Alberta Academic Review最新文献

{"title":"Amazing Grace: How Sweet the Sound of Synthesised Bagpipes","authors":"Hannah Pfeil, Abram Hindle, Hazel Campbell","doi":"10.29173/aar65","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29173/aar65","url":null,"abstract":"A bagpipe is a type of wind instrument that contains a melody pipe, which has an enclosed reed called the chanter and other drone pipes. The chanter is the part of the bagpipe that supplies the note, and the air that the pipes are fed is provided by the bag, which is inflated by a blowpipe and driven by the player’s arm. The goal of this project was to create a bagpipe using a program called Supercollider. Supercollider is used for audio synthesis. While creating this artificial bagpipe (here on referred to as a ‘synth’), it was broken down into four components: the chanter, the base drone, the first tenor drone and the second tenor drone. The chanter has the frequency of the note, the base drone’s frequency will be half that of the chanter and the frequency of the tenor drone will be half that of the base drone. This is because of the length of the pipes in relation to each other. In order to create the synth, a sine oscillator was used, and then put through a resonance filter, and then a reverb filter. This was done in order to mimic the echo that sound has when it is forced through a tube, or enclosed space. All four pipes were added together to create the synth. In order to play a song, the synth was put into a pattern so Supercollider could receive an array of notes, which serve as the frequency of the chanter, and then play the song automatically. The notes for Amazing Grace were transcribed into midi-notes and beat durations and these arrays were fed into the pattern to create the song. The synthetic version of Amazing Grace, in terms of frequency and loudness, was then graphed and compared to the graph of a recording of Amazing Grace played on a real bagpipe. There are differences between the two sound files, the most significant being that the real bagpipe has much more variation in terms of loudness. The synthesized bagpipe had a more gradual and subdued noise level, where the natural bagpipe was much more randomized. Taking the comparisons into consideration, Supercollider can be used to create an approximation of a bagpipe, but under scrutiny, the artificial version currently falls short. \u0000 ","PeriodicalId":239812,"journal":{"name":"Alberta Academic Review","volume":"30 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-09-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"115700541","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"3D Models of Fractured Pelvic Bones for Analysis of Symmetry and Deviation","authors":"Samantha Polege, S. McClelland, Maha S. Ead, D. Li, K. Duke, L. Westover","doi":"10.29173/aar66","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29173/aar66","url":null,"abstract":"Pelvic fractures are a fairly common result of falls, automobile collisions, or other direct impact incidents. Most fractures are relatively mild and not life-threatening, but severe damage may have debilitating effects on the victim's health and quality of life. Pelvic breakage often requires surgery to alleviate, but procedures may be difficult given the complex anatomical structure of the area and the specific location of the fractures. This project aimed to make the planning stage easier for surgeons by analyzing left-right symmetry of the pelvis and using this property to create, in cases where one side is fractured and the other remains intact, 3D models of reconstructed pelvic fractures. Pelvic bone has been proven to be highly symmetrical. This method would provide surgeons with a clearer idea of how to best reassemble and otherwise correct fractures in the pelvis. First, various one-sided pelvic fractures from a batch of anonymized subjects obtained from the University of Alberta Hospital were digitized in medical imaging software. Data from six subjects in total was used in the collection of results. The digitized pelvises were then used to construct 3D models. The fractured pieces were aligned in best-fit with a mirrored intact side. Colour deviation maps, which differentiated between areas of high and low symmetry by measuring the degree of point deviance against a scale, were then generated. Deviance was generally more prevalent along the fracture lines. The predefined threshold considered a maximum of 2 mm of deviation as highly symmetrical. The average RMS value was found to be 1.65 mm and the average percentage of points within 2 mm of difference was 85.1%, indicating that the pelvic bones studied possessed a reasonably high degree of left-right symmetry. The results from this study suggest that this virtual reconstruction method is reliable for use in surgical planning for one-sided pelvic fractures.","PeriodicalId":239812,"journal":{"name":"Alberta Academic Review","volume":"35 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-09-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"124326939","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Design of a Braided Composite Badminton Racket on Solidworks","authors":"M. Neufeld, A. Ead, Eric Lepp","doi":"10.29173/aar64","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29173/aar64","url":null,"abstract":"Current badminton rackets are typically made out of steel, aluminium, or carbon fibre. Although these materials perform acceptably, there are some downsides to their properties. However, these non-ideal characteristics of badminton rackets may be overcome with the usage of different manufacturing materials, specifically braided composites. An example of a braided material is KevlarⓇ. Kevlar is a heat resistant and high strength synthetic fibre that can be manufactured into braids using a maypole braiding system. These Kevlar braids can then be manipulated to a preferred shape for the curing process. In order to come up with a feasible design to base the prototype, a 3D modelling software (SolidWorksTM) is used. This ensures geometrical viability and possible to manufacture of the prototype. Modeling a badminton racket on Solidworks required the modelling of a racket head, and handle. The head was created using 2 ellipses, one of which acted as a skeleton, or mould for the Kevlar braid, and the other was a hollow ellipse which encompassed the mold and acted as the Kevlar braid. The solid ellipse was created in two halves, each having either an extrusion or a hole in the ends. This allowed them to easily attach to form a full ellipse. Once modeled, the solid ellipse was 3D printed to act as the curing mandrel, an internal skeleton for the Kevlar braids. In order to attach the head to the handle, a three-part connector piece was created and 3D printed. The rod of the racket was not created with an internal skeleton because the flexibility would falter. Instead, the Kevlar braids were slid off the material after curing and attached to the racket heads connector piece. In order to have a balanced weight ratio throughout the racket, the grip was created with an internal 3D printed skeleton. This structure allowed for a feasible, flexible, and strong Kevlar based product.","PeriodicalId":239812,"journal":{"name":"Alberta Academic Review","volume":"9 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-09-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"125365549","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Characterization of Lignin","authors":"Mikayla McKenna-Pettit, N. Manafi, Neda Nazemifard","doi":"10.29173/AAR63","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29173/AAR63","url":null,"abstract":"Lignin is a complex organic compound crucial to the structural tissues of vascular plants, such as trees. The cyclic structure and aromaticity of lignin give it significant potential to be used as a renewable and safe replacement for toxic aromatic compounds in chemical and industrial processes. The purpose of this experiment was to characterize lignin, specifically the particle diameter and zeta potential, using both the Zetasizer Nano ZSP and the ImageJ image processing software, and to compare the accuracy of both measurement methods. Due to the natural fluorescence of lignin, a fluorescence microscope is used to capture images of lignin particles. By having a known distance and the scale of measurement, with ImageJ it is possible to calculate distances, such as the diameters of particles in images. The Zetasizer Nano ZSP is a device capable of measuring both particle diameter and zeta potential, which is the electrical charge existing on particles suspended in a medium. Small amounts of lignin, in powder form, are placed into scintillation vials with different amounts of distilled water to create 3 different concentrations of sample to measure using the Zetasizer. Between 10-15mL of sample are placed into specialized measurement cells and put into the Zetasizer. Multiple measurements are conducted and averaged to achieve accurate results. The measured zeta potential value is indicative of the stability of the lignin. If the value of zeta potential is higher than 30mV, negative or positive, it has a high stability and low reactivity. The average values of zeta potential measured by the Zetasizer ranged from -27mV to -21mV. The particle diameter is important in characterization, as the smaller and more distributed the particles are, there is a larger surface area for reactions to occur. Average particle diameter measured by the Zetasizer ranged from 926-976µm. The results from the Zetasizer Nano ZSP are more accurate than those from the ImageJ software, as ImageJ allows for a substantial amount of human error to impact the results. The outcomes help direct future experiments using lignin and beneficial to future research concerning lignin and its potential.","PeriodicalId":239812,"journal":{"name":"Alberta Academic Review","volume":"57 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-09-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"132252744","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Regional Symmetry of the Pelvis","authors":"S. McClelland, Samantha Polege, D. Li, Maha S. Ead, L. Westover, K. Duke","doi":"10.29173/aar62","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29173/aar62","url":null,"abstract":"Understanding the left-right symmetry of the pelvis can assist with the virtual reconstruction of fractured pelvises in the future. Further specifying the different regions can give more information regarding the anatomy of the bone. CT scans of intact pelvises are turned into 3D models using a computer program called Mimics. The femurs and spine are removed manually to isolate the bone. The model can then be analyzed and the regions defined. The pelvis is split into three pieces using the program Geomagic, the iliac, acetabular, and pubic rami regions. The two cuts are made based around the highest and lowest points of the acetabular cup. From here each cut piece can be mirrored and aligned with the opposing side of the pelvis. Colour deviation maps can then be generated to visualize the asymmetry, as well as the RMS value and the percentage of points within a 2 mm deviation threshold. The average RMS values are below 2 mm and the percentage of points within 2 mm is high. My research reflects that the pelvis is symmetrical and may be used to assist in the surgical planning process of pelvic fractures.","PeriodicalId":239812,"journal":{"name":"Alberta Academic Review","volume":"85 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-09-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"123182168","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Establishing CRISPR/Cas9 in Lipomyces starkeyi","authors":"Zoe Lau, D. Stuart, Bonnie A. McNeil","doi":"10.29173/aar61","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29173/aar61","url":null,"abstract":"The goal of this project was to adapt the Yarrowia lipolytica plasmid based CRISPR/Cas9 system for usage in Lipomyces starkeyi. Lipomyces starkeyi is an oleaginous yeast, which synthesizes and stores high amounts of intracellular lipids. This specific yeast can store lipids at concentrations higher than 60% of its dry cell weight. Due to these high concentrations of lipids, L. starkeyi is a desired organism for the production of biofuels and other oleochemicals. However, there is a lack of knowledge and of genetic tools when trying to engineer the cells to produce these lipids for our use. The genome editing tool, CRISPR/Cas9 is efficient and simple, therefore desirable for the engineering of L. starkeyi. The goal was achieved by replacing the Y. lipolytica promoter with a L. starkeyi promoter, inserting guide RNA, as well as confirming cas9 protein expression.","PeriodicalId":239812,"journal":{"name":"Alberta Academic Review","volume":"1 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-09-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"128849674","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Thermochemical and Structural Analysis of Tautomers of Sulfur and Selenium Modified RNA Nucleobases","authors":"M. Joy, Alex Brown, Arturo Mora Gomez, Maria Rossano‐Tapia, Shyam Parshotam","doi":"10.29173/aar59","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29173/aar59","url":null,"abstract":"Nucleobases (adenine, cytosine, guanine, and uracil), the four molecules that forms RNA, have been found to be useful in probing in the human body when modified because they can emit light. Non-modified nucleobases do not exhibit emissive properties and cannot be used as probes. Some of the modifications include the substitution of nitrogen atoms with sulfur and selenium, and the resulting modified nucleobases give place to the so-called tz- and ts- RNA alphabets, respectively. Therefore, the aim of this project was to provide insights about the viability, from a computational perspective, of using the modified nucleobases as probes, evaluating the differences in thermochemical, structural and emissive properties of the modified nucleobases with respect to the non-modified ones. Nucleobases can coexist with other modified nucleobases or tautomers, molecules that differ due to the change in position of hydrogen atoms in a molecule’s structure and as a result have different physical and chemical properties. The thermochemical properties evaluation mainly consisted in the computation of the relative Gibbs Free Energy (G), which is related to the fraction F, an index of the relative population among tautomers. This was done using Gaussian 09 software by performing geometry analysis and frequency computations on each one of the tautomers. By comparing the equilibrium fractions, it was determined that in both cases, tz- and ts- guanine and cytosine exist principally in the form of one of their tautomers (Cytosine 2 and Guanine 2) as in the case of the non-modified cases. After confirming which tz- and ts- tautomers were the ones with the largest probable population, infrared (IR) and ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) spectra were obtained. The IR spectra of selenium and sulfur tautomers of guanine and cytosine indicated that the tautomers had peaks at similar frequencies with respect to each other, however, the intensities varied, implying slight structural changes between the tautomers. On the other hand, the UV-vis spectra showed a change in peak positions between the tautomers with sulfur and selenium, suggesting that the change between sulfur and selenium has an effect on the spectra by shifting the peaks from the original molecules’ λmax values. Their relative population fractions show that only the canonical forms of the modified nucleobases exist in a larger extent than the rest of their tautomer forms. In addition, the features in their UV-vis and IR spectra allow these tautomers to be differentiated from each other.","PeriodicalId":239812,"journal":{"name":"Alberta Academic Review","volume":"55 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-09-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"131042305","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"X' Marks the Spot: Transferring Dig Site Coordinates from Maps to Google Earth","authors":"Nicole Jaremco, M. Saraswat, Howard Gibbins, P. Currie, C. Coy","doi":"10.29173/aar58","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29173/aar58","url":null,"abstract":"Dinosaur Provincial Park has been a popular site for palaeontological digs for many years. Over time, the many quarries and bone beds uncovered have had their locations marked on large paper topography maps. Unfortunately, many dig sites have been lost due to poor documentation. Some sites have been abandoned for years. The high erosion levels of the park (2 – 4 mm yearly) continually both destroys dig sites and uncovers new fossils. To help recover old, unused dig sites, the coordinates of the sites marked on the old paper maps were uploaded to Google Earth Pro for easy access. Unfortunately, the points had to first be transferred to clear mylar maps, because the original paper maps lacked longitude and latitude measurements. This was accomplished by matching the topography when the scale of the maps differed, and by overlaying the clear maps on the paper maps when they did not. The distance of each point from a line of longitude or latitude was found using a ruler (each mm measured on the map representing 10 m in the park) and used to calculate their coordinates. After the coordinates were found, they were recorded in a Google SpreadSheet. Once this was completed for all 462 points, they were uploaded to Google Earth Pro. The purpose of this project was to provide more easily accessible records of dig sites and prevent further record loss as the old paper maps age and their condition deteriorates. The massive paper maps are unwieldy and impractical to use in the field, and something more compact is needed. Google Earth is easily accessed on a computer or cell phone, and the points will not be lost due to physical damage, degradation, or misplacement of the records. In addition, it takes up far less space in digital form, and thus is better for field work than the original maps.","PeriodicalId":239812,"journal":{"name":"Alberta Academic Review","volume":"14 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-09-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"128274471","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Investigation of Silicon Nanoparticle-Polystyrene Hybrids","authors":"Madiha F. Khan, Alyxandra N. Thiessen, I. T. Cheong, S. Milliken, J. Veinot","doi":"10.29173/aar60","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29173/aar60","url":null,"abstract":"Current LED lights are created with quantum dots made of metals like selenium, tellurium, and cadmium which can be toxic. Silicon is used as a non-toxic substance and is the second most abundant element in the earth's crust. When silicon is prepared at a nanometer size, unique luminesce optical properties emerge that can be tuned using sized surface chemistry. Therefore, silicon nanoparticles can be used as an alternative emitter for LED lights. To produce hydride-terminated silicon nanoparticles we must synthesize the particles. Hydrogen silsesquioxane (HSQ) is processed at 1100 °C for one hour causing Si to cluster and form a SiO2 matrix, also known as the composite. The composite is then manually crushed in ethanol. The solution is further ground using glass beads, then filtered to get the composite powder. The final step is the HF etching. The hydride-terminated particles are then functionalized using three different methods to synthesize silicon nanoparticle-polystyrene hybrids, which determine the magnitude of luminosity and the quality of the hybrids. We spin coat each method and results were analyzed. Method 1 uses heat to functionalize hydride-terminated silicon nanoparticles with styrene. This process also causes styrene to attach to styrene to form a polystyrene chain. Method 1 gave a homogeneous mixture which yielded a consistent, bright and homogenous film. In method 2, dodecyl-terminated silicon nanoparticles are mixed with premade polystyrene. While this method gave better control of the amount of silicon nanoparticles inside the polymer hybrid, a homogeneous mixture was not created due to the different structures of polystyrene and dodecyl chains. Method 3 has dodecyl-terminated silicon with in-situ styrene polymerization. It generated a homogeneous mixture. The in-situ polymerization stabilizes the particles, allowing for brighter luminescence. Because of the stability and lower molecular weight, the mixture was easier to dissolve. We concluded that the different methods resulted in different polymer molecular weights and this created distinct properties between the polymer hybrids when spin-coating. \u0000  \u0000 ","PeriodicalId":239812,"journal":{"name":"Alberta Academic Review","volume":"241 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-09-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"122460503","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Too Much of a Good Thing: High T Cell Count Can Kill Newborns","authors":"A. Bustos, Lai Xu, G. Dunsmore, S. Elahi","doi":"10.29173/aar53","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.29173/aar53","url":null,"abstract":"Neonates have a weakened immune system that could be due to low exposure to pathogens resulting in low adaptive immunity and/or purposeful immune suppression to protect the weak neonate from a robust immune response. The purpose of this project is to find preliminary data to further investigate why the immune system of neonates are weaker, and to possibly improve neonatal immunity while protecting against a powerful immune response in the future.  Using processed mice spleen cells that were stained for CD4 and CD8 to be subjected to flow cytometry, an increase in the percent of helper CD4 and killer CD8 T cells were observed as the mice aged. This indicates that neonates do have a weaker immune system. Between healthy mice and mice infected with either Bordetella pertussis or Listeria, a decrease in the percent of CD4 and CD8 T cells were found, which could be because not enough time had passed for an adaptive immune response.","PeriodicalId":239812,"journal":{"name":"Alberta Academic Review","volume":"1 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-09-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"129716781","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}