Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Ecological Insights And Management Implications Of The Global Migratory Connectivity Of Green Turtles, Jaime Restrepo, Dina Nisthar, Harris Wei-Khang Heng, Lily K. Bentley, Corrie Curtice, Sarah Deland, Ei Fujioka, Patrick N. Halpin, Sarah K. Poulin, Roldán A. Valverde

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

Aim

Green turtles are a widely distributed and highly migratory species; despite extensive data on their movement, there is no species-specific global synthesis on the subject. Based on three decades of published literature and building on previous global analyses, we developed a global network model of migratory connectivity for green turtles to better understand their spatial biology.

Location

Global.

Time Period

1990–2022.

Major Taxa Studied

Green Sea Turtle (Chelonia mydas).

Methods

We conducted a structured literature review extracting georeferenced information on the movement of green turtles from 1990 to 2022, aggregating this information into a single connectivity model, …

College Of Natural Sciences Spring Newsletter, College Of Natural Sciences

College of Natural Sciences Newsletters and Reports

[Page 1] Dean's Message
[Page] 2 Awards & Recognitions // Student Spotlights
[Page] 3 Zhang Named to Landsat Science Team // The Power of Teaching
[Page] 4 “Science as Art” Competition Welcomes High School Artists
[Page] 5 Testing for “Forever Chemicals” in Surface Water // New Faculty Spotlight
[Page] 6 Ambassador Initiated Outreach
[Page] 7 57th Annual Geography Convention
[Page] 8 Twice the Impact on On Call with the Prairie Doc
[Page] 9 Making Staple Foods Healthier // Halaweish & Cole-Dai Retire
[Page] 10 Drone Day 2026
[Page] 11 Student Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity Day (SRSCAD)
[Page] 12 Ceremony …

Model Stormwater Standards 2026, Unh Stormwater Center

UNH Stormwater Center

The purpose of post-construction stormwater management standards is to provide reasonable guidance for the regulation of stormwater runoff to protect local natural resources from degradation and prevent adverse impacts to adjacent and downstream land, property, facilities, and infrastructure. These standards regulate discharges from stormwater and runoff from land development projects and other construction activities to control and minimize increases in stormwater runoff rates and volumes, soil erosion, stream channel erosion, and nonpoint source pollution associated with stormwater runoff.

Comparative Development Of Mof‑Based And Mof‑Free Agnp Functionalized Zno Nanorod–Cotton Fabric Composites For Photocatalytic Applications, Md Al Mamun

Master's Theses

Photocatalysis offers a cost‑effective and environmentally friendly strategy for degrading organic pollutants and addressing energy and environmental challenges. This study initially explored MOF‑based cotton‑fabric‑supported ZnO nanorod composites but found that the MOF component primarily acted as an adsorbent rather than an effective photocatalyst. Consequently, MOF‑free composites were developed by directly growing ZnO nanorods on cotton fabric and functionalizing them with silver nanoparticles. Photocatalytic testing revealed that AgNP‑modified ZnO nanorods, particularly at 10 mM AgNP, exhibited superior dye degradation efficiency, thereby demonstrating a scalable and effective photocatalytic platform.

Evaluating Modern Neural Network Architectures For Suicide Prediction, Kyle Brown

Master's Theses

Suicide remains a leading cause of death among adolescents despite more access to healthcare information than ever before. Medical professionals struggle to make accurate diagnoses and catch warning signs with the overwhelming amount of data available. Machine learning algorithms, including neural networks, have previously been employed for this task, yet it remains an understudied domain.

This research aims to evaluate the capabilities of Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP) and a selection of its successors, ResNet and MLP with a category embedding layer, at the task of predicting suicidal ideation among high-school students. This research finds ResNet to be the most capable at …

Building Dental Workforce Pathways In A Rural State Without A Dental School, Rashid Ahmad, Shawnda Schroeder

Indigenous Health Posters and Presentations

In North Dakota, workforce shortages are shaped by geography, training pathways, and weak return incentives.

• Statewide Dental Health Professional Shortage Area designation
• No in-state dental school
• Workforce shortages function as a structural driver of inequity • Oral health disparities among children, low-income populations, and Indigenous communities

Smart-Charge: Stable Matching Algorithm For Electric Vehicle Charging In Subscription-Based Models, Arindam Khanda, Anurag Satpathy, Sajal K. Das

Computer Science Faculty Research & Creative Works

The transition from internal combustion engine (ICE) to electric vehicles (EVs) introduces several challenges, including limited charging infrastructure, unpredictable charging wait times, and inefficient selection of charging points (CPs). To address these issues, we propose SMART-CHARGE, a framework that efficiently assigns EVs to CPs through an edge-level coordination mechanism within each service region, enforced by roadside units (RSUs). Operating under a novel subscription-based charging model, SMART-CHARGE enforces predefined charging time limits via service-level agreements (SLAs). The EV-CP assignment problem is formulated as a one-to-many matching game that captures EV user preferences. To construct bounded yet efficient EV coalitions at each …

Synthesis Of Novel 1,2,3-Triarylnaphthalenes Via Intermolecular Dehydro-Diels-Alder Reaction, Ethan C. Dailey

Honors Theses

The photo-dehydro-Diels–Alder (PDDA) reaction is a useful method for the construction of substituted naphthalene derivatives from acyclic precursors. While intramolecular variants of this transformation are well established, intermolecular PDDA reactions remain rare due to challenges associated with controlling reactivity under photochemical conditions. Previous studies suggest that electron-withdrawing substituents can promote intermolecular cycloaddition by increasing alkyne polarization and stabilizing reactive intermediates. In this work, the effect of enhanced electron-withdrawing character on intermolecular PDDA reactivity was investigated through the incorporation of a 2,3,5,6-tetrafluoropyridinyl substituent. Corresponding alkyne substrates were synthesized and subjected to photochemical conditions, resulting in the formation of 1,2,3-triarylnaphthalene products. The …

The Privacy Paradox: How Does Concern About Privacy Impact Actions In The Digital Age?, Julia Laduke

Honors Theses

The privacy paradox occurs when people claim to care about their digital privacy, but do not take actions to keep their data from being spread across the internet. This study examines college students, being primarily Generation Z, and their concerns and actions regarding digital privacy and security. A survey of 15 college students, 7 in humanities and 8 in STEM, was used to analyze their thoughts and concerns about their digital privacy. This survey also asked whether they took actions concerning their privacy, and if so, what tools they used to protect it. The results show that about 50% of …

Calibrating Human Trust In The Age Of Generative Ai: An Examination Of Ethical And Social Challenges, Abigail M. Mondido

Honors Theses

Generative AI (GenAI), a set of AI technologies with the ability to generate original, human-like outputs, is beginning to transform the way that information is distributed, composed, published, obtained, analyzed, and consumed. GenAI has seen massive adoption by internet users, businesses, and organizations in recent years despite the persistence of major ethical concerns and social implications. In particular, existing research has identified multiple critical trust-related issues associated with AI in general, including widespread mistrust and distrust, overreliance on AI, and a lack of trustworthiness of AI. There remains a need for a broader understanding of these issues as they relate …

Evaluating The Effects Of Urbanization On Meiofauna Biodiversity In Chattanooga’S Lentic Ecosystems Through Gis Applications, Keyle M. Bryant

Honors Theses

Urbanization is a leading driver of biodiversity loss in freshwater ecosystems, yet its effects on meiofauna—microscopic invertebrates that serve as key bioindicators of ecosystem health—remain poorly understood in lentic environments. This study evaluated the effects of urbanization on meiofaunal biodiversity in ten lentic waterbodies across Hamilton County, Chattanooga, Tennessee, by integrating environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding, in-situ abiotic measurements, and Geographic Information Systems (GIS)-based land use analysis. Water samples were collected between January and April 2023 and processed using 18S rRNA amplicon sequencing to assess biodiversity as richness (amplicon sequence variants or ASVs, phylogenetic diversity or PD, and community composition). Land …

Environmental Awareness And Community Sentiments In A Superfund Site: A Study Of South Chattanooga, Mia Dial

Honors Theses

The concept of environmental injustice refers to the disproportionate exposure of marginalized communities to environmental hazards, often resulting from the placement of industrial sites, waste facilities, or other environmentally harmful infrastructure in areas with limited political and economic power. Alton Park, a historically underserved neighborhood in Chattanooga, Tennessee, faces elevated environmental risks due to its proximity to the South Chattanooga Lead Superfund Site and legacy industrial contamination. This study used semi-structured individual interviews to assess community awareness, perceptions, and behaviors related to environmental hazards in Alton Park. Residents generally reported some awareness of the Superfund site, though knowledge was often …

Resilience By Living With The Land And Community: A Case Study Of A Local Food Forest, Olivia Beck

Honors Theses

Imagine a public space where food, leisure, outdoor activity, and community engagement occur in one place, all in an urban forest ecosystem. For many, this is a hopeful vision of the future, and that is exactly what the idea of an urban food forest provides. In agroecology, a food forest or forest garden consists of planting diverse edible plants and mimicking the patterns of natural ecosystems. The intricate planning and design ensure the forest is self-sustaining, much like a natural forest, making it very resilient once established. However, they face many challenges and take time to grow and develop to …

Growing Change: A Gis Spatial Analysis To Plan Urban Gardens In Chattanooga, Carson A. Chalk

Honors Theses

Food insecurity and limited access to fresh nutritious food in Chattanooga is a prevalent issue, primarily among lower socioeconomic households, and can put strain on overall well-being. This study aimed to identify suitable vacant parcels in Chattanooga where urban gardens could be developed using a GIS-based spatial analysis. Spatial data involving vacant parcels, slope, zoning, and proximity to grocery stores was cross referenced with socioeconomic data focused on poverty rates, vehicle ownership, and mean household income to identify the most suitable sites in areas of greatest need. Sites identified as suitable through GIS were then visited to verify their suitability. …

Techno-Imagination: Elevating Creativity Through Xr And Ai, Christopher Spitzer

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

Techno-Imagination: Elevating Creativity Through XR and AI explores the history of creativity and computing technology, supported by research and academic literature, and looks at the possibilities of a convergence between the two. In parallel, a brief biographical story of the author shares how a passion for creativity emerged, along with a growing interest in science and technology—specifically extended reality—which ultimately came together in the creation of this master’s project. The project also highlights how the Creative Problem Solving (CPS) process was used alongside AI bots and twenty research-based creative thinking skills in developing the business model canvas. Finally, the outcome …

An Exploration Of The Autorotating Pendulum Model, Vlad Nita

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Autorotation is the spontaneous rotation of an object, usually caused by an external fluid flow. The study of autorotation has many physical applications, such as in the design of wind/water turbines. In this thesis, we explore a nonlinear pendulum ordinary differential equation (ODE) which is used to model rotating plates in a fluid and has the capacity to reveal autorotation. In the context of an ODE, autorotation emerges as a bifurcation past oscillations, when the initial velocity of the system crosses a particular threshold. In his classic study from 1983, Lugt [14] utilizes this equation to capture experimental autorotation. Copeland’s …

Conceptualizing A Responsive Design Pedagogy To Support Teachers' Responsiveness To Students' Mathematical Ideas Through Making, Denish Ogweno Akuom

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

This study develops Responsive Design Pedagogy (RDP), a conceptual and analytic model of teacher responsiveness in design-based environments, to account for how responsiveness emerges through interactions among students, tools, and tasks. Although responsiveness has been widely studied in mathematics education, limited attention has been given to responsiveness within mathematical design activity and to how teachers attend to the multiple modes through which students express their mathematical ideas. Addressing these gaps, this qualitative study examined one teacher’s enactment of responsiveness in a Learning-by-Design classroom where students designed and used 3D-printed mathematical tools. Data sources included classroom video, student design artifacts, teacher …

The Space In Between, Cailyn Dawson

Theses and Dissertations

This paper asks the question: is it possible for our bodies to hold contradicting identities at the same time?  Through monochromatic self- portraits, the artist creates a link between quantum mechanics and painting, using the principle of superposition to depict these multiple unformed states of being.

Efficient Compression Framework For Time Series Self-Supervised Learning, Brooklyn Berry

Theses and Dissertations

Time series data is perhaps one of the most broad data types that exist and is studied by diverse research fields. Recently, Self-Supervised Learning (SSL) training frameworks, the training frameworks to pre-train deep learning models without human annotations, have been proposed. Because human annotation for time series is typically associated with being costly, there is a growing interest in developing effective SSL for time series data. In SSL, the pre-trained model will often produce a time series embedding series summarized from the original time series to ensure temporal information is preserved. Although such representation can effectively capture the semantic information, …

Data Driven Monitoring And Control Of Laser Powder Bed Fusion Process, Jose De Jesus Galarza

Theses and Dissertations

The Laser Powder Bed Fusion Process (LPBF) has been one of the main processes of additive manufacturing, enabling the manufacturing of complex geometries, customization, and lightweight parts. Modern LPBF processes have integrated monitoring systems that capture the light emissions per layer for quality assurance. However, standard defect detection algorithms have not yet achieved the high precision required due to the inherently variable nature of the signal, insufficient data for model training, and the confounding effects of the print.

The processes still have some challenges, such as characterizing the roughness from the build parameters alone, improving the pore detection using the …

Advances In Computational Methods For Sparsity-Promoting Linear Inverse Problems, Jonathan Lindbloom

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

Inverse problems arise throughout science and engineering, where indirect, incomplete, and noisy observations are used to recover unknown parameters of interest. In these applications, the corresponding forward or measurement models are often ill-conditioned or underdetermined, so direct inversion is unstable and regularization is required. This thesis develops computational methods for linear inverse problems in which the unknown is assumed to be approximately sparse in a transformed domain defined by a linear, possibly rank-deficient operator, such as a finite-difference matrix, with particular emphasis on large-scale problems.

The thesis makes three main contributions. First, it generalizes hierarchical Bayesian maximum a posteriori estimation …

Insights Into Androgen Receptor Allosteric Modulation By P,P'-Dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene Binding At The Binding Function-3 Site And Site-Specific Binding Function-3 Mutations, Emanuel Aggeo Flores

Theses and Dissertations

One of DDT’s metabolites, p,p’-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (DDE), has been classified as an endocrine disrupting chemical (EDC) due to its ability to interfere with hormone signaling by binding to nuclear receptors (NR) such as the androgen receptor (AR).

Structurally, the AR contains a ligand-binding domain (LBD) where endogenous steroids bind. Furthermore, the LBD contains a surface binding site known as binding function-3 (BF-3), which studies suggest exerts an allosteric effect on bound DHT when small, hydrophobic molecules bind.

Here, we present a study that examines how specific BF-3 site mutations and DDE binding affect steroid stability within the LBP utilizing computational methods. …

I Am Still Learning, Too!: Pre-Service Teachers' Experiences Of Mathematics Anxiety In An Inquiry-Based Mathematics Education Course At Utrgv, Jeremiah James Adriano Dela Rosa

Theses and Dissertations

Mathematics anxiety is a prevalent issue in mathematics education that negatively impacts students’ learning, performance, and engagement in mathematics. Prior research suggests that mathematics anxiety is often shaped by students’ experiences and emotional responses within the classroom environment.

The purpose of this study is to explore how Pre-Service Teachers experience mathematics anxiety in an Inquiry-Based Mathematics Education (IBME) classroom. This study employed a qualitative research design supported by descriptive survey data collected through the Abbreviated Mathematics Anxiety Scale (AMAS), selected components of the Fennema-Sherman Mathematics Anxiety Scale (FSMAS), and semi-structured interviews. The survey instruments were used to provide descriptive background …

F.L.A.I.R. -- A Flow-Level Autoencoder For Intrusion Recognition, Joseph P. Dumond

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) networks underpin critical infrastructure worldwide, yet securing them remains an open challenge. Traditional intrusion detection systems require labeled attack data for training, a resource that is rarely available in real industrial deployments. They also fail against novel threats, a model trained on known attacks has no basis for detecting anything outside its training set. This thesis presents a Flow-Level Autoencoder for Intrusion Recognition, or FLAIR, a fully unsupervised deep learning system for network intrusion detection in IIoT environments. FLAIR is built on a Gated Recurrent Unit (GRU) autoencoder trained exclusively on normal network traffic. Rather …

From Mobilenet To Repvit: A Survey Of Edge-Optimized Computer Vision Architectures, Eli A. Bosch

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

Edge-optimized computer vision is a constantly evolving field where the definition of efficiency has changed repeatedly. This thesis presents a literature survey of four recent Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) families, all analyzed through a consistent framework of accuracy, parameter count, and Multiply-Accumulate Operations (MACs), alongside a survey of five CNN and Vision Transformer (ViT) hybrid models to examine the direction of the field. It was found that accuracy follows a logarithmic curve with respect to parameter count, exhibiting diminishing returns as models scale. This suggests that architectural design contributes more to performance gains than parameter count alone. Theoretical efficiency metrics …

A Case Study On Using Large Language Models To Drive Convergence-Oriented Literature Discovery In Critical Infrastructure Security, Caden J. Williamson

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

In the world of cybersecurity, the rapid development of artificial intelligence proposes a constant challenge for researchers to defend critical infrastructure. Attacks on critical infrastructure can be catastrophic, and emerging strategies of cyber-adversaries that implement leading AI models can expose vulnerabilities in critical infrastructure much faster than previous tools. To defend against this emerging threat, the Cybersecurity Research Working Group at the University of Arkansas is aiming to develop a cross-domain and cross-discipline center of excellence. To support this effort, the group is writing a literature review on the topics of AI and critical systems security. Literature review is an …

Editorial: El Juego De Rol Como Instrucción Para La Inmortalidad, Romano Ponce Díaz

Journal of Roleplaying Studies and STEAM

El presente número del Journal of Roleplaying Studies and STEAM examina la convergencia entre las prácticas lúdicas, el diseño narrativo y los procesos de mediación sociocultural en la investigación contemporánea. Las contribuciones reunidas en este número abordan el juego de rol como un dispositivo de producción de conocimiento, intervención psicoeducativa y reelaboración de representaciones culturales. Nos podemos atrever a señalar que la educación es la convergencia entre la ludología, las ciencias sociales, los estudios visuales y el análisis cultural; entendiendo a la educación como la actividad consciente e intencionada de transmitir información y conocimientos a las siguientes generaciones.

Practicing Conflict Transformation Skills Through Role-Playing Games For Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion In Higher Education, Alexandra Schreiber, Kjell H. Hugaas, Sarah L. Bowman

Journal of Roleplaying Studies and STEAM

No abstract provided.

3d: Dragones, Dados Y Deseos. Rituales En Las Comunidades Roleras De Bogotá, Francisco Gonzalez Buitrago

Journal of Roleplaying Studies and STEAM

¿Qué ocurre cuando la ficción deja de ser solo entretenimiento y se transforma en refugio, ritual y espacio de transgresión? Este artículo analiza los hallazgos de una etnografía y un ejercicio de cartografía social en torno a comunidades roleras de Bogotá, mostrando cómo jóvenes y adultos reconfiguran sus vidas cotidianas a través del juego de rol.

Lejos de limitarse al escapismo, las partidas se convierten en escenarios simbólicos donde caben la negociación, la crítica y la catarsis. En una ciudad marcada por la incertidumbre generacional y las tensiones entre género, clase y territorio, las campañas de rol permiten reimaginarse a …

The Functions Of Role- Playing Games: How Participants Create Community, Solve Problems And Explore Identity, De Sarah Lynne Bowman (2010) [Reseña De Libro], Cristo Leon

Journal of Roleplaying Studies and STEAM

The Functions of Role-Playing Games: How Participants Create Community, Solve Problems and Explore Identity, by Sarah Lynne Bowman, is an ambitious, wide-ranging, and still necessary work for role-playing game studies. Published in 2010, the book proposes that role-playing and roleplaying games fulfill three main social and psychological functions: creating community, facilitating problem solving, and enabling the exploration of identity. Bowman develops this thesis through a combination of theoretical review, cultural reflection, and participant-observer ethnography, based on interviews with players of tabletop role-playing games, live-action roleplaying games, and virtual environments. Organized into seven chapters, the book moves clearly from the …