Digital Commons Network^™

Cannabis Chemist, Mushroom Explorer And Mentor Leaves Ole Miss Smiling, Marisa C. Atkinson

University of Mississippi News

OXFORD, Miss. – After more than 30 years of teaching and research at the University of Mississippi, and more than five decades overall, pharmacy professor Samir Ross is hanging up his lab coat and retiring.

Perceptions Of Pain And Benzodiazepine Use Interrelations: A Qualitative Study, Emma Carnes Lape

Dissertations - ALL

Growing concern and research attention have focused on potential harms associated with widespread use of benzodiazepine (BZD) medications. Individuals with chronic pain bear a disproportionate burden, characterized by higher rates of BZD prescriptions, longer-term use, and increased dependence compared to the general population. Although theory and emerging evidence suggest that pain may play a role in the maintenance of BZD use, there is no extant data describing how individuals perceive interrelations between their pain and BZD use. The aims of the present study were to conduct a thematic analysis of interview data regarding perceptions of interrelationships between pain and BZD …

Asian/Asian American College Students’ Help-Seeking Attitudes For Adhd, Nandini Jhawar

Dissertations - ALL

Background: Asian/Asian American (AA) college students are least likely to engage with ADHD treatment compared to other racially minoritized groups, which may increase their risk for negative outcomes from untreated ADHD symptoms. Public stigma of ADHD contributes to these negative help-seeking attitudes. This study used the minority stress theory to examine if the distal and proximal stress of internalization of the model minority myth, a racial stereotype, influences the relationship between public stigma and help-seeking attitudes. Methods: Participants were undergraduate students recruited from nine geographically diverse universities in the United States. Data was collected over two academic years and included …

Calcium-Ion Transport In Gel And Solid Polymer Electrolytes: From Solvent-Solute Interactions To Molecular Simulations For Next-Generation Calcium Batteries, Xinlu Wang

Dissertations - ALL

Multivalent metal-ion batteries, especially calcium (Ca²⁺) and magnesium (Mg²⁺) systems, are attractive alternatives to lithium-ion technologies owing to their high theoretical energy density, improved safety profiles, and abundant natural resources. Nevertheless, the successful commercialization of these technologies is impeded by challenges in electrolyte development, particularly related to cation solvation, ion transport efficiency, and interfacial stability. This dissertation addresses these challenges through comprehensive experimental investigations and molecular dynamics simulations of polymer-based electrolytes designed explicitly for multivalent cation conduction. In the first study, polymer gel electrolytes comprising poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEGDA) and low dielectric solvents—1,3-dioxolane (DOL) and dimethoxyethane (DME)—with calcium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide (Ca(TFSI)₂) …

Bridging Gaps In Stem: An Evaluation Of A Stem Intervention Program And Its Impact On Degree Attainment And Career Pathways For Low-Income Undergraduate Students, Amanda L. Surman

Dissertations - ALL

Persistent disparities in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) degree completion and career attainment continue to disadvantage students from low-income, firstgeneration, and underrepresented racial and ethnic backgrounds, despite sustained national efforts to diversify the STEM workforce. STEM Intervention Programs (SIPs) have emerged as promising strategies to address these inequities, yet limitations in SIP evaluation literature including the lack of comparison groups, limited longitudinal data, and minimal attention to psychosocial outcomes impede our understanding of their long-term impact. This dissertation uses a mixed-methods, three-project design to evaluate the Strategic Undergraduate STEM Talent Acceleration INitiative (SUSTAIN), a comprehensive SIP at a private, …

Subclinical Cardiometabolic Disease Risk In Adults With Autonomic Nervous System Dysfunction, Alaina Glasgow

Dissertations - ALL

Autonomic dysfunction (AD) is a precursor for cardiometabolic disease development; however, identifying AD and its associated risks presents significant challenges due to multi-system dysregulation and diverse symptom presentation. We examined subclinical cardiometabolic disease risk in AD and the utility of simple autonomic symptom assessments to identify subclinical disease risk. Study 1 thematically explored potential associations linking Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS) to cardiometabolic disease risk. Neuropathic and hyperadrenergic POTS phenotypes may be related to metabolic dysregulation through autonomic neuropathy, sympathetic activity, inflammation, insulin resistance, and elevated vasoactive gut hormones. Study 2 investigated subclinical cardiovascular disease risk in POTS and whether …

Mobility At The Margins: Insights Into Gender, Class And Climate Change In Islamabad's Transit Spaces, Shanel Khaliq

Dissertations - ALL

This dissertation sets out to explore how the urban built environment- particularly public transport infrastructure- shapes class, gender and climate inequality in Islamabad, Pakistan. I tried to understand this issue by using mixed methods, primarily consisting of semi-structured in depth interviews, supplemented by ethnographic fieldwork and a brief consultation of english-language newspaper archives. I conducted 95 interviews in total, and clocked in around 80 hours moving around the city and engaging in a mobile ethnography. The first empirical question that I asked relates to the state and urban transportation planning. I wanted to understand what assumptions regarding class-based, gender-based and …

Essays On The Health And Labor Market Effects Of Menopause And Menopause Hormone Therapy, Lucia Elvira Torres Frasele

Dissertations - ALL

This dissertation explores how menopause and its medical management affect women’s health and labor market outcomes. Despite the centrality of reproductive transitions in the life course of women, economic research has largely ignored menopause, a biologically and socially significant milestone marking the end of fertility. This omission is surprising, given well-established medical evidence that links menopause to increased risks of health conditions that may impair the ability to work. The dissertation addresses this gap through two chapters that examine the causal impact of menopause and Menopause Hormone Therapy (MHT) on health and labor supply using two distinct empirical strategies. The …

Co-Catalyst Modified Mn-Doped Semiconductor Hybrid Nanostructures For Enhanced Photocatalysis, Walker John Macswain

Dissertations - ALL

Semiconductor nanocrystals (NCs) are sought after for their applications in photocatalysis and photovoltaics and due to their impressive optical and electronic properties. In photocatalysis, an important green energy transformation is sunlight utilization to produce hydrogen gas via photocatalytic water splitting. However, the photocatalytic performance of pristine semiconductors is low due to their inherent fast charge recombination. The use of co-catalysts with semiconductor NCs leads to enhanced photocatalytic product generation; noble metal co-catalysts, such as Pt, Au, Ag, and Cu and noble-metal-free metal hydroxide co-catalysts on either chalcogenide CdS or perovskite CsPbX3 (X = Cl, Br) semiconductors were synthesized to study …

Security And Privacy In Deep Learning And Dynamic Decision Making, Feng Wang

Dissertations - ALL

Recent years have seen rapid advances in machine learning applications, such as deep reinforcement learning (DRL) for optimizing wireless resource allocation and federated learning (FL) for enabling privacy-preserving, distributed model training. In these systems, machine learning agents learn and control resources at the edge. However, these systems face significant vulnerabilities to adversarial threats. In a DRL-based mobile communication scenario, an intelligent attacker can selectively jam specific channels and cause critical failure in victim users' performance. In an FL system, a privacy adversary who eavesdrops on shared gradient information can reconstruct the users' private data. This dissertation focuses on both types …

Resolvent-Based And Data-Driven Analysis Of A Supersonic Rectangular Multistream Jet, Miteshkumar Thakor

Dissertations - ALL

Coherent structures play a key role in uncovering and predicting the underlying physics of complex turbulent flows. This dissertation employs data-driven and operator-based techniques to investigate spatiotemporal correlated structures of a complex supersonic multi-stream rectangular jet. The nozzle configuration comprises three primary shear layers: (i) an upper shear layer (USL) formed by the flow on the upper single-sided expansion ramp stream and the freestream, (ii) a splitter plate shear layer (SPSL) generated by the mixing of a core Mach 1.23 stream with a bypass Mach 1 stream at the splitter plate trailing edge (SPTE) and (iii) a lower shear layer …

Theorizing Technology Integration: The Case Of Smart Grid Technologies At Electrical Utilities In The United States, Ehsan Sabaghian

Dissertations - ALL

Over the past decade, the energy culture as a whole and electric industry specifically has been going through wide-scale disruptive and consequential transformation. The pressure for these changes comes from different fronts: Decarbonization (switching to renewable sources and implementing carbon reduction policies); Digitalization (adoption and investment on smart digital technologies, infrastructure, and networks), Decentralization (distributed nature of behind-the-meter resources), and Demand (growing demand from customers for high quality, affordable electricity). In response to these pressures, electric distribution utilities were continuously adopting smart grid technologies (most notably Advanced Meter Infrastructure (AMI) and enterprise-wide applications) to create new organizational capabilities. Now, utilities’ …

Characterization Of The Molecular Mechanisms Of Noise Stress On Developmental Plasticity In Gryllus Bimaculatus & Co-Teaching And Peer-Led Team Learning In Undergraduate Introductory Biology Courses Toward Expanding Participation In Stem For All, Takunda Maisva

Dissertations - ALL

As part of my training as a Discipline Based Education Researcher (DBER), I gained human subjects educational research experience as well as traditional biology research experience in the laboratory setting. This dissertation explores both my biology education research and traditional developmental biological research. The first and second projects focus on biology education research, examining how Peer-Led Team Learning (PLTL) and modifying introductory biology course instructional design can influence student outcomes in undergraduate Biology education. The third project examines how anthropogenic noise affects the developmental biology of the two-spotted field cricket Gryllus bimaculatus using a genetic approach. Peer-Led Team Learning (PLTL) …

Place, Policy, Power: New And Continuous Destinations And The Influence Of State-Level Policy On Immigrant Outcomes, Cassie Dutton

Dissertations - ALL

This research focuses on how state level policies influence the ability of immigrants to enhance their socioeconomic status in both continuous and new immigrant destinations. To accomplish this, this project will draw on IPUMS American Community Survey (ACS) census data, combined with state level policy data. Specifically, this work will examine the impact of state policy concerning: 1) driver’s license and state identification accessibility, 2) security and border patrol, and 3) access to social welfare programs. There are three specific aims of this research: to explore differences in socioeconomic outcomes by new/continuous immigration destination locations, to explore the impact of …

Distributed Sovereignty: Law, Community, And Authority In The Political Theories Of Al-Māwardī, Al-Juwaynī, And Al-Fārābī, Ahmet Çelik

Dissertations - ALL

ABSTRACT This dissertation examines the concept of sovereignty in classical Islamic political thought through a comparative analysis of three major thinkers—al-Māwardī (d. 450/1058), al-Juwaynī (d. 478/1085), and al-Fārābī (d. 339/950)—each representing a distinct epistemic tradition: jurisprudence (fiqh), speculative theology (kalām), and philosophy (falsafa). Employing a conceptual and textual methodology, the study reconstructs a theory of distributed sovereignty in Islamic thought, in which political authority is not centralized in a singular sovereign but dispersed across three interrelated domains: legitimate authority, lawgiving, and governance. Drawing on primary texts—including al-Aḥkām al-Sulṭāniyya, Tashīl al-Naẓar, Ghiyāth al-Umam, al-Madīna al-Fāḍila, al-Siyāsa al-Madanīyya, Kitāb al-Milla, and Iḥṣāʾ …

Race, Space, Taste In The Postwar U.S.: Three Independent Studies On Urban Restaurants In Syracuse, New York, Huseyin Zeyd Koytak

Dissertations - ALL

This dissertation examines how racial inequality shapes the survival, visibility, and strategic adaptation of restaurants in postwar Syracuse, New York. It investigates how commercial food spaces reflect, reinforce, and negotiate racialized patterns of urban development, consumer taste, and economic opportunity. Drawing on longitudinal business and demographic data, a computational content analysis of online restaurant reviews, and original interviews with immigrant restaurateurs, the study integrates quantitative, computational, and qualitative methods to illuminate how race and space co-produce outcomes in the urban food economy. The first empirical chapter shows that Black-majority neighborhoods face higher commercial volatility and shorter restaurant survival, while white-majority …

Leveraging Artificial Intelligence (Ai) For Competency-Based Course Design: A Quality Improvement Project In Nursing Education, Lesslie Bull

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

This quality improvement project addressed inefficient, manual course design processes contributing to faculty workload and declining National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) pass rates at a rural Texas university’s baccalaureate nursing program. Guided by the Roy Adaptation Model and the Plan-Do-Study-Act framework, the project evaluated the effect of integrating artificial intelligence (AI) tools on faculty perceptions of technology adoption, specifically perceived usefulness (PU), perceived ease of use (PEOU), and behavioral intention (BI). Using a quasi-experimental pre-/post-intervention design, twelve faculty members completed a one-hour, evidence-based training using the Generative AI for Instructional Development and Education (GAIDE) framework, and eight faculty participated in …

Oncogenic Effects Of Ecm Remodeling In Obesity And Breast Cancer, Mackenzie L. Hawes, Marcus A. Moody, Caroline R. Mccauley, Abigail G. Huddleston, Maansi Solanky, Dara H. Khosravi, Ayushi R. Patel, Ronald M. Lynch, Suresh K. Alahari, Bruce A. Bunnell, Jorge A. Belgodere, Van T. Hoang, Matthew E. Burow, Elizabeth C. Martin

School of Medicine Faculty Publications

Extracellular matrix (ECM) components are key regulators in breast cancer progression, as ECM remodeling is essential for breast cancer cells to invade into surrounding tissue. This process is characterized by the alignment of fibrillar collagens, breakdown of basement membrane components, and increased interstitial collagen stiffness. In patients with obesity, pre-existing ECM changes, including excessive collagen deposition and heightened matrix stiffness, mimic alterations detected in breast cancer. Given that obesity is a predictor of poor prognosis and resistance to treatment in breast cancer, it is crucial to understand how ECM conditioned by obesity affects disease outcomes. In this review, we highlight …

An Examination Of Student Adherence And Intervention Complexity Within A Class-Wide Cover-Copy-Compare Intervention, Kaytlin Ann Nelson

Dissertations - ALL

Cover-Copy-Compare is a self-management intervention strategy developed to improve students’ academic performance, particularly in spelling. In academic intervention research, it is often assumed that students are completing the intervention as intended, yet this is seldom examined during intervention implementation or subsequent data analysis. The purpose of the present study was to extend the empirical literature on students’ intervention adherence by examining Cover-Copy-Compare permanent products to assess whether the complexity of the intervention (i.e., targeting six versus nine spelling words) contributed to a student’s ability to adhere to core intervention components. For the purposes of the present study, data from one …

A Model Of Blind Quantum Diffusion, John Carver Vining

Dissertations - ALL

We introduce the Blind Quantum Diffusion Network (BQDN), a quantum computational framework designed for distributed systems operating under conditions of partial observability and asynchronous communication. BQDN generalizes the structure of Generalized Boolean Networks (GBNs) by replacing classical multivalued logic nodes with quantum registers, enabling the use of superposition, entanglement, and unitary evolution to model distributed computation and state propagation. Building on the properties of W-states and quantum teleportation protocols, the BQDN leverages entangled coin registers and a token-based control mechanism to implement blind diffusion across a graph. The system achieves synchronization-free evolution without classical coordination by embedding decision-making within quantum …

Lattice And Continuum Anomalies : Bridging The Gap, Arnab Pradhan

Dissertations - ALL

In this thesis, we explore anomalies both in the continuum and on the lattice, and attempt to establish a connection between the two frameworks. In the continuum limit, we work with Kähler-Dirac fields, while in the discrete setting, we focus on staggered fermions. To facilitate insights relevant to the growing field of quantum computing, we consider a Hamiltonian formalism in addition to the path integral. Anomalies offer a concrete bridge between ultraviolet (UV) and infrared (IR) physics, understanding how anomalies manifest on the lattice versus in the continuum provides a powerful predictive framework. By numerically studying lattice gauge theories, we …

The Antelope, University Of Nebraska At Kearney

The Antelope

The Back to Campus edition of The Antelope - Fall 2025.

Engineering Protein Linkers For Optimized Telsam-Darpin Fusion And Crystallization With Electric Field-Based Polymer Orientation, Maria Jose Pedroza Romo

Theses and Dissertations

Fusing a variant of the sterile alpha motif domain of the human translocation ETS leukemia protein (TELSAM) to a protein of interest significantly enhances crystallization and diffraction quality. TELSAM is a pH-dependent, polymer-forming crystallization chaperone that, when covalently fused to a protein, forms a well-ordered crystal lattice. However, the success of this method depends on two factors: 1) the design of the linker connecting TELSAM to the target protein, which influences both crystal packing and target orientation, and 2) the prevention of TELSAM polymer flipping, a phenomenon that disrupts lattice periodicity and impairs structure determination. To address the first challenge, …

Cost-Effectiveness Model For Reservoir Sediment Management Economics, Connor Ronald Hale

Theses and Dissertations

Reservoir sediment deposition poses a challenge to sustainable water supplies around the world. Sediment management has proven to be an expensive endeavor. Two models have been developed to guide economic analysis for reservoir sediment management, namely the Reservoir Sediment Economics Model (RSEM) and the Reservoir Conservation Model 2 (RESCON 2). While these are helpful tools for benefit-cost prefeasibility studies, they rely heavily on sometimes elusive estimations of the benefits of water supply. In this study, a new method for economic analysis is proposed that foregoes benefit-cost analysis in favor of a cost-effectiveness approach. The Sediment Management Cost-Effectiveness Model ranks sediment …

Barriers And Enablers Of Early Health-Seeking Behaviour Among Women With Preeclampsia And Eclampsia: A Qualitative Study At A National Referral Hospital In Uganda, Shirley Moore, Martha Sajatovic

Faculty Scholarship

Background: Globally, 2–8% of women experience hypertensive disorders in pregnancy (HDPs), including preeclampsia and eclampsia, which are the second leading cause of maternal mortality and morbidity. According to the management protocol for preeclampsia in Uganda, weekly follow-up is recommended for women with preeclampsia without severe features who are below 37weeks of gestation; however, this has not been feasible to most cases of preeclampsia/eclampsia (PE/E). There is still limited information describing barriers and enablers of early health-seeking behaviour amongst women with PE/E, yet this is needed to improve their healthcare. This study explored the barriers and enablers of early health-seeking behaviour …

Designing A Data Collection And Visualization Toolkit For Scalable Tensor Algebra In Quantum Chemistry Applications, Epiya J. Ebiapia

LSU Master's Theses

Large-scale quantum chemistry computations, such as those executed with the Tensor Algebra for Many-body Methods (TAMM) framework, require careful configuration of runtime parameters to achieve high performance and cost efficiency in high-performance computing (HPC) and cloud environments. Without effective performance analysis tools, researchers risk inefficient use of computational resources, leading to longer runtimes and higher costs.

To address this challenge, this thesis presents the design and implementation of a performance profiling and visualization toolkit for TAMM, developed as part of the DOE TEC4 project in collaboration with Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Microsoft, and Louisiana State University. The toolkit collects detailed …

New Students Welcomed Into Titan Traditions, Julia Perez

Press Releases 2020-2029

No abstract provided.

Bullying And Cyberbullying Experienced By College Students With Disabilities: Data From The Acha‑Ncha Iii Survey Results, Susan Mueller, Melissa Sutherland, Hans Saint-Eloi Cadely, Jody Kunk

Human Development and Family Science Faculty Publications

Students with disabilities (SWD) in higher education experience higher rates of bullying as compared with students without disabilities (SWOD), which may result in lower academic achievement and distress among SWD. We conducted a secondary data analysis of ACHA-NCHA III survey data from 55,824 respondents to examine the risk of bullying and cyberbullying targeting and the associations between these experiences, distress and academic performance among SWD and SWOD. Specifically, we (1) compared the risk of experiencing bullying and cyberbullying between SWD and SWOD, (2) compared the impact of bullying and cyberbullying on academic performance and distress between SWD and SWOD and …

Insights From Multivariate Analysis Of Seed Vigor Traits In Rapeseed And Mustard (Brassica Spp.) Genotypes, Ayushi Yadav, Shiv Kumar Yadav, Ravish Choudhary, Sushma Mudlupura Kumar, Anbalagan Anumantharaj, Rakesh Bharadwaj, Rashmi Yadav, Yashpal Taak, Navinder Saini, Sneha Adhikari, Sangita Yadav

Turkish Journal of Agriculture and Forestry

Rapeseed and mustard (Brassica spp.) are critical oilseed crops contributing significantly to global edible oil production. In India, Indian mustard (Brassica juncea) dominates Brassica cultivation, yet the country remains heavily dependent on edible oil imports due to insufficient domestic production. Enhancing seed vigor, a key determinant of crop establishment and yield, offers a promising avenue for improving productivity. This study assessed the genetic diversity of 300 rapeseed and mustard genotypes for seed vigor traits using multivariate analysis, including principal component analysis (PCA) and cluster analysis. Eleven seed vigor-related traits were evaluated, and PCA revealed four principal components with eigenvalues greater …

Effects Of Polyethylene Films With Different Uv-A Transmittance On Quality Parameters And Physiology Of Greenhouse-Grown Tomato, Nefi̇se Yasemi̇n Tezcan, Mustafa Erkan, Ahmet Kurunç

Turkish Journal of Agriculture and Forestry

In this study, the effects of three different polyethylene (PE) greenhouse covering materials (CMs) with varying thicknesses and ultraviolet-A (UV-A) transmittance on greenhouse microclimate, plant growth, yield, fruit quality, and chlorophyll fluorescence parameters (Chl FPs) in tomatoes were investigated. The CMs used in the study were 180 μm thick ultraviolet (UV) + ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) + long-wave infrared (IR) + light diffuser (LD) + antifog (AF) added PE (CM1), 160 μm thick PLUS UV + EVA + IR + LD + AF added PE (CM2), and 200 μm thick UV + EVA + IR + LD added PE (CM3). …