Stander Symposium: College of Arts and Sciences

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Is a Roth IRA better if taxes are higher in the future?

Shaun D. Huguley

Roth individual retirement accounts (IRAs) are funded with post tax dollars and Traditional IRAs are funded with pre-tax dollars. Traditional IRAs are taxed when the money is withdrawn. It has been said that if taxes are higher in the future, then it is better to use Roth IRAs, but such analysis does not take into consideration that if income is lower than certain thresholds, a taxpayer can receive credits. We use simulations to see if a Roth IRA is always better when taxes are higher in the future.
Isometries of the Hyperbolic Plane

Nicholas Wade Stout

Classical geometry bases its foundation on five postulates from Euclid. However, mathematicians were always troubled by Euclid's fifth postulate, as it seemed that it should be derivable from the other four, and many made attempts to prove it using the other four postulates. Their efforts proved in vain, as it was later shown that other geometries exist which do not satisfy Euclid's fifth postulate. One of these, which will be the focus of this presentation, is hyperbolic geometry. We will examine two common models for the hyperbolic plane: the disk model and the upper half-plane model, with a particular emphasis on the isometries of the hyperbolic plane. Time permitting, we will also discuss tilings of the hyperbolic plane.
Is the strength of the antipredator response in male sticklebacks (Gasterosteus aculeatus) affected by the type of predator cue they receive?

Michaela M. Rogers

Climate change is inducing rapid changes to the environment, such as habitat fragmentation, invasive species, and pollutant exposure. A strong interest lies in how organisms will cope with rapid human-induced changes. One way organisms adapt is through transgenerational plasticity (TGP), which occurs when experiences in the parental environment influence the phenotype of their offspring. Previous literature shows that male three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) exposed to a predator had offspring that were smaller and less active – a phenotype indicative of a high predation environment. This suggests that TGP primes offspring for the environment they are going to encounter, but less is known about how parents use cues in their environment to elicit these effects. Individuals may rely primarily on one of type of cue (e.g. visual, olfactory) or use different cues simultaneously to assess predation. I exposed G. aculeatus males to either a control, visual only, olfactory only, or combination of visual and olfactory cues of a novel trout predator (Oncorhynchus mykiss) for 10-13 days prior to fertilization. I scored male behavior for 5 minutes before and after exposure to the trout. The results presented here determine whether fathers behave differently depending on the type of predator cue they received. If one type of cue is recognized as more dangerous, then males will exhibit more antipredator behaviors post-exposure compared to pre-exposure (e.g. spending more time oriented to the predator and more time in the back of the tank further from the predator). If fathers use multiple sources of cues simultaneously, then fathers exposed to both visual and olfactory cue of predation will exhibit more antipredator behaviors than fathers that received only visual or only olfactory cues. Recognizing multiple cues can increase the reliability of information in a variable environment where parents need to accurately prepare offspring for future environments.
It Makes Voices Louder: Why the Punishment of Free Speech is Counterintuitive

Caroline Lavin Herling

Diversity of thought is required for progress. However, the differing desired result of “progress” has proven to be an extreme point of contention between individuals and authorities. Of course, with the unbridled nature of free speech comes a spectrum of battling ethics, fallacies, and disparate perspectives of "truth". When authorities get involved to promote a singular viewpoint the diversity that paints the whole picture of the human experience is lost and people with the erased voices react. Ai WeiWei’s 1000 Years of Joys and Sorrows, public outrage over Florida's “Don’t Say Gay” bill, and Jennifer Rossuck’s study of censorship and banned books show that perspectives are recovered when the masses are inspired, specific media attention is earned, and public interest is sparked.
i-TRACE RNA interference-based reporter system to distinguish spatiotemporal gene expression in real time versus lineage cells in Drosophila eye

Anuradha Chimata Venkatakrishnan, Paige Elizabeth McBride

Dynamic gene expression pattern along the spatiotemporal axis is a key fundamental feature of all cells. Such changes contribute to cellular responses to stimuli and also execution of highly regulated and sequential developmental programs. During Drosophila (a.k.a fruit fly) eye development, several genes are expressed in a dynamic manner to regulate target genes. Our interest was to understand the exact expression pattern of some of the genes involved in this process. We have used the i-TRACE (RNAi Technique for Real-time And Clonal Expression) system to assess such minute but dynamic changes in expression pattern by combining Gal4/UAS, FLP/FRT, RNAi and fluorescent reporters. Upon crossing with a Gal4 stock, all real time gene expression (Gal4 mediated) is marked by the presence of red fluorescent protein (RFP) and all lineage cells express green fluorescent protein (GFP) independent of Gal4 activity. Additionally, the effect of Gal4 mediated GFP-RNAi expression persists in cells that currently and recently expressed the gene. This enables us to observe even brief changes in expression marked by loss of GFP. Here, we present the expression data of some of the genes that play an important role during Drosophila eye development.
Language as an Avenue for Representation in Theatre

Hannah Rose Kessler

In my project, I plan to research how language can be an avenue for representation in theatre. I will look at how language is an essential part of culture and works that use the languages of the cultures represented in that piece. I will introduce my topic with how the use of gibberish as Vietnamese in Miss Saigon fails to meet the most basic standard for representation. Then, I will use The Gods of Strangers and West Side Story, to show how the use of language can enhance representation. I will also compare The Gods of Strangers and West Side Story in their use and absence of subtitles and how it helps or hinders representation.
Legalizing Physician Assisted Suicide

Jamie Blodgett, Christopher Eustace, Zoey E. Harig, Tyler Lebegue

Physician Assisted Suicide (PAS) was first legalized in 1994 in Oregon as apart of The Death With Dignity Act. Since then it has been legalized in nine additional states in the U.S. In accordance with Article 25 in the UDHR and Appendix C in The American Medical Association Principles of Medical Ethics (2001), we will be presenting for the legalization of PAS throughout the world using a website and verbal presentation. We will be addressing the Thomas Youk case and the Montana Supreme Court ruling in the case Baxter v. Montana. We will also be speaking on the Patient Choice and Control at End of Life Act in Vermont and the effect this had on the state in 2013 and beyond. We will also be speaking on Brittany Maynard, a terminal brain cancer patient, who experienced Oregon’s Death with Dignity Act and present the argument of living with dignity viruses dying with dignity.As of May 2021, 20% of the world's population lives in a location where PAS is legal. In many states, the requirements for an individual to receive PAS are, “the patient must be terminally ill (expected to die within six months), identified as such by two independent physicians; must be adult, competent, and a resident of the state; must have made two oral requests at least 15 days apart, plus a written request; and must be able to self-administer the lethal agent.” We will be presenting the importance of these steps, and we will continue to connect the core of our presentation to UDHR Article 25 which states, “Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including…medical care and the right to security in the event of…sickness… in circumstances beyond his control.”
Living the Practice

Jessica Nicole Williams

Through various exhibitions, community events, and my pottery business known as "Muddstud", I've had the privilege of living my dream life as a maker. There have been many ups and downs in this journey, but I am learning and growing with each commission.
Macrophage Migration and Phagocytosis in Breast Cancer Microenvironment

Elizabeth A. Avera, Sarah E. Lamb

Macrophages are a specialized type of immune cell that work via phagocytosis, a process in which they engulf and destroy foreign materials, and apoptosis, in which macrophages induce programmed cell death in infected or abnormal cells. Two major subtypes of macrophages include M1 macrophages, which are activated macrophages and induce inflammatory responses, and M2 macrophages, which are alternatively activated and induce anti-inflammatory responses (Abdulhadi, 2014). M1 macrophages have been studied in response to cancer environments for their ability to target cancer cells and trigger phagocytosis (Jaiswal et al., 2010). On the other hand, M2 macrophages are pro-tumorigenic, which can trigger angiogenesis, the development of new blood vessels, and other growth and healing factors, thus promoting tumor invasion and metastasis (Forssell et al., 2007). In 2018, breast cancer was the second leading cause of cancer related deaths in women, making the mechanisms of breast cancer progression important to study (Seigal et al., 2021). This poster will showcase tumor surveillance behaviors of macrophages in response to tumor-associated factors such as chemoattractants, or chemical substances that attract motile cells, protein binding molecules, soluble components from the cancer culture medium, etc., on the migration behavior of the macrophages. With an increased understanding of the factors that impact macrophage migration, this poster will also investigate macrophage’s effects on stimulating cancer phagocytosis and/or apoptosis. In this presentation, we will discuss current studies performed on the immune effects of macrophages in breast cancer invasiveness and progression in order to better understand the role macrophages play.
Mary Across Campus

Matthew Coath, Emma Harry, Kathryn Hehn, Grace Kennedy, Sam Schadek

The Symbolic Convergence Theory focuses on group identities that develop through shared fantasy elements. Through their deeper meaning, these statues rhetorically communicate and construct the Marianist identity at UD. Being frequent symbols on UD’s campus, they remind the community of the shared meanings, emotions, and values of the Marianist order.
Masked Face Analysis

Vatsa Sanjay Patel

Face identification with wearables has been a difficult topic in computer vision since it includes detecting persons who are wearing a face mask. Masked face analysis for the purpose of identifying face masks has the potential to significantly increase performance in a wide variety of face analysis applications. The suggested concept is a single framework for determining the kind of face mask worn by a person. We begin by contributing the mask dataset, which includes a range of face masks. Then, we introduced a deep learning model that takes an input image of a human face wearing a mask and determines the kind of face mask worn by the human face. The presented dataset and methodology will aid in future research on face detection using the mask.
Media Portrayal of the Police Resulting in Fatal Citizen Interactions

Kyla Renay Whitehead

Technology has made news media a universal phenomenon in covering police-citizen interactions. Critics have pointed out biases in their reporting. However, this speculation has yet to be tested empirically. The current study aimed to address this gap by using content analysis to shed light on the media’s dialect when reporting fatal police-citizen interactions. Using content analysis and convenience sampling, the study identified the first 10 articles related to four high-profile cases (i.e., Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, Rayshard Brooks, and Casey Goodsen Jr.) from three news sites that encompassed media value in relation to political bias and reliability in relation to the range of opinion and fact reporting. The procedures included categorizing the title of each article as using positive, negative, and neutral language. Preliminary findings show that 32.3% of news sources portrayed the police involved in fatal citizen interactions using positive language and 41.9% using neutral language. In contrast, only 25.8% of the news sources used negative language. Although claims of the demonization of the police in the media have been used in recent debates, the findings of this study do not support these arguments.
Medical Data Benchmarking for Recommender Systems

Rutuja Rajendra Nimbalkar

Patients with DCCs often experience multiple obstacles when prioritizing treatment plans and prescriptions. Discordant Chronic Comorbidities (DCCs) are health conditions in which patients have multiple, often unrelated, chronic illnesses that may need to be addressed concurrently but may also be associated with conflicting treatment instructions. Various machine learning (ML) or deep learning (DL) algorithms can provide treatment recommendations and identify drug interactions for patients with DCCs. However, to the best of our knowledge, we have yet to see a good documentation of how conflicting recommendations and evolving patient’s needs could be addressed using machine learning techniques. Further, there are no recommendations for algorithms situations for addressing these complex needs that patients with DCCs experience. And yet, the effective support of DCCs requires decisions aids that capture patients' concerns and preferences upfront, before suggesting a prescription recommendation. In this research, we first collected a data set consisting of the patient with DCCs concerns and prescription preference for each of their medical conditions (e.g., type 2 diabetes, arthritis, and/or depression). We then reviewed studies, models, and algorithms and tested some of these algorithms using a set of criteria with our dataset. And to set benchmark outcomes that can reveal the suitable algorithms, parameters, and testing criteria. Specifically, our research investigates four algorithms for identifying effective and efficient predictions of DCCs prescriptions, while taking into account patients' concerns and drug interactions. Among state-of-the-art supervised ML algorithms, Support Vector Machine (SVM) achieves the best performance. The best algorithms then integrated and deployed in the mobile application interface for user engagement and further evaluations.
Me in MEC? Why Students of Color at the University of Dayton Choose Whether or Not to to Utilize Targeted Resources on Campus.

Sebastian Michael Rawl

People of color in the United States have long been granted unequal access to educational opportunities which in turn has led to lower levels of achievement and higher drop-out rates when compared to their white peers. To combat this issue, many institutions of higher education, such as the University of Dayton, have created programs and offices which focus on improving outcomes for students of color as well as representing their cultures on the campus-level. The purpose of this research is to examine the reasons as to why or why not students of color on campus choose to utilize these types of resources and examine if these resources have benefited those students. In order to gain insight on these questions, students of color at the University of Dayton were asked to participate in individual interviews via online video-call to explore their experiences within the institution. This research provides a deeper understanding as to whether or not the university's efforts towards reaching and supporting students of color have been successful, as well as providing information which could influence future decisions.
Mental Health Among Army Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) Cadets

Abigail Nicole Herrmann

There is little research about the subgroup of Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) cadets, especially none that focus on their mental health and the coping strategies they use to adjust to both the college atmosphere and military culture. Therefore, research will be conducted on Army ROTC cadets across the nation to better understand how the added pressure, commitments, and responsibilities affect cadets. The purpose of this project is to compare the mental health of Army ROTC cadets to national mental health trends among the general college student population to further explore some of the differences in this subgroup and learn how to help them better transition into these new environments. The participants in this study will be Army ROTC cadets across the nation. A survey will be distributed through social media outlets, especially through GroupMe chats and snowball sampling will be conducted to help expand the sample size and participation in this research study. The results from the survey will then be converted into percentages and compared to the data collected annually from the American College Health Association. Some of these findings may be categorized according to race, gender, age, and prior service to further evaluate groups who may be affected more while striving to integrate into both these cultures. These results will be used to help Army ROTC programs and college campuses across the nation better understand some of the difficulties this subgroup may be experiencing and use this information to develop more programs and resources to help ease the transition into both a college atmosphere and the military culture.
Military Service and the Expression of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)

William C. Johnson, Madison Kate Petschke

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease, is a neurodegenerative brain disease where the brain wrongly attacks its own motor neurons. Within 2-5 years of diagnosis, a patient with ALS will lose his/her ability to walk, speak, swallow, and even breathe on their own. This disease is very rare and there is currently no cure. This mysterious disease is caused 10% by inheritance, and 90% by other unknown causes. Some suggested causes based on instance of diagnosis might be age or sex, but the most interesting, suggested cause is history of military service. Is it because of chemical exposure, environmental factors, or the traumatic stress that soldiers endure? For our research project, we would like to further unravel the reasons behind ALS diagnosis, especially why the history of military service has a connection with the expression of ALS. We will also include an interview with Will’s roommate, whose father died from ALS in 2014.
miR-277 targets hid to ameliorate Aβ42-mediated neurodegeneration in Drosophila eye model of Alzheimer’s Disease

Anuradha Venkatakrishnan, 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. We misexpressed human Aβ42 in the developing retina of Drosophila, which 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 (miRNAs) which post-transcriptionally regulate expression of genes by degrading mRNA of the target genes. In a forward genetic screen with candidate 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 ̴2.3-fold when miR-277 is misexpressed in the GMR>Aβ42 background in comparison to the GMR>Aβ42 fly model. Hence, 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.
Mock Trial Team Presentation

Lydia G. Artz, Nicholas Alexander Gregor, Katherine Jean Hoener, Arabella D. Loera, Madeleine Elizabeth Onderak, Jackson Fryer Prieto, Sydney R. Sparks

Come watch the award-winning University of Dayton Mock Trial Team present their case: State of Midlands vs. Dakota Sutcliffe! Dakota Sutcliffe has been accused of committing aggravated arson for the burning of Chuggie's Sports Bar and the death of a local firefighter. Dayton Mock Trial will present portions of this case and answer any questions you might have. This will be a trial you won't want to miss!
Modeling Brownian Motion

Huseen KH. A. S. Alenezi, Abdulhadi A. H. J. Alqahtani, Abdullah M. H. J. Alqahtani

Brownian motion is the random motion of particles, atoms, or molecules that are because of random collisions of those particles. It is the motion of a particles such as a smoke or dust particle, in a gas, as it is buffeted by random collisions with gas molecules. Brownian motion can be observed physically as light shines through a window. Particles of dust or pollen can be seen in the light floating in the air and have random pattern of motion. The dust particles aren't moving on their own, but are colliding with molecules of the air keeping the dust in motion. Brownian motion is caused by the structure and physics of fluids i.e. liquids and gases. According to kinetic theory, all matter is in motion; atoms and molecules especially within liquids and gases are in constant vibrating motion. These particles will travel in straight lines until redirected by a collision. Particles within gases and liquids are constantly moving, colliding, and moving toward equilibrium. This kind of collision causes particles to have Brownian motion. In this project modeling of the Brownian motion is done through mathematical and programming tools.
Oklahoma SB 1470 and its Human Rights Implications

Ryley Goles, Grace K. Hughes, Jacob E. Lunsford, Naumann

Oklahoma’s Senate Bill 1470, titled the “Students’ Religious Belief Protection Act,” disproportionately silences students and employees in the Oklahoma public school system that are part of a religious minority. The bill states that Oklahoma public school employees cannot promote or teach ideas that contradict students’ religious beliefs. In addition, employees are subject to fines and/or termination for violating this bill. This legislation, if passed, would directly violate the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the First Amendment by suppressing freedom of thought and speech. This bill comes as one of a number of bills across the country that aim to control what is taught in schools. This piece of legislation holds the potential to change what is taught in schools and how certain controversial topics may be portrayed – or even silenced. This bill could create a snowball effect that leads to more legislation further limiting educators and suppressing instruction on certain topics. Ultimately, it could result in states controlling what and how students learn about certain topics.
Omega Point Through a Semiotic Lens

Calli Fenik, Claire Mahoney, Daniel Peters, Isabelle Wolford, Peter Spesia

In 1973, University of Dayton Performing and Visual Arts Department professor Henry C. Setter won a sculpture competition in Middletown, Ohio. His creation, Omega Point, has been on campus since then and the base was restored in 2009. Students analyze it from a semiotic perspective.
Opioid Epidemic Waves

Chase Alexander Hoffman, David A. Somodi

In 1999, Ohio saw only 327 overdose deaths. As of 2020, the number reported by the Ohio Department of Health was over 5000 deaths (Ohio University, 2021). The opioid epidemic can be traced in three significant “waves” as identified by the CDC: 1990s due to the over prescription of opioids, 2010 due to a rapid increase of overdoses involving heroin, 2013 due to the illicit production of fentanyl and its addition to heroin. As a result of the over prescription of opioids, new prescription laws in Ohio required physicians and pharmacies to log controlled substances into a database starting in 2006. Although there were new laws and regulations that were put in place, there was still rising cases of opioid overdoses. Additionally, there were significant cases of fentanyl being found in illicit drugs in lethal dosages. Currently, Fentanyl-related fatalities account for almost four out of five opioid overdose deaths (Georgetown Hospital 2021). Rehabilitation services are crucial to combatting addictive behaviors. During the pandemic, rehabilitation services addressing addiction were indefinitely suspended. As a result of this and other stresses that the pandemic placed on individuals and families, there was a significant rise in overdoses in Ohio (Perry, 2021). This poster explores the effect all these had on overdose deaths to determine which factors should receive the most attention.
Optical Optimization for Pump-Probe Spectroscopy

Jessica A. Jenick

One important technique for materials characterization is that of pump-probe spectroscopy, which allows us to understand the interactions and characteristics of excited materials under light illumination. The goal of this project was to design and build a pump-probe optical setup for single shot spectroscopy of phase change materials. This setup requires that a sample be pumped by a blue laser to instigate thermal processes, and then probed by a white lamp to look for the spectral shifts as a function of time and optical power. Through the careful use of lenses and mirrors, we were able to refine our optical setup to get acceptable power levels and useful spot sizes to match a white light probe beam with a blue light pump. We have been able to overcome difficulties regarding the use of a white lamp with poor spatial coherence. Building on what has been learned through building this initial setup, we will be able to improve it over time. This setup can later be used with the spectrometer built by the physics department for the further experimentation.
Optical Study of the Topological Semimetal Bi4Se3

Margaret Brown

Quantum confinement of the topological semimetal Bi4Se3 was observed as a giant enhancement of the optical bandgap in two characteristic length-reducing regimes: ultra-thin films and nanoplatelets. The films were prepared via DC magnetron sputtering and characterized using atomic force microscopy and ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy. Current work investigates correlations of reduced dimensionality to enhancements of the bandgap. By characterizing the dimensionality through microscopy, spectroscopy results can be mapped to changes in the band edge as determined through Tauc plots.
Oscillating Chemical Reactions

Ali H. K. M. Alenezi, Michael Jude Johnson, Mitchell A. Manzardo

When looking at the Belousov-Zhabotinsky reaction we find that if we add an indicator to the chemical reaction that changes depending on the concentrations of the chemical we can watch as the mixture changes back and forth from two different colors. We plan on representing this chemical reaction and the color change during our presentation.