Digital Commons Network^™

Baby's First Jets: A Kinematic And Hydrodynamic Analysis Of Turning In Cuttlefish Hatchlings, Alissa M. Ganley, Paul S. Krueger, Ian K. Bartol

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Turning is an important aspect of life underwater, playing integral roles in predator avoidance, prey capture, and communication. While turning abilities have been explored in a diversity of adult nekton, little is currently known about turning in early ontogeny, especially for cephalopods. In this study, we investigated the turning abilities of hatchling common cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis, n = 49) and dwarf cuttlefish (Sepia bandensis, n = 30), using both kinematic and wake-based analyses. Using body tracking software and particle image velocimetry (PIV), we found that S. officinalis turned faster than S. bandensis, but both species …

Half Of Atlantic Reef-Building Corals At Elevated Risk Of Extinction Due To Climate Change And Other Threats, Luis Gutierrez, Beth Polidoro, David Obura, Francoise Cabada-Blanco, Christi Linardich, Emma Pettersson, Paul Pearce-Kelly, Krista Kemppinen, Juan Jose Alvarado, Lorenzo Alvarez-Filip, Anastazia Banaszak, Pilar Casado De Amezua, James Crabbe, Aldo Croquer, Joshua Feingold, Elizabeth Goergen, Stefano Goffredo, Bert Hoeksema, Danwei Huang, Emma Kennedy, Diego Kersting, Marcelo Kitahara, Petar Kružić, Margaret Miller, Flavia Nunes, Juan Pablo Quimbayo, Andrea Rivera-Sosa, Rosa Rodríguez-Martínez, Nadia Santodomingo, Michael Sweet, Mark Vermeij, Estrella Villamizar, Greta Aeby, Khatija Alliji, Daniel Bayley, Elena Couce, Benjamin Cowburn, C. Isabel Nuñez Lendo, Sean Porter, Kaveh Samimi-Namin, Tom Shlesinger, Bryan Wilson

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Atlantic reef-building corals and coral reefs continue to experience extensive decline due to increased stressors related to climate change, disease, pollution, and numerous anthropogenic threats. To understand the impact of ocean warming and reef loss on the estimated extinction risk of shallow water Atlantic reef-building scleractinians and milleporids, all 85 valid species were reassessed under the IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria, updating the previous Red List assessment of Atlantic corals published in 2008. For the present assessment, individual species declines were estimated based on the modeled coral cover loss (1989–2019) and projected onset of annual severe bleaching events (2020–2050) …

Receptor-Targeted Next-Generation Probiotics Ameliorate Mammalian Colitis, Nicholas L. F. Gallina, Vignesh Nathan, Akshay Krishnakumar, Dongqi Liu, Rishi Drolia, Nicole Irrizary Tardi, Yang Fu, Manalee Samadar, Shivendra Tenguria, Alvin Cai, Ruth Eunice Centeno-Martinez, Timothy A. Johnson, Abigail Cox, Lavanya Reddivari, Bruce Applegate, Xingjian Bai, Luping Xu, Deepti Tanjore, Ramesh Vemulapalli, Rahim Rahimi, Arun K. Bhunia

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Introduction: a loss of intestinal barrier function, inflammation, and an elevated expression of epithelial heat shock protein 60 (Hsp60) are features of an inflamed bowel. Probiotics have been used to alleviate colitis-induced pathologies, but offer poor adhesion and adaptation to the diseased gut. We hypothesize that enhancing probiotic adhesion in the inflamed bowel may ameliorate such pathologies. Listeria adhesion protein (LAP; 94-kDa acetaldehyde alcohol dehydrogenase) aids Listeria attachment to the epithelial cells by interacting with the mammalian receptor Hsp60. Bioengineered Lactobacillus casei probiotics (BLPs) expressing LAP showed strong interaction with epithelial Hsp60, a high immunomodulatory response, and sustained epithelial barrier …

Ai And Ml-Based Risk Assessment Of Chemicals: Predicting Carcinogenic Risk From Chemical-Induced Genomic Instability, Ajay Vikram Singh, Preeti Bhardwaj, Peter Laux, Prachi Pradeep, Madleen Busse, Andreas Luch, Akihiko Hirose, Christopher J. Osgood, Michael W. Stacey

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Chemical risk assessment plays a pivotal role in safeguarding public health and environmental safety by evaluating the potential hazards and risks associated with chemical exposures. In recent years, the convergence of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and omics technologies has revolutionized the field of chemical risk assessment, offering new insights into toxicity mechanisms, predictive modeling, and risk management strategies. This perspective review explores the synergistic potential of AI/ML and omics in deciphering clastogen-induced genomic instability for carcinogenic risk prediction. We provide an overview of key findings, challenges, and opportunities in integrating AI/ML and omics technologies for chemical risk assessment, …

Natural Enemies Of Varroa Destructor Identified From Eastern North America Honey Bee Colonies: A Biological Survey Of Candidates For Mite Control From Maryland, Usa, Francisco Posada-Flórez, Daniel Sonenshine, Jay Evans, Dawn Boncristiani, Monica Pava-Ripoll, Steven Cook

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

A survey was conducted of microbes and arthropods associated with Varroa destructor (Acari: Varroidae) mites (hereafter, Varroa) collected from honey bee colonies in Maryland, USA. Live Varroa were challenged with samples of both microbes and arthropods and assessed for their potential as biocontrol agents against the mites. To our knowledge, this is the first survey of natural enemies of Varroa conducted in North American honey bee colonies. The survey revealed 21 fungi, 25 bacteria, one nematode, and 8 arthropod species associated with Varroa in honey bee colonies, and from challenge assays using 11 of these, including 4 species of …

Abalones At Risk: A Global Red List Assessment Of Haliotis In A Changing Climate, Howard Peters, Gina M. Ralph, Laura Rogers-Bennett

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

There is increasing awareness that marine invertebrates such as abalones are at risk from the combined stressors of fishing and climate change. Abalones are an important marine fishery resource and of cultural importance to Indigenous and non-Indigenous people. A highly priced marine delicacy, they are inherently vulnerable: individuals are slow-growing and long-lived and successful reproduction requires dense assemblages. However, their global conservation status is poorly understood. Using IUCN Red List methodology, we assessed the extinction risk to all 54 species of abalone (genus Haliotis). Of the 21 fished commercially for human consumption either now and/or in the past, 15 …

State Of Coastal And Marine Resources: Sablayan, Occidental Mindoro, Ma Celina J. Añonuevo, Jemelyn Grace P. Baldisimo, Denmark B. Racamara, Mary Joyce P. Velos, Joseph Benedict T. Garcia, Frederico B. Sabban, Joey P. Cabasan, Rhea Mae Luciano, Darryl Anthony Valiño, Lovely Joy Heyres, Hazel O. Arceo

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

[Introduction] Sablayan, situated on the western side of Mindoro Island facing the WPS (12.8564° N, 120.9101° E), is a first-class municipality in the province of Occidental Mindoro with a total land area of 2,188.8km² that is divided into 22 barangays, nine of which are along the coast. The coastline stretches for 115 km, with municipal waters covering approximately 750,000 km² (LGU-Sablayan 2008).

The Apo Reef Natural Park, one of its most prominent features, is located approximately 33 km off the coast (Figure 2.9-1) The Apo Reef Natural Park is a protected coral reef system under presidential proclamation 868 (1996) encompassing …

State Of Coastal And Marine Resources: Lian, Batangas, Joseph Benedict T. Garcia, Mary Joyce P. Velos, Jemelyn Grace P. Baldisimo, Joey P. Cabasan, Ma Celina J. Añonuevo, Denmark B. Recamara, Hazel O. Arceo

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

[Introduction] Lian (13.9852° N, 120.6545° E) is a third-class municipality in the northwestern part of the province of Batangas. It is bounded on the north by the municipality of Nasugbu, on the east by the municipalities of Tuy and Balayan, on the west by the WPS, and on the south by the municipality of Catatagan (Figure 2.7-1). It has a total land area of 76.80km² that is divided into 19 barangays, six of which are coastal and two are integrated coastal barangays (LGU-Lian 2013). Its total population is 56,280 individuals in 15,991 households as of 2020 (PSA 2020).

The main …

Understanding The Importance Of Brand Equity On Higher Education: An Empirical Study Of Irish Public Universities, Javier Casanoves-Boix, Ana Cruz-Garcia, Sonia García-Lafuente, Mónica Pérez-Sánchez

Dept. of Marketing & International Business Publications

The today’s university education exposes that the argument that stu- dents have an authentic and valuable voice in the decisions that impact their learning and education has become a phenomenon known as 'stu-dent voice' (Matthews and Dollinger, 2023). Furthermore, Boy-murodova y Qosimova (2024) call to action for stakeholders in higher education to prioritize and invest in quality assurance initiatives as in-dispensable components of institutional effectiveness and academic ex-cellence. According to Lafuente, Cifuentes, and Faura (2024), higher education curricula must incorporate competencies that prepare gradu-ates with the necessary knowledge and values.

In Ireland, there are nine universities that account for a …

Postgraduate Supervision In A Chatgpt World: What’S Next?, Angela Wright

Conference Materials

This study explores the considerable challenges for research supervisors of postgraduate students in Higher Education. For experienced academics, the responsibility of assessing theses and dissertations has never been more critical. With the advent of ample search engine opportunities, Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) technology, and adhering to proper academic integrity processes, how can supervisors navigate these complexities, unsupported by solid procedures, due to the rapidly changing nature of AI? If a supervisor is concerned as to the integrity of the presented work during the supervisory process, what options are available to the supervisor to address concerns with the student in an …

Designing Authentic Assessment To Improve Academic Integrity, Sharon Lehane, Angela Wright

Conference Materials

The use of AI chatbots has sparked worldwide debate regarding assessment practices in higher education. Early indications on the use of AI chatbots, signal significant disruption to the higher education system in relation to academic misconduct concern. In terms of the research approach, initially, a systematic literature review was conducted to examine the association between academic integrity and authentic assessment with 32 focused publications from 2019 to 2023 analysed. This led to the development of a robust ‘Model for Practice’ to guide the implementation of authentic assessment in a way that simultaneously improved academic integrity. This paper presents the main …

Reflecting On Addressing Academic Integrity Through Authentic Assessment, Sharon Lehane, Angela Wright

Conference Materials

With the advancement of Artificial Intelligence and chatbot technologies such as ChatGPT, little else is discussed currently by colleagues in Higher Education. Why? – because their potential disruption for assessment practices in higher education are so uncertain. Advances in these artificial intelligence technologies threaten the legitimacy of assessment and academic integrity, calling conventional assessment methods into question. The widespread utilisation of ChatGPT emphasizes the need for sustainable educational practices such as authentic assessments that focus on higher-order critical thinking and problem-solving skills. In terms of the methodology for this study, a critical examination of the association between authentic assessment design …

Paddlesport Safety Culture In Ireland: An Exploratory Study, John Pierce, Kevin O'Callaghan

Publications

Anecdotally, paddlesports (canoeing, kayaking, stand-up paddleboarding, and rafting) are seen as safe sports, though prior to this report little evidence was available to support this view in an Irish context. This report provides a summary of a research project exploring safety practices in Irish paddlesports. It includes the aim, objectives, research methodology, findings, and recommendations. Discussions early in the research process about how to investigate safety practices in Irish paddlesports brought a number of objectives into focus. It was agreed to compile empirical evidence on current safety practices across Irish paddlesports and to determine what, if any, additional supports may …

Snap-Ed New Mexico Outcome Evaluation Report 2024, Theresa H. Cruz, Lucinda V. Denatale, Robert Mccreary, Mahtab Soleimani, Camile R. Velarde, Belinda E. Vicuña, Yvonnie C. Baik

Reports & Documents

No abstract provided.

Snap-Ed New Mexico Impact Evaluation Report 2024, Belinda E. Vicuña, Robert Mccreary, Mahtab Soleimani, Lucinda V. Denatale, Camile R. Velarde, Yvonne C. Vitanzos, Theresa H. Cruz

Reports & Documents

No abstract provided.

Modelled Effectiveness Of Nbs In Reducing Disaster Risk: Evidence From The Operandum Project, Paul Bowyer, Silvia Maria Alfieri, Bidroha Basu, Emilie Cremin, Sisay Debele, Prashant Kumar, Veronika Lechner, Michael Loupis, Massimo Menenti, Slobodan Mickovski, Jan Pfeiffer, Francesco Pilla, Beatrice Pulvirenti, Paolo Ruggieri, Arunima Sarkar Basu, Christos Spyrou, Silvia Unguendoli, Thomas Zieher, Silviana Di Sabatino

Publications

The use of nature-based solutions (NbS) to address the risks posed by hydro-meteorological hazards have not yet become part of the mainstream policy response, and one of the main reasons cited for this, is the lack of evidence that they can effectively reduce disaster risk. This paper addresses this issue, by providing model-based evidence from five European case studies which demonstrate the effectiveness of five different NbS in reducing the magnitude of the hazard and thus risk, in present-day and possible future climates. In OAL-Austria, the hazard is a deep-seated landslide, and the NbS analysed is afforestation. Modelling results …

A Study Protocol Testing Pre-Exposure Dose And Compound Pre-Exposure On The Mechanisms Of Latent Inhibition Of Dental Fear, Andrew L. Geers, Laura D. Seligman, Keenan A. Pituch, Ben Colagiuri, Hilary A. Marusak, Christine A. Rabinak, Natalie Turner, Sena L. Al-Ado, Michael Nedley

Psychological Science Faculty Publications

Background: Dental stimuli can evoke fear after being paired - or conditioned - with aversive outcomes (e.g., pain). Pre-exposing the stimuli before conditioning can impair dental fear learning via a phenomenon known as latent inhibition. Theory suggests changes in expected relevance and attention are two mechanisms responsible for latent inhibition. In the proposed research, we test whether pre-exposure dose and degree of pre-exposure novelty potentiate changes in expected relevance and attention to a pre-exposed stimulus. We also assess if the manipulations alter latent inhibition and explore the possible moderating role of individual differences in pain sensitivity.

Methods: Participants will be …

Bioconcentration Of Per- And Polyfluoroalkyl Substances And Precursors In Fathead Minnow Tissues Environmentally Exposed To Aqueous Film-Forming Foam–Contaminated Waters, Nicholas I. Hill, Jitka Becanova, Simon Vojta, Larry A. Barber, Denis R. Leblanc, Alan M. Vajda, Heidi M. Pickard, Rainer Lohmann

Graduate School of Oceanography Faculty Publications

Exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) has been associated with toxicity in wildlife and negative health effects in humans. Decades of fire training activity at Joint Base Cape Cod (MA, USA) incorporated the use of aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF), which resulted in long-term PFAS contamination of sediments, groundwater, and hydrologically connected surface waters. To explore the bioconcentration potential of PFAS in complex environmental mixtures, a mobile laboratory was established to evaluate the bioconcentration of PFAS from AFFF-impacted groundwater by flow-through design. Fathead minnows (n = 24) were exposed to PFAS in groundwater over a 21-day period and tissue-specific …

Emerging Contaminants: A One Health Perspective, Fang Wang, Rainer Lohmann, Et Al

Graduate School of Oceanography Faculty Publications

Environmental pollution is escalating due to rapid global development that often prioritizes human needs over planetary health. Despite global efforts to mitigate legacy pollutants, the continuous introduction of new substances remains a major threat to both people and the planet. In response, global initiatives are focusing on risk assessment and regulation of emerging contaminants, as demonstrated by the ongoing efforts to establish the UN’s Intergovernmental Science-Policy Panel on Chemicals, Waste, and Pollution Prevention. This review identifies the sources and impacts of emerging contaminants on planetary health, emphasizing the importance of adopting a One Health approach. Strategies for monitoring and addressing …

Effect Of Nutrient Reductions On Dissolved Oxygen And Ph: A Case Study Of Narragansett Bay, Hongjie Wang, Daniel L. Codiga, Heather Stoffel, Candace A. Oviatt, Kristin Huizenga, Jason Grear

Graduate School of Oceanography Faculty Publications

To assess the consequences of nutrient reduction strategies on water quality under climate change, we investigated the long-term dynamics of dissolved oxygen (DO) and pH in Narragansett Bay (NB), a warming urbanized estuary in Rhode Island, where nitrogen loads have declined due to extensive wastewater treatment plant upgrades. We use 15 years (January 2005-December 2019) of measurements from the Narragansett Bay Fixed Site Monitoring network. Nutrient-enhanced phytoplankton growth can increase DO in the upper water column while subsequent respiration can reduce water column DO and enhance bottom water acidification, and vice-versa. We observed significant decreases in surface DO levels, concurrent …

Cross-Cutting Studies Of Per- And Polyfluorinated Alkyl Substances (Pfas) In Arctic Wildlife And Humans, Rainer Lohmann, Khaled Abass, Eva Cecilie Bonefeld-Jørgensen, Rossana Bossi, Rune Dietz, Steve Ferguson, Kim J. Fernie, Philippe Grandjean, Dorte Herzke, Magali Houde, Mélanie Lemire, Robert J. Letcher, Derek Muir, Amila O. De Silva, Sonja K. Ostertag, Amy A. Rand, Jens Søndergaard, Christian Sonne, Elsie M. Sunderland, Katrin Vorkamp, Simon Wilson, Pal Weihe

Graduate School of Oceanography Faculty Publications

This cross-cutting review focuses on the presence and impacts of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the Arctic. Several PFAS undergo long-range transport via atmospheric (volatile polyfluorinated compounds) and oceanic pathways (perfluorinated alkyl acids, PFAAs), causing widespread contamination of the Arctic. Beyond targeting a few well-known PFAS, applying sum parameters, suspect and non-targeted screening are promising approaches to elucidate predominant sources, transport, and pathways of PFAS in the Arctic environment, wildlife, and humans, and establish their time-trends. Across wildlife species, concentrations were dominated by perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS), followed by perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA); highest concentrations were present in mammalian livers …

Fake Malware Generation Using Gans As Api Calls, Saieswar Reddy Vaka

Master's Projects

With malware threats on the rise, they have also grown more complicated and subtle. Consequently, incorporating cutting-edge machine learning into cybersecurity defenses has never been more crucial. Nevertheless, building resilient machine-learning models is a significant challenge due to the need for existing diversified and complete malware datasets. This project will relieve this difficulty by employing a Generative

Adversarial Network (GAN) to develop artificial malware samples featuring an Appli- cation Programming Interface (API) call series. While traditional generative modeling

has primarily been limited to image-based fields, we offer an “outside the box” domain – malware signature generation – as an API …

Base Station Selection Based On The Predicted Dwell Time In 5g-V2x Handover, Anushree Jayesh Shah

Master's Projects

Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) networks have facilitated smooth communication in vehicles and their surroundings via 5G technology. As vehicles move into different coverage areas, they tend to switch between cellular base stations in order to talk to these "things". Handovers are crucial to maintaining these networks’ effectiveness. To ensure uninterrupted connectivity and seamless handovers, it is extremely important to select a base station that is most appropriate. A vehicle’s dwell time is the duration it stays connected to a base station before handoff. This research focuses on predicting dwell time using regression techniques to proactively choose the most suitable base station. We …

Ai-Driven Credit Card Fraud Detection With Enhanced User Interaction, Toshi Bhat

Master's Projects

This thesis describes the development and testing of a unique system for detecting credit card fraud. The system employs graph neural networks (GNNs) and a real-time user interaction platform. The primary goal of this study is to use advanced machine learning methods and interactive technologies to improve fraud detection accuracy and the speed with which users can receive assistance. GraphSAGE, a type of GNN, was trained on a simulated set of credit card transactions, allowing the system to detect and predict fraud very accurately. Simulating a real-world transaction scenario is an important aspect of the project. In this case, the …

Nft Price Prediction Using Machine Learning, Akhil Patil Bagili

Master's Projects

In the evolving cryptocurrency marketplace, Non Fungible Tokens (NFT) pose a unique challenge when it comes to predicting the prices due to their high volatility and fluctuating nature. This project aims to create a model that utilizes deep learning techniques to accurately forecast NFT prices. Based on the real time data and the transaction history, the model uses Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) and Long Term Short Memory Networks (LSTM) to analyze and make effective predictions about future prices. The methodology involves gathering data from two online marketplaces, Dune and Opensea to create a dataset that enhances the model’s predictive capabilities. …

Optimized Community Detection Across Distributed Heterogeneous Servers, Akash Narang

Master's Projects

The exploration of community detection is crucial across various fields, including marketing, and biological research. This area has evolved from non-overlapping communities to recognize nodes as part of multiple overlapping communities. Current research continues to uncover these dynamics. The main challenge is identifying overlapping communities in graphs with billions of nodes and edges. This paper aims to enhance methodologies for community detection in parallel for unprecedentedly large and complex networks. We introduce the HeteroNodesAdapter algorithm, which supports heterogeneous worker nodes and optimized load distribution in graph stream processing. Additionally, we propose the TailBalancedCommunitySize algorithm to find an optimum community size, …

Detecting Fake Reviews Using Aspect Based Sentiment Analysis And Graph Convolutional Networks, Prathana Phukon

Master's Projects

Online reviews significantly influence consumer behavior and business reputa- tions. Detecting fake reviews is important for maintaining trust and integrity in

these platforms. In this project, an application of Aspect-Based Sentiment Analy- sis (ABSA) called FakeDetectionGCN is introduced to distinguish genuine feedback

from deceptive content. The idea is to analyze sentiments related to specific aspects (features) within reviews. Graph Convolutional Networks (GCNs) are used to model the complex contextual dependencies in the review texts. Additionally, SenticNet, an external semantic resource, is integrated to enhance the understanding of sentiments in the reviews. This model is capable of identifying both human-generated as …

Emotion Detection Using Ensemble Learning, Priya Harika Yerapothu

Master's Projects

Emotion detection is gaining exponential necessity in today’s technological age. This research seeks to delve into ways conversational AI could be enhanced by integrating emotional intelligence using an ensemble learning approach. Traditional machine learning along with advanced neural network architectures are implemented to improve the understanding and intricacies of emotion detection from textual data. The dataset we use is GoEmotions dataset, annotated with 27 emotional labels, to conduct a detailed analysis of emotion recognition. Various machine learning models, such as HistGradientBoosting, LightGBM, CatBoost, and MLP, will be evaluated side by side with advanced models of Bidirectional Long Short-Term Memory (BiLSTM) …

Multirelational Twitter Bot Detection Using Graph Neural Networks, Ketan Jadhav

Master's Projects

Social media is a key resource in modern human communication as well as for information. Ease of access and global reach is a primary factor to the popularity of several social media platforms like Twitter. Social Media Bots are automated programs which are developed for social engagement. These bots, however, are being used with malicious intent as well, to spread fake news and manipulate the masses. Identification of social media bot accounts has become crucial since social media has become one of the primary sources of news and information for a lot of people. This project aims to propose Multirelation …

Adaptive Bounded-Confidence Model For Opinion Maximization, Jacob Ortiz

Master's Projects

Social networks have become a significant source of information due to their easy accessibility, low cost, and ability to spread information quickly. Opinions are crucial in shaping our communication and decision-making processes, and our social connections significantly influence them. We model opinions as continuous values from 0 to 1, i.e., 0 means strong disagree and 1 means strong agree. Each agent has an initial opinion as well as a confidence about her opinion and through interactions with the other agents both are updated. Opinion maximization has gained popularity due to social media’s growing impact on our daily lives, where we …