This paper discusses the motivation, design, implementation, and evaluation of a
new electronic beat sequencing system called HMM Beats. HMM Beats is inspired
by recent work in machine learning on user drum beat prediction. HMM Beats is
an interactive system…

The objective of this thesis project is to build a robot that can clearly demonstrate its
potential to solve standard jigsaw puzzles. This robot must be capable of picking up
and reorienting puzzle pieces to the precision required for completing…

This research explores the metabolic role of the gut microbiota in the global
obesity crisis and rising threat of global warming. Enteric microbiota in the rumen emit
methane as a by-product of metabolite degradation. Experiments – primarily on mice –

The antimicrobial effects of copper have been well established and may prove to be an effective means of reducing nosocomial or hospital-acquired infections. However, discussions surrounding the antimicrobial properties of copper-containing surfaces rarely address the effect of such materials on…

Conflicting reports have emerged as to whether entry of alpha-herpesvirus particles occurs by receptor-mediated membrane fusion or pH-dependent endocytosis, and whether the method of entry differs by cell type. At the other end of the virus replication cycle, it is…

The current state of science education in the United States is evolving to building a skills-based, rather than content-based, knowledge in its students, grades K-12. To this end, I have integrated my experience and understanding of molecular biology and educational…

To investigate the influence of input from fellow group members in a constrained decision-making context, we develop four 2-armed bandit tasks in which subjects freely select one of two options (A or B) and are informed of the resulting reward…

This dissertation concerns itself with the effects of education and wealth on health in Africa. The first two chapters focus on the impact of adult education levels on the HIV epidemic in four sub-Saharan countries. The last chapter turns to…

The limitations common to linear imaging techniques were formalized succinctly by Ernst Abbe in 1873. In his theory, each Fourier component of a signal propagates independently from the source to the detector, and the corresponding feature can be detected only…

The central goal of compressed sensing is to capture attributes of a signal using very few measurements. The initial publications by Donoho and by Candes and Tao have been followed by applications to image compression, data streaming, medical signal processing,…