Digital Commons Network^™

Development Of A Pressure Sensing System Coupled With Deployable Machine Learning Models For Assessing Residual Limb Fit In Lower Limb Prosthetics, Maxwell D. Lewter

Master's Theses

Lower limb amputations pose significant challenges for patients, with over 150,000 cases annually in the U.S., leading to a high demand for effective prosthetics. However, only 43% of lower limb prosthetic users report satisfaction, primarily due to issues with socket fit, which is critical for comfort, stability, and preventing injury. This study presents a deployable sensing system for potentially real-time monitoring of prosthetic socket fit by using pressure sensors and convolutional neural networks (CNNs) to analyze the pressure distribution within the socket. A novel CNN architecture, utilizing both dilated and strided convolutions, is proposed to effectively capture spatial-temporal patterns in …

News From Hope College, Volume 56.2: Winter 2024, Hope College

News from Hope College

No abstract provided.

Dissecting Metabolic Landscape Of Alveolar Macrophage, Sunayana Malla

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The highly plastic nature of alveolar macrophage (AM) plays a crucial role in the defense against inhaled particulates and pathogens in the lungs. Depending on the signal, AM acquires either the classically activated M1 phenotype or the alternatively activated M2 phenotype. In this study, we investigate the metabolic shift in the activated phases of AM (M1 and M2 phases) by reconstructing context specific genome-scale metabolic (GSM) models. Metabolic pathways such as pyruvate metabolism, arachidonic acid metabolism, chondroitin/heparan sulfate biosynthesis, and heparan sulfate degradation are found to be important driving forces in the development of the M1/M2 phenotypes. Additionally, we formulated …

University Of Dayton Magazine, Winter 2024-25, University Of Dayton

University of Dayton Alumni Publications

The University of Dayton Magazine is published quarterly by the Office of University Marketing and Communications for alumni, parents, students, faculty/staff, trustees and other friends of UD.

Efficacy Of M-Health Solution On The Paternal Postpartum Depression Affecting The Relationship Of The Couple: A Pilot Study In Four Hospitals Of Karachi, Pakistan, Syeda Sakina Mehdi, Naghma Rizvi, Saleema A. Gulzar, Nuruddin Badruddin Mohammed, Vardah Bharuchi, Syeda Aleena Abbas, Mehak Barolia

Journal of Asian Midwives (JAM)

Background: Postpartum depression (PPD) significantly impacts mothers and fathers, with paternal PPD (PPPD) affecting 28.3% of fathers in Pakistan. PPPD exacerbates maternal symptoms and disrupts family dynamics but remains underdiagnosed due to cultural stigmas and gender-specific presentations, such as aggression and stress. Socio-economic challenges, marital dissatisfaction, and limited support further heighten PPPD risks. Mobile health (mHealth) technologies offer accessible, stigma-free solutions for mental health support. This study explores PPPD health needs and evaluates an mHealth intervention for improving detection, support, and relationship outcomes among postpartum couples in Pakistan.
Methods: This exploratory sequential mixed-methods study will be conducted in two phases. …

Indications And Outcomes Of Emergency And Elective Cesarean Section Deliveries In A Tertiary Care Hospital In Karachi, Pakistan: A Retrospective Study, Bakhtawar Muhammad Hanif Khowaja Bk, Sabahat Naz, Komal Valliani, Aqsa Nizar Maknojia, Asfa Anwer Ali, Mahek Zaheer Maknojia, Tabish Ali Shalwani, Sheikh Irfan Ahmed, Farida Mughal

Journal of Asian Midwives (JAM)

Background: This study identified major determinants of Cesarean-sections and the outcomes in one referral center.
Methods: A retrospective study was conducted at a tertiary healthcare facility and all women who had cesarean section between January 2020 to July 2021 were enrolled. A chi-square or independent t-test was used to compare maternal and pregnancy characteristics, and neonatal outcomes between emergency c-sections (EmCS) and elective c-sections (ElCS) groups. A multivariable logistic regression analysis compared indications and outcomes between the two groups.
Results: Among 767 women, there were 417 (54.4%) emergency and 350 (45.6%) elective cesarean sections. A multivariable logistic regression revealed that …

Carbon Dioxide Fluxes And The Dominant Role Of Vegetation In Recently Created And Reference Gulf Coast Marshes, A. Muench, T. Elsey-Quirk, J. R. White, R. D. Delaune

Faculty Publications

Coastal wetlands are one of the most productive ecosystems on Earth with the capacity to sequester large amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2). Wetland loss due to anthropogenic and natural causes reduces the carbon (C) storage capacity and potentially releases previously fixed C in biomass and soil to the water column and atmosphere through decomposition. Coastal wetland restoration has the potential to mitigate some of the C losses depending on the balance of C fluxes. However, the role of vegetation and environmental conditions in governing rates of C accumulation in restoration sites is not well resolved. The purpose of this study …

Net Evaporation-Induced Mangrove Area Loss Across Low-Lying Caribbean Islands, Isamar M. Cortés, Jorge Lorenzo-Trueba, Andre S. Rovai, Robert R. Twilley, Mark Chopping, Temilola Fatoyinbo

Faculty Publications

Although mangroves provide many beneficial ecosystem services, such as blue carbon storage and coastal protection, they are currently under threat due to changes in climate conditions, such as prolonged drought exposure. Under drought conditions, evaporation exceeds precipitation and high soil salinities can lead to stunted growth and die-back. To quantify this interplay, we developed a database for low-lying and uninhabited mangrove islands in the Caribbean under various evaporation and precipitation regimes. We extracted physical and biological information from each island using remote sensing techniques and coupled it with a process-based model. We used this database to develop a model that …

A Temperature Tipping Point In Hypoxic Zone Size, R. Eugene Turner, Nancy N. Rabalais, Cassandra N. Glaspie

Faculty Publications

Temperature increases will have ubiquitous effects on aquatic food webs, from microbes to consumers, and affect the quality and quantity of carbon flows within and between water layers. A decline in the biological pump moving carbon from surface to lower layers is anticipated. We reviewed 37 years of data on hypoxic zone size and water quality in the northern Gulf of Mexico to determine if air and bottom water temperature increases (0.5°C decade⁻¹) are significantly related to variations in its areal size. There was no significant decline in important river water quality in the 24 years since the …

Detecting, Attributing, And Projecting Global Marine Ecosystem And Fisheries Change: Fishmip 2.0, Julia L. Blanchard, Camilla Novaglio, Olivier Maury, Cheryl S. Harrison, Colleen M. Petrik, Denisse Fierro-Arcos, Kelly Ortega-Cisneros, Andrea Bryndum-Buchholz, Tyler D. Eddy, Ryan Heneghan, Kelsey Roberts, Jacob Schewe, Daniele Bianchi, Jerome Guiet, P. Daniel Van Denderen, Juliano Palacios-Abrantes, Xiao Liu, Charles A. Stock, Yannick Rousseau, Matthias Büchner, Ezekiel O. Adekoya, Cathy Bulman, William Cheung, Villy Christensen, Marta Coll, Leonardo Capitani, Samik Datta, Elizabeth A. Fulton, Alba Fuster, Victoria Garza, Matthieu Lengaigne, Max Lindmark, Kieran Murphy

Faculty Publications

There is an urgent need for models that can robustly detect past and project future ecosystem changes and risks to the services that they provide to people. The Fisheries and Marine Ecosystem Model Intercomparison Project (FishMIP) was established to develop model ensembles for projecting long-term impacts of climate change on fisheries and marine ecosystems while informing policy at spatio-temporal scales relevant to the Inter-Sectoral Impact Model Intercomparison Project (ISIMIP) framework. While contributing FishMIP models have improved over time, large uncertainties in projections remain, particularly in coastal and shelf seas where most of the world's fisheries occur. Furthermore, previous FishMIP climate …

Characteristics Of Adolescent Romantic Partnerships And Their Associations With Partnership Qualities, Jonathon J. Beckmeyer, Gabrielle C. Kline

Faculty Publications - Family and Consumer Sciences

The purpose of our study was to identify characteristics of adolescents’ romantic partnerships that are associated with the quality of those partnerships. 101 romantically involved adolescents (15 to 18 years old, 47.5% female) were recruited from Qualtrics Panel Services for an online, cross-sectional study of family and social relationships. Most adolescents had same-age and different-gender romantic partners, lived geographically close to their partners, and spent several unsupervised hours with their partners each week, had a define the partnership talk, and anticipated stability in their partnership. Partnership characteristics and quality were significantly associated. Living close to partners and seeing them often, …

Minimizing Take Of Threatened Rattlesnakes And Optimizing Project Review In Se Nebraska, Shaun Dunn, Dan Fogell, Colleen Rothe-Groleau

Nebraska Department of Transportation: Research Reports

The western massasauga (Sistrurus tergeminus) and the timber rattlesnake (Crotalus horridus) are protected under Nebraska Statute 37-801-811 and listed as threatened species. These species occur in the right-of-way (ROW) along several roads in Jefferson, Gage, Pawnee, and Richardson Counties which necessitates the need for added Environmental Review (ER) from Nebraska Department of Transportation (NDOT) staff and onsite surveys prior and during maintenance and construction to roadways. This project sought to minimize ER time, staff time, and increase the knowledge of these species in southeast Nebraska by:

1. Identifying precise locations of western massasauga brumation sites;
2. Mapping travel …

Artificial Intelligence And Cracks In The Foundation Of Intellectual Property, Robin Feldman

UC Law Journal

Our implicit image of progress and the standards we use to calibrate human contribution to progress are quietly at risk from the onslaught of artificial intelligence (AI). AI has the potential to significantly shrink the pool of creative work that is protectable by intellectual property (IP) law and the range of information that is protectable, as well as shrinking the value proposition of IP regimes themselves.

As society faces this changing landscape, we must tread carefully to distinguish fears about AI from the task of defining the boundaries of intellectual property, whose theoretic concepts aren’t designed to bear such weighty …

Mary, The Holy Mother Of God - 1 January 2024, Gerard Moore

Pastoral Liturgy

No abstract provided.

Real-Time Motion Augmentation And Synthesis For Animating The Hands And Eyes Of Virtual Humans And Avatars, Ryan Canales

All Dissertations

Virtual Reality (VR) enables users to interact within virtual worlds via an embodied virtual representation of themselves called an “avatar”. Because avatars are essential for immersive experiences, it is important to consider how altering or augmenting avatar motion affects virtual experiences. This dissertation aims to improve virtual experiences by addressing some of the many challenges in animating avatars and virtual humans.

In our first study, we addressed the lack of tactile feedback during virtual grasping by using visual feedback techniques. We augmented the avatar’s hand motion to remain outside virtual objects (“outer hand”) even when the user’s hand penetrated them. …

200 Years Of Johnson V. M'Intosh (Jvm): Indigenous Responses To The Religious Foundations Of Racism, Philip P. Arnold, Sandra L. Bigtree, Adam Dj Brett

Religion - All Scholarship

No abstract provided.

University Of Nebraska At Omaha Commencement: December 2024, University Of Nebraska At Omaha

Commencement Programs

No abstract provided.

Facial Recognition Technology In The Market: What Consumers Need To Know To Protect Their Rights, Liubov Kirzhakova

UC Law Science and Technology Journal

Facial recognition technology (FRT) has rapidly expanded in consumer products over the last decade, offering convenience, but raising significant privacy concerns. This article examines the implications of FRT on consumer privacy, emphasizing the unique risks associated with biometric data. Unlike other personal data, biometrics are biologically unique and irreplaceable, making unauthorized access and misuse particularly harmful. Despite the growing consumer awareness and concern about data privacy, current legal protections are fragmented and insufficient. This article provides a comprehensive analysis of how FRT is integrated into products and services and highlights the privacy risks associated with each. It reviews existing federal …

Protection Of Nuclear Facilities In Warfare Under International Law, Gary Corn, Sean Watts

Joint PIJIP/TLS Research Paper Series

No abstract provided.

Phenology And Resource Allocation Strategies Of Diploid Flowering Rush (Butomus Umbellatus) In Ohio And New York, Maxwell G. Gebhart, Ryan M. Wersal, Andrew R. Hannes, Nathan E. Harms, Bradley T. Sartain, William L. Wolanske, Mia Yeager

Biological Sciences Department Publications

Flowering rush (Butomus umbellatus L.) is an emergent perennial monocot that has invaded aquatic systems along the U.S.–Canadian border. Currently, there are two known cytotypes of flowering rush, diploid and triploid, within the invaded range. Although most studies have focused on the triploid cytotype, little information is known about diploid plants. Therefore, phenology and resource allocation were studied on the diploid cytotype of flowering rush in three study sites (Mentor Marsh, OH; Tonawanda Wildlife Management Area, NY; and Unity Island, NY) to understand seasonal resource allocation and environmental influences on growth, and to optimize management strategies. Samples were harvested once …

Examining The Risk Of Cardiovascular Disease Among African American College Students At The University Of Texas At Arlington, Esha Kashyap

2024 Fall Honors Capstone Projects - Archive

Many studies examine the risk of cardiovascular disease in the general population of African Americans adults compared with other racial and ethnic groups; however, there is limited research that explores the risk factors, discrimination, and food behavior that impact this group. Cardiovascular disease develops over time and certain practices or experiences can increase the risk of this disease; thus, studying the behavior and perceptions of college students is important. Therefore, this research examined whether food behavior and perceived discrimination was higher in African American college students than in other racial or ethnic student groups. Utilizing a survey containing both qualitative …

Effect Of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (Hbot) On The Proportion Of Splenic Leukocytes During Skeletal Muscle Regeneration, Hetvi Patel

2024 Fall Honors Capstone Projects - Archive

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) can accelerate the regeneration of skeletal muscle after injury and improve overall recovery. Certain cells of the spleen are increased during muscle regeneration; however, the effect of HBOT on splenic cells during muscle regeneration is not well understood. In other experimental models, HBOT proliferates the proportion of splenic cells. In this study, eight male and nine female mice sustaining crush muscle injuries underwent HBOT at 1.5 atmospheres absolute for 60 min or normobaric hyperoxia (100% O₂) for 60 min within 2-6 hours of injury for 4 days. The mice were then euthanized at 4- …

Investigating The Acute Physiological Effects Of Effluent Crystal Violet On The Freshwater Bioindicator Daphnia Pulex, Hoang K. Ho

2024 Fall Honors Capstone Projects - Archive

This study examines the effects of acute exposure to crystal violet (CV) on the freshwater zooplankton Daphnia pulex in response to growing concerns over synthetic dyes from industrial runoff in aquatic ecosystems. The primary objective is to assess CV's impact on D. pulex's heart rate, mobility, morphology, and lethality via a series of acute exposure tests. 48-h acute toxicity (0-2000 μg/L), 48-h immobilization (0-180 μg/L), and 9-h heart rate (0-2,000 μg/L) tests were conducted using third-generation daphnids, followed by stereomicroscopic examination and statistical analysis. Results showed increasing mortality and decreasing mobility and heart rate with increasing CV concentration; the …

Determining Evolutionary Conservation Of Mhc-E And Vista Interaction, Julia Glenn

2024 Fall Honors Capstone Projects - Archive

Research in the Weidanz laboratory is focused on cellular molecules which inhibit immune activation, known as immune checkpoints. One example is HLA-E, which can modulate immune responses at homeostasis or in the context of cancer. HLA-E typically acts by presenting short canonical peptides (VL9s) and binding to CD94/NKG2A receptors on NK cells and T cells. The Weidanz laboratory’s research has found that in the absence of these VL9 peptides, HLA-E binds to another immune checkpoint, VISTA, instead of CD94/NKG2A. Therefore, the HLA-E/VISTA interaction is peptide-dependent. The current study aims to determine if this peptide-dependent interaction is evolutionarily conserved using the …

Investigating The Role Of Hopelessness In The Stress-Performance Relationship Among College Students, Vidushi Sabnani

2024 Fall Honors Capstone Projects - Archive

As college students pursue higher education as a pathway to success, they face pressures that threaten their well-being and academic success. Balancing academic, financial, and social demands has led to a mental health crisis on campuses, with emotional stress cited as the leading cause of students discontinuing their education (Gallup, 2023). This study investigates the relationship between academic stress, perceived stress, and academic performance in college students. It also examines the Yerkes-Dodson law of a curvilinear relationship between stress and performance and the role of hopelessness as a mediator. A sample of 321 participants completed surveys assessing academic stress, perceived …

Conceptual Understanding, Engagement, And Optimal Learning Moments With Problem-Oriented Project Learning In High School Physics, Catherine A. Howell

Dissertations

This research explored the effect of Problem-Oriented Problem Based Learning (POPL) on concept attainment and engagement in a high school physics class. While physics education remains a vital component of STEM education, secondary physics enrollment trails chemistry and biology. Issues contributing to physics’ reputation as a complex subject include prior misconceptions and the formulaic nature of pedagogy. Prior research indicated that active learning can challenge misconceptions and mitigate the sameness of instruction. POPL resides firmly in the active learning methodology of Project-Based Learning (PjBL). This study expanded the research by combining Physics, POPL, concept attainment, multiple components of engagement, and …

The Role Of Eor-1/Plzf In Promoting Soma Compartment Specific Death In A Non-Canonical Cell Death Program In C. Elegans, Nathan Rather

2024 Fall Honors Capstone Projects - Archive

Programmed cell death (PCD) is an essential evolutionarily- conserved and genetically encoded program for normal development and homeostasis. A previous study identified a CED-3 dependent but mechanistically non-apoptotic and highly stereotyped elimination program called Compartmentalized Cell Elimination (CCE) in the C. elegans tail-spike epithelial cell (TSC). Here the transcription factor EOR-1/PLZF is found to promote CCE. The loss of which results in a persisting non-engulfed soma with enlarged nuclei in the first larval stage. This study finds that EOR-1 and its established partners function downstream of CED-3 Caspase protease activity, a role distinct from other PCD contexts where EOR-1 has …

Assessing The Potential For Soil-Mediated Transmission Of Symbiotic Bacteria In The Leaffooted Bug (Leptoglossus Phyllopus), Armeen Nasir

McNair Scholars Research Journal

Recent evidence suggests insects might indirectly provide symbionts to their offspring by releasing them into the soil via feces. We investigated whether this is occurring in the Eastern leaf-footed bug, Leptoglosuss phyllopus. We hypothesized that if adults release viable symbiont cells into their environment, then nymphs will have a higher survival rate, develop faster, and be larger at adulthood when exposed to soil that has been in contact with adult insects for longer. To measure the rate and whether the bugs acquired Caballeronia from the soil, insect nymphs were exposed to soil that had been exposed to a lab colony …

Identification Of Novel Genes Regulating Caenorhabditis Elegans Morphologically Complex Cellelimination, Brenda Amata

McNair Scholars Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Insights Into Cerebrovascular Health: Comparative Study Of The Common Carotid And Middle Cerebral Artery, Emma Lou

2024 Fall Honors Capstone Projects - Archive

The carotid artery, responsible for blood flow to the brain, and the middle cerebral artery (MCA), which supplies the cerebrum, are both susceptible to atherosclerosis, a condition that impairs blood flow and can lead to cognitive decline and ischemic strokes. This study investigates whether blood flow and vasodilation responses in the MCA during a hypercapnic challenge are comparable to those in the common carotid artery, which supplies the entire brain. This project aims to address limitations in current assessment methods, such as transcranial and duplex Doppler ultrasonography, to ascertain whether these two arteries exhibit consistent vasodilation patterns under hypercapnic conditions. …