Digital Commons Network^™

Wildlife Strikes By Damage Category In The U.S. From 2013-2022, Malek Alharbi, Catherine Meechan, Brooke Wheeler, Vivek Sharma

Aeronautics Student Publications

The FAA provides the public with a database containing reports of wildlife strikes. We gathered data on the reported types of damage and concluded there was a difference in the annual strike rate by damage category with no damage as the most reported damage category.

Quantification Of Intervertebral Disc Strain From High-Resolution Ultrasound Imaging During Dynamic Loading, Diya Sakhrani

Discovery Undergraduate Interdisciplinary Research Internship

High-resolution ultrasound imaging employs high-frequency sound waves that can be used to noninvasively visualize the structures within the body, facilitating medical diagnosis without the need for open surgery. The widespread utilization of ultrasound is attributed to its affordability, non-invasive characteristics, and use of non-ionizing radiation. Nevertheless, ultrasound is prone to artifacts originating from the surrounding environment, gas-liquid interfaces, or dense tissue. These artifacts are common in ultrasound images and can cause dropout, noise, and degraded resolution. In this study we analyzed intervertebral disc (IVD) strain during two axial compression testing cycles of bovine intervertebral discs with a 2-dimensional direct deformation …

Deep Learning Approaches For Chaotic Dynamics And High-Resolution Weather Simulations In The Us Midwest, Vlada Volyanskaya, Kabir Batra, Shubham Shrivastava

Discovery Undergraduate Interdisciplinary Research Internship

Weather prediction is indispensable across various sectors, from agriculture to disaster forecasting, deeply influencing daily life and work. Recent advancement of AI foundation models for weather and climate predictions makes it possible to perform a large number of predictions in reasonable time to support timesensitive policy- and decision-making. However, the uncertainty quantification, validation, and attribution of these models have not been well explored, and the lack of knowledge can eventually hinder the improvement of their prediction accuracy and precision. Our project is embarking on a two-fold approach leveraging deep learning techniques (LSTM and Transformer) architectures. Firstly, we model the Lorenz …

Leucine Lock: An Amplified Rapid Antigen Detection System, Matthew David Goff

Theses and Dissertations

Rapid diagnostic tests for COVID-19, influenza, and blood analytes currently have many drawbacks. They vary greatly in accuracy, are expensive to manufacture, and can be insufficiently sensitive to small antigen loads. Leucine lock is designed to rectify these issues that exist in current rapid diagnostics by creating a rapid antigen test with minimal background activity, tunable sensitivity, and low manufacturing cost. Leucine lock consists of a novel leucine zipper containing an intramolecular hairpin, an ScFv antigen binding domain, and a fluorophore reporter in a FRET combination. By altering the number of hydrophobic and electrostatic mismatches in the intramolecular hairpin, as …

Drop Retention And Departure In Shear Flow On Structured Superhydrophobic Surfaces, Blake Morgan Lyons

Theses and Dissertations

Water is often found adhering to surfaces in droplet form. Droplets can develop as a result of precipitation, condensation, or chemical reactions. Drops are retained or held on a surface due to a retention force exerted on the drop by the surface. This retention force is a function of the surface tension of the liquid, drop geometry, and the contact angle between the drop and the surface. When external or body forces exceed this retention force the drop begins to move. This thesis seeks to understand and quantify the forces present at the point of droplet departure once it begins …

Development Of A Submerged Hydraulic Jump Prediction Method Using Documented Fatal Incidents At Low-Head Dams, Caleb Mccurry

Theses and Dissertations

Low-head dams are known to be dangerous due to a recirculating current that, when formed, drowns recreationalists who become trapped in the current. Efforts to mitigate the hazard of low-head dams have led to the compilation of a database of low-head dams with proven fatalities. Additionally, flume-based experiments along with well-known hydraulic equations have been used to create a spreadsheet-based system for predicting the occurrence of the dangerous recirculating current, otherwise known as a submerged hydraulic jump. The premise of the spreadsheet is that if the normal depth calculated with the Mannings Equation for the downstream reach is between the …

View Dependent Simplification And Tessellation For Real-Time High Quality Rendering Of 3d Meshes, Dallin M. Hagman

Theses and Dissertations

The increasing complexity of 3D meshes and growing disparity in performance between high and low-end hardware necessitates more efficient rendering techniques that do not sacrifice visual quality. To support as many hardware configurations as possible, producers of 3D content provide several resolutions of each mesh. Low-end hardware is typically restricted to low-resolution meshes to maintain performance similar to their high-end counterparts, sacrificing visual appeal. However, the presence of hardware tessellation in nearly all modern GPUs presents the opportunity to render high-resolution versions of simplified meshes on low-end hardware with little computational cost. Some research has been conducted into this opportunity, …

Assessment Of The Omni-Channel Adoption For The Management Of Emergence Technologies In Food Retailing During And After The Era Of Covid-19, Esraa Bukhari

Dissertations and Theses

Using E-commerce has become crucial for retailers, specifically in the food business; the Food industry is one of the essential drivers of economies in the world. In and after the era of COVID-19, as technology advances, there is a need to apply an omnichannel strategy. In response, this research aims to develop a decision focus assessing Omni-channeled adoption for the management of emerging technologies in food retailing during and after the era of COVID-19 to evaluate the omnichannel capabilities of food organizations. This establishes a decision model to fill the research gap to succeed and stay competitive in the food …

Educational Policies Committee Agenda December 7, 2023, Utah State University

Educational Policies Committee

• Subcommittee Reports
• Curriculum Subcommittee (Chad Simon)
• Academic Standards Subcommittee (Renee Galliher)
• General Education Subcommittee (Matt Sanders)

Brazili(Americ)An: Perception, Preservation, And Transmission Of Identity Among 1st Generation Brazilians Living In Utah And Salt Lake Valleys, Elisabeth Morris

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The purpose of this study is to better understand how first-generation Brazilian immigrants to Utah’s Salt Lake and Utah Valleys perceive, preserve, and transmit their identity. With this purpose in mind, I hope to add to the previous studies and discussion of identity in the Brazilian diaspora in the United States. The study focuses on the question: How do first-generation Brazilians living in Utah and Salt Lake Valleys perceive their own identities? Additionally, it seeks to answer the following subquestions: How is identity preserved among first-generation Brazilian immigrants to Utah and Salt Lake Valleys and where and how is identity …

December 7, 2023, Caa

Minutes

No abstract provided.

Vista: December 7, 2023, University Of San Diego

USD Vista (1965-)

No abstract provided.

Investigating The Magnetic And Electronic Properties Of Cobalt(Ii) Heteroscorpionate Isomers, Jamie Dawn Freeman

Theses and Dissertations

Cobalt(II) scorpionates possess distinct electronic and magnetic properties in comparison to other first-row transition metal complexes in this ligand class. One unique property is their significantly downfield paramagnetically shifted 11B NMR signals. The utilization of a heteroscorpionate ligand Tp’ introduces asymmetry to metal scorpionates, producing cis and trans isomers. cis- and trans-Co(Tp’)2 were synthesized and separated by column chromatography. 11B NMR data show cobalt(II) homoscorpionates resonances in a narrow 20 ppm shift range around 270 ppm while cis- and trans-Co(Tp’)2 differ with signals at 230 ppm and 140 ppm, respectively. Paramagnetic NMR studies indicate both isomers maintain the same spin …

Role Of The Chief Data Officer In Government, Adita Karkera

Theses and Dissertations

Government data, whether in physical or digital form, has been collected for as far as memory can take us. However, government entities today are grappling with complex heterogeneous data systems. The transformation in data collection and management was profound in 2018 due to the enactment of the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act. This legislation heightened the emphasis on curating, analyzing, and utilizing data to enhance decision-making, mandating federal agencies to appoint a Chief Data Officer (CDO) responsible for orchestrating the strategic use of data within the organization. While the overarching goal of a government CDO is to strategically harness an …

Faculty Senate December 7, 2023, Heather Loughney

The University of Akron Faculty Senate Chronicle

No abstract provided.

Parent Involvement In Elementary Schools, Abbey Koessel

Masters Projects

According to research, the lack of parent involvement in elementary schools can have long-term effects on things like student engagement and overall academic success. This issue becomes more prevalent in high needs, low SES schools as parents face more difficulties and obstacles when trying to be involved. This project uses Joyce Epstein’s framework and related research to develop interventions meant to increase and encourage parent involvement in different ways. There will be a focus on family-school partnerships and communication, parent workshops, and school-based involvement opportunities. Through the implementation of this project, it is hoped that parent engagement increases and student’s …

Improving Teacher Retention Within Archdiocese Of Washington Schools, Denise M. Ball

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this applied study was to solve the problem of teacher retention for the Archdiocese of Washington Schools and to design training to address the problem. Specifically, this study solicited input from teachers to help define and or identify (1) the need for teacher retention, (2) what type of school environment they work in, and (3) how a school environment affects teacher retention. Individual teacher and focus group interviews were conducted, and a survey was utilized for data collection and analysis. The measurement instruments captured data on target teachers regarding school environment/climate and job retention, specifically, years in …

Demonstration Of A Hybrid Electroabsorption Modulator/Photovoltaic Device For Space-Based Free Space Optical Communication And Power Generation, Emily Kessler-Lewis

Theses

The emergence of proliferated low-Earth orbit (pLEO) constellations using small satellites has resulted in significant interest in lowering the size, weight, and power (SWaP) of mission critical subsystems. III-V semiconductors are the class of materials typically used for photovoltaic (PV) arrays for satellites due to their exceptional efficiencies of upwards of 35 % and ability to be made thin, flexible, and lightweight. This is contrasted with the high SWaP communication system, which utilizes a radio frequency (RF) transceiver in order to communicate with a ground station. A lower SWaP alternative to the RF transceiver is to transmit data using free …

“Every Nation Except Our Own”: The Social Gospel, Anti-Immigrant Sentiments, And U.S. Foreign Policy, Andrea Darmawan

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

This thesis concerns the social gospel, a liberal Protestant movement that enjoyed its heyday in the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries. The thesis argues that the movement’s two most prominent figures, Washington Gladden and Walter Rauschenbusch, expressed an antipathy toward immigrants and a paternalistic attitude toward foreign nations and cultures. These attitudes then laid the foundation for contemporary anti-immigrant sentiments and US foreign policy. Gladden and Rauschenbusch’s rhetoric contains sentiments which act as a precursor to various elements of American exceptionalism, from missionary activity abroad to liberal attitudes toward the Middle East after 9/11. These links have …

The Prediction Of Grade Point Average From The Linear Combination Of Persistence Factors For Hispanic College Students, Laurel Lucy Mo

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this quantitative predictive correlation study was to address the lack of research regarding the impacts of persistence factors on the educational outcomes of Hispanic college students. The study was a predictive correlation design with a criterion variable of grade point average (GPA). Predictor variables were the persistence factors of institutional commitment, degree commitment, academic integration, social integration, advising effectiveness, collegiate stress, financial strain, scholastic consciousness, academic efficacy, career integration, and academic motivation. The study setting was a two-year public community college serving a county with a population of 218,000 in Northern Arizona. A college persistence and academic …

A Phenomenological Study On Veterans’ Military Sexual Trauma And Its Impacts On Intimate Partner Relationships, Jaretta A. Buckholtz

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this phenomenological study is to describe active duty and military veterans’ experiences with intimate partner relationships after a sexually traumatic event. The theory guiding this study is attachment theory. Therapies such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), cognitive processing therapy (CPT), and eye-movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), demonstrate they could help victims of military sexual trauma (MST) minimize the suffering of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), major depressive disorder (MDD), substance use disorder (SUD), and a host of other debilitating diseases that may have developed as the result of their MST, which could cause difficulties in their intimate partner …

Exploring The Relationship Between Self-Esteem, Financial Egocentrism, And Fraud Susceptibility In Cyber-Enabled Fraud Schemes Involving Crypto Assets, James Mcdowell

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The propensity to exploit others for one’s own benefit is continuously exhibited by bad actors. Unfortunately, this sentiment holds true in emerging asset classes, such as crypto assets. As a result, it is surprising that current research on fraud susceptibility is approached in a binary way. Researchers examine either what makes an individual predisposed to victimization by bad actors or what factors influence one’s propensity to perpetrate fraudulent schemes. This study bridged this substantial gap in current research by investigating if specific psychological factors influence when, or if, an individual shifts between these two outcomes. The psychological factors incorporated into …

Third-Grade Students’ Poor Performance On The Math Section Of The Stanford Achievement Test At Chapel Hill Elementary School: An Instrumental Exploratory Qualitative Single-Case Study, Giovanny Guillermo Gaviria

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this instrumental exploratory qualitative single-case study was to explore the understanding of the principal, teachers, and parents related to the poor performance on the math section of the Stanford Achievement Test and the related factors of self-determination and self-efficacy of third-grade students in a private Christian elementary school in a city (pseudonym, Chapel Hill) in the Western United States. The theory guiding this study was Bandura's social cognitive theory, which is the foundation of self-determination theory, academic self-efficacy, and school-related parental monitoring. This case study contained a purposeful sample of ten participants (one principal, four teachers, and …

The Road To Armageddon: American Culture And Politics During The Late Cold War, 1970-1991, David Lee Denham Iii

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Bible prophecy has long engaged the American mind. By the late Cold War, Biblical prophecy increasingly shaped the political beliefs of millions of Americans within the evangelical community. The group most impacted were dispensationalist Christians who interpreted the Atomic Age through the lens of end-time prophecies. Dating as far back as the seventeenth-century, American colonists living on the frontier of the British empire in North America embraced millennialism and, at times, interpreted current events through the lens of Bible prophecy while anticipating the Second Coming of Jesus Christ and the Battle of Armageddon. Through the centuries, Bible prophecy became a …

Exploring The Impact Of Cultural Event Attendance On Undergraduate Students' Perceived Sense Of Community At A Dual-Mission University, Post Covid: A Predictive Correlational Study, Jared Stephenson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this quantitative predictive correlational study was to determine how accurately a sense of community (the criterion variable) can be predicted from cultural event attendance (predictor variable) for undergraduate students at a dual-mission university, post-COVID. This study is grounded in the Sense of Community Theory and is significant to students and other higher education stakeholders in determining where to focus efforts regarding student involvement that promotes a sense of community. This research utilized the Sense of Community Index-2 to gather data through a convenience sampling method, recruiting 84 participants from a large dual-mission university in the western United …

A Phenomenological Study Of The Linkage Between Chinese Students’ Undergraduate Experiences In The U.S. And Their Career Choices And Planning, Lin Reed

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative hermeneutic phenomenological study was to discover Chinese alumni’s perceived learning and the impacts of their undergraduate studies in the United States on their career goals and preparation. Using Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory and Knowles’ theory of andragogy as a theoretical framework, this study helped answer the central research question: How do Chinese students’ undergraduate experiences in the United States affect their career choices and planning? Sub-questions have further explored the participants’ relationship to academic and social engagement in college. The purposeful sampling included 10 Chinese students who have studied in the United States, received an undergraduate …

Exploring 21st Century Learning In Virginia Secondary School Technology And Engineering Classrooms: A Hermeneutic Phenomenological Study, George Nicholas Cornwell

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to examine how integrative STEM teachers utilize the Standards for Technological and Engineering Literacy (STEL) to foster and assess 21st-century learning in technology and engineering classes at multiple Virginia public secondary schools. The theory guiding this study was Kolb’s experiential learning theory, which integrates nine learning theories into an innovative cyclical learning process that is like the engineering design loop. This hermeneutic phenomenology included 15 Virginia technology and engineering schoolteachers (Grades 6-12) who purposefully taught multiple academic disciplines and utilized the eight practices of the STEL in the context of their curriculum to …

Faculty Perceptions Of Professional Growth After Course Design Collaboration With An Instructional Designer: A Phenomenological Study, Althea Anita Streater

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This transcendental phenomenological study had the objective of examining the experience of faculty subject matter experts in higher education as they collaborated with instructional designers to develop online learning courses at a college in the northeast United States. The theory guiding this study was Bandura’s theory of self-efficacy. The central research question was: What are the SME reflections on their previous pedagogical and instructional skills, and what growth, if any, can be identified after the course design process? Additional questions examined the faculty's perspective on their past and present pedagogical knowledge. The study took place at a four-year private college …

A Qualitative Study Of A Stepfather’S Perceptions Of Their Role In A Successful Second Marriage In A Blended Family, Kathy Barbee Thornton

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This phenomenological study aimed to comprehensively understand the unique perspective of remarried men as stepfathers within the context of second marriages in blended families. The research delved into the lived experiences of these individuals to shed light on their roles, challenges, and contributions to the dynamic of blended households. By applying Bowen’s family systems theory (FST) to the constructs relevant to blended families, this study offers a resource to the professional counseling community and support for blended families facing various issues. Data collection involved semi-structured interviews focused on the stepfather’s role and responsibilities within the blended family structure. The narratives …

Rab1a Haploinsufficiency Phenocopies The 2p14-P15 Microdeletion And Is Associated With Impaired Neuronal Differentiation, Jonathan J Rios, Yang Li, Nandina Paria, Ryan J Bohlender, Chad Huff, Jill A Rosenfeld, Pengfei Liu, Weimin Bi, Kentaro Haga, Mitsunori Fukuda, Shayal Vashisth, Kiran Kaur, Maria H Chahrour, Michael B Bober, Angela L Duker, Farah A Ladha, Neil A Hanchard, Kristhen Atala, Anas M Khanshour, Linsley Smith, Carol A Wise, Mauricio R Delgado

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Hereditary spastic parapareses (HSPs) are clinically heterogeneous motor neuron diseases with variable age of onset and severity. Although variants in dozens of genes are implicated in HSPs, much of the genetic basis for pediatric-onset HSP remains unexplained. Here, we re-analyzed clinical exome-sequencing data from siblings with HSP of unknown genetic etiology and identified an inherited nonsense mutation (c.523C>T [p.Arg175Ter]) in the highly conserved RAB1A. The mutation is predicted to produce a truncated protein with an intact RAB GTPase domain but without two C-terminal cysteine residues required for proper subcellular protein localization. Additional RAB1A mutations, including two frameshift mutations and …