Digital Commons Network^™

Sleep Duration, Hypnotic Drug Use, And Risk Factors: Cross- Sectional Study, Nazanin Jalali, Parvin Khalili, Zahra Jamali, Zahra Jalali, Amir Moghadam-Ahmadi, Alireza Vakilian, Fatemeh Ayoobi

Department of Neurology Faculty Papers

Both short sleep duration (SSD) and long sleep duration (LSD) are associated with an increased risk of morbidity and mortality. Here, we aimed to assess the prevalence of sleep duration disturbances among adults in association with demographic, medication use, personal habits, and chronic diseases, while also considering the impact of hypnotic drug use. We performed a cross-sectional study of 9991 adult participants of the Rafsanjan Cohort Study (RCS), as part of the Prospective epidemiological research studies in Iran (PERSIAN). Multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted to assess the association between short (< 6 h) and long (> 9 h) sleep duration with demographic and lifestyle …

A Festival Of Form: John Cage & The Infinite Human, Michelle Ried

Bridwell Library Publications

No abstract provided.

Design Principles For App-Based Healthcare Interventions: A Mixed Method Approach, Loknath Sai Ambati

Masters Theses & Doctoral Dissertations

Despite the ubiquity of mobile health applications (apps), the practical use and success of the apps have been questionable. Design Principles (DP) can affect chronic health app user satisfaction and have been studied for ensuring favorable app usage. However, there is no consensual definition of DP within the preceding literature, which has a technical rather than an end-user-centric focus and lacks a rigorous theoretical basis. Moreover, different levels of DPs’ application can lead to differential user satisfaction as influenced by the user-contextual environment, warranting a quantitative assessment. Accordingly, the overarching question to be addressed is which DP for the self-management …

Bambi: Bluetooth Access Management & Beacon Identification, Anthony Jairam

Masters Theses & Doctoral Dissertations

Cybersecurity is a constantly developing field. Patches that secured yesterday’s technology do not safeguard against occurring threats, necessitating continuous research in the field. The outbreak of Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) devices dramatically expands the attack surface. BLE is one of the most widely applicable low-power connectivity standards. The low cost, low power consumption, and ready availability of BLE modules have made them a popular wireless technology for Internet of Things (IoT) devices and power constrained applications. However, the deployment of BLE-enabled devices enlarges the network attack surface. In spite of that, access management is insufficient for Bluetooth Low Energy devices. …

Measuring The Performance Cost Of Manual System Call Detections Via Process Instrumentation Callback (Pic), Jacob Williams

Masters Theses & Doctoral Dissertations

This quasi-experimental before-and-after study measured the performance impact of using Process Instrumentation Callback (PIC) to detect the use of manual system calls on the Windows operating system. The Windows Application Programming Interface (WinAPI), the impacts of system call monitoring, and the limitations of current detection mechanisms and their downsides were reviewed in-depth. Previous literature was evaluated that identified PIC as a unique solution to monitor system calls entirely from User-Mode, being able to rely on the Windows Kernel to intercept a target process. Unlike previous monitoring techniques, PIC must handle all system calls when performing analysis which requires an increase …

Native American Community Digital Divide: Student Insights, Chad R. Fenner

Masters Theses & Doctoral Dissertations

The digital divide continues to be an issue for many Native American individuals in rural tribal areas. This research used a qualitative grounded theory method from the data collection of semi-structured interviews with Native American university students. The open coding of the transcribed responses was used to analyze the text data from individual Native American experiences. The data analysis codes included cost, location, access, digital literacy, and technology knowledge as continuing issues. The coding also shows limited technical support or training availability in the communities. The absence of technology use increases the need to understand factors that remain digital divide …

Attention-Based Data Analytic Models For Traffic Flow Predictions, Kaushal Kumar, Yupeng Wei

Mineta Transportation Institute

Traffic congestion causes Americans to lose millions of hours and dollars each year. In fact, 1.9 billion gallons of fuel are wasted each year due to traffic congestion, and each hour stuck in traffic costs about $21 in wasted time and fuel. The traffic congestion can be caused by various factors, such as bottlenecks, traffic incidents, bad weather, work zones, poor traffic signal timing, and special events. One key step to addressing traffic congestion and identifying its root cause is an accurate prediction of traffic flow. Accurate traffic flow prediction is also important for the successful deployment of smart transportation …

Physicochemical Technique In Municipal Solid Waste (Msw) Landfill Leachate Remediation: A Review, Hamidi Abdul Aziz, Siti Fatihah Ramli, Yung-Tse Hung

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

Leachate generation is among the main challenging issues that landfill operators must handle. Leachate is created when decomposed materials and rainwater pass through the waste. Leachate carries many harmful pollutants, with high concentrations of BOD, COD, colour, heavy metals, ammoniacal nitrogen (NH3-N), and other organic and inorganic pollutants. Among them, COD, colour, and NH3-N are difficult to be completely eliminated, especially with a single treatment. They should be handled by appropriate treatment facilities before being safely released into the environment. Leachate remediation varies based on its properties, the costs of operation and capital expenditures, as well as the rules and …

Exploring Attitudes Of Four Groups Of Stakeholders Toward Family Childcare And Recommending Best Practices To Promote Positive Experiences, Yvonne S. Williams

Dissertations

This research aimed to increase the awareness of licensed family childcare programs and use the viewpoints of four stakeholder groups to construct recommended best practices. These best practices are crucial for supporting effective business practices and providing high-quality services to their stakeholders. Online surveys and virtual interviews were used to acquire the stakeholders' perspectives. The collected data revealed three principal thematic codes: family childcare provider, family childcare business, and family childcare environment. Within these three codes, the family childcare program's areas of improvement, inconsistencies, and strengths were identified and evaluated to construct recommended professional and business best practices. Some of …

The Impact Of Poverty Informed Faculty On Community College Student Success, Barbara J. Embacher

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Community college completion has been proven to be a ticket to a middle-class life. Moreover, we know that poverty causes educational barriers, including community college completion. Community colleges across the nation are identifying significant equity gaps between students from poor versus middle-class or affluent households. One solution to close equity gaps and increase student success rates for students experiencing poverty is to educate college faculty through professional development. This includes 1) information on the causes, myths, stereotypes, and other facts about poverty, 2) the impact poverty has on student achievement, and 3) instructional strategies that can help students experiencing poverty …

The Perseverance Of Play: An Archaeological Analysis Of Residential Blocks With Preschools At The Amache National Historic Site, Megan Brown

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this project is to expand on the understanding of experiences of Japanese American children, specifically preschool-aged children, within the Amache National Historic Site, a WWII Japanese American internment facility located in Granada, Colorado. Through archaeological methods, GIS analysis, oral histories, and archival research, I analyzed the landscape and material culture of the five residential blocks within Amache that had designated preschools. I then compared these blocks with preschools to residential blocks without preschools to determine if there are any patterns and discernable differences between the two study areas. The findings of this research provide insight into how …

Advanced Nursing Practice And Advanced Practice Nursing Roles Within Low And Lower-Middle-Income Countries, Andrew Scanlon, Maria Murphy, Janice Smolowitz, Virginia Lewis

School of Nursing Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Introduction: Population health initiatives rely on the availability and skills of an appropriate workforce to meet required goals. One global workforce initiative with demonstrated ability to expand health care services and improve access to care is the development of Advanced Nursing Practice and Advanced Practice Nursing roles. Given the sparse published information about these roles in Low and Lower-Middle-Income countries, this study seeks to describe their development and application in these countries. Design: The researchers developed a descriptive cross-sectional multilingual survey for online distribution to nursing experts within the targeted countries. Survey questions addressed demographic information on the population served, …

Quantum Algorithm For Mining Frequent Patterns For Association Rule Mining, Abdirahman Alasow, Marek Perkowski

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Maximum frequent pattern generation from a large database of transactions and items for association rule mining is an important research topic in data mining. Association rule mining aims to discover interesting correlations, frequent patterns, associations, or causal structures between items hidden in a large database. By exploiting quantum computing, we propose an efficient quantum search algorithm design to discover the maximum frequent patterns. We modified Grover’s search algorithm so that a subspace of arbitrary symmetric states is used instead of the whole search space. We presented a novel quantum oracle design that employs a quantum counter to count the maximum …

Utilizing The Rpe‑Clamp Model To Examine Interactions Among Factors Associated With Perceived Fatigability And Performance Fatigability In Women And Men, Robert W. Smith, Terry J. Housh, Jocelyn E. Arnett, John Paul V. Anders, Tyler J. Neltner, Dolores G. Ortega, Richard J. Schmidt, Glen O. Johnson

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Purpose The purpose of the present study was to examine the interactions between perceived fatigability and performance fatigability in women and men by utilizing the RPE-Clamp model to assess the fatigue-induced effects of a sustained, isometric forearm flexion task anchored to RPE = 8 on time to task failure (TTF), torque, and neuromuscular responses.

Methods Twenty adults (10 men and 10 women) performed two, 3 s forearm flexion maximal voluntary isometric contractions (MVICs) followed by a sustained, isometric forearm flexion task anchored to RPE = 8 using the OMNI-RES (0–10) scale at an elbow joint angle of 100°. Electromyographic amplitude …

Wind Effects On Dome Structures And Evaluation Of Cfd Simulations Through Wind Tunnel Testing, Tiantian Li, Hongya Qu, Yi Zhao, Ryan Honerkamp, Guirong Grace Yan, Arindam Chowdhury, Ioannis Zisis

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

In the Study, a Series of Wind Tunnel Tests Were Conducted to Investigate Wind Effects Acting on Dome Structures (1/60 Scale) Induced by Straight-Line Winds at a Reynolds Number in the Order of 106. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) Simulations Were Performed as Well, Including a Large Eddy Simulation (LES) and Reynolds-Averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) Simulation, and their Performances Were Validated by a Comparison with the Wind Tunnel Testing Data. It is Concluded that Wind Loads Generally Increase with Upstream Wind Velocities, and They Are Reduced over Suburban Terrain Due to Ground Friction. the Maximum Positive Pressure Normally Occurs Near the Base …

Synergistic Effect Of Hedp.4na And Different Induced Pouring Angles On Mechanical Properties Of Fiber-Reinforced Alkali-Activated Slag Composites, Jingjie Wei, Jianwei Liu, Kamal Khayat, Wu Jian Long

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The Poor Flexural and Damping Properties of Building Materials Damages Concrete Structures and Affects their Service Life When Concrete Structures Are Subjected to Dynamic Loads. Three Different Dosages (I.e., 0%, 0.3%, and 0.6%) of Organic Phosphonates (HEDP.4Na) and Different Pouring Methods (I.e., Conventional Pouring Method, 90°-Induced Pouring Method, and 150°-Induced Pouring Method) Were Designed to Improve the Flexural and Damping Performance of Fiber-Reinforced Alkali-Activated Slag Composites (FR-AASC). the Enhanced Mechanism of HEDP.4Na Was Revealed by Phase Analysis (X-Ray Diffraction, XRD), Pore Structure Analysis (Mercury Intrusion Porosimetry, MIP), the Heat of Hydration, and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) Analysis. the Results Showed …

Compaction Quality Assurance Specifications Of Unbound Materials, Beshoy Riad, Xiong Zhang, Jenny Liu, Yizhuang David Wang

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Compaction quality control/assurance of unbound geomaterials is one of the crucial components in pavement and embankment construction to ensure their performance, stability, and sustainability. Conventional density-based methods such as nuclear density gauge to determine the compaction quality have been widely used due to the straightforward relationship between the readings and targeted material property. Recent modifications in construction standards and the introduction of the Mechanistic-Empirical Pavement Design Guide have inspired a growing interest in developing and implementing strength/stiffness-based compaction control quality assurance (QA) specifications. Numerous studies have been dedicated to investigating the efficiency and effectiveness of the stiffness-based compaction QA tools. …

Integrating Quality Assurance In Balance Mix Designs For Durable Asphalt Mixtures: State-Of-The-Art Literature Review, Yizhuang David Wang, Jun Liu, Jenny Liu

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Delivering durable asphalt concrete within a reasonable cost is one of the great ambitions of pavement material engineers. This state-of-the-art review article documents the efforts spent in the past two decades to ensure the durability and performance of asphalt mixtures in mix design and production. A perspective with the attempt to integrate laboratory mix design, plant production quality assurance, and field place acceptance is applied in the review. The development of the performance specification and performance mix design is summarized. The paper categorizes performance specification into index-based performance specification and predictive performance specification that include performance-related specification and performance-based specification. …

Building Services Engineering March/April 2023

Building Services Engineering

No abstract provided.

The Evolution Of The ‘Trade And …’ ‘Debate’: A View From Asean, Locknie Hsu

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

This article explores the ‘Trade and …’ ‘Debate’ in the context of trade and environment issues. It provides an explanation of the evolution of discussions of such issues in a non-dispute settlement context, using developments in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ integration efforts as illustrations. It also highlights a number of opportunities for trade and environment collaboration in negotiations for free trade agreement and Digital Economy Partnership Agreements.

Encountering Berlant Part 1: Concepts Otherwise, Ben Anderson, Stuart Aitken, Jana Bacevic, Felicity Callard, Kwang Dae (Mitsy) Chung, Kathryn S. Coleman, Robert F. Hayden, Sarah Healy, Rita L. Irwin, Justin Tse

Research Collection College of Integrative Studies

In Part 1 of ‘Encountering Berlant’, we encounter the promise and provocation of Lauren Berlant's work. In 1000-word contributions, geographers and others stay with what Berlant's thought offers contemporary human geography. They amplify an encounter with their work, demonstrating how a concept, idea, or style disrupts something, opens up a new possibility, or simply invites thinking otherwise. The encounters range across the incredible body of work Berlant left us with, from the ‘national sentimentality’ trilogy through to recent work on negativity. Varying in form and tone, the encounters exemplify and enact the inexhaustible plenitude of Berlant's thought: fantasy, the case, …

Green Stormwater Infrastructure: A Critical Review Of The Barriers And Solutions To Widespread Implementation, Bardia Heidari, Sarah Priscilla Randle, Dean Minchillo, Fouad H. Jaber

Research Collection College of Integrative Studies

Rapid urbanization, aging infrastructure, and climate change impacts have put a strain on existing stormwater drainage systems. One commonly acknowledged solution to relieve such stress is Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI). Interest in GSI technology has been growing. However, the level of implementation in many areas around the world lags behind the interest level. This study aims to critically review the body of literature from the last decade to determine the main barriers to wide adoption and the offered solutions to overcome them. Based on a review of 92 peer-reviewed journal articles published between 2012 and 2022, we classify barriers and …

Climate Denialism Bullshit Is Harmful, Joshua Luczak

Research Collection College of Integrative Studies

This paper suggests that some climate denialism is bullshit. Those who spread it do not display a proper concern for the truth. This paper also shows that this bullshit is harmful in some significant ways. It undermines the epistemic demands imposed on us by what we care about, by the social roles we occupy, and by morality. It is also harmful because it corrodes epistemic trust.

Evaluating The Effects Of Heat Vulnerability On Heat-Related Emergency Medical Service Incidents: Lessons From Austin, Texas, Kijin Seong, Junfeng Jiao, Akhil Mandalapu

Research Collection College of Integrative Studies

Extreme heat exposure and sensitivity have been a growing concern in urban regions as the effects of extreme heat pose a threat to public health, the water supply, and the infrastructure. Heat-related illnesses demand an immediate Emergency Medical Service (EMS) response since they might result in death or serious disability if not treated quickly. Despite increased concerns about urban heat waves and relevant health issues, a limited amount of research has investigated the effects of heat vulnerability on heat-related illnesses. This study explores the geographical distribution of heat vulnerability in the city of Austin and Travis County areas of Texas …

Bike-Sharing Station Usage And The Surrounding Built Environments In Major Texas Cities, Louis G. Alcorn, Junfeng Jiao

Research Collection College of Integrative Studies

This study analyzes the effect of different built environments on bike-share usage in nascent dock-based systems in three Texas cities. Past research offers little insight as to whether elements associated with higher bicycle usage in major cities affect ridership in secondary, developing bike-share markets within lower density American cities. In Austin and Houston, a positive relationship emerges between bike-share usage and proximity to high-comfort bicycle facilities. All three cities demonstrated surprisingly minimal relationship between bike-share usage and other proven drivers of bicycling activity in urban areas, which may result from system design for leisure- and recreation-based trips.

Highway To The Comfort Zone: History Of The Psychrometric Chart, Eric Teitelbaum, Clayton Miller, Forrest Meggers

Research Collection College of Integrative Studies

The psychrometric chart is the most common data visualization technique for the designers of thermal comfort systems worldwide. From its humble roots as means of expressing the characteristics of air in building systems design, the use of the chart has grown to include the representation of the zones of human thermal comfort according to both conventional and adaptive models. In this paper, we present an extensive history of this development and the fallacies with representing comfort simply as a box that sometimes moves on the chart. The origins of the link between refrigeration control and comfort control are examined through …

Dendrimer And Dendrimer Gel-Derived Drug Delivery Systems: Breaking Bottlenecks Of Topical Administration Of Glaucoma Medications, Juan Wang, Boxuan Li, Uday B. Kompella, Hu Yang

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Due to high structural flexibility, multidrug carrying capability, and tunable size, dendrimers have been used as suitable carriers for ophthalmic drug delivery. Drug molecules can be either encapsulated or chemically coupled to dendrimers. the nanoscopic size, spheroidal shape, and cationic surface of Poly amidoamine (PAMAM) dendrimers promote their interaction with the cornea and result in prolonged precorneal retention. Dendrimers could be further cross-linked to produce three-dimensional hydrogel networks or dendrimer hydrogels (DH). the properties of the DH can be readily adjusted to maintain both fluidity and adhesiveness, making them suitable for developing topical ocular drug formulations. Micro-/nano- sized DHs, that …

Spectrum, Volume 50, Issue 5, Sacred Heart University

Newspapers (Obelisk & Spectrum)

Highlights include: A Slice of Politics with Senator Blumenthal -- MSU the Target of Another Mass Shooting in 2023 -- Car Break-Ins Affecting SHU Students -- Opportunities with iHub -- An Internship that Gives Back to the Community -- Student Nurses Helping Make a Change -- Men’s Volleyball Makes Statement NEC Win

Trigeminal Trophic Syndrome In A Pediatric Patient With Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma., Ezra Hoover, Ryan Jay, Patricia Witman

Ambulatory and Primary Care Articles

A 13-year-old girl with a history of diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) suffered from progressively worsening facial ulcerations secondary to paresthesia-induced self-excoriation. She was diagnosed with trigeminal trophic syndrome (TTS) induced by DIPG and struggled to heal her lesions in the background of this excoriation disorder. A multidisciplinary approach that included mood disorder management with sertraline and amitriptyline helped diminish paresthesia, improve her quality of life, and promote healing of the ulcers despite the progression of her DIPG. This case highlights the multifactorial complexity of TTS in pediatric patients and the need for successful management strategies.

Why The South Still Hasn’T Bet The Farm—After Murphy V. Ncaa, Southern States Are Less Concerned With Protecting Moral Conservatism And Much More Concerned With An Inability To Make Sports Gambling Economically Viable At The State Level, Nicole Williamson

UNLV Gaming Law Journal

No abstract provided.