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Researchers have considered how school choice policies affect student achievement, but less inquiry explores how the organization of schools may change in the presence of choice. This descriptive and exploratory paper analyzes a state representative sample of school mission statements at two time points: before the enactment of choice policies in Indiana, namely the Indiana Choice Scholarship Program, and again six years into the policy. Using structural topic modeling, this paper examines whether and how school mission statements topics have changed over this period. Descriptive findings suggest mission statement topics differ significantly between sectors but show few changes over time. The most striking shift is that Catholic and other private religious schools appear to be clarifying the religious aspects of their mission in the presence of robust choice policies.

For the first time, a cutin-like, highly chemically resistant macropolymer has been isolated from rachises of Karinopteris sp. (lyginopteridalean pteridosperm, Middle Pennsylvanian). Samples are obtained from a cuticular or "paper" coal-shale, i.e., an organic-rich and highly clastic rock associated with the Upper Block Coal Member of the Brazil Formation, Parke County, west-central Indiana, U.S.A. Karinopteris specimens are preserved as naturally oxidized compressions, termed "fossilized cuticles", and possibly represent vegetation of mineral substrate environments. Employing laboratory oxidation reactions, the fossilized cuticle of Karinopteris rachises is used to obtain the cuticle. After additional and long-term oxidation treatment, the cuticle yields the cutin-like macropolymer, here referred to as "cutin" for simplicity. The fossilized cuticle, cuticle, and cutin samples of Karinopteris sp. are chemically analyzed using semi-quantitative Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. Cutin IR spectra of Karinopteris rachises are characterized by (a) a predominantly aliphatic composition as indicated by intense aliphatic (CH al) C H stretching peaks at 3000–2700 cm−1, which are assigned to methylene (CH 2) and methyl (CH 3) groups; (b) carbonyl (C=O) groups at 1730–1640 cm−1, and aromatic carbon (C=C) absorption bands at 1600–1500 cm−1. A comparison with the cuticle, the cutin stands out due to relatively higher values of CH 2 /CH 3 and C=O/C=C, while displaying notably low values of CH al /C=O and C C contribution. Specifically, the relatively low value of CH al /C=O ratio obtained for the cutin of Karinopteris rachises is consistent with those found in the cutin of extant and fossil leaves. This lower CH al /C=O ratio indicates the important role likely played by C O groups in creating a deformable and flexible structure in both the cutin and the cuticle. Such a reduced rigidity suggests a high level of rachis flexibility of the once-living Karinopteris plant, supporting the interpretation of a climbing or liana habit. Cutin isolation and its chemical characterization shed light on the probable biomechanical (flexibility) properties of Karinopteris rachises, thereby enhancing our understanding of the plant growth habit. [Display omitted] • First-time spectroscopic study of Indiana "paper" coal (Pennsylvanian, U.S.A.). • Cutin polymer is obtained from fossilized cuticles of Karinopteris rachises. • Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy supplies chemical data. • Cutin is mainly aliphatic with highly crossed-linked ester carbonyl (C=O) bonds. • High C O contents suggest a liana-like Karinopteris plant with flexible rachises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Forensic examiners must determine whether both latent fingerprint development and DNA profiling can be performed on the same area of an evidence item and, if only one is possible, which examination offers the best chance for identification. Latent fingerprints can be enhanced by targeting different components of fingerprint residues with sequential chemical treatments. This study investigated the effects of single‐reagent and sequential latent fingerprint development processes on downstream DNA analysis to determine the point at which latent fingerprint development should be stopped to allow for DNA recovery. Latent fingerprints deposited on copy paper by one donor were developed using three sequential processes: 1,8‐diazafluoren‐9‐one (DFO) → ninhydrin → physical developer (PD); 1,2‐indanedione‐zinc (IND‐Zn) → ninhydrin → PD; and IND‐Zn → ninhydrin → Oil Red O (ORO) → PD. Samples were examined after the addition of each chemical treatment. DNA was collected with cotton swabs, extracted, quantified, and amplified. DNA yields, peak heights, number of alleles obtained, and percentage of DNA profiles eligible for CODIS upload were examined. DNA profiles were obtained with varying degrees of success, depending on the number and type of treatments used for latent fingerprint development. The treatments that were found to be the least harmful to downstream DNA analysis were IND‐Zn and IND‐Zn/laser, and the most detrimental treatments were DFO, DFO/laser, and PD. In general, as the number of treatments increase, the opportunities for DNA loss or damage also increase, and it is preferable to use fewer treatments when developing latent fingerprints prior to downstream DNA processing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The profession of recreational therapy first established professional membership organizations in the 1940s and 1950s. The most recent national professional membership organization was developed in 1984, when the American Therapeutic Recreation Association (ATRA) was formed. The National Academy of Recreational Therapists (NART) was established in 2011 as an honor society to recognize the most accomplished practitioners and educators in recreational therapy and to provide a clearinghouse for the exchange of ideas that would ultimately lead to the advancement of the recreational therapy profession. Efforts to establish NART began in 2009 when David Austin and Ray West drafted a conceptualization of the academy and its operations, as well as proposed a set of by-laws. A steering committee was subsequently established to review and approve by-laws for NART and to establish the Founding Fellows of NART. The central purpose of the Academy was the advancement of recreational therapy by recognition, education, research, scholarly activity, advocacy, and the provision of advice to decision makers. Since its inception NART has established and funded a Future Scholars Fund to support outstanding graduate students considering pursuing a terminal degree, as well as the Marcia Carter Scholarly Manuscript Award for the best annual publication in the Therapeutic Recreation Journal. Over its first 10 years, NART made revisions to its bylaws to refine criteria and categories for Fellows, and by 2021 there were 77 elected Fellows. The invited paper summarizes the first 10 years and considers a number of original goals that remain to be realized to support and advance this honor society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Differencing digital terrain models (DTMs) generated from multitemporal airborne light detection and ranging (lidar) data provide accurate and detailed information about three-dimensional (3D) changes on the Earth. However, noticeable spurious errors along flight paths are often included in the differencing results, hindering the accurate analysis of the topographic changes. This paper proposes a new scalable method to alleviate the problematic systematic errors with a high degree of automation in consideration of the practical limitations raised when processing the rapidly increasing amount of large-scale lidar datasets. The proposed method focused on estimating the displacements caused by vertical positioning errors, which are the most critical error source, and adjusting the DTMs already produced as basic lidar products without access to the point cloud and raw data from the laser scanner. The feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed method were evaluated with experiments with county-level multitemporal airborne lidar datasets in Indiana, USA. The experimental results demonstrated that the proposed method could estimate the vertical displacement reasonably along the flight paths and improve the county-level lidar differencing results by reducing the problematic errors and increasing consistency across the flight paths. The improved differencing results presented in this paper are expected to provide more consistent information about topographic changes in Indiana. In addition, the proposed method can be a feasible solution to upcoming problems induced by rapidly increasing large-scale multitemporal lidar given recent active government-driven lidar data acquisition programs, such as the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) 3D Elevation Program (3DEP). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Post-quantum cryptography (PQC) refers to novel requirements in asymmetric cryptography, namely key exchange, asymmetric encryption and digital signature. In PQC, the cryptographic computation shall resist not only attacks from classic computers, but also from quantum computers. Still, PQC algorithms are mathematical functions which are implemented conventionally (as software, hardware, etc.). Therefore, regular implementation-level attacks apply. In this paper, we list the challenges associated with the implementation of PQC, in particular vulnerabilities related to side-channel analyses. Some features in PQC, such as modular arithmetic in finite fields, inversions, non-uniform random numbers sampling, or decoding algorithms, are intrinsically hard to evaluate in constant-time. First, we detail the detection and the prevention of leakage arising from conditional control-flow and from conditional access to data structures. Second, we apply the same methodology to data leakage, in the situation where the manipulated data is randomly split in several shares (protection known as "masking"). Conventional detection of vertical leakage is not appropriate in the presence of countermeasures, such as masking. This paper shows that proper implementation of PQC requires knowledge of security evaluation and of secure coding. Owing to the large variety of PQC algorithms (key generation, encapsulation/decapsulation, signature verification/generation), classes (lattice-based, code-based, multivariate, etc.) and their configurations (key size, conforming to IND-CCA or IND-CPA security, etc.), generic methods shall be available. Those are overviewed in this paper, which is intended to provide to the readers with a comprehensive coverage about secure code evaluation and design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Springs provide ideal monitoring points for groundwater chemistry, which are important for managing groundwater resources. The chemistry of these spring waters aggregate geochemical reactions along the flow path. In this paper, part two of a two-part investigation, 104 perennial springs in the classic karst landscape of the Mitchell Plateau, Indiana, USA were sampled at base flow. Many of these springs are historically important for domestic, agricultural, commercial, and recreational use. Multifactor analysis of field measurements, principal ions, and stable isotopes revealed five primary clusters of springs emerging from the Mitchell Aquifer. Two clusters represented earth-alkaline-type karst groundwater that were discriminated by temperature and inorganic carbon concentration. Two other clusters comprised mineralized alkaline-earth-type groundwater with excess alkalis and elevated sulfate. The fifth cluster appeared to be groundwater that included meteoric and mineralized sources. Using the longitudinal data over two years from part one of this investigation, two mixing lines were used to describe the data set. The mixing lines pointed to sources of sulfur in mineralized springs from deep brines and from evaporite dissolution. Collectively, these regional data allow for a better delineation of water types and differentiation between the Upper and Lower Mitchell Aquifer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we study the interior C^{2} estimates for a type of Hessian quotient equation. If k

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused immense and immeasurable disruption to billions of lives worldwide, and the strain on healthcare workers and facilities will undoubtedly be seen for years to come. Many factors impact the incidence and prevalence of COVID-19 in states, such as policies and legislation, funding, partisanship of the statehouse, vaccination rates, and rurality. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the differences in the daily positive cases between Indiana and Washington State and examine the respective ways each state tried to mitigate the morbidity and mortality of the virus. Indiana and Washington State were chosen as the states have similar populations in different geographical locations in the country and varying responses to the pandemic. Data was obtained from the respective state health departments over a period of two and a half years from March 2020 to December 2022. Independent t-tests were used for the analysis of the data between Indiana and Washington. Overall, Indiana had a higher daily positive case rate when compared to Washington. Indiana had a lower vaccination rate and had more hospitalizations and deaths compared to Washington and the US population as a whole. The difference in the findings of each state could be attributed to the partisanship of the state and the ways in which partisanship influences the enacting of legislation and policies intended to mitigate disease, as well as public health funding allocated by the state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Split failures have been a conventional method to estimate overcapacity at signalized intersections. Currently, split failures are estimated from high-resolution (HR) traffic signal controller event data by evaluating occupancy at the stop bar. Recently, a technique that uses high-fidelity connected vehicle (CV) trajectory data to estimate split failures has been developed and has been adopted by some agencies. This paper compares cycle-by-cycle split failure estimations from both techniques for 42 signalized intersections across central Indiana. CV trajectories were assigned to a cycle based on their arrival characteristics. Then, HR and CV data were used to determine whether each cycle split fails. Finally, agreements and discrepancies were quantified and evaluated. The results obtained after analyzing over 35,000 cycles showed that both techniques produce similar overall split failure estimations. The HR and the CV methods identified 4% and 3% of all cycles as split failing, respectively. However, only 23% of all cycles determined as split failing with the HR approach were also identified as split failing with CV data. Similarly, only 30% of all cycles determined as split failing with the CV approach were also identified as split failing with the HR approach. This indicates significant discrepancies on a cycle-by-cycle basis. Using CV data to identify split failing cycles produces more conservative results and is based on the entire experience of traversing vehicles. If data are available, the authors recommend the CV approach when allocating limited agency resources for operational improvement activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Corn and soybeans play pivotal roles in the agricultural landscape of the United States, and accurately delineating their cultivation areas is indispensable for ensuring food security and addressing hunger-related challenges. Traditional methods for crop mapping are both labor-intensive and time-consuming. Fortunately, the advent of high-resolution imagery, exemplified by Sentinel-2A (S2A), has opened avenues for precise identification of these crops at a field scale, with the added advantage of cloud computing. This paper presents an innovative algorithm designed for large-scale mapping of corn and soybean planting areas on the Google Cloud Engine, drawing inspiration from symmetrical theory. The proposed methodology encompasses several sequential steps. First, S2A data undergo processing incorporating phenological information and spectral characteristics. Subsequently, texture features derived from the grayscale matrix are synergistically integrated with spectral features in the first step. To enhance algorithmic efficiency, the third step involves a feature importance analysis, facilitating the retention of influential bands while eliminating redundant features. The ensuing phase employs three base classifiers for feature training, and the final result maps are generated through a collective voting mechanism based on the classification results from the three classifiers. Validation of the proposed algorithm was conducted in two distinct research areas: Ford in Illinois and White in Indiana, showcasing its commendable classification capabilities for these crops. The experiments underscore the potential of this method for large-scale mapping of crop areas through the integration of cloud computing and high-resolution imagery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Threshold public-key encryption (threshold PKE) has various useful applications. A lot of threshold PKE schemes are proposed based on RSA, Diffie–Hellman and lattice, but to the best of our knowledge, code-based threshold PKEs have not been proposed. In this paper, we provide three IND-CCA secure code-based threshold PKE schemes. The first scheme is the concrete instantiation of Dodis–Katz conversion (Dodis and Katz, TCC'05) that converts an IND-CCA secure PKE into an IND-CCA secure threshold PKE using parallel encryption and a signature scheme. This approach provides non-interactive threshold decryption, but ciphertexts are large (about 16 kilobytes for 128-bit security) due to long code-based signatures even in the state-of-the-art one. The second scheme is a new parallel encryption-based construction without signature schemes. Unlike the Dodis–Katz conversion, our parallel encryption converts an OW-CPA secure PKE into an OW-CPA secure threshold PKE. To enhance security, we use Cong et al.'s conversion (Cong et al., ASIACRYPT'21). Thanks to eliminating signatures, its ciphertext is 512 bytes, which is only 3% of the first scheme. The decryption process needs an MPC for computing hash functions, but decryption of OW-CPA secure PKE can be done locally. The third scheme is an MPC-based threshold PKE scheme from code-based assumption. We take the same approach Cong et al. took to construct efficient lattice-based threshold PKEs. We build an MPC for the decryption algorithm of OW-CPA secure Classic McEliece PKE. This scheme has the shortest ciphertext among the three schemes at just 192 bytes. Compared to the regular CCA secure Classic McEliece PKE, the additional ciphertext length is only 100 bytes. The cons are heavy distributed computation in the decryption process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the previous paper by Alt et al (1984 Indiana Univ. Math. J. 33 367â€"91), the existence of the symmetric plane flows of two fluids with two free boundaries has been established by variational approach. However, the uniqueness of the two-phase fluids with two free boundaries is an unsolved problem. In the present paper, we will deal with the uniqueness of the two-phase fluids. In addition, if we assume that the two nozzles both converge, we shall show the monotonicity of the two free boundaries of the incompressible two-phase fluids issuing from these two nozzles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The state of Indiana maintains approximately 120 salt storage facilities strategically distributed across the state for winter operations. In April 2023, those facilities contained approximately 217,000 tons of salt with an estimated value of USD 21 million. Accurate inventories at each facility during the winter season are important for scheduling re-supply so the facilities do not run out of salt. Inventories are also important at the end of the season for restocking to provide balanced inventories. This paper describes the implementation of a portable pole-mounted LiDAR system to measure salt stockpile inventory at 120 salt storage facilities in Indiana. Using two INDOT staff members, the end-of-season inventory took 9 working days, with volumetric inventories provided within 24 h of data collection. To provide an independent evaluation of the methodologies, the Hovermap ST backpack was used at selected facilities to provide control volumes. This system has a range of 100 m and an accuracy of ±3 cm, which reduces the occlusion to less than 8%. The pre-season facility capacity ranged from 0% to 100%, with an average of 66% full across all facilities. The post-season facility percentage ranged from 3% to 100%, with an average of 70% full. In addition, permanent roof-mounted LiDAR systems were deployed at two facilities to evaluate the effectiveness of monitoring salt stockpile inventories during winter operation activities. Plans are now underway to install fixed LiDAR systems at 15 additional facilities for the 2023–2024 winter season. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examined optimal grain marketing strategies for a southeast Indiana case farm. Specifically, a downside risk model was used to examine the tradeoffs between net return and downside risk, and to determine whether the optimal marketing strategy changed as downside risk was reduced. The hedge and roll marketing strategy had the highest net return for both corn and soybeans. Even when downside risk was reduced, the hedge and roll strategy was an important component of optimal marketing strategies. Results stress the importance of using a portfolio of marketing strategies for corn and soybeans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Science and technology studies scholars have discussed the concept of nature within the context of Christian settler hierarchies (Cronon; Haraway; Titon). However, despite an emerging literature (Doolittle; Mundy), the narrativization of interspecies relations in musical contexts remains undertheorized. In this paper, I examine the ways that music has been used to construct seventeen-year Magicicada Brood X as biologically necessary within Christian environmentalism in the Midwestern United States, despite widespread popular claims that cicadas are "annoying" or "gross." Utilizing a mixture of gastromusicological and multispecies ethnographic techniques, I examine the 2021 event "All Creatures Yum!" in Bloomington, IN, which featured a combination of cicada culinary pop-ups with an album of cicada music. Critiquing David Rothenberg's claim that cicada noise is evidence of a prior stage of human musical evolution, I argue that the pairing of cicadas-as-food with cicadas-as-musical-collaborators suggests a complex negotiation by which participants are involved in "eating the Other" as theorized by bell hooks. The violence of consumption, contrasted with narratives of benevolent bio-musical harmony, brings to light questions of "what particular forms of life and death mean and why they matter" (Van Dooren 7). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an R-based approach to mapping dynamics of the flooded areas in the Inner Niger Delta (IND), Mali, using time series analysis of Landsat 8–9 satellite images. As the largest inland wetland in West Africa, the habitats of IND offers high potential for biodiversity of the flood-dependent eco systems. IND is one of the most productive areas in West Africa. Mapping flooded areas based on satellite images enables to provide strategies for land management and rice planting and modelling vegetation types of IND. Our approach is based on using libraries of R programming language for processing six Landsat images, and each image was taken on November from 2013 to 2022. By capturing spatial and temporal structures of the satellite images on 2013, 2015, 2018, 2020, 2021 and 2022, the remote sensing data are combined to yield estimates of landscape dynamics that is temporally coherent, while helping to analyse fluctuations of spatial extent in fluvial wetlands caused by the hydrological processes of seasonal flooding. Further, by allowing packages of R to support image processing, an approach to mapping vegetation by NDVI, SAVI and EVI indices and visualising changes in distribution of different land cover classes over time is realised. In this context, processing Earth observation data by advanced scripting tools of R language provides new insights into complex interlace of climate-hydrological processes and vegetation responses. Our study contributes to the sustainable management of natural resources and improving knowledge on the functioning of IND ecosystems in Mali, West Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global warming caused by excessive emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) has become a hot topic globally in today's society, and optimizing carbon emission performance (CEP) is an effective way to alleviate CO2 emissions. Many studies have explored CEP at the global, national, provincial and sector levels. However, due to the difficulty in obtaining energy consumption data, there is a lack of studies at the urban agglomeration and city levels. Taking the urban agglomeration dimension as the starting point, this paper constructs an improved epsilon-based measure (EBM) model to measure the CEP of the Yellow River Basin. A spatial data analysis model was introduced to explore the regional spatial characteristics of CEP. The newly developed spatial statistical model was used to study the driving factors of CEP. The results showed that: (1) The overall CEP of the Yellow River Basin was relatively high, showing an upward trend of volatility. There were significant differences between the seven urban agglomerations and 69 cities. (2) The CEP of the Yellow River Basin showed a trend of spatial agglomeration. The urban agglomerations of the eastern region showed a low-value agglomeration phenomenon, and the urban agglomerations of the central and western regions showed a trend of high-value agglomeration. (3) Economic development level (PGGDP), technological progress (TP), industrialization level (IND) and human capital (HC) can play a positive role in promoting the improvement in CEP, and population structure (PD) and energy structure (ES) can play a negative role in promoting the improvement in CEP. Industrial agglomeration (IA) and CEP show a "U"-shaped relationship that first inhibits and then promotes. In addition, foreign direct investment (FDI), IND, and HC have significant spatial spillover effects on neighboring cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Modern vehicles have extensive instrumentation that can be used to actively assess the condition of infrastructure such as pavement markings, signs, and pavement smoothness. Currently, pavement condition evaluations are performed by state and federal officials typically using the industry standard of the International Roughness Index (IRI) or visual inspections. This paper looks at the use of on-board sensors integrated in Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) connected vehicles to obtain crowdsource estimates of ride quality using the International Rough Index (IRI). This paper presents a case study where over 112 km (70 mi) of Interstate-65 in Indiana were assessed, utilizing both an inertial profiler and connected production vehicle data. By comparing the inertial profiler to crowdsourced connected vehicle data, there was a linear correlation with an R2 of 0.79 and a p-value of <0.001. Although there are no published standards for using connected vehicle roughness data to evaluate pavement quality, these results suggest that connected vehicle roughness data is a viable tool for network level monitoring of pavement quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carbonic acid and sulfuric acid speleogenesis describe a dichotomy between epigenetic and hypogenetic caves and carbon and sulfur cycling in karst, but do not acknowledge the global spectrum of cave formation. This paper, part one of a two-part investigation, tests and revises speleogenetic models from a classic karst landscape using dissolved ion concentrations δ13CDIC, and δ34S in water samples collected at four sites across the Bluespring and Lost River karst basins in the Mitchell Plateau, Indiana, USA. Analyses revealed elevated sulfur in both karst basins but differently sourced; H2S (δ34S = −14.2‰) evolved from petroleum seeps in Bluespring Caverns accounted for up to 61% of sulfur in the cave stream, while evaporite beds (δ34S = [+14.50‰, +17.91‰]) of the St. Louis Limestone contributed up to 100% of sulfur at Orangeville Rise, a terminal spring of the Lost River karst basin. These results have implications for carbon–sulfur cycle linkages, particularly the potential acceleration of carbon flux from sulfuric acid dissolution in otherwise epigenetic settings. We suggest a new paradigm for speleogenesis in the North American midcontinent—speleogenesis in the Mitchell Plateau and similar settings is not epigenetic or hypogenetic, but instead polygenetic with competing chemical processes varying across space and time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Let X be a Banach space with a normalized (Schauder) basis (b k) k and let { T (t) } t ≥ 0 be a C 0 -semigroup on X with generator A : D (A) ⊂ X → X . The main contribution of this paper is a new estimate for the semigroup orbits of initial data in D (A 2) that have with respect to (b k) k "absolutely summable graph norm." This result is noteworthy because (1) there is no requirement that z ↦ R (z , A) x has a bounded analytic extension to C + [e.g. Van Neerven (Semigroup Forum 53(2):155–161, 1996)] and (2) the only structural condition on X is the existence of (b k) k [e.g. Wrobel (Indiana Univ. Math. J. 38(1):101–114, 1989)]. Two directions for additional research are in some detail discussed as well at the end of this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transportation agencies in northern environments spend a considerable amount of their budget on salt for winter operations. For example, in the state of Indiana, there are approximately 140 salt storage facilities distributed throughout the state and the state expends between USD 30 M and USD 60 M on inventory and delivery each year. Historical techniques of relying on visual estimates of salt stockpiles can be inaccurate and do not scale well for managing the supply chain during the winter or planning for re-supply during summer months. This paper describes the implementation of a portable pole mounted LiDAR system that can be used to inventory a large barn in under 15 min and describes how this system has been deployed over 90 times at 30 facilities. A quick and easy accuracy test, based upon conservation of volume, was used to provide an independent check on the system performance by repositioning portions of the salt pile. Those tests indicated stockpile volumes can be estimated with an accuracy of approximately 0.1%. The paper concludes by discussing how this technology can be permanently installed near the roof for systematic monitoring throughout the year. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With an influx of public and private sector investment in the electric vehicle (EV) domain, public agencies and stakeholders need objective, equitable and systematic processes for identifying candidate sites for siting charging stations. This paper reports on a case study examining the Indiana Interstate network using connected vehicle data (CV). The Indiana Interstate network analyzed by this study is composed of 1247 centerline miles along nine routes. Each month, approximately 13 billion CV records representing more than 44 million unique trips are generated along all roads in Indiana. For this study 3.02 billion records comprising 4.78 million trips on and around Indiana Interstates and Exits were analyzed for usage patterns. The CV data was predominantly from internal combustion engine vehicle (ICEV) passenger cars, but provides insight into exit utilization and dwell times at 544 exits on 9 interstate roadways to evaluate how their current usage would align with building out Indiana's Alternative Fuel Corridors. A pareto sorted graphic for the top 50 busiest exits in the state shows that all but two are not well served by fast charging infrastructure. The paper suggests this pareto sorted list as a good starting point for further analysis and identified 15 exits on Indiana interstates, if chosen for deploying charging infrastructure, would ensure full compliance. The results provide a systemwide look at present dwell patterns among ICEVs and help identify locations of interest that would most benefit from addition of charging infrastructure as the current fleet of ICEVs gradually transitions to EVs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Despite the United States Preventive Services Task Force recommendation to screen adults for unhealthy alcohol use, the implementation of alcohol screening in primary care remains suboptimal. Methods: A pre and post-implementation study design that used Agile implementation process to increase screening for unhealthy alcohol use in adult patients from October 2021 to June 2022 at a large primary care clinic serving minority and underprivileged adults in Indianapolis. Results: In comparison to a baseline screening rate of 0%, the agile implementation process increased and sustained screening rates above 80% for alcohol use using the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test – Consumption tool (AUDIT-C). Conclusions: Using the agile implementation process, we were able to successfully implement evidence-based recommendations to screen for unhealthy alcohol use in primary care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Objectives: Hospitals and clinicians increasingly are reimbursed based on quality of care through financial incentives tied to value-based purchasing. Patient-centered care, measured through patient experience surveys, is a key component of many quality incentive programs. We hypothesize that operational aspects such as wait times are an important element of emergency department (ED) patient experience. The objectives of this paper are to determine (1) the association between ED wait times and patient experience and (2) whether patient comments show awareness of wait times. Methods: This is a cross-sectional observational study from January 1, 2019, to December 31, 2020, across 16 EDs within a regional health care system. Patient and operations data were obtained as secondary data through internal sources and merged with primary patient experience data from our data analytics team. Dependent variables are (1) the association between ED wait times in minutes and patient experience ratings and (2) the association between wait times in minutes and patient comments including the term wait (yes/no). Patients rated their “likelihood to recommend (LTR) an ED” on a 0 to 10 scale (categories: “Promoter” = 9-10, “Neutral” = 7-8, or “Detractor” = 0-6). Our aggregate experience rating, or Net Promoter Score (NPS), is calculated by the following formula for each distinct wait time (rounded to the nearest minute): NPS = 100* (# promoters – # detractors)/(# promoters + # neutrals + # detractors). Independent variables for patient age and gender and triage acuity, were included as potential confounders. We performed a mixed-effect multivariate ordinal logistic regression for the rating category as a function of 30 minutes waited. We also performed a logistic regression for the percentage of patients commenting on the wait as a function of 30 minutes waited. Standard errors are adjusted for clustering between the 16 ED sites. Results: A total of 50 833 unique participants completed an experience survey, representing a response rate of 8.1%. Of these respondents, 28.1% included comments, with 10.9% using the term “wait.” The odds ratio for association of a 30-minute wait with LTR category is 0.83 [0.81, 0.84]. As wait times increase, the odds of commenting on the wait increase by 1.49 [1.46, 1.53]. We show policy-relevant bubble plot visualizations of these two relationships. Conclusions: Patients were less likely to give a positive patient experience rating as wait times increased, and this was reflected in their comments. Improving on the factors contributing to ED wait times is essential to meeting health care systems’ quality initiatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the impacts of reviewing the time to replace of spare parts under the lenses of reliability- and cost-based optimization with the attempt to reduce the cost of a maintenance plan within a harshly constrained maintenance tasks' scheduling problem. A hierarchical procedure for a robust reliability prediction and scheduling of maintenance tasks is introduced to this purpose. This study takes inspiration from real applications of the preventive maintenance (PM) scheduling process on high-throughput packing and manufacturing lines counting hundreds of functional groups and thousands of components subject to failures and replacements. We investigate the role and the criticality of data entry in the not polynomial (NP)-hard cost-based and reliability-based scheduling problem proposed by Manzini et al. (R. Manzini, R. Accorsi, T. Cennerazzo, E. Ferrari and F. Maranesi, The scheduling of maintenance. A resource-constraints mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) model, Comput. Ind. Eng.87 (2015) 561–568). The proposed reliability-based analysis aids the setting of proper time to failures for spare parts and combines with an analytical single-component and cost-based model to set which maintenance tasks are the most sensitive to the overall cost reduction of a maintenance plan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In e-health systems, patients encrypt their personal health data for privacy purposes and upload them to the cloud. There exists a need for sharing patient health data with doctors for healing purposes in one's own preferred order. To achieve this fine-gained access control to delegation paths, some researchers have designed a new proxy re-encryption (PRE) scheme called autonomous path proxy re-encryption (AP-PRE), where the delegator can control the whole delegation path in a multi-hop delegation process. In this paper, we introduce a certificateless autonomous path proxy re-encryption (CLAP-PRE) using multilinear maps, which holds both the properties (i.e., certificateless, autonomous path) of certificateless encryption and autonomous path proxy re-encryption. In the proposed scheme, (a) each user has two public keys (user's identity and traditional public key) with corresponding private keys, and (b) each ciphertext is first re-encrypted from a public key encryption (PKE) scheme to an identity-based encryption (IBE) scheme and then transformed in the IBE scheme. Our scheme is an IND-CPA secure CLAP-PRE scheme under the k-multilinear decisional Diffie–Hellman (k-MDDH) assumption in the random oracle model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pavement friction plays a crucial role in ensuring the safety of road networks. Accurately assessing friction levels is vital for effective pavement maintenance and for the development of management strategies employed by state highway agencies. Traditionally, friction evaluations have been conducted on a case-by-case basis, focusing on specific road sections. However, this approach fails to provide a comprehensive assessment of friction conditions across the entire road network. This paper introduces a hybrid clustering algorithm, namely the combination of density-based spatial clustering of applications with noise (DBSCAN) and Gaussian mixture model (GMM), to perform pavement-friction performance ratings across a statewide road network. A large, safety-oriented dataset is first generated based on the attributes possibly contributing to friction-related crashes. One-, two-, and multi-dimensional clustering analyses are performed to rate pavement friction. After using the Chi-square test, six ratings were identified and validated. These ratings are categorized as (0, 20], (20, 25], (25, 35], (35, 50], (50, 70], and (70, ∞). By effectively capturing the hidden, intricate patterns within the integrated, complex dataset and prioritizing friction-related safety attributes, the hybrid clustering algorithm can produce pavement-friction ratings that align effectively with the current practices of the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) in friction management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores cosmopsychism's explanatory aspirations from a programmatic perspective. The bulk of the text consists of an argument in favor of the conclusion that cosmopsychism suffers from no insurmountable  individuation  problem (IND). I argue that the widespread tendency to view IND as a mirror-image of micropsychism's combination problem (CP) is mistaken. In particular, what renders CP insolvable, namely, the commitment to the  coupling  of phenomenal constitution with phenomenal inclusion, is, from the standpoint of cosmopsychism, an entirely nonmandatory assumption. I proceed to show that  severing  this unhappy coupling is the key for defending cosmopsychism against the charge of theoretical incoherence. Moreover, I argue that successful defense against such accusation could be mounted regardless of whether or not we assume cosmic consciousness to be perspectival in nature. In addition, the paper touches upon another foundational issue: cautioning against the popular tendency to identify cosmopsychism's  monism  with a mereological unity-in-diversity, and motivating an alternative conception which I call  generative  monism. Finally, as befitting this volume, I pause to reflect upon the question of which schools of Hindu philosophy might tally best, and connect most fruitfully, with cosmopsychism as I understand it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Geodesic trapping is an obstruction to dispersive estimates for solutions to the Schrödinger equation. Surprisingly little is known about solutions to the Schrödinger equation on manifolds with degenerate trapping, since the conditions for degenerate trapping are not stable under perturbations. In this paper we extend some of the results of Christianson and Metcalfe [Indiana Univ. Math. J. 63 (2014), pp. 969–992] on inflection-transmission type trapping on warped product manifolds to the case of multi -warped products. The main result is that the trapping on one cross section does not interact with the trapping on other cross sections provided the manifold has only one infinite end and only inflection-transmission type trapping. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chronic pain is a common feature of hypermobile Ehlers–Danlos Syndrome (hEDS), yet how patients assess and communicate their pain remains poorly understood. The objective of the present study was to explore the use of numeric pain assessment in individuals with hEDS, from a patient-centered perspective. Our analysis is based on in-depth qualitative interviews. The interviews were conducted over the phone. Our participants were patients living with hEDS (N = 35). Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed to identify factors related to their use of these pain assessment instruments. Three primary themes emerged from these data, namely, (1) confusion around the quantification of multidimensional pain, (2) the subjectivity of pain experience, and (3) a strategic use of assessments for practical purposes beyond the accurate representation of pain. These results demonstrate the need for caution in relying exclusively on numeric pain assessment instruments. We conclude with a brief proposal for a clinical communication strategy that may help to address the limitations of numeric pain assessment that were identified in our interviews. Chronic pain is a common feature of hypermobile Ehlers–Danlos Syndrome (hEDS), yet how patients assess and communicate their pain remains poorly understood. Clinicians should be aware that patients have difficulties with the Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) for at least three reasons: (1) confusion around the quantification of multidimensional pain, (2) the subjectivity of pain experience, and (3) a strategic use of assessments for practical purposes beyond the accurate representation of pain. Clinicians should use caution in relying exclusively on NRS instruments. Clinicians may benefit from using clinical communication strategies outlined in our paper, which may help to address the limitations of the NRS that were identified in our interviews. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Community health workers (CHWs) and promotores de salud are frontline health workers who typically come from the communities they serve. Despite providing crucial services, they are not institutionalized (or integrated) within much of the U.S. health care system. Many work, either officially or unofficially, as medical interpreters--restricting their full impact as CHWs/promotores. In this paper, we detail the misemployment and its effects among a subsample of CHWs/promotores in two geographically distinct, exploratory projects. We encourage that collaborative research with CHWs/promotores continue and that fidelity to the CHW model be ensured to realize their true potential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reinforcement learning (RL) has recently been adopted by infrastructure asset management (IAM) researchers for adding flexibility regarding uncertainties in preventive actions decision-making. However, this relatively recent line of research has not incorporated other sources of uncertainties, such as hazards apart from deterioration patterns, nor has such research considered managerial aspects of IAM, such as stakeholders' utilities. This paper aims to provide a holistic framework that draws upon recent developments in IAM systems and microworlds, employs RL model training, and considers deterioration, hazards, and cost fluctuations as the main sources of uncertainties while also adopting managerial aspects into decision-making. Consistent with the existing practice of IAM, this framework brings flexibility in the face of uncertainties to the IAM decision-making process. Multi-agent RL models based on deep Q networks and actor-critic models are constructed and trained for taking intervention actions regarding elements of a real bridge in Indiana through its life cycle. Both models could lead to higher expected utilities and lower costs compared to the optimal maintenance, rehabilitation, and reconstruction (MRR) plans obtained by Monte Carlo simulation and heuristic optimization algorithms. The proposed framework can assist decision-making bodies and managers in the IAM domain with making updateable optimal and more realistic decisions based on the updated state of various complex uncertainties in a negligible amount of time. Long-term strategic intervention actions are vital for maintaining the safety of degraded infrastructure assets. Traditionally, these strategic plans are derived through using optimization methods for maximizing stakeholders' utilities, improving the safety of the network, and minimizing costs and risks associated with catastrophic events. The main drawback, and perhaps the biggest reported challenge, of this approach is the lack of flexibility in the face of the updated state of uncertain phenomena, such as the condition of assets and volatile costs. Simply put, the rare outcomes of unprecedented events can render optimal strategies useless. This study promotes the application of artificial intelligence-based agents for taking updateable decisions given the newly-observed state of all uncertain factors. Based on the results of the case study, the proposed framework was found able to reduce costs by up to 7% during the management horizon. This reduction in costs can be translated into saving millions of dollars of taxpayers' money on a community scale. The theoretically well-founded and practically applicable proposed framework could measurably enhance the management of various infrastructure assets. Given that it can be tailored to other decision-making processes under uncertainty, the proposed framework can be similarly applied to other complex managerial problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The global existence and convergence rates of solutions to the three-dimensional compressible Navier-Stokes equations without heat conductivity have been obtained since Duan and Ma [Indiana Univ. Math. J., 5 (2008), pp. 2299-2319]. However, as far as we know, how to construct the global small solutions to the compressible Navier-Stokes equations without heat conductivity in R² is still an open problem. In the present paper, we give a positive answer in Rn (n=2,3) with the initial data restricted in the Besov spaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A unified geometric approach for the stability analysis of traveling pulse solutions for reaction diffusion equations with skew-gradient structure has been established in a previous paper (see Paul Cornwell [Indiana Univ. Math. J. 68 (2019), pp. 1801-1832]), but essentially no results have been found in the case of traveling front solutions. In this work, we will bridge this gap. For such cases, a Maslov index of the traveling wave is well-defined, and we will show how it can be used to provide the spectral information of the waves. As an application, we use the same index providing the exact number of unstable eigenvalues of the traveling front solutions of FitzHugh-Nagumo equations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vehicular Ad Hoc Network (VANET) is an important part of the modern intelligent transportation system, which can provide vehicle communication at a certain distance. More importantly, VANET can provide route planning and autonomous driving for drivers by analyzing data. However, VANET's data privacy and security are a huge challenge when serving drivers. In this paper, we propose a VANET data-sharing model (DSVN) that combines ciphertext-based attribute encryption (CP-ABE), blockchain, and InterPlanetary File System (IPFS). DSVN uses an outsourced and revocable ciphertext policy attribute-based encryption (ORCP-ABE) scheme, which is improved based on CP-ABE. ORCP-ABE uses key encryption key (KEK) trees to manage user attribute groups and revoke user-level attributes. It eliminates redundant attributes in the access policy by attribute-weighted access trees. Moreover, DSVN has no single point of failure. We demonstrate the indistinguishability under the chosen-plaintext attack (IND-CPA) security of DSVN by a game based on the computational Diffie–Hellman (CDH) assumption. Experimental results show that DSVN can store and share data with low overhead. Additionally, it can revoke attributes of users safely. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we will establish the existence and the Hölder regularity of the local time of the Brownian bridge. Our results are obtained by using a result on Malliavin calculus in [K. Es-Sebaiy, D. Nualart, Y. Ouknine and C. A. Tudor, Occupation densities for certain processes related to fractional Brownian motion, Stochastics 82 2010, 1–3, 133–147] for a Gaussian process with an absolutely continuous random drift, jointly with the classical approach based on the concept of local nondeterminism for Gaussian processes introduced by Berman [S. M. Berman, Local nondeterminism and local times of Gaussian processes, Indiana Univ. Math. J. 23 1973/74, 69–94]. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, three typical limestones, including Tavel limestone, Indiana limestone, and Lixhe chalk, were selected from a large number of porous limestones. These limestones with different porosities have been largely studied in previous experimental investigations because of the complexity of mechanical behavior. According to previous experimental studies, porous limestones present two basic plastic mechanisms: plastic shear as a response at low confining pressures and plastic pore collapse at high confining pressures. In related to the plastic mechanisms, two types of plastic volumetric deformation are revealed: plastic compaction induced by pore collapse, and plastic dilatancy by plastic shearing. In this paper, a micromechanics-based plastic model is extended to describe the elastoplastic behavior of porous limestones. The plastic criterion of porous rock is explicitly dependent on the porosity in addition to being directly based on the relevant mechanical properties of solid matrix at the microscopic scale. An additional plastic hardening law for the solid matrix is proposed, in which two plastic deformation mechanisms are considered in hardening law of the solid matrix, including hardening effect caused by the local equivalent plastic deformation and weakening effect caused by the increase in porosity. Three typical porous limestones with different porosity are selected to validate the proposed model on both hydrostatic and triaxial compression tests. By comparing numerical predictions and experimental data, it is shown that the presented model can correctly describe the mechanical behavior of porous rocks. Highlights: Limestones with different porosities have been largely studied in previous experimental investigations because of the complexity of mechanical behavior. In related to the plastic mechanisms, two types of plastic volumetric deformation are revealed: plastic compaction induced by pore collapse, and plastic dilatancy by plastic shearing. A micromechanics-based plastic model is extended to describe the elastoplastic behavior of porous limestones. The plastic criterion of porous rock is explicitly dependent on the porosity in addition to being directly based on the relevant mechanical properties of solid matrix at the microscopic scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Printed legal materials have been utilized by practitioners since the dawn of the Anglo-European legal system in what is now the United States. When Indiana was opened for settlement, attorneys and judges brought their private libraries to the state. These initial collections were much smaller than the robust and extensive law libraries that existed in thestate prior to the advent of digital legal resources, This paper tracks the development of law libraries in Indiana from the territorial period through the present day, along with the social and economic trends that impacted library development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rainwater may penetrate through the cladding, enter the wall assembly, and cause damage to the façade components and interior finishes, which are moisture sensitive, most of the time. In the current paper, the performance assessment of a skylight with a full-scale mock-up has been evaluated. The mock-up was erected for an actual project to verify the acceptance criteria for the skylight's technical, functional, and architectural details. The test was conducted at the Aluminum Technology Auxiliary Ind. (ALUTEC) facility in the Industrial Zone, Doha, Qatar. The fabricated full-scale mock-up has a rectangular plane configuration of 6.625 m (length) by 3.315 m (width) that belongs to a skylight measuring 36 m by 18 m. The ASTM E283, ASTM E331, and ASTM E330 standards were followed during the experiment. Air infiltration/exfiltration, static water penetration, structural performance, post-structural static water penetration, and structural proof loading tests were performed in an airtight chamber. After recording the residual displacements, the test findings for all the make-up components, namely steel tubes, glass, and aluminum sandwich panels, were determined and found within acceptable limits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The United States has over three trillion vehicle miles of travel annually on over four million miles of public roadways, which require regular maintenance. To maintain and improve these facilities, agencies often temporarily close lanes, reconfigure lane geometry, or completely close the road depending on the scope of the construction project. Lane widths of less than 11 feet in construction zones can impact highway capacity and crash rates. Crash data can be used to identify locations where the road geometry could be improved. However, this is a manual process that does not scale well. This paper describes findings for using data from onboard sensors in production vehicles for measuring lane widths. Over 200 miles of roadway on US-52, US-41, and I-65 in Indiana were measured using vehicle sensor data and compared with mobile LiDAR point clouds as ground truth and had a root mean square error of approximately 0.24 feet. The novelty of these results is that vehicle sensors can identify when work zones use lane widths substantially narrower than the 11 foot standard at a network level and can be used to aid in the inspection and verification of construction specification conformity. This information would contribute to the construction inspection performed by agencies in a safer, more efficient way. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A set S ⊆ V (G) is independent if no two vertices from S are adjacent, and by Ind (G) we mean the set of all independent sets of G. A set A ∈ Ind (G) is critical (and we write A ∈ C r i t I n d e p (G) ) if A - N (A) = max { I - N (I) : I ∈ Ind (G) } [37], where N(I) denotes the neighborhood of I. If S ∈ Ind (G) and there is a matching from N(S) into S, then S is a crown [1], and we write S ∈ C r o w n (G) . Let Ψ (G) be the family of all local maximum independent sets of graph G, i.e., S ∈ Ψ (G) if S is a maximum independent set in the subgraph induced by S ∪ N (S) [22]. In this paper, we present some classes of graphs where the families CritIndep(G), Crown(G), and Ψ (G) coincide and form greedoids or even more general set systems that we call augmentoids. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]