Digital Commons Network^™

Context Matters: Evaluating Llm-Generated Knowledge Graph Schemas, Ritvik Garimella, Riju Marwah, Atishay Jain, Khusham Bansal, Amit Sheth

Publications

Knowledge graph (KG) schema engineering is labor-intensive and resists automation at scale. We investigate whether LLMs can generate domain-specific KG schemas of sufficient quality for downstream symbolic reasoning. We propose a tiered contextual framework that varies domain context richness across four levels: zero context, domain scope, task requirements, and data distribution. Generated schemas are evaluated intrinsically on BioRED (600 PubMed abstracts, multi-type entities and relations), where automated tiered schemas match an established KG construction baseline at 79.9% EC, with edge conformance rising from 47.5% at L1 to a stable 78–80% from L2 onward. Extrinsic evaluation on a 50-record MedHop controlled …

Nightside Electron Precipitation Patterns As Observed By Elfin And Cirbe Cubesats, Kun Zhang, Anton V. Artemyev, Xinlin Li, Xiao-Jia Zhang, Vassilis Angelopoulos, Yang Mei, Zheng Xiang, Niklas Grimmich

Publications

The rapidly expanding fleet of low-altitude CubeSats equipped with energetic particle detectors brings new opportunities for monitoring the dynamics of the radiation belt and near-Earth plasma sheet. Despite their small sizes, CubeSats can carry state-of-the-art instruments that provide electron flux measurements with finer energy resolution and broader energy coverage, compared to conventional missions such as POES satellites. The recently launched CIRBE CubeSat measures 250–6,000 keV electrons with extremely high energy resolution, however, CIRBE typically only measures locally-trapped electrons and cannot directly measure the precipitating electrons. This work aims to develop a technique for identifying indications of nightside precipitation using the …

Doing Less With More: A First-Principles Exploration Of The Suitability Of Agentic Computing Over Alternative Architectural Choices, Ritvik Garimella, Biplav Srivastava, Amit Sheth

Publications

There is growing interest in automating business activities with Agentic Artificial Intelligence (AI) due to latter's seeming ease of use. Never has it been easier, or costlier, to do less with more. However, little is known about when agents are preferable to established alternatives such as local computation, Representational State Transfer (REST), the Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP), and the Model Context Protocol (MCP), particularly when development speed, performance, and operational cost are considered. We investigate this question using a controlled mathematical task that compares seven methods on a benchmark of 1,000 arithmetic expressions where semantics of operator precedence has …

Introducing The Math Narrative Project, Liza Bondurant, Sarah Salisbury, Darolyn Flaggs, Belinda Edwards, Uchenna Miles, Daniel Kaufmann

Publications

Whether you teach calculus to engineering students, algebra to future teachers, or developmental math to first-generation college students, the students in your classroom carry narra- tives about mathematics—about whether they belong, wheth- er it matters, and whether asking for help is safe. You carry narratives too. We authors are mathematics educators who work across university classrooms, secondary schools, and teacher preparation programs in Mississippi, Georgia, Texas, and Pennsylvania. In this piece, we introduce the Math Nar- rative Project (2026), a professional development initiative led by the Branch Alliance for Educator Diversity ([BranchED], n.d.) that we participated in as field testers. …

Tpr2 Project Survey Instruments: Teacher Intention, Initial Employment, And Follow Up Surveys, Devon Brenner, Jenn Whitfield, Dana C. Outlaw, Dana P. Franz, Keith Hubbard

Publications

TPR2 Project Survey Instruments: Teacher Intention, Initial Employment, and Follow Up Surveys

This document contains three longitudinal survey instruments developed for the Investigating STEM Teacher Preparation and Rural Teacher Persistence and Retention (TPR2) project to examine the factors that influence pre-service and early-career teachers' decisions about the geographic location in which they choose to teach, with particular attention to rural and small-town placement. The surveys track participants across three key stages of the teacher pipeline: entry into a teacher preparation program, transition into initial employment, and completion of the first year of professional teaching.

Teacher Intention Survey (TIS): Administered during …

One Size Does Not Fit All: Revisiting World Models And Neurosymbolic Ai, Amit P. Sheth, Madhur Thareja, Anushka Pawar, Niyati Rawal

Publications

World models are being built twice, from opposite ends, without a shared theory of how the two halves should meet. One lineage grounds the world model in perception: a self-supervised, latent-predictive encoder – exemplified by Joint Embedding Predictive Architectures (JEPA) – that learns the structure of sensory experi-ence. A second, older lineage grounds the world model in cognition: an explicit, inspectable structure of entities, rules, and constraints, ranging from knowledge graphs to formal logic to physical law. Neither lineage alone has produced a world model that is simultane-ously adaptive and auditable. We argue this is not solved by picking a …

Protecting America’S Critical Infrastructure: A Shared Responsibility In An Era Of Escalating Cyber Threats, Alan Saquella

Publications

The recent cyberattacks targeting municipal water facilities across multiple U.S. states serve as another reminder that America’s critical infrastructure remains under constant attack. According to the FBI, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), attackers successfully compromised operational technology (OT) devices, including programmable logic controllers (PLCs), by exploiting Internet-connected systems, changing administrator credentials, and disrupting normal operations. Fortunately, local operators responded quickly by isolating affected systems, restoring backups, and preventing what could have become a significant public health crisis.

While these incidents focused on water treatment facilities, they represent a much larger national security issue. …

Global Time-Resolved Measurements Of Inlet/Isolator Unstart Induced By Mass Injection, Andrew N. Bustard, Benjamin L. Bemis, Aaron Marques, Matthew J. Zahr, Thomas J. Juliano

Publications

The inner surface pressure of an axisymmetric inlet/isolator model was measured using anodized-aluminum pressure-sensitive paint (PSP) viewing through cast acrylic. Temperaturesensitive paint was utilized to correct for the PSP’s temperature sensitivity. The model was tested under Mach 5.7 flow at 𝑹𝒆 = 7.1 ×106 /m under conventional noise conditions. Transverse jet injection with jet-to-inlet mass-flow ratios up to 0.8 was used to induce unstart in the inlet/isolator. Background-oriented schlieren visualization of the inlet shocks was collected simultaneously with the PSP to determine when the inlet unstarted. Computational fluid dynamics results were used to determine off-wall flow structures and quantify approach …

An Evaluation Of The “Police Response To Uncrewed Aircraft Systems Operations” Online Training Program, Anthony Galante, Leila Halawi

Publications

This study evaluates the impact of the “Police Response to Uncrewed Aircraft Systems Operations” online training program of officers from the Daytona Beach Police Department (DBPD). By measuring the effectiveness of the training through pretest and posttest assessments and considering variables such as educational background, length of service, and rank, this research underscores the training’s potential to enhance UAS response capabilities. Employing a self-selection sampling method, the study engaged 82 voluntary participants from the DBPD, revealing significant improvement across all groups in UAS knowledge and confidence levels. Despite limitations, these findings offer compelling evidence of the training’s efficacy and advocate …

National Agricultural Library (Nal) Search., Leah Everitt, Sonya Lemke

Publications

SEARCH is the USDA National Agricultural Library (NAL)'s main discovery platform that provides integrated access to the NAL Digital Collections, Special Collections, PubAg and AGRICOLA. NAL SEARCH is a valuable tool for health science librarians, students, and professionals seeking veterinary science, nutrition, or animal experiment alternatives. This article aims to give users a comprehensive overview of this resource.

Meeting The Moment With Ai-Employer Informed Education, Brent Terwilliger, John Faraca

Publications

As artificial intelligence transforms aviation, aerospace, and autonomy-related sectors, higher education must adapt to meet evolving workforce demands. This session shares emerging findings from a nationwide study led by Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, focused on employer perceptions of AI adoption, responsible use, and workforce preparedness in domains including uncrewed systems, space systems, robotics, and advanced air mobility. Based on a structured survey and follow-up interviews, the presentation explores how organizations are using AI tools, from generative platforms to enterprise systems, and defining effective and inappropriate use in operational contexts. Participants will gain insight into critical concerns (e.g., data privacy, compliance, security, …

Rgfc: Registry Grounded Function Calling With Stage-Decomposed Evaluation, Ritvik Garimella, Vedant Khandelwal, Anvi Kohli, Amit Sheth

Publications

Tool-calling evaluations often report whether the final call matches a reference answer, but this single outcome merges different failures: choosing a function outside the available registry, violating the selected schema, or filling arguments with values not supported by the user request. These failures matter more when models must choose from larger tool registries. We introduce RFCD, a registry-scaled function-calling benchmark built from BFCL, Glaive Function Calling v2, and Tool-Call-Data, with standardized JSON-schema registries ranging from 5 to 3,000 functions. We also introduce TAAG, a deterministic stage-decomposed evaluator for registry conformance, structural completeness, and argument grounding. Across six locally served sub-4B …

Course Insight Portfolio: Math 1060 Calculus Of One Variable I, Minh Ha, Dinaniaina Florence Rafidimanantsoa, Preston Sessoms, Rishabh Shukla

Publications

The following portfolio is a representation of the course MATH 1060, Calculus I, taught at Clemson University. The contents can be broken down into 3 major components.

• The first being an analysis of the students who may typically be in the course, the prerequisites required to take the course, and what paths students have after completing the course. This analysis is based upon the course curriculum at Clemson, and as a result will likely not align with that of other universities

. • The second major component is a map of the concepts discussed in MATH 1060 as well …

Course Insight Portfolio Math 1040: Precalculus And Introductory Differential Calculus, Jessica Ayers, Morgan Hayes, Meghan Kerrick, Uthman Rasaq, Drishty Singh

Publications

This portfolio includes four primary elements. First is a document titled “Where did they come from? Where are they going?” that provides a description of the types of students who are likely to take the course, followed by the “Course Concept Map” that visually depicts the flow of topics and possible misconceptions in MATH 1040. Additionally, the “Misconceptions Overlay” document lists articles that offer interesting discussion and further insight into the ideas students may bring to MATH 1040 or develop throughout the course. Two lesson plans are included that cover “Continuity and Introduction to Classifying Discontinuities” as well as an …

Course Insight Portfolio: Math 1080, A Gentle Introduction To Infinite Series, Igor Luis Aureliano, Leyanis Falcon Hernandez, Ross George, Fnu Monika

Publications

This lesson aims to introduce the concept of an infinite series through geometric representations and partial sums to help students develop an intuitive understanding of convergence. A common misconception students may have when first encountering infinite series is the belief that “a sum of infinitely many things must be infinite”. Through the study of a convergent geometric series, students will investigate how the limit of partial sums can produce a finite value, thereby addressing this misconception and developing a more accurate understanding of infinite series.

Perseus Interim Evaluation Report, Data Innovation Project, University Of Southern Maine

Publications

The Data Innovation Project (DIP) from the University of Southern Maine’s Catherine Cutler Institute serves as the external evaluator for the USDA NIFA SAS-funded Promoting Economic Resilience and Sustainability of the Eastern U.S. Forests (PERSEUS) project. This project is a joint effort between Purdue University, the University of Georgia, and the University of Maine. The DIP supports the project in assessing its progress, implementation, and emerging impacts through data collection from project participants and systematic document review (i.e. annual USDA reports, personnel lists, and meeting notes). This includes synthesizing quantitative and qualitative data and incorporating these metrics into independent evaluation …

Course Insight Portfolio: Math 1020 Business Calculus I, Ibrahim Khalilullah, M.G.M. Al Faruque, Jessica Ratovondranto, Leslie Spahr

Publications

This portfolio presents an overview of the student educational context, key course concepts, and some approaches to clarify student misconceptions associated with MATH 1020 (Business Calculus I). The portfolio includes a concept map illustrating the major topics of the course and an overview of common student misconceptions, and lesson plans designed to address those misconceptions through research informed instructional practices.

The concept map highlights the interconnected nature of topics such as functions, limits, continuity, differentiability, derivatives, optimization, graph interpretation, and applications of calculus. Particular attention is given to areas where students commonly experience difficulty, including distinguishing domain, codomain, and range; …

Course Insight Portfolio: Math 2070 Business Calculus Ii, Samuel Ajibola, Zachariah Baer, Kensey Doughtie, Abby Hyatt

Publications

MATH 2070 - Business Calculus II, is a course that most students in the Wilbur O. and Ann Powers College of Business will likely take, but can also meet the mathematics requirement for many majors outside of the College of Science and the College of Engineering, Computing, and Applied Sciences. Like most second semester calculus courses, it requires decent foundations in both algebraic manipulation and derivation to succeed, skills that students will prove through pre-college examination and by passing a first calculus course. Where it differs from a STEM-oriented calculus II course is that it goes beyond integration, touching on …

Clear-Air Turbulence Climatology And Trends, Liam Rodgers, Mark Sinclair

Publications

Clear‑air turbulence (CAT) is a major aviation hazard that occurs near airline cruising altitudes in both cloud and cloud‑free environments. Its lack of a distinct visual signature makes detection and avoidance difficult. CAT is associated with wind shear near jet streams, gravity waves, and Kelvin–Helmholtz instability and may be further enhanced by climate change. This study examines the climatology, spatial distribution, seasonal variability, and trends of CAT over the contiguous United States.

Pilot Reports (PIREPs) from 2001–2025 between 100 and 400 hPa are analyzed alongside jet stream, shear, and stability diagnostics derived from NCEP–NCAR Reanalysis data. Proxies such as inverse …

Quantifying Evapotranspiration From The Wetlands In The Peripheral Area Between The Most Downstream Stream Gages And The Open Water Body Of The Great Salt Lake, Motasem S. Abualqumboz, David G. Tarboton

Publications

Study region: The eastern peripheral area between the most downstream stream gages and the open water body of the Great Salt Lake (GSL), located in northern Utah within the semiarid western United States (US). 

Study focus: As GSL levels decline, the eastern peripheral area is expanding, exposing former lakebed, much of which has transitioned into natural and managed wetlands. Evapotranspiration (ET) from these wetlands consumes water that would otherwise reach the open-water lake body, yet these losses remain poorly quantified and directly affect the GSL water balance. This study compares a water-balance-based ET estimate for the wetlands in the peripheral …

Ai And Algorithmic Literacy Among Health Workers: A Scoping Review Through A Digital Health Literacy Lens, Ihoghosa Iyamu, Carly Wheelans, Devon Haag, Ian Roe, Hsiu Ju Chang, Lorie Donelle Phd, Rn, Fcan, Faan, Ursula Ellis, Geoffrey Mckee, Sofia Bartlett, Mark Gilbert

Publications

Introduction – Artificial intelligence (AI) and algorithmic systems influence health workers’ access, interpretation, and action on clinical and public health information, positioning them as intermediaries between algorithmically mediated outputs and patients, communities, and decision makers. This study examines how AI and algorithmic literacy are conceptualized and measured among health workers through a digital health literacy (DHL) lens. Methods – Using Arksey and O’Malley’s scoping review framework, we searched Ovid MEDLINE, Ovid Embase, Scopus, IEEE Xplore, ACM Digital Library, Europe PMC, and arXiv for English language sources published between January 2020 and May 2025. Two reviewers screened records and extracted data …

A Compendium Of Sound-Symbol Correspondences In English: More Revelations About The Challenge Of Teaching, Learning, And Applying Phonics, David Reinking, Sharon L. Reinking

Publications

In 2022, we published an article in The Journal of Reading Recovery entitled, “Why phonics (in English) is so difficult to teach, learn, and apply: What caregivers and teach- ers need to know” (Reinking & Reinking, 2022) The article outlined the unique challenges of mastering the diverse, irregular correspon- dences between letters and sounds (phonics) in English compared to the regularity of many other alphabetic languages We provided examples and explained how the complexity of English spelling creates and amplifies difficulties in teaching, learning, and applying phonics Our purpose was not to question the importance and viabil- ity of teaching …

“It’S A Lot More To It Than Just Research”: Integrating Critical Data Literacy And Reasoning With Data Into A Stem Summer Camp, Marc T. Sager, Saki L. Milton, Candace Walkington

Publications

Purpose: This study explores how middle-grade girls from predominantly underrepresented and underserved racially and ethnically minoritized (UUREM) backgrounds developed critical data literacy (CDL) through participation in a week-long residential STEM camp. Given the increasing importance of data science education in a data-driven world, this research examines how informal learning environments can support CDL development among youth from historically marginalized groups.

Design/Methodology/Approach: The study draws on qualitative interview data from eleven participants, and their group-produced artifacts to investigate how the camp experience supported engagement with data and the development of CDL. Interviews explored participants' experiences with data collection, organization, analysis, and …

A Phenomenological Study Of Teacher And Student Experience Within A Community Of Inquiry: Utilizing Wonder-Infused Pedagogy In An Elementary Outdoor Classroom, Andrew Gilbert, Steph N. Dean

Publications

This interpretive phenomenological study explores how wonder-infused pedagogy, enacted within an elementary outdoor classroom, supported the development of a community of inquiry. We position the community of inquiry as the overarching framework for cultivating social, cognitive, and teaching presence; wonder as the pedagogical driver; and outdoor learning as the authentic context for engaging in science practices. In response to schooling contexts that often privilege testing and individual achievement over collaborative inquiry, we examined an eight-week outdoor wonder project with third- through fifth-grade students. Data sources included group interviews, student journals, teacher reflections, and photographs. Students engaged in weekly wonder journaling …

Biologically-Inspired Multiscale Neuromorphic Architecture, Christian O'Reilly, Ramtin Zand

Publications

This white paper proposes a biologically-inspired multiscale neuromorphic architecture that bridges key gaps between artificial neural networks (ANNs), spiking neural networks (SNNs), and biological neural networks (BNNs). While SNNs offer promising energy efficiency, their broader adoption remains limited by suboptimal performance and the need for novel learning paradigms. To address these challenges, the proposed framework integrates structural and functional principles observed in the brain, including hierarchical organization, sparse and modular connectivity, predictive coding, and diverse neuronal dynamics.

The architecture operates across micro-, meso-, and macro-scales, incorporating neuron-level diversity (e.g., excitatory/inhibitory and principal/support cells), canonical microcircuits (CMCs), and large-scale hierarchical organization. …

From Classroom To Field: Rural Teachers’ Integration Of Science And The Outdoors, Steph N. Dean, Julieanne A. Wenner

Publications

This study explored how rural educators in the US use outdoor environments to enhance science instruction, addressing the educational marginalization of rural students. Using rural cultural wealth as a theoretical framework, we investigated how rural teachers integrate local nature-based resources and students’ out-of-school experiences into science learning. We conducted interviews and observations with rural teachers, using reflexive thematic analysis as our qualitative approach. Three key themes emerged that highlight the ways our participants use the outdoor environment to teach science: (a) harness rural community partnerships, (b) engage students through relational teaching, and (c) design learning opportunities that honor students as …

Nebraska Insights 2026, Josie Gatti Schafer, Morgan Vogel, Tara Grell, Michael Lee, Mahmuda Akhter Nishu, Meagan E. Paez, Ignacio Ruelas Avila

Publications

Nebraska Insights is a collaboration between the Nebraska Chamber Foundation and the University of Nebraska at Omaha’s Center for Public Affairs Research. The series provides a curated set of indicators that benchmark Nebraska’s demographics, economy, and quality of life against all U.S. states. Each webinar explores selected indicators from the guide and offers guidance on how Nebraska stakeholders can effectively interpret and apply the data.

In-Situ Eval: A Modular Framework For Custom And Real-Time Rag Benchmarking, Ritvik Garimella, Kaushik Roy, Chathurangi Shyalika, Amit Sheth

Publications

Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) has become the standard approach for integrating domain knowledge into Large Language Models (LLMs). However, fair comparison of RAG pipelines remains difficult: data preparation is often ad hoc, subsampling methods are opaque, parameters vary across implementations, and evaluation is fragmented. We present In-Situ Eval, a unified and reproducible framework that operationalizes the full RAG pipeline with configurable subsampling strategies and both RAG-specific and generic evaluation metrics. The platform supports two execution modes: an offline Dataset mode for evaluating precomputed outputs, and a live Retrieval mode for benchmarking RAG variants with state-of-the-art LLMs. Users can flexibly select datasets, …

Simulation Results Of Spaceborne Ssa Using A Comprehensive Passive Radar Model, Chinmay Gaikwad, Filipe Senra, Thomas Alan Lovell, Hao Peng, Berker Pekoz, Tianyu Yang

Publications

In this paper, a high-fidelity simulation framework is developed to assess the feasibility of tracking space debris using a large low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellation equipped with onboard passive radar sensors. By exploiting illumination from a distributed network of ground-based transmitters, the constellation provides consistent line-of-sight access to debris objects at higher altitudes, enabling angles-only detection and tracking. This approach yields a scalable, automated, and cost-effective architecture for next-generation space surveillance and contributes to more resilient space traffic management. A complete angles-only passive-radar orbit-determination pipeline is introduced and demonstrated. Initial orbital states are generated using a rate-aware constrained admissible-region multiple-hypothesis …

External Validation Of A Knowledge-Based Clinical Toxicology Consultant For Diagnosing Single Exposures, Hugo Lerogeron, Joel D. Schipper, Jay L. Schauben, Laurent Guéguen, Valentine Lacotte, Kim An Nguyen

Publications

Introduction

Clinical prediction models assist healthcare providers in estimating disease likelihood using multiple patient-specific factors. While these models are increasingly used, few undergo the essential process of external validation, which limits their clinical utility. In toxicology, timely diagnosis is crucial and expertise scarce, making knowledge-based systems an excellent choice to support medical decision making. A knowledge-based system developed using data from the Florida Poison Information Center Network has shown promise but lacks external validation. This study aims to evaluate its performance using data from the Lyon Poison Information Center to assess its generalizability

Methods

To externally validate the Florida diagnostic …