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Structural Control of Civil Infrastructure Using Bio-Inspired Wireless Sensor Nodes
No full textAging, deterioration, and external loads, such as high winds and seismic excitation, continue to abate the condition of civil infrastructure. Active, semiactive, and passive structural control systems offer a means to mitigate these effects. Despite the considerable amount of research and implementation of data acquisition systems in structural control, the challenges of high energy costs, latency, restricting tethered systems, and unreliable wireless systems are still prevalent. A new, bio-inspired sensor draws from the mammalian auditory system using band pass signal filtering and high data compression capabilities allowing for low power, real-time processing and decentralized control. Despite the feats of this new high speed wireless system, communication issues still exist. Because of the real-time processing, high data transmission leads to a maxed out wireless channel. A potential solution is to eliminate extraneous data in packets by prioritizing information transmitted from each sensor. The 1940 El Centro earthquake signal was output to a four-story structure model and data was collected using the bio-inspired wireless sensors. Through an energy analysis of 12 filter sensors, the data showed filters 7, 3, 10, and 2 transmitted the highest energy signals and therefore, should be given higher priority. The corresponding frequencies of these filters are 4.9 Hz, 2.1 Hz, 7.0 Hz, and 1.4 Hz. These frequencies closely correlate with the natural frequencies, 1.3 Hz, 1.95 Hz, 4.8 Hz, and 6.83 Hz, of the four-story structure model. This validates the bio-inspired wireless sensors and allows for future work in sensor prioritization and extraneous data elimination
Comparative Evaluation of the Pediatric Pressure Ulcer Prediction & Evaluation Tool (PPUPET) to the Braden and Braden Q Scales for Predicting Risk of Development of Pressure Ulcers In Pediatric Patients
No full textPreventing pressure ulcers in pediatric patients is essential to decrease costs and debilitating experiences. The purpose of this study is to compare the PPUPET, Braden Q and the Braden scales regarding sensitivity for predicting pressure ulcer development. The conceptual model used is Betty Neuman’s Health Systems Model, which focuses on internal, external, and created environments that place patients at higher risk for a certain condition. A prospective study of 70 pediatric patients was done in a large teaching children’s hospital in West Michigan to compare the PPUPET, Braden Q and Braden scales. For all patients, a skin audit and follow up chart review was conducted using the PPUPET and age appropriate Braden or Braden Q scale. These scores were then compared using a linear regression test and SPSS 19.0 for data analysis. Children on the units ages 18 and under were included in the data. Excluded were patients off the unit, those in the NICU, and those who refused the skin audit. Limitations include having data from only one site when there are several sites involved. The results showed that the PPUPET and Braden Q were more sensitive than the Braden. And, when compared, the PPUPET was more sensitive on audit day than the Braden Q. Nursing implications include finding the most sensitive scale, to provide nurses with a tool to use at the bedside and promote the best patient outcomes
Intergeniculate Leaflet Lesions Result in Differential Activation of Brain Regions Following the Presentation of Photic Stimuli in Nile Grass Rats
Get PDFThe intergeniculate leaflet (IGL) plays an important role in the entrainment of circadian rhythms and the mediation of acute behavioral responses to light (i.e., masking). Recently, we reported that IGL lesions in diurnal grass rats result in a reversal in masking responses to light as compared to controls. Here, we used Fos as a marker of neural activation to examine the mechanisms by which the IGL may influence this masking effect of light in grass rats. Specifically, we examined the patterns of Fos activation in retinorecipient areas and in brain regions that receive IGL inputs following 1-h light pulses given during the early night in IGL-lesioned and sham-operated grass rats. Three patterns emerged: (1) IGL lesions had no effect on the Fos response to light, (2) IGL lesions resulted in a reversal in Fos responses to light, and (3) IGL lesions resulted in a lack of a Fos response to light. Of specific interest were the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) and the olivary pretectal nucleus (OPT), both of which are retinorecipient and connect reciprocally with the IGL. Light-induced Fos expression in the SCN was unaffected by IGL lesions, whereas the OPT exhibited a significant reduction in Fos expression following a light pulse in animals with IGL lesions. Altogether, our results suggest that the OPT, but not the SCN, exhibits a reversal in Fos responses to light following IGL lesions that reverse masking responses in diurnal grass rats. Our results suggest that interconnections between the IGL and downstream brain areas (e.g., OPT) may play a role in determining the direction of the behavioral response to light
This Fabulous Century
No full textArtist Statement: The women of the 40\u27s seemed never to go anywhere without a hat. Whether she was shopping in the daytime or attending the theater at night, she almost invariably had something on her head. And almost always, it was non-sensical--a high turban or perhaps a wide sailor, festooned with a veil and generally sprouting a profusion of feathers, folds and pleats. To display this culmlnatlon of the 1940\u27s era I decided to fashion a hat, but not just any hat. I wanted to make an over the top hat that any fashionable society woman would want to wear and would have all the GI Joes taking a second look. I hope you enJoy and appreciate This Fabulous Century through my artist book.https://digitalcommons.hope.edu/altered_book/1100/thumbnail.jp
Endophytic Response to Methyl Jasmonate and Loline Quantification
No full textTall fescue (Schedonorus phoenix) is a grass found throughout much of the USA and Europe, and is known to harbor the fungal endophyte Neotyphodium coenophialum. The fungus forms a mutualistic relationship with the host, providing both biotic and abiotic stress tolerance and resistance. Often, the highly selected agronomic cultivar kentucky-31 is used for much of the endophytic-host research, as opposed to a naturalized grass. Therefore, seeds were obtained from Gotland, Finland in order to study the effect of a naturalized cultivar of tall fescue and response to application of methyl jasmonate (MJ). Further, it is common for experiments to use mechanically uninfected seeds to act as naturally endophyte-negative seeds. The purpose of the testing naturalized tall fescue expanded further to using naturally uninfected and mechanically uninfected grass seeds. Plants were exposed to MJ by gaseous diffusion within a controlled environmental chamber, and response was assessed with an aphid (R. padi) bioassay. As in Simons et al. (2008), MJ decreased the resistance of endophyte-infected grasses. Further, there was no difference among mechanically uninfected and naturally uninfected treatments, suggesting that both types are viable for experimental use to act as an endophyte-negative treatment. Constitutive production of toxic chemicals to herbivores is one of the key components of herbivore resistance. However, damage to the plant (or perhaps the fungus) induces an increase in alkaloid production. Samples of KY-31 cultivar from a previous damage-treatment experiment were used to quantify loline levels. Data show that loline levels peak when the plant is cut where the fungus resides, suggesting that it is not damage to the host plant that causes an induced increase of protective alkaloids, but rather damage to the endophyte itself
Building Recognition on Android
No full textThis project is a structural recognition application that is implemented on the Android operating system using either phones or tablets. Using the back-facing camera on the Android device to get a video stream, we used a Computer Vision algorithm to analyze individual frames to search for recognizable buildings. Android sensors provided us with the GPS coordinates of the device. These GPS coordinates allowed us to limit which buildings could potentially be on the screen to nearby buildings. The Computer Vision algorithm we used was SURF (Speeded Up Robust Features). This algorithm uses a matrix to compute areas of high contrast in the picture. These areas of high contrast give a good representation of the outline of the structural aspects of the building as well as the specific colors and texture of the building. Using the smart phone infrastructure coupled with the image analysis provided by SURF, we were able to provide an interactive environment for users. This included touch interaction points called Hotspots. The user can touch a Hotspot to provide more information about the building in various formats. Our application’s interactive information display will be used to augment pedagogy of courses in the digital humanities
Thinking Twice: Redefining the Collaborative Relationship Between K-12 Schools, Teacher Preparation Programs, Student Teachers, and the New Teacher Evaluation System
No full textAccording to Michigan State legislation, student growth and assessment data will comprise a percentage of the annual teacher evaluation beginning with 25% in the 2013-2014 school year and increasing to 50% by the 2015-2016 school year. Due to these changes in the teacher evaluation system in Michigan, teachers and administrators are increasingly concerned about how to show quantifiable evidence of student growth. This study explored the potential and perceived impact the new teacher evaluation system may have on Michigan teachers. It also investigated a correlating impact on teacher willingness to mentor a student teacher completing their pre-service training in a teacher preparation program. Through the analysis of surveys completed by 172 K-12 local teachers in multiple West Michigan schools, as well as a follow-up survey completed by 108 teachers in the same sample, trends in reactions and implications emerged. Coding revealed fragmented understanding of the new teacher evaluation system among those surveyed, possibly indicating varied levels in the implementation of the state legislation. Second, although many teachers expressed willingness to give back to the teaching community by mentoring a pre-service teacher, they voiced hesitancy to transfer control of content delivery and student growth completely to a student teacher. The findings of this study suggest that further research is needed to explore alternative mentor-teacher/student-teacher relationships in response to the challenges posed by the new teacher evaluation system
Deformation of 2024-T3 Aluminum at High Strain Rates
Get PDFThe goal of this project was to study the deformation and failure pattern of 2024-T3 aluminum at high strain rates and to validate the numerical analysis of the aluminum through experimentation. This topic is relevant because of its use in aircraft safety in the event of an onboard explosion. It was hypothesized that a material model incorporating multiple stress-strain curves would be necessary to accurately model this high-velocity metal failure. The study of the aluminum was approached using two different methods. The projectile impact test involved shooting a hardened steel sphere at a clamped plate of the aluminum. Then the ballistic limits of various thicknesses of aluminum and the plate failure patterns could be examined. In the Taylor cylinder test, cylinders of the aluminum were shot at a hardened and immovable disk. The cylinders were measured before and after impact and the deformation was correlated with velocity. As expected, the results from the computer modeling were most closely aligned to the experimental data when a Johnson Cook material model, a model that incorporates differing strain rates into calculating multiple stress-strain curves, was used in the simulation. Therefore, a Johnson Cook model of 2024-T3 aluminum was determined to be a viable source of data when used in modeling this kind of scenario involving high-velocity impacts
Between Two Eras: Arresting God in Kathmandu and the Search for a Modern Nepalese Identity
No full textIn the collection of short stories Arresting God in Kathmandu by Nepalese-American author Samrat Upadhyay, Upadhyay describes the lives of middle class Nepalese people living in Kathmandu during the late 20th century. In my research, I make the case that modern Nepal, specifically the capital, Kathmandu, occupies a unique position between two eras: that of modernity and that of tradition. Upadhyay comments on this position in his stories, which capture the essence of the modern Nepalese experience through the desires and fears of his characters. Furthermore, I propose that Upadhyay offers the allegorical message, through his stories, that modern Nepalese people must embrace both their past and their future so as to maintain their rich heritage while still continuing to progress into the modern world. My paper begins with a brief history of Nepal’s entrance into modernity, where I explore the origins of Nepal’s unique state of “between-ness.” In this segment I utilize Mark Lichty’s book on the growth of consumer culture in Kathmandu, Suitably Modern to make my arguments and compare the culture observed in Lichty’s research to that explored in Arresting God. In the second half of my paper, I move into a literary analysis of many stories in Arresting God, specifically an allegorical interpretation of Upadhyay’s work and the commentary it makes on the modern Nepalese identity. In my presentation, I will compare the nature of modernization and generational conflict in Nepal with several other Asian countries in an effort to distinguish what makes Nepal’s story unique
Two Champions of Migrant Healthcare in Southwest Michigan: Models for Successful Intervention
No full textRecent studies report that 94,167 migrant seasonal farmworkers and their family members reside in Michigan, and many are Hispanic (Larson 2013, Millard 2002). Because social determinants of health persist from generation to generation, significant improvement to migrant healthcare is challenging and requires the work of champions who battle for the rights of the underprivileged. Dr. Vern Boersma, a pediatrician who began his work in the 1950s, and Carolee Besteman, R.N., who began her work in the 1990s, each championed the cause of migrant healthcare in southwest Michigan for decades. Models for successful intervention into community health issues are numerous, highlighting effective characteristics such as “embracing inter-sectoral actions and partnerships” and “understanding needs and solutions through community outreach” (Cohen, Huyen, et al. 2014; Rychetnik, Frommer, et al. 2002). The importance of collaboration and cultural sensitivity to population health intervention is well established at the organizational level, but illustrations of these traits at the personal level are lacking. Using archival records from the Joint Archives of Holland and personal interviews with Boersma and Besteman, I present their contributions as a model for successful intervention at the individual level. In my analysis, cultural sensitivity is assessed as defined by Resnicow, et al., in “Cultural Sensitivity in Public Health: Defined and Demystified,” while collaboration is defined as “people and organizations from multiple sectors working together in common purpose” (Roussos and Fawcett 2000). I propose that improvement of migrant healthcare requires champions who are culturally sensitive and work collaboratively to facilitate gains in wellness and institutional strength as demonstrated through the examples of Boersma and Besteman