Digital Commons Network^™

Aging Popular Exoplanet Host Stars; A Bayesian Analysis Of Stellar Evolution, Grace Henry

Discovery Day - Daytona Beach

This study uses BASE-9, a software tool designed for stellar age analysis, to investigate the ages of exoplanet host stars. We found the stars through a query of the NASA Exoplanet Archive based on the orbital distance of their exoplanets. The habitable zone (HZ) approach we use [2] analyzes the effective temperature and luminosity of stars between 2600 K to 7200 K. Single star systems with that effective temperature range and planets in the calculated HZ were added to our host star candidate set. From there, we used the BASE-9 (Bayesian Analysis of Stellar Evolution) software suite to derive ages …

Testing The Coevality Of Stars In Wide Binary Systems, Aldir Moreira

Discovery Day - Daytona Beach

Gyrochronology, the observed correlation between a star’s period of rotation and its age, is a method that is calibrated based using stellar clusters where ages have been determined by evolutionary models. This project employs a novel “daisy-chain” interpolation algorithm to test the assumption that stars within a given wide binary are the same age, and therefore, should have rotation periods that agree with gyrochronology models. Here we show that the approach does trace lines of constant age across the rotation period vs. color index relation. Additionally, the age dependency of stellar kinematical properties is used to confirm components are gravitationally …

Ground-Based Contributions To Gyrochronology: Comparing Stellar Rotation Periods Of Tess Targets With Zwicky Transient Facility, Kylie Boyer

Discovery Day - Daytona Beach

Gyrochronology is a technique for determining the age of low-mass main-sequence stars by measuring their rotation periods. In principle, rotation is a relatively easy to observe property when spots modulate the brightness of a star. However, contamination from blended objects, instrumental biases, and gaps in observational coverage can skew the data, making rotation periods harder to determine accurately. The Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF), an advanced wide-field camera located in California, surveyed the entire northern sky every two days. This extensive coverage, with data collected from 2018 to late 2024, makes the ZTF an ideal resource for studying long-period stars. Of …

General Call For Manuscripts & Graphics

Michigan Reading Journal

No abstract provided.

Reviews Of 2025-26 Great Lakes Great Books Award Winners And Honor Books, Leah Van Belle

Michigan Reading Journal

No abstract provided.

Great Lakes Great Books: An Invitation To Read Books That Matter To Kids, Leah Van Belle

Michigan Reading Journal

No abstract provided.

Pa 146: What Is Clear, What Is Fuzzy, And What Should We Do Next?, Jenelle Williams, Nicole Peterson

Michigan Reading Journal

Michigan’s Public Act 146 (PA 146), the state’s K–12 Literacy and Dyslexia Law, establishes new requirements for screening, evidence-based instruction, structured literacy practices, professional learning, and strengthened multi-tiered systems of support to improve reading outcomes. While the law provides detailed and prescriptive guidance for elementary schools—particularly regarding decoding-focused instruction aligned to the science of reading, universal screening, and intervention planning—its implications for grades 4–12 are less clearly defined. This article examines what is explicit in the legislation, what remains open to interpretation in secondary contexts, and how districts can move forward strategically as they prepare for full implementation by 2027–2028. …

Coaching For The Whole Teacher: 10 Humanistic Practices For Reflective And Relational Literacy Coaching, Emily Caylor

Michigan Reading Journal

At a time when teacher professional learning often emphasizes compliance and efficiency, literacy coaching can serve as a humanizing counterbalance that centers teachers’ identities and professional agency. This article draws from a yearlong coaching partnership between a literacy coach and an experienced elementary teacher to illustrate how reflection, relational trust, and dialogic interaction cultivate teachers’ intrapersonal awareness and willingness to change. Grounded in Maslow’s (1943) hierarchy of needs as a foundational layer of psychological safety and Korthagen’s (2004) onion model as a framework for identity-centered reflection, this work positions coaching as a relational, dialogic, and context-sensitive process. The article translates …

Elementary Students’ Perceptions Of Peers As Audience, Christina N. Lorelli

Michigan Reading Journal

Abstract

This pilot study, grounded in sociocultural theory, humanizing pedagogy, and dialogic theory, examines how fourth-grade students perceive their peers as their primary audience. It explores how writing becomes a social and relational act that enhances purpose, voice, and identity. As a teacher-researcher in a rural Pennsylvania district, I collaborated with other teachers to build a community of writers as students shared, discussed, and received feedback on their work. Responsive surveys with students revealed key themes: 1. Sharing writing with peers boosts student motivation and involvement; 2. their writing becomes more meaningful, fostering a sense of ownership; and 3. quality …

Mindfulness Practices In The School Setting: Research, Strategies, And Student Voices, Katie Lewis

Michigan Reading Journal

This article explores the role of mindfulness practices in elementary school settings, drawing from current research, practical classroom strategies, and student reflections from a school-based mindfulness yoga pilot. While children enter school with an innate capacity for presence, the structure and demands of formal education can unintentionally diminish their natural ability to regulate attention and emotion. Grounded in research connecting mindfulness to improvements in executive functioning, including working memory, inhibitory control, cognitive flexibility, and sustained attention, this article argues that intentionally teaching mindfulness can strengthen both behavioral and academic outcomes.

A review of empirical studies highlights correlations between mindfulness-based interventions …

Joyful Literacy Experiences: Insights From The Pei In Multicultural Ya Literature, S. Rebecca Leigh, Taraneh Matloob Haghanikar, Danielle Alexander, Yujie Mao, Kim Stein, Maria Mendola, Xunmei Luo, Quigxian Wang, Yonghong Li

Michigan Reading Journal

The primary focus of this qualitative study was to determine how we could apply the theory of emotion and transactional reader response theory to the experience of coding and analyzing emotion in multicultural young adult literature. Seven graduate students in a doctoral class in the Midwest participated in the study for one academic semester, including their instructor and another faculty member from a different Midwestern university. Data included coding and analysis of eight Coretta Scott King medal and honor-winning novels and the Protagonist Emotion Inventory (PEI). Chapters were coded for eight basic emotions and the constant comparative method (Corbin & …

From Talk To Science Literacy: Using Structured Student Talk To Support Newcomer Multilingual Learners In High School, Matthew W. De Boer, Rui Niu-Cooper

Michigan Reading Journal

Newcomer multilingual learners (MLs) often experience significant barriers to oral participation in secondary classrooms, despite the central role of talk in language development, academic learning, and community belonging. Research indicates that while comprehension skills may continue to develop, opportunities for structured oral expression are frequently limited, particularly in teacher-led instructional settings. This article examines how intentional Structured Student Talk (SST) routines can support newcomer MLs in transitioning from classroom silence to meaningful participation. Drawing on interactionist theories of language development, cognitive load theory, and affective filter research, the article argues that oral language must be explicitly scaffolded within content instruction …

Introducing The Michigan Reading Journal’S Incoming Editorial Team, Mihyun Han, Kristen L. White, Nicole R. Peterson, Amy Croel-Perrien

Michigan Reading Journal

No abstract provided.

From The Editors…, Laura Gabrion, Rui Niu-Cooper, Leah Van Belle, Jenelle Williams

Michigan Reading Journal

No abstract provided.

Front Matter

Michigan Reading Journal

No abstract provided.

Full Issue: Volume 58, No. 3

Michigan Reading Journal

No abstract provided.

System And Method For Multi-Parcel Hoa Covenant Violation Detection From Spherical Imagery, Brice Fenger

Defensive Publications Series

Disclosed is a system and method for automated detection of homeowner-association (HOA) covenant violations from spherical (360°) imagery captured during a single drivethrough of a planned community. The novel aspects of the disclosure are: (1) the treatment of a single spherical image as a multi-parcel artifact, with violations attributed across all parcels whose geocoded locations fall within a radius of the image’s capture coordinates; (2) the per-parcel retrieval and merging of covenant rule sets - keyed by the specific parcel and, where applicable, by development phase - into a single multimodal large language model (LLM) prompt that performs both spatial …

Explainable Tree-Based Ensemble Models For Diabetes Prediction Using Shap, Maan Y Anad Alsaleem, Omar Shakir Hasan, Yahya Albugg

AUIQ Technical Engineering Science

Due to the generally unqualified nature of prediction data and the difficulty of interpreting predictions, predicting diabetes remains a significant hurdle in the adoption of machine learning within the medical domain. In this study, several tree-based machine learning techniques (LightGBM, XGBoost, CatBoost, and Gradient Boosting) were applied to predict diabetes using the 2015 BRFSS dataset, while two ensemble methods (soft voting and stacking) were employed to improve predictive accuracy. The performance analysis of the individual models and ensemble approaches indicates that CatBoost achieved the highest accuracy among the single classifiers (0.871), with an F1-score of 0.871 and a ROC–AUC of …

Chronotropic Response To Intratracheal Versus Intravenous Atropine In Anesthetized Adult Patients: A Randomized Controlled Trial, Ammar H. Mahdi, Majid Alhamaidah, Myasar J. Mohammed, Hussein Ali Hussein, Hussein Alkhfaji

AUIQ Complementary Biological System

Atropine is a commonly used anticholinergic agent in anesthetic practice, administered primarily to counteract bradycardia. Rapid treatment of intraoperative bradycardia is clinically critical, as delays may lead to hemodynamic compromise. This study aimed to compare the onset, magnitude, and duration of the chronotropic response to atropine administered via the intravenous (IV) versus intratracheal (IT) route in anesthetized adult patients. A prospective, single-blind, randomized controlled study was conducted on 60 adult patients classified as American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) physical status I-II, scheduled for elective peripheral surgery under general anesthesia. Patients were randomly allocated into three equal groups (n = 20 …

Assessing Media Literacy Competence In Secondary Education: Towards A Rubric Based On A Systematic Review, Steijn Jan Van Der Craats, Jason Simon, Romy Andrieu, Bo Sichterman, Stan Van Ginkel

Journal of Media Literacy Education Pre-Prints

Developing media literacy competence is an essential objective in secondary education. However, a validated instrument aimed to encourage the development of media literacy amongst students formatively is lacking hitherto. This review aims to identify relevant studies on media literacy competence or components thereof and their assessment strategies. Further, this study synthesizes these findings into a set of principles for constructing a formative assessment instrument fostering media literacy competence. Seventeen publications from the last 15 years were selected through a systematic search in scientific databases. All studies were categorized concerning crucial characteristics of assessment instruments. Furthermore, the synthesis of this study …

Statistical Assessment Of Groundwater Quality In Selected Areas Of Samarra District: Effects Of Land Use And Geological Setting, Ahmed K. Ibrahim

Engineering and Technology Journal

In this study, 25 newly drilled wells were selected in the Samarra district, which has an estimated area of about 350 km², and included rural and urban areas with various agricultural, industrial, and residential activities. Water samples were taken from the wells every two months starting in November 2023 and continuing until September 2024. Physical tests were conducted, including total dissolved solids and electrical conductivity, as well as chemical tests that included pH, total hardness (TH), calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), sodium (Na), potassium (K), sulfates (SO₄^–2), nitrates (NO₃^–), and chlorides (Cl). Concentrations …

Experimental And Numerical Analysis Of Mechanical Properties Of Uhmwpe Nanocomposite Reinforced With Nano-Hydroxyapatite, Heshw A. Hassan, Diyar O. Kaka

Engineering and Technology Journal

Recently the polymer nanocomposites have shown significant development, enabling substantial improvements in the performance of conventional polymers that reflect large influences on the products and industry. Ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) is widely employed in biomedical and structural applications, their mechanical properties can be tailored through the incorporation of nanoscale fillers. In this study, nano-hydroxyapatite (nHA) particles were incorporated into UHMWPE at reinforcement loadings of 0.5, 1.0, 3.0, and 5.0% content experimentally, and different volume fraction numerically to evaluate their effect on the material's mechanical behavior. A Representative Volume Element (RVE) based on finite element analysis (FEA) was developed to …

Enhanced No₂ Gas Sensing Using Silver-Doped Cadmium Telluride Nanocrystalline Thin Films, Tunis Balasim Hassan

Karbala International Journal of Modern Science

Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) is a toxic pollutant that necessitates sensitive and reliable monitoring systems. Conventional gas sensors often lack adequate responsiveness and fast recovery under changing conditions and therefore create a need for semiconductors with enhanced performance, especially at high industrial temperatures (around 250 °C). The study therefore aims to synthesis and evaluate silver-doped cadmium telluride (Ag:CdTe) thin films as NO₂ gas sensors. Pure CdTe and Ag:CdTe with silver concentrations of 5, 10, and 15 wt% were prepared by a co-precipitation process. XRD verified cubic symmetry with a progressive fall in crystallite size (6.67 nm to 5.46 nm at 15 …

Member Spotlight: Rebecca Bealer, Willa Liburd

NASIG Newsletter

In this member spotlight, Rebecca Bealer, Head of Serials and Systems Librarian at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Library, reflects on her experience as NASIG's representative to IFLA's Serials and Continuing Resources (SCORE) section. She shares the professional and personal rewards of engaging with library colleagues internationally, the challenges of an increasingly consolidated workload in technical services, and her advice on essential skills for middle managers. Rebecca encourages NASIG members to consider volunteering as IFLA SCORE representative when the next call goes out in mid-2027.

Does Relationship-Centered Communication Partner Training Improve Perceived Marital Attachment, Communication, And Psychosocial Well-Being In Couples Impacted By Aphasia?, Sarah Janalee Laws

Theses and Dissertations

This study explored whether Relationship-Centered Communication Partner Training (RC-CPT) improved perceived marital attachment, communication, and psychosocial well-being in couples impacted by aphasia. A quasi-experimental design was implemented to assess the impact of RC-CPT on various marital outcomes. Twelve married couples participated in the study, with each couple including one spouse with post-stroke aphasia. The Brief Accessibility, Responsiveness, and Engagement Scale (BARE) was used as the primary outcome for this study, assessing attachment behaviors within couples. Secondary outcome measures included the Loneliness Scale Questionnaire, the Relationship Questionnaire, the Conflict and Conflict Resolution Questionnaire, and the Kessler Psychological Distress Rating Scale. Pre-testing …

The Impact Of Response Latency On Perceived Level Of Intelligence And Likability Of Autistic Speakers, Brinley Atkinson

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine how turn-taking latency and speaker or listener gender affect the perceived intelligence and likability of the speaker across autistic speakers. In addition, the overarching goal of this research is to help speech-language pathologists (SLPs) better provide support and strategies to autistic individuals to improve their social and professional lives. Neurotypical English speakers (20 male and 20 female) were recruited to listen to a series of conversational speech samples collected from a group of eight autistic adults (four male and four female). In each sample, autistic individuals responded to a series of everyday …

Assessment Of Groundwater Quality For Irrigation Purpose In Asfan, Saudi Arabia, Abdelilah Khattab, Zaki Al-Hasawi, Talal Almeelbi

Journal of King Abdulaziz University: Meteorology, Environment and Arid Land Agriculture

Saudi Arabia faces a severe water scarcity, making groundwater the primary source for agricultural activities and underscoring the need to assess its quality to ensure sustainable agriculture, given its direct impact on crop performance, soil properties, and overall productivity. This study evaluated the suitability of groundwater for irrigation in the Asfan area of Al-Jumum Governorate, Makkah Region, in western Saudi Arabia. Water samples were collected from nine wells distributed across five farms and analyzed to measure a wide range of physical and chemical parameters, including temperature, total dissolved solids (TDS), total suspended solids (TSS), turbidity, salinity, electrical conductivity, pH, dissolved …

Strategic Agency In Action Transforming Academic Life Through Non-Traditional Intellectual Workflows, Yoshihiko Ariizumi

Learning, Teaching, & Researching Optimization

In popular culture and traditional academia, the image of the "productive scholar" is static: a researcher chained to a desk, staring at a screen for eight hours, manually typing out sentences. However, a subculture of modern intellectuals, independent researchers, and creative professionals on the internet is proving that this setup is actually a bottleneck for the human brain.

By experimenting with cognitive offloading, dynamic movement, and collaborative technologies, these individuals have shifted from passive routines to strategic agency. Below are four curated, real-world case studies drawn from intellectual blogs, creators' post-mortems, and digital newsletters that demonstrate how non-traditional strategies unlock …

Towards A Methodology For Form Creativity Of Building Envelope To Enhance Thermal Performance (Biomimicry As A Tool For Form Creativity), Amal Ebrahim Ahmed Hassanin, Marwa Atef Abd-Elhady

Mansoura Engineering Journal

It has become necessary to achieve thermal comfort for users in buildings, which enhances human ability to work, create, or rest and enjoy. Since the building envelope serves as the link between the inside and outside of the building, forming the building envelope creatively improves and enhances thermal performance of buildings, thus achieving thermal comfort for users. Nature is the primary teacher and source of creativity for humans. Therefore, Biomimicry was chosen as a tool for creative formation, and the descriptive analytical approach was used by analyzing an example where nature was simulated in the formation of the external envelope …

How Informality Drives Forest And Land Use Decision-Making In A Legislative Setting, Emban Ibnurusyd Mas'ud

Forest and Society

This note from the field traces how informality shapes forest and land-use decision-making within a provincial legislative arena in Indonesia. Drawing on an insider-expert perspective from 2021–2024, I reflect on how personal ties, symbolic recognition, and off-record exchanges quietly rework formal policymaking. The story begins with a seemingly simple greeting, kakanda, and follows how this sense of belonging opens access, shapes the selection of experts, and influences which programs survive. Along the way, it becomes clear that budgets operate as political currency, not simply as planning tools but as instruments through which alliances are negotiated and policy survival is …