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League of Women Voters of the Huntington Area E-mail Bulletin, October, 2025
No full textThe periodical is published by the League, which is a nonpartisan political organization that encourages the informed and active participation of citizens in government and influences public policy through education and advocacy.https://mds.marshall.edu/lowv_newsletter_2020-2029/1056/thumbnail.jp
Pop Culture in Appalachia: West Virginia Pop Culture Conventions
No full textThis creative graduate humanities project explores the development, impact, and challenges of pop culture conventions in West Virginia and the implications on the broader Appalachian region. Through in-depth interviews with organizers of eight regional conventions—including HerdCon, Tsubasacon, Causeacon, and the Mothman Festival— I examined the motivations behind organizing such events, the cultural and logistical hurdles faced, and the personal and communal rewards experienced by those involved. By investigating how these events foster community, promote regional tourism, and provide inclusive spaces for fandoms, the project highlights the importance of pop culture in shaping identity and engagement in rural Appalachia. Special attention is given to the roles of volunteers, venue limitations, financial constraints, and the lasting impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on event planning and attendance. My findings demonstrate that, despite challenges, these conventions serve as vital cultural touchstones, blending creativity, community building, and a shared love for popular media
Multiobjective optimal design of hierarchical control architectures for quadcopter systems: linear and hybrid approaches
No full textThis thesis investigates the design of many-objective optimal controllers for quadcopter unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), focusing on both linear and hybrid control structures. In Chapter 2, a multi-input–multi-output (MIMO) optimal control system is developed for a six-degree-of-freedom UAV actuated by four brushless DC motors. The UAV dynamics are first derived and linearized around an operating point, and then organized into a three-loop nested control structure. The outer loop computes the roll and pitch angles required to maneuver the vehicle in the global X and Y directions, the middle loop regulates attitude and altitude, and the inner loop controls the angular velocities of each axis. A many-objective optimization problem, formulated with twenty design parameters and ten objective functions, is solved using the Strength Pareto Evolutionary Algorithm 2 with Shift-based Density Estimation (SPEA2-SDE). Stability and performance constraints are imposed, and numerical simulations conducted on the nonlinear UAV model confirm the effectiveness of the optimized design.
Chapter 3 extends this framework by presenting a hybrid cascade control structure that blends linear and nonlinear algorithms. The UAV’s nonlinear model is again derived and linearized at an operating point to design position and attitude controllers. The outer loop controllers (XG and Y G) generate roll and pitch commands, while the middle loop computes attitude dynamics under the assumption of small Euler angles. In contrast to Chapter 2, the inner loop employs a sliding mode controller (SMC) to generate motor thrust control laws, enhancing robustness against uncertainties and external disturbances. A corresponding many-objective optimization problem, involving twenty-one design parameters and ten objectives, is formulated and solved using the Hypervolume Estimation (HypE) algorithm. By ranking solutions through hypervolume contributions, HypE effectively captures trade-offs among competing objectives. The resulting Pareto sets and fronts demonstrate the inherent competition between performance measures. Simulations on the nonlinear UAV model validate the superiority of the optimized hybrid control design in terms of robustness, disturbance rejection, and overall trajectory tracking performance.
Overall, this thesis demonstrates that many-objective optimization, when applied to both linear and hybrid control structures, provides a systematic and effective approach for enhancing quadcopter stability, robustness, and performance in complex dynamic environments. Furthermore, the results show the hybrid controller with HypE outperforms the linear controller with SPEA2+SDE, exhibiting enhanced capability to attain the target point while efficiently preserving stability and robustness during the flight process
0894: G. W. “Jerry” Sutphin River Transportation Collection, 1832-2024
No full textGerald W. “Jerry” Sutphin was a nationally recognized river historian from Huntington. He graduated from Mullens High School and Marshall University and became an army officer. Sutphin worked for and retired from the United States Army Corps of Engineers before spending twenty years operating his own business, Visual Information Ltd. The author of Sternwheelers on the Great Kanawha River, he also wrote a number of articles and contributed to numerous publications with words and/or photographs. Sutphin provided historical presentations on the Delta Queen and other large sternwheel excursion boats and served as a consultant for several documentaries and exhibits. Sutphin was also a talented artist.
The G. W. “Jerry” Sutphin River Transportation Collection includes the correspondence and personal papers of Gerald W. Sutphin; annual reports and other documents from the United States Army Corps of Engineers; photographs, negatives, and slides documenting rivers and river transportation, particularly on the Kanawha and Ohio rivers; books and other publications; artwork, audio/video material, and artifacts. The collection is divided into nine series: Series I: Manuscript Materials (Boxes 1-13) Series II: Delta Queen Steamboat Company (Boxes 14-20) Series III: United States Army Corps of Engineers (Boxes 21-30) Series IV: Publications (Boxes 31-61) Series V: Albums/Notebooks (Boxes 62-64) Series VI: Photographs (65-93) Series VII: Audio/Video/Digital (Boxes 94-97) Series VIII: Artifacts (Boxes 98-103) Series IX: Oversize
Reducing Rates of Child Abuse and Neglect: An Analysis of Three Potential Solutions
No full textChild abuse and neglect are prevalent problems, affecting an estimated one million children worldwide each year. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate and analyze three potential solutions to reduce the rates of child abuse and neglect. The three programs that were suggested were: improving overall access to healthcare, therapy and counseling, and other support services for children and families who need them, implementing more Nurse-Family Partnerships across the United States for first time mothers with visits from a registered nurse, and increasing parent’s access to economic resources and improving families overall financial security. These programs were researched extensively, and three different criteria (cost-effectiveness, community impact, and accessibility) were used to evaluate the best option using a modified program analysis approach. Upon analysis, it was found that the Nurse-Family Partnership is the most effective method for preventing and reducing child abuse and neglect. However, adopting one program should not be the only solution to end child maltreatment as a multi-faceted approach is needed, such as ending poverty, supporting parents with mental health and substance use issues, and increasing healthcare and mental health services
Positive Psychology Interventions for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Among Earthquake Survivors in Nepal
No full textNatural disasters produce both community and individual trauma; Nepal’s 2015 and 2023 earthquakes exemplify this enduring impact. Previous literature has discussed the effects of PTSD and other mental health concerns post-disasters, providing some context to the difficulties in providing counseling services to those in need. However, little is known about unique psychological, cultural, and contextual factors in Nepal and how their influence and understanding may result in modifying traditional PTSD counseling interventions found in much of the existing professional literature. The purpose of this conceptual paper is to propose a culturally responsive, strengths-based framework that integrates positive psychology interventions, positive psychotherapy (PPT), forgiveness practices, and radical hope with Nepalese ethnopsychology and community-based coping systems. Whether counselors work with those who have experienced or are still experiencing repercussions from the Nepal earthquakes, having a better understanding of how diagnoses and mental health concerns are perceived is essential to the counseling profession
An analysis of the impact of the transition to online learning and remote work on the Army Congressional Fellowship Program
Full text linkThe purpose of this phenomenological, qualitative case study is to investigate the extent to which the compulsory transition to online learning and remote work affected the academic and workplace performance of select personnel in the Army Congressional Fellowship Program (ACFP). This study also aims to better understand the role of classroom and workplace socialization in supporting desired academic and professional outcomes. The sample consisted of twelve Army personnel selected as part of Cohort FY2021 of the ACFP. Each participant was asked to express how online learning and remote work affected their ability to perform their duties as a fellow in a congressional office and as a legislative liaison on the Army staff. They were also asked to describe the role, or lack thereof, that socialization had on their perceived performance and ability to carry out assigned duties.
The findings revealed that while the transition to online learning and remote work posed significant challenges, participants demonstrated resilience and adaptability. Key factors contributing to successful academic performance included self-discipline, effective time management, and access to technological resources. However, the lack of face-to-face interactions significantly impacted socialization and relationship building, leading to feelings of isolation and disconnection. The analysis identified common themes such as the importance of clear boundaries, structured schedules, and proactive engagement from instructors and supervisors. These insights can help organizational leadership better understand and mitigate the potential effects of online learning, remote work, and lack of socialization on instructors, students, supervisors, and employees