Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

State Of The Fisheries: Status Reports And Aquatic Resources Of Western Australia 2022/23, S.J. Newman, K.G. Santoro, D.J. Gaughan

Status reports of the fisheries and aquatic resources

Aquatic resources within Western Australia (WA) are in good condition, and this has positioned WA as a global leader in sustainable fisheries management. The sustainable fisheries of WA continue to support our strong economy and regional communities. Nonetheless, the lack of a consistent approach to build in the knowledge of Traditional Owners remains a gap in our longer term fisheries science in Western Australia.

Climate change and climate variability continues to impact fish stocks, challenging our ability to effectively monitor, assess, and manage fish stocks. We are continually working with our stakeholders, and the broader community to be adaptive, responsive, …

Reimagining Large River Management Using The Resist–Accept–Direct (Rad) Framework In The Upper Mississippi River, Nicole K. Ward, Abigail J. Lynch, Erik A. Beever, Joshua Booker, Kristen L. Bouska, Holly Embke, Jeffrey N. Houser, John F. Kocik, Joshua Kocik, David J. Lawrence, Mary Grace Lemon, Doug Limpinsel, Madeline R. Magee, Bryan M. Maitland, Owen Mckenna, Andrew Meier, John M. Morton, Jeffrey D. Muehlbauer, Robert Newman, Devon C. Oliver, Heidi M. Rantala, Greg G. Sass, Aaron Shultz, Laura M. Thompson, Jennifer L. Wilkening

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Background: Large-river decision-makers are charged with maintaining diverse ecosystem services through unprecedented social-ecological transformations as climate change and other global stressors intensify. The interconnected, dendritic habitats of rivers, which often demarcate jurisdictional boundaries, generate complex management challenges. Here, we explore how the Resist–Accept–Direct (RAD) framework may enhance large-river management by promoting coordinated and deliberate responses to social-ecological trajectories of change. The RAD framework identifies the full decision space of potential management approaches, wherein managers may resist change to maintain historical conditions, accept change toward different conditions, or direct change to a specified future with novel conditions. In the Upper Mississippi …

Environment And Sustainability: December 2023, Environment And Sustainability, Office Of The President

Environment and Sustainability

• AKU’s Honourable Mention at the 2023 IHF Awards

• 7% energy savings at Stadium Road

• FMIC’s new solar water heater

• 2 Electric Shuttles for campus commuting

• AKU at COP28

• And much more…

A Control Study Analysis Application Of Unoccupied Aerial Systems (Drones) To Monitor Eutrophication, Chrystal Mata

Water Resources Science and Technology Theses and Graduate Research Reports

Unmanned Aircraft systems (UAS) can offer a valuable perspective for detecting and monitoring for eutrophication in bodies of water by providing high-resolution images and data assignments for algal blooms and nutrient levels. Eutrophication, the process by which water bodies become enriched with nutrients, has emerged as a critical factor in evaluating and maintaining water quality. In this study, we use DJI Inspire Pro 1 equipped with a Zenmuse X3 camera, attached with a Parrot Sequoia multispectral sensor was used to in conjunction with algorithms to retrieve Chlorophyll parameters for monitoring eutrophication. Although water quality parameters such as pH, nitrate, phosphate, …

Trashed: A Review Of Anthropogenic Litter In An Urban Watershed, John D. Hamilton

Water Resources Science and Technology Theses and Graduate Research Reports

Urban creeks, streams and rivers have become an unfortunate destination for trash pollution. Within an urban watershed trash pollution is harmful to fish, wildlife, public health, contributes to microplastic proliferation, and aesthetically tarnishes an otherwise unscathed ecosystem. With lots of attention focused on trash in marine and coastal ecosystems, this study aims to contribute to the growing research on inland urban watersheds and their involvement. This study highlights issues associated with trash pollution, and investigates the associated vectors, origins, behaviors, and contributing factors that create trash ladened urban watersheds. Datasets and site surveys from repeated trash cleanups in three creekside …

Coastal Wetland Restoration Through The Lens Of Odum's Theory Of Ecosystem Development, Friedrich W. Keppeler, Annette S. Engel, Linda M. Hooper-Bùi, Paola C. López-Duarte, Charles W. Martin, Jill A. Olin, Katelyn J. Lamb, Michael J. Polito, Nancy N. Rabalais, Multiple Additional Authors

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

Advancing ecological restoration assessments requires a more detailed consideration of species interactions and ecosystem processes. Most restoration projects rely on a few metrics not always directly linked with ecological theory. Here, we used Odum's theory of ecosystem development to assess and compare the ecosystem structure and services of created marshes (4–6 years old) with preexisting, reference marshes in a brackish water region of the Mississippi River Delta. We built ecosystem models for created and reference marshes that integrated large datasets of stomach contents, stable isotopes, and taxa abundances. Despite strong resemblance in community structure, created marshes were at an earlier …

Discrete Complementary Exponential And Sine Integral Functions, Samer Assaf, Tom Cuchta

Mathematics Faculty Research

Discrete analogues of the sine integral and complementary exponential integral functions are investigated. Hypergeometric representation, power series, and Laplace transforms are derived for each. The difficulties in extending these definitions to other common trigonometric integral functions are discussed.

Predictive Machine Learning And Its Future In Professional Basketball, Zachary Harmon

Honors College Theses

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is an ever-evolving field, transforming various aspects of contemporary life. From language models to immersive gaming experiences, AI technologies have become integral to our daily existence. Among the most promising arenas for AI integration is the world of sports. This research delves into the application of machine learning models to predict NBA game outcomes, shedding light on the profound impact of machine learning in the realm of professional basketball. Beyond the scope of game prediction, this study explores the broader implications, such as optimizing the selection of televised games, assisting players in showcasing their skills, and much …

New Paths Of Attacks: Revealing The Adaptive Integration Of Artificial Intelligence In Evolving Cyber Threats Targeting Social Media Users And Their Data, Larry Teasley

Cybersecurity Undergraduate Research Showcase

The intersection between artificial intelligence tools and social media has opened doors to numerous opportunities and risks. This research delves into the escalating threat landscape in a society heavily dependent on social media. Despite the efforts by social media companies and cybersecurity professionals to mitigate cyber-attacks, the constant advancements of new technologies render social media platforms increasingly vulnerable. Malicious actors exploit generative AI to collect user data, enhancing cyber threats on social media. Notably, generative AI amplifies phishing attacks, disseminates false information, and propagates propaganda, posing substantial challenges to platform security. Ease access to large language models (LLMs) further complicates …

Lip(S) Service: A Socioethical Overview Of Social Media Platforms’ Censorship Policies Regarding Consensual Sexual Content, Sage Futrell

Cybersecurity Undergraduate Research Showcase

The regulation of sexual exploitation on social media is a pressing issue that has been addressed by government legislation. However, laws such as FOSTA-SESTA has inadvertently restricted consensual expressions of sexuality as well. In four social media case studies, this paper investigates the ways in which marginalized groups have been impacted by changing censorship guidelines on social media, and how content moderation methods can be inclusive of these groups. I emphasize the qualitative perspectives of sex workers and queer creators in these case studies, in addition to my own experiences as a content moderation and social media management intern for …

A Review Of Threat Vectors To Dna Sequencing Pipelines, Tyler Rector

Cybersecurity Undergraduate Research Showcase

Bioinformatics is a steadily growing field that focuses on the intersection of biology with computer science. Tools and techniques developed within this field are quickly becoming fixtures in genomics, forensics, epidemiology, and bioengineering. The development and analysis of DNA sequencing and synthesis have enabled this significant rise in demand for bioinformatic tools. Notwithstanding, these bioinformatic tools have developed in a research context free of significant cybersecurity threats. With the significant growth of the field and the commercialization of genetic information, this is no longer the case. This paper examines the bioinformatic landscape through reviewing the biological and cybersecurity threats within …

How Chatgpt Can Be Used As A Defense Mechanism For Cyber Attacks, Michelle Ayaim

Cybersecurity Undergraduate Research Showcase

The powers of OpenAI's groundbreaking AI language model, ChatGPT, startled millions of users when it was released in November. But for many, the tool's ability to further accomplish the goals of evil actors swiftly replaced their initial excitement with significant concerns. ChatGPT gives malicious actors additional ways to possibly compromise sophisticated cybersecurity software. Leaders in a sector that is currently suffering from a 38% global spike in data breaches in 2022 must acknowledge the rising influence of AI and take appropriate action. Cybercriminals are writing more complex and focused business email compromise (BEC) and other phishing emails with the assistance …

Electrochemical And Colorimetric Nanosensors For Detection Of Heavy Metal Ions: A Review, Sayo Fakayode, Charuksha Walgama, Vivian E. Fernand Narcisse, Cidya Grant

Chemistry, Physics and Astronomy Faculty Scholarship

Human exposure to acute and chronic levels of heavy metal ions are linked with various health issues, including reduced children’s intelligence quotients, developmental challenges, cancers, hypertension, immune system compromises, cytotoxicity, oxidative cellular damage, and neurological disorders, among other health challenges. The potential environmental HMI contaminations, the biomagnification of heavy metal ions along food chains, and the associated risk factors of heavy metal ions on public health safety are a global concern of top priority. Hence, developing lowcost analytical protocols capable of rapid, selective, sensitive, and accurate detection of heavy metal ions in environmental samples and consumable products is of global …

Wavelet Compression As An Observational Operator In Data Assimilation Systems For Sea Surface Temperature, Bradley J. Sciacca

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

The ocean remains severely under-observed, in part due to its sheer size. Containing nearly billion of water with most of the subsurface being invisible because water is extremely difficult to penetrate using electromagnetic radiation, as is typically used by satellite measuring instruments. For this reason, most observations of the ocean have very low spatial-temporal coverage to get a broad capture of the ocean’s features. However, recent “dense but patchy” data have increased the availability of high-resolution – low spatial coverage observations. These novel data sets have motivated research into multi-scale data assimilation methods. Here, we demonstrate a new assimilation approach …

Measuring The Lengths Of Sperm Whales Of The Northern Gulf Of Mexico By Wavelet Analysis Of Their Usual Clicks, George Drouant

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

Acoustic recordings of underwater sounds produced by marine mammals present an attractive alternative to costly and logistically complex ship based visual surveys for collecting population data for various species.

The first reported use of underwater acoustic recordings in the long-term monitoring of sperm whale populations was by Ackleh et al. (Ackleh et al., 2012). The paper describes counting sperm whale clicks at different locations to track population changes over time.

Analysis of sperm whale clicks offers additional insight into sperm whale populations. The echo location clicks (usual clicks) of sperm whales can be used to give an estimate of …

Towards Securing Smart Contracts Systematically, Duy Tai Nguyen

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Smart contracts are a groundbreaking technique that allows users to programmatically modify the state of the blockchain. They are essentially self-enforcing programs that are deployed and executed on top of the blockchain. In recent years, we have witnessed various smart contract incidents that led to substantial financial losses and even business closures. These incidents mainly arise from design flaws in Solidity, a dominant programming language for writing smart contracts, which complicates the process of detecting and repairing vulnerabilities. Furthermore, there is a growing interest in attacking smart contracts by the attackers. This thesis is dedicated to developing effective methods to …

Stereochemical Engineering Yields A Multifunctional Peptide Macrocycle Inhibitor Of Akt2 By Fine-Tuning Macrocycle-Cell Membrane Interactions, Arundhati Nag, Amirhossein Mafi, Samir Das, Mary Beth Yu, Belen Alvarez-Villalonga, Soo-Kyung Kim, Yapeng Su, William A. Goddard, James R. Heath

Chemistry

Macrocycle peptides are promising constructs for imaging and inhibiting extracellular, and cell membrane proteins, but their use for targeting intracellular proteins is typically limited by poor cell penetration. We report the development of a cell-penetrant high-affinity peptide ligand targeted to the phosphorylated Ser474 epitope of the (active) Akt2 kinase. This peptide can function as an allosteric inhibitor, an immunoprecipitation reagent, and a live cell immunohistochemical staining reagent. Two cell penetrant stereoisomers were prepared and shown to exhibit similar target binding affinities and hydrophobic character but 2-3-fold different rates of cell penetration. Experimental and computational studies resolved that the ligands’ difference …

Including The Human Dimension Into Resilience Planning For Maine’S Lobster Fishery, Katherine Maltby, Katherine E. Mills

Maine Policy Review

The American lobster fishery is one of the most valuable in the US but is being affected by climate-driven shifts in lobster availability, impacting people’s ability to harvest the resource and sparking broader adaptation challenges. Since the late 1990s, lobster landings in the Gulf of Maine (GOM) have climbed to record levels while those in Southern New England (SNE) have experienced significant declines. The experiences of SNE lobstermen during these declines can offer important lessons for both individual lobstermen and communities in the GOM, where lobster abundance is currently at high levels but facing future uncertainty given continuing climate trends. …

The Surprising Oceanography Of The Gulf Of Maine, Nicholas R. Record, Benjamin Tupper, Johnathan Evanilla, Kyle Oliveira, Camille Ross, Logan Ngai, Karen Stamieszkin

Maine Policy Review

The oceanography of the Gulf of Maine has changed in ways that have not been seen previously but that are likely to be more common in the future–changes like extreme rapid warming and declines in primary productivity. The changing oceanography has underpinned surprising losses in commercial stocks and endangered species. Because of the rapid rate of change, some have viewed the Gulf of Maine as a window into the ocean’s future, with the idea that lessons learned can be applied in places that have yet to experience similar rapid changes. We can examine the dynamics, origin, and implications of surprising …

Statically Scheduling Circular Remote Attribute Grammars, Seyedamirhossein Hesamian

Theses and Dissertations

Classical attribute grammars invented by Knuth have been the subject of extensive study. Over the years there have been various extensions introduced, each with the goal of making attribute grammar more useful for applications such as program analysis. The first extension described here is circular attribute grammar by Farrow. It is followed by remote attribute grammar, which was introduced separately by Boyland and Hedin. More recently, Hedin introduced circular remote attribute grammars and a proof of concept implementation with demand evaluation. Remote attribute grammars make it possible for semantic rules to access attributes of nodes that are not local, and …

Analysis Of Triton Cg 110 Foaming Characteristics For Use As A Potential Fire Suppressant, Addison Cobb, Jeremy Cho

Undergraduate Research Symposium Lightning Talks

Background: Per-FluoroAlkyls (PFAs) are incredibly stable molecules which do not biodegrade. These chemicals have been linked with a series of health issues and environmental problems.

Problem: PFAs have been identified in most drinking water supplies in the United States. Large Amounts of this is due to Aqueous Fire-Fighting Foams (AFFF’s), which contain PFAs, seeping into the groundwater supply.

Solution: While little can be done about PFAs currently in groundwater supplies, replacing PFA-based AFFFs with newer Eco-AFFFs can halt AFFF contamination, and maintain firefighting suppression.

Sensitive Capacitance Measurements Of The Quantum Hall Effect In Graphene, Vergil Schreiber, Justin Alvarez, Joshua Island

Undergraduate Research Symposium Podium Presentations

Research on how electrons respond to confinement holds potential for breakthroughs in quantum computing and more energy efficient electronics. In intense magnetic fields and near-zero temperatures, electrons in confined to 2D display unique quantum behaviors. These conditions quantize electron motion into circular orbits, resulting in discrete Landau energy levels.

Controls On Sediment Connectivity In Fluvial Networks Impacted By Wildfire Across Utah, Alec Arditti

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Flooding and sedimentation caused by wildfire are among the greatest threats to watersheds, fish populations and reservoirs in the western US. Burned landscapes are at risk for increased runoff and erosion and have the potential to transport sediment that may put downstream resources at risk. The ability of the channel to transport sediment downstream, known as the connectivity, is important for determining where impacts may occur. Sediment bottlenecks are locations within the watershed where local conditions produce a persistent decrease in downstream connectivity of sediment, resulting in increased sediment deposition and potentially a substantial modification of the local channel and …

Private Ethereum Blockchain Implementation And Its Security Features For Smart Home Iot, Hasibul Grande Alam

Theses and Dissertations

The security and privacy of IoT devices have become primary concerns as smart home networks are connected to the internet. Ethereum blockchain can be a solution to mitigate or prevent attacks – sniffing attacks, malware attacks, Eavesdropping, and Distributed Denial of Services (DDoS) attacks. Deploying Ethereum in resource constraint IoT devices is challenging due to resultant energy consumption, computational overhead, and delay. We adopted smart home as a case study to examine our methodology as a model for general IoT applications. This thesis work presents the implementation of private Ethereum blockchain that is optimized and installable on smart home IoT. …

Intellibeehive, Christian Ivan Narcia-Macias

Theses and Dissertations

Utilizing computer vision and the latest technological advancements, in this study, we developed a honey bee monitoring system that aims to enhance our understanding of Colony Collapse Disorder, honey bee behavior, population decline, and overall hive health. The system is positioned at the hive entrance providing real-time data, enabling beekeepers to closely monitor the hive's activity and health through an account-based website. Using machine learning, our monitoring system can accurately track honey bees, monitor pollen-gathering activity, and detect Varroa mites, all without causing any disruption to the honey bees. Moreover, we have ensured that the development of this monitoring system …

A Combinatorial Proof Of Supercranks For Partitions With A Fixed Number Of Parts, Jacob J. Gutierrez

Theses and Dissertations

In a previous paper by Eichhorn and Kronholm, a selection of supercranks for p(n,m) was established by generating functions. In this paper we will reprove this result with combinatorial witnesses for the selection of supercranks via integer lattice points.

Attitudes Towards Mathematics Of Developmental Mathematics Students In A Community College, Benjamin Ortiz

Theses and Dissertations

Reformations to developmental mathematics aim to remove barriers for students entering higher education. Challenges like costly multi-course sequences and high failure rates prohibit students’ access to college-level math courses and prevent degree or certification completion. Understanding factors that foster student success is critical to increase student success. This study focuses on students’ attitudes towards mathematics, utilizing the novice-expert continuum through Code et al.’s Mathematical Attitude and Perceptions Survey (MAPS) instrument. Student expertise scores, including all MAPS dimensions and specific dimension scores, were assigned. Kruskal-Wallis Rank-Sum tests identified differences in student populations by course and attitude dimension. …

An Automatic Solver For Optimal Control Problems, Marcel Efren Benitez

Theses and Dissertations

Optimal control theory is a study that is used to find a control for a dynamical system over a period of time such that a objection function is optimized. In this study we will be looking at optimal control problems for ordinary differential equations or ODEs and see that we can use an automatic solver using the forward-backward sweep using Matlab to solve for them from an 1 dimension to bounded cases and to nth dimension cases.

Enhancing Indoors Robotic Traversability Estimation With Sensor Fusion, Christos Sevastopoulos

Computer Science and Engineering Dissertations

Generally speaking, traversability estimation illustrates the ability to navigate or move through a particular environment (indoors or outdoors). Indoor environments are governed by uncertainty and stochasticity arising from their complex structures encapsulating both static elements like furniture and walls, as well as entities such as moving humans. In our research, we underline the importance of blending semantic and spatial information for ensuring secure navigation for a mobile robot. We show that RGB sensors suffer from constrained situational awareness of the surroundings, thus highlighting the need to incorporate spatial and geometric data, which can collaborate synergistically to enhance overall perception and …

Prospects And Constraints For A Recreational Fishery On East Canyon Creek At The 910 Ranch, S. Bishop, A. Garner, G. Mclaughlin, T. Oman, N. Omer, C. Stewart

Watershed Sciences Student Research

Summit County Lands and Natural Resources has retained students from Utah State University’s Management and Restoration of Aquatic Ecosystems program to evaluate current conditions of East Canyon Creek (ECC) in the 910 Ranch and propose prospects, constraints, and potential actions to establish a recreational trout fishery.