Category: 2013

ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) Population in Lane County- A Project with United Way of Lane County

Presenters : Man Nguyen, Eric Wittkop, Emily White

Mentor : William Harbaugh

Major : Economics

Poster 5

Many US households earn an income greater than that specified by the Federal Poverty Level (FPL), a measure of poverty that does not vary across the 48 contiguous states, however, many households in the U.S who stand above the FPL still struggle to meet their basic needs and be financially self-sufficient. Although the FPL does not take into account the actual quantity of money required to meet the basic cost of living expenses across the United States, many financial assistance programs are designed solely to assist people below this line, especially federally administered programs. As there exists a percentage of population who stands above the 100% FPL but still not able to be self-sufficient, it is the ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) population. We are working on the research with United Way of Lane County who seeks a way to calculate the percentage population of ALICE and its distribution in Lane County. It is important to know the ALICE population as ALICEs has been suffering without sufficient income that will lead to a short and long-term suffering to the whole community. Our methodology is focused on meeting two separate objectives. The first objective is to calculate the number and percentage of ALICE population in Lane County. The second objective is to create a predictive model that will give United Way a tool to estimate future fluctuations in the size (but not the distribution) of the Lane County ALICE population so that they can better direct their programming to serve this group.

Deciduous Teeth Show Close Relationships Between Oreodont Genera (Eucrotaphus, Merycochoerus and Promerycochoerus)

Presenter : Kendra Walters

Mentor : Edward Davis

Major : Biology

Poster 27

Oreodonts lived during the Cenozoic Era, particularly from the Eocene to Miocene Epochs. They were abundant in the past but have no modern descendants. Classifying oreodonts is a difficult task because there is disagreement on the species, genus and subfamily classifications of many individual oreodont groups. The three genera of oreodonts we examined (Promerycochoerus, Merycochoerus, and Eucrotaphus) have experienced this problem and are divided between two to three different subfamilies. Our examination of the deciduous teeth of four individuals from these three genera found great morphological similarity, indicating a closer relationship than is currently recognized. We examined two individuals of Eucrotaphus trigonocephalus, one individual of Merycochoerus sp., and one of Promerycochoerus carrikeri from the collection at the University of California Museum of Paleontology. The deciduous premolars from all three genera are tellingly similar, varying only in size, and match previous descriptions of Promerycochoerus carrikeri. Simi- larities are especially evident in the last two deciduous premolars. These similar characters contradict the current subfamily divisions, indicating a close relationship between all three genera. We propose a re-division of oreodont subfamilies that reflects this close deciduous morphology. We also recognize synonymy of Promerycochoerus and Merycochoerus, as our examination primarily found size differences between them that we do not accept as genus-level distinctions.

Do Distinct Types of Progenitors Contribute to Enteric Nervous System Development?

Presenter : Charlotte Taylor

Major : Biology

Mentor : Judith Elsen

Poster 10

The enteric nervous system (ENS), the largest component of the peripheral nervous system, provides intrinsic innervation of the intestinal tract and modulates gut function. The ENS forms a complex network of different neuronal subtypes and glial cells. ENS progenitors originate in the hindbrain, migrate to the gut, migrate caudally along the gut in two parallel streams, and eventually encircle the gut. ENS progenitors express different marker genes, e.g. phox2b, sox10, and ret. Our goal is to take advantage of the zebrafish model to learn whether expression of these marker genes designates distinct ENS progenitor populations. We used a phox2b:GFP transgenic line that expresses in ENS progenitors and double fluorescent in situ hybridization to quantify progenitor marker gene expression and colocalization in GFP+ cells. Our analysis suggests that subpopulations of enteric progenitors are present during zebrafish ENS development. These subpopulations are characterized by the following marker combinations: phox2b/sox10/ret, phox2b/ret, and phox2b. Our data also suggest that phox2b and sox10 expression is consistent along the length of the gut and ret expression is higher caudally. Our next step is to conduct lineage tracing studies to learn if distinct ENS progenitor subpopulations give rise to different ENS cell types, by tracing the offspring of genetically labeled subpopulations of progenitors. Traditionally, the Supreme Court has deferred to the President in times of war; however, following 9/11 the Court took an active role in placing limits on the President’s unilateral pow- ers. The Court’s decisions in these cases were effective in restraining Executive power, but they only somewhat protected and restored the detainees’ civil liberties. The protection of certain individual rights has been followed by the curtailment of others. Currently, the Obama Administration is facing criticism for the indefinite detention of detainees, and this study provides a framework which outlines how civil liberties can again begin to be restored.

Bullying, Victim, and Aggressor: Past Experience versus Current Behavior

Presenter : Fushu Tan

Mentor : Holly Arrow

Major : Psychology

Poster 38

Bullying is the most common type of violence in American schools, and the consequences can persist into adulthood, affecting school achievement, prosocial skills, and psychological well-being for both victims and bullies. The current study examined whether past experience with bullying affects how likely college students are to intervene when someone they know is bullied. 120 college students (50 males, 70 females) completed a questionnaire that assessed their past experience with physical and relational aggression. They then read a scenario that asked them to imagine a real-life situation of bullying. Next, they decided whether they would intervene by contacting the aggressor, the victim, or both. Over 95% of participants reported some past experience as both aggressor and victim. Unexpectedly, males reported significantly more past experience as relational aggressors than females. Over half the participants said they would intervene by contacting both victim and bully. However, past victimization experience did not increase the likelihood of intervening. In fact, past experience scores tended to be somewhat lower for those who intervened. The only significant past experience predictor was that those who chose not to intervene at all tended to have more experience as a bully. The findings provide additional evidence that exposure to bullying often includes experience as both aggressor and victim, and that can complicate an un- derstanding of how this experience affects future decisions to intervene.

An Electronic Art Installation

Presenter : Athan Spathas

Major : Sociology

Poster 44

This is an electronic art installation: using the Arduino (an open-source microprocessor), an accelerometer (which measures tilt and acceleration), an electronic drum-pad (midi-controller), and the computer program ‘Max’ to design a multi-person instrument. The accerometer is on a cord which can be swung like a pendulum (hence that part is an electronic pendulum), and its lengths can be adjusted to demonstrate how it swings faster or slower (educational for explaining the functions of a pendulum). As it swings, the accelerometer measures the velocity at which it’s moving, and controls the amplitude of the tones which are controlled by the drum-pad. To summarize, I made an instrument that you can swing in a variety of ways to manipulate sound, and can be used in conjunction with other instruments to create an interdependent sound (this primarily came from 2 classes I took this year which are brand new, with Chet Udell in the Music (Technology) Department, Sensormusik & Computer Net- work Music).

Senior Honors Thesis on Attitudes Toward Gay Marriage

Presenter : Daniel Schwartz

Mentor : Patricia Gwartney

Major : Sociology

Poster 41

A majority of Americans have been opposed to same-sex marriage since public opinion polls first began asking about it in 1988. However, beginning in 2010, attitudes in support of same-sex marriage began to outweigh opposition. This senior honors thesis helps explain why and how Americans’ attitudes have shifted toward greater support for same-sex marriage. I also thoroughly examine the homophile movement, and propose that without it being so robust, Americans’ attitudes would remain largely opposed today. I relied on existing data from the General Social Survey. My hypothesis was that age cohort would be the strongest determinant of one’s attitude toward same-sex marriage, and my findings supported my hypothesis. While previous literature has examined the strong impacts the homophile movement has had on the public, it has not empirically examined the correlates of the shift in attitudes. Additionally, my research contributes to the dialogue on same-sex marriage as a currently contentious civil rights issue. Homosexuals are the only minority groups that do not enjoy the same marital rights as non-homosexual minority groups. But considering the recent legislative attention same-sex marriage has received, it is likely that homosexuals will soon be granted the right to wed.

Electron Diffraction in a Scanning Electron Microscope

Presenter : Alexander Schachtner

Mentor : Benjamin McMorran

Major : Physics

Poster 4

We use focused ion beam nanofabrication to manufacture forked diffraction gratings capable of producing electron beams with helical wavefronts and orbital angular momentum (OAM). A vast number of unique beam modes carrying OAM can be produced through manipulation of grating fork number or position. Generally these gratings are milled such that they produce a phase shift in the beam and are used with high energy electrons (300keV) in a TEM to investigate the quantum or magnetic properties of the electron or image magnetic materials. Our latest work focuses on manufacturing gratings that produce only an amplitude shift, which opens up imaging capability to lower energy electrons (5-30 keV) and thus expands their use to a wider range of commercially available SEMs. We use these amplitude gratings to show the relationship between the number/position of forks and OAM inherited by the beam. This work could lead to advances in imaging capability, and also creates a widely accessible and scalable demonstration of the quantum properties of the electron which can be leveraged by any science program with SEM access.

The Role of the BAF Chromatin Remodeling Complex during Heart Valve Development

Presenter : Maithri Sarangam

Mentor : Kryn Stankunas

Major : Biology

Poster 56

Human heart valves are remarkable structures that open and close billions of time during a lifetime. Like any structure under constant mechanical strain, their shape and molecular composition are finely tuned to maximize efficiency and longevity. The development of these valves must also be finely tuned to produce proper the shape and composition, or dangerous health consequences may arise. We are studying the developmental processes of valve formation. Particularly, we are interested in the role of the BAF chromatin remodel- ing complex. Chromatin refers to the complex of DNA and histone proteins. Cell nuclei contain a series of cylindrical histone com- plexes, around which DNA is wrapped. The structure resembles a single thread wrapped around a series of spools with approximately
2 loops per spool. The BAF complex regulates gene expression by altering nucleosome positioning. We believe the BAF complex is required for the proper development of the aortic and pulmonic valves. We used mouse models and complex mouse genetic techniques to study the role of the BAF complex on mammalian heart valve development. Using a crelox system, we caused a loss of function of the BAF complex by knocking out Brg1, the key ATP-ase required for the complex to function. We then used various staining methods to study the resulting phenotype at different time points during the later stages of development. The results suggest that the BAF complex is required for proper organization of the valve shape and molecular composition.

Altered Lung Development in Growth Restricted Offspring from Hypertensive Pregnant Rats

Presenter : Alice Rear

Mentor : Jeffrey Gilbert

Major : Biology and Human Physiology

Poster 37

Recent studies suggest that angiogenic dysregulation in utero impairs fetal pulmonary vascular development and arrests normal alveolarization, potentially contributing to the pathogenesis of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD). Since reduced utero-placental perfusion (RUPP) induced hypertension is associated with angiogenic imbalance (soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase-1, sFlt-1; and vascular endothelial growth factor, VEGF) in the maternal circulation and amniotic fluid, we hypothesized it would result in abnormal alveolarization, diminished pulmonary vascular development, and impaired VEGF signaling in the fetal rat lung. Fetal lung tissue and amniotic fluid were collected on day 19 of gestation from RUPP and normal pregnancies (NP). A second cohort delivered pups that were weighed at birth and lungs were collected at 10 weeks of age. Fetuses from RUPP pregnancies were smaller at day 19 (2.1 vs. 2.6 g; P<0.05) of gestation and at birth (6.1 vs. 6.7 g; P<0.05) than NP offspring. Preliminary data suggests that RUPP offspring may have reduced (20% decrease) pulmonary vascularity and alveolar simplification (45% decrease in alveolar space) when compared to normal pregnant controls. VEGF receptor-2 was decreased (48%; P< 0.05) in the lungs of day 19 RUPP offspring. These data suggest that chronic placental insufficiency has detrimental effects on the developing pulmonary vasculature and alveoli, and support the hypoth- esis that angiogenic imbalance in utero may play an important role in the pathogenesis of BPD

Stopping Heat: A Study of Repurposed Cork Insulation

Presenter : Sebastian Oviedo, Maria Burbano

Mentor : Alison Kwok

Major : Architecture

Poster 40

Over the last few decades, the construction industry has been increasingly concerned with its impacts on the environment. This relates both to the production and the operation performance of materials and assemblies. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the thermal performance of post-consumer cork stoppers re-used as insulation for OSB panels. With the use of an insulated HotBox and HOBO U12 data loggers, a sample of a cork stopper-insulated panel was tested for heat flow and thermal resistance, and compared to a panel insulated with commercial extruded polystyrene foam. The results showed that the repurposed cork insulation had a performance 17.3% higher than that of the commercial alternative. Repurposing post-consumer waste could diminish the amount of cork going to landfills, which is approximately 13 billion each year (13). Cork is a naturally produced, highly insulative material, which makes it a potential material for high-performance building construction.