Digital Commons Network^™

Three Essays On Social Security Retirement Age Reform And Its Implications For Older Adults, Halim Yoon

Dissertations - ALL

Rising life expectancy and declining fertility rates have led to rapid population aging in many countries. To address the resulting fiscal pressures on social insurance programs and encourage longer labor force participation among older adults, many countries have reformed their public pension systems. In the United States, the Social Security Amendments of 1983 gradually increased the Full Retirement Age (FRA)—the age of eligibility for full, unreduced Social Security benefits—from 65 to 67. While prior research has extensively examined whether this reform delayed Social Security claiming and retirement, much less is known about its broader and longer-term consequences for well-being, including …

Substance Use From Adolescence To Midlife: The Influence Of Religiosity, Childhood Aversity, And Sexual Minority Status, Joshua Glenn Grove

Dissertations - ALL

Substance use is a leading cause of premature mortality in the United States, with overdose and alcohol-related deaths rising sharply in adulthood and midlife. Religiosity is among the most well-documented social factors associated with lower substance use, operating through community ties, behavioral norms, and meaning-making. Yet despite the life course nature of substance use, research has centered primarily on adolescence, relied on cross-sectional data, and typically employed single measures of religiosity. Consequently, it remains unclear whether religiosity functions similarly across its multiple dimensions or among populations exposed to heightened social disadvantage, including individuals with adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and sexual …

Image Restoration Regularized By Structured Sparsity Promoting Functions: Theory, Algorithms, And Applications, Jianchen Wei

Dissertations - ALL

Image restoration aims to recover an unknown clean image from observations degraded by blur, subsampling, missing pixels, or noise. This dissertation develops and analyzes variational image restoration models based on structured sparsity promoting functions (SSPFs) and their Moreau-enveloped regularization. The main objective is to design nonconvex regularization models that promote structured sparsity in transformed image representations while remaining analytically tractable and computationally effective. The first part of the dissertation studies an SSPF regularized image restoration model. Under the identifiability condition $\ker(A)\cap \ker(B)=\{\bm0\}$, where $A$ is a linear forward degradation operator and $B$ is a transform operator used to extract image …

The Unintended Consequences Of Deregulating Confidential Treatments, Jiahui Han

Dissertations - ALL

This paper examines how the SEC’s deregulation of confidential treatment under the FAST Act affected firms’ material contract redaction behavior and the broader economic consequences associated with disclosure opacity. Using a large sample of SEC filings, I document that confidential treatment is positively associated with both product market competition and lower 10-K readability, suggesting that redaction reflects both proprietary protection incentives and broader disclosure opacity. Further analyses using abnormal file size show that discretionary disclosure complexity remains significantly associated with redaction behavior after controlling for firms’ underlying economic complexity and reporting environment. I further find that the association between redaction …

Marble Bodies: Sculpture, Gender, Race, And Nineteenth-Century U.S. Literature, Madeline Olley

Dissertations - ALL

Marble Bodies reads across both literary texts and sculptures to ask how sculptural logic operates across forms to reveal what sculptors and sculpture offer the field of nineteenth-century U.S. literary studies—formally, theoretically, and methodologically. It argues that sculpture functions not merely as subject matter within nineteenth-century American literature but as an interpretive framework that reveals how bodies are objectified, valued, and assigned cultural meaning. With attention to the formal and material properties of sculpture—stillness, smoothness, and duration—and to the questions of ideality, valuation, and preservation that sculpture generates, this dissertation shows how nineteenth-century writers and artists found in those properties …

Aging Alone In Malaysia: Social Challenges And Legal Protections, Jal Zabdi Mohd Yusoff, Zulazhar Tahir, Siti Zaharah Jamaluddin

Hasanuddin Law Review

According to The Japan Times, nearly 28,000 elderly individuals in Japan will die alone in the first half of 2024. This alarming trend is not unique to Japan; many countries, including Malaysia, are facing the challenges of an aging population. As Malaysia approaches becoming an aging nation, issues affecting the elderly, particularly those living alone, demand urgent attention. While not all elderly people face the same circumstances, some enjoy stable finances or live with their family, while others live in isolation due to various factors, such as remaining unmarried, widowhood, or estranged familial ties. Some are simply separated by their …

Presentation – The Crel Framework: Structuring Ttrpgs For Real Learning, Cristo Leon

STEM for Success Resources

Welcome everyone. I want to begin not with a definition, but with an image. This poster is not only announcing an event. It is showing what role-playing games do. They gather many worlds into a shared space. In this image, the shamanic figure becomes a bridge among languages, traditions, stories, disciplines, and communities. That is also the purpose of the 10th International Colloquium on Role-Playing Game Studies: to create a space where people who care about role-playing games can meet, listen, connect, and recognize the knowledge already being created through play.

Weighted Average Ensemble Learning Model For Improving Brain Tumor Classification, Laith H. Alhasnawy, Hasanain Ali Al Essa, Tahseen A. Wotaifi, Abbas F. Hommadi, Ameer K. Al-Mashanji

Baghdad Science Journal

The detection of Brain Tumors (BTs) is of great benefit in identifying the growth of dangerous cells in the brain that pose a threat to the patient's life. Early detection of BTs remains a significant challenge due to subtle differences among tumor types and the complexity of brain anatomy. Manual diagnosis by radiologists is often time-consuming and subject to variations, which may delay treatment. Among available imaging techniques, Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is widely used because of its high-resolution capabilities. Deep Learning (DL) has achieved remarkable success in image classification tasks through Transfer Learning (TL), which utilizes pre-trained models. Therefore, …

Predictive Mobility-Aware Analysis Of Controller Overhead In Sdn-Enabled Iot, Abdulrahman Saidu, Kamalrulnizam Bin Abu Bakar, Babangida Isyaku, Muhammad Nura Yusuf, Farkhana Binti Muchtar

Baghdad Science Journal

The rapid growth and increasing mobility of Internet of Things (IoT) mobile devices significantly intensify flow setup requests in Software-Defined Networking (SDN). Frequent movement of mobile devices across access points triggers repeated flow rule installations in data-plane switches, leading to excessive controller overhead under limited flow-table memory capacity. Inaccurate mobility prediction in existing approaches further aggravates this challenge by causing unnecessary rule placement and redundant flow setup requests. This study investigates the impact of mobility-aware prediction on controller overhead with experimental scenarios using different groups of mobile IoT devices, while considering controller CPU and memory utilization. A proactive mobility prediction …

Examining Nitrate Concentrations In Rainwater In The Marine Boundary Layer In St. Petersburg, Sam Irvine, Anson Kirsch, Ben Lloyd '25, Yasin Elshorbany, James Ivey

Student Research

Harmful algae blooms (HABs) are a common, natural phenomenon that occur in bodies of water. Karenia brevis is an algae species where, in excess, it can result in red tide events which deplete nutrients in the area, impacting aquatic life and releasing toxic gasses. Past research shows that K. brevis can grow through nutrient absorption in response to excess nitrate in water. This project sought to examine whether nitrates from rainfall are responsible for creating an increase in nitrogen concentrations in the water surrounding St. Petersburg which can lead to algae bloom growth. Results showed that rainwater has higher concentrations …

Data Scheduling Using Distance Function With Single-Pass Processing, Mahmood Shakir Hammoodi, Suhad Hatim Jihad, Mithal Hadi Jebur

Baghdad Science Journal

Task scheduling is one of the most fundamental difficulties confronting numerous sectors, including education, healthcare, and industrial management. Scheduling quality has a direct impact on performance efficiency, resource utilization, and end user satisfaction. With the growing volume and diversity of data, there is a greater demand for intelligent systems that can handle the spatial and temporal complexity of jobs and resource allocation. As a result, modern data analysis and decision-making processes have become critical for ensuring workflow optimization while reducing time and space waste. This study proposes an innovative approach to task scheduling that combines multidimensional data analysis using Data …

Assessing Clinician Preference For Redirection Of Care In Neonatal Tracheostomies, Gabriella Destefano, Alla Kushnir, Perri Donenfeld

Cooper Rowan Medical Journal

A spectrum of indications exists for the implementation of neonatal tracheostomies, ranging from short-term airway control to congenital airway anomalies. The decision to initiate long-term mechanical ventilation is multifaceted and can be influenced by factors such as physician preferences, caregivers’ attitudes, and comorbidities. It is important to have an ethical framework in place to guide the treatment of preterm neonates who may require long term mechanical ventilation. This study examines physician perspectives on the ethics of neonatal tracheostomy, focusing on the treatment of infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia. A mixed methods study, consisting of demographic information and 5 clinical vignettes centering …

Cardozo Law News Brief: June 26, 2026, Benjamin N. Cardozo School Of Law

Cardozo Law News Briefs

Highlights from the June 26, 2026 Cardozo Law News Brief include:

• Cardozo celebrated the Class of 2026 at its 48th Commencement, honoring 304 J.D. graduates and 64 LL.M. graduates as they prepared to begin their legal careers.
• Professor Gary Galperin spoke to The Guardian and was quoted in The Wall Street Journal about the defense strategy in the Luigi Mangione case, discussing the likelihood of a psychiatric defense.

Faculty news includes:

• Sarah Chu, Director of Policy & Reform at the Perlmutter Center for Legal Justice, published her paper "Move Fast and Strengthen Justice: A Framework for Responsible Technology Adoption" …

U.S. Service Member To Counseling Student, Nicole Marie Arcuri-Sanders, Kellie Forziat-Pytel

Educational Sciences and Organizations

This qualitative descriptive study examines the absence of military career pathways for licensed mental health counselors (MHCs) and the impact of this structural limitation on service members' career transitions. Findings indicate that both combat and non-combat veterans pursued mental health counseling due to personal service-related mental health experiences and dissatisfaction with available care while in service. Despite these challenges, many participants expressed a strong desire to continue serving their country as professional counselors. Over half of the participants reported separating from the military because no occupational role existed for licensed MHCs. At the same time, most indicated they would have …

Effect Of 3d Printing Orientation And Fabrication Techniques On The Marginal Adaptation Of Obturator Bases At The Defect Margin, Loshni.S Sagaran

Student Works (2020-2029)

Marginal adaptation of an obturator at the maxillary defect margin is essential for achieving an effective oronasal seal and satisfactory prosthetic function. However, evidence regarding the effects of fabrication techniques and 3D-printing build orientation on obturator-base adaptation remains limited. This in vitro experimental study assessed marginal adaptation of obturator bases at the maxillary defect margin and examined the effects of 3D-printing build orientation and fabrication technique/material. Fifty obturator bases were fabricated on an edentulous maxillary master cast with a Class I midline defect in two phases. In Phase I, obturator bases were 3D printed at 0°, 45°, and 90° build …

Long-Term Shoreline Evolution And Anthropogenic Impact: Evidence From 76 Years Of Coastal Change In Mazagón, Spain, M. Fernández-Hernández, M. Pastor, L. Iglesias, R. Castedo, K. S. Sajinkumar

Michigan Tech Publications

The Mazagón coast (Huelva, southwestern Spain) illustrates the strong imprint of anthropogenic interventions on shoreline dynamics. This study evaluates its evolution between 1946 and 2022 by digitizing historical shorelines from aerial photographs and quantifying changes through three complementary indicators: Net Shoreline Movement (NSM), End Point Rate (EPR), and Linear Regression Rate (LRR). Statistical analyses (ANOVA and Tukey’s test) were performed to assess differences between pre- and post-construction phases of the Juan Carlos I breakwater. The results indicate a prevailing erosive trend, with mean retreat rates of − 1.4 m/yr and localized shoreline losses exceeding 100 m. Prior to the breakwater, …

Seeing Is Believing: Mental Imagery Amplifies Moral, Emotional, And Motivational Responding To Mentally Constructed Hypothetical Events, Julie L. Ji, Adam S. Radomsky, Jackie Andrade

School of Psychology

Mental imagery is theorised to support important mental simulation processes, yet there remains little direct evidence of its functional impact on affective, moral, and motivation outcomes. This study examined whether the ability to generate visual mental imagery amplifies “as-if-real” responding to a mentally constructed harm event. Using a modified laboratory harm provocation paradigm, Aphantasics (individuals with no or minimal visual imagery; N = 32) and Visualisers (those with normal to high imagery ability; N = 48) were asked to write down the sentence “I hope [name of a loved one] is in a car accident”, followed by instructed mental simulation …

Isolation, Molecular Identification, And Biofilm Characterisation Of Klebsiella Pneumoniae From Clinical Specimens, With Evaluation Of Probiotic Lactobacillus Fermentum-Mediated Anti-Biofilm Activity, Sophy Ps

Muthanna Medical Journal

Background: Healthcare-associated infections caused by Klebsiella pneumoniae infection are increasingly associated with indwelling medical devices due to the organism's strong biofilm-forming ability, which enhances resistance to antibiotics and host immune responses. This study evaluated the biofilm-forming potential of clinical Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates and investigated the anti-biofilm activity of Lactobacillus fermentum under in vitro conditions. Methods: Fifteen clinical specimens, including catheter tips (n=6), sputum (n=5), and urine (n=4), were collected between September and December 2012. Isolates were identified using morphological and biochemical tests. Biofilm formation was assessed using the crystal violet microtiter plate assay. Molecular confirmation involved 16S rRNA gene sequencing …

Knowledge, Attitudes, And Practice Of Iraqi Parents Regarding The Issues Of Vaccinating Their Children, Taqi Mohammed Jwad Taher, Rami Bahaa Saadi, Rand Sadik Al Radhy, Mohanad Aljama, Houreleen H Salman, Mayameen H Salman, Mustafa Sabeeh Lafta Zubaidi, Shaymaa Abdul Lateef Al-Fadhul, Mohammed Firas Turki, Hasanain Faisal Ghazi

Muthanna Medical Journal

Background: Children's vaccination can help in the prevention and protection against various fatal illnesses. Aims: This study aims to assess the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of both parents toward their children's vaccinations. Methods: This is a cross-sectional analytical study of Iraqi parents in Wasit province. Data was collected through self-administered questionnaires that were developed from published research and adapted according to local culture. Data was collected from three primary health care centres in Kut City, Wasit province, for 255 parents who visited centres with their children for any reason from the first of April 2023 to the thirteenth of July …

The Multitargeted Cellular Spectrum Of Quercetin: Ameliorating Xenobiotic Toxicities And Metabolic Disorders, Wissam Sajid Hashim

Muthanna Medical Journal

Quercetin, a prominent dietary flavonol, exhibits a diverse range of biological activities that extend beyond simple free-radical scavenging, encompassing vital cytoprotective, membrane-stabilizing, and metabolic-regulatory properties.¹ This comprehensive review elucidates the multifaceted pharmacological spectrum of quercetin in restoring physiological homeostasis under conditions of xenobiotic insults and metabolic stress.² Specifically, we synthesize experimental and clinical evidence—including pivotal comparative studies to demonstrate quercetin's exceptional capacity to regulate systemic lipid profiles, preserve hemorheological parameters, and maintain cellular membrane integrity across vital systems.^3,4 Furthermore, this review highlights the therapeutic efficacy of quercetin in mitigating industrial and environmental xenobiotic-induced toxicities, with particular emphasis …

Rethinking African Security In The Anthropocene: An Alternative Framework, Hamdy A. Hassan

All Works

Introduction – Traditional approaches to African security often treat neocolonialism, governance failures, and terrorism as isolated issues, obscuring their systemic interconnections under Anthropocene conditions of human-induced environmental change. This study argues that African security should be reconceptualized in light of climate change, resource depletion, and ecosystem degradation, as these dynamics reshape the continent's collective security arrangements. Methods – This research combines critical analysis of African collective security mechanisms, focusing on the African Union and the African Peace and Security Architecture, with qualitative evidence from 15 unstructured interviews conducted in Mali, Nigeria, and Egypt between July and October 2025. Thematic qualitative …

Ralph Carter V. Adam Baumcratz

2026 Decisions

USDC for the Western District of Pennsylvania

Binding Energy Of Muonic Beryllium: Perturbative Versus All-Order Calculations, Shikha Rathi, Ulrich D. Jentschura, Paul Indelicato, Ben Ohayon

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

We compute the ground-state binding energy of muonic (Formula presented) (Formula presented) Be in two ways: first, the fully perturbative treatment of the nuclear-size effect often employed in light systems, and second, an approach that accounts for the finite-nuclear-size to all orders (and is inspired by calculations otherwise employed for heavy muonic ions). The results are compared term by term and show that both approaches agree to better than one part-per-million of the total energy. The objective of this work is twofold. The first is practical: to provide a parameterization that allows the extraction of the (Formula presented) (Formula presented) …

Client Communication Strategy Pitch Deck, Staci Thomas

Generative AI Teaching Activities

Business Client Communication Strategy - Pitch Deck

Heritage Without Equity: Afro-Descendant Representation, State Governance, Museums And The Limits Of Cultural Policy In Belize, Sherilyne L. Jones

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines how heritage governance in Belize shapes the representation, recognition, and participation of Afro-descendant communities within national cultural institutions and policy frameworks. Focusing on Creole/Kriol and Garifuna communities, the study analyses how law, institutional designs, museum practises, tourism development, and community-based heritage work to produce uneven forms of cultural visibility. I argue that Afro-descendant communities are not absent from Belizean heritage. Rather, their cultural presence has not consistently translated into institutional authority, sustained investments, or meaningful participation in decisions about national representation. Drawing on critical heritage theory, critical museology, post-colonial scholarship, and the concept of authorised heritage discourse, …

Trauma-Informed Care In Residential Settings: Staff Perceptions And The Impact Of The Prevent-Teach-Reinforce Model With Trauma-Informed Principles, Marissa L. Del Vecchio

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Trauma-informed care (TIC) has been recognized as a critical framework for supporting individuals on the autism spectrum, intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) and those within residential facilities given their heightened risk for experiencing adverse events, including trauma. However, the development and evaluation of a trauma-informed behavior analytic assessment and intervention approach is lacking. Although behavior analysts frequently target behaviors associated with trauma, research suggests that many practitioners have limited training, supervision and competence in TIC, despite widespread recognition of its importance. The Prevent-Teach-Reinforce (PTR) model may be a promising approach to address these limitations, as its practices align closely with …

Multi-Modal Survival Prediction On Breast Cancer Mammograms And Enabling Multi-Institutional Collaborations With Federated Learning, Nikolas Koutsoubis

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Cancer remains one of the leading causes of mortality worldwide, and machine learning is well positioned to leverage the large volumes of routinely collected clinical and imaging data to improve patient outcomes. Realizing this potential at scale requires three capabilities that current practice does not yet deliver in combination: models that integrate the multiple data modalities clinicians use, training procedures that respect institutional data-sharing constraints, and tooling that enables sharing of de-identified data when federated approaches are not sufficient. This dissertation develops methods and infrastructure addressing each of these capabilities in the context of breast cancer and oncology more broadly. …

Testimonios From Latine Educational Leaders Supporting Youth Development Programs, Luis E. Feliciano

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The United States has been experiencing a demographic change for the last twenty years representing a rise in both Latiné students and families. Despite this demographic change, Latiné folk remain widely underrepresented in school leadership, and furthermore underrepresented in specific Youth Development Programs (YDPs), with the relationship between educational leaders and YDPs being widely unexplored in academia. This study sought to bridge the gap between YDPs and educational leadership, specifically for Latiné folk by asking how Latiné educational leaders used their cultural heritage to encourage YDP development. To accomplish this a testimonio methodology was implemented via a two staged interview …

Evaluating The Role Of Individual Differences: Impact On Fruit And Vegetable Intake Outcomes In Nourish-T+ Caregivers Of Pediatric Cancer Survivors, Sandra Soca Lozano

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Pediatric cancer survivors are at increased risk for obesity and related long-term health complications, highlighting the need for interventions promoting healthy lifestyle behaviors during survivorship. The present study examined caregivers’ fruit and vegetable intake in the full NOURISH-T+ intervention and evaluated whether their dietary outcomes changed from baseline to the 3-month post-assessment and differed by selected caregiver sociodemographic characteristics. The study also examined whether these characteristics accounted for variance in 3-month fruit and vegetable outcomes. Participants included 68 caregivers in the full NOURISH-T+ condition who completed both baseline and 3-month post-assessments. Fruit and vegetable intake was assessed using the Healthy …

Interpreting Discrepant Multi-Informant Data: Examining School Psychologists’ Decision-Making Processes With Social-Emotional And Behavioral Assessment, Thomas Koza

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Multi-informant assessment is a common method used by school psychologists to collect data on students' social-emotional and behavioral concerns across the three tiers of the Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) framework. While this data can provide a comprehensive understanding of student functioning, informant discrepancies are common, and little is known about how school psychologists make sense of discrepant data or whether using structured frameworks can support their interpretation. This dissertation used an experimental mixed-methods design with vignettes to examine how school psychologists interpret discrepant multi-informant social-emotional and behavioral assessment data and whether exposure to a structured framework influenced this process. …