Digital Commons Network^™

The Brca1/Brca2 Test: A Swiss And American Analysis Of The Effective Facilitation Of Genetic Healthcare Equity For Breast Cancer Prevention, Elizabeth Cahill

Switzerland: Global Health and Development Policy

This paper investigates the accessibility and equity of BRCA1/BRCA2 genetic testing in Switzerland and the United States—two high-income nations with vastly different healthcare models. While genetic testing for breast cancer prevention has the potential to save lives through early detection and targeted interventions, access to such services remains uneven. This study uses a comparative approach to analyze how healthcare systems, insurance structures, psychological barriers, genetic literacy, and the vocational mobility of genetic counseling shape the extent to which individuals can access BRCA testing. Primary data were collected through expert interviews with a Swiss health economist and a French genetic counselor …

Switzerland’S Approach To Combating Addiction To Opiates, And Its Application To The United States Framework, Vittoria Volpi

Switzerland: Global Health and Development Policy

The opioid epidemic remains a pressing global public health challenge, with a hypothesized 1.2 million opioid-related fatalities in the United States alone, by 2029 (Rao et al., 2021). In the United States, the epidemic was driven by the overprescription of opioid pain medications in the 1990s. In contrast, in Switzerland, the opioid crisis stemmed from heroin imports and open-air drug scenes in the late 20th century. This research project analyzes Switzerland's national response to opioid abuse—specifically its Four Pillar Approach—and evaluates its potential applicability within the context of the United States. Using a qualitative research design, the study draws on …

Building Resilient Vaccine Cold Chains In Sub-Saharan Africa, Maya Tilley

Switzerland: Global Health and Development Policy

The world has made great strides in public health in the past century, with the introduction of vaccines revolutionizing preventative care. Continued research and development has allowed for increased vaccine roll-out, but with a growing number of people to vaccinate, immunization supply chains have struggled to keep up. The cold chain–the systems of refrigeration that keep vaccines cool–is a key facet of the global immunization supply chain. Most vaccines require storage between 2 and 8 degrees Celsius, throughout their whole journey from manufacture to the last-mile. Insufficient cold chain management and technology has led to considerable vaccine wastage, while many …

Blanket Statements, Issue 168, Spring 2025

Blanket Statements: News Publication of the American Quilt Study Group

Blanket Statements, Issue 168, Spring 2025

Commonly Encountered Insect Pests Of Virginia, Angel Almaas

Department of Entomology: Distance Master of Science Projects

Foreword

The goal of this pamphlet is to provide an outline of over 50 commonly encountered pest species that occur in Virginia. Care was given to represent each category of pest. This is by no means an exhaustive list of insect pests in Virginia. However, the profiles chosen are reflective of data from insect inventories performed on military bases in coastal Virginia (Fort Eustis, Langley Air Force Base, and Camp Pendleton), sampling from counties in central Virginia, insect species diversity surveys performed in northern Virginia, annual species counts of vector surveillance data from the Virginia Department of Health, and information …

A Comprehensive Catalog Of The Important Insects Found Within The Usa's National Parks, Raven Patrick

Department of Entomology: Distance Master of Science Projects

To fulfill the Masters in Entomology Masters Project requirement, I chose to focus on creating a list of the important insects found within the National Parks of the United States. Important insects, although subjective, was grouped into four categories for my project: Keystone Insect Species, Invasive Insect Species, Insect Species of Conservation Concern, and Culturally Significant Insect Species. Keystone insects include those that are important parts of ecosystems and who which without would cause a significant upset to the food web. Invasive insect species includes those that are introduced into parks accidentally, usually through anthropogenic means, and are causing ecological …

What’S Past Is Prologue: The Effects Of Shelby County V. Holder In Georgia, Jane Delworth

SLU Law Journal Online

The Supreme Court’s decision in Shelby County v. Holder, which struck down Section 4 and, by extension, Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, created a clear path for discriminatory voting laws to take hold. This article explores how the Supreme Court decision paved the way for second-generation barriers to voting, which legally diminish the influence of minority voters and in some cases, effectively block their participation altogether. It also examines Georgia’s role as a key state advancing these second-generation barriers to voting, alongside proposed legislation aimed at preventing these discriminatory practices before they can impact voters.

Amendment 7 Ballot Candy And The Single Subject Rule: How The Legislative Supermajority Amended The State Constitution To Limit Voter Choice, Joshua A. Jones

SLU Law Journal Online

During the most recent general election, Missouri voters passed Amendment 7, a legislative ballot measure which erected bulwarks around an election process that limits voter choice. This article will discuss some of Missouri’s constitutional protections against deceptive ballot provision packages, specifically the single subject rule, as well as why they necessarily fall short of total efficacy. It does not argue for a more stringent application of the rules, because doing so would have implications for one of Missourians’ most powerful tools of direct democracy. The paper will examine Amendment 7 for its use of “ballot candy” that legislators successfully dangled …

Reshaping Future: Research Progress And Future Prospects Of Disruptive Technology Topics, Sanhong Deng, Jianming Guo, Yujie Shi

Journal of Scientific Information Research

[Purpose/significance]Disruptive technology is regarded as a revolutionary force that "changes the rules of the game" and "reshapes the future pattern", and has gradually become a hot and difficult issue in interdisciplinary research. This paper summarizes the literature related to disruptive technologies, clarifies the concepts and characteristics of disruptive technologies, subdivides research topics and directions, summarizes research focuses and looks forward to future development trends, and provides reference for relevant personnel. [Method/ process]On the basis of sorting out the latest related research on disruptive technologies, this paper clarifies the research progress of disruptive technologies from three aspects: the concept and characteristics …

Analysis Of Collaborative Networks Of Distinguished Scientists Based On Strong And Super Relationships：A Case Study Of Nobel Prize Winners, Junwan Liu, Rui Zhang, Hongzhe Sui

Journal of Scientific Information Research

[Purpose/significance]Scientific cooperation has become an important feature to promote scientific and tech⁃nological breakthroughs and original innovation. Exploring the laws and patterns of scientific cooperation among distinguished scientists can help provide decision-making references for the country to cultivate leading talents and establish high-performance teams. [Method/process]In this paper, we take 145 Nobel Prize winners in natural sciences from 1990 to 2010 as research objects, identify the strong and super relationships in their scientific cooperation and construct their cooperation networks. It further applies social network analysis and network recursive decomposition to analyse the quantitative characteristics of strong and super-relationships of Nobel Laureates and …

Relationship Between Academic Influence And Institutional Cooperation In Specific Fields：Evidence From The Computer Science Domain, Yukai Yang, Yi Zhao, Chengzhi Zhang

Journal of Scientific Information Research

[Purpose/ significance]In scientific collaboration, institutions are the primary driving units of scientific research. Compared to intra-institutional collaboration, inter-institutional collaboration often has the potential to produce high-impact papers. Therefore, studying fine-grained collaboration at the institutional level holds significant importance.[Method/process]To explore the relationship between different types of institutional cooperation and academic influence, this paper classifies institutions and defines various types of cooperation. Using network analysis methods, it investigates the relationship between network indicators of different types of institutional cooperation and academic influence. [Result/conclusion]Taking the computer science domain as an example, the analysis of the relationship between network indicators of different types of …

Research On Emergency Intelligence Risk Traceability From The Perspective Of Three Dimensional Space, Yizhou Liu, Wei Huang

Journal of Scientific Information Research

[Purpose/significance]How to leverage the high value of intelligent intelligence technology and services for risk traceability analysis in the context of large-scale emergency situations is an urgent challenge that needs to be addressed in the governance of risks in an intelligent society. [Method/process]Based on the theory of ternary space, the risk of emergencies is divided into three dimensions: physical space, social space, and information space. Intelligent intelligence technologies such as large model causal relationship extraction, complex network analysis, and natural language processing are applied to collect and analyze emergency intelligence. A risk traceability model is constructed for seven elements including event …

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Mitigation Through Education: A Brain-Based Learning Approach, Marisa S. Paglino

PhD in Education

Prior research has indicated a noteworthy relationship between post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), working memory (WM) function, and quality of life (QOL) among individuals who have experienced traumatic events within their lifetime. Despite much prior research focusing primarily on adult combat veterans of war, minimal data exists evaluating the effects of traumatic events in civilians who have yet to pass the age of complete neurological development (25 years or age). The present study aimed to evaluate the differences in trauma perception, perception of WM function, and perception of QOL among college students in Florida. Using descriptive statistics, based on the type …

On The Borders: Black Women’S Multiple And Competing Social Identities And Expectations, And The Impact On Their Intragroup Leadership And Relational Experiences, Clover Baker-Brown

PhD in Organizational Leadership

Black women in the United States are often portrayed as a monolithic and unified group—defined primarily by racial identity and expectations of a shared understanding of common experiences. However, while racial identity is frequently foregrounded in public discourse, this framing often overlooks the overlapping of Black women’s multiple identities and the influence on their sense of belonging in their various groups. This omission can be subtle yet misleading. How Black women choose to self-identify may result in competing expectations or intragroup mistrust, which can impact their overall leadership and relational experiences. Black women's social identities are diverse, vibrant, and transcend …

Standardizing Social Determinants Of Health Factors From Heterogeneous Sources To Improve Data Fairness, Yifang Dang

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Social Determinants of Health (SDoH) significantly influence health outcomes, yet their representation in computational models remains fragmented. This dissertation addresses this gap by constructing an SDoH ontology (SDoHO), leveraging it to improve large language model (LLM) performance, and using LLMs to extract new knowledge and enrich the ontology. The overarching goal is to establish a feedback loop where ontology development enhances LLM-based extraction, and LLM-derived insights refine and expand the ontology. The methodology is structured across three aims: (1) ontology construction, (2) ontology-assisted LLM enhancement, and (3) LLM-driven ontology enrichment, with a focus on Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD). …

Development And Evaluation Of The Da Vinci Ai Tutor: Enhancing Accessibility And Personalized Learning In Art History Education, James Hutson, Tiffani Barner

Faculty Scholarship

This study examines the implementation of the Da Vinci AI Tutor, an innovative artificial intelligence (AI)-based tutoring platform designed specifically for enhancing personalized and accessible learning in art history within higher education. Launched in Fall 2024 at a private liberal arts institution in the Midwest, the system integrates a conversational AI avatar modeled after Leonardo da Vinci, incorporating immersive virtual reality environments and multimodal interaction capabilities to engage students across undergraduate survey courses, advanced Renaissance classes, and graduate comprehensive exam preparations. Addressing significant gaps in existing humanities education research, the current study explores two primary research questions: (i) How AI-driven …

Government-Backed Insurance For Artificial Intelligence Technologies, Renee Henson

Faculty Publications

Artificial intelligence (AI) is an unpredictable technology that has the capacity to both help and harm people. Although insurance plays a key role in compensating for harms in other contexts, AI-produced damages evade traditional principles of risk pricing which limits viable commercial insurance coverage. AI requires modified insurance systems that can compensate diverse and unpredictable losses. Just like AI, at one time nuclear energy was viewed as a new and profitable, yet wholly unpredictable, technology that had the capacity to cause devastating harm. AI poses similar threats to society in certain domains, including, for example, health care (e.g., risk management …

A Compendium Of Human Gene Functions Derived From Evolutionary Modelling., Marc Feuermann, Huaiyu Mi, Pascale Gaudet, Anushya Muruganujan, Suzanna E Lewis, Dustin Ebert, Tremayne Mushayahama, Gene Ontology Consortium, Paul D Thomas

Faculty Research 2025

A comprehensive, computable representation of the functional repertoire of all macromolecules encoded within the human genome is a foundational resource for biology and biomedical research. The Gene Ontology Consortium has been working towards this goal by generating a structured body of information about gene functions, which now includes experimental findings reported in more than 175,000 publications for human genes and genes in experimentally tractable model organisms 1,2 . Here, we describe the results of a large, international effort to integrate all of these findings to create a representation of human gene functions that is as complete and accurate as possible. …

Footloose: The Musical, Otterbein Theatre And Dance Department

2024-2025 Season Productions

No abstract provided.

Comparative Analysis Of Municipal Fragmentation: Economic Impacts Of St. Louis And Louisville Metro Regions Since 2000, Jason C. Sides, James A. Newman

Missouri Policy Journal

No abstract provided.

Missouri Policy Journal -Volume 2, Issue 2 (2025) -Full Issue, Lindenwood University

Missouri Policy Journal

No abstract provided.

Peak Wokeness In Legal Scholarship: An Empirical Analysis Of Recent Trends In Progressive Topics, Michael Conklin

California Western Law Review

No abstract provided.

Usm Franco-American Collection Newsletter April 2025, Franco-American Collection

Franco-American Collection Newsletters

This monthly newsletter highlights news from the Franco-American Community. If you have any events, conversation groups, or other resources you’d like mentioned, please reach out to Anna at [email protected]. Do you have any suggestions as to the name of the newsletter? Don’t hesitate to reach out with suggestions!

Spring 2025 Edition, Southwestern Oklahoma State University

The Sig

Greetings, COP Community!

We are so proud of our student pharmacists and graduates. Whenever I meet alumni, I am impressed by their accomplishments. To look back and remember their first weeks of pharmacy school and to now hear about their career journey and successes reminds us of how a quality pharmacy education can positively impact the personal and professional growth of young people. It also helps us as teachers, preceptors, and mentors to remember why we have dedicated our careers to pharmacy education. The COP is 85 years young, and we continue to strive to provide a personalized educational experience …

The Man, The Myth, The Mothman: Cryptid Folklore And West Virginian Identity Formation, Bailey South

Munn Scholars Awards

“Cryptids” as a theme within Appalachian (more specifically West Virginian) folklore has gained increased interest in recent years, yet limited scholarly attention has been paid as to why. Along similar lines, many West Virginians have reclaimed the West Virginia regional identity. In this study, I collected and analyzed the opinions of West Virginians on the West Virginia identity and on cryptids to argue that the popularity of cryptids within folklore (a reclamation) has coincided with the reclamation of the West Virginian identity. I surveyed a demographic of mainly students through an online survey to analyze their perspectives, gathering demographic data …

Marine Animalia Diversity And Coral Reef Condition At Big Creek Beach And Boca Del Drago, Bocas Del Toro, Panamá: A Decade Of Change, Lucy Cornett

Panama: Tropical Ecology, Marine Ecosystems, and Biodiversity Conservation

As the oceans’ largest biological structure, coral reefs provide vital ecosystem services, including coastline production, food production, tourism, and preservation of biodiversity. The calm waters provided by the Bocas del Toro archipelago protection from the Caribbeans Sea promotes many coral reefs because of the calmer waters caused by protection from the Caribbean Sea. While many reefs are present, increases in tourism and other anthropogenic threats make monitoring the health of these coral reefs and the diversity of marine organisms of the utmost importance. This study examines the percent substrate cover and the diversity and density marine organisms of two coral …

Monitoring Weight Loss Management And Patient Satisfaction By Utilization Of Phone-Based Check-Ins: An Evidence-Based Quality Improvement Project, Katie O’Neill

DNP Projects

Background

Obesity is one of the fastest growing public health issues across the nation. Obesity is a critical factor in prevention of obesity-related non-communicable diseases (OR-NCDs) such as diabetes, hypertension and coronary artery disease. The increase in obesity creates a global burden on chronic disease prevention for future healthcare systems. With the increasing popularity of Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1’s) being prescribed, the level of provider communication should be evaluated and encouraged for successful weight management outcomes.

Project Goals

1.) Implement a phone call to patients on a GLP-1 to provide education on healthy lifestyle habits from October 2024 to December 2024. …

The Soulful Lawyer: Jungian Practices For Legal Professionals, Luis Chiesa

Buffalo Law Review

The legal profession faces a profound crisis of meaning, with lawyers experiencing some of the highest rates of depression, anxiety, and substance abuse of any profession. While techniques like mindfulness meditation have gained traction as tools to address lawyer well-being, they often fall short of fostering the deeper sense of purpose and fulfillment that so many legal professionals seek. This Article explores how Jungian depth psychology and contemplative practices can address the root causes of dissatisfaction, or “dukkha,” within the legal profession. Drawing from Carl Jung’s concepts of persona, shadow, and collective unconscious, it examines how lawyers can unmask their …

Cover Page And Editorial Board, Buffalo Law Review

Buffalo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Prophetic Prosperity: Unveiling The Next Frontier Of Socially Responsible & Sustainable Investing, Alyssa Carbone

Buffalo Law Review

Islamic finance, poised for a significant rise in prominence, stands uniquely at the intersection of religious adherence and modern financial systems. With Islam projected to overtake Christianity as the dominant world religion by 20501 and Muslims constituting the fastestgrowing religious group, expected to reach a global population of nearly 3 billion adherents in 20602, the demand for financial products aligned with the values of Islam is set to soar. Accordingly, Islamic finance, specifically Islamic capital markets, has strong projections of growth, even amidst economic instability in traditional Western financial markets.3 Yet, despite its promising outlook, Islamic finance remains largely unfamiliar …