Digital Commons Network^™

Ramadan Hardcore By Hicham Habchi E Mehdi Yassire, Sarah Nesti Willard

Books and Book Chapters

This article examines Ramadan Hardcore, a graphic novel by Hicham Habchi and Mehdi Yassire, through a visual and contextual analysis. It explores how the novel’s raw illustrative style reinforces its title and narrative, creating a powerful emotional impact while presenting an authentic, and at times deliberately exaggerated, representation of reality. Using visual semiotic analysis, the study demonstrates how the artwork reflects the authors’ lived experiences and contributes to the novel’s gritty, direct atmosphere. The article also discusses the controversy surrounding the graphic novel’s provocative title, noting that although it initially attracted considerable attention, interest quickly declined and copies have …

January 2026, Robert Kelly

Robert Kelly Manuscripts

No abstract provided.

Horbat Husham (North) A-10259, Adir Khanin

Favissa: Past Archaeological Excavation Reports

In March 2026, a trial excavation was conducted at Horbat Husham (North, plot 710, within the Brosh Industrial Zone) in Bet Shemesh (permit No. A-10259; map ref. 196342–454/626441–564; Fig. 1), prior to the construction of a logistics center. The excavation was undertaken on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority and funded by Polyran Profiles Ltd. It was directed by A. Khanin, with the assistance of N. Nehama (administration), E. Marco (documentation and photogrammetry), A. Zakaim (drafting and cartography), S. Gendler (metal detection), Y. Shalev (supervision), M. Hemed, A. Aviv, and L. Edeltin.

Associations Between Discrimination And First-Generation College Students’ Belonging And Academic Well-Being, Thomas P. Le, Nicola Forbes, Elizabeth B. Raposa

Psychology Faculty Research and Scholarship

First-generation college students (FGCS) make up one third of the college student population but continue to face unfavorable academic outcomes. A powerful yet understudied factor that contributes to FGCS’ lower academic and graduation rates is campus discrimination. Importantly, discrimination undermines feelings of belonging on campus and belonging has been found to predict academic performance, motivation, and persistence to graduation. The current study examined whether on-campus discrimination influenced sense of belonging among 276 FGCS sampled during the first few months of the COVID-19 pandemic, and whether decreased sense of belonging, in turn, was associated with two forms of academic well-being (i.e., …

Emotions In Terrorism And Response To Terrorism: Humiliation, Hate, And Love, Clark Mccauley, Sophia Moskalenko

Psychology Faculty Research and Scholarship

This chapter explores the underexamined role of emotions in terrorism and responses to terrorism, arguing that radicalization studies have disproportionately focused on cognitive factors such as ideology and narrative while neglecting the powerful influence of emotions. Brief review of existing research highlights how emotions play a central role in terrorist motivations and in target and bystander responses to terrorist attacks. Conceptual definitions of humiliation, hate, and love are introduced, positioning them as critical emotional experiences that drive both individual radicalization and large-scale political violence. A more systematic study of emotions in terrorism research is suggested for developing effective counterterrorism policies …

Genocide And Politicide: The Psychology Of State Terrorism, Clark Mccauley

Psychology Faculty Research and Scholarship

This chapter reviews the psychologies that enable mass killing of civilians by government (politicide). A typology of perceived threats is advanced, with special attention to contamination threat and essentializing the enemy. Three groups of actors are distinguished: perpetrators, leaders, and the mass public that leaders and actors claim to represent. Predictors of genocide are considered, highlighting the importance of means and opportunity.

Two-Pyramids Model Of Radicalization To Terrorism, Clark Mccauley, Sophia Moskalenko

Psychology Faculty Research and Scholarship

This chapter reviews the origins and developments of the Two-Pyramids Model of radicalization, which distinguishes between the radicalization of opinions and the radicalization of actions. The Radicalization of Action Pyramid categorizes individuals from passive (inert) to those committing terrorist acts, while the Radicalization of Opinion Pyramid progresses from neutrality to a personal moral obligation to act violently for a cause. Empirical studies, including the Activism and Radicalism Intention Scales (ARIS), support the model’s distinction between activism and radicalism as separate dimensions. The chapter highlights the importance of group dynamics, diagnostic and prognostic frames, and the role of public opinion in …

Fear And Coercion In Government Definitions Of Terrorism, Clark Mccauley

Psychology Faculty Research and Scholarship

In this chapter I review government definitions of terrorism to show the popularity of assuming that terrorists aim to coerce governments and their citizens through fear. Then I draw out some of the costs of this assumption for analysts of terrorism, practitioners of counterterrorism, and targets of terrorist attacks. Including fear and coercion in definitions of terrorism blinds us to the importance of terrorist aims other than coercion, of emotions other than fear, and of audiences other than terrorist victims. In particular I argue that terrorists aim to elicit anger and overreaction that will advance their cause. Ignoring this strategy …

Twelve Mechanisms Of Radicalization To Terrorism, Sophia Moskalenko, Clark Mccauley

Psychology Faculty Research and Scholarship

Radicalization refers to changes in beliefs, feelings, and actions toward increased support for one side of an intergroup conflict. The extreme of action radicalization is political violence and terrorism. Twelve psychological mechanisms driving participation in political violence are identified.  At the individual level, motivation to engage in political violence can be based on personal grievance, political grievance, “slippery slope” participation in illegal political activity, love for already-radicalized friends and relatives, and social disconnection (”unfreezing”) that opens an individual to new ideas and new comrades.  At the group level, participation in political violence can emerge from extremity shift of like-minded group …

The Prediction Of All-Cause Mortality In End-Stage Kidney Disease Patients Using Social Determinants Of Health: A Machine Learning Framework, Addy Smith, Maxwell Donelan, Hossein Moradi Rekabdarkolaee, Patti Brooks, Brandon Varilek, Surachat Ngorsuraches, Jerry Schrier, Adam Dell, Semhar Michael

Journal Articles: College of Nursing

End-stage kidney disease (ESKD) is the irreversible final stage of chronic kidney disease in which the kidneys lose their independent function. This study presents a machine learning framework to predict all-cause mortality in ESKD patients by the end of a follow-up period. We combined patient-specific clinical factors with social determinants of health (SDOH) to assess their influence on survival outcomes. Data were obtained from the United States Renal Data System, including patients admitted in 2015 and followed through August 2021. Community-level SDOH data were integrated from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, with variable screening techniques and expert input …

Environmental Degradation And Food Systems In Ghana: Gold Mining And Synthetic Pesticides, Da'mirah Vinson

Honors Theses

This research examines the relationship between environmental degradation and food systems in Ghana. Although sociological research has explored how extractive practices like gold mining dispossesses farmers of land (Gilbert and Albert 2016; Agariga 2021; Kwang and Blagogie 2025), the consequences for food sovereignty and security remain understudied. Research that considers food and land from a sociocultural perspective is even more limited. My research addresses these gaps by asking: How do environmental degradation practices—specifically gold mining and chemical use—affect food production, distribution, and security in Ghana? And how does the decline of arable land reshape cultural food identity? To explore these …

The Effects Of Low-Frequency, Low-Intensity Ultrasound On Gene Expression In Macrophage-Endothelial Cell Co-Culture, Evelyn Hergenhan

Honors Theses

Introduction

Low-frequency, low-intensity ultrasound (LFLI US) has been shown to be a promising treatment for noninvasive accelerated chronic wound healing. However, the biological mechanisms of this ultrasound-assisted healing are not yet understood, limiting clinical adoption. The objective of this study is to characterize the effects of LFLI US on gene expression in a simulated chronic wound environment to gain a better understanding of the biological mechanisms underlying this therapeutic.

Methods

A simulated chronic wound environment consisting of endothelial cells and inflammatory M1 macrophages co-cultured in 3D was subject to LFLI US at 50, 100, or 150 mW/cm² Spatial-Peak, Temporal-Peak …

Always Green, Ever Living, Anna Plante

Honors Theses

The Creative Honors Thesis, “Always Green, Ever Living," is an experimental essay film that explores the complexities and contradictions of environmental conservation, up against the contemporary climate crisis. The film is centered on Muir Woods National Monument and follows a young girl's relationship with nature. The film reflects on how protected natural spaces are influenced by systems of funding, access, and interpretation, as well as broader environmental pressures. Using a combination of archival footage, original imagery, narration, and ambient sound, the project adopts the essayistic structure that prioritizes reflection over linear storytelling.

Genre Based Analysis Of Sustainability In Contemporary U.S. Film Production: Inception Or Illusion?, Tanner Ennis

Interdisciplinary Studies | Senior Theses

Anthropogenic activity is actively leading to environmental degradation, highlighting the need for large industries to take responsibility for their environmental impact, particularly the film industry. While sustainable practices in the film industry such as virtual production, recycling of set construction materials, or the use of renewable energy present opportunities to improve sustainability, there is still a substantial amount of progress to be made. For example, research has demonstrated that increases in production budget correlate with higher carbon dioxide emissions, with fuel, utilities, and travel acting as the top contributors (Sustainable Entertainment Alliance, 2022). Conversation among the scholarly community is centered …

Teachers' Perceptions Of The Use Of The Language Essentials For Teachers Of Reading And Spelling (Letrs) Professional Development Training, Colette Burgess

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling (LETRS) professional development course has been participated in by educators across the United States. The LETRS training focuses on research-based methods and the science of reading. The five components of the science of reading guide the LETRS course. These components include phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. The purpose of this study was to examine the perspectives and experiences of teachers from West Virginia schools who participated in the LETRS professional development course as a cohort. This study examined the questions: What are the perceptions of K-5 educators in implementing …

Toward Completeness Theorem For Guarded Kleene Algebra With Tests, Hung Pham

Honors Theses

Code refactoring is a fundamental practice in software engineering, in which a program is restructured without changing the actions it performs and the results it produces. To carry out refactoring with confidence, one requires a formal method for verifying that two programs are equivalent. Guarded Kleene Algebra with Tests (GKAT) provides such a framework, an algebraic system designed to reason about a natural class of programs, namely those in which every branch and loop is governed by a Boolean condition, such as if–else and while statements. Central to GKAT is a finite set of algebraic axioms for deriving program equivalences. …

Upr Report Submissions, Sarah Dávila A., Lauren E. Bartlett

Faculty White Papers

No abstract provided.

Table Of Contents

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

Masthead

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

Hospital Counsel’S Role In Supporting Quality Patient Care, Nadia N. Sawicki

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

Unwanted Medical Treatment Harms Patients: Taxonomy Of Healthcare Consent Infractions, Thaddeus M. Pope

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

Is It A Failure Of Informed Consent When A Physician Does Not Share A Test Result With A Patient Because The Physician Does Not Believe The Test?, Alan Schwartz

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

Deliberating The Right To Electroconvulsive Therapy In The Correctional Setting, S. Jan Brakel, Xiaoyin Cao, Stephen H. Dinwiddie

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

A Centralized Defense Against Hospital Cyberattacks, Jack Woehler

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

Unintended Consequences: The Impact Of Deinstitutionalization On Mental Health With O’Connor V. Donaldson, Elliott Rose

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

America, Where A Kid Can (Maybe) Be A Transgender Kid: Eknes-Tucker V. Governor Of Alabama, Hans Brownstein

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

Table Of Contents

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

Masthead

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

Strategies For The Dream Of Homeownership To Survive Climate Change Disasters In An Insurance Crisis, Celeste M. Hammond, Virginia Harding

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Relevance And Semantics Of The Forum Shopping Factor In Illinois Forum Non Conveniens Jurisprudence, William G. Beatty

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.