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Description
Many real-world engineering problems require simulations to evaluate the design objectives and constraints. Often, due to the complexity of the system model, simulations can be prohibitive in terms of computation time. One approach to overcome this issue is to construct a surrogate model, which approximates the original model. The focus of this work is on the data-driven surrogate models, in which empirical approximations of the output are performed given the input parameters. Recently neural networks (NN) have re-emerged as a popular method for constructing data-driven surrogate models. Although, NNs have achieved excellent accuracy and are widely used, they pose their own challenges. This work addresses two common challenges, the need for: (1) hardware acceleration and (2) uncertainty quantification (UQ) in the presence of input variability. The high demand in the inference phase of deep NNs in cloud servers/edge devices calls for the design of low power custom hardware accelerators. The first part of this work describes the design of an energy-efficient long short-term memory (LSTM) accelerator. The overarching goal is to aggressively reduce the power consumption and area of the LSTM components using approximate computing, and then use architectural level techniques to boost the performance. The proposed design is synthesized and placed and routed as an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC). The results demonstrate that this accelerator is 1.2X and 3.6X more energy-efficient and area-efficient than the baseline LSTM. In the second part of this work, a robust framework is developed based on an alternate data-driven surrogate model referred to as polynomial chaos expansion (PCE) for addressing UQ. In contrast to many existing approaches, no assumptions are made on the elements of the function space and UQ is a function of the expansion coefficients. Moreover, the sensitivity of the output with respect to any subset of the input variables can be computed analytically by post-processing the PCE coefficients. This provides a systematic and incremental method to pruning or changing the order of the model. This framework is evaluated on several real-world applications from different domains and is extended for classification tasks as well.
ContributorsAzari, Elham (Author) / Vrudhula, Sarma (Thesis advisor) / Fainekos, Georgios (Committee member) / Ren, Fengbo (Committee member) / Yang, Yezhou (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2021
Description
Conflict Minerals are mined resources that cause countless human rights violations in their pursuit. The “3Ts and G” (tin, tantalum, tungsten, and gold) are some of the most lucrative sources of income for armed militant groups in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), linking them to the deadliest global conflicts. A study from the Enough Project found that armed groups made an estimated $185 million from conflict minerals in 2008. A mortality study by the International Rescue Committee looking at conflict-related deaths between August 1998 and April 2007 estimated that more than 5.4 million people died as a result of armed conflict in Congo. Conflict minerals are used in everyday consumer electronics, automobiles, manufacturing equipment, electronics, pharmaceuticals, aerospace, and jewelry. Consumers need to continue to support Conflict Free regulations and policy such as the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. President Donald Trump threatened to remove the Dodd-Frank act which would reverse one of the only pieces of legislature which forces supply chains to be transparent and ethical. Colonialism is the practice by which a powerful country directly controls less powerful countries and uses their resources to increase its own power and wealth; conflict minerals and human rights violations that subsequently occur are a modern variation of colonialism. I think that consumers would respond with disdain if they were aware that items they purchase and use everyday are #conflicted. I designed a book, campaign, book, and physical exhibit to communicate information about conflict minerals to an audience.
ContributorsRamey, Cecilia Inocentia (Author) / Alfred, Sanft (Thesis director) / Eric, Montgomery (Committee member) / The Design School (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
Worldwide there are over 50 million people suffering from epilepsy, eighty percent (80%) of whom live in low to middle income countries. Of that eighty percent (80%) of people suffering from this disease, seventy-five percent (75%) do not receive treatment. The current design and treatment methods of epilepsy have many limitations in these specific countries. These limitations include: lack of education about the disease leading to stigmas surrounding it, inability to afford treatment options, and the absence of healthcare practitioners who specialize in the treatment of neurological illnesses. Additionally, the healthcare system worldwide is a large contributor to climate change calling for a need to implement sustainable practices in both the treatment of patients and creation of healthcare centers. This thesis has been developed in order to theorize the design of a clinic that can be beneficial to epileptics in developing countries and to the environment. Through the methodology of case studies and research on existing strategies implemented in specific hospitals, we were able to focus on three main aspects that should be taken into consideration for an epilepsy clinic: the ambient environment, sustainability, and target demographic - developing countries. The idea ambient environment, it was found, plays a large role in the healing process through reduction of stress on patients. From there the most important features specific to epilepsy were able to be considered and synthesized for the best possible theoretical design of a clinic focused on the treatment and diagnosis of epilepsy in a developing country.
ContributorsPenrose, Nicole Ellen Youzhi (Co-author) / Gonzalez, Bianca (Co-author) / Vallerand, Olivier (Thesis director) / Brunner, Lori (Committee member) / School of Human Evolution & Social Change (Contributor) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
As existing typologies and precedents that integrate music into architectural form don’t pay careful consideration to the composer’s intent and technique of the score into built structure and its program, the goal is propose a new architecture that integrates the site, program, and acoustics. Scenes from Childhood (Kinderszenen), composed by Robert Schumann, depict memories, dreams, hopes, candor, and games- all lost in paradise. Schumann composed the piece as an adult, reminiscing of his childhood. The rising 6th with a four-note falling figure is the main motif. The motif opens the 1st movement, reappears in the 2nd, 4th, and 11th, and is transposed in the 6th, 7th, and 9th. This motif and the implications of each movement, as well as the piece as a whole, became the organizing principle in defining form, program, and experience: a public park wedged between two elementary schools in a low-income neighborhood in Los Angeles, California. The proposal aims to integrate the lack of the two institutions’ music programs into the experience of the 13 pavilions that reflect the 13 movements in Schumann’s piece. The manifestation of the final project was just as important as the process; the program is developed through the score, and the architectural is supported by the musical curriculum as well as Schumann’s intent.
ContributorsKim, Cecile (Author) / Vekstein, Claudio (Thesis director) / Mclean, Elizabeth (Committee member) / The Design School (Contributor) / School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
Place and memory are strongly intertwined based on the human experience. So what can a new place become in the mind of an individual who has garnered distressing perceptions of one’s current environment due to trauma? How can the environment support or facilitate periods of transition caused by a traumatic event? The aftermath of abuse that occurs in romantic relationships of late adolescence leads to a rocky crisis stage that often results in isolation, loss of identity, and social stigma. It is a period of transition in which recovery can be a long journey. This is where concepts of acceptance, mental alleviation, and appreciation of the present moment evoked by a nonjudgmental architecture can come into play. A space with the purpose of evoking a mental and emotional respite is of great need, especially when considering the current severity of today’s fast paced society. An architecture of this nature holds relevance and importance on campuses of higher education when considering the specific demographic. In order to reverse the perception of one’s surroundings as tarnished spaces and override the sensations to which distrust and exhaustion have claimed ownership, this center of healing should be integrated into an individual’s life as a facilitator of comfort. In short, it should provide the ability and opportunity to take a breath.
The Intermission is a healing space located at Arizona State University in Tempe, specifically where Forest Mall and Orange Mall meet. Abuse in intimate relationships is the most prevalent amongst college-aged individuals and those of late adolescence. This architecture exists specifically for the survivors of this particular traumatic experience, but welcomes all of the student body. It takes into consideration the general sensory overload placed on today’s youth who are existing in a specifically stressful and challenging developmental phase of life. The intention lies in eliciting a reprieve through the use of nature as an enclosure and an undulating platform as a labyrinth, which ultimately offers up a positive form of both a sensory and traversing experience. It offers the discovery of stimuli that users are able to easily adapt to and appreciate. It allows for and calls one to take part in deceleration. The goal is to bring the users to the awareness of themselves, their surroundings, and that of the present moment through spatial means. With this, the environment is able to support and facilitate a period of transition through the re-building of identity and memory. Ultimately, The Intermission is architecture as pause from a harsh and sometimes unforgiving life. It is an in-between moment for the in-between individual— an alternate, but necessary route (as well as pit stop) in the loop of daily life.
ContributorsJohnson, Amberley (Author) / Heywood, William (Thesis director) / Maddock, Bryan (Committee member) / The Design School (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
What is a habit, anyway? As it turns out, habits, both good and bad, are huge drivers of the long term direction of an individual’s life. We spend around 45% of our time on habitual behavior, or automatic actions--actions that slip under the radar of normal conscious decision-making processes. Habits are a way for the human brain to conserve energy by reacting in the same way to certain circumstances that generated positive outcomes in the past.
The habit loop underlies this whole process. First, someone has a craving--food, happiness, stress relief, anything. Next, they experience a cue in the environment--a sight, sound, smell, or piece of information that prompts them to act. Then they perform the routine, which is the most visible part of a habit. Finally, they are rewarded, whether the reward is good for them in the long run or not. We perform habits all the time without realizing it, so having even slightly more awareness and control of our habits can have a disproportionate benefit for our personal improvement.
In its earliest iterations, “habit trackers” were paper tools for measuring and motivating daily progress. Many competitors are still paper, like journals and calendars. Others are apps with the same functionality. In my competitive analysis, I chose to focus on competitors that included a behavioral change component along with habit tracking.
The habit loop underlies this whole process. First, someone has a craving--food, happiness, stress relief, anything. Next, they experience a cue in the environment--a sight, sound, smell, or piece of information that prompts them to act. Then they perform the routine, which is the most visible part of a habit. Finally, they are rewarded, whether the reward is good for them in the long run or not. We perform habits all the time without realizing it, so having even slightly more awareness and control of our habits can have a disproportionate benefit for our personal improvement.
In its earliest iterations, “habit trackers” were paper tools for measuring and motivating daily progress. Many competitors are still paper, like journals and calendars. Others are apps with the same functionality. In my competitive analysis, I chose to focus on competitors that included a behavioral change component along with habit tracking.
ContributorsLewis, Catharine Ruby (Author) / Shin, Dosun (Thesis director) / Feil, Magnus (Committee member) / The Design School (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2020-05
Description
The term kaizen is derived from the Japanese words “kai” meaning change and “zen” meaning good, and is a popular business philosophy for continuous improvement used in industrial engineering. KaiZEN: the Art of Continuous Improvement is an exploration of the relationship between design and engineering, and how these principles can be applied to home and work environments for the everyday reader. Readers will learn common practices used in industry, especially manufacturing environments, and how to use the same innovative solutions in their home and work life. Applying these principles will allow anyone to thrive in a space of aesthetic and functional efficiency that can improve state of mind, quality of life, and unlock the best version of oneself. By the end readers will become more observant of their surroundings and organize their environment with intention. They will have a deeper connection to the theory of continuous improvement and realize the unlimited potential of work, life, and self. The text is delivered in the format of a “coffee-table book” with concept illustrations and easy-to-read passages and applications. The book discusses the following industrial engineering principles: Lean Six Sigma, ergonomics, human factors engineering, network optimization, the “shortest path” problem, workplace design, economics, psychology, and physiology. It also explores applications of design principles like Feng shui, hygge, color psychology, modern farmhouse, bohemian, and minimalism. The text is divided into home and work sections, with organizing recommendations for home elements, living room, kitchen, bedroom, and bathroom. The work section discusses workstation ergonomics, network optimization, and budgeting.
ContributorsScholz, Averie (Author) / Jennings, Cheryl (Thesis director) / Custer, Lisa (Committee member) / Industrial, Systems & Operations Engineering Prgm (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2020-05
Description
There is a somewhat contentious phrase that says, “There is no such thing as user error, only bad design.” While it could be considered an exaggeration, this phrase sparks a discussion about the importance of good user interface design. These types of designs are integrated into our daily lives, influencing every interaction we have with the world around us. This project combines research and design to create a prototype interface utilizing the principles of effective, user-friendly design.
ContributorsHorvath, Sarah Kallista (Author) / Perez-Fox, Prescott (Thesis director) / Squire, Susan (Committee member) / Arts, Media and Engineering Sch T (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2020-05
Description
Asthma is one of the most common chronic conditions in the United States, being diagnosed in over 20 million Americans. The condition is even more common among young children, and their academic performance and ability to attend school can be negatively impacted by poorly-managed asthma. Digital therapeutics are therapeutic interventions driven by high quality software programs to prevent, manage, or treat a medical disorder or disease. Technology in the healthcare space is rapidly improving, and smart devices are becoming more common everyday. How can digital therapeutics and evolving technology be implemented to make life easier for those that suffer from asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease? My research seeks to answer the overarching question: How might we improve the day-to-day experience of children with asthma? Airie is a system of devices and products that educate both asthmatic children and their parents about the condition, facilitate self-monitoring and asthma management skills, and improve overall quality of life.
ContributorsChen, Jane Jialin (Author) / Shin, Dosun (Thesis director) / Feil, Magnus (Committee member) / The Design School (Contributor) / School of Sustainability (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2020-05
Description
For my creative project, I built a musical robot and explored the possibilities for robots in music education. In addition, I wrote a guide to share what I learned and to provide helpful information to anyone who is planning on building their own musical robot. This is not a step-by-step set of instructions; however, it gives the reader a preview of many options they have for building a musical robot. This guide includes information about existing musical robots, outlines possible strategies for brainstorming ideas, and describes various capabilities of musical robots. While this project focused on the intersection of music and robotics, my approach also included design thinking, which helped provide a focus and shaped my creative process.
The robot building guide is targeted toward an audience with little or no knowledge of robotics. It begins by exploring existing musical robots and explaining how existing products can be used as a source for inspiration. Next, this guide outlines various methods of design thinking and encourages the reader to use design thinking throughout the brainstorming and building process. This guide also highlights options for designing 3D-printed parts, which can be added to a robot. After that, the guide explains options for robot movement, specifically chassis kit assembly and using a 1Sheeld board with Arduino. This guide also explores the possibilities for the interaction of lights and sound, including sound-reactive lights and remote-control lights. Practical information about materials and their organization is provided, as well. The guide concludes with exciting possibilities for robots in music education.
The robot building guide is targeted toward an audience with little or no knowledge of robotics. It begins by exploring existing musical robots and explaining how existing products can be used as a source for inspiration. Next, this guide outlines various methods of design thinking and encourages the reader to use design thinking throughout the brainstorming and building process. This guide also highlights options for designing 3D-printed parts, which can be added to a robot. After that, the guide explains options for robot movement, specifically chassis kit assembly and using a 1Sheeld board with Arduino. This guide also explores the possibilities for the interaction of lights and sound, including sound-reactive lights and remote-control lights. Practical information about materials and their organization is provided, as well. The guide concludes with exciting possibilities for robots in music education.
ContributorsDemassa, Katelyn Debra (Author) / Tobias, Dr. Evan (Thesis director) / Bacalzo, Dean (Committee member) / School of Music (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2020-05