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Making (Heat)Waves: Intermittent Thermal Stress Effects On Beet Armyworm (Spodoptera Exigua) Growth To Eclosion, Shane Dreher, Swayamjit Ray

Research and Creative Works Expo

In this study, we demonstrated how application of heat stress, followed by rapid cooling, affected the rate at which beet armyworm caterpillars gained weight, entered pupation and exited their pupae as moths via eclosion.

Quantitative Echocardiography Markers To Denote Severity Of Tricuspid Regurgitation Compared To Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Imaging In Single Right Ventricle Variants., Tony Zunica, Anmol Goyal, Janelle Noel-Macdonnell, Daniel Forsha

Research Showcase

Background:

Single right ventricle and Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS) are congenital heart diseases that require multiple palliative surgeries to create a single right ventricular system. 25-30% of these patients develop significant tricuspid regurgitation (TR), which is associated with worse outcomes among all stages of palliation.

Echocardiography remains the cornerstone imaging modality for serial evaluation in these patients.  However, estimating tricuspid regurgitation is highly subjective in the pediatric population, necessitating need for reliable and reproducible quantitative echocardiography markers. Currently, cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) is considered the gold standard for quantification of tricuspid regurgitation with good accuracy and reproducibility.

Objectives/Goal:

Our …

Internet Facilitated Child Abuse In The Midwest, Serena Wagoner, Tara Frazier, Jim Anderst, Ashley K. Sherman, Danielle Horton

Research Showcase

Background: Currently there is a lack of published research on the role of the internet in facilitating child sexual abuse (CSA). The aim of this study was to characterize the prevalence and nature of internet-facilitated sexual abuse among children who were referred for a forensic interview (FI) due to concerns of CSA or child physical abuse (CPA).

Objectives/Goal: The aim of this study was to characterize the prevalence and nature of internet-facilitated sexual abuse among children who were referred for a forensic interview (FI) due to concerns of CSA or child physical abuse (CPA).

Methods/Design: This was a prospective study …

Trussworthy - A Lunar Module Truss System, Anthony Wehrli, Sebnem Kalayci, Tyler Williams, Sofia Lopez-Linares Perez, Connor Mcdonagh, Presley Robb

Undergraduate Research and Scholarship Symposium

TrussWorthy is a modular truss-based construction platform designed to support the gradual development of sustainable infrastructure on the lunar surface. Aligned with NASA’s Moon to Mars objectives, the system emphasizes in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) by transforming lunar regolith into structural components through sintering and additive manufacturing. By reducing dependence on Earth-supplied materials, TrussWorthy aims to lower launch costs while enabling scalable, long-term construction capabilities. The design integrates autonomous excavation, 3D printing, and robotic assembly, building on technologies expected from upcoming Artemis and Commercial Lunar Payload Services missions. Engineered to withstand extreme thermal cycling, vacuum conditions, and reduced lunar gravity, the …

Sense Of Abundance Effect On Happiness, Samantha Macneil, Philip Watkins

2026 Symposium

The purpose of this study was to see how sense of abundance affects overall happiness. Understanding this can help us to understand how our subjective well-being is connected to gratitude. A sense of abundance has been proposed to be crucial to trait gratitude (Watkins, 2014), but few studies have investigated the importance of this construct. Our data comes from a related study that we conducted analyzing interpretation biases characteristic of gratitude. We had 165 participants complete all parts of the administered survey online. It contained two measures of abundance, happiness, and trait gratitude. The happiness scales were the Subjective Happiness …

Spin Coating Thin Films Of Zinc Oxide, Micah Byre

2026 Symposium

Thin films are a part of semiconductor devices and electronics we use everyday. There are many methods of depositing thin films on substrates and one of the easiest and cost effective is spin coating. Compared to other conventional deposition methods such as plasma enhanced chemical vapor (PECVD),electroplating, pulsed laser deposition (PLD), and others, spin coating does not require expensive equipment or a vacuum system. In this study, thin films of zinc oxide were deposited on glass substrates via spin coating under varying processing conditions. These films were then imaged in a scanning electron microscope to investigate correlations between processing conditions …

Agentic Scientific Machine Learning For Autonomous Model Discovery In Systems Pharmacology, Nazanin Ahmadi, George Karniadakis

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Altsim: A Simulation Of Asian Longhorned Tick (Haemaphysalis Longicornis) Population Dynamics And Transmission Of Theileria Orientalis, Shania Sanderson, Holly Gaff

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Health Navigation During Pediatric Emergency Department Visits: Addressing Previously Identified Disparities In Unmet Social Needs, Divya Sundar, Quinne Shultz, Tarynn Kerr, Perla Rivera, Maija Holsti, Katharine Osborn

Utah Conference on Community Engagement

Unmet social needs (USN) are associated with poorer health outcomes and increased healthcare utilization. Families experiencing USN are more likely to rely on emergency departments (EDs) for care, particularly when preventive care is inaccessible. In 2022, Tedford et al. identified a high prevalence of USN among families presenting to this pediatric emergency department (PED), highlighting the PED as a critical access point for intervention and the need for targeted programs within the same clinical setting.
In January 2024, a Health Navigation course was implemented within the Pediatric Clinical Research Education program at the University of Utah. Undergraduate and graduate students, …

Assessing Lagged Temperature Effects On Mosquito Life-History Traits, Nusrat Tabassum Dr.

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Attractor Reconstruction And Their Topological Data Analysis For Seizure Onset Detection, Kevin Slote, Igor Belykh, Mukesh Dhamala, Marrium Shamshad, Kelley Smith

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Mitigating Parameter Identifiability Issues Through Model Calibration On The Data-Informed Active Subspace: An Example In Tumor Growth, Allison L. Lewis, Rebecca A. Everett

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Incorporating Thermal Performance Curves Into Population Dynamic Models For The West Nile Vector, Culex Pipiens, Benjamin Bruncati, Helle Aronson, Chloé Lahondère, Michael A. Robert

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

The Shadow Of The Serpent: A Translation And A Critical Reading, Ghada Abdulrazzaq Alkilani

Thesis/ Dissertation Defenses

This thesis presents a literary translation of Youssef Ziedan's novel The Shadow of the Serpent. Framed through the lenses of the cultural turn in translation studies, Bassnett & Lefevere, and Venuti, with Jacques Derrida's deconstruction, alongside the feminist, postcolonial, and psychoanalytic perspectives. This work presents translation as an act of cultural negotiation and philosophical inquiry. It also contributes a critical reading of the novel's rich historical, cultural, and linguistic dimensions. The author uses dialectical language variation, shifting between Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) and Colloquial Egyptian Arabic (CEA), which becomes a core position of analysis and challenge. These language choices are …

Digging Deep Into Curation: A Guide To Creating A Local Fossil Museum, Syd Joheim, René Shroat-Lewis

Research and Creative Works Expo

In Arkansas, the dissemination of educational content related to evolution and natural history is often constrained by prevailing cultural dynamics. This has resulted in a significant gap in the exposure of primary and secondary school students to foundational concepts in natural history and physical sciences. Even the state’s most popular science and history museums often intentionally exclude exhibits that risk upsetting a large portion of their visitors, further exacerbating the issue. As a consequence, many children do not receive proper education on natural history and physical sciences.  To address this educational deficiency, researchers identified and cataloged specimens from a collection …

Development And Characterization Of Sulfur-Based Concrete From Industrial Waste By-Products, Vasilia Numan Rabah Alkhaldi

Thesis/ Dissertation Defenses

Portland cement (PC) is a significant player in the construction industry, which is one of the largest global carbon footprint sectors, contributing approximately 8% of total anthropogenic CO₂ emissions worldwide. In arid and developing countries such as the UAE, the negative impacts of PC are amplified by the piling of industrial wastes, and hence there is an urgent need to develop efficient and cost-effective waste management solutions. This dissertation reports on the design and characterization of a novel sulfur-based concrete made from locally available industrial waste materials, with an emphasis on improving the performance and durability of the material as …

Assessing Vegetation Health Following The 2014 Carlton Complex Fire Using Remote Sensing, Rachael Sv Pentico

2026 Symposium

Climate change, combined with decades of altered fire regimes and fire suppression, has increased fuel accumulation across western U.S. forests, contributing to more frequent, larger, and more intense wildfires. Remote sensing offers an effective approach for analyzing these large-scale fire events and their ecological impacts, as satellite imagery enables affordable, accessible, and reproducible monitoring of vegetation change across broad spatial and temporal scales. This study examined the 2014 Carlton Complex Fire in the Methow Valley, Washington. Burning 265,108 acres, it was the largest wildfire in Washington State history at the time and caused extensive agricultural and forest damage. Post-fire vegetation …

The Great Camas, Campbell Martin-Wager

2026 Symposium

While often overlooked, the Pacific Northwest hosts several important Indigenous plants that would have been heavily relied on in many Coastal Salish diets hundreds of years ago. This presentation focuses on the historical importance of the Great Camas (also known as Camassia leichtlinii). This is a flower with a bulb that would be cooked and eaten by many Coastal Salish.  Alongside the flower, I will be going over my research trip to the San Juan Islands, and how I researched and made my project for an interpretive sign to be posted on the San Juan Islands. By bringing awareness …

What Happens When A Community Organizes? Five Years Of Coalition Opioid Response In Tooele County, Matt Huntington

Utah Conference on Community Engagement

The Tooele Opioid Response Network (TORN) was formed to address the opioid crisis through
coordinated, community-driven action. Over the past five years, TORN has grown from a small
coalition into a countywide consortium that connects public health, behavioral health,
emergency services, law enforcement, education, and community organizations around a
shared response to substance use.

This presentation will highlight both the reach and the systems-level impact of the network.
Attendees will learn how TORN has engaged hundreds of residents through prevention,
education, awareness, and recovery-focused events, while also advancing larger structural
changes in the community. These include expanded access to treatment, …

Service That Leads Somewhere: Community-Engaged Service As A Career Pathway, Janell C. Torres

Utah Conference on Community Engagement

Session outcomes: Understand the elements of a complete service-to-career framework, including credentialling and sector-aligned pathways, identify principles of the service-to-career framework to your program design and pathways to institutionalizing the frameworks, and identify new partners to engage to strengthen and scale a service-to-career pathway approach.

Comparing Carbon Emissions Across Transportation Mode For A 5-Mile Urban Trip In Spokane, Washington, Christian Agyei

2026 Symposium

Transportation plays a significant role in shaping local greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, particularly in mid-sized cities where automobile use remains dominant. This project examines how carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions differ across transportation modes for a standardized five-mile urban trip in Spokane, Washington. Using emission factors from the U.S Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the study estimates grams of CO₂ per passenger-mile and total CO₂ emissions per trip for four transportation modes, including single-occupancy vehicles, public transit, cycling, and walking. Commute pattern data from American Community Survey (ACS) provided local context on travel behavior in Spokane. This analysis …

Intimate Partner Violence And Diagnostic Codes In Pediatric Health Records, Sonali Ramesh, Kelsey Gavin, Nivedita Jayasekar, Ashley K. Sherman, George Abraham, Gunjan Tiyyagura, Kimberly Randell

Research Showcase

Background: Intimate partner violence (IPV) among caregivers impacts 1 in 5 US children annually. Encounters with survivors of IPV need to be carefully documented, as the perpetrator can obtain access to these records either legally or in duplicitous ways. ICD-10 codes are used to document problems addressed during a healthcare encounter. ICD codes have been used to monitor and assess IPV-related care provided in adult settings; knowledge of their use in pediatrics is limited. In 2023, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) revised billing guidelines to incorporate social determinants of health (SDOH) in the determination of medical complexity. …

Current Practices Of Anticoagulant Utilization In Pediatric Patients With Acute Myeloid Leukemia (Aml), Abbey Elsbernd, Natalie Grills, James Antoon, Kathryn Kyler, Lucas Orth, Timothy Savage, Matt Hall, Jennifer Goldman, Shannon Carpenter

Research Showcase

Background:

Management of thromboembolism (TE) in pediatric acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is challenging due to prolonged periods of thrombocytopenia and associated bleeding. There are no guidelines for anticoagulation for children with AML.

Objectives/Goal:

This study aims to understand anticoagulation utilization and association with bleeding events in hospitalized children with AML, both with and without thromboses.

Methods/Design:

We performed a retrospective cohort study using the Pediatric Health Information System (PHIS) administrative database of index hospitalizations for patients 1-21 years of age upon admission in 2016-2024 with the diagnosis of AML. Patients with bleeding disorders, thrombophilia, and acute promyelocytic leukemia were excluded. …

Treatment Of Severe Hemolysis In A Baby Requiring Multiple Tandem Extracorporeal Support Modalities And Experimental Monoclonal Antibody Therapy, John J. Morelli Iii, Judith Sebestyen Vansickle, Lejla Music Aplenc, Debra E. Newton, Alexandra Oschman, John M. Daniel Iv

Research Showcase

Background: Severe neonatal hemolysis can result in multiorgan dysfunction requiring advanced extracorporeal support. While plasma exchange and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) are effective supportive therapies, persistent hemolysis despite these interventions poses significant therapeutic challenges. Eculizumab, a monoclonal antibody targeting terminal complement protein C5, is approved for complement-mediated hemolytic disorders but has not been described in neonates receiving ECMO or concurrent plasma exchange. The pharmacokinetics and efficacy of monoclonal antibody therapies in extracorporeal circuits remain poorly characterized.

Objectives/Goal: To describe the clinical response and pharmacokinetic profile of eculizumab in a neonate with refractory hemolysis requiring ECMO, continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT), …

Clinical And Non-Clinical Factors Associated With Early Discharge In Pediatric Non-Trauma Patients Transported By Rotor Wing, Jordon Mitzelfelt, Lisa Pruitt, Amy Papa, Ashley K. Sherman, David Juang, Sarah Brunner, Asdis Finnsdottir Wagner, Jennifer Flint

Research Showcase

Background: Helicopter emergency medical services (HEMS) are crucial for transporting critically ill children to definitive care, however, rising costs and relative risks of this type of transportation necessitate careful evaluation of potential over-utilization. Current literature primarily focuses on pediatric trauma patients, leaving a significant gap in data regarding non-trauma pediatric HEMS transports and the influence of non-clinical factors such as referral hospital distance, resources, and capabilities on transport decisions.

Objectives/Goal: This study aims to address these gaps by examining non-trauma pediatric HEMS patients and identifying associated clinical and non-clinical factors related to early hospital discharge (< 24 hours).

Methods/Design: This retrospective, single-center …

Influence Of Pollinator Island Patch Size On Forb Establishment And Pollinator Networks In Palouse Prairie Restoration, Yaelle Esther Reeve

2026 Symposium

The Palouse Prairie Ecoregion is one of North America’s most endangered grassland ecosystems, with less than 1% retaining native vegetation. Restoration efforts have struggled to re-establish ecologically important native forbs and the plant–pollinator interactions necessary for long-term community stability. Spatial configuration of floral resources is known to influence pollinator foraging behavior and interaction network structure, yet few studies have evaluated how planting scale affects both plant establishment and pollinator community assembly in early-stage prairie restoration. My research aims to evaluate how variations in the size (0.1, 1, and 10 m²) of grouped wildflower plantings (pollinator islands) affect native forb establishment, …

Partisan Perceptions Of Humanity: Dehumanization Of Israelis And Palestinians By U.S. Adults, Margot Pressman, Faith Richards, Ainsley Medina

Linfield University Student Symposium: A Celebration of Scholarship and Creative Achievement

Dehumanization, the perception of others as less than fully human, frequently emerges in contexts of intergroup conflict. Drawing on Haslam's (2006) two-factor model distinguishing mechanistic and animalistic dehumanization, this study examined how U.S. adults perceive Israelis and Palestinians amid the ongoing Israeli-Gaza conflict, with political affiliation explored as a potential moderating variable. A sample of 210 participants (98 Democrats, 110 Republicans) rated both groups on dehumanization and liking measures using anchored sliding scales. Contrary to expectations, dehumanization items did not load onto two distinct factors; instead, a single composite measure demonstrated adequate reliability (α = .787). Results indicated that Palestinians …

Analyzing The Effects Of Carbon Markets On Environmental Quality Within A Country, Taila Patterson

Linfield University Student Symposium: A Celebration of Scholarship and Creative Achievement

Carbon markets have been used as a tool to combat climate change for decades. However, climate change is still on the rise with people saying the world is approaching the point of no return. This study evaluates the effects of carbon markets on environmental quality of a country through an ordinary least squares regression model. Environmental quality is measured through the existence of carbon markets, carbon taxation, human development, and petrostates. Results indicate a positive relationship between carbon markets and environmental quality. These results demonstrate that carbon markets do positively effect environmental quality, thereby creating a framework for advising policy …

Investigation Of Molecular Interactions Between Peroxisome Biogenesis Factors Pex3 And Pex 19, Vania Hernandez

Linfield University Student Symposium: A Celebration of Scholarship and Creative Achievement

Peroxisome biogenesis disorders (PBDs) are caused by disrupted peroxisome formation, which impairs cellular metabolism, leading to poor muscle tone, seizures, hearing and vision loss, and skeletal abnormalities. Peroxisomes are small membrane-bound organelles that perform essential synthesis, breakdown, and detoxification reactions. Peroxisomes can be created through fission, the division of existing mature peroxisomes, or de novo biogenesis. In de novo biogenesis, the endoplasmic reticulum secretes vesicles containing peroxisomal proteins (peroxins) that recruit additional peroxins to form a mature peroxisome. PEX3 and PEX19 are peroxisomal biogenesis factors that interact to coordinate trafficking and import of peroxisomal membrane proteins (PMPs). The molecular nature …

Homelessness Rate Across The United States, Carson D. Washburn

Linfield University Student Symposium: A Celebration of Scholarship and Creative Achievement

Analysis of homelessness rates across each state, looking at different economic causes.