Digital Commons Network^™

Pre-Answer Entitlement Gate For Ai-Answered Phone Lines With Subscription-Shape-Differentiated Fail Policy And Metering-Lag Reinforcement, Gustavo Matthew Assuncao

Defensive Publications Series

This publication discloses, in enabling detail, a pre-answer entitlement gate for telephone lines that are answered by an autonomous AI agent (an AI "receptionist" or voice bot) and billed on a metered subscription. The distinguishing constraint is architectural: the platform runs on top of a Communications-Platform-as-a-Service (CPaaS) provider that emits its usage/charging signal only when the call completes. There is no mid-call credit-control channel available at the CPaaS layer — the platform cannot ask the carrier to reserve, decrement, or terminate a call against a balance while the call is live, the way a telecom Online Charging System (OCS) can. …

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What Are Vestigial Structures? Evidence For Evolution Explained, Ryan Bebej

University Faculty Publications and Creative Works

Evolution wasn’t something we talked about very much in my home or church when I was growing up.

Yet somehow, I came to believe that evolution wasn’t compatible with Christian faith. At the time that seemed okay, because I had heard that the evidence for evolution wasn’t very strong anyway.

That all began to change when I started studying biology in college. In different classes, I encountered some of the compelling evidence for evolution and common descent.

Vestigial structures were one of the topics that came up often in biology textbooks about these topics.

Today, biologists point to …

Dabrafenib-Induced Cutaneous Eruptions In A Patient With Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis, Jaanvi Mehta, Julianna Tolotta, Eleanor Matthews, Daniel Joffe, Safiyyah Bhatti, Lauren Banner, Jenna Mandel, Molly Wallace, Timothy G. Webster, Jason B. Lee, Neda Nikbakht

Department of Dermatology and Cutaneous Biology Faculty Papers

Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) is a rare malignancy marked by clonal proliferation of Langerhans cells, with BRAF V600E mutations identified in over 50% of the cases. BRAF inhibitors (BRAFi), such as dabrafenib, have shown efficacy in treating BRAF V600E-mutant LCH. However, BRAFi therapy is associated with cutaneous adverse effects, including the development of new melanocytic nevi, verrucae, and keratinocyte carcinoma (KC). This case report describes a 78-year-old woman with BRAF V600E-mutant LCH who developed multiple dermatologic side effects following dabrafenib salvage therapy. Seven weeks into treatment, the patient presented with eruptive palmoplantar nevi, verrucae, and a basal cell carcinoma (BCC). …

Fertility And Birth Rates In The Mountain West, 2024, Sydney Mitchell, Maisoon Faris, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Health

This fact sheet reports 2024 data on the overall birth rate and birth-related health measures in the five Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, and Utah using data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website. This fact sheet includes information from the National Center for Health Statistics, “Statistics by State” subsection related to birth. This subsection focuses on fertility rates, teen birth rates, infant mortality rates, births to unmarried mothers, cesarean deliveries, pre-term births, and infants with low birth weight.

A Significant Moment In The Colorado River Water Supply Crisis, Jack Schmidt, Anne Castle, John Fleck, Eric Kuhn, Kathryn Sorensen, Katherine Tara

The Traveling Wilburys of the Colorado River

On Sunday, July 12, the surface of Lake Powell was 3524.32 feet above sea level, and the surface of Lake Mead was at 1042.77 ft.7 These elevations equated to 5,505,869 and 7,169,640 acre feet (af), respectively, of live storage in the two reservoirs. The combined total live storage of these reservoirs was 12,675,509 af. The last time the combined total live storage in Lake Powell and Lake Mead was this small was May 23, 1957, during construction of Glen Canyon Dam when the entire amount of 12,668,000 af was stored in Lake Mead.

Microwave-Plasma Disinfector (Origreen), Samir M. El-Ghazaly, Amirreza Ghadimi Avval, Sara Ghayouraneh, Saleh A. Alfawaz, Ibrahim Nasser I. Alquaydheb

Patents Granted

A microwave-plasma disinfector (Origreen) with a microwave source with multi-feed points and variable output power. It also has a low-temperature atmospheric-pressure plasma source. This versatile microwave-plasma disinfector has the ability to decontaminate heat-sensitive materials by subjecting them to a microwave-assisted plasma with controlled microwave power. This dual-action, at suitable non-destructive microwave and plasma doses, sterilizes the equipment at a lower temperature with higher effectiveness than either plasma or microwaves alone.

Vima Group Inc. V. Zhang

All Decisions

Court granted landlord's motion to amend petition to allege the small landlord exemption from GCEL and granted DHCR's motion to quash landlord's subpoena, but granted tenant's summary judgment motion and dismissed the petition because the apartment is presumptively rent stabilized under ETPA as it is in a building built before January 1, 1974 containing at least six residential units, and landlord failed to properly plead a recognized exemption from rent stabilization or a ground for eviction under the Rent Stabilization Code.

A Global Imprint Of Gadolinium-Based Contrast Agents Used In Magnetic Resonance Imaging In Drinking Water, Vanessa Hatje, Franciele Castro Novais, Anna Maria Orani, Maria Elisabete Machado, Pere Masque, Marc Metian

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Since the 1980s, rare earth elements (REE), particularly gadolinium (Gd) used in gadolinium-based contrast agents (GdCA), have revolutionized Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) diagnostics. However, the near-complete persistence of these compounds through wastewater treatment processes has led to widespread global environmental contamination. Here, we present a global assessment of REE concentrations and GdCA signatures in tap water from 148 cities across 89 countries and Antarctica, where anthropogenic Gd ranges from 0.1 to 61.2 ng L–1 and accounts for up to 99% of total dissolved Gd. Contamination hotspots are concentrated in Europe and North America. While Gd levels scale with MRI usage …

El Dibujo Como Tecnología De Mediación Cognitiva: Pensamiento Visual Y Construcción Del Conocimiento, María Gárgoles Navas

Artículos científicos

Este artículo reconsidera el dibujo más allá de su función repre-sentativa. Se plantea como una tecnología de mediación cognitiva que es capaz de traducir fenómenos complejos en estructuras visuales compren-sibles. Dibujar no consiste solo en registrar ideas previas, sino también im-plica participar activamente en su construcción. Este proceso se produce mediante la interacción entre percepción, gesto y materialidad. En primer lugar, se analiza el dibujo como forma de pensamiento visual corporeizado. La acción de dibujar configura un espacio de exploración cognitiva donde emergen relaciones conceptuales. En segundo lugar, las imágenes cientí-ficas permiten estructurar el conocimiento debido a que actúan como …

Testing Elicitors Of Homologous Jadr2 Proteins To Regulate Natural Product Production, Carzon J. Williams, Emilee A. Patterson, Allison S. Walker

SPARK Symposium Presentations

The growing threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has and will contribute to global economic and public health concerns in the foreseeable future leading into 2050. As mortality rates derived from AMR are projected to reach 10 million if no viable solution is found to combat it through hastened drug discovery. The use of natural products to mitigate AMRs effects is viable as more than 50% of FDA approved drugs are natural products. These natural products are synthesized by biosynthetic gene clusters (BGC), found in bacteria with a regulatory protein not allowing transcription until unbound . Current methods of eliciting the …

Leadership In Higher Education Amid Demographic Shifts: Implications Of Campus Event Management, Marrissa J. Williams

M.S. in Leadership

This study focuses on how demographic shifts within higher education have influenced leadership practices, specifically within enrollment management and campus event programming. As student populations become increasingly diverse, institutions are challenged to change their recruitment, engagement, and support strategies to meet the needs of first-generation, low-income, and non-traditional learners. The research explores the role of leadership in shaping these responses, with a focus on how decisions related to admissions events, like campus visits, outreach initiatives, and multicultural programming, have contributed to student engagement and enrollment outcomes. Using a qualitative approach grounded in the analysis of peer-reviewed articles and case studies, …

Comparable Outcomes, Divergent Learning Pathways: Comparing Metacognitive Reflection And Practice Problems In Organic Chemistry, Jitendra D. Belani

College of Life Sciences Faculty Papers

Organic Chemistry I presents significant challenges for students, requiring both conceptual understanding and effective study strategies. Two commonly used approaches to support learning are structured practice problems and metacognitive reflection activities; however, these strategies are rarely compared directly within the same course context. In this study, students enrolled in a postbaccalaureate Organic Chemistry I course (n = 31) were randomly assigned to one of two low-stakes interventions: weekly practice problem sets or structured reflection surveys focused on study strategies. Student performance was evaluated using three midterm examinations, a cumulative final exam, and overall course grades, along with measures of participation. …

State Engagement In Trump Accounts: A Policy-Design And Implementation Framework, Center For Social Development, Washington University In St. Louis, Pennsylvania Treasury Department

Center for Social Development Research

Trump Accounts are IRAs for American children, with a $1,000 federal seed contribution available for those born from 2025 through 2028. Under the current design, families must take two separate steps to request an account. Children whose families do not complete both steps will receive neither the account nor the federal deposit. They also will be excluded from employer matches, philanthropic contributions, and other general contributions to Trump Accounts. The current opt-in design will leave behind the children who need the program most. States are well positioned to address this gap. This Policy Brief proposes a framework for state engagement …

Mcguire Memorial V. Teamsters Local 261, International Brotherhood Of

2026 Decisions

USDC for the Western District of Pennsylvania

Bridging Pediatric To Adult Care In Cystinosis: A Scoping Review Of Healthcare Transition Of Care Protocols And A Roadmap For Future Practice., Sanat Subhash, Nicholas Pantelakis, Kyle Backston, Ruhaan Bajpai, Amir Safadi, Brandon Petrovich, Bradley A. Warady, Maria Diaz-Gonzalez De Ferris, Rupesh Raina

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

Cystinosis is a rare lysosomal storage disorder that affects approximately 1 in 100,000 to 200,000 live births worldwide. Long-term graft success in cystinosis depends on cysteamine adherence and structured multidisciplinary transition, supported by protocols developed by both pediatric nephrologists and hospital organizations. This review explores institutional and regional care models, structured programs such as the RISE protocol and Got Transition's Six Core Elements, and major barriers including adult nephrology expertise, psychosocial stressors, and insurance coverage gaps. Additionally, we explore the impact of digital health tools for their role in supporting cysteamine adherence and maintaining continuity of care. Emerging technologies such …

Striking A Chord For Southern Music Scholarship, Michael Newsom

University of Mississippi News

OXFORD, Miss. – From the Delta blues to the birth of rock 'n' roll, many of the harmonies that shaped American music were first struck in the South, and a new gift aims to help the University of Mississippi study this rich history in depth.

How To Authenticate An Orcid On Your Experts Profile, Kimberly Holling

ScholarWorks Publications

This document provides step-by-step instructions for researchers to authenticate their unique ORCID number on the Experts Portal profile.  This allows for the two systems to update researcher profiles for either one or both systems, as preferred.

Scientific Advances In Ecology Through The Lens Of Ecological Processes, Jiquan Chen, De Hui Zeng, Guillermo Martínez Pastur, João C. Azevedo, James A. Lutz, Raffaele Lafortezza, Andrew Burton, Et Al.

Michigan Tech Publications

In this perspective editorial, we analyzed publication trends and author-provided keywords across ten leading ecology journals from 2012 to 2025 to synthesize recent developments in ecological research. We identified six major trends that have shaped the field: (1) the shift from descriptive to mechanistic investigations, (2) the relevance of climate change and ecosystem feedbacks, (3) the growing integration of the human dimension into ecological research, (4) the application of advanced technologies and analytical methods, (5) the increasingly diverse contributions from the global scientific community, and (6) the rise of issue-focused research. Building on this synoptic overview, we discuss emerging frontiers …

Enhancing Resonance Wave–Matter Interaction In Finite-Size Dielectric Metasurfaces, Varsha Vijay Kumar, Elena Semouchkina

Michigan Tech Publications

We investigate the dramatic effects produced by the presence of physical boundaries of finite-size metasurfaces (MSs), composed of identical cylindrical dielectric resonators without broken symmetry, on the complexity of their responses, observed at normal plane wave incidence, when constituent particles can support only dipolar Mie resonances. We demonstrate the possibility to excite extra high-quality resonance modes in these finite structures, which are quite distinct from the modes in infinite structures. We explore the formation of different types of high-quality modes in MS fragments of different configurations and sizes, which makes it possible to provide guidance for configuring their optimal designs. …

A Scoping Review Of The Role, Challenges, And Opportunities Of Academic Librarians In Research Data Management And Open Science In Africa, Aminu Umar Musa, Usman Hassan, Abubakar Mohammed Musa

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Objective: The increased data density of research has made research data management a critical service within university libraries. This paper provides a scoping analysis of the literature on academic librarians' roles, difficulties, and possibilities in research data management (RDM) and open science (OS) in Africa.

Methods: The review, which followed the Arksey and O'Malley scoping review framework and was presented in accordance with PRISMA-ScR principles, methodically mapped existing evidence from peer-reviewed literature published between 2010 and 2024. Scopus, Web of Science, Library and Information Science Source, and Google Scholar were all used for searches. Following screening and eligibility assessment, 43 …

Oregon State Rank Assessment For Steens Mountain Cushion Buckwheat (Eriogonum Ovalifolium Var. Rubidum), Lindsey K. Wise

Institute for Natural Resources Publications

Oregon state conservation status assessment for Steens Mountain Cushion Buckwheat (Eriogonum ovalifolium var. rubidum) using NatureServe methodology, 2026.

Investigating The Links Between Parent Math Anxiety, Parenting Behaviors, And Child Math Achievement And Math Anxiety In Middle Childhood, Kimia Akhavein

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Existing research indicates that parents’ math anxiety is a robust predictor of children’s math achievement and math anxiety. The current dissertation study moved the literature forward by examining the transmission of parents’ math anxiety to children’s math achievement and math anxiety via autonomy-supportive and controlling parenting behaviors using an observational coding scheme during a homework help task when children were in second grade. The first research aim examined if parents’ autonomy supportive and controlling behaviors mediated the link between parents’ math anxiety and children’s math achievement and math anxiety one year later. The second research aim examined whether parents’ emotion …

Analysis Of The Fracture Toughness Of Ercual A2 Cladding On Api X70 Using The Instrumented Charpy Impact Test, Martín Aguirre-Pulido, Francisco Fernando Curiel-López, Jose Jaime Taha-Tijerina, Jorge Alejandro Verduzco-Martínez, Víctor Hugo López-Morelos, Heriberto Granados-Becerra, Ariosto Medina-Flores

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications

The degradation of steel used in the oil industry has become a serious problem due to the high costs associated with material loss from corrosion. Applying thin layers of corrosion-resistant material promises to be a viable alternative for extending the service life of pipelines. ERCuAl-A2 electrode claddings were applied to API X70 carbon steel using the MIG brazing process with direct current (DC) and pulsed current (P). The cladding was applied under three conditions: base material (BM) at room temperature, BM preheated to 120 °C, and Ni-buttered BM. Microhardness profiles and Charpy impact tests were performed on the MB and …

Beyond Sticky Floors: Executive Gender Diversity And Firm-Level Gender Pay Inequality In Uk Firms, Yasser Eliwa, Sally Ahmed, Ahmed Saleh

All Works

This study examines whether executive gender diversity is associated with gender pay inequality in UK firms. Although prior research has extensively examined board diversity, less is known about whether gender diversity within executive leadership teams is linked to differences in pay inequality across firms. Using a panel of FTSE 350 non-financial firms from 2017 to 2023 and mandatory UK gender pay gap disclosures, we estimate regression models to examine the relationship between the proportion of female executives and the gender pay gap. The findings show that greater executive gender diversity is significantly associated with lower gender pay inequality. In contrast, …

Application Of Virtual Reality To Alter Sweetness Perception, Serena Wellbelove, John Gieng, Valerie A. Carr, Kate Mcleod, Xi Feng

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Regular consumption of excess sugar is linked to nutrition-based diseases, including gut problems, Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease, and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus. Increasing sweetness perception is a novel technique to decrease sugar consumption. This experiment compared the sweetness perception of sweetened and unsweetened almond milk in response to different virtual environments with music and visuals. Two music types, the classical song Goldberg Variations, BMV. 998-Variation 13 and a jazz song generated by AI were used. Additionally, fall and spring forest backgrounds were generated by the Blockade Labs 3D image generator. Each participant tasted sweetened and unsweetened almond milk in music-only, …

Fostering Collaboration Through Learning Communities: A Case Report On Engaging With All Of Us Data Among Library Professionals, Faculty, And Students, Zachary Mcniece, Dawn Hackman, Nick Szydlowski, Yuqi He

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Background: Research data services (RDS) have expanded in academic libraries but can be challenging to develop, particularly in teaching-intensive and less-resourced institutions. Learning communities offer a promising model for building skills, fostering collaboration, and aligning services with local needs. Case Presentation: This case report describes the development and implementation of three learning communities—a library group, a faculty group, and a student group—at a teaching-focused institution. These communities brought together library professionals, faculty, and students from diverse disciplines—including health sciences, education, data science, and engineering—to collaboratively explore the All of Us dataset. By working with the same dataset, participants were able …

Oncogenic Pik3ca Reprograms Glutamine Metabolism To Drive Bladder Cancer Progression, Karthik Reddy Kami Reddy, Vasanta Putluri, Danthasinghe Waduge Badrajee Piyarathna, Jun Hyoung Park, Aaditya Krishna Arun, Sachin B Jorvekar, Yongchao Dou, Mohammed Khurshidul Hassan, Chandra Sekhar Amara, Abu Hena Mostafa Kamal, Chandra Shekar R Ambati, Jun Xu, Daniel Kraushaar, Adriana Langer Gramer, Allison C Bellman, Leomar Y Ballester, Yuan Xu, Robert Taylor Ripley, Seth P Lerner, Roni J Bollag, Martha K Terris, Chong-Xian Pan, Benny Abraham Kaipparettu, Yair Lotan, Nagireddy Putluri

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: Genomic analysis has revealed that approximately 40% of bladder cancer (BLCA) tumors harbor alterations in the PI3K/AKT pathway, with PIK3CA mutations occurring in 15-25% of cases. PIK3CA, which encodes the catalytic p110α subunit of PI3K, plays a critical role in regulating cell survival, proliferation, and metabolism. However, the metabolic and functional consequences of PIK3CA mutations in BLCA remain poorly defined.

Methods: To investigate the role of PIK3CA mutations in BLCA, we performed targeted sequencing on tumors from patients, identifying recurrent alterations. Using CRISPR/Cas9 knock-in models in SCaBER and UM-UC-3 cell lines, we introduced the PIK3CA E545K mutation to study …

577 Vanderbilt Llc V. Hassell

All Decisions

Landlord commenced a nonpayment proceeding demanding the legal regulated rent. In 2018, landlord's predecessor-in-interest settled a prior nonpayment proceeding by two-attorney stipulation, granting tenant a preferential rent of $1,750 set to expire August 14, 2024. After HSTPA's enactment on June 14, 2019, RSL §26-511(c)(14) and RSC §2521.2(d) were amended to require that any tenant paying a preferential rent as of HSTPA's effective date be charged no more than that preferential rent for the lifetime of the tenancy. Tenant moved for summary judgment. The court granted the motion, holding that the 2018 stipulation's expiration date became unenforceable after HSTPA, that applying …

Hill Plaza Enters. Ny Llc V. Terris

All Decisions

Court granted tenant's motion for a discretionary stay of the proceeding pending appeal under CPLR 5519(c), allowing tenant to challenge a prior decision denying summary judgment on her rent overcharge and fraudulent deregulation counterclaims. Court found minimal prejudice to landlord because the underlying nonpayment petition had already been dismissed, while potential prejudice to tenant from proceeding without resolution of the appeal was manifest.

Danielle Taylor V. Lsac

2026 Decisions

USDC for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania