Follow

• 

  Let’s Get Mental! : How Mental Health and Religion Work Together to Support the Common Good

  Caroline Lavin Herling, Gabriel Christopher Janus, Gabrielle N. Wilson

  This study asks how religion addresses mental health, with a focus on how it can provide for the common good. The purpose was to explore how religions or religious contacts have been intermingling with the more common dialogue around mental health within the past 20 years. A literature review of relevant articles in Psychology, Sociology and Anthropology revealed that from India to the United States, religion and mental health are concurrent topics in the lives of those individuals who have mental illnesses and practice spirituality. Some of the key points we found are that being in a community, such as being in a religious community can help the mental health of the people and helps them to form better social skills and mental processes. While there is no one way to approach mental health, if you have a role within religion, those individuals mental health seems to be better than those who do not. In India, the impact of the caste system has an effect on the mental health and religious groups are working to ameliorate those effects. The meaning that people can take away from this presentation on mental health in religion is that participation in religious communities can provide outlets and resources to help people stay mentally positive and happy.

• 

  Living Through and Dealing with Addiction in Families

  Amelia Grace Vancamp

  Drug Addiction is one of the many leading causes of fatality, mental illness, homelessness, and family tragedy. As much as drug addiction affects an individual, it also affects the family. From being able to see the effects and emotional costs to peers and family members, we can understand drug addiction better and the mental/emotional tolls it inflicts to all involved. The purpose of this study is to educate the public about the hardships families go through when living with someone with addiction. Participants were chosen based on convenience sampling and recommendations from other interviewees. The research explored the accounts of recovering addicts, family members of an addict and those who have known or seen someone’s family go through this family disease. Through an analysis of seven semi-structured interviews, I was able to identify six themes. The six themes seen were different genders instinct approach when trying to help, time and focus not evenly distributed between parents and non-addicted siblings, Families financial strains, lack of trust, and relationships.These findings provide information the community needs to assist families that suffer from this disease.

• 

  Living Wage in Dayton: Human Rights for Whom?

  Kinsleigh A. Jones, Ahmi' Moore, Christianna J. Surratt

  The purpose of this HRS200 Project is to explore the way in which advocacy work has been done in Dayton, and its surrounding areas, through the concept of Living Wage. Our group is looking to examine the way that administrative assistants, technical staff, and others advocate for their needs, especially in regard to the concept of living wage. The presentation that our group is doing seeks to highlight the research that we have completed for our HRS200 class. We have found material in the Dayton’s City Commission records and the University of Dayton’s Archive files. This research sheds light on Universal Human Rights issues 23 through 25 as well as the UN Global Goals one (No Poverty), three ( Health and Well-Being ), and eight (Decent Work and Economic Growth) . Furthermore, this research is important to our team, our community, and our course because it showcases the way in which worker and economic rights intersect with human rights. A living wage is the foundation to sustain what’s at the base of the UDHR-- free expression, dignity, and liberties that all humans are entitled to. Per our research we have found many connections between human rights and economic justice that the living wage exemplifies.

• 

  Low Cost VR Interaction

  Yagnik Vinodkumar Trivedi

  In the current time, we have VR systems used in varied field for very different kind of application and uses. But the devices (VR headset & controllers) are costly. The aim is to create a VR system which is affordable and gives user the best possible VR experience. This system will let user interact in the VR world with the low-priced head mounted VR device and controllers. Creating a low-cost VR interaction system in which users can do task like rearranging furniture in a room, learn juggling and other task/games like Pong game using cheap and reusable devices like old phones, sensors etc.

• 

  Making Culture-Centered Music Therapists: Resources for Working with Young Adults in Latinx Communities

  Michaela Ann Miller

  This thesis investigates the lack of music therapy literature related to this topic and identifies considerations music therapists should take when working with Latinx communities. I illustrate how social justice and culture-centeredness can be integrated into music therapy practice with the identified communities. I use interviews collected from Latinx university students to learn about the diverse musical preferences and cultures that different members of Latinx communities hold. I describe necessary changes in the American Music Therapy Association’s Competencies for Music Therapists in order to equip music therapy students to better work with diverse populations. Finally, I provide examples of music experiences and hypothetical case studies to demonstrate what music therapy could look like in a culture-centered context with this young adult population. The purpose of this thesis is to make music therapy a more equitable, accessible, and appropriate treatment option for Latinx communities.

• 

  Marijuana Decriminalization Policy and its Effect on Drug-Related Arrest Rates in the New England Region

  Maura Hanley, Michael Lawless

  Marijuana decriminalization policy is a rapidly growing legislative trend of policy change in the United States. Our research examines if marijuana decriminalization policy implementation has affected the rates of drug-related arrests in six states in the New England region of the United States. Maine, Vermont, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Connecticut and Massachusetts were chosen specifically because the New England region was very progressive when it came to marijuana decriminalization and implemented policy in the 2000s and early 2010s. Our research goal was to analyze the arrest rates of marijuana sales and possession per state per year, and examine how the data reflects the relationship of policy implementation and drug arrest rates.

• 

  Marijuana Usage by College Students

  Alec R. Warren

  The usage of marijuana by college students has been a heavily researched topic over the years. In 2017, marijuana usage by college students was at an all time high. Researchers believe that it will continue to rise for a variety of reasons. However, there has been a lack of current up to date research on the topic. The research conducted below offers statistics and answers to a range of questions in regards to college students marijuana usage as well as breaking it down by gender. This quantitative study examines survey responses from 299 undergraduate college students from across the United States. The survey asks questions in regards to marijuana usage and accessibility on their respective campuses. The research findings support the idea that marijuana usage by college students is still at an all time high.

• 

  Masked Face Analysis via Multitask Learning

  Vatsa Sanjay Patel

  Facial recognition with mask/noise has consistently been a challenging task in computer vision, which involves human wearing a facial mask. Masked Face Analysis via Multi-task learning is a method which will answer to many questions. In this paper, we propose a unifying framework to simultaneously predict human age, gender, and emotions. This method is divided into three major steps; firstly, Creation of the dataset, Secondly, 3 individual classification models used for the system to learn the labelled (Age, Expression and Gender) images, Thirdly, the multi-task learning (MTL) model; which takes the inputs as the data and shares their weight combined and gives the prediction of the person’s (with mask) age, expression and gender. However, this novel framework will give better output then the existing methods.

• 

  Measured Properties and Possible Applications of Far-From-Equilibrium Systems

  Ryan J. Maguire, Lauren Ashley Stoops

  Self-assembling systems, such as micelles, have a variety of applications in biological organisms. Their unique properties include an ability to achieve a relatively stable, far-from-equilibrium state that in turn yields a number of unique aspects upon an individual system. Distinct properties of a far-from-equilibrium system include unusually low shear-viscosity, a lower degree of packing in the polar head groups, a higher degree of packing in the hydrophilic hydrocarbon chains, and an overall increase in chaos. These properties allow biological systems to conserve heat, especially due to the unique intermolecular interactions demonstrated through the shear-viscosity. These studies provide possible macroscopic uses for micelles and other far-from-equilibrium systems to ultimately reduce the waste heat emitted by humanity and instead utilize this heat as energy, ultimately limiting the impact of human actions on climate change and conserving Earth's ecological systems.

• 

  Measuring Perceptions of Various Forms of Rehabilitation and Re-entry Programs on Various Types of Offenders and Reducing the Likelihood of Recidivism: A Qualitative Study of Criminal Justice Professionals in Ohio

  Jasmine H. Riechmann

  Research suggests that rehabilitation and reentry programs reduce rates of recidivism for various types of offenders. The study, based on the constructivist paradigm, will use a phenomenological strategy to explain criminal justice professionals’ perceptions of rehabilitation and reentry programs. Participants with experience working with at-risk populations in Ohio were selected for inclusion in the study. Participant experiences and feedback were analyzed to answer the research questions posed in the study. Data collected from each interview and the researcher’s field notes were compared to identify themes.

• 

  Meredith Grenci: Artist Talk

  Meredith R. Grenci

  I have always had an innate understanding of and love for color. My appreciation of the human figure came after, when I was introduced to a figure drawing class at the University of Dayton. This fascination, along with developmental experiences, has nourished my artistic curiosities, and led me to focus on the versatile nature of color throughout my figurative pieces.Aiming to explore the dynamic human identity, my body of artwork touches on themes of a modern global pandemic. Focusing on the emotional side of human disposition and likeness, my paintings and sculptures demonstrate how figurative imagery is a testimony to cultural change. Through my creative process, the crossover between the human experience and the tactile nature of fine art is brought to light, and beams from within the finalized piece; the method constitutes ‘bringing the figure out of the darkness.’ This is achieved by using a layering technique with mixed media to build the figure up and out of the ground, the canvas. Adopting the concept of ‘painting’ as a philosophy toward two-dimensional media application has enabled me to communicate more effectively through art. The implementation of a step by step creative process results in multi-dimensional imagery, emphasizing visual depth.Ultimately, by exploring culture and figurative imagery, my body of work becomes a sign of the times and an outlet for storytelling. It serves to render society in an interpretive way, and prompts viewers to develop a response from the heart, rooted in ‘pathos.’

• 

  Mid Century Androgyny

  Jessica Nicole Williams

  The constant availability of modern technology encourages society to resist moments of meditation. In hopes of creating a shift in this interaction, I am focusing on functional pottery and giving them glory. I am exploring various ways of incorporating my androgyny, searching for a balance of hard and soft, geometric and organic. The journey of finding this balance is a reflection of my struggles with gender and self-image, embodying masculine and feminine energy searching for existence of both without abundance of one. I find the linear quality of mid-century modern aesthetic to be a compliment to the organic, feminine energy I'm channeling. The childhood memories attached to this aesthetic are something I treasure, reminding me of times where we were together and so present. I am looking to encourage this presence through my functional work, to invite community and conversation into a home space.

• 

  mir-277 Targets Hid to Ameliorate Aβ42-mediated Neurodegeneration in Drosophila Eye Model of Alzheimer’s Disease

  Prajakta D. Deshpande

  Alzheimer’s disease (AD), an age-related progressive neurodegenerative disorder, exhibits reduced cognitive functions with no cure to date. One of the reasons for AD is the extracellular accumulation of Amyloid-beta 42 (Aβ42) plaques. Misexpression of human Aβ42 in the developing retina of Drosophila exhibits AD-like neuropathology. Accumulation of Aβ42 plaque(s) triggers aberrant signaling resulting in neuronal cell death by unknown mechanism(s). We screened for microRNAs which post-transcriptionally regulate expression of genes by degrading mRNA of the target genes. In a forward genetic screen using miRNAs, we identified mir-277 as a genetic modifier of Aβ42-mediated neurodegeneration. Gain-of-function of mir-277 rescues Aβ42 mediated neurodegeneration whereas loss-of-function of mir-277 enhances Aβ42 mediated neurodegeneration. Moreover, misexpression of higher levels of mir-277 in the GMR>Aβ42 background restores the retinal axonal targeting indicating functional rescue. Furthermore, we have identified head involution defective (hid) as one of the targets of mir-277 by Fly TargetScan and validated by luciferase assay and qPCR. The hid transcript levels are decreased by one third when mir-277 is misexpressed in the GMR>Aβ42 background in comparison to the GMR>Aβ42 fly model. Here we provide a mechanism of how mir-277 modulates Aβ42-mediated neurodegeneration by regulating hid transcript levels and demonstrate its neuroprotective role in Aβ42-mediated neuropathology.

• 

  Modeling and Visualization of Brownian Motion with Python

  Jiahe Song

  Brownian motion is widely used in the field of physics, mathematics, and economics, refers to the random motion of particles in a fluid, such as smoke particles in a gas. This study models and visualizes the Brownian motion in two dimensions by using random walk process and python visual package respectively. The final program performs a million steps of random walk process in a finite size lattice.

• 

  Modeling the Oscillation of a Belousov–Zhabotinsky Reaction

  Wyatt Norman Lee

  In the late 20th Century, physicist Ilya Prigogine formulated a mathematical model of chemical oscillators, also known as autocatalytic reactions. He named this model the ‘Brusselator’ after his home town of Brussels. The two equations of the Brusselator model of a Belousov–Zhabotinsky Reaction consist of two constants, a and b, and two variables, denoted x and y in this project, which represent the concentrations of the two chemicals in the reaction. The ordinary differential equations of this model will be solved using numerical methods in the Python programming language, specifically utilizing the Bulirsch–Stoer algorithm to do so. A plot of the solutions will be provided to gain a more intuitive understanding of the reaction taking place.

• 

  Multi Vehicle Recognition, Tracking and Counting

  Avinash Beerelli

  Traffic congestion has become a major problem in the cities which are expanding at a rapid rate, making it way for looking at intelligent traffic systems. It is also rising and contributing to issues like wasted fuel, increased cost of transportation, greenhouse gas emissions, and safety as well. There are a number of solutions available which focus on reducing traffic congestion and improve traffic flow by vehicle detection, tracking and counting. In the proposed project we adopt artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms to automatically analyze ongoing traffic condition in real time, detect the vehicles and their classification, such as cars, trucks, buses, or motorbikes. In addition, we are tracking the vehicles along multiple cameras in the city.

• 

  Music Therapy Approaches and Methods with Children Ages 8-12 Who Have Had Adverse Childhood Experiences

  Stephanie Elaine Kozol

  There is research stating that children who have had Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), as described by Felitti et al. (1998), can develop significant relationships with music (Fairchild & Mraz, 2018; Stuart, 2018; Zanders, 2012). For children who have experienced ACEs, music can provide a medium for self-expression, an escape from reality, a way to process challenging events, and other coping mechanisms. Although music therapy clinical resources for this age group are scarce, it seems that music therapy has potential to increase quality of life for children ages 8-12 affected by ACEs. Through interviews with three music therapists, considerations for best music therapy practices with this clientele are described with particular consideration given to salient treatment themes. This study provides resources that can improve the quality of music therapy as trauma treatment for children who have had ACEs, as well as equip current and future clinicians with insights and perspectives to advocate for expanded music therapy services for children with ACEs.

• 

  NGOs and their Economic Relationship with Women in Bangladesh

  Krista R. Borchers, Laura Ann Hughes, Dominic A. Ortenzo

  Based on the work and data gathered by Counterpart International, a development agency funded by USAID, this presentation focuses on how gender in Bangladesh is constructed both conceptually and in practice. This is part of a larger program Counterpart International has implemented since 2018, titled, ‘Promoting Advocacy and Rights’ (PAR) in collaboration with local NGOs. Anchored in the Gender/Women in Development (GID/WID) approach, PAR aims to deepen democratic values within civil society to improve public governance. Our specific goal is to examine how the development project implemented by the NGOs plan to ‘include’ women, who are their target population. During our research, we have come to the understanding that NGOs often have a double-sided nature. Although NGOs come with the intent of help and aid, there are many times that they misunderstand the culture and actual effects of their work in a given country. Understanding gender roles in culture is critical to finding success within development projects. In Bangladesh, there are many layers to the economic situation of women. Similarly, they have a complicated history working with international NGOs, specifically in terms of microfinance. This presentation first outlines Counterpart’s efforts in improving civil society, especially looking at gender equality and advancing equal opportunity. Next, we use the critical development studies framework to identify gaps in the project design and offer some recommendations based on our semester-long work on deepening our understanding of Bangladesh as a unique country. Finally, we analyze the development project using the critical framework of access, effects, and control.

• 

  Novel Patented Porphyrin Works Synergistically with Bacteriophage PEV2 in the Removal of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Biofilms on Medically Relevant Substrata

  Jessica Elizabeth Geyer, Hannah Corinne Gordon

  Antimicrobial resistance is a leading concern for medical professionals around the world, the lack of efficacy of many major antibiotics is now causing once treatable strains of bacteria to run rampant infections. One primary pathogen of concern is Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a deadly bacterium that causes severe human infections and exhibits a high mortality rate for immunocompromised individuals. While a single cell of P. aeruginosa can rapidly acquire antibiotic resistance, the biofilms it self-produces provides it with an additional 1000 times more resistance. Bacterial biofilms produce an extracellular matrix that acts as a scaffold for growth and imparts a form of protection against predators, harsh conditions, and chemicals. As the problem of antibiotics resistance rises coupled with the difficult eradication of biofilms, there is an urgent need for an alternative and more reliable method of bacterial treatment. Our lab has produced a novel patented zinc containing porphyrin, Zn(II)meso-5,10,15-triyl-tris(1-methylpyridin-1-ium)-20-(pentafluorophenyl) porphine tritosylate (ZnPor), which exhibits broad antibacterial activity against planktonic and biofilm-associated cells. ZnPor interacts with the biofilm which results in a more porous biofilm that dissembles and detaches from substrata, making the bacterial cells inherently more accessible and susceptible to removal. In this work we show a synergistic combination treatment between ZnPor and an obligately lytic P. aeruginosa specific bacteriophage, PEV2. There is greater biofilm deconstruction from various medically relevant substrata such as polyethylene, titanium, and hydroxyapatite. These activities do not require photoactivation; however, when photoactivation is added the combinational therapy, there is even further removal of the biofilm and killing of associated cells. We also present data that demonstrates ZnPor possesses activity against the bacteriophage PEV2. We refer to this as the “take no prisoners” approach; intended to mop up the battlefield of the phage-bacteria war; thus, reducing the survival of phage resistant bacteria and addressing the issue of bacterial resistance.

• 

  Oakwood Inclusion Coalition Project

  Roberto Luis Alomar, Eman Abdulaziz Alshafai, Brian M. Bollinger, Claire Townsend Brewer, William Carreras-Ortiz, Emily M. Cordonnier, Drake J. Dahlinghaus, Samantha Nicole Johnson, Megan Marie Lewis, Ajay Anton Madlinger, Remy P. McAllister, Kathryn Elizabeth Niekamp, Brendan Michael Pugliese, Lucy Rauker, Madeline Murphy Spicer, Shannon Marie Stanforth

  Students in the senior level Graphic Design III course were tasked with creating a logo design and branding for the Oakwood Inclusion Coalition (OIC). Students spent the semester working as independent design firms self-named RPS and Post Meridian. Responsibilities of the two firms entailed not only design work but inter-firm management and extra-firm communications with members of the OIC. While certain roles such as Project Manager or Communications Specialist were maintained, RPS and Post Meridian used their own democratic strategy to include everyone in the creative process. Students began their approach to the OIC’s project by compiling visual inspiration, focusing on key words in the OIC’s mission, developing an appropriate color palette, and collectively creating sketches for a logo that embodied the mission of the OIC. Concept sketches were then edited and further refined to tailor the logo designs to the goals of the OIC. Political climates past, present, and future were considered along with the history of the city of Oakwood and the themes of inclusivity and action in the face of adversity. Upon presenting their logo concepts to the OIC Leadership Team, each firm was directed to move forward with a single logo direction and corresponding branding materials. RPS and Post Meridian are scheduled to present their final logo designs and branding assets to the OIC Leadership Team next week. The OIC will in turn select one firm’s proposal to move forward into production and implementation. The chance to work with a local government on a project with such important implications has been a tremendous experiential learning opportunity for all. Special thanks to Dr. Roger Crum for bringing the OIC project to the senior Graphic Design students in the Department of Art and Design.

• 

  On a Min-Max Property of Chordal Bipartite Graphs

  Kayte Lynn Jackson

  I will be exploring an interesting min-max feature of a subset of graphs called chordal bipartite graphs, those without any induced cycles on 6 or more vertices. First, I will explain special properties of a larger subset of bipartite graphs, those with no induced cycles on strictly 6 vertices, and how this leads to the conclusion for chordal bipartite graphs. The findings that are described are from a paper titled "A Min–Max Property of Chordal Bipartite Graphs with Applications" that I have read in detail. Consider a graph G, a bipartite graph with no induced cycles on exactly 6 vertices, then G* is the complement of the square of the line graph of G. The paper initially proves two facts. First, it proves that each maximal independent set of G* is the edge set of a chain subgraph of G. It also proves that the minimum number of chain subgraphs needed to cover the edges of G is equal to the chromatic number of G*. These fascinating properties along with a previous discovery that a chordal bipartite graph G has a weakly chordal G* leads to the conclusion that the size of the largest induced matching of G, the largest clique size of G*, the chromatic number of G*, and the minimum number of chain graphs needed to cover the edges of G are all equal in chordal bipartite graphs.

• 

  On Sex Differences in the Effects of Rapid-Acting Antidepressants

  Patrick Robert Flaherty

  Major depressive disorder (MDD) is an extremely debilitating sex-related disorder that currently affects over 300 million people worldwide. Women are more vulnerable to the precipitation of depressive symptoms and they are more likely to suffer from MDD as compared to men. Despite the pronounced sex differences in the manifestation of MDD and responsiveness of patients to drug treatment, clinical andpreclinical research on the neurobiological basis of this disorder and antidepressant drug development has focused on the male sex. Conventional antidepressant drug therapies are often ineffective and typically require weeks of chronic treatment to induce alleviation of depressive symptoms in MDD patients. Recently, the discovery of the rapid-acting antidepressant properties of the non-competitive N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist ketamine revolutionized the field of antidepressant drug discovery. In the context of the current thesis we conducted a literature review on the current clinical and preclinical evidence highlighting the important role that sex may play in response to ketamine, as well as to other rapid-acting antidepressants.

• 

  Panel Discussion: An Introduction to "The Magic Flute"

  Mariah Joanna Berryman, Alyssa C. Boldt, Clare Rose Carey, Juliana Christine Hake, Mary Clare Hake, John Carter Herzog, Trinity Peace Hines-Anthony, Michaela Ann Miller, Angelo N. Moore-Knight, Arianna Maria Ranallo, Olivia Easton Redwine, Anna Jean Simmons, Blaise C. Stephens, Beck Lee Trumbull

  Meet the cast and creative team who created the University of Dayton's 2020-2021 production of Mozart's The Magic Flute. Stream the episodes or binge watch the full version at the UD Music Department's YouTube channel.

• 

  Parental Hostility and Youthful Offending

  Shannon Elizabeth Powers

  Research shows that parenting styles are associated with children’s behavior and adjustment. One type of parenting style is parental hostility, which has been found to be correlated with delinquency. This relationship is more pronounced when parental hostility includes physical aggression towards the child or teenager. The current study aims to examine the link between parental hostility and delinquency among adjudicated juveniles. The Pathways to Desistance data was used to examine this relationship. The sample consisted of 1,354 serious juvenile offenders between the ages of 14 years old to under 18 years old from Philadelphia and Phoenix. The participants were 86% males, 41.4% African American, 20% White, and 33.5% of the rest of the sample consisted of other races. A bivariate correlation was used to examine the association. The findings show a weak statistically significant association between mother’s and father’s parental hostility and total offending, which is aligned with previous research. Findings and implications will be discussed.

• 

  Perception of Police Canines on a Midwest Campus

  Tyera J. Brown, Noah Nietz

  Officials at Midwest universities have often shied away from the idea of bringing police canines onto campuses in fear of the perceptions from students. The study used a phenomenological strategy to explain students' and officers' perceptions of police canines on a Midwest university campus. Participants enrolled in a Midwest university and officers employed at a Midwest university were interviewed using a snowball sampling method. Participants were asked a series of open-ended questions on their views of policing and bringing police canines on campus. Participant experiences and feedback were analyzed to answer the research questions in the study. Data collected from interviews was reviewed to identify themes.