Digital Commons Network^™

Bridging Act-R And Project Malmo, Developing Models Of Behavior In Complex Environments, David M. Schwartz

Honors Theses

Cognitive architectures such as ACT-R provide a system for simulating the mind and human behavior. On their own they model decision making of an isolated agent. However, applying a cognitive architecture to a complex environment yields more interesting results about how people make decisions in more realistic scenarios. Furthermore, cognitive architectures enable researchers to study human behavior in dangerous tasks which cannot be tested because they would harm participants. Nonetheless, these architectures aren’t commonly applied to such environments as they don’t come with one. It is left to the researcher to develop a task environment for their model. The difficulty …

A Decade Of Blessings: 2018-19 Report Of The President, Office Of The President, Gonzaga University

Office of the President Publications

Each year, Gonzaga University's Office of the President produces an annual Report of the President. This publication that highlights just a few of the many accomplishments over the previous academic year, and is intended to convey gratitude to our Trustees and Regents, benefactors, and many supporters.

Driving Anxiety In Young People With Autism Spectrum Disorder : A Driving Simulator Pilot Study, Rebecca Pasch

Honors Theses

The goal of this project was to investigate how driving anxiety changes overtime in young people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) when using a driving simulator technology. Additional exploratory measures were collected on duration of participation,. stopping distance, and reaction time.

Hildegard Of Bingen And The Four Temperaments Theory, Minji Lee

Department of Religion Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Hildegard of Bingen (1097-1178) was a German nun in the Benedictine order. As the youngest daughter of ten children, she realized she was chosen by God and started her religious life quite early. Hildegard made a vow at the age of eight and joined the woman’s religious community with her mentor Jutta at the age of fourteen. She confessed that she received her first vision when conceived in her mother’s womb. Her continuous reception of visions became officially known through her first visionary book, the Scivias, short for "Scito vias Domini," which took her ten years to complete. After this …

Exploration Of Thiol-Michael Addition Bioconjugation To Extend Polymers Of A Protein-Based Hydrogel, Elaine Wallin Smith

Honors Theses

Hydrogels have been explored for many biomedical applications, including targeted, in situ drug delivery to avoid the negative side effects associated with systemic delivery. In our work, we are exploiting the high affinity, calcium-dependent binding between calmodulin and its target peptides to create a biomaterial for in situ, extracellular drug delivery. Genes were engineered to make two protomers, Calmodulin Collagen-Like Protein (CCLP) and Peptide Collagen-Like Protein (PCLP), that will spontaneously self-assemble in situ due to the high Ca2+ concentration in the extracellular space and provide tunable, targeted drug delivery in a biocompatible hydrogel. One important factor that would dictate the …

Doc 2019-06 Proposal For New Bachelor Of Science In Health Science Degree And Consolidation Of Selected Majors Within The Department Of Health And Sport Science, University Of Dayton. School Of Education And Health Sciences

Senate Documents

Legislative Authority


Rationale for Program:

We propose to establish a Bachelor of Science in Health Science (BSHS) degree in the School of Education and Health Science (SEHS) and Department of Health and Sport Science (HSS). Within this new degree, we propose:

● The creation of a major in Health Science, with multiple concentrations that correspond to our current offerings.
● The transfer of the current baccalaureate degree program in Dietetics to this degree to better align the major with the degree earned

A Hybrid-Powered Wireless System For Multiple Biopotential Monitoring, Shawn Li

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Chronic diseases are the top cause of human death in the United States and worldwide. A huge amount of healthcare costs is spent on chronic diseases every year. The high medical cost on these chronic diseases facilitates the transformation from in-hospital to out-of-hospital healthcare. The out-of-hospital scenarios require comfortability and mobility along with quality healthcare. Wearable electronics for well-being management provide good solutions for out-of-hospital healthcare. Long-term health monitoring is a practical and effective way in healthcare to prevent and diagnose chronic diseases. Wearable devices for long-term biopotential monitoring are impressive trends for out-of-hospital health monitoring. The biopotential signals in …

Testing And Validation Framework For Closed-Loop Physiology Management Systems For Critical And Perioperative Care, Farooq M. Gessa

Master’s Theses

The research aims at developing a framework for testing systems such as closed-loop physiology management systems to ensure that they are safe and effective for use with patients. Building medical devices that are both robust and safe is a challenge. There has been a tremendous increase in modernization and innovation of various medical systems but many of these systems either fail trials or are recalled due to safety issues.

Medical operation rooms require care teams responsible for monitoring the patients and other technical surgical devices. The care process requires a balancing administration that takes care of the drugs and fluids …

Evaporation-Driven Micromixing In Sessile Droplets For Miniaturized Absorbance-Based Colorimetry, A. Chandramohan, M. Chakraborty, J. A. Weibel, S V. Garimella

CTRC Research Publications

We demonstrate the use of an evaporating, sessile droplet on a nonwetting substrate as a miniature micromixing device to conduct sample−dye reactions for absorbance-based colorimetry. The nonwetting substrate supports buoyancy-induced mixing inside the droplet for rapid completion of the measurement. The Bradford assay is used as a proof of concept, where a protein-containing sample is reacted with a reagent dye to measure the protein concentration. Viability of absorbance measurement through the droplet is first established using droplets in which the reactants are mixed prior to their deposition onto the substrate. In a second set of experiments involving in situ mixing, …

Multirobot Confidence And Behavior Modeling: An Evaluation Of Telerobotic Performance And Efficiency, Nathan Lucas

Wayne State University Dissertations

There is considerable interest in multirobot systems capable of performing spatially distributed, hazardous, and complex tasks as a team. There is also growing interest in manned-unmanned teams leveraging the unique abilities of humans and automated machines working alongside each other. The limitations of human perception and cognition affect the ability of operators to integrate information from multiple mobile robots, switch between their spatial frames of reference, and divide attention among many sensory inputs and command outputs. Automation is necessary to help the operator manage increasing demands as the number of robots scales up. However, more automation does not necessarily equate …

Investigation Of The Role For Methyl-Cpg Binding Protein 2 Variant Mbd2_V2 In Cancer Stem Cells And Obesity-Associated Cancers, Emily A. Teslow

Wayne State University Dissertations

Obesity is a risk factor for both TNBC and PCa, and pro-inflammatory features associated with obesity, including upregulated production of ROS, promote CSCs. Previously published work from the Bollig-Fischer laboratory established that TNBC CSCs could be inhibited by neutralizing ROS in culture with H2O2 targeted antioxidants. In this report, antioxidant treatment resulted in the downregulation of mRNA splicing variant MBD2_v2. MBD2_v2 was highly expressed in CSCs versus bulk TNBC cells and supported self-renewal in vitro. As obesity is coupled with increased ROS, we hypothesized that obesity could drive CSCs via MBD2_v2 expression. The work presented in this thesis addressed this …

Philosophy And Theology: Is Birth Ethically Relevant?, Christopher Kaczor

Philosophy Faculty Works

No abstract provided.

Engineering Stem Cell Cardiac Patch With Microvascular Features Representative Of Native Myocardium, Zichen Qian, Dhavan Sharma, Wenkai Jia, Daniel Radke, Timothy Kamp, Feng Zhao

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

The natural myocardium is a highly aligned tissue with an oriented vasculature. Its characteristic cellular as well as nanoscale extracellular matrix (ECM) organization along with an oriented vascular network ensures appropriate blood supply and functional performance. Although significant efforts have been made to develop anisotropic cardiac structure, currently neither an ideal biomaterial nor an effective vascularization strategy to engineer oriented and high-density capillary-like microvessels has been achieved for clinical cardiovascular therapies. A naturally derived oriented ECM nanofibrous scaffold mimics the physiological structure and components of tissue ECM and guides neovascular network formation. The objective of this study was to create …

Automatic 13C Chemical Shift Reference Correction Of Protein Nmr Spectral Data Using Data Mining And Bayesian Statistical Modeling, Xi Chen

Theses and Dissertations--Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry

Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is a highly versatile analytical technique for studying molecular configuration, conformation, and dynamics, especially of biomacromolecules such as proteins. However, due to the intrinsic properties of NMR experiments, results from the NMR instruments require a refencing step before the down-the-line analysis. Poor chemical shift referencing, especially for ¹³C in protein Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) experiments, fundamentally limits and even prevents effective study of biomacromolecules via NMR. There is no available method that can rereference carbon chemical shifts from protein NMR without secondary experimental information such as structure or resonance assignment.

To solve this problem, we …

Effects Of A Ketogenic Diet On Body Composition, Metabolic Health, And Quality Of Life In Ovarian And Endometrial Cancer Patients, Caroline Whitney Cohen

All ETDs from UAB

Ketogenic diets (KDs) have garnered considerable research attention in recent years, having been investigated as a therapy for neurologic, metabolic, and even dermatologic diseases. Recent research has also focused on KDs as a potential intervention for cancer, with preclinical studies demonstrating profound effects such as inhibiting tumor growth, enhancing the effects of radiation and chemotherapy, and prolonging survival. However, to date few studies have been conducted in cancer patients. In order to determine if KDs might augment existing cancer treatment protocols, additional research is needed. Accordingly, the objective of this project was to conduct the first randomized, controlled trial examining …

Impact Of Environmental Exposures On Respiratory Health, Lawrence Rasmussen

All ETDs from UAB

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality around the world. Cigarette smoking is a leading cause of COPD; similarly, individuals exposed to secondhand smoke (SHS) are also vulnerable to COPD and other airway diseases; however, distinct molecular mechanisms involved in SHS-induced lung effects that result in COPD are poorly understood. Mucociliary clearance (MCC) is a primary lung defense against inhaled particulate matter and pathogens. Thus, understanding how inhaled irritants such as SHS disrupt MCC will promote improved scientific understanding and better public health initiatives to prevent respiratory illnesses. Using a variety of in vitro …

If A Virtual Tree Falls In A Simulated Forest, Is The Sound Restorative? An Examination Of The Role Of Level Of Immersion In The Restorative Capacity Of Virtual Nature Environments, Jessica Michaelis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Stress and cognitive fatigue have become a pervasive problem, especially in Western society. Stress and cognitive fatigue can have deleterious effects not only on performance, but also on one's physical and mental health. This dissertation presents a study in which the aim is to investigate the effects of virtual nature on stress reduction and cognitive restoration. Specifically, this study assessed the effects of Immersion (Non-immersive, Semi-immersive, Fully-immersive) and Exploration (Passive vs Active) on stress reduction and cognitive restoration. Additionally, restoration from the most effective virtual nature environment was compared to that of taking an active coloring break. Eighty-three university students …

Development Of Novel Temperature Responsive Polymeric Sorbents And Their Applications In Water Remediation, Shuo Tang

Theses and Dissertations--Chemical and Materials Engineering

Water remediation utilizing sorption has found strong interest due to its inexpensiveness, universal nature and ease of operation. In particular, thermo-responsive sorbents consisting of N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPAAm) offer significant potential as “smart” and advanced materials to remove multiple aqueous pollutants. NIPAAm exhibits excellent thermo-responsiveness, which senses the external temperature variation and changes its swelling and sorption behaviors in a sharp and rapid manner. At the beginning of this work, an extensive review of literature has been compiled to provide a summary of NIPAAm-based thermo-responsive sorbents in water/wastewater remediation applications.

Initially, we developed a novel approach to synthesize and characterize NIPAAm copolymeric …

The Influence Of Fatiguing Exercise On Power Output, Lena Kate Perry

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

Physical fatigue impairs performance during high power, short duration activities. As technological developments permit new methods of measuring this effect, it is important to validate existing paradigms. The purpose was to determine if kinetic measurements from vertical jump (VJ) tests are influenced by fatigue based on explosive power outputs. A sample of athletes (9 men, 26 women) from a Division I NCAA sports program completed testing. To establish baseline VJ kinetics, athletes performed a controlled warm-up and then completed six jumps using Sparta Science technology, each separated by 15s rest. Sparta software computed three force outputs: Load, Explode and Drive. …

A Mutation In Site-1 Protease Is Associated With A Complex Phenotype That Includes Episodic Hyperckemia And Focal Myoedema, George G. Schweitzer, Connie Gan, Robert C. Bucelli, Daniel Wegner, Robert E. Schmidt, Marwan Shinawi, Brian N. Finck, Rita T. Brookheart

Open Access Publications

No abstract provided.

Top 10 Research Priorities In Spatial Lifecourse Epidemiology, Peng Jia, Ross C. Brownson, Et Al.

Open Access Publications

No abstract provided.

Postpartum Body Composition And Breast Milk Hormones, Camille Schneider

All ETDs from UAB

The prevalence of both adult and child obesity continues to rise. Children born to mothers with obesity have a greater risk for future obesity and chronic disease. There is an increasing body of literature suggesting that pregnancy and infancy are critical periods influencing the child’s risk for obesity. However, little is known about whether consumption of breast milk from an obese mother might influence the child’s metabolic programming and growth. The purpose of this dissertation was to examine the association of maternal adiposity with insulin and leptin in breast milk and, in turn, whether breast milk insulin, leptin, and glucose …

Transparent Authentication Utilising Gait Recognition, Hind K Al-Obaidi

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

Securing smartphones has increasingly become inevitable due to their massive popularity and significant storage and access to sensitive information. The gatekeeper of securing the device is authenticating the user. Amongst the many solutions proposed, gait recognition has been suggested to provide a reliable yet non-intrusive authentication approach – enabling both security and usability. While several studies exploring mobile-based gait recognition have taken place, studies have been mainly preliminary, with various methodological restrictions that have limited the number of participants, samples, and type of features; in addition, prior studies have depended on limited datasets, actual controlled experimental environments, and many activities. …

1. The “New Person Contested”: Atheist Humanist Vs. Catholic Worldviews On Transhumanism, Irene J. Dabrowski, Anthony L. Haynor

Praxis Publications

No abstract provided.

Parkinson's Disease And The Gastrointestinal Microbiome, Michal Lubomski, Ai Huey Tan, Shen-Yang Lim, Andrew J. Holmes, Ryan L. Davis, Carolyn M. Sue

Medical Papers and Journal Articles

Recently, there has been a surge in awareness of the gastrointestinal microbiome (GM) and its role in health and disease. Of particular note is an association between the GM and Parkinson’s disease (PD) and the realisation that the GM can act via a complex bidirectional communication between the gut and the brain. Compelling evidence suggests that a shift in GM composition may play an important role in the pathogenesis of PD by facilitating the characteristic ascending neurodegenerative spread of α-synuclein aggregates from the enteric nervous system to the brain. Here, we review evidence linking GM changes with PD, highlighting mechanisms …

When Empathy Only Goes So Far: Development Of A Trait Parochial Empathy Scale, Anna Maria C. Behler

Theses and Dissertations

Empathy, the ability to feel and/or understand another’s emotional state, plays a significant role in interpersonal interactions, mitigating hostility and enhancing affiliation and helping. However, empathy also biases interpersonal reactions. For example, at the group level empathy can become amplified towards members of their ingroup and blunted towards individuals in outgroups, a term called parochial empathy. Currently, no validated measures of parochial empathy at the dispositional level exist, and development of such a scale would be important to understanding the role of group-based emotions in prejudice and discrimination against outgroups. I conducted five studies to develop and validate a …

Infographic: Stem And Medical Careers Related To Sports, Melanie Canfield, Leroy Long Iii

Publications

This infographic includes science, technology, engineering, math and medical (STEMM) careers related to sports. The targeted audience for the infographic is college counselors, professors, coaches and student-athletes who pursue STEMM degrees while playing a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) sport. The infographic may also be useful to K-12 students, parents, teachers and coaches. A job description, average salary, and undergraduate major are listed for a variety of careers such as data scientist, video game designer, sports engineer, sports economist, physical therapist, and mental health clinician.

Pressure Versus Impulse Graph For Blast-Induced Traumatic Brain Injury And Correlation To Observable Blast Injuries, Barbara Rutter

Doctoral Dissertations

"With the increased use of explosive devices in combat, blast induced traumatic brain injury (bTBI) has become one of the signature wounds in current conflicts. Animal studies have been conducted to understand the mechanisms in the brain and a pressure versus time graph has been produced. However, the role of impulse in bTBIs has not been thoroughly investigated for animals or human beings.

This research proposes a new method of presenting bTBI data by using a pressure versus impulse (P-I) graph. P-I graphs have been found useful in presenting lung lethality regions and building damage thresholds. To present the animal …

Graduate Survey, 2018-2019, Hart Career Center, Illinois Wesleyan University

First Destination Survey

No abstract provided.

Bulletin Of Yale University School Of Nursing 2019-2020, Yale School Of Nursing

Yale School of Nursing Bulletins and Catalogues

Series 115, Number 15

September 5, 2019