Digital Commons Network^™

A Systematic Unified Approach For Addressing Temporal Instability In Road Safety Analysis, Kazi Redwan Shabab, Tanmoy Bhowmik, Mohamed H. Zaki, Naveen Eluru

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Multivariate models are widely employed for crash frequency analysis in traffic safety literature. In the context of analyzing data for multiple instances (such as years), it becomes essential to evaluate the stability of parameters over time. The current research proposes a novel approach, labelled the mixed spline indicator pooled model, that offers significant enhancement relative to current approaches employed for capturing temporal instability. The proposed approach entails carefully creating independent variables that allow us to measure parameter slope changes over time and can be easily integrated into existing methodological frameworks. The current research effort compares four multivariate model systems: year …

Validation Of Mobile Devices In Arbitrary Locations Against Force Plate Standard For Balance Assessment, German J. Ellsworth

Master's Theses

With balance assessment being essential to the prediction of fall risk and detection and assessment of motor disorders, increasing clinical accessibility to objective balance metrics is essential. Work has been done validating center of mass (COM) acceleration metrics against well regarded force plate center of pressure (COP) position standards for mobile device data acquisition systems, but most research is restricted to devices being close to the COM or strapped in a harness configuration. Through the use of rigid body kinematics and the inverted pendulum model, this study develops novel methodology for calculating COM acceleration using mobile devices in arbitrary positions, …

A Data-Driven Framework For Analyzing And Predicting Social Media Engagement During Rumor Propagation, Joseph E. Faza

Master's Theses

The spread of rumors on social media has become a significant concern, as platforms like X (formerly known as Twitter) enable rapid dissemination of unverified information. These rumors can shape public perception and behavior, making it crucial to understand the dynamics of their spread. The main objective of this study is to explore how users interact with rumor-related tweets and identify key factors that predict tweet engagement. By analyzing tweets from seven different rumor events, this research aims to uncover patterns in user engagement and provide insights into the spread of misinformation. The study utilized a dataset of tweets from …

Of Geese And Grass: Investigating Impacts Of Brant Grazing On Eeelgrass, Dakota L. Osborne

Master's Theses

Grazing pressure is important in structuring plant communities, particularly in aquatic environments. Eelgrass (Zostera marina), a keystone species in estuaries across North America, is experiencing widespread population declines. As a keystone species, eelgrass provides numerous important functions, including: 1) water filtration, 2) sediment stabilization, 3) providing refuge and nursery habitat for numerous species, and 4) carbon sequestration. Benefits which could be lost if eelgrass beds continue to diminish. California has experienced some of the greatest eelgrass declines, and Morro Bay, CA experienced a 96% decrease in eelgrass from 2007 to 2017. Most studies to date have examined bottom-up …

Achieving Access And Equity In Education: An Analysis Of Higher Education Reforms In Pakistan

Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education

No abstract provided.

International Spouses’ Goals And Investment In Language Learning Programs

Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education

No abstract provided.

Just Maps? Exploring The Development And Use Of Environmental Justice Mapping Tools In The United States, Claire Emrick

Master's Theses and Capstones

The disparate distribution of environmental risks and benefits is well documented in the United States. In response, interactive mapping tools that attempt to represent and address environmental justice (EJ) issues have proliferated in recent years. By synthesizing socioeconomic and environmental data into a user-friendly interface, EJ mapping tools can inform advocacy and policy decisions that benefit disadvantaged communities. Numerous studies have contributed to the development and assessment of the indices and datasets found in these mapping tools, while other articles have highlighted approaches to and lessons learned from single cases of EJ mapping tool development. However, only a few studies …

Mechanical Properties Of Composite Fiberglass Rods Used For Ocean Structure Tethers To Mitigate North Atlantic Right Whale Entanglement, Louis Gitelman

Master's Theses and Capstones

Entanglements in rope fishing gear significantly threaten the critically endangered North Atlantic Right Whale’s health and population (Knowlton, 2022; Brooker & Matthias, 2020). This thesis investigates the potential to mitigate the risk of whale entanglements in ocean structure tether components by using stiff fiberglass composite rods instead of rope. This potential was investigated through five main avenues:1. A survey was conducted of the availability, cost, and material properties of available composite rods and their operability in marine structures. 2. Four-point flexure testing was conducted to measure the degradation of the material properties of fiberglass composite rod samples as a function …

Diversification Of New England’S Macroalgae Industry: Introduction Of Nori, Riplee Mercer

Master's Theses and Capstones

The aquaculture of macroalgae is multi-billion-dollar industry globally, but is primarily dominated by Asian production. The US macroalgae industry is relatively small but has grown over the last decade, heavily dominated by kelp aquaculture. The goal of this project is to facilitate the diversification of the US industry by developing nursery and grow-out techniques for the production of Wildemania amplissima, a native species of nori. Following the life history of Wildemania amplissima, a series of experiments were conducted to 1) compare culture initiation methods from wild-collected blades, 2) determine optimum culture conditions for vegetative growth of the conchocelis sporophyte stage, …

Stronger Practical Game-Playing Ai For Duelyst Ii, Bryan Mckenney

Master's Theses and Capstones

Duelyst II is an online collectible card game (CCG) that features a 9 × 5 grid board,making it a cross between the popular CCG Hearthstone and chess. It is a partially- observable stochastic game (POSG) with a large branching factor and the ability to take several actions in a time-limited turn, making it a challenging domain for game-playing AI. On top of that, successor generation is very slow, limiting the effectiveness of traditional planning approaches such as Monte Carlo tree search (MCTS).

In this thesis, I build on my previous work on Duelyst II AI, creating a stronger game-playing agent …

Hardware And Software Optimization For Of Smart Insole Systems For Gait Analysis, Femi John Olugbon

Master's Theses and Capstones

Gait analysis is vital in human biomechanicals, clinical diagnostics, and rehabilitation, providing essential insights into human locomotion. Ground reaction forces play a significant role in understanding gait dynamics, detecting abnormalities, and assessing treatment outcomes. Accurate measurement and analysis of ground reaction forces and other gait parameters are crucial for developing effective interventions and improving patient outcomes.

The first part of this thesis explores methods to optimize and standardize the number of pressure sensors and their optimum placements within the insole for accurate and reliable estimation of temporal gait parameters. Standardization of sensor position for temporal gait analysis is crucial for …

Bioimpedance Smart Needle System For Real-Time Tissue Detection During Intramuscular Injection, Marc Peter Tausanovitch

Master's Theses and Capstones

Injectable drug delivery is an extremely commonplace procedure in the world ofmedicine, with over 16 billion injections administered annually. Due to the high vascularity of muscle tissue, the intramuscular (IM) route is preferred for many antibiotic, biological, and hormonal drugs. Appropriate needle length plays a critical role in the success of IM injection, ensuring that the drug is deposited in the core muscle. Instances of over- or under-penetration are associated with reduced drug bioavailability and vaccine related injury. Unfortunately, guidelines for needle length selection do not always yield positive results due to practitioner error or adverse patient physiology. This thesis …

Evaluating The Long-Term Performance Of Recycling Agents In High-Rap Content Asphalt Mixtures, Zheng Wang

Master's Theses and Capstones

The Utilization of Reclaimed Asphalt Pavement (RAP) has become a pivotal strategy for improving infrastructure sustainability. However, with a high RAP content included in the pavement material, the aged asphalt will decline the mechanical properties of the flexible pavement and thus decrease the durability. Recycling agents (RAs) are products with chemical and physical characteristics designed to restore the rheological properties of reclaimed asphalt material and improve the performance of recycled asphalt mixtures with high RAP content that promote economic and environmental benefits. Plenty of the RA products are proven effective once blended with asphalt; however, the long-term effect of the …

Mitigation Of Road Mortality Of Freshwater Turtles In New Hampshire With An Emphasis On Blanding's Turtles (Emydoidea Blandingii), Lauren White

Master's Theses and Capstones

The Blanding’s turtle (Emydoidea blandingii) is a state-endangered species in New Hampshire that is particularly vulnerable to road mortality due to reproductive life history traits, habitat use, and migration patterns. Successful conservation techniques to mitigate wildlife road mortality include building fences and wildlife crossing structures (eco-passages) at roadkill hot spots. A collaborative research group designed a road mortality risk model to understand turtles' relative road mortality risk at existing wetland crossing sites in New Hampshire and to assess whether culverts at these sites may function as eco-passages. To ground-truth this model, roadkill surveys and wildlife camera monitoring techniques were used …

Architectural Design For Data Security In Cloud-Based Big Data Systems, Mujeeb-Ur-Rehman Jamali, Najma Imtiaz Ali, Abdul Ghafoor Memon, Mujeeb-U-Rehman Maree, Aadil Jamali

Baghdad Science Journal

Architecture design of system is creative process after all. Non-functional requirements and software architecture have a strong relationship. Security of system is one of great concern and it is a non-functional need and requirement. The architectural style and structure chosen for a system should be based on the non-functional system requirements. Big Data technologies are used to store handles huge amounts of operational data in the public domain. Structure and behavior diagrams of the system is proposed that use a secure architectural design for a system that works over the cloud. Different components of Big Data have been investigated in …

Mechanical Performance And Corrosion Behaviour Of Aluminum7075 Reinforced By Nano-Titanium Dioxide, Raouf Mahmood Raouf, Lubna Ghalib, Ahmed K. Muhammad

Baghdad Science Journal

In this study, the stir casting technique (SCT) was applied to form aluminium (Al) nanocomposites with various weight percentages of nanotitanium dioxide powder (TiO2). The structural, mechanical, and corrosion properties of nanocomposites were investigated. The microstructure was taken by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), while the crystal structure of the specimens was obtained using X-ray diffraction (XRD). In addition, nanocomposites were immersed in 0.5 M HCl solution for potentiodynamic and corrosion rate measurements. The results showed that the best specimen is 0.03%, as it increased by 23% for hardness, but the tensile strength increased to 52%. Whereas, SEM images of the …

Leveraging A Team Approach For Emergency Preparedness In Georgia, Virginia Brown, Maria Bowie, Pamela Turner, Aaron Golson

Journal of Human Sciences and Extension

This project cultivated a foundational level of training that will grow as an integral part of the University of Georgia Cooperative Extension’s organizational commitment to provide systemic readiness in support of the emergency response. The development of four geographically dispersed, specially trained small teams within the University of Georgia Extension System built capacity for readiness, response, and recovery to natural disasters and local emergencies. These teams help facilitate a timely and skilled response to the needs of employees and stakeholders before, during, and after natural disasters and local emergency events. Specialized training continues to be provided to all team members.

Were The “Best Made Better”? A Content Analysis Of South Carolina 4-H Programming, Lauren B. Hood, Christopher J. Eck, K Dale Layfield, Joseph L. Donaldson

Journal of Human Sciences and Extension

Since 1902, 4-H Youth Development programs have been implemented by Cooperative Extension agents or educators for teaching, influencing, and leading youth to new life skills that can positively impact their futures. The 4-H motto is “learn by doing” and is practiced with a hands-on learning approach. Unfortunately, during the COVID-19 pandemic, 4-H programs and clubs around the nation were confined to home or distance learning and no group interaction, limiting this hands-on learning approach. This study analyzes how 4-H, specifically in South Carolina, was implemented without meeting in person and how it affected retention rates during the pandemic. Analysis of …

Un-Erasing Race: Introducing Social Network Discrimination To The Law, Chika O. Okafor

North Carolina Law Review

No abstract provided.

Lawmaking For Leverage, Rebecca Aviel

North Carolina Law Review

No abstract provided.

Thtr 206.01: Theatre Production Ii - Run Crew, Jason J. Mcdaniel

University of Montana Course Syllabi, 2021-2025

No abstract provided.

Geo 508.V50: Fundamentals Of Academic Research, Hilary R. Martens

University of Montana Course Syllabi, 2021-2025

No abstract provided.

M 109.01: Indigenous Ways Of Knowing In Science, Technology, Engineering And Mathematics, Aaron M. Thomas, Frederick Peck

University of Montana Course Syllabi, 2021-2025

No abstract provided.

Ddsn 114.01: Introduction To Cad, Brian Hoover

University of Montana Course Syllabi, 2021-2025

No abstract provided.

Dst 120.01: Electrical Systems, Alexander E. Carlson

University of Montana Course Syllabi, 2021-2025

No abstract provided.

Edec 453.01: Early Childhood Stem, Anna L. Puryear

University of Montana Course Syllabi, 2021-2025

No abstract provided.

Edu 407e.50: Ethics And Policy Issues, David C. Owens

University of Montana Course Syllabi, 2021-2025

No abstract provided.

Biob 160n.00: Principles Of Living Systems, Scott A. Wetzel, Andrea T. Green

University of Montana Course Syllabi, 2021-2025

No abstract provided.

Csci 323.01: Software Science, Zedong Peng

University of Montana Course Syllabi, 2021-2025

No abstract provided.

Csci 444.01: Data Visualization, Jesse V. Johnson

University of Montana Course Syllabi, 2021-2025

No abstract provided.