Fine Arts

Authors: Amanda Carlson. Mentors: Bradford Berges. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) causes AIDS and is one of the most studied viruses in history. HIV is a retrovirus that has two copies of a single stranded RNA genome. While there is in-depth understanding of the virus and its pathogenesis, no completely effective treatment or vaccine exists. One potential target for therapeutic treatment of HIV is Viral Protein R (Vpr). Vpr is a multi-functional accessory protein encoded by the HIV genome. While HIV is a quickly mutating virus, the vpr gene remains relatively conserved. Mutations in this protein dramatically impact the rate of AIDS progression compared to the wild type (WT) version of Vpr. The Vpr polymorphism R77Q is associated with the Long Term Non Progressor (LTNP) phenotype. Regular AIDS onset is 5-7 years for WT virus and 10 or more years for R77Q. These differences in AIDS progression have been observed in vivo by following people with HIV over time. We have successfully shown that R77Q activates G2 cell cycle arrest more efficiently than WT followed by apoptosis, a death mechanism with less inflammation compared to necrosis. While the molecular mechanism of Vpr-induced apoptosis is known, it is not yet determined why point mutations in Vpr are changing levels of apoptosis. With further experimentation, we have shown that R77Q has decreased expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines compared to WT virus, which may explain why it is associated with the LTNP phenotype. The functions of Vpr come from binding and modifying cellular proteins and enzymes. The focus of our research is to determine what molecular interactions change between Vpr mutants to better understand the shifts in apoptotic levels. Vpr can be found intracellularly in the nucleus, cytoplasm, and mitochondria and extracellularly in secreted proteins and within virions. We will determine Vpr concentration in these various locations for both WT Vpr and the R77Q mutant, starting by measuring extracellular Vpr. To quantify virion-associated Vpr, we have designed a research plan. We will use WT-Vpr plasmids tagged by GFP to create GFP-tagged plasmids with either WT, R77Q or null mutations using site-directed mutagenesis. We will use Sanger sequencing for confirmation of the proper Vpr mutations tagged by GFP. We will then digest the plasmid DNA, leaving only the Vpr-GFP component and use PCR to amplify the sequences. We will transfect null virus plasmid (NL4-3) and Vpr-GFP plasmids into HEK cells to package the null virus and Vpr-GFP plasmids together to create active HIV particles. Using these virus particles, we will infect Hut-78 cells for a short time to allow the virion to enter the cells. We will then measure GFP fluorescence via flow cytometry, allowing us to quantify virion Vpr. This will be run alongside a mock infection as a control. We hypothesize that differences in virion Vpr concentrations exist among Vpr mutants. Through these experiments, we aim to discover more about the role Vpr plays in cell death by apoptosis and contribute to the existing literature exploring the importance of Vpr in HIV-1.

Authors: Abigail Cheever, Chloe Kang, Hunter Lindsay, Mackenzie Hansen, Kim O'Neill, K Scott Weber. Mentors: K Scott Weber, Kim O'Neill. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) T cell therapy is a modern technology that has become a widely accepted treatment for blood cancers such as lymphoma and leukemia. Recent studies have proven the successful application of CAR T cell therapies in autoimmune diseases as well. Graves’ Disease (GD) is an autoimmune disease that affects approximately 1 in 100 Americans and is the most common cause of hyperthyroidism. GD is mediated by anti-thyroid stimulating hormone receptor (TSHR) antibodies produced by autoreactive B cells. Our hypothesis is that a curative treatment for GD can be created by designing a CAR T cell that specifically targets the autoreactive B cells in GD, by using TSHR as a binding domain to act as bait for the anti-TSHR B cells. We selected TSHR epitopes for the binding domain of the CAAR T cell, and our anti-TSHR antibodies bound significantly to our engineered CAAR T cells. A target B cell line with anti-TSHR B cell receptors was engineered using the Nalm6 B cell line. Using primary human CAAR T cells, activation and cytotoxicity assays against anti-TSHR B cells shows that CAAR T cell therapy is an effective and promising method to treat antibody mediated autoimmune diseases like GD.

Authors: Ellie Martin. Mentors: Cynthia Finlayson. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Pottery reconstruction allows archaeologists to better understand their artifacts and gain a more complete understanding of ancient ceramic techniques. Reconstruction techniques have evolved over time that strive for both better conservation practices and long-lasting results, as well as the use of bonding materials that are reversible rather than permanent. This poster examines the process of utilizing an acetone-based glue consisting of dissolved polymer beads of differing strength solutions. The entire process with be illustrated by step-by-step photos and directions as well as the quality of the final results. Two layers of different solution consistencies are applied to the pottery in different stages before the pieces are joined together. The first layer of glue is a thin coat made of 5% polymer and 95% acetone, and it is applied to any edges that will be refit. This layer fortifies the sherd and ensures that the glue applied is not stronger than the sherd itself. After the first layer has dried, the second coat of glue, made of 12% polymer and 88% acetone, is added to each piece. The sherds are then joined and placed in a secure location to dry, such as a bin of silica beads. Acetone-based polymer glue is strong and flexible, yet also dissolvable. Any mistakes can be unmade with the careful application of small amounts of acetone, and no restoration action is utilized on the pottery fragments that cannot be undone. This method of reconstruction is safe, secure, long-lasting, and meets modern conservation standards.

Authors: Dustin Edmonds, Devin Needs, Riley Fisher. Mentors: Brent Feland. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Research questionHow does localized vibration increase blood flow? We know that localized vibrations increase blood flow. We wanted to know if this is done through the release of hormones, specifically histamines. Relevant research contextResearch on blood flow has been done using whole-body vibration but research on the effects of localized vibration on arterial blood flow is scant. To date, there are only a couple of research articles on massage guns despite their prolific use in the sports industry. No research to date has attempted to assess the mechanism behind the increased blood flow that results from localized vibration.MethodsTwenty-one participants completed this study, 11 males and 10 females, mean age of 22.1 +/- 2.0 years. The mean male height 181.3 +/- 9.6 cm and weight 80.7 +/- 19.0 kg. The mean female height is 169.2 +/- 7.5 cm, and the mean weight is 64.5 +/- 9.3 kg. All subjects were “recreationally active” and exercised at least three times a week for thirty minutes a day. Excessive activity or high-level athletes were not allowed to participate. Each subject received localized vibration to the gastrocnemius (vibration of 47 Hz for 10 minutes) with and without an antihistamine drug by reporting to the lab on 2 separate days. The non-antihistamine trial was performed first, followed at least 24 hours later by ingesting an antihistamine (180 mg of fexofenadine) 1 hour before the trial. Blood flow in the popliteal artery was measured using an ultrasound. Measurements (mean and peak blood velocity, volume flow, popliteal diameter, and heart rate) were taken before localized vibration treatment and then taken at intervals for 19 minutes after the treatment.AnalysisWe used a cell-means mixed model to statistically compare the effect of vibration on blood flow with and without antihistamines. This was done by evaluating the blood flow response immediately post vibration and comparing that to baseline values for both control and antihistamine conditions. Results and ConclusionThere was a significant increase in blood flow without antihistamine while administration of antihistamine blunted the blood flow response and resulted in an insignificant increase in blood flow. In the tests with the antihistamine, we saw an insignificant change in blood flow immediately post vibration, resulting from the localized vibration. From this experiment, we hypothesize that increased blood flow from localized vibration is due to activation of mast cells which release histamines and that this cellular activation is force dependent.

Authors: Jacob Armstrong, Tyler Standifird. Mentors: Tyler Standifird. Insitution: Utah Valley University. Lower Limb Asymmetries in Unilateral Jump Mechanics as Possible Risk Factor for Injury in Collegiate WrestlersJacob Armstrong and Tyler Standifird 1Utah Valley University, Orem, Ut. Injuries impose a multi-faceted burden on athletes, coaches, and sporting organizations, encompassing physical, financial, and psychological ramifications. Determining risk factors and identifying them in athletes has been a widespread goal amongst researchers and practitioners in attempts to reduce injuries. Investigating Limb asymmetries, or limb imbalances, has been a common approach in identifying such factors but has shown inconsistent correlations with injuries (Melony, 2018). Moreover, much of the current research investigates asymmetries of outward limb performance (i.e., Strength, flexibility, jump performance etc.) and not asymmetries of internal joint mechanics. Identifying relationships between internal joint asymmetries and lower limb injuries can further aid coaches, practitioners and sporting organizations in effectively identifying injury risks. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate internal joint asymmetries of the lower limbs during unilateral jump testing and their association with injuries in collegiate wrestlers. Methods: 23 healthy Division 1 NCAA collegiate wrestlers performed single leg depth jumps from a 12-inch platform unto force plates (Bertec Inc 1000 hz). Additionally, markerless motion capture technology was used to collect video data using Qualisys Mocap cameras (Qualisys North America, Inc. Buffalo Grove, Ill). Imagery was then processed in Theia (Theia Markerless, Inc. Kingston, Ontario) to produce 3d joint locations for all the joints of the lower extremity. Each wrestler performed 3 jumps with the left leg and then 3 with the right leg for a total of 6 jump attempts. 7 total variables were calculated and recorded in Visual 3D software (Dolomite Enterprises, LLC. Tallahassee, FL) for each wrestler and leg: drop max vertical force, vertical loading rate on drop, peak knee adduction angle, peak knee abduction moment, peak knee adduction moment, peak knee flexion angle, peak knee extension moment. Averages, standard deviations and percent differences were also calculated and compared between limbs. Injury history data was also collected from each participant from the year 2021 - present day.Results: Averaging found asymmetries in peak knee adduction angle with the left knee being greater than the right by 4.9 degrees (p=0.001), peak knee abduction moment with the right knee being greater than the left by .95 newton meters (p=0.001), and peak knee adduction moment with the left knee being greater than the right by .44 newton meters (p=0.001). All significant asymmetries were found in the frontal plane. No significant asymmetries were found in the sagittal plane. Injury history report found a total of 24 seperate lower limb injuries within the described timeframe. 16 associated with the right limb and 8 associated with the left. A total of 5 ACL injuries, 8 MCL injuries, 5 LCL Injuries, 3 meniscus injuries, and 3 ankle injuries. Conclusion: Asymmetry trends in collegiate wrestlers potentially indicate that internal joint asymmetry is specific to sport or activity. Also, internal joint asymmetry could be a potential indicator for training protocols for overall better movement and health within the studied population. Asymmetrical values of the peak knee adduction angle, peak knee abduction moment, and peak knee adduction moment combined with the frequency of knee injuries of the participants indicate possible positive correlations between the magnitude of asymmetry discovered and injury risk.

Authors: Naavah Craze, crazen@byu.edu . Mentors: John Chaston. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Wolbachia are maternally inherited bacteria found in the reproductive organs of many arthropod species. These parasitic bacteria are influential in the reproductive fitness of the host and can affect a population’s male-to-female ratio. Wolbachia can only be cultured in living cells and current methods for inoculating hosts with this bacteria have low success rates. These factors make these bacteria difficult to study in lab environments. In this project, we test a pricking method for inoculating Drosophila melanogaster with Wolbachia. In this method, axenic, or bacteria-free, female flies will be pricked in the abdomen with a Wolbachia-coated needle. Eggs from these flies will be collected from 3 to 5 days after pricking and will be incubated. The offspring will be tested using gel electrophoresis to see if inoculation was successful. If successful, this method can be used as a simple and efficient way to introduce Wolbachia into Drosophila melanogaster. These inoculated flies can then be used in experiments to study the relationship between the bacteria and the host organism.

Authors: Lillian Davis, Paul B Frandsen. Mentors: Paul B. Frandsen. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Insects of the order Embioptera (webspinners) typically live in colonies that can cover the ground of entire fields with their silk-constructed galleries, providing them with camouflage from predators and cover from the rain. Uniquely amongst silk-producing insects, webspinners possess silk glands in their forelimbs and, like spiders, retain the ability to produce silk throughout their life history. They typically live together in semi-social colonies, feeding off of decaying plant matter. Previous studies have been limited to morphological descriptions of species, testing various qualities of their silk, and a few molecular studies based on short DNA sequences. Here we present the genome of Apostonia ceylonica, a webspinner species from India, providing the first embiopteran genome assembly, opening the door to a multitude of analyses. At a haploid size of approximately 3.1 gigabases, their genome is significantly larger than previous estimates, containing a significant number of repeating segments. This data provides valuable information for future studies into the genes that control silk production, information for identifying this species through meta-barcoding, and data that could improve phylogenetic trees. By evaluating the effect of repetitive elements on their oversized genomes, we gain insights into the evolutionary history of Apostonia ceylonica.

Authors: Lauren Heath, John Chaston. Mentors: John Chaston. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Mounting evidence shows that gut microbiota disruption is related to several physiological processes and disease development in mammals; however, the mechanisms by which these processes take place are not fully understood due to the complexity of the mammalian gut microbiome. Studying the fruit fly, Drosophila Melanogaster proves to be a valuable model for understanding the gut microbiome on a smaller scale. Previous research has identified microbiota disruption alters the fly’s ability to cope with thermal stress and causes slower chill coma recovery times. Chill coma recovery is an important survival trait and stress response in Drosophila flies. Microbiota may affect the ability of hosts to tolerate stressful situations. The purpose of this project is to determine the effect of different bacterial strains on the mechanisms of chill coma recovery through a metagenome analysis of different bacterial strains. I hypothesize that certain microbe genes will increase chill coma recovery times. To test this assumption, I will mono-associate by flooding different groups of eggs with a microbe wash and infusing their food with the same bacteria strain. After cultivation, a chill coma will be induced by placing mature adult flies in empty vials on ice for three hours, and then the time for each individual to stand up after their transfer to room temperature will be recorded. Subsequently, I will assess cold tolerance, and evaluate the rates of recovery. With this, we can further identify the mechanisms of the chill coma recovery process by pinpointing specific proteins necessary for this process through a metagenome-wide association approach (MGWA) and gene analysis. If I observe no effect of the bacterial strains on chill coma recovery times, I can test different mixes of microbes to determine if improved recovery rates are a side effect of global metabolic changes caused by decreased biodiversity in the gut of drosophila flies. Studying the metabolic processes of Drosophila allows us to unravel further the mechanisms by which gut microbes affect the fitness and health of their host. My findings may be extrapolated to further understand the human gut microbiome.

Authors: Kirsten Sanders. Mentors: Ruth Kerry. Insitution: Brigham Young University. The Great Salt Lake (GSL) found in the Salt Lake Valley is a remnant of Lake Bonneville. In the 1980s the GSL reached record high water levels. But by 2022, the lake has been drying up and reached record-low water levels. Previous research using seven years of Purple Air Network data has shown that particulate air pollution levels, PM 2.5 and PM 10, are worse within 10km of the Great Salt Lake. Other research investigating the distribution of toxic heavy metals (Copper, Arsenic, Lead, and Zinc) in topsoil samples from throughout the Salt Lake Valley showed that some of the highest levels of Copper and Arsenic pollution were found near Saltair among dried sediments on the shoreline of the Great Salt Lake. This study involved collecting numerous samples from the dried shoreline of the Great Salt Lake and analyzing them for their heavy metal contents using Xray Fluorescence. The heavy metals were then mapped and linked to sediment particle sizes and pH to indicate where the most toxic sediments are located, and where the sediments that are most easily picked up by the wind are located. The maps of heavy metals will be used with our analysis of the Purple Air Network and wind rose data from our previous study to show where toxic dust clouds are most likely to be an issue to the population. Links with 2016 Asthma ER visits and Hospitalizations will also be investigated.

Authors: Eva Driggs, Megan Cahoon, Seth Bybee. Mentors: Seth Bybee. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Odonates (dragonflies and damselflies) exhibit diverse coloration. These vibrant colors are important for species recognition, camouflage, and mate recognition. Adult odonates emerge in late spring, mate and reproduce, and die by fall. As color and seasonality are both important aspects of the adult stage in odonates, we pose the question: Does the odonate community color composition change over the season?We hypothesize that different colors within the odonate community will peak in abundance at different times in the season. We conducted population estimates weekly at a local park in Provo and analyzed data from Utah, the Great Basin, and the West Coast (GBIF). From this data, we found that generally, blue odonates have the highest abundance throughout the season, but red odonate populations persist later in the season while blue populations decline which may be due to seasonal changes in heat and light.

Authors: Coleman Judd, Alexander Beagley. Mentors: Michelle Culumber. Insitution: Weber State University. Due to the overuse of antibiotics in industrial, agricultural, and medical settings, antibiotic-resistant bacteria are becoming more prevalent in various unique settings. We set out with the goal of identifying antibiotic-resistant bacteria from the Great Salt Lake waterfront. After isolating colonies on agar containing the antibiotic Tetracycline, we performed 16S rRNA gene sequencing and identified three separate Enterobacteriaceae species all exhibiting varying levels of antibiotic resistance. We performed an array of biochemical and physiological tests to further distinguish the Enterobacteriaceae species. Full spectrum biochemical tests indicate two near identical species followed by a third, novel species as both a phenotypic and biochemical outlier. Antibiotic resistant bacteria within the Great Salt Lake region present an ever-growing dilemma of clinical and environmental danger that accompanies antibiotic resistant microbes.

Authors: Cooper Johnson. Mentors: John Chaston. Insitution: Brigham Young University. The main goal of this project is to determine the relationships between microbes in the microbiota of Drosophila and the activity rate of Drosophila at low temperatures. Previous research has already determined that the microbiota leads to changes in fly activity levels at normal temperatures (Schretter, 2019). Studying the relationship at low temperatures with the method I will outline below will help us to have a more holistic view of how the bacteria affect fly locomotion and behavior. This holistic understanding can open doors for other projects that study if manipulation of the microbiota could have a specific desired effect on the fly’s behavior, and it can help us understand how the microbiota’s impacts are affected by drastic changes in temperature. In this experiment we seek to determine how each of 41 different strains of bacteria affects fly activity at temperatures of approximately 17 degrees celsius using several different metrics to measure both locomotion and social behaviors. These metrics would be collected simultaneously by placing flies in a chamber for Drosophila Video Tracking (DVT), which would use a camera and tracking software to record the above-mentioned metrics on fly activity. Using so many different metrics allows us to have a more holistic view of the flies’ activity and to be able to better determine exactly how the bacteria are affecting the flies. In order to connect the data with the microbiota, the flies would be separated into 41 different experimental groups and each group would be “mono-associated” with one of the 41 different above-mentioned bacterial strains. Mono-association means that each of the fly eggs would be bleached, and then divided in groups, with each group being grown in an environment containing a specific type of bacteria. This means that each fly experimental group would have one species of bacteria in their microbiota, and therefore we can associate changes in fly behavior to the differences in the Drosophila microbiota. Having determined which bacteria affect the fly activity at low temperatures, we would use Metagenome-wide association to determine which bacterial genes are causing this change. Metagenome-wide association involves comparing the genomes of bacteria shown to cause changes in Drosophila activity in order to identify the similar protein-coding sequences that may be the causes of these changes in activity. To confirm the findings at that stage, the genes are expressed in a bacteria that doesn’t express them normally, and flies are analyzed to see if the changes in activity persist. If they do, we can safely say that the changes are due to that specific gene sequence. We expect that the mono-associated flies will show differences in activity level, because it has already been established in a previous study that the microbiota in the flies has a statistically significant effect on the activity level of the flies, meaning that the presence of certain bacterial cultures in the flies lead to a difference in activity. Therefore, if there is no difference in activity level, it is most likely due to the low temperatures, and it may then be necessary to perform the experiment again at different temperatures to determine at what point the temperature negates the effect caused by the bacteria present in the fly microbiota. We aim to study the relationship between the microbes present in the fly microbiota and their activity level at low temperatures and identify the mechanisms by which the microbes affect the fly activity level.

Authors: Lauryn Dupaix. Mentors: Riley Nelson. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Golger’s rule is an ecogeographic rule stating that animals in warm and humid climates are heavily pigmented, whereas animals in colder and drier climates are lightly pigmented. By using previously collected specimens of Proctacanthus sp. from across the U.S., we explore how this rule applies to several species of robber flies over time and geographic space. The average color of thorax was analyzed using a spectrophotometer which were used in correlation tests with climate measurements from where the specimen was collected. We found that this ecogeographic rule was not consistent in all four of the species of robber flies that were analyzed. Therefore, other studies of the applicability of ecogeographic rules are being assessed in this genus. This research helps define morphological variation in a widespread species and open avenues for more morphological analysis of insects in a changing climate.

Authors: Levi Pouwer, Keaton Helquist. Mentors: Jared Nielsen. Insitution: Brigham Young University. OBJECTIVE: To identify brain regions and networks underlying acquired-brain-injury-induced insomnia. BACKGROUND: In patients of tertiary-level mental healthcare facilities, symptoms of chronic insomnia are prevalent in 78.2% of the population. Additionally, among those who suffer from acquired brain injury, few symptoms are as generally pervasive as that of chronic insomnia. Meta-analyses of insomnia patients with fMRI data have failed to identify consistently affected brain regions. Individual studies have suggested several brain regions are involved in insomnia, including the anterior cingulum, orbitofrontal cortex, the insula, caudate nucleus, and the anterior capsula interna. However, few regions have consistently been implicated in the pathophysiology of insomnia. Moreover, little is known regarding the collective brain networks involving insomnia. DESIGN/METHODS: A comprehensive systematic literature review was conducted to identify case studies of individuals afflicted with acquired brain injury-induced insomnia (N=53). The review process was facilitated by employing Cadima, specialized literature review software. To establish a reference baseline for comparison, a substantial cohort of resting-state functional MRI (fMRI) scans from healthy control subjects (N=1000) was meticulously acquired. Subsequently, lesion network mapping analysis, as outlined by Fox et al. in 2018, was applied to the lesions observed in the 53 patients. This method allowed us to assess the impact on functional connectivity and analyze its implications by comparing the patients' lesion networks with the baseline scans obtained from healthy controls. RESULTS: In the context of lesion network mapping analysis, our study revealed that 45 out of 53 patients diagnosed with acquired brain injury-induced insomnia exhibited brain lesions that were functionally connected to both the left amygdala and the left anterior insula. Moreover, in 39 out of 57 patients, the lesion networks also included bilateral anterior insula and the hypothalamus. Comparative analysis of these lesions with a normative database unveiled a substantial disparity in functional connectivity to the left amygdala and left anterior insula in patients suffering from acquired brain injury-induced insomnia. This finding underscores the relevance of tissue within these regions and tissues functionally connected to these areas in relation to the onset of lesion-induced insomnia. CONCLUSION: The observed functional network connectivity among the left amygdala and the left insular region in relation to insomnia introduces a potentially more intricate mechanism underlying the onset of insomnia, in addition to the previously proposed factors such as hyperarousal in cortical regions and subcortical neuropathologies. Our findings highlight the possibility of a deeper connection between the initiation of insomnia and limbic structures, specifically emphasizing their role in emotion and sleep regulation. This suggests that the neural mechanisms influencing anxiety may have interrelated effects on the mechanisms influencing insomnia. It is evident that further investigation, particularly among psychiatric patients afflicted with insomnia, is warranted to delve into the activities occurring in these regions and to elucidate the potential interplay between anxiety and insomnia. This research paves the way for a deeper understanding of the complex relationship between neural pathways and the development of insomnia, ultimately offering valuable insights for future clinical and therapeutic considerations.

Authors: Connor Hough. Mentors: Johnny Chaston. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Many variables can have an effect on the microbiota (microbial community associated with an organism) which can, in turn, affect the health and lifestyle of the microbiota's host organism. One such variable is geographic latitude (distance away from the earth's equator) which was the subject of a portion of a study performed by Walters et al. in 2020 and a similar study performed by Henry et al. in 2022. Walters et al. determined that latitude had a significant effect on the composition of the gut microbiota in Drosophila melanogaster (fruit flies) while Henry et al. determined that latitude did not have a significant effect. To better understand what variables may have caused a difference in the results of these two studies I plan to perform data analysis on the data provided from both Walters et al. and Henry et al. Particularly, Henry et al. provided data about the microbiota of other sample types associated with D. melanogaster across the latitudinal cline such as the fruit fly excrement, the leaves in their environment, and their diet which consisted of apples and grapes. While this data was mentioned in Henry et al.’s paper I feel that a more in depth analysis of these sample types could bring insight about how these microbiota affect one another and how latitude affects each of them separately. I will use QIIME (a bioinformatics data analysis software) data analysis methods, such as alpha and beta diversity metrics, and R to analyze the data provided and create graphs. Because each sample type in the data was recorded with unequal sample sizes I will also need to make a new taxonomic graph of the sample types when measured proportionally to each other. To do this I will use QIIME to group the original feature table metadata from Henry et al. by sample type and return a new table with an equal number of samples for each sample type. With this done I will then be able to make a new bar plot using QIIME. I will then use this new set of adjusted data to analyze the relationships between latitude and each sample type as well as the relationship between each sample type to one another. I will also perform these data analytics methods on the data provided on fruit fly gut microbiota by Walters et al. and compare the results with the fruit fly gut microbiota provided by Henry et al.. I hypothesize that further analyzing the data from these sample types will reveal new correlations between the microbiota of these sample types and with latitude. If no new information is learned through this analysis then it will solidify Henry et al.’s claim that latitude does not significantly affect the microbiota. Alternative outcomes may show that there is not a correlation between the microbiota of sample types which would indicate that the microbiota exhibits a neutral behavior and is not selective. However, if my hypothesis is correct then these correlations would show that the microbiota of separate sample types are related to the microbiota of other sample types and that latitude does have a significant effect on the microbiota of each sample type. The results of this analysis will open up more pathways for study about the reason behind these correlations or the lack thereof.

Authors: Anna Norman, Chloe Houghton, Macall Walker, Audrey Saunders. Mentors: Tyson Harmon. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Face it! How reliable is emotional facial expression coding within and across raters? Background Emotion, described as “physiological forces, located within individuals, that bolster our sense of uniqueness....” (Katriel, 2015, p. 57) is a critical aspect of day-to-day communication. For people with acquired language disorders post-stroke (i.e., aphasia), this interaction is particularly important due to relatively spared emotional processing, which has the potential to either facilitate or interfere with language processing (see e.g., Harmon et al., 2022; Ramsberger, 1996). The present study is part of a larger project, which seeks to determine whether people with aphasia exhibit more emotional facial expressions during personal narrative discourse than adults who do not have aphasia and whether these expressions are more emotionally arousing. The present study specifically seeks to investigate the reliability of facial coding by comparing average frequency and intensity of emotional facial expressions both within and across undergraduate student coders. Methods In order to quantify emotional facial expression frequency and intensity, undergraduate research assistants are trained to code facial expressions using a modified FACES protocol (Kring and Sloan, 2007). The modified protocol will be used to code emotional facial expressions of video footage that was obtained from participants while they told personal narratives (e.g., talking about an illness they experienced or an important life event). First, research assistants identify the baseline facial expression for each participant. Next, research assistants code transitions from a neutral expression to an emotional facial expression for valence (positive/negative) and intensity. Intensity ratings are scaled from 1 to 4 depending on how many units of the face are involved within the corresponding facial expression. Using this protocol, research assistants will begin facial coding after they are trained and demonstrate mastery by attaining 80% agreement with a master code. Upon completing initial data coding, research assistants will be assigned to recode 10% of previously completed video samples as well as 10% of samples that were previously coded by other coders. This secondary coding will be used to measure intra- and inter-rater reliability across dependent variables: frequency of emotional facial expressions, intensity of positive facial expressions, and intensity of negative facial expressions. Average frequency of emotional facial expressions will be calculated as the number of facial expressions produced per minute within a given sample. Intensity of positive and negative facial expressions will be calculated as the mean intensity within each valence respectively. The average frequency and intensity of initial and reliability codes will then be compared using Pearson’s correlation coefficient. Anticipated Results We anticipate that intra- and inter-rater reliability will be above 0.8. Through a strict training process, research assistants will calibrate their coding to achieve 80% agreement with the master code. We anticipate this training process to produce effective intra- and inter-rater reliability. Findings will be important for determining the reliability of facial coding procedures and trustworthiness of data for answering questions related to the longer-term project. References Harmon, T.G., Jacks, A., Haley, K. L., & Bailliard, A. (2020). How responsiveness from a communication partner affects story retell in aphasia: Quantitative and qualitative findings. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 29(1), 142-156. https://doi.org/10.1044/2019_AJSLP-19-0091 Harmon, T.G., Nielsen, C., Loveridge, C., Williams, C. (2022). Effects of positive and negative emotion on picture naming for people with mild to moderate aphasia: A prelimariny investigation. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 64(3), 1025-1043. https://doi.org/10.1044/2021_JSLHR-21-00190 Katriel, T. (2015). Exploring emotion discourse. In H. Flam & J. Kleres (eds.), Methods of exploring emotions (1st ed., pp.57-66). Taylor & Francis Group. Kring, A.M., & Sloan, D.M. (2007). The facial expression coding system (FACES): Development, validation, and utility. Psychological Assessment, 19(2), 210-224. https://doi.org/10/1037/1040-3590/19.2.120

Authors: Harlan Stevens, Arwen Oakley. Mentors: Stephen Piccolo. Insitution: Brigham Young University. The number of scientific journal articles published per year now exceeds one million. To help maximize the impact of these articles, researchers must ensure that images in the articles are accessible to people with color-vision deficiencies (CVD). Up to 8% of males and 0.5% of females experience at least one form of color-vision deficiency, thus making it difficult for these individuals to discern patterns in images that use particular color combinations. We sought to shed light on this problem by estimating how often published images use color combinations that are unfriendly to people with a CVD. Examining 6,000 images published in biology-oriented research articles published in the eLife journal between 2012 and 2022, we identified images with potentially problematic color combinations. Using quantitative metrics and manual review, we estimate that 13% of these articles would be difficult for people with moderate-to-severe deuteranopia to interpret. We used a convolutional neural network to automate the ability to label images as being problematic for people with moderate-to-severe deuteranopia. The machine learning model successfully classified images in a testing dataset with an auROC of 91.3%. Based on these results, we created a web application that allows users to upload images and view estimates about whether the images are CVD-friendly. Such efforts are critical to ensuring that papers published in the biology literature are interpretable to diverse audiences.

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: 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: Liberty Rausch. Mentors: Kenneth L Alford. Insitution: Brigham Young University. The Hyrum Smith Papers project, patterned after the Joseph Smith Papers, is a scholarly initiative at Brigham Young University aimed at collecting, transcribing, analyzing, and publishing selected extant documents associated with Hyrum Smith, the older brother of Joseph Smith, Jr.—key figures in the early history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. With a focus on illuminating the often underappreciated contributions of Hyrum Smith, this project examines a wide range of historical documents. These include, but are not limited to, personal correspondence, journals, sermons, certificates, legal documents, land records, ecclesiastical and administrative documents, and others. The purpose is to contribute to a deeper understanding of Hyrum’s role, leadership, and influence within the context of the American religious, social, and political climate of the early 19th century. The goal of this research is to publish a volume with transcriptions, narratives, photographs, and illustrations associated with Hyrum Smith’s life. This UCUR oral presentation will provide an overview of how relevant documents are identified and incorporated into our corpus.

Authors: Allen Otterstrom. Mentors: Joe Price. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Data quality is a key input in efforts to link individuals across census records. We examine the extreme version of low data quality by identifying census US enumerators in the US who fabricated entire families. We provide clear evidence of fake people included in the census in Homestead, Pennsylvania. We use the features of this case study to identify other places where there seem to be fake people. Our automated approach identifies census sheets that have much lower match rates to other census records that would be expected, given the characteristics of the people recorded on each sheet.

Authors: Hyrum Veach. Mentors: Amy Harris. Insitution: Brigham Young University. The agricultural laborers’ riots that occurred in England from 1830 to 1831, commonly called the Swing Riots, have been well-studied over the past fifty years. In recent years, historians have sought to better understand individual protests were rooted in local causes and social networks, however, there are still gaps in historians’ understanding of how these events related to urban protests going on around the same time. Through an in-depth exploration into the Norwich weavers’ riots in 1829 and the fires in Swanton Abbott, Norfolk in January 1831 this research attempts to show how the changing relationship between urban and rural communities could link urban and rural protest movements in multifaceted ways. Special attention is paid to the lives of some of these protests’ key participants (Richard Knockolds and the Davison brothers), including their backgrounds, motivations, and the ways their actions were memorialized both in the city and the country. When these two protests are situated in the context of urban-rural relations, it becomes clear that they were part of an active renegotiation of the relationship between city and country brought on because the pressures of industrialization were pushing the two together in ways that many found threatening. Each of the people involved had a different vision for what this relationship should look like, as well as a vested interest in ensuring this vision prevailed. By foregrounding how these participants approached the boundaries between urban and rural worlds, this research emphasizes the ways this boundary was a crucial point of contention in early industrial Britain.

Authors: Elisabeth Morris. Mentors: Desirée Oliveira. Insitution: Brigham Young University. The purpose of this study is to better understand what it means to be an American by examining perceptions of national identity through the lens of Brazilian Americans living in Northern Utah. With this purpose in mind, we hope to add to the discussion of national identity during a time when the United States' title as a “melting pot of nations'' is called into question. The study focuses on the question: How do Brazilian Americans living in Northern Utah perceive their own national identity? Additionally, it seeks to answer the following subquestions: Does a pluralistic national identity exist among Brazilian Americans in Northern Utah?; If a pluralistic national identity exists among Brazilian Americans in Northern Utah, do the two identities coexist, or is there a synthesis of the identities and what does that look like?; How do they perceive American national identity?; How is American National identity influenced by Brazilian Americans in the United States? Working with local Brazilian businesses, cultural groups, families, and individuals, we collected data through a variety of ethnographic methods including participant observation, semi-structured interviews, mapping, sonic recordings, oral histories, photo, video, and media usage. We then used thematic qualitative data analysis methods, finding that Brazilian Americans in Northern Utah see their identities as pluralistic as well as that Brazilian and American identities coexist, operating in different spaces. The results show how American national identity is fluid and complex, existing as a companion to other identities, demonstrating how “Brazilianess” contributes to “Americanness” by creating more empathy, understanding, and union in the United States.

Authors: Brenda Payan Medina. Mentors: Andy Eisen. Insitution: University of Utah. Between the years of 1988 and 2016, there has been a staggering figure of individuals, in the hundreds of thousands, that have been incarcerated in what has been recognized as a mass incarceration phenomenon intended to make our nation safer using a “tough-on-crime” approach. As of 2020, the number of people incarcerated is slated to be around two million, and the prison population continues to grow. Along with this stunning growth in our carceral systems has also come the realization that without investment into incarcerated individuals, prison systems will continue to grow without serving any meaningful purpose to both incarcerated people and their communities once incarcerated individuals have served their terms. As a result, educational programming has been implemented in multiple prisons across the country, and following suit is the implementation of visual, theater, and writing-based arts programs. While the original intention of many arts education programs in carceral environments is to serve as a form of rehabilitation, therapy, and assimilation back into society for those that are incarcerated, many incarcerated or formerly-incarcerated artists perceive the arts opportunities offered to be much more valuable and fulfilling than a means of emotional regulation and personal growth; some see it as a way of connection or re-connection with their families, friends, and communities, others see it as a potential career path and redirection of the trajectory of their lives, and some see it as a reclamation of their identities and voices beyond their criminal history.

Authors: Sven Wilson, Joseph Price, Hannah Hammond, Katharine Wilson. Mentors: Joe Price. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Research suggests that environmental and behavioral risk factors often shared by spouses will result in similar spousal lifespans. This is seen most powerfully in the well-documented tendency for the hazard of mortality to rise immediately after spousal loss, thereby causing a greater concordance in spousal lifespans. This is sometimes referred to as "broken heart syndrome," and a widowhood effect on mortality has been observed in multiple large population studies in many countries. We employ a new dataset from the United States containing over 2.8 million couples drawn from the 1940 census who were born between 1880 and 1920 who are linked to US Census Schedules through 1940 and to the wiki-like genealogical data source Family Search. To account for the presence of assortative mating, we employ a strategy where the lifespan of the spouse's siblings is used as an instrumental variable for spousal lifespan. We find only a small amount of assortative mating on the basis of lifespan, but considerable sorting based on education and income. Our simple IV model finds a statistically significant causal relationship between the death of both husbands and wives on the lifespan of their respective spouses, and those effects are roughly twice as big as the OLS estimates. An additional year of life for the spouse adds .11 years to the husband’s lifespan; and .157 years to the wife. The larger effect on women’s lifespan is in opposition to most of the literature on the widowhood effect.

Authors: Lizzie Stewart, Hayden Underwood, Dallas Goolsby, Spencer Sears. Mentors: Camilla Hodge. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Social connection is critical to understanding how individuals interact with one another and form social bonds in groups. Our research evaluates the effects on social connection based on the Ecology of Family Experiences framework, which considers the interplay between three domains: family, activity, and time. We believe that the EFE is a transferable framework that will have important social implications for understanding interpersonal relationships and designing experiences intended to increase social connection. In this study, we examine the relationship between social connection and two variables: 1) social interaction, or the behavior between two or more people crossing paths. Social interaction considers joint or parallel interaction styles between people; 2) self-disclosure, or interaction where one intends to willfully and deliberately divulge something personal to another. We hypothesize that social interaction and self-disclosure influence social connections outside the family context. We seek to shed light on the mechanisms that shape and alter the quality and depth of interpersonal connection. In our experiment, we used a 2x2 quasi-experimental design. Participants were assigned to one of four conditions varying in self-disclosure (high vs. low) and social interaction (joint vs. parallel). Self-disclosure questions asked participants to answer prescribed questions, including highly personalized questions (high disclosure) and non-personalized information (low disclosure). Participants either interacted with a partner (joint) or wrote responses next to a partner without verbal communication (parallel). Social connection was measured using the Inclusion of Others and Self Scale. The sample consisted of 148 university students. The average participant was a white, unmarried, 20-year-old from a middle- to high-class economic background. Data analysis was conducted using mixed model techniques that took into account the unique dyadic relationship of each pairing. Results suggested a significant interaction between self-disclosure and social interaction (t = 2.354, p < 0.05). With high self-disclosure and joint activity having a mean of 4.54, high self-disclosure and parallel activity having a mean of 2.33, low self-disclosure and joint activity having a mean of 3.47, and low disclosure parallel activity having a mean of 2.01. These findings highlight the importance of self-disclosure and social interaction styles in influencing social connection, extending the applicability of the EFE framework beyond the family unit.

Authors: Ramon Zabriskie, Erica Miller, Felicia Korth, Anna Taylor. Mentors: Ramon Zabriskie. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Implicit bias occurs automatically and unintentionally based on a person’s lifetime experience and cultural history (National Institutes of Health, 2022; Handelsman & Sakraney, 2015). In this study, implicit bias is evaluated through the lens of a transformative diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging business course. DEIB originated in the 1960s in response to equal employment and affirmative action laws (Sarrett, 2022). Studies show that Millennials and Gen Z generations are the most diverse populations ever in the United States (Stamps & Foley, 2023). Benefits of DEIB include the creation of a more unified, diverse, and successful workplace, less biases in hiring, team development, promotions, and who companies do business with (El-Amin, 2022). This study’s theoretical framework is based on the transformative learning theory which seeks to understand and promote human development through learning. Transformation is more than "knowing more" through time; when a learner is transformed by education they undergo a shift in perspective, and after that shift, they cannot go back to see the world the way they once did, at least in some small way (Wichita State University). The class was designed with experiential learning approaches and introduces a variety of DEIB concepts such as privilege, unconscious bias, assumptions, and intersectionality. Students interacted with a variety of experiential components such as DEIB events, panels, and interviews which addressed various minority groups. At the beginning of the DEIB course, students completed an IAT test focused on racial bias. The IAT test is known as the Implicit Association Test that uses positive and negative connotative words in association with pictures of minority groups to measure automatic reactions targeting an individual's level of implicit bias towards one minority group versus another. After students completed the racial IAT test, scores were recorded representing the level of implicit racial bias students held towards white people vs. black people. At the conclusion of the 14-week-long course, students completed the same IAT test on racial bias. Scores were recorded once again, comparative with previous IAT scores, to evaluate whether the amount of racial implicit bias had changed as a result of participating in the DEIB course and its curriculum. Data was then analyzed visually comparing the means from the pre to post test results. The data was analyzed using this method because the sample size was not large enough to return what the researchers considered to be reliable results. More data is available for this study, but has not been cleaned and matched, this process is currently taking place. Once the data is available, the researchers will use paired sample T-tests to conduct a full analysis. Additionally, descriptive analysis will be represented in the form of histograms of pre and post test scores observing the progression towards less implicit bias. The mean for the pre-test was .78 (sdv=1.34, n=171) and the post-test was .63 (std=1.38, n=144). Our sample size was 181 participants with 25 that chose not to answer. Demographics of participants consisted of 66% Caucasian, 3% Hispanic, 2% Asian, 2% Native Hawaiian, 1% other, and 26% who chose not to respond. The average age of participants was 21. Gender of participants consisted of 121 females and 34 males. Visual examinations of the means suggest there was migration toward 0, which would represent little to no bias and the class was making a difference in participants’ implicit bias scores. This study underscores the utility of DEIB instruction in promoting changes in bias. The impact of changes in implicit bias through this learning coupled with DEIB principles in a transformative way will greatly influence the workforce for generations to come.

Authors: Spencer Paulsen. Mentors: Jeffery Tessem. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Today approximately 537 million adults are living with diabetes. This figure is expected to rise to about 640 million by the year 2030. Metabolic stress is known to drive the development of the disease. The pancreatic β-cell which is responsible for producing and secreting insulin in response to elevated blood glucose concentrations is particularly sensitive to metabolic stressors. Therefore, understanding the molecular character of β-cells is important to curing diabetes. Nkx6.1 is an important β-cell transcription factor critical for proper β-cell development and function. Our lab has shown a potential interaction between Nkx6.1 and PACS1 in β-cells. PACS1 is associated with the Trans-Golgi network and is involved in protein maturation by sending newly synthesized proteins to their intended target inside or outside the cell. We know that insulin is synthesized in the ER and sent to the Golgi for vesicle packaging. We hypothesized that PACS1 helps sort insulin in the Trans-Golgi network, and that interaction with the β-cell transcription factor Nkx6.1 is essential for this process. Therefore, the study of the interaction between Nkx6.1 and PACS1 may provide a greater understanding of diabetes and insulin secretion in β-cells. Here, we present the results of our investigation of the link between Nkx6.1, PACS1, and the Golgi apparatus. We present data validating the Nkx6.1-PACS1 interaction, the cellular location of the interaction, and the effect of changing glucose concentration on this interaction. These results will help deepen our understanding of how the Nkx6.1-PACS1 interaction works to ensure proper β-cell function.

Authors: Changxi Xing, Kirsten Chapman. Mentors: Xinru Page. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Prior work from our lab has demonstrated that social media usage can be highly beneficial for autistic young adults. Simultaneously though, it can lead to physical or social harms. In order to better support the autistic community on social media, it is important to provide educational content on social media safety. As such, the BYU Social Technology and Privacy Lab has developed, and is currently validating, educational slides, quizzes, and practices modules.My work focuses on creating a gamified education app that will host these materials. This app will utilize effective gameplay strategies in order to motivate autistic users to meaningfully consume the materials. This app will be designed to cater to the needs of individuals in this community.The project started with a thorough literature search in September. I reviewed prior work on gameplay design and educational psychology of both neurodiverse and non-neurodiverse populations (n=12). We will be engaging in participatory design sessions that allow participants to contribute their own ideas and designs. These designs will be pieced together to form a preliminary prototype of the app. Based on these findings, a mobile application will be built and deployed in the autistic community. Statistics on user performance and the amounts of time they spend on the materials will be collected. These statistics will be analyzed and compared with the non-gamified version of the app. We will also collect qualitative data on participant attitudes towards the app.

Authors: Rachel Bi, Chong Meng. Mentors: Rachel Bi. Insitution: Utah Valley University. The full proposal is available upon request. This research project is sponsored by the Bonnie Ballif-Spanvill Endowed Fellowship, which provides $10,000 in funding.Abstract:Over the past decade, the financial technology (FinTech) industry has experienced remarkable growth and innovation, with new products and services designed to meet the evolving needs of consumers. This rapidly expanding force is challenging and disrupting traditional financial industries in terms of product innovation, customer satisfaction, and employer demand in the labor market. In fact, global FinTech investments have soared from less than $2 billion to an impressive $142 billion in 2021, and this upward trend is expected to continue (Balyuk, Berger, and Hackney, 2020). While previous studies have focused on the impact of FinTech on income inequality, little is known about the potential of this digital technology to address gender inequality (Loko and Yang, 2022).This proposal seeks to address a specific aspect of gender inequality: the gender pay gap in finance. This term refers to the wage disparity between male and female executives in the industry. Our objective is to analyze women's compensation within the FinTech sector, identify factors contributing to the gender pay gap, and develop recommendations to address this issue. Specifically, we have the following hypotheses:H1: Gender pay gaps among executives should shrink in the FinTech industry.Public FinTech firms are typically younger and smaller than other publicly traded companies. Because managers in smaller firms are generally less risk-averse and have a stronger preference for taking risks, we hypothesize that the gender pay gap between female and male executives could widen due to differences in risk-aversion.H1a: Gender pay gaps among executives should enlarge in the FinTech industry.Our second hypothesis centers on comparing gender pay gaps in the pre- and post-initial public offering (IPO) stages of the same company. The public market is widely recognized as crucial in overseeing and limiting managers' pursuit of risk (Asker, Farre-Mensa, and Ljungqvist, 2015). If executives' risk aversion changes with access to the public market, we anticipate that gender pay gaps will decrease following IPOs. Therefore, H2: Gender pay gaps among executives should shrink in FinTech firms after their initial public offerings. Institutional investors in the public market can shape the internal corporate governance structure (Dasgupta, Fos, and Sautner, 2021). We anticipate that board diversity, measured by the percentage of female executives on the board, will increase after IPOs. Consequently, we predict that the changes in gender pay gaps between the pre-IPO and post-IPO periods will be more noticeable when the board is less diverse prior to IPOs. H2a: The decrease in gender pay gaps should be more pronounced when the board of a Fintech firm is less diversified before IPOs.

Authors: Jaiden Sherratt, Madison Ward, Alexandra Clements, Makenzie Vance, Christopher Furlow. Mentors: Julie Johnson Pynn. Insitution: Southern Utah University. Global identity is a concept once recognized by Maslow in 1954 as he said people “feel a kinship and connection, as if all people were members of a single family… Because of this, self-actualizing people have a genuine desire to help the human race.” Historically, it has been seen that this sense of global identity and citizenship can lead to great acts of kindness and empathy, as was the case with Chiune Sugihara who saved over 6000 Jews from Nazi oppression out of a sense of love for humanity (McFarland et al., 2013). It was also found that people with a strong global identity are more likely to be concerned about human rights and hold egalitarian views (McFarland et al., 2012). The research sought to answer the question, “Can images of global success or suffering affect subjects’ feeling of connection with humanity as a whole?” Through this research, we can better understand how positive or negative events impact people’s feelings of global citizenship. Participants will be recruited through the SONA system, as well as the researchers’ social media accounts, and a SUU portal announcement. Our main survey measure is the Identification With All Humanity scale. The scale is intended to measure an individual’s characteristics of concern for global issues and human rights, prosocial attitudes, intergroup forgiveness, and solving global problems (Hamer 2021). Participants were randomly assigned to one of two exposure conditions consisting of either 10 images of human success or 10 images of human suffering. Participants took the adapted IWAH survey, then were exposed to one of the two image sets for five second minimum per image, then took the adapted IWAH survey again to see if the images influenced their perception of global identity. After exposure, participants were asked “Did these images affect your feeling of connection with humanity? Why or why not? The images presented focused on issues of environmentalism. This research is currently in the phase of conducting the survey, and will close the survey gathering on November 1, 2023. Then the researchers will analyze the collected data to see if images of success or suffering influence global identity.

Authors: Claudia Wiese, Josh Steffen, Heather Briggs, Rodolfo Probst. Mentors: Josh Steffen. Insitution: University of Utah. Evaluating effect of formic acid treatment on foraging behaviors of Apis mellifera through pollen DNA metabarcoding using the MinION deviceBees play a vital role in maintaining the health and productivity of terrestrial ecosystems by providing pollination to many of the world’s plants. In recent decades, many bee species, including Apis mellifera (European honeybee), have experienced worldwide population declines.Varroa destructor, an external parasite, is one of the leading causes of honeybee population declines, as they are the primary cause of colony collapse disorder.Various methods exist to control the impact of V. destructor, including Formic Acid (FA) treatment, a well-documented solution to reducing V. destructor numbers. Yet, despite clearly established evidence that A. mellifera behaviors are very sensitive to changes in their hive environment, very few studies have looked at the effect of FA on honeybee foraging behavior. DNA metabarcoding is a powerful tool allowing ecologists to quantitatively assess differences in diet within species without the need for extensive knowledge of pollen taxonomy or complicated fieldwork experiments.In this study, A. mellifera hives (n=7) were split into control (n=3) and treatment groups (n=4). Pollen samples were collected from all hives before, during, and after FA treatment to compare if FA application impacted the foraging patterns of the bees in the treated colonies as compared to the control group. To compare foraging patterns between the treatments, we performed metabarcoding using the trnL (UAA) chloroplast intronic region, commonly used to barcode plant species. Amplicons were subsequently sequenced with a portable sequencer (ONT MinION Mk1C). Basecalling, quality check, demultiplexing, and filtering of the data were conducted with Guppy and Medaka. Obtained sequences (n=120 reads) were compared to a reference database with BLAST to determine the sequence identity of visited plants. With this information, we plan to compare absolute foraging numbers, species, and related ratios between control and experimental hives. Most sequences were assigned with a high percentage identity to a sample database (>89%), Although certain species (e.g., Malus sylvestris [European crab apple] and Prunus avium [wild cherry]) were probably visited by all hives, our preliminary findings show that pollen loads differ between control and experimental conditions, indicating a variation in floral visitation.These results suggest that FA treatment, while effective at controlling V. destructor, may impact honeybee foraging patterns. Further research is needed to understand if this behavioral change is detrimental to the health of the colony, and the consequences of variation in floral visitation to pollination networks.

Authors: Em Hart. Mentors: Nicole Dib. Insitution: Southern Utah University. The legend of King Arthur has withstood the test of time unlike any other work of literature. Not only is a tale originating from a post-Roman Britain still known today, it is influential and pervasive, impacting the building blocks, themes, and motifs of contemporary stories in genres ranging from fantasy to superheroes to propaganda pieces. Given the legend’s undeniable influence, it sparks the question of what characteristics have allowed this tale to transcend the standard literary lifetime. One theory attributes the legend’s universality to the romantic narrative structure that it gained during the French Vulgate Cycle in the thirteenth century. Though undoubtedly a contributing factor given the structure’s popularity at the time, this theory neglects to consider more common and proven factors of audience appeal, particularly the appeal that similarly transcends temporary trends and tastes. When considering Arthurian legend’s universality, it is important to acknowledge what elements remain consistent over the centuries as opposed to what has more freedom to change with the shifting tastes of the cultures it touches. Arthurian legend, despite the massive changes it has undergone, maintains elements that allow audiences across time to accurately identify it as Arthurian legend. Though stories can carry elements popularized or introduced by Arthuriana in the modern day, those elements do not necessarily make that story Arthurian in the perception of the reader. However, there are stories that change narrative structure, medium, time, place, and even popular plot points, that are still recognized as Arthurian. A similar phenomenon can be seen outside of Arthuriana in more contemporary stories that outlast their expected literary lifetimes. With this in mind, this presentation will consider the ways that Fan Studies explore the communities, individuals, and passions that have replicated this phenomenon. When engaging with this area of study and the elements that source it, a pattern emerges, showing a characteristic that commonly fuels the burgeoning universality of these celebrated stories. In fan works, things like narrative structure, medium, time, and plot all change freely, allowing for the consistencies to become clear. The characters, their bonds, their flaws, and their dramatic needs remain consistent across ever-changing landscapes, be it in fandom circles or the centuries and cultures touched by Arthurian legend. With this guide from other stories and their early universality, my paper will make it clear that an audience appeal substantial enough to transcend centuries is ultimately accessed through characterization, an essential element of the Arthurian legend.

Authors: Jared K Bradshaw. Mentors: Brandon Ro. Insitution: Utah Valley University. This research seeks to analyze if there exists an understanding of structural design principles among untrained humans. Building forms and styles have evolved since the earliest structures. For thousands of years buildings were limited by naturally occurring materials. Designs of those periods reflected the structural principles of those materials. In the last few hundred years technological advances have provided structural methods which radically altered how buildings can be designed. An example is the difference in column spacing between historic and modern buildings, where the former has much tighter spacing due to natural material’s spanning limitations. To analyze the understanding of untrained humans an eye-tracking study was conducted using A.I.-3M-VAS eye-tracking software. This technology utilizes artificial intelligence to graphically display eye gaze sequences, patterns, and durations of focus. The software reflects the first few seconds of eye-tracking, providing insights into subconscious reactions before a logical response is formed. Images of structural elements were designed digitally to reflect a variety of forms, maintain cohesiveness, and remove visual variables. Each image was individually processed through the software providing isolated results. The results of the study show consistent patterns of focus on locations of structural significance, such as bearing points, connections, and material loads. The consistency by which these concepts received focus concludes that there is an innate human ability to locate structural methods of building. Of note the structural forms which adhered to the limits of natural materials registered different eye tracking patterns than the modern manipulated material forms. The historic methods displayed even tracking throughout the structure, whereas the modern methods created hot spots at the points of greatest structural significance. The differences further emphasizes that untrained people are not limited to just understanding familiar structural forms. This will allow for further research on the physiological effects between form types.

Authors: Holly Biesinger. Mentors: Ran Qi. Insitution: Southern Utah University. This study analyzes important intersections in the relationship that photography had with polygamy from the year 1878, when the gelatin dry-plate method of photography became commercialized, to 1953, when the Short Creek Raids occurred. The study focuses on the polygamist faction within the Mormon Church (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints), specifically the group that later evolved into the Fundamentalist Latter-Day Saints (FLDS). It is important to note that not all members of the original Mormon church were polygamists, and as such this study does not represent the church as a whole. Additionally, it is important to note that the entire history of polygamy or photography will not be addressed, but key points of intersection will be acknowledged. This study describes how photography that contained polygamist subjects shifted over time and established a narrative for the outside general public to understand.

Authors: Eve Christensen, Chase Redd, Bailey Uzzardo. Mentors: Elijah Neilson. Insitution: Southern Utah University. The advent of the Covid-19 pandemic in early 2020 brought with it a host of changes to the workplace. One change in particular was the wide-spread transition to remote work as opposed to in-person work as concerns with spreading the Covid-19 virus necessitated a shift in how the labor force performed their work. The Covid-19 pandemic created more opportunities for employees to work from home rather than working on site. This paper seeks to evaluate the correlation between working from home and earnings using an econometric model. By comparing an individual’s earnings before and after the Covid-19 pandemic, along with whether they work from home or on site, we hope to better understand the effect that remote work has on a person's decision to enter the job market and which fields the incoming labor force are pursuing. Our findings will also be relevant to employers as they evaluate what a competitive wage would be depending on the availability of work from home options for a certain job.

Authors: Audrey Wells. Mentors: Fredric Govedich. Insitution: Southern Utah University. This project is an interdisciplinary meta-analysis of literature across neuroscience, psychology, biochemistry, and biological anthropology. I am interested in comparing the neural physiology of love relationships to that of recreational drug use. I have cross referenced studies on the areas of activation and neurotransmitter level changes for each of these experiences. Both of these activities, specifically when comparing drugs to the infatuation stage of a relationship, show a dramatic increase in the reward complex within the center of the human brain, as well as an increase in risky behavior and obsession with the object of attraction/addiction. I then continued in an analysis of the termination from either positive stimuli, namely, rejection from a lover, and recreational drug withdrawal. I have found that within the motivational sectors of the brain, activation when viewing your rejector, as well as the heightened dopamine produced, show comparable similarities to those who are experiencing an active physiology drug withdrawal.

Authors: Jonas P Knochelmann. Mentors: Rogelio E. Cardona-Rivera. Insitution: University of Utah. Despite the highly technical nature of Procedural Content Generation (PCG), the holistic study of the discipline is minimal and qualitative. We argue that this gap exists because there is no formal framework to talk about PCG artifacts and algorithms and propose the mathematical field of group theory to serve as such a framework. Group theory is a well-established discipline that has been embraced in chemistry, physics, and art, with tools for analyzing, combining, and generating objects based on their structure. We outline a specific method for applying group theory to PCG and explore a number of case studies in the hopes of developing a more unified formal framework for future study.

Authors: Tia Dudley, Ty Erickson. Mentors: Matthew Weeg, Mary Jo Tufte. Insitution: Southern Utah University. The pharmacological investigation of plant essential oils has been expanding due to their suspected health implications. Research supports that plant essential oils have cardiovascular benefits, including reducing blood pressure and managing hypertension. Our research centers on stinging nettle and its effect on the vasculature in frogs. Existing evidence shows that stinging nettle can be used to treat hypertension, a disease intensified by vasoconstriction. Our study aims to investigate if stinging nettle causes a relaxation in smooth muscle and vasodilation. We administered stinging nettle on the vasculature in frogs and measured the diameter of the blood vessels before, during, and after the application. Results show that the application of stinging nettle has a vasodilating effect on some of the smaller blood vessels. The vasodilation is a potential mechanism for the anti-hypertensive effects of stinging nettle. These findings illustrate a probable avenue in cardiovascular medicine and highlight the potential of plant oils in reshaping the landscape of modern health.

Authors: Jenna Norris. Mentors: Kerry Muhlestein. Insitution: Brigham Young University. In the hot and dry climate of the Fag el-Gamous Cemetery in Egypt, a wide range of elaborately woven textiles have been preserved, each with unique characteristics and technical elements. Through analyzing technical elements, this research aims to reveal evidence of foreign textile production or materials incorporated in Fag el-Gamous burials. The BYU Egypt Excavation Team has been excavating at the cemetery for over 40 years, uncovering important information about the region’s ancient inhabitants. Due to their exceptional preservation, textiles can provide significant insights into the lives and identities of the individuals buried at the site. While studies have been conducted in the past to address how socioeconomic status and religious affiliation are reflected in textiles, more remains to be learned about how foreign connections and trade affected textile production in the Fayoum region. This research aims to utilize both technical and design analysis to identify foreign textiles—including analyzing weaving techniques, thread manipulations, and woven motifs. It will also aim to use these forms of analyses to detect potential indications of immigration, providing a foundation for future research into connections between immigrant status and funerary practices.

Authors: Megan DuVal, John Longino, Rodolfo da Silva Probst. Mentors: John Longino. Insitution: University of Utah. Army ants (Formicidae: Dorylinae) are top predators throughout most tropical and subtropical regions of the world. Their nomadic colonies and cooperative social hunting make them behaviorally and ecologically unique keystone species that are of conservation concern. Their status as nomadic top predators makes army ants vulnerable in areas affected by habitat fragmentation. An obstacle to conservation efforts is the outdated army ant species-level taxonomy, which hasn’t been updated since the 1950s for many genera. For Labidus, a widespread and ecologically important army ant genus in the Americas, there are currently seven valid species recognized solely based on morphology of workers and/or males. Three species are only based on males, which need to be associated with their respective workers, and within the four primarily worker-based species, there are likely cryptic species. To address these issues, we applied cutting-edge phylogenetics and phylogenomics to update the species-level taxonomy. To construct our phylogenetic tree, we used ultraconserved elements (UCEs, which use thousands of regions across the genome and can accurately infer evolutionary relationships across broad timescales) from 17 specimens, 66 COI barcodes from the Barcode of Life Database (BOLD), and 35 new COI barcodes obtained through in-house Nanopore sequencing. Through our analyses, we found that the genus Labidus contains at least 11 species and that all of the previously recognized wide-ranging species are made up of multiple cryptic species with more restricted ranges. We were able to associate all three previously identified male-based species with their respective workers. We have also found patterns of parallel and overlapping biogeography across multiple Labidus clades. Our UCE+Nanopore approach allows for an updated taxonomy of Labidus, leading to a better understanding of its evolutionary history and a better ability to promote its conservation.

Authors: Jacob Willoughby. Mentors: Joshua Price. Insitution: Southern Utah University. Gender pay inequality remains a persistent and widely discussed issue across various professions and industries. I was curious about the extent that this issue affects the field of psychology as it is an industry that is quite significantly dominated by woman. This econometrics paper delves into the complex landscape of possible gender-based wage disparities within the realm of psychology. By employing rigorous statistical analysis and econometric techniques, I aim to uncover the underlying factors contributing to the pay gap between male and female psychologists. Understanding the intricacies of this phenomenon is not only essential for promoting fairness and equality in the workplace but also for fostering a more inclusive and diverse community within the field of psychology. This study endeavors to shed light on the extent of the pay gap, its determinants, and potential policy implications to address this critical issue in the profession.

Authors: Addie Ressler. Mentors: Jacob R. Hickman. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Since the conflict named “the Troubles”, infrastructure and symbolic imagery have been used to divide areas within Northern Ireland and mark territory between Loyalist and Republican communities. While the larger community in Belfast is still held by these physically and socially enforced boundaries, the art community actively defies these restrictive borders by renting, renovating, and then transforming buildings and spaces within segregated areas. In this paper, I analyze the unique and incomparable role that artists can play in pushing against the sectarian attitudes that persist within Belfast. Their success is dependent, in part, on the spaces they occupy and the use of those spaces. I argue that because artists infuse their studios and buildings with metaphysical meaning, artist collectives are able to provide neutral spaces where individuals from the opposing communities can come in contact with one another. Ultimately, members of the art community in Belfast strive to produce a commune-like entity that can act as a microcosm for an ideal Belfast.

Authors: Talia Berglund. Mentors: Michael T. Searcy. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Fremont Red-on-Gray Pottery Specific to the Northern Macro-Region of inhabitance, there has yet to be a comprehensive cataloging of Fremont red-on-gray ceramics. As such, I will be asking the following research questions in regard to this type of ceramic: What designs were painted on Great Salt Lake red-on-gray? And how do these designs compare to other Fremont ceramic types? In order to effectively answer these questions, I will look at Great Salt Lake Fremont ceramic vessels and sherds with traces of red paint on the surface, with a particular emphasis on the artifacts found at Hinckley mounds but comparing them to Wolf Village specimens as well. The research will include recording the shapes and designs that are painted on the vessels, as well as measuring width and length of these lines and shapes. I will also investigate what the red pigment is made out of–using either PXRF or microscopic analysis. These methods will generate a catalog of designs found on red-on-gray ceramics, as well as a data set that will allow me to look for patterns among the painted designs. I plan to develop a general typology of red-on-gray Fremont pottery based on the sample investigated.In carrying out this research, we should be able to assess whether or not the Fremont in the Northern Macro-Region shared painting practices with other Fremont in different areas, and thus possibly determine how they viewed themselves as belonging to or different from other nearby groups of people. If a pattern emerges and red-on-gray designs are shared between groups, then perhaps they interacted with and associated with those groups. If there is a lack of shared practices and designs, the opposite could be potentially true.

Authors: Amber Clayton. Mentors: Michael Searcy. Insitution: Brigham Young University. This summer, an excavation took place at the Hinckley Mounds, which included the recovery of many different artifacts. Artifacts found include faunal bones—the main object of my research project. The Fremont people left behind so many different things for us to find. They hunted particular animals; which can indicate which animals may have contributed most to their diets and may have also been used to contribute to other aspects of their lives. Many questions can be answered with the analysis of faunal bones: Which faunal bones show up more than others? What does the variety of animals teach us about the Fremont people at Hinckley Mounds? Through the analysis of the faunal assemblage I will be conducting, I will be able to tell which animals are more common in the assemblage. I believe this will also be able to tell me which animals played a more prominent part in the lives of the Fremont people.My primary goal is to determine the typology of the faunal bones by using the comparative collection at the Museum of Peoples and Cultures in order to see if I can identify the animals left behind by the Fremont people at Hinckley Mounds. Hundreds of faunal bones were found, so many of them that it will be impossible for me to analyze all of them during fall semester. However, I will strive to analyze representative sample of them so I have some good sample data. I will then use the data from 2023 and the results from the 2015 field season to write up the research for this project.

Authors: Katrina Kim. Mentors: Joshua Price. Insitution: Southern Utah University. The gender wage gap has been a persistent issue in the labor market for several decades, resulting in inequalities in workforce opportunities for women. Traditionally, this gap has often been attributed to observable characteristics, referred to as "human capital determinants" which characterized jobs in to male-dominated and female-dominated roles. This division was based on factors such as job requirements and physical labor, leading to disparities in wages. However, recent decades have seen a narrowing of the gender wage gap due to increased opportunities and the emergence of the gig economy. While Uber is one of the most widely recognized gig economy platforms, this study aims to explore whether the gender wage gap persists or narrows across various technology-based job markets. Utilizing data from the Gig Economy Data Hub, which includes information from gig worker surveys, tax returns, demographics, and more, this research seeks to identify the factors influencing gender pay disparities. The study will examine income differentials between male and female gig workers across multiple platforms, taking into account various wage determinants and tax statuses. Additionally, demographic variables including race and household income will be considered as wage disparities exist not only between genders but also among different minority groups. By examining various factors, this study will contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the impact of the gig economy on gender pay equity and inform potential policy interventions aimed at addressing these disparities.

Authors: Ashlyn Clark. Mentors: Lynnette Finau. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Festivals, museums, bookstores, and Shinto shrines might not seem to have a lot in common, but implicit Nationalist ideals find their way into each of these, leaving their mark in the transmission of Japanese identity. In this study of Yasukuni Jinja and the Yushukan Museum (the Tokyo National War and Peace Memorial shrine and museum), it becomes more clear how these relate to one another, how they relate to Japanese identity, and how exactly they are nationalist in nature. Honor, sacrifice, tradition, and war come together to create a beautiful, unifying narrative that links ancestors with descendants, maintaining national identity and continuing to transmit their traditional ideals.

Authors: Aksel Anderson, Lindsay Rupp, Anna Busatto, Rob MacLeod. Mentors: Rob MacLeod. Insitution: University of Utah. Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death globally, and one of the most impactful subsets is coronary artery disease (CAD). CAD occurs when an obstruction(s) in the arteries fails to supply the heart with sufficient blood flow, ultimately resulting in tissue death. Understanding the geometric structure of the heart’s vasculature can provide insight into the development of CAD. However, previous research has only captured vasculature geometries for the main coronary branches, neglecting the downstream vasculature. Therefore, capturing the downstream vasculature would offer researchers a more comprehensive model to study CAD. Our study developed a method to efficiently obtain subject-specific, comprehensive vasculature geometries. First, we obtained five computed tomography (CT) scans of explanted porcine hearts with the coronaries highlighted via a contrast agent. From these CT images, we developed a novel method to efficiently capture the vasculature geometry of each subject. Once we obtained the final geometries, we computed two metrics to determine the extent of the captured vasculature: (1) the number of vessel segments and (2) the smallest vessel radius. We obtained an average vessel segment count of approximately 169 +/- 63 vessels and a smallest vessel radius of approximately 0.44 +/- 0.15 mm. We were able to successfully capture vessels over 85% smaller than the largest porcine coronary artery with a radius of approximately 3.5 mm. Our methodology will help researchers and clinicians obtain comprehensive vascular geometries to enhance the study and treatment of CAD.

Authors: Gabe Matthews, Easton Eddie. Mentors: Jennifer Meyer. Insitution: Utah Tech University. Diabetes is a prevalent chronic health condition associated with significant complications, including diabetic kidney disease. The accumulation of elevated glucose levels in cells triggers an upregulation of NADPH Oxidase (NOX) expression, contributing to diabetic kidney disease. NOX activation results in an increased production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), inducing oxidative stress and cellular proliferation. Pterostilbene, recognized for its natural antioxidant properties, has demonstrated efficacy in reducing oxidative stress across various cell types. This study focuses on elucidating the NOX pathways in endothelial cells exposed to hyperglycemic conditions and assessing the extent of oxidative stress reduction with the introduction of pterostilbene. To quantify cellular oxidative stress, we will employ an Amplex Red assay to measure superoxide and hydrogen peroxide levels within the cells. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) will also be utilized to assess NOX protein gene expression at the mRNA level. To complement these methods, a western blot analysis is conducted to quantify NOX protein concentrations under distinct environmental conditions. Our research aims to shed light on the potential of pterostilbene as a therapeutic agent in mitigating oxidative stress associated with hyperglycemic conditions in endothelial cells.

Authors: Hazel Ticas, Daniel Scott. Mentors: Daniel Scott. Insitution: Utah Valley University. The COVID-19 pandemic’s results, though highly publicized throughout its early years, fell out of the media’s attention over time. Despite the lower volume of media coverage, the effects of the pandemic remain ongoing. In an effort to maintain accurate information about the most current impacts of COVID-19, this study will review relative COVID-19 case amounts compared to population density for four populations during the omicron peak between the years of 2021 and 2022.. The four populations are: counties in New York, United States; counties in California, United States; a collection of the largest counties from the other 48 United States, and the states in Sweden. The population density for each of the four populations was corrected using Google Maps in order to eliminate areas that didn’t have any residents, but were part of the county or state boundaries. Boundaries have been defined as anything thats stops the spread of COVID-19, said boundary can be geographical or self-isolation. We aim to analyze the data trends of how Omicron spreads in relation to population density and boundary effects by comparing the ratio of virus spreadability to boundaries on each population. The goal is to create a model that can be applied to COVID-19.