Digital Commons Network^™

Design & Analysis Of Mixed-Mode Integrated Circuit For Pulse-Shape Discrimination, Bryan Orabutt

McKelvey School of Engineering Graduate Student Theses & Dissertations

In nuclear science experiments it is usually necessary to determine the type of radiation, its energy and direction with considerable accuracy. The detection of neutrons and discriminating them from gamma rays is particularly difficult. A popular method of doing so is to measure characteristics intrinsic to the pulse shape of each radiation type in order to perform pulse-shape discrimination (PSD).

Historically, PSD capable systems have been designed with two approaches in mind: specialized analog circuitry, or digital signal processing (DSP). In this work we propose a PSD capable circuit topology using techniques from both the analog and DSP domains. We …

The Impact Of The Covid-19 Pandemic On Orthopaedic Surgery Residency Applicants During The 2021 Residency Match Cycle In The United States, Nicholas C. Danford, Md, Connor Crutchfield, Ba, Amiethab A. Aiyer, Md, Charles M. Jobin, Md, William N. Levine, Md, Sean Lynch

Health Equity and Quality Improvement (HEQI) Summit

To quantify the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on rising fourth-year medical students' plans to apply to residency in orthopedic surgery.

Identification Of Genetic Variants Underlying Maxillary Canine-Tooth Mesioversion And Small Body Size In Shetland Sheepdogs, Sydney R. Abrams

All Theses

The domesticated dog (Canis lupus familiaris) exhibits a unique population structure, with high levels of genetic homogeneity within breeds due to selective breeding. These closed breeding populations can result in breed-specific inherited disorders. Maxillary canine-tooth mesioversion (MCM) is a genetically complex dental anomaly observed nearly exclusively in the small Shetland Sheepdog breed. Here, we utilized a genome-wide approach to discover a locus of major effect on chromosome 9. Using whole-genome resequencing data from a bilaterally affected dog, we identified variants in two genes: FTSJ3, encoding an RNA methyltransferase, and GH1, encoding growth hormone. Independent genome-wide association …

Hear Me Now: When Storytelling Meets A Health System Library, Heather J. Martin, Amanda Schwartz

Articles, Abstracts, and Reports

Background: A chance encounter at work led to an innovative and rewarding partnership between a large health system library and a storytelling program whose mission is to give patients, loved ones, and caregivers a sacred space to share their stories and make healthcare more humane.

Description: Providence System Library Services leadership collaborated with palliative care communication managers to support the mission and growth of a health system storytelling program. The program includes professionally produced podcasts, multimedia video and audio stories from patients/families/employees, and other online content. Library involvement was multifaceted including fact checking and literature searching to support the podcast; …

Interdiction Models To Disrupt The Operations Of Sex Trafficking And Other Forced Illicit Labor Networks, Michael T. Clark

All Theses

Sex traffickers often force their victims to work in both commercial sex markets and perform other illicit activities (e.g., drug dealing, theft, and fraud). Current literature has failed to address interdiction models that aim to disrupt all components of a sex traffickers’ operation, including these other illicit activities. In this thesis, we present a interdiction problem, and its single-level linear optimization reformulation, to reduce the profit of a human trafficking network concurrently operating in the commercial sex market and other illicit activity markets. Our novel formulation aims to investigate the practical implications of interdiction decisions made to disrupt a human …

Addressing The Performance Of Distance Relays In Presence Of Inverter Based Resources, Prabin Adhikari

All Theses

The transition towards clean energy initiatives to reduce global greenhouse emissions and the dependence on fossil fuels requires the interconnection of large-scale renewable energy power plants to high voltage transmission networks via inverters. These inverter interfaced power sources, popularly known as inverter-based resources (IBRs), pose several technical challenges to the existing distance protection infrastructures widely deployed in transmission systems.

Fault characteristics of IBRs are significantly different from those shown by synchronous generators (SGs). With IBRs taking a large share of generation, their increasing penetration at the transmission level causes incorrect operation of existing distance protection schemes designed for systems dominated …

Vermont Global Warming Solutions Act: The Costs Of Inaction From Land Conversions, Grayson L. Younts

All Theses

The Vermont (VT) Global Warming Solutions Act (GWSA, 2020) sets greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction targets as 26% below 2005 by 2025, 40% below 1990 by 2030 and 80% below 1990 by 2050 for energy-related emissions only. Vermont’s omission of GHG emissions from land conversions can result in significant costs of inaction (COI), which can hinder state’s mitigation and adaptation plans and result in a climate crisis-related risks (e.g., credit downgrade). Science-based spatio-temporal data of GHG emissions from soils as a result of land conversions can be integrated into the conceptual framework of “action” versus “inaction” to prevent GHG emissions. …

“People Like They Historical Shit In A Certain Way”: The Civil War Plays Of Suzan-Lori Parks, Or Commercialized Memory And Black Lives, Brandon Eric Fisher

All Theses

Suzan-Lori Parks has explored the relationship between Blackness, slavery, and capitalism throughout her career. I argue that Parks’s three works—The America Play (1995), Topdog/Underdog (2001), and Father Comes Home from the Wars (2015)—should receive critical attention as her Civil War plays. By this phrase, I mean that Parks embeds her critiques of racial capitalism in historical narratives about America’s bloodiest conflict. In these three plays, she takes up several white supremacist Civil War tropes—tropes like what scholar Cody Marrs calls the “Father Abraham” story and the “Agrarian Imagination” myth—and criticizes them as narratives that deny African American history. To …

Out Of The Box: Bridging The Long-Distance Gap Between Consumer And Product In Online Experiences By Using Ar To Facilitate A Deeper Connection Through Virtual Try-Ons, Jessica E. Schell

All Theses

As consumers are more and more preferring online experiences to brick-and-mortar shopping, there is a growing need for new and creative marketing strategies that can overcome the physical distance between consumer and product. In this paper, I demonstrate how augmented reality can bridge that gap, allowing consumers to connect with a product in a way that is not possible through traditional online media forms such as images and video. To that end, this paper includes a detailed breakdown of the conception and creation of Out of the Box, an augmented-reality application developed to enable users to virtually interact with …

A Bayesian Model Selection Approach To Mediation Analysis., Wesley L Crouse, Gregory R Keele, Madeleine S Gastonguay, Gary Churchill, William Valdar

Faculty Research 2022

Genetic studies often seek to establish a causal chain of events originating from genetic variation through to molecular and clinical phenotypes. When multiple phenotypes share a common genetic association, one phenotype may act as an intermediate for the genetic effects on the other. Alternatively, the phenotypes may be causally unrelated but share genetic loci. Mediation analysis represents a class of causal inference approaches used to determine which of these scenarios is most plausible. We have developed a general approach to mediation analysis based on Bayesian model selection and have implemented it in an R package, bmediatR. Bayesian model selection provides …

Genome-Wide Transcript And Protein Analysis Highlights The Role Of Protein Homeostasis In The Aging Mouse Heart., Isabela Gerdes Gyuricza, Joel M Chick, Gregory R Keele, Andrew Deighan, Steven C. Munger, Ron Korstanje, Steven P Gygi, Gary Churchill

Faculty Research 2022

Investigation of the molecular mechanisms of aging in the human heart is challenging because of confounding factors, such as diet and medications, as well as limited access to tissues from healthy aging individuals. The laboratory mouse provides an ideal model to study aging in healthy individuals in a controlled environment. However, previous mouse studies have examined only a narrow range of the genetic variation that shapes individual differences during aging. Here, we analyze transcriptome and proteome data from 185 genetically diverse male and female mice at ages 6, 12, and 18 mo to characterize molecular changes that occur in the …

Gen Ms 68 Lillian E. Brooks Nursing Diary, Jill Piekut Roy

Search the General Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Collection includes a diary kept by Lillian E. Brooks from August 29, 1935 to May 6, 1939, and three accompanying items. The collection documents the daily life and work of a Maine woman who aspired to be a nurse before her untimely death.

Pirate Arbitration, David Horton

Minnesota Law Review Vols. 106:2 onward (2021-present)

The U.S. Supreme Court’s expansion of the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) has transformed the American civil justice system. In a series of controversial opinions, the Court has held that the FAA preempts state law, bars class actions, and empowers companies to delegate questions about the arbitration itself to arbitrators. For decades, critics have objected that forced arbitration dilutes consumers’ and employees’ rights. However, this Article explores a byproduct of the arbitration revolution that is arguably even more troubling. Recently, criminals, opportunists, and other shady entities have started exploiting the Court’s FAA jurisprudence to accomplish goals that are illegal. The Article …

Power To The People: Distributing The Benefits Of A Clean Energy Transition Through Equitable Policy, Legislation, And Energy Justice Initiatives, Alexandria E. Dolezal

Minnesota Law Review Vols. 106:2 onward (2021-present)

The transition to renewable energy may be accelerating, but the path to a clean energy future is still littered with potential inequities. This reality has become increasingly evident in the early 2020s as the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated injustices within the existing energy system, leaving many low-income and minority communities struggling to pay for essential utilities. Moreover, marginalized communities are disproportionately impacted by the negative externalities of the energy sector, such as air pollution and climate- change-induced natural disasters. Recent events, like the Texas power crisis and unprecedented heatwaves in 2021, have brought these issues into sharper focus, while equally …

Constraining Criminal Laws, F. Andrew Hessick, Carissa Byrne Hessick

Minnesota Law Review Vols. 106:2 onward (2021-present)

Most criminal law is statutory. Although the violation of criminal statutes can result in significantly more serious consequences than violations of other types of statutes, the dominant theories of statutory interpretation do not distinguish between criminal statutes and non-criminal statutes. Those theories say that, when interpreting statutes, courts should always be faithful agents aiming to implement the will of the legislature, and that task does not change depending on whether the statute is criminal. This Article shows that treating the interpretation of criminal statutes the same way as other statutes is a major departure from the past. Historically, courts did …

Psychological Parenthood, Anne L. Alstott, Anne C. Dailey, Douglas Nejaime

Minnesota Law Review Vols. 106:2 onward (2021-present)

Family law in the United States is governed by an assortment of familiar legal doctrines and policies that often undermine, and sometimes sever, the relationships between children and the adults with whom children are most closely bonded. For example, the “best interests of the child” standard, which has long governed a host of legal determinations such as custody, offers only a vague and indeterminate guideline for decision-making, an approach that risks undervaluing the importance of children’s relationships to close caregivers. Similarly, courts and commentators commonly assert that the federal Constitution provides special protection to biological parent-child relationships, despite the fact …

Data Narratives: Aesthetic Activation Of Urban Space Through Augmented Reality, Conor Mcgarrigle Dr., John Buckley

Books/Book Chapters

This chapter discusses Data Narratives, a commissioned augmented reality artwork resulting from a period as artist in residence with Dublin City Dashboard. Data Narratives focused on working with city data to create hybrid artistic representations of Dublin’s ongoing housing affordability crisis, acting both as activist artistic engagement with the socio-political-economic space of the city and aesthetic activation of urban space through augmented reality. As data describes and defines so much of our digital every day, the project and residency programme asked how it could be leveraged as a medium for artistic creation and how could art supply new insights …

Iowa Waste Reduction Center Newsletter, May 2022, University Of Northern Iowa. Iowa Waste Reduction Center.

Iowa Waste Reduction Center Newsletter

Contents:

--- EPA adds 1-bromopropane (1-BP) to the Clean Air Act List of Hazardous Air Pollutants
--- FLPC Calls on Congress to Prioritize Food Waste Reduction in the 2023 Farm Bill
--- Sustainability & Environmental Awareness Award
--- Two Iowa Green Brewery Certified Breweries Won Prestigious 2022 World Beer Cup Award
--- Iowa Composting Council Seeks Board Nominations
--- Air Quality permits under review
--- Industry New

National Coral Reef Management Fellows Newsletter Volume 4 | Issue 1, National Oceanic And Atmospheric Administration (Noaa) Coral Reef Conservation Program

National Coral Reef Management Fellowship Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Global Developments In Social Prescribing, Daniel F. Morse, Sahil Sandhu, Kate Mulligan, Stephanie Tierney, Marie Polley, Bogdan Chiva Giurca, Siân Slade, Sónia Dias, Kamal R. Mahtani, Leanne Wells, Huali Wang, Bo Zhao, Cristiano Emanuel Marta De Figueiredo, Jan Joost Meijs, Hae Kweun Nam, Kheng Hock Lee, Carolyn Wallace, Megan Eliott, Juan Manuel Mendive, David Robinson, Miia Palo, Wolfram Hermann, Rasmus Østergaard Nielsen, Kerryn Husk

Applied Computer Science | Faculty Scholarship

Social prescribing is an approach that aims to improve health and well-being. It connects individuals to non-clinical services and supports that address social needs, such as those related to loneliness, housing instability and mental health. At the person level, social prescribing can give individuals the knowledge, skills, motivation and confidence to manage their own health and well-being. At the society level, it can facilitate greater collaboration across health, social, and community sectors to promote integrated care and move beyond the traditional biomedical model of health. While the term social prescribing was first popularised in the UK, this practice has become …

Radical Belonging: School As Communion Of Peoples, Place, And Power, Joey Yung-Jun Liu

Education (PhD) Dissertations

In wondering “How are decolonizing, place/land-based, and community-grown learning places created and sustained as alternatives to dominant settler-colonial systems, and what stories would they share about their creation and existence?”, I formed relationships with two alternative, autonomous, decolonizing schools through a teacher-guide at each school who served as guides for me to enter their spaces with invitation. In developing these relationships over 2-3 years and spending 2-3 weeks alongside each of them at their school sites, I was able to sustain natural and deep conversation with my teacher-guides, who then served as co-storyers of this research to collectively …

Tennessee Bed Space And Operating Capacities Report, May 2022, Tennessee. Department Of Correction.

Bed Space & Capacity Reports

No abstract provided.

Microbiological Safety And Quality Of Raw, Ready-To-Eat (Rte) Seafood Sold In Orange County, California, Grace Marquis

Food Science (MS) Theses

Raw, ready-to-eat (RTE) seafood can pose health threats due to the potential presence of foodborne pathogens. Listeria monocytogenes is a known microbiological hazard associated with raw, RTE seafood. Salmonella enterica has not traditionally been recognized as a hazard in seafood, but it is an emerging concern, with five outbreaks in seafood in the United States from 2011 to 2021. The presence of E. coli and total coliforms can indicate fecal or environmental contamination. The objective of this study was to evaluate the microbiological safety and quality of raw, RTE seafood sold in Orange County, CA. A total of 105 raw, …

Characterization Of Gangliosides And Fatty Acids In Extracellular Vesicles From Human Milk, Aliya Amin

Food Science (MS) Theses

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are bioactive components of human milk that may impact functionality to regulate growth, cognitive development, metabolism, and immunity in newborns. The biogenesis of EVs and the mechanism by which EVs elicit biologic effects in vivo have not been characterized entirely. Gangliosides and fatty acids are integral in the formation, release, stability, and functionalities of EVs. Presumably, EV function is related to EV composition and lipids in EVs influence the bioavailability of EV cargo and downstream functions of EVs. The objective of this research was to characterize the fatty acid and ganglioside composition of EVs in human milk. …

Lack Of Affirmative Consent: Trauma In Jhumpa Lahiri’S “Interpreter Of Maladies”, Ansalee Morrison

English (MA) Theses

Most scholars who have published analyses of the title story of Jhumpa Lahiri’s 1999 Pulitzer Prize-winning short story collection, Interpreter of Maladies, read Mina Das’s character as a woman who chose to be unfaithful to her husband with a friend who once stayed in their home, resulting in the conception of her second son, Bobby. This general consensus is likely influenced by how Mr. Kapasi, the story’s narrator and the tour guide in whom Mina confides her story, concludes that the “pain” Mina complains of is actually “guilt” (Lahiri 63). The work of Tzuhsiu Beryl Chiu, however, stands out …

Traumas And Recovery In Takaya Natsuki's Fruits Basket, Vesper North

English (MA) Theses

This thesis examines the various traumas within Takaya Natsuki’s anime series Fruits Basket and how the act of transformation triggers the beginnings of recovery for numerous characters. Fruits Basket bears striking similarities to the French fairy tale Beauty and the Beast (as well as later adaptations) originated by Gabrielle-Suzanne de Villeneuve. Throughout, I draw parallels between the “Beauty and the Beast”-genre with Fruits Basket and how the anime expands upon shared themes, specifically trauma. Additionally, I analyse the birth of and recovery from traumas (caused by bullying, loss, abuse, and feelings of otherness) for “Beauty and the Beast” archetypes within …

Early Music Ensemble: Not Far From The Tree, Chapman Early Music Ensemble

Printed Performance Programs (PDF Format)

No abstract provided.

Guitar Ensemble, Chapman Guitar Ensemble

Printed Performance Programs (PDF Format)

No abstract provided.

Characterization Of A Potential Glucose Transporter In Trypanosoma Brucei, Matthew Morgan

All Theses

Trypanosoma brucei, the African trypanosome, is an organism heavily dependent on glucose for ATP production during the infectious stage of its life cycle. Here, we have explored the role of an uncharacterized protein designated “novel glucose transporter” (NGT) as a potential glucose transporter. Sequence analyses suggests that NGT shares similarities (either at the primary sequence level or structurally) with Trypanosome Hexose Transporters 1 (TbTHT1), and human GLUT3, both of which are membrane sugar transporters. NGT was localized by fluorescence microscopy to subcellular structures consistent with lysosomes. Silencing NGT expression with RNA interference in parasites resulted in a growth defect …

Enclosure In Flesh And Stone: Intermediaries And Access To God In Revelations Of Divine Love, Emily Danuser

All Theses

In this thesis, I argue that in Revelations of Divine Love, Julian of Norwich uses the topic of enclosure (both in flesh and stone) as a means to delineate her arguments regarding the role of intermediaries and the way they can facilitate access to God while opening opportunities for dialogue within the broader public. Through a close-reading and historical contextualization of her writing on the topic of enclosure, I demonstrate that even some of Julian’s more controversial doctrinal claims can be reconciled if one understands the levels and role she assigned to intermediaries.