Digital Commons Network^™

The Smell Of Attraction: Cuticular Hydrocarbon (Chc) Profiles In A Horned Beetle, Chelsey N. Caldwell

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

The Asian Rhinoceros beetle, Trypoxylus dichotomus, is characterized by its large “pitchfork” horns on the heads of males. They use these horns to engage in male competition; battling each other for access to limited females. However, recent field studies suggest that females are choosy, selecting male mates based on traits other than horn size. In many insects, cuticular hydrocarbons are used by females to choose attractive, high quality males as mating partners. CHC’s are the molecules present in the waxy outer layer of the cuticle, functioning in waterproofing but also acting as pheromones. Individual CHC profiles can be indicative of …

The Study Of Akr1b10 Enzymatic Activity And Expression For Increasing Endogenous All Trans-Retinoic Acid In The Skin, Kassandra L. Boshae

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

Retinoic acid (atRA) is used throughout the body as a signaling molecule, and is important in cellular differentiation for many different cell types. atRA is a product of the retinol metabolism pathway. atRA is generally produced within cells by conversion of Retinol (ROL) into Retinaldehyde (RAL). RAL is then either irreversibly converted to atRA or is converted back to ROL via aldo-keto-reductase 1B10 (AKR1B10), thereby lowering the concentration of atRA. This makes AKR1B10 an interesting target for therapies and treatments for many different diseases and conditions. We hypothesized that natural and synthetic compounds would inhibit AKR1B10 activity and increase concentrations …

Behavioral Impacts Of The Gut Microbiome On Drosophila Melanogaster, Ashley May Bielawski

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

Recent studies indicate alterations in the gut microbiome impact behavior including increasing aggressive behavior. The gut of an organism is home to a complex community of bacteria, fungi and viruses that collectively make up the gut microbiome. The prevailing hypothesis is that changes in the microbiome are communicated to the brain and subsequently impact behavior. In the Certel lab, we are identifying factors that regulate aggressive behavior and have been specifically examining the role of octopamine using the model system Drosophila. Octopamine (OA) is a neurotransmitter and neuromodulator that is required to promote aggression. Males without OA exhibit decreased …

Culture, Heroism, And Revolution: Mythological Concepts In Modern-Day Iranian Society, Julia Troisi

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

There are many aspects of cultural history that can impact a region throughout time. In this paper, I will address the mythological and/or religious foundations for countless themes in modern-day Iran's cultural and political spheres. There are many mythological foundations represented in the modern-day society of Iran. First, I will identify the themes within these mythologies, then, I will address the mythological foundations of characters in the Shahnameh who have been carried throughout time into the present. Next, I will address the traditions and holidays observed in today’s Iranian-speaking world and their ancient roots. Finally, I will address some aspects …

The Journey Home, Roy W. Savage Jr

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

My PowerPoint Presentation is called "The Journey Home"- A Military Veteran's Timeline. The focus of my project was to discern the amount of emotional and physical trauma that military members are exposed to. In doing so, I want to help people understand the complexities of going from military service and returning to civilian life...a place you don't recognize and people who no longer recognize the person you were before you left. It is important to understand that each phase has a certain level of "shock" associated with transitioning into military service, culminating in the return home and uncertainty.

Interactive Storybook Reading Through Preschool Collaborations To Improve Literacy And Academic Readiness, Maria Ann Begger

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

Early exposure to language-rich environments, including early exposure to literacy, has been linked to academic success. Participating in shared storybook reading with children before they enter elementary school yields lasting results throughout their education. However, for some toddlers are not provided adequate exposure to language-literacy experiences they are at-risk for language-literacy deficits. For these children, speech-language pathologists (SLPs) and preschool teachers can work together to support emergent and early literacy skills. Using a multilinguistic structured approach in reading intervention has been documented effective for children who. exhibit difficulty learning to read. This approach includes simultaneous delivery of multiple linguistic skills …

Developing A Reference Model To Evaluate For Riparian Restoration After The Removal Of Rattlesnake Dam, Kati L. Barreiros, Corey Leach

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

Reference models are critical to ecological restoration because they allow managers to understand the condition the project site would have been in if degradation had not occurred, to develop and communicate a shared vision of project targets, and serve as the building blocks for developing treatment plans. However, despite their importance, many restoration projects do not include information on reference conditions or include data from only a single or limited number of reference sites. We are proposing to create a reference model that can be used to evaluate riparian vegetation restoration after the removal of a dam on Rattlesnake Creek …

Singing Beetles? Figuring Out How Male Rhinoceros Beetles Produce Their Courtship Songs., Devin Hunt, Nathan Barton, Chelsey Caldwell, Cole Sander, Romain Boisseau, Cerisse Allen, Douglas J. Emlen

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

Insects produce sound in wildly-diverse ways, from the vibrating wings of chirping crickets to the pulsating tympanum of whining of cicadas. Beetles (order: Coleoptera) use sound in aggressive displays, alarm calls, and courtship sequences. Although all beetles appear to generate sounds using stridulation, where a plectrum, or pick, is rubbed against a pars stridens, or file, species differ in the size and location of these structures, resulting in a diverse mechanistic array of sound production within this order. The Japanese rhinoceros beetle, Trypoxylus dichotomus, was recently observed stridulating during courtship sequences; however, the mechanism of sound production, including …

The Perception Of Intimate Partner Violence In Formal Reporting, Libby Freeman

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a form of violence that is committed by someone that is a steady or serious partner. IPV includes multiple types of violence such as physical, sexual, or psychological abuse. 43% of women and 28% of men on college campuses experienced some form of IPV (Tsui & Santamaria, 2015). Rates of IPV have been studied quite frequently but the perception if it is a crime has not. Even with the lack of research, we believe that the perception of IPV being a crime will affect the rates of formal reporting. Data for this experiment was obtained …

The Psychological Undertones For Delayed And Non-Treatment Seeking Behavior After Concussion, Nicholas G. Debellis

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

Purpose: The goal of this project is to gain a general understanding for why individuals don’t seek or delay seeking help after sustaining a concussion. We believe that this project is important for helping us to identify why people don't seek treatment while shedding light on the dark figure that exists within mental health and sports culture. We hold that the data gathered from this project will allow us to empathize and help reeducate individuals by addressing existing stigma around concussions.

Methods: Using an interactive survey on Qualtrics and the University of Montana student population, we hope to discern the …

The Effect Of Familiarity On Truthiness Judgement, Karina M. Carlson

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

Judgments on whether a statement is true are influenced by various factors. For example, Newman et al. (2012) found participants rated a statement as true if it was presented with a related photo, even if the photo did not provide any evidence that the statement is true. This phenomenon is known as the truthiness effect. Despite a large number of existing studies, little has been known about the mechanism underlies the truthiness effect. In the memory literature, previous studies demonstrated that simply repeating an item, such as a word, makes it more memorable (Jacoby & Whitehouse, 1989), suggesting that mere …

Combating Deaths Of Despair In Montana, Cassidy June Alexander

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

Deaths by suicide, alcoholism and drug overdose are known as the deaths of despair. This research project seeks to explore efforts in Montana to combat deaths of despair.

In 2018, The Commonwealth Fund explored rising trends of deaths of despair at the state level. It found that from 2005 to 2016, the rate of deaths of despair increased in every state and the Disctrict of Columbia. Among the highest rates of deaths of despair is Montana. While this analysis provides valuable insight into the deaths of despair, there are many more factors that contribute to deaths of despair in rural …

Motherless On Tv: Navigating Womanhood While Estranged, Abigail Gillespie

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

The complexities of female relationships, particularly mother-daughter relationships, are widely excluded from contemporary television culture. I suggest that this rarity leans more on the side of cultural omittance. Family estrangement is much more common in culture than we realize, yet, it is lent no cultural capital, no acknowledgement, and it leads to further estrangement. A person experiencing estrangement is already isolated from family, but also isolated from culture, community, and discussion surrounding this issue.

I have written a television pilot (“Motherless” is the title of the show), and will be conducting an online table reading of the episode. …

Re-Interpreting A Complex Maya Burial At Tutu Uitz Na, Justine Marie Bye

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

In 2017, John Walden led an excavation of the Tutu Uitz Na intermediate elite center, found in the Maya site of Lower Dover, Belize. He and his team uncovered two burials, designated SG1-BU2 and SG1-BU3. Their initial report claims that there were three individuals, all sacrificially bound and killed within an eastern triadic shrine. In 2019, Dr. Kirsten Green-Mink and Justine Bye, both of the University of Montana, re-analyzed the Tutu Uitz Na burials and performed a comprehensive bioarchaeological analysis. SG1-BU2 was found to contain three individuals – 2 adults and 1 subadult. SG1-BU3 contained one adult, likely of high …

Legal Interpretation, Mykaila Ashynn Berry

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

The purpose of this project is to provide a fresh and in-depth analysis of legal jurisprudence through the use of two of the most important legal theorists of our time, H. L. A. Hart and Ronald Dworkin. This project focuses on how Dworkin’s position in his famous paper “Hard Cases”, helps us understand an important Supreme Court case, Cohen v. California. Cohen will be the main focus of my project. The project will discuss the case and the possible ways of deciding the case. Then the project explains both Dworkin’s and Hart’s positions. Finally, the project will analyze how Dworkin’s …

Kim Williams: Professionalizing Domesticity In Montana And Abroad, Emmett Ball

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

Kim Williams was a renowned writer and naturalist living and working in Missoula, Montana in the 1970s and 80s. She gained national recognition for her regular guest appearances on National Public Radio’s program “All Things Considered,” where she offered home-spun lessons on frugality, naturalism, and happiness through simplicity. Williams’s professionalization of domesticity was the culmination of a lifelong battle in an attempt to reconcile her own personal conception of femininity against her conflicting aspirations for a professional career and a familial, domestic life. There is little scholarship analyzing Williams’s personal life, and no known scholarship has attempted to condense her …

Fmc Corp. V. Shoshone-Bannock Tribes, Seth T. Bonilla

Public Land & Resources Law Review

In 1998, FMC Corporation agreed to submit to the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes’ permitting processes, including the payment of fees, for clean-up work required as part of consent decree negotiations with the Environmental Protection Agency. Then, in 2002, FMC refused to pay the Tribes under a permitting agreement entered into by both parties, even though the company continued to store hazardous waste on land within the Shoshone-Bannock Fort Hall Reservation in Idaho. FMC challenged the Tribes’ authority to enforce the $1.5 million permitting fees first in tribal court and later challenged the Tribes’ authority to exercise civil regulatory and adjudicatory jurisdiction over …

Montana Kaimin, April 22, 2020, Students Of The University Of Montana, Missoula

Montana Kaimin, 1898-present

Student newspaper of the University of Montana, Missoula.

Preview; Park Cty. Envtl. Council And Greater Yellowstone Coal. V. Montana Dep’T Of Envtl. Quality And Lucky Minerals, Inc.: Mepa And Review Of Agency Decisions, Lacey Fortin

Montana Law Review Online

No abstract provided.

Four Fucks Anne Bonny Did Not Give And One She Did, Libby Riddle

The Oval

No abstract provided.

"How Many Field Goals In A Touchdown?" And Other Things I Don't Understand, Donna Arganbright

The Oval

No abstract provided.

Homecoming, Jasper Vanspoore

The Oval

No abstract provided.

B Minor 7, Emily Greenlund

The Oval

No abstract provided.

Voracious Appetites, Hannah Hall

The Oval

No abstract provided.

Dragon Lily, Alivia Zeiler

The Oval

No abstract provided.

Roses For Amelia, Libby Riddle

The Oval

No abstract provided.

Spotlight, Nat Brancaccio

The Oval

No abstract provided.

Lock Bridge, Missoula, Emily Greenlund

The Oval

No abstract provided.

Catalyst Seasons, Jayne Albrecht

The Oval

No abstract provided.

Landscape, Sam Pester

The Oval

No abstract provided.