Digital Commons Network^™

Small Language Model Jailbreak Defender Framework, Eduardo Alberto Castro Puello

CCAC Theses and Dissertations

Small Language Models (SLMs) are increasingly deployed in enterprise, edge, and domain‑specialized applications due to their lower computational cost and latency compared to Large Language Models (LLMs). However, SLMs typically exhibit weaker safety alignment and are disproportionately vulnerable to jailbreak, prompt‑injection, and fine‑tuning attacks that can erode refusal behavior and enable unsafe outputs. Existing defensive techniques such as rule‑based filtering or heavy safety fine‑tuning often degrade task performance or introduce excessive over‑refusal, limiting the safe adoption of SLMs in regulated or security‑sensitive environments. This dissertation proposes the design and empirical evaluation of a modular security alignment framework for fine‑tuned SLMs …

Enoch’S Measuring, Counting, Weighing, And Balancing Creation In 2 Enoch, Andrei Orlov

Theology Faculty Research and Publications

In recent years one can see increased scholarly attention to the epistemological dimension of early Jewish apocalyptic writings and, in particular, to the ways by which divine knowledge was harvested and cultivated by the protagonists and antagonists of those early Jewish accounts. The early Enochic booklets have traditionally played a central role in these epistemological probes since they contain the earliest descriptions of the transmission and acquisition of divine knowledge in Jewish apocalypticism.  These accounts deal both with revelations unveiled by God and angels to the patriarch Enoch and with illicit transmission of divine knowledge by the rogue group of …

A Neo-Kuyperian Approach To Mathematics, Calvin Jongsma, Kevin Vander Meulen

Faculty Work Comprehensive List

This chapter develops a Reformational perspective on the discipline of mathematics that stems from the seminal ideas of Kuyper, Dooyeweerd, Wolters, Clouser, and others. The implications of the Biblical motif of Creation-Fall-Redemption is explored for the task of Christian scholarship in general and for the field of mathematics in particular, drawing upon relevant developments in the history and philosophy of mathematics.

Neuromuscular Adaptations Following Eight Weeks Of French Contrast Training In Elite Youth Football Players: Implications For Athletic Performance, Okan Demir, Tolga Altug, Christopher B. Taber, Mehmet Bayansalduz

Exercise Science Faculty Publications

Neuromuscular training is increasingly recognised for enhancing football performance and athletes’ capacity to tolerate the repetitive high-intensity demands of match play. The French Contrast Method (FCM) combines heavy resistance, plyometric, and ballistic exercises within a post-activation performance enhancement framework, yet evidence in elite youth players during the competitive season remains limited. This study examined the effects of an eight-week in-season FCM program on reactive strength, neuromuscular performance, maximal strength, anaerobic performance, and short-distance sprint ability. Twenty-eight elite male youth football players were randomly assigned to an experimental group (FCM plus regular football training; n = 14) or a control group …

Associations Of Blood Pressure Level And Variability With Cortical Thickness: A Cross-Sectional Analysis From The Maracaibo Aging Study, Romeo De Leon, Shana Garza, Silvia Mejia-Arango, Kristina Vatcheva, Sokratis Charisis, Claudia L. Satizabal, Luis J. Mena, Joseph H. Lee, Joseph D. Terwilliger, Eron Manusov

School of Medicine Publications

Background: Although high blood pressure (BP) level and variability are associated with Alzheimer's Disease (AD), their relationship with cortical thickness in brain regions that are associated with AD is unclear. Furthermore, the role of 24-hour BP has not been examined. We investigated the associations of office and ambulatory BP measures with cortical thickness in brain regions implicated in AD.

Methods: We performed a cross sectional analysis of 304 participants without dementia from a population-based study with office and 24-hour BP and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data. We considered cortical thickness values derived from 10 regions throughout the frontal, parietal, and …

Reduced Threat-Related Neural Efficiency: A Possible Biomarker For Pediatric Anxiety Disorders, Julia O. Linke, Reut Naim, Simona P. Haller, Parmis Khosravi, Beck Scheinberg, Meghan E. Byrne, Anita Harrewijn, Ellen Leibenluft, Melissa A. Brotman, Anderson M. Winkler, Daniel Samuel Pine

School of Medicine Publications

Objective: Pediatric anxiety disorders are common and predict adult psychopathology, yet current treatments, such as cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), produce lasting remission in less than 50% of affected youths. To support the search for improved, mechanistically grounded interventions, this study evaluated neural efficiency, defined as similarity in functional connectivity between a threat task and rest, as a potential biomarker. The study evaluated neural efficiency in relation to anxiety diagnosis and treatment response.

Methods: The authors compared 103 youths with an anxiety disorder diagnosis (mean age, 12.5 years [SD=2.91], 62% female) to 103 youths with no psychiatric diagnosis (mean age, 13.4 years …