According to a national survey, almost 53% of full-time college students ages 18 to 22 drank alcohol in the past month and about 33% engaged in binge drinking during that same time frame. Unhealthy drinking habits are on a rise and despite the efforts implemented by schools, just under 2,000 college students die a year […]
B47: Female hormones and pelvic inflammatory disease in women: a cross-sectional study
Introduction: More than 1 million women in the US contract pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) each year causing over 100,000 infertility cases. Although several risk factors for PID have been identified, the possible association of female hormone usage and PID has not been analyzed. This study’s research question was, “Is the use of estrogen or progesterone […]
B45: Determination of Recombination Frequency Between Sexes in a Maize Hybrid
Meiotic recombination ensures the accurate segregation of homologous chromosomes and reshuffles genetic information to generate new combinations of alleles. In plants, recombination is essential for plant breeding, which allows us to map quantitative traits and introduce desirable traits into elite breeding lines. Sex differences have important consequences for population differentiation, sex chromosome evolution, adaptation, and […]
B44: Predicting the Transmissibility of Emerging SARS-CoV-2 Variants With Bioinformatic Approaches
SARS coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the causative agent of the COVID-19 global pandemic. Highly infectious variants have emerged over the course of the pandemic as the virus continued to replicate and mutate. Key mutations often take place in the spike protein, and can increase the likelihood of an interaction between the virus and the human […]
B43: Spin Equilibrium of Cobalt-Salen Complexes
Spin Crossover (SCO), or spin equilibrium, is a well-studied phenomenon in some metal complexes. This phenomenon occurs when changes such as heat, light, or pressure are applied to a metal complex, which the metal center responds by changing its spin state. The spin state of a metal center is the arrangement of its valence electrons, […]
B42: Remediation of “Forever Chemicals”: Adsorption of PFOA on Novel Polymer Resin
Per-and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances(PFAS) are a class of ubiquitous and highly-persistent fluoro-organic water contaminants within the environment that have been widely utilized since the 1960’s. They are utilized in numerous industrial applications as surfactants, and are found in products such as firefighting foams, makeup, nonstick cookware, waterproof fabrics, and plastics. The most common PFAS compound in […]
B41: Multimedia Learning with YouTube: Do Educational Chemistry Videos Cognitively Support Student Learning?
Especially in a post-pandemic context, the use of technology and multimedia content for teaching and learning chemistry has become increasingly prevalent. While YouTube videos may contain accurate chemistry content, the way in which information is presented affects the potential for learning. Based on evidence-based research and cognitive theory, we used Mayer’s Multimedia Principles (MMP) to […]
B40: Using biologging data from turtles to assess repeatability and consistency in physiological behaviors
Animals exhibit a wide range of behaviors that can be influenced by their fitness, niche, energy costs, physiology, and general responses to environmental stimuli. This behavioral variation, commonly referred to as personality, is defined as consistent differences in behavior between individuals over time. For this study, we decided to monitor behavior using several biologging devices […]
B38: Genetic Variability and Lyme Disease Infection in the White-Footed Mouse in Northern Michigan
The lower peninsula of Michigan is inhabited by two species of closely related white-footed deer mice, Peromyscus leucopus and Peromyscus maniculatus. Both of these species are hosts for the deer tick, Ixodes scapularis which acts as the vector for B. burgdorferi infection. However, it’s been determined that P. leucopus is the main reservoir host for […]
B37: Miami Middletown Greenhouse Pathogen Identification and Management
Houseplants improve our mental and physical well-being, productivity, and enhance the overall appearance of a space. Unfortunately foliage plants are often attacked by pests and pathogens which can negatively impact their health and appearance. As a Botany major and student worker on the Middletown campus, I began taking care of the plant maintenance in the […]