Digital Commons Network^™

Privacy-Preserving Local Authorization For Regulated, Safety-Critical, And Financial Systems, Jonathan Stephen Baker

Defensive Publications Series

This disclosure describes systems and methods for controlling access to regulated, age-restricted, safety-critical, high-liability, and financial devices using privacy-preserving local authorization. In disclosed embodiments, a user device, terminal, embedded controller, or local authorization module verifies that a requesting user satisfies one or more access conditions before enabling operation of a protected physical or digital system. The authorization process may be performed locally or at the edge, without requiring persistent storage of raw biometric data, identity templates, or reusable personal credentials by a relying party. The system outputs a limited authorization result, proof, token, permission state, or access decision indicating that …

Breaking The Cycle: The C.A.R.E. Manager Model To Address Intergenerational Incarceration, Amber Pelan, Miranda Jacobsen

Criminology and Criminal Justice Theses and Dissertations

Generational incarceration is a significant social problem in which criminal justice involvement is repeated across multiple generations of the same family. Children of incarcerated parents face elevated risks of trauma, poverty, educational disruption, mental health challenges, and later justice system involvement. These patterns demonstrate that incarceration often harms the entire family rather than only the individual offender. This project examines why generational incarceration occurs and identifies strategies to interrupt the cycle. The project uses a literature review methodology to integrate criminological 4 theory, sociological research, and policy analysis. These theories explain how parental incarceration disrupts child development, weakens family bonds, …

Proactive Violence Prevention: A Universal Bi-Annual Violence-Needs Assessment Tool For Grades K-12, Millie Fritzler, Emily Linehan

Criminology and Criminal Justice Theses and Dissertations

“Violence prevention begins in the high chair, not the electric chair” (Reiner, as cited in Davis et al., 2002). Two elements are essential to successful violence prevention: interventions that start early and interventions that are consistent (Davis et al., 2002; Dodge et al., 2015). The first five years are crucial for development; therefore, violence prevention needs to happen as early as possible to identify and address potential risk factors before harmful behaviors become reinforced (Davis et al., 2002). Despite this knowledge for the need for early violence prevention, schools still lack a truly proactive, universal system for identifying violence-related risk …

Crowding, Capacity, And Reform: Exploring The Dynamics Of Correctional Policy, John Ursino

Criminology and Criminal Justice Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines the dynamic mechanisms that drive correctional population change and evaluates strategies for sustainable decarceration. Despite widespread calls for evidence-based corrections, methodological tools such as time series analysis remain underutilized for understanding population management. This dissertation addresses this gap through a three-paper design that applies advanced time-series methods to key stages of the correctional continuum. Chapter Two uses interrupted time-series analysis to evaluate the impacts of both proactive (policy-driven) and reactive (COVID-19 and court mandate-related) decarceration events in Washington State on admissions, technical violations, and recidivism outcomes, clarifying how policy design affects prison admission flows. Chapter Three employs …

Biology Major Awarded Goldwater Scholarship For Stem Research Leaders, Dave Larsen

College of Arts and Sciences Newsroom

Ashley Williams is UD’s seventh Goldwater Scholar and the fourth in biology.

Carrying The Dream Forward: Intergenerational Hope And Academic Persistence Among Historically Underserved Caregiving Graduate Students, Deborah D. Gaspard

Educational Leadership Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

This qualitative study examined the lived experiences of eight graduate students who serve as caregivers, including those raising children and supporting elderly family members, and how these responsibilities complicate traditional forms of academic engagement. Despite a growing proportion of students with overlapping academic and caregiving roles, institutional structures remain largely oriented toward traditional students with minimal external obligations. Drawing on in-depth narratives, this study explored how caregiving demands shape students’ academic and social integration as well as how institutional policies and practices influence their persistence. Other research has shown that caregiving responsibilities significantly impact students’ time, energy, and access to …

Physical, Environmental, And Psychological Determinants Of Sleep Among Long-Distance South Asian Caregivers Of Older Adults: A Mixed-Methods Approach, Srujana Chekuri

Gerontology Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

Long-distance caregiving is an increasingly common yet understudied form of family care, particularly among immigrant communities whose cultural expectations of flial responsibility remain strong despite geographic separation. Among South Asian caregivers of older adults, caregiving across borders is shaped by powerful norms of duty, emotional endurance, and family obligation, creating distinctive patterns of stress that may profoundly afect health. One of the most consequential but underexamined outcomes of this caregiving context is sleep. This mixed-methods dissertation examined the physical, environmental, and psychological determinants of sleep among long-distance South Asian caregivers of older adults living in the United States. Guided by …

Collins Aerospace Automated Pressure Switch Tester, Joseph C. La Barbera, Kevin Cordero, Brenda Sanchez, Molly Bramm

Honors Capstones

For aerospace companies like Collins, pressure switches are crucial for safety, precise control, and reliability. As such, thorough testing of these switches is an essential step in Collins’ manufacturing workflow. However, current testing regimes suffer from several critical drawbacks. Firstly, they require constant manual supervision, costing precious time and manpower. Existing systems are also only able to test one single switch at a time, which creates backlog and delays. Lastly, current testing equipment has poor integration with the Collins digital ecosystem, hindering the utility of these devices. To solve these design challenges, a new system is required that is self-operable, …

Lunar Regolith Sintered Brick Apparatus, Andrew Fasano, Noah Parayil, Darius Felix Karra

Senior Design Project For Engineers

This project describes the preliminary design and analysis of the Semi-Autonomous Lunar Regolith Sintered Brick Apparatus that will assist in developing permanent infrastructure on the Moon. An issue with permanent lunar operations is the transportation of materials to the Moon. To address this, the designed device uses lunar regolith as the source material for producing bricks. This design considers the constraints set for operation with the Griffin lunar lander: maximum payload mass of 200 kg, power consumption below 5 kW, and limited payload dimensions. The design uses a combination of a laser sintering motion system, a regolith layering subsystem, a …

Environmental Law, Travis M. Trimble

Mercer Law Review

In 2025, in a Clean Water Act (“CWA”) citizen-suit challenge to a landowner’s filling of a tract of land on St. Simon’s Island, Georgia, under a nationwide dredge-and-fill permit issued by the United States Army Corps of Engineers (the “Corps”), the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit held that the landowner did not waive its right to challenge whether the tract was a wetland by virtue of submitting a form to the Corps in connection with its obtaining coverage under the permit that stated that the landowner accepted that the tract at issue was a jurisdictional water …

Eye In The Sky: The Eleventh Circuit Allows Warrantless Surveillance Of The Home Via Pole Cameras In United States V. Gregory, John T. Roberts

Mercer Law Review

What does “search” mean? Defining the word seems simple enough, yet, courts have struggled to provide a consistent answer under Fourth Amendment jurisprudence. This difficulty has only been exacerbated by rapidly advancing technological innovations in the field of surveillance. Specifically, courts across the country are split on whether long-term surveillance of an individual’s home via a pole camera is considered a search under the Fourth Amendment.

In United States v. Gregory, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit addressed this issue head on, holding that surveillance of this kind is not considered a search under the Fourth …

Trapped By Immunity: Women, Prisons, And The Need For Obvious Clarity, Alexandria E. Hatten

Mercer Law Review

For many Americans, the mere thought of the prison system evokes great fear and uncertainty. The fear is justified and reflected through rampant reports of sexual abuse, exploitation, and abuse of power by prison officials. Lack of privacy in prisons is largely supported and expected. The general population of prisons have unique safety concerns which require closer surveillance and diligent observation by correctional officers. Prison officers are tasked with ensuring that all contraband stays out of inmate possession—notwithstanding the constant changes of the general population. The security interests of a prison also extend to prison visitors. The known security concerns …

An Occupational Therapy Toolkit: Integrating Lymphedema And Patient Education In Oncology, Brianna Schwake

Occupational Therapy Capstones

Occupational therapy can be beneficial in oncology care, but a lot of professionals do not understand how occupational therapy fits in or what it even does. Lymphedema therapy is also overlooked and undereducated, while also being a rising need in therapists that are specialized in lymphedema.

This capstone synthesizes in-depth knowledge within the area of oncology and lymphedema through clinical skill development, education, and advocacy.

Focus Area:

• Clinical Skills
• Advocacy
• Education

Purpose:

Goal to create sustainable resources and interventions to empower patients and caregivers, advocate for the role of occupational therapy, and address overlooked needs such as mental health, caregiver …

Celiac Plexus Radiosurgery For Retroperitoneal Pain In Advanced Cancer: A Pre-Specified Secondary Analysis Of Health-Related Quality Of Life In A Phase Ii Single-Arm Trial, Aisling Barry, Ronen Fluss, Laura Dawson, David Hausner, Michael Buckstein, Talia Golin, Laurence Freedman, Marcin Miszczyk, Dayssy Diazpardo, Artur Aguiar, Dror Limon, Raphael Pfeffer, Moaz Ben-Ayun, Liat Hammer, Ziv Symon, Ofir Morag, Gali Jacobson, Adam Dicker, Jerzy Wydmanski, Camilla Zimmermann, Yaacov Lawrence

Department of Radiation Oncology Faculty Papers

BACKGROUND: Retroperitoneal pain syndrome seen in pancreatic cancer is a major clinical challenge. Celiac plexus radiosurgery, a new palliative technique for retroperitoneal pain syndrome, decreased pain levels in a phase II study. Here Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQOL) outcomes are reported.

METHODS: Evaluable patients, who were enrolled between January 2018 and December 2021, in an international single-arm Phase II ethics-approved study (NCT03323489), were included. The pre-specified secondary endpoint-change in HRQOL from baseline to 3- and 6-weeks post-treatment, was measured by the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy - Hepatobiliary (FACT-Hep) version 4 questionnaire. Mean change was deemed clinically significant (CS) if …

Applied Accounting Perspectives: Case Studies In Theory, Regulation, And Practice, Zoe Justice

Honors Theses

This document includes two semesters of casework completed under the instruction of Dr. Victoria Dickinson in ACCY 420. These case studies were designed to expose accounting students to more applicable research to their field of study that will help them in their future careers. This document includes a total of eight case studies, spanning various topics in the accounting field. Most cases were completed in a group, with a few being completed individually. For each case, the topic was researched thoroughly using online resources and a solution was proposed or observations synthesized. During the second half of the course, my …

Beyond The Numbers: A Patterson School Of Accountancy Practicum, Olivia R. Mardis

Honors Theses

This practicum comprises six case studies that explore a range of accounting topics. While each case stands independently, the work collectively emphasizes the interpretation of financial information. Although financial statements may appear to some as a series of abstract figures, accountants are trained to understand and apply the “language of business,” transforming numerical data into meaningful insights that inform decision-making.

The first case provides an objective analysis of a company’s Form 10-K, focusing on interpreting financial statements and using that interpretation to evaluate performance and guide decisions. The second case examines the Corporate Transparency Act, analyzing its intended purpose, potential …

Functionalized Nanodiamonds As Binding Platforms For Single-Stranded Dna, Mallory A. Chapman

Honors Theses

Nanodiamonds (NDs) offer a promising platform for biomolecular applications due to their stability, biocompatibility, and three-dimensional structure. This study focused on developing a nanodiamond–DNA complex in which streptavidin-functionalized NDs would form a protective shell around biotinylated single-stranded DNA (ssDNA), creating a core–shell system like an “M&M” candy with DNA at the center and a protective coating on the outside. DNA has many uses in nanotechnology, including DNA origami, nanomachines, and drug delivery systems, but its degradation limits its practical use, making protective strategies essential.

ND–DNA conjugates were prepared using biotin–streptavidin interactions and analyzed using gel electrophoresis. Initial separation on agarose …

The Influence Of Ole Miss And Nil On Local Business Strategy In Oxford, Mississippi, Benjamin D. Blossom Mr.

Honors Theses

This thesis argues that while NIL policies have introduced new financial and promotional dynamics, the relationship between the University of Mississippi athletics and the Oxford business community is still primarily shaped by long-standing, collaborative practices. The study focuses on how NIL is influencing these established relationships and the economic landscape of a college town where the university acts as a major economic driver. Through six in-depth interviews with Oxford business owners across retail, hospitality, food service, and events, the research finds that athletics, and football in particular, fuel much of the city’s economic activity. However, businesses see NIL-driven endorsements as …

Prematurity And Special Education: Raising Awareness Of The Connections Between Preterm Births And Special Education, Nadia R. Corder

Honors Theses

In this thesis, the goal was to find the link, if any, between prematurity and special education, with regards to probability of special education and outcomes, and to create a means of professional development for not only special education teachers about prematurity risks and effects on students but also parental education about the possible procedures of their child’s education. This is accomplished through the organization of infographic pamphlets for parents and an online professional development presentation. Both these formats are compliant to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessibility parameters. A literature review was conducted to achieve this goal using …

The Isoperimetric Inequality And Wirtinger’S Inequality, Mason Neal

Honors Theses

In this thesis, we present Hurwitz’s proof of the Isoperimetric Inequality, which roughly states that the area enclosed by a simple closed curve is always less than or equal to the area of a circle with the same perimeter. Hurwitz’s proof relies on Wirtinger’s Inequality. We survey results about periodic functions and Fourier series, and we use them to provide a proof of Wirtinger’s Inequality. We then give a new proof of a variant of Wirtinger’s Inequality due to Alzer and generalize this variant to higher powers.

Ready: Piloting An Inclusive Higher Education Program For Individuals With Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities At The University Of Mississippi, Emily R. Davis

Honors Theses

The University of Mississippi is currently one of the few SEC schools that does not offer an inclusive higher education program for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DDs). An initiative to bring inclusive higher education to Ole Miss began as a passion project led by Honors College student Bailey Beaird and continued through 2024. Bailey worked diligently to research and design a model for implementing a four-year inclusive higher education program (IHEP). Ultimately, the decision was made by the administration to postpone advancement of a four-year program due to limited campus resources and concerns surrounding long-term sustainability. Instead, the …

Lifestyle And Activity Patterns Of The Classic Period Maya From Chac Balam And San Juan, Ambergris Caye, Belize, Abigail L. Hornbeck

Honors Theses

Bioarchaeological research often uses skeletal remains to reconstruct patterns of activity and labor in past populations. This study examines potential sex-based differences in long bone morphology among individuals from the Classic Maya sites of Chac Balam and San Juan on Ambergris Caye, Belize. These coastal communities participated in maritime trade networks, and daily activities such as cargo transport, canoe travel, and fishing may have placed distinctive mechanical stresses on the skeleton. The goal of this study was to evaluate whether measurable differences in bone structure between males and females reflect differences in habitual activity patterns.

Two complementary methods were used …

The War On American Consumers, William C. Morrill V

Honors Theses

In this work I seek to discuss the various avenues that consumers have been abused by both individual corporations and wider market trends. I also attempt to shed light on how recent consumer advocacy movements have been gaining momentum to combat these issues. The background information for this work has been collected through years of personal observation of the issues at hand. The areas of technology, automobiles, and agriculture that are featured prominently throughout the essay are all topics of either personal impact to myself and family or things that I have a hobby-like interest in. I have kept up …

The Associations Between Problematic Social Media Use, Social Media Appearance Preoccupation, And Sleep Quality Among Emerging Adults, Lily Gisclair

Honors Theses

Emerging adulthood is a critical developmental window in which significant transitions increase vulnerability to mental health challenges. Additionally, emerging adults are spending large amounts of time on social media sites. Recent literature suggests that problematic social media use and social media appearance preoccupation could all play a role in increased anxiety, depression, and poorer sleep outcomes in young people. However, to our knowledge, few studies have directly examined the associations among all of these variables specifically in the emerging adult population. The current study was designed to examine these associations among 178 emerging adults between the ages of 18 and …

Concrete Crumbles, Drew M. Dzurko

Graduate Artistry Projects and Performances

Concrete Crumbles examines instability within contemporary American political and social life through photography, collage, and installation. Using construction zones and damaged infrastructure as primary subject matter, the project investigates how material transformation and fragmentation can function as metaphors for political precarity, media saturation, and the erosion of civic stability. Photographs are printed on copy paper, physically cut, rearranged, collaged, and scanned into unstable compositions that resist fixed perspective and seamless representation. These processes emphasize labor, impermanence, and reconstruction while challenging photography’s traditional association with objectivity and permanence.

The work is informed by historical and contemporary influences including Brassaï, Germaine Krull, …

Assessing College Tuition And Wage Prospects For Careers In Archaeology, Angelina H. Gutierrez

Honors Capstones

The pressures of rising college tuition are raising questions about whether a degree in higher education is worth the return on investment in today's society and economy. This study aims to acknowledge the issues of affording college and the opportunities granted in the face of college wealth premiums from the perspective of the field of archaeology. The college wealth premium is understood as additionalopportunities and increased salaries offered to those with a degree in higher education compared to those without. Using the Midwestern United States as a case study, I discuss the gender/race wage gap, college debt, loan inequity, and …

Visual Arts And Humanities In Medical Education, Lauren Schild, Craig Uthe

Scholarship Pathways Program

Introduction: In medicine today, physicians are expected to be impartial, emotionally intelligent, and have the observational skills to pick up on and interpret ambiguous body language, skin changes, and hygiene factors which may aid in a diagnosis. However, medical students are often not directly taught these observational or emotional intelligence skills. Art has historically been used by the artist to express thoughts and emotions for themselves and to allow viewers to explore their own feelings. The aim of this course is to provide an opportunity for students to advance their observation and communication skills through the study and creation of …

Assessing Trends In Medical Students’ Perceptions Regarding Statistical Analysis, Ethan Noble, Valeriy Kozmenko, Paul Thompson

Scholarship Pathways Program

Assessing Trends in Medical Students’ Perceptions Regarding Data Analysis and Statistics Knowledge and Skills

Ethan Noble, MD | Mentors: Valeriy Kozmenko, MD, Paul Thompson, PhD

Introduction: The use of evidence-based medicine requires that physicians are able to properly analyze and interpret the results of new research. The development of new research and medical knowledge is swift, and a strong foundation in statistics and research is needed for physicians and medical students to keep up with new research. Curriculum in medical education often lacks in-depth coverage of the subject, and additional curriculum has been shown to enhance student confidence and ability …

Using Geospatial Analysis To Compare Metropolitan Greenspace And Adolescent Obesity, Rachel Schild, Denyelle Kenyon, Zachary Schild

Scholarship Pathways Program

Using Geospatial Analysis and Machine Learning to Compare Metropolitan Greenspace and Rates of Adolescents with Obesity

 Rachel Schild MD | DenYelle Kenyon PhD

 Introduction: Insufficient outdoor activity, influenced by limited access to exercise-friendly greenspaces, may contribute to increasing childhood obesity rates. However, rigorous evaluation of greenspace quality on a citywide scale is lacking. This study aims to characterize greenspace vegetation types and correlate them with adolescent obesity outcomes, identifying optimal characteristics for promoting health. This data could aid city planners in optimizing greenspace allocation and improving vegetation choices.

Methods: Satellite imagery and municipal data were used to map ten cities, …

Fabrication Of Ws₂ Thin Films Via Spray Pyrolysis With Comprehensive Structural, Electrical, And Chemoresistive Analyses Toward No₂ Detection, Chetan R. Yewale, Satish S. Mandawade, Rajendra V. Wagh, Umesh J. Tupe, Sajid Naeem, Arun V. Patil

Polytechnic Journal

Nanostructured metal sulphides are gaining attention as potential materials for resistive chemical sensors due to their high electrical conductivity and chemical stability compared to metal oxides. Among these, tungsten disulfide (WS₂), a transition metal dichalcogenide (TMD), stands out because of its distinctive electrical, optical, and mechanical properties. In this study, WS₂ thin films were synthesized on glass substrates using the spray pyrolysis technique. Structural and electrical characterizations revealed a highly porous, granular morphology with nanoparticle agglomerations, as observed through FESEM. XRD analysis confirmed a well-crystallized hexagonal WS₂ phase with an average crystallite size of 35.81 nm. The films exhibited a …