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THE IMPACT OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC ON NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE FAN ATTENDANCE
Get PDFThe COVID-19 pandemic struck swiftly around the world, causing several societal functions and normalcies to adapt or shut down completely. This culminating project explores the effects of COVID-19 on arena fan attendance of the National Hockey League (NHL). This project was guided by the following three research questions: Q1 – How did the NHL arena closures affect fan attendance during the COVID-19 pandemic? Q2 – What factors influenced NHL fan arena attendance before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic? Q3 – What factors impacted the NHL arena fan attendance after the conclusion of the COVID-19 pandemic? An empirical model developed in previous studies was adapted to fit this study, and multilinear regression analysis with two models was used to answer questions 2 and 3. The data collected spanned 7 seasons (2017-2024) from 32 NHL teams and included attendance numbers, and the following on-field factors: stadium capacity, shots per game, goals for per game (goals scored by home team), points percentage, major penalties, and hits per 60 minutes.
The findings were: Q1 – Comparisons of seasons that occurred before (2017-19), during (2020-21), and post pandemic (2022-24) showed that arena fan attendance severely decreased during the COVID-19 pandemic and has experienced a record-breaking increase in the 2023-24 season. Q2 – The findings in the first model, Model 1, showed that the factors analyzed had a minimal and somewhat inconclusive effect on arena attendance prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Points percentage, goals for per game, shots per game, major penalties, hits per 60 minutes all had high p-values and could not be considered significant. Arena capacity was the one factor in this model that showed a potential minor effect. Q3 – The results in the second model, Model 2, showed that arena capacity had a significant impact on arena attendance rates in the post-pandemic seasons. Areas for further study include: (1) A similar analysis using alternate factors, such as ticket prices and overall team wins, to explore their effect on fan attendance in the years before and after the pandemic. (2) A similar analysis of other major league sports such as the Premier League, La Liga, and Indian Premier League. (3) Further analysis into fighting in the NHL and its influence on fan attendance in comparison to other sports where fighting is allowed
The Effects of Compassion Fatigue Among ChildWelfare Workers
Get PDFBackground: Research has shown that compassion fatigue (CF) is a state of physical and emotional exhaustion in which workers empathize with their clients\u27 suffering. CF has been found to impact child welfare workers, leading to high turnover rates, multiple placement changes for foster children and youth, and burnout. The knowledge gap is that limited research has been conducted to examine the effects of CF among child welfare workers. Objective: This systematic review proposes synthesizing the literature on compassion fatigue among child welfare workers\u27 overall well-being. Methods: The following database was used: One Search, Google Scholar, and PubMed. The keywords include (“compassion fatigue or “secondary traumatic stress”), mental health, burnout, and social workers. For inclusion in this systematic review, we systematically reviewed published English articles from 2014 to 2024
BREAKING BARRIERS, BUILDING REALITIES: DESIGNING A PEDAGOGICALLY SOUND ONBOARDING PROCESS FOR IMMERSIVE MEDIA CLASSROOM INTEGRATION
Get PDFAs immersive media technologies such as virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and mixed reality (MR) continue to gain traction in education, the need for a roadmap for educators to adopt these new learning technologies in a manner that enhances student learning increases. This project explores essential elements of an effective onboarding process for extended reality (XR)-enabled learning environments, focusing the recommendations for an anonymous virtual reality lab located at a public, 4-year university in Southern California. The study analyzes interviews from twelve students experiencing VR for the first time under three different onboarding contexts: no onboarding, Meta’s First Steps commercial onboarding, and the ad hoc onboarding offered by the virtual reality lab. A thematic analysis revealed common challenges including hardware discomfort, confusion over controller functions, disorientation in virtual environments, and anxiety rooted in both unfamiliarity and media analogies. Based on these findings, this project offers recommendations, such as interpersonal instruction, environmental cues, haptic feedback, hands on demonstrations, amongst other suggestions. These findings are also outlined in a whitepaper
An Exposition on Prostate Cancer Dynamics: A History and Exploration of Cancer Growth Models
Get PDFThe detection, diagnosis, and treatment of cancer are the primary objectives of the field of mathematical oncology. Our goal is to examine the history of mathematical oncology by introducing the models that have influenced it. From this vantage point, we examine five primary models that focus on the progression of prostate cancer and the development of treatment protocols at different stages. The Ideta model will be further elaborated upon by examining the effects of androgen deprivation therapy and the addition of chemotherapy on growth dynamics. Finally, clinical data will be utilized to verify the Vollmer and Humphrey model’s findings. We will analyze a diverse array of variables from a longitudinal dataset that has been supplied to us by the National Cancer Institute. Our objective is to utilize Linear Discriminant Analysis to develop a predictive model and assess the accuracy of our predictions. Furthermore, we suggest that there are numerous unanswered questions that require further investigation in order to create a predictive model that can be applied in clinical settings
EXAMINING THE TRANSMISSION OF PATERNAL TRAUMA ACROSS GENERATIONS AND ITS EFFECTS ON OFFSPRING’S DEVELOPMENTAL OUTCOMES
Get PDFBackground: Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) are linked to a wide range of developmental, behavioral, and emotional difficulties across the lifespan. While significant research has examined the impact of maternal ACEs, limited attention has been given to the role of paternal trauma in shaping child development. Objective: This study proposes to use a quantitative descriptive design to examine the relationship between parental, particularly paternal, ACEs and developmental outcomes in children aged 0 to 5 years. Guided by social learning theory and the National Child Traumatic Stress Network’s (NCTSN) core concepts of trauma, the study explores how trauma-related behaviors and coping mechanisms may be modeled and transmitted intergenerationally. It is hypothesized that higher levels of paternal ACEs will correlate with increased developmental delays and socioemotional challenges in children, potentially exerting effects comparable to or greater than maternal ACEs. Methods: Participants will be recruited through Child and Family Service agencies, and data will be collected via self-report questionnaires and semi-structured interviews measuring parental ACEs and child development using tools such as the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Conclusion: The results of this study are anticipated to inform the creation of trauma-informed interventions that specifically include fathers, with the aim of fostering resilience and breaking the cycle of trauma passed from one generation to the next
UNDERSTANDING THE IMPACT OF RANSOMWARE ON BIOTECHNOLOGY
Get PDFBiotechnology encompasses the use of research on both biology and technology to create products that can advance in areas such as healthcare and agriculture. Because of the technology and products that arise from the use of biotechnology, the industry is especially targeted by cyber-attacks. A prominent type of cyber-attack that is utilized by cyber criminals on biotechnology is ransomware. The goal of this project is to determine the impact of ransomware on biotechnology. The research questions posed are: Q1) What are real examples of ransomware attacks that have occurred on biotechnology companies and what patterns can be identified by these impacts? Q2) What is the financial, operational, and reputational impact of ransomware attacks on biotechnology companies? Q3) What cybersecurity strategies and mitigation techniques can biotechnology companies implement to reduce the risk of ransomware attacks in the future? The method for data collection is the use of online databases such as Google and Google Scholar in order to find different articles to support my claims. Each of these articles are used to best answer the primary research questions that have been posed. A search for articles that are related to ransomware attacks and biotechnology was conducted in order to determine the impact of ransomware on biotechnology companies. The findings and results of the literature review are broken down into three sections, each section answering the research question posed. For question 1, the overall findings of the articles discussed real examples of ransomware attacks to biotechnology companies such as Enzo Biochem, 10x Genomics, and Evotec which were all attacked through similar vulnerabilities including phishing and unsecured access. For question 2, the literature review found that ransomware attacks have a significant impact to biotechnology companies, financially, operationally, and reputationally, resulting in lack of innovation, disturbed research processes, stakeholder mistrust, and revenue losses. For question 3, it was found that a multidisciplinary approach of cybersecurity strategies and mitigation techniques such as staff training, proper identification of attacks, system notification protocols, decoy files, understanding Shannon entropy, Controlled Folder Access (CFA), and monitoring Master File Table (MFT) logs are needed to reduce the risk of ransomware attacks in the future
ELEVÁNDOSE MÁS ALLÁ DE LA CULPA: NAVIGATING FAMILY ACHIEVEMENT GUILT AND FAMILISMO IN THE ACADEMIC JOURNEYS OF LATINO MALE FIRST-GENERATION COLLEGE STUDENTS IN THE INLAND EMPIRE
No full textThis study explores the experiences of Latino first-generation college students (FGCS) in California’s Inland Empire, focusing on family achievement guilt—the emotional tension felt when academic success surpasses that of family members. Rooted in familismo and cultural expectations, this phenomenon can lead to self-doubt, stress, and academic struggles, particularly for Latino males in community colleges. This qualitative study uses a phenomenological approach and testimonios to examine how participants navigate familial obligations, cultural expectations, and academic identities. Findings indicate that while family achievement guilt creates emotional and psychological barriers, students develop resilient coping strategies, including mentorship, peer support, and reframing education as a tool for family upliftment rather than detachment. This study highlights the need for culturally responsive institutional support to validate Latino FGCS experiences and mitigate achievement guilt. Insights from this research inform higher education policies and practices aimed at fostering academic success among Latino FGCS
Fighting for the Right of the People: The Case of the Catholic Church in Korea During the Democratization Movement
Get PDFIn July of 1987, after almost a decade of military rule, President Chun Doo-hwan of South Korea agreed to resign as acting president, thus allowing the first democratic elections to take place in the country for the first time in 27 years. The citizens of South Korea rejoiced at hearing the news that democracy has finally come to the country and they no longer would have to live in fear from an authoritarian government. People were now free to express their frustrations, concerns, and not having to worry about being detained by the Korean Central Intelligence Agency or the anti-communist police. While many of the ordinary people did take measures to achieve this goal, there were certain groups in the background helping get things done. One of those organizations was none other than the Catholic Church. Two key religious figures will come to play in the movement, the late Cardinal Kim Sou-hwan and Father Ham Se-woong. This thesis is an examination of how these two men of faith got involved in the politics of two of the most devastating dictatorships in South Korea during a period when the threat of the spread of communism was at large in the era of cold war. The thesis also looks at and answers the questions about whether or not the church needed to get involved in politics and if it is required to have the government respect and honor the rights that each human being deserves to have. This thesis first examines the history behind the founding of the Catholic Church in Korea and amidst some of the worst persecutions in the early nineteenth century, the Church was able to prevail and have a place as one of the many religions that are practiced in Korea today. It will next examine how the Church became involved in politics and social activity from the Japanese Colonial Period, the separation of the peninsula into north and south and how politics became even more involved between the two countries. It will then finish with the cases of the Park Chung-hee and Chun Doo-hwan regimes and how the leaders of the Church, Cardinal Kim and Father Ham, along with other individuals, were active in supporting the movements that took place and would eventually lead to the full democratization of the country in 1987
PERSONALIZED RETENTION STRATEGY OPTIMIZATION OF AUTO INSURANCE CUSTOMERS USING CHURN PREDICTION ANALYSIS
Get PDFAddressing customer churn remains one of the greatest difficulties in the auto insurance sector, frequently caused by unmanaged complaints, service inaction, and insufficient communication regarding the customer’s needs. The goal of this research is to create a framework based on machine learning algorithms that predict whether a customer complaint will be confirmed by the regulatory authority and use this as a proxy to estimate customer churn in the absence of direct cancellation data. Through predicting complaint confirmation, which acts as an indicator of genuine service failure, the model helps in detecting customers with greater risk and aids in formulating individualized retention plans. The information used for this study includes auto insurance complaints submitted from the Texas Department of Insurance by constituents residing in Austin, Texas. Although the dataset is geographically restricted and missing some demographic information, it provides rich data pertaining to service-related problems and behavioral indicators of churn. The research addresses four key questions: Q1. Which service-related factors lead to confirming a complaint and how do they indicate customer dissatisfaction and possible churn risk? Q2. How accurately can a stacked machine learning model combining both XGBoost and MLP predict complaint confirmation outcomes, and how do their performance compare to individual models? Q3. How can the insights from the churn prediction models be translated into effective, data-driven retention strategies for the auto insurance companies? Q4. How can feature importance from the churn prediction model be used to support strategic decision-making and improve customer retention efforts? The findings and conclusions of the analysis are respectively as follows: For Q1. purpose, the most significant drivers of confirmed complaints which is a proxy of churn appear to be resolution time, complaint handling and reason for complaint. All these features indicate how important customer satisfaction and operational productivity service management are to customer loyalty. For Q2. a more sophisticated approach where the model comprised a stack of tree-based and neural network methods performed better than the individual models, exhibiting lower generalizability and predictive performance. This confirmed that hybrid models are less fragile when it comes to measuring complex customer behavior. With respect to Q3. This study used TF-IDF-based topic modeling to extract predominant themes from the complaint texts. These themes were associated with the scores for churn probability to develop targeted company retention strategies which incorporated redesigns of the workflows, escalation protocols, and enhancements in communications. Q4. The analysis carried out SHAP analysis to explain the conclusions of the models which enabled business executives to follow the trail of churn to services they failed to deliver. The use of these interpretations provided customers support teams with clear data to take operational actions based on changes customers wanted to see engineered in their service delivery processes. By adding demographic, transactional, and policy variables, future research might enhance the framework\u27s efficiency in model performance and customization. Further work may include using A/B testing to assess the impact of implementing machine learning-informed retention campaigns within a live CRM environment
EVALUATING THE IMPACT OF COMMUNITY GARDENS ON SOCIAL EQUITY AND PUBLIC HEALTH: A CASE STUDY OF CARAMEL CONNECTIONS FOUNDATION\u27S (CCF) SEEDS OF JOY COMMUNITY GARDEN
Get PDFCommunity gardens have been increasingly recognized as effective public health interventions that address food insecurity, foster social cohesion, and promote environmental sustainability. This evaluation examines the impact of the Caramel Connections Foundation (CCF) Seeds of Joy Community Garden in Ontario, California, by assessing its effectiveness in advancing social equity, improving public health outcomes, and fostering community engagement. Using an evaluation framework, this study measures key program outcomes, including improvements in community well-being, inclusivity, and access to green spaces.
A mixed-methods evaluation design was applied, incorporating process and impact evaluation methodologies. Secondary data collected from CCF’s existing program records, survey responses, and focus group discussions were analyzed to assess participant experiences and perceptions. The evaluation questions focused on the extent to which the garden contributed to social connectedness, health literacy, and resource accessibility, particularly for underserved populations. The survey instrument, pre-tested for clarity and validity, measured participant perceptions of social equity, health-promoting behaviors, and neighborhood resilience, aligning with social determinants of health (SDOH) frameworks.
Findings indicate that the Seeds of Joy Community Garden serves as a key community asset, enhancing social cohesion and contributing to health equity efforts by addressing food insecurity, increasing access to nutritious food, green space, and educational programming. As this evaluation relied solely on secondary data provided by the nonprofit, Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval was not required. Ethical considerations were upheld, including the use of de-identified program data and adherence to best practices in public health program evaluation. The results of this evaluation provide actionable insights for scaling similar community-driven interventions, guiding future program improvements, and informing public health policies that promote equitable access to environmental and health resources