This study compares three approaches in the design of an autonomous machine listening agent that predicts harbor porpoise ultrasonic echolocation clicks in diverse noise environments. Considering the temporal variations of noisy coastal ocean soundscapes which the harbor porpoises inhabit, we propose a leave-one-day-out (LODO) cross-validation strategy in the training of...
Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) are vocal baleen whales that exhibit complex social interactions that vary spatially and seasonally. Across their range, humpback whales produce a wide array of vocalizations including ‘song’, foraging vocalizations, and a range of vocalizations known as social calls -- unclassified non-song vocalizations. This study investigates the...
This collection consists of autobiographical essays which center around my father,
my first husband, and my backyard. All of the pieces are recollections, and most occur
either from my study inside the house, or from the deck outside, looking at the yard. The
Preface is the story of how I...
Throughout the course of this thesis, I argue that the prose of David Foster Wallace, specifically his posthumously published novel The Pale King, inhabits a middle ground between universal sincerity and the particularized authenticity of postmodern irony. I examine Lionel Trilling's definitions of sincerity and authenticity before moving toward an...
My thesis is comprised of two articles, titled "Journeying Through (An)Other World: Examining the Role of Magic and Transformational Otherness in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight" and "Magic, Muggles, and Mudbloods: Examining Magical Otherness in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter Series." The introduction frames the thematic, theoretical, and critical connections...
Over the past ten years, reports of piracy and other forms of maritime violence have been dramatically on the rise. As these reports increase, so too does international attention toward how to solve this. This thesis examines the development of cooperative maritime security efforts in both Southeast Asia and the...
The electric power grids of countries across the globe rely on load and generation forecasting to know when, where, and how much resources need to be dispatched to sustain proper grid operation. Because of this, forecasting needs to be highly accurate to avoid unnecessary resource dispatch which can be costly....
In the contemporary U.S., the state, through the Legislative Assembly, the State Board of
Education, and the Department of Education, sets policies for K-12 education. These include goals
and standards that affect the kinds of influences local officials, parents, and students can have
on various education programs, required and elective...
There is a new possibility of generating deep ultraviolet laser radiation from a solid-state source. With recent advances in material development, a new nonlinear optical crystal provides a greater damage threshold than current materials making higher conversion efficiencies possible.
This thesis examines the possibility of using this crystal to generate...