Poster Session 3: 4:00 - 5:30 PM PST
Enter Here
Posters 1-44
Abstract Volume and Quick Reference Guide _________________________________________________________________________________________
Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Advisor(s): Dr. Hagop Atamian
Alfalfa is a legume that is commonly used as a nutritious feed source for ruminants. Being a member of the fabaceae family, alfalfa interacts with the bacteria rhizobia in order to get the nitrogen it needs. Alfalfa encapsulates rhizobia and provides the home for it, and the rhizobia fixes nitrogen for its host in return. However, less known are the other bacteria present in the soil microbiome that also interact with the alfalfa root . In addition, it is well known that plant circadian clock (biorhythm) has significant effects on its interaction with the soil microorganisms. In this project, we are experimenting with alfalfa grown in field soil in order to identify and understand the time of day dependent interactions between alfalfa and the soil microbiome. We are hoping that by understanding this intricate interaction between alfalfa and soil microbes will be valuable in increasing the alfalfa productivity.
Advisor(s): Dr. Cecilia Lopez
Myelin basic protein (MBP) is necessary for the proper function of the central nervous system. Since it maintains the integrity of the myelin sheath, its degradation is implicated in multiple sclerosis (MS). MS is a chronic autoimmune neuromuscular disease that currently has no cure. Patients with MS are typically diagnosed when their immune system reacts to modified forms of MBP. Once translated, MBP is heavily modified by the chemical addition of molecules including phosphoryl (PO3-) and methyl (CH3) groups at serine and arginine residues. Although phosphorylation by various kinases is generally absent in patients with MS, methylated arginine residues as well as the enzyme that causes methylation, PRMT5, have both been implicated in MS and are established markers of autoimmunity. Since arginine groups can be mono- or di-methylated (asymmetric vs. symmetric), we have set out to optimize methods using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) for the detection of these three arginine derivatives. Preliminary data shows that monomethylated arginine can be distinguished from dimethylated arginine, however further work to resolve the two dimethylated species is underway. Resolving the two species will allow for a more efficient way to distinguish between healthy modifications of MBP vs. MBP found in MS. Once we can distinguish between these arginine derivatives, we will perform in vitro methylation reactions using modified MBP and resolve these acid hydrolyzed derivatives via HPLC.
Biological Sciences
Advisor(s): Dr. Douglas Fudge, Dr. Zeng
Hagfishes are a group of eel-like animals that are known for their secretion of slime when they are disturbed or attacked by predators. Slime glands contain intermediate filament protein threads that are manufactured within specialized gland thread cells. The glands produce two main cell types, gland thread cells, and gland mucous cells. The thread cells are then diluted by the seawater where they uncoil and extend as fibers. The mucus absorbs the water, making the mucous component of the slime. Gland thread cells make the fibrous part of the slime, which deploys as coiled threads known as skeins. The slime threads within skeins exhibit a coiled morphology. While the 3D morphology of thread coiling is known, the origin of the coiling is unknown. The coiling of the thread can be left-handed or right-handed. I wondered whether there are patterns of skein coiling within individuals and species. One possibility is that the coiling direction is the same in all individuals but varies among species. It is also possible that left- and right-handed coiling is randomly distributed individually, within a species, and among species. In my project, I will measure the handedness of coiling in skeins from numerous individuals from several species of hagfishes. I will do this by observing skeins through a scanning electron microscope (SEM) and using an established protocol of handedness. The results will provide clues on whether there is a preferred method of thread skein production from coiling in a given species or individual.
Advisor(s): Dr. Douglas Fudge, Dr. Yu Zeng
Hagfish are a species of bottomfeeder fish with the unique defense mechanism of slime secretion. This slime is able to clog the gills of their predators. Their slime is composed of a matrix of mucus and threads, with these threads being released from the gland thread cells (GTCs). Epidermal thread cells (ETCs) are another type of cell in the hagfish that contains threads, and they are embedded throughout the epidermis. Very little is known about the function of the ETCs or the structures that have been observed inside of them. It is known that their threads are thinner, shorter, and less complexly coiled within the cell than the GTCs’ threads are. ETCs have no active mechanism of releasing their threads like GTCs do, but it has been found that they can be released passively upon disturbance to the skin. When hagfish skin was scraped with a microscope slide cover slip, ETCs were able to be collected on the slip, which was placed on a slide and observed under a microscope. Images were captured, and using the image analysis software “image J”, ETC threads were measured from end to end to obtain their lengths. Threads so far have ranged from just under 2 mm to just over 3 mm long. Understanding the morphology of these cells and the structure of their different components will help us understand the ways in which these cells may function, and what role they serve for the hagfish.
Advisor(s): Dr. Douglas Fudge, Andrew Lowe
Hagfishes are a diverse group of jawless marine fishes that are noteworthy for their ability to produce gill-clogging slime when threatened. The slime exudate ejected by the slime glands is made up of two main components: thread skeins and mucous vesicles. Although the biophysical mechanisms of exudate deployment in seawater are not understood, some details are known. Thread skeins must unravel from their coiled state and provide strength to the slime in the form of a network of silk-like threads. Deployment of mucous vesicles is known to involve the swelling of constituent glycoproteins their subsequent deformation into a vast mucous network that interpenetrates the slime thread network. Recent theoretical work suggests that thread skein unraveling would be greatly enhanced under conditions where the skein (or a loose piece of thread) is pinned to a solid surface. There are two competing hypotheses that work to explain the unravelling. The first is the anchor point hypothesis which states that skeins need to be connected to a solid object in order to unravel and form effective slime. This is contrasted by the elastic mucus matrix hypothesis which explains that skeins stay embedded in mucus and as the mucus deforms, it loads skeins in tension and effects unravelling. We have employed high-speed camera mounted on an Axio Zoom microscope and an upright microscope to observe this process in detail. Our preliminary results align more closely with the elastic mucus hypothesis as there was no unravelling before the mucus was formed with the hydrating mucus also acting as an elastic solid for the skeins to embed in. Furthermore, unravelling occurred only for skeins embedded in the mucus matrix when the mucus remained attached to the slide and turbulence seemed necessary to provide force to the mucus which could then transmit to the skeins to facilitate unravelling.
Chemistry
Advisor(s): Dr. Allegra Liberman-Martin
Hydroboration is a reaction that is becoming increasingly used in the synthesis of many organic compounds as it is typically chemo-selective and the hydroborated product leads to a number of synthetic routes. These reactions are traditionally catalyzed by expensive transition metals. To explore a more efficient catalyst, the use of a cyclic carbodiphosphorane catalyst has been investigated. This catalyst can be prepared in a two-step synthesis and is very reactive due to a carbon containing two lone pairs. This, in turn, makes the catalyst an excellent nucleophile. The research being presented will explore the hydroboration of isocyanates and test the overall efficiency of this catalyst in providing the expected products.
Advisor(s): Dr. Jerry LaRue
In the course of chemical innovation, laboratory experiments can often be costly and time-consuming. The use of computational chemistry, the simulation of chemical reactions by a computer, can provide a method to cheaply perform hundreds of reactions faster than can be done in the lab, allowing researchers to focus their time and financial resources on the experiments that prove the most promising. Although computational chemistry is a powerful tool in the sciences, it is a topic that undergraduate students rarely work with due to the intrinsic difficulty of quantum mechanics and implementing dense mathematical theory into computer code. Thus, there is a need for a pedagogically focused computational chemistry package that illustrates the benefits of the subject and walks students through the process of converting chemistry theory into executable code. To address this issue, a pedagogical Python package for Jupyter Lab was designed and implemented to provide both LaTeX descriptions of the theory and mathematics, along with a breakdown of how to convert the theory into code. The library is designed in a modular fashion to support conceptual learning and provides a built-in graphing system to allow for visualization of any data being computed within the package. To illustrate the difference between harmonic and anharmonic potentials and basis sets to students, the harmonic oscillator and anharmonic morse oscillator basis sets were implemented within this framework to illustrate the strengths and weaknesses of both in the context of computing vibrational wavefunctions for diatomic molecules.
Advisor(s): Dr. Maduka Ogba
Calcium triflimide, triflate, and fluoride salts have recently gained attention as cheap, abundant, and non-toxic Lewis acid catalysts. However, little is known about the mechanism of activation or the role of the counterions in these chemical reactions. Recent experiments show that calcium bistriflimide was effective in activating sulfur(VI) fluorides toward nitrogen-containing sulfur(VI) compounds via sulfur-fluoride exchange (SuFEx). However, significantly reduced yields were observed when calcium fluoride instead of bistriflimide, was used as the Lewis-acid activator, suggesting the non-innocent role of the counterion in facilitating calcium catalysis. In this work, density functional theory methods were used to compute and compare the SuFEx mechanism mediated by calcium fluoride to that of calcium bistriflimide. Structural, energetic, and electronic properties of the activated species are analyzed to reveal the origins of the counterion-induced differences in reactivity between calcium Lewis acidic salts.
Advisor(s): Dr. Maduka Ogba
Calcium ions, bound to weakly coordinating anions (e.g., bistriflimide or triflate ions), have gained significant utility within the last two decades as catalysts for facilitating challenging chemical reactions. This is particularly exciting because calcium, unlike the transition metals typically used as catalysts, is cheap, abundant, and non-toxic. Despite these obvious advantages, calcium catalysis is in its infancy - little is known about the mode in which calcium salts activate substrates in chemical reactions. Recent experimental work has shown that calcium bistriflimide salts activate sulfur(VI) fluorides in a sulfur(VI)-fluorine exchange (SuFEx) toward nitrogen-containing sulfur(VI) compounds of medicinal relevance. A closer look at the experimental data show that switching the anion from bistriflimide to triflate results in dramatic yield losses, indicating that the counterion plays a crucial role in facilitating the chemical process, beyond being weakly coordinating. In this work, density functional theory methods were used to compute and compare the SuFEx mechanism mediated by calcium triflate to that mediated by calcium bistriflimide. Structural, energetic, and electronic insights from computations that explain the origins of the counterion-induced reactivity differences between calcium bistriflimide and calcium triflate will be presented.
Communication Sciences and Disorders
Advisor(s): Dr. Mary Fagan
Mother-infant language interactions are correlated with the vocabulary size of infants. The language diversity of mother-infant interactions influences the baby’s vocabulary development, which is considered important for later academic and linguistic achievement. Vocabulary development consists of vocabulary comprehension and production. Vocabulary comprehension is the individual’s ability to understand the meaning of a word. Vocabulary production is the ability to utilize labels or describe the nature of a stimulus. Most infants with cochlear implants have less early hearing experience than hearing infants of the same chronological age. The hearing experience of the individual is referred to as hearing age; while chronological age refers to their actual age. For infants with profound hearing loss, hearing experience typically begins when they receive cochlear implants. Therefore, early implantation tends to decrease delays in vocabulary acquisition. Our research project assesses the language and communication skills of infants, ages 8-30 months, and the influence of maternal language on vocabulary size. The number of words spoken by mothers is compared with the vocabulary size of infants with and without cochlear implants using the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventories. Although there are various studies analyzing the vocabulary delays of children with cochlear implants, there is less research available that examines the relationship between maternal language and vocabulary development for infants who have received cochlear implants in the first year. Therefore the goal of this study is to examine the influence of maternal language on the vocabulary development of infants who had received cochlear implants at 13 months of age or earlier.
Communication Studies
Advisor(s): Dr. Austin Lee
The family environment is the first setting in which children internalize communication styles and learn behavior. Throughout a child's life relationships with family members and experiences impact an individual's self-esteem. The purpose of the research project is to further investigate the relationship between family communication styles and young adults' self-esteem. Our overall objective is to closely investigate whether positive or negative communication has an effect on children’s self-esteem. Positive family communication is respectful, honest, open, straightforward while negative communication includes yelling, passive-aggressive behavior, blaming, name-calling, etc. Self-esteem and family communication are important to study because there needs to be a better understanding of how family communication affects children’s self-esteem which in turn can affect mental health.
We will be collecting our data through a survey that asks multiple questions that will measure an individual's self-esteem and gauge their family relations and styles of communication. Our participants will be young adults ranging from the ages of 18-25. We are using Rosenberg's self-esteem scale to calculate the participant's self-esteem. To measure is family communication has an effect on self-esteem we will be using the four family communication pattern theory, conversation orientation scale, and conformity orientation scale. According to the Family Communication Patterns Theory, there are four different types of family communication patterns: consensual, pluralistic, protective, and laissez-faire. The conformity orientation scale attempts to measure the orientation through an environment and network where the family members provide unconditional and unqualified obedience to family values and decisions. The conversation orientation scale is aimed at measuring whether one was raised in a high conversation or low conversation environment. We believe that those who were raised in high conformity and low conversation families have lower levels of self-esteem than others.
Computer Science
Advisor(s): Dr. LouAnne Boyd
During the COVID-19 pandemic, with its social distancing and remote learning, it has been apparent that teens have found it difficult to socialize. To address this problem, we have explored two ways of encouraging socialization among teens: in real life, via an app which matches suitable friends, and in online classes, via a cooperative multiplayer video game which integrates with Zoom-style breakout rooms. When asked in interviews, multiple teenagers reported a decline in socialization not just in the real world, but also in educational settings online. In line with the “Prototype” stage of the design thinking process, we developed wireframes with Figma and collected teenagers’ interactions with these wireframes. We then used these wireframes in the “Test” stage of design thinking. Some of our user tests focus on an app that matches teens with possible friends, based on their locations and/or interests. These tests prompt teens to find friends by location, and then by interests, recording the time it takes the users to do these tasks. Other prototype tests focus on the user experience of starting to play a video game in a Zoom-like breakout room. Specifically, we explore the interactive processes of starting a multiplayer game and joining a pre-existing one. A summary of quantitative and qualitative data is discussed.
Advisor(s): Dr. LouAnne Boyd
Covid 19 has been detrimental for the world, unable to physically socialize, teenagers have been shifting gears towards remote leisure activities such as social media. Unfortunately, research suggests that this worldwide issue has led to teens being negatively impacted by their continuously growing obsession with social media as a distraction. It is evident that this change ultimately decreases their productivity. From interviews with teens, they have shown that they recognize these effects and have a desire to get help with this issue. Additionally, research has shown that teenagers’ rate of utility for social media apps are decreasing as they spend more time being productive throughout the day. Our goal, led by a design thinking framework, is to limit social media and the distractions that come with it by possibly blocking notifications from these applications periodically. A different approach is by setting a daily limit on the amount of time spent using social media. By applying user centered design, we first developed multiple prototypes to tackle the problem at hand while boosting productivity. Then, we had a range of users test our works in progress. By analyzing the research we gathered from this, we progressed by applying and generating further improvements to our blueprint to draw a final conclusion. The information accumulated throughout this project is also discussed.
Advisor(s): Dr. LouAnne Boyd
The rise of social media has come with a variety of issues for the younger generation, especially concerning the stress they experience every day because of it. Teens should be able to express themselves and enjoy life without worrying about the “where” or “how” to do this. Our research found some areas that could be improved so teens can more easily find activities to de-stress. By having access to these apps, teens might be able to relieve more of the anxieties they are experiencing. Through ideation sessions, we created four program ideas that should provide quality of life improvements (haircuts, food and movie recommendations, and music playlists). To ease the haircut process, teens can use one of our apps to search for hairdressers that specialize in their preferred style, ensuring a satisfactory cut. Other apps provide specialized playlists and movie recommendations based on preferences and possible triggers, respectively. Finally, we wanted to provide an app that offers teens a chance to share food ideas and locations as a way for teens to easily bond and have fun. All four of these applications provide quick and easy solutions to activities that should be relaxing but can sometimes be tedious and/or stressful. We each prototyped one of these four programs, testing how understandable the interface systems are for each application. We will assess qualitative and quantitative data collected from these teen user tests.
Advisor(s): Dr. LouAnne Boyd
Living remotely as a teenager has had some important consequences. Research has shown that during COVID and post-COVID, social media use has hindered productivity. Existing literature in the field illustrates that social media use among teens correlates to lower well being, depression, anxiety and lower productivity. During the pandemic, these symptoms have become amplified and are now bigger sources of concern than ever. We ask "Are time limits and separate workspaces effective in increasing productivity by decreasing social media use? To answer this question, we collected data from teens from which we developed prototypes that aimed to reduce time spent on unproductive applications (including social media). In order to achieve this, we gathered qualitative and quantitative data from teen participants, developed low fidelity prototypes, and tested and refined prototypes. Then, we created wireframes and tested the high-fidelity prototypes on the group of interest. By developing ideas for applications we hope to aid productivity and reduce time spent by teens on social media. We conducted user testing of low and high-fidelity prototypes and results are discussed.
Data Analytics
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
Would you like to update the software? Rapid advancements within the field of technology have led the average consumer to grow fearful of technology. This paper will highlight research from the Chapman Survey of American Fears. Hypothesis Ⅰ: I suspect that Individuals who are in the lower class income bracket and the lower education spectrum tend to be more fearful of technology. My theory behind the hypothesis is that those in the lower-income brackets do not have the resources of technology at hand and those who are in the lower education brackets might not have enough experience with technology. Hypothesis Ⅱ: I suspect that those in older generational age brackets will tend to be more fearful of technology. The technological advancements in the last 40 years have inspired this generational theory. Hypothesis Ⅲ: I suspect that specific regions of the United States are more fearful than others. My theory was created with the thought that regions with more rural customs will tend to be more fearful. Technophobia is showcased in many ways, some that might not be picked up by a naked eye. This research will bring light to a relatively new and rapidly developing industry creating stress and worry among individuals nationwide. If the hypotheses are proven to be true we will begin to explore options to give adults resources to combat this fear. Technology surrounds us from the simplest forms like watches to the most complex algorithms on social media. The majority of the population can be oblivious to the covers we put on technology which is why this research is necessary.
Advisor(s): Dr. LouAnne Boyd
Over a year of being quarantined for COVID-19, teenagers (age 15-18) have switched to using their phones and laptops more than ever. This is shown by interview data collected in class and through public online app usage trends. Our goal is to create an application that allows a user to manually enter their mood throughout the day, then once their mood is entered, the user will get a list of important statistics about their screen time and mood correlation. A user's phone screen time data will be synced and thoroughly analyzed, showing the user how or how much a certain application affects how they feel. By analyzing social media usage on laptops and mobile phones, we can survey users and see if and how social media usage correlates to their mood from a selection of different moods, social life on a scale of lonely to extremely socially active, sex life on a scale of 1-10, and mental health on a scale of 1-5. Our team will analyze these patterns using simple statistics and regression models to predict how a teen will feel after using social media for an arbitrary amount of numbers. We expect a negative correlation between social media usage and mood, meaning that the more teens use social media, the worse they will feel in the long run. We came to this conclusion due to dopamine being manipulated and raising users baselines through application usage, meaning once they stop using social media, the users dopamine levels will fall below their new heightened baseline.
Environmental Science and Policy
Advisor(s): Dr. Jason Keller
For my research, I will be looking at the Dixie and August complex fires, both of which happened in the past two years and the two largest fires recorded in California. I work at an air quality technology company called IQAir, so the data will be gathered from our network of both low cost and federally regulated ground sensors surrounding the fire locations to track the movement of the smoke. I plan on analyzing both PM2.5 and PM10, which are different sizes of particulate matter that represent pollution in the air. This data will be observed using hourly measurements over the course of the days of the fire and compared to the days leading up to the fire. The length of time to return to the standard air quality will also be analyzed. The data will be supplemented with satellite imagery of the region gathered from NASA through the Giovanni platform, such as humidity and meteorological factors, along with the average wind speed in the area in m/s. This research is important because wildfires continue to get more common and more extreme with climate change, and they have significant impacts on human health, livelihood, and the environment. I plan on referencing the new WHO guidelines on air quality to demonstrate the significant impact on health air pollution can have as well.
Health & Strategic Communication
Advisor(s): Dr. Austin Lee
The COVID-19 pandemic brought many novel experiences and unprecedented effects to the United States population. Specifically, from March to May 2020 much of the world was under strict lockdown. The purpose of this research study is to examine if different personality traits affected individuals’ coping styles during the pandemic’s peak. Previous research has analyzed the relationship between personality traits and coping mechanisms. Due to the uniqueness of the COVID-19 pandemic, this study looks to provide a more contextual application of personality traits and coping mechanisms. Participants completed a questionnaire including the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire-Revised (EPQ-R) and the MERS-CoV Staff Questionnaire which was adapted to the context of COVID-19. The three personality traits that will be measured by the EPQ-R are neuroticism, psychoticism, and extraversion. The two categories of coping that will be assessed are problem-focused and emotional-approach coping. It is expected that there will be significant correlations between personality traits and coping strategies such that higher levels of extraversion and psychoticism will be linked to more significant problem-focused coping strategies while higher neuroticism will yield links to more and emotion-focused coping strategies.
Health Sciences and Kinesiology
Advisor(s): Dr. Manjari Murali
Mindfulness meditation has been shown to have a plethora of positive effects on attention, stress, and memory, and this attentional control may prove to strengthen emotional regulation (Moore et al., 2012). Other studies have shown that those with a history of depression are at risk for developing Alzheimer's disease later in life (Ownby et al., 2012). One of the predominant outcomes of Mindfulness practice is an increased ability of the practitioner to maintain equanimity in the face of difficult situations. By maintaining balanced emotions, these individuals can effectively quell depression symptoms, which by extension can decrease their chance of getting Alzheimer’s later in life. This study includes an extensive literature review on the effects of mindfulness meditation on emotional control, the correlation between emotional regulation and Alzheimer’s, and the link between a history of attentional and mental disorders and Alzheimer’s. Our research has led us to believe that the risk of developing Alzheimer’s can be greatly decreased by mindfulness meditation practice in mid life. We identified peer-reviewed scientific publications using search engines and plugged in key words like, “meditation, “emotion,” “depression,” “attention,” and “Alzheimer’s.” Additionally, we located open-source and research data sets to compare the prevalence of attentional and mental health disorders by state (in the United States) with the likelihood of an Alzheimer's diagnosis. Our analysis of the literature indicates that the Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) Program improves attention control in participants by allowing their executive control network to function at a greater capacity. This leads to greater allocation of attentional resources, even in the case of emotionally charged situations. We argue that Mindfulness-mediated regulation of one’s emotional response will decrease their chance of developing depression, and therefore, decrease their chance of developing Alzheimer’s disease later in life.
Advisor(s): Dr. Manjari Murali
As new research emerges on the effectiveness of mindfulness practices, there is a growing interest in the specific neurophysiological and longitudinal outcomes of mindfulness, including its long-term effects on stress. Through an extensive literature review, we are considering a surplus of experimental studies that have found an inverse relationship between mindfulness and both perceived and physiological stress. We are also seeking out studies that have investigated chronic stress as a factor for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Numerous studies indicate that Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) is an intervention beneficial for stress management and general mental health (Klatt et al., 2009). Although there have been many studies that individually explore either the link between mindfulness and stress, or between stress and AD, there is less research done on the implications of mindfulness on preventing or delaying the onset of AD. Existing public and research data sets will be analyzed to identify potential connections between the prevalence of AD in a population and levels of stress and mindfulness. In addition to literature review and data set analysis, we will present our longitudinal research design to investigate the correlation between mindfulness and levels of perceived and physiological stress in participants of the 6-week Mindfulness Course taught by the Fish Interfaith Center at Chapman University. Our research study has implications for Alzheimer’s disease prevention because chronic stress in midlife is believed to increase the risk of Alzheimer’s disease in later life (Jeong et al., 2006). Mental health surveys and salivary cortisol tests will be taken before, immediately upon completion, and 3 months after the completion of the Fish Mindfulness Course. It is anticipated that both the levels of perceived stress as well as the physiological stress of the subjects will decrease after completing the mindfulness course and partaking in regular meditation, both short-term and long-term.
Music
Advisor(s): Dr. Jessica Sternfeld
Research has shown that listening to music has the power to influence people’s moods. One researcher, DeNora, found in a study 2000 that mood-matching music, or listening to music that matches your current emotional state, has proven to be emotionally transformative. When interviewed, all participants in her study stated that they typically listen to music that they felt they needed in the moment. This research supports the idea of music for productivity, which is the subject of my project. Music therapy is a growing and influential field that has the ability to affect people’s emotional, psychological, and physical well-being. Evidence has shown that music therapy can unlock lost memories in patients with dementia and can be a form of stress relief for veterans with PTSD. However, few of these studies seem to dive deeper into what genres of music are most beneficial in certain situations and/or could create certain outcomes. For example, would an elderly patient find more or less benefit from listening to current pop hits than hits from the 50s? In this paper, I examine the research that has already been done in the field of genre-specific music therapy and related areas, and draw conclusions from what is already known. I also provide templates for further studies, including testing familiarity with the music being played, that can be conducted to expand these results and ideas already in practice.
Pharmacy
Advisor(s): Dr. Rachita Sumbria, Rudy Chang
Cerebral microhemorrhages (CMH) are microscopic bleeds in the brain that have a high prevalence in the aging population. Brain vascular disruption and the ensuing red blood cell (RBC) migration into the brain is considered to be the main route of CMH development. It is known that brain endothelial cells can engulf fibrin clots and translocate them to the perivascular area. Further, our previous work, which was primarily done in vitro, has demonstrated that oxidatively stressed RBC (utilizing tert-butyl hydroperoxide (t-BHP)) or RBC degradation products can migrate across the brain endothelium demonstrating that the brain endothelium has erythrophagocytic capabilities. The aim of the current study was two-fold: 1) to extend our in vitro observations in vivo, and 2) to study the interactions between the brain endothelium, microglia, and RBC, given the role of microglia in RBC clearance and CMH development. Here, using Tie2-GFP mice, which express GFP in the endothelium, and fluorescently labeled RBCs, we aimed to study the interactions between the brain endothelium and RBCs exposed to oxidative stress, in vivo. For this, PBS- and tBHP-treated RBCs were injected into Tie2-GFP mice (n=4 per group) and allowed to circulate for 24h. Brains were harvested, sectioned, stained for Iba1 (a microglial marker), and imaged using a confocal microscope, post-mortem. All the images were analyzed using NIH Image J for: RBC-positive vessels, Iba-1-positive area, and microglial activation state (resting or activated). Our results showed that tBHP-RBCs attached to the brain blood vessels and corroborated our in vitro findings. Further, there was a significantly higher iba1-positive area in the tBHP-RBC treated mice. These results confirm the erythrophagocytosis phenotype of the brain endothelium for damaged/stressed RBCs, and this process was associated with microgliosis, in vivo.
Advisor(s): Dr. Rachita Sumbria, Joshua Yang, Dr. Rachita Sumbria
Microglia are the immune cells of the brain and their role in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is increasingly reported (1). Microglia are the main source for tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα), a major pro-inflammatory cytokine in the brain (1). Further, studies show that TNFα plays a pathological role in AD pathophysiology (3). For example, TNFα is increased in the plasma and brains of AD patients. As a result, TNFα inhibitors (TNFIs) can be potential treatments for AD. The current existing biologic TNFIs do not cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB) (2). To cross the BBB, a fusion protein was engineered wherein the TNFI was fused to an antibody against the transferrin receptor (TfRMAb). The bioengineered fusion protein enables the TNFI to get into the brain using receptor-mediated transport (2). Our goal was to study the effects of two TNFIs: Etanercept, which is a currently FDA-approved TNFI for peripheral inflammatory conditions, and the BBB-penetrating TNFI. For this, 10.7-month-old male APP/PS1 mice were injected intraperitoneally with saline (n=16), BBB-penetrating TNFI (3 mg/kg, n=9), Etanercept (1.5 mg/kg, n=9) or TfRMAb (2.25 mg/kg, n=5) three days/week for 10 weeks. At the end of the study, the brains were collected, sectioned, stained for Iba1 (microglia marker), imaged, and analyzed using NIH Image J for the Iba1-positive area. The data quantified indicated that both Etanercept and the BBB-penetrating TNFI treated mice had reduced microgliosis suggesting that both peripheral and central TNFIs can reduce microgliosis in the aged APP/PS1 mice.
Physical Therapy
Advisor(s): Dr. Rahul Soangra, Michael Shiraishi
With the number of stroke patients on the rise, including amongst a younger population, it is imperative to better understand the role of gait and posture asymmetry as a precursor to an individual’s fall-risk and how this information can be utilized for stroke rehabilitation. This study investigates how asymmetry influences mobility in healthy participants using TUG (timed up and go) test. We seek to establish which aspect of TUG, if any alone, determines an individual’s risk of falling. These tests include a sit to stand test (STS), 10-step gait (‘OGW’ over ground walking), and 360° turn test (TURN), in addition to the complete TUG test time. Kinematic and kinetic data was collected from the participants with and without weight attachment on their non-dominant leg. The asymmetry of the weight will simulate a stroke patient’s reduced mobility characteristics and will help determine if limb asymmetry due to attached weight influences TUG performance. In this study, we recruited 10 healthy young (5 males, 5 females, Age M±SD, Height = M±SD, weight = M±SD), and 10 healthy old (5 males, 5 females, Age M±SD, Height = M±SD, weight = M±SD). The amount of weight was normalized to 7.5% of their total body weight. Data was collected using motion sensor capture on Vicon Nexus, X-Sens accelerometer data, and Smartphone data on the platform EdgeImpulse. Data was processed and biomechanics parameters of gait and posture will be assessed and compared to identify any patterns or discrepancies among participants within each aspect of the TUG test.
Presenter(s): Talia Brennan, Bridgette Kohl, Johanna Darendinger
Advisor(s): Dr. Rahul Soangra, Michael Shiraishi
Postural stability involves a person’s ability to control their body center of mass (COM) over the base of support . In individuals with stroke, postural stability is greatly altered due to hemiparalysis, limiting the ability of these people to maintain their balance, and increasing their fall risk. It can be affected by varying factors such as decreased control of affected side, strength of affected side muscles, neuromuscular deficits, endurance or stamina, and increased body mass index (BMI). In this study, 10 young males (age 23.67 ± 5.5 years, height 169.50 ±7.42 inches, weight 153.13 ± 40.77lbs) and females (age 25.75 ±7.85 years, height 169.50 ± 7.42 inches, weight 169.15±82.97lbs) and 10 elderly males (age 70.75 ±7.37years, height 174.75±6.02 inches, weight 180.00±4.96lbs) and females (ages 69.50 ±4.51years, height 165.19±4.88inches, weight 135.43± 28.01lbs) participated. All Participants performed postural stability standing task with and without weights attached on the dominant lower limb . Participants were asked to stand still for one minute with eyes open and eyes closed condition. Weights made up of 7.5% of the participant’s body weight were placed on their ankles in order to stimulate how a stroke patient’s mobility is altered. Postural parameters such as sway area, sway velocity, center of pressure length were evaluated for with and without limb weights. This was done in order to see how weight asymmetry affected their balance during standing. Ultimately, it was hypothesized that more center of pressure excursions would be present with weight than without thus resulting in deficits to maintain balance. This study can simulate stroke conditions to some extent and facilitate understanding on how stroke affects postural stability and increased fall risk.
Political Science
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
The Department of Justice and the FBI designate hate crimes to be crimes, often violent, based on race, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or disability. Since the 1990s, crime news reporting has tripled, and news media has geared more towards 24-hour news coverage. As media accessibility and consumption have increased, the visibility of crime, in general, has increased, but a spotlight on hate crimes has become emergent. Sociological and political theories aim to explain how rising accessibility to media can affect people’s opinions and the social and political agendas of the country. Countless research contributions to the theory of agenda-setting have aimed to show the effects media has on influencing viewers based on obtrusive and unobtrusive issues; however, little research has questioned if the media can influence the fears of its viewers through such reporting. This paper will investigate the relationship between one’s media consumption and the extent to which one fears being the victim of a hate crime (including racially motivated hate crimes). Relying on original data from the Chapman Survey of American Fears (2019 & 2020/2021), a nationally representative sample of U.S. adults, I expect to find a noticeable relationship between one’s media consumption and their fear of being victim to a hate crime. I also expect to find that the amount of media one consumes will affect whether they fear being the victim of a hate crime due to heightened media coverage of hate crimes and racially motivated violence during 2020. Nevertheless, finding a relationship between one’s media consumption and fear of being the victim of a hate crime could signal a new era in American history where its citizens fear each other more than international or environmental threats simply due to access to information.
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordo
The California fire season has extended into a full year with Golden State residents finding themselves facing more frequent and more intense wildfires than in years past. In this analysis I explore the relationship between wildfires, voting behavior, and class. Utilizing a statewide representative dataset, the Public Understanding of Debris Flow and Wildfire Messaging, I find that affluence has a strong relationship with being prepared for a potential wildfire. Additionally, I find that poorer Californians are less likely to have taken precautions to protect their homes from wildfires. These findings highlight that as these fires continue to pop up across the state that low-income homeowners will be hit disproportionately hard as local and state governments fail to fill in the cracks and support these individuals. These findings should elicit a reckoning that major steps are needed to be taken not only to combat wildfires but also to prepare less affluent Californians for when these fires inevitably occur. Californians across the state are feeling more threatened by wildfires now than they have in years past but low-income Californians still need support to prepare for the next potential fire. While we may not think of fires as purveyors of classism, the lack of resources to prepare for these fires results in them having racist and classist impacts.
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
Our beliefs about undocumented people and their movement to the United States are heavily rooted in our partisanship and subsequently our consumption of any and all forms of media. In this paper, I examine the relationship between a person and their political identity, their sources of information as well as their overall consumption of the media, and conclusively their beliefs about the undocumented population and their status or a lack thereof in the United States. I have found that those that identify themselves as Republican or are more conservative in their beliefs, are inclined to believe that a heavier restriction or an absolute ban on immigration is the only solution to make the United States safer and to maintain a particular set of values. Democrats, or those who label themselves as liberal, are more likely to think on the contrary, and that it makes no difference to the safety of the country and whether or not we open the borders to people will not affect the dynamic in the United States. News and media consumption go hand-in-hand with partisanship and therefore act as an increasingly large component in a person's belief about this policy. Republicans who consume conservative leaning media such as Fox News have a significantly higher likelihood of being anti-immigration, whereas Democrats who source from social media forums, which are often more left leaning, tend to think the opposite.
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
Public awareness of the climate crisis has increased over the past several decades due in part to increased exposure to climate science and the drastic reports released by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. This report uses the past four years of the Chapman Survey on American Fears to track the groups most fearful of climate change and those who have high levels of environmental concern. The variables tracked across these years include individual income, education level, age, political ideology and party identification, as well as the extent to which one believes the Bible is literal in its content. These demographics are analyzed through a series of linear regression models and correlation tests. Hypotheses tested in this report are derived from the anti-reflexivity hypothesis and the concept of End Times Theology. The Agenda-Setting effect of mainstream partisan media in the United States is also analyzed to provide context to the information sources of various demographics. Republicans and conservatives, as expected, are least likely to fear climate change of any demographic and exacerbate differences in smaller demographics when controlling for party identification. Republicans with higher incomes yield a negative relationship to fear of climate change and overall environmental concern. Democrats as a whole are more likely to fear climate change and have higher environmental concern, though the more specific demographics of income, age, and education hold highly mixed results across the four years of data. Interpretation of the Bible as literally true, word-for-word, increased its strength in determining one’s fear of climate change throughout the Trump presidency. Fear of climate change, while climbing from 2017 to 2019, saw a slide backwards during 2020, setting a bleak stage for the future of climate policy in the United States.
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
In the past decade, the pro-life movement has been strongly associated with the Republican Party, however, party affiliation is not the only determining factor in picking a stance on this hot topic. An individual's party identification does not necessarily determine their stance on certain issues nor can we say that their stance on certain issues determines their party affiliation. In this paper, I examine the relationship between being pro-life and other demographics such as household income, race/ethnicity, age, religiosity, and other stereotypical markers of the pro-life movement. Using the ANES 2020 data set which represents the general population of Americans in the U.S. I expect to find a correlation between being pro-life and having less college education, lower income, religious affiliation and being part of the hispanic community. I will be examining how these factors are looked at when seperated, as well as how they may paint a different picture than when these factors are analyzed in multi-variable crosstabs. The correlations made between the pro-life group and the dependent variables may line up with what has already been previously discovered as markers for support of the movement, but with a closer examination of the relationships that have previously not been uncovered, I hope my data will give insight to the pro-choice movement and how anyone could be pro-life, and vise versa. To have a better understanding between these variables could lead to less hostility and less political divisiveness between the two groups so that we can potentially bring this topic to the negotiation table.
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
Climate change is taking a strategic position in international and national politics. The recent emergence of climate change effects has reached record high numbers within the last two decades. My research examines how the belief in climate change and other environmental fears relate to the media, political preferences, and generational differences. Additionally, the research will investigate the role of partisan group identity and how that can influence the science behind climate change's politicization. Utilizing the Chapman University Survey of American Fears, a nationally representative sample, this study explores the correlation between the fear of climate and other environmental fears, with media, demographic, and social-psychological variables. Two themes identified include: (1) the demand for unbiased media, political, and social change focusing on the climate emergency, and (2) identifying critical contributors to the division of fear on climate change, including the media, political leaders, generational differences, and capitalist ideologies. The research will conclude with a discussion of how the media and party identification affects the way climate change is perceived and why scientific information is understood differently, from person to person. As my research found, the politicization of environmental crises is one of the most prevalent explanations for fear of climate change. Thus, it is crucial to question why there is a divide within society amongst the legitimacy of climate change. This fast-growing crisis will not stop without significant changes on both sides of the political divide.
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
Prevalent everywhere, fake news remains camouflaged amongst the social media posts of over 4.48 billion people worldwide. This paper will provide analysis regarding the complexive dilemma society faces against falsified information through the usage of social media and how in general people obtain more fears through heavy social media usage. Relying on the Chapman University Survey of American Fears, a Representative National sample of US adults to display the fears developed through society’s usage of social media and being deceived by misleading posts. In comparison to other Americans, participants who utilize social media to perceive breaking news are twice as likely to obtain a fear or believe a conspiracy in comparison to people who typically utilize a more Democratic news outlet. Three times as likely to obtain a fear when compared to a more Republican-leaning perspective. Applying social media usage as the independent variable, we can analyze that heavy reliance on social media and how it increases certain fears. Contrasting social media usage against users of CNN and Fox News, two well-known news outlets with generally differing political parties, and ran a cross tabulation between participant’s usages of informational outlets in comparison with how afraid they are of contracting coronavirus. With the majority of adult Americans receiving their daily news from popular social media websites and applications, it is imperative that social media companies rigorously fact-check the information cloaked as news circulating the web. This analytical approach allows for the solid assumption that due to the more common circulation of fake news and its prevalence in social media rather than standard news sources, people are more likely to develop a fear when constantly relying on social media as their primary source of information.
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
According to the Chapman Survey of American Fears (2020-2021) fear of corrupt government officials is the number one thing Americans fear: 79.6 % of them in fact. In addition, voter turnout is one of the quintessential pillars that allows a democracy to function properly. In this paper I will examine the extent to which fear of government officials’ corruption affects voter turnout. Using the data from the Chapman Survey of American Fears and variables from the American National Election Study between 2020 and 2021, I expect to find a moderately strong relationship between fear of government corruption and voter turnout. Moreover, I expect to find that the more an American, fears that government corruption is taking place, the less likely that individual is to vote. When looking at the 2020 and 2021 data on elections and fears, I expect media, policy, and party control to affect the fear Americans have of governmental corruption. Another mechanism I expect to affect American’s fear of corruption is political preference; more specifically I expect Republicans to have less of a fear of government corruption. Although eliminating fear of corruption is nearly impossible, limiting outside factors that increase fear of corruption can increase voter turnout, and increase political activism in the United States.
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
The anonymous figurehead called “Q” has divided the nation and helped create the online infrastructure, QAnon, that has spread some of today’s most well followed and supported conspiracy theories. What began as an anonymous person dropping random commentary on the website 4chan turned into a prominent figure that spread conspiracies such as the Pizzagate theory and accused high level politicians of being “deep fakes”. QAnon has turned into a huge political movement that defined the 2020 United States presidential election and created a faction within the Republican Party. But what type of people are apart of QAnon? How has QAnon grown to this level and have these always been the people that followed conspiracies. Conspiracies are nothing new to American culture, but it has never held so many real-life consequences than what we have seen QAnon created.
Using the 7th Annual Chapman Survey of American Fears, a representative national survey, conducted in January 2021, I will be examining the relationship between believing in other traditional conspiracies, media consumption, and demographic factors such as political affiliation and education, to having a strong to moderate agreement level with QAnon. This is significant because QAnon has changed the shape of the United States Political System and has been a platform that has breed mistrust between citizens and the government, with this dissertation I will be able to distinguish how creations like QAnon get to their target audience and what characters these individuals share.
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
In this paper I will examine how party affiliation and belief in conspiracy theories affect COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and the following of COVID-19 mandates in the United States. I examine how much of an influence these factors have in the decision to get the COVID-19 vaccine while focusing on how belief in conspiracy theories is hindering progress against the virus. Many factors have an influence in the decision to get the vaccine but trust in experts happens to be one of the most influential while interestingly finding that race and religion also play a role. It is also important to observe other deciding factors such as effectiveness and safety of the vaccine and whether previous vaccine hesitancy differs from that of the COVID-19 vaccine. Relying on the Chapman University Survey of American Fears, a representative national sample of U.S. adults, I was able to observe how many U.S. adults fear that the vaccine is an excuse to insert tracking technology into their bodies. I find a possible correlation between income and education and the difference in vaccination rates per group. Additionally, race and religion are revealed to be significant influencers. While we are living in uncertain times it is important to analyze the factors behind people’s opposition and rejection to the vaccine and overall mandates.
Psychology
Advisor(s): Dr. Julia Boehm, Dr. Brooke Jenkins
COVID-19 has led to the emergence of an altered society. Cumulative and individual stressors may lead to a time of crisis for students over time. Considering the detrimental impacts that stress may have, proper attention should be given to various mental and physical health issues. Previous studies suggest that certain psychosocial factors, such as optimism and positive affect, serve as valuable resources for mental and physical health during times of stress. However, the associations between optimism and positive affect with mental and physical health outcomes during the pandemic are yet to be investigated. This study aims to investigate these associations. We hypothesized that greater levels of optimism and positive affect would be associated with lower levels of depression, anxiety, and physical health symptoms during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. 293 university students were recruited to complete an online questionnaire in the spring of 2020. Longitudinal data was collected from participants every two months after, for a total of five assessments. Students self-reported their optimism, positive affect, anxiety, depression, and physical health levels. Multilevel modeling was used to test associations. Results indicated that greater optimism and positive affect were associated with fewer depressive symptoms, lower anxiety, fewer physical health symptoms, and better self-reported physical health (ps < 0.05). When testing optimism and positive affect together, both were associated with depressive symptoms, but only optimism was associated with anxiety (ps < 0.05). When entered together in the model, optimism and positive affect were not significantly associated with physical symptoms or self-reported physical health (ps > 0.05). Results suggest optimism and positive affect may serve as resources during COVID-19, and there are overlaps in their effects on health. Further investigations could create and implement effective health interventions that promote optimism and positive affect.
Advisor(s): Dr. Julia Boehm
Adolescent substance use has a net negative effect on the population as it interferes with cognitive processes, contributes to mood disorders, and costs society in healthcare, education, and juvenile crime. Perceived control may be a relevant factor for adolescent substance use, including cigarette and alcohol intake. Past longitudinal research that studied the relationship between personal control and cigarette smoking and alcohol use in ninth grade students revealed that those who showed more perceived control were less likely to have experimented with alcohol and smoking than those who showed less perceived control. However, most evidence examines adults and focuses on gender effects, leaving a gap of information about perceived control in adolescents and substance use. We hypothesized that adolescents with less perceived control would have more recent alcohol consumption and cigarette smoking relative to those with more control. The study used data from 2,824 participants in the 1958 National Child Development Study, which examined individuals born in England, Scotland, or Wales in March 1958 from birth through older age. Essays written by participants at age 11 were rated for perceived control by two judges (Finn’s r interrater reliability = .88). Cigarette smoking (smoker vs. non-smoker) and alcohol consumption (drinker vs. non-drinker) was self-reported at age 16. A logistic regression did not show a relationship between perceived control and being a smoker (b = -0.05, standard error [SE] = 0.04, p = 0.18, odds ratio [OR] = 0.95). Similarly, a logistic regression did not show a relationship between perceived control and drinking alcohol (b = -0.06, SE = 0.09, p = 0.51, OR = 0.94). However, the direction of associations were consistent with the hypothesis that more control would predict less smoking and drinking. Findings do not suggest that feeling in control of one's life at age 11 is correlated with less recent alcohol consumption and cigarette use 5 years later. Further research on this topic would be beneficial.
Advisor(s): Dr. Aaron Schurger, Dr. Matthew Ballew, Dr. Marina Kahana
Recent research indicates an effect of attractive celebrity images on mood and body image (Brown, 2016). This effect can further develop into long term issues, such as body dysmorphia or depressive/suicidal symptoms. Female adolescents are especially susceptible to these effects, as they are likelier to engage in intense personal celebrity worship (Maltby, 2005), although this may also be attributed to the lack of research on the impact of media exposure on males’ body image (Agliata, 2004). My research will focus on how a self-evaluation of one’s own demographics (race, gender, etc.) may modulate the effect of attractive celebrity images on self-image. I predict that participants will rank themselves as less attractive when asked questions about their demographics before being exposed to images of celebrities versus being asked those questions after (as is usually done in research).
Advisor(s): Dr. Vincent Berardi
Homelessness is a growing issue in California, with more than half of all unsheltered people in the country residing in the state. As public opinion is known to impact policy formation, the first goal of this study was to quantify the accuracy of the public’s understanding of the homeless population and its attitudes towards this group, with an emphasis on measuring stigma and mental illness. The second goal was to determine if certain misperceptions and/or attitudes are associated with preferences for different policy solutions. The Perceptions of Homeless and Mental Illness survey was sent via Amazon Mechanical Turk to participants in California (N = 389; mean age=39) and consisted of items in 5 categories: Homeless Demographics, Opinions/Attitudes, Causes of Homelessness, Policy Ideas, and Social Dominance/Modern Racism. A Principal Components Analysis was run on the Causes and Policy questions to build subscales, and then multiregressions and ANOVA analyses were run on these subscales to compare perceptions of causes and policy ideas to participant demographics and general attitudes. Regarding findings, political party was the most significant predictor of causes opinions and policy support, with conservatives being significantly more likely to attribute causes to personal failings, such as laziness, as well as support policies that emphasized personal responsibility. Opinions regarding social dominance were associated with support for more individualized causes and exclusionary policies. Finally, significant associations were found between personal failings causes, personal responsibility policies, and stigmatized opinions about homeless and mental illness. These findings emphasize the need for interventions to address stigma and prejudice in addition to solving the homelessness problem.
Sociology
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
American police, like the cultural and social structure of the country, are highly individualistic. People living near and under the poverty line, too often people of color, in the US are actively more afraid of our law enforcement due to the years of our government fostering a failed system of policing, incarceration, discrimination, and injustice. Our modern police force is a close derivative of the brutal “slave patrol” forces that monitored the slave movement and enforced discipline across the south. Fear of police abuse is not uncommon among minority communities, and harsh law enforcement is a device and result of procedures to keep up with racial isolation and disparity. This paper will evaluate the relationship between minority and low-income families and fear of police brutality, using data retrieved from the Chapman University Survey of American Fears. Low-income black families are more likely to be under the federal poverty line than other races. As the middle class disappears and cities become more divided into a binary of classes, upper or lower. Undertones of segregation hold firm as low-income neighborhoods also tend to have a higher number of black people. The higher-class areas tend to have fewer black people; however, higher rates of police killing black people. Black people living in America often fear police regardless of their economic status; however, combined with those who face income disparities, it further deepens the discrimination. This fear of our law enforcement system is not a displaced one. In this article, I hope to delve into the factors that fuel this fear for so many low-income people of color in the US.
Software Engineering
Advisor(s): Dr. LouAnne Boyd
Our goal is to understand concerns teens may have in a post-COVID environment particularly when it concerns social media. Teens are searching for more authoritative self-imposed controls over their social media usage (ages 16 - 17). This is shown by the interview data we collected in which multiple teens mentioned trouble managing their time due to a compulsive tendency to overindulge when it concerns social media. With this in mind, we’ve set out to design applications and features that will (hopefully) aid in curbing some of the more addictive parts of social media. By helping teens use social media less, we hope to improve their overall productivity in life. Through a variety of paper prototypes, we conducted user testing to determine the best designs for setting self-imposed goals for app usage, including choosing to set either an automatic limit schedule or one with more manual impositions, and having an in-app feature to set a time limit reminder to take a break. Through interactive wireframing, these apps and features, as well as general usability will be tested. Results will follow.
Theatre
Advisor(s): Dr. Andrew Chappell
Korean pop music, also known as K-pop, has become a widespread global phenomenon over the past 20 years. Most recently, boy group BTS has captured the attention of record labels and audiences for their structured dances, group dynamic, and exciting performances. Similar to how K-Pop artists have become international sensations, other aspects of Korean culture and entertainment have established a spot in mainstream popular culture. Films like Parasite, Korean dramas, and television shows like Netflix’s streaming hit Squid Game, and even Korean beauty products are all forms of Korean entertainment and leisure that are a part of mainstream American entertainment. The unprecedented influence of Korean pop culture on Western entertainment is known as the Hallyu wave, and aspects of the wave can be observed most readily at ethnic enclaves such as Koreatown Los Angeles. Through cultural hubs like Koreatown Los Angeles, the different commercial entities serve as bridges for people who might otherwise not experience Korean culture. From a westernized, non-Korean perspective, elements of tourism and history are analyzed within this project. The purpose of this research is to explore how forms of entertainment at Koreatown Los Angeles such as Korean pop are ways by which Koreans express aspects of their identity, within a westernized setting. In an ethnographic observation, the researcher visited Koreatown Los Angeles and has also studied the history of the cultural site and Korean pop music. Using this western lens, comparisons are drawn culturally to see how capitalist pastimes such as visits to Koreatown Los Angeles and watching idols on a screen, capture the minds and hearts of audiences around the globe.
Advisor(s): Dr. Andrew Chappell
The theater is a unique and collaborative art form where individuals from diverse backgrounds are able to come together to develop and transform words into something meaningful. From actors to production managers, each individual provides important insight into their unique area of focus. The role of a stage manager is to not only manage but it is also organized, communicate and facilitate in order to ensure that the process of production runs smoothly and efficiently. Stage Management is a crucial part of the production process however, it can become extremely stressful and tiring. Because Stage management is a relatively new role to theater, there isn’t much in-depth research into this role.
By looking into the details of what it means to be a stage manager and the stress that comes with it, I hope to discover ways to cope with the stress for future stage managers to come. Through the help of faculty members such as Kim Weber and the professional connections that I have made, I hope to conduct comprehensive interviews on the experiences of other stage managers. I will look not only into the stressful times but also into what made the positive moments so great and how we can turn negatives into positives for the future. I am also hoping to look into further detail into stage management through history and look to see how it has changed throughout time. Even though the idea of stage management is still relatively new, individuals had to take on some part of stage management roles. This is such a prominent issue in the current climate as the role of stage manager is transforming right before our eyes. As the pandemic adds in another factor to stage management, we must learn and juggle our previous responsibilities with our new responsibilities.
- Affect of Biorhythm on the Symbiotic Relationship of Alfalfa and its Microbiome
Advisor(s): Dr. Hagop Atamian
Alfalfa is a legume that is commonly used as a nutritious feed source for ruminants. Being a member of the fabaceae family, alfalfa interacts with the bacteria rhizobia in order to get the nitrogen it needs. Alfalfa encapsulates rhizobia and provides the home for it, and the rhizobia fixes nitrogen for its host in return. However, less known are the other bacteria present in the soil microbiome that also interact with the alfalfa root . In addition, it is well known that plant circadian clock (biorhythm) has significant effects on its interaction with the soil microorganisms. In this project, we are experimenting with alfalfa grown in field soil in order to identify and understand the time of day dependent interactions between alfalfa and the soil microbiome. We are hoping that by understanding this intricate interaction between alfalfa and soil microbes will be valuable in increasing the alfalfa productivity.
- Using HPLC to Analyze Methylated Arginine Derivatives in Myelin Basic Protein, a Protein Implicated in Multiple Sclerosis
Advisor(s): Dr. Cecilia Lopez
Myelin basic protein (MBP) is necessary for the proper function of the central nervous system. Since it maintains the integrity of the myelin sheath, its degradation is implicated in multiple sclerosis (MS). MS is a chronic autoimmune neuromuscular disease that currently has no cure. Patients with MS are typically diagnosed when their immune system reacts to modified forms of MBP. Once translated, MBP is heavily modified by the chemical addition of molecules including phosphoryl (PO3-) and methyl (CH3) groups at serine and arginine residues. Although phosphorylation by various kinases is generally absent in patients with MS, methylated arginine residues as well as the enzyme that causes methylation, PRMT5, have both been implicated in MS and are established markers of autoimmunity. Since arginine groups can be mono- or di-methylated (asymmetric vs. symmetric), we have set out to optimize methods using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) for the detection of these three arginine derivatives. Preliminary data shows that monomethylated arginine can be distinguished from dimethylated arginine, however further work to resolve the two dimethylated species is underway. Resolving the two species will allow for a more efficient way to distinguish between healthy modifications of MBP vs. MBP found in MS. Once we can distinguish between these arginine derivatives, we will perform in vitro methylation reactions using modified MBP and resolve these acid hydrolyzed derivatives via HPLC.
Biological Sciences
- Handedness in Thread Skein Coiling
Advisor(s): Dr. Douglas Fudge, Dr. Zeng
Hagfishes are a group of eel-like animals that are known for their secretion of slime when they are disturbed or attacked by predators. Slime glands contain intermediate filament protein threads that are manufactured within specialized gland thread cells. The glands produce two main cell types, gland thread cells, and gland mucous cells. The thread cells are then diluted by the seawater where they uncoil and extend as fibers. The mucus absorbs the water, making the mucous component of the slime. Gland thread cells make the fibrous part of the slime, which deploys as coiled threads known as skeins. The slime threads within skeins exhibit a coiled morphology. While the 3D morphology of thread coiling is known, the origin of the coiling is unknown. The coiling of the thread can be left-handed or right-handed. I wondered whether there are patterns of skein coiling within individuals and species. One possibility is that the coiling direction is the same in all individuals but varies among species. It is also possible that left- and right-handed coiling is randomly distributed individually, within a species, and among species. In my project, I will measure the handedness of coiling in skeins from numerous individuals from several species of hagfishes. I will do this by observing skeins through a scanning electron microscope (SEM) and using an established protocol of handedness. The results will provide clues on whether there is a preferred method of thread skein production from coiling in a given species or individual.
- Hagfish Epidermal Thread Cells
Advisor(s): Dr. Douglas Fudge, Dr. Yu Zeng
Hagfish are a species of bottomfeeder fish with the unique defense mechanism of slime secretion. This slime is able to clog the gills of their predators. Their slime is composed of a matrix of mucus and threads, with these threads being released from the gland thread cells (GTCs). Epidermal thread cells (ETCs) are another type of cell in the hagfish that contains threads, and they are embedded throughout the epidermis. Very little is known about the function of the ETCs or the structures that have been observed inside of them. It is known that their threads are thinner, shorter, and less complexly coiled within the cell than the GTCs’ threads are. ETCs have no active mechanism of releasing their threads like GTCs do, but it has been found that they can be released passively upon disturbance to the skin. When hagfish skin was scraped with a microscope slide cover slip, ETCs were able to be collected on the slip, which was placed on a slide and observed under a microscope. Images were captured, and using the image analysis software “image J”, ETC threads were measured from end to end to obtain their lengths. Threads so far have ranged from just under 2 mm to just over 3 mm long. Understanding the morphology of these cells and the structure of their different components will help us understand the ways in which these cells may function, and what role they serve for the hagfish.
- Uncovering Slime Deployment Mechanisms in Hagfish
Advisor(s): Dr. Douglas Fudge, Andrew Lowe
Hagfishes are a diverse group of jawless marine fishes that are noteworthy for their ability to produce gill-clogging slime when threatened. The slime exudate ejected by the slime glands is made up of two main components: thread skeins and mucous vesicles. Although the biophysical mechanisms of exudate deployment in seawater are not understood, some details are known. Thread skeins must unravel from their coiled state and provide strength to the slime in the form of a network of silk-like threads. Deployment of mucous vesicles is known to involve the swelling of constituent glycoproteins their subsequent deformation into a vast mucous network that interpenetrates the slime thread network. Recent theoretical work suggests that thread skein unraveling would be greatly enhanced under conditions where the skein (or a loose piece of thread) is pinned to a solid surface. There are two competing hypotheses that work to explain the unravelling. The first is the anchor point hypothesis which states that skeins need to be connected to a solid object in order to unravel and form effective slime. This is contrasted by the elastic mucus matrix hypothesis which explains that skeins stay embedded in mucus and as the mucus deforms, it loads skeins in tension and effects unravelling. We have employed high-speed camera mounted on an Axio Zoom microscope and an upright microscope to observe this process in detail. Our preliminary results align more closely with the elastic mucus hypothesis as there was no unravelling before the mucus was formed with the hydrating mucus also acting as an elastic solid for the skeins to embed in. Furthermore, unravelling occurred only for skeins embedded in the mucus matrix when the mucus remained attached to the slide and turbulence seemed necessary to provide force to the mucus which could then transmit to the skeins to facilitate unravelling.
Chemistry
- Hydroboration of Isocyanates Using a Carbodiphosphorane Catalyst
Advisor(s): Dr. Allegra Liberman-Martin
Hydroboration is a reaction that is becoming increasingly used in the synthesis of many organic compounds as it is typically chemo-selective and the hydroborated product leads to a number of synthetic routes. These reactions are traditionally catalyzed by expensive transition metals. To explore a more efficient catalyst, the use of a cyclic carbodiphosphorane catalyst has been investigated. This catalyst can be prepared in a two-step synthesis and is very reactive due to a carbon containing two lone pairs. This, in turn, makes the catalyst an excellent nucleophile. The research being presented will explore the hydroboration of isocyanates and test the overall efficiency of this catalyst in providing the expected products.
- Comparison of Morse and Harmonic Oscillator Basis Sets for Diatomics
Advisor(s): Dr. Jerry LaRue
In the course of chemical innovation, laboratory experiments can often be costly and time-consuming. The use of computational chemistry, the simulation of chemical reactions by a computer, can provide a method to cheaply perform hundreds of reactions faster than can be done in the lab, allowing researchers to focus their time and financial resources on the experiments that prove the most promising. Although computational chemistry is a powerful tool in the sciences, it is a topic that undergraduate students rarely work with due to the intrinsic difficulty of quantum mechanics and implementing dense mathematical theory into computer code. Thus, there is a need for a pedagogically focused computational chemistry package that illustrates the benefits of the subject and walks students through the process of converting chemistry theory into executable code. To address this issue, a pedagogical Python package for Jupyter Lab was designed and implemented to provide both LaTeX descriptions of the theory and mathematics, along with a breakdown of how to convert the theory into code. The library is designed in a modular fashion to support conceptual learning and provides a built-in graphing system to allow for visualization of any data being computed within the package. To illustrate the difference between harmonic and anharmonic potentials and basis sets to students, the harmonic oscillator and anharmonic morse oscillator basis sets were implemented within this framework to illustrate the strengths and weaknesses of both in the context of computing vibrational wavefunctions for diatomic molecules.
- Investigating the Role of the Counterion in Calcium-Mediated Sulfur-Fluoride Exchange
Advisor(s): Dr. Maduka Ogba
Calcium triflimide, triflate, and fluoride salts have recently gained attention as cheap, abundant, and non-toxic Lewis acid catalysts. However, little is known about the mechanism of activation or the role of the counterions in these chemical reactions. Recent experiments show that calcium bistriflimide was effective in activating sulfur(VI) fluorides toward nitrogen-containing sulfur(VI) compounds via sulfur-fluoride exchange (SuFEx). However, significantly reduced yields were observed when calcium fluoride instead of bistriflimide, was used as the Lewis-acid activator, suggesting the non-innocent role of the counterion in facilitating calcium catalysis. In this work, density functional theory methods were used to compute and compare the SuFEx mechanism mediated by calcium fluoride to that of calcium bistriflimide. Structural, energetic, and electronic properties of the activated species are analyzed to reveal the origins of the counterion-induced differences in reactivity between calcium Lewis acidic salts.
- Counterions Effects in Calcium-Mediated Sulfur-Fluorine Exchange
Advisor(s): Dr. Maduka Ogba
Calcium ions, bound to weakly coordinating anions (e.g., bistriflimide or triflate ions), have gained significant utility within the last two decades as catalysts for facilitating challenging chemical reactions. This is particularly exciting because calcium, unlike the transition metals typically used as catalysts, is cheap, abundant, and non-toxic. Despite these obvious advantages, calcium catalysis is in its infancy - little is known about the mode in which calcium salts activate substrates in chemical reactions. Recent experimental work has shown that calcium bistriflimide salts activate sulfur(VI) fluorides in a sulfur(VI)-fluorine exchange (SuFEx) toward nitrogen-containing sulfur(VI) compounds of medicinal relevance. A closer look at the experimental data show that switching the anion from bistriflimide to triflate results in dramatic yield losses, indicating that the counterion plays a crucial role in facilitating the chemical process, beyond being weakly coordinating. In this work, density functional theory methods were used to compute and compare the SuFEx mechanism mediated by calcium triflate to that mediated by calcium bistriflimide. Structural, energetic, and electronic insights from computations that explain the origins of the counterion-induced reactivity differences between calcium bistriflimide and calcium triflate will be presented.
Communication Sciences and Disorders
- The Influence of Maternal Language on the Vocabulary Development of Infants After Early Cochlear Implantation
Advisor(s): Dr. Mary Fagan
Mother-infant language interactions are correlated with the vocabulary size of infants. The language diversity of mother-infant interactions influences the baby’s vocabulary development, which is considered important for later academic and linguistic achievement. Vocabulary development consists of vocabulary comprehension and production. Vocabulary comprehension is the individual’s ability to understand the meaning of a word. Vocabulary production is the ability to utilize labels or describe the nature of a stimulus. Most infants with cochlear implants have less early hearing experience than hearing infants of the same chronological age. The hearing experience of the individual is referred to as hearing age; while chronological age refers to their actual age. For infants with profound hearing loss, hearing experience typically begins when they receive cochlear implants. Therefore, early implantation tends to decrease delays in vocabulary acquisition. Our research project assesses the language and communication skills of infants, ages 8-30 months, and the influence of maternal language on vocabulary size. The number of words spoken by mothers is compared with the vocabulary size of infants with and without cochlear implants using the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventories. Although there are various studies analyzing the vocabulary delays of children with cochlear implants, there is less research available that examines the relationship between maternal language and vocabulary development for infants who have received cochlear implants in the first year. Therefore the goal of this study is to examine the influence of maternal language on the vocabulary development of infants who had received cochlear implants at 13 months of age or earlier.
Communication Studies
- Effects of Family Communication on a Young Adults' Self-esteem
Advisor(s): Dr. Austin Lee
The family environment is the first setting in which children internalize communication styles and learn behavior. Throughout a child's life relationships with family members and experiences impact an individual's self-esteem. The purpose of the research project is to further investigate the relationship between family communication styles and young adults' self-esteem. Our overall objective is to closely investigate whether positive or negative communication has an effect on children’s self-esteem. Positive family communication is respectful, honest, open, straightforward while negative communication includes yelling, passive-aggressive behavior, blaming, name-calling, etc. Self-esteem and family communication are important to study because there needs to be a better understanding of how family communication affects children’s self-esteem which in turn can affect mental health.
We will be collecting our data through a survey that asks multiple questions that will measure an individual's self-esteem and gauge their family relations and styles of communication. Our participants will be young adults ranging from the ages of 18-25. We are using Rosenberg's self-esteem scale to calculate the participant's self-esteem. To measure is family communication has an effect on self-esteem we will be using the four family communication pattern theory, conversation orientation scale, and conformity orientation scale. According to the Family Communication Patterns Theory, there are four different types of family communication patterns: consensual, pluralistic, protective, and laissez-faire. The conformity orientation scale attempts to measure the orientation through an environment and network where the family members provide unconditional and unqualified obedience to family values and decisions. The conversation orientation scale is aimed at measuring whether one was raised in a high conversation or low conversation environment. We believe that those who were raised in high conformity and low conversation families have lower levels of self-esteem than others.
Computer Science
- I Don’t Have Any Friends: Encouraging Teen Socialization during COVID-19
Advisor(s): Dr. LouAnne Boyd
During the COVID-19 pandemic, with its social distancing and remote learning, it has been apparent that teens have found it difficult to socialize. To address this problem, we have explored two ways of encouraging socialization among teens: in real life, via an app which matches suitable friends, and in online classes, via a cooperative multiplayer video game which integrates with Zoom-style breakout rooms. When asked in interviews, multiple teenagers reported a decline in socialization not just in the real world, but also in educational settings online. In line with the “Prototype” stage of the design thinking process, we developed wireframes with Figma and collected teenagers’ interactions with these wireframes. We then used these wireframes in the “Test” stage of design thinking. Some of our user tests focus on an app that matches teens with possible friends, based on their locations and/or interests. These tests prompt teens to find friends by location, and then by interests, recording the time it takes the users to do these tasks. Other prototype tests focus on the user experience of starting to play a video game in a Zoom-like breakout room. Specifically, we explore the interactive processes of starting a multiplayer game and joining a pre-existing one. A summary of quantitative and qualitative data is discussed.
- Escape to Better Things: Limiting Social Media to Increase Productivity
Advisor(s): Dr. LouAnne Boyd
Covid 19 has been detrimental for the world, unable to physically socialize, teenagers have been shifting gears towards remote leisure activities such as social media. Unfortunately, research suggests that this worldwide issue has led to teens being negatively impacted by their continuously growing obsession with social media as a distraction. It is evident that this change ultimately decreases their productivity. From interviews with teens, they have shown that they recognize these effects and have a desire to get help with this issue. Additionally, research has shown that teenagers’ rate of utility for social media apps are decreasing as they spend more time being productive throughout the day. Our goal, led by a design thinking framework, is to limit social media and the distractions that come with it by possibly blocking notifications from these applications periodically. A different approach is by setting a daily limit on the amount of time spent using social media. By applying user centered design, we first developed multiple prototypes to tackle the problem at hand while boosting productivity. Then, we had a range of users test our works in progress. By analyzing the research we gathered from this, we progressed by applying and generating further improvements to our blueprint to draw a final conclusion. The information accumulated throughout this project is also discussed.
- Personalizing Stress Relieving Activities for Teens
Advisor(s): Dr. LouAnne Boyd
The rise of social media has come with a variety of issues for the younger generation, especially concerning the stress they experience every day because of it. Teens should be able to express themselves and enjoy life without worrying about the “where” or “how” to do this. Our research found some areas that could be improved so teens can more easily find activities to de-stress. By having access to these apps, teens might be able to relieve more of the anxieties they are experiencing. Through ideation sessions, we created four program ideas that should provide quality of life improvements (haircuts, food and movie recommendations, and music playlists). To ease the haircut process, teens can use one of our apps to search for hairdressers that specialize in their preferred style, ensuring a satisfactory cut. Other apps provide specialized playlists and movie recommendations based on preferences and possible triggers, respectively. Finally, we wanted to provide an app that offers teens a chance to share food ideas and locations as a way for teens to easily bond and have fun. All four of these applications provide quick and easy solutions to activities that should be relaxing but can sometimes be tedious and/or stressful. We each prototyped one of these four programs, testing how understandable the interface systems are for each application. We will assess qualitative and quantitative data collected from these teen user tests.
- Human Computer Interaction Elements in Development of Productivity Applications for Adolescents
Advisor(s): Dr. LouAnne Boyd
Living remotely as a teenager has had some important consequences. Research has shown that during COVID and post-COVID, social media use has hindered productivity. Existing literature in the field illustrates that social media use among teens correlates to lower well being, depression, anxiety and lower productivity. During the pandemic, these symptoms have become amplified and are now bigger sources of concern than ever. We ask "Are time limits and separate workspaces effective in increasing productivity by decreasing social media use? To answer this question, we collected data from teens from which we developed prototypes that aimed to reduce time spent on unproductive applications (including social media). In order to achieve this, we gathered qualitative and quantitative data from teen participants, developed low fidelity prototypes, and tested and refined prototypes. Then, we created wireframes and tested the high-fidelity prototypes on the group of interest. By developing ideas for applications we hope to aid productivity and reduce time spent by teens on social media. We conducted user testing of low and high-fidelity prototypes and results are discussed.
Data Analytics
- Causes of Technophobia in Adults
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
Would you like to update the software? Rapid advancements within the field of technology have led the average consumer to grow fearful of technology. This paper will highlight research from the Chapman Survey of American Fears. Hypothesis Ⅰ: I suspect that Individuals who are in the lower class income bracket and the lower education spectrum tend to be more fearful of technology. My theory behind the hypothesis is that those in the lower-income brackets do not have the resources of technology at hand and those who are in the lower education brackets might not have enough experience with technology. Hypothesis Ⅱ: I suspect that those in older generational age brackets will tend to be more fearful of technology. The technological advancements in the last 40 years have inspired this generational theory. Hypothesis Ⅲ: I suspect that specific regions of the United States are more fearful than others. My theory was created with the thought that regions with more rural customs will tend to be more fearful. Technophobia is showcased in many ways, some that might not be picked up by a naked eye. This research will bring light to a relatively new and rapidly developing industry creating stress and worry among individuals nationwide. If the hypotheses are proven to be true we will begin to explore options to give adults resources to combat this fear. Technology surrounds us from the simplest forms like watches to the most complex algorithms on social media. The majority of the population can be oblivious to the covers we put on technology which is why this research is necessary.
- How does Social Media affect Teenagers' Moods?
Advisor(s): Dr. LouAnne Boyd
Over a year of being quarantined for COVID-19, teenagers (age 15-18) have switched to using their phones and laptops more than ever. This is shown by interview data collected in class and through public online app usage trends. Our goal is to create an application that allows a user to manually enter their mood throughout the day, then once their mood is entered, the user will get a list of important statistics about their screen time and mood correlation. A user's phone screen time data will be synced and thoroughly analyzed, showing the user how or how much a certain application affects how they feel. By analyzing social media usage on laptops and mobile phones, we can survey users and see if and how social media usage correlates to their mood from a selection of different moods, social life on a scale of lonely to extremely socially active, sex life on a scale of 1-10, and mental health on a scale of 1-5. Our team will analyze these patterns using simple statistics and regression models to predict how a teen will feel after using social media for an arbitrary amount of numbers. We expect a negative correlation between social media usage and mood, meaning that the more teens use social media, the worse they will feel in the long run. We came to this conclusion due to dopamine being manipulated and raising users baselines through application usage, meaning once they stop using social media, the users dopamine levels will fall below their new heightened baseline.
Environmental Science and Policy
- An Analysis of Particulate Matter and Meteorological Conditions during California Wildfires
Advisor(s): Dr. Jason Keller
For my research, I will be looking at the Dixie and August complex fires, both of which happened in the past two years and the two largest fires recorded in California. I work at an air quality technology company called IQAir, so the data will be gathered from our network of both low cost and federally regulated ground sensors surrounding the fire locations to track the movement of the smoke. I plan on analyzing both PM2.5 and PM10, which are different sizes of particulate matter that represent pollution in the air. This data will be observed using hourly measurements over the course of the days of the fire and compared to the days leading up to the fire. The length of time to return to the standard air quality will also be analyzed. The data will be supplemented with satellite imagery of the region gathered from NASA through the Giovanni platform, such as humidity and meteorological factors, along with the average wind speed in the area in m/s. This research is important because wildfires continue to get more common and more extreme with climate change, and they have significant impacts on human health, livelihood, and the environment. I plan on referencing the new WHO guidelines on air quality to demonstrate the significant impact on health air pollution can have as well.
Health & Strategic Communication
- Personality Traits and Coping During COVID-19
Advisor(s): Dr. Austin Lee
The COVID-19 pandemic brought many novel experiences and unprecedented effects to the United States population. Specifically, from March to May 2020 much of the world was under strict lockdown. The purpose of this research study is to examine if different personality traits affected individuals’ coping styles during the pandemic’s peak. Previous research has analyzed the relationship between personality traits and coping mechanisms. Due to the uniqueness of the COVID-19 pandemic, this study looks to provide a more contextual application of personality traits and coping mechanisms. Participants completed a questionnaire including the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire-Revised (EPQ-R) and the MERS-CoV Staff Questionnaire which was adapted to the context of COVID-19. The three personality traits that will be measured by the EPQ-R are neuroticism, psychoticism, and extraversion. The two categories of coping that will be assessed are problem-focused and emotional-approach coping. It is expected that there will be significant correlations between personality traits and coping strategies such that higher levels of extraversion and psychoticism will be linked to more significant problem-focused coping strategies while higher neuroticism will yield links to more and emotion-focused coping strategies.
Health Sciences and Kinesiology
- Mindfulness Meditations Contribution to Emotional Control via Executive Control Network Functioning to Decrease Likelihood of Developing Alzheimers
Advisor(s): Dr. Manjari Murali
Mindfulness meditation has been shown to have a plethora of positive effects on attention, stress, and memory, and this attentional control may prove to strengthen emotional regulation (Moore et al., 2012). Other studies have shown that those with a history of depression are at risk for developing Alzheimer's disease later in life (Ownby et al., 2012). One of the predominant outcomes of Mindfulness practice is an increased ability of the practitioner to maintain equanimity in the face of difficult situations. By maintaining balanced emotions, these individuals can effectively quell depression symptoms, which by extension can decrease their chance of getting Alzheimer’s later in life. This study includes an extensive literature review on the effects of mindfulness meditation on emotional control, the correlation between emotional regulation and Alzheimer’s, and the link between a history of attentional and mental disorders and Alzheimer’s. Our research has led us to believe that the risk of developing Alzheimer’s can be greatly decreased by mindfulness meditation practice in mid life. We identified peer-reviewed scientific publications using search engines and plugged in key words like, “meditation, “emotion,” “depression,” “attention,” and “Alzheimer’s.” Additionally, we located open-source and research data sets to compare the prevalence of attentional and mental health disorders by state (in the United States) with the likelihood of an Alzheimer's diagnosis. Our analysis of the literature indicates that the Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) Program improves attention control in participants by allowing their executive control network to function at a greater capacity. This leads to greater allocation of attentional resources, even in the case of emotionally charged situations. We argue that Mindfulness-mediated regulation of one’s emotional response will decrease their chance of developing depression, and therefore, decrease their chance of developing Alzheimer’s disease later in life.
- The Effects of Mindfulness on Stress, with Implications for Alzheimer's Disease
Advisor(s): Dr. Manjari Murali
As new research emerges on the effectiveness of mindfulness practices, there is a growing interest in the specific neurophysiological and longitudinal outcomes of mindfulness, including its long-term effects on stress. Through an extensive literature review, we are considering a surplus of experimental studies that have found an inverse relationship between mindfulness and both perceived and physiological stress. We are also seeking out studies that have investigated chronic stress as a factor for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Numerous studies indicate that Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) is an intervention beneficial for stress management and general mental health (Klatt et al., 2009). Although there have been many studies that individually explore either the link between mindfulness and stress, or between stress and AD, there is less research done on the implications of mindfulness on preventing or delaying the onset of AD. Existing public and research data sets will be analyzed to identify potential connections between the prevalence of AD in a population and levels of stress and mindfulness. In addition to literature review and data set analysis, we will present our longitudinal research design to investigate the correlation between mindfulness and levels of perceived and physiological stress in participants of the 6-week Mindfulness Course taught by the Fish Interfaith Center at Chapman University. Our research study has implications for Alzheimer’s disease prevention because chronic stress in midlife is believed to increase the risk of Alzheimer’s disease in later life (Jeong et al., 2006). Mental health surveys and salivary cortisol tests will be taken before, immediately upon completion, and 3 months after the completion of the Fish Mindfulness Course. It is anticipated that both the levels of perceived stress as well as the physiological stress of the subjects will decrease after completing the mindfulness course and partaking in regular meditation, both short-term and long-term.
Music
- A Playlist for Productivity: A Music Therapy Analysis on the Impact of Music Familiarity, Genres, and Productivity.
Advisor(s): Dr. Jessica Sternfeld
Research has shown that listening to music has the power to influence people’s moods. One researcher, DeNora, found in a study 2000 that mood-matching music, or listening to music that matches your current emotional state, has proven to be emotionally transformative. When interviewed, all participants in her study stated that they typically listen to music that they felt they needed in the moment. This research supports the idea of music for productivity, which is the subject of my project. Music therapy is a growing and influential field that has the ability to affect people’s emotional, psychological, and physical well-being. Evidence has shown that music therapy can unlock lost memories in patients with dementia and can be a form of stress relief for veterans with PTSD. However, few of these studies seem to dive deeper into what genres of music are most beneficial in certain situations and/or could create certain outcomes. For example, would an elderly patient find more or less benefit from listening to current pop hits than hits from the 50s? In this paper, I examine the research that has already been done in the field of genre-specific music therapy and related areas, and draw conclusions from what is already known. I also provide templates for further studies, including testing familiarity with the music being played, that can be conducted to expand these results and ideas already in practice.
Pharmacy
- Aged RBC and Brain Endothelial Interactions in Vivo in Tie2-GFP Mice
Advisor(s): Dr. Rachita Sumbria, Rudy Chang
Cerebral microhemorrhages (CMH) are microscopic bleeds in the brain that have a high prevalence in the aging population. Brain vascular disruption and the ensuing red blood cell (RBC) migration into the brain is considered to be the main route of CMH development. It is known that brain endothelial cells can engulf fibrin clots and translocate them to the perivascular area. Further, our previous work, which was primarily done in vitro, has demonstrated that oxidatively stressed RBC (utilizing tert-butyl hydroperoxide (t-BHP)) or RBC degradation products can migrate across the brain endothelium demonstrating that the brain endothelium has erythrophagocytic capabilities. The aim of the current study was two-fold: 1) to extend our in vitro observations in vivo, and 2) to study the interactions between the brain endothelium, microglia, and RBC, given the role of microglia in RBC clearance and CMH development. Here, using Tie2-GFP mice, which express GFP in the endothelium, and fluorescently labeled RBCs, we aimed to study the interactions between the brain endothelium and RBCs exposed to oxidative stress, in vivo. For this, PBS- and tBHP-treated RBCs were injected into Tie2-GFP mice (n=4 per group) and allowed to circulate for 24h. Brains were harvested, sectioned, stained for Iba1 (a microglial marker), and imaged using a confocal microscope, post-mortem. All the images were analyzed using NIH Image J for: RBC-positive vessels, Iba-1-positive area, and microglial activation state (resting or activated). Our results showed that tBHP-RBCs attached to the brain blood vessels and corroborated our in vitro findings. Further, there was a significantly higher iba1-positive area in the tBHP-RBC treated mice. These results confirm the erythrophagocytosis phenotype of the brain endothelium for damaged/stressed RBCs, and this process was associated with microgliosis, in vivo.
- Biologic TNF-α Inhibitors Reduce Microgliosis in Aged APP/PS1 Mice for Alzheimer’s Disease
Advisor(s): Dr. Rachita Sumbria, Joshua Yang, Dr. Rachita Sumbria
Microglia are the immune cells of the brain and their role in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is increasingly reported (1). Microglia are the main source for tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα), a major pro-inflammatory cytokine in the brain (1). Further, studies show that TNFα plays a pathological role in AD pathophysiology (3). For example, TNFα is increased in the plasma and brains of AD patients. As a result, TNFα inhibitors (TNFIs) can be potential treatments for AD. The current existing biologic TNFIs do not cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB) (2). To cross the BBB, a fusion protein was engineered wherein the TNFI was fused to an antibody against the transferrin receptor (TfRMAb). The bioengineered fusion protein enables the TNFI to get into the brain using receptor-mediated transport (2). Our goal was to study the effects of two TNFIs: Etanercept, which is a currently FDA-approved TNFI for peripheral inflammatory conditions, and the BBB-penetrating TNFI. For this, 10.7-month-old male APP/PS1 mice were injected intraperitoneally with saline (n=16), BBB-penetrating TNFI (3 mg/kg, n=9), Etanercept (1.5 mg/kg, n=9) or TfRMAb (2.25 mg/kg, n=5) three days/week for 10 weeks. At the end of the study, the brains were collected, sectioned, stained for Iba1 (microglia marker), imaged, and analyzed using NIH Image J for the Iba1-positive area. The data quantified indicated that both Etanercept and the BBB-penetrating TNFI treated mice had reduced microgliosis suggesting that both peripheral and central TNFIs can reduce microgliosis in the aged APP/PS1 mice.
Physical Therapy
- Tug Study in Grail Lab at Rinker Health Campus
Advisor(s): Dr. Rahul Soangra, Michael Shiraishi
With the number of stroke patients on the rise, including amongst a younger population, it is imperative to better understand the role of gait and posture asymmetry as a precursor to an individual’s fall-risk and how this information can be utilized for stroke rehabilitation. This study investigates how asymmetry influences mobility in healthy participants using TUG (timed up and go) test. We seek to establish which aspect of TUG, if any alone, determines an individual’s risk of falling. These tests include a sit to stand test (STS), 10-step gait (‘OGW’ over ground walking), and 360° turn test (TURN), in addition to the complete TUG test time. Kinematic and kinetic data was collected from the participants with and without weight attachment on their non-dominant leg. The asymmetry of the weight will simulate a stroke patient’s reduced mobility characteristics and will help determine if limb asymmetry due to attached weight influences TUG performance. In this study, we recruited 10 healthy young (5 males, 5 females, Age M±SD, Height = M±SD, weight = M±SD), and 10 healthy old (5 males, 5 females, Age M±SD, Height = M±SD, weight = M±SD). The amount of weight was normalized to 7.5% of their total body weight. Data was collected using motion sensor capture on Vicon Nexus, X-Sens accelerometer data, and Smartphone data on the platform EdgeImpulse. Data was processed and biomechanics parameters of gait and posture will be assessed and compared to identify any patterns or discrepancies among participants within each aspect of the TUG test.
- Evaluating Effects of Asymmetry Load on Shank on Postural Sway Characteristics on Healthy
Presenter(s): Talia Brennan, Bridgette Kohl, Johanna Darendinger
Advisor(s): Dr. Rahul Soangra, Michael Shiraishi
Postural stability involves a person’s ability to control their body center of mass (COM) over the base of support . In individuals with stroke, postural stability is greatly altered due to hemiparalysis, limiting the ability of these people to maintain their balance, and increasing their fall risk. It can be affected by varying factors such as decreased control of affected side, strength of affected side muscles, neuromuscular deficits, endurance or stamina, and increased body mass index (BMI). In this study, 10 young males (age 23.67 ± 5.5 years, height 169.50 ±7.42 inches, weight 153.13 ± 40.77lbs) and females (age 25.75 ±7.85 years, height 169.50 ± 7.42 inches, weight 169.15±82.97lbs) and 10 elderly males (age 70.75 ±7.37years, height 174.75±6.02 inches, weight 180.00±4.96lbs) and females (ages 69.50 ±4.51years, height 165.19±4.88inches, weight 135.43± 28.01lbs) participated. All Participants performed postural stability standing task with and without weights attached on the dominant lower limb . Participants were asked to stand still for one minute with eyes open and eyes closed condition. Weights made up of 7.5% of the participant’s body weight were placed on their ankles in order to stimulate how a stroke patient’s mobility is altered. Postural parameters such as sway area, sway velocity, center of pressure length were evaluated for with and without limb weights. This was done in order to see how weight asymmetry affected their balance during standing. Ultimately, it was hypothesized that more center of pressure excursions would be present with weight than without thus resulting in deficits to maintain balance. This study can simulate stroke conditions to some extent and facilitate understanding on how stroke affects postural stability and increased fall risk.
Political Science
- Setting the Fear Agenda: How Media Accessibility Affects Hate Crime Victimization Fears in America
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
The Department of Justice and the FBI designate hate crimes to be crimes, often violent, based on race, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or disability. Since the 1990s, crime news reporting has tripled, and news media has geared more towards 24-hour news coverage. As media accessibility and consumption have increased, the visibility of crime, in general, has increased, but a spotlight on hate crimes has become emergent. Sociological and political theories aim to explain how rising accessibility to media can affect people’s opinions and the social and political agendas of the country. Countless research contributions to the theory of agenda-setting have aimed to show the effects media has on influencing viewers based on obtrusive and unobtrusive issues; however, little research has questioned if the media can influence the fears of its viewers through such reporting. This paper will investigate the relationship between one’s media consumption and the extent to which one fears being the victim of a hate crime (including racially motivated hate crimes). Relying on original data from the Chapman Survey of American Fears (2019 & 2020/2021), a nationally representative sample of U.S. adults, I expect to find a noticeable relationship between one’s media consumption and their fear of being victim to a hate crime. I also expect to find that the amount of media one consumes will affect whether they fear being the victim of a hate crime due to heightened media coverage of hate crimes and racially motivated violence during 2020. Nevertheless, finding a relationship between one’s media consumption and fear of being the victim of a hate crime could signal a new era in American history where its citizens fear each other more than international or environmental threats simply due to access to information.
- Wildfire Unpreparedness in California
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordo
The California fire season has extended into a full year with Golden State residents finding themselves facing more frequent and more intense wildfires than in years past. In this analysis I explore the relationship between wildfires, voting behavior, and class. Utilizing a statewide representative dataset, the Public Understanding of Debris Flow and Wildfire Messaging, I find that affluence has a strong relationship with being prepared for a potential wildfire. Additionally, I find that poorer Californians are less likely to have taken precautions to protect their homes from wildfires. These findings highlight that as these fires continue to pop up across the state that low-income homeowners will be hit disproportionately hard as local and state governments fail to fill in the cracks and support these individuals. These findings should elicit a reckoning that major steps are needed to be taken not only to combat wildfires but also to prepare less affluent Californians for when these fires inevitably occur. Californians across the state are feeling more threatened by wildfires now than they have in years past but low-income Californians still need support to prepare for the next potential fire. While we may not think of fires as purveyors of classism, the lack of resources to prepare for these fires results in them having racist and classist impacts.
- Partisanship and its' Impact on our Beliefs About Immigration.
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
Our beliefs about undocumented people and their movement to the United States are heavily rooted in our partisanship and subsequently our consumption of any and all forms of media. In this paper, I examine the relationship between a person and their political identity, their sources of information as well as their overall consumption of the media, and conclusively their beliefs about the undocumented population and their status or a lack thereof in the United States. I have found that those that identify themselves as Republican or are more conservative in their beliefs, are inclined to believe that a heavier restriction or an absolute ban on immigration is the only solution to make the United States safer and to maintain a particular set of values. Democrats, or those who label themselves as liberal, are more likely to think on the contrary, and that it makes no difference to the safety of the country and whether or not we open the borders to people will not affect the dynamic in the United States. News and media consumption go hand-in-hand with partisanship and therefore act as an increasingly large component in a person's belief about this policy. Republicans who consume conservative leaning media such as Fox News have a significantly higher likelihood of being anti-immigration, whereas Democrats who source from social media forums, which are often more left leaning, tend to think the opposite.
- Fear and Skepticism: A Changing Climate During the Trump Era
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
Public awareness of the climate crisis has increased over the past several decades due in part to increased exposure to climate science and the drastic reports released by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. This report uses the past four years of the Chapman Survey on American Fears to track the groups most fearful of climate change and those who have high levels of environmental concern. The variables tracked across these years include individual income, education level, age, political ideology and party identification, as well as the extent to which one believes the Bible is literal in its content. These demographics are analyzed through a series of linear regression models and correlation tests. Hypotheses tested in this report are derived from the anti-reflexivity hypothesis and the concept of End Times Theology. The Agenda-Setting effect of mainstream partisan media in the United States is also analyzed to provide context to the information sources of various demographics. Republicans and conservatives, as expected, are least likely to fear climate change of any demographic and exacerbate differences in smaller demographics when controlling for party identification. Republicans with higher incomes yield a negative relationship to fear of climate change and overall environmental concern. Democrats as a whole are more likely to fear climate change and have higher environmental concern, though the more specific demographics of income, age, and education hold highly mixed results across the four years of data. Interpretation of the Bible as literally true, word-for-word, increased its strength in determining one’s fear of climate change throughout the Trump presidency. Fear of climate change, while climbing from 2017 to 2019, saw a slide backwards during 2020, setting a bleak stage for the future of climate policy in the United States.
- The Pro Life Movement: Misconceptions and Demographics
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
In the past decade, the pro-life movement has been strongly associated with the Republican Party, however, party affiliation is not the only determining factor in picking a stance on this hot topic. An individual's party identification does not necessarily determine their stance on certain issues nor can we say that their stance on certain issues determines their party affiliation. In this paper, I examine the relationship between being pro-life and other demographics such as household income, race/ethnicity, age, religiosity, and other stereotypical markers of the pro-life movement. Using the ANES 2020 data set which represents the general population of Americans in the U.S. I expect to find a correlation between being pro-life and having less college education, lower income, religious affiliation and being part of the hispanic community. I will be examining how these factors are looked at when seperated, as well as how they may paint a different picture than when these factors are analyzed in multi-variable crosstabs. The correlations made between the pro-life group and the dependent variables may line up with what has already been previously discovered as markers for support of the movement, but with a closer examination of the relationships that have previously not been uncovered, I hope my data will give insight to the pro-choice movement and how anyone could be pro-life, and vise versa. To have a better understanding between these variables could lead to less hostility and less political divisiveness between the two groups so that we can potentially bring this topic to the negotiation table.
- Identifying the Key Contributors of Environmental Fears
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
Climate change is taking a strategic position in international and national politics. The recent emergence of climate change effects has reached record high numbers within the last two decades. My research examines how the belief in climate change and other environmental fears relate to the media, political preferences, and generational differences. Additionally, the research will investigate the role of partisan group identity and how that can influence the science behind climate change's politicization. Utilizing the Chapman University Survey of American Fears, a nationally representative sample, this study explores the correlation between the fear of climate and other environmental fears, with media, demographic, and social-psychological variables. Two themes identified include: (1) the demand for unbiased media, political, and social change focusing on the climate emergency, and (2) identifying critical contributors to the division of fear on climate change, including the media, political leaders, generational differences, and capitalist ideologies. The research will conclude with a discussion of how the media and party identification affects the way climate change is perceived and why scientific information is understood differently, from person to person. As my research found, the politicization of environmental crises is one of the most prevalent explanations for fear of climate change. Thus, it is crucial to question why there is a divide within society amongst the legitimacy of climate change. This fast-growing crisis will not stop without significant changes on both sides of the political divide.
- Social Media Impact on the General Public's Fears
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
Prevalent everywhere, fake news remains camouflaged amongst the social media posts of over 4.48 billion people worldwide. This paper will provide analysis regarding the complexive dilemma society faces against falsified information through the usage of social media and how in general people obtain more fears through heavy social media usage. Relying on the Chapman University Survey of American Fears, a Representative National sample of US adults to display the fears developed through society’s usage of social media and being deceived by misleading posts. In comparison to other Americans, participants who utilize social media to perceive breaking news are twice as likely to obtain a fear or believe a conspiracy in comparison to people who typically utilize a more Democratic news outlet. Three times as likely to obtain a fear when compared to a more Republican-leaning perspective. Applying social media usage as the independent variable, we can analyze that heavy reliance on social media and how it increases certain fears. Contrasting social media usage against users of CNN and Fox News, two well-known news outlets with generally differing political parties, and ran a cross tabulation between participant’s usages of informational outlets in comparison with how afraid they are of contracting coronavirus. With the majority of adult Americans receiving their daily news from popular social media websites and applications, it is imperative that social media companies rigorously fact-check the information cloaked as news circulating the web. This analytical approach allows for the solid assumption that due to the more common circulation of fake news and its prevalence in social media rather than standard news sources, people are more likely to develop a fear when constantly relying on social media as their primary source of information.
- Does Fear of Corrupt Government Officials affect Voter Turnout In The United States?
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
According to the Chapman Survey of American Fears (2020-2021) fear of corrupt government officials is the number one thing Americans fear: 79.6 % of them in fact. In addition, voter turnout is one of the quintessential pillars that allows a democracy to function properly. In this paper I will examine the extent to which fear of government officials’ corruption affects voter turnout. Using the data from the Chapman Survey of American Fears and variables from the American National Election Study between 2020 and 2021, I expect to find a moderately strong relationship between fear of government corruption and voter turnout. Moreover, I expect to find that the more an American, fears that government corruption is taking place, the less likely that individual is to vote. When looking at the 2020 and 2021 data on elections and fears, I expect media, policy, and party control to affect the fear Americans have of governmental corruption. Another mechanism I expect to affect American’s fear of corruption is political preference; more specifically I expect Republicans to have less of a fear of government corruption. Although eliminating fear of corruption is nearly impossible, limiting outside factors that increase fear of corruption can increase voter turnout, and increase political activism in the United States.
- Followers of Q: Who are They and What Inspires Them?
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
The anonymous figurehead called “Q” has divided the nation and helped create the online infrastructure, QAnon, that has spread some of today’s most well followed and supported conspiracy theories. What began as an anonymous person dropping random commentary on the website 4chan turned into a prominent figure that spread conspiracies such as the Pizzagate theory and accused high level politicians of being “deep fakes”. QAnon has turned into a huge political movement that defined the 2020 United States presidential election and created a faction within the Republican Party. But what type of people are apart of QAnon? How has QAnon grown to this level and have these always been the people that followed conspiracies. Conspiracies are nothing new to American culture, but it has never held so many real-life consequences than what we have seen QAnon created.
Using the 7th Annual Chapman Survey of American Fears, a representative national survey, conducted in January 2021, I will be examining the relationship between believing in other traditional conspiracies, media consumption, and demographic factors such as political affiliation and education, to having a strong to moderate agreement level with QAnon. This is significant because QAnon has changed the shape of the United States Political System and has been a platform that has breed mistrust between citizens and the government, with this dissertation I will be able to distinguish how creations like QAnon get to their target audience and what characters these individuals share.
- How do Conspiracy Theories and Party Affiliation Affect Vaccine hesitancy and COVID Mandates?
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
In this paper I will examine how party affiliation and belief in conspiracy theories affect COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and the following of COVID-19 mandates in the United States. I examine how much of an influence these factors have in the decision to get the COVID-19 vaccine while focusing on how belief in conspiracy theories is hindering progress against the virus. Many factors have an influence in the decision to get the vaccine but trust in experts happens to be one of the most influential while interestingly finding that race and religion also play a role. It is also important to observe other deciding factors such as effectiveness and safety of the vaccine and whether previous vaccine hesitancy differs from that of the COVID-19 vaccine. Relying on the Chapman University Survey of American Fears, a representative national sample of U.S. adults, I was able to observe how many U.S. adults fear that the vaccine is an excuse to insert tracking technology into their bodies. I find a possible correlation between income and education and the difference in vaccination rates per group. Additionally, race and religion are revealed to be significant influencers. While we are living in uncertain times it is important to analyze the factors behind people’s opposition and rejection to the vaccine and overall mandates.
Psychology
- The Coronavirus Pandemic: Associations of Optimism and Positive Affect with Mental & Physical Health Outcomes
Advisor(s): Dr. Julia Boehm, Dr. Brooke Jenkins
COVID-19 has led to the emergence of an altered society. Cumulative and individual stressors may lead to a time of crisis for students over time. Considering the detrimental impacts that stress may have, proper attention should be given to various mental and physical health issues. Previous studies suggest that certain psychosocial factors, such as optimism and positive affect, serve as valuable resources for mental and physical health during times of stress. However, the associations between optimism and positive affect with mental and physical health outcomes during the pandemic are yet to be investigated. This study aims to investigate these associations. We hypothesized that greater levels of optimism and positive affect would be associated with lower levels of depression, anxiety, and physical health symptoms during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. 293 university students were recruited to complete an online questionnaire in the spring of 2020. Longitudinal data was collected from participants every two months after, for a total of five assessments. Students self-reported their optimism, positive affect, anxiety, depression, and physical health levels. Multilevel modeling was used to test associations. Results indicated that greater optimism and positive affect were associated with fewer depressive symptoms, lower anxiety, fewer physical health symptoms, and better self-reported physical health (ps < 0.05). When testing optimism and positive affect together, both were associated with depressive symptoms, but only optimism was associated with anxiety (ps < 0.05). When entered together in the model, optimism and positive affect were not significantly associated with physical symptoms or self-reported physical health (ps > 0.05). Results suggest optimism and positive affect may serve as resources during COVID-19, and there are overlaps in their effects on health. Further investigations could create and implement effective health interventions that promote optimism and positive affect.
- Perceived Control’s Association with Adolescent Substance Use: Longitudinal Findings from the National Child Development Study
Advisor(s): Dr. Julia Boehm
Adolescent substance use has a net negative effect on the population as it interferes with cognitive processes, contributes to mood disorders, and costs society in healthcare, education, and juvenile crime. Perceived control may be a relevant factor for adolescent substance use, including cigarette and alcohol intake. Past longitudinal research that studied the relationship between personal control and cigarette smoking and alcohol use in ninth grade students revealed that those who showed more perceived control were less likely to have experimented with alcohol and smoking than those who showed less perceived control. However, most evidence examines adults and focuses on gender effects, leaving a gap of information about perceived control in adolescents and substance use. We hypothesized that adolescents with less perceived control would have more recent alcohol consumption and cigarette smoking relative to those with more control. The study used data from 2,824 participants in the 1958 National Child Development Study, which examined individuals born in England, Scotland, or Wales in March 1958 from birth through older age. Essays written by participants at age 11 were rated for perceived control by two judges (Finn’s r interrater reliability = .88). Cigarette smoking (smoker vs. non-smoker) and alcohol consumption (drinker vs. non-drinker) was self-reported at age 16. A logistic regression did not show a relationship between perceived control and being a smoker (b = -0.05, standard error [SE] = 0.04, p = 0.18, odds ratio [OR] = 0.95). Similarly, a logistic regression did not show a relationship between perceived control and drinking alcohol (b = -0.06, SE = 0.09, p = 0.51, OR = 0.94). However, the direction of associations were consistent with the hypothesis that more control would predict less smoking and drinking. Findings do not suggest that feeling in control of one's life at age 11 is correlated with less recent alcohol consumption and cigarette use 5 years later. Further research on this topic would be beneficial.
- How Self-Evaluation of Demographics Modulates the Effects of Attractive Celebrity Images on Self-Image
Advisor(s): Dr. Aaron Schurger, Dr. Matthew Ballew, Dr. Marina Kahana
Recent research indicates an effect of attractive celebrity images on mood and body image (Brown, 2016). This effect can further develop into long term issues, such as body dysmorphia or depressive/suicidal symptoms. Female adolescents are especially susceptible to these effects, as they are likelier to engage in intense personal celebrity worship (Maltby, 2005), although this may also be attributed to the lack of research on the impact of media exposure on males’ body image (Agliata, 2004). My research will focus on how a self-evaluation of one’s own demographics (race, gender, etc.) may modulate the effect of attractive celebrity images on self-image. I predict that participants will rank themselves as less attractive when asked questions about their demographics before being exposed to images of celebrities versus being asked those questions after (as is usually done in research).
- Unknown and Unhoused: Californians’ Perceptions of Homeless Demographics, Causes, and Policy Ideas
Advisor(s): Dr. Vincent Berardi
Homelessness is a growing issue in California, with more than half of all unsheltered people in the country residing in the state. As public opinion is known to impact policy formation, the first goal of this study was to quantify the accuracy of the public’s understanding of the homeless population and its attitudes towards this group, with an emphasis on measuring stigma and mental illness. The second goal was to determine if certain misperceptions and/or attitudes are associated with preferences for different policy solutions. The Perceptions of Homeless and Mental Illness survey was sent via Amazon Mechanical Turk to participants in California (N = 389; mean age=39) and consisted of items in 5 categories: Homeless Demographics, Opinions/Attitudes, Causes of Homelessness, Policy Ideas, and Social Dominance/Modern Racism. A Principal Components Analysis was run on the Causes and Policy questions to build subscales, and then multiregressions and ANOVA analyses were run on these subscales to compare perceptions of causes and policy ideas to participant demographics and general attitudes. Regarding findings, political party was the most significant predictor of causes opinions and policy support, with conservatives being significantly more likely to attribute causes to personal failings, such as laziness, as well as support policies that emphasized personal responsibility. Opinions regarding social dominance were associated with support for more individualized causes and exclusionary policies. Finally, significant associations were found between personal failings causes, personal responsibility policies, and stigmatized opinions about homeless and mental illness. These findings emphasize the need for interventions to address stigma and prejudice in addition to solving the homelessness problem.
Sociology
- How Wealth Inequality and Race Affect Fear of Police & Law Enforcement in The US
Advisor(s): Dr. Ann Gordon
American police, like the cultural and social structure of the country, are highly individualistic. People living near and under the poverty line, too often people of color, in the US are actively more afraid of our law enforcement due to the years of our government fostering a failed system of policing, incarceration, discrimination, and injustice. Our modern police force is a close derivative of the brutal “slave patrol” forces that monitored the slave movement and enforced discipline across the south. Fear of police abuse is not uncommon among minority communities, and harsh law enforcement is a device and result of procedures to keep up with racial isolation and disparity. This paper will evaluate the relationship between minority and low-income families and fear of police brutality, using data retrieved from the Chapman University Survey of American Fears. Low-income black families are more likely to be under the federal poverty line than other races. As the middle class disappears and cities become more divided into a binary of classes, upper or lower. Undertones of segregation hold firm as low-income neighborhoods also tend to have a higher number of black people. The higher-class areas tend to have fewer black people; however, higher rates of police killing black people. Black people living in America often fear police regardless of their economic status; however, combined with those who face income disparities, it further deepens the discrimination. This fear of our law enforcement system is not a displaced one. In this article, I hope to delve into the factors that fuel this fear for so many low-income people of color in the US.
Software Engineering
- Reducing Social Media Consumption
Advisor(s): Dr. LouAnne Boyd
Our goal is to understand concerns teens may have in a post-COVID environment particularly when it concerns social media. Teens are searching for more authoritative self-imposed controls over their social media usage (ages 16 - 17). This is shown by the interview data we collected in which multiple teens mentioned trouble managing their time due to a compulsive tendency to overindulge when it concerns social media. With this in mind, we’ve set out to design applications and features that will (hopefully) aid in curbing some of the more addictive parts of social media. By helping teens use social media less, we hope to improve their overall productivity in life. Through a variety of paper prototypes, we conducted user testing to determine the best designs for setting self-imposed goals for app usage, including choosing to set either an automatic limit schedule or one with more manual impositions, and having an in-app feature to set a time limit reminder to take a break. Through interactive wireframing, these apps and features, as well as general usability will be tested. Results will follow.
Theatre
- How K-Pop and Culture Interact in Koreatown Los Angeles
Advisor(s): Dr. Andrew Chappell
Korean pop music, also known as K-pop, has become a widespread global phenomenon over the past 20 years. Most recently, boy group BTS has captured the attention of record labels and audiences for their structured dances, group dynamic, and exciting performances. Similar to how K-Pop artists have become international sensations, other aspects of Korean culture and entertainment have established a spot in mainstream popular culture. Films like Parasite, Korean dramas, and television shows like Netflix’s streaming hit Squid Game, and even Korean beauty products are all forms of Korean entertainment and leisure that are a part of mainstream American entertainment. The unprecedented influence of Korean pop culture on Western entertainment is known as the Hallyu wave, and aspects of the wave can be observed most readily at ethnic enclaves such as Koreatown Los Angeles. Through cultural hubs like Koreatown Los Angeles, the different commercial entities serve as bridges for people who might otherwise not experience Korean culture. From a westernized, non-Korean perspective, elements of tourism and history are analyzed within this project. The purpose of this research is to explore how forms of entertainment at Koreatown Los Angeles such as Korean pop are ways by which Koreans express aspects of their identity, within a westernized setting. In an ethnographic observation, the researcher visited Koreatown Los Angeles and has also studied the history of the cultural site and Korean pop music. Using this western lens, comparisons are drawn culturally to see how capitalist pastimes such as visits to Koreatown Los Angeles and watching idols on a screen, capture the minds and hearts of audiences around the globe.
- Managing the stress and the Stage: An In-Depth Research into What it Takes to be a Stage Manager
Advisor(s): Dr. Andrew Chappell
The theater is a unique and collaborative art form where individuals from diverse backgrounds are able to come together to develop and transform words into something meaningful. From actors to production managers, each individual provides important insight into their unique area of focus. The role of a stage manager is to not only manage but it is also organized, communicate and facilitate in order to ensure that the process of production runs smoothly and efficiently. Stage Management is a crucial part of the production process however, it can become extremely stressful and tiring. Because Stage management is a relatively new role to theater, there isn’t much in-depth research into this role.
By looking into the details of what it means to be a stage manager and the stress that comes with it, I hope to discover ways to cope with the stress for future stage managers to come. Through the help of faculty members such as Kim Weber and the professional connections that I have made, I hope to conduct comprehensive interviews on the experiences of other stage managers. I will look not only into the stressful times but also into what made the positive moments so great and how we can turn negatives into positives for the future. I am also hoping to look into further detail into stage management through history and look to see how it has changed throughout time. Even though the idea of stage management is still relatively new, individuals had to take on some part of stage management roles. This is such a prominent issue in the current climate as the role of stage manager is transforming right before our eyes. As the pandemic adds in another factor to stage management, we must learn and juggle our previous responsibilities with our new responsibilities.