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Get PDFThis thesis is a collection of short fiction written in fulfillment of the Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing at the University of New Orleans
State Estimation—Beyond Gaussian Filtering
Get PDFThis dissertation considers the state estimation problems with symmetric Gaussian/asymmetric skew-Gaussian assumption under linear/nonlinear systems. It consists of three parts. The first part proposes a new recursive finite-dimensional exact density filter based on the linear skew-Gaussian system. The second part adopts a skew-symmetric representation (SSR) of distribution for nonlinear skew-Gaussian estimation. The third part gives an optimized Gauss-Hermite quadrature (GHQ) rule for numerical integration with respect to Gaussian integrals and applies it to nonlinear Gaussian filters.
We first develop a linear system model driven by skew-Gaussian processes and present the exact filter for the posterior density with fixed dimensional recursive representation, i.e., the skew-Gaussian filter (SGF). The SGF not only has an analytical recursion of a small dimension akin to the Kalman filter, but also possesses an efficiency comparable to the Kalman filter. The minimum mean-square error (MMSE) estimator based on our proposed skew-Gaussian filter is demonstrated via a simulation study.
Next, we propose a skew-symmetric presentation of the posterior density to handle the discrete-time filtering problem for a nonlinear system driven by non-Gaussian processes. The skew-symmetric representation of distributions, which has a product form of a symmetric pdf (known as the base pdf) times a perturbation function (known as the skewing function), is employed in this dissertation. Based on a first-order skew-symmetric representation of Gaussian distribution, we propose the first-order skew-Gaussian filter (FOSGF) and demonstrate it by applications to the radar tracking problem.
For the filtering problem where Gaussian integrals are adopted in the state update, we propose a new set of Gauss-Hermite quadrature rules using an optimized proposal density. The optimized GHQ rule, proposed in this dissertation, finds an optimized way to improve GHQ-based Gaussian integration when the integrand is not close to a polynomial by transforming it to one approximated by a polynomial. The solution is formulated as a nonlinear least-squares problem with linear constraints. Several numerical examples based on the optimized GHQ rule are studied and compared with the traditional methods
Death Actually
Get PDFThis collection of short horror stories orbits around the concept of death, and how we perceive and experience it. When our shared cultural understanding of death has become severely warped, on both an individual and societal level, can we truly comprehend our own mortality? What happens when death becomes another product of the content mill: extraneous data to be scrolled past and consumed without thought? The horror of these stories comes not only from the threat of death or bodily harm, but from how malleable death can be. What should be the ultimate commonality amongst all living things has instead become hyper-individualistic; a consequence of one’s personal beliefs and values. In today’s world, death is simply a matter of opinion.
Together, these stories articulate the collection’s central question: when the nature of death cannot be objectively understood and collectively agreed upon, is it even real anymore?
What is death, actually
An Exploration of Bengali Identity with Material and Visual Artifacts through Painting
Get PDFPainting is and always has been, at its root, an exploration of identity for me. My current collection of work explores the stripping of Eurocentric beauty standards and presentation of the divine of the Brown Body to reveal my version of the human spirit. My drawings, paintings, and a hand-tufted rug all made with a surreal, colorful representation of the coming together of body and mind
Assessment of Community Needs in Southeast Louisiana Using VIA LINK’s 211 Call Data: 2012-2021
Get PDFVIA LINK partnered with researchers from the University of New Orleans (UNO) Master of Public Administration (MPA) program to conduct a community needs assessment for southeast Louisiana based on anonymous 211 call data over the past decade. The research team evaluated call data to pinpoint the greatest needs of those seeking VIA LINK’s services and how needs changed over time, including significant changes during the COVID pandemic and Hurricane Ida. The goal was to help VIA LINK and its partners better anticipate and respond to community needs and help fill gaps in regional resources.
This report shares findings from the study for public use. It explains the approach and limitations of the research, followed by trends in three areas: who calls 211, what their greatest needs are overall and during disasters, and what resource gaps exist. It concludes with recommendations for VIA LINK as well as its government and nonprofit partners so the data can be turned into action that strengthens our region
Erosion and Resuspension of Cohesive Sediments in Coastal Louisiana
Get PDFThe research presented in this study is motivated by the need to improve the predictions of cohesive sediment erosion and subsequent transport. In addition, the knowledge of the geotechnical engineering soil properties related to the erosion of sediments in coastal Louisiana has broad implications as these properties are used in transport models guiding the current restoration efforts. The erosion measuring device used in the study is the Cheng-Han Tasi and Wilbert Lick Shaker. Previous studies have been conducted before using the Shaker, but challenges with the calibration of the shear stress hampered the resuspension results produced by the Shaker. Therefore, this study aims to examine the flow conditions inside the Shaker using the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software Ansys. This allowed for a calibration curve based on 2-D flow conditions inside the Shaker rather than other erosion experiments. The soil sample tested using the Shaker are mainly from the southeast Louisiana coastline, which is significantly impacted by erosion. Moreover, the current study estimates the critical shear stress Pa of erosion for both mass and surface erosion, along with erosion parameters (m). Furthermore, this study further develops a simple sediment resuspension and distribution model. This model aims to improve the efficiency of data analysis in the current Louisiana Integrated Compartment Model (ICM) sediment distribution subroutine, which uses other languages for some sediment transport simulations. Moreover, The ICM is much larger and captures a wide range of processes making it computationally demanding to answer research questions. Therefore, the new model will be simpler and only capture some processes. Furthermore, this change will allow research questions to be answered more economically than using larger integrated models
Environmental Sensitivity of Maternal and Offspring Phenotype in the Green Anole (Anolis carolinensis) Lizard
Get PDFAnimals dynamically invest their acquired energetic resources into fitness-related traits, and life-history trade-offs occur when limited resources are invested in a given trait at the expense of another. The phenotypic effects of life history trade-offs are well documented, but the mechanisms facilitating these trade-offs are poorly understood. One such mechanism is the insulin/insulin-like signaling (IIS) network, and specifically its two primary hormones: insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1) and insulin-like growth factor 2 (IGF2). IGF1 is well-characterized but IGF2 is severely understudied, though it is present in nearly all amniotes and sometimes expressed at higher levels than IGF1 in adulthood. I tested how different environmental pressures affect expression of these hormones in adult female green anoles (Anolis carolinensis). Because maternal effects, which are transgenerational effects whereby the mother’s environment influences offspring phenotype, can also promote life-history trade-offs, I also tested how these same environmental manipulations affect egg and offspring phenotypes. IGFs are affected by diet restriction and sprint training in females, albeit in different ways that are also dependent on mass and energetic history of the individual in question. IGF1 and IGF2 are therefore implicated in the response to variation in environment and the manner in which energetic environment is manipulated matters. Similarly, manipulating diet and locomotor investment also had distinct effects on both egg and offspring phenotypes, again in a manner that depended on the mass of the mother. These results implicate both the IIS and related pathways in life-history trade-offs involving the maternal and offspring phenotypes in green anoles