Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

The Benefits Of Undergraduate Research Assistantships In Nursing, Ryoko Pentecost

Student Research Initiative

Specific Aims:The specific aim of this study was to explore student nurses’ perceptions of the benefits of being an undergraduate research assistant.

Background: Undergraduate student nurses gain benefits from collaborating outside of the classroom with faculty as a research assistant. Students can explore the faculty role of researcher through their experiences, and these experiences may encourage students to become faculty in the future. Boise State University School of Nursing (BSU SON) students have been encouraged to participate with faculty members through the Faculty-Student Research Support Initiative, funded by the DeMeyer Endowment. Through this research experience, undergraduate research assistants from BSU …

Biomedical Photoacoustic Imaging Using Gas-Coupled Laser Acoustic Detection, Jami Johnson

Student Research Initiative

Several detection methods have been explored for photoacoustic and ultrasound imaging of biological tissues. Piezoelectric transducers are commonly used, which require contact with the sample to be imaged and have limiting bandwidth characteristics. Interferometry detection exhibits improved bandwidth characteristics and resolution, yet generally require complicated optics and the incorporation of a contacting reflective medium. In this paper, we report the use of a noncontact photoacoustic imaging system that does not require the use of a reflective layer. A simple, robust technique known as gas-coupled laser acoustic detection is used, which has previously been applied to evaluation of composite materials. This …