Support Vector Machines (SVM) and Random Forests (RF) have
consistently outperformed other machine learning algorithms on a variety of
problems. SVM can be used for classification and regression on many types of
data (e.g. nonlinear, high dimensional), but cannot handle missing or mixed data.
This research implements a permutation-based variable...
Droplet and spray impingement cooling are typically used in high heat flux
thermal management. In this thesis, droplet impingement and evaporation heat transfer
characteristics are determined from measured spatially- and temporally- varying fluid
and surface temperatures. Unique to this study is the documentation of the effects of
using a nanofluid...
This thesis describes the chemical investigation of marine cyanobacteria collected in Madagascar and Panama with an emphasis on the isolation and structure elucidation of medicinally relevant secondary metabolites.
A collection of the marine cyanobacterium Lyngbya majuscula from the Radames Islands, Madagascar yielded two new cyclic depsipeptides, radamamides A and B,...
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Many conditions affecting hydrogen (H₂) production by the cyanobacterium, Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803, were optimized to yield maximum H₂ accumulation. Biological H₂ production from photosynthetic species is a promising form of renewable energy since an abundant supply of sunlight hits the Earth every day, and photosynthetic bacteria can harness this...
Greater Sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) habitat research has historically focused on fine-scale (0.007 - 0.032 ha) vegetation structure and composition immediately surrounding sites selected by birds. However, little work has evaluated vegetation attributes important for Greater Sage-grouse at a landscape-scale or identified landscape attributes that influence habitat use patterns. Habitat use...
Litter nutrient dynamics contribute significantly to biogeochemical cycling in
forest ecosystems. These dynamics may be influenced by site attributes, litter nutrient concentrations, and soil nutrient availability either independently or synergistically. Litter nutrient dynamics were examined in two decomposition studies in temperate coniferous forests of Oregon. I used ¹⁵N-labelled litter of...
Synthetic adhesives like phenol formaldehyde (PF) and isocyanates dominate the
wood based structural panel market. The raw materials that makeup these adhesives
are based on petroleum and natural gas. The sustainability and the continued success
of the wood based structural panel industry will benefit from the development of
alternative adhesives...
We evaluated genes previously identified from a large scale functional genomics screen for their potential value to help enhance carbon sequestration in planted trees. We used poplar as a model tree species because of its abundant genetic variation, ease of gene transfer, and availability of large databases for genomic, anatomical,...
Despite the advances in surgery, physical therapy, and pharmaceutical agents, muscle
dysfunction (i.e., atrophy and weakness) continues to impair recovery from an anterior
cruciate ligament (ACL) injury and surgery. Ischemia-reperfusion injury during surgery
and the subsequent limb disuse are two events experienced by patients having ACL
surgery. Oxidative stress and...
One of the basic questions facing transportation planners and road managers is how to provide and maintain a road system that provides efficient access to the forest while limiting adverse effects roads can have on water and soil resources. The purpose of this study is to develop decision support models...
Previous research has documented that identity priming influences academic performances. Other research has found that emotional priming enhances memory for emotional words. The experiment reported here examined the memory of members of a girls high school tennis team who were primed with student or athlete identities and positive or negative...
Evolution of the mobile communication standards and proliferation of hand-held devices mandate stringent Analog-to-Digital Converter (ADC) specifications. Among various ADCs, a ∆Σ ADC is best known as a power-efficient ADC when more than 12b is required. However, a conventional discrete-time (DT) ∆Σ Modulator (∆ΣM) is inadequate for low-power wideband applications...
For centuries in what is now southern Kenya and northern Tanzania, nomadic, Maasai livestock herders have coexisted with vast populations of wildlife. Today, both wildlife and the Maasai herding lifestyle, a vital component of Maasai culture, are threatened by changes to the landscape and losses in mobility, including the policy...
Communicating dynamic motion content, such as exercise, with a static medium, such as paper, is difficult. The technology exists for presenting 3D animated exercise content to patients, however, the tools for allowing exercise domain experts to effectively author the content do not exist. We conducted two formative studies with exercise...
Fisheries scientists persistently create, communicate, and use information. In
fact, if they did not, there would be no fisheries science. To exist, science must be
part of a continuum where shared information, from casual hallway communications
to rigorously reviewed articles, documents the questions asked and
the solutions suggested. Relevant information...
This dissertation has two objectives. The first objective is to determine where best to situate the study of mentoring (i.e. the 'making of scientists') on the landscape of the history of science and science studies. This task is accomplished by establishing mentoring studies as a link between the robust body...
In order to address the energy needs of developing countries and remote communities, Oregon State University has proposed the Multi-Application Small Light Water Reactor (MASLWR) design. In order to achieve five years of operation without refueling, use of 8% enriched fuel is necessary.
This dissertation is focused on core design...
Since the early 1990s, declines in northern spotted owl (Strix occidentalis caurina) populations have been documented through extensive field surveys and range-wide demographic analyses. Although loss of late-successional forest has been credited as the primary cause for spotted owl population declines, environmental variation has also been shown to influence vital...