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UGRC Schedule Fall 2010
Thursday, December 9
4:00 – 4:30 pm Registration MC Crossroads
Presenters check in and receive a name badge and
program
4:30 – 9:00 pm Poster
Sessions
Presenters
will be available at their displays to answer questions and explain their
research from 4:30 until 6:00.
Physical & Life Sciences MC
Crossroads
Social Sciences MC
Crossroads
5:00 – 8:00 pm Oral Sessions
Presentations will be fifteen minutes (12 minutes for
the paper and 3 minutes for questions). We have staggered the starting times so
that all sessions will end at 8:00.
Languages &
Letters (starting
6:30) MC 176A
Life Sciences (starting
6:00) MC 174A
Physical Sciences (starting
6:15) MC 174B
Social Sciences (starting
6:00) MC 176D
8:00 – 9:00 pm Reception
&
Refreshments MC
Crossroads
Judges will gather in MC 177 to tabulate scores.
9:00 – 9:30 pm Awards Ceremony MC Little Theater
Awards will be given to the top three presentations in
each session.
UGRC Program Fall 2010
POSTER SESSION: PHYSICAL & LIFE SCIENCES
MC Crossroads
4:30 PM
Daniel Zimmer, Electrical
Engineering
Jason Schofield
David Call
Kyle Wilkins
Levitating Light
Bulb
Through the use of wireless power
transfer, we will light a small light bulb that will be suspended by a
magnetic field. The light bulb
will consist of a number of small LEDs packaged into a standard
household light bulb which will
receive power from reciprocating resonance coils, one placed in the
base of the apparatus to transmit
the power, and another in the base of the bulb to receive the power
through induction. This bulb will
be magnetically held in place through the use of a Hall Effect sensor
at the top of the apparatus,
coupled with a small rare-earth based electromagnet, which interacts with a
small rare-earth magnet in the
top of the bulb to maintain lift.
Brandan Lym, Exercise Science
Natalie Scherher
Ron Garner
Cassie Robertson
A New Method for
Determining Exercise Intensity to Meet Cardiovascular
Needs
The purpose of our study was to
determine whether work at lactate threshold (LT) or ventilatory
threshold (VT) is optimal for
improvements in cardiovascular fitness. 27 college-aged students (7
females, 20 males) participated
in the study. Subjects were separated into groups based on fitness
levels, sedentary (SED), average
(AVG) and fit (FIT). Subjects participated in a graded exercise test
(GXT) to determine LT followed by
a VO2max test. VO2 at LT was used to determine work rate for a
final run where time to
exhaustion (TTE) was recorded. No differences (p = 0.079) in TTE were found
between groups SED, AVG, and FIT,
therefore all groups were combined for further analysis. TTE =
33.96 ± 10.97 min; HR at
LT =167.77 ± 9.12 bpm; RPE at LT:= 13.19 ± 1.36; VO2max = 53.35
± 7.67
ml/kg/min-1; VO2 at LT = 39.46
± 6.02; ml/kg/min-1. Percent VO2max at LT = 74.04 ± 5.26% TTE
was not related to VO2max (p=0.9;
r = -0.009). Additionally, TTE was not related to VO2at LT (p =
0.24; r= -0.2). The study
determined no correlation between TTE and fitness level measured as both
VO2max, and VO2 at LT. General
guidelines typically recommend between 30-60 min of exercise
most days of the week. Other
guidelines use RPE, % VO2max, or HR to determine exercise intensity.
We found that by exercising at
LT, total exercise time fell within the recommended guidelines of the
ACSM and the CDC for both
duration and intensity. Exercise at LT or VT fell within the
recommended guidelines for
duration of exercise regardless of fitness level. We recommend using LT
or VT as the guideline for
determining exercise intensity.
POSTER SESSION: PHYSICAL & LIFE SCIENCES
MC Crossroads
4:30 PM
Kevin McGuire, Geology
The Geochemistry
of the Chalk Hills Member of the Catahoula Formation
The Catahoula Formation is found
throughout eastern Louisiana and Texas and is composed of layers
of fine to coarse-grained
sandstones, shale, and volcanic ash. This research focuses on providing a
petrographic and geochemical
description of the Chalk Hills Member of the Catahoula Formation. The
ash is composed of bubble shards,
the majority being hydrated with a minority remaining glassy, and
less than five percent subhedral
to euhedral sanidine crystals. A TAS plot indicates that the ash is
dacitic in origin. Spider diagram
comparisons with EMORB, OIB, and upper and lower crust show
strong negative K, Sr, and Ti and
positive Th anomalies. They also indicate that the Catahoula ash is
close to OIB in composition. This
implies a magmatic plume-sourced eruptive center as the possible
source of the ash. The REE trend
shows a strong negative Eu trend, which, coupled with the negative
K and Sr anomalies in the spider
diagrams, suggests a strong effect of plagioclase/sanidine
crystallization on the magma
evolution. In addition, a comparison of the ash/OIB REE trends against
elemental partitioning in
rhyolites produces trends that nearly mirror each other, suggesting that
plagioclase fractionation was the
dominant process in the final magmatic evolution of the sample.
Clayton Pace, Geology
Provo Standstill
Wave Energy
During the late Pleistocene, Lake
Bonneville was at its highest level known as the Bonneville
Highstand. The lakes threshold
failed causing the lake surface to drop more than 100 m to the level
known as the Provo Standstill.
The landforms that developed during the Provo Standstill were
determined in large part by the
shoreface wave energy. Wind velocity, direction, and storm duration
are factors influencing wave
energy; however, this data is unknown. In order to determine Lake Provo
wave energy, the fetch and slope
were calculated at 500 m intervals along the shoreface. Fetch and
slope data can be analyzed
alongside the geology of the shoreface in order to determine the correct
wave energy. Elevation
corrections were made to the Provo Lake data accommodating the isostatic
rebound that occurred because of
the decreased load on the crust. Examination of the Lake Provo
landforms in combination with the
fetch and slope calculations help us understand the wave energy
that was present during the Provo
Standstill.
Meesha Ard, Geology
Petrology of
Basaltic Pillow Lavas in Teton Canyon, Idaho, U.S.A.
Three basalt lava flows are
exposed near the mouth of Teton Canyon, Idaho, U.S.A., each with a base
of pillow lavas. These flows
erupted from a shield volcano on the Rexburg bench, south of the canyon
and dammed the river at three
levels. The absence of paleosols between the flows indicates they were
emplaced shortly after one
another—likely from the same eruptive event. The basalts contain
phenocrysts of euhedral
plagioclase, euhedral to subhedral olivine, & Fe-Ti oxides. The oldest
&
youngest flows also contain euhedral
clinopyroxene. Like other normal Snake River Plain basalts,
these flows are ferroan,
calc-alkalic, medium-K2O, and Nb-rich. The younger flows contain
progressively smaller
plagioclase; more euhedral olivine phenocrysts; lower Cr & Ni
concentrations;
and higher Rb, Zr, & Ba
concentrations—indicating that the magma system became progressively less
evolved as the eruption
progressed. This study is part of a larger study to understand the nature of
basalt-river interactions in
southeast Idaho.
POSTER SESSION: PHYSICAL & LIFE SCIENCES
MC Crossroads
4:30 PM
Stacey Sterling, Exercise
Science
Lloyd Lee
Korissa Zollinger
Jason King
The Energy
Expenditure of Ballroon Dance
Ballroom dance is quickly
becoming a popular form of physical activity. There have been limited
studies regarding the energy
expenditure of ballroom dance. The purpose was to determine the energy
expenditure of ballroom dance and
compare these results with current ACSM and CDC guidelines for
physical activity. Participants
consisted of 24 college-age individuals (12 male, 12 female). Oxygen
uptake was recorded and used to
determine energy expenditure during 30-minutes of ballroom dance
(waltz, fox trot, swing, cha
cha). Dances were performed in four-minute intervals with two-minute rest
periods between each dance. The
swing dance was repeated in order to reach 30-minutes of total
activity. Mean energy expenditure
during the 30-minutes of total activity including rest was 5.88 ± 1.7
kcal/min. Energy expenditure
during the waltz (6.01 ± 1.8 kcal/min), fox trot (6.01 ± 1.9
kcal/min) and
cha cha (6.41 ± 2.1
kcal/min) were considered moderate activity according to CDC and ACSM
guidelines. The energy
expenditure of both swing dances (8.14 ± 2.5 and 7.92 ± 2.5
kcal/min) were
considered vigorous activity by
the same guidelines. Ballroom dance is an acceptable form of exercise
and can be used to reach
recommended prescription guidelines for physical activity.
Michael Shaw, Biology
Senyo Agbenowu
Tuoen Liu
Alok Bhushan
Jean Pfau
Histone
Deacetylase (hDaC) Inhibitors Induces Apoptosis and Inhibits Cell
Proliferation in
7TD1 Cells: Implications in Treatment of Multiple Myeloma
Suberoylanilide hydroxamic acid
(SAHA) is a histone deacetylase inhibitor that has become a
promising antitumor agent in
Multiple Myeloma. In this study, we examined the effects of the HDAC
inhibitor SAHA on the cell
proliferation and apoptosis in both dexamethasone sensitive (7DT1) and
resistant (7TD1-DXM) Multiple
Myeloma cells. Apoptosis was determined by flow cytometry analysis
of Annexin V binding populations.
Acetylated histones and apoptosis-associated proteins were
detected by Western blotting.
SAHA (0–20μM) induced apoptosis in a concentration- and
timedependent
manner in the two cell lines:
7TDI (IC50 of 0.05μM) and 7TD1-DXM (IC50 of 0.5μM).
SAHA treatment caused an
accumulation of acetylated histones (H3), an increase in Bax proteins, a
decrease of Bcl2 and Bcl-XL
proteins. Treatment with low doses of SAHA significantly increased the
sensitivity of both cell lines to
dexamethasone. These finding will be of enormous benefit to clinicians
and patients. Inhibition of HDAC
may decrease the dose of adjunct chemotherapy used in routine
clinical practice and also
prevent the development of resistance
POSTER SESSION: PHYSICAL & LIFE SCIENCES
MC Crossroads
4:30 PM
Steven C. Hansen, Geology
Ryan A. Shurtliff
Samuel L. Grover
Petrology of the
Igneous Rocks of the Centennial and Henry’s Mountains,
Idaho
The Centennial and Henry’s
Mountains are located near the Continental Divide on the Idaho-Montana
border and contain ~40 km3 of
Eocene shoshonite aa lava flows that overlie local Paleozoic strata and
are cut by feeder dikes. These
rocks are exposed in three discontinuous areas each roughly 5 km (E-W)
wide in a 10 x 30 km region. The
youngest flow from the westernmost area has a 40Ar/39Ar age of
49.94 ± 0.038 Ma. Because
these rocks are located between the Absaroka (to the east) and Challis (to
the west) volcanic fields their
petrogenesis may yield useful insights into the Eocene petrotectonic
history of western North America.
The volcanic features, petrography, and composition of the Sawtell
Peak shoshonites are remarkably
uniform. The flows are sometimes vesicular or amygdaloidal, are
crystal rich, and contain
euhedral cpx phenocrysts, commonly-altered ol phenocrysts, and microlites of
plag and Fe-Ti oxides. Major and
trace element compositions suggest that these rocks erupted during
(at least) three eruptive
episodes; are compositionally similar to the mafic rocks of the Absaroka
(rather than the Challis)
volcanic field; and include a significant subduction zone compositional
component—likely from the
subduction zone that existed beneath western North America during the
Eocene.
Jacob Kerksiek, Electrical
Engineering
Beau Haertling
Affordable Green
Energy
Alternative energy sources such
as hydro, thermal, and wind are becoming very popular in today’s
―Green‖ environment.
This semester we looked specifically at using wind to develop a relatively
inexpensive generator using an
array of permanent magnets. Using E&M principles we designed and
built a working 3-phase dc
generator. Our target power output was 400 watts (enough to power a small
dwelling in a developing
country). Our design budget was $300.00. The purpose of this project was
only to develop the actual
generator. The mechanical means to turn the generator such as a windmill,
turbine, or other source were
outside the scope of the project.
POSTER SESSION: SOCIAL SCIENCES
MC Crossroads
4:30 PM
Erika Hales, Psychology
Gender
Differences in Body Satisfaction and Estimated Weight
For my study, I wanted to see
whether males and females at BYU-Idaho tended to overestimate their
weight or underestimate it and if
there was a difference between the genders. I also wanted to see
whether body satisfaction played
a role in the estimation of weight. The literature shows that females
report more body dissatisfaction
than males. However, on the issue of whether a specific gender tends
to over or underestimate more
than the other, research conclusions can be found to support either
viewpoint. I hypothesized that
women would overestimate more than men and men would
underestimate more than women.
After conducting this study, I observed which findings in the
literature most closely resembled
my results.
Kacie Birtcher, Psychology
Veronica Zanni
Motivation: What
Factors Encourage Students to Graduate?
We want to see what the
contributing factors are in student’s motivation to complete their
education. In
order to gain quantitative data
we created and sent out a survey via email to 500 students from
freshman to senior year to
evaluate what motivates them to graduate. In analyzing our feedback, we
have discovered that more
internal factors, such as satisfaction and self-fulfillment held more weight
than external factors, such as
good income and career aspiration.
Matt Nearents, Psychology
The Faces of
Cars: Impacts on Trait Attribution
My study aims to explore how
people see facial expressions in cars and anthropomorphize human
characteristics onto cars in the
form of trait attribution. My study takes four cars, removes the
identifying information and asks
participants to rate the car on two personality characteristics:
friendlyhostile,
and submissive-dominant.
Participants are also asked to rate whether they perceive a facial
expression on the car front and
which universal expression they see.
Travis Bowers, Psychology
Do Grades Affect
Student Evaluations?
The purpose of this study is show
evidence that student grades affect instructor evaluations at Brigham
Young University-Idaho.
Evaluations from six colleges were collected from the winter 2010 semester.
Three of the colleges had high
GPA’s and the other three had low GPA’s. From each college 2
classes
were taken. One of the classes
had a high GPA and the other had a low GPA. For this study we
hypothesized that a high class
GPA’s correlates with a high instructor rating; we used a point biserial
correlation to show this. We also
hypothesized that a student’s expected grade will significantly relate
to a high or low class GPA; we
also used a point biserial correlation to show this. Our results show that
the grade’s students
receive in a course affects their rating of the instructor and the course.
POSTER SESSION: SOCIAL SCIENCES
MC Crossroads
4:30 PM
Alex North, Psychology
Arwen Behrends
Kayla Green
Luis Oquendo
Individualistic
and Structural Attributions of Poverty in the LDS Population
Because of the importance and
prevalence of poverty in the world there has been a significant amount
of research done on the lay
attributions of poverty and the subsequent influence on helping behavior.
The purpose of this study was to
further the work on how religion mediates poverty attributions by
extending the research into an
LDS population. 144 BYU-Idaho students filled out an internet based
survey. The survey used a 5 point
scale to measure students attributions of poverty. A factor analysis
revealed six factors that
accounted for 62.9% of the variance, while an ANOVA test showed that an
individualistic and structural
attributions were used more than fatalistic attributions to explain poverty.
Because of the high Conservative
influence in the LDS sample we hypothesized that the individualistic
attribution would be the more
popular. Our hypothesis was only partially supported. It appears that
religious influence reduced the
effect that political orientation exerted on poverty attribution.
Jeff Laugenour, Psychology
The Effect of
Warm and Cool Colors on the Desirability of Food
Many factors contribute to the
overall desirability of food. On such factor is the color of both the food,
and the packaging it is presented
with. This study investigates the affect of the warmth or coolness of
the packaging color of a food has
on its overall desirability. It proposes that warmer colors have a
greater positive impact on food
desirability then cooler colors.
Jessica Green, Psychology
The Comparison
of Methods for Coping with Stress in Combat Situations from
the Vietnam,
Gulf, and Iraqi/Afghani War
This study discusses how stress
affects militants within the United States Army, and does a comparison
of lifestyles to analyze how each
person handled their respective stressful situations. This is a pilot
study of seven people because of
limitations placed on the study itself, and it was conducted here on
the BYU-Idaho campus. This study
is a Mixed Methods study. There was an Interview conducted with
each person and a questionnaire
given to each person to better measure it from an empirical stance.
ORAL SESSION: LANGUAGES & LETTERS
MC 176A
6:45 PM
Sarah Baird, English
Animal vs.
Human: Exploring Carnality and Rationality through Zoomorphism
in “The Horse Dealer’s Daughter”
D.H. Lawrence’s short
story, ―The Horse Dealer’s Daughter,‖ has received very
little attention in the
world of critical analysis. Those
who have written on it have mainly focused on how the story is a
journey from misery to an
awakening and spiritual re-birth. All of these critics make valid points that I
agree with. However, I take a
different approach to this famous short story. In the research I have done,
none of the critics take a deeper
look into the animal imagery within the story. There is too much animal
imagery contained in the story
for it to be ignored. I argue that in ―The Horse Dealer’s Daughter,‖
Lawrence compares the striking
contrasts between the carnal human being and the rational human being
through his use of zoomorphism,
or the giving of animal mannerisms to human beings. Through my
analysis, the audience will
discover the natural or carnal instincts of human beings when faced with
desperation, which can lead to
irrational thinking. Through my analysis of the heroine’s decision to
walk away from these instincts,
readers will also learn how rationality overcomes carnality.
7:00 PM
Benjamín Ocampo, History
Steinbeck’s Marginal Man in Tortilla
Flat
The examination of the
marginalization of Danny of Tortilla Flat, the main character of the
novel
demonstrates the perils of the
marginal man and how in the end he cannot belong to two societies
without ultimately choosing one
or the other, and losing his previous identity. In short, Danny is an
example of the marginal man and
through this marginalization his primitive identity is challenged by
civilized society and is
ultimately lost.
7:15 PM
Rosa Lea V. Ojeda, English
The Gift of
Exposure
O. Henry’s short story, ―The
Gift of the Magi‖ has typically been viewed as the ultimate portrayal of
altruism. Henry’s stories
are known for their surprise endings of bringing good out of bad situations.
Could it be possible that the ―good‖
he has written actually disguises the bad? In ―The Gift of the Magi‖
Henry attacks women. For example,
the first description of Della is that of a sobbing woman, who does
nothing but think about how
little money she has. Her hair, representing her beauty, is her most prized
possession. Her beauty is
everything to her, and to her husband. When she cuts her hair, she doubts her
self-worth, showing us that a
woman is only as good as her looks. Della continually asks for her
husband’s approval of her
looks, implying that a woman’s worth is determined by man. That Della
loses
her worth when she cuts her hair
is evident because Jim never actually tells Della she is pretty. Henry
also makes a point to describe
Jim as ―needing a new overcoat‖ and ―without gloves.‖
Instead of buying
Jim what he actually needed, and
what she could afford, Della chose to sell what was important to her
for a man. Della sacrificed a
part of herself for her husband because women’s needs come secondary to
men’s. Henry wrote ―The
Gift of the Magi‖ while he was in prison, calling his credibility into
question.
Many women in Henry’s life
died, causing him to view women as weak and feeble and to blame them
for his grief. Henry’s
seemingly sweet tale blinds readers to what the story actually does: demeans,
objectifies, and marginalizes
women through the use of diction, tone, and symbolism.
ORAL SESSION: LANGUAGES & LETTERS
MC 176A
7:30 PM
Timothy Ng, International
Studies
New Texts from
Social Media: Tweets from Beyond the Great Firewall
The introduction of Web 2.0
social media has given a new voice to millions of Internet users all around
the globe; nowhere has this been
more apparent than in China and Far-East Asia. Since the fiber-optic
boom of the mid-1990s, the world
has become connected to a previously unfathomable stream of
communication and information
that is changing not only individual and social behaviors, but is
affecting highly influential
topics like global politics as well. With a focus on current Chinese social
media trends, particularly in
regard to their adoption of the micro-blogging platform Twitter, this study
will observe how new and
influential literary texts are being created, despite opposition from an
increasingly aggressive Internet
censorship regime originating from the nation’s communist
government. The study will
further analyze the authors of these new texts, namely native political
dissidents who are taking
advantage of the latest Internet technologies, to inform and voice their
criticisms to not only their
oppressors, but the rest of the world. Although the phenomenon is relatively
new and still in its early
stages, the research will reveal historical precedents to these dissident texts
that stretch as far back as the
days of imperial rule, to events that have occurred as recently as within
this last generation. In
addition, the study will speculate Twitter’s potential role in
encouraging
political reform within the
Chinese mainland.
7:45 PM
Katelyn Ericson, English
A Matter of
Choice: A Critical Look at C.S. Lewis’
The
Great Divorce
At troubled times like these, the
tendency to ask the age old questions of ―what is my purpose?‖, ―why
am I here?‖, and ―where
am I going‖ seem to become more important. It is a mystery that men for
thousands of years have tried to
solve. The unknown world of the afterlife is so easily attained, yet
many do not have any clue to what
it may be like. Is there really a heaven or a hell? And if there is,
what do you do to get there? C.S.
Lewis, in his book The Great Divorce, attempts to answer these
questions. The focus of his book
revolves around a trip from Hell up to Heaven. Each character that
arrives is given the opportunity
to make a change in their life that would allow them to stay, but many
refuse such an offer. Critics
have argued a variety of reasons regarding the Lewis’s purpose: teaching
doctrine of good vs. bad, the
principles of turning toward God, and the description of the righteous and
evil—but they have only
barely glazed over one of the most important concepts of the entire novel—
the principle of agency. An
understanding of this concept, (sometimes described as the innate power
each man has to make decisions
for themselves—regardless of anything or anyone else), is critical to
the overlying message of the
novel. Everything ties back into this principle. Once the reader sees how
this fits, they can understand
more fully why the difference between Heaven and hell is a matter of
personal choice.
ORAL SESSION: LIFE SCIENCES
MC 174A
6:00 PM
Garrett Weldon, Exercise
Physiology
Dane Owens
Complex vs.
Complex-Eccentric Training on Short Term Vertical Jump Height
Recent evidence suggests that
additional loading during the eccentric phase of lower body plyometric
exercises may illicit greater
increases in vertical jump height (VJH) when compared to results without
additional loading (Myszka,
2009). The purpose of this study was to compare the effects on short-term
VJH when additional loading
during the eccentric phase of the plyometric portion of complex training
(combination of resistance
training and biomechanically similar plyometric exercises on each training
day) is added to a standard
complex training program. Ten subjects were randomly assigned to one of
two training programs: complex
training (CPX) or complex-eccentric training (CPXE). Five other
subjects that did not want to
participate in resistance or plyometric exercises were assigned to a control
(CON) group. Each subjects’
VJH was recorded pre and post training. During the 5 ½ weeks of
training both CPXE and CPX groups
performed the same resistance protocol but differed in how the
eccentric phase of the plyometrics
were done. A one way ANOVA was used to compare changes.
Vertical jump in the CPXE group
(8.64 ± 2.75 cm) increased significantly (P < 0.05) when compared
to both the CPX group (3.81
± 2.69 cm) and the CON group (0.64 ± 0.73 cm). VJH for the CPX group
alone did not significantly (P
> 0.05) increase when compared with the CON group. In a 5 ½ week
period of training CPXE increases
VJH significantly when compared with CPX or CON.
6:15 PM
Aly Barthelmes, Exercise
Science
Allison Eliason
The Effect of Macronutrient
Breakfast on Overall Calorie Intake
Eating breakfast each morning is
very important as it provides necessary energy. The type of
macronutrient found in breakfast
may influence type of food eaten throughout the day. Eating
breakfast may decrease overeating
and promote healthier eating, thus halting the steady rise of obesity.
The purpose of our study is to
determine whether a breakfast composed of a single macronutrient will
affect the total caloric intake
consumed each day. Thirty test subjects between ages 18 and 40 were
recruited for the study. Each
person was given a breakfast to be eaten every morning for five days
consisting of either protein
(chunk light tuna), simple carbohydrate (Berry Colassal Crunch cereal), or
complex carbohydrate (old
fashioned rolled oats). Test subjects recorded their food intake daily and
researchers used that data to
estimate calorie consumption per day for each individual. Data was then
compared between individuals and
among groups.
ORAL SESSION: LIFE SCIENCES
MC 174A
6:30 PM
Joshua Cady, Biology
Chloe Stenkamp-Strahm
Ailene MacPherson
Neuropathy of
the Enteric Nervous System Due to a High Fat Diet
Mice fed a 72% fat diet have been
shown to have symptoms of enteric
neuropathy, insulin resistance
and obesity at 8 and 16 week study periods. In an effort to monitor the
early onset of these changes,
mice were analyzed after a 2 week period. Data concerning glial cell
integrity, sensory and excitatory
motor neuron activity showed mostly non-significant values between
test and control mice.
6:45 PM
Tyler W. LeBaron, Exercise
Physiology
Functional Water
for Prevention and Treatment of Diseases
The incurable, chronically ill,
or otherwise afflicted have been pilgrimaging to Nordenua to drink the
so-called healing waters.
Clinical trials consisting of over 2000 diabetic patients have verified that
these ―natural reduced
waters‖ can indeed improve important blood parameters. It has been
revealed
that the main agent responsible
for these benefits is hydrogen gas. Recently, hydrogen has been
extensively studied for its
therapeutic properties as a regulator, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and its
anti-apoptotic protective
effects. Electrolyzed reduced water (ERW) exhibits a negative oxidation
reduction potential and
zeta-potential, supersaturated with nanosize hydrogen bubbles existing in
negative colloidal forms around
the hydroxides. ERW was approved by the Japanese Ministry of
Health and Welfare in 1965 for
its therapeutic effects. Many studies have been published concerning
its application; including,
prevention and treatment of neurodegenerative diseases and atherosclerosis,
reductions in pro-inflammatory
cytokines, amelioration of impaired lipid and glucose metabolism,
prevention of pancreatic β-cell
dysfunction, suppression of cancer cell proliferation, and longevity.
Though there are numerous studies
on these topics, a comprehensive literature review does not exist
This will be the first review written,
which will help move the scientific community forward in new
directions for the prevention and
treatment of diseases.
7:00 PM
John Cornelius, Biology
Ben Nelson
Jose Alvarez
Steven Miles
Phagocytosis as
a Viable Means of Horizontal Gene Transfer
Horizontal Gene Transfer (HGT) is
increasingly noted as the cause of the appearance of species
specific sequences in other,
non-related organisms. Previous work has indicated phagocytosis, the
engulfing of extracellular bodies
for nutrition, as a potential mechanism of transferring viable DNA
sequences into Dictyostelium
discoideum amoeba. As an extension of this work, we here investigate
phagocytosis as a viable means of
HGT in murine (mouse) microglia, the resident white blood cells in
neural tissue. Successful
insertion of transferred genes into these cells represents a novel mode of
peptide delivery to the central
nervous system.
ORAL SESSION: LIFE SCIENCES
MC 174A
7:15 PM
Jared Roberts, Exercise
Science
Chris Madsen
Hyrum Anderton
The Effects of
Progressive Static Stretching on Anaerobic Power Performance
Perceptions of a single bout of
static stretching have been negative in correlation with anaerobic power
performance. Studies have not
concluded whether static stretching over an extended period of time will
increase or decrease anaerobic
performance. The purpose of this experiment is to prove that
progressive static stretching
over time will increase ones overall anaerobic performance. Nine active
participants were assigned
randomly to one of three groups and asked to stretch either before or after
training. Testing was completed
both before and after the study.
7:30 PM
Shaun Huntington, Exercise
Physiology
Ryan Daw
Jessica Mearns
How Unstable
Training Affects Performance
Performance in sports demands a
high degree of coordination, muscle control, and balance, each of
which are stressed by training
the body in an environment that requires heightened proprioception and
multiple muscle groups to be
recruited simultaneously. When an individual is training on an unstable
surface, balance and
proprioception are increased. The purpose of this study was to determine if
training on unstable surfaces had
an effect on lateral movement, explosive power, and core strength.
Ten male and female students ages
18-25 enrolled in a beginning weight training class, volunteered,
and were randomly assigned to
this study. Two comparison groups were established and each
performed a total body workout
with unstable squats and lunges as the variable. Workouts took place
twice a week for approximately
one hour over the course of a six week training period.
7:45 PM
Nathan O’Dell, Exercise
Science
Robert Welker
Rachel Carlisle
Effects of Squat
Training Barefoot
Studies have been conducted
showing that wearing shoes decreased the natural calcaneal stability of
the subject compared to the
barefooted subjects, therefore this decrease in stability caused more
injuries in shod subjects then to
those who were barefoot. The purpose of this experiment was to study
whether or not a strength
training program conducted barefoot, would have increased power output
compared to those who trained
with shoes measured by a 1 repetition maximum in the back squat.
Eight untrained college students
enrolled in a Brigham Young University-Idaho weight training class
were assigned to two groups prior
to training: barefoot (B) and shoes (S). All students participated in
the same strength training regime
as prescribed by the strength and conditioning research team
designed for six weeks. Pre- and
post-training tests were conducted for the 1 RM back squat. Analysis
of Variance was calculated for
all dependent variable and significance levels were set a p<.05.
ORAL SESSION: PHYSICAL SCIENCES
MC 174B
6:15 PM
Scott Fuller, Physics
Research
Capabilities of BYU-Idaho Telescope and Variable Star Study of RV
Ursa Major
The BYU-Idaho Physic’s
Department recently acquired a 250mm f/4 Maksutov Newtonian telescope
for use by undergraduates and
faculty. In order for students to obtain quality images that can be used
for research, they must
understand several techniques. These techniques include focusing, autoguiding,
and image reduction. Images are
taken with a SBIG ST-7XME charge-coupled device (CCD). CCDs
are employed in many modern
astronomical research projects and their solid-state design allows for
detailed photometric studies such
as variable star studies. Variable stars are those whose apparent
brightness changes with respect
to the observer. RV Ursa Major is one such star. Following detailed
research of RV Ursa Major, its
period was found to be 0.46746 ± 0.00395 days. The phase curve of the
star was also created based on
the results of images taken over an 11-day period in August 2010. This
research is designed to guide
future projects by BYU-Idaho undergraduates and faculty members.
6:30 PM
Brett Stone, Mechanical
Engineering
A Hybrid Future
and How BYU-I Students Can Help Shape It
The feasibility of BYU-Idaho
students from the Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering and
Automotive Technology Departments
designing and building a hybrid vehicle was researched. A wide
range of project ideas were
evaluated against several important criteria using a decision matrix. Items
such as cost, available space and
tools, project relevance, and number of students who would benefit
were included.
6:45 PM
David Perry, Biology
Using Gamma Wave
Energies to Map Defects in Metallic Surfaces
Annihilation events of positrons
and electrons give off two gamma ray photons. The typical energy
associated with such an event is
511 keV per gamma ray—the common rest energy of the electron and
positron plus their kinetic
energy. However, this can be affected by the velocity of the electrons in the
annihilation events. When
positrons collide with high momentum core electrons the spread of gamma
wave energies typically widens.
For example, instead of giving off two gamma rays of equal energies,
such an annihilation event may
give off one ray of greater and one of equally less energy due to the
Doppler Effect. Using
standardized samples of annealed and shot-peened copper we hope to identify
which wave energies are typical
of surface defects and use that data to make two-dimensional defect
maps in other materials. We
expect to improve the precision of the techniques to the point of
consistently mapping 15 x 20 cm
objects. Obstacles to our goals include short- and long-term
repeatability of the process
(including sample positioning error) and consistency of results compared to
error tolerance. Using 15-minute
data segments we intend to measure and minimize margins of error
and improve the limitations of
these techniques.
ORAL SESSION: PHYSICAL SCIENCES
MC 174B
7:00 PM
Brock Shenton, Geology
Kevin McGuire
Composition and
Petrogenesis of the Basalts of the Island Park Area, Idaho
The Island Park area is located
in the southwestern portion of the nested Yellowstone I, Henry’s Fork,
and Yellowstone II calderas in
eastern Idaho. The area centers on the 1.2 Ma partially-filled Henry’s
Fork caldera and is largely
surfaced by mafic rocks. Like the Yellowstone II caldera, the Island park
area records the transition from
rhyolite- to basalt-dominated magmatism that characterizes the
development of volcanic fields in
the Yellowstone Snake River Plain volcanic province (YSRP). This
study reports the compositions of
the mafic rocks of the Island Park area and infers their petrogenesis
by comparing their compositions
to those of YSRP rocks for which petrogenetic models have already
been developed. Like other mafic
rocks of the YSRP those in the Island Park area are dominantly
ferroan; calcic to calc-alkalic;
low- to medium-K2O; and Nb-rich. Three basic petrogenetic magma
series have been identified for
the YSRP: 1) A distinctly bimodal basalt-rhyolite (normal YSRP)
series. This series is
volumetrically dominant and consists of upwelling-mantle-derived basalts and
associated anatectic rhyolites.
Fractional crystallization and minor assimilation variably contribute to
compositions of this series. 2) A
magma mixing series. This series is much less common and is
characterized by compositions
derived from mixing of the basalt and rhyolite magmas of the bimodal
series. 3) An extensive
fractional crystallization series. This series is uncommon and consists of the
fractionation products—including
rhyolite—of the normal YSRP basalt of the bimodal series. The
mafic rocks of the Island Park
area dominantly belong to the normal YSRP series. Like the
Yellowstone system, the Henry’s
Fork system includes above-average abundance of the extensive
fractional crystallization
series. Unlike the Yellowstone system, the transition to mafic magmatism in
the Henry’s Fork system
occurred with very little magma mixing—both in volume and in the extent
of
mixing. These observations
suggests that magmas belonging to the magma mixing and fractional
crystallization series are more
common during the transition from rhyolite- to basalt-dominated
volcanism in the YSRP, and that
the abundance and extent of mixing during the transition is
determined by the size and
persistence of the granitic magma body of the system.
7:15 PM
Amy Ferguson, Physics
Summer at NIST
The first project I did at NIST
was with a solar cell. The purpose was to find the External Quantum
Efficiency (EQE) by measuring the
current across the solar cell and by finding the intensity of light at
the solar cell. I then started
working on measuring the index of refraction (n) and dielectric constant (k)
of a thin film of iron on
silicon. I etched pieces of the sample for different amounts of time in
phosphoric acid and then measured
n and k. I graphed the data to find trends. Research is continuing
on both of these projects by my
adviser, Dr. Nhan Nguyen.
ORAL SESSION: PHYSICAL SCIENCES
MC 174B
7:30 PM
Jacopo Lafranceschina, Physics
Deformable
Mirrors in Close Loop
Using a deformable mirrors device
and optical instruments, we set up experiment to correct user
aberration in close loop system.
We developed parts of Matlab codes that run the algorithm that makes
the system work.
7:45 PM
Patrick L. Norby, Geology
Coral Abundance,
Diversity, and Body Size Decrease with Depth in the Early
Mississipian
Lodgepole Formation, Montana
The Early Mississippian
(Kinderhookian) Lodgepole Formation of southwest Montana was deposited
in an upper ramp to slope setting
situated between the Antler Foredeep to the west and a broad
carbonate platform to the east.
Three primary depositional environments are recognized based on
predictable differences in
sedimentology and paleontology, including from onshore to offshore: 1)
outer ramp, 2) proximal slope,
and 3) distal slope to basin environments. Rugose and tabulate corals
comprise a large portion of the
macrofossil fauna in the Lodgepole Formation. Solitary rugose corals
are by far the most common coral
taxa and are found in all three depositional environments. In
contrast, colonial rugose and
tabulate corals are comparatively rare and mostly occur in outer ramp and
proximal slope environments.
Generally, coral abundance, diversity, and body size decrease from
proximal to distal slope
environments. Colonial corals from the proximal slope are largest and exhibit
the best preservation.
Sedimentological observations suggest that colonial corals may have been
limited in abundance and size by
frequent turbidite disturbance. The observed size ranges of coral
colonies suggest that the
frequency of terminal obrution events during the accumulation of Lodgepole
sediments was on the order of a
few years to decades.
ORAL SESSION: SOCIAL SCIENCES
MC 176D
6:00 PM
Elizabeth Anderson, English
Arwen Behrends
A Study of
Note-taking Methods
Many students believe ―that
taking notes in class . . . helped them understand a class lecture‖
(Huang,
2006). Our hypothesis is when
notes are handwritten and then transcribed connection, personal use and
application, and later reference
to the material will be greater than if the notes are taken only by hand
or only with computer software.
72 randomly selected undergraduate students from BYU-Idaho
received a survey of 12 questions
that assessed their note-taking method, and if they connected their
notes to other classes and
personal experiences. The participants were sent an email containing a link
to the survey. Only the responses
that indicated using either hand or computer note taking methods
were used in the analysis. SPSS
was used to run statistical analysis of the results. The results were not
significant for any of the
factors tested. However, these results indicate that the quality of notes
taken,
rather than the method that
increases connections. The conditions were largely uneven, with only one
participant that reported using
the note taking method this study sought to analyze. Future research
may be designed to determine if
quality of notes rather than the note taking is a better indicator for
connections made.
6:15 PM
Scott Hurst, Psychology
Effects of
Parental Divorce on Adult Children
The methodology of the proposed
study is straightforward; married BYU-Idaho students will be asked
if their parents are still
married or divorced and at what age they married. After collecting the data,
populations of students with
divorced parents will be compared with those whose parents are still
married. The aim is to find a
statistically significant difference in the age at which students married
depending on the situation of
their family of origin.
6:30 PM
David B. Thacker, Psychology
Determinants of
Attractiveness in LDS Culture
This study aims to see whether
women will rate a man’s facial attractiveness higher based on whether
he has completed certain
religious tasks. The main research question to be answered here is whether a
man is thought to be more
attractive depending on whether he has or has not served a mission for The
Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). The participants include 53 LDS women in
the control group and 16 LDS
women in the experimental group. Data was collected via use of a
slideshow featuring a fake
biography followed by two pictures of a man’s face. ANOVA was used as
the statistical procedure.
ORAL SESSION: SOCIAL SCIENCES
MC 176D
6:45 PM
Arwen A. Behrends, Psychology
Handling
Conflict in Online and Face-to-face Groups
The purpose was to describe the
different methods that a decision-making group uses when dealing
with an uncooperative member in
an online and face-to-face setting. The hypothesis was that the online
group would spend significantly
more time in opposition and engage in more confrontative or
disagreement type comments.
Fifteen BYUI students were recruited from either a random selection
from juniors/seniors or were
recruited from a general psychology and a foundations class. Participants
were assigned to either an online
or face-to-face group. Each group was given the prompt to come up
with three ways in which BYUI
approved housing needs to change and was given 20 minutes to come
up with a unanimous decision. The
face-to-face groups were video recorded and transcripts of the
online groups were kept for
analysis. A confederate was used to create conflict within the group by
disagreeing with the final
decision. The transcripts were analyzed with the Group Working Relations
Coding System and the
Interpersonal Conflict Interaction Coding System. Analysis found that the
online group spent significantly
more time in opposition and was less likely to engage in negotiation
and used stronger confrontative
remarks than the face-to-face group.
7:00 PM
Cody Naccarato, Psychology
Self Diagnosing
Depression
This research looks at people are
their ability to accurately diagnose their own level of depression in
comparison to the ―average‖
American. I believe because of self-serving bias that the subjects will
believe that they are not as
depressed as the average American. This study uses 33 participants of
BYU-I, both male and female, who
filled out a survey for determining current levels of depression
along with what they believe
their own level of depression is. SPSS will be used to figure out if there is
any correlation between the
levels of depression and the self-diagnoses.
7:15 PM
Justin Larson, Psychology
Kathryne Reinholm
Marriage
Satisfaction and Gaming: Are the Two Incompatible?
The purpose of our study is to
examine the effect that multiplayer gaming usage and addiction has on
marriage. Our independent
variable is the usage of video games and their impact on marriage—this
study will help provide a better
understanding of: the gaming behaviors of married individuals who
play Massively Multiplayer Online
Role-Playing Game(s)—i.e. World of Warcraft, Eve, any/all
Facebook—internal games
(i.e. Farmville, MafiaWars, Farm Town, etc.)—gaming addiction, time
spent gaming, satisfaction in
gaming participation, interaction between spouses gaming together, and
the resulting marital
satisfaction levels of both individuals in the couple.
ORAL SESSION: SOCIAL SCIENCES
MC 176D
7:30 PM
Marlaina Lemmon, Sociology
Jennifer Schipper
Becky Taylor
Kira Middleton
Cait Raney
How Does Level
of Outgoingness Affect Dating Frequency?
The main purpose of our study was
to examine the links between an outgoing personality and
frequency of dating, with
particular interest in social interactions on college campuses with rate of
dating. The participants in this
study were 400 single BYU-I college students (200 males; 200
females). The students completed
a computer survey on their self-perceived outgoingness related to
their dating frequency. T-test
analysis revealed that higher levels of perceived outgoingness relate to a
greater amount of dates. We found
outgoingness to be a highly desired trait in a potential date, whether
the person identified themselves
as outgoing or not.
7:45 PM
Jeremy Oswald, Recreation Management
A Mixed Methods
Investigation Comparing the Happiness and Enjoyment
Levels Between
Five Majors at BYU-Idaho
As a place of continuous
educational innovation, BYU-Idaho has implemented several programs over
recent years to enhance the
student experience. Researchers in the field of positive psychology
continue to explore human
flourishing and enhancing the human experience. This report brings both
missions together in an effort to
apply principles of positive psychology to increase the classroom
experience and overall experience
at BYU-Idaho, focusing principally on the tested hypothesis that
happier people are more
productive and enjoy benefits that others do not. 300 students selected from
the business management, English,
mechanical engineering, music, and nursing majors were invited to
fill out a brief online happiness
measurement to see if different majors scored differently from one
another. They were also asked
provide insight as to what they enjoy about their particular field of
study. Although the differences
in composite score results of the happiness measure were not
statistically significant, the
motivations and sources of enjoyment within each field of study were
significant and insightful. These
insights will provide instructors with ideas that will make their
curriculum and approach to
teaching and learning more enjoyable, and that this will increase the
happiness and productivity of
students at BYU-Idaho.
UGRC Faculty Mentors Fall 2010
Brigham Young University – Idaho