Digital Commons Network^™

Endoparasites In Magnificent Frigatebirds (Fregata Magnificens Rothschildi) From Southeast Florida, Usa, Isabelle Petty, Alexia Hilber

Undergraduate Student Symposium

The Magnificent Frigatebird (Fregata magnificens) is a pelagic seabird widely distributed across tropical and subtropical regions. Due to its wide-ranging foraging behavior and fish-based diet, these birds are susceptible to parasitic infections. However, little is known about the species' endoparasite communities. Despite its ecological importance, research on this species remained limited, particularly regarding the diversity and distribution of endoparasites. This study aims to investigate the endoparasite community in these birds. Specimens were collected from multiple rehabilitation centers from southeast Florida. A total of six individuals were examined (MAFR 2000, 3105, 3106, 3107, 3108, and 3109) for parasite presence …

Disrupting Stat3 Signaling In Glioblastoma Stem Cells Using Nitro-Modified Curcumin Analogs, Sneha Subhash, Swara Chindhade, Maria Moreno Hollweg, Kyuree Chang

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription 3 (STAT3) is frequently overactivated in cancers, including glioblastoma (GBM), where its dysregulation is associated with aggressive disease and poor patient survival. STAT3 supports tumor progression by promoting proliferation, resistance to apoptosis, maintenance of cancer stem cells, and immune suppression. Although numerous STAT3 inhibitors are under preclinical and clinical evaluation, none have yet achieved FDA approval. GBM remains a highly lethal brain cancer with limited therapeutic options, underscoring the need for new targeted treatments. Nitro-containing compounds, known for their strong electron-withdrawing characteristics, are emerging as potential anticancer agents. A library of 41 nitro-containing chalcones …

Ticked Off: A Systematic Review Of Alpha-Gal Syndrome Mechanisms

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Alpha-gal syndrome is characterized by an IgE-mediated immune response against galactose-α-1,3-galactose. In the United States, the principal vector is the Lone Star tick, whose range has expanded nationwide. 110,000 cases have been reported since 2010, with the CDC estimating 450,000 as many cases go unrecognized. Vomiting, difficulty breathing, and hypotension can occur immediately or hours after exposure. Ongoing exposure to alpha galactose with AGS increases mast cell inflammatory response, raising coronary artery disease risk. Perioperative ingredients like gelatin, monoclonal antibodies, and stearic acid have triggered anaphylactic shock in AGS patients. These complications hinder diagnosis. The inclusion criteria required original research …

Snapping Shrimp Acoustic Activity As An Indicator Of Ecosystem Health Across Mangrove, Seagrass, And Coral Reef Habitats In The Florida Keys, Catherine Salazar, Alexander Wheeler

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Mangroves, coral reefs, and seagrass provide refugia, nursery areas, and feeding grounds for many marine species. These ecosystems have faced declines in habitat complexity through natural and anthropogenic causes. Passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) is used to track changes in habitat characteristics through the monitoring of acoustic species, like snapping shrimp. Snapping shrimp are among the most active species inhabiting shallow subtropical marine environments, and their abundance, often tracked through their acoustic activity, are strong indicators of a healthy ecosystem. This study compares the acoustic activity of snapping shrimp across mangrove, seagrass, and coral reef habitats in Key Largo, Florida, as …

Sold For Parts: Moral Connections Between Paid Surrogacy And Paid Organ Donation, Alessandra Coke

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Throughout this presentation, I make ethical arguments about paid surrogacy, based on established arguments regarding paid living organ donation possible due to similarities between the procedures. I establish the differences between conceptualizations of surrogacy: unpaid/altruistic and paid/compensated, and clarify what is meant by paid surrogacy. The primary similarity between paid living organ donation and paid surrogacy is that both practices are a 'voluntary' violation of bodily integrity for financial benefit. I argue that both practices due to financial incentives cannot truly be seen as voluntary. I argue that the reasons that are used to understand paid living organ donation as …

Advances In Aortic Valve Replacement For The Recovery Of Elderly Patients In Southern Florida, Khushi Faldu

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Aortic stenosis, a narrowing of the aortic valve, is a significant health burden in aging populations, as in Broward County, Florida, where the elderly demographic is rapidly expanding. The classical approach to valve replacement is performed via Surgical Aortic Valve Replacement (SAVR). Recently, Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement (TAVR), a minimally invasive alternative, has emerged as a life-changing option for patients with a high surgical risk. Using inductive methods, this study compiled and analyzed data from existing research records and publications comparing endothelial recovery following TAVR and SAVR. We aim to design a teaching case study to highlight how procedural choice …

When Peers Matter: Peer Communication And The Association Between Parental Dependence And Superiority Cognitions, Preya Pandya, Bala Sivani Paddala, Anisha Nandra

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Although parent-child relationships have been widely studied during childhood and adolescence, less attention has been given to how these relationships continue to influence adjustment during emerging adulthood. This developmental period is marked by instability and exploration, as young adults begin transitioning into adult roles such as higher education, employment, and long-term relationships. Research suggests that parenting continues to matter during this time, with successful separation-individuation representing a normative developmental task. Excessive parental dependence, however, may be associated with maladjustment. At the same time, peers play an increasingly important role in emerging adulthood, and positive peer relationships are often linked to …

Reengineering Bone Health: Preventing Steroid-Induced Osteoporosis Without Jaw Damage, John Voudouris

Undergraduate Student Symposium

Glucocorticoid ("steroid") drugs are essential for treating autoimmune diseases, but long-term use often weakens bones, leading to a condition called glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis (GIO). In the United States, steroids such as prednisone and dexamethasone are prescribed to over 10 million patients annually, and roughly 30% of long-term users develop GIO, contributing $20-30 billion in annual health-care costs. To this end, bisphosphonates are commonly used to treat GIO by preventing bone-loss; however, they can also cause a serious adverse effect called medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaw (MRONJ). Thus, safer jaw-protective treatments are urgently needed. In this study, we tested a different strategy …

Analyzing The Variation In Microplastic Intake Of Waterhyacinth And Pennywort In Lake Okeechobee, Aashvi Gowrisankar

Undergraduate Student Symposium

The Florida Everglades ecosystem faces many threats, including municipal pollution and agricultural runoff. This study compares the microplastic intake of two types of floating vegetation in Lake Okeechobee. Water hyacinth (Pontederia crassipes) has a greater root mass and surface area than its native equivalent pennywort (Hydrocotyle umbellate). We hypothesize that water hyacinth would have greater microplastic intake due to its increased capillary action. Our project was conducted using three guiding questions: which plant type had the greatest microplastic intake, did accumulation vary with location, and did concentration vary among roots, stems, and leaves in each plant …

Enabling Parameter-Efficient Multi-Tasking Via Multi-Head Architecture For Edge Device Deployment, Redwanul Islam Arif, Mohammod Akib Khan, Syed Hasib Akhter Faruqui, Sahidul Islam

Artificial Super Intelligence (ASI) Conference

Deploying Deep Neural Networks (DNNs) on edge devices requires balancing task performance with strict memory and computational constraints. Conventional approaches to multi-task learning often rely on replicating heavy backbones, which is infeasible for resource-constrained environments. In this work, we propose and rigorously analyze a parameter-efficient multi-branch architecture based on a shared, ImageNet-pretrained ResNet-18 backbone. Instead of deploying independent models for distinct visual tasks, we consolidate feature extraction for multiple tasks into a single, unified framework. We first conduct an ablation study to determine the optimal depth of task-specific fully connected (FC) classification heads, maximizing learning capacity while minimizing computational overhead. …

Qcausalmed: Hybrid Quantum-Ai Approaches For Optimizing Causal Inference In Personalized Oncology, Nikunj Doshi, Kavach Shah, Shikhar Patel

Artificial Super Intelligence (ASI) Conference

Estimating individualized treatment effects from observational clinical data is a central challenge. Personalized oncology depends on this estimation for meaningful patient-level decisions. Standard variable selection methods tend to over-adjust for spurious covariates in practice. They also under-adjust for true confounders when the causal graph is high-dimensional. This failure arises because optimal adjustment set identification is NP-hard in the general case. This paper proposes QCausalMed, a hybrid quantum-classical pipeline addressing this problem. The system formulates confounder selection as a Quadratic Unconstrained Binary Optimization problem. This QUBO problem is solved using the Quantum Approximate Optimization Algorithm, or QAOA. The resulting quantum-selected minimal …

Optimization, Co-Design And Nextgen Of Agentic Ai, Bhawesh Singh

Artificial Super Intelligence (ASI) Conference

As generative artificial intelligence and multi-agent systems transition from experimental research prototypes into the backbone of enterprise-critical infrastructure, the industry has reached a pivotal juncture where computing bottlenecks represent the primary barrier to progress. The historical reliance on "brute-force" scaling, simply increasing model parameter counts, has reached a point of diminishing returns, as the exponential escalation in training costs and energy consumption becomes economically and environmentally unsustainable. To address these challenges, this paper provides a comprehensive examination of six cutting-edge technological pillars currently redefining neural architecture and optimization: Neural Architecture Search (NAS) for automated design, Advanced efficient training techniques, Energy-efficient …

Ai-Driven Enterprise Architecture And Value Realization Framework, Hemant Soni

Artificial Super Intelligence (ASI) Conference

For over 40 years enterprise architecture has promised to align technology investment with organizational strategy. Just a portion of that promise has been fulfilled. Extensive documentation or artifact repositories that describe the enterprise in detail but hardly ever influence its direction in any discernible way has been the field's main output. This paper begins with that diagnosis which was most accurately expressed by Tamm et al. and in the context of the public sector by Dang and Pekkola and inquires as to whether artificial intelligence can solve the underlying structural issue instead of just speeding up the documentation process. We …

From Local Innovation To Global Impact: The Ncino Story, Fredrika J. Spencer

Atlantic Marketing Association Proceedings

No abstract provided.

The Return Of Regime Politics: Liberator Or Tyrant, Dylan Coombs

Helms School of Government Spring Public Policy Conference

No abstract provided.

Institutional Gateways For Ideological Contestation: A Schattschneiderian Analysis Of School Board Library Policy Disputes, Hanna Bechtel

Helms School of Government Spring Public Policy Conference

No abstract provided.

Private Property In The Social Contract: Locke Versus Rousseau, Adam Opp

Helms School of Government Spring Public Policy Conference

No abstract provided.

“Sanctuary And Sovereignty: The Constitutional And Christian Mandate For Order In U.S. Immigration Policy”, Christopher J. Boosey, Franklin Patterson

Helms School of Government Spring Public Policy Conference

No abstract provided.

Countering Violent Extremism In The Sahel Region: Roles Of The U.S. And Eu, Ben Ellis, Alina Macovei, Beata Diana Chako, Daiwei Huang, Kehuan Ren

Helms School of Government Spring Public Policy Conference

No abstract provided.

Epistemological Take On The Problem Of Evil: St. Augustine Vs. Rousseau, Emma Burns

Helms School of Government Spring Public Policy Conference

No abstract provided.

Foreign Military Financing And Influencing Foreign Policy And National Security Alignment, Peter W. Aubrey

Helms School of Government Spring Public Policy Conference

No abstract provided.

Strategy In A Disrupted World: Evaluating The 2025 Nss Through The Five Disruptions Framework, Anthony Hughes

Helms School of Government Spring Public Policy Conference

No abstract provided.

Intelligence Reform: A Strategic Overhaul Of The Intelligence Community, Johnny Davis

Helms School of Government Spring Public Policy Conference

No abstract provided.

Human Dignity In The Constitutions Of Post-Communist European States: Comparative Perspectives And Implications For Religious Freedom, Daniel Fodorean

Helms School of Government Spring Public Policy Conference

No abstract provided.

Making Just War Tradition (Jwt) More Relevant, Carl Rehberg, Anthony Hughes

Helms School of Government Spring Public Policy Conference

No abstract provided.

The American Church, Trump, And Christian Nationalism, Johnny Davis

Helms School of Government Spring Public Policy Conference

No abstract provided.

'Buga Yanu Junba: Strengthening First Languages And Wellbeing Through Collaborative Songwriting', Gillian Howell, Annika Moses, Educators From Baya Gawiy Buga Yani Jandu Yani U

Talking Heads Seminar Series

In September 2025, Marninwarntikura Women’s Resource Centre (MWRC), Indigenous Literacy Foundation and Tura released Buga Yanu Junba, a songbook and companion album of 22 original songs in Bunuba, Gooniyandi, Walmajarri, and Kimberley Kriol. But where did these songs come from? This presentation traces their origins in a three-year participatory arts-based research project: a collaboration between early childhood educators at Baya Gawiy Buga Yani Jandu yani U in Fitzroy Crossing, facilitators from the Perth-based cultural development organisation Tura, and a researchermusician from the University of Melbourne as part of Tura's ongoing SoundFX program.

The research pursued two interconnected goals: to increase …

Advancing Equitable Faculty Evaluations: Refining Behavior-Based Rubrics For Systemic Change, Celia Freed

Miners Solving for Tomorrow Research Conference

Bias in faculty evaluations continues to influence decisions about promotion, tenure, and resource allocation, disproportionately affecting women and underrepresented faculty. To address these inequities, this study develops and implements behavior- and-outcome based evaluation rubrics designed to improve fairness, clarity, and consistency. Using a case study approach, calibration data, participant feedback, and refinement are used to guide rubric development and standardization. Over one academic year, this project progressed through data analysis, rubric revision, faculty feedback, and pilot implementation, followed by evaluation of its effectiveness. The study advances research on structured evaluation systems and examines how behavior-based criteria can potentially enhance inclusivity …

Biosensors For Biomedicine, Drake O'Leary

Miners Solving for Tomorrow Research Conference

This project investigated the use of engineered bacterial reporter systems to detect cellular stress responses associated with antibiotic activity. While constructs were successfully introduced and tested against known antibiotics, the reporter consistently produced a blue signal across conditions, limiting the ability to distinguish specific stress responses. This suggests issues such as leaky expression, insufficient regulatory control, or lack of specificity in the reporter design. Although results were inconclusive, this work highlights key challenges in developing reliable biosensors and provides a foundation for future optimization. Improving signal specificity and reducing background expression will be critical for enabling accurate characterization of antibiotic …

Optimizing Duckweeds Harvesting Strategies To Maximize Nutrient Recovery And Its Role As A Phytosensor In Different Water Sources While Maximizing Sustainable Biomass Growth, Basma Ghannam

Thesis/ Dissertation Defenses

This thesis is concerned with determining the optimal water treatment and harvesting strategy for Lemna minor duckweed plants. The main objective of this thesis is to examine how duckweed plants grow in terms of biomass, photosynthetic activity, leaf morphology, chlorophyll and carotenoid content, and their efficiency in nutrient removal from different water sources. The methodology of the study included assessing duckweed in three water samples including tap water, saline water, and greywater and three harvesting strategies, including low, medium, and high harvesting intensities to determine their growth and nutrient removal efficiency. The results of the study showed that L.minor grown …