Digital Commons Network^™

Diagnosing Covid-19 Infection In Chest X-Ray Images Using Neural Network, Salim M. Zaki, Mustafa Musa Jaber, Mohammed A. Kashmoola

Baghdad Science Journal

With its rapid spread, the coronavirus infection shocked the world and had a huge effect on billions of peoples' lives. The problem is to find a safe method to diagnose the infections with fewer casualties. It has been shown that X-Ray images are an important method for the identification, quantification, and monitoring of diseases. Deep learning algorithms can be utilized to help analyze potentially huge numbers of X-Ray examinations. This research conducted a retrospective multi-test analysis system to detect suspicious COVID-19 performance, and use of chest X-Ray features to assess the progress of the illness in each patient, resulting in …

A Geographic Segmentation Approach For Satellite-Derived Bathymetry, Juliane Jussara Affonso

Master's Theses and Capstones

Safety of navigation depends on our knowledge of seabed and its features, and, as such, any improvements in deriving bathymetry for nautical chart updating are of major importance. Satellite-Derived Bathymetry (SDB) is an alternative to traditional surveys using ship and airborne sensors, particularly for mapping remote and shallow areas, due to its reduced cost and the absence of navigational risks in very shallow and unsurveyed areas. However, the accuracy of SDB can be judged as relatively low for nautical charting purposes and, therefore, is mostly used for reconnaissance or/and for filling gaps in remote or very shallow areas. One of …

Design And Synthesis Towards Bifunctional 89zr And 44sc Chelators For Immuno-Positron Emission Tomography, Noah Cote

Master's Theses and Capstones

The design and synthesis of novel zirconium and scandium complexes, ZrIV(p-NO2-sal-DFO) and ScIII(p-NO2-Bn-NOTPi) respectively, and their potential for use in immuno-positron emission tomography (immuno-PET) are discussed. The design for a linear octadentate ligand for Zr was hypothesized and derived from deferoxamine B (DFO), a well-known hexadentate siderophore for Fe complexation. A p-NO2-salicyclic acid derivative was prepared to provide a bifunctional handle for antibody conjugation. Deferoxamine B chelates with hydroxamate moieties, which have proven useful for chelation of hard acids. While difficulties in purification led to no complexation studies being performed, this chelator was confirmed via 1H NMR , 13C NMR, …

Cosmogenic 36cl Dating Of The Granite Canyon Moraine Complex In The Teton Range To Determine Fault Offset Rates And The Influence Of Valley Hypsometry On Glacier Behavior, Calen M. Rubin

Master's Theses and Capstones

During the Last Glacial Maximum, major drainages along the east side of the Teton Range were occupied by alpine glaciers that extended to the floor of Jackson Hole. Chronologies of glaciation in the central and northern parts of the range have been developed via 10Be exposure dating of well-preserved terminal and lateral moraine complexes. However, few glacial records have been developed in the southern portion of the range. The metamorphic and sedimentary bedrock and shallow hypsometry of Granite Canyon stand in contrast to the crystalline lithology and steeper hypsometry of glaciated valleys further north along the eastern range front. Granite …

Textualism And The Indian Canons Of Statutory Construction, Alex Tallchief Skibine

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

When interpreting statutes enacted for the benefit or regulation of Indians or construing treaties signed with Indian nations, courts are supposed to apply any of five specific canons of construction relating to Indian Affairs. Through examining the modern line of Supreme Court cases involving statutory or treaty interpretation relating to Indian nations, this Article demonstrates that the Court has generally been faithful in applying canons relating to treaty interpretation or abrogation. The Court has also respected the canon requiring unequivocal expression of congressional intent before finding an abrogation of tribal sovereign immunity. However, there are two other canons that the …

The Times They Are A-Changin’?: #Metoo And Our Movement Forward, Terry Morehead Dworkin, Cindy A. Schipani

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Social movements like #MeToo have gained public traction like never before. In this Article, we place those developments within their historical context and chart a path forward. First, we provide a history of the prior unsuccessful attempts to ratify an Equal Rights Amendment, and we discuss that effort’s current legal status and prospects. Then, we briefly review the history of sexual harassment law. Having outlined this historical context, we move to contemporary developments. We describe actions that state legislatures and local municipalities have taken to address the concerns raised by the #MeToo movement. Finally, we discuss how inflection points can …

The Fed Of The Future: A Framework To Optimize Short-Term Lending Practices, Emma Macfarlane, Karin Thrasher

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

Underbanked individuals currently face significant risk when accessing short-term credit. While payday loans are the least expensive short-term credit option when compared to alternatives like overdraft fees, they can also have an extraordinarily high cost of borrowing. Unable to pay the cost of the loan, borrowers often find themselves in a vicious cycle that drives them further into debt. This Note sets forth a proposal as to how payday loans can be better regulated to create affordable access to short-term credit. Specifically, this Note advocates for congressional and Federal Reserve intervention in the payday lending market.

This Note first analyzes …

Rethinking Absolute Immunity From Defamation Suits In Private Quasi-Judicial Proceedings

The University of New Hampshire Law Review

No abstract provided.

Pop & Perjury: The Irs Valuation War With The Estate Of Michael Jackson

The University of New Hampshire Law Review

When Michael Jackson died unexpectedly in Los Angeles, California, on June 25, 2009, his career and earnings were nearing an all-time low. Plagued by past sexual abuse allegations, scandals, and questionable health, Michael Jackson’s personal finances were purported to be in complete disarray. However, following his unexpected death, the value of his estate, which was reported to be near to nothing, swelled as the world remembered his beloved contributions to the world and began to purchase accordingly. Sales of Michael Jackson’s music began to soar high. The estate’s value soared even higher as it signed licensing agreements and released new …

Broken Promises: The Granite State’S Return To The Institutionalization Of Children With Disabilities

The University of New Hampshire Law Review

In 1975, the New Hampshire legislature enacted a progressive statute which mandated the Department of Health and Human Services “to establish, maintain, implement and coordinate a comprehensive service delivery system for developmentally disabled persons.” This law was innovative for its time; it decreed that individual service plans (ISPs) be developed for every client in the state’s service delivery system, guaranteed “a right to adequate and humane habilitation and treatment[,]” and contemplated the state’s area agency system as we know it today. The statute was a steppingstone for the 1981 class action lawsuit of Garrity v. Gallen. This was one of …

Bobcat Identification, Abundance, And Behavior At Road Mitigation Structures In South Texas, Victoria Hanley

Theses and Dissertations

Highways in South Texas fragment the landscape and result in high road mortality rates for the endangered US ocelot (Leopardus pardalis). In response, the Texas Department of Transportation constructed nine wildlife crossing structures (WCS) on Farm-to-Market (FM) 106 which adjoins Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge in Cameron County, Texas. With ocelots being rare and elusive, bobcats (Lynx rufus) are often used as a surrogate species to study felid behavior at road mitigation structures in South Texas. Bobcats have unique markings which allow them to be individually identified. Three methods of individual identification of bobcats using camera …

The Role Of Lncrna Uca1 In Colorectal Cancer Progression And Metastasis, Sophia M. Leslie

Theses and Dissertations

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the primary cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide, and it is the third most common cancer diagnosed in adults in the United States according to the American Cancer Society. We have identified lncRNA UCA1, a poor prognosis marker in CRC, responsible for increased proliferation and upregulating key genes related to glucose metabolism. Recombinant cell lines were generated to overexpress and knockdown UCA1 to establish the phenotype and to investigate the properties endowed in metastasis. A vital aspect of the metastatic progression is when the cell survives detachment from the extracellular matrix. At 36 hours of anchorage-independent stimulation, …

Scan4façade: Automated As-Is Façade Modeling Of Historic High-Rise Buildings Using Drones And Ai, Yuhan Jiang, Sisi Han, Yong Bai

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

This paper presents an automated as-is façade modeling method for existing and historic high-rise buildings, named Scan4Façade. To begin with, a camera drone with a spiral path is employed to capture building exterior images, and photogrammetry is used to conduct three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction and create mesh models for the scanned building façades. High-resolution façade orthoimages are then generated from mesh models and pixelwise segmented by an artificial intelligence (AI) model named U-net. A combined data augmentation strategy, including random flipping, rotation, resizing, perspective transformation, and color adjustment, is proposed for model training with a limited number of labels. As …

Stimulus Discrimination Training And Its Effects On Generalization Gradients, Christopher Veenstra

Theses and Dissertations

Adaptation-level theory has been used to explain how the size and shape of generalization gradients depend on the procedure used to study generalization. However, most of the empirical support for this theory has come from studies using a relatively simple stimulus dimension (e.g., lights that vary in brightness). In addition, much of the research has focused on one specific prediction of adaptation-level theory: that responding during a generalization test should shift towards intermediate values within the tested portion of the stimulus dimension. The present research used a more complex set of stimuli. Specifically, the stimulus dimension was based on bar …

Identifying Motivations Of New Counselors For Continuing Professional Development Of Multicultural Competencies: A Qualitative Study, Larry English

Dissertations

The need to increase multicultural counseling skills is a crucial area of focus in the continued evolution of the counseling profession. This necessity is due to a number of factors, including the ongoing demographic and societal changes in the United States. The research has helped to bring awareness of the need for increased and continued professional development in the area of cultural literacy and multicultural competencies skills for beginning counselors and others in counseling-related programs. At the micro level, the research investigated new clinicians’ self-awareness of their own biases, assumptions, internalized/externalized actions, and beliefs toward other cultures. The purpose of …

The Characterization Of Natural Ingredients As Pharmaceutical Excipients In Paracetamol Tablets, Nigel Patrick Brooks Jr

All Theses

Excipients used in pharmaceuticals are inactive ingredients that play a big role in drug formulations, and drug delivery systems. Binders are a type of pharmaceutical excipient that is crucial to the stability, physical characteristics, and cohesiveness of the tablet. Fully synthetic binders, such as polyethylene glycol (PEG), are commonly used due to their great formulation traits; however, these materials may have a slow dissolution rate, reduced bioavailability, or the potential to cause allergic reactions. Due to these limitations, natural excipients would be a great alternative due to their biocompatibility and faster dissolution rate. The purpose of this research was to …

A Fresh Look At A University Website: Redesigning The Graphic Communication Website, Kristy Leung, Samantha Kim

Graphic Communication

Designed over ten years ago, the landing page of the Graphic Communication website does not reflect the artistic talents of the department and exhibits poor navigation and usability. Colleen Twomey, the department chair, has expressed that prospective students, transfers, guardians, and other visitors have trouble finding relevant information on the website. As a university-affiliated site, the landing page should guide both new and returning visitors to their destination in a quick and intuitive manner. The primary goal of this project is to effectively educate new visitors who are interested in the Graphic Communication program but have minimal knowledge of what …

Cultivating Christian Community In A Post-Covid Era, Susie M. Lloyd

Journalism

This study focuses on how to meet the needs of young adult Christians through community and resources, all of which aim to help them live more like Jesus. There are many online resources for Christians, but society lacks a “one-stop shop” website that has every resource a young adult following Jesus could need. These resources include an online community where people can choose what mode of community they need, whether that be one-on-one discipleship or mentorship, consistent group meetings with people their own age, an accountability partner, or just a friend who shares similar beliefs and values. In an era …

Wordmuse, John M. Nelson

Computer Science and Software Engineering

Wordmuse is an application that allows users to enter a song and a list of keywords to create a new song. Built on Spotify's API, this project showcases the fusion of music composition and artificial intelligence. This paper also discusses the motivation, design, and creation of Wordmuse.

Novelty Ice Cream Assembly Prototype, Mason Sylvester, Logan Williamson, Alvaro Martinez, Adin Gilman-Cohen

Mechanical Engineering

Cool Beans USA is a novelty ice cream startup company founded by Keith Zachow. In the winter of 2022, our team began working with Mr. Zachow to develop a machine to automate parts of the production process for his product. This product consists of two hemispherical ice-cream cone shell halves filled with soft serve ice cream and pressed together. The assembled pods are around the size and shape of a small walnut and are intended to be sold in stores as a frozen finger food. At the time of project inception, this product was in its early stages and was …

Community In Culture: The Role Of Multicultural Education In Elementary School, Michaela Novack

Senior Honors Theses

Racism, bias, and discrimination plagues all areas of society, including the school systems. With the wrong perspective, diversity causes division, and it is impacting students, even in elementary schools. This thesis will examine research about the issue of racism and bias in elementary schools and suggest the solution of cultural integration experiences with practical strategies. It will demonstrate how cultural diversity in instruction encourages students to identify stereotypes, readjust their perspectives of culture, and identify and appreciate their cultural differences. This instruction can be achieved through a variety of methods including virtual field trips, diverse literature, and class activities. The …

Possible Role Of The Storm-Generated Streamwise Vorticity In Tornado Intensification And Evolution, Lance Reed Wilson

Theses and Dissertations

Streamwise vorticity developing within the forward flank (FF) of supercell thunderstorms has been found to modulate the intensity of the low-level mesocyclone. However, few studies have quantitatively investigated FF vorticity contributions to low-level mesocyclone intensity. This study investigates the relative contribution of streamwise vorticity within the FF to the low-level mesocyclone strength using two Cloud Model 1 simulations with 75 m horizontal grid spacing initialized with the 18Z Jackson, MS, special sounding from the environment that produced the 27 April 2011 Tuscaloosa tornado. Vorticity budgets were calculated along forward trajectories that enter the low-level mesocyclone. Trajectories traversing through the FF …

Rsv-Induced Actin Modulation: Contributes To Bronchial Wall Thickening; Does Not Induce Emt, And Is Cdc42-Assisted, Sattya Narayan Talukdar

Theses and Dissertations

RSV is a negative-sense, single-stranded RNA virus that infects our respiratory tract and can cause severe bronchiolitis and pneumonia worldwide. RSV bronchiolitis causes more fatalities in infants and newborns and leads to severe hospitalization and even death of children. The host-RSV interaction has yet to be explored properly to explain RSV bronchiolitis. This study aimed to elucidate the connection between the modulation of host actin cytoskeletal with viral pathogenesis, including bronchiolitis. As bronchial wall thickening is a common feature of bronchiolitis, the contribution of RSV-infected airway epithelium to bronchial wall thickening was evaluated. RSV infection in the healthy adult bronchial …

Multispectral Imaging For Microchip Electrophoresis Enables Point-Of-Care Newborn Hemoglobin Variant Screening, Ran An, Yuning Huang, Anne Rocheleau, Qiaochu Zhang, Yuncheng Man, Zoe Sekyonda, Amma Owusu-Ansah, Umut A. Gurkan

Faculty Scholarship

Hemoglobin (Hb) disorders affect nearly 7% of the world's population. Globally, around 400,000 babies are born annually with sickle cell disease (SCD), primarily in sub-Saharan Africa where morbidity and mortality rates are high. Screening, early diagnosis, and monitoring are not widely accessible due to technical challenges and cost. We hypothesized that multispectral imaging will allow sensitive hemoglobin variant identification in existing affordable paper-based Hb electrophoresis. To test this hypothesis, we developed the first integrated point-of-care multispectral Hb variant test: Gazelle-Multispectral. Here, we evaluated the accuracy of Gazelle-Multispectral for Hb variant newborn screening in 265 newborns with known hemoglobin variants including …

Multicriteria Study Of The Violation Of The Principle Of Innocence In Traffic Accidents, Eduardo Luciano Hernández Ramos, Carlos Gilberto Rosero Martinez, Janneth Ximena Iglesias Quintana, Alex Javier Peñafiel Palacio

Neutrosophic Sets and Systems

No abstract provided.

Using Landsat Satellite Imagery To Estimate Groundcover In The Grainbelt Of Western Australia, Justin Laycock, Nick Middleton, Karen Holmes

Resource management technical reports

Maintaining vegetative groundcover is an important component of sustainable agricultural systems and plays a critical function for soil and land conservation in Western Australia’s (WA) grainbelt (the south-west cropping region). This report describes how satellite imagery can be used to quantitatively and objectively estimate total vegetative groundcover, both in near real time and historically across large areas. We used the Landsat seasonal fractional groundcover products developed by the Joint Remote Sensing Research Program from the extensive archive of Landsat imagery. These products provide an estimate of the percentage of green vegetation, non-green vegetation and bare soil for each 30 m …

Intelligent Autonomous Inspections Using Deep Learning And Detection Markers, Alejandro Martinez Acosta

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Inspection of industrial and scientific facilities is a crucial task that must be performed regularly. These inspections tasks ensure that the facilityâ??s structure is in safe operational conditions for humans. Furthermore,the safe operation of industrial machinery, is dependent on the conditions of the environment. For safety reasons, inspections for both structural integrity and equipment is often manually performed by operators or technicians. Naturally, this is often a tedious and laborious task. Additionally, buildings and structures frequently contain hard to reach or dangerous areas, which leads to the harm, injury or death of humans. Autonomous robotic systems offer an attractive solution …

Dangerous Alliances: Russia’S Strategic Inroads In Latin America, Douglas Farah, Marianne Richardson

INSS Strategic Perspectives

Russia’s strategic interests in Latin America center on establishing a multisector, persistent presence in the Western Hemisphere as a counterweight to U.S. and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) presence in the former Soviet Union and bordering states. The engagement focuses on aggressive implementation of what the West calls the doctrine of “hybrid warfare.” This approach fuses hard and soft power across multiple domains, recognizing the existence of a permanent state of confrontation with the West. This strategy undergirds the rationalization and operationalization of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The Inevitable U.S. Return And The Future Of Great Power Competition In South Asia, Thomas F. Lynch

INSS Strategic Perspectives

More than a year after America’s painful Afghanistan withdrawal, the future of U.S. and Western security interests in South Asia no longer relates mainly to the terrorism threat from Salafi jihadism, which has receded and reoriented there to be most menacing toward Pakistan and China. Instead, American security interests now require the proper posture for long-term Great Power competition (GPC) with China. Such a posture in South Asia requires patient, persistent growth in the slowly maturing, overt strategic security partnership with India and a quiet regeneration of a transactional one with Pakistan.

By The Inch, It’S A Cinch: The Case For Go-Ing Slow In First-Year Legal Writing Courses, Patrick J. Long

Journal Articles

No abstract provided.