Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Artificial Intelligence, Synthetic Media, And The Criminal Justice System, Jeffrey J. Jacobs

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Artificial intelligence (AI) technologies continue to evolve at an exponential pace, and their utilization of synthetic media in criminal activity presents both unprecedented opportunities and significant challenges for criminal justice systems. This dissertation explores the intersection of AI-driven synthetic media crime and the U.S. criminal justice system, identifying how such technologies are being utilized in criminal activity and evaluating the system’s capacity to adapt. This study uses a longitudinal, mixed-methods research design; it also collects and analyzes data from law enforcement agencies, AI developers, and cybersecurity experts to forecast future crime trends and assess the efficacy of current justice system …

Research On The Accessibility Elements Of Rural Public Digital Cultural Services Based On Aism-Fmicmac, Lihui Peng, Banruo Gu, Chuang Hong, Xisheng Hu

Journal of Scientific Information Research

[Purpose/significance] A structural analysis of the stratified dependencies among accessibility determinants in rural public digital cultural ecosystems enables identification of pivotal developmental nodes, thereby establishing theoretical foundations for optimizing service delivery mechanisms and achieving spatial equilibrium in digital cultural provision. [Method/process] This study applies grounded theory to conduct a comprehensive coding analysis of policy documents related to China's rural public digital cultural services. Through this process, five dimensions and fifteen sub-components of accessibility are identified. An index system for accessibility factors is then developed using the AISM approach. The identified elements are classified into three hierarchical levels. To further validate …

Drug Risk Knowledge Discovery For Western Medicines Based On Knowledge Graph Link Prediction, Jianxiang Wei, Ma Hengyuan Ma, Yuehong Sun, Wenwen Du, Letian Hu

Journal of Scientific Information Research

[Purpose/significance] The risk information contained in drug instructions is usually incomplete, and some new adverse reactions can only be discovered in actual clinical use. This paper proposes an information organization and knowledge discovery method for pharmacovigilance, in order to timely and accurately identify missing risk knowledge in drug instructions. [Method/process] Drug instructions of 8 152 Western medicines are collected as the research data; On the basis of ontology construction, data annotation, and model training, the UIE model is used to jointly extract entity and relationship triplets from the research data; A new knowledge graph link prediction method CompGCN-RotatE, is proposed, …

Coexistence Of“Emotion”And“Rationality”：Analysis Of The Impact Mechanism Of Frequent Reversal Events On The Evolution Of Online Public Opinion, Liqiang Wang, Xueqi Li, Yixian Wang

Journal of Scientific Information Research

[Purpose/significance] In recent years, frequent reversal events have negatively impacted the online media environment, leading to an increasing number of skeptical voices during the evolution of public opinion.These doubts are no longer merely emotional outbursts but also involve rational understanding of the event's authenticity. This study aims to gain a deeper understanding of this phenomenon and attempts to reveal the impact mechanism of frequent reversal events on the evolution of online public opinion. [Method/process] Through surveys and computer simulation experiments, the study analyzes various elements such as individuals, media environment, and evolution patterns in online public opinion,then according to the …

Research On Temporal Knowledge Graph Completion Method For Emergent Events Based On Bigru And Graph Contrastive Learning, Peng Wu, Zhenyu Lu, Xuechen Zhang

Journal of Scientific Information Research

[Purpose/significance] During emergencies, social media short texts contain critical information but are heavily interfered with by noise. Traditional static knowledge graph completion techniques struggle to effectively address their dynamic evolution and data sparsity issues, making it imperative to introduce temporal modeling methods. [Method/process] This study proposes a dynamic completion framework that combines the temporal feature capture capability of Bidirectional Gated Recurrent Units (BiGRU) with the noise-resistant representation learning advantages of Graph Contrastive Learning (GCL). At the completion level, the ConBiTE method is introduced, which captures temporal dependencies through self-attention mechanisms and BiGRU, while leveraging GCL to enhance the completion of …

Assessing The Robustness Of Combinatorial Multi-Armed Bandit For Geofencing With Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces., Luciano De Souza, André Gomes

STEM Student Research Symposium Posters

Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces (RIS) can influence beam selection in next-generation wireless systems by shaping the channel conditions observed during beam sweeping. Prior work assumes deterministic beam sweeping, enabling Combinatorial Multi-Armed Bandits (CMAB) to learn beam-specific policies for geofencing. In this work, we evaluate the robustness of this approach under randomized beam sweeping, where the mapping between bandits and beam directions is disrupted episode by episode. Under these conditions, the learning algorithm no longer converges to a structured solution, instead behaving closely to a random policy, with higher variability and lower mean reward. These results indicate that the CMAB relies on …

Detection, Mapping, And Spraying Of Carolina Redroots In Cranberry Bogs Using Ai And Autonomous Drones, Duwon Ham, Bishal Neupane, Thien Ba Nguyen, Thanh Nguyen, Hieu D. Nguyen, Thierry Besancon

STEM Student Research Symposium Posters

Use artificial intelligent and autonomous drones to automatically detect Carolina Redroots in cranberry bogs, create density maps of the weed, and perform spot spraying.

On The Need For Intelligent Link Management In Wifi 7 Mlo, Logan Lux, André Gomes

STEM Student Research Symposium Posters

Wi-Fi 7 EMLSR allows devices to use multiple wireless links to improve throughput and reduce latency, but its real-world performance depends heavily on network conditions. This project investigates the need for intelligent link management in Wi-Fi 7 EMLSR by building a real testbed to measure performance.

Geochemistry And Petrography Of Upper Devonian (Famennian) Paleosols In The Appalachian Basin Of Central Pennsylvania, Usa, Cheyenne Woodward, Tami Emick, Lily Pfeifer, Jeff Trop

STEM Student Research Symposium Posters

To test the hypothesis of alpine glaciation in the late Devonian (Famennian) at subtropic latitudes, we present new major element geochemistry and petrographic thin section images from upper Devonian paleosols collected from north-central Pennsylvania (Appalachian Basin).  Paleosols, ancient soils, record climate conditions at the time of formation. Major element geochemistry is used to calculate the intensity of weathering which is used for paleoclimate interpretations, and microfabrics observed in paleosol thin section petrography yield important clues about the soil type and degree of pedogenesis in the system. Twenty-three samples were collected from the Catskill and Lockhaven Formation paleosols for geochemical analysis, …

Reproducibility Of Carbon Quantum Dots, Liliana De Salas, Kyah Smalley, Nicholas Whiting

STEM Student Research Symposium Posters

Carbon quantum dots (CQDs) are semi-conducting, carbon- based, spherical nano-crystals known for their photo-luminescent properties and biocompatibility, making them intriguing candidates for nano fertilization of crop plants. Green synthesis of CQDs utilizes hydrothermal solvation. Synthesis of CQDs from agricultural wastes is a sustainable, low-cost alternative to other synthesis pathways

Domain Wall Gravitational Waves: Constraints Within Extensions Of The Standard Model, Sophia W. Jensen

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

This work considers an extra-dimensional framework to explain the gravitational wave background (GWB), massive neutrinos, and baryon asymmetry. Through studying all three, restrictions on certain parameters arise and provide bounds on both theories. It is proposed that the GWB is caused by cosmic domain walls, sheet-like topological defects that were theoretically created in the early universe shortly after the Big Bang. A relationship be- tween the energy density of domain walls and the vacuum expectation value of the broken symmetry was defined. Constraints on the parameters, including the already observed fre- quencies of gravitational waves and the current energy content …

Intermediate-Scale Outflow Dynamics Of Eta Carinae, Edmund J. Garcia, Matthew C. Fleenor

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

η Carinae (η Car) is a binary system, with the larger star being an extremely massive, luminous blue variable (LBV) beyond the Eddington Limit. Surrounding the η Car system, numerous multi-wavelength imaging campaigns reveal axisymmetric structures with the expanding bipolar Homunculus Nebula (¡1 pc). In combination with the episodic eruptive history of the η Car system, our initial intermediate-scale imaging revealed further axisym- metric structures (1-5 pc). To gain a more expansive view of how the small scale structure connects to panoramic imaging of the η Car region, we constructed a deep, optical, narrowband mosaic of 189 images utilizing the …

Finiteness Of Torsion Loci And Normal Functions Arising From Cycles On Hadamard Products, Devin Akman

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

The unifying theme of this dissertation is normal functions. In the first chapter, we study an invariant of knot exteriors and similar manifolds called the A-polynomial through the lens of vanishing loci of normal functions. Using a special case of the Zilber-Pink conjecture, proven in the second chapter, we show that only finitely many irreducible Laurent polynomials of bounded overgenus appear as factors of A-polynomials. In the third chapter, we construct normal functions from hypergeometric variations of Hodge structure and compute their regulators. Finally, we determine under which conditions incomplete motivic cohomology cycles on families complete to cycles on their …

Exactly Solving One-Dimensional Models For The Fractional Quantum Hall Effect, Joseph R. Cruise

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Nearly fifty years after its experimental debut, the quantum hall effect has produced perhaps more unique descriptions than any other subject of condensed matter physics. From topological band theory to non-commutative geometry, topological and conformal field theories, random matrix models and more, each approach captures a subset of the essential features, and compliments the others to produce a beautiful mosaic description. In this thesis, we revisit the fractional quantum hall (FQH) effect from its oldest vantage point, that of the trial wavefunctions and the parent Hamiltonians which stabilize them. Laughlin's observation of the importance of the theory of holomorphic functions …

Ticking Toward Security: Practical Source Authentication For The Precision Time Protocol, Alexander Gebhard

Dissertations (1934 -)

The convergence of Information Technology (IT) and Operational Technology (OT) in Industry 4.0 environments has greatly expanded the attack surface of critical infrastructure systems. Legacy industrial protocols originally intended for use only in isolated networks are now exposed across interconnected systems. This interconnectivity enables adversaries to target power grids, manufacturing plants, and other critical systems with increasing sophistication. Although vendors have retroactively introduced security extensions to industrial protocols such as EtherNet/IP and OPC Unified Architecture (OPC UA), the adequacy and practical feasibility of these security measures remain understudied. This dissertation advances the security of industrial protocols through three main contributions. …

Rosenzweig's Elements And Universal History, Martin Zwick

Complex Systems Faculty Publications and Presentations

This paper uses Rosenzweig’s conception of the three elements of God, World, and Human from The Star of Redemption in a model of universal history. The model also has some relation to Rosenzweig’s geopolitical essay, Globus, which is very different from the meta-historical Star. Based on a systems-theoretic schema of events and processes, the model views human history in terms of three linked processes: a primary process labeled “World” – the origin and development of human society embedded in nature, a secondary process labeled “God” – the origin and development of the Axial religions and philosophies, and a …

Electrochemical Reduction Of Carbon Dioxide Using A Tethered Catalyst System Prepared Through Click Chemistry, Iaroslavna Kovalenko

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

One way to electrochemically reduce CO₂ is to use modified electrode surfaces with bound transition-metal electrocatalysts. Optimal conditions for modifying copper surfaces with (2-azidoethyl) phosphonic acid in acetone have been identified for forming a self-assembled monolayer (SAM) via the tethering by aggregation and growth (T-BAG) method. The subsequently formed phosphonate film on the copper surfaces protects the modified electrodes from oxidation or side reactions on the copper. A copper-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition (CuAAC) click reaction between the terminal azide group on the phosphonate and a synthesized terpyridine ligand with the necessary terminal alkyne substituent has been successfully carried out on …

Probing Composition Effects On The Intrinsic Energetics Of Proton Transfer In Binary (Hcl)M(H2o)N Clusters, Max R. Tucker, Sarah N. Arradondo, Olivia M. Longsworth, George C. Shields, Gregory S. Tschumper

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

This work examines the effects on intrinsic energetics as the composition of finite (HCl)_m(H₂O)n cluster families containing at least one water molecule is changed at the molecular level, where m ≥ 2 and m + n = 4 − 6, and the associated (Cl⁻)_x(H₃O⁺)_x(HCl)_m−x(H₂O)_n−x clusters resulting from the dissociation of x HCl fragments via proton transfer (PT). They are collectively labeled m:n, and xPT indicates the degree of dissociation, from 0PT (no dissociation) up to 3PT. More than 1000 unique minima …

Theoretical Study Of Electronic Properties Of Functionalized Monolayers: Cu, Ag, Au, And Pt Atomic Wires On Graphene, H-Bn Monolayer, Silicene, And Phosphorene, Mythreyee T. Aasuri, Mukesh K. Choudhary, Narender Kumar, Ravindra Pandey

Michigan Tech Publications

The structural and electronic properties of graphene, h-BN monolayer, silicene, and phosphorene monolayers functionalized with Cu, Ag, Au, and Pt atomic wires were investigated using van der Waals─corrected density functional theory. These atomic wires form stable, functionalized monolayers that exhibit physisorption on planar monolayers and chemisorption on nonplanar ones. This results in either linear or bent configurations of the atomic wires, depending on the interface strength, leading to distinct electronic states. A weaker interface induces metal-induced gap states near the Fermi level, whereas a stronger interface results in covalently hybridized states farther from the Fermi level. Analysis of the electron …

Boolean Rank Via Monomial Ideals And Neural Ideals, Juliann Marie Geraci

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

This dissertation develops new connections between Boolean matrix factorization, combinatorial neural codes, and commutative algebra. The central goal is to understand how structural and algebraic invariants can be used to measure and bound complexity in discrete data. We begin by studying the Boolean matrix factorization (BMF) problem, which seeks to express a binary matrix as a product over the Boolean semiring with minimal inner dimension, known as the Boolean rank. By interpreting binary matrices as bipartite graphs, we relate Boolean rank to biclique covers and introduce algebraic techniques to study this quantity. We associate to a matrix its edge ideal …

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

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit (Bpsou) Final Unreclaimed Sites Field Sampling Plan (Fsp) Package #7: Ur-01, Ur-12, Ur-03, Ur-04, Ur-15, And Ur-17 Amendment, Mike Mcanulty

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

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

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

Cognition Is Not Content: A Structural Account Of Processing Conditions, Griselda Poe

Publications and Research

Human cognition has been described in terms of content. This description becomes insufficient once artificial systems make output observable apart from subject attribution, intention, and relational context. Under this contrast condition, what becomes visible is a layered structure in which output, reconstruction, evaluation, and termination do not necessarily coincide. The same input may register as complete under one processing condition while remaining unresolved under another. This separability means that content-based description does not merely omit an additional variable: it can mislocate a processing difference as a difference in meaning, personality, intention, ability, or attitude. This is not a proposal for …

Molecular Catalysts For Electrochemical Nitrogen Activation Toward Sustainable Ammonia Synthesis, Jin-Xiu Han, Hao Xue, Xian-Biao Fu

Journal of Electrochemistry

Homogeneous electrocatalytic nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR) provides a powerful framework to interrogate molecular nitrogen-fixation pathways under mild conditions. By tuning the metal center, ligand architecture, and reaction medium, these systems enable capturing key intermediates and delivering mechanistic insight at the molecular-level resolution. Nevertheless, advances remain constrained by highly reduced operating potentials, intense competition from the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), limited durability in turnover, and inadequate long-term stability.

In this review, we take electron delivery to the molecular active site as the guiding principle for organizing homogeneous electrochemical N₂ activation and transformation. We classify reported systems into direct electron transfer …

Water-Driven Solid Electrolyte Interphase Governs Continuous-Flow Ammonia Electrosynthesis, Peng-Bo Liu, Sheng-Liang Zhai, Ji Huang, Zhong-Shuo Zhang, Jie Zeng, Shao-Feng Li

Journal of Electrochemistry

Flow-cell architectures have emerged as a powerful platform for continuous and stable lithium-mediated nitrogen reduction (Li-NRR), enabling ambient-condition electrochemical ammonia synthesis and offering a promising alternative to Haber-Bosch processes. However, Li-NRR is exceptionally sensitive to trace water, and even minor variations in water content can profoundly alter interfacial chemistry. Here, we systematically investigate how initial water concentration affects Li-NRR performance in a continuous-flow cell. Excess water drives the formation of a thick solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) layer, which may impede nitrogen access to metallic lithium and hinder lithium-ion transport. As a result, the ammonia Faradaic efficiency collapses from ~61% to …

Insertion Of Noble Metal Free Cathodic Catalyst Layer With Fe-N-C Catalyst For Boosted Performance Of Pemfc, Shi Zhou, Muhammad Tariq, Asif Nadeem Tabish, Muhammad Salman, Fan-Di Ning, Muhammad Rayyan Tayyab, Ran-Ran Peng, Meng-Geng Hao, Wen-Mu Li, Xiao-Chun Zhou

Journal of Electrochemistry

Economical Fe-N-C catalysts are considered as promising alternatives to platinum group metal catalysts for proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). Despite exhibiting robust activity on rotating disk electrodes, their performance within membrane electrode assemblies often experiences limitations, such as decreased O₂ diffusion, high H₂O₂ formation, low proton conduction, and a lower electron transfer number. In this study, key factors, including proton transport, electron conduction, and gas diffusion within air-breathing PEMFCs, have been investigated by adjusting cathode catalyst layer (CCL) compositions. From the experimental results, the optimal peak power density was obtained when the loading of Fe-N-C …

Complexity Of The Zero Set Of A Matrix Schubert Ideal, Cesar Julian Meza

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

T-varieties are normal varieties equipped with an action of an algebraic torus T. When the action is effective, the complexity of a T-variety X is dim(X)−dim(T). Matrix Schubert varieties, introduced by Fulton in 1992, are T-varieties consisting of n×n matrices satisfying certain constraints on the ranks of their submatrices. In this dissertation, we focus on the complexity of certain torus-fixed affine subvarieties of matrix Schubert varieties. Concretely, given a matrix Schubert variety X_w where w∈S_n, we study the complexity of Y_w obtained by the decomposition X_w = Y_w ×C^k with k as large as possible. Building on results by Escobar–Mészáros …

A Comparative Study Of Tin Electrorefining In Molten Licl–Kcl–Cacl₂: Experimental Two-Electrode Current Control And Theoretical Three-Electrode Potential Control, Bryant Johnson, George Ankrah, Ander Fuller, Devin Rappleye

Reviews, Analyses, and Instructional Studies in Electrochemistry (RAISE)

Molten salt electrorefining is a mature technology for metal recovery, yet conventional current‑controlled, two‑electrode operation provides limited electrochemical selectivity and restricted insight into electrode‑specific behavior. In this work, a simplified model is developed to compare current‑controlled two‑electrode electrorefining data with a potential‑controlled three‑electrode electrorefining simulation using tin in molten LiCl–KCl–CaCl₂ as a surrogate for plutonium processing. The model examines anodic and cathodic limitations under fixed‑potential operation and evaluates implications for selectivity, efficiency, and runtime relative to experimentally demonstrated two‑electrode performance. Results indicate that independent potential control enables operation closer to thermodynamic selectivity limits, with the potential to suppress impurity oxidation …

Electroanalytical Characterization And Applications Of Two Novel Cells Developed Specifically For Screen-Printed Electrodes, Issa Adeeb Waswas

Thesis/ Dissertation Defenses

The present thesis describes the development and electroanalytical characterization of two novel cells intended to extend the use of screen-printed electrode chips (SPECs) to applications that are not readily accommodated by currently available cell designs. There are two main objectives for this thesis: first, to redesign the previously described universal batch cell (UBC) into an enhanced format with simpler operation, wider applicability, and quantitative hydrodynamic behavior comparable to that of the rotating disc electrode (RDE); and second, to construct a compact eight-channel batch cell for simultaneous voltammetric applications in unstirred solutions. To achieve these objectives, the Enhanced Universal Batch Cell …