Digital Commons Network^™

Effects Of Fast And Slow-Wilting Soybean Genotypes On Plant-Herbivore Interactions, Jessica Ayala

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] is one of the most important food crops in the world due to its multiple uses in agriculture sector. A major limiting factor in soybean production system is drought stress, causing up to 80% reduction in yield. Due to climate change and associated rise in ambient temperatures, water scarcity is a major concern in crop production, and consequently researchers are turning to soybean accessions that demonstrate better water use efficiency (WUE) traits. However, field grown soybean is also under severe pressure from insect herbivores, often accounting for a 30% reduction in yield. Among these, …

Boise State Magazine, Anna Webb (Editor)

FOCUS on Boise State

No abstract provided.

Nourishing Nations: A Comparative Analysis Of American Food Production Laws & Regulations, Morgan Flood

Honors Theses

Food manufacturing, distribution, and consumption have a significant influence on equity, sustainability of the environment, and public health. Food regulations control these factors, but there are substantial variations in how European countries and America balance safety, innovation, and economic interests. With a focus on finding flaws in the American regulatory system, this thesis compares the rules and regulations overseeing food production in the US and Europe. It examines how these inequalities fuel environmental deterioration, economic inequality, and public health issues. For example, dangerous chemicals like titanium dioxide, potassium bromate, and Red Dye 40 have been restricted in the European Union …

Video Game Development 3.0: Ai-Driven Collaborative Co-Creation, Jay Ratican, James Hutson

Faculty Scholarship

The evolution of game development has transitioned from manual coding (Software 1.0) to data-driven Artificial Intelligence (AI) (Software 2.0), and now to a more advanced stage—video game development 3.0. This phase is characterized by AI-driven processes leveraging large language models (LLMs), neural networks, and other AI techniques that autonomously generate code, content, and narratives. This paper explores the foundational technologies underpinning this paradigm shift, including customizable AI modules, dynamic asset creation, and intelligent non player characters (NPCs) that adapt to player interactions. It also highlights the integration of AI with emerging technologies like Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), and …

Transmission Main Construction Management - An Assessment Of Project Tracking During Transition To A Cloud Based System, Martin C. Munger

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

A massive $2B settlement between the Federal Government and the City of New Orleans to remediate the damage to municipal infrastructure from Hurricane Katrina and the failed USACE levee system required the repair of roughly 400 of 1600 miles of roadways in New Orleans. The mandated repairs included many subsurface utilities below those roads. Traditional engineering construction project management practices proved inadequate to manage such a massive undertaking on the strict timelines mandated by FEMA funding. Unprecedented volumes of work for the engineering and construction industries and the government agencies tasked with performing the work from design through construction revealed …

A Talking Cart, Abdullah Bin Naeem

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This research investigates the development of a robust AI-powered detection and tracking engine aimed at revolutionizing the retail checkout experience. The foundation of this work is a comprehensive exploration of state-of-the-art Computer Vision methodologies, particularly focusing on object detection, segmentation, and tracking. The study employs a modular pipeline that integrates advanced visual recognition algorithms with a robust data processing framework.

Key to this work is the construction of a synthetic dataset using Unity3D, enabling the generation of high-quality annotated data that mirrors real-world retail scenarios. This approach addresses the challenge of insufficient labeled datasets by simulating diverse and cluttered shopping …

Implementation Of Non-Linear Filtering Techniques For Object Tracking, Shaswat Koirala

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Deep Learning Approach For Accurate Segmentation Of Oil Spills In Marine Systems, Mohamed Elsheref

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Oil spills present critical environmental hazards, threatening marine ecosystems and necessitating fast, accurate detection for effective mitigation. Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) imagery has been instrumental in detecting oil spills, but manual interpretation is often inefficient and prone to errors. This study addresses the limitations of manual methods by proposing a deep learning approach for automated oil spill detection and segmentation.

Utilizing a novel transfer learning-based semantic segmentation model, this research focuses on detecting oil slicks on the sea surface with higher accuracy and efficiency. The model leverages pre-trained networks and incorporates U-Net variants, including UNet++ and MultiResUNet, to optimize spatial …

Enhancing Password Security And Memorability Using Machine Learning And Linguistic Patterns, Jared Wise

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

In the digital age, text-based passwords remain a primary method for securing online accounts. Yet, users frequently face a dilemma between creating passwords that are easy to remember and sufficiently secure against cyberattacks. This research introduces an approach to password generation that bridges this gap by utilizing linguistic patterns, particularly song lyrics, to develop highly secure and naturally memorable passwords. Using large lyric datasets gained from web scrapes from popular song lyric websites (AZ Lyrics, Genius), features are extracted from a corpus of over 5 million lyrics using sentence structure and natural language processing in a novel way. In using …

Financial Risk In A Changing Climate, Mashuk S. Rahman

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Essay 1:

Given the missing-not-at-random (MNAR) nature of carbon emissions figures under the voluntary disclosure regulator environment, this research imputes synthetic emissions figures for both disclosing and non-disclosing publicly traded US firms, using an IV approach adapted for sample bias correction. The forward-observing implied cost of equity capital measure is consistently higher for carbon-intensive firms regardless of disclosure decision. This higher cost found in the large swath of high-emitting firms reduces the net present value of green transition investments, thus fueling existing research on the counterproductive natures of capital allocation in efforts to reduce corporate pollution. Contrary to emerging research, …

New Constraints On The Stratigraphic Architecture And Evolution Of Mississippi River Delta Lobe Activity: Barataria Basin, Southeastern La, Wilke Coleman

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Barataria Basin is a shallow water, interdistributary estuary that has evolved in response to dynamic depositional regimes governed by distributary avulsion and reworking of sediments by coastal processes. In the Mississippi River delta plain, the migratory nature of the River has produced an evolving landscape constructed through episodes of regressive and transgressive sedimentation. These processes produce unique depositional signatures in the stratigraphic record, however the transgressive component of the delta cycle often results in obliteration of the regressive phase. This study uses a modern suite of geophysical and sediment core data to construct a revised geologic framework in Barataria Basin, …

Direct K+ And Ag+ Ion-Exchanged Into Sapo-34 Prepared Via Microwave Irradiation And Its Performance In Mto, Mazin Jasim Mohammed, Najwa Saber Majeed

Baghdad Science Journal

Recently, light olefins became an important material for industrials, especially plastics. High olefins production cost from oil sources, made the researchers look for other methods. Methanol conversion to olefins over SAPOs was an excellent alternative. SAPO-34 molecular sieve is considered a proper catalyst used in this field. For this purpose, SAPO-34 with morpholine template was prepared under microwave irradiation. K and Ag ions were incorporated successfully by ion exchange method. The samples were analyzed by XRD, SEM, EDX, FT-IR, BET, and TGA techniques. XRD showed higher crystallinity of K-SAPO-34 and smaller crystallite size than Ag-SAPO-34. The SEM and EDX analysis …

Genetic Prevalence Of Antifungal Resistance Gene In Cancer Patients With Oropharyngeal Candidiasis From Iraq, Muhamed Abd Ulrahman Majeed, Abdulameer Jasim Mohammed, Omar Sadik Shalal

Baghdad Science Journal

As the population of immunocompromised patients grew, yeast infections became more common. There has been a significant rate of morbidity and mortality among patients with Candidiasis demonstrating increased resistance to antifungal medications. The main aim of this study was to determine the virulence gene of Candida albicans, evaluate antifungals used for Candidiasis, and biofilm formation, which is isolated from the mouth of individuals in the Baghdad Governorate From 1st October 2022 to 28th February 2023. This study included 120 oral swabs collected from people who had oral candidiasis, with an age group between10-65 including both Genders. The results obtained showed …

The Effect Of Curcumin Powder And Cloves Oil On The Properties Of Fibers Produced By Electrospinning Technology, Areej Bouta, Ghazal Tuhmaz, Husain Bakr, Hoda Sharouf

Baghdad Science Journal

Electrospinning is a simple method for obtaining nanofibers. They possess distinctive ‎properties such as large surface area to weight and high porosity, which make them attractive for many ‎applications. In this research, the electrospinning technique was used to obtain non-woven mats of ‎fibers using polylactic acid (PLA) with the addition of curcumin powder and clove oil as natural ‎antibacterial materials. For the preparation of mats, a 10% polylactic acid solution was prepared in ‎a mixture of acetone and dimethylformamide. Natural materials were added to the ‎polymer solution in several concentrations of 1, 3, 5, 7, and 10%. The viscosity of …

Intelligent System For Student Performance Prediction Using Machine Learning, Mustafa S. Ibrahim Alsumaidaie, Ahmed Adil Nafea, Abdulrahman Abbas Mukhlif, Ruqaiya D. Jalal, Mohammed M Al-Ani

Baghdad Science Journal

Accurately predicting student performance remains a significant challenge in the educational sector. Identifying students who need additional support early can significantly impact their academic outcomes. This study aims to develop an intelligent solution for predicting student performance using supervised machine learning algorithms. This proposed focus on addressing the limitations of existing prediction models and enhancing prediction accuracy. In this work employed three supervised machine learning algorithms: Random Forest, Extra Trees, and K-Nearest Neighbors. The steps of research methodology contained (data collection, preprocessing, feature identification, model construction, and evaluation). This paper utilized a dataset comprising 24,000 training instances and 6,000 testing …

Carbon Footprint For Industry -Al-Rasheed Vegetable Oil Factory, Elham M. Al-Bayati, Jinan S. Al-Hassan

Baghdad Science Journal

This is a comprehensive study to calculate the carbon footprint of the Al-Rasheed vegetable oil factory in gaining a clear understanding of the environmental impact and identifying opportunities for emission reduction and sustainability improvement and to provide an overview of the key elements and objectives of the current study. Utilizing industry-standard calculation methodologies and emission factors specific to Al-Rasheed Factory and geographic location, we analyzed the collected data to quantify Al-Rasheed carbon emissions across only scope 1(Direct GHG Emissions via the burning of fossil fuels) measured by using the latest IPCC 2021 version 1.02 GHG Protocol and the SimaPro version …

Security Of Mobile Radiological Sources: Overview Of Industry Applied Technologies, Ann M. Archer, Ashleigh Wickham

International Journal of Nuclear Security

Small radiological sources used in industrial settings recurrently require transit between job sites. Securing these sources, while stationary, can be addressed with standard security approaches and equipment. Transport of these sources increases the risk and complexity of managing and maintaining control of these sources. Implementing methodologies to securely monitor and locate sources improves response and resolution of anomalous events during transit. The Mobile Source Transit Security (MSTS) system was developed to improve security and provide situational awareness of these mobile sources throughout their job cycle. The MSTS development effort focused on creating a set of systems that could be successfully …

Precision Prognostics For Cardiovascular Disease In Type 2 Diabetes: A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis, Abrar Ahmad, Lee Ling Lim, Mario Luca Morieri, Claudia Ha Ting Tam, Feifei Cheng, Tinashe Chikowore, Monika Dudenhöffer-Pfeifer, Hugo Fitipaldi, Chuiguo Huang, Sarah Kanbour, Sudipa Sarkar, Robert Wilhelm Koivula, Ayesha A. Motala, Sok Cin Tye, Gechang Yu, Yingchai Zhang, Michele Provenzano, Diana Sherifali, Russell J. De Souza, Russell J. De Souza, Deirdre Kay Tobias, Paul W. Franks, Stephen S. Rich, Robert Wagner, Tina Vilsbøll, Kimberly K. Vesco, Miriam S. Udler, Tiinamaija Tuomi, Arianne Sweeting, Emily K. Sims, Jennifer L. Sherr, Robert K. Semple, Rebecca M. Reynolds, Maria J. Redondo

Clinical Research Faculty Publications

Background: Precision medicine has the potential to improve cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk prediction in individuals with Type 2 diabetes (T2D). Methods: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of longitudinal studies to identify potentially novel prognostic factors that may improve CVD risk prediction in T2D. Out of 9380 studies identified, 416 studies met inclusion criteria. Outcomes were reported for 321 biomarker studies, 48 genetic marker studies, and 47 risk score/model studies. Results: Out of all evaluated biomarkers, only 13 showed improvement in prediction performance. Results of pooled meta-analyses, non-pooled analyses, and assessments of improvement in prediction performance and risk of …

Zero-G Exercise Equipment, Charisse Biglete, Jake Brajevich, James Monroe, Ethan Siahpush

Mechanical Engineering

In a micro-gravitational environment, the body undergoes less loading than that found on Earth. This leads to muscular atrophy, Osteoporosis, decreases in protein synthesis, and various other undesirable outcomes. To prevent this, astronauts undergo a strict exercise regime to maintain their health. The current exercise equipment available for spacecraft is large, heavy, complicated to use, costly, and unsafe. There is a definite need for the re-engineering of the exercise equipment to be used by astronauts while in microgravity environments to rectify these issues.

Beyond The Box: Delivering A New Look To Ohayo Korea, Beatrice Diaz

Graphic Communication

Ohayo Korea, a newly established business in South Korea, specializes in providing buying, packing, consolidation, and forwarding services for international customers seeking exclusive South Korean products or bulk shipments for business purposes. Despite offering valuable services, The business faces significant challenges in establishing visibility and trust in the marketplace. Currently, the business relies primarily on word-of-mouth and minimal social media presence, which restricts its reach and credibility among potential customers. In a highly competitive market, these constraints hinder Ohayo Korea’s ability to stand out and communicate its unique offerings effectively.

To address these challenges, a cohesive brand identity that resonates …

Community Response To Floods In The Cache River Watershed Of Southern Illinois: Application Of A Proposed Framework For Assessing General And Specified Community Resilience, Raymond Albert Bieri Iii

Theses

Recent years have seen increased awareness about the potential adverse impacts of climate change on hydrologic systems and human communities. The concept of community resilience – the capacity of communities to respond to drivers of change in a manner that maintains or improves upon community well-being – is widely recognized as a suitable framework for informing climate change adaptation policies. Emerging insights from the community resilience literature highlight the importance of the distinction between general resilience, which refers to the resilience of social-ecological systems to all kinds of drivers of change, and specified resilience, which is concerned with the resilience …

Predator-Prey Interactions And Space Use Strategies For Two Mesocarnivores, Abigail Weber

Theses

Mesocarnivores, including bobcats (Lynx rufus) and coyotes (Canis latrans), serve an important ecological role, functioning as the top predators throughout much of the eastern United States due to the extirpation of larger-bodied carnivores. Mesocarnivores are often described as generalists due to their flexibility in forage and habitat preferences and their ability to persist in human-dominated landscapes. However, this characterization overlooks the fact that many individuals within these populations act as specialists, with movement, space use, and predation strategies varying between individuals and across environmental contexts. Quantifying variability in mesocarnivore space use and movement from multiple perspectives can provide a better …

Understanding The Experience Of Being Food Insecure At An Independent College Or University, Natalie Wagner

Dissertations

Many people struggle to consistently access enough food for an active and healthy life (United States Department of Agriculture, 2020). Research has shown that college students experience food insecurity at rates higher than the general population while also facing negative academic, mental, physical, and social consequences (Baker-Smith et al., 2020; Bruening et al., 2018; Dubick et al., 2016; Henry, 2017; Martinez et al., 2018). Although studies on food insecurity among higher education have increased in the past few years, much of the research has been quantitative in nature and has been conducted at community colleges and state-funded institutions (Baker-Smith et …

Investigating The Impacts Of Ai Integration On Workplace Well-Being, An Exploratory Case Study, Anezka Viskova-Robertson

Dissertations

In an era characterized by rapid technological advancement, organizations are grappling with the profound changes brought by the integration of artificial intelligence (AI). This study examines the impact of AI integration on workplace well-being, conceptualized as a key indicator of the health of an organization’s socio-technical system. Conducted over a four-month period, this research utilized an exploratory case study approach, collecting data from 35 participants across four distinct organizations. By employing a socio-technical systems perspective and the tripartite model of attitudes, the study investigates the intricate interactions between AI technologies and human factors within organizational contexts. The findings reveal that …

Vegetation Dieback In The Mississippi River Delta Triggered By Acute Drought And Chronic Relative Sea-Level Rise, Tracy Elsey-Quirk, Austin Lynn, Michael Derek Jacobs, Rodrigo Diaz, James T. Cronin, Lixia Wang, Haosheng Huang, Dubravko Justic

Faculty Publications

Coastal wetlands are vulnerable to sea-level rise. Here, the authors use 16 years of data to correlate vegetation dieback in the Mississippi River Delta to drought-induced salt water intrusion in the summer of 2012.

Resilient, Environment Tolerant And Biocompatible Electroluminescent Devices With Enhanced Luminance Based On Compliant And Self-Adhesive Electrodes, Ya Lu, Yuanyuan Chen, Haoyu Sun, Fang Deng, Changtong Mei, Xinwu Xu, Qinglin Wu, Huining Xiao, Yiying Yue, Jingquan Han

Faculty Publications

Electroluminescent (EL) devices are of great significance for expanding the application range of optoelectronics. However, the realization of EL devices with environment-tolerance, stretchability, mechanical cycling stability, self-adhesion, biocompatibility, and high dielectric constant still remains a challenge. Herein, a type of EL device with enhanced comprehensive performances composing of a chlorinated barium titanate/phosphor/polydimethylsiloxane (Cl-BT/phosphor/PDMS) luminescent layer sandwiched between two silver nanowire-cellulose nanocrystal with II crystalline allomorph/Triton X-100 modified polydimethylsiloxane (AgNW-CNC II/TX-PDMS) electrodes fabricated through a full solution-processing strategy is proposed. Environmentally-friendly CNC II with high transmittance acts as an antioxidant, dispersant and film-former for AgNWs. The hydrophilic modification of TX to …

Estrogen Signaling In The Dorsal Raphe Regulates Binge-Like Drinking In Mice, Valeria C. Torres Irizarry, Bing Feng, Xiaohua Yang, Nirali Patel, Sarah Schaul, Lucas Ibrahimi, Hui Ye, Pei Luo, Leslie Carrillo-Sáenz, Penghua Lai, Maya Kota, Devin Dixit, Chunmei Wang, Amy W. Lasek, Yanlin He, Pingwen Xu

Division of Basic Science Faculty Publications

Estrogens promote binge alcohol drinking and contribute to sex differences in alcohol use disorder. However, the mechanisms are largely unknown. This study aims to test if estrogens act on 5-hydroxytryptamine neurons in the dorsal raphe nucleus (5-HTDRN) to promote binge drinking. We found that female mice drank more alcohol than male mice in chronic drinking in the dark (DID) tests. This sex difference was associated with distinct alterations in mRNA expression of estrogen receptor α (ERα) and 5-HT-related genes in the DRN, suggesting a potential role of estrogen/ERs/5-HT signaling. In supporting this view, 5-HTDRN neurons from naïve male mice had …

Sex Differences In Interacting Genetic And Functional Connectivity Biomarkers In Alzheimer’S Disease, Jordan N. Williamson, Shirley A. James, Sean P. Mullen, Bradley P. Sutton, Tracey Wszalek, Beni Mulyana, Peter Mukli, Andriy Yabluchanskiy, Balebail Ashok Raj, Kristin Fargher, Amanda Smith, Lisa Raudin, Gloria Chaing, Norman Relkin, Karen Elizabeth Smith, Hyungsub Shim, Laura L.Boles Ponto, Susan K. Schultz, Antero Sarrael, Raymundo Hernando, Nunzio Pomara, Dick Drost, Andrew Kertesz, John Rogers, Irina Rachinsky, Stephen Pasternak, Elizabether Finger, David Bachman, Kenneth Spicer, Jacobo Mintzer, Bruce L. Miller, Howard J. Rosen, Stephen Correia, Paul Malloy

Clinical Research Faculty Publications

As of 2023, it is estimated that 6.7 million individuals in the United States live with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Prior research indicates that AD disproportionality affects females; females have a greater incidence rate, perform worse on a variety of neuropsychological tasks, and have greater total brain atrophy. Recent research shows that hippocampal functional connectivity differs by sex and may be related to the observed sex differences in AD, and apolipoprotein E (ApoE) ε4 carriers have reduced hippocampal functional connectivity. The purpose of this study was to determine if the ApoE genotype plays a role in the observed sex differences in …

Blood And Mri Biomarkers Of Mild Traumatic Brain Injury In Non-Concussed Collegiate Football Players, Eunhan Cho, Joshua Granger, Bailey Theall, Nathan Lemoine, Derek Calvert, Jack Marucci, Shelly Mullenix, Hollis O’Neal, Tomas Jacome, Brian A. Irving, Neil M. Johannsen, Owen Carmichael, Guillaume Spielmann

Clinical Research Faculty Publications

Football has one of the highest incidence rates of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) among contact sports; however, the effects of repeated sub-concussive head impacts on brain structure and function remain under-studied. We assessed the association between biomarkers of mTBI and structural and functional MRI scans over an entire season among non-concussed NCAA Division I linemen and non-linemen. Concentrations of S100B, GFAP, BDNF, NFL, and NSE were assessed in 48 collegiate football players (32 linemen; 16 non-linemen) before the start of pre-season training (pre-camp), at the end of pre-season training (pre-season), and at the end of the competitive season (post-season). …

Many-Body Enhancement Of High-Harmonic Generation In Monolayer Mos2, Victor Chang Lee, Lun Yue, Mette B. Gaarde, Yang Hao Chan, Diana Y. Qiu

Faculty Publications

Many-body effects play an important role in enhancing and modifying optical absorption and other excited-state properties of solids in the perturbative regime, but their role in high harmonic generation (HHG) and other nonlinear response beyond the perturbative regime is not well-understood. We develop here an ab initio many-body method to study nonperturbative HHG based on the real-time propagation of the non-equilibrium Green’s function with the GW self energy. We calculate the HHG of monolayer MoS2 and obtain good agreement with experiment, including the reproduction of characteristic patterns of monotonic and nonmonotonic harmonic yield in the parallel and perpendicular responses, respectively. …