Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Re: 2026 Spring Semi-Annual – Interim Site-Wide Groundwater Monitoring Data Report Silver Bow Creek Butte Area Npl Site, Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit Consent Decree-Civil Action No. Cv 89-039-Bu-She, Josh Bryson

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

Re: Draft Final Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit Unreclaimed Sites Field Sampling And Investigation Plan: Ur-41 – Montana Street And Interstate-90, Mike Mcanulty

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

Evolution Of Global Sea‐Level Rise Projections And Their Uncertainty, Andra J. Garner, Amy Appollina, Jessica Slotter, Gregory G. Garner, Aimée B. A. Slangen, Robert E. Kopp, Benjamin P. Horton

School of Earth, Environment, and Society Faculty Publications and Presentations

For more than 40 years, scientists have projected future sea‐level change. Documenting how sea‐level projections have evolved is vital for tracking progress, uncertainties, and future research needs. Here, we update and analyze a database of global‐mean sea level (GMSL) projections dating from 1982 to 2025, identifying five key findings. First, GMSL projection generation has been concentrated in a small number of developed countries, with 95% of projections produced in the United States, United Kingdom, European Union, or Australia. Second, while GMSL projections for 2050 and 2100 have been published regularly since the early 1980s, only 30 of 103 studies have …

Draft Final 2023 Reclamation Improvement Sites Sampling: Bres No. 31 – Waste Dump #5 Site Evaluation Summary Report, Pioneer Technical Services, Inc.

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

This Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit (BPSOU) Reclamation Improvement (RI) Site Evaluation Summary Report (SESR) presents results of soil sampling conducted on October 16, 2023, at the Butte Reclamation Evaluation System (BRES) No. 31 – Waste Dump #5 Site and adjacent areas (referred to herein as Site) within the BPSOU. The BPSOU Consent Decree (CD) (referred to herein as BPSOU CD; EPA, 2020) Appendix D, Attachment C Further Remedial Elements Scope of Work (FRESOW) prescribed further evaluation of sites reclaimed prior to establishment of the Butte Hill Revegetation Specifications (BHRS) (Appendix A to the BPSOU CD), which were initially established …

Citizen Science As A Long-Term Environmental Baseline: Assessing Impacts Of A Small Dam Removal In Montana, Usa, Bethany Blakey, Natalie Bursztyn

Watershed Sciences Student Research

As dam removals increase in frequency across Europe and North America, most research has focused on the impact of larger dam removals, despite the removal of small dams being much more common. There are hundreds of small dams in Montana, USA, and this research investigates impacts on stream ecology and morphology using citizen science data collected over eight years spanning before and after a 2020 small dam removal in Rattlesnake Creek. We analyzed pebble count grain size distributions and aquatic macroinvertebrate biotic indices from 2017 to 2024 to assess changes in sediment transport and macroinvertebrate population as well as evaluate …

Artificial Intelligence And Social Equities: Navigating The Intersectionalities In A Digital Age (Editorial), Daisuke Akiba, Julie Albright

Publications and Research

This editorial article introduces and synthesizes the Special Issue, “Artificial intelligence and social equities: navigating the intersectionalities in a digital age,” which examines how AI systems intersect with race, ethnicity, and interconnected identity dimensions across global contexts. The eight contributions span healthcare, digital media, higher education, organizational communication, and speculative futures, addressing anti-racist psychiatric algorithms, AI-generated visual disinformation, epistemic injustice between the Global North and South, algorithmically mediated rural–urban divides, culturally untranslated technology transfer, accessibility auditing across the AI lifecycle, and the tension between mechanical objectivity and empathic understanding. Read together, they show that AI is neither inherently …

Oregon State Rank Assessment For Schweinitz's Cyperus (Cyperus Schweinitzii), Nora Dunkirk

Institute for Natural Resources Publications

Oregon state conservation status assessment for Schweinitz's cyperus (Cyperus schweinitzii) using NatureServe methodology, 2026.

A Vision For The Future Of Academic Publishing In Sports Analytics, Ryan Elmore, B. Baumer, Brian Macdonald, Gregory J. Matthews, Michael E. Schuckers

Statistical and Data Sciences: Faculty Publications

This article introduces the Journal of Statistics and Data Science in Sports (JSDSS), a Diamond Open Access, peer-reviewed journal. The journal is founded on three core principles. First, our commitment to open access is absolute. Second, reproducibility is critical and fundamental to the journal. Third, we believe sport is a rich and underutilized laboratory for statistical and data science innovation. The aim of the Journal of Statistics and Data Science in Sports is to provide an outlet for original, rigorous, practical, state-of-the-art, reproducible, and peer-reviewed analysis of sports data as well as the data science tools (software, applications, data, etc.) …

2026 Final Bpsou Backfill And Cover Material Quality Assurance Project Plan (Qapp), Pioneer Technical Services, Inc.

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

This Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit (BPSOU) Backfill and Cover Material Quality Assurance Project Plan (QAPP) provides the procedures and protocols necessary to conduct sampling and geotechnical characterization activities on import borrow and other externally sourced materials that will be used in backfill, cover soil, or engineered caps for upcoming BPSOU remediation activities described in the BPSOU Consent Decree (CD) (referred to as BPSOU CD; EPA, 2020a) Further Remedial Elements Scope of Work (FRESOW) (Attachment C of Appendix D to the BPSOU CD), the 2020 Residential Metals Abatement Program (RMAP) Unilateral Administrative Order (UAO) Amendment (EPA, 2020a), and ongoing maintenance …

Deep Learning-Based Burned Area Mapping Of California Wildfires Using Sentinel-2 And Landsat-8 Imagery Enhanced With Super-Resolution Techniques, Youngmin Seo, Seung Hee Kim, Menas Kafatos, Jinsoo Kim, Yangwon Lee

Institute for ECHO Articles and Research

The increasing frequency of wildfires under a changing climate has led to extensive ecosystem destruction, highlighting the need for reliable burned area assessment using satellite imagery. Single-satellite data are constrained by observation gaps and interference from smoke and clouds, whereas multi-satellite data fusion can mitigate these limitations. Nonetheless, the fusion techniques still encounter challenges such as spatial information loss from resolution differences and cross-satellite domain mismatch. This study presents a burned area mapping framework that integrates super-resolution (SR) with transfer learning to address spatial and domain gaps in multi-satellite data. Specifically, Landsat-8 imagery is super-resolved to 7.5 m resolution, and …

Benchmark Brown Dwarf Systems. I. Chemical Abundance Analysis Of Fgk Stars With Wide-Separation Brown Dwarf Companions Using Pepsi, Caprice L. Phillips, Megan Bedell, Catherine Manea, Alison Duck, Anusha Pai Asnodkar, Emily J. Griffith, Austin Rothermich, Emily Calamari, Jacqueline K. Faherty, Ben Burningham, Channon Visscher, Eileen C. Gonzales, Ilya Ilyin, Klaus Strassmeier, Ji Wang

Faculty Work Comprehensive List

We present results from a spectroscopic survey of 32 FGK stars hosting brown dwarfs, using high-resolution optical spectra (R = 130,000 and 50,000) obtained with the Potsdam Echelle Polarimetric and Spectroscopic Instrument spectrograph on the Large Binocular Telescope. The primary goal of this survey is to determine precise stellar parameters and abundances for 11 elements (C, O, Mg, Si, Ca, Al, Ti, Fe, Y, S, and N) in these systems. We employ spectral synthesis within the BACCHUS framework to derive precise stellar properties and elemental abundance ratios. For our data with average signal-to-noise ratio > 200, we achieve a typical …

Zero-Field Diode Effect As A Constraint On Cuprate Superconductivity Mechanisms, Armen Gulian, Serafim Teknowijoyo, Vahan Nikoghosyan

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

We present measurements demonstrating that copper-oxide high-temperature superconductors can exhibit broken time-reversal symmetry in the absence of external magnetic fields. Using Tl₂⁢Ba₂⁢CaCu₂⁢O₈ microbridges, we observe a pronounced superconducting diode effect at 100 K under strictly zero-field conditions. This nonreciprocal response remains unchanged in magnetic fields up to ±100 Oe. Our results are consistent with recent reports of zero-field diode behavior in Bi₂⁢Sr₂⁢CaCu₂⁢O_8+𝛿 and together they indicate that time-reversal symmetry breaking may be an intrinsic property of the cuprate superconducting state. These findings provide an additional experimental …

2026 Final Insufficiently Reclaimed Sites Quality Assurance Project Plan (Qapp), Pioneer Technical Services, Inc.

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

Insufficiently Reclaimed sites exist within the Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit (BPSOU) that could pose a threat to human health or surface water quality due to the exposure of historical mine waste. Although many source areas have been previously reclaimed, areas exist where reclamation was completed prior to the establishment of the Butte Hill Revegetation Specifications (BHRS) or reclaimed areas that have failed consecutive Butte Reclamation Evaluation System (BRES) inspections and now fall into either the Insufficiently Reclaimed or Reclamation Improvement category. In all these cases, additional work is required to comply with the BHRS to ensure the cap remains …

Unveiling Cuo-Doped Mwcnts Incorporated Polycaprolactone As Effective Photocatalytic Nanomembranes For Sequestrating Toxic Dyes From Industrial Wastewater And Antibacterial Applications, Hesham Moustafa, Mohamed Mousa, Mohamed Morsy, Gotdon Price, Mohamed H. Hemida, Samah A. Mohamed, Ahmed Helal

Nanotechnology Research Centre

Organic dyes, such as methylene blue (MB), are widely used in the textile and dyestuff industries, which can be released into the environment as major dye pollutants in wastewater, thereby causing serious environmental hazards. The present research aimed to synthesize effective CuO-doped multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and incorporated into a renewable polycaprolactone (PCL) polymer at varied dosages (i.e., 3, 7, and 10 wt%) to fabricate photocatalytic nanomembranes for toxic dye sequestration. XRD, SEM and FTIR analysis were employed to characterize the structure, morphology and composition of prepared nanoparticles and PCL nanomembranes. The mechanical properties and antibacterial performance of prepared nanomembranes …

2026 Final Unreclaimed Sites Quality Assurance Project Plan (Qapp), Pioneer Technical Services, Inc.

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

Unreclaimed sites exist within the Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit (BPSOU) that could pose a threat to human health or surface water quality due to the presence of historical mine waste. Although many source areas have been previously reclaimed, areas still exist in which soil has not yet been evaluated; such sites may provide a pathway for human exposure or impact surface water quality via stormwater runoff. These Unreclaimed sites will be evaluated in accordance with Appendix D, Attachment C, Section 8.0 of the BPSOU Consent Decree (referred to herein as CD) (EPA, 2020a).

This Quality Assurance Project Plan (QAPP) …

2026 Final Unreclaimed Sites Quality Assurance Project Plan (Qapp), Pioneer Technical Services, Inc.

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

Unreclaimed sites exist within the Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit (BPSOU) that could pose a threat to human health or surface water quality due to the presence of historical mine waste. Although many source areas have been previously reclaimed, areas still exist in which soil has not yet been evaluated; such sites may provide a pathway for human exposure or impact surface water quality via stormwater runoff. These Unreclaimed sites will be evaluated in accordance with Appendix D, Attachment C, Section 8.0 of the BPSOU Consent Decree (referred to herein as CD) (EPA, 2020a).

This Quality Assurance Project Plan (QAPP) …

Nasa’S Ecostress Satellite Reveals Widespread Midday Depression In Ecosystem Evapotranspiration, Jingyi Bu, Jingfeng Xiao, Joshua B. Fisher, Yiqi Luo

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Plants often exhibit a midday depression in water use (i.e., transpiration), reflecting a constraint on their ability to sustain maximum water transport, which may occur at the cost of reduced photosynthesis. Eddy covariance observations and geostationary satellites cannot quantify this widespread phenomenon globally while resolving fine-scale spatial variability. Using evapotranspiration measurements from the ECOsystem Spaceborne Thermal Radiometer Experiment on Space Station (ECOSTRESS) and machine learning, we quantify the global distribution of midday depression in evapotranspiration. Midday depression primarily occurs during peak-growing seasons in temperate zones and dry periods in the tropics, with a morning shift of the peak evapotranspiration time …

Adaptive Rational Approximation In Dynamic Economic Models: A Novel Application Of The Aaa Algorithm To Economic Growth, Adaye Sosthene Yvan N'Guettia

Mathematics, Statistics, and Computer Science Honors Projects

I study adaptive rational approximation for fixed points that arise in infinite-horizon dynamic programming. I integrate the Adaptive Antoulas–Anderson (AAA) algorithm into Bellman- and Euler-based fixed-point solvers by recomputing a barycentric rational interpolant at each update. In addition to standard AAA, which selects support points from interpolation residuals, I study a residual-weighted variant in which Bellman,Euler, or KKT diagnostics act as secondary weights on the greedy pivot rule. This alignment of approximation adaptivity with the underlying equilibrium conditions can concentrate degrees of freedom in regions of steep curvature, sharp transitions in localbehavior, and other localized features that typically degrade polynomial …

An Analysis Of The Effects And Implementations Of The Early Literacy Grant In Arizona, Alicia Severiano Perez

Mathematics, Statistics, and Computer Science Honors Projects

Over the years, states have implemented Science of Reading (SoR) frameworks to address low literacy levels. The Early Literacy Grant (ELG) in Arizona funds and supports such frameworks for schools serving low-income students. This paper is the first to explore the grant through interrupted time series modeling to evaluate effectiveness and text analysis to understand its implementation. We do not find clear evidence of positive effects caused by the grant, other than some cases, such as Yuma County. Schools typically allocate funds toward salaries and hiring instructors. These findings raise questions about whether its allocations should be closely monitored.

Level Sets For Lehmer Codes Of Pattern Avoiding Permutations, Avery Sinclair

Mathematics, Statistics, and Computer Science Honors Projects

We study the poset structures for two families of pattern avoiding permutations. An n-permutation is a list of the numbers [n]={1,2,...,n}. A permutation is 321-avoiding when it does not contain a decreasing subsequence of length 3. A poset (partially ordered set) is a set such that some elements can be compared with one another. Using Lehmer codes, we define a poset for 321-avoiding permutations. We then fully describe the six lowest levels of this poset. We then consider the analogous poset for 123-avoiding permutations (which don't contain an increasing subsequence of length 3) and fully describe the three lowest levels.

Temperature Predictions With Zncuins/Zns Quantum Dots, Reu/Fri Program Physics And Astronomy, Amber Banks

Student Works

For hundreds of years, humans have built thermometers based on the principles of thermal expansion and contraction. In the modern world, there is a need to scale down our thermometers to monitor cellular reactions, both within the human body and within artificial organ chips. Lewis et al. (2020) introduces a nanoscale thermometer based on the thermal expansion of CdTe quantum dots. When ex panded, these dots exhibit systematic changes in photoluminescence (PL) which are recognized by a neural network as an increase in temperature. Our research builds upon the framework of Lewis et al. (2020), testing its feasibility with ZnCuInS/ZnS …

Oregon State Rank Assessment For Koehler's Rockcress (Boechera Koehleri), Lindsey K. Wise, Gabriel Campbell

Institute for Natural Resources Publications

Oregon state conservation status assessment for Koehler's rockcress (Boechera koehleri) using NatureServe methodology, 2026.

Machine Learning For Functional Outcome Prediction After Vestibular Schwannoma Surgery: A Systematic Review And Diagnostic Test Accuracy Meta-Analysis, Shiva Nischal, Shaan Patel, Musa China, Kush Kale, Yi Hein Chai, Santosh Guru, William Muirhead, Patrick Grover

Department of Neurosurgery Faculty Papers

PURPOSE: Machine learning (ML) models have been increasingly applied to predict postoperative facial nerve dysfunction and hearing preservation after vestibular schwannoma (VS) surgery. However, reported performance varies substantially, and the overall diagnostic accuracy and clinical reliability of these models remain uncertain. We conducted a systematic review and diagnostic test accuracy meta-analysis to characterise the current state and methodological readiness of ML-based prediction of these outcomes.

METHODS: PubMed, Embase, and CENTRAL were searched from inception to February 2026. Studies evaluating ML-based prediction of facial nerve function or hearing preservation following VS surgery were included. Diagnostic performance metrics were pooled using random-effects …

Synthesis, Thermal Stability, And Ionic Conductivity Of Phenyl-Extended Viologen Ditriflate Salts: Tailoring Properties Via Oxyethylene Chain Length, Seonghyeok L. Cox, Emily Moon, Si L. Chen, David King, Haesook Han, Pradip K. Bhowmik, Calvin Ng Yi Bin, Thamil Selvi Velayutham, Alfonso Martinez-Felipe

Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty Research

Six new phenyl-extended viologen salts with oxyethylene groups paired with triflate anions (OTF) have been synthesized using anionic ring-opening and ring-closing reactions (ANRORC) and metathesis reactions with LiOTf salts. The salts, which contain terminal oxyethylene chains of varying lengths ((CH₂CH₂O)_n, n = 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 7), are named PEOn-OTF. These materials exhibit a fluorescence response and possess high thermal stability, with processing windows up to approximately 300 °C, as confirmed by thermogravimetric analysis. While samples with short chain lengths (n = 1, 2, and 3) undergo crystallization observed …

Feedback Indices To Evaluate Llm Responses To Rebuttals For Multiple Choice Type Questions, Justin C. Dunlap, Anne-Simone Parent, Ralf Widenhorn

Physics Faculty Publications and Presentations

We present a set of indices designed to characterize Large Language Model (LLM) responses when challenged with rebuttals during a chat. Assessing how LLMs respond to user dissent is crucial for understanding their reliability and behavior patterns, yet the complexity of human-LLM interactions makes systematic evaluation challenging. Our approach employs a fictitious-response rebuttal method that quantifies LLM behavior when presented with multiple-choice questions followed by deliberate challenges to their fictitious previous response. The indices are specifically designed to detect and measure what could be characterized as sycophantic behavior (excessive agreement with user challenges) or stubborn responses (rigid adherence to the …

Interpretable Multimodal Learning For Integrating Neuroimaging And Genetic Data In Alzheimer’S Disease, Kun Zhao, Siyuan Dai, Yingying Zhang, Guodong Liu, Pengfei Gu, Chenghua Lin, Paul M. Thompson, Alex D. Leow, Heng Huang, Haoteng Tang

Computer Science Faculty Publications

Introduction: Early detection of Alzheimer's disease (AD) requires models that combine brain structure changes with genetic risk, but existing methods struggle to align these different data types.

Methods: We present R-GenIMA, an interpretable multimodal large language model that pairs a region-of-interest vision transformer with genetic prompting to jointly analyze structural MRI and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Each brain region becomes a visual token and SNP profiles are encoded as structured text, letting the model link regional atrophy to genetic factors through cross-modal attention. Tested on the ADNI cohort, R-GenIMA performs well in classifying four groups: normal cognition, subjective memory concerns, …

Norman H. Cromwell, Unl Chemistry; Nu System Dean; Eppley Cancer Center Director, Norman H. Cromwell, Pete Boughn, Mark A. Griep

UNL ORCA Interview Series

This 1980 interview of Normal Cromwell was done by Pete Boughn at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha. He asked about Cromwell’s history but mostly about his time as director of the Eppley Cancer Center. The interview is reproduced with permission from the UNMC McGoogan Library.

Cromwell was born in 1913 in Terre Haute, Indiana. In 1935, he earned a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in his hometown. In 1939, three things happened: he earned a doctorate in organic chemistry from the University of Minnesota, he got married, and he was hired …

Ngram Data Social Media, William Zywiak

Data and Datasets

Data set for a NSF STEM grant.

Lag Correlation Variance, William Zywiak

Data and Datasets

Data set for a NSF STEM grant.

A Stochastic Nonlinear Dynamical System For Smoothing Noisy Eye Gaze Data, Thoa Thieu, Roderick Melnik

School of Mathematical & Statistical Sciences Faculty Publications

In this study, we address the challenges associated with accurately determining gaze location on a screen, which is often compromised by noise from factors such as eye tracker limitations, calibration drift, ambient lighting changes, and eye blinks. We propose the use of an extended Kalman filter (EKF) to smooth the gaze data collected during eye-tracking experiments and systematically explore the interaction of different system parameters. Our results demonstrate that the EKF significantly reduces noise, leading to a marked improvement in tracking accuracy. Furthermore, we show that our proposed stochastic nonlinear dynamical model aligns well with real experimental data and holds …