Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Analysis Of Angular Momentum In Planetary Systems And Host Stars, Stacy Ann Irwin

Theses and Dissertations

The spin angular momentum of single Main Sequence stars has long been shown to follow a primary power law of stellar mass, J ∝ Mα, excluding stars of <2 solar masses. Lower mass stars rotate more slowly with and have smaller moments of inertia, and as a result they contain much less spin angular momentum. A secondary power law describes the upper bound of angular momenta of these less massive stars with a steeper slope. The Solar System’s orbital angular momentum, however, is of the same order of magnitude as the primary law, whereas the Sun’s spin angular momentum is consistent with the secondary relationship. This suggests that planets are an important clue to answering questions about stellar angular momentum loss and transfer. With recent advances in exoplanet discovery and characterization, the angular momenta of exoplanetary systems can now be determined. A method is developed to calculate planetary system angular momenta from the spin and orbital angular momenta of a sample including 426 host stars and 532 planets. To maximize the size of the working sample, systems discovered by both the transit and radial velocity methods are included, and the biases of both techniques are identified. Self-consistent stellar moment of inertia parameters are interpolated from grids of stellar evolutionary models. Main Sequence host stars range from 0.6 to 1.7 solar masses, and their angular momenta are shown to agree well with previous studies of stellar angular momentum, generally falling on or below the appropriate power law, and exhibiting detection method biases. The systems’ angular momenta, including both the planetary orbital and stellar spin components, are widely spread above and below the primary power law, but on average agree well with the primary relationship. The results indicate that the primary power law describes angular momenta of stars of <2 solar masses well, when planetary angular momentum is included. This relationship also holds across host star evolutionary classifications. For 90% of the systems, the angular momentum contained in the planets is greater than the spin angular momentum of the host star, a characteristic shared by the Solar System. Undetected planets contribute significant bias to the system angular momentum as well as to the proportion of angular momentum contained in the planets. This bias is used to identify systems which are likely to harbor additional planets in already known planetary systems, assuming the Solar System’s proportions are typical.

A Search For Planets And Brown Dwarfs Around Post Main Sequence Stars, Tomomi Otani

Theses and Dissertations

So far, the most promising theory for the existence of subdwarf B (sdB) stars is that they were formed during binary star evolution. This research was conducted to test this theory by searching for companions around six sdB pulsators (V391 Peg, HS 0702+6043, EC 20117-4014, PG 1219+534, PG 0911+456, and PG 1613+426) using the Observed-minus-Calculated (O-C) method. A star’s position in space will wobble due to the gravitational forces of any companion. If the star is emitting a periodic signal, the orbital motion of the star around the system’s center of mass causes periodic changes in the light pulse arrival …

On The Inverse Multiphase Stefan Problem, Bruno Giuseppe Poggi Cevallos

Theses and Dissertations

We consider inverse multiphase Stefan problem, where information on the heat flux on the fixed boundary is missing and must be found along with the temperature and free boundaries. Optimal control framework is pursued, where boundary heat flux is the control, and optimality criteria consists of the minimization of the L₂-norm declination of the trace of the solution to the Stefan problem from the temperature measurement on the fixed boundary. State vector solves multiphase Stefan problem in a weak formulation, which is equivalent to Neumann problem for the quasilinear parabolic PDE with discontinuous coefficient. Full discretization through finite differences is …

Histone Deacetylase 6 (Hdac6) Is Critical For Tumor Cell Survival And Promotes The Pro-Survival Activity Of 14-3-3Ζ Viadeacetylation Of Lysines Within The14-3-3Ζ Binding Pocket, Jeffrey Benjamin Mortenson

Theses and Dissertations

Our understanding of non-histone acetylation as a means of cellular regulation is in its infancy. Using a mass spectrometry approach we identified acetylated lysine residues and monitored acetylation changes across the proteome as a consequence of metabolic stress (hypoxia). We observed changes in acetylation status of non-histone lysines in tumor cells. Through the use of small molecule inhibitors of histone deacetylase enzymes (HDACs) and siRNA screening identified HDAC6 as a pro-survival regulator of lysine acetylation during hypoxia. The phospho-binding protein 14-3-3ζ acts as a signaling hub controlling a network of interacting partners and oncogenic pathways. We show here that lysines …

Geologic Mapping Of Ice Cave Peak Quadrangle, Uintah And Duchesne Counties, Utah With Implications From Mapping Laramide Faults, Gabriel J. Poduska

Theses and Dissertations

Geologic mapping (1:24,000 scale) of the Ice Cave Peak quadrangle, Uintah and Duchesne Counties, Utah has produced a better understanding of the geologic structures present in the quadrangle and has increased our understanding of faulting in northeastern Utah. Map units in the quadrangle range in age from late Neoproterozoic to Quaternary and include good exposures of Paleozoic rocks (Mississippian to Permian), limited exposures of Mesozoic rocks, and good exposures of Tertiary strata (Duchesne River Formation and Bishop Conglomerate) deposited during uplift of the Uinta Mountains. Lower Mississippian strata along the south flank of the Uinta Mountains have typically been mapped …

An Improved Classifier Chain Ensemble For Multi-Dimensionalclassification With Conditional Dependence, Joseph Ethan Heydorn

Theses and Dissertations

We focus on multi-dimensional classification (MDC) problems with conditional dependence, which we call multiple output dependence (MOD) problems. MDC is the task of predicting a vector of categorical outputs for each input. Conditional dependence in MDC means that the choice for one output value affects the choice for others, so it is not desirable to predict outputs independently. We show that conditional dependence in MDC implies that a single input can map to multiple correct output vectors. This means it is desirable to find multiple correct output vectors per input. Current solutions for MOD problems are not sufficient because they …

Cellular Discrimination Using In Vitro Raman Micro Spectroscopy: The Role Of The Nucleolus, Hugh Byrne

Articles

Raman micro spectroscopy has attracted considerable attention over the last few years to explore its possible clinical applications as a non-invasive powerful label-free in vitro screening tool in cancer diagnosis and monitoring, subcellular analysis of biochemical processes, drug uptake, mode of action and mechanisms of interaction as well as toxicity of, for example, chemotherapeutic agents.

However, in order to evaluate accurately the potential of Raman micro spectroscopy for such applications it is essential to optimise measurement and data processing protocols associated with subcellular analysis. To this end, in vitro differentiation of cell lines is a basic proof of concept for …

Nat Traversal Techniques And Udp Keep-Alive Interval Optimization, Christopher Daniel Widmer

Theses and Dissertations

NAT traversal presents a challenge to Peer to Peer (P2P) applications, as in many instances a third party is needed to help initiate communication between two hosts when one is behind one or more NAT devices. Much work has gone into facilitating communication across NATs using various protocols, and several standards have been developed to this end. This thesis explores the advantages and disadvantages of several of these standards, including protocols for interacting with the NAT device itself (NAT Port Mapping Protocol (NATPMP), Port Control Protocol (PCP), and Universal Plug and Play (UPnP)), and those using an external server to …

Iron-Mediated Stabilization Of Soil Carbon Amplifies The Benefits Of Ecological Restoration In Degraded Lands, Lucas C. R. Silva, Timothy A. Doane, Rodrigo S. Correa, Vinicius Valverde, Engil Isadora Pujol Pereira, William R. Horwath

School of Earth, Environmental, and Marine Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Recent observations across a 14‐year restoration chronosequence have shown an unexpected accumulation of soil organic carbon in strip‐mined areas of central Brazil. This was attributed to the rapid plant colonization that followed the incorporation of biosolids into exposed regoliths, but the specific mechanisms involved in the stabilization of carbon inputs from the vegetation remained unclear. Using isotopic and elemental analyses, we tested the hypothesis that plant‐derived carbon accumulation was triggered by the formation of iron‐coordinated complexes, stabilized into physically protected (occluded) soil fractions. Confirming this hypothesis, we identified a fast formation of microaggregates shortly after the application of iron‐rich biosolids, …

Synthesis And Functionalization Of Fluorescent Quantum Dot Bioconjugates For Cellular Imaging Of Directed Gene Therapy, Jason Matthew Davis

MSU Graduate Theses

Herein, I optimize a method for synthesis and bioconjugation of water-soluble, fluorescent CdSe/ZnS quantum dots (QDs) for targeted cellular delivery of DNA. Core CdSe QDs were synthesized in high temperature organic solvents and passivated with a ZnS shell to increase quantum yield. The fluorescent QD nanoparticles were made water-soluble by enveloping them with an amphiphilic polymer. These aqueous nanoparticles were functionalized with tertiary amines to impart a positive charge, allowing electrostatic binding to negatively-charged DNA. The conjugated QDs were characterized using zeta potential and electrophoresis to gauge their ability to electrostatically bind DNA. The QDs were further modified by conjugation …

An Apache Hadoop Framework For Large-Scale Peptide Identification, Harinivesh Donepudi

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Peptide identification is an essential step in protein identification, and Peptide Spectrum Match (PSM) data set is huge, which is a time consuming process to work on a single machine. In a typical run of the peptide identification method, PSMs are positioned by a cross correlation, a statistical score, or a likelihood that the match between the trial and hypothetical is correct and unique. This process takes a long time to execute, and there is a demand for an increase in performance to handle large peptide data sets. Development of distributed frameworks are needed to reduce the processing time, but …

Evaluation Of Xanthan/Enzymatically Modified Guar Gum Mixtures In Oil-In-Water Emulsions, Pavan Kumar Chityala

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Oil-in-water emulsions have wide range of applications in food industry because of their structure-forming properties, and as delivery systems of polyunsaturated fatty acids into foods. The thermodynamic instability of oil and water, and high susceptibility of unsaturated fatty acids to oxidation lead to physical and oxidative stability in oil-in-water emulsions. These instability processes are generally controlled by incorporating proteins and polysaccharides into oil-in-water emulsions. The objective of this study was to evaluate xanthan/enzymatically modified guar (XG/EMG) polysaccharides on the physical and oxidative stability of 2 wt% whey protein stabilized oil-in-water emulsions containing 20% v/v menhaden fish oil. Enzymatic modified guar …

Expectation Numbers Of Cyclic Groups, Miriam Mahannah El-Farrah

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

When choosing k random elements from a group the kth expectation number is the expected size of the subgroup generated by those specific elements. The main purpose of this thesis is to study the asymptotic properties for the first and second expectation numbers of large cyclic groups. The first chapter introduces the kth expectation number. This formula allows us to determine the expected size of any group. Explicit examples and computations of the first and second expectation number are given in the second chapter. Here we show example of both cyclic and dihedral groups. In chapter three we discuss arithmetic …

Zero-Waste Planning At Higher Education Institutions: A Case Study Of Western Kentucky University, Kianoosh Ebrahimi

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Over the past two decades, the number of universities that pursue zero-waste strategies has steadily increased. However, more study is required on several interrelated factors, policy barriers, and infrastructural fundamentals, which each influence the efficiency of waste management structures (WM) at universities. In this work, the role of the aforementioned factors in implementing an efficient sustainable WM program at higher education institutions was investigated, using Western Kentucky University (WKU) as a case study. The objectives of this study were to identify and assess what type of WM strategies should be priorities for a university that may lack stringent WM infrastructure. …

Modification Of Traffic-Related Respiratory Response By Asthma Control In A Population Of Car Commuters, Maria C. Mirabelli, Rachel Golan, Roby Greenwald, Amit U. Raysoni, Fernando Holguin, Priya Kewada, Andrea Winquist, W Dana Flanders, Jeremy A. Sarnat

School of Earth, Environmental, and Marine Sciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background: Effects of traffic-related exposures on respiratory health are well documented, but little information is available about whether asthma control influences individual susceptibility. We analyzed data from the Atlanta Commuter Exposure study to evaluate modification of associations between rush-hour commuting, in- vehicle air pollution, and selected respiratory health outcomes by asthma control status.

Methods: Between 2009 and 2011, 39 adults participated in Atlanta Commuter Exposure, and each conducted two scripted rush-hour highway commutes. In-vehicle particulate components were measured during all commutes. Among adults with asthma, we evaluated asthma control by questionnaire and spirometry. Exhaled nitric oxide, forced expiratory volume in …

Characterizations Of Levy Distribution Via Sub-Independence Of The Random Variables And Truncated Moments, Gholamhossein G. Hamedani, M. Ahsanullah, Seyed Morteza Najibi

Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Science Faculty Research and Publications

The concept of sub-independence is based on the convolution of the distributions of the random variables. It is much weaker than that of independence, but is shown to be sufficient to yield the conclusions of important theorems and results in probability and statistics. It also provides a measure of dissociation between two random variables which is much stronger than uncorrelatedness. Following Ahsanullah and Nevzorov (2014), we present certain characterizations of Levy distribution based on: (i) the sub-independence of the random variables; (ii) a simple relationship between two truncated moments; (iii) conditional expectation of certain function of the random variable. In …

Missing Photos, Suffering Withdrawal, Or Finding Freedom? How Experiences Of Social Media Non-Use Influence The Likelihood Of Reversion, Eric P.S. Baumer, Shion Guha, Emily Quan, David Mimno, Geri K. Gay

Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Science Faculty Research and Publications

This article examines social media reversion, when a user intentionally ceases using a social media site but then later resumes use of the site. We analyze a convenience sample of survey data from people who volunteered to stay off Facebook for 99 days but, in some cases, returned before that time. We conduct three separate analyses to triangulate on the phenomenon of reversion: simple quantitative predictors of reversion, factor analysis of adjectives used by respondents to describe their experiences of not using Facebook, and statistical topic analysis of free-text responses. Significant factors predicting either increased or decreased likelihood of reversion …

Improving Satellite-Based Chlorophyll-A Estimating Algorithms In Shallow, Coastal Waters, Tara Blakey

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This work evaluated the improvement to the accuracy of chlorophyll-a (chl-a) estimating algorithms derived from Sea-Viewing Wide Field-of-View Sensor (SeaWIFS) archives of an optically-shallow, subtropical bay. Preliminary investigation into the in situ chl-a measurements showed that the fine spatial and temporal resolution currently only available through satellite remote sensing are required to adequately understand the dynamics of coastal chl-a. The in situ datasets, however, were found to be useful for developing chl-a algorithms by allowing for 1) identification of appropriate times of year for classifying benthic habitats and 2) the assumption of annually …

Land Use /Land Cover Driven Surface Energy Balance And Convective Rainfall Change In South Florida, Hari P. Kandel

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Modification of land use/land cover in South Florida has posed a major challenge in the region’s eco-hydrology by shifting the surface-atmosphere water and energy balance. Although drainage and development in South Florida took place extensively between the mid- and late- 20^th century, converting half of the original Everglades into agricultural and urban areas, urban expansion still accounts for a dominant mode of surface cover change in South Florida. Changes in surface cover directly affect the radiative, thermophysical and aerodynamic parameters which determine the absorption and partitioning of radiation into different components at the Earth surface. The alteration is responsible …

Hydrologic Controls Of Coastal Groundwater Discharge In Southern Taylor Slough, Everglades National Park, Florida, Edward Linden

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This project empirically determined the controls of groundwater discharge potential and surface water chemistry in southern Taylor Slough, Everglades National Park, Florida. Potential for groundwater discharge was calculated as the difference in equivalent freshwater stage between groundwater and surface water on a daily basis for two sites (upland and coastal) along southern Taylor Slough. Upstream water stages were shown to vary most similarly to the timing of groundwater discharge potential in coastal Taylor Slough. Surface water major ion chemistry did not apparently change as a result of groundwater discharge potential. Surface water major ion chemistry at the coastal site was …

Meta-Raps Hybridization With Machine Learning Algorithms, Fatemah Al-Duoli

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation focuses on advancing the Metaheuristic for Randomized Priority Search algorithm, known as Meta-RaPS, by integrating it with machine learning algorithms. Introducing a new metaheuristic algorithm starts with demonstrating its performance. This is accomplished by using the new algorithm to solve various combinatorial optimization problems in their basic form. The next stage focuses on advancing the new algorithm by strengthening its relatively weaker characteristics. In the third traditional stage, the algorithms are exercised in solving more complex optimization problems. In the case of effective algorithms, the second and third stages can occur in parallel as researchers are eager to …

Energy Harvesting-Aware Design For Wireless Nanonetworks, Shahram Mohrehkesh

Computer Science Theses & Dissertations

Nanotechnology advancement promises to enable a new era of computing and communication devices by shifting micro scale chip design to nano scale chip design. Nanonetworks are envisioned as artifacts of nanotechnology in the domain of networking and communication. These networks will consist of nodes of nanometer to micrometer in size, with a communication range up to 1 meter. These nodes could be used in various biomedical, industrial, and environmental monitoring applications, where a nanoscale level of sensing, monitoring, control and communication is required. The special characteristics of nanonetworks require the revisiting of network design. More specifically, nanoscale limitations, new paradigms …

Artificial Maturation Studies Of Polymethylenic Plant Biopolymers: Investigating The Chemical Alterations From Plant Material To Coal, Blaine Elizabeth Hartman

Chemistry & Biochemistry Theses & Dissertations

The thermal maturation and alternation of vascular plant material into coals and as expelled petroleum-like compounds is the main focus of this dissertation. Utilizing artificial maturation studies, like hydrothermal liquefaction, yields useful information regarding how plant material is preserved in coals and the potential certain plant biopolymers possess to generate liquid fuels is acquired. The studies within this dissertation focus on utilizing the aliphatic biopolymers, cutin, cutan, and suberan, found in the epidermis of certain plants. These biopolymers contain minimal amounts of heteroatoms and are comprised of long polymethylenic chains, which are desirable characteristics in generating bio-oils. Additionally, understanding the …

Detecting, Modeling, And Predicting User Temporal Intention, Hany M. Salaheldeen

Computer Science Theses & Dissertations

The content of social media has grown exponentially in the recent years and its role has evolved from narrating life events to actually shaping them. Unfortunately, content posted and shared in social networks is vulnerable and prone to loss or change, rendering the context associated with it (a tweet, post, status, or others) meaningless. There is an inherent value in maintaining the consistency of such social records as in some cases they take over the task of being the first draft of history as collections of these social posts narrate the pulse of the street during historic events, protest, riots, …

Accuracy Comparison Of Numerical Integration Algorithms For Real-Time Hybrid Simulations, Ganesh Anant Reddy

Civil & Environmental Engineering Theses & Dissertations

The use of accurate numerical integration algorithms is one of the key factors for a successful real-time hybrid simulation (RTHS). In RTHSs, explicit integration algorithms are preferred more than implicit methods since all calculations need to be completed within a given time step during simulation. Explicit methods require the use of effective stiffness and damping for experimental substructures, which are incorporated into the calculation of the integration parameters. In general, those values that are greater than the expected stiffness and damping of the experimental substructure are used to ensure the stability of simulation. If a rate-dependent and nonlinear experimental substructure …

Supervised Classification Using Copula And Mixture Copula, Sumen Sen

Mathematics & Statistics Theses & Dissertations

Statistical classification is a field of study that has developed significantly after 1960's. This research has a vast area of applications. For example, pattern recognition has been proposed for automatic character recognition, medical diagnostic and most recently in data mining. Classical discrimination rule assumes normality. However in many situations, this assumption is often questionable. In fact for some data, the pattern vector is a mixture of discrete and continuous random variables. In this dissertation, we use copula densities to model class conditional distributions. Such types of densities are useful when the marginal densities of a pattern vector are not normally …

High Performance Large Graph Analytics By Enhancing Locality, Naga Shailaja Dasari

Computer Science Theses & Dissertations

Graphs are widely used in a variety of domains for representing entities and their relationship to each other. Graph analytics helps to understand, detect, extract and visualize insightful relationships between different entities. Graph analytics has a wide range of applications in various domains including computational biology, commerce, intelligence, health care and transportation. The breadth of problems that require large graph analytics is growing rapidly resulting in a need for fast and efficient graph processing.

One of the major challenges in graph processing is poor locality of reference. Locality of reference refers to the phenomenon of frequently accessing the same memory …

Studies Of Two-Nucleon Interactions And Few-Body Electromagnetic Structure In Chiral Effective Field Theory, Maria Piarulli

Physics Theses & Dissertations

A coordinate-space nucleon-nucleon potential is constructed in chiral effective field theory (χEFT) retaining pions, nucleons and Δ-isobars as explicit degrees of freedom. The calculation of the potential is carried out by including one-and two-pion-exchange contributions up to next-to-next-to-leading order (N2LO) and contact interactions tip to next-to-next-to-next-to-leading order (N3LO). The low-energy constants multiplying these contact interactions are fitted to the 2013 Granada database in the laboratory-energy range 0–300 MeV. Three versions of this chiral potential, corresponding to three different cutoffs, have been developed. The cutoff regularizes the one- and two-pion exchange as well as the contact part of the potential. A …

Computational Investigation Of Pernicious Compounds: Arsenic And High Energy Density Materials And Their Relevant Mechanisms, Lenora Kathleen Harper

Chemistry & Biochemistry Theses & Dissertations

The underlying mechanisms of chemical warfare agents (CWAs) and high energy density materials (HEDMs) are poorly understood, yet important to the development of chemical applications in military science and technology. The reactivity of arsenite and arsenic-based CWA lewisite with biological thiols plays an important role in toxicity of these elements. Toxic effects of arsenite are eliminated when arsenite and selenite are co-administered, due to their antagonistic relationship. The arsenic-based CWA lewisite is detoxified by the dithiol-containing British anti-lewisite (BAL). The reduction of arsenous acid by thiol, the formation of an As-Se species, and the detoxification of lewisite with BAL have …

Study Of Photochemical Formation Of Hydroxyl Radical In Natural Waters, Luni Sun

Chemistry & Biochemistry Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation mainly focuses on the sources of the hydroxyl radical (•OH) from photochemical reactions in natural waters, in particular from reactions involving dissolved organic matter (DOM). Firstly, an accurate method for estimating •OH formation rate during long-term irradiation was developed. It was observed that previous methods for measuring •OH formation rates in the natural waters, which were based upon sequentially determined cumulative concentrations of probe photoproducts, significantly underestimated actual •OH formation rates. It was found that the underestimation was mainly due to the degradation of the probe photoproducts and that only ‘instantaneous’ formation rates were appropriate for accurately estimating …