9547 research outputs found
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Seeing the big picture: A stop-motion film exploring Earth Observation
No full textGraduateEarth Observation (EO) has transformed many systems that support wellbeing from monitoring environmental changes to forecasting dangerous weather events. The societal impact of EO has been characterized using economic valuation, however, cultural and relational values that are harder to quantify and express in monetary terms, like sense of place, perspective, and spiritual connection, remain understudied. Specifically, how is EO technology linked to our perception of interconnectedness— being in dynamic relationships with other entities and events in our community, region, and world? A short stop-motion film explores the historical context of this question
Stay Steady: Medications and Fall Prevention for Older Adults
No full textFalls related to medication use are a significant public health concern among older adults, resulting in substantial morbidity and healthcare costs. This community health project involved creating an educational pamphlet targeted to older residents of New Milford, Connecticut, outlining common medications known to increase fall risk and providing medication-specific strategies to mitigate these risks. The pamphlet highlighted drug classes such as antihypertensives, sedatives, opioids, and antidepressants, and offered practical advice, such as slow position changes to reduce orthostatic hypotension. The intervention aimed to increase awareness, promote safer medication practices, and ultimately reduce falls, injuries, and associated healthcare utilization in the elderly population
Home-Based High-Intensity Balance Training With Family Member Support In Persons With Multiple Sclerosis: A Feasibility Single-Group Pretest-Posttest Design
No full textMultiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic neurological disorder of the central nervous system characterized by progressive physical and cognitive deterioration throughout the disease process. The physical and cognitive impairments, independently or interactively, impact physical activity, social participation, and quality of life. Traditionally, balance training conducted in a supervised environment has shown to improve balance and cognitive function. However, participation in center-based exercise programs may be burdensome for some persons with MS due to time constraints and transportation difficulties, suggesting the need for an alternative modality that attenuates participation barriers while eliciting important health benefits. Home-based balance training programs have been developed to address these aforementioned hurdles and promote accessibility. However, our recent meta-analyses revealed that home-based balance training did not significantly improve balance and cognitive function in persons with MS. Thus, we designed a novel home-based high-intensity balance training program (HBBT-MS) that employs a family member of MS as an exercise supporter. As a first step, this study aims to examine its feasibility (Chapter 2), determine its effect on physical, cognitive, and self-reported outcomes (Chapter 3), and qualitatively explore exercise supporters’ experiences around support for the intervention (Chapter 4). This involved a single-group pretest-posttest design. We recruited 28 persons with MS (mean age:55.2, 82.1% Female) and 29 exercise supporters (mean age:54.3, 65.5% Male). Participants performed the HBBT-MS program for 30 minutes per session, 3 days per week for 12 weeks. The program demonstrated high adherence rate (92.9%) and attendance rate (94.4%), with no severe adverse events reported. Most participants with MS and exercise supporters were satisfied with the program contents and support. As to treatment effects, there were significant improvements in static balance (p < 0.001, d = 0.74), lower-extremity function (p < 0.001, d = 0.70), and walking (p = 0.004, d = 0.34). Participants showed significant improvement in cognitive processing speed (p = 0.007, d = 0.71) and visuospatial memory (p = 0.22, d = 0.02), but not verbal memory (p =0.007, d = 0.71). We observed significant but small improvements in self-reported outcomes, including fatigue (p = 0.03, d = 0.30), fear of falling (p = 0.004, d = 0.47), and dual-task difficulty (p = 0.003, d = 0.40). After interviewing 12 exercise supporters, we found that they gained varied benefits and insights through the support experience, with subsequent intention to continue this type of support moving forward. The HBBT-MS was feasible and safe in persons with MS. Participants were also capable of meeting high-intensity exercise doses with the support by exercise supporters. This study also demonstrated promising evidence of positive changes in physical, cognitive, and self-reported outcomes following the intervention. Thus, the successful examination of feasibility in this HBBT-MS can inform designing a larger clinical trial focusing on the efficacy of this modality on health outcomes.Doctor of Philosophy (PhD
Survey of hemoparasites in Vermont aquatic turtles
No full textUndergraduateTurtle populations are subject to an ever-increasing number of threats stemming from pollution, climate change, and habitat loss. An understanding of hemoparasite prevalence and diversity in turtle populations is essential for assessing their health, monitoring changes over time, and tracking parasite spillover between turtles and other vertebrates. I analyzed 44 turtle samples from 3 different species and 4 different locations in my survey. My goal is to be the first to morphometrically and molecularly identify aquatic turtle parasites in the state to establish a baseline for future research and conservation efforts
Vibration control in rotor chain structures with dual topological states
No full textGraduateRotor chain models (RCMs) offer a mathematical framework for studying wave propagation in periodic structures, such as folding-inspired metamaterials. These systems support topo- logically protected states (TPS) that localize vibrational energy, independent of material defects. This study presents a 1D RCM with spring-hinge elements, allowing control over vibration localization by adjusting stiffness and angles. The model predicts dual topologi- cal states at zero and finite frequencies, enhancing wave control and vibration mitigation. These findings contribute to resilient mechanical designs, including origami-inspired struc- tures, with applications in aerospace, deployable systems, and noise reduction technologies
A Case Study of Guerrilla Virtual Reunification from the Morningside Hospital History Project: Privacy and Access, Independence and Sustainability
No full textThe Lost Alaskans Morningside Hospital History Project (MHHP) is a grassroots community archival project documenting the nearly 3,500 Alaskans who were institutionalized at a private psychiatric hospital in Oregon from 1904-1960. Through semi-structured interviews with volunteers and researchers, this article analyzes the MHHP’s online patient database as an experiment in guerrilla virtual reunification—digitally reuniting scattered archival records outside of institutional partnerships. The study highlights two pairs of competing archival virtues: privacy and access, and independence and sustainability. The research underscores how community archives navigate ethical, legal, logistical, and affective challenges in their goal of documenting marginalized histories. In particular, the article discusses the fragility of grassroots digital preservation and the special challenges in documenting and identifying institutionalized people.This version of the article has been accepted for publication after peer review and is subject to Springer Nature’s AM terms of use, but is not the Version of Record and does not reflect post- acceptance improvements, or any corrections. The Version of Record is available online at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10502-025-09519-
Mobile phone use and psychopathology in trauma exposed individuals
No full textGraduateDesigning effective digital interventions for those with trauma-related psychopathology requires knowing how such individuals use their mobile device so that intervention design can be usercentered. This study (N=332) examined the relationship between mobile phone activity and PTSD symptoms in individuals with post-trauma psychopathology. Participants completed measures of trauma exposure, PTSD symptoms, and mobile phone use. Results indicated that greater engagement with mobile games, watching videos, and social media was associated with higher PTSD symptoms, with social media use showing a gender-specific effect. These findings can inform the design of digital interventions that leverage app-based engagement to support trauma-affected individuals
A New Architecture for Choreographic Programming Languages
No full textChoreographic programming (CP) is a paradigm for implementing distributed systems that uses a single global program to define the actions and interactions of all participants. One characteristic of CP is that values are "located", i.e. associated or annotated with parties who own them, and non-owners of a located value cannot use it. Existing CP systems are generally either select-&-merge systems, which have a designated "select" operator for communicating knowledge of choice, or use alternative strategies that are known to be less efficient. We make four contributions to the ongoing development of CP systems. First, we propose and formalize conclaves and multiply-located values; this combination of features enables efficient conditionals without redundant communication or a specialized operator. Second, we implement this "conclaves-&-MLVs" paradigm in Haskell as the MultiChor library. Third, we propose census polymorphism, a technique for abstracting over the number of participants in a choreography. Forth, we demonstrate the viability of a CP system MiniChor that uses only conclaves and has no designated syntax for located values. MultiChor is available to end-users now, and contains solutions to key engineering problems. Based on anecdotal experiences using it and subsequent work on the theory-oriented fork MiniChor, we outline near-term avenues for future work on CP systems for industry use.Computer ScienceDoctor of Philosophy (PhD
Exploring Carcinization Through a Simulated Context.
No full textCarcinization, the phenomenon of crustaceans independently evolving crab-like body structures, has been widely observed in nature. Since all common ancestors of modern crustaceans are extinct, modern study of carcinization invites the usage of evolutionary algorithms to determine the factors of carcinization. While the causes of carcinization are hypothesized, a prominent theory invokes the direction of locomotion as a factor. Using evolutionary robotics, we test whether selection for lateral locomotion drives convergent evolution toward crab-like morphologies in silico. We performed the experiment utilizing a lobster-like robot, under a hill climber evolutionary algorithm to select through 10,000 specimens for 30 trials under earth-like open-air conditions. Robot morphologies selected mutations which positively affected lateral locomotion. By quantifying trait thresholds (torso width, tail reduction, leg splay), the level of carcinization was assessed. The robots were then compared against robots evolved to maximize longitudinal locomotion. Our findings show that evolved robots maximizing lateral locomotion had some degree of carcinization, with the majority of robots emerging fully carcinized. Robots maximizing longitudinal locomotion did not exhibit traits of carcinization.Computer Scienc
Investigating the Existence and Implications of a PACAP-mediated Circuit from the Medial Habenula (MHb) to the Interpeduncular Nucleus (IPN)
No full textChronic stress-induced psychiatric disorders, such as anxiety and depression, are some of the most widespread pathologies across the globe. Nevertheless, first-line treatments such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) have limited efficacy. Recent evidence suggests that dysregulation of neuropeptidergic signaling pathways, particularly those involving pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide (PACAP), may play a key role in the pathophysiology of anxiety and depression. This study investigates the existence and functional relevance of a novel PACAP-sensitive circuit extending from the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST) to the medial habenula (MHb), and from the MHb to the interpeduncular nucleus (IPN), a pathway hypothesized to mediate the generation of chronic stress-induced psychopathologies. To assess this circuitry, we conducted two experiments. In Experiment 1, PAC1-Ires-Cre mice received stereotaxic injections of a Cre-dependent AAV vector encoding mCherry into the MHb to label PAC1R-expressing neurons. Subsequent imaging revealed that these neurons terminate in the IPN, validating the existence of a PACAP-sensitive MHb-IPN projection. In Experiment 2, retrograde tracing with Fluoro-Gold infusions into the IPN of C57BL/6 mice was used to identify upstream afferents. While technical limitations affected signal detection in the MHb, a fluorescent signal detected in the lateral habenula (LHb) and rostromedial tegmental nucleus (RMTg) suggests anatomical overlap and possible off-target tracer diffusion. These findings support the existence of a BNST-MHb-IPN projection in which PACAP-secreting neurons in the BNST activate PAC1R-expressing and Substance P (SP) secreting neurons in the dorsal MHb, which in turn synapse onto the IPN. Dysregulation of this pathway likely contributes to the emergence of stress-induced anxious and depressive behavior. Given the downstream connectivity of the IPN with serotonergic nuclei such as the dorsal raphe, this pathway may represent the mechanism through which chronic stress disrupts systemic serotonergic tone and generates psychopathology. The anatomical and functional insights gained from this study emphasize the therapeutic potential of targeting PACAP and SP signaling within this circuitry to treat chronic stress-related disorders such as depression and anxiety.Psychological Scienc