Does Confidence Reporting from the Crowd Benefit Crowdsourcing Performance?

We explore the design of an effective crowdsourcing system for an $M$-ary classification task. Crowd workers complete simple binary microtasks whose results are aggregated to give the final classification decision. We consider the scenario where the workers have a reject option so that they are allowed to skip microtasks when they are unable to or choose not to respond to binary microtasks. Additionally, the workers report quantized confidence levels when they are able to submit definitive answers. We present an aggregation approach using a weighted majority voting rule, where each worker's response is assigned an optimized weight to maximize crowd's classification performance. We obtain a couterintuitive result that the classification performance does not benefit from workers reporting quantized confidence. Therefore, the crowdsourcing system designer should employ the reject option without requiring confidence reporting.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures, SocialSens 2017. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1602.0057

Combustion Devices CFD Team Analyses Review

A variety of CFD simulations performed by the Combustion Devices CFD Team at Marshall Space Flight Center will be presented. These analyses were performed to support Space Shuttle operations and Ares-1 Crew Launch Vehicle design. Results from the analyses will be shown along with pertinent information on the CFD codes and computational resources used to obtain the results. Six analyses will be presented - two related to the Space Shuttle and four related to the Ares I-1 launch vehicle now under development at NASA. First, a CFD analysis of the flow fields around the Space Shuttle during the first six seconds of flight and potential debris trajectories within those flow fields will be discussed. Second, the combusting flows within the Space Shuttle Main Engine's main combustion chamber will be shown. For the Ares I-1, an analysis of the performance of the roll control thrusters during flight will be described. Several studies are discussed related to the J2-X engine to be used on the upper stage of the Ares I-1 vehicle. A parametric study of the propellant flow sequences and mixture ratios within the GOX/GH2 spark igniters on the J2-X is discussed. Transient simulations will be described that predict the asymmetric pressure loads that occur on the rocket nozzle during the engine start as the nozzle fills with combusting gases. Simulations of issues that affect temperature uniformity within the gas generator used to drive the J-2X turbines will described as well, both upstream of the chamber in the injector manifolds and within the combustion chamber itself

Martin Luther King Jr. Rhetorical Analysis

Third-place winner in the Short Essay category of the 2018 Emerging Writers Contest. The essay is a rhetorical analysis of Martin Luther King, Jr.\u27s speech I Have a Dream

Esse

University of Michiganhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/156271/1/final_thesis.pd

Black Couples Filtering Their Love Stories Through the Use of Social Media

Black couples\u27 use of social media for expressing their emotions needs to be explored to help them develop their narratives without external pressure. Narrative therapy is used to understand the difficulties ofholding on to unique personal narratives and preferred futures in the context of a hostile dominant discourse. The Black community has a long history of oppression, which makes their stories significant. Thus, social media posts by successful Black couples can be helpful in developing a new theory explaining personal narratives of Black couples in an online environment. These narratives provide information regarding themost common problems faced by Black people in developing romantic relationships and the culture-specific factors influencing Black couples\u27 relationships. This qualitative grounded theory focuses on understanding Black couples\u27 use of social media in developing their couple narratives

The truth about Spain

https://stars.library.ucf.edu/prism/1799/thumbnail.jp

Variational Methods on Elastic Curves

In this thesis we investigate elastic curves. These are curves with minimal bending energy as measured by the total squared curvature functional. We show that these can be computed by evolving curves in the direction of the negative gradient in certain Hilbert space settings. By discretizing the curves and using numerical integration, we compute approximate minimizers and display using computer graphics. We propose a conjecture based on the rotation number of a curve that predicts the critical point curves that minimize bending energy

The Study and Application of Carbon Nanotube Film Heaters for Space Applications

The purpose of this research was to examine the feasibility of using Carbon Nanotube (CNT) sheets as thin film heaters for space applications. The ability to maintain the temperature of space components has a direct impact on a space vehicle\u27s operation and longevity. Currently etched foil heaters are used to heat satellite batteries. Battery heaters are the focus of this research. However, as this study will show, they have limitations and are susceptible to failure. CNT sheets have many beneficial properties and show potential in replacing the etched foil design. In this study test specimens were created by forming laminate test articles comprised of CNT sheets and an adhesive Kapton® substrate material. These test articles were subjected to a series of tests both in atmosphere and in vacuum. Comparative tests were done on etched foil heaters and specimens made from a new polyimide material from Dupont™. As a secondary study, the effects of CNT grain orientation on heat generation capability was included. It was found that while the CNT articles were not as power efficient as the etched foil design, in the configurations tested, they offered a much higher maximum temperature, a faster response time (how fast the specimens heated up), and mitigated the potential for total heater failure. With respect to the grain orientation study, it was found that using commercial off the shelf (COTS) CNT sheets resulted in no significant change in thermal properties for specimens of the size used in these tests. In conclusion, CNT thin film heaters proved to be a viable alternative to current battery heater technology

Evaluation and Treatment of Musicians from a Holistic Perspective

Throughout the past 3 decades, treatment of injured musicians in a health care setting has been reported; however, the quality of care from a musician’s standpoint is poor. As musicians are speaking up more about their pain, the profession of occupational therapy has the capacity to make an impact on the way musicians are treated from a rehabilitative perspective. Musicians often do not trust medical practitioners who follow the traditional medical model because their symptoms and concerns are not addressed. Occupational therapists, especially those working in the realm of hand rehabilitation, are well equipped to treat injured musicians using our unique activity analysis skills and holistic frame of reference; the goal is to return them back to their prior levels of playing. To support the Occupational Therapy Practice Framework: Domain and Process’s vision, this article discusses evaluation and treatment of the unique musician emphasizing the musician’s point of view through an occupation-based, client-centered, and evidence-based practice