Digital Commons Network^™

Governance In The Absence Of Government, Tracy Hresko Pearl

Faculty Articles

Artificial intelligence (AI) is advancing at an unprecedented pace, with generative systems exerting growing influence over social, economic, and political life. While Al offers opportunities for innovation and efficiency, it also poses risks ranging from misinformation and job displacement to existential threats if highly autonomous systems evade human control. Across industry, government, and civil society, there is broad consensus that Al requires oversight.

Yet traditional U.S. regulatory approaches face six significant barriers: (1) technology outpacing legislation, (2) limited Al expertise among policymakers, (3) regulatory capture, (4) political gridlock, (5) outdated governance structures, and (6) the inherent complexity of Al. Combined …

Msh 245 The American Musical Experience Fall 2025 Syllabus, Margaret Farrell

Open Educational Resources

This syllabus guided our exploration of the ways in which the musical cultures of those who arrived on our shores from Europe and Africa shaped the emergence of a distinctly American musical tradition. Links to relevant readings were provided on our LMS (Brightspace) page. Since this was an asynchronous online section, engagement was mainly through videos and slide presentations. Discussion assignments reinforced learning and encouraged critical thinking. In addition, students were required to submit a report on a live American music experience.

Grpa-Prs: A Risk Stratification Method To Identify Genetically-Regulated Pathways In Polygenic Diseases, Xiaoyang Li, Brisa S Fernandes, Andi Liu, Jingchun Chen, Xiangning Chen, Zhongming Zhao, Yulin Dai

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Introduction: Polygenic risk score (PRS) assesses genetic risk for diseases, yet some high-risk individuals avoid illness while low-risk individuals develop it. We hypothesize that unknown counterfactors may reverse PRS predictions, offering insights into disease mechanisms and interventions.

Methods: We developed a novel framework to identify genetically-regulated pathways (GRPas) using PRS-based stratification in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and schizophrenia (SCZ) cohorts. We calculated PRS models, stratified individuals by risk and diagnosis, and analyzed differential GRPas. For AD, analyses were further conducted with and without apolipoprotein E (APOE) effects, and across APOE haplotype.

Results: In AD, we identified several well-known AD-related pathways, including …

Design And Development Of An Intervention To Improve The Quality And Safety Of Pediatric Dental Sedation: A Human-Centered Design Approach, Kawtar Zouaidi, Jan Yeager, Suhasini Bangar, Sayali Tungare, Urvi Mehta, Janelle Urata, Alfa-Ibrahim Yansane, Thomas Tanbonliong, Jungsoo Kim, Emily Sedlock, Krishna Kumar Kookal, Yan Xiao, Tokede Oluwabunmi, Heiko Spallek, Amy Franklin, Gregory W Olson, Joel White, Elsbeth Kalenderian, Muhammad F Walji

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: There are gaps in understanding the experiences of children, parents, and providers during dental conscious sedation. This study aimed to capture and analyze these experiences to identify opportunities for improvement and enhance the quality and safety of pediatric dental conscious sedation.

Methods: A human-centered design approach was used to examine the conscious sedation experience in 2 US advanced education pediatric dental clinics. Researchers conducted field observations, interviews with providers and parents, and providers focus groups to explore experiential factors. Data were transcribed and analyzed using content thematic analysis. Insights from the data were used to explore and generate new …

Factors That Influence The Implementation Of Effective Succession Planning In Nonprofit Organizations, Sharon L. Cook

Human Resource Development Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore factors influencing the implementation of effective succession planning (SP) in nonprofit organizations within a specific traditional industry—the electric utility industry. This study adopted the concept of SP as a process or system, and systems theory was selected to examine the SP process. Rothwell’s (2016) seven- pointed star model for systematic SP and management provided the conceptual framework for this study. This study used an inductive, qualitative approach to collect information from participants, with semi-structured, open-ended interviews. Face-to-face interviews were preferred, but some online interviews via Zoom were necessary. Interviews were conducted …

Scottish Workers’ Stories Of Life And Labour During Covid-19 From The Workers’ Stories Project, Hailey Maxwell, Ruth Gilbert, Suki Sangha, Ewan Gibbs

Studies in Scottish Literature

This article explores how Scottish workers narrated the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their life and work, by analysing 55 fifty-five submissions to the Workers' Stories Project. Between 2020 and 2022, the project creative reflections on the pandemic from workers across Scotland, drawing on the tradition of workers' inquiry and workers' education that encouraged critical reflection and the embrace of worker creativity. Submissions were overwhelmingly literary in form, primarily short prose supplemented by poetry, with three key themes emerging: intimacy and alienation; insecurity and status; and a slower living pace. Cumulatively, the stories underline how COVID-19 magnified workplace injustices …

Development Of A Lightweight Dataset Catalog With Digital Commons, Claire Warner, Amy Reese, Marla Hertz

Libraries Professional Work

Many academic libraries maintain dataset catalogs to make the research data produced by their institutions more findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable (FAIR). These catalogs use a variety of approaches to gather metadata for dataset records and may be hosted on one of several platforms. Our approach is to develop Python code and leverage APIs to locate relevant datasets, then harvest and clean the associated metadata. The cleaned metadata is manually curated and enhanced before being added to the Dataset Catalog. We employ the hosted institutional repository Digital Commons to display the dataset records. Combining API harvesting and automated data cleaning …

Masthead - Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal, Vol. 32 (2025-26)

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

No abstract provided.

When Executions Don't Kill: The Stories Of Eight People Who Survived Their Date With Death, Austin Sarat, Julia Morgan-Canales, Aidan Gemme

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

This Article focuses on the eight people who have survived execution attempts in the last 100 years. Some of them faced a second attempt to carry out the sentence. Others escaped that fate only to die in prison; one reached an agreement with the state to allow them to remain in prison for the rest oftheir life, and the fate of another is up in the air.

By examining what went wrong in their executions and the accounts of those events offered by defense lawyers, state officials, and judges, this Article suggests that these executions fall into distinct genres. Each …

Can The Free Speech Clause Protect Transgender Expression From The Trump Administration?, Daniel Cooper

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

This Article explores how the Free Speech Clause can provide protection to speakers implicated by the Trump administration's executive orders restricting gender-related speech. Part I will provide an overview of how the Trump administration has directed executive authority to stifle gender-non-conforming identity and expression, how those efforts fit within the larger context of right-wing efforts to marginalize transgender people, and why the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution is not currently a useful tool for the protection of trans rights. Part II will examine efforts to regulate government employees' pronoun usage, focusing on whether …

Investigating Driver Perceptions Of Semi-Autonomous Vehicle Sensing And Response Characteristics, Molly Mersinger

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

As semi-autonomous vehicle (SAV) technologies become increasingly integrated into modern transportation, understanding how the public perceives their capabilities is essential for ensuring safe and effective human-automation interaction. This study examined drivers’ perceptions of SAV detection and discernment abilities across 28 driving conditions and how those perceptions related to expected vehicle behaviors in 17 corresponding scenarios. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses identified three perceptual dimensions: Traffic Infrastructure and Vehicle Recognition, Dynamic Roadway Hazards and Vulnerable Road Users, and Human Interaction and Contextual Cues. Moderate overlap between the first two dimensions suggested that participants viewed certain structured and dynamic roadway features as …

Adaptive Control For Spacecraft With Flexible Appendages With Unknown Parameters, Nicolo Woodward

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Flexible spacecraft pose several challenges in control design due to the uncertain dynamical model and the underactuated nature of these systems. Adaptive and robust controllers are the common choice for these systems to either meet operational requirements like attitude pointing or to suppress vibrations. However, these controllers add complexity in the design of onboard Attitude Determination and Control Systems (ADCS) and the Reaction Control Systems (RCS) for spacecraft maneuvering. The objective of this research is to control a system that undergoes unpredictable and unknown disturbances through onboard derivation of an equivalent reduced order model designed around mounted sensors. The proposed …

Bridging The Rural Telehealth Divide, Deborah Farringer

Law Faculty Scholarship

This article examines the historical development, regulatory landscape, and post-pandemic future of telehealth in the United States, with a particular focus on its original purpose: improving access to care for rural populations. Although Congress first authorized Medicare reimbursement for telehealth in 1997 to alleviate rural health disparities, federal and state regulatory frameworks—especially restrictions on originating sites, licensure rules, and HIPAA-driven technology requirements—significantly limited adoption for more than two decades. The COVID-19 public health emergency triggered sweeping temporary waivers that removed geographic limitations, permitted the use of common communication technologies, liberalized supervision and prescribing rules, and allowed audio-only encounters. These changes …

Exudation Entomology, John Buchanan

Department of Entomology: Distance Master of Science Projects

My master's project is exudation entomology. I propose a new area of entomology that will renew and reshape the science, answer questions that have been explored, and open new questions that have yet to be asked.

Exudation entomology is the study of exudates from arthropods. This includes (but is not limited to) honey, saliva, silk, secretions, venom, pheromones, paper, wax, and more. Other properties, such as bioluminescence, sounds, and odors, are also included. Exudation entomology will explore the chemical makeup of exudates, the anatomical mechanisms for how the arthropod produces the exudate, why the exudate is essential for arthropods and …

Flies: Nature’S Hidden Helpers, A Science Literacy Project Exploring Beneficial And Pest Insects, Natalie Johnston

Department of Entomology: Distance Master of Science Projects

A science literacy project for elementary learners exploring beneficial and pest insects with a focus on flies, nature's hidden helpers.

This project demonstrates that science literacy can be cultivated through experiential and interdisciplinary teaching. Future developments could include digital tools for compost monitoring, citizen science participation, or expanded studies of other decomposer species. Cross-curricular collaboration with language arts and art education can further strengthen the integration of creativity and evidence-based reasoning.

Ultimately, this work reaffirms that even small organisms—like flies—can inspire big learning outcomes. By integrating science literacy with sustainability education, we prepare students to think critically about ecological relationships …

Home By Now? “Habitual Residence” And The Hague Convention On The Civil Aspects Of International Child Abduction, Emily Mcanally

The International Law Review Association Student Forum

The Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of Child Abduction (“the Convention”) is a multilateral treaty signed in 1980 which aims “to secure the prompt return of children wrongfully removed to or retained in any Contracting State”; and to ensure mutual respect of the “rights of custody and access” between the contracting states. As of 2025, there are 103 signatories of the Convention who have committed to taking “all appropriate measures” and employing “the most expeditious procedures available” to ensure that children wrongfully within their territory can be returned home. Although the Convention has existed for nearly half a century, …

Concurrent Acl And Medial/Lateral Meniscal Repair In A Collegiate Soccer Player: Disablement Model Case Study, Rebecca L. Perry, Angelica Alicea, Jeanette Welch, Carl White, Emily E. Hildebrand, Peter Lisman

Clinical Practice in Athletic Training

This case examines a 19-year-old female Division I collegiate soccer player who underwent anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction with medial and lateral meniscal repairs. Though meniscal tears often occur in conjunction with ACL injury, incidence of concurrent medial and lateral tears with presence of a displaced bucket-handle lesion is rare. This patient attempted to tackle an oncoming opponent in which contact caused forceful trunk rotation away from her planted right foot. Sideline evaluation revealed medial and posterior knee pain with active knee range of motion deficits. Further evaluation revealed apprehension and muscle guarding during Lachman’s, anterior drawer, and valgus stress …

Flatness-Based Active Disturbance Rejection Control With B-Spline Output Regulation For A Chemical Reactor, Qasim M. Hamad, Safanah M. Raafat

Iraqi Journal of Computers, Communications, Control and Systems Engineering

Model uncertainties and exogenous disturbances are inherent phenomena in chemical plants that degrade performance and lead to poor-quality products. To mitigate these Issues, this paper addresses disturbances by exploiting the differential flatness property (DFP) of the nonlinear continuous stirred tank reactor (NCSTR). A two-degree-of-freedom (2DOF) control design was implemented, incorporating flatness-based feedforward and feedforward and feedback controllers. This design leverages the differential flatness method for effective stabilization and tracking performance. A robust feedback tracking control strategy integrating a disturbance observer (DO) and a simple feedback controller was implemented to form a flatness active disturbance rejection control (FADRC) scheme. The B-spline …

Group-Based Sample Partitioning Knn: A Computationally Efficient Knn Algorithm For Resource-Constrained Environments, Ayad M. Dalloo, Amjad J. Humaidi

Iraqi Journal of Computers, Communications, Control and Systems Engineering

The k-Nearest Neighbors (kNN) algorithm is widely used for classification due to its simplicity and effectiveness. However, its computational cost remains a significant challenge, particularly for embedded systems with limited processing power and memory. To address this Issue, we propose the Group-Based Sample Partitioning (k²NN) Algorithm, which introduces a two-phase approach to reduce computational complexity while maintaining classification accuracy. In the first phase, the algorithm pre-groups training samples by iteratively selecting anchor points and partitioning their k-nearest neighbors, thereby reducing redundancy in the dataset. In the second phase, the test sample dynamically selects local anchor points, constructing a smaller, more …

Video Deep Fake Detection Based On Spatiotemporal Analysis, Muna Ghazi Abdulsahib

Iraqi Journal of Computers, Communications, Control and Systems Engineering

Deep fake videos are a threat to information integrity by using advanced deep learning techniques to manipulate visual content and make it hard to distinguish from real videos. This includes videos where a person’s image is changed or replaced using deep learning techniques. In this paper, we propose a hybrid approach for deep fake video detection that combines spatial and temporal features. We use a pre-trained VGG16 to extract deep spatial features from individual frames, and then global average pooling at both spatial and temporal level to convert variable length video sequences into fixed dimensional representations. A fully connected classifier …

A Review Of Post-Quantum Digital Signature Schemes Applicability And Performance In Various Environments, Marwa M. Hamood, Arwa A

Iraqi Journal of Computers, Communications, Control and Systems Engineering

The emergence of quantum computers, coupled with relentless advancements in technology, calls for the immediate transition from classical to modern cryptography for efficient data transfer across optic fibers. This paper assesses different proposed post-quantum signature schemespertaining to their plausibility of being useful against quantum computers’ capabilities. The ability of quantum computers to solve mathematical equations at speeds significantly faster than those of classical computers is remarkable. Existing cryptographic frameworks that depend on discrete logarithms and integer factorization are seriously threatened by this exceptional efficiency. In order to protect sensitive data in a post-quantum world, it may be necessary to reevaluate …

Emotion Recognition From Upper-Body Movements With A Pose Collage Cnn Architecture, Gheed Tawfeeq Waleed, Shaymaa Hameed

Iraqi Journal of Computers, Communications, Control and Systems Engineering

Emotion recognition through body movement presents a compelling alternative to traditional facial and vocal analysis in the field of emotion recognition . This study introduces a deep learning-based framework that utilizes upper-body movements features to classify emotional states using ConVolutional Neural Networks (CNNs). The system is trained and evaluated on the Body Language Dataset (BoLD) dataset, targeting seven primary emotions: happiness, sadness, anger, fear, surprise, joy, and disgust. The proposed model achieves a classification accuracy of 95.72%, significantly outperforming existing methods in bodybased emotion recognition. The result highlights the potential of body posture as a reliable and standalone modality for …

New Traffic Control Based On Vanets Protocols Technique, Bushra Jaber M.Jawad

Iraqi Journal of Computers, Communications, Control and Systems Engineering

An ad hoc network in a mobile system is known as a vehicular network. This application is useful in communication between the roadside and vehicle infrastructures. Nowadays, the deficiency and quality of transport classifications of smart transport systems are playing a vital and excessive role. This paper presents the examination of the traffic stream under VANET protocol methods. In the execution of luxury and safe vehicular ad hoc networks, the automobile must resolve inquiry information from other vehicles through multi-loop organizations. In case of the data move in vehicular ad hoc networks, it should have to aspect numerous disruptions because …

Applications And Control Of Cable-Driven Parallel Robot: A Review, Yasser Hatim Alwan, Muayad Sadik, Ahmed Alaa Oglah

Iraqi Journal of Computers, Communications, Control and Systems Engineering

A cable driven parallel robot (CDPR) is a specific kind of parallel robot that utilizes cables as opposed to traditional rigid links to perform their functions. This gives it the advantages of being lightweight, having a wide operational workspace, and being easier and less expensive to implement than alternatives since it only requires cables operated by motors and fixed to a structure suitable for a certain application, allowing them to move and rotate an end-effector. The concept of this robot is not new though using a fully automated version of it was only started in the mid1980s and witnessed extensive …

Improved Carrier Frequency Offset Measurement With Reduced Latency And Computational Requirements, Niyaz Othman Ali, Jalal Jamal

Iraqi Journal of Computers, Communications, Control and Systems Engineering

Over the past four decades, the communication sector has experienced significant economic growth and widespread adoption. Some emerging applications require high data rates, low latency, and must operate efficiently in environments where wireless devices are moving at high speeds. Noise and high device mobility have a considerable impact on received signal frequency, ultimately affecting system performance. So, accurate frequency estimation for received signals is therefore crucial, prompting extensive research. In this paper, we propose a three-step frequency estimation technique. The first stage, termed the coarse stage, employs a few sampling sizes to perform a fast Fourier transform. The second stage …

Artificial Intelligence For Eeg Analysis: A Comprehensive Review Of Deep Learning Techniques, Hudai Ahmedi Albeiruti

Iraqi Journal of Computers, Communications, Control and Systems Engineering

This review systematically outlines the progression and implementation of artificial intelligence (AI) techniques, with a focus on deep learning (DL), for the analysis of electroencephalogram (EEG) signals. We cover the whole EEG processing pipeline from signal acquisition and preprocessing to feature extraction and classification. The survey begins with traditional machine learning techniques such as Common Spatial Patterns (CSP) and Support Vector Machines (SVMs), then transitions to more recent DL architectures—including ConVolutional Neural Networks (CNNs), Recurrent Neural Networks (RNNs), and their hybrid configurations—that have significantly expanded the analytical capabilities of neurophysiological systems. These methods have been widely applied in fields ranging …

Eco 4000 – Statistical Analysis For Economics And Finance [Syllabus], Dmytro Dushko

Open Educational Resources

The course introduces econometric techniques that are useful for conducting empirical analyses in economics and finance. Its purpose is to enable students to master these concepts and successfully complete an independent empirical project. The course will be structured into three roughly equal parts: the first part will cover probability and sets, providing a foundation for statistical reasoning; the second part will focus on statistics, delving into quantitative methods for analyzing economic data; and the third part will introduce econometrics, emphasizing linear models that establish relationships between two or more variables of interest. We will explore linear models from both theoretical …

Learning Opportunities 2025/2026, Illinois Math And Science Academy

Course Catalogs

The graduation requirements of the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy are established by the IMSA Board of Trustees. Each semester students must take a minimum of five academic courses (2.5 credits) for a letter grade (not Pass/Fail) not including SIR, Internship, Credentials and Independent Study. Students may enroll in a maximum of seven courses each semester including academic courses, SIR, Internship, Credentials, and Independent Study. The College and Academic Counselor approves enrollment for students in all courses and experiences. Academic courses must be taken for a grade in order to count towards graduation credit.

The Advocate (Fall 2025), Lewis & Clark Law School

The Advocate

No abstract provided.

Richmond Law Magazine: Autumn 2025

Richmond Law Magazine

Danielle Stokes and the energy discussion

Beyond the page

The mentorship web