Digital Commons Network^™

Family Experiences Of Engagement In Inclusive Childcare Programs For Toddlers, Julianna Lieb, Audra Classen, Lindsay Wright, Hollie Filce

Faculty Publications

Previous research has explored family engagement experiences and practices in childcare programs. The purpose of this study was to explore family members’ experiences related to their engagement in decision-making processes across various inclusive, toddler childcare programs. Five early educators and eight parents participated in the study. Four parents had a child with a diagnosed disability or developmental delays, were at-risk for developmental delays, and/or received speech, occupational, or physical therapy. Eligible early educators participating in the study taught toddlers (18 to 30 months) in a private, faith-based, or university childcare program. A semi-structured interview style was used to collect family …

Gender (In)Equity In Global Mental Health Research: A Call To Action, The Women In Global Mental Health Research Group, Kelly Rose-Clarke

Faculty Publications

In this commentary, we build on work by Gurung and colleagues which highlighted gender inequity in the global mental health research workforce in Nepal (Gurung et al., 2021). We seek to increase awareness of the under-representation of women in global mental health research and its consequences, and we call for change. By women, we refer to all people who identify as women, including trans people. The commentary is informed by conversations with women who are global mental health researchers in the Global North and South at various stages of their careers.

Living In The Summer, Andrea Luxton

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

The Mindful First Amendment, Gary Myers

Faculty Publications

The mindfulness movement has begun to play an expanding role in personal well-being and in society more generally. Although there is an active push for mindfulness in law, its primary focus is on ways in which mindfulness techniques can help lawyers in their personal and professional lives. This article explores the possible contributions of mindfulness to the widely recognized challenges facing freedom of speech and freedom of the press in an era of severe cultural and political polarization.

Review Of Heaven & Earth Grocery, Michael F. Russo

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

A Cyclical Phenomenon Among Stock & Commodity Markets, Hector O. Zapata, Junior E. Betanco, Maria Bampasidou, Michael Deliberto

Faculty Publications

Considerable studies have examined the relationship between commodity markets and stock markets. This paper studies the cyclical relationship between commodity markets and stock markets with implications for investing based on index relationships. Stock markets are represented by the U.S. S&P 500 index and aggregate commodity markets by the U.S. producer price index (PPI). Tradeable market indexes readily available to investors, namely the S&P GSCI Index and the Bloomberg Commodity Index (BCOM), are also studied. An optimal bandpass filter is used to estimate the cyclical component using a pricing-performance measure of the S&P 500 relative to the PPI, based on annual …

Transcription Factor Pecs Mediates Agrobacterium Fabrum Fitness And Survival, George C. Nwokocha, Prava Adhikari, Asif Iqbal, Hannah Elkholy, William T. Doerrler, John C. Larkin, Anne Grove

Faculty Publications

The transcriptional regulator PecS is encoded by select bacterial pathogens. For instance, in the plant pathogen Dickeya dadantii, PecS controls a range of virulence genes, including pectinase genes and the divergently oriented gene pecM, which encodes an efflux pump through which the antioxidant indigoidine is exported. In the plant pathogen Agrobacterium fabrum (formerly named Agrobacterium tumefaciens), the pecS-pecM locus is conserved. Using a strain of A. fabrum in which pecS has been disrupted, we show here that PecS controls a range of phenotypes that are associated with bacterial fitness. PecS represses flagellar motility and chemotaxis, which are processes that are …

Three-Dimensional Scaffolds For Bone Tissue Engineering, Harish Chinnasami, Mohan Kumar Dey, Ram Devireddy

Faculty Publications

Immobilization using external or internal splints is a standard and effective procedure to treat minor skeletal fractures. In the case of major skeletal defects caused by extreme trauma, infectious diseases or tumors, the surgical implantation of a bone graft from external sources is required for a complete cure. Practical disadvantages, such as the risk of immune rejection and infection at the implant site, are high in xenografts and allografts. Currently, an autograft from the iliac crest of a patient is considered the “gold standard” method for treating large-scale skeletal defects. However, this method is not an ideal solution due to …

Factorizing 2fa: Forensic Analysis Of Two-Factor Authentication Applications, Jessica Berrios, Elias Mosher, Sankofa Benzo, Cinthya Grajeda, Ibrahim Baggili

Faculty Publications

Many sectors such as banking, academia, health care, and others have made Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) mandatory for all their registered users. The growth in the usage of 2FA technology demonstrates the need to understand how 2FA applications operate, the kind of information they store about their users, and the implications, if any, that may arise if malicious actors exploit them. Our work focuses on the forensic analysis of 15 2FA applications used by millions of people. Our analysis includes popular applications such as FreeOTP, Google Authenticator, Microsoft Authenticator, Twilio Authy, and more. The applications were tested on different operating systems …

Pastoral Leadership: A Catalyst For Whole-Church Ministry, Boubakar Sanou

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

The Future Of International Law Freedom Of Journalism: A Transitional Justice Framework, Edward L. Carter

Faculty Publications

The overwhelming majority of digital and physical attacks on journalists are done with impunity. This results in lower-quality journalism, less scrutiny of government, and less healthy societies and democracies. The international human rights law concept of transitional justice could bolster collective will and inform legal mechanisms to combat such impunity. Judges and investigators in several recent cases of attacks on journalists have invoked transitional justice concepts, including truth-telling, criminal investigations and prosecutions, reparations, and institutional reforms to guarantee non-recurrence. These mechanisms should be fully implemented to protect journalism at local, national, and international levels.

Packets-To-Prediction: An Unobtrusive Mechanism For Identifying Coarse-Grained Sleep Patterns With Wifi Mac Layer Traffic, Dheryta Jaisinghani, Nishtha Phutela

Faculty Publications

A good night’s sleep is of the utmost importance for the seamless execution of our cognitive capabilities. Unfortunately, the research shows that one-third of the US adult population is severely sleep deprived. With college students as our focused group, we devised a contactless, unobtrusive mechanism to detect sleep patterns, which, contrary to existing sensor-based solutions, does not require the subject to put on any sensors on the body or buy expensive sleep sensing equipment. We named this mechanism Packets-to-Predictions(P2P) because we leverage the WiFi MAC layer traffic collected in the home and university environments to predict “sleep” and “awake” periods. …

Identity And Rituals Of South Asian Communities In Africa: A Missiological Analysis, Andrew Tompkins

Faculty Publications

There is a sizable Indian population throughout sub-Saharan Africa. A majority of the Indian population are practicing Hindus. For Hindus, ritual is a significant part of their faith tradition, often the most important. In Africa, where they are a minority, Indians often cling to these rituals to maintain their identity as both Indian and Hindu. To share Christ among Indians in Africa, a robust understanding of ritual is required. While many Africans have thought about ritual from their cultural backgrounds, Seventh-day Adventist Africans have yet to do as much reflection on the role of ritual and faith. Adventists in Africa …

Cost Estimation Trends For Major Defense Acquisition Programs, Sammantha Jones, Edward D. White, Jonathan D. Ritschel, Shawn M. Valentine

Faculty Publications

The authors use both descriptive and inferential techniques to investigate average and standard deviation trends in cost estimates for major defense acquisition programs (MDAPs) grouped into decades from the 1970s to 2010s. For total program-cost-growth factors (CGFs), the 2010s exhibited lower CGFs compared to the 1990s. For the program-acquisition-unit cost (PAUC) CGFs, the 2010s appear lower than the 1990s and borderline lower than the 1970s. A statistically significant decreasing trend in the standard deviations of total program CGFs throughout the decades was identified. This lowering variability trend also appeared for PAUC CGFs from the 1980s onward. This finding appears to …

The Politics Of Fat And Gender In The Ancient World, Susan E. Hill

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Determining Ion Activity Coefficients In Ion-Exchange Membranes With Machine Learning And Molecular Dynamics Simulations, Hishara Keshani Gallage Dona, Teslim Olayiwola, Luis A. Briceno-Mena, Christopher G. Arges, Revati Kumar, Jose A. Romagnoli

Faculty Publications

The activity coefficients of ions in polymeric ion-exchange membranes (IEMs) dictate the equilibrium partitioning coefficient of the ions between the membrane and the liquid. It also affects ion transport processes, such as conductivity, in ion-exchange membranes. Accurately predicting the ion activity coefficient without experimental data has been elusive as most models are empirical or semi-empirical. This work employs an embedding process that maps microscopic and macroscopic properties for modeling of ion activity coefficients in IEMs with molecular dynamics (MD) and machine learning (ML). This strategy is effective for accurately predicting activity coefficients in various IEM materials, including random copolymer and …

Numerical Simulation Of The Korteweg–De Vries Equation With Machine Learning, Kristina O. F. Williams, Benjamin F. Akers

Faculty Publications

A machine learning procedure is proposed to create numerical schemes for solutions of nonlinear wave equations on coarse grids. This method trains stencil weights of a discretization of the equation, with the truncation error of the scheme as the objective function for training. The method uses centered finite differences to initialize the optimization routine and a second-order implicit-explicit time solver as a framework. Symmetry conditions are enforced on the learned operator to ensure a stable method. The procedure is applied to the Korteweg–de Vries equation. It is observed to be more accurate than finite difference or spectral methods on coarse …

Investigation Of Iron(Iii) Tetraphenylporphyrin As A Redox Flow Battery Anolyte: Unexpected Side Reactivity With The Electrolyte, Nathan H. Mitchell, Noémie Elgrishi

Faculty Publications

Redox flow batteries (RFBs) present an opportunity to bridge the gap between the intermittent availability of green energy sources and the need for on-demand grid level energy storage. While aqueous vanadium-based redox flow batteries have been commercialized, they are limited by the constraints of using water as an electrochemical solvent. Nonaqueous redox flow battery systems can be used to produce high voltage batteries due to the larger electrochemical window in nonaqueous solvents and the ability to tune the redox properties of active materials through functionalization. Iron porphyrins, a class of organometallic macrocycles, have been the subject of many studies for …

Nutrition Interventions Addressing Structural Racism: A Scoping Review, Matthew Greene, Bailey Houghtaling, Claire Sadeghzadeh, Molly De Marco, De'jerra Bryant, Randa Morgan, Denise Holston

Faculty Publications

African Americans experience high rates of obesity and food insecurity in part due to structural racism, or overlapping discriminatory systems and practices in housing, education, employment, health care and other settings. Nutrition education and nutrition-focused policy, systems and environmental changes may be able to address structural racism in the food environment. This scoping review aimed to summarise the available literature regarding nutrition interventions for African Americans that address structural racism in the food environment and compare them with the 'Getting to Equity in Obesity Prevention' framework of suggested interventions. An electronic literature search was conducted with the assistance of a …

Active Colloids As Models, Materials, And Machines, Kyle J.M. Bishop, Sibani Lisa Biswal, Bhuvnesh Bharti

Faculty Publications

Active colloids use energy input at the particle level to propel persistent motion and direct dynamic assemblies. We consider three types of colloids animated by chemical reactions, time-varying magnetic fields, and electric currents. For each type, we review the basic propulsion mechanisms at the particle level and discuss their consequences for collective behaviors in particle ensembles. These microscopic systems provide useful experimental models of nonequilibrium many-body physics in which dissipative currents break time-reversal symmetry. Freed from the constraints of thermodynamic equilibrium, active colloids assemble to form materials that move, reconfigure, heal, and adapt. Colloidal machines based on engineered particles and …

Zeolite Supported Pt For Depolymerization Of Polyethylene By Induction Heating, Bernard Whajah, Joseph N. Heil, Cameron L. Roman, James A. Dorman, Kerry M. Dooley

Faculty Publications

We demonstrate that for polyethylene depolymerization with induction heating (IH), using a bifunctional (Pt- or Pt− Sn-containing zeolite) hydrocracking catalyst, we can obtain high hydrocarbon product yields (up to 95 wt % in 2 h) at a relatively low surface temperature (375 °C) and with a tunable product distribution ranging from light gas products to gasoline- to diesel-range hydrocarbons. Four zeolite types [MFI, LTL, CHA(SSZ-13), and TON] were chosen as the supports due to their varying pore sizes and structures. These depolymerization results are obtained at atmospheric pressure and without the use of H2 and result in an alkane/alkene mixture …

Inequalities In Wellbeing In Lebanese Children And Different Refugee Subpopulations: A Multidimensional Child Deprivation Analysis, Zeina Jamaluddine, Gloria Safadi, Alexandra Irani, Nisreen Salti, Jad Chaaban, Sawsan Abdulrahim, Alban Thomas, Hala Ghattas Ph.D.

Faculty Publications

Background and Objectives:

This study constitutes the first attempt to describe the overlapping deprivations faced by Lebanese children (Lebanese) and that of the three sub-populations of refugees living in Lebanon: Palestinian refugees living in Lebanon, Palestinian refugees from Syria and Syrian refugees.

Methods:

Using data from the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) Household Survey 2016 (n = 10,555 Lebanese; 7,106 Palestinian refugees living in Lebanon; 2,768 Palestinian refugees from Syria and 5,891 Syrian refugee children aged 2 to 17 years old), we report on single and overlapping deprivations (at least two concurrent deprivations) using indicators related to survival …

Estimating Intermittency Significance By Means Of Surrogate Data: Implications For Solar Wind Turbulence, Eliza Teodorescu, Marius Mihai Echim, Jay Johnson

Faculty Publications

Introduction: Intermittency is a property of turbulent astrophysical plasmas, such as the solar wind, that implies irregularity and fragmentation, leading to non-uniformity in the transfer rate of energy carried by nonlinear structures from large to small scales. We evaluated the intermittency level of the turbulent magnetic field measured by the Parker Solar Probe (PSP) in the slow solar wind in the proximity of the Sun during the probe’s first close encounter. Methods: A quantitative measure of intermittency could be deduced from the normalized fourth-order moment of the probability distribution functions, the flatness parameter. We calculated the flatness of the magnetic …

Nonsolvent-Induced Phase Separation Inside Liquid Droplets, Rami Alhasan, Tanner A. Wilcoxson, Dakota S. Banks, Sion Jung, Douglas R. Tree

Faculty Publications

Nonsolvent-induced phase separation (NIPS) is a popular method for creating polymeric particles with internal microstructure, but many fundamental questions remain surrounding the kinetics of the complex coupled mass transfer and phase separation processes. In this work, we use simulations of a phase-field model to examine how (i) finite domain boundaries of a polymer droplet and (ii) solvent/nonsolvent miscibility affect the NIPS process. To isolate the effects of phase separation kinetics and solvent/nonsolvent mass transfer on the NIPS process, we study two different cases. First, we investigate droplet concentrations that originate inside the two-phase region, where phase separation kinetics alone governs …

Black Soldier Fly Frass Supports Plant Growth And Reduces Nitrogen Leaching During Coleus Production, Jeffrey Beasley, Jeff Kuehny, Thanos Gentimis, Jeb Fields

Faculty Publications

Industrial insect rearing is expected to increase as a feedstock to meet growing global food demand. This will lead to greater production of insect excreta known as frass, a nutrient-dense organic material that has shown promise as a natural fertilizer source with potential environmental benefits. In this study, black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) frass (BSFF) was compared with a synthetic fertilizer (SF) during production of containerized ornamentals grown under greenhouse conditions. Fertilizers were incorporated into a bark-based substrate at 0, 0.1, 0.2, or 0.3 kg.m–3 nitrogen (N) planted with coleus (Plectranthus scutellarioides) plugs. Growth index, shoot dry weight, and leaf …

Influence Of Harvest Aid On Soybean Seed Quality Affected By Delayed Harvest And Environment In Louisiana, Priscila Campos, Donnie Miller, Josh Copes, Melanie Netterville, Sebe Brown, Trey Price, David Moseley, Thanos Gentimis, Peters Egbedi, Rasel Parvej

Faculty Publications

Harvest aid application can expedite soybean (Glycine max) harvest and increase efficiency through both weed and crop desiccation and has become a common practice in Louisiana soybean production systems. Field studies in 2019–2020 evaluated the influence of harvest aid application (none, paraquat at 0.28 kg/ha, sodium chlorate at 6.72 kg/ha, or saflufenacil at 0.0498 kg/ha) on seed quality affected by delayed harvest (∼20, 30, or 44 days after optimum harvest timing, i.e., 13% seed moisture). Environment was investigated in both field (natural rainfall events) and environmentally controlled growth chambers (79 or 90°F with 30% or 100% relative humidity and exposed …

Battling Bots: Experiences And Strategies To Mitigate Fraudulent Responses In Online Surveys, Brittney Goodrich, Marieke Fenton, Jerrod Penn, John Bovay, Travis Mountain

Faculty Publications

Declining survey response rates have driven many researchers to seek out cost-effective methods of increasing participation, such as conducting surveys online, paying incentives, and using social media to engage hard-to-reach populations. Malicious actors can exploit the monetary incentives and anonymity of online surveys, threatening the integrity of survey data. We share two recent experiences conducting online surveys that were inundated with fraudulent responses. Our objective is to increase awareness of this emerging issue and offer guidance for others to mitigate the effects of fraudulent responders in their own research.

Exploring The Experiences Of Pregnant Women In The U.S. During The First Year Of The Covid-19 Pandemic, Courtney E. Williams, Dana Berkowitz, Heather M. Rackin

Faculty Publications

In this paper, we integrate the stress process model with symbolic interactionism to frame our analysis of interviews with 35 women who were pregnant and/or gave birth during the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic. We detail three stressors, highlight their variation, and discuss how they coped with these stressors. Women reported having to navigate contradictory information about the public health crisis, but Black participants simultaneously endured added strain from a heightened awareness of racialized violence. To cope with an overabundance of precarious and contradictory messages, some women sought out information (i.e., information gatherers), others eschewed information (i.e., information avoiders), …

Effects Of Yogurt With Carao (Cassia Grandis) On Intestinal Barrier Dysfunction, Α-Glycosidase Activity, Lipase Activity, Hypoglycemic Effect, And Antioxidant Activity, Ricardo S. Aleman, Jhunior Marcia, Ryan Page, Shirin Kazemzadeh Pournaki, Daniel Martín-Vertedor, Víctor Manrique-Fernández, Ismael Montero-Fernández, Kayanush Aryana

Faculty Publications

Cell inflammation disrupts intestinal barrier functions and may cause disorders related to a leaky gut, possibly leading to diabetes. The objective of this study was to determine if carao (Cassia grandis) incorporated into yogurt enhances in vitro intestinal barrier function. To achieve this goal, Caco-2 cells were used as a model of intestinal barrier permeability. Caco-2 cells were treated with cytokines (interleukin-1β, tumor necrosis factor-α, interferon-γ, and lipopolysaccharide (LPS)) and yogurt with carao yogurt (CY) at different doses (1.3 g/L, 2.65 g/L, and 5.3 g/L). Real-time quantitative polymerase chain and immunofluorescence microscopy were applied to evaluate the expression and localization …

8(Meso)-Pyridyl-Bodipys: Effects Of 2,6-Substitution With Electron-Withdrawing Nitro, Chloro, And Methoxycarbonyl Groups, Caroline Ndung’U, Petia Bobadova-Parvanova, Daniel J. Lamaster, Dylan Goliber, Frank R. Fronczek, Maria Da Graça H. Vicente

Faculty Publications

The introduction of electron-withdrawing groups on 8(meso)-pyridyl-BODIPYs tends to increase the fluorescence quantum yields of this type of compound due to the decrease in electronic charge density on the BODIPY core. A new series of 8(meso)-pyridyl-BODIPYs bearing a 2-, 3-, or 4-pyridyl group was synthesized and functionalized with nitro and chlorine groups at the 2,6-positions. The 2,6-methoxycarbonyl-8-pyridyl-BODIPYs analogs were also synthesized by condensation of 2,4-dimethyl-3-methoxycarbonyl-pyrrole with 2-, 3-, or 4-formylpyridine followed by oxidation and boron complexation. The structures and spectroscopic properties of the new series of 8(meso)-pyridyl-BODIPYs were investigated both experimentally and computationally. The BODIPYs bearing 2,6-methoxycarbonyl groups showed enhanced …