Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Evaluation Of The Temperature And Time Dependence Of Electrostatic Breakdown, Charlie Sim

Senior Theses and Projects

The goal of this research was to investigate temperature and time dependent models for the electrostatic breakdown of polymeric spacecraft insulators. Temperature dependent breakdown was found by inducing an electrostatic breakdown in the prototypical polymer Low Density Polyethylene (LDPE) at various temperatures. Time dependent breakdown was found by applying a static voltage to LDPE and measuring the time to electrostatic breakdown. No significant temperature dependence of the electrostatic breakdown of LDPE was observed in a temperature range of 150 K to 300 K. The time dependent results show that the time to electrostatic breakdown is modeled by a negative logarithmic …

Coupled Deformation And Metamorphism, Fabric Development, Rheological Evolution And Strain Localization, Scott E. Johnson

University of Maine Office of Research Administration: Grant Reports

When Earth's tectonic plates interact with one another the rocks that comprise them are deformed, commonly forming great mountain chains. During this deformation, the minerals that make up the rocks can become spatially or crystallographically aligned to form a fabric. The development of rock fabric is a primary factor affecting the strength, or rheological evolution of deforming rocks. Fabric development commonly involves coupling of both physical and chemical processes. For example, crenulation cleavage is the most common type of fabric in multiply deformed rocks, and its formation leads to extreme mineral segregation and rheological anisotropy. It is also commonly associated …

An Analytical And Numerical Treatment Of The Carter Constant For Inclined Elliptical Orbits About A Massive Kerr Black Hole, Peter Komorowski, Sree Ram Valluri, Martin Houde

WORLDiscoveries Research Showcase

In an extreme binary black hole system, an orbit will increase its angle of inclination (i) as it evolves in Kerr spacetime. We focus our attention on the behaviour of the Carter constant (Q) for near-polar orbits. The value of Q for bound orbits is non-negative; and an increase in Q corresponds to an increase in i. For a Schwarzschild black hole, the polar orbit represents the boundary between the prograde and retrograde orbits at which Q is at its maximum value. The introduction of spin (S = |J|/M2) to the massive black hole causes this boundary, or Abutment, to …

Understanding Classification Decisions For Object Detection, Will Landecker, Michael David Thomure, Melanie Mitchell

Systems Science Friday Noon Seminar Series

Computer vision systems are traditionally tested in the object detection paradigm. In these experiments, a vision system is asked whether or not a specific object--for example an animal--occurs in a given image. A system that often answers correctly is said to be very accurate. In this talk, we will discuss some ambiguity that exists in this measure of accuracy. We will also propose a new measure of object-detection accuracy that addresses some of this ambiguity, and apply this measure to the hierarchical "standard model" of visual cortex.

Fast Protein Structure Alignment, Yosi Shibberu, Allen Holder, Kyla Lutz

Mathematical Sciences Technical Reports (MSTR)

We address the problem of aligning the 3D structures of two proteins. Our pairwise comparisons are based on a new optimization model that is succinctly expressed in terms of linear transformations and highlights the problem’s intrinsic geometry. The optimization problem is approximately solved with a new polynomial time algorithm. The worst case analysis of the algorithm shows that the solution is bounded by a constant depending only on the data of the problem.

Estimates Of Information Growth In Longitudinal Clinical Trials, Abigail Shoben, Kyle Rudser, Scott S. Emerson

UW Biostatistics Working Paper Series

In group sequential clinical trials, it is necessary to estimate the amount of information present at interim analysis times relative to the amount of information that would be present at the final analysis. If only one measurement is made per individual, this is often the ratio of sample sizes available at the interim and final analyses. However, as discussed by Wu and Lan (1992), when the statistic of interest is a change over time, as with longitudinal data, such an approach overstates the information. In this paper, we discuss other problems that can result in overestimating the information, such as …

Slides: Impacts Of Oil Shale On Carbon Emissions, Jeremy Boak

The Promise and Peril of Oil Shale Development (February 5)

Presenter: Dr. Jeremy Boak, Center for Oil Shale Technology & Research, Colorado School of Mines

43 slides

Slides: Costs And Benefits Of Development: An Industry Perspective, Glenn Vawter

The Promise and Peril of Oil Shale Development (February 5)

Presenter: Glenn Vawter, Executive Director, National Oil Shale Association

12 slides

Algal Biofuel, Feb 5, 2010, Harry Reid Center, University Of Nevada, Las Vegas

Biofuels

News in Brief

1. UVa engineers find significant environmental impacts with algae-based biofuel (Jan-21, 2010)

2. IPCC scientist: Global cooling headed our way for the next 30 years? (Jan 11, 2010)

3. Shining a Light on Plants' Quantum Secret to Boost Photosynthesis (Feb 3, 2010)

Agenda: The Promise And Peril Of Oil Shale Development, University Of Colorado Boulder. Natural Resources Law Center

The Promise and Peril of Oil Shale Development (February 5)

The largest known oil shale deposits in the world are in the Green River Formation, which covers portions of Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming. Fully one-half of the world’s oil shale lies within 150 miles of Grand Junction, Colorado, and about 80% of these reserves are on federal land. Estimates of recoverable reserves in the Green River Formation range from 500 billion to 1.53 trillion barrels. At present consumption rates, this is enough oil to satisfy 100% of U.S. demand for well over 100 years.

Development of oil shale could cause significant impacts on the Colorado Plateau. It would provide for …

Slides: Costs And Benefits Of Oil Shale Development, James T. Bartis

The Promise and Peril of Oil Shale Development (February 5)

Presenter: James T. Bartis, Senior Policy Researcher, Rand Corporation

21 slides

Slides: The Promise And Peril Of Oil Shale: Federal Law And Policy, David Bernhardt

The Promise and Peril of Oil Shale Development (February 5)

Presenter: David Bernhardt, Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, Denver, CO

13 slides

Slides: Oil Shale Water Needs, State Water Planning And The Colorado River Compact, Daniel R. Birch

The Promise and Peril of Oil Shale Development (February 5)

Presenter: Daniel R. Birch, Deputy General Manager & Chief Engineer, Colorado River District

17 slides

Slides: The Logistics And Energy Needs Of Oil Shale Extraction, Alan K. Burnham

The Promise and Peril of Oil Shale Development (February 5)

Presenter: Dr. Alan K. Burnham, Chief Technology Officer, American Shale Oil, LLC

10 slides

Slides: Water For Oil (Shale)?, Bart Miller

The Promise and Peril of Oil Shale Development (February 5)

Presenter: Bart Miller, Water Program Director, Western Resource Advocates

10 slides

Slides: The Peril Of Energy Usage, Mike Tupper

The Promise and Peril of Oil Shale Development (February 5)

Presenter: Mike Tupper, Executive Vice President, Composite Technology Development, Inc.

9 slides

Slides: The History Of Oil Shale Development And What It Means For The Future, Patty Limerick

The Promise and Peril of Oil Shale Development (February 5)

Presenter: Patty Limerick, Center of the American West, University of Colorado at Boulder

35 slides

Slides: The Elusive Bonanza, Randy Udall

The Promise and Peril of Oil Shale Development (February 5)

Presenter: Randy Udall, Co-founder, Association for the Study of Peak Oil-USA

62 slides

Slides: Energy Development Water Needs Assessment And Water Supply Alternatives And Analysis, Benjamin Harding

The Promise and Peril of Oil Shale Development (February 5)

Presenter: Benjamin Harding, Principal Engineer, AMEC Earth and Environmental

15 slides

Slides: Promise Or Peril: Shale Oil, Energy, And The Region, Chase Huntley

The Promise and Peril of Oil Shale Development (February 5)

Presenter: Chase Huntley, Policy Adviser for Energy & Climate Change, The Wilderness Society

8 slides

Effects Of Socioeconomic Status On Brain Development, And How Cognitive Neuroscience May Contribute To Levelling The Playing Field, Rajeev Raizada, Mark M. Kishiyama

Dartmouth Scholarship

The study of socioeconomic status (SES) and the brain finds itself in a circumstance unusual for Cognitive Neuroscience: large numbers of questions with both practical and scientific importance exist, but they are currently under-researched and ripe for investigation. This review aims to highlight these questions, to outline their potential significance, and to suggest routes by which they might be approached. Although remarkably few neural studies have been carried out so far, there exists a large literature of previous behavioural work. This behavioural research provides an invaluable guide for future neuroimaging work, but also poses an important challenge for it: how …

Quantitative Assessment Of Sample Stiffness And Sliding Friction From Force Curves In Atomic Force Microscopy, Nancy Burnham, Jon Pratt, Gordon Shaw, Lee Kumanchik

Nancy A. Burnham

It has long been recognized that the angular deflection of an atomic force microscope(AFM) cantilever under “normal” loading conditions can be profoundly influenced by the friction between the tip and the surface. It is shown here that a remarkably quantifiable hysteresis occurs in the slope of loading curves whenever the normal flexural stiffness of the AFM cantilever is greater than that of the sample. This situation arises naturally in cantilever-on-cantilever calibration, but also when trying to measure the stiffness of nanomechanical devices or test structures, or when probing any type of surface or structure that is much more compliant along …

Intracellular Delivery Of A Membrane-Impermeable Enzyme In Active Form Using Functionalized Gold Nanoparticles, P Ghosh, Xc Yang, R Arvizo, Zj Zhu, Ss Agasti, Zh Mo, Vm Rotello

Vincent Rotello

Gold nanoparticles were coated with a short peptide to promote intracellular delivery of membrane-impermeable proteins. Through microscopy and enzyme assays, we demonstrated the particles were able to transport functional enzymes into a variety of cell lines. Significantly, the transported proteins were able to escape from endosomes. Moreover, these particles showed no apparent cytotoxicity.

Mesoporous Silica Microparticles Enhance The Cytotoxicity Of Anticancer Platinum Drugs, Zhimin Tao, Bonnie Toms, Jerry Goodisman, Tewodros Asefa

Chemistry - All Scholarship

We report on the endocytosis and the time-dependent enhanced cytotoxicity of anticancer platinum drugs when the drugs are combined with (or loaded into) one of the two most common types of mesoporous silica materials, MCM-41 or SBA-15. The anticancer drug cisplatin and its isomer transplatin, when loaded on MCM-41 and SBA-15 microparticles, were less cytotoxic to leukemia cells than the drugs alone after 12 h exposure. However, the drug-loaded microparticles exhibited unprecedented enhanced cytotoxicity to the cancerous cells after 24 h of exposure. This cytotoxicity of the drug-loaded microparticles was even higher than of the pure drugs in solutions, suggesting …

The Heat Capacity And Thermodynamic Properties Of The Iron Oxides And Their Relation To The Mineral Core Of The Iron Storage Protein Ferritin, Claine Lindsey Morton Snow

Theses and Dissertations

The iron oxides are a group of materials with geological, biological, and technological importance. A thermodynamic understanding of these materials is important because it provides information about their relative stabilities, chemical reactivity, and transformations. This study provides the heat capacity of a nanocrystalline magnetite (Fe3O4) sample, bulk hematite (α-Fe2O3), nanocrystalline hematite, akaganéite (β-FeOOH), and lepidocrocite (γ-FeOOH) at temperatures as low as 0.5 K. These measurements were fit to theoretical functions at temperatures lower than 15 K, and the respective thermophysical properties of these materials are discussed. Also the molar entropies of bulk hematite and hydrous nanocrystalline hematite as well as …

Tetraaquabis(3-Fluoropyridine-4-Carboxylato-Κn)Zinc(Ii) Dihydrate, Jonetha Fleming, Jennifer Kelley, Leroy Peterson Jr., Mark D. Smith, Hans-Conrad Zur Loye

Faculty Publications

In the title compound, [Zn(C₆H₃FNO₂)₂(H₂O)₄]·2H₂O, the Zn^II atom is octahedrally coordinated in a ZnO₄N₂ environment by two 3-fluoropyridine-4-carboxylate (3-fpy4-cbx) ligands and four water molecules. The [Zn(3-fpy4-cbx)₂(H₂O)₄] molecules form a three-dimensional network through strong O-HO and weak O-HF hydrogen bonds between 3-fpy4-cbx and water molecules. The crystal used for data collection was a twin, with the twin law corresponding to a 180° rotation about the real-space [001] axis. The major twin fraction refined to 0.795 (1).

Understanding The Impact Of Climate Change Media Messages, Susanna Priest

2010 Annual Nevada NSF EPSCoR Climate Change Conference

7 PowerPoint slides Convener: Nick Lancaster, DRI Session 6: Bridging the Gap- Interdisciplinary Science to Connect Biophysical and Social Dimensions of Climate Change Abstract: -Energy and (in the state of Nevada) water conservation are linked to mitigation of, and adaption to, climate change. -However, these links are not immediate, and individuals may feel powerless to control the future climate. -Further, Nevada residents are less likely than other Americans to believe climate change is “a very serious problem” (50% versus 62%; Maibach, 2008)

Losing The Lake: Designing An Educational Computer Game On Water Resources In Southern Nevada, Michael Nussbaum, Gale Sinatra, Frederick C. Harris, Sergiu Dascalu, Sajjad Ahmad, Kent J. Crippen, Marissa Owens

2010 Annual Nevada NSF EPSCoR Climate Change Conference

30 PowerPoint slides Convener: Nick Lancaster, DRI Session 6: Bridging the Gap- Interdisciplinary Science to Connect Biophysical and Social Dimensions of Climate Change Abstract: To design and test an educationally useful computer game to educate middle- and high-school students, and the general public, about water and sustainability + effect of climate change on those

Local Land Use Scenario Formulation Using The Ipcc Sres Climate Change Scenarios Within Nevada, Scott Bassett

2010 Annual Nevada NSF EPSCoR Climate Change Conference

23 PowerPoint slides Convener: Darko Koracin, DRI Session 5: Climate Modeling Abstract: -Develop a methodology for downscaling SRES for use in land use drivers at a regional scale (metropolitan city scale) -Integrate land use drivers into urban growth models (UGMs) and land use change models -Link land use based demand models with river operations to assess potential future water allocations

The Scaling Impact Of Hydrologic Processes On The Integrated Response In Large River Basins, Zhongbo Yu

2010 Annual Nevada NSF EPSCoR Climate Change Conference

21 PowerPoint slides Convener: Darko Koracin, DRI Session 5: Climate Modeling Abstract: -Hydrologic change in response to the climatic variability (i.e., global warming) -Impacts at global, national or regional scales -Coupled, efficient model systems -Large-scale impacts vs. small-scale hydrology -Needs to bridge the gaps among various scales