Program for the Spring 2018 Multidisciplinary Research Day


DEPARTMENT OF BIOLOGY

Analytical Papers and Analyses

Barnett, Nathan. CONSERVATION OF RAINBOW TROUT.
Rainbow Trout are a trout in \r\n\\r\\nthe salmonid family. The ability of this \r\npredator to \\r\\nlive in most cold head water streams \r\nmakes it a \\r\\nvaluable sport fish in many regions. \r\nIts adaptations \\r\\nto these conditions make it \r\nsusceptible to harm by \\r\\nfishermen and survey \r\nmethods. We have opened a \\r\\ndiscussion on the \r\nconservation of Rainbow Trout \\r\\nacross a range of \r\nconservation goals.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CARY D. CHEVALIER

Sarna, Christian. TECHNOLOGICAL TREASURE HUNTING AND RC FLIERS.
A discussion of the potential conservation \r\nbenefits and management concerns regarding \r\nrecreational use of technologies such as GPS \r\ngames, geocaching, and \"drones\".
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CARY CHEVALIER

Sarna, Christian. TECHNOLOGICAL TREASURE HUNTING AND RC FLIERS.
The rapid expansion of technology poses many immediate threats to wild spaces, but these technologies may also be used to benefit conservation efforts. This poster discusses the potential conservation uses and management concerns regarding recreational use of technologies such as GPS games, geocaching, and "drones."
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CARY CHEVALIER

Empirical Projects

Allen, Ben. Cribb, Amelia. Glise, Joe. Sapp, Madison.. INDUCING APOPTOSIS IN HELA CELLS USING DIFFERENT CONCENTRATIONS OF H2O2.
Cell death by apoptosis is the common and expected cellular response to stress. The apoptosis pathway allows the cellular components to be recycled. With higher levels of cellular stress present cells may undergo necrosis. H2O2 is a commonly used source of for inducing cellular stress. It is thought that the concentrations of H2O2 is directly correlated with the level of stress on cancer cells (Singh 2). Apoptosis is thought to be induced by mitochondrial dysfunction. H2O2 initiates the caspase cascade following breakdown of the mitochondrial membrane. It is thought that cells in the presence of lower dosed H2O2 will undergo apoptosis with cells in the presence of a higher H2O2 dose will result in necrosis (Xiang1).
Faculty Sponsor: KRISTEN WALTON

Baker, Ethan. CONSERVATION MANAGEMENT AND NATURAL HISTORY OF WILD TURKEY .
This poster covers the natural history, conservation, and management of the Wild Turkey in America. This poster also covers topics such as habitat and behavior of Wild Turkeys.
Faculty Sponsor: CARY D. CHEVALIER

Bashaw, Ben. INVESTIGATING EVOLUTIONARY RELATIONSHIPS WITHIN THE TRIBE POGOSTEMONEAE AND GOMPHOSTEMMATEAE .
The family Lamiaceae is one of the most species- rich angiosperm families, characterized by a suite of morphological characters. Lamioideae, the second largest subfamily in Lamiaceae, is further subdivided into ten tribes, of which Gomphostemmateae and Pogostemoneae are interesting with their members being extensively used in medicinal and cultural purposes. My poster talks about how different types of molecular DNA data have shown different phylogenetic relationships between the two tribes, and we are interested in collecting more molecular data to substantiate our claims that the incongruence is real, and there is a need for reclassification for these two groups.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. TILOTTAMA ROY

(Blakley, Sarah) (Heinz, Sarah) (Ong, Shi Qing) (Wilson,Riley). THE EFFECTS OF COMMON HOUSEHOLD PRODUCTS IN HELA CELLS.
Apoptosis is the process of programed cell death that can occur in a variety of ways. This process can be artificially induced by external factors such as common household products. For the experiment, mixtures of air freshener, body wash, shampoo, and clorox were used for the purpose of inducing apoptosis in HeLa Cells. The experimental procedure consisted of nuclear staining using fluorescence DAPI and DNA fragmentation. These procedures resulted with the conclusion that both body wash and shampoo do not induce apoptosis, but rather cause necrosis, another form of cell death. Air freshener was found to have no apoptotic effect, and clorox was found to cause a less effective form of necrosis.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. KRISTEN WALTON

Campbell, Kaitlyn . CONSERVATION OF THE MEXICAN GRAY WOLF.
This poster will have information about the basic life of the Mexican gray wolf, there is also information over the basic conservation efforts that are being done in a recovery effort to help restore the populations back to what they once were before they were almost extirpated.
Faculty Sponsor: CARY CHEVALIER

Chavez, Vincent. Duncan, Preston. Harrison, Kaitlyn. Katompa, Gloria. . THE EFFECT OF UV IRRADIATION ON INDUCING APOPTOSIS IN HELA CELLS.
The experiment performed was designed to measure whether or not UV light induces apoptosis in HeLa cells. Apoptosis was measured by two methods: ELISA and DAPI Nuclear Staining. In both of these methods there were two control (white light) treatments and two UV light treatments. Control groups were a 5 minute exposure control and a 10 minute exposure control. UV Light treatment groups were a 5 minute UV exposure treatment and a 10 minute UV exposure treatment. Our findings were inconclusive.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. KRISTEN WALTON

Doolan, Lindsay; Lewis, Savannah; Mackley, Christian; Thiede, Nikki. THE EFFECTS OF ULTRA-VIOLET LIGHT ON APOPTOSIS INDUCING ETOPOSIDE IN MICE COLON EPITHELIAL CELLS.
Etoposide induces apoptosis in mammalian cells. Studies have previously been done on the effect of Ultra-Violet light on cells, but there is little research regarding UV light’s effect on etoposide directly. For this experiment, etoposide was exposed to a UV lamp for various time allotments then the mouse colon epithelial cells were treated with the etoposide from various UV exposures. Duplicates need to be completed to confirm, but etoposide exposed to UV light for 24 hours reduced the incidence of apoptosis in cells in comparison to cells exposed to etoposide and etoposide with exposures less than 24 hours.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. WALTON

Flowers, Tyler. SMALLMOUTH BASS IN AMERICA.
I will discuss the origin of where the smallmouth \r\nbass derived from and showcase several facts about \r\nits evolution. I will also discuss differences \r\nbetween it and some of the other bass species, and \r\nits life cycle as well as hit on what a large part \r\nof what conservation has done to help improve the \r\nspecies as a whole.
Faculty Sponsor: DR.C

Hersh, Lex. CONSERVATION OF TRAGELAPHUS EURYCERUS ISAACI.
The presentation is about the conservation of the eastern mountain bongo (Tragelaphus eurycerus isaaci), a critically endangered forest antelope indigenous to Africa. Its decline is caused by human habitat destruction and over hunting. The presentation will explore the topics of the mountain bongo’s behavior and habitat, challenges of conservation, and current conservation efforts. The presentation will explain how its behavior correlates to previous conservation efforts and current conservation efforts, which may have been unsuccessful and why. The presentation concludes on whether the research poured into the conservation of the mountain bongo will be enough to save it.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CHEVALIER

Hoover, Cole; Gawley, Nick; Baker, Ethan; Herring, Aaron. INVASIVE SPECIES MANAGEMENT.
This poster discusses invasive plant species of both Missouri and North America. Management techniques are also discussed, as well as the future outlook of invasive plant species.
Faculty Sponsor: CARY CHEVALIER

Lee, Brian. THE AMERICAN KESTREL.
A review of the America Kestrels’ life history, habitat, breeding \r\n\\r\\nand management policies.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CHEVALIER

Mahl, Steven. REAL-TIME PCR SPECIFICITY TO EVALUATE FOUR BRADYRHIZOBIUM JAPONICUM STRAINS.
Using previously designed primers, we developed conditions to specifically distinguish between Bradyrhizobium japonicum strains USDA 110, 123, 136, and 138. We evaluated how the presence of additional DNA could contribute to alteration of Cq values for each strain and found no significant changes. We now have the tools designed to perform growth quantification between all four strains in an in vitro competitive growth environment.
Faculty Sponsor: BAKER, JASON

Moore, Kerry; Moore, Mary; Davidson, Mary. CROCODYLIA: AN OVERVIEW OF CROCODYLIAN BEHAVIOR.
Crocodylia consist of three lineages that include; Alligatoridae, Gavialidae, and Crocodylidae. The Crocodylia only consists of 9 genera and 25 species. What makes the Alligators and Crocodiles intriguing are not only their massive size and their Dinosaur-like looks, but their behavior is vastly different than their snake, lizard and turtles relatives. Birds and Crocodylia surprisingly exhibit some very similar behaviors. The Crocodylia are most closely related to Aves (birds) than any other reptile. \r\n
Faculty Sponsor: DR. MILLS

Moore, Mary, Moore, Kerry, Jenkins, Brian, Barta, Csengele. THE ALLELOPATHIC EFFECTS OF LONICERA MAACKII LEAF EXTRACTS.
Plants have different defense mechanisms when there is resource competition between species. Some plants use allelopathy to inhibit other neighboring plants’ growth by releasing biochemicals. Lonicera maackii is an invasive species which uses allelopathy to compete with its neighbors. We studied the potential of inhibition of L. maackii leaf extracts on different Brassica rapa lines producing different amounts of gibberellic acid (GA3). Our results indicate, that the tall (GA3 overproducing) seeds were the least inhibited, followed by the standard seeds, with the dwarf seeds (producing low level of GA3 hormone) being inhibited the most.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CSENGELE BARTA

Moore, Mary; Moore, Kerry. INHIBITION POTENTIAL OF LONICERA MAACKII ON B. RAPA CORRELATES TO AMOUNT OF GIBBERELLIC ACID.
Plants have different defense mechanisms when there is resource competition between species. Some plants use allelopathy to inhibit other neighboring plants’ growth by releasing biochemicals. The Lonicera maackii is an invasive plant species that uses allelopathy to take over its neighboring plants. We wanted to study the potential of inhibition from the L. maackii leaf extract on three different Brassica rapa strains with different amounts of Gibberellic acid (GA). There were vast differences between the amount of Gibberellic acid a plant has with how much it was inhibited by the extract. The Tall (containing the most GA) seeds were the least inhibited, followed by the standard seeds, and then the dwarf seeds having been inhibited the most.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. BARTA

Peukert, Brett. FERAL HOGS IN THE UNITED STATES.
Feral hogs are rapidly expanding their range as well as increasing their population size. Without a mix of several management methods, feral hogs will continue to disperse and cause millions of dollars in damages. This presentation seeks to inform the general public on the growing problem, and possible management strategies that may help reduce feral hog populations.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CHEVALIER

Phelan, Jesica, Holland, Emily, Constable, Kyle William, Barta, Csengele. IDENTIFICATION OF A PARTIAL SEQUENCE OF THE POST OAK ISOPRENE SYNTHASE GENE.
In this study we successfully amplified and identified for the first time a short segment of the post oak (Quercus stellata) isoprene synthase (IspS) gene. The isoprene synthase gene (IspS), encodes for the terminal enzyme responsible for converting dimethylallyl pyrophosphate (DMAPP), and its isomer, isopentenyl pyrophosphate (IPP), to isoprene (2-methyl-1,3-butadiene, C5H8). In planta, isoprene acts to protect membranes from damages induced by high temperature stress that is commonly experienced by plants in their native growth environment on sunny days, and also protects plants from oxidative stress, potentially neutralizing short lived, damaging reactive oxygen species. In the troposphere, isoprene reactions may contribute to ozone formation, particularly in polluted environments, and may increase the lifetime of methane—a greenhouse gas—in the atmosphere with positive feedback on a warming climate.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CSENGELE BARTA

Prawitz, R., Barta, C., Bolander, B., Bilby, S., Brown, J., Brown , R., Duryee, A.M., Edelman, D., Gray, C., Gossett, C., Haddock , A., Helsel, M., Jones, A., Klingseis, M., Leslie, K., Miles, E.. DARK ADAPTATION ENHANCES THE EFFICIENCY OF DNA EXTRACTION FROM MATURE PIN OAK LEAVES..
Mature oak leaves, although abundantly available during the plants’ developmental cycle, are rarely exploited as viable sources of genomic DNA due to their high foliar concentrations of secondary metabolites difficult to remove during standard DNA purification, interfering with downstream molecular genetics applications. The current work assessed whether in situ dark adaptation, to deplete sugar reserves and inhibit secondary metabolite synthesis could compensate for the difficulties encountered when isolating DNA from mature leaves rich in secondary metabolites. We optimized a rapid, commercial kit based method to extract genomic DNA from dark- and light-adapted leaves and demonstrated that dark adaptation increases the yield and quality of genomic DNA obtained from mature oak leaves. From DNA extracts prepared with our optimized method, we identified for the first time partial segments of the genes encoding 18S rRNA and isoprene synthase (IspS) from pin oak (Quercus palustris), whose full genome has not yet been sequenced.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CSENGELE BARTA

Shabbir, Sumra; Culver, Meghan; Embrey, Dustin; Bonifas, Seth. EFFECTS OF HYDROGEN PEROXIDE ON INDUCTION OF APOPTOSIS IN HELA CELLS.
Apoptosis has been shown to be induced in HeLa cells by hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). The experiment shown was designed in order to determine what concentration of hydrogen peroxide could induce apoptosis given 22 hours to incubate. Our results concluded that concentrations at or above 0.4 mM H2O2 could induce apoptosis given the designated incubation period. More research should be done in order to determine when in the 22 hour incubation apoptosis took place.
Faculty Sponsor: KRISTEN WALTON

Singleton, Angel Nierman, Valerie Russel, Miranda. IMPORTANCE OF WET SPECIMEN TO SCIENCE.
The collection of animal and plant specimens play an essential role in scientific studies. Preservation of wet specimen’s help scientists discover what kind of habitats certain organisms can be found in. It could also be used to get an organism’s population size, range, length, and structure. Preservation of animals are a big reason as to why we have such great phylogenetic trees and have even led scientists to discover that some species, such as Lithobates Fisheri, never really went extinct. There will be a discussion over several other useful reasons as to why researchers use museum specimens. When it comes to preserving, it is a process that should be carefully done to insure that the specimen does not get damaged. It is somewhat of a long process that takes patience, but when done correctly could be used to help discover more information about that organism. We will go over detailed steps on how to properly euthanize and prepare a specimen.
Faculty Sponsor: MARK MILLS

Tanner Merwin, Robert Bremer, Sarah Krickeberg, Cyrus Socia-Surritt. INVESTIGATING SPEED OF MOVEMENT FOR THE PROTIST STENTOR WITH APPLICATION OF PESTICIDE.
The purpose of our project was to determine if applications of increasing pesticide concentrations would bolster or inhibit movement speeds of Stentor. Our hypothesis that higher pesticide concentrations would cause the Stentor to move faster was falsified through implementation of our experiments. In reality, the average times that the Stentor took to travel the distance increased instead of decreasing upon applications of increasing amounts of pesticide. We believed that this happened because the higher amounts of pesticide was causing the Stentor to die quickly.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. TILOTTAMA ROY

Thammarat, Chayata. ENVIRONMENTAL STRESS EFFECTS ON ROOTS GROWTH.
Roots growth has not been studied much with environmental stresses and could be used in the real environment. In this experiment, five seeds were dropped into the center of petri disk with two wet layers of filter paper and parafilm under them in order. Four cottons were set up to contain four milliliters of four different substances at four different corners of petri disk with about the same distance and size. The four substances are nutrient, water, mixture of nutrient and inhibitor(two milliliters each), and lastly inhibitor. This set up was repeated for another four times, made up five petri disks and twenty five seeds used in total. When the roots started to germinate, all of the roots tend to point toward inhibitor or mixture's directions while after the leaves started to reach the top of petri disks, only two petri disks contained those with roots still growing toward water and nutrient's directions. The other three disks have roots spread around more onto the nutrient and water sides but still reached for the inhibitor and mixture's sides. However, one observation was made that the two disks have some amount of inhibitor at the corner of the cotton while the other three disks didn't and more on the middle of the cotton or at the end corner of disks. This could affect the results if the roots were unable to sense the inhibitor until they are closer to inhibitor.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. BARTA CSENGELE

Internship/Practicum Experience

Doering, Branden Koellin,Blake. INTERNSHIP AT LOESS BLUFFS NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE.
This is a poster summarizing our experiences while working at Loess Bluffs National Wildlife Refuge. It talks about some outreach and education, wetland management, invasive species control, and provides a brief overview of some facts about the refuge.
Faculty Sponsor: DR.CHEVALIER

Gawley, Nick. MISSOURI DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION INTERNSHIP: FISHERIES AND FORESTRY POSTER.
Presenting a poster that details my experience working with the Missouri Department of Conservation specifically in the Fisheries and Forestry divisions. Information includes what I did during my internship and why it was important, as well as why conservation in general is important.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. C

Pauley, Brittney. OUTREACH AND EDUCATION INTERNSHIP WITH MISSOURI DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION. .
This poster presents the internship experience I completed during the Spring 2018 semester. I assisted the naturalist at the Northwest Regional Office of the Missouri Department of Conservation, Jada Tressler. We hosted a plethora of programs educating children and the general public in Northwest Missouri.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CARY CHEVALIER

Thomas, Brad. LOESS BLUFFS NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE .
Overview of my internship at Loess Bluffs National \r\nWildlife Refuge working along side the various \r\nrefuge staff.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CHEVALIER

Literature Reviews

Abrahamson, Levi; DeShazo, Madi; Wells, Sidney. ASSESSMENT OF BULLSHARK (CARCHARHINUS LEUCAS) NATURAL HISTORY AND CONSERVATION ISSUES.
This poster will reflect research conducted on the natural history of bullsharks. We will discuss issues in conservation based on a "fear factor" of sharks.
Faculty Sponsor: CARY D. CHEVALIER

Atkins, Kaitlyn . CONSERVATION CONTROL ON CYPRINUS CARPIO (CARP).
The conservation of Carp has grown and there have been many studies done. When the carp were first introduced, they weren’t a problem. When carp were first brought over here, they were mainly used for recreation and to control other species. Once the carp population grew in large numbers, they have created great impacts on the aquatic ecosystems. From the studies that have been done, these carp are impacting the aquatic ecosystems to help us control the population. Although there aren’t many ways that control this aquatic invader, with studies we can find ways to control the carp population.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CARY CHEVALIER

Boothe, Josiah. AMAZON RIVER DOLPHIN CONSERVATION.
Amazon river dolphin conservation research project. The project describes the different species and subspecies of the Amazon river dolphins. The Inia geoffrensis is the scientific name of one species of the Amazon river dolphin. There are two subspecies of Inia. The project goes over the habitat of this organism. Areas they prefer to live, feed, and breed. Also population studies being done to determine the status of the species. The project also talks about the human impacts on the dolphins. Mainly pollutants from agriculture, logging, and gold mining. Lastly the project talks about the conservation efforts being taken by different non-profit organizations and the different nation governments along the Amazon river.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CARY D. CHEVALIER

Briscoe, Aaron. AN OVERVIEW OF CORAL BLEACHING AROUND THE WORLD.
The purpose of creating this poster was to better demonstrate my ability at educating others. This poster was assigned to me as a part of a ten page paper in my BIO209 course. The overall subject of my poster and paper is the event known as coral bleaching. Through acquiring sixteen primary sources related to coral bleaching, coral's internal symbiotes, and economic records I formed a paper explaining the relevance and application of wildlife conservation in coral bleaching. Then from writing a paper I took some important aspects I had written about and designed a poster to better portray the effects of coral bleaching with my designated photos, and sections of writing that explain cost- efficiency in combating bleaching and rehabilitation of affected species. Also in the poster is a summary as to what coral are affected, what lives inside of them that is affected, and what exactly coral bleaching is. I imagine there are more crucial sources of information from my paper I could have better exemplified in my poster however I kept it broad so that my target audience would be able to take more from it. Overall creating the poster and writing my paper have been very tedious but brilliant exercises for providing experience in understanding scientific articles and creating projects built towards my further career skill set.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CARY CHEVALIER

Kessler, Dakota Koelling, Blake Bryant, William. BOBWHITE QUAIL RESEARCH.
Literature review on Bobwhite quail. Go into detail about home range and conservation efforts with Bobwhite quail.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CHRVALIER

Bryant, William. LARGEMOUTH BASS CONSERVATION.
Largemouth bass are one of Americas top sport fishing species. This paper goes into detail on studies and conservation efforts helping these fish.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CHEVALIER

Darling Nicholas, Ryan Brenden, Weber Samuel. WHOOPING CRANE (GRUS AMERICANA) MIGRATION PATTERNS.
This poster is a review of the current migration status of the Whooping Crane. Back from the brink of extinction, it is pertinent to understand their movement patterns.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CHEVALIER

DeShazo, Madi; Herron, Jackie; Watson, Chris. SNAKE FUNGAL DISEASE AND ISSUES WITH CONSERVATION.
This research was conducted over the recent epidemic of Snake Fungal Disease (SFD) affecting colubrid snakes and pit vipers in North America. SFD, caused by a saprobe fungus (Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola), spreads externally through direct contact with a contaminated environment, and can have detrimental effects on snake populations. We will discuss the natural history of the species and management techniques to battle this fungal disease.
Faculty Sponsor: MARK MILLS

Domann, Rachael & Edelman, Danielle. CHAMAELEONIDAE OF MADAGASCAR.
There are approximately 160 described species of chameleons located throughout the old world and almost half of them are endemic to the island of Madagascar. Even more, some species are found in only small remote areas of the island. Chameleons range in size and colors and these features play in an important role for defense and reproduction. They also have features that are unique to them and not found in other lizards. Populations of species of Chameleons are declining rapidly. 36% of the known Chameleon species are endangered. More conservation action is needed to ensure Chameleons’ long term survival.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. MARK MILLS

Hayden, Tasha Hayes, Olivia. HABITS AND HABITAT OF THE NORTH AMERICAN MOOSE.
An overview of the habits and habitats of the North American Moose. Both text and pictures are used to inform the reader of this interesting animal that lives amongst us. This includes food, shelter and reproduction information.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CHEVALIER

Filley, James; Miller, Sam; Whitman, Isaac. LIFE HISTORY OF WHITE-TAILED DEER (ODOCOILEUS VIRGINIANUS).
This poster is a review of information about white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus). Specifically, examining the range, both historic and present, habitat, behavior, life cycle, and management of white-tailed deer. Additionally, we briefly examined Chronic Wasting Disease and how it impacts white-tailed deer.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CARY CHEVALIER

Glore, Caitlin; Herron, Jackie; Marks, Mackenzie. MANAGEMENT OF PRAIRIES IN MISSOURI.
This is a presentation of the flora, wildlife, and management tools that are used to maintain prairies in Missouri. Prairies require fire as a management tool to maintain habitat for not only flora on the prairie, but wildlife of the prairie as well. Making prairies one of many terrestrial habitats that require a great deal of conservation and management.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CARY CHEVALIER

Hunter, Sondi. TIGER CONSERVATION: OUR LAST FIGHT TO SAVE THE REMAINING TIGER SPECIES.
Out of the original nine tiger species, only six remain. Tigers are going extinct because of habitat loss, the wildlife trade, and disease. Tiger conservation is one of the most important ways to save the remaining tiger species.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CHEVALIER

Kiefer, Josie Katie, Lavelle. EASTERN TIGER SALAMANDER .
The poster discusses the natural history and \r\n\\r\\nconservation of the eastern tiger salamander \r\nfound \\r\\nin Missouri.
Faculty Sponsor: MARK S. MILLS

Koelling, Blake, McNutt, Tori, Thomas, Brad. NATURAL LIFE HISTORY OF THE MASSASAUGA RATTLESNAKE.
This poster is about the natural life history of the Massasauga Rattlesnake and the distribution in Loess Bluffs National Wildlife Refuge.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. MARK MILLS

Lammoglia, Gabrielle & West, Matt. THE EFFECT OF EUTROPHICATION ON AMPHIBIANS.
Amphibians are key bioindicators for ecosystem health, and are particularly vulnerable to disturbances. Eutrophication from agricultural runoff disrupts natural nutrient cycling, promotes cyanobacterial blooms, and negatively impacts amphibian growth, development, and ability to combat parasites and disease.
Faculty Sponsor: MARK MILLS

Lavelle, Katie; Kiefer, Josie; Pauley, Brittney. NATURAL HISTORY AND CONSERVATION OF THE BOBCAT.
A review of the natural history and conservation of the Bobcat, including their habitat and relationship with humans.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CARY CHEVALIER

Marks,Zachary . HELP PROTECT WHITETAIL DEER.
Managing and protecting wild populations of whitetail deer. Also, the importance and significance of managing Chronic Wasting Disease.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CARY CHEVALIER

McKenzie, Joshua. A REVIEW OF CRYPTOSPORIDIOSIS IN REPTILES..
Working with reptiles in a Zoological setting there is no worse fear, in my opinion, than containing an outbreak of cryptosporidiosis. This disease, caused by microscopic parasites Cryptosporidium, causes weight loss and diarrhea in its hosts. Highly infectious and easily spread to humans and other animals “Crypto”, as its commonly referred to, has no known effective treatment or cure for reptiles. An in depth study and experimentation into cryptosporidiosis is needed to develop some way to combat it in reptiles.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. MARK MILLS

McQuiston, Derin. THE NATURAL HISTORY, CONSERVATION, AND MANAGEMENT OF THE MONARCH BUTTERFLY.
The Monarch butterfly is a prolific pollinator like the bee or even other species in the order Lepidoptera. It is revered by many as one of the most beautiful insects in the world and many associates it with their first foray into the realm of scientific inquiry when observing its life cycle early on in our education. The purpose of this paper is to look at the natural history cycle of the Monarch butterfly, management challenges facing it, and the current management of the species. I will explore natural history topics such as its distribution and habitat, morphology at the larval, pupal, and adult stages, and migration behavior, and more. Conservation and management issues of the Monarch such as conservation status, threats, and management policies will also be discussed.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CARY CHEVALIER

McQuiston, Derin, Rosinski, Brian, Malone, Stephanie. NATURAL HISTORY AND CONSERVATION OF THE MOUNTAOIN LION.
Ghost Cat. Catamount. Puma. Painter. Panther. Cougar. The many names given to the Mountain lion, North America's largest cat, demonstrates the original distribution of the big cat across the continent. Stretching from southern Canada to the tip of South America. The mountain lion is large and slender and has short, muscular limbs. The pelage is of medium texture, characteristically short year-round in tropical forms, but growing longer and thicker in the winter in temperate forms. The young are black-spotted in three irregular dorsal lines and transverse rows. These spots are vivid up to the animal's third or fourth month of life. While the coloring of adult mountain lions can vary by individual, region and season, they tend to be tawny, reddish-brown, or grayish-brown in color, with creamy white accents on the chin, throat, chest and belly. Mountain lions also have dark brown or black accents on the sides of their muzzles (almost resembling a moustache), backs of their ears and at the tip of their long tails.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CARY CHEVALIER

Domann, Rachael Peukert, Brett Doering, Branden. NATURAL HISTORY AND CONSERVATION OF BLACK BEAR.
This poster gives a brief overview of black bear habitat, distribution and population management techniques
Faculty Sponsor: CHEVALIER

Sarna, Christian. TECHNOLOGICAL TREASURE HUNTING AND RC FLIERS.
The rapid expansion of technology poses many immediate threats to wild spaces, but these technologies may also be used to benefit conservation efforts. This poster discusses the potential conservation uses and management concerns regarding recreational use of technologies such as GPS games, geocaching, and "drones."
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CARY CHEVALIER

Woodrum, Adam. CONSERVATION AND MANAGEMENT OF THE EASTERN SPOTTED SKUNK.
This is a research-based literature review on the general conservation and management of the eastern spotted skunk, Spilogale putorius. This research paper discusses the natural history, conservation status, ecological niche, and management practices of the eastern spotted skunk.
Faculty Sponsor: CARY CHEVALIER

Ziebarth, Guthre. CONSERVATION OF THE CHANNEL CATFISH.
My research paper looks at how channel catfish, , acts within the environment. This paper also looks at what habitat and food. Within this realm, I look at what the channel catfish eats, how this affects their growth rate and how the channel catfish fits into the ecosystem. Within this paper, I also observe the breeding season for channel catfish and at what age sexual maturity is. Lastly, this paper will examine the aquaculture of the channel catfish. This is the farming of channel catfish and then harvesting them for the meat that can be sold for consumption. Overall, this research paper will look at how the channel catfish acts within its environment and what is being done to help conserve these animals.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CARY CHEVALIER

DEPARTMENT OF BUSINESS

Empirical Projects

Myers, Carson. MODELING GLOBAL YOUTH??S ACCULTURATION TO GLOBAL CONSUMER CULTURE: A CROSS-CULTURAL COMPARISON.
With the expansion of globalization, the increased competitive environment had led to the diffusion of brands across borders and cultures. Furthermore, young consumers represent an optimal segment for the proliferation of global consumer culture. The proposed study empirically tests interrelationships among socialization agents’ influence, acculturation to global consumer culture, perceived brand equity, attitudes toward brands, and brand resonance in the global sportswear brands context among young consumers in the United States and Thailand.
Faculty Sponsor: PHILLIP

DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTER SCIENCE MATH AND PHYSICS

Analytical Papers and Analyses

Frazier, Spencer; Morehead, Alex; Prine, Steven; Petersson, Emil. PREDICTING GAME GENRES BY ANALYZING CODE STRUCTURE.
Recent research endeavors in bioinformatics and other machine learning fields have taken a topological approach to classifying data structured as graphs. One such study (Li et al. 2011) has accomplished this through the use of Support Vector Machines (SVM) to analyze the latent features of chemical compounds, proteins, and cell graphs. We are extending the techniques of this study to the domain of publicly available software projects to experiment with classifying a structured language codebase. To run this experiment, we developed an automated pipeline for extracting, transforming, and analyzing structural features among sets of genre-specific codebases. This pipeline consists of a service to execute specific queries for repositories on GitHub, a translation layer for exporting acquired software projects into a convenient format, and a set of graph-specific metrics to be performed comprehensively for each project. We specifically chose to study how well we can predict the genre of a specified Java game project available on GitHub and assess the utility of this technique relative to others that do not take into account structural features.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. JOSEPH KENDALL-MORWICK

Empirical Projects

Frazier, Spencer; Morehead, Alex; Prine, Steven; Petersson, Emil. PREDICTING GAME GENRES BY ANALYZING CODE STRUCTURE.
Recent research endeavors in bioinformatics and other machine learning fields have taken a topological approach to classifying data structured as graphs. One such study (Li et al. 2011) has accomplished this through the use of Support Vector Machines (SVM) to analyze the latent features of chemical compounds, proteins, and cell graphs. We are extending the techniques of this study to the domain of publicly available software projects to experiment with classifying a structured language codebase. To run this experiment, we developed an automated pipeline for extracting, transforming, and analyzing structural features among sets of genre-specific codebases. This pipeline consists of a service to execute specific queries for repositories on GitHub, a translation layer for exporting acquired software projects into a convenient format, and a set of graph-specific metrics to be performed comprehensively for each project. We specifically chose to study how well we can predict the genre of a specified Java game project available on GitHub and assess the utility of this technique relative to others that do not take into account structural features.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. JOSEPH KENDALL-MORWICK

Internship/Practicum Experience

Dumler, Kyle/ Strong, Konor/ Chiesi, Toni. SGA INVENTORY TRACKING SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT PROJECT.
We created a web application for the SGA to track inventory items that belong to resource student organizations.
Faculty Sponsor: CONNIE HECKER

Ye, Lisa, Evans, Zach, Carlisle, Jon. BUCHANAN COUNTY ASSET MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT PROJECT.
For years, the director of the Buchanan County IT Department utilized an excel spreadsheet for tracking information about the 350+ systems. While this approach worked, the director thought that it would be better if a web application could be created to enable more flexibility and greater of use current technology. The IT Director requested software from our team to provide better tracking of their devices. Initially we decided on a MVC solution, however we became excited at the prospect of learning a new technology – Angular and ultimately embraced the challenge.
Faculty Sponsor: CONNIE HECKER

Khan, Awais Scarborough, Trey Wahlert,Landon etc,etc. CIRCLE SPOT WEB APPLICATION SOFTWARE.
Circlespot software demonstration. Web development project. Order for small business to survive they need to be able to advertise.
Faculty Sponsor: CONNIE HECKER

DEPARTMENT OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE/LEGAL STUDIES/SOCIAL WORK

Analytical Papers and Analyses

Sollars, Eric. LAW ENFORCEMENT SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY ANALYSIS.
This paper discusses law enforcement social media policies. In recent years, law enforcement has found its actions appearing in social media. Individual officers utilize social media for personal or professional purposes. Officers may find that this usage can come under public scrutiny. Since the actions of individual officers can affect the departments for which they work, policies should be in place to establish appropriate social media usage. To better understand how law enforcement officers utilize social media and how departments address such usage, surveys were distributed to a variety of law enforcement departments in the greater Kansas City, Missouri area.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. PAM CLARY

Empirical Projects

Arrasmith, Alexandria. PRACTICUM AT MOSAIC LIFE CARE.
I will be presenting information about my experience in my practicum with the women's health department of Mosaic Life Care.
Faculty Sponsor: JANA FRYE

Arrasmith, Alexandria. SOCIAL MEDIA POLICIES IN SOCIAL SERVICE AGENCIES .
Should social service agencies have specific rules and/or expectations for their employees in regards to social media? The goal of this study was to find out how many social service agencies had social media policies and to find out what the specific rules were within these policies. A survey was conducted and found that only 41% of social service agencies have a written social media policy
Faculty Sponsor: PAM CLARY

Brown, Andrea. ETHICAL ISSUES WITH SOCIAL MEDIA USAGE AND PROFESSIONALS .
It is important to my research that I prove \r\nthrough a survey that there is a great deal on \r\nambiguity in the code of ethics in relation to \r\nsocial media usage. My survey will consist of 11 \r\nclosed-ended and one open-ended question to \r\nexplore if there is anyone who feels that their \r\nprofessions code of ethics is worded confusingly, \r\nSocial media and internet can be a great tool for \r\na variety of uses but my research will show that \r\nmany workers are getting sanctions because there \r\nisn’t a clear guide on critical issues involving \r\nmedia and practice work. The instrument I used in \r\nthis study was a mixed methods survey that was \r\nadministered online. The reason I used a mixed \r\nmethod survey is because I asked open-ended \r\n(quantitative) and closed-end (qualitative) \r\nquestions. The sample population was various, \r\nrandom student professionals from the Social Work, \r\nNursing and Criminal Justice departments.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. PAM CLARY

Brown, Bryan. PERCEPTIONS OF SOCIAL MEDIA VALIDITY AND SHARING IN PROFESSIONAL STUDIES GRADUATES.
I seek to answer a basic question in my research. Does education, (particularly graduates with a professional study degree), help stop perpetuation of false media due to a heightened ability to decipher what is false and what is genuine? Is a graduate less likely to blindly believe social media news without a secondary source to verify validity.The instrument was a twenty question survey. I would have preferred administering this survey person, however ultimately I ended up relying (ironically) on social media to attempt to reach my quota of participants. Both group A and B was given the same 21 question survey. The results are now currently being collected for the purpose of ultimately being rendered down to statistical data. The purpose of the survey was to see if education had any bearing on the filtering of and or the perpetuation of false media.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. PAM CLARY

Chavez, Kinsley. SOCIAL MEDIA IN HIGHER EDUCATION.
This study proposes the effects of the use of \r\n\\r\\nsocial media on students in Higher Education. \r\nThe \\r\\ngoal of this study was to determine how \r\nsocial \\r\\nmedia is being used by students and the \r\neffect it \\r\\nhas on their education. This study \r\nis important, \\r\\nbecause professors are using \r\nmore technology in \\r\\nthe classroom setting which \r\ncould impact students \\r\\nand their course work. \r\nWe used quantitative and \\r\\nqualitative data in \r\nthe form of a four- page \\r\\nsurvey. The survey \r\nremained anonymous from a \\r\\nrandom selection of \r\nstudents on Missouri Western \\r\\nState University \r\nCampus.
Faculty Sponsor: PAM CLARY

Cooper, Carolyn. COMMUNICATING WITH FACULTY THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA.
This study aims to examine how faculty is utilizing social media to communicate with students. This study also seeks to identify how faculty is using social media, and which sites they prefer. Social media has become greatly significant to our society. The number of adults using social media sites continues to increase over the years. We know that social media sites are being used by not only students, but faculty as well. Through surveys I intend to identify the answer to my research question, which is, “how has communication strengthened by having faculty on social media?” It is likely that communication through social media is only going to increase. Research behind the effectiveness of social media communication is important.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. PAM CLARY

Fluker, Markel . HOW IS SOCIAL MEDIA AFFECTING LAW ENFORCEMENT DEPARTMENTS.
I am gathering data from various police departments to find out if there are certain social media polices in play that police officers have to be aware of while on and off duty. This is extremely important because policies change daily and new information is introduced, causing older policies to become obsolete. The method we will use to collect data of the specific departments is by providing each department with a list of survey questions regarding the current social media policies that are in place.
Faculty Sponsor: PAM CLARY

Ford, Tyler. PRACTICUM EXPERIENCE WITH GREAT CIRCLE.
Student\'s practicum experience with Great Circle\'s IOP/PHP \r\nprogram. During my placement as a Youth Care Specialist \r\nwith Great Circle\'s intensive outpatient program/partial \r\nhospitalization program I worked with behavioral youth ages \r\n6-20 and participated on a multidisciplinary treatment team \r\ninterested assisting clients reach their individualized \r\ntreatment goals.
Faculty Sponsor: JANA FRY

Ford, Tyler. SOCIAL MEDIA AND PROFESSIONAL ETHICS.
This study was designed to examine the attitudes and opinions towards the current professional standards regarding ethical uses of social media by professionals, and whether professionals feel their code of ethics properly and adequately addresses the boundaries between personal and professional social media applications.
Faculty Sponsor: PAM CLARY

Grable, Nick . SOCIAL MEDIA IN HIGHER EDUCATION.
The research question that guided this study was \r\n\\r\\nto find out if professors felt student\\\'s \r\nlevel of \\r\\nengagement is motivated by the use of \r\nsocial \\r\\nmedia. The big question was the use of \r\nsocial \\r\\nmedia in schools itself and how it \r\nimpacted the \\r\\nstudents, their code of ethics, \r\nfaculty, and \\r\\neverything else. As there are \r\narticles mentioned \\r\\nthroughout throughout my \r\nresearch, this survey \\r\\nwill be one that hasn\\\'t \r\nbeen given in terms of a \\r\\nvery broad spectrum \r\nof what websites, how they are \\r\\nused, and who \r\nexactly is the subject to use social \\r\\nmedia in \r\nthe classroom setting the most.
Faculty Sponsor: PAM CLARY

Griffin, Miranda, Ford, Tyler, Brown, Andrea. SOCIAL MEDIA AND THE EFFECTS ON ETHICAL VALUES OF STUDENTS.
This research was conducted to help illuminate the threat of social media on the code of ethics as well as the ethical values of professional study students. A survey was created to be distributed within professional fields. The data was analyzed and tested to determine if there was any statistical significance between the age of the student and the ethical values that appeared to be broken due to social media. With the results of the research, we hope to establish a solution that will become beneficial for professionals in the future.
Faculty Sponsor: PAM CLARY

Hurd, Holly. THE UTILIZATION OF SOCIAL MEDIA IN HIGHER EDUCATION.
This study surveyed faculty members in a higher education setting on how they believe social media has or has not affected the classroom experience. The study compared level of utilization among various fields of study. This study provides a list of frequently used social media sites across various departments. In addition, this study provides insight regarding whether or not student involvement has been increased by the utilization of social media in a classroom setting. An electronic survey was used to complete this research.
Faculty Sponsor: PAM CLARY

Leonard, Precious. SOCIAL MEDIA IN GENERAL EDUCATION COURSES.
This study will attempt to explore how professors are using social media in General Education courses to increase student engagement. The research strategy consisted of mixed methods, including literature reviews and surveys given to professors at a medium size university in Missouri.
Faculty Sponsor: PAM CLARY

Loehr, Julia. SOCIAL WORK PRACTICUM .
Practicum at HALO teaching and planning for art therapy \r\nworkshops with homeless youth in Kansas city
Faculty Sponsor: JANA FRYE

Loehr, Julia. ASSESSING THE EFFICACY OF ART THERAPY INTERVENTIONS WITH HOMELESS YOUTH.
Qualitative research at HALO agency to evaluate the efficacy of art twhrrapy programs with homeless youth as seen from direct care staff perspective
Faculty Sponsor: ALI KAMALI

Pike, Danielle. ADVANTAGES OF STUDENTS USING SOCIAL MEDIA IN HIGHER EDUCATION.
This study proposes to study the effects of the use of social media on students in Higher Education. The goal of this study is to determine how social media is being used by students and the effect it has on their education. This study is important, because professors are using more technology in the classroom setting which could impact students and their course work. We will be using quantitative and qualitative data in the form of a two-page survey. The survey will remain anonymous from a random selection of students on Missouri Western State University Campus.
Faculty Sponsor: PAM CLARY

Rickel, Derrick . A DISPARITY IN JUSTICE: THE RICH AND POOR.
Abstract Examining the disparity in the criminal justice system in the United States (US): Between the rich and the poor. When it comes to seeking legal representation, most people cannot always afford to spend the hundreds and thousands of dollars it takes to retain the lawyer to resolve their legal problem. Instead, the majority of the time, people end up paying a ticket, fine, or pleading guilty to a charge simply because it is cheaper. This in turn means that they plead guilty and have that on their records for, potentially, the rest of their lives and all for a crime they might not even have committed. Studies have shown that the main demographic effected by this problem has primarily been those of the minority communities. In examining this issue, it is important to design treatment policies to help prevent and combat these injustices and reduce the rate of unnecessary incarcerations. Keywords: Rich, poor, United States, justice system, disparity, treatment policies
Faculty Sponsor: DAVID TUSHAUS

Streett, Clara. SOCIAL MEDIA IN HIGHER EDUCATION.
This study proposes to study the effects of the use of social media on students in Higher Education. The goal of this study is to determine how social media is being used by students and the effect it has on their education. This study is important, because professors are using more technology in the classroom setting which could impact students and their course work. We will be using quantitative and qualitative data in the form of a two-page survey. We collected data to support the evidence of how social media is used in higher levels of education and what different types of social media sites were used in the classroom.
Faculty Sponsor: PAM CLARY

Thomson, Lindsey. SOCIAL MEDIA USE IN HIGHER LEVELS OF EDUCATION.
This study proposes to study the effects of the use of social media on students in Higher Education. The goal of this study is to determine how social media is being used by students and the effect it has on their education. This study is important, because professors are using more technology in the classroom setting which could impact students and their course work. We will be using quantitative and qualitative data in the form of a two-page survey. We collected data to support the evidence of how social media is used in higher levels of education and what different types of social media sites were used in the classroom.
Faculty Sponsor: PAM CLARY

Walker, Debra. SOCIAL MEDIA IN THE WORKPLACE.
Data collection and research on the use of social media in the workplace. Looking to see if agencies have policies and procedures in place on the use of social media.
Faculty Sponsor: PAM CLARY

Walker, Debra. PRACTICUM PLACEMENT.
Presentation for my practicum placement for my social work 480 class. Discuss what I have learned from this experience.
Faculty Sponsor: JANA FRYE

Warner, Anjanette. SOCIAL MEDIA POLICIES WITH AGENCIES.
This study was implemented to examine if there are social media policies in place at social service agencies to protect patients and the agencies. Social media accounts and personal technical devices have become one of the main sources of communication, advertisement, research and leisure time for most in today's society. With this in mind, a study was conducted to examine if employers have a policy in place and or employees are aware of the agency's policy for social media use, and are caretakers allowed to use and have access to personal technical devices while with a patient. This study focuses on the patients of the aging population (65+) as they're most vulnerable. The study will indicate if there are social media policies in place to protect the aging population.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. PAM CLARY

Wertz, Kati. SOCIAL MEDIA USE WITH STUDENTS IN HIGHER EDUCATION.
This study proposes to study the effects of the use of social media on students in Higher Education. The goal of this study is to determine how social media is being used by students and the effect it has on their education. This study is important, because professors are using more technology in the classroom setting which could impact students and their course work. We will be using quantitative and qualitative data in the form of a two-page survey. The survey will remain anonymous from a random selection of students on Missouri Western State University Campus.
Faculty Sponsor: PAM CLARY

Windsor, Amanda; Bechtold, Jonht. SEX TRAFFICKING: A REAL PROBLEM OR JUST ANOTHER BUZZWORD?.
Sex trafficking is an internationally recognized human rights concern, a battle which local law enforcement are becoming all too familiar with. Our goal is to educate the community on what sex trafficking is, who is most vulnerable to victimization, and how the community can assist law enforcement in both the prevention and detection of potential victims.
Faculty Sponsor: DAVID TUSHAUS

Internship/Practicum Experience

Cable, Sabrina. THE FARMER'S HOUSE.
Board on my practicum at The Farmers House. 415 \r\n\\r\\nmain street Weston MO. A non-profit agency \r\nthat provides services for individuals with \r\ndevelopmental disabilities.
Faculty Sponsor: JANA FRYE

Jefferson, Geornesha. PRACTICUM EXPERIENCE AT RIVERSIDE PRIMARY SCHOOL.
This is about my practicum experience at Riverside Primary School and how it applies to social work and what I learned in the social work program.
Faculty Sponsor: JANA FRYE

Saltsgaver, Kayla . PREFERRED FAMILY HEALTHCARE .
Information about practicum site will be presented. Poster will detail the goals and objectives of the agency, their clientele, and what they do. Poster will show the need of this intervention and how it effects those that use the services provided by Preferred Family Healthcare. Intern will discuss their experiences and what they have learned from being at the placement. Duties of the intern will be outlined.
Faculty Sponsor: JANA FRYE

Simmons, Christy. BUCHANAN COUNTY CHILDREN\\\'S DIVISION.
This is about my Practicum at The Buchanan County \r\nChildren\'s Division. I have been at my placement \r\nfrom January 16th 2018 until May 1st 2018. This is \r\nexplaining about my experience and about the \r\npeople I worked with while I was there.
Faculty Sponsor: JANA FRYE

Literature Reviews

Tidwell, Ashley. THE USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA IN THE CLASSROOM.
This study is examining whether or not the use of social media in the classroom is something that benefits the students and teachers or not. Think about when you were starting college and how excited you were that first day of class, all you did was sit down and listened to the teacher talk about what all the semester was going to consist of. Black Hills University professors had a workshop that consist of social media in the classroom and how they are or are not using it. Teachers found that Facebook wasn’t the number one social site that we as students us but Twitter, Blogs, and Google platforms were the most popular websites that are being used today (BHSU). As I continued my education, I wondered if I was going to get a professor who was going to teach me how to use things I will take with me as I started my career after graduation or not.
Faculty Sponsor: PAMELA CLARY

DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMICS POLITITICAL SCIENCE AND SOCIOLOGY

Empirical Projects

Agbaji, Oganya. IMMIGRANTS IN AMERICA: WORK, EDUCATION, AND THE FAMILY DYNAMIC .
The present study was designed to analyze the dynamic of immigrant families in America relating to work, work roles, and education. The study consisted of 10 participants of varying immigrant status in the United States, varying ethnicities, varying age, varying education levels, and varying socioeconomic status. Participants were administered an online survey through the medium of Google forms that asked questions pertaining to their work roles and experiences with education between the United States and their country of origin. Results yielded that younger generation immigrants were more U.S. educated than older, and were more likely to pursue or desire to pursue higher education. Results also yielded that work roles typically did not change much from country of origin to the United States. Mothers are generally viewed as caretakers and fathers as breadwinners across the board.
Faculty Sponsor: ALI KAMALI

Papandrea, Veronica . THE EFFECTS OF INTERRACIAL MARRIAGE ON SOCIETY .
Couples in Interracial Marriages have dealt with the \r\n\\r\\nloss of friends and family members because, of \r\ntheir \\r\\nspouse’s ethnicity. Furthermore, some \r\ncouples have \\r\\nencountered language and cultural \r\nbarriers. 10 of \\r\\nthe participants were/are in \r\nInterracial Marriages \\r\\nand consisted of different \r\nethnicities. Most of the \\r\\nparticipants didn’t \r\nlose any family members and \\r\\nfriends. However, \r\nhalf of the participants felt that \\r\\nthere was a \r\ncultural barrier with their spouse. \\r\\n
Faculty Sponsor: ALI KAMALI

DEPARTMENT OF ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY

Empirical Projects

Brickey, Matthew. AUTOMATIC LIGHTING SYSTEM IMPLEMENTED WITH BIDIRECTIONAL VISITOR COUNTER.
 The ease of use and rapidly decreasing price of \r\n\\r\\nmicrocontrollers and small low power computers \r\nhas \\r\\nallowed a massive increase in IoT devices \r\nand \\r\\nsimple automation projects. Lighting, \r\nsecurity and \\r\\nconvenience projects abound and \r\nare easily \\r\\naccomplished with a minimum of \r\nequipment. \\r\\nThe proposed system uses an Arduino \r\ncompatible \\r\\nboard and seeks to automate \r\nlighting based on \\r\\nwhether or not a room is \r\noccupied and be able to \\r\\nbe fit over existing \r\nswitches . The system seeks \\r\\nto reduce power \r\nconsumption from lights left on \\r\\nneedlessly \r\nwhile also ensuring adequate lighting \\r\\nwhen \r\nneeded and provide an increase in \\r\\nconvenience.
Faculty Sponsor: JINWEN ZHU

(Dillon, Dakota) (Parker, Boston) (Wutke, Mitch). BRP GUITAR AMPLIFIER.
In the music industry, the tube amplifier has been the preferred method of amplification for many years. These amplifiers use vacuum tubes to increase the power of a signal. The future, however is in the shape of the solid-state amp. For a lower cost, they are able to create a more durable alternative as well as maintain all of the essential components of a traditional amplifier.
Faculty Sponsor: JINWEN ZHU

Fox, Timothy. EQUIPMENT CLEANING VALIDATION USING TOC TESTING.
In order to comply with GMP regulations, manufacturers pharmaceuticals must adhere to strict guidelines regarding processes used to clean equipment. One of these processes is cleaning validation. This project dealt with validating a new loading pattern for an industrial parts washer which contained components used to fill bottles with vaccine. The basic process for this to wash the components, swab the components, and then test the components for total organic carbon(TOC). Once testing has been completed and passing results have been obtained, the new loading pattern is now validated.
Faculty Sponsor: JIN WEN ZHU

(Griffin, Darius) (Nkongolo, Nathan). FLORO: THE FLOOR CLEANING ROBOT.
FloRo is a motorized automatic floor cleaning robot, characterized by its discreet presence, and ease of use. The completed project is able to be switched on, and move freely to clean up dirt and spills off of messy floors, all while utilizing the power of an ultrasonic sensor to avoid any large obstacles in its path. We chose this project because we thought it might be a fun and challenging way to implement the knowledge we’ve gained while completing our EET course work. Throughout the duration of this project, we found ourselves applying our previous knowledge not only to construct our robot, but to gain new a understanding of engineering concepts we’ve learned in the past. A simple example of this would be reading a schematic or block diagram associated with our circuit board. Having studied these in previous courses, we were able to apply our knowledge of them to gain some new understanding of the Arduino system and how we could best use it to our advantage.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. ZHU

Griffin, Darius. EGT 490 INTERNSHIP.
Interstate Batteries is a national franchise that specializes in the sale of batteries ranging from automotive and marine batteries, to coin cell and phone batteries. With over 12,000 different batteries available at more than 200,000 locations across the country, Interstate Batteries is certainly an industry leader and is thriving here in the St. Joseph community. Interstate All Battery Center, is where I spent the duration of my internship. Here we provide a service that is not typical of all Interstate stores, that being our Electronic Device Repair service. We diagnose, and make repairs to a wide range of items mostly consisting of cell phones, laptops, and tablets.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. JINWEN ZHU

Nkongolo, Nathan. LOWE\\\\\\\'S HOME IMPROVEMENT HARDWARE.
This semester, I did my internship at Lowe\\\\\\\'s Home Improvement Warehouse. I was hired on as an electric in the electric department at the store. Though the store, has several departments, the section that I worked at dealt with electrical work with lights and rough electrical. Tasks perform change very little over the months. When first working at Lowes, I was required to undertake training related to electricity. This training including the wiring which tested me on ground wire, neutral wire, and hot wire. Also it includes question relating to what wire is best used for wet locations. This would be the UF cable. But after training past through, I was required to keep proper maintenance of my area. I was asked changes lights depending on the fixture and the type of light that it was needing. Fan that carried light as times were needed to be required depending on the damaged product. Goals that I had for myself were to learn I much as I can from the expertise that worked in my department. Their knowledge and understanding would be beneficial for me in the future. I believe I was able to obtain as much as I can from the guys in the department.
Faculty Sponsor: JINWEN ZHU

PARKER, BOSTON. AGAPE HOME IMPROVEMENT CO, LLC.
Accredited by the better business bureau, Agape Home Improvement Co, LLC has been proud to serve the Kansas City and surrounding area for 25 years. Their trained staff is specialized in basements, bathrooms, kitchens and more. Agape is owned and family operated and is dedicated to finishing their products with the best quality and customer service
Faculty Sponsor: JINWEN ZHU

Internship/Practicum Experience

FRISBIE, JONATHAN. VACCINE BULKING CYCLE.
The Boehringer Ingelheim group is one of the world’s 20 leading pharmaceutical companies. Boehringer Ingelheim was founded in 1885, and since then the family-owned company has been committed to researching, developing, manufacturing and marketing products of high therapeutic value for human and veterinary medicine. I have had the pleasure of learning the blending aspect of the company’s manufacturing facility in Saint Joseph, Mo. In the blending department we take all the necessary components that go into the vaccine, and we blend them into one giant tank according to the calculations provided to us. There is a lot that goes into the process of bulking a product, from prepping the tank, bulking the product, and clean-up. Once the process is complete, the cycle repeats itself with another product. \\\\r\\\\n
Faculty Sponsor: JINWIN ZHU

Lundy, Ryan. REARDON MACHINE COMPANY.
Reardon Machine Company is a machine shop here in St Joseph that does a wide variety of work for many different companies in the area. Throughout my internship I had the opportunity to work with lots of different types of technology from CNC lathes and mills to state of the art measuring instruments. Machine shops like Reardon Machine Company are essential for the advancement of technology in manufacturing and to keep the manufacturing industry running smoothly for many years to come.
Faculty Sponsor: JINWEN ZHU

Prokop, Doug. ALTEC INDUSTRIES MIDWEST SPECIALTY PRODUCT.
As the world's population grows there is a greater need for a sufficient supply of power in all kinds of countries in varying climates and environments. Ever wonder what it takes to supply energy around the world? What types of utility equipment are necessary to handle the jobs that must be done to spread and maintain a steady supply of energy to all corners of the globe. That is where Altec Inc. comes in. At Altec Inc. I have been fortunate to design the custom utility equipment necessary to complete these jobs in whatever climate it may be needed.
Faculty Sponsor: JINWEN ZHU

Wutke, Mitch. EET INTERNSHIP - VELOCITI.
Today we live in an amazing time where technology impacts all aspects of life. Everything and everyone uses technology. It is also something that is constantly evolving and improving. With these constant changes also comes a need for someone to support and sustain this technology. That is where a company such as Velociti comes in. Velociti is a technology deployment company based out of Riverside, MO that I have had the pleasure of having my internship experience at.
Faculty Sponsor: DR ZHU

Empirical Projects

Derr, Greg. RASPBERRY PI DICEROLLER.
The Raspberry PI 3 Model B Digital Dice Roller is a handheld, portable computer. The purpose of the device is as the name states, a digital dice roller. This device will aid any game that uses different types of die and even multiples of said die. Like a smart phone, it is a touch screen that allows inputs directly from the screen. It is simple to use from powering up, the display of which die are available to be marked. Another window, next to the die type, displays the total of the rolled die or dice being used. A button set for each die type generates numbers within the range the selected die.
Faculty Sponsor: JINWIN, ZHU

Johnson,Sarah Dovel,Jacob. 1HZ TO 1MHZ FREQUENCY COUNTER.
The 4026 Decade/Frequency Counter is a small circuit that is built to create low cost frequency meters that will read a certain range in hertz. The small 7-segment display will provide the reader with easy to read digital frequencies. This electronic instrument is used for the measuring of frequencies of pulses per second in a periodic electronic signal. It accumulates the number of events occurring within specific periods of time. It is a resettable counter that allows the user to get multiple uses of this electronic device. The frequency counter is a user-friendly device that can be easily installed for permanent or mobile applications.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. JINWEN ZHU

DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH MODERN LANGUAGES

Empirical Projects

Pimentel, Tiffany. UNITED NINETY THREE.
In this paper/poster, I will be analyzing the \r\nactual events of Flight United 93 as \r\ncompared/contrasted to that of the movie.
Faculty Sponsor: WILLIAM CHURCH

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH PE AND RECREATION

Empirical Projects

Fee, Victoria; Hicks, Shawna. EXERCISE BENEFITS AND BARRIERS ACROSS DIFFERENT AGE GROUPS.
Research has demonstrated that people across age groups have different reasons for exercising. Older adults are more likely to exercise as a way to prevent / treat chronic diseases, while younger adults often exercise more to manage weight, relieve stress, and for appearance. The purpose of this study was to determine how perceived exercise benefits and barriers changed across age groups. Participants were young adults (n=22), middle age adults (n=18), and older adults (n=19). Participants completed a survey measuring their perceived benefits and barriers of exercise. Independent t-test results were not significant, but all three age groups scored high on the perceived benefits scale. Older adults were significantly more uncomfortable (F(2,55)=9.08, p<.05) at peak gym times compared to younger or middle-age adults.
Faculty Sponsor: WILLIAM RUSSELL

Helm, Jessica & Walser, Whitney. AN EXAMINATION OF THE EXERCISE HABITS OF COLLEGE STUDENTS.
College students’ exercise habits range from never exercising to exercising every day. Additionally, while some exercise habits are functional, others may be dysfunctional habits. The purpose was to determine how college students majoring Health, Physical Education and Recreation (HPER) fields compared to students in other academic majors with respect to the levels of functional and dysfunctional exercise habits and emotional response to exercise. Seventy-five participants completed surveys on their exercise habits, and compared several academic majors: (1) Health, Physical Education and Recreation (HPER), (2) Physical Therapy Assistants (PTA), and (3) Other (10 different majors including Biology, Education, Business, Chemistry, and Criminal Justice). One-way ANOVA results comparing academic majors on their functional exercise habits (PEHQ) and their dysfunctional exercise habits (OEQ) were not significantly different.
Faculty Sponsor: WILLIAM RUSSELL

Williams, Daryl and Bahr, Jesse. AN EXAMINATION OF VARIOUS EXERCISE MOTIVATION ACROSS AGE GROUPS.
Research has shown that, regardless of age, everyone should participate in physical activity to reduce disease risks including cardiovascular disease and obesity. The purpose of this study was to determine if motivational factors to engage in various exercise were different across different age groups. A convenience sample of 40 exercisers (20 males; 20 females) from Missouri Western State University completed the Behavioral Regulation in Exercise Questionnaire-2. To compare motivational influences across age groups, we compared male and female college aged exercisers (18-24 years old) with older male and female exercisers aged 40 and older. Males were significantly higher on their general exercise motivation (M=41.95, SD=6.68) compared to females (M=37.70, SD=5.60). Specifically, males (M=13.05, SD=2.70) were significantly higher than females (M=10.80, SD=3.64) on Identified regulation and also higher (M=12.60) than females (M=8.80, SD=4.75) on Introjected Regulation
Faculty Sponsor: WILLIAM RUSSELL

DEPARTMENT OF HONORS

Analytical Papers and Analyses

Barnett, Nathan. THE BP OIL SPILL THROUGH ART AND DOCUMENTS.
The 2010 BP oil spill remains the most catastrophic oil spill in American history. The effects of the oil spill are widely known, but less discussed are the events leading up to the spill. The 2016 film is an artful depiction of the day leading up to the explosion that caused the tragedy. We will be discussing this movie's role in explaining the real events behind the BP oil spill.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. WILLIAM CHURCH

Comella, Elizabeth. ANDREW JACKSON THE MAN AND THE BROADWAY ROCK STAR.
Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson directed Alex Timbers with lyrics by Michael Friedman is an emo-rock Broadway musical created in 2010. Andrew Jackson was the founder of the Democratic Party, and has been remembered as one of the most controversial presidents in the history of the United States. When the above things are put side by side it seems almost comical to try and draw any real correlation between them. Their similarities however, can be found when the early 2000’s guy-liner is put aside, and the intentions of the musical and the man are considered. Though Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson certainly takes heavy poetic license it seems fitting that a modern retelling of Jackson's life would be in such a loud and crude form.
Faculty Sponsor: WILLIAM CHURCH

Currey, Brett. AN ANALYSIS OF THE PORTRAYAL OF MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. IN FILM AS OPPOSED TO REALITY.
Martin Luther King Jr. was a great man. He was also a martyr for a noble cause. These two widely held opinions often distort the reality of exactly who Martin Luther King Jr. really was. It is this that I would like to bring to light as I not too long ago did not know much about the man who led the civil rights movement and is said to have done little to no wrong. This is not the truth, but rather a distortion that we have put on the reality that many people choose to not explore.
Faculty Sponsor: WILLIAM CHURCH

Daugherty, Heather. THOMAS JEFFERSON IN MIRANDA'S HAMILTON.
Thomas Jefferson has always been a controversial figure in history. He was a United States Founding Father and, later, the President of the budding nation. In Lin-Manuel Miranda’s, Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson is depicted as a comedic antagonist, an obstacle for Alexander’s plans. Many of his controversial aspects, such as his involvement in slavery or his bombastic stances on individual rights, were glazed over or lessened, especially through Miranda’s artistic decision to cast Thomas Jefferson as a black man.
Faculty Sponsor: WILLIAM CHURCH

Morehead, Alex. THE REAL LIVES OF THE NEWSIES.
This research essay will be focused on the historical accuracy and inaccuracy of recent depictions of the lives of early 20th century newsboys. Popularized by the thematic and energetic musical Newsies, the lifestyle and culture of early 20th century American citizens in New York City have been brought into a clearer light within the last few decades. Due largely in part by advancements in the given field of research, an in-depth look at the true lives of America’s “newsies” will very well provide a better understanding of social, political, and economic issues of the day. More so, by examining the causes of and solutions for issues prevalent during the turn of the 20th century, new, intuitive responses to modern societal issues can be spawned. It is the purpose of this paper to explore the similarities and differences between the Newsies film and stage production and the actual events they are based on for their meaningful implications in interpreting various historical events of the 21st century and their dramatic depictions in modern film, music, art, and beyond.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. WILLIAM CHURCH

Empirical Projects

Karns, Neiley. THERE AND BACK AGAIN: A SLAVE?'S TALE BY SOLOMON NORTHUP.
Poetic license is a literary tool used by authors, poets, filmmakers, and songwriters to enhance their respective works of art. According to Cambridge University’s online dictionary, poetic license is the freedom that the creators of these works of art possess that allow them to alter facts for literary purposes. These creators may choose to exercise their poetic licence for a number of reasons, including to dramatize and draw attention to important ideas and concepts. Examples of this can be seen in the 2013 movie Twelve Years a Slave, directed by Steve McQueen. This movie is an artistic representation of the memoir of the same name, written by Solomon Northup. Solomon first wrote and published his memoir in 1853 in response to a growing interest of the public in slaves’ stories. McQueen adapted Solomon’s memoir into the largely successful film by using his poetic license to dramatize the facts and fabricate events that appeal to the audience. Examples of this utilization of artistic freedom can be seen in the sequence in which events of Solomon’s life are presented, occurrences involving Patsey, and the difficulties that had to be overcome to secure Solomon’s liberation.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. WILLIAM CHURCH

Sharp, Kaylee. EXPOSING THE HIDDEN FIGURES .
The 2017 movie, Hidden Figures, depicts three African American women fighting discrimination as NASA female mathematics computers. The real women, Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan, and Mary Jackson all work as mathematicians for NASA, computing for various tasks in the space program. The movie shows many acts of prejudice and discrimination that black professional women faced in the 1960s. The release of the movie came directly after the publication of the book Hidden Figures. Like the movie, this book was aimed to illustrate the struggle of Black women working at NASA. While the two are based on the same events, they show different experiences of the women. The medium through which the message is presented allowed for different features meant to entertain. This presentation is a comparative analysis of the book, movie, and historical events that educate people on the marginalization of Black professional women in the wake of the Civil Rights Movement.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. WILLIAM CHURCH

Trimmer, Eli. INTERPRETATION OF THE MANHATTAN PROJECT THROUGH FILM AND SONG.
The Manhattan Project was the United States' secretive operation to be the first nation to build the atomic bomb, and to become a world superpower. Almost 80 years later, we are still seeing results of the Manhattan project in the news, as well represented in songs and films. This paper analyzes how artists in multiple artistic outlets have interpreted and re-interpreted history, as artists give their treatment to the making and use of the bomb.
Faculty Sponsor: WILLIAM CHURCH

Whitman, Isaac and Woodrum, Adam. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS OF LIGNIN.
This research project was a literature review over the phenolic molecule lignin. The research presented discussed what lignin is, its molecular chemistry, medicinal uses, economic contributions, and other processes associated with it.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. SVOJANOVSKY AND DR. BARTA

Historical Papers

Beier, Julia. THE TRUTH OF HONEST ABE.
Abraham Lincoln, we all know him as the tall, top- hat wearing man who freed the slaves. The 16th president of the United States is a popular candidate for favorite commander-in-chief. Steven Spielberg attempts to bring this beloved man back to the land of the living with his 2012 major motion picture, Lincoln, but how much of this modern day depiction is truth, and how much is simply artful lies?
Faculty Sponsor: WILLIAM CHURCH

Grace, Tyler. THE PATRIOT (2000): BENJAMIN MARTIN VS. FRANCIS MARION.
The purpose of this paper is to examine a particular film, book, or \r\nother artistic work, and examine the poetic license taken between the \r\nartists take on a particular event or person, and that event or person \r\nitself. I will compare and contrast the real world Francis Marion, the \r\n“Swamp Fox”, a Revolutionary War militia leader, with the fictional \r\ncharacter Benjamin Martin, from The Patriot, the 2000 feature film. \r\nThe goal of the paper is to examine the poetic license taken, why \r\nthey took poetic license, and how much license they took.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. WILLIAM CHURCH

McKern, Will. HOW DOES PLATOON STAND UP TO THE HISTORY OF THE VIETNAM WAR? .
The film Platoon, a box office hit, but that does not reflect whether or not it communicates the history of the war. No matter the historical accuracy of the film or book, the chaos of that war is a central theme. Films and books often dramatize the events, however, for whatever purpose the author or director sees. Oliver Stone seems to have had the goal of communicating what his psychological experience in the war was.. Comparing the dramatized story of Platoon with history presents contradictions, and inadequacy in how the story relates to real history.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CHURCH

Literature Reviews

Pickering, Bayley Song, Bingxin. GINKGOLIDES LITERATURE REVIEW.
Ginkgolides are biologically active terpenoids present in Ginkgo bioba which is a living fossil plant existing more than 200 million years. They have remarkable clinical effects. Modern researchers have found their neuroprotective, anti-cancer, cardioprotective, stress alleviating, memory-enhancing effects.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. SVOJANOVSKY AND DR. BARTA

Derr, Kaitlynn; Holland, Emily; Tittor, Raechel. A REVIEW OF THE FUNCTIONS AND PROPERTIES OF PHYTOALEXINS.
Phytoalexins include a variety of compounds that are produced in plant tissues and are utilized to defend a plant against environmental stressors such as viruses and fungi. They exhibit a variety of chemical structures, including terpenoids, glycosteroids, and alkaloids. In addition to their applications in plants, they also have antioxidative properties and the potential to be effective in the treatment of certain types of cancers. While the mechanisms behind the antiproliferative effects of these substances are still unknown, current studies have demonstrated that these substances are potentially effective for developing new anti-tumor drugs.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. SVOJANOVSKY AND DR. BARTA

Hubbard, Britane. AMIRI BARAKA: SOMEBODY BLEW UP AMERICA.
Few tragedies on United States soil have incited fear, shock, and anger like the terrorist attacks on September 11th, 2001. This attack shook the foundation of safety for American citizens and for the world as well. These attacks on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and the hijacking of United Airlines Flight 93 resulted in the death of 2,977 people (CNN, 2017). This presentation examines Amiri Baraka’s representation of these events in his poem“Somebody Blew Up America” and explores why this poem is one of the most controversial and interesting artistic depictions of this tragedy.
Faculty Sponsor: WILLIAM CHURCH

(Owens, Demetria) (Owens, Atasha). THE ESSENTIAL OILS OF TERPENES.
The discussion of terpenes used in common essential oils and their popular uses. Terpenes are naturally occurring hydrocarbons based on combinations of two or more isoprene units. Within plants, they serve the purpose of either attracting pollinators or repelling predators due to their strong aromas. These strong aromas are largely responsible for the popularity of essential oils, which are often used for herbal remedies and homeopathic medicine.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. SVOJANVSKY AND DR. BARTA

Pinaire, Andrea and Prawitz, Rachael. ATROPA BELLADONNA.
Atropa Belladonna has had a long history of acting as both a poison and a medicine. In this poster, we look at the history, properties, and uses of belladonna.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CSENGELE BARTA

(Tauchen, Ali), (Hartline, Lindsey). SALICYLIC ACID LITERATURE REVIEW.
We are going to discuss all the wonderful uses of Salicylic Acid. To begin we have a brief history and background of the plants it comes from. Then we move into the medial benefits.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. SVOJANOSKY AND DR. BARTA

DEPARTMENT OF MUSIC

Analytical Papers and Analyses

Gierstorf, Rhonda. TO SING, OR NOT TO SING, "WHAT," IS THE QUESTION..
Every year, hundreds of Missouri's high school students attend district and state vocal music competitions, where they sing vocal solos, chosen from a prescribed music list, the P.M.L., as set forth by the MSHSAA. I analyzed the list to determine if the vocal selections meet the needs of today's high school students. Submissions for changes to the list were made based on my findings.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. PAUL HINDEMITH

DEPARTMENT OF NURSING

Empirical Projects

Burgess Briana, Dubrul Chris, Goodrich Laura, Harmon Adrianna, McCullough Michael, Violett Kara. ANTIMICROBIAL STEWARDSHIP IN THE GERIATRIC POPULATION.
Antibiotic resistant organisms are quickly threatening the current healthcare approach. This paper details the Fast Five, which are strategies that can be used by antimicrobial stewardship teams in long term care facilities; in general, the elderly are more prone to infections, and because of this, many providers prescribe a broad- spectrum antibiotic hoping that it remedies whatever ailment the patient presents with. The Fast Five aim to stop the blanket usage of antibiotics by implementing the following strategies: increasing education regarding proper hygiene and reportable signs and symptoms, involving all levels of the interdisciplinary team, adding additional criteria to routine documentation, antimicrobial order forms and checklists, and exploration of alternative, non- antibiotic treatments in the presence of suspected infection. These strategies are evidenced based and designed to be easily adaptable to each organization’s individual needs and requirements.
Faculty Sponsor: STEPHANIE STEWART

Montoya, Juan C., Schultz, Shelby N., Carr, Mariah L., Fox, Nathaniel A., and Williams, Tara A. . THE INFLUENCES OF FAMILY INTERACTION AND SPIRITUAL WELL-BEING ON THE OLDER PEOPLE.
The purpose of this study was to examine the influences of family interaction and spiritual well-being on the older people’s anxiety and depression. This was a cross sectional, descriptive research design. The structured questionnaires were used to do the data collection. There were 50 older people were recruited from community. The mean age was 70.38 (SD = 8.34), range (55-99). There were 19 Male (38%) and 31 Female (62%). The SPSS 23 version was used to do the data analysis. Life Satisfaction/Self- actualization was the significant predictor to decrease older people’s anxiety and depression.
Faculty Sponsor: PI-MING YEH

Neverdusky, Kyrsten; Brock, Tara ; Harris, Megan ; Shaver, Mary ; Wall, Tamara . THE INFLUENCES OF PERSONALITY, AND COPING STRATEGIES ON OLDER PEOPLE??S ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION.
The purpose of this study was to exam the influences of coping strategies and personality on older people’s anxiety and depression. This was a cross sectional, descriptive research design. The structured questionnaires were used to do the data collection. There were 50 older people were recruited from community. The mean age was 70.38 (SD = 8.34), range (55-99). There were 19 Male (38%) and 31 Female (62%). The SPSS 23 version was used to do the data analysis. Problem focused disengagement coping strategy, Emotional Stability and Positive Personality were the significant predictors to decrease older people’s anxiety and depression.
Faculty Sponsor: PI-MING YEH

Nichole Owens, SPTA, April Smith, SPTA, Jeff Smith, SPTA, Halee Tharp, SPTA. EFFECT OF TWO TEACHING STRATEGIES ON COMFORT WITH, EMPATHY TOWARD, AND KNOWLEDGE OF DEMENTIA.
Dementia is a cognitive disorder that includes a decline in mental ability with symptoms of memory deficits, personality changes, and impaired reasoning. Methods of teaching about dementia should seek to change attitude, empathy, and knowledge. This study tested the null hypothesis that two teaching strategies would not have an effect on students’ knowledge of, empathy toward, and comfort with dementia. Fifty students were randomly assigned to a simulation group or a movie group. The simulation group experienced simulated dementia for seven minutes. The movie group watched a seven-minute clip of a woman with dementia. Students were surveyed before and after the intervention for knowledge of, comfort with, and empathy toward people with dementia. Participants in the SIM group significantly improved in empathy. Participants in the MOVIE group significantly improved in their level of comfort with the disease. Both methods of teaching about dementia appear to be have different benefits.
Faculty Sponsor: MAUREEN RAFFENSPERGER

Literature Reviews

Barnes, Jessica; Holmes, Brenna; Looper, Amy; Sherer, Ryan. OPEN ACCESS TO PATIENT HEALTH INFORMATION.
With healthcare technology evolving, could unlimited access to medical information via patient portals potentially hurt the patient? The issue is gaining significance, as patient portals are becoming increasingly common.
Faculty Sponsor: FAST, KELLY

Bartholomew, Laurel Mills, Nicole Puett, Sammi Gentry, Sophie Filley, Emily. EFFECTS OF ELECTRONIC DEVICE USE ON CHILDREN.
In 2007, the first smartphone was introduced by Macintosh, the creation of the first Iphone. Today, an estimated 223 million Americans own a smartphone, nearly 84% of the population. Although there are proven studies that show the positive effects of technology, much can be said about the negative impact technology is having on our society. Studies have shown there is decreased physical activity, developmental speech delays, violent behavior, obesity, and an avoidance of face-to-face social interactions, to name a few. Smartphones are not the only contributor causing developmental milestones to be lost. There is an over- exposure to television, video games, iPads, tablets and computers as well. Such technology is causing overstimulation and hyperarousal in a developing brain. When a child’s brain is even moderately exposed to technology for an extended amount of time, the brain interprets this stimulation as stress. This means as a child remains exposed to technology, they are in a state of chronic stress which effectively short circuits the frontal lobe, creating a host of symptoms that mimic or exacerbate mental health, learning, and behavioral disorders. This paper will focus on technological habits and their relation to the development of children and adolescents.
Faculty Sponsor: GRETCHEN QUENSTEDT-MOE

Baumann, Hilary; Birkinsha, Rilea; Dowell, Morgan. CLINICAL DOCUMENTATION IMPROVEMENT EFFECT ON REIMBURSEMENT AND DOCUMENTATION QUALITY.
Clinical Documentation Improvement (CDI) specialists focus on quality, accuracy and completeness of documentation to provide additional specificity to support appropriate healthcare reimbursement. In order to make these improvements, CDI has had to rise to the occasion and identify and address all insufficiencies of previous standards. We aimed to assess the impact of CDI efforts by comparing quality metrics, coding and reimbursement after implementation of CDI programs.
Faculty Sponsor: FAST, KELLY

Berten, Kenzie; Peacock, Mary. PATIENT IDENTIFICATION IN MEDICAL RECORDS.
In healthcare, the patient identification process could mean life or death. Identifying a patient by traditional methods may not be accurate. Duplicate records continue to be a major issue in healthcare. A recent study done shows that middle name accounted for 68.30% of mismatches. The social security number accounted for 53.54% of duplicate pairs. Mismatches in name fields as the result of misspellings or swapped names from last/first/middle accounted for a large number of mismatches. (Haenke, Just, Marc, Munns & Sandefer, 2016). This study is a literature review of current best practice for identifying patients by a unique patient identifier.
Faculty Sponsor: FAST, KELLY

Bogan-Clay, Raymond; Diederich, Blaire; Stalcup, Amber. CONSUMERS AND EXCHANGE OF SENSITIVE HEALTH INFORMATION.
This study collected data regarding any concerns about healthcare consumers' willingness to exchange sensitive health information through electronic devices, and if there were any specific characteristics among consumers' decision to share and/or not share their information. Sensitive information is unusually high-risk information when it comes to disclosure (i.e. discrimination, social stigma, physical harm, etc.)
Faculty Sponsor: FAST, KELLY

Chambers, Danielle Dennis, Hilary Nielson, Kristen Cordonnier, Samantha Dawson, Kayla . THE CANNABIDIOL DEBATE .
The usage of CBD oil has increased over the last several years, however its usage is an issue facing many controversies.  In the United states, CBD oil is classified under the Schedule I Controlled Substances Act by definition as a “derivative” or “component” of marijuana (Mead, 2017). Unlike tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, it does not produce a high, which makes CBD oil safer. The goal of this study is to increase knowledge in regards to what CBD oil is and both the advantages and disadvantages it can have regarding epilepsy. Mead, A., (2017), The legal status of cannabis (marijuana) and cannabidiol (CBD) under U.S. law. Epilepsy and Behavior, 288-289.
Faculty Sponsor: DR. CRISTI CAMPBELL DNP

Petrechko, Paige, Davis, Brittany, McDonell, Dakoda, Obermier, Johnna, Miramontes, Sarai. POSTPARTUM DEPRESSION: WHAT CAN PUT YOU AT RISK?.
Women who suffer from postpartum depression can experience feelings of sadness, anxiety, severe fatigue, despair, and irritability. Postpartum depression is defined as a form of severe depression that can occur within 12 months after delivery that interferes with daily functions and requires treatment. The risk factors that contribute to postpartum depression in women following pregnancy variety from previous diagnosis of mental illness to obstetrical complications. Data was collected utilizing a systematic review of fourteen research articles related to Postpartum Depression. The Star Model of Knowledge Transformation was used to organize the research into five categories including: research, methods, translation, integration, and evaluation. The paper will be further evaluated by discussing other topics related to the risk factors of postpartum depression, including screening tools available to diagnose postpartum depression. In summary, methods on how to improve early diagnosis of postpartum depression through additional screenings will be explored.
Faculty Sponsor: JILL MORSBACH

Empirical Projects

Dittemore, Kaley White, Clayton Atkins, Krystal Mabery, Tiffany Prososki-Large, Kathy. NURSE BURNOUT SYNDROME: A PREVENTATIVE PROTOCOL.
There is an increase in nurse burnout syndrome all across the United States and the world. Nurse burnout syndrome, an issue causing disengagement and exhaustion on multiple levels, has become a serious problem and perhaps a large reason why there is a shortage of nurses. Many different factors have been discovered through research, yet no definite answers have been determined. A nurse may experience an array of symptoms that vary in severity including depersonalization, mental and physical exhaustion, and loss of personal goals. This global issue not only impacts nurses personally; but also patients, nurse families, and co-workers. Low patient satisfaction scores directly correlate with higher rates of nurse burnout. Companies spend thousands of dollars on nursing turnover when nurses burnout to the point of leaving the healthcare field. The nurses’ family is impacted as the effects of burnout may be brought home. This alarming and impactful issue needs further attention, and research is needed to explore ways to prevent and reduce its effects. This paper will discuss nurse burnout syndrome, why it is an issue in the nursing profession, and what interventions can be implemented using a protocol to prevent and decrease this problem.
Faculty Sponsor: MACHELLE SKINNER

DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHOLOGY

Empirical Projects

Allen, Ashley, Crossland, Felicity, Thygerson, Tara & Zubiri, Karl. TRIGGER WARNINGS: EMOTIONAL RESPONSE TO EMOTIONAL MATERIAL .
While trigger warnings have been examined in past research, the focus has typically been on why professors use them and the perception students have of them. The current project examined if the function of trigger warnings - to allow for learning to continue while examining a sensitive or emotional topic - is valid. Although we found no effect of trigger warnings on learning, we discuss limitations and the importance of continued research in this area.
Faculty Sponsor: BENJAMIN D. ENGLAND

Barbee, Lucy; Clark, Cheyenne; Fells, Chandra; Girdner, Jackson; Marmaud, Kayla; Song, Bingxin. THE EFFECT OF DIFFERENT ENCODING INSTRUCTIONS ON RECOGNITION MEMORY FROM SIMILAR ITEMS.
Many different factors influence memory. This study focuses on the way we memorize or encode items and the content of the items we memorize. We hypothesized that people are more likely to recognize words if the encoding type matched the item contents. Participants were presented with semantic (e.g., beer, drink, keg) and phonological (e.g., deer, hear, fear) associates with instructions to focus on either the meaning or sound of the words, followed by a recognition test. Results illustrate that encoding meaning produces better memory than encoding sounds. However, the expected interaction between encoding type and item content was not found.
Faculty Sponsor: COREY WHITE

Bauman, Dylan, Messick, Abbi, Murphy, Sara, Porter, Taylor, Pugh, Melissa & Williams, Alexis. THE LIKEABILITY OF A CO-WITNESS, THE PERCEPTION OF DIFFICULTY, AND ITS IMPACT ON EYEWITNESS MEMORY.
Research done on the suggestibility of eyewitness memory typically focuses on false or misleading suggestions about information within the event. We examined whether suggestions about the difficulty of remembering the event functioned in a similar way. More specifically we examined whether a suggestion about the difficulty of remembering the event changed memory for the event and/or confidence in remembering the event. Additionally, we examined whether the likablity of the source of such information changed this. While the suggestion, and not the likability, did affect confidence, neither affected memory for the event. We discuss limitations to the current experiment, and possible future directions.
Faculty Sponsor: BENJAMIN D. ENGLAND

Booth, Jordan. THE EFFECT OF MUSIC ON CHEATING.
Given the various features of music, its effect on human behavior and psychological processes is various and complex. For example, gambling is a behavior that inherently involves taking a risk. Research has shown that when listening to music that they find pleasurable, listeners will gamble more. This is likely due to the increase in confidence that one feels during this time, and that the risk may be less severe. Another risk-based behavior that increases with confidence is cheating. This study will examine if the same kind of relationship that exists between music and gambling exists with music and cheating. The current study assessed musical preferences prior to having participants complete a task in which they were exposed to various song, and differently incentivized to cheat. We found no data that supports our theory. However, the methodology used in this study may have found flaws in previous studies using the same paradigm.
Faculty Sponsor: BENJAMIN ENGLAND

Hamel, Dallace Hurd, Derek Shellenberger, Jordan Stockton, Eariana. THE DARK SIDE OF ANTI-DISCRIMINATION TRAINING.
We examined reactance in workplace and social settings using anti- discrimination training. A 2 (training: present vs. none) x 2 (judgment: work vs. social setting) x 2 (homosexual vs. heterosexual application) design with repeated measures on latter two factors was employed with explicit and implicit prejudice as dependent variables. We predicted trained participants would demonstrate no preference towards homosexual or heterosexual applicants in workplace settings, but will show preference towards heterosexual roommates. Explicit attitudes correlated with social judgement of roommate applicants, but nothing else. Training had a negative effect on selection of homosexual applicants regardless of setting.
Faculty Sponsor: KELLY HENRY

Porter, Taylor Fells, Chandra Allen, Ashley . EXPLORING THE FACTOR STRUCTURE OF THE INTERPERSONAL HOPELESSNESS SCALE.
We looked at the interpersonal theory of suicide. The theory states that it is the combination of perceived burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness, and being hopeless that either of these perceived circumstances will improve, that creates the most severe form of desire to die by suicide. We looked to see if the results would support the construct validity of the IHS, therefore promoting its use in future studies examining suicidality from the perspective of the interpersonal theory of suicide to address the lack of attention on hopelessness about the interpersonal constructs theorized to create the desire to die by suicide.
Faculty Sponsor: JON MANDRACCHIA

146 submissions listed.
BIOLOGY54
BUSINESS1
COMPUTER SCIENCE MATH AND PHYSICS5
CRIMINAL JUSTICE/LEGAL STUDIES/SOCIAL WORK30
ECONOMICS POLITITICAL SCIENCE AND SOCIOLOGY2
ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY13
ENGLISH MODERN LANGUAGES1
HEALTH PE AND RECREATION3
HONORS18
MUSIC1
NURSING12
PSYCHOLOGY6
ANALYTICAL PAPER/ANALYSIS11
EMPIRICAL75
HISTORICAL PAPER3
INTERNSHIP15
LITERATURE REVIEW39
PROTOTYPE3