Digital Commons Network^™

Usa V. Hunter Anderson

2026 Decisions

USDC for the Middle District of Pennsylvania

“We're Human. We Are Just Human”: Experiences Of Trans And Two-Spirit Individuals In The Midwest, Gwen Avery Donner

Honors Thesis

In the United States today, gender can be a hot button topic, seemingly controversial and assigned as political, and within conservative regions the topic of gender becomes more taboo. Unfortunately, this view can lead to the stigmatization and discrimination of individuals who fall outside of the socially constructed gender binary. In order to explore how living in the conservative landscape of the Midwest impacts individuals who reside outside of the gender binary, 11 semi-structured, qualitative interviews with Trans and/or Two-Spirit individuals were conducted in which they were asked about their lived experiences. The findings of the interviews revolved around two …

Genome Wide Association Study (Gwas) On Different Economic Traits And Epigenetic Stability Of Sweetpotato In Louisiana, Ajay Dhungana

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Sweetpotato [Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam] is a globally important food, feed, and industrial crop, yet its improvement is constrained by a complex hexaploid genome, clonal propagation, and susceptibility to multiple diseases. In Louisiana, production is threatened primarily by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. batatas (Fusarium wilt) and Ceratocystis fimbriata (Black rot). Furthermore, the in vitro propagation methods essential for disease-free planting material and germplasm conservation can introduce epigenetic instability that undermines clonal fidelity. This dissertation integrates genome-wide association studies (GWAS), genotype by environment interaction (GEI) and DNA methylation profiling to dissect resistance mechanisms and assess epigenetic stability in Louisiana sweetpotato …

Making The Right Decisions For Adaptive Radiotherapy, Chloe C.F. Ditusa

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Purpose: Daily anatomical changes can invalidate the geometric, dosimetric, and biological assumptions of reference radiotherapy plans, yet quantitative evidence describing fraction-level deviations across disease sites remains limited. This work developed and evaluated a metric-based framework for daily dose assessment to characterize temporal treatment behavior and inform adaptive decision-making in Head and Neck (H&N) radiotherapy and Prostate stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT). Methods: A web-based Dashboard was created to compute geometric, dosimetric, and radiobiological metrics from daily dose recalculations. Calculations were first verified against a commercial treatment-planning analysis platform. Daily dose on anatomy-of-the-day was reconstructed using CBCT-based pseudo-CTs for H&N and daily …

Government Goes Goop, Jennifer D. Oliva

Emory Law Journal Online

This Article argues that the appointment of prominent wellness and antivaccine figures to senior federal health positions marks the culmination of a long-running evolution in American health fraud—from nineteenth-century traveling medicine shows to the institutional capture of government health agencies. Drawing a direct lineage from patent medicine marketing to contemporary wellness conspiracism, this Article demonstrates how tactics perfected by early medicine show entrepreneurs—emotional manipulation, conspiratorial framing, anti-establishment positioning, and the exploitation of information asymmetries—have persisted across regulatory and technological shifts, ultimately achieving unprecedented political legitimacy.

This Article traces this evolution through the deregulated supplement marketplace created by the Dietary Supplement …

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 …

Aberrant Recruitment Of The Striatum And Insula Is Associated With Recalling And Suppressing Fatigue- And Anger-Related Memories In People With Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/Myalgic Encephalomyelitis, Katharine Rimes, Vincent Giampietro, Trudie Chalder, Roland Zahn, Sean Fallon

School of Psychology

Research suggests that people with chronic fatigue syndrome tend to suppress emotions more than healthy individuals. However, whether there are also changes in the neural substrates of emotional regulation in people with chronic fatigue syndrome remain unexplored. Specifically, it is unclear whether there is a neural delineation in how fatigue and anger-related memories are recalled or supressed in people with chronic fatigue syndrome. This study investigated this hypothesis using functional magnetic resonance imaging. We compared blood oxygen level-dependent signal changes between people with chronic fatigue syndrome (N=20) and matched controls (N= 20) during a novel task that involved the recall …

Music-Based Intervention For Stress And Sleep In Substance Use Recovery, Olivia A. Coleman

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Aim: Sleep difficulties and elevated stress are common among individuals recovering from substance use disorders (SUDs), often persisting long after initial detoxification. Music-based interventions offer a low-risk, nonpharmacological option that may support sleep and stress regulation. This study examined whether a Structured Music Listening Protocol (SMLP) could improve sleep quality and reduce perceived stress within a residential SUD treatment program.

Methods: Fifty eligible patients were enrolled in the Intervention Group (SMLP – Structured Music Listening Protocol) and fifty in the Control Group (Standardized Therapy) from a residential treatment center for SUDs. Both groups received standard therapy from the center. The …

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 …

Donor Sex And Platelet Storage Change The Therapeutic Effects Of Platelet-Derived Extracellular Vesicles On Endothelium, Mandeep Kaur, Malvika Gupta, Sowmya Shree Gopal, Charles E. Wade, Jessica C. Cardenas, Amit K. Srivastava

Cardeza Foundation for Hematologic Research

Platelet-derived extracellular vesicles (PEVs) play an active role in vascular protection and repair and are being explored as a viable alternative to platelet therapy. Because platelet function and stability are shaped by donor sex and storage conditions, these same factors are likely to influence the PEVs they release. Understanding these influences is key to developing PEVs into a safe and dependable therapeutic option. In this study, we investigated how donor sex and platelet storage affect the therapeutic properties of PEVs. To address this, PEVs were isolated from platelets of healthy male and female donors. Platelets were either processed immediately after …

Decision Making Processes Of Adolescent Women About Entering Intimate, Long-Term Romantic Relationships, Jeannie Miller

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

There is a high rate of women in their late 20s and early 30s that are in destructive relationships, many because of decisions that were made during adolescence . Little research has focused on understanding the decision making process of entering intimate, long-term romantic relationships from the viewpoint of adult women in their late 20s through 30s who made that decision during adolescence. This phenomenological study allowed for a greater understanding of adolescent decision making, specifically about entering intimate, long-term romantic relationships. The research questions were (a) What are the lived experiences of young women as they enter intimate, long-term …

Nathan Furey Appointed As The First Robert Summers Professor Of Biology, Mark Wanner

UNH Today Archive

No abstract provided.

Psy312 - Psychology Of Memory, Sandra Campeanu

Open Educational Resources

Theoretical issues, established findings, empirical research, and contemporary controversies in the study of memory. Analysis of the processes of encoding, storage and retrieval, including models, developmental changes, neurophysiology, and memory distortions. Consideration of the ways memory influences behavior, problem solving, and sense of self.

This document is a revised syllabus for Professor Campeanu's PSY312 - Psychology of Memory course at Lehman College.

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 …

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 …

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 …

Comparison Of Sampling Methods For Estimation Of Aquatic Insect Diversity And Abundance Across Seasonal Gradients In A Southern U.S. River System, Albert Henry Gasperecz

LSU Master's Theses

Determination of benthic macroinvertebrate assemblage composition plays a vital role in assessment and management of lotic systems throughout the U.S. However, the validity of biomonitoring programs depends on accurate and precise measures of macroinvertebrate abundance, which in turn are dependent on sampling gears and protocols. The goal of this project was to assess how gear selection influences estimates of aquatic insect abundance and diversity, and how this selection can affect biological monitoring practices. I used 4 different gears in 3 southern Mississippi streams to aquatically and terrestrially collect aquatic insects seasonally throughout 2024. I identified and recorded all genera present …

Predator-Prey Responses Of The Clamworm Alitta Succinea To Direct Interaction With Crabs And Chemical Cues, Shyann Mcclain, Gloria M. Massamba N'Siala

Knowledge and Creativity Expo

Predator–prey interactions in marine benthic systems can have important indirect effects mediated through environmental signaling. Predators can reveal their presence through the release of chemical cues, influencing the activity and feeding rates of other potential prey through non-consumptive effects, which may ultimately shape energy allocation and survival in targeted populations. Along the Atlantic coast of the United States, predatory crabs overlap spatially with polychaete prey such as the clamworm Alitta succinea, creating consistent predation pressure. This study will set up the experimental system needed to examine the physiological responses of clamworms to both direct and indirect predation cues under controlled …

Seasonal Activity Pattern Of Ambrosia Beetles In Southeast Virginia, Umme H. Akter, Sajrim Chowdhury, Deborah A. Waller

Knowledge and Creativity Expo

Ambrosia beetles (Curculionidae: Scolytinae) are wood-boring insects that influence forest ecosystems through fungal symbioses, rapid host colonization, and invasive species dynamics. Despite their ecological importance, seasonal activity patterns remain poorly characterized in southeastern Virginia. This study integrates field trapping and statistical modeling to examine species-specific seasonal activity across two forested sites in Norfolk, Virginia. Beetles were monitored using ethanol and essential oil-baited bottle traps alongside ethanol-soaked bolt traps. Overall abundance peaked in April, indicating strong early-season emergence. Ethanol-baited traps captured 3-7 times more beetles than essential oil traps, and negative binomial generalized linear models confirmed bait type as a significant …

Protocol For Egg Mass Preservation And Its Efficacy In The Marine Annelids Ophryotrocha Labronica, Brennan Sinclair, Gloria Massamba-N'Siala

Knowledge and Creativity Expo

Accurate measurement of egg size is essential for understanding reproductive investment and developmental patterns in Ophryotrocha labronica, but standard protocols require imaging fresh eggs, limiting sample throughput. This study tested whether short‑term preservation in 4% formalin alters egg size and developed a workflow to support more efficient developmental observations. Egg masses were divided into subsamples and measured after 0, 2, and 7 days of preservation. Using a linear mixed‑effects model, we analyzed 224 eggs from 25 masses to evaluate the effect of preservation time while accounting for variation among clutches. Preservation time had no significant effect on egg size, …

Methods Of Inducing Cellular Senescence In Lung Fibroblasts, Sara Palega, Jennifer Q. Zhou, Shan Zhu, Yan Y. Sanders

Knowledge and Creativity Expo

Methods of Inducing Cellular Senescence in Lung Fibroblasts

Sara Palega¹, Jennifer Q Zhou², Shan Zhu², Yan Y Sanders²

¹VHS Biomedical Sciences PhD program, ²Department of Biomedical and Translational Sciences, Macon & Joan Brock Virginia Health Sciences at Old Dominion University (ODU)

Introduction: Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF) is the most prevalent and severe of interstitial lung diseases. This chronic and progressive condition lacks treatment options and is ultimately fatal without a lung transplant. IPF arises from aberrant wound healing that leads to excessive collagen deposition, inflammation, and cystic alveolar growths which makes …

Methane Consumption Rates By Coastal Virginia Beach Microbes, James R. Bailey Ii

Knowledge and Creativity Expo

This study measures whether microbial communities in the shallow coastal waters of Virginia Beach are capable of consuming methane in the water column. Using methane enrichment incubations and gas chromatography, we found no measurable methane oxidation of our samples over multi-day periods. These results suggest that these coastal waters may act as net sources of atmospheric methane.

Using Spices To Mitigate The Detrimental Effects Of The Red Imported Fire Ant Solenopsis Invicta Buren (Formicidae) In Virginia, Karson Mchendry, Deborah Waller

Knowledge and Creativity Expo

The Red Imported Fire Ant, Solenopsis Invicta Buren, first arrived in southeastern Virginia in 1989 and rapidly spread throughout the area. These invasive ants displace native ant species and prey on vulnerable invertebrate and vertebrate species. Fire ant workers are very aggressive and readily bite and sting humans. Although the ant colonies can be eliminated with pesticide applications, chemical control can have detrimental effects on humans and on the environment. In the present study, we investigated various spices including cinnamon, nutmeg and turmeric as repellents to foraging workers. The use of spices to control ant activity promises to be an …

Trapping Ambrosia Beetles (Curculionidae) With Ethanol-Soaked Tree Bolts In Southeastern Virginia., Sajrim Chowdhury, Umme H. Akter, Deborah A. Waller

Knowledge and Creativity Expo

Native and invasive ambrosia beetles infest a wide variety of tree species in southeastern Virginia and cause significant damage. We investigated trapping ambrosia beetles by using ten different tree species as lures. One objective of the study was to determine the most effective lure for each species of ambrosia beetle related to tree species and the diameter of the bolt. Sections of tree limbs of two different diameters and 25cm in length were soaked in ethanol and hung from trees in several natural locations, both near water and away from water. Beetles attracted to the lures bored into the bolts …

Establishing Aquarium Systems And Care Protocols For Marine Invertebrates In The Department Of Biological Sciences At Odu, Magdalene R. Hamlin, Gloria Massamba N'Siala Ph.D.

Knowledge and Creativity Expo

Maintaining live animals in lab settings is useful for establishing a stock of specimens available for experimental studies without relying on continuous collection efforts. Previous aquarium systems utilized in the aquatic facility of the Department of Biological Sciences at ODU were suited for research on freshwater and marine vertebrates and were not designed for the care of marine invertebrates. This project aims to establish methods and protocols suitable for maintaining various marine invertebrates in a control laboratory setting. In the first stage of the project, the existing recirculation system and lab space will be reorganized and restructured to suit the …

The Influence Of Wind Speed On Phytoplankton Bloom Timing In Antarctica's 5 Regions, Majesti L. Cummings, Jessie S. Turners

Knowledge and Creativity Expo

Phytoplankton blooms form the foundation of the Antarctic marine food web and play a critical role in regional carbon cycling. Recent observations along the West Antarctic Peninsula indicate shifts in bloom phenology, the seasonal timing of biological events in nature, with accumulation seasons occurring later in recent decades. This study investigates how different variability in spring wind speed influences phytoplankton bloom start dates and peak dates across five ecological regions of the West Antarctic Peninsula.

Bloom timing is derived from 25 years of satellite-based chlorophyll-a observations, including annual start date and peak date. Wind speed data derived from atmospheric reanalysis …

How Much Does Shape Matter: Investigating The Impact Of Marine Particle Morphological Features On In-Situ Settling Velocities Using Pca And Various Ml Models, Huanqing Huang, Alexander B. Bochdansky

Knowledge and Creativity Expo

Particle settling velocity serves as an essential component in ocean biological pump, as it determines particle retention time in the water column. Stokes’ law has been widely used to predict particle settling velocities by particle size and excess density in aquatic environments. However, an increasing number of studies suggest that Stokes’ law fits poorly in the size-velocity relationship of observations on small oceanic particles. Here, we present a series of novel approaches to investigate the relative contribution of settling velocities by the particle shape and optical densities using machine learning (ML) models and principal component analysis (PCA), based on 3906 …

Microplastics As Physical Hubs Amplifying Antiobiotic Resistance Under Mixed-Contaminant Selection In Wastewater Systems, Liyuan Hou

Spring Runoff Conference

Microplastics (MPs) are tiny plastic particles within the range of (0.1 mm to 5 mm) in size

The Paradox Of Musical Vernaculars, By Marina Ritzarev, Jacob Gran

Music & Musical Performance: An International Journal

No abstract provided.

Recent Progress In Nanogel Technology: From Molecular Design To Biomedical Applications, Fatima Raed Al-Ahmed, Mohammed Sabar Al-Lami

Maaen Journal for Medical Sciences

Nanogels, a hydrophilic polymer network at the nanoscale, combine the structural flexibility of hydrogels with the dynamic behavior of nanoparticles, offering unprecedented control over drug loading and release. Their large surface area, tunable porosity, high water content, biocompatibility, and stimuli-responsive behavior enable transport across biological barriers. This review critically examines nanogels’ unique properties, classifications, diverse methods of preparation, drug release mechanisms, characterization techniques, and various applications in therapeutic areas, such as cancer therapy, wound healing, transdermal and ocular drug delivery, and theranostics. Highlights are shed on nanogels’ potential to target specific sites, both by functionalization and stimuli-responsive behavior, therefore improving …