Digital Commons Network^™

Sustainable Cash Flow Management Strategies For Small To Medium-Sized Service Businesses, Melody Gray

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Nearly 50% of small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) fail within five years, resulting in financial losses for business owners and reduced employment opportunities. Entrepreneurs care about this issue because poor cash flow management is a major contributor to business failure, threatening economic growth and job stability. Grounded in working capital management, the purpose of this qualitative, multiple case study is to explore successful cash flow management strategies for service industry SME owners to sustain free cash flow beyond 5 years. The study included four SME owner participants in the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex who successfully started and sustained the business beyond …

Horizonte Fronterizo: The Vitality Of Community And Contemporary San Diego-Tijuana Border Art, Ruben L. Loza

Chicana and Chicano Studies ETDs

This research dedicates attention to different examples of music and visual art that encompass contemporary San Diego-Tijuana border-integrated art. By employing a participant-observer approach with the music component and conducting plática-based interviews with all involved artists, this work underlines the vitality of the artworks’ manipulation of the U.S.-Mexico border wall and community as a driving force in the elaboration and growing influence of these projects and pieces. By analyzing how these works act as vehicles for response, light is also cast on greater matters that lie beyond the border zone: propagation of fear, anti-immigrant sentiment, and misinformed anxieties.

Empowering Consumers: The Impact Of Awareness On Skill Development And Assertiveness In Market Engagement, Megawati Simanjuntak

Journal of Marketing and Consumer Behaviour in Emerging Markets

Consumer empowerment focuses on the knowledge, attitudes, skills, and advocacy that enable consumers to recognize and defend their rights and responsibilities. This study aims to explore the relationship between consumer awareness, skills, and assertiveness, highlighting the role of consumer empowerment in defending their rights. The study involves 2,600 respondents, consisting of 1,400 individuals from urban areas and 1,200 individuals from rural areas, analysed using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM). The findings reveal that consumer awareness significantly enhances both skills and assertiveness. Additionally, consumer skills serve as a mediator linking awareness and assertiveness. This research emphasizes that higher awareness among consumers can …

Spartan Daily, April 15, 2025, San Jose State University, School Of Journalism And Mass Communications

Spartan Daily, 2025

Volume 164, Issue 32

Integrated Analysis Of Molecular And Clinical Features Associated With Overall Survival In Melanoma Patients With Brain Metastasis, Swaminathan Kumar, Meredith S Pelster, Merve Hasanov, Renato A Guerrieri, Courtney W Hudgens, Debora A Ledesma, Fuchenchu Wang, Grant M Fischer, Julie M Simon, Lauren E Haydu, Kalman V Katlowitz, Y N Vashisht Gopal, Jennifer L Mcquade, Lawrence N Kwong, Jason T Huse, Alexander J Lazar, Michael T Tetzlaff, Jeffrey E Gershenwald, Aron Y Joon, Ken Chen, Ziyi Li, Prahlad T Ram, Sherise D Ferguson, Michael A Davies

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Melanoma brain metastases (MBMs) are diagnosed in up to 60% of metastatic melanoma patients. Previous studies have identified clinical factors that correlate with overall survival (OS) after MBM diagnosis. However, molecular and immune features associated with OS are poorly understood. An improved understanding of the molecular and immune correlates of OS could provide insights into MBM patient outcomes and guide therapeutic development. Thus, we analyzed clinical features and outcomes of 74 melanoma patients who underwent surgical resection (via craniotomy) between 1991 and 2015 at our institution with RNA-seq data generated from their MBMs. The median post-operative OS was 8.6 months …

Using Human Computation And Harmonic Expansions For Characterization And Design Of Grain Boundary Networks, Christopher W. Adair

Theses and Dissertations

Grain Boundary Networks (GBNs) are a high-dimensional feature in polycrystalline microstructural materials that are formed from the crystallographic degrees of freedom. This feature affects multiple material properties such as diffusivity, fracture, elasticity, heat transfer, and others. The link between the crystallography and the material properties is called the structure-property linkage, and allows for simulation and design of materials. While it is possible to use the structure-property linkage to design materials for better performance, the high-dimensional nature of the interconnected grain boundaries preclude the use of many common optimization algorithms for efficiency or local minima considerations. This work shows how the …

Materials Data Science Ontology(Mds-Onto): Unifying Domain Knowledge In Materials And Applied Data Science, Balashanmuga Priyan Rajamohan, Alexander C. Harding Bradley, Van D. Tran, Jonathan E. Gordon, Hayden W. Caldwell, Redad Mehdi, Gabriel Ponon, Quynh D. Tran, Ozan Dernek, Benjamin G. Pierce, Raymond Wieser, Weiqi Yue, Kiefer Lin, Jiana Kambo, Arafath Nihar, Pawan K. Tripathi, Yinghui Wu, Laura S. Bruckman, Erika I. Barcelos, Roger H. French

Faculty Scholarship

Ontologies have gained popularity in the scientific community as a way to standardize terminologies in organizations’ data. Although certain cohorts have created frameworks with rules and guidelines on creating ontologies, there exist significant variations in how Materials Science ontologies are currently developed. We seek to provide guidance in the form of a unified automated framework for developing interoperable and modular ontologies for Materials Data Science that simplifies the ontology terms matching by establishing a semantic bridge up to the Basic Formal Ontology(BFO). This framework provides key recommendations on how ontologies should be positioned within the semantic web, what knowledge representation …

On The Nature Of Things: Communication And Relationships, The Philosophical Discussion Group

The Philosopher's Stone

• On the Nature of Things: Communication and Relationships

Do Pro-Environmental Factors Lead To Customers’ Purchase Intention Of Home Energy Management System? The Moderating Effects Of Energy-Efficient Habits, Maryam Zidehsaraei, Minoo Zidehsaraei, Kourosh Esfandiar

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Environmental challenges, encompassing climate change and global warming, compel consumers to alter their consumption habits. Although there has been a notable surge in consumer awareness regarding pro-environmental practices, especially concerning home energy, there remains a lack of comprehensive research exploring the factors affecting consumers’ willingness to adopt or invest in home energy management system (HEMS) technology. Notably, there have been no studies focused on the factors influencing HEMS purchase intentions (PI) in the Iranian context. Grounded in the theory of planned behavior (TPB) and the norm activation model, this research delves into the PI of Iranian households regarding HEMS, categorizing …

Supporting Health Equity In Obesity Prevention For Women Of Reproductive Age, Amanda Gilbert

Brown School Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Women of reproductive age (18-44 years) are at an increased risk of developing obesity due to pregnancy, stressors during this stage in the life course (e.g., leaving home, new jobs, parenthood), and historical and ongoing discrimination and marginalization. Preventing obesity for this population needs to be a public health priority. Obesity negatively affects women’s health (e.g., chronic disease, cancer); leads to poor pregnancy outcomes (e.g., gestational diabetes); and increases the risk children will develop obesity through intergenerational transmission of obesity, further entrenching health disparities for future generations. Health equity principles of social justice and human rights help obesity prevention researchers …

Library Data Storytelling And Information Wisdom, Kate Mcdowell

Bryant Jackson Lectureship

What can you tell about your library data as a story? Learn how to bring data stories to life for library advocacy of all types, from sustaining the library to transforming its work. Participants will learn about ongoing research identifying classic library stories told to persuade decision-makers as part of the Data Storytelling Toolkit for Libraries project (IMLS). Tools academic libraries can use include:

• Strategies to understand data storytelling uses for academic libraries
• Reach different kinds of audiences such as students, administrators, and funders
• Adapt narrative structures to communicate information and emotion at the same time

Dr. Kate McDowell’s interdisciplinary …

Robust Inference For The Unification Of Confidence Intervals In Meta-Analysis, Wei Liang, Haicheng Huang, Hongsheng Dai, Yinghui Wei

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

Traditional meta-analysis assumes that the effect sizes estimated in individual studies follow a Gaussian distribution. However, this distributional assumption is not always satisfied in practice, leading to potentially biased results. In the situation when the number of studies, denoted as K, is large, the cumulative Gaussian approximation errors from each study could make the final estimation unreliable. In the situation when K is small, it is not realistic to assume the random effect follows Gaussian distribution. In this paper, we present a novel empirical likelihood method for combining confidence intervals under the meta-analysis framework. This method is free of the …

Label-Free Evaluation Of Mouse Embryo Quality Using Time-Lapse Bright Field And Optical Coherence Microscopy, Fei Wang, Senyue Hao, Kibeom Park, Ali Ahmady, Chao Zhou

2020-Current year OA Pubs

The selection of high-quality embryos is essential to enhance the implantation rate for in vitro fertilization (IVF). Optical coherence microscopy (OCM) can noninvasively provide three-dimensional (3D) high-resolution imaging of developing embryos. The revealed microstructures can be used for accurate embryo evaluation. Here, we acquire time-lapse 3D OCM images with co-registered bright-field imaging on mouse embryo development from the one-cell stage to the fully hatched blastocyst inside an incubator. Our results demonstrate the capability of OCM to detect structural features of the developing embryos. The second and third embryonic cell cycles are indicated to be associated with blastocyst formation and the …

Understanding Implementation Determinants Of Universal School Meals Through An Equity-Driven Mixed Methods Approach, Gabriella M Mcloughlin, Molly Kerstetter, Yerusalem Yohannes, Omar Martinez, Resa M Jones, Ross C Brownson, Jennifer O Fisher

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Policies, such as Universal School Meals (USM), are essential for preventing inequities in chronic disease risk among socially and economically marginalized populations. Implementing USM reduces food insecurity and obesity risk, among other academic/health outcomes; unfortunately, across the nation student participation (i.e., reach) is lower than expected, limiting its public health impact. Grounded in implementation science and health equity frameworks, this study aimed to: 1) investigate the determinants of implementing USM in a large, urban school district and 2) assess key challenges and supports across schools with varying levels of participation in USM.

METHODS: A needs and assets assessment was …

Distributed Serving Of Partitioned Machine Learning Models Across Heterogeneous Hardware Resources, Vince Gatto, Junyan Li, Chi Chen, Hang Fu, Brad Froehle, Smit Hinsu, Devanshu Jain, Aniruddh Nath, Ruolin Jia, Shuo Chang, He Ma, Daokun Jiang

Defensive Publications Series

The present disclosure relates to systems and methods for serving machine learning models by partitioning model components for distributed execution across heterogeneous hardware resources. In particular, the disclosure describes techniques for splitting models into independently executable subgraphs deployed across a cluster of machines with varying hardware configurations (e.g., CPUs, GPUs, TPUs). The system leverages the distinct strengths of different hardware types by mapping memory-intensive or preprocessing-heavy components to CPU machines, while assigning compute-intensive subgraphs to accelerators such as TPUs. The distributed architecture employs a runtime system that manages inter-machine communication and orchestration of inference tasks, enabling improved utilization, scalability, and …

¿Y Ahora Qué? Interest Convergence And Hope Through Provision, Promotion, And Partnerships In Two-Way Dual Language Programs, Mitch Ingram, Charise Pimentel

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

As Two-Way Dual Language Programs continue in their nascent stages in the United States, some teachers, administrators, and researchers have reported issues of interest convergence. In this article, two researchers work alongside a bilingual pre-service teacher to highlight three such examples: the business of learning a language, Latin@ Spanish-speaking students used as resources, and the gentrification of bilingual education. Beyond the diagnosis of such dilemmas, we offer a preliminary framework and some promising tenets of hope to overcome any such asymmetries that can exist when interested families from different social locations agree to collaborate in the journey of dual language …

Sociocultural Predictors Of Children’S Papiamento And Dutch Reading Literacy In The Dutch Caribbean, Melissa Van Der Elst-Koeiman, Eliane Segers, Ronald Severing, Ludo Verhoeven

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

This study examined how Papiamento and Dutch attitude and home literacy environment of 168 children in fourth grade of the post-colonial Dutch Caribbean, predicted L1 and L2 reading literacy in sixth grade. Overall, children had higher scores for reading literacy in L1 Papiamento as compared with L2 Dutch. They showed more positive attitudes towards their mother tongue, regarding language use, reading, and media use. Furthermore, literacy activities at home were more frequent in L1 than in L2, although they reported having more books at home in L2 than in L1. Finally, L1 home literacy activities were negatively related to L1 …

Description And Publishing Guidelines

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

No abstract provided.

Life Long Perspectives On The Multilingual Experience, Annie Shaba

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

Multilingualism Across the Life Span is a text that explores the subject of language diversity and multilingualism across an individual’s lifespan and their community. Edited by Unn Røyneland and Robert Blackwood, the book features co-authored chapters that look into the complexities of linguistic diversity, multilingualism as a lived reality, and the non-linear trajectories of language development. The book is divided into three parts: methodological and theoretical developments in bilingual acquisition, language practices and policies in the family, and bilingual aging, communication, and cognitive impairments. It offers insights from research conducted in various parts of the world and is relevant for …

Navigating Taiwan's Bilingual 2030 Policy: Unveiling Teachers' Glocalization Efforts And Agency, Ching-Ching Lin, Ming-Hsuan Wu

Journal of Multilingual Education Research

As a strategic initiative aimed to enhance English communication skills and bolster the global competitiveness of the general population, Taiwan’s Bilingual 2030 Policy takes place at the intersection of neoliberalism, globalization, and the global spread of the English language. The neoliberal framing of Taiwan’s language education policy has exerted powerful influences on teacher education, teacher hiring practices, curricular design, assessment, and other school practices. While the neoliberalist influences are prevalent among countries in the Global South, responses and resistance may take many forms embedded in specific sociocultural contexts. The reflection discussed here examines the challenges faced by teachers in Taiwan …

A Quantitative Study Teaching De-Escalation With Virtual Reality Simulation To Associate Nursing Students Measuring Effectiveness, Learning, And Confidence, Michele Marbet

Liberty University Research Week

Workplace violence against nurses is a critical global public health issue, with one in four nurses reportedly experiencing physical assault by patients. This quantitative quasi-experimental, pretest-posttest study aimed to assess the effectiveness of virtual reality simulation as a teaching strategy for de-escalation education in associate nursing students (N = 29) perception in learning and confidence. The study utilized the Simulation Effectiveness Tool-Modified (SET-M) instrument to measure outcomes guided by Kolb's experiential learning theory and the NLN Jeffries simulation theory. The learning variable demonstrated significant improvement as confirmed by paired t-test analysis (p < .01). For the effectiveness and confidence variables, which violated assumptions of normality, a comprehensive statistical approach was implemented. Analysis included parametric testing via paired t-tests, supplemented by nonparametric methods (Wilcoxon Signed-ranks test and Sign test) to ensure statistical rigor. The cumulative results across all three statistical tests consistently demonstrated significant improvements (p < .001). Effect size calculations revealed medium to large significance for all variables measured by Cohen’s d. The conclusive findings of this research to reject all three null hypotheses suggest that virtual reality simulation is an effective teaching strategy for developing de-escalation skills, enhancing both learning and confidence among associate nursing students. Future studies are needed to further validate and expand upon the findings of the current research, potentially leading to more widespread adoption of virtual reality simulation in nursing education for teaching de-escalation. Keywords: Nursing education associate degree, de-escalation, virtual reality simulation, work-place violence

Le Corps : Prise De La Parole Du Corps Qui Devient Sujet Dans L’Écriture Sidéenne De À L’Ami Qui Ne M’A Pas Sauvé La Vie D’Hervé Guibert Et De Dans Ma Chambre De Guillaume Dustan., Sasha Aisha Craig

Vernacular: New Connections in Language, Literature, & Culture

C’est à travers les ouvrages À l’ami qui ne m’a pas sauvé (1990) d’Hervé Guibert et Dans ma chambre de Guillaume Dustan que nous essayons de comprendre le monde de ceux qui ont été stigmatisé comme des fléaux de la société. Dans les années quatre-vingt-dix, les recherches avancent pour aider ceux qui sont atteints du SIDA mais seulement quelques-uns réussissent à se faire soigner. Guibert et Dustan nous font revivre leurs moments de désuétude où la société les rejettent. Cette recherche met en avant l’écriture sidéenne qui se veut souvent « crue » et parle par l’intermédiaire du corps qui …

Translation And Migration, Utopia And Dystopia: Representations Of The Labor Of Cultural Mediation In Fictional Eastern Europe And The Real Us-Mexico Border, James L. Richie Iv

Vernacular: New Connections in Language, Literature, & Culture

With the publication of Moira Inghilleri’s book, Translation and Migration (2017), the linguistic act of translation and the social phenomenon of migration have been linked in the world of interdisciplinary studies, yet this linkage may obscure the relevance of works in which only one phenomenon (translation or migration) is presented. A case study in which a work exploring migration can be contrasted with a work exploring the function of translation may reveal in one another the social forces that condition both practices. In Lucas Pope’s independently created video game Papers Please (2014), the player embodies a border patrol agent in …

Le Bénin Francophone: Une Étude Sur L’Angle Sociolinguistique, David Achodo

Vernacular: New Connections in Language, Literature, & Culture

Cette communication porte sur le paysage sociolinguistique d’un pays d’Afrique occidental–la République du Bénin (l’ancien Dahomey)–mettant en évidence l’interface complexe entre le français et les langues béninoises. Le prestige du français, en tant que langue privilégiée employée pour la communication interethnique dans de divers domaines du pays, rend son acquisition essentielle. Mais, en dehors des autres langues étrangères présentes parmi les membres éduqués de la population béninoise, les langues locales entrent en jeu avec le français, produisant ainsi trois variétés distinctes du français : le français standard, le français d’Afrique et le français snobé. Chacune de ces variétés possède des …

The Jacksons' Debate, Marcus Vinicius Neves

Vernacular: New Connections in Language, Literature, & Culture

The Jacksons’ Debate” explores ethical dilemmas through an alien civilization considering human consumption. This philosophical sci-fi story examines sentience, moral responsibility, and societal progress from a unique perspective. Blending dark humor with social commentary, it challenges readers to reflect on human behavior and ethical decision-making in the face of necessity and scientific advancement.

Le Silence, Le Prédéterminisme Et La Sexualité : Le Cas De Thérèse Desqueyroux, Daniel E. Folger

Vernacular: New Connections in Language, Literature, & Culture

Le silence fait partie intégrante de l’histoire de Thérèse Desqueyroux. A Argelouse, née d’une famille dont la tradition exige l’effacement de l’individualité, elle n’échappe pas à cette répression en se mariant avec Bernard, ni en se sauvant à Paris. La nature inéluctable de son destin fait qu’elle est parfois comparée aux héroïnes tragiques Andromaque et Phèdre. Néanmoins, la parole de cette dernière possède un pouvoir que celle de Thérèse ne détient pas. Malgré la nature étouffante du mutisme imposé sur elle, le silence prend quelquefois un côté positif, notamment lorsque Thérèse est auprès de son amie Anne de la Trave. …

38. Protest 2025. United Faculty [Article]

LGBTQIA+ Archive Class Projects

Citation: NI Staff. (2025, April 9). United Faculty cements opposition to higher education bills in statement. Northern Iowan, 3.

The National Cybersecurity Teaching Coalition: Expanding Cybersecurity Education Opportunities, Paul Wagner, Melissa Dark, Robert Honomichl, Filipo Sharevski, Sandra Leiterman

Journal of Cybersecurity Education, Research and Practice

The increasing prevalence of cybersecurity threats and the shortage of qualified professionals necessitate innovative solutions for cybersecurity education at all levels. Despite the expansion of post-secondary cybersecurity programs, employer dissatisfaction with graduates and a lack of standardized introductory curricula highlights the need for structured secondary education pathways. The National Cybersecurity Teaching Coalition (NCTC) and its National Cybersecurity Teaching Academy (NCTA) address this gap by equipping high school educators with the necessary knowledge and credentials to teach cybersecurity effectively. NCTA offers an 18-credit cybersecurity graduate certificate program to ensure teachers are competent and confident to develop and teach cybersecurity curriculum with …

Vision For The Future Of Oncology Physical Therapy: Apta Oncology’S Strategic Plan, Christopher M. Wilson, Emily Compagner

Oncology Rehabilitation in Practice

This article summarizes the 2024-27 strategic plan of the Academy of Oncologic Physical Therapy. The strategic plan consists of five strategic pillars — advocacy, engagement, education, collaboration, and research. Although the strategic plan is slated for another review in 2027, the 2024-27 strategic plan sets forth the key initiatives to advance the field of cancer physical therapy and oncology rehabilitation. This piece summarizes some key initiatives and how the academy and the profession will aim to achieve the APTA and APTA Oncology visions. For the full 2024-27 strategic plan of APTA Oncology, visit www.oncologypt.org.

Axillary Web Syndrome (Aws) In Absence Of Breast Cancer History Or Surgery: A Case Report, David B. Locke, Linda Koehler

Oncology Rehabilitation in Practice

Background: Axillary web syndrome (AWS) is a complication of breast cancer surgery with axillary lymph node removal. Cords are found within 2 weeks post-surgery in the axillary area of the operated side, and many extend down the arm or into the lateral chest wall. The purpose of this report is to present a unique case of idiopathic AWS, and to increase awareness of non-cancer related AWS in the medical community.

Case Description: A 39-year-old healthy female presented to physiotherapy with a 2-week history of a palpable tight cord in her left axilla without history of cancer or surgery. She sought …