Digital Commons Network^™

Development Of Novel Peroxidase-Tio2/Zno Hybrid Catalysts For The Degradation Of Emerging Pollutants, Rana Fawzi Mohamed

Theses

Water pollution by different organic compounds is one of the most important environmental issues that is attracting the attention of many scientists due to its direct potential bad effect on human health. These organic pollutants include pesticides, pharmaceuticals, industrial wastes, and personal care products that are released in water bodies from domestic and industrial discharge. Various chemical, physical and biological approaches have been proposed to degrade these contaminants from the polluted water. In the present study, we immobilized versatile thermostable enzymes, Soybean peroxidase (SBP) and Horseradish peroxidase on functionalized photocatalysts—TiO₂ and ZnO to create novel bio-composite catalysts (SBP-TiO₂, SBP-ZnO, HRP-TiO₂, …

Characterizing And Predicting Repeat Food Consumption Behavior For Just-In-Time Interventions, Yue Liu, Helena Huey Chong Lee, Palakorn Achananuparp, Ee-Peng Lim, Tzu-Ling Cheng, Shou-De Lin

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Human beings are creatures of habit. In their daily life, people tend to repeatedly consume similar types of food items over several days and occasionally switch to consuming different types of items when the consumptions become overly monotonous. However, the novel and repeat consumption behaviors have not been studied in food recommendation research. More importantly, the ability to predict daily eating habits of individuals is crucial to improve the effectiveness of food recommender systems in facilitating healthy lifestyle change. In this study, we analyze the patterns of repeat food consumptions using large-scale consumption data from a popular online fitness community …

Data Security Issues In Deep Learning: Attacks, Countermeasures, And Opportunities, Guowen Xu, Hongwei Li, Hao Ren, Kan Yang, Robert H. Deng

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Benefiting from the advancement of algorithms in massive data and powerful computing resources, deep learning has been explored in a wide variety of fields and produced unparalleled performance results. It plays a vital role in daily applications and is also subtly changing the rules, habits, and behaviors of society. However, inevitably, data-based learning strategies are bound to cause potential security and privacy threats, and arouse public as well as government concerns about its promotion to the real world. In this article, we mainly focus on data security issues in deep learning. We first investigate the potential threats of deep learning …

Targeting Parp-1 With Metronomic Therapy As A New Approach To Modulate Mdsc Function And Enhance Anti-Pd1 Immunotherapy In Colon Cancer, Salome Valentina Ibba, Mohamed Ghonim, Abdelmetalab Tarhuni, Matthew Dean, Hamid Boulares, Augusto Ochoa, Youssef Errami, Ali Elbahraway, Ilyes Benslimane, Dorota Wyczechowska, Luis Del Valle, Amir Al-Khami, Hanh Luu

School of Medicine Faculty Publications

34th Annual Meeting and Pre-Conference Programs of the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer - Part 1, November 6 - 10, 2019, National Harbor, MD

Explaining Illness With Evil: Pathogen Prevalence Fosters Moral Vitalism, Bastian Brock, Christin-Melanie Vauclair, Steve Loughnan, Paul Bain, Ashwini Ashokkumar, Maja Becker, Michal Bilewicz, Emma Collier-Baker, Carla Crespo, Paul W. Eastwick, Ronald Fischer, Jennifer Tong, Jennifer Tong

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Pathogens represent a significant threat to human health leading to the emergence of strategies designed to help manage their negative impact. We examined how spiritual beliefs developed to explain and predict the devastating effects of pathogens and spread of infectious disease. Analysis of existing data in studies 1 and 2 suggests that moral vitalism (beliefs about spiritual forces of evil) is higher in geographical regions characterized by historical higher levels of pathogens. Furthermore, drawing on a sample of 3140 participants from 28 countries in study 3, we found that historical higher levels of pathogens were associated with stronger endorsement of …

Screening And Treating Hyperlipidemia In Patients On Tofacitinib, Tocilizumab, Sarilumab, And Baricitinib, William Torelli Do, Thomas A. Quinn Do, Kourtney Erickson Do, Andrea M. Soliman Do, Attiya Harit Ms, James Ross Md, Facp

Department of Medicine

No abstract provided.

Embryonic Development Of A Parthenogenetic Vertebrate, The Mourning Gecko (Lepidodactylus Lugubris), Aaron H. Griffing, Thomas J. Sanger, Juan D. Daza, Stuart V. Nielsen, Brendan J. Pinto, Edward L. Stanley, Tony Gamble

Biological Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

Background

One goal of evolutionary developmental biology is to understand the role of development in the origin of phenotypic novelty and convergent evolution. Geckos are an ideal system to study this topic, as they are species‐rich and exhibit a suite of diverse morphologies—many of which have independently evolved multiple times within geckos.

Results

We characterized and discretized the embryonic development of Lepidodactylus lugubris—an all‐female, parthenogenetic gecko species. We also used soft‐tissue μCT to characterize the development of the brain and central nervous system, which is difficult to visualize using traditional microscopy techniques. Additionally, we sequenced and assembled a de …

Robot, Inc.: Personhood For Autonomous Systems?, Gerhard Wagner

Fordham Law Review

Since the invention of the steam engine, technological progress has served as a driver of innovation for liability systems. Pertinent examples include the arrival of the railway and the introduction of motor-powered vehicles. Today, the digital revolution challenges established legal axioms more fundamentally than technological innovations from earlier times. The development of robots and other digital agents operating with the help of artificial intelligence will transform many, if not all, product markets. It will also blur the distinction between goods and services and call into question the existing allocation of responsibility between manufacturers and suppliers on one side and owners, …

The Impact Of Biotic Characteristics Of Uae Coastal Area On Movements Of Socotra Cormorant, Nouf Sameer Abdullah Saeed Al Qadi

Theses

Monitoring Socotra Cormorant population and conducting research on their breeding biology and feeding habits are considered the top priorities for ensuring the long-term protection of their breeding colonies and feeding grounds. The research was conducted by using ArcMap Software (10.5) to map Socotra cormorant migratory movements in the Arabian Gulf Region during the 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 breeding seasons.; and to determine environmental variables that affect migratory movements using a GIS approach, which helps to identify areas of conservation value. The study provided needed information on the current distribution of Socotra Cormorant along with the distribution of marine ecosystems (mangroves and …

Evaluation Of Phytochemical Composition And Anti-Cancer Potential In Root Extracts Of Moringa Peregrina (Forssk.) Fiori, Salama Khamis Sultan Saeed Al Kaabi

Theses

Natural products provide many bioactive lead molecules for the discovery of new medicines. Naturally, derived phytochemicals have exhibited tremendous biological activities including anticancer activity. More than 60% of antitumor medicines are closely associated with natural products. In the present study, hexane, chloroform, acetone and, methanol extracts from roots of Moringa peregrina were screened for phytochemical analysis and anticancer activity. Phytochemical analysis was performed by Gas Chromatography and Mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The anticancer potential of the extracts was done on the human breast cancer cell line (MCF-7) and cell viability was measured using WST-1 Cell Proliferation Assay Kit. The cell line …

Professional Competency Development Utilizing Emotional Intelligence In Medical Programs, Christopher Carlin

All Theses And Dissertations

The purpose of this mixed methods study was to examine the perceptions of physician assistant faculty about emotional intelligence. The study sought to determine PA educators’ familiarity with EI as a construct and to elicit perceived barriers in implementing EI within PA educational programs. The data were collected from a both a focus group of physician assistant faculty was convened from a university in New England and an online cross-sectional survey of randomized physician assistant faculty throughout the United States. The quantitative portion of the research investigated the perceptions faculty held about emotional intelligence. Additionally, the survey asked participants to …

Academic Librarians’ Motivation Toward Professional Development In The United Arab Emirates Federal Higher Education Institutions, Asma Othman Alkatheeri

Foundations of Education Theses

This thesis is investigating the status of professional development (PD) for academic librarians in the United Arab Emirates. The first objectives of the thesis is to investigate the current Professional Development in terms of activities, organization and effectiveness of the programs for academic librarians in Federal Higher Education Institutions in the United Arab Emirates, from the point of view of the librarians. The second objective is to explore the extent to which academic librarians are motivated toward Professional Development in the United Arab Emirates Federal Higher Education Institutions. Qualitative research method has been utilized and data are collected via interviews …

Design And Modeling Of A New Biomimetic Soft Robotic Jellyfish Using Ipmc-Based Electroactive Polymers, Zakai J. Olsen, Kwang J. Kim

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Research

Smart materials and soft robotics have been seen to be particularly well-suited for developing biomimetic devices and are active fields of research. In this study, the design and modeling of a new biomimetic soft robot is described. Initial work was made in the modeling of a biomimetic robot based on the locomotion and kinematics of jellyfish. Modifications were made to the governing equations for jellyfish locomotion that accounted for geometric differences between biology and the robotic design. In particular, the capability of the model to account for the mass and geometry of the robot design has been added for better …

Long-Term Study On The Population Ecology Of Urban Queen Snakes (Regina Septemvittata) In Central Virginia, Rachel Beiler

Senior Honors Theses

As parts of the world are becoming more urbanized, species living in urban habitat fragments are more at risk of extirpation. We conducted, in an urban environment, a 12-year (2008-2019) mark/recapture study on a Queen snake (Regina septemvittata) population in Rock Castle Creek, Lynchburg, VA to determine population viability. Ninety-nine individual Queen snakes were marked to determine stable population estimates (range 3 - 43 snakes) and an annual survival rate of 52%. Our research found that despite the challenges of urban living, this population is stable and similar to rural Queen snake population studies. Certain life-history traits are …

The Power Of Wording: An Evaluation Of Framing Effects, Chelsea Romph

Honors Capstones

No abstract provided.

Fostering Whole Person Development Through High School Football: A Case Study, Joshua Daniel Cassidy

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this study was to describe how Coach Clark (pseudonym) addressed the development of the whole person during adolescence through high school football at County High School (pseudonym). Whole person development (WPD) during adolescence was generally defined as human development that was meant to involve all the parts (i.e., cognitive, social, spiritual, emotional, and physical) of a person. This study answered the following central research question: How does Coach Clark address the development of the whole person during adolescence through high school football at County High School? The results of this study showed that Coach Clark addressed the …

Attorneys' Experiences With Continuing Legal Education Delivered Online: A Holistic Single Case Study, Kimberly Ann Thomas

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative holistic single case study was to describe how practicing attorneys in North Carolina experience continuing legal education (CLE) courses delivered online. The theories guiding the study are Knowles’ adult learning theory and Siemens’ connectivist theory, as they address how adults learn and how the use of technology connects learning. The central research question is as follows: How do practicing attorneys in North Carolina experience online CLE courses? This question leads to three sub-questions: What meaning do practicing attorneys ascribe to CLE? What benefits and concerns do attorneys identify with CLE delivered online? How do attorneys …

Comparing Perceived College Persistence Between Students Taking Online Or Residential Dual Enrollment In High School, Dustin Joseph Miller

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Dual enrollment and online education are two factors of education that have become prevalent over the past decade. This rapid growth has resulted in higher attendance rates, but also higher dropout rates. It is the students’ persistence to graduation that demands the attention of all stakeholders. There is an abundance of research showing the value of dual enrollment leading to student success at the collegiate level, but the purpose of this study is to differentiate between online and residential dual enrollment. This study used a causal comparative design to compare the two group means of first-year residential college students taking …

Hyperpolarized Relaxometry Based Nuclear T1 Noise Spectroscopy In Diamond, A. Ajoy, B. Safvati, R. Nazaryan, J. T. Oon, B. Han, P. Raghavan, R. Nirodi, A. Aguilar, K. Liu, X. Cai, X. Lv, E. Druga, C. Ramanathan, J. A. Reimer, C. A. Meriles, D. Suter, A. Pines

Publications and Research

The origins of spin lifetimes in quantum systems is a matter of importance in several areas of quantum information. Spectrally mapping spin relaxation processes provides insight into their origin and motivates methods to mitigate them. In this paper, we map nuclear relaxation in a prototypical system of ¹³C nuclei in diamond coupled to Nitrogen Vacancy (NV) centers over a wide field range (1 mT-7 T). Nuclear hyperpolarization through optically pumped NV electrons allows signal measurement savings exceeding million-fold over conventional methods. Through a systematic study with varying substitutional electron (P1 center) and ¹³C concentrations, we identify the operational …

Dance Rhythm, Aili W. Bresnahan

Books and Book Chapters by University of Dayton Faculty

This chapter proposes a theory of dance rhythm as distinct from rhythm in dance. First, it distinguishes natural and intentional rhythm, constructed from combining theories by Dewey and Margolis. It then defends this account by exploring musical and non-musical connections between rhythm and dance. It argues that dance rhythm can arise in conjunction with music, or that it can – though need not – follow music, or that it can set the musical rhythm, or be completely independent of music, though natural or internal bodily rhythms can underpin both. Finally, it asserts the existence of dance that might be naturally …

Understanding Nitrogen Limitation In Soybean, Nicolas Cafaro La Menza

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Meeting soybean demand on existing cropland area for a global population of 9.7 billion people by the year 2050 requires narrowing the existing gap between average producer yield and yield potential. Soybean relies on two sources on nitrogen (N): biological N₂ fixation and indigenous soil N supply. As soybean yield continues to increase, it seems critical to know if there is a yield level at which potential contribution of indigenous nitrogen sources and fixation becomes insufficient to meet crop N requirements for high yields, while still maintaining or increasing protein and oil concentration. This study evaluated N limitation across …

Framing Trans Rights, Marie-Amélie George

Northwestern University Law Review

In the wake of marriage equality, opponents of LGBT rights refocused their attention, making transgender rights their main target. To persuade voters to maintain gender identity antidiscrimination protections, LGBT rights campaigns presented trans identity in a specific, but limited, way. These campaigns emphasized gender-conforming transgender individuals—those who adhere to male and female stereotypes—and thereby implicitly reinforced the gender binary. Although LGBT advocates have largely succeeded in their efforts to preserve LGBT rights, their messaging may undermine the movement’s broader litigation strategy and subject nonbinary members of the transgender community to greater discrimination and persecution.

The trans rights framing choices thus …

Recent Updates In The Management Of Merkel Cell Carcinoma, Ahmed Nadeem Abbasi, Syed Mustajab Ahmed, Bilal Mazhar Qureshi

Department of Radiation Oncology

Merkel cell carcinoma is an aggressive non-melanomatous cutaneous tumour of neuroendocrine origin with an increasing incidence in the recent years. It is a tumour of the elderly and immunosuppressed, which most often appears on sun-exposed areas of the body. The clinical features of the cutaneous or subcutaneous lesions hardly contribute to the diagnosis, and, hence, histopathology and immunohistochemistry play a vital role in diagnosis. The latest staging system by the American Joint Committee on Cancer includes non-nodal invasion to adjacent structures i.e. bone, muscle, fascia, or cartilage into the criteria, in additionto size and depth of invasion. The management reliesheavily …

Remote Sensing Of The Terrestrial Carbon Cycle: A Review Of Advances Over 50 Years, Jingfeng Xiao, Frederic Chevallier, Cecile Gomez, Luis Guanter, Jeffrey A. Hicke, Alfredo R. Huete, Kazuhito Ichii, Wenjian Ni, Yong Pang, Abdullah Rahman

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

Highlights

• We review 50 years of history and advances in remote sensing of C fluxes and stocks

• We present an overview of terrestrial C cycle, remote sensing, and key milestones

• We review remote sensing platforms/sensors, data, methods, findings, and challenges

• We also discuss the uncertainty and validation of the C flux and stock estimates

• A forward-looking perspective and insights for future research are provided

Abstract

Quantifying ecosystem carbon fluxes and stocks is essential for better understanding the global carbon cycle and improving projections of the carbon-climate feedbacks. Remote sensing has played a vital role in this endeavor during the last …

Development And Characterisation Of High Surface Energy Microstructured Sol-Gel Coatings For Sensing Applications, Emma Machugh

Doctoral

This study investigates the development of high surface energy photoreactive organic inorganic hybrid sol-gel coatings for the microstructuration of high-resolution microfluidic platforms and optofluidic biosensor platforms by standard photolithography processes. To achieve this, the first step of our work consisted of identifying the fundamental physico chemical processes governing the structuration and surface properties of hybrid organic inorganic sol-gel coatings. For this purpose, a reference material based on the combination of an organosilane (3-Methacryloxypropytrimethoxysilane, MAPTMS) and a transition metal (zirconium propoxide, ZPO), was firstly developed and characterised. It was highlighted that chemical, physical and combined physical and chemical processes can be …

Musical Aesthetics Of The Natural World: Two Modern Compositional Approaches, Eli Stine, Christopher Luna-Mega

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Throughout recorded human history, experiences and observations of the natural world have inspired the arts. Within the sonic arts, evocations of nature permeate a wide variety of acoustic and electronic composition strategies. These strategies artistically investigate diverse attributes of nature: tranquility, turbulence, abundance, scarcity, complexity, and purity, to name but a few. Within the 20th century, new technologies to understand these attributes, including media recording and scientific analysis, were developed. These technologies allow music composition strategies to go beyond mere evocation and to allow for the construction of musical works that engage explicit models of nature (what has been called …

Noda-Like Rna Viruses Infecting Caenorhabditis Nematodes: Sympatry, Diversity, And Reassortment, Lise Frézal, Hyeim Jung, Stephen Tahan, David Wang, Marie-Anne Félix

Open Access Publications

Three RNA viruses related to nodaviruses were previously described to naturally infect the nematode

Maternal Fluoxetine Exposure Alters Cortical Hemodynamic And Calcium Response Of Offspring To Somatosensory Stimuli, Rachel M Rahn, Susan E Maloney, Lindsey M Brier, Joseph D Dougherty, Joseph P Culver

Open Access Publications

Epidemiological studies have found an increased incidence of neurodevelopmental disorders in populations prenatally exposed to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). Optical imaging provides a minimally invasive way to determine if perinatal SSRI exposure has long-term effects on cortical function. Herein we probed the functional neuroimaging effects of perinatal SSRI exposure in a fluoxetine (FLX)-exposed mouse model. While resting-state homotopic contralateral functional connectivity was unperturbed, the evoked cortical response to forepaw stimulation was altered in FLX mice. The stimulated cortex showed decreased activity for FLX versus controls, by both hemodynamic responses [oxyhemoglobin (HbO

Human Monoclonal Antibodies Against Chikungunya Virus Target Multiple Distinct Epitopes In The E1 And E2 Glycoproteins, Jose A. Quiroz, Ryan J. Malonis, Larissa B. Thackray, Courtney A. Cohen, Jesper Pallesen, Rohit K. Jangra, Rebecca S. Brown, Daniel Hofmann, Frederick W. Holtsberg, Sergey Shulenin, Elisabeth K. Nyakatura, Lorellin A. Durnell, Vinayak Rayannavar, Johanna P. Daily, Andrew B. Ward, M. Javad Aman, John M. Dye, Kartik Chandran, Michael S. Diamond, Margaret Kielian, Jonathan R. Lai

Open Access Publications

Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is a mosquito-transmitted alphavirus that causes persistent arthritis in a subset of human patients. We report the isolation and functional characterization of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) from two patients infected with CHIKV in the Dominican Republic. Single B cell sorting yielded a panel of 46 human mAbs of diverse germline lineages that targeted epitopes within the E1 or E2 glycoproteins. MAbs that recognized either E1 or E2 proteins exhibited neutralizing activity. Viral escape mutations localized the binding epitopes for two E1 mAbs to sites within domain I or the linker between domains I and III; and for two …

Dc-Script Deficiency Delays Mouse Mammary Gland Development And Branching Morphogenesis, Chunling Tang, Renske J E Van Den Bijgaart, Maaike W G Looman, Nina Tel-Karthaus, Annemarie M A De Graaf, Susan Gilfillan, Marco Colonna, Marleen Ansems, Gosse J Adema

Open Access Publications

Mammary glands are unique organs in which major adaptive changes occur in morphogenesis and development after birth. Breast cancer is the most common cancer and a major cause of mortality in females worldwide. We have previously identified the loss of expression of the transcription regulator DC-SCRIPT (Zfp366) as a prominent prognostic event in estrogen receptor positive breast cancer patients. DC-SCRIPT affects multiple transcriptional events in breast cancer cells, including estrogen and progesterone receptor-mediated transcription, and promotes CDKN2B-related cell cycle arrest. As loss of DC-SCRIPT expression appears an early event in breast cancer development, we here investigated the role of DC-SCRIPT …