Digital Commons Network^™

Stories To Empower Our Communities: Promoting Diverse Lgbtqia+ Narratives In Picture Book Collections, Amanda Melilli, Alicia G. Vaandering, James W. Rosenzweig

Library Faculty Presentations

Do you want to move past marking that diversity checkbox and take your LGBTQIA+ collection development to the next level? As seen through the work of Diverse BookFinder, how historically underrepresented identities are portrayed in our collections is just as important as increasing the number of books depicting these identities. This presentation moves beyond asking if there is LGBTQIA+ representation in recently published picture books and instead explores the more complex questions of who is being represented, in what ways, to what extent, and why each type of narrative is important to children and their families. Join us to gain …

Title Ix Vs. Ncaa: A Gameplan For Championship Equity, Leigh E. Friestedt

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

In 1972, Congress enacted Title IX of the Education Amendments Act (Title IX) to prohibit sex-based discrimination in “any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.” While the original legislation did not stipulate “athletics,” Title IX has had a profound impact on intercollegiate sports by expanding the athletic opportunities for women as a covered “program or activity.” However, fifty years after the enactment of Title IX, there are still significant disparities between men’s and women’s intercollegiate athletics, most notably at the high-profile National College Athletics Association (NCAA or Association) Championships.

In 2021, the NCAA hosted the men’s and women’s …

2023-June-01-Bucs On Parade, University Marketing And Communication, East Tennessee State University

ETSU News

Confetti, cheers, and a surprise announcement topped off a historic season for the ETSU Marching Bucs.

On April 6, the campus community was invited to gather in the D.P. Culp Student Center for a “special recognition” of the marching band. With the largest band in ETSU history, it had been a memorable year and one worth celebrating. However, the students, faculty, and staff had no idea that a special guest had flown in to deliver important news.

“It is with great pleasure that I announce today that for the first time in this school’s history, the East Tennessee State …

2023-June-01-Etsu Alum's Nonprofit Raises Over $1.5 Million For Humanitarian Aid, University Marketing And Communication, East Tennessee State University

ETSU News

Imagine coming to a country thousands of miles from your home, leaving your family and loved ones behind – only to one day wake up to find them and millions of others in the middle of a war zone. That is the reality East Tennessee State University alumnus Yaroslav (Yaro) Hnatusko lives every day. Yaroslav (Yaro) Hnatusko

Combined with the love for his homeland and the skills Hnatusko honed at ETSU, he and his brother co-founded Restore Ukraine —a nonprofit organization aimed at providing essential humanitarian aid to those affected by the crisis in Ukraine. When war broke out in …

Optimal Power Sharing Speed Compensation In On-Road Wireless Ev Charging Systems, Donovin Lewis, Omer Onar, Veda Prakash Galigekere, Mostak Mohammad, Dan Ionel

Electrical and Computer Engineering Graduate Research

Dynamic wireless charging of electric vehicles (EV) is an emerging technology with the potential to address range anxiety and reduce the size of batteries or provide charge sustaining operation. Charging demand for dynamic wireless charging systems (DWCS) varies greatly in response to location specific traffic behaviors including the number and speed of vehicles. This paper highlights the potential reduction of load variation with speed compensation and simulates opportunities to maximize the number of cars charged concurrently through ”power sharing” or altering power output to slower cars while maintaining a maximum delivered energy. An improved sub- minute model for synthetic traffic …

Merging Multiple Existing Geotechnical Databases, Charlie Sun, Brad Rister, Eileen Grady

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

This report discusses a project undertaken by Kentucky Transportation Center (KTC) researchers to create a comprehensive geotechnical database for highway planning, design, maintenance, and repair. The project consolidated multiple geotechnical data sources into a unified database accessible to Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) staff, enabling informed decision making and improving project outcomes. Databases were merged with great attention to detail, ensuring data integrity and coherence. A geotechnical data collector app developed as part of the project supports convenient and efficient data collection in the field, even when phones or tablets lack network connectivity. A rockfall rating app and landslide hazard rating …

A Duty To Impeach: Libel And Modern Liberalism After Dobbs, Matthew L. Schafer

Missouri Law Review

The conservative legal establishment is waging war on modern liberalism with Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization marking its most recent victory. Against this backdrop, this Article contends that attacks from the right on New York Times Co. v. Sullivan—the Court’s defining First Amendment decision that places political speech at the center of free speech doctrine—are motivated not by bona fide doctrinal disagreements but rather the cynical belief that the specter of defamation liability unrestrained by Sullivan will silence political opponents and, in turn, hasten the end of modern liberalism. So while the battle over Sullivan may not have the …

Untangling Defamation Law: Guideposts For Reform, Lyrissa Lidsky

Missouri Law Review

This article, which is based on a keynote address given at the 2023 Missouri Law Review Symposium, addresses the past and predicted future of defamation law in hopes of galvanizing needed reforms. As a necessary backdrop, this article explains why today’s defamation law remains so complex, tracks reforms over the last half century, and explains why the common law of defamation has not adapted adequately to the challenges posed by cheap speech in the digital era. The article then turns to assessing the complaints of defamation law’s most prominent would-be reformers and finds them to rest on an incomplete understanding …

Co-Simulation Of Electric Power Distribution Systems And Buildings Including Ultra-Fast Hvac Models And Optimal Der Control, Evan S. Jones, Rosemary E. Alden, Huangjie Gong, Dan M. Ionel

Electrical and Computer Engineering Graduate Research

Smart homes and virtual power plant (VPP) controls are growing fields of research with potential for improved electric power grid operation. A novel testbed for co-simulation of electric power distribution systems and distributed energy resources (DERs), is employed to evaluate VPP scenarios and propose an optimization procedure. DERs of specific interest include behind-the-meter (BTM) solar photovoltaic (PV) systems as well as heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems. Simulation of HVAC systems is enabled by a machine learning procedure that produces ultra-fast models for electric power and indoor temperature of associated buildings that are up to 133 times faster than typical …

Social Media In The Corporate World, Linelle C. Lestrade

Student Theses and Dissertations

This study focuses on the rise of corporate brands on social media and the resulting identity issues. Four marketing and PR professionals were interviewed for this study utilizing oral history as qualitative research method. People were selected for membership based on their networks and reputations as authorities in their respective fields. All the discussions were recorded on Zoom with everyone's consent. All four participants brought varied expertise and experience in social media marketing and management to the discussion. They were picked because their backgrounds fit the study's goals best. Open-ended questions were used to elicit responses to personal experiences, issues, …

Social Media Reactions To Apologies From Public Figures, Brands, And Companies And Its Impact On Reputation, Melissa N. Dolan

Student Theses and Dissertations

Apologies issued by public figures, brands, and companies after a scandal or public perception of wrongdoing are common occurrences that have a significant impact on a brand's overall reputation. The impact on reputation hinges on how apologies are dissected and criticized by audiences on social media, which in turn influences public opinion and perception of the brand, company, or public figure. Furthermore, social media has exacerbated condemnation or support for public apologies, because it provides a platform for public discourse on the matter. Apologies are powerful tools that can be effective if implemented well or can be detrimental to a …

Dna Ancestry Testing And Racial Discourse In Higher Education: How The (Re)Biologization Of Race (Un)Settles Monoracialism For Graduate Students, Orkideh Mohajeri, Marc P. Johnston-Guerrero, Anita K. Foeman, Bessie Lee Lawton

Communication and Media Faculty Publications

The recent proliferation of DNA testing in both popular culture and higher education calls to question whether such testing reifies race as a biological construct and, in particular, whether or not it disrupts or reinforces monoracial categorizations. Graduate students, who are often at a point in their educational journeys to further question and critique commonly held ideas, provide a unique lens through which to investigate discourses surrounding DNA testing. In this qualitative study, we analyze data from four focus groups with 22 racially diverse U.S. graduate students who had recently completed an ancestry test. We identify two specific discourses that …

A Conceptual Framework On Tax Knowledge And Tax Compliance Intention: The Moderating Effect Of Patriotism In Nigeria, Mansur A. Saidu Dr., Ladan Shagari Shamsudeen Phd

Bullion

Realizing more tax revenues is a sign of an increase in the tax compliance intention of taxpayers within a given nation. This emanates from the taxpayers' level of readiness and willingness as a result of their accumulated tax knowledge and patriotism. But due to people's behavioral and social limitations, non-tax compliance intention is becoming eminent, leading to a lot of tax gaps and revenue losses on the part of the government to finance its expenditures for the betterment of a country. Not much could be achieved after several research efforts were recently put in place. The Income Tax Evasion Theory …

The Banner - V. 158, No. 6 - (June 2023), Christian Reformed Church In North America

The Banner

No abstract provided.

Managers Are People, Too! The Eleventh Circuit’S Rejection Of The “Manager Exception” Allows Human Resource And Managerial Employees To Bring Title Vii Retaliation Claims, Kaitlyn Myles

Mercer Law Review

Human resource (HR) managers undertake important tasks at companies. For example, a company may employ a human resource manager to manage internal issues, such as those affecting lower-level employees. That HR manager may come to the conclusion that a lower-level employee, having faced some discrimination from the company, had their rights violated. In that situation, the HR manager may advocate for the employee against the company. Subsequently, the company terminates the HR manager for siding with the employee over the company. Can the HR manager successfully bring a retaliation suit against the company? It depends. More specifically, the answer depends …

The Remedies For Constitutional Flaws Have Major Flaws, Richard J. Pierce Jr.

Duke Journal of Constitutional Law & Public Policy

In this essay, Professor Pierce describes the many ways in which the conservative majority of the Supreme Court has attempted to use its unique approach to interpretation of the Constitution to restructure the government and to reallocate power among the branches of government. He then describes the problems that the Court has encountered in its efforts to choose remedies for the constitutional flaws that it detects.

Increasingly, the Court must choose between remedies that are ineffective and remedies that make it impossible for the government to function. Pierce predicts that the problems that the Court has experienced to date will …

Profiling Consumers: Examination Of Chinese Gen Z Consumers’ Sustainable Fashion Consumption, Yanbo Zhang, Chuanlan Liu, Yanru Lyu

Faculty Publications

The textile and apparel industry is widely recognized for its negative impact on the environment and society, and China is one of the largest fashion-consumption markets worldwide. There has been a growing awareness and effort to address these concerns in China, and Chinese Gen-Z consumers are playing a crucial role in shaping sustainable practices. This study aimed to identify and profile Gen-Z consumers with substantial engagement in sustainable fashion consumption in China. Data were collected from 292 Chinese Gen-Z adults from three major cities, Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou, using a convenience sampling strategy and the snowball approach. Cluster analysis was …

Cute Politics! Articulating The Kawaii Aesthetic, Fandom And Political Participation, Hsin-Yen Yang

Communication Studies Faculty Publications

What do Hello Kitty and other cute artifacts have anything to do with political communication? As the dominant aesthetic of global consumer society, kawaii (“cute” in Japanese) has become a popular expression in many public spaces and political cultures, especially in East and Southeast Asia. Based on her field participation, interviews, and secondary sources, Dr. Hsin-Yen Yang offers a historical-textual analysis of the ways in which cute aesthetics and fan participation alter the political communication process in postauthoritarian Taiwan. This study suggests that the prevalence of kawaii in protests and political campaigns indicates an ideological shift from masculine communication styles …

Purposely Changing Church Culture When A Pandemic Forces Church Change: How The Covid Pandemic Impacted One Large Sda Church, Steve Case, Benji Ferguson

Journal of Adventist Youth and Young Adult Ministries

T he Carmichael SDA Church, located in the suburbs of Sacramento, California, seemed to be a gem in the Northern California Conference, with the largest membership, highest tithe, and largest pastoral staff. The pandemic put a halt to most of this church’s ministry, exposing some weaknesses and preventing the ministry it had developed over the years. Simultaneously, new forms of ministry sprung forth because of the sudden changes. The long-term impact of the pandemic challenges this church to move forward in new ways rather than attempting a restart as though nothing happened. This is a case study of how one …

Mandatory Child Neurology Training For Adult Neurology Residents In Pakistan, Tipu Sultan

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

No abstract provided.

Association Of Hyperuricemia With Ischemic Stroke In Adult Population, Ijaz Ali, Zaid Waqar, Bushra Khalid, Maryam Naseem, Soban Khan, Sajid Ali, Muhammad Tariq, Muhammad Adil, Hira Badar Abbasi, Mazhar Badshah

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

Background and Objective:

Stroke is the second most prevalent cause of dementia, the third biggest cause of mortality, and the top cause of disability globally. Hyperuricemia is frequently seen in patients with vascular risk factors. The objective of this study was to determine the association of hyperuricemia with ischemic stroke in adult patients presenting to neurology department of a tertiary care hospital.

Methods:This was a case-control study of 200 patients, 100 patients with stroke and 100 unmatched controls were accessed for vascular risk factors and hyperuricemia. The setting was Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, Islamabad and study duration was …

Chronic Hepatitis B, C, And Stroke; Association And Pathophysiology, Hamza Imran, Adnan Yousuf, Mohammad Wasay

Pakistan Journal of Neurological Sciences (PJNS)

Background and Objectives:

Hepatitis infection may raise the incidence of stroke and other cerebrovascular abnormalities, according to several studies. However, its association is controversial. This review looked to compile the most recent research on the relationship between HBV and HCV, atherosclerosis, and stroke.

Methods:This article reviews the literature on the connection between hepatitis B and C viruses with stroke and atherosclerosis. The search included articles from PubMed, PakMediNet, and Google Scholar, as well as a Medline search using specific keywords and MeSH terms. A total of 2655 articles were identified. Out of these 2655 articles we identified 134 articles …

Nourishing The Future: Research On Building Sustainable Food Systems For A Resilient And Healthy Santa Clara, Ayla Flanagan

Silicon Valley Power Sustainable Futures Program

The city of Santa Clara faces challenges related to food insecurity and limited access to resources. The high cost of living in Silicon Valley contributes to financial strain for many residents, with a significant portion of households falling between the federal poverty line and the self-sufficiency index. The city currently relies on food pantries and limited free food resources to address food security issues. Santa Clara's Climate Action Plan includes goals to reduce food waste and rescue edible food as part of its efforts to promote sustainability through 2045. Implementing Senate Bill 1383, which aims to reduce organic waste and …

Polyflowbuilder: An Intuitive Tool For Academic Planning At Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Duncan Thomas Applegarth

Computer Engineering

PolyFlowBuilder is a web application that lets users create visually intuitive flowcharts to aid in academic planning at Cal Poly. These flowcharts can be customized in a variety of ways to accurately represent complex academic plans, such as double majors, minors, taking courses out- of-order, etc. The original version of PolyFlowBuilder, released Summer 2020, was not written for continued expansion and growth. Therefore, a complete rewrite was determined to be necessary to enable the project to grow in the future. This report details the process to completely rewrite the existing version of PolyFlowBuilder over the course of six months, using …

Solar Array Mini Rover, Alexa Hansen, Storm Randolph, Derek James Russell

Computer Engineering

The RoverX Senior Project has been an evolutionary process, with its roots in the RoverX Capstone project which concluded in the Winter of 2023. Our journey commenced with a core focus on hardware, which culminated in the successful creation of the Minimum Viable Product (MVP). Further information on our initial endeavors can be found in the 2022 "Alpha Report" and the 2023 "Summary of Handoff Contents/Quick Start Guide" for the RoverX project. However, recognizing the limitless possibilities of software in enhancing the rover's capabilities, our focus shifted towards this exciting frontier. Our final quarter of the senior project was dedicated …

Detecting Alzheimer's Disease Using Artificial Neural Networks, Sally Lee, Mia Keegan

Electrical Engineering

This project aims to use artificial neural networks (ANN) in order to detect Alzheimer’s disease. More specifically, convolutional neural networks (CNN) will be utilized as this is the most common ANN and has been used in many different image processing applications. The purpose of using artificial neural networks as a detect method is so that an intelligent way for image and signal analysis can be used. A software that implements CNN will be developed so that users in medical settings can utilize this software to detect Alzheimer’s in patients. The input for this software will be the patient’s MRI scans. …

Low-Cost Portable Laser Communication Device, Tom Elkayam, Basile Louis Scoffie

Electrical Engineering

The portable laser communication device (PLCD), is a low cost system used to set up networks in data isolated regions via an optical line-of-sight communications protocol. In this manner the PLCD transmits at 9600 baud using UART protocol over the visible light band at 635nm. The device is intended to operate in indoor conditions and be semi-permanent until redeployed. The PLCD is built as a transmitter, receiver pair and when installed, utilizes tracking to find each other and automatically set up communication within a window of 30° laterally and 10° vertically. Each side of the system is less than 15 …

Variable Frequency Motor Drive Application, Jason G. Milne, Nick Mark

Electrical Engineering

This project entails the development of an electrical engineering undergraduate lab module focusing on utilizing a variable frequency drive (VFD) controlled with a programmable logic controller (PLC) — the Modicon M580. The variable frequency drive is a device that is able to automatically change the frequency of an object through automation without having to physically change the device that is being controlled (ex: fans, pumps, motors, etc.). This project will guide students to understand the software for programming and controlling the PLC within a 3 hour laboratory experiment. Throughout the lab, the students will learn how to implement the PLC …

Vr Force Feedback Gloves, Mark Wu, Claire Chen

Electrical Engineering

The goal of this project is to produce a manufacturing plan for a consumer VR glove. The total addressable market of VR is over 170 million global users as of 2022 (Kolmar , 2022) with a serviceable available market of 300,000 users on Meta’s own social platform (Heath, 2022). The targeted Quest 2 platform utilizes handheld controllers, which causes a lack of immersivity in social settings and gaming scenarios. One common use of the platform involves social platforms such as “Horizons” where users meet in a virtual world to interact; handheld controllers don’t allow users to shake hands, make finger …

Development Of Cal Poly’S Hybrid Ac/Dc House, Eduardo Andres Muñoz, Giovanni Ramirez Angel

Electrical Engineering

The Hybrid House provides an example for what sustainable housing solutions could look like. It also functions as a potential solution to the current rural electrification issues many developing countries face. The use of a DC-DC MISO converter allows for combining multiple power sources into a single DC bus. The Hybrid House integrates the DC bus by employing the use of DC-DC converters for home use. This system may potentially improve the overall system efficiency by avoiding the losses associated with AC-DC converters. The use of the DC bus further leverages the Solar Panel renewable energy solution to become a …