Digital Commons Network^™

Ml-Empowered Nondestructive Evaluation In Additive Manufacturing, Mohammadsaber Nemati

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation investigates cutting-edge AI-based approaches to enhance Nondestructive Evaluation in Additive Manufacturing (AM). As a larger workflow that aims to design complex alloys and shape memory polymers for AM, this effort tries to leverage machine learning to achieve performance and structural integrity goals in the material characterization stage. The dissertation comprises three key test cases:

1. X-ray CT Data Analysis Using Machine Learning

This section identifies the limitations of manual pixel-level segmentation in X-ray CT data analysis and introduces zero-shot learning. A self-supervised approach is proposed, eliminating manual segmentation and enhancing crack detection and prediction.

2. Neutron Imaging of …

From Empowerment Movement To Hijacked Hashtag: A Thematic Analysis Of #Shoutyourabortion, Sidney R. Reynen

LSU Master's Theses

This study delves into the digital landscape of the contentious abortion debate, focusing on the use and hijacking of the Shout Your Abortion hashtag. Drawing parallels to previous research on digital feminism, hashtag activism, and hashtag hijacking, this study further expands such literature by revealing shifts in anti-abortion rhetoric and strategies post-Dobbs. I identified seven themes within the supportive discourse: abortion narratives, pro-choice and other feminist rhetoric, calls to action, feminist art and shareables, reproductive health information and resources, positive-to-neutral mentions of the movement, and engagements with anti-abortion users. Within the hijacked posts, I identified five themes: Shout …

A Dance Of Resistance: The Puerto Rican Bomba As A Means To Challenge Intersections Of Discrimination On The Island, Daniel Loving

LSU Master's Theses

This thesis examines the Puerto Rican Bomba as a multifaceted cultural and political phenomenon, focusing on its pivotal role in challenging and subverting the enduring issues of racial and gender discrimination on the Island. Drawing from an interdisciplinary framework that encompasses cultural studies, anthropology, history, performance and film studies, this research elucidates the complex interplay between Bomba's rhythmic and choreographic elements, its historical evolution, and its contemporary significance in the context of Puerto Rico's sociopolitical landscape. By analyzing Bomba's historical roots in African and indigenous traditions, its adaptation during colonial and post-colonial eras, and its ongoing relevance in the struggle …

The Structures And Functions Of Offices Of Academic Affairs: A Case Study, Ryan Thomas Landry

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This study sought to describe how offices of academic affairs (administrative offices supporting provosts) at public, research-intensive universities in the United States are structured and what kind of work these offices do. There is a dearth of scholarly literature on the topic, indicative of an overall lack of knowledge about these organizations. From a practical standpoint, I intended for this study to contribute to the body of knowledge of higher education administration with hopes that it provides helpful insights to administrators as they consider organizational design. Using the theoretical framework of modern organization theory, I employed an embedded case study …

On Virtue Ethics Theory And Elementary Music Education, Joshua Burgos

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation uses virtue ethics theory, teacher research method, and self-study to examine how I perceive myself as contributing to cultivating virtuous persons. Virtue ethics theory, teacher research method, and self-study are empirical, using concrete methods of data generation and analysis, and conceptual, relating to studying philosophical research, ideas, and interpretations (Annas, 2007; Check & Schutt, 2012; Kemmis & McTaggart, 1988). The study aimed to discover how virtue is cultivated through music education and improve teaching practice using virtue ethics theory and empirical research to offer insight into how virtue is cultivated. The study was conducted in an elementary school …

Graphic Identities: Creating Places For Queer Belonging Through Comics, Victoria Payne

LSU Master's Theses

This thesis explores how queer comics create spaces and places of belonging for the LGBTQIA+ community. Queer comics occupy a complex and liminal space. This thesis considers three different types of comics commonly theorized as separate: the embodied, digital, and the literary. It is the tension between the physical nature paired with the intangible nature of the worlds created in these stories that makes them a perfect place for building spaces that are queer, safe, and interactive for queer and non-queer readers alike. This is the case with print comics and graphic novels, as well as digital comics and webcomics. …

Containerized Satsuma Mandarin Production Under Protective Screens As A Management Strategy, Anna Timmerman

LSU Master's Theses

Many of the world’s citrus growing regions are experiencing challenges related to citrus greening, also known as Huanglongbing (HLB) caused by the presumed bacterial agent Candidatus Liberibacter spp. HLB is vectored by the Asian citrus psyllid (Diaphorina citri) and through propagation of infected citrus material. HLB impacts tree health as well as fruit development, ripening, and quality of the resulting citrus fruit, often leading to an unmarketable product. Producers are growing citrus in high density orchards underneath protective screening material that excludes the Asian citrus psyllid, preventing new HLB infections. Four ultra-high containerized tree spacings of 2 feet …

Identification Of Quantitative Trait Loci (Qtl) Of Agronomic, Forage, And Milling Traits In A Southeastern Us Oat Association Panel, Kelly Joseph Arceneaux

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Common oat (Avena sativa L.) is an allohexaploid (AACCDD, 2n = 6x = 42) crop grown primarily for human consumption and animal feed, and as a forage source worldwide. Southern oat breeding programs prioritize forage yield and regrowth, grain yield and quality, winter hardiness, and disease resistance. While spring oat breeding programs target grain yield and quality (beta-glucan content), winter oat breeding programs target forage yield and quality in addition to grain yield. Recent advances in genotyping by sequencing (GBS) and single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) array have facilitated identification of quantitative trait loci (QTLs) and SNPs controlling various traits through …

Politics In Applicant Attraction And Recruitment: Firm Response To Abortion Legislation And Its Impact On Applicant Interest, Madeleine Coward

Honors Capstones

No abstract provided.

The Intracellular Localization And Function Of The Stress Response Kinase C-Jun Amino- Terminal Kinase In Drosophila Melanogaster, Claire Brescher

Honors Capstones

No abstract provided.

A Phoenix Glimmers Within The Ashes: Generalized Defensive Traits Suggest Hope For Plants Under Attack By Invasive Pests, Todd D. Johnson, Justin G.A. Whitehill

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Omics-Driven Investigation Of The Biology Underlying Intrinsic Submaximal Working Capacity And Its Trainability, Monalisa Hota, Jacob L. Barber, Jonathan J. Ruiz-Ramie, Charles S. Schwartz, Do Thuy Uyen Ha Lam, Prashant Rao, Michael Y. Mi, Daniel H. Katz, Jeremy M. Robbins, Clary B. Clish, Robert E. Gerszten, Mark A. Sarzynski, Sujoy Ghosh, Claude Bouchard

Division of Basic Science Faculty Publications

Submaximal exercise capacity is an indicator of cardiorespiratory fitness with clinical and public health implications. Submaximal exercise capacity and its response to exercise programs are characterized by heritability levels of about 40%. Using physical working capacity (power output) at a heart rate of 150 beats/min (PWC150) as an indicator of submaximal exercise capacity in subjects of the HERITAGE Family Study, we have undertaken multi-omics and in silico explorations of the underlying biology of PWC150 and its response to 20 wk of endurance training. Our goal was to illuminate the biological processes and identify panels of genes associated with human variability …

Validity Of An Artificial Intelligence-Based Application To Identify Foods And Estimate Energy Intake Among Adults: A Pilot Study, Chloe P. Lozano, Emma N. Canty, Sanjoy Saha, Stephanie T. Broyles, Robbie A. Beyl, John W. Apolzan, Corby K. Martin

Clinical Research Faculty Publications

Background: The commercial application Openfit allows for automatic identification and quantification of food intake through short video capture without a physical reference marker. There are no known peer-reviewed publications on the validity of this Nutrition Artificial Intelligence (AI). Objectives: To test the validity of Openfit to identify food automatically and semiautomatically (with user correction), test the validity of Openfit at quantifying energy intake (kcal) automatically and semiautomatically, and assess satisfaction and usability of Openfit. Methods: During a laboratory-based visit, adults (7 male and 17 female), used Openfit to automatically and semiautomatically record provided meals, which were covertly weighed. Foods logged …

Access, Interest, And Barriers To Incorporation Of Birth Doula Care In The United States, Amanda W. Mitchell, Joshua R. Sparks, Robbie A. Beyl, Abby D. Altazan, S. Ariel Barlow, Leanne M. Redman

Clinical Research Faculty Publications

Doula care improves maternal care, yet barriers exist to incorporating doula care. The purpose of this study was to evaluate interest and barriers to doula care. Overall, 508 women, 26–35 years of age (54.5%), White/Caucasian (89.8%), and married (88.6%), completed this study. Most reported ≥1 previous birth (97.6%). Respondents would “feel comfortable” (73.2%) and “more confident” (54.9%) with doula care at birth, and 57.9% reported their provider would be supportive of doula care. Only 39.0% expressed benefits to doula care during pregnancy compared to 72.6% at birth and 68.1% during postpartum. Most would hire a doula if health insurance covered …

Expanding Non-Invasive Approaches For Fish-Health Monitoring: A Survey Of The Epidermal Mucous Metabolomes Of Phylogenetically Diverse Freshwater Fish Species, Drew R. Ekman, Marina G. Evich, Jonathan D. Mosley, Jon A. Doering, Kellie A. Fay, Gerald T. Ankley, Timothy W. Collette

Faculty Publications

There is a pressing need for more-holistic approaches to fisheries assessments along with growing demand to reduce the health impacts of sample collections. Metabolomic tools enable the use of sample matrices that can be collected with minimal impact on the organism (e.g., blood, urine, and mucus) and provide high-throughput, untargeted biochemical information without the requirement of a sequenced genome. These qualities make metabolomics ideal for monitoring a wide range of fish species, particularly those under protected status. In the current study, we surveyed the relative abundances of 120 endogenous metabolites in epidermal mucus across eight freshwater fish species belonging to …

Influences Of Yogurt With Functional Ingredients From Various Sources That Help Treat Leaky Gut On Intestinal Barrier Dysfunction In Caco-2 Cells, Ricardo S. Aleman, Ryan Page, Roberto Cedillos, Ismael Montero-Fernández, Jhunior Abraham Marcia Fuentes, Douglas W. Olson, Kayanush Aryana

Faculty Publications

The impact of yogurts made with starter culture bacteria (L. bulgaricus and S. thermophilus) and supplemented with ingredients (maitake mushrooms, quercetin, L-glutamine, slippery elm bark, licorice root, N-acetyl-D-glucosamine, zinc orotate, and marshmallow root) that can help treat leaky gut were investigated using the Caco-2 cell monolayer as a measure of intestinal barrier dysfunction. Milk from the same source was equally dispersed into nine pails, and the eight ingredients were randomly allocated to the eight pails. The control had no ingredients. The Caco-2 cells were treated with isoflavone genistein (negative control) and growth media (positive control). Inflammation was stimulated using an …

A Descriptive Study Of Louisiana 4-H 8th Through 12th Graders' Perceptions Of Career And College Readiness, Carrie M. Lane

LSU Master's Theses

As youth leave primary education and enter college or a career path, preparing those youth to ensure success has fallen, in large part, upon formal and non-formal youth educators. Encouraging students to apply and complete college has been a focus of education professionals for many years. Historically, gauging college and career readiness (CCR), academic institutions have relied on academic performance in areas of English Language Arts and Mathematics (Mattern, et. al, 2014). The use of academic focused measures instead of student-based evaluation had its drawbacks. While core education is important, measuring soft skills needed for the workforce and college environment …

Vibriosis: An Integrated Study Of Ecology, State Policy, And Health Communication, Ruth Akintoye

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The CDC reports fatalities within one to two days for 20% of victims of a Vibrio vulnificus infection. This flesh-eating bacterium is part of the Vibrio genus, which comprises various pathogenic species responsible for the human illness, Vibriosis, which is estimated at 80,000 annual cases in the US, according to the CDC.

A vibriosis public health concern exists, but there's no mandatory national surveillance system. This study reveals that only 19 states mandate vibriosis reporting, leaving a gap in understanding the incidence of disease from this flesh-eating bacterium.

This research comprises four studies that advance our knowledge of vibriosis through …

Conducting Enchantment: Organized Sound And Ritual Spaces In Modern And Ancient Worlds, Haley Stuckey

Honors Capstones

No abstract provided.

Effects Of A Major Hurricane On Dynamics, Structure, And Composition Of Mississippi River Delta Forests, Lance C. Umlang

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Tropical cyclones recurrently influence coastal forests worldwide. Tree survival (resistance) and post-cyclone recruitment (resilience) can vary with cyclone intensity, producing differences in composition, arboreal structure, and dynamics among affected forests. Studies of tropical cyclone wind effects on coastal forests typically emphasize damage more than post-cyclone responses. We hypothesized that intense cyclones might produce large, stratum-dependent effects that prevent affected forests from returning to pre-storm conditions. We explored direct effects of major Hurricane Katrina and post-hurricane changes in oak-dominated bottomland and cypress/tupelo-dominated swamp forests within the inactive portion of the Mississippi River deltaic plain. Overall mortality was high (14-25%) but concentrated …

Yeast Crf1p: An Activator In Need Is An Activator Indeed, Sanjay Kumar

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Ribosome biogenesis is an energetically costly process, and tight regulation is required for stoichiometric balance between components. This requires coordination of RNA polymerases I, II, and III. Lack of nutrients or the presence of stress leads to downregulation of ribosome biogenesis, a process for which mechanistic target of rapamycin complex I (mTORC1) is key. mTORC1 activity is communicated by means of specific transcription factors, and in yeast, which is a primary model system in which transcriptional coordination has been delineated, transcription factors involved in regulation of ribosomal protein genes include Fhl1p and its cofactors, Ifh1p and Crf1p. Ifh1p is an …

Becoming Avian: Amazonian Featherworks From The John P. O’Neill Collection, Madeline R. Blanchard

LSU Master's Theses

In 1998 ornithologist John P. O’Neill donated an ethnographic collection of 434 objects he was gifted from researcher Charles Fugler or purchased from persons in Pucallpa, Peru, during his time there studying Amazonian birds. I evaluate 18 feathered objects. According to O’Neill, the cultures responsible for the items are the Cashinahua, Aguaruna, Achual, and Arawak. Eighteen of these items are beautifully crafted arrangements of feathered clothing and objects. The collection includes five headdresses, five bouquets, a hat, a necklace, three tassels, a backrack, a scarf, and a hair tie.

The objects and the seventeen species of bird used are active …

Nikolai Medtner And The Beethoven Tradition In Performance And Pedagogy, Jamie E. Gurt

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The compositions of Nikolai Medtner (1880-1951) have received increasing attention in both performance and scholarship. This monograph explores the influence of the Beethoven tradition in Medtner’s piano sonatas with a focus on performance and pedagogy. An examination of Medtner’s biography contextualizes Medtner’s training in composition and performance, as well as philosophical and personal influences. Next, the study examines Medtner’s writings on Beethoven as well as current scholarship on the piano sonatas of the two composers, observing influences in overall formal and stylistic characteristics. Exploring performance and pedagogy, the study considers examples from Medtner’s recordings of his Sonata Tragica, Op. …

Sequence-Defined Ionic Peptoid Polymers: Synthesis, Characterization, And The Role Of Charge Patterning, Bailee N. Barrett

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This work explores the role of positionally defined charges on the self-assembly behavior of a series of sequence-defined peptoid block copolymers. The unique ability to precisely control the number and position of each monomer unit along the polymer chain makes this system particularly well suited for uncovering how changes in monomer sequence alter the resulting structures. We employ a number of scattering techniques to uncover how systematically repositioning a single ionizable monomer, along an otherwise neutral polymer chain, alters the self-assembled micellar structures and subsequently their responsiveness to changes in their local environment.

Chapter 1 reviews previous efforts to transition …

Proud Of Your Boy: Toxic Masculinity, Boyhood, And The American Musical, Aaron J. Wood

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This project traces the cultural historiography of the phrase "boys will be boys" and examines the pattern of white male excusal it embodies through a case-study based survey of onstage depictions of boyhood in musical theatre. I argue that the generational idea of manhood as aggressive, competitive, and violent is continually reasserted through our passive acceptance of white boy violence. This dissertation looks to the musicals Newsies, West Side Story, Heathers, and Dear Evan Hansen as case studies for exploring the cultural lineage of the phrase “boys will be boys.” Like the works of Aaron Thomas, Raymond …

Quality And Consumer Acceptance Of Shrimp Nuggets As Affected By Shrimp Shell Powder Addition, Jorge Ortega

LSU Master's Theses

Approximately 6 million tons of shrimp are produced annually. However, about 45% of shrimp is discarded as waste (shell/head portions). This waste represents both environmental and economic challenges. This study was performed to explore the potential of utilizing shrimp shell powder (SSP) as a sustainable ingredient in shrimp nuggets. To determine the optimal SSP inclusion levels, a preliminary study involving 35 panelists who participated in two sessions was conducted to determine a Consumer Rejection-Tolerance-Threshold (RTT) using a probit-regression model (α=0.05, GENMOD procedure, SAS software). Rejection-Range (RR) was determined at 95% fiducial limits, which yielded the maximum acceptable %SSP. Subsequently, 105 …

Building Solidarity Between Minority Groups, Seonwoo Kim

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Although a considerable number of scholars agree that an intergroup coalition among minorities will be more powerful in changing biased perceptions, regulations, and policies (e.g., Burson & Godfrey, 2020; Lane et al., 2019), cross-minority solidarity is challenging due to the inherent difficulties in establishing a shared goal and reaching a consensus on methods and tactics (Gawerc, 2021; Rogers, 2004) and competing policy stances and stereotypes (Hope, 2019; Nopper, 2006). Numerous instances of social movements that failed due to the failure of coalitions to form have been documented in the literature (e.g., Almeida, 2010; Ferree & Roth, 1998; Gelb & Shogan, …

France Within Louisiana Law, Government, And Media, Nicolas Garon

Tête à Tête: Journal of Francophone Studies

No abstract provided.

Lrtransformer: Learn-Region Transformer For Object-Agnostic Point Cloud Segmentation, Dipesh Gyawali

LSU Master's Theses

3D point cloud segmentation segments the 3D point cloud data into different regions/instances depending on their features that have numerous applications in robotics, autonomous driving, digital twinning, augmented reality, etc. The majority of the existing point cloud segmentation methods depend on class labels to identify 3D objects in the surroundings. Our work focuses on segmenting point clouds into different regions/instances in an object-agnostic manner for any number of objects in the environment. Given the point cloud, our method can segment the entire scene into multiple instances without depending on object shape and size. We leverage the power of the self-attention …

Continuous Spin Excitations In The Three-Dimensional Frustrated Magnet K2ni2 (So4)3, Weiliang Yao, Qing Huang, Tao Xie, Andrey Podlesnyak, Alexander Brassington, Chengkun Xing, Ranuri S.Dissanayaka Mudiyanselage, Haozhe Wang, Weiwei Xie, Shengzhi Zhang, Minseong Lee, Vivien S. Zapf, Xiaojian Bai, D. Alan Tennant, Jian Liu, Haidong Zhou

Faculty Publications

Continuous spin excitations are widely recognized as one of the hallmarks of novel spin states in quantum magnets, such as quantum spin liquids (QSLs). Here, we report the observation of such kind of excitations in K2Ni2(SO4)3, which consists of two sets of intersected spin-1 (Ni2+) trillium lattices. Our inelastic neutron scattering measurement on single crystals clearly shows a dominant excitation continuum, which exhibits a distinct temperature-dependent behavior from that of spin waves, and is rooted in strong quantum spin fluctuations. Further using the self-consistent-Gaussian-approximation method, we determine that the fourth- and fifth-nearest-neighbor exchange interactions are dominant. These two bonds together …