Digital Commons Network^™

Predicting Undergraduate Fallout And Success, Ammar Ahmed Alzarooni

Theses

Universities need to uncover students who are likely to drop out early and do something about it. It should be easy to find and use this information. This thesis evaluated interpretable machine-learning models (MLMs) for predicting three final student outcomes including Dropout, Enrolled and Graduate, using solely demographic, administrative/financial and first-semester academic variables. Study employed publicly accessible Portuguese UCI student retention dataset (4,424 records) and incorporated end-of-Semester-1 feature window to prevent look-ahead leakage and align with actual advising cycles. We trained and compared models using stratified validation, explicit class-imbalance handling and decision-threshold optimization to make dropout detection most critical factor. …

Tranquil Talismans, Yayan Zhang

Theses

My series aims to delve deep into my personal experiences, narrating the uncertainty of graduating, the imbalance between study and work, and the anxiety brought about by countless rejections that have gradually disrupted the rhythm of my life. This disruption manifests in physiological symptoms such as insomnia, irregular menstrual cycles, emotional fluctuations, and the discovery of bodily lumps.My thesis work is separated into three parts of my journey. The first part portrays a dark period marked by chaos and confusion as I underwent a transition in my social roles and visually metaphorizes the onset of anxiety as darkness and chaos …

Development Of Feature Tokenizer Deep Learning Model For Fault Diagnosis In Marine Propulsion System, Pratik Anand Deshpande, J. Preetha Roselyn, Prabha Sundaravadivel

Electrical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

The fault diagnostics in Brushless Direct Current (BLDC) motor drive system is critical for operational safety and system lifespan in propulsion system applications. However, signature parameters such as currents, voltages, speed, and torque have provided nonlinear behavior, which limits the usefulness of traditional model-based approaches. This research provides a deep learning based intelligent system to monitor the failures in marine propulsion system. Each signal feature is represented as a structured token, with a specific class token used to collect global contextual information. The proposed model captures both local temporal dynamics and global inter-feature interdependence multi-layer self-attention processes, allowing for the …

Women Shellfishers’ Role In Managing ‘Women’S Forest’ And Conservation Challenges In Youtefa Bay, Indonesia, Helmawaty E. Rumbiak

Open Access Master's Theses

Mangrove forests in Youtefa Bay hold critical ecological and cultural significance for the Enggros community, particularly for women. Known as the “women’s forest,” this area is where Enggros women harvest shellfish and collect firewood. Women shellfishers have a close relationship with the forest, where they connect with their children and other women. However, rapid urban development and pollution around the mangrove ecosystem have negatively impacted the women shellfishers and their role in managing the mangrove forest. Shellfishing activity will likely decrease as urban development around the forest increases, and more waste flows into the forest. This research examines the role …

Impact Of Water Quality And Gear Type On Eastern Oyster (Crassostrea Virginica) Growth In Narragansett Bay, Ri, Jacqueline Rosa

Open Access Master's Theses

Oyster aquaculture is expanding in Rhode Island, yet key farming regions in the lower West Passage of Narragansett Bay (WPNB) lack the in-situ, high-temporal resolution monitoring needed to evaluate emerging stressors and support production. At the same time, the industry is undergoing rapid technological development aimed at improving production while reducing labor and overall costs. In recent years, a low-maintenance, alternative surface gear was introduced in WPNB; however, its impact on oyster performance relative to traditional cultivation methods has not been quantified. This study established a 1.5-year continuous water quality time series in WPNB and paired these observations with …

Exploring Community Engagement Strategies In Shellfish Aquaculture: Insights From Growers In Rhode Island And Massachusetts, Megan Hensel

Open Access Master's Theses

Shellfish aquaculture is a rapidly growing industry in North America in response to the increased demand for sustainable protein. This trend holds true for Southern New England as well, where shellfish cultivation and consumption have long been embedded in the culture. However, there is a growing disconnect between shellfish growers and the communities in which they live, which has led many researchers to explore ways that growers can enhance relationships with their local communities through community engagement. The purpose of this study is to expand upon the existing literature to understand how shellfish growers in Rhode Island and Massachusetts perceive …

Covering The Coast: Local News Frames And Journalist Perspectives On Sea Level Rise In Rhode Island, Mackensie Dupont Crowley

Open Access Master's Theses

Local news outlets are well positioned to communicate and localize sea level rise for communities facing significant risk, yet coverage of the issue remains understudied. This thesis examines coverage of sea level rise in local Rhode Island news and the factors shaping it. A mixed-methods approach was used following the collection of nearly 1,000 articles published between 2014 and 2024, including a content analysis of issue-level frames and semi-structured interviews with local journalists to contextualize coverage patterns. The analysis revealed that stories focusing on infrastructure and property, politics, governance, and law, and natural hazards dominated coverage, while stories about recreation …

Literature Review On Osteoarthritis Management, Robert A. Weinberg

MEDI 9331 Scholarly Activities Clinical Years

Knee osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common cause of long-term knee pain in adults over 45, and a leading cause of disability worldwide. About one in two people will develop it in their lifetime. This review brings together current evidence on how knee OA is diagnosed and treated, using the main clinical guidelines and the most important trials of the past ten years. The evidence points to a simple, step-by-step plan. Exercise, weight loss, and patient education are the strongly recommended first steps. Oral and topical non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are the first-choice medicines. Steroid injections into the joint help …

Literature Review On The Effectiveness Of Surgical Vs Non-Surgical Management In Elderly Patients With Distal Radius Fractures, Robert A. Weinberg

MEDI 9331 Scholarly Activities Clinical Years

Distal radius fractures are common in patients aged sixty years and older. The best management strategy remains debated, particularly in elderly patients where complications risk, radiological outcomes and functional recovery need to be considered. Several studies have compared surgical interventions including open reduction and internal fixation with conservative management including closed reduction and immobilization. The aim of this literature review is to synthesize current evidence on these outcomes for elderly patients with a distal radius fracture who were treated with surgical treatment or non-surgical treatment.

Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease (Adpkd) Case Study, Nhu P. Tang

Bachelor of Science in Diagnostic Ultrasound Projects

Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) is the most common inherited renal disorder that is present in adults and is characterized by progressive cyst development. It leads to chronic kidney disease (CKD) and end-stage renal disease (ESRD) due to loss of renal function. This case presents a 54-year-old male with known ADPKD and nephrolithiasis who presented with left flank pain and hypertension. Ultrasound evaluation demonstrated enlarged bilateral kidneys with numerous cysts replacing normal renal tissue and a kidney stone within the left kidney. For management, the patient was placed on medications and has been on the transplant list. This case …

Perioperative Role Of Vascular Ultrasound In Sta–Mca Bypass For Moyamoya Disease: A Case Study, Madeleine Ramos

Bachelor of Science in Diagnostic Ultrasound Projects

Moyamoya is a chronic progressive cerebrovascular disorder characterized by gradual stenosis and eventual occlusion of the intracranial vessels. The disease most commonly begins in the intracranial internal carotid arteries and may extend to involve the anterior, middle, and posterior cerebral arteries. As arterial narrowing progresses, a network of fragile collateral vessels forms at the base of the brain, creating the characteristic “puff of smoke” appearance seen on angiographic imaging.

This case study reviews a 43-year-old male who presented with an acute ischemic stroke involving a functionally occluded right M1 segment of the middle cerebral artery (MCA), later determined to be …

Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia: A Case Report, Keira Martin

Bachelor of Science in Diagnostic Ultrasound Projects

The Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia is an uncommon fetal defect of the diaphragm discovered in utero, where it does not complete development, allowing abdominal viscera to herniate into the thorax. This case study describes the procedure of using ultrasonography on a 41-year-old female who is pregnant with a fetus with a congenital diaphragmatic hernia. The procedure completed was a detailed anatomy scan, which is a transabdominal ultrasound to rule out pathology of the fetus, uterus, cervix, and ovaries. The ultrasound discovered a defect in the left side of the fetal diaphragm, allowing the stomach and a portion of the left liver …

Progression To Critical Stenosis In An Unmonitored Bicuspid Aortic Valve: Case Report, Rylen Manuel

Bachelor of Science in Diagnostic Ultrasound Projects

Bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) is the most common congenital heart defect, but it can remain undiagnosed until adulthood. This case study describes a 36-year-old male who presented for a transthoracic echocardiogram to evaluate systolic murmur without any symptoms. The patient vaguely recalled a diagnosis of BAV in his childhood but had not received any cardiac evaluation for over two decades and no documentation of the diagnosis was available in his medical record. Echocardiography confirmed a BAV with cusp fusion and revealed critical aortic stenosis, moderate aortic regurgitation, mild dilation of the ascending aorta, and severe left ventricular hypertrophy. The severity …

The Critical Role Of Transthoracic Echocardiography In The Evaluation Of Acute Renal Infarction, Gurjeet Dosanjh

Bachelor of Science in Diagnostic Ultrasound Projects

Acute renal infarction is a rare and frequently misdiagnosed condition that often presents with nonspecific abdominal or left flank pain. Renal infarction is commonly associated with cardioembolic etiologies, making echocardiography evaluation essential. In the case presented, a 60-year-old male had presented with a sudden onset of left flank pain, and a computed tomography (CT) confirmed renal infarction. A transthoracic echocardiogram was performed to assess cardiac structures, function, and potential intracardiac thrombus. Results showed the diagnosis of moderately reduced left ventricular systolic dysfunction with exclusion of a cardioembolic source, timely investigation of anticoagulant therapy, and a reduced risk of irreversible damage. …

An Ovarian Cancer Case Study, Amina Farah

Bachelor of Science in Diagnostic Ultrasound Projects

Ovarian epithelial carcinoma (OEC) is the most common and lethal form of ovarian cancer, often presenting with subtle or nonspecific symptoms. This report describes the case of a 31-year-old postpartum woman with a six-month history of abdominal pain and bloating. This case highlights the limitations of imaging modalities in the evaluation of large lesions. A focused abdominal ultrasound examination was performed, revealing an intra-abdominal vascular mass. Findings were compared with prior and subsequent Computed Tomography (CT) scans to assess the lesion’s origin, given the limitations of ultrasound. Sonographic evaluation demonstrated a large mixed heterogenous mass with thick septations and internal …

Renal Cysts On Ultrasound, Jocelyn Rios De La Cerda

Bachelor of Science in Diagnostic Ultrasound Projects

Renal cell carcinoma is a malignant condition that impairs kidney function and is commonly associated with risk factors such as smoking and hypertension. This case study examines an 83-year-old female with a significant medical history who presented for further evaluation of an indeterminate renal mass previously identified on CT and MRI imaging, which revealed a benign cyst and a separate solid lesion with concerning characteristics. A renal ultrasound demonstrated a simple cyst and a distinct hypoechoic, ill-defined lesion, raising concern for possible neoplasm. Follow-up imaging with contrast-enhanced CT was recommended for further characterization. This case highlights the importance of ultrasound …

A Large Recurrent Pseudoaneurysm Of The Superficial Femoral Artery: A Case Report, Virginia Engel

Bachelor of Science in Diagnostic Ultrasound Projects

Peripheral arterial aneurysms are rare vascular pathologies characterized by dilation of all three arterial wall layers within an extremity. When a peripheral aneurysm ruptures, the extravasation can be contained by the surrounding soft tissues of the extremity, forming a pseudoaneurysm that can continue to grow. In this case report, a 60-year-old male presented with a ruptured left superficial femoral artery (SFA) aneurysm that formed a large recurrent pseudoaneurysm, with concomitant right SFA and popliteal artery aneurysms. Multiple imaging modalities (computed tomography angiography (CTA), angiography, ultrasound) and treatment methods (autologous vein bypass, endovascular stent) were used throughout this case. This case …

Dynamic Modeling Of The Earth's Trapped Proton Environment, Xiaojing Xu, Steve R. Blattnig, Francis F. Badavi, Martha S. Clowdsley, Edward J. Semones

Physics Faculty Publications

Context: Reliable prediction of space radiation exposure is critical for safeguarding spacecraft systems and ensuring astronaut health during missions. Accurate radiation risk assessment for space mission requires advanced models of the Earth’s trapped proton environment. These models must reflect temporal variations driven by geomagnetic field evolution and solar cycle modulation. Existing static models, such as AP8 and IRENE-AP9, are not designed to fully capture these evolving conditions. Aims: This paper presents a dynamic modeling method for the prediction of trapped proton fluxes, which incorporate time-dependent variations due to geomagnetic field evolution and solar cycle fluctuations. Methods: The …

Increasing Occupational Therapy’S Visibility In College Sports Medicine In Student-Athletes With Season-Ending Injuries, Mickaela H. Buzzy, Bonnie Fischer-Camara

Post Professional Occupational Therapy Doctoral (PPOTD) Student Capstone Projects

Sport is an essential part of a student-athlete’s life. Many student-athletes gain a strong “athletic identity” in their sport. When a student-athlete is faced with an injury, specifically a season-ending injury, they are at risk of facing a significant sense of loss of identity and adverse psychological effects on their mental health. In the collegiate athletic setting, athletic trainers are often the first to notice signs of psychological distress of student-athletes; however, they frequently report limited education, training, and confidence in providing necessary psychosocial interventions. The purpose of this capstone project was to increase occupational therapy’s visibility in the collegiate …

Promoting Three-Dimensional Printed Assistive Devices For Occupational Therapy Through Online Resources, Luke M. Shotts, Alex Orkwis, Blanche Leeman, Jacie Schneider

Occupational Therapy Student Scholarship

Three-dimensional (3D) printing gives occupational therapists (OTs) a way to make low-cost, customizable assistive devices, but it remains underused in practice because most OTs have little training in it and the open-source designs that exist are scattered across sites not built for clinical use. This capstone project developed OT 3D Resource (https://www.ot3dresource.org), a free website that teaches OTs, students, and educators how to use 3D printing to create assistive devices for hand-related needs. The site includes beginner tutorials, a library of open-source printable device files with print settings and clinical considerations, and links to established 3D printing communities. …

Advancing Occupational Therapy In Sports: Bridging The Gap In Mental Performance, Gianna N. Scarantino

Occupational Therapy Student Scholarship

Occupational Therapy’s (OT’s) role in sports mental performance remains an underrecognized and emerging area of practice, with limited awareness among OTs, a lack of available educational resources, and currently no established pathway into the field. The purpose of this doctoral capstone project was to increase awareness of OT’s role in sports mental performance through the development and evaluation of a comprehensive educational resource. The educational resource included a digital portfolio, recorded PowerPoint lecture, educational Instagram content, and a Linktree that organized all project materials into one accessible location. Four licensed OTs completed a Qualtrics pre-resource knowledge checklist, reviewed the educational …

Preparing Future Occupational Therapy Practitioners To Provide Culturally Responsive Care For Hispanic Populations, Abraham Ramirez

Occupational Therapy Student Scholarship

As the United States becomes increasingly culturally diverse, occupational therapy practitioners must be prepared to provide culturally responsive, client-centered care to individuals and families from diverse backgrounds. This doctoral capstone addressed an identified gap in occupational therapy education related to students’ preparedness to work with Hispanic/Latino populations through the development and dissemination of educational resources grounded in cultural humility. Guided by Agner’s Cultural Humility Framework, the project emphasized lifelong self-reflection, recognition of personal biases, collaboration, and openness to clients’ lived experiences rather than mastery of cultural knowledge. A mixed-methods approach was utilized, incorporating a literature review, needs assessment, faculty consultation, …

Connecting Through Art: A Collaborative Art Program For The Deaf Community, Andrey Meg Bacal, Cristina Dumitrescu, Gary Dennis, Regina Brejda, Maija Vizvary, Jacie Schneider

Occupational Therapy Student Scholarship

This doctoral capstone project developed, implemented, and evaluated a Deaf-centered, ASL-accessible community art program at the Jessye Norman School of the Arts in Augusta, Georgia. The project addressed communication and environmental barriers that may limit participation in meaningful leisure and community-based occupations. Two ASL-interpreted art sessions and a community art show were completed, with evaluation using adapted PROMIS-based survey items, implementation observations, and quality improvement feedback. Because only two usable anonymous survey responses were available at each time point, findings were summarized descriptively and interpreted as feasibility and implementation information rather than evidence of effectiveness. The project supported the feasibility …

School-Based Sensory Room Education Program: An Occupational Therapy Approach, Makenzie Stiles, Bonnie Fischer-Camara, Tracie Ostrander, Elizabeth Young, Sophia Theodorou, Jacie Schneider

Occupational Therapy Student Scholarship

Sensory rooms are commonly used within school settings to support students' self-regulation, behavior, and participation in educational activities. However, evidence suggests that special education teachers and teacher aides often receive limited training on the appropriate use of sensory rooms, including identifying students who may benefit and selecting activities based on individual sensory needs. The purpose of this mixed-methods, pre-experimental capstone project was to develop, implement, and evaluate a school-based sensory room education program for special education teachers and teacher aides at Deposit Central School District. Guided by Ayres Sensory Integration® and Adult Learning Theory, the project included a needs assessment, …

Enhancing Ot Practice: A Podcast Approach To Improve Culturally Responsive Care, Tobin J. James

Occupational Therapy Student Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Multimodal Emotion Detection System, Shubhankar Sameer Munshi

Master's Projects

Trying to understand emotion from speech is a problem that is present in human computer interaction. Nevertheless, there are still some shortcomings in current SER methods. Text-based systems may miss vital vocal cues, such as sarcasm, tone changes, and delivery. On the other hand, purely audio-based systems are prone to noise and unstable acoustic features. The combination of linguistic and acoustic features in multimodal approaches partially solves this problem, but many existing approaches use inflexible multimodal fusion techniques that cannot adjust their behaviors according to the quality of input signals. In this work, we propose a multimodal approach based on …

Emotional Patterns In Conversational Social Media Using Graph-Based Context, Sai Sanjay Yerunkar

Master's Projects

Most social media datasets for emotion detection have not been constructed to account for conversational structure‚ so we investigate whether it carries signal for emotion prediction. Using Sentiment140 and GoEmotions Reddit threads‚ we construct their thread-based conversation graphs and compute the aggregated features of neighbors as well as the transformer and TF-IDF representations of comments. Connected comments are 4.5× more similar in emotions than expected by chance. Pairwise emotional similarity decays exponentially with geodesic distance (e.g.‚ after 2 hops). Pairs separated by a 30s timestamp difference have the highest emotional similarity. These results suggest that emotion is structured locally and …

Exploring Parents’ Perspective Of Outdoor Occupational Therapy Sessions, Harold Ho, Michelle Huynh, Christina Le, Amy Morrison

Master's Projects

Introduction: Outdoor play is recognized as critical for supporting children’s development across physical, cognitive, and social-emotional domains (Firby & Raine, 2022; Walker & Ray, 2024; Zhu et al., 2024). The current literature suggests that outdoor play strengthens executive functioning, early learning skills, and enhances social-emotional competency (Dinkel et al., 2019; Walker & Ray, 2024; Zhu et al., 2024). Furthermore, accessibility to outdoor play is shaped by contextual factors, including parental perceptions of safety, environmental barriers, and broader societal influences (Cox et al., 2025; Faulkner et al., 2025; Jelleyman et al., 2019). The research suggests that common parental concerns have emerged …

Searching For Cause Of Unexplained Protein Interaction With Multiple Assembly Methods, Gavin Anderson

Master's Projects

Research into colistin adjuvants has identified interactions between a host of proteins and proteins found within certain strains of bacteria. BLAST, a widely adopted local sequence alignment tool, was used to create a database containing the genomes of relevant bacterial strains, which would then be used to query against the previously identified proteins. Many of these strains do not have publicly available assemblies, which makes database construction difficult. CATwalk, a new naïve fragment extender, is first described in this paper and used to extend fragments of interest. BLAST results first identified short fragments with sufficient similarity, which can then be …

Detection And Characterization Of Cancer Using Cfdna Fragmentomic Analysis, Guneet Bhogal

Master's Projects

Cell-free DNA (cfDNA) fragmentomics has emerged as a promising non-invasive approach for detecting and characterizing cancer by analyzing DNA fragmentation patterns. These fragment patterns are unique and can be used to distinguish between tumor and healthy DNA. This paper uses machine learning models to detect cancer by evaluating Shannon entropy of fragment lengths at the first coding exon 1 regions and correlating them to targeted cancer genes. This approach was applied to two datasets consisting of samples with prostate, breast, and lung cancers. Our results indicated that exon 1 fragmentation entropy captures biologically relevant differences in cancer-specific chromatin organization and …