Dylan Lubbe and Dr. Mikaela Dufur, Department of Sociology Modern scientists continue to argue over an issue that has existed since the first time a person realized that his or her skin was a slightly different shade or tint than someone else’s: Does skin color serve as an indicator for something deeper? The conversation about […]
Search Results for: investigation
Buzzwords without Borders: Three Field Experiments in Individual Donation Behavior
Scott Jackson and Dr. Joshua Gubler, Department of Political Science In 2009, the Pew Internet & American Life Project reported that over the preceding twelve months, 67% of Americans “contributed to a charity or non-profit organization other than their place of worship” (Smith et al., 2009). The study also found that 11% of Internet users […]
Mediators between Pornography Use and Risky Sexual Behaviors
Gwen Coulson and Dr. Scott Braithwaite, Department of Psychology With the advent of the internet the availability, anonymity, and affordability of pornography has substantially increased (Cooper, 1998). Furthermore, content analyses have revealed that various types of pornographic material frequently present sex as casually occurring between acquaintances (Brosius, Weaver, & Staab, 1993) and often portray sexual […]
Assessing the Impact of the Approximations Used in the Development of the Pulsed Laser Method for Measuring Thermal Diffusivity
Trevor Terrill and Dr. Matthew Jones, Department of Mechanical Engineering Project Overview The purpose of this project was to conduct a rigorous investigation of each of the approximations made in the development of the pulsed laser method for measuring the thermal diffusivity. Thermal conductivity is an important engineering parameter, but measuring it directly is difficult. […]
Influence of Tissue Stiffness Asymmetry on Human Vocal Fold Vibration
Kimberly Stevens and Dr. Scott Thomson, Department of Mechanical Engineering Background and Motivation The flow-induced vibration of the human vocal folds produces the sound for voiced speech and singing. The vocal folds consist of two folds of tissue, one on each side of the larynx, that are nominally symmetric in terms of shape, composition, and […]
An Alternative Method to Prepare Cobalt Catalysts Using Salt Precursors
Trevor Seegmiller and Dr. Calvin Bartholomew, Department of Chemical Engineering Fischer-Tropsch synthesis (FTS) is the process for converting syngas (carbon monoxide and hydrogen) into liquid fuels such as gasoline and diesel. A cobalt or iron catalyst is required for the process. Cobalt catalysts have the highest effectiveness and stability in FTS; however, they are more […]
Cell-free Protein Synthesis Extract Preparation Methods
Troy Holland and Dr. Brad Bundy, Department of Chemical Engineering My ORCA project proposed to test and optimize various low capital cost cell lysis methods, while leaving the internal cell machinery intact and viable for cell-free protein synthesis research. Our cells of interest were a strain of the bacterium E. coli, and their cellular machinery […]
The Effects of Bibliotherapy on Elementary Students’ Perceptions toward Peers with Disabilities
Brianna Teerlink and Professor Tina Dyches, Department of Counseling Psychology and Special Education This study constructed and evaluated an extended-contact method of intervention to investigate children’s attitudes towards peers with disabilities. A 3×2 (neutral and intergroup, divided into didactic and bibliotherapy; pre- and post-intervention) design was used with 288 children ages 6-12 years in grades […]
Mentored Research in Geochemistry of Ancient Maya and Fremont Archaeological Sites
Dr. Richard Terry, Department of Plant & Wildlife Sciences Many of the activities of the ancient Maya did not leave artifactual or architectural remains for us to study, since many activities involved organic materials that were biodegraded over time. Furthermore, the warm and humid climate accelerated the decomposition of most organic materials (Dahlin et al., […]
The Cognitive Neuroscience of Long-Term Memory
Dr. Brock Kirwan, Department of Psychology Memory is an essential cognitive ability. It allows us to use past events to guide future actions. Research in my laboratory focuses on determining the mechanics of how the brain remembers what it does. We are interested in determining what will be remembered and what will be forgotten. Specifically, […]