Scholar research Abstracts
The McNair program hosts a Summer Research Institute (SRI) in which,
among other activities, scholars conduct supervised research.
Scholars then write research papers and present their findings
at CMU and national conferences.
2009 Scholar:
Cyrus
Azizi
Comparing Intra-racial and Inter-racial Dialogue: A Qualitative
Approach
Abstract: It has been documented that different races
and different sexes perceive the world differently. The present
study looks at the differences in perceptions of a campus
climate for diversity using the conversational style of focus
groups. There will be two groups for whites, differing by gender
as well as for students of color. There will also be two mixed
race groups. The purpose of the study is to look at how those
perceptions differ depending on the race of those in the
conversation. Implications of studying this area of
communication include helping minorities’ transitions into
college and creating a more inclusive community and more
productive inter-racial interactions.
2009 Scholar:
John
Brooks
Monstrosity in Horror Literature
Abstract: Horror literature hinges on one unique
characteristic rarely found outside of the genre: monstrosity.
Monstrosity is an abstract convention which remains largely
unexamined in terms of its literary value. Its purpose and
function in horror literature have been neglected because the
genre tends to be critically dismissed as a pop phenomenon.
Until an argument which addresses monstrosity as an integral
property of horror literature is presented, the genre cannot be
evaluated properly.
2009 Scholar:
Briana Corpt
The Combined Effects of Exercise and Levodopa in a 6-OHDA Rat
Model of Parkinson’s Disease
Abstract: Parkinson’s disease (PD), a
neurodegenerative disorder affecting the control of voluntary
movement, is pharmaceutically treated with levodopa (L-dopa),
but includes side effects such as motor response complications (MRC)
and a diminished duration with chronic use. Emerging studies
have shown the beneficial effects of exercise at restoring or
maintaining motor skills traditionally lost in PD patients, but
there has been limited research about the combined effects of
both treatments. This study aims to better understand the
interaction effects between exercise and L-dopa. Eight male rats
were used, and all were given unilateral injections
6-hyrdroxydopamine to induce hemi-parkinsonian symptoms. After
two weeks, four animals received L-dopa twice daily while the
other four received a vehicle. Of these divided groups, half
underwent exercise twice daily after injection for two hours.
The other half was simply placed back into their home cages.
Exercise as the sole treatment showed beneficial motor recovery.
L-dopa alone also helped alleviate PD symptoms, but in time, the
rats developed MRC including dyskinesia. The two combined
treatments were effective in mediating voluntary movements, and
increased the drug’s duration of effectiveness. Nevertheless,
the combined treatment resulted in more abnormal involuntary
movements than those rats treated solely with L-dopa.
2009 Scholar:
Caitlin Demsky
Mental Health and Illness in the Workplace: An Evolutionary
Perspective of Several Workplace Triggers of Mental Illness
Abstract: The present study examines the hypothesis
that the prevalence of mental illness in the workplace is
partially due to a mismatch between qualities of the modern
workplace and the anscestral environment in which humans
evolved. The Workplace Characteristics Survey (see Appendix A)
was developed to assess the levels of several evolutionarily
relevant characteristics of the workplace, including: exposure
to sunlight, exposure to greenery, noise levels, physical
activity, quality of sleep and amount and quality of interaction
with animals and humans. Dependent variables were depression,
anxiety, and somatic symptoms, which were also assessed with
questionnaires. The researcher hypothesized that lower levels of
depression, anxiety, and somatic symptoms would be found in
employees who reported higher levels of sunlight exposure,
physical activity, interaction with humans and animals, greenery
exposure and sleep quality as related to their workplace, and
that higher levels of depression, anxiety, and somatic symptoms
would be found in employees who reported higher noise levels in
their workplace. Significant correlations were found between
noise levels and quality of sleep and depression, anxiety, and
somatic symptoms. Human interaction was also found to be
correlated with anxiety in several subgroups. The remaining
hypotheses were not fully supported by the results.
2009 Scholar:
Mark Dravland
Thermal diffusivity of thin film semiconductor electrodes for
electret polarization mapping
Abstract: Thermal diffusivity of thin film electrode
materials can be acquired using a bolometric thermal pulse
technique utilizing only one laser. Using this method,
semiconductor electrodes were evaluated for potential use in
thermal pulse tomography
2009 Scholar:
Kyle
Eveleth
Not Yet Donne: An Analysis of the Psychology of John Donne’s
Songs and Sonets
Abstract: The verse work of John Donne is rife with
themes, motifs, and metaphors which can be used as a roadmap to
understanding the works of an author who has seen a motley
assortment of stances regarding his poetry. In particular,
analyses of his poems for recurring themes of constancy and
inconstancy, the politics of love, gender relations, sexual
conquest, anxiety for the future, and ambivalence can be
illuminating for deciphering the psychology of a poet whose life
contained the same motley assortment of experiences that his
poetry has. The present study seeks to analyze these themes in
the context of the time period, in the context of current
critiques of John Donne’s work, and in relation to the
transmission of ideas and ideologies throughout history. This
could provide a better understanding of the psychology of John
Donne as understood by interpretations of a selection of his
verse work.
2009 Scholar:
Rebecka
Green
A Search for Non-invasive Methods: Determining Age At Death
Abstract: Current methods of assessing age at death by
studying teeth can be destructive, causing the inability to use
a single tooth in more than one study and the loss of valuable
fossil, archaeological or forensic evidence. This paper examines
relationships between ratios of unoccluded and partially
occluded dentin tubules in recent human canine samples by
quantification of the numbers of each in transparent and opaque
sections of tooth samples collected by use of a scanning
electron microscope. This study aims to contribute to the effort
to provide and improve new non-invasive ways of assessing age at
death by potentially offering a test of micro-ct density scans.
2009 Scholar:
Kerry Lepley
The role of Copine A in phototaxis and thermotaxis in developing
slugs of Dictyostelium discoideum
Abstract: Copines are a group of calcium-dependent
membrane binding proteins found in many organisms, including
humans. However, the exact cellular function of these proteins
is unknown. We studied the function of copines using
Dictyostelium discoideum, a single-celled eukaryotic model
organism. We focused on one of six copine genes, copine A (cpnA).
When under starvation conditions, Dictyostelium cells aggregate
into mounds that become migrating slugs, which move toward
optimal areas of light and heat. To study the role of cpnA in
development, we compared the slug behavior of cells lacking the
cpnA gene (cpnA- cells) to the slug behavior of wildtype cells.
First, we captured images of slugs and then after measuring slug
size, we found that the cpnA- slugs were much larger than
wildtype slugs. In addition, we carried out slug phototaxis and
thermotaxis assays and found that cpnA- slugs exhibited no
phototaxis and negative thermotaxis, while wildtype cells
exhibited positive phototaxis and thermotaxis. Mixing a small
percentage of wildtype cells with cpnA- cells rescued slug size,
thermotaxis, and phototaxis defects. Expression of GFP tagged
CpnA in cpnA- cells under the Actin 15 or CpnA promoter did not
rescue these defects. Our results indicate that CpnA has a role
in intercellular signaling important in regulating the size,
motility, phototaxis, and thermotaxis of slugs in developing
Dictyostelium.
2009 Scholar:
Rebecca McRae
Furfural prevents growth and induces ROS-like damage that is
suppressed by the overexpression of OYE2
Abstract: A renewable fuel source is necessary to
combat the rising economical and environmental concerns
currently associated with fossil fuels. One possible renewable
fuel is bio-ethanol from lignocellulosic biomass. However, there
are many problems that need to be addressed before this
alternative can be realized. One major problem is the existence
of multiple inhibitors found in a typical lignocellulosic
hydrolysate. Some of the predominant inhibitors include
furfural, hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), and vanillin. These
chemicals inhibit the growth and fermentation of the budding
yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae. In order to fight the effects
of fermentation inhibitors the stress protective gene, OYE2, was
overexpressed. To test the effects in the presence of inhibitors
exponentially growing yeast with or without the overexpressed
OYE2 were grown with or without furfural present. Yeast
overexpressing OYE2 were shown to grow better in medium
containing low and even high amounts of furfural (25 mM and 50
mM, respectively). Furfural was shown to induce the accumulation
of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and cause cellular damage to
membranes and nuclear chromatin. We predict that overexpression
of OYE2 will subsequently cause reduced damage to membranes and
chromatin. These data demonstrate that overexpressing OYE2
provides protection to yeast against the industrial inhibitor
furfural.
2009 Scholar:
Samantha
Nielsen
Factors That Contribute to Fathers Being Perceived as Good or Poor Sexuality Educators for Their Daughters
Abstract: This study examined how fathers communicate
with their daughters when discussing sexuality, and the factors
that contribute to the fathers being perceived as good or poor
sexuality educators by their daughters. The data from 10 female
participants’ were analyzed (five fathers were rated as good
sexuality educators, and five were rated as poor). Factors that
contributed to fathers being perceived as good sexuality
educators included being emotionally close with his daughter,
displaying attentiveness to her comfort level, being open and
honest when discussing sexuality, monitoring her behaviors with
a level of trust, and using direct communication. Overall, good
fathers exhibited an active parenting style, read cues for
alleviating anxiety, and established an emotionally close
relationship with their daughters in other aspects beyond
sexuality education.
2009 Scholar:
Amanda
Powell
By-Product Gods: A Study of Underlying Cognitive Processes
Responsible for the Creation and Transmission of God Concepts
Abstract: Comparative religion scholars in the past
have sought to show differences between different religious
traditions, but have provided little information regarding
fundamental similarities. By employing the cognitive science of
religion, this project seeks to provide an examination of the
universal conceptualization and transmission of real-time god
concepts.
2009 Scholar:
Genna
Randazzo
Comparing the Transparency of Verbs Across Two Graphic Symbol
Sets
Abstract: The purpose of this investigation was to
compare the transparency of verbs across two graphic symbol sets
(Picture Communication Symbols and SymbolStix) frequently used
in augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). In order to
determine which set represents verbs most transparently, both
typically developing children and children with documented
speech/language impairments, age 6 to 8 years, were given a
forced-choice identification task for both symbol sets. The task
required participants to identify their perception of the
correct symbol for a named referent verb when given the choice
between four symbols. Results indicated that participants were
significantly more likely to choose the expected target of the
SymbolStix set as opposed to the Picture Communication Symbol
set. Findings of this investigation may have clinical
implications for children who need picture/symbol boards or
booklets to facilitate their communication.
2009 Scholar:
Kayana
Sanders
Undergraduate Psychology Students Perceptions of the
Multicultural Environment within Their Department
Abstract: Individuals who belong to cultural/ethnic minorities or who identify as LGBTQ are underrepresented among U.S. psychologists. This trend has been conceptually linked to U.S. psychologists’ historical inattention to issues that are relevant to these populations. As the foundation of a broader effort to empirically explore the relation between psychology faculty perceptions and the experiences of psychology students who are either LGBTQ, belong to ethno cultural minority groups, or both, this study explored the training experiences of 8 undergraduate psychology majors or minors using both quantitative and qualitative approaches. Results point to significant student concerns regarding the inclusiveness of their training experiences both broadly and across four specific domains. This research provides an initial assessment of the perceptions of inclusiveness in their learning experiences among psychology undergraduate students belonging to two historically marginalized groups.
2009 Scholar:
Elizabeth
Taylor
Evaluating a Model for Community Engagement and Intergroup-relations
in Culturally-diverse Youth
Abstract: Anytown is a weeklong residential diversity
awareness program for youth. The main goal of this program is to
help youth develop skills as community leaders who can promote
inter-group acceptance and inclusion. After a careful
examination of the principles of the program and the data
supporting its effectiveness, a conceptual model was developed
as a likely explanation of the individual-level effects of the
Anytown program. The key operational variable in this model is
collective identity, defined as that proportion of the self
which depends on an individual’s group memberships. The model
hypothesizes that Anytown’s positive effects on diversity
acceptance and social responsibility are mediated by changes in
collective identity, which in turn result from two key program
components: Exposure to meaningful intergroup interactions and
the teaching of relevant information.
