bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The online instructional dynamic: a study of community college faculty teaching online courses and their perceptions of barriers to student success
Authors:   , Hadsell Jory Andrew , Bureau W. Edward
Published: July 2021

Online students at some California community colleges are experiencing lower success rates than their peers in face-to-face versions of the same courses. Insight into the forces shaping student success in online courses is needed to address such disparities. The purpose of this study was to explore, in-depth, the lived experiences of faculty teaching courses online at a California community college to inform instructional practice so barriers to student success may be avoided. This online instructional dynamic is defined as the experiences surrounding instructor-student interaction, including factors impacted by the use of various technologies and instructional design approaches. The following questions guided the study: 1) How do faculty perceive their interactions with students in an online course? 2) What instructional practices do faculty believe have a positive impact on student success in their courses? 3) Why do faculty members believe the identified instructional practices have positive impacts on student success? A phenomenological research design was employed. Participants consisted of eight community college faculty with significant teaching experience in online Math, English, or Business courses. Data were gathered via in-depth interviews, observation, and artifact analysis. A computerized qualitative analysis software program was used to code and analyze the data for emergent themes. The study included five major findings: a) Challenges teaching in an online environment, b) Communication issues, c) Potential hindering factors for online students, d) Overall perceptions of the online instructional dynamic, and e) Practices that promote engagement and success. Results of the study included: a) The online teaching model presents unique challenges for faculty, b) Communication challenges may hamper online effectiveness, c) Student population differences may make comparisons difficult between face-to-face and online, and d) Online teaching is both frustrating and enriching for faculty. The study conclusions were: a) Challenges adapting technique and content to the online environment, b) Dominant communication strategies may lead to frustration, c) Student perceptions and attitudes may hinder success, d) Teaching online is both frustrating and rewarding, and e) Six identified practices faculty believe have positive impacts on student success. Recommendations for institutional leaders and further research are provided.
Interactive freeform editing techniques for large-scale, multiresolution level set models
Authors:   , McCormick Manolya Eyiyurekli , Breen David E.
Published: July 2021

Level set methods provide a volumetric implicit surface representation with automatic smooth blending properties and no self-intersections. They can handle arbitrary topology changes easily, and the volumetric implicit representation does not require the surface to be re-adjusted after extreme deformations. Even though they have found some use in movie productions and some medical applications, level set models are not highly utilized in either special effects industry or medical science. Lack of interactive modeling tools makes working with level set models difficult for people in these application areas. This dissertation describes techniques and algorithms for interactive freeform editing of large-scale, multiresolution level set models. Algorithms are developed to map intuitive user interactions into level set speed functions producing specific, desired surface movements. Data structures for efficient representation of very high resolution volume datasets and associated algorithms for rapid access and processing of the information within the data structures are explained. A hierarchical, multiresolution representation of level set models that allows for rapid decomposition and reconstruction of the complete full-resolution model is created for an editing framework that allows level-of-detail editing. We have developed a framework that identifies surface details prior to editing and introduces them back afterwards. Combining these two features provides a detail-preserving level set editing capability that may be used for multi-resolution modeling and texture transfer. Given the complex data structures that are required to represent large-scale, multiresolution level set models and the compute-intensive numerical methods to evaluate them, optimization techniques and algorithms have been developed to evaluate and display the dynamic isosurface embedded in the volumetric data.
Nanodiamond-polymer composites
Authors:   , Neitzel Ioannis , Gogotsi Yury
Published: July 2021

Due to their favorable strength to weight ratio and low friction coefficients, polymer composite materials find numerous applications in structural, tribological, biomedical, sports and other industries. A nanocomposite by definition contains a filler smaller than 100 nm in one of its dimensions. At these small length scales, the specific surface area becomes large and polymer-filler interactions become increasingly important, changing polymer properties in the vicinity of the surface and forming a new phase called the "interphase". Tailoring the properties of the interphase holds the greatest potential for obtaining new or improved properties. The small 5 nm diameter of detonation nanodiamond (ND) particles, in combination with their superior mechanical properties (diamond properties) and rich surface chemistry, makes ND an optimal candidate for reinforcing polymer matrices. However, previous studies on polymer-ND composites are controversial: both significant increases and decreases in properties were reported. Reasons for these discrepancies are unclear, while understanding reinforcing mechanisms is true key for further progress in this field. Reinforcing effects of ND on polymers were systematically studied on various polymer matrices in this work. For thermosetting polymers, the effects of as-received and functionalized (aminated) ND-NH2 on the mechanical and tribological properties were investigated and demonstrated the advantages of covalent incorporation of ND into the structure of epoxy, resulting in a strong nanofiller-matrix interface. Multifunctional composites can be designed as well: in the case of an epoxy matrix, ultimate mechanical reinforcement was achieved by using high loadings of ND powder, along with an increased thermal conductivity and reduced friction coefficients. To reinforce a thermoplastic biodegradable polymer, poly(L-lactic) acid (PLLA), ND's surface was hydrophobized by grafting octadecylamine to match this hydrophobic polymer, resulting in an improved dispersion of ND in the matrix and better mechanical properties, along with biocompatibility and fluorescence. Several complementary mechanical characterization techniques including pin-on-disk, nanoindentation, Vickers, tensile, compression and AFM test were used to study the reinforcing mechanisms of ND. Results were compared with computer models. This research provides new insights in the reinforcing mechanisms of ND in polymer matrices. The findings allow for a new design of polymer nanocomposites, showing the potential of nanocomposites and suggest that further research efforts must focus on the uniform dispersion and de-agglomeration of ND in polymer matrices.
Factors that support or inhibit academic affairs and student affairs from working collaboratively to better support holistic students' experiences
Authors:   , O'Connor Joshua Sean , Bureau W. Edward
Published: July 2021

Within a traditional organizational structure in higher education, academic and student affairs divisions may not be collaborating well, and the lack of such collaboration may be impacting the students' holistic experiences. Students' academic and personal development depends not only on the quality of the curriculum and classroom instruction, but also on the quality of another major educational division within the university, student development services, departments commonly collected under the umbrella known as student affairs. This qualitative phenomenological study seeks to identify the factors supporting or inhibiting academic affairs faculty and student affairs professionals from working collaboratively to better support students' holistic experiences. Using three primary methods of data collection - interviews, focus groups, and document review - the researcher examined the following questions: 1) How do higher education professionals describe the interaction between the silos of academic affairs and student affairs divisions? 2) From inhibiting to supporting, what is the spectrum of factors that impact how academic affairs faculty and student affairs professionals work collaboratively? and 3) What are the elements of collaboration between academic and student affairs divisions that would benefit student development? The research intended to examine the collaborative climate on the UC Davis campus in regard to the working relationships between student affairs professionals and academic affair faculty. Five emergent themes ascended from the research: (1) Academic Success, (2) Need for Collaboration and Relationship Building, (3) Silos, (4) Lack of Knowledge of the Other Divisions, and (5) Student Experience. As a result, the research found many factors supporting and inhibiting collaborative work between Academic Affairs and Student Affairs professionals. It is evident silos exist, causing a disconnect in communication, resources, student support, and collaboration between the two divisions. Leadership, increased collaboration, and sharing of information will assist in the deconstruction of preexisting silos. The Academic and Student Affairs Divisions leadership needs to fulfill the mission, goals, and values of their division, while always putting the student first. To accomplish this, the leadership must focus on the mission of the university, reach across silos, and focus on holistic collaborative partnerships that shape the holistic students' experiences.
Emotional expressivity and working memory capacity
Authors:   , Kniele Kathryn , Kloss Jacqueline D.
Published: July 2021

There is a vast literature documenting the effects of emotion expression on physical, psychological and cognitive health. Among these studies is preliminary evidence suggesting that persons who express emotion enjoy gains in neurocognitive functioning, while persons who suppress emotion perform poorly on cognitive tasks. However, the link between the trait of emotional expressivity and cognitive function remains largely unexplored. The primary aim of this study was to examine such a relationship between trait expressivity and cognitive functioning. Specifically persons high in expressivity were expected to have greater working memory performance than persons low in expressivity. Additionally, it was thought that intrusive thinking thinking about stressful life events would mediate the relationship between emotional expressivity and working memory performance. Seventy-four healthy, undergraduate men and women participated in this research study in exchange for extra credit for their psychology courses. The Berkeley Expressivity Questionnaire was used to assess individual levels of emotional expressivity. Working memory capacity was assessed via 1) the Digit Span Backwards portion of the Digit Span subtest from the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale - 3rd Edition and 2) Turner & Engle's (1989) Arithmetic Operation Word Memory Span Test. Participants also completed a series of self-report questionnaires assessing depressive, anxious, and intrusive thinking symptoms to determine the differential impact of depression, anxiety and intrusive thinking on working memory performance. Multiple regression procedures revealed that overall trait expressivity was largely unrelated to working memory performance. However, individuals characterized as highly expressive about negative emotions performed worse on the Digit Span Backwards task than those who were less expressive about negative events. Positive expressivity was unrelated to working memory function. Findings from this study also support previous findings that intrusive thinking mediates the relationship between stress and working memory, but failed to support the hypothesis that emotional expressivity is a universally adaptive coping style that facilitates working memory functioning.
Acoustically and electrokinetically driven transport in microfluidic devices
Authors:   , Sayar Ersin , Farouk Bakhtier
Published: July 2021

Electrokinetically driven flows are widely employed as a primary method for liquid pumping in micro-electromechanical systems. Mixing of analytes and reagents is limited in microfluidic devices due to the low Reynolds number of the flows. Acoustic excitations have recently been suggested to promote mixing in the microscale flow systems. Electrokinetic flows through straight microchannels were investigated using the Poisson-Boltzmann and Nernst-Planck models. The acoustic wave/fluid flow interactions in a microchannel were investigated via the development of two and three-dimensional dynamic predictive models for flows with field couplings of the electrical, mechanical and fluid flow quantities. The effectiveness and applicability of electrokinetic augmentation in flexural plate wave micropumps for enhanced capabilities were explored. The proposed concept can be exploited to integrate micropumps into complex microfluidic chips improving the portability of micro-total-analysis systems along with the capabilities of actively controlling acoustics and electrokinetics for micro-mixer applications. Acoustically excited flows in microchannels consisting of flexural plate wave devices and thin film resonators were considered. Compressible flow fields were considered to accommodate the acoustic excitations produced by a vibrating wall. The velocity and pressure profiles for different parameters including frequency, channel height, wave amplitude and length were investigated. Coupled electrokinetics and acoustics cases were investigated while the electric field intensity of the electrokinetic body forces and actuation frequency of acoustic excitations were varied. Multifield analysis of a piezoelectrically actuated valveless micropump was also presented. The effect of voltage and frequency on membrane deflection and flow rate were investigated. Detailed fluid/solid deformation coupled simulations of piezoelectric valveless micropump have been conducted to predict the generated time averaged flow rates. Developed coupled solid and fluid mechanics models can be utilized to integrate flow-through sensors with microfluidic chips.
Statistical mechanics and kinetics of protein folding and aggregation
Authors:   , Schreck John Stephen , Yuan Jian-Min
Published: July 2021

The self-assembly of amyloid proteins into fibrils is thought to be the cause of many diseases, including Alzheimer's disease, Huntington's disease, and prion-related disease (e.g. mad cow disease). Thus, understanding how certain proteins can form amyloid fibrils is essential, if cures are to be found. We start by exploring how individual proteins may transform from one conformational structure to another. For example, we study how an alpha-helix may change into to a beta-hairpin. We then study how amyloid proteins may join together to form aggregates of varying conformation and size. Overall, four main areas of these problems are studied in detail: protein structure change by equilibrium methods, protein aggregation at equilibrium with a fixed number of protein monomers in the system, protein aggregation in equilibrium with a variable number of monomers in the system, and finally the non-equilibrium aggregation of proteins into fibrils. For the systems studied at equilibrium, we focus on using methods from statistical mechanics. By describing a simple Hamiltonian that quantifies the interactions between residues in proteins, or proteins in aggregates, a transfer matrix can be used to solve the partition function of each system exactly. The transfer matrix used in our study of protein folding can take into account the long-range interactions found in beta-sheet structures. Once the partition function for either proteins or aggregates is calculated, various thermodynamical quantities can be derived and compared with experiments to test model predictions. We also introduce the aggregate and solvent phases, when studying protein self-assembly in the grand-canonical ensemble, which naturally introduces the chemical potentials of proteins and aggregates into the problem. For the non-equilibrium studies of protein aggregation, we use mass-action kinetic equations to calculate the concentrations of aggregates of all sizes as a function of time. We show that by taking into account all combinatorial ways two protein aggregates could join to form a larger aggregate, as well as all possible ways an aggregate could fragment into two pieces, certain calculated quantities can reliably predict the long-time average length distribution of the fibrils, as well as the total mass of protein found in the fibrils. Moreover, we are able to estimate how loosely-bound proteins are in aggregates. Overall, our studies of proteins allow us to gain a deeper understanding of the complicated processes involved in folding and aggregation.
Differentiating between developmentally disabled child molesters and perpetrators of adult sexual molestation using penile plethysmography
Authors:   , Klein Tamara Lynn , Nezu Christine M.
Published: July 2021

The purpose of this research project was to examine whether differences exist in persons with developmental disabilities who have committed either an offense against a child or an offense against an adult. Research with non-developmentally disabled offenders indicates differences exist, which has treatment implications. However, due to the low victim specificity of developmentally disabled sex offenders, it is hypothesized that no differences will be found. An ANOVA was conducted to examine whether differences existed with respect to the Pedophile Index and no significant differences were found. A split plot repeated measures ANOVA was performed and differences were found to exist with respect to age and gender between the two groups. However, the differences found with respect to age appear to be moderated by gender. Post-hoc analyses found no correlation between the Pedophile Index scores and measures of recidivism, which consider gender of the victim. Differences were noted between the two groups of offenders with respect to measures of recidivism.
Writing a Standard Operating Procedure for the Philadelphia Fire Department Emergency Response Employees' Mucous Membrane and Non-intact Skin Exposures to BBP and OPIM
Authors:   , Fung Christine , Cummings Curtis E.
Published: July 2021

Background: Emergency Response Employees (EREs) comprise firefighters and paramedics and are at risk for bloodborne infections such as hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). EREs increase their risk when they are performing basic and advanced life saving skills. Some EREs might be at increased risk for developing HBV infection if they are not immune when exposed. Other risk factors include splashes of blood or body fluids from patients. Objectives: To evaluate and analyze the Philadelphia Fire Department (PFD) EREs exposure to bloodborne pathogens (BBP) and other potentially infectious materials (OPIM), and to compose a standard operating procedure (SOP) specific to the PFD. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted to analyze the PFD EREs'52 mucous membrane and 38 non-intact skin exposures to BBP and OPIM from 2001 to 2011. The data analysis involved examining the causes and risk factors that affect the occurrence of mucous membrane and non-intact skin exposures such as age, years of experience, paramedic activities, and behavioral and environmental factors. In addition, the rates of mucous membrane and non-intact skin exposures were calculated according to call volume. Results: Our study found PFD paramedics non-intact skin and mucous membrane exposures were 21.1 and 6.25 times (respectively) lower compared to other studies. The mucous membrane exposure rate was 194/1,000,000 calls and the non-intact skin exposure rate was 156/1,000,000 calls. Mucous membrane exposures occurred most often on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Non-intact skin exposures occurred most often Wednesdays and Fridays. Trends in paramedic activities or environmental factors related to mucous membrane and non-intact skin exposures were exhibited. Combative patients spat in the paramedics' eyes on 24 different occasions, and combative patients scratched, bit or cut paramedics11 times. Fluid splash from endotracheal tubes and nasal intubation into the paramedics' eyes occurred 11 times. Gloves ruptured, torn or removed occurred 11 times. Behavioral factors for mucous membrane and non-intact skin exposures included assault and removal of the paramedics' mask by patients. To date, there has been no seroconversion to HBV, HCV, and HIV among the EREs. Conclusion: Although there have been no seroconversions to HBV, HCV, and HIV via non-intact skin and mucous membrane exposures, these bloodborne pathogens are of serious concern to the PFD. EREs are advised to complete their HBV vaccine series and should use appropriate personal protective equipment and take extra precautions to minimize the risk of a bloodborne pathogen exposure.
Fluid simulations in an independent visual effects pipeline
Authors:   , Bodenstein Daniel , Redmann Christopher P.
Published: July 2021

Fluid simulations are among some of the most difficult shots completed by visual effects artists. Long simulation times, high memory requirements, and limited control are just a few of the major issues in fluid simulation. Many large visual effects studios have custom fluid solvers, with well-developed pipelines and teams of developers supporting them. Independent artists working on fluid simulation shots lack those resources. Independent artists have the option of several commercial fluid solvers with different ways of creating fluid simulations and vastly different user interfaces. This can quickly add complication to the already complicated and difficult task of fluid simulation at a production quality level. This thesis presents a unified application that allows for initial simulation setup across a multitude of commercially available fluid solvers. This application aims to aid artists in creating fluid simulations by bringing together the controls from multiple applications and providing a single interface to several different solvers and simulation algorithms. In addition to the application, this thesis presents an evaluation of each supported fluid solver across various production situations, to further assist artists in selecting the appropriate solver for a given fluid simulation shot.
Generation of hydrogen-rich gas using non equilibrium plasma discharges
Authors:   , Odeyemi Olufela O. , Fridman Alexander A.
Published: July 2021

This dissertation investigates Non equilibrium plasma discharges, particularly gliding arc plasma discharge and dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) as alternative techniques to thermal or catalytic conversion of hydrocarbons to hydrogen rich gas mixtures. This dissertation comprehensively addresses two important problems associated with the large scale use of biomass, municipal wastes, coal and other hydrocarbons as energy sources. One of the problems is the fouling effect of the by-product of pyrolysis and gasification on process equipment. The by-products are collectively known as pyrogas. Pyrogas comprises of light hydrocarbons, heavy hydrocarbons, tar as well as water, CO₂, CO and hydrogen. Some of the negative impacts of tar in fuel reforming include engine wear, disruption of process equipment and high maintenance costs. The other important fuel reforming drawback is the emission of carbon dioxide (a major greenhouse gas responsible for climate change) into the atmosphere. Many scientific studies have elaborated on the impact of anthropogenic CO₂ on global climate. Non equilibrium plasma discharge is demonstrated to effectively reform pyrogas into hydrogen rich synthesis gas. A syngas (hydrogen and CO) concentration from 47% to 80%, hydrogen yield of 55% and CO yield of 60% were achieved after plasma assisted pyrogas reforming. Non equilibrium plasma discharge is also shown to be effective in the reforming of hydrocarbon fuels into hydrogen and carbon suboxide without the release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Detailed analyses, evaluation and results are presented.
Textile-templated anisotropic electrospun scaffolds for cardiac tissue engineering
Authors:   , Şenel Ayaz Hatice Gözde , Lelkes Peter I.
Published: July 2021

Myocardial infarction (MI) and end-stage heart failure represent some of the major life-threatening pathologies. Current conventional treatments of the aftermath of MI involve promoting revascularization to protect residual cells and slowing down the progression of heart failure. However, these treatment modalities fail to restore the ability of the heart to provide adequate blood supply. In spite of promising preclinical results, most clinical trials have shown that the long-term outcome of cellbased therapies does not exceed that of conventional pharmacological intervention. For end-stage patients, heart transplantation is the only alternative, which remains limited due to the shortage of donor organs and to the potential for rejection of the donated organ. Therefore, current studies focus on bioengineering approaches for creating cardiac patches that will assist in restoring cardiac function, by repair and regeneration of the myocardium. This thesis presents a novel approach for creating bioactive anisotropic cardiac patches. Our approach is based on a combination of biomedical and textilemanufacturing techniques in concert with nano-biotechnology based tissueengineering stratagems. Using jersey-knitted textiles, made of cotton or polyester yarns as template targets, I successfully produced anisotropic three-dimensional electrospun scaffolds with diverse architectures and patterns. By comparing scaffolds made of poly(lactic-co-glycolicacid) and polycarbonate urethane (Bionate®), I concluded that elastomeric Bionate® is a suitable candidate material for constructing functional anisotropic contractile cardiac patches. The ultra-structure and mechanical properties of textile-templated scaffolds significantly differ from those of scaffolds electrospun from the same materials onto conventional 2-D flattarget electrospun scaffolds. Textile-templated scaffolds supported the adhesion and proliferation of H9C2 cardiac myoblasts and murine neonatal cardiomyocytes and guided the cardiac-like anisotropic organization of these cells in vitro. The functionality of anisotropic 3-D electrospun scaffolds was further tested by seeding with murine neonatal cardiomyocytes and assessing their spontaneous contractile properties in vitro. My results indicated that knitted polyester-templated fibrous scaffolds that were manufactured using our new technique were significantly more effective compared to two control groups. The methods described in this thesis take advantage of established textile manufacturing strategies as an efficient and costeffective approach to enhance the complexity of 3-D scaffold structures for cardiac tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.
Biophysical and physiological ecology of loggerhead turtle nests at Zakynthos and Kyparissia, Greece
Authors:   , Suss Jack Samuel , Spotila James Robert
Published: July 2021

Sea turtles bury large masses of eggs on beaches. Burying eggs deeply in sand provides a humid environment with fairly constant temperature, but also constrains the diffusion of gases. Zakynthos and Kyparissia, Greece host the largest loggerhead turtle rookeries in the Mediterranean, and the sand on the beaches visibly differs in texture. I used these differences as a natural experiment to determine how the physical characteristics of sand affect the physiology of loggerhead turtle nests in 2009 and 2010. Temperature at nest depth was lower on Marathonissi (26.7 ± 1.6°C) and Laganas (27.9 ± 0.8°C) than all other beaches (30.3 ± 1.5°C) and provided conditions for male hatchling production during this period. Beach temperatures on Kyparissia were higher than ambient weather conditions because topography of the beach allowed for increased absorbance of solar radiation. Based on soil water characteristic curves, eggs on the beaches of Greece were not under hydric stress. Diffusivity varied as a function of air-filled porosity in sand from sea turtle nesting beaches in Greece, Costa Rica and Equatorial Guinea. Conductivity varied as a function of air-filled porosity and median grain size. The oxygen concentration of sea turtle nests can be affected by both diffusion and bulk flow of gases, especially for beaches with large tidal amplitudes. Hatching success of nests was lowest on Kyparissia A (67.6 ± 4.5%) and maximum nest temperature was lowest on Marathonissi beach (29.4 ± 0.4°C). All other beaches had a hatching success of 83.0 ± 4.7% and a maximum temperature of 33.1 ± 0.4°C. Minimum oxygen concentration within the nest ranged from 17.1 to 20.1 kPa among all nests. Sand grain size characteristics, water content, clutch size, temperature, and ambient sand oxygen concentration predicted nest oxygen concentration when inactive pore space was consideredGas exchange may limit clutch size, and may be an important factor in the evolution of multiple nesting events in sea turtles. As beaches continue to be developed, eroded or renourished, the undisturbed state of the interstitial environment must be understood in order to properly mitigate and restore the beach ecosystem.
Assessing and Exploring the Attachment in Foster Children Through the Use of the Bird's Nest Art Therapy Task and Narrative Story
Authors:   , Redtschitz Veronika Grankina , Hartzell Elizabeth
Published: July 2021

The purpose of this research study was to assess and explore attachment patterns in foster children between seven to eleven years of age using an art therapy assessment called the Bird's Nest Drawing (BND). Three participants with a history of at least two foster home placements participated in this study. Two of the children were female and one child was male. All children were African-American. The results in a number of studies indicate that children in foster care are at elevated risk of developing behavior and mental health problems and insecure attachments (Finzi, et al., 2001; Klassen, 2000). A thorough understanding of this problem is essential to clinicians working with this population in order to plan and provide appropriate interventions and treatment. This pilot study, in which children were asked to draw a bird's nest and tell a story about their drawing, was conducted in order to understand and assess attachment patterns in foster children. All children in this sample were assessed as insecurely attached and each one's drawings and stories shared themes of isolation, vulnerability, fear, lack of protection, some type of a threat to the well-being of the birds living in the nest and loss of the bird's nest. Despite the negative themes in the children's artwork and narratives all participants ended their stories with positive endings, which suggests they may have wish-fulfillment fantasies or feel hopeful about their future. The findings of this study suggest that the children who participated were able to use the metaphor of the bird's nest effectively, which provided valuable information concerning their attachment experiences. This suggests that the BND can be a valuable and effective tool to collect information about a child's attachment experience and possibly assess attachment patterns within one 50-minute session. The findings suggest that information obtained during the BND assessment can be used by clinicians to track a client's progress and plan treatment and interventions more efficiently during art therapy.
Deciphering Nutritional Labeling on Sit-Down Chain Restaurants
Authors:   , Youngfert Andrea , Auchincloss Amy H.
Published: July 2021

BACKGROUND: In January 2010, Philadelphia County enacted a point-of-purchase menu labeling law that requires chain restaurants with 15 or more restaurants nationally to list nutrient values on all printed menus. This legislation provides an opportunity to examine the effectiveness of nutritional labeling in sit-down chain restaurants in Philadelphia. OBJECTIVES: Identify the factors that influence consumers' use of nutritional menu labeling at sit-down chain restaurants and highlight apparent barriers and facilitators to use. METHODS: Five consumer focus groups, totaling 36 participants, were conducted in August 2011. Focus group participants were predominantly female African Americans and had mean incomes <$60,000. Participant mean age was 36 years and mean education was 14.5 years. Two study team members independently conducted the coding analysis within NVivo qualitative software to identify the major themes. RESULTS: Two main themes emerged as facilitators or barriers to using the nutritional labeling: nutritional knowledge and menu design. Facilitators to use included higher prior nutrition knowledge, an increased awareness of nutrient content from seeing the labels, and displays that facilitated seeing healthier items and a nutritional anchor. Barriers to use included lower prior nutrition knowledge, confusion over the menu design, frustration with deciphering nutritional information, and a poor understanding of daily intake needs. CONCLUSION: While participants highlighted both facilitators and barriers to using nutrition information, the barriers to use served as stronger influences against using the listed nutritional information. Awareness of nutritional content did appear to increase from menu labeling which could influence healthier menu item selection in the future.
Associations of serum folate and B12 with cognitive function in children ages 6-16 years old
Authors:   , Nguyen Cathy T. , Lee Brian K. , Gracely Edward J.
Published: July 2021

Background: Folate and B12 are important for nervous system functioning at all ages, with important roles in functions such as neurotransmitter synthesis. Although studies suggest a relation between folate and B12 and cognitive function in the elderly population, there is relatively less evidence regarding these vitamins and children's cognitive function. Objective: The purpose of the study was to examine the associations of serum folate and B12 with cognitive performance in children ages 6-16 years old in the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III), conducted from 1988 to 1994. Design: A cross-sectional analysis was conducted using data on 5,365 children ages 6-16 years old from NHANES III. Serum folate and B12 were measured, along with performance on the Wide Range Achievement Test-Revised (math and reading) and the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised (block design and digit span). Associations of B vitamins with cognitive performance were assessed using linear regression models adjusted for various covariates. Results: Higher serum concentrations of folate were associated with higher reading and block design scores after adjusting for various covariates. For example, compared with the lowest quartile of folate, children in the highest quartile scored on average 3.05 points higher on the reading test (p<0.001). B12 was not associated with any of the test scores. Conclusions: In the largest study to-date, higher folate concentrations were associated with better reading and block design scores. However, to determine the ideal concentrations of folate needed for optimal cognitive performance, more intervention studies with longitudinal follow-up are needed.
Tribological Assessment of Hydrogels for Replacing Damaged Articular Cartilage
Authors:   , Baykal Doruk , Kurtz Steven M.
Published: July 2021

In joint disorders, lesions may be limited to the joint surface. In such cases, replacing only the affected surface to preserve healthy tissue and cancellous bone is preferable to total joint arthroplasty. By employing a cartilage replacement material in focal defect repair or hemiarthroplasty applications, joint stability may be preserved while patient pain and joint dysfunction may be reduced. Hydrogels have been studied to replace damaged articular cartilage tissue. The motivation is that hydrogels may maintain natural joint lubrication due to their biphasic nature and their structure can be modified to mimic mechanical properties of articular cartilage. In order to assess the tribological properties of such a biphasic material, its lubrication mechanisms, the damage it causes on the opposing articular cartilage, and its wear properties under clinically relevant conditions were evaluated in the current dissertation. A biphasic model with linear-elastic solid matrix sufficiently predicted the material behavior of the family of tested hydrogels. Also, Stribeck analysis suggested that hydrogel-on-ceramic articulation was lubricated by a fluid film. Together, these findings suggested that, similar to articular cartilage, interstitial fluid pressurization was crucial to the viscoelasticity and lubrication properties of this biphasic material. Results indicated that biphasic materials with smaller aggregate moduli (spearmans rho=0.5; p<0.001) and larger permeability values (rho=-0.3; p<0.001) than those of the tested hydrogels in this study would produce lower coefficients of friction. Furthermore, collagen maturity and proteoglycan content as obtained by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy were shown to decrease at the onset of in vitro cartilage wear before surface damage occurred. Cartilage pins that articulated against cartilage and hydrogel yielded higher collagen maturity than cartilage on CoCr articulation in a physiologic pin on disc (POD) wear tester. However, only cartilage-on-cartilage articulation yielded higher proteoglycan content than cartilage-on-CoCr articulation. It was postulated that the cartilage articulations against cartilage, hydrogel and CoCr in the current research represented three distinct stages of in vitro wear of articular cartilage. Finally, submerged weights were found to be more suitable than wet weights in quantifying wear of hydrogels in spite of unwanted effects of swelling. Based on submerged weights, the wear rate of hydrogel articulations was -1.4 ± 8.3 mm³ / MC, which was not statistically different than undetectable wear. The combination of coefficient of friction measurements, white light interferometry, and environmental scanning electron microscopy supported that wear generated was undetectable up to 5 million cycles of physiologic POD testing.
An exploration of how marital expectations and socio-economic status impact post-secondary educational and professional goals of Northern CA Asian Indian immigrant women
Authors:   , Bhatia Aparna , Bureau W. Edward
Published: July 2021

This phenomenological study explored the impact of marital expectations and socio-economic status on post-secondary educational and professional goals of Northern California Asian Indian immigrant women both before and after marriage. For the purposes of this study, 15 Southeast Asian Indian immigrant women from the Sacramento metropolitan region were selected for face-to-face interviews, a focus group study, and observation. Women were selected according to criteria including (a) women who were born in India but had migrated to the United States at an early or adult age, (b) were married or divorced, (c) had completed high school, (d) were in the age range of 20-65, and (e) had completed, were in the process, or planned to complete a post-secondary education (f) had prior work experience, were working, or desired to work. Study findings revealed that marital expectations and socio-economic status did impact womens post-secondary educational and professional goals, both before and after marriage. Womens post-secondary educational and professional goals were also affected by numerous other factors, such as parental and familial influences, evolutionary trends, and educational and cultural differences in the United States. Each of these factors shaped and impacted participants goals in different ways and many of the factors were closely inter-related. Since lack of social support in a foreign land was a barrier that impacted participants marital and familial lives that in turn impacted their educational and professional goals, it was recommended that a social network of Asian Indian immigrant women be formed to lend social, emotional, psychological, financial, and intellectual support.
Community College Administrative Roles in Identifying Faculty for Future Management Positions
Authors:   , Knirk Brian , Geller Kathy Dee , Bureau W. Edward
Published: July 2021

The community college system is beginning to see waves of retirements at all levels of the administrative structure. These retirements, in conjunction with expected growth in administrative positions, will result in system-wide administrative vacancies. Community colleges not already seeking new leaders are likely to find themselves in the midst of a leadership crisis. With candidates from outside the community college system difficult to find, colleges will need to look internally for future leaders. Despite the clear need for succession planning programs, colleges have been slow to adopt formal succession planning procedures to train and advance faculty into much needed administrative positions. This phenomenological research study investigated the experiences of nine retired northern California community college administrators to explore their lived experiences and perceptions surrounding informal succession planning at their colleges, their perceived role as administrators in encouraging and preparing faculty to take on new management positions, as well as their experiences working with newly promoted administrators. Study participants confirm the complexity of the dean position within the community college system, along with the inherent lack of control associated with entry-level management which discourages faculty from seeking advancement into administration. This study identifies common transformational experiences that help prepare faculty with aspirations of administrative careers for success within community college administration, and further emphasizes the value of peer mentoring for neophyte administrators. The results of this study, based on findings resulting from the stories shared by the participants, include: the importance of leadership skills for entry-level mangers, the confirmation that preparing for advancement is incumbent on the faculty, succession planning is misunderstood or poorly communicated within many institutions, and finally, preparation and desire alone do not ensure a successful transition into administration. This study concluded by recommending colleges clearly define succession planning within their institution and provide resources and opportunities for interested faculty to gain the skills, both managerial and leadership, needed to be successful as an academic dean.
Temperature-based structural identification and health monitoring for long-span bridges
Authors:   , Yarnold Matthew Thomas , Moon Franklin L.
Published: July 2021

Temperature-based methods for the structural evaluation and monitoring of long-span bridges were investigated. The motivation for the work stemmed from the critical need for further assessment and preservation techniques for long-span bridges, which represent the most critical (and in many cases irreplaceable) nodes within the transportation network. Through this work, several methods were developed which utilize temperature as the forcing function to experimentally characterize the structure. This approach is novel and represents a potential improvement over current methods (e.g. ambient vibration monitoring) which do not allow the full transfer function of the bridge to be obtained. In particular, this research developed and investigated three temperature-based evaluation methods. The first, termed Temperature-Based Structural Identification (TBSI), follows from the traditional structural identification framework. This approach is used for direct correlation of the input (temperature) and output responses (strains and displacements) for finite element (FE) model calibration and parameter identification. The second method, termed Temperature-Based Structural Health Monitoring (TBSHM), utilizes a streamlined approach to continually track and identify variations in key temperature-based response patterns. An interpretation framework using changes in these patterns to guide proactive maintenance and preservation practices was also developed. The last method, termed Periodic Temperature-Based Assessment (PTBA), aims to directly (i.e. without the use of an FE model or baseline information) characterize the performance of key mechanisms of a bridge by measuring physically meaningful and easily interpreted response metrics. The research concluded temperature-based experimentation provides valuable insight into the performance of long-span bridges. TBSI exhibits accurate and reliable identification of FE model boundary and continuity conditions with clear advantages over ambient vibration model updating. The use of TBSHM has also indicated encouraging contributions to conventional SHM approaches. A distinct baseline was identified as the relationship between local strains, global displacements, and temperature variation which produces unique planes in 3D space. These 3D planes have greater sensitivity to parameter modification when compared to ambient vibration methods and show promise for identification of outliers. Additionally, quantitative performance measures were developed for PTBA of long-span bridges. This approach can improve current evaluate methods of movement mechanisms and assess long-term durability of a structure. Overall, TBSI, TBSHM, and PTBA have shown substantial benefits for advancing our understanding of constructed long-span bridge behavior.