Digital Commons Network^™

Efficacy Of Berberine In Glucose And Metabolic Control, Grace Poduch

Summer Interdisciplinary Research Symposium

Objective: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a common chronic disease with significant complications if poorly managed. This study evaluated the effectiveness of berberine--the primary active compound in Rhizoma Coptidis-- compared to metformin, a widely used oral hypoglycemic agent, in managing blood glucose in adults with T2DM. It also examined berberine's impact on metabolic syndrome components, including prediabetes, hyperlipidemia, obesity, and chronic inflammation.

Methods: A literature review was conducted using Google Scholar and PubMed with keywords including "berberine", "Rhizoma Coptidis", "metformin", and "type 2 diabetes". Included studies were full-text, published in English since 2019, and involved adult humans with …

Platelet-Rich Plasma Vs. Corticosteroid Injections For Rotator Cuff Tendinopathy: A Literature Review, Adam J. Nieman

Summer Interdisciplinary Research Symposium

Objective: This literature review aims to compare the efficacy of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and corticosteroid (CS) injections for treatment of rotator cuff tendinopathy (RCT). The primary outcomes of interest include changes in pain and shoulder function following injection therapy.

Methods: A systematic literature search was conducted using Google Scholar, PubMed, and EBSCOhost via Valparaiso University’s library system. Keywords included: plasma, PRP, platelet-rich plasma, platelets, steroids, corticosteroids, injection, therapy, intervention, treatment, rotator cuff, rotator cuff tendinopathy, rotator cuff disease, rotator cuff injury, rotator cuff tendinitis, and impingement syndrome. The search yielded 5,300 results on Google Scholar, 27 on PubMed, …

Therapeutic Benefits Of Boxing, Dancing, And Singing In Parkinson's Disease Management, Chloe N. Smith

Summer Interdisciplinary Research Symposium

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the effects of boxing, dancing, and singing as movement-based interventions on motor symptoms, quality of life, cognition, and depression in individuals diagnosed with Parkinson's disease (PD).

Methods: A literature search was conducted using Google Scholar with terms including "Boxing," "Dance," "Singing," "MDS," and "Parkinson's disease." Studies were included if participants had a confirmed diagnosis, engaged in a movement-based intervention, and were either on or off PD medication. Exclusion criteria included the presence of other health conditions, inability of complete the intervention, or advanced disease symptoms that limited participation. Key outcomes assessed were mobility, agility, …

Ketogenic Metabolic Therapy For Treatment Refractory Mental Illness, Mackenzie R. Ketterhagen

Summer Interdisciplinary Research Symposium

This project explores the potential of Ketogenic Metabolic Therapy (KMT) as adjunctive therapy for refractory mental illness. Evidence suggests that ketogenesis can reverse mitochondrial dysfunction, a pathophysiological feature commonly associated with major depressive disorder (MDD), bipolar disorder (BD), and schizophrenia disorder (SD), leading to measurable improvements in psychiatric symptoms, metabolic biomarkers, and body composition. While preliminary results are promising, current data are based on small sample sizes and short study durations, limiting the generalizability of findings. Therefore, KMT cannot yet be considered a broadly validated adjunctive treatment for severe mental illness. Continued research, particularly longitudinal studies, is essential to determine …

Identifying And Characterizing The Binary Central Star Of The Planetary Nebula Phr J1040-5417, Hunter Wood

Summer Interdisciplinary Research Symposium

Planetary nebulae occur towards the end of the life cycles of stars with a mass less than about eight times the mass of the Sun. As the star expands at the end of its life, it ejects its outer layers, and the high temperature of the leftover core causes the ejected gas to ionize and glow. At the centers of some of these planetary nebulae, there can be two stars present instead of one. These binary stars can be detected through a variety of ways, with the most common being photometric variability, or a change in the brightness of the …

Re: June 2025 Berkeley Pit Migratory Waterfowl Protection Monthly Report, Mark Thompson, Loren Burmeister

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

Reviving Heritage, Soreya Ganda

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

Niger’s cultural identity is shaped by a rich mosaic of ethnic groups, including the Hausa, Zarma-Songhai, Tuareg, and Fulani, each with distinct traditions, building practices, and relationships to the land. For centuries, these communities lived according to their own social and spatial systems, rooted in environment-specific knowledge and craftsmanship. This balance was disrupted during the French colonial period, which began in the late 19th century and lasted until Niger’s independence in 1960. Colonial administration redrew territorial boundaries, centralized authority, and introduced foreign materials, aesthetics, and construction standards, redefining how people built and interacted with their environments. While Niger now appears …

Math Information Retrieval From Images Via Formula Extraction, Vector Embedding, And Multimodal Llm-Based Question Answering, Angel Wheelwright Crawford

Theses and Dissertations

Math Information Retrieval (MIR) aims to revolutionize the retrieval of math information by addressing the challenges in representing, retrieving, and producing highly specialized math content. In order to develop a robust MIR system, designers must be able to process math equations (MEs) to a format that different systems can use, which is difficult due to various formats math information are stored in, including visual images and document texts. To improve the usage of math information in varied forms for people who are learning and utilizing math, we propose three different methods of handling ME data. The first method is a …

Multiscale Modeling And Dynamic Mutational Profiling Of Binding Energetics And Immune Escape For Class I Antibodies With Sars-Cov-2 Spike Protein: Dissecting Mechanisms Of High Resistance To Viral Escape Against Emerging Variants, Mohammed Alshahrani, Vedant Parikh, Brandon Foley, Gennady M. Verkhivker

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

The rapid evolution of SARS-CoV-2 has underscored the need for a detailed understanding of antibody binding mechanisms to combat immune evasion by emerging variants. In this study, we investigated the interactions between Class I neutralizing antibodies—BD55-1205, BD-604, OMI-42, P5S-1H1, and P5S-2B10—and the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein using multiscale modeling, which combined molecular simulations with the ensemble-based mutational scanning of the binding interfaces and binding free energy computations. A central theme emerging from this work is that the unique binding strength and resilience to immune escape of the BD55-1205 antibody are determined by leveraging a broad epitope …

Mechanical Properties And Temperature Resistance Of Fly Ash-Based Geopolymer Concrete, Hala Emad Elden Fouad, Mohamed I. Serag, Ahmed Ragab, Abdelrahman Hussein

Mansoura Engineering Journal

Global warming is pressing issue, primarily driven by increasing in greenhouse gas emissions with CO2 accounting for 64% of total emissions. It was founded that produce one ton of Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) producing one ton of CO2. To address these issues, geopolymers derived from fly ash (FA) have been proposed as a superior alternative to cement. This research presents a comparative review of OPC and FA-based geopolymers in the context of CO2 sequestration. The research investigates the behavior of FA-based geopolymer cement, focusing on the influence of preparation conditions on its mechanical performance, bond strength, and the effect of …

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 …

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 …

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. …

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 …

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.

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.

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 …

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

Faculty Senate Executive Committee Minutes

No abstract provided.

Physical Activity Mediates Age Differences In Cognition Among Tsimane Forager-Horticulturalists, Phoebe E. Imms, Nikhil N. Chaudhari, Daniel Cummings, Daniel Eid Rodriguez, Giuseppe Barisano, Paul L. Hooper, M. Katherine Sayre, Edmond Seabright, Randall C. Thompson, M. Linda Sutherland, James D. Sutherland, Benjamin C. Trumble, Michael Gurven, Jonathan Stieglitz, Caleb E. Finch, Hillard S. Kaplan, Wendy J. Mack, Margaret Gatz, Andrei Irimia

ESI Publications

Background: The Tsimane and Moseten of the Bolivian Amazon are highly physically active and exhibit low rates of cognitive impairment and brain atrophy.

Methods: We use structural equation modelling to examine how their physical activity levels mediate the relationship between (1) age and cognition, and (2) age and cognition via brain volume (BV).

Results: Tsimane males (n = 305, mean ± SD age = 59.94 ± 9.68) and Tsimane females (n = 265, mean ± SD age = 59.28 ± 9.79) exhibit significantly higher levels of physical activity than Moseten males (n = 106, mean ± SD …

Ibrutinib In Combination With Lenalidomide Revlimid/Dexamethasone In Relapsed/Refractory Multiple Myeloma (Aft-15)., Yvonne Efebera, Vera Suman, Shira Dinner, Taylor O'Donnell, Ashley Rosko, John Mckay, Peter Barth, Patrick Hagen, Saad Usmani, Paul Richardson, Jacob Laubach

Oncology Articles

BACKGROUND: Studies have suggested a synergism between lenalidomide (LEN) and ibrutinib (IBR) in multiple myeloma (MM). Both downregulate IRF4, a key target and master transcriptional factor regulating myeloma cell survival.

METHOD: A 3 + 3 phase I trial was conducted to determine the maximum tolerated dose (MTD) of IBR in combination with LEN + dexamethasone (DEX) in patients with relapsed/refractory (RR) MM who had at least one prior line of therapy. Three dose levels (DLs) were planned. The cycle length was 28 days. IBR was administered orally daily in doses of 560 mg on DL1-2 and 840 mg on DL3, …

Teaching In Authentic Ways: Exhibit Work And Student Curators In Special Collections, Rebecca Fitzsimmons

Faculty and Staff Publications – Milner Library

Engaging students in exhibit work offers them a chance to learn new skills and grow as scholars while producing a tangible and public-facing project outcome from their coursework. From learning to communicate complex ideas to making research connections between rare and primary sources, exhibit curation relies on building research skills, sharpening writing and communication techniques, and developing critical thinking skills. Pushing and refining ideas is an essential part of the iterative process of research, and exhibit curation invites students to learn this practice in a real-world, project-based way. More specifically, it requires students to read, review, compare, and analyze more …