cometadata/datacite-titles-descriptions-related-identifiers huggingface dataset:
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c127-651579
title: Interactive fast random access, retrieval, and navigation of large datasets

description: This research is motivated by two important trends. First, more than ever before large amounts of data and information are being accessed through mobile devices such as smart phones, tablet computers, book readers, etc. Second, significant amounts of complex and high-volume information (e.g. maps, medical images, scientific datasets, virtual museums, etc.) are now available over networks. In addition to entertainment applications (e.g. video sharing), a significant driver of traffic over networks is likely to come from professional applications. Such applications, like those that might provide doctors with pervasive access to medical information, will demand high quality performance according to a variety of different metrics, such as latency, resolution, interactivity, and perceptual quality. ❧ We have proposed a novel system for interactive, fast, and random access and navigation of large datasets. Of particular interest in our system is the random retrieval of lower dimensional data from high dimensional datasets. The system makes it possible to allow limited memory mobile devices to quickly access complex large datasets over low-bandwidth connections. This approach can reduce the transmission rate dramatically (by factor of 2) and also improve the level of interactive navigation. Both 2D and 3D systems, referring to the dimensionality of the datasets that may be accessed, for fast and random access have been developed and each system is composed of a tiling scheme, linear searching algorithm, compression methodology, mapping algorithm, and reconstruction scheme. The mapping algorithms can also be applied to various other applications and areas. We also have proposed models for parameter selection and system optimization, tools to both analyze and quantify the benefits of our proposed re-mapping algorithm as well as wavelet based approach 3D system. This work offers both theoretical and practical contributions and can be used in a wide-array of exciting future applications.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c127-664214
title: Stochastic characterization, realization and upscaling of polycrystalline materials

description: Almost all metallic structures, in particular aerospace systems, consist of polycrystalline materials. There is an inherent heterogeneity in the structure of polycrystals that results from variation in the morphology and texture of underlying microstructures, characterized by geometrical shape, size and crystallographic orientations. The prediction of scatter in mechanical behavior of metallic systems due to these microstructural heterogeneities is of significant importance to many engineering applications. The inherent heterogeneity can be adequately described by a probabilistic approach. Stochastic representation of material properties can also accommodate uncertainty stemming from incomplete data and missing information. This dissertation is motivated by two challenges involved in developing a probabilistic framework for characterization, realization and upscaling of polycrystalline materials. The first one is concerned with the construction of a sufficiently representative description of random media in terms of morphology and material properties, for an intended purpose. The second important challenge arises in modeling the relationship between the random micro-heterogeneities and the parameters or functions used to describe the physical processes of interest at the coarse scale. One of the essential questions in this regard is whether the coarse scale description is capable of capturing the signature of fine scale characteristics. The inherent heterogeneities in the nature of these fine scale features are reflected on coarse scale observables in the form of random fluctuations around the average response. Hence, any mechanistic model must account for these fluctuations in order to capture the effect of subscale heterogeneities. To address these challenges, we first introduce a statistical characterization of an experimental database on morphology and crystallography. The resulting statistical model is used as a surrogate to further experimental data, required for calibration and validation. We then discuss the construction of a stochastic mechanistic model for mesoscale description of materials with microstructure. The linear elastic constitutive matrix of this model is described mathematically as a random matrix which is bounded from above and below. The identification of model parameters using statistical ensembles of digitally generated random microstructures is presented. We validate the predictive accuracy of the probabilistic model using simulated data resulting from subscale simulations. Also discussed in this work is a simple application problem in order to investigate the capability of the model to detect the signature of mesoscale damages. Finally, we study the effect of heterogeneities on the stochastic wave response of random polycrystalline microstructures making use of the microstructure simulation tool developed in the first part of this work.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c127-670683
title: An investigation of the timing of orogenic events in southern Spain and southern California using the Lu/Hf and Sm/Nd isotopic systems

description: This study examines the timing of metamorphism in the Betic Cordillera of southern Spain and the Catalina Schist in southern California, using Lu/Hf and Sm/Nd isotopic geochronology on garnet-bearing rocks.  Garnets are very common metamorphic minerals; they sequester 176Lu as they grow, and they also incorporate a measurable amount of 147Sm.  Both isotopes can be used in conjunction with their respective daughter isotopes to determine the growth or cooling age of the garnets, giving an insight into the timing of the metamorphism. ❧ Five samples are studied from the Internal Zone of the Betic Cordillera. A graphitic-mica schist sample from the structurally lowest tectonic unit (the Nevado-Filábride Complex) produced a Lu/Hf age of 13.3 ± 7.3 Ma and a Sm/Nd age of 15.6 ± 7.4 Ma. The other four Betic samples come from the structurally central tectonic unit (the Alpujarride Complex), and include a garnet-mica schist (Sm/Nd age: 23.8 ± 5.7 Ma) from Almuñecar, a granulite facies metapelite from the Jubrique unit above the Ronda peridotite massif (Lu/Hf age: 192 ±47 Ma, Sm/Nd age: 44 ± 12 Ma), an amphibolitized eclogite from the Blanca unit from beneath the peridotite (Sm/Nd age: 25.1 ± 4.9 Ma), and a garnet peridotite from the Ronda massif in the Sierra Bermeja (Sm/Nd age: 28.3 ± 6.4 Ma). ❧ One sample comes from the Franciscan Complex on Santa Catalina Island in southern California.  It is from the Blueschist Unit of the Catalina Schist. This is a garnet-glaucophane-lawsonite schist, from which two separate Lu/Hf ages were obtained. Glaucophane and lawsonite separates defined an isochron with an age of 112.3 ±7.3 Ma, while the garnet separates produced an age of 152 ±23 Ma. ❧ Several of these ages provide useful insights into the metamorphic histories of their respective rock units, but some of the Lu-Hf ages may have been affected by zircon inclusions with isotopically old Hf.  The significance of each age is discussed in the light of current knowledge about the rock history, and the strengths and weaknesses of the Lu/Hf and Sm/Nd isotopic systems are compared.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c40-154471
title: Living arrangements and life satisfaction of residents in homes for the aged
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c40-357562
title: College access: a qualitative look at access programs for African American males in higher education

description: Lower retention rates for African American males in higher education are reaching levels of concern. This study explored areas such as stereotype threat, family and social influences, and the impact of role models to gauge their effect on these rates. Results of the study show that African American males in higher education believed they benefited from an increase in engagement with institutional agents, an increased presence of African American male faculty staff, and access programs that create a sense of welcoming and create a community atmosphere at institutions of higher education.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c40-361271
title: Essays on industrial organization

description: This dissertation contains theoretical essays on competition regulation issues. The main purpose is to understand the competitive effect of firms’ certain strategic behaviors in the context of vertical relationships. The key question analyzed is how competition and the nature of demand affect the decision of firms. The implications for competition policy and antitrust law enforcement are discussed. ❧ The first essay studies the design of competing technology standards in industries with positive network effects. I consider a three-stage game in which standards first choose how many patent holders to certify, patent holders then set royalties for using their own patents, and lastly end users make a discrete choice over the competing standards. I find that competing standards have incentives to soften competition through fragmenting their patent rights. Nevertheless, the degree of fragmentation is lessened when competition among standards becomes more intense. Moreover, compatibility among standards also affects the incentives to fragment patent rights. These results provide alternative explanations to as why standards in many high-technology industries adopt highly fragmented patent rights structure. ❧ The second essay examines a variety of international airline cooperative agreements, namely interlining, codesharing, and joint ventures. The model is flexible enough to accommodate any number of airport pairs in air travel markets. The analysis yields two main findings. First, although codesharing does not fully eliminate double markups, it still tends to lower air fares in all the markets when interlining is treated as the benchmark. Second, if airlines have implemented codesharing, then further allowing revenue-sharing alliance or joint venture can raise air fares and even lower total surplus. ❧ The third essay studies the competitive effects of price-matching guarantees under the Margin Protection Program (MPP), which is a vertical program offered by a retailer to its supplier. With the MPP, the supplier is required to ensure that the retailer achieves a threshold profit margin when it matches competitors’ price. I find that the MPP provides an alternative way for the supplier and the retailer to collude. The implementation of the MPP can lead to higher profits for participants, but the retailer outside the program and final-product consumers can be harmed.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c127-647691
title: Domestic containment: Japanese Americans, Native Americans and the cultural politics of relocation

description: Domestic Containment: Japanese Americans, Native Americans and the Cultural Politics of Relocation, is a comparative ethnic and cultural studies project that examines narratives of government-sponsored relocation programs. Domestic Containment expands the limited comparative ethnic studies work that makes connections between Asian American and Native American Studies with a discursive analysis of the pamphlets, manuals and reports of two government agencies: the War Relocation Authority (WRA), which was created in 1943 to encourage and assist residents to move out of Japanese internment camps, and the Voluntary Relocation Program, an agency modeled after the WRA and created in 1956 in order to encourage Native Americans on and near reservations to move to distant cities. While much scholarship that addresses mid-century U.S. race relations has focused on civil rights and integration, little attention has been paid to the U.S. government's attempts to change its method of control from physical containment to policies of containment through ideology, as well as these policies’ long-term effects. ❧ Domestic Containment interrogates the government agencies' creative retellings of historical events that sought to prove the state's benevolent role in the displacement of Japanese Americans and Native Americans. An analysis of government agency training manuals and relocation propaganda illuminates how specific racial and gender formations were endorsed during the post war era of nation building, and became central tenets in the state’s attempted integration of both groups into mainstream American culture. I then turn to Julie Otsuka's novel When The Emperor was Divine and Kent Mackenzie's docudrama The Exiles to consider the lingering effects of dispossession and dispersal felt by those pushed into a diasporic space within a nation state. Reading these three forms of narratives -– government agency documents, fiction and film -– alongside one another provides insight into the psychic costs of belonging amidst mid-twentieth century understandings of citizenship.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c127-648429
title: Quantum fluctuations in small lasers

description: Quantum ﬂuctuations play a critical role in determining the steady-state and transient response of a laser. Such ﬂuctuations can dominate behavior when there is a small number of particles in the system. Correlations between n discrete excited electronic states and s discrete photons can create non-Poisson probability distributions and damp the average dynamic response of laser emission. In this thesis a quantum mechanical treatment of ﬂuctuations and saturable absorption in meso-scale lasers is presented. Time evolution of the density matrix is obtained from numerical integration and ﬁeld-ﬁeld and intensity-intensity correlations are calculated to obtain steady-state line width and photon statistics. Inclusion of a saturable absorber in the otherwise homogeneous medium is shown to suppress lasing, increase ﬂuctuations, and enhance spontaneous emission near threshold. Methods to connect between quantum, meso-scale and classical systems is also developed.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c127-656478
title: Jazz in south Los Angeles and its connection to the community arts

description: From its early origins in New Orleans, jazz has always been considered a predominantly black art form. These roots run deep in the history of Los Angeles, however currently there is little pulse felt for the music in the city. This paper seeks to explore that rich history of jazz by examining the African American communities in South Los Angeles. Central Avenue and Leimert Park form the core focus of this research and unveil a strong community arts tradition. The racial and economic politics that divide L.A. contribute to the various waves where jazz has thrived in these black communities. This thesis questions whether there is a possibility of a re-strengthening of the bonds in the black communities of South L.A. which could result in yet another jazz era.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c40-123109
title: A survey of Los Angeles area administrator's perceptions regarding the nature and extent of citizen community and other inputs utilized in the development of agency policy and decision making: Child welfare
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c40-125838
title: A comparative, exploratory study of professional and paraprofessional gang workers who work with Chicano gangs living in East Los Angeles
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c40-300889
title: Music across the lifespan

description: This dissertation explores music making as a health-promoting activity that optimizes cognitive health across the lifespan. It asks whether music making is associated with protection against cognitive impairment and describes engagement among Americans ages 50+. Results support further consideration of music’s potential as a protective health behavior to promote healthy cognitive aging and reduce cognitive impairment risk. ❧ Study I. In a population-based co-twin control study, we examined the association between playing a musical instrument and dementia or cognitive impairment. Data came from the Study of Dementia in Swedish Twins. Among 157 pairs discordant for dementia and cognitive impairment, 27 pairs were discordant for playing an instrument. Controlling for sex, education, and physical activity, those playing a musical instrument experienced a 64% reduced likelihood of dementia and cognitive impairment compared to their nonmusician co-twin (OR = 0.36, 95% CI: 0.13-0.99). ❧ Study II. Using longitudinal nationally representative data from 2005-2011 from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), we examined: 1) the extent to which Americans ages 50+ engage in music making and 2) the sociodemographic and socioeconomic factors associated with engagement. Among 4,692 individuals, gender, race/ethnicity, and education were significant predictors of engagement. Of the 21% of Americans engaging in music making, most engage in few hours per month. Results suggest there is ample room to create and expand music programs and a vast audience to be introduced (or re-introduced) to music. ❧ Study III. We examined the association between music making (playing a musical instrument or singing) and developing cognitive impairment (dementia or CIND) using longitudinal nationally representative data from the HRS from 2004-2010. Participants were cognitively intact at baseline in 2004. Music making data were collected in 2005. Follow-up was from 2006-2010. Among 3,965 individuals ages 51+, those who engaged in music making in 2005 experienced a 22% lower likelihood of developing any cognitive impairment from 2006-2010, compared to individuals who did not engage in music (OR=0.78, 95% CI: 0.62–0.99, p = 0.04), controlling for sociodemographic and socioeconomic factors.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c40-411005
title: Lower extremity control and dynamics during the golf swing

description: To successfully complete the golf swing, players need to interact with the ground to create rotation with limited translation. In this body of work, we have explored how players complete the golf swing from the muscular, segment, and whole-body level. As golf shot distance increases between clubs, players generate larger reaction forces and whole-body moments. Coincidentally, players use similar muscle sets that are consistent with reaction forces and net joint moments on both legs. Understanding the control and dynamics of the lower extremity during the golf swing can benefit players and inform the design of interventions to improve performance.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c127-617868
title: A comprehensive study of the Chinese government's natural disaster communication framework based on the natural disaster management and communication system's response to two natural disasters

description: The frequent occurrence of natural disasters has long been a reality in China, but with an apparent increase in the frequency of the natural crises in China in recent years, the Chinese government’s preparation for and response to such events have changed. This thesis studies the performance of China’s disaster management and communication system in two disaster situations that occurred in 2008: a major winter storm and the Sichuan earthquake. Government policies relevant to the full life cycle of natural disasters, from prevention to relief and restoration, are covered, and the government’s on-the-ground communication activities as these two disasters unfolded are analyzed. Using this information, the thesis explores the features of the Chinese government’s natural disaster communication framework and identifies potential gaps between this framework and classic crisis communication theories.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c127-630368
title: Minimizing congestion on railway networks

description: The railway transportation is becoming more and more important to the whole transportation system. The railway transportation is cost-effective, energy-efficient and safe. The railway is a major method of transportation of freight and passengers in many countries. Given the fact that the railway industry is facing rapid increasing demand, better planning and scheduling tools are needed to effectively manage the scarce resources. In this thesis, we focus on developing train scheduling and train dispatching algorithms that minimize the congestions on railway networks. ❧ The first part of this thesis studies the freight train scheduling problem. We develop optimization-based approaches for scheduling of freight trains. Two mathematical formulations of the scheduling problem are first introduced. Two heuristics based on mixtures of the two formulations are proposed. The proposed algorithms are able to perform better than two existing heuristics such as a simple look-ahead greedy heuristic and global neighborhood search algorithms, in terms of total train delay. For relatively large networks, two algorithms based on the idea of decomposition are proposed. We use two sample networks to test our proposed decomposition algorithms. The two sample networks are 33.9-mile and 49.3-mile long, respectively. Our decomposition algorithms are shown to outperform the two existing algorithms. ❧ The second part of the thesis studies the train dispatching problem for double-track and triple-track railway segment. The regular dedicated dispatching policy dedicates one track for trains travelling in one direction. If trains are travelling at different speeds, the faster train will catch up with the slower train thus be delayed. We first look at the problem where there are only two train speeds in the network, we propose a switchable dispatching policy for the double-track segment to reduce the chance that a faster train being blocked by a slower train. We use queueing theories to derive the delay functions. The new switchable dispatching policy is shown to significantly reduce the train delays compared to a dedicated policy. We also study the effect of having a crossover at the middle of the track segment. The switchable policy is then extended to the triple-track segment. Several variations of the switchable policy for triple-track segment are studied. Finally, we study the double-track segment dispatching policy for multiple train speeds.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c127-638855
title: Outbound foreign direct investment in China's finance sector: implications for domestic banking reform

description: Economic liberalization has occurred at a rapid pace in China since the start of economic reforms in 1978. One sector that has lagged behind when it comes to liberalization, however, is that of the banking and finance sector. The lack of liberalization, and more generally, structural reform in China’s banking system is due to its irreplaceable role as financier of the national economy. With no alternative forms of financing, state-led economic development in China has consistently been dependent on bank lending. In particular, large state-owned enterprises (SOEs) are the entities that have benefited most from government-mandated preferential lending policies. ❧ This critical role of financial support has extended beyond the domestic realm in recent years to include assisting enterprises in their outbound foreign direct investment (OFDI). As China’s general OFDI increases, so has finance sector-specific OFDI. Finance sector-specific OFDI theoretically can assist in the reform process for China’s state-owned banks, but this does not seem to be a primary motivation for banks to invest abroad. Rather, finance sector OFDI indicates an extension of banks supporting state-owned and large enterprises abroad. This project makes the argument that this added imperative role will provide even less of an incentive for policymakers to mandate desperately needed reforms, to the detriment of the banking system.