Staggered Truss Frames

Staggered truss framing systems have been gaining popularity for use in structural engineering because they provide large, column-free openings and rapid construction. However, their performance during seismic events has not been fully investigated. The failure of the shear connection between the floor system and the top of the truss may cause building failure and is essential to the understanding of the behavior of staggered trusses during an earthquake. The shear connection will be tested by simulating a seismic event. The strong wall/floor at Valparaiso University will be utilized to test a scale model of the shear connection until failure. The results will be analyzed to create a standard seismic design guide for staggered truss frames. A 3D interactive environment will also be produced from the test data to virtually recreate the tests for educational purposes

Teaching Computers to Think: Analysis of Artificial Intelligence and Connect Four

Connect Four is a classic two person, zero-sum game in which players utilize their wits and gravity to connect four of their own pieces in a horizontal, vertical, or diagonal row while blocking their opponent’s attempt to do the same. We have constructed a simulation of this game which we have used as a base for the implementation and testing of varying Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems. Early strategies worked according to simple strategic methods, while more advanced heuristics employed a Min-Max Tree in tandem with methods to determine how advantageous a certain board would be. This Min-Max Tree goes beyond a simple strategy, as it allows for the computer to look many moves ahead, thus picking the move that optimizes its chances of winning. The collection of statistics for the various strategies has allowed for the analysis and improvement of the AI structures

Circle the Cat: Developing Intelligent Strategies for a Simple Two-Player Game

Circle the Cat is an adaptation of the classic mathematical puzzle Qudraphage in which a cat attempts to escape a hexagonal board, but after each move one hexagon is blocked. We have coded a simulation of this classic puzzle. The result of our development allows for the implementation of varying strategies to computationally examine their effectiveness. The code itself, though extensive, is open enough for additions/extensions to be added fairly easily. Analysis of simpler strategies has allowed for improvement of both Cat and Player AI systems. We are currently looking at implementing more advanced systems, perhaps turning to machine learning

Representing theater: text and performance in kabuki and bunraku

Since the fourteenth century, theater has been at the center of cultural life in Japan to an extent rare in the world. several Japanese theatrical traditions, noh, kyogen, bunraku, and kabuki, continue to the present as living lineages of actors passing on their skills from generation to generation, actors have maintained control over the interpretations of texts on the stage. kabuki and bunraku differ fundamentally in their origins and essence. Joruri was the inheritor of the long oral storytelling tradition of blind musicians that flourished after the Genji civil war. During the time of the playwright Chikamatsu Monzaemon, who wrote for both the bunraku and kabuki stages, it became standard to publish complete bunraku texts at the time of first performance with the name of the playwright as author. The theater was a vibrant aspect and stimulant of cultural life in the Edo period, one in which individuals from all walks of life participated through a variety of means