Digital Commons Network^™

Subcooled Pool Boiling On Hierarchical Micro- And Nanostructure-Modified Copper Surfaces In Hfe-7100 Dielectric Liquid, Shayan Davani, Bin Zhang, Brendon Doran, Luke Hansen, Mohammad Khan, Mahdi Roodbari, Wen Jin Meng, Arden L. Moore

Faculty Publications

Hierarchical surfaces comprised both microscale and nanoscale structures have been previously studied as a means of targeting multiple length scales to achieve superior pool boiling performance. However, preceding studies have focused almost exclusively on high surface tension working fluids, while technologically important low surface tension fluids have remained largely unexplored. Due to their significantly lower surface tension these liquids tend to push out the air trapped in surface cavities of the heating surface, resulting in fewer nucleation sites compared to the same surface in water at low to moderate superheats. Thus, developing effective surface modification techniques for pool boiling in …

Biomarkers In Cancer Detection, Diagnosis, And Prognosis, Sreyashi Das, Mohan Kumar Dey, Ram Devireddy, Manas Ranjan Gartia

Faculty Publications

Biomarkers are vital in healthcare as they provide valuable insights into disease diagnosis, prognosis, treatment response, and personalized medicine. They serve as objective indicators, enabling early detection and intervention, leading to improved patient outcomes and reduced costs. Biomarkers also guide treatment decisions by predicting disease outcomes and facilitating individualized treatment plans. They play a role in monitoring disease progression, adjusting treatments, and detecting early signs of recurrence. Furthermore, biomarkers enhance drug development and clinical trials by identifying suitable patients and accelerating the approval process. In this review paper, we described a variety of biomarkers applicable for cancer detection and diagnosis, …

The Effects Of Layer Thickness On The Mechanical Properties Of Additive Friction Stir Deposition-Fabricated Aluminum Alloy 6061 Parts, Hamed Ghadimi, Mojtaba Talachian, Huan Ding, Selami Emanet, Shengmin Guo

Faculty Publications

Solid-state additive friction stir deposition (AFSD) is a thermomechanical-based additive manufacturing technique. For this study, AFSD was utilized to produce aluminum alloy 6061 (AA6061) blocks with varying layer thicknesses (1 mm, 2 mm, and 3 mm). The mechanical properties were assessed through uniaxial tensile tests and Vickers microhardness measurement, and statistical analysis was employed to investigate differences among data groups. The results revealed that the deposition layer thickness influences tensile properties in the building (Z) direction, while the properties in the X and Y directions showed minor differences across the three AFSD blocks. Furthermore, variations in tensile properties were observed …

Review Of Artificial Neural Networks For Wind Turbine Fatigue Prediction, Alshannaq, Aly Mousaad Aly

Faculty Publications

Wind turbines have emerged as a prominent renewable energy source globally. Efficient monitoring and detection methods are crucial to enhance their operational effectiveness, particularly in identifying fatigue-related issues. This review focuses on leveraging artificial neural networks (ANNs) for wind turbine monitoring and fatigue detection, aiming to provide a valuable reference for researchers in this domain and related areas. Employing various ANN techniques, including General Regression Neural Network (GRNN), Support Vector Machine (SVM), Cuckoo Search Neural Network (CSNN), Backpropagation Neural Network (BPNN), Particle Swarm Optimization Artificial Neural Network (PSO-ANN), Convolutional Neural Network (CNN), and nonlinear autoregressive networks with exogenous inputs (NARX), …

Reliability Analysis Of End Cracking In Continuous Prestressed Concrete Girders, A. M. Okeil, S. Ghimire

Faculty Publications

Constructing bridges using precast prestressed concrete girders is extremely popular because of their durability and ease of construction. Establishing continuity between precast girders has its advantages and has been employed in many projects. It causes the development of positive restraint moments at intermediate supports as a result of long-term effects such as creep, shrinkage and thermal gradients. Prestressed concrete girder end cracking occurs if the positive restraint moments exceed the girder’s cracking moment. In this study, the probability of girder end cracking in continuous prestressed concrete bridges is assessed using structural reliability concepts. This study focuses on two bridge configurations …

Field Monitoring Of Bridge Link Slab Performance Under Long-Term And Live Load Effects, A. M. Okeil, M. Canales

Faculty Publications

Several details to eliminate bridge expansion joints have been proposed, and employed, in bridge construction. Expansion joints are known to require regular maintenance and are the cause of a host of problems including damage to girder ends and substructure components in the vicinity of the joints. The link slab detail is one of these alternatives that eliminates bridge expansion joints without introducing full bridge girder continuity. It has been gaining wide acceptance in North America and is becoming a standard construction detail. A bridge over the Ouachita River in Louisiana, US, employed the link slab detail to connect prestressed concrete …

Instrumentation And Strain Monitoring Of Bfrp Bars In Pedestrian Bridge Deck Link Slab, A. Elsafty, A. Okeil, J. Fletcher, T. Fowler, D. Jones, S. Nolan

Faculty Publications

Eliminating bridge deck expansion joints is considered a feasible alternative for addressing problems associated with deck joints, which results in reduced maintenance and improved bridge-deck design life. Link slabs introduce partially continuity for bridge girders and improve the seismic performance, wind and storm wave loads resistance. It also leads to lower cost, improved riding quality, and improved structural integrity, and may lead to longer spans. The goal of this study is to monitor the performance of a link slab employed in a pedestrian bridge where Basalt Fiber Reinforced Polymer (BFRP) bars were used for its reinforcement. The pedestrian bridge was …

Solving Short-Term Relocalization Problems In Monocular Keyframe Visual Slam Using Spatial And Semantic Data, Azmyin Md Kamal, Nenyi Kweku Nkensen Dadson, Donovan Gegg, Corina Barbalata

Faculty Publications

In Monocular Keyframe Visual Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (MKVSLAM) frameworks, when incremental position tracking fails, global pose has to be recovered in a short-time window, also known as short-term relocalization. This capability is crucial for mobile robots to have reliable navigation, build accurate maps, and have precise behaviors around human collaborators. This paper focuses on the development of robust short-term relocalization capabilities for mobile robots using a monocular camera system. A novel multimodal keyframe descriptor is introduced, that contains semantic information of objects detected in the environment and the spatial information of the camera. Using this descriptor, a new Keyframe-based …

Water Wave Optimization Algorithm-Based Dynamic Optimal Dispatch Considering A Day-Ahead Load Forecasting In A Microgrid, Duy C. Huynh, Loc D. Ho, Hieu M. Pham, Matthew W. Dunnigan, Corina Barbalata

Faculty Publications

A novel strategy is proposed to tackle an optimal dispatch of a microgrid in response to dynamic conditions, utilizing a water wave optimization (WWO) algorithm and considering a day-ahead load forecasting. Amongst meta-heuristic algorithms, the WWO algorithm stands out in terms of population size, parameter tuning, exploitation and exploration, convergence speed, as well as optimization mechanism. It leverages its ability to efficiently explore solution spaces and adapt to changing conditions. It is applied to the dynamic optimal dispatch of a microgrid with the uncertainty of load power considered and solved by day-ahead load forecasting. It dynamically adjusts the microgrid operation …

Single-Component Hydrophilic Terpolymer Thin Film Systems For Imparting Surface Chemical Versatility On Various Substrates, Yun Hee Ko, Hai Ha Tran Nguyen, Christopher R. Branstetter, Soeun Park, Jin Kyun Lee, Jaesung Yang, Jangwook P. Jung, Myungwoong Kim

Faculty Publications

We demonstrate a single-component hydrophilic photocrosslinkable copolymer system that incorporates all critical functionalities into one chain. This design allows for the creation of uniform functional organic coatings on a variety of substrates. The copolymers were composed of a poly(ethylene oxide)-containing monomer, a monomer that can release a primary amine upon UV light, and a monomer with reactive epoxide or cyclic dithiocarbonate with a primary amine. These copolymers are easily incorporated into the solution-casting process using polar solvents. Furthermore, the resulting coating can be readily stabilized through UV light-induced crosslinking, providing an advantage for controlling the surface properties of various substrates. …

Method For Assessing Coating Uniformity Of Angioplasty Balloons Coated With Poly(Lactic-Co-Glycolic Acid) Nanoparticles Loaded With Quercetin, Allison D. Zieschang, Kevin F. Hoffseth, Tammy R. Dugas, Carlos E. Astete, Dorin Boldor

Faculty Publications

In this study, we aim to quantify coating uniformity and correlate fluorescence intensity to drug loading for drug-coated angioplasty balloons (DCB) coated with 5, 10, 15, or 20 layers of poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) nanoparticles (NPs) entrapped with quercetin. Uniformity was quantified from histograms and horizontal line profiles of microscopic fluorescent images acquired with sample specific parameters, and cracks in the coating were measured and counted. The fluorescence of images acquired with global parameters was correlated with quercetin loading measured via gravimetric/HPLC analysis. More layers on DCBs may be associated with less uniform coatings, as indicated by differences in histogram standard deviations. …

Machine Learning For Automated Sand Transport Monitoring In A Pipeline Using Distributed Acoustic Sensor Data, Harrison Gietz, Jyotsna Sharma, Mayank Tyagi

Faculty Publications

Uncontrolled sand production presents a substantial challenge to wellbore and pipeline integrity and efficiency of hydrocarbon production operations, often leading to equipment damage and compromised productivity. Traditional sand detection methods on the surface alert operators to sanding issues, but they are often a lagging indicator of downhole sanding events and do not provide precise identification of the problematic reservoir zones. Addressing this limitation, this study harnesses a combination of efficient signal processing and machine learning (ML) to analyze data from optical-fiber-based distributed acoustic sensors (DASs), thus serving as the first instance (to the authors' knowledge) of an automated and real-time …

Neurosymbolic Ai Approach To Attribution In Large Language Models, Deepa Tilwani, Revathy Venkataramanan, Amit P. Sheth

Faculty Publications

Attribution in large language models (LLMs) remains a significant challenge, particularly in ensuring the factual accuracy and reliability of the generated outputs. Current methods for citation or attribution, such as those employed by tools like Perplexity.ai and Bing Search-integrated LLMs, attempt to ground responses by providing real-time search results and citations. However, so far, these approaches suffer from issues such as hallucinations, biases, surface-level relevance matching, and the complexity of managing vast, unfiltered knowledge sources. While tools like Perplexity.ai dynamically integrate web-based information and citations, they often rely on inconsistent sources such as blog posts or unreliable sources, which limits …

Extract Clinical Lab Tests From Electronic Hospital Records Through Featured Transformer Model, Lucy M. Lu, Richard S. Segall

Faculty Publications

Natural language, as a rich source of information, has been used as the foundation of the product review, the demographic trend, and the domain specific knowledge bases. To extract entities from texts, the challenge is, free text is so sparse that missing features always exist which makes the training processing incomplete. Based on attention mechanism in deep learning architecture, the authors propose a featured transformer model (FTM) which adds category information into inputs to overcome missing feature issue. When attention mechanism performs Markov-like updates in deep learning architecture, the importance of the category represents the frequency connecting to other entities …

Automated Detection Of On-Farm Irrigation Reservoirs In Two Critical Groundwater Regions Of Arkansas: A Necessary Precursor For Conjunctive Water Management, Daniel D. Shults, John W. Nowlin, Joseph H. Massey, Michele L. Reba

Faculty Publications

In eastern Arkansas, the use of surface water for crop irrigation is steadily increasing in response to declining aquifers. Effective conjunctive water management requires accurate and timely information on the locations, sizes, and numbers of on-farm irrigation reservoirs. A method for remotely locating and characterizing on-farm reservoirs was developed using relative elevation and near-infrared imagery. With 62% accuracy, the method automatically identified 429 irrigation reservoirs within a 1.9-Mha area in less than an hour using an off-the-shelf laptop. Reservoirs not accurately identified (i.e., false negatives) were caused by the presence of vegetation or turbidity within the reservoirs. There were no …

The Intersection Of Gender, Caregiving, And Research Productivity During The Covid-19 Pandemic: A Multi-Method Study, Elizabeth A. Moschella-Smith, Sharyn J. Potter

Faculty Publications

The COVID-19 pandemic differentially impacted the productivity of women researchers with children compared to men, with and without children. The purpose of the present study was to examine the relationship between gender, caregiving responsibilities, and research productivity before and during the pandemic. We quantitatively and qualitatively analyzed survey (n=227) and follow-up interview data (n=44) collected from faculty and staff at a Carnegie Classification Research 1 public university. Findings suggest that women researchers with children faced increased caregiving demands and diminished research productivity during the pandemic, compared to men with children and researchers without children. As illustrated by the qualitative data, …

An Empirical Evaluation Of The Trademark Modernization Act, Jeremy N. Sheff

Faculty Publications

The Trademark Modernization Act of 2020 (TMA) created two new forms of administrative proceedings designed to clear spurious trademarks from the federal register. Congress’s hope for these new proceedings was that they would “respond to concerns that registrations persist on the trademark register despite a registrant not having made proper use of the mark covered by the registration” by “allow[ing] for more efficient, and less costly and time consuming” means of removing them. This Article subjects that policy to empirical examination, disclosing and analyzing a newly constructed dataset covering the dockets of all TMA proceedings (and petitions for proceedings) to …

Human Mobility And The Infectious Disease Transmission: A Systematic Review, M. Naser Lessani, Zhenlong Li, Fengrui Jing, Shan Qiao Ph.D., Jiajia Zhang Ph.D., Bankole Olatosi Ph.D., Xiaoming Li Ph.D.

Faculty Publications

Recent decades have witnessed several infectious disease outbreaks, including the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, which had catastrophic impacts on societies around the globe. At the same time, the twenty-first century has experienced an unprecedented era of technological development and demographic changes: exploding population growth, increased airline flights, and increased rural-to-urban migration, with an estimated 281 million international migrants worldwide in 2020, despite COVID-19 movement restrictions. In this review, we synthesized 195 research articles that examined the association between human movement and infectious disease outbreaks to understand the extent to which human mobility has increased the risk of infectious disease outbreaks. …

Understanding Our Digital Fingerprints: Metadata, Competency, And The Future Practice Of Law, Stacey Lane Rowland

Faculty Publications

Metadata, often referred to as “data about data,” plays a crucial role in the digital world. It encompasses embedded information within electronic documents that reveals details about their creation, modification, and transmission. In legal proceedings, metadata can be both helpful and controversial, as it can expose sensitive information and potentially support or refute claims of fabricated evidence. With the widespread use of smartphones and other electronic devices, individuals generate vast amounts of personal data, including metadata, that can provide detailed insights into their lives.

This Article explores the significance of metadata in various contexts, such as digital photographs, and highlights …

Facilitating Digitization And Reformatting Via Committee Work, Nicole Lewis, Abby Beazer, Marissa Bischoff, Michael F. Gates, Benjamin Harry, Lindsey Memory, Rebecca A. Wiederhold

Faculty Publications

The Reformatting Committee at Brigham Young University Library actively manages and facilitates the digitization of library materials, playing a pivotal role in advancing larger digitization projects. The committee comprises various stakeholders in the digitization and reformatting workflow, each with unique concerns and requirements, allowing the committee to effectively navigate the complexities of the digitization process. This exploration of the committee includes motivations for its formation, an explanation of its documentation, and the benefits gained.

The Reformatting Committee exemplifies a balanced approach to meeting various stakeholders’ expectations and building bridges between departments, thereby advancing the library’s mission in the context of …

The Game, The Players, And The Board, Bruce E. Boyden

Faculty Publications

Christopher Seaman and Thuan Tran’s fascinating article, Intellectual Property and Tabletop Games, raises important questions about the role of intellectual property in developing and distributing innovative products. The market for tabletop games, Seaman and Tran argue, is able to sustain a high level of creativity at a high up-front cost, all while protected by some but not all of the IP rights that other industries’ outputs receive. Is that evidence of IP’s necessity or its superfluousness? In this Response, I argue that the answer is a little bit of both. Whereas prior scholarship has shown the lack of an …

Digital Usage Of Indian Teleworkers In Home Settings: A Digital Inclusion Framework, Anindita Paul, Borchuluun Yadamsuren, Kim M. Thompson

Faculty Publications

This research focuses on ICT adoption and digital use by teleworkers operating from their homes during the pandemic in India. A two-phase mixed-method approach is used: Phase 1 involved in-depth interviews with three individuals during the pandemic, findings from which were used along with the Factors Affecting Digital Inclusion (FDI) model (Thompson & Paul, 2020) to develop the survey instrument for Phase 2. This survey was distributed to professionals via listservs, and the FDI model was subsequently utilized to analyze the survey responses. The study’s findings highlighted multiple factors related to digital inclusion among teleworkers that could impact work productivity. …

Regulation By (Bad) Proxy: How Selective Application Of Transaction Cost Economics Tainted The Ftc's Proposed Ban Of Employee Noncompete Agreements, Alan J. Meese

Faculty Publications

Agencies have imperfect information about conduct they regulate. This problem is particularly acute when identical conduct has differing effects in various markets. Determining the economy-wide impact of such conduct can be difficult or impossible.

The FTC faces such a challenge. The Commission has announced a rule banning the nation’s 30 million employee noncompete agreements (“NCAs”) as unfair methods of competition under Section 5 of the FTC Act. The Commission determined that NCAs likely reduce aggregate wages, helping to establish a presumptive violation. The Commission also found that nearly all NCAs are both procedurally coercive—because employers use overwhelming bargaining power to …

The Mediating Effect Of Financial Literacy On Blockchain Technology Application And Financial Risk: Insight From Ghanaian Professionals Toward Policy Recommendations, Maxwell Okpoti Mensah, Williams Kwasi Peprah [email protected]

Faculty Publications

This study explores the mediating effect of financial literacy on the relationship between blockchain technology application and financial risk among financial institution professionals in Ghana. Utilizing a correlational research design, data were collected from a sample of 336 professionals through a self-constructed Likert-scale questionnaire. The analysis was conducted using path analysis and mediation techniques. The findings reveal that financial literacy had a significant partial mediating effect between blockchain technology application and financial risk, accounting for 26.0% of the total effect. The direct negative effect of blockchain technology applications on financial risk also remained significant, highlighting the independent contribution of blockchain …

Pressure Induced Modification Of Electronic And Magnetic Properties Of Mncrnbal And Mncrtaal, Brandon Schmidt, Paul M. Shand, Parashu Kharel, Pavel V. Lukashev

Faculty Publications

Spin-gapless semiconductor (SGS) is a new class of material that has been studied recently for potential applications in spintronics. This material behaves as an insulator for one spin channel, and as a gapless semiconductor for the opposite spin. In this work, we present results of a computational study of two quaternary Heusler alloys, MnCrNbAl and MnCrTaAl that have been recently reported to exhibit spin-gapless semiconducting electronic structure. In particular, using density functional calculations we analyze the effect of external pressure on electronic and magnetic properties of these compounds. It is shown that while these two alloys exhibit nearly SGS behavior …

An Analysis Of Precision: Occlusion And Perspective Geometry’S Role In 6d Pose Estimation, Jeffrey Choate, Derek Worth, Scott Nykl, Clark N. Taylor, Brett J. Borghetti, Christine M. Schubert Kabban

Faculty Publications

Achieving precise 6 degrees of freedom (6D) pose estimation of rigid objects from color images is a critical challenge with wide-ranging applications in robotics and close-contact aircraft operations. This study investigates key techniques in the application of YOLOv5 object detection convolutional neural network (CNN) for 6D pose localization of aircraft using only color imagery. Traditional object detection labeling methods suffer from inaccuracies due to perspective geometry and being limited to visible key points. This research demonstrates that with precise labeling, a CNN can predict object features with near-pixel accuracy, effectively learning the distinct appearance of the object due to perspective …

The Contracts Word List: Integral Vocabulary For Reading And Writing English Contracts, Elizabeth Hanks, Brett James Hashimoto, Jesse Egbert

Faculty Publications

Both Business English as a Lingua Franca (BELF) and Legal English as a Lingua Franca (LELF) users engage with legal contracts regularly. However, contractual language is notoriously complex, due in part to the vocabulary it contains. To help mitigate the challenges related to learning the vocabulary of contracts, this paper introduces a word list of American English contracts called the ContractsWord List (CWL).We describe the compilation of the Corpus of English Business Contracts (CEBC) that represents six major contract types in 48 million words. The extraction of prevalent and specialized words from the CEBC is described, following validation procedures in …

Demographic Change, Migration, And The African American Vowel System In Georgia, Jon Forrest, Margaret E. L. Renwick, Joseph A. Stanley, Lelia Glass

Faculty Publications

The theme of this volume is generational trends in language change, with an emphasis on the Baby Boomer to Gen X transition as an important period of time. Many studies have found sharp changes in vowel systems in communities after the Baby Boomer Generation on the East Coast (Thiel and Dinkin 2020) and in the Midwest (Nesbitt 2021). Though we know a great deal about the geographic consistency of the Baby Boomer to Gen X transition, in all of these cases, the focus has been on White speakers and regional varieties. Besides the general importance of including a breadth of …

The Dark Side Of Robotic Process Automation, Marc Eulerich, Nathan Waddoups, Martin Wagener, David A. Wood

Faculty Publications

Prior research on Robotic Process Automation (RPA) has largely focused on how it benefits firms and employees. In contrast, we interview 26 high-profile RPA stakeholders at a Fortune 500 firm to ascertain challenges, drawbacks, or pitfalls of using RPA. We identify five key problems related to RPA usage: (1) RPA is often used as a quick-fix band-aid instead of fixing core system issues, (2) RPA can cause serious control and security issues, (3) the true cost of RPA is often misunderstood and understated, (4) RPA governance is complicated and challenging, and (5) RPA usage can lead to a loss of …

Transformative Learning Outcomes: Shifting The Learning Outcome Conversation From Assessment To Design, Mat D. Duerden, Jamin C. Rowan

Faculty Publications

What if the focus of learning outcomes shifted from telling students what they will know at the end of a course to who they will become? Learning outcomes have drifted away from informing curriculum design to providing parameters for external assessment. This article reviews this shift along with a proposal to reimagine learning outcomes as transformative learning outcomes. It discusses previous work on transformative learning outcomes and proposes a new conceptual definition: learning outcomes that articulate habits of mind or ways of being that students will develop because of a learning experience or sequence of learning experiences. Such learning outcomes …