Digital Commons Network^™

Efficiency Improvement In A Two-Dimensional Axial Diffuser By Passive And Active Flow Control Methods, Muthana M. Ali, Qusay Jihad, Ali L. Ekaid

Engineering and Technology Journal

This paper presents a combined numerical and experimental investigation of the effects of boundary-layer bleeding and thermal control on flow behavior and separation within a two-dimensional rectangular diffuser having an inlet cross-section (7 × 25) cm. The experiments were conducted under fully developed flow conditions over a wide range of Reynolds numbers, based on the hydraulic diameter, from (3.4×¹⁰4-1.64×¹⁰5) and for diffuser divergence angles varying from (5^∘ to 20^∘) .To accurately predict the velocity field, pressure distribution, and boundary-layer development, the incompressible Reynolds-Averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) equations were solved using the finite volume method …

Effect Of Graphite-Mwcnt Hybrid Nanofluid Mql On Cutting Force During Turning Of Ti-6al-4v Alloy, Abbas Ibrahim Khwakaram, Yassin Mustafa Ahmed, Muhammed Tahir Muhammed

Engineering and Technology Journal

Titanium alloys are popular in the aerospace and medical fields because they are very robust but difficult to work with. The study was carried out on a hybrid nanofluid (graphite and MWCNTs, in sunflower oil) under minimum quantity lubrication (MQL) conditions. Unlike conventional lubrication methods, hybrid nano-additives reduce cutting forces during turning. The Taguchi L18 orthogonal array was employed to study the effects of cutting speed, feed rate, and cooling conditions on cutting force. The ``smaller-is-better'' rule was applied to convert the average cutting force into signal-to-noise S/N ratios. ANOVA was used to determine the extent to which each factor …

First Photographic Record Of A Pale-Colored Wild Boar (Sus Scrofa) Consistent With Leucism In The Zagros Mountains, Iraqi Kurdistan, Bahez F. Ali, Hana A. Raza, Nabaz Horeni

AUIQ Complementary Biological System

Pigmentation anomalies in wild mammals are rare and poorly documented in wild boar (Sus scrofa) populations. Leucism, characterized by partial loss of melanin while retaining normal eye pigmentation, represents one of the least frequently reported coloration anomalies in the species. During a camera-trap survey in Bamo Mountain, Zagros Mountains of Iraqi Kurdistan, an unusually pale-colored wild boar consistent with leucism was recorded. The individual exhibited cream to light-blond pelage with retained darker pigmentation on the snout and distal limbs, while the eyes remained normally pigmented. Its morphology and behavior were otherwise consistent with those of a typical wild …

Diagnostic And Clinical Management Performance Of Large Language Models In Pediatric Infectious Diseases: A Multi-Model Comparative Cross-Sectional Study With Healthcare Professionals And Medical Students, Sait Ramazan Gülbay, Muhammed Yusuf Ozan Avcı, Muhammed Nezih Koç, Hanife Tutan, Sümeyye Koç, Ömer Adil İlhan, Metin Doğan

Journal of Pediatric Infectious Diseases

Objective: Large language models (LLMs) are increasingly investigated to support clinical decision-making. However, their comparative performance against human expertise in pediatric infectious diseases remains insufficiently characterized. This study compared diagnostic accuracy and management score between healthcare professionals, medical students, and multiple LLM configurations. Methods: A cross-sectional comparative study was conducted using 30 standardized pediatric infectious disease cases stratified by difficulty (6 easy, 12 medium, 12 difficult). Each case included three multiple-choice questions: a diagnostic gateway question and two management questions. A conditional scoring framework was applied: management questions were scored only when the diagnostic gateway question was answered correctly. The …

Risk Factors Associated With Poor Prognosis In Children With Severe Pneumonia And Their Clinical And Nursing Implications, Chao Fan, Jiarong Li, Jiao Yuan

Journal of Pediatric Infectious Diseases

Objective: Severe pneumonia (SP) accompanied by high fever is frequently encountered in pediatric emergency and intensive care settings and is associated with unfavorable short-term outcomes. Early identification of factors associated with poor prognosis may support timely risk recognition and nursing awareness. Methods: This retrospective observational study included 195 children with SP complicated by high fever who were admitted to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) or the Emergency Department of our hospital between January 2019 and January 2022. Demographic characteristics, baseline clinical indicators, and laboratory parameters at admission were extracted from medical records. Poor prognosis was determined according to predefined …

Serum Igf-1 And Igfbp-3 In Preschool Children With Adjudicated Sepsis: A Retrospective Case–Control Study, Wei Pan, Wenwen Zhang

Journal of Pediatric Infectious Diseases

Objective: Sepsis in children is accompanied by marked inflammatory and metabolic perturbations. Conventional markers such as C-reactive protein (CRP) and procalcitonin (PCT) reflect inflammation but do not capture broader endocrine–metabolic responses. We therefore examined serum insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and insulin-like growth factor binding protein-3 (IGFBP-3) in preschool children with retrospectively adjudicated sepsis and explored their in-sample discriminatory ability within this dataset. This study was exploratory and was not designed to validate clinically actionable biomarkers. Methods: We conducted a retrospective case–control study of 73 children aged 4–6 years with retrospectively adjudicated sepsis and 80 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. For …

Efficacy Of Dipyridamole As Adjuvant Therapy On Coronary Artery Outcomes In Children With Intravenous Immunoglobulin-Resistant Kawasaki Disease: A Multicenter, Randomized, Open-Label Trial, Qingping Wu, Lianzhen Wang, Xiaohong Long

Journal of Pediatric Infectious Diseases

Objective: Non-responsive Kawasaki disease to intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) increases the risk of coronary artery damage in pediatric patients. There is an urgent clinical need for adjunctive therapies that can improve outcomes in these high-risk children. Dipyridamole, with its antiplatelet and vasodilatory effects, may improve outcomes in such patients, but prospective research evidence is currently lacking. Methods: This multicenter, randomized, open-label trial enrolled 144 pediatric patients with IVIG-resistant Kawasaki disease. Participants were randomly allocated to receive either standard therapy supplemented with oral dipyridamole (2 mg/kg, three times daily), or standard therapy alone. The primary endpoint was the change in mean coronary …

Predictors Of Time To Positive Blood Culture In Neonatal Sepsis And Its Utility As A Guide For Optimizing Antibiotic Duration, Asmaa Almilhem, Doha Mouneer Moustafa, Izdehar Nached, Yaser Ali, Mona Khalaf, Hala Ismail, Ahmed Azzam, Aisha Alkhaaldi

Journal of Pediatric Infectious Diseases

Objective: Neonatal sepsis is a leading cause of mortality and morbidity in neonatal units. Neonates are often exposed to prolonged periods of antibiotics, leading to adverse outcomes. This study aimed to assess the time to positivity (TTP) in early-onset neonatal sepsis (EONS) and late-onset neonatal sepsis (LONS) and its impact on the duration of empirical antibiotics. Methods: A retrospective cohort review was conducted from January 1, 2021, to December 31, 2023, at Al Qassimi Women’s and Children’s Hospital, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates. Neonates admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) with positive blood cultures and confirmed EONS or LONS …

Epstein-Barr Virus Infection In Children Of Hangzhou During Strict And Optimized Covid-19 Control Periods: Epidemiological Characteristics And Variation Distributions, Hao Wang, Lin Chen, Shuangshuang Huang, Zhijian Song, Chunhong Zhu, Tong Wang, Fengqing Cai, Zhaoyang Peng, Hongqiang Shen

Journal of Pediatric Infectious Diseases

Objective: Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection is linked to multiple pediatric disorders, and COVID-19 control measures may have modified its epidemiological profiles. This study analyzed EBV infection characteristics and distribution changes among children in Hangzhou before and after the promulgation of the ‘10 prevention and control measures,’ comparing the strict (2022) and relaxed (2023) pandemic periods. Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on 38,086 children with suspected EBV-related diseases who underwent EBV serological antibody testing via chemiluminescence immunoassay at Children's Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine between January 2022 and December 2023. The percentages and distributions of Seropositive across years, …

Integrating Geo Analysis And Machine Learning For Identifying Transcriptomic Signature Of Ev-A71 Infection, Li Li, Guifang Hu

Journal of Pediatric Infectious Diseases

Objective: To identify a transcriptomic signature associated with EV-A71 infection using peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) transcriptome profiles from the public dataset GSE135964, which compares samples from subjects with Enterovirus A71 (EV-A71) infection against healthy controls based on bioinformatics and machine learning algorithms, for exploratory biomarker discovery. Methods: The publicly available dataset GSE135964, accessed through the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database WAS analyzed. Differential expression analysis was conducted with a |log2FC| ≥ 0.5 and an adj.P.Val < 0.05 cutoff. The resulting gene set was then visualized through box plots, PCA, volcano plots, and heatmaps. Subsequently, we utilized the random forest algorithm, which quantified gene importance by integrating the mean decrease in both accuracy and the Gini index. This process culminated in the selection of the highest-ranking 10% of genes for subsequent candidacy. Functional characterization of the candidate genes involved Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analyses, alongside the establishment of a protein-protein interaction (PPI) network leveraging the STRING database. Results: Our analysis revealed 438 differentially expressed genes (DEGs), with a marked imbalance towards upregulation (415 genes) compared to downregulation (23 genes). Random forest screening identified 44 candidate genes. PPI analysis identified 23 key genes, and LASSO regression finally pinpointed three feature genes: IFIT5, OASL, and PLSCR1. ROC analysis showed AUC values of 0.964, 0.921, and 0.894 for OASL, PLSCR1, and IFIT5, respectively, indicating a strong association with EV-A71 infection. Enrichment analysis implicated these feature genes in antiviral biological processes, suggesting a core mechanism involving antiviral defense (GO:0051607) to viral RNA binding (GO:0003727). Conclusions: The identified three-gene signature, enriched in antiviral response pathways, provides a theoretical basis for future research into host transcriptomic responses to EV-A71 infection and the RIG-I signaling axis. This transcriptomic signature analysis offers an exploratory resource for understanding EV-A71–associated HFMD.

Balancing Diagnostic Accuracy And Antimicrobial Stewardship In Neonatal Sepsis, Jeslyn Tengkawan, Mmdeah Hapsari, Dimas Tri Anantyo, Helmia Farida, Adhie Nur Radityo, Moh Syarofil Anam, Seda Yilmaz Semerci

Journal of Pediatric Infectious Diseases

Objective: Neonatal sepsis continues to be a major cause of morbidity and mortality globally, particularly in developing countries. The rising rate of antimicrobial resistance underscores the urgent need for reliable, practical sepsis prediction tools to optimize antibiotic use. The Sepsis Prediction Score (SPS) integrates clinical and laboratory parameters and has shown a positive impact in simplifying clinical decision-making. This study aimed to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of the SPS in predicting late-onset sepsis (LOS) in a tertiary referral hospital in Indonesia. Methods: This diagnostic study used a cross-sectional design and was conducted at Dr. Kariadi General Hospital, using medical records …

Empirical Antibiotic Use In Children With Acute Fever: Clinical Evidence And Sociocultural Perspectives Literature Review, Hussein Moustafa Shehata, Ranya Khairy Ammar

Journal of Pediatric Infectious Diseases

Objective: Empirical antibiotic therapy in children with acute fever remains a controversial clinical issue. Fever is one of the most common presenting symptoms in pediatric care, yet most febrile episodes are self-limiting and attributable to viral infections. To evaluate the clinical evidence on empirical antibiotic therapy in febrile children, assess clinical outcomes, synthesize international guideline recommendations, and analyze the impact of sociocultural factors on prescribing practices. Methods: A narrative literature review was conducted using PubMed/MEDLINE, Embase, and Google Scholar (January 2014 – March 2025), supplemented by guideline databases from the World Health Organization (WHO), the European Society for Paediatric Infectious …

Late-Onset Cobalamin C Deficiency Associated Atypical Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome – Diagnostic Pitfalls: A Case Report, Martha Stampfli, Sibylle Tschumi, Giacomo Simonetti, Corinne Benchimol, Gabriela Oesch, Alexander Lämmle, Matthias Baumgartner

Journal of Child Science

Introduction: Cobalamin C (cblC) deficiency represents a rare but treatable and potentially underrecognized cause of thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA) in both pediatric and adult populations. It is a multisystem disorder with heterogeneous clinical manifestations. TMA occurs in 10-25% of affected individuals. Case presentation: A ten-year-old girl presented with vomiting and abdominal pain, followed by generalized status epilepticus and hypertensive crisis. Neuroimaging was unremarkable. Laboratory evaluation demonstrated severe renal impairment (creatinine 506 µmol/L), microangiopathic hemolysis and thrombocytopenia. Atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome (aHUS) was suspected and treated with eculizumab and intermittent hemodialysis. Genetic analysis identified biallelic pathogenic variants in the MMACHC gene, confirming …

Prevalence And Factors Associated With Depression In Pediatric Epilepsy Patients At Maharat Nakhon Ratchasima Hospital, Paneeta Panjanya, Manachawee Maneeratchakit, Vitchayaporn Emarach Saengow

Journal of Child Science

Background: Epilepsy is a chronic neurological disorder commonly associated with depressive symptoms, which can negatively affect quality of life. Early identification through screening is therefore important in pediatric epilepsy care. Objective: To determine the prevalence of depressive symptoms and associated factors among pediatric patients with epilepsy at Maharat Nakhon Ratchasima Hospital. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among patients aged 10–15 years with epilepsy attending the Pediatric Epilepsy Clinic between May 2024 and June 2025. A total of 141 participants were included. Demographic, family, and epilepsy-related data were collected. Depressive symptoms were screened using the Thai version of the Children’s …

Development Of The Toileting Habit Profile Questionnaire -2nd Revision; Assessing Sensory-Based Toileting Difficulties, Isabelle Beaudry-Bellefeuille, Eduardo Ramos-Polo

Journal of Child Science

Background: Childhood functional defecation disorders (FDD), including functional constipation and non-retentive fecal incontinence, are classified as disorders of gut–brain interaction and are increasingly recognized as a public health concern. FDD are commonly associated with challenging toileting behaviors and reduced participation in age-appropriate toileting routines, which may contribute to both the onset and maintenance of symptoms. Identifying factors underlying toileting participation difficulties is essential for effective intervention planning. Occupational therapy practitioners have developed expertise in addressing participation challenges in daily activities, including toileting, and in identifying sensory integration issues that may interfere with engagement. Aim: This paper introduces the Toileting Habit …

Physical Development Of Children Born From Adolescent Mothers: A Descriptive Evaluation Compared To World Averages, Sebahat Aydos, Aysel Köksal Akyol

Journal of Child Science

Background: Adolescent motherhood is a globally prevalent phenomenon that has been the subject of scientific research for many years. However, comprehensive scientific studies focusing on the physical development of children born to adolescent mothers remain quite limited. Objective: The aim of this study was to compare the height, weight, and head circumference development of infants and children born to adolescent mothers with the World Health Organization Multicenter Growth Reference Study (WHO MGRS) data. Methods: The study sample consisted of 2,209 infants and children born to adolescent mothers in Turkey, whose records were extracted from the Infant/Child Follow-up Data Set of …

Modeling And Forecasting Intraday Spot Volatility, Adam Clements, Daniel P. A. Preve

Research Collection School Of Economics

We propose a multiple-equation regression-based method for modeling and forecasting intraday spot volatility. In this approach, intraday intervals are treated as individual time series, deviating from the common practice of treating the data as one continuous sample. Our empirical study, which spans more than two decades and encompasses six US blue-chip stocks, employs the recent OK volatility estimator developed by Li, Wang, and Zhang (2024) to expose the dynamics of latent intraday spot volatility over time. We demonstrate that the proposed method effectively captures the intricate dynamics of intraday spot volatility and find strong evidence that it outperforms a competing …

Exploring The Relationship Between Energy Use And Sectoral Output At The Useful Stage, Daniel Chester, Ritika Susarla, Paul Brockway, Emmanuel Aramendia, Matthew Magness, Matthew Kuperus Heun

University Faculty Publications and Creative Works

1.Develop a publicly-available dataset of sectoral useful energy/exergy intensities

• And final, where not already existing

• How do global sector-level trends change when viewed from the useful stage?
• Are similar convergence patterns observed compared to previous analysis?
• How do sectoral differences explain aggregate convergence/divergence?

Smart-Twin: Systematic Modeling And Real-Time Transportation With Digital Twins, Hovannes Kulhandjian

Mineta Transportation Institute

Urban transportation networks are increasingly affected by everyday congestion, non-recurring disruptions, and limited real-time visibility into what is happening on the road. Transportation agencies require advanced tools that support faster, proactive management and data-driven infrastructure decisions rather than passive monitoring. This report presents SMART-TWIN, an Artificial Intelligence (AI)–driven Digital Twin framework designed for real-time traffic operations, disruption detection, and performance-based decision-making support. The SMART-TWIN architecture integrates microscopic traffic simulation (detailed traffic modeling), long-horizon synthetic demand generation simulating real travel patterns, supervised machine learning, and performance analysis within a unified and reproducible workflow. A corridor-scale Digital Twin was developed for the …

Cultivating Narratives: A Critical Discourse Analysis Of Higher Education Student-Led Farms And Gardens, Maximilan Sherard, Marc T. Sager

Publications

Despite extensive research on community agriculture, little attention has been paid to student-led farms or gardens (SFGs) in higher education contexts. SFGs represent a unique site for community agriculture due to their diverse stakeholders, academic affiliations, and the institutional policies they navigate. This study examines online promotional materials from 42 SFGs located on land-grant higher education campuses across the United States. Using critical discourse analysis, we (1) map these organizations’ practices and (2) identify competing discourses about community and agriculture within their promotional narratives. We identify and explain four core practices (membership, growing, distribution, and purpose) and connect these practices …

Fair + Equitable July 2026, International Association Of Assessing Officers

Fair + Equitable

The July F+E issue reviews how eliminating the property tax would impact local budgets.

Also in this issue:

• An updated Annual Conference session schedule
• The President’s Column
• IAAO launches national campaign to explain the value of the property tax
• Longtime IAAO director retires
• The 2026 conference charity
• IAAO Library hot topics
• New IAAO designees
• Meet A Rep

A Quality Improvement Approach To Reducing Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Readmissions, Florwisse Rubio

All Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Scholarly Projects

Problem:

The problem identified at the project site is that care transitions for patients with COPD lack standardized discharge processes, leading to inconsistent education, limited follow-up, and poor coordination of care.

Aim of the Project:

The primary aim was to improve patient outcomes by reducing the 19.6% 30-day readmissions among older adults diagnosed with COPD at the selected project site by implementing a standardized discharge intervention over 12 weeks, measuring progress, and ensuring appropriate workflow. The initiative of this project sought to foster a sense of proper continuity of care through timely follow-up, interprofessional communication among patients and providers, and …

Enhancing Medication Timeliness Through Structured Handoff In A Mental Health Facility, Belinda Zinhu

All Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Scholarly Projects

Problem: Delayed medication administration in an adult inpatient mental health facility exceeded organizational benchmarks and posed risks to patient safety, treatment effectiveness, and continuity of care. Baseline electronic health record (EHR) audits showed that about 30% of scheduled medications were administered outside the organization's acceptable timeframe, and inconsistent nurse shift handoffs contributed to the delays.

Aim of the Project: The aim of the quality improvement project was to improve patient outcomes by implementing the I-PASS standardized handoff communication tool to reduce late medication administration from 30% to 15% within 12 weeks.

Review of the Evidence: Evidence supports structured handoff frameworks …

Selene And Pleiades Labor To Keep Watch Over A Lonely Night - Sappho, Maksim Astashinskiy

Faculty Papers and Publications

The title is the translator’s; the poem is popularly referred to as the “Midnight poem,” Wikipedia, accessed July 19, 2026, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midnight_poem; the Greek text is transcribed from The Digital Sappho: Text and Commentary, accessed July 17, 2026, https://digitalsappho.org/fragments/fr118-168/. For an expansive compilation of translations of this poem, see: “Sappho’s Moon and Pleiades,” Brief Poems: An irregular anthology of tweet-size poems (blog), November 22, 2015, https://briefpoems.wordpress.com/2015/11/22/sapphos-moon-and-pleiades/. The unattributed two-line poem text is featured in Hephaestion (ca. 2nd century C.E.), see: Hephaestionis Enchiridion, cum commentariis veteribus edidit Maximilianus Consbruch. Accedunt variae metricorum graecorum reliquiae (Lipsiae: B.G. …

Clinical Document Metadata Extraction: A Scoping Review, Kurt Miller, Qiuhao Lu, William Hersh, Kirk Roberts, Steven Bedrick, Andrew Wen, Hongfang Liu

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Objectives: Clinical document metadata, such as document type, structure, author role, medical specialty, and encounter setting, is essential for accurate interpretation of information captured in clinical documents. However, vast documentation heterogeneity and drift over time challenge harmonization of document metadata. Automated extraction methods have emerged to coalesce metadata from disparate practices into target schema. This scoping review aims to catalog research on clinical document metadata extraction, identify methodological trends and applications, and highlight gaps warranting further investigation.

Methods: We followed the PRISMA-ScR (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews) guidelines to identify articles from Ovid …

Implementation And Evaluation Of The Owll Intervention To Improve The Quality And Safety Of Pediatric Dental Sedation: A Mixed-Methods Approach, Kawtar Zouaidi, Jan Yeager, Sayali Tungare, Suhasini Bangar, Janelle Urata, Alfa-Ibrahim Yansane, Jungsoo Kim, Emily Sedlock, Krishna K Kookal, Yan Xiao, Oluwabunmi Tokede, Heiko Spallek, Amy Franklin, Gregory Olson, Joel White, Elsbeth Kalenderian, Muhammad F Walji

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: The OWLL (Open-Wide Learning Lab) intervention was developed using Human-Centered Design to improve the quality and safety of pediatric dental sedation. The intervention includes a patient-facing informational sedation brochure and video, and an enhanced set of clinical sedation records. Here, we report on the process evaluation 6 months after implementation in daily clinical practice.

Methods: This study was conducted at the outpatient pediatric dental clinics of 2 large US academic dental institutions. We used a mixed-methods design to assess the fidelity, acceptability, appropriateness, and feasibility of the OWLL intervention. Quantitative data were gathered through chart reviews, while qualitative data …

Few-Shot Prompting Strategies For Improving Large Language Model-Based Cardiovascular Disease Risk Prediction, Tiemar Semere Berhe, Senay Gebreab, Ahmad Musamih, Walaa Alkhader, Khaled Salah, Samer Ellahham, Raja Jayaraman

Industrial Engineering: Faculty & Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

Data-Driven Decision-Making Capacity Of State Vr Agencies, Catherine Ipsen, Christopher Clapp, Jordan A. Costello

Employment

Federal agencies are required to use data to support policy and program decisions. This factsheet explores VR capacity to use their data to shape decision-making and develop return on investment (ROI) models.

When Muscle Matters: Skeletal Muscle Mass And Surgical Outcomes, Lauren G. Schumacher

Summer Interdisciplinary Research Symposium

Objective: The goal of this project was to explore the relationship between skeletal muscle mass and postoperative complications in order to evaluate how muscle-based surgical risk assessment could lead to actionable preoperative plans for adult surgical patients.

Methods: A literature review was conducted using ScienceDirect and Research Rabbit to identify studies examining skeletal muscle and surgical outcomes. Full text studies involving adult surgical patients and evaluating skeletal muscle characteristics were included, while studies involving pediatric, non-surgical populations, lacking postoperative follow-up, or published before 2020 were excluded. Five total studies consisting of meta-analyses, retrospective cohort studies, a systematic review, and a …

Following Her Footsteps: The Life’S Work Of A Historian: A Journey Into Dominican Memory, M. Dougherty Professor Emerita

History and Political Science | Faculty Scholarship

A personal account of Sr. Patricia Dougherty’s discovery of the life of Mother Mary Goemaere before she founded the Dominican Sisters of San Rafael—a journey that began in personal curiosity and unfolded into a ministry, a responsibility, and ultimately, a calling.