Digital Commons Network^™

On Learning Informative Trajectory Embeddings For Imitation, Classification And Regression, Zichang Ge, Changyu Chen, Arunesh Sinha, Pradeep Varakantham

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

In real-world sequential decision making tasks like autonomousdriving, robotics, and healthcare, learning from observed state-action trajectories is critical for tasks like imitation, classification,and clustering. For example, self-driving cars must replicate humandriving behaviors, while robots and healthcare systems benefitfrom modeling decision sequences, whether or not they come fromexpert data. Existing trajectory encoding methods often focus onspecific tasks or rely on reward signals, limiting their ability togeneralize across domains and tasks.Inspired by the success of embedding models like CLIP andBERT in static domains, we propose a novel method for embeddingstate-action trajectories into a latent space that captures the skillsand competencies in the …

The "Not Seen" Effect Of International Financial Centers: Innovation In The Global Financial Ecosystem, Charlotte Ku, Andrew P. Morriss

Faculty Scholarship

International Financial Centers (IFCs) are hubs of legal and financial innovation, developing specialized frameworks that facilitate cross-border investment, enhance global capital mobility, and support economic growth. Through jurisdictional competition, professional clustering, and adaptive regulatory frameworks, IFCs have pioneered legal structures that enable enterprises of all sizes to participate in the global economy. Using case studies of the International Business Company, the Limited Liability Company, the Protected Cell Company, and advances in trust law and applying the theoretical frameworks of social scientist Richard Florida and psychologist Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi, this Article illustrates how IFCs serve as laboratories for financial experimentation, generating widely …

Law And Political Economy: Missing Markets, Missing Law, And Missing Political Economy, Andrew P. Morriss, Roger E. Meiners

Faculty Scholarship

This Article critiques the "Law and Political Economy" (LPE) framework. It aims to challenge the Law and Economics (L&E) approach. We argue that LPE lacks a coherent theoretical foundation and fails to engage with empirical evidence, rendering its critiques of markets, law, and political economy incomplete and unpersuasive. By contrast, L&E provides robust analytical tools and a well-developed understanding of legal and market dynamics, is grounded in empirical research, and has theoretical consistency. We illustrate these points through historical examples in the evolution of L&E and suggest ways LPE can evolve to offer a meaningful alternative. Rigorous intellectual competition will …

A Dutch Approach To Charleston’S Water Management, Noor Hooijmaijers

All Theses

Coastal cities across the world face increasing threats from climate change impacts such as flooding, drought, and sea level rise. The East Coast of the United States, including Charleston, South Carolina is among the most vulnerable cities due to its low elevation and exposure to extreme weather events. The Netherlands, with a big part of its country below sea level, have become accustomed generating solutions to mitigate climate change impacts.

This thesis examines how elements of Dutch water management, which is known for its multi-layered, proactive, and integrated governance system, can be adapted to improve Charleston’s resilience against climate change …

Understanding Writing Center’S Motivations For Creating And Providing Online Writing Resources: A Qualitative Study, Mackenzie K. Croley

All Theses

This research-based thesis documents the process of creating online writing resources. The data was collected from an IRB-approved study where I interviewed writing center directors about how their centers have created and maintained online writing resources to support students. After conducting interviews, I share the results of the study about each center’s creation and maintenance practices. I discuss the labor that this type of project takes and how those centers have supported this process by using staff from all roles within the center. I explore how the online resources build ethos for the center. Finally, I explain how these online …

The Shame Of (Be)Longing In Jamaica Kincaid's Lucy, Grace S. Miholic

All Theses

This thesis examines the role of shame in Kincaid's Lucy. Separated into four separate sections, the thesis moves through Lucy’s relationship with her boss, Mariah, her Antiguan mother, and the shame that is identified at the end of the novel. In the introduction, I identify the passage that frames the novel around shame. I then identify my thesis, which centers around Lucy’s shame and her inability and refusal to situate herself with neither Mariah nor her mother’s expectations. The second section of the thesis revolves around Mariah and the form of feminism that skews her perception and expectations of …

Capitola, The Newsboy, As A Story-Paper: Movement, Serialization, And The Rewriting Of Domestic Space In E.D.E.N Southworth’S The Hidden Hand, Emma B. Pinson

All Theses

E.D.E.N. Southworth’s The Hidden Hand was immensely popular among nineteenth century American readers. These readers would have read the novel in a story-paper before it made its debut in novel form. Similar to a newspaper with the exception being that the content is fiction, readers would rush to purchase a new edition each week. In this thesis, I argue that both the content and print form of The Hidden Hand disrupt the separate gender spheres in nineteenth century America by encouraging a young girl’s movements in public spaces. What I call a separate separate gender sphere allows women and young …

Migration And Diaspora: An Intersectional Feminist Reading Of Lucy By Jamacia Kincaid., Benjamin Oluwakayode Akinlabi

All Theses

This thesis explores how migration and diaspora shape the intersectional experience of Black women through a close reading of Jamaica Kincaid's Lucy. Drawing on Black feminist thought, I make a case using analytical and theoretical frameworks to expand intersectionality to account for global movement and memory. Intersectionality must move beyond national borders to account for how power travels with people. I argue that migration works externally through movement and displacement, and diaspora works internally through memory. There is a location in the United States, but there is always a look back through memory and the two conflict. Lucy's migration …

Crusade From Afar: British Conservative Revolutionaries And The Nationalist Cause In Spain, Russell Crosthwait

All Theses

The Spanish Civil War catalyzed a distinctive intellectual movement among Britain's interwar right—the Conservative Revolutionaries. This thesis explores how this conflict provided ideological coherence to figures like Arnold Lunn, Arthur Bryant, and Douglas Jerrold, who occupied a unique position between conventional conservatism and fascism. Through organizations such as the Friends of Nationalist Spain, these intellectuals translated their abstract critiques of liberalism, democracy, and industrial capitalism into concrete political action. The thesis demonstrates that these figures were neither simple conservatives nor card-carrying fascists, but proponents of a third way between the two. This study challenges the conventional narrative that portrays British …

Investigating The Influence Of Animation And Conversational Virtual Agent Features On The Usability And User Experience Of The Smartphone Mental Health Application “Airheart”, Victoria Hill

All Theses

Rates of depression in college students have skyrocketed since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, reflecting a need for effective, accessible mental health interventions. One potential intervention includes mental health (MHealth) apps. Virtual agents within MHealth apps may represent one way to provide human-like connection and therapeutic benefits. Despite the abundance of MHealth apps currently available for public use, few include virtual agents. Moreover, it is unclear which virtual agent features within mental health apps may be particularly beneficial in providing a positive user experience. The current study sought to evaluate how features of virtual agents, such as animation and …

Industrialization And Immigration: Latino And Hispanic Immigrants In The South Carolina Upstate, Matthew D. Girardeau

All Theses

European investment in the South Carolina Upstate created favorable conditions for Latino immigration. French tire manufacturer Michelin came to the region in the 1970s, and the construction of the largest BMW plant in the world in the 1990s greatly impacted the local economy. The Upstate had a history of outside investment, beginning with Northern industrialists in the textile industry and later European companies that provided equipment for textile mills. The automotive industry did not necessarily employ Latinos, but the money generated by the sector created booming construction and service industries. Latinos built a community in western Greenville County and established …

Assessing The Viability Of A Proposed Third-Party Reusable Foodware System: An Environmental And Economic Comparison, Margaret Milani

All Theses

The United States generates 73 million tons of plastic waste annually, with over 6% attributed to the restaurant industry. The EPA recommends that restaurants reduce their plastic waste by transitioning to reusable foodware items. Previous studies have shown that using a single reusable foodware item, such as a cup, can result in lower environmental impacts and greater economic benefits compared to single-use plastic alternatives. However, the upfront costs of purchasing reusables, commercial dishwashers, and other associated expenses remain significant barriers for restaurants, leading many to continue using single-use plastic foodware. This study aims to analyze and compare the environmental impacts …

1785 Parisian Salon Project: New Methods And Practical Innovations In Digital Heritage Reconstruction, James Hutson, Charles O'Brien, Wesley Wolfe, Kayla Kraff, Trent Olsen

Faculty Scholarship

The 1785 Salon Unreal Engine Reconstruction Project represents a significant advance in digital heritage and immersive art historical research by combining generative AI-based asset creation, modular user experience (UX) design, and historically informed workflows. During the Spring 2025 phase, the project achieved major milestones, including the successful development of a replicable pipeline for transforming 2D reference images into period-accurate 3D sculpture models using generative AI and digital sculpting tools. Simultaneously, a robust and adaptable Inspection System was engineered within Unreal Engine, offering granular interaction controls, bilingual (English/French) content integration, dynamic metadata display, and enhanced accessibility. These innovations collectively enabled historically …

Enhancing Sub-Optimal Trajectory Stitching: Spatial Composition Rvs For Offline Rl, Sheng Zang, Zhiguang Cao, Bo An, Senthilnath Jayavelu, Xiaoli Li

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Reinforcement learning via supervised learning (RvS) has been known as a burgeoning paradigm for offline reinforcement learning (RL). While return-conditioned RvS (RvS-R) predominates across a wide range of datasets pertaining to the offline RL tasks, recent findings suggest that goal-conditioned RvS (RvS-G) outperforms in specific sub-optimal datasets where trajectory stitching is crucial for achieving optimal performance. However, the underlying reasons for this superiority remain insufficiently explored. In this paper, employing didactic experiments and theoretical analysis, we reveal that the proficiency of RvS-G in stitching trajectories arises from its adeptness in generalizing to unknown goals during evaluation. Building on this insight, …

Do Perceptions Affect Outcomes In Patients With Metabolic-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease? A Clinical Inquiry., Tim Kimball

The Eleanor Mann School of Nursing DNP Capstone Projects

Abstract

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Metabolic-associated steatotic liver disease is a chronic condition that often coexists with metabolic disorders and impacts a significant portion of the global population. The literature indicates that patients’ perceptions are linked to outcomes; however, there is a gap in the literature examining the influence of these perceptions on the outcomes of metabolic-associated steatotic liver disease. This clinical inquiry investigated this relationship.

METHODS: Data collection occurred between January and February 2025 in a primary care setting, utilizing a 5-point Likert scale of patients’ perceptions of care, disease severity, and self-efficacy. Patients were identified through a retrospective chart …

Voting With Culture: Assimilation And Civic Engagement Among Latinos In The U.S., Erandy H. Ruaro

Political Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

How does assimilation explain voting and voter registration rates among Latinos? Using data collected from the 2020 Collaborative Multi-Racial Post Election Survey (CMPS), this paper examines the role of assimilation of Latinos into mainstream U.S. society on political participation. I measure assimilation using factors such as racial identity, education, income, and language to analyze how these factors have led to increased or decreased political participation, such as voting and voter registration. This research finds that Latinos generally are more likely to participate in voting and voter registration as the level of education and income increases. This study also found that …

Latino Voter Turnout In The Nuevo South, Stephane C. Escobar-Velasco

Political Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

Latinos have had a growing presence in the South for years, leading it to be referred to as the “Nuevo South.” This thesis will examine Latino voter turnout in the South and the factors that influence them to show up at the polls. This study uses data from the Collaborative Multi-racial Post-Election Survey (CMPS) for 2016 and 2020. Through this data, I seek to understand why turnout is low and which factors impact turnout the most. I use rational choice theory to further understand how Latinos choose whether or not which considers the advantages and disadvantages of voting. Throughout this …

The Relationship Between Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder And Problematic Internet Usage In Lgbtq+ Adults, Kayli Nicole Heigelmann

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores how LGBTQ+ adults who experience attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptomology perceive and navigate potential problematic Internet usage (PIU). Utilizing a qualitative, phenomenological approach, twelve participants were interviewed to gain insight on how neurodivergence, queer identity, and Internet engagement intersect. Findings revealed two overarching themes: 1) the interplay between PIU, ADHD, and sexual/gender diversity, and 2) the meaning of the Internet for individuals with intersecting minority identities. Participants widely endorsed the Internet as an important space for identity negotiation, community, and affirmation for their multiple minority statuses, but acknowledged their vulnerability to the Internet’s attention-capturing mechanisms, reporting …

Strategies For Writing Synthesis To Learn: A Case Study Among Sixth-Grade Social Studies Students, Kalie A. Chamberlain

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Writing instruction that emphasizes strategy use helps students become better writers, especially when tackling difficult writing tasks, such as writing from sources or writing syntheses. Strategic writing instruction also supports student learning in content areas like social studies. This project examined whether Strategies for Writing Synthesis to Learn (SWSL), a mode of strategic writing instruction developed by researchers in Spain, would be effective in a new context. It also sought to understand how SWSL was perceived by students and teachers. A mixed-methods case study was used to explore both quantitative (e.g., student growth) data and qualitative (e.g., student and teacher …

Poets, Pioneers, And In-Betweeners: Musicians Of The South Asian Diaspora, Kancana Preetika Kathiravan

Music Undergraduate Honors Theses

Sid Sriram, Arooj Aftab, and Ganavya Doraiswamy are three Asian American musicians who have experienced a meteoric rise over the past five years. These artists are signed to major labels, receive mainstream media exposure, have multiple Grammy nominations, and tour internationally. Through different avenues, they have built up diverse audiences that include members of the South Asian diaspora who see their own stories and music represented. Rather than being a single part of a cross-cultural collaboration, these musicians belong to both worlds. With backgrounds both in South Asian and American musical styles and grammars, these musicians are like their work: …

Experimental Study Of Process Parameter Effects On Internal Defects In Titanium Coaxial Wire-Based Laser Metal Deposition, Remy Mathenia, Braden Mclain, Todd Sparks, Frank Liou

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Wire-based laser metal deposition is an additive manufacturing process that can be used in the efficient manufacturing of complex structures. This paper utilizes a three-beam coaxial laser wire system to explore the effect of process parameters on the resultant deposition density. The reduction in or elimination of defects is important to the mechanical properties of the additively manufactured material and the widespread adoption of additive manufacturing processes. In this work, two-bead-wide walls were deposited under varying experimental conditions, including the traverse feed rate and workpiece illumination proportion. A method for calculating the bead pitch and layer height increment based on …

Strategic Construction Of Anomalies: A Quantum International Relations Framework For Uap, Nate Ostdiek

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP), commonly known as UFOs, are notoriously tricky to understand and analyze. The persistent ambiguity surrounding UAPs is not accidental but strategic; by keeping them in a liminal state of explanation, actors construct a geopolitical anomaly that blurs the boundaries between threat, curiosity, and control. Utilizing a Quantum International Relations (QIR) framework pioneered by Alexander Wendt, James Der Derian, and others enables new analytical tools to explain the creation and impact of these strategic anomalies. The social ontological status of UAP (extraterrestrial, fake, interdimensional, secret technology, natural phenomena, etc.) is determined by an entangled network of epistemological …

Intersecting Identities And Ipv: The Impact Of Sexual And Gender Minority Stressors On Intimate Partner Violence Victimization Across Racial Groups, Kameryn S. Dunn Freeman

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

Previous research has found that sexual and gender minority People of Color (SGM-POC) report higher rates of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) victimization than White SGM. In a sample of AFAB SGM people, Whitton et al. (2021) found that sexual minority stressors, adverse childhood experiences, and structural inequalities partially explain this disparity. This study replicates Whitton et al.’s study in a sample with greater sexual and gender diversity and extends the study by examining additional SGM stressors as potential mediators. We used data from a large, nationally-recruited sample of same-sex couples to test the indirect effect of race on IPV victimization …

No Unified Ableukhov: Orientalism And Imperialism In Andrei Bely's Petersburg., Tuesday Shaw

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

This project brings into dialogue the 1913 Russian novel Petersburg by Andrei Bely and postcolonial approaches to literature, primarily those developed by Edward Said in Orientalism (1978) and Culture and Imperialism (1994). Petersburg was the product of an artistic movement, Symbolism, that idealized breaking apart boundaries between artforms. Said’s notion of Orientalism, in contrast, is based on the idea that there is an essential division between “East” and “West.” While there might appear to be a tension in applying a theory premised on division to a work that apparently wants to dissolve all boundaries, attention to Petersburg’s depiction of …

Design Dogma: Redefining Tradition And Innovation Through Mahjong., Isabel L. Ahnemiller

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

This design project explores the creation of a Riichi Mahjong set that bridges the traditional cultural heritage of the game with modern design, aimed at introducing the game to new audiences. Riichi Mahjong, a variant of the traditional Chinese Mahjong game, has evolved significantly over the centuries. This project focuses on the development of a visually appealing and functional set that enhances a player’s experience, while staying true to the historical roots of Mahjong. The design uses careful selection of color schemes and symbols, such as the use of both Chinese characters and Arabic numerals to encourage recognition and learning …

The People's Ledger: Reform Or Revolution?, Kostantinos R. Grigoras

Applied Economics Theses

The ramifications of the 2007-08 financial crisis, the later Covid-19 pandemic, and the technological developments surrounding cryptocurrencies and digital ledgers have led to increasingly explicit political views on banking apart from dominant mainstream economic narratives. As such, a widening range of authors from varying perspectives have sought to contribute a “programmatic vision” to the set of changes they assert as necessary in the current financial system. Saule T. Omarova’s (2021) controversial article, “The People’s Ledger: How to Democratize Money and Finance the Economy,” and the resulting political reaction to its goal of advancing such a programmatic vision in order to …

Learning Educational Technology Prototyping With Generative Ai, Justin Olmanson, Azadeh Hassani, Gretchen K. Larsen

Department of Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education: Faculty Publications

In this study, we use ethnographic methods, grounded theory, and an iterative analytical approach to explore participant experiences and strategies for engaging generative AI in support of both learning how to prototype educational technologies and learning to code. We examine how ChatGPT and Giuseppe (a scaffolded co-coding interface of our own design) influence students’ approaches to prototyping and programming. This study contributes to the field by: identifying specific challenges and affordances of generative AI in prototyping and educational technology development contexts; and offering insights into how educators, students, and learning technology developers can integrate generative AI in formative educational technology …

Epanorama May 2025, Southern Adventist University

Panorama Parent Newsletter

This digital issue of Panorama includes information student's presenting at the Global Mathematics Conference, Meg Jay presentation access, and social media.

Identifying Barriers To Covid-19 Vaccination In Hispanic Populations, Saul O. Castillo, Kurt R. Wharton

Posters

Vaccination hesitancy has always been an issue within marginalized communities. This is why it came as no surprise when the COVID-19 vaccine was met with resistance upon its release1. However, it has been many years since the FDA approved the first COVID19 vaccine and on some level, COVID-19 has become a part of our daily lives. This means that people have had time to determine how they feel about the COVID19 vaccine and reflect on their decisions to receive or decline the vaccine.

There are many reasons as to why people choose to receive or decline the COVID-19 vaccine. This …

The Relationship Between Dyslexia And Resilience, Hannah R. Linder, Martina Villa, Daniel Kleinman, Nicole Landi

Honors Scholar Theses

Studies of students with dyslexia have focused on reading and cognitive skills development and their relationship to academic outcomes. Yet, non-cognitive skills, such as resilience or grit, have been shown to positively contribute to life satisfaction, mental health, and academic success (e.g., Aro et al., 2023; Casali et al., 2023; Hossain et al., 2021; Kortteinen et al., 2020). However, this literature is small and inconclusive, with inconsistent definitions and measures of grit and resilience. Furthermore, prior studies have led to mixed results when investigating levels of resilience amongst people with and without dyslexia (Armfield et al., 2021; Kalka & Lockiewicz, …