Digital Commons Network^™

Toward A Unified Network Flow Framework: From Conservation Principles To Fluid Dynamics Models, Zonghan Zhang

Theses and Dissertations

Network flows govern a wide range of critical systems, from tangible infrastructures like transportation and power grids to replicable processes such as information spread and epidemics. While tangible flows obey conservation laws and physical constraints, replicable flows, like rumors or viruses, can grow, decay, or vanish unpredictably. Despite their increasing interaction in real-world settings, these flow types are typically modeled in isolation, using disconnected mathematical frameworks. This dissertation presents a unified modeling approach that bridges the gap between conserved and replicable flows by embedding principles from fluid dynamics into graph-based propagation models. I introduce physically informed extensions to classical models, …

Electrochemical Detection Of No And Ca2+ During Cold Atmospheric Plasma Treatment Of Acute Wounds: Sensor Selectivity And Stability In The Plasma-Bio-System, Jonathan E. Thomas, Kristina Pattison, Suneel Kumar, Gagana Karkada, Duncan Trosan, Aunic Goodin, Jason Rainone, Dnyaneshwari Rananavare, Vandana Miller, Francois Berthiaume, Katharina Stapelmann

Kimmel Cancer Center Faculty Papers

Cold atmospheric plasmas (CAP) are a versatile tool in medical applications like wound healing. Its therapeutic benefits are partially attributed to the generation of biologically active reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (RONS). Characterization of RONS, however, typically only occurs after treatment. Here we report the first real-time in situ detection of CAP-generated nitric oxide (NO), and the simultaneous detection of cellular calcium ions (Ca²⁺) release using electrochemical sensors during CAP treatment of murine wounds. In vivo, NO rose rapidly within the first minute of CAP treatment but accumulated less overall than in PBS, reflecting reactions with wound-bed targets. In situ …

Technological Disruption And Regulatory Response: The Case Of Decentralised Finance, Jakub Wisła, Jolanta Bartoszewska

Journal of Banking and Financial Economics

This article examines responses to the regulatory challenges posed by decentralised finance (DeFi), a fast-evolving domain of blockchain-based financial innovation. It investigates the factors shaping divergent regulatory strategies, with a focus on the European Union’s comprehensive cryptoasset framework and selected comparative insights. Adopting a qualitative legal methodology – combining doctrinal-functional analysis, multivocal literature review, and two case studies – the authors explore how regulatory responses are influenced by three key variables: legal tradition, the financial function performed by blockchain-based solutions, and the level of technological and institutional autonomy. The case studies – Bitcoin as a payment instrument and cryptoassets as …

Sex Disparities In Prescription Opioids Associated Cardiovascular Adverse Events, Li Ma

Theses and Dissertations

The opioid crisis in the United States has evolved from a medical response to pain into a nationwide public health emergency. The prescription opioids (POs) – associated cardiovascular adverse events (CVAEs) remain insufficiently studied, especially in relation to sex disparities. This dissertation investigates sex disparities in PO-associated cardiovascular adverse events (CVAEs) through an analytic framework integrating artificial-intelligence-assisted literature mining and real-world pharmacovigilance analytics. In the analytic framework, first, AI powered topic modeling was employed to uncover POs-associated CVAEs risks with a focus on sex differences. A total of 1,837 PubMed abstracts were analyzed using two methods, Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) …

Musculoskeletal Disorders In Dentistry: An Insight Into Dental Techniques And Practices, Mehwash Kashif, Aman Ashar, Amna Rehman, Abdul Aleem, Sidra-Tul-Muntaha Hashmi, Muhammad Yousuf Ali

Journal of Dentistry Indonesia

Objective: Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) are common workplace hazards in dentistry resulting from poor ergonomics and static postures, which lead to back, neck, and upper limb (shoulder, elbow, wrist, and hand) problems among dentists, resulting in harm to their health, productivity, and career. This study aimed to assess the frequency of MSDs, risk factors related to MSDs, and awareness of ergonomics among clinicians. Methods: Data were collected from 400 dental professionals, including house officers, postgraduate trainees, general dentists, and teachers/consultants, each with at least 12 months of practice. Data were collected using a structured, closed-ended questionnaire. Before data collection, ethical approval …

Pavements And The Urban Heat Island Effect: A Network Analysis Of Research Trends And Knowledge Structure, Fouzieh Rouzmehr, Saman Jamshidi

Architecture Faculty Research

The urban heat island (UHI) effect is one of the most pressing challenges associated with rapid urbanization. It arises primarily from the replacement of natural vegetation with impervious surfaces, alterations in surface energy balance, and heat emissions from human activity. Mitigating these drivers has become a global priority, particularly in fast-growing cities. Pavements play a central role in UHI intensification due to their large surface coverage, low albedo, and capacity to retain heat. This study adopts a bibliometric approach to systematically map the knowledge structure and research trends in pavement-related UHI studies. A dataset of 834 publications from Web of …

An Axe To The Funny Bone: Curated Instability And Horror-Comedy Intersections In American Storytelling, Samantha Box

Masters Theses

Funny. Terrifying. Subversive.

Horror-Comedy twists and bites at the intersection of two incredibly reactive genres— with both Horror and Comedy being well known for the political and social discourses they embody and reinvent through story. While prevalent in American popular culture, scholarly analysis of this hybrid space barely exists beyond a small number of Film Studies investigations. Despite this lack, Horror-Comedy works continue to be successfully produced. This thesis unpacks the vibrant relationship between fear and laughter in contemporary American storytelling through Horror-Comedy, maintaining a focus on structural dynamics and the audience-disarming results of simultaneously applying horror and humor to …

The Effects Of Nanobubble Fertigation And Soil Conditioners To Improve Nutrient Dynamics, Soil Microbial Activity, And Chili Productivity, Betty Natalie Fitriatin, Euis Ahah Rokayah, Elsa Naila Elmyra, Tualar Simarmata, Nicky Oktav Fauziah, Hanif Fakhrurroja

Jurnal Kultivasi

Drip fertigation is a fertilization method that integrates nutrient delivery with an irrigation system, which is capable of optimizing the direct delivery of nutrients to the root zone. This experiment aims to investigate the effect of drip fertigation with nanobubble technology, and soil conditioners on the population of Phosphate-Solubilizing Bacteria (PSB) and Azotobacter spp., available phosphorus, total nitrogen, growth, and yield of red chili. The study used a Strip Plot Design with two factors and three replications. The first factor was nutrient application (solid NPK fertilizing as control; drip fertigation; and drip fertigation with nanobubble technology), and the second factor …

Effect Of Nano Edible Coating, Storage Temperature, And Packaging On Water Content, Weight Loss, And Color On Oyster Mushrooms (Pleurotus Ostreatus), Inneke Amalia, Warid Ali Qosim, Kusumiyati

Jurnal Kultivasi

Oyster mushrooms are one of the most commonly consumed mushrooms due to their high nutritional content, including protein, fiber, vitamins, and minerals, as well as their antioxidant properties. However, these mushrooms are easily damaged by microbes and poor post-harvest handling, which affects their quality. The combination of nano-edible coating, packaging, and storage temperature offers a solution to these issues. This study aims to evaluate the effects of nano-edible coating, packaging, and storage temperature on water content, weight loss, and the color (L*, a*, and b*) of oyster mushrooms. The study was conducted at the Horticulture Laboratory, Faculty of Agriculture, Universitas …

Board Of Trustees Agenda, Dec. 12 2025, Indiana State University Board Of Trustees

Board of Trustees

No abstract provided.

Board Of Trustees Minutes, Dec. 12, 2025, Indiana State University Board Of Trustees

Board of Trustees

Indiana State University Board of Trustees meeting minutes

Lifetime Prediction Of Electrolytic Capacitors Under Variable Loadings In Electric Vehicles For Prognostics And Health Management Applications, Jaewon Lee

Electronic Dissertations and Theses, 2010-current

Aluminum electrolytic capacitors (AECs) are widely used in electric vehicles (EVs) power electronics but are also a primary source of wear-out failures. Most previously proposed lifetime models were derived under constant loading conditions and therefore cannot capture variable loading arising from seasonal or diurnal temperature swings and user-dependent driving profiles in EVs. This study develops a variable-loading lifetime prediction framework for AECs, which can be further extended to prognostics and health management (PHM). Collectively, the results of the study demonstrate a framework suitable for PHM application, in which SoD-based lifetime prediction yields reliable predictions under variable loadings. An appropriate lifetime …

Using Quantum Annealing For Sampling And Pattern Generation In Generative Machine Learning And Catastrophic Forgetting Mitigation, Abdelmoula El Yazizi

Theses and Dissertations

The first goal of this dissertation was to understand the reasons for the absence in previous investigations of significant and consistent improvements in the trainability of Restricted Boltzmann Machines (RBM) when the Quantum Annealer (QA) was used for sampling from the RBM probability distribution. The second goal was to address the shortcomings of those previous investigations, explore possibilities of improving RBM training, and identify other machine learning applications that could benefit from sampling or from generating patterns by the QA. The first part of this dissertation focused on a Local-Valley (LV) centered approach to assessing the quality of sampling. QA-based …

Faculty Adoption Of The Canvas Learning Management System: An Application Of The Utaut2 Framework, Alyssa Hutcheson Mckinley

Theses and Dissertations

This study aimed to examine faculty adoption of the Canvas LMS at a public university through the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology 2 (UTAUT2) framework. Survey data were collected from faculty across multiple colleges within the university and were used to explore the predictive power of the UTAUT2 constructs including hedonic motivation, facilitating conditions, performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, habit and behavioral intention. In addition to this, disciplinary differences along with discipline-specific needs were also considered in order to better understand adoption patterns. The results of this study indicated habit, hedonic motivation, facilitating conditions, and the …

How Are Teacher Leadership Characteristics Defined?: Investigating The Development Of Leadership Identity, Role Clarity, And Administrative Support, Anna C. Daher

Theses and Dissertations

The research study investigated how graduates of a teacher leadership preparation program perceived their development as teacher leaders, the factors that supported or hindered their leadership practices, and how their lived experiences aligned with the Teacher Leader Model Standards. The mixed method qualitative research study was designed to examine how teacher leaders make meaning of their growth and enactment of leadership while remaining in classroom roles. Eighteen graduates of a teacher leadership preparation program at a public university in Mississippi completed a survey on their leadership development and current roles. Of those, six participants representing diverse educational backgrounds, experience levels, …

Anxiety, Stress, And Depression As A Predictor Of Established Vaping Among High School Students, Autumn Schneider

Theses and Dissertations

Previous research has linked initiation of e-cigarette use with mental health but has not identified how mental health factors impact patterns of use of these products in adolescents. I tested the hypothesis that adolescents who report vaping to cope with stress, depression, and anxiety have more established patterns of use with data from the National Youth Tobacco Survey. Crosstabulations and logistic regression outcome measures included current use, intensity of use, and cumulative lifetime use. Reasons for initial and current use related to mental health were associated with current e-cigarette use, more intense use, and higher cumulative use. Mental health plays …

Understanding Acceptance Capacity And Intentions Of Mississippians To Participate In The Conservation And Management Of Black Bears In Mississippi, Basant Pant

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation explores the acceptance capacity of Mississippians towards black bears (Ursus Americanus), and their intentions to participate in their conservation and management. It intends to bridge the theory and application of wildlife acceptance capacity among three main objectives. First, a systematic literature review of journal articles employing the Search, Appraisal, Synthesis and Analysis (SALSA) method revealed the development phase of Wildlife Acceptance Capacity (WAC)-conceptual phase (1988 -2000) and applied phase (post 2000), highlighting the strong scholarly collaboration among high human development index (HDI) countries with limited collaboration with the low HDI countries. Second, a mail survey of 4,080 Mississippi …

Quantifying Benefits Of Biochar With Variable Absorption Capacity As A Partial Cement Replacement In Concrete, Benjamin Shannon

Theses and Dissertations

Extensive research has been conducted on biochar-incorporated concrete. However, no concrete mixture design guideline is currently available for implementing biochar incorporation in practice. The objective of this study was to correlate biochar absorption capacity with the compressive strength of biochar-incorporated concrete, to quantify the benefits of biochar and develop mix design guidelines. Biochar with varying absorption capacities was incorporated into concrete at 10%, 20%, and 40%. Strength and moisture loss were recorded over the 90-day curing period of the biochar-incorporated concrete. Results revealed three main findings: (1) in 10%, 20%, and 40% biochar mixes, the normalized strengths ranged from 0.65–0.85, …

Analysis Of Trends From Mass Concrete Case Studies, Bradford Songer

Theses and Dissertations

While conventional mass concrete is well understood, high strength and ultra high performance concrete present unique challenges when placed in large volumes. This thesis compiles and analyzes thermal data from mass high strength and ultra high performance concrete placements collected over the past eight years by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in support of military construction projects. The datasets span a wide range of material types and volumes. The analysis identifies trends in temperature development, temperature differentials, and the influence of mixture constituents on heat generation. This thesis contributes to the improved understanding of thermal behavior in mass concrete. …

Exploring The Impact Of Incorporating Artificial Intelligence Integrated Systems In The Workplace, Catherine Cruz Agosto Noda

Theses and Dissertations

This study focuses on assessing the impact of incorporating systems integrated with in the workplace by assessing the constructs of usability, cognitive load, and trust. The constructs are assessed by generation and experience level to determine which factors are relevant in a workplace setting. A workplace scenario was simulated by asking participants to complete tasks where they assumed the role of a warehouse manager assigned with assessing two scheduling systems – one with artificial intelligence and one without artificial intelligence. The participants were presented with three tasks of increasing difficulty for each prototype. Both quantitative and qualitative measures were used …

Enhancing Leadership Development For Faculty And Staff At Community Colleges, Christopher L. Haralson

Theses and Dissertations

Community colleges serve as critical gateways to higher education and workforce advancement, yet many lack formal leadership development programs tailored to their unique missions and operational challenges. This capstone project explores the need for and proposes the design of a comprehensive leadership program for community colleges, addressing three guiding questions: (1) How can community colleges build institutional support for leadership development programs? (2) In what ways can leadership programs increase faculty and staff engagement to improve student success? (3) How can structured leadership programs serve as foundations for succession planning within college administration? A desk-based research methodology was employed, anchored …

‘Cog In The Machine’ Or Social Being? How Digital Communications Affect Social Capital Development In Higher Education Institution Workplaces., Daphne Abigail Knox

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research is to investigate the impact of digital communications on social capital development within the workplace in public institutions of higher education. While previous literature recognizes the potential implications of the internet on areas like social capital (Putnam, 2000; 2020) and formal and informal communications in organizations (Simon, 1997), an in-depth understanding of how modern digital communications impact social capital development is still necessary to address the gap in literature and to analyze the impact of digital communications on the development of organizational social capital. The potential implications of this work on scholarly research include expanding …

Bridging The Gap: Enhancing Novice Teacher Retention Through Logistical And Administrative Support, Denise Fleurette Harrel

Theses and Dissertations

This project examines the challenges novice teachers encounter and how structured support systems impact their job satisfaction, effectiveness, and retention. The review focuses on administrative and logistical support, highlighting gaps between teacher preparation and classroom realities that contribute to high attrition (Falk, 2017; Koca, 2016). Key challenges include insufficient time management training, inconsistent expectations, and limited district or school-level support (Fantilli & McDougall, 2009), all of which are intensified by the demands of navigating modern classroom technologies (Philipsen et al., 2019). The literature review centers on teacher perceptions to clarify what constitutes effective logistical and administrative support (Banerjee et al., …

Optimizing Military Fighter Jet Selection: A Decision Analysis Approach For Nuclear-Capable Aircraft, Eni Kelechi Ofong

Theses and Dissertations

This research investigates the strategic decision-making process involved in selecting a nuclear-capable fighter aircraft for NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) nations in Europe. In adaptation to the continuously changing technology landscape and the necessity for enhanced deterrence capabilities, this study evaluates three potential aircraft: the legacy Panavia Tornado (PA-200), the widely deployed F-16 Fighting Falcon (F-16), and the advanced F-35 Lightning II (F-35). Each platform presents distinct advantages and limitations regarding operational performance, mission adaptability, cost-effectiveness, and long-term sustainability. To systematically assess these alternatives, the study employs various decision analysis frameworks, including Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA), single dimensional value function …

Inductively Heated Platinum Electrodes, Jayamini Madumali Mudugamuwa Hewage

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation presents the fabrication and application of a 150 micrometer platinum microelectrode for induction heating, with a copper coil generating the electromagnetic field and the heating process controlled using pulse width modulation technique (PWM) to regulate the duty cycle of a high-frequency signal. Electrochemical characterization, including resonance frequency determination, peak-to-peak potential optimization, and scan rate variation, is conducted using a 5 mM [Ru(NH3)6]2+/3+ solution in 0.1 M KNO3 to calibrate current variations with changing duty cycles, while the temperature increase (delta T) is estimated using the Seebeck coefficient of [Ru(NH3)6]2+/3+. The study further explores the application of induction heating …

Toward Approachable Reinforcement Learning: Using Dataflow Application And Large Language Models For Human-Understandable Policies, Joel Thomas Huber

Theses and Dissertations

Optimal decision-making under uncertainty is a challenge in everything from board games to business scenario planning. With visual programming systems, end-users can utilize reinforcement learning (RL) agents to identify an optimal policy in their own stochastic environments. However, while the RL agent can demonstrate that an optimal policy exists, RL polices tend to be opaque and difficult to interpret. This thesis investigates how Large Reasoning Models (LRMs) can generate human-understandable rules from RL policies. I compare multiple approaches and models, varying the format of the RL policy provided to the LRM as well as the prompting strategy. My results show …

The Impact Of Land Use Types On Pollinator Communities In Upland Oak Forests, John Olanrewaju Omolewa

Theses and Dissertations

This research investigates how land use types influence pollinator communities in upland oak forests, focusing on bees (Hymenoptera: Apoidea). The study has four objectives: (1) compare bee species richness and abundance across four land use types; hardwood, pine/mixed pine, open fields/agricultural areas, and scattered hardwood; (2) test whether bee community composition differs among these land uses; (3) assess how land use shapes diversity of both common and rare bee species; and (4) investigate the reproductive output of cavity-nesting communities in upland oak forests. Together, these aims provide a comprehensive understanding of how land use practices affect wild bee communities in …

Impacts Of Upgrading Gcc On The Srtuner Compiler Autotuning Algorithm, Jonathan D. Butterfield

Theses and Dissertations

An often-overlooked research gap is the applicability of research over time. The impact of updating the GNU Compiler Collection version was investigated for the SRTuner compiler optimization research. Versions 7 through 14 were tested using documented flags and recommended flag dependencies. Quality controls measured and enforced consistency across test runs and benchmarks. The performance of SRTuner was compared to a random control while the impact of enforcing flag dependencies was evaluated. The most influential flags were investigated by turning them off in isolation, but results were mixed. It was determined that enforcing flag dependencies resulted in improved performance, but the …

Considerations For Cottonseed Oil As A Feedstock For Renewable Fuels, John Elmore

Theses and Dissertations

As the world population grows and the standard of living improves in developing countries, global energy demand will continue to rise, with energy use in the developing world expected to increase dramatically more than the per capita reductions in developed countries from efficiency improvements. Nearly a third of the total global energy demand is used for transportation, resulting in a substantial contribution to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. While the demand for energy rises, initiatives and regulations are underway to mitigate the amount of GHG emissions to Earth’s atmosphere. As efforts progress in industry, governments, and society to reduce the total …

Evaluating Avian And Aquatic Macroinvertebrate Communities In Wetland Reserve Easements In The Mississippi Alluvial Valley, Kara Michelle Hall

Theses and Dissertations

During the 19th and 20th centuries, nearly 80% of historic bottomland hardwood forests (BLHFs) in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley (MAV) was converted to cropland. Efforts to enhance and restore wetlands on marginal farmland have occurred since the early 1990s through the Wetland Reserve Easement (WRE) and other programs, yet few studies have evaluated ecological impacts of WREs. I conducted avian and aquatic macroinvertebrate surveys across WREs, croplands, and historic minimally disturbed wetlands to index abundance, richness, and diversity. I found WREs had less overall avian abundance, richness, and diversity than reference wetlands, whereas WREs exceeded crop sites in total richness …