Digital Commons Network^™

Unpacking And Re-Imagining Dental Ethics With Anti-Oppressive And Interdisciplinary Praxis, Eleanor Fleming Phd, Dds, Mph, Ficd, Facd

Journal of the American College of Dentists

Dental ethics are assumed to be neutral in their intent. With a social contract grounded in liberalism and assumptions centering whiteness, the resulting ethics reinforce hierarchy, otherness, and inequities. Because concepts and practices are rarely neutral, dental ethics is embedded with biases, which results in it falling short of the demands of the 21st century and exacerbating health inequities rather than supporting efforts for health justice. This manuscript invites the reader to reflect critically and re-imagine dental ethics using anti-oppressive and interdisciplinary praxis. For the improvement of public health, the narrowing of inequities, and a functioning oral health system, the …

Dr. William Thomas Green Morton, Civil War Hero, Peter H. Jacobsohn Dds, Facd

Journal of the American College of Dentists

This article examines the overlooked Civil War contributions of Dr. William Thomas Green Morton, the dentist best known as the Father of Surgical Anesthesia. While Morton’s role in introducing ether anesthesia to surgery is well documented, his service as a volunteer anesthetist for the Union Army remains largely unrecognized in Civil War literature. Drawing on contemporary accounts, letters, and eyewitness descriptions, the article highlights Morton’s presence on major battlefields, where he administered ether to thousands of wounded soldiers. His work dramatically reduced surgical pain, improved morale, and marked the earliest example of organized military anesthesia in American history.

The Innocence Trap, Caitlin Glass, Julian Green

Minnesota Law Review Vols. 106:2 onward (2021-present)

What makes a conviction wrongful? Developments in DNA science have led to a wave of exonerations over the past thirty years, revealing sources of error in the criminal legal process. Innocence organizations proliferated to represent people whose convictions could be overturned by newly discovered evidence. This is vital work for the individuals who are released and for the purpose of systemic change. At the same time, a focus on exonerations constructs a relatively narrow conception of wrongful convictions—one that is synonymous with factual innocence.

This Article argues that a broader conception of wrongful convictions may be revealed through co-ideation with …

Regulatory History And Judicial Review, Todd Phillips, Anthony Moffa

Minnesota Law Review Vols. 106:2 onward (2021-present)

The Administrative Procedure Act (APA) requires federal agencies to simply “incorporate in the rules adopted a concise general statement of their basis and purpose” after they receive comments from the public, and the Supreme Court ruled in Overton Park that courts are to adjudicate whether rules are arbitrary and capricious based on agencies’ contemporaneous rationales. Judge-created doctrines incentivize agencies to rely on these “concise” statements to elucidate their rationales, and, as a result, rulemaking preambles have ballooned in size as agencies seek to insulate themselves from critical courts.

This Article contends that although the APA’s statutory requirement is in tension …

Imminent Harm As A Requirement For Forcing Guardianship: Why Guardianship Law Should Follow Civil Commitment Law, Sophia Antonio

Minnesota Law Review Vols. 106:2 onward (2021-present)

Approximately fifteen million adults live with severe mental illness in the United States. They are our neighbors, family, and friends. Often, concerned family members or professionals initiate guardianship proceedings to protect the assets and health of people experiencing severe mental illness. But guardianships subject people to a severe removal of individual rights. Guardians can decide where their ward lives, what medical care they can receive, and who they can associate with.

People experiencing severe mental illness are uniquely ill-suited for an arrangement that restricts their autonomy because it exacerbates their illnesses, and their symptoms are more likely to go into …

Fine And Punishment: Remedial Versus Punitive Penalties Under The Eighth Amendment, Jack Swain

Minnesota Law Review Vols. 106:2 onward (2021-present)

The Bank Secrecy Act, enacted in 1970, was intended in part to prevent American taxpayers from hiding funds in secret bank accounts overseas. At the time of the Act's enactment, a former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York named secret foreign accounts as the single largest loophole in American tax law. This problem persists today. Over the last two decades, several of the largest banks in Switzerland have paid billions in fines after admitting to helping American clients hide billions in taxable assets.

Obtaining a bank account in a foreign jurisdiction like Switzerland is a luxury that …

The "Miscarriage Of Justice" Exception To Appeal Waiver Enforcement: Debunking And Demystifying The Circuit Split, Bex Warner

Minnesota Law Review Vols. 106:2 onward (2021-present)

Ninety-seven percent of all federal criminal convictions come from a plea agreement, and two-thirds of federal plea agreements contain an appeal waiver. The Supreme Court has held that appeal waivers can be enforced, but not under what circumstances. What happens if a criminal defendant waives their right to appeal and then is sentenced to time incarcerated that is higher than the statutory maximum? Or what happens when a defendant claims counsel was ineffective in giving them advice about entering into the plea agreement? Or when a criminal defendant claims the judge gave them a higher sentence because they are Black? …

Presidential Control Of The Civil Service, Nicholas Bednar

Minnesota Law Review Vols. 106:2 onward (2021-present)

Conventional wisdom treats the federal civil service as largely beyond the President’s reach. This Article challenges that assumption. Legal scholars too often focus on constitutional powers rather than statutory authority. Yet the President has possessed statutory authority to regulate entrance into the civil service and the conduct of federal employees since before the passage of the Pendleton Act. Through detailed case studies spanning recruitment, conduct, unionization, and removal, this Article demonstrates how Presidents routinely alter the structure of the civil service. The analysis shows how Presidents can use this statutory authority to strengthen administrative capacity when used in good faith …

The Judiciary's Intrusion Into The Power To Tax: The Constitutionality Of Taxing Unrealized Gains And Argument For Deference To The Elected Branches, Blaise Knueppel

Minnesota Law Review Vols. 106:2 onward (2021-present)

In the United States, investment income (e.g., capital gains, dividends, interest) is favored over earned income (e.g., salary, self-employment, tips). While Congress bears some responsibility for the favorable treatment that investment income gets, it has not acted alone. The judiciary, for its part, has contributed a rule that shields any taxation of investments until they have become realized. In Eisner v. Macomber (1920), the Supreme Court determined that investments must be separated from their capital and that there must be some form of receipt before the gain is considered taxable. In other words, the Macomber Court read a rule that …

Improving Psychiatric Paraprofessional Preparedness Through Mental Health First Aid Training In An Outpatient Mental Health Clinic, Anisha Hampton

DNP Scholarly Projects

BACKGROUND: Paraprofessional staff in outpatient mental health clinics play a critical role in monitoring clients with serious mental illness (SMI) and supporting continuity of care in community-based settings. However, the absence of standardized training contributes to variability in staff knowledge, confidence, and ability to recognize early signs of mental health deterioration. Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) is an evidence-based training designed to improve mental health literacy and crisis response skills among frontline workers.

METHODS: This quality improvement project utilized a pre-post design within a Plan-DoStudy-Act (PDSA) framework at an outpatient mental health clinic. Paraprofessional staff completed the Mental Health Literacy …

Integrating Brief Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Into Telepsychiatry: A Professional Development Model For Pmhnps, Catherine A. Roberts

DNP Scholarly Projects

Background: Mental illnesses remain among the most prevalent health conditions in the United States, affecting approximately 23% or nearly one in five adults in 2025 (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2025); National Institute of Mental Health [NIMH], 2024a). Despite this high prevalence, only 50.6% of adults living with mental health disorders receive treatment (NIMH, 2024a); although the expansion of telepsychiatry has improved access to mental healthcare, medication-management visits are frequently brief and primarily focused on pharmacotherapy thereby limiting opportunities for delivery of psychotherapeutic interventions. This limitation highlights the need for structured, evidence-based psychotherapeutic approaches that can be …

Mansfield And More, Dorothea A. Boulukos

2026

In this paper, I argue that Jane Austen’s treatment of Fanny Price, a character who embodies the conservative feminine ideal, exposes the contradictions within that ideal. I take Hannah More’s 1799 Strictures on the Modern System of Female Education: With the View of the Principles and the Conduct Prevalent Among Women of Rank and Fortune as a paradigmatic representation of this ideal. Fanny is often in agreement with More, not least on the subject of German playwrights, whom both women find subversive. Fanny also obeys many of More’s prescriptions: she is quiet, submissive to male authorities, and prone to self-doubt. …

Occupational Therapy’S Role In The School System: Educating Teachers On The Role Of Occupational Therapy And Providing Them With Sensory Processing Strategies, Kiley N. Carter

OTD Capstone Projects

This capstone project addresses the limited understanding and communication between teachers and occupational therapists (OT) in elementary school settings, particularly in Southern Illinois. Although occupational therapist are essential members of special education teams, teachers often lack clarity about the scope and impact of occupational therapy in schools. The project’s primary aim was to educate teachers about the role of OT and provide them with practical sensory strategies to support students with sensory processing disorders in the classroom. The methodology involved assessing teachers’ needs through observation, reviewing current literature, and collaborating with site and faculty mentors. An educational module and a …

Occupational Therapy For Perinatal Mothers In Rural Community Practice: Development & Implementation Of Educational Modules, Hannah M. Johnson

OTD Capstone Projects

There are significant gaps in maternal healthcare in rural communities in Illinois where only 65.4% of pregnant people live within 30 minutes of a hospital that provides maternity care (State of Illinois, 2025). Pregnant and postpartum individuals in the region are inadequately supported during their transition to motherhood within the current healthcare system. This capstone project aimed to serve women in Southern Illinois during the perinatal period through occupational therapy-based and trauma-informed educational content. The project was conducted at The Little Resource Center, a parenting and family support center in Carbondale, under the guidance of their staff. Three educational modules, …

Ai-Enabled Urban Decision-Making: From Infrastructure To Policy Implementation, Amir Hosein Taherkhani

Doctoral Dissertations

Urban infrastructure systems face unprecedented compound threats from aging physical stock, climate-driven hazard escalation, and large-scale systemic shocks, yet the analytical tools available to decision-makers remain inadequate in both empirical scope and equity orientation. This dissertation advances urban resilience science along two complementary empirical frontiers.The first investigation develops a deep reinforcement learning framework for socially equitable, flood-aware bridge portfolio maintenance optimization. Using Proximal Policy Optimization, a portfolio of 19 flood-vulnerable bridges in Suffolk County, Massachusetts is optimized over a multi-year planning horizon integrating HAZUS-based flood hazard simulation across four return-period scenarios (10, 50, 100, and 500 years), HEC-18 hydraulic scour …

The Long And Short Of It: Exploring The Essential Dynamics Of Select Geophysical Flows, Adhithiya Sivakumar

Doctoral Dissertations

Geophysical flows are central to important climatological processes, yet their strong turbulence and additional complexities -- density stratification, wave-current interaction, and phase change -- make analytical prediction and direct numerical simulation infeasible in many regimes. This dissertation adopts a reductionist approach in which simplified representations -- often inspired by observed scale disparities -- are utilized to isolate and investigate the organizing mechanisms of these complex flows. Within this framework, three distinct but thematically connected problems are studied.

We first study Langmuir turbulence in the open ocean, in which surface gravity waves interact with wind-driven currents to organize the mixed layer …

In Their Own Words: Why First-Generation Minority Students Take On Leadership Roles At Hispanic-Serving Institutions, Suzette Ramsundar Ed.D

Theses and Dissertations

While there is an abundance of research on student leadership and how it impacts student retention (Tinto, 1987 and Pascarella & Terenzini, 2005), it is typically from the university's perspective. This phenomenological study, however, investigated the experiences and perceptions of first-generation minority students who commuted to campus and pursued leadership roles at Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs). Utilizing phenomenological methodology, this research examined the lived experiences of eight student leaders to understand how they made meaning of their leadership engagement.

Student leaders in this study shared the details of the significant challenges they navigated, including financial pressures, commuting demands, cultural barriers, and …

Resilience In The Aftermath Of A Technological Disaster: A Community-Based Mixed Methods Research Study Author Links Open Overlay Panel, Jasmín D. Llamas, Melissa L. Morgan

Counseling Psychology

This study tests a disaster model of resilience in the aftermath of a natural gas pipeline explosion. This technological disaster occurred in a residential neighborhood in the Western United States. Traditionally, disaster literature has focused on the negative impacts of disasters, emphasizing distress and psychopathology; however, there has been a shift towards exploring protective factors that prevent psychopathology. The present study, guided by Community-Based Participatory Research, expands our understanding of disaster resilience. A mixed methods design was employed using a quantitative survey of 146 participants to test a model of resilience and qualitative open-ended questions to explore methods of coping …

Electronic Bills Of Lading And Blockchain Technology: A Regulatory Perspective, Hsin-Hua Tsai

Journal of Marine Science and Technology–Taiwan

Information and communications technology (ICT) systems are increasingly relevant to the maritime sector. Regarding the revolution of the bill of lading, many shipping lines and other technology startups have been looking into developing viable electronic transport documents that have the same functions as paper bills of lading to reduce supply chain risks. The limitations of the paper-based process have become increasingly visible in the COVID-19 crisis. The main purpose of the article is to analyze the application of blockchain bills of lading, which utilizes computational logic to create the digital ledger, and users can set up algorithms and rules to …

Intelligent Formation Control Using Orfbls And Adaptive Backstepping Sliding-Mode Control To Address Uncertain Tilting In Multi-Quadrotors During Wind Gusts, Ching-Chih Tsai, Chun-Fu Mao, Kumail Hussain

Journal of Marine Science and Technology–Taiwan

In terms of aerial robotics, stable and precise formation control is a significant challenge for tilting multi-quadrotors during disturbances. This paper proposes a fixed-time formation control strategy for tilting multi-quadrotors to address the effect of external wind gusts. The observer accurately predicts environmental disturbances and an adaptive backstepping sliding-mode control (ABSMC) method with an output recurrent fuzzy broad learning system (ORFBLS) addresses these disturbances within a finite time. ORFBLS dynamically adjusts its structure through a growing ORFBLS structure to allow nodes to be added as needed. The method's stability is validated using Lyapunov stability theory and ensures the convergence of …

Visually Guided Landing System On Ship Deck For Multicopter, Dong-Lin Li, Shih-Kai Lee, Tzu-Hsiang Chou

Journal of Marine Science and Technology–Taiwan

Traditionally, high-value fish have been located at sea using helicopters. However, with advancements in technology, maritime drones have become increasingly important in recent years. Compared to traditional helicopter-based methods, drones offer significantly lower operational costs, making them cost-effective. However, the challenging sea conditions, including strong winds and the swaying motion of vessels, pose significant challenges for drone landings.

This paper proposes a stable approach for multicopter landing on ships at sea, incorporating improved marker detection, enhanced wind resistance control, and more accurate deck motion prediction. In the marker detection phase, we introduce a method to improve the accuracy of ArUco …

Using Remote Sensing Technology To Develop A Framework For Improving Hydrologic Models, Marissa Cook

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

With increased storm intensity due to climate change and urbanization, flash flooding has become an increasingly significant issue globally and regionally. Although the factors influencing urban flash flooding are well-known, there is a growing need for technology to accurately and remotely predict the chance of a flash flood occurring from any given rain event to give people time to prepare. This study aims to use multispectral satellite imagery to provide a framework for improving near real-time flood predictions in an urban area of a high gradient, fourth order stream impacted by flooding. Specifically, we utilize satellite imagery to create the …

Entrainment And Surfacing Dynamics Of Submerged, Buoyant Turbulent Jets, Zeeshan Saeed

Doctoral Dissertations

Turbulent entrainment (TE) in buoyant jets plays a key role in dispersing environmental contaminants, carrying significant socio-economic implications. For example, the transport of heat and solutes through submarine volcanoes and the discharge of subglacial meltwater crucially affect the marine ecosphere. This, in turn, impacts coastal communities, the supply chains they support, and the broader socio-economic landscape. Therefore, advancing our understanding of how submerged buoyant jets mix and developing remote sensing tools to help monitor their changing status is crucial for devising strategies to mitigate marine-related challenges quickly, economically, and effectively. Therefore, this dissertation has three primary objectives: (I) examine the …

Emotional Complexity In Context: Within-Person Variability In Emotional Granularity, Emotion Covariation, And Emodiversity, Kristen Diann Petagna

Doctoral Dissertations

Key features of emotional complexity include emotional granularity, the ability to identify feelings with precision; emodiversity, the number and evenness of different emotions experienced; and emotion covariation, the tendency to experience positive and negative emotions independently. Prior work has largely treated these features as trait-like. This dissertation examines whether these features are dynamic by investigating how they vary within individuals over time and across contexts. In Chapter 2, participants (N =123) reported their emotions multiple times a day for 6 weeks and completed biweekly assessments of mental health symptoms. Emotional granularity and covariation increased over time, whereas emodiversity decreased, and …

Comparative Law: Cases, Text, And Materials, Francesca Bignami

GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works

This new casebook offers a contemporary approach to the teaching of comparative law.  By integrating an up-to-date set of cases, code texts, and scholarly materials drawn from the civil law and common law traditions, as well as from Islamic law and customary law, it captures today’s dynamic legal landscape.  Beyond the western jurisdictions that typically feature in the general comparative law course, the book gives sustained attention to Brazil, Pakistan, South Africa, and Ethiopia. Subject areas covered are private law, procedural law, labor law, administrative law, digital law, and constitutional law.  Looking to professional life after graduation, this book equips …

A Variance Decomposition Approach To Inconclusives In Forensic Black Box Studies, Amanda Luby, Joseph B. Kadane

Mathematics and Statistics Faculty Work

In the USA, ‘black box’ studies are increasingly being used to estimate the error rate of forensic disciplines. A sample of forensic examiner participants is asked to evaluate a set of items whose source is known to the researchers but not to the participants. Participants are asked to make a source determination (typically an identification, exclusion, or some kind of inconclusive). We study inconclusives in two black box studies, one on fingerprints and one on bullets. Rather than treating all inconclusive responses as functionally correct (as is the practice in reported error rates in the two studies we address), irrelevant …

Government Agencies In The United States Are Obstructing Native Species Restoration, Creating Regulatory Pits For Wildlife, Jeremy T. Bruskotter, L. Mark Elbroch, John Vucetich

Michigan Tech Publications

No abstract provided.

Restoring The Wild East: Predicting Public Support For Cougar And Red Wolf Reintroduction In The Eastern United States, Benjamin Ghasemi, Jeremy T. Bruskotter, John A. Vucetich, L. Mark Elbroch, Robyn S. Wilson, Neil H. Carter, Axel Moehrenschlager, Shelby Perry, Joseph W. Hinton

Michigan Tech Publications

Restoring large carnivores to human-dominated landscapes remains ecologically and socially contentious, though reintroduction may offer important benefits where coexistence is possible. Yet, efforts to reintroduce cougars (Puma concolor) and red wolves (Canis rufus) in the Eastern U.S. face major challenges, largely due to human-caused mortality and opposition. We employed the hazard acceptance model and structural equation modeling to investigate the socio-psychological drivers of public support for reintroduction. Survey data were collected from residents of the Eastern U.S. for cougars (n = 2665) and red wolves (n = 3825). For both species, support was positively associated with perceived personal and societal …

Eng 4801 : Integrating The English Language Arts In Middle And High Schools, English

Approved Course Proposals

No abstract provided.

Different Destinations: Clarifying And Addressing Pipeline Problems For Women In Academic Archaeology, Scott R. Hutson, Jaycee Castro, Bruno Athie Teruel

Anthropology Faculty Publications

In STEM fields, women tend to leak out of the pipeline to the professoriate. In archaeology, however, robust databases and chronological control reveal that there is no leakage from earning a PhD to tenure-track positions. Nor is there a leak from assistant professor to associate professor. Nevertheless, men get hired as faculty in PhD programs more often than women. This is important because PhD programs are research-intensive and train future leaders. Furthermore, women PhD students have women as advisers more than often men and report advantages to this arrangement. Yet with fewer women faculty in PhD programs, women mentors are …