Digital Commons Network^™

The Intangible Divide: Why Do So Few Firms Invest In Innovation?, James Bessen, Xiupeng Wang

Faculty Scholarship

Investments in software, R&D, and advertising have grown rapidly, now approaching half of U.S. private nonresidential investment. Yet just a few hundred firms account for almost all this growth. Most firms, including many large ones, regularly invest little in capitalized software and R&D, and this "intangible divide" has surprisingly deepened as intangible prices have fallen relative to other assets. Using comprehensive US Census microdata, we document these patterns and explore a variety of factors associated with intangible investment. We find that firms invest significantly less in innovation-related intangibles when their rivals invest more. One firm's investment can obsolesce rivals' investments, …

Common Measures Of Vaccination Intention Generate Substantially Different Estimates That Can Reduce Predictive Validity, Jessica Fishman, K. Aleks Schaefer, Daniel Scheitrum, Christopher Robertson, Dolores Albarracin

Faculty Scholarship

Surveys often estimate vaccination intentions using dichotomous ("Yes"/"No") or trichotomous ("Yes," "Unsure," "No") response options presented in different orders. Do survey results depend on these variations? This controlled experiment randomized participants to dichotomous or trichotomous measures of vaccine intentions (with “Yes” and “No” options presented in different orders). Intentions were measured separately for COVID-19, its booster, and influenza vaccines. Among a sample of U.S. adults (N = 4,764), estimates of vaccine intention varied as much as 37.5 ± 17.4 percentage points as a function of the dichotomous or trichotomous response set. Among participants who had not received the COVID-19 vaccine, …

Evolving Corporate Philanthropy, David I. Walker

Faculty Scholarship

With the rise of corporate ESG initiatives and public benefit corporations, corporate philanthropy is evolving from an emphasis on cash contributions (contributional philanthropy) to an emphasis on adjusting operations to advance the public good (operational philanthropy). All forms of corporate philanthropy are controversial, but this article evaluates the impact of this evolution on the relative benefits and concerns of corporate philanthropy, arguing that the shift in emphasis towards operational philanthropy increases the comparative advantage of corporate philanthropy, increases agency costs, both simplifies and complicates shareholder primacy concerns, and increases the difficulty of prescriptively regulating corporate philanthropy through the tax code …

The Role Of The Basolateral Nuclear Complex & Central Nucleus Of The Amygdala In Fear-Conditioned Responses To External Stimuli And Anxiety Responses, Oluwaseyi A. Adelakun

Senior Theses

This thesis reviews the role of the amygdala, particularly the basolateral nuclear complex (BLA) and central nucleus (CeA), in fear-conditioned responses and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). By investigating the neurological and physiological mechanisms that influence the amygdala’s fear and anxiety responses, further connections can be made between this region and other notable brain regions, like the prefrontal cortex (PFC). We review both human and rodent models to explore the overlap between the two and explore various therapeutic interventions that regulate amygdalar activity and therefore mitigate anxiety symptoms. Key research into the patient SM, who lacks fear responses due to bilateral …

Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy In Pregnant And Postpartum Women, Madison G. Kaup

Senior Theses

This project had three main goals: 1) Explore how pregnancy and childbirth affect the female pelvic floor anatomy and physiology, 2) Examine current practices through a literature review and interviews conducted with pelvic floor physical therapists currently practicing in various clinical settings across the United States, and 3) Develop suggestions to mitigate the challenges currently faced in the field by patients and therapists.

The female pelvic floor undergoes extensive changes throughout pregnancy as its structures are targeted by laxity-inducing hormones and mechanical stress from the growing fetus. During childbirth, the system is stretched beyond its physiological limit, causing damage to …

Analysis Of Shock Absorption By Spring-Assisted Crutch Tips, Noah Hirschegger, Daegan Caime, Mohamed Atta

Senior Theses

Angel Consulting was originally created to address the problem of excessive wear and tear on the joints of individuals who use crutches for long periods of time. This company has sought to alleviate these issues with a proprietary spring-assisted crutch tip, which reduces the impact of crutch use and will hopefully be able to assist people in alleviating joint damage and discomfort. The team's main purpose is to determine an optimal metric for both marketability and effectiveness and to test the prototype design to ensure the validity of assistance for people who require chronic crutch use. To do this, we …

Female's Digital Self-Making On Tiktok: Identity Construction Through A Framework Of Postfeminist Media And Neoliberalism (2016-2024), Lindsey A. Pritchard

Senior Theses

This thesis explores the relationship between TikTok's algorithmic design, women's identity construction, and the feminist historical context that shapes these constructions. In Chapter 1, "TikTok, Algorithmic Design, and Self-Making," I analyze how TikTok's algorithm functions and how these factors influence the curation and presentation of identity. This chapter establishes the foundational understanding of TikTok as a platform where identity performance is deeply intertwined with algorithmic design.

Chapter 2, "TikTok Feminism and Identity Commodification" examines the commodification of women's identities on the platform. It investigates the historical context of feminism and its evolution into postfeminism, analyzing how these narratives have been …

Designing An Identity: How Everyday Fashion Forms Latino Identity In The United States, Hailey M. Frick

Senior Theses

This study explores how everyday fashion acts a framework for understanding Latino identity in the United States. By examining the intersection of fashion studies and Latino studies, the research highlights the nuanced ways that Latinos use clothing as a tool for identity formation and expression, using symbolism and community belonging, which is rooted in tradition. Through case studies of individual expressions, the paper reveals how everyday fashion is a form of communication that allows people to negotiate both personal and collective identities. Ultimately, this paper utilizes everyday fashion to understand Latino identity, lives, and communities and their longstanding presence in …

Perceptions Of Virtual Reality In Cardiac Pharmacy Education, Morgan E. Mendes

Senior Theses

Background: The reformation of how educational content is portrayed is not a new phenomenon. However, the world of pharmacy has been slow to adapt, particularly considering higher education’s declining attendance rates and less engaging lectures. XR can be a great addition to learners’ curriculum, particularly VR, with various applications including adjunctive pharmacotherapy, patient counseling, pharmacist training, and pharmacological modeling. Despite the various barriers VR integration faces, the benefits of VR necessitate its future implementation into our COP curriculum as an augmentative form of learning.

Methods: An independent study of 11 students at the UofSC COP was conducted in the Spring …

Efficacy Of, And Barriers To, Treatment Options For Pans/Pandas, Kayla E. Pray

Senior Theses

Background: PANS/PANDAS are pediatric autoimmune disorders that cause an acute-onset of OCD-like symptoms and/or severe restricted eating, as well as anxiety, irritation, deterioration of fine motor skills, hyperactivity, and other psychiatric symptoms. An estimated 1-2% of the pediatric population is affected. Currently, there is little research published on the treatment options for PANS/PANDAS and there is no evidence-based consensus on the best treatment option.

Purpose: This study aimed to discover the efficacy of, and barriers to, available treatment options for PANS/PANDAS.

Methods: A convenience sample of individuals diagnosed with PANS/PANDAS or their parent/caregiver was recruited anonymously through Facebook support groups. …

The Left Ventricle Under Stress: Exploring The Impact Of Gestational Stress On Postpartum Cardiovascular Health, Archana Ramesh

Senior Theses

A woman’s cardiovascular system undergoes several changes to equip it for the physiological demands of pregnancy. The left ventricle (LV) is most susceptible to changes such as increased cardiac output and workload because it is the primary chamber in the heart that pumps oxygenated blood to the entire body. Some mothers may be unable to cope with the physiological demands, and ventricular hypertrophy, along with other cardiac remodeling that takes place during pregnancy, may bring light to underlying cardiovascular disease (CVD). The peripartum period often comes with heightened stress, disproportionately for certain populations, and this stress has been linked with …

A Historical Analysis Of Infant Mortality In South Carolina From 1920-1970, Allison Ritchie

Senior Theses

This study uses Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to investigate racial and spatial inequalities in South Carolina infant mortality rates (IMR’s) between 1920-1970. In the 20th century, IMR’s declined throughout the United States, primarily due to economic growth, increased sanitation, and improved medical knowledge. Factors such as systemic racism and lack of healthcare access resulted in higher IMR’s for Black infants and infants living in rural areas. In 1920, South Carolina’s Black IMR was 1.5 times higher than the white IMR; by 1970 the difference expanded to 1.9, reflecting a 27% rise. The disparity between Black and white IMR’s increased in …

Sensitivity Of Contributing Factors To Heterogeneity Corrections In Dosimetry Of Ocular Brachytherapy Using Iodine-125 Coms Plaques, Yongsook Lee

All Publications

Purpose: To investigate sensitivity of contributing factors to heterogeneity corrections in ocular brachytherapy using iodine-125 (125I) Collaborative Ocular Melanoma Study (COMS) plaques.

Material and methods: Using egs_brachy, Monte Carlo (MC) simulations were performed for 125I COMS plaques (model: IsoAid IAI-125A). Homogeneous dose (DHOMO) was estimated under the American Association of Physicists in Medicine Task Group-43 assumptions, with 85 Gy prescribed to a 5 mm depth. Heterogeneous doses (DHETERO#1-#7) were determined with medium-heterogeneity for the following scenarios: #1. Modulay backing (M) alone, #2. Silastic insert (S) alone, #3. Interseed attenuation effects (I) alone, #4. M + S, #5. M + I, …

Characterization Of Stealth Liposome-Based Nanoparticles Encapsulating Acat1/Soat1 Inhibitor F26: Potential Therapeutics For Niemann-Pick Type C And Other Neurodegenerative Diseases., Junghoon Lee

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

Cholesterol dysregulation is implicated in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson’s disease (PD), Huntington’s disease (HD) and Niemann-Pick type C disease (NPCD). This study focused on evaluating the potent ACAT1 inhibitor, F26, as a therapeutic strategy for NPCD. F26 demonstrated superior ACAT1 inhibition and efficacy compared to the previously studied inhibitor, F12511, both in vitro and in vivo. Notably, F26 exhibited enhanced pharmacokinetic properties, including prolonged duration of action and better brain retention, making it a more promising candidate for treating neurodegenerative diseases.

F26 was encapsulated in a liposome-based nanoparticle system, DSPE-PEG2000 with phosphatidylcholine (PC), for enhancing its …

Forecasting The Effects Of Smoking Prevalence Scenarios On Years Of Life Lost And Life Expectancy From 2022 To 2050: A Systematic Analysis For The Global Burden Of Disease Study 2021, Atulya Khosla

All Publications

Background: Smoking is the leading behavioural risk factor for mortality globally, accounting for more than 175 million deaths and nearly 4·30 billion years of life lost (YLLs) from 1990 to 2021. The pace of decline in smoking prevalence has slowed in recent years for many countries, and although strategies have recently been proposed to achieve tobacco-free generations, none have been implemented to date. Assessing what could happen if current trends in smoking prevalence persist, and what could happen if additional smoking prevalence reductions occur, is important for communicating the effect of potential smoking policies.

Methods: In this analysis, we use …

Global, Regional, And National Burden Of Stroke And Its Risk Factors, 1990-2021: A Systematic Analysis For The Global Burden Of Disease Study 2021, Shahzaib Ahmad

All Publications

Background: Up-to-date estimates of stroke burden and attributable risks and their trends at global, regional, and national levels are essential for evidence-based health care, prevention, and resource allocation planning. We aimed to provide such estimates for the period 1990-2021.

Methods: We estimated incidence, prevalence, death, and disability-adjusted life-year (DALY) counts and age-standardised rates per 100 000 people per year for overall stroke, ischaemic stroke, intracerebral haemorrhage, and subarachnoid haemorrhage, for 204 countries and territories from 1990 to 2021. We also calculated burden of stroke attributable to 23 risk factors and six risk clusters (air pollution, tobacco smoking, behavioural, dietary, environmental, …

Radiopaque Femnn-Mo Composite Drawn Filled Tubing Wires For Braided Absorbable Neurovascular Devices, Adam J. Griebel, Petra Maier, Henry D. Summers, Benjamin Clausius, Isabella Kanasty, Weilue He, Nicholas Peterson, Carolyn Czerniak, Alexander A. Oliver, David F. Kallmes, Ramanathan Kadirvel, Jeremy E. Schaffer, Roger J. Guillory

Michigan Tech Publications

Flow diverter devices are small stents used to divert blood flow away from aneurysms in the brain, stagnating flow and inducing intra-aneurysmal thrombosis which in time will prevent aneurysm rupture. Current devices are formed from thin (∼25 μm) wires which will remain in place long after the aneurysm has been mitigated. As their continued presence could lead to secondary complications, an absorbable flow diverter which dissolves into the body after aneurysm occlusion is desirable. The absorbable metals investigated to date struggle to achieve the necessary combination of strength, elasticity, corrosion rate, fragmentation resistance, radiopacity, and biocompatibility. This work proposes and …

Pancreatic Enzyme Use Reduces Pancreatitis Frequency In Children With Acute Recurrent Or Chronic Pancreatitis: A Report From Insppire, Maisam A Abu-El-Haija, Ankur Chugh, Gretchen A Cress, Douglas S Fishman, Cheryl E Gariepy, Matthew J Giefer, Praveen Goday, Tanja Y Gonska, Amit S Grover, Douglas Lindblad, Quin Y Liu, Asim Maqbool, Jacob A Mark, Brian A Mcferron, Megha S Mehta, Veronique D Morinville, Robert A Noel, Chee Y Ooi, Emily R Perito, Sarah Jane Schwarzenberg, Zachary M Sellers, Michael Wilschanski, Yuhua Zheng, Ying Yuan, Dana K Andersen, Mark E Lowe, Aliye Uc, Consortium For The Study Of Chronic Pancreatitis, Diabetes, And Pancreatic Cancer (Cpdpc)

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Introduction: Among children who suffer from acute recurrent pancreatitis (ARP) or chronic pancreatitis (CP), acute pancreatitis (AP) episodes are painful, often require hospitalization, and contribute to disease complications and progression. Despite this recognition, there are currently no interventions to prevent AP episodes. In this retrospective cohort study, we assessed the impact of pancreatic enzyme therapy (PERT) use on clinical outcomes among children with pancreatic-sufficient ARP or CP.

Methods: Children with pancreatic-sufficient ARP or CP in the INSPPIRE-2 cohort were included. Clinical outcomes were compared for those receiving vs not receiving PERT, as well as frequency of AP before and after …

Perineuronal Nets’ Role In Metabolism, Li Du, Lulu Chen, Yong Xu, Tianshu Zeng

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Perineuronal nets (PNNs), specialized extracellular matrix (ECM) structures that envelop neurons, have recently been recognized as key players in the regulation of metabolism. This review explores the growing body of knowledge concerning PNNs and their role in metabolic control, drawing insights from recent research and relevant studies. The pivotal role of PNNs in the context of energy balance and whole body blood glucose is examined. This review also highlights novel findings, including the effects of astroglia, microglia, sex and gonadal hormones, nutritional regulation, circadian rhythms, and age on PNNs dynamics. These findings illuminate the complex and multifaceted role of PNNs …

Circulating Tumor Cell Count And Overall Survival In Patients With Metastatic Hormone-Sensitive Prostate Cancer, Daniel Bsteh, Tong Xu, Jacek K Pinski, Sue Ingles, Timothy Junius Triche, Gary R Macvicar, Daniel A Vaena, Anthony W Crispino, David James Mcconkey, Primo N Lara, Maha H A Hussain, David I Quinn, Tanya B Dorff, Seth Paul Lerner, Ian Thompson, Neeraj Agarwal

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

IMPORTANCE: In metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer (mHSPC), new first-line combination therapies have enhanced overall survival (OS), but clinical outcomes for individual patients vary greatly and are difficult to predict. Peripheral blood circulating tumor cell (CTC) count is the most extensively validated prognostic liquid biomarker in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC), and recent studies have suggested that it may also be informative in mHSPC.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the prognostic value of CTC count in men with mHSPC.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: In this prognostic study, peripheral blood was drawn at registration (baseline) and at progression to mCRPC in the S1216 study …

Demystifying Hispanic Versus Latino/A Versus Latinx: Which Do Emergency Department Patients Prefer?, James S Ford, Brian Chinnock, Robert M Rodriguez

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

No abstract provided.

Smokejumper Magazine, October 2024, National Smokejumper Association

Smokejumper and Static Line Magazines

This issue of the National Smokejumper Association (NSA) Smokejumper Magazine, contains the following articles: Message from the President; Roger Savage Earns Master's with Historical Jump Database; Ode to My Friend Rod McIver; Milsy's Last Jump; Goat Mountain Fire; Ring of Fire: The Gobi 1966 - Pt. 1; Remembering Steve Wight; Mountain Pine Beetle and Forest Management; Ben Musquez: Vietnam Veteran, Airborne, Smokejumper; Odds and Ends; We All Need to Know Our Smokejumper History; "Animal Ed" Weissenback: The Final Chapter; Notes from the Ranks; The Sleeping Child Fire; Sounding Off from the Editor; Off the List; Three Benjamins; Catastrophic Reburns Threaten …

Participant Engagement And Preference Study For Clinical Outcomes Associated With Atrial Fibrillation: The Pearl-Af Study, Shelby D. Reed, Josephine L. Harrington, Daniel P. Morin, Samir F. Saba, Jay Alan Montgomery, Robert W. Harrison, Daniel R. Frisch, Thomas Viethen, Miriam Tamm, Jessica Xiao, Hardi Mundl, Rosa Coppolecchia, Jui-Chen Yang, Matthew J. Wallace, Juan Marcos Gonzalez, Manesh R. Patel

Division of Cardiology Faculty Papers

Background: Quantifying patients’ preferences for health outcomes associated with atrial fibrillation (AF) and its treatments offers a replicable approach to considering the patient perspective in regulatory decision-making. Objective: The authors conducted a preference survey to estimate the relative importance of AF-related events for use in clinical trial analyses to estimate net health benefits with anticoagulants. Methods: The survey included nontechnical descriptions of three severities of stroke, systemic embolism, myocardial infarction (MI) with or without subsequent heart failure (HF), major bleeding, clinically relevant nonmajor bleeding, and death. A best-worst scaling question format was used in which patients were shown 10 sets …

Reversing File Access Control Using Disk Forensics On Low-Level Flash Memory, Caleb J. Rother, Bo Chen

Michigan Tech Publications

In the history of access control, nearly every system designed has relied on the operating system (OS) to enforce the access control protocols. However, if the OS (and specifically root access) is compromised, there are few if any solutions that can get users back into their system efficiently. In this work, we have proposed a novel approach that allows secure and efficient rollback of file access control after an adversary compromises the OS and corrupts the access control metadata. Our key observation is that the underlying flash memory typically performs out-of-place updates. Taking advantage of this unique feature, we can …

The Promise And Perils Of Smart (City) Bots As Educational Tools, Thomas Menkhoff, Siew Ning Kan, Shaohui Foong

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Written from an educator’s perspective, the paper aims to examine the increasing use of chatbot technology capable of answering user queries in various fields such as commerce, public service delivery, urban areas, higher education etc. by simulating human conversation through text messages or voice commands. We analyse why smart bots have become popular technologies in the context smart cities; shed light on different types of bots (chatbots, large language models such as ChatGPT, flying bots); and explain how we use bots as teaching tool in an introductory AI for business course. A key argument putting forward is that smart bots …

Challenges In Pediatric Home-Based Hospice And Palliative Care: A Case Series, Toluwalase A Ajayi, Rachel Thienprayoon, Lisa Humphrey

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Pediatric home-based hospice and palliative care is a growing and important sub-field within the larger pediatric palliative care landscape. Despite research demonstrating the clinical and systemic efficacy of pediatric home-based hospice and palliative care, there remain barriers to its optimal development, implementation, and dissemination as well as best clinical practice knowledge gaps. This case series presents specific examples of ubiquitous challenges in pediatric home-based hospice and palliative care in hopes of guiding future research, education, advocacy, and program development efforts.

Global Presence And Penetrance Of, Michael Bayat, Rose Bruffaerts, Gabriela Ortiz Cruz, Caio C Disserol, Kristen S Fisher, Jainy N Jose, Bernadette Kalman, Orhun H Kantarci, Dmytro Maltsev, Catherine Middleton, Gabriela Novotni, Dijana Plaseska-Karanfilska, Salmo Raskin, Josiane Souza, Helio A Teive, Zbigniew K Wszolek

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Objectives: To highlight the worldwide presence of CSF1R-related disorder (CSF1R-RD), discuss its penetrance, and provide the first haplotype analysis.

Methods: Data on patients worldwide were collected, including demographics, genotype, family history, and clinical status. For haplotype analysis, polymorphisms of short tandem repeats in 3 distinct families with CSF1R p.Ile794Thr variant were examined.

Results: Nineteen new patients were included, at a mean age of 38.7 years (ranging from 11 to 74 years), from 14 families from the Americas, Asia, Australia, and Europe, including the first from Mexico, North Macedonia, and Ukraine. Fifteen CSF1R variants were found, including 8 …

Association Of Aortic Valve Calcium With Dementia And Stroke: The Multi-Ethnic Study Of Atherosclerosis, Alexander C Razavi, Jelani K Grant, Ellen Boakye, Khalil Anchouche, Omar Dzaye, Matthew J Budoff, Jerome I Rotter, Xiuqing Guo, Jie Yao, Alexis C Wood, Roger S Blumenthal, Erin D Michos, George Thanassoulis, Wendy S Post, Michael J Blaha, Chinwe Ibeh, Seamus P Whelton

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background and aims: Calcific aortic valve disease is associated with increased thrombin formation, platelet activation, decreased fibrinolysis, and subclinical brain infarcts. We examined the long-term association of aortic valve calcification (AVC) with newly diagnosed dementia and incident stroke in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA).

Methods: AVC was measured using non-contrast cardiac CT at Visit 1. We examined AVC as a continuous (log-transformed) and categorical variable (0, 1-99, 100-299, ≥300). Newly diagnosed dementia was adjudicated using International Classification of Disease codes. Stroke was adjudicated from medical records. We calculated absolute event rates (per 1000 person-years) and multivariable adjusted Cox proportional …

The Relationship Between Adverse Childhood Experiences, Symptom Severity, Negative Thinking, Comorbidity, And Treatment Response In Youth With Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Brent J Small, Joseph F Mcguire, Sabine Wilhelm, Wayne K Goodman, Daniel Geller, Eric A Storch

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Although youth and adults with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) endorse elevated incidence of exposure to traumatic life events during childhood, the existing literature on adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and OCD is mixed and studies focusing on pediatric OCD are limited. The present study examines the relationship between ACEs and OCD onset, symptom severity, negative cognitive patterns, comorbidity, and cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) response in 142 children and adolescents with OCD. ACEs were ascertained from parent reports. Most parents reported child exposure to ACEs. Out of the parents who reported ACEs, 50% reported ACE exposure prior to OCD diagnosis and 50% reported ACE …

Editorial Expression Of Concern: Role Of Brca1 In Heat Shock Response, Ren-Qi Yuan, Qinghui Meng, Min Gao, Itzhak D Goldberg, Suzanne A Fuqua, Richard G Pestell, Eliot M Rosen

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background

Despite significant improvements in the outcome of Estrogen Receptor (ER) α-positive breast cancer (BC) following the use of endocrine therapies, resistance remains a major challenge. Clinical studies proved that obesity, in addition to promote BC progression, is associated with a reduced efficacy to these treatments, but mechanisms remain unclear.

Methods

We used co-culture systems followed by validation through an ‘ex vivo’ model of human mammary obese (Ob) adipocytes and obese endocrine-resistant metastatic Patient-Derived Organoids (PDOs). Transcriptomics with MixOmics-MINT and MetaCore Functional Tools along with lentiviral and pharmacological approaches provide insights into mechanisms. Clinical relevance was investigated using public datasets, …