Developing an approach to improve beta-phase properties in ferroelectric pvd-hfp thin films

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI)Improved fabrication of poly(vinylindenefluoride)-hexafluoropropylene (PVDF-HFP) thin films is of particular interest due to the high electric coercivity found in the beta-phase structure of the thin film. We show that it is possible to obtain high-quality, beta-phase dominant PVDF-HFP thin films using a direct approach to Langmuir-Blodgett deposition without the use of annealing or additives. To improve sample quality, an automated Langmuir-Blodgett thin film deposition system was developed; a custom dipping trough was fabricated, a sample dipping mechanism was designed and constructed, and the system was automated using custom LabVIEW software. Samples were fabricated in the form of ferroelectric capacitors on substrates of glass and silicon, and implement a unique step design with a bottom electrode of copper with an aluminum wetting layer and a top electrode of gold with an aluminum wetting layer. Samples were then characterized using a custom ferroelectric measurement program implemented in LabVIEW with a Keithley picoammeter/voltage supply to confirm electric coercivity properties. Further characterization using scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy confirmed the improvement in thin film fabrication over previous methods

Greening Louisville\u27s East Market District : a comparative assessment of sustainability.

The East Market District located in Louisville, KY is currently undergoing a multi-million dollar urban regeneration. This transformation is being marketed as a primer sustainable neighborhood with the goal of serving as a model for other cities in the United States. As result of these changes, it is imperative to analyze the concept of sustainability from a variety of stakeholder perspectives utilizing content analysis on interviews and LEED Neighborhood Scorecard. Utilizing these methods, the central goal of this study is to understand the various interpretation of sustainability within this neighborhood. The findings observed via the critical assessment of the LEED Neighborhood Scorecard, showed that the criterion for which neighborhood sustainable development is judged is socially focused. This paralleled with the occupant’s vision of a socially-based sustainable environment, which is in conflict with that of the constructors. These disparate findings reveal issues underlying sustainable development

Future Dispute System Design: Ethical Imperatives, Millennial and Beyond

Published in cooperation with the American Bar Association Section of Dispute Resolutio

The Alice Cipher

Lewis Carroll loved ciphers. Between 1858 and 1868 he invented four and recorded them in his diary: two matrix ciphers and two polyalphabetic ciphers: the Telegraph Cipher and the Alphabet Cipher. He submitted the latter two for publication, and personally used them to write letters to his child friends

3D Object Detection Using Virtual Environment Assisted Deep Network Training

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI)An RGBZ synthetic dataset consisting of five object classes in a variety of virtual environments and orientations was combined with a small sample of real-world image data and used to train the Mask R-CNN (MR-CNN) architecture in a variety of configurations. When the MR-CNN architecture was initialized with MS COCO weights and the heads were trained with a mix of synthetic data and real world data, F1 scores improved in four of the five classes: The average maximum F1-score of all classes and all epochs for the networks trained with synthetic data is F1∗ = 0.91, compared to F1 = 0.89 for the networks trained exclusively with real data, and the standard deviation of the maximum mean F1-score for synthetically trained networks is σ∗ = 0.015, compared to σ_F1 = 0.020 for the networks trained exclusively with real F1 data. Various backgrounds in synthetic data were shown to have negligible impact on F1 scores, opening the door to abstract backgrounds and minimizing the need for intensive synthetic data fabrication. When the MR-CNN architecture was initialized with MS COCO weights and depth data was included in the training data, the net- work was shown to rely heavily on the initial convolutional input to feed features into the network, the image depth channel was shown to influence mask generation, and the image color channels were shown to influence object classification. A set of latent variables for a subset of the synthetic datatset was generated with a Variational Autoencoder then analyzed using Principle Component Analysis and Uniform Manifold Projection and Approximation (UMAP). The UMAP analysis showed no meaningful distinction between real-world and synthetic data, and a small bias towards clustering based on image background

Repeatability of performance rankings and wool production characteristics of merino ewes in a semi-arid farming environment.

A flock of 205 strong wool South Australian bloodlíne Merino sheep was run in a semi-arid cereal/sheep farming environment at Wanbi in the Murraylands area of South Australia. Shearing and collection of performance records occurred on five separate occasions at successive ages ranging from 6 months to 42 months. Characters examined were body weight, greasy fleece weight, clean fleece weight, mean fibre diameter and eight Woolplan selection indices. Four key indicators were used to assess the most appropriate age of measurement and selection, in order to provide the best compromise between selection accuracy and minimisation of the period that sheep must be retained until selection is undertaken. These key indicators were; estimated repeatability of each character; phenotypic correlation of character between age of measurement and adult performance; phenotypic correlation of character between adjacent measurement ages; and accuracy of producing ability. The quality of performance records for within-flock selection remained unaffected by non-genetic between-year variation imposed evenly across the entire flock. Between-year variation was induced by animal age and environmental factors such as season and nutritional status. Provided that non-genetic between-animal variation is excluded and data collectíon procedures are sound, producers can have a high degree of confidence in the reliability of objective performance measurements collected within their flocks. Repeatability estimates and phenotypic correlation coefficients from this trial indicated that the South Australian strong wool Merino strain is in the low to medium range in comparison with other Merino strains present in Australia. Performance measurements collected on sheep at the 6 month age did not provide a satisfactory indication (not significant) of relative performance superiority of the animals during later adult life. However single performance measurements collected al 12 months of age provided a reliable and accurate (P<0.001) indication of later performance for body weight, mean fibre diameter and all Woolplan selection indices apart from the CFW options for indices #1 & #2. A second performance measurement of clean fleece weight, greasy fleece weight and Woolplan CFW indices #1 & #2 at the 18 month age provided an accurate (P<0.001) indication of later adult performance. Two sheep selection systems are available to producers. The first recommended system is a a two-stage selection procedure involving assessment of the flock at 12 months of age for greasy fleece weight and body weight, followed by culling and a second assessment of the remaining animals for greasy fleece weight and fibre diameter at the 18 month age. The second recommended system involves the once-off use of a selection index, using performance measurements collected at the single measurement age of 12 months. Selection indices suitable for this system are the GFW option for Woolplan indices #1, #2, #3 and #4, and the CFW option for Woolplan indices #3 and #4.Thesis (M.App.Sc.) -- University of Adelaide, Dept. of Animal Science, 199

Oral manifestations as the first presenting sign of Crohn?s disease in a pediatric patient

Crohn?s disease (CD) is a chronic inflammatory disorder affecting the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Although the GI tract is the primary site of involvement, many patients, particularly in pediatric cases, first present with non-intestinal manifestations, including oral lesions. Oral manifestations of CD in children occur in around 50-80% of cases, and about 30% of CD cases in children occur first in the mouth. Recognizing such oral lesions in the pediatric population, and requesting a biopsy, may expedite the diagnosis of CD. We describe a 15 year old male who presented with oral findings of multiple aphthous ulcers and plaques of pink papules of the buccal vestibule. We highlight the initial pathology findings, including non-caseating granulomas, sialadenitis, and a notable plasmacytosis, from biopsy of the left retromolar pad area, which triggered further testing for CD. We provide discussion of how CD was eventually diagnosed and treated and highlight the significance of the pathological findings in this case as they relate to the pathogenesis of CD

Snowmobile Noise Exposure Monitoring of Yellowstone National Park Employees

In Yellowstone National Park (YNP) the use of snow machines has steadily increased since 1949.  Paralleling the rise in snow machine travel were concerns over increases in noise emissions. The concerns resulted in the establishment of winter-use plans for YNP.  As periodic iterations of winter-use plans began to appear, input was needed concerning noise exposures received by YNP employees regulating snow machine traffic entering the Park.  This study provides noise monitoring results of worker exposure from snow machine traffic at the west entrance to YNP.  The study objectives were to characterize noise exposures received by YNP employees and to evaluate these exposures relative to Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards.  Concerning area and personal monitoring of YNP employees supervising snow machine traffic, study results suggest compliance with OSHA regulations.  This is also true when applying a more conservative approach to estimate daily noise exposure. In contrast, monitoring results estimating noise exposures received by YNP employees operating snowmobiles revealed that 1 of 10 (10%) were not compliant with the OSHA noise standard and 5 of 10 (50%) equaled or exceeded its action level.  While the findings associated with snowmobile operators serve to provide awareness of the potential for adverse exposures, limitations concerning these exposure estimates are discussed and point to the need for additional monitoring using more precise methods.  Given that winter-use plans for YNP will continue to evolve, it is anticipated that the results of this study will provide information that can better manage occupational noise exposure and the protection of employee health