Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Winona State University Campus Life Blog: 2013-2022, Winona State University

Winona State University Blogs

The Winona State University (WSU) Campus Life Blog includes articles and entries from October 2013- October 2022. Note: there may be format coding in the document.

Winona State University Wellness Blog: 2013-2023, Winona State University

Winona State University Blogs

The Winona State University (WSU) Wellness blog includes articles and entries from February 2013-February 2023. Note: there may be format coding in the document.

Cave Signs: Assessing Mammoth Cave National Park's Access For The Deaf And Hard Of Hearing, Katelyn Lane

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

This project evaluates the accessibility of cave tours in Mammoth Cave National Park for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing community (DHHC). The study was advertised to the DHHC with the use of flyers through the Kentucky Commission on the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, First Baptist Church Bowling Green’s Deaf Ministry, WKU social media, and directly to visitors who contacted the park seeking services. Willing participants either joined a group tour or reserved their own cave tour, requesting necessary accommodations. Following these tours, a survey was given inquiring about participants’ general experience with Mammoth Cave, whether all their needs …

Impact Of Non-Medical Cannabis Legalization With Market Restrictions On Health Service Use And Incident Cases Of Psychotic Disorder In Ontario, Canada, Kelly K. Anderson, Rebecca Rodrigues, Britney Le, Maliha Mamun, Suzanne Archie, Jordan Edwards, Tara Elton-Marshall, Jason Gilliland, Daniel Thomas Myran, Lena Palaniyappan, Christopher M Perlman, Jamie A Seabrook, Robin M Murray, Salimah Z Shariff

Epidemiology and Biostatistics Publications

BACKGROUND: Cannabis is a risk factor in the onset and persistence of psychotic disorders. There is concern that non-medical cannabis legalization in Canada may have population-level impacts on psychotic disorders. We sought to examine changes in health service use and incident cases of psychotic disorder following cannabis legalization, during a period of tight restrictions on retail stores and product types.

METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional interrupted time-series analysis using linked population-based health administrative data from Ontario (Canada) from January 2014 to March 2020. We identified psychosis-related outpatient visits, emergency department visits, hospitalizations, and inpatient length of stay, as well as …

Perioperative Mortality In Low-, Middle-, And High-Income Countries: Protocol For A Multi-Level Meta-Regression Analysis, Kevin Mcintyre, Yun-Hee Choi, Ava John-Baptiste, Daniel J Lizotte, Eunice Y S Chan, Jessica Moodie, Saverio Stranges, Janet Martin

Epidemiology and Biostatistics Publications

BACKGROUND: Surgery is an indispensable component of a functional healthcare system. To date there is limited information regarding how many people die during the perioperative period globally. This study describes a protocol for a systematic review and multilevel meta-regression to evaluate time trends regarding the odds of perioperative mortality among adults undergoing a bellwether surgical procedure while accounting for higher order clustering at the national level.

METHODS: Published studies reporting the number of perioperative deaths from bellwether surgical procedures among adults will be identified from MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane CENTRAL, LILACS and Global Index Medicus. The primary outcome will be the …

Limitations Of Invasive Snake Control Tools In The Context Of A New Invasion On An Island With Abundant Prey, Shane R. Siers, Melia G. Nafus, Jereid E. Calaor, Rachel M. Volsteadt, Matthew S. Grassi, Megan Volsteadt, Aaron F. Collins, Patrick D. Barnhart, Logan T. Huse, Amy A. Yackel Adams, Diane L. Vice

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

In October 2020, a new population of invasive brown treesnakes (Boiga irregularis) was discovered on the 33-ha Cocos Island, 2.5 km off the south coast of Guam, United States. Cocos Island is a unique conservation resource, providing refuge for many lizards and birds, including endangered species, which were extirpated from mainland Guam by invasive predators including brown treesnakes. We sought to evaluate the usefulness of toxic baiting with acetaminophen-treated carrion baits and cage trapping, common tools for the control of brown treesnakes on mainland Guam, as potential eradication tools on Cocos Island. We evaluated multiple bait types and …

Site-Specific Space Use And Resource Selection By Black Vultures (Coragyps Atratus) In The Southeastern Usa, Betsy Evans, John S. Humphrey, Eric A. Tillman, Michael L. Avery, Bryan M. Kluever

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

North American populations of Black Vultures Coragyps atratus have increased and expanded their distribution in the southern and eastern USA. In conjunction with these patterns has been a rise in human–vulture conflicts. To improve our understanding of space use patterns and better inform management, we evaluated the movements of Black Vultures (n = 23) in the southeastern USA using a long-term GPS tracking database. Our specific objectives were to: (1) quantify home-range sizes in relation to season and geographical study location and (2) examine within-home-range resource selection to identify landscape and anthropogenic factors influencing roost and diurnal space use. …

Antipredator Blood-Squirting Defense In Horned Lizards (Phrynosoma): Chemical Isolation Of Plasma Component(S), Pogonomyrmex Ant Dietary Origin, And Evolution, Wade C. Sherbrooke, Bruce A. Kimball

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

North American horned lizards of the genus Phrynosoma are largely myrmecophagous and squirt systemic blood from circumocular sinuses during encounters with certain mammalian predators. The predators react with distinct revulsion. Using bioassay-guided fractionation of blood plasma, we endeavored to identify the source and characteristics of the active chemical compound(s) responsible for this negative oral response. Our results of coyote bioassays and a series of novel mouse bioassay experiments were largely concordant. The active compound(s) was likely plasma-borne with a molecular weight (mw) of between 800 and 1,600. To identify the source of the active compound(s), we noted bioassay responses …

Eradication Of Feral Swine From A Barrier Island In Florida, Usa: An Examination Of Effort And Multi-Method, Multi-Species Population Indexing, Richard M. Engeman, Eric A. Tillman, Betsy A. Evans, John C. Griffin, Garrison Grobaski, Bradley S. Smith, John Stark, Bryan M. Kluever

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Feral swine (Sus scrofa) were targeted for and successfully eradicated from Saint Vincent Island (SVI), a National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) along the coast of Florida’s panhandle to protect its habitats and uncharacteristically high diversity of wildlife species for barrier islands in the region, including federal and state-listed threatened and endangered species. The eradication effort was initiated in early 2015 and concluded in 2019. A total of 438 feral swine were removed from the Island, 417 by federal control experts and 21 by recreational hunters. In general, the amount of effort needed to eradicate each feral swine slowly increased …

Downed Wood Removal Effects On Survival And Site Fidelity Of Woodrats In A California Oak Woodland, Timothy J. Smyser, Michael A. Hardy, Amy J. Davis, William L. Preston, William D. Tietje

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Owing to the increasing intensity and frequency of wildfires in the western United States, the removal of woody debris (downed dead wood and snags) from fire‐prone landscapes is being evaluated for wildfire mitigation. Consequently, the study of the ecological value of coarse woody debris to sustain dependent species has become of foremost importance. From 2004–2009, we used a before‐after control‐impact (BACI) study design to assess the effects of downed wood removal on a population of big‐eared woodrats (Neotoma macrotis) in an oak woodland (Quercus spp.) in coastal‐central California, USA. Using Pollock's robust design mark‐recapture analyses (with 12 …

High Thermal Quality Rookeries Facilitate High Thermoregulatory Accuracy In Pregnant Female Rattlesnakes, Haley A. Moniz, Jack Henry Buck, Hayley L. Crowell, Scott M. Goetz, Trevor D. Ruiz, Emily N. Taylor, Scott M. Bobacks

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Temperature is a primary factor influencing organismal development, and the fluctuating daily and seasonal thermal regimes of temperate climates may challenge the ability of viviparous reptiles to optimize body temperatures during gestation. Testing how viviparous reptiles navigate highly variable thermal conditions (e.g., relatively cold nights and/or highly fluctuating temperatures) is a powerful way to understand how they use microhabitats for thermoregulatory benefits. We assessed the thermal ecology of pregnant and non-pregnant female prairie rattlesnakes (Crotalus viridis) inhabiting a high-elevation, montane shrubland in northwest Colorado throughout their short summer active season, addressing the thermal consequences of microhabitat selection with …

Characterizing Feral Swine Movement Across The Contiguous United States Using Neural Networks And Genetic Data, Rachael M. Giglio, Courtney F. Bowden, Ryan K. Brook, Antoinette J. Piaggio, Timothy J. Smyser

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Globalization has led to the frequent movement of species out of their native habitat. Some of these species become highly invasive and capable of profoundly altering invaded ecosystems. Feral swine (Sus scrofa × domesticus) are recognized as being among the most destructive invasive species, with populations established on all continents except Antarctica. Within the United States (US), feral swine are responsible for extensive crop damage, the destruction of native ecosystems, and the spread of disease. Purposeful human-mediated movement of feral swine has contributed to their rapid range expansion over the past 30 years. Patterns of deliberate introduction of …

Bayesian Integrated Species Distribution Models For Hierarchical Resource Selection By A Soaring Bird, Ryo Ogawa, Guiming Wang, L. Wes Burger, Bronson Strickland, J. Brian Davis, Fred L. Cunningham

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Migratory birds exhibit seasonal geographic range (hereafter, range) dynamics during the annual cycle. Few studies have examined how migratory birds select their habitats for range occupancy at the species level and space use at the individual level simultaneously. We hypothesized that environmental variables directly related to fitness components would affect the range occupancy probabilities of migrants, whereas environment variables related to movements and flights would affect the space use intensities of migrants. We built Bayesian integrated species distribution models (ISDMs) to evaluate the effects of climate conditions, wind conditions, and landcover compositions on the seasonal range dynamics of American white …

Raccoon Density Estimation From Camera Traps For Raccoon Rabies Management, Amy J. Davis, Wesley C. Dixon, Richard B. Chipman, Amy T. Gilbert, Jacob E. Hill, James C. Beasley, Olin E. Rhodes Jr., Guha Dharmarajan

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Density estimation for unmarked animals is particularly challenging, yet density estimates are often necessary for effective wildlife management. Raccoons (Procyon lotor) are the primary terrestrial wildlife reservoir for Lyssavirus rabies within the United States. The raccoon rabies variant (RRVV) is actively managed at landscape scales using oral rabies vaccination (ORV) within the eastern United States. To effectively manage RRVV, it is important to know the density of raccoons to appropriately scale the density of ORV baits distributed on the landscape. We compared methods to estimate raccoon densities from camera‐trap data versus more intensive capture‐mark‐recapture (CMR) estimates across 2 …

Evaluating The Deductive Competence Of Large Language Models, Spencer M. Seals, Valerie L. Shalin

Psychology Faculty Publications

The development of highly fluent large language models (LLMs) has prompted increased interest in assessing their reasoning and problem-solving capabilities. We investigate whether several LLMs can solve a classic type of deductive reasoning problem from the cognitive science literature. The tested LLMs have limited abilities to solve these problems in their conventional form. We performed follow up experiments to investigate if changes to the presentation format and content improve model performance. We do find performance differences between conditions; however, they do not improve overall performance. Moreover, we find that performance interacts with presentation format and content in unexpected ways that …

Enhancing Cross-Modal Contextual Congruence For Crowdfunding Success Using Knowledge-Infused Learning, Trilok Padhi, Ugur Kursuncu, Yaman Kumar, Valerie L. Shalin, Lane Peterson Fronczek

Psychology Faculty Publications

The digital landscape continually evolves with multimodality, enriching the online experience for users. Creators and marketers aim to weave subtle contextual cues from various modalities into congruent content to engage users with a harmonious message. This interplay of multimodal cues is often a crucial factor in attracting users' attention. However, this richness of multimodality presents a challenge to computational modeling, as the semantic contextual cues spanning across modalities need to be unified to capture the true holistic meaning of the multimodal content. This contextual meaning is critical in attracting user engagement as it conveys the intended message of the brand …

Environmental Metrics In Action: Exploring U.S. Superfund Sites Affiliated With The Fashion Industry, Nidia K. Trejo

Textile Society of America: Symposium Proceedings

Little is known of Superfund sites, long-term clean up sites, affiliated with the apparel and footwear supply chain in the United States. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) manages the clean up of contaminated sites that pose a significant risk to human health and the environment under the Superfund program. A site can become contaminated if hazardous waste from industrial operations are mismanaged or dumped into the environment, in an uncontrolled manner. In this study, a proposed Superfund site (Mohawk Tannery in Nashua, New Hampshire), an active Superfund site (Ciba-Geigy Corp. in Toms River, New Jersery), and a …

Human System Composite Performance Measures: General Systems Performance Theory Insights, Lawrence Disalvi

Bioengineering Dissertations - Archive

Composite Performance Measures (CPMs) of human performance are widely employed in applications that range from mundane to life-changing, yet they are frequently presented without explanation or reference to theoretical underpinnings. The conceptual soundness of a widely used CPM approach, based on additive combination of constituent components, has been called into question by Kondraske. He argues the relevance of General Systems Performance Theory (GSPT) and performance capacity envelope concepts when applied to multidimensional CPM measures.

To obtain evidence-based answers to assertions regarding CPM types and rationale employed in medical and non-medical contexts, a Systematic Descriptive Review was conducted. Separately, the GSPT-based …

Data Driven Trade-Off Analysis For Cybersecurity, Goskel Kucukkaya, Murat Ozer, Murat Balci, Emrah Ugurlu

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

Trade-off analysis, a specialization of systems engineering, addresses design criteria like security, cost, performance, and compliance. Monte Carlo simulations are commonly employed to generate impact scenarios for trade-off analysis combined with solution alternatives that accommodate industry-specific considerations and uncertainties. In the cyber domain, this paper proposes a methodology for data-driven trade-off analysis in cybersecurity, leveraging industry reports as primary data sources using confidentiality, integrity, and availability as trade-off analysis objectives. Distribution functions are derived to manage and model uncertainties for various industries. The approach given in this study aims to facilitate informed choices and to enhance cybersecurity decision making and …

A Comprehensive And Comparative Examination Of Healthcare Data Breaches: Assessing Security, Privacy, And Performance, Mohammed Al Kinoon

Graduate Thesis and Dissertation 2023-2024

The healthcare sector is pivotal, offering life-saving services and enhancing well-being and community life quality, especially with the transition from paper-based to digital electronic health records (EHR). While improving efficiency and patient safety, this digital shift has also made healthcare a prime target for cybercriminals. The sector's sensitive data, including personal identification information, treatment records, and SSNs, are valuable for illegal financial gains. The resultant data breaches, increased by interconnected systems, cyber threats, and insider vulnerabilities, present ongoing and complex challenges. In this dissertation, we tackle a multi-faceted examination of these challenges. We conducted a detailed analysis of healthcare data …

Understanding Social Dynamics In Toxic Conversations And Public Health Intervention Acceptance On Social Media, Ana Aleksandric

Computer Science and Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Social media is now central to daily life, offering users a space to share content and opinions. However, these platforms also facilitate the spread of hate speech and misinformation, which can negatively impact public health. This dissertation develops methodologies to analyze social media data for insights that could inform health interventions. The research first examines user responses to toxic content, focusing on behavioral and emotional reactions, as well as group dynamics and bystander effects in toxic interactions. Another key focus is public opinion toward health interventions, particularly COVID-19 vaccination, using geolocated posts and analyzing factors such as race, ethnicity, and …

Sustainable Additive Manufacturing Of Polysulfone Membranes For Liquid Separations, Brian Leonard, Harrison Loh, David Lu, Ebuka A. Ogbuoji, Isabel Escobar, Konstantinos Sierros, Oishi Sanyal

UK CARES Faculty Publications

Membranes serve as important components for modern manufacturing and purification processes but are conventionally associated with excessive solvent usage. Here, for the first time, a procedure for fabricating large area polysulfone membranes is demonstrated via the combination of direct ink writing (DIW) with non-solvent induced phase inversion (NIPS). The superior control and precision of this process allows for complete utilization of the polymer dope solution during membrane fabrication, thus enabling a significant reduction in material usage. Compared to doctor blade fabrication, a 63% reduction in dope solution volume was achieved using the DIW technique for fabricating similarly sized membranes. Cross …

Temperature-Dependent Stress–Strain Behavior Of Amorphous And Crystalline P3ht, Kehinde H. Fagbohungbe, Connor P. Callaway, Chad Risko

UK CARES Faculty Publications

The scalable commercialization of organic electronics wherein p-conjugated polymers serve as the semiconductors hinges on precise control of the material electronic, redox, optical, and mechanical properties, which are each highly influenced by local and long-range morphology. Here, we undertake atomistic molecular dynamics (MD) simulations at three temperatures (150 K, 300 K, and 400 K) to assess the morphological and mechanical response of bulk poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT), a representative homopolymer of interest as an organic semiconductor (OS). As P3HT is a semicrystalline polymer, we characterize mechanical properties for both amorphous and crystalline P3HT models to derive insights into structure–property relationships, including Young’s …

Table Of Contents, Academy Editors

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

No abstract provided.

Academy Presidents And Institutional Members, Academy Editors

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

No abstract provided.

Business Meeting Report (Secretary's And Treasurer's Report), Academy Editors

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

No abstract provided.

Probable Extirpation Of The Jackrabbit (Lepus Californicus) From Arkansas, D.B. Sasse

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

The black-tailed jackrabbit (Lepus californicus) was first documented in Arkansas during the modern era in Franklin County in 1927. Over the next few decades records were reported from multiple counties in northwest Arkansas and the species was locally common in Benton, Crawford, and Washington counties in the 1950s. The last Arkansas record documented in the scientific literature was from 1968 and since then there have only been three credible reports, with the last being from the late 1980s. The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission solicited reports of jackrabbits from the public and failed to find evidence of them from a …

A Review Of Herpetofaunal Distributions In Arkansas With Special Emphasis On Contributions From Citizen Science: Part I – Snakes, R. Jacobs, N. Ortiz, J. Jackson, J.D. Willson, K.G. Roberts, R. Kannan

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

We present a comprehensive updated review of the distributions of the 38 species of snakes in Arkansas. We compare historical and current distributions with citizen science data uploaded and verified in iNaturalist, a leading biodiversity monitoring online citizen science database. The Arkansas Herpetological Atlas, a website maintaining species occurrence records, is also used and compared. We highlight the role played by iNaturalist in enhancing our knowledge of snake distributions in Arkansas. 10,885 verified and vetted Research Grade (RG) observations of Arkansas snakes have been recorded in iNaturalist, expanding the known distributions of 36 of the 38 species. This is the …

Ultrastructure Of The Biflagellated Spermatozoon In The Western Siren, Siren Nettingi (Caudata: Sirenidae), Using Scanning Electron Microscopy, S.E. Trauth

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

I investigated the ultrastructure of the biflagellated spermatozoon of the Western Siren, Siren nettingi, using scanning electron microscopy from salamanders collected in northeastern Arkansas. My primary goal in this study was to reveal the general morphology of the distinctive sperm cell components (two axonemes, two undulating membranes, and two axial fibers), which run nearly the entire length of the spermatozoon. These remarkable gamete structures are found in members of the salamander family Sirenidae and do not conform to spermatozoal ultrastructure of any other salamander species. Moreover, the biflagellated sperm are the end product of an extraordinary assemblage of complex maturation …

Journal Of The Arkansas Academy Of Science Volume 78, Academy Editors

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

No abstract provided.