materials to support a model for the yield of uncharged insulators. These measurements are made using a low-fluence, pulsed electron beam and charge neutralization to minimize charge accumulation. They show charging induced changes in the total yield, as much as 75%, even for incident electron fluences of <3 fC/mm², when compared to an uncharged yield. The evolution of the yield as charge accumulates in the material is described in terms of electron recapture, based on the extended Chung and Everhart model of the electron emission spectrum and the dual dynamic …

Nutrient Utilization From Anaerobic Digester Effluent Through Algae Cultivation, Shantanu Wahal

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Nutrients present in digested animal waste can be utilized for algae cultivation under suitable conditions. Algal growth, however, depends on the chemical forms and speciation of these nutrients. In this study a chemical equilibrium model was first used to describe nutrient speciation and predict conditions that enhance the solubility of nutrients in anaerobic digester effluent. Dilution with water and separation of large particulates greatly improved nutrient availability and light penetration - conditions favorable for algal cultivation. Algae growth was tested using three strains - Scenedesmus dimorphous (UTEX # 417), Chlorella vulgaris (UTEX# 265), and an algal isolate (designated as LLAI …

Keeping Wetlands Wet: The Human Hydrology Of Wetlands In The Bear River Basin, Rebekah Downard

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This research seeks to understand how wetlands maintain a water supply in the Bear River Basin, where water is generally scarce. Research was conducted through semi-structured interviews with wetland and water experts in the basin and archival research of historical documents and water rights.

The U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service manages three refuges on the Bear River, and has obtained water rights portfolios for each. Holding water rights does not ensure that there will be water available for refuge wetlands. Instead, position in relation to other powerful water users is the most important factor in determining the security of …

Maternal Effects In Transmission Of Self-Medicative Behavior From Mother To Offspring In Sheep, Udita Sanga

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Mammals begin learning food preferences in utero and maternally mediated influences early in life help offspring develop their feeding habits. Mammals also learn by individual experience to ingest medicinal compounds such as polyethylene glycol (PEG), which attenuates the negative post-ingestive effects of tannins, a group of potentially toxic plant secondary compounds. The objective of this study was to investigate the transmission of acquired self-medicative behavior from mother to offspring using polyethylene glycol (PEG) as a medicine to relieve malaise caused by tannins. I hypothesized that: 1) mothers trained to associate the beneficial effects of PEG while consuming tannins will pass …

Generation And Analysis Of Verbal Route Directions For Blind Navigation, John Nicholson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

According to the National Federation of the Blind, there are an estimated 10 million people in the United States who are visually impaired. Of these, 1.3 million are legally blind. Many people with extreme vision loss receive orientation and mobility training in order to help them learn skills that allow them to travel and navigate multiple types of indoor and outdoor environments. Even with this training, a fundamental problem these people face is learning new routes, especially in environments with which they are not familiar. Although the research community has developed a number of localization and navigation aids that are …

A Spatio-Temporal Analysis Of Landscape Change Within The Eastern Terai, India: Linking Grassland And Forest Loss To Change In River Course And Land Use, Tanushree Biswas

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Land degradation is one of the most important drivers of landscape change around the globe. This dissertation examines land use-land cover change within a mosaic landscape in Eastern Terai, India, and shows evidence of anthropogenic factors contributing to landscape change. Land use and land cover change were examined within the Alipurduar Subdivision, a representative of the Eastern Terai landscape and the Jaldapara Wildlife Sanctuary, a protected area nested within Alipurduar through the use of multi-temporal satellite data over the past 28 years (1978 – 2006).

This study establishes the potential of remote sensing technology to identify the drivers of landscape …