cometadata/datacite-rtg-text-other-reclassification-records huggingface dataset:
Exact critical points of the O($n$) loop model on the martini and the 3-12 lattices
Creators: name: Ding, Chengxiang
name: Fu, Zhe
name: Guo, Wenan
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2012
Subjects: subject: Statistical Mechanics (cond-mat.stat-mech)
subject: Soft Condensed Matter (cond-mat.soft)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We derive the exact critical line of the O($n$) loop model on the martini lattice as a function of the loop weight $n$.A finite-size scaling analysis based on transfer matrix calculations is also performed.The numerical results coincide with the theoretical predictions with an accuracy up to 9 decimal places. In the limit $n\to 0$, this gives the exact connective constant $μ=1.7505645579...$ of self-avoiding walks on the martini lattice. Using similar numerical methods, we also study the O($n$) loop model on the 3-12 lattice. We obtain similarly precise agreement with the exact critical points given by Batchelor [J. Stat. Phys. 92, 1203 (1998)].
description: 4 pages, 3 figures, 2 tables
An Explainable Deep Federated Multi-Modal Cyber-Attack Detection in Industrial Control Systems
Creators: name: Bahadoripour, Sepideh
Publisher: name: Graduate Studies
Year: 2024
Subjects: subject: Artificial Intelligence

description: Industrial Control Systems (ICS)s are crucial for monitoring and controlling critical infrastructure such as smart grids, the oil and gas industry, and transportation. Traditionally, ICSs were placed on isolated communications systems to keep them safe from cyber-attacks, where they were relatively inconspicuous and unknown to most attackers. The connection between ICS and wide area networks facilitates the online access, monitoring, and control of the systems remotely. The drawback of wide area network integration is increased attack surfaces in ICS and increased vulnerability to cyber-criminals. Considering the critical function of ICS within vital infrastructure operations, system compromise could result in substantial risks to both human life and the environment. Furthermore, the escalating frequency of cyber-attacks on ICS in recent years accentuates the pressing need for timely and effective security solutions. This thesis will propose an explainable deep federated multi-modal model for cyber-attack detection in ICS environments to secure the ICS networks and mitigate potential risks to human lives and the environment. Moreover, the proposed model will focus on the challenges of using machine learning techniques in the cybersecurity of the ICS, such as data privacy of training the models on the cloud. In addition, the proposed model analyzes sensor and network modalities of an ICS and detects cyber-attacks based on their joint abstract representation. Furthermore, a federated learning-based technique for the cyber-attack detection model will be proposed to build a powerful detection component based on several ICS without sharing clients' data to ensure data privacy.
The Battleground of Translation: Making Equal in a Global Structure of Inequality
Creators: name: (:Unav)
Publisher: name: Columbia University
Year: 2018
Subjects: Translations
Semantics
Knowledge, Theory of
Culture

description: In her interview published in the Cairol based journal ALIF, Lydia H. Liu reflects on the centrality of translation to the circulation of all knowledge. She emphasizes, in particular, new ways of understanding translation beyond semantics: What role does the supersign play in the making of concepts in translation? How do we analyze the logic of equivalency that simultaneously determines the "translables" and "untranslables"? Why is nonsense inseparable from sense? How do we analyze the conditions of the universal in translation? etc.
An Investigation of Heavy Metal Pollution Impact on Drinking Water Quality in the Birim River Sub-Basin of Ghana
Creators: name: Amengor, Jacob Kwasi
Publisher: name: Graduate Studies
Year: 2024
Subjects: subject: Water Quality
subject: Mining
subject: Heavy Metal Pollution
subject: Engineering--Environmental

description: The threat posed by Artisanal and Small-scale Mining (ASM) to the quality of drinking water in Ghana has become a major public concern due to the many harmful chemicals used in the process. This study aimed to investigate heavy metal pollution in the Birim River Sub-Basin and develop a community participation module to manage the threats of heavy metal pollution the drinking water in surrounding communities. The study was based on 192 samples collected from Kibi and Akim Oda water treatment plants and towns (Upstream and Downstream) for a period of 6 weeks. Four heavy metals, Lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), Chromium (Cr), and Arsenic (As) in water were investigated from the Birim River sub-basin in the Eastern Region of Ghana. The water samples were analyzed using a Shimadzu AA- 7000 Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer with deuterium background corrector. The ranges of the heavy metals detected were 0.00 mg/L – 0.15 mg/L, 0.00 mg/L – 1.06 mg/L, 0.002 mg/L – 0.910 mg/L for Cd, Cr, and As respectively, Pb was not detected in all samples. The Heavy Metal Pollution Index (HPI) of 136 and 1037 recorded at the point of use at both upstream Kibi and downstream Akim Oda showed that ASM significantly rendered the quality of the drinking water unfit for use. Both adults and children residing in both Kibi and Akim Oda face substantial non-cancer risks, as evidenced by the Hazard Index values of 3.87 and 44.81 for adults and 8.90 and 103.08 for children, respectively. The Total Cancer Risks associated with the exposure to the drinking water laced with multiple heavy metals showed that over 6,500 adults and 15,500 children out of a million were at risk in Kibi, while over 28,000 adults and 64,400 children were at risk in Akim Oda. The high levels of heavy metals concentration recorded in the source water, filtered water, treated water and the tap water supports the claim that artisanal and small-scale mining negatively impact drinking water quality and puts the health of consumers at risk.
Middle Pleistocene paleoenvironmental reconstruction through phytolith analysis at the Manyara Beds, northern Tanzania
Creators: name: Bundala, Mariam Joseph
Publisher: name: Graduate Studies
Year: 2024
Subjects: subject: Middle Pleistocene
subject: Phytoliths
subject: Paleovegetation
subject: Paleoanthropology
subject: Eastern Africa
subject: History--Ancient
subject: Archaeology
subject: Paleoecology
subject: Paleobotany

description: This project is aimed at developing a detailed habitat reconstruction for hominins living at the Manyara Beds of Northern Tanzania during the early Middle Pleistocene using phytolith remains. The dissertation comprises three interlinked, but independent studies. The first study examines the phytolith assemblages from modern surface soils and plants to create a referential baseline for studying phytoliths from the Acacia-Commiphora ecosystem surrounding the Manyara Beds, the same plant regions in which our ancestors reside. Phytoliths from 21 species of plants, including 11 unstudied taxa from this ecosystem, were characterized. Twenty-five composite surface soil samples from five sites were also analyzed. Using Stromberg's 2003 classification and interpretive scheme, this study has demonstrated that the dominant phytoliths for Commiphora are polyhedral epidermal cells, and Acacia is a rare producer of blocky-faceted rectangular plate morphotypes. The second study examines phytolith assemblages from archaeological and non-archaeological sites within the six-meter zone of the uppermost part of the lower Manyara Beds. In general, phytolith assemblage from archaeological and non-archaeological sites confirms the persistence of C4 grasslands. However, varied habitats were available for the Acheulean tool-making hominins at archaeological site MK 4, which featured palms, woody dicots, sedge, and grasslands taxa, including high proportions of warm arid and moist loving C3 and C4 PACMADs and dry adapted C4 chloridoids. There is also a small presence of wet-loving panicoids. The palms, sedges, Commelinaceae, and other aquatic monocots indicate that Manyara Beds were well-watered, at least with the occurrence of freshwater springs or rivers near the Lake shores. Therefore, inferences from phytolith assemblages from the Manyara Beds are consistent with the common predictions of many Plio-Pleistocene sites near the lake shores, pointing to hominin's dependence on water and food resources such as plants and game. The third study presents the analysis of 106 stone tool residue samples from the MK4 site to understand the function of the small flake assemblage found there. Ten tools yielded phytoliths, including two flaked and eight core tools. Phytoliths revealed the exploitation of plant resources, including grasses, palms, sedges, woody dicots, and other unknown taxa.
Radiative coupling and weak lasing of exciton-polariton condensates
Creators: name: Aleiner, I. L.
name: Altshuler, B. L.
name: Rubo, Y. G.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2011
Subjects: subject: Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics (cond-mat.mes-hall)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: In spite of having finite life-time exciton-polaritons in microcavities are known to condense at strong enough pumping of the reservoir. We present an analytical theory of such Bose-condensates on a set of localized one-particle states: condensation centers. To understand physics of these arrays one has to supplement the Josephson coupling by the radiative coupling caused by the interference of the light emitted by different centers. Combination of these couplings with the one-site interaction between the bosons leads to a rich nonlinear dynamics. In particular, a new regime of radiation appears. We call it weak lasing: the centers have macroscopic occupations and radiate coherently, but the coupling alone is sufficient for stabilization. The system can have several stable states and switch between them. Moreover, the time reversal symmetry in this regime is, as a rule, broken. A number of existing experimental puzzles find natural interpretation in the framework of this theory.
description: 5 pages, 2 figures
International Peacebuilding and Local Success: Assumptions and Effectiveness
Creators: name: Autesserre, Severine
Publisher: name: Columbia University
Year: 2017
Subjects: subject: Conflict management
subject: Peace--International cooperation
subject: Peace-building
subject: Political science
subject: FOS: Political science

description: Existing research on war and peace lacks analysis of what allows peacebuilding to succeed at the subnational level. Instead, most scholars focus on peacebuilding failure and macro-level dynamics. This is unfortunate because the obstacles to peacebuilding are such that the most puzzling question is why international efforts sometimes succeed, rather than why they fail. The lack of focus on success is also problematic because it results in ambiguous findings. On the one hand, there is an emerging consensus that local conflict resolution is crucial to building peace. There is also an agreement that, all else being equal, international support tends to increase the chances of successful peacebuilding. On the other hand, when international actors have tried to back local initiatives, they have often generated counterproductive consequences and worsened the situation. Should international actors support local peacebuilding processes? If so, how can they actually do this? Drawing on in-depth interviews, field and participant observations in nine different conflict zones, and document analysis, this article takes the first step in explaining whether, how, why, and under what conditions international interveners (including donors, diplomats, peacekeepers, and the foreign staff of international and non-governmental organizations) can contribute to successful local and bottom-up peace efforts. It makes three central contributions. First, it shows that the policy and scholarly literatures suffer from a dearth of findings on successful international support to local conflict resolution. Second, it emphasizes the critical—and under-researched—role of assumptions in shaping peacebuilding initiatives. Third, it develops a theoretical framework to analyze how assumptions influence international peace efforts. By way of illustration, the article analyzes three widespread assumptions about peacebuilding and the role of peacebuilders. In each case, it challenges assumptions that international interveners take for granted but that are actually unfounded and detrimental, while identifying assumptions that promote peacebuilding effectiveness.
Institutional collaborations to support undergraduate research as experiential learning
Creators: name: Flanagan, Kyla
name: Stowe, Lisa
name: Summers, Mindi
name: Murphy, James E.
Publisher: name: Taylor Institute for Teaching and Learning
Year: 2023

description: Conference Panel Presentation, ISSOTL Conference, Nov 8-11, 2023, Utrecht, Netherlands.
description: Changing a campus culture to have experiential learning become essential to the student experience requires extensive buy-in and support from the campus community (Stowe & O'Connell, 2022). The Office of Experiential Learning at the University of Calgary supports experiential learning institutionally, with a bold target of all students having at least two high-quality experiential learning opportunities during their academic studies (Kaipainen et al., 2020). At UCalgary, a large, research-intensive institution, undergraduate research is a signature form of experiential learning where students engage in hands-on research in collaboration with researchers. There are numerous benefits to students participating in research (for example, see Lopatto et al., 2020); however, a lack of incentives and training can limit faculty members' willingness to engage in pedagogical change (Brownell and Tanner 2017). In this panel discussion, we will describe the landscape and context of undergraduate research at UCalgary, programming that has supported more than 3500 students engaging in research initiatives over the last three years, and institutional-level collaborations that have facilitated a culture shift, increasing undergraduate research in curricular and co-curricular experiences. As a vital part of our work, we will describe extensive research to understand barriers to accessing experiential learning opportunities for deserving equity groups and ameliorative actions we have taken as a campus to increase accessibility (Stowe et al., 2022). Finally, we will discuss the challenges and successes faced in expanding undergraduate research and experiential learning opportunities in our context institutionally and explore with participants how our experiences may translate to other institutional contexts.
Quantum vortex reconnections
Creators: name: Zuccher, S.
name: Caliari, M.
name: Baggaley, A. W.
name: Barenghi, C. F.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2012
Subjects: subject: Other Condensed Matter (cond-mat.other)
subject: Fluid Dynamics (physics.flu-dyn)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We study reconnections of quantum vortices by numerically solving the governing Gross-Pitaevskii equation. We find that the minimum distance between vortices scales differently with time before and after the vortex reconnection. We also compute vortex reconnections using the Biot-Savart law for vortex filaments of infinitesimal thickness, and find that, in this model, reconnection are time-symmetric. We argue that the likely cause of the difference between the Gross-Pitaevskii model and the Biot-Savart model is the intense rarefaction wave which is radiated away from a Gross-Pitaeveskii reconnection. Finally we compare our results to experimental observations in superfluid helium, and discuss the different length scales probed by the two models and by experiments.
description: 23 Pages, 12 Figures
Reporting Workplace Bullying Research
Creators: name: Sharples, Kerry
Publisher: name: Royal Roads University
Year: 2021
Subjects: bullying
cyberbullying
online bullying
bullying in the workplace
workplace mobbing
postsecondary education

description: My research project explores the existing policies, procedures, protocols, and technologies Alberta post-secondary institutions use to report workplace bullying. Current analysis shows little research has been conducted to these specifications in the field and there is much to explore, from user experience to reporting effectiveness. Workplace bullying is an ever-prevalent issue (Farmer, 2011) which has both intense and adverse effects on both the employee, management, and the institution. To help guide my research, I used the Technology Acceptance Model and Constructivism as theoretical frameworks. The research was conducted using case study as its methodology and drawing on aspects from meta-synthesis; qualitative research enabled me to focus on the “what and why”. I researched eight post-secondary institutes within Alberta, as well as engaged with three participants from a post-secondary institute from different backgrounds to bring more meaning and insight to my research.
Developing Novel Supervised Learning Model Evaluation Metrics Based on Case Difficulty
Creators: name: Kwon, Hyunjin
Publisher: name: Graduate Studies
Year: 2024
Subjects: subject: Machine Learning
subject: Case Difficulty
subject: Binary and Multiclass Classification
subject: Artificial Intelligence
subject: Computer Science

description: Performance evaluation is an essential step in the development of machine learning models. The performance of a model informs the direction of its development and provides diverse knowledge to researchers. Most common ways to assess a model’s performance are based on counting the numbers of correct and incorrect predictions the model makes. However, this conventional approach to evaluation is limited in that it does not consider the differences in prediction difficulty between individual cases. Although metrics for quantifying the prediction difficulty of individual cases exist, their usefulness is hindered by the fact that they cannot be applied universally across all types of data; that is, each metric requires specific data conditions be met for its use, which can be a significant obstacle when dealing with real-world data characterized by diversity and complexity. Therefore, this thesis proposes new metrics for calculating case difficulty that perform well across diverse datasets. These new case difficulty metrics were developed using neural networks based on varying definitions of prediction difficulty. In addition, the metrics were validated using various datasets and compared with existing metrics from the literature. New performance evaluation metrics incorporating case difficulty to reward correct predictions of high-difficulty cases and penalize incorrect predictions of low-difficulty cases were also developed. A comparison of these case difficulty-based performance metrics with conventional performance metrics revealed that the novel evaluation metrics could provide a more detailed explanation and deeper understanding of model performance. We anticipate that researchers will be able to calculate case difficulty in diverse datasets under various data conditions with our proposed metrics and use these values to enhance their studies. Moreover, our newly developed evaluation metrics considering case difficulty could serve as an additional source of insight for the evaluation of classification model performance.
An ounce of prevention : the legal and business case for the implementation of workplace wellness programs
Creators: name: Fixter, Brian L.
Publisher: name: University of British Columbia
Year: 2012

description: The health of American and Canadian citizens is plummeting. Intrinsically tied to this decline has been inflation in the costs associated with poor health, both at the macro-governmental and the micro-employer levels. To curb these spiraling costs, Canadian and American governments and employers have fallen on traditional cost-reduction and benefit roll-backs to secure their economic bottom-lines. This thesis combats that orthodoxy by proposing that the appropriate course for dealing with poor employee health is charted through an increase in spending on health programs in the workplace. Workplace wellness programs seek to modify unhealthy employee lifestyle decisions by broadening health education efforts and incentivizing healthier changes. Given the reach of the workplace, it is ideally situated as a tool for reformation of employee health habits. While workplace wellness programs have been shown to substantially increase employee productivity and corporate profitability, there remains a general reluctance on the part of employers to integrate wellness promotion into the workplace. This hesitancy arises, in part, from an educational gap about how to legally and successfully integrate employee wellness messaging. Indeed, employers lack information on a number of key fronts, which has led to concerns about such programs. These areas of incomplete knowledge include: (1) the business costs associated with deteriorating employee health; (2) the emergent statistical research indicating that workplace wellness programs can result in significant returns on investment; (3) how to reduce exposure to legal liability when addressing personal decisions of employees; and (4) what are the necessary wellness program components, and what are the best ways to implement those components successfully. It is the purpose of this thesis to educate employers on these areas and alleviate the tension arising from corporate involvement in employee decision-making so that the development of workplace wellness programs will increase. Given the current state of public health in Canada and the United States, employers must recognize and understand their ability to positively influence the health of their employees. While this thesis cannot be the only catalyst in this emerging paradigm shift, it serves as a marking point towards that goal.
Event-by-event fluctuations of magnetic and electric fields in heavy ion collisions
Creators: name: Bzdak, Adam
name: Skokov, Vladimir
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2011
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph)
subject: Nuclear Theory (nucl-th)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We show that fluctuating proton positions in the colliding nuclei generate, on the event-by-event basis, very strong magnetic and electric fields in the direction both parallel and perpendicular to the reaction plane. The magnitude of E and B fields in each event is of the order of m_pi^2 \approx 10^18 Gauss. Implications on the observation of electric dipole in heavy ion collisions is discussed, and the possibility of measuring the electric conductivity of the hot medium is pointed out.
description: 10 pages, 5 figures, new comments in section 3, to appear in Phys. Lett. B
The Late Cretaceous Boreal Sea: Biostratigraphy and Paleoenvironmental Analysis of the Smoking Hills and Mason River formations in the Horton River area, Northwest Territories, Canada
Creators: name: Diaz-Tamayo, Juan F.
Publisher: name: Graduate Studies
Year: 2024
Subjects: subject: Late Cretaceous
subject: Siliceous micofossils
subject: Boreal Sea
subject: Micropaleontology
subject: Biomarkers
subject: Smoking Hills and Mason River formations
subject: Canadian Arctic
subject: Geochemistry
subject: FOS: Earth and related environmental sciences
subject: Geology
subject: Paleontology

description: Micropaleontological and geochemical analyses of the Upper Cretaceous Smoking Hills and Mason River formations in the Anderson Basin, northern mainland coast of Arctic Canada, were used to evaluate the marine and terrestrial environmental conditions that prevailed in the southern extent of the Boreal Sea at the end of the Cretaceous. The radiolarian biozonation proposed in this study and its correlation with diatom, silicoflagellate and palynological biozones previously reported in the same area indicate a late Santonian-middle Campanian age for the Smoking Hills Formation and a middle Campanian-early Maastrichtian age for the Mason River Formation. The Smoking Hills Formation was deposited during marine transgression and water column stratification, and planktic communities were dominated by dinoflagellates, red algae, green algae and probably diatoms and silicoflagellates. Bottom waters were predominantly anoxic-euxinic during the deposition of this unit, with short intervals of ventilation as evidenced by the presence of benthic foraminifera. Terrigenous input increased considerably during the deposition of the Mason River Formation and fueled marine primary productivity. Marine planktic communities were dominated by diatoms, silicoflagellates, and probably red and green algae. Bottom waters were fully oxygenated and dominated by sponges. Total concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons indicate that angiosperms diversified during the early Maastrichtian and contributed considerably to the organic matter preserved in the Mason River Formation. These compounds also show evidence of increased wildfire activity and erosion rates in continental areas, increasing the amount of soil-derived organic matter in the marine basin. The integration of micropaleontological with elemental and organic geochemical data presented in this study provides new insight into the response of planktic communities to environmental perturbations in a Cretaceous Arctic shelf ecosystem. Additionally, the findings provided here, along with other scientific contributions in Arctic regions, will allow us to explore the role of the Boreal Sea as an atmospheric carbon and climate regulator during the Cretaceous.
Robust Nodal Structure of Landau Level Wave Functions Revealed by Fourier Transform Scanning Tunneling Spectroscopy
Creators: name: Hashimoto, K.
name: Champel, T.
name: Florens, S.
name: Sohrmann, C.
name: Wiebe, J.
name: Hirayama, Y.
name: Roemer, R. A.
name: Wiesendanger, R.
name: Morgenstern, M.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2012
Subjects: subject: Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics (cond-mat.mes-hall)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Scanning tunneling spectroscopy is used to study the real-space local density of states (LDOS) of a two-dimensional electron system in magnetic field, in particular within higher Landau levels (LL). By Fourier transforming the LDOS, we find a set of n radial minima at fixed momenta for the nth LL. The momenta of the minima depend only on the inverse magnetic length. By comparison with analytical theory and numerical simulations, we attribute the minima to the nodes of the quantum cyclotron orbits, which decouple in Fourier representation from the random guiding center motion due to the disorder. This robustness of the nodal structure of LL wave functions should be viewed as a key property of quantum Hall states.
Speocera tabuk Li & Li 2019, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Tong, Yanfeng
name: Li, Fengyuan
name: Song, Yang
name: Chen, Haifeng
name: Li, Shuqiang
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2019
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Arachnida
Araneae
Ochyroceratidae
Speocera
Speocera tabuk

description: Speocera tabuk Li & Li sp. nov. (Figs 42, 58J) Material examined. Holotype ♀ (IZCAS), Philippines, Luzon Island, Kalinga Province, Tabuk City, road to Tabuk, forest along the road near a narrow water channel (17º24.757′N, 121º16.384′E), elev. 408 m, 2.VI.2015, leg. F. Ballarin & Y. Li. Etymology. The specific name is derived from the type locality; noun. Diagnosis. The new species is similar to S. cuyapo Li & Li sp. nov. but can be distinguished by the longer afferent spermathecae (cf. Figs 42B, 20B). Description. Female. Total length 1.00; carapace length 0.48; carapace width 0.41; abdomen length 0.51; abdomen width 0.36. Prosoma: carapace pyriform, narrowing gradually anteriorly; shiny, light yellow, suffused with purplish pattern (Fig. 42C); pars cephalica flat; fovea not visible. Sternum light yellow, suffused with purplish color, as long as wide (Fig. 42D). Endites light yellow with serrula; labium light yellow. Clypeus nearly vertical; short. Chelicerae light yellow; promargin with a series of six teeth reaching the lamina; retromargin with two very small denticles (Fig. 58J). Eyes: six contiguous eyes surrounded by black pigmentation, nearly subequal (Fig. 42C). Opisthosoma oval; purplish. Legs light yellow; leg lengths I 1.76 (0.50, 0.15, 0.51, 0.34, 0.25); II 1.63 (0.46, 0.16, 0.45, 0.32, 0.25); III 1.43 (0.41, 0.14, 0.36, 0.30, 0.22); IV missing. Genitalia. Internal genitalia with afferent spermathecae short, straight, not extending past the sides of the abdomen (Fig. 42B); spermathecae amorphous (Fig. 42A). Male. Unknown. Distribution. Known only from the type locality.
description: Published as part of Tong, Yanfeng, Li, Fengyuan, Song, Yang, Chen, Haifeng & Li, Shuqiang, 2019, Thirty-two new species of the genus Speocera Berland, 1914 (Araneae: Ochyroceratidae) from China, Madagascar and Southeast Asia, pp. 1-75 in Zoological Systematics 44 (1) on page 52, DOI: 10.11865/zs.201901, http://zenodo.org/record/5366923
Enhancing Antimicrobial Stewardship On Dairy Farms With A Focus On Selective Treatment Of Clinical Mastitis
Creators: name: De Jong, Ellen
Publisher: name: Graduate Studies
Year: 2024
Subjects: subject: Veterinary Science

description: Clinical mastitis (CM) treatment decisions have been the focus of antimicrobial stewardship in the dairy sector, as CM and antimicrobial dry cow treatments account for the majority of antimicrobials used on farms. To improve on-farm antimicrobial stewardship, a selective treatment approach of CM is explored, centering around milk culture-guided decisions. Detailed principles of selective CM treatment and an evidence-based protocol are presented in Chapter 2, alongside an overview of expected cow and farm impacts, impact of proportion of Gram-negative cases on expected reduction in antimicrobial use, adoption rates across the globe, and knowledge and technology gaps. A systematic review and meta-analysis is presented in Chapter 3, evidencing that a selective CM treatment protocol can be adopted without adversely influencing bacteriological and clinical cure, somatic cell count, milk yield, and incidence of recurrence or culling. Chapter 4 presents survey results of 142 farms detailing adoption of various CM protocols among Canadian dairy farmers, demonstrating an association between increased adoption of selective CM protocols and low average cow SCC, as well as a distinction between 3 groups of farmers with similar relative importance of decision factors. Delving further into CM decision-making, Chapter 5 presents considerations of Western Canadian dairy farmers at each decision step from identification of CM to treatment termination, as well as 3 overarching themes impacting each step: Personal attributes, Inter-actor dynamics, and Moving beyond protocols. Chapter 6 describes 4 themes related to perceptions on mastitis-related antimicrobial use: Antibiotic use paradox: Perception vs. reality; Low disease incidence is a badge of honor; In good hands: Veterinarians as safeguards; and “It takes a village to make a change”, alongside 10 proposed interventions designed using the Behavior Change Wheel to mitigate voiced barriers and appeal to facilitators towards milk-culture guided decisions. To advance this research future efforts should be focused on improving selection of CM cases to exclude antimicrobial treatment, discouraging inadequate mastitis-related antimicrobial stewardship practices, enhancing quality and accessibility of milk diagnostic tests, and stimulating and monitoring uptake of selective CM protocols.
Thyreocephalus annulatus
Creators: name: Bordoni, A.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2013
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Staphylinidae
Thyreocephalus
Thyreocephalus annulatus

description: Thyreocephalus annulatus (FAUVEL 1895)
M a t e r i a l s t u d i e d: Yunnan, Zhiwuyanm Xishuangbanna, Hu & Tang 5-6.VII.2003, 3 exx. (SNUC), 1 ex. (cB).
G e o g r a p h i c a l d i s t r i b u t i o n: This species is known from numerous areas in the Oriental region (BORDONI 2002). New record for China.
description: Published as part of Bordoni, A., 2013, New data on the Xantholinini from China. 24. New genus, new species and new records of the Shanghai Normal University collection (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae) 244 ° contribution to the knowledge of the Staphylinidae, pp. 1745-1797 in Linzer biologische Beiträge 45 (2) on page 1748, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.10273196
Integrating Field-Based Knowledge of Alpine Aquifers in Basin-Scale Hydrological Models
Creators: name: Ralph, Brayden Maxwell
Publisher: name: Graduate Studies
Year: 2024
Subjects: subject: Alpine Hydrogeology
subject: Hydrology
subject: Geology
subject: FOS: Earth and related environmental sciences
subject: Remote Sensing

description: Talus and moraine serve as vital groundwater reservoirs, with their associated capability to modulate the baseflow of major rivers that originate in headwater environments. Recent field-based studies conducted in the Canadian Rocky Mountains have identified a nonlinear storage-discharge relationship expressed by these surficial alpine aquifers and the importance of their spatial positioning and extent in headwater environments. However, few studies have tried to upscale our current small-scale understanding of these surficial units, to better understand how their storage-discharge dynamics influence basin-scale (i.e. 10^3-10^4 km^2) hydrology. This study aimed to develop a means to integrate several representative features associated with alpine aquifers into a basin-scale hydrological model to potentially improve its capability to estimate and predict the baseflow of mountain rivers. Specifically, this study developed a simple object-oriented image classification workflow to map the spatial extent and distribution of talus and moraine, among other alpine landcover, in addition to validating the capability of a previously discerned simple exponential function to emulate the aforementioned groundwater storage-discharge relationship expressed by alpine aquifers. The resulting object-oriented workflow did well to capture the spatial variability of the aquifers present in the 2228 km^2 Upper Bow River Basin in Alberta Canada, yielding an overall accuracy rating of 90%, while providing an efficient means to extract the aquifer’s spatial characteristics. The exponential function was then tested in a small first-order watershed in the Canadian Rocky Mountains and simulated watershed’s groundwater storage-discharge dynamics to a similar accuracy compared to a distributed physically-based groundwater flow model implemented in the same area. This suggests that the function potentially has the capacity to be integrated as the new baseflow function in a basin-scale hydrologic model and likely improve its capability to accurately estimate and predict the baseflow of mountain rivers. The underlying framework of the Modélisation Environnementale communautaire (MEC) - Surface Hydrology (MESH) model, a basin-scale hydrological model widely implemented in alpine regions in Canada, is presented to demonstrate how these representative features associated with alpine aquifers could be integrated into such a model.
Exploring Emotion Recognition of Students in Virtual Reality Classrooms Through Convolutional Neural Networks and Transfer Learning Techniques
Creators: name: Shomoye, Michael Abidemi
Publisher: name: Graduate Studies
Year: 2024
Subjects: subject: emotion recognition
subject: facial expression
subject: VR
subject: virtual reality
subject: virtual learning environment
subject: machine learning
subject: deep learning
subject: CNN
subject: Convolutional Neural Networks
subject: transfer learning
subject: ResNet50
subject: VGG19
subject: MobileNet
subject: Computer Science
subject: Artificial Intelligence

description: In contemporary educational settings, understanding and assessing student engagement through non-verbal cues, especially facial expressions, is pivotal. Such cues have long informed educators about students' cognitive and emotional states, assisting them in tailoring their teaching methods. However, the rise of online learning platforms and advanced technologies like Virtual Reality (VR) challenge the conventional modes of gauging student engagement, especially when certain facial features become obscured or are entirely absent. This paper explores the potential of Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs), specifically a customized training approach model adapted from the ResNet50 architecture, in recognizing and distinguishing subtle facial expressions in real-time, such as neutrality, boredom, happiness, and confusion. The novelty of our approach is twofold: First, we optimize the power of CNNs to analyze facial expressions in digital learning platforms. Second, we innovate for the context of VR by focusing on the lower half of the face to tackle occlusion challenges posed by wearing VR headsets. Through comprehensive experimentation, we compare our model's performance with the default Residual Neural Network 50 (ResNet50) and evaluate it against full-face and VR-occluded face datasets. Ultimately, our endeavor aims to provide educators with a sophisticated tool for real-time evaluation of student engagement in technologically advanced learning environments, subsequently enriching the teaching and learning experience.
General Scattering Mechanism and Transport in Graphene
Creators: name: Rabiu, M.
name: Mensah, S. Y.
name: Abukari, S. S.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2011
Subjects: subject: Materials Science (cond-mat.mtrl-sci)
subject: Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics (cond-mat.mes-hall)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Using quasi-time dependent semi-classical transport theory in RTA, we obtained coupled current equations in the presence of time varying field and based on general scattering mechanism $τ\propto \mathcal{E}^β$. We find that close to the Dirac point, the characteristic exponent $β= +2$ corresponds to acoustic phonon scattering. $β= +1$ long-range Coulomb scattering mechanism. $β= -1$ is short-range delta potential scattering in which the conductivity is constant of temperature. The $β= 0$ case is ballistic limit. In the low energy dynamics of Dirac electrons in graphene, the effect of the time-dependent electric field is to alter just the electron charge by $e \to e(1 + (Ωτ)^2)$ making electronic conductivity non-linear. The effect of magnetic filed is also considered.
description: 8 pages, 3 figures
Επιχειρηματικό και Στρατηγικό πλάνο:Στοχευμένη θεραπεία με 3ης γενιάς EGFR TKIsσε ασθενείς με μη μικροκυτταρικό καρκίνο του πνεύμονα
Creators: name: Αναγνωστάκη, Αγγελική Ελευθερίου
Publisher: name: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
Year: 2023
Subjects: Επιχειρηματικό πλάνο
Μη μικροκυτταρικός καρκίνος του πνεύμονα
Υποδοχέας επιδερμικού αυξητικού παράγοντας
Business Plan
Non-small cell lung cancer
EGFR

description: Σκοπός της διπλωματικής εργασίας είναι η κατανόηση της νόσου και η χαρτογράφηση της αγοράς σε σχέση με το standard of care, την αποζημίωση,τα ενδιαφερόμενα μέρη, τις ευκαιρίες,τα δυνατά σημεία,τις αδυναμίες,τις προκλήσεις και τις απειλές.Θέσπιση στόχων και προσδιορισμός βραχυπρόθεσμης και μακροπρόθεσμης στρατηγικής, πρωτοβουλίες και ενέργειες που θα οδηγήσουν στην απρόσκοπτη πρόσβαση στην θεραπεία, στην εδραίωση της στην αγορά, στη μεγιστοποίηση της θετικής εμπειρίας ιατρού και ασθενή και τέλος καθορισμός δεικτών ποσοτικών και ποιοτικών(KPIs) με σκοπό την μέτρηση της επίτευξης των στόχων
description: The purpose of the diploma thesis is to understand the disease and map the market in relation to the standard of care, reimbursement, stakeholders, opportunities, strengths, weaknesses, challenges, and threats. Setting goals and defining a short- and long-term strategy, initiatives and actions that will lead to unhindered access to treatment, its establishment in the market, in maximization of the positive experience of doctor and patient and finally the definition of quantitative and qualitative indicators (KPIs) in order to measure the achievement of the goals
Glitched: A Novel and the Perpetual Posthuman Performance of Never-Becoming
Creators: name: Grue, Janelle
Publisher: name: Graduate Studies
Year: 2024
Subjects: subject: Dystopian
subject: Posthumanism
subject: Creative
subject: Assemblages
subject: Counterrevolutionary
subject: Literature--Canadian (English)

description: This thesis aims to illuminate the nuanced ways posthuman manipulation, coupled with the allure of hope, becomes a potent force for dominant systems to extinguish individual autonomy. The narrative in Glitched unfolds against the backdrop of a collapsing Canadian society, with citizens eventually falling under the rule of the Regime. Through this storyline, the fictional narrative and subsequent research intend to unravel the complexities of human agency within speculative fiction, particularly dystopian literature, by focusing on a narrative that emphasizes the absence of hope and revolution. While dystopian stories predominantly center on rebellion-centric narratives, this thesis investigates the implications of autonomy under authoritarian rule without the catalyst of revolution by drawing on the theoretical framework of Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari’s assemblages and the impossible act of becoming. Through close readings and thematic analyses of other novels and counterrevolutionaries, the thesis illustrates a complex interplay between the Regime’s control through nanotechnology, individual identity, and the blurred boundaries between conscious and unconscious states. Glitched contributes a distinctive perspective to speculative fiction, presenting an alternative to conceptual frameworks surrounding autonomy in dystopian societies and re-evaluating the role of hope and rebellion in shaping narratives of human agency.
An Effective Medium Approach to Electron Waves: Graphene Superlattices
Creators: name: Silveirinha, Mario
name: Engheta, Nader
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2012
Subjects: subject: Materials Science (cond-mat.mtrl-sci)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We develop an effective medium approach to characterize the propagation of matter waves in periodic structures, such as graphene or semiconductor superlattices. It is proven that the time evolution of the states that are not more localized in space than the characteristic period of the structure can be described exactly through an effective Hamiltonian, and that the electronic band structure of the system can be exactly determined from the effective Hamiltonian. As an illustration of the application of the method, we characterize the mesoscopic response of graphene superlattices. It is shown that these structures may be described using simply two effective parameters: a dispersive potential, and an anisotropy tensor that characterizes the pseudospin. Our model predicts that a graphene superlattice characterized by an indefinite anisotropy tensor - such that the eigenvalues of the tensor have opposite signs - may permit the perfect tunneling of all the stationary states with a specific value of the energy when it is paired with a dual graphene superlattice with positive definite anisotropy tensor.
description: 36 pages
Two Aspects of Black hole entropy in Lanczos-Lovelock models of gravity
Creators: name: Kolekar, Sanved
name: Kothawala, Dawood
name: Padmanabhan, T.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2011
Subjects: subject: General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology (gr-qc)
subject: High Energy Physics - Theory (hep-th)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We consider two specific approaches to evaluate the black hole entropy which are known to produce correct results in the case of Einstein's theory and generalize them to Lanczos-Lovelock models. In the first approach (which could be called extrinsic) we use a procedure motivated by earlier work by Pretorius, Vollick and Israel, and by Oppenheim, and evaluate the entropy of a configuration of densely packed gravitating shells on the verge of forming a black hole in Lanczos-Lovelock theories of gravity. We find that this matter entropy is not equal to (it is less than) Wald entropy, except in the case of Einstein theory, where they are equal. The matter entropy is proportional to the Wald entropy if we consider a specific m-th order Lanczos-Lovelock model, with the proportionality constant depending on the spacetime dimensions D and the order m of the Lanczos-Lovelock theory as (D-2m)/(D-2). Since the proportionality constant depends on m, the proportionality between matter entropy and Wald entropy breaks down when we consider a sum of Lanczos-Lovelock actions involving different m. In the second approach (which could be called intrinsic) we generalize a procedure, previously introduced by Padmanabhan in the context of GR, to study off-shell entropy of a class of metrics with horizon using a path integral method. We consider the Euclidean action of Lanczos-Lovelock models for a class of metrics off-shell and interpret it as a partition function. We show that in the case of spherically symmetric metrics, one can interpret the Euclidean action as the free energy and read off both the entropy and energy of a black hole spacetime. Surprisingly enough, this leads to exactly the Wald entropy and the energy of the spacetime in Lanczos-Lovelock models obtained by other methods. We comment on possible implications of the result.
description: v1: 20 pages, no figures v2: added some discussion, to appear in Phys. Rev. D
State Immigration Enforcement Policies: How They Impact Low-Income Households
Creators: name: Gelatt, Julia
name: Koball, Heather
name: Bernstein, Hamutal
name: Runes, Charlotte
name: Pratt, Eleanor
Publisher: name: Columbia University
Year: 2017
Subjects: Children of immigrants
Immigrant families
Emigration and immigration--Government policy
Poor families
Deportation

description: Over seven million U.S. children live with at least one noncitizen parent – and 80 percent of these children are US-born citizens. Close to 5 million US-citizen children live with an unauthorized immigrant parent, potentially subject to deportation. Research has shown that the deportation of a parent has serious deleterious effects on families—emotional distress, behavioral issues, and economic hardship for children—and that even the threat of deportation can hurt a family’s well-being by causing fear that restricts mobility, access to jobs, and use of public and private supports in times of need. The election of President Trump, with his plans to increase efforts to identify and deport unauthorized immigrants, has signaled a harsher policy environment for immigrant families than in recent years. In State Immigration Enforcement Policies: How They Impact Low-Income Households , researchers at NCCP, Urban Institute, and Migration Policy Institute looked at how the changing immigration policy environment is likely to affect immigrant families. Specifically, the report examines whether immigrant families living in states that ramped up enforcement of federal policy saw any changes in their material hardship, or how often fear of deportation affected their ability to pay for essentials (such as rent, utilities, or food). The report highlights important connections between immigration policy enforcement and well-being in immigrant households.