bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Information and Self-Organization in Complex Networks
Authors:   , Culbreth Garland
Published: January 2025

Networks that self-organize in response to information are one of the most central studies in complex systems theory. A new time series analysis tool for studying self-organizing systems is developed and demonstrated. This method is applied to interacting complex swarms to explore the connection between information transport and group size, providing evidence for Dunbar's numbers having a foundation in network dynamics. A complex network model of information spread is developed. This network infodemic model uses reinforcement learning to simulate connection and opinion adaptation resulting from interaction between units. The model is applied to study polarized populations and echo chamber formation, exploring strategies for network resilience and weakening. The model is straightforward to extend to multilayer networks and networks generated from real world data. By unifying explanation and prediction, the network infodemic model offers a timely step toward understanding global collective behavior.
Comparing a Hear-Say and See-Say Teaching Procedures during Verbal Behavior Instruction
Authors:   , Borquez Nicholas Paul
Published: January 2025

Establishing effective language intervention for those who struggle to acquire it early on has received significant attention from researchers within the field of behavior analysis. The procedures of the present study were adapted from Spurgin' thesis research from 2021, in which a stimulus specific consequence was used during teaching after participants made correct responses. In this case, the stimulus specific consequence was a label for a picture that participants were required to point to during teaching trials. When participants pointed to the correct card, the researcher would label the card and deliver a small wooden block which the participants were told they were working for. In the hear-say procedures, participants were taught one set of cards and instructed to echo the researchers' labels. In the see-say participants were taught a second set of cards and instructed to "beat' the researcher to saying the word. After all cards were taught, were tested with a non-vocal receptive identification test. Immediately following this, participants were tested with a vocal expressive identification test. An extended teaching was included to determine the effects of additional practice within each condition. Results indicated that the participants were able to require some receptive and expressive language but targets often did not correspond. In many instances, receptive mastery did not necessarily lead to expressive mastery or vice versa. Results also indicated that additional practice improved receptive scores but had little impact on expressive scores. Implication for teaching learners with autism as well as typical adults is discussed.
Structural Pitch Collections in Jaakko Mäntyjärvi's "Richte mich, Gott"
Authors:   , Botha Charlotte
Published: January 2025

‘Richte mich, Gott' exemplifies Jaakko Mäntyjärvi's pluralistic compositional approach through an interlaced organization of tonal and non-tonal pitch content. The development of ideas in the text of Psalm 43 and the concluding doxology is depicted across both layers of pitch organization and governed by specific structural pitch collections: (0145) and (0257). Moreover, the organic transformation of these structural pitch collections' intervallic content emerges as a fundamental means of progression throughout the work, in turn influencing the intervallic content of surrounding tonal material. This process of transformation and its relationship to the text is revealed through tonal and pitch-class analysis; a flexible approach to segmentation; and an exploration of two-way and three-way symmetry, and the disruption thereof, in pitch space and pitch-class space. An understanding of the interrelationship between pitch material from the tonal and non-tonal layers of pitch organization can aid singers, conductors, and analysts in the efficacy of their study, preparation, and performance of the psalm. The accompanying appendix of targeted choral warm-ups in this document offers choirs a practical method for studying, internalizing, and performing the non-tonal pitch content in the work.
Computational Techniques for Accelerated Materials Discovery
Authors:   , Cerasoli Franklin
Published: January 2025

Increasing ubiquity of computational resources has enabled simulation of complex electronic systems and modern materials. The PAOFLOW software package is a tool designed to construct and analyze tight binding Hamiltonians from the solutions of DFT calculations. PAOFLOW leverages localized basis sets to greatly reduce computational costs of post-processing QE simulation results, enabling efficient determination of properties such as electronic density, band structures in the presence of electric or magnetic fields, magnetic or spin circular dichroism, spin-texture, Fermi surfaces, spin or anomalous Hall conductivity (SHC or AHC), electronic transport, and more. PAOFLOW's broad functionality is detailed in this work, and several independent studies where PAOFLOW's capabilities directly enabled research on promising candidates for ferroelectric and spintronic based technologies are described. Today, Quantum computers are at the forefront of computational information science. Materials scientists and quantum chemists can use quantum computers to simulate interacting systems of fermions, without having to perform the iterative methods of classical computing. This dissertation also describes a study where the band structure for silicon is simulated for the first time on quantum hardware and broadens this concept for simulating band structures of generic crystalline structures on quantum machines.
Hurricane Harvey and the Devastation of Dispossession
Authors:   , Espinoza Samantha
Published: January 2025

Disaster science is a procedural field often construed as producing blanket policies that attempt to cover everyone, but the complexity of human lived experiences must have a space to exist within disaster science if its research and findings are to be effective. This thesis illustrates that disaster policies and publications often leave out the most vulnerable communities—those in greatest need of collective support. Through critically analyzing beautification through green space, discussing photovoice interviews, and by deconstructing public preparedness documents published by Harris County Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management (HCOHSEM), it is clear that accumulation by dispossession filters down through not only property and money but also access to green spaces and a healthy life. By dispossessing low-income communities of their right to green spaces and life, those communities end up in places that are environmentally dangerous, leaving them at a disadvantage in the disaster preparedness and recovery process. This thesis serves as a case study highlighting how HCOHSEM failed to provide low-income communities with assistance prior to, during, and after Hurricane Harvey. The lessons from these gaps in protective measures show that public policies need to be malleable to ensure residents of any community are covered. Though no two communities are alike, other cities and federal emergency entities can learn about what public policy measures require progressive changes to better serve the most vulnerable communities.
Online Testing of Context-Aware Android Applications
Authors:   , Piparia Shraddha
Published: January 2025

This dissertation presents novel approaches to test context aware applications that suffer from a cost prohibitive number of context and GUI events and event combinations. The contributions of this work to test context aware applications under test include: (1) a real-world context events dataset from 82 Android users over a 30-day period, (2) applications of Markov models, Closed Sequential Pattern Mining (CloSPAN), Deep Neural Networks- Long Short Term Memory (LSTM) and Gated Recurrent Units (GRU), and Conditional Random Fields (CRF) applied to predict context patterns, (3) data driven test case generation techniques that insert events at the beginning of each test case in a round-robin manner, iterate through multiple context events at the beginning of each test case in a round-robin manner, and interleave real-world context event sequences and GUI events, and (4) systematically interleaving context with a combinatorial-based approach. The results of our empirical studies indicate (1) CRF outperforms other models thereby predicting context events with F1 score of about 60% for our dataset, (2) the ISFreqOne that iterates over context events at the beginning of each test case in a round-robin manner as well as interleaves real-world context event sequences and GUI events at an interval one achieves up to four times better code coverage than not including context, 0.06 times better coverage than RSContext that inserts random context events at the beginning of each test case, 0.05 times better coverage than ISContext that iterates over context events to insert at the beginning of each test case in a round-robin manner, and 0.04 times better coverage than ISFreqTwo that iterates over context events at the beginning of each test case in a round-robin manner as well as interleaves real-world context event sequences and GUI events at an interval two on an average across four subject applications and, (3) the PairwiseInterleaved technique that selects a different context event at the beginning of each test case by iterating through context covering array in a round-robin manner and systematically interleaves context with GUI events by prioritizing the execution of GUI events in new contexts achieves higher code coverage up to a factor of six when compared to Monkey, up to a factor of 1.3 when compared to a technique that generates test suites without context events, and similar code coverage when compared to ISContext that iterates over context events to insert at the beginning of each test case in a round-robin manner on an average across five subject applications.
Corrosion Mechanism and Prevention of Wire Bonded Device in Microelectronic Manufacturing and Spectroscopic Investigation of Copper Etch Chemical Equilibria for High Density Interconnect Application
Authors:   , Ashok Kumar Goutham Issac
Published: January 2025

In the first part of this dissertation work, Al bond pad corrosion behavior was investigated in the presence of common industrial contaminants such as chloride (Cl-) and fluoride (F-). Al corrosion while in direct contact with Cu displayed rapid hydrogen (H2) gas evolution and dendrite propagation. In contrast, Al without bimetallic contact showed only minor surface roughening. This observed difference in the corrosion mechanism between Cl- and F- is attributed to the solubility of the corrosion products (AlCl3 vs. AlF3) formed on the Al surface. Our subsequent work explored corrosion prevention inhibition of wire-bonded devices (WBD) in the Cl- environment. Our research shows that the Al bond pad was protected against corrosion by chemically modifying the surface of the Cu wires, thereby preventing the H2 evolution. The inhibitor was observed to be highly selective, thermally stable, hydrophobic, and cost-effective, making it viable for industrial application of this coating for Al bond pad corrosion prevention. In the second part of the dissertation work, we utilized a novel approach of using ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV-Vis) as a chemical-sensitive monitoring tool of the chemical environment in Cu etch bath. The UV-Vis technique illuminates the roles of H+, Cl-, Cu+, and Cu2+ to the etch bath while also providing a means to monitor the Cl- in the broad UV peak at 250 nm. The UV-Vis probe successfully demonstrated the etch rate difference between the two etch bath solutions and help in the restoration of the etching bath. Additionally, the proof-of-concept experiments (POC) to investigate UV enhanced etching for achieving anisotropic etching in PCB fabrication showed promising preliminary results with the need to develop additional etching techniques.
Static or Evolving? The Racial Principal-Policy Gap
Authors:   , Joseph Curtis Brenon
Published: January 2025

Empirical studies have shown that white racial attitudes tend to predict racial policy support. It has also been established that the relationship between whites' espoused racial tolerance and their support for ameliorative racial policies is imperfect, due to the principal-policy gap which characterized misalignment between individuals' espoused values for racial equity and their limited support for policies aimed at achieving those ends. Less consideration however, has been given to how the principal-policy gap changes over time. Using data from over 14,000 respondents who participated in the General Social Survey from 1994 through 2018, I show that the principal-policy gap is persistent, and that distances between principal and policy decline and expand over time. Using OLS regression models to analyze a sample of white adults, I find that the link between individuals' expressed liberal racial attitudes and their support for racial policies changed over the 24-year span. A noticeable narrowing of the principal-policy gap is also evident in the latter years of the sample. The reduction in the gap from 2014 through 2018 suggests that the influence of social movements like BLM may have been driving this trend.
SIMON: A Domain-Agnostic Framework for Secure Design and Validation of Cyber Physical Systems
Authors:   , Yanambaka Venkata Rohith
Published: January 2025

Cyber physical systems (CPS) are an integration of computational and physical processes, where the cyber components monitor and control physical processes. Cyber-attacks largely target the cyber components with the intention of disrupting the functionality of the components in the physical domain. This dissertation explores the role of semantic inference in understanding such attacks and building resilient CPS systems. To that end, we present SIMON, an ontological design and verification framework that captures the intricate relationship(s) between cyber and physical components in CPS by leveraging several standard ontologies and extending the NIST CPS framework for the purpose of eliciting trustworthy requirements, assigning responsibilities and roles to CPS functionalities, and validating that the trustworthy requirements are met by the designed system. We demonstrate the capabilities of SIMON using two case studies – a vehicle to infrastructure (V2I) safety application and an additive manufacturing (AM) printer. In addition, we also present a taxonomy to capture threat feeds specific to the AM domain.
CO2 Transport and Acid-Base Status during Fluctuations in Metabolic Status in Reptiles
Authors:   , Conner Justin Lawrence
Published: January 2025

Reptiles can often experience perturbations that greatly influence their metabolic status (e.g., temperature, exercise, digestion, and ontogeny). The most common cause of fluctuations in metabolic status in post-embryonic reptiles is arguably digestion and physical activity (which will be further referred to as exercise). The objective of this thesis is to determine the mechanisms involved in CO2 transport during digestion, determine the mechanisms that allow for the maintenance of acid-base homeostasis during digestion, and observing the effect of an understudied form of exercise in semi-aquatic reptiles on the regulation of metabolic acidosis and base deficit. This dissertation provided evidence for potentially novel and under investigated mechanisms for acid-base homeostasis (e.g., small intestine and tissue buffering capacity; Chapters 3 & 4), while also debunking a proposed hypothesis for the function of an anatomical feature that still remains a mystery to comparative physiologist (Chapter 2). This thesis is far from systematic and exhaustive in its approach, however, the work accomplished in this dissertation has become the foundation for multiple distinct paths for ecologically relevant investigations of the regulation of metabolic acidosis/alkalosis in reptiles.
Advanced Cathodes for High Energy Density Lithium Sulfur Battery
Authors:   , Bhoyate Sanket
Published: January 2025

A systematic development of 2D alloy catalyst with synergistic performance of high lithium polysulfide (LiPS) binding energy and efficient Li+ ion/electron conduction is presented. The first section of work found that Li+ ions can flow through the percolated ion transport pathway in polycrystalline MoS2, while Na+ and K+ ions can easily flow through the percolated 1D ion channel near the grain boundaries. An unusually high ionic conductivity of extrinsic Li+, Na+, and K+ ions in 2D MoS2 film exceeding 1 S/cm was measured that is more than two orders of magnitude higher than those of conventional solid ionic materials, including 2D ionic materials. The second section of this dissertation focus on catalyzing the transformation of LiPSs to prevent the shuttle effect during the battery cycling by synthesizing 2H (semiconducting) – 1T (metallic) mixed phase 2D Mo0.5W0.5S2 alloy on CNF paper, using two step sputtering and sulfurization method. The lithium sulfur (Li-S) battery cell assembled with the 2D Mo0.5W0.5S2/CNF/S cathode shows a high specific capacity of 1228 mAh g-1 at 0.1C and much higher cyclic stability over 4 times as compared to the pristine cathodes. The high LiPSs binding energy of catalyst efficiently prevents the shuttling effect and corrosion of Li anode after long term stability test for over 400 cycles. The defect engineered MoWS catalyst on CNF showed significantly enhanced polysulfide transformation resulting in specific capacity of 1586 mAh g-1 at 0.05C for the full cell Li-S battery and much higher cyclic stability over 1000 cycles. Stacked layers of D-MoWS-CNF-S cathodes can result in an increased sulfur loading up to 10 mg cm-2 with highest achievable areal capacity of 13.5 mAh/cm2. The efficient sulfur utilization and reduced negative-to-positive capacity (N/P) ratio by D-MoWS catalyst significantly increased the gravimetric energy density to the highest reported value of 1090 Wh kg-1 w.r.t the total weight of anode and cathode.
Aerodynamic Optimization of a 2D Airfoil for Rotary-Wing Aircraft at Mars Atmospheric Conditions
Authors:   , Saez Aleandro G.
Published: January 2025

The interest toward Mars exploration has been considerably increasing due to also the successful deployment of the Perseverance rover and the continuous tests developed by SpaceX's launch vehicle, Starship. While the Mars 2020 mission is currently in progress, the first controlled flight on another planet have been proven in April 2021 with the vertical take-off and landing of the Ingenuity rotorcraft on Mars. In addition, the rotorcraft Dragonfly is expected to achieve the same endeavor in Titan, the largest moon of Saturn, by 2036. Continuous efforts have been oriented toward the development of new technologies and aircraft configurations to improve the performance of current proposed designs to achieve powered flight in different planetary bodies. This thesis work is a preliminary study to develop a comprehensive analysis over the generation of optimum airfoil geometries to achieve vertical flight in environments where low Reynolds numbers and Mach number equal to 0.2 and 0.5.
The Origins of Professorship in the American Clarinet School and the Lasting Influence of Stein, Stubbins, and Voxman
Authors:   , McCall Jenna Abdelhadi
Published: January 2025

The American Clarinet School includes approaches to clarinet playing from European immigrants who instilled their musical style and ideas in the first generation of American-born clarinetists. Some of the first influential pedagogues from Europe include Daniel Bonade (1896-1976), Gustave Langenus (1883-1957), Gaston Hamelin (1884-1951), and Simeon Bellison (1881-1953). Even though they inspired many ideas of the American approach to clarinet, they were known in their time as performers rather than teachers first. The aim of this dissertation is to provide further examination into the modern clarinet professorship in the United States by examining three of the first generation of American-born clarinet professors and their contributions to pedagogy: Keith Stein (1908-1980), William Stubbins (1911-1975), and Himie Voxman (1912-2011). Topics discussed include embouchure, hand position, articulation, technique, expression and phrasing, equipment, teaching beginners, and repertoire.
Anxiously Yours, (fe)mail: A Narrative Exploration of Anxiety, Empathy and Hope in Art Museum Education
Authors:   , Galuban Beatriz Asfora
Published: January 2025

This research explores the relationship between narrative, empathy and anxiety in art museum education. The study begins from my personal experience with anxiety and is methodologically rooted in narrative inquiry and friendship as method. In this study, I propose a creative method of narrative postcard writing called (fe)mail – rooted in a feminist ethic of care that seeks to understand and empathize with the experience of others through correspondence. This research asks relevant questions about the future of art museum programming for mental illness and the act of writing (fe)mail as a reflective practice for academics and educators in the field of social science. In my narrative analysis of the program and the data, I also problematizes my role as researcher, educator and friend throughout the study by considering my own biases, expectations and personal educator agenda. The study is divided into two parts. The first comprises correspondence and analysis of (fe)mail between myself and my best friend/co-participant, Atleigh. In Part I, I conduct a narrative analysis of the (fe)mail data produced between us in order to answer the following questions: What qualities of (fe)mail will appear in the exchange? Can (fe)mail be used as a tool for self-care during the research writing process? In Part II of the study, (fe)mail is brought into the museum by way of a virtual museum program for six women in order to answer the following questions: In what ways does the museum program create a sense of community among participants? In what ways might (fe)mail create empathy for works of art, the self, and others as part of a museum program?
Lived Experiences of Women Superintendents that Impact Promotion into the Superintendency in Texas Public School Districts
Authors:   , Cunningham Shannon
Published: January 2025

Women continue to be underrepresented in superintendent roles in public schools. The purpose of this narrative inquiry was to explore the lived experiences and perceptions of women superintendents regarding the professional and personal factors that impacted their ability to be promoted to the position of superintendent in Texas public school districts. I applied role congruity theory (RCT) to participants' shared stories to ascertain how their promotion to the superintendency was affected by gender-related role stereotypes. Based on that lens, my findings revealed that every woman believed both formal and informal mentorship and networking opportunities were critical factors in being promoted to the superintendency and their continued success in that role; they perceived they had control over deciding how to balance family and work-life, they agreed they needed to have a supportive family; they perceived that hard work was directly correlated to promotion to or success in the superintendency, more so than gender. While each of the women may have experienced gender-related issues in their career, none perceived that gender-related issues impacted their ability to be promoted. Most of my participants said the career path they followed was a factor, and suggested that other women should be strategic about which superintendent position they should accept. As a result of my findings, I make recommendations that should be offered to women who want to pursue the superintendency and for future research.
Machine-Learning-Enabled Cooperative Perception on Connected Autonomous Vehicles
Authors:   , Guo Jingda
Published: January 2025

The main research objective of this dissertation is to understand the sensing and communication challenges to achieving cooperative perception among autonomous vehicles, and then, using the insights gained, guide the design of the suitable format of data to be exchanged, reliable and efficient data fusion algorithms on vehicles. By understanding what and how data are exchanged among autonomous vehicles, from a machine learning perspective, it is possible to realize precise cooperative perception on autonomous vehicles, enabling massive amounts of sensor information to be shared amongst vehicles. I first discuss the trustworthy perception information sharing on connected and autonomous vehicles. Then how to achieve effective cooperative perception on autonomous vehicles via exchanging feature maps among vehicles is discussed in the following. In the last methodology part, I propose a set of mechanisms to improve the solution proposed before, i.e., reducing the amount of data transmitted in the network to achieve an efficient cooperative perception. The effectiveness and efficiency of our mechanism is analyzed and discussed.
Influence of Hypoxia on Acute Lead Toxicity and Calcium Homeostasis in Early Life Stage Zebrafish (Danio rerio)
Authors:   , Moghimi Mehrnaz
Published: January 2025

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of Pb and hypoxia co-exposure on Pb toxicity and Ca homeostasis in early life stage (ELS) zebrafish (Danio rerio). Previous evidence indicates that exposure of ELS zebrafish to hypoxia (~20% air saturation) reduces Ca uptake, likely through down-regulation of the apical epithelial Ca channel (ECaC). Considering that Pb and Ca are known antagonists and compete for uptake pathways, it was hypothesized that co-exposure of Pb with hypoxia would decrease Pb toxicity by reducing Pb uptake (likely mediated through a reduced number of ECaCs). However, it was shown that at 96 hpf, whole body accumulation of both Pb and Ca was lower at 40% air saturation compared to 100% and 20% air saturation. This result closely aligned with the 96h LC50 results which showed the highest mortality of zebrafish at 40% compared to the other air saturation levels. This suggests that toxicity is likely the result of exacerbated hypocalcemia at 40% air saturation due to both Pb competition for Ca binding to Ca uptake channels/transporters, such as ECaC, and potentially reduced expression of such channels/transporters in response to this level of hypoxia. Overall, it appears that ELS zebrafish respond differentially to the 40% and 20% hypoxia levels when co-exposed with Pb. Further investigation is needed to illustrate the physiological and molecular mechanisms underlying this response.
Group Testing: A Practical Approach
Authors:   , Gollapudi Sri Srujan
Published: January 2025

Broadly defined, group testing is the study of finding defective items in a large set. In the medical infection setting, that implies classifying each member of a population as infected or uninfected, while minimizing the total number of tests.
Teaching through the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Experiences and Perspectives of United States Lower Elementary Teachers
Authors:   , Kinard Widad S.
Published: January 2025

The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study is to identify and describe the perceptions and experiences of lower elementary public-school teachers in the United States teaching with educational technologies during the COVID-19 pandemic. Through a demographic survey and semi-structured interviews, teachers shared their experiences regarding the barriers they encountered teaching and learning with educational technologies in face-to-face, remote, and hybrid classrooms. The multi-phase coding process used emic and etic codes to analyze the data. This study identifies and describes the existing barriers teachers face with learning technologies in the classroom before COVID-19 and the new obstacles they have encountered due to the pandemic. The results of this study are discussed, and recommendations are provided to help researchers identify the essential supports educators need for future emergencies.
Examining the Barriers and Benefits of a PhD Nursing Program Using a Systems Construct Approach: A Case Study
Authors:   , Johnson Charles
Published: January 2025

The purpose of this exploratory qualitative case study is to describe the formation of a graduate enrollment evaluation system (GEES) to capture and explore the perceptions of key stakeholders to critically examine the barriers and benefits of a PhD nursing program at a large, public designated high research institution. As the research suggest, there is a current need for increased enrollment for nurses into nursing doctorate programs to further meet the patient's expanding demand, to expand the science of the nursing profession, and to increase the pipeline of qualified nursing faculty. Without a pipeline of qualified nursing faculty, fewer new nurses can be trained for the nursing workforce that already experiences a critical deficiency in staffing.
Domain Specific Cognitive Effects of Sickle Cell Disease in Children
Authors:   , Carroll Bridgette
Published: January 2025

Multiple contributors to neurocognitive impairment in individuals with sickle cell disease have been identified. Research indicates that a history of cerebrovascular accidents, such as silent infarcts and strokes are associated with greater cognitive decline among children with sickle cell disease. Additionally, disease effects such as hemoglobin and hematocrit levels significantly effect cognitive performance among this population and should be taken into consideration when examining neurocognitive impairment. Further, previous studies show a significant relationship between child behavior problems, family functioning, and cognitive performance in children with sickle cell, marking those as important targets for intervention among this population. While cognitive decline with increased age is not typically examined in healthy child populations, some research indicates the presence of age effects in those with SCD. A majority of the literature addresses cognitive impairment from a broad perspective, while a limited number of studies have begun to address effects among specific cognitive domains. Using archival data from the National Institutes of Health's Cooperative Study of Sickle Cell Disease, results revealed that disease severity was negatively correlated with some aspects of cognitive functioning, including visual-spatial domains. Additionally, some measures of cognitive performance were inversely correlated with age. Consistent with hypothesized outcomes, family functioning was strongly associated with measures of cognitive functioning. Implications are discussed.
A Behavior Analytic Account of Humor Responses: Taking a Joke Way Too Seriously
Authors:   , Amezquita IV Edward Brandon
Published: January 2025

Compared to other examples of human behavior, humor responses have received relatively little attention from the scientific community and by the behavior analytic community in particular. This study investigated what some of the controlling variables for humans to emit a humor response may be. Participants were randomly presented two types of word sequences/jokes: one with a matching punchline and one without a matching punchline. Participants rated whether the jokes were funny or not funny, and reaction time was measured for all stimuli presented. Generally, the results showed that reaction times to punchlines rated as not funny were shorter than punchlines that were rated funny. These differences in reaction time were interpreted with priming, intraverbal control, and multiple control as an experimental foundation. Limitations include the absence of physiological measures due to COVID-19 restrictions and the forced choice of two rating responses. The implications of this research reveal opportunities for future research of humor responses.
Verbal assessment to confirm nursing associates' occupational readiness
Authors: Elliott Paula , Murray Rachel
Published: January 2025

The aim of nursing programmes is to produce employees who are occupationally ready. One method to assess occupational readiness is a verbal examination of subject area knowledge and understanding. This assessment type is used at a higher education institution in the north of England deemed outstanding by Ofsted. The verbal assessment (a professional conversation) requires student nursing associate apprentice learners to demonstrate clinical and professional knowledge and understanding gained and applied throughout a 2-year foundation degree to prepare for registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Council as a nursing associate. Preparation for this assessment consolidates prior learning; the assessment method is authentic and has been found to be an effective means through which learners are able to articulate and showcase their knowledge, with many gaining high marks.
Working effectively with individuals with substance use disorders: a qualitative descriptive study
Authors: Tamayo Niall , Lane Annette , Petrovic Kristin , Moghabghab Rola
Published: January 2025

Background:

Irrespective of where nurses work, they may provide care to individuals with substance use disorders. Unfortunately, some nurses may not understand how to work with these individuals and stigmatisation may occur.

Aim:

To explore how to provide effective care for these individuals.

Method:

A qualitative descriptive study examining helpful interventions for individuals with substance use disorders through interviewing four substance abuse specialist nurses.

Findings:

Findings consider person-centred care, such as how to create a therapeutic relationship with individuals with substance use disorders, empowerment of these individuals and providing hope, and employing a holistic approach.

Conclusion:

Nurses may encounter individuals with substance use disorders and may benefit from knowledge of how best to intervene.
Association of Geriatric Nutritional Risk Index Scores with Outcomes in Patients Undergoing Maintenance Hemodialysis
Authors: Yang Yuting , Yang Yujuan , Hu Yanping , Shi Xintian , Huang Jiayan , Wan Junhui , He Hong , Chen Qinkai , Wang Yu , Zhao Qing
Published: January 2025

Aims/Background The Geriatric Nutritional Risk Index (GNRI) is an effective tool for identifying malnutrition, and helps monitor the prognosis of patients undergoing maintenance hemodialysis. However, the association between the GNRI and cardiovascular or all-cause mortality in hemodialysis patients remains unclear. Therefore, this study investigated the correlation of the GNRI with all-cause and cardiovascular mortality in patients undergoing maintenance hemodialysis.

Methods This study included 402 incident hemodialysis patients. Based on the first-dialysis GNRI quartile, the patients were divided into four groups: N1 (GNRI ≤85.04), N2 (GNRI 85.05–91.04), N3 (91.05–96.49), N4 (GNRI ≥96.5) groups. The risk of all-cause and cardiovascular mortality among the different GNRI groups was compared using the Kaplan-Meier survival curve analysis through log-rank tests. Furthermore, Cox regression analysis was used to assess the association between the GNRI groups and all-cause mortality. Additionally, the predictive capability of the GNRI groups on the prognosis was evaluated by employing receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis.

Results Patients in the N1 group exhibited a significantly higher risk of all-cause mortality (p < 0.001) and cardiovascular mortality (p = 0.004) compared to the other groups. ROC curve analysis revealed that GNRI, age, and serum creatinine had moderate predictive value for mortality, with GNRI indicating an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.605 for all-cause mortality and 0.565 for cardiovascular mortality. Moreover, the N2 and N3 groups had a significantly reduced risk of cardiovascular mortality compared to the N1 group.

Conclusion A lower GNRI is closely associated with a higher risk of all-cause and cardiovascular mortality in hemodialysis patients.
Temporary Migrant Workers in Transnational Space: Understanding Class Ambiguity
Authors: Khondker Habibul Haque
Published: January 2025

This paper has two main objectives. First, it delves into the complex dynamics of social inequality among migrant workers who, being transnational, often face a dual or multiple class and status positions depending on their physical location, and their ethno-national, and gender backgrounds. Their class position becomes uncertain, fluid, and unstable. Drawing comparisons with their sedentary counterparts, the ambiguity of their class positions in the home and host countries becomes apparent. Migrant workers, often driven by economic necessity or geopolitical factors, face unique challenges that distinguish their experiences from those in settled communities. By examining the multifaceted dimensions of social inequality, this paper aims to shed light on the distinct characteristics and implications of inequality within migrant populations while also highlighting key differences from their sedentary counterparts in their societies of origin. Second, this paper argues that the concept of class, as used in mainstream sociology, falls short when applied to transnational migrants. Yet, the concept of class has not outlived its utility, despite the challenges the case of migrant laborers poses. Conceptual innovation is needed for tackling the subject of class in the context of transnationalism, which this paper strives to provide by interrelating social class with occupational status and exploring their effects on transnational migrant workers.
Global Capital, Local Dynamics: Unravelling Labor Relations in Chinese Foreign Direct Investment within South Africa's Industrial Relations
Authors: Zi Yanyin
Published: January 2025

South Africa has attracted foreign direct investment (FDI) worldwide, providing a window to the African continent. China has significantly expanded its regional investment as one of South Africa’s critical development partners. However, as Chinese investments deepen their engagement, concerns regarding labor relations and workers’ rights have surfaced. The China-Africa research on labor issues tends to focus on daily interactions while often neglecting to examine the dynamics and conflicts among various stakeholders. This study explores these issues in a Chinese manufacturing business in South Africa by unveiling the interactions between local governments, labor unions, and Chinese FDI. Interviews and documentary research were conducted to gather relevant information. This study finds that despite the setup of a national minimum wage, collective bargaining, and the intention to increase social equality in South Africa, there is still a concern that FDI could contribute to a new cycle of labor struggles and that it could perpetuate inequality.
Buchanan and the writing of Public Principles of Public Debt
Authors: Marciano Alain
Published: January 2025

This article examines how James Buchanan came to write Public Principles of Public Debt, his first sole-authored book. We explore the evolution of Buchanan’s views on public debt, particularly his rejection of the three central propositions of what he called the “new orthodoxy.” We show how he initially recognized the significance of Ricardian equivalence (the relationship between taxes and loans), later rejected it, and ultimately criticized the analogy between private and public debt. Our analysis draws on a draft paper titled “Taxes versus Loans. Variations on a Ricardian Theme,” tracing Buchanan’s gradual intellectual development and the factors that influenced his theory of public debt. This study not only clarifies Buchanan’s thinking process but also sheds light on the formation of Public Principles of Public Debt, contributing to a better understanding of its economic content.
A Party Out of Touch
Authors: Brown Wendy
Published: January 2025

ABSTRACT: There is not one kind of Trump voter. Of course there are the Nazis, the altright, the hyper-misogynist and hyper-racist—all those who feast on Donald Trump’s wild promises, noxious insults, and boorish ways. There are those animated by hatred for the “libs,” whose contempt or mere disregard they absorb daily. There are Christians, Zionists, and even (late-breaking) Muslims who expect Trump to serve their cause better than the Joe Biden–Kamala Harris regime did. There are those who want the southern border of the country fortified and recent migrants deported. There are small business owners who want lower taxes and fewer restrictions, and former mining and industrial workers who want jobs that would pay what union-protected ones did.
Pride and Prejudice
Authors: Jones Sarah
Published: January 2025

ABSTRACT: Last fall, the waters rose in Appalachia and did not stop until many were dead and many more were homeless. As the remnants of Hurricane Helene tore through the region, I waited for word of family and friends, and watched online as they documented the destruction. In tiny Damascus, Virginia, the town nearest my childhood home, the waters inundated the main street and tore houses off their foundations. Soon I saw something worse on social media: when the Nolichucky River overflowed in Erwin, Tennessee, it swept away workers at a nearby plastics factory. Survivors said their bosses had called them into the plant despite troubling forecasts, and when the flooding began, forbade them to leave.
“Oblivion’s Sable Shore”: Phillis Wheatley Peters at the Limits of Lyric History
Authors: Berlin Michael Paul
Published: January 2025

Abstract: This essay reads Phillis Wheatley Peters’s poetry for the way in which it reimagines a British sense of lyric history that had long excluded Black women like herself but in which she was nevertheless bound to work. It demonstrates that Weatley Peters negotiated the lyric as a genre circumscribed by whiteness in her association of racialized tropes, such as the personification of melancholy, with images of death and natural destruction. By staying with her small-scale works of private loss, this essay puts pressure on the notion that she sought a place of belonging within the imperial culture from which her writing drew by arguing that her work posed a visionary challenge to British culture’s totalizing ends. In the attention that they give to individual and collective endings, Wheatley Peters’s poems complicate notions of civilizational progress that were central to the British literary nationalism of the eighteenth century. It is in this eschatological dimension of loss that Wheatley Peters’s experience as an enslaved woman appears in her poetics and transforms the cultural values manifest in the literary forms through which she wrote.
Aut(h)o(r)critique
Authors: Hrvatin Varja , Švab Nika
Published: January 2025

In this text on the production frameworks of staging contemporary drama, Varja Hrvatin and Nika Švab discuss the paradoxical relationship between the non-governmental sector, playwrights, and the institute of calls for tenders that results in the phenomenon of plays being performed by their authors. This claim addresses different standards in naming contemporary drama texts and defining their authorship, which is, again, tied to the ‘difference’ between public and non-governmental organisations.
Forming an in-between place: urbanisation of the Beach Ground, Xiamen (1842–1930)
Authors: Yu Ruoqi
Published: January 2025

This article examines the urban modernisation of Xiamen, a city located in the south-east of China, from the 1830s to the 1930s, highlighting the interplay between local initiatives and imperial powers. The Beach Ground was a core area of the Xiamen Bund, located south-west of Xiamen, and played a vital role in the maritime trade. Its planning and governance were closely linked to the establishment of the British concession (1852–1930). Taking the reclamation and embankment construction of the Beach Ground as a starting point, this article analyses how the Beach Ground transformed as an in-between place through unofficial land reclamation (before 1842), British concession planning (1842–1911), sovereignty disputes (1878–1922) and the construction of the Xiamen Bund embankment (1920s–1930s). These four vignettes provide a multi-perspective narrative of Xiamen’s regional development through the political and economic conflicts and resolutions of different stakeholders, as well as its consequences for local society. This reveals the impacts of global exchange on China’s modernisation and affirms the contribution of Indigenous knowledge and local adaptation.
The K469E Polymorphism of the Intracellular Adhesion Molecule 1 (ICAM-1) Gene Is Not Associated with Myocardial Infarction in Caucasians with Type 2 Diabetes
Authors: Milutinović A. , Petrovič Daniel
Published: January 2025

Type 2 diabetes is one of the major risk factors for the development of CAD and subsequent MI. Inflammation, whereby ICAM-1 plays an important role, has been implicated in the pathogenesis of MI. The K469E polymorphism of the ICAM-1 gene has recently been associated with ischemic stroke, atherosclerosis of femoral arteries and microvascular complications of type 2 diabetes. We examined the association between the K469E polymorphism of the ICAM-1 gene and MI among the patients with type 2 diabetes in Slovenian population. Genotyping of the K469E polymorphism of the ICAM-1 gene was performed for 367 subjects with type 2 diabetes: 152 patients with MI and 215 with no history of CAD. The K469E ICAM-1 genotype distribution in patients with MI (EE = 21.7 %, EK = 47.4 %, KK = 30.9 %) did not differ from genotype distribution in patients without CAD (EE = 19.1 %, EK = 50.7 %, KK = 30.2 %), and the EE genotype was not associated with MI in subjects with type 2 diabetes (P = 0.5). In conclusion, the K469E polymorphism of the ICAM-1 gene was not associated with MI in patients with type 2 diabetes, and therefore may not be used as a genetic marker for MI in patients with type 2 diabetes.
Phytochemical profiling and biological evaluation of Annona muricata L. root extract: A comprehensive assessment
Authors: Gama M M G , Rani K R B
Published: January 2025

Annona muricata Linn., a component of the Annonaceae family, is a fruit-bearing tree endowed with a rich tradition of utilization. Recognized by various colloquial names such as soursop, graviola, and guanabana, Annona muricata is an evergreen botanical species predominantly found in tropical and subtropical zones globally. The current study was designed to evaluate the antioxidant and antibacterial properties while simultaneously elucidating the quantitative composition of phytochemical constituents within the root extract responsible for the pharmacological activities of the investigated subject. The 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) method was used to assess antioxidant activities, while the well diffusion method evaluated antibacterial activity against common pathogens. Researchers have reported various bioactive compounds alkaloids, phenols, etc., that exhibit antibacterial, antifungal, antitubercular, anticancer, antioxidant, and other prophylactic activities. The chloroform extract displayed notable inhibitory efficacy against E. coli MTCC 443, indicating increased susceptibility with a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 0.3 mg/mL. The sample exhibited a comparatively elevated alkaloid content compared to its phenolic content. Bioactive phytoconstituents with diverse biological activities, justifying the rationale for their therapeutic use by local inhabitants.