Digital Commons Network^™

Transforming Co2 Into Value-Added Products: Liquefied Petroleum Gas And Solid Carbon Materials, Kaiying Wang

McKelvey School of Engineering Graduate Student Theses & Dissertations

The escalating climate crisis, driven by anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, necessitates the development of advanced Carbon Capture and Utilization (CCU) technologies. A critical distinction within CCU lies between transient carbon cycling, which converts CO2 into fuels, and permanent sequestration, which transforms it into durable, solid materials. This dissertation addresses fundamental catalytic challenges across both pathways to develop economically viable and technologically sound solutions for CO2 valorization. This work seeks to answer two primary research questions: (1) How can the catalyst temperature mismatch and stability limitations in the tandem conversion of CO2 to Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) be overcome to …

Interrupting Empire: Playing With Concealment And Pedagogy In The Meme ‘For The Better, Right?’, Amy N. Sojot

Education Studies Faculty publications

‘For the better, right?’ is a Star Wars meme that depicts a scene from Episode II—Attack of the Clones. Although the scene and dialogue never occur in the actual film, the meme provides a concise fourteen-word analysis of how Empire conceals itself. Using postfoundational inquiry, this article examines the meme’s pedagogy through Brian Massumi’s work on play in relation to politics and affect. Concealment and interrup- tion are identified as two characteristics of these relations. Author-created iterations of the meme demonstrate how play, as theorized by Massumi, can rework these tactics of concealment and interruption, enabling them to imagine alternative …

Employers’ Best Practices For Retaining Women Employees With Dual Responsibilities Post-Covid-19 Pandemic: A Multiple Case Study, Wenoka E. Nieves

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The challenges women face with dual responsibilities during a crisis often force them to take on additional or multiple responsibilities at home. The specific research problem is that although researchers have investigated job loss during crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, the topic of how employers can retain women with dual responsibilities, caring for their family members in their household and working during crises, has not been explored. The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore the best practices that employers use to retain women employees with dual responsibilities who are caring for their household family members …

Artificial Intelligence And Consumer Trust, Privacy, And Protection On Digital Platforms, Alheri Gajere Adams

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Academic scholars have researched the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on privacy, trust, and data governance; however, substantial gaps remain—particularly regarding how AI influences consumer trust and privacy among Texas consumers subscribed to digital platforms. The purpose of this generic qualitative study was to explore how Texas consumers experience and perceive online platforms for personal and private use regarding online data privacy and trust, underscoring the gap in prior research on how state-level consumer protection laws, such as the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA), address concerns relative to data trust, privacy, and digital protection. The conceptual framework that guided …

Late-Stage Capitalism And Consumerism In Higher Education: A Morphogenetic Analysis, Kallen Zhou

Publications

Facing widespread student disengagement and dissatisfaction, U.S. higher education is undergoing a paradigm shift, detaching from its civic and pedagogical origins. A key force driving this transformation is the rise of student consumerism. While existing literature documents market-driven actions adopted by higher education institutions (HEIs) and the consumer roles students play, it overlooks structural market forces. Specifically, little theorization exists on the relationship between late-stage capitalism and student consumerism. This paper addresses that gap through two steps: first, offering a historical analysis of the traditional university model, late-stage capitalism, academic capitalism, and the decline of the liberal arts; second, developing …

Beyond Precision: Ambiomic Survivorship In Childhood And Aya Cancer., Juan Antonio Ortega-García, Omar Shakeel, Nicole Wood, Antonio Pérez-Martínez, Jose Luís Fuster-Soler, Mark D. Miller

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

Background: Survival among children and adolescents and young adults (AYA) with cancer has improved substantially over recent decades; however, dominant survivorship models remain reactive-activated post-treatment and anchored to static exposure- and organ-based screening. This design underuses the anticipatory window at diagnosis and overlooks environmental and social determinants that modulate outcomes across the life course. Methods: We narratively reviewed international frameworks including the Children's Oncology Group (COG), the International Late Effects of Childhood Cancer Guideline Harmonization Group (IGHG), the Pan-European Network for Care of Survivors after Childhood and Adolescent Cancer (PanCare) and the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN), and synthesized evidence …

Comparison Of Cervical Spine Injury Clinical Prediction Rules For Children After Blunt Trauma, Lois K. Lee, Fahd A. Ahmad, Lorin R. Brown, Monica Harding, Lawrence Cook, Kathleen Adelgais, Rebecca K. Burger, Alexander Rogers, Leah Tzimenatos, Lauren C. Riney, Daniel Rubalcava, Caleb E. Ward, Kenneth Yen, Julie C. Leonard

2020-Current year OA Pubs

No abstract provided.

Baseline Exposure-Response Assessment Of Metals From Dried Blood Spots And Personal Household Air Pollution Concentrations Among Pregnant Women In Rwanda: Household Air Pollution Intervention Network Trial, Adolphe Ndikubwimana, Lisa De Las Fuentes, Victor G Dávila-Román, Et Al.

2020-Current year OA Pubs

BACKGROUND: Exposure to metals from the combustion of biomass via inhalation may result in negative health outcomes affecting a variety of organs and systems. Pregnant women cooking with biomass fuels may be exposed to metals, such as lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd), and have unique risks for adverse health effects with potential impacts on the growing fetus. We assessed the associations between household air pollution and metals detected in dried blood spots from pregnant women at baseline in Rwanda.

METHODS: We analyzed data from 781 pregnant women aged 18-35 years who resided in rural households using biomass fuel and who …

Single-Nucleus Multiomics Reveals The Disrupted Regulatory Programs In Three Brain Regions Of Sporadic Early-Onset Alzheimer’S Disease, Andi Liu, Citu Citu, Nitesh Enduru, Xian Chen, Chia-Hao Tung, Tirthankar Sinha, Sofia E Sepulveda, Astrid M Manuel, Damian Gorski, Brisa S Fernandes, Meifang Yu, Paul E Schulz, Lukas M Simon, Claudio Soto, Zhongming Zhao

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Sporadic early-onset Alzheimer’s disease (sEOAD) represents a substantial but less-studied subtype of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Here, we generated a single-nucleus multiome atlas derived from the postmortem prefrontal cortex, entorhinal cortex, and hippocampus of nine individuals with or without sEOAD. Comprehensive analyses were conducted to delineate cell type–specific transcriptomic changes and linked candidate cis-regulatory elements (cCREs) across brain regions. We prioritized eight conservative transcription factors in glial cells in multiple brain regions, including RFX4 in astrocytes and IKZF1 in microglia, which are implicated in regulating sEOAD-associated genes. Moreover, we identified the top 25 altered intercellular signaling between glial cells …

How Design Law Is Taking Shape In The United States And European Union, Christine Haight Farley

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

This Essay uses a comparative framework to show that sophisticated design rights holders in both the United States (U.S.) and the European Union (EU) increasingly sidestep specialized design regimes in favor of more expansive trademark and copyright doctrines. Although both jurisdictions now operate cumulative intellectual property (IP) systems for industrial design, they have taken sharply divergent paths in confronting the proliferation of “design dupes”—replicas that trade on the appeal of sought-after designs. In the United States, rights holders rely chiefly on trademark law, and especially trade dress, to convert cultural recognition into legally cognizable source indication, a move facilitated by …

P-15 Peptide Enhanced Bone Graft Improves Time To Fusion In Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion: A Randomized, Controlled, Investigational Device Exemption Study, James S. Harrop, Michael P. Steinmetz, John E. O'Toole, Christopher D Chaput, Rick C. Sasso, K. Brandon Strenge, Greg Maislin, Jeffrey P. Mullin, Thomas B. Freeman, Anthony Guanciale, Howard Lantner, Michael E. Janssen, David G. Schwartz, John M. Small, Wellington K. Hsu, Paul M. Arnold

Department of Neurosurgery Faculty Papers

STUDY DESIGN: Prospective, multicenter, single-blind, randomized, and controlled pivotal study.

OBJECTIVE: Compare time-to-fusion in patients treated with P-15L (PearlMatrix TM P-15 peptide enhanced bone graft) versus local autograft over 24 months and evaluate changes in pain and quality of life at 24 months relative to baseline.

SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: P-15L, an FDA-designated breakthrough device, is a composite bone graft with P-15, a 15-amino acid polypeptide that promotes cellular adhesion, proliferation, and differentiation to support bone formation.

METHODS: Patients (22-80 y) with degenerative disc disease were randomized to the investigational (P-15L) or control (local autograft) group during single-level transforaminal lumbar …

Alfred L. Stewart

African American Funeral Programs

No abstract provided.

The Impact Of Patient-Generated Health Data From Mobile Health Technologies On Health Care Management And Clinical Decision-Making: Narrative Scoping Review, Ava Keeling, John Downey, Matthew Halkes, Yinghui Wei

School of Nursing and Midwifery

Background: Long-term health conditions and multimorbidity are increasing globally, placing an unsustainable pressure on health care systems. Mobile health (mHealth) technologies enable the collection of patient-generated health data outside clinical settings, offering the potential to support personalized care and inform clinical decision-making. However, the ways in which mHealth patient data are being used in clinical practice remain unclear. Objective: This study aimed to map and synthesize the existing literature on how patient-generated mHealth data are reportedly being used and influencing clinical decision-making for adults with long-term conditions in an outpatient care setting. Methods: A narrative scoping review was conducted on …

The Nursing Human Capital Value Model, Olga Yakusheva, Kathryn A. Lee, Marianne Weiss

Individual Articles

Nursing's economic value is presently framed within the dominant “outcomes-over-cost” value framework. Within this context, organizations employing nurses often use nursing budget reductions as a cost-minimization strategy, with the intent of retaining high quality outcomes. However, persistent issues such as nurse understaffing, burnout, and turnover threaten healthcare systems' capacity to deliver the quality, equitable, affordable patient care that the public requires. In this paper, we propose a new conceptual model and definition of nursing's economic value. The model development is guided by the convergence of three classic economic frameworks:human capital theory, production theory, and value theory. Grounded in these theories, …

Utilizing The Visia Camera For Analyzing 5-Fluorouracil Treatment Efficacy For Actinic Keratosis, Emily Woolhiser, Leena Jamal, Jessica Kirk, Bertha Baum, Robert Dellavalle

Student Publications

The VISIA camera is a device that captures images of the skin, offering a detailed look at skin health by detecting changes that are often missed during physical exams and by the naked eye. It can help identify changes in UV damage, pigmentation, texture, fine lines, and redness. In dermatology, it has become a useful tool to build targeted treatment plans and follow patient progress over time. We present a case of a male patient diagnosed with diffuse scalp actinic keratoses who was treated with topical 5-fluorouracil (5-FU). VISIA images were taken before treatment, at one week, and again three …

Exploring The Medicinal Properties Of Indigenous Plants Within An Enabling Program: Bridging The Gap Between School, Aboriginal And Torres Strait Islander Knowledge And Science, Sharon L. Gough, Julie Sartori, Angela Jones

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

In 2021, less than half of Australian universities considered Indigenous perspectives in curriculum development, with only 15% ensuring Indigenous content in all courses. Literature acknowledges that a strengths-based approach to the inclusion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledge and perspectives, enhances representation and decolonises curriculum. In 2020, Noongar elder Vivienne Hansen, and John Horsfall created Noongar Bush Medicine, detailing the medicinal use of Indigenous plants. Yeshi, Turpin, Jamtsho, and Wangchuk noted that many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities use native plants for health purposes. However, there is limited data on the therapeutic efficacy of these plants. In 2024, …

Adaptive Neuromodulation Dialogues: Navigating Current Challenges And Emerging Innovations In Neuromodulation System Development, Frederik Lampert, Matthew R Baker, Michael A Jensen, Amir H Ayyoubi, Christian Bentler, Jessica L Bowersock, Rosana Esteller, Jeffrey A Herron, Graham W Johnson, Daryl R Kipke, Christopher K Kovach, Vaclav Kremen, Filip Mivalt, Joseph S Neimat, Theoden I Netoff, Enrico Opri, Alexander Rockhill, Joshua M Rosenow, Kristin K Sellers, Nathan P Staff, Chandra Prakash Swamy, Ashwin Viswanathan, Gerwin Schalk, Timothy Denison, Dora Hermes, Nuri F Ince, Peter Brunner, Gregory A Worrell, Kai J Miller

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Adaptive neuromodulation systems and implantable brain-computer interfaces have made notable strides in recent years, translating experimental prototypes into clinical applications and garnering substantial attention from the public. This surge in interest is accompanied by increased scrutiny related to the safety, efficacy, and ethical implications of these systems, all of which must be directly addressed as we introduce new neurotechnologies. In response, we have synthesized the insights resulting from discussions between groups of experts in the field and summarized them into five key domains essential to therapeutic device development: (1) analyzing current landscape of neuromodulation devices and translational platforms (2) identifying …

Metabolomic Profiling Reveals Brain Lipid Alterations In Pex7-Deficient Models Of Rhizomelic Chondrodysplasia Punctata, Riya Sankhe, Meredith I Williams, Wedad Fallatah, Laura Mackay, Mary Layne Brown, Pranjali Bhagwat, Sarah H Elsea, Nancy Braverman, Michael F Wangler

Duncan NRI Faculty and Staff Publications

Rhizomelic chondrodysplasia punctata type 1 (RCDP1) is a peroxisomal disorder characterized by skeletal shortening, intellectual disability, seizures, cataracts, and reduced lifespans. RCDP1 is caused by biallelic loss-of-function variants in PEX7, which encodes a protein required for importing select enzymes into the peroxisome matrix, including those essential for ether lipid synthesis (e.g., plasmalogens) and the branched-chain fatty acid catabolism. Plasmalogen deficiency is a hallmark of RCDP1 and other peroxisomal disorders, including RCDP types 2-5 (RCDP2-5) and Zellweger spectrum disorders (ZSD). Here, we performed comprehensive metabolomic profiling of clinical samples from RCDP patients and Pex7-deficient mouse models. We identified profound …

Development Of Self-Assembled Polymeric Polyplexes For Microrna Delivery: Toward Treatment Of Alcohol-Associated Liver Disease, Marjina Akter Kalpana

Theses & Dissertations

Self-assembled polymeric polyplexes have the potential to serve as an RNA interference (RNAi) delivery platform for the combined inhibition of CXCR4 and miR-155 in the treatment of alcohol-associated liver disease (AALD). A central challenge in RNA delivery is balancing the extracellular stability of polyplexes, cellular uptake, and intracellular release of RNA cargo. We developed polymeric polyplexes using the CXCR4-antagonist polymer PAMD, designed to target CXCR4 on activated hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) and deliver therapeutic miRNA to activated Kupffer cells (KCs) in fibrotic liver. We improved the polyplexes by cholesterol modification of PAMD and by PEGylation of PAMD-Ch. The cholesterol modification …

Facilitators Of Routine Cervical Screening Receipt For Women With Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities In Nebraska, Anne Woodruff Jameson

Theses & Dissertations

Women with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) experience disproportionately low rates of cervical screening relative to women without I/DD, despite its clear role in cancer prevention. This disparity is especially stark in Nebraska, where in 2023, only 56% of women with I/DD had cervical screen receipt, compared to 78.4% of their non-disabled peers.. Previous literature has explored barriers to cervical screening for women with I/DD using the socioecological model (SEM) as a framework. This dissertation used three methodologies: a case study, a scoping review, and survey research, to examine facilitators to cervical screening for women with I/DD using the SEM …

Peripheral Blood Biomarkers For Rheumatoid Arthritis-Associated Interstitial Lung Disease, Brent A. Luedders

Theses & Dissertations

Rheumatoid arthritis-associated interstitial lung disease (RA-ILD) is a common extra-articular complication of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Measuring peripheral blood biomarkers represents an appealing strategy to inform the screening and prediction of RA-ILD. In these studies, I aimed to further characterize the associations of peripheral blood biomarkers with prevalent and incident RA-ILD. First, I evaluated the associations of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) with RA-ILD among a multicenter cohort of RA U.S. Veteran patients (n = 2,312). Higher concentrations of MMP-7 and MMP-9 were independently associated with both prevalent and incident RA-ILD, including a nearly four-fold increased odds of prevalent RA-ILD (adjusted odds ratio …

Assessment Of Polymeric Chloroquine Formulations For Targeted Therapy Of Ulcerative Colitis And Metastatic Colorectal Cancer, Neha Kumari

Theses & Dissertations

Effective targeted drug delivery is a critical unmet need in the management of both ulcerative colitis and metastatic colorectal cancer, where conventional systemic therapies may be hindered by suboptimal efficacy and significant side effects. This thesis explores the development and preclinical assessment of polymeric chloroquine (PCQ)-based nanotherapeutics, leveraging stimuli-responsive designs for disease-specific delivery and action.

For ulcerative colitis, a reactive oxygen species (ROS)-responsive nanogel system was engineered to release PCQ, a macromolecular derivative of hydroxychloroquine, specifically in the inflamed areas within the colon. Nanogels with well-defined size and positive surface charge were synthesized via reversible fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization …

Role Of Nadph Oxidase 4 In Murine Cancer-Associated Fibroblast, Faith M. Gomez

Theses & Dissertations

Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in women in the United States. Frontline hormone therapies for breast cancer prove ineffective in triple negative breast cancer tumors wherein the hormones estrogen, progesterone, and HER2 are downregulated or absent; therefore, patients diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer are primarily limited to chemotherapies which carry a higher failure and resistance rate. Here we target cancer associated fibroblasts as potential drivers of chemoresistance in triple negative breast cancer. We investigated the mechanism by which Nox4 regulates the YAP/TAZ pathway in modulating DTX sensitivity and sought to determine if targeting Nox4 …

Graphical Display Of A Career In Chronological Order With Achievement Percentiles, Safwan Samla

Defensive Publications Series

A digital representation of a person’s career is provided in a manner that is easy to follow and provides important statistics relating to achievement assessments relative to others. A person’s career can be displayed through a graphical user interface comprising an X and Y plot wherein the X-axis comprises a timeline determined by a person’s career and the Y-axis comprises data-based categories pertaining to different achievement and experiences from the person’s career.

The Contributors, Contributors Contributors

Budhi: A Journal of Ideas and Culture

Contributors

Notes For Contributors, Contributors Contributors

Budhi: A Journal of Ideas and Culture

Contributors

Socrates And Early Buddhist Medical Ethics: Foundations Of Moral Reasoning In The Care Of Body And Mind, Chandima Gangodawila

Budhi: A Journal of Ideas and Culture

While Buddhist traditions articulate a parallel moral vision in the early discourses of the Pāli Canon, Western traditions usually locate the roots of ethical reasoning in Socratic inquiry. Especially in their approaches to bodily care, spiritual well - being, and moral responsibility, this article contends that both Socratic and Early Buddhist ideas converge on fundamental principles in medical ethics. Through a comparative textual and philosophical study, the paper examines how Socratic dialectics and the Buddha's diagnostic approach to dissatisfa ction/ suffering (dukkha) both produce frameworks for ethical healthcare anchored in the development of virtue, wisdom, and care for the integrity …

Inclusive Stem Education In Nigerian Schools:An Emerging Pathway For Substainable Development, Oginni Aderonke Margaret Dr., Awobodu Victoria Yetunde Dr., Olusegun Bisola Esther Miss

Journal of Educational Research and Practice

Inclusive STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education plays a vital role in promoting equitable learning opportunities and fostering sustainable development. However, in Nigeria, many marginalized student groups face barriers that hinder their full participation in STEM fields. This study examines the factors impeding inclusivity in STEM education and their effects on students’ motivation, academic performance, and awareness of sustainable development in Lagos State. Employing a survey research design, data were gathered from 550 students selected through simple random sampling across 21 secondary schools in Education Districts I, III, and V. A researcher-developed questionnaire was used for data collection. To …

Lessons Learned: Andreas Verykios And Kostas Tsatsaronis, Mercedes Cardona

Journal of Financial Crises

Andreas Verykios was appointed in 2018 to lead the board of directors of the General Council of the Hellenic Financial Stability Fund (HFSF), an independent special purpose vehicle created to stabilize the Greek banking sector in the wake of the country’s debt crisis. The Greek economy was badly affected by the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) and the Sovereign Debt Crisis, when the government was found to have underreported its fiscal deficits and public debt. This led to a downgrade and eventual default of its sovereign bonds, requiring assistance from the European Commission. From 2010 through 2018, the commission implemented three …

Lessons Learned: Paul Tucker, Salil Gupta

Journal of Financial Crises

After joining the Bank of England (BoE) in 1980, Sir Paul Tucker held a number of positions of increasing responsibility including serving as a member of several key committees. Tucker played a crucial role in the BoE’s response to the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) as director for markets, through March 2009, then as deputy governor of the bank until November 2013. Post-crisis, he has been instrumental in constructing the international regulatory framework on financial stability. From 2016 to 2021, Tucker also chaired the Systemic Risk Council.

Currently, Tucker is a research fellow at Harvard Kennedy School, Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business …