Digital Commons Network^™

Recurrent Maxillary Medication-Related Osteonecrosis Of The Jaw With Maxillary Sinusitis In An Edentulous Patient: A Possible Bidirectional Relationship, Wun-Ting Lin, Yu-Nung Lee, Yu-Fen Yen, Ken-Chung Chen

Journal of Dental Sciences

No abstract provided.

A Note On The Novel Passive Sampling In Environmental Dna (Edna) Collection Technique To Detect Yellow Mud Turtle (Kinosternon Flavescens): Field And Laboratory Approaches In Turtle Edna, Sakib Tahmid Rishan, Richard J. Kline, Md. Saydur Rahman

School of Integrative Biological & Chemical Sciences Faculty Publications

Environmental DNA (eDNA) is a powerful and sensitive method for monitoring aquatic and terrestrial organisms, offering insights into their distribution. Usually, eDNA is collected using a filter membrane through water filtration. However, the passive eDNA method can simplify sampling and broaden its scope, offering new insights for ecological surveillance. This study examined the efficacy of six different membrane filters in detecting the yellow mud turtle (Kinosternon flavescens) through a novel passive eDNA method. After being immersed in water for 12 h, only the mixed cellulose ester (MCE) membrane filter consistently demonstrated specific polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification using …

Heat Misers, Snow Misers, And Cognitive Misers: The 'Nukewarm' Perceptions Of Nuclear Power, Tyler Williams

Dissertations and Theses

Rising energy demand in the United States necessitates alternatives to fossil fuels, yet renewable energy sources alone are insufficient to meet this demand. Nuclear power presents a promising option but faces persistent public hesitancy. This study examines how heuristic-based biases relate to American's risk-benefit perceptions towards nuclear power. Guided by the heuristic-systematic model. Results indicate that competence and affect are related to risk-benefit perceptions, and naturalness shows no relationship with risk perceptions but does correlate with benefit perceptions. Implications highlight the importance of affect-driven communication strategies for nuclear communicators, while also underscoring the need for participatory approaches that foster trust …

The Chironian 2026, New York Medical College

The Chironian

The Chironian is distributed to a readership of 16,000 faculty, alumni and employees of New York Medical College, government and community leaders, affiliated hospitals and selected media. Each issue is carefully crafted to provide a balance of articles on cutting-edge research, personality profiles, student accomplishments and alumni news from all five schools on the NYMC campus. Inquiries can be sent to [email protected].

Evolving Legal Issues In Higher Education: Introduction To The Higher Education And The Law Symposium, Patricia E. Salkin

Touro Law Review

The Touro Law Review could not have selected a better time to highlight many of the evolving legal issues in higher education. It can be both an exciting time to practice law in this space and one that challenges the creative problem-solving skills of lawyers and their clients. This issue of the Law Review highlights a number of key developments and trends.

Meaningful Work: A Phenomenological Study Of Embedded Writing Peer Mentors, Susan S. Detwiler

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

This phenomenological case study examines the experiences of writing peer mentors who are embedded in a first-year inquiry-based writing seminar. It aims to understand how peer mentors who are engaged in the complex practice of supporting first-year writers in a writing classroom make sense of themselves and writing. At a large R-1 diverse university, I interviewed 6 writing peer mentors 3 times over 1 calendar year. I traced their development from mentees, (first-year writing students), through their three semesters of peer mentoring. They also shared written reflections from their training praxis course (a course for peer mentors focusing on their …

When Civilians Involve Themselves In Crime Control: Do Perceived Police Legitimacy And Trust In The Police Predict Support For Vigilantism And Citizen’S Arrests?, Charlotte T. Parque

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Recent cases in which civilians involved themselves in the crime control process have garnered divided reactions, with some people supporting and others disapproving the civilians’ actions. Although existing research shows that perceptions of the police predict support of civilians involved in crime control, exact directions of the effects conflict. I address these conflicting findings by examining how people conceptualize police legitimacy and trust in the police, whether those conceptualizations align with scholarly definitions of legitimacy and trust, and explore if the two constructs differentially predict support of vigilantism. Additionally, I explore whether people approve of two types of civilian crime …

Understanding The Experiences Of First-Generation College Students Working As Resident Assistants, Mairead S. Murray

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

First-generation college students have been a population of interest in higher education for several decades as they are both a historically underserved group and make up a significant portion of the college-going population (RTI International, 2019a; Schuyler et al., 2021), making them an impactful group of students to research. As a whole, first-generation college students tend to fall behind their non-first-generation college student peers in key areas that are indicators of student success, including engagement, persistence, and degree completion (Goldman et al., 2022; Kezar & Kitchen, 2020; Kuh et al., 2007; McCallen & Johnson, 2020; Means & Pyne, 2017; Pendakur, …

Investigation Of Fine-Grain Cu And Cu Alloys For Low-Temperature Hybrid Bonding Applications, Sarabjot Singh

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Hybrid bonding has emerged as a key enabler for next-generation three-dimensional (3D) integration, offering fine-pitch interconnects and improved electrical performance. However, conventional Cu–Cu hybrid bonding typically requires elevated temperatures to achieve sufficient diffusion and interface quality, posing challenges for temperature-sensitive device integration and process compatibility. This work investigates materials engineering approaches to enable low-temperature Cu–Cu bonding through both microstructure design and alloying strategies.

This work begins by examining grain refinement in Cu as a pathway to enhance diffusion through increased grain boundary density, providing efficient atomic transport without introducing additional elements. Three Cu-based systems Cu–Co, Cu–Ag, and Cu–Al were systematically …

Next-Generation Computing Hardware: Advancements In Tantalum Oxide Reram For Ai And Neuromorphic Applications, Rajas Ravindra Mathkari

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

The rapid development of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data-intensive computing has exposed the fundamental limitations of conventional von Neumann architectures, in which energy and time are continuously lost transferring data between physically separate memory and processing units. In contrast, the human brain performs complex computations directly at the point of memory storage through billions of parallel synaptic connections, a paradigm known as in-memory computing. Realizing this in hardware requires memory devices that are fast, energy-efficient, non-volatile, and capable of storing multiple resistance levels in an analog manner. Resistive Random Access Memory (ReRAM) based on tantalum oxide (TaOx) is one …

Addressing Mental Health In College Athletics: Developing A Mindfulness-Centered Curricular Intervention For Student-Athletes And Coaches, Douglas W. Lampman

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Rising rates of mental health concerns among collegiate student-athletes have intensified calls for a more holistic approach to athlete development and well-being.  While student-athletes regularly interact with coaches and educators, few curricular interventions explicitly address mental and emotional wellness in the athletic context.

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the development, implementation, and perceived impact of a mindfulness-centered approach and curriculum.  This curriculum is designed explicitly for collegiate student-athletes and coaches.  Grounded in mindfulness-based pedagogy, the curriculum addressed stress management, emotion regulation, interpersonal relationships, performance anxiety, and personal growth.

Using a multi-tiered qualitative design, data were collected …

African American Attitudes Toward Supporting Older Adults: Differences By Lifecourse Stage, Nekehia T. Quashie, Sarah E. Patterson, Michelle A. Stage, Neil K. Mehta

Public Health Faculty Publications

African Americans express stronger norms of familism compared to other racial and ethnic groups in the United States. Frequently overlooked is whether attitudes toward family and/or government support for older adults vary by lifecourse stage (young adult, midlife, and older adults) and type of support among African Americans. Using data from the 2001-2003 National Survey of American Life Adult Reinterview (n=1696, aged 18-90), multinomial logistic regression analyses were used to examine whether attitudes toward family, equal family and government, or government responsibility for financial, household chores, and personal care support to older adults vary by lifecourse stage. Findings showed that …

Digital Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Versus Education For Chronic Pain In Adults With Sickle Cell Disease: 12-Month Randomized Trial Results, Olubusola B. Oluwole, Yi-Fan Yi-Fan Chen, Christina M. Lalama, Julia A. O’Brien, Laura M. De Castro, Charles Patrick Carroll, Darla Liles, Nirmish Shah, Santosh L. Saraf, Victor R. Gordeuk, Leshana Saint Jean, Michael Debaun, Robert M. Cronin, Tonya M. Palermo, Sherif M. Badawy, Megan E. Hamm, Jennifer N. Stinson, Chitra Lalloo, Sophie Lanzkron, Cassandra Trimnell, Lakiea Bailey, Raymona H. Lawrence, Kaleab Z. Abebe, Charles R. Jonassaint

Department of Medicine Faculty Papers

Background: Chronic pain affects up to 40% of adults with sickle cell disease (SCD), yet treatment options remain limited. While cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is effective in other chronic pain conditions, it is underutilized for SCD pain, and its effectiveness remains unclear. Purpose: The Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Real-time Pain Management Intervention for Sickle Cell via Mobile Applications (CaRISMA) compared digital CBT to Education for chronic SCD pain in adults. At 6 months, the primary outcome (pain interference) showed no between-group difference but both groups improved (CBT: −2.13; Education: −2.66). This report presents 12-month outcomes. Methods: A total of 359 …

Crispr-Cas9 Unleashed: Gene-Slicing Adventures In The Cancer Battlefield, Shivakuma Sonnaila, Shilpi Agrawal

Chemistry & Biochemistry Faculty Publications and Presentations

Cancer, a global health menace, continues to pose significant challenges in terms of incidence and mortality, necessitating innovative therapeutic strategies. Despite existing treatments, the limitations persist, prompting a quest for novel approaches. The emergence of immunotherapy marked a transformative era in solid tumor treatments, yet its efficacy is constrained by adverse effects. Concurrently, the integration of advanced technologies into cancer treatment explores the vast potential residing at the molecular level through gene analysis and manipulation. This review articulates the role of state-of-the-art genome editing technology, notably clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR-Cas9), in overcoming the constraints of immunotherapy for …

The Role Of The Coach In Student-Athlete Engagement, Christina Cobb

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Student engagement has long been recognized as a key indicator of student success in higher education, but limited research has examined engagement within the context of intercollegiate athletics. This qualitative case study explored how college coaches influence student-athlete engagement and how student-athletes utilize athletic department support services designed to promote engagement practices. Guided by Kuh et al.’s (2006) theory of student engagement, this study examined engagement through the lens of time and effort invested in educationally purposeful activities and the institutional environments that support or constrain participation.

Participants included six student-athletes, four coaches, and two athletic department administrators at a …

Scalable Single-Erbium Telecom Qudits With Record Room-Temperature Quantum Coherence In Silicon-Based Nanostructures, Alexander Kaloyeros

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Advancing quantum information science demands solid-state quantum systems that maintain long quantum coherence at elevated temperatures while supporting scalable, CMOS-compatible fabrication and telecom C-band operation. No existing platform has simultaneously achieved these requirements, as state-of-the-art demonstrations of coherent control of erbium ions, with an intrinsic telecom-band optical transition, have been confined to cryogenic temperatures below < 10 K under controlled vacuum conditions. This thesis introduces a new paradigm in which materials science and engineering provides the enabling pathway to quantum coherence.

A foundry-compatible nanofabrication approach, paired with targeted materials engineering, is developed to realize a new class of CMOS-scalable quantum system: arrays of spatially isolated single-erbium-ion qudits (five-level systems) embedded in silicon-based (e.g., silicon carbide (SiC) and SiC_xO_y) hollow nanopillars (HNPs). Non-lithographically …

Entropic Dynamics Approach To The Classical Limit Of Quantum Mechanics: Decoupling Of The Center Of Mass Motion For A Mesoscopic Particle, Fatimah Judayba

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

In the Entropic Dynamics (ED) approach, quantum mechanics is derived from the principles of entropic inference and information geometry. The ED approach differs from other interpretations by making a clear commitment to distinguishing which variables are ontic (real) and which are epistemic. The classical limit for the center of mass (CM) coordinate is achieved for a large number of particles, M →∞, while Planck’s constant ℏ remains finite. Typically, the emergence of the classical limit requires decoherence through interactions with the external environment. In this work, we investigate whether the classical behavior of the CM coordinate in a mesoscopic system …

Understanding The Intergenerational Transmission Of Risk And Resilience In Black Birthing Parent-Infant Dyads: Physiological Coregulation & Cultural-Contextual Factors, Annabelle Armah

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Symptoms of postpartum depression (PPD) are common, particularly for Black birthing parents who may face increased psychosocial risk during the perinatal period. Previous work has demonstrated that PPD can have significant ramifications not only for maternal wellbeing but for infants’ regulatory development. PPD may influence the concordance or mutual influence of biological states between parents and children (i.e., physiological synchrony). Physiological synchrony is thought to be implicated in the development of self-regulation and may be a mechanism through which PPD undermines infants’ emerging regulatory capacities. In Black families, cultural-contextual factors, like racism or cultural practices, may additionally shape birthing parent …

Development And Analysis Of An Embedded Hardware Platform For Low-Power Rram–Based In-Memory Computing And Neural Network Applications, Jeelka Solanki

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Conventional computing architectures are based on repeated data transfer between memory and the compute unit; however, artificial neural network applications rely on data-intensive vector-matrix multiplication as a mathematical operation, where data movement from memory to compute processor results in increased power consumption and reduced performance. Possible solutions to this problem include in-memory computing, which addresses the data transfer bottleneck by computing directly within the memory. To demonstrate the potential of this approach, our research group fabricated hafnium oxide-based resistive random-access memory (RRAM) arrays using a 65nm CMOS technology for in-memory compute operations. This work demonstrates the design and development of …

Rethinking Theories Of Political Discourse: The Limitations Of The Deliberative-Agonistic Split, Connor Moran

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

What are “theories of political discourse,” why do they matter to political theory, and where do current ones fall short? This dissertation mines the existing resources availed by contemporary democratic theory in order to respond to the discursive challenge of “pernicious polarization,” particularly in the United States. The most comprehensive and influential theories of political discourse today have been furnished by the almost 40-year debate between deliberative democracy and agonism, both of which offer normative models centered on ameliorating the quality of political discourse.

The key finding of the dissertation is that the foundational works of the deliberative-agonistic split lack …

Classification, Service Provision, And Early Academic Skills Of Early Elementary School Students Who Received Services As A Preschool Student With A Disability, Meghan Conboy

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Youth with disabilities benefit from coordinated supports and services, particularly during early childhood when they are developing foundational abilities that will influence their developmental trajectory (Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center, 2015; Sandall et al., 2005). Preschool-aged students who enter kindergarten with adequately developed pre-academic skills are more likely demonstrate high performance levels in academic domains throughout compulsory education compared to peers with low pre-academic skills (Christensen et al., 2020; Fitzpatrick, 2017; Hair et al., 2006; Tavassolie et al., 2022). However, despite the knowledge that both preschool programs and high-quality and effective early intervention benefit children across their lifetime, limited research …

School Leaders’ And Teachers’ Sensemaking Of Performance-Based Learning And Assessment Reform Initiatives, Kate Jarrard

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Educational leaders occupy a difficult position in the landscape of reform, as they are at times charged with initiatives that conflict with existing guidance and core instructional work. Effective change requires more than program redesign; it demands shifts in people’s behavior. For school leaders, the challenge is not simply understanding a new initiative, but making personal sense of it and then communicating it coherently to staff in ways that generate genuine commitment, all while navigating the gap between standard and innovative practice, bridging from policy intent to classroom-level implementation.

In the case of school performance, standardized testing has long anchored …

Understanding Support And Success: A Cross-Group Analysis Of Student Support Services And Nontraditional Graduate Student Experience, Erica Shudt

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

This study explored how nontraditional graduate students perceive their experiences with student support services within a Research 1, public university. The purpose of this study was to understand how these services impact their overall academic experience. Findings from semi-structured interviews with nontraditional graduate students and student support staff using a qualitative approach revealed four themes. These themes included (1) a shared emphasis on connection and belonging, (2) flexibility as a foundation for support and success, (3) individualized student-centered support, and (4) the acknowledgement of nontraditional student support identity. Both groups identify that meaningful support is within relationships with faculty and …

Reviving Southern Divides: Multilevel Explorations Of Gentrification’S Role In School Resegregation In Tallahassee, Florida From 1999 – 2015, Ola U. Kalu

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

This dissertation examines whether neighborhood gentrification in Tallahassee reshaped Title I elementary schools by improving academic outcomes, changing who enrolled, or both, from 1999 to 2015. Using Bronfenbrenner's Ecological Systems Model as a conceptual scaffold, the study situates schools within their neighborhood and district contexts across three nested analytical levels. A two-wave panel design using 2010 and 2015 school-year observations is linked to a 2000 Census baseline to connect school data with spatially weighted neighborhood change indicators. Mixed-effects multilevel models and fixed-effects robustness checks estimate the associations between neighborhood change indicators and two continuous dependent variables: standardized ELA achievement and …

The Effect Of Education On Green Growth And Carbon Emissions, 1990–2022, Soojeong Ahn

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

The question of whether education promotes economic growth has long been a central topic in development research, and education has been linked to economic outcomes through macro-level pathways such as human capital accumulation, productivity growth, and technological diffusion. More recently, this discussion has expanded beyond economic growth to consider whether education contributes to environmentally sustainable development, particularly green growth. Green growth emphasizes the possibility of sustaining economic expansion while reducing environmental pressure (OECD, 2011; UNEP, 2011), and this study therefore examines how education is related to green growth and carbon emissions at the macro level.

At the macro level, existing …

Systematic Literature Review: Elevating Black Voices Through Universal Social-Emotional Learning Interventions, Natasha J. Hogg

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

This systematic literature review examined the outcomes of culturally responsive universal Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) interventions for Black students in K-12 school settings addressing mental health, racial trauma, and racial disparities. Following the PRISMA protocol, a comprehensive search was conducted across PsycINFO, EBSCO, and five academic journals by April 2025. Results yielded 11 peer-reviewed articles with 2,246 Black participants published between 1994 and 2024. Exclusion criteria included sole focus of Tier 2 or 3 interventions, lacking Black student populations, or lacking outcomes aggregated by race. Seven SEL interventions were identified with risk of bias assessed by a secondary reviewer. Thematic analysis …

Multifunctional And Adaptive: Tracking How Fibroblasts Respond To Tissue Injury And Facilitate Tissue Remodeling, Joey R. Tavarez

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Fibrosis is characterized by an accumulation of proteins in the extracellular matrix (ECM) that results in altered tissue architecture and reduced organ function. In the salivary glands, fibrosis leads to loss of saliva, dysbiosis of the oral microbiome, an increase in oral infections, difficulty in digestion of food and an overall reduction in the quality of life. Understanding the progression of fibrosis and how it affects human health is a crucial step for designing effective therapeutics. Understanding fibroblast function is integral to advancing the field due to the many roles they play in maintaining the ECM. To perform preliminary analysis, …

Informationally-Optimal Measurements On Single-Qubit Systems, Adam V. Preston

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

This thesis will focus on deriving informationally-optimal quantum state tomographic measurements on single-qubit systems, with the definition of informationally optimal to be defined as those measurements which maximize the average information gain. The informationally-optimal measurements that will be covered include projective measurements (formally building off of the work of [1] and putting it on firm, information-theoretic foundations), and more general types of quantum measurements called directional (also known as rank-one) positive operator-valued measure (POVM) measurements, and, finally, adaptive directional POVM measurements.

For projective measurements, we build on the work of Wootters and Fields ([1]) and show, via analytical methods and …

German Science, American Manufacturing: Ethnic Capital, Transnational Technology, And Corporate Development At Bausch & Lomb, 1853–1953, George L. Grobe Iv

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

This dissertation examines the first century of the Bausch & Lomb Optical Company, founded in Rochester, NY in 1853 by German immigrants John Jacob Bausch and Henry Lomb. It argues the firm’s success was driven by leveraging of management’s German ethnic identity as “ethnic capital” to access resources like financial liquidity, immigrant labor, and technical expertise. These resources allowed for the transformation of the firm from a small optical retail shop into a major manufacturer of advanced optical instruments. However, as later generations of the family Americanized, the ability of the firm to leverage ethnic capital eroded until breaking completely …

Discord Is Still A Chord: A Mixed-Methods Analysis Of Discourse Networks, Brokerage, And The Fiscal Consequences Of Fracking Policy In The Delaware River Basin, In Hae Noh

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Beneath the policy debates of many environmental controversies lies a dynamic network of actors making claims, forming coalitions, and contesting policy discourses. Drawing on theories of discourse coalitions, discourse networks, network brokerage, and public finance, and using the Delaware River Basin hydraulic fracturing debate as a case study, this dissertation examines how discourse coalitions evolve, how discourse brokers shape coalition dynamics, and whether resulting policy decisions produce meaningful fiscal consequences. The first paper investigates how discourse coalitions shifted across three periods of the Delaware River Basin fracking debate, using a mix of methods integrating discourse network analysis, computational text analysis, …