Stander Symposium Projects

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  Does Engaging in Physical Activity Provide College Students with Greater Academic Success?

  Ashlee Hoang Nguyen

  It is shown that in order to maximize health benefits, adults should engage in at least 150 minutes of physical activity each week. Past research has shown that regular engagement in physical activity has the potential to improve cognitive ability. The goal of this research project is to better understand the relationship between physical activity and academic performance among college students at a private university in Central Ohio.

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  Does Gang Involvement and Exposure to Violence Affect Perceptions of Juveniles’ Chances for Future Success?

  Justin P. Parlette, Ethan James Zemek

  For our project, we looked at how gang involvement and exposure to violence affect perceptions of chances for future success. This is a quantitative research project using the Pathways to Desistance dataset, which is focused on 1,354 juveniles involved with the justice system in both Maricopa County, AZ and Philadelphia, PA. We looked at the baseline data (lasting from November 2000 until March 2003). In order to be eligible for the study, juveniles had to be between the ages of 14 and 18 at the time of their offense. In our research, we used a total of nine variables. For our independent variables we used subject gender, ethnicity, number of biological parents in the household, ever involved in a gang, victim score, witness score, and personal rewards of crime. For our dependent variables we used aspirations and expectations for the future. Through our research, we found that victim score, the personal rewards of crime and ethnicity were significant in determining the results of future expectations. Furthermore, we found that ever being in a gang and the personal rewards of committing crime were significant in determining the result for future aspirations.

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  Does Regular Exercise Improve the Quality and Quantity of Sleep in College Students?

  Matthew T. Mahoney

  The purpose of this investigation is to determine if regular exercise improves sleep patterns in college students. In order to have strong cognitive function, it is imperative that sleep quality and quantity remain positively consistent. Research shows that strong cognitive function can lead to greater success in college coursework and extracurricular activities. Sleep is also important for physical and mental health. Building high-quality exercise and sleep habits at a young age can lay a solid framework for a person's health as they age, leading to a higher quality of life.

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  Doors, Trikes and Folding Wings: Advancing Concepts for Machines Using MotionGen

  Andrew William Gasser, Veronica Michele Hatfield, Brian Andrew Piper, Brock Robert Smith

  MotionGen, a kinematic analysis and synthesis tool, helps to readily develop working kinematic models of mechanisms, planar robotic systems, and heavy machinery like backhoes and bulldozers. By using MotionGen, these systems can be readily synthesized and animated. A team of DIMLab (Design of Innovative Machines Lab) students has been busy this semester learning MotionGen and using it to create novel yet practical designs. We have utilized MotionGen to model recumbent tricycles for people with disabilities who pedal with FES, to investigate novel architectures for mechanical presses, to ideate on a novel swinging door, and to assess the motion of a foldable airplane wing.

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  Do You Truly See Them? Disabled LatinX Artists in the Arts

  Guadalupe Sanchez-Salvador

  This THR/VAR 250 Diversity in the Creative and Performing Arts poster presentation project requires each student to research and present on a topic relevant to the interdisciplinary fields of visual and performing arts through a critical multicultural and social justice lens that foregrounds the appreciation of diversity and enables the expansion of personal cultural competencies.

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  Drivers of Prairie Establishment during Post-Agricultural Ecosystem Restoration in Southwestern Ohio, USA

  Valerie Thurston, Michaela Woods, Madelaine Gregory, Ryan McEwan

  Ecological restoration of degraded lands, such as abandoned agricultural fields, often requires establishing native species in challenging environmental conditions. The interruption of this process by invasive species, such as Callery pear (Pyrus calleryana), in the United States poses a significant obstacle to native plant reestablishment. Woody invasive species like Callery pear outcompete native plants, creating favorable conditions for invasion and rendering post-agricultural fields unsuitable for native species establishment. Traditional methods for controlling invasive species require consistent upkeep and observation, but in tallgrass prairies, increasing the diversity and abundance of plants has shown some ability to decrease the number of invasive species in the area. In collaboration with community partners at Five Rivers Metroparks, initiated an experiment on a 30-acre parcel of post-agricultural land in Trotwood, Ohio. Twenty 50 x 50m plots were established, each receiving one of four prairie seed mixes with varying levels of species diversity and legume content (n = 5 / seed treatment). These plots were further subdivided and treated with one of four soil amendments: mulch, whole soil, mulch & whole soil, and a control with no amendment. A vegetation survey conducted in the summer of 2023 to assess the state of the plant community. After around 5 years, we have found that there is still a significantly smaller presence of invasive species compared to native species. There is also a higher species richness in the higher diversity seed mix plots than the lower diversity seed mix plots, which shows some success in the different seed mixes. The research conducted continues to help gain a better understanding of the complex problem surrounding native restoration projects, particularly in the Midwest, and our ability to defend landscapes against invasion.

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  Drug and Alcohol Treatment Group Effects of Inmate Behavior

  Jack R. Dewine, Cameron J. Johnson

  For our research, we were interested in looking into the effects of drug or alcohol treatment programs on prison inmates. Specifically, we were looking at the effects that the treatment programs had on inmate behavior during their time incarcerated. Our research was done by examining the 2004 Survey of Inmates. The main focus of our study revolved around treatment programs and how they affected the behavior of inmates. In this study, we analyzed a multitude of factors, spanning from demographics to how the inmates conducted themselves before and after prison. In terms of demographics, we looked into male and female populations and how they may differ. Behaviors of inmates such as whether or not they went through treatment while imprisoned, whether or not they were charged with a drug offense, and if they were either written up for a drug/alcohol offense while in prison. In terms of actual attendance to treatment programs, our research led us to finding out that 80.9 percent of inmates incarcerated never attended a program. This comes as a surprise considering that our research also revealed to us that 65.72 percent of offenders arrested were in for a drug offense. Only 19.65 percent of those charged with a drug offense were not charged with drug possession. This was telling to us, showing that inmates who would benefit from help were not participating in the treatment programs which may be available. We found that in each model we ran, the sex of an inmate was the most significant in association with being written up for a drug or alcohol violation and that it was mostly men that were being written up. We also found that attending a treatment group before being incarcerated was significant in all models that they were included in. This result told us that if you had gone to a treatment group before prison, you were less likely to receive a write up for a violation.

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  Dve interacting partner chb role in microtubule dynamics during eye development

  Sunanda Yogi

  Chromosome bows (chb)/Mast/Orbit is required for bipolar mitotic spindle organization at the kinetochore. This is an important microtubule plus end tracking protein functions in maintaining the microtubule dynamics. It is evolutionary conserved and the human ortholog is cytoplasmic linker associated protein 1 (CLASP1) which plays crucial role in microtubule distribution and stability during cell cycle and has been shown to impact neurofibrillary tangle formation in tauopathies. To mechanistically understand, how chb regulate microtubule orientation? We are utilizing Drosophila, a genetic tractable model system with various developmental stages and looked at its genetic interactome, where has been shown that chb is being suppressed by defective proventriculus (Dve). It is a K50 homeodomain transcription factor required for the cell type specification and expressed in the dorsal head vertex region of eye-antennal imaginal disc of Drosophila. We hypothesize that if chb expression is regulated by dve which results in altered kinetochore assembly, when we knockdown the expression of chb using RNAi (RNA interference) in the eye, it gives us small and necrotic regions in the proper ommatidium arrangement of the eye. We are further interested into looking at what happens to dve expression and wg which is negative regulator of eye development. This will further illustrate on key partners involved in the cellular assembly of microtubules.

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  Ebony G. Patterson : Exploration of Invisibility and Visibility

  Jillian R. Fahey

  This THR/VAR 250 Diversity in the Creative and Performing Arts poster presentation project requires each student to research and present on a topic relevant to the interdisciplinary fields of visual and performing arts through a critical multicultural and social justice lens that foregrounds the appreciation of diversity and enables the expansion of personal cultural competencies.

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  Educating the Whole Person: Building a Community-based English Language Learning Program

  Kateri Marie Dillon

  While some resources exist to support adult English language learning in Dayton, Ohio, many immigrants and asylum seekers are prevented from accessing language instruction due to barriers of scheduling, transportation, and childcare. This is a detriment to the city of Dayton, which cannot effectively receive the gifts of its members not fully integrated into the community. In this study, the researcher takes a holistic and assets-based approach to adult English Language Learning (ELL). A tutoring, classroom hybrid English program was implemented to support the large Latinx population at Immaculate Conception Church, in partnership with Brunner Literacy Center. To mitigate barriers of scheduling, transportation, and childcare, the program was scheduled immediately after the well-attended Spanish mass each Sunday morning, while a children's program took place simultaneously. Over the course of the program, attendance increased from about 25 to 35 learners weekly. Tutors described feeling supported and satisfied with their volunteer experiences. Learners reported positive relationships with their tutors and an increase in confidence in their ability to speak English.

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  Effect of Si/Al Ratio on the Transport Behavior of Zeolitic Nanotubes.

  Muhammad Rizwan

  Carbon nanotubes are the poster child of 1-dimensional nanomaterials, but in recent years attention has spread to other chemistries such as boron-nitride and molybdenum-disulfide. The first nanotubes with zeolitic walls were recently synthesized. This new structure presents both nanoscale pores in the nanotube wall and a mesoscopic channel along the tube axis. These molecular structures have the potential to be impactful in several applications, but a fundamental understanding of how their new structure affects their adsorption and transport properties is critical to realizing their widespread use. We use molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the effect of Si/Al ratio and the associated charge defects on the adsorption and transport of different liquids within the multiscale features of the zeolite nanotube.

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  Effects of Chronic Pharmacological SERCA Activation on Cognitive Behaviors, Dendritic Spine Density and Aminoacidergic Neurochemistry

  Carter J. Moore

  Intracellular Calcium (Ca2+) signaling plays a crucial role in a multitude of neuronal processes. These processes range from cell development and potentiation, to programed cell death, however they all share the commonality of being paramount in neuronal function. One key regulator of intracellular Ca2+ is the Sarco-Endoplasmic Reticulum (ER) Ca2+ ATPase (SERCA) pump. SERCA is responsible for sequestering cytosolic Ca2+ into the ER, a major site for Ca2+ storage. Due to its importance in maintaining Ca2+ homeostasis, it comes as no surprise that dysfunction of SERCA has been shown to be involved in various neuropsychiatric diseases, such as Parkinson’s Disease (PD), Alzheimer’s Disease (AD), and Schizophrenia. Consequently, drugs that affect SERCA are of high interest for future therapeutic treatments, but the role that SERCA plays in the brain and behavior is not well understood. In the context of the current study, we assessed the effects of chronic pharmacological SERCA activation using the drug CDN1163 on learning and memory processes, as well as on aminoacidergic neurochemical responses and dendritic spine density in brain regions implicated in cognitive processes in mice of both sexes.

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  Effects of Digital Use on Social Wellbeing and Development

  Johnny P. Nguyen

  With the advancement of technology in the 21st century, digital usage has become more prevalent in society that the younger generations are now growing up in the presence of technological innovations. Because of this, researchers have tried to study the impact of digital technology on the social well-being of not just the youth, but people of all ages as well. This study observed the effects of digital technology on the social well-being of young adults–ages 18-25. Many studies have been conducted observing a generalized usage of digital technology on social well-being. With how advanced digital communication has become and how efficient young adults are able to use such digital modes for communication, studies have shown some disconnect when it comes to social well-being and development. This study specifically examined how communicating and connecting through digital technology affects social well-being in young adults.

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  Effects of Paternal Heat Exposure and Parental Care on the Development of Offspring in Gasterosteus aculeatus

  Emma R. Borgert

  Humans are profoundly altering the abundance and distribution of organisms via climate change. In particular, warming temperatures are affecting marine and freshwater ecosystems by increasing physiological stress, limiting growth, and decreasing dissolved oxygen. With all this change occurring, an understanding of how organisms are going to cope is crucial. Transgenerational plasticity – when parental experiences alter offspring traits - can allow organisms to rapidly adapt to environmental change. Previous literature has focused on the role of maternal experiences on offspring traits, but paternal experiences are just as important. Fathers can influence their offspring in multiple ways, including changes via both sperm and paternal care behaviors. Three-spined sticklebacks, Gasterosteus aculeatus, are a small fish found in freshwater and marine ecosystems with paternal-only care. Many populations are facing the threats of drought and wildfire, making it important to understand how they will adapt to climate change. To understand how paternal heat exposure alters offspring development, I exposed parents to cool (~17°C) or warm (~20°C) water temperature and then manipulated whether fathers provided paternal care or offspring were artificially aerated; this generated offspring that received cues of heat exposure from gametes alone versus from gametes and paternal care. I found that males exposed to warmer temperatures were less colorful but provided the same amount of care overall to their offspring. Offspring of cool-temperature males were shorter than offspring of warm-temperature parents, but only when males provided paternal care. Offspring survival was not affected by parental heat exposure but was lower when offspring themselves were exposed to warm temperatures. Overall, these results suggest that heat exposure alters both paternal and offspring traits, and that the effects on offspring depend on the mechanism of paternal effects (care versus sperm).

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  Embracing College Students LinkedIn Profile

  Alyssa Leanne Smith

  LinkedIn is a tool all college students should embrace, whether they realize the importance of it now or not. The goal of the platform is to create a professional image. It can enhance and grow an expert network, which allows students to pursue career goals. The presentation conducted will analyze not only how to update and create LinkedIn profile, but it will also give ways to continue to enhance and utilize the tool daily. Following these steps on LinkedIn will allow career seekers to organize their page and start the connection process with contacts and employers. This presentation will show best practices of how to start and maintain a professional LinkedIn profile. These steps are needed for all college students to be in the game of networking and feel confident in the way they display themselves through their professional profile.

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  Empirical Research Presentations in Economics

  Aaron Michael Arellano, Joseph C. Ariano, Michael F. Baffa, Austin S. Baker, Brett Robert Beardsley, Kevin James Borah, Andrew J. Cade, John Michael Connor, John P. Deeley, Anthony Vincent Dipaolo, Jack Joseph Drago, Luke J. Dreas, Justin Alexander Eichholz, Benjamin Matthew Engels, Matthew J. Erhardt, Trevor T. Fraley, Matthew K. Freel, John Thomas Graham, Garth E. Hall, Gabriel A. Haubner, Nathan Glenn Jabaay, Nicholas R. Kairys, Joseph R. Lauterbach, Daniel J. Lins, Timothy J. McCabe, Ryan P. McRae, Milan Miscevic, James A. Olson, Catherine Ann Rafter, Joshua John Russell, John James Smithwick, Greta Josephine Spees, John Richard Stanley, Matthew Casaclang Szell, Robert Brendan Taggart, Adam R. Thill, James R. Thomas, Jackson P. Ward, Elizabeth Claire Wonderley

  Four years of coursework culminate in a written and oral presentation of an empirical research project during the senior capstone course. Students apply economic theory and econometric techniques to analyze data in order to answer an original research question.

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  Empowering Effective Government Contract Management with the Development of a Project Manager Dashboard

  David W. Haberkorn, Theodore I. Miller, Jason Anthony Siangas-Lopez

  MIS and OPS Senior Capstone Projects include small teams of 3 or 4 senior students working weekly with a company/organization to solve a real business problem. These projects extend for the complete undergrad senior year including both Fall and Spring semesters. Students act as Project Consultants and Managers to guide the project from inception until conclusion by delivering solutions and deliverables to the client. Students produce project documentation and formal presentations at multiple stages of the project and conclude with presentations to the supporting Client's Leadership Team.

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  Empowerment Through Autonomy: Gandhi’s Vision for Women and Women’s Rights

  Mary K. Kelty

  What is nonviolence — a concept, a mode of protest, a practice for modern living? This poster explores the ways in which nonviolence has been historically interpreted as "ahimsa," "beloved community," and as a way for practical and ethical thinking in our modern lives. We highlight the role of nonviolence as method and practice in historical and contemporary global instances that range from the farm workers movement, anti-nuclear protests, environmental green politics, and Dalit and Black actions towards representation.

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  Energy Sector Stock Returns During Periods of Rising Fed Fund Rates: An Empirical Analysis 1999-2023

  Kathleen Mae Hattrup

  Stocks in the energy sector are highly volatile due to ongoing imbalances in the supply and demand for oil and natural gas. In this study, I examine the impact of rising interest rates and in particular, fed fund rates on energy sector stock returns. The period of analysis is from 1999-2023 within which there are four distinct periods where fed fund rates are rising. I expect positive returns to energy sector stocks in periods where the rate rise is simply due to economic growth. I expect negative returns when the rates are rising due to a policy of aggressive monetary tightening by the fed. I use the top 20 stocks by market cap in the S&P 500 energy sector to carry out my study.

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  Enhancing Deep Collaboration through Experiential Learning: The Impact of the Stitt Scholars Program

  Avery Lorraine Baltrus, Trent Edward Borgmann, Anna Isabella Carollo, Lauren E. Carr, Austin M. Ebbing, Brooke Elisabeth Hunstad, Brian Nicholas LeCocq, Loring L. Leitzel, Lucianna T. Nice, Kevin Louis Nudo, John Protz, Yadiel Yomar Roque, Raegan Mae Rowland, Catherine Sayeedi, Erin O. Wagner, Jack Vincent Waters

  Collaboration in higher education has significantly improved, with programs increasingly incorporating collaborative elements in their curricula. Despite these advances, there is a pressing need to further enhance interdisciplinary collaborations through experiential learning. The Stitt Scholars Program exemplifies this by offering students from the School of Engineering, the College of Arts and Sciences, and the School of Business Administration opportunities to work with startup companies at the HUB, supported by PNC Bank. Students commit ten hours weekly to their projects and engage in lectures on innovation and entrepreneurship. The program's success has attracted further investment, enabling its expansion and continued contribution to interdisciplinary education and community engagement.

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  Enterprise Risk Management Dashboard

  Tara Maureen Geary, Vince A. Holzheimer, Julie Anne Knight

  MIS and OPS Senior Capstone Projects include small teams of 3 or 4 senior students working weekly with a company/organization to solve a real business problem. These projects extend for the complete undergrad senior year including both Fall and Spring semesters. Students act as Project Consultants and Managers to guide the project from inception until conclusion by delivering solutions and deliverables to the client. Students produce project documentation and formal presentations at multiple stages of the project and conclude with presentations to the supporting Client's Leadership Team.

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  Environmental Toxins, Breast Milk, and Nursing Madonnas

  Rihanna L. Domingos

  The Relationship Between Mary and Environmental Toxins in Breast Milk and Their Implications for Generational Health

  Many different items that we encounter in everyday life contribute to the consumption of environmental toxins, which can be transmitted across generations through breastfeeding. The infiltration of these toxins into our food, water, and even medical equipment underlines the effects of environmental pollutants on human health, particularly among vulnerable populations such as newborns and breastfeeding mothers. Utilizing a comprehensive review, this research initiative seeks to examine the impact of distinct toxins in breast milk and establish correlations between breastfeeding practices and depictions of Nursing Madonnas.

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  Establishing Drosophila Intestinal Tumor Models to Study Signaling Interactions that Regulate Tumor Growth

  Venolia Adjei, Sydney Ellen Anderson, Brandon Jericho Clark, Maria Theresa El Biri, Michael K. Gruhot

  Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second leading cause of cancer-related mortality in the US, with the American Cancer Society estimating 153,000 new diagnoses and 53,000 deaths in 2023. Genetic mutations in the genes Ras, APC, and p53 occur at a high frequency in human CRC, including the activation of oncogenic Ras, loss of function of APC, and dominant negative mutations in p53. This potentially implicates dysregulation of the Ras-MAPK, Wnt, and DNA repair pathways associated with the products of these respective genes. Prior studies in patients have revealed two or more of these pathways to be dysfunctional in the majority of clinical cases, suggesting a greater need for multigenic models of CRC. To better understand tumorigenesis in the context of different genetic alterations, we have developed Drosophila melanogaster models of CRC by mispressing them individually (one-hit), in pairs (two-hit), and collectively (three-hit). Using these models, we will investigate the interactions among the aforementioned molecular pathways, characterizing the expression of pathway-specific downstream target genes, changes in the cell cycle, and tumor progression. To generate tumors in the Drosophila intestine, we misexpressed the genes under study using escargot-GAL4 (esg-GAL4), which specifically drives the expression of tumor-promoting genes in intestinal stem cells, in tandem with the heat shock-inducible FLP-FRT system. We quantified the survival rates of mutant and control flies to determine the impact of these mutations on survival. Additionally, the phenotypes and gene expression patterns of intestinal tumor cells were analyzed and compared via dissection of third-instar larvae and subsequent use of immunohistochemistry. Here, we present our preliminary data from these experiments and our progress in developing a preclinical model of CRC in Drosophila.

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  Establishing Inventory Optimization

  D'Angela Kierra Applewhite, Robert Hans Mueller, Luke C. Rimsky

  MIS and OPS Senior Capstone Projects include small teams of 3 or 4 senior students working weekly with a company/organization to solve a real business problem. These projects extend for the complete undergrad senior year including both Fall and Spring semesters. Students act as Project Consultants and Managers to guide the project from inception until conclusion by delivering solutions and deliverables to the client. Students produce project documentation and formal presentations at multiple stages of the project and conclude with presentations to the supporting Client's Leadership Team.

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  Ethos Guatemala Breakout - Aquaponic Systems

  Adam Robert Cartwright, Franklin Alexander McClimans, Sarah Jane McDonald, Keagan G. McDonough, Jacob D. Pentasuglio

  A team of undergraduate engineering students developed and installed an aquaponic system at a school for children from low income families in Zaragoza, Guatemala. The students used a systems thinking approach as part of a design thinking process for this project. During a 10-day immersion in Guatemala, they learned from and worked with local aquaponic experts and members of the community to install a system that is sustainable and appropriate for the school. This project is part of the Ethos Center within the UD School of Engineering.