Digital Commons Network^™

Development Of An Assessment And Prediction Framework For Bridge Expansion Joints, Abdelhay Badawy, Ossama A. Hosny, Hatem Elbehairy, Elkhayam M. Dorra

Faculty Journal Articles

Expansion joints (EJ)s are considered one of the weakest elements in bridges as their lifetime is considerably shorter than that of other elements. The objective of this research was to select an appropriate system for assessment and maintenance of bridges’ EJs. The system seeks to predict the conditions of EJs, with the aim of offering appropriate maintenance and repair strategies that extend their life spans. An EJ management system (EJMS) was developed that optimizes cost over time, targeting the optimum maintenance strategy for EJs, through visual inspections and a genetic algorithm to construct a unique Markov chain transition matrix capable …

Interviewed For Concast (Episode 4), Gauri Pillai, Atrey

Popular Media

In a recent interview with The Hindu, published on 25.05.2023, the Hon’ble Speaker of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly, talking about the Shiv Sena dispute, stated that he is not bound by the order of Election Commission (ECI) and will decide the disqualification petitions filed by both factions of the Shiv Sena independently. He also affirmatively stated that the Hon’ble Supreme Court, vide its judgement dated 11.05.2023 in Subhash Desai v. Principal Secretary to Government, Maharashtra, WP (C) No. 493 of 2022 (Shiv Sena Constitution Bench Judgement) has widened the role of the Speaker under the X Schedule of Constitution (X …

Caliper: A Software For Blood-Free Parametric Patlak Mapping Using Pet/Mri Input Function, Praveen Dassanayake, Lumeng Cui, Elizabeth Finger, Matthew Kewin, Jennifer Hadaway, Andrea Soddu, Bjoern Jakoby, Sven Zuehlsdorf, Keith S.St Lawrence, Gerald Moran, Udunna C. Anazodo

Paediatrics Publications

Routine clinical use of absolute PET quantification techniques is limited by the need for serial arterial blood sampling for input function and more importantly by the lack of automated pharmacokinetic analysis tools that can be readily implemented in clinic with minimal effort. PET/MRI provides the ability for absolute quantification of PET probes without the need for serial arterial blood sampling using image-derived input functions (IDIFs). Here we introduce caliPER, a modular and scalable software for simplified pharmacokinetic modeling of PET probes with irreversible uptake or binding based on PET/MR IDIFs and Patlak Plot analysis. caliPER generates regional values or parametric …

The Santaquin Greenway System: Preserving The Future Of Santaquin Trails And Open Space, Ian Kola

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Santaquin residents value their open spaces, trails and gathering spaces. Greenways are a space-efficient form of open space that can ensure a community has access to these amenities.

This greenway master plan is a cumulative result of work compiled and completed by students from Utah State University’s Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning department, Santaquin residents, and city government. Extensive community engagement occurred through USU’s senior capstone and Charrette projects, and this master plan coincides with the planning conclusions made in these projects.

This plan represents a conceptual layout and design of a greenway system in Santaquin, UT. These plans are …

Synthesis Of 2d Material Based Bi2o3/Mxene Nanohybrids And Their Applications For The Removal Of Industrial Effluents, Sana Munir, Mirza Mahmood Baig, Sonia Zulfiqar, Muhammad Saqib Saif

Faculty Journal Articles

2D material-based Bi2O3/MXene nanohybrids were successfully fabricated through an ultrasonication method. MXene (Ti3C2Tx) nanosheets were prepared via simple H.F. etching while bismuth oxide nanoflowers were prepared by the co-precipitation method. The structure, morphologies, and optical properties of all the prepared samples were analyzed by various advance techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), UV–Visible spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). To check the photocatalytic efficiency of prepared material was performed for both colored and colorless dyes. A significant increase in photocatalytic properties were observed for methylene blue and benzoic acid. The prepared nanohybrid showed 1.6 folds higher …

Examining The Adaptive Market Hypothesis With Calendar Effects: International Evidence And The Impact Of Covid-19, Aliaa Bassiouny, Mariam Kiryakos, Eskandar Tooma

Faculty Journal Articles

This study examines whether the adaptive market hypothesis (AMH) explains calendar anomalies across 16 headline stock market indices in 10 markets. We employ the rolling window analysis and estimate a T-GARCH (1,1) for a long time series that includes two years coinciding with the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall, the empirical results reveal that calendar day anomalies across our sample markets exhibit time-varying behavior, evolving through patterns that shift markets between periods of efficiency and inefficiency, thereby providing support for the AMH framework. The results also highlight the calendar anomalies that reappeared after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic across international markets.

Evaluation Of Fresh And Hardened Properties Of 3d-Printed Engineered Cementitious Composites (Ecc) Designed For Sustainable And Resilient Infrastructure Systems, Maryam Hojati, Muhammad Saeed Zafar, Amir Bakhshi

Data

3D concrete printing is a cutting-edge construction technique that has the potential to revolutionize the construction industry due to cost-saving in terms of labor and formwork costs, efficiency in construction, lower safety-related risks, and a higher degree of automation. However, several issues still make its adoption relatively slower on a large scale. Engineered cementitious composites (ECC), a class of ultra-high-strength concrete, can be a potential solution to some problems, such as reinforcement and durability. The preliminary phase of a Tran SET project focused on the design of 3D printable ECC, considering the concrete mix design proportions and their potential effects …

Alternative Supplementary Cementitious Materials In Ultra-High Performance Concrete, Craig Newtson, Seyedsaleh Mousavinezhad, Gregory J, Gonzales, William K. Toledo, Judit M. Garcia

Data

Ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) is an emerging material with remarkable mechanical and durability properties that contains large amounts of cementitious materials. Silica fume is a main supplementary cementitious material (SCM) in UHPC, however, it is more expensive than cement and other SCMs, so it is often substituted with inexpensive class F fly ash. Unfortunately, future availability of fly ash is uncertain as the energy industry moves toward renewable energy. Fly ash shortages create an urgent need to find cost-effective and environmentally-friendly alternatives for fly ash. This study investigated replacing cement, fly ash, and silica fume in UHPC mixtures with ground …

Effectiveness Assessment Of E-Ticketing Technology In Construction Of Transportation Projects, Sharareh Kermanshachi, Karthik Subramanya

Data

The construction of highway infrastructure has devoted significant resources towards e-Construction to reduce the paperwork and automate the tasks in daily operations. Electronic Ticketing (e-Ticketing) is one such component of e-Construction that aids in the digital transfer of material tickets such as asphalt and concrete which accounts for more than fifty per cent of construction costs. Despite the benefits of e-Ticketing, many state departments and agencies are unwilling to transition into this technology. No studies have identified the cause of the delay in the implementation process, developed a framework to comprehend the platform's full potential, quantified savings, and suggested strategies …

Using Rice Husk Ash (Rha) As Stabilizing Agent For Problematic Subgrade Soils And Embankments, Zahid Hossain, Rifat Bulut, Fares Tarhuni, Hussein Al-Dakheeli

Data

Arkansas produces the most of the rice in the United States. About 20% of poddy is rice husk (RH), which is burnt under controlled conditions to produce rice rusk ash (RHA). The RHA is considered an environmental hazard and a significant challenge for rice millers. However, RHA is rich in pozzolanic material, which is mainly silica. In this study, RHA is used to stabilize poor soils. Another commonly used stabilizer, hydrated lime (HL), has also been evaluated for comparison purposes. Thus, this study aimed to determine the optimum percentages of RHA, HL, or a combination of these two agents by …

Increasing Bridge Durability And Service Life With Lidar Enhanced Unmanned Aerial Systems (Uas), Fernando Moreu, Mahsa Sanei, Chris Lippitt

Data

Bridge construction inspections require quantitative measurements and location information. The conventional approach is visual inspection, which in general, is rather time-consuming, expensive due to traffic closure, subjective, and needs special access. Therefore an automated rebar layout detection algorithm was developed to quickly extract quantitative rebar layout information from the LiDAR data. This systematic method can automatically cluster the bridge elements from a 3D point cloud by using LiDAR-equipped UAS data collection and unsupervised machine learning techniques. A new automated inspection system using a LIDAR-equipped UAS can eventually if developed and tested be more reliable as well as less expensive. In …

Development Of Distress Index Prediction Models For Rehabilitation Treatments In Louisiana Using Advanced Machine Learning Techniques, Momen R. Mousa, Marwa Hassan

Data

Performance prediction models are used by state agencies to predict future trends in distress indices, hence, determining the required maintenance and/or rehabilitation treatment as well as the deterioration rate and remaining pavement service life. However, most of these models are based on a limited number of parameters and cannot predict the performance distress indices reliably. Such limitation resulted in having, most of the time, a maximum prediction period of five years. As a solution and coping with the ever-increasing size of pavement data, machine learning techniques have become a promising alternative. The objective of this study was to develop a …

Covid-19 And Traffic Safety: Exploring Exposure, Crash Frequency And Severity, And Roadway And Network Design, Nicholas N. Ferenchak Ph.D

Data

Early COVID-19 lockdowns in the first half of 2020 largely kept people at home, thereby reducing motor vehicle traffic levels. Theoretically, reduced traffic exposure should have resulted in reduced motor vehicle crashes. However, a variety of factors may have complicated this relationship. In order to better understand the impact of COVID-19 lockdowns on traffic safety outcomes, we explore fatalities, injuries, and total crashes before and during the lockdowns on both the national and state levels. We provide descriptive statistics and create negative binomial regressions exploring the role of vehicle, user, and built environment factors on traffic safety outcomes. Findings suggest …

Alcohol Use, Sleep, And Depression Among Family Caregivers In The Time Of Covid-19, Ashley M. Strzelecki, Mairead E. Moloney, Alyssa T. Brooks, Jessica Weafer

Psychology Faculty Publications

The COVID-19 pandemic has substantially altered daily life around the world, resulting in significant impacts on health behaviors. The additional burdens imposed by family caregiving (i.e., providing unpaid care for children and/or adults) may further exacerbate negative effects of the pandemic on health and health behaviors, including increased alcohol consumption, poor sleep, and increased depressive symptoms. The current study examined this possibility. Participants (N = 320, mean age = 35.11 years) completed an online questionnaire assessing alcohol use, sleep, and depression during the COVID-19 pandemic (June–August 2020) and retrospectively assessed the same health behaviors in the months prior to the …

Hostages Of The Crisis: Iranian Students And Jimmy Carter, Timothy Will Teague

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Hostages of the Crisis: Iranian Students and Jimmy Carter discusses President Carter’s decision in 1979 to order the Immigration and Naturalization Service to assess the approximately 56,000 Iranian students in the United States for deportation after the seizure of the American embassy in Tehran, Iran. This works begins with a discussion of the development of the nation’s immigration system, examining how it was born as a result of anti-Chinese xenophobia in the late nineteenth century and how it matured with nativistic immigration laws in the first half of the twentieth century. Immigration policy was often influenced by xenophobic sociopolitical pressure …

Activational Vs. Organizational Effects Of Sex Steroids And Their Role In The Evolution Of Reproductive Behavior: Looking To Foot-Flagging Frogs And Beyond, Nigel K. Anderson, Sarah E. Goodwin, Eric R. Schuppe, Allexandrya Dawn, Doris Preininger, Lisa A. Mangiamele, Matthew J. Fuxjager

Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Sex steroids play an important role in regulation of the vertebrate reproductive phenotype. This is because sex steroids not only activate sexual behaviors that mediate copulation, courtship, and aggression, but they also help guide the development of neural and muscular systems that underlie these traits. Many biologists have therefore described the effects of sex steroid action on reproductive behavior as both “activational” and “organizational,” respectively. Here, we focus on these phenomena from an evolutionary standpoint, highlighting that we know relatively little about the way that organizational effects evolve in the natural world to support the adaptation and diversification of reproductive …

Evaluating The Efficacy Of Mazao Tickoff (Metarhizium Anisopliae Icipe 7) In Controlling Natural Tick Infestations On Cattle In Coastal Kenya: Study Protocol For A Randomized Controlled Trial, Joseph Wang’Ang’A Oundo, Daniel Masiga, Michael Nyang’Anga Okal, Gebbiena M. Bron, Komivi S. Akutse, Sevgan Subramanian, Quirine Ten Bosch, Constantianus J.M. Koenraadt, Shewit Kalayou

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

Ticks and tick-borne diseases cause substantial economic losses to the livestock industry in sub-Saharan Africa. Mazao Tickoff is a novel bioacaricide developed for tick control and is based on the entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium anisopliae sensu lato (s.l.) isolate ICIPE 7. To date, no randomized controlled study has been undertaken to demonstrate the efficacy of this bioacaricide in reducing natural tick infestation on cattle. To this end, this field trial is designed to evaluate the anti-tick efficacy of Mazao Tickoff on cattle in coastal Kenya compared to a standard chemical tick control protocol. In this prospective, multi-center randomized controlled trial, eligible …

Integrating A Crop Model With A Greenhouse Gas Calculator To Identify Low Carbon Agricultural Intensification Options For Smallholder Farmers In Rural South Africa, Farirai Rusere, Lynn V. Dicks, Siyabusa Mkuhlani, Olivier Crespo

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

Models that enable the estimation of crop yields and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions concurrently are still lacking. This study develops a biophysical modelling framework encompassing a farm typology, a crop model, and a farm-focused GHG calculator to assess productivity (crop yield) and GHG emissions of crop management practices concurrently. Using this modelling framework, the study developed cropping system scenarios based on the concept of conservation agriculture (CA) to identify and design cropping systems that deliver ecological intensification for different farm types. All farm types were found to be net sources of GHG with cropping system inefficiency across all farm types. …

Larval Exposure To Parasitic Varroa Destructor Mites Triggers Specific Immune Responses In Different Honey Bee Castes And Species, Yu Fang, Abebe Jenberie Wubie, Mao Feng, Chuan Ma, Boris Baer, Jianke Li

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

Innate immune systems are key defenses of animals and particularly important in species that lack the sophisticated adaptive immune systems as found in vertebrates. Here, we were interested to quantify variation in innate immune responses of insects in hosts that differ in their parasite susceptibility. To do this, we studied immune responses in honey bees, which can host a remarkable number of different parasites, which are major contributors of declining bee health and colony losses. The most significant parasite of honey bees is the mite Varroa destructor, which has infested the majority of global honey bee populations, and its control …

Integrated Management Of Spodoptera Frugiperda 6 Years Post Detection In Africa: A Review, Ghislain T. Tepa-Yotto, Peter Chinwada, Ivan Rwomushana, Georg Goergen, Sevgan Subramanian

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

The introduction of fall armyworm (FAW) Spodoptera frugiperda (JE Smith) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) on the African continent has led to paradigm shifts in pest control in maize systems, occasioned by year-round populations. The discovery of resident parasitoid species adapting to the new pest significantly informed decision-making toward avoiding highly hazardous synthetic insecticides to control the pest. A number of biopesticides have shown promise against the fall armyworm, providing a new arsenal for the sustainable management of this invasive pest. However, a few knowledge gaps remain for a fully integrated and sustainable FAW-management approach, particularly on host-resistance potential.

Can I Choose My Offer: How Choice On Sales Offer Impacts Consumer Purchase Decision?, Atmadeep Mukherjee

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

While making a purchase decision consumers tend to evaluate various assortments. Most of the research in choice literature has focused on the impact of focal product assortment size and consumer preferences. With the advent of a novel sales promotion strategy, where consumers are provided with a choice to select an offer, this dissertation investigates the effect of choice on sales offer, specifically free offers on purchase evaluations. Building on choice literature and sales promotion this dissertation argues that choice on sales offers, particularly free offers, will have a positive effect on purchase evaluations and the effect gets accentuated under certain …

Essays On Performance Evaluation Of Portfolio Managers Of Mutual And Hedge Funds, Yuekun Liu

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation consists of three essays focusing on the performance evaluation of portfolio managers of mutual and hedge funds. The first essay shows the performance of corporate bond mutual funds tends to be estimated using models with limited empirical validation. I test several models and find considerable variation in quality. That variation leads to meaningful differences with respect to the stylized facts of corporate bond fund performance. Using my preferred BENCH4 model—a novel model based on funds’ common benchmarks—I find average underperformance, substantial relative performance persistence, a small number of funds with positive alphas unattributable to luck, and positive alphas …

The Dope Distance Is Sic: A Stable, Informative, And Computable Metric On Ordered Merge Trees, Jose Arbelo, Antonio Delgado, Charley Kirk, Zach Schlamowitz

Mathematics Summer Fellows

When analyzing time series data, it is often of interest to categorize them based on how different they are. We define a new dissimilarity measure between time series: Dynamic Ordered Persistence Editing (DOPE). DOPE satisfies metric properties, is stable to noise, is as informative as alternative approaches, and efficiently computable. Satisfying these properties simultaneously makes DOPE of interest to both theoreticians and data scientists alike.

Dynamics In Nutrients, Sterols And Total Flavonoid Content During Processing Of The Edible Long-Horned Grasshopper (Ruspolia Differens Serville) For Food, Brian O. Ochieng, Joseph O. Anyango, John M. Nduko, Xavier Cheseto, Cynthia M. Mudalungu, Fathiya M. Khamis, Changeh J. Ghemoh, Peter J. Egonyu, Sevgan Subramanian, Dorothy Nakimbugwe, Geoffrey Ssepuuya, Chrysantus M. Tanga

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

Long-horned grasshopper (Ruspolia differens Serville) is a tasty delicacy in over 20 African countries. This study evaluated the impact of diverse post-harvest thermal treatment (blanching, boiling, toasting, and deep-frying) on the nutrients, total flavonoid content and sterols preservation of R. differens products. Crude protein, ash, and fibre of R. differens was drastically reduced by deep-frying technique. There was increase in Omega-3 (α-linolenic acid), Omega-6 fatty acid (linoleic and arachidonic acids) and sterols [(22Z)-27-Norergosta-5,22-dien-3β-ol, cholesterol, campesterol, cholest-4-ene-3-one and β-sitosterol] and flavonoids (2–3 folds) during blanching compared to other techniques. The iron and zinc content increased significantly in blanched and boiled products …

Biological Control Interventions And Botanical Pesticides For Insect Pests Of Crops In Sub-Saharan Africa: A Mapping Review, Fabrizia Ratto, Toby Bruce, Gilson Chipabika, Sithembile Mwamakamba, Rachel Mkandawire, Zeyaur Khan, Angela Mkindi, Jimmy Pittchar, Frank Chidawanyika, Susannah M. Sallu, Stephen Whitfield, Kenneth Wilson, Steven M. Sait

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

Agricultural productivity can be increased sustainably in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) by reducing crop losses due to insect pest damage. As an alternative to environmentally-damaging chemical pesticides, biological control interventions and botanical pesticides show potential to achieve both high yields and profits. However, synthesized information of their performance and understanding of their adoption among smallholder farmers is limited. Here, 173 studies of biological control interventions and botanical pesticides of insect pests for 35 crops from 20 sub-Saharan countries from 2005 to 2021 were systematically reviewed. Drawing on published datasets, we found that cereals, particularly maize, were the most studied crop (59%). …

Two Courts, Two Conclusions: Abortion Law In India, Gauri Pillai

Popular Media

On 15 July 2022, the Delhi High Court, in Ms X v The Principal Secretary of Health and Family Welfare Department Government of NCT of Delhi (‘Ms X’), denied an unmarried woman permission to terminate her unwanted pregnancy at 23 weeks under Section 3 of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 1971. A week later, through an ad-interim order, the Supreme Court allowed the woman’s appeal against the Delhi High Court’s order, permitting termination as long as a Medical Board confirms that abortion is medically safe for the pregnant woman. In this post, I discuss both these orders, which differ …

Towards Automated Input Generation For Sketching Alloy Models, Ana Jovanovic, Allison Sullivan

Association of Computing Machinery Open Access Agreement Publications-Archive

Writing declarative models has numerous benefits, ranging from automated reasoning and correction of design-level properties before systems are built, to automated testing and debugging of their implementations after they are built. Alloy is a declarative modeling language that is well suited for verifying system designs. While Alloy comes deployed in the Analyzer, an automated scenario-finding tool set, writing correct models remains a difficult and error-prone task. ASketch is a synthesis framework that helps users build their Alloy models. ASketch takes as an input a partial Alloy models with holes and an AUnit test suite. As output, ASketch returns a completed …

Dataset For Surface Soil Property And Processes Following The 2015 Soda Fire At The Reynolds Creek Critical Zone Observatory In Sw Idaho, Kathleen A. Lohse, Derek Pierson, Nicholas Patton, Jonathan Sanderman, David P. Huber, Bruce Finney, Jeremy Facer, Jared Meyers, Mark S. Seyfried

Reynolds Creek Critical Zone Observatory Data

Wildfires are increasing in frequency and extent in the Western United States with climate change and expansion of invasive plant species. On August 10, 2015, the Soda Fire initiated and burned 113,000 hectares (279,000 acres) of sagebrush steppe habitat in southwestern Idaho; it was contained on August 22, 2015. Approximately 29% of the RCEW CZO was burned, and fire severity was rated predominately moderate severity in the areas of study. Aboveground biomass was largely eliminated by the fire. Given the focus of the RCEW CZO on improving prediction and understanding of soil carbon at the pedon to landscape scale, the …

Blood Chemistry And Biliverdin Differ According To Reproduction And Tourism In A Free-Living Lizard, Susannah French

Browse all Datasets

Changes in the physiological health of species are an essential indicator of changing conditions and environmental challenges. Reponses to environmental challenges can often induce stress, influence physiology, and change metabolism in organisms. Here we tested blood chemistry parameters indicative of stress and metabolic activity using an i-STAT point-of-care blood analyzer in seven populations of free-ranging rock iguanas exposed to varying levels of tourism and supplemental feeding. We found significant differences in blood chemistry (glucose, oxygen, carbon dioxide, hematocrit, hemoglobin, calcium, potassium, and biliverdin levels) among populations exposed to varying levels of tourism, and also some variation between sexes and reproductive …

Data From: Complex Tourism And Season Interactions Contribute To Disparate Physiologies In An Endangered Rock Iguana, Susannah French

Browse all Datasets

To promote survival and fitness, organisms use a suite of physiological systems to respond to both predictable and unpredictable changes in the environment. These physiological responses are also influenced by changes in life history state. The continued activation of physiological systems stemming from persistent environmental perturbations enable animals to cope with these challenges but may over time lead to significant effects on the health of wildlife. In the present study, we tested how varying environmental perturbations driven by tourism and associated supplemental feeding affects the energetics, corticosterone and immunity of six discrete populations of the northern Bahamian rock iguana (Cyclura …