Department of Computer Science Activity 1998-2004

This report summarizes much of the research and teaching activity of the Department of Computer Science at Dartmouth College between late 1998 and late 2004. The material for this report was collected as part of the final report for NSF Institutional Infrastructure award EIA-9802068, which funded equipment and technical staff during that six-year period. This equipment and staff supported essentially all of the department\u27s research activity during that period

The Sensor Network Workbench: Towards Functional Specification, Verification and Deployment of Constrained Distributed Systems

As the commoditization of sensing, actuation and communication hardware increases, so does the potential for dynamically tasked sense and respond networked systems (i.e., Sensor Networks or SNs) to replace existing disjoint and inflexible special-purpose deployments (closed-circuit security video, anti-theft sensors, etc.). While various solutions have emerged to many individual SN-centric challenges (e.g., power management, communication protocols, role assignment), perhaps the largest remaining obstacle to widespread SN deployment is that those who wish to deploy, utilize, and maintain a programmable Sensor Network lack the programming and systems expertise to do so. The contributions of this thesis centers on the design, development and deployment of the SN Workbench (snBench). snBench embodies an accessible, modular programming platform coupled with a flexible and extensible run-time system that, together, support the entire life-cycle of distributed sensory services. As it is impossible to find a one-size-fits-all programming interface, this work advocates the use of tiered layers of abstraction that enable a variety of high-level, domain specific languages to be compiled to a common (thin-waist) tasking language; this common tasking language is statically verified and can be subsequently re-translated, if needed, for execution on a wide variety of hardware platforms. snBench provides: (1) a common sensory tasking language (Instruction Set Architecture) powerful enough to express complex SN services, yet simple enough to be executed by highly constrained resources with soft, real-time constraints, (2) a prototype high-level language (and corresponding compiler) to illustrate the utility of the common tasking language and the tiered programming approach in this domain, (3) an execution environment and a run-time support infrastructure that abstract a collection of heterogeneous resources into a single virtual Sensor Network, tasked via this common tasking language, and (4) novel formal methods (i.e., static analysis techniques) that verify safety properties and infer implicit resource constraints to facilitate resource allocation for new services. This thesis presents these components in detail, as well as two specific case-studies: the use of snBench to integrate physical and wireless network security, and the use of snBench as the foundation for semester-long student projects in a graduate-level Software Engineering course

Applying Spatial Computing to Everyday Interactive Designs

In this position paper, we address the applicability of spatial computing in the field of interactive architecture. The process of designing large-scale interactive systems is cumbersome, due in fact to single design cycles (transforming ideas into prototypes) taking a period of time usually measured in months, most of it dedicated to writing the software controlling the system. As most interactive architecture projects pass through several design cycles interleaved with user studies, speeding up the generation of the needed software becomes of crucial importance. The global-to-local programming approach is in fact a perfect tool for this task. Describing complex behaviors with simple rules is rarely seen in the existing installations, the large majority employing a central computer for the control of the system. Building up on our previous experience in this area, we created HiveKit, a proof of concept allowing bridging between the two fields, giving non-specialists easy access to distributed algorithms. HiveKit is a software package which allows designers to specify the desired behavior and automatically generate and deploy the needed code on networks of embedded devices. We introduce several projects where HiveKit is employed and create an argument, based on user studies, favoring the need for large-scale adoption of such tools

The Boston University Photonics Center annual report 2016-2017

This repository item contains an annual report that summarizes activities of the Boston University Photonics Center in the 2016-2017 academic year. The report provides quantitative and descriptive information regarding photonics programs in education, interdisciplinary research, business innovation, and technology development. The Boston University Photonics Center (BUPC) is an interdisciplinary hub for education, research, scholarship, innovation, and technology development associated with practical uses of light.This has undoubtedly been the Photonics Center’s best year since I became Director 10 years ago. In the following pages, you will see highlights of the Center’s activities in the past year, including more than 100 notable scholarly publications in the leading journals in our field, and the attraction of more than 22 million dollars in new research grants/contracts. Last year I had the honor to lead an international search for the first recipient of the Moustakas Endowed Professorship in Optics and Photonics, in collaboration with ECE Department Chair Clem Karl. This professorship honors the Center’s most impactful scholar and one of the Center’s founding visionaries, Professor Theodore Moustakas. We are delighted to haveawarded this professorship to Professor Ji-Xin Cheng, who joined our faculty this year.The past year also marked the launch of Boston University’s Neurophotonics Center, which will be allied closely with the Photonics Center. Leading that Center will be a distinguished new faculty member, Professor David Boas. David and I are together leading a new Neurophotonics NSF Research Traineeship Program that will provide $3M to promote graduate traineeships in this emerging new field. We had a busy summer hosting NSF Sites for Research Experiences for Undergraduates, Research Experiences for Teachers, and the BU Student Satellite Program. As a community, we emphasized the theme of “Optics of Cancer Imaging” at our annual symposium, hosted by Darren Roblyer. We entered a five-year second phase of NSF funding in our Industry/University Collaborative Research Center on Biophotonic Sensors and Systems, which has become the centerpiece of our translational biophotonics program. That I/UCRC continues to focus on advancing the health care and medical device industries

Functional and structural impact of the loss of the leucine-rich repeat protein LRIT1 in the mouse retina.

Mutations in genes encoding the leucine-rich repeat (LRR) proteins nyctalopin and LRIT3 lead to complete congenital stationary night blindness because they are critical to depolarizing bipolar cell function in the retina. LRIT3 has two closely related family members, LRIT1 and LRIT2. In silico analyses of publicly available RNA-Seq data showed that Lrit1 was highly expressed in the retina. Here I describe the expression pattern and impact of loss of LRIT1 on retinal function. To enable these studies, we used CRISPR/Cas9 technology to create an Lrit1-/- mouse line. Retinal morphology and morphometry analyses showed no gross changes in retinal structure or retinal layer thickness. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) shows photoreceptor, ON bipolar cell, and horizontal cell proteins localize normally in the absence of LRIT1. These data suggest LRIT1 is unnecessary for normal retinal and synaptic development. IHC also reveals LRIT1 localizes to the OPL with punctate staining similar to proteins expressed in invaginating horizontal cells at rod spherules but does not co-localize with ON or OFF bipolar cell proteins. RNA in situ hybridization shows Lrit1 expression in the ONL and INL, suggesting LRIT1 may also be expressed in photoreceptors. We used electroretinogram analyses to assess retinal function in Lrit1-/- mice and demonstrate that the a- and b-waves are decreased in amplitude under both scotopic and photopic conditions. Multi-electrode array recordings of Lrit1-/- retinal ganglion cells demonstrated abnormal ganglion cell responses and rhythmic oscillations. Taken together, our data localize LRIT1 to the OPL of the mouse retina where the loss of LRIT1 results in abnormal outer and inner retinal function without altering retinal structure. Thus, LRIT1 is critical for normal retinal signaling

Researching the development of problem-solving skills in undergraduate students and the effect of cognitive factors on performance

Solving problems is the motivating force behind many scientific endeavours. A student’s ability to solve problems is a key to their academic success. Problem-solving skills developed during a degree course are of significant value to graduate employers and therefore need to be valued significantly by educators and learners. This thesis describes the investigation into the factors that influence undergraduate chemistry students’ abilities to develop the problem-solving skills they require for success in their undergraduate studies and beyond.Quantitative data was gathered from chemistry undergraduates for three cognitive variables thought to influence academic performance. Context-rich open-ended problems were developed in order to assess students’ ability to solve more complex problems. Performance data was gathered from open-ended problem-solving sessions alongside performance data from assessments within a chemistry degree course, including final degree scores. The quantitative data was used to identify any relationships between the students’ cognitive abilities and academic performance.Qualitative research investigated the variety of approaches students take towards solving open-ended problems and also gathered data on students’ attitudes towards and experiences of the use of context-rich open-ended problems.The results show that chemistry students’ mental capacities and disembedding abilities have an impact upon their ability to solve complex open-ended problems. The skills required to solve complex open-ended problems were identified as being different skills to those required to solve the algorithmic problems found to be common elements of assessments used within undergraduate chemistry degrees.The qualitative research revealed details of students’ approaches to open-ended problem-solving and a shift in attitudes towards a more positive view of such activities. Approaches to problem-solving were identified as novice, transitional and expert. Students were also found to be able to reflect upon their learning experiences. They enjoyed the experiences and saw the value of them despite finding them challenging.The implications of the findings are discussed and recommendations for further work are made

A 360 VR and Wi-Fi Tracking Based Autonomous Telepresence Robot for Virtual Tour

This study proposes a novel mobile robot teleoperation interface that demonstrates the applicability of a robot-aided remote telepresence system with a virtual reality (VR) device to a virtual tour scenario. To improve realism and provide an intuitive replica of the remote environment for the user interface, the implemented system automatically moves a mobile robot (viewpoint) while displaying a 360-degree live video streamed from the robot to a VR device (Oculus Rift). Upon the user choosing a destination location from a given set of options, the robot generates a route based on a shortest path graph and travels along that the route using a wireless signal tracking method that depends on measuring the direction of arrival (DOA) of radio signals. This paper presents an overview of the system and architecture, and discusses its implementation aspects. Experimental results show that the proposed system is able to move to the destination stably using the signal tracking method, and that at the same time, the user can remotely control the robot through the VR interface