2013 Abstracts

Zachary Cook, Utah Valley University Behavioral Science A Trend analysis of counseling visits to Utah Valley Universities (UVU) student health center was carried out between the months of January to October of 2012. During this time intake forms from students were examined in alphabetical order by HIPPA trained researchers and assessed for the frequency of the client’s visits along with their chief complaint as determined by the therapists. High frequencies of complaints such as depression, anxiety, and educational issues were reported from students attending the university in past studies beginning in 1999 at UVU’s health center. Researchers at Kansas State University used an instrument known as the Case Descriptor List to measure a therapist’s assessment of a client’s problems based on nineteen categories including items such as depression, anxiety, and educational/vocational issues (Benton, Robertson, Tseng, Newton, & Benton, 2003, p. 69). The basis of the present study was formulated by collapsing the nineteen categories into fourteen constructs for simplicity in order to determine the trend found between the years of 2006 to 2011. During this time 1,974 individuals obtained counseling services from UVU’s student health center. The research found that 56% of clients sought therapy for depression, 38.1% for anxiety, and 39.9% for educational assistance based on the stated categories. An increase in issues such as depression and anxiety has demonstrated the need for an increase in the number of trained therapists as it relates to the complexity of issues and co-morbidity. It has also shown the need for improved intake procedures, focusing on accurate diagnosis which the counseling center has recently adopted.

Dexter Thomas, Westminster College Psychology When someone is the victim of a beating, rape, or murder, one might expect that most individuals would recognize the innocence of the victim. Surprisingly, research suggests many people assign blame to innocent victims (Dalbert, 2009; Lerner & Simmons, 1966). The “Just World” hypothesis proposes a possible explanation for this puzzling phenomenon. Belief in a Just World implies that good things happen to good people and bad things happen to bad people. Previous research has found a relationship between belief in a just world, victim blaming, and other beliefs such as homophobia (Glennon & Joseph, 1993; Anderson, 1992). The present experiment extends upon this area of research. We examine transphobia, belief in a just world, and victim blaming. Three hundred and forty-two participants ages 18-72 were recruited from within the United States. Participants read a scenario in which an individual was the innocent victim of a beating. Participants were randomly assigned to one of two conditions; in one condition, the victim was transgender, in the other condition, the victim was not. Participants then completed questionnaires measuring victim blame, transphobia, and belief in a just world. Results showed that transphobia positively correlated with belief in a just world. Additionally, a positive correlation was found between victim blaming and transphobia for all victims, transgender and non-transgender. However, when controlling for levels of transphobia, belief in a just world was no longer correlated with victim blaming. These results suggest that transphobia is related to belief in a just world and that transphobia, separate from belief in a just world, is related to increased victim blaming even for victims who are not transgender.

Antoinette Kingsford, Weber State University Psychology The type of professor a student selects for a college course can impact the quality of learning and success in the course. Information about the traits and qualities of professors is limited to word of mouth and Internet sites that allow for biased ratings of professors. The validity and quality of information obtained via online professor rating websites, like RateMyProfessor.com (RMP), is often called into question in academia. A study to assess the validity of RMP was conducted with 127 Weber State University students from introductory psychology classes. The participants completed an online survey using the RMP rating scale for professors, and they also completed the College of Social Sciences professor evaluation survey. They were also asked questions regarding RMP usage, professor traits, and sources they used to find information about professors. The findings of the study indicated that students were using RMP more frequently than word of mouth from friends to obtain useful information about professors. The most meaningful traits in professor selection were Clarity and Overall Quality, not necessarily Easiness and Attractiveness. Also, there were no significant differences between gender and professor trait importance, and the validity of RMP was highly correlated to the Student Evaluation of Weber State Psych 1010 Professors.

Dallin Webb, Utah State University Sociology, Social Work, and Anthropology Recent rediscovery of an ancient Fremont irrigation system in central Utah presents the opportunity to model the economics of Fremont irrigation agriculture. A significant cost of irrigation farming is the construction of a ditch to bring water from a natural source to the fields. We use an experimental approach to investigate the costs of ditch construction. Mountain mahogany digging sticks were employed to construct ditches under different sediment conditions, as well as a stream diversion into a ditch take-out. The experiments reveal a range of costs incurred for constructing different elements of the system.

Trevor Hicks-Collins, Weber State University Psychology Austistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is an increasingly prevalent disorder, with approximately 1 of every 88 children in the United States diagnosed with the disorder. Several factors can exacerbate autistic symptoms in ASD children, including environment, diet, and sleep. Sleep problems in children with ASD’s occur more frequently than in non-ASD children, and their effects could be even more detrimental. The sleep literature in non-ASD children is clear about how sleep deficits adversely affect behavior and cognition, but there is little research to indicate the effects of sleep deficits on ASD children. This study was designed to assess the effect of sleep quality and quantity on ASD symptoms. The participants were children, ages 5-8, who were rated on the autistic spectrum. The children’s sleep was assessed using Actigraph monitors, which provided an objective measure of sleep quality and quantity. The children wore the monitors each night for one week. Also, parents and teachers kept daily records of the children’s sleep quantity and autistic behaviors, reporting both good and bad behaviors. A MANOVA was used to assess the effect of REM sleep, duration of sleep, and number of interruptions on autistic symptoms reported by parents and teachers. Results indicate that the amount and quality of REM sleep (both short-term and long-term) affects the frequency of autistic symptomology in children. In addition, results demonstrate that parents’ perceptions of sleep duration in their children is greatly distorted. Parents believe that their children are getting much more sleep than they actually are. Helping parents and teachers understand how important sleep is in affecting autistic symptomology can help modify behaviors. Studies like this are instrumental to providing us with information to better understand one of the fastest growing disorders affecting children today.

Nicholas Gailey, Westminster College Psychology For over seven decades organizational scientists have extensively studied the happy-productive worker thesis, which assumes that a happy worker is a productive worker. Previous research in the field has focused on the relationship of a worker’s own happiness with their productivity. However, uncertainty remains today as to the link between managerial psychological well-being and their employees’ productivity. The purpose of the current study is to find a correlation between managerial psychological well-being and employee productivity. Thirty managers from two manufacturing facilities participated in the study and responded to two different measures of psychological well-being. Productivity data from one hundred employees underneath the managers were also collected daily over a period of three weeks. Results, strengths, and limitations of the study will be discussed along with its implication for future research and practice in the field of industrial/organizational psychology.

Zachary Cook, Elizabeth Hanna, Harmony Jovey, Joseph Ammon Martin, Tyler McDonald, Shelby Randquist, George Rivera, Amy Sachs; Utah Valley University Sociology and Criminology National data concerning citizens’ opinions toward the death penalty is already available, but this data has a serious limitation because only 35 states allow for use of the death penalty (called retentionist states), and each of them uses it differently, so it makes little sense to look at national trends and attitudes and try to apply them to a particular state. It appears that the best method is to explore the attitudes within each retentionist jurisdiction (state) with the goal of obtaining data that will en- able attitudes to be compared and contrasted based on defined variables. This study explores the attitudes of Utah residents in two phases. In the first phase, 6,000 postal surveys were sent to a random sample of Utah residents in six purposively chosen cities (based on representative demographics). This instrument contained questions used in existing instruments and addition- al questions designed to address attitudes specific to the death penalty. The second phase consists of in-depth interviews with survey-respondents who strongly support the death penalty and strongly oppose the death penalty. They will be asked to elaborate on their responses to the postal survey questions and to describe which factors most influence their opinions concerning the death penalty.

Jennifer Campbell, Utah State University Psychology Eating disorders are pervasive mental illnesses that overwhelm the lives of individuals who struggle with them. For individuals with anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa who do not respond to other treatments, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy has the potential to be effective. This presentation looks to orient researchers to Acceptance and Commitment Therapy while supplying a potentially useful treatment option for those who struggle with clinical anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa. The current literature comes together to support the effectiveness of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for the treatment of eating disorders, specifically anorexia. This presentation focuses on the symptomatology and physical effects of anorexia and bulimia, as well as core principles and processes of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. Future directions regarding the effectiveness of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy can be broadened to include adolescents as well as other types of eating disorders, such as binge eating disorder and eating disorders not otherwise specified.

Lauren Miller, Utah State University Psychology Affective disorders such as depression, phobias, schizophrenia, and post-traumatic stress disorder impairs the ability to time in the seconds-to-minutes range, i.e., interval timing. We investigated the effect of chronic administration of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor fluoxetine (FLX) when anxiety-inducing task-irrelevant distracters are presented during an interval timing task. Given that some anti-depressants have beneficial effects on attention and working memory, e.g., decreasing emotional response to negative events, we hypothesized that FLX would decrease activation of amygdala and increase activation of prefrontal cortex. Our results revealed differential activation of amygdala and prefrontal cortex in FLX and vehicle treated rats corresponding to the expected changes in behavior. Results are discussed in relation to the brain circuits involved in interval timing and emotional processing, and the pharmacological management of affective disorders.

Jordan Roberts, University of Utah Political Science I explore the tragic collision between individual self-determination and collective self-determination. While the conflict between these two ideals exists in many forms throughout political life, I focus on an international manifestation of this collision: the conflict between national sovereignty (predicated on collective self-determination) and international human rights (predicated on individual self-determination). There are perhaps no two international values more acclaimed, and no two values that clash as intensely; to allow for sovereignty means to allow for human rights abuses and to intervene in the name of human rights means to deny sovereignty. Eschewing traditional political lenses, I employ a tragic framework that 1) allows fuller engagement with the conflict and 2) avoids the pitfalls of the traditional lenses, including one-sidedness (which fuels the continuation of the conflict) and detachment (which allows for inaction). I draw on Sophocles’ Antigone, interpreting the title character as an embodiment of individual self-determination and Creon as an embodiment of collective self-determination. Furthermore, I argue that prominent attempts at finding a compromise between the two forces caught in this tragic collision, exemplified by the emerging international norm of Responsibility to Protect (R2P), are blind to the collision’s inherently tragic nature, and thus subvert one or both of the values at stake. I also address how this tragic blindness of notable theorists working on questions concerning human rights and sovereignty reproduces the blindness of another Sophoclean character: Oedipus. While tragic conflicts do not lend themselves to neat and tidy outcomes, a tragic framework embraces the conflict, instead of sidestepping it, and works towards an ambiguous, unhappy solution.

Kevin Korous, University of Utah Psychology The goal of this study was to explore if participation in different types of activities was related to the development of an internal locus of control in middle childhood. It was hypothesized that children who participated in more activities would have more of an internal locus of control than children who participated in fewer activities. Participants consisted of 45 adolescent boys and 99 adolescent girls (M = 10, SD = 1.34). Parents were asked to tell us about the activities their child participated in. The listed activities were grouped into four categories based on prior research: 1) sports based activities; 2) school based activities; 3) arts based activities; and community based activities (Barber, Abbott, Blomfield, & Eccles, 2009). To measure locus of control, participants were asked to tell us why a situation involving conflict with a peer occurred and what he/she would do. Then the narratives were coded for locus of control using a five-point scale. There was a significant difference in locus of control by story, Wilk’s A = .348, F(2, 143) = 37.64, p < .01, partial eta2 =.348. Participants were significantly more likely to report that the act of overt aggression was an event s/he had control over and could resolve independently whereas participants reported that the act of relational aggression was more externally driven resulting in less control over the situation, t(141) = -4.59, p < .01, mean difference = .123. Additionally, the participants reported a lower sense of control over the breaking of a social norm by a peer than they did in response to the acts of overt and relational aggression, t(141) = -4.093, p < .01, mean difference = .108 and t(141) = -8.672, p < .01, mean difference = .115, respectively. There was only one significant correlation among the different types of activities and the participants’ scores on locus of control. Children who participated in more arts based activities demonstrated more of an internal locus of control in response to a peer violating a social norm than children who participated in fewer arts based activities, r(142) = -.234, p < .01.

Yoon Lee, Utah State University Family, Consumer, and Human Development Drug abuse in America is a major problem that has been well documented throughout history. Marijuana use has increased among most age levels and is the most abused illicit drug in America. Cocaine use has also increased over the past decade. Possibly the most alarming trend is the fact that hospital visits due to drug abuse of any kind are dramatically increasing each year. Using data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (2010), this study explored to what extent adolescents and young adults were involved with Marijuana or Cocaine abuse and to investigate factors associated with their use of such illicit drugs. For the data analyses, the total sample included 37,926 individuals between the ages of 12 and 25; the sub-sample of this study consisted of Adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17 (n=18,622) and young adults between the ages of 18-25 (n=19,304). The descriptive statistics suggested that among the study sample, 35.3 percent reported they ever used marijuana, while 7.5 percent reported they ever used cocaine. The results of logistic regression analyses show that all else being equal, age, health, gender, race, county size, and illicit drug addiction are statistically significant in predicting the likelihood of reporting marijuana experience among young adults between ages of 12-25. Similarly, the results of logistic regression analyses show that all else being equal, age, health, gender, education, race, county size, and illicit drug addiction are statistically significant in predicting the likelihood of reporting marijuana experience among young adults between ages of 12-25.

Kevin Lawanto, Utah State University Psychology Mice are excellent models for studying aggressive behaviors and the neural circuits underlying aggression. They identify their conspecifics through olfactory communication within the animal group (emission scent marking and detection of volatile and nonvolatile chemicals, such as pheromones). Anomalies in the perception and processing of olfactory cues may induce abnormal social behavior, anxiety or aggression. We performed a behavioral assessment of male NrCAM knockout mice and wild-type littermates. We found that NrCAM-deficient male mice exhibit increased aggression towards unknown conspecifics. Using cFos immunostaining, we revealed differences in neuronal activation between NrCAM knockout mice and wildtype littermates in a circuit relevant to processing of olfactory cues and male-specific behaviors (olfactory bulb, amygdala, bed nucleus of the stria terminalis and hypothalamus). These differences may be the result of misrepresentation of olfactory cues due to abnormal neuronal connectivity in the olfactory system. Our studies may be relevant to pathophysiological mechanisms responsible for abnormal social behaviors, aggression and anxiety.

Elizabeth Payne, Utah State University Anthropology This paper is an exploratory ethnographic research project designed to collect stories of health care experiences of childbirth in Cache Valley, Utah. By interviewing women who have given birth in Cache Valley, key themes have been identified as being significant to the childbirth community, these are; the Biomedicalization of childbirth; Tensions between the biomedical and holistic out-of-hospital approaches to births; Out-of-control pitocin use; and the Beliefs and Attitudes associated with giving birth. I compare the results with my own experiences as well as in the literature. The discussions raises issues of concern and an applied suggested course of action is offered to policy makers.

Eric Hastings, Utah State University Psychology Does building a new school facility change the quality of the school learning environment? If so, how enduring are these effects? Research shows some correlation between the physical environment of a school and student outcomes to. However, research fails to demonstrate that drastic changes to the environment through reconstruction influence those same outcomes. To investigate this relationship a group of newly built/reconstructed schools was identified and looked at longitudinally to measure the quality of the school’s learning environment two years before construction and four years after construction. To measure the school’s learning environment this research used the Indicators of School Quality survey (ISQ); a comprehensive survey system for school administrators to evaluate and monitor school improvement and accreditation efforts which provides information on the status of the schools learning environment, year to year progress and details about the conditions for learning produced in the classrooms. ISQ does this by measuring parent, teacher, and student perceptions of things such as parent support, teacher excellence, student commitment, school leadership, instructional quality, resource management, and school safety. In addition to the impact of school construction on a school’s learning environment, this analysis was extended to student attendance, safety, and student academic achievement. Data collected to this point supports the argument that school construction only has short term effects on a school’s learning environment, but no long lasting effect. Instead of investing in new facilities, schools and districts would be wise to first consider giving more attention to maintaining student and teacher relationships.

Karen Yu, University of Utah Psychology Objective

Tida Blackburn, University of Utah Psychology Previous work has shown that our perception of height is influenced by ones eye height. We further investigate this phenomenon by extending this research to virtual reality. Virtual reality can give the appearance of eyeheight change, which cannot be done otherwise. We changed participants’ eye height by adjusting the height at which participants viewed their environment. Effective eye heights were both 0.08 cm lower and higher than the participants’ normal eye height. The virtual reality environment was a classroom with two vertical poles and a horizontal pole that create a horizontal barrier for participants to walk under. In the first experiment, participants were instructed to walk under the barrier as naturally as possible and to duck when needed. The height of the barrier was altered across trials. In the second experiment, we manipulated eye height further using physical objects, namely shoe inserts. The second experiment followed the design of the first experiment. Data was collected using cameras and a tracking program to record the participants’ ducking behavior. The previous study found that manipulating a person’s height influences their judgment of how high the horizontal barrier appears and whether they could pass under it without ducking. We hypothesized that people will change their ducking behavior depending on their eye height, because they are rescaling their body to their new viewpoint.

Bret Wayman, University of Utah Sociology The purpose of this study is to examine the motivations that drive non-traditional students to return to complete a degree and the challenges that returning students face while attempting to earn that degree that might be different than those of a traditional student. The study assumes that there are differences between non-traditional and traditional students in regards to motivation and challenges faced along the path to earning a degree. By examining these differences, the study aims to see if there are ways to better serve a non-traditional student’s needs in order to increase graduation rates among the non-traditional student group. The primary data for this study consists of essays written by the attendants of a seminar, “Life after the NFL (and other life-changing experiences): A discussion of the challenges and rewards of returning to college,” presented by Dr. Julie Stewart which was sponsored by the University of Utah Department of Sociology and the Sociology Student Advisory Committee and interviews with selected non-traditional students, faculty, and staff. The essays were originally intended for curriculum rather than research purposes and consist of the thoughts of students who attended the seminars about the challenges faced by returning students and the motivations that drive non-traditional students to return to the complete a degree. The seminar attendees consisted of both traditional and non-traditional students. Interviews will be conducted with students who qualify as non-traditional students due to several demographic qualities, and with faculty/staff that are familiar with the challenges that non-traditional students face in returning to school. The students selected will be picked using the strategic method snowball sampling to ensure that those sampled are in the desired demographic. As more non-traditional students enter academia areas of concern need to be identified to help those students to better function and achieve similar results to more traditional students. The proposed study intends to find those areas of concern.

Andrew Chol, University of Utah Psychology Motivation is a critical factor in academic performance and must be self-regulated over time (Sansone & Thoman, 2005). Self-regulation becomes more significant online due to the lack of schedule and supervision characteristic of traditional in-class courses (Artino & Stephens, 2009). That is, online students must address both opportunities for supplemental learning (i.e. videos) and possible distractions that may redirect focus (i.e., social media) (Sansone, et al. in press). An initial examination (Sansone, Butner, et al., 2011) of the Regulation of Motivation and Performance Online (RMAPO) project indicated that students given reasons to value learning basic HTML skills in an online lesson (value-added) spent more time on-task and off-task prior to submitting an assignment; this time spent was furthermore associated with greater interest. Given this counterintuitive pattern, our study aimed to identify and analyze the nature of off-task website access, and whether certain sites or patterns were more beneficial for interest and performance. Websites were coded into the following categories: on-task, non-lesson websites related to HTML coding, indirectly lesson-related websites (i.e., alternative image examples), off-task social communication, off-task personal interests, and other. Statistical analysis (i.e., Chi-square, ANOVA) revealed that patterns of off-task behavior varied by category as a function of condition (control or value-added). Specifically, value-added groups accessed indirectly lesson-related websites and off-task personal interests to a significantly higher degree relative to the control. Access to these websites was further significantly related to higher degrees of interest and performance (quiz scores). The findings suggest that students given reasons to value learning may use off-task behavior as strategy to 1) seek additional information related to their developing interest on a topic, and 2) rejuvenate diminished resources through creation of interest. Addition of utility value may thus motivate students to reconfigure their learning process in service of having a more interesting experience using both on and off-task means (Sansone & Thoman, 2005).

Heather Sheffer, Utah State University Family Consumer and Human Development Background:

Austin LaBau, Utah State University History and Sociology At the beginning of the 19th century, there was only one public insane asylum in the United States. Together, this facility and a handful of private hospitals housed only a few hundred patients. By 1890, more than 74,000 Americans lived in mental institutions. A wealth of literature exists on the rise of the American insane asylum during this period; the evolution of modern psychiatry; and the philosophical, political, social, and ethical implications of the two. But what the literature lacks is a perspective on the rise of the asylum that recognizes its place in the developing urban environment. This project addresses that shortcoming by exploring a small group of institutions within the context of a single urban center; New York. In 1890, one-in-twenty-five Americans lived in what would soon become New York City’s five boroughs, alongside nearly one-in-ten of the country’s institutionalized insane. Upon opening, NYC’s massive insane asylums became a source of pride for city’s elites. Far from being hidden away, most of the asylums were built on islands in the East River—at the time, one of the busiest waterways in the world. Nestled between Brooklyn and Manhattan, the imposing structures and their residents lived in clear view of thousands of daily commuters, and inspired numerous poems, novels, and songs. However, it was not their largess that attracted international visitors like Charles Dickens and Alexis de Tocqueville, but the unique circumstances in which they operated. Throughout the 19th century, the intimate nature of NYC, where masses of impoverished immigrants lived only blocks from some of the richest and most powerful men in the world, helped make the city the site of violent class warfare, as well as a testing ground for social reform. Insane asylums were only a portion of NYC’s sprawling public welfare system, consisting of nearly a hundred public and private charitable institutions inn Manhattan alone. To explain how the insane asylum affected New York City, I examine essays, and photographs written and taken by doctors, patients, reporters, and reformers illustrate the significance of the insane asylum on New York City life.

Amanda Snow, Utah State University Psychology Past studies investigating attention have found that exposure to natural scenes have a restorative effect on attention in adults, allowing for the occurrence of effortless, involuntary attention. This is in contrast to exposure to urban scenes which do not show the same restorative effect on attention (Berto et al., 2005, 2008). The present study investigates the potentially restorative effects on childhood attention of exposure to natural scenes. In this study, 58 children ages 4 to 11 participated in a task which was attentionally taxing. Next, they were instructed to attend to pictures belonging to one of three conditions: “high fascination” (natural scenes), “low fascination” (urban scenes), or a control group (geometric shapes). Finally, the participants performed the initial attentionally taxing task once again. While accuracy remained constant across conditions, children demonstrated a greater decreased reaction time when exposed to high fascination natural scenes as opposed to low fascination urban scenes or the geometric shapes of the control group. Between the pre and post tests, mean differences of 37.7 milliseconds for the natural condition, 24.4 milliseconds for the urban condition, and 22.7 milliseconds for the control group was found. This suggests that exposure to high fascination natural scenes has a restorative effect on attention in children as it does in adults. This finding is important because it provides a mechanism by which the attentional capacities of children may be improved.

Esther Kim, University of Utah Political Science In 1961, student activists from across the United States challenged socially segregated public transit in the South by enforcing desegregation laws. The activists, known as Freedom Riders, were met with resistance, violence and jail. On its 50th anniversary in May 2011, the Freedom Riders were met with much media recognition: a documentary screening at Sundance, an episode on Oprah and a commemorative retracing of the original ride sponsored by PBS American Experience, which involved student activists from across the country to get on the bus. The Civil Rights Movement as a historical memory has become highly celebrated and widely understood as racial justice realized, but commemoration works to historicize and isolate these acts of resistance from modern day struggle for social equity. As a participant of the student freedom rides, I witnessed a complicated mapping of how we live with history, memory, race, power, place, the everyday lives of people that are still affected by events that shaped the nation and corporations seeking to benefit from the blind acceptance of commemoration. Using Cultural Studies theories of encoding and decoding, this research is an examination of the tensions among the actions and rhetoric of the Freedom Riders movement and how they are validated, co-opted, re-formed and understood. This research is an attempt to pull the acts of the Freedom Riders out of a historical framework, contextualizing the way we understand how the events of the Civil Rights Movement have played out and affect the ways we engage social activism and justice now.

Madeleine Oritt, University of Utah International Studies This research examines the impact of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) on accessibility to HIV/AIDS medications for populations in resource-limited countries. This World Trade Organization agreement created provisions by which these countries can obtain or manufacture HIV/AIDS drugs at reduced prices, but also affirmed the intellectual property rights of pharmaceutical companies over their drugs. To achieve a thorough understanding of its impact, several other factors that affect accessibility to HIV/AIDS medications, beneficially or detrimentally, were analyzed and compared to the TRIPS agreement; these factors include foreign aid, drug pricing inequality, patent pools, independent actions of drug companies, and political pressure. Research was conducted through literary review, using primary sources including academic articles, news and magazine articles and information from governmental organizations like the World Trade Organization and the World Health Organization. This research recognizes the detrimental effect of the TRIPS agreement on accessibility of HIV/AIDS medications globally. However, the analysis of the aforementioned factors illuminates the positive effects of multiple other actors and organizations, which may negate, partially or fully, the ramifications of the TRIPS agreement. Thus, this research concludes fundamental factors, including physical obstacles like a lack of infrastructure and dispersal of HIV/AIDS-affected populations in rural areas, social obstacles like ethnic fractionalization and stigma, and political obstacles like government corruption, inefficiency and lack of economic prosperity, have the most deleterious effect upon HIV/AIDS drug accessibility. Instead of focusing on the TRIPS agreement as a singular determinant, these deep-rooted issues must take precedence and will require more time, cooperation and political will to change on a national and global level. Until the affected countries are willing to assume responsibility for drug accessibility and the fundamental issues that affect it, it will be impossible to realize widespread progress toward treating HIV/AIDS in resource-limited populations.

Stephanie Lawanto, Utah State University Psychology Mice are excellent models for studying social behavior. Anomalies in the perception and processing of social cues may induce abnormal social approach or sexual behaviors. We performed an assessment of social behavior in NrCAM knockout female mice and wild-type littermates. We found that NrCAM knockout mice exhibit social behavioral deficits (reduced interaction with unknown conspecifics). Analysis of neuronal activation in a circuit relevant to processing and response to olfactory cues (olfactory bulb, amygdala, bed nucleus of the stria terminalis, hypothalamus), using cFos immunostaining, revealed differences in neuronal activation between NrCAM knockout mice and wild type littermates exposed to unknown conspecifics. These differences may be the result of anomalies in neuronal connectivity in the olfactory systems in NrCAM knockouts. These studies have the potential to generate a new understanding of pathophysiological mechanisms responsible for abnormal social behaviors, and to identify new treatment strategies to reduce social deficits in autism spectrum disease patients.

Chance Christensen, Utah State University Psychology Affective disorders such as depression, phobias, schizophrenia, and post-traumatic stress disorder impairs the ability to time in the seconds-to-minutes range, i.e., interval timing. We investigated the effect of chronic administration of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor fluoxetine(FLX) when anxiety-inducing task-irrelevant distracters are presented during an interval timing task. According to the Relative Time-Sharing (RTS) model, presentation of task-irrelevant distracters during a timing task results in a delay in responding suggesting a failure to maintain subjective time in working memory, possibly due to attentional and working memory resources being diverted away from timing. Given that some anti-depressants have beneficial effects on attention and working memory, e.g., decreasing emotional response to negative events, we hypothesized that FLX would improve maintenance of information in working memory in trials with distracters, resulting in a decrease of the disruptive effect of emotional events on the timekeeping abilities. Our results revealed independent effects of FLX on timing and resource allocation. Acute administration of FLX delayed timing, but this effect was eliminated after chronic administration. FLX reduced the detrimental effect of the distracters only when the distracters were anxiety-inducing, but not when they were neutral. Results are discussed in relation to the brain circuits involved in RTS of resources, and the pharmacological management of affective disorders.

Justine Larsen, Utah State University Political Science In recent years, the aggressive barred owl’s invasion of northern spotted owl territory has led to significant declines in spotted owl populations along the Pacific Northwest. In response to the owl’s waning population, the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) has implemented a plan under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) to kill the barred owl in a radical attempt to save the spotted owl. Applauded as revolutionary legislation, critical in protecting the Earth’s species from extinction, the ESA is decidedly far from the miracle bill its proponents laud it to be. A mere one percent of species protected under the ESA have successfully recovered enough to be delisted, and the ESA had little to do with these rare recoveries (Scheer & Moss, 2012). Observation and analysis of the spotted owl’s turbulent decline, reveals fundamental flaws specifically in basic theories on which the legislation was based. Particularly, the theory that nature, if left alone, will return to a natural state of balance (balance of nature theory) is a primary concept that has led the ESA astray numerous times, as evidenced by the FWS’ paradoxical plan to capture and kill one species in order to maintain a balance in the other species. This study reviews the balance of nature theory, providing research examining the effectiveness of the ESA and contributing to efforts to determine an appropriate and successful solution to species decline.

Jonathan Hilbert, Utah Valley University Academic Affairs The Jordan River in Utah has been highly regulated for many years through intense irrigation, channelization, and managed releases from Utah Lake. As the only outlet of Utah Lake flowing north into the Great Salt Lake, it is important to the riparian ecosystem and the surrounding human population as well. The river has a long history of mixed-uses, but it is emerging as a popular recreation site for the numerous adjacent communities. Human interaction on the individual and commercial scale influences the river through development and urbanization. The physical characteristics of the river and its riparian zone can be monitored to understand how the landscape is changing over time. In this study we focus on land cover changes in the riparian zone of the upper one-third of the river flowing out of Utah Lake to what is called “the point of the mountain”. This is the portion of the river that flows in Utah County. From aerial imagery and field observations, we noted alterations in the vegetation within the riparian zone from channelization, riprap, invasive species, or removal for a variety of reasons. We use GIS and aerial imagery to evaluate the land cover change on the Jordan River in Utah County between 1992-2011. Using Anderson’s classification system of land cover, specifically Urban or Built-Up Land, Agriculture, Vegetation, and Barren Earth, we quantified the changes in vegetation within a 100 meter buffer of the river’s wetted channel. While there are areas where little change is observed, areas of greatest change occurred downstream of the outlet, where a number of new communities have been developed in the last decade. As a subset of Vegetation we mapped changed in invasive species, tamarisk and reed canary grass, along the same section of the river within the riparian zone. Urban planning and invasive species removal along the river needs to be further considered as potential future recreation and restoration efforts are advanced on the river.

Licia Kim, Utah Valley University Academic Affairs Utah is a state that was largely settled by immigrants, and among those immigrants were hundreds of Chinese people. For over 70 years, Salt Lake City was home to one of the most prominent Chinatowns in the Intermountain West. Today, Utah is home to over 10,000 Chinese people, but there is no Chinatown in Utah. If the average Utahan is asked “Whatever happened to Salt Lake’s Chinatown?” the answer will invariably be a variation of “Salt Lake had/has a Chinatown?” Yes, Salt Lake City had a Chinatown and this research project answers the question of what happened to it. By exploring existing scholarly works, oral interviews and newspaper articles from the years that Plum Alley, Salt Lake City’s Chinatown, existed, I examined the creation, heyday, decline and eventual demise of Utah’s largest Chinatown. According to my research, the Plum Alley Chinatown disappeared because of a combination of cultural/religious differences, economic pressures, racial issues, and political/legal restrictions. As the significance of China, both to Utah and the United States as a whole, increases, an opportunity is created to increase public awareness of the Chinese experience in Utah’s history. Once this history is known, Plum Alley’s location, in a familiar, near-by location, will provide students in Chinese immersion classes (and their parents) with an opportunity to form a more immediate connection with these distant people. The goal of this research is therefore twofold: 1) to create a research article suitable for publication in a scholarly journal, and 2) to create a PowerPoint presentation and/or traveling historical exhibit on Plum Alley suitable for display at schools, public libraries and other community centers (such as the new South Salt Lake Chinatown shopping center). Simple entrance and exit surveys will allow me to track the effectiveness of the presentation/exhibit to increase visitor awareness of this little known chapter in Utah history.

Buchanan Kerswell, Utah Valley University Academic Affairs Increase in population and wealth in Utah will likely result in increased fossil fuel consumption. Consequently it will lead to more environmental problems, especially air quality and health issues. It is essential to further the research and assessment of renewable energy sources. The objective of this research is to compile, analyze, map and assess energy data from the Utah Geological Survey, Utah Office of Energy Development and Utah Department of Environmental Protection. Our project will give public a clear picture of air quality and energy use coupling with population and economic growth. ArcGIS maps and statistical analysis will be made using the available database. Furthermore, detailed assessments on the development potentials of different renewable energy sources (e.g. solar, wind, geothermal) in Utah will be conducted using ArcGIS. Our preliminary data analysis on fossil fuels indicates that consumption and expenditures have grown over time with population growth. A notable fact is that when expenditures have risen rapidly, consumption tends to decline. The most recent evident periods are during the early 1980s and in the early 2000s, when oil prices were rapidly increasing. Furthermore, the data show that air quality is closely correlated with the quantity of fossil fuel consumed, especially given Utah’s special topography (the valley effect). The data on renewable energy sources have revealed that all renewable energy sources together provide less than 1% of energy need in Utah. Although the growth and development have varied during the last half century, there is a steady growth in geothermal, solar and wind energy over the last decade. Results from ArcGIS mapping will provide useful insights on zoning and assessing potential renewable energy sources in Utah. Renewable energy is the key to our economic growth and clean air in Utah. It is essential that the transition from a primarily carbon-based energy portfolio be to one that includes a greater mix of renewable sources. Further results, analyses and maps will be presented during the meeting.

Andy Thompson, Utah Valley University Academic Affairs The effectiveness of relationship education, especially among predominately young college students, has been a topic of great interest. Given the diversity of family outcomes, more young individuals seek out help for their relationships. Past studies involving relationship education programs have showed that such programs are beneficial (e.g., Halford, et al., 2003). Improvement in couple communication skills was one effect of couples participating in these programs, and even increased relationship satisfaction in some instances (Halford, et al., 2003).

Janeese Stiles, Utah Valley University Academic Affairs Previous studies have shown that high-frequency (HF) ultrasound is sensitive to cell properties such as stiffness and adhesion factors which are a function of protein expression. The goal of this project is to see if HF ultrasound is sensitive enough to detect and differentiate between the five molecular subtypes of breast cancer which are based on protein expression. Since genetic changes precede histological changes in the development of breast cancer, the ability to detect genetic changes (i.e., molecular subtypes) in breast tissue in real time and at the microscopic level will allow surgeons to remove all of the malignant and premalignant tissue during lumpectomies. HF ultrasound personalizes the treatment plan and will be used as a diagnostic technique for precise, image-guided breast cancer surgery. Four breast cancer cell lines with different molecular subtypes and a non-malignant breast cell line will be grown as monolayer cultures. At monolayer confluence, cell and nuclei morphologies of the cell cultures will be determined by phase-contrast microscopy. After microscopy, the monolayers will be ultrasonically tested using a HF ultrasonic test system with a single-element (50 MHz, 6.35-mm) ultrasonic immersion transducer. The resulting ultrasonic waveforms will be analyzed using computational models that simulate the ultrasonic scattering from cells and nuclei as a function of morphology, internal properties, and external properties. The protein expressions associated with the different subtypes will be researched to determine what effects each subtype will have on cell and tissue properties. This method will add a new dimension to pathology and permit more efficient surgical treatment of breast cancer.

Tyson Jones, Utah Valley University Academic Affairs In 2008 the people of the United States and the world were awakened from a dream that huge financial gains can be made at the expense of huge public losses while everything will stay just and fair. Unfortunately, the 2008 economic crash wasn’t the result of just one idea in one sector, but rather a culture within economies; a culture that has not just investment bankers but everyday American and foreign citizens pursuing the same path. This path, that many American and foreign citizens have been enticed by, is a business structure that leaves an individual and their chances of success equal to the chances of failure of those that follow suit, namely Ponzi Schemes. The many people who follow Ponzi Schemes are looking for financial security along with promises of high earnings and early retirement, but are often met with greater debt than they had before simply due to the structure of these Ponzi schemes. For the most part Ponzi schemes have been made illegal in the United States; however, due to certain laws that have been established, Ponzi schemes have been operating under the guise of established businesses known as Multi-level Markets (MLMs). The laws in question are the DSHEA, which has aided MLMs on a national level, and Utah S.B. 0182, which created a loophole for MLMs to operate in large numbers on a State level. Thus a culture of legal positivist views allows the illegal and immoral business practices of MLMs to encourage a culture of harming many to reward a few. This conclusion about MLMs comes from contrasting the structure of MLMs with the moral theory of Immanuel Kant’s Categorical Imperative which requires that all moral actions be held as a universal maxim, and that people are not treated as merely means to an end. The purpose of this research is to assess whether the previous conclusion is in fact true of MLMs in regards to moral business practices through the Categorical Imperative. If after examination the conclusion is found to be true, the DSHEA and Utah S.B. 0182 both need to be revoked in order to begin a change in culture; else large amounts of U.S. dollars, as well as other currencies, will continue to fund illegal Ponzi schemes acting as legitimate businesses and an opportunity to take steps to change U.S. culture on the nature of wealth. In addition, a new culture that allowed for the 2008 financial crisis of large rewards for the few at huge public expenses will continue to grow.

Laurel Thompson, Utah Valley University Academic Affairs Soldiers and non-combatants are at risk of exposure to dangerous aerosols (airborne particles or droplets) in the form of biological agents such as bacteria, toxins, or viruses. The current method for assessing health risk in the field is a moist swath which turns dark upon contact with a biological aerosol. Optical methods are more sensitive to the physical properties of aerosols, and many systems have been developed for optically measuring particle properties. However, they are generally limited to bio-aerosol detection at a single point in space where the system directly samples an aerosol from within the aerosol cloud. The desired solution is a system that can employ remote sensing to measure aerosol properties from a distance. Standoff detection methods allow a much larger area to be measured at once, providing a more general or big-picture view of the aerosols in a given area. There are several ways that standoff optical scattering data can be analyzed for determining aerosol properties. Light scattered by aerosols of known size and composition can be modeled exceptionally well with Mie scattering theory, but the reverse problem determining aerosol properties from the light signals using inverse Mie theory is difficult to solve because a unique set of aerosol properties must be found to correspond to the optical spectra. This is challenging since different combinations of aerosol properties can result in similar spectra. The size distribution, however, has a large effect on the optical signal and may therefore be used to differentiate aerosols. Specifically, biological aerosols have a more narrow size distribution than mineral-based dusts due to genetic limitations. Their refractive indices will also contribute to distinct optical spectra. The hypothesis for this project was that these factors would be sufficient to classify aerosols for risk assessment. Three analysis methods were used to test this hypothesis: Mie inversion with matrix solutions, empirical curve fitting with polynomial functions, and principal component analysis (PCA). Particles suspended in methanol were used as the model aerosol system. A range of particle sizes and compositions were illuminated by a balanced deuterium/halogen light source and spectral measurements from 200-1100 nm were taken. Optical data over a 200-1300 nm range were also collected from a variety of bio-aerosols using an open path remote sensing system at a 30-meter standoff distance.

Chelsea Newsome, Utah Valley University Academic Affairs In the emerging profession of health education there has been a lack of attention on the needs of health education specialists. Recently at Utah Valley University, Dr. Mary V. Brown, and undergraduate students in the Public and Community Health Education department, conducted research focusing on if the needs of health education specialists were being met. Qualitative data collection methods were used to help in needs assessment, planning, goal setting, and quality improvement for both professional organizations and academic institutions. Student Researchers held five focus groups throughout the state of Utah to gather insights from health educators on what they believe are emerging trends, most useful coursework in the academic setting, and professional development needs. The questions used in the focus groups were developed from the assistance of two state professional organizations. The students involved were trained to be moderators and note takers by using guidelines from Krueger and Casey (2000). The data was analyzed using the long table approach outlined by Krueger and Casey (2000). The results showed that the health educators perceived the top emerging trends were social marketing, followed by social media, and a greater focus on primary prevention. As researchers we found the most helpful information for academic institutions would be what the health educators felt were lacking in their educational experiences. The health educators wished that grant writing, computer programs/technical skills/ designing brochures, real life experience/opportunities to apply their knowledge in community settings/practical application classes had been offered in their program of study. With regard to professional development, we found the majority of health educators were supported from upper management to receive continuing education depending on funds. The classes they wanted more of at these continuing education conferences are knowledge in politics, technology, and developing partnerships in the community. This information will be a benefit to both the professional organizations and academic institutions in the state of Utah to improve training of professionals and students alike.

Michael Alexander, Utah Valley University Academic Affairs The Tintic Mining District is located in central Utah on the eastern edge of the Basin and Range Province. This area experienced significant hydrothermal alteration associated with volcanism in the early Cenozoic Era. This hydrothermal alteration was productive of sulfide ore deposition along fissure veins, including ores of copper, gold and silver. Previous aeromagnetic surveys showed that porphyry copper assemblages are associated with mappable anomalies in the Earth’s total magnetic field. The magnetic anomalies were interpreted as resulting from buried intrusive igneous rocks associated with the porphyry copper assemblages. The objective of this research is to map buried fissure veins on property owned by NorthStar Mine using a ground-based survey of anomalies in the Earth’s total magnetic field. This study will be the first geophysical mapping of fissure veins in this area. Previous work by the author and other Utah Valley University students showed that total magnetic field anomalies could be used to map halloysite clay deposits, the copper sulfide deposits associated with buried basaltic dikes, and a wide variety of igneous rock bodies including buried bodies of quartz monzonite, rhyolite and tuff. Because the igneous rocks are considered to be the source of hydrothermal fluids, further mapping of the distribution of igneous rocks could give some insight into the migration of fluids that deposited ore in fissure veins. The ground-based magnetic survey will be carried out using the Geometrics G-856 Proton Precession Magnetometer. Magnetic susceptibilities of outcrops will be measured using the handheld SM-10 Magnetic Susceptibility Meter. Rock samples will also be collected for crushing and more precise measurement of magnetic susceptibility in the lab using the Bartington MS3 Magnetic Susceptibility Meter. Mapped magnetic anomalies will be compared with possible subsurface rock bodies using the IX2D Magnetic Interpretation Software. All necessary equipment is currently owned by the Department of Earth Science. This research is being carried out in cooperation with NorthStar Mine. Results will be reported at the meeting.

Alex Dutson, Utah Valley University Academic Affairs Introduction:

John Maynes, Utah State University Elementary Education Research on gifted education has shown that expertise development requires learning very basic skills to a high level (Bloom 1986). As a university education is meant to provide students with opportunities to develop expertise in a given field, it is imperative that universities provide learners with opportunities to learn very basic skills to a high level. However, do students receive adequate opportunities to learn the skills necessary to develop expertise? Do some students receive more opportunities than others? This study seeks to answer these questions by surveying honors and non-honors students to determine their perceptions respectively of opportunities to develop expertise in their chosen field of study. By matching each honors student with a non-honors student in the same class, the survey aims to evaluate the difference between the perceptions of honors students and non-honors students in the same class. Scager, et al indicate that honors students are more likely to develop expertise than non-honors students at a university (2011). Thus the hypothesis of this study is honors students receive more opportunities for expertise development than non-honors students.

Andres Chavez, Brigham Young University Education The purpose of this research is to explore the current status and condition of the public and private education k-12 in Ecuador and analyze the implications that recent policy changes made by the Ecuadorian Ministry of Education hold for the future role of K-12 schools in the country. In order to do this, I first met with the Minister of Education and received information regarding national test scores of schools in six provinces, the provinces being Guayas, Santa Elena, El Oro, Manabí, Azuay, and Pichincha. I then visited four different types of schools in each of those provinces, the types being public, municipal, fiscomisional, and private. In each of these schools, I held an interview with the principal as well as a few selected teachers, and observed the general condition of the school grounds and facilities. I found that the majority of the public schools are overpopulated, while the private schools for the poor are disappearing due to the diminishing number of students who are enrolling in their programs. I propose that the reforms that the Ministry of Education has put in place will be more effective in improving education if the number of students in each public classroom is reduced to a manageable amount. This can be achieved by the government providing subsidies and financial aid for more students to attend private schools.

Brandon Dollar, Utah Valley University College Success Studies Student retention and persistence to graduation are two issues that receive significant attention and allocation of financial and human resources in higher education. A recent study (Creighton, Creighton, & Parks, 2010) stated that 26% of new freshmen do not matriculate their sophomore year. Consequently, many institutions within higher education have placed emphasis on the first-year experience (FYE). In response to the issues that lead freshmen to dropout, FYE program outcomes generally include student self-awareness (Krause & Coates, 2008), learning academic skills and strategies (Crisp & Cruz, 2010; Schrader & Brown, 2008), connecting students to campus (Zhao & Kuh, 2004; Bell, 2012) and social support (Tinto, 2009; Wilcox, Winn & Fyvie-Gauld, 2005). However, research shows that most institutions approach FYE programming with a “piecemeal approach” (Krause, Hartly, James, & McInnis, 2005) and do not take a “whole-of-institution” approach (Kift, Nelson, & Clark, 2010) where student retention and persistence are part of the fabric of the entire institution. One of the aspects of FYE programming is peer mentoring. Peer mentoring emerged within the FYE programs to facilitate these program outcomes and ultimately, student retention. In fact, an early literature review (Jacobi, 1991) on mentoring revealed four identifiable outcomes of mentoring, three of which claimed to be applicable to peer mentoring and successful fulfillment of FYE outcomes. Some peer mentoring programs emerge from student affairs (Lopez, Johnson & Black, 2010) while other programs originate from academic affairs (Colvin & Ashman, 2010). Aside from the differing origins of peer mentoring programs, research identifies six types of mentoring programs, five of which claim to be applicable to peer mentoring (Karcher, Kuperminc, Portwood, Sipe, & Taylor, 2006). However, there still appears to be no universal approach to peer mentoring in higher education. Specifically, research has yet to reveal a peer mentoring program that comprehensively synthesizes the great foundational work of Jacobi (1991) and Karcher and his colleagues (2006) and maintains the necessary theoretical alignment proposed in recent literature (Hall & Jaugietis, 2011; Crisp & Cruz, 2010) within a holistic and integrated institutional approach to student success and retention.

Jared Crossley, Brigham Young University Education This research project was to make a film about Lloyd Alexander, one of America’s most influential authors of fantasy for young readers. Best known for his Chronicles of Prydain, including the 1969 Newbery Award winning “The High King”, Alexander won numerous awards and was translated into over 20 languages. This study includes interviews with his editors, close friends, and professionals in the children’s literature community as well as archival photographs from his life. The research actually culminated in two documentary films exploring the life and writings of Lloyd Alexander, one ten minutes long and the other an hour in length. These films already have created much interest in Alexander and his works, reaching long-time Alexander fans, as well as helping to establish some new readers of his work.

Megan Curtis, Utah Valley University Academic Affairs Capitol Reef Field Station (CRFS) is located in south-central Utah within Capitol Reef National Park (CARE). Due to its arid climate and diverse geology, many plant species found within CARE have unique adaptations that are sensitive to disturbance. Cryptobiotic crusts, which play a vital role to the health of vegetation by stabilizing soils, cycling nutrients, and reducing erosion, are extremely sensitive to disturbance and can take many years to recover after being damaged by footprints. In addition, the spread of invasive species can harm native vegetation by competition for resources. Since CRFS’s founding in 2008, it has been frequented by visitors who come to learn about CARE’s natural and cultural history. Consequently, various trails and dirt roads surrounding CRFS may be a source of human disturbance and spread invasive species. Another source of disturbance is cattle that graze in this area on their route through CARE twice each summer. The objective of this study is to characterize the vegetation surrounding CRFS and determine the present level of human and domestic impact on this vegetation. Our specific questions were; (1) Is the level of human disturbance associated with plant community structure and proximity to CRFS, (2) Which communities have the highest levels of cattle/human disturbance?, (3) How does community structure vary by vegetation type? To address these questions, two 100-m transects with differing proximities to CRFS were established in each of four vegetative communities’ Pinyon-Juniper, Big Sagebrush, Riparian, and Grassland. Species frequency, cover, and disturbance (density of tracks within a quadrat) were recorded within each transect using a nested plot frequency design -four nested subplots ranging from 0.25 4m2. To account for seasonal variance, data were collected in four sampling periods throughout growing season. To characterize community abiotic factors, slope, aspect, and soil attributes were measured for each transect. To analyze the data, we ran multivariate analysis, including Non-metric Multidimensional Scaling (NMS), and Multi-response Permutation Procedure (MRPP). The two-dimensional NMS solution explained 80.1% of variability in community structure.

Chase Hansen, Utah Valley University Academic Affairs Purpose

John Maynes, Utah State University The Center for the School of the Future In the early history of the United States, the Founders of our nation set aside vast amounts of land which were to be used to support public schools. Starting in 1785, lands were dedicated to support schools and thereby provide public education to new settlers in the “Northwest Territory.” Further legislation in 1787 reinforced this granting process with the language, “Religion, morality, and knowledge being necessary to good government and the happiness of mankind, schools and the means of education shall forever be encouraged.” These actions were championed by many of the same men who would be influential in writing the Constitution, most notably Nathan Dane of Massachusetts. However, after the first lands were granted, many new states were admitted to the United States without granting lands for schools. It seemed that the idea for granting school lands had been forgotten. However, in 1803 Ohio was admitted as a state, and the land grants for public schools were renewed. Since that time, every state admitted to the Union was granted school trust lands. The purpose of this study is to address the following questions: What resources were used to support public education? How did attitudes toward these resources evolve from the beginning of our country to now? Based on preliminary findings, we can see that attitudes towards school trust lands have varied throughout history and the policies and resources used to support them have been equally variable. By looking at school trust lands and school permanent fund values, I hope to evaluate the attitudes of decision makers toward education over the course of American history. Using historical records such as legislation, Congressional annuls, and personal correspondences to evaluate personal attitudes of policymakers, this study will identify determinants that supported the unique attitudes and policies surrounding school trust lands.

Keely Glade, Utah Valley University Academic Affairs Cytozyme Laboratories, Inc., Salt Lake City, UT is an agricultural company that provides a range of products for large food crop farming and animal production. In order to provide data to prospective buyers on their products’ effectiveness in improving crop yields and health, they chose to study the expression levels of several different genes using Arabidopsis thaliana as their model organism. These genes include: 1) At2g14610 encoding Pathogenesis Related gene 1 (PR1), which assists in plant pathogen defense, 2) At2g29350, Senescence-Associated Gene 13 (SAG13), and 3) At2g30770, Cytochrome p450, Family 71, Subfamily A, Polypeptide 13 (CYP71A13). A. thaliana leaves were treated with a proprietary substance implicated in plant health and potential crop yield. Treated and untreated leaf homogenates were used to create cDNA from purified RNA for the quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) assays. The qRT-PCR assays were performed on the cDNA generated from PR1, SAG13, CYP71A13, with the 40S ribosomal subunit as the internal control, on an ABI 7500 Fast Real Time System using gene-specific primers and SYBR green as our reporter molecule. The fold change, a value that is a relative comparison between the non-treated and treated samples, for each gene was calculated. The results showed clear up regulation of PR1, SAG13, and CYP71A13 compared to the 40S ribosomal subunit internal control. Future experiments include qRT-PCR and microarray analyses for 11 other proprietary treatments provided by Cytozyme.

Laura Gilpin, Brigham Young University Nursing Purpose/Aims: The purpose of this pilot study was (1) to examine nursing students’ perceptions of their first experience with death in the clinical setting and (2) to determine if curricular changes are necessary to better prepare nursing students effectively cope with their first death experience as a nurse. Background: Death, particularly the unexpected death of a patient, is an emotionally charged, high-stress situation for any nurse. Nursing students encounter scenarios involving death and dying in simulation laboratories, as well as in the clinical setting. In simulation settings debriefing is routinely accomplished and is seen as a critical component of the learning experience. However, Leavy and colleagues (2011) found that even during formal simulation debriefing sessions nursing students were not able to fully process their emotions In real-life clinical settings, the stakes are even higher as nursing students must be able to effectively cope with the death of a patient. Unfortunately, research on students’ first experience with death is limited. Huang and colleagues (2010) found students may not receive adequate support from clinical nursing instructors during the dying process and after a patient’s death. Methods: This was a descriptive mixed methods pilot study. An online anonymous survey was sent to students in the Brigham Young University College of Nursing regarding their first experience with death in the clinical setting (N=306). Students were e-mailed a brief description of the research project and an invitation to participate in the study only if they had experienced the death of a patient. Completion of the online questionnaire implied consent. The participants answered 5 demographic questions and 11 survey questions with the estimated time commitment for each participant being 15 minutes. Results: The online questionnaire was sent to 306 BSN nursing students Approximately 10% initially responded (N=33). A smaller group (N=25) completed the entire survey. Qualitative comments from nursing students who experienced the death of their patient included feeling sad, shocked and uncomfortable. Fifty percent of the nursing students did not receive any debriefing from their clinical instructor following the event.

Stevie Norcross, Westminster College Chemistry Gold nanostructures exhibit tunable optical properties that depend on a nanomaterial’s composition, shape, and size. These optical properties arise from a phenomenon known as the localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR), which contributes to surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) spectra. SERS enhances detection by up to 9 orders of magnitude vs. normal Raman scattering thereby routinely improving detection limits of target molecules to nM μM concentrations. In this study, gold nanorods, which exhibit tunable LSPR properties from the visible to near-IR regions, were synthesized using a solution phase seed-mediated growth method. LSPR tunability was achieved by varying gold nanorod growth temperature, silver ion concentration, or reducing agent (ascorbic acid) concentration. Systematically varying these parameters yielded gold nanorods with LSPR wavelength maximums ranging from 692 to 763 nm. By increasing the concentration of ascorbic acid from 0.54 mM to 0.63 mM, gold nanorods with an average LSPR wavelength maximum of 755 ± 8 nm were synthesized. Following the synthesis, the gold nanorods were used for the direct and enhanced detection of the anti-cancer drug, 6-mercaptopurine and one of its metabolites, 6-thiouric acid. It was observed that as molecular concentrations were increased signal intensities systematically increased; therefore, the identification and quantification of each molecule individually as well as in a mixture of the molecules in buffer was achieved.

Brennan Young, Utah State University Geology Thermal springs in northern Utah and southeastern Idaho mostly lie near active or inactive Basin-and-Range normal faults. They are dynamic systems, and the character of some has changed drastically since work as early as the 1980’s (Blackett and Wakefield, 2002; IDWR, 2001). We examined and sampled 60 thermal springs and most samples met criteria for cation geothermometers, or mathematical-geochemical tools used to estimate the maximum temperature of hydrothermal reservoirs. Of the 60 springs, 51 met criteria for the Na-K-Ca geothermometer and the remaining nine springs did not meet the criteria for the K-Mg, Na-K, Na-K-Ca, or Na-K-Ca-Mg cation geothermometers used in this project (Fournier and Truesdell, 1973; Fournier and Potter, 1979; Giggenbach, 1988). Of those 51 springs, only one is considered to be in partial equilibrium with the thermal reservoir, and estimates a reservoir temperature of 79°C (Giggenbach, 1988). Though the majority of springs exhibit a chemical signature of having mixed with shallow groundwater (Giggenbach, 1988), the Na-K-Ca geothermometer gives the most reliable results for springs in northern Utah and southeastern Idaho, but only for springs with surface temperatures exceeding 30°C and with greater than 1000 ppm total dissolved solids (TDS). Geothermometer results for these springs yield reservoir temperature estimates between 193 and 249°C.

Jim Goodman, Westminster College Chemistry Mercury is a toxic element that adversely impacts the health of wildlife and ecosystems worldwide. While all forms of mercury are toxic, methylmercury is the only form of mercury that is biomagnified, and thus organisms with the highest mercury concentrations and most at risk to mercury toxicity are typically the top predators in an ecosystem. To evaluate if arachnids, a top predator in the insect realm, are bioaccumulating mercury a spatial and temporal study of mercury bioaccumulation in arachnids and terrestrial invertebrates was conducted at the Great Salt Lake. Total mercury (HgT) and methylmercury (MMHg) concentrations were measured in arachnids collected once each month from two different sites on Antelope Island in the Great Salt Lake, and at a control site at Utah Lake, a fresh water lake to the south where mercury concentrations in the water column are substantially lower. Average concentrations of HgT and MMHg in arachnids from Antelope Island were 2600 ± 497 ppb and 1690 ± 169 ppb, respectively. These were significantly higher than the HgT and MMHg concentrations in arachnids at Utah Lake, where they are only 72 ± 54 ppb and 42 ± 30 ppb, respectively. Substantial spatial variation in HgT and MMHg concentrations in arachnids at the two sites on Antelope Island was also documented, and may be due to differences in the abundance of brine fly prey at the different locations.

Daniel Gray, Utah Valley University Physics Mini black holes (BH) of various mass could be left over in space from the early expansion Big Bang phase (so called primordial BHs). As a result of interaction of those BHs with interstellar hydrogen they could form a bound system with an electron or a proton (or both). What would such system look like? Would it be stable, metastable, or would BH quickly consume the orbiting particle? How much is life time of such “gravitational atom”? If such system is stable then what is the size of it; how much is the bonding energy of its ground state (=ionization potential energy) and how much are the energies of its exited states? Are those atoms “gravitational atoms” observable? What other properties do they have? Based on known physics we try to analyze the behavior of such exotic systems and answer the above questions for black holes of various masses.