Digital Commons Network^™

Autoethnographic Examination Of Moral Distress While Working For The For-Profit Substance Use Disorder Treatment Sector, Kapil Nayar

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Interpersonal conflicts and moral distress due to authority figures' unethical and illegal practices are widely discussed topics in the literature. Coping with these experiences and becoming a whistleblower, however are understudied in the counseling field, and are often stigmatized yet advocated for in our codes of ethics. The purpose of this qualitative autoethnographic study is to (1) show moral distress exists in the for-profit sector of substance use disorder treatment; (2) moral distress results from counselors discovering evidence of unethical and illegal activities; (3) moral distress results from the act of blowing the whistle and (4) offers a roadmap for …

Transcriptomic Clustering Of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia: Molecular Subtypes Based On Bruton’S Tyrosine Kinase Expression Levels, Gorkem Kismali, Ganiraju Manyam, Nitin Jain, Cristina Ivan, Betty Lamothe, Mary L Ayres, Lakesla R Iles, William G Wierda, Varsha Gandhi

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Historically, CLL prognostication relied on disease burden, reflected in clinical stage. Later, chromosome abnormalities and genomics suggested several CLL subtypes which were aligned with response to therapy. Gene expression profiling data identified pathways associated with CLL progression. We hypothesized that transcriptome and proteome may identify functional omics associated with CLL nosology. As a test cohort, we utilized publicly available treatment-naïve CLL transcriptomics data (n = 130) and did consensus clustering that identified BTK-expression-based clusters. The BTK-High and BTK-Low clusters were validated in public and our in-house databases (n = >550 CLL patients). To associate with functional relevance, we took samples …

Comparison Of Vendor-Pretrained And Custom-Trained Deep Learning Segmentation Models For Head-And-Neck, Breast, And Prostate Cancers, Xinru Chen, Yao Zhao, Hana Baroudi, Mohammad D El Basha, Aji Daniel, Skylar S Gay, Cenji Yu, He Wang, Jack Phan, Seungtaek L Choi, Chelain R Goodman, Xiaodong Zhang, Joshua S Niedzielski, Sanjay S Shete, Laurence E Court, Zhongxing Liao, Fredrik Löfman, Peter A Balter, Jinzhong Yang

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background/objectives: We assessed the influence of local patients and clinical characteristics on the performance of commercial deep learning (DL) segmentation models for head-and-neck (HN), breast, and prostate cancers.

Methods: Clinical computed tomography (CT) scans and clinically approved contours of 210 patients (53 HN, 49 left breast, 55 right breast, and 53 prostate cancer) were used to train and validate segmentation models integrated within a vendor-supplied DL training toolkit and to assess the performance of both vendor-pretrained and custom-trained models. Four custom models (HN, left breast, right breast, and prostate) were trained and validated with 30 (training)/5 (validation) HN, 34/5 left …

Characterization Of An Inorganic Powder-Based Scintillation Detector Under A Uhdr Electron Beam, Daline Tho, Sam Beddar

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

(1) Background: Ultra-high dose rate (UHDR) radiation therapy needs a reliable dosimetry solution and scintillation detectors are promising candidates. In this study, we characterized an inorganic powder-based scintillation detector under a 9 MeV UHDR electron beam. (2) Methods: A mixture of ZnS:Ag powder and optic glue was coupled to an 8 m Eska GH-4001-P polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) optical fiber. We evaluated the dependence of the detector on dose per pulse (DPP), pulse repetition frequency (PRF), and pulse width (PW). Additionally, we determined the stability and the reproducibility of the detector. (3) Results: The signal ratio between the PMMA clear optical …

Gene Expression Regulation By Au-Rich Elements And Au-Rich Element Binding Proteins, Courtney Fay Jungers

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

The regulation of messenger RNA (mRNA) splicing, stability, and translation efficiency are major modes for controlling gene expression – which is essential for life. RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) and microRNAs (miRNAs) are trans-acting factors that bind to cis-elements influencing the stability and translation of the mRNA transcript. AU-rich elements (AREs) are cis-elements that are targeted by AU-rich element binding proteins (ARE-BPs). Here, I show a novel role for AREs and AU-rich element binding protein 1 (AUF1) during alternative splicing and report on interactions of RBPs and miRNAs to design a new treatment for breast cancer by interrupting these interactions in the …

Sensitivity And Application Of Frequency Domain High-Density Diffuse Optical Tomography (Fd Hd-Dot), Weihao Fan

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is a non-invasive imaging technique that measures hemodynamic responses in the brain, similar to functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) but with distinct advantages. By utilizing near-infrared light, fNIRS can penetrate biological tissues and detect changes in oxygenated and deoxygenated hemoglobin. Additionally, fNIRS is portable, noninvasive and inexpensive. Within the realm of fNIRS, several measurement techniques exist, including Continuous Wave (CW), Frequency Domain (FD), and Time Domain (TD) methods. In this dissertation, we focused on the effects, fundamental principles and applications of FD designs. We provided the introduction in Chapter 1, and discussed the background theory and …

Amorfe: An Ai-Integrated Interactive Brainstorming Interface, Ipshita Pal

Theses

Amorfe is an interactive multi-touch digital interface that reimagines brainstorming and collaboration using artificial intelligence (AI). Designed to make ideation more dynamic, the platform allows participants to explore, merge, and refine ideas in real time. AI is a creative catalyst, offering unpredictable outcomes and streamlining the brainstorming process. This makes Amorfe engaging, intuitive, and inclusive, encouraging active participation. The platform’s potential was demonstrated through a hypothetical scenario: “How do we create more green spaces on the RIT campus?” Four participants explored various brainstorming phases through touch interaction, leading to the creation of a prototype simulation video and a promotional video. …

Dissonance, Shreya Talegaonkar

Theses

Cognitive dissonance represents a profound psychological phenomenon where conflicting beliefs create mental tension. My thesis, Dissonance, transforms this abstract concept into an immersive multimedia installation that visually explores the human mind's intricate journey of reconciling internal contradictions. Using Cinema 4D, Adobe AfterEffects, and Resolume Arena, the project creates dynamic 3D animations projection-mapped across an 8x8x6 cubic feet space. Carefully designed blackout curtains and strategic seating immerse participants in a transformative narrative of psychological exploration. Audiences navigate through four distinct phases: Consistency, Chaos, Turmoil, and Adaptation. Each phase invites viewers to experience the unsettling yet profound journey of internal conflict resolution, …

Characterization Of An Inorganic Powder-Based Scintillation Detector Under A Uhdr Electron Beam, Daline Tho, Sam Beddar

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Ultra-high dose rate (UHDR) radiation therapy needs a reliable dosimetry solution and scintillation detectors are promising candidates. In this study, we characterized an inorganic powder-based scintillation detector under a 9 MeV UHDR electron beam.

Methods: A mixture of ZnS:Ag powder and optic glue was coupled to an 8 m Eska GH-4001-P polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) optical fiber. We evaluated the dependence of the detector on dose per pulse (DPP), pulse repetition frequency (PRF), and pulse width (PW). Additionally, we determined the stability and the reproducibility of the detector.

Results: The signal ratio between the PMMA clear optical fiber and the …

Development Of New Controller And Associated Cybersecurity Issues With Battery Energy Storage Integrated With Microgrid, Syeda Afra Saiara

Electronic Theses and Dissertations Archive

Battery energy storage system (BESS) plays a crucial role in integrating renewable sources in microgrids. However, robust BESS controllers are needed to carry out this function properly. Existing controllers suffer from overshoots and slow convergence issues. This thesis proposes a novel Sigma Delta Modulation (SDM) controller for BESS in solar photovoltaic (PV) connected microgrids to address the limitations of existing controllers. The performance of SDM has been compared with that of the Proportional Integral (PI) and Fuzzy Logic based controllers. Also, the thesis addresses the cybersecurity issues in solar PV based microgrids. The Ensemble Learning technique and an Improved Ensemble …

Schedulability Analysis Of Multi-Phase Limited-Preemption Tasks, Benjamin Standaert

McKelvey School of Engineering Graduate Student Theses & Dissertations

This work addresses hard real-time systems, in which tasks must be scheduled so that they are guaranteed to meet deadlines. In particular, when tasks execute across multiple domains with high preemption costs, the combined cost of these preemptions can cause the system to become unschedulable. The number of preemptions must therefore be bounded to limit the overall task execution time, while ensuring that task blocking times are small enough to allow the system to be schedulable. Prior work introduces the Multi-Phase Secure model, which describes a more exact version of this scenario, and an algorithm to determine schedulability of sporadic …

Recollective Features In The Natural Language Used To Justify Memory Decisions, Xinran Zhang, Ian G. Dobbins

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

The natural language people use to justify memory decisions predicts recognition accuracy, in part, because it conveys recollection. This study compared a traditional bag-of-words (BOW) classifier to one using BERT embeddings, and newly tests whether classifier recognition scores also predict the later recall of individual recognition probes. During both training and testing, the BERT classifier outperformed the BOW classifier. Nonetheless, a BOW approach was important for explaining the BERT classifier, accounting for a sizeable portion of its variance and confirming that the BERT classifier was also recollection sensitive. The BERT classifier’s recognition scores predicted future recall and mediated the tendency …

Synthesis Of Higher-Order Catenanes And Catenane-Based Materials, Gray Harlan

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Catenanes are a subset of mechanically interlocked molecules (MIMs) and are composed of interlocked rings that can be oriented linearly, radially, or branched. A defining feature of all MIMs is that they are bound through their architectures consisting of mechanical bonds, leading to unique topologies. Catenanes have attracted interest due to their stimuli-responsive behavior and the degrees of freedom afforded by the mechanical bond, a feature which is absent with standard covalent bonds. The stimuli responsiveness of catenanes arises from their templated syntheses, where two or more pre-macrocycles are brought together by a driving force. Various templation strategies rely on …

A Filter-Based Model Of Visual Recognition, Olivia Rose Bockler

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Visual recognition, a key perceptual process, enables primates to identify faces, food, tools, and potential threats in their environment. Cortical neurons along the ventral visual stream—spanning from early visual cortex (V1) through inferotemporal cortex (IT), with long-range projections to ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (vlPFC)—are essential for visual recognition. Traditional models propose that neuronal representations increase in complexity in each stage of this pathway, culminating in object-specific representations in higher-order cortex. However, this hypothesis remains debated, particularly as artificial visual models have countered that individual neurons along this pathway may function more as filters contributing to distributed representations of objects. Thus, this …

Comparative Analysis Of Outcomes In Adult Spinal Deformity Patients With Proximal Junctional Kyphosis Or Failure Initially Fused To Upper Versus Lower Thoracic Spine, Oluwatobi O Onafowokan, Munish Chandra Gupta, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

No abstract provided.

Safety And Optimality Monitors For Learning-Enabled Systems Using Conformal Prediction, Jackson Cox

McKelvey School of Engineering Graduate Student Theses & Dissertations

The use of machine learning to create data-driven plant models and controllers has led to an increased need for safety and optimality monitors for model-based systems. System plant models are subject to uncertainty due to learning constraints such as unseen data and overfitting or physical constraints such as unknown dynamics and noise. This uncertainty is detrimental to safety-critical systems and must be properly regulated. To curb this uncertainty, we create prediction sets using the guarantees provided by Conformal Prediction. With a user-specified high probability, these prediction sets contain the true plant system states for an entire prediction horizon, which we …

Rental Property Demand And Supply Analysis Using Machine Learning, Ahmed Amiri

Theses

The real estate market in Dubai is famous for its activity and stimulating potential due to the geographical position of the emirate, well-developed transport and legal framework. Timely determination and prediction of rental price is crucial for investors, property owners and managers, tenants and authorities in their decision making to maximize returns and ensure market stability. Traditional approaches are insufficient for the analysis of the temporal and spatial relations between property characteristics and market processes, which require the use of sophisticated machine learning algorithms. This paper aims to predict the rental prices of properties in Dubai using machine learning models …

Social Media Intelligence: Responding To Crime And Violence In The Digital World, Chloe Lynn Sitton

Theses

The integration of social media into everyday life has transformed how crime is committed, communicated, and investigated. This capstone project examines the emerging field of social media intelligence and its growing influence on modern policing, surveillance, and the community. Drawing from sociological theory, law enforcement practice, legal analysis, and community-based research, this project offers a far-reaching interdisciplinary view of how social media is shaping crime and justice in the United States.

Macrowire For Intracranial Thrombectomy: An Early Experience Of A New Device And Technique For Anterior Circulation Large Vessel Occlusion Stroke, Kaustubh Limaye, Sami Al Kasab, Jaidevsinh Dolia, Mohamad Ezzeldin, Daniel Vela Duarte, Vinodh Doss, Sourabh Lahoti, David Hasan, Alejandro Spiotta, Khaled Asi, Vasu Saini, Tapan Mehta, Ameer Hassan, Diogo Haussen, Dileep Yavagal, Jesse Jones, Omar Tanweer, Waleed Brinjikji

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Mechanical thrombectomy (MT) has become the standard of care for treatment of acute ischemic stroke secondary to large vessel occlusion up to 24 h from the last known normal time. With ADAPT and SOLUMBRA techniques, classically, a large bore aspiration catheter is delivered over a microcatheter and microwire crossing the clot to perform thrombectomy. Recently, a novel macrowire (Colossus 035 in.) has been introduced as a potential alternative to the use of microwire-microcatheter to allow the delivery of the aspiration catheter (ID = 0.070 in. up to 0.088 in.) over a macrowire alone.

OBJECTIVE: To test the …

Multi-Antigen Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesvirus (Eehv) Mrna Vaccine Induces Humoral And Cell-Mediated Responses In Mice, Jessica R Watts, Jennifer L Spencer Clinton, Jeroen Pollet, Rongsheng Peng, Jie Tan, Paul D Ling

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background/Objectives: Elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus (EEHV) causes lethal hemorrhagic disease (HD) in Asian and African elephants in human care and the wild. It is the leading cause of death for young Asian elephants in North American and European zoos despite sensitive diagnostic tests and improved treatments. Thus, there is a critical need to develop an effective vaccine to prevent severe illness and reduce mortality from EEHV-HD. We generated a multi-antigenic EEHV mRNA vaccine to address this need that encodes the EEHV1A-subtype glycoproteins gB, gH, gL, and gO. These conserved proteins are the entry machinery for several herpesviruses in the betaherpesvirus subfamily …

Addressing Lung Truncation In 99mtc-Maa Spect/Ct For 90y Microsphere Radioembolization Treatment Planning, M Allan Thomas, Richard Laforest, John Karageorgiou, Dan Giardina, Tyler J Fraum, Chris D Malone, Justin K Mikell

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Prior studies have established that macroaggregated albumin (MAA)-SPECT/CT offers more robust lung shunt fraction (LSF) and lung mean absorbed dose (LMD) estimates in

METHODS: Lung truncation was simulated in 56 cases with adequate (> 90%, mean: 98%) lung coverage in MAA-SPECT/CT by removing slices in ~ 5 mm increments from the lung apices to the diaphragm. A wide range of lung coverages from 100% to <  1% in ~ 2% increments were created. LSF and LMD were calculated with four methods. (1) 2D planar imaging standard (not truncated), truncated lung SPECT/CT data was: (2) used with no corrections (SPECT

RESULTS: Averaged across simulated lung coverages from 40 to 80%, percent errors relative to non-truncated data for SPECT

CONCLUSION: LSF and LMD can be estimated for

An Adaptive Algorithm To Provide Fan Speed Control, Chejung Liu, Vic Chia

Defensive Publications Series

Proposed herein is a new algorithm to facilitate fan speed control (FSC) for cooling fans of electronic devices that utilizes existing sensor readings for a device to determine the altitude at which the device is operating. With this estimated altitude value, fan speed control mechanisms can be enhanced from conventional two-dimensional (2D) control techniques that only consider temperature versus (vs) duty cycle to three-dimensional (3D) control techniques that consider temperature vs altitude vs duty cycle to manage fan speed. Utilizing techniques as proposed herein, an optimized fan speed control mechanism can be provided for electronic devices that reduces power consumption …

Evaluation Of The Presence Of Sarcocystis Spp. In Dogs Raised In Alpaca Farm Enterprises In Cajamarca, Peru, Milena Ydrogo, María Cabrera, Jennifer L. Cuzcano-Anarcaya, Luis A. Vargas-Rocha, Teófilo Torrel

The Thai Journal of Veterinary Medicine

The apicomplexans of the genus Sarcocystis are parasites that infect various animal species, including humans. Both dogs and other carnivores can act as definitive hosts of this protozoan. The present study aimed to determine the frequency of Sarcocystis spp. in domestic dogs raised in three alpaca breeding areas in Cajamarca. Random fecal samples were collected from 102 dogs of different ages and both sexes in three locations related to alpaca breeding: Atahualpa Jerusalén Agricultural Workers Cooperative - Cajamarca (N = 35), SAIS Huacraruco - San Juan (N = 33), and Alpacas Project - Foncreagro - Sorochuco (N = 34). The …

The Four Domains Model Of Artificial Intelligence In Surgical Education: Adapting Applications To Trainee Level, Anant R. Tewari, Jasraj Raghuwanshi, Lawal A. Labaran, Xudong Li

Journal of Innovation in Health Sciences Education

Since the inception of modern medicine, surgical trainees have benefitted from coaching and feedback from senior surgeons. In the high-demand operating room environment, granular feedback is often limited by time constraints. Artificial intelligence (AI) represents a novel frontier in surgical education in that it may be able to provide reliable, objective, and comprehensive feedback in an automated manner. While prior studies have given broad overviews of AI in surgical training, there has been no study to our knowledge that has codified the myriad applications and offered guidance for which applications best suit trainees at various levels of surgical education. We …

Leveraging Gamification And Social Media To Teach Heart Failure Clinical Practice Guidelines In Entry-Level Physical Therapist Education, Kaelee Brockway

Journal of Innovation in Health Sciences Education

Introduction: Clinical practice guideline adherence remains a challenge in health care, with reported rates as low as 26%. Research shows multiple barriers to adherence, including limited access and guideline complexity. Integrating guidelines into education is crucial, demanding innovative methods to enhance translation into practice.

Methods: This multiple methods study explored application of the substitution, augmentation, modification, and redefinition model to integrate social media and gamification activities to engage students in learning action statements of a clinical practice guideline for the management of heart failure. Performance on exam items relevant to the guideline content were used to determine if this …

Setting The Stage For Success: Teaching Behavior Expectations During The First Week, Katie Hamilton, Jamie Nichols

Georgia Association for Positive Behavior Support Conference

A strong start is key to a successful school year, and teaching specific behavior expectations early on helps set the tone for a positive, productive learning environment. This presentation will guide PBIS teams, both new and seasoned, through a proven approach to launching the school year with teaching clear and consistent school-wide behavior expectations. Participants will receive a comprehensive toolkit, including a detailed schedule for the first days of school, customizable presentations for teachers to use in their classrooms, and engaging behavior expectation assignments with answer keys. By implementing these strategies, schools can create a cohesive culture of respect and …

Building Evidence-Based Pbs For Schools, Clinics And Communities, Tom Clees

Georgia Association for Positive Behavior Support Conference

Abstract

For students in both the general and adapted curriculum, low achievement, behavioral excesses and social skills deficits are predictive of each other (Gresham, 2016;). Too, an escalating cycle may lead to further antisocial responses, a decrease in learning outcomes, and exclusion from services for some (Kauffman, 2018). Related to these challenges, the successful application of positive behavior supports has been widely reported by schools, clinics, and community-based services. Although definitions of PBS, and the scope of these practices, vary depending on the reference point of those responsible for administration and application, there seems to be agreement that PBS practices …

The Private Cause Of Action Under Maine's Unfair Trade Practices Act, Steven A. Shaw

Maine Law Review

In 1970 the Maine Legislature passed the Unfair Trade Practices Act (UTPA) which declared unlawful any "unfair methods of competition and unfair or deceptive acts or practices in the conduct of any trade or commerce . . . ." UTPA-type statutes, now common to all states, offer several advantages. The statutes provide for a statutory award of attorneys' fees, create a private cause of action which is simple in comparison to analogous common law claims, and offer a flexible concept of unlawful conduct which many courts have shown a willingness to interpret broadly and sympathetically. Although Maine's UTPA was originally …

Hospital Accountability In Health Care Delivery, C. Elisabeth Belmont

Maine Law Review

In recent years, the role of community hospitals in health care delivery has undergone a dramatic change. Until the latter half of the twentieth century, a hospital was merely a "doctor's workshop," providing physicians with the physical facilities, equipment, and personnel necessary to treat their private patients. Due to progressive medical technology, today's hospital has moved from a passive role in patient care to more active participation in the delivery of total health care. The hospital has become a health care provider in its own right, furnishing a broad range of diagnostic and outpatient services, home care assistance, and specialized …

In Defense Of Civil Juries, Peter W. Culley

Maine Law Review

Criticism of the civil jury system is nothing new. In fact, virtually since its inception the civil jury has been embroiled in controversy. Typically critics argue that: the jury cannot handle the complex or technical case; there is great expense and delay attendant to trial by jury; jury adjudication is of low quality; verdicts rendered by different juries in cases involving similar facts often appear inconsistent. Recently, Justice Donald Alexander of the Maine Superior Court stated that "[t]he civil jury system has outlived its usefulness." In support of his basic premise that the civil jury system is merely an historical …