Distributed Graph Computation In C++ Using Hpx, Panagiotis Syskakis

LSU Master's Theses

Graph analytics are central to applications, ranging from scientific computing to social-network analysis. Many large graph workloads exceed the memory capacity and performance capabilities of a single machine. Existing distributed graph systems often force a trade-off between programmability and performance: high-level platforms can incur substantial runtime overheads, while lower-level distributed libraries frequently expose complex or fragile programming models. This thesis investigates whether modern C++ can support generic distributed graph algorithms that remain both expressive and efficient. We present a prototype distributed graph library in C++ built on the HPX runtime system and guided by the abstractions of the NWGraph library. …

Evaluating U.S. Health Policy Levers Using Difference-In-Differences: Hospital Acquisitions, Global Budgets, And Income Policies, Kola Adegoke

NYMC Student Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

Background: U.S. health policy relies on multiple levers to influence system performance, financial stability, and population health. This dissertation uses a three-paper portfolio to evaluate organizational change (hospital acquisitions), payment reform (Maryland all-payer global budgets), and income-related state policies, applying difference-in-differences (DiD) designs with prespecified diagnostics to support causal interpretation.

Methods: Study 1 examined hospital change-of-ownership (CHOW) acquisitions using a national hospital-year panel from RAND HCRIS (2014–2023), linked to CHOW timing data from 2016–2023. Effects on revenue outcomes were estimated using a staggered difference-in-differences design implemented with the Callaway and Sant’Anna estimator, using doubly robust inverse probability weighting, hospital-level …

Virtual Humans In Virtual Reality: A Scoping Review On Sociability, Fidelity, And Expression, J K Sangeeth Chandran, Marisa Llorens Salvador, Cathy Ennis

Articles

Introduction:

Virtual reality (VR) systems have evolved significantly over the past decade, enabling immersive experiences with enhanced realism and interactivity. This has motivated an interest in socially oriented applications. As user proxies, Virtual Humans (VHs) play essential roles in such applications. However, despite technological advancements, achieving realistic, expressive, and socially responsive VHs continues to present design and implementation challenges. In this scoping review, we present the state-of-the-art of VR VHs, examining the impact of VHs on the user experience.

Methodology:

We reviewed 59 papers retrieved from five databases across three core themes: the implementation and impact of VH facial expressions, …

Objective Conditioning Via Latent-Factor Modeling, Kalman-Smoothing, And Hidden Markov Clustering: An Application To Empirical Asset Pricing, Melanie R. Neller

Theses and Dissertations

Empirical asset pricing relies heavily on conditioning sets--industry groupings, size buckets, valuation screens, and other researcher-defined partitions--to structure cross-sectional tests and portfolio construction. While intuitive, such partitions risk blending heterogeneous firms, masking latent exposures, and introducing omitted-variable bias. This thesis develops an objective, mathematically grounded conditioning pipeline that replaces subjective groupings with latent-factor extraction, Kalman-based data techniques, and probabilistic clustering via Gaussian hidden Markov models (HMMs). Using CRSP monthly returns, the framework stabilizes noisy return data, extracts systematic structure through principal component analysis (PCA), identifies homogeneous stock cohorts through HMM clustering, and models regime persistence using Markov transition matrices. These …

Curriculum For A Two Semester Calculus Course Specializing In Life Science And Data Science, Patrick Mcclain

LSU Master's Theses

Traditionally, introductory calculus has been designed for engineering and physics students, often leaving students majoring in data science or life sciences with a curriculum that lacks professional relevance and is overly reliant on problems that focus on computational fluency. This thesis proposes a two-semester sequence, called MATH 153X and MATH 154X, specifically tailored for the Louisiana State University (LSU) Dual Enrollment program and university-level data science and life sciences majors. By integrating modern computational tools—such as symbolic calculators and artificial intelligence (AI) tools—the proposed curriculum shifts the pedagogical focus from procedural symbolic manipulation toward conceptual literacy.

Through a series …

Oral Health In People With Schizophrenia, Leire Urien, Ainara Arnaiz, Xabier Marichalar-Mendia, Unax Lertxundi, Jose De Leon, Agate Txurruka, Nerea Jauregizar, Teresa Morera-Herreras

Psychiatry Faculty Publications

Aim This study aimed to assess the oral health status of individuals with schizophrenia and explore its association with behavioural and pharmacological factors, with particular focus on long-term antipsychotic treatment and cumulative anticholinergic burden. Methods A total of 153 adults with schizophrenia (18–65 years) from the Mental Health Network of Bizkaia (Spain), all under antipsychotic treatment for ≥12 months, were evaluated and compared with 153 controls from the general population. Data on socio-demographic variables, tobacco use and oral hygiene habits were collected. Oral health was assessed using the Decayed, Missing and Filled Teeth (DMFT) index and the Community Periodontal Index …

Socioeconomic Disparities In Readmission Outcomes And Cardiac Procedures Among Atrial Fibrillation Hospitalizations, Muhammad U. Almani, Muhammad Yousuf, Noor Fatima, Muhammad Q. Ullah, Muhammed Arshad

Einstein Health Papers

Introduction: Atrial fibrillation (AF) remains one of the leading dysrhythmias incurring hospitalization. We set out to determine the impact of socioeconomic status (SES) on in-hospital cardiac procedures and the readmission outcomes in patients with AF. Methods: The National Readmission Database (NRD) was searched for adults with a primary diagnosis of AF between 2010 and 2019. We determined unplanned AF-specific readmission within 30 days. Median neighborhood household income was assessed by patient zip code as quartiles: low income (Q1), middle income (Q2), upper-middle income (Q3), and high income (Q4). Differences in in-hospital cardiac procedures during the index hospitalization and probability of …

Spartan Daily, March 26, 2026, San Jose State University, School Of Journalism And Mass Communications

Spartan Daily, 2026

Volume 166, Issue 28

Lekhner V 205-54 House Inc.

All Decisions

The Appellate Division affirmed the Supreme Court's dismissal of an evicted cooperative tenant's claims for money damages. The tenant, whose shares were auctioned to satisfy a nonpayment judgment, argued the landlord had an implied contractual duty to conduct the auction with a minimum bid to protect her profit. The court found no such implied contract. Additionally, the tenant's claim under RPAPL § 702, challenging non-maintenance charges in the prior nonpayment judgment, was barred by res judicata as the issue had been litigated. The landlord's motion to dismiss the complaint was properly granted.

La Valley Named Executive Director For Rural Health Education, Unh Communications And Public Affairs

UNH Today Archive

No abstract provided.

What Factors Influence Health Professions Trainees’ Preferences For Employment In Rural Appalachia? A Qualitative Study To Inform The Design Of A Discrete Choice Experiment, Chris Gillette, Jan Ostermann Ph.D., Aylin A. Aguillar, Sarah O'Neal, Chris Everett, Dawn Caviness, Esita Patel, Laiton Steele, Dawn Goel, Quazi Minhaz Tabassum

Faculty Publications

Optimizing the geographic allocation of health care providers has the potential to improve health care access and health outcomes for rural populations. To inform the design of a discrete choice experiment (DCE) survey to elicit health professions trainees' preferences for rural practice, this formative research aimed to: (1) elicit factors that influence job selection among health profession trainees, including medical residents physician assistant (PA) and nurse practitioner (NP) students, (2) identify how these trainees evaluate trade-offs for rural job placement and (3) inform attribute selection for inclusion into a future DCE to identify health professions trainees’ preferences for rural practice. …

Full Issue

Criterion: A Journal of Literary Criticism

No abstract provided.

Am. Civil Liberties Union Vs. Clark Cnty. School Dist., 142 Nev. Adv. Op. 24 (March 26, 2026), Jacob Stephenson

Nevada Supreme Court Summaries

Information contained in an investigative file is exempt from the NPRA’s general disclosure requirement to the extent that the information is confidential under NRS 289.080.

Virtual Humans In Virtual Reality: A Scoping Review On Sociability, Fidelity, And Expression, J. K. Sangeeth Chandran, Marisa Llorens Salvador, Cathy Ennis

Research Outputs: 2025-Present

Introduction – Virtual reality (VR) systems have evolved significantly over the past decade, enabling immersive experiences with enhanced realism and interactivity. This has motivated an interest in socially oriented applications. As user proxies, Virtual Humans (VHs) play essential roles in such applications. However, despite technological advancements, achieving realistic, expressive, and socially responsive VHs continues to present design and implementation challenges. In this scoping review, we present the state-of-the-art of VR VHs, examining the impact of VHs on the user experience. Methodology – We reviewed 59 papers retrieved from five databases across three core themes: the implementation and impact of VH …

Practice Patterns And Inpatient Outcomes In Lung Abscess: A Cross Sectional Study, Saikou Saidy, Ali Iqbal, Saqib H. Baig

Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care Medicine Faculty Papers

Background: Lung abscess is typically managed with antibiotics, but drainage procedures are sometimes performed when there is inadequate clinical response or when source control is needed. Real-world inpatient practice patterns remain incompletely described in contemporary U.S. data. Our aim was to evaluate national inpatient practice patterns, predictors of procedural intervention, and associated in-hospital outcomes and resource utilization among patients hospitalized with lung abscess managed conservatively, with bronchoscopic drainage, or with percutaneous drainage.

Methods: Using the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) (2016–2018), we identified adult (18 years and older) hospitalizations with a principal diagnosis of lung abscess [International Classification of Diseases, 10th …

Translating The Book Of Mormon Into Spanish: A Case Study Of The Translation Of Sacred Texts, Gabriel González Núñez

Writing and Language Studies Faculty Publications

The translation of sacred texts is one of the oldest forms of translation, one which has helped develop our understanding of what translation is. Even so, the question arises as to whether there is anything particularly distinctive about translating sacrality. On the one hand, it can be argued that translating sacred texts is just like translating any other historical or cultural texts (Naudé, 2010). On the other hand, it can be argued that the translation of sacred texts deserves its own category because, for some members of the population, these texts play a special role (Long, 2013). This study seeks …

Rethinking How The United States And Mexico Share The Colorado River, Eric Kuhn, Anne Castle, Carlos De La Parra, John Fleck, Jack Schmidt, Kathryn Sorensen, Katherine Tara

The Traveling Wilburys of the Colorado River

Since 1945, the United States and Mexico have managed common interests on their two largest shared rivers systems, the Colorado and the Rio Bravo/Rio Grande, under the terms of the 1944 international treaty that was designed from the beginning with tools to adapt to changing hydrologic and societal conditions. A recent emergency agreement on the Rio Bravo/Rio Grande illustrates what is possible, and with old river management rules on the Colorado both within the United States and between the United States and Mexico about to expire, we are at a moment of opportunity for meaningful change. The core problem on …

Monitoring Relapse In Post-Transplant Acute Myeloid Leukemia Requires Integrated Assessment, With Flow Cytometry Showing The Highest Efficacy, Wei J Wang, Sa A Wang, Hong Fang, Qing Wei, Shimin Hu, Sanam Loghavi, Gheath Al-Atrash, Chenxuan Zang, Peng Wei, Jeffrey L Medeiros, Wei Wang

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Quaker Campus, March 26, 2026 (Vol. 24, Issue 10), Whittier College

Quaker Campus

No abstract provided.

Towards Understanding Robust Neural Coding Through Representational Geometry, Zeyuan Ye

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Neural activity is high-dimensional and variable, yet animals represent information robustly. This thesis studies the origins of such robustness through the lens of representational geometry and deep neural network modeling. From a geometric perspective, population responses concentrate near smooth manifolds embedded in a high-dimensional state space. To infer these manifolds from noisy data and quantify their geometric properties, we develop a statistical method based on Gaussian processes and kernel regression (GKR). Applying GKR to simultaneously recorded grid-cell population activity during open-field navigation, we show that increasing running speed expands a torus-like representational manifold and improves spatial decodability. Thus, despite faster …

Early Literacy Footprints: Analysis Of Elementary School Students' Initial Reading Abilities Using Early Grade Reading Assessment (Egra), Novi Safitri, Rina Heryani, Angga Hadiapurwa, Atep Sujana

Bahasa dan Seni: Jurnal Bahasa, Sastra, Seni, dan Pengajarannya

Low initial reading skills are an indication of low student literacy. This research aims to analyze the early reading skills of Phase A students, which includes grades 1 and 2 of elementary school. The research used a descriptive qualitative method, involving 122 students from two elementary schools in Garut Regency, aged 6 to 8 years old. The instrument used in this study was the Early Grade Reading Assessment (EGRA) reading test. The results of the study showed that 68% of students in Phase A had early reading skills in the category of needing guidance. Meanwhile, 6.6% of students were in …

An Integrated Germline And Somatic Genomic Model For Coronary Artery Disease, Xiong Yang, Min Seo Kim, Xinyu Zhu, Md Mesbah Uddin, Tetsushi Nakao, So Mi Jemma Cho, Satoshi Koyama, Tingfeng Xu, Laurens F Reeskamp, Rufan Zhang, Zhaoqi Liu, Yunga A, Paul S De Vries, Ramachandran S Vasan, Eric Boerwinkle, Alanna C Morrison, Bruce M Psaty, Russell P Tracy, Susan R Heckbert, Michael H Cho, Jeong H Yun, Nicholette D Palmer, Donald W Bowden, Joanne M Murabito, Daniel Levy, Nancy L Heard-Costa, George T O'Connor, Lewis C Becker, Brian G Kral, Lisa R Yanek, Laura M Raffield, Bertha Hidalgo, Jerome I Rotter, Stephen S Rich, Kent D Taylor, Wendy S Post, Charles Kooperberg, Alexander P Reiner, Braxton D Mitchell, Sharon L R Kardia, Jennifer A Smith, Patricia A Peyser, Lawrence F Bielak, Dong Keon Yon, Hong-Hee Won, Donna K Arnett, Albert V Smith, Stacey B Gabriel, Patrick T Ellinor, Nhlbi Trans-Omics For Precision Medicine (Topmed) Consortium, Pradeep Natarajan, Minxian Wang, Akl C Fahed

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Multiple germline and somatic genomic factors are associated with risk of coronary artery disease, but there is no single measure of risk that integrates all information from a DNA sample. To address this gap, we develop an integrated genomic model that includes six germline and somatic genetic drivers for coronary artery disease, including polygenic risk score, genetically-proxied proteomic/metabolomic risk scores, and clonal hematopoiesis of indeterminate potential. We evaluated its predictive power in the UK Biobank (N = 391,536), and validate it using data from the TOPMed program (N = 34,177). The 10-year coronary artery disease risk based on the integrated …

The Development Of A Framework To Classify Medication Deprescribing Among Patients With Type 2 Diabetes In Primary Care Practices, Puja B Gandhi, Yoav Jacob, Joeita F Macfield, Gia Merlo, Stefanie M Meyer, Shivani S Patel, Caroline Rhéaume, Kara L Staffier, Madeline Watson, Micaela C Karlsen

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Nerandomilast In Progressive Pulmonary Fibrosis: Data From The Whole Follow-Up Period Of The Fibroneer-Ild Trial, Marlies S Wijsenbeek, Shervin Assassi, Arata Azuma, Vincent Cottin, Anna-Maria Hoffmann-Vold, Toby M Maher, Fernando J Martinez, Justin M Oldham, Luca Richeldi, Claudia Valenzuela, Hui Gu, Ivana Ritter, Susanne Stowasser, Michael Kreuter

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: In the FIBRONEER-ILD trial in patients with progressive pulmonary fibrosis (PPF), nerandomilast 9 mg bid and 18 mg bid reduced the decline in forced vital capacity at week 52 compared with placebo (the primary endpoint). We assessed the effects of nerandomilast up to the final database lock.

Methods: Time to first acute exacerbation of ILD, hospitalisation for respiratory cause, or death (key secondary endpoint) and other time-to-event endpoints were assessed.

Results: 1176 patients, of whom 512 were taking background nintedanib, received nerandomilast or placebo. At final database lock, mean (sd) exposure to trial medication was 15.1 (5.7) months and …

Empowering College Students With Generative Ai Literacy In Higher Education, Kay Coates, Lili Li

University Libraries: Faculty Presentations

This paper engages in a discussion about how to enhance excellence in teaching, learning, and research in higher education by leveraging the capabilities and adoption of generative AI. Based on college-level teaching practices at Georgia Southern University, it identifies 5 generative AI tools that can potentially augment college students' critical thinking, decision-making, and problem-solving skills.

Identity Restoration Theory: Reclaiming Cultural Identity As A Pathway To Reintegration, Sigifredo Castell Britton

Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences

This article introduces Identity Restoration Theory (IRT), a new theoretical framework that explains what formerly incarcerated individuals need to reconnect with disrupted cultural identities as a pathway to reintegration. Grounded in qualitative fieldwork with Raizal ex-offenders and community leaders on San Andrés Island, Colombia, IRT is designed to conceptualize reintegration, not as institutional resettlement, but as a culturally rooted process of re-embedding identity within community and place. The framework delineates five interdependent constructs—cultural memory, place reconnection, narrative repair, communal belonging, and agency activation—that emerged inductively from participant narratives. Anchored in the postcolonial context of an Afro-Caribbean island society, IRT provides …

Development Of Big-Ideas Guided Thematic Unit Module For High School English As A Foreign Language Instruction In China, Wang Han

Student Works (2020-2029)

The 2017 National English Curriculum Standards for Senior High Schools in China position “Big Ideas” as a central organizing principle for thematic unit design. The absence of Big-Ideas oriented instruction is often linked to fragmented learning, rote memorization, weak knowledge transfer, and limited higher-order thinking, which collectively hinder the attainment of national core competency goals. Existing studies and teacher survey data suggest that students lacking exposure to Big-Idea pedagogy underperform in cross-text reasoning, critical thinking, and cultural awareness. Teachers also face multiple challenges: a superficial understanding of Big Ideas, a lack of structured instructional tools, and constraints posed by exam-driven …

Who Gets To Be A Teacher? A Postqualitative Inquiry Into Teacher Attrition, Chloe Fann

Electronic Theses and Dissertations Archive

This postqualitative dissertation challenges four decades of assumptions about who counts as a teacher and what it means to leave teaching. Drawing on Deleuze and Guattari's (1987) concept of order-words (i.e., the restrictions and boundaries tied to words through presuppositions), I investigate how the teacher attrition literature has created and maintained teacher as an order-word that establishes specific boundaries around what it means to be a teacher. Through nearly 40 years of repetition across the Teacher Follow-up Survey, grey literature from federal agencies and think tanks, and empirical research, these boundaries have become naturalized, making them feel inevitable rather than …

Belowground Drivers Of White Oak (Quercus Alba L.) Artificial Regeneration: Nursery Soil Fungal Communities And Expanded Genomic Resources For U.S. Phytophthora Cinnamomi, Amira Noui

Electronic Theses and Dissertations Archive

White oak (Quercus alba L.) reforestation relies on nursery-grown seedlings, yet the microbial processes influencing seedling quality and disease risk remain poorly understood. Integrating nursery fungal community ecology with pathogen genomics is essential to evaluate belowground dynamics relevant to artificial regeneration. Using ITS2 metabarcoding of 145 soil samples from a commercial Tennessee nursery, I compared fungal communities across one-year-old fumigated (1-0), two-year-old fumigated (2-0), and two-year-old unfumigated (2-0) nursery beds. Fungal richness and community composition differed among beds. Seedling age was associated with increased ectomycorrhizal abundance and higher relative abundances of putative plant pathogens, while fumigation reduced fungal richness and …

Proposed Standardized Nomenclature For Anomalous Aortic Origin Of A Coronary Artery: An International Multidisciplinary Initiative, Carlos M Mery, Meena Nathan, Christoph Gräni, Rajesh Krishnamurthy, Cristina Basso, Marshall L Jacobs, Julie A Brothers, Massimo A Padalino, Silvana Molossi

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Increasing use of advanced noninvasive imaging has provided great anatomic and morphologic details to characterize congenital coronary artery anomalies. Anomalous aortic origin of a coronary artery (AAOCA) is a subtype that may lead to myocardial ischemia with variable clinical manifestations across the lifespan. Management decision making in AAOCA is hindered by anatomic variants of differing physiologic consequences. Several systems of nomenclature have been used that lack uniformity in potentially high-risk morphologic features. The ICAAC (International Coronary Artery Anomalies Collaborative), a group of experts in coronary artery anomalies, proposes a standardized nomenclature to describe anatomy and morphologic features of AAOCA using …