Digital Commons Network^™

“Overworked, Undernourished, And Weak In The Eyes”: The Portrayal Of Librarians In Comics, Alessandro Camarra

Staff publications

Librarians and library workers have frequently appeared as characters within the medium of comics, perhaps more so than people realize. While the discussion usually begins and ends with Barbara Gordon/Batgirl, the number of examples that can actually be found is astoundingly vast.

Whether they are fictional beings wholly created by the artists, or based on real-life individuals, librarians represent a standard archetype within popular culture that creators often reference in order to convey a specific image to their audience. Usually, but not always, this involves an emphasis on negative stereotypes associated with the profession: demanding silence from patrons, outdated modes …

A Pauline Portrait Of The Gift Of Prophecy According To 1 Corinthians 14, Jacob W. Garrell

Senior Honors Theses

This study investigates the 1 Corinthians 14 discourse concerning gifts in corporate worship to identify the major characteristics of the New Testament gift of prophecy. Sources written from various theological frameworks will be weighed and examined for agreement and divergence. The resulting description of prophecy will be limited almost exclusively to observable claims and supported inferences drawn from exegesis of 1 Corinthians 14. The evidence from this text promotes an understanding of prophecy as a gift performed by functional, self-controlled agents with the chief intent of revelatory, though fallible, communication for edification, confirmation, and witness. Meanwhile, questions concerning the spontaneity …

'Here's What Bali Can Do For You': Social Media's Impact On Travel Writing, Carlisle Avalon Jarnigan

Senior Honors Theses

This thesis examines how social media has initiated a shift in the genre of travel writing from educational cultural observation to a form of engagement-driven, monetized travel content creation. Historically, the genre has functioned as a descriptive genre dedicated to educating readers who would never get to see the destinations they read about modern travel writing and content creation use emotional persuasion to market travel experience as a product, redefining the genre. Using methods like geotagging, user-generated content (UGC), and emotionally charged storytelling approaches, travel creators no longer just describe locations but instead promise readers that if they visit, they …

Behavioral Biases In Investment Decision-Making: Evidence From Short-Term Trading Behavior During High-Volatility Market Events, Jayden A. Shwed

Honors Theses

This study examines how behavioral biases influence short-term trading behavior during periods of high market volatility. While traditional financial theory assumes that investors act rationally, real-world market behavior often reflects the influence of psychological factors. Rather than treating behavioral bias as a single market force, this thesis compares how different biases appear across distinct market environments. Using an empirical, case-study-based approach, this study evaluates three recent market episodes: the COVID-19 market crash in 2020, the GameStop meme stock surge in 2021, and the rise of NVIDIA during the artificial intelligence boom from 2023 to 2024. Historical price and trading volume …

Executive Committee - Agenda, 05/05/2026, Academic Senate

Academic Senate Agendas

No abstract provided.

Bioinformatic Resolution Of Candidate Stress-Response Homologs In Cryptosporidium Parvum: P53-Family Vs Sestrin Identity, Freeman Tobechukwu Ezeala Mr.

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

Cryptosporidium parvum is an apicomplexan protozoan of major public-health importance, but accurate genome annotation in this organism remains difficult because of its compact genome, deep protein divergence, and the presence of compositionally biased or low-complexity regions that can mislead similarity-based analysis.

In this thesis, I examined one such annotation problem involving a conserved Cryptosporidium stress-response candidate protein, CPATCC_0028580_t1 (833 aa). The central question was whether this protein is better interpreted as a member of the p53 family, based on similarity to p53-like DNA-binding domains (PF00870), or as a member of the Sestrin family associated with the PA26 domain.

I explored …

Substantive Biases? Analyzing Ideological Bias In Substantive Due Process Claims On The Roberts Court, Nicholas J. Ginsberg

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This thesis examines whether judicial ideology has a stronger influence on Supreme Court decision making in substantive due process claims when compared to other areas of law through the Roberts Court. Previous scholarship has noted that ideology is a factor in judicial decision making, however, there is little scholarship on if specific areas of law makes ideology play a larger factor in decision making. Utilizing justice-level voting records from the Roberts Court and Segal-Cover scores to measure judicial ideology, a logistic regression model is utilized to analyze the relationship between ideology and voting behavior in substantive due process cases and …

Comparing Llm Architectures In Street Fighter Iii, Andrew Hinh, Hyemin Doo, Jack Wu

Computer Science and Engineering Senior Theses

We built a browser-based Street Fighter III benchmark for comparing large language models (LLMs) and visionlanguage models (VLMs) under real-time constraints. The game runs through a Gymnasium-like control loop that exposes both frames and structured state while the agent emits button actions. We deploy the system on Modal and stream matches overWebRTC, which lets us compare ability, latency, and cost in one setting instead of spreading them across unrelated benchmarks. Because the benchmark is narrow, architectural tradeoffs that are easy to blur in offline evaluation show up quickly during live play.

The Relationship Between Evidence-Based Coaching And The Decision-Making And Cultural Responsiveness Of Child Welfare Professionals, Kenisha Coon-Santiago

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

No abstract provided.

Complications Following Orthognathic Surgery In Patients With Cleft Lip And/Or Palate: A Single-Centre Retrospective Analysis Of 57 Consecutive Patients, Ahmed Shawqi Alqattan, Ahmed Al Hashmi, Said Al Rashdi, Mohammed Al Nabhani

Sultan Qaboos University Medical Journal

Objectives: The most prevalent craniofacial abnormality in infants is cleft lip and/or palate (CL/P). Orthognathic surgery is necessary for 25–60% of patients in order to enhance face aesthetics and masticatory function. Nevertheless, there is a lack of defined complication profiles in this particular population. Thus, this study aimed to describe the spectrum and frequency of complications following orthognathic surgery in CL/P patients at a tertiary care referral centre. Methods: This retrospective cohort study included consecutive CL/P patients who underwent orthognathic surgery at Al Nahda Hospital, Muscat, Oman, between 2008–2022. Variables analysed included demographics, procedure type, length of stay and predefined …

Development Of Antagonist Peptides Of The Crk/Crkl Sh2 Domains By Modifying The Peripheral Amino Acid Residues Of The Yxxp Motif., Taeju P. Park, Anuradha Roy, Justin T. Douglas, Laurie Harned, Sarah A. Neuenswander, Neka Large, Giridhar Mudduluru, Melinda Broward, David K. Johnson

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

Protein-protein interactions (PPIs) through the phosphotyrosine-Src homology 2 (SH2) interaction play critical roles in many signal transduction pathways. CT10 regulator of kinase (Crk) and Crk-like (CrkL) are structurally and functionally similar adaptor proteins that mediate PPIs through their SH2 domains. Crk and CrkL are essential in tumor cell migration and invasion and have been proposed as therapeutic targets. However, there are no Crk and CrkL inhibitors available. Previously, we designed a conserved heptapeptide that binds to Crk by analyzing the 15 YXXP motifs in p130Cas. The peptide bound to the SH2 domain of Crk (CrkSH2) and inhibited the CrkSH2-p130Cas interaction. …

Practicing A Pedagogy Of Slow Resistance In The Writing Classroom, Kathleen Rose Dillon

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Especially during and following the ‘lockdown era’ of the COVID-19 pandemic, college writing instructors have sought ways to mitigate the harms of neoliberal and capitalist practices in the academy and writing classroom. Incorporating elements of Slow Pedagogy, Disability Studies, Anti-Capitalist Composition, and Participatory Action Research methodology, this dissertation argues for practicing a Pedagogy of Slow Resistance, centering co-creation and relationship-building, to resist neoliberal and capitalist values, and promote student belonging and well-being. This dissertation highlights a classroom study in which two undergraduate students in the TRIO program, which serves students who are first in their family to go to college, …

Digital Lean Transformation Through Mes–Scada Intergration: Reducing Transactional And Cognitive Waste In High-Volume Electronics Manufacturing, Kamal Alalul

Graduate Dissertations and Theses

This research addresses inefficiencies in Manufacturing Execution System (MES)-driven workflows, where excessive user interactions and fragmented access to work instructions introduce transactional and cognitive waste. To address these limitations, an integrated architecture was developed using Ignition as a SCADA-based operator interface connected to the MES through API-based communication. The system replaces direct MES interaction with a unified interface that embeds work instructions and automates transaction execution within the production workflow. The approach was implemented and evaluated through an industrial case study on a 15 station electronics manufacturing line. Results show a 51% reduction in total cycle time, decreasing from 2,996 …

Consumer Evaluations Of Corporate Generosity, Yanyi Leng

Olin Business School Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

How do consumers evaluate corporate generosity? This dissertation examines how both the structure and communication of firms’ charitable initiatives shape consumer judgments, revealing that consumers are highly sensitive to cues about consistency, authenticity, and responsibility embedded in corporate social responsibility (CSR) efforts. In Chapter One, “Consumers Prefer that Corporations Donate Periodically,” I examine how the temporal consistency of corporate giving influences consumer evaluations. Across seven preregistered studies (N = 150,563), including two large-scale field studies and five online experiments, I demonstrate that making a series of periodic contributions, e.g., donating $20,000 per month for 12 months, rather than donating an …

Narrating Power: How Organizations Can Shape Power Holders’ Perceptions And Behaviors Through Promotion Narratives, Hyun Jung Yoon

Olin Business School Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Promotions are gateways to influential positions of power in organizations. Much work on promotions has examined how changing the promotion decision system—how the promotion is decided—can affect the power-related perceptions and behaviors of the promoted employees. However, I argue that organizations can also actively shape the perceptions and behaviors of the promoted employees through how they deliver those decisions—through narrating them. Specifically, I theorize that “promotion narratives”—the personal explanations organizations provide to promoted employees about why they were promoted—can shape how promoted employees construe the role of others in obtaining a promotion and how they engage with others in the …

Juvenile Justice, Kayla Baptiste

Harriet L Wilkes Honors College Theses 2020 - Present

When a minor fatally shoots their classmate, the justice system faces a harrowing question: does this child deserve the same death sentence as an adult murderer? While most instinctively answer ‘no,’ the philosophical ‘why’ remains complex. Juvenile courts were founded on the principle that young offenders are developmentally distinct, possessing limited decision-making capacity and a unique potential for reform. Some argue that punishing juveniles identically to adults harmfully ignores these developmental limits, while others contend that exempting them from adult sanctions disregards the cruelty and intent present in their crimes. Ultimately, however, no philosophical justification for punishment—neither utilitarian nor retributive—justifies …

Rgfc: Registry Grounded Function Calling With Stage-Decomposed Evaluation, Ritvik Garimella, Vedant Khandelwal, Anvi Kohli, Amit Sheth

Publications

Tool-calling evaluations often report whether the final call matches a reference answer, but this single outcome merges different failures: choosing a function outside the available registry, violating the selected schema, or filling arguments with values not supported by the user request. These failures matter more when models must choose from larger tool registries. We introduce RFCD, a registry-scaled function-calling benchmark built from BFCL, Glaive Function Calling v2, and Tool-Call-Data, with standardized JSON-schema registries ranging from 5 to 3,000 functions. We also introduce TAAG, a deterministic stage-decomposed evaluator for registry conformance, structural completeness, and argument grounding. Across six locally served sub-4B …

Analysis Of Approximations In Flash Thermal Diffusivity Measurements Using High‑Fidelity Simulations, Tage T. Burnett, Jakob G. Bates, Matthew R. Jones, Christopher R. Dillon, John Tencer

Faculty Publications

Thermal diffusivity is an important material property for understanding and characterizing transient behavior in many heat transfer applications. This study investigates the accuracy and approximations of inverse mathematical models for measuring thermal diffusivity of materials via the widely used Flash Method. High-fidelity simulations of the Flash Method in copper, silicon carbide, silicon, and glass were performed as numerical experiments and included physics such as in-depth absorption, radial conduction, and surface convection. Data from those numerical experiments were used to estimate material thermal diffusivity using seven traditional and new inverse models. Parker’s original model had relative errors 𝜖< 5% when the approximations it makes were enforced in numerical experiments. Newer models performed well even when experimental restrictions were relaxed. Models that include radial heat conduction were capable of accurately measuring thermal diffusivity (𝜖< 1%) when a Gaussian energy source was used. Models with radial conduction and in-depth material absorption of the laser source could calculate thermal diffusivity for semi-transparent materials such as silicon (𝜖< 1%) and even transparent materials like glass (𝜖< 10%). Convective losses from the material’s front surface had a negligible impact on measurements except for very low thermal diffusivity materials. Using temperatures from many locations of the test material’s surface increased resilience to noise, reducing the distribution of thermal diffusivity measurements by more than an order of magnitude. The models developed in this study could enable a more relaxed Flash Method experimental setup that maintains thermal diffusivity accuracy and extend the utility of the Flash Method to semitransparent materials.

Bns Bldgs., Llc V. Thomas

All Decisions

In this nonpayment proceeding, the court grants respondent's motion for discovery with respect to the apartment's rent regulatory status. The court finds that respondent demonstrated ample need based on the DHCR rent history, which showed indicia of fraudulent deregulation.

What’S In It For Us?, Hannah Giancola

Theses

What’s in it for us? examines how value can be created, abstracted, and redefined through material practice, participation, and shared experience. Situated in the space between maker and mender, the artist works in the symbiotic relationship between creation and repair. Wood is the primary material of creation, often in its imperfect form. It becomes both medium and metaphor representing intrinsic value while helping to challenge the systems that’s equate value with market and currency. From a multidisciplinary approach and adaptive nature, the work pulls from personal history, interfaith upbringing, and influences from conceptual art to traditional craft. This thesis transitions …

Purine Metabolic Adaptation Protects The Endothelium From Disturbed Flow-Induced Dna Damage And Atherosclerosis, Qian Ma, Yongfeng Cai, Zhidan Zhang, Dingwei Zhao, Yuan Zhao, Peishan Xu, Tammy Lu, Wendy Zhang, Qiuhua Yang, Yaqi Zhou, Varadarajan Sudhahar, Tohru Fukai, Hanjoong Jo, Yiming Xu, Yuqing Huo

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Despite effective lipid-lowering therapies, atherosclerosis continues to be a leading cause of death, with considerable residual cardiovascular risk. Atherosclerotic lesions develop preferentially at arterial regions exposed to disturbed flow (d-flow), which induces genomic stress, endothelial injury, and barrier dysfunction. Hemodynamic forces are known to reprogram endothelial metabolism, but the role of de novo purine synthesis (DNPS), which supplies nucleotides for genome maintenance and whose terminal steps are catalyzed by the bifunctional enzyme ATIC, remains undefined in atherosclerosis. By integrating bulk and single-cell multiomics with in vitro flow systems and in vivo models, we show that d-flow upregulates DNPS and ATIC …

Cpt1a Loss Promotes Lung Metastasis In Immune-Competent Mice Via A Mechanism Of Mtdna Release And Chronic Activation Of Sting Pathway, Xiaoyong Wang, Shu-Ting Chou, Yoonha Hwang, Jin Chen, Deanna N Edwards

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

The metastatic progression of breast cancer involves complex interactions between tumor cells and immune cells, including T cells that exert cytotoxic pressure to limit metastasis. Tumor cells reprogram their metabolism to evade immune surveillance, a critical step to achieving metastatic outgrowth. Using an unbiased CRISPR screen targeting metabolism-related genes and a clinically relevant spontaneous metastasis mouse model, we identified CPT1A, the rate-limiting enzyme in fatty acid β-oxidation, as a suppressor of immune-dependent metastasis. Loss of CPT1A enhances lung metastasis in immunocompetent mice, but not Rag1 KO mice that lack mature lymphocytes. Loss of CPT1A triggers cytosolic mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) release …

Contemplative Classrooms For Ecological Wisdom: Reimagining K-12 Education In Pakistan, China, And Beyond, Maha Shoaib, Jing Lin, Yueyue Wang

Journal of Contemplative and Holistic Education

This paper explores the transformative potential of contemplative environmental education in addressing the growing disconnection between humans and the natural world, particularly within K-12 education systems shaped by anthropocentric and capitalist paradigms. Modern schooling often frames nature as an object of study, rather than a sacred, living presence, contributing to ecological alienation amid intensifying environmental crises. We propose a radical shift toward contemplative, holistic education that draws on spiritual, Indigenous, and ecological knowledge systems. Grounded in Daoist philosophy, Islamic teachings on stewardship, Hindu ethics, and Indigenous worldviews, we reimagine education as a relational and sacred engagement with the Earth. We …

Wisdom And Contemplative Effort In Ikeda Daisaku's Philosophy Of Human Education, Jason Goulah, Riya Kartha

Journal of Contemplative and Holistic Education

This article introduces and examines Japanese philosopher Ikeda Daisaku's (1928–2023) perspectives on wisdom and contemplative effort, what Ikeda calls “human revolution,” at the heart of his practice of “human education.” Using bilingual and critical discourse analyses of the Ikeda corpus, the authors summarize Ikeda’s philosophy of human education, highlighting the role of human revolution as a contemplative practice in the cultivation of wisdom. Thereafter they outline the multiple ways Ikeda articulates wisdom in his philosophy, analyzing the various Sino-Japanese character compounds used to convey the concept and the respective meaning of each. As the original language reflects a depth and …

Reimagining Teacher-Student Relationships In Schools: What Does Mencius Say?, Ruo-Han Wang, Charles Scott

Journal of Contemplative and Holistic Education

In some K-12 educational settings, it is often assumed that teachers are the ones who deliver and guide, while students are the ones who are delivered and guided. As a result, both in common perception and practical operations, teachers typically hold more power than students, acting as both the possessors and executers of authority. While this inherent power imbalance in traditional schools is understandable, it can create fundamental situations that remain unresolved, representing an ontological problem in education . These fundamental issues have persisted in causing trauma in educational settings (Frieze, 2015), and the need for healing for both students …

Beyond Coping In High School: An Emergent Mindfulness Practice Towards Embodied Wisdom, Mel A.V. Voulgaris

Journal of Contemplative and Holistic Education

Mindfulness practice is trending in schools. Within secondary education, it is oftentimes introduced as meditation for present-moment awareness of the self to support academic concerns. However, mindfulness practice in its original conception is a holistic way of cultivating human well-being towards flourishing. It is a practice that aims for awareness to the entirety of human subjective and intersubjective experiencing as it is emerging. In doing so, mindfulness evolves from a coping tool into a rich contemplative practice. This paper will make the case that mindulness as a contemplative practice facilitates the cultivation of embodied wisdom and that such a practice …

A Qualitative Analysis Of Bilingual Children's Subjective Feelings When Language Brokering, Laritza Leyva, Emely B. Bayas, Jordan S. Perry

Undergraduate Research and Engagement Symposium

This study investigates how bilingual child language brokers (CLBs) subjectively feel when language brokering (i.e., translating for family members who are not proficient in a language) and the factors that contribute to their feelings. CLBs (ages 9-12) were interviewed about their brokering experiences, and overall themes were identified using thematic analysis. While the majority of CLBs reported feeling positively when translating, some mentioned feeling “normal,” negative, and/or bewildered. CLBs further explained that their feelings were influenced by their belief that translating is helpful, their vocabulary knowledge, and family values related to language learning and bilingualism, among other reasons.

Ai In The Er: Why Emergency Medicine Needs More Than An Algorithm, Aidan Patrick Crawford

Undergraduate Research and Engagement Symposium

AI holds the potential to revolutionize emergency medicine; to save lives or cause serious harm if left ungoverned by the right ethical framework. The high-stakes, fast-moving nature of emergency care exposes the limits of rule-based AI ethics more than anywhere else in medicine. Ignatian spirituality offers training and application guidance beyond rule-based ethics.

The Effect Of Temperature On Competitive Interactions Between Two Species Of Invasive Crayfish, Jackson Rohrbaugh

Undergraduate Research and Engagement Symposium

The North Shore Channel (NSC) of the Chicago River is home to two invasive species of crayfish, the red swamp crayfish and the rusty crayfish. However, distribution data of these two species show that they do not occupy the same regions of the channel. I investigated whether this difference in distributions resulted from the temperature gradient present in the NSC. Specifically, I tested how competitive interactions between the two species changed in different water temperatures. I did so by placing one crayfish of each species in tanks of varying water temperatures and recording their interactions.

How Individual Differences Affect Children’S Learning From Gesture​, Esha Thakker

Undergraduate Research and Engagement Symposium

Gestures are hand movements that accompany speech and convey information. Although research shows gestures support learning, not all children benefit equally. This study examines how individual differences, such as prior knowledge, verbal working memory, fluid intelligence, and children’s tendency to view movement as meaningful, influence learning from gesture-based instruction. First-grade students participated in tasks to assess these characteristics and received instruction on linear measurement, a foundational early math skill that challenges many children in the United States. By exploring how cognitive profiles interact with instructional contexts, this research aims to inform more effective teaching strategies.