Tag: Poster 34

Variation of Dental Calculus in Captive Macaques

Presenters: Colin Oliveira, Daniel Vermillion and Lauren Moore

Mentor: Frances White

PM Poster Presentation

Poster 34

Dental calculus in nonhuman primates varies with diet, ecology, and immune health. As in humans, monkeys with excessive dietary carbohydrates can accumulate calculus buildup over time, although there is little information on variation of this dental pathology within nonhuman primates. Focusing on the variance between sexes and species, we scored the presence and severity of dental calculus in 91 skeletal specimens of captive adult Macaca mulatta (N=33) and Macaca fascicularis (N=58). An adult only sample was established to partially control for variance in calculus due to age, adult defined as erupted M3. Calculus was scored on each tooth from 0 to 3, with 0 as “none present” and 3 indicating “over 50% of surface affected”. Each side was scored independently. Missing teeth were evaluated for apparent causation of tooth loss. Most teeth exhibited some degree of dental calculus, but all four incisors were the most heavily calcified in both species. The anterior labial surfaces were the most impacted. The frequency of premortem canine removal in our sample prevented us from examining this trait in neighboring dentition. The least calcified were the M3s, probably due to the difference in eruption time between the incisors and the molars. We performed a one-way ANOVA on the total sample, and found no significant difference in calculus buildup between females and males for either species. We did find differences between the two species (F = 27.63, p<0.0001) with M. fascicularis exhibiting significantly more calculus.

Humanizing the Houseless: Warming a Tent Through Homemade Insulation

Presenter: Stefanie Wibiasa

Co-Presenters: Amber Bass, Marisa Daluro

Mentor: Alison Kwok

Poster: 34

Major: Architecture

The Pacific Northwest’s climate-mild, but with occasional extremes-greatly affects a resident’s satisfaction with his or her particular thermal environment. The primary goal of this study was to help the tent communities of Eugene, Oregon stay significantly warmer during the harsh winter months. To this end, we investigated whether adding a layer of homemade insulation to the floor of a tent would significantly reduce heat loss and better regulate the interior temperature. Group members selected a neutral, unsheltered outdoor venue and set up a small tent similar to one that would be found in a houseless community. Over the course of a 24-hour period (divided into three eight-hour segment), hourly temperature readings both inside and outside the tent were measured and recorded. The first eight- hour assessment functioned as a control period—data taken without supplementary insulation. The second and third eight-hour assessments measured temperature data after various layers of homemade insulation had been added to the interior base of the tent. The study goals were addressed primarily through data logging, quantitative inquiry, and analyzing ideas of thermal comfort.

Hidden Hunters: The Little-Known Native Soldiers that Changed Warfare in the West

Presenter: Tyler Jorgensen

Mentors: Kevin Hatfield, History and Jennifer O’Neal, Special Collections

Poster: 34

Major: Mathematics 

My research concerns the Native scouts involved in the Snake War who were hired by the United States Army to hunt Northern Paiutes. Why would these native scouts want to hunt down other native people? Why would they join sides with the government which, at the time, was surging into native lands and seizing territory? This paper asserts that the answers to these questions can be grouped into three categories: money, power, and hatred, my essay will argue that these three factors are what drew the scouts to the American side. One example of a significant primary source I will use is William McKay’s journal. William McKay was the commanding officer over a force of Warm Springs scouts hired to hunt down Northern Paiutes. In addition to primary sources, I will attain information from secondary sources to provide background information for my essay, as well as display evidence to explain why these scouts fought.

For instance, I had the opportunity to ask tribal elders Wilson Wewa and Myra Johnson what they believe made the native scouts want to side with the U.S. government. They provided me with vital information and several avenues of research for my topic. My research will conclude that the incentives I identified for scouts to work with the U.S. Military far outweighed any of the complications. It is my hope that my research can fulfill a gap of knowledge on the subject and allow other scholars to see a new perspective of the conflict.

Gender and Inequalities in the Workplace

Presenter: Jessica Romeo

Co-Presenters: Belicia Castellano, Bailey Davenport

Faculty Mentor: Julia Heffernan

Presentation Type: Poster 34

Primary Research Area: Social Science

Major: Educational Foundations

Gender inequalities and instances of patriarchy in the workplace are creating limitations for individuals and overall affecting their lives. The focus of our research is predominantly on women in the workplace and how these factors affect them in a negative manner. Through the use of Gender: Ideas, Interactions, Institutions, and other resources, we will examine topics such as sexual harassment, job segregation by sex and gender, and wage gaps. Within these topics, we have determined that these support the idea that gender inequality in the workforce is typically aimed toward women. Such instances are apparent in pay, as the average woman makes $0.78 to the average male. This is also apparent by the fact that depending on sex and gender, women and men are stereotyped to fit into a specific and particular career, therefore establishing job segregation. A significant amount of women report leaving their job due to sexual harassment, which is yet another example of how these topics are apparent in the workplace. These factors, and our research, suggest that women do not have equal opportunities in the workplace, which reestablishes gender binaries and devalues the work of women.

Investigating the Physiological Effects of Mutations in the Proposed Backtrack Site of Yeast RNA Polymerase II

Presenter(s): Joshua Mostales

Faculty Mentor(s): Diane Hawley

Poster 34

Session: Sciences

Transcription, the first step of gene expression, is a process fundamental to all known forms of life. In eukaryotic cells, the enzyme RNA polymerase II (Pol II) executes transcription by moving forward along the DNA, transferring the genetic information encoded in DNA to messenger RNA. However, Pol II also backtracks on the DNA, causing transcription to become arrested. When backtracking occurs, Pol II slides backwards on the DNA, displacing nascent RNA from the active site into a proposed “backtrack site,” comprising residues in the Pol II subunits Rpb1 and Rpb2 that interact with the RNA. The resulting stable “arrested complex” must be reactivated for elongation to continue. While backtracking has been implicated in numerous processes essential for regulating gene transcription, its physiological relevance is not yet certain. Using Saccharomyces cerevisiae (Baker’s yeast), we have engineered individual and combinations of mutations in the Rpb1 region of the backtrack site to disrupt the protein-RNA interactions that arise from backtracking. Through phenotypic and growth comparisons between wild-type and mutant strains, we examine how impairing the binding of RNA to the backtrack site affects yeast fitness and various Pol II functions in vivo, providing further insight into the possible functions of Pol II during backtracking and arrest.