University of Wisconsin–Platteville

This study demonstrates the use of wastewater monitoring for opioids and other high-risk substances on a university campus, intended to inform public health surveillance and response efforts for youth and transitional age youth. Over a 14-week campaign, we collected 54 grab samples from three campus manholes, including one that isolated flows from a student housing complex, and analyzed them for 24 parent compounds and metabolites using LC-MS/MS. Heroin and its metabolite 6-acetylmorphine were among several opioid-related detections, illustrating how campus wastewater monitoring can capture actionable use events for targeted public health interventions. Fentanyl, norfentanyl, and xylazine were consistently below their method reporting limits across all 54 samples, consistent with recent declines in national overdose and wastewater datasets. The highest detection frequencies were associated with methamphetamine (22-50%), amphetamine (39-83%), and a THC metabolite (50-100%). This study also highlights the implications of sample type (grab vs. composite) and day of week for wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE). Considering that the use of opioid-related WBE as an actionable public health surveillance tool is still relatively new, additional case studies are needed to explore the potential of this emerging tool and increase confidence in deploying public health interventions in response to wastewater data.

Abstract Graphene, the recently discovered allotrope of carbon, comprising one layer of carbon atoms, has distinctive properties mainly attributed to its 2D hexagonal structure. It is 200 times rigid than steel and lighter than paper. Graphen based materials have potential for application in the field of protective coating. Protecting metal’s surface against corrosion and leaks can be done by many techniques but coating is the method of choice due to its simplicity and low cost. Corrosion protection of metals is of immense importance due to their widespread use. Graphene has shown tremendous corrosion resistance as a coating material; however, its high strengthening effect is suppressed in coating applications. In this study, homegrown graphene was produced by cryogenic milling of soft graphite and applied in different weight percentages of coatings on copper plates and after 30 days salt bath testing corrosion properties were determined. It was found that the coating’s resistance to corrosion under salt soaking conditions is greatly increased when a modest amount of graphene (or fine graphite particles) by weight is added.

Mathematics instructors incorporate various word problems to illustrate the wide-ranging practical applications of mathematical concepts. Premadasa and Bhatia (2013) categorized math word problems into three main categories: I (curiosity-driven), R (relatable), and U (unrelatable). The study reveals a clear preference among students for problems in categories I and R over those in category U. Building on this categorization, we conducted a survey in which students were asked to recall the word problems they encountered throughout the semester. Our findings confirm that students notably recall and engage more with category I problems compared to those categorized as U.

A microgrid is a localized distribution network that consists of electricity users who have access to local renewable and other energy sources. Typically, it is connected to a utility distribution grid but can also function independently. The utility grid plays a crucial role in the nation's economy and security, as well as the well-being of its residents. However, connecting different microgrids to a wider network through a utility's substation can expose them to significant cyber threats. This study examines cybersecurity vulnerabilities in microgrid systems using a testbed approach. By simulating various cyberattack scenarios on a microgrid testbed, we assess the impact of different attack types on microgrid operations, with a particular focus on system stability and communication networks. Attacks such as denial of service, communication hijacking, and others are explored. Our findings highlight significant weaknesses in the communication infrastructure and provide insights into designing microgrids that can effectively address cybersecurity challenges in real-world industrial utility networks.

Interest in bringing Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) and Western Science together to enhance climate and landscape resilience is growing rapidly, particularly for engagement with pyrogenic communities around the world. For these systems, Indigenous Knowledge offers unique insights that reflect millennia of intimate engagement with local landscapes, while Western Science can offer additional understanding of the emergence of climates and ecological conditions that are novel at evolutionary timescales. Here, we weave Indigenous Knowledge together with a multicentury history of fire, landuse, and forest development derived from tree rings to retell a more complete history of human engagement with the places commonly referred to as Wisconsin and Minnesota Points at the head of Lake Superior in the Laurentian Great Lakes. Our aim in this work is to create mutual reciprocal benefits for those involved in this work to disrupt a long history of extractive research and to honor the knowledge shared with us by reducing barriers to the revitalization of traditional cultural and landuse practices. This intensely local study, contextualized by substantial bodies of Indigenous Knowledge and Western Science, illustrates the importance of place-based and community-based research for understanding the role of Indigenous fire stewardship in shaping pine barrens sites and demonstrates how these fine-scale relationships are linked to regional landscape diversity yet may be invisible to other proxy-based studies. These results help (re)center Indigenous Knowledge and traditional fire-use practices in the process of ecocultural fire restoration for the creation of diverse, resilient, and just socioecological systems that continue to transition toward a warmer future.

Requirements for brighter and more compact light sources in the EUV and X-ray regimes as well as EUV and FUV astronomical mirrors include maintaining unprecedented cleanliness and practical and economical contamination control methodologies. We have developed a family of Apply-Dry-Peel, residue-free polymer coatings that safely protect and clean surfaces that begin to fill these technology gaps. Contaminant removal was monitored by various techniques, including Nomarski Microscopy, BRDF 3D Light Scattering, Atomic Force and Scanning Electron Microscopy, and XPS and Auger spectroscopy. High power laser damage (LIDT) testing results13 also demonstrate YAG laser damage thresholds on new YAG laser optics of 3 J/cm2 before AND after cleaning, clearly demonstrating no residue. FUV coating work for NASA on mirrors for the Habitable Worlds Observatory will also be presented.