Digital Commons Network^™

Exploring Health Equity With Culturally Specific Providers Of Permanent Supportive Housing, Judith Solomon

University Honors Theses

Chronic homelessness is an important public health issue. Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) is a promising opportunity for transitioning people experiencing homelessness into housing, however there remain unaddressed racial inequities in service provision and outcomes. The aim of this study is to better understand the role of culturally specific (CS) providers of PSH in improving health equity. I analyzed interviews with CS PSH providers for themes related to health and healthcare. Providers spoke about the importance of connecting clients to healthcare. Providers stressed the importance of honesty and lived experience, highlighting the strong sense of responsibility to the community. Providers also …

Special Delivery: Special District Use Of Collaboration To Solve Challenges, Kelly Irene Fahl Sherbo

Dissertations and Theses

As the special district sector continues to increase in number across the U.S., understanding their role in public governance increases in value both to practitioners and academia alike. The state of the academic literature on special districts does not yet reflect the large size and importance of the sector and has been severely limited by available data, mainly coming from the U.S. Census Bureau. Existing research has focused on broad descriptions of the field of special districts, some studies focus on policy and political effects; but scant research analyzes behavior within and among special districts, particularly with their public entity …

Characterizing Rainfall Variability Within A Series Of Storms Over Northern California In February 2017, Parker Jan Malek

Dissertations and Theses

In February 2017, a series of storms with associated atmospheric rivers (ARs) made landfall in the US state of California, dropping large amounts of precipitation over the Sierra Nevada Mountains and their western foothills. The rainfall from these ARs, long, narrow bands of water vapor that transport large amounts of water vapor from the tropics to the mid-latitudes, instigated the near-failure of the Oroville Dam located at the southeastern edge of the Feather watershed outside the city of Oroville in the state's Central Valley. This case study provides a synoptic and mesoscale diagnosis of the drivers of rainfall pulses that …

Neural Visual Synthesis For Graphics, 4d Gaussians And Videos, Zhan Li

Dissertations and Theses

Efficient visual synthesis has played an indirect yet important role in the development of neural networks. Graphics processing units (GPUs) were initially designed for visual synthesis tasks such as rendering graphics. However, their parallel computing capabilities later made GPUs the ideal hardware for training neural networks. Since neural networks have greatly benefited from GPUs, a compelling question arises: How can neural networks, in turn, improve efficient visual synthesis?

Existing visual synthesis methods still require improvement for higher efficiency. For example, Monte Carlo rendering takes over 15 minutes to generate a megapixel frame at a high-quality setting on a GPU, as …

Next Arrival And Destination Prediction Via Spatiotemporal Embedding With Urban Geography And Human Mobility Data, Pengjiang Li, Zaitian Wang, Xinhao Zhang, Pengfei Wang, Kunpeng Liu

Computer Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

With the development of transportation networks, countless trajectory data are accumulated, and understanding human mobility from traffic data could be helpful for smart cities, urban computing, and urban planning. Extracting valuable insights from traffic data, such as taxi trajectories, can significantly improve residents’ daily lives. There are many studies on spatiotemporal data mining. As we know, arrival prediction or regional function detection encompasses important tasks for traffic management and urban planning. However, trajectory data are often mutilated because of personal privacy and hardware limitations, i.e., we usually can only obtain partial trajectory information. In this paper, we develop an embedding …

Extant Life Detection Using Label-Free Video Microscopy In Analog Aquatic Environments, Carl D. Snyder, Manuel Bedrossian, Casey Barr, Jody W. Deming, Chris A. Lindensmith, Christian Stenner, Jay L. Nadeau

Physics Faculty Publications and Presentations

The ability of microbial active motion, morphology, and optical properties to serve as biosignatures was investigated by in situ video microscopy in a wide range of extreme field sites where such imaging had not been performed previously. These sites allowed for sampling seawater, sea ice brines, cryopeg brines, hypersaline pools and seeps, hyperalkaline springs, and glaciovolcanic cave ice. In all samples except the cryopeg brine, active motion was observed without any sample treatment. Active motion was observed in the cryopeg brines when samples were subjected to a temperature gradient above in situ. In general, levels of motility were low in …

Pdxscholar Multi-Year Annual Report (2022-2024), Julia Stone, Sherry Buchanan, Bertrand Robinson, Stacey Schlatter, Carolee Harrison

Library Faculty and Staff Publications and Presentations

We are excited to share our 2022-2024 PDXScholar Multi-Year Annual Report. This multi-year report covers the period between January 1, 2022 and December 31, 2024. PDXScholar, Portland State University's institutional repository, provides access to the scholarly and creative output of PSU faculty, students, and staff. In this report, we aim to highlight PDXScholar’s growth and impact through readership data, new content and collections, and feedback from our users.

Realizing Intrinsically Ultralow And Glass-Like Thermal Transport Via Chemical Bonding Engineering, Zhonghao Xia, Xingchen Shen, Jun Zhou, Yuling Huang, Yali Yang, Jiangang He, Yi Xia

Mechanical and Materials Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Crystals exhibiting glass-like and low lattice thermal conductivity ( ) are not only scientifically intriguing but also practically valuable in various applications, including thermal barrier coatings, thermoelectric energy conversion, and thermal management. However, such unusual are typically observed only in compounds containing heavy elements, with large unit cells, or at high temperatures. In this study, chemical bonding principles are utilized to weaken the Ag–Ag bonds and enhance lattice anharmonicity. The incorporation of a chalcogen anion as a bridge ligand is proposed to facilitate phonon rattling in Ag6-octahedron-based compounds. Guided by this design strategy, five Ag6 octahedron-based compounds, AAg3X2 (A = …

Layout-Aware Quantum Circuitry And Algorithmic Extensions To Grover's Algorithm, Ali Al-Bayaty

Dissertations and Theses

Lov K. Grover introduced, in 1996, Grover's algorithm as a quantum search algorithm to find all solutions for quantum oracles representing classical problems. My research observed that the Grover diffusion operator of Grover's algorithm gives wrong solutions when Boolean oracles are designed in some logical structures. Therefore, I invented the new "controlled-diffusion operator" for Boolean oracles as a new approach for Grover's algorithm that always correctly solves the problem of Grover's algorithm.

Another important problem in quantum computing is designing reliable and cost-effective quantum gates using reversible binary logic. In classical logic design, the stage of logic design can be …

Model Explanations For Gender And Ethnicity Bias Mitigation In Ai-Generated Narratives, Martha Otisi Dimgba

Dissertations and Theses

Large Language Models (LLMs) are increasingly utilized in diverse applications, ranging from professional content creation to decision-making systems. However, their outputs often amplify the biases present in their training data, perpetuating stereotypes and reinforcing societal inequities, particularly regarding gender and ethnicity. Such biases can cause tangible harm, especially for underrepresented groups, and require awareness and effective mitigation strategies.

This work explores gender and ethnicity representation in narratives created by generative AI describing 25 occupational fields defined by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. We examine three large language models (LLMs)--Llama 3.1 70B Instruct, Claude 3.5 Sonnet, and GPT 4.0 Turbo. …

The Role Of Homocysteine Redox Chemistry In Biomolecular Mechanisms, Megha Gupta

Dissertations and Theses

Homocysteine at elevated levels is a well-known independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease. However, it is still unclear, after large scale clinical trials, involving tens of thousands of patients, whether homocysteine is a disease mediator or marker. The disconnect between the basic science showing the association of homocysteine with cardiovascular disease and the outcomes of clinical trials based on vitamin therapy for homocysteine lowering, highlights the need for insights into the molecular mechanisms linking homocysteine to cardiovascular disease and other pathologies. For example, elevated homocysteine levels have also been associated with risk for stroke, venous thromboembolism, Alzheimer's disease, neural tube …

Cost Comparison Of Congregate, Motel, And Village-Type Shelters For People Experiencing Homelessness, Jacen Greene, Todd Ferry, Emily Leickly, Franklin H. Spurbeck

Homelessness Research & Action Collaborative Publications and Presentations

Village and motel shelters exemplify the expanding field of “alternative” shelters for people experiencing homelessness, largely defined in contrast to “traditional” congregate shelters. Little research compares the financial costs of alternative and traditional shelter models. The research team analyzed cost data for 13 alternative shelters (six villages and seven motel shelters) and nine traditional congregate shelters in Portland, Oregon. Costs were assessed per “unit” (i.e. shelter bed or motel room) to account for differences in shelter sizes. Village shelters had the highest per-unit set-up costs ($99,630), followed by motel shelters ($88,462), while congregate shelters had the lowest ($43,692). Congregate shelters …

Explaining The Variance In Cardiovascular Health Indicators Among Asian Americans: A Comparison Of Demographic, Socioeconomic, And Ethnicity, Lalaine Sevillano, Adrian Matias Bacong, Dale Dagar Maglalang

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

BACKGROUND

The Asian American (AA) population is the fastest-growing major racial or ethnic group in the U.S. Typically treated as a monolith in research, disaggregated data show disproportionate cardiovascular disease (CVD) burden among certain AA ethnic groups. This analysis aimed to identify which factors explain variance in cardiovascular health among AA ethnic groups.

METHODS

We analyzed pooled 2010-2018 National Health Interview Survey cross-sectional data from Chinese, Asian Indian, Filipino, and Other Asian adults in the U.S. Coronary heart disease, heart attack, and stroke were the CVD outcomes of interest. Covariates included sociodemographic characteristics, CVD-related health behaviors (e.g., smoking tobacco, physical …

Advances In Theory And Computational Methods For Next-Generation Thermoelectric Materials, Junsoo Park, Alex M. Ganose, Yi Xia

Mechanical and Materials Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

This is a review of theoretical and methodological development over the past decade pertaining to computational characterization of thermoelectric materials from first principles. Primary focus is on electronic and thermal transport in solids. Particular attention is given to the relationships between the various methods in terms of the theoretical hierarchy as well as the tradeoff of physical accuracy and computational efficiency of each. Further covered are up-and-coming methods for modeling defect formation and dopability, keys to realizing a material's thermoelectric potential. We present and discuss all these methods in close connection with parallel developments in high-throughput infrastructure and code implementation …

Lagging Brain Gene Expression Patterns Of Drosophila Melanogaster Young Adult Males Confound Comparisons Between Sexes, Flannery Mclamb, Zuying Feng, Jeanne P. Vu, Lindsey Griffin, Miguel F. Vasquez, Goran Bozinovic

Center for Life in Extreme Environments Publications

Many species, including fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster), are sexually dimorphic. Phenotypic variation in morphology, physiology, and behavior can affect development, reproduction, health, and aging. Therefore, designating sex as a variable and sex-blocking should be considered when designing experiments. The brain regulates phenotypes throughout the lifespan by balancing survival and reproduction, and sex-specific development at each life stage is likely. Changes in morphology and physiology are governed by differential gene expression, a quantifiable molecular marker for age- and sex-specific variations. We assessed the fruit fly brain transcriptome at three adult ages for gene expression signatures of sex, age, and sex-by-age: 6698 …

Quantum Finite Automaton Using Ternary Rotation Quantum Gates And Chrestenson Family Quantum Gates, Yuchen Huang, Marek Perkowski, Xiaoyu Song, John M. Acken

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Quantum automata can solve certain problems with a smaller state space than classical automata. We developed a quantum finite automaton using ternary rotation quantum gates and the Chrestenson family of ternary quantum gates. The main idea of this paper is to show how to combine rotation ternary quantum circuit-based QuantumFinite Automaton and quantum reversible circuit-based Deterministic Finite Automaton to build a more powerful machine. The combined machine can enable more complex language and pattern recognition. The developed quantum finite automaton and resulting combined machine can be used for robotics applications such as language, gesture, and motion recognition.

Plural Water Narratives: An Environmental Justice Lens On A Systematic Review Of Q-Methodology Water Research, Melissa Haeffner, Alida Cantor, Janet Cowal, Andrea Bryant, Darius Mani Yaw, Kinna Je Palacios, Daniela Serna, Bryce Sprauer, Abigail Tran-Gruver

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

Environmental justice research has shown that people's experiences and perceptions of water differ because systematic inequalities shape the extent to which people access clean water and are exposed to water hazards. Q‐methodology is one technique that has been used to aggregate multifaceted subjective narratives and understand different perspectives on a topic. In this paper, we systematically review 77 case study articles applying Q‐methodology to water‐related topics, to inventory how people perceive their relationships with water. We create a classification system based on environmental justice theory to examine (1) distributive justice issues around alternative water sources and agricultural and urban water …

"Our Vision Is That Black Mothers And Birthing People, Fathers, And Partners Are Safe, Honored, And Respected Throughout Pregnancy And Parenthood": Black Birth Workers' Agenda For Black Maternal Health In Oregon, Sarah Marguerite Applin

University Honors Theses

Black women and Birthing People (BWBP) face disproportionate rates of mortality within the United States healthcare system. BWBP are three times more likely to suffer a pregnancy-related death than White women. Therefore, addressing and consulting with BWBP about the birthing experience that BWBP sustains when they are bearing children is imperative. The inclusion and application of this key knowledge and understanding should be emphasized and at the root of further development toward reproductive justice. This participatory story was led by Dr. Roberta Hunte. Interviews and focus groups with Black birth workers, birthing people, and public health professionals were conducted in …

Beyond The Shadow Of Large Cities: Small And Mid-Sized Cities As Hidden Epicenters Of Eviction, Evicted In Oregon, Alex Farrington, Colleen Carroll, Azad Amir-Ghassemi, Safia Goldsmith, Lisa K. Bates

Urban Studies and Planning Faculty Publications and Presentations

Most eviction research focuses on large cities, leaving us with limited knowledge of evictions in smaller cities. Our analysis of evictions in three small and mid-sized cities in Oregon reveals that these cities can also experience severe eviction crises. By collecting and hand-coding data from justice courts, we provide a comprehensive view of evictions in these cities–including the role different types of courts play–for the first time.

Impact Of Roughness Spanwise Wavelength On Secondary Flow Rearrangement, Jianzhi Yang, Xiang I. A. Yang, Luoqin Liu, Jian Zhu, Xiaowei Zhu

Mechanical and Materials Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Spanwise heterogeneity in surface roughness generates secondary mean flows in a rough-wall turbulent boundary layer. This study investigates the influence of roughness spanwise wavelength on the arrangement of these secondary flows using direct numerical simulation (DNS). We systematically vary the spanwise wavelength, δS/δ⁠, from ππ/16 to π2π⁠, while maintaining constant roughness height and surface coverage density. Here, S represents the roughness spanwise wavelength, and δδ denotes the outer length scale, which in this case is the half-channel height. Secondary flows are observed in all DNS cases, but their configurations depend on the spanwise wavelength. Specifically, small wavelengths result in low-momentum …

Improving Public Health Data Collection Approaches Across Populations: Findings From A National Evaluation Of Fruit And Vegetable Incentives, Carmen Byker Shanks, Betty T. Izumi, Jenna Eastman, Teala W. Alvord, Amy L. Yaroch

OHSU-PSU School of Public Health Faculty Publications and Presentations

Objective: Public health approaches for addressing diet-related health in the United States (US) include nutrition incentive (NI) and produce prescription (PPR) projects. These projects, funded through the US Department of Agriculture Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program (GusNIP), aim to support intake of fruits and vegetables through healthy food incentives. Measuring GusNIP impact is vital to assessing the ability of incentives to improve public health nutrition outcomes across populations. Shared measures used across GusNIP projects assess fruit and vegetable intake, food security, demographics, among other variables, through a participant survey. This study explored challenges and opportunities to support evaluation across GusNIP. …

The Effects Of Imidacloprid And Polyester Microfibers On The Larval Development Of The Endangered Sunflower Star, Alexandra G. Tissot, Elise F. Granek, Fiona Curliss, Augustin Kalytiak-Davis, Jason Hodin, Michelle L. Hladik

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

Sea star wasting syndrome has affected numerous species of sea star, with populations of Pycnopodia helianthoides (Brandt, 1835) left most at risk. As their populations are struggling to recover, it is important to gain a better understanding of the impacts that the multiple stressors in their habitats can have on their populations. Contaminant stressors in particular are of increasing importance, because aquatic organisms can be exposed to a dynamic range of contaminants from nearby anthropogenic activity that may affect their future recovery efforts. This study is the first to quantify the effects of contaminant stressors on the larvae of P. …

Understanding Young Adolescent Identity And Experiences Through Internal Dimensions: A Scoping Review, Dezeré J. Martin, Stacie K. Pettit, Sandra L. Stacki, Kristie W. Smith, Micki M. Caskey

Curriculum and Instruction Faculty Publications and Presentations

The purpose of this study was to explore multiple facets of young adolescent identity and related experiences through a scoping literature review. Based on Gardenswartz and Rowe’s Four Layers of Diversity Model, we specifically examined extant literature around five of the internal dimensions: gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity, and physical ability. Two overarching research questions guided this investigation: What is the range and nature of current findings on young adolescent identity and experience? What gaps exist in research on young adolescent identity and experiences? To address these research questions, our research group conducted a scoping literature review using predetermined search strings …

Monitoring And Modeling Legacy Tree Response To Restoration Treatments In The Klamath Mountains, Oregon, Usa, Isaac Joseph Ball

Dissertations and Theses

Climate change and its disruption of historical drought and wildfire patterns pose a substantial threat to forest health in the western United States. This threat is compounded by past management practices like fire suppression. The largest, oldest, and most ecologically valuable trees are particularly vulnerable, making their conservation a key objective of climate-adaptive forest management. Restoration treatments such as mechanical thinning have been shown to enhance tree growth and drought resilience in dry conifer forests, but long-term monitoring is necessary to understand their sustained effects. This study used dendroecological tree-ring analysis to investigate the effects of thinning on the growth, …

The Dementia Care Partner Hub: An Innovative Approach To Addressing Unmet Social And Health Needs, Sherril Gelmon, Jenn Reed, Walter D. Dawson

OHSU-PSU School of Public Health Faculty Publications and Presentations

The well‐being of care partners of people living with dementia, who are family, friends, or neighbors and often unpaid, is often not addressed explicitly in clinical dementia care. Care partners, especially those from systematically marginalized communities, experience substantial unmet social and behavioral needs. We reviewed role model programs and conducted focus groups and interviews with care partners and representatives of community organizations and government agencies. We developed the concept of a Dementia Care Partner Hub as a “one‐stop shop” to connect dementia care partners and service providers with information and resources, meeting a need that is not currently addressed in …

Investigating Environmental Controls On Temperature Dynamics In An Urban Stream, Matthew Cullen Yates

Dissertations and Theses

Water temperature is a critical environmental variable influencing aquatic ecosystems. This study investigated the factors controlling stream temperature and thermal stratification in Rock Creek (RC) and Bethany Lake, an urbanized watershed featuring an in-line irrigation pond and buried wastewater infrastructure. Previous research suggested that subsurface water flow might drive temperature shifts in Rock Creek during summer periods when flow from Bethany Lake ceases. From 2023 to 2024, continuous temperature and stage monitoring, combined with statistical methods including principal component analysis and random forest regression, were used to evaluate seasonal temperature dynamics and their controlling factors. Results confirmed that seasonal reversals …

Access To Arynes From Arenes Via Net Dehydrogenation: Scope, Synthetic Applications And Mechanistic Analysis, Riley A. Roberts, Bryan E. Metze, Nicole Javaly, Theresa M. Mccormick, David R. Stuart

Chemistry Faculty Publications and Presentations

Arynes undergo a wide range of chemical transformations making them versatile reactive intermediates for organic synthesis. Access to arynes has long been dominated by pre-functionalised reagents, e.g., the venerable o-trimethylsilylaryl triflates. However, a move toward developing methods to access arynes that are both mild and efficient has prompted research into aryl “onium” aryne precursors. Here, we leverage aryl “onium” species as in situ or isolated intermediates in a net dehydrogenation of simple arenes as a novel and efficient way to access arynes. We describe a unified strategy in which two different tactics are employed to access diversely substituted …

Commensality In The Eateries Of Roman Pompeii, Amaya Yolanda Eckersley

Dissertations and Theses

Despite a nearly 300-year excavation history at Pompeii and many identified eating and drinking establishments, social behavior in these public or semi-public spaces has eluded significant research. Elite Roman literature is the traditional guideline for understanding Roman mealtimes and what they meant for social behavior. This literature, however, fails to accurately represent its sub-elite inhabitants. These sub-elites of Rome largely had their meals prepared outside of their homes. Pompeii is no exception and provides a massive boon for researchers willing to consider archaeological evidence. The buildings and evidence buried at Pompeii have ultimately shown a wide array of tabernae related …

Shock Effects Including Maskelynite Formation In Three Shergottite Meteorites From Mars, George Ayeh Anim

Dissertations and Theses

Martian meteorites result from large impact events on the surface of Mars that cause intense shock metamorphism. This study examines the shock metamorphic features of three shergottite meteorites, Dho 019, NWA 12241, and NWA 15628, to better understand shock impact events. The research uses petrographic analysis, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), and electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) to analyze the meteorites. A key focus of this research is the formation of maskelynite, a glass with plagioclase composition, whose formation mechanism has been the substance of debate among researchers. This study proposes that maskelynite forms through a transient intermediary …

All The Lonely People: An Integrated Review And Research Agenda On Work And Loneliness, Julie M. Mccarthy, Berrin Erdogan, Talya Bauer, Selin Kudret, Emily Campion

Business Faculty Publications and Presentations

Decades of studies spanning multiple disciplines have provided insight into the critical role of loneliness in work contexts. In spite of this extensive research, a comprehensive review of loneliness and work remains absent. To address this gap, we conducted a multidisciplinary review of relevant theory and research and identified 213 articles reporting on 233 empirical studies from management, organizational psychology, sociology, medicine, and other domains to uncover why people feel lonely, how different features of work can contribute to feelings of loneliness, and the implications of employee loneliness for organizational settings. This enabled a critical examination of the distinct conceptualizations …