Digital Commons Network^™

Developing A Vision-Based Framework For Measuring And Monitoring Water Resource Systems Using Computer Vision And Deep Learning Techniques, Seyed Mohammad Hassan Erfani

Theses and Dissertations

Increased vulnerability of water systems to extreme events and climate change is among the profound challenges facing the management of water resource systems around the world. Extreme events, including droughts, floods, and natural hazards have become more frequent and intensive, particularly in coastal regions. Floods, for instance, caused tens of billions of US dollars losses and put the lives of thousands in danger, globally. To cope with the adverse consequences of floods, a wide range of structural, non-structural, and emergency measures are studied and deployed by flood management sectors. Various flood simulation, mapping, and forecast systems have been developed to …

Extending The Convolution In Graph Neural Networks To Solve Materials Science And Node Classification Problems, Steph-Yves Mike Louis

Theses and Dissertations

The usage of graph to represent one's data in machine learning has grown in popularity in both academia and the industry due to its inherent benefits. With its flexible nature and immediate translation to real life observed objects, graph representation had a considerable contribution in advancing the state-of-the-art performance of machine learning in materials.

In this dissertation proposal, we discuss how machines can learn from graph encoded data and provide excellent results through graph neural networks (GNN). Notably, we focus our adaptation of graph neural networks on three tasks: predicting crystal materials properties, nullifying the negative impact of inferior graph …

Study Of Non-Covalent Interactions Using Molecular Rotors And Balances, Daniel Onyekachi Madukwe

Theses and Dissertations

The main focus of this dissertation is on the quantification of non-covalent interactions using molecular rotors and balances. While molecular rotors were used to measure kinetic effects of weak non-covalent interactions, molecular balances were used to measure their thermodynamic effects. Chapters 1 and 2 focus on the use of molecular rotors in measuring and studying the kinetic effects of the hydrogen bonding interaction on the bond rotation transition states. Chapters 3 and 4 focus on the quantification of lone pair – lone pair and sp²-CH/π interactions respectively, using molecular balances. These studies were carried out in the …

Increasing Math Knowledge In 3Rd Grade: Evaluating Student Use & Teacher Perceptions Of Imagine Math, Paoze Lee

Theses and Dissertations

Students across the nation struggle with learning mathematics for a variety of reasons such as the abstract nature, there is only one correct answer and how math is foundational. With the recent increase in the use of digital programs, school districts across the nation have turned to digital math programs for math intervention and learning. School district leaders must weigh costs, effectiveness, and teacher perceptions. Eighty-seven percent of the third grade students at Reyes Elementary nearly met or did not meet California math standards, prompting the school to adopt Imagine Math. The purpose of this research was to evaluate if …

Luis Abraham Delgadillo: A Rediscovery Of His Piano Music, Fanarelia Auxiliadora Guerrero López

Theses and Dissertations

Luis Abraham Delgadillo (1884–1961) is one of the most representative Nicaraguan musicians from the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. Works such as his Sinfonía Indígena (Indigenous Symphony), Suite Teotihuacán (Teotihuacán Suite), and Sinfonía Incaica(Incaic Symphony) positioned him as one of the most important composers and pianists from Latin America. He had great success during his career as a composer and toured North America and South America extensively during the 1930s and 1940s. During these visits, he had many of his works performed, and met other influential composers and musicians such as Carlos Chavez, Amadeo Roldán, Aaron Copland, Arthur …

Widely Digitally Delicate Brier Primes And Irreducibility Results For Some Classes Of Polynomials, Thomas David Luckner

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation considers three different sections of results. In the first part of the dissertation, a result on consecutive primes which are widely digitally delicate and Brier numbers is discussed. Making use of covering systems and a theorem of D. Shiu, M. Filaseta and J. Juillerat showed that for every positive integer k, there exist k consecutive widely digitally delicate primes. They also noted that for every positive integer k, there exist k consecutive primes which are Brier numbers. We show that for every positive integer k, there exist k consecutive primes that are both widely digitally …

Supporting Black Students In Sixth-Grade Science Through A Social Constructivist Approach: A Mixed-Methods Action Research Study, Kirk Anthony Heath

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this mixed-method action research study was to improve Black students’ performance in my sixth-grade science class by improving their ability to use the claim, evidence, and reasoning (CER) framework. Using criterion-based convenient sampling, I enlisted 17 Black participants, all of whom were underperforming in my science class at a suburban, middle-class, predominantly White public middle school serving Grades 6–8. As a teacher researcher, I implemented and assessed an intervention designed to improve their ability to use the CER framework. Using a mixed-method action research design, I simultaneously collected and triangulated quantitative and qualitative data.

This study may …

The Correlation Between Bilingual Children’S Self-Reported Language Proficiency And Their Scores On Dual-Language Standardized Assessments, Andrea Elise Vargas

Theses and Dissertations

This study aimed to evaluate the relation between bilingual Spanish-English speaking children’s self-reported language proficiencies and bilingual experiences and their scores on norm-referenced standardized dual-language assessments. Additionally, the relation between bilingual children’s self-reported language proficiencies and bilingual experiences and parent reports of children’s Spanish and English input and output was examined. The Houston Questionnaire, a novel tool designed to provide insight into bilingual children’s self-perceptions of language proficiencies and experiences, was administered to gather such information for this study. A sample of bilingual children local to Columbia, South Carolina completed a battery of dual-language standardized assessments in kindergarten, and then …

Shakespeare In Virtual Reality: Social Presence Of Students In A Virtual Reality Book Club, John Funchess Ott Jr.

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this mixed methods study was to implement and evaluate the impact of a virtual reality book club on the social presence of students. This research examined participants using virtual reality headsets to study the works of William Shakespeare. This study examined two research questions: 1) How does the implementation of a virtual reality technological innovation affect students’ knowledge of Shakespearean works? 2) How does the implementation of a virtual reality technological innovation affect social presence in students? Participants interacted within virtual worlds with one another and the researcher. Data was collected using a pre-post assessment test, writing …

Academic Impacts Of Intergenerational Trauma: Assessing The Relationship Between Ace Scores Of Parents And The Language And Literacy Development Of Their Elementary-Aged Children, Paige Lee Banaszak

Theses and Dissertations

This paper contributes to the current literature by investigating factors that may contribute to language and literacy difficulty among children, to support the future development of effective intervention techniques. The data analyzed in this paper was collected from children and families participating in Reach Every Reader, a research study currently being conducted to improve literacy outcomes in the U.S. by developing a computer-adaptive screening assessment tool to identify children at risk for language and literacy difficulties early in their educational development. Children enrolled in kindergarten through third grade completed tasks that target language and literacy skills, and their parent(s) completed …

University, City, And Community: Athletics Urban Renewal Projects And The University Of South Carolina’S Carolina Coliseum And Blatt Physical Education Center, 1964–1971, Theresa M. Harrison

Theses and Dissertations

Higher education institutions (HEIs) often are characterized by how they compete with other institutions. Institutions try to secure the most resources for their benefit, and this often includes expansion and land accumulation.1 Increasingly common is land acquisition for athletics expansion or enhancement, because successful athletics programs build perception and prominence.2 Historically, for large public universities in urban centers, athletics expansion or enhancement has negatively affected surrounding areas. Often, city centers are populated by Black and Brown community members due to the migration patterns of Blacks after World War II and subsequent racial segregation efforts that further segregated Communities by Color. …

Digital Health Design For Improving Treatment Decisions, Akanksha Singh

Theses and Dissertations

In the age of artificial intelligence and large datasets, information retrieval by querying large databases is an impossible task for the common user due to the information overload. Recommender Systems (RS) for commercial applications like YouTube, Amazon and Netflix were designed to support users by finding items of interest based on their user profiles and various filtering techniques. Health Recommender Systems (HRS) is a category of RSs that provides immense opportunities for application across several healthcare domains and contexts including treatment decision support. Unlike RS applications that focus on analyzing consumer choices, a key differentiator for HRS applications is the …

Platform Of Growth: An Analysis Of Earnings And Social Media Engagement Among Esports Athletes, Colleen Marie Dibble

Theses and Dissertations

Esports consists of online gaming, cyber sport, and virtual sport in a highly competitive environment. The industry has grown tremendously over the last 30 years (Leroux-Parra, 2020). Professional esports competitions are often now contested with a large scale, global audience, and millions of dollars potentially at stake in some competitions. Hundreds of esports athletes earn a living from the multi-billion-dollar esports industry. In addition to players earning salaries and prize pool money in a professional setting, many colleges have offered scholarships to enrolled students and have begun to offer esports-related curriculums (Dominguez, 2022). Networks such as ABC, ESPN, and TBS …

Predictors Of Driving Performance Post-Stroke, Halle Elise Prine

Theses and Dissertations

Driving is a complex skill involving the interaction of various brain functions, making it challenging to determine the independent contributions of each process to driving proficiency. While past studies have identified assessments such as the Useful Field of View Test (UFOV) and the Trial Making Test (TMT) as strong predictors for driving skills, little research has explored the impact of visual search and movement inhibition on driving after stroke. This cross-sectional study includes participants between the ages of 21 to 80 years with residual disability caused by a unilateral middle cerebral artery stroke at least six months prior. The participants …

Sentiment Analysis Of Swedish And Finnish Twitter Users’ Views Toward Nato Pre- And Post- 2022 2nd Russian Invasion Of Ukraine, Alexander Scott Fulham

Theses and Dissertations

This study seeks to analyze the changes in Swedes’ and Finns’ opinions toward the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in light of the 2022 2nd Russian Invasion of Ukraine. To do so, a large dataset of geotagged tweets containing keywords related to NATO is analyzed using lexicon-based sentiment analysis to study spatiotemporal trends. The study shows that overall discussion remains very neutral, with less than a quarter of all tweets having a non-zero sentiment score, and differs markedly from public opinion polling in both countries while spatiotemporally, the discussions is concentrated in the major population centers and exhibits little month …

Impact Of Dam Height And Grain Size Distribution On Breaching Of Non-Cohesive Dams Due To Overtopping, Heather O'Donal

Theses and Dissertations

The National Inventory of Dams reports 74,400 earthen dams in the United States in 2021, of these dams approximately 27% are considered at high or significant hazard risk, that is dam failure will cause widespread damage and loss of lives. The most frequent cause of dam failure is breaching caused by overtopping. Accurate predictions of breach evolution are thus crucial to determine flood hydrographs for the safety of communities and properties at risk. Laboratory experiments were conducted on non-cohesive, compacted embankments to understand the role of dam height and sediment grain size on breaching caused by overtopping. Dam heights varied …

Feasibility Of A Parent-Focused, Stress Management Intervention To Decrease Adolescent Bmi, Reduce Stress, And Increase Well-Being Among African American Families, Colby J. Kipp

Theses and Dissertations

African American adolescents in the United States experience a higher prevalence of obesity as compared to their White counterparts. This health inequity presents a public health concern as consequences of weight-related chronic diseases often persist into adulthood and are increasingly problematic. As chronic stress has been found to be higher among African American youth compared to White adolescents, it presents as a potential barrier to participation for African American families in health promotion interventions. Additionally, it may be beneficial to target stress in health promotion programs as a modifiable factor in conjunction with health behaviors that may improve outcomes related …

A Bayesian Spatial Scan Statistic For Normal Data, Laasya Velamakanni

Theses and Dissertations

Scan statistics are useful methods for detecting spatial clustering. While they were initially developed to detect regions with an excess of binomial or Poisson events, spatial scan statistics have been extended to detect hotspots in other types of data including continuous data. They have many applications in different fields such as epidemiology (e.g. detecting disease outbreaks), sociology (e.g. detecting crime hotspots), and environmental health (e.g. detecting high-pollution areas). Spatial scan statistics identify a ‘most likely cluster’ and then use a likelihood ratio test to determine if this cluster is statistically significant. Spatial scan statistics have been extended to the Bayesian …

Predicting Material Structures And Properties Using Deep Learning And Machine Learning Algorithms, Yuqi Song

Theses and Dissertations

Discovering new materials and understanding their crystal structures and chemical properties are critical tasks in the material sciences. Although computational methodologies such as Density Functional Theory (DFT), provide a convenient means for calculating certain properties of materials or predicting crystal structures when combined with search algorithms, DFT is computationally too demanding for structure prediction and property calculation for most material families, especially for those materials with a large number of atoms. This dissertation aims to address this limitation by developing novel deep learning and machine learning algorithms for effective prediction of material crystal structures and properties. Our data-driven machine learning …

The Effects Of Technology Integration On Academic Performance And Engagement Of Third Grade Social Studies Students: A Mixed Methods Study, Ashley Megregian

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of technology integration on third grade social studies students' academic performance and their engagement with the content of map skills at Peony Elementary. The study took place during the Fall of 2022 with 14 third grade social studies students. There is low academic performance and a lack of engagement from elementary students both nationally and locally. This research explored three questions related to the effects of integrating technology on student academic performance and engagement. The first question looks at the impact of integrating technology on third grade students’ academic performance …

A Qualitative Study Examining And Comparing Families’ And Teachers’ Perceptions Of School Readiness, Shalonya Cerika Knotts

Theses and Dissertations

A child’s readiness for school can impact their trajectory in subsequent grades and later in life. Therefore, children must be prepared when transitioning to kindergarten. As a kindergarten teacher at a Title I elementary school, I noticed a lack of readiness and conducted this qualitative action research study to create a readiness plan for my school by examining and comparing families’ and teachers’ perceptions of school readiness. The participants included my students’ parents and caretakers and my fellow kindergarten teachers. The findings indicate similar perceptions of school readiness. The family and teacher samples both associated readiness with academics and peer …

Capturing Visuals In Hospitality: A Multi-Dimensional Exploration Of Photographs In Interdisciplinary Research, Ningqiao Li

Theses and Dissertations

The widespread practice of photo-taking and sharing behavior fosters research on photographs to probe into consumer behavior and business strategies. Consequently, the critical role of photographic research has been acknowledged in the fields of marketing as well as tourism and hospitality. To delve deeper into understanding photographs, this dissertation carried out three independent but interconnected studies to examine photographs from both macro and micro perspectives.

The first study systematically reviews photographic research across sociology, marketing, computer science, and tourism and hospitality. It explores key topics, methodologies, and theories, and compares the merits and drawbacks of various research methods employed in …

Multimodal Digital Literacy Practices: Perspectives Of L2 Academic Writing Instructors, Priscila Jovazino Bastos Medrado Costa

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of my dissertation study was to explore the experiences and perceptions of English language instructors about the use of multimodal digital technologies in the teaching of academic writing. Writing academically in English as a second language (L2) is complex and multilayered for international students, and multimodal digital literacy practices are essential in the writing process in the age of information technology. The literature on multimodal digital literacies applied to L2 English instruction and to academic writing and the literature on teachers’ impressions about instructional technologies are vast. However, there is a need for further studies that address the …

A Systems Approach To Design And Plan Sustainable Antifragile Infrastructure Based On Aggregate Footprint And Satisfaction, Farboud Khatami

Theses and Dissertations

The concepts of robustness and sustainability in planning and design of water and energy infrastructures have been extensively explored in previous research, primarily focusing on system reliability, environmental considerations, and economic aspects. This study aims to broaden the understanding of these concepts by offering comprehensive frameworks that capture the essence of robustness and sustainability at two distinct levels.

The first level of investigation focuses on the performance of infrastructure networks during natural disasters. Traditionally, this has been addressed using reliability, resilience, and vulnerability metrics. However, these methods rely on static, deterministic, and non-stationary data, which is inadequate when dealing with …

Reading Strategies: Impact On Fifth Grade African American Males’ Reading Comprehension And Motivation To Read, Patrice Antoinette Barrett

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this action research was to implement four close reading strategies (Aha moment, Hmm moment, B.U.R.N. strategy, and R.A.P.) and evaluate its impact on fifth grade African American male students’ reading comprehension skills and their experiences with reading at Wisteria Lane Elementary. This intervention study focused on two research questions: how does the implementation of close reading strategies impact the reading comprehension skills of fifth grade male students, and in what ways does the implementation of close reading strategies influence fifth grade male students’ motivation to read in other classes? Nationally, African American boys suffer with weak reading …

Instructional Coaching: A Support For Increasing Engagement In Middle School Mathematics, Christi Ritchie Edwards

Theses and Dissertations

This observational case study employed a qualitative design to investigate the impact of student-centered instructional coaching and self-determined professional development on student engagement in middle school mathematics. Research demonstrates that engaging students in the learning process increases their attention and motivates them to engage in higher-level critical thinking. Teachers who adopt a student-centered approach to instruction increase opportunities for student engagement. Instructional coaches are used as a professional development tool to support teachers with student-centered instructional practices to engage students in their learning. This four-week study involved two sixth-grade mathematics teachers conducting Number Talks in one of their classes of …

Analysis, Measurement, And Modeling Of Millimeter Wave Channels For Aviation Applications, Zeenat Afroze

Theses and Dissertations

Millimeter wave (mmWave) communication systems can employ a large amount of spectrum, and can consequently offer large data rates, e.g., multi-Gigabits-per-second. This technology can be used in many sectors: aviation, vehicles, public transportation, robotics, autonomous factories, etc. Yet mmWave communication systems suffer from some propagation challenges, including large free space path loss (PL), large penetration loss, and large diffraction loss. Hence, it is vital to quantify these and other channel effects to ensure link reliability. Most mmWave systems will employ directional antennas to enable acceptable link distances. In many settings this will require directional receiver antennas to rotate in azimuth …

Stem Educators’ Perceptions Of Gender Bias And The Contributing Factors That Persist For Women In Stem Education, Haleigh Nicole Kirkland

Theses and Dissertations

Social influence from society holds the key to social norms that influence students and their future aspirations. Gender bias is considered one of the influencing factors that affects the decisions of female high school students on participating in STEM education. This descriptive study describes the key factors that STEM educators perceived as influential for female high school students' participation in STEM education. The research questions of the study included: (1) What are high school STEM educators’ perceptions regarding gender bias in the STEM School of Study cluster at Skyler High School and (2) What factors do high school STEM educators …

Effects Of Caffeine On Measures Of Clinical Outcome And Recovery Following Mild Traumatic Brain Injury In Adolescents, Jacob Michael Eade

Theses and Dissertations

OBJECTIVE: The overarching purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of habitual caffeine consumption on mTBI outcomes in adolescents. BACKGROUND: Adolescents who suffer an mTBI have an increased risk for neurological impairment and symptomology. Thus, it is important to elucidate modifiable lifestyle factors that have the potential to influence injury outcomes and recovery. Caffeine is a legal psychoactive compound prevalent among the adolescent population. Marketed as an ergogenic aid caffeine coincides with recreational activities where incidence of mTBI is high. However, no human study has explored the influence of caffeine consumption on mTBI pathology. It was hypothesized that …

Development Of Atomistic Machine Learning Approaches For Thermal Properties Of Multi-Component Solids And Liquids, Alejandro David Rodriguez

Theses and Dissertations

Currently, heat transfer in many industries is the limiting factor for innovation, especially in the energy sector. For example, maximizing thermal conductivity of ceramic coatings in power plant devices improves the overall electrical to thermal energy ratio, whereas minimizing thermal conductivity is required for desirable heat-to-electricity conversion in thermoelectric devices. As such, rapid discovery of new materials with extreme thermal conductivity values is quintessential for the near-future deployment of current and developing energy applications.

The vibrational properties of crystalline materials are essential for their ability to conduct heat. Fundamentally, the restorative atomic forces of displaced atoms are sufficient to represent …