Digital Commons Network^™

A Virtual-Reality-Based Dental Simulator For Endodontics With Automated Formative Feedback, Yousef Salah Abo El Ela

Theses and Dissertations

Advancements in virtual reality (VR) and haptic technology are transforming the landscape of medical and dental education, offering new avenues for safe, immersive, and repeatable training experiences. Within dentistry, endodontics presents unique challenges for preclinical education due to anatomical complexity, limited access to extracted teeth, ethical concerns, and the shortcomings of conventional plastic models. Despite endodontics specific plastic teeth being available, they fall short of replicating the hardness of real extracted teeth, are relatively costly compared to generic plastic teeth, and are ultimately a disposable item which makes them inadequate as a sustainable long-term solution. Extracted teeth do a much …

Reachability In Interactive Chemical Reaction Networks, Aberto Avila-Jimenez, Bin Fu, Elise Grizzell, Robert Schweller, Tim Wylie

Computer Science Faculty Publications

This paper studies the effects of interactivity on molecular computation, specifically in the Step Chemical Reaction Networks model (Step CRNs), by adding the ability for a user to interact with the system by selecting which species to add at each step, or by having some control over which reactions execute. The two proposed variants are Interactive CRNs and Randomized Interactive CRNs. We show that in Interactive CRNs, even when restricted to void (deletion-only) rules of relatively small size, if a user can decide which species to add at each step based on the configuration, reachability is PSPACE-complete when bounded and …

Geometric Modeling Through Multiple Implicit Functions, Yiwen Ju

McKelvey School of Engineering Graduate Student Theses & Dissertations

Implicit representations have become a dominant paradigm in computational settings ranging from learning-based geometry generation to advanced manufacturing. While treating geometry as the level set of a black-box function provides significant modeling flexibility, converting these representations into explicit surface meshes remains a major challenge. Standard volumetric extraction methods are fundamentally designed for smooth manifolds and therefore struggle to capture sharp geometric features such as creases, corners, and non-manifold junctions that are critical for high-fidelity industrial design and engineering tasks. Many of these intricate features arise from modeling multiple implicit functions. Examples include Constructive Solid Geometry (CSG), material interfaces, and more …

A High-Resolution Daily Precipitation Fusion Framework Integrating Radar, Satellite, And Nwp Data Using Machine Learning Over South Korea, Hyoju Park, Hiroyuki Miyazaki, Menas Kafatos, Seung Hee Kim, Yangwon Lee

Institute for ECHO Articles and Research

Accurate precipitation mapping is essential for effective disaster management; however, individual radar, satellite, and numerical weather prediction products often struggle in the topographically complex terrain of South Korea. This study proposes a high-resolution (~500 m) daily precipitation fusion framework that integrates Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) radar, Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Integrated Multi-Satellite Retrievals for GPM (IMERG), and Local Data Assimilation and Prediction System (LDAPS) data. The framework employs a Random Forest model augmented with a monthly Empirical Cumulative Distribution Function (ECDF) correction. Auxiliary predictors are incorporated to enhance physical interpretability and stability, including terrain attributes to represent orographic effects, land-cover …

Use Of Electrocardiograms To Identify Coronary Artery Disease: Cross-Validation Of An Artificial Intelligence Model, Michael Leasure, Indu Poornima, Adam Butchy, Utkars Jain, Devin Vasoya, Michael Warnick, Brent Williams, John Rehder, Prahlad Menon, Veronica A. Covalesky, Gary S. Mintz

Department of Medicine Faculty Papers

BACKGROUND: The current gold standard for the diagnosis of coronary artery disease (CAD) is invasive angiography; however, it is an invasive procedure. Therefore, we developed an artificial intelligence model designed to predict significant CAD from a resting digital 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG).

OBJECTIVES: This retrospective study assessed the model's ability to predict clinically significant CAD in a patient population presenting for coronary angiography.

METHODS: From 2019 to 2021, 16,476 patients had a resting 12-lead digital ECG recorded within 90 days prior to coronary angiography. The artificial intelligence model was developed using 10-fold cross-validation methodology. Clinically significant disease was defined as angiographic …

Artificial Intelligence In Higher Education, Opportunities, And Challenges: A Review, Sharifa Alblooshi

All Works

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a growing force of change in higher education, providing assistance to students, teachers, and administrators in teaching, learning, and administration. As AI technologies advance rapidly, they present a combination of significant opportunities and complex challenges. In this study, we examine the role of AI in higher education, highlighting both its positive and negative impacts, as well as current policy gaps and issues arising from its deployment. The literature on the topic was reviewed to determine how AI decisively impacts teaching and learning, the role of AI in assessments and academic integrity, as well as ethics, psychological …

From Latent Manifolds To Targeted Molecular Probes: An Interpretable, Kinome-Scale Generative Machine Learning Framework For Family-Based Kinase Ligand Design, Gennady M. Verkhivker, Ryan Kassab, Keerthi Krishnan

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Scaffold-aware artificial intelligence (AI) models enable systematic exploration of chemical space conditioned on protein-interacting ligands, yet the representational principles governing their behavior remain poorly understood. The computational representation of structurally complex kinase small molecules remains a formidable challenge due to the high conservation of ATP active site architecture across the kinome and the topological complexity of structural scaffolds in current generative AI frameworks. In this study, we present a diagnostic, modular and chemistry-first generative framework for design of targeted SRC kinase ligands by integrating ChemVAE-based latent space modeling, a chemically interpretable structural similarity metric (Kinase Likelihood Score), Bayesian optimization, and …

Clustering Of Temporal And Visual Data: Recent Advancements, Priyanka Mudgal

Computer Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

Clustering plays a central role in uncovering latent structure within both temporal and visual data. It enables critical insights in various domains including healthcare, finance, surveillance, autonomous systems, and many more. With the growing volume and complexity of time-series and image-based datasets, there is an increasing demand for robust, flexible, and scalable clustering algorithms. Although these modalities differ—time-series being inherently sequential and vision data being spatial—they exhibit common challenges such as high dimensionality, noise, variability in alignment and scale, and the need for interpretable groupings. This survey presents a comprehensive review of recent advancements in clustering methods that are adaptable …

Mapping Post-Rainfall Recovery In Arid Regions Using A Hierarchical U-Net, Xin Hong

All Works

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) experienced an extreme rainfall event between April 15 and 17, 2024, and that resulted in severe flooding in its coastal regions. Dubai was among the most affected regions. This study applies a hierarchical deep learning model on PlanetScope imagery to detect flood inundation, quantify flood extent by land cover, and examine short-term recovery dynamics. While earlier work detailed the methodological development of a hierarchical U-Net model (Hong et al., in press), here we emphasize its application for monitoring resilience trajectories in an arid urban environment. Results show that approximately 22 km² of land was …

Assessing Urban Flooding And Vegetation Impact In Dubai Creek Following The April 2024 Extreme Rainfall, Dana Alhammadi, Xin Hong

All Works

During April 2024, the United Arab Emirates experienced an unusual phenomenon of an intense rainfall episode between April 14 and 18 that resulted in massive flooding in urban environments, particularly low-lying areas such as Dubai Creek. As a tidal waterway with dense urban development and environmentally sensitive zones surrounding it, Dubai Creek is an ideal site for assessing environmental changes caused by to floods. The study employed pre-flood (14 April) and post-flood (18 April) high-resolution PlanetScope satellite images, in combination with QGIS analysis, to evaluate vegetation health and surface water changes. Quantification of affected areas from flooding was achieved through …

Mapping Urban Vegetation Changes Using Planetscope Imagery And Gis: A Case Study Of The 2024 Dubai Flood, Sumayya Almansoori, Xin Hong

All Works

In April 2024, unexpected heavy rainfall triggered one of the most severe flooding events in Dubai’s recent history, causing widespread concern for urban infrastructure and green spaces. This study evaluates the flood’s impact on urban vegetation in South Dubai using high-resolution PlanetScope satellite imagery and the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI). Vegetation conditions before and after the flood (April 14 and April 18–19, 2024) were quantified and compared using NDVI analysis within QGIS to assess changes in vegetation health and coverage. Results indicate significant declines in vegetation health in areas dominated by intensive turf management, such as Damac Hills and …

Generative Ai Use And Self-Learning In Higher Education: The Role Of Learning Difficulties, Dana Saleh, Areej Elsayary

All Works

The rapid development of GenAI tools and their adoption in education have shown promising potential to personalize learning experiences. However, their effectiveness is influenced by factors such as familiarity, frequency of use, and the impact on self-learning. This study investigates the undergraduate students' familiarity with Generative AI (GenAI) tools, their frequency of use, and the perceived impact of GenAI on self-learning, with particular consideration of differences between students with and without learning difficulties. Prompt engineering is also included as a secondary aspect of students' GenAI experience. The research employed a quantitative survey design, utilizing validated scales to measure familiarity, usage …

Integrating Adversarial Scenarios Into Llm Security Labs: An Experience Report On A Hands-On Approach, Dominic A. Wilson

Journal of Cybersecurity Education, Research and Practice

This paper presents an exploratory case study detailed as a pedagogical experience report on integrating adversarial Large Language Model (LLM) scenarios into a graduate cybersecurity curriculum. In addition to prompt injection, sophisticated techniques such as jailbreaking and model inversion pose emerging threats that traditional computer security curricula often lack. We present the design and implementation of a structured, hands-on module addressing this gap, utilizing a custom Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) platform with local open-source LLMs. A cohort of 16 graduate students participated in this two-week pilot module, engaging in "red team" activities to actively exploit model alignment and privacy vulnerabilities. The …

Agentic Intelligence Under Constraint: Energy, Context, And The Expansion Of Exchange, Nick Loghmani

iSchool - All Scholarship

Recent advances in agentic artificial intelligence have been driven primarily by scale: larger models, increased data, and expanding computational resources. However, rising energy costs, inference latency, and hardware constraints increasingly challenge this trajectory. This paper argues that intelligence—biological or artificial—does not primarily scale through raw computational expansion, but through the management of exchange under constraint. Drawing on cognitive science, systems theory, and prior work on exchange-based models of intelligence, the paper proposes a theoretical framework in which agentic intelligence scales through context management, proceduralization, and the assembly of reusable units of exchange. Unlike approaches that focus solely on model compression …

Ai-Driven Automatic Fault Detection Systems: Revolutionizing Modern Smart Grids, Aravind Sanikommu

Student Theses and Dissertations

The increasing complexity of current power systems, resulting from the integration of distributed generators and renewable energy sources, necessitates intelligent and adaptive fault detection schemes. Traditional protection using impedance and phasor analysis is usually weak when operating in nonlinear and transient operating conditions. Consequently, the tools of Data-driven fault classification and decision-making have gained strength under artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to improve grid reliability. This thesis is a proposal of an automatic fault detection and classification system based on AI applied to a smart mini-grid setting built in MATLAB/Simulink. A complete set of voltage and current data …

Developing A Multimodal Approach To Channel Characterization On Youtube, Shadi Shajari

Theses and Dissertations

YouTube has become a dominant arena for global information sharing, where creators and audiences interact through content, comments, and engagement dynamics. Understanding how these interactions shape a channel’s identity requires a comprehensive characterization of both audience behavior and content structure. This dissertation develops a unified framework for characterizing YouTube channels through multimodal analysis that integrates behavioral modeling, dimensionality reduction, clustering, and content-based characterization to provide a holistic view of audience and editorial patterns. The framework begins by analyzing the structural relationships within co-commenter networks, where users who repeatedly comment on the same videos are connected to capture patterns of interaction …

Identifying And Overcoming Some Operational Limitations Of Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces In 5g And Beyond Wireless Networks, Souvik Deb

Doctoral Theses

Reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RIS) can dynamically reshape the propagation environment to enhance signal strength, spectral efficiency and reliability in 5th generation (5G) cellular as well as device to device (D2D) communications. However, to reap such benefits, a range of practical and operational challenges need to be addressed for effectively utilizing RIS in realistic urban environments. This includes maintaining line of sight (LoS) between the RIS and the communicating devices for reliable signal reflection in millimeter wave (mmWave) communication, reducing high channel estimation overhead for communication using multipath rich channels and preventing violation of strict latency constraints due to high complexity …

Oer Review For Open Programming: Java I - Creating An Oer Textbook For Programming Fundamentals, Peter Arsenault

Open Educational Resources Publications

This report describes the creation and implementation of a seven‑chapter Open Educational Resource (OER) for Bentley University’s CS 180 – Programming Fundamentals course, developed from the author’s teaching notes, custom examples, and course materials from Fall 2024. The project aimed to provide current, accessible, digital‑first learning resources aligned with modern programming tools, supported by generative‑AI editing in NotebookLM and open‑source formatting tools such as pandoc and Marp. Implemented during Fall 2025, the OER received highly positive student feedback, particularly regarding its clarity, accessibility, and cost savings, and it is slated for further refinement—including updates for Java 25, expanded examples, and …

Significance, Challenges, And Policy Recommendations For Strengthening Database Development To Support Ai For Science In China, Kaihua Chen, Hongxin Liu, Rui Guo

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

With the rapid emergence of research intelligence driven by big data and artificial intelligence (AI), high-quality, openly shared scientific databases have become a strategic focal point for scientific innovation and enhancing technological competitiveness. Major countries around the world are increasingly recognizing the foundational role of scientific databases in advancing basic research. While continuously strengthening their own scientific data infrastructure through a series of initiatives, they have simultaneously imposed restrictions and suppression on the development of AI technologies in China, including those involving research data. Against this backdrop, building an autonomous and controllable scientific data ecosystem to support research intelligence is …

Data Altruism: Eu Solution And Path Of Localization In China, Teng Wu

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

Data altruism transcends the profit-seeking, monopolistic and competitive nature of the market mechanism. It is driven by innovation and encourages data subjects and holders to share information guided by the public interest. As a new type of data application and service model, it aims to achieve a virtuous cycle of the data ecosystem while optimize the utilization of data resources. Tracing back to the source, the theoretical foundation of data altruism from the ethical theory of altruism, and the concept of its budding was supported by the data for good. Analysis shows that the specific scheme of the EU data …

Evaluating Corruption Defenses On Learning Adversarial Robustness, Roland Yang, Akhil Kanthamneni

Journal of the South Carolina Academy of Science

No abstract provided.

3d Object Tracking Registration Based On Improved Rbot Method, Jiarui Zhou, Haihua Cui, Pengcheng Li, Shihao Gu, Huipu Hao, Xifu Zhao, Anan Zhao, Tao Jiang

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: To address the limitations of region-based object tracking (RBOT) in handling isotropic objects and scenarios with similar foreground-background colors, an improved method integrating edge features is proposed. The approach employs edge detection to extract object contours and designs a region segmentation strategy incorporated into an energy function framework to optimize internal line and edge consistency, thereby enhancing adaptability in dynamic environments and improving pose estimation accuracy. Validation through augmented reality assembly experiments on an aero-engine demonstrates that the proposed method effectively reduces rotational and translational errors, achieving initialization deviations of less than 1.5° and 0.5%, respectively. For static …

3d Reconstruction For Stadium Cad Drawings Based On Graphic Element Arrangement Pattern Analysis, Shang Ma, Mengyu Zhang, Lan Zhang, Gang Yang

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: To address the issue of the time-consuming and labor-intensive manual conversion of two-dimensional CAD design drawings of buildings into three-dimensional models, and leveraging the characteristic that stadiums contain a large number of repetitively and regularly arranged objects, this study proposes a similar graphical element detection algorithm. This algorithm detects similarities between graphical elements by constructing their bounding boxes and calculating the L2-Norm distance, identifying all graphical elements of the same type within the CAD drawing. Furthermore, a transformation sequence detection algorithm is proposed. Based on the geometric transformation relationships between graphical elements, a geometric transformation space is defined. By …

Visual Relocalization Method Combining Region Classification And Local Feature Enhancement, Yining Wang, Yanli Liu, Guanyu Xing

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: Visual relocalization tasks have important application value in fields such as digital twin and augmented reality. The current mainstream methods still face challenges such as mismatch between coordinate regression scale and receptive field and insufficient attention to local information. A visual relocalization method that combines region classification and local feature enhancement is proposed. The coordinate regression problem in large space is transformed into a multi-region classification problem and a coordinate regression problem inside a small scene, which significantly reduces the uncertainty of coordinate regression and makes the network globally have a large receptive field. A conditioning layer using deep …

Diffusion Model For Human Motion Generation With Fine-Grained Text And Spatial Control Signals, Binze Jiang, Wenfeng Song, Xia Hou, Shuai Li

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: To improve the accuracy, controllability, and realism of text-driven human motion generation, a novel method is proposed that integrates fine-grained textual semantics with spatial control signals. Within the diffusion model framework, both global text tokens and body-part-level local tokens are introduced. These are encoded using CLIP to obtain corresponding features, which are then fed into the motion diffusion model to enable fine control over different body parts. Spatial guidance is used to dynamically adjust joint positions during the diffusion denoising process, ensuring that the generated motion adheres to spatial constraints. Realism guidance is incorporated to enhance the naturalness and …

Virtual Reality Rehabilitation Training System Based On Multimodal Brain-Computer Interface, Jing Qu, Kaining Fang, Shantong Zhu, Lingguo Bu

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: The aging population has led to an increasing demand for rehabilitation for cognitive and motor functions. In response to the lack of interest in traditional rehabilitation and the absence of objective physiological assessment in existing virtual reality (VR) rehabilitation systems, a VR rehabilitation training system based on multimodal brain computer interface is developed by integrating VR interaction, near-infrared brain functional imaging, and motion capture technology. An immersive cognitive-motor integrated training environment was constructed to guide users in completing upper limb tasks. By recruiting subjects and synchronously collecting brain network data and Kinect upper limb motion parameters, multimodal assessment …

Defect Detection Method Based On Hierarchical Microscopic Feature Modeling And Simulation, Jing Zou, Xu Tan, Junji Mao, Haidong Gao, Jianrong Tan

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: To address the challenge of detecting small and low-contrast defects in complex microscopic images, a defect method technology based on hierarchical microscopic feature modeling and simulation is proposed. The method is built on the RT-DETR (real-time detection transformer)framework to construct the HM-RTDETR (hierarchical microscopic RT-DETR) model. It maintains the global feature modeling ability of the Transformer and introduces a Dense O2O-Mosaic, a high-density one-to-one Mosaic augmentation strategy, to increase supervision density for small samples. A depthwise separable convolution (DWConv) module is used to enhance local detail extraction in microscopic textures, and a learnable PatchExpand module is applied …

Material Reconstruction From Single Image Combining Neural Networks With Singular Value Decomposition, Zhiqiang Li, Xukun Shen, Yong Hu, Xueyang Zhou, Yifan Chen

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: The tabulated BRDFs (bidirectional reflectance distribution function) can realistically reproduce the surface appearance of objects. However, due to their high-dimensional characteristics and the fact that a single planar image contains limited reflectance information and small differences, methods for estimating tabulated BRDFs typically require complex equipment or the capture of multiple images. To address this issue, a method is proposed for reconstructing material properties from a single image by combining neural networks with singular value decomposition. The singular value decomposition is introduced to compress the material into a lower-dimensional space. The task of solving the tabulated BRDFs is simplified to …

Full-Body Co-Speech Gesture Generation Based On Spatial-Temporal Enhanced Generation Model, Shuozhe Zhang, Wenfeng Song, Xia Hou, Shuai Li

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: Full-body co-speech gesture generation significantly enhances the interactivity of virtual digital humans, requiring generated gestures to not only align accurately with speech but also demonstrate realistic full-body dynamics. To address limitations of existing methods—Transformer-based approaches often overlook temporal features of action sequences, while diffusion model-based ones inadequately capture spatial correlations between body parts, a full-body action generation method integrating diffusion models, Mamba, and attention mechanisms is proposed. We introduce the spatial self-attention-temporal state space model (STMamba Layer) as the core of denoising network to extract
inter-part spatial features and intra-part temporal features, thus enhancing action quality and diversity. …

Vrbt: Vr Badminton Training With Multitask Injury Alerts Based On Lightweight 3d Skeletal Reconstruction, Yuning Zhu, Meng Yang, Tianyue Chen, Weiliang Meng

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: To overcome the limitations of traditional badminton training, a VR training method that integrates multiple models for collaborative simulation is proposed. A "perception-decision- interaction" framework is developed within Unity, featuring diverse training modules powered by a physics engine for realistic trajectory simulation. The system employs a lightweight MHFormer for 3D pose estimation and a novel multi-task model (enhanced injury prediction system, EIPS) that combines random forest and XGBoost to jointly assess injury risk. This approach offers a solution for balancing real-time performance with accuracy in skeleton reconstruction and enables personalized training through dynamic risk assessment.