Digital Commons Network^™

“They Are Fat And Want Special Treatment For Being Fat”: Backlash To And Lay Theories Of Fat Activism, Flora Blanchette-Oswald, Minh Duc Pham, R. J. Harr, Alexandra Garr-Schultz, Kimberly E. Chaney

Faculty Publications

Fat activism is a movement that seeks to acknowledge and eliminate the oppression of fat people. The movement and those who participate face significant backlash, yet fat activism is understudied. We sought to understand lay theories about fat activism; that is, how everyday people think about the goals and motivations of fat activism, and people who engage in fat activism, to understand how these perceptions shape support for and backlash toward fat activism. In Study 1 (N = 294), we qualitatively elucidated lay theories of fat activism in a US nationally representative sample. We identified lay theories that both …

Impact Of Exercise Video-Guided Bodyweight Interval Training On Psychophysiological Outcomes In Inactive Adults With Obesity, Gabriella F. Bellissimo, Alyssa Bailly, Kelsey Bourbeau, Christine Mermier, Anthony Campitelli, Quint Berkemeier, Jonathan Specht, Jessica Smith, Jeremy Ducharme, Matthew J. Stork, Jonathan P. Little, Len Kravitz

Faculty Publications

Purpose: Determine the impact of a 6-week YouTube-instructed bodyweight interval training (BW-IT) program on cardiometabolic health, muscular strength, and factors related to exercise adherence in adults with obesity. Methods: Fourteen adults (30.7 ± 10.3 yrs, BMI 35.5 ± 5.4 kg/m²) participated in this study. The BW-IT program progressed bi-weekly from a 1:3 to 1:1 work-to-rest ratio, using maximum effort intervals of high knees, squat jumps, scissor jacks, jumping lunges, and burpees. Pre- and post-intervention measures included peak oxygen consumption ( (Formula presented.) O2peak), relative quadriceps isometric muscular strength, waist circumference (WC), body composition via bioelectrical impedance, and cardiometabolic …

Learning From Indigenous Knowledge And Research, Rob Morrison

Faculty Publications

The goal of this sabbatical research is to learn more about non-Western ways of knowing and learning (epistemologies) and to become a more effective culturally responsive teacher. I investigated how Indigenous Knowledge and research practices can enrich current definitions and practices of Information Literacy and integrate them into the research process. Information Literacy is part of a larger and more complex research process that involves connecting researchers’ questions and purpose with literature reviews and the resulting new knowledge.

I am continuing my research journey that started with my dissertation work on Culturally Relevant Information Literacy and Critical Information Literacy (CIL). …

Beyond Traditional Analytics: Ai's Transformative Role In Marketing Intelligence And Customer Experience Optimization, Anindita Sengupta, Prathima Shivakumar Pattada, Anasuya Sengupta

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Government-Backed Insurance For Artificial Intelligence Technologies, Renee Henson

Faculty Publications

Artificial intelligence (AI) is an unpredictable technology that has the capacity to both help and harm people. Although insurance plays a key role in compensating for harms in other contexts, AI-produced damages evade traditional principles of risk pricing which limits viable commercial insurance coverage. AI requires modified insurance systems that can compensate diverse and unpredictable losses. Just like AI, at one time nuclear energy was viewed as a new and profitable, yet wholly unpredictable, technology that had the capacity to cause devastating harm. AI poses similar threats to society in certain domains, including, for example, health care (e.g., risk management …

Examining Whether Method Of Suicide Exposure And Closeness To Decedent Relate To Firearm Storage Practices, Evan A. Albury, Jessica L. Gerner, David A. Jobes, Raymond P. Tucker

Faculty Publications

Introduction: One factor that can influence whether someone will engage in secure firearm storage is having a suicide exposure (SE). Daruwala et al. (2018) examined this and found that individuals with an SE, without considering perceived closeness, did not significantly differ from those who did not have an SE in their firearm storage practices. Thus, the present study aimed to replicate and extend the research of Daruwala et al. (2018) by examining if the method of suicide (by firearm or other means) and closeness of suicide decedent relate to secure firearm storage practices. Methods: 308 male firearm owners completed self-report …

Monitoring Molecular Interactions With Cell Membranes Using Time-Dependent Second Harmonic Generation Microscopy, Prakash Hamal, Sushant P. Sahu, Peter P. Piers, Huy Nguyen, Shashank S. Kamble, Robin L. Mccarley, Manas R. Gartia, Louis H. Haber

Faculty Publications

Time-resolved second harmonic generation (SHG) microscopy is used to investigate the physicochemical interactions between positively charged, hydrophobic, drug-like molecules and the plasma membrane of human cells (nonsmall cell lung cancer, H596). In the present study, molecular adsorption and transport of the cationic molecules, malachite green (MG) and malachite green isothiocyanate (MGITC), are studied in real time in living H596 cells and in dead, fixed H596 cells. MGITC is shown to have stronger adsorption and more rapid transport kinetics as compared to MG due to increased dipole-dipole interactions. Additionally, MGITC is found to have faster adsorption and transport kinetics in living …

Endothelial Dysfunction Promotes Age-Related Reorganization Of Collagen Fibers And Alters Aortic Biomechanics In Mice, Liya Du, Jeffrey Rodgers, Nazli Gharraee, Olivia Gary, Tarek Shazly, John F. Eberth, Susan M. Lessner

Faculty Publications

Endothelial dysfunction, defined as a reduction in the bioavailability of nitric oxide (NO), is a risk factor for the occurrence and progression of various vascular diseases. This study investigates the effect of endothelial dysfunction on age-related changes in aortic extracellular matrix (ECM) microstructure and the relationship between microstructural adaptation and the mechanical response. Here, we used groups of NOS3 knockout (KO), NOS3 heterozygotes (Het), and wild-type (WT) B6 mice (controls) to study changes in hemodynamic parameters, collagen fiber organization, and both active and passive aortic mechanics using biaxial pressure myography over a time course from 1.5 to 12 mo. Our …

Tobacco Package Health Warnings About Product Manipulations: An Experimental Study Among Australian Adults Who Smoke, Emily Brennan, Claudia Gascoyne, Kimberley Dunstone, Amanda Vittiglia, Gayathri Srinivasan, Jim Thrasher Ph.D., Ma, Ms, Janet Hoek, Melanie Wakefield, Sarah Durkin

Faculty Publications

The tobacco industry manipulates cigarettes to provide sensory cues that mislead people who smoke. We assessed the effectiveness of health warnings (HWs) focussed on the impact of misleading product attributes, including filter ventilation, menthol, and roll-your-own tobacco, which were called Product Attribute HWs. Australian adults who smoke (n = 2544) were randomly assigned to view: control medication warnings; new Standard HWs with smoking harm images; Product Attribute HWs; or Product Attribute HWs plus a video. At baseline, participants were exposed to seven condition-specific warnings (+ video for those in the Product Attribute HWs + Video condition), then they were …

Research Priorities For Drivers Of Food Choice For Food System Transformation In South Asia: Proceedings Of A Collaborative Workshop, Christine E. Blake Ph.D., Rd, Sunny S. Kim, Edward A. Frongillo Ph.D., Purnima Menon

Faculty Publications

Agrifood systems in South Asia are highly productive, but substantial challenges including poverty, climate change, and environmental degradation complicate progress toward achieving sustainable healthy diets for all. The dynamics of food systems and the consequence of their rapid transformation for food choice behaviors that contribute to healthy and unhealthy diets are not well understood. Food choice is defined as a decision-making process through which individuals and households consider, acquire, prepare, distribute, and consume foods and beverages. Understanding drivers of food choice (DFC) is important for achieving sustainable healthy diets, but evidence is lacking. This article outlines collectively derived priorities for …

Telehealth Or In-Person Hiv Care? Qualitative Study Findings On Decision-Making From People With Hiv And Hiv Care Providers In South Carolina During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Valerie Yelverton, Salome Joelle Gass, Daniel Amoatika, Christopher Cooke, Jan Ostermann, Nabil Natafgi, Nicole L. Hair Ph.D., Bankole Olatosi Ph.D., Otis L. Owens, Shan Qiao Ph.D., Xiaoming Li Ph.D., Caroline Derrick, Sharon Weissman, Helmut Albrecht

Faculty Publications

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted HIV care services across the United States. Telehealth was rapidly implemented to ensure HIV care continuity. Despite the evidence of unequal telehealth uptake among some people with HIV (PWH), the decision-making processes to determine who received telehealth or in-person care are under-researched. This study assessed which decision criteria and processes determined which HIV care visit type was used by PWH and HIV care providers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Qualitative in-depth interviews with 18 PWH and 10 HIV care providers from South Carolina assessed PWHs’ and HIV care providers’ decision-making criteria and processes for telehealth HIV care …

Endothelial Dysfunction Promotes Age-Related Reorganization Of Collagen Fibers And Alters Aortic Biomechanics In Mice, Liya Du, Jeffrey Rodgers, Nazli Gharraee, Olivia Gary, Tarek Shazly, John F. Eberth, Susan M. Lessner

Faculty Publications

Endothelial dysfunction, defined as a reduction in the bioavailability of nitric oxide (NO), is a risk factor for the occurrence and progression of various vascular diseases. This study investigates the effect of endothelial dysfunction on age-related changes in aortic extracellular matrix (ECM) microstructure and the relationship between microstructural adaptation and the mechanical response. Here, we used groups of NOS3 knockout (KO), NOS3 heterozygotes (Het), and wild-type (WT) B6 mice (controls) to study changes in hemodynamic parameters, collagen fiber organization, and both active and passive aortic mechanics using biaxial pressure myography over a time course from 1.5 to 12 mo. Our …

Unveiling The Nexus Between Digital Monitoring And Experiences Of Intimate Partner Violence In Romantic Relationships, Caley Hewitt, Fanny A. Ramirez, Anna Gjika

Faculty Publications

Using survey data from a sample of 378 women who live in the United States and self-identify as either Black or Latinx, this study explores predictors of women’s digital monitoring practices in intimate relationships in the context of intimate partner violence (IPV). We use literature about surveillance, monitoring, and IPV to frame our study. Our results show three significant instances that influence the odds of monitoring a romantic partner: (1) past experiences with digital abuse, (2) past experiences with offline psychological abuse, and (3) age, with younger women having increased odds of engaging in digital monitoring compared to older women. …

Shear-Thinning Hydrogel For Delayed Delivery Of A Small Molecule Metalloproteinase Inhibitor Attenuates Myocardial Infarction Remodeling, Joshua E. Mealy, William M. Torres, Lisa A. Freeburg, Shayne C. Barlow, Alison A. Whalen, Chima V. Maduka, Tarek Shazly, Jason A. Burdick, Francis G. Spinale

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Analyzing Stability Of Estimates At Completion For Long Duration Development Efforts, Bradley Vuu, Jonathan D. Ritschel, Brandon M. Lucas, Edward D. White

Faculty Publications

Defense program managers utilize Earned Value Management (EVM) methodologies to measure, report, and predict the cost and schedule performance of their programs. Previous research conducted by Christensen (1996) and Kim et al. (2019) has shown varied results in the stability of EVM Estimates at Completion (EACs). Stability is defined as a 10% or less deviation from the final EAC at a specified percent completion point of the program. The Christensen (1996) and Kim et al. (2019) studies also noted that program-specific factors, such as phase, can impact the accuracy of EVM metrics. This study builds upon those works by assessing …

A Bird’S-Eye View Of Leadership Styles, Craig Carr, S. Joseph Kidder

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Illustrations Of Benevolent And Hostile Heterosexism In Lgbtq+ People’S Lives, Jes L. Matsick, Lindsay Palmer, Flora Oswald, Mary Kruk, Kenneth Ye

Faculty Publications

In this study, we aimed to define heterosexism—a form of sexual stigma that accounts for interpersonal attitudes and institutionalized ideology—in a multi-dimensional way, centering on LGBTQ+ people’s experiences. We draw from an ambivalent theory of prejudice and focus on heterosexism, or an ideology that stigmatizes nonheterosexual behaviors, identities, relationships, and communities. We aimed to learn how LGBTQ+ people would narrate their experiences of heterosexism within a benevolent and hostile framing. In a qualitative online study, LGBTQ+ participants (N = 77; 49% White) reviewed definitions of and recalled encounters with benevolent and hostile heterosexism, providing examples of how heterosexism manifests …

Racial And Ethnic Inequalities In Actual Vs Nearest Delivery Hospitals, Nansi S. Boghossian, Lucy T. Greenberg, Jeffrey S. Buzas, Joshua Radack, Molly Passarella, Jeannette Rogowski, George R. Saade, Ciaran S. Phibbs, Scott A. Lorch

Faculty Publications

IMPORTANCE Minoritized racial and ethnic groups, such as American Indian and Black individuals, often receive lower quality health care compared with White individuals. There is limited understanding of how these disparities extend to obstetric care, particularly when comparing the quality of care at the actual delivery hospital vs the nearest obstetric hospital based on the birthing individual’s residence. OBJECTIVE To examine inequality in care based on the actual delivery hospital and the closest delivery hospital to the birthing individual’s residential zip code centroid. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This population-based retrospective cohort study used data from 5 states (2008 to 2020 …

Family Risk Classes Predict Longitudinal Parent And Child Outcomes: Understanding The Implications Of Poverty-Related Adversity, Daniel K. Cooper, Benjamin L. Bayly, Brianna Tennie, Francesca Lupini, Martha E. Wadsworth

Faculty Publications

Experiencing poverty and associated risk factors can be detrimental to families’ mental health and well-being. However, it is unclear whether experiencing specific types or patterns of adversity leads to distinct outcomes. Guided by the Family Stress Model, the objective of this study was to (a) identify unique family risk classes based on exposure to various combinations of poverty-related adversity and (b) examine whether the family risk classes differed in their levels of parental coping strategies, couple relationship quality, parenting practices, and child behavior problems. The sample included 301 mother–father–child triads (602 adults and 301 children) with a combined income ≤ …

New Method Of Impact Localization On Plate-Like Structures Using Deep Learning And Wavelet Transform, Asaad Migot, Ahmed Saaudi, Victor Giurgiutiu

Faculty Publications

This paper presents a new methodology for localizing impact events on plate-like structures using a proposed two-dimensional convolutional neural network (CNN) and received impact signals. A network of four piezoelectric wafer active sensors (PWAS) was installed on the tested plate to acquire impact signals. These signals consisted of reflection waves that provided valuable information about impact events. In this methodology, each of the received signals was divided into several equal segments. Then, a wavelet transform (WT)-based time-frequency analysis was used for processing each segment signal. The generated WT diagrams of these segments’ signals were cropped and resized using MATLAB code …

Neurosymbolic Knowledge-Grounded Planning And Reasoning In Ai Systems, Amit Sheth, Vedant Khandelwal, Kaushik Roy, Vishal Pallagani, Megha Chakraborty

Faculty Publications

To build AI systems capable of decision-support assistance, such as AI-assisted healthcare, it is essential to develop user-centric decision-making processes that are robust, interpretable, and capable of effectively processing and acting on natural language interactions. Instruction-based prompting of large language models has demonstrated considerable success in supporting humans with information assistance tasks, including creative writing and content generation. However, recent studies reveal that language models exhibit limitations in performing complex reasoning and planning tasks, such as constructing compositional or hierarchical plans involving multiple reasoning steps. To address these challenges, we propose a neurosymbolic framework that integrates large language models with …

Mirrors For Pacific Islander Children: Teaching Resilience Through Culturally Adapted Bibliotherapy, Isabel Medina Hull, Elizabeth Cutrer, Paul H. Ricks, G. E. Kawika Allen, Kendra M. Hall-Kenyon, Lorena Seu, Kristopher J. Urbina, Melia Fonoimoana Garrett

Faculty Publications

Pacific Islander youth face disproportionately high rates of suicide and mental health challenges, yet culturally appropriate interventions remain scarce. This study investigated whether culturally adapted bibliotherapy could effectively promote resilience in American Samoan children by incorporating culturally relevant stories and coping strategies. Through collaboration with on-island Samoan cultural brokers, we developed and implemented culturally adapted stories and lessons designed to resonate with the experiences of children in American Samoa. The study employed a mixed-methods approach with 34 American Samoan children aged 5–13 years, using observations, adapted card sorts, and forced-choice procedures to measure responses to the intervention. The results demonstrated …

Alcohol Use Disorder Medication Coverage And Utilization Management In Medicaid Managed Care Plans, Maureen T. Stewart, Sage R. Feltus, Christina Andrews Ph.D., Andrea Acevedo, Cindy Parks Thomas, Jeffrey Bratberg, Constance M. Horgan, Dominic Hodgkin, Rachel Sayko Adams

Faculty Publications

IMPORTANCE Evidence-based, patient-centered treatment for alcohol use disorder (AUD) can include pharmacotherapy with naltrexone, acamprosate, or disulfiram; however, these medications are rarely used. Medicaid managed care plans (MCPs) manage health services for nearly 80% of Medicaid enrollees and are the largest payer for addiction treatment services. Little is known about Medicaid MCP policies for AUD medications.

OBJECTIVES To describe Medicaid MCPs’ coverage and management of acamprosate, naltrexone, and disulfiram for AUD and examine associations of plan characteristics and state policies with medication coverage.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS In this cross-sectional study, a content analysis was performed of 2021 insurance benefit …

Toward A Unified Conceptualization Of Social Capital, Paulina Erices-Ocampo, Miranda J. Lubbers, Jimi Adams

Faculty Publications

Social capital is among the most broadly used concepts in social science. Despite its shared understanding as beneficial resources available from the connections between people, authors vary widely in their conceptualizations of social capital. To extract clarity from these disparate perspectives, we offer a systematic framework for conceptualizing social capital, which identifies three primary theoretical dimensions of scholars’ conceptualizations of social capital: (a) where beneficial resources reside, ranging from within individuals to the relationships between individuals; (b) beneficial network structure, differentiating closure from brokerage arrangements; and (c) the level to which rewards accrue, distinguishing individual from collective benefits. We illustrate …

Ec2vec: A Machine Learning Method To Embed Enzyme Commission (Ec) Numbers Into Vector Representations, Mengmeng Liu, Xialong Ni, J. Ramanujam, Michal Brylinski

Faculty Publications

Enzyme commission (EC) numbers play a vital role in classifying enzymes and understanding their functions in enzyme-related research. Although accurate and informative encoding of EC numbers is essential for enhancing the effectiveness of machine learning applications, simple EC encoding approaches suffer from limitations such as false numerical order and high sparsity. To address these issues, we developed EC2Vec, a multimodal autoencoder that preserves the categorical nature of EC numbers and leverages their hierarchical relationships, resulting in more meaningful and informative representations. EC2Vec encodes each digit of the EC number as a categorical token and then processes these embeddings through a …

Time-Series Forecasting In Smart Manufacturing Systems: An Experimental Evaluation Of The State-Of-The-Art Algorithms, Mojaba A. Farahani, Fadi El Kalach, Austin Harper, M.R. Mccormick, Ramy Harik, Thorsten Wuest

Faculty Publications

Time-Series Forecasting (TSF) is a growing research area across various domains including manufacturing. Manufacturing can benefit from Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) innovations for TSF tasks. Although numerous TSF algorithms have been developed and proposed over the past decades, the critical validation and experimental evaluation of the algorithms hold substantial value for researchers and practitioners and are missing to date. This study aims to fill this research gap by providing a rigorous experimental evaluation of the state-of-the-art TSF algorithms on thirteen manufacturing-related datasets with a focus on their applicability in smart manufacturing environments. Each algorithm was selected based …

The Southern Miss Bower Academic Center: A Recent Academic Library-Athletics Partnership, Blake Denton

Faculty Publications

In 2019, A. Blake Denton published a literature review that identified and described 35 partnerships between academic libraries and athletics programs at higher education institutions in the United States, 20 of which were established for library marketing and development purposes. Recognizing that the literature documenting marketing and development partnerships was dated, he published a study in 2021 that provided updated, more comprehensive accounts for eight participating institutions and an analysis of the evolving nature of their relationships over time. This third article analyzes the partnership at the University of Southern Mississippi that resulted in the relocation of the athletics program’s …

Tropical Cyclone Response In Annual Tree Growth At Three Different Coastal Sites Along The Gulf Of Mexico, Usa, Clay S. Tucker, Alyssa C. Crowell, Kayla D. Stan, Thomas W. Patterson

Faculty Publications

Coastal forests are highly vulnerable to disturbances from tropical cyclones (TCs), yet the long-term impacts of storm surges on tree growth remain understudied. This study examines the relationship between TC-induced storm surges and annual tree-ring growth in Pinus elliottii at three coastal sites along the northern Gulf of Mexico. Using dendrochronological methods, we analyzed total ring width, earlywood, and latewood growth patterns to assess suppressions in response to past TC activity. Our results indicate that storm surge events consistently cause growth suppression, with recovery periods averaging two to three years. However, suppression patterns vary by site, with trees in more …

Does Travel Time Matter?: Predictors Of Transportation Vulnerability And Access To Hiv Care Among People Living With Hiv In South Carolina, Sayward Elizabeth Harrison, Peiyin Hung, Katherine Green, Sarah J. Miller, Mariajosé Patron, Divya Ahuja, Sharon Weissman, Caroline Rudisill, Tammeka Evans

Faculty Publications

Background

People living with HIV (PLHIV) in the southern United States (US) are at high risk for poor outcomes across the HIV care continuum leading to low rates of viral suppression. Understanding structural barriers to care—including transportation vulnerability—is critical to improve HIV outcomes. This study investigated relationships between travel time to HIV care, transportation vulnerability, and HIV care disruptions to inform future transportation interventions for PLHIV residing in South Carolina and other southern US states.

Methods

A total of 160 PLHIV (N = 160) were recruited from a large immunology center in South Carolina. Participants reported on transportation experiences, transportation …

Comparison Of Deep Learning And Traditional Machine Learning Models For Predicting Mild Cognitive Impairment Using Plasma Proteomic Biomarkers, Kesheng Wang Phd, Ma, Bs, Donald A. Adjeroh, Wei Fang, Suzy M. Walter, Danqing Xiao, Ubolrat Piamjariyakul, Chun Xu

Faculty Publications

Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is a clinical condition characterized by a decline in cognitive ability and progression of cognitive impairment. It is often considered a transitional stage between normal aging and Alzheimer’s disease (AD). This study aimed to compare deep learning (DL) and traditional machine learning (ML) methods in predicting MCI using plasma proteomic biomarkers. A total of 239 adults were selected from the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) cohort along with a pool of 146 plasma proteomic biomarkers. We evaluated seven traditional ML models (support vector machines (SVMs), logistic regression (LR), naïve Bayes (NB), random forest (RF), k-nearest neighbor …