Digital Commons Network^™

2023’S Billion-Dollar Disasters List Shattered The Us Record With 28 Big Weather And Climate Disasters Amid Earth’S Hottest Year On Record, Shuang-Ye Wu

Geology Faculty Publications

The U.S. set an unwelcome record for weather and climate disasters in 2023, with 28 disasters that exceeded more than US$1 billion in damage each.

While it wasn’t the most expensive year overall – the costliest years included multiple hurricane strikes – it had the highest number of billion-dollar storms, floods, droughts and fires of any year since counting began in 1980, with six more than any other year, accounting for inflation.

Beyond The Byline, Teri Rizvi

Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop Blog

Beth Nevarez loves discovering the story behind the story. A public historian who spent days combing through the Erma Bombeck Collection at the University of Dayton, Nevarez quickly realized the dual nature of the trailblazing humorist.

Late To Work, Dean Norman

Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop Blog

For some jobs it is important to show up on time. Retail clerks, airline pilots, kindergarten teachers.

Keeping My Eyes On The Road, Jerry Zezima

Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop Blog

I have never been a visionary — or even, since I have two eyes, a double visionary — but I recently read a newspaper report about driver's licenses and saw clearly that getting an eye exam is a good way to stay out of jail.

2024-01-05 Minutes Of The Executive Committee Of The Academic Senate, University Of Dayton. Academic Senate. Executive Committee

ECAS Minutes

Approved minutes of a meeting of the Executive Committee of the Academic Senate of the University of Dayton.

Magi From The East Enter The Nativity Scene, Bridget Retzloff

Marian Library Blog Archive

On the Epiphany, visitors referred to in Scripture as kings and wise men, arrive, having traveled from great distances to a humble stable to pay homage to the newborn king, bringing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.

Creating Shared Equity Leadership: How A Culture Of Equity-Mindedness Transforms Institutional Capacity Toward Greater Collective Outcomes, Gerica Brown, Ione Damasco, Justin Keen, Leslie Picca, Nancy Mchugh

Learning Teaching Forum

As the University of Dayton seeks to distinguish itself through curricular innovation and creating a holistic, integrated and relationship rich learning environment for our students it is evident that doing so with an equitable mind frame is the secret sauce for success. Engaging all students in a meaningful and holistic learning experience where all students participate in rich development opportunities and persist to graduation at higher rates requires a deeper understanding of the why. (ex. Why are some students not engaging? Why do some students fall through the cracks? Why are some students unsatisfied with their University of Dayton …

Virtual Academic Coaching (Vac): A Practical Technology For Student Engagement, Jessica Gregor, Paul Gregor

Learning Teaching Forum

Virtual academic coaching (vAC), distinct from the roles and responsibilities of post-secondary educators or counselors, is a novel method of higher education student development and retention, and is quickly becoming established at both public and private universities throughout the United States and abroad. Although relatively new to the canon of student success in higher education, virtual coaching is foundationally based in longstanding tenets of adult education and relies on principles which educators and counselors have recognized since the formalization of the post secondary classroom. Positive research into efficacy of the virtual academic coaching profession lends credibility to its potential for …

Thinking Outside The Box For Experiential Student Learning: Development Of Remote Experiential Learning And Volunteering During The Pandemic, Amy Christopher

Learning Teaching Forum

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, experiential learning for health care professional programs struggled to find clinical rotation sites and provide students in the didactic curricular phase opportunities to apply health education outside of the classroom. Many healthcare sites and community health screening events were prohibited during an extended period of time due to pandemic isolation. As a health educator, exploration of remote experiential learning took creative planning to ensure students were able to apply their medical knowledge in real-life situations, give back to their community according to Marianist charisms, and fulfill healthcare-related volunteer service hour requirements.

More information in …

Marianist Holistic Education: Bridging Divides For The Common Good, Katrina Kelly

Learning Teaching Forum

This interactive session seeks to rediscover and redefine the essence of holistic education within the Marianist tradition, with a steadfast commitment to bridging divides and advancing the common good. Key objectives include benchmarking perspectives of both students and staff on the facets of holistic education imbued with the Marianist spirit and integrating pedagogical strategies that incorporate ongoing assessments and dialogues to uphold these principles effectively. The session includes small group discussions, observing and sharing feedback on behaviors indicative of the five core elements defining the Marianist approach to education, synthesizing collective observations, and culminating in creating a comprehensive repository of …

One Relationship At A Time, Eric F. Spina

President's Blog: From the Heart

A small group of alumni, whose graduation years span more than half a century, have come together as volunteers to lead the We Soar campaign. Like the Marianists, they're fostering community one relationship at a time.

Erma's Got Talent, Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop

Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop Blog

Erma’s Got Talent, loosely formatted along the lines of America’s Got Talent, will offer 12 randomly selected contestants the opportunity to perform two minutes of their original stand-up material in front of comedy veterans. The winners will perform on stage at the Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop in April.

Setting Those Goals, C. Hope Clark

Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop Blog

For the most part, people hate goals. They hate making the goals, or they love making them but hate following through on them. It's why New Year's resolutions catch so much crap. We talk big, then let them fizzle after, what, one week?

My New Year's Anti-Resolutions, Jase Graves

Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop Blog

A few days ago during one of those rare occasions when our whole family was together and my three semi-grown daughters weren't nursing an iPhone while wearing universe-canceling headphones, my wife posed probably the most oft-asked question this time of year: "Does anyone have any New Year’s resolutions?"

Ud Men For Gender Equity Newsletter, January 2024, University Of Dayton. Women's Center

UD Men for Gender Equity Newsletter

In this issue:

• Upcoming Engagement Opportunities: Student Recognition; Advocate 101; Updated Isidore Virtual Engagement
• Solidarity Moment
• Share Your Experience

Minutes, January 2024, University Of Dayton. College Of Arts And Sciences

Documents of the College of Arts and Sciences Academic Affairs Committee

Minutes from organizational meeting for Academic Affairs Committee

A Bi-Invariant Approach To Approximate Motion Synthesis Of Planar Four-Bar Linkage, Tianze Xu, David H. Myszka, Andrew P. Murray

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Publications

This paper presents a planar four-bar approximate motion synthesis technique that uses only pole locations. Synthesis for rigid-body guidance determines the linkage dimensions that guide a body in a desired manner. The desired motion is specified with task positions including a location and orientation angle. Approximation motion synthesis is necessary when an exact match to the task positions cannot be obtained. A linkage that achieves the task positions as closely as possible becomes desired. Structural error refers to the deviations between the task positions and the linkage's generated positions. A challenge in approximate motion synthesis is that structural error involves …

Exponential Fusion Of Interpolated Frames Network (Efif-Net): Advancing Multi-Frame Image Super-Resolution With Convolutional Neural Networks, Hamed Elwarfalli, Dylan Flaute, Russell C. Hardie

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Convolutional neural networks (CNNs) have become instrumental in advancing multi-frame image super-resolution (SR), a technique that merges multiple low-resolution images of the same scene into a high-resolution image. In this paper, a novel deep learning multi-frame SR algorithm is introduced. The proposed CNN model, named Exponential Fusion of Interpolated Frames Network (EFIF-Net), seamlessly integrates fusion and restoration within an end-to-end network. Key features of the new EFIF-Net include a custom exponentially weighted fusion (EWF) layer for image fusion and a modification of the Residual Channel Attention Network for restoration to deblur the fused image. Input frames are registered with subpixel …

Intelligent Millimeter-Wave System For Human Activity Monitoring For Telemedicine, Abdullah K. Alhazmi, Mubarak A. Alanazi, Awwad H. Alshehry, Saleh M. Alshahry, Jennifer Jaszek, Cameron Djukic, Anna Brown, Kurt Jackson, Vamsy P. Chodavarapu

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Telemedicine has the potential to improve access and delivery of healthcare to diverse and aging populations. Recent advances in technology allow for remote monitoring of physiological measures such as heart rate, oxygen saturation, blood glucose, and blood pressure. However, the ability to accurately detect falls and monitor physical activity remotely without invading privacy or remembering to wear a costly device remains an ongoing concern. Our proposed system utilizes a millimeter-wave (mmwave) radar sensor (IWR6843ISK-ODS) connected to an NVIDIA Jetson Nano board for continuous monitoring of human activity. We developed a PointNet neural network for real-time human activity monitoring that can …

Predicting An Optimal Medication/Prescription Regimen For Patient Discordant Chronic Comorbidities Using Multi-Output Models, Ichchha Pradeep Sharma, Tam Nguyen, Shruti Ajay Singh, Tom Ongwere

Computer Science Faculty Publications

This paper focuses on addressing the complex healthcare needs of patients struggling with discordant chronic comorbidities (DCCs). Managing these patients within the current healthcare system often proves to be a challenging process, characterized by evolving treatment needs necessitating multiple medical appointments and coordination among different clinical specialists. This makes it difficult for both patients and healthcare providers to set and prioritize medications and understand potential drug interactions. The primary motivation of this research is the need to reduce medication conflict and optimize medication regimens for individuals with DCCs. To achieve this, we allowed patients to specify their health conditions and …

Characterization Of Upper Extremity Kinematics Using Virtual Reality Movement Tasks And Wearable Imu Technology, Skyler A. Barclay, Lanna N. Klausing, Tessa M. Hill, Allison L. Kinney, Timothy Reissman, Megan E. Reissman

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Publications

Task-specific training has been shown to be an effective neuromotor rehabilitation intervention, however, this repetitive approach is not always very engaging. Virtual reality (VR) systems are becoming increasingly popular in therapy due to their ability to encourage movement through customizable and immersive environments. Additionally, VR can allow for a standardization of tasks that is often lacking in upper extremity research. Here, 16 healthy participants performed upper extremity movement tasks synced to music, using a commercially available VR game known as Beat Saber. VR tasks were customized to characterize participants' joint angles with respect to each task's specified cardinal direction (inward, …

Humor Writer Of The Month: Lou Clyde, Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop

Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop Blog

Our Humor Writer of the Month is Lou Clyde, an award-winning playwright and blogger from South Carolina.

Promotional Brochure: Marian Forum, Spring 2024, University Of Dayton, International Marian Research Institute

Reports and Promotional Materials

Promotional flyer designed by Ann Zlotnik highlighting the 2024 Marian Forum and affiliated events including a Mass, a Mardi Gras celebration, a lecture titled "American Patroness: Marian Shrines and the Making of U.S. Catholicism" (Karen Park and Katherine Dugan), and the presentation of the 2024 Marianist Award to Thomas Landy of the College of the Holy Cross.

The Solemnity Of The Mother Of God, Bridget Retzloff

Marian Library Blog Archive

Begin 2024 with love and appreciation for Mary, the mother of Jesus.

Consequences Of Spatial Structure In Soil–Geomorphic Data On The Results Of Machine Learning Models, Daehyun Kim, Insang Song, Lorrayne Miralha, Daniel R. Hirmas, Ryan W. Mcewan, Tom G. Mueller, Pavel Samonil

Biology Faculty Publications

In this paper, we examined the degree to which inherent spatial structure in soil properties influences the outcomes of machine learning (ML) approaches to predicting soil spatial variability. We compared the performances of four ML algorithms (support vector machine, artificial neural network, random forest, and random forest for spatial data) against two non-ML algorithms (ordinary least squares regression and spatial filtering regression). None of the ML algorithms produced residuals that had lower mean values or were less autocorrelated over space compared with the non-ML approaches. We recommend the use of random forest when a soil variable of interest is weakly …

Just Doordash Erma, Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop

Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop Blog

The spring workshop is sold out, but it's not too late for writers to experience the conference's special blend of joy and laughter, support and inspiration. For those who won’t be able to make the creative pilgrimage to Erma Bombeck’s alma mater, we're offering Erma Home Schooling.

Who's Publishing What: The Weight We Carry, Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop

Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop Blog

Christina Consolino's newest novel, The Weight We Carry, "reminds us of the fine line between reliance and independence, tending and mothering, and love and obligation."

Nativities On Demand!, Michele Jennings

Marian Library Blog Archive

Live too far to visit this year’s crèche exhibit? With the Nativities and the Natural World audio tour, you can still enjoy it.

The Fourth Week Of Advent: Printable Coloring Activities, Ann Zlotnik

Marian Library Blog Archive

You and your family and friends will love these coloring sheets and printable crafts including a make-your-own poinsettia ornament.

A Christmas Message Of Peace, Eric F. Spina

President's Blog: From the Heart

"Let us not just yearn for peace this Christmas season, but take on the mantle of peacemakers who work to transform our world through love," University of Dayton President Eric F. Spina wrote in his Christmas message to the campus community.