Digital Commons Network^™

Portrait Shadow Removal Via Self-Exemplar Illumination Equalization, Qian Huang, Cheng Xu, Guiqing Li, Ziheng Wu, Shengxin Liu, Shengfeng He

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

We introduce the Self-Exemplar Illumination Equalization Network, designed specifically for effective portrait shadow removal. The core idea of our method is that partially shadowed portraits can find ideal exemplars within their non-shadowed facial regions. Rather than directly fusing two distinct classes of facial features, our approach utilizes non-shadowed regions as an illumination indicator to equalize the shadowed regions, generating deshadowed results without boundary-merging artifacts. Our network comprises cascaded Self-Exemplar Illumination Equalization Blocks (SExmBlock), each containing two modules: a self-exemplar feature matching module and a feature-level illumination rectification module. The former identifies and applies internal illumination exemplars to shadowed areas, producing …

Who You Explain To Matters: Learning By Explaining To Conversational Agents With Different Pedagogical Roles, Zhengtao Xu, Junti Zhang, Anthony Tang, Yi-Chieh Lee

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Conversational agents are increasingly used in education for learning support. An application is “learning by explaining”, where learners explain their understanding to an agent. However, existing research focuses on single roles, leaving it unclear how different pedagogical roles influence learners’ interaction patterns, learning outcomes and experiences. We conducted a between-subjects study (N=96) comparing agents with three pedagogical roles (Tutee, Peer, Challenger) and a control condition while learning an economics concept. We found that different pedagogical roles shaped learning dynamics, including interaction patterns and experiences. Specifically, the Tutee agent elicited the most cognitive investment but led to high pressure. The Peer …

Short-Term Electricity Price Forecasting With Constrained Regressors, Mucun Sun, Li Zhang, Yifeng Gao

Computer Science Faculty Publications

The volatility of electricity price presents a challenge to market participants as their decision-making process are highly depend on the accuracy of price forecasts. However, there is growing empirical evidence of increasing price volatility and price spikes in electricity markets as a result of variable renewable energy generation, extreme weather events, and other factors. The distribution shift caused by spikes in electricity price data differentiates the forecasting tasks from other renewable energy sources. Moreover, the observations may be compromised by cyberattacks and thus not available in the testing phase. To this end, we propose a Similarity-Enhanced Electricity Decomposition Forecasting model …

Rethinking News Classification Through A Multi-Dimensional Framework, Luana De Jesus Ferreira

Honors Theses

This thesis proposes a multi-dimensional framework for news classification that evaluates articles across three independent dimensions: headline accuracy, language neutrality, and content reliability. These dimensions produce both a continuous reliability score and a five-tier interpretive scale, while additionally classifying articles by genre and topic. To operationalize this framework, a structured annotation protocol was developed and applied to a dataset of 373 news articles drawn from 79 outlets spanning a wide range of contemporary media ecosystem. A binary Logistic Regression classifier trained on the ISOT Fake News Dataset was then evaluated against this dataset to examine how a model trained on …

Saturated Hierarchical Atomic Incremental Learning (Shail): A Behavioral Learning Perspective On Staged Mastery And Saturation, Ernest Fokoue

Articles

We introduce Saturated Hierarchical Atomic Incremental Learning (sHAIL), a learning paradigm in which complex tasks are approached through a sequence of simpler atomic subtasks, each mastered to saturation before progression. The central mechanism is a saturation criterion that detects when learning dynamics enter a plateau region, triggering consolidation and subsequent ascent to a higher level of task complexity. We develop a theoretical framework for sHAIL and show that it naturally gives rise to \emph{staircased convergence}: alternating phases of rapid improvement and genuine plateau. Within each level, classical convergence guarantees apply under standard smoothness conditions, while the hierarchical transitions are driven …

No Intelligence Without Statistics: The Invisible Backbone Of Artificial Intelligence, Ernest Fokoue

Articles

The rapid ascent of artificial intelligence (AI) is often portrayed as a revolution born from computer science and engineering. This narrative, however, obscures a fundamental truth: the theoretical and methodological core of AI is, and has always been, statistical. This paper systematically argues that the field of statistics provides the indispensable foundation for machine learning and modern AI. We deconstruct AI into nine foundational pillars—Inference, Density Estimation, Sequential Learning, Generalization, Representation Learning, Interpretability, Causality, Optimization, and Unification—demonstrating that each is built upon century-old statistical principles. From the inferential frameworks of hypothesis testing and estimation that underpin model evaluation, to the …

Exact Soliton Solutions Of The Nonlinear Time-Fractional Schrödinger Equation Via Atangana–Baleanu And M-Truncated Operators, Bahadır Kopçasiz, Fatma Nur Kaya Sağlam, Mehmet Şenol

Mathematical Modelling and Numerical Simulation with Applications

The main objective of this work is to obtain exact soliton solutions for a nonlinear time-fractional equation model describing wave profiles arising in various physical systems. To derive different wave structures associated with the considered model, two analytical techniques are employed: the extended G'\G^2-expansion method and the modified auxiliary equation (MAE) approach. A wave transformation is applied to reduce the nonlinear time-fractional equation to a nonlinear ordinary differential equation (NLODE) by means of the M-truncated and Atangana-Baleanu (AB) fractional operators. Several classes of solutions, including exponential, hyperbolic, and trigonometric wave forms, are obtained. Over and above the analytical results, graphical …

Emergent Operator Logic: A Foundational Framework For Dynamic Reasoning And Generative Intelligence, Mona Gharib, Abduallah Gamal, Muhammad Nawaz, Basma Nasir

Neutrosophic Systems with Applications

This paper introduces Emergent Operator Logic (EOL), a framework that treats propositions as continuous operators $F_p:X \rightarrow X$ on a complete metric state space $( X,d )$ and evaluates truth after action via a continuous valuation $V:X \rightarrow [ 0,1 ]$. Logical composition is realized by three operator-level connectives: sequential $p \circ q$(causal order), parallel $p\parallel q$(1-Lipschitz cooperative blend), and the emergent synthesis $E( p,q ) = \frac12( F_p \circ F_q + F_q \circ F_p )$, which symmetrizes non-commuting actions. We provide a Hilbert-style proof system (sound), an algebraic semantics via E-algebras, and show that the category of E-algebras is …

Markov-Modulated Queueing Network For Mobile Traffic Aggregation With Threshold-Controlled Buffers, Anton A. Esin, Elmira Yu. Kalimulina

Mathematical Modelling and Numerical Simulation with Applications

We study the problem of data transmission from mobile platforms operating in high-speed transit between cellular base stations, under conditions of unstable and intermittent connectivity. Conventional queueing and connectivity models often fail to capture the combined effects of rapidly changing signal conditions, finite buffer capacity, and dynamic topology. We aim to develop a tractable yet expressive model that integrates stochastic link availability, queue dynamics, and buffer control. We propose a mathematical framework based on queues whose service intensities are modulated by a continuous-time Markov chain (CTMC) representing signal conditions along a high-speed trajectory. The core subsystem is a two-stage (aggregation …

Quantum Indiscernibility And Perspectivalism, Emily Adlam

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

It has often been suggested that similar quantum particles may be a counterexample to the principle of the Identity of Indiscernibles. In this article, I discuss the status of indiscernibility in a perspectival approach to quantum mechanics. I argue that adopting an internal physical perspective can have the effect of making entities discernible even if they are not discernible relative to external reference frames, and thus perspectivalism offers a new way to understand the physical meaning of weak discernibility. I discuss whether this approach is circular, and I consider whether the reference frames involved are physically meaningful. I conclude that …

Quantum Superpositions Of Conscious States In A Minimal Integrated Information Model, Kelvin J. Mcqueen, Ian T. Durham, Markus P. Müller

Philosophy Faculty Articles and Research

Could there be quantum superpositions of conscious states, as suggested by the Wigner’s friend thought experiment? Mathematical theories of consciousness, notably integrated information theory (IIT), make this question more precise by associating physical systems with both quantitative amounts of consciousness and structural characterizations of conscious states. Motivated by a recent proposal that ties wave-function collapse to integrated information, we construct a simple quantum circuit that would, on that proposal, place a minimal system—a feedback dyad—into a superposition of states that differ in their associated conscious states. This “Schrödinger’s dyad” provides a controlled setting for evaluating a central desideratum of consciousness-based …

Non-Hermitian Sl (3, C) Three-Mode Couplers, B. M. Rodríguez-Lara, Hamed Ghaemi-Dizicheh, Shahram Dehdashti, Andreas Hanke, Ahmed Touhami, J. Nötzel

Physics & Astronomy Faculty Publications

Photonic systems with exceptional points, where eigenvalues and corresponding eigenstates coalesce, have attracted interest due to their topological features and enhanced sensitivity to external perturbations. Non-Hermitian mode-coupling matrices provide a tractable analytic framework to model gain, loss, and chirality across optical, electronic, and mechanical platforms without the complexity of full open-system dynamics. Exceptional points define their spectral topology, and enable applications in mode control, amplification, and sensing. Yet N -mode couplers, the minimal setting for N th-order exceptional points, are often studied in specific designs that overlook their algebraic structure. We introduce a general sl(N , C) framework for arbitrary …

A Systematic Review Of Mathematical Interpretations Of The Weton Marriage Tradition Within Islamic Cultural Contexts, Ratna Damayanti, Surya Sari Faradiba

Jurnal Pendidikan Sains

This study is grounded in the limited integration of mathematics, culture, and religion within academic discussions of local traditions, particularly the weton marriage calculation practice. It aims to explore the mathematical concepts embedded in weton calculations and to analyse these practices from an Islamic law perspective within an interdisciplinary framework. The study employs a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) method following the six-stage PRISMA 2020 protocol, including the formulation of research questions, development of a search strategy, application of inclusion and exclusion criteria, study selection, quality assessment, and thematic synthesis. Data were collected from Google Scholar and Garuda using the keywords …

The Blurred Boundaries Of Care: A Qualitative Analysis Of Nurse-Doula Role Conflict, Curisa Mae Tucker Phd, Rn, Maria Mcclam, Kelly Russin Dnp, Rnc-Ob, Chse, Nansi Boghossian, Rachel Gulczinski, Lauren Workman

Faculty Publications

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Chemical Design Strategies For Hybrid Metal Halide Semiconductors With Enhanced Stability And Optoelectronic Properties, Ali Azmy

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Metal halide semiconductors have rejuvenated the attention of the scientific community for the last two decades owing to their photophysical and electronic properties. However, these materials have some limitations that hinder their commercialization and widespread application. One major limitation of these materials is their instability under ambient and operating conditions of moisture, head, light and radiation exposure. Here, we report multiple chemical design strategies to address the stability issues of these materials while simultaneously maintaining their exceptional optoelectronic properties. Such design strategies allowed the acquisition of the first members of the family of porous metal halide semiconductors which exhibit record …

Geospatial Understanding Of Foundation Models: Self-Supervision, Robustness, And Resource-Constrained Learning, Gilbert Kibet Rotich

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Research on large-scale geospatial understanding from satellite imagery remains relativelyunderexplored. Much of the field still relies on narrow, task-specific pipelines, and there is lim- ited work on developing true foundation models or on systematically evaluating how well these models generalize under domain shift, geographic variation, and real-world scene diversity. This dissertation advances foundation-model pretraining and evaluation for remote sensing along three complementary axes. First, we develop self-supervised multispectral pretrained models for satellite image classification by adapting BYOL, BarlowTwins, DINO, MoCo, and Simsiam to multispectral inputs, addressing the limited amount of curated satellite datasets relative to ImageNet. Pretraining on Eurosat and …

Curriculum For A Two Semester Calculus Course Specializing In Life Science And Data Science, Patrick Mcclain

LSU Master's Theses

Traditionally, introductory calculus has been designed for engineering and physics students, often leaving students majoring in data science or life sciences with a curriculum that lacks professional relevance and is overly reliant on problems that focus on computational fluency. This thesis proposes a two-semester sequence, called MATH 153X and MATH 154X, specifically tailored for the Louisiana State University (LSU) Dual Enrollment program and university-level data science and life sciences majors. By integrating modern computational tools—such as symbolic calculators and artificial intelligence (AI) tools—the proposed curriculum shifts the pedagogical focus from procedural symbolic manipulation toward conceptual literacy.

Through a series …

The Reform Of Prior Appropriation And The Fate Of Great Salt Lake, Christopher L. Lant, Rocky Seeley, Beth Parker, Andrew Follett

Spring Runoff Conference

Legal Issues Raised by the Decline of Great Salt Lake

• Violations of Clean Air Act from dust threaten federal intervention
• Petition to list Wilson’s Phalarope as an endangered species

An Experimental Study On The Mechanical Property Evolution Of Granites Post-High-Temperature Treatment Under Loading And Unloading Conditions, Hao Wencai, Qiao Wei, Liu Huichen, Zhu Zhennan, Wang Hao, Liu Richeng, Guo Jie, Xie Jingyu, Cheng Xianggang, Lyu Ruijie

Coal Geology & Exploration

Objective The surrounding rocks of wellbores remain in a state of stress release during the drilling and heat extraction of deep geothermal reservoirs. Therefore, investigating the characteristic stresses of heat-treated granites under loading and unloading conditions is critical to understanding the crack evolution in deep hot dry rock (HDR) reservoirs during their stimulation. Methods Targeting the granite specimens after heat treatment at varying high temperatures (e.g., 200 ℃, 300 ℃, 400 ℃, 500 ℃, and 600 ℃), this study conducted triaxial loading and unloading tests under a confining pressure of 60 MPa, aiming to investigate the impacts of high temperature …

Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit Final Butte Hill Revegetation Specifications, Mike Mcanulty

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

Marine Vehicle Dynamics Using Koopman Operator Theory With Hybrid Observables, Mikhalib A L Green

LSU Master's Theses

Accurate modeling of marine vehicle dynamics remains challenging due to strong nonlinear hydrodynamic effects, environmental disturbances, and sensitivity to configuration changes, particularly for small-scale platforms. Classical physics-based models require extensive parameter identification and often exhibit degraded performance outside narrow operating regimes, while purely data-driven approaches may lack structure or impose high computational cost. This thesis presents a data-driven Koopman operator framework with hybrid observables for modeling the dynamics of unmanned marine vehicles. The proposed approach combines structured monomial observables with a learned neural network embedding to construct a lifted state representation in which the nonlinear vehicle dynamics are approximated by …

Best Integrated Writing Spring 2026 - Complete Edition, Wright State University School Of Humanities And Cultural Studies, Tracy Smith, Kristie Mckiernan

Best Integrated Writing

Best Integrated Writing includes excellent student writing from Integrated Writing courses taught at Wright State University.

Microstructural Evolution And Precipitate Control In Boron-Doped Ni-Mn-Ti Shape Memory Alloys Via Thermal Processing, Na Liu, Marcia Ahn, Subrata Ghosh, Dipika Mandal, Bed Poudel, Wenjie Li

Biochemistry, Chemistry & Physics: Faculty Publications

Elastocaloric cooling, which leverages stress-induced phase transformation in shape memory materials, represents a sustainable and energy-efficient alternative to conventional vapor-compression cooling systems. Central to optimizing these materials is understanding how thermal processing history dictates phase formation, microstructure, and thermal properties. In this study, we investigated the (Ni50Mn31.5Ti18)99.8B0.2 compound synthesized via vacuum induction melting and arc melting, followed by water quenching. Induction melting results in needle-like, boron-rich precipitates within the martensite lattice. In contrast, vacuum arc melting promoted precipitate growth at the grain boundaries. The vacuum arc melting sample exhibits ~82% martensite phase fraction, a near-ambient transformation temperature of ~277 K, …

Construction Of Emerging Contaminants Risk Governance System, Cheng Li, Mingcheng Wang, Chunlei Li

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

Emerging contaminants pose considerable risks to the ecological environment, human health, and social safety. The establishment of an emerging contaminants risk governance system constitutes a crucial component of the national ecological security strategy and the ecological civilization framework in the new era. When examined through the lens of the holistic view of national security and guided by the ecological civilization philosophy of the new era, China’s current efforts in managing emerging contaminants reveal several shortcomings—including a fragmented and incomplete risk management system, as well as preliminary stages in chemical environmental management policies and related technologies. Therefore, grounded in national conditions …

Institutional And Ideational Features Of Canadian-Us Fishery Management Networks: Connectivity, Coherence, And Collaboration, Owen Temby, Evelyn Roozee, Dongkyu Kim, Jasper R. De Vries, Derek A. Katznelson, Antonia Sohns, Gordon M. Hickey

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

This article examines fishery management along and across the Canadian-US border through the comparison of collaborative transboundary networks in four regions: the Salish Sea, the Great Lakes, the Gulf of Maine, and the northern region including the Gulf of Alaska and the Hecate Strait. Transnational fishery management is an inter-organizational and multi-jurisdictional enterprise constituted by shared understandings of a suite of tasks and by communications among the participants. We use survey data to summarize the inter-organizational scale and participation in the networks, the centrality of different organization types, the factors that contribute to network formation, other ideational network traits like …

Geochemistry Of The Upper Jurassic–Lower Cretaceous Limestone Of The Bilecik Formation In The Dümrek Area (Eskişehir, Western Central Anatolia): Implications For Depositional Environment And Paleotemperature, Asuman Kahya, Meti̇n Bağci

Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences

Upper Jurassic–Lower Cretaceous limestones of the Bilecik Formation are exposed near the village of Dümrek (Eskişehir Province) within the Sakarya Zone. Mineralogical analyses reveal that these limestones are predominantly composed of calcite and include intraclasts, fossil shell fragments, ooids, and peloids, cemented by sparry and micritic calcite. The U/Th, Ni/Co, V/(V+Ni), V/Cr, and Ce/Ce* ratios indicate that these carbonates were deposited in an oxic environment. Furthermore, the Mn/Sr ratios imply no diagenetic alteration, indicating preservation of the original geochemical signature. The PAAS-normalized REE+Y patterns of these limestones display depletion in light rare earth elements, a pronounced positive La anomaly (La/La* …

Integrated Dinsar And Hvsr Microtremor Analysis For Understanding Ground Deformation And Site Effects: Case Study Of The Bawean Earthquake (M6.5), Joshua Purba, Muhammad Fikri Hayqal Hiola, Ramadhan Priadi, Riska Yulinda, Iham Ilham, Rosa Amelia

Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences

This study investigates the seismic hazards of Bawean Island following a recent M6.5 earthquake using an integrated approach combining differential interferometric synthetic aperture radar (DInSAR) and horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratio (HVSR) methodologies. The DInSAR analysis revealed ground deformation characterized by subsidence up to 10 cm and uplift up to 8 cm, correlating with the region’s strike-slip fault dynamics. HVSR analysis provided insights into site amplification effects, identifying zones with low Vs30 values (153.77–454.72 m/s), high amplification factors (A0), and elevated seismic vulnerability index values (Kg). The dominant frequency (f0) on Bawean Island ranges from 0.64 to 17.76 Hz, with most areas …

Ai Dependency Vs. Doctoral Identity: How Generative Ai Is Challenging The Development Of Independent Scholarly Thinking In Doctoral Students, Valerie A. Storey

All Faculty and Staff Scholarship

The rise of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) in higher education has altered the conditions under which doctoral students learn, research, and develop as scholars. Although doctoral student use of GenAI has accelerated rapidly, institutional frameworks for responsible and developmentally appropriate use have not kept pace. This paper examines a central paradox in doctoral education: the same tools that enhance research productivity may also weaken intellectual independence when used without guidance. Using a critical review methodology, the study synthesizes 47 sources on doctoral education, GenAI use, policy, and epistemic development. Three interconnected dimensions of risk emerged from the analysis: critical thinking …

Three-Layer Cognitive Architecture: A Structural Account Of Core Processing, Modulation, And The Prior Layer, Griselda Poe

Publications and Research

The two-layer model of Core processing and Modulation processing, developed in prior work in this series, provides a structural account of conscious communicative architecture. This paper identifies the limits of that model and introduces a third layer—the Prior layer—as a structural necessity implied by those limits. The Prior layer is not directly observed. It is inferred from constraints that cannot be explained within the two-layer model: the source of orientations that conscious processing neither generates nor controls, and the persistence of constraints that precede and shape all conscious outputs. Using the developmental architecture of large language models as an external …

Structure Before Theory: A Structural Account Of Spontaneous Ai Architecture Visualization, Griselda Poe

Publications and Research

This paper presents an n=1 phenomenological record of spontaneous structural visualization that occurred during early interaction with large language models. The experience consisted of (A) immediate perception of mode or layer shifts in model output and (B) visualization of a stratified architecture composed of a stable core and cloud-like upper layers. At the time of occurrence, the author had no theoretical interest in AI architecture and no intention of developing a cognitive model. The paper does not argue for theoretical priority or novelty. Instead, it examines whether the recorded phenomena can be interpreted under two alternative cognitive assumptions: a single-layer …