Category: Oral Presentation

Electrical brain waves modulate with movement speed and uncertainty

Presenter(s): Ryan Leriche—Biology

Faculty Mentor(s): Ryan Leriche

Session 6: Interact & React

We investigated how brain electrical activity changes with movement speed and movement uncertainty . Understanding the electrophysiological profile of movement speed could have applications for Parkinson’s Disease while movement uncertainty may be an ignored confound across many experiments .

We used a computerized task to manipulate participants to move more slowly or more quickly . In addition to these “slow” and “fast” blocks, our task manipulated the certainty of an upcoming movement . When participants knew when they were going to move this was known as a “certain” block . Conversely, during “uncertain” blocks, participants were not sure when they were going to move . Movement speed (slow or fast) and movement uncertainty (certain or uncertain) blocks were paired together creating four possible blocks: fast-certain, fast-uncertain, slow-certain, and slow- uncertain . Scalp-electro-encephalography (EEG) was recorded from 12 participants during this task to examine their brain activity . We looked at the electrical activity in the beta (13-30 Hz) frequency range over the sensorimotor cortex . Our findings suggest that beta-band activity is elevated in during slower movements . The slow-uncertain block had increased beta power compared to the fast- uncertain block during movement preparation . Our other results are less conclusive .

Determining the role of the pulvinar in visual attentional control

Presenter(s): Emmalyn Leonard—Biochemistry

Faculty Mentor(s): Cristopher Niell, Philip Parker

Session 5: The Wonders of the Brain

Visual attentional control is a behavior that is critical for survival; despite its importance, the specific neural mechanisms underlying the process remain unclear . Upon perception, visual information is routed from the retina through the thalamus, which relays signals to the cortex for further processing . The pulvinar, a nucleus of the thalamus, has strong connections to both visual cortex (V1) and areas involved with attentional control, such as the superior colliculus and prefrontal cortex . The pulvinar has been implicated in attentional control from studies of human patients, as pulvinar lesions are correlated with an inability to ignore distracting visual information during performance of a behavioral task . Studies have also shown that mice are capable of learning similar tasks; given that their visual system is highly analogous to that of humans, mice serve as an optimal model for important behaviors such as visual attentional control . We targeted mouse pulvinar neurons with a GCaMP-expressing virus to allow measurement of brain activity through a cranial window . Utilizing both widefield and two-photon microscopic imaging, we found that axons projecting from the pulvinar to V1 are visually responsive and appear to be organized in a retinotopic manner . Future work on this project will include introduction of a visually guided behavioral task alongside silencing of pulvinar neurons using a DREADDs-expressing virus . We expect to find that, when mouse pulvinar neurons are silenced, important signals for visual attention sent from the thalamus to V1 will be interrupted, resulting in poor performance of a task requiring visual attentional control .

Learning during a Pandemic: The First-Year University Student Experience

Presenter(s): David Lee, Emily Shinn, Chloe Stevenson

Faculty Mentor(s): Anne Laskaya

Session 1: Learning during a Pandemic: The First-Year University Student Experience

This research investigates the learning experiences of first-year University of Oregon students who are participating in the sudden shift to remote-based education during the global Covid-19 pandemic . We document and assess the challenges, difficulties, and benefits first-year students encounter as they suddenly move from the Fall and Winter Terms of shared, live campus classroom-based learning to the physically-isolated conditions of Spring Term’s online learning .
Using a carefully-designed survey and individual learning-narratives, we assess first-year students’ perceptions of their own learning effectiveness, productivity, content retention, and analytical depth in this historical moment . We also investigate students’ perceptions of their own well-being and their satisfaction with higher education during the sudden shift to remote learning required by the pandemic . A survey coupled with short student narratives constitute our methods of inquiry . The survey asks students to rank their experiences, allowing gradations of response rather than simple yes/no answers . Two open-ended questions will solicit narrative (or short answer) responses . The questionnaire, using Google Surveys, will be distributed shortly to all first-year students whose email addresses are in the UO Directory .

Our presentation will inform the UO community, and potentially other interested academic communities, about the various impacts of Covid-19 on first-year students and provide documentation of that impact . This will also help the university community plan on how best to support their first-year students (as well as more advanced students) during a time of crisis and experimental remote-based learning.

Robo4 Project

Presenter(s): Byron Lee—Human Physiology

Faculty Mentor(s): Ashley Walker

Session 6: Interact & React

Aging is associated with the impairment of the neurovascular unit, and this potentially leads to increased Alzheimer’s disease pathology and cognitive impairment . A specific axon guidance receptor, Robo4, is important in maintaining the structure and restrictive barrier of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) . We predicted that the knockout of Robo4, and the subsequent increase in BBB permeability, will result in cognitive dysfunction . Therefore, Robo4 signaling pathways may potentially be a valuable target for therapeutic treatments of AD . In the present study, we studied Robo4 knockout (Robo4 -/-) and wild type (Robo4 +/+) mice crossed with mice containing mutations in amyloid precursor protein (APP), leading to greater aberrant amyloid-beta production . To examine the effect of aging, we studied young and old wildtype C57BL6 mice . We assessed cognitive function by conducting Nest Building tests and Morris Water Maze . We found that old C57BL6 mice had impaired cognitive function compared to young C57BL6 mice . However, when Robo4 x APP groups were compared, we found no differences in cognitive function . These preliminary results suggest that aging has a stronger effect on cognitive function than Robo4 knockout . Additional studies are needed to determine the effect of Robo4 knockout on blood-brain barrier permeability and amyloid-beta accumulation .

Genomic ancestry is explained by both geography and ecology in Mimulus aurantiacus

Presenter(s): Connor Lane—Biology

Faculty Mentor(s): Matt Streisfeld

Session 4: Preserving Mother Earth

One of the main goals of evolutionary biology and ecology is to understand the mechanisms by which the vast diversity in life on Earth is created . Integral to this process is speciation, where one species diverges into two . Recent work has shown that speciation can occur even if populations are not completely isolated with each other, which is known as speciation with gene flow . To understand this phenomenon, we perform a survey characterizing genetic admixture and genomic ancestry in Mimulus aurantiacus ssp . puniceus . From here, we test whether or not certain genome features thought to be indicative of local adaptation covary with geographic space and environmental differences . We hypothesize that due to local adaptation being well-characterized within ssp . puniceus, we will observe substantial genetic subdivision in our survey and find that important genome statistics covary with environment due to adaptation leading to genetic isolation . From our survey, we found both an extraordinary amount of genetic subdivision in ssp . puniceus, indicating that what we consider to be one subspecies has many distinct groups . In addition to this, we find that the most differentiated groups within puniceus have indistinguishable floral trait distributions, hinting at a deeper history of isolation rather than these groups being separated due to natural selection . Population genomic data reveals that variation in genome features signaling divergence is explained by variation in both geography and environment, implying that both neutral processes based on geographic isolation and positive selection due to local ecology are important for shaping the genome .

Enhancing Education through Improved Communication: Case Study of Senegal

Presenter(s): Dylan Land—International Studies, Political Science

Faculty Mentor(s): Dennis Galvan

Session 1: Global Views—We vs. Them

Education is understood as a cornerstone of any development endeavor . Improved education has empirically proven to ameliorate health outcomes, bolster social and economic mobility, amplify civic participation and lay the foundation for other positive societal developments . The education system in Senegal has continued to improve through various initiatives, sponsored by the national government and the donor community . Despite the success of various reform programs, there is still much to be done in order for Senegal to meet desired benchmarks established by national, regional and global education expectations . At the core of Senegal’s educational shortcomings lies ineffective communication . There is a lack of consistent empirical data about the achievements of education initiatives . There are holes in reporting and monitoring mechanisms, and the complexity of results-based frameworks often produces inefficiency within the system, all of which, I contend, could be solved through improved communication . Grounded in expansive literature review and analysis of primary source documents, this paper will explore possible avenues for enhancing education in Senegal . Through the formation of robust communication channels, coherent systems of accountability, and transparent mechanisms for administrating, reporting and monitoring, educational deficiencies could be remedied . However, considering the significant absence of reliable and consistent data, further research is required to determine the exact measures that must be taken by relevant stakeholders . Understanding the possibilities of improving the Senegalese education system may teach us important lessons about how to further enhance education internationally and prepare students in all nations for meaningful participation in the modern world .

Impacts of Environment on Degree of Despotism in Semi-Free Ranging Japanese Macaques (Macaca Fuscata)

Presenter(s): Lisa Kwan—Anthropology, French

Co-Presenter(s): Noa Cohen

Faculty Mentor(s): Kylen Gartland, Frances White

Session 6: Interact & React

Primate societies have evolved social hierarchies when higher ranking individuals can gain access to differential benefits such as food resources and mating opportunities . In order to maintain high rank, individuals must uphold the social hierarchy and defend their position against lower- ranking primates . Different primate groups have varying degrees of hierarchical flexibility in which a population is despotic or tolerant depending on which confers individual benefit . This is often dependent on the particular environment . Tolerant hierarchies are typically seen in environments where group cohesion and cooperation are important for individual success, and are characterized by low rates of severe wounding, sharing of limited food resources, and frequent reconciliation following aggressive interactions . In contrast, despotic hierarchies are found where individuals can gain benefits by competing amongst each other for access to resources . They are distinguished by frequent aggression and wounding between individuals, restricted access to resources, and infrequent reconciliation . Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata) are primarily characterized as having despotic hierarchies . Our research examines potential differences in hierarchies of Japanese macaques in wild and captive settings due to differences in abundance and distribution of resources between the two environments . Through an examination of published studies, we will compare and contrast the environmental factors associated with despotic versus tolerant hierarchies in Japanese macaques . We will collect data on the Japanese macaque group at the Oregon National Primate Research Center (ONPRC) . This research may provide insight into how different captive and wild environments affect primate behavior .

Los Angeles County Response to COVID-19

Presenter(s): Myriah Kunipo-Aguirre—Human Physiology

Co-Presenter(s): Hannah Heskin, Amelia Hardeman, Angelique Wallman

Faculty Mentor(s): Kristin Yarris

Session 2: US Outbreak Breakout—COVID-19 Research

I am currently in Dr . Yarris’s global health field experience class this Spring and our focus is the current global pandemic and public health crisis . For my project, I focus on California’s response to COVID-19, with a focus on Los Angeles County . I have chosen Los Angeles because my hometown is in the county and where I am currently at during this time . Also, the population of about 10 million makes it the third-largest metropolitan economy in the US In a flash our world went digital, online, remote, and technology is at the forefront of our lives more than ever . I decided to incorporate technology and turned to the classic social media platform . I have started a twitter page where I am curating together information/ resources regarding COVID-19 in Los Angeles County, using data from the county department of public health and the mayor’s office, as well as other official government sites . The twitter page allows me to quickly link articles or videos and short blurbs on information and I add my own analysis of current news using curated threads and tweets . The main topics I focus my project on are overall state, county, and city response (policies, mandates), community resources (food banks, financial assistance), and impact on industry and economy (sports, tourism) . While COVID related news can seem overwhelming, my project aims to create an accessible, organized reference for others in my community or people in my personal network to follow .

Restoring Connections: An Online Environmental Education Curriculum

Presenter(s): Katy Kuechle—Environmental Studies

Co-Presenter(s): Zoe O’Toole, Garrett Reagan, Ellie Townsley,

Faculty Mentor(s): Kathryn Lynch, Sasha White

Session 4: Environmental Leaders Program

The Environmental Leadership Program (ELP) is a collaborative, interdisciplinary service-learning program rooted in the University of Oregon Environmental Studies Program . ELP works with Mount Pisgah Arboretum and a cohort of kindergarten through fifth-grade students from Adams Elementary School . Our team mission was to develop an environmental education program for fifth-grade students that cultivated an understanding of the connections between people and their environment, specifically the Kalapuya’s relationship with oak savanna habitats and fire regimes, delivered through online lessons . The Confederated Tribes of the Grande Ronde provided feedback to our curriculum to accurately portray the history of the Kalapuya . Our curriculum was adapted into an online format to provide students with real-time lessons that deepened a sense of appreciation of the natural world within the local Willamette Valley through interactive activity sheets, journaling, and storytelling . Given the current pandemic and the lack of traditional classroom education, environmental education is more important than ever . Our curriculum helped create a sense of structure by establishing core routines and encouraging them to continue to interact with their environments in a safe and personally relevant way .

Phase One Of A Free Curriculum For Treating Anxiety And Increasing Productivity With Evidence Based Methods

Presenter(s): Nolan Kriska—Business and Psychology

Faculty Mentor(s): Dare Baldwin

Session 3: To Care and How Not to Care, that is the Question…

If people avoid their anxiety now, they put themselves at serious risk for mental and financial damage . A 2013 meta analysis deduced the effects of anxiety on cognitive function from over 200 studies that involved thousands of participants . They found anxiety decreased productivity and quality of life, “The impacts of anxiety on cognition [are as follows] . Both threat of shock—a translational anxiety induction—and pathological anxiety disorders promote the detection of potentially harmful stimuli at multiple levels of cognition from perception to attention to memory and executive function” (Robinson 7) . One proven method that helps people control their anxiety is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), a psychotherapy that creates new paths of thought in order to challenge unwanted behaviors and mood disorders . Using CBT now rather than later gives people a chance to continue to contribute to society and maintain a quality of life . I plan to teach CBT and its affiliated counterparts (habituation, inhibitory learning model, yuck diagram, dialectics and some existential thought) via youtube, published research, and the use of a live secure network . Thank you for your time and consideration .

Works Cited: www .ncbi .nlm .nih .gov/pmc/articles/PMC3656338/