Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Nba Player Types And Salaries: Assessing The Disparities In Pay, Nick Riccardi, Rodney J. Paul

Sport Management - All Scholarship

The purpose of this study was to identify player types that exist in the modern National Basketball Association (NBA), test whether player types are paid differently controlling for performance and other factors and construct successful rosters with cheaper payrolls.
We collected performance statistics and salary data for players and teams across five seasons (2018-19 to 2022-23). Cluster analysis is leveraged to group together player-seasons to identify the player types that exist in the NBA. Linear regression models are run to test for differences in pay by cluster membership while controlling for performance, age, and contractual details. Linear programming simulation models …

Impact Of Mining Activities On Land Use Land Cover (Lulc) Using Geospatial Techniques In The Obuasi Municipality, Jonathan Arthur Quaye-Ballard, Samira Naa Yemoley Nsiah, Jephthah Marfo Nimoh, Titus Tienaah, Tina Dzigbordi Wemegah, Precious Adwoa Okyere

Publications

Introduction: Sustainable development, which balances economic, social, and environmental factors to meet the needs of the present and future generations, is a collective responsibility. Rapid population growth and intensification of socio-economic activities are causing significant changes in Land Use Land Cover (LULC), directly impacting ecosystem services, biodiversity, and climate. The Obuasi community is already facing environmental degradation and health problems due to gold mining.

Methodology: The study assessed the spatial extent and intensity of mining activities in the Obuasi Municipality on the LULC and predicted future LULC changes due to mining activities using geospatial techniques. The LULC changes were analysed …

Quantum Ai To Factor Intergers Midterm Presentation, Reu/Fri Program Physics And Astronomy, Kai Sandberg

Student Works

No abstract provided.

Indifferentiability Analysis Of Symmetric Key Ciphers, Sayantan Paul

Doctoral Theses

The thesis presented here analyses the security of certain selected symmetric key ciphers - The ciphers analyzed are the 2 and 3-round Confusion-Diffusion Network, the 3-round Cascade Cipher with two independent keys, and the Feistel Construction with 7 and 8 rounds. Substitution Permutation Networks (SPNs) are widely used in the design of modern symmetric cryptographic building blocks. Attacks against the 2-round Confusion-Diffusion Network construction have been exhibited by Dodis et al. (2016a) in their Eurocrypt 2016 paper titled ‘Indifferentiability of Confusion-Diffusion Networks’, and by Da, Xu and Guo (2021b) in their paper ‘Sequential Indifferentiability of Confusion-Diffusion Networks’. Both attacks mentioned …

Anionic Azo Dyes: Wastewater Pollutants As Functionalizing Agents For Porous Polycarbonate Membranes Aiding In Water Decolorization, Alan Jarrett Messinger, Isabella S. Mays, Brennon Craigo, Jeffrey Joering, Sean P. Mcbride

Physics Faculty Research

Efficient water decolorization techniques are vital for ensuring fresh water for future generations. Azo dyes are used heavily in the textile industry and are a challenge to remove from industrial wastewater. This research expands on recent innovative work where anionic azo dyes themselves were used to functionalize track-etched porous polycarbonate filtration membranes with decolorized water obtained as a byproduct. The objective of this research is to determine whether the observed dye rejection is dependent on the magnitude of the intrinsic charge of the dye molecule or on its structure, using two selectively chosen anionic azo dye series during functionalization. The …

Murmurations Of Modular Forms And P-Power Coefficients, Debanjana Kundu, Katharina Müller

School of Mathematical & Statistical Sciences Faculty Publications

We extend the work of N. Zubrilina on murmuration of modular forms to the case when prime-indexed coefficients are replaced by squares of primes. Our key observation is that the shape of the murmuration density is the same.

Machine Learning And Crime Prevention, Emily Lizewski

Student Theses

Predictive policing uses machine learning to analyze crime patterns and help law enforcement better efficient use their resources. These tools can improve accuracy by highlighting complex trends in large sets of data. While this technology has its advantages, it also raises important ethical and social questions. Within this paper we looks at how predictive policing works, focusing on the machine learning models often used such as decision trees, random forests, gradient boosting, and models that factor in both time and location. It also explores how these tools might unintentionally reinforce biases already present in historical crime data. In reviewing the …

Re: Approval Letter For Bpsou Blacktail Creek Riparian Actions Draft Field Work Plan: Wetlands Delineation And Functional Assessment (Received August 8, 2025), Emma Rott

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

Quantum Pseudorandom Primitives Beyond Pseudorandom States, Chuhan Lu

Dissertations and Theses

Quantum pseudorandomness is an emerging research area. Ji, Liu, and Song defined pseudorandom states (PRSs) and pseudorandom unitaries (PRUs) as quantum analogs of pseudorandom generators and pseudorandom functions. A unitary oracle separation result between one-way functions and PRSs/PRUs, established by Kretschmer, suggests that certain quantum primitives may remain secure even if classical cryptography is compromised. This insight has spurred extensive work on quantum pseudorandomness and its applications in quantum cryptography.

Many constructions of PRSs have been established under standard assumptions, yet building a secure PRU was a long-standing open problem. This dissertation aims to narrow the gap between PRSs and …

Investigation Of Co-Current And Counter-Current Multiphase Flow In Upstream Drilling And Production Applications, Hazem Fleifel

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In the domain of upstream Petroleum Engineering, the dynamics of co-current and counter-current multiphase flows present huge challenges, significantly impacting the efficiency of associated processes. This study investigates two specific applications concerning these flow behaviors, involving both laboratory experiments and transient computer simulations. This work investigates two distinct well control and production enhancement processes, involving multiphase flow dynamics: the bullheading kill procedure and liquid-assisted gas lift (LAGL).

The first topic (Topic 1) explores the bullheading process, a type of well control methods, by challenging the traditional understanding that gas removal efficiency increases monotonically with injection pump flow rate. Through 1D …

Re: 2025 Spring Migration Seasonal Report For Berkeley Pit Waterfowl Protection Plan, Mark Thompson, Loren Burmeister

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

Montserrat Developments Impacting Local Coral Reefs, Emma I. Bartholomew

2025 Symposium

Montserrat is a small island in the Caribbean, and over half of the island is in the exclusion zone because of the active volcano, Soufrière Hills. In that half was the old capital, Plymouth, which has since been abandoned, and its old port. The old port was getting less reliable and accessible, so they decided to build a new port in Little Bay, closer to the seat of government in Brades. This study explored how the addition of the new port impacted the corals in that area. We explored several different bays and recorded the diversity and health of the …

A Study On Webassembly And Its Security, Thomas Crossman

Research from the Berry Summer Thesis Institute, 2025

This project studies WebAssembly, a binary language specification that enables non-native languages, such as C/C++ and Rust, to run efficiently on webpages, supporting complex tasks like gaming or data processing. It functions by translating a non-native language into a WebAssembly binary, which is natively supported by most browsers. Notably, WebAssembly uses a linear memory model, storing all non-code data in a single linear array. Unfortunately, this design compromises some security principles, introducing security risks and complications.

Our overall project goal is to investigate WebAssembly functionality, develop a test program, and address a critical security challenge to enhance the safety of …

Domain Obedient Deep Learning, Soumadeep Saha

Doctoral Theses

Deep learning, a family of data-driven artificial intelligence techniques, has shown immense promise in a plethora of applications, and it has even outpaced experts in several domains. However, unlike symbolic approaches to learning, these methods fall short when it comes to abiding by and learning from pre-existing established principles. This is a significant deficit for deployment in critical applications such as robotics, medicine, industrial automation, etc. For a decision system to be considered for adoption in such fields, it must demonstrate the ability to adhere to specified constraints, an ability missing in deep learning-based approaches. Exploring this problem serves as …

A Comprehensive Review On Gamification In Neurocybersecurity, Ms. Kritika

Journal of Cybersecurity Education, Research and Practice

The research investigates gamification methods as it applies to the emerging interdisciplinary domain that brings together cybersecurity with neuroscience and psychology. Neurocybersecurity implements neural concepts to protect digital systems from security threats while targeting the human vulnerabilities that present as the strongest points of attack. Several researchers have examined gamification techniques which incorporate game design elements to enhance cybersecurity training outcomes by improving user participation and knowledge retention and user conduct compliance. The research incorporates Self-Determination Theory along with Cognitive Load Theory to explain the design principles for efficient gamified interventions. The implementation of both cognitive performance improvement and neuroplasticity …

Well Spacing Optimization Technology For Coalbed Methane Horizontal Wells, Wang Yuting, Yang Yanhui, Zhang Cong, Wang Xiuwei, Liu Zhong, Chen Jiale, Dong Qing, Sun Tao, Zhang Wuchang, Li Kexin, Wang Qi

Coal Geology & Exploration

Background Well spacing design directly affects the resource utilization and exploitation benefits of blocks. Rational well spacing design plays a significant role in the commercial exploitation of coalbed methane (CBM) fields. Since the beginning of China’s 14th Five-Year Plan, blocks for CBM production in the southern Qinshui Basin have experienced a gradual increase in burial depth, a progressive decline in permeability, and a constant update of primary exploitation technology. Consequently, traditional well spacings fail to meet the requirements for field CBM exploitation any longer. Methods This study investigated the western Qinnan – eastern Mabi block by combining numerical simulations with …

Geochemical Characteristics And Genesis Of Element Enrichment Of Niobium-Rich-Rare Earth Metal Layer In Longtan Formation Of Zhina Coalfield, Ding Yunlong, Wang Fangfa, Li Bi, Tang Lifang, Yang Yi, Li Shangyuan, Wang Xiaofang, Zou Yinhong, Wang Yang

Coal Geology & Exploration

Background With the increasing demand for strategic metals and the gradual depletion of traditional metal deposit resources, coal and coal-bearing rock series are considered to be potential sources of rare metals, and coal series associated has become one of the main directions of current mineral exploration. A set of coal measure strata rich in niobium (Nb) and rare earth elements (REE) has been found in Zhina coalfield, western Guizhou and the contents of Nb and REE are as high as 334.89 μg/g and 1014.51 μg/g, respectively. This discovery is of great significance to the theoretical study of coal measure metal …

Advances In Research On The Activation And Recovery Of Strategic And Critical Valuable Metals From Coal Fly Ash, Wang Yuhao, Dong Zhongbing

Coal Geology & Exploration

Background Coal fly ash, a bulk solid waste byproduct from coal-fired power generation, has a global annual output exceeding 0.75 billion tons. Its disordered piling poses severe environmental risks, such as the generation of heavy metal leachate and PM_2.5 emissions. However, coal fly ash is rich in aluminum (Al 100‒200 mg/g), gallium (Ga 10‒300 μg/g), lithium (Li 1 300‒3 700 μg/g), and rare earth elements (REEs 200‒800 μg/g), establishing it as a potential alternative resource of strategic metals. Methods By analyzing the current domestic and international technologies for metal recovery from coal fly ash, this study expatiates on the …

Hybrid Differentiator-Based Method For Estimating The Drilling Speed Of A Vehicle-Mounted Drilling Rig During Surface Drilling For Mine Rescue, Wang Yunfei, Zhao Jiyun, Hu Yongjie, Zhang Zongyang, Pan Xiaochen

Coal Geology & Exploration

Background Vehicle-mounted drilling rigs (VMDRs), key devices in surface drilling for mine rescue, directly connect the ground and underground disaster-hit areas through vertical drilling, thereby creating rescue channels for trapped people. In this case, the drilling speed of VMDRs serves as an important indicator for evaluating surface drilling operations. However, directly determining the drilling speed is challenging due to the limitations of position sensors. Methods This study developed an estimation method based on a new hybrid differentiator (NHD), allowing the drilling speed to be calculated using measurable displacement signals. First, a continuous switching function was devised, and its convergence characteristics …

Methodology And Integration For Dynamic Safety Assessment And Early Warning Of Drilling Sites For Emergency Rescue After Underground Space Collapse, Xie Zhongzhi, Zhang Guohua, Wei Xingtong, Zhang Ning, Wang Xiaotian, Ni Xiaoyang, Zhou Zhengwen, Wang Xianze

Coal Geology & Exploration

Objective IGiven the lack of methods for dynamic safety assessment related to disasters in drilling site environments for emergency rescue after underground space collapse, this study proposed a multisource data-driven methodology for dynamic safety assessment and real-time early warning. Methods By comprehensively considering the disaster-inducing environment and disaster-causing factors at drilling sites for emergency rescue, this study established the safety assessment indices of the environment and their grading system. By integrating multi-source data on surrounding rock deformation, gas concentration, and drilling rig vibration, this study developed a safety assessment method through combination weighting achieved using the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) …

Family Ties: Nba Draft Position And Player Performance, Nick Riccardi, Rodney J. Paul

Sport Management - All Scholarship

This study aims to investigate the role, if any, that nepotism plays in the careers of players in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Career performance is compared between the 780 players drafted from 2007-2019 with familial relationships considered. Ordinary Least Squares and logistic regression models are specified to estimate the effect of having a relative on the success of an NBA player’s career. We find that siblings of NBA players earn more and reach minimum games played thresholds more often, while sons of NBA players earn more, but generally do not reach games played thresholds more often than similarly-drafted peers.

Digital Rock Modeling And Elastic Simulations Of Fractured-Vuggy Carbonate Reservoirs, Zhu Wei, Zhao Luanxiao, Wang Yirong

Coal Geology & Exploration

Objective The Tarim Basin exhibits extensively distributed deep fractured-vuggy carbonate reservoirs. Therefore, determining the seismic and petrophysical characteristics of carbonate reservoirs with a fracture and vug system will provide significant guidance for the exploration, discovery, drilling, and exploitation of favorable reservoirs in the basin. Variations in the filling state of dissolution fractures and vugs will lead to significantly different elastic and attenuation characteristics of the reservoirs. Methods Based on geological insights into the geometric structural and filling characteristics of the dissolution fracture-vug system in the outcrop sections of carbonate strata in the Tarim Basin, this study proposed a digital rock …

Using Novel Technology And Sensemaking In The Classroom, Reu/Fri Program Physics And Astronomy, Julio Escobedo

Student Works

This project looked into the usefulness of various new and unique technologies in a science classroom setting to allow for more sensemaking to occur among students. This was done through professional developments or training for multiple educators on how to use these devices in the classrooms. We found that each new technology had a unique set of useful capabilities and drawbacks. These findings suggest that implementation of these technologies can increase sensemaking if done properly and with proper training beforehand.

08.25.2025 Ored Connect, Liz Williamson

ORED Newsletter

• Research Security Required Training
• ORED Research Reception

Effect Of Chalcogen-Phosphorus Substituents On Enediynes Undergoing The Bergman Cyclization, Marcos Hendler, Travis Greene, Dominic A. Siriani, Carol A. Parish

Chemistry Faculty Publications

We have theoretically characterized electrocyclizations of chalcogen-phosphorus-containing enediynes. We performed quantum calculations at the BS-(U)­CCSD/cc-pVDZ level to analyze the geometries and energetics of two different cyclization pathways, each consisting of the first three chalcogens (oxygen, sulfur, and selenium). The first pathway involved the cyclization of the chalcogen-phosphorus substituents followed by Bergman cyclization, while the second pathway proceeded via Bergman cyclization followed by chalcogen-phosphorus cyclization. To more accurately understand the energies of the diradicals involved in each pathway, we also performed spin-flip characterizations using UHF reference wave functions and the spin-flip formulation of the equation-of-motion coupled cluster theory with singles and …

Flash Communication: Visible-Light-Driven, Cobalt-Mediated Selective C–H Arylation Of 2,2′-Bipyridine, Xi Chen, Eric R. Allen, Mckenzie L. Stack, Zachary M. Garozzo, Dian Wang

Chemistry Faculty Research and Publications

Herein, we report a visible-light-driven, cobalt-mediated, highly selective C–H arylation method to afford aryl-2,2′-bipyridine, a widely used class of ancillary ligands in transition metal catalysis. This arylation reaction exhibits good-to-excellent C6 selectivity for a variety of aryl groups, allowing for isolation of the 6-isomer in its pure form. Mechanistic studies provided evidence for the generation of an aryl radical by the joint action of [Co(bpy)₃] species and visible light, enabling arylation under mild conditions. Compared to previous work, this method employs cost-effective reagents and provides one-step, direct access from 2,2′-bipyridine to a broad range of electronically varied 6-aryl-2,2′-bipyridine …

Ai Is Not The New Dei: Academia’S Addiction To The Next Big Thing, Essraa Nawar

Library Articles and Research

"Every August, as campuses come back to life across the country and the world, I notice the same rhythm: new policies announced, committees formed, webinars scheduled, and fall conferences themed around the latest 'big thing.'

This fall? No surprise. The wave is artificial intelligence.

AI task forces are meeting weekly. Universities are drafting 'responsible AI' policies. New centers and certificates are being launched. Syllabi are being rewritten. Symposia and faculty retreats promise that AI will 'redefine the future of education.'

It is bold. It is ambitious. But it is also deeply familiar."

Table Of Contents, The Editors

Coal Geology & Exploration

No abstract provided.

Fracturing Evolution Mechanisms Of Eroded Coals Under The Temperature Effect Of The Co2-H2O System, Lin Baiquan, Shi Yu, Liu Ting, Shen Yang, Huang Tao

Coal Geology & Exploration

Background Injecting hot flue gas produced and discharged by gas-fired power plants into deep coal seams where gas is difficult to extract enjoys dual benefits: gas production growth and geologic CO₂ sequestration. However, there is an urgent need to determine the impact of the heat-carrying property of hot flue gas on the stability of coal reservoirs. To address this issue, the key is to clarify the fracturing evolution mechanisms of eroded coals under the temperature effect of the CO₂-H₂O system.Methods Using the independently built platform of CO₂-H₂O-coal interactions that consider …

Advances In Research On Geological Evaluation Of Compressed Air Energy Storage In Underground Gas Storage Facilities, Jiang Wen, Huang Leqing, Zhang Songhang, Ma Huiying

Coal Geology & Exploration

Background Against the backdrop of achieving peak carbon dioxide emissions and carbon neutrality globally, renewable energy has developed rapidly and is gradually changing the world's energy mix. However, the intermittent and fluctuating nature of photovoltaic and wind power energy is prone to cause grid frequency fluctuations and reduced power supply reliability. Compressed air energy storage (CAES) technology has emerged as the key to the stable operation of the green power grid thanks to its large capacity and low cost.Methods Based on a systematic review of domestic and international literature in recent years, this study organizes the current theoretical and …