Digital Commons Network^™

Tax Trends, E. S. Linett

Tax Adviser

No abstract provided.

Pension Reform Act Of 1974: Taxation Of Distributions, Douglas M. Cain, R. Michael Sanchez, Constance L. Hauver, James F. Wood

Tax Adviser

No abstract provided.

Influence Of The Covid-19 Pandemic On Anatomy Higher Education Around The World, Sneh Patel, Santanu De

FDLA Journal

The Coronavirus Infectious Disease 2019 (COVID-19) disrupted the higher education sector worldwide in several disciplines, especially those in healthcare as well as science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) that require active, experiential learning via practical application of concepts centering around anatomy. Dynamic instructional and technological interventions took place rapidly in an effort to minimize the adverse repercussions of moving away from traditional means of education in these critical scientific fields. COVID-19 necessitated administrators, faculty, students, and interns at colleges, universities, medical/ healthcare science programs and residencies to pursue teaching, learning, and assessment of anatomy courses/curricula through innovative strategies without compromising …

Artificial Intelligence (Ai) Additions To Nursing Education: Accommodating The Complexity Of Today’S Populations And Assuring Evidence-Based Pathways Of Patient-Centered Care, Jamie Anne Marcus, Bonnette Villalba Webb, Abigail Pauline Batin Villarroya

FDLA Journal

Predicted demographic changes in the rising older than 65 populations with possible declining mental and physical health mandate adaptations to new professional nursing roles that will incorporate technology, and changing policy environments. Nursing experience, knowledge, and skills will transition to new cognitive pathways to think and process information. Nurses will be supported by artificial intelligence (AI) technologies and become information integrators, health coaches, and continue to be deliverers of human caring. New transition pathways in nursing education to meet the needs of these diverse populations, and patient complex presentations will transcend to synergizing and optimize digital-age healthcare environments and assure …

From Barriers To Bridges: Enhancing Accessibility In Education With Generative Ai, Amy Sugar, Faith Delorenzo

FDLA Journal

Generative artificial intelligence (GAI) tools have the potential to rapidly advance accessibility and Universal Design for Learning (UDL) in K-12 and higher education settings. By effectively crafting prompts and leveraging existing GAI tools, educators and students can reduce barriers for all learners, including those with disabilities. In this paper, we discuss practical strategies and considerations when using GAI to create flexible and engaging learning experiences while building an accessible and inclusive learning environment.

Exploring Mental Health Stigma Among Law Enforcement Officers, Nicholas D. Chestnut

FDLA Journal

This applied dissertation investigates the prevalence and impact of mental health stigma among law enforcement officers (LEOs) in the United States. Despite growing awareness of the importance of mental health in the law enforcement community, stigma surrounding mental illness remains a significant barrier to help-seeking behaviors among officers. The study employed a research design that examined attitudes, perceptions, and experiences related to mental health stigma among LEOs.

Through online self-assessment surveys administered via a secure portal, participants provided insights into their attitudes toward mental illness, perceptions of stigma, and willingness to seek help for mental health concerns.

Data analysis revealed …

Integrating Ai-Llms Into Educational Practices: A Study On Pre-Service Teachers' Readiness And Concerns, Jayrome L. Núñez, Wendell A. Lived, Jomar M. Urbano, Mark Anthony F. Jamisal, Mariecres B. Hontiveros

FDLA Journal

The integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI), particularly Large Language Models (LLMs), into educational practices has become increasingly relevant, influencing pre-service teachers' preparedness and engagement. This study examines the readiness and concerns of pre-service teachers in adopting AI-LLMs for teaching, filling a gap in literature on AI's role in teacher education. Using a cross-tabulation analysis of survey data from 685 respondents across different educational majors and academic levels, the study highlights variations in AI adoption, familiarity, and ethical considerations. Findings indicate that AI engagement grows with academic progression, with Secondary Education majors demonstrating higher adoption rates than Elementary Education majors. While …

On The Influence Of British/American English In The Dominican Society/A Revisited Edition, Pedro J. Tavarez-Dacosta Dr., Fransheska Arias Reyes Lic., Ivanna Del Pilar Tavarez Vasquez Mag.

FDLA Journal

The present work is a historical/linguistic account of an unprecedented fact regarding the existence of two English Speaking Communities [British English and American English], in our country the Dominican Republic, where Spanish is the official and most used language, to the extent of being considered a monolingual nation or country. It is analyzed here, on how the Hispaniola Island was split into two different territories due to different treaties (Aranjuez, Ryswick, among others), held in the old European Metropolis and how the island came to be a French Colony (the territory of what is Haiti now), a Haitian Creole/French speaking …

Artificial Intelligence In The Efl Learning Process For Dominican Higher Education, Pedro J. Tavarez-Dacosta Dr., Fransheska Arias Reyes Lic., Ivanna Del Pilar Tavarez Vasquez Mag.

FDLA Journal

This research work, explores the important incidence that Artificial Intelligence has have in the development of modern higher education and education at all in our country, the Dominican Republic, before, during, and after the Sanitary Emergence brought by the Covid-19 Pandemic. Through this Documentary Research, we examine in details the case of the Dominican Republic as compared to those cases occurred in the international arena, as a means for reflection and understanding of this phenomena called Artificial Intelligence on its different modalities since Computerizing and Internet changed our lives, decades ago. It is the purpose of this work to bring …

Translanguaging Within The Scope Of Dominican Pre-College And College Education, Pedro J. Tavarez-Dacosta Dr., Fransheska Arias Reyes Lic., Ivanna Del Pilar Tavarez Vasquez Mag.

FDLA Journal

Our country, which is today the Dominican Republic, is a Spanish speaking country due to the historical and well known fact that the then Hispaniola Island or Santo Domingo was split into two different colonies by effect of the Aranjuez Treaty (1777), held between the two Colonial Metropolis of Spain and France thus establishing the French occupation of the territory of Haiti to the West and the Spanish territory to the East, and producing therefore the establishing of two different countries with two different languages (Spanish and French), in a land (Quisqueya) in which in pre-Colombian times was occupied by …

Analyzing The Pisa Tests Results (2018) In Terms Of The Revised Bloom’S Taxonomy For The Spanish Reading-Comprehension Area Of Dominican Students., Pedro J. Tavarez-Dacosta Dr., Fransheska Arias Reyes Lic.

FDLA Journal

This work aims to analyze the Results of the PISA Tests for the year 2018 in the Dominican Republic as subministered every three year by the OECD presided over by Dr. Andreas Schleicher, and that it is long awaited both for the Ministry of Education-MINERD-, and as well as for the non-governmental society and the opposition parties, among others. This scenario which is not exclusively of our country puts on the table many questioning as that of, if the country shall continue as part of that program on the light that such testings have been hardly criticized in more developed …

Sociolinguistics Approaches In Efl Teaching Methods For Dominican College Students, Pedro J. Tavarez-Dacosta Dr., Fransheska Arias Reyes Lic.

FDLA Journal

This work is concerned with the effects or pedagogical influences of the so-called Sociolinguistics Approaches on Dominican College education, specifically at three groups of advanced EFL Classes at the State College, that is to say the Universidad Autonoma of Santo Domingo-UASD-, during the last virtual and first semester of this year (2021-1), as a part of the Core Curriculum of the said institution. The emphasis was placed in determining how certain currents of the like had have a considerable influence in both the teacher’s population as well as that of the students, resulting with not a new discovery, that Constructivism …

A Case Study On The Use Of Spelling As A Determining Factor In Teaching English Grammar In Dominican Schools, Pedro J. Tavarez-Dacosta Dr., Fransheska Arias Reyes Lic.

FDLA Journal

English spelling has always been described by many language researchers and teachers as a daunting task especially for learners whose first language is not English. This monograph presents the report of an investigation on the use of spelling, which includes the determining factor of grammar in the teaching of English, in it we will develop a program for observing students and teachers as an initial assessment, (pretest) and the design of the development of said observation as a final evaluation (posttest). This observation was made with the total of 28 students of the sixth grade of Primary School Nuestra Señora …

Language Immersion Programs For Dominican College Students/From The Russian Experience To The Mescyt Experience, Pedro J. Tavarez-Dacosta Dr.

FDLA Journal

The following work consists of a comparative research of two of the most outstanding immersion programs for foreign languages (Russian/English) that Dominican college students have ever undergone. The first one, happened decades ago in the cold distant Union of Soviet Socialist Republic where thousands of our students were sent as scholarship’s recipient to study in different Russian universities, after being selected by the Dominican Communist Party, and sponsored by the Soviet Government. The second one, is still happening in our country with the offering of the so-called English Immersion Program sponsored since 2005 by the Ministry of Higher Education-MESCyT- The …

Methodological Discrepancies In The Teaching/Assessment Process Of Efl At The High School Level In The Dominican Public System, Pedro J. Tavarez-Dacosta Dr.

FDLA Journal

Discrepancies between the processes of Teaching and Assessment of English of the Middle Level. Dr. Pedro Tavárez DaCosta: 2016. Freelance Researcher, for the Regional Office of Education 11-02 in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic Teacher's Evaluation / Evaluation Criteria / Summative and Formative Evaluation / Program for Evaluation Improvement in Language Teaching. This research work consisted in the implementation of a plan in which, by way of treatment, it was possible to improve the levels of assessment competences of the foreign language, of the non-qualified teachers of English of the middle level, Districts 11-01 and 11-02 of the Regional of Education …

Of Standardized Student Measurements And Tests In The Dominican Republic, Pedro J. Tavarez-Dacosta Dr., Fransheska Arias Reyes Lic.

FDLA Journal

The present work seeks to establish a comparison between two different and distant evaluation tools applied to the Dominican student population in order to measure the efficiency of our educational system in the recent years, one of them measured the quality of Dominican education in three areas (the PISA Test), whereas the other tested the quality of the proficiency of the English language (EF English Proficiency Index), both for the pre-college levels. Although one of our cherished ideas was our having analyzed such tests of extreme relevance for us, the EFL Teachers and Professors at many different levels, as the …

Methodological Discrepancies In The Teaching/Assessment Process Of Efl At The High School Level In The Dominican Public System, Pedro J. Tavarez-Dacosta Dr.

FDLA Journal

Discrepancies between the processes of Teaching and Assessment of English of the Middle Level. Dr. Pedro Tavárez DaCosta: 2016. Freelance Researcher, for the Regional Office of Education 11-02 in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic Teacher's Evaluation / Evaluation Criteria / Summative and Formative Evaluation / Program for Evaluation Improvement in Language Teaching. This research work consisted in the implementation of a plan in which, by way of treatment, it was possible to improve the levels of assessment competences of the foreign language, of the non-qualified teachers of English of the middle level, Districts 11-01 and 11-02 of the Regional of Education …

Effectiveness Of The G-T Method In Efl Monolingual Adult Classes At Private Institutes In The City Of Puerto Plata, D.R, Pedro J. Tavarez-Dacosta Dr.

FDLA Journal

The goal of this research is to determine the effectiveness of Grammar -Translation Method on EFL adult learners. The sample of this investigation was based on 30 graduated students as a universe and a sample of 15 which represent the 50% in which 9 of them were female who represent the 60% and 6 male who represent the 40% from Impact Languages Institute. The research used random sampling process to lead this investigation. The findings of this research indicated that there is a positive Correlation between the usage of Grammar Translation Method and both female and male EFL learners. This …

Effectiveness Of The G-T Method In Efl Monolingual Adult Classes At Private Institutes In The City Of Puerto Plata, D.R., Pedro J. Tavarez-Dacosta Dr.

FDLA Journal

The goal of this research is to determine the effectiveness of Grammar -Translation Method on EFL adult learners. The sample of this investigation was based on 30 graduated students as a universe and a sample of 15 which represent the 50% in which 9 of them were female who represent the 60% and 6 male who represent the 40% from Impact Languages Institute. The research used random sampling process to lead this investigation. The findings of this research indicated that there is a positive Correlation between the usage of Grammar Translation Method and both female and male EFL learners. This …

Efl Programs For People With Special Needs In The In Different National Settings, Pedro J. Tavarez-Dacosta Dr.

FDLA Journal

The present work attracted our attention motivated by the need of seeking ways of helping people learning EFL, with certain disabilities than undertaking a research project by itself. The needs for implementing those special program in our country is out of the question, since to the extent that our society and country has been developing in economic, social and political terms, to that extent we have realized the need to become a more inclusive society, more open to sectors with special needs, not only in terms of urban planning, but also in the design of their own educational policies towards …

A Modular Pipeline For Flatbed Content Detection And Localization With Accurate Deskew, Hp Inc

Defensive Publications Series

We present an end-to-end pipeline for localizing and deskewing one or multiple foreground objects (documents, photos, cards, receipts) placed on a flatbed scanner with a white to near-white background. The method integrates iterative morphological contrast shaping (white / black top-hats), gamma-driven diffusion, statistical region merging (SRM), distance-transform based consolidation, and Voronoi-like label propagation. A unified skew estimation interface produces deskewed, refined crops per object. This document mirrors the structural flow of a companion skew orientation disclosure while remaining self-contained and focused on the flatbed multi-object extension.

Proximity-Based Vector Database Sharing For Enhanced Rag Systems, Hp Inc

Defensive Publications Series

This disclosure proposal introduces a system for enhancing Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) systems by enabling proximity-based sharing of vector databases among devices. Leveraging Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) for device discovery and Wi-Fi Direct for high-speed data transfer, this system eliminates the limitations of isolated local vector stores and the privacy risks associated with cloud-based solutions. Key features include local library generation, secure proximity-based discovery, and dynamic integration of shared libraries. The decentralized and privacy-preserving architecture ensures secure collaboration in dynamic environments, transforming the scope of information retrieval in workplaces, classrooms, and beyond.

Wearable Docking Station For Head-Mounted Display, Karen Jean Kwan, Jasmine Soria Sears, Atieh Taghavinia, Rebecca Spiegel

Defensive Publications Series

As disclosed herein, a wearable docking station for a head-mounted display is provided. The wearable docking station may include a first arm of a neckband conforming to a neck of a user. The wearable docking station may include a second arm of the neckband conforming to the neck of the user. The wearable docking station may include a central portion of the neckband connecting the first arm and the second arm. The wearable docking station may include at least one interface for docking a head-mounted display (HMD) when the HMD is removed from a head of the user. A system …

Outdoor Optical Distribution Frame, N/A

Defensive Publications Series

The technology described in this publication relates to a high-density, weather-proof optical distribution frame (“ODF”) that enables network setup outdoors in parallel with data center construction, designed to accelerate machine learning (ML) data center capacity delivery. This frame eliminates the need to wait for lengthy building completion before initiating network deployment. By enabling earlier network readiness, this frame has the potential to shorten overall data center delivery timelines by 3 to 6 months.

Probabilistic Identity Filter For Offline, Privacy-Preserving, Contact-Based Nearby Device Discovery, Dave Mccloskey, Darren Krahn, Joon Young Seo, Kevin Yeo

Defensive Publications Series

A core component of offline, private, contact-based discovery is requiring the two devices to perform a cryptographic protocol known as private set intersection (PSI) between a list of identifiers stored at a first device and the address book of known contacts stored at a second device. However, PSI is computationally expensive. This disclosure describes a probabilistic identity filter for devices. A device can encode a set of identities using this filter that enables other devices to check if their identity belongs in this filter with no false negatives and only small false positive probabilities, while ensuring that other devices cannot …

Research On Play-Based Learning In Mathematics, Natalia Do Prado Leite Ribeiro Cleto

Transformations

This paper addresses the importance of using a play-based learning (PBL) approach when teaching mathematics in elementary schools, reinforcing its benefits such as the acquisition and development of concepts, the enhancement of students’ problem-solving skills, and the increase of students’ motivation to learn (Russo, Bragg and Russo, 2020). It explores one of the main causes for math learning difficulties in early learning and explores a possible solution using a play-based approach. This paper also provides a few strategies that can be used by teachers to implement a successful play-based approach in the classroom.

Facilitating Trauma Informed Practices In Intermediate Algebra, Ruthmae Sears, Kelley Cummings, Sandra Vernon-Jackson, Keisha Albritton, Alfredo Rodriguez-Vera, Chuqian Song

Transformations

As a programmatic evaluation effort, we examined the extent to which Intermediate Algebra instructors promoted trauma-informed practices. Data were garnered from 230 students enrolled in Intermediate Algebra in Fall 2024 via a Trauma Informed Practices Survey and a survey about the impact of Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton. The quantitative data was analyzed using frequencies, and the qualitative data were analyzed using open coding and thematic analysis. The results suggest that students generally perceive their instructors exhibited trauma-informed care. The results have implications for providing adequate support and resources to ensure all students learn mathematics.

The Indiana Statesman, October 23, 2025, Indiana State University

Student Newspaper

Provost Olsen to leave Indiana State University; Creativity Corner Contest; Indiana State bookstore is moving to HMSU

Kenyon Collegian - October 23, 2025

The Kenyon Collegian

No abstract provided.

Radiomics For Dynamic Lung Cancer Risk Prediction In Uspstf-Ineligible Patients, Morteza Salehjahromi, Hui Li, Eman Showkatian, Maliazurina B Saad, Mohamed Qayati, Sherif M Ismail, Sheeba J Sujit, Amgad Muneer, Muhammad Aminu, Lingzhi Hong, Xiaoyu Han, Simon Heeke, Tina Cascone, Xiuning Le, Natalie Vokes, Don L Gibbons, Iakovos Toumazis, Edwin J Ostrin, Mara B Antonoff, Ara A Vaporciyan, David Jaffray, Fernando U Kay, Brett W Carter, Carol C Wu, Myrna C B Godoy, J Jack Lee, David E Gerber, John V Heymach, Jianjun Zhang, Jia Wu

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Non-smokers and individuals with minimal smoking history represent a significant proportion of lung cancer cases but are often overlooked in current risk assessment models. Pulmonary nodules are commonly detected incidentally-appearing in approximately 24-31% of all chest CT scans regardless of smoking status. However, most established risk models, such as the Brock model, were developed using cohorts heavily enriched with individuals who have substantial smoking histories. This limits their generalizability to non-smoking and light-smoking populations, highlighting the need for more inclusive and tailored risk prediction strategies. Purpose: We aimed to develop a longitudinal radiomics-based approach for lung cancer …