Digital Commons Network^™

Modeling “Abnormal” Ovulatory Dynamics: Enzymes, Insulin, And The Impact Of Stress, Savannah E. Williams

Bryn Mawr College Dissertations and Theses

This work focuses on modeling the impact of stress on ovulatory dynamics. We develop a mathematical model of endocrine processes including gonadotropin-releasing hormone, kisspeptin signaling, and the ovulatory cycle. Integral to our model development, we define ovulatory criteria, conduct an extensive global sensitivity analysis, and fit parameters to clinical hormone data throughout the ovulatory cycle. We then incorporate four biological pathways through which stress may interact with the ovulatory cycle – increased aromatase activity, hyperinsulinemia, suppression of luteinizing hormone (LH), and the influence of cortisol on kisspeptin signaling. High levels of simulated chronic stress cause significant disruption of the ovulatory …

Current And Emerging Therapeutic Strategies For The Treatment Of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, Miguel A. Lopez Perez, Noah L. Weisleder

Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry Faculty Publications

Background/Objectives: Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is a fatal, progressive neuromuscular disorder caused by mutations in the dystrophin gene, leading to the absence of functional dystrophin protein. As the largest gene in the human genome, the DMD locus is highly susceptible to mutations, contributing to a prevalence of approximately 1 in 3800–6300 live male births worldwide. This review aims to provide a comprehensive and critical synthesis of current and emerging therapeutic strategies for DMD.

Methods: We conducted a narrative review of the literature, integrating findings from clinical trials, regulatory approvals, and preclinical studies. We categorized therapeutic approaches into mutation-agnostic and mutation-specific …

Prevalence And Characteristics For Mental Health Disorder Before And After Childhood Cancer Diagnosis—A Statewide Population-Based Study Among Medicaid Beneficiaries, Feitong Lei, Laurie E. Mclouth, Eric B. Durbin, Thomas T. Tucker, John L. Villano, Bin Huang

Internal Medicine Faculty Publications

Introduction: Pediatric cancer patients suffer mental health deficits. Patients who are vulnerable with respect to socioeconomic or other sociodemographic factors may be at heightened risk for worse mental health outcomes during cancer for many reasons including entering treatment with an existing mental health disorder. The purpose of this study was to describe the prevalence and trajectory of mental health before and after a childhood cancer diagnosis in a socio-demographically at-risk sample.

Methods: Data from the Kentucky Cancer Registry was utilized to identify patients aged 19 or under with a first primary childhood cancer diagnosis during 2001–2017. Linking KCR data with …

The Bigotry Of The Future: Ai Recruitment Tools & Hiring Discrimination Law, Lily Manshel

City University of New York Law Review

As one-click applications and a competitive job market result in hundreds of applicants per listing, hiring tools that use Artificial Intelligence (“AI”) promise recruiters a convenient way to sort through the crowd and find the “perfect” candidate, all while eliminating human bias. These tools—which include resume screeners, gamified assessments and personality tests, and video interviewing software—are proliferating so rapidly that their ubiquity is positioned as inevitable by both the software companies that produce them and the employers who use them. However, the use of these automated decision-making tools creates a paradox under existing antidiscrimination law: the systems clearly perpetuate and …

Review Of Programming With Java – Second Edition, Mingming Du

Open Educational Resources - Reviews

No abstract provided.

How The Proposed Esa Habitat Rule Harms Species On Public Lands, Sandi Zellmer

Faculty Journal Articles & Other Writings

At present, there are 1,684 federally listed endangered and threatened species in the United States. Habitat modification is the primary reason for listing. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have proposed a rule that would rescind their decades-old definition of “harm” under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Currently, “harm” is the only term within ESA Section 9’s prohibition on “take” that encompasses habitat modification. If modifying habitat is no longer a “take,” the ESA itself would be rendered incapable of satisfying Congress’s goal: “to halt and reverse the trend toward species …

Office Of Academic & Student Affairs: Grade Review & Grievance Procedures

Academic Affairs – Policy Library

No abstract provided.

Office Of Research Compliance: Policy On Scientific Integrity And Misconduct

Academic Affairs – Policy Library

No abstract provided.

A Mandate With Teeth: Biting Back At The Neglect Of New York's Humane Education Law, Mei Brunson

Animal Law Review

New York passed its compulsory humane education law in 1917, which obligates school districts to provide weekly instruction in the “humane treatment and protection of animals” to all elementary school students. Though this mandate is clear, New York school districts routinely ignore it and deprive students of the humane education that they are statutorily entitled to. To make matters worse, the New York Commissioner of Education has abdicated their responsibility to enforce this minimum educational standard. Over the years, the laudable efforts of advocacy groups, educators, and legislators have brought about some instances of district compliance. Nevertheless, widespread district noncompliance …

Toward Interspecies Reproductive Justice, Asha A. Ramakumar

Animal Law Review

Reproductive justice discourse has largely overlooked non-human animals, despite the parallel forms of biopolitical control exercised over human women and female animals’ reproductive labor. By examining the shared logics underlying the subordina-tion of both human women and dairy cows, this Article argues that any genuine conception of reproductive justice must inter-rogate reproductive exploitation beyond the human experience. Drawing from Michel Foucault’s theory of biopower and Carol J. Adams’ framework of the “absent referent,” this Article elucidates how powerful institutions control those with the capacity for preg-nancy by perpetuating narratives of biological essentialism and obligation.

Part II examines several examples of …

Behavioral Interventions For Increasing Group Engagement In K-12 Classrooms: A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis, Lauren M. Lejeune, Mark Devdas Samudre, Hongyang Zhao, Meredith Jeffords, Jason C. Chow

Early Childhood, Special Education, and Counselor Education Faculty Publications

This systematic review and meta-analysis synthesized the body of research on behavioral interventions for improving group engagement. Fifty studies were included (n = 10 group designs; n = 40 single case designs [SCDs]). Most research on interventions to improve group engagement was conducted in elementary and middle school general education settings. Class-Wide Function-Related Intervention Teams (n = 6), the Good Behavior Game (n = 6), Tootling (n = 8), and multicomponent approaches (n = 9) were the most commonly reported intervention types. Antecedent strategies that were most commonly embedded in behavioral interventions to increase group …

A Golden Age For Us . . . Or For The Airlines? Ensuring Robust Federal Consumer Protections To Make Flying Great Again For Everyone, David S. Nahmias, Julian Sanghvi

Journal of Law and Mobility

Flying today is not meaningfully better for passengers than it was twenty years ago—and the airlines are largely to blame. Airlines leverage opaque pricing practices and junk fees to extract greater revenue from passengers, while the quality of air travel has deteriorated. Despite its mandate to protect the flying public and the air travel market from deceptive and anticompetitive practices, the Department of Transportation has been largely captured—adopting industry-favorable regulations and procedures while cutting commonsense consumer protections. This Essay examines the airlines’ coordinated campaign to circumvent and dismantle consumer protections, and how the industry have largely captured the federal agency …

From Pixels To Semantics: A Multi-Stage Ai Framework For Structural Damage Detection In Satellite Imagery, Bijay Shakya, Catherine Hoier, Khandaker Mamun Ahmed

Research & Publications

Rapid and accurate structural damage assessment following natural disasters is critical for effective emergency response and recovery. However, remote sensing imagery often suffers from low spatial resolution, contextual ambiguity, and limited semantic interpretability, reducing the reliability of traditional detection pipelines. In this work, we propose a novel hybrid framework that integrates AI-based super-resolution, deep learning object detection, and Vision-Language Models (VLMs) for comprehensive post-disaster building damage assessment. First, we enhance pre- and post-disaster satellite imagery using a Video Restoration Transformer (VRT) to upscale images from 1024x1024 to 4096x4096 resolution, improving structural detail visibility. Next, a YOLOv11-based detector localizes buildings in …

Distilling The Complexity Of Agent-Based Simulations Into Textual Explanations Via Large Language Models, Noé Y. Flandre, Philippe J. Giabbanelli

VMASC Publications

Communicating the design and results of agent-based models (ABMs) to subject matter experts is challenging, which hinders participation and limits trust in simulation-based decision support. Large language models (LLMs) can communicate ABMs as textual summaries, thus complementing traditional disclosure through statistical and visualization techniques. While prior work translated the structure of conceptual models into narratives via LLMs, our extension covers the dynamics of simulation models via an automated simulation-to-text method that extracts contextual information from NetLogo ABMs, performs repeated simulations, and generates narrative descriptions (including the model’s purpose, parameters, and simulation dynamics) using mutimodal LLMs. Furthermore, four summarization algorithms spanning …

Geochemical, Tectonic, And Temporal Evolution Of The Southeastern Superior Craton: Insights From The Three Lakes Region, Michigan, Helen Ann Foldenauer

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

The geodynamic processes associated with the onset of global plate tectonics remain a contentious topic in Earth Sciences. The Superior Craton of south-central Canada is the largest preserved area of known Archean material, and study of this area has contributed greatly to our understanding of these early Earth processes. The study area near Three Lakes, Michigan, was designated by the USGS as part of the Earth Mapping Resources Initiative (EMRI) program. No complete, detailed geologic map currently exists for the assigned area, and by contributing to mapping efforts, this study was able to assess both the Archean tectonic evolution and …

Machines In The Marsh: Struggles Of Peatland Rehabilitation Following The Shutdown Of The Irish Industrial Peat Industry, Maeve Mcgroary

Student Theses 2015-Present

As the EU and the Irish government focus on shifting to green energy and becoming carbon neutral, there has been a growing concern about the use of Irish peatland. For centuries, Irish people have cut and dried peat for the purpose of burning. This would traditionally be used for heating and cooking but as electricity became increasingly popular in the 1960s, companies like Bord na Móna helped industrialize the process of harvesting peat as part of their expansion of several peat-fired electricity stations. Chapter one discusses how decades of overharvesting has caused extreme damage to peatlands and their wildlife. Chapter …

2026 Crummer Truist Portfolio, Alexis Matton, Carlos Meyer, Amelia Kondal, Numair Aziz, Madison Kalhor, Taylor Payne, Hannah Gilbert, Chris Brennan, Ian Dean, Tully Njoroge, Dylan Reilly

Crummer Truist Portfolios

We would like to thank you for your service to the Crummer Truist Portfolio. Without your participation, Crummer students would not benefit from the unique insight you bring to managing an active portfolio. We have been fortunate to listen and learn from some outstanding guest speakers who have been generous with their time and expertise: Dr. J. Clay Singleton, Emeritus Professor, Crummer Graduate School of Business; Amy Martin, Executive Director (Corporate Credit Strategy) at Wells Fargo; Davis Moshier, Investment Banking Associate at Lucid Capital Markets; Jay Kineon, Analyst at PFM Financial Advisors; Marc Miller, Partner, DePrince, Race, and Zollo; Matej …

A Comparison Of Standards-Based Grading And Traditional Grading Systems As Related To State Test Scores, Jordan T. Ruiz

Doctor of Education (EdD)

State test scores have become a gauge that many stakeholders use when judging schools, teachers, and students in the United States of America. Most of these tests are based on the standards set by the state to judge the competency of the students. The purpose of this study was to compare the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) state test score data of seventh-grade students from two middle schools in the Pacific Northwest. It also seeks to establish if there were statistically significant differences between students who learn under a Standards-Based Grading (SBG) system versus a Traditional Grading System (TGS) when …

Cultus: Eco-Phenomenology In The Work Of John Steinbeck, Robinson Jeffers, And Jack London, Carter D. Johnson

Theses and Dissertations--English

In the face of increasingly dire environmental crises, proposed solutions have gravitated toward imperatives for faster, cleaner, and more efficient technologies and resources. While practical solutions are necessary, they are entirely insufficient to deal with an underlying issue driving environmental degradation: unbridled instrumental reason. In this dissertation, I suggest a theoretical posture, cultus, which attempts to balance the necessity of instrumental action with the guiding counterweight of receptivity. Furthermore, I argue that such personal receptivity is uniquely fostered in aesthetic experiences, attuning the individual to the non-identical and renewing a relationship of care.

I examine the life and work of …

Evaluation Of Critical Shear Strength Of Soils In Nebraska Based On Revised Cpt, Chung R. Song, Bashar Al-Nimri, Basil Abu Al Sha'r, Dhurba R. Pandey, Jongwan Eun, Seunghee Kim

Nebraska Department of Transportation: Research Reports

This study evaluated the “Fully Softened Shear Strength (FSSS)” of soils in Nebraska based on a revised Cone Penetration Test(CPT) method. FSSS is a unique strength condition that soils show substantially reduced strength during rainy seasons, eventually causing failure of slopes and other structures.

The revised CPT was adapted to inject water at targeted depths, inducing controlled moisture infiltration and capturing real-time soil softening over designated intervals of 30, 60, or 90 minutes. Through tip resistance (qc) and sleeve friction (fs) measurements under “in-situ” and “wet” conditions, the test effectively identified fully disturbed/low strength zones around the sleeve. Simultaneous sampling …

Development And Evaluation Of Crashworthy Approach Guardrail Transition With Increased Span Length Between Concrete Bridge Rail And First Transition Post – Phase I, Tewodros Yosef, Qusai Alomari, Ronald K. Faller, Robert W. Bielenberg, Scott Rosenbaugh

Nebraska Department of Transportation: Research Reports

This study developed and evaluated a 34-in.-tall Nebraska Department of Transportation (NDOT) thrie-beam approach guardrail transition (AGT) with an increased span between the concrete buttress end and the first transition post. The objective was to accommodate a wide range of common obstructions near bridge ends, including abutments, wing walls, drainage features, and utilities. A survey of NDOT districts identified critical obstruction geometries and informed design criteria. Most NDOT districts indicated that a maximum span of about 4 ft would be sufficient, and some preferred spans up to 6 ft. To accommodate a wider range of obstructions, the first transition post …

Assessment Of Truck Parking Demand And Safety During Normal And Severe Weather Conditions In Nebraska, Nathan Huynh, Li Zhao, Zhenghong Tang, Aida Riahifar, Jahangeer Jahangeer

Nebraska Department of Transportation: Research Reports

This project examined truck parking capacity, demand, and utilization patterns along I-80 in Nebraska. The objectives were to (1) document the capacity of public and private truck parking facilities along I-80, (2) analyze spatial and temporal trends in parking demand, (3) develop models to predict occupancy at parking facilities, (4) identify clusters of undesignated parking during inclement weather, and (5) assess whether truck parking shortages contribute to truck-involved crashes. Within a one-mile buffer of I-80, 21 public facilities and 49 private facilities were identified. The spatiotemporal analysis of these public and private truck parking facilities using the National Agriculture Imagery …

A Psychometric Evaluation Of Obsessive-Compulsive Items In The Hierarchical Taxonomy Of Psychopathology (Hitop)-Self Report Among Caregivers Of Children, Zach Wasserman

Honors Theses

Introduction: The classification and assessment of psychopathology is a crucial part of understanding mental health. The current model, published in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, with the current 5th edition (DSM-5; American Psychiatric Association, 2022), utilizes a categorical approach to psychopathology (i.e., one has the disorder or they do not). This creates ~300 diagnoses that are understood as theoretically distinct from one another. In reality, categorical diagnoses are often heavily comorbid (Forbes et al., 2024) and within a diagnostic category there are large amounts of heterogeneity (Feczko & Fair, 2020). To address these issues, dimensional models …

An Analysis Of Volcanic Lightning And Its Controlling Factors, Nathan Stamford

Honors Theses

Volcanic lightning, first documented during the 79 AD eruption of Mount Vesuvius, includes any electrical discharge that is generated during a volcanic eruption rather than a thunderstorm. By analyzing individual eruptions and performing laboratory experiments, previous research has identified multiple controlling factors that influence the charging mechanisms and generation of volcanic lightning. While the previous research has made significant discoveries about the phenomenon, the exact relationship between many of these controlling factors and volcanic lightning generation has been poorly quantified. In this study, we investigate these controlling factors and show that they have a wide range of influence over volcanic …

The Divide Of Women’S Health: Systematic Thinking Of Women, Tasfia T. Howlader

Honors Theses

Women’s health has constantly been changing- from public health infrastructure to health policies, and even medical advancements. Yet, the struggles are persistent within the gaps present in women’s health. The Socio-Ecological Model (SEM) explains interactions between different levels of relationships, which result in health outcomes that vary from individual factors to environmental factors. Applying the SEM to describe health disparities can help explain how the relationships an individual has influenced their health. This project serves to exemplify these different levels while discussing the tailoring of services to the needs and the importance of populations based on their experiences. Specifically, adhering …

Patient Safety: Paramedic To Nurse Patient Handover Quality And Its Influence On Clinical Deterioration In The Emergency Department, Madison P. Penick

Nursing | Senior Theses

Background: Quality patient handoff from Emergency Medical Services to the Emergency Department is a crucial transition of care that directly impacts patient safety, medical intervention, and patient outcomes. If concise, effective communication is not achieved, critical details can be left out resulting in medical errors, delayed intervention times, and lack of identification of clinical deterioration.

Aim: This study aims to understand how paramedic to nurse handoff quality impacts a nurse’s early identification of clinical deterioration.

Proposal:

Methodology: A quasi-experimental study of mixed-method research.

Recruitment strategy: A fire department in Marin County, CA and ED nurses from the base trauma center …

Displacement And Belonging: The Search For Identity Through Latina Literature, Noelia A. Alvarado Torres

Literary and Intercultural Studies | Senior Theses

How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents by Julia Alvarez and Infinite Country by Patricia Engel are two novels that highlight the Latino search for identity and belonging in the United States.  The characters in these books navigate adolescence and adulthood in the face of displacement, each illustrating how history, culture, and society interfere with the search for one’s self. They also highlight the multicultural experience of being shaped by different spaces that at times contradict one another. Furthermore, these books, written by women and with women at the center, bring forth a voice that often gets left out in …

That's A Great Question! A Practical Guide To Engage Teens In Honest Conversations, Linda Van Voorst

Doctor of Ministry

This Doctoral Project addresses a significant and persistent challenge within evangelical churches: 70% of Evangelical teens disengage from church upon high school graduation. While often attributed to rebellion or declining belief, this project investigates deeper formative dynamics contributing to this disengagement.

Research revealed that many adolescents do not disengage because they reject faith, but because they lack safe, relational spaces within the church to voice meaningful questions about God, suffering, identity, and belief. When questioning is met with discomfort, defensiveness, or premature answers, adolescents often internalize the message that doubt is incompatible with faith. The research also surfaced that many …

The Political Posturing Of The American Church And Its Influence On American Government Policymaking, Kathleen Maria Shaw

Doctor of Ministry

This dissertation explores the intersection of theology, politics, leadership, and iteration to the present political situation of the American Church. This author argues that crises in governance and church identity stem from the theological disunity of separation between divine authority and moral responsibility. The opening chapter, America’s Theological Roots, will bring out the influence which the Biblical ideas of the Covenant and of Justice have had on the foundation of the American Nation. The second chapter, The American Pulpit and Political Power: A Historical and Contemporary Analysis, explores how preaching has acted as a moral force for reformation …

Leadership Pathways Foundations: Developing Women In Alliance Missions, Melissa Lynne Singfiel

Doctor of Ministry

The project was developed to address the NPO: Women in Alliance Missions have unmet developmental needs, are often overlooked in the first decade of service, and underutilized for leadership opportunities.

A key insight of the research was a twofold obstacle facing women in ministry. First, the fundamental theological disagreement over women’s participation in leadership results in pervasive patriarchal preference and predominance of male leadership voices in the organizational culture. Second, a general lack of preparation and mentoring for women in the areas of leadership and formation results in an absence of women in the leadership pipeline and an additional layer …