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Effects Of Large Mammal Exclusion On Seedling Communities Depend On Plant Species Traits And Landscape Protection In Human-Modified Costa Rican Forests, Nohemi Huanca-Nuñez, University Of Connecticut, University Of The Sunshine Coast, Sabrina E. Russo

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

1. Large terrestrial herbivorous mammals (LTH-mammals) influence plant community structure by affecting seedling establishment in mature tropical forests. Many of these LTH-mammals frequent secondary forests, but their effects on seedling establishment in them are understudied, hindering our understanding of how LTH-mammals influence forest regeneration in human-modified landscapes.
2. We tested the hypothesis that the strength of LTH-mammals' effects on seedling establishment depends on landscape protection, forest successional stage and plant species' traits using a manipulative field experiment in six 1-ha sites with varying successional age and landscape protection. In each site, we established 40 seedling plot-pairs, with one plot excluding LTH-mammals and …

Multiphoton In Vivo Microscopy Of Embryonic Thrombopoiesis Reveals The Generation Of Platelets Through Budding, Huan Liu, Hellen Ishikawa-Ankerhold, Julia Winterhalter, Michael Lorenz, Mykhailo Vladymyrov, Steffen Massberg, Christian Schulz, Mathias Orban

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Platelets are generated by specialized cells called megakaryocytes (MKs). However, MK's origin and platelet release mode have remained incompletely understood. Here, we established direct visualization of embryonic thrombopoiesis in vivo by combining multiphoton intravital microscopy (MP-IVM) with a fluorescence switch reporter mouse model under control of the platelet factor 4 promoter (Pf4CreRosa26mTmG). Using this microscopy tool, we discovered that fetal liver MKs provide higher thrombopoietic activity than yolk sac MKs. Mechanistically, fetal platelets were released from MKs either by membrane buds or the formation of proplatelets, with the former constituting the key process. In E14.5 c-Myb-deficient …

High-Fat Diet, But Not Duration Of Lactation, Increases Mammary Gland Lymphatic Vessel Function And Subsequent Growth Of Inflammatory Breast Cancer Cells, Wintana Balema, Janelle Morton, Richard A Larson, Li Li, Fred Christian Velasquez, Natalie W Fowlkes, Savitri Krishnamurthy, Bisrat G Debeb, Eva Sevick-Muraca, Wendy A Woodward

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) presents as rapid-onset swelling and breast skin changes caused by tumor emboli in the breast and breast skin lymphatics. IBC has been linked with obesity and duration of breastfeeding, but how these factors affect IBC tumor progression is not clear. We modeled the simultaneous effects of diet and weaning in mice on in vivo lymphatic function; on IBC tumor growth; and on aspects of the mammary gland microenvironment before and after IBC (SUM149) xenograft inoculation. We hypothesized that weaning status and diet would have synergistic effects on lymphatic function and the breast microenvironment to enhance IBC …

Generalization Of Procedural Motor Sequence Learning After A Single Practice Trial, B P Johnson, I Iturrate, R Y Fakhreddine, M Bönstrup, E R Buch, E M Robertson, L G Cohen

2020-Current year OA Pubs

When humans begin learning new motor skills, they typically display early rapid performance improvements. It is not well understood how knowledge acquired during this early skill learning period generalizes to new, related skills. Here, we addressed this question by investigating factors influencing generalization of early learning from a skill A to a different, but related skill B. Early skill generalization was tested over four experiments (N = 2095). Subjects successively learned two related motor sequence skills (skills A and B) over different practice schedules. Skill A and B sequences shared ordinal (i.e., matching keypress locations), transitional (i.e., ordered keypress pairs), …

Investigating Sucrose And D-Trehalose In Aot Reverse Micelles, Delaney Collier, Bridget L. Gourley

Annual Student Research Poster Session

Reverse micelles are nanosized structures that encapsulate small water pools and allow us to investigate the fundamental interactions of small organic molecules in nanoconfinement. The behavior of small organic molecules, sometimes referred to as osmolytes, differs in bulk solution and confinement. Because reverse micelles are a good model for biological nanoconfinement, investigating osmolytes in reverse micelle systems can help us to better understand the role they play in biological systems. Optical spectroscopy such as UV-Vis, Fluorescence, and Red Edge Excitation (REES) was used to probe the environment of the reverse micelles. Three small organic molecules were studied: a monosaccharide, d-glucose, …

Investigating An Instructional Model For Integrated Stem In Teacher Education, Laurie O. Campbell, Nicole Damico

Journal of STEM Teacher Education

Active learning experiences that incorporate technology, design, and making combine to form an important and necessary pedagogical approach that supports the 21st century skills of collaboration, communication, creativity, digital literacies, and computational thinking as a problem-solving framework. Active learning experiences in teacher preparation serve as a model for future educators to follow, while building the educators' efficacy to conduct future implementations with their own students. In this study, a multidisciplinary Pop-Up Makerspaces activity was conducted as an active hands-on approach to interdisciplinary STEM education. The intersectionality of English language arts with integrated STEM through design and making included: (a) enriching …

Pre-Service Science Teachers’ Understanding Of Science And Engineering Practices, Engineering Design Process, And Scientific Method, Frackson Mumba, Alexis Rutt, Paul Asunda, Reid Bailey

Journal of STEM Teacher Education

This study examined secondary pre-service science teachers’ understanding of science and engineering practices, the engineering design process, and the scientific method before and after an intervention. Participants were ten pre-service science teachers. Data were collected through a survey and semi-structured interviews. Results show that after the intervention pre- service science teachers developed understanding of science and engineering practices and used more engineering-specific language when describing them. They also developed an understanding that both engineering design process and scientific method are cyclical and iterative and that the two processes share many practices, but the biggest difference between them is in their …

Impact Of Covid-19 Pandemic On Experienced Introductory Stem Instructors’ Teaching Practices, Sarah Boesdorfer

Journal of STEM Teacher Education

Professional development for STEM instructors and facilitating change in their instruction requires understanding current practices along with what motivates or causes them to change their teaching practice. Teaching during the Covid-19 pandemic caused a lot of change in how courses were delivered in-person or online, but it also provided opportunities for instructors to change the teaching method used in the courses, potentially shifting towards more student-centered practices. Some commonly cited barriers to faculty changes were removed or lowered during this time and instructors had to think about their teaching due to the nature of the pandemic. Opportunity for change was …

Designing A Program To Develop Computer Science Master Teachers For An Underserved Rural Area, Susie Morrissey, Thomas Koballa, Robert Allen, Judy Godfrey, Michael Dias, Shawn Utley, Deannia Clements

Journal of STEM Teacher Education

Due to a shortage of rural computer science teachers, researchers used a three-phase method to design a computer science endorsement, which will be coupled with an instructional coaching endorsement within an Educational Specialist degree program. The team conducted interviews of teachers as well as school and district level administrators in rural areas to determine needs and resources available to develop computer science master teachers. Interviewers also investigated recruitment, preparation and support processes pertinent to the program. Findings included that, although infrastructure for wireless access is lacking, school and district administrators are very interested in supporting teachers to become computer science …

Teachers’ Perceptions On Women In Stem: Breaking The Stereotypes, Lili Zhou, Alankrita Chhikara, Stephanie Oudghiri, Araba A. Z. Osei-Tutu, Razak Kwame Dwomoh

Journal of STEM Teacher Education

Drawing on an online professional development modular course that addressed critical approaches to the issues of race, immigration, English Language Learners (ELLs)/Emerging Bilinguals (EBs), and gender and sexual orientation, this paper reports teachers’ perceptions on gender stereotypes in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education. In particular, building on the course readings, we discuss teachers’ emergent approaches to address gender stereotypes in teaching practice that improve girls' participation in STEM fields. Data is collected from a pre-course survey and teachers’ discussions during the course. Centering on the course readings from theoretical and empirical research that address gender issues, discussion prompts …

I-Guide Climbers: A Model For Multidisciplinary Academic Labs For Early Career Development, Iman Haqiqi, Wei Hu, Ramya Kumaran, Pin-Ching Li, Nicholas Manning, Alex Michels, Ayman Nassar, Jinwoo Park, Jimeng Shi, Adam Tonks, Zhaonan Wang

I-GUIDE Forum

In this paper, we propose a new form of multidisciplinary academic collaboration that goes beyond the traditional modes of knowledge exchange. We argue that most research collaboration today is based on interactions between closely related disciplines, in which researchers share data, methods, and insights within a common framework or problem. However, such collaboration may not foster the development of the communication and management skills essential to a multi-disciplinary research career. Therefore, we suggest establishing a network of researchers from divergent, yet complementary, disciplines who are interested in improving these skills through regular interactions and feedback. The main goal of this …

Curriculum Design Of Artificial Intelligence And Sustainability In Secondary School, Jinyi Cai, Mei-Po Kwan, Chunyu Hou, Dong Liu, Yeung Yam

I-GUIDE Forum

Artificial Intelligence is revolutionizing numerous sectors with its transformative power, while at the same time, there is an increasing sense of urgency to address sustainability challenges. Despite the significance of both areas, secondary school curriculums still lack comprehensive integration of AI and sustainability education. This paper presents a curriculum designed to bridge this gap. The curriculum integrates progressive objectives, computational thinking competencies and system thinking components across five modules—awareness, knowledge, interaction, empowerment and ethics—to cater to varying learner levels. System thinking components help students understand sustainability in a holistic manner. Computational thinking competencies aim to cultivate computational thinkers to guide …

Gaxin2-Xo3 Surface Pyramids Interaction With Formaldehyde: Thermodynamic And Sensing Analysis, Mudar Ahmed Abdulsattar

Karbala International Journal of Modern Science

GaxIn2-xO3 surface pyramids' electronic structures are investigated using density functional theory, including dispersion corrections. Application of GaxIn2-xO3 surface pyramids as a gas sensor for formaldehyde is also performed and compared with experimental findings. These findings show that the energy gap of these pyramids follows closely with the bulk values. The energy gap increases between the two limits, In2O3 and Ga2O3. Applying GaxIn2-xO3 surface pyramids as a gas sensor uses transition state theory formalism. Thermodynamic quantities such as activation Gibbs energy, enthalpy, and entropy are needed for temperature-dependent calculations. A comparison of sensor response which is proportional to reaction rate as …

A Spatiotemporal Synthesis Of High-Resolution Salinity Data With Aquaculture Applications, Dong Liang, Jeremy M. Testa, Cassie Gurbisz, Lora A. Harris

I-GUIDE Forum

Technological advancement and the desire to better monitor shallow habitats in the Chesapeake Bay, Maryland, United States led to the initiation of several high-resolution monitoring programs such as ConMon (short for “Continuous Monitoring”) measuring oxygen, salinity, and chlorophyll-a at a 15-minute frequency. These monitoring efforts have yielded an enormous volume of data and insight into the condition of the tidal water of the Bay. But this information is underutilized in documenting the fine-scale variability of water quality, which is critical in identifying the link between water quality and ecological responses, partly due to the challenges in integrating monitoring data collected …

Data Mining In Internet Of Things Systems: A Literature Review, Amany M. Sarhan

Journal of Engineering Research

The Internet of Things (IoT) and cloud technologies have been the main focus of recent research, allowing for the accumulation of a vast amount of data generated from this diverse environment. These data include without any doubt priceless knowledge if could correctly discovered and correlated in an efficient manner. Data mining algorithms can be applied to the Internet of Things (IoT) to extract hidden information from the massive amounts of data that are generated by IoT and are thought to have high business value. In this paper, the most important data mining approaches covering classification, clustering, association analysis, time series …

Deeplab V3+ Based Semantic Segmentation Of Covid -19 Lesions In Computed Tomography Images, Merihan Mohamed Abdalwahab Eissa Abdalwahab, Sameh Napoleon, Amira S. Ashour

Journal of Engineering Research

Abstract- Coronavirus 2019 spreads rapidly worldwide causing a global epidemic. Early detection and diagnosis of COVID-19 is critical for treatment as it causes respiratory syndrome appears in the chest medical images, such as computed tomography (CT) images, and X-ray images. The CT images are more sensitive and have more details compared to the X-ray images. Thus, automated segmentation plays an imperative role in detecting, diagnosing, and determining the spreading of COVID-19. In this paper, the DeepLabV3+ combined with MobileNet-V2 model was implemented. To validate this combination, we conducted a comparative study between the DeepLabV3+ variants by its combination with MobileNet-V2 …

Helmet-Mounted Display System Based On Iot, Ahmed Hassan Eldeib

Journal of Engineering Research

Many people enjoy motorcycle riding and there are thousands of people who have lost their lives due to road accidents. This is mainly due to the delay in the state of emergency that must be provided to the victims. The helmet-mounted display system that uses the Internet of Things (IoT) reduces accidents and informs its contacts in emergencies so the helmet module contains sensors to determine the passenger's pulse rate, alcohol content, and vibration intensity. The pulse rate sensor is used to determine whether the rider has worn the helmet and which will be connected to the rider's start of …

Voronoi Diagram Applications Towards New Sustainable Architectural Language, Adel Adel Abbas

Journal of Engineering Research

This paper is concerned with the study of how to generate irregular geometric shapes that simulate their counterparts in nature, based on mathematical rules, specifically through Voronoi diagram, which already has been used in a group of contemporary buildings and urban design projects. The paper deals with this diagram through a theoretical study that explains the characteristics and applications of this diagram, with a review of examples of engineering formations that exist in nature and to which the applications of the Voronoi diagram apply. The paper aims to how to achieve a balance between form and function through this diagram, …

The Search For A New Theory Of Sustainable Architectural Design: Breathing Architecture, Tamer Tamer Anwer El Gabaly, Rasha Said Abd El-Lateef

Journal of Engineering Research

To maintain the reduction in fuel consumption and the need to modify the techniques concerning climate change new ideas for example “Parisian worker gardens”, New York’s “community gardens”, and “vegetable squares” of Muscovite, come into the picture. The city aims to produce more clean energy than it consumes within fifteen years for a positive energetic assessment. The city plans to shift more towards renewable energies for example photovoltaic cells, biomass, green architecture such as walls and roofs, etc. The new architecture should also follow these green technologies and methods. Methodology—The methodology of this paper is based on a qualitative research …

Health Justice: The Entanglement Of Quality Of Life And Neoliberalism, Rana Rana Hammam, Salma Anwar, Mennatullah Hendawy

Journal of Engineering Research

Covid 19 pandemic sheds light on the entanglement of urban planning and public health in neoliberal urban contexts with special attention to justice. “Good health and wellbeing” is one of the sustainable development goals. This article argues that neoliberal urban practices result in a good Quality of Life for privileged populations, but negatively affect the vulnerable and lead to health injustice from the perspective of urban planning. Hence, Quality of Life is negatively affected since health is a crucial aspect within the discipline of Quality of Life. The spatial determinants of health-related Quality of Life are essential to be considered …

How Does The Interior Design Of Learning Spaces Impact The Students` Health, Behavior, And Performance?, Shaymaa Shaymaa El-Sayed Gad, Walaa Noor, Marwa Kamar

Journal of Engineering Research

: The importance of research: human beings are greatly affected by their surroundings, especially in learning spaces. Lighting, colors, seating arrangement, and other factors all have a physical and psychological impact on students, which is reflected in their behavior, and performance. Research problem: Although there have been previous studies that have linked a student's behavior to the interior design elements of the learning space, there is no extensive, combined study that can guide the design of university educational spaces to achieve the highest possible efficiency for the students. Research Objective: Set criteria to assess the learning space; this standard states …

Health Promoting Qualities Framework For Blue And Green Landscapes: Applying Perceived Restorativeness On A Case Study Of Nile Riverfront In Greater Cairo Region, Sara Sara Tarek

Journal of Engineering Research

Blue and green landscapes contribute to the quality of life of cities in different positive ways. It has environmental, social, and visual benefits that affect directly the physical and psychological health of city residents in one way or another, in addition to providing ecological benefits for their surroundings. There are plenty of previous studies that investigated the different health characteristics of blue and green spaces. However, there is still a need for more interdisciplinary studies to measure the long-term effect of blue and green landscapes together on the health of their users. Therefore, the presented study aims to investigate and …

Sustainable Urban Design Of Urban Spaces In Residential Areas And Their Impact On Human Behavior, Amira Gaber

Journal of Engineering Research

Public spaces in residential areas can be considered as a key controller of people's behavior. As these spaces motivate people to socially interact this by the way tailor their personality and mental processes. Besides, this interaction affects the quality of life of individuals and the way they interact with the environment. Accordingly, it is essential for architects to pay more concern to the design of open areas with more consideration to human aspects rather than just physical aspects only. Moreover, the goals and principles of sustainability, especially social sustainability has to be considered. This attributed to the strong relationship and …

Voronoi Diagram Applications Towards New Sustainable Architectural Language, Adel Adel Abbas

Journal of Engineering Research

This paper is concerned with the study of how to generate irregular geometric shapes that simulate their counterparts in nature, based on mathematical rules, specifically through Voronoi diagram, which already has been used in a group of contemporary buildings and urban design projects. The paper deals with this diagram through a theoretical study that explains the characteristics and applications of this diagram, with a review of examples of engineering formations that exist in nature and to which the applications of the Voronoi diagram apply. The paper aims to how to achieve a balance between form and function through this diagram, …

The Search For A New Theory Of Sustainable Architectural Design: Breathing Architecture, Tamer Tamer Anwer El Gabaly, Rasha Said Abd El-Lateef

Journal of Engineering Research

To maintain the reduction in fuel consumption and the need to modify the techniques concerning climate change new ideas for example “Parisian worker gardens”, New York’s “community gardens”, and “vegetable squares” of Muscovite, come into the picture. The city aims to produce more clean energy than it consumes within fifteen years for a positive energetic assessment. The city plans to shift more towards renewable energies for example photovoltaic cells, biomass, green architecture such as walls and roofs, etc. The new architecture should also follow these green technologies and methods. Methodology—The methodology of this paper is based on a qualitative research …

Health Justice: The Entanglement Of Quality Of Life And Neoliberalism, Rana Rana Hammam, Salma Anwar, Mennatullah Hendawy

Journal of Engineering Research

Covid 19 pandemic sheds light on the entanglement of urban planning and public health in neoliberal urban contexts with special attention to justice. “Good health and wellbeing” is one of the sustainable development goals. This article argues that neoliberal urban practices result in a good Quality of Life for privileged populations, but negatively affect the vulnerable and lead to health injustice from the perspective of urban planning. Hence, Quality of Life is negatively affected since health is a crucial aspect within the discipline of Quality of Life. The spatial determinants of health-related Quality of Life are essential to be considered …

How Does The Interior Design Of Learning Spaces Impact The Students` Health, Behavior, And Performance?, Shaymaa Shaymaa El-Sayed Gad, Walaa Noor, Marwa Kamar

Journal of Engineering Research

: The importance of research: human beings are greatly affected by their surroundings, especially in learning spaces. Lighting, colors, seating arrangement, and other factors all have a physical and psychological impact on students, which is reflected in their behavior, and performance. Research problem: Although there have been previous studies that have linked a student's behavior to the interior design elements of the learning space, there is no extensive, combined study that can guide the design of university educational spaces to achieve the highest possible efficiency for the students. Research Objective: Set criteria to assess the learning space; this standard states …

Health Promoting Qualities Framework For Blue And Green Landscapes: Applying Perceived Restorativeness On A Case Study Of Nile Riverfront In Greater Cairo Region, Sara Sara Tarek

Journal of Engineering Research

Blue and green landscapes contribute to the quality of life of cities in different positive ways. It has environmental, social, and visual benefits that affect directly the physical and psychological health of city residents in one way or another, in addition to providing ecological benefits for their surroundings. There are plenty of previous studies that investigated the different health characteristics of blue and green spaces. However, there is still a need for more interdisciplinary studies to measure the long-term effect of blue and green landscapes together on the health of their users. Therefore, the presented study aims to investigate and …

Sustainable Urban Design Of Urban Spaces In Residential Areas And Their Impact On Human Behavior, Amira Gaber

Journal of Engineering Research

Public spaces in residential areas can be considered as a key controller of people's behavior. As these spaces motivate people to socially interact this by the way tailor their personality and mental processes. Besides, this interaction affects the quality of life of individuals and the way they interact with the environment. Accordingly, it is essential for architects to pay more concern to the design of open areas with more consideration to human aspects rather than just physical aspects only. Moreover, the goals and principles of sustainability, especially social sustainability has to be considered. This attributed to the strong relationship and …

Superparamagnetic Iron Oxide Nanoparticles Of Sabizabulin (Veru-111) For Pancreatic Cancer Treatment, Vivek K. Kashyap, Godwin P. Darkwah, Neeraj Chauhan, Prashanth K.B. Nagesh, Qinghui Wang, Duane D. Miller, Wei Li, Murali M. Yallapu, Meena Jaggi, Subhash C. Chuahan

Research Colloquium

Background: Pancreatic cancer (PanCa) is one of the leading causes of cancer-related mortality in the United States due to very limited therapeutic options. Thus, developing novel therapeutic strategies will help for the management of this disease. We recently identified VERU-111, a novel synthetic molecule which showed potent anti-cancer effect against PanCa via targeting clinically important βIII and βIV tubulin isoforms. In this study, we synthesized and characterized its novel nanoformulation (MNP-VERU) and evaluated its therapeutic effects in vitro and xenograft mouse model.

Methods: MNPs were prepared by chemical precipitation method and loaded with VERU-111 using diffusion method. This formulation was …