SHAREOK Repository
Not a member yet
49261 research outputs found
Sort by
Multi-Material Extrusion-Based Additive Manufacturing: Refinement and Vertical Stacking in a Dual-Silicone DIW System
No full textThis thesis advances previous research in multi-material extrusion-based additive manufacturing using Direct Ink Writing (DIW) to develop a more controlled, vertically capable printing process. Building on a dual-material pneumatic extrusion system created at the University of Oklahoma, this work focuses on refining material flow, optimizing print parameters, and exploring early-stage stacking behavior with silicone elastomers.After replicating the original dual-material setup using EcoFlex 00-30 silicone with and without THI-VEX additive, print inconsistency and overspreading highlighted the need for systematic control. A nine-line matrix was developed to isolate the effects of pneumatic pressure and print speed. Results identified 5 psi and 200 mm/min as optimal for consistent, single-layer deposition. Two-pass stacking trials then tested three THI-VEX concentrations (15%, 20%, and 25%) to assess Z-axis behavior. Dimensional analysis showed the 20% formulation provided the most stable stacking, balancing stiffness with print reliability. Though time constraints and dimensional limitations prevented multilayer stacking, this work establishes a repeatable framework for future Z-axis development in dual-silicone DIW systems. The findings transition this project from exploratory replication to process refinement, providing a validated path forward for additive manufacturing of soft, multi-material structures
Repairing the Catalog: Using Reparative Description for Indigenous Subjects
No full textI was really inspired by The Tribal Nations in Oklahoma Metadata presentation during the 2023 Metadata Justice in Oklahoma Libraries and Archives Symposium. I was inspired to add proper tribal names to all records with “Five Civilized Tribes” as a subject heading. But then, as I read more about subject headings, I realized that Indians of North America was a problematic heading, and I wanted to help mitigate the harm that that subject might do. So, I began adding subject headings “Indigenous people of North America” to all records in Cameron University Library's catalog with Indians as a subject heading. And then, during the 2024 Metadata Justice Symposium, I was inspired by the Searching the Past, Finding the Present: Identifying Contemporary Tribal Communities in Gilcrease Museum's Rare Books Collection presentation, and I went back to the beginning and started all over again, with a more detailed and nuanced spreadsheet. I will explain my process, showing before and after records in the ILS and OPAC, and explaining my spreadsheet. I will explain how I created an alternate vocabulary to use in place of subject headings with "Indian" -- I'm adding Indigenous people to the subjects of each record in the catalog with "Indians" as a subject heading, and then I've been adding the correct tribal names for any tribal nation specified in the subjects (like, Navajo Indians, gets subject headings: Diné Indians (Navajo) ; Navajo Nation) I will ask for feedback on how to continue the work after the project itself is done. How do I "train" anyone following me to keep up the practice
EFFECTIVENESS OF AI-POWERED ADVERTISING ON GENERATION Z’S TRUST, ATTITUDE, AND PURCHASING BEHAVIOR
No full textAs artificial intelligence (AI) becomes an increasingly integrated innovation in the digital world, its impact on the consumer perception and behavior has drawn interest, academically and in industry. This thesis investigates the effectiveness of AI-powered advertising on Generation Z’s trust, attitudes, and purchasing intentions. This study will use the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) with a few additions, such as: AI literacy, perceived AI accuracy, and perceived AI reliability. These variables are put in place to examine their level of influence on functional and emotional perception in AI on Generation Z. By exploring how AI-powered advertising affects the consumer-brand relationship within this demographic, this study will contribute to the academic understanding of technology acceptance and guide marketers in leveraging this new technology without hurting their relationship with these new and upcoming consumers
SETTLER AGGRESSIONS: INDIGENOUS DOCTORAL STUDENT EXPERIENCES WITH SETTLER COLONIALISM IN HIGHER EDUCATION
No full textIndigenous students pursuing doctoral education often navigate environments shaped by the historical and on-going settler colonial structure of the United States. This study aimed to examine the lived experiences of Indigenous doctoral students with microaggressions at Non-Native Colleges and Universities (NNCUs), with attention to how these incidents are shaped by underlying settler colonial dynamics. Using an Indigenous methodological approach, with Settler Colonialism and TribalCrit as guiding frameworks, data were collected through in-depth interviews with 11 Indigenous doctoral students from both public and private universities. The term “settler aggression” emerged in this study as a way to describe microaggressions rooted in settler colonialism and directed at Indigenous individuals or communities. The findings uncovered four themes of settler aggressions: Settler Ignorance, which is categorized as a structural lack of awareness that benefits the setter; Settler Tokenization (and Indigenous Labor), which illustrates how settlers utilize Indigenous people, knowledge, culture, or spirituality to appear diverse without bringing about real change; Environmental Settler Aggressions in the Academy, which are the systemic settler aggressions embedding within academic structures; and Settler as Supreme Sovereign, which reflects how settlers assert their dominance through the centering of their own authority, knowledge, and culture while marginalizing Indigenous people. This research highlights the need for higher education institutions to move beyond symbolic gestures and implement actionable policies that support, protect, and empower Indigenous students
INVESTIGATING CLIMATE IMPACTS ON WEATHER-RELATED CRASHES
No full textAdverse weather conditions due to precipitation are known to increase crash occurrence and fatality rates. One fifth of all vehicle crashes in the United States are weather-related, with a sixth of this value resulting in a fatality. However, the impacts vary by precipitation type and region. Weather regimes, which identify large-scale atmospheric patterns, are useful to study for accounting region-specific precipitation variability. This study examined the relationship between fatal weather-related crashes and ENSO-precipitation-anomaly and weather-related crashes and regime-precipitation-anomaly time scales to better understand subseasonal-to-seasonal variability in weather impacts to surface transportation and safety communication. Fatal crash, precipitation, snow, and weather regime data were combined to determine how strong climate impacts are to roads. Two important takeaways from this study are that: (1) the precipitation anomalies and fatal crash relationship is driven by anomalous liquid precipitation rather than anomalous snow or frozen precipitation and (2) weather regimes impact fatal weather-related crashes differently from region to region. Traffic safety has improved over time in terms of safety, though climate change may alter future trends. El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) patterns influence precipitation in some regions, which can affect crash rates, though direct links remain uncertain. Many fatal crashes occur without any prior warnings, indicating a need for improved safety communication to drivers about the dangers of adverse weather. Since climatology and driver behavior differ regionally, crash counts vary. Limitations include the lack of availability of earlier frozen precipitation data and non-fatal weather-related crash data
LEAK DETECTION BY DYNAMIC SIMULATION IN NATURAL GAS PIPELINES WITH HYDROGEN
No full textIntegrating hydrogen into current natural gas transportation systems is gaining attraction as an energy source target. Although pipelines remain the best and most cost- effective means of gas transportation, the addition of hydrogen alters the flow dynamics and raises the need for efficient monitoring. Leakage is one of the most important hazards in pipeline systems, since it could affect safety, environment, and economy. This work aims to understand the flow behavior in a gas pipeline transporting a natural gas-hydrogen mixture without and with leaks. At this study, various leak scenarios are modeled using OLGA, a dynamic multiphase flow simulator. Different leak sizes, gas compositions, flow rates, pipeline diameters, and inclination angles are modeled through a sequence of simulations. The leak is situated at a specific point in the pipeline. Box- Behnken design is used to conduct a sensitivity analysis, which includes low, medium, and high values across the five aforementioned variables. The primary leak indicators are pressure, temperature, and mass flow rate. Additionally, synthetic noise is included in the pressure and temperature data to replicate realistic sensor readings. Matrix profiles are used to analyze time- series events for anomalies, marked as leaks. Then, a machine learning leak detection model is developed from simulation data using a random forest classification model. The machine learning model is developed once based on temperature and another time based on pressure as leak indicator. The results emphasize that noise highly affects the outcome of the leak detection system. The temperature-based model proves to be more sensitive to noise and measurement uncertainty than the pressure-based model. The temperature-based matrix profiles cannot identify any leaks, once noise is added to the data. The pressure-based model can still identify leaks with noise, but its prediction accuracy is reduced. Leak size, pipe diameter, and distance from the leak also influence the leak detection. Leak detection becomes easier through pressure data for larger leaks, smaller pipe diameters, higher flow rates, and through sensors closer to the leak location. This thesis highlights the necessity of selecting suitable indicators in leak detection. A machine-learning model is proposed based on random forest classifiers, utilizing the most common and cost-effective sensors (pressure and temperature) to enhance leak detection in natural gas pipelines without and with hydrogen. This model can be used as a valuable tool in monitoring transportation systems and reducing energy and financial losses associated with leaks
THE MEMORABLE MESSAGES LEADING TO THE DECISION TO TAKE SECURE MEASURES AGAINST FINANCIAL FRAUD ATTACKS: THE CASE OF SAUDI ARABIAN STUDENTS ABROAD
Get PDFABSTRACTSocial engineering attacks (SEAs) pose significant challenges today. As attackers exploit various strategies to manipulate individuals using persuasion techniques and digital tools to deceive individuals into trusting them. These manipulation strategies are designed to exploit individual information in order to access confidential details for purposes such as stealing money or disclosing sensitive information. They encompass a range of tactics, including fraud, phishing, and vishing, which represent various methods; however, the underlying objective remains consistent. Since the success or failure of these attacks often depends on individuals’ concern about the risk and secure behavior, the threats of social engineering attacks may increase among those engaging in less familiar interactions, such as international students who face language barriers, cultural differences, and unfamiliar interaction norms. International students, with a focus on Saudi students abroad in Western countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia as a case study, represent a community navigating diverse challenges outside their home countries, yet they are often overlooked in communication studies. Using an open-ended online survey, this study employed an inductive qualitative content analysis approach to analyze participants’ fraud-related stories and messages to identify whether different forms of communication affect their concerns about the SEAs’ risk and behavioral responses to avoid such risk. Participants were asked to recall communication events and memorable messages, as well as report any protective behaviors they adopted to safeguard themselves against SEAs’ attacks. The analysis explored whether different forms of communication, focusing on memorable messages, influenced Saudi students abroad to adopt secure behavior and become concerned about such risks. The main findings revealed that interpersonal communication with close others and firsthand experiences with scammers appeared to impact participants’ concern and the risk associated with such experiences. This interactive communication involved participants sharing, talking about, or evaluating fraud-related information with others or themselves. Furthermore, the findings also found that this engagement often triggered intrapersonal reflections, such as feelings of fear of attackers exploiting advanced technology to make the attacks legitimate and influence trust in conducting online transactions. Furthermore, these emotional reactions to the prevalent attacks targeting individuals’ confidential information influenced participants’ decisions to adopt protective actions, reflected in their avoidance strategies and self-responsibility in financial matters and online behavior. Culture and religious values rooted in Saudi and Islamic traditions also appeared as key factors influencing participants to adopt secure behavior, as emerged from their memorable messages reflecting culture-based wisdom, which influenced the decision to adopt secure behavior against SEAs. Therefore, the findings expand understanding of message effects and protective behavior change models. These models suggest that factors such as perceived vulnerability and susceptibility to a threat motivate individuals to adopt or change behavior to avoid a threat. However, in the Saudi context, the data revealed that personally relevant as well as cultural and religious values work as motivators to adopt secure actions against fraud, particularly when the messages are interactive. Notably, the study supported the idea that factors like vicarious experiences, personal narrative, and emotional relevance were motivating factors in shaping protective behaviors among Saudi students abroad. Furthermore, the findings maintained factors like self-efficacy and attitudes toward a secure behavior, reflecting how participants evaluated their capacity to avoid a threat and engaged in precautionary actions. Practically, this study highlights the importance of designing anti-fraud communication strategies that are culturally and religiously framed, as participants shared messages that reflected personally relevant and reflected their cultural and religious values. This is especially true for Saudi Arabian students abroad, particularly when the messages are interactive. Furthermore, prevention messages can also leverage storytelling, emphasize relatable personal experiences to enhance memorability, and influence protective behavior change. The findings contribute to the literature on international students’ challenges by revealing how cultural familiarity, rather than exposure to less familiar environments, critically shapes participants’ concerns and behavioral responses to avoid fraud attacks. Meaning that less familiar interactions abroad did not appear to impact fraud concerns among Saudi students in Western countries. Instead, personal and emotional narratives shared within close others’ networks, firsthand experiences and intrapersonal reflection were memorable and influential. While some participants recalled media messages, authority warnings, and school instructions as memorable messages to recognize the risk associated with fraud, personal and cultural connections appeared more effective in motivating protective behavior change. Furthermore, the findings illustrate how participants’ fraud-related stories involving interactive communication events not only influenced their concerns about fraud risk and proactive behavior to protect themselves from the attacks but also enhanced the memorability of such interactions. The study’s findings provide valuable insights into the influential forms of communication that shape risk concerns and encourage the adoption of secure behavior against SEAs. Additionally, this study maps out the behavioral changes that participants adopted to protect themselves against fraud threats. These behavioral changes captured both technical and interpersonal strategies, including password management and privacy control. The study also identifies the memorable messages feature in relation to the communication context that increased the memorability of such messages, influencing these behavioral shifts. The current study findings expand the boundaries of the messages’ effect and protective behavior change of the factors associated with adopting or changing behavior to avoid a threat, particularly in the Saudi Arabian context. Furthermore, the study findings provide recommendations for improving fraud prevention communication strategies targeting international students and individuals specifically from collectivist cultures such as Saudi Arabia, suggesting that culturally framed and personally relevant messages can be more effective than solely informational appeals. Keywords: Social Engineering Attacks (SEAs), fraud concern, secure behavior, Saudi students abroad, communication forms, memorable messages, interactive communication
EXEMPLARISM IN CHRISTOPHER TIN’S TO SHIVER THE SKY: A PHILOSOPHICAL ANALYSIS OF VIRTUE MORAL THEORY IN MUSIC
Get PDFChristopher Tin’s To Shiver the Sky is an oratorio that explores the history of human flight, spanning from medieval conceptions of heaven to the achievement of landing a person on the moon. Through a multi-lingual choral-orchestral composition, Tin sets the words of pioneering figures in aviation to music, presenting their narratives as exemplars of human achievement. This paper argues that To Shiver the Sky embodies key elements of Linda Trinkaus Zagzebski’s Exemplarist Moral Theory, which emphasizes the admiration of exemplars. I analyze the oratorio through the lens of Exemplarist Moral Theory by categorizing the figures featured in Tin’s work into three types of exemplars: the hero, the saint, and the sage. Each movement of the oratorio is then examined to reveal how these exemplars’ virtues are admired and emulated in the music. Finally, using specific movements of To Shiver the Sky, I propose three formative ideas for developing an exemplarist musical practice
STUDY ON SELECT DESIGN FACTORS IN GRS BRIDGE ABUTMENTS
Get PDFConstruction of Geosynthetic Reinforced Soil (GRS) bridge abutments requires high-quality coarse-grained backfill materials. But the increasing scarcity of select fills has driven up construction costs, creating a demand for more affordable alternatives. To address this economic concern, this study examines the viability of using a marginal quality soil as backfill material for GRS bridge abutments. The marginal soil used in this study had nearly 25% fines, but it was non-plastic. Three model walls with identical designs were constructed: Model 1 with sand backfill (control case) and Models 2 and 3 with the marginal soil as the backfill, which was placed and compacted in both models at OMC+3% gravimetric water content. The strip footing, representing bridge load, was at the same location for Models 1 and 2, but it was placed closer to the abutment facing in Model 3. Each model abutment was instrumented to monitor settlements, facing displacements, reinforcement strains, and water content at selected locations within each model. Results of the study showed that Model 2 exhibited slightly larger deformation than the control model and Model 3 showed greater deformations than Model 2 due to the proximity of the strip footing load to its facing. Nevertheless, footing settlements, facing displacements and reinforcement strains in all models were significantly smaller than the FHWA serviceability requirements for a 190 kPa design load. These observations indicate that with proper design, including tightly-spaced reinforcement and strong facing-reinforcement connection, as was done in this study, marginal quality backfills of the type used in this study can serve effectively as backfill in GRS bridge abutments. The study provides valuable insight into the influences that backfill quality and footing location could have on structural stability and performance of GRS bridge abutments, offering a potential path toward cost-effective backfill alternatives for their design