Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Evaluating Hydrology Preservation Of Simplified Terrain Representations, Christopher S. Stuetzle, W. Randolph Franklin, Barbara Cutler

Computer Science Faculty Publications

We present an error metric based on the potential energy of water flow to evaluate the quality of lossy terrain simplification algorithms. Typically, terrain compression algorithms seek to minimize RMS (root mean square) and maximum error. These metrics fail to capture whether a reconstructed terrain preserves the drainage network. A quantitative measurement of how accurately a drainage network captures the hydrology is important for determining the effectiveness of a terrain simplification technique. Having a measurement for testing and comparing different models has the potential to be widely used in numerous applications (flood prevention, erosion measurement, pollutant propagation, etc). In this …

Generalized Neuron Based Secure Media Access Control Protocol For Wireless Sensor Networks, Raghavendra V. Kulkarni, Ganesh K. Venayagamoorthy, Abhishek V. Thakur, Sanjay Kumar Madria

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Security plays a pivotal role in most applications of wireless sensor networks. It is common to find inadequately secure networks confined only to controlled environments. The issue of security in wireless sensor networks is a hot research topic for over a decade. This paper presents a compact generalized neuron (GN) based medium access protocol that renders a CSMA/CD network secure against denial-of-service attacks launched by adversaries. The GN enhances the security by constantly monitoring multiple parameters that reflect the possibility that an attack is launched by an adversary. Particle swarm optimization, a popular bio-inspired evolutionary-like optimization algorithm is used for …

Ohio River Denial As A Transportation Corridor And Its Economic Impacts On The Energy Industry, Caglar Utku Guler

Theses and Dissertations

What if the Ohio River is disrupted or denied partially or completely as a transportation corridor? A disruption may be either a natural or man-made disaster or a planned outage on the river’s lock and dam structures. Recent history is full of water transport disruption events having significant economic effects on the waterside industries. To assess coal-based economic impacts, we developed a network flow model to represent waterside coal-fired power plants situated along the Ohio River, their respective coal supplying mines, and the various transportation modes that connect them. We show that significant transportation-centric insights can be derived by using …

Interpolation Theorems For Self-Adjoint Operators, Shijun Zheng

Department of Mathematical Sciences Faculty Publications

We prove a complex and a real interpolation theorems on Besov spaces and Triebel-Lizorkin spaces associated with a self adjoint operator L, without assuming the gradient estimate for its spectral kernel. The result applies to the cases where L is a uniformly elliptic operator or a Schrödinger operator with electro-magnetic potential.

Moving First Life Into Secondlife: Real World Opportunities For Virtual Teams And Virtual World Project Management, Dawn Owens, Alanah Davis, John D. Murphy, Deepak Khazanchi, Ilze Zigurs

Information Systems and Quantitative Analysis Faculty Publications

Consider a world where you can: conduct training sessions and bring together experts from around the globe in a single, common environment where learning is possible; hold effective meetings in a shared space where distant resources and people can come together to communicate, laugh, and create artifacts quickly and easily; and, coordinate a project with ease and overcome cultural barriers to team effectiveness. These scenarios can be realized with virtual world (VW) technology.

Role Of Forward Model In Surface-Wave Studies To Delineate A Buried High-Velocity Layer, Xiaohui Jin, Barbara Luke, Carlos Calderon-Macias

Civil and Environmental Engineering and Construction Faculty Research

Procedures are tested and compared for processing Rayleigh surface wave data to obtain one-dimensional shear wave velocity profiles for a hypothetical site that contains a buried high-velocity layer (HVL). The main purpose of such an investigation would be to discriminate and characterize the HVL. When target dispersion curves are derived from synthetic time histories, for the most part, the HVL is better identified when profiles are inverted using only the fundamental mode of Rayleigh wave propagation, rather than a more compatible but more complex forward model. The outcomes imply that in practice, a simple forward model might be more successful …

The Prevalence And Determinants Of Health Risk Behaviors Among High School Students In Mexico, Nellie León

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that despite health promotion efforts, adolescents continue to engage in behaviors that put them at risk for morbidity and mortality. Alcohol consumption, illicit drug use, smoking, and risky sexual behaviors are among the behaviors that contribute to leading causes of morbidity and mortality in youth; these four behaviors were explored in this study. An observational cross-sectional design was utilized. The Youth Risk Behavior Survey from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was utilized to assess the prevalence of the four risk behaviors among high school students in Jalisco, Mexico. Items constructed …

Synthesis And Evaluation Of Lanthanide Ion Dota-Tetraamide Complexes Bearing Peripheral Hydroxyl Groups, Azhar Pasha, Mai Lin, Gyula Tircso, Cynthia L. Rostollan, Mark Woods, Garry Kiefer, A. Dean Sherry, Xiankai Sun

Chemistry Faculty Publications and Presentations

The use of lanthanide-based contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging has become an integral component of this important diagnostic modality. These inert chelates typically possess high thermodynamic stability constants that serve as a predictor for in vivo stability and low toxicity. Recently, a new class of contrast agents was reported having a significantly lower degree of thermodynamic stability while exhibiting biodistribution profiles indicative of high stability under biological conditions. These observations are suggestive that the nature of contrast agent stability is also dependent upon the kinetics of complex dissociation, a feature of potential importance when contemplating the design of new …

Enhanced Capacitative Calcium Entry And Sarcoplasmic-Reticulum Calcium Storage Capacity With Advanced Age In Murine Mesenteric Arterial Smooth Muscle Cells, John N. Buchholz, Sean M. Wilson, Ravi Goyal, Gregory D. Smith

Arts & Sciences Articles

Intracellular Ca(2+) signaling is important to perfusion pressure related arterial reactivity and to vascular disorders including hypertension, angina and ischemic stroke. We have recently shown that advancing-age leads to calcium signaling adaptations in mesenteric arterial myocytes from C57 BL/6 mice [Corsso, C.D., Ostrovskaya. O., McAllister, C.E., Murray, K., Hatton, W.J., Gurney, A.M., Spencer, N.J., Wilson, S.M., 2006. Effects of aging on Ca(2+) signaling in murine mesenteric arterial smooth muscle cells. Mech. Ageing Dev. 127, 315-323)] which may contribute to decrements in perfusion pressure related arterial contractility others have shown occur. Even still, the mechanisms underlying the changes in Ca(2+) signaling …

“Humanoid Robot” “Programming Of Movement Patterns” “Humanoid - Bioloid”, Faton Bekteshi

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis was developed in collaboration with Univ.Prof.Dipl.-Ing.Dr.Dr.h.c.mult. Peter Kopacek and Msc. Artan Dermaku and boosted the creation of the Humanoid Robotics Laboratory of UBT, at University for Business and Technology in Prishtina. ( http://www.ubt-uni.net/ ).

The main objective of the Humanoid Robot, for the time being, is to develop a

humanoid robot able to make complex motions like walking, running and jumping through real-time feedback control techniques.

This exposition presents a Linear Quadratic Regulator (LQR) controller for the simulation and control of the humanoid robot. Also our objective during programming the robot was to make him able improving military …

Nutrient And Fecal Microbe Sources For A Eutrophic Lake And Recommended Remediation Steps, Wilgreen Lake, Madison County, Kentucky, Walter S. Borowski, Theresa A. Aguiar, Jill Hunter, Erin C. Jolly, Richard D. Stockwell

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Wilgreen Lake is a man-made lake, classified as nutrient-impaired (303d list) by the EPA and State of Kentucky. The lake drains a watershed with residential developments, cattle pasture, modified woodlands, and some industrial/urban usage in the city of Richmond. The principal tributaries are Taylor Fork and Old Town Branch that meet to form the trunk of the lake approximately one mile in length. The upper reaches of Taylor Fork are adjacent to a densely-packed (quarter-acre lots) housing development with septic systems, and its watershed drains some portions of southern Richmond. Old Town Branch drains cattle pasture and residential areas of …

Assessment Of Methylthioadenosine/S-Adenosylhomocysteine Nucleosidases Of Borrelia Burgdorferi As Targets For Novel Antimicrobials Using A Novel High-Throughput Method, Kenneth Cornell, Shekerah Primus, Jorge A. Martinez, Nikhat Parveen

Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background: Lyme disease is the most prevalent tick-borne disease in the USA with the highest number of cases (27444 patients) reported by CDC in the year 2007, representing an unprecedented 37% increase from the previous year. The haematogenous spread of Borrelia burgdorferi to various tissues results in multisystemic disease affecting the heart, joints, skin, musculoskeletal and nervous system of the patients.

Objectives: Although Lyme disease can be effectively treated with doxycycline, amoxicillin and cefuroxime axetil, discovery of novel drugs will benefit the patients intolerant to these drugs and potentially those suffering from chronic Lyme disease that is refractory to these …

Wayne E. Sabbe Arkansas Soil Fertility Studies 2008, Nathan A. Slaton

Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Series

Rapid technological changes in crop management and production require that the research efforts also be presented in an expeditious manner. The contributions of soil fertility and fertilizers are major production factors in all Arkansas crops. The studies described within will allow producers to compare their practices with the university’s research efforts.

Electronic Commerce Research And Applications Ecra Co-Editors' Introduction For Volume 8, Issue 2, March - April 2009, Robert J. Kauffman, Patrick Y. K. Chau, Terry R. Payne, J. Christopher Westland

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Many efforts are occurring around the world to improve supply chain performance to best-practice levels to improve the profitability of manufacturing and service firms. As a result, there is great interest among industry leaders and academic researchers to find ways to coordinate and streamline all of the activities in the supply procurement process as a basis for cost management, managed quality, and strategic competitiveness. With the Internet, the possibility of implementing many innovative new approaches to procurement has driven firms to want much higher performance than they currently seem to be able to achieve. Some of the innovations include dynamic …

Coesite In Eclogite From The North Qaidam Mountains And Its Implications, Jian-Xin Zhang, Fan-Cong Meng, Jin-Ping Li, Chris G. Mattinson

All Faculty Scholarship for the College of the Sciences

Coesite provides direct evidence for ultrahigh pressure metamorphism. Although coesite has been found as inclusions in zircon in paragneiss of the north Qaidam Mountains, it has never been identified in eclogite. In this contribution, based on petrographic observations and in situ Raman microprobe spectroscopy, coesite was identified as inclusions in garnet of eclogite from the Aercituoshan, Dulan UHP metamorphic unit, north Qaidam Mountains. Coesite is partly replaced by quartz, showing a palisade texture. This is the first report on coesite in eclogite from the north Qaidam Mountains, and is also supported by garnet-omphacite-phengite geothermobarometry (2.7–3.25 GPa, 670–730°C). Coesite and its …

Web Query Recommendation Via Sequential Query Prediction, Qi He, Daxin Jiang, Zhen Liao, Steven C. H. Hoi, Kuiyu Chang, Ee Peng Lim, Hang Li

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Web query recommendation has long been considered a key feature of search engines. Building a good Web query recommendation system, however, is very difficult due to the fundamental challenge of predicting users' search intent, especially given the limited user context information. In this paper, we propose a novel "sequential query prediction" approach that tries to grasp a user's search intent based on his/her past query sequence and its resemblance to historical query sequence models mined from massive search engine logs. Different query sequence models were examined, including the naive variable length N-gram model, Variable Memory Markov (VMM) model, and our …

Fast Object Search On Road Networks, Ken C. K. Lee, Wang-Chien Lee, Baihua Zheng

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

In this paper, we present ROAD, a general framework to evaluate Location-Dependent Spatial Queries (LDSQ)s that searches for spatial objects on road networks. By exploiting search space pruning technique and providing a dynamic object mapping mechanism, ROAD is very efficient and flexible for various types of queries, namely, range search and nearest neighbor search, on objects over large-scale networks. ROAD is named after its two components, namely, Route Overlay and Association Directory, designed to address the network traversal and object access aspects of the framework. In ROAD, a large road network is organized as a hierarchy of interconnected regional sub-networks …

House Of Cards, M. Thulasidas

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

We are in dire straits - no doubt about it. Our banks and financial edifices are collapsing. Those left standing also look shaky. The financial industry as a whole is battling to survive. And, as its frontline warriors, we will bear the brunt of the blood- bath sure to ensue any minute now. A good opportunity to play solitaire?

Visual Word Proximity And Linguistics For Semantic Video Indexing And Near-Duplicate Retrieval, Yu-Gang Jiang, Chong-Wah Ngo

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Bag-of-visual-words (BoW) has recently become a popular representation to describe video and image content. Most existing approaches, nevertheless, neglect inter-word relatedness and measure similarity by bin-to-bin comparison of visual words in histograms. In this paper, we explore the linguistic and ontological aspects of visual words for video analysis. Two approaches, soft-weighting and constraint-based earth mover’s distance (CEMD), are proposed to model different aspects of visual word linguistics and proximity. In soft-weighting, visual words are cleverly weighted such that the linguistic meaning of words is taken into account for bin-to-bin histogram comparison. In CEMD, a cross-bin matching algorithm is formulated such …

Scattering Polarization Due To Light Source Anisotropy Ii. Envelope Of Arbitrary Shape., Richard Ignace, M. Al-Malki, J. Simmons, J. Brown, D. Clarke, J. Carson

ETSU Faculty Works

Aims. We consider the polarization arising from scattering in an envelope illuminated by a central anisotropic source. This work extends the theory introduced in a previous paper (Al-Malki et al. 1999) in which scattering polarization from a spherically symmetric envelope illuminated by an anisotropic point source was considered. Here we generalize to account for the more realistic expectation of a non-spherical envelope shape. Methods. Spherical harmonics are used to describe both the light source anisotropy and the envelope density distribution functions of the scattering particles. This framework demonstrates how the net resultant polarization arises from a superposition of three basic …

Rural Communities And Awareness Of Doe Environmental Management Programs At The Nevada Test Site: Do Outreach Efforts Matter?, Helen R. Neill, K. K. Snyder, Janet Ward

Public Policy and Leadership Faculty Publications

Are residents living in communities around the Nevada Test Site aware of environmental remediation activities and do outreach efforts contribute to awareness? Through a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) grant, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas administered a mail questionnaire to 14,083 residents and received 1,721 responses. Approximately 90% of the respondents reported awareness of past nuclear tests at the Nevada Test Site; 63% reported awareness of low-level radioactive waste disposal at the site; and 41% are aware that the Yucca Mountain Project for high level waste disposal is part of the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management and not …

Characteristics Of Convective Sources Of Gravity Waves And Sprites Present In Satellite Ir Images During The Spreadfex 2005 Campaign, F. T. São Sabbas, V. T. Rampinelli, J. Santiago, P. Stamus, S. L. Vadas, D. C. Fritts, Michael J. Taylor, Pierre-Dominique Pautet, G. Dolif Neto, O. Pinto

All Physics Faculty Publications

We developed a technique to identify and estimate the size, intensity, and Tropopause overshoot of thunderstorm convective cores expected to be significant sources of gravity waves. The work was based on GOES IR images of South America on the night of 30 September to 1 October and 25–26 October 2005, as part of the Spread F Experiment (SpreadFEx) in Brazil in 2005. We also characterized, for the first time, the convective activity of three small TLE producing thunderstorms that yielded 11 TLEs on 25–26 October 2005. The campaign occurred during the dry to wet season transition in central Brazil, marked …

Quiet Variability Of Equatorial E × B Drifts During A Sudden Stratospheric Warning Event, J. L. Chau, Bela G. Fejer, L. P. Goncharenko

Bela G. Fejer

[1] We present strong evidence that during the January 2008 minor sudden stratospheric warming (SSW) event, the equatorial vertical E × B drifts exhibit a unique and distinctive daytime pattern. We do not think one event causes the other, however both events might be related through the global effects of planetary waves. The drifts were measured by the Jicamarca Incoherent scatter radar located under the magnetic equator. We have observed an anomalous temporal variation of the vertical E × B drifts during the minor SSW event, showing a semidiurnal variation with very large amplitudes lasting for several days. Large differences …

Server-Assisted Context-Dependent Pervasive Wellness Monitoring, Archan Misra, Ben Falchuk, Shoshana Loeb

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Recent research on remote health monitoring solutions has focused largely on developing context-dependent, streamprocessing capabilities on a personal mobile hub (typically, a cellphone) for energy-efficient transmission of data collected from a set of body-worn medical sensors. In this paper, we argue that commercial deployment of such pervasive wellness monitoring will require the extension of such ‘context dependency’ to the process of data collection (from the sensors to the mobile device) as well. In particular, the utilization of an individuals non-medical activity context, by the cellphone, in coordination with a backend server, is posited to be the key to supporting important …

Discovery Of X-Ray Emission From The Wolf-Rayet Star Wr 142 Of Oxygen Subtype., L. Oskinova, W.-R. Hamann, A. Feldmeier, Richard Ignace, Y.-H. Chu

ETSU Faculty Works

We report the discovery of weak yet hard X-ray emission from the Wolf-Rayet (WR) star WR 142 with the XMM-Newton X-ray telescope. Being of spectral subtype WO2, WR 142 is a massive star in a very advanced evolutionary stage shortly before its explosion as a supernova or gamma-ray burst. This is the first detection of X-ray emission from a WO-type star. We rule out any serendipitous X-ray sources within approximate to 1 '' of WR 142. WR 142 has an X-ray luminosity of L(X) approximate to 7 x 10(30) erg s(-1), which constitutes only less than or similar to 10(-8) …

Dynamical And Precipitation Structures Of Poleward-Moving Tropical Cyclones In Eastern Canada, 1979-2005, Shawn M. Milrad, Eyad H. Atallah, John R. Gyakum

Publications

Tropical cyclones in the western North Atlantic basin are a persistent threat to human interests along the east coast of North America. Occurring mainly during the late summer and early autumn, these storms often cause strong winds and extreme rainfall and can have a large impact on the weather of eastern Canada. From 1979 to 2005, 40 named (by the National Hurricane Center) tropical cyclones tracked over eastern Canada. Based on the time tendency of the low-level (850–700 hPa) vorticity, the storms are partitioned into two groups: ‘‘intensifying’’ and ‘‘decaying.’’ The 16 intensifying and 12 decaying cases are then analyzed …

All-Sky Ligo Search For Periodic Gravitational Waves In The Early Fifth-Science-Run Data, Benjamin P. Abbott, Marco Cavaglia, For Full List Of Authors, See Publisher's Website.

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

We report on an all-sky search with the LIGO detectors for periodic gravitational waves in the frequency range 50-1100Hz and with the frequency's time derivative in the range -5x10^-9-0Hzs^-1. Data from the first eight months of the fifth LIGO science run (S5) have been used in this search, which is based on a semicoherent method (PowerFlux) of summing strain power. Observing no evidence of periodic gravitational radiation, we report 95% confidence-level upper limits on radiation emitted by any unknown isolated rotating neutron stars within the search range. Strain limits below 10^-24 are obtained over a …

Evaluation Of Performance Of A Maximum Likelihood Estimator For Tracking Purposes In The Presence Of Speckle Noise, Adrian Brett Monz

Theses and Dissertations

In many cases, optical tracking systems do not have cooperative beacons avail- able. This is particularly true for the case involving tracking a laser illuminated target such as a missile seeker head, where the object of interest is an extended source. Furthermore the extended source is often observed in the presence of noise such as shot and speckle noise as well as atmospheric turbulence which further degrades the signal. This research effort presents the evaluation of an existing algorithm based on the maximum-likelihood technique for tilt estimation in the presence of extended sources and speckle noise, with particular application to …

White-Tailed Deer Browsing And Rubbing Preferences For Trees And Shrubs That Produce Nontimber Forest Products, Scott E. Hygnstrom, Peter D. Skelton, Scott J. Josiah, Jason M. Gilsdorf, Dallas R. Virchow, James A. Brandle, Anil K. Jayaprakash, Kent M. Eskridge, Kurt C. Vercauteren

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Nontimber forest products (food, herbal medicinals, and woody floral and handicraft products) produced in forest, agroforestry, and horticultural systems can be important sources of income to landowners. White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) can reduce the quality, quantity, and profitability of forest products by browsing twigs and rubbing stems, resulting in direct and indirect losses to production enterprises. We evaluated deer damage (frequency and intensity of browsing and rubbing) sustained by 26 species of trees and shrubs, the relationships among morphological features of trees and shrubs to damage levels, and the economic impacts of deer damage on the production of …

From The Editor, James Manasco

Sci-Tech News

No abstract provided.