Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Spawning Characteristics Of Yellow Perch During Periods Of Water Level Fluctuations In A Hydropower Reservoir, Kyle J. Matt

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Water level fluctuations alter reservoir ecosystems causing direct and indirect effects on fish populations. The dewatering of eggs, a direct impact of lake level drawdowns, can affect reproductive success of species that spawn in littoral zones, such as Yellow Perch. I examined relationships between water level fluctuations and spawning characteristics of Yellow Perch in a Central Appalachian hydropower reservoir, where water levels were permitted to be drawn down to 4 m and 2.1 m below the full pool elevation in March and April, respectively. Daily presences of egg masses were recorded on artificial spawning structures at two sites for the …

Protein/Peptide Characterization Using Mass Spectrometry And Molecular Dynamics Simulations, Ahmad Kiani Karanji

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Mass spectrometry (MS) based-techniques and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations have been used to characterize protein/peptide structure as well as their interactions with lipid vesicles and detergents. Chapter 1 introduces an introduction to the concepts and tools that were used in this work. In Chapter 2, the dominant gas-phase conformer of [M+3H]3+ ions of the model peptide Acetyl-PSSSSKSSSSKSSSSKSSSSK are examined with ion mobility spectrometry (IMS), gas-phase hydrogen deuterium exchange (HDX), and mass spectrometry (MS) techniques. This section furthers the development of a protein structural prediction tool by providing information about gas-phase ion conformers of two model peptides having different solution conformational …

Global Existence And Asymptotic Behavior Of The Solutions To Models For Chemotaxis Systems With Chemo Attractants And Repellents, Aesha Lagha

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

We study global existence and asymptotic behavior of the solutions to models for chemotaxis systems with chemo attractants and repellents in three dimensions. Chemo attractants and repellents may be called chemo agents. For Part I, we use the logistic model for the mass. The interactions between chemo agents and the mass are taken into account. For Part II, we consider the case when mass is conserved and we use the Lotka-Volterra type model for chemo agents. To accomplish this, we use the Fourier transform and energy method. We show the existence of global solutions by the energy method. Also, we …

The Effects Of Membrane Physicochemical Properties On Huntingtin Membrane Association And Downstream Aggregation, Maryssa Beasley

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Huntington’s Disease (HD) is a fatal neurodegenerative disorder caused by an expanded glutamine repeat region (polyQ) within the huntingtin protein (htt). As a result of the expanded polyQ domain, htt associates into a variety of toxic aggregate species. The polyQ domain of htt is flanked at the N-terminal end by 17 amino acids (Nt17) that adopt an amphipathic α-helical structure in the presence of binding partners such as lipid membranes. In addition to comprising a lipid binding domain, the Nt17 amphipathic α -helix has been directly implicated in htt aggregation initiation via self-association with other Nt17 α -helices. Due to …

Mapping Surficial Geology In The New River Gorge National River And Bluestone National Scenic River, West Virginia, Using Lidar-Derived Digital Elevation Data, Marla K. Denicola

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

The purpose of this thesis was to determine if the surficial geology of Bluestone National Scenic River (BLUE) and New River Gorge National River (NERI), two areas of similar geology, can be mapped using visual interpretation methods applied to digital elevation models (DEMs) derived from light detection and ranging (LiDAR) data. Surficial geology in BLUE was field mapped using GPS, following definitions and characterizations for surficial geology units established with the guidance of Dr. J. Steven Kite. A 2m x 2m LiDAR-derived DEM was used for BLUE and most of NERI using US Army Corps of Engineers (USCOE) LiDAR data, …

Sex And Age Differences In Prevalence And Risk Factors For Prediabetes In Mexican-Americans, Kristina Vatcheva, Belinda M. Reininger, Susan P. Fisher-Hoch, Joseph B. Mccormick

School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

AIMS:

Over 1/3 of Americans have prediabetes, while 9.4% have type 2 diabetes. The aim of our study was to estimate the prevalence of prediabetes in Mexican Americans, with known 28.2% prevalence of type 2 diabetes, by age and sex and to identify critical socio-demographic and clinical factors associated with prediabetes.

METHODS:

Data were collected between 2004 and 2017 from the Cameron County Hispanic Cohort in Texas. Weighted crude and sex- and age- stratified prevalences were calculated. Survey weighted logistic regression analyses were conducted to identify risk factors for prediabetes.

RESULTS:

The prevalence of prediabetes (32%) was slightly higher than …

Screening Potential Citrus Rootstocks For Phytophthora Nicotianae Tolerance, Madhurababu Kunta, Sandy Chavez, Zenaida Viloria, Hilda S. Del Rio, Madhavi Devanaboina, George Yanev, Jong-Won Park, Eliezer S. Louzada

School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Seeds from four citrus rootstocks including sour orange, Bitters-C22 citrandarin, Sarawak pummelo 3 Rio Red grapefruit, and Sarawak pummelo 3Bower mandarin were exposed to high inoculum levels of Phytophthora nicotianae to screen for tolerance. Inoculation of pregerminated seeds (PGIS) and non-PGIS was carried out. The average P. nicotianae propagule counts from the soil samples where these seedlings were raised ranged from 424 to 1361 colony forming units/cm3. The proportion of live to dead plants was recorded at 11months postinoculation, which showed that Sarawak3Bower performed significantly better than other rootstocks. Evaluation of the rootstocks 18 months postinoculation resulted in only one …

Optimal Quantization For Discrete Distributions, Russel Cabasag, Samir Huq, Eric Mendoza, Mrinal Kanti Roychowdhury

School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

In this paper, we first determine the optimal sets of n-means and the nth quantization errors for all 1 ≤ n ≤ 6 for two nonuniform discrete distributions with support the set {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6}. Then, for a probability distribution P with support { 1 n : n ∈ N} associated with a mass function f, given by f(x) = 1 2k if x = 1 k for k ∈ N, and zero otherwise, we determine the optimal sets of n-means and the nth quantization errors for all positive integers up to n = 300. Further, for …

Finite Lifespan Of Solutions Of The Semilinear Wave Equation In The Einstein–De Sitter Spacetime, Anahit Galstian, Karen Yagdjian

School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

We examine the solutions of the semilinear wave equation, and, in particular, of the φq model of quantum field theory in the curved space-time. More exactly, for 1 < q < 4 we prove that the solution of the massless self-interacting scalar field equation in the Einstein-de Sitter universe has finite lifespan.

Mesoscopic Methods In Engineering And Science, Christian Jansen, Manfred Krafczyk, Li-Shi Luo

Mathematics & Statistics Faculty Publications

(First paragraph) Matter, conceptually classified into fluids and solids, can be completely described by the microscopic physics of its constituent atoms or molecules. However, for most engineering applications a macroscopic or continuum description has usually been sufficient, because of the large disparity between the spatial and temporal scales relevant to these applications and the scales of the underlying molecular dynamics. In this case, the microscopic physics merely determines material properties such as the viscosity of a fluid or the elastic constants of a solid. These material properties cannot be derived within the macroscopic framework, but the qualitative nature of the …

Comparative Survival Of Asian And White Metastatic Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer Men Treated With Docetaxel, Susan Halabi, Sandipan Dutta, Catherine M. Tangen, Mark Rosenthal, Daniel P. Petrylak, Ian M. Thompson Jr., Kim N. Chi, Johann S. De Bono, John C. Araujo, Christopher Logothetis, Mario A. Eisenberger, David I. Quinn, Karim Fizazi, Michael J. Morris, Celestia S. Higano, Ian F. Tannock, Eric J. Small, William Kevin Kelly

Mathematics & Statistics Faculty Publications

There are few data regarding disparities in overall survival (OS) between Asian and white men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC). We compared OS of Asian and white mCRPC men treated in phase III clinical trials with docetaxel and prednisone (DP) or a DP-containing regimen. Individual participant data from 8820 men with mCRPC randomly assigned on nine phase III trials to receive DP or a DP-containing regimen were combined. Men enrolled in these trials had a diagnosis of prostate adenocarcinoma. The median overall survival was 18.8 months (95% confidence interval [CI] = 17.4 to 22.1 months) and 21.2 months (95% …

Nonparametric False Discovery Rate Control For Identifying Simultaneous Signals, Sihai Dave Zhao, Yet Tian Nguyen

Mathematics & Statistics Faculty Publications

It is frequently of interest to identify simultaneous signals, defined as features that exhibit statistical significance across each of several independent experiments. For example, genes that are consistently differentially expressed across experiments in different animal species can reveal evolutionarily conserved biological mechanisms. However, in some problems the test statistics corresponding to these features can have complicated or unknown null distributions. This paper proposes a novel nonparametric false discovery rate control procedure that can identify simultaneous signals even without knowing these null distributions. The method is shown, theoretically and in simulations, to asymptotically control the false discovery rate. It was also …

Boundary Vortex Formation In Polarization-Modulated Orthogonal Smectic Liquid Crystals, Carlos J. García-Cervera, Tiziana Giorgi, Sookyung Joo

Mathematics & Statistics Faculty Publications

We investigate the relaxation of an energy functional originated in the physics literature to study the bistability of polarization modulated orthogonal smectic phases (SmAP_Fmod) of bent-core molecules liquid crystals. We show that the interplay between the mixed boundary conditions and the shape of the sample results in boundary defects. We also analyze the bistable switching due to an applied electric field via gradient flow numerical simulations. Our computations reveal a novel dynamic scenario, where switching is achieved by the formation of two internal vortices.

Cybersecurity Education Through Technological And Engineering Literacy Standards, Philip A. Reed, Steven A. Barbato

STEMPS Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Observation Of Reduced Thermal Conductivity In A Metal-Organic Framework Due To The Presence Of Adsorbates, Hasan Babaei, Mallory E. Decoster, Minyoung Jeong, Zeinab M. Hassan, Timur Islamoglu, Helmut Baumgart, Alan J.H. Mcgaughey, Engelbert Redel, Omar K. Farha, Patrick E. Hopkins, Jonathan A. Malen, Christopher E. Wilmer

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Whether the presence of adsorbates increases or decreases thermal conductivity in metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) has been an open question. Here we report observations of thermal transport in the metal-organic framework HKUST-1 in the presence of various liquid adsorbates: water, methanol, and ethanol. Experimental thermoreflectance measurements were performed on single crystals and thin films, and theoretical predictions were made using molecular dynamics simulations. We find that the thermal conductivity of HKUST-1 decreases by 40 – 80% depending on the adsorbate, a result that cannot be explained by effective medium approximations. Our findings demonstrate that adsorbates introduce additional phonon scattering in HKUST-1, …

Evaluating Information Flow In Medication Management Process In Australian Acute Care Facilities: A Multi-Professional Perspective, Seyi Lagoke

Theses

Over the years, various interventions have been introduced to improve the medication management process. While these interventions have addressed some aspects predisposing the process to inefficiencies, significant gaps are still prevalent across the process. Studies have suggested that the goal of optimal medication therapy is achievable when information flow integrates across the various medication management process phases, stakeholders and departments involved as the patient moves through the process. To provide a cross-sectional view of the process, this study utilised a systemic philosophy to evaluate the information flow integration across the process.

The research approach adopted for this study takes a …

Semi-Supervised Adversarial Domain Adaptation For Seagrass Detection Using Multispectral Images In Coastal Areas, Kazi Aminul Islam, Victoria Hill, Blake Schaeffer, Richard Zimmerman, Jiang Li

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Seagrass form the basis for critically important marine ecosystems. Previously, we implemented a deep convolutional neural network (CNN) model to detect seagrass in multispectral satellite images of three coastal habitats in northern Florida. However, a deep CNN model trained at one location usually does not generalize to other locations due to data distribution shifts. In this paper, we developed a semi-supervised domain adaptation method to generalize a trained deep CNN model to other locations for seagrass detection. First, we utilized a generative adversarial network loss to align marginal data distribution between source domain and target domain using unlabeled data from …

Priority Based Routing And Link Scheduling For Cognitive Radio Networks, Peng Jiang, Mitchell Zhou, Song Wen

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

To address the challenges caused by the time-varying rate requirement for multimedia communication sessions, we propose a Priority Based Routing and link Scheduling (PBRS) scheme for multi-hop cognitive radio networks. The objective is to minimize disruption to communication sessions due to channel switching as well as to minimize network resource consumption for multimedia applications based on a prioritized routing and resource allocation scheme. PBRS includes a priority based optimization formulation and an efficient algorithm to solve the problem. The main idea is to allocate the available resource to different types of services with their Quality of Experience (QoE) expectation as …

Securing Technological Privacy: Modernizing The Texas Disciplinary Rules Of Professional Conduct To Protect Electronic Data, Ashley "Nikki" Vega

St. Mary's Journal on Legal Malpractice & Ethics

This comment explains how and why the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct (the “Texas Disciplinary Rules”) should be updated to reflect the modernization of technology. Lawyers must keep abreast of changes in the law and its practices; including those which are technological in nature. The American Bar Association (the “ABA”) recently amended the “technology provisions” of its Model Rules of Professional Conduct (the “Model Rules”); namely Rule 1.1 “Competence” and Rule 1.6 “Confidentiality of Information” in order to keep up with the benefits and risks associated with technology in the legal profession. Additionally, over half of all jurisdictions have …

Transfunctions And Other Topics In Measure Theory, Jason Bentley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Measures are versatile objects which can represent how populations or supplies are distributed within a given space by assigning sizes to subregions (or subsets) of that space. To model how populations or supplies are shifted from one configuration to another, it is natural to use functions between measures, called transfunctions. Any measurable function can be identified with its push-forward transfunction. Other transfunctions exist such as convolution operators. In this manner, transfunctions are treated as generalized functions. This dissertation serves to build the theory of transfunctions and their connections to other mathematical fields. Transfunctions that identify with continuous or measurable push-forward …

How We Can Extend The Standard Deviation Notion With Neutrosophic Interval And Quadruple Neutrosophic Numbers, Victor Christianto, Florentin Smarandache, Muhammad Aslam

Branch Mathematics and Statistics Faculty and Staff Publications

During scientific demonstrating of genuine specialized framework we can meet any sort and rate model vulnerability. Its reasons can be incognizance of modelers or information mistake. In this way, characterization of vulnerabilities, as for their sources, recognizes aleatory and epistemic ones. The aleatory vulnerability is an inalienable information variety related with the researched framework or its condition. Epistemic one is a vulnerability that is because of an absence of information on amounts or procedures of the framework or the earth [7]. Right now, we examine fourfold neutrosophic numbers and their potential application for practical displaying of physical frameworks, particularly in …

A Short Remark On Vortex As Fluid Particle From Neutrosophic Logic Perspective, Victor Christianto, Florentin Smarandache

Branch Mathematics and Statistics Faculty and Staff Publications

In a previous paper in this journal (IJNS), it is mentioned about a possible approach to re-describe QED without renormalization route. As it is known that in literature, there are some attempts to reconcile vortex-based fluid dynamics and particle dynamics. Some attempts are not quite as fruitful as others. As a follow up to previous paper, the present paper will discuss two theorems for developing unification theories, and then point out some new proposals including by Simula (2020) on how to derive Maxwell equations in superfluid dynamics setting; this could be a new alternative approach towards “fluidicle” or “vorticle” model …

Synthesis Of Graphene Using Plasma Etching And Atmospheric Pressure Annealing: Process And Sensor Development, Andrew Robert Graves

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Having been theorized in 1947, it was not until 2004 that graphene was first isolated. In the years since its isolation, graphene has been the subject of intense, world-wide study due to its incredibly diverse array of useful properties. Even though many billions of dollars have been spent on its development, graphene has yet to break out of the laboratory and penetrate mainstream industrial applications markets. This is because graphene faces a ‘grand challenge.’ Simply put, there is currently no method of manufacturing high-quality graphene on the industrial scale. This grand challenge looms particularly large for electronic applications where the …

Speech Mode Classification Using The Fusion Of Cnns And Lstm Networks, Pratyusha Chowdary Vakkantula

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Speech mode classification is an area that has not been as widely explored in the field of sound classification as others such as environmental sounds, music genre, and speaker identification. But what is speech mode? While mode is defined as the way or the manner in which something occurs or is expressed or done, speech mode is defined as the style in which the speech is delivered by a person.

There are some reports on speech mode classification using conventional methods, such as whispering and talking using a normal phonetic sound. However, to the best of our knowledge, deep learning-based …

Development Of Methods For The Removal Of Selected Pollutants From Several Matrices And Identification Of Unknown Pollutants Adsorbed Onto Plastics Collected From Freshwater, Kathryn Marie Renyer

Dissertations

Plastic pollution represents one of greatest anthropogenic threats to the environment. Five to ten billion tons of plastic are manufactured every year. Currently, Earth's ecosystem is contaminated with billions of tons of plastic debris, much of which cannot be recycled. Over time, this plastic debris decomposes into small particles. Small plastic particles are known to adsorb toxic compounds in marine environments. My research is concerned with creating novel methods for the detection and quantification of selected persistent organic pollutants from several media. Specifically, I developed methods for the detection and quantification of endosulfan sulfate (ESS) from Lumbricus terrestris tissue and …

Characterizing The Hydrological Function Of Treed Bogs In The Zone Of Discontinuous Permafrost, Brenden Disher

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The loss of permafrost has produced a wholesale conversion from forest to wetland, and many studies have analyzed the effects of permafrost thaw-induced land cover change on the hydrology and ecology of landscapes within the Taiga Plains. The permafrost thaw driven areal shrinkage of forested plateaux and their replacement by treeless wetlands is well documented, and the co-occurrence of permafrost and black spruce forest cover is the basis for areal estimates of the former. However, field studies conducted at a peatland dominated landscape near Fort Simpson, NWT indicate that tree canopy may persist following the loss of permafrost and the …

Determination Of Samarium And Dysprosium Solubility, Seana Brennan

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

In recent years, the use of Rare Earth Elements (REE) has rapidly increased, resulting in numerous potential anthropogenic inputs to the environment. As a result, these metals are emerging as microcontaminants and pose a potential threat to aquatic life. However, the toxicity of REE are largely unknown due, in part, to the limited information on their chemical speciation. The purpose of this project was to gain an understanding of REE precipitate formation and solubility as the foundation for the development of the chemical equilibrium component of toxicity prediction models. Solubility experiments were conducted with Samarium, (Sm), a light REE, and …

Impact Of Seismic Lines On The Hydrology Of Wetlands In The Discontinuous Permafrost Zone, Southwestern Northwest Territories, Angela Hamilton

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Previous studies in the southern Northwest Territories have shown the underlying discontinuous permafrost is sensitive to disturbances such as the creation of seismic lines. Their creation has resulted in compaction topsoil and tree removal causing accelerated permafrost thaw. The loss of permafrost has caused seismic lines’ surface elevation to subside, which allows water to conjugate. This increases the soil moisture of a seismic line, which results in preferential thaw along the seismic line edges. Thaw along the edges over time has connected more previously isolated wetlands to seismic lines. This leads to more water entering, resulting in higher water levels …

Reconstructing Hydrologic Conditions And Metals Supplied By The Peace River To The Peace-Athabasca Delta, Jelle André Faber

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The Peace-Athabasca Delta (PAD) in northern Alberta, Canada, is recognized internationally for its ecological, historical, and cultural significance. The delta is mostly within Wood Buffalo National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and is a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance. The construction of the WAC Bennett Dam (1967) and the Site C Dam (ongoing, 2024) on the Peace River, and expansion of the Alberta Oil Sands industry along the Athabasca River have raised concerns over water quantity and quality in the delta. When industry operations began, effective monitoring had not been implemented. Consequently, pre-industrial reference conditions are unknown and can …

Health-Aware Food Planner: A Personalized Recipe Generation Approach Based On Gpt-2, Bushra Aljbawi

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

"What to eat today?" With the flourish of Internet, more and more people nowadays are inclined to find an answer to this most problematic question online. The recent explosion of food networks; however, produces large volumes of recipes, making it even harder to make an informed decision. This yields the need for advanced decision-making algorithms and efficient recommendation systems. Conventional recommender systems are not feasible anymore as food is a complicated feature that presents unique challenges and is less studied. For example, it can be one of the main reasons for obesity and many other chronic diseases. Food recommender system …