bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Glycosylation regulates CADM1 tumor suppressive function
Authors:   , Huang Zongguan , Barker Jacqueline M
Published: July 2021

Melanoma is the deadliest form of skin cancer and incidence is on the rise. While in situ melanoma can be surgically resected with little clinical follow-up, melanoma patients with metastasized disease have poor prognosis. Cell adhesion molecules play a critical role in metastatic progression and recently, our group found levels of the cell adhesion molecule 1 (CADM1) are inversely-correlated with invasiveness and migratory potential of melanoma cells. CADM1 is a single transmembrane protein belonging to the immunoglobulin superfamily and is heavily glycosylated. There are six known N-glycosylation sites in the Ig-like domains of CADM1, some of which can be a substrate for polysialylation - a post-translational modification of chained sialic acid moieties added to asparagine (N) residues. The goal of this project is to determine how glycosylation regulates the anti-metastatic functions of CADM1. In this study, we created human melanoma cell lines designed to inducibly express CADM1 point mutants that swap the reported glycosylated asparagine residues to non-modifiable glutamine (Q). Western blotting reveals that these mutants are lower molecular weight than wild type CADM1, suggesting that each site is modified. To assess the biological role of these glycosylation, melanoma cell lines were subjected to Boyden chamber-based migration and invasion assays as well as collagen sprouting. We found that disruption of N-linked glycosylation at N113 largely inhibited the anti-migratory/invasive effects of CADM1. We plan to build on these studies; investigating the activity and regulation of putative CADM1 glycotransferases, potentially defining a novel prognostic indicator and an innovative therapeutic avenue for metastatic melanoma patients.
The Winning Combination
Authors:   , Woodside Katelyn , Yau Pamela
Published: July 2021

While the classical orchestral field struggles amid declining audiences, financial crises, and fundraising shortfalls, the California Symphony has defied industry trends. Through the implementation of their Long Haul Model, the organization has seen a 145% increase in ticket revenue, 41% increase in contributed revenue, 69% increase in new subscriber renewal rate, and a 70% increase in audience size. This study conducted an inquiry into the experiences of individuals closely involved with the operations of the California Symphony in an attempt to understand the workplace cultures, interpersonal relationships, and management styles present during the implementation of their Long Haul Model. The research seeks to uncover what factors, other than strategy and business tactics, may have contributed to the success of the California Symphony. A content-driven, inductive qualitative thematic analysis was chosen as the basis for this research. Six participants were interviewed and from that data set, three overarching themes were developed to interpret the management styles, workplace culture, and guiding principles of the California Symphony. The researcher concluded that an integrated management style paired with a thoughtful leadership approach, grounded in a values-based framework were the integral components of the orchestra's success. This project illustrates how one orchestra overcame the endemic challenges of the classical music industry through a thoughtful, holistic leadership approach and could serve as inspiration for other struggling classical music organizations.
Rational Design and Experimental Characterization of Small Molecule Inhibitors of the Bacterial Stringent Response Activating Enzyme RelA
Authors:   , Hall Donald C. , Ji Haifeng
Published: July 2021

Medical biofilms can be defined as an infectious organized community of bacteria that are living as a multicellular entity. Bacteria have evolved multiple strategies to ensure their survival in these communities. One of these strategies is called the "stringent response" and is activated almost universally among most bacterial species in response to various nutrient limitations. The keystone enzyme in triggering the bacterial stringent response which produces a state of relative metabolic quiescence is RelA. RelA is a highly conserved pyrophosphotransferase that is encoded by the relA gene. This enzyme is responsible for sensing amino acid starvation at the ribosome and is self-regulating within a bacterial biofilm. RelA catalyzes the reaction between GTP/GDP and ATP to form the "alarmones" pppGpp (guanosine pentaphosphate) and ppGpp (guanosine tetraphosphate). These molecules trigger a transcriptional change within the cell causing an upregulation in oxidative damage combating enzymes as well as a reduction in replication machinery. Cells which have gone through these metamorphic changes are called persister cells. Persister cells, while not genetically resistant to antibiotics, can withstand up to 1000x the antibiotic concentrations of their planktonic counterparts. This work outlines the task of developing a RelA inhibitor which would both prophylactically stop persister cells formation and would convert already formed persister cells to their antibiotic-susceptible state allowing for the synergetic treatment of medical biofilms using a combination therapy. An in silico pipeline approach to identify hit compounds for the inhibition of RelA was developed. Using this approach, combined with biochemical, molecular biological and microbiological methods we have analyzed these in silico hit compounds and identified a set of lead compounds that inhibit RelA and reduce biofilm persistence when the biofilm is simultaneously treated with antibiotics and the RelA inhibitors. We have developed and synthesized several analogs of these lead compounds and have tested them in SAR studies to show how these compounds interact in the inhibition of the RelA enzyme. Through this approach, we have gained both a better understanding of the stringent response and the ability to combat bacteria in medical biofilm infections.
Formal Verification of SPIRAL Generated Code
Authors:   , Brinich Patrick J. , Johnson Jeremy Russell
Published: July 2021

This thesis formally verifies a subset of SPIRAL, an efficient code generation system for digital signal processing algorithms and related computations. The thesis focuses on algorithms for fast signal transforms. SPIRAL represents algorithms for linear transforms as sparse matrix factorizations using a domain specific language called the Signal Processing Language (SPL). An SPL expression representing a signal transform algorithm is obtained by repeated application of factorization and matrix identities. Such an SPL expression can then be compiled to some target language. The rules used for generating these algorithms as well as an SPL compiler targeting a simple imperative language with arrays and values from a commutative ring, IMP+V, are verified. The Coq proof assistant is used to create a deep embedding of SPL expressions and a formal definition of the algorithm generation rules. Each SPL expression can be evaluated to a matrix, and applying any algorithm generation rules to an SPL expression should produce a new SPL expression that evaluates to the same matrix. A theory of matrices in developed in Coq in order to formally express this matrix equivalence and prove that the algorithm generation process is correct. Finally, the syntax and semantics of IMP+V are defined in Coq. Hoare logic is used to verify parameterized IMP+V code fragments that are used to build an SPL to IMP+V compiler. This compiler is verified by showing that any IMP+V program compiled from a given SPL expression must apply that SPL expression's matrix to its input vector. Using this machinery, a formal proof of correctness of the fast Fourier transform (FFT) and related transforms is obtained.
Art Museums
Authors:   , Bueso Victoria Isabelle , Coleman Laura-Edythe
Published: July 2021

In today's social climate, it is crucial to discuss diversity within a museum, no matter how difficult it might be. With demographics becoming increasingly diverse, more arts organizations in the U.S. have community-based missions, but their leadership is not reflective of their communities. In this paper, I address the relationship between diversity in museum leadership and audience. Does having a diverse staff help art museums reach the ethnically and culturally diverse communities that they claim to serve? What are museums doing to reach these audiences? What more can museums do to reach them? I find that, though a museum has diverse representation in leadership, they may not reflect the city demographics. As a result, they are not successful in reaching the communities that they aim to serve. It is important for visitors to feel that they belong in the museum. If not, visitors, and even museum staff, are not likely to return. Many organizations and individuals in the arts field recognize a need for change, but it is not happening as quickly as some would like. A "renewal" or "rethinking" of why and how arts organizations exist is important in maintaining healthy arts organizations. It is crucial to organizations' survival that different groups of people are represented in leadership.
Effective Museum Sustainability
Authors:   , Renk Abigayle , Zitcer Andrew
Published: July 2021

Despite traditional fundraising methods, art museums continually strive, or even struggle, for financial sustainability. The ongoing uncertainty for long-term financial support can immobilize future museum operations, which opens possibilities to how museums can resourcefully use their image and outreach in collaboration strategies with external supporters and local businesses. Previous research in creative economy theories, such as creative class and cultural industries, suggest that creative sector organizations, whether for-profit and not-for-profit, can apply their creative resources towards fostering cross-sector partnerships and collaborations with businesses in the private sector. This research topic explores the economic impact of the arts, particularly art museums, in hopes of aiding their future success and organizational longevity. Data has been analyzed from academic journals and articles, public surveys, economic databases, and case studies on art museum strategies and creative economy implementation. Further quantitative and qualitative research includes an analysis of Philadelphia art museum reports from the last three years and research interviews with museums professionals about potential success in cross-sector collaborations for fundraising and development. The main findings are evidence that art museums are executing these concepts in diverse methods while acquiring similar results. This research is a study into how art museums secure additional financial support though meeting the needs of the community, creating local partnerships, and sustaining mutual benefits between themselves and collaborators outside of the creative sector.
Learning Preferences as an Index of Individual Differences in Cognitive Flexibility
Authors:   , O'Donnell Hayley E. , Chrysikou Evangelia
Published: July 2021

A key question in the cognitive control literature involves determining the executive functions that mediate cognitive flexibility (CF) and the brain regions that support them. Recent perspectives have offered persuasive evidence suggesting that CF may be guided by low-level associative learning mechanisms. Empirical data have further shown that learning preferences may capture individual differences in CF. This thesis examines the prediction that CF is a function of individual differences in learning preference (i.e., whether one tends to employ an exploration relative to an exploitation learning strategy) and task demands. In Experiment 1, healthy native English speakers were administered three CF tasks that incorporate either (i) a shifting component, or (ii) a creative thinking component, or (iii) both shifting and creative thinking elements. A classic reward-based learning task was employed to determine each participant's learning style based on their response selection history during the task. Experiment 2 employed a similar paradigm to manipulate prefrontal cortex (PFC) engagement in CF using transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) and examined interactions between PFC involvement and learning strategy. The combined results of these studies offer new evidence regarding how learning preferences might capture individual differences in CF, while revealing the possible neural mechanisms that support it.
Changing Educators' Perceptions of Disabilities through a Disability Simulation in St. Maarten
Authors:   , Kruzynski Jennifer N. , Phillips Joy C.
Published: July 2021

Due to a lack of training on disabilities and special education for general education teachers on the island of St. Maarten, teachers are unable to successfully educate individuals with disabilities. Teachers are unable to develop or run special education programs; and students with disabilities do not always have the opportunity to learn with their general education peers in St. Maarten schools and are, therefore, less likely to graduate. This lack of knowledge and understanding prevents inclusion of individuals with disabilities. The purpose of this qualitative, phenomenological research was to explore general education teacher's experiences as they participated in the Walk In My Shoes (WIMS) disability simulation program. Through a qualitative phenomenological study, using Moustakas' (1994) phenomenological approach, the research explored the lived experiences of nine general education teachers and administrators who participated in a teacher training disability simulation intervention program. Nine participants were interviewed one-to-one. The following research questions were addressed through this phenomenological study: (1) How do teachers in St. Maarten describe their knowledge, understanding, and acceptance of student's disabilities? (2) How do teachers describe their experience during their participation in the Walk In My Shoes disability simulation program? (3) After participating in the Walk In My Shoes program, how do the teachers describe what they learned and how it influenced their acceptance of individuals with disabilities? Participants expressed overall satisfaction with the WIMS program. They expressed some worries prior to participating and some frustration with navigating the simulations during the program, but they concurrently expressed increased feelings of empathy and knowledge of disabilities after having participated in the program. Furthermore, many of the participants shared ideas of inclusion and acceptance for their students, families, and community after participating. The Fine Motor disability simulation was one that stood out the most to participants as having a positive impact followed by the Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Visual Motor stations. Based on the findings, several recommendations were made including extending the preparation training for the simulation as well as extending the follow up activity discussion. The WIMS program was originally created for general education students; however, this study demonstrated the possible benefits of using the program for teacher training or professional development and should be considered as a method to teach general education teachers about disabilities.
Modulation of spinal Shox2 interneurons by synaptic input from sensory afferents and local locomotor circuits
Authors:   , Li Erik Zhi-Chong , Dougherty Kimberly J. , von Reyn Catherine R.
Published: July 2021

Locomotion is a complex, rhythmic motor activity involving well-coordinated activation of multiple muscle groups. Locomotor central pattern generators (CPG) are neural circuits located in the thoracolumbar spinal cord which generate the basic rhythm and pattern for locomotion. These circuits integrate descending commands and afferent feedback to produce context-appropriate gait, but the basic motor pattern can be produced independent of both signals. As a result, recruitment of CPGs may have therapeutic relevance for gait improvement following pathologies affecting descending controls, such as stroke or spinal cord injury. Locomotor CPGs have been proposed to have a two-layer structure, in which a rhythm-generating layer produces rhythmic neural bursts and directs a pattern-forming layer to coordinate and recruit appropriate motor modules. Neurons which express the transcription factor Shox2 early in development are involved in both layers and can be divided based on overlap with the V2a interneuron class. Non-V2a Shox2 neurons are implicated in rhythm generation, while V2a Shox2 neurons contribute to motor neuron recruitment. Because rhythm-generating neurons are at the root of CPG function, modulation of non-V2a Shox2 neurons should strongly affect locomotor function. We therefore sought to determine whether and how afferent feedback and interactions with other CPG neurons contributed to the regulation of Shox2 neuron activity. Electrical stimulation of functionally-specified ankle afferents revealed that Shox2 neurons receive highly stereotyped patterns of afferent feedback, consistent with perturbations of ongoing locomotor activity in these preparations. Synaptic inputs to non-V2a Shox2 neurons were modulated rhythmically during locomotion and were reduced following hemisection, suggesting a strong commissural component. Based on this finding, computational modeling of left-right interactions revealed that inhibitory inputs from contralateral CPGs could contribute to maintenance of Shox2 rhythmicity across a wide range of descending drive strengths and produce moderate increases in maximum locomotor frequency. Together, these results provide cellular mechanisms acting presynaptically on rhythm-generating neurons that enable context-appropriate adjustments to locomotor function. Keywords: central pattern generator, locomotion, rhythm generation, sensory afferents, shox2, spinal interneuron
Metagenomic Binning to Recover Functional and Taxonomical Information from Environmental Engineering Biological Systems
Authors:   , Keshani Langroodi Saeed , Sales Christopher
Published: July 2021

Great value can be added to the study of biological processes with having a broader view of microbial community structure, functions, and interactions in ecosystems important to environmental engineering. Advances in cellular and molecular biology are providing overtures to new ways of studying microbial communities holistically. Metagenomics, for example, is a method for analysis of the entire genomic contents of a microbial community. Metagenomics circumvents the challenges of lab culturing by using genomic sequencing to study the diversity of microorganisms in an environment (even if they were previously unknown or difficult to culture). Although there are still several obstacles yet to be overcome for interpretation of metagenomic data, metagenomic binning (i.e., clustering of metagenomic raw data) is an approach to subset metagenomic sequencing reads into microbial populations. Metagenomic binning therefore provides a method for studying the taxonomical classification and functional annotations of microbial populations to interpret interactions among microbial populations that compose a microbial community. This study aims to perform metagenomic binning to enhance taxonomical classification, functional potentials, and interactions among microbial populations in environmental systems. For this reason, a metagenomic data processing pipeline is developed to evaluate metagenomic data from three environmental engineering projects including: (1) a 2,4,6-Trinitrotoluene (TNT) contaminated site remediation project; (2) a bench scale reactor study of Enhanced Biological Phosphorous Removal (EBPR); and (3) a bench scale study of Algae-bacteria bioreactor designed for nitrogen removal from wastewater. This customized pipeline which is comprised of a series of genomic/metagenomic tools designed to recover better quality results to have more accurate and reliable interpretation of the system dynamics for the given systems. The successful pipeline hopefully, not only would help to uncover new information from aforementioned environmental engineering studies, but also, could be applicable to any other metagenomic studies across various disciplines.
Teaching Inner-City Youth When Pedagogy Is Not Enough
Authors:   , Swinton-Buck Taiisha , Phillips Joy C.
Published: July 2021

The purpose of this study was to explore how teachers who self-identify as acting as change agents use social justice practices to make an impact on student success in their classroom and school community. A phenomenological approach was selected in order to gain insight into the lived experiences of change agent teachers and to determine their perceptions of teaching as a political act. Semi structured interviews were conducted with nine teachers who were recipients of Teacher of the Year in their school district, had at least 2 years of experience in teaching, and previous or current participation in community involvement aligned to social justice. An iterative thematic analysis of the interview transcripts was conducted, and three themes emerged: (a) motivations, (b) role of teaching, and (c) change actions. These interviews These interviews reveal that all participants viewed teaching as an act of social justice and provided information about the actions participants took to improve their students' education experience. These findings extend the previous literature by demonstrating teachers' lived experiences as change agents in their school environments.
Teachers' Lived Experiences Regarding the Use of Therapy Dogs as a Behavior Management Strategy
Authors:   , Kelsey Rhonda M. , Vorndran Christina M.
Published: July 2021

This qualitative study explores the lived experiences of educators who have had two or more direct interactions with therapy dogs in the classroom setting. Specifically, this study seeks to explore the attitudes and beliefs of teachers as it relates to the use of therapy dogs to de-escalate students exhibiting undesirable behaviors. Additionally, this study will seek to discover the benefits and/or challenges the use of therapy dogs bring to the classroom. The research resulted in three major themes emerging: (a) types of undesirable behaviors and perceived causes, (b) skills, strategies, and resources for managing undesirable behaviors, and (c) teachers' understanding of the use of therapy dogs in the educational setting. The study sample consists of nine teachers from an elementary school in South Carolina. This phenomenological study used the qualitative data collection strategies of a focus group and one on one interviews. Interviews were transcribed and data from the transcriptions were analyzed for this study using various coding methods. The voices of these educators shared their trials and frustrations as it relates to undesirable behaviors in the classroom as well as their hope for innovative strategies such as the use of therapy dogs that can aid in mitigating these behaviors. In addition to the information teachers shared regarding behavior and the use of therapy dogs, they also shared excitement about the use of therapy dogs to aid in the academic success of students. Keywords: Children in crisis, de-escalation techniques, undesirable behaviors, mental health, therapy dogs, loss of instructional time.
Chemical Source Apportionment of Ambient Particulate Matter in the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal
Authors:   , Werden Benjamin Seth , DeCarlo Peter F.
Published: July 2021

Anthropogenic emissions of submicron particulate matter (PM₁) reduce the quality of life and life expectancy globally. The Kathmandu Valley in Nepal endures unmitigated aerosol pollution. The air quality index in this remote urban basin can be as hazardous as megacities', like Delhi, which is eight-fold more populated. Ambient measurements in April 2015 and winter 2018 and mobile measurements in April 2018 characterized PM₁ for the Nepal ambient monitoring and source testing experiment (NAMaSTE). Measurements of non-refractory PM₁ (NR-PM₁) size, concentration, and chemical composition by aerosol mass spectrometers (AMS) characterize the regional aerosols. Understanding ambient PM₁ concentration, chemical composition, organic aerosol sources, and spatial variation is essential for pollution mitigation. The enhancement of PM₁ from background to urban regions was 120%. Organic aerosol (OA, 50%) and black carbon (BC, 20%) dominate stationary PM₁ mass. On-road PM₁ had an elevated BC component of 60%. Carbonaceous aerosols were typically 70% or more of PM₁ mass. Mobile measurements characterized an enhancement of sulfate aerosol (SO₄²⁻ ) by 150% from background to industrial brick kilns regions. Source apportionment of OA by positive matrix factorization (PMF) identifies traffic, biomass, trash, and coal combustion, and a dominant fraction of secondary organic aerosols (57%). Traffic, the prominent primary source of PM₁, contributed 18% of ambient OA and 36% of BC. In the city center the contribution of primary emissions was up to 60%. Brick kilns were a primary source of organic and inorganic sulfate emissions, and trash burning plumes a source of aerosol hydrogen chloride (HCl). The impact of distinct source factors varied by hour of day and measurement location. This study characterized significant ambient PM₁ sources and the effect of measurement location on concentration and composition. Characterizing the impact from each emission source provides critical insight for local air quality management. The fast time response of ground-based mobile measurements and in-situ instrumentations allowed for the determination of distinct plumes and local sources, in addition to regional variation. This distinction is impossible from stationary or satellite measurement platforms. The combination of stationary and mobile measurements across the Kathmandu Valley characterizes the spatial and temporal impacts on PM₁ concentration and chemical composition.
Investigating Propensity for Patient Telemedicine Technology Adoption Utilizing Trust, Distrust, Spatial Accessibility, Privacy, and Demographics
Authors:   , Stark Randy J. , Gefen David
Published: July 2021

Adoption of telemedicine health portals have the potential to benefit patient, provider, and payor stakeholders. Despite the potential benefits of portals, patients historically have low activation/utilization rates and the reasons for such are not well understood. The aim of this research investigated the unique drivers that influence the complex patient activation process of a health portal within a large rural healthcare organization. To achieve this, a patient survey was administered to measure core variables of interest such as distance/travel time to medical facilities, personal information privacy, trust, distrust, as well as items adapted from behavioral intention frameworks, namely the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). Survey response data for activated and non-activated patients were combined with demographic data obtained from electronic health records and then analyzed based on the research model. Overall, results indicate support for the research model's utility in predicting patient behavioral intentions to activate a health portal. GLM regression results for non-activated patients suggest intentions to activate are influenced by specific features/functionality, perceived ease of use, social norms, perceived usefulness, and protections. Additionally, results indicate key differences exist within specific segments of the population, such as males and females, suggesting that various demographics and controls have implications to consider for behavioral intentions to activate. Results did not indicate strong support for the postulations of distance, travel time, trust or distrust as factors of direct and significant influence on behavioral intentions to activate. The findings suggest that high levels of trust and low levels of distrust toward the organization exist, which should be considered when comparing results across institutions and in various use cases or contexts. In conclusion, results suggest that segmenting the population and customizing the marketing or launch communications of a health portal to these segments may increase patient behavioral intentions and subsequent activation of a health portal. The key piece to increasing adoption and utilization of a patient health portal lies in the actual activation process because those who do not activate the technology can't ever take advantage of the features and benefits a health portal may have for them.
End of Life Simulation Training for Registered Nurses
Authors:   , Blazoff Kathleen T. , Wilson Linda , Okupniak Carol , Robertson Denise
Published: July 2021

Background: Nurses are not adequately trained in evidence-based end-of-life (EOL) care. The lack of knowledge can negatively impact the patients, families, and nursing staff. During EOL, the symptom burden is high, and the emotions of families and staff caring for these patients maybe stressful and challenging. For hospitals, determining what the most effective and efficientmethod to educate nurses on end-of-life care can be challenging. Purpose: The purpose of this evidence-based practice project is to improve EOL knowledge and care of the patients and families in clinical nurses by viewing a simulation training video. Methods: Prior to implementation of the project an EOL simulation video using live actors was developed based on the CARES tool. CARES is a pneumonic for comfort, airway, restlessness,emotional and spiritual support and self-care. The CARES tool is designed to help nurses stay focused and provide a method to account for the necessary tasks to address during the last fewdays to hours of a patient's life. All clinical nurses were asked to participate in this voluntary project. The clinical nurses had the ability to view the video as a group or as individuals. The project consisted of Lazenby's End of Life Professional Caregiver Survey. A 28-item Likert scale tool was used to measure outcomes in this pre and post-test design. The survey was administered before and immediately following viewing the video. A total of 70 nurses participated in the project. Analysis: Median of each item was analyzed pre and post survey noted improvement in 24 outof 28 survey questions. Overall median improvement was 2.55-2.90 respectively. Results: This EOL simulation video overall increased the knowledge of EOL for clinical nurses to improve care and confidence when caring for patients and families during this life-changing event.
Experiences of Board Certified Behavior Analysts in Center-Based Autism Education
Authors:   , Oliver Melissa , Vorndran Christina M.
Published: July 2021

Autism is increasing in prevalence across the world. As a result, the need for evidence-based treatment has become increasingly necessary. One such evidence-based treatment is Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), the science of learning and behavior. ABA is a highly structured discipline that requires extensive training and supervision from a master's or doctoral level Board Certified Behavior Analysts (BCBA). While BCBAs are highly skilled in the principles and application of ABA, potential gaps in knowledge and understanding of special education practices, may impact their ability to plan, monitor, and modify student educational programming in academic settings. This has the potential to impact student performance and overall program effectiveness. The same gaps may exist for special educators in relation to effective clinical programming. A difference, however, may be found in access to professional development opportunities for these groups of professionals in a center-based setting for individuals with autism, where trainings in ABA are more regularly offered. Therefore, further investigation is needed to determine the extent to which BCBAs recognize existing gaps in their knowledge and understanding of best practices in special education, and how these gaps may impact their ability to execute high quality teaching and effective staff supervision. The purpose of this phenomenological study is to explore the lived experiences of BCBAs working at a center-based program for student with autism who have limited knowledge and understanding of special education instructional practices and work in supervisory and leadership positions.
Observations and Influences of Real-Time Indoor Ammonia Concentrations during HOMEchem
Authors:   , Ampollini Laura , DeCarlo Peter F.
Published: July 2021

Although ammonia (NH3) is usually found at outdoor concentrations of 1-5 ppb, indoor ammonia concentrations can be much higher. Indoor ammonia is strongly emitted from cleaning products, tobacco smoke, building materials, and humans. Because of ammonia's high reactivity, solubility in water, and tendency to sorb to a variety of surfaces, it is difficult to measure, and thus a comprehensive evaluation of indoor ammonia concentrations remains an understudied topic. During HOMEChem, a comprehensive indoor chemistry study which occurred in a test house in June 2018, the real-time concentration of ammonia indoors was measured using cavity ring-down spectroscopy. A mean unoccupied background concentration of 32 ppb was observed, with further enhancements of ammonia occurring during cooking, cleaning, and occupancy activities, reaching maximum concentrations during these activities of 130 ppb, 1592 ppb and 99 ppb, respectively. Furthermore, ammonia concentrations were strongly influenced by indoor temperatures and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) operation. In the absence of activity-based sources, the HVAC operation was the main modulator of ammonia concentration indoors.
MXene Inks for Electronics and Energy Storage
Authors:   , Quain Evan , Gogotsi Yury
Published: July 2021

Formulations of conductive ink compatible with different patterning methods provide essential avenues to fabricate low cost, flexible electronics and electrochemical devices. Modern microfabrication techniques can print material with high resolution however, they often involve multi-step processing or expensive instrumentation. This thesis focuses on the creation and characterization of MXene in water for simple solution processable inks compatible with different deposition methods and on a variety of substrates. These Ti₃C₂ inks can be used for a variety of deposition methods such as painting, ink-jet printing, screen printing, and writing. This work focuses on hand written MXenes of concentrations above 30 mg/mL; employed in commercially available pens for dispensing and patterning MXene sheets directly onto substrates. These pens can be used both manually and automatically, with any biaxial instrument, to write on a variety of substrates including paper, wood, and textile. Automated writing electronics and energy storage devices can be created with the Ti₃C₂ ink. These systems are similar to metal-based inks except they do not require a sintering step and show superior performance when compared to equivalent carbon-based inks.
A look at arts funding in Europe
Authors:   , Walker Clinton J. , Brody Jean
Published: July 2021

This study looks at arts funding in Europe in 2019 to understand what role European governments play in arts funding, how that role has changed in recent decades, and how arts organizations in Europe can support themselves as government funding declines. It does not present a wholistic view of arts funding on the Continent because the Continent is vast and public funding scenarios vary from country to country and even between organizations within the same country. Through a literature review and interviews with fundraising professionals in the United Kingdom, France, and Austria, the study presents the challenges and opportunities that face the specific organizations represented in the interviews and additional arts funding trends around the Continent. These challenges include declining government funding, largely tied to the recession of 2008, and the need to replace it with new revenue channels such as membership, individual giving, and corporate sponsorship. The study finds that private fundraising is on the rise in Europe with some organizations already seeing significant and growing revenue. Private, contributed revenue might never completely replace government subsidies, but it is an attractive complement to state financing that could diversify funding sources and enable arts organizations to survive any further decreases in government support. The study concludes that to build these channels, arts organizations in Europe must learn to communicate their needs and get to know their philanthropic audience, what they want to support, why and how. They must also seek out fundraising best practices and develop a culture of asking for money. These will inform how to build a culture of philanthropy that can support their organization long-term.
Art Galleries at the Jersey Shore
Authors:   , Jonas Danielle Adelaide , Brody Jean , Coleman Laura-Edythe
Published: July 2021

Galleries located in coastal regions in New Jersey are exposed to conditions that force the businesses to adopt tactics and strategies to sustain their business models. This is due to factors such as rise and fall in business, changes in customer demographics by season, and finding a variety of methods to generate revenue in a condensed time period. Eight gallery owners or managers in the coastal towns of Cape May, Atlantic City, Tuckerton, and Surf City were interviewed through a series of research questions. Interviews covered topics such as business strategies, programming choices, staffing capacity, their personal choice to work multiple jobs or only run their gallery, social media usage, and other unique solutions their gallery has utilized. There was a great variation in methods of adaptation utilized by each business to cope with the seasonal nature of its location and fluctuating customer bases. Business strategies were not dependent on location, rather there was a loose correlation between age of gallery and strategies. Most gallery owners and managers interviewed had at least one additional occupation or business. Motivations to work multiple occupations were dependent on the owner or manager rather than the town or their corresponding gallery's operational calendar. Staffing for each gallery varied, especially with a distinction between seasonal and year-round employment. Choices of themes, disciplines, and aesthetics for each gallery had a variation in connection to imagery of the town's local iconography and culture. The most common theme and images for works for sale were ocean-related icons and a focus on artists from the region. Strategies incorporating technology, such as social media or websites, were used at every gallery which exposed a variation in each gallery's methods for trying to capture customers and processing sales. Businesses who utilized technology more frequently, with variation in applications and methods, were able to capture more customers beyond the area's peak season. The galleries studied are connected because they experience seasonality as a business in a coastal town, but their solutions are truly unique to their brand identity. The creative solutions discussed in this paper can serve as a starting point for other businesses to apply and adapt to their own business models.
Increasing the Use of Long Acting Reversible Contraceptives in Primary Care
Authors:   , Thornton-Bowmer Mary R. , Wilson Linda , Okupniak Carol
Published: July 2021

Unintended pregnancy remains a serious public health challenge in the United States (Parks & Peipert, 2016). With renewed emphasis on health prevention, women's needs across the lifespan demand more attention, especially around reproductive health. Women who do not use any contraception method have an increased chance of becoming pregnant annually compared to those using some form of contraception (Bexhell, Guthrie, Cleland & Trussell, 2016) The purpose of this practice improvement project is to promote the use of Long Acting Reversible Contraception (LARC), the most effective form of birth control method (Birgisson, Zhao, Secura, Madden, & Peipert, 2015), along with using standardized evidence-based contraception education. Relationship based care is a culture transformation model and an operational framework that improves safety, quality, patient satisfaction, and staff satisfaction by improving every relationship within an organization (Glembocki & Fitzpatrick, 2015). A Relationship Based Care (RBC) approach was used as a way to communicate with the primary care department and other disciplines. According to Glembocki & Fitzpatrick (2015), RBC is a caring theory that includes the patient in the decision-making process while also building relationships that leads to high-quality patient care. Several discussions with stakeholders i.e. nurse practitioners (NP), registered nurses, medical assistants, health educator, social worker and behavioral health consultants about ways to improve LARC use in a primary care setting were conducted several months prior to the study. A registered nurse (RN) was utilized, as the health educator (HE). The HE used standardized evidence-based contraception education to increase understanding among patients between the ages of 18-45 who are not planning to become pregnant within a year using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) recommended guidelines for reproductive health (CDC, 2014). Patients who are scheduled for office visits including family planning visit (i.e. sick visits, physical exams, etc.) received standardized, evidence-based contraception education from the HE. The NP was responsible for discussing birth control options at all family planning visits to women who met the criteria and emphasized the use of LARCs. Condom use was encouraged to prevent sexually transmitted infections.
One-pot Near-ambient Condition AI-RAFT for Star Polymer Synthesis
Authors:   , Timmins Renee Lauren , Magenau Andrew J. D.
Published: July 2021

A near-ambient and oxygen tolerant arm-first star polymer synthesis strategy was developed using alkylborane-initiated reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (AI-RAFT). An air stable alkylborane-amine complex was chemically deblocked with isocyanate functionalities in-situ to liberate a reactive alkylborane that consumes oxygen to generate radicals to drive the RAFT processes. The AI-RAFT system was optimized for oxygen and initiator concentration as well as reaction time to improve livingness and further improve star conversion. Crosslinking agents were injected at the conclusion of arm polymerizations to yield star polymers, which were evaluated by arm-conversion values, arm numbers, and dispersities. To assess the tunability of star morphology, systematic studies were performed to evaluate the influence of monomer concentration, crosslinker functionality, crosslinker concentration, and the degree of polymerization of the arms. Our experimentation revealed that the functionality of the crosslinker had little effect on conversion of arms to stars, but that the ratio of the alkene to the CTA caused significant changes in arm conversion and arm numbers. Last, the star polymers produced by AI-RAFT were converted into poly(acrylic acid) stars and evaluated for use as polyelectrolyte complexes.
Detection of hypoxia in humans
Authors:   , Rajasekar Arjun , Kam Moshe , Hrebien Leonid
Published: July 2021

Humans exposed to high altitude or high acceleration conditions for prolonged periods of time often exhibit hypoxic symptoms. The commencement of physiological and cognitive changes due to the onset of hypoxia may not be immediately apparent to the exposed individual. These changes can go unrecognized for minutes and even hours; and may lead to serious performance degradation or complete incapacitation. Despite interest in the detection of hypoxia, existing detection methodologies have limited scope of reliable performance in the field. This research investigates the underlying physiological and cognitive signals under environments prone to development of hypoxic symptoms. Attention is focused toward developing temporal models for physiological signals, state-augmented Kalman filters, and designing of hypoxia detection frameworks. These frameworks utilize parallel fusion architectures that use Bayesian decision criteria to combine local decisions from ensembles of raw physiological, cognitive, and environmental signals, along with outputs of local classifier/detectors trained using machine learning techniques, to provide reliable hypoxia detection.
Mindfulness-Based Art Therapy With Medical Staff In Oncology
Authors:   , Eisman ToniAnn , Carlton Natalie , Dougherty Abby
Published: July 2021

Treatment administered in a medical setting can result in complications for all individuals involved in that care, including the patient directly, their caregivers, and the medical staff. In oncology settings, specifically, high rates of stress levels, burnout, and compassion fatigue are prevalent. Symptoms of these mental health experiences can lead to decreased quality of care for patients, a shortage of staff to work with patients in need of medical intervention, and poorer quality of self-care practices, if any are utilized. This purpose of this capstone thesis project was to develop a method of incorporating mindfulness-based and arts-based practices as a means of promoting workplace self-care for oncology nurses. The literature demonstrated that both mindfulness and art therapy interventions in these settings for professional staff tended to be beneficial in stress reduction and promoted the exploration of emotional regulation, support from peers, and development of a sense of self. Through my experiences as an art therapy intern at a research based hospital, I uncovered the need for the staff to receive respite time from their work in order to stay rejuvenated. I observed the importance of accessibility and awareness to self-care practices in the workplace, the value of support from coworkers, and openness to experience. The need to be flexible, adaptable to, and aware of staff needs as the art therapy facilitator proved to be vital for the success of this mindfulness and art therapy based self-care format.
The Role of a Digital Department at a Major Market Broadcast Television Station
Authors:   , Spencer Keshroy J. , Tedesco Albert S.
Published: July 2021

Due to both the speed at which societies communicate and consumers unwavering desire for content, technological advances continuously shape the ever-changing digital landscape. Social media has become a tool for broadcast station groups in an effort to keep up with consumer demands. Although consumer viewing habits have shifted from the more traditional way of consuming content, the change has not altered their desire to be entertained and/or enlightened. As technology continues to evolve, and smart devices enable viewers to consume content wherever and whenever they go, television stations have constructed digital departments in an effort to retain viewership while continuing to understand how to suit the viewer's insatiable appetite for content. Having recognized that the viewing tendencies of their younger target demographics have shifted to social media, station groups have utilized media outlets such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube as a means of appealing to the vast viewing audience to deliver interactive content, retain viewership from industry-wide competition, all while gaining new viewers. This case study is the preferred method by which the researcher will examine the topic, with in-depth interviews with key digital department executives accompanied by social media analysis. The case study reveals how a digital department has attempted to provide exclusive content for viewers, as well as their ability to retain viewership, all while being one step ahead of competing content creators.