Digital Commons Network^™

Re: Approval Letter For The 2024 Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit (Bpsou) Stormwater Evaluation And Maintenance Report (Dated April 8, 2026), Emma Rott

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

The Item Response Warehouse: What It Is, How To Use It, And Targets For Potential Improvements, Savira D. Nadela, Hansol Lee, Nishka Jain, Ayaan Gupta, Xingyi Zhang, Benjamin W. Domingue

Chinese/English Journal of Educational Measurement and Evaluation | 教育测量与评估双语期刊

The Item Response Warehouse (IRW) is a repository of harmonized item response datasets designed to support secondary analysis and methodological research in psychological and educational measurement. This paper serves as a practical guide for researchers interested in using the IRW. We describe the structure of IRW datasets and the quantitative and qualitative metadata available for dataset selection, and we demonstrate how researchers can navigate the IRW website to explore and compare available tables. We further show how the IRW R and Python packages can be used to filter datasets programmatically, download response-level data, and generate standardized citations for reproducible research …

Graph Theoretical Modeling Of Self-Assembling Dna Of The Double Cone Graph, Philiffe Tebalan, Evan Burns

Rose-Hulman Undergraduate Mathematics Journal

The unique properties of double-stranded DNA molecules make DNA a valuable structural material with which to form nanostructures, and the field of DNA nanotechnology is largely based on this premise. By modeling nanostructures with discrete graphs, efficient DNA self-assembly becomes a mathematical puzzle. These nanostructures have wide-ranging applications, such as containers for the transport and release of nano-cargos, templates for the controlled growth of nano-objects, and in drug-delivery methods. This research centers around exploring graph theoretical and combinatorial properties of DNA self-assembly to optimize the nanostructure construction for the Double Cone Graph.

Objections To The Use Of The Axiom Of Choice To Model The Physical World, Kensey Doughtie

Rose-Hulman Undergraduate Mathematics Journal

We look at platonistic mathematics and the application of this perspective in the physical world. We recognize paradoxes within Zermelo–Fraenkel set theory with the axiom of choice (ZFC) that conflict with physical reality, giving us reason to question if the axiom of choice should be so freely applied in theories of the physical world especially since it appears to enable a deterministic perspective. In theories of quantum physics, the axiom of choice is used to assume noncomputable numbers as initial conditions. This is equivalent to assuming a finite system contains an infinite amount of information at an instant in time; …

A Masked-Perturbation Model For Destabilization Security Games In Feedback Systems, Gabriel Michael Perry

Theses and Dissertations

In this thesis, we present a mathematical formulation for increasing cyberphysical system security. This model allows a system administrator to use assumptions about exposed signals to derive defense strategies meant to mitigate the system's vulnerability to feedback perturbation attacks. We begin with a survey of game theory with the goal of building the concepts of resource and security games. We then introduce our model, which is a security game; targets in this game are exposed signals in the model map of the system, and resources are perturbed or introduced dynamical relationships between these signals. This formulation, called the masked-perturbation model, …

Theoretical Expressivity Of Self-Attention As A Model Of Binary Sequence-To-Sequence Functions And Other Explorations, Dustin Angerhofer

Theses and Dissertations

The self-attention mechanism lies at the heart of modern sequential modeling with deep neural networks, especially in the context of Large Language Models (LLMs). The basic role of self-attention is to capture pairwise interactions between tokens in a sequence. This allows token embeddings to be endowed with context-dependent information before further processing. Despite its widespread use, our theoretical understanding of self-attention is still nascent. In this work, we examine self-attention as a model of binary sequence-to-sequence (seq2seq) functions, which is the simplest non-trivial case to analyze. We find, using VC dimension and the Sauer-Shelah lemma, that in the limit of …

The Lookahead Transformer, Justin P. Olcott

Theses and Dissertations

Large Language Models (LLMs) are transformer models that generate text autoregressively in two stages: prefill and decode. The prefill stage processes all input tokens in parallel and caches them into the KV cache. The decode stage uses the KV cache, processes a single token at a time, and is generally memory-bandwidth constrained. Each decode step generates a token probability distribution, samples from it, appends the token to the cache, and repeats. This left-to-right, one-at-a-time generation paradigm has proven effective for language modeling in many domains; however, it also has limitations such as token permanence, constant compute per token generation, constant …

Influence Of Precursor Synthesis Temperature And Hydrothermal Alkaline Medium On Agglomeration And Crystal Phase Of Barium Titanate Nanoparticles, Murat Özen

Turkish Journal of Chemistry

Phase‑pure, cube‑like barium titanate (BaTiO3) nanoparticles were synthesized via hydrothermal treatment of a single‑source barium-titanium peroxo-hydroxide precursor. Precursor solutions prepared at room temperature, 0 °C, and –10 °C with various storage times exhibited Ba/Ti molar ratios ranging from 0.66 to 1.05 as determined by X-ray fluorescence. Cooling the precursor solution to –10 °C effectively suppressed the polymerization of Ti-O-Ti, yielding near‑ideal stoichiometry and finer precursor particles. Subsequent hydrothermal processing in NH4OH, KOH, and NaOH (0.5–10 M, 100–200 °C) revealed the strong dependence of agglomeration and morphology on the alkaline medium. While NH4OH and KOH resulted in severe agglomeration and the …

Vanadium’S Journey From Essential Trace Metal To Emerging Environmental Pollutant In The Anthropocene Era, Tanu Arora, Nivedita Agnihotri, Mohammad Azam

Turkish Journal of Chemistry

Vanadium, previously considered a minor trace element, is gaining global environmental attention due to its expanding applications in metallurgy, energy storage, catalysis, and agriculture. With this rise in its industrial and technological uses, however, anthropogenic emissions of vanadium into the atmosphere, soils, and water bodies have also escalated. Unlike many heavy metals, vanadium exhibits complex redox behavior, primarily existing as V(IV) and V(V) species, which significantly impacts its environmental mobility, bioavailability, and toxicity. Vanadium exhibits complex behavior that necessitates an integrated research approach to better understand its various roles in scientific fields. This review summarizes the current knowledge on vanadium’s …

Computational And Experimental Analysis Of Oleanolic Acid As An Allosteric Activator Of Sirt1, Emrah Sariyer, Eda Dokumacioğlu, Hati̇ce İskender

Turkish Journal of Chemistry

Sirtuin 1 (SIRT1) is a member of the sirtuin protein family and the biological effects of SIRT1 encompass various areas such as the ageing process, metabolism regulation, and cellular stress response. SIRT1 activators are compounds that enhance the activity of SIRT1 enzyme. These activators can be natural or synthetic compounds and have the potential to provide health benefits by augmenting the biological effects of SIRT1. Oleanolic acid (OA) is a triterpenoid compound that has antiinflammatory, antioxidant, and glucose and lipid metabolism-regulating properties naturally found in many plants. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of OA …

Synthesis Of Werner- And Werner-Like-Type Clathrates, Their Characterization, And Theoretical Calculation Of Their Properties, Zari̇fe Si̇bel Şahi̇n, Zeki̇ Kartal

Turkish Journal of Chemistry

In this paper, the synthesis and structural characterization of three new coordination compounds in crystal structure consisting of a nickel atom, varying numbers of 3-aminopyridine molecules, and two isothiocyanate ion ligands are presented. The crystal structures of these compounds were determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction. Consequently, the explicit formulas and shorthand notations of the compounds are [Ni(NCS)2(C5H6N2)2(H2O)]·(H2O) (1), [Ni(NCS)2(C5H6N2)3]·(C2H6) (2), and [Ni(NCS)2(C5H6N2)4]·2(C5H6N2) (3). The consistency of the crystal structure data was confirmed by elemental analysis and infrared spectroscopy. These coordination compounds are Werner-like-type clathrates containing water, ethane, and 3-aminopyridine molecules as guest molecules in their structures, respectively. According to …

Templating Effect Of Neutral Dithiane Ligands On The Self-Assembly Of Cationic Au(I)-Phosphine Units, Farzane Osanlou, Abdollah Neshat, Mohammad Reza Yousefshahi, Vaclav Eigner, Michal Dusek, Shahram Seidi

Turkish Journal of Chemistry

The interactions between the dinuclear Au(I) precursor (dppm)Au2Cl2 and neutral sulfur-containing dithianes (specifically 1,3- and 1,4-dithiane) were examined in the presence of NH₄PF₆. Although these sulfur-based ligands were initially employed to facilitate the formation of mixed phosphine/sulfur Au(I) complexes, single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis revealed the unexpected generation of multinuclear Au(I) assemblies exclusively coordinated by phosphine ligands. When 1,3-dithiane was present, a trinuclear Au(I) complex was isolated, characterized by a central four-coordinate Au(I) center exhibiting a distorted see-saw geometry, flanked by two terminal Au(I) centers with T-shaped coordination environments. Importantly, the dithiane ligand did not coordinate directly to the gold centers …

Sensitive Stripping Voltammetric Determination Of An Anthracene–Isatin Schiff Base In Biological Samples, Gökçe Öztürk, İrem Gökgöz, Emi̇ne Arslan, Eli̇f Şi̇şman, İnci̇ Seli̇n Doğan, Di̇lek Kul, Fatma Ağin

Turkish Journal of Chemistry

​In the present study, the electrochemical behavior and quantitative determination of the Schiff base 3-[(anthracen-2-yl)imino]-5-nitro-1,3-dihydro-2H-indol-2-one (ANT) were investigated for the first time using voltammetric techniques at a glassy carbon electrode. The effects of solvent composition, pH, and scan rate on the redox behavior of ANT were systematically evaluated. The compound exhibited an irreversible oxidation process governed by adsorption-controlled kinetics. Quantitative analysis was conducted using differential pulse stripping voltammetry (AdS-DPV) and square-wave stripping voltammetry (AdS-SWV) under optimized conditions. Both methods exhibited linear responses over the concentration range of 0.2–8.0 μM, with limits of detection of 0.0366 μM and 0.0433 μM for …

Investigation Of The Enzyme-Inhibitory, Antibacterial, And Anticancer Properties Of Metal Phthalocyanines, Meryem Topal, Fevzi̇ Topal, Firat Yilmaz, Esra Bulut Atalay, Ümi̇t Muhammet Koçyi̇ği̇t, Emre Güzel

Turkish Journal of Chemistry

In this study, the enzyme inhibitory, antibacterial, and anticancer activities of a phthalonitrile derivative and its metal phthalocyanines (Pcs; indium, zinc, copper, cobalt, and manganese; 1–6) were investigated. The cobalt and manganese Pcs were synthesized for the first time in this study. The inhibitory activities of the symmetric Pcs, which were expected to interact with acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) via their 4-(isopropylbenzyl)oxy substituents through host–guest interactions, were investigated. More selective inhibition of AChE than BChE was observed for these compounds. For AChE, CoPc was identified as the most potent inhibitor (IC50 = 14.81 nM), whereas for BChE, InPc was …

Nucleophilic Cyclization Of N-Propargylated Pyrazole-5-Carboxylates: Synthesis Of Pyrazolo[1,5-A]Pyrazin-4(5h)-One Derivatives, Meli̇k Firat Mengeş, Meltem Tan Uygun

Turkish Journal of Chemistry

Cyclization reactions are among the most important and widely used methods for synthesizing biologically active fused heterocyclic compounds. In the present study, pyrazolopyrazinone derivatives (10a–i) were synthesized from N-propargylated pyrazoles via nucleophilic cyclization with hydrazine hydrate under a nitrogen atmosphere. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectral analyses confirmed that ring closure proceeded in a manner consistent with the formation of a six-membered pyrazinone moiety. In addition, the pyrazolotriazepinone derivative 15c was synthesized using an alternative approach. In this method, substitution with chloroacetone was first carried out, followed by ring closure with hydrazine hydrate, affording a seven-membered triazepinone system. Comparison of the …

Bass Numbers Of Veronese Submodules And Lifting The Frobenius Trace, Taylor Jeffrey Murray

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

The first part of this thesis is inspired by the works of G. Lyubeznik, C. Hunkeke, R. Sharp, and L. Núñez-Betancourt on Bass numbers, associated primes, and injective dimension of local cohomology modules. In particular, we study the question: how do Bass numbers behave under the Veronese functors? We show for a positive integer n, a reasonably nice, graded, finitely generated algebra over field R, and a graded module M, that if the Bass numbers of M are finite over R, then so are the Bass numbers of Mⁿ/Rⁿ; this recovers …

The Synthesis And Evaluation Of Thioxothiazolidin-4-One Compounds As Pim Kinase Inhibitors, Kelly Malzewski

Master's Theses (2009 -)

The Proviral integration site for Moloney Murine Leukemia virus (PIM) kinases belongs to the family of serine/threonine kinases consisting of three isoforms; PIM1, PIM2, PIM3. PIM kinase is involved in multiple cellular processes through the phosphorylation of several proteins within the JAK/STAT pathway, leading to cell proliferation, apoptosis inhibition, cell migration, transcription, and energy metabolism. However, disruption or overexpression of PIM within the cycle can have negative, tumorigenesis effects with increased fatality rates. Currently, there are no FDA approved PIM kinase inhibitors available for specific cancer target therapies, despite the growing need and high demand research interests. It is widely …

Detection Of The Presence And Growth Of E. Coli Bacteria In A Droplet-Based Microfluidic System Using Laser Induced Fluorescence, Oshira Peiris

Theses and Dissertations

Antimicrobial resistance is a biomedical event, wherein an infectious microbe becomes non-responsive to the dosage of a particular antibiotic due to previous overuse or overexposure. Currently, agar plate disc diffusion is used as the gold standard for detecting antimicrobial resistance. The possibility of miniaturizing and speeding up detection techniques for antimicrobial resistance is investigated in this thesis. Microfabrication techniques were used in developing two droplet microfluidic systems interfaced with laser induced fluorescence detection. Microfluidic devices were manufactured with different droplet generating geometries using poly-dimethyl siloxane, soft lithography and hydrophobic surface treatment. The microfluidic devices were tested for droplet quality using …

Model Unification: A Systematic Approach For The Cluster Expansion, Kolten Barfuss

Theses and Dissertations

A systematic approach for model unification of cluster expansion models is developed and demonstrated. The method builds on previous work with the Manifold Boundary Approximation Method (MBAM) to identify supremal models. The work is motivated by the exercise of unifying cluster expansion models – characterized by Π matrices – for two binary alloys that share one atomic species to form a model for the ternary alloy. The result is the Supremal Π Algorithm, a systematic unification algorithm that relies on an MBAM-informed understanding of models and on the singular value decomposition. The algorithm yields ΠΛ, a Π matrix for the …

Revised Draft Final Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit (Bpsou) Unreclaimed (Ur) Sites New And Mahoney (Ur-23) Construction Completion Report (Ccr), Pioneer Technical Services, Inc.

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

Revised Draft Final Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit (Bpsou) Unreclaimed (Ur) Sites New And Mahoney (Ur-23) Construction Completion Report (Ccr), Pioneer Technical Services, Inc.

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

Histopathology Image Classification Using Machine Learning, Mohammed H. Alali

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Histopathology image classification is a critical component of cancer diagnosis. However, the gigapixel scale of Whole-Slide Images (WSIs) and the high variability in tissue staining and scanner quality across medical centers present significant computational challenges. This dissertation proposes a comprehensive machine learning framework to address these challenges, bridging the gap between theoretical models and practical clinical deployment.

First, to manage the massive dimensionality and noise inherent in WSIs, this research develops a robust feature extraction methodology. The pipeline implements a stringent tile filtering technique to eliminate physical artifacts and resolve severe class imbalances. It integrates ConvNeXt alongside an attention-based pooling …

Cohomological Support Varieties Along Ring Maps, Ryan Watson

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Inspired by Quillen’s geometric approach to study group cohomology, Avramov introduced the theory of support varieties to study finite modules over local complete intersection rings. Geometric properties of the variety encode important homological information, and this theory has been a useful tool in studying complete intersection rings leading to many advances in local commutative algebra. By the work of several authors, this theory has now been expanded to encompass any noetherian local ring. Notably, Pollitz developed the theory of cohomological support varieties over Koszul complexes and used them to answer a question of Dwyer, Greenlees, and Iyengar regarding the structure …

Development And Flight Of Stratospheric Missions For Hard X-Ray Polarimetry And Hard X-Ray Spectroscopy, Ephraim Gau

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

The recent launches of the {\it Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer} ({\it IXPE}\,) and {\it XRISM} have provided significant advances to the realms of polarization and high-resolution spectroscopy in X-ray astrophysics. However, both of these satellite missions conduct measurements in the soft X-rays, below 10 keV. To obtain a complete picture of any astrophysical source, we must extend these capabilities to the hard X-rays, above 10 keV, as well. Thus, in my graduate work, I have directed my efforts in these two regimes: measuring the polarization of hard X-rays with {\it XL-Calibur}, and improving the energy resolution of hard X-ray telescopes …

Some Closure On The Relation Between Cfg And Peg, Nathan J. Bulloch

Theses and Dissertations

We work toward a practical, unified language formalism for structurally recursive languages by expressing the mathematical theories underlying context-free grammars with lookahead (CFGLA) in the Rocq theorem prover and leveraging CFGLA semantics to analyze interactions between between recursion and negative lookahead. We give examples of grammars with left-recursive negation cycles for the parsing expression grammar (PEG) variant due to Medeiros et al. and for the translation from PEG to CFGLA due to Miyazaki and Minamide. To study the interaction between left recursion and negative lookahead in a PEG context, we introduce FPEG, a left-recursive extension of PEG with Fitting semantics.

Robust Thermodynamic Analysis Of Flexible Protein-Ligand Binding Using Statistical Mechanics, Mitchell Dulaney

Create@State

Understanding how proteins bind small molecules is essential for accurate computational modeling of biological systems. However, calculating binding free energy (delta G), enthalpy (delta H), and entropy (delta S) becomes unreliable when proteins are flexible, and ligands are between multiple binding positions. This motion causes traditional computational methods to produce inconsistent thermodynamic values.

A computational workflow was implemented that included docking to predict likely binding positions, molecular dynamics simulations to sample how the protein and ligand move over time, and statistical mechanics analysis to calculate thermodynamic quantities. A new theoretical framework was developed and implemented in a custom program to …

Ma(1) Or White Noise?, Orithea Regn, Ferebee Tunno

Create@State

This project provides an over of testing an MA(1) process confidence interval while keeping the margin of error to a minimum, even for small sample sizes.

Synthesizing Fluorescent 3,4-Dihydropyrimidin-2(1h)-Ones Using A One-Pot Synthesis Reaction, John R. Griggs

Create@State

In medical and pharmaceutical practices, Biginelli (3,4-dihydropyrimidin-2(1H)-ones) products have a number of potential uses due to their anticancer and anti-inflammatory properties.  In addition, they are a possible treatment for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). These compounds can be further modified to exhibit fluorescent properties. However, before using them in medicinal studies, it is useful to establish a procedure that can easily be modified and is synthetically accessible to allow for further optimization. The experiment was performed using the Biginelli compounds as a substrate, along with a variety of aromatic aldehydes and acids. After obtaining the products and purifying them with vacuum …

Laser Ablation-Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy Of Yttrium Plasma, Dawn Gipson

Create@State

Laser ablation is a widely used sampling method for elemental chemical analysis. Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) and laser ablation inductively-coupled mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) are the two most common implementations. Application of these techniques is found throughout the sciences, including analysis in archaeological settings, geology, and medical analysis of hard tissue such as teeth or bone. Many applications benefit from the microdestructive nature of the technique. However, the relationship between the laser-ablation crater and the analytical signal is poorly understood. Laser ablation-atomic absorption spectroscopy (LA-AAS) is used in our laboratory to determine the mass of material incorporated into the plasmas in …

Synthesis And Characterization Of Thiazole Derivatives As Potential Antitumor Agents, Kaylee Leddy

Create@State

Melanoma is the 5th most common cancer in both men and women in the USA. It originates in melanocytes, which make the melanin pigment that gives skin its color. While treatable in early stages, melanoma becomes nearly incurable once metastasized. Thiazole derivatives have been recognized in many pharmaceutical classes including anticancer, antimicrobial, antimalarial, anti-tuberculosis, and diuretics. They have long been researched for their natural pharmacological properties and have shown potential to inhibit melanoma cell growth. In this study, catechol-substituted thiazole derivatives were synthesized using the Hantzsch-Thiazole synthesis. A total of 13 novel compounds were made using 2-chlorodihydroxyacetophenone with various catechol-substituted …