Digital Commons Network^™

A Constitutional Right To Exclude Evidence, Colin Miller

Texas A&M Law Review

The Supreme Court has held that criminal defendants have a constitutional right to introduce evidence and a constitutional right to receive evidence, but it has never recognized a constitutional right to exclude evidence. Specifically, the Supreme Court has issued numerous rulings finding that the Due Process Clause demands that (1) defendants have the right to present a defense that trumps the rules of evidence; (2) the prosecution must disclose material exculpatory evidence to the defense; (3) the State has certain duties to preserve evidence so that it can be disclosed to the defense; and (4) any discovery obligations on defendants …

Careers After Prison: Preventing Recidivism By Reforming Restrictive Licensing Regimes, Ian C. Stephens

Texas A&M Law Review

A prisoner leaving confinement in the United States is unlikely to seamlessly reintegrate into society. People leaving incarceration face a cornucopia of economic and social barriers that prevent them from easily finding secure economic footing. The well-established link between unemployment and recidivism materializes when economic circumstances drive the poor and desperate back toward crime and back into prison. This vicious circle not only rips apart families and communities but also imposes a ruinously expensive financial burden on states. Despite this cost, many states continue to bar formerly incarcerated people from their most viable opportunities to become peaceful and productive members …

Doe V. Geller And Personal Jurisdiction Over Internet Activities, Elizabeth Kruse

Texas A&M Law Review

Personal jurisdiction is fundamental in American jurisprudence since it gives a court the power to bind parties with its ruling. Despite this subject’s mundane veneer, the concept is so complicated that it has inspired thousands of academic articles. A brief search on Westlaw under Law Reviews & Journals for the term “personal jurisdiction” yields nearly 10,000 results, while Lexis+ yields 14,662 for the same term. Even so, as the nature of human interaction has changed from in person, to in writing, to over the phone, and, most recently, to over the internet, the doctrine of personal jurisdiction has accommodated. Recent …

Association Among Student Retention And Program Utilization Within An Independent Community College In Northeastern New Mexico, Geno Castillo

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The problem investigated in this study was the trend of decreasing student retention of first-year, degree-seeking college students at an independent community college located in northeastern New Mexico. The purpose of the study was to examine the association between student retention and program utilization. The research question was to determine if statistically significant differences existed between first-year students at an independent community college in northeastern New Mexico who did and did not utilize government-funded tutoring programs, which is a peer-led program managed by the Center for Academic Excellence. The theoretical foundation for the study was Tinto’s student retention theory model. …

Equations To Predict Carbon Monoxide Emissions From Amazon Rainforest Fires, Sarah M. Gallup, Bonne Ford, Stijn Naus, John L. Gallup, Jeffrey R. Pierce

Economics Faculty Publications and Presentations

Earth systems models (ESMs), which can simulate the complex feedbacks between climate and fires, struggle to predict fires well for tropical rainforests. This study provides equations that predict historic carbon monoxide emissions from Amazon rainforest fires for 2003–2018, which could be implemented within ESMs’ current structures. We also include equations to convert the predicted emissions to burned area. Regressions of varying mathematical forms are fitted to one or both of two fire CO emission inventories. Equation accuracy is scored on r², bias of the mean prediction, and ratio of explained variances. We find that one equation is best …

Comparative Study Of Aerodynamic Characteristics Of Standard And Dimpled Naca 0012 Airfoil, Fahim Shahriyar, Carson Running

Mechanical Engineering Student Publications

This study analyzes the aerodynamic performance of a NACA 0012 airfoil with dimples on its upper surface, comparing it to the standard configuration. Using the Navier-Stokes equations, Blasius solutions, the k-ε turbulence model, and ANSYS Fluent, steady-state incompressible flow was simulated at 25 m/s across angles of attack from -20° to +20°. Results show the standard airfoil performs well at the low Reynolds number and lower angle of attack. The inward dimple airfoil reduces drag at negative angles, while the outward dimple airfoil enhances lift at higher positive angles. Shear stress analysis reveals laminar flow on flat plates and turbulent …

The Effect Of Temperature On Power Output From A Hydroelectric Penstock, Taylor Hartell, Carson Running

Mechanical Engineering Student Publications

Hydroelectric power is a form of renewable energy that uses the power from water to generate electricity. One of the ways this is done is by diverting water from a river with a penstock leading to a turbine. Hydroelectric systems rely on water as the source of power, and the viscosity of water varies with temperature. When temperatures are low, viscosity is high, and when temperatures are high, viscosity is low. Other works have studied the optimal dimensions of penstocks for power generation and the effect of hydroelectric power on river temperatures. In this research, the effect of temperature on …

A Comparative Analysis Of The County-Level Covid-19 Lockdown’S Impact On Child Sexual Abuse Rates, Aunastasia Fantasia Marie Zsidiewicz

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

National reported rates of childhood sexual abuse (CSA) during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown were significantly lower than expected. This quantitative study explored rates of CSA before and after the lockdown for 22 Michigan counties by considering socioeconomic status (SES) demographics to isolate the lockdown’s specific impact on reported CSA rates. The SES of the counties was measured using the Kuppuswamy scale, a numerical compilation of the mean occupation, education, and income of households within a given county. The Social Determinants of Health framework provided a blueprint for understanding the impact of exploring the different socioeconomic variables. This framework also helped …

Administrators’ Perceptions Of Minoritized Students’ Underrepresentation In K-8 Gate, Vernice Verona Sharpe

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand SWSD administrators’ perceptions of the practices and identification criteria that exacerbated this underrepresentation, guided by a culturally responsive school leadership framework. For this basic qualitative design, eight SWSD administrators with direct knowledge of the GATE programs participated in semistructured interviews. Data analysis involved initial and axial coding, resulting in three key themes: limited cultural awareness among administrators, the importance of incorporating community perspectives, and the need to reevaluate traditional GATE identification practices. Based on these themes, it is recommended to enhance cultural competency training, to engage community members in decision-making, and …

U.S. Patented Medication Prices Too High To Warrant Affordable Costs By Patients, Kisa Mwenelupembe

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Optimal pricing of patent medicines is needed to ensure profitability of pharmaceutical companies while managing ease of access to these medicines for patients. The general problem that necessitated this study was that the prices of most patent medications in the United States are too high to warrant affordable costs by patients while simultaneously fostering drug innovation. The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore the best practices for ensuring equal access to patent medicines while maintaining profitability of pharmaceutical companies to pursue needed innovation and development of new drugs. This study was underpinned by Bandura’s social cognitive …

Effectives Strategies Leaders Use To Engage Nurses In Safe Work Practices, Madeline Ortiz Gonzalez

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Work-related injuries remain a significant challenge in the healthcare sector, leading to reduced productivity and financial losses despite improvements in workplace safety. Healthcare leaders are concerned that unsafe work practices negatively affect organizational performance and service quality. Grounded in Burn’s transformational leadership framework, the purpose of this qualitative pragmatic inquiry study was to explore effective strategies used by six nurse leaders in Southern United States use to encourage nurses to adopt safe work practices and foster a culture of safety. Through thematic analysis, three core themes were identified: implementing comprehensive training programs, establishing effective communication channels, and fostering a safety-first …

“I Have One More Hour Of Power And Many Miles Of Communication To Go”: Lessons Learned From Community Research Interrupted By Climate Crises, Antonia R.G. Alvarez, Sherry Manning, Teresa Dosdos Ruelas

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

The Ang Pagtanom og Binhi Project is a University–Community partnership and community-based participatory research project exploring the health benefits of food sovereignty practices in the Philippines. In late 2021, in the midst of data collection, Super Typhoon Odette made landfall in the Philippines causing massive environmental and structural devastation. In the aftermath of the storm, community partners in the Philippines and members of the research team in the United States shared photos, texts, and updates. These messages included descriptions of structural and environmental damage caused by the storm and stories of mutual aid efforts and actions taken by individuals and …

Weaving Our Kuwentos (Stories) Toward Ginhawa (Aliveness): Pilipinx American Social Work Motherscholars Enacting Praxes Of Survival And Thrivance In The Academy, Joanna C. La Torre, Lalaine Sevillano, Lisa Reyes Mason, Alma M. Ouanesisouk Trinidad, Cora De Leon

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Five Pilipina American (PA) social work MotherScholars, from a doctoral student to an interim dean, used kuwentuhan (Pilipinx methodology) to amplify their survivance and thrivance despite attempted exclusion, reduction, and distortion as Pilipinos by coloniality/modernity. Grounded in decolonial feminism (the view that oppressions such as sexism and racism co-constitute coloniality and that unsettling oppressions disrupts hegemony) and Pinayism (an integrated framework revaluing the labor, intellect, and nurturance of mothering through a cultural lens), the authors work coalitionally across their PA diversity to re-center ginhawa (aliveness or sense of ease and wellness). Together, they embarked on an iterative self-study process of …

Theoretical Trends Of Islamic Banking: A Critical Reading, Abduljabbar Al-Sabhany

Journal of King Abdulaziz University: Islamic Economics

Moving away from usurious lending, in which the borrower bears the risk of the loan, to almudaraba and participation, in which the two parties to the contract share its profits and losses, was the title of the emerging Islamic banking, where its project and its contracting system were prepared through individual initiatives. However, as soon as Islamic banks were established, professional considerations began to dominate the leadership of banking practice, specifically in the field of risk management. It led to a decisive transformation that would bring Islamic banks back into the Indebtedness system but through financing sales. Just as this …

The Term 'Marketing' In The Islamic Jurisprudential Heritage And Its Impact OnةControlling The Legality Of Marketing Practices, Maya Nejib Ammar

Journal of King Abdulaziz University: Islamic Economics

This study explores the concept of marketing within the context of Islamic jurisprudential heritage and its influence on establishing the legality of marketing practices. Existing studies on Islamic marketing usually combine the term "marketing" with either Islam or the guidelines and regulations of Islamic jurisprudence. They generally aim to discern whether Islamic marketing exists as an independent discipline with its unique foundations and principles distinct from traditional marketing or if it merely applies Islamic legal rulings to traditional marketing topics. Some studies also present the Islamic perspective on contemporary marketing sciences. Regardless of the stance one adopts, this study does …

Managing Surplus In Takaful Insurance Companies: The Moroccan Experience As A Model, Latifa El Yanboiy

Journal of King Abdulaziz University: Islamic Economics

This research aims to shed light on the regulatory, legal, and Sharia principles governing the distribution methods of surplus in Takaful insurance companies, proposing the optimal approach for distribution that maximizes fairness to the stakeholders in insurance companies as much as possible. The research highlights the importance of managing insurance surplus in Takaful insurance companies, reflecting solidarity among contributors in bearing losses and reducing insured risks by collective donations. To achieve this goal, the research adopted an descriptive approach to present theoretical and practical methods for managing cooperative insurance surplus. The research emphasizes the significance of the surplus distribution system …

The Role Of The Marsad Contract In Rehabilitating Degraded Awqaf Lands- Innovative Waqf Projects, Ahmed Dib

Journal of King Abdulaziz University: Islamic Economics

This research is part of an active endeavor to develop endowment (waqf) properties and strengthen confidence in their economic and social potential. It explores the concept of "Marsad contract" as One of the most significant developmental mechanisms that can be adopted for the reconstruction and restructuring of endowment lands.Marsad (designated money) is a debt owed at the endowment, where the lessee invests their own funds with the permission of the administrator of the endowment (Nazir) to develop the essential endowment properties. It is a specialized form of lease that combines two transactions: firstly, a debt owed to the endowment represented …

Association Among Student Retention And Program Utilization Within An Independent Community College In Northeastern New Mexico, Geno Castillo

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The problem investigated in this study was the trend of decreasing student retention of first-year, degree-seeking college students at an independent community college located in northeastern New Mexico. The purpose of the study was to examine the association between student retention and program utilization. The research question was to determine if statistically significant differences existed between first-year students at an independent community college in northeastern New Mexico who did and did not utilize government-funded tutoring programs, which is a peer-led program managed by the Center for Academic Excellence. The theoretical foundation for the study was Tinto’s student retention theory model. …

Effectives Strategies Leaders Use To Engage Nurses In Safe Work Practices, Madeline Ortiz Gonzalez

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Work-related injuries remain a significant challenge in the healthcare sector, leading to reduced productivity and financial losses despite improvements in workplace safety. Healthcare leaders are concerned that unsafe work practices negatively affect organizational performance and service quality. Grounded in Burn’s transformational leadership framework, the purpose of this qualitative pragmatic inquiry study was to explore effective strategies used by six nurse leaders in Southern United States use to encourage nurses to adopt safe work practices and foster a culture of safety. Through thematic analysis, three core themes were identified: implementing comprehensive training programs, establishing effective communication channels, and fostering a safety-first …

Perceptions Of The Skills Gap In Career And Technical Education In An Urban School District, Kyna Monic Eberhardt

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A gap in career and technical education (CTE) skills can negatively influence outcomes for students who plan to enter the workforce or college following high school graduation. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the perceptions of principals, counselors, teachers, and business leaders from different industries, about the skills gap among CTE students and their preparation for the workforce or college. Kathuria’s organizational alignment theory grounded this study. For this case study design, semistructured interviews were conducted with nine participants purposively selected from each stakeholder group: principals, counselors, teachers, and business leaders from different industries. All participants …

Unh's Connell Recognized For His U.S. Patent, Brooks Payette

UNH Today Archive

No abstract provided.

Is Increased Mutation Driving Genetic Diversity In Dogs Within The Chornobyl Exclusion Zone?, Megan N. Dillon, Allison N. Dickey, Reade B. Roberts, Jennifer A. Betz, Timothy Mousseau, Norman J. Kleiman, Matthew Breen

Faculty Publications

Environmental contamination can have lasting impacts on surrounding communities, though the long-term impacts can be difficult to ascertain. The disaster at the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant in 1986 and subsequent remediation efforts resulted in contamination of the local environment with radioactive material, heavy metals, and additional environmental toxicants. Many of these are mutagenic in nature, and the full effect of these exposures on local flora and fauna has yet to be understood. Several hundred free-roaming dogs occupy the contaminated area surrounding the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant, and previous studies have highlighted a striking level of genetic differentiation between two geographically …

Is Increased Mutation Driving Genetic Diversity In Dogs Within The Chornobyl Exclusion Zone?, Megan N. Dillon, Allison N. Dickey, Reade B. Roberts, Jennifer A. Betz, Timothy Mousseau, Norman J. Kleiman, Matthew Breen

Faculty Publications

Environmental contamination can have lasting impacts on surrounding communities, though the long-term impacts can be difficult to ascertain. The disaster at the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant in 1986 and subsequent remediation efforts resulted in contamination of the local environment with radioactive material, heavy metals, and additional environmental toxicants. Many of these are mutagenic in nature, and the full effect of these exposures on local flora and fauna has yet to be understood. Several hundred free-roaming dogs occupy the contaminated area surrounding the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant, and previous studies have highlighted a striking level of genetic differentiation between two geographically …

High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound Ablation For Primary Or Salvage Prostate Cancer Therapy: Initial Outcomes In The Veteran Healthcare Setting, Sagar Patel, Ali Antar, Aly Alrabaa, Gal Saffati, Broderick Fleming, Neel Srikishen, Jeremy Slawin, Jennifer Taylor, Jeffrey Jones

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) provides comparable oncologic, erectile, and urinary outcomes to standard-of-care options for localized prostate cancer. This study reports the largest United States series of HIFU in veterans for both primary and salvage therapies. We retrospectively analyzed the outcomes of 43 veterans treated at the Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center from 2018 to 2022. Primary endpoints included prostate-specific antigen (PSA) reduction and local recurrence rates. Secondary endpoints included 30-day complications, Sexual Health Inventory for Men (SHIM), and American Urological Association Symptom Score (AUASS). In our study, 31 veterans (72.1%) received primary treatment and 12 (27.9%) received …

Optimizing Ewing Sarcoma And Osteosarcoma Biopsy Acquisition: A Children's Oncology Group Bone Tumor Committee Consensus Statement, Matthew S Dietz, Alyaa Al-Ibraheemi, Jessica L Davis, C Matthew Hawkins, Brian T Craig, Roshni Dasgupta, David S Geller, David S Shulman, Sarah Cohen-Gogo, Ajay Gupta, Susan L Whiteway, Emily K Slotkin, Christine M Heske, Safia K Ahmed, Daniel J Indelicato, Catherine M Albert, Nicole Montgomery, Jesse K Sandberg, Holcombe E Grier, Mark Krailo, Michael S Isakoff, Elyssa Rubin, Elizabeth R Lawlor, Steven G Dubois, Leo Mascarenhas, Patrick J Grohar, Odion Binitie, Damon Reed, Katherine Janeway, Ryan D Roberts, Kelly M Bailey

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Trends in diagnostic biopsy sample collection approaches for primary bone sarcomas have shifted in the past 2 decades. Although open/incisional biopsies used to be the predominant approach to obtain diagnostic material for Ewing sarcoma and osteosarcoma, image-guided core needle biopsies have increased in frequency and are safe for patients. These procedures are less invasive and reduce recovery times but have potential limitations. The quantity and quality of tissue obtained through these procedures vary between institutions. Acquired viable tissue volumes can be low, limiting the conduct of downstream expanded clinical workup, molecular analyses, and research. Patients with advanced Ewing sarcoma and …

The Globular Cluster System Of The Virgo Cluster Ultradiffuse Galaxy Vcc 615, J. C. Mihos, Patrick R. Durrell, Elisa Toloba, Eric W. Peng, Sungsoon Lim, Patrick Côté, Puragra Guhathakurta, Laura Ferrarese

Pacific Faculty Work

We use Hubble Space Telescope imaging to study the globular cluster system of the Virgo Cluster ultradiffuse galaxy (UDG) VCC 615. We select globular cluster candidates through a combination of size and color, while simultaneously rejecting contamination from background galaxies that would be unresolved in ground-based imaging. Our sample of globular cluster candidates is essentially complete down to a limiting magnitude of F814W = 24.0, ≈90% down the globular cluster luminosity function (GCLF). We estimate a total globular cluster population for VCC 615 of N GC = 25 . 1 − 5.4 + 6.5 , resulting in a specific frequency …

U.S. Patented Medication Prices Too High To Warrant Affordable Costs By Patients, Kisa Mwenelupembe

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Optimal pricing of patent medicines is needed to ensure profitability of pharmaceutical companies while managing ease of access to these medicines for patients. The general problem that necessitated this study was that the prices of most patent medications in the United States are too high to warrant affordable costs by patients while simultaneously fostering drug innovation. The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore the best practices for ensuring equal access to patent medicines while maintaining profitability of pharmaceutical companies to pursue needed innovation and development of new drugs. This study was underpinned by Bandura’s social cognitive …

The Lived Experiences Of Black College Students And Counseling Based Upon Social Media Influences, Shamanda Burston

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Despite social media's use as a tool for social influence and increase in mental health disclosures within Black communities, limited literature describes how Black college students, specifically, are utilizing social media related to mental health. This qualitative study includes a description of the influence of social media on the perception of counseling services for Black college students. Using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) through the lens of Kelman's social influence theory, the influence of social media on Black college students' perception of counseling services was explored. Currently enrolled Black or African American college or university students within the United States, over …

Development And Evaluation Of An Implementation Strategy To Increase Hpv Vaccination Among Underserved Youth Across Texas: A Protocol Paper, Paula M Cuccaro, Jihye Choi, Lara S Savas, Efrat K Gabay, Mayra Aguilar Mcbride, Amy Montelongo Eldridge, Timothy J Walker

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: All for Them is a theory-based and evidence-informed multilevel, multicomponent program delivered through schools to increase HPV vaccination among medically underserved youth across Texas. Given the potential logistical challenges of program implementation, understanding how to best support the implementation and sustainment of the program is critical. The overall goals of this study are twofold: 1) develop a multifaceted implementation strategy, Implementing All for Them (IM-AFT); and 2) evaluate the impact of IM-AFT on implementation outcomes for schools and healthcare providers to successfully implement All for Them in their respective settings.

METHODS: This study is underpinned by a comprehensive and …

Love As A Commitment Device: Evidence From A Cross-Cultural Study Across 90 Countries, Marta Kowal, Adam Bode, Karolina Koszałkowska, Biljana Gjoneska, David Frederick, Anna Studzinska, Dmitril Dubrov, Dmitry Grigoryev, Tolvo Aavik, Pavol Prokop, Caterina Grano, Hakan Çetinkaya, Derya Atamtürk Duyar, Roberto Balocco, Carlota Batres, Yakhlef Belkacem, Merve Boğa, Nana Burduli, Ali R. Can, Razleh Chegeni, William J. Chopik, Yahya Don, Seda Dural, Izzet Duyar, Edgardo Etchezahar, Feten Fekih‑Romdhane, Tomasz Frackowiak, Felipe E. García, Talia Gomez Yepes, Farida Guemaz, Brahim B. Hamadoul, Mehmet Koyuncu, Miguel Landa-Blanco, Samuel Lins, Tiago Tiago, Marlon Mayorga‑Lascano, Moises Mebarak, Mara Morelli, Izuchukwu L. G. Ndukaihe, Mohd Sofian Omar Fauzee, Ma. Criselda Tengco Pacquing, Miriam Parise, Farid Pazhoohl, Ekaterine Pirtskhalava, Koen Ponnet, Ulf‑Dietrich Relps, Marc Eric Santos Reyes, Ayşegül Şahin, Fatima Zahra Sahli, Oksana Senyk, Ognen Spasovski, Singha Tulyakul, Joaquín Ungaretti, Mona Vintila, Tatiana Volkodav, Anna Wlodarczyk, Gyesook Yoo, Benjamin Gelbart, Piotr Sorokowski

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Given the ubiquitous nature of love, numerous theories have been proposed to explain its existence. One such theory refers to love as a commitment device, suggesting that romantic love evolved to foster commitment between partners and enhance their reproductive success. In the present study, we investigated this hypothesis using a large-scale sample of 86,310 individual responses collected across 90 countries. If romantic love is universally perceived as a force that fosters commitment between long-term partners, we expected that individuals likely to suffer greater losses from the termination of their relationships—including people of lower socioeconomic status, those with many children, and …