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- Title
- THE PROTEOMICS APPROACH TO EVOLUTIONARY COMPUTATION: AN ANALYSIS OF PROTEOME-BASED LOCATION INDEPENDENT REPRESENTATIONS BASEDON THE PROPORTIONAL GENETIC ALGORITHM.
- Creator
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Garibay, Ivan, Wu, Annie, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
As the complexity of our society and computational resources increases, so does the complexity of the problems that we approach using evolutionary search techniques. There are recent approaches to deal with the problem of scaling evolutionary methods to cope with highly complex difficult problems. Many of these approaches are biologically inspired and share an underlying principle: a problem representation based on basic representational building blocks that interact and self-organize into...
Show moreAs the complexity of our society and computational resources increases, so does the complexity of the problems that we approach using evolutionary search techniques. There are recent approaches to deal with the problem of scaling evolutionary methods to cope with highly complex difficult problems. Many of these approaches are biologically inspired and share an underlying principle: a problem representation based on basic representational building blocks that interact and self-organize into complex functions or designs. The observation from the central dogma of molecular biology that proteins are the basic building blocks of life and the recent advances in proteomics on analysis of structure, function and interaction of entire protein complements, lead us to propose a unifying framework of thought for these approaches: the proteomics approach. This thesis propose to investigate whether the self-organization of protein analogous structures at the representation level can increase the degree of complexity and ``novelty'' of solutions obtainable using evolutionary search techniques. In order to do so, we identify two fundamental aspects of this transition: (1) proteins interact in a three dimensional medium analogous to a multiset; and (2) proteins are functional structures. The first aspect is foundational for understanding of the second. This thesis analyzes the first aspect. It investigates the effects of using a genome to proteome mapping on evolutionary computation. This analysis is based on a genetic algorithm (GA) with a string to multiset mapping that we call the proportional genetic algorithm (PGA), and it focuses on the feasibility and effectiveness of this mapping. This mapping leads to a fundamental departure from typical EC methods: using a multiset of proteins as an intermediate mapping results in a \emph{completely location independent} problem representation where the location of the genes in a genome has no effect on the fitness of the solutions. Completely location independent representations, by definition, do not suffer from traditional EC hurdles associated with the location of the genes or positional effect in a genome. Such representations have the ability to self-organize into a genomic structure that appears to favor positive correlations between form and quality of represented solutions. Completely location independent representations also introduce new problems of their own such as the need for large alphabets of symbols and the theoretical need for larger representation spaces than traditional approaches. Overall, these representations perform as well or better than traditional representations and they appear to be particularly good for the class of problems involving proportions or multisets. This thesis concludes that the use of protein analogous structures as an intermediate representation in evolutionary computation is not only feasible but in some cases advantageous. In addition, it lays the groundwork for further research on proteins as functional self-organizing structures capable of building increasingly complex functionality, and as basic units of problem representation for evolutionary computation.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2004
- Identifier
- CFE0000311, ucf:46307
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0000311
- Title
- A Continuous Hydrologic Model Structure for Applications at Multiple Time Scales.
- Creator
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Griffen, Jonathan, Wang, Dingbao, O'Reilly, Andrew, Medeiros, Stephen, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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There are many different controlling factors on the partitioning of rainfall into runoff. However, the influence of each of these controls varies across different temporal scales. Consequently, numerous water balance models have been developed in the literature for application across various time scales. These models are usually developed for a particular time scale so that the controls with the greatest influence on rainfall partitioning are captured. For example, the SCS curve number method...
Show moreThere are many different controlling factors on the partitioning of rainfall into runoff. However, the influence of each of these controls varies across different temporal scales. Consequently, numerous water balance models have been developed in the literature for application across various time scales. These models are usually developed for a particular time scale so that the controls with the greatest influence on rainfall partitioning are captured. For example, the SCS curve number method was developed to simulate direct runoff at the event scale; the (")abcd(") model was developed as a monthly water balance model; and the Budyko model was developed for long-term water balance. More recently, the proportionality hypothesis, which traces its origins from the SCS curve number method, has been identified as the commonality between these three hydrologic models, suggesting that this hypothesis may be the unifying principle of hydrologic models across various time scales.The objective of this thesis is to develop a conceptual hydrologic model structure for continuous simulations for multiple time scales. The developed model is applicable to daily, monthly, and annual time scales.Direct runoff is computed by a proportionality relationship in the SCS curve number method. In the (")abcd(") model, evapotranspiration and storage at the end of each time period are computed by a proportionality relationship, however evapotranspiration is computed based on an exponential relationship of storage and potential evapotranspiration while base flow is computed based on a linear reservoir model. In the Budyko model, runoff and evapotranspiration are computed by a proportionality relationship.The primary difference with the proposed model in this thesis in comparison with the other three water balance models is the application of the proportionality hypothesis to the partitioning of surface runoff and continuing abstraction as well as the partitioning of continuing evapotranspiration and subsurface flow.The proposed model structure is implemented in Matlab. The developed model includes six parameters, which are estimated for 71 case study catchments in the United States using a genetic algorithm. The model performances at the daily, monthly and annual time scales are evaluated during calibration and validation periods, and compared with the (")abcd(") model and a Budyko-type model developed for multiple time scales.Evaluation of the models shows that the proposed model performs better or comparable to the other models at all time scales.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2014
- Identifier
- CFE0005173, ucf:50672
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005173
- Title
- ROBUST ESTIMATION AND ADAPTIVE GUIDANCE FOR MULTIPLE UAVS' COOPERATION.
- Creator
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Allen, Randal, Xu, Chengying, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
In this paper, an innovative cooperative navigation method is proposed for multiple Unmanned Air Vehicles (UAVs) based on online target position measurements. These noisy position measurement signals are used to estimate the target's velocity for non-maneuvering targets or the target's velocity and acceleration for maneuvering targets. The estimator's tracking capability is physically constrained due to the target's kinematic limitations and therefore is potentially improvable...
Show moreIn this paper, an innovative cooperative navigation method is proposed for multiple Unmanned Air Vehicles (UAVs) based on online target position measurements. These noisy position measurement signals are used to estimate the target's velocity for non-maneuvering targets or the target's velocity and acceleration for maneuvering targets. The estimator's tracking capability is physically constrained due to the target's kinematic limitations and therefore is potentially improvable by designing a higher performance estimator. An H-infinity filter is implemented to increase the robustness of the estimation accuracy. The performance of the robust estimator is compared to a Kalman filter and the results illustrate more precise estimation of the target's motion in compensating for surrounding noises and disturbances. Furthermore, an adaptive guidance algorithm, based on the seeker's field-of-view and linear region, is used to deliver the pursuer to the maneuvering target. The initial guidance algorithm utilizes the velocity pursuit guidance law because of its insensitivity to target motion; while the terminal guidance algorithm leverages the acceleration estimates (from the H-infinity filter) to augment the proportional navigation guidance law for increased accuracy in engaging maneuvering targets. The main objective of this work is to develop a robust estimator/tracker and an adaptive guidance algorithm which are directly applicable UAVs.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2009
- Identifier
- CFE0002535, ucf:47650
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002535
- Title
- THE COST OF DISCRIMINATION: JOB AGE-TYPE AND LEGAL OUTCOMES.
- Creator
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Smith, Nicholas, Fritzsche, Barbara, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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The older population is growing rapidly and businesses must prepare for changes in their workforce. Cases of age discrimination have also become more common. Older workers are being forced out of their jobs at a faster rate than any other age group. As a result, older workers commonly take jobs in different careers, where they compete with younger workers who have similar relevant experience and are valued for their youth. Both prototype matching theory and career timetables theory state that...
Show moreThe older population is growing rapidly and businesses must prepare for changes in their workforce. Cases of age discrimination have also become more common. Older workers are being forced out of their jobs at a faster rate than any other age group. As a result, older workers commonly take jobs in different careers, where they compete with younger workers who have similar relevant experience and are valued for their youth. Both prototype matching theory and career timetables theory state that people hold stereotypes of the job in addition to stereotypes of people. In laboratory research, a mismatch between the age of the worker and the age-type of the job has led to lower evaluations, lower job suitability ratings, and other indicators of discrimination. The purpose of this thesis is to assess whether the construct of age-type is related to discrimination in real-world legal cases. Real life instances of discrimination were attained from a 15-year sample of 388 age discrimination jury verdicts and settlements. Each job in the sample of cases was rated to determine age-type, perceived proportion of older and younger workers in the job, and importance of stereotypically older worker features to the job. Results showed that all forms of age stereotypes, both general and specific, were related to the frequency of cases in jobs associated with older or younger stereotypes. Specifically, older workers were more likely to have age discrimination cases go to trial in younger age-typed jobs. However, these variables did not help to predict formal outcomes of the cases (win vs. loss). Among the cases that did win, cases in older age-typed jobs won significantly more money than in younger age-typed jobs.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2012
- Identifier
- CFH0004262, ucf:44948
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH0004262
- Title
- Annual water balance model based on generalized proportionality relationship and its applications.
- Creator
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Tang, Yin, Wang, Dingbao, Kibler, Kelly, Singh, Arvind, Sumner, David, Quintana-Ascencio, Pedro, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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The main goal of this dissertation research is to derive a type of conceptual models for annual water balance at the watershed scale. The proportionality relationship from the Soil Conservation Service Curve Number method was generalized to annual scale for deriving annual water balance model. As a result, a one-parameter Budyko equation was derived based on one-stage partitioning; and a four-parameter Budyko equation was derived based on two-stage partitioning. The derived equations balance...
Show moreThe main goal of this dissertation research is to derive a type of conceptual models for annual water balance at the watershed scale. The proportionality relationship from the Soil Conservation Service Curve Number method was generalized to annual scale for deriving annual water balance model. As a result, a one-parameter Budyko equation was derived based on one-stage partitioning; and a four-parameter Budyko equation was derived based on two-stage partitioning. The derived equations balance model parsimony and representation of dominant hydrologic processes, and provide a new framework to disentangle the roles of climate variability, vegetation, soil and topography on long-term water balance. Three applications of the derived equations were demonstrated. Firstly, the four-parameter Budyko equation was applied to 165 watersheds in the United States to disentangle the roles of climate variability, vegetation, soil and topography on long-term water balance. Secondly, the one-parameter Budyko equation was applied to a large-scale irrigation region. The historical annual total water storage change were reconstructed for assessing groundwater depletion due to irrigation pumping by integrating the derived equation and the satellite-based GRACE (Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment) data. Thirdly, the one-parameter Budyko equation was used to model the impact of willow treatment on annual evapotranspiration through a two-year field experiment in the Upper St. Johns River marshes. An empirical relationship between the parameter and willow fractional coverage was developed, providing a useful tool for predicting long-term response of evapotranspiration to willow treatment. ?
Show less - Date Issued
- 2017
- Identifier
- CFE0006958, ucf:51638
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006958
- Title
- The conceptual field of proportional reasoning researched through the lived experiences of nurses.
- Creator
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Deichert, Deana, Dixon, Juli, Haciomeroglu, Erhan, Andreasen, Janet, Hunt, Debra, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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Proportional reasoning instruction is prevalent in elementary, secondary, and post-secondary schooling. The concept of proportional reasoning is used in a variety of contexts for solving real-world problems. One of these contexts is the solving of dosage calculation proportional problems in the healthcare field. On the job, nurses perform drug dosage calculations which carry fatal consequences. As a result, nursing students are required to meet minimum competencies in solving proportion...
Show moreProportional reasoning instruction is prevalent in elementary, secondary, and post-secondary schooling. The concept of proportional reasoning is used in a variety of contexts for solving real-world problems. One of these contexts is the solving of dosage calculation proportional problems in the healthcare field. On the job, nurses perform drug dosage calculations which carry fatal consequences. As a result, nursing students are required to meet minimum competencies in solving proportion problems. The goal of this research is to describe the lived experiences of nurses in connection to their use of proportional reasoning in order to impact instruction of the procedures used to solve these problems. The research begins by clarifying and defining the conceptual field of proportional reasoning. Utilizing Vergnaud's theory of conceptual fields and synthesizing the differing organizational frameworks used in the literature on proportional reasoning, the concept is organized and explicated into three components: concepts, procedures, and situations. Through the lens of this organizational structure, data from 44 registered nurses who completed a dosage calculation proportion survey were analyzed and connected to the framework of the conceptual field of proportional reasoning. Four nurses were chosen as a focus of in-depth study based upon their procedural strategies and ability to vividly describe their experiences. These qualitative results are synthesized to describe the lived experiences of nurses related to their education and use of proportional reasoning.Procedural strategies that are supported by textbooks, instruction, and practice are developed and defined. Descriptive statistics show the distribution of procedures used by nurses on a five question dosage calculation survey. The most common procedures used are the nursing formula, cross products, and dimensional analysis. These procedures correspond to the predominate procedures found in nursing dosage calculation texts. Instructional implications focus on the transition between elementary and secondary multiplicative structures, the confusion between equality and proportionality, and the difficulty that like quantities present in dealing with proportions.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2014
- Identifier
- CFE0005781, ucf:50058
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005781
- Title
- General Vector Explicit - Impact Time and Angle Control Guidance.
- Creator
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Robinson, Loren, Qu, Zhihua, Behal, Aman, Xu, Yunjun, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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This thesis proposes and evaluates a new cooperative guidance law called General Vector Explicit -Impact Time and Angle Control Guidance (GENEX-ITACG). The motivation for GENEX-ITACGcame from an explicit trajectory shaping guidance law called General Vector Explicit Guidance(GENEX). GENEX simultaneously achieves design specifications on miss distance and terminalmissile approach angle while also providing a design parameter that adjusts the aggressiveness ofthis approach angle. Encouraged by...
Show moreThis thesis proposes and evaluates a new cooperative guidance law called General Vector Explicit -Impact Time and Angle Control Guidance (GENEX-ITACG). The motivation for GENEX-ITACGcame from an explicit trajectory shaping guidance law called General Vector Explicit Guidance(GENEX). GENEX simultaneously achieves design specifications on miss distance and terminalmissile approach angle while also providing a design parameter that adjusts the aggressiveness ofthis approach angle. Encouraged by the applicability of this user parameter, GENEX-ITACG is anextension that allows a salvo of missiles to cooperatively achieve the same objectives of GENEXagainst a stationary target through the incorporation of a cooperative trajectory shaping guidancelaw called Impact Time and Angle Control Guidance (ITACG).ITACG allows a salvo of missile to simultaneously hit a stationary target at a prescribed impactangle and impact time. This predetermined impact time is what allows each missile involvedin the salvo attack to simultaneously arrived at the target with unique approach angles, whichgreatly increases the probability of success against well defended targets. GENEX-ITACG furtherincreases this probability of kill by allowing each missile to approach the target with a uniqueapproach angle rate through the use of a user design parameter.The incorporation of ITACG into GENEX is accomplished through the use of linear optimal controlby casting the cost function of GENEX into the formulation of ITACG. The feasibility GENEXITACGis demonstrated across three scenarios that demonstrate the ITACG portion of the guidancelaw, the GENEX portion of the guidance law, and finally the entirety of the guidance law. Theresults indicate that GENEX-ITACG is able to successfully guide a salvo of missiles to simultaneouslyhit a stationary target at a predefined terminal impact angle and impact time, while alsoallowing the user to adjust the aggressiveness of approach.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2015
- Identifier
- CFE0005876, ucf:50868
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005876
- Title
- PERCEPTION OF CUTENESS AND BEAUTY.
- Creator
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Jones, Danielle, Poindexter, Carla, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
-
Upbringing and psychological make-up inspire individual norms for beauty and cuteness. The mannerist approach in my work is a product of the figural liberties found in cartooning, illustration and art history. By altering facial and bodily features, I relate the proportions of an infant to cuteness and innocence. However, I tailor the photographs to empower the subjects all the while mirroring trends in contemporary pop culture. I'm interested in themes of everyday life, vitality and...
Show moreUpbringing and psychological make-up inspire individual norms for beauty and cuteness. The mannerist approach in my work is a product of the figural liberties found in cartooning, illustration and art history. By altering facial and bodily features, I relate the proportions of an infant to cuteness and innocence. However, I tailor the photographs to empower the subjects all the while mirroring trends in contemporary pop culture. I'm interested in themes of everyday life, vitality and emotion placed in obscure, imaginary or exaggerated venues. I fictionalize subjects of my reality to compel viewers to identify with and fancy emotions, circumstances, moods and relationships. The intent is to amplify, yet be truer to their existence and idiosyncrasies through figural adaptations.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2009
- Identifier
- CFE0002538, ucf:47637
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0002538
- Title
- An Analysis of Race and Gender in Select Choice Programs Within Brevard County Public Schools.
- Creator
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Doaks, Synthia, Murray, Barbara, Murray, Kenneth, Baldwin, Lee, Thedy, Elizabeth, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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The focus of this research was to compare the student membership population proportions, by race and gender, of Brevard County Public School students with the actual participation in select choice programs offered to Brevard County public high school students. This study was based on an analysis of the scores of 1,152 eighth-grade students who received a score of 4 or 5 on the 2008 Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) mathematics and a score of 4 or 5 on the 2008 Florida Comprehensive...
Show moreThe focus of this research was to compare the student membership population proportions, by race and gender, of Brevard County Public School students with the actual participation in select choice programs offered to Brevard County public high school students. This study was based on an analysis of the scores of 1,152 eighth-grade students who received a score of 4 or 5 on the 2008 Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) mathematics and a score of 4 or 5 on the 2008 Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) reading and their participation in high school advanced academic courses. The advanced academic choice programs selected for this study consisted of the four Florida articulated accelerated college credit seeking programs: Advanced Placement (AP), Dual-Enrollment (DE), International Baccalaureate(&)#174; (IB) Diploma Programme, and the Cambridge Advanced International Certificate of Education (AICE). The proportion comparison consisted of student membership data and eighth-grade FCAT scores from 2007-2008 and the student membership data and high school course load data from the 2008-2009, 2009-2010, 2010-2011, and 2011-2012 academic school years. Chi-square goodness-of-fit tests were run to analyze the proportions by race and gender of the sample groups and student membership populations. For each respective year involved in this study, there was a statistically significant difference in the race and gender proportions of the samples and the student membership populations.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2014
- Identifier
- CFE0005325, ucf:50509
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005325
- Title
- APPLICATION OF THE EMPIRICAL LIKELIHOOD METHOD IN PROPORTIONAL HAZARDS MODEL.
- Creator
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HE, BIN, Ren, Jian-Jian, University of Central Florida
- Abstract / Description
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In survival analysis, proportional hazards model is the most commonly used and the Cox model is the most popular. These models are developed to facilitate statistical analysis frequently encountered in medical research or reliability studies. In analyzing real data sets, checking the validity of the model assumptions is a key component. However, the presence of complicated types of censoring such as double censoring and partly interval-censoring in survival data makes model assessment...
Show moreIn survival analysis, proportional hazards model is the most commonly used and the Cox model is the most popular. These models are developed to facilitate statistical analysis frequently encountered in medical research or reliability studies. In analyzing real data sets, checking the validity of the model assumptions is a key component. However, the presence of complicated types of censoring such as double censoring and partly interval-censoring in survival data makes model assessment difficult, and the existing tests for goodness-of-fit do not have direct extension to these complicated types of censored data. In this work, we use empirical likelihood (Owen, 1988) approach to construct goodness-of-fit test and provide estimates for the Cox model with various types of censored data.Specifically, the problems under consideration are the two-sample Cox model and stratified Cox model with right censored data, doubly censored data and partly interval-censored data. Related computational issues are discussed, and some simulation results are presented. The procedures developed in the work are applied to several real data sets with some discussion.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2006
- Identifier
- CFE0001099, ucf:46780
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0001099