Digital Commons Network^™

Temperature Sensitivity Of Nitrogen Mineralization In Peat From Bogs Across A Michigan Transect, Madison Smith, Hannah Sturgeon, Abigail Brewer, Gael Figueroa-Enriquez, Christopher Klaver

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

In this study, seven peat bogs across a latitudinal transect of Michigan were used to analyze inorganic nitrogen (nitrate and ammonium) release from peat to predict the impact that climate warming has on peatland nitrogen cycle. More nitrogen release is expected in samples kept at warmer temperatures (simulated climate warming) and also from samples from lower latitudes in the transect. 1-m peat core samples were taken at each site. 20 g of acid washed sand was added to upper chambers of microlysimeters (two-chambered filter towers). 50 g of peat was added onto the sand and was left to equilibrate for …

Β-Decay Strength Function Of 53ni And 52co, Gabe A. Balk, A. Spyrou, M. K. Smith, W. Von Seeger

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

The p process is believed to be responsible for the formation of heavy proton-rich nuclei in the universe. This work deals with the decay of two nuclei that are part of the p process, ⁵³Ni and ⁵²Co. β+ decays for each isotope were recorded with the Summing NaI(Tl) detector at the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory. A preliminary β-decay Intensity Function was derived with Total Absorption Spectroscopy. Total energy spectra, β-particle spectra, individual γ-energy spectra, and multiplicity spectra for the decay to levels in the child nucleus were modeled with GEANT4 based on information from the National Nuclear Data …

Examining Regression Assumption Violations In Machine Learning Models Using The Wisconsin Longitudinal Study Dataset, Grace Mooney Anderson, Melia Brewer

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

A growing practice within the psychological sciences is a reliance on machine learning models for data analysis. Machine learning models may have profound implications for improving human well-being and health (e.g., Walsh et al., 2017). However, like any statistical model, machine learning requires that the assumptions of linear regression are met, though the implications of violating these assumptions in machine learning models are unknown. Our study investigates these potentially stark consequences by testing machine learning models in simulated data with built-in assumption violations, as well as a publicly available dataset. We hypothesize that when regression assumptions are violated, we will …

The Effects Of Self-Selected And Pre-Selected Music On Acute Exercise Perceptions And Performance In Insufficiently Active College Students, Alison J. Bache, Tiovanni M. Knight, Lazerick T. Smith Jr.

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Extensive research has investigated the effects of music on exercise. Researchers suggest that music can improve athletic performance and promote positive perceptions of exercise. However, previous research has focused on athletes or recreationally active participants, and often compares the presence of music during exercise to a lack of music. This study aims to determine whether listening to self-selected preferred music versus pre-selected motivational music improves acute exercise performance and perception of exercise in sedentary college students. Ten individuals will complete baseline testing by following the YMCA cycling protocol. Each participant will then complete two subsequent trials in which they will …

Investigation Of Convection Cells Via Truncated Eigenmode Decomposition, Gillian Donley, A. E. Fraser

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Convection cells are found in a variety of contexts throughout physics, including plasmas within the stellar interior and in neutral fluids such as planetary atmospheres. Rayleigh Benard Convection (RBC) is the most well studied model for this behavior, describing convection in fluids that are heated from below and cooled from above, resulting in a temperature gradient which can drive instabilities. Under the right conditions, this instability develops and drives convective heat transport, which is still actively researched in fluid and plasma dynamics today. We study the neutral fluid configuration of this system using a novel modeling approach that approximates the …

Exploring The Effectiveness Of Directing Groups For Rhodium-Catalyzed Decarbonylation, Bryan J. Forrest, Isabelle M. Klanseck, Jazmin E. Aguilar-Romero, Mary G. Kapitula

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Reactions involving carbon-carbon bond activation are of interest to develop methods of functionalizing molecules. Work in the Johnson Group utilizes rhodium-catalyzed decarbonylation to form new carbon-carbon bonds in pyridyl ketones, where the nitrogen on the pyridine ring acts as a directing group. Though this reaction is easily replicated and gives high yields, the need for a pyridine directing group limits the range of molecules that can be synthesized. To broaden the scope of this reaction, novel directing group compounds were synthesized through different routes and their efficacy in the decarbonylation reaction was explored.

Determining The Step Count Accuracy Of Four Commercially Available Smart Watches, Jolie Labarge, Samuel Aylward

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

The purpose of this study was to determine the step counting accuracy of four commercial smart watches. Methods: Twelve adults (mean ± SD, 24.8 ± 8.4 years) completed this two-trial study. Trial 1(T1) occurred indoors and Trial 2 (T2) took place outdoors. During T1 participants were outfitted with four smart watches, two on each arm (Apple Watch Ultra, Coros Vertix 2, Garmin Fenix 6, Polar Grit X) and completed both a treadmill and activities of daily living (ADL) protocol. During T2 they completed a 3.2 kilometer trail run. During TW participants wore a chest harness outfitted with a GoPro camera …

Effects Of Empathic Concern, Social Support, Health, And Burnout On Undergraduate Pre-Health And Nursing Students’ Stress, Caroline Davenport

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Stress among undergraduate students is an inevitable consequence of difficult studies, and this may especially be the case for pre-health and pre-nursing students. This research was aimed to determine whether the level, type, or combination of stressors affected pre-health and pre-nursing majors to greater degrees or in different ways. The data come from 531 undergraduate students who initially self-identified as pursuing either a pre-health or pre-nursing degree, and were surveyed once per year. The present data set includes Freshman through Junior years. The second and third wave asked students about their greatest stressors (open ended) and numerically rate the degree …

Mechanochemical Formation Of Polyacrylamide Nanocomposites: Impact Of Nanoparticle Surface Chemistry And Substrate Functionalization, Bryn Couturier, Lauren Buckley, Connor Bovia

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint condition, with treatments currently limited to symptom management and invasive surgical procedures. This project investigates the fundamental mechanisms for a potential treatment route that would allow soft material nanocomposites to form within the joint through mechanochemical reactions. To gain fundamental insight into the different chemical pathways for this to occur, this work compares a top-down vs bottom-up approach. The top-down method focuses on the influence of applied oscillatory mechanical stresses on bulk hydrogel polymerization. Polyacrylamide (PAM) is used as a well-studied control system. PAM-nanocomposites were achieved through co-polymerization, with gold nanoparticles with different capping ligands …

Identity Development Among Pre-Health Students During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Anya Kapitula, Anna Tyshka

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Many sociology studies have been published regarding the experiences and development of medical school students, but there is a gap in research observing undergraduate students on pre-health professions tracks. Specifically, studies have been published noting a significant decrease in the empathy of medical school students during their third year, but no research has been conducted to identify development patterns of these students during their undergraduate years. This study aims to identify groups of undergraduate students on pre-health professions tracks based on typologies formed from longitudinal survey responses, and also to identify any significant transitions between these groups over time. Because …

Classifying Patient Handling Techniques To Reduce Risk Of Musculoskeletal Injury In Nursing Students, Giovanni Battaglia, Emanuel Sanchez

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Nurses suffer musculoskeletal injuries at a higher proportion than the general population due to physical strain and poor posture during patient-handling tasks; studies show that back injuries occur at a rate of 28.9 cases per 10,000 registered nurses. The purpose of this study is to apply multivariate time series classifiers (MTSCs) to classify six patient-handling tasks and the quality of subject posture (good, poor, or neutral) during these tasks. Manikins weighing 44 lbs, 66 lbs, and 110 lbs simulated patients. In this proof-of-concept study the XCM, ResNet, and MiniRocket MTSCs were trained with data collected from four non-nursing students using …

Former Ncaa Diii College Athletes' Perceptions And Plans For Maintaining Post-Sport Exercise Behavior, Christian A. Clark, Samantha M. Vermeesch, Morgan A. Eckenrod

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

College athletes in the United States exhibit various declines in physical and mental health following retirement from sport. These declines in health are not well understood, however, one cause may be reduced exercise rates following retirement from regular sports training. It is unknown how former athletes' perceptions of health and fitness change after retirement and affect their exercise behavior post-sport. The purpose of this study was to understand former Division III (DIII) athletes' perceptions of health and fitness following college graduation and sports retirement and to explore what their future plans for exercise maintenance were. Recently graduated student-athletes from Hope …

Expanding The Use Of Palladium-Catalyzed Beta-Aryl Elimination Reactions, Anna G. Tyshka, Tyler J. King, Lucas D. Day, Timothy R. Welsh

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Transition metal-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions involving organic boronic acids are ubiquitous throughout organic synthesis. Despite the popularity of these methods, some boronic acids, such as those with 2-heteroaryl, 2-fluoroaryl, and cyclopropyl substituents, are incompatible, as these species decompose via protodeboronation prior to their incorporation into the desired reaction. To circumvent the protodeboronation process, the organometallic intermediates typically generated via catalyst transmetallation with a boronic acid can instead be generated via β-carbon elimination Efforts will focus on solving the so-called "2-pyridyl problem" and broadening the scope of known coupling partners in a Suzuki-like reaction, then systematically expand to include other palladium- and …

Β-Decay Strength Function Of 99,100 Y, Nathaniel Jobson, A. Spyrou

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

The rapid neutron capture process (r process) is responsible for the formation of numerous nuclei in the universe. To obtain better models for heavier nuclei that are part of the r process, the decay paths of 99,100Y were analyzed. This work was done using the Summing NaI(Tl) detector at the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory. The Iβ(E) and the Beta Gamow-Teller function (BGT) were extracted from the measured Total Absorption Spectroscopy (TAS), Sum of Segments (SEG), and Multiplicity spectrum. The Iβ(E) and the Beta Gamow-Teller function (BGT) were extracted from the measured spectra and then compared to the Quasi Random Phase …

Quantifying The Effect Of Air On Uncertainty In The Particle Accelerator, Megan Haeussler, Evelyn Martin, Zachary Doctor

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

In preparation to measure environmental PFAS contamination, we are quantifying measurement uncertainties of liquid Sodium-Fluoride (NaF) standards undergoing particle induced gamma emission (PIGE). These standards are measured in the atmosphere outside of the vacuum environment of the particle accelerator at Hope College. One source of uncertainty is the dimensions of the experimental setup. If the target is even one millimeter farther away from the exit window than anticipated, the beam will lose energy as it travels through the air and will not be able to penetrate as far into the target as expected. We aim to quantify the uncertainty caused …

Death Stranding: A New Digital Ecology, Jordan Long

Theses and Dissertations

This essay analyzes Death Stranding, the 2019 release from contemporary game auteur Hideo Kojima. Here, I discuss the unique potentialities of this game world, detailing the ways in which Death Stranding expresses ecological perspectives. Asynchronous multiplayer serves as a unique metagame, helping to prove that play is a process of action which facilitates ecological thinking. The world of Death Stranding is filled with strange objects. The nonhuman entities that the player encounters throughout the game, for example, seem entirely alien. And yet, when these entities are properly understood, we realize that their inclusion is necessary--and natural. Your "job" in the …

Multiscale Characterization Of Dislocation Development During Cyclic Bending Under Tension In Commercially Pure Titanium, Nathan R. Miller

Theses and Dissertations

Continuous bending under tension (CBT) has been shown to increase room temperature elongation-to-failure (ETF) in various sheet metals past that of simple tension (ST). In commercially pure titanium (CP-Ti) Grade 4, up to 3x extended elongation over ST has been achieved. A greater understanding of deformation mechanisms in CBT would allow for its elongation-enhancing effects to be more fully exploited in HCP and other metals, creating potential for new forming strategies. While most of the extended ETF has been attributed to delayed localization via incremental deformation inherent to the CBT process, together with compressive stabilization and relaxation of mechanical strain …

The National Basketball Association Communications Strategy For The 2019-20 Season Restart, Trevor Dale Jones

Theses and Dissertations

This paper analyzes the NBA's communications efforts from June 4 to July 30, 2020 as it prepared for an unprecedented season restart in the early days of a global pandemic. While scholars have examined the media's framing of the NBA in this period, there is a gap in the literature when looking at the official NBA communications strategy of the organization itself. As the first study to use risk communication theory in a sports scenario while also employing corporate social advocacy as the second theoretical basis of analysis, this qualitative study is a thematic and textual analysis of 14 NBA …

Validating Boyness: How Art Education Allows Male Adolescent Students A Space For Authenticity, Vulnerability, Empathy, And Connection, Stephanie Behlke-Mcfarland

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines societal norms and unwritten rules for boys as they mature. It is hypothesized that most boys deal with emotional suppression or dissociation in varying degrees of severity due to traumas during their developmental years. This dissociation creates an inability to express their own emotions adequately and therefore affects their ability to empathize with others. A lack of vulnerability may also be a common challenge among boys society still considers vulnerability weakness. This pattern continues into adulthood and is then perpetuated through posterity and future generations. This thesis explores through a qualitative case study how using art integration …

“It Didn’T Hurt Me”: Patients’ And Providers’ Perspectives On Unsupervised Take‑Home Doses, Drug Diversion, And Overdose Risks In The Provision Of Medication For Opioid Use Disorder During Covid‑19 In San Juan, Puerto Rico, Roberto Abadie, Celia B. Fisher

School of Global Integrative Studies: Faculty Publications

Background During the COVID−19 pandemic, clinics offering medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD) needed to rapidly introduce unsupervised take−home dosing, while relapsing patients and patients unable to enter treatment faced increased risks of fentanyl−related overdose deaths and other drug−related harms. Based on a qualitative study of people who inject drugs (PWID) receiving MOUD treatment and MOUD staff in Puerto Rico, this paper documents the lived experiences of patients and providers during this period and the risk perceptions and management strategies to address substance misuse and drug diversion attributable to unsupervised take−home−dose delivery

Methods In−depth qualitative interviews were conducted with patients …

Structure Of Native Four-Repeat Satellite Iii Sequence With Non-Canonical Base Interactions, Erin Chen , '23, M. Trajkovski, Hyun Kyung Lee , '21, Samantha Nyovanie, Kailey N. Martin, W. L. Dean, M. Tahiliani, J. Plavec, Liliya A. Yatsunyk

Chemistry & Biochemistry Faculty Works

Tandem-repetitive DNA (where two or more DNA bases are repeated numerous times) can adopt non-canonical secondary structures. Many of these structures are implicated in important biological processes. Human Satellite III (HSat3) is enriched for tandem repeats of the sequence ATGGA and is located in pericentromeric heterochromatin in many human chromosomes. Here, we investigate the secondary structure of the four-repeat HSat3 sequence 5′-ATGGA ATGGA ATGGA ATGGA-3′ using X-ray crystallography, NMR, and biophysical methods. Circular dichroism spectroscopy, thermal stability, native PAGE, and analytical ultracentrifugation indicate that this sequence folds into a monomolecular hairpin with non-canonical base pairing and B-DNA characteristics at concentrations …

Does It Pay To Play? A Dyadic Study Exploring Familial Investment In Organized Youth Sport, Kayla Wolma

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Parents play an important role in the youth sport experience for their child (Bonavolontá, 2021). Two ways that parental investment is evident in youth sport is through parental support and parental pressure. Parental support has been linked to child-athlete enjoyment and enthusiasm in the youth sport setting (Gagné, 2003), whereas heightened stress and anxiety for the child-athlete have been associated with parental pressure (Gould, 2008; O'Rourke, 2011). Recent literature has explored family investment in youth sport (fiscal) and discovered that greater investment is associated with greater perceived parental pressure on the athlete, while also showing a decline in the athlete's …

A Comprehensive Musical Model For Stroke Recovery, Janeellen Altevogt

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

The ways in which music therapy impacts healing have been studied and observed in many ways in the past. However, most do not go the step further to consider how music therapy can be used to specifically help stroke patients recover lost function. In this paper, a video game design is proposed in which a combination of music therapies is integrated into a multi-level activity that incorporates repetition, reward, and strengthening of both physical and cognitive abilities. The game consists of five worlds each containing ten levels that all function to use the power of play and repetition to improve …

Hope College Abstracts: 23rd Annual Celebration Of Undergraduate Research And Creative Activity, Hope College

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

The 23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity was held on April 12, 2024 in the Richard and Helen DeVos Fieldhouse at Hope College and featured student-faculty collaborative research projects. This program is a record reflective of those projects between the 2023-2024 academic year.

Quality Of Health, Physical Activity, And Exercise In Former College Athletes Post-Sport: A Systematic Review, Ryan P. Endres, Emily K. Mayfield, Christian A. Clark

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

A surplus of modern research in the field of sports science has yielded that, despite their immense athletic and physically active background, former college athletes tend to be less well off in aspects of fitness, and exercise than their non-athlete counterparts. These previous findings have led to further exploration of the question: what is the quality of health, physical activity, and exercise in former college athletes post-sport? Using a systematic approach based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, this review explored three online databases (PubMed, SportDiscus, and PsychInfo) to collect peer-reviewed articles regarding this …

Stream-Borne Floating Mismanaged Waste In Holland, Michigan: Focus On Foam, Sam J. Haakenson, Reina A. Duron

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Streams and storm drain systems link terrestrial roadside litter to rivers and lakes, which eventually supply floating debris to the global ocean. To better understand this linkage, we evaluated the kinds and quantity of floating mismanaged solid waste being transported in five streams within the Lake Macatawa watershed in the environs of Holland, Michigan. We deployed floating litter booms in the four smallest streams. These consisted of a rip-stop nylon sleeve encasing pool noodle floats strung on a wire rope. These were placed diagonally across the stream and anchored to fence posts set into the stream banks. In the largest …

Ucc Minutes Apr 12, 2024, Undergraduate Curriculum Committee

Undergraduate Currirculum Committee Minutes

No abstract provided.

Development Of A Consistent Proton Induced Gamma Emission Liquid 19f Standard, Jordan Craft, Ryan Mccreedy, Naomi Whitfield, Loic Rutabana

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

We developed a new technique to quantify PFAS (Fluorine) contamination in water using Hope College’s particle accelerator. To do this, we created an ~2000 PPM NaF in water standard and carefully controlled the experimental configuration. We are hoping that careful control of the experimental conditions will yield a consistent 19F gamma-ray count per Coulombs from Proton Induced Gamma-ray Emission (PIGE). 3.4MeV protons have enough energy to exit the particle accelerator, travel 27 mm in air, and penetrate into the liquid standard. As protons lose energy in the liquid, nuclear reactions such as (p, p’gamma) with the 19F and 23Na nuclei …

Adult Dysphagia: Interprofessional Support Groups And Holistic Approaches, Natalie Bekmetjev, Abigail Mosher

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

This research project investigates Adult Dysphagia, a condition characterized by difficulties in swallowing, and its various impacts on daily life. Common causes of adult dysphagia include radiation treatment, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and Parkinson’s disease. Beyond its physical manifestations, dysphagia has significant psychosocial implications given the role of food and eating in our daily lives, affecting relationships and evoking emotions such as shame and fear of choking. Recognizing the limitations in traditional approaches to treatment, our study emphasizes the importance of an interprofessional support group. Traditional interventions often have limited time to address the many different aspects of dysphagia and …

The Home-Concept: A Descriptive Analysis Of Schemas For The Home, Tasia Parsons, Tyler Kennedy, Lauren Zago

23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024)

Throughout history, one's home has had great significance, typically viewed as "the prototypical place" (Lewicka, 2010a, p. 211). Homes help fulfill many needs in the lives of their occupants, including self-expression (Gosling et al., 2002), feelings of safety and control (Smith, 1994), among others. Even so, psychological research on the topic of home is relatively minimal (Graham et al., 2015; Meagher, 2020).

To evaluate what concepts people most associate with their home, we employed an adapted version of the Twenty-Statements Test (Kuhn & McPartland, 1954; Rees & Nicholson, 2004) that asked participants to respond to the statement "My Home is…." …