The Dynamical Systems Method for solving nonlinear equations with monotone operators

A review of the authors's results is given. Several methods are discussed for solving nonlinear equations $F(u)=f$, where $F$ is a monotone operator in a Hilbert space, and noisy data are given in place of the exact data. A discrepancy principle for solving the equation is formulated and justified. Various versions of the Dynamical Systems Method (DSM) for solving the equation are formulated. These methods consist of a regularized Newton-type method, a gradient-type method, and a simple iteration method. A priori and a posteriori choices of stopping rules for these methods are proposed and justified. Convergence of the solutions, obtained by these methods, to the minimal norm solution to the equation $F(u)=f$ is proved. Iterative schemes with a posteriori choices of stopping rule corresponding to the proposed DSM are formulated. Convergence of these iterative schemes to a solution to equation $F(u)=f$ is justified. New nonlinear differential inequalities are derived and applied to a study of large-time behavior of solutions to evolution equations. Discrete versions of these inequalities are established.Comment: 50p

Effect of Selected Essential Oils on Brown Recluse Spider Control

Loxosceles reclusa isconsidered a pest throughout its range in the US due mostly to the effects of its venomous bite (Sandidge and Hopwood, 2005). Management techniques include the use of pesticides to target this dangerous synanthropic organism. Essential oils, commonly used for various health benefits, have been previously used as a method of pest control (Koulet al, 2008). Studies have shown varying results when tested on different insects and pests (Regnault-Roger et al, 2011). Their effect on L. reclusa is still undetermined. Thus, we tested the potential of essential oils as an effective method of control for L. reclusa. Results from our experiment indicated that the selected essential oils had a varied effect with overall low mortality

Oviposition Decisions by Indianmeal Moth

The Indianmeal moth, Plodia interpunctella,is a pest in the United States of stored grains. The larvae feed on grains, grain products, dried fruits, nuts, cereals and a variety of processed food products. Indianmeal moths can detect where other Indianmeal moths have laid eggs but it is unknown if they know where other species have been and laid eggs. So, does the colonization of flour by other species affect where an Indianmeal moth will lay her eggs? Our results showed there was no preference for colonized or uncolonized flour by the moths. The average number of eggs laid in both patches of flour was even. This data shows us that the moths do not have a preference where they lay their eggs, potentially increasing competition among species in food patches

Accuracy in UAS GPS Coordinates in Response To Speed

The purpose of this experiment was to find how much of a difference in GPS accuracy on a UAS system in relation to speed there was (if any) in comparison to an absolute (1-2 cm accuracy) known location provided by a ground station. We began by placing identification makers in a straight line, setting up a TopCon ground station and positioning each of them to an absolute GPS coordinate, and flying a Mavic Pro UAS with GPS positioning abilities over each of the identification markers. After many runs at different hover times, speed and altitude, we found that the GPS coordinates from the UAS would not match with the absolute location of the TopCon

Red Flour Beetle Aggregation

The Red flour beetle feeds on grain which is why it is considered a pest. Understanding their aggregation behavior can help us to find new ways to control them. What we don’t yet know is what makes them group together the way they do, whether it be instinctive or a learned behavior. If the beetles are driven by strain-specific behaviors, then we should see a greater proportion of them aggregate with the same strain, which would mean they follow instinctive behavior. The results showed to be contradictory to the original hypothesis. The beetles seemed to show learned behavior due to them grouping more with beetles from the same starting environment rather than the same strain. These results tell us that we need to consider the environment, not just genetic strains, when trying to develop control strategies

Caught in the Middle: Empowerment in Middle Managers

Citation: Doty, N. (2017) Caught in the Middle: Empowerment in Middle Managers. Unpublished manuscript, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS.Kirmser Undergraduate Research Award - Individual Non-Freshman Category, grand prizePrevious studies on the topic of middle management focus on how these specific managers drive the organizations they are a part of, how they motivate their subordinates to work effectively and efficiently, how middle managers create excitement, and how their leadership style helps their followers find purpose in their work. And yet, little is done to flesh out how these strong MMs are created, what motivates them, and how they succeed in their position (Kominis & Emmanuel, 2007). These MMs are the “basis of strategic renewal” in bettering an ever-changing organizational environment and, conversely, can even “sabotage implementation efforts” in the changing strategy of the workplace (Mantere, 2008, p. 294). This paper aims to discover what factors influence the empowerment of middle managers for the purpose of better understanding and development of MMs in organizational and workplace structures. Motivation is the influence on a person’s “direction, vigor and persistence of action” (Rajhans, 2012, p. 82). The current literature on the subjects of management, motivation, and work performance focus on the topics of role expectations, and empowerment, and are typically viewed through the theoretical lenses of structural empowerment and psychological empowerment, which are outlined below

Steering proton migration in hydrocarbons using intense few-cycle laser fields

Proton migration is a ubiquitous process in chemical reactions related to biology, combustion, and catalysis. Thus, the ability to control the movement of nuclei with tailored light, within a hydrocarbon molecule holds promise for far-reaching applications. Here, we demonstrate the steering of hydrogen migration in simple hydrocarbons, namely acetylene and allene, using waveform-controlled, few-cycle laser pulses. The rearrangement dynamics are monitored using coincident 3D momentum imaging spectroscopy, and described with a quantum-dynamical model. Our observations reveal that the underlying control mechanism is due to the manipulation of the phases in a vibrational wavepacket by the intense off-resonant laser field.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure

Production of methyl ethyl ketone from biomass using a hybrid biochemical/catalytic approach

The recent demand for sustainable routes to fuels and chemicals has led to an increased amount of research in conversion of natural resources. A potential approach for conversion of biomass to fuels and chemicals is to combine biochemical and chemical processes. This research used microbial fermentation to produce 2,3-butanediol, which was then converted to methyl ethyl ketone by dehydration over a solid acid catalyst. The fermentation process was performed using the bacteria Klebsiella oxytoca (K.O). 2,3-butanediol then dehydrated to form methyl ethyl ketone on a solid acid catalyst, the proton form of ZSM-5, and heat. The goal was to determine the reaction kinetics of 2,3-butanediol dehydration over ZSM-5, and to demonstrate the hybrid biochemical/thermochemical approach for synthesizing chemicals from biomass. It was found that ZSM-5 produced methyl ethyl ketone with high selectivity (greater than 90%), and could convert fermentative 2,3-butanediol to methyl ethyl ketone. The reaction order of 2,3-butanediol dehydration was found to be slightly large than one, and an activation energy of 32.3 kJ/mol was measured

Characterizing Website Traffic Driven by Different Media Types

The audience for KSU Ag Extension services consists of crop managers across Kansas; traditionally reached through face-to-face events and delivery of paper-based materials. The myFields program is an alternative, online approach for delivering information; important in light of budget cuts that reduce face-to-face events and paper publications. The extension of myFields has been defined by social media, newsletters, and the radio. Our goal is to look at the analytics of the site and to determine which extension outlet is the most effective for driving user traffic to the website. We want to know; how do different media outlets drive user traffic to myFields.info? Using new data available on the site, we will track site analytics after pushing the data release on 1) social media (Twitter), 2) the agronomy department’s newsletter (eUpdates), and 3) KSU’s ag radio show (Ag Today). Specifically, we used the release of 2018 corn performance data on our Demonstration Plot Data tool to audiences as a driver to the site. The results suggest that the eUpdate article was the most successful extension resource considering the length of time people spent on the site, but the Radio spot was extremely successful as a jump in page views