Digital Commons Network^™

Position Effects Of 22q13 Rearrangements On Candidate Genes In Phelan-Mcdermid Syndrome, Sujata Srikanth, Lavanya Jain, Cinthya Zepeda-Mendoza, Lauren Cascio, Kelly Jones, Rini Pauly, Barb Dupont, Curtis Rogers, Sara Sarasua, Katy Phelan, Cynthia Morton, Luigi Boccuto

Open Access Publishing Fund

Phelan-McDermid syndrome (PMS) is a multi-system disorder characterized by significant variability in clinical presentation. The genetic etiology is also variable with differing sizes of deletions in the chromosome 22q13 region and types of genetic abnormalities (e.g., terminal or interstitial deletions, translocations, ring chromosomes, or SHANK3 variants). Position effects have been shown to affect gene expression and function and play a role in the clinical presentation of various genetic conditions. This study employed a topologically associating domain (TAD) analysis approach to investigate position effects of chromosomal rearrangements on selected candidate genes mapped to 22q13 in 81 individuals with PMS. Data collected …

Tracking The Decline Of Weasels In North America, David Jachowski, Roland Kays, Andrew Butler, Anne M. Hoylman, Matthew E. Gompper

Open Access Publishing Fund

Small carnivores are of increasing conservation concern globally, including those formerly thought to be widespread and abundant. Three weasel species (Mustela nivalis, M. frenata, and M. erminea) are distributed across most of North America, yet several recent studies have reported difficulty detecting weasels within their historical range and several states have revised the status of weasels to that of species of conservation concern. To investigate the status and trends of weasels across the United States (US) and Canada, we analyzed four separate datasets: historical harvests, museum collections, citizen scientist observations (iNaturalist), and a recent US-wide trail camera survey. We observed …

Going Viral- Using Technology In The Classroom To Show The Spreading Of Viruses, Laura C. Todd, Brooke A. Whitworth

Publications

No abstract provided.

Wireless Sensor Network System Data Acquisition And Analysis Using Designsafe-Ci, S. Sridhar, J.-P. Pineli, J. Zhang, C. S. Subramanian, J. Wang, J. Sun, S. Lazarus, H. Besing

American Association for Wind Engineering (AAWE) Workshop

No abstract provided.

Stand-Alone Direct Current Power Network Based On Photovoltaics And Lithium-Ion Batteries For Reverse Osmosis Desalination Plant, Vishwas Powar, Rajendra Singh

Publications

Plummeting reserves and increasing demand of freshwater resources have culminated into a global water crisis. Desalination is a potential solution to mitigate the freshwater shortage. However, the process of desalination is expensive and energy-intensive. Due to the water-energy-climate nexus, there is an urgent need to provide sustainable low-cost electrical power for desalination that has the lowest impact on climate and related ecosystem challenges. For a large-scale reverse osmosis desalination plant, we have proposed the design and analysis of a photovoltaics and battery-based stand-alone direct current power network. The design methodology focusses on appropriate sizing, optimum tilt and temperature compensation techniques …

Clemson Commencement Program, May 2021, Clemson University

Clemson Commencement Programs

No abstract provided.

Historical Nets, Jenny E. Washburne

All Theses

This creative thesis consists of two historical fiction short stories and a critical essay discussing the merits and challenges of writing historical fiction. The essay ties together the main themes of the short stories, both set in the early 1900s American west, and discusses how an author’s choice in character, plot, and setting may interact with a historical perspective to capture something that transcends time. As the critical component of the thesis, the essay also explores the techniques of well-known fiction writers who use history in their storytelling, drawing together time and place in ways unique to the genre. The …

The Danger Within: Implications Of Firewood Transport In Invasive Forest Insect And Disease Spread, Angelica Solano

All Theses

Invasive forest insects and diseases are a problem affecting North American forests, and their intracontinental spread can be aggravated through the movement of contaminated firewood. We conducted a scoping review to assess trends and gaps in the existing literature, as well as patterns in behavior related to forest pest dispersal through firewood movement in North America. Of the 76 documents identified through our search, 24 met the inclusion criteria and were categorized based on five identified themes: 1) insect incidence in firewood, 2) insect dispersal via firewood, 3) recreational firewood movement, 4) firewood treatments, and 5) behavior and rule compliance. …

Monsters & Machines: An Assessment Of Dehumanization In High School Football Broadcasts, Adam P. Middleton

All Theses

Prior to this study, dehumanizing language, that which denies full humanness to others (Haslam, 2006), had been found to be present within collegiate and professional American Football broadcasts (Haslerig et al., 2019; Oates, 2007). In addition, high school games are also broadcasted, yet had remained unexplored. With dehumanization having links to negative effects for those exposed, and the presence of youth participants adding an extra complexity to this process, a need for assessment was presented. The objective of this research was to determine if dehumanizing language was present within high school broadcasts in hopes of creating a preliminary understanding of …

Training Physics-Based Controllers For Articulated Characters With Deep Reinforcement Learning, Avishek Biswas

All Theses

In this thesis, two different applications are discussed for using machine learning techniques to train coordinated motion controllers in arbitrary characters in absence of motion capture data. The methods highlight the resourcefulness of physical simulations to generate synthetic and generic motion data that can be used to learn various targeted skills. First, we present an unsupervised method for learning loco-motion skills in virtual characters from a low dimensional latent space which captures the coordination between multiple joints. We use a technique called motor babble, wherein a character interacts with its environment by actuating its joints through uncoordinated, low-level (motor) excitation, …

An Analysis Of Presence And User Experiences Over Time, John J. Porter Iii

All Dissertations

This manuscript presents the result of a series of studies intended to shed light on understanding how trends regarding user experiences in VR changes over time when engaging with VR games.

In my first study, I explored how user experiences compared when playing Minecraft on the desktop against playing Minecraft within an immersive virtual reality port. Fourteen players completed six 45 minute sessions, three sessions were played on the desktop, and three in VR. The Gaming Experience Questionnaire, i-Group presence questionnaire, and Simulator Sickness Questionnaire were administered after each session, and players were interviewed at the end of the experiment. …

The Self Outside: A Nearly Concealed Shared Heart, Lori Brook Johnson

All Theses

Rearranging past moments to reveal a nearly concealed shared heart, the work finds people who quickly pass through the gaze of the camera and translates the moment into a pigment referred to here as pastel’d dirt to draw out evidence of an awareness of ourselves in another.

As a salve to separation, the drawings are composed through amalgamated archival footage into a wavering pastiche of historical and contemporary art. This salve is applied via materials that are resolute and vulnerable (pastels both grip and dissolve, travel and saturate), and is thereby used to draw into our inevitable severance from one …

Forest/People, Taylor Andrew Parker

All Dissertations

The Clemson Experimental Forest (CEF) is a 17,500-acre forest surrounding and owned by Clemson University. Loved by many, it is a working forest managed for sustainable timber harvest and used to provide a laboratory for teaching, research, and demonstration based on its affiliation with Clemson University and its charter through the New Deal. The Clemson Experimental Forest is a setting for recreation and re-creation by those in the greater Clemson community and the Upstate of South Carolina. As the population in the Southeast United States grows, so too do the impacts and pressures on natural areas. The CEF is experiencing …

Revolutions Of Virtues: Revisiting The Underpinnings Of Rhetorical Education, Eric Reid Hamilton

All Dissertations

This dissertation concerns the prevalent disconnect between writing instruction and moral education in modern university settings. The project calls for integrating the progymnasmata as informed through Aristotelian virtue ethics to enable rhetorical flourishing. I examine the need for explicit ethical frameworks in writing instruction, evaluating multiple approaches and advocating virtue ethics. All fourteen exercises of the progymnasmata, according to the system popularized by Aphthonius of Antioch, will be detailed and updated for the contemporary classroom. Quintilian’s pedagogical scholarship and practice will serve as a model for application. The specific virtues of adaptability, experimentation, and mindfulness will be promoted as central …

Individualized Wrist Motion Models For Detecting Eating Episodes Using Deep Learning, Wenkang Wei

All Theses

This thesis considers the problem of detecting eating episodes such as meals and snacks, by tracking wrist motion using smartwatch device. Previous work by our group has trained a wrist motion classifier using a large data set collected from 351 people to learn general eating behaviors. We call this a group model. This thesis investigates training the classifier with the same model architecture on new data collected by 8 people, and training the individualized classifier separately for each person. We call these individual models. The main goal in this work is to determine if individual models provide higher accuracy in …

An Ecological Approach To Rehabilitation For Traumatic Brain Injury, Lisa Hoskins

All Theses

Advancements in technology, research, and practice are scientifically establishing the relationship between the mind, body, and built environment. In modern TBI rehabilitation medicine, a team of specialists works together to assess the physical, mental, and emotional effects of brain injuries on individual patients and to develop and carry out a plan of action that helps them to overcome, compensate for, and cope with changes in their levels of ability. TBI rehabilitation can integrate holistic practices that better consider an integrated mind-body relationship as well as the built environment as potentially significant factors in supporting functional ability.This thesis investigates the potential …

Genome-Wide Association Studies Of Antimicrobial Activity In Global Sorghum [Sorghum Bicolor (L.) Moench], Lindsay Kaye Shields

All Theses

Sorghum is a common feed grain globally with vast genetic and phytochemical diversity that may provide numerous health benefits, including its aptitude as an antimicrobial feed grain. This study highlights the antimicrobial potential of a collection of 384 diverse sorghum accessions against two prominent foodborne pathogens, Clostridium perfringens and Salmonella enterica. Following extensive screening, we determined that sorghum grain extract is more efficient at inhibiting C. perfringens than S. enterica. Antimicrobial activity observed against C. perfringens was not significantly correlated with either total phenols (r = 0.12) or tannin concentration (r = 0.12). Moreover, we mapped loci associated …

On Moving Beyond And Looking Behind: An Analysis Of Contemporary Queer Of Color Digital Art And Performance, Caroline Kinderthain

All Theses

Queer theory has long limited its revolutionary potential by prioritizing white gay cis men in the fight for political and social change. Theorists like Roderick Ferguson, José Esteban Muñoz, Gloria Anzaldua, Audre Lorde, and Jasbir Puar, to name a few, have expanded the foundations of queer theory to account for queer people of color and the potential for queer futurity. The innovative work on queer utopia that is set up in Muñoz’s Cruising Utopia is the foundation for the performance and art analyses that shape this project. To contextualize the queer utopian looking that I find crucial to these objects, …

Intimate Distortions, Katherine Van Drie

All Theses

Intimate Distortions look beyond the stereotypes of nature and conditioned social prescription to reflect upon the complexities and nuances of our contemporary society. As we endeavor to overcome trauma and the negative influences that knock us off balance, Intimate Distortions exist in a complex place between nature and culture – a place of hybridity that indicates something evolved and ‘natural’, but also to the historical, social and cultural constructs that humans continue to exist within. This work explores how we, who are part of the natural world, contrive to mold our identities and present ourselves to others in superficial and …

In Vivo Analysis Of An Injectable Tannic Acid Crosslinked Collagen Type I Bead Scaffold For Tissue Regeneration Post-Lumpectomy, Kylie King

All Theses

Among women, breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in the United States, affecting about 1 in every 8 women. It accounts for approximately 30% of new cancer diagnoses and is one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths among women in developed countries. Current treatment options for breast cancer are surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation. Unfortunately, there are negative side effects associated with each of these, and they may not work for every patient. In addition, local breast cancer recurrence presents a high risk, especially for patients undergoing lumpectomy procedures. The goal of this project is to alleviate these …

Low Concentrations Of Ethanol Promote Longevity Via The Insulin Receptor And Heat Shock Factor 1 In Caenorhabditis Elegans, Maxime Fernand Bilodeau

All Theses

Alcohol abuse has been extensively studied and is well known to cause multiple health problems, such as coronary heart disease, stroke, liver disease, and some forms of cancer. Conversely, there has also been an ongoing debate about whether ethanol in moderation has beneficial effects. For example, some studies have found that light to moderate alcohol consumption can have cardiovascular benefits and reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. Additionally, there have been studies showing that low concentrations of ethanol can increase the lifespan of Caenorhabditis elegans. However, the pathways and mechanisms involved in ethanol-mediated longevity are still unknown.

In this …

Re-Creating Judith Beheading Holofernes, Originally Painted By Artemisia Gentileschi, In A Real-Time Rendering System, Elizabeth A. Schlesener

All Theses

Artemisia Gentileschi is one of the most renowned female artists of her time, best known for her Baroque style paintings of religious narratives.Judith Beheading Holofernes, originally painted by Gentileschi in 1620-21, now hangs permanently in the Uffizi Gallery of Florence, Italy, the birthplace of the Renaissance. Many Renaissance artists, such as Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo, were dedicated to the arts and sciences. For the first time, artists used scientific techniques to replicate real life accurately, including knowledge of linear perspective and human anatomy. As pointed out in the Hockney-Falco thesis, artists used new inventions like the camera-obscura …

Change In Charleston’S Built Environment: A Study Of Building Footprints Comparing Primary Dwellings To Secondary Buildings In Harleston Village, Gabriel Michael Cristofari

All Theses

This thesis investigates the rates of change for main dwellings and secondary buildings in Harleston Village, one of Charleston, South Carolina's, early suburban neighborhoods. The goal of this thesis is to study how the frequency of change for secondary buildings compares with that of primary dwellings and to see if secondary buildings encounter a greater rate of change compared with primary dwellings. The research will quantify an anecdotal phenomenon, of outbuildings being demolished or altered more than primary buildings. The study area for this thesis is Harleston Village, and the sample data was gathered from nine city blocks. The two …

Re-Evaluating Significance Through Embodied Energy: Quantifying Significance In Load Bearing Brick Masonry Buildings, Bernard J. O'Brien

All Theses

The environmental value of historic buildings can be quantified by calculating embodied energy, as a means to expand understanding of historic significance. As a test of this notion, the embodied energy of historic brick, the largest material by volume in historic load bearing brick masonry buildings is calculated. The current criteria for designating buildings as significant were designed in the mid-to-late twentieth century and did not anticipate the environmental issues that would face the historic preservation movement in the twenty-first century. There is, for example, no existing database or index of the embodied energy of historic building materials. This thesis …

Equine Gastric Ulcers; A Pilot Study: Associated Biomarkers And Polysaccharide Supplementation As A Solution, Peyton Victoria Svagerko

All Theses

Equine Gastric Ulcer Syndrome affects roughly 90% of performance horses. The only reliable antemortem diagnostic method is endoscopy, which is an invasive process. The cornerstone of treatment is acid suppression, a cost-prohibitive option that is not viable for long-term use. The objectives of this study were to investigate the efficacy of a polysaccharide (PS) supplement on gastric ulcers in the squamous (SQ) and glandular (GL) regions of the equine stomach and identify associated serum and salivary biomarkers. It was hypothesized that severity of SQ and GL ulcers throughout the supplemental period would decrease and levels of serum and salivary proteins, …

Learning Multi-Agent Navigation From Human Crowd Data, Foram Joshi

All Theses

The task of safely steering agents amidst static and dynamic obstacles has many applications in robotics, graphics, and traffic engineering. While decentralized solutions are essential for scalability and robustness, achieving globally efficient motions for the entire system of agents is equally important. In a traditional decentralized setting, each agent relies on an underlying local planning algorithm that takes as input a preferred velocity and the current state of the agent's neighborhood and then computes a new velocity for the next time-step that is collision-free and as close as possible to the preferred one. Typically, each agent promotes a goal-oriented preferred …

Rigid Body Dynamics Of Ship Hulls Via Hydrostatic Forces Calculated From Fft Ocean Height Fields, Reagan Samuel Burke

All Theses

An art tool is presented that utilizes a method for simulating the motion of ships in response to hydrostatic forces on the hull from a height-field representation of an ocean surface. Other forces modeled as a PID controller aid to steer the ship and stabilize the motion. The algorithms described can be applied to 3D models of arbitrary shapes composed of polygons "floating" on height fields generated from a myriad of additional spectra. The performance of the method is demonstrated in simple and complex ships, and ocean surfaces of at, medium, and large waveheights.

Privacy-Preserving Image Classification Using Convolutional Neural Networks, David Karl Langbehn

All Theses

The process of image classification using convolutional neural networks (CNNs) often relies on access to large, annotated datasets and the use of cluster or cloud-based computing resources. However, many classification applications such as those in healthcare or defense introduce privacy concerns that prevent the collection of such data and the use of pre-existing large scale computing systems. Although many solutions to privacy preserving machine learning have previously been explored, the added computational complexity incurred with training on encrypted values inhibits these systems from executing in real-time. One of the most promising solutions that facilitates secure machine learning is secure multi-party …

"Enthusiastic Jew And Lover Of Humanity": August Bondi And The Roots Of Transnational Freedom During The Long Nineteenth Century, Matthew Christopher Long

All Theses

Migration is a decidedly human condition that has influenced the development of all nations. Yet the cultural and demographic impacts upon the United States during the long nineteenth century brought about by the mass movements of peoples from Africa, Europe, and beyond were especially pronounced. Immigrants to North America brought with them more than linguistic and cultural artifacts, however; propelled by intellectual currents in their countries of origin, they often carried with them a sensibility of revolution, radical republican politics, and a moral suasion that they employed as they navigated the political and social realities in their new countries. Many …

"They Don't Need Men And They Don't Need God": The Liberatory Possibilities Of Waywardness In Toni Morrison's Paradise, Mary Frankovich

All Theses

While Toni Morrison’s work is often a topic of critical conversations regarding race and gender in the United States, less attention is paid to her 1997 novel Paradise. Morrison’s many-layered, multi-voiced work explores the tensions between the rigidly patriarchal, all-black town of Ruby, Oklahoma, and the wayward women who live in a nearby mansion known as the Convent. The women create an unlikely community at the Convent, and Ruby’s patriarchs are so threatened by them that they murder the women. In this paper, I argue that the women in the Convent community enact alternative ways of being by claiming waywardness …