Digital Commons Network^™

Commonwealth Times 2026-04-15

Commonwealth Times, 1969-

No abstract provided.

Exploring Ai-Generated Student Responses To Mathematics Word Problems: Dyslexia And Dyscalculia Perspectives, Karis Musgrave, Michele Cudd

2026 Celebration of Student Scholarship - Poster Presentations

No abstract provided.

What Factors Cause Attrition In Space Systems: Engineering And Mathematics Programs In Kentucky?, Jaden Yates, Ethan Henderson, Wilson Gonzalez-Espada, Elijah Jensen

2026 Celebration of Student Scholarship - Poster Presentations

No abstract provided.

2026 Celebration Of Student Scholarship Program And Abstracts, Morehead State University. Undergraduate Research Fellowship Program.

2026 Celebration of Student Scholarship - Poster Presentations

No abstract provided.

Climate Change And Transportation, Paul J. Marchese

Open Educational Resources

This module examines how climate change is affecting transportation systems across multiple sectors, including roads, rail, air, maritime, and active transportation. It highlights key climate trends such as rising temperatures, sea level rise, and extreme weather, and explains how these factors disrupt infrastructure, operations, and safety. The module also explores the economic, operational, and policy challenges associated with maintaining resilient transportation systems under changing environmental conditions. Finally, it presents a range of adaptation and mitigation strategies, emphasizing engineering solutions, sustainable technologies, and data-driven decision-making.

Hypersonic Impact Method For Aerodynamics And Convective Heating (Hi-Mach) With Sensitivities, Jeremiah Goates, Logan Freeman, Nathan Hoch, Douglas Hunsaker

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Student Publications and Presentations

The purpose of this paper is to present the development of an engineering level code for calculating hypersonic aerodynamics and convective heating, HI-Mach. Novel to this paper are the use of analytic methods for streamline tracing and the direct differentiation of geometric sensitivities for both forces and heat load. Independent panel inclination methods calculate the pressure distribution on the surface of a hypersonic vehicle. Normal shock relations provide the thermodynamic state on each panel. Streamlines are integrated using closed-form streamline equations. Flat plate formulas corrected for compressibility calculate the skin friction coefficient and acreage heat flux on each panel. Formulas …

From Awe To Anxiety: Investigating Art-Induced Self-Transcendence Using Virtual Reality, Monica V. Weedman, Kutter Callaway, Daniel M. Shafer, Tyler Greenway, Jo- Ann Tsang, Wade C. Rowatt

University Faculty Publications and Creative Works

Introduction: Art has been shown to evoke a range of emotions, yet the mechanisms underlying these responses remain underexplored. Across three studies using between- and within-subjects designs, we examined how viewing original photographic art in virtual reality (VR) influences self-transcendent emotions and related affective states.

Method: In Study 1, participants viewed photographs in one of three VR contexts (museum, warehouse, church sanctuary). In Study 2, participants viewed the same photographs in a VR museum context where the photo scale varied (small vs. large scale). In Study 3, online participants viewed video recordings of the VR museum with or without computer-generated …

Inclusive Special Education: Changing Mindsets And Practices To Improve Student Achievement, Nicole S. Pechous

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Decades after federal mandates for special education services, students with disabilities (SWD) continue to lag significantly behind their peers in academic achievement and post–school outcomes. This quantitative study explores how the inclusive mindsets and collaborative practices of general and special education teachers from a medium–sized, suburban Midwestern district improved after participating in a year-long training series on inclusive practices. The study also explores the impact of increased inclusive mindsets and practices on student reading achievement, particularly for students with disabilities. Using a quantitative design, changes in inclusive mindsets and practices for participating teachers were analyzed. Findings indicated that participation in …

Dimensionless Ratios And Processes Controlling Volumetric Bioretention Performance, Andrew Charles Hiestand

Master's Theses (2009 -)

Urbanization of previously natural land cover has spurred the innovation and implementation of green stormwater infrastructure (GSI) to combat increased surface runoff due to impermeable areas and a changing climate. Bioretention has been a popular choice in design due to its small footprint and proven effectiveness in retaining stormwater runoff and limiting discharges to receiving surface waters. However, their event-to-event performance variability is difficult to explain due to a number of confounding and interacting influences that distort cross-site analyses including inter-event drying and antecedent soil moisture conditions, geometric size and media properties, and event magnitude. This study applies and evaluates …

Evaluating Sand Characteristics And Their Influence On Sea Turtle Nest Incubation Conditions, Thomas Naylor

Honors Theses

The embryonic development of sea turtles is strongly influenced by the environmental factors experienced during incubation within the nest. These environmental factors can influence hatchling sex ratios, body condition, and their success emerging from nests. Adult female sea turtles lay nests across a range of sites throughout the nesting season, resulting in each nest encountering unique abiotic conditions. This study aims to identify how variation in sand characteristics, such as grain size proportions, permeability, and color, influences nest temperature and subsequent hatchling outcomes of Loggerhead Sea Turtles (Caretta caretta) and Green Sea Turtles (Chelonia mydas) from …

Enhancing E-Learning Recommendation Systems Using Latent Dirichlet Allocation (Lda), Zanbaq Hikmet Thanon, Javad Salimi Sartakhti

Mesopotamian Journal of Big Data

Although the wide range of instructional materials, might overcome students and limit their capability to learn effectively, platform of education become important for providing personalized learning. Traditional recommendation systems (RS) try to resolve this issue; yet, they fail in understanding learning content semantically. This restriction makes it more difficult for them to deliver accurate, useful, and clear recommendations. The aim of this study is to enhance E-learning RS using topic modeling, specially the Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) method, to discover latent structures within educational content. The ``20 Newsgroups'' dataset that containing over 20,000 items across 20 categories used to evaluate …

Automated Asset Allocation: Evaluating Generative Artificial Intelligence In Retirement Portfolio Construction Vs. Target-Date Funds, Kiah Steven Derrick

Honors Capstone Projects and Theses

No abstract provided.

Synthesis Of Cu2znsns4 (Czts) Semiconductor Thin Film With Variation Of Sulfur Solution Concentration, Sri Sugiarti, Farhan Dandi Nugraga, Ahmad Sjahriza

Chimica et Natura Acta

The Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) thin film is an alternative semiconductor material as a light absorbing layer in solar cells. The advantages of CZTS as a light absorbing layer are the availability of abundant materials in nature and high absorption coefficient values. The absorbent layer was prepared using the sol-gel and spin coating method on an indium tin oxide (ITO) glass substrate. Films were made with a sol-gel solution with varying concentrations of sulfur solution, namely with a concentration of 3M and 6M using a simple spin coating tool which was rotated for 30 seconds. The film formed was hardened at 550°C …

Essays On Empirical Research Of Education, Criminal And Decision, Hsuan-Hua Huang

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation consists of three essays in applied microeconomics, examining how subjective beliefs, institutional designs, and policy incentives shape critical life-cycle decisions in education and public safety. The first chapter investigates how students form beliefs about their academic ability and how the misalignment between perceived and benchmark ability shapes high-stakes educational sorting. Using longitudinal data from Taiwan, I show that these ability gaps systematically predict school and track choices. By developing a model of utility maximization under perceived ability, the results highlight that subjective beliefs, rather than objective scores alone, are central to educational outcomes and potential mismatches in school …

High Germinability Can Facilitate Recovery Of Adelia Vaseyi (Euphorbiaceae), An Imperiled Tamaulipan Thornscrub Shrub, Saroj Dhakal, Bashira Chowdhury, Alejandro Fierro-Cabo

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

While critical to maintaining dryland biodiversity and drought resilience, reforestation has been limited in subtropical dry forests because of knowledge gaps in seed biology that must be filled to upscale seedling production and ensure recovery of imperiled endemic plants. We characterized seed germination, dormancy, and storage needs for Adelia vaseyi, a threatened endemic shrub commonly included in planting mixes to restore Tamaulipan thornscrub, an imperiled subtropical forest spanning South Texas and Northeastern Mexico. We found A. vaseyi seeds have high germinability (82.0%) and a short mean germination time (3.04 ± 0.08 days). A delia vaseyi seed does not appear …

What It Takes To Solve The Origins Of Life: An Integrated Review. Part 2: Theoretical Methods And Emerging Trends, Silke Asche, Carla Bautista, Celia Blanco, David Boulesteix, Alexandre Champagne-Ruel, Cole Mathis, Omer Markovitch, Zheng Peng, Avinash Vicholous Dass, Eloi Camprubi

School of Integrative Biological & Chemical Sciences Faculty Publications

The origin(s) of life (OoL), which has puzzled scientists for centuries, remains a major scientific challenge in the 21st century. Understanding the processes relevant to the OoL demands theoretical frameworks that can connect processes across scales, from microscopic dynamics to emergent levels of organization. While experimental studies generate a wealth of data, theoretical and computational approaches provide the structure necessary to interpret and generalize these findings. In Part 1, we examined the most widely used experimental techniques in the field. Here, we focus on the mathematical, physical, and computational techniques used to model phenomena relevant to life’s origin(s). We discuss …

Accelerated Coupled Mode Model For Fiber Laser Amplifiers As An Averaged Dynamical System, Rebecca Bryant, Jacob Grosek, Jay Gopalakrishnan

Mathematics and Statistics Faculty Publications and Presentations

We apply a known theorem for simplifying dynamical systems with bounded error to a specific optical fiber waveguide problem, thereby supplementing the physical intuition and heuristics used in the optics community with proper mathematical justification. Using techniques from the averaging theory of dynamical systems, a reliable accelerated model based on the coupled mode theory (CMT) approach for a common fiber laser amplifier application is derived. Computational testing reveals that this accelerated model achieves a ∼4000x increase in computational speed compared to the CMT model while preserving high accuracy in key figures of merit such as output power and amplification efficiency. …

Brown Pelican (Pelecanus Occidentalis) Groundings On A Four-Lane Divided Highway In South Texas: A Comparative Study Using Citizen Science, Bradley Evan Beer, Kevin W. Ryer, Md. Saydur Rahman, John H. Young Jr., Richard J. Kline

School of Integrative Biological & Chemical Sciences Faculty Publications

The population of the once-endangered brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) has increased over the past several decades and is now considered fully recovered. However, in south Texas, the combined effects of weather patterns, transportation infrastructure, and brown pelican biology have led to road mortalities on State Highway 48 (SH 48) at the Carl “Joe” Gayman Bridge. To mitigate these mortalities, the Texas Department of Transportation modified traffic barriers on SH 48. We aimed to examine the effect of the barrier change and determine which weather variables influence brown pelican groundings on SH 48. Citizen scientists monitored sections of SH …

Uniqueness And Nonlinear Stability Of Positive Entire Solutions In Parabolic-Parabolic Chemotaxis Models With Logistic Source On Bounded Heterogeneous Environments, Tahir Bachar Issa

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

This paper studies the asymptotic behavior of solutions of the parabolic-parabolic chemotaxis model with logistic-type sources in heterogeneous bounded domains: (formula present) We find parameter regions in which the system has a unique positive entire solution, which is globally asymptotically stable. More precisely, under suitable assumptions on the model’s parameters, the system has a unique positive entire solution (u∗(t, x), v∗(t, x)) such that for any u0 ∈ C⁰(Ω̅), v0 ∈ W^1,∞(Ω̅) with u0, v0 ≥ 0 and u0 ≢ 0, the global classical solution (u(t, x; t0, u0, v0), v(t, x; t0, u0, v0)) of …

Cybersecurity Integration In Research Stage Connected Devices Within Healthcare Environments, Klemens Koszarek

Master's Theses (2009 -)

The rapid growth of connected devices in healthcare environments has significantly expanded the cybersecurity threat landscape, extending the potential risks beyond traditional hospital networks. Regulatory guidance from the FDA and risk management frameworks such as the NIST Cybersecurity Framework (NIST CSF) provide an approach for managing cybersecurity risk in connected systems. However, these principles are not always applied during early stages of device development. As a result, security consideration may be deferred until later stages of development, allowing for vulnerabilities to persist in systems as they move toward clinical or commercial deployment. This study presents a structured method for integrating …

A Scoping Review Of The Objective Structured Assessment Of Technical Surgical Skills (Osats), David J. O'Regan, Christopher Caddy, Retnagowri Rajandram, Paul Barach

College of Population Health Faculty Papers

BACKGROUND: Objective structured assessment of technical skills (OSATS) offers an objective tool for assessing bowel anastomosis on a benchtop. It was developed in 1997 to set appropriate standards and expectations for the surgical trainee. OSATS have become the gold standard of assessment across many disciplines. A global Likert rating scale, including respect for tissues, instrument handling, economy of movement, and flow of the operation predominates the literature. This has led to many questioning OSATS objectivity, claiming the process to be time-consuming, subjective, demanding human resources, and requiring extensive training of the trainer. We believe OSATS scoring has omitted the 22-point …

Ai In Insurance Industry: Using Machine Learning To Improve Insurance Risk Predictions, Simbarashe Ngonyamo

INSPIRE Student Research and Engagement Conference

• Insurance companies rely heavily on accurate risk prediction to identify potential customers, make marketing easier, and reducing the chances of loosing money.
• Traditionally, actuarial models such as logistic and Probit regression have been widely used because they are interpretable and statistically solid.
• However because of the rapid growth of data, insurance companies have started to shift from these traditional methods to machine learning techniques that can capture more complex and nonlinear relationships which traditional models may miss
• Therefore, this study investigates whether modern machine learning techniques—specifically Random Forest and XGBoost—can outperform traditional actuarial models in predicting customer interest in vehicle …

From Punishment To Public Health: Rethinking Addiction In The U.S And Portugal, Kenna Hall-Hoyt, Sarah Denin, Shelby Jenkins

INSPIRE Student Research and Engagement Conference

Portugal's approach to combat substance use disorder has been a commonly discussed public health strategy over the last decade because it challenges the idea that punishing the drug user detours the drug issue. In 2001, the country decided to decriminalize substance use disorder and change addiction services to be under the Ministry of Health. The approach that Portugal is using in its research looks very different from places like the U.S., who over-medicate and then criminalizes drug users. Portugal, instead, steers individuals to local groups comprising of psychologists, social workers, and health professionals who work with them to find the …

The Importance Of Education: A Comparison Of Educational Systems In The United States And South Sudan, Allie Haughenbury, Faith Defenbaugh, Emma Randecker, Hadley Farrell, Haylea Tillman

INSPIRE Student Research and Engagement Conference

The significance of education in creating opportunities for individuals has been established as important to both individual growth and national development. The purpose of this project is to assess the role of education by comparing the educational system in the United States with that of South Sudan in terms of structure, accessibility, and barriers. The U.S. has a well developed educational system with access to public education for (almost) all children, whereas children in South Sudan face significant challenges to receiving an education. These challenges include a lack of infrastructure, a lack of trained educators, a lack of resources, and …

Women's Access To Education: A Global Perspective, Olivia Clausen, Lillie-Kay Colby, Ellie-Lynn Colby

INSPIRE Student Research and Engagement Conference

Access to education for women has been restricted in various ways across the globe throughout history. Many of these restrictions have led to gender disparities in access to work, which pushes women into more vulnerable situations, such as poverty, abuse, or forced marriages. The goal of this research is to raise awareness and knowledge about women’s and girls’ education in South Sudan, given its 93% illiteracy rate among women. According to UNESCO, among the 84% of countries that legally protect the right to education, only 57% explicitly guarantee it without discrimination on the basis of sex and/or gender. Education for …

Understanding The Role Of Tiktok As A Source Of Support For Cyberbullying Victims, Saba Iqbal

Theses and Dissertations

Cyberbullying poses a significant threat to teenagers and young adults, who often seek support and advice online. Little is known about the support and advice shared online for victims of cyberbullying and whether it is helpful. In this study, we used qualitative thematic analysis to examine a sample of 150 TikTok videos that give support or advice for cyberbullying victims. We identify 33 unique pieces of support and advice across 5 categories, with differences in tone and delivery among different types of videos. We then evaluated the quality of 33 unique pieces of cyberbullying advice in a user study with …

Ownership Duration In The U.S. Business Jet Market, Yuchen Hu

SACAD: Scholarly Activities

This study analyzes ownership duration in the U.S. business jet market using FAA registry data as of February 16, 2026 (N=12,359). The analysis reveals a structured distribution with a mean of 5.86 years and a median of 5.00 years. Crucially, retention varies by acquisition status: new aircraft owners exhibit an average hold of 7.36 years, whereas pre-owned aircraft holders show a significantly higher turnover of 5.11 years, with most resales occurring within a 3–7-year window. These findings suggest that ownership behavior is driven by structured asset management and lifecycle planning, providing a predictive framework for identifying aircraft replacement and trade-in …

On Track But Too Slow? The Dynamics Of Eu Decarbonization, Parisa Pakrooh, Matteo A. Manera

Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei Working Papers

Despite the strong commitment of European countries to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, the extent to which key policies and drivers jointly shape emissions dynamics remains insufficiently investigated. To fill this gap, the study investigates the combined effects of the circular economy, energy transition, emissions trading systems, carbon tax, and digitalization on carbon reduction in the EU member states. Using annual data from 2000 to 2023, the analysis integrates causal discovery, time-varying dependence modeling, and machine learning methods to unravel system-level causal structure, dynamic connectedness, and future emission trajectories. The Directed Acyclic Graph method, especially the Fast Adjacency Skewness algorithm, …

Biomechanical Analysis Of Skeletal Open Bite Treatment Methods: A Comparative Finite Element Study ​, Ömer Faruk Sari, Muhammed Hi̇lmi̇ Buyukcavus

Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences

Background/aim: The biomechanical effects of zygomatic anchorage plates, vertical chin-caps, and occipital headgear on dentofacial structures in patients with skeletal anterior open bite malocclusion were compared using three-dimensional finite element analysis.

Materials and methods: Three-dimensional finite element models were constructed based on computed tomography data obtained from a patient with skeletal anterior open bite. Simulation models representing zygomatic anchorage-supported intrusion, vertical chin-cap, and occipital headgear were generated under fixed orthodontic conditions. In each scenario, a unilateral force of 200 g (1.96 N) was applied along clinically relevant force vectors. Stress distributions in craniofacial bones, sutural structures, teeth, roots, and temporomandibular …

Imsaloquium 2026 Event Booklet, Student Inquiry And Research (Sir)

IMSAloquium Event Booklets

Cover designed by Joyce Symoniak.

Welcome to IMSAloquium, our annual, school-wide symposium for research and inquiry! This booklet contains abstracts for over 220 outstanding projects conducted by IMSA students in the 2025-26 academic year. The topics range from biomedical research to artificial intelligence, from history to the social sciences, and from business to entrepreneurship. Many of our students are working with off-campus mentors at world-renowned universities, research laboratories, and businesses. Others are working on-campus with IMSA’s own outstanding Faculty. The SIR and IN2 Teams would like to thank all of our mentors for their efforts. Our experiential programs would not …