Digital Commons Network^™

Health Policies Within The Poverty Agendas Of Lula And Rousseff, Welington Lazarini, Francis Sodré, Carlos Eduardo Siqueira

Gastón Institute Publications

The anti-poverty agenda has been at the heart of the World Bank’s discourse in recent decades. Social policies started to be identified as strategic for combating poverty and promoting development in poor countries. We analyzed the health policy recommendations made by the World Bank to Brazil in the Lula da Silva and Rousseff administrations from 2003 to 2014. Document analysis was used to explore the partnership contracts between the World Bank and Brazil, projects financed by the World Bank in Brazil, and the document “20 Years of Construction of the Health System in Brazil: An Analysis of the Unified Health …

Training Underrepresented Minority Students For Careers In Public Health Leadership – Public Health Leaders Fellowship Program, Jigsa Tola

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Background: Shortage and lack of diversity in the United States public health workforce is well documented and remains a challenge to meaningfully improving the health of the population. Although the diversity of the public health workforce has implications for access, care quality, and career opportunities in low-income communities, there is no strong mechanism by which minorities are trained to replenish the workforce. Morehouse College’s Public Health Leaders Fellowship Program (MC-PHLFP) is a cooperative program with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to train undergraduate students for careers in public health leadership.

Purpose: The purpose of this research is …

Investigating Flash Flood Occurrence Using Negative Binomial Models In Maryland, United States Of America, Zainab O. Akinsemoyin

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Globally, as extreme weather patterns intensify, flash floods have emerged as one of the most destructive and immediate environmental threats. In Maryland, flash floods are particularly concerning due to its diverse topography and increasing urban development, which exacerbates runoff and overwhelms drainage systems. The state has experienced significant flash flood events, highlighting the need for effective models to manage risks and inform mitigation strategies. While regression models such as the Negative Binomial (NB) and Zero-Inflated Negative Binomial (ZINB) are commonly used for count data analysis, their application to flash flood modeling in the USA, including regions like Maryland, remains limited …

A Philosophical Look Into The Morality And Legality Of Abortion, Alexis J. Agnew

Honors College Theses

In his Nicomachean Ethics, Greek philosopher Aristotle posits an understanding of ethics and how human life is characterized by the “good.” Aristotle argues that (I) ethics involve humans possessing a rational capacity and specific function; (II) ethics are habitual, and the “doctrine of the mean” is used to gauge proper action; and (III) justice is linked to virtue. A moral issue that can be analyzed through Aristotle’s Ethics, as well as works of contemporary philosophers, is abortion. Abortion has been a controversial topic and has been brought before the Supreme Court to determine its morality and legality. Using …

Eagle Executive Magazine, Georgia Southern University

College of Business: News & Publications

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• Feature: Corporate Culture Series
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Dancing Around And Through Harm: Examining The Lived Experiences Of Women Of Colour With Gender-Based Violence In The Toronto & Kitchener-Waterloo Latin Dance Communities, Lexi Salt

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Given the systemic nature of gender-based violence in Canada, as well as the increasing popularity of Latin dance, it is important to better understand the particular and culturally-specific ways gender-based violence manifests itself within the Latin dance community. This research study examines the lived experiences of women of colour with gender-based violence in the Toronto and Kitchener-Waterloo Latin dance communities. Two groups of participants took part in semi-structured interviews: 14 women of colour dancers, and six “Power Players”, leaders in the Latin dance community who are in a position of power (e.g., instructors, organizers, DJs). The data was analyzed using …

"Better Equipped"? Examining The Role Of Social Work In Clinical Countering Violent Extremism, David Yuzva Clement

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Hate and violent extremism persist in communities, online environments, and societies across the globe. In addition to their most violent expressions, including hate crimes, extremist and terrorist violence, these phenomena wield severe negative, detrimental, traumatic, and intergenerational impacts. Grounded in evidenced-based policy, comprehensive prevention and intervention efforts, as well as the transfer of knowledge across scientific disciplines, a whole-of-society approach is fundamental to prevent and counter hatred, violence, and extremism. Although violent radicalization and associated societal problems are advancing at unprecedented speeds, preventing and countering violent extremism (P/CVE) is an emerging intervention field in behavioural health and social sciences. While …

Collateral Consequences And The Bars Outside Of Incarceration: An Assessment Of Massachusetts State Policies Surrounding Reentry, Nisa Rivera

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

How do Massachusetts policies impose collateral consequences for people with felony convictions and/or periods of incarceration? Previous research shows that having some form of a criminal record can make it harder to obtain housing, employment, and other sectors of life. Research was conducted to examine how Massachusetts policies restrict access to necessary resources that would otherwise allow returning citizens to become self-sufficient. Assessments were made regarding civic engagement, housing, higher education, employment, occupational licensing, and government assistance. The presence of a collateral consequence was based on whether a felony conviction was taken into consideration or served as a disqualifier, whether …

Holding States Accountable: An Analytical Review Of Reintegrative Laws, Policies And Programs For Felons And Ex-Offenders, Samira Kerkach

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

It is past due that states and the federal government take accountability for the gaps in reintegration of felons into society and begin seeking justice for these communities. In an overview of the political marginalization of criminal felony offenders, Leonor (2022) asserts that because of the significant impact of felon disenfranchisement laws on Black Americans, it is evident that this issue is complicated and proportions on racialized lines, meaning that modern felon disenfranchisement laws disproportionately affect communities of color, and therefore dilutes the political power of these underrepresented communities. There are more barriers to the successful reintegration of felons besides …

The Constitutionality Of Barring Undocumented Immigrants From Second Amendment Protections, Abby Vorhees

American University Law Review

Under current federal law, undocumented immigrants remain unable to access one of the most fundamental rights contained within our Constitution: the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms. Several undocumented immigrants have challenged the constitutionality of the federal prohibition (18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(5)(A)), resulting in a three-way circuit split on whether undocumented immigrants are protected by the Second Amendment. The Supreme Court, however, has remained silent on the issue, leaving undocumented immigrants unprotected.

The Supreme Court’s 2022 Second Amendment decision, N.Y. State Pistol & Rifle Ass’n v. Bruen, upended the traditional method of constitutional review, means-end scrutiny, in favor …

A Descriptive Study Of The Perception Of Emerging Adults Aged 18-25 Years Toward Police Efficacy And Image In The United States, Jude Louis

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions of emerging adults toward police efficacy and image. The study was descriptive, used quantitative methodology, and utilized a non-experimental design. Close-ended questions were used in an online format to survey emerging adults aged 18-25 years in the United States. The data was collected using the SurveyMonkey Audience, which was relatively cost-effective, able to gather information from the target audience within a short period of time, and efficient with any sample size. The study occurred over two months in 2024. Emerging adults in the United States aged 18-25 years irrespective of …

Spouse Violence In Case Of Police Officers In Puerto Rico: Violence In Police Families, Jorge Ismael Suarez

Theses and Dissertations

This applied dissertation was designed to explore the relationship between factors related to police work and whether these factors help predict domestic violence in a sample of officers of the Puerto Rico Police. The following factors were explored in this study: external burnout, alcohol abuse, department withdrawal, and authoritarian spillover. This study was based on a previous study by Johnson et al. (2005), which revealed that violence exposure and domestic violence among police officers are linked according to four mediation chains. The mediation chain was a model implemented by the authors to determine the influence of burnout, authoritarian spillover, alcohol …

Examining Digital Hostility Against Black Women: A Thematic Analysis Of The Black Manosphere On Twitter, Nekea Sanders

Theses and Dissertations

The Manosphere is a collective of powerfully influential men who create and control harmful narratives about women online. Individuals within the Manosphere are disseminating their beliefs and garnering support through various online platforms, including social media. This research study sheds light on the Black Manosphere, a group within the Manosphere that has gone under the radar, despite the detrimental and toxic content they publish online about Black women. This qualitative research study examined the hostile rhetoric published by the Black Manosphere on Twitter (now X) about Black women. The research questions guiding this qualitative examination were: (1) What types and …

A Qualitative Study: Sex Offenders’ Perceptions Of The State’S Sex Offender Registry, Ann Marie Elliott

Theses and Dissertations

Sex offender registries (SOR) were created because of gruesome crimes committed against minors and the vulnerable, and they serve as a punishment. Empirically, SORs have become more functional over the years, so providing accurate information should be fundamental. It is the topic of discussion in many conversations, specifically during holidays and events involving minors, and it is used for background searches and ongoing investigations. Consequently, society expects the information displayed to be precise. Inaccurate information can potentially be harmful, especially to sex offenders. Nevertheless, when SOR is mentioned, rightfully so, society, including law enforcement, immediately exhibits sympathetic emotions for the …

Pressure Points: A Quantitative Study Of Young Adults Perception Of Police Officers, Yasmean Talas

Theses and Dissertations

This study aimed to quantify factors contributing to young adults' perceptions of law enforcement based on their experiences and exchanges with police. Data were collected via an online survey from young adults to assess variables such as peer influence, familial influence, social media impact, police interactions, and perceptions of law enforcement (POPS).

On average, participants exhibited neutral perceptions of law enforcement. The analyses revealed significant relationships between family influence, social media impact, police interactions, and POPS scores. Specifically, family and police interactions showed significantly positive associations with POPS scores, indicating that strong family bonds and positive police interactions tend to …

Exploring The Differences In Military Attitudes Toward Rape Myths And Their Relationship To Demographic Factors, Essence Anderson

Theses and Dissertations

Military sexual assault crimes, including rape, attempted sexual assault, unwanted sexual contact, and sexual harassment, have continued to increase over the last few decades. The issue has become problematic enough for the Department of Defense to allocate a significant amount of money for sexual assault resources. Specifically, the Department of Defense gives millions of dollars each year for the prevention and training of sexual assault, yet the issue continues to persist. There is a lack of understanding of the posture of service members' attitudes toward sexual assault and if certain demographics differ in their attitudes toward rape myths. While sexual …

Benthic Landers In Oceanography – The Design And Justification Of A Multi-Use Novel Benthic Lander System, David M. Nadeau

Open Access Master's Theses

Benthic lander systems can empower researchers with access to long-term high-resolution data streams in challenging to access marine environments. In recent years, landers have emerged as key components for oceanographic research, particularly in the deep ocean due to their ability to work autonomously over long periods. However, these systems are expensive and complex, requiring specialized equipment and knowledge to design, develop, deploy, and recover that reduces broad accessibility to ocean data. Lightweight, cost effective, and multi-use benthic lander systems have the potential to provide economical platforms that reduce logistical barriers to support the next generation of oceanographic research. This project …

Cross-Temporal Hierarchical Forecast Reconciliation Of Natural Gas Demand, Colin O. Quinn, George F. Corliss, Richard J. Povinelli

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Local natural gas distribution companies (LDCs) require accurate demand forecasts across various time periods, geographic regions, and customer class hierarchies. Achieving coherent forecasts across these hierarchies is challenging but crucial for optimal decision making, resource allocation, and operational efficiency. This work introduces a method that structures the gas distribution system into cross-temporal hierarchies to produce accurate and coherent forecasts. We apply our method to a case study involving three operational regions, forecasting at different geographical levels and analyzing both hourly and daily frequencies. Trained on five years of data and tested on one year, our model achieves a 10% reduction …

Privacy-Preserving Pedestrian Movement Analysis In Complex Public Spaces, Kunchala Anil

Doctoral

Every journey starts and ends with a walking phase. As a fundamental mode of transportation, it plays a crucial role in the functioning of urban societies. Cities should strive to create public spaces that promote walking by designing pedestrian-friendly infrastructure that is accessible, safe, and convenient for all. An essential step in designing pedestrian-friendly infrastructure is understanding pedestrian usage patterns and behaviour in existing public spaces and infrastructure.

Empowering Urban Traffic Management: Elevated 3d Lidar For Data Collection And Advanced Object Detection Analysis, Nawfal Guefrachi, Hakim Ghazzai, Ahmad Alsharoa

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The 3D object detection capabilities in urban environments have been enormously improved by recent developments in Light Detection and Range (LiDAR) technology. This paper presents a novel framework that transforms the detection and analysis of 3D objects in traffic scenarios by utilizing the power of elevated LiDAR sensors. We are presenting our methodology's remarkable capacity to collect complex 3D point cloud data, which allows us to accurately and in detail capture the dynamics of urban traffic. Due to the limitation in obtaining real-world traffic datasets, we utilize the simulator to generate 3D point cloud for specific scenarios. To support our …

Deep Learning For Uav Detection And Classification Via Radio Frequency Signal Analysis, Prajoy Podder, Maciej Zawodniok, Sanjay Madria

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) are advertised as great tool that benefits society and humanity. However, UAVs also pose significant security threats ranging from privacy invasions, to interfering with commercial aircraft landing and takeoff, to accidently crashing into vehicles or people, to military or terrorist attacks. Consequently, there is a pressing need to detect and identify UAVs to mitigate such potential risks. While image-based methods are crucial for UAV detection, radio frequency (RF) emissions offer additional valuable insights. Analyzing RF signals, such as those used in UAV-ground station communications, can provide information about UAV types based on distinct frequency usage or …

Enhancing Water Safety: Exploring Recent Technological Approaches For Drowning Detection, Salman Jalalifar, Andrew Belford, Eila Erfani, Amir Razmjou, Rouzbeh Abbassi, Masoud Mohseni-Dargah, Mohsen Asadnia

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Drowning poses a significant threat, resulting in unexpected injuries and fatalities. To promote water sports activities, it is crucial to develop surveillance systems that enhance safety around pools and waterways. This paper presents an overview of recent advancements in drowning detection, with a specific focus on image processing and sensor-based methods. Furthermore, the potential of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning algorithms (MLAs), and robotics technology in this field is explored. The review examines the technological challenges, benefits, and drawbacks associated with these approaches. The findings reveal that image processing and sensor-based technologies are the most effective approaches for drowning detection …

Filling The Gap: The Case For Driver's Licenses As A Lifeline To Opportunity For Undocumented Immigrants Where The Federal Government Fails To Act On Comprehensive Immigration Reform, David Peraza

FIU Law Review

The federal government has repeatedly failed at passing comprehensive immigration reform, which would provide basic benefits to the undocumented population in the U.S, including driver’s licenses. Various states have made attempts to provide undocumented immigrants with driver’s licenses. This work address the benefits and drawbacks of these policies and ultimately posits that holdout states should enact policies to provide driver’s licenses to undocumented immigrants in the face of the federal government’s inaction.

Inadequate Demonstration: Epa’S Latest Effort To Force A Clean Energy Transition On The Power Sector Rests On Technologies That Have Not Been Adequately Demonstrated, Mario Loyola

FIU Law Review

The Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) proposed regulations of power plant carbon emissions under Section 111 of the Clean Air Act, which were proposed in May of 2023, raise a number of concerns. The proposed regulations target a transition in the U.S. power sector towards clean energy, relying heavily on Carbon Capture & Storage (CCS) and green hydrogen technologies to achieve nearly net zero carbon emissions from existing fossil fuel power plants. These technologies, however, do not seem to satisfy the Section 111 requirement that the Best System of Emissions Reduction (BSER) be adequately demonstrated at the scale and for the …

Using Information Technology For Comprehensive Analysis And Prediction In Forensic Evidence, Faris Kamil Hasan Mihna, Mustafa Abdulfattah Habeeb, Yahya Layth Khaleel, Yasir Hussein Ali, Yasir Hussein Ali

Mesopotamian Journal of CyberSecurity

With the escalation of cybercriminal activities, the demand for forensic investigations into these crimes has grown significantly. However, the concept of systematic pre-preparation for potential forensic examinations during the software design phase, known as forensic readiness, has only recently gained attention. Against the backdrop of surging urban crime rates, this study aims to conduct a rigorous and precise analysis and forecast of crime rates in Los Angeles, employing advanced Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies. This research amalgamates diverse datasets encompassing crime history, various socio-economic indicators, and geographical locations to attain a comprehensive understanding of how crimes manifest within the city. Leveraging …

Disability, Race, And Immigration: The Intersectional Impact Of Policing, Tania N. Valdez

GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works

Law enforcement officers commonly must respond to situations in which a person is experiencing acute symptoms of a mental illness. Yet from the first moment of police involvement, these community members face the possibility of negative outcomes. Consequences include officers' use of excessive force leading to injury or death, criminal arrest and prosecution that results in deprivation of liberty, separation from the community, and the creation of a permanent criminal record that affects other rights.

Although potential violence and criminalization are important reasons to avoid relying on police during mental health events, another key consideration is often ignored in the …

Revisioning Algorithms As A Black Feminist Project, Ngozi Okidegbe

Faculty Scholarship

We live in an age of predictive algorithms.¹ Jurisdictions across the country are utilizing algorithms to make or influence life-altering decisions in a host of governmental decision-making processes—criminal justice, education, and social assistance to name a few.² One justification given for this algorithmic turn concerns redressing historical and current inequalities within governmental decision-making.³ The hope is that the predictions produced by these predictive systems can correct this problem by providing decision-makers with the information needed to make fairer, more accurate, and consistent decisions.⁴ For instance, jurisdictions claim that their turn to risk assessment algorithms in bail, …

Human Rights In Hospitals: An End To Routine Shackling, Neil Singh Bedi, Nisha Mathur, Judy D. Wang, Avital Rech, Nancy Gaden, George J. Annas, Sondra S. Crosby

Faculty Scholarship

Medical students (NSB, NM, JDW) spearheaded revision of the policy and clinical practice for shackling incarcerated patients at Boston Medical Center (BMC), the largest safety net hospital in New England. In American hospitals, routine shackling of incarcerated patients with metal restraints is widespread—except for perinatal patients—regardless of consciousness, mobility, illness severity, or age. The modified policy includes individualized assessments and allows incarcerated patients to be unshackled if they meet defined criteria. The students also formed the Stop Shackling Patients Coalition (SSP Coalition) of clinicians, public health practitioners, human rights advocates, and community members determined to humanize the inpatient treatment of …

A Reasonable And Well-Reasoned Teaching Tool In Unreasonable Times, Jasmine Gonzales Rose

Faculty Scholarship

Devon Carbado’s most recent book, Unreasonable: Black Lives, Police Power, and the Fourth Amendment, is a must-read for anyone studying or concerned with criminal procedure or policing. Unlike some of Professor Carbado’s other work, the brilliance of this book is not necessarily new conceptualizations or theorizations—for which he is well known—but rather centers on accessible pedagogy. If you have studied race and policing, you are not likely to find a new case, study, or reference to scholarship in the book. But, you are going to understand anti-Black racism, policing, the Fourth Amendment, and their intersections better than you did …

Hidden In Plain Sight: Redefining The Field Of National Security, Aziza Ahmed

Faculty Scholarship

Throughout his campaign for presidency, Trump called for a ban on Muslims entering the United States. As President, he kept his word. Only days after he took office, the new administration released the first version of the Executive Order: Protecting the Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry Into the United States. The first Executive Order, however, did not say the word Muslim. Instead, it listed only Muslim-majority countries as necessary for restrictions on entry. The Executive Order also trafficked in stereotypes about Muslims, such as the need to ban people who engage in acts of "bigotry or hatred," including honor killings. …