Digital Commons Network^™

Understanding Supply Chain Innovation, Kenneth B. Kahn, David P. Cook

Marketing Faculty Publications

Purpose – Supply chain innovation (SCI) represents a complex construct, capturing the interest of practitioners and researchers alike. There is no commonly accepted definition for the term, field research on the construct appears to be highly fragmented and industry examples demonstrate diverse ways in which it occurs.

Design/methodology/approach – Reviewing definitional literature and top winners of the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals’ Supply Chain Innovation Award, this manuscript identifies salient points about SCI to guide continued research and industry practice.

Findings – Seven points are made about SCI. These pertain to its multiple definitions, technology, relationships, performance outcomes, conceptual …

A Comparative Analysis Of Explainable Ai (Xai) Techniques For Transparent And Reliable Image Classification, Sovon Chakraborty, Shakib Mahmud Dipto, Kevin R. Pilkiewicz, Michael L. Mayo, Pratip Rana

Computer Science Faculty Publications

Evaluating the trustworthiness of black-box machine learning models remains a significant methodological challenge. Their lack of transparency and interpretability limits applicability, because stakeholders often seek transparency before trusting the results of black-box machine learning models. Explainable AI (XAI) methods provide for human-understandable justifications and informed decision-making of these black-box architectures. Therefore, it is imperative to select the proper XAI model tailored to specific tasks. In this research, we focus on examining four XAI techniques: PEEK, LRP, GRAD-CAM, and LIME to understand how they perform against each other for image classification tasks. We evaluate the performance, robustness, generalizability, noise stability, and …

Rurality, Infant Feeding Practices, And Perinatal Cardiovascular Health Behaviors, Elly Marie Marshall

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Introduction: Cardiovascular diseases are a leading cause of pregnancy-related deaths in the United States, with higher rates in rural areas. While limited healthcare access contributes to this disparity, other factors remain unclear. Breastfeeding provides long-term protection against cardiovascular disease, but modern infant feeding practices are complex and may impact maternal cardiovascular health (CVH) in unexpected ways. Healthy CVH behaviors of sufficient sleep duration, adequate physical activity, a healthy diet, and nicotine avoidance can enhance protection against future cardiovascular disease risk. Therefore, the aims of this dissertation are to 1) assess associations between rurality and first trimester CVH behaviors; 2) synthesize …

Preoperative Patient Sentiment Is Associated With Postoperative Outcomes In Adult Spinal Deformity Surgery, Ross J. Gore, David Mazur-Hart, Mohan K. Sunkara, Aaqib Ali, Qizar Ali, Christopher J. Lynch, Christopher Ames

Center for Secure and Intelligent Critical Systems (CSICS) Publications

Study Design: Prospective observational pilot study of adult spinal deformity surgery patients.

Objective: To determine whether preoperative patient sentiment, quantified using a 21-class valence scale extending the CARP paradigm implemented through an offline Large Language Model, predicts postoperative outcomes.

Summary of Background Data: Predicting adult spinal deformity surgery outcomes remains challenging with traditional clinical and radiographic parameters alone. Although patient psychological factors and expectations significantly influence postoperative satisfaction and quality of life, systematic approaches to capture these factors are underdeveloped. Offline Large Language Models offer scalable, privacy-preserving psychological risk stratification.

Materials and Methods: We prospectively enrolled 18 patients undergoing adult …

Promoting The Use Of Smoke Evacuation Systems In The Operating Room: A Quality Improvement Initiative, Andrea Leigh Drayer

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Background: Surgical smoke produced during procedures poses serious health risks to operating

room (OR) staff and patients, yet many hospitals, including an academic medical center in

northern West Virginia, have underutilized smoke evacuation systems. The imminent

enforcement of West Virginia House Bill 4376, mandating smoke evacuation use, provided both

urgency and opportunity for an intervention.

Purpose: The purpose of this Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) quality improvement project

was to increase timely compliance with the use of smoke evacuation systems during all smoke-

producing procedures, ensuring alignment with safety standards and legislative requirements.

Methods: A systematic evidence review of academic …

Mahmoud V. Taylor: Cause Or Effect Of Disruptions In Public Schools?, Richard B. Katskee, Ira C. Lupu

Faculty Scholarship

Mahmoud v. Taylor represents an extraordinary departure from long-standing constitutional norms about the rights of parents of children in public schools. In Mahmoud, the Supreme Court upheld a Free Exercise Clause claim by parents in Montgomery County, Maryland, who sought to have their children (grades K–5) excused from readings that contain LGBTQ characters and themes. The majority opinion by Justice Alito rests on a highly controversial reading of Wisconsin v. Yoder.

Part I of the paper provides the doctrinal and historical backdrop to Mahmoud, which reflects the acute tension between a once-narrow understanding of Yoder and the post-Obergefell backlash against …

Religious Riders And The Sherman Act, Bailey Sanders

Faculty Scholarship

Can corporations engage in anticompetitive behavior on the basis of religious belief? While the answer may seem like an obvious no, in fact this question has largely been overlooked. It has hovered at the margins of the debate over religious exemptions: Proponents of religious exemptions have essentially argued that there is no harm in providing such exemptions to businesses because a competitive market will ensure consumers who might be denied services or goods by a religious firm can still obtain those goods and services elsewhere. But what if religiously minded businesses act in ways that are specifically designed to limit …

Uncertain Enforcement And Standing To Sue, Ernest A. Young

Faculty Scholarship

Plaintiffs with strong claims that a law is unconstitutional may yet fail to establish standing when the law is rarely enforced. Other statutes, like Texas’s unusual abortion law, may render challenges difficult by delegating enforcement to private parties who are difficult to identify in advance. Both problems arise from the assumption that the law shapes behavior only through sanctions imposed in enforcement proceedings. This view is mistaken, both jurisprudentially and empirically. Worse, it requires courts to ask two unanswerable questions: How likely is enforcement? And how likely does Article III require it to be? It also asks standing doctrine to …

The Effect Of Provider Diversity On Racial Health Disparities: Evidence From The Military, Michael Frakes, Jonathan Gruber

Faculty Scholarship

We assess the relationship between the racial diversity of medical providers and racial health disparities in the use of preventive care and in patient outcomes. We use unique data from the Military Health System, where we observe providers as patients so that we can identify their race, and where moves across bases change exposure to provider race in a plausibly exogenous fashion. We consider patients with four chronic, deadly, but manageable illnesses, where the relationship with the provider may have the most direct impact on health. We find striking evidence that provider racial diversity leads to reduced disparities in maintenance …

The Ywca Goes To The Countryside: The Rural Work Of The Chinese Young Women’S Christian Association, 1926-1947, Elizabeth Littell-Lamb Phd

Asia Pacific Perspectives

This is the first study of the Chinese YWCA’s rural work. The decision to “go to the countryside” in part grew out of a critique by Chinese YWCA women of its Westerninfluenced agenda. That critique led the YWCA national committee to establish rural work as a first step toward a China-centered agenda. Key aspects of that agenda were the empowerment of rural secretaries in the field and the inclusion of rural women as members. The empowerment of rural secretaries contributed to the democratization of professional relationships within the association. The inclusion of rural women as members allowed the YWCA to …

Missionary Body Politics: Physical Education In West China, 1905-1950, Cory Willmott

Asia Pacific Perspectives

Republican Era China saw a radical transformation in Chinese physical culture as it aimed to compete in the global geopolitics of nation-states. Employing an historical ethnographic approach, this paper outlines how the unique conditions of Sichuanese warlordism and secret societies affected missionary relations with the Guomindang (GMD) as they implemented increasingly militarized physical education programs. Before the 1928 GMD consolidation of power, missionaries and GMD educators aligned with the YM/ WCA in physical education programs. After the GMD moved their headquarters to Chongqing in 1938, relations soured between the GMD and the Sichuan missionaries. Although the latter had been the …

Towards Developing A Career Technology Fit Framework And Analyzing Its Influence On Work-Related Outcomes Among It Professionals, Gunjan Tomer

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

With growing attrition rate and significant demand for skilled IT professionals, the importance of studying their behaviour has become important for both academia and industry. Despite ample amount of research, there is still a gap between theory and practice. Based on our qualitative study conducted on Indian IT professionals we propose that technology allocation might contribute in understanding the behaviour of IT professionals. We found that IT professionals evaluate the technology allocated to them based on their individual career motives. This evaluation, either positive or negative, influences their job outcomes. Further, we explored the factors that make a technology preferable …

Black Widow Optimization Of Hybrid Renewable-Hydrogen Microgrids For Cost-Effective Water Pumping In Off-Grid Systems, Ayodeji Akinsoji Okubanjo, Ignatius Kema Okakwu, Samson Oladayo Ayanlade, Abayomi Temitope Layeni, Etinosa Noma-Osaghae, Christian Chukwuemaka Ike, Olufemi Peter Alao, Ayodeji Joseph Akinremi, Ayo Isaac Oyedeji

Trends in advanced sciences and technology

The intermittent nature of renewable energy resources, together with limited infrastructure in off-grid communities, presents major obstacles to sustainable water supply. To overcome these challenges, this study develops a Black Widow Optimization (BWO)-based framework for the optimal sizing of a hybrid renewable–hydrogen microgrid integrating photovoltaic (PV) systems, wind turbines, battery energy storage, and hydrogen storage for reliable and cost-effective water pumping applications. The optimization goals are to reduce the Levelized Cost of Water (LCOW), Levelized Cost of Hydrogen (LCOH), and Net Present Cost (NPC), while system reliability and energy efficiency are quantified using the probability of unmet water demand (PUWD) …

The Value Of Personal Data Ecosystems: A Flemish Media Sector Case Study, Maarten De Mildt, Melanie Verstraete, Sofie Verbrugge, Didier Colle

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

Personal Data Stores (PDSs) have been proposed as a privacy-preserving approach to data sharing that increases individual control over personal data while enabling new forms of cross-organizational collaboration. This collaboration leads to the emergence of Personal Data Ecosystems (PDEs). Despite growing interest in PDEs, limited research has examined how the organizational and economic barriers identified in prior studies manifest in practice. This paper investigates these challenges through a case study of the Flemish media sector within the Solid4Media project, which explores the use of PDSs to support data sharing and personalization across media organizations. Using a qualitative research design, data …

Knowledge Regarding Cervical Cancer Among Adults Studying In A Selected Institution In Mandya District, Karnataka: A Descriptive Study, Megha Maria Joy, Nikitha R, Anitha Victoria Noronha

Manipal Journal of Nursing and Health Sciences

Introduction: Cervical cancer remains a major public health concern, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. Adequate knowledge regarding cervical cancer, its etiology, prevention, and screening is essential for early detection and reduction of disease burden. Objectives: This study aimed to assess the knowledge regarding cervical cancer among adults studying in a selected institution in Mandya District, Karnataka, and to determine the association between knowledge levels and selected demographic variables. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional design was adopted among 60 adults selected through simple random sampling. Data were collected using a validated structured knowledge questionnaire administered through Google Forms. …

Sustainable Paper Production From Date Palm And Reed Leaves Through The Valorization Of Agricultural Waste Products, Imane Belyamani, Alreem Alameri, Jacqueline Soghman

All Works

The environmental consequences of wood-based paper production, including greenhouse gas emissions, have accelerated the search for sustainable alternatives. This study investigates the use of reed and date palm fibers as eco-friendly raw materials for paper production, focusing on starch's influence on their thermal, structural, and mechanical properties. Reed fibers exhibited a higher pulp yield (58.2 %) and lower lignin content (7.8 %) compared to date palm fibers (55.9 % yield, 14.1 % lignin), contributing to papers with smoother textures and greater flexibility. The incorporation of starch into both fiber types resulted in notable performance improvements, though the effects were more …

A Novel Bernstein Operational Matrix Approach For Tempered Fractional Differential Equations: Convergence And Stability Analysis, Jalal Al Hallak, Mohammed Alshbool, Ishak Hashim, Eddie Shahril Ismail, Shaher Momani

All Works

Tempered fractional differential equations (TFDEs) incorporate exponential decay into fractional operators to account for truncated memory and semi-long-range dependence in a variety of applications, including anomalous diffusion, viscoelasticity, transport phenomena, geophysical processes, and financial dynamics. In this work, a tempered fractional Bernstein method (TFBM) was proposed for the numerical solution of TFDEs involving Caputo-type derivatives. The proposed formulation combined a Bernstein polynomial approximation with an analytic representation of the Caputo–tempered fractional derivative through operational matrices. On this basis, two collocation-based variants were developed, namely, a Chebyshev-type method (TFBM-C) and a Legendre-type method (TFBM-L). For the linear setting, a convergence analysis …

Smart Health Care Application For Predicting Complications Risk In Type 2 Diabetes Management Using Personalized Digital Twins: A Focus On Early Intervention And Prevention Strategies, Haifaa Alkaabi, Ahed Abugabah

All Works

The study examined the application of Personalized Digital Twins (PDTs) to prevent complications during the management of Type 2 Diabetes, especially in early intervention and prevention plans. Based on a high-quality dataset related to the CDC Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) data, we tested multiple predictive models such as the Random Forest, Gradient Boosting machines (GBM), and Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost). We developed a composite risk indicator from established clinical risk factors (hypertension, dyslipidemia, elevated BMI) to stratify complication risk. The Random Forest model achieved 99% accuracy (AUC: 0.98) at the population-level risk classification. The GBM model was optimized …

Kidney Dysfunction, Biochemical Changes, Dna Alteration, And Mapks Regulation Following Chronic Exposure To Regular And Occasional Hookah Smoke In Mice, Naserddine Hamadi, Anas Nemmar, Sumaya Beegam, Nur Elena Zaaba, Ozaz Elzaki, Abderrahim Nemmar

All Works

Regular hookah smoking (Reg-HS) has become a major global public health issue, linked to significant health risks, including kidney damage. A less frequent pattern of use, known as occasional hookah smoking (Occ-HS), is also common; however, there has been little progress in understanding the direct impact of Occ-HS on kidneys. To investigate how varying frequencies of HS inhalation affect the kidney, we exposed mice to nose-only HS under two regimens, occasional (30 min once weekly) and regular (30 min five times per week) for a duration of 6 months. This study explored the impact on renal damage, inflammatory responses, oxidative …

Integrative Machine Learning Of Genetic And Lifestyle Factors For Personalized Skin Health, Yassine Benachour, Lina Maloukh, Barbara Geusens

All Works

Objective: To develop an AI framework that combines genetic, phenotypic, and lifestyle data for profiling skin-health patterns and generating hypothesis-supporting summaries for potential decision support. Methods and procedures: A dataset of 5,254 individuals integrates six genes (FLG, AQP3, MMP-1, MMP-3, SOD2, GPX), six phenotype severities, and 20+ lifestyle factors. Mutation burden and interactions are tested by ANOVA. K-modes clustering identifies four interpretable dermatological profiles within the cohort and is embedded in leakage-free nested cross-validation (train-only selection; test labels from training centroids). Subtypes are predicted from genetics plus lifestyle using an XGBoost (XGB) classifier; explainability uses gain, permutation importance, and SHAP …

Cyber Behaviors And Well-Being In Emerging Adults: Patterns, Determinants, And Gender Differences, Areej Elsayary, Juan Calmaestra, Mercedes Gómez-López

All Works

Technological advances have reshaped the ways in which young people interact, giving rise to a complex digital landscape with implications for their well-being. Despite the growing body of research on cyber behaviors, their potential for both positive and negative well-being outcomes is not yet fully understood, nor is the role of gender in shaping these relationships. The present study aimed to explore the relationship between online moral disengagement, problematic internet use, online disinhibition, and cyberbullying dimensions and emotional, social, and psychological well-being among 671 emerging adults, as well as to examine the potential moderator role of gender. The results revealed …

Machine Learning For Wearable Sensor-Based Human Movement Rehabilitation: A Five-Year Systematic Review, Yassine Benachour, Farid Flitti, Lina Maloukh, Aicha Beya Far, Elhocine Boutellaa, Mohamed Bentoumi, Marwa Chendeb El Rai, Nour Aburaed, Khaled Ali, Moez Rehman, Sultan Mosleh, Rania Dghaim, Sadok Bouamama

All Works

Wearable-sensor-based human movement analysis is an increasingly important component of digital health and rehabilitation, enabling objective monitoring and data-driven personalization of therapy. In parallel, machine learning (ML) methods have rapidly expanded for interpreting multimodal movement signals, yet the evidence base remains heterogeneous and difficult to benchmark. This PRISMA-guided systematic review synthesizes recent ML approaches for wearable human motion analysis in rehabilitation-oriented health applications. We searched IEEE Xplore, PubMed, and Scopus for English-language studies published from 2021 to 2025 and extracted information on sensor modalities, ML task formulations and model families, dataset characteristics, validation protocols, and reported performance metrics, together with …

Low-Energy Co2 Sequestration Via Palm Waste Biochar Activated With Carbide Lime For Mineral Carbonation Of Industrial Wastes, Maisa El Gamal, Ameera F. Mohammad, Basim Abu-Jdayil, Imen Ben Salem, Suhaib Hameedi

All Works

A sustainable method for enhancing CO₂ capture and sequestration was developed by accelerating the carbonation of alkaline industrial wastes using carbide lime-activated biochar (BC(CLW)), an alkaline by-product of acetylene production. The biochar was produced from palm tree waste through slow pyrolysis at 400 °C, followed by activation with carbide lime slurry to enhance its alkalinity, surface basic sites, and reactivity toward CO₂. Three industrial residues, namely ladle furnace slag (LF), baghouse dust (BH), and cyclone silo dust (CD), were blended with 0, 5, 7, and 10 wt. % BC(CLW) and carbonated under ambient conditions. Characterization by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), Fourier-transform …

Lower Suicidal Ideation Linked To Easier Access To Urban Green Spaces During The Covid-19 Pandemic: A Nationwide Study In Japan, Zheng Xian, Tomoki Nakaya, Clive E. Sabel, Ryo Okubo, Kun Liu, Jinguang Zhang, Takahiro Tabuchi

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Urban green spaces (UGSs) have been linked to improved mental health and lower suicide rates, yet their protective role during large-scale crises remains underexplored. We examined associations of UGS accessibility with long-term and pandemic induced new-onset suicidal ideation during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic in urban Japan, using data from a nationwide health survey of 17,376 participants (August 2020). Modified Poisson regression models estimated prevalence ratios (PRs) for suicidal ideation by UGS accessibility (area, number, and type) within 5, 10, and 15-minute walking thresholds from home, controlling for individual and area-level confounders. UGS accessibility exhibited dose-response relationships with …

Direct And Indirect Metal Contamination Of Estuarine Sediments By Boat Paint Particles, Andrew Turner, Ho Kwan Cheung

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Surface and subsurface estuarine sediments close to a cluster of abandoned boats have been fractionated (between <250 and 5000 μm) and analysed microscopically for paint particles. Paints were encountered in all samples, with concentrations calculated for whole sediment samples up to 1450 per kg (dry weight). X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analysis of paint particles retained by the coarsest (>5000 μm) size fraction revealed heterogeneous concentrations of Ba, Cu, Pb, Sn and Zn that reflect pigments and antifoulants used in various recent and historical antifouling and above waterline boat paints. Analysis of sediments by XRF revelated heterogeneous distributions of these metals between locations, size fractions and depths, and among replicate measurements at different positions of the same sample. Consequently, no relationship with grain size (evaluated using Rb as a proxy) was evident and concentrations often greatly exceeded predicted effect levels for sediments. Re-analysis …

Right Child In The Right Place: A Mixed-Method Case Study Of Plymouth City Council’S Placement Decision Systems, Leetice Taylor, Sheena Asthana, Oliver Beer, Cath Quinn

School of Health Professions

This research aims to understand how to reduce the use, and cost of inappropriate placements for Plymouth’s children in care. The number of children in care in England is rising, and local authorities are under pressure to find a suitable home within their local area for children in care, where appropriate. Local authorities are paying unsustainable costs for placements where children are facing potential negative outcomes. This research will synthesise information from academic literature, financial and demographic data, council staff, children in care and carers to understand best practice in placing children in the right place and driving down costs. …

Three Christmas Island Land Crabs Do Not Alter Extracellular Magnesium In Response To Acute Reduced Temperature, Katie N.G. Thiessen, Helena C. Reinardy, John I. Spicer, Lucy M. Turner

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

Magnesium is essential to numerous biological processes in many species. Including protecting intracellular pH and ATP concentrations during temperature and anoxia stress. Extracellular [Mg²⁺] is tightly regulated in many, but not all crustaceans. There is evidence that extracellular [Mg²⁺] content may be open to environmental influence such as temperature. The alteration of extracellular [Mg²⁺] in decapod crustaceans in response to temperature has been proposed, with individuals exposed to low temperature often displaying an increase in extracellular [Mg²⁺]. However, data, supporting or refuting this hypothesis, are sparse and drawn mainly from temperate and …

Alcohol Awareness, Prevention, And Education In Greek Life, Vivian J. Mcmechen, Kara Ann Lasater, Page Dobbs

2026 Honors Symposium

Background: Alcohol consumption is normalized in Greek Life culture, and this social standard can lead to risky health behaviors and overconsumption. At the University of Arkansas, approximately one-third of students are members of Greek Life; there is a need for prevention methods that understand students’ lived experiences. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine students’ experiences with alcohol prevention, awareness, and education as current members of Greek Life at the University of Arkansas. Through student interviews and surveys, this project aims to inform and provide recommendations for relatable and student-centered alcohol prevention and education efforts. Methodology: This study …

On The Reasonableness Of Religious Belief According To W. James' "The Will To Believe" With Reference To Alvin Plantinga's “The Nature Of Necessity”, Maria Gadelrad Shenouda Nakhla

Theses and Dissertations

Analytically, I follow William James's approach in his paper "The Will to Believe" to demonstrate that holding a religious belief is reasonable and it is not incompatible with being a philosophy scholar. I do this through explaining the way James addressed the main obstacle that Clifford puts against belief (in general) which is ‘the lack of sufficient evidence’. Clifford claims that belief cannot be accepted without evidence on it.

James breaks apart this obstacle through many steps. First, analyzing the nature of belief itself, showing that belief cannot be attained based on intellectual grounds alone (which needs sufficient evidence), but …

2026 Nh 4 H Qualifying And Entry For Ese, Hannah Majewski

UNH Cooperative Extension

No abstract provided.