This thesis examines the mixing times for one-dimensional interacting particle systems. We use the coupling method to study the mixing rates for particle systems on the circle which move according to specific permutations e.g., transpositions and 3-cycles.
Lau Basin basalts host an array of geochemical signatures that suggest incorporation of enriched mantle source material often associated with intraplate hotspots, but the origin of these signatures remain uncertain. Geochemical signatures associated with mantle material entrained from the nearby Samoan hotspot are present in northwest Lau Basin lavas, and...
The volcanic origin of the Samoan archipelago can be explained by one of three models, specifically, by a hot spot forming over a mantle plume, by lithospheric extension resulting from complex subduction tectonics in the region, or by a combination of these two processes, either acting sequentially or synchronously. In...
Recent works have investigated use of the hydrogen isotopic composition of C₃₇ alkenones (δD[subscript K37s]), lipid biomarkers of certain haptophyte microalgae, as an independent paleosalinity proxy. I discuss herein the factors impeding such an application and identify the potential alternative use of δD[subscript K37s] measurements as a proxy for non-thermal,...
Although deep reinforcement learning agents have produced impressive results in many domains, their decision making is difficult to explain to humans. To address this problem, past work has mainly focused on explaining why an action was chosen in a given state. A different type of explanation that is useful is...
Angry driving behaviors that lead to acts of road rage have become a major public health concern. Understanding the differences between people who drive with a high level of anger and those who do not provides insight into possible prevention approaches. This study applied Richard Lazarus' Cognitive-Motivational-Relational (CMR) Model to...
This dissertation delves into understanding, characterizing, and addressing dataset shift in deep learning, a pervasive issue for deployed machine learning systems. Integral aspects of the problem are examined: We start with the use of counterfactual explanations in order to characterize the behavior of deep reinforcement learning agents in visual input...
Nuclear energy enjoyed widespread support in the United States during its initial decades and has seen extensive study as a potential means of combating contemporary energy issues such as climate change and alternative transportation fuels. Despite the potential contribution to solving these challenges, the industry has been largely stagnant since...
BACKGROUND. Residues of pesticides on crops can result in mortality to foraging bees. The likelihood of mortality can be mitigated by applying pesticides in the evening so that their residues dissipate by the following morning when bees resume foraging. The dissipation rates of different pesticides, or their residual toxicity, is...
DNA fragments of the gene for VP2, the major capsid protein of Infectious
Pancreatic Necrosis Virus (IPNV), were expressed in Escherichia coli and
characterized immunologically with antisera made to different serotypes of
IPNV. The entire VP2 gene was excised from the plasmid pUC19/A+SΔK and
fragmented with restriction enzyme Sau3A1. The...