Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Time Series Analysis: A New Look At Some Old Problems, Ferebee Tunno

All Dissertations

This dissertation gives a comprehensive report of my doctoral research in time series analysis from summer 2006 to spring 2009. It is comprised of two main efforts: interval estimation for an autoregressive parameter and arc length tests for equivalent ARIMA dynamics. Such problems are traditional in statistics, but three new theorems and several simulations are presented here that help elucidate new ways to handle them.

Constructed Wetland Treatment System: An Approach For Mitigating Risks Of Flue Gas Desulfurization Waters, Derek Eggert

All Dissertations

Federal laws regarding ambient air quality are currently requiring industries to reduce emissions of sulfur dioxides (SO2). Coal-fired power plants have therefore begun implementing flue gas desulfurization (FGD) scrubbers that utilize a highly oxygenated water stream (calcium carbonate saturated water) to transform sulfur gases into soluble anion species (e.g. sulfite and sulfate). This FGD process also transfers potentially toxic constituents including arsenic, cadmium, chemical oxygen demand, copper, mercury, selenium, chloride, sulfates, and zinc into the scrubbing water. These scrubber waters, referred to as FGD waters, present an industrial problem due to the large volumes produced (378,000 to 1,900,000 L/day) and …

Intersections And Representations Of Graphs, John Light

All Dissertations

Given two graphs G and H sharing the same vertex set, the edge-intersection spectrum of G and H is the set of possible
sizes of the intersection of the edge sets of both graphs. For example,
the spectrum of two copies of the cycle C₅ is {0, 2, 3, 5}, and the spectrum of two copies of the star K_1,r is {1, r}. The intersection spectrum was initially studied for designs by Lindner and Fu and others and was originally extended to graphs by Eric Mendelsohn. Several examples are studied, both when G and H are isomorphic and …

On Elliptic Curves, Modular Forms, And The Distribution Of Primes, Ethan Smith

All Dissertations

In this thesis, we present four problems related to elliptic curves, modular forms, the distribution of primes, or some combination of the three. The first chapter surveys the relevant background material necessary for understanding the remainder of the thesis. The four following chapters present our problems of interest and their solutions. In the final chapter, we present our conclusions as well as a few possible directions for future research.
Hurwitz class numbers are known to have connections to many areas of number theory. In particular, they are intimately connected to the theory of binary quadratic forms, the structure of imaginary …

Recovery Of Fathead Minnows (Pimephales Promelas) Following Episodic Copper Exposure: A Biochemical, Physiological, Individual, And Population Perspective, Holly Zahner

All Dissertations

The US EPA utilizes the Biotic Ligand Model (BLM) when developing site-specific water-quality criteria for copper. The BLM was calibrated using toxicity data from fixed duration continuous exposures (48 or 96h LC50). However, exposures of copper in natural aquatic systems typically vary in concentration, duration, and may occur multiple times over the life-span of an organism. Additionally, organisms will experience periods in copper free water, potentially allowing them to detoxify and recover homeostasis. Yet, the BLM framework does not consider brief exposures (<24h), multiple exposures, latent responses, or organism recovery, potentially resulting in an inaccurate assessment of exposure toxicity. A recently proposed physiologically-based addition to the BLM will extend the applicability of the framework to brief, multiple pulse copper exposures. Thus, the overall goal of this research was to characterize the recovery of larval Pimephales promelas following episodic copper exposure at a biochemical, physiological, individual, and population level.
The response of whole-body sodium, whole-body Na+/K+-ATPase, and whole-body carbonic anhydrase in larval P. promleas was quantified …

Fundamental Aspects Of Small Molecules And Macromolecules On Poly(Ethylene Terephthalate) Capillary-Channeled Polymer Fibers, Christine Straut

All Dissertations

Stationary phases and adsorbents are continually being developed to enhance separations in high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Polymeric stationary phases have gained popularity due to their ability to be employed over a large pH range and because they are more chemically robust when compared to silica based phases. Capillary-channeled polymer (C-CP) fibers are an alternative to traditional porous packed bed beads. These fibers have a unique geometry with increased the surface area/volume ratios when compared to cylindrical fibers. Very unique characteristics are realized in the use of the C-CP fibers, including drastically reduced backpressures and selection of solute-surface interaction through …

Investigation Of Photophysical And Photochemical Processes In Conjugated Polymer Nanoparticles By Single Particle And Ensemble Spectroscopy, Craig Szymanski

All Dissertations

Single molecule imaging has emerged as a powerful tool in a range of applications, but the field is limited by a lack of fluorescent probes with sufficient brightness and photostability for many demanding applications such as tracking of single biomolecules in cells and tissues at video rate with 1 nm spatial resolution. Conjugated polymers hold great promise as a solution to these issues, with a high density of π electrons and variety of chemistries, allowing efficient and tunable absorption of light. This dissertation describes the development and characterization of a novel type of nanoparticle composed of conjugated polymer called CPdots. …

Whole Foods: Renewable Energy Credits, Green Business, And Capitalist Approaches To Climate Change, Samantha Kanofsky

Pomona Senior Theses

Dedication. Acknowledgements. Preface. Chapter 1: Introduction. Chapter 2: Green Business and Carbon Offsetting. Chapter 3A: Case Study. Chapter 3B: Interview. Chapter 4: Case Study. Chapter 5: Conclusion. Bibliography.

Ridge Subduction Volcanism In The Zeballos Complex, Southern Patagonian Andes, Michael Joseph Dasilva

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

The Zeballos Complex (47.0°S, 71.4°W) lies on the western side of Meseta del Lago Buenos Aires (MLBA) in the southern Andean backarc region, southeast of the Chile Triple Junction and east of ridge collision that occurred at 6 Ma. The Zeballos Complex is a bimodal, alkaline volcanic complex consisting of multiple lava flows, dikes, volcanic necks, and sub-volcanic intrusives that range from basalt to trachybasalt (47-50% SiO₂; 5-7% Na₂O+K₂O; 3-7% MgO) to highly differentiated trachyandesite, trachydacite, and trachyte (58-65% SiO₂; 8-12% Na₂O+K₂O). Intermediate compositions are relatively rare, but …

A Sedimentary Investigation Of Lineation Patterns Found In The Pinelands Of New Jersey, Jennifer Lynn Lapoma

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Late Pleistocene (-15,000 years ago) geomorphic processes in the Pinelands of southern New Jersey were investigated after odd lineations were found on an Electromagnetic Induction (EMI) survey during the construction of a runway expansion at Lakehurst Naval Air Engineering Station. These lineations roughly matched up with alternating high and low albedo lineations identified on a 1931 aerial photomosaic approximately 17 kilometer (km) south of Lakehurst Navy Base in Davensport Branch, New Jersey. These lineations were initially hypothesized to be relicts from strong katabic winds flowing off the Laurentide Ice Sheet that would have been capable of winnowing magnetic sands from …

Patch Models And Applications On The Spread Of Avian Influenza, Kimberly Rude

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

The avian influenza virus (AIV) is an infectious disease that predominantly affects birds. Economic losses due to large-scale deaths of domestic poultry as a result of past outbreaks have been devastating. Additionally, there is major concern about the spread of the virus to humans. The virus has spread to humans in the past, but has not yet been known to spread beyond one human. Since influenza viruses are known to mutate easily, there is serious concern that the virus could mutate into a strain that can be transmitted easily to and among humans.

There has been much speculation that migratory …

Numerical Studies Of A Nonlinear Heat Equation With Square Root Reaction Term, Ron Buckmire, Karl Mcmurtry, Ronald Mickens

Ron Buckmire

Interest in calculating numerical solutions of a highly nonlinear parabolic partial differential equation with fractional power diffusion and dissipative terms motivated our investigation of a heat equation having a square root nonlinear reaction term. The original equation occurs in the study of plasma behavior in fusion physics. We begin by examining the numerical behavior of the ordinary differential equation obtained by dropping the diffusion term. The results from this simpler case are then used to construct nonstandard finite difference schemes for the partial differential equation. A variety of numerical results are obtained and analyzed, along with a comparison to the …

Paradigms For Non-Classical Substitutions, Lawrence Stout, P. Eklund, M. Galan, J. Kortelainen

Lawrence N. Stout

We will present three paradigms for non-classical substitution. Firstly, we have the classical substitution of variables with terms. This is written in a strict categorical form supporting presentation of the other two paradigms. The second paradigm is substitutions of variables with many-valued sets of terms. These two paradigms are based on functors and monads over the category of sets. The third paradigm is the substitution of many-valued sets of variables with terms over many-valued sets of variables. The latter is based on functors and monads over the category of many-valued sets. This provides a transparency of the underlying categories and …

Simulation Of Ultrashort Laser Pulse Propagation And Plasma Generation In Nonlinear Media. Dissertation, Jeremy Gulley

Jeremy R. Gulley

In this dissertation, a modified nonlinear Schrödinger equation is derived, which describes the propagation of ultrashort laser pulses through nonlinear materials in which plasma generation and laser-induced damage can occur. Differences between this model and models currently used in the literature are investigated and analyzed by numerical simulations. Ultrafast laser-induced material modification is investigated using this method by simulating the propagation of fully 3+1D (3 spatial plus 1 time dimension) laser pulses, which are numerically constructed from experimentally measured beam profiles and pulse shape data. The latest of these investigations reveals that standard rate-equation models for the free-electron plasma generation …

Natural Hazards Education In Australian Schools: How Can We Make It More Effective?, Neil Dufty

Neil Dufty

No abstract provided.

Polarization Variability Arising From Clumps In The Winds Of Wolf-Rayet Stars., Qing-Kang Li, Joseph P. Cassinelli, John C. Brown, Richard Ignace

Richard Ignace

The polarimetric and photometric variability of Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars as caused by clumps in the winds, is revisited. In the model which is improved from Li et al. 2000, the radial expansion of the thickness is accounted for, but we retain the dependence on the beta velocity law, stellar occultation effects. We again search for parameters that can yield results consistent with observations in regards to the mean polarization, the ratio of polarimetric to photometric variability, and the volume filling factor. Clump generation and spatial distribution are randomized by the Monte Carlo method so as to produce clumps which are, …

Regression When The Predictors Are Images, Philip T. Reiss

Philip T. Reiss

No abstract provided.

Co-Evolution Of Super Massive Black Holes And Their Surrounding Galactic Bulges, Joseph Chatelain

Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

An Immune Self-Adaptive Differential Evolution Algorithm With Application To Estimate Kinetic Parameters For Homogeneous Mercury Oxidation, Chunping Hu, Xuefeng Yan

Chunping Hu

A new version of differential evolution (DE) algorithm, in which immune concepts and methods are applied to determine the parameter setting, named immune self-adaptive differential evolution (ISDE), is proposed to improve the performance of the DE algorithm. During the actual operation, ISDE seeks the optimal parameters arising from the evolutionary process, which enable ISDE to alter the algorithm for different optimization problems and improve the performance of ISDE by the control parameters’ self-adaptation. The performance of the proposed method is studied with the use of nine benchmark problems and compared with original DE algorithm and other well-known self-adaptive DE algorithms. …

The Effect Of Draining Forge Pond On The Assonet River

Watershed Access Lab Projects

No abstract provided.

The Effect Of The Waste Water Treatment Plant On The Nemasket River

Watershed Access Lab Projects

What is the effect of the waste water treatment plant on the water quality of the Nemasket River? Students chose three sites to study. These were located at the headwaters near Assawompset Pond, Route 105 (reference site), and Murdock Street (impact site). Murdock Street had a greater expanse of aquatic vegetation both upstream and downstream than the Route 105 site. The treatment plant is located between these two sites and deposits nitrates and phosphates into the river with its effluent. Phosphates are more readily removed from effluent via chemical reactions, while nitrates are more difficult to remove. The plant removes …

Runnins River

Watershed Access Lab Projects

In Fall 2008 all 10th grade Biology II students and their teachers joined the watershed study project initiated by AP Biology students at Seekonk High School. Students traveled to 2 sites along the Runnins River: the Burr’s Pond site and an upstream site at the home of the Masons; to assess the health of the river at these sites. This highly successful venture allowed these students to relate ecological concepts to real, hands on research. Students, with the assistance of Kim McCoy, collected and filtered water grab samples, collected macroinvertebrate samples, took pictures of their classmates activities and of organisms …

Runnins River Project

Watershed Access Lab Projects

In Fall 2008 all 10th grade Biology II students and their teachers joined the watershed study project initiated by AP Biology students at Seekonk High School. Students traveled to 2 sites along the Runnins River: the Burr’s Pond site and an upstream site at the home of the Masons; to assess the health of the river at these sites. This highly successful venture allowed these students to relate ecological concepts to real, hands on research. Students, with the assistance of Kim McCoy, collected and filtered water grab samples, collected macroinvertebrate samples, took pictures of their classmates activities and of organisms …

Burr’S Pond And Runnins River: An Annual Watershed Survey, 2009

Watershed Access Lab Projects

AP Biology students at Seekonk High School are required to complete an independent research project to fulfill the Ecology unit of the course during the summer prior to the course. Students must apply what they learned in their readings to a local ecosystem, Burr’s Pond which is attached to the Runnins River. Students spend time at the pond area during the summer documenting organisms, evidence of population dynamics, animal behavior, trophic levels, nutrient cycling, etc. Students put together a Burr’s Pond Summer Field Research Project Portfolio to be submitted on the first day of school. Student projects are displayed at …

Burrs Pond: Polluted Or Not?

Watershed Access Lab Projects

In Fall 2008 all 10th grade Biology II students and their teachers joined the watershed study project initiated by AP Biology students at Seekonk High School. Students traveled to 2 sites along the Runnins River: the Burr’s Pond site and an upstream site at the home of the Masons; to assess the health of the river at these sites. This highly successful venture allowed these students to relate ecological concepts to real, hands on research. Students, with the assistance of Kim McCoy, collected and filtered water grab samples, collected macroinvertebrate samples, took pictures of their classmates activities and of organisms …

Life In The Runnins River

Watershed Access Lab Projects

In Fall 2008 all 10th grade Biology II students and their teachers joined the watershed study project initiated by AP Biology students at Seekonk High School. Students traveled to 2 sites along the Runnins River: the Burr’s Pond site and an upstream site at the home of the Masons; to assess the health of the river at these sites. This highly successful venture allowed these students to relate ecological concepts to real, hands on research. Students, with the assistance of Kim McCoy, collected and filtered water grab samples, collected macroinvertebrate samples, took pictures of their classmates activities and of organisms …

River Watch 2009

Watershed Access Lab Projects

No abstract provided.

Macroinvertabrate And Water Quality Survey Of Smelt Brook

Watershed Access Lab Projects

No abstract provided.

Parking Lot Discharge Study

Watershed Access Lab Projects

No abstract provided.

Rcms Mi Team Macro-Invertebrate Stream Monitoring

Watershed Access Lab Projects

No abstract provided.