Probabilistic Inference and Ranking of Gene Regulatory Pathways as a Shortest-path Problem

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James Jensen and Dr. Mark Clement, Department of Computer Science The project began in the Computational Science Lab in the Computer Science Department, where I was given the assignment of finding something useful to do with a collaborating biologist’s microarray data. Initially, the goal was to identify differentially expressed genes, and shifted to integrating differential […]

Parameter Estimation Using a Continuous, Differentiable and Asymmetric Penalized Likelihood Function

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Brian Holt and Dr. Dennis Tolley, Department of Statistics Per the original ORCA proposal, work has been done to estimate relative amounts of compounds from GC-MS (gas chromatography-mass spectrometry) data using an asymmetric penalized likelihood function. The initial results of this project were presented at the CPMS Student Research Conference in March of this year1. […]

Increasing Usefulness of Neutron Detectors through Gamma Shielding

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Andrew Hoffman and Dr. Lawrence Rees, Department of Physics and Astronomy The BYU nuclear research group has over the past few years been attempting to design neutron detectors for the use of both scientists and homeland security applications. When radioactive materials are being transported, they can emit a broad spectrum of particles including gammas, betas, […]

Modeling of an Ion Exchange Reaction Involving Decamethylcucurbit[5]uril in the Gas Phase

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Jacob Hedelius and Dr. David Dearden, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Mathematical modeling is both common and increasingly expected in scientific research, to both predict and to explain results. Models are used in many disciplines, from describing cellular process in biology, weather patterns in planetary science, to galaxies in physics. As part of my studies […]

A Bayesian-based Equivalent Sound Source Model for Military Jet Aircraft

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David Hart and Dr. Kent Gee, Department of Physics and Astronomy Military jet aircraft are some of the fastest vehicles ever made. Their jet engines exhaust fuel at supersonic speeds and create large amounts of noise. However, this noise is loud enough to cause hearing loss, even with the most advanced levels of hearing protection. […]

The Planar Equitent Conjecture: Combining Isoperimetry and Minimal Surfaces

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Abraham Frandsen and Dr. Michael Dorff, Department of Mathematics The goal of this project was to explore a new problem in geometric optimization: isoperimetric surfaces with both boundary and volume constraints. The idea behind the problem is the following: what is the optimal way to enclose a given volume with a surface that must also […]

Bayesian Semi-parametric Modeling of Functional Data Exploration into Major League Baseball Analytics

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Jared Fisher and Dr. Gilbert Fellingham, Department of Statistics Most measurements follow trends over time, and those trends can be modeled. While there are many techniques for doing this, this project’s model brings a unique angle. This method can model trends with multiple peaks, from different subjects, and group them in clusters of similar curves. […]

H2O Megamasers: Measuring the Central Black Hole Mass of Mrk 1210

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Stephen Clouse and Dr. Victor Migenes, Department of Physics and Astronomy Abstract We present results from monitoring the spectra of Mrk 1210 with the Green Bank Telescope (GBT) and through the construction of sub-mas resolution maps with the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA). The purpose of these observations was to determine the accelerations, distances, and […]

Sound Radiation from a Hammered Dulcimer

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Benjamin Christensen and Dr. Kent Gee, Department of Physics and Astronomy The hammered dulcimer is a stringed instrument of the zither family, typically consisting of a wooden trapezoidal body with metal strings stretched across the frame. A typical dulcimer can span anywhere between 2 1/2 and 5 octaves, depending on the size of the instrument. The dulcimer used […]