Digital Commons Network^™

Reclaiming The Genius Of A Free State, Tennessee's Forgotten Anti-Monopolies Clause, Braden H. Boucek

Belmont Law Review

This article argues that Tennessee’s Anti-Monopolies Clause—enshrined in Article I, Section 22 of the Tennessee Constitution since 1796—has been systematically underenforced and misconstrued by Tennessee courts. Although the constitutional text unequivocally provides that “monopolies are contrary to the genius of a free State and shall not be allowed,” judicial interpretation has diluted this categorical prohibition by importing deferential federal rational basis review and engaging in “lockstepping” with federal substantive due process doctrine. The author contends that this approach is doctrinally unsound because the U.S. Constitution contains no analogous anti-monopoly provision, rendering federal precedent inapposite. Through historical analysis grounded in originalist …

Regulating Artificial Elections, Courtney A. Barclay

Belmont Law Review

This Article examines the growing role of artificial intelligence in shaping modern election discourse and the resulting tensions with First Amendment doctrine. Focusing on generative AI, deepfakes, chatbots, and synthetic media, the Article evaluates whether existing campaign finance laws—particularly disclosure and disclaimer requirements—adequately address AI-driven distortions in the electoral marketplace of ideas. Surveying the Federal Election Commission’s 2024 interpretive rule on fraudulent misrepresentation, emerging state legislation regulating synthetic media, and proposed federal reforms, the Article argues that current legal frameworks are both constitutionally constrained and practically insufficient. Drawing on the AdChoices model from data privacy regulation, it proposes a hybrid …

Pure Imagination: A World Of Agentive Ai And Anti-Adhesion Contracting, Jeff Lingwall, Steven Hyde

Belmont Law Review

Jeff Lingwall and Steven J. Hyde’s Pure Imagination: A World of Agentive AI and Anti-Adhesion Contracting examines the transformative—and destabilizing—effects of large language models (LLMs) on contract law. The Article situates LLM-mediated contracting within the historical evolution of contractual formalities, arguing that agentive AI introduces a new phase in which negotiation, offer, acceptance, performance, and even litigation may be conducted without meaningful human mediation. The authors develop a model of legal risk that increases as LLMs shift from human-reviewed drafting tools to autonomous agents purporting to negotiate or bind parties. They then explore the possibility of “anti-adhesive” mass-bespoke contracts, in …

Harvesting Humans, Joanmarie Ilaria Davoli

Belmont Law Review

This Article examines allegations of systematic forced organ harvesting by the People’s Republic of China and argues that existing U.S. federal criminal law provides an underutilized mechanism to deter American participation in that industry. Tracing the historical development of China’s transplant system—from the use of executed prisoners to the alleged targeting of prisoners of conscience, including Falun Gong practitioners and Uyghurs—the Article situates organ procurement practices within broader human rights and genocide concerns. It contends that despite congressional hearings, resolutions, and proposed sanctions, meaningful deterrence has been limited. The Article advances a novel enforcement theory: prosecution of U.S. persons under …

But-For Or Not But-For, The Question Is Answered, Samuel Rawlings Barnett Jr.

Belmont Law Review

In But-For or Not But-For, the Question Is Answered, Samuel Rawlings Barnett Jr. examines the ongoing federal circuit split regarding the appropriate causation standard for retaliation claims under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). While some circuits apply a “motivating factor” standard, others require plaintiffs to prove “but-for” causation. The Note situates this division within the Supreme Court’s broader shift in employment discrimination jurisprudence from the mixed-motive framework of Price Waterhouse v. Hopkins to the stricter “but-for” standard articulated in Gross, Nassar, and Comcast. Through close statutory analysis of 29 U.S.C. § 2615(a)(1) and § …

Coerced Into Confession: Prosecutorial Pressure And The Misuse Of Plea Bargaining, Molly Mceachern

Belmont Law Review

This Note examines the coercive dynamics embedded in modern plea bargaining and argues that prosecutors’ reliance on conviction rates as a primary measure of success distorts the administration of justice. Tracing the historical evolution of plea bargaining from early English common law skepticism to its constitutional legitimization in Brady v. United States, the article demonstrates how plea bargaining has shifted from a pragmatic case-management tool to a dominant and often coercive mechanism of criminal adjudication,

Poetry And Fiction Reading From Introduction To Creative Writing, Cara Dees, Conrad Ligasan, Justice Jackson, Hannah Wagner, Sammi Matias, Mathias Stewart, Reagan Lane, Claire Carrillo, Zander Schirmer

SPARK Symposium Presentations

This poetry and fiction reading features several student presenters from "English 2430: Introduction to Creative Writing" – many of whom are performing their creative work to a live audience for the first time. Whether through poetry or prose, these students' inventive use of language and storytelling will hook you from beginning to end.

Exploring Belmont’S Herbarium, Corinne Parker, Darlene Panvini

SPARK Symposium Presentations

The Belmont University Herbarium is a collection of plant samples used to document species. These specimens have been collected by Belmont students since 1973, helping to document the flora of Middle Tennessee. This semester, the specimens were organized and their identifications were confirmed. Updating the herbarium’s organizational system allowed for some specimens that were not fully prepared to be identified and processed, increasing the number of specimens that the university can use for teaching and research purposes. The number of specimens, families, and commonly collected families will be reported. Recommendations will be provided for further collecting to expand the herbarium …

Teaming With Technology: Adaptive Automation In Joint Cognitive Systems For Industry 5.0, Jessica Johnson

Virginia Digital Maritime Center (VDMC) Faculty Publications

Adaptive automation enables dynamic reallocation of functions between people and autonomous agents to improve performance in complex work. This paper presents a meta-analysis of experimental and quasi-experimental studies (2000-2025) on joint cognitive systems in industrially relevant contexts, quantifying effects on task performance, safety/failure management, workload, trust, and learning. Across studies, adaptive automation reliably reduces operator workload and shows moderate gains in task performance and safety, with healthier trust dynamics when adaptations are triggered by human-state or event cues, made transparent to the user, and remain rapidly overridable. Risks emerge when performance-triggered switching is opaque or poorly timed, which can erode …

Efficacy Of Deferoxamine Mesylate In Serum And Serum-Free Media: Adult Ventral Root Schwann Cell Survival Following Hydrogen Peroxide-Induced Cell Death, Yee Hang Ethan Ma, Abhinay R. Putta, Cyrus H. H. Chan, Stephen R. Vidman, Paula V. Monje, Giles W. Plant

Neurosurgery Faculty Publications

Schwann cell (SC) transplantation shows promise in treating spinal cord injury as a pro-regenerative agent to allow host endogenous neurons to bridge over the lesion. However, SC transplants face significant oxidative stress facilitated by ROS in the lesion, leading to poor survival. deferoxamine mesylate (DFO) is a neuroprotective agent shown to reduce H₂O₂-induced cell death in serum-containing conditions. Here we show that DFO is not necessary to induce neuroprotection under serum-free conditions by cell survival quantification and phenotypic analysis via immunohistochemistry, Hif1α and collagen IV quantification via whole cell corrected total cell fluorescence, and cell death …

Contributors, Karin Dejonge-Kannan, Travis N. Thurston, Amanda Deliman, Amanda Morris, Anna Kuthy, Anne Cook, Beth Buyserie, Bethany B. Stone, Caroline Wienhold, Casandra E. Harper, Chris Kilgore, Cynthia Korpan, Elisabeth Schussler, Ferlin Mcgaskey, Gabrielle Stecher Woodward, Hannah Mae Lewis, James Agutter, Janette R. Hill, Jeff Spears, Jim Lamuth, Jordan Shipley, Kate Tregloan, Kim Hales, Letizia Guglielmo, Melissa E. Ko, Michael Morrone, Miranda Yaggi Rodak, Peggy Brickman, Raoul A. Mulder, Shannon M. Sipes, Sharon Lyman, Shihua Brazill, Stephen A. Klien, T. Adam Halstrom, Terri A. Dunbar, Victoria Mondelli, Vijay R. Kannan, Virginia Stormer

Documenting Teaching Excellence

No abstract provided.

Praise For Documenting Teaching Excellence, Paul J. Barr

Documenting Teaching Excellence

No abstract provided.

1. The Teaching Dossier As Genre: A Sotl-Informed Approach To Documenting Teaching Excellence, Shannon M. Sipes, Michael Morrone

Documenting Teaching Excellence

This chapter argues a teaching dossier (the primary outlet for documenting teaching effectiveness) is its own genre of academic writing and that the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) provides the most effective cross-disciplinary lens in which to engage with this genre. Salient defining characteristics of the genre are its purpose–to evaluate teaching quality, stakeholders–the faculty member who writes and complies the dossier and evaluating readers, and sub-genres such as teaching philosophy statements and curricula vitae. The genre’s core purpose, to evaluate teaching quality, also serves as a core purpose of SoTL, with peer review making the evaluations “akin to …

8. Many Stories Matter, So Let Us Make Them Accessible: Transforming Student Literature And Essays To Open Anthologies, James Thibeault

Open Educational Resources For and As Assessment

This chapter delves into the concept of open literature, emphasizing the importance of creating accessible and diverse literary works through open pedagogy. It explores the definition of open literature, distinguishing it from analytical and instructional resources, and highlights current examples of open literature initiatives. Throughout the chapter, it outlines methods for designing open literature anthologies through classroom assignments, including the integration of auxiliary works and the selection of appropriate open licenses. Finally, it discusses various open publication options for these anthologies. Overall, the chapter aims to foster a more inclusive and representative literary landscape that benefits both current and future …

Series Information, Karin Dejonge-Kannan, Travis N. Thurston

Documenting Teaching Excellence

No abstract provided.

More Than Money: Holistic Outcomes Of Catholic Higher Education, Jason King

Journal of Catholic Education

In an era dominated by financial metrics and return-on-investment rhetoric, this study offers a counternarrative by examining the holistic outcomes of Catholic higher education. Drawing on a nationally representative survey of 2,000 college graduates, it compares alumni of Catholic and secular institutions across three domains: life satisfaction and personal fulfillment; civic engagement and community involvement; and ethical development. The findings reveal that graduates of Catholic colleges report higher life satisfaction, greater civic participation, and a stronger ethical orientation than their secular peers—patterns that persist across demographic subgroups. While Catholic colleges perform well on traditional financial indicators, their distinctive value lies …

The Influence Of Japanese Art And Aesthetics On The Paintings Of Théodore Rousseau, Erinn Alexis Stuart

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Landscape paintings of Barbizon painter Théodore Rousseau provide a unique perspective on the impact of Japanese artworks on nineteenth-century French painting. The examination of Eastern influences on Western art has been confined to Western urban popular culture, resulting in a narrative that restricts the understanding of modern art to the context of Western industrialization. This method of exploring cultural influences constructs a narrative of othering, confining the perception of its impact to the superficial and commercial, thus perpetuating an othering subnarrative, not only between the two nations but also between the different genres of Western art. Through an investigation into …

Creating Counternarratives To Heteronormativity In Art Education: Portraits Of The Lives Of Five Gay Art Teachers, Bradley Mckinney

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This study explored ways heteronormativity has been reinforced in art education, drawing from personal experiences and scholarly literature. I reflected on how conformity pressures influence individuals and communities aligning with Foucault's concepts of binary polarities, Butler’s theory of performativity, Sedgwick’s notion of survivor’s responsibility and Warner’s ideas of queer stigma. My research combines autoethnography, ethnography, personal narrative, and therapeutic reflection to create portraits, or in-depth narratives, and snapshots, or brief narratives, of five self-identified gay art teachers from the Midwestern region of the United States. These portraits and snapshots examine ways the participants navigated their identities within educational environments. Creating …

Credit Card Fraud Detection Via Model Retraining And Fine-Tuning, Anamol Khadka

Computer Science and Engineering Student Research - Archive

Credit card fraud detection is a critical task in financial systems, especially given the rarity and evolving nature of the fraudulent behavior. The highly imbalanced class levels of the fraudulent and non-fraudulent transactions make it a challenging classification problem to solve. This study investigates the effectiveness of machine learning models: Logistic Regression, XGBoost, and Multi-Layer Perceptron (Neural Network), evaluated under temporal retraining and fine-tuning scenarios using a publicly available, highly imbalanced dataset of European credit card transactions. The dataset includes 284,807 transactions, of which only 492 (0.172%) are labeled as fraudulent, making it a well-known example of an imbalanced classification …

Comparative Evaluation Of Traditional Machine Learning And Deep Cnn Models For Static Hand Gesture Recognition, Anamol Khadka, Prit Desai

Computer Science and Engineering Student Research - Archive

Hand gesture recognition plays a vital role in facilitating natural and intuitive human-computer interaction, with applications ranging from sign language translation to touchless control systems. This study presents a comparative evaluation of traditional machine learning models and a deep convolutional neural network (CNN) for static hand gesture classification. The experimental dataset comprises 24,000 training images and 6,000 testing images, spanning 20 gesture classes. Traditional models, including k-Nearest Neighbors (KNN) and Support Vector Machines (SVM), utilize handcrafted features such as convex hull, convexity defects, and Hu moments. In contrast, the deep learning approach fine-tunes a ResNet18 architecture to learn features directly …

A Random Walk Simulation Of Positron Annihilation Depth As A Function Of Positron Beam Energy, Saniya Anjum Aqeel Ahmed Yadgeer

Physics Theses - Archive

Depth resolved defect and chemical characterization studies using positron annihilation spectroscopy depend on the ability to estimate the fraction of positrons annihilating at surface, in the bulk, at defects or as Positronium. The depth resolution is limited by the implantation profile of the energetic positrons and the diffusion of the thermalized positrons. Here we implement a random walk simulation as described in S. Eichler et al. [1] to track the monoenergetic positrons implanted into multilayer graphene on Cu. For our simulations the implantation depths were sampled from a Makhovian distribution that has been shown to accurately represent the implantation profile …

Sin, Sickness, Or Self-Defense? How Medicalizing Women’S Acts Of Survival Confounds Justification And Excuse, And Undermines Justice, Jordan Robinson

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Shadow Of Exceptionalism: Morality, Pragmatism, And Covert Action In American Cold War Foreign Policy, Kyle Stacy

History Theses - Archive

The complex forces of national identity, economic ambition, and ideological justification created a dynamic and contested landscape that shaped America’s Cold War policies. A carefully curated useful past, bolstered by religious convictions, fostered a belief in American exceptionalism and moral leadership that provided both the impetus and justification for 11 America’s actions abroad. Yet, America’s stated ideals—freedom and democracy—existed in stark tension with the pursuit of its national interests, often clashing with its self-perceived moral superiority. The Cold War environment fostered a culture of secrecy within the highest levels of government. Here, transparency and accountability were readily sacrificed for strategic …

Menstrual Cycle Variations In Ultrasound And Biomechanical Risk Factors For Acl Injury In Adolescent Female Athletes, Jessica Garcia

Kinesiology Dissertations - Archive

Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries are a significant concern in adolescent female athletes, with rates consistently higher than their male peers. This disparity is attributed to a complex combination of anatomical, hormonal, and neuromuscular factors that elevate injury risk while performing dynamic movements common in running and cutting sports such as soccer, basketball, lacrosse, and volleyball. Knee laxity has been identified as a potential risk factor, yet current measurement tools lack the sensitivity, reliability, and validity needed for practical application. Additionally, fluctuating sex hormones throughout the menstrual cycle (MC) have been implicated in changes to ligament properties and neuromuscular control, …

The Effects Of Speed, Grade And Footwear On Knee Adduction Moment And Tibial Shock, Alexis C. Gant

Kinesiology Dissertations - Archive

Knee osteoarthritis (OA) is a degenerative joint disease characterized by progressive cartilage deterioration, chronic pain, and reduced mobility. Alterations in gait mechanics, particularly increased knee adduction moment (KAM) and tibial shock, are strongly associated with OA onset and progression. These biomechanical markers reflect abnormal joint loading and provide valuable insights for developing non-invasive interventions. This dissertation investigates how modifiable external factors, specifically walking slope, footwear type, and walking speed, influence knee joint loading patterns. The goal is to inform rehabilitation strategies that can decrease joint stress, alleviate symptoms, and slow disease progression.

Study 1 examines the effects of walking slope …

Force Matters: An Exploration Of Manual Therapies Effects On Passive Tension Properties Of The Lower Extremity., Loran D. Wade Jr

Kinesiology Dissertations - Archive

Musculoskeletal dysfunction is a leading cause of pain, functional limitation, and disability worldwide, necessitating the exploration of non-invasive therapeutic strategies. Manual therapy, which encompasses massage, stretching, and instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilization (IASTM), has long been used to address musculoskeletal dysfunction, yet its mechanisms of action and clinical efficacy remain inconsistently defined within the literature. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the historical foundations, physiological effects, and current applications of manual therapy techniques in the treatment of musculoskeletal disorders. Emphasis is placed on how these interventions influence key musculoskeletal properties, including tissue stiffness, joint range of motion, neuromuscular function, and …

Impact Of Climate Change On North Central Texas, Diana K. T. Hansen

Earth & Environmental Sciences Dissertations - Archive

ABSTRACT

IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON

NORTH CENTRAL TEXAS

Diana Kay Thomas Hansen, Ph.D.

The University of Texas at Arlington, 2025

Supervising Professor: Arne M.E. Winguth

The North Central Texas region is a rapidly expanding metropolitan area. One of the largest climate hazards that will affect human health in this region are extended heat waves and heavy precipitation. This study will examine how these hazards will change in response to climate change and the impact to human health due to weather extremes in a changing climate.

Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (Phase 6) simulations were used to evaluate future projected temperature …

The Role Of Sodium Butyrate As An Inflammatory Regulator And Its Effect On Long Noncoding Rnas In Neuroinflammation, Angel Covarrubias

Chemistry & Biochemistry Theses - Archive

Inflammation is a crucial homeostatic process that contributes to both the elimination of foreign invaders and tissue repair. Inflammation at sites of tissue injury or infection is initiated by the detection of a harmful stimulus, triggering vital inflammatory immune signaling pathways and a cascade of cytokines and inflammatory mediators. The dysregulation of this process, however, can result in inappropriate inflammatory responses manifesting in tissue damage and compromised cell function. Dysregulation of the inflammatory response is seen frequently in many human diseases such as Diabetes, Cancer, cardiovascular disease, and neurodegenerative diseases.

In the context of the Central Nervous system, inflammation is …

Kinetic Analysis Of A Carbon-Rich Sico Model System, Takhya Holley

Chemistry & Biochemistry Theses - Archive

Kinetic Analysis of a Silicon Oxycarbide (polymethylhydrosiloxane/divinylbenzene) material was done for meaning of kinetic analysis methodology development. The material was synthesized using the standard procedure from, Blum 2005. A series of TGA’s was done using non-isothermal experiments. The analysis involved an initial isoconversional analysis using Friedman method, then decomposition of processes into individual processes using the Fraser-Suzuki function. The validation agreed within 1%, which is permissible by the ICTAC recommendations. The activation energies of the individual processes were determined using the Friedman method.The pre-dominant process #2 was found to have an activation energy of 220 +- 20 kj/mol and first-order …

Estimating Vapor Pressures Of Pheromone Compounds Using Gas Chromatographic Retention, Bipasha Sarker

Chemistry & Biochemistry Theses - Archive

Accurate determination of the vapor pressures of organic materials is important for predicting the sample’s environmental impact. It is difficult to directly measure accurate and precise vapor pressures of chemical compounds with direct experimental methods. Thus, indirect or predictive models for estimating vapor pressures are used. In this study, we follow a gas−liquid chromatography (GLC)-based approach, where retention data is correlated with vapor pressure using multiple reference standards. The method (GLC-RTyS) requires temperature-dependent retention factors (k-values) for test compounds and reference standards with known vapor pressures at matching temperatures. It has been observed that reference standards selected according to functional …