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- Creators: Computer Science and Engineering Program
Description
With the growth of technology globally, the usage for hardware with Mixed Reality functionalities has expanded over the past few years. Specifically, its usage in an educational setting is something that warrants more research. Virtual Reality specifically is a form of experience that transports users into a different landscape for education. This paper explores the intricacies of a game developed in Virtual Reality to explore bartering as an educational tool. Specifically, it explores the game system that could use the benefits of Virtual Reality in educating users through experience. The hypothesis is that Virtual Reality can help facilitate this gaming experience to accomplish the goals aligned in the game overview.
ContributorsKamasamudram, Anuj (Author) / Johnson, Mina (Thesis director) / Wylie, Ruth (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Computer Science and Engineering Program (Contributor) / Thunderbird School of Global Management (Contributor) / Dean, W.P. Carey School of Business (Contributor)
Created2025-05
Understanding Sustainable Transportation Systems: A Comparative Analysis of Phoenix and Philadelphia
Description
The transportation of people and goods is a necessary task of society. The systems we construct to accomplish this objective profoundly impact the livelihoods of those interacting with them. Therefore, understanding the factors of these systems is paramount in building sustainable transportation systems. I conducted a comparative analysis of Phoenix and Philadelphia, two cities with similar population sizes, to understand which factors are important in determining the sustainability of transportation systems. Through this comparison, it became apparent that choice is a key element in sustainable transportation systems, and that the context and history of cities are critical in making sense of the status quo and planning for a better future.
ContributorsEppley, Reed (Author) / Kelman, Jonathan (Thesis director) / Hagen, Bjoern (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Sustainability (Contributor)
Created2025-05
Description
As the world shifts toward renewable energy, green hydrogen (H2) has emerged as a promising
solution for reducing emissions in sectors that are difficult to electrify. Thermochemical H2
production offers an alternative to electrolytic H2 production by using high-temperature redox
cycles. This individual research project focuses on the improvement of the fabrication methods
and eventual fabrication of a Labyrinth Reactor (LR) for thermochemically producing H2. The LR
is a compact system that uses a metal oxide, e.g. cerium oxide, to produce H2 through a two-step
metal oxide redox cycle. This cycle involves first reducing a metal oxide at high temperatures to
release oxygen. In the second step, the reduced metal oxide reacts with steam at a lower
temperature to be reoxidized, producing H2. Unlike many reactors that conduct this cycle in one
reaction zone, the LR physically separates this cycle into the reduction, heat recovery, and water
splitting zones. These zones are contained within an insulating firebrick cavity, where the metal
oxide weaves through a narrow path to each zone. This novel configuration fits a typically long
path into a small reactor volume. This allows for a compact design with a cyclical path, which
improves thermal efficiency and maximizes power density for a cost-effective H2 yield.
The reactor utilizes a firebrick insulating cavity with a path separating the three distinct zones.
This firebrick cavity required fabrication as it comprised of multiple layers of firebrick, each with
a distinct geometry, and additional firebrick components placed within the layers. The layers and
components were fabricated using a computer numerical control (CNC) milling machine. The
method for fabrication involved multiple steps; cutting the firebricks down to the desired size,
polishing the sides to be level, establishing the zero in the software used to control the CNC
machine, using various grinding bits to carve out the necessary path of each firebrick layer, and
assembling the layers to ensure they fit together securely. Throughout the fabrication process,
ii
several challenges were encountered, including uneven polishing, coordinate loss during CNC
operations, and deviations during grinding. These issues were addressed by optimizing spindle
speeds, shortening G-code runs, and reducing human error where possible. Additionally, CNC
processes were refined to improve accuracy.
The LR was developed from insights gained from teams around the world working on
thermochemical reactor systems. In particular, the LR design stems from the work done by
Sandia National Laboratories on the CR5 and Cascading Pressure Reactor. The first iteration,
version 1, of the LR was built and tested in ASU LightWorks® Laboratory. The testing resulted in
significant fractures within the firebrick layers and components. This led to the second iteration,
version 2, which involved a redesign of the firebrick layers to prevent these structural damages.
The focus of this research involves the fabrication process of version 2 of the LR. The fabricationprocess was improved through technique refinements, and design elements that made fabrication difficult were identified for future redesign. Ultimately, due to the complexity of
certain firebrick components, version 2 of the LR was not completed. Given the lengthy process,
it was decided that shifting focus to designing and fabricating a new LR iteration would be more
valuable. The constructed layers of version 2 were used for various testing. The lessons learned
through the fabrication process influenced the design of the third iteration of the LR, version 3.
Also, this project serves as a guide for best practices for future fabrication efforts.
Version 3 is far simpler in terms of layer geometry to expedite the fabrication process. Also,
the new iteration is larger, has more reactive material, and has the goal of producing 1g/hour of
H2. Version 3 is currently being fabricated by the ASU LightWorks® Laboratory and will then go on to be tested. Overall, this work contributes to LightWorks® Laboratory’s aim for the advancement of a thermochemical reactor for scalable green H2 production.
ContributorsHanabergh, Elena (Author) / Ermanoski, Ivan (Thesis director) / Miller, James (Committee member) / Ali, Natalia (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Program (Contributor) / School of Sustainability (Contributor)
Created2025-05
Description
In today’s digital age, language barriers are a significant obstacle to the accessibility of
high-quality content. While existing translation solutions are functional, they often com-
promise on the human element, particularly the unique voice and personality of the content
itself. This results in either plain text translations (captioning) or robotic voice-overs that
are extremely unengaging.
This thesis presents Translatica, an end-to-end translation platform that revolutionizes
content creation by translating any video while preserving contextual information and the
speaker’s authentic voice. The translation pipeline employs open-source voice conversion
algorithms and a modular architecture that can stay up to date with constantly changing
technology. This implementation delivers a comprehensive translation platform across 20+
languages. This paper will outline the high-level details of the Translatica project, and hone
in on the cloud infrastructure used to develop the project.
As the market demands change, Translatica’s approach addresses the status quo and
also serves a greater purpose: enabling universities like Arizona State University to amplify
their educational voice globally while preserving the human aspect in digital content.
ContributorsRamani, Krishna (Author, Co-author) / Hsu, Jeffrey (Co-author) / Jhaj, Baaz (Co-author) / Osburn, Steven (Thesis director) / Zhu, Haolin (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Computer Science and Engineering Program (Contributor)
Created2025-05
Description
This project presents an attempt to recognise single, handwritten alphanumeric characters with a machine learning-based approach. Using a dataset of 131,600 handwritten characters, I trained a custom convolutional neural network (CNN), which achieved a 87.94% accuracy rate, and I applied the ResNet-152–a well-known published model, which achieved a 87.13% accuracy rate, for comparison. A full-stack web application was also developed in conjunction with the model for demonstration. These results signify that the depth of the model was not the main culprit for the systematic failure of recognising some pairs of characters, and that a different approach must be attempted.
ContributorsHo, Timothy (Author) / Menees, Jodi (Thesis director) / Srinivasan, Aravind (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Computer Science and Engineering Program (Contributor)
Created2025-05
Description
Businesses and advertising agencies today often promote their products and services through advertisements across various online services such as Google, Meta, Microsoft, and others. Online advertising plays a crucial part in acquiring new clients, resulting in the business's success. However, the interpretation of essential advertising data, such as cost per click and conversion rate, across these advertising platforms presents a challenge to smaller businesses and advertising agencies that manage various client accounts across multiple platforms. This project resolves inefficiencies in digital marketing reporting by delivering a study on the design, development, and evaluation of the Advertising Analytics Dashboard, which provides businesses and agencies such as Vloe, a Quebec-based advertising agency, a unified platform for retrieving tracking analysis and advertising metrics for multiple accounts across multiple online advertising platforms (Vloe, n.d.). Users through the Advertising Analytics Dashboard can detect embedded tracking tags such as Google Analytics and Meta Pixel, and connect their advertising accounts to retrieve data across Google Analytics, Google Ads, Meta Ads, and Microsoft Ads. The platform supports OAuth login, query saving, PDF report generation, and dynamic localization in English and Canadian French. Upon deploying the website, an usability study with 14 participants indicated that users found the dashboard intuitive and the retrieved data accurate. The project successfully delivered and demonstrated how the user-friendly, simplified, and streamlined Advertising Analytics Dashboard provides value to small businesses and advertising agencies for viewing and analyzing tracking and advertising data across multiple platforms in one centralized location.
ContributorsMahajan, Neil (Author) / Chavez Echeagaray, Maria Elena (Thesis director) / Dansereau, Christine (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Computer Science and Engineering Program (Contributor)
Created2025-05
Description
This thesis explores how capitalism has co-opted feminist ideals to market products and exploit women’s labor under the guise of empowerment. Through historical and contemporary case studies, from Edward Bernays’s “Torches of Freedom” campaign to Unilever’s Dove “Real Beauty” initiative, this paper traces how corporations have aligned themselves with feminist rhetoric while perpetuating structural inequalities. The analysis discusses the commodification of body positivity, the burden of emotional labor in service economies, and the rise of neoliberal feminism, which emphasizes individual choice over collective action. It also critiques the entertainment industry’s manipulation of female fan communities for profit. By exposing these contradictions, the thesis argues that corporate feminism often reinforces the very systems it claims to challenge. The paper concludes by offering recommendations for increasing corporate accountability and also creating more authentic feminist engagement in marketing and labor practices.
ContributorsSantaella, Noemi (Author) / Barca, Lisa (Thesis director) / Ostling, Michael (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Public Affairs (Contributor) / Dean, W.P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / School of Sustainability (Contributor) / Department of Management and Entrepreneurship (Contributor)
Created2025-05
Description
This thesis presents the design, implementation, and evaluation of Beacon, a self-hosted error
monitoring platform developed for ASU Online. Beacon addresses the challenges of observability in digital learning environments by providing comprehensive error tracking, real-time alerting, and customizable dashboards while ensuring data sovereignty, cost efficiency, and scalability. Built on an event-driven architecture using open standards, Beacon aims to improve issue resolution times, enhance student experience, and reduce operational costs compared to commercial alternatives. The system leverages OpenTelemetry for data collection, Kafka for event processing, and Elasticsearch for storage, demonstrating how these technologies can be integrated to create a robust observability solution tailored to educational technology needs.
ContributorsJuntilla, Ben (Author) / Menees, Jodi (Thesis director) / Jagannath, Shruthi (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Computer Science and Engineering Program (Contributor)
Created2025-05
Description
The Robotics Design Fundamentals Educational VR Experience is a game designed to help players learn and understand the concepts of robot configuration, basic kinematics, and forward kinematics through an embodied approach in virtual reality. This Virtual Reality (VR) experience focuses on reinforcing player's understanding of the Denavit-Hartenberg (DH) parameter derivation process, a key step in developing forward kinematic models. Forward kinematic models are extensively used in the field of robotics, since they act as an intermediate step in the development of more complex models, such as inverse kinematic models, so it is important for students to be able to quickly and confidently derive forward kinematic models. By analyzing VR game design best practices, characteristics of effective embodied learning approaches, and current educational robotics simulators, The Robotics Design Fundamentals Educational VR Experience aims to be an effective tool for students to practice the process of deriving DH parameters and forward kinematic models.
ContributorsJung, Damon (Author) / Johnson, Mina (Thesis director) / LiKamWa, Robert (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Computer Science and Engineering Program (Contributor) / Computing and Informatics Program (Contributor)
Created2025-05
Description
The perfect anti-cheat software for a first person shooter that balances protecting user privacy and effective cheat detection in a modern age where dishonest methods of gameplay are rampant within competitive games. By utilizing the inherent protections servers have against third party attacks, by removing the software off of the client, all of the detection methods are placed in an external area, where cheaters are determined by behavior that is tracked through statistical trackers placed in the game. By measuring multiple key features including Illegal Trace Time, Trigger Time, and Mouse Flick Speed. Each of these measured attributes relate to commonly used cheats in first person shooters, which is the target for this anti-cheat machine learning model. By gathering a wide range of statistics and figuring out the average player’s statistics, it would be possible to determine if a player is using external programs to gain an unfair advantage.
ContributorsKim, James (Author) / Kobayashi, Yoshihiro (Thesis director) / Baek, Jaejong (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Computer Science and Engineering Program (Contributor)
Created2025-05