Gyrus Higher Learning Management System

Our project was to develop a prototype learning management system for use of higher education for our sponsor, Gyrus Systems. This consisted of creating a MySQL relational database to store user and class information, to design and code a user interface that emphasized user experience, and to implement functionalities for each user role. Early in the design phase we outlined which features were must haves, in order to demonstrate an adequate prototype, and had this list approved by our sponsor. They were then divided into two roles. The role of “student” has the ability to submit assignments, get information from their instructor, and receive and review grades for submitted assignments. The role of “professor” has the ability to post assignments, receive and grade student submissions, send their students information about the class, and post materials for the students to review. The application is hosted on a shared web server and the work was done through a cPanel Portal. The UI is constructed with a custom bootstrap and our functional code is in jQuery. Transactions between our front-end and the MySQL database are handled in PHP. Our final product is a functional web-application that accommodates the must haves outlined in our original design. The main pages are the page for class information, the page for viewing grades, the page for viewing announcements, and the dashboard containing quick information. The pages are designed for the fulfillment of the different roles’ unique needs.https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/capstone/1168/thumbnail.jp

Space station electrical power system availability study

ARINC Research Corporation performed a preliminary reliability, and maintainability (RAM) anlaysis of the NASA space station Electric Power Station (EPS). The analysis was performed using the ARINC Research developed UNIRAM RAM assessment methodology and software program. The analysis was performed in two phases: EPS modeling and EPS RAM assessment. The EPS was modeled in four parts: the insolar power generation system, the eclipse power generation system, the power management and distribution system (both ring and radial power distribution control unit (PDCU) architectures), and the power distribution to the inner keel PDCUs. The EPS RAM assessment was conducted in five steps: the use of UNIRAM to perform baseline EPS model analyses and to determine the orbital replacement unit (ORU) criticalities; the determination of EPS sensitivity to on-orbit spared of ORUs and the provision of an indication of which ORUs may need to be spared on-orbit; the determination of EPS sensitivity to changes in ORU reliability; the determination of the expected annual number of ORU failures; and the integration of the power generator system model results with the distribution system model results to assess the full EPS. Conclusions were drawn and recommendations were made

MINNESOTA ENERGY-ECONOMIC INFORMATION SYSTEM

The energy-economic impact forecasting system presented here is a modular approach to both economic modeling and information systems development. A set of eleven modules--market, investment, demand, production, (input-output), employment, value added, labor force, population, household, fiscal, and ecologic--provides the data base and programming routines for simulating the state (or a substate regional) economy. An additional set of government function modules, including energy and environmental management, provides an auxiliary data base and forecasts for state and local government agencies. This series of data modules and related computer programs, locally called SIMLAB, is organized as a readily accessible regional impact simulation system.Community/Rural/Urban Development,

Progress or Devastation? The Effects of Ethanol Plant Location on Local Land Use

Land Economics/Use,

Rotor and stator assembly configured as an aspirating face seal

A rotor and stator assembly having a rotor and a stator with opposing surfaces defining an air bearing and an air dam of an aspirating face seal. In a first embodiment, the air bearing and the air dam are axially offset. In a second embodiment, the rotor has an axially extending protuberance located radially between the air bearing and the air dam. The axial offset and the protuberance each act to divert the air flow (e.g., compressed gas or combustion gases in a gas turbine or steam in a steam turbine) in a direction transverse to the air flow direction through the air bearing and the air dam, thus isolating the air flows from the air bearing and the air dam which improves seal performance

What Mathematics Graduate Teaching Assistants Value in a Professional Development Program

Many mathematics graduate students will be a teaching assistant at some point in their time at graduate school; however, few of them have any prior teaching experience. Fortunately, many universities offer a professional development (PD) program to help prepare Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs) for teaching. Little research has been done on GTA’s perceptions of their PD experience. This study aimed to address this issue by answering the question, “what do GTA’s value in the PD experience?” To answer this question, a survey was sent to all mathematics, applied mathematics, and statistics graduate students at a southwestern university. After the survey, 12 GTAs agreed to be interviewed. Through the survey and interviews, five themes arose in what GTAs value: interactions with peers, interactions with teaching supervisors, collaborative learning spaces, observations of instructors as an undergraduate and graduate student, and support provided through PD. From this study, recommendations are given for PD programs to consider

Brush Seals for Improved Steam Turbine Performance

GE Energy has retrofitted brush seals into more than 19 operating steam turbines. Brush seals offer superior leakage control compared to labyrinth seals, owing to their compliant nature and ability to maintain very tight clearances to the rotating shaft. Seal designs have been established for steam turbines ranging in size from 12 MW to over 1200 MW, including fossil, nuclear, combined-cycle and industrial applications. Steam turbines present unique design challenges that must be addressed to ensure that the potential performance benefits of brush seals are realized. Brush seals can have important effects on the overall turbine system that must be taken into account to assure reliable operation. Subscale rig tests are instrumental to understanding seal behavior under simulated steam-turbine operating conditions, prior to installing brush seals in the field. This presentation discusses the technical challenges of designing brush seals for steam turbines; subscale testing; performance benefits of brush seals; overall system effects; and field applications

430— IFNγ and 5-Aza Drug Effects on HLA Expression in Human Leukemia and Epidermoid Carcinoma

Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) is a gene that codes for cell-surface proteins that are the basis of our bodies’ immune response, and are crucial for the combatting of pathogens or infections. For our experiment we observed two cell lines, a human Leukemia cell line (HL-60), and an epidermoid carcinoma cell line A-431. Our purpose for this experiment was to observe the effects of two drugs as well as the combination of them on the expression of HLA antigens in these cancerous cell lines. The drugs being used in this experiment are Gamma interferon, which is known to increase antigen presentation and 5-azacitidine which is known to have anti-cancer actions. The data collected suggests that in A-431 cells, interferon and 5-aza both upregulate HLA expression, however the combination appears to diminish these effects. It also suggests that in HL-60 cells Interferon and 5-aza separately also upregulate HLA-expression and also upregulate HLA together however no more than individually

From Goethe to Godel: Against the Language of Thought Hypothesis

This paper re-examines the language of thought hypothesis by considering objections raised by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe against influential views about the relation of language and thought in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, such as those posited by Herder, Schleiermacher, Schlegel, and von Humboldt. Goethe’s Theory of Colors contains an instructive critique of the idea held by many of his contemporaries: that the bounds and limits of thought are linguistic in character. I argue that Goethe’s remarks anticipate later 20th-century challenges to the language of thought hypothesis regarding implicit cognition, such as Dennett’s “chess playing” example, as well as Gödel’s discussions of the issue of formal incompleteness

CRISPR-UnLOCK: Multipurpose Cas9-Based Strategies for Conversion of Yeast Libraries and Strains

Citation: Roggenkamp E, Giersch RM, Wedeman E, Eaton M, Turnquist E, Schrock MN, Alkotami L, Jirakittisonthon T, Schluter-Pascua SE, Bayne GH, Wasko C, Halloran M and Finnigan GC (2017) CRISPR-UnLOCK: Multipurpose Cas9-Based Strategies for Conversion of Yeast Libraries and Strains. Front. Microbiol. 8:1773. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2017.01773Saccharomyces cerevisiae continues to serve as a powerful model system for both basic biological research and industrial application. The development of genome-wide collections of individually manipulated strains (libraries) has allowed for high-throughput genetic screens and an emerging global view of this single-celled Eukaryote. The success of strain construction has relied on the innate ability of budding yeast to accept foreign DNA and perform homologous recombination, allowing for efficient plasmid construction (in vivo) and integration of desired sequences into the genome. The development of molecular toolkits and “integration cassettes” have provided fungal systems with a collection of strategies for tagging, deleting, or over-expressing target genes; typically, these consist of a C-terminal tag (epitope or fluorescent protein), a universal terminator sequence, and a selectable marker cassette to allow for convenient screening. However, there are logistical and technical obstacles to using these traditional genetic modules for complex strain construction (manipulation of many genomic targets in a single cell) or for the generation of entire genome-wide libraries. The recent introduction of the CRISPR/Cas gene editing technology has provided a powerful methodology for multiplexed editing in many biological systems including yeast. We have developed four distinct uses of the CRISPR biotechnology to generate yeast strains that utilizes the conversion of existing, commonly-used yeast libraries or strains. We present Cas9-based, marker-less methodologies for (i) N-terminal tagging, (ii) C-terminally tagging yeast genes with 18 unique fusions, (iii) conversion of fluorescently-tagged strains into newly engineered (or codon optimized) variants, and finally, (iv) use of a Cas9 “gene drive” system to rapidly achieve a homozygous state for a hypomorphic query allele in a diploid strain. These CRISPR-based methods demonstrate use of targeting universal sequences previously introduced into a genome