Digital Commons Network^™

The Game Of Life: How Playing Gamified Interactive Narratives Affects Career Planning In Cambodia, Lauren B. Frank, Paul Sparks, Sheila T. Murphy, Lizzie Goodfriend, Paul Falzone

Communication Faculty Publications and Presentations

To improve economic opportunity in Cambodia, we used social cognitive theory to develop gamified, interactive narratives using mobile phones. Participants guided their chosen character toward their “dream job” goal while encountering a series of barriers along the way. Participants (N = 1,625) were randomly assigned to one of four message frequency experimental conditions: a no-play control condition or playing the interactive narrative one, two, or five times. Compared with not playing the interactive narrative (control), those who played showed higher perceived self-efficacy, response efficacy, and behavioral intentions. Playing more times was associated with less attentional focus and enjoyment, but greater …

From Crafting Cardboard To Creating A Company, Shea Stewart

University of Mississippi News

CME student, Ole Miss business major starts company creating 'man cave must-have'

Fod-A: A Dataset For Foreign Object Debris In Airports, Travis Munyer, Pei-Chi Huang, Chenyu Huang, Xin Zhong

Aviation Institute Faculty Proceedings & Presentations

Foreign Object Debris (FOD) detection has attracted increased attention in the area of machine learning and computer vision. However, a robust and publicly available image dataset for FOD has not been initialized. To this end, this paper introduces an image dataset of FOD, named FOD in Airports (FOD-A). FOD-A object categories have been selected based on guidance from prior documentation and related research by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). In addition to the primary annotations of bounding boxes for object detection, FOD-A provides labeled environmental conditions. As such, each annotation instance is further categorized into three light level categories (bright, …

Commonthought (2021), Commonthought Staff

Commonthought

This issue features works created by Lesley University students and covers a broad range of topics. The work itself crosses many disciplines from creative writing to visual arts.

Autonomous Guidance Of Unmanned Combat Air Vehicles In Basic Fighter Maneuvering, Jeffery G. Dean

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Basic fighter maneuvering, or BFM, is the dynamic engagement of two or more aircraft in close-range air combat. The relatively recent introduction of advanced unmanned combat air vehicles (UCAVs) has opened the possibility for automated systems to be players in this arena of air-to-air combat, which has thus far been limited to manned aircraft. In order to design an unmanned system that could fight and win a BFM engagement, the system must include an advanced system for guidance. This dissertation leverages techniques from gain scheduling and incorporates adjustable aimpoint guidance, in order to address the capability for UCAVs to execute …

The Influence Of Youth And Parent Reports Of Parental Knowledge And Monitoring And Reporting Discrepancy On High Risk Youth Offending, Leana A. Bouffard, Gaylene Armstrong

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Introduction

Positive parenting practices are known to be related to lower levels of youth offending. Questions remain as to the overlap between youth and parent perceptions of parenting practices, and the relationship of perception discrepancies with youth offending. This study examines the concordance of parenting behaviors reports, the relationship between parent and youth perceptions of parenting measures with youth offending, and whether discordant youth and parent reports are related to heterogeneity in youth offending.

Methods

Survey data from 818 high risk U.S. youth averaging 16 years old who participated in the Pathways to Desistance study and his or her parent …

Entrepreneurship In Nebraska, Josie Gatti Schafer, Morgan Vogel, Nebraska Business Development Center, Tara Grell, Center For Public Affairs Research (Cpar), University Of Nebraska At Omaha

Past Publications

The Nebraska Business Development Center partnered with the Center for Public Affairs Research at the University of Nebraska at Omaha to advance knowledge on entrepreneurship in the State of Nebraska. This study identifies the context, setting, players and behaviors of the entrepreneurship ecosystem. It also provides evidence of the challenges they experience and develops a series of “calls to action” to increase the pace of entrepreneurship development in Nebraska.

In 2019, the Blueprint Nebraska report defined the Nebraska economy as having “low levels of entrepreneurship… and innovation”. The report explains, “To remain a vibrant place for business, the state must …

Cigarette Smoking After Aerobic Exercise: The Unfavorable Impacts On Vascular Function, Elizabeth J. Pekas, Song-Young Park

Health and Kinesiology Faculty Publications

It is well-accepted that vascular dysfunction plays a key role in the pathophysiology of cardiovascular diseases. Although vascular dysfunction is multi-faceted, exercise is a commonly recommended prophylactic strategy to preserve vascular function. We and others have shown that exercise training can elicit beneficial effects on vascular function (e.g., blood pressure and conduit artery function) in healthy and clinical populations^1-4. In fact, indices of vascular function are enhanced shortly after acute exercise^5,6, suggesting that the postexercise recovery period may be a crucial component for facilitating long-term vascular adaptations⁷. Poor habits may be …

Bargaining For Integration, Shirley Lin

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires employers to restructure exclusionary environments upon the request of their employees with disabilities so that they may continue working. Under a virtually unexamined aspect of the mandate, however, the parties must negotiate in good faith over every accommodation request. This “interactive process,” while decentralized and potentially universal, occurs on a private, individualized basis.

Although the very existence of the mandate has been heavily debated, the scholarship has yet to acknowledge that the ADA is actually ambivalent to individuals’ relative power to effect organizational change through bargaining. This Article is the first to critique …

Artificial Intelligence And Neurology - Opportunities And Challenges In Pakistan, Adeel A. Memon, Junaid S. Kalia

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

The field of artificial intelligence (AI) has undergone rapid development in neurological disorders over the past few decades. AI relies on large volumes of high-quality data. As a result, their use in low-resource settings has been limited due to the lack of a digitized health care system. This article will address the challenges and opportunities involved in implementing AI for neurological care in Pakistan, as well as discuss the types of digital health care data and the benefits of applying AI in resource-limited countries

The Constellation Of Centronuclear Myopathy And Craniofacial Dysmorphism, Mahnoor Hafeez

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

ABSTRACT:

A 20 years old third-year MBBS female student from Dow Medical College in 2008 presented to the Neurology Dept. in Karachi with a short history of rapidly worsening bilateral lower limb weakness for 6 months. There was facial dysmorphism. Motor neuron disease was the suspicion; EMG/NCS study revealed non inflammatory myopathic process involving all limb muscles; Centro nuclear myopathy (CNM) was diagnosed via muscle biopsy. CNM is a group of congenital myopathies, where cell nuclei are abnormally located in skeletal muscle cells. Craniofacial dysmorphism is characterized by abnormal development of facial and skull structures. To the best of the …

Pseudo-Torch- A Rare Mutation Causing Global Development Delay, Microcephaly And Extensive Band Like Brain Calcification, Javeria Raza Alvi, Saher Gul Ahdi, Mahrukh Sultan, Tipu Sultan

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

Pseudo-TORCH 1 syndrome is an inherited autosomal recessive disorder that clinically and radiologically mimic congenital TORCH infection. We report a case of three and half years old child who presented with early infantile seizures, progressive microcephaly, facial dysmorphism and global developmental delay. There were symmetrical band like intra-parenchymal calcification as well as in pons and thalami. Serological testing for infectious agents was negative. His Whole exome sequencing revealed OCLN gene mutation consistent with Pseudo-TORCH syndrome-1.

A Rare Case Of Epilepsia Partialis Continua Secondary To Rasmussen’S Encephalitis, Waleed Shahzad, Muhammad Hassan, Haris Majid Rajput, Tehmina Inayat, Naveed Ullah Khan, Mazhar Badshah

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

Rasmussen's encephalitis is a rare baffling disorder seen in nearly 1 % to 2 % of epilepsy population and in 7.4% of paediatric population. It is mostly seen in children and in most cases seizures are seen during 14 months to 14 years with peak age 3 to 6 years. Etiology includes viral infections, humoral autoimmunity and T-cell mediated cyto-toxicity of the brain tissue. The main clinical features are intractable epilepsy, hemiparesis, hemidystonia, hemiathetosis, epilepsia-partialis-continua and mental decline. Imaging shows unilateral hemispheric brain atrophy. Here we describe a unique case of a 15-year-old Pakistani girl with severe immune mediated brain …

Guillain–Barré Syndrome In Sars-Cov-2; A Case Report, Naveed Ullah Khan, Muhammad Hassan, Haris Majid Rajput, Waleed Shahzad, Hafsa Mobeen, Mazhar Badshah

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

Multiple systems have been affected by COVID-19 infection, and neurological symptoms are not uncommon. A 45-year-old male presented to us in the emergency department without focal neurological deficits. He developed ascending paralysis soon after his admission, which was followed by worsening respiratory symptoms. The family of the patient refused a lumbar puncture, and his NCS/EMG showed features of acute motor axonal neuropathy (AMAN), a variant of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS). After being admitted on the 4th day, the patient developed type 2 respiratory failure and died on the 5th day of admission before any treatment could be started. Patients with COVID-19 …

Barriers To Dance Education: An Exploration Into The Beliefs Of Dance Educators And Non-Dance Familiars On Dance And Its Place In The Public-School System, Brianna Michelle Miller

Master's Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate differing views on the value of dance and its place within the public-education system. The researcher crafted three research questions to guide her research:

Q1 What barriers or objections exist when it comes to incorporating dance within the public-school setting? Q2 What discrepancies exist between the viewpoints of dance educators and non-dance familiars when it comes to dance and its value within the public education system? Q3 What specific steps can be taken to highlight the importance of dance education in the public-school setting?

Nine dance educators and twelve non-dance familiars completed …

Thoughts On The Nil Era: An Introduction To The Special Issue, Marshall Magnusen

Journal of Applied Sport Management

The goal of this special issue is to inspire scholarship and spark conversation about NIL through a variety of “think pieces” from leading researchers. Sport scholars were invited to combine their expertise with creativity to craft compelling papers about NIL and how it may be interpreted through a variety of disciplinary lenses.

A Fistful Of Nil: Have We Entered A “Wild West” Recruiting Era?, Marshall Magnusen, Samuel Y. Todd

Journal of Applied Sport Management

Changes about the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s (NCAA) Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) policy impacted the world of college sports in the summer of 2021. Emerging from the dust of this seismic event was an apparent new frontier for athletes, coaches, and universities to explore. In the eyes of many, college sports had now entered a “Wild West” frontier because of NIL, especially as it pertains to recruiting athletes. But what does that really mean, “Wild West”? And further, if such a comparison is at least somewhat accurate, are there lessons that can be learned from other sectors who likewise …

Reframing The Collegiate Facilities Arms Race: The Looming Impact Of Nil And Conference Realignment, Jeffrey Petersen, Lawrence W. Judge

Journal of Applied Sport Management

Amidst the backdrop of an ongoing global pandemic, the summer of 2021 brought forth two events teetering the Division I college sport landscape at the precipice of unprecedented change due to two fundamental shifts: the first being the opening of revenue streams to collegiate athletes through use of name, image and likeness (NIL), and the second being the latest round of athletic conference realignment. With the impacts of these changes just beginning to be manifested, it is important to consider how these potentially seismic shifts in the collegiate landscape may influence existing issues of prior scholarly examination as well as …

Investigation And Discovery Of Novel Transition Metal Cysteamine Systems With Halogens From The First Principles Calculations, Noura Dawas Alkhaldi

Physics Dissertations - Archive

Cu-cysteamine (Cu-Cy) is a material that has the cysteamine bonded with Cu. It is a molecular photosensitizer which can be activated by visible, ultraviolet light, and X-rays to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS). Cu-Cy has been used in various applications such as solid-state lighting, radiation detection, and as treatment of both shallow and deep cancers. Hence, it is important to study the stability, electronic and optical properties of Cu-Cy as well as finding other possible cysteamine systems. The first principle theoretical investigations of novel transition metal cysteamine systems with halogens are performed by density functional theory. In the first part …

Orbital Evolution Studies And Radio Searches Of Extra-Solar Moons, Marialis Rosario-Franco

Physics Dissertations - Archive

Exoplanetary research has undergone a great deal of development and growth. Achievements in theoretical studies and detection techniques have led to the discovery of 4,000+ exoplanets in ~3, 000 planetary systems to date. Despite this great success, and though candidates have been proposed, the confirmation of the first exomoon is yet to be accomplished. Understanding the constraints under which extrasolar moons form around exoplanets can provide insight into the overall formation of the system, the host planet’s habitability, and could even aid the process of drawing out the best observational candidates for exomoon searches. This work entails the use of …

Barriers To Resource Access: The Need For Social Workers As Cultural Brokers In Hispanic Immigrant Communities, Leslie Noemy Reyna

Social Work Theses - Archive

Although the U.S. has more immigrants than any other country in the world (Budiman, 2020), there exists inequality in resource access among U.S. born and immigrants. The inequality has been created and maintained by the development of barriers such as idealization assimilation, forced acculturation, anti-immigrant sentiment and the limitations developed within immigrant serving organizations. Immigrants have tried to overcome these barriers through brokering by brokering through assimilation, brokering through their children and brokering through community health workers known as promotoras. Although the possibility of brokering exists, the question remains: how can immigrants achieve access to resources in a society designed …

Transgenerational Effect Of Predator Cues On Life History Traits And Phenotypes Of Daphnia, Huu Trung Tran

McNair Scholars Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Modeling Ingestive Behavior On Free-Grazing Through Acoustics And Its Relationship To Ph In The Reticulum, Johnathan Alexander Andres

McNair Scholars Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Staging Tau Pathology With Tau Pet In Alzheimer’S Disease: A Longitudinal Study, Shi Dong Chen, Jia Ying Lu, Hong Qi Li, Yu Xiang Yang, Jie Hui Jiang, Mei Cui, Chuan Tao Zuo, Lan Tan, Qiang Dong, Jin Tai Yu, Michael W. Weiner, Paul Aisen, Ronald Petersen, Clifford R. Jack, William Jagust, John Q. Trojanowki, Arthur W. Toga, Laurel Beckett, Robert C. Green, Andrew J. Saykin, John C. Morris, Richard J. Perrin, Leslie M. Shaw, Maria Carrillo, William Potter, Lisa Barnes, Marie Bernard, Hector González, Carole Ho, John K. Hsiao, Jonathan Jackson, Eliezer Masliah, Donna Masterman, Ozioma Okonkwo

Clinical Research Faculty Publications

A biological research framework to define Alzheimer’ disease with dichotomized biomarker measurement was proposed by National Institute on Aging–Alzheimer’s Association (NIA–AA). However, it cannot characterize the hierarchy spreading pattern of tau pathology. To reflect in vivo tau progression using biomarker, we constructed a refined topographic 18F-AV-1451 tau PET staging scheme with longitudinal clinical validation. Seven hundred and thirty-four participants with baseline 18F-AV-1451 tau PET (baseline age 73.9 ± 7.7 years, 375 female) were stratified into five stages by a topographic PET staging scheme. Cognitive trajectories and clinical progression were compared across stages with or without further dichotomy of amyloid status, …

Meal Composition During An Ad Libitum Buffet Meal And Longitudinal Predictions Of Weight And Percent Body Fat Change: The Role Of Hyper-Palatable, Energy Dense, And Ultra-Processed Foods, Tera L. Fazzino, James L. Dorling, John W. Apolzan, Corby K. Martin

Clinical Research Faculty Publications

Background: Foods that increase obesity risk are ubiquitous in the US food environment. Such foods may be the target of hedonic eating, which may facilitate weight gain and lead to obesity. The study tested whether meal composition during an ad libitum buffet meal was associated with 1-year weight and percent body fat changes among healthy younger adults without obesity. Hyper-palatable foods (HPF) were the study focus; comparisons were conducted with high energy dense (HED) and ultra-processed foods (UPF). Design: Younger adults without obesity (N = 82; 43% male; mean age 26.8) completed an ad libitum buffet meal and provided body …

Weight Loss In Primary Care: A Pooled Analysis Of Two Pragmatic Cluster-Randomized Trials, Peter T. Katzmarzyk, John W. Apolzan, Byron Gajewski, William D. Johnson, Corby K. Martin, Robert L. Newton, Michael G. Perri, Jeffrey J. Vanwormer, Christie A. Befort

Clinical Research Faculty Publications

Objective: The aim of this study was to report the results of five weight-loss interventions in primary care settings in underserved patients and to compare the level of pragmatism across the interventions using the Pragmatic Explanatory Continuum Indicator Summary (PRECIS-2) tool. Methods: Data from 54 primary care clinics (2,210 patients) were pooled from the Promoting Successful Weight Loss in Primary Care in Louisiana (PROPEL) and Rural Engagement in Primary Care for Optimizing Weight Reduction (REPOWER) cluster-randomized trials. Clinics were randomized to one of five comparators: PROPEL usual care, PROPEL combination of in-clinic and telephone visits, REPOWER in-clinic individual visits, REPOWER …

Proliferation Of Chondrodonta As A Proxy Of Environmental Instability At The Onset Of Oae1a: Insights From Shallow-Water Limestones Of The Apulia Carbonate Platform, G. Del Viscio, G. Frijia, R. Posenato, P. Singh, Daniel J. Lehrmann, J. L. Payne, K. Al-Ramadan, U. Struck, K. P. Jochum, M. Morsilli

Earth and Environmental Geosciences Faculty Research

Chondrodonta is an opportunistic, oyster-like bivalve, common in shallow-water carbonates of the Cretaceous Tethyan Realm. Despite its high abundance and widespread geographic distribution, the precise relationship between the early Aptian proliferation and environmental perturbations resulting from the Oceanic Anoxic Event 1a (OAE1a), has not been investigated. Stratigraphic and geochemical analyses of the lower Aptian Chondrodonta bedsets within the inner platform limestones of the Apulia Carbonate Platform (Gargano Promontory, southern Italy) are conducted to assess the environmental controls on the Chondrodonta proliferation and its timing and causal relationship to OAE1a. Chondrodonta occurs with sparse to common individuals within requieniid rudist floatstone–rudstones, …

Automated Design And Manufacturing Of Lowpass Filters, Evan W. Johnson

Master's Theses

Modern communications, radar, and other high frequency systems all include filters in their designs. Designers frequently benefit from custom filters with cutoff frequencies or other specifications not readily available in off-the-shelf products. Obtaining a custom filter from a filter manufacturer is typically expensive and time consuming. Each new design requires new engineering and tuning to obtain the desired performance.

This thesis proposes an industry-first automatic design and manufacturing process for stepped impedance low pass filters that eliminates the costly engineering and tuning used by legacy filter manufacturers, enabling low-cost, rapid turn around of custom filter designs. We develop custom modeling …

Abdominal Computed Tomography Imaging Findings In Hospitalized Covid-19 Patients: A Year-Long Experience And Associations Revealed By Explainable Artificial Intelligence., Alice Scarabelli, Massimo Zilocchi, Elena Casiraghi, Pierangelo Fasani, Guido Giovanni Plensich, Andrea Alessandro Esposito, Elvira Stellato, Alessandro Petrini, Justin Reese, Peter N Robinson, Giorgio Valentini, Gianpaolo Carrafiello

Faculty Research 2021

The aim of this retrospective study is to assess any association between abdominal CT findings and the radiological stage of COVID-19 pneumonia, pulmonary embolism and patient outcomes. We included 158 adult hospitalized COVID-19 patients between 1 March 2020 and 1 March 2021 who underwent 206 abdominal CTs. Two radiologists reviewed all CT images. Pathological findings were classified as acute or not. A subset of patients with inflammatory pathology in ACE2 organs (bowel, biliary tract, pancreas, urinary system) was identified. The radiological stage of COVID pneumonia, pulmonary embolism, overall days of hospitalization, ICU admission and outcome were registered. Univariate statistical analysis …

Integrating Degradation Forecasting And Abatement Framework Into Advanced Distribution Management System, Huu Phuong Hoang

All Dissertations

Future distribution grids are expected to face an increasing penetration of heterogeneous distributed energy resources (DERs) and electric vehicles (EVs). This landscape change will pose challenges to the control and management of distribution grids because of the variability of renewable energy resources and EV charging. In addition, multiple DERs dispersed over networks can also challenge the grid operation and maintenance as various DERs at various locations are needed to be monitored and managed. However, customers will not be content with reductions in power quality, reliability, economy, safety, or security. To enhance the effectiveness of grid control and management, future grids …