Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Semi-Universal Portfolios With Transaction Costs, Dingjiang Huang, Yan Zhu, Bin Li, Shuigeng Zhou, Steven C. H. Hoi

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Online portfolio selection (PS) has been extensively studied in artificial intelligence and machine learning communities in recent years. An important practical issue of online PS is transaction cost, which is unavoidable and nontrivial in real financial trading markets. Most existing strategies, such as universal portfolio (UP) based strategies, often rebalance their target portfolio vectors at every investment period, and thus the total transaction cost increases rapidly and the final cumulative wealth degrades severely. To overcome the limitation, in this paper we investigate new investment strategies that rebalances its portfolio only at some selected instants. Specifically, we design a novel on-line …

Genetic Differentiation And Phylogeography Of Partially Sympatric Species Complex Rhizophora Mucronata Lam. And R. Stylosa Griff. Using Ssr Markers, Severino G. Salmo Iii, Alison K.S Wee, Koji Takayama, Jasher L. Chua, Takeshi Asakawa, Sankararamasubramanian H. Meenakshisundaram, Onrizal Onrizal, Bayu Adjie, Erwin Riyanto Ardli, Sarawood Saengkaw, Norhaslinda Binti Malekal, Nguyen Xuan Tung, Orlex Baylen Yllano, Mohd Nazre Saleh, Khin Khin Soe, Yoichi Tateichi, Yasuyuki Watano, Shigeyuki Baba, Edward L. Webb, Tadashi Kajita

Environmental Science Faculty Publications

Background

Mangrove forests are ecologically important but globally threatened intertidal plant communities. Effective mangrove conservation requires the determination of species identity, management units, and genetic structure. Here, we investigate the genetic distinctiveness and genetic structure of an iconic but yet taxonomically confusing species complex Rhizophora mucronata and R. stylosa across their distributional range, by employing a suite of 20 informative nuclear SSR markers.

Results

Our results demonstrated the general genetic distinctiveness of R. mucronata and R. stylosa, and potential hybridization or introgression between them. We investigated the population genetics of each species without the putative hybrids, and found strong …

Mod Pseudo Linear Algebras, Florentin Smarandache, W.B. Vasantha Kandasamy, K. Ilanthenral

Branch Mathematics and Statistics Faculty and Staff Publications

In this book authors for the first time elaborately study the notion of MOD vector spaces and MOD pseudo linear algebras. This study is new, innovative and leaves several open conjectures. In the first place as distributive law is not true we can define only MOD pseudo linear algebras. Secondly most of the classical theorems true in case of linear algebras are not true in case of MOD pseudo linear algebras. Finding even eigen values and eigen vectors happens to be a challenging problem. Further the notion of multidimensional MOD pseudo linear algebras are defined using the notion of MOD …

Theory Of Abel Grassmann's Groupoids, Florentin Smarandache, Madad Khan

Branch Mathematics and Statistics Faculty and Staff Publications

It is common knowledge that common models with their limited boundaries of truth and falsehood are not su¢ cient to detect the reality so there is a need to discover other systems which are able to address the daily life problems. In every branch of science problems arise which abound with uncertainties and impaction. Some of these problems are related to human life, some others are subjective while others are objective and classical methods are not su¢ cient to solve such problems because they can not handle various ambiguities involved. To overcome this problem, Zadeh [67] introduced the concept of …

Front Matter [23rd International Grassland Congress Proceedings], National Organizing Committee, International Grassland Congress

IGC Proceedings (1993-2023)

No abstract provided.

Tropical Grasslands--Trends, Perspectives And Future Prospects, Panjab Singh

IGC Proceedings (1993-2023)

This paper attempts a rapid summary of the present day state of tropical grassland and livestock based production systems globally, especially in tropics, in relation to recent trends, future assessment, grassland rehabilitation and management strategies, future perspectives of grassland science and development including policy imperatives.

Development Of Boron-Containing Polyimide Materials And Poly(Arylene Ether)S For Radiation Shielding, Brittani May Collins

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.

Enhancing Bug Reports For Mobile Apps, Kevin Patrick Moran

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.

Promising Forage Options To Enhance Livestock Production In Mediterranean Climate Agricultural Systems, Serkan Ates, Hayley C. Norman, Hichem Ben Salem, Bradley Nutt, Harun Cicek

IGC Proceedings (1993-2023)

The increasing demand for food, fibre and animal products inevitably requires intensifying agricultural production worldwide. This can present a number of environmental and farming systems challenges in Mediterranean climate areas of the world. Developments of novel strategies, employing ecologically sound intensification practices, are crucial to enhance production in the Mediterranean agropastoral production systems. In this paper, we have discussed forage based systems that improve productivity, profitability, environmental quality and resilience of the farming systems. Key opportunities include better use and integration of diverse genetic resources, new agronomic techniques and the utilization of perennial forage plants that are adapted to land …

Grazing Management Options For Maintaining Optimum Pasture Composition And Utilization, Glen E. Aiken

IGC Proceedings (1993-2023)

Global demand for meat and dairy products will continue to increase over the 21st century, however, the global forage-based livestock industry will be challenged in meeting production goals with minimal impact of the environment. Sustainable production of grazing livestock will depend on the use of carefully planned grazing management strategies. Development of a grazing management plan involves making two decisions: determining the livestock density at which pastures are stocked and settling on the method used to graze the pastures. Stocking rate indirectly affects output per animal and per hectare through its direct effect on forage mass and pasture composition. A …

Nitrogen Management Of Forages In Relation To Gaseous Emissions – New Approaches And Considerations, Shabtai Bittman, Derek Hunt

IGC Proceedings (1993-2023)

Forages have a high N demand, a long growing season, and an effective root system all contributing to effective nutrient capture. However forages are restrictive in methods available for mitigating gaseous losses both as NH₃ and as N₂O, due to both practical and cost considerations. Strategies are needed to address the challenges of both N efficiency and N losses. Agronomic techniques in long term experiments can enhance estimates of N loss pathways and N efficiency, and demonstrate the importance of integrated multinutrient approaches. The dual manure stream concept divides manure into a thin fraction suitable as an …

Productivity And Biological Nitrogen Fixation Of Different Species Of Vetches (Vicia Spp.) Under The Rainfed Conditions Of West Asia, Ali Abd El Moneim, Mohan C. Saxena

IGC Proceedings (1993-2023)

The low rainfall areas of West Asia are characterized by pastoral production system primarily based on small ruminants (sheep and goats). Rangelands serve as the main source of feed. With increasing population, the demand for livestock products has increased. As a consequence, the stocking rates have soared, increasing the pressure on rangelands. Rangeland degradation has therefore been increasing threatening the sustainability of livestock production system and the livelihood of the people dependent on it. Production of additional feed is essential to reduce the pressure on rangelands. Vetches (Vicia spp.) are endemic in the area and can be potential source …

Rainwater Harvesting And Its Impact On Farming Systems, J. S. Samra

IGC Proceedings (1993-2023)

Landless, small holders and other poors supplement their livelihood and adapt to climate change by grazing, stall feeding with crop residues and fodder cultivated under rainfed and irrigated conditions. Improving productivity by conserving rainfall, ground water recharging, harvesting and recycling of rainwater especially in degraded open access or shared land with community participation was quite successful over a wide range of precipitation and ecological situations. Various types of trenches, bunding, vegetative barriers, gully plugs, ponds, check dams, land slides and mine spoils stabilization etc. retained more soil moisture, seeds, vegetative propagules etc. in situ and prevented soil erosion. It regenerated …

Changing Grassland Scenario In Developing Countries--Economical And Social Perspective, Abule Ebro

IGC Proceedings (1993-2023)

Grasslands are mainly used for livestock production in developing countries although they have been facing contradictory pressures, i.e., increased demand for natural resources and animal products to cope with rising human populations. On the other, there is a need to preserve the environment and ecosystem. This paper reviewed the causes of grassland changes, the economic and social perspective of changing grasslands with more emphasis on dry lands. Different indicators were used to assess the economic (livestock production, wildlife and tourism, crop production, ecosystem services) and social (traditional institutions, mobility, land tenure and grazing systems) perspectives of changing grassland. The major …

Management Of Grazing Lands Through Educating Communities, D. Ariungerel, Graeme Hand, Annabel Walsh

IGC Proceedings (1993-2023)

The Mongolian steppe is one of the world’s largest grassland and it is an arid to semiarid land with a strong climate gradient. Biodiversity loss leading to desertification and land degradation is estimated to be impacting around 65% of the total area of Mongolia. The preliminary objective of this project was to trial the Positive Deviance Methodology to determine if this method assists herders to design behaviors to reverse this biodiversity loss. This project is a partnership between Mongolian Herders, Mongolian rangeland scientists and Australian based Stipa Native Grasses Association. The Positive Deviance Methodology has five basic steps based around …

Gumbos As Matrices For Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization Time Of Flight Mass Spectrometry, Hashim Abdullah Al Ghafly

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This work involves the investigation of a group of uniform materials based on organic salts (GUMBOS) as matrices for matrix assisted laser desorption ionization time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF) for analysis of hydrophobic biomolecules. GUMBOS are new class of materials that show great promise as MALDI matrices because they are able to form a thin-layer on the MS target, thereby enhancing the sample homogeneity, signal intensity, and shot-to-shot reproducibility. The detection of hydrophobic peptides using MALDI-TOF MS remains a challenge because the majority of matrices utilized are hydrophilic thereby exhibiting low affinity for hydrophobic molecules. To address this, I …

Improving Human Health By Increasing Access To Natural Areas: Linking Research To Action At Scale, Bradford S. Gentry, Julia E. Anderson, David R. Krause, W. Colby Tucker, Karen A. Tuddenham

Yale School of the Environment Publications Series

Report of the 2014 Berkley Workshop

Held at the Wingspread Conference Center, Johnson Foundation, Racine, Wisconsin - June 2014

Development Of Improved Methodologies Toward The Formation Of C-C And C-N Bonds, Ijaz Ahmed

Dissertations - ALL

Organometallic chemistry provides valuable tools for the formation of carbon-carbon and carbon-heteroatom bonds that would otherwise require multiple steps and resources to achieve through conventional methods. Studies toward the regioselective and stereoselective formation these types of bonds using different organometallic methods will be presented. Three focal areas have been studied: C-N bond formation, C-H borylation, and silylvinylation of alkynes.

In Chapter 1, palladium-catalyzed amidation has been used to effectively form C-N bonds toward the synthesis of valuable imidazo[4,5-b]pyridines and imidazo[4,5-c]pyridines. The reaction conditions are tolerable for a variety of N-substituted-3-amino-2-chloropyridines. All current routes to expand the substrate scope in regards …

Chemically Patterned Surfaces As Test Platforms To Study Magnetic And Solvent-Responsive Properties At The Nanoscale: Investigations Using Scanning Probe Microscopy, Shalaka Kulkarni

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Chemically patterned surfaces were fabricated using a combination of molecular self-assembly and particle lithography to generate billions of nanostructures of organosilane self-assembled monolayers (SAMs). Monodisperse mesospheres were used as surface masks to prepare nanostructures on flat surfaces using the simple benchtop chemistry steps of mixing, centrifuging, evaporation, and drying. Periodic arrays of well-defined organosilane nanostructures serve as discrete surface sites for the selective deposition of polymers and magnetic nanoparticles.

In this dissertation, particle lithography approaches for surface patterning provide new directions for studying surface chemistry at the molecular-level using high resolution investigations with scanning probe microscopy (SPM). Atomic force microscopy …

Seismic Velocity Characteristics Of Partially Saturated Unconsolidated Sediments, Jie Shen

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Seismic velocity models of the near-surface (< 30 m) better explain seismic velocities when all elements of total effective stress are considered, particularly in materials with large cohesive and soil suction stress such as clays. Traditional constitutive elastic models assume interparticle and soil suction stresses are negligible. This study proposes a new methodology which corrects total effective stress in Hertz-Mindlin theory for interparticle and soil suction and calculates the elastic moduli by extending Biot-Gassmann theory to include pressure effects induced by water saturation changes and cohesion. The proposed model predicts seismic velocities that correlate well with measured field velocities from the literature. Soil density, porosity, elastic moduli and the soil-water characteristic curve (SWCC) are important properties for soil characterization. Currently, geotechnical and laboratory tests for soil properties are costly and limited to point sampling sites. Seismic surveys can potentially provide laterally continuous soil property values that may complement geotechnical borehole tests with low cost. We propose a new method to invert for soil properties and the SWCC from seismic P- and S-wave velocity-vs.-depth profiles interpreted from shallow (< 25 m depth) unconsolidated sediments under conditions of near-full saturation (> 99%). The results from seismic soil property inversion are validated by comparison to geotechnical and laboratory results conducted independently in the same area as the seismic survey. Knowledge of homogeneous and heterogeneous fluid-distribution patterns is important for the estimation of oil reserves, reservoir simulation, the interpretation of time-lapse seismic, and the selection of remediation techniques for groundwater contamination. Problems exist in determining in-situ fluid-distribution patterns in unconsolidated sediments because laboratory tests on core samples may not be representative of in-situ conditions. We propose a new method to determine in-situ fluid-distribution patterns by inverting …

Estimating The Number Of Components Of A Spatial—Em Algorithm: An R Package, Aishat O. Aloba

Honors Theses

The Expectation Maximization algorithm also known as the EM algorithm is an algorithm used to solve the maximum likelihood parameter estimation problem. This problem arises when some of the data involved are missing or incomplete, hence it becomes difficult to know the parameters of the underlying distribution. The EM algorithm mainly comprises of two steps; the E—Step, and the M—Step. In the E—Step, estimated parameter values are used as true values to calculate the maximum likelihood estimate, and in the M—Step, the maximum likelihood calculated is used to estimate the parameters. The E—Step and M—Step iterate through until a specified …

Breastfeeding: Physiological And Cultural Influences, Alison R. Cegielski

Honors Theses

Within a biological perspective, breasts are indisputably for the use of nourishment of the young. This can be seen by how mammary glands are used by every other species other than humans. Humans are the only species that also looks at breasts within a cultural perspective, and that perspective is where the debate of breastfeeding occurs. There is really no debate that if given the option to breastfeed, breastfeeding is the best choice for the development of infants due to the fact that breast milk has been adapted for the human physique. In spite of the health benefits associated with …

Effects Of Synthetic Blood Plasma On Calcium Dependent Dimerization Of Ncad12, Brent Treadway

Honors Theses

Neural Cadherin (NCAD) is one of three Type 1 vertebral classical cadherins that function as the primary transmembrane component in cell-to-cell interactions at adherens junctions. Adhesive interactions mediated by this protein are calcium dependent with three calcium-binding sites between each of its five extracellular domains. NCAD is very important in many cell-to-cell interactions because of its function in development and in immune and neurological synapses. Generally, in vitro studies of calcium dependent dimerization of NCAD are conducted in a nonphysiological buffer (NaCl + HEPES: SEC buffer). In order to study dimerization in more physiologically relevant conditions, I created a synthetic …

A Study Of The Impact Of Ph On The Structure And Stability Of Epithelial Cadherin, Catherine Abadie

Honors Theses

Epithelial (E-) cadherin is a transmembrane protein whose function lies in cell-to-cell adhesion. It is a transmembrane component of adherens junctions of epithelial tissues, thereby connecting the actin cytoskeletons of adhered cells. It has five extracellular domains, a small transmembrane portion, and a cytoplasmic tail. The molecule must bind calcium in order to form an adhesive dimer with a cadherin molecule emanating from an adjacent cell. Cancer of the epithelial tissue, carcinoma, is accompanied by acidification of the tissue and a loss in cell adhesion. The long-term goal of this project is to determine the effect of a decrease in …

An Investigation Into The Synthesis Of A Four-Armed Diamino Swallowtail, Christopher Carter Barnett

Honors Theses

Perylenebisimides (PBIs) complex with quadruplex DNA and may influence the formation of telomeres. PBIs with amine groups are ionized at neutral pH and therefore soluble in water [1]. Swallowtails are long alkyl chains usually attached to PBIs to inhibit self-aggregation by pi-stacking [2]. Past attempts to create a PBI with swallowtails containing extra nitrogens were unsuccessful due to purification issues and methylene connectors. The purpose of this research is to investigate the synthesis of a diamino swallowtail with a methine connector. The first step is to create 1,3-bis(dibenzylamino)propan-2-one by way of an SN2 substitution reaction using 1,3-dichloroacetone and dibenzylamine [3]. …

Visualization Techniques Of Shear Wave Propagation In Wormlike Micellar Fluid, Connor M. Tierney

Honors Theses

In an aqueous solution amphiphilic molecules can self-aggregate and form a wormlike micellar fluid. These non-Newtonian fluids have been studied in the context of diagnostic medical imaging due to the fact that the fluids have viscoelastic properties and can act as a nonperishable model for human tissue. They also display flow-birefringence, which is a property that allows for the analysis of shear wave propagation through the fluid. However, one issue encountered at lower micelle concentrations is the inability to see the emergent birefringence pattern that results from shear wave propagation. In this study Experiment 1 was an analysis of shear …

An Investigation Of Protein-Dna Binding Characteristics By Fluorescence Anisotropy, Danna Nobile

Honors Theses

Recent studies have illustrated the presence of several secondary, non-B DNA structures that are associated with the promoter regions of several oncogenes, such as the intensely studied MYC gene. Two such secondary structures, G-quadruplexes and i-Motifs, have become topics of interest due to their prevalence within oncogenic promoters and their potential accessibility for future drug targeting due to their globular natures. Though fairly extensive research has been conducted to understand different factors affecting G-quadruplex formation and stability, similar studies for i-Motifs, particularly related to thermodynamics, are still evolving. One factor known to contribute to the additional energy required for duplex …

Modelling Global Climate Variables With Cellular Automata Networks, David Robinson

Honors Theses

Cellular automata are discrete models that can be used to simulate many physical systems. Cellular automata have been used to model gas diffusion, different types of chemical reactions, population growth, and land use change over time. Recent research into cellular automata networks has shown that if sparse long range connections are added to a cellular automata, then it will exhibit properties of complex networks. Furthermore, research into modeling climate systems has shown that modeling the global climate as a complex network can be used to predict individual climate variables. In this work we attempt to connect these ideas by simulating …

Comparison Of The Spatial Distributions Of Cavitation Damage With The Measured Diffraction Patterns For A High-Power Ultrasonic Transducer, Davis Lane Rogers

Honors Theses

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the performance of a model of the propagation of ultrasonic fields produced by an ultrasonic transducer, a device that uses a piezoelectric crystal to produce high-intensity ultrasonic waves. The transducer operates immersed in a water bath where it generates waves of sufficient intensity to produce non-linear phenomena that include acoustic streaming and cavitation. This study used a planar transducer to visualize the damaging effects of high-intensity ultrasonic waves targeted on acrylic plates. Seven plates were targeted and positioned from 8.5 to 11.5 cm from the transducer. The spatial distribution and degree of …

A Visualization Tool For Survey Responses And A Unifying Interface Redesign, Iva Cramer

Honors Theses

As an intern for financial software company FNC, Inc. during the summer of 2014, my fellow interns and I began an innovation project for creating and analyzing surveys for better client feedback methods. I have continued this project even after the internship, and this thesis covers that continuation: the visualization of survey responses and the redesign of the page on which they are contained. The project detailed here was to revamp the survey statistics page with a coherent layout that matches the rest of the site in addition to overhauling the actual graphs and charts for aesthetic and accuracy.