Digital Commons Network^™

Document Encoding Effects On Large Language Model Response Time And Consistency, Dianeliz Ortiz Martes, Nezamoddin N. Kachouie

Mathematics and System Engineering Faculty Publications

Large language models (LLMs) such as GPT-4 are increasingly integrated into research, industry, and enterprise workflows, yet little is known about how input file formats shape their outputs. While prior work has shown that formats can influence response time, the effects on readability, complexity, and semantic stability remain underexplored. This study systematically evaluates GPT-4’s responses to 100 queries drawn from 50 academic papers, each tested across four formats, TXT, DOCX, PDF, and XML, yielding 400 question–answer pairs. We have assessed two aspects of the responses to the queries: first, efficiency quantified by response time and answer length, and second, linguistic …

Monte Carlo Gradient Boosted Trees For Cancer Staging: A Machine Learning Approach, Audrey Eley, Thu Thu Hlaing, Daniel Breininger, Zarindokht Helforoush, Nezamoddin N. Kachouie

Mathematics and System Engineering Faculty Publications

Machine learning algorithms are commonly employed for classification and interpretation of high-dimensional data. The classification task is often broken down into two separate procedures, and different methods are applied to achieve accurate results and produce interpretable outcomes. First, an effective subset of high-dimensional features must be extracted and then the selected subset will be used to train a classifier. Gradient Boosted Trees (GBT) is an ensemble model and, particularly due to their robustness, ability to model complex nonlinear interactions, and feature interpretability, they are well suited for complex applications. XGBoost (eXtreme Gradient Boosting) is a high-performance implementation of GBT that …

Education About, In, And For Wetlands: Practices, Premises, Possibilities, And Challenges, Tom Marcinkowski

Mathematics and System Engineering Faculty Publications

The purpose of this paper is to review areas of educational theory, research, and practice relevant to wetlands education, notably education about, in, and for wetlands. Five key areas are reviewed: (a) from the Report of the Intergovernmental Conference on Environmental Education, goals and objectives for wetlands education; (b) from the literature, major curricular and instructional approaches in and elements of wetlands education; (c) from the literature, broad instructional strategies available to and commonly used in wetlands education; (d) from websites of federal agencies in the U.S., education, outreach, and training programs that focus on education about, in, and for …

Infinitely Many Solutions For Nonlinear Elliptic Problems In The Whole Space, Eleonora Amoroso, Gabriele Bonanno, Kanishka Perera

Mathematics and System Engineering Faculty Publications

This paper investigates the existence of infinitely many weak solutions for a nonlinear elliptic p-Laplacian equation defined in the whole space RN . In particular, the equation is parameter-dependent and a range of positive parameters in which the equation admits such solutions is provided. Moreover, some particular cases in which the solutions turn out to be nonnegative are presented. The study is conducted via variational methods and critical points theory. © 2025, University of Szeged. All rights reserved.

Ground-Based Cloud Type Classification For Aviation Weather Hazard Detection Using Deep Learning, Marcus P. Cote, Michael E. Splitt, Steven M. Lazarus, Ryan T. White, Cecilia G. Baker

Mathematics and System Engineering Faculty Publications

General aviation pilots who encounter hazardous weather face a heightened risk of fatal accidents compared to those in other sectors of aviation. To help avoid unplanned weather encounters, accurate information on cloud type and sky conditions can enhance situational awareness and hazard recognition. Among available weather information resources, ground-based webcam networks are growing for aviation meteorology and other interests such as wildfire monitoring. These webcams can provide near-real-time visual weather information to pilots, especially in regions of complex terrain where traditional weather observation methods may lack adequate spatial and temporal coverage. To harness the benefits from webcams while reducing the …

Reproductive Health Education In Ghana: Perspectives Of School Health Education Programme (Shep) Coordinators, Population Council, Msi Reproductive Choices, Ghana Education Service, Ghana Health Service

Sexual and Reproductive Health, Rights, and Choices

Schools in Ghana have integrated reproductive health education (RHE) topics into their curricula and School Health Education Programme (SHEP) Coordinators recognize the importance of RHE. However, for RHE to reach its full potential, it needs to be established as a stand-alone subject. This study highlights the challenges and opportunities in delivering in-school RHE, underscoring the interplay between policy frameworks, implementation strategies, and locally accepted approaches.

A Series Of Studies On Social Annotation: How They Came To Be, Virginia Clinton-Lisell

Education, Health & Behavior Studies Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Defining An Irrelevant Plasma Concentration For Trichlormethiazide In Racing Horses – A Case Report And Analysis, Kimberly Brewer, Justin C. Holmes, Clara Fenger, Abelardo Morales-Briceño, Andreas F. Lehner, George A. Maylin, Robert Holland, Levent Dirikolu, Thomas Tobin

Maxwell H. Gluck Equine Research Center Faculty Publications

This communication reviews the matter of the clinical, pharmacological, and regulatory significance of a 4.95 nanogram/ml identification of trichlormethiazide in urine from a horse six days after administration of a compounded trichlormethiazide/ dexamethasone preparation. This combination of dexamethasone and trichlormethiazide has historically been widely used in bovine and equine medicine to reduce local inflammation and edema. The horse was administered an oral formulation of trichlormethiazide 400 mg /dexamethasone 10 mg per packet under veterinary supervision on days 7 and 6 before the race in question. Following the race, the post-race urine sample from the horse tested “positive” for trichlormethiazide at …

Trace Level Identifications Of N-Ethylnicotinamide In Racing Horses Associated With A Vitamin B3 Supplement: Case Reports And Analysis, Clara Fenger, Kimberly Brewer, Abelardo Morales-Briceño, Andreas F. Lehner, George A. Maylin, Robert Holland, Levent Dirikolu, Thomas Tobin

Maxwell H. Gluck Equine Research Center Faculty Publications

Nikethamide, N,N-diethyl-3-pyridinecarboxamide (Coramine®) is a central nervous system stimulant at one time used therapeutically in human medicine but no longer marketed in the US. Nikethamide is classified a Drug Class 1, Penalty Class A substance by the Association of Racing Commissioners International (ARCI) and as a Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) SO or banned Stimulant that lacks FDA approval. Identifications of Nikethamide or its metabolite N-Ethylnicotinamide in racing samples can result in significant penalties in horse racing. Nikethamide is rapidly metabolized to N-Ethylnicotinamide, which remains detectable in plasma and urine leading to its use as a regulatory “marker” of …

Transformer Models For Paraphrase Detection: A Comprehensive Semantic Similarity Study, Dianeliz Ortiz Martes, Evan Gunderson, Caitlin Neuman, Nezamoddin N. Kachouie

Mathematics and System Engineering Faculty Publications

Semantic similarity, the task of determining whether two sentences convey the same meaning, is central to applications such as paraphrase detection, semantic search, and question answering. Despite the widespread adoption of transformer-based models for this task, their performance is influenced by both the choice of similarity measure and BERT (bert-base-nli-mean-tokens), RoBERTa (all-roberta-large-v1), and MPNet (all-mpnet-base-v2) on the Microsoft Research Paraphrase Corpus (MRPC). Sentence embeddings were compared using cosine similarity, dot product, Manhattan distance, and Euclidean distance, with thresholds optimized for accuracy, balanced accuracy, and F1-score. Results indicate a consistent advantage for MPNet, which achieved the highest accuracy (75.6%), balanced accuracy …

What Shapes Environmental Identity: Insights From Highly Environmentally Literate Students, Marušić-Jablanović Milica, Zorica Stanišić, Jelena Stanišić, Dragana Gundogan, Tom Marcinkowski

Mathematics and System Engineering Faculty Publications

The paper aimed to describe features of the environmental identity of primary school students (age 13-14) in Serbia, as well as the experiences they find most influential in shaping their environmental identity. Specifically, students from the two best-performing classes (N=34), based on their scores on environmental literacy assessment responded to an open-ended questionnaire regarding their relationship with nature and the most important experiences shaping this relationship, in both private and school contexts. The students offered evidence of features of their environmental identity in terms of: environmental affect-sensitivity, environmental concern, moral reasoning, as well as pro-environmental behavior as its correlate. Both …

Subject-Independent Cuff-Less Blood Pressure Monitoring Via Multivariate Analysis Of Finger/Toe Photoplethysmography And Electrocardiogram Data, Seyedmohsen Dehghanojamahalleh, Peshala Thibbotuwawa Gamage, Mohammad Ahmed, Cassondra Petersen, Brianna Matthew, Kesha Hyacinth, Yasith Weerasinghe, Ersoy Subasi, Munevver Mine Subasi, Kaya Mehmet

Mathematics and System Engineering Faculty Publications

(1) Background: Blood pressure (BP) variability is an important risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. Still, existing BP monitoring methods often require periodic cuff-based measurements, raising concerns about their accuracy and convenience. This study aims to develop a subject-independent, cuff-less BP estimation method using finger and toe photoplethysmography (PPG) signals combined with an electrocardiogram (ECG) without the need for an initial cuff-based measurement. (2) Methods: A customized measurement system was used to record 80 readings from human subjects. Fifteen features with the highest dependency on the reference BP, including time and morphological characteristics of PPG and subject information, were analyzed. A …

Combination Of Hsp90 Inhibitors And Hsp70 Inducers Prevent Hydrochloric Acid-Induced Pulmonary Fibrosis In Rabbits, Ruben M. L. Colunga Biancatelli, Pavel A. Solopov, Tierney Day, Dan E. Austin Jr., Len E. Murray, John D. Catravas

Bioelectrics Publications

Combined therapies with Heat Shock Protein 90 (HSP90) inhibitors and Heat Shock Protein 70 (HSP70) inducers are gaining significant interest in cancer and cardiovascular research. Here, we tested the hypothesis that HSP90 inhibitors and HSP70 inducers, together, can block the development of pulmonary fibrosis. We exposed New Zealand White Rabbits to hydrochloric acid (HCl, 0.1 N, 1.5 mL/kg), one of the top five chemicals most commonly involved in accidental exposures and inhalation injuries worldwide, and treated animals with either the orally available HSP90 inhibitor TAS-116 (1.7 mg/kg 5x/week) or TAS-116 combined with the HSP70 inducer, geranylgeranyl acetone (GGA, 50 mg/kg, …

Potentiation Of Gelonin Cytotoxicity By Pulsed Electric Fields, Olga N. Pakhomova, Eleni Zivla, Giedre Silkuniene, Mantas Silkunas, Andrei G. Pakhomov

Bioelectrics Publications

Gelonin is a ribosome-inactivating protein with extreme intracellular toxicity but poor permeation into cells. Targeted disruption of cell membranes to facilitate gelonin entry is explored for cancer and tissue ablation. We demonstrate a hundreds- to thousands-fold enhancement of gelonin cytotoxicity by pulsed electric fields in the T24, U-87, and CT26 cell lines. The effective gelonin concentration to kill 50% of cells (EC₅₀) after electroporation ranged from <1 nM to about 100 nM. For intact cells, the EC₅₀ was unattainable even at the highest gelonin concentration of 1000 nM, which reduced cell survival by only 5–15%. For isoeffective electroporation treatments using 300 ns, 9 µs, and 100 µs pulses, longer pulses were more efficient at lowering gelonin EC₅₀. Increasing the electric field strength of 8, 100 µs pulses from 0.65 to 1.25 kV/cm reduced gelonin EC₅₀ from 128 nM to 0.72 nM. Conversely, the presence of 100 nM gelonin enabled a more than 20-fold reduction in the number of pulses required for equivalent cell killing. Pulsed electric field-mediated delivery of gelonin shows promise for hyperplasia ablation at concentrations sufficiently low to minimize or avoid systemic toxicity.

The Effect Of Liquid Conductivity On A Helium Plasma Jet And The Hydrogen Peroxide Production, Edwin A. Oshin, M. Ziaur Rahman, Chunqi Jiang

Bioelectrics Publications

Understanding plasma-liquid interactions and the impact of the electrical conductivity (σ) of liquid on plasma is important for plasma applications in water treatment and medicine. Ultrapure water, phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) solution, biological media, and sodium chloride (NaCl) solutions at various concentrations were used in this study to provide a broad range of conductivity values ranging from 0.055 μS cm⁻¹ to 222 mS cm⁻¹. A helium atmospheric pressure plasma jet (APPJ) impinging on liquid was generated in ambient air using a hollow-needle electrode that was powered by 200 ns, 7 kV pulses at a pulse repetition frequency of …

The Ptp4a3 Inhibitor Kvx-053 Reduces Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (Sars-Cov-2) Virulence, Inflammation, And Development Of Acute Lung Injury In K18-Hace2 Mice, Ruben M. L. Colunga-Biancatelli, Pavel A. Solopov, Caitlin M. Woodson, Irving Coy Allen, Ivan Akhrymuk, Maryna Akhrymuk, Brittany N. Heath, Hannah M. Ivester, Tierney Day, Dan E. Austin, Kylene Kehn-Hall, John S. Lazo, Elizabeth R. Sharlow, John D. Catravas

Bioelectrics Publications

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has caused a global health crisis, marked by high transmissibility and virulence. Despite widespread vaccination efforts, effective treatments for COVID-19, particularly for severe cases leading to Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), remain limited. This study investigates the efficacy of KVX-053, a protein tyrosine phosphatase type IVA (PTP4A3) small molecule inhibitor, in modulating SARS-CoV-2-induced inflammation and lung injury using in vitro cell models and in vivo K18-hACE2 transgenic mice. KVX-053 reduced in vitro pro-inflammatory cytokine expression, including TNFα, CXCL10, and CXCL11, without impacting viral replication or cell viability. K18-hACE2 mice treated with KVX-053 demonstrated …

Determining The Transient Electric Field And The Effect Of Pulse Repetition Frequency On The Field In A Repetitive 10-Ns Pulsed Discharge In A Quiescent Ch₄-Air Mixture, Chunqi Jiang

Bioelectrics Publications

The goal of this research is to understand the underlying physics enabled by nanosecond pulsed power in a discharge initiation and the following physicochemical processes that favor lean-fuel plasma ignition for combustion. The hypothesis of this project is that pulsed power waveforms such as the pulse repetition frequency (PRF), voltage amplitude, and dielectric surface alter the reduced electric field during the initiation of the discharge, resulting in different plasma properties, which will vary the physicochemical processes for efficient and selective radical productions. This is especially important for lean-burn combustion and reducing emission.

Investigating The Refugial River Mouth Hypothesis: Assessing The Effects Of Low Salinity Conditions On The Microscopic Life Stages Of Nereocystis Luetkeana, Duncan Jackson

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Populations of Nereocystis luetkeana (bull kelp) have experienced localized extinction events in northern California since 2014 due to multiple stressor events, including the area’s most severe marine heatwave (MHW) to-date. Previous surveys in the region observed that bull kelp recovered and persisted at river mouths following the 2014-2015 MHW, suggesting that river mouths may serve as refugia – the refugial river mouth hypothesis. My study aimed to assess this hypothesis and the long-term stability of these refugia by studying how freshwater influences communities at these sites and bull kelp recruitment. Field surveys of salinity fluctuation and kelp and sea urchin …

Place-Based Learning Practices: A Diptych Case Study Of Human And More-Than-Human Relationality At The Tribal And Western Academic Institutional Interface, Karley M. Rojas-Vienneau

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The ‘Place-Based Learning Practices Project’ is a graduate project under the Native American Studies Department Rou Dalagurr Food Sovereignty Lab and Traditional Ecological Knowledges Institute (FSL). Making contributions at the intersection of Western academia and Indigenous science, it imagines and realizes content, policies, and protocols surrounding two case studies and the larger cal poly humboldt (cph) institution which respect, honor, and uplift Indigenous sovereignty and resurgence in partnership with the Blue Lake Rancheria Tribe and the greater regional tribal community. Encompassing two projects internal and external to the institution, I aim to address the construction of controlled and protective environments …

Jaguar (Panthera Onca) Population Status And Conservation Needs In Panama Revealed Using Spatial Density And Occupancy Models., Rebeca E. Becdach

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Jaguars (Panthera onca) are key predators and the largest felid in the Americas. The species is listed as near threatened globally due to habitat loss, fragmentation, and human persecution. Their population decline can negatively affect the structure and functioning of the ecosystems they inhabit. Conservation efforts for jaguars and their habitat require understanding jaguar populations and how they are impacted by human presence across their range. This information is lacking in Panama, a critical portion of the Jaguar range. Panama forms a narrow land bridge connecting Central and South America, integral to wildlife movement, including jaguars, across both …

Grade-Band Instructional Framework Using Art Integration As A Social Emotional Learning Tool To Increase Accessibility And Equity For All Learners, Greta Dodson Turney

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Based on my experiences in education, I endeavored to develop a sustainable grade-band instructional curriculum integrating art as a low-floor, high-ceiling, social-emotional learning tool to increase accessibility and equity for all learners while addressing the need for social interaction to abate the increase in violence, mental health issues, and the feelings many students have that they are unworthy of success. To achieve this framework and promote sustainability, I mapped the curriculum currently available at a rural California school district, identified techniques for teaching three or more grades in one classroom, and I designed a program to cover all standards through …

Our Stories Of Coming Home: Project Rebound Student Experiences At Cal Poly Humboldt And College Of The Redwoods, Eddie Peña

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The explosion of the prison population over the last 50 years has dramatically increased the number of people in the reentry process. Understanding the reentry process, and how students connected to Project Rebound experience reentry is crucial to developing prescriptive services that will support student success. The study used semi-structured interviews and open-ended questions. The questions focused on the time before release, immediately after release, and future goals. Interviews were coded line-by-line and themes were discovered using a modified Grounded Research approach. Results suggest being incarcerated and the reentry process comes with mixed emotions. Students felt anxious and afraid in …

The Experience Of Child Language Brokering In Latin/Hispanic Students: Understanding How Clb Shapes Attitudes Towards Higher Education, Noemi Maldonado

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Immigrants often pursuing a better life than that in their own places of birth migrate to the states. In order to make lives in the states they bring their families with them or begin to create their own already inside the host country. With little knowledge of the place, they arrive and with nothing more than the help of their children, they seek to find a place in the society they became a part of. Immigrant children or those who come from migrant families often must help their parents, caretakers, or extended family manage the English language and American culture …

Using Behavior Skills Training To Teach Independent Living Skills, Jeanavy Marie Perez

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

As young adults transition into adulthood, they are recognized as transition-age youth (TAY) with varying levels of experience and independent skills. TAY may need training in certain independent living skills to help them be successful adults. There are varying workshops, trainings, and interventions that approach teaching relevant skills. Behavior skills training (BST) is an evidence-based behavioral intervention utilized in applied behavior analysis (ABA). BST consists of four learning components: instructions, modeling, practice, and feedback. BST can teach a variety of skills. Social skills training (SST) aims to teach behaviors that expand an individual's behavioral repertoire through the acquisition of adaptive …

Brokered Violence: Safety For Sale In The Free Marketplace Of Data, Sam Adler, Thomas E. Kadri, Chinmayi Sharma

Popular Media

This article exposes how the unregulated data broker industry fuels violence by selling detailed personal information gathered from public records, social media, and private sources. Drawing on the Minnesota assassinations and other cases, it shows how such data enables stalking, harassment, and targeted attacks. The piece critiques state and federal laws like California’s DELETE Act and New Jersey’s Daniel’s Law for leaving victims to navigate slow, fragmented removal processes. It proposes a centralized victim registry with rapid compliance requirements, shifting responsibility to brokers. Finally, it challenges the industry’s First Amendment defense, urging legal reforms that prioritize public safety over commercial …

Anabolic Properties Of The Progestin Altrenogest And Its Regulation As An Environmental Substance In Horse Racing – Review And Analysis, Andreas F. Lehner, Levent Dirikolu, Sarah Jacob, Kimberly Brewer, Abelardo Morales Briceñoe, Robert Holland, George Maylin, Clara Fenger, Thomas Tobin

Maxwell H. Gluck Equine Research Center Faculty Publications

Altrenogest is a progestogen substance used in equine medicine for the synchronization of ovulation during the spring breeding season and the control of estrus in mares. It accomplishes its actions by down-regulation of endometrial progesterone receptors and repression of estrogen receptor transcriptional activation. However, various groups have also measured androgen receptor binding activity for altrenogest in vitro; these findings combined with androgenic and anabolic properties roughly 1/20 in potency of testosterone and its structural similarity to the anabolic steroid trenbolone have created concerns among racing authorities of altrenogest’s potential abilities to alter the outcome of equine athletic performance, even though …

Wellness And The Tax Law, Leigh Z. Osofsky

Georgia Law Review

The tax law has long provided extensive subsidies for “medical care.” These subsidies cost the government hundreds of billions of dollars a year. The definition of medical care, which is at the heart of these subsidies, originated many decades ago at a time when there was little to no conception of wellness.

Times have changed in the medical world. Medical science now emphasizes that wellness practices, like exercise, meditation, and social connection, have an important impact on physical as well as mental health, including by playing a significant role in preventing and treating disease. Under the tax statute, medical care …

The Grey Market’S Ability To Be Black And White: Regulating For Fraud In Online Marketplaces Beyond The Inform Consumers Act, Jack A. Cofer

Georgia Law Review

The rapid expansion of e-commerce and the rise of secondary online marketplaces, amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic, have fundamentally altered consumer shopping behaviors. These marketplaces entice online shoppers with appealing benefits, such as sustainability, wallet-friendly pre-owned selections, or by simply offering what no one else can—accessibility. However, as demand for coveted goods outpaces supply, grey-market transactions flourish, exposing consumers to a risk of counterfeit and illicit products.

This Note examines the INFORM Consumers Act, a regulatory framework aimed at enhancing transparency within secondary online marketplaces by imposing disclosure requirements on certain third-party sellers. While the Act represents a significant step …

Let The Punishment Fit The Crime: Interpreting Application Of Joint And Several Liability To Criminal Asset Forfeiture Post-Honeycutt, Anna Gowen

Georgia Law Review

This Note analyzes the intricacies surrounding the application of joint and several liability to criminal asset forfeiture, particularly following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Honeycutt v. United States. Starting with a historical analysis of asset forfeiture’s early use in civil contexts to the application of forfeiture in the criminal context under statutes like RICO, this Note addresses the tension between the Eighth Amendment right to receive punishment proportional to the crime and the government’s incentives to pursue forfeitable assets. This Note then recounts a previous circuit split over the permissibility of joint and several liability in criminal asset …

Georgia’S Failure To Accommodate Its Disabled Citizens, Daniel T. Witcher

Georgia Law Review

Workplace discrimination against individuals with disabilities is, unfortunately, not unheard of in modern America. At the federal level, Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act (the ADA) takes special aim at alleviating workplace disability discrimination. At the state level, most states have adopted statutory regimes heavily influenced by, if not identical to, Title I. Yet a small minority of states, including Georgia, have not.

This Note examines the implications of this decision. First, this Note briefly describes the ADA’s substantive workplace disability discrimination provisions and illustrates how Georgia stands with the distinct minority of states in refusing to adopt …