Digital Commons Network^™

Considering Numerical Relativity For Upgrades In Mcfacts Merger Dynamics, Shawn K. Ray

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Binary black hole mergers (BBH), some likely originating from active galactic nuclei (AGN), are observed by ground-based detectors such as LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA (LVK) and will be detected by future space-based detectors such as the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) and the Laser Interferometer Lunar Antenna (LILA). The dynamics of AGN may be responsible for a significant fraction of BBH mergers soon to be observed by LISA and LILA, yet the dynamics of BBH mergers within AGN disks remains ambiguous despite their appearance in gravitational wave observations. Monte carlo For AGN Channel Testing and Simulation (McFACTS) is an open-source software used to …

Managing Multi-Channel Service Operations, Omer Berk Olmez

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

In today’s evolving service landscape, the growth of virtual channels alongside traditional in-person services is changing how providers interact with customers and how services are delivered. This dissertation studies how service systems should be designed and managed when customers can choose between virtual and in-person channels through three connected perspectives: customer behavior, work design, and public policy. The first study examines booking-window design in a pooled multi-channel appointment system using appointment-level data from an undergraduate advising office, a queueing model, and a digital twin. It shows that booking windows shape the offered set and the flow of demand across channels, …

Theatrical Agency In The Constitution Of Logical Space, Esther Marveta Neff

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation takes advantage of our current moment of collapse and shifting episteme to move from resistance and critique into modes of position, prefiguration, and praxiocentricism, giving not only a critique of the colonial-modern logical space of Theatrum Mundi, but also aiming to configure the thetic consciousness that grounds “theatrical agency” in the logic of cognitive and social epistemological modelling.  In what ways do we “build our own worlds”? What does “theatricality” tell us about human agency, especially in the domain of “theoretical attitudes,” and “consciousness”? In what ways, and to what extent, are we responsible for constituting …

Inductive Biases In Field-Level Cosmological Inference From Galaxy Catalogs, James O'Connor Baldwin

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

We perform field-level likelihood-free inference of the matter density parameter Ωm from simulated galaxy catalogs using machine learning models with differing inductive biases. Using features extracted from hydrodynamic simulations in the CAMELS suite, we investigate how both observable choice and model architecture govern the extraction of cosmological information. We consider galaxy positions and line-of-sight peculiar velocities, both separately and in combination, and compare permutation-invariant Deep Sets, implemented with either standard multilayer perceptrons (MLPs) or Kolmogorov–Arnold Networks (KANs), to graph neural networks (GNNs) implemented with MLPs, which explicitly encode spatial relations. We evaluate inference performance under both in-distribution and out-of-distribution (OOD) …

Beyond The Veil Of Modernity: René Guénon, Prophet Of The Metapolitical Imaginary, Frederic Colier

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Heralded by some as one of the greatest intellectuals of the 20th century, French metaphysician René Guénon (1886-1951) is also the controversial father of Primordial Tradition, a metaphysics designed to remedy the decline of Western civilization. Guénon viewed the West in the grip of a prolonged cycle of degeneration. He sought to implement a pseudo-authoritarian spiritual reset that required a total rejection of its Western intellectual heritage and an embrace of Eastern doctrines.

Focusing on his landmark book The Crisis of the Modern World (1927), the dissertation examines how Guénon implemented his controversial reset. After outlining the religious, cultural, and …

Reexamining The Croton Aqueduct: A Ward-Level Microhistorical Analysis Of Infrastructure And Cholera Mortality In 1849 New York City, Alexandria R. Toothman

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This work reexamines the Croton Aqueduct’s role in public health by shifting analysis from the citywide level to the ward level, revealing that infrastructure expansion did not produce uniform benefits across New York City. When the Croton Aqueduct opened in 1842, it was celebrated as an achievement that would deliver pure water and eliminate disease. However, only seven years after its opening, in 1849, cholera returned with greater force in the Sixth Ward. This work shows that the uneven distribution of Croton infrastructure corresponded with uneven cholera mortality rates, challenging narratives that present Croton as a singular triumph of urban …

Identifying Textual Predictors Of Early Termination In Clinical Trials In Medicine: An Explainable Machine-Learning Study, Rohan Ramnarain

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

About one in five clinical trials in medicine ends early, wasting valuable resources and reducing the evidence available for developing life-saving medical treatments. This project uses a method called Trial2Vec, which is a self-supervised machine-learning method that converts clinical trial documents into dense numerical representations that capture their key design and clinical characteristics, to turn each proposed clinical trial’s written protocol into a compact numerical profile (a process referred to as embedding). These profiles are then paired with a predictive machine learning models to identify the words and phrases in the trial documents that can signal a higher risk of …

Discovery Of Newly Resolved Filament And Extraplanar Gas In M33 With The Local Group L-Band Survey, Emma Taylor Kleiner

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The proximity of the Local Group allows for unparalleled resolution of the structure and kinematics of the ISM while simultaneously observing the overall rotation of the galaxy. These nearby galaxies present the opportunity to probe stellar feedback processes in various galactic environments. M33 in particular, offers insight into the nature of the extended neutral gas and its relationship with the star-forming disk and the surrounding CGM, by way of its classic star-forming spiral and relatively undisturbed system. Outside of M33’s distinguished warp, the galaxy offers little evidence of satellites and shows few signs of interaction, begging the question of how …

School Just Wasn't For Me: Investigating The Intersections Of Education, Incarceration, And Improvisation, Kelly L. Brady

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

New York City is the largest city in the United States and home to the nation's largest school system.  NYC public schools are also the country's most segregated, according to a 2021 report from the UCLA Civil Rights Project.  This qualitative, Arts-Based Research study follows the development and performance of an applied theater piece created by formerly incarcerated and court-involved youth exploring their early educational experiences before encountering the juvenile justice system. Using Disability/Critical Race Theory (DisCrit) and Critical Performance Ethnography this project investigates how structural systems of education and incarceration intersect to construct youth as "others," including special education, …

Mapping Public Engagement With Environmental Finance In The U.S: Spatiotemporal Insights From Google Trends On Public Engagement And Policy Equity In The U.S, Hilda Afeku-Amenyo, Charles Knoble, Pankaj Lal

Department of Earth and Environmental Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

This study analyzes U.S. public engagement with environmental finance from 2015–2023 using Google Trends data for four key terms: “green bonds,” “sustainable finance,” “climate finance,” and “ESG.” Our analysis reveals a notable rise in engagement with environmental finance topics, with Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) investing generating the highest levels of interest. Geographically, the District of Columbia exhibited disproportionate search activity relative to other regions. While public awareness of environmental finance has grown, we highlight disparities in knowledge and accessibility of information. These findings carry significant policy implications, particularly in ensuring equitable access to sustainable financial instruments. We underscore the …

Muon Lifetime: Theory, Experiment, And Simulation, Soren Agustin Munoz

Physics

This senior project investigates the muon lifetime through three complementary approaches: theoretical calculation, laboratory measurement, and computational simulation. The theoretical component develops the necessary background from relativistic field theory to the effective weak interaction, culminating in the leading-order Fermi-theory prediction of τ ≈ 2.2 μs, which explains why the muon lifetime lies on the microsecond scale.

The experimental component measures the lifetime of stopped cosmic-ray muons using a plastic scintillator, photomultiplier tube, and analog timing electronics. A binned Poisson likelihood fit to the primary 15-day acquisition run τ = 2.17^+0.03_-0.09 μs, consistent with the accepted value within the …

Validation Of Electromagnetic Shower Development In A Reduced Alice Focal-E Detector Model Using Geant4, Isaac Lara Romo

Physics

This project focuses on the preliminary simulation of a reduced FoCal-E detector model for the ALICE experiment at CERN. Beamline tests were simulated using an electron gun at various incident energies, and the results were compared with those of the FoCal group. The longitudinal charge deposition per sensor layer was compared between the two setups to verify that the reduced model exhibited expected calorimeter behavior. Additionally, the transverse signal across the high-granularity sensor layers was examined to determine whether the reduced model reproduced the expected lateral development of electromagnetic showers. The results obtained from these measurements show that the reduced …

Ppg-Sport: A Dataset For Reliable Heart Rate Monitoring From Wrist Ppg Under Dynamic Sports Conditions, Changshuo Hu, Hung Manh Pham, Yiming Zhang, Guanru Yan, Xiao Ma, Yuezhong Wu, Thivya Kandappu, Archan Misra, Dong Ma

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Photoplethysmography (PPG) has become a cornerstone of physiological sensing in wearable devices, enabling non-invasive monitoring of heart rate and related biomarkers. However, its reliability deteriorates sharply under dynamic, high-intensity, or non-periodic motions such as those in sports, where existing datasets fail to capture realistic wrist dynamics. To address this gap, we introduce PPG-Sport, the first large-scale dataset designed for heart rate monitoring from wrist-worn PPG under real sports conditions. The PPG-Sport dataset includes synchronized PPG, inertial measurement unit (IMU), and electrocardiography (ECG) recordings from both wrists of 30 participants across six representative activities: stationary, walking, running, badminton, table tennis, and …

Graded Contact Geometry And The Aksz Formalism, Ivan Contreras, Nicolas Martinez Alba, Rajan Amit Mehta

Mathematics Sciences: Faculty Publications

The AKSZ formalism is a construction of topological field theories where the target spaces are differential graded symplectic manifolds. In this paper, we describe an analogue of the AKSZ formalism where the target spaces are differential graded contact manifolds. We show that the space of fields inherits a weak contact structure, and we construct a solution to the analogue of the classical master equation, defined via the Jacobi bracket. In the n =1 case, we recover the Jacobi sigma model, and in the n = 2 case, we obtain three-dimensional topological field theories associated to Courant-Jacobi algebroids.

Low-Cost Path-Loss Characterization For Underground Mine Tunnels Using Lora Transceivers At 915 Mhz, Hilary Kelechi Anabi, Samuel Frimpong, Muhammad Azeem Raza

Mining Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Accurate path-loss models are essential for planning reliable wireless networks in underground mines, yet existing characterization studies rely on specialized channel sounders and vector network analyzers costing tens of thousands of dollars, placing them beyond the reach of most mine operators. This paper demonstrates that LoRa transceivers costing approximately US $15 per node can serve as a self-contained path-loss measurement instrument, logging the received signal strength indicator (RSSI) and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) directly to a CSV file over a standard USB serial connection. A measurement campaign conducted at the Missouri S&T Experimental Mine on 31 March 2026 collected 4801 packets …

Phases And Dynamics Of An Impurity Immersed In One-Dimensional Quantum Droplets, Dimitrios Diplaris, Ilias A. Englezos, Friethjof Theel, Peter Schmelcher, Simeon I. Mistakidis

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

We explore the ground-state properties of a single impurity immersed in a one-dimensional quantum droplet medium formed by a two-component Bose mixture. Relying on ab initio simulations, we demonstrate that tuning the impurity–droplet interactions allows to controllably reshape the droplets' density profiles and associated correlation patterns. For attractive impurity-medium couplings, the impurity becomes localized within the droplet, which exhibits a density hump at the vicinity of the impurity, while repulsive interactions facilitate phase separation. Comparing our many-body results with the appropriate extended Gross–Pitaevskii description, we find adequate agreement for the droplet density profiles, with the effective field approach systematically overestimating …

High-Pressure Studies Of Magnetic Topological Materials, Greeshma Chireckal Jose

ETDs from 2020-2029

Quantum technology leverages the principles of quantum mechanics to transform emerging fields such as quantum computing, spintronics, and next-generation electronics. A crucial step in advancing this frontier is the detailed understanding of fundamental quantum phenomena in materials that can drive quantum innovation. This research aims to systematically investigate quantum phase transitions and unconventional emergent behaviors in magnetic topological materials subjected to external pressure. This study focuses on three representative systems: EuCd2As2, EuMnBi2, and FeSn, each serving as a model for exploring intrinsic magnetic topological states. EuCd2As2, a candidate Weyl semimetal (WSM), is expected to exhibit pressure-induced topological phase transitions, making …

Inverse Modeling The Geo-Spread Of Covid-19 In Brazil, Cameron Keith Mills

ETDs from 2020-2029

In 2021 Fitzgibbon, Morgan, Webb, and Wu used a modified SEIR (susceptible, exposed, infected, and recovered) model to predict how COVID-19 spread through Brazil [12]. For their model, six constant coefficients were used that were fitted, referenced, or assumed. In this thesis, we geo-spatially modify their SEIR model and formulate an inverse problem to recover the now spatial coefficients of the model. We first show there exists a unique solution to the modified model. To solve the inverse problem, we modify an inverse method [17] that focused on minimizing convex functionals. These recovered spatial coefficients can be used with Matlab’s …

Biomedical Applications Of Structurally Defined Natural And Semi-Synthetic Saponins, Chaeeun Lim-Paik

ETDs from 2020-2029

Triterpenoid saponins are amphiphilic glycosides that exhibit a wide range of biological and pharmacological properties, including antifungal, antiviral, molluscicidal, hypoglycemic, and hypocholesterolemic effects. These biological and pharmacological properties make saponins attractive for diverse applications. In this work, we demonstrate three biological applications: (i) immunostimulant vaccine adjuvant, (ii) protein delivery enhancement, and (iii) gene transfection enhancement. In light of the strong structure dependence of saponin activity, expanding the structural diversity of available scaffolds is essential for establishing structure-activity relationships (SAR) across these applications. Here, we expanded our saponin collection through semi-synthetic derivatization and the isolation of new saponins from distinct natural …

Holographic Description Of 4d Maxwell Theories And Their Code-Based Ensembles, Ahmed Barbar, Anatoly Dymarsky, Alfred Shapere

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications

We formulate a precise holographic duality between an ensemble of 4d U(1)^g Maxwell theories living on a spin four-manifold M₄ and a topological Abelian BF-type 2-form theory of level N, summed over all five-manifolds with boundary M₄. The elements of the boundary ensemble are Abelian gauge theories specified by self-dual symplectic codes over ℤ_N, that parameterize topological boundary conditions in the 5d TQFT. Similarly, the equivalence classes of topologies distinguished by the 5d theory are parameterized by orthogonal self-dual codes. Hence the holographic duality can be reformulated in the language of quantum stabilizer codes. …

Middle School English Language Arts Teacher Perceptions About Literacy Self-Efficacy, Carrie Beth Buchanan

ETDs from 2020-2029

Historically, research has shown that teacher self-efficacy positively influences student achievement (Gibson & Dembo, 1984; Tschannen-Moran et al., 1998; Muijs & Reynolds, 2001). With the sudden shift to digital instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic and the changes in literacy practices and assessment, teachers have been required to implement new instructional strategies. Grounded in Bandura’s (1977) self-efficacy theory, my research explored how mastery experiences and teacher mindsets influence student success in this changing environment. This study employed an exploratory sequential mixed-methods design to investigate the perceptions of current middle school English Language Arts (MS ELA) teachers about their literacy self-efficacy. Data …

Submission To The Parliamentary Inquiry Into Educational Attainment, Australian Council For Educational Research (Acer)

Shaping educational policy

The 2026 Australian House of Representatives Standing Committee on Education Inquiry into the factors driving educational attainment considered the factors that drive variations in educational attainment including between and among boys and girls, from early learning, through school education, (including vocational education and training (VET) in schools), to tertiary education. It sought to identify the factors driving differential engagement, participation, and outcomes at all levels and transitions from lower to senior secondary school; from school to tertiary education; and from education into the workforce and broader society. The Australian Council for Educational Research's submission draws on evidence from four major …

Enhancing The Metacognitive Thinking Of Middle-Grade Multilingual Learners: A Design-Based Research Study Leveraging Dialogic Teaching, Renee R. Burns

Dissertations

This study explores how dialogic teaching can enhance metacognition and self-efficacy among middle school multilingual learners (MLs) who face challenges with the academic language demands of literacy tasks. Using a design-based research (DBR) methodology, specifically formative experiment, the Metacognitive Dialogic Teaching Protocol (MDTP) was implemented over seven iterative cycles. The research questions were as follows: How do dialogic interactions impact metacognition in middle-grade MLs? How does Metacognitive Dialogic Teaching affect comprehension development in these students? And how does it influence their self-efficacy? The participants included six middle-grade MLs engaged in a Tier 2 literacy intervention who initially exhibited fake reading …

Investigation Of Warfarin–Human Serum Albumin Binding By Ultrafast Affinity Extraction Using Single- And Dual-Column Affinity Microcolumn Systems, Samiul Alim

Department of Chemistry: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This dissertation examined the interaction of warfarin with human serum albumin (HSA) by using affinity chromatography, with particular emphasis on ultrafast affinity extraction (UAE) and affinity microcolumns. HSA affinity supports were prepared by immobilizing HSA onto diol-bonded silica via Schiff base chemistry and used to prepare affinity microcolumns for chromatographic studies under physiological-like conditions at pH 7.4 and 37.0 °C. UAE studies were performed to investigate the effects of residence time, flow rate, and column configuration on the measured apparent free fraction of warfarin and on the calculated apparent binding parameters. The results showed that the measured apparent free fraction …

Iowa Waste Reduction Center News, June 2026, University Of Northern Iowa. Iowa Waste Reduction Center.

Iowa Waste Reduction Center Newsletter

Contents:

--- Thank you, Leslie
--- Zane joins the IWRC
--- DNR Air Fee changes
--- What does MSEI assistance look like?
--- P2 Green Brewery Certification webinars
--- Energy Efficiency resources
--- Industry News

The Best Children's Books Of The Year [2026 Edition], Bank Street College Of Education. Children's Book Committee.

Children's Book Committee

Includes more than 600 titles chosen by the Children’s Book Committee as the best of the best published in 2025. In choosing books for the annual list, committee members consider literary quality and excellence of presentation as well as the potential emotional impact of the books on young readers. Other criteria include credibility of characterization and plot, authenticity of time and place, age suitability, positive treatment of ethnic and religious differences, and the absence of stereotypes.

Custom Animatronic Puppet, Jake Schuman, Fredy Herrarte, Madison Reedy, Jackson Reynolds

Mechanical Engineering

This project involved the design, fabrication, and implementation of a custom audio-animatronic puppet modeled after Dr. Brian Davis for the California Polytechnic State University Mechanical Engineering Department. The objective was to create an expressive, lifelike character capable of synchronized speech, head movement, arm gestures, and seated-to-standing motion while demonstrating the integration of mechanical design, controls, manufacturing, and artistic fabrication.

The final system consists of an 18-degree-of-freedom animatronic platform utilizing servo-driven facial and upper-body actuation combined with a pneumatic standing mechanism. A modular aluminum and 3D-printed structural framework was developed using SolidWorks and validated through engineering analysis. Character shells were digitally …

Compressor Rotor Joints And Interference Fit Study, Isabela Jimenez, Aubrey Perez, Isaiah Guerrero, Jireh Velasquez

Mechanical Engineering

Solar Turbines need a comprehensive study on the effects axial and radial inference fits have on turbine compressor rotor stiffness. The aft weldment of the compressor has press-fit dowel pins and pilot joints to connect one weldment section to another. These fits need to be assessed through a finite element modal analysis, as well as practically tested through modal impacts to investigate how the fits affect the stiffness of the turbine’s connected weldments. The experimental data will be used to validate the finite element analysis (FEA) model.

Mass - Modular Acoustic Suppression System, Julia Megargle, Michael A. Milner, Lucas Kaemmererer, Jonathan Corvera, Gabriel Choi, Emmi Cayer

Mechanical Engineering

The Modular Acoustic Suppression System (MASS) is a mass tuned damper that reverberates a membrane atop a cavity to absorb select acoustic frequencies produced by the Environmental Control and Life Support Systems (ECLSS) within NASA's Artemis Human Lander. The height of the reverberation chamber is adjusted to mitigate a range of varying tonal frequencies within the human lander.

To Lecture Capture Or Not To Lecture Capture? The Answer For Legal Education Appears To Be A “Regulated Yes”, Nikos Harris Kc

Dalhousie Law Journal

The debate over the use of technology in the law classroom is often framed as the necessary use of modern forms of information sharing versus the creation of distractions which undermine deeper learning. One subject of significant debate in law faculties is whether students should have regular access to taped lectures from their courses, often referred to as “lecture capture.” Most universities have systems that can routinely record classes, and there are a number of pedagogical benefits which flow from student use of taped lectures. However, the issue of providing broad access to lecture capture is a complex one which …