Applications Of Compressive Sensing To Surveillance Problems

In many surveillance scenarios, one concern that arises is how to construct an imager that is capable of capturing the scene with high fidelity. This could be problematic for two reasons: first, the optics and electronics in the camera may have difficulty in dealing with so much information; secondly, bandwidth constraints, may pose difficulty in transmitting information from the imager to the user efficiently for reconstruction or realization. In this thesis, we will discuss a mathematical framework that is capable of skirting the two aforementioned issues. This framework is rooted in a technique commonly referred to as compressive sensing. We will explore two of the seminal works in compressive sensing and will present the key theorems and definitions from these two papers. We will then survey three different surveillance scenarios and their respective compressive sensing solutions. The original contribution of this thesis is the development of a distributed compressive sensing model

CIO Lateral Influence Behaviors: Gaining Peers\u27 Commitment to Strategic Information Systems

In order to develop and bring to fruition strategic information systems (SIS) projects, chief information officers (CIOs) must be able to effectively influence their peers. This research examines the relationship between CIO influence behaviors and the successfulness of influence outcomes, utilizing a revised model initially developed by Yukl (1994). Focused interviews were first conducted with CIOs and their peers to gain insights into the phenomenon. A survey instrument was then developed and distributed to a sample of CIO and peer executive pairs to gather data with which to test a research model. A total of 69 pairs of surveys were eventually used for data analysis. The research model was found to be generally meaningful in the CIO–top management context. Furthermore, the influence behaviors rational per- suasion and personal appeal exhibited significant relationships with peer commitment, whereas exchange and pressure were significantly related to peer resistance. These results provide useful guidance to CIOs who wish to propose strategic information systems to peers

Development of Protein Biomarker Identification Protocols

Protein biomarkers can be used to predict biological traits or diseases. There is a need for robust methods to identify protein biomarkers that are linked to livestock production traits. Serum from blood is often used for detecting and screening for biomarkers. Albumin is a protein that comprises 50% or more of the total content of serum, and has historically been removed from serum before biomarker development and testing. We have shown that it is possible to successfully identify potential biomarkers without albumin removal, thus reducing steps and potentially cost in both development and routine testing phases

Multimodal Analgesia in Orthopaedic Surgery and Presentation of a Comprehensive Postoperative Pain Protocol: A Review

Rising opioid use in the United States has now been termed an epidemic. Opioid use is associated with considerable morbidity, mortality, and cost to the healthcare system. Orthopaedic surgeons play a key role in the opioid epidemic by prescribing postoperative narcotics. Although our understanding of the quantity of narcotics to prescribe postoperatively for analgesia is progressing, there is still a paucity of data focused on routine postoperative pain protocols. The purpose of this article is to review the current options for both opioid and non-opioid analgesia and put forth a multisubspecialty orthopaedic protocol of postoperative pain. On the basis of study findings and the individual experiences of surgeons within our orthopaedic department, our comprehensive pain protocol includes the following considerations: use of non-steroidal antiinflammatory drugs on an individual basis, limited use of benzodiazepines, use of diazepam in only pediatric patients undergoing major procedures, lower doses of gabapentin after hip and knee arthroplasty, higher doses of gabapentin after spine procedures, general use of oxycodone owing to its accessibility, use of isolated opioids rather than combined forms, and close collaboration with anesthesiologists for determining use of peripheral nerve block. Our resultant comprehensive pain protocol can provide orthopaedic surgeons with a framework to build upon, which will benefit greatly from future studies that examine narcotic use with specific procedures

Seeing in the dark – II. Cosmic shear in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey

Statistical weak lensing by large-scale structure – cosmic shear – is a promising cosmological tool, which has motivated the design of several large upcoming surveys. Here, we present a measurement of cosmic shear using co-added Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) imaging in 168 square degrees of the equatorial region, with r < 23.5 and i < 22.5, a source number density of 2.2 per arcmin^2 and mean redshift of z_(med) = 0.52. These co-adds were generated using a new method described in the companion Paper I that was intended to minimize systematic errors in the lensing measurement due to coherent point spread function anisotropies that are otherwise prevalent in the SDSS imaging data. We present measurements of cosmic shear out to angular separations of 2°, along with systematics tests that (combined with those from Paper I on the catalogue generation) demonstrate that our results are dominated by statistical rather than systematic errors. Assuming a cosmological model corresponding to Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe 7(WMAP7) and allowing only the amplitude of matter fluctuations σ_8 to vary, we find a best-fitting value of σ_8=0.636^(+0.109)_(−0.154) (1σ); without systematic errors this would be σ_8=0.636^(+0.099)_(−0.137) (1σ). Assuming a flat Λ cold dark matter model, the combined constraints with WMAP7 are σ_8=0.784^(+0.028)_(−0.026)(1σ)^(+0.055)_(−0.054)(2σ) and Ω_mh^2=0.1303^(+0.0047)_(−0.0048)(1σ)^(+0.009)_(−0.009)(2σ); the 2σ error ranges are, respectively, 14 and 17 per cent smaller than WMAP7 alone

Seeing in the dark – I. Multi-epoch alchemy

Weak lensing by large-scale structure is an invaluable cosmological tool given that most of the energy density of the concordance cosmology is invisible. Several large ground-based imaging surveys will attempt to measure this effect over the coming decade, but reliable control of the spurious lensing signal introduced by atmospheric turbulence and telescope optics remains a challenging problem. We address this challenge with a demonstration that point spread function (PSF) effects on measured galaxy shapes in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) can be corrected with existing analysis techniques. In this work, we co-add existing SDSS imaging on the equatorial stripe in order to build a data set with the statistical power to measure cosmic shear, while using a rounding kernel method to null out the effects of the anisotropic PSF. We build a galaxy catalogue from the combined imaging, characterize its photometric properties and show that the spurious shear remaining in this catalogue after the PSF correction is negligible compared to the expected cosmic shear signal. We identify a new source of systematic error in the shear–shear autocorrelations arising from selection biases related to masking. Finally, we discuss the circumstances in which this method is expected to be useful for upcoming ground-based surveys that have lensing as one of the science goals, and identify the systematic errors that can reduce its efficacy

DC Birdscape: A Program for Monitoring Neotropical Migratory Birds in Washington, DC

Urban and suburban habitats often contain a variety of Neotropical migratory birds, but are poorly sampled by programs such as the North American Breeding Bird Survey. DC Birdscape was developed to inventory and monitor birds in Washington, DC. Birds were surveyed using a systematic sample of point counts during 1993-1995. Results indicate that species richness of Neotropical migratory birds varied among land-use categories, and that maximum species richness occurred in parkland habitats. Although DC Birdscape has provided relevant information on bird distribution and species richness, it is unclear whether the information is of sufficient management interest to support its continuation as a long-term monitoring program