Choosing a Thesis Advisor: Surprise and Success

One of the most daunting and yet important decisions in graduate school is the selection of your thesis advisor. Inviting an advisor into your graduate thesis process is like hiring a ship navigator who will help guide your graduate study through the sometimes choppy waters of data research and thesis writing and into the safe harbor of graduation and a good job. Although you remain the captain of your own career, your graduate advisor teaches you how to use the charts and equipment that will bring you to the completion of your graduate degree. The specific steps involved in choosing an advisor vary according to department and school; however, some aspects of this process are universal, no matter which college or university you attend. Many people compare this selection process to choosing a spouse, because the thesis advisor is someone who will be with you, directly or indirectly, throughout your professional life. As in finding and forging any successful professional relationship, identifying a compatible advisor is not an easy task, and few road maps exist that explain how to manage it. Consequently, most graduate students begin the process of choosing their thesis advisor without much background information. A lack of preparation can lead to disappointing results, whereas an informed approach can achieve a very satisfying outcome. In fact, a compatible advisor can function as your career navigator, someone you can consult for professional advice whenever your career takes an unexpected turn or presents a promising opportunity. In the end, the rewards that come with a reliable advisor who is right for you, your professional goals, and your field of study, are worth the investment of extra time and energy in a thorough search process. In the stories that follow, I offer you some insight into this sometimes unpredictable quest and share my decision-making process, as well as a few of the experiences I have had in my search for thesis advisors. I hope this chapter will prepare you to choose an advisor who will work well with you and see you through to the completion of your graduate degree

Encapsulating Ibuprofen using Beeswax Microspheres

Beeswax is extremely versatile, often used in candles, lubricants. This compound is readily available and is not very expensive. We are interested in using beeswax as a biodegradable capsule to self-encapsulate drugs like ibuprofen

Analysis of the Encapsulation of Beeswax Microspheres with Ibuprofen

Beeswax is extremely versatile, often used in candles, lubricants. This compound is readily available and is not very expensive. We are interested in using beeswax as a biodegradable capsule to self-encapsulate drugs like ibuprofen

Comunicación e identidades en Yawar fiesta de José María Arguedas: el festejo de las transformaciones

A la luz de algunos conceptos de Françoise Perus especialmente el de poética narrativa y de Mijail Bajtin tipos de novela y cronotopo , se analiza la novela Yawar fiesta de José María Arguedas. La premisa central radica en la demostración de que esta novela no se limita a exponer un conflicto entre indios y blancos, sino que presenta la confrontación entre numerosas visiones de mundo, las cuales se transforman notoriamente a lo largo del acontecimiento, de tal manera que la narración aparece como una unidad dinámic

Algunas observaciones en torno a la estructura, el dialogismo y el plurilingüismo en "La culpa es de los tlaxcaltecas" de Elena Garro

Mediante la vinculación entre el texto literario, la historia y los símbolos; el análisis de la trama, el argumento y la estructura, y la inclusión de algunos conceptos extraídos de Teoría y estética de la novela, de Mijail Bajtín, el presente trabajo aspira a demostrar el dinamismo dialógico verificado en "La culpa es de los tlaxcaltecas", de Elena Garro. Más allá de las consideraciones fantásticas, este cuento constituye la manifestación viva del encuentro entre múltiples cosmovisiones, destinadas a confrontar el discurso autoritario y oficial propio de la historia mexicana

Caracterización de las rutas metabólicas de un lodo activado enriquecido en bacterias acumuladoras

Uno de los aspectos más importantes dentro del tratamiento de aguas residuales, con el sistema de lodos activados, es mantener una buena sedimentación para poder lograr un proceso más eficiente. Para ello, en ocasiones, se utilizan selectores con los cuales se favorece el crecimiento de las bacterias formadoras de flóculos sobre las filamentosas, que causan esponjamiento o “bulking” del lodo. En ese sentido, este trabajo de investigación buscó caracterizar un lodo operado con un selector no aireado. Esto con la finalidad de conocer a cuál modelo de lodos activados se ajustaba mejor y así lograr tener un mayor control del proceso y evitar problemas de sedimentación, los cuales ya se habían presentado en años anteriores. Además, aprovechando el uso de un selector, se planteó la posibilidad de estar trabajando con un cultivo enriquecido en bacterias acumuladoras de sustrato o fósforo. Siendo éstas últimas de gran importancia en la remoción biológica de nutrientes. Para lograr el objetivo anterior, se realizaron corridas de degradación en batch utilizando el lodo de los dos RBS con los que se trabajó en el proyecto. En éstas corridas se midieron cinéticas de DQO, fósforo, nitrógeno y utilización de oxígeno. Con los resultados obtenidos se verificó que las bacterias predominantes en el lodo fueron del tipo acumuladoras de sustrato, ajustándose mejor al modelo de lodos activados No.3 (ASM3), y se optimizó la operación teniendo especial cuidado en alcanzar una concentración de oxígeno disuelto óptimo (alrededor de 2 mg/L) al inicio de la fase aerobia en los reactores. Después se probó la hipótesis de que al aumentar la cantidad de fósforo presente en el agua residual, utilizada como alimento en los RBS, se puede favorecer el crecimiento de las bacterias acumuladoras de fósforo. Para ello, se montó otro reactor al que se le aumentó la concentración de fósforo en el alimento, pasando de 2 a 18 mg/L de P, y se estuvo monitoreando el comportamiento de los ortofosfatos en los ciclos de operación. Luego del monitoreo, se observó una remoción de fósforo importante pero no así el comportamiento metabólico típico para organismos de este tipo. Para descartar una remoción por precipitación química, debido al pH alto que se maneja en los reactores (>8.5), se montó un experimento controlando el pH a 7 utilizando el mismo lodo y la misma alimentación enriquecida con fósforo. Con esta prueba se observó que al descender el valor de pH ya no hubo remoción significativa de fósforo. Por lo que la ruta metabólica más predominante en el cultivo del lodo fue la de los GAO. Los resultados de toda la investigación lograron mantener estables los reactores biológicos y descartar que los problemas de sedimentación fueron por falta de nutrientes, si no por falta de oxígeno disuelto al momento de la degradación del sustrato. Además, dio las bases y conocimientos necesarios para desarrollar un proceso de remoción biológica de fósforo en futuros proyectos.CONACY

Cross-layer Balanced and Reliable Opportunistic Routing Algorithm for Mobile Ad Hoc Networks

For improving the efficiency and the reliability of the opportunistic routing algorithm, in this paper, we propose the cross-layer and reliable opportunistic routing algorithm (CBRT) for Mobile Ad Hoc Networks, which introduces the improved efficiency fuzzy logic and humoral regulation inspired topology control into the opportunistic routing algorithm. In CBRT, the inputs of the fuzzy logic system are the relative variance (rv) of the metrics rather than the values of the metrics, which reduces the number of fuzzy rules dramatically. Moreover, the number of fuzzy rules does not increase when the number of inputs increases. For reducing the control cost, in CBRT, the node degree in the candidate relays set is a range rather than a constant number. The nodes are divided into different categories based on their node degree in the candidate relays set. The nodes adjust their transmission range based on which categories that they belong to. Additionally, for investigating the effection of the node mobility on routing performance, we propose a link lifetime prediction algorithm which takes both the moving speed and moving direction into account. In CBRT, the source node determines the relaying priorities of the relaying nodes based on their utilities. The relaying node which the utility is large will have high priority to relay the data packet. By these innovations, the network performance in CBRT is much better than that in ExOR, however, the computation complexity is not increased in CBRT.Comment: 14 pages, 17 figures, 31 formulas, IEEE Sensors Journal, 201

Towards a context-based Bayesian recognition of transitions in locomotion activities

This paper presents a context-based approach for the recognition of transition between activities of daily living (ADLs) using wearable sensor data. A Bayesian method is implemented for the recognition of 7 ADLs with data from two wearable sensors attached to the lower limbs of subjects. A second Bayesian method recognises 12 transitions between the ADLs. The second recognition module uses both, data from wearable sensors and the activity recognised from the first Bayesian module. This approach analyses the next most probable transitions based on wearable sensor data and the context or current activity being performed by the subject. This work was validated using the ENABL3S Database composed of data collected from 7 ADLs and 12 transitions performed by participants walking on two circuits composed of flat surfaces, ascending and descending ramps and stairs. The recognition of activities achieved an accuracy of 98.3%. The recognition of transitions between ADLs achieved an accuracy of 98.8%, which improved the 95.3% accuracy obtained when the context or current activity is not considered for the recognition process. Overall, this work proposes an approach capable of recognising transitions between ADLs, which is required for the development of reliable wearable assistive robots.<br/