Digital Commons Network^™

Leveraging Research-Based Knowledge Translation Via Rural Libraries To Improve Maize Postharvest Practices In Uganda, Jackline Estomihi Kiwelu, Patrick Ngulube

Libraries

Background: Rural community libraries are increasingly recognised for providing localised knowledge, yet their potential to support agricultural extension services and improve access to postharvest knowledge in Uganda remains underexplored.
Objectives: This study examined the postharvest information needs of smallholder maize farmers and explored how community libraries can be leveraged to translate and repackage research-based knowledge to meet these needs.
Method: A mixed-methods parallel design was employed. Data were collected from a survey of 312 maize farmers, personal interviews and two focus group discussions (FGDs) with 22 extension workers and four librarians. Desk research was conducted to analyse relevant documents. Quantitative …

The Nature Of Extremism Within The Rhode Island Department Of Corrections, Robert J. Hehl, Richard Laroche, Riley Guilbeault, Cameron Page

CJC 450 - Criminal Justice and Criminology Capstone

The key judgements in this Capstone Research assessment (CRA) are based on interviews of extremism professionals done through Zoom calls, scholarly articles, and reports. Research conducted by Capstone Research team #1 is current from 2019 through 2025. Interviews were conducted from October 3, 2025, to November 14, 2025. Insights from these interviews proved valuable in providing context, verifying open-source findings, and increasing the overall reliability of the cited information. Continued reporting on this topic will offer further understanding of the likelihood and nature of the identified activities.

Use Of Preference Signals In Family Medicine Residency Recruitment, John E. Snellings, Hanwen Miao, Daniel L. Meyer, Miranda A. Moore

Department of Family and Community Medicine Faculty Publications

Background and Objectives: Increases in graduate medical education application volume led to the introduction of preference signaling—a tool within the Electronic Residency Application Service that allows applicants to signal their sincere interest to a limited number of programs. This study aims to evaluate how family medicine program directors used preference signals during the 2023–2024 recruitment season, the first year this tool was available to family medicine programs. Understanding program director perspectives on preference signal utility is crucial for determining the tool’s impact on the residency selection process.

Methods: Data were collected through the Council of Academic Family Medicine Educational Research …

Prison Labor Exploitation, As Easy As “Pie”: Private Industry Exploitation Under Pie Certified Prison Work Programs, Jack Burum

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Chronic Alcohol Consumption Enhances The Differentiation Capacity Of Hematopoietic Stem And Progenitor Cells Into Osteoclast Precursors, Hami Hemati, Madison B. Blanton, Jude Koura, Rupak Khadka, Kathleen A. Grant, Ilhem Messaoudi

Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics Faculty Publications

Chronic alcohol consumption (CAC) is associated with an enhanced risk of bone fracture, reduced bone density, and osteoporosis. In a rhesus macaque model of voluntary ethanol consumption, CAC induces functional, transcriptomic, and epigenomic changes in hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) and their resultant monocytes/macrophages, skewing them toward a hyper-inflammatory response. In the present study, those studies were extended to investigate alterations in osteoclast development, which, in postnatal life, differentiate from HSPCs and play a critical role in maintaining bone homeostasis. Spectral flow cytometry revealed a skewing of HSPCs toward granulocyte-monocyte progenitors in the CAC group, consistent with an increased …

Chronic Alcohol Consumption Reprograms Osteoclast Lineage Communications To Promote Osteoclastogenesis, Hami Hemati, Brianna M. Doratt, Ilhem Messaoudi

Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics Faculty Publications

Chronic alcohol consumption increases the risk of osteoporosis and fracture by disrupting bone remodeling, in part by enhancing osteoclastogenesis. However, the cellular mechanisms underlying this process remain incompletely defined. We analyzed scRNA-seq data from osteoclasts differentiated in vitro from bone marrow mononuclear cells obtained from macaques following 12 months of chronic ethanol or isocaloric control solution consumption. Module scoring, trajectory inference with generalized additive modeling (tradeSeq), and CellChat-based analyses of intercellular communication were applied to uncover ethanol-induced changes in metabolic reprogramming, lineage progression, and signaling network dynamics. Module scoring indicated metabolic reprogramming toward oxidative phosphorylation, with reduced glycolytic, migratory, and …

Alcohol Consumption Exacerbates High-Fat Diet- Mediated Disruptions In Myelopoiesis And Osteoclastogenesis In Mouse Models Of Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Liver Diseases, Hami Hemati, Madison B. Blanton, Lauren Rutt, Nicholas Keiran, Rebecca Geron, Florence Lima, Rebecca L. Mccullough, Ilhem Messaoudi

Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics Faculty Publications

Objective: Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease (MASLD) and Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Alcohol-related Liver Disease (MetALD) exhibit systemic immune abnormalities. Given that such immune dysregulation is closely linked to the skeletal complications frequently observed in MASLD and MetALD, we sought to comprehensively characterize the bone marrow hematopoietic compartment and its link to osteoclastogenesis.

Methods: We utilized bone marrow from mouse models of MASLD (high-fat diet, HFD) and MetALD (high-fat diet plus ethanol, HFD+EtOH), followed by flow cytometric analysis to phenotype hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs), as well as in vitro and in vivo assays to evaluate osteoclastogenesis.

Results: We found that …

Public Schools: Immigration & Customs Enforcement’S Unconstitutional And Inhumane Hunting Ground, Ma Camille Briones

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Can We Close The Rhode Island Women’S Prison?, Nick Horton

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Baobabs, Networks And Digital Sovereignty: Afro-Brazilian And Indigenous Community Digital Territories As Communitarian Dh, Eduard Arriaga-Arango

Language, Literature, and Culture

Baobáxia is an initiative developed by the Afro-Brazilian network Rede Mocambos that serves as a model of community digital organizing so they can propose data justice, digital sovereignty and autonomy. Baobáxia is a technology that interconnects diverse communities in Brazil (i.e, Quilombos, Indigenous communities and Favelas, among others), and also creates a structure to store, curate and disseminate local knowledge, traditions, histories and representations. This infrastructure demonstrates how non-expert communities can use digital strategies to defend their territory, preserve their cultural production, and affirm their human condition. Throughout this article I discuss how Baobáxia and Rede Mocambos work, as well …

Plea Bargaining In The United States Military, Frank Rosenblatt

Journal Articles

This article offers a primer on plea bargaining in the U.S. military justice system. American military justice is like criminal justice in the rest of the country in that the lion’s share of cases are plea bargained. But there are key differences between military and civilian plea bargaining. First, a central factor of negotiations in military plea bargaining is whether the accused will keep his or her job. Second, the military has a wider range of disposition options than traditional penal sanctions, including nonjudicial punishment and administrative sanctions. Finally, the military seemingly permits more discretion and offers less binding guidance …

The Birth Of Modern International Criminal Law: The International Military Tribunal At Nuremberg, Frank Rosenblatt

Journal Articles

The International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg (IMT), the most famous and arguably most important international criminal trial in human history, almost did not occur. In fact, it might even be an accident of history that the most senior perpetrators of the Nazi regime’s atrocities eventually faced the courtroom instead of summary execution. That their fate was decided by rights over might has shaped the world; helped birth the fields of international criminal law and international human rights law; and become the starting point for conversations about international law, transitional justice, genocide, and human rights.

Outbreak Preparedness And Response In A Globalized World: Are We Ready?, Francesca F. Norman, David Brett-Major, Chiara Sepulcri, Emmanuel Bottieau, Theresa Sepulveda, Federica Toscanini, Laura A. Nicolini, Jesse J. Waggoner, Sami Alcedo, Davidson H. Hamer, Ralph Huits, Michael Libman, Geosentinel Network, Tropnet Network, Kevin O'Laughlin

Journal Articles: Epidemiology

BACKGROUND: Recent global epidemics and pandemics have highlighted the need for adequate diagnostic capacities to respond to emerging threats. Strengthening operational capacities can lead to improved preparation; investing in emergency response infrastructure may diminish progression of outbreaks and prevent escalation.

METHODS: An email-linked survey was sent January-March-2025 to two global infectious disease surveillance networks' (GeoSentinel and TropNet) participating clinics assessing capacity for Oropouche virus (OROV) diagnostic testing. Data on testing capacity for other arboviruses was also requested.

RESULTS: Responses were obtained for 58 GeoSentinel/TropNet sites (58/104, 55.8%): 50% responding sites (29/58) had OROV diagnostic testing available at a public reference …

A Defense Of The Good Samaritan Argument For The Moral Permissibility Of Abortion, Ava Von Pechmann

Pitzer Senior Theses

Judith Jarvis Thomson’s 1971 essay “A Defense of Abortion” is a foundational work in contemporary abortion ethics. It offers a critical analysis of and detailed rebuttal against the argument from a right to life, a prominent anti-abortion argument premised on fetal personhood. Thomson crucially asserts that we may offer a concession to the abortion critic by accepting the premise that a fetus is a person, and still reject the conclusion that abortion is morally impermissible. This is because the right to life does not necessarily entail the right to use another’s body for survival. As such, carrying an unwanted fetus …

“Why Can’T I Do My Homework Without Crying?” Neurodivergence And The Gendered Expectations Of Functioning, Alia Wang

Pitzer Senior Theses

The purpose of this qualitative interview study was to examine the experiences of neurodivergent women and gender-diverse individuals regarding productivity. Neurodivergence is often understood in biological and medical terms; far less attention has been given to how neurodivergent individuals experience and navigate everyday life. Meanwhile, productivity is often framed as a neutral measure of efficiency, but in practice, it is shaped by social norms that shape particular ways of thinking, working, and behaving.

Particularly for women and gender diverse people, these expectations are compounded not only by cognitive differences but also by gendered norms around behavior. This creates a mismatch …

Balancing Face-To-Face And Digital Communication: The Role Of Relationship Maintenance In Dual-Earning Families, Tamara D. Afifi, America L. Edwards

Information Science Faculty Publications

This study examines how face-to-face (FtF) and computer-mediated communication (CMC) contribute to relationship maintenance and resilience in dual-earning families, a largely overlooked area in family communication research. Guided by the theory of resilience and relational load (TRRL), we test how ongoing FtF and CMC maintenance behaviors predicted well-being across a week among 62 families (i.e., two parents and one adolescent). Using a week-long daily diary and physiological measures (cortisol and IL-6 assays), we assess perceived stress, mental health, and loneliness. Findings suggest that both FtF and CMC maintenance are associated with lower stress and better well-being, with FtF showing somewhat …

Buprenorphine Utilization Following Removal Of Prior Authorization Requirements In The Kentucky Medicaid Population, Dustin K. Miracle, Lindsey R. Hammerslag, Svetla Slavova, Michelle R. Lofwall, Sharon L. Walsh, Jeffery Talbert, Patricia R. Freeman

Pharmacy Practice and Science Faculty Publications

Purpose: To evaluate changes in buprenorphine dispensing for treatment of opioid use disorder (OUD) among Kentucky Medicaid enrollees following the removal of prior authorization (PA) requirements for the transmucosal buprenorphine combination product.

Methods: We analyzed Kentucky Medicaid claims from 1/1/2016 through 6/30/2023 to identify enrollees with OUD during each quarter (Q1/2017–Q2/2023), using a 12-month lookback window. Segmented regression analysis was used for statistical modeling of an interrupted time series (ITS) design to assess changes in the quarterly proportion of enrollees with OUD receiving buprenorphine for OUD treatment, focusing on the effect of PA removal. The effective date of the PA …

Contemporary Trends In High-Potency P2y12 Receptor Inhibitor Use Among Patients With Acute Myocardial Infarction Undergoing Percutaneous Coronary Intervention, Ayman R. Fath, Binish Qureshi, Amro Aglan, Osamah Altaee, Hend Mansoor, Ahmed Almomani, Karim Al-Azizi, Marwan Saad, Andrew M. Goldsweig, Hani Jneid, Islam Y. Elgendy

Pharmacy Practice and Science Faculty Publications

Background: High‐potency P2Y12 receptor inhibitors (ticagrelor and prasugrel) reduce ischemic outcomes compared with clopidogrel among patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). This study aims to examine contemporary trends and identify predictors of their use among patients with AMI undergoing PCI in the United States.   Methods: This observational study used electronic health records from >95 US‐based health care organizations. Adults with AMI who underwent PCI between 2016 and 2023 were included. The primary outcome was the prescription of high‐potency P2Y12 receptor inhibitors versus clopidogrel. Multivariable logistic regression was used to identify independent predictors of P2Y12 inhibitor …

Contraceptive Method Provision Patterns Among Rural And Urban Kentucky Medicaid Enrollees, Dustin K. Miracle, Svetla Slavova, Jeffery Talbert, Daniela C. Moga, Patricia R. Freeman

Pharmacy Practice and Science Faculty Publications

Purpose: To characterize contraceptive provision among the Kentucky Medicaid population and assess for rural−urban disparities.

Methods: Kentucky Medicaid claims from the calendar year 2019 were used to identify females at risk for unintended pregnancy (via a modified version of the criteria defined by the US Department of Health and Human Services Office of Population Affairs). Multinomial logistic regression was used to assess the impact of rural−urban residence on contraceptive outcomes, while adjusting for relevant covariates. Outcomes for the multinomial regression model were provision of a: (1) less effective method (i.e., condoms) or no contraceptive; (2) moderately effective method (oral, transdermal, …

Play Without Pain: A Comprehensive Overview About Playing Injuries In Instrumentalists, Emily Hofer

Schultz-Werth Award Papers

Clara Schumann, renowned composer and pianist, writes to Johannes Brahms while on her annual English tour: “I have good news for you in that I am being afforded an enthusiastic reception, people say I have never played so well, etc.; but I am suffering terribly with rheumatism in my arm and finger muscles…I am absolutely exhausted” (Altenmüller & Kopiez 110). Clara had been enduring concert after concert to financially support her family, and though she received high praise for performances, her health was deteriorating because of it. Many musicians like Clara train rigorously, dedicating thousands of hours to master their …

Evaluating The Effects Of Biochar-Based Slow-Release Nitrogen Fertilizers On Camelina Growth And Development In Greenhouse, Lily Geffre

Schultz-Werth Award Papers

The world’s dependence on conventional fertilizers such as urea allows for significantly increased crop yields but has also greatly contributed to the environmental degradation of agricultural lands and surrounding areas. Biochar-based slow-release fertilizers (SRFs) are an ideal alternative to conventional fertilizers, as they enhance nutrient uptake and retention, improve soil properties, and reduce nutrient leaching and volatilization. This study evaluated the effects of biochar-based SRFs, in comparison with traditional non-SRF fertilizers, on the vegetative growth, physiological growth, and yield of Camelina sativa under greenhouse conditions. Conventional urea yielded the best overall crop results, but a coated biochar-based urea SRF achieved …

Prevalence, Perception, And Prevention: Tobacco And Nicotine Use Amongst Middle And High School Students, Samantha Fischer

Schultz-Werth Award Papers

This study examines data from a survey conducted with South Dakota middle and high school principals about tobacco and nicotine use on school grounds and school district tobacco policies. The project was implemented through the South Dakota State University Population Health Evaluation Center and was sponsored by the South Dakota Department of Health Tobacco Control Program. Over 1.58 million high school students and 640,000 middle school students reported using some type of tobacco product in a 2024 report (United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), 2024). Of the middle and high school students who previously used tobacco products sometime in …

Spanish Speakers And Healthcare: Experiences And Perceptions, Ainsley Boucher

Schultz-Werth Award Papers

The Spanish-speaking population in the United States is large and diverse. As such, individual perceptions regarding healthcare access and quality held by native Spanish speakers vary widely. In order to provide insight into local healthcare access, a customized survey was developed and distributed to a workplace in the Brookings area. Responses varied considerably, reflecting a diversity of experiences and perceptions. Determinants such as language barriers, occupational health risks, and various socioeconomic factors may affect healthcare access and quality for native Spanish speakers in the United States.

The Dietary Burden Of Phosphorus And Aluminum In Ready-To-Eat Wheat Flour Tortillas Exceeds That Of Corn Tortillas: Implications For Patients With Chronic Kidney Disease, Kate Chander Chiang, Robert Yokel, Jason M. Unrine, Kamyar Kalantar-Zadeh, Ajay Gupta

Pharmaceutical Sciences Faculty Publications

Background: Ready-to-eat, shelf-stable tortillas contain several phosphorus- and aluminum-containing additives that may increase the risk of adverse events in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD).

Objective: The present study aimed to measure the dietary aluminum and phosphorus burden in store-bought corn and wheat flour tortillas. Design: This cross-sectional study analyzed the elemental content of commercially available corn and wheat flour tortillas collected from 2019 to 2020.

Setting: Twenty-one elements were quantified by ICP-MS and ICP-OES from 14 corn and 13 wheat flour tortilla brands purchased from local supermarkets in Southern California in 2019–2020.

Statistical analyses performed: Multiple group comparisons were …

Altered Bile Acid Transport In Liver Disease, Sarah Cayton, Lindsay C. Czuba

Pharmaceutical Sciences Faculty Publications

Background/Objectives: Bile acids, synthesized from cholesterol in the liver, are amphipathic molecules that play an integral role in lipid digestion and absorption, while also serving as systemic endocrine hormones. They continuously undergo enterohepatic circulation, where they interact with various transporter proteins. Dysregulated bile acid transport is associated with the pathogenesis of liver disease. This review summarizes the key findings relating to bile acid transport expression and activity in the pathogenesis of liver disease.

Methods: A review of the literature was performed using PubMed and relevant terms including, but not limited to, “bile acid transporters”, “liver disease”, and “bile acid uptake …

Chronic Alcohol Consumption Disrupts The Gut Microbial And Metabolic Landscapes, Madison B. Blanton, Ethan G. Napier, Katelyn E. Keen, Ethan V. Stuart, Isaac R. Cinco, Hami Hemati, Ronald C. Bruntz, Landon Wilson, Stephen Barnes, Rupak Khadka, Kathleen A. Grant, Ilhem Messaoudi

Pharmaceutical Sciences Faculty Publications

Introduction: Alcohol use disorder (AUD) increases incidence of infections, organ damage, and cancers. Aberrant inflammation is likely a driver of these adverse outcomes. Indeed, chronic alcohol consumption (CAC) rewires macrophages/monocytes toward a hyper-inflammatory phenotype. Prior studies showed increased gut permeability and dysbiosis. Translocation of host- and microbial-derived metabolites could trigger the hyper-inflammatory responses generated by macrophages/monocytes. However, the exact changes in these metabolites remain poorly defined due to confounders that complicate clinical studies and the differences between human and rodent gut microbiomes.

Methods: Here, we utilized a non-human primate model of ethanol self-administration to characterize alcohol-induced alterations in gut microbes …

Infantile Epileptic Spasms Syndrome: Clinical Profile And Outcomes At A Tertiary Hospital In Kenya, Peninah Mwangi, Katherine Oyieke, Sam Gwer, Pauline Samia

Paediatrics and Child Health, East Africa

Background: Infantile epileptic spasms syndrome (IESS) is characterised by onset of epileptic spasms between 3 and 12 months, with or without typical hypsarrhythmia, and developmental stagnation or regression. There are limited data on the clinical profile and treatment outcomes of IESS in sub-Saharan Africa.

Objective: To describe the clinical profile and treatment outcomes of infants diagnosed with and managed for IESS at Aga Khan University Hospital, Nairobi.

Methods: Records of children aged 3–24 months diagnosed with IESS between January 2012 and December 2021 were identified from the hospital information system using the terms “infantile spasm”, “epileptic spasms”, …

Beyond Fixed Thresholds: Per-Label Calibration For Fine-Grained Emotion Detection On The Goemotions Dataset, Sai Puneet Naga Venkata Subramanyam Patchipulusu

Selected Full-Text Master Theses 2021-

This study investigates the effectiveness of five community fine-tuned transformer models for fine-grained emotion detection on the GoEmotions dataset: SamLowe/roberta- base-go_emotions (RoBERTa-base), cirimus/modernbert-base-go-emotions (ModernBERT), mrm8488/deberta-v3-base-goemotions (DeBERTa-v3-base), bhadresh-savani/bert-base-go- emotion (BERT-base-cased),and tasinhoque/distilbert-go-emotions (DistilBERT) . While the original GoEmotions research by Demszky et al. (2020) established a BERT-base baseline with a macro-F1 of 0.46, this thesis extends that work through independent empirical evaluation of five derivative models, systematic per-label threshold optimization, and comparative analysis of architectural trade-offs across the full transformer model family. Using the GoEmotions simplified test split (5,427 examples across 28 categories), all five models were evaluated at a fixed 0.5 …

Establishing A Public Health Surveillance System For The Opioid Crisis: The Experience Of The Healing Communities Study, Bridget Freisthler, Daniel J. Feaster, Charles Knott, Marc Larochelle, John Mccarthy, Svetla Slavova, Sharon L. Walsh, Jennifer Villani

Biostatistics Faculty Publications

Introduction: Efforts to reduce opioid overdose deaths in the United States have been stymied by the lack of timely and standardized population-level data for local, state, and national levels. The U.S. has a strong national need for linking opioid and other drug overdose surveillance data to service utilization data for overdose prevention and treatment to inform resource allocation and response planning.

Methods: We provide insight on the challenges of identifying, obtaining, and harmonizing administrative outcome data across four states using the collective experience from the HEALing Communities Study to test a community-engaged, data-driven, population-level intervention to reduce opioid overdose deaths. …

Pediatric Clinical Reasoning Labs’ Impact On Student Self-Efficacy In Pediatric Physical Therapy Education, Bethany Early

Dissertations

All graduates of entry-level Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) programs must be competent to work with patients across the lifespan and high levels of perceived self-efficacy (SE) may be a predictor of future success. Experiential learning is an effective teaching and learning strategy used within Pediatric PT education (PedPTE). This study examined the extent to which pediatric clinical reasoning labs impact student SE within PedPTE, and to what extent does previous experience or interest in pediatrics have on perceived SE.

The methodology was a sequential explanatory mixed methods research design. Quantitative data collection included 27 second year DPT students, utilizing …