Effects of Age and Prior Reproduction on the Cost of Reproduction in Two Species of Burying Beetles

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Effects of Age and Prior Reproduction on the Cost of Reproduction in Two Species of Burying Beetles Damron, Ethan; Jo, Dane Mark Belk, Biology Introduction Understanding how much energy an organism allocates to breeding to maximize reproduction over their lifetime, or the cost of reproduction, is a central idea to understanding the variations in patterns […]

Comparative Transcriptomics of Patagonian Lizards (Liolaemus) and Central-American Casque-headed Lizards (Coroytophanidae)

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McGhie, Megan Comparative Transcriptomics of Patagonian Lizards (Liolaemus) and Central-American Casque-headed Lizards (Corytophanidae) Faculty Mentor: Jack Sites, Jr., Department of Biology Introduction This project aimed help identify some of the genomic basis of various phenotypic-genotypic relationships among reptiles. These include the genetic basis of adaption in the following aims: (1) the evolution of hemoglobin subunits […]

Phylogeny and species boundaries in the “flying dragons” of the Draco maculatus species complex (family Aamiedae)

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Klabacka, Randy Phylogeny and species boundaries in the “flying dragons” of the Draco maculatus species complex (family Agamidae) Faculty Mentor: Dr. Jack W. Sites Jr., Biology Department Introduction Indo-Burma, comprising most of Mainland Southeast Asia east of India and north of Peninsular Malaysia, is a biodiversity hotspot within Southeast Asia that has been called a […]

Examining Gene-Expression Patterns Across Rare Colon Cancer Syndromes to Identify Early Diagnosis and Treatment Options

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Hawkes, Douglas Examining Gene-Expression Patterns Across Rare Colon Cancer Syndromes to Identify Early Diagnosis and Treatment Options Faculty Mentor: Stephen Piccolo, Biology Introduction Colon cancer often runs in families. Individuals in these families have a relatively high lifetime risk of developing colon cancer and often develop aggressive tumors at a relatively young age. Currently, genetic […]

In-Class Participation and Performance Gender Gaps in Introductory Biology Courses: The Instructor Gender Effect

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Nelson, Nicholas In-Class Participation and Performance Gender Gaps in Introductory Biology Courses: The Instructor Gender Effect Faculty Mentor: Liz Bailey, Biology Introduction It is well known that undergraduate women are underrepresented in STEM disciplines, which includes the sciences, technology, engineering, and mathematics (NSF 20011). However, the explanation for this phenomenon is not completely understood. Much […]

Meta-Analysis of Flipped Classroom

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Meta-Analysis of Flipped Classroom Ratchapong Kaosucharit erik_pierce@byu.edu kaosu Advisor: Dr. Jamie Jensen, Department of Biology Introduction The “Flipped Classroom” is a learning model in which content attainment is shifted forward to out-side of class, and then followed by instructor-facilitated concept application activitiesa in class (Jensen, 2015). It is one of the most rapidly emerging and […]

Do Antartctic Tardigrades Survive Better When They Are Wet or Dry When Exposed to Freese/Thaw Cycling?

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Hendricks, Katelyn Do Antarctic Tardigrades Survive Better When They Are Wet or Dry When Exposed to Freeze/Thaw Cycling? Faculty Mentor: Byron Adams, Biology Department Introduction : Substantial amounts of evidence prove that there are drastic climate changes taking place everywhere on Earth. Antarctica, the home to microscopic tardigrades, or water bears, is no exception. Tardigrades […]

How Well Can Machine-learning Algorithms Predict Biomedical Outcomes Based on Gene-expression Data?

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Anna Guyer and Stephen Piccolo, Department of Biology Introduction Biomedical data are increasing in size and complexity. To make sense of these data, biomedical researchers often use “machine-learning” algorithms, which are developed by the computer-science community. Our goal was to perform a systematic comparison of many of these algorithms across 100 data sets to identify […]

Natural Selection in Samoan Metabolic Pathways

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Sage Wright and John Kauwe, Biology Introduction One of the leading causes of death in Pacific Islanders is diabetes or other metabolic diseases [cdc]. This may be due to the idea that the thrifty genotype hypothesis contributes to the increase in type 2 diabetes [Southam]. The thrifty genotype hypothesis suggests that certain genes that encourage […]

Playing the Mutating Game

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Mitchell Young and Seth Bybee, Department of Biology Mutation rates may differ from organism to organism. Therefore, many species that are not model organisms are difficult to use in evolutionary studies, especially those focused on genomic scale questions. The focus of this project is to provide 1) inference of mutation rates for several previously unstudied […]