Digital Commons Network^™

If Its Cold I Will Be Late For Class, Ira Satpathy

A Midwestern Review: A Magazine of the Arts and Issues at DePauw University

Ira Satpathy is a Philosophy, Politics, and Economics major at DePauw University. They enjoy making portraits, writing poetry, and playing badminton. Listen to them on What the Feminism!, their podcast on intersectional feminism.

Lush Alleyway, Emily Loera

A Midwestern Review: A Magazine of the Arts and Issues at DePauw University

"Emily Loera is a Junior double majoring in Design Studies and Asian Studies. She is on the Women’s Track and Field team and involved in many other organizations on DePauw’s campus. She loves to share her art with others, read, and hang out with her friends."

Crestfallen, Annika Christiansen

A Midwestern Review: A Magazine of the Arts and Issues at DePauw University

Annika Christiansen is a Sophomore photojournalist and Media Fellow at DePauw University. She has been pursuing photography personally and professionally for the past six years, and her art is inspired by the hidden beauty in mundane scenes. She loves fiction writing, jazz music, and cinematography.

Damaged Goods, Ira Satpathy

A Midwestern Review: A Magazine of the Arts and Issues at DePauw University

Ira Satpathy is a Philosophy, Politics, and Economics major at DePauw University. They enjoy making portraits, writing poetry, and playing badminton. Listen to them on What the Feminism!, their podcast on intersectional feminism.

Credentials, Audrey Ickes

A Midwestern Review: A Magazine of the Arts and Issues at DePauw University

Audrey Ickes is a Senior English-Writing major and History and Communications double minor. Flip to page 31 to see the rest of her credentials or page 23 to find out why she writes whether she likes to or not.

Sole Purpose, Dylan Copeland

A Midwestern Review: A Magazine of the Arts and Issues at DePauw University

Dylan Copeland is a Junior Studio Art major at DePauw University. His photography focuses on themes of environmental sustainability and our relationship with the natural world. In his free time, he enjoys pole vaulting, skateboarding, and listening to music.

Developing Custom Fertilizer Strategies Recirculating Hydroponic Systems, Joshua Bryan Tebow

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Hydroponic systems recirculate nutrient solution to reduce the amount of water used in leafy green production. However, the rootzone of the nutrient solution is complex and influenced by interacting factors such as plant uptake demand, irrigation water quality, supplied fertilizer salts and nutrient concentrations, environmental conditions, and injection of mineral acids/bases to control solution pH. A common strategy for managing nutrients in commercial production is to select a hydroponic solution formulation (i.e. recipe) to supply and maintain a target pH and electrical conductivity (EC) in the recirculating solution over time by automatic injection of mineral acids/bases and concentrated fertilizer stock …

Implications Of Acetylation And Phosphorylation On Metabolic Enzymes, Nour Fatema

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

All living things depend on glycolysis and the TCA cycle for energy production and metabolic control. Post-translational modifications (PTMs) such as acetylation and phosphorylation, which can change enzyme activity, substrate binding, and overall metabolic balance, tightly regulate these pathways. Diseases like cancer and metabolic problems are associated with disruptions in these alterations.

Serine phosphorylation and lysine acetylation are two of the many PTMs that are evolutionarily conserved processes that alter protein function. Previously thought to be a static histone alteration, acetylation is now understood to be a dynamic regulator of metabolic enzymes that modifies contacts, charge, and conformation. In response …

Use Of Pushed-In Pencel Pressuremeter Test For Shallow Foundation Design In Florida Fine Sands, Brhane Weldeanenya Ygzaw

Theses and Dissertations

A comprehensive evaluation was conducted on the performance, consistency, and practical application of various in-situ geotechnical testing methods for predicting the settlement and bearing capacity of shallow foundations in Florida’s fine sands. The methods assessed include the Standard Penetration Test (SPT), Cone Penetration Test (CPT), Dilatometer Test (DMT), pushed-in PENCEL Pressuremeter Test (PPMT), and the pre-bored TEXAM Pressuremeter Test. A dual approach controlled indoor testing at the FDOT State Materials Office (SMO) and field investigations at three representative sites (Kingsley, Trenton, and the UCF research site), formed the experimental foundation.

Over thirty settlement prediction techniques and thirteen bearing capacity estimation …

Trends In And Factors Associated With Science Achievement Among Fourth Graders In Saudi Arabia: A Secondary Analysis Of Timss Data, Reda Massawe

Theses and Dissertations

This secondary analysis examined trends and factors associated with science achievement among fourth-grade students in Saudi Arabia using data from the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). Between 2007 and 2019, Saudi students consistently scored below the international average in science, with female students outperforming males by more than 30 points. The study addressed two issues: (1) reasons behind Saudi students’ underperformance and (2) limited research on contributing factors. TIMSS data from 2011, 2015, and 2019 were analyzed using descriptive, correlational, and regression methods. While trends across the years were explored, only 2019 data were used for detailed …

Matrix Training Of Verb Tenses With Autistic Children, Alexandra Lynn Ewald

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to extend the research on matrix training by evaluating its efficacy for producing recombinative generalization of regular verb tense endings. Three autistic children were shown videos of people known to the participants acting out behaviors associated with an action about to take place, currently taking place, or that took place. The targets (actors, actions, and verb tenses) were arranged in a matrix, and the targets appearing along the diagonal of the matrix were directly trained, while the remaining targets were probed to determine if the participant was able to emit correct responses without any …

Synthesis And Characterization Of New Inorganic Materials In Different Length Scales; From Nanometer To Micrometer, Kirkland Sheriff

All Dissertations

In this dissertation there are a new series of Preyssler polyoxometalate (POM) crystalline solids created using electrochemical potential. It was found that using electrochemical potential, where nucleation and reduction occur simultaneously, was a convenient method for exploratory synthesis creating new crystalline solids in aqueous solution and at room temperature. The general structure feature reveals that Preyssler POM was covalently linked by various metals from the d and f block including Co²⁺, Ni²⁺, La³⁺, Nd³⁺, Gd³⁺ and Ho³⁺ where the POM was reduced by 2 to 4 electrons. The resulting solids …

Student Self-Assessment Of Learning To Foster Improved Self-Reflection Of Learning And Academic Achievement, Leann Renee Doerr

Dissertations

Throughout her career and most notably post-pandemic, the scholar practitioner observed an increase in students giving up when encountering rigorous academic content and assignments. During the research process, concepts of student agency and self-regulation of learning, which were new to the scholar practitioner, came to the forefront of skills her students either lacked or needed to improve upon. Empathy generators were gathered for participants at Context School #1, which led to Student agency and self-regulation of learning becoming the center of the intervention during the design thinking process. The Self-Assessment of Learning, created and modified during the design thinking phases, …

Exploring The Roles Of Registered Dietitian Nutritionists In Food Service Management Practice Settings And The Established Guidelines That Aid In Assessing Competency, Angelique Lim

Theses and Dissertations

Background: Registered dietitian nutritionists (RDNs) are highly qualified professionals to manage food service operations, yet only 3% of RDNs work in food service management. Objective: The objective of this research is to determine what established guidelines, training, certifications, and advanced degrees RDNs working in management of food and nutrition systems (MFNS) use to develop their level of expertise. Methods: RDNs who are members of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Management of Food and Nutrition Systems Dietetic Practice Group were invited to participate in a survey to assess characteristics of current RDNs working in MFNS, and to determine resources, training …

Achieving Reward-Based Crowdfunding Project Success: An Examination Of Value Congruence, Bright Frimpong, Emmanuel Wusuhon Yanibo Ayaburi, Francis K. Andoh-Baidoo

Information Systems Faculty Publications

Crowdfunding founders increasingly rely on reward-based platforms to raise capital for their projects. However, the low success rate of reward-based project campaigns remains a concern for many founders and platform managers. Prior studies investigating participants’ motivations have focused on either the founder or backer perspective, with little research examining the joint effects of founder and backer motivations. Drawing on the theory of basic human values, we assert that founders and backers are strategic about their motivations for engaging in crowdfunding campaigns. We identify four basic human values—self-transcendence, self-enhancement, openness to change, and conservation—that may reveal their intrinsic motivations and investigate …

Exploring Principals' Equity Mindset As It Applies To Their Practice Within A Mexican-U.S. Border Community, Sonia D. Aguilar

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The study's aimed to explore principals' equity mindset to respond to the research question: How do principals' lived experiences, identity, beliefs, attitudes, and values construct their understanding of equity, and how does it impact their practice within the school communities they serve? The study employed narrative inquiry as a methodology to gain knowledge and understanding of principals' conceptualization of equity and how equity emerges in their practice. These principals' rich descriptive narratives showed that their understanding and embodiment of equity are reflected within their practice. Their inherent values, beliefs, attitudes, and overall sense of self and upbringing are at the …

Optimal Experimental Plan For Multi-Level Stress Testing Under Progressively Hybrid Censoring, David Kojo Amakye

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Reliability analysis is essential for understanding how products perform over time, particularly in environments where failure data is limited or costly to obtain. One effective approach is multi-level stress testing, where test units are subjected to varying levels of stress to accelerate failures and extract more information within constrained timeframes. This study presents a novel optimization-based framework for designing life-testing experiments under progressively Type-II hybrid censoring, assuming Weibull lifetime distributions. Leveraging a Variable Neighborhood Search (VNS) algorithm, we determine efficient allocations of test units and censoring parameters across multiple stress levels to enhance the precision of estimates of the model …

Comparative Study Of Non-Iterative Seqential Method For Biot's Poroelasticity Model, Jeff Frimpong Amponsah

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Linear poroelasticity theory describes the interaction between the motion of fluids and deformation of porous media. The theory serves various applications in a wide range of science and engineering fields, such as soil mechanics, oil reservoir modeling, and bio-medical applications. Partial differential equations are used to model the complex interaction between fluid flow and solid deformation in porous media. Since analytical solutions to these equations are rarely available for realistic problems, we resort to numerical solutions. One major advantage is their ability to provide accurate approximations of the solutions. Various numerical methods have been proposed to solve Biot's poroelasticity system. …

Utilization Of Lunar Regolith For Water Production And Rocket Propulsion On The Moon, Dominic Austen

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

In-situ resource utilization (ISRU) is pivotal for sustainable space exploration. Lunar ISRU has primarily focused on the extraction of oxygen from regolith for breathing and propulsion and, more recently, on harnessing surface ice to produce liquid hydrogen and oxygen for propulsion. Lunar regolith simulant LHS-1 is currently used to develop thermal technologies for water extraction from icy regolith in the polar regions of the Moon. However, the development of these technologies is hindered by the lack of data on the thermophysical properties of LHS-1 at low temperatures and on the kinetics of water sublimation from icy regolith. In this dissertation, …

Anotaciones De Un Viaje Sin Carreteras, Julio Alejandro Barrera Moreno

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

“Viajaremos juntos, tú y yo, en carro, desde Miami hasta Nueva York”, me prometió mi papá, poco antes de desaparecer, presuntamente muerto en los Estados Unidos por traficar con drogas, hace tanto tiempo que ya casi ni lo recuerdo. “Viajaremos juntos, tú y yo, en carro, desde Miami hasta Nueva York”, le prometí a mi hijo, poco antes de abordar el avión que me trajo hasta los Estados Unidos, hace ya tres años, tanto, que cada vez que nos reencontramos, no lo reconozco de lo tanto que crece. Y desde entonces, un imposible nos atraviesa, una promesa que solo a …

Computational Framework For Integrating Single Nucleotide Variant Scores To Identify Novel Genes In Cancers, Amanda Maria Bataycan

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

A quantitative integrated scoring function, iQ(G) was developed to assess the cumulative effects of nonsynonymous single nucleotide variants (SNVs) on the protein-coding genes with the goal to find novel candidate cancer-related genes from patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), and ovarian cancer (OC). With Genomic Data Commons as primary data resource for this project, whole-exome SNV data were extracted on patients with one of these three cancers. For each specific cancer, the iQ(G) function sums up the deleterious effects of individual SNVs with respect to the transcripts of the gene G in which they occur, weighted …

A Texas-Sized Problem: Abortion Policy And Public Perception On The Border, Sabrina Bustillos

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The present study is an examination of the impacts Texas' abortion restrictions have had on residents of El Paso, Texas. As of 2022, virtually all instances of abortion are illegal in the state of Texas. Despite the complete overturn of Roe V. Wade, in addition to Texas' passage of the "Texas Heartbeat Act", lawmakers have continued to propose and enact laws that encourage the intimidation, investigation, and punishment of anyone suspected of aiding and abetting an abortion, regardless of whether it occurred outside of state lines. These policies are ever-changing and impact millions of Texans, whether they know it or …

Cyber Resiliency Framework And Mechanisms For Software Defined Tactical Networks, Anthony Castanares

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Traditional tactical networks fail to achieve cyber resiliency for many reasons, but the most prevalent causes include flat designs, the absence of cyber detection capabilities at the lowest level, and immutable resource allocations after instantiation. These design choices allow network threats direct visibility to each device on the network, and the lack of detection allows infections to proliferate. Furthermore, tactical battlefield networks are difficult to secure because of the lack of persistent oversight by an intelligent agent that can exercise control over the network's topology or resources in real-time. However, advances in software-defined networking (SDN) provide an opportunity to address …

Generative Ai For 3d Printed Antenna Design, Jennifer Ann Chavez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This research explores the integration of generative artificial intelligence (AI) with a physics-informed particle swarm optimizer (PSO) to develop 3D printable microstrip patch antennas. A neural network was trained on a dataset of microstrip patch antenna geometries and their corresponding performance metrics: return loss and gain. The PSO used a fitness function prioritizing low return loss in potential antennas, eventually yielding novel antenna geometries with parasitic components. 3D printing constraints were also hard coded into the framework, thus preventing any geometries being generated that cannot be fabricated. When simulated using Ansys HFSS, the AI generated microstrip patch antennas exceeded the …

A Digital Twin Approach To Job Shop Scheduling: Simulation And Optimization In Anylogic, Alan Alejandro Corral Lopez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

In complex manufacturing environments such as job shops, machine breakdowns and maintenance activities can significantly disrupt production flow, leading to delays, bottlenecks, and reduced throughput. This thesis presents the development of a digital twin for a job shop system using AnyLogic simulation software to evaluate the effectiveness of fallback routing logic, where jobs are dynamically rerouted to alternative machines when primary machines are unavailable due to scheduled and unscheduled events. The digital twin replicates real-world job shop conditions, incorporating variable job sequences, machine-specific processing times, and both preventive and corrective maintenance schedules. Two scenarios were compared: a baseline configuration with …

A Numerical Analysis Tool To Evaluate Pavements Integrated With Dynamic Wireless Power Transfer Technology, Hector Cruz

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

As electric vehicles (EVs) continue to gain market share in the U.S., the integration of dynamic wireless power transfer (DWPT) systems into pavements has emerged as a promising solution to address range anxiety and infrastructure limitations. However, the structural implications of embedding DWPT technology into roadways remain insufficiently explored. This dissertation presents the development and application of a numerical analysis tool to evaluate the mechanical performance of flexible pavements containing embedded charging units (CUs). A series of finite element models, validated with full-scale experimental data, were used to assess the influence of axle loading, material properties, layer configurations, bonding conditions, …

Hidden Layer Reshaping On Convolutional Neural Network, Alan Delgado

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies have become really popular in recent years. From ChatGPT to Tesla cars, many applications can benefit from these type of technologies. Automotive, healthcare, biomedical, cybersecurity, finances, and retail are some of the fields that take advantage of it. It has been seen that AI can solve complex problems, but there is still work to be done to optimize it. A deep learning neural network (DLNN) tries to simulate how a human brain operates. These DLNNs are made up of artificial neurons which are connected by weight that are modified when the network is trained. These networks …

Sustainable Agriculture Through Data-Driven Land And Soil Management For Rural Farming Communities, Peggy Clareece Discenza

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This thesis aims to investigate sustainable farming practices by utilizing a database containing soil, weather, and water data. Additionally, it evaluates cropping strategies using a system that incorporates nutrient dynamics and environmental values. The objective is to monitor, develop predictive models, and assess the impact of both controlled and uncontrolled nutrient variables. This is achieved through the development of an algorithm that provides information on soil health based on datasets and land use, with a particular focus on residual values after harvesting for deeper analytical insights and interpretation. This study focuses on key nutrients, including pH levels, water availability, and …

Optimal Accelerated Life-Testing Plans Under Progressive Type Ii First Failure Censoring Scheme, Emmanuella Duah

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Designing optimal accelerated life testing (ALT) plans under progressive Type-II first failure censoring involves complex computational challenges, especially when trying to balance efficiency, precision, and practicality. This research introduces a novel optimization framework aimed at determining the best test configuration that minimizes estimation uncertainty within constrained experimental conditions. We developed a tailored meta-heuristic strategy based on an enhanced Variable Neighborhood Search (VNS) algorithm, which efficiently navigates the complex landscape of censoring schemes and stress allocations. Unlike conventional methods that typically focus on simpler censoring or stress-level structures, this approach simultaneously optimizes both the censoring points and sample allocations across various …

The Depths Of Horror: Exploring The Manifestation Of Fear In The Natural World, Jordan Eugene Easley

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The horror genre is uniquely powerful in that it is one of the only hands of fiction with the ability to reach off the page and follow you. The feeling of fear originally formed in the confines of a scary story can lie dormant in the reader after the story has finished and be resurfaced later by a related trigger. On a late night after work walking through a deserted car garage, home alone in the middle of a storm, or stumbling into an abandoned hospital, the reader is imbued with an ability to detect a threat that was previously …