Fine Arts

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: Michaela Lovejoy, Rylee Udom, Lindsey Fry, Hailey Roubidoux, Makayla Dunbar, Kali Hunt, Mandy Gibbs, Lisa Welch. Mentors: Lisa Welch. Insitution: Utah Tech University. Traditional dental radiography education necessitates the exposure of both clinician and patients to radiation to build clinician skill. Virtual reality (VR) may enable practitioners to learn valuable hands on skills without the use of expensive equipment and without patient or operator exposure to radiation. The purpose of the research is to determine if access to practice in virtual reality (VR) using a specifically designed application, builds skill competency in dental radiology compared with traditional practice methods. A convenience sample of 24 first year dental hygiene students at Utah Tech University were recruited and randomly assigned to the test and control groups. Test group participants were given access to a VR headset with a dental radiology skill practice application installed. Control group participants were given access to traditional dental radiography skill practice methods. To encourage participation, an incentive of a $10 Amazon gift card upon completion of the study was offered. Data will be collected via skill competency evaluation at two-months, mid-term grade scores and final grade scores from the participants’ dental radiology laboratory course. To increase internal validity and reliability, investigators responsible for skill competency evaluation will be blinded and undergo both intra and inter-rater reliability testing to 95% agreement. Upon completion of the Fall semester 2023, data will be analyzed using ANOVA repeated measures between factors accounting for the two independent variables of traditional practice and practice in VR and the dependent variables of competency assessment scores, mid-term and final clinical course grades. Alpha will be set at 0.05. Should it be determined that practice in VR contributes to student learning, VR may enable students to practice additional health science skills in a safe, low stakes environment; thus, increasing student experiential learning and contributing to increased student and patient safety.

Authors: Marcus M Lawrence, Merrill Funk, Jeffrey C Cowley, Amanda Hawkes, Aaron McKenzie, Alexandra Routsis, Wesley Ziegler, Talon Thornton, Spencer Maxwell, Korina Ziegler, James Navalta. Mentors: Marcus Lawrence. Insitution: Southern Utah University. American College of Sports Medicine has again found that wearable technology and resistance training (RT) are two of the top 5 fitness trends in 2023. Our lab recently found that the bicep-worn Polar Verity device was valid and reliable for measuring average and maximal heart rate (HR) during light intensity circuit RT. However, no study has examined other bicep worn devices during RT while also examining heavier intensities. PURPOSE: To determine the concurrent validity of identical Polar OH1 (x2) and Verity Sense (x2) bicep-worn devices in recording average and maximal HR following moderately heavy RT. METHODS: Twenty-one adult participants completed this study (n=10 female, n=11 male; age: 26.1±9.2 yrs; height: 171.3±9.4 cm; mass: 71.4±18.2 kg; RT experience: 5.7±4.9 yrs). The four bicep devices (Polar OH1 x2 and Polar Verity Sense x2) were worn along with the Polar H10 chest strap, criterion for HR. Participants completed 8 supersets of the reverse lunge and shoulder press exercises using dumbbells at a light (4 sets) and moderately heavy (4 sets) intensity with 1 superset of 6 repetitions per exercise (12 repetitions per superset) and 1 min rest between supersets. Data was analyzed for validity (Mean Absolute Percent Error [MAPE] and Lin’s Concordance Coefficient [CCC]), with predetermined thresholds of MAPE<10% and CCC>0.70. Paired t-tests were used to determine differences (p<0.05). RESULTS: For average or maximal HR, neither the Polar Verity Sense 1 (127.2±17.8 or 151.5±16.7bpm) or 2 (125.7±18.8 or 147.9±18.9bpm) or the Polar OH1 1 (128.7±18.5 or 154.5±18.1bpm) or 2 (129.5±18.2 or 156.4±17.4bpm) were significantly (p range: 0.14-0.97) different than the criterion (128.6±19.2 or 149.3±18.0bpm). However, the Polar Verity 1 and 2 were not considered valid for average HR (MAPE range:16.17-17.57%; CCC range: 0.07-0.13) or maximal HR (MAPE range: 11.60-13.33%; CCC range: 0.02-0.29). The Polar OH1 1 and 2 devices were not considered valid, either, for average HR (MAPE range: 17.22-17.25%; CCC range: 0.08-0.09) or maximal HR (MAPE range: 13.24-13.92%; CCC range: .024-0.27). CONCLUSION: Despite our lab previously finding the Polar Verity as valid for HR measurements during light intensity RT, the current bicep-worn devices should not be utilized during heavier intensity RT for accurate HR measurements. Individuals resistance training and utilizing bicep-worn devices for heart rate should use them cautiously.

Authors: Anthony Cornwall, Jake Rhea, Travis Ficklin. Mentors: Travis Ficklin. Insitution: Utah Tech University. The purpose of this study was to examine the correlation among various barbell tracking methods for both validity and between-method variability. Back squat and snatch lifts were simultaneously tracked using three systems: a corded linear transducer system (Tendo), a laser-based system (Flex), and a reflective marker multi-camera motion capture system (3D). The 3D system was considered a gold standard for validation. Nine repetitions each of barbell back squat and a snatch lifts were executed. Each system simultaneously tracked peak velocity, peak power, mean velocity, mean power, and displacement of the barbell for both lifts. All correlations were tested using Pearson Product Moment, with alpha set a priori at 0.05. Correlations among tracking methods were high for the back squat, and considerably lower for the snatch lift. Correlations for displacement were poor among all methods (-0.63 < r < 0.65). Correlations for velocities and powers were strong in the back squat (0.79 < r < 0.99), but weak-to-moderate for the snatch (-0.31 < r < 0.63). A discussion will be presented of tracking methods and lift mechanics, which can explain some, but not all, disparities among methods.

Authors: Dylan Snook, Anthony Cornwall, Travis Ficklin. Mentors: Travis Ficklin. Insitution: Utah Tech University. The purposes of this study were to (a) experimentally measure the moment of inertia of a regulation baseball and (b) use the same method to measure the new moment of inertia of a modified baseball about orthogonal axes. The moment of inertia (I) of a rolling sphere follows the form I = k*m*r2, where m = ball mass, r = ball radius, and k represents a constant specific to the ball. Because baseballs are multi-layered of varying densities, they were not treated as a solid spheres. The balls were rolled multiple times down a plane inclined at 4.55 degrees and acceleration was derived by video tracking the ball using a camera with optical axis perpendicular to the plane of the ball’s motion. Position and velocity were derived during the rolling acceleration, and the slope of velocity was taken to be the rolling acceleration (acc). This was then used in the equation: k = (g sin(theta)/acc) – 1, where g is the acceleration due to gravity and theta is the angle of inclination of the plane. The variable k was calculated based upon average acceleration over many rolling trials and then used to finally calculate I for each ball. Results for the regulation ball and for the modified balls will be presented for multiple axes.

Authors: Nathan McCoy. Mentors: Jeff Mason. Insitution: Utah State University. Aging-associated changes in motor function often leads to the development of musculoskeletal tremors. In women, the development/severity of tremors is causally related to ovarian failure atmenopause. In the laboratory, mice can serve as an effective model for the development of aging-associated tremors. Based on our previous studies, ovarian somatic tissues transplanted from young mice to old mice significantly decreased the tremor amplitudes and lowered levels ofgliosis in the brains of the older recipient mice, compared to age-matched control mice. The study was carried out using both germ-cell-containing and germ-cell-depleted ovarian tissue. Neurological improvement and overall health were achieved using both types of tissue with similar results indicating that it may be a non-hormonal influence that is responsible for this phenomenon. This study is aimed to identify which properties of ovarian tissue causes these neurological health benefits to occur. Ovarian tissues excrete exosomes, vesicles that can befilled with miRNA which are transported throughout the body. We aim to isolate these exosomes from ovarian tissues using density gradient based centrifugation and have them introduced via injection intraperitoneally into mice to see if the same neurological improvements are achievedas it was done in mice with ovarian somatic tissue transplants. If such improvements are corroborated then ovarian exosomes will be sequenced to identify which miRNA sequences signal the body to undergo these health improvements.

Authors: Wesley Ziegler, Spencer Maxwell, Aaron McKenzie, Talon Thornton, Alexandra Routsis, Korina Ziegler, Jae Bovell, Devin Green, Bryson Carrier, James Navalta, Setareh Star Zarei, Kaye Lavin, Jeffrey C Cowley, Amanda Hawkes, Merrill Funk, Marcus M Lawrence, Charli Aguilar. Mentors: Marcus Lawrence. Insitution: Southern Utah University. Wearable technology and strength training with free weights are two of the top 5 fitness trends worldwide. However, minimal physiological research has been conducted on the two together and none have measured the accuracy of devices measuring repetition counts across exercises. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine the concurrent validity of four wrist-worn Garmin devices, Instinct (x2), Fenix 6 Pro, and Vivoactive 3, to record repetition counts while performing 4 different exercises during circuit resistance training. METHODS: Twenty participants (n=10 female, n=10 male; age: 23.2  7.7 years) completed this study. Participants completed 4 circuits of 4 exercises (front squat, reverse lunge, push-ups, and shoulder press) using dumbbells at a light intensity with 1 set of 10 repetitions per exercise and 30 seconds rest between exercises and 1-1.5 min rest between circuits. Mean absolute percent error (MAPE, ≤10%) and Lin’s Concordance Coefficient (CCC, ρ≥0.7) were used to validate the device’s repetitions counts in all exercises compared to the criterion reference manual count. Dependent T-tests determined differences (p≤0.05). RESULTS: No devices were considered valid (meeting both the threshold for MAPE and CCC) for measuring repetition counts during front squats (MAPE range: 3.0-18.5% and CCC range: 0.27-0.68, p value range: 0.00-0.94), reverse lunge (MAPE range: 44.5-67.0% and CCC range: 0.19-0.31, p value range: 0.00-0.28), push-ups (MAPE range: 12.5-67.5% and CCC range: 0.10-0.34, p value range: 0.07-0.83), and shoulder press (MAPE range: 18.0-51.0% and CCC range: 0.11-0.43, p value range: 0.00-0.79) exercises. CONCLUSION: The wearable wrist-worn devices were not considered accurate for repetition counts and thus manual counting should be utilized. People who strength train using free weights will need to wait for either improved repetition counting algorithms or increased sensitivity of devices before this measure can be obtained with confidence.

Authors: Kade Robison, David Britt, Elizabeth Vargis. Mentors: David Britt. Insitution: Utah State University. Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is the leading cause of sensorineural hearing loss, the most prevalent form of permanent hearing loss, worldwide. CMV treatment requires long term administration of nucleoside analog antivirals such as ganciclovir (GCV). Although ganciclovir effectively inhibits CMV, it also inhibits neutrophils, an essential component of the immune system, reducing optimal treatment duration. Previous studies have demonstrated that ganciclovir toxicity can be reduced while maintaining effective CMV inhibition by combining subtherapeutic doses of ganciclovir with quercetin, an FDA approved hydrophobic flavonoid with antiviral properties, solubilized with a mitochondria-targeting drug delivery vehicle, Poloxamer 188 (P188). Further efforts have been made to optimize the combinatorial ganciclovir with quercetin encapsulated in P188 (GCV-QP188) treatment by exploring the potential benefits of adding antioxidant vitamins to the GCV-QP188 treatment. One of the pathways by which CMV induces hearing loss is the generation of excess reactive oxygen species, specifically in the mitochondria. Current literature suggests that the toxic effects of the reactive oxygen species produced by CMV in the could be reduced via natural vitamin antioxidant treatments. Ascorbic acid, also known as vitamin C, was the first antioxidant vitamin investigated due to its synergistic antiviral properties when paired with quercetin to treat SARS-CoV-2. Yet, the addition of ascorbic acid into the combinatorial treatment was more toxic than the existing GCV-QP188 treatment. Current efforts are concentrated on assessing the effect of selectively delivering hydrophobic antioxidants to the mitochondria of CMV infected mouse fibroblast cells as targeted antioxidant delivery will require lower antioxidant concentrations, reducing associated toxicity. The addition of hydrophobic antioxidants retinol and alpha-tocopherol, vitamins A and E respectively, delivered via mitochondria-targeting P188 to the existing GCV-QP188 treatment is being investigated to determine if it will significantly improve GCV-QP188 treatment efficacy.

Authors: Anya Weglarz. Mentors: Melissa Watt. Insitution: University of Utah. AbstractBackgroundWomen living with HIV (WLHIV) commonly experience internalized HIV stigma, which refers to how they feel about themselves as a person living with HIV. Internalized stigma interferes with HIV care seeking behavior and may be particularly heightened during the pregnancy and postpartum periods. This thesis aimed to describe internalized HIV stigma among WLHIV giving birth, identify factors associated with internalized HIV stigma, and examine qualitatively the impacts of internalized HIV stigma on the childbirth experience.MethodsPostpartum WLHIV (n=103) were enrolled in the study between March and July 2022 at six clinics in the Kilimanjaro Region, Tanzania. Participants completed a survey within 48 hours after birth, prior to being discharged. The survey included a 13-item measure of HIV-related shame, which assessed levels of internalized HIV stigma (Range: 0-52). Univariable and multivariable regression models examined factors associated with internalized HIV stigma. Qualitative in-depth interviews were conducted with pregnant WLHIV (n=12) and postpartum WLHIV (n=12). Thematic analysis, including memo writing, coding, and synthesis, was employed to analyze the qualitative data.ResultsThe survey sample had a mean age of 29.1 (SD = 5.7), and 52% were diagnosed with HIV during the current pregnancy. Nearly all participants (98%) endorsed at least one item reflecting internalized HIV stigma, with an average endorsement of 9 items (IQR = 6). The most commonly endorsed items were: “I hide my HIV status from others” (87%), “When others find out I have HIV, I expect them to reject me” (78%), and “When I tell others I have HIV, I expect them to think less of me” (75%). In the univariable model, internalized stigma was associated with two demographic characteristics: being Muslim vs. Christian (ß = 7.123; 95%CI: 1.435, 12.811), and being in the poorest/middle national wealth quintiles (ß = 5.266; 95%CI: -0.437, 10.969). Internalized stigma was associated with two birth characteristics: having first birth vs. having had previous births (ß = 4.742; 95%CI: -0.609, 10.093), and attending less than four antenatal care appointments (ß = 5.113; 95%CI: -0.573, 10.798). Internalized stigma was associated with two HIV experiences: being diagnosed with HIV during the current pregnancy vs. diagnosis in a prior pregnancy (ß = 5.969; 95%CI: -1.196, 10.742), and reporting experiences of HIV stigma in the health system (ß = 0.582; 95%CI: 0.134, 1.030). In the final multivariable model, internalized stigma was significantly associated with being Muslim vs. Christian (ß = 6.80; 95%CI: 1.51, 12.09), attending less than four antenatal care appointments (ß = 5.30; 95%CI: 0.04, 10.55), and reporting experiences of HIV stigma in the health system (ß = 0.69; 95%CI: 0.27, 1.12). Qualitative discussions revealed three key themes regarding the impact of internalized HIV stigma on the childbirth experience: reluctance to disclose HIV status, suboptimal adherence to care, and the influence on social support networks.ConclusionWLHIV giving birth in this sample experience high rates of internalized HIV stigma. This stigma was significantly associated with being Muslim, as opposed to being Christian, attending less than four ANC appointments, and reporting experiences of HIV stigma in the healthcare setting. Other factors that were correlated to higher levels of internalized stigma were socioeconomic status, parity, and timing of HIV diagnosis, all of which can impact access to and engagement in healthcare services during the intrapartum and postpartum periods. Internalized HIV stigma impacts the childbirth experience for WLHIV, making the labor and delivery setting an important site for intervention and support.

Authors: Syrus Miner, Ryland Day, Justin LeClair, Adam Dimaio. Mentors: Randy Klabacka. Insitution: Utah Tech University. Accurate measurement of the knee joint angle is important for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation. With the advancement of wearable technology the measurement of range of motion can now be measured dynamically during exercises. The primary purpose of this research project is to provide a mechanism by which physical therapy outcomes can be improved after knee replacement surgery. This will be accomplished by creating a knee brace attachment that will employ motion detecting sensors to chart the post-op and/or post-injury progression of the movement of the knee joint. It is estimated that approximately 5% of the population over the age of 50 in the United States are currently living with a knee replacement. It has been shown that knee pain has been coupled with depression, low self-esteem, eating disorders, and an overall lower satisfaction in life. Improved knee function has reduced the dissatisfaction experienced in life as daily activities are able to be retained. While physical therapy helps recovery of range of motion for patients, the incentive for patients to complete tasks at home and the lack of standardized data collection may impede patient recovery times. The desired outcome of this research is to create a device that reports the effectiveness of a patient's treatment by using off-the-shelf electronics to accurately measure knee joint range of motion and communicate it to physicians.

Authors: ANNA EDLER, RYAN KUNKLER, CASEY WEBB, JACOB MANNING, MARCUS M LAWRENCE. Mentors: Marcus Lawrence. Insitution: Southern Utah University. Climbing (sport and bouldering) has become a very popular hobby for people all over the globe.Now that climbing is an Olympic sport the need for understanding best training practices through evidence, not anecdotal experience, has grown. Using the International Rock Climbing Research Association (IRCRA) individual grading scale based on route completion difficulty,some research has shown that upper limb strength is important for individuals to progress from recreational/intermediate to more advanced/elite levels. However, many studies use non-sportspecific measurements (i.e., hand dynamometer versus a finger climbing hold) and none have assessed rate of force development (RFD) or lower body strength contributions. PURPOSE: To test the hypothesis that compared to recreational/intermediate climbers advanced climbers would have greater dominant and non-dominant upper-body strength and finger RFD as well as lower body compound strength. METHODS: Nineteen subjects (n=8 female and n=11 male;age: 24.7±7.5 yrs; height: 177.6±7.8 cm; mass: 76.0±14.9 kg; IRCRA Sport Grade: 14.1±6.7; n=10 intermediate, n=9 advanced) completed this study. During a single session, following a standardized 3-5 min. warm-up all participants dominant and non-dominant finger strength andRFD (using a Tindeq dynamometer load cell attached via static rope to a 20mm edge) as well as shoulder strength (using the same Tindeq load cell with a static rope attached to an olympic ring), and lower-body compound strength (isometric mid-thigh pull using G-strengthdynamometer load cell attached to a straight bar with a static rope) were assessed. Three trials were done on each measurement with 1 min. between trials and 3-5 min. between tests. Unpaired t-tests determined differences, p<0.05. RESULTS: Across every measurementadvanced climbers had significantly (p<0.05) higher values for absolute and relative (normalized to body weight, BW) measurements. As absolute and non-dominant results were similar we onlyreport dominant relative results, where appropriate. Indeed, compared to intermediate climbers advanced climbers had significantly higher relative dominant finger RFD (9.9±3.7 vs 20.8±9.4N/s*BW -1 ), finger strength (0.5±0.1 vs 0.7±0.3 kg/BW), shoulder strength (0.7±0.2 vs 0.9±0.2 kg/BW), as well as relative compound strength (1.8±0.4 vs 2.6±0.7 kg/BW, respectively). CONCLUSION: Advanced climbers have larger absolute and relative RFD in their fingers,stronger dominant and non-dominant fingers and shoulders, as well as stronger lower body compound strength. Thus, individuals looking to progress from recreational/intermediate climbing grades to advanced/elite should focus on improving total body absolute and relative strength as well as finger RFD.

Authors: Caroline Nielson, Connor Baird. Mentors: Robert Kagabo. Insitution: Utah Tech University. Opioid Use Disorders Treatment Related Disparities in Patients with Psychiatric IllnessAuthors: Caroline Nielson, Connor Baird, Robert Kagabo, PhD, MSW, MPHAbstractBackgroundThis study is a review of peer-reviewed articles of Opioid Use Disorders (OUD) treatment among individuals with psychiatric illness. OUD is a subset of substance use disorders (SUD) that is chronic and a growing public health concern. There were 47,000 opioid-related deaths in 2018 in the US; OUD is responsible globally for 68% of the drug-related deaths. OUD can result from either prescribed or non-prescribed opioid use. Some populations such as individuals with psychiatric illness have high rates of prescription opioids yet face opioid use treatment and research-related disparities. This review study examines OUD treatment and research-related disparities among patients with psychiatric illness with the goal to improve treatment among this vulnerable population.MethodsUsing PubMed and PsycINFO databases, we performed a search of journal articles regarding OUD treatment which were published between 2010 and 2023. We then completed a review of the journal articles using narrative overview guidelines. All articles reviewed were from randomized controlled trial (RCT) studies. Examples of search terms used include OUD treatment and mental health; OUD and psychiatric illness RCT studies; and opioid use treatment and mental health. Studies included were those of OUD treatment among individuals with psychiatric illness and or with a DSM5 or DSM4 diagnosis. Any studies that did not include OUD treatment and, or a DSM diagnosis, or RCT design were excluded. To avoid duplication, only one journal article from a study was included. ResultsThere were 18 journal articles reviewed that met the inclusion criteria. Treatment periods ranged from 8-24 weeks. Generally, studies excluded individuals with diagnoses such as schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorders, or other serious mental health diagnoses. Several studies included participants with a DSM5 or DSM4 diagnosis of OUD, while excluding individuals with other psychiatric or substance use disorders. Most of the studies used pharmacological treatments and only a few studies had combined pharmacological and behavioral treatments. The common medicines in pharmacological treatments were methadone, buprenorphine, and naltrexone.ConclusionOUD treatment and research related disparities exist among individuals with psychiatric illness, yet this is the population who suffer most from OUD. Additional studies regarding OUD treatment among individuals with psychiatric illness are needed to improve OUD treatments and reduce OUD-related morbidity and mortality rates.

Authors: Hannah Smith. Mentors: Jeff Parker. Insitution: Brigham Young University. The Arabic language uses a rich system of patterns called verb forms to create verbs with related meanings from roots made of consonants. For example, the root k-t-b, in form I, kataba, means ‘to write.’ When it appears in form II as kattaba, it means ‘to make someone write.’ In form III, kaataba, it means ‘to exchange letters,’ ‘to correspond’ (Wehr, 2019). There are ten commonly used verb forms, although not every root is used in every form. As Arabic has been exposed to English and speakers borrow verbs from English into their Arabic, they make choices about how and whether to integrate these foreign words into the verb forms. For example, the verb ‘to block (on social media),’ with the derived root b-l-k, is used in form II, ballaka, ‘to block.’ Other borrowed verbs, however, don’t get integrated in this way. Instead, they are used as a noun with a native Arabic verb, usually ‘amila, ‘to do.’ For example, English ‘to delete’ becomes ‘amila daliit, literally ‘to do a delete.’ This study aims to understand what factors influence when and how completely borrowings from English like these are integrated into the verb forms in Jordanian Arabic (JA) by interviewing university students in Amman, Jordan. The interviews are primarily focused on four forms in which borrowings in JA frequently appear (Salem, 2015). Initial data from a group of eight participants shows a general acceptance for the borrowings in their base forms, with much more variation in speakers’ intuitions regarding their usage in other forms. For example, all eight participants perceive ‘to block,’ ballaka, as a completely acceptable word used by most people. However, only two participants felt the same way about its counterpart form, taballaka, ‘to be blocked,’ whereas two other participants perceived it as something no one would ever use. Furthermore, some participants perceive verbs that rely on ‘to do,’ such as ‘to delete,’ to be in the beginning stages of integration, with three of eight interviewees stating that some of these verbs actually are acceptable in verb form II. Thus far, the perceptions of all the borrowings seem to indicate that speakers believe that integration of borrowed verbs is a gradual process. Furthermore, in addition to other factors, the extent to which the verbs are integrated in JA seems to be affected in large part by cultural perceptions of how foreign the verbs are, a factor that has not been noted in previous studies on the subject.

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: Adam Call, Parker Myers. Mentors: Mark Hughes. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Petal projections are defined as a special class of knot projection with a single multi-crossing, which causes the formation of loops entering and exiting the crossing. The relative height of the strands as they pass through the multi-crossing is always an odd-length permutation. Recent research has described the complete set of moves which is sufficient to relate any two permutations that describe the same knot. In this talk, we will discuss potential novel knot invariants arising from isotopy of knots and their petal projections.

Authors: Joshua Cook Wright. Mentors: Jordan Jones. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Fifty years ago, Brazilian scholar José de Nascimento Morais Filho rediscovered Maria Firmina dos Reis (1825–1917), Brazil’s first female—and first black female—novelist. Morais published a biography about Reis, including in it as many of her works as he could find. During her lifetime, Reis published the novel, Úrusula, musical compositions, short stories, and poems, though it was only through Morais’ biography that some of these works were reintroduced to the general public. Reis used writing to challenge the flaws she saw in society. The most glaring of these was slavery, with which she had first-hand experience, her Afro-Brazilian mother and African grandmother having been enslaved. Because of this, she has gained notoriety as not only the first female novelist in Brazil, but as an ardent abolitionist. However, the people living in her hometown of Guimarães, Maranhão, knew her—and continue to remember her—quite differently. To them, she was a teacher, whose life’s work was to educate and elevate as many lives as she could. She founded a school that taught both boys and girls and refused to use corporal punishment. Using information gathered on a summer research trip to Maranhão, Brazil, including a visit to the archive where Reis’ works were rediscovered and a visit to Guimarães, I will compare the prevailing understanding of Maria Firmina dos Reis as an abolitionist writer with the powerful and living legacy that I experienced first hand in Guimarães. I conclude by discussing the impact of viewing Maria Firmina dos Reis as both an abolitionist and a teacher, how these views complement each other, and how seeing both sides of her story can help us better understand how activism can manifest in many different ways.

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: Abraham Harris, Juliana Corbridge. Mentors: Mark Hughes. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Braid closures provide a way to study knots and links in 3-space via group-theoretic techniques. Several important open problems in low-dimensional topology can be reformulated as problems in combinatorial group theory via a particular braid invariant called the band rank. In this talk we will describe the band rank and techniques for computing this quantity which draw on tools from reinforcement learning.

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: Samantha Richardson, Sam Simmons. Mentors: Mark Hughes. Insitution: Brigham Young University. During cellular mitosis long DNA molecules are first split and then separated with one copy being transferred to each of the daughter cells. A class of enzymes known as topoisomerases assist in the separation of the two strands of DNA, though the precise mechanism by which they work is unknown. In this talk we will discuss attempts to model topoisomerase action using techniques from reinforcement learning.

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: 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: 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: 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.

Authors: Tiba Hasan, Elise Larsen, McKell Gillins. Mentors: Jodie Lopez. Insitution: Utah Valley University. AbstractThis paper discusses studies that have researched the most effective forms of teeth whitening and the mechanism behind it. Studies discuss the oxidation of double bonds which in turn lighten the chromogens impacting the overall coloration of dentition. The three main forms of treatment that were considered in these studies include in-office treatment, at home treatment and OTC products. At home overnight bleaching proved to have the best results for both immediate and post 10 week results. At-home treatment under dentist’s care involves lower concentration of hydrogen peroxide or carbamide peroxide ranging from three to ten percent thus it takes longer time than in-office treatment (Leh, B. 2018). Factors such as food intake, beverages, smoking, and oral hygiene care can all impact the efficiency of bleaching methods. While some toothpaste brands, like charcoal toothpaste, claim to whiten teeth, research suggests that these abrasive toothpastes may lead to enamel wear. Furthermore, studies have compared the effects of chemical and herbal toothpaste and found that both can produce similar whitening effects. However, chemical products tend to be more harmful compared to herbal alternatives As dental esthetics have become increasingly important to western populations, more whitening products are readily available for consumer use. Studies warn about the adverse risks and effects of dental bleaching to be aware of for both the consumer and those applying or prescribing bleaching methods, therefore it is important for hygienists and others in the dental field to become educated and aware of the increasing bleaching product selection.

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: Britt Wyatt, Alyssa Habel, Jess Cusick, Heath Ogden, Josh Premo. Mentors: Dr.Britt Wyatt. Insitution: Utah Valley University. Vaccines are crucial to maintaining healthy communities as they provide immunological protection against a variety of infections (Geoghegan, S. et al. 2020). By providing immunity, vaccines prevent serious illnesses, reduce disease severity, and protect communities. However, in 2019 the World Health Organization (WHO) declared vaccine hesitancy (resistance to getting vaccinated) as one of the top 10 dangers to global health (Dubé, Ève, et al. 2021). Previous studies have shown that certain communities are more vaccine hesitant than others. For example, individuals who are religious, conservative, Black, and women have been found to be more vaccine hesitant than other individuals (Savoia, E. et al., 2021) (Gowda C. & Dempsey, A., 2013). Therefore, we wanted to investigate vaccine hesitancy at an open enrollment institution that serves a unique student population where ~70% of students are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and ~30% are non-traditional (over the age of 24) (UVU IR, 2023). Compared to the overall 1.6% of individuals in the United States who are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Pew Research Center, 2023), the identities of the students attending the open enrollment institution are vastly underrepresented in education research that has been conducted at other institutions. To investigate vaccine hesitancy, a survey was given to 1,444 students in the beginning of the Fall 2023 semester asking questions around vaccine safety and support. Preliminary results indicate that 70% of non-religious students will choose to be vaccinated against known and new diseases compared to 37% of religious students. 53% of non-religious students think that vaccine mandates are appropriate compared to 25% of religious students. These results indicate more vaccine hesitancy with religious students compared to non-religious students. As religious students make up most of the student population, results can help inform instructors and/or other stakeholders on scientific literacy topics to support in the academic setting. Lastly, further investigation on the intersectionality of identities will be explored such as gender and religion as women make roughly 80% of health-related decisions in their family unit. If religious women are more likely to be vaccine hesitant, development of strategies to support those students in making evidence-based decisions could be a future aim.

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: Anthony Cornwall, Dylan Snook, Travis Ficklin. Mentors: Travis Ficklin. Insitution: Utah Tech University. The purpose of this study was to discover any relationships between individual finger force capabilities of collegiate pitchers and the spin rates and axes of their four-seam fastballs. NCAA Division-I pitchers participated in the study. Using a hand-held dynamometer, multiple trials of a squeezing task were performed by each pitcher. Five trials were made using both index and middle fingers at maximum isometric effort. Then, in counterbalanced order, pitchers also duplicated the isometric squeeze isolating the index and middle fingers in one-fingered squeezes. Pitchers were constrained to make the maximum effort squeezes in a time frame similar to that of delivering a pitch.Spin axis and rate for their four-seam fastballs were taken from previously collected ball flight tracking using a field Trackman system. Analysis was performed for any relationships among axis tilt and relative finger contribution to total force, as well as spin rates with total isometric force. Additional relationships based upon anthropometric measures of the hand and fingers were also explored and the results are to be presented.

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: Danielle Terry, Seth Helton, Michael Creer. Mentors: Austin M Green. Insitution: University of Utah. With anthropogenic influence increasing worldwide, it is important to understand how wildlife behavior changes in response to urbanized landscapes. Urban ecosystems represent relatively novel landscapes with unique threats and opportunities that can completely restructure species’ population composition and dynamics. Mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) have been shown to alter their temporal activity in response to urbanization across their range of the Intermountain West of the United States. In this study, we will investigate the effects of anthropogenic influence on mule deer temporal activity behavior across two distinct life stages: fawning and non-fawning. Data for this study will come from the citizen science camera trapping project, Wasatch Wildlife Watch. The full project area is separated into two study sites: “Rural” and “Urban”. This study will be based around the wild-to-urban interface of the Central Wasatch Mountain Range and the Bear River Mountain Range, which composes some of the most highly recreated portions of the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest, receiving approximately 9,000,000 visitors annually (U.S Forest Service). We will investigate the proposed differential effects of anthropogenic influence and urbanization on mule deer diel activity patterns in the fawning vs. non-fawning life stages. Also, we will inquire whether intraspecific responses in mule deer diel activity alter interspecific interactions, especially with fawning predators, and how these responses might interact with environmental factors. We predict that anthropogenic influence and urbanization alter the diel activity patterns of fawning mule deer more than non-fawning deer and that the presence and activity of fawn predators (e.g., coyote [Canis latrans]) would have a stronger effect on fawning deer activity than non-fawning deer activity.

Authors: Becca fabis. Mentors: Alexandra Giannell. Insitution: Utah Valley University. On December 2nd my friend was killed by a hit and run driver while going on a run at night. It was right before finals. I was involved with the police and helped her family pack up all of my beloved friends belongings and watched as her daddy cried in her room. Words can’t express the agony I saw. Two months later I learned that another roomate (in a different apartment) her cousin had committed suicide. And we were the place everyone gathered. I held her cousin’s (who committed suicide) sister in my arms as she cried. Words cannot express the agony I felt for them.Then on the first day of school this semester (a month ago) my father suddenly passed away from a brain aneurysm. He was at the peak of health. My mom puked from sickness and shock, later got sick with other illnesses, (she’s doing a little better now) then my sister got sick and I was left to care for them on my own. There’s no words to express my exhaustion. The late nights of wandering my house making sure we were safe. Words have no ability to express my agony I’m in. After my roomate passed I created a painting. It’s called my grieving process because it’s of a house, the house represents me. In it through color you can see the process that grief can have on a person. I’m only 25, people say I’m too young to lose this many people. Perhaps they’re right. It’s an eerie painting and pretty odd when you look at it. I have had now three losses that have taught me that sometimes words aren’t enough. That it’s through art I can scream and it is documented. I would love to present on how creating art can be the breathe of fresh air one desperately needs in order to continue on in this fight we call life.

Authors: Sierra M Mellor, Madilyn Brandt, Nathaniel Eberhart, Samuel Flor, Julianne H Grose. Mentors: Julianne Grose. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Continued use of antibiotics has driven the evolution of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which cause infections that prove difficult to treat. Therefore, it is crucial that alternative treatments for bacterial infections are developed. One such promising method, known as phage therapy, utilizes viruses that infect bacteria. However, compared to the high abundance of bacteriophages, relatively few have been isolated and sequenced, with little known about their gene products. Here we have isolated two phages, SummitAcademy and AJGecko, against the host bacteria Gordonia rubripertincta. Gordonia belongs to the Actinobacteria class containing many pathogenic bacteria, including Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and so analysis of SummitAcademy and AJGecko can provide insight into the evolution of this family. Genomic comparison of conserved genes between SummitAcademy and other Gordonia phages identifies 14 hypothetical proteins as unique to SummitAcademy. Subsequent liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LC-MS) of CsCl-purified SummitAcademy confirms expression of many predicted gene products, verifying the annotation. Several peptides generated through mass spectrometry also provide evidence for extending predicted start sites of gene products. Further characterization of virion proteins and gene products of SummitAcademy can add to the overall knowledge of this cluster of phages and potential phage therapies against Gordonia or related infections.

Authors: Isaac Gillins, Zoe Thompson. Mentors: . Insitution: Utah Valley University. The pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) gene is expressed in the hypothalamus and pituitary and is cleaved into several peptide hormones. One of these is melanocyte-stimulating hormone (MSH), which is involved in food intake and energy expenditure. A mutation in the POMC gene can result in a rare condition in which the subject displays early-onset obesity characterized by severe hyperphagia (i.e. excess hunger). Affected subjects may also show a lack of pubertal development. In this experiment, we will study mice with a mutation in the POMC gene. They show some of the same symptoms as humans with a POMC mutation, including hyperphagia, obesity & infertility. Specifically, we will investigate the estrous cycle in female mice to determine if they are cycling normally. The estrous cycle, similar to the menstrual cycle in humans, is characterized by changes in reproductive hormones, and can be divided into four stages: proestrus, estrus, metestrus, and diestrus. Cells lining the surface of the vagina have been previously collected using a pipette smear technique. Each stage can be characterized by the proportion of three cell types: epithelial cells, cornified cells, and leukocytes. These cells correspond to the fluctuating hormone levels during the estrous cycle. Images of these samples will be assessed for the composition of cells to determine the stage of the estrus cycle, and whether or not the cycle displays normal patterning. Because POMC-deficient mice are infertile, we hypothesize their estrous cycles may be atypical. For example, the estrous cycle of the POMC-deficient mice may appear in irregular order or with one stage being predominant over the rest. If the estrous cycle is atypical, then we will measure the hormones directly to confirm that the infertility is caused by changes in hormonal regulation. This will help us to understand more about how the POMC gene affects reproductive function.

Authors: Lexi Todd, Jessica Jespersen, Isabel Medina Hull, Mary Crawford, Taylor Powell, Ashley Roberts, Melia Fonoimoana Garrett, Kris Urbina, Elizabeth A Cutrer. Mentors: Elizabeth A Cutrer. Insitution: Brigham Young University. Background: American Samoan children face significant mental health challenges, including high levels of depression and anxiety, often escalating to suicidal thoughts and behaviors during adolescence. Addressing this issue, our study collaborated with community leaders in American Samoa to develop and implement five tailored lesson plans aimed at teaching 35 elementary school children resilience strategies for emotional self-regulation. Method: Employing Multimodal Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (MMIPA), we examined students' drawings depicting their emotions of sadness, anger, and fear before and after the intervention. The analysis focused on understanding the impact of the lesson plans on students' emotional regulation strategies. Results: Post-intervention, our findings indicated a notable improvement in students' ability to regulate their emotions, particularly fear. Through the lesson plans, students acquired practical skills and coping mechanisms, allowing them to better manage their emotions. This positive shift in emotional regulation suggests that the intervention played a significant role in enhancing students' resilience, specifically in dealing with fear-related emotions. Conclusion: Our study underscores the effectiveness of a community-based intervention approach in addressing the mental health challenges faced by American Samoan children. By providing targeted resilience-focused lessons, students demonstrated improved emotional self-regulation, particularly in managing fear. These findings highlight the importance of culturally sensitive interventions and community collaboration in promoting mental well-being among vulnerable populations.

Authors: Zach Hendry, Carson Cunningham. Mentors: Micah Shepherd, Kent Gee. Insitution: Brigham Young University. The number of rocket launches per year has been increasing dramatically since 2015, with more rockets launched in the year 2022 than had ever been launched. With the increase in the number of launches per year, it has become increasingly important to understand the impact of rocket launches on the greater environment and community. One important aspect of a rocket launch is the level of acoustical energy that is produced during liftoff. Instantaneous pressure values have been regularly recorded up to 180 dB. Due to these high levels, it’s become important to be able to accurately predict the noise produced by a rocket. One powerful tool used in predicting this sound is the crest factor. The crest factor is an acoustical measurement that shows the difference between the maximum sound pressure (i.e. the crest) compared against the averaged value of the sound pressure. Additionally, this information is vital for planning acoustical equipment in order to avoid measurement clipping. This presentation will be about crest factor analyses performed on the Antares NG-19 rocket launch from August 2023.