Digital Commons Network^™

Louisiana Children’S Trust Fund: 2017-2018 Annual Report, Elizabeth Winchester, Jonathan Lomotey, Marmar Orooji, Jada Thomas-Smith, Aimee H. Moles, Kandra Colomb, Judith Rhodes

Reports

No abstract provided.

Recruiting, Retaining, And Promoting For Careers At Transportation Agencies, Christofer Harper, Susan Bogus, Raghava Kommalapati, Doeun Choe

Data

Corresponding data set for Tran-SET Project No. 17PPLSU07. Abstract of the final report is stated below for reference:

"State transportation agencies currently face complex challenges in recruiting and retaining the workforce necessary to function effectively. The situation exacerbates due to the number of employees from different generations that have to coexist with varying values, expectations, and principles. These agencies are primarily comprised of two generational groups: the baby-boomers, who are approaching retirement and occupy many managerial positions; and the millennials, who are demonstrating their interest in technology and demanding dynamism in their careers. This multiplicity of interest represents a challenge …

Development Of A Self-Powered Structural Health Monitoring System For Transportation Infrastructure, Aydin Karsilaya, Samer Dessouky, Athanassios Papagiannakis

Data

Corresponding data set for Tran-SET Project No. 17PTAM03. Abstract of the final report is stated below for reference:

"Roadways and bridges play an important role in the economic and social health of society by connecting commerce and people. Economic growth and population expansion pose considerable burden on the aging infrastructure (i.e., pavements and bridges). There is a pressing need to develop structural health monitoring (SHM) technologies capable of collecting infrastructure utilization data. Doing so inexpensively with self-powered systems will revolutionize infrastructure monitoring technology, and will improve decision making enabling roadway and bridge preservation. In this study, a self-powered battery-less structural …

Investigating Problem Of Distracted Drivers On Louisiana Roadways, Xiaoduan Sun

Publications

Due to the escalating usage of cellphone and social networking, distracted driving is and will remain as one of the most serious problems faced by Departments of Transportation (DOTs) and law enforcement agencies. Under the aim of in-depth investigation of distracted driving crashes in Louisiana, the specific objectives of this study are: (1) reviewing the crash reports for the quality of distracted driving crash reporting, (2) analyzing distracted driving-related crashes through regression model and data mining algorithm to link the severity of distracted driving crashes with the contributing factors collected in crash data, (3) investigating the observable characteristics of distracted …

The Use Of A Celebrity In Advertising A Potentially Unhealthy Product: Using Psi And The Effects On Consumers’ Body Image, Oliver Taylor

Honors Capstones

No abstract provided.

Energy-Constrained Private And Quantum Capacities Of Quantum Channels, Mark M. Wilde, Haoyu Qi

Faculty Publications

This paper establishes a general theory of energy-constrained quantum and private capacities of quantum channels. We begin by defining various energy-constrained communication tasks, including quantum communication with a uniform energy constraint, entanglement transmission with an average energy constraint, private communication with a uniform energy constraint, and secret key transmission with an average energy constraint. We develop several code conversions, which allow us to conclude non-trivial relations between the capacities corresponding to the above tasks. We then show how the regularized, energy-constrained coherent information is equal to the capacity for the first two tasks and is an achievable rate for the …

Molecular Architecture Of Fungal Cell Walls Revealed By Solid-State Nmr, Xue Kang, Alex Kirui, Artur Muszyński, Malitha C.Dickwella Widanage, Adrian Chen, Parastoo Azadi, Ping Wang, Frederic Mentink-Vigier, Tuo Wang

Faculty Publications

© 2018 The Author(s). The high mortality of invasive fungal infections, and the limited number and inefficacy of antifungals necessitate the development of new agents with novel mechanisms and targets. The fungal cell wall is a promising target as it contains polysaccharides absent in humans, however, its molecular structure remains elusive. Here we report the architecture of the cell walls in the pathogenic fungus Aspergillus fumigatus. Solid-state NMR spectroscopy, assisted by dynamic nuclear polarization and glycosyl linkage analysis, reveals that chitin and α-1,3-glucan build a hydrophobic scaffold that is surrounded by a hydrated matrix of diversely linked β-glucans and capped …

Transient Marine Euxinia At The End Of The Terminal Cryogenian Glaciation, Xianguo Lang, Bing Shen, Yongbo Peng, Shuhai Xiao, Chuanming Zhou, Huiming Bao, Alan Jay Kaufman, Kangjun Huang, Peter W. Crockford, Yonggang Liu, Wenbo Tang, Haoran Ma

Faculty Publications

© 2018, The Author(s). Termination of the terminal Cryogenian Marinoan snowball Earth glaciation (~650–635 Ma) is associated with the worldwide deposition of a cap carbonate. Modeling studies suggest that, during and immediately following deglaciation, the ocean may have experienced a rapid rise in pH and physical stratification followed by oceanic overturn. Testing these predictions requires the establishment of a high-resolution sequence of events within sedimentary records. Here we report the conspicuous occurrence of pyrite concretions in the topmost Nantuo Formation (South China) that was deposited in the Marinoan glacial deposits. Sedimentary facies and sulfur isotope data indicate pyrite precipitation in …

Stochastic Lagrangian Formulations For Damped Navier-Stokes Equations And Boussinesq System, With Applications, Kazuo Yamazaki

Communications on Stochastic Analysis

No abstract provided.

Generalized Random Fields And Lévy's Continuity Theorem On The Space Of Tempered Distributions, Hermine Biermé, Olivier Durieu, Yizao Wang

Communications on Stochastic Analysis

No abstract provided.

On A Stochastic 2d Simplified Liquid Crystal Model Driven By Jump Noise, T. Tachim Medjo

Communications on Stochastic Analysis

No abstract provided.

New Filters For The Calibration Of Regime Switching Beta Dynamics, Robert J. Elliott, Carlton Osakwe

Communications on Stochastic Analysis

No abstract provided.

Non-Continuous Double Barrier Reflected Bsdes With Jumps Under A Stochastic Lipschitz Coefficient, Mohamed Marzougue, Mohamed El Otmani

Communications on Stochastic Analysis

No abstract provided.

Adoption Of Sustainable Agriculture Practices Among Farmers In Kentucky, Usa, Bijesh Mishra, Buddhi R. Gyawali, Krishna P. Paudel, Neelam C. Poudyal, Marion F. Simon, Siddhartha Dasgupta, George Antonious

Faculty Publications

© 2018, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature. Promoting the sustainable agricultural practices at an individual farm level is essential to ensure agricultural sustainability. This study analyzed whether and how various factors related to farm or farmers’ characteristics influence the adoption intensity of sustainable agriculture practices. We used a negative binomial regression model to fit the data collected from a mail survey of farmers in Kentucky, USA. Our results showed that the adoption intensity of sustainable agriculture practices varied significantly among agricultural districts in Kentucky. Farmers who grew row crops, had irrigation facilities, and were in favor of …

Atomic-Scale Tailoring Of Spin Susceptibility Via Non-Magnetic Spin-Orbit Impurities, F. N. Womack, P. W. Adams, H. Nam, C. K. Shih, G. Catelani

Faculty Publications

Following the discovery of topological insulators, there has been a renewed interest in superconducting systems that have strong spin-orbit (SO) coupling. Here we address the fundamental question of how the spin properties of a otherwise spin-singlet superconducting ground state evolve with increasing SO impurity density. We have mapped out the Zeeman critical field phase diagram of superconducting Al films that were deposited over random Pb cluster arrays of varying density. These phase diagrams give a direct measure of the Fermi liquid spin renormalization, as well as the spin orbit scattering rate. We find that the spin renormalization is a linear …

Geometric Quenching Of Orbital Pair Breaking In A Single Crystalline Superconducting Nanomesh Network, Hyoungdo Nam, Hua Chen, Philip W. Adams, Syu You Guan, Tien Ming Chuang, Chia Seng Chang, Allan H. Macdonald, Chih Kang Shih

Faculty Publications

In a superconductor Cooper pairs condense into a single state and in so doing support dissipation free charge flow and perfect diamagnetism. In a magnetic field the minimum kinetic energy of the Cooper pairs increases, producing an orbital pair breaking effect. We show that it is possible to significantly quench the orbital pair breaking effect for both parallel and perpendicular magnetic fields in a thin film superconductor with lateral nanostructure on a length scale smaller than the magnetic length. By growing an ultra-thin (2 nm thick) single crystalline Pb nanowire network, we establish nm scale lateral structure without introducing weak …

Reporting Characteristics In Sports Nutrition, Conrad P. Earnest, Brandon M. Roberts, Christopher R. Harnish, Jessica L. Kutz, Jason M. Cholewa, Neil M. Johannsen

Faculty Publications

Purpose: To examine data reporting characteristics in sports nutrition. Methods: We examined 236 papers from ten journals published in 2016. The primary outcome was statistical variance associated with treatment (SD (correct) vs. SEM or CI). Secondary outcomes included the reporting of: (a) effect sizes (Y/N); (b) outcome prioritization (Y/N; primary, secondary, etc.) and (c) statistical variance relative to change from baseline (CI (correct) vs. SD or SEM). As tertiary/exploratory outcome, we examined whether authors stated a directed hypothesis. Statistical evaluation was performed using chi-square analyses. Results: We observed significant trends for all analyses (p < 0.001) and between category comparisons (p < 0.002). For the primary outcome, 128 (59%) articles correctly used SD to denote treatment variance, while 79 (36%) and 11 (5%) used SEM and CI, respectively. For secondary outcomes, 63 articles (29%) reported effect sizes, while 155 (71%) did not. Additionally, 188 articles (86%) did not prioritize outcomes, 134 articles (61%) stated no hypotheses and 40 (19%, out of 100) articles used CI to denote change scores vs. SD (19%, n = 41) and SEM (n = 10, 5%). Eight articles (4%) reported no variance terms. Conclusions: Overall, there are gaps regarding reporting in sports nutrition. Editors, journal publishers, and the field of exercise science alike should consider these outcomes and provide editorial staff, reviewers and authors with more concrete guidelines.

Supplemental Nitrogen Applications On Corn In Lower Mississippi River Delta Alluvial Soils, Henry J. Mascagni, Brenda Tubana, Marilyn Dalen

Faculty Publications

Core Ideas: Corn optimal N rate on two alluvial soils ranged from 200 to 265 kg N ha−1. Supplemental N applied at early silk increases corn grain yield on two alluvial soils. Relative chlorophyll readings did not consistently diagnose need for supplemental N. Nitrogen deficiency may occur late in the corn (Zea mays L.) growing season due to N fertilizer loss, particularly on poorly drained clay soils, or increased plant demand. Results from field trials conducted from 2006 to 2014 at the Northeast Research Station, St. Joseph, LA, were summarized to evaluate the influence of supplemental N (SN) on corn …

The Rice Blast Resistance Gene Ptr Encodes An Atypical Protein Required For Broad-Spectrum Disease Resistance, Haijun Zhao, Xueyan Wang, Yulin Jia, Bastian Minkenberg, Matthew Wheatley, Jiangbo Fan, Melissa H. Jia, Adam Famoso, Jeremy D. Edwards, Yeshi Wamishe, Barbara Valent, Guo Liang Wang, Yinong Yang

Faculty Publications

Plant resistance genes typically encode proteins with nucleotide binding site-leucine rich repeat (NLR) domains. Here we show that Ptr is an atypical resistance gene encoding a protein with four Armadillo repeats. Ptr is required for broad-spectrum blast resistance mediated by the NLR R gene Pi-ta and by the associated R gene Pi-ta2. Ptr is expressed constitutively and encodes two isoforms that are mainly localized in the cytoplasm. A two base pair deletion within the Ptr coding region in the fast neutron-generated mutant line M2354 creates a truncated protein, resulting in susceptibility to M. oryzae. Targeted mutation of Ptr in a …

Discussion Forum: The Vanishing Nineteenth Century In European History?, David Blackbourn, James M. Brophy, Pieter M. Judson, Alexander M. Martin, Lloyd S. Kramer, Alex Chase-Levenson, Roger Chickering, Simone Lässig, Suzanne Marchand, Karen Hagemann, Sebastian Conrad, Birgit Aschmann, Insa Kummer, Jürgen Osterhammel, Andrew Zimmerman

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Editorial Introduction For The Topical Issue "The New Metaphysics: Analytic/Continental Crossovers", Paul Livingston, Jon Cogburn

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Checking Facts And Fighting Back: Why Journalists Should Defend Their Profession, Raymond J. Pingree, Brian Watson, Mingxiao Sui, Kathleen Searles, Nathan P. Kalmoe, Joshua P. Darr, Martina Santia, Kirill Bryanov

Faculty Publications

Bias accusations have eroded trust in journalism to impartially check facts. Traditionally journalists have avoided responding to such accusations, resulting in an imbalanced flow of arguments about the news media. This study tests what would happen if journalists spoke up more in defense of their profession, while simultaneously also testing effects of doing more fact checking. A five-day field experiment manipulated whether an online news portal included fact check stories and opinion pieces defending journalism. Fact checking was beneficial in terms of three democratically desirable outcomes–media trust, epistemic political efficacy, and future news use intent–only when defense of journalism stories …

Understanding Fear Of Zika: Personal, Interpersonal, And Media Influences, Chun Yang, James Price Dillard, Ruobing Li

Faculty Publications

Fear of infectious disease often motivates people to protect themselves. But, it can also produce negative bio-social-psychological effects whose severity is on par with those of the disease. The WHO declaration of Zika as a world health crisis presented an opportunity to study factors that bring about fear. Beginning nine days after the WHO announcement, data were gathered from women aged 18–35 living in the southern United States (N = 719). Respondents reported experiencing fear of Zika at levels akin to those reported following other significant crises/disasters (e.g., the terrorist attacks of 9/11). Fear increased as a function of (1) …

Transient Marine Euxinia At The End Of The Terminal Cryogenian Glaciation, Xianguo Lang, Bing Shen, Yongbo Peng, Shuhai Xiao, Chuanming Zhou, Huiming Bao, Alan Jay Kaufman, Kangjun Huang, Peter W. Crockford, Yonggang Liu, Wenbo Tang, Haoran Ma

Faculty Publications

© 2018, The Author(s). Termination of the terminal Cryogenian Marinoan snowball Earth glaciation (~650–635 Ma) is associated with the worldwide deposition of a cap carbonate. Modeling studies suggest that, during and immediately following deglaciation, the ocean may have experienced a rapid rise in pH and physical stratification followed by oceanic overturn. Testing these predictions requires the establishment of a high-resolution sequence of events within sedimentary records. Here we report the conspicuous occurrence of pyrite concretions in the topmost Nantuo Formation (South China) that was deposited in the Marinoan glacial deposits. Sedimentary facies and sulfur isotope data indicate pyrite precipitation in …

The Medusae Fossae Formation As The Single Largest Source Of Dust On Mars, Lujendra Ojha, Kevin Lewis, Suniti Karunatillake, Mariek Schmidt

Faculty Publications

© 2018, The Author(s). Transport of fine-grained dust is one of the most widespread sedimentary processes occurring on Mars today. In the present climate, eolian abrasion and deflation of rocks are likely the most pervasive and active dust-forming mechanism. Martian dust is globally enriched in S and Cl and has a distinct mean S:Cl ratio. Here we identify a potential source region for Martian dust based on analysis of elemental abundance data. We show that a large sedimentary unit called the Medusae Fossae Formation (MFF) has the highest abundance of S and Cl, and provides the best chemical match to …

Robust Secure Transmission Of Using Main-Lobe-Integration-Based Leakage Beamforming In Directional Modulation Mu-Mimo Systems, Feng Shu, Wei Zhu, Xiangwei Zhou, Jun Li, Jinhui Lu

Faculty Publications

In this paper, we make an investigation of robust beamforming for secure directional modulation in the multiuser multiple-input and multiple-output systems in the presence of direction angle measurement errors. When statistical knowledge of direction angle measurement errors is unavailable, a novel robust beamforming scheme of combining main-lobe-integration and leakage is proposed to simultaneously transmit multiple different independent parallel confidential message streams to the associated multiple distinct desired users. The proposed scheme includes two steps: designing the beamforming vectors of the useful confidential messages and constructing artificial noise (AN) projection matrix. Here, in its first step, the beamforming vectors for the …

Susceptibility And Resilience To Cyber Threat: Findings From A Scenario Decision Program To Measure Secure And Insecure Computing Behavior, Carl F. Weems, Irfan Ahmed, Golden G. Richard, Justin D. Russell, Erin L. Neill

Faculty Publications

Interest in the individual differences underlying end user computer security behavior has led to the development of a multidisciplinary field of research known as behavioral information security. An important gap in knowledge and the motivation for this research is the development of ways to measure secure and insecure cyber behavior for research and eventually practice. Here we report a study designed to develop a technique for assessing secure and insecure cyber behavior for broad research use. The Susceptibility and Resilience to Cyber Threat (SRCT) is an immersive scenario decision program. The SRCT measures susceptibility to cyber threat and malicious behavior …

Use Of Ultra-High-Performance Fiber-Reinforced Concrete (Uhp-Frc) For Fast And Sustainable Repair Of Pavements, Shih-Ho Chao

Publications

This research presents a new methodology, which enables streets, roads, highways, bridges, and airfields to use an advanced fiber-reinforced concrete material, which can delay or prevent the deterioration of these transportation infrastructure when subjected to traffic and environmental loadings. The major problem of concrete is its considerable deterioration and limited service life due to its brittleness and limited durability. As a result, it requires frequent repair and eventual replacement, which consumes more natural resources. Ultra-high-performance fiber-reinforced concrete (UHP-FRC) introduces significant enhancement in the sustainability of concrete structures due to its dense microstructure and damage-tolerance characteristics. These characteristics can significantly reduce …

Development Of A Self-Powered Structural Health Monitoring System For Transportation Infrastructure, Aydin Karsilaya, Samer Dessouky, Athanassios Papagiannakis

Publications

Roadways and bridges play an important role in the economic and social health of society by connecting commerce and people. Economic growth and population expansion pose considerable burden on the aging infrastructure (i.e., pavements and bridges). There is a pressing need to develop structural health monitoring (SHM) technologies capable of collecting infrastructure utilization data. Doing so inexpensively with self-powered systems will revolutionize infrastructure monitoring technology, and will improve decision making enabling roadway and bridge preservation. In this study, a self-powered battery-less structural health monitoring (SHM) system was developed. It is powered by a thermal energy harvester equipped with thermoelectric generators …

Mitigating Traffic Congestion On I-10 In Baton Rouge, La: Supply- And Demand-Oriented Strategies & Treatments, Samir Ahmed, Osama Osman, Julius Codjoe

Publications

The aim of this study is to develop a better understanding of the causes of traffic congestion on I-10 in the Baton Rouge, LA area, particularly at the I-10 Mississippi River Bridge, and to identify treatments and strategies to mitigate congestion at the bridge site. This study developed and calibrated a microsimulation model of I-10 (from Lobdell Highway in Port Allen to Highland Road, I-110 to Florida Street, and I-12 to Walker Road) and investigated several supply- and demand-oriented strategies. This includes: rehabilitation and utilization of the old Mississippi River Bridge on US-190 and the existing US-190/US-61 corridor, overall demand …