Digital Commons Network^™

Towards A Biophilic Design Methodology In Search For Health-Inducing Built Environment [Revisiting Sagrada Família: As A Case-Study And Design Checklist], Nelly Shafik Ramzy, Almoataz Bellah Gamal-Eldin Abdelazem

Journal of Engineering Research

Special attention had been recently paid to pinpoint the aspects that most affect human satisfaction within the built-environment. Experimental findings demonstrate that compositions that connect people to natural elements and configurations help to increase their sense of wellbeing, with definite and therapeutic consequences on physiology, productivity, and even on stress/pain- reduction. Hence, a set of methodical approaches emerged from diverse domains, initiating a new space of research, i.e. environmental psychology; one of the most tenable theories in this direction is “Biophilia”. This paper accentuates the underpinnings of this theory in the field of architecture, overviewing and comparing the most prominent …

Space Verification, Eisenhower Center For Space And Defense Studies

Space and Defense

The purpose of this study is twofold: first, to determine to what extent multilateral agreements to limit disruptive actions in space and/or establish norms of behavior are verifiable; second, to consider under what circumstances space verification serves U.S. interests.

Cyber Deterrence: Is A Deterrence Model Practical In Cyberspace?, Nathaniel Youd

Space and Defense

Student Contribution:

After reconsidering massive retaliation versus escalation dominance concepts from nuclear deterrence, escalation dominance, investing in capability to respond proportionally at each level of cyber attack, may be the most practical and effective military strategy for strengthening cyber deterrence.

Cyberwar: Clausewitzian Encounters, Marco Cepik, Diego Rafael Canabarro, Thiago Borne Ferreira

Space and Defense

As Clausewitz’s masterpiece suggests, language matters for how states conceptualize and plan for war. ‘Cyberwar’, now on the lips of nearly every national security policymaker, may turn out to be a misnomer.

Strategic Nuclear Weapons For Planetary Defense, James Howe

Space and Defense

The planet Earth is continually under bombardment. Each day, roughly 100 tons of small meteoroids and space debris – some as large as a meter in diameter, but most smaller than a grain of sand – strike the atmosphere. Moving at speeds in excess of 40,000 kilometers per hour, these meteoroids are often seen as bright streaks in the sky as they burn up from atmospheric friction. Fortunately, because they are consumed high in the atmosphere, meteoroids and space dust pose no threat to humans or other life on Earth.

Book Review: Child, Craig M. Keeney

South Carolina Libraries

No abstract provided.

Identification Of Micronuclei In The Lymphocytes Of The Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus According To The Period Of Diagnosis As A Biomarker, Harem Othman Smail

Polytechnic Journal

Micronuclei in lymphocytes can indicate DNA damage or chromosomal instability. This study aimed to compare the Micronuclei to the different period diagnoses of type 2 diabetes mellitus. Four groups were created out of 140 people: type 2 diabetes mellitus 1 year, type 2 diabetes mellitus 1 to 3 years, type 2 diabetes mellitus 3 to 5 years, and control. Each group had 35 participants. The blood sample taken from the individuals was put on a slide, fixed with 5% geimsa solution or Leishman stains, and examined under a microscope. Micronuclei scoring was completed afterwards. Additionally, p ≤ 0.05 was utilized …

Heart Village Gives Students Sustainability And Missions Experience, Taylor University

2023 Website News Stories

No abstract provided.

Medical School Watercooler Newsletter - November 10, 2023, Lindsey Lyle

Watercooler Newsletter

This is the November 10, 2023 edition of the Frederick P. Whiddon College of Medicine's newsletter - Watercooler.

Contents Include:

• Whiddon College of Medicine representatives host sessions at AAMC annual meeting
• Members of the USA SRFC present posters at national conference
• Bauer discusses potential of extracellular vesicles at international lung vascular biology conference
• Whiddon College of Medicine staff recognized for excellence
• Medical students educate Greek chapters about opioids
• Pierce awarded 2023 Mayer Mitchell Award for Excellence in Cancer Research
• Crews receives Marsha Raulerson Advocacy Award
• Miller to present Frazer/Leigh Memorial Lecture

Semantic Representation Of Neural Circuit Knowledge In Caenorhabditis Elegans., Sharan J Prakash, Kimberly M Van Auken, David P. Hill, Paul W Sternberg

Faculty Research 2023

In modern biology, new knowledge is generated quickly, making it challenging for researchers to efficiently acquire and synthesise new information from the large volume of primary publications. To address this problem, computational approaches that generate machine-readable representations of scientific findings in the form of knowledge graphs have been developed. These representations can integrate different types of experimental data from multiple papers and biological knowledge bases in a unifying data model, providing a complementary method to manual review for interacting with published knowledge. The Gene Ontology Consortium (GOC) has created a semantic modelling framework that extends individual functional gene annotations to …

Tilt Current Meter Measurements Near Straits Of Mackinac, Ana Dyreson, John Lenters, Xinyu Ye, Christopber Pinnow

Michigan Tech Research Data

We assess the unique water current velocities around the Straits of Mackinac between Lakes Michigan and Huron using a hydrodynamic model, observations from a buoy, and new measurements taken on the lakebed with tilt current meters.

Relation Between Halogen Bond Strength And Ir And Nmr Spectroscopic Markers, Akhtam Amonov, Steve Scheiner

Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty Publications

The relationship between the strength of a halogen bond (XB) and various IR and NMR spectroscopic quantities is assessed through DFT calculations. Three different Lewis acids place a Br or I atom on a phenyl ring; each is paired with a collection of N and O bases of varying electron donor power. The weakest of the XBs display a C–X bond contraction coupled with a blue shift in the associated frequency, whereas the reverse trends occur for the stronger bonds. The best correlations with the XB interaction energy are observed with the NMR shielding of the C atom directly bonded …

Stem Lunch Series: Student Belonging In Stem, Rebecca Symula, Susan Pedigo, Jessica Osborne

Events

Date: Friday, November 10 Time: 12:00-1:00 pm Location: Johnson Commons East Banquet Room Panelists: Rebecca Symula, instructional associate professor of biology; Susan Pedigo, professor of chemistry and biochemistry; and Jessica Osborne, principal evaluation associate, Center for Research Evaluation The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) awards the University of Mississippi a grant to understand, promote, and evaluate inclusivity in STEM education. In this session, HHMI team members will share and discuss some of their initial research featuring student and faculty perspectives on belonging and inclusivity.

Improving Cervical Cancer Screening Rates In The Primary Care Setting, Esmeralda Young

Student Scholarly Projects

Practice Problem: Cervical cancer screening with Pap is the recommended standard practice for women aged 21 to 65. The project aimed to increase low cervical cancer screening rates at a primary care clinic.

PICOT: The PICOT question that guided this project was: (P) In women 21 to 65 years old in the primary care setting (I), does proactive pre-scheduling of cervical cancer screenings (C) compared to current standard practice (O) affect cervical cancer screening rates (T) over eight weeks?

Evidence: The evidence strongly supported improving cervical cancer screening among the targeted population. Studies showed that Pap smear screening reduced the …

Transport Barriers Influence The Activation Of Anti-Tumor Immunity: A Systems Biology Analysis, Mohammad R. Nikmaneshi, James W. Baish, Hengbo Zhou, Lance L. Munn

Faculty Journal Articles

Effective anti-cancer immune responses require activation of one or more naïve T cells. If the correct naïve T cell encounters its cognate antigen presented by an antigen presenting cell, then the T cell can activate and proliferate. Here, mathematical modeling is used to explore the possibility that immune activation in lymph nodes is a rate-limiting step in anti-cancer immunity and can affect response rates to immune checkpoint therapy. The model provides a mechanistic framework for optimizing cancer immunotherapy and developing testable solutions to unleash anti-tumor immune responses for more patients with cancer. The results show that antigen production rate and …

Environmental And Natural Resources Law Symposium: Assessing The August 2023 Amendments To The Waters Of The United States Rule In The Wake Of Sackett V. Epa, Ryan Day

Maurer Law Events

In 1982, the Army Corps of Engineers adopted the EPA definition of “waters of the United States.” This brought an end to a smoldering interagency conflict over the definitions under the Clean Water Act. This relationship was formalized with a 1989 Memorandum of Agreement between the EPA and the Corps; the Corps has largely ceded definitional decision making to the EPA, which develops guidance and supporting materials, while the Corps is responsible for most case-specific jurisdictional determinations under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. In 2023, the agencies embarked on their latest round of rulemaking. In January, the Biden …

Faculty Feed November 10, 2023, College Of Arts & Sciences

News, Magazines and Reports

Recent student and faculty accomplishments.

Investigating The Impact Of Reticulate Evolution And Paralogy In Phylogenomic Studies Using The Complex Genus Packera (Asteraceae: Senecioneae), Erika Rae Moore-Pollard

Electronic Theses and Dissertations Archive

Underlying discordance in phylogenomic studies is becoming more common, and the answer is not as simple as adding more data. Biological processes such as polyploidy, hybridization, and incomplete lineage sorting are main contributors to these issues and must be considered when generating phylogenies. Otherwise, phylogeny building in complex groups can lead to spurious results, and interpretations could be misleading. The genus Packera belongs to the sunflower family and contains an estimated 64 species and varieties endemic to North America. Packera is complex as most members are known to hybridize or exhibit polyploidy, making it difficult to reconstruct evolutionary relationships within …

Factors Affecting Forage Quality And The Subsequent Response In Production And Energy Metabolism In Lactating Jersey Cows, Kassidy Kate Buse

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

Forage quality is the potential of a forage to produce a production response in animals. Because of how essential they are in dairy cattle rations, forages can have major influence on the behavior and production of dairy cattle. In experiment 1, the effect of forage fragility on the rumen environment and digestibility was evaluated. Increasing the inclusion of a less fragile forage led to greater rumen retention time, which resulted in lower rumen pH and greater NDF digestibility. Experiment 2 evaluated the effects of diets high in either corn silage or alfalfa haylage supplemented with either corn- or soy-based protein …

Efficient Chemical-Free Degradation Of Waterborne Micropollutants With An Immobilized Dual-Porous Tio2 Photocatalyst, Daniel E. Willis, Ella C. Sheets, Mary R. Worbington, Madhusudan Kamat, Sarah K. Glass, Ma Cayla J. Caso, Tochukwu Ofoegbuna, Liz M. Diaz, Caleb Osei-Appau, Samuel D. Snow, Kevin M. Mcpeak

Faculty Publications

Photocatalytic advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) promise a chemical-free route to energy-efficient degradation of waterborne micropollutants if long-standing mass transfer and light management issues can be overcome. Herein, we developed a dual-porous photocatalytic system consisting of a mesoporous (i.e., 2-50 nm pores) TiO2 (P25) photocatalyst supported on macroporous (i.e., >50 nm pores) fused quartz fibers (P25/QF). Our reusable photocatalytic AOP reduces chemical consumption and exhibits excellent energy efficiency, demonstrated by degrading various pharmaceutical compounds (acetaminophen, sulfamethoxazole, and carbamazepine) in natural waters with electrical energy per order (EEO) values of 4.07, 0.96, and 1.35 kWh/m3, respectively. Compared to the conventional H2O2/UVC AOP, …

Uavs And Deep Neural Networks: An Alternative Approach To Monitoring Waterfowl At The Site Level, Zachary J. Loken

LSU Master's Theses

Understanding how waterfowl respond to habitat restoration and management activities is crucial for evaluating and refining conservation delivery programs. However, site-specific waterfowl monitoring is challenging, especially in heavily forested systems such as the Mississippi Alluvial Valley (MAV)—a primary wintering region for ducks in North America. I hypothesized that using uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) coupled with deep learning-based methods for object detection would provide an efficient and effective means for surveying non-breeding waterfowl on difficult-to-access restored wetland sites. Accordingly, during the winters of 2021 and 2022, I surveyed wetland restoration easements in the MAV using a UAV equipped with a dual …

Racial And Ethnic Differences In The Usage Of Opioids To Treat Chronic Pain, Char Ong, Adam Fink, Tian Yu, Nebojsa Nick Knezevic

Advocate GME

No abstract provided.

An Overview Of Elements And Relations: Aspects Of A Scientific Metaphysics, Martin Zwick

Complex Systems Faculty Publications and Presentations

A talk on my book, Elements and Relations: Aspects of a Scientific Metaphysics. Book description:

This book develops the core proposition that systems theory is an attempt to construct an “exact and scientific metaphysics,” a system of general ideas central to science that can be expressed mathematically. Collectively, these ideas would constitute a non-reductionist “theory of everything” unlike what is being sought in physics. Inherently transdisciplinary, systems theory offers ideas and methods that are relevant to all of the sciences and also to professional fields such as systems engineering, public policy, business, and social work. To demonstrate the generality …

Archaeology In 2022: Counter‐Myths For Hopeful Futures, M Berihuete‐Azorín, Chelsea Blackmore, Lewis Borck, James L. Flexner, Catherine J. Frieman, Corey A. Herrmann, Rachael Kiddey

School of Law, Humanities and Social Sciences

Archaeology in 2022 features more calls than ever for a socially and politically engaged, progressive discipline. Archaeologists increasingly respect and integrate decolonizing and Indigenous knowledge in theory and practice. They acknowledge and embrace the fluidity and diversity of sexes and genders, past and present. They document patterns of migration, ancient as well as contemporary, to combat retrograde and racist narratives that remain pervasive in the public sphere. At the same time, the field has a deep‐seated conservative bastion toward which many scholars retreat, arguing for an “objective” past that is free of political implications or interpretive ambiguity. As anarchist archaeologists, …

Finite Element Analysis Comparing A Peek Posterior Fixation Device Versus Pedicle Screws For Lumbar Fusion, Robert Eastlack, Pierce Nunley, Kornelis Poelstra, Alex Vaccaro, Marcus Stone, Larry Miller, Pierre Legay, Julien Clin, Aakash Agarwal

Department of Orthopaedic Surgery Faculty Papers

BACKGROUND: Pedicle screw loosening and breakage are common causes of revision surgery after lumbar fusion. Thus, there remains a continued need for supplemental fixation options that offer immediate stability without the associated failure modes. This finite element analysis compared the biomechanical properties of a novel cortico-pedicular posterior fixation (CPPF) device with those of a conventional pedicle screw system (PSS).

METHODS: The CPPF device is a polyetheretherketone strap providing circumferential cortical fixation for lumbar fusion procedures via an arcuate tunnel. Using a validated finite element model, we compared the stability and load transfer characteristics of CPPF to intact conditions under a …

Role Of Soluble Urokinase Type Plasminogen Activator Receptor (Supar) In Predicting Mortality, Readmission, Length Of Stay And Discharge In Emergency Patients: A Systematic Review And Meta Analysis, Syeda Tayyaba Rehan, Hassan Ul Hussain, Eman Ali, Kanwal Ashok Kumar, Shehroze Tabassum, Muhammad Hasanain, Asim Shaikh, Gibran Ali, Zohaib Yousaf, Muhammad Sohaib Asghar

Section of Internal Medicine

Background: Soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR) is an inflammatory biomarker that is used to predict mortality, readmission, early discharge, and LOS, thus, serves as a useful tool for ED physicians. Our study aims to analyze the efficacy of suPAR in predicting these prognostic markers in ED.
Methods: We performed a comprehensive search on 6 databases from the inception to 30th November 2022, to select the following eligibility criteria; a) observation or triage trial studies investigating the role of suPAR levels in predicting: 30 day and 90-day mortality, 30-day readmission, early discharge (within 24hr), and LOS in patients coming to …

Breakdown Of Category-Specific Word Representations In A Brain-Constrained Neurocomputational Model Of Semantic Dementia, Yury Shtyrov, Aleksei Efremov, Anastasia Kuptsova, Thomas Wennekers, Boris Gutkin, Max Garagnani

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

The neurobiological nature of semantic knowledge, i.e., the encoding and storage of conceptual information in the human brain, remains a poorly understood and hotly debated subject. Clinical data on semantic deficits and neuroimaging evidence from healthy individuals have suggested multiple cortical regions to be involved in the processing of meaning. These include semantic hubs (most notably, anterior temporal lobe, ATL) that take part in semantic processing in general as well as sensorimotor areas that process specific aspects/categories according to their modality. Biologically inspired neurocomputational models can help elucidate the exact roles of these regions in the functioning of the semantic …

Feasibility Of A Text Messaging-Integrated And Chatbot-Interfaced Self-Management Program For Symptom Control In Patients With Gastrointestinal Cancer Undergoing Chemotherapy: Pilot Mixed Methods Study, Sameh Gomaa, James Posey, Babar Bashir, Atrayee Mallick, Eleanor Vanderklok, Max Schnoll, Tingting Zhan, Kuang-Yi Wen

Department of Medical Oncology Faculty Papers

BACKGROUND: Outpatient chemotherapy often leaves patients to grapple with a range of complex side effects at home. Leveraging tailored evidence-based content to monitor and manage these symptoms remains an untapped potential among patients with gastrointestinal (GI) cancer.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to bridge the gap in outpatient chemotherapy care by integrating a cutting-edge text messaging system with a chatbot interface. This approach seeks to enable real-time monitoring and proactive management of side effects in patients with GI cancer undergoing intravenous chemotherapy.

METHODS: Real-Time Chemotherapy-Associated Side Effects Monitoring Supportive System (RT-CAMSS) was developed iteratively, incorporating patient-centered inputs and evidence-based information. It …

Employing A Fractional Basis Set To Solve Nonlinear Multidimensional Fractional Differential Equations, Md. Habibur Rahman, Muhammad I. Bhatti, Nicholas Dimakis

Physics & Astronomy Faculty Publications

Fractional-order partial differential equations have gained significant attention due to their wide range of applications in various fields. This paper employed a novel technique for solving nonlinear multidimensional fractional differential equations by means of a modified version of the Bernstein polynomials called the Bhatti-fractional polynomials basis set. The method involved approximating the desired solution and treated the resulting equation as a matrix equation. All fractional derivatives are considered in the Caputo sense. The resulting operational matrix was inverted, and the desired solution was obtained. The effectiveness of the method was demonstrated by solving two specific types of nonlinear multidimensional fractional …

Locomotor Kinematics On Sand Vs. Vinyl Flooring In The Sidewinder Rattlesnake Crotalus Cerastes, Jessica L. Tingle, Brian M. Sherman, Theodore Garland Jr

University Research

For terrestrial locomotion of animals and machines, physical characteristics of the substrate can strongly impact kinematics and performance. Snakes are an especially interesting system for studying substrate effects because their gait depends more on the environment than on their speed. We tested sidewinder rattlesnakes (Crotalus cerastes) on two surfaces: sand collected from their natural environment and vinyl tile flooring, an artificial surface often used to elicit sidewinding in laboratory settings. Of ten kinematic variables examined, two differed significantly between the substrates: the body's waveform had an average of ∼17% longer wavelength on vinyl flooring (measured in body lengths), and snakes …