Connecting the Game Industry with WPI

WPI hosts a career fair every semester where many WPI students apply for job or internship positions with various companies. However, there is a distinct lack of attending companies that require the skills of Interactive Media and Game Development (IMGD) students. We interviewed IMGD professors, members of the game industry, a variety of company representatives, and went to networking events in order to understand what we could do to bring more IMGD related companies to campus. Our hope is that our efforts will lead to IMGD students having an easier time finding work as well as planting WPI on the local game industry’s radar

Commentaries on the Laws of England : in Four Books

“The main purpose in giving to the public a new edition of the Commentaries of Blackstone, was to present the changes in the law which had taken place since the last preceding edition appeared, that the reader, while informing himself concerning the law of England of a century since, might not be misled in respect to its present condition. With this object before him, while avoiding the detail which might be useful to the English practitioner, but which would merely cumber the pages for American use, the editor has sought to indicate the statutory changes sufficiently to give a general idea of the advancement made in the English law since our commentator’s time, and also to enable the American student to compare the law of his own country with the system from which it was derived, as modified by the experience of another land enjoying free institutions under circumstances and with a state of society considerably differing from our own….” --Author’s Preface to the First Edition reprinted in 2nd Ed. “A new edition of this work having become necessary, the editor has made some changes and additions, but not such as will call for special notice here. They consist in the main of references to new cases, though some new notes have been added which may prove of practical value.” --Authors Preface in 2nd Ed.https://repository.law.umich.edu/books/1097/thumbnail.jp

Commentaries on the Laws of England : in Four Books

From Editor\u27s Preface, Volume I: “The Commentaries of Mr. Justice Blackstone have now for more than a century been the wonder and delight of persons whose curiosity or interest have led them to investigate the constitution and laws of Great Britain, the condition of things from which they grew, and the reasons upon which they rest…. “In preparation of the present edition it has not been thought unimportant to call attention from time to time to the differences which exist between the constitutions of Great Britain and of the United States. Some of those differences, however, are too subtle to be put upon paper, and spring from differences in society which are sensibly felt but difficult of description…. “What is new in this edition has been added in the same spirit that has governed the selections from the English notes. As students make more use of this work than practicing lawyers, their information and benefit have been kept mainly in view but references have been made to judicial decisions on many practical questions, and it is hoped they will be found not without their convenience to the profession generally.” --Thomas M. Cooley, Ann Arbor, … 1870https://repository.law.umich.edu/books/1103/thumbnail.jp

Commentaries on the Laws of England : in Four Books

“The Commentaries of Mr. Justice Blackstone have now for more than a century been the wonder and delight of persons whose curiosity or interest have led them to investigate the constitution and laws of Great Britain, the condition of things from which they grew, and the reasons upon which they rest…. “In preparation of the present edition it has not been thought unimportant to call attention from time to time to the differences which exist between the constitutions of Great Britain and of the United States. Some of those differences, however, are too subtle to be put upon paper, and spring from differences in society which are sensibly felt but difficult of description…. “What is new in this edition has been added in the same spirit that has governed the selections from the English notes. As students make more use of this work than practicing lawyers, their information and benefit have been kept mainly in view but references have been made to judicial decisions on many practical questions, and it is hoped they will be found not without their convenience to the profession generally.” --Thomas M. Cooley, Ann Arbor, … 1870https://repository.law.umich.edu/books/1102/thumbnail.jp

Characterisation of Peripheral Neuropathy and Neuronal and Endothelial Markers of Neuropathic Pain: a Comparative Study Across Preclinical Models of Neuropathic Pain

Neuropathic pain is pain caused by a lesion or disease to the somatosensory pathways. A leading cause is diabetic peripheral neuropathy which effects over half of all diabetic patients. This neuronal damage commonly leads to sensory disturbances such as dysesthesia, allodynia, and hyperalgesia. These unpleasant sensory experiences are often accompanied by secondary symptoms such as anxiety and depression; all of which negatively effects the suffers quality of life. The underlying pathology behind diabetic peripheral neuropathy and other neuropathic pain conditions is not well understood and requires further elucidating. The lack of understanding poses significant problems for diagnosis and optimal treatment strategies, resulting in only a small proportion of sufferers benefitting from current pharmacological treatment. Without biomarkers that can accurately predict neuropathy and neuropathic pain, it is hard to successfully identify preclinical treatments that will translate to optimal treatment strategies for neuropathic pain sufferers. Potential biomarkers of peripheral neuropathic pain include intra-epidermal nerve fibre density (IENFD), Langerhans cells (LCs) density, calcitonin gene-related peptide (cGRP) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). Plantar skin biopsies were collected from male Wister Han ISG STZ-induced type 1 diabetic rats with a stable mechanical allodynia after 7 weeks and from male and female high fat diet (HFD) induced type diabetic C57 BI6 mice. An immunohistochemistry (IHC) protocol was developed to quantify IENFs, LCs and cGRP density using anti PGP 9.5 and cGRP antibodies. There was found to be a significant decrease in IENF density in STZ induced type 1 diabetic rats at 2- (p<0.001), and 7- weeks (p<0.001) which correlated with an increase in LC expression (r= -0.6214, p= <0.002). There was also a proportional increase in cGRP expression in STZ induced type 1 diabetic rats at 2-, 4-, and 7-weeks, the increase was only significant at 2 weeks (p=0.012). No time course effects in IENFD decrease, LCs increase, or cGRP increase were found in 2-, 4-, and 7-week STZ induced type 1 diabetic rats. VEGF expression levels were quantified, using western blot, in control and STZ induced type 1 diabetes rat retina however no signal was produced with the anit-VEGF antibody, suggesting an issue with the antibody or protocol. In the HFD induced type 2 diabetes model there was a significant decrease in IENFD between male mice fed control chow and those fed 60% fat diet (p < 0.001) as well as between male mice fed 42% and 60% fat diet (p=0.010). In female mice there was a significant decrease in IENFD from the control chow group in both the 42% fat diet group (p=0.002) and the 60% fat diet group (p < 0.001). However no significant change was found in LC expression or proportional levels of cGRP in the HFD induced type 2 diabetes model. This study demonstrated that the quantification of IENFD can be reliably and comparatively measured in plantar skin of healthy and diabetic type 1 and 2 neuropathic rodents. The observed increase in LC expression levels in combination with IENFD have the potential to assess the development and potential severity of the neuropathy, as well as predict the extent of neuropathic pain. The use of CGRP as a reliable biomarker was inconclusive in this study however further investigation is warranted into its use as a translatable neuropathy biomarker, as well as the role it plays in the generation of neuropathic pain, and mechanism for analgesia

Dynamic Analysis of a Microgrid Powered With an Inverter and Machine-Based Distributed Resources

The proliferation of renewable distributed energy resources, particularly photovoltaic (PV) power systems, and the increasing need for a reliable power supply has led to the concept of microgrids, a mini-grid that consists of locally connected power generation units and needs, able to operate connected or disconnected from the utility grid, using controlled and coordinated methods to provide for the users of the microgrid the best possible conditions for their needs. The main technical issues facing microgrids include some of the following, seamless transition from stand-alone to utility grid connected operation, how to preserve frequency and voltage stability, and provide the lowest cost power among numerous power resources. Technologies that will be used in the future smart grid will be built, tested, and fielded in modern microgrids with many national laboratories, utility companies, and universities using microgrids of all different types for research and development. This dissertation describes the design, fabrication, and testing of a microgrid facility which comprises adjustable resistive and inductive loads, a diesel-powered generator (DG), an advanced inverter PV system, a battery energy storage system (BESS), monitoring, protection, and control devices. The microgrid facility was built with the foresight that it would be used for conducting tests and experiments related to microgrid technical challenges, thus ease of access and expandability were built in which allows it to be used for both research and education purposes. Numerous experimental tests conducted include the following: (a) the dynamic response of a DG to load changes, (b) an advanced PV inverters autonomous functions, (c) advanced inverter islanding test, (d) load sharing among the DG and PV system, (e) PV and battery storage systems load sharing, (d) dynamic performance of an advanced PV inverter and a DG during unintentional islanding under different power export/import conditions, and (e) BESS iv response to utility outage under different PV operating conditions. Attempts to improve reliability and power quality are made by expanding the PV inverter ride-through times during frequency and voltage abnormalities. An economic analysis in terms of Net Present Value (NPV) is conducted on a residential application where a BESS is paired with a PV system to shift solar energy in favor Time-of-Use (ToU) pricing and to provide ancillary grid services

Storybook - A Casual Game

The purpose of this MQP was to construct a small-scale game such that we would have adequate time to properly balance and polish it. The prompt of a casual game led us to design a cooperative multiplayer dungeon crawler/collectible card game hybrid, something we have never seen in a casual game before. Our goal over the course of development was to keep scale manageable while also creating a unique game that we could polish and proudly show off

Adam Smith and the theory of punishment

A distinctive theory of punishment plays a central role in Smith's moral and legal theory. According to this theory, we regard the punishment of a crime as deserved only to the extent that an impartial spectator would go along with the actual or supposed resentment of the victim. The first part of this paper argues that Smith's theory deserves serious consideration and relates it to other theories such as utilitarianism and more orthodox forms of retributivism. The second part considers the objection that, because Smith's theory implies that punishment is justified only when there is some person or persons who is the victim of the crime, it cannot explain the many cases where punishment is imposed purely for the public good. It is argued that Smith's theory could be extended to cover such cases. The third part defends Smith's theory against the objection that, because it relies on our natural feelings, it cannot provide an adequate moral justification of punishment

Risk factors associated with mortality and interventions in 472 neonates with interrupted aortic arch: A Congenital Heart Surgeons Society study

ObjectiveWe sought to determine the prevalence of outcomes and associated patient and management factors for neonates with interrupted aortic arch.MethodsFrom 1987 to 1997, a total of 472 neonates were enrolled prospectively from 33 institutions. Competing risks methodology was used to determine simultaneous risk and associated incremental risk factors for death, initial and subsequent left ventricular outflow tract procedures, and arch reinterventions.ResultsOverall survival was 59% at 16 years after study entry but improved with successive birth cohort. In general, risk factors for death in each of the competing risks analyses included lower birth weight, younger age at study entry, type B interrupted aortic arch, and major associated cardiac anomalies. Of 453 patients who had interrupted aortic arch repair, after 16 years 33% had died and 28% had undergone an arch reintervention. Reintervention was more likely for those who had truncus arteriosus repair, interrupted aortic arch repair by a method other than direct anastomosis with patch augmentation, and the use of polytetrafluoroethylene as either an interposition graft or a patch. From study entry, competing risks after 16 years showed that 28% had died and 34% had undergone an initial left ventricular outflow tract procedure. Initial left ventricular outflow tract procedure was more likely for those with single ventricle, type B interrupted aortic arch, bicuspid aortic valve, or anomalous right subclavian artery. Among those who had undergone an initial left ventricular outflow tract procedure, after 16 years 37% had died and 28% had undergone a second procedure.ConclusionAnatomic features affect mortality and initial left ventricular outflow tract procedures, whereas characteristics of the arch repair affect arch reintervention