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Investigation Of Water-Molecule Complexes And Their Catalytic Effect On Important Atmospheric Reactions, Taylor Scott Cline Jun 2013

Investigation Of Water-Molecule Complexes And Their Catalytic Effect On Important Atmospheric Reactions, Taylor Scott Cline

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is a collection of works that investigates issues related to environmental chemistry. The first portion of this research explores the role of water vapor on the kinetics of important atmospheric reactions. Work is presented on the self-reaction of β-hydroxyethyl peroxy radical (β-HEP) and the catalytic increase in reaction rate by water vapor. β-HEP serves as a model system for investigating the possible role of water vapor in perturbing the kinetics and product branching ratio of atmospheric reactions of other alkyl peroxy radicals. The self-reaction rate coefficient of β-HEP was investigated between 276-296 K with 1.0 × 10^15 to …

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The Bromus Tectorum-Pyrenophora Semeniperda Pathosystem, Heather Finch Jun 2013

The Bromus Tectorum-Pyrenophora Semeniperda Pathosystem, Heather Finch

Theses and Dissertations

Variable mortality of Pyrenophora semeniperda--infected Bromus tectorum seeds has been referred to as a "race for survival", stating that seeds that germinate quickly are more likely to escape pathogen-caused mortality. Dormancy status is not the only variable determining outcomes within the Bromus-Pyrenophora pathosystem. Varying temperature and exposure to water may strongly influence germination outcomes of B. tectorum when in the presence of P. semeniperda. Low water potentials characteristic of semi-arid soils are often over-looked in the context of seed pathogens, and are ecologically relevant- especially for plant species that inhabit intermittently dry environments. To adequately characterize the Bromus tectorum-Pyrenophora semeniperda …

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Inter-Caste Adoption In India: Effects On Kinship And Caste As Understood By The Adoptive Family, Kelly Hacker, Dr. Charles Nuckolls Jun 2013

Inter-Caste Adoption In India: Effects On Kinship And Caste As Understood By The Adoptive Family, Kelly Hacker, Dr. Charles Nuckolls

Journal of Undergraduate Research

In his studies of kinship (1984), David Schneider put forth the theory that kinship is not inherently biologically-based, but is rather a symbolic and flexible understanding of the relationship between individuals. Inter-caste adoption in India, where a husband and wife adopt an unrelated child born to parents of a different caste, presents itself as an interesting testing ground for this theory, as both biological unrelatedness and a difference in caste must be overcome in the creation of kinship between adoptive family and adoptee.

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Biological Markers Of Cognition And Error-Detection, Nicholas Edwards, Dawson Hedges Jun 2013

Biological Markers Of Cognition And Error-Detection, Nicholas Edwards, Dawson Hedges

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The purpose of my project was to find factors that might be predictive of cognitive deficits in a college age group of people. After discussing the topic with my mentor, Dawson Hedges, we chose a few broad categories, including family health history, demographics, education, and psychological history. Once we had decided upon these topics, I began looking through the literature to see what questions people had already asked.

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Developing The Confocal And Fluorescence Microscopy Techniques To Visualize The Eliposomes Inside Of Cells To Treat Cancer, Tara Pandey, Dr. William Pitt Jun 2013

Developing The Confocal And Fluorescence Microscopy Techniques To Visualize The Eliposomes Inside Of Cells To Treat Cancer, Tara Pandey, Dr. William Pitt

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Cancer is among the leading causes of death in the world. The goal for this project was to visualize a liposome containing perfluorocarbon emulsion an eLiposome, inside of tumor cells using confocal and fluorescence microscopes. A successful study of this project would help to understand the behavior of cancer cells in the presence of drugs during targeted drug delivery for cancer.

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Inverted Sequence Identification In Diploid Genomic Scaffold Assembly Via Weighted Max-Cut Reduction, Paul Mark Bodily Jun 2013

Inverted Sequence Identification In Diploid Genomic Scaffold Assembly Via Weighted Max-Cut Reduction, Paul Mark Bodily

Theses and Dissertations

Virtually all genome assemblers to date are designed for use with data from haploid or homozygous diploid genomes. Their use on heterozygous genomic datasets generally results in highly-fragmented, error-prone assemblies, owing to the violation of assumptions during both the contigging and scaffolding phases. Of the two phases, scaffolding is more particularly impacted and algorithms to facilitate the scaffolding of heterozygous data are lacking. We present a stand-alone scaffolding algorithm, ScaffoldScaffolder, designed specifically for scaffolding diploid genomes. A fundamental step in the scaffolding phase is the assignment of sequence orientations to contigs within scaffolds. Deciding such an assignment in the presence …

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Stability And Change In Women's Personality Across The Life Course, Carly D. Lebaron Jun 2013

Stability And Change In Women's Personality Across The Life Course, Carly D. Lebaron

Theses and Dissertations

The current study sought to examine change and stability of personality in a sample of women over the course of 35 years. Existing research is mixed regarding whether or not personality changes over time or whether it remains stable. Using a sample of 187 women tracked over four time points (approximately 10 years between each time point), change and stability in openness to experience, extraversion, and neuroticism was tested using a stacked multilevel growth curve analysis. Four life course events (transition to parenthood, change in marital status, wife entering or leaving the workforce, and husband retiring) were added as predictors …

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Optical Characterization Of Optofluidic Waveguides Using Scattered Light Imaging, Micah Jenkins, Dr. Aaron Hawkins Jun 2013

Optical Characterization Of Optofluidic Waveguides Using Scattered Light Imaging, Micah Jenkins, Dr. Aaron Hawkins

Journal of Undergraduate Research

One exciting field of research within optics involves using on chip optical waveguides as biological sensors. Dr. Aaron Hawkins and his team of students have worked to develop a platform for bio-sensing using ARROW’s (anti-resonant reflecting optical waveguides) to confine light to a hollow core channel. These devices are filled with sample solutions and can be used to detect changes in optical transmission as fluorescently tagged particles traverse the hollow core channel.

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Tapered Photoresist In The Manufacture Of Nanosieves, Meagan Bracken, Dr. Aaron Hawkins Jun 2013

Tapered Photoresist In The Manufacture Of Nanosieves, Meagan Bracken, Dr. Aaron Hawkins

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The purpose of this project was to assist in the manufacturing of nanosieves. The device is designed to separates nano-size particles from the fluid substance in which they are contained. An example of this, and one of the main targets of this project, is the separation of HDL and LDL cholesterol particles from a sample of blood. This goal of separating cholesterol has many benefits to the medical world. By creating a method to characterize HDL cholesterol sizes and concentrations we can monitor a person’s risk for heart disease. Because cholesterol particles have this important attribute of size characterization, it …

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Family Matters: Operationalization Of Intergenerational Educational Background, Elizabeth Warnick Jun 2013

Family Matters: Operationalization Of Intergenerational Educational Background, Elizabeth Warnick

Theses and Dissertations

This study seeks to replicate and extend Roksa and Potter's (2011) analysis of the association between intergenerational family background and academic outcomes by utilizing the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 to examine alternative methods for operationalizing maternal educational background. Results indicate a positive association between maternal upward mobility and adolescent academic achievement. Measures of mobility affect adolescent achievement even when controlling for both mother's and maternal grandmother's educational attainment. Future research should examine the differential impact of extreme mobility, specifically downward mobility, on adolescent academic outcomes.

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Exploration Of The Low-Molecular Weight Proteome Of Tissue And Serum, With Applications To Disease Biomarker Discovery, Meihwa Tanielle Alvarez Jun 2013

Exploration Of The Low-Molecular Weight Proteome Of Tissue And Serum, With Applications To Disease Biomarker Discovery, Meihwa Tanielle Alvarez

Theses and Dissertations

The low-molecular weight proteome is of great interest due to the vast number of smaller proteins and peptides present within it, some of which are likely to be disease-related and may provide insights into disease mechanisms or even prediction and diagnosis. Serum is often the most preferred specimen for disease prediction or diagnosis, as it can be obtained less-invasively and its collection is fairly routine in a clinical setting. Although serum samples are one of the most preferred specimens for disease studies, additional disease information may also be obtained using other specimens, such as tissue. The study of tissue specimens …

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Reconceiving A Necessary Evil: Teaching A Transferable Fyc Research Paper, Samuel James Dunn Jun 2013

Reconceiving A Necessary Evil: Teaching A Transferable Fyc Research Paper, Samuel James Dunn

Theses and Dissertations

The place of the research paper in first-year composition (FYC) courses is often debated in composition forums. Many argue that the a-disciplinary nature of FYC doesn't allow instructors to teach the research paper in a way that will be transferable to disciplinary writing tasks, while others say that it is possible, as long as we have a thorough understanding of the kinds of writing tasks students will face in the disciplines and specifically teach writing skills that will be transferable. To identify these more generalizable writing skills to be emphasized, I interviewed 14 professors at Brigham Young University from different …

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Kierkegaard And A Pedagogy Of Liminality, Sylvia Mcmillan Jun 2013

Kierkegaard And A Pedagogy Of Liminality, Sylvia Mcmillan

Theses and Dissertations

There is a strain of curriculum theory especially since the reconceptionalist movement that applies existential philosophy to educational issues and questions. There is also a related branch of curriculum theory that looks especially at existentialist theology to cast light on curriculum issues from a more religious slant. Both of these strains of analysis are rooted in Kierkegaard, the father of existentialism and existential theology (Huebner, 1999; Tillich, 1948). The educational implications of the works of Kierkegaard are a subject that has been virtually unexamined in either educational or Kierkegaardian scholarship except by two scholars whose works are already 40 years …

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Modelling Infertility With Markov Chains, Rebecca Dorff Jun 2013

Modelling Infertility With Markov Chains, Rebecca Dorff

Theses and Dissertations

Infertility affects approximately 15% of couples. Testing and interventions are costly, in time, money, and emotional energy. This paper will discuss using Markov decision and multi-armed bandit processes to identify a systematic approach of interventions that will lead to the desired baby while minimizing costs.

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Improving Implicit Learning And Explicit Instruction Of Adult And Child Learners Of Chinese, Li-Hui Kuo Jun 2013

Improving Implicit Learning And Explicit Instruction Of Adult And Child Learners Of Chinese, Li-Hui Kuo

Theses and Dissertations

This study explored the main effects and interaction effects of implicit learning and explicit instructional approaches on the language acquisition of beginning adult and child learners of Chinese and analyzed the successful adult and child learners' learning styles in their information processing time, second language acquisition techniques, and cognitive strategies. Volunteers from Brigham Young University and Wasatch Elementary School were randomly assigned to either an Explicit Instruction Treatment (EIT) or an Implicit Learning Treatment (ILT). Following the treatment, the participants completed an online survey and a vocabulary application test. Results from a 2 x 2 factorial ANOVA indicated that adults …

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Client Experiencing In Cognitive-Behavioral Treatment For Eating Disorders, James William Vandyke Jun 2013

Client Experiencing In Cognitive-Behavioral Treatment For Eating Disorders, James William Vandyke

Theses and Dissertations

Depth of client experiencing has been associated with positive therapeutic outcomes across theoretical orientations. Experiencing describes a particular mode of cognitive-affective processing in which clients use internal felt experience as the basis for self-examination and the resolution of personally significant issues. Given evidence that eating disorders are associated with particular disruptions of cognitive-affective processing, it is likely that experiencing plays a role in the successful treatment of eating pathology. However, no study to date has examined the relationship between experiencing and outcome in eating disorder treatment. The purposes of the current study were to examine depth of client experiencing during …

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Modeling Of An Ion Exchange Reaction Involving Decamethylcucurbit[5]Uril In The Gas Phase, Jacob Hedelius, Dr. David Dearden Jun 2013

Modeling Of An Ion Exchange Reaction Involving Decamethylcucurbit[5]Uril In The Gas Phase, Jacob Hedelius, Dr. David Dearden

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Mathematical modeling is both common and increasingly expected in scientific research, to both predict and to explain results. Models are used in many disciplines, from describing cellular process in biology, weather patterns in planetary science, to galaxies in physics. As part of my studies with the Office of Research and Creative Activities (ORCA), I created a simple model for reactions of the molecule decamethylcucurbit[5]uril (mc5) in the gas phase.

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Dynamical Structure Function Identifiability Conditions Enabling Signal Structure Reconstruction, Julius Adebayo, Dr. Sean Warnick Jun 2013

Dynamical Structure Function Identifiability Conditions Enabling Signal Structure Reconstruction, Julius Adebayo, Dr. Sean Warnick

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Networks of controlled dynamical systems exhibit a variety of interconnection patterns that can be interpreted as the structure of a system. One such interpretation of system structure is a system’s signal structure, characterized as the open-loop causal dependencies among manifest variables and represented by its dynamical structure function (DSF). Previous work has shown that if no a priori structural information is known about the system, not even the Boolean structure of the dynamical structure function is identifiable. Consequently, one method previously suggested for obtaining the necessary a priori structural information is to leverage knowledge about target specificity of the controlled …

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Identification Of Novel Ribosome Stalling Peptides Using The Tat-Two Hybrid, Benjamin Van Leeuwen, Dr. Allen Buskirk Jun 2013

Identification Of Novel Ribosome Stalling Peptides Using The Tat-Two Hybrid, Benjamin Van Leeuwen, Dr. Allen Buskirk

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Dr. Buskirk discontinued my previous project on discovering novel ribosomal stalling sequences shortly after the start of the semester because of its lack of relevance to more current ribosomal research trends. While there are still an unknown number of stalling sequences that have yet to be discovered, the current research has moved away from that field into more novel ribosomal research. Therefore, I was not able to finish my project as planned and presented in my last application.

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Screening Of Secondary Chemicals From Selected Species Of North American Lichens Against Various Pathologenic Bacteria, Jocelyn Raphael, Dr. Larry St. Clair Jun 2013

Screening Of Secondary Chemicals From Selected Species Of North American Lichens Against Various Pathologenic Bacteria, Jocelyn Raphael, Dr. Larry St. Clair

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Lichens consist of a fungus occurring symbiotically with a photosynthetic organism (such as an alga and/or cyanobacterium). Lichens are known to produce a high number of secondary metabolites. Studies have shown that these secondary compounds have various biological roles such as antibiotic, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, anti-proliferative, antioxidant, etc. (Huneck, 1999; Molnar & Farkas, 2010). There is a great need for new forms of antibiotics as bacterial infection is an ongoing problem and many bacteria have become resistant to available treatments. To develop new forms of antibiotics many different potential compounds need to be tested. The purpose of this project was to …

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Early Parental Death, Genetic Variants And Risk For Alzheimer’S Disease: Building A Risk Profile From The Cache County Study On Memory, Health And Aging, Michael Peterson, Dr. John Kauwe Jun 2013

Early Parental Death, Genetic Variants And Risk For Alzheimer’S Disease: Building A Risk Profile From The Cache County Study On Memory, Health And Aging, Michael Peterson, Dr. John Kauwe

Journal of Undergraduate Research

A person’s predisposition to Alzheimer’s Disease is known to be influenced by both genetic factors as well as environmental factors. One know environmental factor is that known to affect risk for disease is early parental death. The purpose of this research is to better understand the complex factors that influence the disease by analyzing the relationship between the environmental factor of early parental death with genetic variants known to influence the disease.

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Genetic Relationships Of Cottus Bairdii In Butterfield Springs, Nevada, To Other Population Of Cottus Bairdii, Sun Yeong Oh, Dr. Dennis Shiozawa Jun 2013

Genetic Relationships Of Cottus Bairdii In Butterfield Springs, Nevada, To Other Population Of Cottus Bairdii, Sun Yeong Oh, Dr. Dennis Shiozawa

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The goal for this project was to evaluate the genetic relationships of the freshwater sculpin, Cottus bairdii, in Butterfield Springs, Nevada, with other populations of C. bairdii. We planned to examine several mitochondrial genes, ND1, ND2, and the control region, to identify the most likely origin of this population. We hypothesized that these sculpins were from Colorado River Basin as Scoppettone speculated (Scoppettone, Rissler & Shea, 2004).

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Endocannabinoid Biosynthetic Enzymes In Hippocampal Interneurons, Ryan Williamson, Dr. Jeff Edwards Jun 2013

Endocannabinoid Biosynthetic Enzymes In Hippocampal Interneurons, Ryan Williamson, Dr. Jeff Edwards

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The hippocampus is a region of the brain that mediates learning and memory formation by changing the properties of synapses within its circuitry [2]. The plastic nature of these synapses allows the brain to alter how sensitive one neuron is to stimulation from another neuron. Improper regulation of synaptic plasticity may cause memory loss associated with neurodegenerative disease [4].

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Rescuing The Collagen 2a1 Gene In Mouse Model To Alleviate Stickler Syndrome Symptoms, Jamie Twiggs, Dr. Robert Seegmiller Jun 2013

Rescuing The Collagen 2a1 Gene In Mouse Model To Alleviate Stickler Syndrome Symptoms, Jamie Twiggs, Dr. Robert Seegmiller

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Stickler Syndrome is a severe disease with no cure that occurs in 1/7500 births resulting in extreme ocular, craniofacial, musculoskeletal and cardiovascular problems for those diagnosed. It is caused by mutations in the collagen genes, most often a premature stop codon in the collagen 2A1 gene, although in some cases it is caused by mutations in the collagen 11 A1 and A2 genes. The purpose of this research was to discover an effective method of gene therapy in mice models by reinserting a functional collagen gene into mice embryos using a viral vector and plasmids. I hypothesized that if the …

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Teasing Out The “Why’S” Of Evolution: A Functional Assessment Of B-Class Protein Complexes, Holly Waddel, Dr. Clinton Whipple Jun 2013

Teasing Out The “Why’S” Of Evolution: A Functional Assessment Of B-Class Protein Complexes, Holly Waddel, Dr. Clinton Whipple

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The evolution of floral development is caused by changes in gene function. The model for floral morphology is the ABC model of floral development (Coen & Meyerowits, 1991). In this model, A genes control sepals, A + B genes control petals, B + C genes control stamen, and C genes control carpels (See fig. 1). If B genes are removed, the resulting flower would contain only sepals and carpels, no petals or stamen.

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The Effects Of Daidumene Lineata On The Intertidal Rock Pools, Preston Wilson, Russell Rader Jun 2013

The Effects Of Daidumene Lineata On The Intertidal Rock Pools, Preston Wilson, Russell Rader

Journal of Undergraduate Research

My experiment was to test the effect Diadumene lineata has on the marine life of the intertidal rock pools in the northwest.

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The Effect Of Anterior Knee Pain On Serum Cartilage Oligomeric Matrix Protein And Muscular Cocontraction During Running, Scott T. Woodland Jun 2013

The Effect Of Anterior Knee Pain On Serum Cartilage Oligomeric Matrix Protein And Muscular Cocontraction During Running, Scott T. Woodland

Theses and Dissertations

Knee pain can alter lower-extremity neuromechanics and often results in functional disability. The relationship between lower-extremity neuromechanical alterations, due to anterior knee pain, and articular cartilage condition is unclear. The purpose of this study was to determine the independent effect of anterior knee pain during running on articular cartilage condition, as reflected by serum cartilage oligomeric matrix protein concentrations and muscle cocontraction duration. Seven men and five women completed a 30-min run in three different sessions: control (no infusion), sham (isotonic saline infusion), and pain (hypertonic saline infusion). Saline was infused into the right infrapatellar fat pad for the duration …

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Brain Structures Associated With Temperament And Social Behavior In Rhesus Monkeys: An Mri Study, Andrew C. Chaffin Jun 2013

Brain Structures Associated With Temperament And Social Behavior In Rhesus Monkeys: An Mri Study, Andrew C. Chaffin

Theses and Dissertations

Temperament is thought to be the foundation for normative personality and subsequent behaviors later in life. To assess the relationship of early temperament with variation in structural brain development, this study examined rhesus macaque mother-infant behavior, and then three years later, used MRI to assess neurostructural differences. Individual differences in mother-infant interactions and emotionality were then linked to brain differences. Extensive behavioral data obtained over the first year of life under both resting and stressful conditions was used to assess the quality of mother-infant interactions and emotionality. The MRI focused on brain volume in areas thought to be related to …

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Phylogeny Of Acridoidea (Orthoptera: Caelifera) Based On Complete Mitochondrial Genome Data: Testing Partition Strategies, James Leavitt, Dr. Michael Whiting Jun 2013

Phylogeny Of Acridoidea (Orthoptera: Caelifera) Based On Complete Mitochondrial Genome Data: Testing Partition Strategies, James Leavitt, Dr. Michael Whiting

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The orthopteran superfamily Acridoidea (Orthoptera, Caelifera), which includes grasshoppers and their nearest relatives, is the largest of the orthopteran superfamilies and provides an excellent model for studying the evolution of mitochondrial genomes. Ultimately I was able to reconstruct a phylogeny for Caelifera based on entire mitochondrial genomes (mtgenomes) in order to (1) evaluate the relative effectiveness of various data partitioning strategies within a Maximum Likelihood (ML) framework; (2) evaluate the conservation of anti-codons across the group and elucidate patterns among the start and stop codons of the mitochondrial protein coding genes (MPCGs); and (3) specifically test the monophyly of Acridoidea …

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The Effect Of Male Dominance On Female Mate Choice In Poecilia Gillii, Michael Mcentire, Dr. Jerald Johnson Jun 2013

The Effect Of Male Dominance On Female Mate Choice In Poecilia Gillii, Michael Mcentire, Dr. Jerald Johnson

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Female mate choice (intersexual selection) and male dominance interactions (intrasexual selection) can each play important roles in sexual selection. These two mechanisms tend to be discussed in isolation. The goal of this study is to explore the interaction between these two forms of sexual selection. To test this idea, we focused on the livebearing tropical fish system Poecilia gillii (See Figure 1). We grouped males into similarly sized pairs and observed them for a week to determine which male was dominant. These pairs were then presented to females in mate choice trials to ascertain female preference. Our data appears to …

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