Digital Commons Network^™

Hands-On Ransomware: An Experiential Wannacry Case Study For Undergraduate Cybersecurity Education, Eli Creek Richmond, Thomas R. Devine

Military Cyber Affairs

Ransomware represents one of the most disruptive threats in the cyber landscape, yet hands-on malware analysis remains rare in undergraduate cybersecurity curricula. This paper presents the design, implementation, and evaluation of an experiential learning module centered on the WannaCry ransomware case study, deployed in a senior-level course at West Virginia University. Students performed static and dynamic analysis using industry-standard tools. Pre- and post-module assessments demonstrated measurable gains in self-reported competency across seven technical dimensions. The module's competencies align directly with DoD Cyber Workforce Framework Work Role 212, Cyber Defense Forensics Analyst, supporting education-to-workforce pipeline development.

Breaking The Build: Detecting Software Supply Chain Vulnerabilities In Ci/Cd Pipelines, Mercedes R. Wahl, Dr. Benjamin Yankson

Military Cyber Affairs

This study examines whether integrating structured DevSec- Ops security controls into CI/CD pipelines can reduce software supply chain risk by preventing vulnerable components from progressing through the software development lifecycle. Software supply chain attacks frequently originate from weaknesses or compromises within dependencies, build environments, and trusted development stages, making early detection essential. A controlled sandbox experiment compared two pipeline configurations: a baseline CI/CD pipeline with no automated security enforcement and a secure DevSecOps pipeline integrating automated vulnerability scanning, SBOM generation, and artifact integrity verification. A known vulnerable dependency, the Python requests package (version 2.19.0) associated with CVE-2018-18074, was intentionally introduced …

Mitigating Common Vulnerabilities And Exposures In Cobol-Based Critical Systems Using The Strangler-Fig Pattern, Lauren E. Caruso, Vincent J. Compeau, Assefaw H. Gebremedhin

Military Cyber Affairs

COBOL-based legacy systems continue to underpin critical infrastructure in banking and government sectors despite their age and associated cybersecurity risks. Originally developed through a Department of Defense–sponsored initiative to standardize business computing, COBOL remains widely used in mission-critical environments. However, these systems face increasing vulnerabilities due to outdated security architectures, workforce shortages, and rising maintenance costs. This paper examines cybersecurity and operational challenges associated with COBOL systems and evaluates the Strangler Fig pattern as a modernization strategy that enables incremental replacement while maintaining continuity. The findings highlight implications for financial institutions and public-sector organizations dependent on legacy infrastructure.

From Framework To Toolchain: Implementing Zero Trust Architecture In Cloud-Native Environments For Dow Compliance, Shelby C. Snyder

Military Cyber Affairs

Federal agencies face a fiscal year 2027 target for enterprise-wide Zero Trust deployment, but NIST SP 800-207A defines logical components without identifying the Kubernetes technologies that implement them. This paper proposes a three-tier mapping of the Policy Engine, Policy Administrator, and Policy Enforcement Point to service mesh, microsegmentation, and perimeter tooling, stating the criteria by which each component is classified. It then applies a defined rubric to six Zero Trust vendors across component alignment, Kubernetes capability, federal authorization posture, and evidence quality, finding that no single vendor covers all three tiers. The mapping is a testable architectural proposition; a Stage …

Hybrid Deep (Cnn-Bilstm) Intrusion Detection For Defense And Mission-Critical Networks, Corey A Cheng, Jermaine Anim-Addo, Asma Jakir Hussain, Zion O Smith-Fox, Sanjay Goel, Yuksel Celik

Military Cyber Affairs

This article examines how hybrid deep learning can strengthen intrusion detection for military and defense networks. Using the CSE-CIC-IDS2018 dataset, the study evaluates a CNN-BiLSTM model designed to detect benign traffic and multiple attack categories, including DDoS, DoS, botnet, brute-force, web attack, and infiltration activity. The model achieved strong multi-class detection performance, with 0.9893 accuracy and 0.9979 ROC-AUC. The findings suggest that AI-supported intrusion detection can improve cyber defense operations, analyst triage, and protection of mission-critical networks.

Are Large Language Models Safe? A Vulnerability Analysis Of Generated Source Code, James Richards-Perhatch, Mitchell Milander, James M. Halvorsen, Assefaw Gebremedhin

Military Cyber Affairs

The increasing complexity of software and demands for rapid deployment have pushed the software industry to rely more on large language models (LLMs) in developing source code. However, as this technology is still relatively recent, questions can arise about the safety of the generated code. This paper presents an analysis of seven LLMs with respect to the presence of vulnerabilities within source code. Our findings show that LLMs are more likely to produce vulnerable web applications than vulnerable C programs, and that vulnerabilities are more likely to occur when program size and complexity increases.

Characterizing Advanced Persistent Threats With Cyber Attack Flow Metrics, Tyler Miller, Caleb Chang, Shouhuai Xu

Military Cyber Affairs

Cyber attack campaigns vary not only in scale but in structure, yet conventional characterizations often reduce them to a single dimension such as technique count or impact severity. In this paper we extend the concept of cyber attack flows by defining three new metrics, novelty, technique complexity and flow complexity. Then we characterize the attack flows of three advanced persistent threat campaigns using these metrics and draw insights regarding their capabilities. Our findings include that low novelty does not equate to low attack capabilities and that exploitation of an internet-facing appliance is a common initial attack vector.

Semantic Shields: Automating Critical Infrastructure Defense Via Nlp-Driven Ransomware Profiling, Henry Trowbridge, Ian Zalcberg, Ryan Schley, Carter Yagemann, Natasha Phan, Srikar Maduposu, Vimal Buck

Military Cyber Affairs

Ransomware poses a growing threat to critical infrastructure, where successful attacks can disrupt operational technology (OT) and industrial control systems (ICS) with significant public safety consequences. However, attributing ransomware incidents to specific threat actors remains challenging due to ransomware-as-a-service ecosystems, actor rebranding, and the obfuscation of traditional indicators of compromise. This paper presents Semantic Shields, an NLP-driven attribution framework that leverages BERT-generated semantic embeddings and DBSCAN clustering to profile ransomware actors through the linguistic characteristics of ransom notes. Using a dataset of 295 ransom notes from 189 distinct threat groups, the framework achieved an 87.2% true positive clustering rate and …

Closing The Interpretability Gap: Explainable Ml-Based Malware Detection For Defensive Cyberspace Operations, Tashi Stirewalt, Sean Hodgson, Puumaaya Tahiru, Assefaw Gebremedhin

Military Cyber Affairs

This paper presents an end-to-end, explainable malware triage pipeline designed for defense-oriented cyber operations. It combines high-performance static detection methods with analyst-centered interpretability. Utilizing the EMBER 2024 Windows PE subset, we train and evaluate four classifiers and select LightGBM as the production model based on its predictive performance, inference efficiency, and compatibility with exact tree-based attribution. The deployed system consists of four sequential components: PE feature extraction, malware probability scoring, dual explainability (using SHAP and LIME), and large language model (LLM) report generation, all integrated within a Flask web interface. On a temporal test set of 1,080,000 samples, LightGBM achieves …

Llm-Generated Countermeasures For Iot Cyberattacks, James Alger, Michael Tu

Military Cyber Affairs

The rapid expansion of the Internet of Things (IoT) has introduced significant cybersecurity challenges, particularly for resource-constrained devices that traditional intrusion detection systems often fail to protect effectively. This paper proposes a novel, two-phase autonomous security pipeline designed to bridge the gap between probabilistic threat detection and deterministic network enforcement. The framework first utilizes a custom Time Series Transformer (TST) to classify multivariate network traffic and identify specific attack vectors, such as ransomware, SQL injections, and malicious file uploads. In the second phase, an agentic AI layer, comprising a locally hosted Large Language Model (LLM) orchestrated via LangGraph, processes the …

Foreward, Todd Arnold

Military Cyber Affairs

No abstract provided.

Letter From The Director: Mastery In Practice, Joseph Schafer

Military Cyber Affairs

No abstract provided.

Journal Ida 2023 102 4

Journal IDA

The Journal IDA is a peer-reviewed, scientific periodical owned and published by the Indiana Dental Association, a constituent of the American Dental Association.

Journal IDA concentrates on the clinical aspects of dentistry, including case studies and research; practice management and business aspects of dentistry, from start up to transition; and also includes special and regular feature articles.

Journal Ida 2023 102 3

Journal IDA

The Journal IDA is a peer-reviewed, scientific periodical owned and published by the Indiana Dental Association, a constituent of the American Dental Association.

Journal IDA concentrates on the clinical aspects of dentistry, including case studies and research; practice management and business aspects of dentistry, from start up to transition; and also includes special and regular feature articles.

Breaking Free From Gender Norms: Adolescent Constructions Of Femininity Through The Patriarchy And High School Musical, Ina Tolentino

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Ina is a double major in nursing and psychology from Elk Grove, CA. Ina “always had trouble embracing myself with the way masculinity and femininity are pitted against each other” and found meaning in writing this essay, as they believe “there’s so much value in painting ourselves however we want … regardless of the expectations of gendered roles.” As a non-binary individual, Ina feels that writing this piece was a healing experience and a reminder to embrace all aspects of who they are. They love reading and writing, which has led to a bedroom flooded with different kinds of books. …

Rage Against The Machine: How Screen Time Is Impairing Our Intelligence And What We Can Do About It, Jillian Steeves

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Jillian is a history major from Danvers, MA. Her essay was inspired by an article she read in her composition class about how screens could damage cognitive functioning, and she thinks that “for a lot of people, myself included, overindulgence in tech is increasingly affecting our quality of life.” Jillian noted the irony of a history major writing about a current topic, but she “found there to be a lot of overlap between my history studies and the topic of my essay,” and she was able to “take many of the skills I’ve picked up as a historian — research, …

The Brain, The Block, The Bummed Writer, Karina Silva

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Karina is a psychology major with a biology minor from Winthrop, MA. Karina says that writer’s block has “always been an obstacle for me, especially whenever I have to write papers for classes.” She notes that this paper was one of the first that she felt passionate about writing, and she feels that “researching the neurology behind writer’s block” enabled her to “further appreciate the wonders of the brain” and “develop an interest in research surrounding neuroscience and psychology.” Karina is a Brazilian-American who speaks Portuguese as well as English. Her hobbies include drawing, and she notes that art helps …

Fake News’ Negation Of A Useful Education, Vance Naftal

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Vance is an international relations Major from Baltimore, MD. Vance chose to write about the negative effects that misleading/false news stories can have on an individual, especially when in college, because he “sees society moving farther and farther away from truth and leaning more into sentiments based on emotions — which is directly at odds with the point of a higher education.” Vance started college at 16 years old. At 17, he decided to take a gap year (which became a gap of 4 years) to enter the workforce. At 21, he found himself yearning to be a part of …

Your Teachers Are Bullshitting You, Kylie Medeiros

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Kylie is a biology major from Fairhaven, MA. Because she was specifically told for this assignment that students “couldn’t bullshit this essay,” she was reminded of all the times throughout her academic career when other teachers said things of a similar nature. “Being short on time, and desperately in need of a research topic,” she found that it would be “incredibly ironic to bullshit my paper in the form of a research on the topic of BS itself.” While writing her essay Kylie found it interesting how much creative freedom she was given to research and write about something she …

Moral Punishment, Anna Krasnoslobodtseva

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Anna is a biochemistry major from Milton, MA. She decided to write about the prison system and punishment because of conversations about morality during her Composition II class, and because she believes “the prison system in the United States is often discriminatory and does not work toward the rehabilitation of people like it should.” She felt that writing this was “more free than a traditional structured high school essay” and that it “involved a lot of learning, by means of stepping outside of what I am comfortable with writing and exploring new research methods, going to the library, and taking …

What’S In A Name?: A Discussion Of The Nature Of Bilingual Education In The United States, Emma Kennedy

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Emma is a Latin American and Iberian Studies major with a minor in Secondary Education from Ipswich, MA. She has always been intrigued by languages, language barriers, and language learning throughout her studies. She was intrigued to “read about people who have the opposite perspective, who oppose multilingual education, and want their children to focus on perfecting their English.” Emma wants to be a teacher, focusing on multilingual students. She feels that her paper’s connection to her career “made the researching and writing process feel more interesting and relevant to her real life.” Emma enjoys reading and uses it as …

Textism And The Shift In English Writing, Alex Der-Kazaryan

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Alex is a management major with a concentration in accounting from Belmont, MA. While writing this essay, Alex wanted to investigate “how our writing has evolved over the last thirty years or so.” Noticing a “retraction of socialization from other people,” since we introduced ourselves to new technologies, Alex focused this essay on the common complaint that “texting has only done damage to formal writing.” Alex has also come to enjoy writing as a way of self-expression and writes that it “can now be used in a way that benefits me.” Alex is also a huge history buff and has …

Race And Rhetoric: Examining How The Audience’S Race Creates Rhetorical Constraints And Influences Rhetoric, Quinn Gabrielle Cantor

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

Quinn is a mathematics major living in Jamaica Plain, MA, but born in the Philippines. Quinn rhetorically analyzes Linda Villarosa’s essay from the 1619 Project by The New York Times by investigating how Villarosa’s “intended audience and purpose ultimately culminated into her published essay.” Quinn says her analysis is supported both by the rhetorical knowledge gained in her Composition I course and by a history class she took in high school that investigated race relations and discrimination. Quinn’s experiences as a student in both the Philippines and the United States has made her “deeply care about the importance of a …

2022 Editor's Introduction, Lauren M. Bowen

Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition

No abstract provided.

The Autobiography Of Giambattista Vico, Giambattista Vico

Hannah Arendt Marginalia - All

Ithaca, N.Y., Great Seal Books [1963, ©1944]

Call # : B3583 .V53 1963

Contains marginalia, underlining and notes on p. 241.

PDF Information : 23 Pages, 8.4 MB

From Static Frameworks To Adaptive Evaluation: Piloting An Ai-Powered Evaluation Planner For Media Literacy And Digital Skills Interventions, Natalia Edisherashvili, Marit Puusepp, Leen D'Haenens, Tania Azadi, Łukasz Tomczyk, Gemma Martinez Fernández, Miguel Ángel Casado Del Río, Diego Martinez-Castro

Journal of Media Literacy Education Pre-Prints

Evaluating media literacy and digital skills (ML&DS) interventions remains challenging due to limited methodological capacity, time, and resources. Existing frameworks offer valuable guidance but are static and require expert adaptation. This pilot study tested an AI-powered Evaluation Planner developed within the REMEDIS project to support practitioners in designing feasible, evidence-informed evaluation plans. Using a mixed-methods design, 56 participants from 12 countries assessed the tool’s usability, clarity, and perceived utility after completing the Planner and an online survey. Findings showed high perceived ease of use, cognitive clarity, utility, and multilingual functionality. Associations between clarity, ease of use, and intention to reuse …

Untersuchungen Zum Problem Der Zeit Bei Nietzsche., Joan Stambaugh

Hannah Arendt Marginalia - All

Den Haag, M. Nijhoff, 1959.

Call # : B3318.T5 S7

Contains marginal lining and "Hannah Arendt Bluecher" on front endpaper.

PDF Information : 10.8 MB, 32 Pages

Oswald Spengler, A Critical Estimate, Henry Stuart

Hannah Arendt Marginalia - All

New York : Scribner, 1952.

Call #: B3332.S44 H8

Contains marginalia, endpaper notes, marginal lining and underlining. PDF information: 24 pages - 7.9 MB

Evaluation Of The Phytochemical Components And In Vitro Anti-Inflammatory Activities Of Eucalyptus Camaldulensis, Nwankwo Henry Chukwuebuka, Oladipo Miriam Oluchi, Oladipo Bamidele Fatai, Onmata Gloria Deborah, Agbo Joseph Odeh, Agu, Solomon Tsekohol, Onyeyili Patrick Azubuike

Bulletin of Faculty of Pharmacy Cairo University

Phytochemicals such as alkaloids, flavonoids, and terpenoids are known for their medicinal properties, including anti-inflammatory effects. This study analyzed the phytochemical composition of Eucalyptus camaldulensis leaf extracts and evaluated its’ in vitro anti-inflammatory potential. Leaves of E. camaldulensis were collected, authenticated and extracted using 70% methanol. Qualitative and quantitative phytochemical analyses were performed using standard protocols. Total phenolic content (68.68 ± 0.001 mg/100g), flavonoids (279.62 ± 0.18 mg/100g), alkaloids (82.17 ± 0.76 mg/100g), tannins (22.79 ± 0.03 mg/100g), and terpenoids (8.43 ± 0.03 mg/100g) were quantified. Anti-inflammatory assays included albumin denaturation inhibition (76.33 ± 0.19% at 50 mg/mL), proteinase inhibition …

Dysphagia Risk And Oral Health-Related Quality Of Life Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults And Residents Of Long-Term Care Facilities, Lin-Yang Chi

Articles in Press

No abstract provided.