2024 Abstracts

Authors: Danielle Alvarado, Kasidy Weber, Shannon Buckley. Mentors: Shannon Buckley. Insitution: University of Utah. The ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS) plays a critical role in cancer by regulating the degradation of key proteins involved in cell cycle control, DNA repair, apoptosis, and signaling pathways, making it a crucial mechanism for maintaining cellular homeostasis and preventingtumor development and progression. The expression levels of F-box ubiquitin E3 ligase, FBXO21, correlates with patient survival in several types of cancer, suggesting a role in tumorgenesis. We have previously shown silencing FBXO21 in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cell lines and patient samples leads to differentiation, slowed tumor progression, increased chemotherapy sensitivity, and altered cytokine signaling. Further, we found that FBXO21 ubiquitinates p85α, a regulatory part of the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) pathway, for degradation resulting in altered PI3K signaling. Although PI3K inhibitors are used in cancertreatment, issues like off-target effects, dose-limiting toxicities, and resistance necessitate further research and development for optimized efficiency and minimal negative effects in targeting the PI3K pathway. To further understand the role of FBXO21 in cancer, we utilized shRNAs targeting FBXO21 in various cancer cell lines to identify the role of FBXO21 in cellular proliferation, apoptosis, and alteration of the PI3K pathway. The PI3K signaling pathway is initiated through p85α binding to the catalytic subunit, p110, leading to downstream AKT and mTOR activation. We found knockdown of FBXO21 stabilizes p85α, leading to dimerization of free p85 and decreased PI3K pathway activation. Therefore, we hypothesize that FBXO21 may function as a novel regulator of PI3K signaling, offering an alternative approach to PI3K inhibitors. Our findings suggest that FBXO21 may represent a novel therapeutic target acrossvarious cancer subtypes to target the overactive PI3K pathway. Targeting FBXO21 may enhance the efficacy of current therapies and provide potential benefits for improving patient outcomes in the treatment of cancer, including but not limited to AML

Authors: Kennedy Parker. Mentors: Melinda Russell Stamp. Insitution: Weber State University. Role-playing is considered one of the most effective teaching strategies for training undergraduate clinical psychology students because it fosters active learning in a supportive and safe environment (Gibbs, 2019; Osborn & Costas, 2013). The literature is replete with studies that document the benefits of role-playing for clinical training. These benefits include the development of active-listening, perspective-taking, empathy, critical thinking, communication, collaboration, problem-solving, and increased enjoyment of course material (Dawood, 2013; Gibbs, 2019; Grose-Fifer, 2017). A challenge associated with classroom role-plays involves student reluctance to participate due to feelings of self-consciousness and anxiety associated with being negatively evaluated (Mallonee, 2018). There is limited research on the effectiveness of different role-play modalities which may include classmates role-playing with one another; as well as actors and virtual avatars role-playing with students. There have been mixed findings in the literature regarding whether students are more comfortable disclosing to virtual avatars or to actors in face-to-face encounters (Rogers et al., 2022; Roster & Chen, 2016). To date, there are no research studies comparing student perceptions of role-plays with virtual avatars to face-to-face interactions with actors in undergraduate psychology classes. For the current study, 60 undergraduate Psychology students were randomly assigned to either role-play with an avatar or an actor. Following the 25-minute role-plays, students completed surveys assessing perceived utility value, self-efficacy, level of anxiety, engagement, and future interest in role-playing. This preliminary study will compare the effectiveness of avatar and actor role-play modalities which will help educators better structure training for undergraduate students in clinical psychology.

Authors: Joseph Moore. Mentors: Jeff Hill. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Shape memory alloys are extensively utilized in many industries due to their ability to return to a predefined shape when heated. For medical applications, Nitinol, a nickel-titanium shape memory alloy, holds significant favor due to its biocompatibility and super elasticity. Since its discovery in the early 1960s, Nitinol has been the subject of ongoing research and fresh insights into how this alloy operates are of great importance to the industry.Nitinol wires sourced from manufacturers exhibit substantial uncertainty in their actuation temperature, also known as the austenite finish temperature. This study aims to investigate a heat-treatment method that can reduce these uncertainties, ultimately narrowing down the precise and consistent austenite finish temperature for two types of Nitinol wire: a single wire and a coiled variant.To achieve this, Nitinol samples were subjected to heat treatment in a furnace, with temperature and time parameters ranging from 500 to 650 °C and 5 minutes to 2 hours. Subsequently, the austenite finish temperature was triggered and recorded by immersing the heat-treated samples in degassed and deionized water at a controlled temperature.This research defines a straightforward yet effective approach that produces dependable results under controlled conditions. This method has the potential to streamline the determination of austenite finish temperatures, making future research more efficient. It may also open doors for innovative and efficient methods investigating the impact of heat treatment on Nitinol wires.

Authors: James Walker. Mentors: Pania Newell. Insitution: University of Utah. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the discussion of using fibrous porous materials in the context of face masks has gained significant relevance. These materials consist of networks of fibers that are intertwined through weaving, knitting, or bonding, creating a structure with interconnected pores that facilitate the transport of gasses and liquids. When a face mask is used, it is under tensile stresses that can greatly affect its longevity and behavior, and simulating the behavior of the fibers within the mask under this loading is essential in enhancing its robustness. Numerical analysis involving fibrous porous materials is challenging due to their inherent randomness and anisotropy, however. The models we use need to accurately represent the entire mask, which we achieve using a small cubic cell known as a representative volume element (RVE). In this study, we systematically investigate the role of fiber diameter, fiber cross sectional shape, and RVE size on the mechanical properties of various RVEs using a computational framework built on the finite element method. The RVEs themselves are idealistic, but useful networks of polypropylene fibers that are orthogonally intersected within cubic boundaries. Our results show that once an appropriate RVE size was determined with constant porosity between systems, the stiffness of the samples increases as the cross-sectional shape progresses from a triangle to a square, to a pentagon, etc., largely due to the increases in intersection volume between fibers. We also found that increasing the diameter serves to increase material stiffness. This project not only offers insights into designing more robust face masks but also provides novel tools that can be used for designing other fibrous porous materials.

Authors: Maren Archibald. Mentors: Jared Colton. Insitution: Utah State University. Two-factor authentication was in use as early as 1994 with a patent belonging to telecommunications company Ericsson, which described the tech as “an authentication unit which is separate from preexisting systems." Today, multifactor authentication (MFA) requires a user to prove their identity by way of their knowledge, through a password or one-time code; their possession, through a physical key; or their inherence, through biometrics like a fingerprint or an eye scan. The secure sign-in method has proliferated in recent years, but while significant time has been dedicated to refining it, little if any research has been done in relation to its ethical implications. In his scholarship on discipline, Michel Foucault writes of “examination that places individuals in a field of surveillance.” MFA is one such method of surveillance — various forms track users’ location data, common usage and login hours, and biometric information. In my presentation, I will apply Foucauldian ethics to show how MFA is uniquely situated among other forms of societal documentation because of its purpose. The very data that depersonalizes users into numbers is also meant to be so precise and personal that it is the only way to believe users are who they say they are. And beyond MFA’s treatment of individual users looms the widespread collapse of a distinction between privacy and security. These values are not incompatible, but organizations have implemented MFA in a way that requires users to sacrifice privacy in order to gain security. My research will show how MFA aggrandizes the power differential between users and tech giants and threatens the ability to simultaneously maintain privacy and digital identity.

Authors: Logan Whitney, Jaren Wilson, Elley Colledge, Jamie Thygerson. Mentors: Jessica Pullan. Insitution: Southern Utah University. Exosomes are nanosized (40-150 nm) extracellular vesicles (EVs) secreted from cells that play a vital role in the human body's intracellular communication.1 The use of bovine-derived exosomes as a drug delivery vehicle provides an innovative approach to targeted drug delivery4 due to their stability, nontoxicity, non-immunogenic properties, and cost efficiency.5,6,7,8,9 The purpose of our research is to establish and refine a raw bovine milk exosome isolation protocol to determine the quality of exosomes. Current standards for small EV identification are currently being established and regulated by the International Society of Extracellular Vesicles (ISEV) but center around three main categories: proteins, nucleic acids, and lipids.2 To refer to EVs as exosomes, they must be of endosome origin, otherwise they are referred to as ectosomes, and must be appropriately referred to by their size.13 Upon isolation, we verified the morphology of the small EV’s using Scanning Electron Microscopy, allowing visualization of the size and shape of the small EVs. Our research methods for the quantification of surface proteins include Rose Bengal Assay12 and Bradford Assay. Examination using exosome-specific cell surface markers, such as CD63, demonstrates protein functionality of the small EVs. Quantification of lipids allows for comparison of lipid concentration to surface protein concentration for further evidence of exosome identification. Lastly, RNA quantification ensured the small EVs met the concentration threshold to be defined as exosomes. The combination of these methods will further the work in bovine milk extracellular vesicles by yielding a low-cost, high-yield protocol for the isolation and characterization of EVs that can be further used as biomarkers, drug carriers, and a variety of platforms of delivery to physiological targets. [1] Rayamajhi, S., Nguyen T., Marasini R., Aryal S. Macrophage-derived exosome-mimetic hybrid [2] Théry, C., Witwer, K.W., Aikawa, E., Alcaraz, M.J., Anderson, J.D., Andriantsitohaina, R., et al. Minimal information for studies of extracellular vesicles 2018 (MISEV2018): a position statement of the International Society for Extracellular Vesicles and update of the MISEV2014 guidelines.  Journal of Extracellular Vesicles 2018; 7:1. [3] Pullan, J. E., Confeld, M. I., Osborn, J. K., Kim, J., Sarkar, K., and Mallik, S. Exosomes as drug carriers for cancer therapy. Molecular Pharmaceutics 2019; 16:1789–1798. vesicles for tumor targeted drug delivery. Acta Biomaterialia 2019; 94:482-494.  [4] He J, Ren W, Wang W, et al. Exosomal targeting and its potential clinical application. Drug Deliv Transl Res 2022;12(10):2385-2402. [5] Munagala R, Aqil F, Jeyabalan J, Gupta RC. Bovine milk-derived exosomes for drug delivery. Cancer Lett. 2016; 371(1):48-61. [6] Rashidi M, Bijari S, Khazaei AH, Shojaei-Ghahrizjani F, Rezakhani L. The role of milk-derived exosomes in the treatment of diseases. Front Genet 2022;13:1009338.  [7]García-Martínez J, Pérez-Castillo ÍM, Salto R, López-Pedrosa JM, Rueda R, Girón MD. Beneficial Effects of Bovine Milk Exosomes in Metabolic Interorgan Cross-Talk. Nutrients 2022;14(7):1442.  [8] Mashouri, L., Yousefi, H., Aref, A.R. et al. Exosomes: composition, biogenesis, and mechanisms in cancer metastasis and drug resistance. Mol Cancer 2019; 18:75.  [9] Radha Munagala, Hina Kausar, Charu Munjal, Ramesh C. Gupta, Withaferin A induces p53-dependent apoptosis by repression of HPV oncogenes and upregulation of tumor suppressor proteins in human cervical cancer cells, Carcinogenesis 2011; 11:1697–1705. [10] Wijenayake S., Eisha S., Tawhidi Z., Pitino M.A., Steele M.A., Fleming A.S., et al. Comparison of methods for pre-processing, exosome isolation, and RNA extraction in unpasteurized bovine and human milk. PLoS ONE 2021;16:e0257633. [11] Osteikoetxea X., Balogh A., Szabó-Taylor K., Németh A., Szabó T.G., Pálóczi K., et al. Improved Characterization of EV Preparations Based on Protein to Lipid Ratio and Lipid Properties. PLOS ONE 2015;10:e0121184. [12] Kishore, S.; Maruthamuthu, M. Binding of Rose Bengal onto Bovine Serum Albumin. Proceedings / Indian Academy of Sciences 1993, 105 (4–5), 279–285. DOI:10.1007/bf02866917. [13] Théry, C., Witwer, K. W., Aikawa, E. et al. (2018). Minimal information for studies of extracellular vesicles 2018 (MISEV2018): A position statement of the International Society for extracellular vesicles and update of the MISEV2014 guidelines. Journal of Extracellular Vesicles, 7(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/20013078.2018.1535750z

Authors: Alix Elliston. Mentors: Lane Law. Insitution: Salt Lake Community College. Cyanobacteria (colloquially known as blue-green algae) are photosynthetic prokaryotes commonly found in water. Several genera of freshwater cyanobacteria, including Microcystis, Planktothrix (Oscillatoria), and Anabaena, produce potent hepatotoxins known as microcystins. Eutrophication and increasing temperatures facilitate an overgrowth of toxin-producing cyanobacteria, referred to as cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms (cyanoHABs). There are several known cyanophages which infect these genera and there has been some research into the role phages play in regulating cyanoHABs. This study aims to isolate microcystin-producing cyanobacteria from Utah Lake, as well as known or novel freshwater cyanophages which can infect the isolates. Any isolated phage will be propagated, have its DNA extracted and sequenced, and studied for use as a CRISPR delivery vehicle to target toxin-producing cyanobacteria, with the aim of knocking out microcystin biosynthesis.

Authors: Ty Wilson. Mentors: Amita Kaundal. Insitution: Utah State University. Climate-induced environmental stresses and the increased use of fertilizers to meet the increasing demand for food significantly threaten food production and soil health. In natural environments, microbes are vital to the growth and development of plants. Their presence in the soil allows for enormous flexibility and nutritional availability for plants, particularly those living in harsh conditions. A plant’s microbiome, especially the underground, plays a significant role in its growth and development and mitigates environmental stresses. Idaho and Utah are particularly challenging environments due to extreme temperatures and arid soil. However, despite these difficult environmental factors, the native plants of Utah and Idaho can thrive. Here, we are exploring the rhizosphere microbiome of Shepherdia x utahensis ‘Torrey,’ a hybrid of two highly drought-tolerant buffaloberry species, S. argentea and S. rotundifolia native to the Intermountain West region of the US to isolate plant growth promoting bacteria. In this study, we isolated drought-resistant plant growth-promoting microbes from the rhizosphere of hybrid buffaloberry. Root samples of hybrid buffaloberry were collected from three locations in Utah: the USU campus, Greenville Farm USU, and the USU botanical garden, Kaysville. The rhizosphere was removed from these root samples and pooled together. The bacteria were isolated on five different bacterial growth media twice. The isolated microbes were then purified using the streak plate method. Forty-six unique isolates were selected based on morphological characteristics and tested for four plant growth-promoting traits. Fourteen bacteria could show the ability to fix nitrogen fix, 18 produced a siderophore, 17 could solubilize phosphate, and 11 produced catalases. IAA production, ACC deaminase, and protease activity assays are in progress. All isolates will be identified by 16S rRNA Sanger sequencing.

Authors: Byron Adams, Elias Johnson, D Alejandro Espinosa-Lucas, R Darío Perez-García, Israel Solano-Zavaleta, J Jaime Zúñiga-Vega, Gonzalo A Ramirez-Cruz. Mentors: Byron Adams. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Urbanization has forced animals to respond to novel environments. One of the challenges of urban ecology is that it is unknown if the ecological processes that take place in wild conditions also occur in urban environments. In natural ecosystems, key predators can limit prey abundance and have a widespread effect on trophic levels. Here, we examine a predator-prey interaction in Mexico City, an urban ecosystem where prey can be evaluated in the presence or absence of apex predators. Nearly all original ecosystems in Mexico City have been converted into man-made structures. Many of the green spaces in the city contain populations of the Mexican gray squirrel. These green spaces are also inhabited by different species of raptors, the most frequent being Harris’s hawk, Cooper’s hawk, and sharp-shinned hawk. Little is known about interactions between raptors and squirrels in terms of demographic parameters. We do know, however, that raptors prey on squirrels. We predicted that in parks where raptors were present, there would be fewer squirrels than in parks where there were no raptors. We studied the relationship between raptors and squirrels using occupancy models to determine the environmental factors that affect the presence of both squirrels and raptors. We then tested if the presence of raptors influenced the occupancy probability of squirrels. Lastly, we estimated the abundance of squirrels in parks, both where raptors are present and where they are absent. Contrary to our predictions, we found no evidence that predators predict squirrel abundance. However, we did find evidence that the presence of raptors can be predicted by the abundance of squirrels. These results suggest that this predator-prey interaction in Mexico City parks could be relatively recent and still not in equilibrium, or that other factors may be affecting the dynamics between these two urban populations.

Authors: Stephen Chamberland, Craig D. Thulin, Katherine Solorzano, Cassandra Beddes, Nathan Twitchell, Abram Caruso. Mentors: Steve Chamberland, Craig D. Thulin. Insitution: Utah Valley University. This investigative procedure is a continuation of an experiment done by UVU undergraduate student Kyra Banks and her mentor, UVU Professor of Chemistry Craig Thulin, to determine the structure of xanthommatin. Xanthommatin is one of the primary pigments found in monarch butterflies, and many other insects. Data obtained during the mass spectrometric analysis was observed to indicate a possible deamination of xanthommatin, however the quantity of deaminated xanthommatin observed was too small and so the structure could not be determined. The research investigates the precedented deamination of kynurenine as a model to develop a procedure for the deamination of 3-hydroxykynurenine, primarily due to the fact that it is cheaper in price to xanthommatin, as well as a chemical precursor that can be used for the synthesis of xanthommatin. The implications of this suggest that the deamination procedure developed for 3-hydroxykynurenine could be successfully replicated with xanthommatin. After the deamination procedure has been successfully repeated, xanthommatin will be synthesized using one of a few procedures developed by Kumar, A., et al1. Once a sufficient sample of xanthommatin has been successfully synthesized, the deamination procedure will be repeated on samples of xanthommatin to determine the structure of deaminated xanthommatin using NMR spectroscopy. The research conducted here is beneficial not only because it is a continuation of other UVU student’s and staff’s work, but also to those whose work is in the animal biology realm of science. The information that will be extracted from this research will spearhead new research pathways and questions to be explored.Xanthommatin-Based Electrochromic Displays Inspired by Nature (acs.org)Biomimetic Colorants and Coatings Designed with Cephalopod-Inspired Nanocomposites (acs.org)

Authors: Andrew Call. Mentors: John Chaston. Insitution: Brigham Young University. The main goal for this project is to confirm previous predictions of specific genes that may influence flies’ dietary preference to consume lactic acid bacteria (LAB). The preference of LAB is a normal phenotype that flies have, because the bacteria is essential for their gut microbiota. A previous genome-wide association study (GWAS) by another student in my mentor’s lab predicted genes that lead flies to prefer to consume diets that have live LAB. This genetically determined fly phenotype was measured by calculating the frequency and number of times the flies would choose the LAB inoculated diet over a control diet. My role will be to test if 7 genes have the influence predicted by this previous analysis. The experiment will follow close with the one previously performed by the student who predicted the genes I’m testing. I’ll be using a flyPAD which has a small arena (cage) that will hold one fly. Inside that arena are 2 wells that contain food. These wells have sensors attached to them, so each time the fly takes a sip of food, an electronic signal will be sent to a computer that keeps track of the number of sips from each well, the duration of each sip taken and time in between each sip and graph all the results taken for comparison between a control group and the test groups. I will starve 48 female mutant drosophila melanogaster for 3 hours prior to the experiment and then place them inside the flyPAD where I have previously placed 1 μl of 1:1 yeast-glucose diets in each well, however I will inoculate 0.05 μl of LAB in one of the diets. I will track each sip the flies take from each of the two foods for 1 hour. To measure accurately, there will be 2 controls also being tested. I will use flies that do not contain the genetic mutation and I will also have control arenas where both food wells do not contain LAB.I expect that any mutant that has a reduced preference for LAB-inoculated diet relative to the control diet represents a validated prediction of the previous study. In some cases, there may be no variation in preference for the control or LAB-inoculated diet, indicating a gene that does not contribute to fly preference for LAB in the diet. If none of the mutants tested validate the genome-wide association predictions, I will go back to the gene list and select one additional subset of genes to test if these influence the genetic prediction. We previously focused on genes that had multiple hits in the previous experiment, regardless of how significant the predictions were. In this second round, I will simply select the ten most significant remaining genes. Overall, this project will help confirm the previously selected genes with their association with a diet preference of lactic acid bacteria, improving the gut microbiota of Drosophila melanogaster.

Authors: Tanner Van Orden, Dennis Shiozawa, Peter Searle, Ana Kokkonen, Paul Evans. Mentors: Paul Evans. Insitution: Brigham Young University. The Bonneville cutthroat trout (Onchorynchus clarki utah) is the only trout species native to the Northern and Southern Snake ranges in Eastern Nevada. Streams on the east side of both ranges flowed into Lake Bonneville 12,000 – 15,000 years ago when Lake Bonneville was at its maximum. As Lake Bonneville retreated, Bonneville cutthroat trout in these streams were left isolated. To better understand how Bonneville cutthroat trout in the study area are coping with a changing climate, we Investigated the genetic diversity of Bonneville cutthroat in the Northern and Southern Snake ranges and compared them to historic samples. We found highly differentiated cutthroat trout populations in close proximity to each other and a genetic diversity loss of up to 86.3% in the last 12 years.

Authors: Macaulay Gould, Chelsea Romney, Andrew Moss. Mentors: Chelsea Romney. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Attorneys play an important role in protecting the rights of the defendant and maintaining fair courtroom outcomes. This project compared self-reported fairness between court customers with and without an attorney representing their case. 372 Provo City Justice Court customers reported their perceived fairness in a 10-item survey, validated by national court assessment tools. Statistical analysis was performed, and a linear regression model revealed no association between legal representation and fairness. This indicates that both groups reported the same level of fairness, regardless of attorney representation. While evidence suggests that court customers with an attorney may receive better outcomes and less jail time, this was not reflected in court customers’ perceived fairness. We suggest a court navigator be available to court customers, so they can better understand how fairly they are being treated.

Authors: Joseph Holmes. Mentors: Jared Nielsen. Insitution: Brigham Young University. BACKGROUND Anosognosia is characterized by a stroke victim’s inability to acknowledge their acquired physical deficits. Such patients could believe they can operate their limbs normally even when they cannot. Patients will often attribute other reasons to explain their deficit (unwillingness to move, a sprain, arthritis, etc).Previous research has reported damage from various brain areas, including several fronto-temporal-parietal areas, insula, and subcortical regions. Many studies suggest that the deficit is caused from impaired sensory feedback coupled with spared motor intentions, which involves premotor, sensory-motor regions, basal ganglia, temporal-parietal junction, insular cortex, and prefrontal cortex. The objective of this study is to confirm the involvement of these brain areas. It is also to identify other possible networks that could contribute to the development of AHP. METHODSWe performed a literature review for case studies of patients presenting with anosognosia for hemiplegia (n=17). The majority of cases were attributed to ischemic stroke (n=15) while the others resulted from hemorrhagic stroke. Lesion network mapping analysis was performed on the 17 lesions with a large cohort of healthy control resting-state scans (n=1000). RESULTSThe main regions to which the lesions were functionally connected included the right transverse temporal gyrus (n=17) and the anterior left insula (n=17). It is also important to note that the lesion networks were found to be negatively correlated with a few areas in the prefrontal cortex. CONCLUSIONFurther research should be done to investigate the involvement of specific areas of the prefrontal cortex in AHP. Some regions in the prefrontal cortex may be negatively correlated; however, past research suggests a positive correlation of other prefrontal regions. It is important that clinicians understand the lesion networks of AHP, as it will guide them to treat patients more effectively. Interventions such as transcranial brain stimulation could become more beneficial to patients, as clinicians will know specific areas of the brain to stimulate to mitigate symptoms of AHP.

Authors: Dylan Skinner. Mentors: Mark Hughes. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Deep reinforcement learning (DRL) continues to demonstrate remarkable efficacy in pattern recognition and problem-solving, particularly in domains where human intuition falls short. In the realm of knot theory, an important challenge revolves around constructing minimal-genus slice surfaces for knots of varying complexity. In this presentation, I will outline a novel approach that leverages the power of DRL to tackle this difficult problem. Using braid representations of knots, we train reinforcement learning agents to construct minimal genus slice surfaces by finding sequences of braid transformations that are optimal with respect to a given objective function. This provides a template for attacking other computationally difficult problems in topology and pure mathematics using reinforcement learning.

Authors: Alexander Goslin, Hazel Ticas, Morgan Covarrubias. Mentors: Daniel Scott. Insitution: Utah Valley University. In the evolving realm of personal care product development, striking a balance between ingredient choice, manufacturing intricacies, and consumer demands is pivotal. As the industry grapples with escalating costs and the clamor for novelty, there's an imperative to find methods that refine the development pathway, keeping both product quality and cost-effectiveness in check. Machine Learning (ML) emerges as a promising contender, proposing a data-centric route to formulation - from discerning patterns to forecasting efficacies, and even creating formulas themselves. This study delves into the intricacies of leveraging ML for personal care formulations, specifically emphasizing its role in substituting ingredients to either amplify a product's qualitative facet or reduce production costs. Despite the allure of ML, its integration into personal care isn't without challenges, given the industry's unique regulatory, consumer-centric, and trend-driven landscape. Through rigorous testing, evidence-based enhancements, and in-depth analysis, we aim to shed light on ML's functional dynamics in cosmetic formulations, underscoring both its potential dividends in cost and quality.

Authors: Sebastian Partida. Mentors: Jamie Spinney. Insitution: Southern Utah University. Lighting levels have an important role in influencing the ambiance and functionality of various land uses. To achieve specified goals while optimizing energy efficiency and sustainability, lighting intensity must be balanced. The purpose of this study was to compare light intensity for different land uses (e.g., residential, commercial, industrial, and recreational). This study measured light intensity (i.e., brightness) for a random sample of different land uses using a digital light meter within Cedar City, UT. GPS coordinates were also acquired in order to map the brightness data. As expected, the results revealed that residential land uses were the darkest, whereas commercial and industrial land uses were the brightest. The findings indicate communities have to maintain a balance between creating a warm and pleasant atmosphere and ensuring appropriate illumination for safety and security purposes. Energy-efficient LED fixtures and smart lighting systems, for example, can provide adjustable and programmable illumination settings that meet both aesthetic and safety requirements.

Authors: Michelle Stanley. Mentors: Baktybek Abdrisaev. Insitution: Utah Valley University. Due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, much of Europe has been striving to reduce their dependence on Russian energy. Lithuania, however, began this process 11 years ago when Russia raised the price of Russian gas transported through Gazprom. Lithuanian leadership recognized the potential danger of being dependent on Russia and with the Russian invasion of Ukraine, those concerns proved to be well-founded. Through its history, Lithuania has experienced Russian oppression and has fought for its sovereignty. The history of Lithuania’s energy relationship with Russia from its declared independence from the Soviet Union in March 1990, its complete dependence on Russia for gas, and the process of becoming the first European Union country to become independent from Russian gas in May 2022. This is a case study which shows that: independence from Russian energy removes Russia’s coercive power over that country, the current European energy crisis is the culmination of long-standing European dependence on Russian energy, and that eventually European countries will have to reconcile with Russia. The article will outline three significant periods of time in Lithuania’s energy relationship with Russia: the Lithuania-Soviet Union energy relationship immediately before the fall of the Soviet Union, the process whereby Lithuania has pursued its energy independence from Russia since 1991, and Lithuania’s efforts to achieve full energy independence from Russia following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.