Digital Commons Network^™

Exploring The Impact Of Self-Compassion And Mindfulness Interventions On Teacher Stress, Feedback Delivery, And Student Behavior In Elementary Classrooms, Coral Lynn Koller

Theses and Dissertations

Teacher stress is a persistent challenge that negatively affects educator well-being, classroom climate, and student outcomes. Although the prevalence and impact of teacher stress are well-documented. This single-case multiple baseline study investigated the effects of a structured self-compassion and mindfulness intervention on teacher stress, delivery of positive feedback, and student on-task behavior in three general education elementary teachers. Over a 6- week period, participants engaged in mindfulness and self-compassion practices, tracked through a combination of self-report scales (Daily Stress Response Scale, Perceived Stress Scale, SelfCompassion Scale, and Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire) and pre- and post-classroom observations. Results indicated reductions in …

Development Of A Low-Cost Roadside Monitoring System For Identifying High-Emitting Heavy-Duty Trucks, Spencer Larson

Theses and Dissertations

This project investigated the feasibility of using low-cost sensors to identify high-emitting heavy-duty diesel trucks through roadside emissions monitoring. A sampling system was designed and tested in both laboratory and field environments to evaluate sensor performance and measurement reliability. In the laboratory, controlled engine testing enabled direct comparison between low-cost sensors and research-grade instruments to establish baseline accuracy, response time, and sources of uncertainty. These tests demonstrated that while low-cost sensors exhibit greater bias and slower response, several are capable of detecting transient emission events. Field deployments revealed that real-world conditions, such as plume dilution, spatial variability, and short exposure …

A Comprehensive Review Of Optimization Techniques For Healthcare Using Cancer Datasets, Dina Tbaishat, Mohammad Tubishat, Sharif Naser Makhadmeh, Mohammed Azmi Al-Betar

All Works

This study presents a systematic review of metaheuristic optimization techniques applied to healthcare problems using cancer datasets. A structured search of recently published peer-reviewed literature was carried out, focusing on five major application areas: feature selection, classification, image segmentation, hyperparameter tuning, and early detection. For each eligible study, the optimization strategy, dataset characteristics, data modality, learning model, validation protocol, and reported outcomes are provided. The reviewed works were organized into a taxonomy of original, modified, and hybridized algorithms, and a descriptive analysis was performed to assess algorithm prevalence and dataset utilization. The findings highlight that feature selection remains the most …

Skuarewave: Play Music With Holograms, Bryan Duggan

Research Outputs: 2025-Present

Skuarewave is a holographic musical instrument built in Godot, running on Meta Quest 3 with hand tracking and a gesture-based interface. A musician composes and performs music by waving and pinching inside holographic skuares (squares) in mixed reality. There are three instrument sequencers and a drum sequencer, each supporting variable-length sequences up to 64 steps. Key, mode, and octave can be changed in real-time with gestures as the composition plays live. There are real-time audio effects and a 3D waveform visualiser. The demo features a live performance incorporating live looping on Bb flute with holograms, with the performer's view projected …

Board Of Directors Meeting Minutes (June 8, 2026), File 1, Dmacc Board Of Directors

Board of Directors Meeting Minutes

This file contains the minutes from the Des Moines Area Community College Board meeting held on June 8, 2026.

Endoplasmic Reticulum-Resident Α-Glucosidase Ii Drives Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Progression Via Regulation Of Secretory Glycoproteins, Shike Wang, Na Ding, Angelo Chen, Derrick Cardin, Yuting Xu, Kate Grimley, William K. Russell, Jun Xu, Jonathan M. Kurie, Guan Yu Xiao, Xiaochao Tan

Markey Cancer Center Faculty Publications

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) remains a leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide, yet its molecular drivers are not fully defined. Emerging evidence highlights the importance of tumor-stroma interactions mediated by secreted glycoproteins. However, the mechanisms by which cancer cells regulate the secretion of these protumorigenic proteins remain largely unknown. Endoplasmic reticulum-resident (ER-resident) N-glycan-processing enzymes regulate proper protein folding, a prerequisite for glycoproteins to exit the ER and undergo secretion. By evaluating their prognostic significance in lung tumors and conducting functional screening in lung cancer cells, we identify α-glucosidase II (α-Glc II) as a key regulator of NSCLC progression. α-Glc …

Show Me The Money: Finance Models In Epilepsy Practice., Deepti Zutshi, Emily Klatte, Maysaa Basha, Leisha Osburn, Eric Segal, Nina Garga, Rohit R Das

Medical Education Articles

Healthcare models and the finances associated with such models are complex. Patients with epilepsy (PWE) receive care in a variety of settings, and each is associated with differing reimbursement, financial levers, as well as unique strengths and weaknesses. As the financial climate of healthcare system changes rapidly in the setting of an aging population, physician shortages, and increasing costs of healthcare delivery, it is important for clinicians to understand the financial aspects of caring for PWE. In this review, we examine basic concepts in healthcare economics and then review the financial aspects of care in an academic context, a private …

International Commitments Of Japan’S Prefectures With Foreign States: Empirical Patterns, Authority, And Legal Nature, Yuhei Matsuyama

Brooklyn Journal of International Law

Under international law, sovereign states are the primary subjects of rights and obligations and possess the authority to conclude treaties. Domestic constitutions typically allocate foreign affairs powers to national governments. Nonetheless, subnational governments—including prefectures—regularly engage in international activities. In some federal systems, constituent units are expressly authorized by their constitutions to conclude international agreements. By contrast, the Constitution of Japan vests foreign affairs authority exclusively in the national executive and is silent on the authority of prefectural governments. This Article uncovers and analyzes approximately 180 previously unexamined international commitments concluded by Japanese prefectural governments with foreign states, identified through information …

The Law And Policy Of Gender Provisions In Multilateral And Regional Trade Governance, Maria Panezi

Brooklyn Journal of International Law

Trade is neither gender-neutral in its design nor in its outcomes. This Article offers a bird's-eye view of the law and policy of gender provisions in multilateral and regional trade governance, examines the conceptual boundaries of incorporating gender into trade policy, and evaluates legal and policy approaches that can make trade more responsive to the asymmetries that disproportionately affect women. Using Canada as a case study, the Article examines one of the most comprehensive national frameworks for mainstreaming gender in trade, including the Gender-Based Analysis Plus (GBA Plus) methodology and the inclusion of dedicated gender and trade chapters in several …

Green Technology And International Patents: Incentivizing Innovation Or Blocking Access?, Matteo Rizzi

Brooklyn Journal of International Law

As the global climate crisis intensifies, the transition to clean energy technologies has become an urgent priority for the world's largest carbon dioxide emitters: China, the United States, and India. This Note examines how patent law can serve as a critical instrument in accelerating that transition. The patent system’s core quid pro quo grants inventors exclusive rights in exchange for public disclosure, creating powerful incentives for innovation. Yet the law’s failure to require active use of patented technologies has enabled a range of anticompetitive behaviors, including patent trolling, patent warehousing, and the accumulation of dormant patent portfolios, that allow proprietary …

Colliding Interests: Solving The Space Debris Crisis Through Us-China Cooperation, Grace E. Mannion

Brooklyn Journal of International Law

As human activity in outer space accelerates, the accumulation of space debris in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) presents an increasingly urgent threat to global infrastructure, economic stability, and the future of space exploration. This Note examines the regulatory and geopolitical challenges underlying the space debris crisis, with particular attention to the fragmented nature of existing international legal frameworks. Current regimes, including the Outer Space Treaty and the Liability Convention, establish broad principles of cooperation and liability but fail to meaningfully address the rapid growth of orbital debris driven by both state and commercial actors. Focusing on the United States and …

Next-Generation Dns Rpz For Automated Threat Intelligence, Risk-Aware Filtering, And User-Centric Security, Jinu S, Kishore V. Krishnan, Rajarshi Middya, Annasamy Bagubali

Journal of Cybersecurity Education, Research and Practice

The Domain Name System (DNS) remains a critical attack vector exploited by adversaries for command-and-control (C2) communication, data exfiltration, and phishing campaigns. DNS Response Policy Zones (RPZ) have emerged as an effective defense mechanism by enabling the redirection or blocking of queries to malicious domains. However, current RPZ implementations encounter significant challenges related to scalability, adaptability, and user awareness, often resulting in static policies, delayed updates, and a high incidence of false positives. To address these limitations, this paper proposes an enhanced RPZ framework that integrates adaptive threat intelligence, machine learning-driven dynamic policy updates, and user-context-aware security controls. The proposed …

Auricular Point Acupressure Self-Management (Apa-Sm) Program For Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain Among Rural Populations: A Protocol For A Pragmatic, Randomized Controlled Trial, Jennifer Kawi, Jane Bolin, Hulin Wu, Jungkyung Min, Rupsikha Bora, Sarah Pace, Idara N Akpan, Alee Lockman, Tonychris Nnaka

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Introduction: Chronic musculoskeletal pain (CMP) is a leading cause of incurred personal healthcare costs and disability in the USA. It disproportionately affects rural populations, who are more likely to be uninsured, lack access to a regular healthcare provider and experience a higher prevalence of CMP. As a result of reduced access to non-pharmacological care, there is greater reliance on opioids. The Auricular Point Acupressure - Self-Management (APA-SM) program is a simple, needleless, evidence-based therapy that empowers individuals to self-manage their pain. Preliminary studies, including a recent UG3 pilot testing, demonstrated feasibility, safety and significant improvements in pain and function. Guided …

Structure And Spectroscopy Of Free Base, Copper, And Zinc Tetrapentylporphyrin, Christopher J. Ziegler, Nneka Damola Ajayi, Victor N. Nemkyin, G Richard Geier Iii

University Research

Synthetic porphyrins have been crucial as models for heme units and other biological porphyrins, as well as components of advanced materials and catalysts. Much of the work on synthetic porphyrins has focused on the meso-substituted 5,10,15,20-tetraphenylporphyrin (TPP) or the pyrrole-substituted 2,3,7,8,12,13,17,18-octaethylporphyrin (OEP). In this report, we present a comprehensive spectroscopic, electrochemical, and computational study of free-base, zinc(II), and copper(II) 5,10,15,20-tetrapentylporphyrin (TPeP). TPeP can be prepared via a two-step, one-flask reaction of pyrrole and hexanal mediated by Montmorillonite K10, followed by oxidation with 2,3-dichloro-5,6-dicyano-1,4-benzoquinone (DDQ) in yields of around 40%. Similar to TPP, the TPeP systems have the highest occupied molecular …

How International Copyright Approaches To Generative Ai May Influence The Development Of U.S. Copyright Laws For Ai, Tessa Chew

San Diego International Law Journal

Since late 2022, Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) has emerged as a vital technological tool in many industries by producing human-like content based on its trained datasets. This advancement has sparked an international debate over the ethical and legal implications of using copyrighted works for Artificial Intelligence (AI) training. Countries have taken differing legislative approaches to this issue. Japan aims to promote innovation with minimal restrictions; the United Kingdom aims to protect copyright holders by implementing strict AI copyright protections; and the European Union focuses on the transparency of the AI’s copyright use. The United States is currently at a regulatory …

Invisible Nations: Self-Determination As A Legal Shield For The World’S Last Isolated Peoples, Paige Schacher

San Diego International Law Journal

This Comment examines the legal and ethical considerations of self-determination as applied to the world’s last uncontacted tribes—indigenous communities that live isolated from mainstream society. While the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) established a foundational framework for uncontacted tribes’ right to self-determination, its implementation in practice faces jurisdictional, ethical, and legal issues. By examining international and domestic legal instruments, case studies from India and Brazil, and the evolving role of artificial intelligence in indigenous land monitoring, this Comment argues that domestic and international bodies must collaborate to enforce more tailored protections to guard the autonomy …

Land Forward: Planning For Legal Reforms To Facilitate Land Back And Community-Driven Relocation In Response To Climate Change, E. Barrett Ristroph

San Diego Journal of Climate & Energy Law

Indigenous and other place-based communities face the loss of their homes due to climate change. The practices that have led to the current climate crisis have also contributed to the historical dispossession and marginalization of these communities. United States laws and programs already provide for land transfers to federally recognized tribes, home buyouts for households in hazard-prone areas, and community development. But these laws and programs are piecemeal, reactive, and often inaccessible to the communities most in need. They do not provide a streamlined method for tribes to regain lands needed for rematriation and adaptation. Nor do they allow place-based …

Faculty Perceptions Of Lgbtq+ Students In Higher Education, Serena Gramling, Laura E. Barrow, Stacy Mikel, Mark J. Sciuchetti Dr., Falynn Turley

Higher Learning Research Communications

Objective: Limited faculty understanding of LGBTQ+ student experiences may contribute to exclusionary campus climates and discriminatory practices. This study examined faculty perceptions to identify ways to improve support for LGBTQ+ students and promote inclusive environments.

Method: A descriptive quantitative design was used to examine faculty perceptions of LGBTQ+ students and differences across geographic regions. 142 participants completed the 20-item instrument.

Results: Although regional differences in acceptance were observed, geographic location did not significantly predict faculty attitudes. Faculty acceptance played a key moderating role in the relationship between awareness and engagement in inclusive practices. Findings indicated that faculty attitudes alone are …

Film, Television, And Artificial Intelligence: Ensuring The Role Of Screenwriters In Anticipation Of Generative Artificial Intelligence’S Increasing Capabilities, Rachel Johnson

San Diego International Law Journal

Artificial Intelligence (AI) currently is one of most critical topics discussed across industries. AI technology, such as Generative Artificial Intelligence (GAI), looms over people employed in creative fields who view it as a threat to their livelihoods. Legislative and judicial law must grapple with the complex legal issues GAI poses. In the entertainment realm, employees in professions such as Hollywood’s film industry have found ways to secure their present and near future against AI-encroachment.

In 2023, the Writers Guild of America (WGA), a labor union covering the screenwriters of television and film, coordinated the second longest labor strike in Hollywood’s …

How States Can React To The “Summer Of Flooding,” Increase Flood Insurance Coverage, And Improve Flood Resiliency, Perry S. Warren, Esq., Joseph P. Keller, Esq.

San Diego Journal of Climate & Energy Law

Summer 2025 was the United States’ “summer of flooding,” as shown by four one-in-1,000-year rainfall events that occurred during a single week in July. Because flood damage is not covered under a standard homeowners, renters, or commercial insurance policy, many individuals and businesses affected by these storms will face difficulties repairing their property unless they purchased flood insurance. As flood risks increase due to climate change, flood insurance will become increasingly unaffordable unless governments intervene.

In 2024, Pennsylvania became the first and only state that established a Flood Insurance Premium Assistance Task Force. The Task Force issued nine recommendations calculated …

Leveraging A Vintage Radio Interface To Explore Media Recommender Systems, Paula Kelly, David Powell, Frank Duignan, Emma Clarke, Damon Berry

Research Outputs: 2025-Present

Older adults often face significant barriers to engaging with and critically evaluating complex, AI-driven systems, leading to potential exclusion and marginalisation. This paper introduces a novel approach leveraging a nostalgic vintage radio platform as a familiar and accessible "bridge"to provoke and facilitate meaningful participatory design discussions about such a system. We present a multidisciplinary design project that utilises the tactile and accessible metaphor of an old-fashioned, table-top wood-cased radio to engage older adults in conversations about the ethical impact and accessibility of contemporary media systems. The platform is used as a discussion toolkit to explore the pros and cons of …

Development And Preliminary Validation Of Orca-Pd, An Online Rapid Cognitive Assessment For Parkinson Disease: Mixed Methods Study, Avigail Lithwick Algon, Sarah Brisman, Chi-Ying R Lin, William Saban

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: Traditional in-person neuropsychological tests for Parkinson disease (PD) lack accessibility, scalability, and PD specificity. Mobility impairments hinder access to in-person assessments, and long waiting times for expert evaluation limit scalability. Common tools for cognitive screening, such as the Montreal Cognitive Assessment, are generic and not specific to PD.

Objective: The goal of this study was to address these challenges by leveraging the internet. This study aimed to develop a sensitive tool to detect cognitive impairments in early- to mid-stage PD in an accessible and scalable manner.

Methods: We developed the Online Rapid Cognitive Assessment for Parkinson's Disease (ORCA-PD), a …

Notch1 Acts As A Tumor Suppressor That Induces Early Differentiation In Head And Neck Cancer, Chenfei Huang, Shhyam Moorthy, Qiuli Li, Kazi M Ahmed, Kalil Saab, Defeng Deng, Jiping Wang, Xiayu Rao, Jiexin Zhang, Yuanxin Xi, Jing Wang, Zhiyi Liu, Noriaki Tanaka, David A Wheeler, Eve Shinbrot, Rami Saade, Curtis R Pickering, Tong-Xin Xie, Adel K El-Naggar, Abdullah A Osman, Kunal Rai, Patrick A Zweidler-Mckay, John V Heymach, Lauren A Byers, Faye M Johnson, Vlad C Sandulache, Jeffrey N Myers, Pedram Yadollahi, Mitchell J Frederick

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Inactivating NOTCH1 mutations in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) were described over a decade ago, suggesting a tumor suppressor function - unlike its oncogenic role in other tumors. Today, much debate persists regarding a putative oncogenic role in HNSCC as well, with reports that NOTCH1 signaling drives tumor growth and a cancer stem cell (CSC) phenotype. In this work, comprehensive experiments unequivocally demonstrate that NOTCH1 is a tumor suppressor in HNSCC regardless of mutation or activation status and that it reduces CSC frequency. We developed a signature of NOTCH1 activation showing the pathway is associated with very early …

Situating Stormwater Infrastructure Through Collaborative Design: Insights From A University-Community Partnership, Serena A. Echols

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Stormwater ponds help address flooding and partially mitigate nutrient pollution while sometimes serving as a central landscape element in community parks. In underserved urban communities, however, stormwater ponds are sometimes neglected and underutilized, leading to public health and environmental justice challenges. Our research in Tampa, Florida, seeks to develop pathways for residents and other stakeholders to collaboratively co-design infrastructure interventions and pondscape redevelopment for neglected stormwater ponds. Drawing on ethnographic and participatory methods as well as environmental assessment and modeling, we are working with residents of one pond community on cleanup and redevelopment strategies. Results reveal that balancing local and …

Assessment Of The Status Of Open Access Publications In Central Universities Of India: A Review Of Literature, Gulam Jilani, Swapna Banerjee

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Unrestricted access to research outputs and increased exposure and distribution of academic information are two benefits of Open Access (OA) publication, which has emerged as a revolutionary method to scholarly communication. With an emphasis on its economic models, international and Indian publishing trends, institutional activities, regulations, and researcher attitudes, this study explores the literature on open access publishing. The paper examines many OA models, such as gold, green, hybrid, bronze, and diamond access, emphasizing their benefits, drawbacks, and implications for the fair distribution of information. The expansion of open access publication in India and throughout the world is also covered, …

Media Playback State Synchronization For Large Language Models, Nikita Agarwal

Defensive Publications Series

A context gap is often experienced when large language models (LLMs) are utilized on secondary computing devices during media playback on primary computing devices. Manual context input is typically used to formulate queries regarding the on-screen content. The disclosed technology provides a synchronization process where a media playback state and metadata are transmitted from the primary computing device to the secondary computing device over a local network. A silent handshake protocol is executed to retrieve a timestamp and a content identifier for a scene. This playback data is utilized to fetch scene-specific metadata, such as actor identification and visual details. …

Generative Media Repair For Uninterrupted Transcoding With An Asynchronous Approval, Nikita Agarwal

Defensive Publications Series

The process of ingesting large-scale media files may be interrupted by data corruption, which can necessitate a re-upload and re-transcode, consuming network and computational resources. Described systems and methods can address this by detecting corruption during ingestion, generating a provisional synthetic patch for the corrupted portion, and allowing the transcoding process to proceed. A cryptographic manifest can be created to document the change, and the provisionally repaired asset may be held in a quarantined state. An asynchronous approval workflow can then allow a content partner to review, approve, or reject the patch, with a fallback for providing a corrected segment. …

Fusing Uwb Spatial Data And Imu Orientation For Deterministic Device Targeting, Nikita Agarwal

Defensive Publications Series

Systems for routing interactive content, for example, from a primary display to a specific user's device in a multi-user environment, can present challenges in identifying the intended recipient. This disclosure describes systems and methods that can combine spatial data with orientation data to help ascertain user intent. For example, spatial positioning of devices may be determined using ultra-wideband (UWB) radio signals, while an inertial measurement unit in a handheld control device (e.g., a remote control, smartphone, or wearable device) can track its orientation. By fusing these data streams, a directional vector can be projected from the control device. A target …

Transmission Of Firm-Level Demand Shocks To Stock Returns: Evidence From 10-K Text Analysis, Dylan Gunjan Parikh

Economics Undergraduate Senior Theses

Industrial organization and corporate finance papers that measure firm-level demand characteristics employ price, quantity, and product characteristic data that is unavailable in public financial disclosures. As a result, cross-sectional asset pricing literature attention to demand-side factors is limited. This paper constructs a demand shock measure from natural language processing of 28,263 publicly disclosed 10-K filings from 2001 to 2020. I find that a 1SD demand shock increases contemporaneously predicts a 1.8% increase (SE = 0.4%) in returns. Long-short portfolio sorted on demand shock generates 8.5% alpha (SE = 1.9%) against combined Fama-French and Q-factor models and a 0.91 sharpe ratio …

Otologic Manifestations Of Temporomandibular Disorders, Fatemeh Ebrahimi, Ali Akbar, Vivian Jin, Vivian F Kaul, Craig B Pearl

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background/Objectives: Temporomandibular disorder (TMD) affects a third of the adult population and has been associated with otologic symptoms. These symptoms are frequently misattributed to primary otologic diseases, leading to delays in diagnosis and treatment. This review aims to summarize the reported prevalence, proposed pathophysiologic mechanisms, and management strategies of otologic manifestations in patients with TMD.

Methods: A literature review was conducted using the MeSH terms "temporomandibular joint disease" and "otologic symptoms." Five additional searches were performed using "temporomandibular disease/dysfunction" combined with each of the five most common otologic symptoms. Meta-analyses, randomized controlled trials, reviews, and systematic reviews were …