Digital Commons Network^™

Influence Of Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles On The Efficiency Of Oxytetracycline Removal From Wastewater Using Continuous Catalytic Ozonation, Sarmad Al-Anssari, Hassanain A. Hassan, Maha K. Mohsin, Ahmed A. Mohammed

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Antibiotics must be fully eliminated before they are released into the environment. In most cases, conventional wastewater treatment systems are not built to handle polar microcontaminants such as antibiotics. Oxytetracycline (OTC) is one of these antibiotics, an environmental hazard contaminant in aqueous solutions. Therefore, an advanced treatment method is needed for wastewater contaminated with antibiotics. In this study, we employed zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO), and the catalytic ozonation procedure was employed to increase the ozonation efficiency. A continuous experiment was carried out to compare the effectiveness of catalytic and single ozonation in degrading OTC in a continuous reactor. The flow …

Zero Trust Architecture For Electric Transportation Systems: A Systematic Survey And Deep Learning Framework For Replay Attack Detection, Grace Muriithi, Behnaz Papari, Ali Arsalan, Laxman Timilsina, Alex Muriithi, Elutunji Buraimoh, Asif Khan, Gokhan Ozkan, Christopher Edrington, Akram Papari

Montclair State University Scholarship & Creative Works

Modern and autonomous hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), as complex cyber-physical systems, represent a key innovation in the future of transportation. However, the increasing interconnectivity and reliance on digital components expose these vehicles to significant cybersecurity risks. To address these challenges, Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA) has emerged as a promising security framework. Operating on the principle of ‘never trust, always verify,’ ZTA offers a comprehensive approach to ensuring continuous trust verification in HEV systems. Despite its potential, the application of ZTA within cyber-physical vehicular systems remains underexplored, and its practical benefits and limitations are not yet fully understood by the engineering …

Utilizing The Combinatory Power Of Chemotherapeutic Compounds In Triple Negative Breast Cancer Cells, Matthew I. Hyder

Biology Summer Fellows

Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths among women worldwide and the second most common cause of cancer deaths in women in the United States. Genetic variants that increase the risk of breast cancer include mutations in the breast cancer susceptibility genes 1 and 2 (BRCA1 and BRCA2). Apoptosis, or programmed cell death, is a natural process that helps the body remove aged cells. However, in cancer, deregulated apoptotic signaling—especially the activation of anti-apoptotic mechanisms—enables cancer cells to evade this process, leading to uncontrolled proliferation, tumor survival, therapeutic resistance, and cancer recurrence. Most anti-cancer drugs function as chemotherapeutic …

Characteristics Of Single‑Phase Fire‑Contact And Tree‑Contact Faults In Medium‑Voltage Overhead Lines, Meng Wang, Yi Zeng, Longshan Yang, Tianxiang Chen, Songhai Fan, Chi Wu

Journal of Electric Power Science and Technology

In recent years, there have been numerous wildfires caused by various factors, seriously affecting the safe operation of overhead distribution lines. In addition to the contact between overhead lines and trees, human use of fire and lightning are also among the causes of wildfire accidents. The 10 kV overhead line is taken as the research object, and an experimental research platform for single-phase fire-contact and tree-contact faults is built. By means of a high-resistance ground fault model and a comparison in the time and frequency domains, the characteristics of the two faults are analyzed, and the change rules of leakage …

Investigating The Impact Of Agent Openness On Planning In Multi-Agent Systems, Bala Subramanyam Duggirala

School of Computing: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Multi-agent systems (MAS) possess significant potential for modeling real-world scenarios requiring coordinated actions (like wildfire fighting or ridesharing) among autonomous entities or agents (e.g., wildfire fighting agents) in complex, dynamic environments. Effective decision-theoretic planning (where each agent must carefully consider both the immediate and the future situations or states, and coordinate with the other agents (neighbors) to evaluate what needs to be done at present) within MAS, especially multiagent planning, where the planning agent directly models its neighbors in order to estimate their optimal actions, is critical, yet challenged by factors like partial observability, openness, and diverse agent types with …

The Covid-19 Lockdown And Diabetes Self-Management In Esan Northeast Area Of Edo State, Esther Ehivbaun Rapu

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The COVID-19 lockdown impacted chronic diseases care globally, but there is limited research on how individuals in rural Nigerian communities managed diabetes during this period. This qualitative phenomenological study explored the lived experiences of self-management with diabetes during the COVID-19 lockdown among adults in Esan Northeast. The socioecological model (SEM) served as the guiding conceptual framework, allowing for the exploration of the impact of individual, interpersonal, community, and institutional factors on self-care behaviors. The research explored how cultural, social and economic factors impacted how adults with diabetes in Esan Northeast managed their condition during the COVID-19 lockdown. Semi-structured interviews via …

Study Of Anomalous Variations In Seismic And Non-Seismic Parameters Using Machine Learning Techniques To Develop The Earthquake Forecasting Model In The Himalayan Belt, Senthil Kumar M

Theses and Dissertations

Understanding and forecasting earthquakes is not just about science it’s about saving lives, even as the dynamic and hidden nature of Earth's tectonic processes makes this an intricate challenge. The Himalayan belt is one of the most seismically active regions globally due to the collision of the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates. Investigating this region is essential for understanding highly complicated tectonic mechanisms and reducing substantial hazards posed to millions of people by persistent and intense seismic events. This study aims to enhance forecasting methodologies by applying machine learning techniques while dealing with the inherent challenges of geological complexity and …

Longitudinal Associations Between Waking Movement Behaviors And Health-Related Quality Of Life In Older Adults: A Compositional Data Analysis Approach, Jaclyn P. Maher, Alexander Jochim, Yeongjun Seo, Brynn L. Hudgins, Iman F. Khan, Peyton A. Greco, Emily M. Postlehwait, Om L. Patel, Krista S. Leonard, Chih-Hsiang Yang, Denver M. Y. Brown

Faculty Publications

Objectives

Movement behaviors, such as sedentary behavior (SB), light intensity physical activity (LPA), and moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity (MVPA) are mutually exclusive, in that time spent in one behavior inevitably displaces time spent in another. Yet, few studies have simultaneously considered these health behaviors and their association with health-related quality of life (HRQoL), an important indicator of health and well-being in aging populations. This study aimed to explore the role of waking movement behaviors (i.e., SB, LPA, MVPA) in prospectively predicting HRQoL in older adults. The study further aimed to cross-validate associations between movement behaviors and HRQoL using …

Adolescents' Use Of Music For Pain Management., Rebecca J. Lepping, Lora L. Black, Kymberly A. Kline, Deanna Hanson-Abromeit, Andrea L. Chadwick, Dustin Wallace, William R. Black

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

To investigate the experiences of adolescents with chronic pain who participated in an intensive interdisciplinary pain treatment program, this secondary study analyzes the themes that emerged regarding the spontaneous utilization of music in coping strategies for chronic pain. During research interviews focused on coping skills and treatment engagement, participants spontaneously reported using music as an effective coping strategy for managing pain. A deductive thematic analysis revealed key themes related to their usage, including using music as a distractor, motivator and in other ways as coping strategies. Since participants indicated that music is essential to their experiences of coping with pain, …

Macrophage-T Cell Interactions Promote Slamf1 Expression For Enhanced Tb Defense, G V R Krishna Prasad, Steven J Grigsby, Gideon A Erkenswick, Cynthia Portal-Celhay, Ekansh Mittal, Guozhe Yang, Samuel M Fallon, Fengyixin Chen, Thais Klevorn, Neharika Jain, Yuanyuan Li, Makedonka Mitreva, Amanda J Martinot, Joel D Ernst, Jennifer A Philips

2020-Current year OA Pubs

CD4+ T cells are crucial for protective immunity to intracellular pathogens. In addition to secreting cytokines, CD4+ T cells promote control of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection through cognate interactions with macrophages, but the mechanism has been unclear. Here, we show that SLAMF1/CD150 is highly and uniquely induced in macrophages by antigen-specific interactions with CD4+ T cells. In macrophages, SLAMF1 enhances the generation of reactive oxygen species and restricts Mtb replication. Mtb-infection of mice promotes SLAMF1 expression specifically on infected macrophages, not uninfected bystanders. SLAMF1 expression depends on adaptive immunity and also autophagy. Moreover, Slamf1

Using The Safety Scissors: Dna Resection Regulation At Dna Double-Strand Breaks And Telomeres, Michael M, Soniat, Logan R. Myler

Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Faculty Papers

DNA resection is a universal process in genome maintenance by which one strand of DNA is degraded, leaving the other strand intact. This sometimes highly processive process is critical for many forms of DNA damage repair, replication-coupled repair, meiotic recombination, and telomere maintenance. Therefore, resection must be tightly regulated to prevent genome instability and promote faithful and accurate repair. Here, we review what is known about how resection functions and how it is controlled, using DNA double-strand break repair and telomere maintenance as examples. We address how resection is regulated in three independent steps: resection initiation, long-range processing, and termination. …

The Evolving Future Of Work: Implications For Newcomer Adaptability And Connectivity During Organizational Socialization, Talya N. Bauer, Berrin Erdogan, Allison M. Ellis, Donald M. Truxillo, Grant M. Brady, Julie M. Mccarthy

Business Faculty Publications and Presentations

Organizational socialization and the practice of onboarding new hires are central human resources functions. However, traditional socialization theory and practice were built on assumptions that are increasingly misaligned with today's work context. We identified four current, emerging, and future work trends that characterize the evolving landscape surrounding organizational socialization: technological advancement, the expansion of remote work arrangements, rising societal loneliness and mental health challenges, and aging workforce demographics. Collectively, these trends have contributed to dramatic shifts in the context and performance of work, as well as the expectations that employees and organizations hold for one another. Accordingly, we argue that …

Augustine’S Ethics And Authentic Happiness, Ignatius C. Williams

Say Something Theological: The Student Journal of Theological Studies

Finding happiness is a fundamental human goal, despite the fact that it varies between cultures, philosophical systems, and religious beliefs. But how mankind pursues happiness as the greatest good and how it is reached in that process are considered because not all endeavors ultimately lead to true or authentic happiness. In light of this, Augustine’s notion of ethics and authentic happiness are examined, along with some essential principles for living an ethical life that is congruent with true happiness. Three topics are explored. First, I examined Augustine’s theory of happiness as well as moral requirements centered on grace, love, and …

Unearthing Evidence For St. Augustine’S Racial Blackness And Paralleling Augustine’S Christian Mystical Religion To Traditional African Religion’S Mysticism, Dillon Cook

Say Something Theological: The Student Journal of Theological Studies

This article undertakes two projects rendering significant ramifications for philosophy/theology, if my assertions are correct. First, the philosopher/theologian known as St. Augustine of Hippo is most saliently recognized as a “white man”; if not a white man, “a European”; if not European, “a man of Rome”; or “Mediterranean”; etc. Outside the intellectual sphere, this is how he is often depicted in art, Penguin Classic books, and so on. Yet ironically, images of Augustine rarely circulate, if at all, as a Black-African-Indigenous person. Was Augustine nonwhite? Evidence is rendered that this is indubitably the case. Could Augustine have been modernly categorized …

Comparing The Mechanical Properties Of Conventional, Milled, And 3d-Printed Occlusal Splint Materials: An In Vitro Study, Sadeem Alzaghran

Master's Theses (2009 -)

Aim: Evidence on the mechanical properties of digitally manufactured occlusal splint materials remains scarce. The aim of this study was to evaluate and compare the mechanical properties of CAD/CAM fabricated occlusal splint materials versus conventionally heat-cured acrylic resin materials. Materials and Methods: A total of 100 specimens were manufactured for the present study. One CAD-CAM milled (ProArt CAD Splint), one heat-polymerized (SR IVOcap Clear), and three 3D-Printed (KeySplint Hard, NightGuard Firm2 and RoDIN Splint 2.0) resin materials were evaluated. Flexural strength, flexural modulus and surface hardness were measured. The three-point flexure test was used for the determination of flexural strength …

Illness Severity And Marital Communication In Young Couples: The Moderating Role Of Marital Satisfaction, Jaime Lea Dick

Theses and Dissertations

The emergence of a chronic physical illness is unexpected in emerging adulthood and is accompanied by stress. Additionally, married partners of individuals with physical illnesses are likewise affected by the new diagnosis. Marriage outcomes of couples facing chronic illnesses together vary, being sometimes positive and sometimes negative. The current study examined the relationship between the emergence of chronic physical illness in emerging adults and marital communication of both the patient and partner, with marital satisfaction as a moderator. Gender differences are also addressed. From the Couple Relationships and Transition Experiences (CREATE) study, a nationally representative dataset of newly married emerging …

Uncharted Territory: The First Case Of Cardiac Myxoma In A Patient With Nf2, Muhammad Sabri, Zinya Talukder, Naila Ijaz, Joseph Neri

Rothman Institute Papers

BACKGROUND: Cardiac myxoma is a benign tumor, typically originating in the left atrium, and is often linked to Carney complex. In our literature review, there are no case reports of cardiac myxoma in patients with neurofibromatosis type 2 (NF2).

CASE SUMMARY: A 60-year-old man presented with dizziness and was found to have meningioma and vestibular schwannoma, consistent with NF2. Cardiac myxoma was incidentally diagnosed through echocardiography and confirmed by cardiac magnetic resonance imaging and tissue pathology. The mass was surgically resected. The patient was offered genetic testing; however, he decided to not undergo further testing.

DISCUSSION: NF2 is an inherited …

Investigating The Relationships Among Suspended Sediment Concentration, And Marsh Edge Erosion In Barataria Bay, La, Lily Vowels

LSU Master's Theses

Barataria Bay, Louisiana, USA exhibits a unique microtidal, wind-driven hydrodynamic climate where extensive levee infrastructure throughout Louisiana has starved Barataria Bay and similar interdistributary bays of the historic levels of terrigenous sediment import. This has contributed to extreme coastal wetland loss in Louisiana. This project seeks to understand how hydrodynamic and meteorological conditions are linked to sediments’ fate after erosion from the marsh edge. Specifically, this project seeks to differentiate the roles of wave resuspension and marsh edge erosion (MEE) in sediment dynamics in Barataria Bay. An acoustic wave and current profiler (AWAC) was used to capture hydrodynamic conditions, and …

From Devices To The Cloud: Digital Forensics In The Changing Social Media Landscape, Joseph Brown

LSU Master's Theses

This thesis presents a comprehensive digital forensic analysis of emerging and alternative social media platforms, including Truth Social, Threads, Bluesky, Nextdoor, and Neighbors. These platforms, which range from politically aligned alt-tech networks to hyperlocal neighborhood apps, present unique forensic challenges and security vulnerabilities. Across all case studies, established forensic techniques were applied using a hybrid methodology combining mobile device analysis, network traffic monitoring, and API interrogation. Findings include the discovery of plaintext credentials, session tokens, and other sensitive artifacts, particularly in platforms with weaker security postures such as Truth Social, Bluesky, Nextdoor, and Neighbors. Threads, by contrast, demonstrated greater resilience …

Lessons From The 2023 Ieee Autonomous Drone Chase Challenge, Luigi Raphael I. Dy, Kristoffer B. Borgen, John H. Mott, Yung Hsiang Lu, Li Yu Lin, Zhangpeng Yang, James M. Goppert, Jakub Tomczak, Stefano Roccella, Andrea Vannini, Zhiwei Dong

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

No abstract provided.

Conditional Optimal Sets And The Quantization Coefficients For Some Uniform Distributions, Evans Nyanney, Megha Pandey, Mrinal Kanti Roychowdhury

School of Mathematical & Statistical Sciences Faculty Publications

Bucklew and Wise (1982) showed that the quantization dimension of an absolutely continuous probability measure on a given Euclidean space is constant and equals the Euclidean dimension of the space, and the quantization coefficient exists as a finite positive number. By giving different examples, in this paper, we have shown that the quantization coefficients for absolutely continuous probability measures defined on the same Euclidean space can be different. We have taken uniform distribution as a prototype of an absolutely continuous probability measure. In addition, we have also calculated the conditional optimal sets of n-points and the nth conditional quantization errors …

Cloud-Assisted Multi-Channel Data Broadcasting, Debabrata Maji

Master’s Dissertations

The convergence of Internet of Things (IoT) and cloud computing has transformed technology, impacting commerce, industrial production, data management, etc. Multi- Channel Broadcast Encryption (MCBE), first introduced by Phan et al. (ASIACCS 2013), is a cryptographic encryption primitive used for both IoT and Cloud that permits a sender to e!ciently and securely encrypt several messages for di”erent groups of receivers. After thoroughly exploring the existing literature, we observe that none achieves the robust provable security within the standard model. This paper addresses this gap, aiming to achieve adaptive INDistinguishable under full-IDentity Chosen-Ciphertext Attack (IND-ID-CCA) security by constructing an e!cient identity-based …

Re: Comment Letter For Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit (Bpsou) Draft 2024 Groundwater Monitoring Data Summary Report (Dated May 30, 2025), Emma Rott

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

Re: Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit (Bpsou) Superfund Operation And Maintenance (O&M) Request For Maintenance – Kelley Stormwater Channels (Dated April 22, 2025), Josh Bryson

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

Association Between Homelessness And Maternal Health Outcomes Among Non-Hispanic Black Women In Georgia, Miranda Weaver

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Maternal health disparities among homeless non-Hispanic Black women in Georgia represent a critical public health concern, driven by inequitable access to care and elevated risks of adverse pregnancy outcomes. This study examined how homelessness influences perinatal care utilization (timing and frequency of prenatal visits and postpartum checkups) and pregnancy complications (gestational diabetes, hypertension, and depression), and whether these associations differ by geographic context (urban versus rural). Grounded in the Social Determinants of Health framework, the study used a quantitative cross-sectional design, analyzing secondary data (n = 1,540; weighted ≈ 203,571) from Phase 8 (2017–2021) of the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring …

The Influence Of Sociodemographic Factors On Opioid Mortalities In The U.S. State Of Georgia, Theresa Highsmith

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Since the late 1990s, the United States has been in the midst of an opioid epidemic that continues to present significant public health challenges. Opioid-related mortality, particularly involving fentanyl, has disproportionately affected vulnerable populations. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the associations between educational level, homelessness, and alcohol use with opioid-related overdose deaths involving fentanyl, while controlling for age, gender, and marital status, among Black and White populations in the U.S. state of Georgia. The theoretical framework was Bronfenbrenner’s socioecological model, which recognizes that individual behavior is influenced by multiple levels of factors, including interpersonal, community, and …

Staff Education To Outpatient Healthcare Staff On Managing Patients With Aggressive Behaviors, Adeline Fonkem Asonganyi

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The aim of this staff educational project was to improve staff knowledge by educating healthcare staff on how to minimize patients’ aggressiveness and provide a safer, more therapeutic environment for patients and healthcare providers. Patients with mental health problems can exhibit violent behavior, posing threats to patient safety and the safety of healthcare workers. To address this practice gap, I conducted a literature review; 509 articles were identified and then narrowed to 23 articles specific to this topic. The project question for my study was: Does implementing an educational program for nurses and mental health specialists on strategies to reduce …

Comparing Dosimetric Outcomes Of Static Imrt And Vmat In Accelerated Partial Breast Irradiation For Medially Located, Left-Sided Tumor Beds, Rani Jamil

Masters Projects

Abstract

Introduction: Accelerated partial breast irradiation (APBI) has emerged as a targeted alternative to whole-breast irradiation for early-stage breast cancer, particularly for patients with medially located, left-sided tumors. Static intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) and volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) offer advanced dose conformity, yet no direct comparisons between static IMRT and VMAT have been conducted specifically for medially located, left-sided APBI, a uniquely challenging anatomical subgroup. This study evaluates dosimetric differences between static IMRT and VMAT plans to determine which modality provides superior target coverage and organ-at-risk (OAR) sparing in left-sided APBI.

Methods: Ten patients with medially located left-sided breast …

Shock Induced Droplet Aerobreakup For Newtonian And Non-Newtonian Fluids, James Leung

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This research investigates shock-induced aerodynamic breakup (aerobreakup) of fluids with different stress-strain behaviors. The central hypothesis is that shear stress from highspeed gas flow manifests differently depending on a fluid’s strain response, influencing droplet breakup morphology, fragment size distribution, and drag-induced acceleration. To test this, experiments and simulations were performed on μm–mm sized droplets of Newtonian (water) and shear-thinning fluids (nanofluids or xanthan gum). Two experimental setups were used: an open-ended shock tube and a closed conventional shock tube. In the openended setup, a normal shock impacts a stationary droplet held by an acoustic levitator. Droplet breakup and gas dynamics …

Fsec Meeting Minutes July 23, 2025, University Of Rhode Island Faculty Senate

Faculty Senate Executive Committee Minutes

No abstract provided.