Digital Commons Network^™

Breadquest: Enhancing Roguelike Accessibility Through Procedural Generation And Thematic Design, Hahns Pena

Computer Science and Software Engineering

BreadQuest is a top-down roguelike dungeon crawler with a whimsical dessert theme that aims to make the genre more accessible while preserving strategic depth and replayability. Players explore procedurally generated dungeons, fight pastry-themed enemies, and collect bakery-inspired items that support a flavor-elemental combat system, with each run offering unique layouts, encounters, and rewards. Built in Unity with a modular, data-driven architecture, the game uses procedural generation techniques like Binary Space Partitioning, Voronoi diagrams, and Perlin noise to create varied and replayable levels. The project emphasizes approachable gameplay, cultural dessert inspiration, and replayability, with success evaluated through playtesting and player feedback.

Active Galaxies In A New Light: The Broad Line Region In The Near-Infrared, Sky O'Donnell

Physics

At the center of most massive galaxies, there is a supermassive black hole with a mass millions to billions of times that of the Sun. In some of these galaxies, so-called Active Galactic Nuclei (AGNs), the supermassive black hole is converting the gas that falls toward it into radiation energy, creating large amounts of luminosity. AGNs are composed of the central supermassive black hole, its accretion disk, and a region just outside, composed of fast-moving ionized gas clouds called the Broad Line Region (BLR). Using spectra obtained with NASA’s Infrared Telescope Facility, we use a technique known as reverberation mapping …

Provost’S Media Report February 16 – May 12, 2026, Une Office Of The Provost

UNE Provost's Reports

Report of UNE media appearances during the period of February 16, 2026 through May 12, 2026. Prepared for the Academic, Student, and Research Affairs Committee Provost’s Report, June 2026.

Real Promise For False Claims: A Whistleblower Litigation Strategy To Reward Investigative Journalism, Frank D. Lomonte

Washington Law Review

Every year, investigative reporters uncover stories of waste, fraud, and corruption, alerting the government to taxpayer ripoffs that had previously gone undiscovered or ignored. For decades, non-journalists have been reaping windfall rewards—sometimes in the millions—by using false-claims statutes to bring whistleblower actions on the government’s behalf. With news organizations struggling for their economic survival, and efforts to secure alternative financial support through government bailouts faltering, is it time for journalists to seek a share of the money they recoup for taxpayers by becoming plaintiffs?

This Article explores the possibilities, and downside risks, of using the federal False Claims Act, and …

Standardizing Tms Intensity Across Different Coils Using Individualized Electric Field Modeling, Evgenii Kim, Mohammad Daneshzand, Keren Zhu, Danyal Fareed Bhutto, Teresa Jacobson Kimberley, Dylan J. Edwards, Netri Pajankar, Parker Kotlarz, Tommi Raij, Sergey N. Makaroff, Aapo Nummenmaa

Moss-Magee Rehabilitation Papers

Quantitative measures for Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) intensity are needed to ensure safe and consistent application in therapeutic and research settings. However, resting motor thresholds (rMTs), commonly used to determine stimulation intensity, depend on the coil used. Unless motor mapping and treatment coils are identical, re-thresholding is necessary, increasing patient discomfort and potentially introducing variability across studies. These considerations raise an unresolved fundamental question: does individual rMT reflect a consistent cortical electric field (E-field) magnitude independent of coil geometry? We tested the hypothesis that rMT corresponds to a coil-invariant cortical E-field magnitude and evaluated a computational method for predicting stimulator …

Prompted Props, Human Pipelines: Evaluating Ai-Generated 3d Assets For Game-Ready Environments, Andrew Begemann, James Hutson

Faculty Scholarship

Generative AI systems increasingly promise rapid 3D asset production for game development, yet their practical viability depends on whether generated models can move beyond visual preview into editable, optimized, engine-ready workflows. This article presents a practice-led comparative case study of a stylized fantasy tavern environment produced through two workflows: a human-authored Blender pipeline and an AI-assisted pipeline using Meshy 6 and Hunyuan 3D. Using a fixed asset list, shared visual theme, documented prompts, production-time tracking, visual comparison, topology inspection, UV-map analysis, and post-generation labor accounting, the study evaluates whether text-to-3D tools function as production substitutes, ideation accelerators, or conditional asset …

Exploring Information Literacy Skills, Attitudes, And Barriers Among Medical And Nursing Students In Bahrain: A Mixed-Methods Perspective, Asif Altaf, Suchita N. Dsilva, Simple Sibi Joseph, Fida Mukhtar, Muhammad Zeeshan, Bindhu Nair

Communications in Information Literacy

Information literacy is essential for evidence-based medical education, yet Gulf-region studies rarely examine student competencies and barriers. This study examines the information literacy skills, attitudes, and challenges faced by medical and nursing students at RCSI Bahrain. A mixed-methods design was employed, combining a quantitative survey (n = 343) with qualitative focus groups (n = 10). Students reported high self-perceived information literacy across domains. Time constraints and information overload were identified as the primary barriers to effective communication. Focus group findings highlighted the late introduction of curricula, technical access challenges, and inequities between medical and nursing programs. Library training attendance, academic …

Still Can’T Kill My Vibe: A Critical Autoethnography Navigating Anti-Blackness As A Student And Teacher—A Black Queer Educator’S Toolkit Towards Joyful Resistance, Mischelle Brown

Social Justice in Educational Leadership EdD Dissertations

This critical autoethnography investigates the intersectional realities of navigating anti- Blackness, systemic racism, and heteronormativity within the American educational landscape. Moving chronologically through the dual lenses of student and teacher, this work unpacks the institutional erasure, surveillance, and microaggressions experienced by Black Queer bodies in academic spaces. Grounded in the theoretical framework of Black Queer Feminism (BQF), this study utilized Epistolary Letter Writing, Education Journey Mapping and Community Cultural Wealth to expose how the education system perpetuates anti-Blackness, white supremacist, heteronormative, patriarchal ideologies. Yet rather than centering trauma as the definitive narrative, this autoethnography elevates the concept of “Joy as …

S-[2-(Hydroxyamino)-2-Oxoethyl]-O-Octyl-Dithiocarbonate Ester (Ehaox): Performance And Adsorption Mechanism, Yue Zhou, Jiaxiang Li, Hongli Fan, Zhilong Li, Yuesheng Gao, Tian Lin, Haiyan Tang, Tingting Wang, Wei Sun

Michigan Tech Publications

This study explores the interfacial interactions between a novel collector, S-[2-(hydroxyamino)-2-oxoethyl]-O-octyl-dithiocarbonate ester (EHAOX), and bastnaesite mineral surfaces during selective flotation. Compared to conventional octylhydroxamic acid (OHA), EHAOX demonstrated superior recovery, achieving an over 40% absolute increase in recovery compared to octylhydroxamic acid (OHA) at the same collector concentration (1 × 10⁻⁵ mol/L) and pH 8.0, and selectivity for bastnaesite, attributed to its optimized hydrophobicity (supported by CLogP calculations). Mechanistic studies via zeta potential, UV/vis spectroscopy, and FTIR revealed the formation of a complex composite via chemisorption between EHAOX and Ce³⁺ sites on the bastnaesite surface, with coordination occurring …

Test Bench Pcb Design For A Vlsi Grid Cell Chip, Nicholas Bruk, Jason Alexandar

Electrical Engineering

This report presents the design, implementation, and validation of a custom printed circuit board (PCB) test bench for a VLSI grid cell emulation chip. The final board provides two independently adjustable 5V supplies using LM317 linear regulators, eleven potentiometer-controlled bias voltages, high-impedance buffering of analog outputs via an MCP6022 dual operational amplifier, and buffering of digital outputs using a 74HC244 buffer IC. The design includes a 40-pin DIP socket for the VLSI chip, extensive test-point headers for probing, and a 9V battery input for portable operation. Five fully functional boards were fabricated using ExpressPCB and assembled with through-hole components. An …

Design And Parametric Testing Of A Transimpedance Amplifier For Low-Power Biomedical Applications, Stanlon Tan, William Chung, Brandon Wu

Electrical Engineering

This project developed and evaluated an optical sensing system for detecting changes associated with glucose concentration. The system combined a laser-diode, cuvette sample holder, photodiode, resistive-feedback transimpedance amplifier, high-resolution analog-to-digital converter, and microcontroller. Parametric testing evaluated the effects of input current and feedback resistance on transimpedance gain, output range, and linearity. Firmware was developed to configure the ADC, average repeated conversions, monitor measurement variation, convert raw digital counts into voltage using a source-meter calibration equation, and compare sample measurements with a water reference. A cuvette enclosure maintained alignment between the laser-diode, sample, and photodiode while reducing external optical interference. Testing …

Performance Evaluation Of Roadside Unit-Assisted Wireless Communication For Connected Vehicles, Keyrollos A. Hanna, Ethan M. Nguyen

Electrical Engineering

This project presents the design and implementation of a wireless communication network intended to improve situational awareness between vehicles and reduce the likelihood of multivehicle collisions. Two TurtleBot3 Burger platforms equipped with Raspberry Pi computers were used to simulate vehicles operating within a shared environment. Communication latency and packet loss were evaluated under multiple operating conditions, including direct vehicle-to-vehicle communication and communication assisted by a roadside unit (RSU). The results were analyzed to determine whether the proposed system could transmit warning messages with sufficient speed and reliability for collision prevention applications. The project demonstrates the feasibility of low-cost vehicle communication …

Simulation Of Silicon Neurons With Memristive Synapses For Ai Accelerators, Marcus Ivey, Kelvin Shi

Electrical Engineering

This project seeks to design and simulate a neuromorphic spiking neural network (SNN) that implements the logical AND and logical OR operation through the interaction of a Leaky Integrate-and-Fire (LIF) output neuron and memristive synapses modeled using the Biolek formulation. Two pulsed inputs are transmitted through memristive devices whose conductance serves as the synaptic weights. A supervised Hebbian training strategy, implemented in MATLAB, is employed to adjust the synaptic conductance according to the Hebbian delta rule. The proposed framework demonstrates how elementary logical computation may arise from biologically motivated learning processes embedded in hardware-realistic neuromorphic circuits. The study provides a …

Wildlife Tracking Via Uav&Rf, Nam Ah Nguyen

Electrical Engineering

Animal tracking collars transmit very-high-frequency (VHF) beacon signals so researchers can locate tagged wildlife in terrain where direct visual tracking is difficult. This project develops a radio-frequency (RF) wildlife tracking prototype in which a UAV carries a receiving antenna and receiver over the search area to detect the collar signal and send measurements to a ground station. A transmitter test device was built to emulate a tracking collar. An STM32 microcontroller reads keypad input, controls a digital-to-analog converter (DAC), tunes a voltage-controlled oscillator (VCO) to the selected VHF frequency, and sends the RF signal through an amplifier and antenna. The …

Ugv-Based Vertebrate Pest Deterrence In Vineyards: Vision-Guided Row Patrol And Navigation, Candace Qualls, Karina Wilson, Ben Badhorn

Electrical Engineering

An increase in agricultural demands and the need to sustainably protect crops has created a need for autonomous navigation through a vineyard with a verified pest detection and deterrence system. Developing this solution revealed several challenges. First, the robot must reliably navigate through structured, repetitive vineyard rows. Second, pests must be detected accurately under changing environmental conditions. Lastly, the system must respond with a chosen deterrent within an appropriate time window, all while minimizing false triggers. To address these challenges, this project uses a Husky A200 unmanned ground vehicle equipped with a 2D LiDAR sensor, an Intel RealSense RGB camera, …

Uav Trio Formations For Aerial Pest Deterrence With Vision-Based Bird Monitoring, Benjamin Andrew Ly, Chris Kwon, Christian Joseph Macaranas

Electrical Engineering

No abstract provided.

Portable Food Pasteurization Using Pulsed Electric Fields (Pef), Thomas E. Mcmillan Iii

Electrical Engineering

Foodborne illnesses remain a significant public health concern, motivating continued development of alternative food pasteurization technologies. Pulsed electric field (PEF) treatment is a non-thermal pasteurization method that inactivates microorganisms through electroporation while minimizing thermal degradation of food products. The long-term objective of this project was development of a portable PEF food pasteurization system.

An iterative design approach was used to investigate generation of the high-voltage pulses required for PEF treatment. Multiple pulse forming network topologies were evaluated through simulation, leading to selection of a solid-state Marx generator architecture. A low-voltage five-stage prototype was designed, constructed, and tested to validate the …

Pv Performance Evaluation Study At Cal Poly Solar Farm, Eva Paola D. Calderon

Electrical Engineering

This photovoltaic (PV) system performance evaluation study aims to assess the performance of Cal Poly’s Gold Tree Solar Farm, which produces 4.5MW of solar energy. The evaluation concerns itself with the reliability of the PV system that can be affected by weather conditions, component malfunctions, and degradation of the PV modules. Under the International Energy Agency Photovoltaic Power Systems (IEA-PVPS) Task 13 objectives of reliability and maintenance, this study is necessary to contribute towards improvements in analysis and mitigation strategies for long term usage. Existing operational monitoring data from 2018 to 2025 is the focus timespan, providing real world data …

A Broadband, Dual Polarized Antenna For The Radio Neutrino Observatory In Greenland, Laken Baker

Electrical Engineering

Neutrinos contain information necessary to determine the origins of the universe and cosmic events because they can travel long distances with minimal interaction, preserving information about their cosmic origins. Since neutrinos interact with ice sheets resulting in RF radiation, antennas have been developed to detect RF transmissions.

A compact 'vane structure' (see Fig. 1a) dual-polarized broadband antenna model has been developed, constructed, and characterized according to input reflection coefficient, and co and cross-pol E and H plane radiation patterns using HFSS and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo’s anechoic chamber for the Radio Neutrino Observatory in Greenland (RNO-G) [1]. Its design …

Wireless Communication In Autonomous Vehicles, Kaylie Bao, Nicholas Andrews, Mark Negus

Electrical Engineering

This project focuses on developing and testing a vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication system using Dedicated Short Range Communications (DSRC) based on the IEEE 802.11p standard. The system uses the NXP i.MX 8XLite V2X Evaluation Kit, which includes the SAF5400 modem for wireless communication in the 5.9 GHz band.

The main goal of this project was to establish reliable communication between two V2X evaluation boards and to verify that custom, user-defined data could be transmitted between them. Through iterative testing, we were able to successfully send and receive custom 802.11 frames using the provided command-line tools and achieve consistent communication between nodes. …

Vlsi Spike Encoder For Spiking Neural Networks With 4-Bit Sar Adc, Jack Marshall, Wyatt Tack, Cameron Young, Ryken Thompson

Electrical Engineering

A spike encoder forms the interface between sampled data, such as image data or a sensor signal, and a spiking neural network by converting numerical input samples into discrete spike events. Unlike conventional artificial neural networks, spiking neural networks use spare, even-driven computation instead of continuous-valued activations. This makes them attractive for low-power embedded systems, biomedical electronics, and other edge applications where energy consumption, physical area, and thermal limits are important design constraints.

This project develops a modular spike encoder architecture for spiking neural networks with selectable support for temporal, rate, multi-spike, and delta encoding. Prior work has shown that …

Lora Radio Propagation & Antenna Design For Freight Trains, Cesar Chavez, Marlon Jennson Hernandez

Electrical Engineering

Freight-train environments present significant challenges for wireless communication due to large metallic structures, varying cargo types, and changing antenna orientations that can degrade radio-frequency propagation. This project evaluated the performance of LoRa-based communication links intended for End-of-Train (EOT) and Head-of-Train (HOT) systems operating at 915 MHz. Field testing was conducted to characterize antenna performance using metrics including received signal strength indicator (RSSI), signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), and communication range. Experimental results showed that antenna polarization and directivity significantly affect communication performance in freight-train environments. Directional antennas provided improved signal strength when properly aligned but experienced performance degradation as antenna orientation changed. …

Cal Poly Mars Rover Battery Management System, Lawrence Nichols, Caleb Michael King, Thomas Anh Khoa To, Angel Soto

Electrical Engineering

The exploration of space has consistently been one of the most expensive endeavors humanities has undertaken in its journey to expand ever further. The PolyRover project aims to not only cheapen that expense through student-based research but also provide a better bang for buck as more unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) can be utilized on planets in concert. In order to do so, the rovers need a robust, yet compact battery management system that can fit within the wheel well. Our system will consist of six commercially-available 18650 batteries in series, organized in a hexagonal fashion around the motor. The BMS …

Characterizing Aging-Induced Rowhammer Vulnerability And Designing A Runtime-Adaptive Defense For Ddr4 Dram, Abdulaziz Alajmi

Electrical and Computer Engineering Master's Theses

Rowhammer is a hardware fault that began as a DRAM reliability concern and became a security vulnerability. Repeatedly activating one row corrupts data in its neighbors, so an attacker who can hammer rows next to sensitive memory can flip bits they could never directly access. The number of activations needed to do so is called the Rowhammer threshold. The Rowhammer threshold has fallen steadily with each generation. The defenses that ship in response, from in-DRAM target-row refresh to the counter-based mitigations now mandated by the DDR5 standard, all rest on a quiet assumption: that this threshold is a fixed property …

Lora Networking Hardware Reference Designs For Terrestrial And Low-Earth-Orbit Communications, Kevin Nottberg

Master's Theses

The work presented here demonstrates a highly robust and tested LoRa networking hardware reference design to meet the needs of the embedded networking company OWL Integrations. The hardware presented integrated a unique combination of features and design choices. The detailing of its unique design is potentially of use to others for use in fielded battery powered terrestrial sensor networking hardware utilizing LoRa. Also, the terrestrial hardware presented is shown to have the capability to support command and control (C2) LoRa links in low-earth orbit beyond terrestrial systems. The design presented has a more U.S. centric component bill-of-materials (BOM), with the …

A Workflow For Automating Geospatial And Data Visualizations For Post-Earthquake Building Damage Data, Alejandra Bravo

Architectural Engineering: Graduate Reports

After major seismic events, reconnaissance efforts of various types are made to gather data. Coarse data can be collected with satellite imagery, mid-scale data can be recorded by capturing thousands of images, and granular data is typically documented manually by humans. Post-earthquake reconnaissance teams can be deployed by universities, research organizations, professional associations, and private firms. Academics, engineers, and students with varying degrees of expertise are tasked with collecting building metadata and damage data, typically in a short period of time. This data can be of various types including numerical (i.e. number of stories, height, etc.), categorical (i.e. damage level, …

Examining How Student Involvement And Identity Shapes Perceptions Of Cal Poly Administrative Communication And Organizational Change, Ellenor Rose Nunes

Communication Studies

This study examined the relationship between student organization involvement, sense of belonging, and perceptions of administration at California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly). Using survey data collected from 176 students, independent samples t-tests and correlation analyses were conducted in SPSS Version 25 to examine whether involvement in student organizations was associated with perceptions of administration and institutional belonging. Results indicated no significant relationship between levels of involvement and perceptions of administration or organizational change communication. However, students involved in student organizations reported significantly greater feelings of mattering and belonging compared to non-involved students. Additionally, students with stronger feelings of belonging …

City Farm Slo: A Case Study Of Nonprofit Regenerative Agriculture, Carver Tunnell

Master's Theses

The focus of this thesis is to create a case study on City Farm SLO, a nonprofit based in San Luis Obispo, California, that has engaged in education and regenerative agriculture on City owned land since 2013. This case study is intended for use in undergraduate agribusiness and natural resource management courses, to encourage thoughtful discussion surrounding nonprofit and regenerative agricultural systems. The case presents the nonprofit at a time of relative success, having recently secured a lease renewal, extending stewardship 40 years into the future. However, the reliance on grants and donations threatens the security of the operation going …

Rolling Garden Box, Lucas Meneghetti, Gabe Haarberg, Alex Seybold, Matthew Podgorski

Baker/Koob Endowments Awarded Projects

The Rolling Garden Box project was successfully completed and delivered to Heather McColley, project sponsor and Special Day Class instructor at Oceano Elementary School, on June 3, 2026. The project met all original design objectives and was well received by both staff and students. The final product provides an accessible gardening experience for all students. The garden box features a wheelchair-accessible design, a mobile platform with locking caster wheels, and a switch-activated watering system that responds reliably to student inputs. The system allows students to independently control the watering process, reinforcing cause-and-effect learning in a hands-on environment outside the traditional …

Reimagining Legal Education: The Transformative Power Of Small-Group Instruction, Michael I. Meyerson

Seattle University Law Review

Legal education is failing its students. Those entering their first year of law school have greater anxiety and less developed reading and writing skills than ever before. The traditional large Socratic class, which was never the most effective teaching method, has become increasingly counterproductive.

This Article contends that small-group instruction provides the opportunity for superior teaching, especially for first-year law students. Recent scholarship in active learning, educational psychology, and students’ mental health demonstrates the limitations of the traditional large Socratic class experience. Building on that theoretical foundation and informed by sustained classroom experience, this Article argues that small-group pedagogy more …