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Metabolic Versatility In Melainabacteria, A Close Relative Of Cyanobacteria, Sophia Marie Miller, Kathryn Bick, Heidi E. Abresch

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

A New Member of Melainabacteria, the Closest Relatives of Cyanobacteria

Melainabacteria are the recently discovered, closest non-photosynthetic relatives of cyanobacteria, the organisms responsible for the oxygenation of Earth's atmosphere. Previous work has shown that Melainabacteria live in a wide range of environments, including deep groundwater, anoxic sediments, and the digestive tracts of termites and mammals. These bacteria have been suggested to play a significant role in the latter environments and may contribute to neurodegenerative and gastrointestinal disease in human populations. However, our knowledge of Melainabacteria diversity and metabolism is still very limited, principally because no member of this group has …

Inhibitory Signaling From A Critical Hub Neuron Drives Behavior Selection And Frequency, Wyatt T. Ploot

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

Both animals and humans must constantly make decision in dynamic environments. Situational assessment and appropriate response selection are crucial processes that determine the ability of an organism to survive and thrive, or fail and die. Understanding how the signaling by neurons and circuits ultimately lead to behavioral decisions is a critical question that may lead to the identification of mechanisms that address out-of-context behaviors. To understand how neurons send important information that leads to a behavioral decision, I am using the powerful genetic model, Drosophila melanogaster, and the choice to engage in aggressive behavior between males. My focus is …

Effects Of Acute Sleep Deprivation On The Physiological Response To Woodsmoke And Exercise, Izaac Paul Sessums

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

Chronic exposure to woodsmoke presents serious health detriments, yet the acute response to woodsmoke exposure is not well defined. While current literature reports on woodsmoke exposure and exercise, little work has been performed to understand the potential compounding effects of sleep deprivation during exposure. Sleep deprivation could modify physiologic responses to stressors such as exercise and smoke inhalation. Acute sleep deprivation has been shown to depress vagal tone, specifically depressed heart rate variability and stress recovery. The further identification of acute physiologic responses to woodsmoke would likely provide insight into the mechanism behind increased cancer and cardiovascular disease rates. Purpose: …

Effects Of Warming And Drying On The Survival And Performance Of Giant Salmonfly Nymphs (Pteronarcys Californica), Kailie Todd, Jackson Birrell

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

This study examines how warming and drying affect the performance and survival of giant salmonfly nymphs (Pteronarcys californica), which are important economically, ecologically, and culturally throughout the mountain west. My experiments were motivated by a dam malfunction that occurred in late November 2021 on the Madison River in Montana that caused the river to dry rapidly downstream of the dam and reduced flow by 70% for 50 hours. The effects of such events on aquatic insects are unknown, and my experiments were designed to assess how long salmonfly nymphs could survive in still water as well as in …

Cooking With A Conscience, Jonah Britton, Sonia Bornemann, Ashley Wilson, Mogran White, Brooke Deruwe, Hallee Olsen, Kennedy Delap, Aidan Potter

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

Cooking with a Conscience is a local and sustainable cookbook designed to facilitate more sustainable decisions and discussions concerning food in our community. Regarding the initial steps of the creation of the cookbook, our group is conducting a survey and multiple interviews both abroad and in Montana to determine what sustainability means and how sustainability is related to food consumption and production. Our research is also built around finding out people’s current eating habits as well common restrictions that often prevent our community from eating sustainably. We acquired the recipes by both asking local food producers, and by conducting individual …

Compact Steam Generator Numerical Analysis And Mechanics Design, Parker Rockholm, Congshan Mao

NASA-Missouri Space Grant Consortium

A heat exchanger is a device that is used to transfer heat between two fluids that are at different temperatures and are separated by a solid wall. This system is used in many engineering applications such as air conditions, power production, waste heat recovery and chemical processing. Heat exchangers are commonly classified by their flow arrangement and type of construction. A special and important class of heat exchanger is termed compact heat exchangers, but ‘compact’ does not refer to its size. These heat exchangers are used to achieve higher performance by using very large surface densities (heat transfer surface area …

Progress In Optimization Of Electrostatic Sieve Concept For Transport Of Lunar Regolith Using A Genetic Algorithm, Easton Ingram

NASA-Missouri Space Grant Consortium

A method for optimizing electrostatic dust transport systems using a genetic algorithm is in development. Applications to electrostatic sieving are discussed for use on the lunar surface. This simulation will allow for rapid development, testing, and optimization of electrostatic particle transport designs with large search spaces. Current progress and ongoing work for the simulation is reviewed.

Million-Year Melt-Presence In Mogollon Datil Volcanic Field Rhyolites: Constraining The Histories Of The Bursum Caldera Resurgent Domes, Ethan Wagner, Gary Michelfelder, Shannon Porter Rentz

NASA-Missouri Space Grant Consortium

The Mogollon-Datil volcanic field is located in southwestern New Mexico is the result of punctuated volcanism and the transition between arc and rift magmatism. The resurgent domes that are the result of the 28 Ma Bursum caldera records the transition from rhyolitic to basaltic andesite volcanism that occurred between 27-26 Ma. Our goal is to determine if the resurgent domes of the Bursum caldera are related in space and time but sourced from different pockets of melt extracted as the result of remobilization of cold storage mushes by injection of intermediate composition magmas. To accomplish this, we will use a …

Can Jwst Reveal The Hubble Sequence In The Early Universe?, Vicki Kuhn

NASA-Missouri Space Grant Consortium

No abstract provided.

Lunar In-Situ Aluminum Production Through Molten Salt Electrolysis (Lisap-Mse), Jacob Ortega, Jeffrey D. Smith, Fateme Rezaei, David Bayless, William P. Schonberg, Daniel S. Stutts, Daoru Frank Han

NASA-Missouri Space Grant Consortium

The goal of Artemis is to establish a sustained presence on the Moon. To achieve so, numerous resources are necessary. The Moon contains several essential elements needed to sustain human presence. Most of those elements are trapped in the form of minerals. To refine those minerals into useful materials, reduction methods are needed. Most reduction methods on Earth require large amounts of mass and power which is unrealistic for early stages of building a lunar base. To solve this problem, we are developing a concept of Lunar In-Situ Aluminum Production through Molten Salt Electrolysis (LISAP-MSE).

The LISAP-MSE project, if successful, …

Student-Athlete Mental Health: University Of Montana Case Study, Abigail M. Sherwood

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

Student-athletes at the collegiate level experience high levels of pressure that can impact their mental health. When athletes crack under this pressure, many wonder where to draw the line between healthy and excessive pressures. Despite international examples (e.g. Naomi Osaka withdrawing from the French Open in 2021, Simone Biles withdrawing from the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, and many collegiate athletes taking their own lives), some backlash still remains towards athletes prioritizing their mental health. The athletic department at the University of Montana currently offers counseling sessions free to student-athletes. However, student-athletes have expressed mental health concerns; yet many of the sessions …

How Do Zooplankton Communities In Gravel Pit Ponds Respond To Restoration?, Meredith Claire Eiden

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

Zooplankton are microscopic organisms that are integral to food webs in aquatic environments, and their diversity and composition can serve as biological indicators of ecosystem condition and function. Studying zooplankton assemblages can provide a useful tool for practitioners working in restored ponds, yet they are often overlooked in restoration assessments. To examine zooplankton community recovery in gravel pit ponds, I first compared zooplankton communities in two gravel pit ponds near Fort Missoula while they were still owned by Knife River Construction (2015) and then after initial restoration actions were completed (2022). Second, I compared current zooplankton communities in these actively …

Barriers To Outdoor Recreation For Marginalized Communities At The University Of Mt, Beatrix A. Frissell

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

Exclusion from outdoor recreation reflects legacies of oppression of marginalized communities and makes access to the outdoors not equally available. In the United States approximately 38% of Black Americans and 48% of Hispanic Americans participated in outdoor recreation in 2020. This is compared to 55% participation among Caucasian Americans. Many other intersecting identities are actively excluded, including people with disabilities, fat populations, and members of the LGBTQIA2S+ community; furthermore, class-based hierarchies are shown through the restricted outdoor access of low income populations.

While numerous studies show lack of diversity in outdoor recreation, there has been little to no research conducted …

Alienation As A Global And Local Issue, Sequoia Gregorich, Cole Mathews, Daniel Ryan, Alexandra Berna, Olivia Kalvig

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

Title: Alienation as a Global and Local Issue

Purpose: We asked questions to determine if alienation is an issue that needs to be addressed and how to address it. With the help of our University of Montana campus and experts, we now better understand alienation as it exists and doesn’t exist on campus.

Methods: We analyzed data and responses collected from a survey advertised across campus, as well as conducted interviews with students and experts in the field of alienation.

Significance: Provide valuable information and data to empower our campus community to live in such a way that eradicates and …

Exhibition Preface: The Work In January 1991 展览前言：1991年1月的工作, Tan Xu 徐坦

Zhou Documents

The preface of exhibition is written in Chinese and demonstrates the initial idea and motivation of creating the works by the Dawei Xiang Art Group. (Yifan Shang '25)

Preparing The Younger Generation For A Better Future With Wildfire, Elizabeth Riddle, Rory Mclaverty, Katherine Wendeln, Lillian Hollibaugh, Mackenzie Weiland, Aubrey Frissell

University of Montana Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR)

The frequency and severity of wildfires have increased around the world within the last two decades due to shifts in land management practices, climate change, and other factors. The effects of these fires have led to an inaccurate public perception of wildfire as a whole. This overly-simplified, vilified perception of wildfire obscures the role that it has played in shaping landscapes for thousands of years, and how indigenous peoples have applied fire to take care of landscapes.

We sought to empower future generations to better coexist with wildfire by changing this public perception through a children’s book. Over the course …

The Limits Of Using An Anti-Semitism Rhetoric Against The Anti-Zionist Discourse: The Case Of Jewish Voice For Peace, Haoua Lebbal

International Conference on Hate Studies

This presentation tracks the historical manipulation of the anti-Semitic rhetoric, from the conservative Jewish reactions against the American Council of Judaism during WWII, to contemporary ones against the anti-Zionist activism of JVP. It also provides an insight into the scholarly and structured arguments proposed by JVP’s contributors against the anti-Semitic label and libel, and ultimately seeks to denounce the lexical and ideological manipulation of the anti-Semitism – both as a term and a phenomenon – by conservative parties for conservative prospects.

A Fake Future: The Threat Of Foreign Disinformation On The U.S. And Its Allies, Brandon M. Rubsamen

Global Tides

This paper attempts to explain the threat that foreign disinformation poses for the United States Intelligence Community and its allies. The paper examines Russian disinformation from both a historical and contemporary context and how its effect on Western democracies may only be exacerbated in light of Chinese involvement and evolving technologies. Fortunately, the paper also studies practices and strategies that the United States Intelligence Community and its allied foreign counterparts may use to respond. It is hoped that this study will help shed further light on Russian and Chinese disinformation campaigns and explain how the Intelligence Community can efficiently react.

Les Traductions Et Comparaisons D’Un Discours D’Emmanuel Macron Et Un Entretien De Mohammed Moussaoui, Estefania O. Johnson

Global Tides

Ce papier va expliquer l’importance de la rhétorique, spécifiquement des dirigeants. Il fait une explication de l’histoire de la laïcité en France et puis de la politique de Macron. Puis, il va traduire deux discours du président actuel de la France, Macron, et un dirigeant d’un groupe musulman qui s’appelle Mohammed Moussaoui. Après, il essaye de faire une comparaison entre la rhétorique des deux chefs. Avec la comparaison et contraste des mots, il illustre l’importance de la rhétorique des meneurs globalement, avec l’analyse des mots de Donald Trump, l’ancien président aux États-Unis.

This paper will explain the importance of rhetoric, …

Diversity In The American Church: A Case Focus On The Korean Immigrant Church, Claire Lee

Global Tides

There are ethnic factions that exist within the Christian Church in the United States, and every ethnic faction seems to be marked by a set of theological or cultural features that distinguish it from other factions. This paper explores the socio-political history, function, and future direction of the Korean Immigrant Church (KIC). Specifically, this paper analyzes the origins of the robust connection between the Korean immigrant population and Protestant Christianity, the functional importance of the KIC, and demographic changes within KICs in the 21st Century. This paper also discusses a broader application of the KIC to other ethnically homogeneous Christian …

Contradiction And Juche, Philosophical Deviations From Traditional Dialectical Materialism By Kim Il Sung And Mao Zedong Necessitated By Socio-Political Conditions, Thomas Bidewell

Global Tides

This work will attempt to attribute the deviations from the traditional Marxist dialectic in the cases of Mao Zedong and Kim Il Sung to their necessitated governing philosophies, and thus their geopolitical conditions. In the case of Mao, this governing philosophy is ‘State-Building Socialism’, a hyper-materialist reappropriation of Marxist materialism crafted to raze internal cultural and economic hierarchy through isolating Contradictions, a rebranding of dialectics. In the case of Kim, a framework of ‘Ethnic Anti-Colonialism’ is adopted through the creation of Juche, an anti-materialist philosophy with references to Hegelianism to wrestle back the agency of ethnic Koreans against Imperialism.

No Mere Materialism: The Revelatory Nature Of Death In C.S. Lewis's Space Trilogy, Laurel Wood

Global Tides

This paper explores the role which death plays in the narrative of C.S. Lewis’s Space Trilogy. During the time of the trilogy’s composition, materialist philosophy was becoming increasingly popular in the Western world as individuals looked to science as the source of absolute truth. As a former materialist, Lewis was alarmed by this development and confronted materialist ideology in numerous fiction and non-fiction works.

Blending textual evidence from the trilogy with scholarly commentary, this paper demonstrates that Lewis uses death, particularly the fear of annihilation and the afterlife which it evokes, to bypass materialist assertions of the atheistic nature of …

Coffins And Pancakes: Eschatological Experiences In The Brothers Karamazov, Joshua Sullivan

Global Tides

This paper investigates the roles of perspective, community, and memory in shaping experience in the lives of the characters of The Brothers Karamazov. Eschatology, in Christian theology, refers to the study of the end times and the ultimate destination of humankind. Dostoevsky elicits an eschatologically blurred vision of the present and the future, where characters experience the realities of heaven and hell in their present life. This paper examines these experiences, analyzing the circumstances, implications, and meaning of these events in the characters’ lives.

Taking Down Descartes Trademark: An Objection To Descartes Ontological Argument, Nathaniel Lannen

Global Tides

Descartes attempts to prove God's existence by arguing we have an innate idea of perfection that could have only been created by an infinite source. In this paper, I object to Descartes by arguing our idea of perfection is not equatable to God. This is because our innate idea of perfection does not have enough representational content necessary to exceed our formal reality, meaning it is self-caused. In that way, our idea of perfection is less significant than Descartes would like to admit.

Music And Mood Regulation: The Effect Of Upbeat Music On Moods, Abiola Adebayo

Student Academic Conference

Research suggests that emotional regulation plays a vital role in mental and physical health and that music is often used for mood regulation. This research explored how music is used for mood regulation and the general effect of music on moods. This study examined the adaptive and maladaptive use of music for mood regulation. Two groups of participants were used; half of the participants were randomly assigned to melancholy music, and the other half were randomly assigned to upbeat music. A questionnaire containing The Positive and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS) was used to measure current mood states before and after …

“Sharenting” And Child Privacy: A Content Analysis Of Parent Bloggers’ Instagram Posts, Abiola Adebayo

Student Academic Conference

In this age of artificial intelligence and identity theft, there is an increasing concern for online safety. In recent years, there has been an increase in parents sharing more of their children's lives on the Internet, a trend known as "sharenting”. Beyond posing potential security risks, many of these children do not or cannot consent to publicly sharing their lives. This study used content analysis methods to explore how primary caregivers share information about their children's lives in ways that may compromise their privacy or safety. Fifty public Instagram posts were randomly selected and coded for several aspects of a …

Structural And Electrical Properties Of 2-D Transition Metal Oxides, Jessica Fink, Jacob Berry, Gabriel Fedynich, Kartik Ghosh

NASA-Missouri Space Grant Consortium

2-dimensional materials have gained much popularity after the rise of graphene with its unique physical properties such as high electrical conductivity, high thermal conductivity, and high elasticity. There is an active search for 2D materials beyond graphene to improve performance in energy applications, sensors, and optoelectronic devices. Recently, transition metal dichalcogenides such as molybdenum disulfide (MoS₂) are on the rise. However, MoS₂ is well researched whereas molybdenum oxide (MoO_x) has been studied less. Molybdenum oxide can be in various forms such as MoO, MoO₂, and MoO₃. MoO₂ and MoO_{3 …}

Application Of Wray-Agarwal Turbulence Model To Axisymmetric Subsonic And Transonic Flows, Mike Kiely

NASA-Missouri Space Grant Consortium

This paper describes the problem setup, implementation, and numerical results obtained with the commercial CFD software ANSYS Fluent to test the accuracy of the one equation Wray-Agarwal (WA) turbulence model in comparison to the commonly used one-equation Spalart-Allmaras (SA) turbulence model by computing two axisymmetric benchmark problems, namely the subsonic flow past an axisymmetric after-body and the transonic flow past Sandia axisymmetric bump. The axisymmetric after-body case features low speed flow in near separation conditions where it was found that the Wray- Agarwal model and the Spalart-Allmaras model produced nearly identical results. The Sandia transonic axisymmetric bump case features a …

Investigating The Presence Of Volatile Molecules On Comet 67p, Keith Reece

NASA-Missouri Space Grant Consortium

67P/Churyumov—Gerasimenko is a Jupiter Family comet that originated in the Kuiper Belt. We observed six volatile compounds using IRTF on Mauna Kea. We report the volatile compound abundances of OH, H₂O, NH₂, C₂H₂, HCN, and NH₃ in orders 170, 171, and 172 of the comet’s spectrum.

Precise, Scalable, And Low-Cost Manufacturing Of Microperforated Cylindrical Tube As A Broadband Acoustic Ventilation Barrier, Ian Greene

NASA-Missouri Space Grant Consortium

Broadband acoustic ventilation barrier, which can simultaneously block acoustic transmission and maintain ventilation of air flow, promotes potential air-permeable yet sound-proofing applications in green buildings. Emerging microperforated cylindrical tube has demonstrated broadband acoustic attenuation, especially in the low frequency range, as well as sufficient ventilation, which is enabled by micron-scale perforations over the entire surface of cylindrical shell. Therefore, precise manufacturing technology is desirably demanded to fabricate microperforated cylindrical tubes at large scale and economically. In this project, we develop a synchronization assistant control (SAC) system that is integrated with a computer numerical control (CNC) drilling system for continuous fabrication …