Digital Commons Network^™

Exercise Science Pre-At, Kinesiology, Sport, And Recreation

Program Revisions/Additions

No abstract provided.

Computer Science Bs, Mathematics And Computer Science

Program Revisions/Additions

No abstract provided.

Fashion Merchandising, Art + Design

Program Revisions/Additions

No abstract provided.

Modeling The Development Of Keyhole Passage Morphology, Charlotte Boehme

2026 Research Poster Competition

Cave passage morphology is an important indicator of the hydrological conditions under which a cave passage was formed. Keyhole passages are a commonly occurring type of passage morphology that consists of a round, wide top with a smaller canyon incised in the bottom of the passage. These passages typically indicate a shift from fully water-filled to partially water-filled conditions. There are multiple mechanisms by which such a transition can occur, and little is understood about which of these mechanisms is most common, or whether aspects of keyhole passage morphology may indicate the primary formation mechanism. CaveCHAMP is a physically based …

Optimizing Microscale Tesla Valve Design For Enhanced Efficiency For Filtering And Sorting Bacteria, Brian Ewalt

2026 Research Poster Competition

Invented by Nikola Tesla in 1920, a Tesla valve is a passive check valve with no moving parts but showing diodicity for fluids (i.e., allowing fluids to flow easily in one direction but not in the other). Tesla valves have demonstrated remarkable versatility across a range of scientific fields. Recently, a study conducted at the University of Arkansas showed that these conduits exhibited diodicity for bacteria in the absence of fluid flows (Rogers et al. 2023), serving as proof of concept for applying microscale Tesla valves for filtering and sorting bacteria and microorganisms in biomedical settings. However, the design of …

Chronostratigraphy Using Stable Carbon Isotopes Of The Elliot Formation, South Africa, Aidan Del Pino

2026 Research Poster Competition

The Elliot Formation in South Africa preserves a fossil-bearing record spanning the Late Triassic–Early Jurassic, a time marked by significant environmental changes related to the Central Atlantic Magmatic Province (CAMP) and the end-Triassic extinction event. Despite its importance, the Elliot Formation remains poorly constrained due to limited chronostratigraphic markers. Chronostratigraphy is the branch of geology that correlates and dates rock units in time, allowing researchers to arrange these rock units into a chronological sequence. Globally, the Triassic–Jurassic boundary is characterized by a pronounced negative carbon isotope excursion linked to CAMP volcanism and the end Triassic extinction event. This C-isotope excursion …

Temporal Variational Graph Autoencoder For Influenza Evolution, Soumya Chauhan

2026 Research Poster Competition

Frequent mutations in influenza virus surface proteins can increase infectivity while evading human and vaccine immunity, causing seasonal epidemics. The CDC annually evaluates thousands of virus strains to predict mutated sequences likely to be dominant in the next season, which creates a need for methods that better capture how viral mutations evolve over time. In this study, we represent influenza protein sequences as a network-like graph, creating connections if sequences are collected a week apart and only differ by one mutation. This method explicitly considers time information as part of the evolution, while other existing methods analyze mutated sequences without …

Stream Education: How It Can Enrich The Expansion Of Social-Emotional Learning., Madalyn Menke

2026 Research Poster Competition

This research project investigates the implementation of a STREAM Education curriculum – integrating science, technology, reading/writing, engineering, arts/humanities, and mathematics, with a group of fourteen elementary-aged students. The study explores how the intentional inclusion of Reading and the Arts within a traditional STEM framework - guided by the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL framework - can enrich students’ social-emotional wellbeing and engagement in learning. In partnership with SOAR Afterschool Care, an eight-week instructional project was implemented in which students read What Do You Do with an Idea? by Kobi Yamada as a central text. The book served …

Uav-Based Sensor Integration For In-Situ Lake Water Quality Monitoring, Alec Campbell

2026 Research Poster Competition

Current water quality assessment methods rely heavily on manual sampling and laboratory analysis, which are time-consuming and difficult to perform in remote or hazardous environments. In surface water monitoring, spatial and temporal resolution is often constrained by labor, access, and logistical limitations of manual sampling programs. This research aims to develop a drone-based system for real-time, in situ lake water quality monitoring. To address these challenges, the project focuses on integrating multiple water quality sensors, including oxidation-reduction potential (ORP), pH, electrical conductivity (EC), turbidity, and a multispectral spectrometer, into a compact, UAV-compatible design capable of collecting spatially referenced data. Methods: …

Flair- Flow-Level Anomaly Intrustion Recognition, Joseph Dumond

2026 Research Poster Competition

Industrial control systems (ICS) and industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) networks support critical infrastructure such as power generation, water treatment, and manufacturing. As these systems become more connected, they are increasingly exposed to cyber threats. However, many existing intrusion detection approaches rely on detailed packet inspection or supervised machine learning techniques that require labeled attack data and extensive tuning, making them difficult to deploy in real industrial environments.ICS networks typically generate highly regular and predictable communication patterns due to periodic control logic and deterministic device behavior. Because of this structure, abnormal or malicious activity often appears as a disruption to …

When Relevant Isn’T Readable: Evaluating Cognitive Accessibility In Search, Kaija Frierson

2026 Research Poster Competition

According to the World Health Organization, more than one billion people worldwide experience some form of disability. Many of them may affect cognitive processing and reading comprehension rather than vision or mobility, which creates barriers when accessing written information online. Web search is a critical modern literacy skill used for learning, decision-making, and everyday problem solving, yet most search systems are designed with the assumption that all users can process complex written language equally. As a result, people with dyslexia, other cognitive disabilities, low literacy levels, or who are English language learners may struggle to access relevant information even when …

P4 Driven Data Plane Analytics For Industrial Control Network Security, Haden Fowler

2026 Research Poster Competition

Industrial control systems manage critical infrastructure such as power grids, water treatment plants, and manufacturing facilities. These systems rely on specialized network protocols to send measurements and commands between sensors, controllers, and operator workstations. Protecting these networks from cyberattacks is essential because a successful intrusion could disrupt services that millions of people depend on daily. Most current security monitoring approaches analyze copies of network traffic after it has already passed through the system. This delay means that malicious commands may reach their targets before any alarm is raised. More importantly, when alerts do occur, operators often lack the evidence needed …

Solidfit: A Decentralized Mobile Health-Tracking App Using Personal Online Data Stores (Pods), Evan Meyers

2026 Research Poster Competition

Personal fitness data is increasingly collected through mobile applications, yet most current systems store this information in centralized platforms that limit user control, long-term ownership, and data portability. This project addresses the question of whether a decentralized data model can be used to support everyday fitness tracking while preserving user autonomy and privacy. As individuals become more aware of how their health data is collected and shared, there is a growing need for systems that allow users to retain ownership of their personal information without sacrificing usability or functionality.This research presents SolidFit, an Android-based fitness tracking application designed around the …

A Bayesian Late-Fusion Supportability Framework For Rare-Disease Severity Prediction In Glut1 Deficiency Syndrome, Jordan M. Rodriguez

Mathematics Dissertations

Glucose transporter type 1 deficiency syndrome (GLUT1-DS) is a rare neurometabolic disorder with heterogeneous neurological and developmental severity. Because patient-level severity is not observed as a single validated outcome, this dissertation develops a Bayesian late-fusion supportability framework for constructing and predicting an ordered latent severity phenotype from clinical, genetic, and EEG-derived evidence. The primary target was constructed in a larger clinical cohort using age-5 symptom burden and learning cognition, then assigned to an aligned multimodal prediction cohort. Target-defining variables were excluded from supervised predictors, and models were evaluated using patient-exclusive cross-validation with training-fold preprocessing and fold-wise EEG PCA.

The primary …

Comparative Evaluation Of Hplc And Capillary Electrophoresis In Intestinal Permeability Of Oseltamivir Phosphate Via Single-Pass Intestinal Perfusion (Spip) Method, Senem Şanli, Gülpembe Halay, Mustafa Sinan Kaynak, Nurullah Şanlı

Arts & Sciences Faculty Publications

Introduction: Oseltamivir phosphate (OP), a widely used antiviral prodrug for influenza, requires accurate Biopharmaceutics Classification System (BCS) classification to inform formulation and bioequivalence decisions. Despite its high solubility, the permeability characteristics of OP remain inadequately defined. Methods: This study evaluated the intestinal permeability of OP using the in situ Single-Pass Intestinal Perfusion (SPIP) model in male Sprague Dawley rats. Two validated analytical methods - High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) and Capillary Zone Electrophoresis (CZE) were developed and compared. Metoprolol tartrate served as the high-permeability reference standard, and phenol red was used to monitor water flux. Permeability coefficients (Peff) were calculated after …

Stuck In The Middle?: A Design Project To Support Do Not Qualify (Dnq) And Other Struggling Students At The Elementary Level, Steven T. Hartnett, Kevin M. Parkinson, Whitney M. Wayman

Doctor of Education Capstones

This dissertation in practice is designed to support New Kent County Public Schools, which noticed an increase in students being referred for special education services without a concomitant increase in students being found eligible for such services. Systems mapping revealed a root cause of this discrepancy is that the division lacked a comprehensive intervention plan consistently implemented, and - as a result - some students were referred for special education services not due to the presence of a potential learning disability, but merely for lack of other available options. Using tenets from design thinking and design-based research, the project co-created …

Seeing The Invisible Load: Xr+ Multimodal Sensing For Cognitive Ergonomics In Industrial Training, Jessica M. Johnson, Andwele Grant

Virginia Digital Maritime Center (VDMC) Faculty Publications

Extended reality (XR) technologies are increasingly positioned as disruptive Industry 5.0 tools for human-centric industrial training and intelligent human–system integration. Coupled with multimodal sensing (eye tracking, EEG, HRV, GSR, and other physiological signals), XR environments promise to make otherwise invisible cognitive demands observable, especially for novice trainees entering complex industrial settings. Yet the evidence base is fragmented: (1) there is no quantitative synthesis of the cognitive ergonomics benefits of XR plus sensing; (2) little is known about which XR–sensor configurations yield the strongest effects; (3) prior reviews rarely focus on industrial and manufacturing tasks; (4) multimodal signals are used predominantly …

Make It Maritime: A Simulation-Based Engineering Design Challenge Using Multimodal Technologies, Jessica M. Johnson, Jennifer Renne, Jason Dudley

Virginia Digital Maritime Center (VDMC) Faculty Publications

This paper presents The Incredible Bulk, a multimodal, simulation-based engineering challenge that introduces Grades 4–12 to maritime careers and digital transformation. Students assume the roles of different maritime careers to assemble aircraft carrier bulkhead systems using: VR for spatial orientation and task preview; a 3D model as visual work instruction; paper blueprints for part identification and dimensioning; 3D-printed components for hands-on assembly; and an AR app for quality assurance/inspection. Grounded in constructionism and cognitive apprenticeship, the plan–build–inspect loop externalizes thinking and situates coached, authentic practice that advances engineering design, systems thinking, and technological literacy.

Propensity Score Matching Accounting For Longitudinal Trends Before Baseline With Group-Based Trajectory Modeling, Dustin R. Bastaich

Theses and Dissertations

Propensity score matching is used in observational studies to balance baseline attributes between a treatment of interest and a control group. Propensity score matching typically relies on baseline variables, but longitudinal trends in patient characteristics can also influence treatment decisions and subsequent health outcomes. This dissertation extends standard approaches by explicitly incorporating longitudinal trajectories of key variables into the propensity score estimation process.

Trends in a longitudinal variable prior to baseline were characterized using group-based trajectory modeling. A two-step modeling approach was implemented where trajectory groups of a key variable were first estimated and then included as covariates in the …

What Is School For? Interpreting Purpose And Practice In A Microschool Case Study, Cammie D. Justus-Smith

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines how one microschool interprets and enacts the purposes of schooling through a qualitative case study of Summit School, an Acton Academy affiliate in a mid-sized Southern city. Situated within broader debates about school choice and alternative education, the study explores how Summit’s vision, structures, and participant experiences illuminate enduring tensions in schooling: civic versus economic aims, public good versus private benefit, and innovation versus institutional continuity. Drawing on interviews, focus groups, observations, and school documents, the study treats Summit not as representative of microschools broadly, but as a bounded case through which larger questions about educational purpose …

Identifying Mobility Hub Suitability In The Mid-Sized United States Urban Area Using Weighted Overlay And Percentile Based Local Peak Analysis, Eric Asplund

Theses and Dissertations

IDENTIFYING MOBILITY HUB SUITABILITY IN THE MID-SIZED UNITED STATES URBAN AREA USING WEIGHTED OVERLAY AND PERCENTILE‑BASED LOCAL PEAK ANALYSIS

By Eric Asplund

A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Urban and Regional Planning at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Virginia Commonwealth University, 2026.

Major Director: Dr. Ivan Suen, Ph. D., Associate Professor, Faculty of Urban and Regional Studies and Planning

Shared mobility hubs are increasingly posited in transportation planning as interventions supporting multimodality, sustainability, and equitable access, but guidance on evaluation of potential hub locations remains uneven, particularly in mid-sized United States cities where …

Environmental Monitoring In Shallow Lakes: Public Health Threats In Urban Waters, Kyleigh E. Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

Lakes are an integral part of urban and suburban communities, providing ecological, recreational, and public health benefits. Many of these lakes are located in densely populated areas and are subject to urban influences on water quality. Algal toxins and Escherichia coli are two common recreational concerns. Algal toxins come from harmful algal blooms that are influenced by nutrient availability and temperature, while bacteria are often introduced through run-off and animal waste. Sampling every 3-4 weeks from May-October 2025 allowed for the assessment of seasonal patterns and site-specific differences across nine lakes in the Richmond area. The highest bacterial concentrations appeared …

Mathematical Models With Clinical Applications For Improving Health Outcomes, Helen Harris

Theses and Dissertations

In clinical settings, patients are exposed to many risks and stressors that could result in adverse health outcomes. Here we present mathematical models that seek to address these risks. First, we present a Markov Chain model to investigate the effect of medication reconciliation (MR) completion on patient health outcomes in the intensive care unit. Using this model, we simulate the annual incidence of adverse drug events (ADEs) for three different ADE rates. Based on the simulated results, we conduct a cost-benefit analysis for various levels of compliance to determine the financial implications of increasing MR completion depending on the baseline …

Absolute Quantification And Identification Of Rna From Rna-Lipid Nanoparticles Using High Resolution Mass Spectrometry, Jason C. Funderburk

Theses and Dissertations

RNA therapeutics are a rising drug category with potential use for a range of conditions encompassing infectious diseases to therapies for cancer, diseases, and genetic disorders. RNA-lipid nanoparticles (RNA-LNPs) are the prominent delivery method for these therapeutics approved products include mRNA vaccines and polyneuropathy treatments. The emergency use authorizations and orphan drug status of current RNA-LNP drugs has allowed approval without finalization of the regulatory analytical procedures for quality monitoring. The objective of the study was to develop an LC-MS assay to simultaneously measure identity and concentration of two therapeutically relevant intact RNA constructs extracted from RNA-LNPs to enhance quality …

Re-Sense, Nneoma Njoku

Theses and Dissertations

Re-Sense examines artist’s books as perceptual tools capable of reshaping how readers encounter history, memory, and archival absence. Beginning with the idea that books teach us how to know and how to see, the text argues that conventional book structures often reinforce Western knowledge systems through overemphasis of linearity, coherence, and containment. In contrast, artist’s books' experimental structures support novel modes of knowing and relation to ourselves and the world of humans and non-humans. The author describes this process of exhuming perception from Western constraints as re-sensing.

Through re-sensing, the historical past becomes less like a fixed record and more …

A Framework For Digital Energy Modulation And Translation In Projectional X-Ray Imaging, Richard R. Wargo

Theses and Dissertations

In projectional X-ray imaging, acquisition energy fundamentally influences subject contrast, image noise, and radiation dose. While dual-energy techniques exploit spectral differences to optimize contrast and enable material separation, acquiring multiple images of the same anatomy often requires additional exposures and increased system complexity.

This dissertation presents a framework for digital energy modulation (DEM), in which computational models are trained to translate projection images between energy domains without requiring additional X-ray acquisitions. DEM is conceived as a generalizable strategy for controlled contrast modulation in projection imaging, with potential applications in image optimization, radiation therapy alignment, and dual-energy applications.

The framework was …

Proof Of Recovery: A Model To Enhance Data Integrity In Data Management Systems, Gustaf Barkstrom

Theses and Dissertations

Businesses lose millions of dollars every year when they can’t restore data from backups. Research shows that Disaster Recovery Plan (DRP) testing is not conducted frequently enough, nor are records maintained that demonstrate full data recovery from backups. This work introduces a design science artifact called PRTOK that aims to increase DRP testing. The design science artifact is a software solution that integrates with Data Management Systems (DMS)

such as iRODS and DSpace, and can work with formats such as HDF5 and BagIt. Proof-of- recovery records, or tokens, are recorded in a replicated, resilient, and indelible proof-of- authority blockchain data …

Follow The Cyclists: Everyday Navigation Of Richmond's Bike Infrastructure, Emily E. Schreer

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the embodied experience of cycling in Richmond, emphasizing the importance of centering firsthand, lived experience in cycling research and urban planning. While traditional transportation planning can often myopically prioritize efficiency and safety metrics to evaluate infrastructure, this project argues that such approaches overlook essential experiential, sensory, and emotional dimensions of cycling that determine how infrastructure is perceived, used, and ultimately succeeds or fails.

Through an ethnographic approach combining field observation of cyclist behavior and mental mapping sessions with Richmond cyclists, this study positions people who bike in Richmond as expert knowledge holders. Participant contributions, combined with observations …

Nanomagnet Based Straintronic Devices For Unconventional Computing: Simulation And Performance Analysis, Rahnuma Rahman

Theses and Dissertations

Nanomagnetic devices are of great interest in digital hardware because of their non-volatility and dynamic ability to change magnetization but suffer from high switching error rates and temperature sensitivity. Magnetostrictive nanomagnets that utilize strain to switch between stable magnetization states encoding bit information are of interest since they are extremely energy efficient as piezoelectric layers can be used to rotate magnetization that have switching energies in the range of attojoules. Their stochasticity can also be useful in probabilistic, analog, neuromorphic, and collective computing systems, where occasional switching errors are not devastating. The dissertation extends spintronics beyond conventional computing schemes by …

Exploring, Understanding, And Supporting Academic Help-Seeking In Context, Molly L. Taylor

Theses and Dissertations

Conceptualized as a self-regulated learning (SRL) strategy, academic help-seeking is a fascinating behavior because it is self-directed while also reliant on social interactions with help-givers (Karabenick, 2004). What is known about help-seeking in academic settings largely revolves around individual traits, strategies, motivations, beliefs, and identities, and how each of these constructs influence help-seeking outcomes (Bornschlegl et al., 2020; Fong et al., 2023; Karabenick & Gonida, 2018). What is underexplored in these areas, however, is how features of the learning context interact with student-level factors to shape academic help-seeking behaviors and beliefs. This dissertation attempts to address some of these gaps …