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Ship Detection Feature Analysis in Optical Satellite Imagery through Machine Learning Applications
Get PDFShip detection remains an important challenge within the government and the commercial industry. Current research has focused on deep learning and has found high success with large labeled datasets. However, deep learning becomes insufficient for limited datasets as well as when explainability is required. There exist scenarios in which explainability and human-in-the-loop processing are needed, such as in naval applications. In these scenarios, handcrafted features and traditional classification algorithms can be useful. This research aims at analyzing multiple textures and statistical features on a small optical satellite imagery dataset. The feature analysis consists of Haar-like features, Haralick features, Hu moments, Histogram of Oriented Gradients, grayscale intensity histograms, and Local Binary Patterns. Feature performance is measured using 8 different classification algorithms, including K-Nearest Neighbors, Logistic Regression, Gradient Boosting, Extreme Gradient Boosting, Support Vector Machine, Random Decision Forest, Extremely Randomized Trees, and Bagging. The features are analyzed individually and in different combinations. Individual feature analysis results found Haralick features achieved a precision of 92.2% and were computationally efficient. The best combination of features was Haralick features paired with Histogram of Oriented Gradients and grayscale intensity histograms. This combination achieved a precision score of 96.18% and an F1 score of 94.23%
Accelerating the Information-Theoretic Approach of Community Detection Using Distributed and Hybrid Memory Parallel Schemes
Get PDFThere are several approaches for discovering communities in a network (graph). Despite being approximating in nature, discovering communities based on the laws of Information Theory has a proven standard of accuracy. The information-theoretic algorithm known as Infomap developed a decade ago for detecting communities, did not foresee the tremendous growth of social networking, multimedia, and massive information boom. To discover communities in massive networks, we have designed a distributed-memory-parallel Infomap in the MPI framework. Our design reaches scalability of over 500 processes capable of processing networks with millions of edges while maintaining quality comparable to the sequential Infomap. We have further developed a novel parallel hybrid approach for Infomap consists of both distributed and shared memory parallelism using MPI and OpenMP frameworks. This achieves a speedup of more than 11x in processing a network of over 100 million edges which is significantly greater than the state-of-the-art techniques
Epic on an American Scale: Sherwood Anderson\u27s Winesburg, Ohio
Get PDFI am pleased to submit an original research article entitled “Epic on an American Scale: Sherwood Anderson’s Winesburg, Ohio” for consideration for publication in Beyond the Margins. In this article I examine the link between ancient Greek epic and American Midwestern Agrarianism. Specifically, I examine how Greek and Roman epic influenced Modernism as evidenced in one of the earliest Modernist works, Anderson’s Winesburg, Ohio. I find that Anderson employs many epic elements to convey the link between the two empires and emphasize the epic nature of the collapse of American Agrarianism.
I believe my article would be a great contribution to your journal because I focus on Anderson expatriate status and the influence his European travels and study bore upon his work, specifically his most famous work, Winesburg, Ohio
Corporate Sustainability
Get PDFThis dissertation consists of two essays that examine the role of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in finance. In the first essay, we examine the bondholder wealth effects of socially responsible firms. Using an extensive U.S sample from 2006 to 2016 and two methodologies – corporate yield spreads and bond credit ratings – we provide evidence that proactive environmental and social practices are reflected in the price of corporate bonds. Furthermore, we examine the impact of managerial ownership on the relationship between CSR and bondholder wealth effects. We postulate that higher equity ownership induces managers to take on more firm risk in the interest of shareholders, thereby increasing the company’s default risk. Empirical findings reveal that CSR plays a significant role in reducing the risk premium of corporate bonds and in assessing the credit quality of specific bond issues and that managerial ownership attenuates the negative relation between CSR and bondholder wealth. Results are robust to various controls for firm and bond specific factors, alternative model specifications, and industry membership.
The second essay identifies the factors that motivate organizations to invest in corporate social responsibility (CSR). Using a comprehensive sample of publicly traded, non-financial, U.S. domiciled firms for the period between 2006-2016, we identify and examine several firm and CEO characteristics that potentially explain the extent of firms’ devotion to corporate social investments. We find evidence that advertising intensive firms and financially stable firms are more likely to engage in socially responsible activities, while risker firms demonstrate lower levels of CSR. Furthermore, we address the question of whether certain types of CEOs are more likely to invest in CSR by exploring the role of CEO attributes. Empirical results indicate that female CEOs are more intrinsically motivated to undertake long-term investments in socially responsible initiatives pertaining to environmental concerns and diversity issues. We also find support that the CEO compensation structure is more related to the employee relations and environmental concerns dimensions
“Enriching Lives within Sedimentary Geology”: Actionable Recommendations for Making SEPM a Diverse, Equitable and Inclusive Society for All Sedimentary Geologists
Get PDFInnovative science benefits from diversity of thought and influence at all waypoints along the scientific journey, from early education to career-length contributions in research and mentorship. Scientific societies, like the Society for Sedimentary Geology (SEPM), steward their innovators and the direction of the science, thereby defining the societal impact and evolution of a discipline. They are uniquely positioned to promote the representation and success of all scientists, including those from minoritized populations, through proactive advocacy, and inclusive mentorship, awards, and leadership. We introspectively review available records of SEPM membership, leadership, awardees, and editorial boards to identify areas for growth and begin a dialogue about how the society and its members can work together to better reflect our community. In the last decade, SEPM has seen a decline in membership, while representation and recognition of scientists from minoritized groups has remained low. Awards and honors have overwhelmingly gone to men, even in the last ten years, and very few women or people of color are in leadership roles. SEPM has recently taken positive steps towards becoming more inclusive (e.g., the Code of Professional Conduct); however, much more work is needed. We provide recommendations for swift actions that SEPM and its members should undertake for the society to become a diverse, inclusive, and equitable environment where all scientists thrive. The systemic changes needed will take continuous effort, which must be shared by all of us, to build an enduring legacy that we can be proud of
Ronin Nights
Get PDFBelow is a reflection paper based on my time at UNO earning my M.F.A. in Film Production. It also covers the experience in creating my thesis film Ronin Nights. After the reflection will be the shooting script and all the forms that were filled out for the productio
The Relationship Between Emotional Intelligence and Personality Type in Counselor Education Students
Get PDFAbstract
Although emotional intelligence and personality are extensively researched topics, the two concepts are rarely studied within the context of counselor education. Thus, the purpose of the present research was to explore the relationships between 134 counseling students’ demographics, academic experience, emotional intelligence, and personality types who were enrolled in Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) accredited programs in southern Louisiana and Texas. Students completed a Demographic Survey, the Mayer-Caruso-Salovey Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT), and Jung’s Typology Test (JTT™). The ability model of emotional intelligence that was developed by Salovey and Mayer (1990) was used as the conceptual framework for the research, which includes four branches: a) emotional perception, b) emotional integration, c) emotional understanding, and d) emotional management. The results included descriptive statistics that indicated female counseling students had higher overall emotional intelligence and were more emotionally perceptive and integrative than male students. Also, younger counseling students were more emotionally integrative than older students. Correlations for students’ race and overall emotional intelligence, emotional integration, and understanding were significant. Counseling students with an affective theoretical orientation were more emotionally understanding than students with a cognitive theoretical orientation. Students with cognitive or affective theoretical orientations preferred Intuition over Sensing in their personality types. Five multiple regression analyses were analyzed. First, students’ gender, race, number of coursework hours completed, and number of years of graduate study explained 16.8% of the variance in their overall emotional intelligence scores. Second, for emotional perception, students’ gender and the number of years of graduate study accounted for 6.5% of the variance. Third, students’ gender, age, and race explained 14.3% of the variance in emotional integration. Fourth, for emotional understanding, students’ race, number of coursework hours completed, number of years of graduate study, and students with personality types of Introversion and Perceiving accounted for 30.7% of the variance. Finally, students’ age and Feeling personality type explained 6.9% of the variance in emotional management
Forecasting the Development of a Natural Levee Breach and Subsequent Sediment Distribution at Mardi Gras Pass, Louisiana
Get PDFIn 2012, a breach in a natural levee occurred on the Mississippi River near the Bohemian Spillway, forming a new distributary named Mardi Gras Pass. Since its genesis, scientists from local universities and NGOs have been regularly performing bathymetric and bank surveys to track the channel’s expansion, as well as discharge surveys throughout the receiving basin. This study developed and implemented a hindcast simulation based on this wealth of data utilizing the morpho- and hydrodynamic model, Delft3D. This model was then used to create a 20-year forecast and a 1-year simulation without tidal and subtidal forces. The results demonstrated that tides were a major influence on water levels, discharge rates, and sedimentation patterns. The forecast suggested that an avulsion is not likely in the near future. However, channel reorganizing within the floodplain occurred as preferential flow and deposition trends developed based on the physical parameters determined by the hindcast
Probability Distributions of Particle Hop Distance and Travel Time Over Equilibrium Mobile Bedforms
Get PDFThe joint probability distribution of streamwise particle hop distance, lateral particle hop distance, and travel time constrains the relationships between topographic change and sediment transport at the granular scale. Previous studies have investigated the ensemble characteristics of particle motions over plane bed topography; however, it is unclear whether reported distributions remain valid when bedforms are present. Here, we present measurements of particle motion over bedform topography obtained in a laboratory flume and compare these to particle motions over plane bed topography with otherwise similar conditions. We find substantial differences in particle motion in the presence of bedforms that are relevant to macroscopic models of sediment transport. Most notably, bedforms increase the standard deviation of streamwise and lateral hop distances relative to the mean streamwise hop distance. This implies that bedforms increase the streamwise and lateral diffusion lengths and, equivalently, increase diffusive-like fluxes