Design and Implementation of an Extensible Variable Resolution Bathymetric Estimator

For grid-based bathymetric estimation techniques, determining the right resolution at which to work is essential. Appropriate grid resolution can be related, roughly, to data density and thence to sonar characteristics, survey methodology, and depth. It is therefore variable in almost all survey scenarios, and methods of addressing this problem can have enormous impact on the correctness and efficiency of computational schemes of this kind. This paper describes the design and implementation of a bathymetric depth estimation algorithm that attempts to address this problem by combining the computational efficiency of locally regular grids with piecewise-variable estimation resolution to provide a single logical data structure and associated algorithms that can adjust to local data conditions, change resolution where required to best support the data, and operate over essentially arbitrarily large areas as a single unit. The algorithm, which is in part a development of CUBE, is modular and extensible, and is structured as a client-server application to support different implementation modalities. The algorithm is called “CUBE with Hierarchical Resolution Techniques”, or CHRT

Rigid Divisibility Sequences Generated by Polynomial Iteration

The goal of this thesis is to explore the properties of a certain class of sequences, rigid divisibility sequences, generated by the iteration of certain polynomials whose coefficients are algebraic integers. The main goal is to provide, as far as is possible, a classification and description of those polynomials which generate rigid divisibility sequences

Corporate Philanthropy of Robber Barons

This project will attempt to analyze the philanthropy of Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller to form conclusions about their motivations and reasoning behind their acts of corporate philanthropy

Herpetofaunal Inventories of the National Parks of South Florida and the Caribbean: Volume III. Big Cypress National Preserve

Amphibian declines and extinctions have been documented around the world, often in protected natural areas. Concern for this trend has prompted the U.S. Geological Survey and the National Park Service to document all species of amphibians that occur within U.S. National Parks and to search for any signs that amphibians may be declining. This study, an inventory of amphibian species in Big Cypress National Preserve, was conducted from 2002 to 2003. The goals of the project were to create a georeferenced inventory of amphibian species, use new analytical techniques to estimate proportion of sites occupied by each species, look for any signs of amphibian decline (missing species, disease, die-offs, and so forth.), and to establish a protocol that could be used for future monitoring efforts. Several sampling methods were used to accomplish these goals. Visual encounter surveys and anuran vocalization surveys were conducted in all habitats throughout the park to estimate the proportion of sites or proportion of area occupied (PAO) by each amphibian species in each habitat. Opportunistic collections, as well as limited drift fence data, were used to augment the visual encounter methods for highly aquatic or cryptic species. A total of 545 visits to 104 sites were conducted for standard sampling alone, and 2,358 individual amphibians and 374 reptiles were encountered. Data analysis was conducted in program PRESENCE to provide PAO estimates for each of the anuran species. All of the amphibian species historically found in Big Cypress National Preserve were detected during this project. At least one individual of each of the four salamander species was captured during sampling. Each of the anuran species in the preserve was adequately sampled using standard herpetological sampling methods, and PAO estimates were produced for each species of anuran by habitat. This information serves as an indicator of habitat associations of the species and relative abundance of sites occupied, but it will also be useful as a comparative baseline for future monitoring efforts. In addition to sampling for amphibians, all encounters with reptiles were documented. The sampling methods used for detecting amphibians are also appropriate for many reptile species. These reptile locations are included in this report, but the number of reptile observations was not sufficient to estimate PAO for reptile species. We encountered 35 of the 46 species of reptiles believed to be present in Big Cypress National Preserve during this study, and evidence exists of the presence of four other reptile species in the Preserve. This study found no evidence of amphibian decline in Big Cypress National Preserve. Although no evidence of decline was observed, several threats to amphibians were identified. Introduced species, especially the Cuban treefrog (Osteopilus septentrionalis), are predators and competitors with several native frog species. The recreational use of off-road vehicles has the potential to affect some amphibian populations, and a study on those potential impacts is currently underway. Also, interference by humans with the natural hydrologic cycle of south Florida has the potential to alter the amphibian community. Continued monitoring of the amphibian species in Big Cypress National Preserve is recommended. The methods used in this study were adequate to produce reliable estimates of the proportion of sites occupied by most anuran species, and are a cost-effective means of determining the status of their populations

Form and Function Focused Language Activities and Their Effects on Student Writing in a Spanish Immersion Classroom

The research question addressed in this project was, how does implementing (Spanish) form and function focused language activities during independent reading time affect subject-verb agreement and opinion formation in third grade students’ writing? The study was grounded in the idea of cross-curricular transfer (Meyer & Schendel, 2014; Zwiers, 2006). Students utilized scaffolded form and function focused Spanish language frames in a peer-to-peer reciprocal teaching setting during reading, with the intent that the linguistic learning would transfer to students’ writing. Using Brown\u27s (1973) Obligatory Occasion Analysis method as outlined by Ellis and Barkhuizen (2005) the researcher found substantial improvement in subject-verb agreement for preterit tense verb forms and opinion formation. He discovered some inconsistencies in growth by gender and race, as well as improvements in verb forms not directly focused on. This project adds significant new findings to the field of immersion education research

After the Final Snap: Cognitive Appraisal, Coping, and Life Satisfaction among Former Collegiate Athletes

Lazarus and Folkman's (1984) cognitive model was used to examine the effect of retirement from intercollegiate football. Participants included 52 former college football athletes from Division IA and IAA. The questionnaire included the Intercollegiate Football Retirement Questionnaire (IFRQ); demographic information, personal control ratings, and life satisfaction ratings from the Elite Athlete Retirement Interview Schedule (Wethner, 1985); General Emotion Scale (GES, Folkman & Lazarus, 1985), and the 60-item COPE (Carver et al., 1989; Carver & Scheier, 1994) to assess coping strategies. Former players experienced both positive and negative emotions, reported different levels of personal control, and used a variety of coping strategies that were related to life satisfaction. The appraisal process was a stronger predictor of life satisfaction following intercollegiate football retirement, than the use of any specific coping strategy

The Soybean Aphid: Perspectives from Across the Street

On June 18, 2001, one of us (B.L.) found soybean aphids, Aphis glycines, on VI-stage soybean plants near Decorah in northeastern Iowa. Aphids were common in river-bottom fields and the highest density was 20 aphids per plant. Most of the aphids were clustered on the youngest unexpanded trifoliate leaf. Aphids were not found on hilltop fields even though there were woodlands nearby that might harbor their alternate host, buckthorn. Thus began the second year of our experience with the soybean aphid. This paper will give a brief overview of our understanding of the soybean aphid, potential management guidelines, and insecticide performance data from neighboring states

Detecting Invasive Insects with Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

A key aspect to controlling and reducing the effects invasive insect species have on agriculture is to obtain knowledge about the migration patterns of these species. Current state-of-the-art methods of studying these migration patterns involve a mark-release-recapture technique, in which insects are released after being marked and researchers attempt to recapture them later. However, this approach involves a human researcher manually searching for these insects in large fields and results in very low recapture rates. In this paper, we propose an automated system for detecting released insects using an unmanned aerial vehicle. This system utilizes ultraviolet lighting technology, digital cameras, and lightweight computer vision algorithms to more quickly and accurately detect insects compared to the current state of the art. The efficiency and accuracy that this system provides will allow for a more comprehensive understanding of invasive insect species migration patterns. Our experimental results demonstrate that our system can detect real target insects in field conditions with high precision and recall rates.Comment: IEEE ICRA 2019. 7 page

Serving Multiply Handicapped Deaf Adults in a Comprehensive Rehabilitation Center

Non

Gazelle: A Human Powered Vehicle

This thesis details the year-long Senior Design process in which our goal was to create a human powered vehicle that could be a short-distance replacement for cars. Our team designed our vehicle to be entered in the ASME Human Powered Vehicle Competition in April of 2016. Our vehicle featured a seat that could be adjusted for users of different heights, making it more comfortable to ride. This report will describe the process and design choices that were made throughout the year in order to create a vehicle. Our frame was welded using Chavez Welding, and the welding created some complications with our frame and adjustable seat, which will be talked about later in the document. Solutions and improvements for our vehicle will be discussed, as well as reasoning for our initial design choices