Digital Commons Network^™

Linguistic Ideologies Of Foreign Assistant Language Teachers In Japan, Catherine Johnson

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

Assistant Language Teachers (ALTs) in Japan are recruited globally to provide support in primary and secondary English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classrooms. Though there are several recruitment programs, this study examined ALTs who participated in the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Program. Specifically, this study addressed the research question: how do foreign assistant language teachers (ALTs) teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL) in Japan develop a linguistic ideology? To provide context to this research question, the literature review covered prescriptivism and descriptivism as two ends of a spectrum of linguistic ideologies, speakerism and pedagogy of Global Englishes, pragmatic …

Bridging The Divide: Addressing The Achievement Gap Amidst Educational Resegregation In The Twin Cities, Josiah Wiest

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

This study uses secondary analysis of data to examine the following research questions: RQ1: What is the relationship between funding allocation and academic performance across metro high schools with varying levels of racial segregation? RQ2: What is the correlation between demographic factors and academic achievement in metro high schools, and how do these factors contribute to the racial achievement gap? The review of literature analyzes the implications of the rapid resegregation in the Minnesota education system, examining how racial and economic segregation confines Black and Brown children within a cycle of inequality, forcing students to receive a lesser education. The …

A Look At Improving Independent Reading: Introducing Concept Mapping Into Sustained Silent Reading To Improve Comprehension, Shawn Reagan

School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

Reagan, S. (2025). A Look at Improving Independent Reading: Introducing Concept Mapping into Sustained Silent Reading to Improve Comprehension

This thesis explores how integrating concept mapping into a sustained silent reading (SSR) program affects middle school students’ reading comprehension. Motivated by personal experiences as a reader and educator, and shaped by literacy research and the Science of Reading movement, this study investigates strategies to increase student engagement and comprehension through intervention within independent reading programs. Conducted at a K–12 charter school in Minneapolis, the quasi-experimental study involved two sixth-grade English Language Arts classes over nine weeks. One class (experimental group) …

Genomic Analysis Of 11,555 Probands Identifies 60 Dominant Congenital Heart Disease Genes, Michael C Sierant, Sheng Chih Jin, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

Congenital heart disease (CHD) is a leading cause of infant mortality. We analyzed de novo mutations (DNMs) and very rare transmitted/unphased damaging variants in 248 prespecified genes in 11,555 CHD probands. The results identified 60 genes with a significant burden of heterozygous damaging variants. Variants in these genes accounted for CHD in 10.1% of probands with similar contributions from de novo and transmitted variants in parent-offspring trios that showed incomplete penetrance. DNMs in these genes accounted for 58% of the signal from DNMs. Thirty-three genes were linked to a single CHD subtype while 12 genes were associated with 2 to …

Motivators And Barriers To Healthy Food Consumption: Qualitative Study With Gen Z Living In Bratislava, Emel Yarimoglu, Lucia Vilcekova

AMTP Proceedings 2025

People in Europe have been caring about physical activity, healthy eating, and healthy body weight. The study aimed to explore the motivators and barriers to healthy food consumption among university students living in Bratislava, Slovakia. Qualitative research was conducted with sixteen students, and data were collected by written text. Self-reported written data were collected by convenience sampling and analyzed via content analysis. Four motivators of healthy food consumption were revealed (personal appearance, health-consciousness, physical activity, and social), and four barriers to healthy food consumption were obtained (functional, personal, psychological, and social). This research is original since it demonstrated motivators and …

Chimes: April 1, 2025, Calvin University

Chimes

Kelvin hires "media medium" to write all official comments for The Jingle by Disfavor Fuller

All dining halls closed, faculty to feed students by I. M. Hungary

Kelvin faces severe drop in student engagement by June Knot

budget Trouble? Kelvin steals Michigan's 5 Star QB Bryce Underwood with $15 million NIL deal, university economy collapses by Zach Korn

Entire football team cut- "it just seemed like the right thing to do" by Grant Funding & Ethan Liar

Synod-approved definitional gymnastics team to start inaugural season in 2025-26 by Nathan Meijer

Stairs by KE apartments to be turned into terraced rain …

Masthead

UC Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Digital Dollar: Privacy And Transparency Dilemma, Jiayin Jiang

UC Law Journal

Many have voiced concerns that the digital dollar, a digital form of central bank money, will facilitate government surveillance, thus depriving users of privacy. This Article investigates critical technical designs proposed by leading think tanks, central banks, and scholars from interdisciplinary fields, reaching a surprising conclusion that contradicts popular belief: a digital dollar can offer better privacy protection than existing digital payment systems. The Article argues that those expressing concerns have made two flawed assumptions: (1) that digital dollar data is fully transparent regarding personal information and transaction details and (2) that the government or Federal Reserve has unrestricted access …

The Case Against Surge Pricing, Ramsi A. Woodcock

UC Law Journal

Surge pricing—using data and algorithms to raise prices in response to unexpected increases in demand—has spread across the economy in recent years, from Amazon and Disney World to commuter highways and, of course, Uber, which is infamous for surge pricing rides. Companies claim that surge pricing equilibrates supply and demand, but that is impossible, at least in the short run when demand unexpectedly outstrips supply. What surge pricing really does is to ration existing supply based on ability to pay. That is both distributively unjust and potentially inefficient. It should also be considered a violation of the antitrust laws because …

The Pathway To And Consequences Of Foster Parent Intervention In Dependency Cases, Gillian Katz Lamon

UC Law Journal

Over the last 50 years, federal child welfare legislation has wrestled with how to reconcile the competing goals of the child welfare system: child protection, family preservation, and permanency. The United States foster care system has evolved alongside transformations in private adoptions. As the prospects for private adoption have dwindled, the pendulum has shifted toward prioritizing child protection. Youth in foster care have suddenly become the private adoption alternative. Most recently, some state courts have granted foster parents standing to intervene in termination of parental rights proceedings. In those cases, foster parents are permitted to battle with natural parents for …

Compensated To The Moon: The Impact Of Excessive Compensation On Director Independence Post Tornetta V. Musk, Andrea Olofson Chen

UC Law Journal

Excessive director compensation erodes the independence that directors are supposed to bring to boardrooms. In theory, directors are meant to serve as objective parties, overseeing corporations using their care, skill, and loyalty to promote sound decisionmaking. However, excessive compensation can create the unintended ill-effect of rendering a director beholden to upper management and unable to make clear-eyed, impartial decisions. To mitigate this problem, this Note advocates for the implementation of tenure limits, compensation caps, and enhanced proxy disclosures to ensure that board members uphold their fiduciary duties and make decisions in the best interests of the corporations they serve rather …

Differentiation Stage Predicts Radiosensitivity In Mesenchymal-Like Pancreatic Cancer, Tingshi Su, Xinjian Yu, Mojtaba Hoseini-Ghahfarokhi, David B Flint, Scott J Bright, Joana I D S Antunes, David K J Martinus, Mandira Manandhar, Mariam Ben Kacem, Poliana C Marinello, Eurico J G Pereira, Hua-Sheng Chiu, Uwe Titt, David R Grosshans, Jan Schuemann, Henning Willers, Harald Paganetti, Pavel Sumazin, Gabriel O Sawakuchi

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Purpose: To derive a genomic classifier to predict radiosensitivity of pancreatic cancer cell lines and patients with pancreatic cancer to allow genomic-guided radiation therapy.

Methods and materials: We collected a comprehensive data set of full clonogenic cell survival curves of 45 pancreatic cancer cell lines irradiated with clinical photon and proton beams. We derived classifiers based on data from human embryonic and fetal pancreas single-cell RNA-sequencing to distinguish between epithelial and mesenchymal cells and to predict pancreas cell-line differentiation stage. Independent testing was done with an embryonic mouse pancreas single-cell RNA-sequencing data set. We then used bulk RNA-seq profiles from …

Pathos, Spring 2025, Portland State University. Student Publications Board

Pathos

Editor: Adriana Stanzione

An Equitable End: Meeting The Needs Of Queer Families Within Deathcare, Nyssa Peck

University Honors Theses

This thesis seeks to explore end-of-life care experiences of queer families, focusing on interactions with palliative and hospice caregivers. Currently, end-of-life (EOL) practitioners in institutional and medical care settings are often poorly equipped to interact with queer families due to inadequate cultural training models, personal biases, and ignorance regarding the queer identities of their clients. This manifests in substantial inequities within deathcare systems regarding the accommodation of the unique needs of queer familial structures. Drawing upon multidisciplinary scholarship, I sought to examine these needs, which diverge from that of heterosexual families due to queer families’ absence of legal protections and …

The Pamela Anderson Exception: How The Public Figure Doctrine Makes Involuntary Pornography A Subject Of Public Concern In Congress’S Revenge Porn Statute, Jared Kossover

Vanderbilt Law Review

Congress’s chosen remedy for the proliferation of online revenge porn has a design flaw. The Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act, codified in 15 U.S.C. § 6851, provides a civil right, enforceable in federal court, to victims of nonconsensual pornography. However, exceptions for matters within the “public concern,” written into the statute with the First Amendment in mind, weaken the force of the Act and threaten to make its proscriptions a nullity. This Note calls on Congress to narrow the public concern exception in the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act to include only matters of political significance. Such an amendment will …

Understanding Brady Violations, Jennifer M. Mcaward

Vanderbilt Law Review

This largest-ever study of adjudicated violations of Brady v. Maryland provides a detailed and nuanced understanding of who suppresses material evidence in criminal cases, as well as why, how, where, and how often. Its findings complicate the conventional wisdom that Brady violations are the work of nefarious prosecutors who intentionally withhold material evidence from criminal defendants. While it is true that “bad faith” permeates this area of constitutional noncompliance, a substantial minority of Brady cases stem from “good faith” errors by prosecutors and suppression by law enforcement officers. Mostviolations occur in a small number of states, and most often, state …

Tiered Clinician Vaccine Communication Strategy To Improve Childhood Vaccine Uptake: A Cluster Randomized Clinical Trial., Douglas J. Opel, Jeffrey D. Robinson, Chuan Zhou, Kathryn Colborn, Heather Spielvogle, Anna Furniss, Christine Spina, Cathryn Perreira, Sean T. O'Leary

Communication Faculty Publications and Presentations

No experimental studies to date have tested the effectiveness of clinician communication strategies to improve vaccine uptake among children of parents with negative vaccine attitudes.

The Passive-Active Interaction (Pai) Model: Redefining Audio Interactions In Video Game Music, Morgan A. Weeks

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Scholarship on music in video games has focused on the player in two main ways: the psychological effect music has on the player and the physical, kinesthetic relationship between the player’s inputs and the game’s music. This dissertation builds on this work by exploring gameplay moments in which the music informs the player’s inputs through rhythms, tempo, harmonic relationships, and changes in the musical texture. Using “analytical play” (Summers 2016), rhythmic analysis, looping analysis, and harmonic observations, alongside a variety of different video games, consoles and genres, I have developed an analytical Passive-Active Interaction (PAI) Model that is applicable to …

How Financial Aid Affects The Odds Of Study Abroad Participation For Students Of Color, Patrick Newcomb

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Prior research has shown that studying abroad provides students with enriching, diverse educational experiences with positive personal, academic, and professional outcomes. Despite the benefits, only a small portion of American higher education students participate in study abroad programs. Students of color disproportionately study abroad at lower rates than White students. Since cost is often cited as the primary barrier preventing education abroad, this study examined the types of financial aid associated with study abroad access and participation.

This study used data from the National Postsecondary Student Aid Study, which is a nationwide dataset designed to represent the makeup of institutions …

Adoption Of Virtual Influencers By The Healthcare Industry: Benefits And Drawbacks, Jessica L. Holden, Ismet Anitsal, Melek Meral Anitsal

AMTP Proceedings 2025

Social media influencers are thought leaders and influence others' attitudes, opinions, and behaviors (Pourkarim et al., 2023. Laszkiewicz & Kalinska, 2023). The healthcare industry currently utilizes social media and social media influencers to provide generalized health advice and opinions on and experiences with different providers (Reed & Feilding, 2022). However, the use of social media by healthcare businesses is still relatively novel (Gijsen et al., 2020), although it is becoming increasingly used for healthcare education and decision-making (Stellefson et al., 2020). Within the social media marketing space, there has been a rise in the use of virtual influencers. A Virtual …

Beyond The Bickering: Examining Event, Victim, And Offender Characteristics For Sibling Abuse Incidents In Oregon, Isabella M. Starr

University Honors Theses

Sibling violence (SV) is the most prevalent form of intrafamilial and domestic violence, yet it remains underrecognized and lacks the systematic attention given to other forms of family violence. Often minimized or misclassified as typical sibling rivalry, SV can inflict serious and lasting physical, emotional, and psychological harm on its victims. This study explores the characteristics of sibling violence incidents reported to law enforcement in Oregon between 2016 and 2023, using data from the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS). Through an analysis of 5,793 single-victim, single-offender incidents, the research examines demographic patterns among victims and offenders, incident dynamics, and typological …

Climate Change Detection In Four Locations In Peninsular Malaysia For Green Sustainability Awareness, Noor Kesuma Mohd Yazid, Norshahida Shaadan, Firdaus Mohamad Hamzah, Nurain Ibrahim, Mahayaudin M.Mansor

Malaysian Journal of Computing (MJoC)

Climate change impacts ecosystems, often resulting in the extinction of many species and their habitats and harm to human health. Preserving and protecting green spaces is essential to maintaining ecosystem health. This study aims to detect and examine climate change and its impact on temperature and rainfall at four locations in Malaysia to increase green environment sustainability awareness. The methodology involved investigating the pattern of climate variation using several visualization tools, the Mann-Kendall test, the EWMA control chart, and the Kruskall-Wallis test. Data on monthly average temperature and rainfall amount for the 30 years between 1989 and 2018 was obtained …

Localization Module In User Experience Questionnaire For Cross Cultural Website Design, Nurhayati Mohd Husni, Nur Atiqah Sia Abdullah

Malaysian Journal of Computing (MJoC)

The importance of User Interface (UI) and User Experience (UX) in ensuring the practicality and usability of websites for users is well-recognized. The User Experience Questionnaire (UEQ) is widely employed to evaluate these aspects of a product, ensuring linguistic and cultural appropriateness for its target locale based on country, region, or language. However, the UEQ lacks a module specifically designed to assess the localization properties of a product. This research aims to extend the UEQ by introducing a localization module that adheres to cross-cultural design principles. The study involved a systematic literature review to identify potential items for the localization …

Integrated Cybersecurity Framework For Enhanced Threat Detection And Incident Response In The Digital Era, Azlin Ramli, Mohamad Yusof Darus, Yusnani Mohd Yussoff, Badri Azni, Kanqi Xie

Malaysian Journal of Computing (MJoC)

This research presents a novel cybersecurity framework aimed at improving threat detection and incident response in today's complex digital environment. The framework integrates three key components: advanced threat detection, accelerated incident response, and continuous risk assessment, adopting a holistic and adaptive approach. It leverages machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) to proactively identify and counter evolving cyber threats, moving beyond traditional reactive systems. The advanced threat detection element utilizes AI-driven analytics to spot anomalous patterns and forecast potential vulnerabilities, thus enhancing threat visibility. The accelerated incident response streamlines automated responses to common threats, significantly cutting response times. Complementing these …

A Preliminary Strategy Towards Supporting The Automation Of Shariah Compliant Requirements, Normi Sham Awang Abu Bakar, Azlin Nordin, Madihah Sheikh Abdul Aziz, Norzariyah Yahya, Aminudin Che Ahmad

Malaysian Journal of Computing (MJoC)

Web-based technology offers a wide range of online services in practically every industry, including the medical field. The ISO MS 1900:2014 certification has been awarded to the Sultan Ahmad Shah Medical Centre (SASMEC)@IIUM (Shariah-based Quality Management System). All hospital reporting processes are currently carried out manually using a variety of physical forms, such as the food premise inspection form, the complaint form, and the programme monitoring form to support the implementation and monitoring of the shariah- compliance-related activities. This strategy necessitates a considerable amount of effort, time, and resources to manage these manual activities. These problems have led to insufficient …

Examining The Impact Of Feature Selection Techniques On Machine And Deep Learning Models For The Prediction Of Covid 19, Hafiza Zoya Mojahid, Jasni Mohamad Zain, Marina Yusoff, Abdul Basit, Abdul Kadir Jumaat, Mushtaq Ali

Malaysian Journal of Computing (MJoC)

Feature selection is a vital preprocessing step for identifying the most informative features in complex datasets, enhancing the efficiency and accuracy of machine learning models. Its applications extend across various domains, including big data analytics, finance, chemometrics, medical diagnostics, biological research, intrusion detection systems, and renewable energy solutions. In medical contexts, feature selection serves a dual purpose: it reduces dimensionality while simultaneously improving the comprehension of disease etiology. This study delves into key variable selection methods—specifically Recursive Feature Elimination (RFE), Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator (LASSO). We evaluate the interaction of these methods with …

The Prevalent Mindset Pattern (Deliberative-Implemental) As A Predictor Of Positive Thinking Among University Students, Susan Rasim Khalil Arafa, Thaer Ahmad Ghbari

Journal of Educational and Psychological Studies

The study aimed to identify the prevailing mindset (deliberative-implemental) among university students and its ability to predict their positive thinking, as well as to determine whether there were statistically significant differences in mindset (deliberative-implemental) according to gender and faculty variables. To achieve the study objectives, data were collected using two research instruments: the Deliberative-Implemental Mindset Scale, which consists of two dimensions— deliberative mindset and implemental mindset—and the Positive Thinking Scale, which includes 25 items distributed across five dimensions: optimism and general satisfaction, emotional regulation and emotional intelligence, acceptance of others and personal responsibility, forgiveness and self-acceptance, and love of learning …

Amniocentesis In Pregnancies At Or Beyond 24 Weeks: An International Multicenter Study, Roni Zemet, Mohamad Ali Maktabi, Alexandra Tinfow, Jessica L Giordano, Thomas M Heisler, Qi Yan, Roni Plaschkes, Jenny Stokes, Jennifer M Walsh, Siobhán Corcoran, Erica Schindewolf, Kendra Miller, Asha N Talati, Kristen A Miller, Karin Blakemore, Kate Swanson, Jana Ramm, Ivonne Bedei, Teresa N Sparks, Angie C Jelin, Neeta L Vora, Juliana S Gebb, David A Crosby, Michal Berkenstadt, Boaz Weisz, Ronald J Wapner, Ignatia B Van Den Veyver

Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy Staff Publications

Background: Amniocentesis for genetic diagnosis is most commonly done between 15 and 22 weeks of gestation but can be performed at later gestational ages. The safety and genetic diagnostic accuracy of amniocentesis have been well-established through numerous large-scale multicenter studies for procedures before 24 weeks, but comprehensive data on late amniocentesis remain sparse.

Objective: To evaluate the indications, diagnostic yield, safety, and maternal and fetal outcomes associated with amniocentesis performed at or beyond 24 weeks of gestation.

Study design: We conducted an international multicenter retrospective cohort study examining pregnant individuals who underwent amniocentesis for prenatal diagnostic testing at gestational ages …

Crispr/Cas9 Gene Therapy Increases The Risk Of Tumorigenesis In The Mouse Model Of Hereditary Tyrosinemia Type I, Tong Chen, Mercedes Barzi, Nika Furey, Hyunjae R Kim, Francis P Pankowicz, Xavier Legras, Sara H Elsea, Ayrea E Hurley, Diane Yang, David A Wheeler, Malgorzata Borowiak, Beatrice Bissig-Choisat, Pavel Sumazin, Karl-Dimiter Bissig

Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy Staff Publications

Background & aims: The therapeutic potential of CRISPR gene editing has been demonstrated in various animal models; however, little is known about its long-term consequences. This study seeks to bridge this gap by investigating the lasting consequences of CRISPR gene therapy in an animal model of hereditary tyrosinemia type I (HT-I). We compared the standard of care-nitisinone, a small molecule inhibitor of hydroxyphenylpyruvate dioxygenase (HPD)-with the deletion of the Hpd gene by CRISPR gene therapy. Both treatments block flux through tyrosine catabolism and thereby prevent the accumulation of toxic catabolites in HT-I.

Methods: We assessed the efficacy and safety of …

The Association Between County-Level Social Determinants Of Health And Cardio-Kidney-Metabolic Disease Attributed All-Cause Mortality In The Us: A Cross Sectional Analysis, Antoinette Cotton, Pedro Rvo Salerno, Salil V Deo, Salim S Virani, Khurram Nasir, Ian Neeland, Sanjay Rajagopalan, Naveed Sattar, Sadeer Al-Kindi, Yakov E Elgudin

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: The American Heart Association recently defined cardio-kidney-metabolic (CKM) syndrome as the intersection between metabolic, renal, and cardiovascular disease. Understanding the contemporary estimates of CKM related mortality in the US is essential for developing targeted public interventions.

Methods: We analyzed state-level and county-level CKM-associated all-cause mortality data (2010-2019) from the CDC Wide-ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research (WONDER). Median and interquartile (IQR) age-adjusted mortality rates (aaMR) per 100,000 were reported and linked with a multi-component metric for social deprivation: the Social Deprivation Index (SDI: range 0 - 100) grouped as: I: 0 - 25, II: 26 - 50, III: 51 …