DNA replication is vital for cell division as it produces exact copies of all chromosomes for the two daughter cells.  During S-phase of the cell cycle, DNA replication begins at specific, defined locations within a chromosome known as origins of replication.  Interestingly, some origins activate in early S-phase while others activate late.  The biological significance of this temporal control of replication is largely unknown.  In multiple species, centromeric DNA, the site of recruitment for proteins required for separation of chromosomes during mitosis, has been found to be early replicating.  The Brewer/Raghuraman lab has recently shown that centromeres in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae promote their own early replication by advancing the activation time of their neighboring origins.  The conservation of early centromere replication coupled with the Brewer/Raghuraman lab’s recent finding suggests that early centromere replication may be important for chromosome maintenance.  We set out to determine the consequences of a late replicating centromere by artificially delaying its replication time in S. cerevisae, through replacing its nearby origins with drug resistant markers.  To enhance sensitivity of the experiment, I impaired the activity of the spindle checkpoint that monitors correct chromosome segregation.  I also constructed a control chromosome with an early replicating centromere and the same markers.  I will then compare the degree of chromosomal instability, as measured by survival on drug plates, of the control cells to those that contain a late replicating centromere.  We expect the experimental group to show an increase in the number of cells that have lost the chromosome compared to the control cells.  Even if the effect is small we will perform long-term growth experiments to analyze how the cells cope with reduced genetic stability.  The results of this study will provide a better understanding of the biological importance of the temporal replication program.

Does gubernatorial leadership matter? Declining revenues associated with the great recession encourage state governments to use their limited resources more efficiently. However, elected officials will often disagree about priorities, which can make enacting necessary reforms difficult. The goal of this research is to investigate whether state variations in gubernatorial powers impact the ability of governors to respond to important challenges, such as the effects of the great recession. I study fifty states from 1960 to 2012, and ask whether unified government versus divided government, the strength of the governor’s veto power and the strength of the governor’s budget powers is related to a state’s economic performance. Controlling for other factors, I expect to find that states where governors have more veto and budget power, and where the government is unified under same party also tend to have lower unemployment rates. By improving our understanding of the relationship between governors and state economic performance, this study may also shed light on how national reforms strengthening the executive powers might impact presidential economic performance.

In rural Kyakitanga village of the Luweero Triangle in Central Uganda, inequalities resulting from structural violence of colonialism and the post-independence regimes of Milton Obote and Idi Amin trickle down as negative effects on the local food system, which in turn degrade the environment and peoples’ health. Locals express a desire to remedy this food insecurity through modern farming techniques. My research explores the potential role of Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) in the village’s pursuit of food sovereignty and the formation of a future food system. TEK is the usually place-based intergenerational knowledge of indigenous populations about how to thrive in a mutually evolving and beneficial relationship with the environment; as an informer of subsistence methods, TEK tends to be more environmentally sustainable and socially equitable than modern farming. My methodologies included literature review of colonial and post-colonial political economic history of Uganda, current food insecurity in rural Sub-Saharan Africa, TEK in East Africa, and examples of TEK recovery in other communities. Additionally, in Summer 2013, I will conduct participant observation and a community-based participatory action research (PAR) study involving multigenerational semi-structured individual and group interviews in the village. I will collaborate with locals in the research process and share all results with Kyakitangans as a resource for pursuing food sovereignty. My research is significant because it addresses upstream issues of local autonomy, historical trauma, and ecological factors that are often neglected in public health and development discourses in the Ugandan context, which is historically dominated by verticalization and neoliberalism. As applied anthropology, my research will promote the autonomy and agency of an oppressed community, and lead to relevant broader implications for global health and development work and discourse.

Prostate cancer is the most common type of male malignancy in the Western world. Patient death often occurs when treatments which decrease circulating levels of male reproductive hormones are no longer effective. This lethal stage is termed castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). Under normal conditions, androgens function through androgen receptors (ARs) to cause AR activation. The recently identified androgen receptor splice variants (AR-Vs), which lack part or all exons coding for the AR-ligand binding domain, are believed to cause the continuous AR activation found in androgen-independent conditions such as CRPC. Ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme E2 C (UBE2C) is an oncogene expressed in many types of solid tumors and has a function of marking proteins for degradation. Uncontrolled cell growth can be caused by overexpression of UBE2C which targets proteins that serve as cell-cycle check points to be degraded. Overexpression of UBE2C is reported to be positively correlated with AR-V expression. The transcription activation of UBE2C requires chromatin-looping through a phosphorylated transcription factor, mediator of RNA polymerase II transcription subunit 1 (p-MED1). My project investigates the relationship between AR-V and p-MED1 in mediating UBE2C gene expression. We used LnCaP and M12 human prostate cancer cell lines and transfected them with AR-Vs. Expression assays were carried out to measure the UBE2C gene expression levels and the presence of p-MED1 in response to AR-V expressions. We also performed functional assays such as co-immunoprecipitation to determine the functional interplay between AR-V and p-MED1 in mediating UBE2C transcription. We hypothesized that p-MED1 is required in AR-V-directed UBE2C expression. Our data suggest that, through a distinct transcriptome, the presence of p-MED1 as a mediator is required in AR-V-directed UBE2C expression and cancer cell proliferation. The importance of AR-V, p-MED1 and their mechanisms underlying CRPC progression might provide a new therapeutic approach for targeting AR-independent CRPC.

Grounded in subaltern studies, a body of work that analyzes the viewpoints of those who are outside of the social, political and geographic power structure, this paper strives to illuminate the Nueva Canción, or “New Song” movement. Emerging in Latin America during the 1960s, Nueva Cancion celebrated the lives of indigenous and laboring class communities, but was largely made up of figures from positions of racial and economic privilege within the larger system. Investigating the seemingly contradictory politics of representation present, this paper discusses how the movement sought to champion disenfranchised figures, while simultaneously casting such figures as incapable of representing themselves; thus rendering them voiceless. At the center of my inquiry is Mercedes Sosa, a prominent Nueva Cancion figure of local and international recognition, who, as a woman of mixed European and indigenous ancestry, attempted to traverse the gap between the movement and its sentimentalized subject matter. By using Sosa as a focal point, this paper aims to illustrate the complex dynamics of the social and political climate in Latin America from 1960-1982, that enabled Sosa to function neither as producer or subject, but as what can be referred to as a “knowledge mover,” circulating the dominant ideology at the same time as effectively challenging it.

Isochrysis galbana is a marine alga that produces large quantities of lipid per cell. Lipids contain extensive amounts of potential energy. Therefore, this haptophyte may be considered for use in biofuel production. The lipid body organelle—the site of neutral lipid storage—is involved in many cellular processes. To date, little is known about this organelle in I. galbana. Chloroplasts contain lipids stored within smaller structures, termed plastoglobuli. For the purpose of the study, lipid body and chloroplast isolation techniques have been developed for I. galbana.  While light intensity has shown no direct effect on I. galbana’s growth rate, we hypothesize different qualities of light will affect growth by altering cellular protein, carbohydrate and lipid content. We will culture I. galbana under red and blue wavelengths of light. Using chloroplast isolation techniques, as well as developed lipid body isolation procedures, we will analyze the lipids contained within I. galbana lipid bodies and chloroplasts when grown under different light qualities. We will also determine if these wavelengths of light induce a stress response concurrent with lipid production. Preliminary data shows that heat shock proteins 70 and 90 –proteins that maintain homeostasis within the cell—are present in I. galbana whole cell protein extracts as well as isolated lipid body proteins. Using Western blot techniques, the abundance of these stress proteins will be measured under different light conditions. These studies will provide information on growth and lipid production under different light qualities, and whether these wavelengths of light elicit a stress response in I. galbana, an alga with potential for applied biomass production.

Drilled oil is becoming increasingly expensive because it is a non-renewable resource that the planet depends on for energy and transportation. Algae may become the next source of global fuel. Chrysochromulina sp. is an ideal model for algal biofuel production because it has a high growth rate in culture, and the two lipid bodies (the organelles that store potential biofuel precursors) are easily detectable using cell biological techniques. The ability of Chrysochromulina sp. to change its lipid metabolism quickly in response to replicated environmental stress conditions is a crucial factor to better understanding its growth optimization and survival. Based on our preliminary data, this microalgae has the potential for production and commercialization of its lipid-based compounds. Guschina and Hardwood’s 2006 studies have shown that lipid production increases in algae under various environmental stress conditions, such as nitrogen limitation, salinity, or increased temperature. Thus, we have investigated the growth dynamics of Chrysochromulina sp. under the following stress conditions: increased salinity, depleted nitrate levels, depleted ammonium levels, and depleted phosphorous levels. For each of these experiments, flow cytometry was used to obtain cell counts and determine growth rate (K’). Neutral lipid content and lipid body size are essential measurements because they represent how efficiently Chrysochromulina sp. produces lipids (i.e. biofuel) and the characteristics of the different lipids being produced. Using Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS), we have elucidated that the lipid profiles change under different growth conditions. The results attained from these studies provide relevant information about the physiology and ideal growth of lipid producing conditions of Chrysochromulina sp. Using this information, we will be able to determine the proteins involved in lipid biogenesis and apply genetic modification techniques to optimize lipid production for commercial use.

Active learning generally increases student achievement, but not all instructors experience the same magnitude of gains. This variation in student achievement is likely due to differences in how active learning is implemented in the classroom as well as differences in total classroom time devoted to active learning. Although multiple tools exist for characterizing active learning in the classroom, none have been used to explain variation in student achievement. We are developing a new type of Classroom Observation Tool (COT) that characterizes how closely an instructor’s use of active learning matches the best practices suggested in education literature and can be correlated with observed variation in student exam achievement. Currently, we are using the COT to analyze 3 randomly selected classroom sessions from 27 different introductory biology instructors using archived footage. We will create a linear model that combines instructor’s COT scores with controls for variability in student ability and exam challenge between instructors to predict student exam performance. This model will allow us to identify which elements measured by the COT are most strongly correlated with variation in student performance. With this baseline data, we will be able to recommend the use of the COT to help Faculty assess the effectiveness of their instruction, thereby enhancing teaching and student learning not only within Biology education at UW, but also across all postsecondary education.

Our study aims to determine how physiological measures of affect such as heart rate variability and galvanic skin response may be linked to other representations of emotion that arise naturally in text-based communication during online collaboration. Research in this area is important because people increasingly collaborate in a distributed manner across greater distances, and text-based communication is one of the primary means of facilitating these collaborations. The inspiration for this work comes from Aragon and Williams' (2011) paper, which introduces a complex systems model of collaborative creativity and describes ways that affect contributes to this model. In this study, we test and validate the model by using physiological measures to detect and explore the relationship between affect and creativity. Possible outcomes include correlations of creative events with physiological measures of affect and/or the occurrence of affect in chat messages.

Proteins perform a vast array of functions within all living organisms. These functions are heavily dependent on the protein’s 3-D structure. The loss of protein structure can lead to a wide variety of problems, one being the formation of insoluble protein aggregates, which can result from cellular stress. Aggregates can inhibit proper protein function, disrupt cellular homeostasis, and are implicated in many diseases. In order to combat aggregate formation, a family of proteins exists that interact with misfolded and aggregate prone proteins (clients). This family, known as the small heat shock proteins (sHSPs), delays the formation of insoluble aggregates in the cell. Their expression and activity as molecular chaperones have been seen to increase under stress conditions. However, how sHSPs delay aggregation is not well understood. We seek to better understand binding between sHSPs and their clients. Interactions between the sHSP αB crystallin and the model client Δ131Δ (a mutant of staphylococcal nuclease) have been characterized by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR). We hope to test the observations made from this simplified system in more functionally applicable assays. sHSPs not only interact with clients, but also amongst themselves. There are ten known human sHSPs, some of which have been shown to interact with each other. While this interaction is not well understood, we do know that sHSP monomers associate non-covalently to form dimers, which in turn form higher ordered oligomers. To begin understanding these interactions, we seek to investigate whether sHSPs can exchange their monomer subunits to form heterodimers. The ability to heterodimerize would suggest an even greater diversity of oligomer structure and function. We are interested in characterizing the properties of this proposed heterodimerization. Through site directed mutagenesis, experimental based assays, and gel electrophoresis, we seek to gain a detailed description of these proteins that play such a critical role in cellular health.

One role of the state is to help foster economic growth. Financial incentives and regulations are thought to play important roles in industry location and investment decisions. Industries related to bioscience address important problems in society, from how to increase food production to how to defend against viruses. These industries are projected to see large levels of growth over the next 20 years. To explain differences in bioscience industry growth across states, I created a data series that analyzes the incentives available in each state against the impact of each of their bioscience industries. I then defined the quantitative and qualitative effects of these policies in order to show which provide the best areas for growth of bioscience firms and in-turn State economies. I expect to find that high levels of state incentives and reduced regulation directly lead to increased levels of employment, increased number of bioscience establishments, and an overall more impactful bioscience industry.

Arsenic-contaminated groundwater poses a major environmental hazard and adversely affects the health of over 100 million people worldwide. Prolonged consumption and exposure leads to arsenicosis, which can result in skin lesions, impaired cognitive development, cancer and death. One current groundwater remediation technique involves injecting microbial nutrients (i.e. sulfate and carbon) into the subsurface of contamination sites to promote the formation of minerals (through microbial-induced reducing conditions) that either integrate arsenic into their matrix or adsorb arsenic onto their surface. However, studies have shown that post-treatment arsenic levels can increase beyond pre-treatment levels if the predominant removal mechanism is adsorption, and if sufficiently high levels of organic carbon are present to further reduce the adsorbing minerals, resulting in the re-mobilization (release) of arsenic. Therefore, it is important to determine the dominant removal process in order to develop effective long-term remediation techniques. Presently, we are working to determine the effectiveness of techniques involving induced microbial sulfate reduction through nutrient injections, which are currently being used for arsenic removal near Tacoma, WA. To simulate field conditions I pumped contaminated groundwater, extracted from the site, through sediment test columns to determine the arsenic retention capacity of the system. Once effluent and influent arsenic concentrations matched, we used the method of sequential chemicals extractions, along with μXRF and μXRS (microscale x-ray fluorescence and absorption, respectively) to determine the speciation and prevalence of the various arsenic-utilizing and -adsorbing minerals created. Next, we will pump uncontaminated groundwater through the columns to determine the post-treatment concentrations expected for this site due to re-mobilization. If our results show that the dominate removal mechanism is the incorporation arsenic into precipitates, preliminary treatment will be sufficient. However, if adsorption is the primary removal mechanism, a long-term treatment plan will need to be developed to minimize the remobilization of arsenic.

 The performance of machine learning (ML) classification algorithms in an open-ended problem with manual labels is difficult to assess, because errors can exist both in classification and manually labeled datasets. An additional dataset of manually re-annotated data can help to differentiate classifier and manually labeled data errors; however, there is currently no effective way to visualize all three datasets simultaneously. To address this problem, we introduce a new type of visualization called a confusion diamond. The confusion diamond consists of 8 triangles, with each comparing different dimensions of all three datasets. The arrangement of the triangles complement traditional confusion matrices and utilize many of their visual properties. The confusion diamond layout allows users to pre-attentively perceive data errors as distinct from classification errors, which makes the visualization easy to use. Multiple confusion diamonds can be analyzed at once, making it useful for datasets containing multiple labels, and giving researchers the ability to quickly identify which labels have errors and how to solve them. This work presents the key design elements of the confusion diamond visualization, relevant usage scenarios, and findings from semi-structured interviews with members of a research team interested in using the confusion diamond to help them visualize ML classification performance on large social media datasets.

Since gaining the right to vote, women’s influence in the political sphere has been on the rise. While voters have started to embrace women as political leaders, research done by Huddy and Terkildsen on gender stereotypes and their effects on candidates finds that female leaders are not given the same respect as male leaders when it comes to military and police issues. Their research also finds that the inverse is true; male leaders are not perceived to have the same competence as female leaders on social welfare issues such as health care and family support programs. I will investigate this question of gender issue ownership by examining the impact of gender on gubernatorial power in 50 states over ten years. I will compare the changes in state spending across policy areas. I hypothesize that, other things equal, a change in the gender of the governor will predict changes in program spending across policy areas. I expect that governors who are perceived to be more competent in a specific policy area will have a greater effect on the spending in that area and therefore that a change in gender of the governor will predict a change in spending.

In Africa, emergency humanitarian relief operations, in response to ongoing conflict and natural disasters, continue to struggle with violent, targeted attacks on humanitarian workers, aid supplies and refugees. While food aid plays an important role in addressing food shortages, previous studies suggest that food aid can contribute to the spread of civil conflicts under certain conditions. The purpose of this study is to examine the possibility that certain levels of food aid could exacerbate political violence against refugees in Africa because armed groups are likely to be motivated to prevent food aid distribution to an opponent refugee population, and to achieve material gain. To evaluate this claim, I analyze the relationship between three different types of food aid and delivery methods reported in the World Food Programme between 1988 and 1998, and data on affected refugee population by political violence against refugees in African countries. Food aid, defined as emergency food aid, programme food aid and project food aid, is delivered through direct transfer, local purchase and triangular purchase. In this study, the basic conditions of food aid consist of all commodities and all donor countries. There are fifty-three African countries that reported the amount of food aid they received, and twenty-six African countries that reported the number of refugees affected by political violence during the years of study. Based on the available data, I create several regression models that show the effects of each food aid and delivery method on rate of violence. I expect that emergency food aid and direct transfer have a strong positive correlation with violence involving refugees because they are directly delivered to targeted refugees who are at risk for insurgent attack.

America has become a world leader in medical research because of the achievements in research and technology made by pioneering physicians in various specialist medical fields. In America, specialist physicians have come to dominate the physician population, more than in other developed nations. For government health insurance programs such as Medicare, specialist physicians already receive substantially higher reimbursements than primary care physicians, namely because of the higher costs of running their practice, in addition to complex and risky nature of their field of medicine. Medicare calculates reimbursements based on the costs, skills and liability of a physician's practice at the same rate throughout the country. However, Medicare provides for regional adjustments of these costs through the Geographic Practice Cost Index. I hypothesize that the geographic index amplifies the difference in how much specialist physicians make compared with their primary care counterparts. As the index increases in value, the compensation gap between the two groups widens, providing additional incentives for specialists to practice in areas where the geographic index is high. Using physician population statistics and the Geographic Practice Cost Index, I ask whether the income advantage of specialty physicians where the index is high leads to an undersupply of primary care physicians compared to other areas.

In Washington State, the number of incarcerated individuals has nearly tripled in the past three decades, and almost half of all current inmates are repeat offenders. At the same time, in response to recent budget cuts, the Washington State Department of Corrections (WADOC) closed two correctional facilities, decreased their staff, and cut funding for offender rehabilitation programs. This problem is not unique to the state of Washington. The United States has the highest incarceration rate of any country- about 1 in every 100 citizens are currently behind bars- and bloated correctional facilities throughout the nation are feeling the impact of the economic recession. Now more than ever, it is apparent that we need to seek new, innovative approaches to imprisonment and rehabilitation. This study examines the potential of prison gardening projects to help address this need. I focus on the Sustainability in Prisons Project (SPP) in Washington, but include evidence from similar projects happening throughout America and abroad. My methods include first-hand observations of SPP’s gardening activities at Cedar Creek Corrections Center, interviews with program directors, and a literature review of comparable case studies and existing science on the benefits of human-nature interactions. I find that prison gardening projects in correctional facilities offer financial benefits to the state, shrink the environmental footprints of facilities, and create positive experiences for the staff and inmates. I conclude with a discussion on these benefits, including possible areas for further development of gardening programs in prisons and suggestions for future research.

Emerging from the political decline of the Islamic “Gunpowder Empires,” the Central Asian Nadir Shah assumed leadership of the former Safavid Empire before winning notable victories over his Ottoman and Mughal counterparts. In this paper, I attempt to grapple with the complex issue of Nadir Shah’s ethnic identity, which has alternately been presented as either Turkic or Persian. As such, I attempt to navigate the trend of nationalist historians to appropriate Nadir Shah into their own nation’s retroactive “national history,” relying not only on the works of such historians, but also those more removed from nationalist perspectives. Using readings spanning from the 18th century until the present day, I note the shifts in Nadir Shah’s ethnic identification across nations and time periods as well as the differing degree to which historians attempted to restrict the king’s identity to a single ethnic group. Highlighting political changes affecting Central Asia during the 18th century and their enablement of Nadir Shah’s navigation of class and race-based hierarchies, I then critique narrow national identifications of Nadir Shah and attempt to highlight nuances within the issue of pre-nation state ethnic identity. In conclusion, I assert that pre-nation-state identity may have been mutable and that Nadir Shah’s identity, rather than sitting on one side of a Turkic-Persian dichotomy, reflects a fluidity of nationality extant in 18th century Central Asia.

Pharmacogenetics is the study of how variations in a person’s DNA affect their response to drugs. It is the foundation of ‘personalized medicine’ and could one day enable drug therapies for individual patients based on genetic composition. Glucocorticoids are a group of cholesterol-based signaling molecules including endogenous hormones such as cortisol, which the body produces naturally in response to various forms of stress, and commonly prescribed anti-inflammatory drugs, which are used to treat diseases ranging from asthma and cancer to autoimmune disorders and psoriasis. For a glucocorticoid to produce its physiologic effects in any cell of the body, it must first bind to the glucocorticoid receptor (GR) and translocate with the GR to the cell nucleus. Both of these biologic processes are dependent on the molecular chaperone protein hsp90. A necessary first step in glucocorticoid-based pharmacogenetics research is better understanding the genetic variation associated with alterations in endogenous cortisol signaling. Our goal was to identify correlations between individuals’ variations in endogenous cortisol signaling and underlying genetic variability. Salivary cortisol (CORT) concentrations were measured in healthy volunteers (n=66) before and after CORT stimulation to determine variability in circulating CORT levels and CORT response. Statistical analysis revealed that inter-participant CORT variability in concentration or percent change was not exclusively correlated to participant demographics, health history, or GR single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Interestingly, nuclear localization of hsp90 correlated with an elevated pre-stimulus CORT concentration and a decreased post-activity CORT concentration. To investigate the observed CORT response and hsp90 localization association further, coding regions of the hsp90 gene were sequenced to identify possible genetic linkages. Eight hsp90 SNPs were detected, four previously unreported. All participants expressed between two and five of these SNPs. These data demonstrate inter-participant differences in CORT response, nuclear hsp90 concentrations, and GR/hsp90-associated SNPs are readily detected and potentially interrelated.

The pancreatic islet β-cell maintains blood glucose homeostasis by releasing insulin, a process that becomes dysfunctional in type 2 diabetes mellitus. Thus, maintaining normal β-cell function is critically important and occurs through many mechanisms including interactions with the surrounding extracellular matrix (ECM). We have recently shown that the polysaccharide hyaluronan is a normal component of the islet ECM. Under normal conditions, hyaluronan exists in a high molecular weight (HMW) form (>500 kDa) which exerts anti-inflammatory effects on surrounding cells. One study has shown that HMW hyaluronan can potentiate β-cell glucose-stimulated insulin release (GSIS). Our preliminary data suggest, in diabetic islets, hyaluronan can become fragmented. Low molecular weight (LMW) hyaluronan (<10 kDa) is pro-inflammatory. Furthermore, agents that can activate the same intracellular signaling pathways as LMW hyaluronan (e.g. free fatty acids and lipopolysaccharide) have been shown to impair GSIS, suggesting LMW hyaluronan may have a similar effect. I hypothesize that HMW hyaluronan potentiates GSIS, whereas LMW hyaluronan inhibits GSIS in vitro. Rat pancreatic islet cells were cultured on plates coated with HMW hyaluronan, LMW hyaluronan, or L-ornithine (control). After 48 hours GSIS was determined by comparing insulin release under basal (low glucose) and stimulated (high glucose) conditions. Our preliminary data show that as expected HMW hyaluronan potentiates GSIS 2 fold while LMW hyaluronan decreases GSIS by 30% compared to control. Thus it appears HMW hyaluronan is beneficial for β-cell function whereas LMW hyaluronan lacks this effect. Hence, hyaluronan fragmentation in the islet under diabetic conditions may contribute to impaired β-cell function.

Abnormal perinatal environment, commonly manifested as low birth weight, has been associated with birth defects as well as chronic disease. In particular, studies have shown low birth weight to have a deleterious association with type II diabetes, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, renal disease, and renal failure. Of specific interest are the mechanistic details concerning low birth weight subjects’ altered excretion. Maternal low protein diet (LPD) during gestation and lactation results in offspring with significantly lower birth weight. Using the maternal LPD rat model, we determined renal excretion of select endogenous compounds by collecting blood and urine at various times of age. Clearance of creatinine and uric acid are indicators of glomerular filtration rate and reabsorption, respectively. High Performance Liquid Chromatography assays were used to simultaneously quantify creatinine and uric acid in the urine and in the blood of the rat. It was found that creatinine clearance and uric acid clearance decreased in LPD rats in an age-dependent and sex-specific fashion. Specifically, there were observed significant decreases in both creatinine clearance and uric acid clearance in LPD male offspring at both age’s day 90 and day 120 old. No differences were observed in both creatinine clearance and uric acid clearance in LPD female offspring until age day 120 old indicating an age-dependent programming of females as opposed to males. The results strongly correlate with decreased and altered excretion observed in low birth weight subjects and suggest that perinatal LPD has a long-term programming of renal excretion. These findings could partially explicate the underlying mechanisms that lead to higher incidence of renal disease/dysfunction in perinatally growth restricted subjects. Furthermore, altered renal function could affect the renal handling of therapeutic agents and thus affecting the overall treatment outcomes in low birth weight subjects.

Hawkmoths, Manduca sexta, feed mainly during early morning and late evening in low light conditions by hovering and tracking moving flowers. The variable lighting conditions in which the hawkmoths feed in nature allow for the perfect setting to examine how visual signal acquisition can affect the performance of motor controlled tasks. By varying the luminance levels, it could result in a change in the amount of time it takes for hawkmoths to react to visual stimuli. In other words, motion-sensing tasks, like tracking a moving flower while feeding, may vary with the background sensory environment. We tested our hypothesis with freely flying moths feeding from a robotically actuated artificial flower at a low luminance level of .3 lux and a high luminance level of 300 lux. Because the flower motion was composed of the superposition of multiple sine waves (0.2-20 Hz), we were able to examine how moths responded at different frequency levels, making it possible to reconstruct a performance pattern. The flower's movement was done in both the vertical and horizontal axes. By calculating the coherence at each frequency, gain, and phase delay, we discovered that moths reliably track at frequencies exceeding 5 Hz. As predicted, we perceived much larger processing delays from the moth's response to the flower's movement at lower luminance levels than higher. This processing delay corresponds to moths being able to perceive and react to visual stimuli 16ms faster at high luminance levels than low luminance levels. At low luminance levels, moths actually overcorrected by overshooting the flower's position at peak tracking frequencies (1-2Hz), possibly due to longer integration delays. Future experiments involve integrating two degrees of freedom by combining multiple axes. Background sensory environment significantly alters the performance of an ecologically-relevant tracking behavior as predicted from sensory neurophysiological mechanisms.

Spinal cord injury is currently only treatable to a limited extent and often involves the partial or full loss of motor function. Spinal cord injury is also believed to be a strong factor in muscle loss and motor disorientation in mammals. Recent research has suggested that electrical stimulation of affected areas of the central nervous system can play a role in restoration of the ability to control paralyzed muscles in certain model organisms. Our Neuroprosthetic Rehabilitation project is focused on improving the ability of adult Long-Evans rats to make forelimb movements, via electric micro-stimulation, after localized spinal cord injury. The subject rats will first undergo behavioral training to achieve aptitude at a repeated task such as using one forelimb to reach for pellets at a certain distance. Following this, suitable candidates will be subjected to unilateral, cervical spinal cord contusions and will once again attempt to reach proficiency at pellet retrieval while micro-stimulation is routinely administered during training sessions. Functional improvement in rats stimulated during the pellet retrieval task will be compared with improvement of those stimulated independently of their behavior, and those not receiving stimulation. It is hypothesized that the improvement in the former group will be more significant than that of the latter groups, but will not generalize as well to other behaviors. Significant results will be instrumental to further understanding of how a damaged spinal cord can be repaired – or the effects of injury mitigated – in people suffering from related conditions.

Despite the growing interest in studies of gender and sexuality, little has been published about the figure of Attis since the initial monographs almost three decades ago. Not only does this figure, who was imported into Rome from Asia Minor during the Republican period, represent an important instance of gender ambiguity and nonconformity living in the heart of Roman society, but these issues play out in an incredibly vivid way on the body of Attis. Because of a fit of madness and grief induced by his lover in retaliation for his perceived infidelity, Attis commits suicide by castrating himself. Therefore, the choice made by artisans working in central Italy (Latium and Campania) to obscure Attis’ genitals through his characteristic and unique garment gives insight into distinctly Roman concerns with the integrity of the male body and how to construct the masculine gender. By analyzing one class of the sculptural representations of Attis that combine aspects of both masculine and feminine iconographies of dress and selectively obscure Attis’ genitals, I will demonstrate that these representations were produced under specific social conditions that differed from those in the Hellenistic world and in the periphery of the Roman Empire. In so doing, I hope to rescue Attis from what I feel are oversimplified and typologically driven analyses that obscure the active dialogue between these figures and Roman notions and representations of masculinity. In the process, I also wish to raise questions about other less valorized male bodies that place their owners into liminal gender categories: the hermaphrodite, the androgyne and the eunuch, with the hope of engendering future discussion about alternative masculinities in Rome.

NSFW (“Not Safe For Work”) is an acronym used to indicate that a website, a picture, or a link contains inappropriate (usually pornographic) content. One could say that all of 4chan.org is NSFW. 4chan is an imageboard where communication takes place in the form of pictures and images posted by anonymous users and deleted minutes after they appear online. This anonymity and ephemerality of communication unleashes levels of racism, sexism, homophobia, and general malevolence unseen in Social Web communities like Facebook. However, 4chan operates with virtually no advertisement (or profit-motive) while Facebook is now a publicly traded corporation, with a mandate to generate revenue for its stockholders by monetizing its assets, which happen to be the words, pictures, jokes, and plans of its more than 1 billion users. Discourses surrounding the Social Web speak in terms of “openness,” “connectivity,” and “transparency,” promising a more civil online community. However, these trends make personal data and communication susceptible to appropriation by capital. How has 4chan remained a largely non-commodified space in the midst of the corporate colonization of the Social Web, and what do we make of its sociopathic ethos? I studied the community and signifying practices of 4chan's random board /b/, finding that although the fundamental anonymity and ephemerality of communication on the board free up participants to be racist, sexist, homophobic, and generally malevolent to degrees unseen in the Social web, these same conditions create a space for truly free speech (in both the monetary and behavioral sense), creating a novel mode of signification and a space for subversive political consciousness in the process.

Since neuronal morphology is linked to neuronal function, the nervous system goes to great lengths to ensure that neurons achieve their proper shape, and failure to do so is associated with many cognitive disorders. However, the precise regulatory mechanisms underlying the coordinated expression of certain genes in a given cell type, at the right amount, and at the exact developmental time is one of the longstanding questions in developmental biology. MicroRNA biogenesis is a common mechanism by which cells regulate gene expression, often by “tuning” levels of target gene products, allowing for fine regulation of protein levels over a broad dynamic range. From a genetic screen for mutations in fruit flies that affect dendrite morphology in sensory neurons, we identified a novel Dicer-1 allele that causes stereotyped dendrite defects, including deregulated growth and defects in dendrite self-avoidance. Dicer-1 encodes a type III RNA endonuclease that is required for processing many types of small regulatory RNAs, including microRNAs. Time-lapse imaging and quantitative analysis of the dendrite patterning in Dicer-1 mutant sensory neurons reveals that there is a significant increase in the number and overall length of dendrite branches as well as an increase in dendrite-dendrite crossing-over, especially at late stages of larval development. Interestingly, mutation in a gene (pasha) that functions upstream of Dicer-1 to process a subset of miRNAs recapitulates the exuberant branching, but not the dendrite crossing phenotype of Dicer-1 mutants. We hypothesize that different classes of miRNAs regulate dendrite branching and dendrite self-avoidance and we plan to use microarray analysis of Dicer-1 and pasha mutants to identify the pathways regulated by these different classes of miRNAs.

Once subjected to an extractive history of British colonial and Indian national imperatives and ignored by development institutions, the mountainous region of Kumaon, Uttarakhand now thrives in its current development trends. Given that developers and donors disregarded the region while much of the rest of India prospered, it seems incongruous that the region should now be succeeding in its own development. This project asks why the isolated and “underdeveloped” region of Kumaon that was “left behind” by mainstream development and has only recently emerged is now able to succeed in its own grassroots development. My thesis posits an answer grounded in the notions of agency and identity politics in regional social movements and development vision. I examine the interdependency between the environment and social and historical processes, which informs my analysis of local development strategy regarding regional preferences for grass use in livelihood practices. The analysis employs data collected through qualitative, ethnographic interview processes and participant observation in the field. Supplementing the primary data with literature on identity assertion as a response to colonial and neocolonial processes, I argue that Kumaon has thrived and created significant agricultural development, notwithstanding the lack of outside aid, because development there is inextricably linked to regional movements for social change. These social movements have distinguished Kumaon from national trends of development and have led to the emergence of a conservationist and rights-oriented regional identity, which has helped form a particular vision for Kumaoni development focused on the environmental rights of the people.

The Arctic is receving global attention as climate change transforms the region. With increased interest in natural resources and sovereignty issues, the security discourse in the Arctic is also changing. This Taskforce report seeks to understand Arctic security as the capacity for communities and states to build sustainable and resilient systems and to assert a representative voice, in arenas of diplomacy and negotiating power. The Taskforce group spent one week in Quebec City and Ottawa, Canada gathering research with scholars, government officials, and Inuit leaders. This report combines relevant literature with these engagements to understand the evolution of Arctic security. Aspects of security discussed include: the Northwest Passage, devolution of resources, Quebec’s Arctic policy, tourism, food security, biodiversity, homelessness, education, the Arctic Council, and China’s role in the Arctic. Each chapter provides specific policy options that together form a model for building capacity for communities.

 Contemporary theorists are still coming to terms with Michel Foucault's conception of power structures and how those relate to biopower, the State's control over its subjects. My research focuses on what Michel de Certeau calls heterology (logic of the Other) present within these structures. I use the theoretical work of Certeau to examine heterology and tactics (everyday ways of "making do") as well as Bruno Latour's framework of Actor Network Theory to chart the movement of actors within the structure. Latour also explains the "mediation" that happens, where the actor itself is changed through the process of action. It is this mediation, as part of an actor-network, that I will use to describe the photographs of Abu Ghraib, detailing the complex assemblage of military personnel, detainees, and even the non-human agency of the cameras themselves. I explore the contextual "framing" of the photography through a close reading of a number of the photographs released, an examination of their material reproduction through various news media (news outlets, Government publications, and the internet), and their reception in both American and British cultures and Iraqi culture. In addition, I use a number of secondary sources, such as the documentary film Standard Operating Procedures and the White House press release, to understand how the production and reproduction of these photographs might serve political reasons, either complicit with or subversive to the motives of State structures of power. Preliminary results suggest that the actor networks at Abu Ghraib engaged in politically subversive behavior through an intuitive combination of competing ideologies that norms of the State could not fully capture. The "framing" of the photographs both ideologically and culturally served to portray messages that the American Government, at the time of the photographs' release, could not have anticipated or intended.

In her letters to Descartes, Princess Elizabeth of Bohemia asks a question that many modern philosophers have tried to answer: "Given that the soul of a human being is only a thinking substance, how can it affect the bodily spirits, in order to bring about voluntary action?" Here Elizabeth questions the very nature of the relationship between mind and body. It is not easily understood or explained how a nonphysical substance can affect or be affected by a physical substance in order to create both sensations and voluntary movement. Through the attempts to find solutions to this problem, it becomes clear that the true problem lies in Descartes' separation of the nonphysical mind and the physical body within the idea of a person. Drawing from Spinoza, Locke, and Hobbes, I argue that mind and body are simply two ways of understanding a single, indivisible human being.

Combining wildlife tracking skills with motion-sensitive cameras, environmental anthropology students can provide practical results for stakeholders who are seeking to provide sustainable solutions to human-wildlife intersections and inform land management decisions. In 2010, the Learn and Serve Environmental Anthropology Field (LEAF) School at Edmonds & Everett Community Colleges partnered with Snohomish County Public Works to monitor a wildlife passage: a 4’x4’ box culvert installed in a new road alignment in Granite Falls, WA. The passage connects a five-acre wetland, a mitigation site for the County, with a larger wetland complex associated with the floodplains of the South Fork of the Stillaguamish River, designated critical habitat for Puget Sound Chinook Salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) and Coastal-Puget Sound Bull Trout (Salvelinus confluentus). Research results show the culvert being utilized by targeted low-mobility species and Columbian Black-tailed Deer (Odocoileus hemionus columbianus), who was thought to be too large to access the passage. July 2011 photos show the first does with their fawns using the passage to cross between the wetland and the riparian corridor. Summer 2012 data shows the return of the does as well as two adolescent bucks accessing the passage. Two years of data appear to show the black-tailed deer are willing to adapt to and use this size of culvert. Through the application of a service-learning strategy students are investigating the effectiveness of the structure and considering whether current land use issues may compromise the long term viability of the wildlife corridor. This research sets the stage for continued citizen science and community outreach projects in Granite Falls. These citizen-science projects become even more critical as populations push into the rural areas of the Pacific Northwest.

While writing the first quarter of a Gothic fantasy novel titled Deathwatch, I also carried out analytical research examining Romantic Gothic themes appearing in my creative text. I was largely unfamiliar with Gothic literature while planning this novel and these themes appeared naturally in my text from the start as a clear example of intertextuality. However, in order to gain a better understanding of the tradition I was referencing and use it effectively as a framework, I began researching features of Romantic Gothic literature. Key to Romantic Gothic literature is its villain-hero model of the outcast who is unable to determine whether his alienation is his own fault or the fault of the larger world. This model in turn leads to the Gothic features of doubles and the dangerous lover, both of which allow the hero frightening insight through physical confrontation with his own self. By identifying these literary themes in both Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and my own work over the course of my research, I was able to better understand and deepen my own intertextual framework. As a result, during Deathwatch’s writing process, I was able to both reference and alter these unique features of the Gothic genre in a knowledgeable way, significantly enriching the quality of my own text.

This project strives to address the surprisingly high rates of eating disorders (ED) in southern Italy. Determinants for ED in southern Italy are characterized by perfectionist tendencies and parental criticism, rather than the low self-esteem and body image problems most often associated with ED. The high prevalence of ED and unique composition of symptoms and psychological determinants among southern Italian women point to a compelling paradox: Given the widely supported theory that the development of eating disorders in a population may be ascribed not only to media-stimulated body image concerns but also to processes of modernization and industrialization, why do women in southern Italy, which has not conformed to or successfully undergone these processes, exhibit relatively high rates of eating disorders? This thesis argues that ED in southern Italy is a symptom of transgenerational transmission of trauma related to collective regional fear of the end of WWII and loss of the precarious economic certainty of the Allied occupation. This fear and eventual loss could not be openly mourned because of its conflict with the Resistance and liberation myths that sustain WWII memory in the popular national narrative. To substantiate this claim, I will further propose that both culture-specific ED pathologies and acclaimed films represent ciphered articulations of the psychically “indigestible” nature of this conflict. I will analyze selected films of acclaimed southern Italian directors: Ettore Scola’s La famiglia, Giuseppe Tornatore’s Cinema Paradiso, Francesco Rosi’s Tre fratelli, and Mario Martone’s L’amore molesto. Each film is analyzed anasemically—that is, completely wthin the bounds of its auditory, visual, and cinematographic language—before connecting it to historical and social contexts.

Male circumcision has been found to lower the risk of heterosexual transmission of HIV infection in men by up to 60%. In efforts led by the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare in Zimbabwe in upscaling male circumcision, the new Prepex™ device, a double plastic ring that necrotizes the foreskin, has been suggested in resource poor settings as an alternative to surgical methods of circumcision. For a comparison of the Prepex™ device vs. surgical methods psychosocial behavioral interviewing and clinical safety testing was conducted on a group of men in Zimbabwe (N=240) at three intervals: immediately prior to the procedure, and at two weeks and three months following the procedure. This provided a measure of the clinical safety of both methods as well as the effects on daily living, sexual relations, and perceptions regarding the procedure. In both study arms positive attitudes increased throughout the trial, with satisfaction of 'very' or 'extremely' satisfied with the procedure at 95% in the surgical group and 88% in the device group. Other than pain being slightly more of an issue in the device group there were few differences among expectations, perceptions, and experiences between the two groups. This study suggests that the switch from surgical methods to Prepex ™ device will not change the psychosocial barriers limiting the current male circumcision programs in Zimbabwe.

President Obama’s recent inaugural speech included the call for equal rights for members of the GLBT community. Among the issues transgender people especially face are access restrictions to transition related health care. This project examines the implications for transgendered people in terms of access to gender-confirming surgical procedures and how this affects their quality of life. The sites of this study were the United States and Germany, two countries using the same parameters to determine if a person suffers from Gender Identity Dysphoria, the clinical diagnosis required to undergo gender-confirming procedures. In the U.S. these procedures are widely not covered because they are labeled elective or cosmetic. German law on the other hand mandates full health insurance coverage as surgery is considered a necessary and effective treatment of a clinically established condition. This project uses quantitative data collected with questionnaires and qualitative data in the form of life history interviews. It compares the results of the National Transgender Discrimination Study (n=6,540) with responses to the same questionnaire by transgender Germans (n=88). Findings indicate that access to transition related care via health insurance improves the mental and physical well-being of individuals whereas access limited due to lack of coverage can be detrimental. Life histories provided by five individuals, three Americans and two Germans, evaluated in open and closed coding according to the Grounded Theory approach, also indicate lower rates of depression and drug use in people after gender-confirming procedures. Yet due to the small size of the German sample these findings may not be representative. Furthermore, even though gender-confirming procedures are effective, they should not be understood as mandatory for everyone diagnosed with Gender Identity Dysphoria.

Everist Genomics reports, "If ~20% of Americans currently diagnosed with hypertension reduced their systolic blood pressure by 12.5 points it would reduce heart disease risk by 21%, stroke risk by 37%, and risk of death from heart disease or stroke by 25%, and generate >$75 billion in annual cost savings for healthcare payers and employers." Current procedure for health monitoring requires that patient be monitored by an in hospital or out-patient basis. Monitoring the daily variations involved with everyday activity can produce a more complete and exacting type of diagnosis and prognosis for health care professionals, as well as providing important information to the health compromised, regular, or health conscience individual. Real Time Health Monitoring System (RTHMS) is a conceptual idea that would benefit people of all ages and health categories. The interface would be worn against the skin and reports encrypted real time health information to a secure on-line database through a cellular data network. The user would have administrative abilities to personal health records and has the only authority to grant access to suitable parties. Depending on the application, monitoring scenarios could include detecting patterns in pre-seizure activity, and monitoring of blood chemistry and distribution of medication. Real time monitoring may give physicians information for earlier diagnoses prior to the onset of illness. Patients suffering from addiction difficulties may be presented with the monitoring option as a way to avoid incarceration and remain productive. The concept is sound, the finance required for implementation is tricky, but could be done creatively through mass markets and stylized design. The benefits that could be achieved by the Real Time Health Monitoring System are obvious and realized through the saving of time and money in the treatment of health issues, and also could provide significant health safeguards and embellishments for the individual as well as an individual’s interactions with society.

The process flow in clinical laboratories resembles that in a traditional manufacturing setting, but there are distinct differences between the former and the latter which make it difficult to directly reflect the essential functions of a clinical laboratory in a simulation model. Creating a simulation model enables us to analyze and determine the impact on key metrics such as turnaround time and utilization rates when we change the physical configuration of the laboratory and vary the input parameters of the model. We have adapted the object-oriented nature of SIMIO, a program commonly used in a manufacturing setting, to create a discrete-event simulation modeling language for clinical laboratories reflecting the technical knowledge of experts from the clinical laboratory domain. We organized critical aspects of the clinical laboratory into class hierarchies to clearly delineate their functions and relationships. We then developed specific modules using the class hierarchies to represent the unique behavior of instruments, equipment and processes in a clinical laboratory. Using these modules, we created a simulation model of the clinical laboratory. The domain-specific modules we have formulated provide clinical laboratory experts with a customized tool to understand and improve their own system from a modeling perspective.

Patient centered health care requires that individuals be linked to a team of care providers responsible for guiding them through the full range of health and preventive services. This research addresses the considerations and lays the foundation for understanding how to incorporate patient characteristics when creating patient panels to match the needs of patients and the skill sets of their health care providers. We illustrate how a strategic plan can be developed with varying combinations of care provider team composition. This strategic plan enables clinics to hire staff with the appropriate skill set to meet patient demand for health care. By examining a representative data set, patients will be pooled according to a minimal set of attributes, such as age, gender, and medical conditions, in order to model the mix of patient attributes within a panel. Using probabilistic distributions, an estimate of total workload for each care-giving panel is established. Different combinations of preferences and panel mix amongst the medical professionals are analyzed with respect to the objectives of meeting patient demand while matching patient preferences with physician capabilities and preferences.

Bacterial antibiotic resistance is a rapidly growing concern for global health care. Typically, clinical antibiotics work by targeting essential pathways involved in bacterial metabolism or growth while leaving host cells unaffected. There are three basic mechanisms of bacterial resistance: (1) bacteria can chemically modify the antibiotic to a non- toxic form, (2) pump the antibiotic out of the cell, or (3) modify the enzyme or pathway targeted by the antibiotic. The second two mechanisms can be thought of as being selfish, as the mechanism doesn't directly help the community on a macroscale. However, the first mechanism helps the whole community, thus it can be thought of as cooperative. We hypothesize that the class of resistance mechanism, i.e. cooperative or selfish, is the primary factor that determines the geometry of colony morphology surrounding an antibiotic source. To test this hypothesis, we computationally simulated the diffusion of antibiotic on a plate inoculated with bacteria that express a cooperative resistance mechanism. Using insights gained from these simulations, we also experimentally explored this phenomena by imaging the growth of resistant E. coli cells in the presence of various antibiotics. In my talk I will discuss the results from the simulation and the experimental stage, as well as the current state of the analysis.

 Passage of Eocene slab windows beneath the Pacific Northwest is documented by plate motion reconstructions as well as the on-land geologic record. The earliest known record of this process is the 55-44 Ma Basalt of Summit Creek (BSC), a steeply dipping 1600 m section of subaerial lavas exposed southeast of Mount Rainier. These tholeiitic basalts erupted in an arc setting (as evidenced by underlying tuffs) but display a mix of MORB and OIB traits and have isotopic signatures of a depleted mantle source. In chemical and isotopic composition BSC lavas overlap with the voluminous Crescent Formation basalts on the Olympic Peninsula, which are of similar age but located ~100 km farther west. A few BSC samples display arc traits (e.g., HFSE depletions); we suggest these may record interaction between ascending asthenospheric mantle / melts and a mantle wedge previously modified by subduction processes. Compositional diversity among BSC lavas appears to reflect both fractional crystallization and source heterogeneity. Modeling with MELTS (Ghiroso and Sack, 1995) indicates that differentiation dominated by removal of clinopyroxene and plagioclase took place at mid crustal depths (P = 5 kbar) and that the parent magma had <0.2 wt. % water. However, this process cannot account for all incompatible element data, which appear to require multiple parent magmas. The Eocene was a critical juncture in Pacific Northwest tectonics. Subduction, slab window magmatisim, terrane accretion and mantle plume activity were all ongoing at this time. Increased understanding of the petrology BSC will contribute to our overall knowledge of the evolution of the western margin of North America.

Due to its global position, the Cotopaxi Nation Park (CNP) area in the Ecuadorian Tropical Andes is expected to experience a large temperature increase of 4° - 7° C during this century due to global warming, affecting approximately 200,000 people, especially regarding water scarcity and environmental degradation. Land use and land cover changes in relationship to climate change are being analyzed using four remote sensing images of the area from 1987, 1999, 2007, and 2009 using a geographic information system (GIS) framework. We are analyzing the recession of glaciers in Mount Cotopaxi, an active volcano with an elevation of 5897 meters above sea level, and changes in highland grasslands (i.e. the paramo ecosystem), which are the two primary water sources for the region. Our analysis will allow us to determine rates of change and estimate future scenarios to help local officials plan for more efficient land and water use. In addition, we are performing statistical analyses on weather data obtained from two weather stations in the area located at different elevations to determine changes in temperature, soil moisture, rainfall, and relative humidity. These data, in conjunction with information gained from the remote sensing images and GIS, will help us answer our research question regarding the effects of climate change on water resources, land use, and land cover in CNP.

Recent reports have shown that metabolic signatures are highly characteristic for a cell and may act as a leading cause for cell fate changes. In particular, we have shown that during development from naïve to primed embryonic stem cells, the cells undergo a dramatic transition from metabolically bivalent to highly glycolytic. However, this state of inert mitochondria rapidly changes to highly potent mitochondria during further differentiation. It is not yet understood how and why the pluripotent cells enter the highly glycolytic, metabolically cancer-like (Warburg effect) stage and how a differentiating cell leaves this stage. We have now performed metabolomics profiling of naïve and primed pluripotent cells using mass spectrometry. Interestingly, primed cells accumulate the tryptophan degradation product kynurenine. Kynurenine (KY) can act as a ligand for the transcription factor AHR. In cancer cells AHR activation by KY incudes growth while in surrounding T-cells KY based AHR activation will inhibit T-regulatory cells. My hypothesis is that kynurenine is a key metabolite in determining stem cell stage and in helping protect the primed stage embryo against the mother's immune cells. I will now test this hypothesis by analyzing the levels of the key KY metabolism enzymes by qPCR. My prediction is that the tryptophan degrading enzyme IDO1 will be unregulated in the primed stem cells. To test whether kynurenine can change the state of naïve stem cells, I will add different concentrations of kynurenine to the stem cell media and test potential cell fate changes. Since primed ESC-like metabolism is also observed in cancer cells, it is of great interest to understand how the cellular transitions in and out of this metabolic state are controlled during normal development. These studies will shed light on the function and regulation of metabolism during normal and disease developments.

The nuclear transport pathway performs the fundamental function of moving cargo between the cytoplasm and nucleus in all eukaryotes. Nuclear transport is carried out through a highly conserved mechanism across all eukaryotes. Yet, in Drosophila, several components of the nuclear transport apparatus, including importins, evolve rapidly under positive selection. Genetic conflict with selfish elements has been suggested as a possible cause for this pattern of rapid evolution. Here, we present a comprehensive phylogenomic analysis of importin gene evolution in Drosophila. Importins are adapter molecules that directly mediate the transport of cargo into the nucleus. Our analysis reveals a recurrent pattern of gain and loss of importin paralogs across independent lineages of Drosophila. Interestingly, we discovered that almost all new copies of importins have acquired a testes-specific expression pattern since their birth through gene duplication. This pattern of repeated gains of testes-specific copies of importins suggests a function in suppressing genetic conflicts such as segregation distortion in the male germline. Segregation distorters such as SD in Drosophila melanogaster act by impairing nuclear transport in the testes. We are currently performing functional tests for the hypothesis that an increased dosage of these testes-specific importins may serve a role in suppressing segregation distortion in the male germline by restoring nuclear transport during spermatogenesis.

In an effort to study evolution and mechanisms of adaptation, seven populations of S. cerevisiae were cultivated in chemostat under nutrient limitation. Whole genome sequencing and Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) analysis were performed on clones isolated at 200 generations. I sought to test the effect of each mutation on the cellular fitness thus to characterize beneficial and passengers mutations. By combining PCR and Sanger sequencing, I confirmed five mutations (4 SNPs, one indel) detected by whole genome sequencing on one clone. Using backcross-mating techniques with the ancestral strains, I was able to isolate each mutation and test their individual fitness. I found that 4 of the mutations are passenger mutations that do not impact the fitness of the cells. One of the mutations, a non-synonymous change in SGF73 leading to the truncation of the protein, increased the competitive fitness by 24%. Mutations leading to the truncation of SGF73 were also found in three other independent clones. The presence of similar mutations in four independent populations suggests that the loss of the protein is an important process of adaptation to sulfate limitation. I am now studying the dynamic and the spread of this mutation in the population over 200 generations. SGF73 is the human ortholog of ataxin-7 of the SAGA complex associated with spinocerebellar ataxia diseases and our findings may be important to study the role of this protein in the development of human disease.

Every aspect of nature is governed by the laws of physics. These laws include the basic principle of the center of gravity which is defined as a point in an object’s body at which the total net torque due to gravity equals zero. Understanding and applying this basic principle is crucial for dancers if they are to be successful movers. Yet the popular form of dance known as breaking seems to defy the laws of physics, particularly static equilibrium – a state where an object will not rotate unless an external force is applied because the center of gravity is located above an object’s base of support. Many breakers are able to perform gravity defying movements as they invert their bodies and hold various poses known as “freezes.” Using a series of cameras and a three-dimensional (3D) modeling program, I am able to locate the center of gravity in individual breakers and reveal that their movements do not violate the laws of physics. Using the information collected from this research, I can then propose and create new possibilities for freezes based on the concepts of static equilibrium. This research will be a stepping stone for further biomechanical researches in breaking and other forms of dance. Similar experimental techniques can be used to analyze more complex principles such as dynamic equilibrium – balance while in motion.

Practicing the art and physicality of dance is a beneficial experience that is underutilized in primary education. Previous research, such as Patricia T. Alpert’s “The Health Benefits of Dance” and Mabel Elsworth Todd’s “The Thinking Body,” has shown the benefits of learning dance. The potential values of dancing include working with other people and understanding space, time, and personal empowerment. Yet, many students do not have access to basic dance education and schoolteachers typically do not have the tools to integrate dance in the classroom. The purpose of my research was to identify and define key dance concepts that schoolteachers untrained in dance can implement in their classrooms. Research methods included observing University of Washington introductory dance classes and asking local professional dance instructors what they find to be most important and effective in their dance classes. The data collected was then used to draft a guide for the implementation of basic dance concepts into public school classrooms. The guide is written for teachers without previous formal dance training and takes limited budgets and time constraints into consideration. This allows teachers to learn dance concepts and exercises and confidently teach these to their students in the classroom. I hope the findings from this research will bring dance to students who otherwise would not have such an opportunity to learn and receive the numerous benefits dance offers.

A performing art form originally from Japan, Taiko drumming has been embraced by Japanese Americans as a way to pass down cultural values. In the Seattle area alone, there are nine Taiko groups that perform regularly and two youth Taiko groups. Although research has examined the role of Taiko in the Canadian Japanese community, little research has looked at Taiko in the Japanese American context. My research looks at the role of Seattle Taiko groups in passing down the tradition of Taiko to future generations. My methodology involved participating in a beginning class held by Seattle Kokon Taiko and observing how the teacher introduced the cultural context for Taiko. In addition, other students in the class were interviewed about why they decided to take the Taiko class. For students of Japanese ancestry, the desire to connect back to Japanese culture is likely a prominent reason for taking the Taiko class. The results of this reserach will contribute to understanding of how cultural dances are transmitted in a context that is different from the dance's origin.

The insertion and placement of an external ventricular drain (EVD) addresses two important neurological problems with more than two hundred fifty thousand procedures per year. For example, ventriculostomies are performed when intracranial is elevated and either is immediately dangerous or will not respond to drug therapies. The success rate of EVD placement is sufficiently low to cause concern and few systems exist for guided assistance in EVD placement. We propose a handheld, disposable, ultrasound guided ventricular catheter to assist neurosurgeons in precise and accurate EVD placement. Utilizing existing catheter designs, we have replaced the current guide wire with one that contains a small (one mm in diameter) ultrasound transducer at the tip. The ventricles have a set of acoustic properties significantly different from brain tissue, allowing us to detect them with ultrasound. We processed the ultrasound backscatter signal from the ventricle walls using custom electronics to give feedback to the neurosurgeons while they are directing the catheter. We have collected initial data that supports the feasibility of this device. Results to date in porcine models have demonstrated an ability to detect ventricles and assist in the precise guidance of the catheter into the desired lateral ventricle. Outcomes have been repeatable for practicing neurosurgeons over all trials in five experiments and for others over 8/10 attempts in three experiments using a Sonosite MicroMaxx to verify accurate EVD placement. Moving forward we will incorporate pulsitility and Doppler imaging modalities to decrease the margin of error for false positive ventricle detection. We aim to increase the reliability of accurate EVD placement in both emergency room and operating room situations while providing a product that is less expensive and more accessible than current guided systems.

Nanoscience and nanotechnology has evolved rapidly in recent decades. It promises a greater understanding and higher degree of customization in future materials. One field of interest is the ability to mimic the biological composition of bone tissue using nanoscale hydroxyapatite (HA). With the ability to manufacture and impregnate with proteins, the mimicked tissue can be utilized in vivo without the side effects of traditional organ transplants and biocompatible materials. HA nanowires were fabricated using a hydrothermal synthesis process. First, the precursor composed of calcium phosphate was synthesized via a sol-gel process to create a powder. After suspending the powder in solution of DI water and ammonium hydroxide, the solution was loaded into an autoclave and heated at 170 degrees Celsius for various time periods. The product was then characterized using optical microscopy, scanning electron microscope (SEM) X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Raman spectroscopy. First, SEM was used to determine if particles were successfully synthesized. Next, the size of the nanowires was characterized. It was found that the nanowires had an aspect ratio of 5:1. XRD powder diffraction showed that the samples matched the industry standard peaks for HA. Lastly, Raman spectroscopy was conducted but the results are yet to be analyzed. The work has successfully synthesized nanowires of hydroxyapatite utilizing a hydrothermal process. Through use of the above characterization methods, we find that an alteration to the synthesis must be performed to obtain HA nanowires with larger aspect ratios. – 20:1. Successive syntheses are being conducted by varying pH levels and time periods to achieve the desired lengths.

The swell shark, Cephaloscyllium ventriosum, is one of the most popular sharks in public aquaria on the west coast of the United States, but very little is known about the early growth and development of this species. Swell sharks, members of the catshark family Scyliorhinidae, are small oviparous sharks that lay semi-translucent egg cases which they attach to rocks and seaweed during egg laying. Limited data on post-hatch growth exists for this shark, but there is essentially no data available on the early growth and gestation time of this shark within the egg case. The goal of this study was to determine the gestation period and early growth of the Swell shark. The gestation time of 10 egg cases and the post-hatch growth rates of 39 swell sharks were recorded over a 23-month period. Juvenile swell sharks were reared from egg cases deposited in laboratory aquaria during July 1990 by eight female swell sharks previously caught off Santa Barbara Island, California. Mean gestation time for the eggs (n = 10) maintained at 13.5-17.5° C with a constant photoperiod (12 hrs light, 12 hrs dark) was 264.4 + 18.106 SD days. Newly hatched sharks had a mean total length (TL) of 15.3 + 0.7 cm SD (n= 42) and had a mean weight of 15.0 + 1.4 g SD (n= 27). The average percent growth of sharks approximately one year old (n=21) was 38.74 + 7.66 % SD. The gestation time of C. ventriosum is significantly longer than that of a similar catshark, Hemiscyllium osellatum, which has a gestation period of just 140.3 ± 4.6 days. However, TL at hatching was very similar to this species and the average neonate length of H. osellatum was 16.5 ± 0.5cm and average weight was 19.9 ± 2.1 g.

Dendrites are branched extensions of the cell body of a neuron that act to receive and process synaptic or sensory inputs. The elaborate branching pattern of the dendrite is a hallmark of neural type, and has a considerable impact in determining what signals a neuron receives, and how these signals are integrated. Alterations of dendrite morphology can lead to abnormalities in neuron function--dendritic defects are associated with neurological disorders such as Ret syndrome, Fragile-X syndrome, and Down syndrome, and in many cases the dendrite pathologies are progressive. Therefore we set out to identify mutations that result in progressive defects in dendrite growth and stability with the hope that the genes affected by these mutations and the processes in which they regulate will provide new insight into human disease. A series of complementation tests using chromosomal deficiencies, as well as meiotic mapping have been used to map one such mutant (cc215) to a small chromosomal interval. In addition, we have performed a non-complementation screen to determine other alleles that affect the same gene mutated in cc215. Complementation tests and sequence analysis are currently being performed to classify the gene affected by this allelic series, which will allow us to investigate the underlying cause(s) of the dendrite defects in the mutants.

Two strains of Botryococcus braunii algae were grown in three different sets of conditions to compare growth characteristics and lipid production. One species, UTEX LB 572, was a Race A Botryococcus braunii from the culture collection of the University of Texas in Austin. The second species, AC 762, was a Race B Botryococcus braunii from the culture collection of the University of Caen, France. UTEX 572 was found to produce two hydrocarbon chain lengths of C:16 and C:18 in a 2:3 ratio respectively. The AC 762 was found to produce hydrocarbons called botryococcenes of chain lengths between C:30 and C:36. The lipid chain lengths of both strains were evaluated by mass spectrometry. The UTEX 572 lipid content was quantified by analytical spectrometry after direct transesterification of the lipid content to biodiesel. The AC 762 lipid content was quantified by a photospectrometry technique developed by UC Berkeley researchers Eroglu and Melis (1985). Cells of both species were harvested during exponential growth phase from 400 mL of growth media and then freeze dried and analyzed gravimetrically. Nine flasks of each species were grown with 3000 lux average light intensity on a 12h:12h light:dark cycle at room temperature averaging 22° C. Three flasks of each species were grown with 1.5% CO2 in BG-11 media, three flasks of each species were grown in BG-11 media with air only and three control flasks were grown in respective carrier medias as those used in the algae collection of origin. Knowledge of the rates at which AC 762 and UTEX 572 produce hydrocarbons as well as the specific lengths and proportions of those hydrocarbons contributes to data needed for comparison of economic considerations in industrial applications.

Although eyewitness testimony is a critical element in criminal investigation, decades of research have demonstrated the fallibility of eyewitness memory. Among the reforms proposed to minimize eyewitness errors is the recommendation that investigators instruct eyewitnesses that “individuals depicted in lineup photos may not appear exactly as they did on the date of the incident”. Although expectations were that this appearance change instruction (ACI) would enhance the quality of the eyewitness decision, recent research suggests that the instruction may actually result in more mistaken identifications. Two theories were proposed to account for this finding.  The first suggests that the increase in mistaken identifications caused by the ACI is a result of witnesses mental transforming the individuals in the lineup to imagine what they would look like if they were more similar to the perpetrator.  The second theory proposes that the increased mistaken identifications are a product of witnesses simply becoming more willing to choose someone from the lineup as a result of being told that the true perpetrator may not look the same as their memory. The present study was designed to test the first hypothesis using a novel secondary recognition task paradigm. Relying on data collected from 120 college students, we evaluated whether the ACI encouraged witnesses to engage in a “mental transformation” of the lineup members when viewing a lineup. Part 1 of the study involved showing participants photographs of individuals and then testing their memory for those individuals with simultaneous lineups. In Part 2, witness’s memory for the lineup members themselves was tested. Overall, results did not support the “mental transformation” hypothesis.  However, given that participants performed at chance levels in the Part 2 task, it is possible that the null results are due to task difficulty.

Since the introduction of DNA testing in 1989, post-conviction DNA testing has exonerated over 300 individuals in the United States who were wrongly convicted (Innocence Project, 2013). Evaluations of these cases have revealed that the single greatest contributor to these errors has been mistaken eyewitness identification (Garrett, 2011). Recommendations proposed to improve eyewitness decision-making in identification procedures include the use of unbiased instructions, the “appearance change instruction” (ACI; reminding the witness that the perpetrator may look different now than s/he did during the crime), and sequential presentation of lineup members. Past research on unbiased instructions and sequential presentation has shown that these procedures encourage more conservative decision processes which lead to fewer false identifications, but also fewer correct identifications. In contrast, recent research in our lab has indicated that the ACI appears to have the opposite effect; the instruction generates more liberal choices that lead to more correct, but also false identifications. Given the effects of these recommended procedures, the present research examines the relative influence of these three procedures on witness decisions in photographic lineups. A 2 (unbiased instructions: yes/no) x 2 (ACI: yes/no) x 2 (lineup presentation: simultaneous/sequential) between-subjects factorial design was used. Participants (N=121) viewed photographs of individuals and later had their memory tested with both target-present and target-absent photoarrays. Preliminary analyses indicate that, as expected, sequential presentation resulted in more conservative decision-making whereas the ACI produced less conservative decisions. There was no effect of unbiased instructions on decisions. This poster will present complete results on all participant data in relation to the main effects of and interactions amongst the ACI, unbiased instructions, and sequential presentation on witness’ decisions. These results will provide further information regarding the use of the ACI and its’ relative contribution to improving the collection of eyewitness evidence.

People have often heard statements like "2010 is the hottest year on record in the world." However, this ranking in order of average global temperature is uncertain, because the global temperature is not a direct measurement but a statistical combination of data, which by itself has uncertainty. We have developed new methods to rank each year taking into account the standard error of a real mean temperature. The methods give us distributions of the rank of each year's temperature, and allows us to compute the probability that a given year is the hottest year on record. We can arrange the years in order of these probabilities. The results are consistent with regular ranking of continental US annual mean temperature, but allows us to express the uncertainty of the ranks. We can also estimate, for example, the probability that 12 of the last 15 years have been among the hottest ever, as President Obama said in his State of the Union address in February.

M dwarf stars are classified by their small radii and relatively cool surface temperatures. Their internal structures are known to be almost entirely convective, and this extreme convection causes a tangling of the stars' magnetic field lines. Upon realignment of the magnetic field lines, an incredible amount of energy is released from the star in what is called a flare. This research project is an ongoing observation of the flare activity on the M dwarf stars GJ1243 and GJ1245. Two months of flare activity was observed using the flux measurements made by NASA's Kepler telescope. The frequency, duration and types of flares were recorded and analyzed with the aid of the computer program "Flares by Eye." It has been observed that most flares have short rise times and long decay times, the intensities of which seem to follow a power law. Continued research on this topic will help us learn more about the physics behind the ignition of these stellar explosions, how the flares decay, and how the stars become less active as they age.

For thermoelectric (TE) applications, oxides possess certain advantages over conventional intermetallics, including excellent high-temperature stability, low toxicity, and a complex structure, which aids in lowering the thermal conductivity. Recently, it has been found that SrxBa1-xNb2O6 (SBN) holds potential for use in high-temperature TE applications (e.g., waste heat recovery). In our work, a solution combustion synthesis (SCS) process was devised to fabricate SBN with a range of Sr:Ba ratios in order to ascertain an ideal SBN composition for optimum TE behavior. The SCS method, which is highly amenable to mass production, allowed for good control of the SBN stoichiometry, and the as-processed powders were found to possess good single phase purity. Powders processed with different SBN compositions were subject to conventional sintering followed by reduction. The TE properties of each SBN composition were then tested and compared. Preliminary results of our acquired data suggest a decrease in the thermal conductivity as the Ba content is increased, likely due to the larger mass of Ba when compared to Sr. From the obtained results, an ideal SBN composition was determined having the optimal TE performance. Field assisted sintering (FAST) was then employed to processed SBN powder having the optimum composition, and the TE properties of the SBN from both conventional sintering and FAST were compared.

Neurons are specialized cells that receive and relay information throughout an organism, and the compartment that inputs the signal has multi-complex structures known as dendrites. The form of the dendrite is tightly regulated to neuron function; therefore, any abnormality that alters the structure of the dendritic arbor can lead to severe defects in neuronal function. However, the mechanisms of how dendrites develop and maintain their arborization are poorly understood. From a forward genetic screen for mutant alleles with progressive defects on dendrite patterning we identified one mutant allele that leads to a complete loss of terminal dendrites. We mapped this allele to a small genetic interval, and using complementation tests and DNA sequence analysis we identified Acsl (Acyl-CoA synthetase long-chain) as the gene affected by this mutation. Interestingly, Ascl is also associated with human X-linked mental retardation (XMR), but to date the role that Ascl plays in dendrite development has not been investigated. Here we report the phenotypic analysis of the Acsl mutant, effects of Acsl knock down in neurons, and our plans for functional analysis of Acsl in dendrite development.

Malaria is a parasitic infection due to Protozoa Plasmodium. This is a severe global disease with 250 million annual cases leading to 1-2 million deaths. The most virulent, P. falciparum, is responsible for severe clinical malaria and death. An array of anti-malarial treatments exist today, however parasites evolve continuously to develop resistance even to the newest frontline anti-malarial drugs. Previous studies in the Rathod laboratory have demonstrated that drug resistance can be generated in the lab and that some drugs can be utilized to characterize Accelerated Resistance to Multiple Drugs (ARMD) parasites, such as the laboratory strain Dd2, and non-ARMD parasites, such as the laboratory strain HB3. In the current study, we are using a cyclopropyl carboxamide (GSK 2645947) to select for resistant parasites. Cyclopropyl carboxamides are a chemically novel class of antimalarial agents identified recently and they prevent the growth of P. falciparum in the early trophozoite stages of the erythrocytic Plasmodium cycle. This project focuses on determining the conditions for the development of resistance against GSK 2645947 with Dd2 and HB3 by conducting a series of selection experiments utilizing different concentrations of GSK 2645947 and starting parasites populations. Unlike previous conditions which indicate that the Dd2 strain acquires resistance at a significantly higher frequency than the HB3 stain; the data from this study suggests that both Dd2 and HB3 strains respond similarly to GSK 2645947. Through this study, we can further understand the behavior of resistant P. falciparum parasites. 

Experimental studies have suggested that pain and dyspnea (shortness of breath) may involve the same affective experience. This association has not been explored in large community samples. We analyzed data from Cohort 12 of the Medicare Health Outcomes Survey, which measured subjective health status in 275,000 Medicare Managed Care recipients in 2010 and 2012. Dyspnea was defined by aggregating three questions (shortness of breath at rest, while walking one block, and while climbing stairs). Pain was measured by a question about how much pain interfered with normal work inside and outside the home during the last month. Both measures were dichotomized as high and low / none. We produced descriptive statistics to characterize the overlap of pain and dyspnea at baseline. We created regression models to measure the strength of the association of pain with dyspnea, adjusting for age, sex, race, education, and three potential medical causes of dyspnea (CHF, obesity and asthma). We estimated the likelihood of dyspnea and pain co-occurring at the two measurement points two years apart. 22.2% of participants without dyspnea had pain and 69.9% of those with dyspnea had pain. In an adjusted regression model, participants with dyspnea were 8.3 times more likely to have pain than those without dyspnea. Pain was strongly associated with the onset and the persistence of dyspnea. In this large sample of Medicare recipients, pain and dyspnea were very strongly associated, to the degree that they may represent different facets of the same experience. These results confirm experimental studies about the affective experience of both symptoms. These findings might help clinicians to appreciate better how patients experience pain and dyspnea. Additional research is needed to understand the exact mechanisms by which pain and dyspnea co-occur, and other risk factors for them.

The basic functional unit of the nervous system is the neuron, which contains two highly specialized compartments, the axon and dendrite. Dendrites received synaptic/sensory inputs, and the dendrite arborization pattern has a profound influence on the type and number of inputs a dendrite can receive. We are studying dendrite patterning in the Drosophila peripheral nervous system (PNS), with a particular focus on the role that non-neuronal signals play in shaping dendrite development. In the Drosophila PNS, sensory neurons grow on top of a monolayer of epithelial cells, which provide instructive cues to shape dendrite patterning. To date, there are plenty of tools available to genetically label and manipulate neurons, but few tools are available for genetic manipulation of epithelial cells. My goal is to design a reporter construct that will specifically label and facilitate targeted expression of transgenes in epithelial cells. To this end, I am assembling a modular plasmid construct which contains a minimal promoter, an enhancer sequence which we have found to be sufficient to direct epithelial expression, and the coding sequence of green fluorescent protein or other genes of interest. After assembling the construct, I will use germline transformation to generate transgenic flies and test the efficacy of the construct. If successful, this will represent the first epithelia-specific transcriptional reporter, and will provide a template for assembly of additional tools for studying dendrite-epithelia interactions.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are crucial regulators of gene expression in plants and animals and play a critical role in many biological processes, including nervous system development. From our previous study of Drosophila melanogaster peripheral sensory neurons, we found that miRNA bantam is both necessary and sufficient in epithelial cells to initiate an epithelia-derived signaling pathway that regulates dendrite growth. Using miRNA sensors, which report the location on miRNA activity, we found that bantam activity is developmentally regulated in epithelial cells. We hypothesize that this developmental regulation of bantam activity is the result of transcriptional regulation of bantam, and we aim to investigate this using bantam transcriptional reporters. To this end, we are developing bantam transcriptional reporter constructs in which the bantam transcript has been replaced by different reporter genes, such as GFP or Luciferase, while preserving the cis-regulatory landscape. We will use these reporters to monitor bantam transcript levels over developmental  time and, pending the outcome of these studies, we will use the reporters to identify trans-acting factors that regulate bantam transcription.

 Vesicular Glutamate Transporters (vGluts) are proteins that package glutamate into vesicles prior to synaptic transmission. Three isoforms have been identified in mammals (vGlut-1-3), with 1 and 2 showing a mostly complementary pattern of expression, and 3 co-localizing in a small number of cells with both 1 and 2. Knockout mice for the vGlut1 gene die shortly after weaning, indicating a crucial role for vGlut1 in development. Intriguingly, avian genomes contain no vGlut-1 orthologs, despite the fact that lizards, a common ancestor of both mammals and birds, have orthologs of both vGlut-1 and -2. The fact that birds function without vGlut1 suggests there may be an increased functional role for vGlut2 in the avian brain. To further demonstrate the presence and potential role of vGlut2 in avian pallial circuitry, we used immunocytochemical methods to study the brain distribution of vGlut2 protein in zebra finch. To confirm the specificity of antibodies to vglut2, we first performed co-localization of anterograde tracer with vGlut-2 in known glutamatergic terminals in RA that originated from pallial song nucleus HVC. Electron microscopy further confirmed that labeling was restricted to synaptic terminals containing vesicles, and in situ hybridization was used to confirm the presence of mRNA in somata. We found that a large number of vGlut2-positive cells are present throughout the zebra finch pallium, and also found evidence for vGlut-2 positive synapses in three different song nuclei (nucleus HVC, Area X, and robust nucleus of the arcopallium), which were imaged and analyzed for size, and the potential identity of post-synaptic elements. Our results are consistent with the notion that avian vGlut2 has largely taken over vGlut1 functions. We believe our study contributes important facts to the long disputed evolutionary relationship between the avian pallium and the mammalian cortex.

Public parklands provide a space for recreation and ecosystem protection. However, managing parks for these traits can be a challenge as the two activities are often in conflict. The aim of this study is to explore the trade-offs between ecosystem protection and recreation in public parks through a case study of Fay Bainbridge Park (FBP) on Bainbridge Island, Washington. Bainbridge Island Metro Park & Recreation District (BIMPRD) with guidance from Washington Sea Grant (WSG) proposed the addition of three boardwalks at FBP with the intention of providing beach access and reducing trampling. For this study, I worked with WSG and BIMPRD to survey park visitors. The survey focused on participants’ use of FBP, their current understanding of the local ecosystem, and their feelings toward the addition of beach boardwalks, specifically impacts of boardwalks on beach ecology, aesthetics, and accessibility. In order to place this study in the context of public park management, I conducted a literature review of related case studies. The survey results revealed patterns concerning park use, prior ecological knowledge, and feelings toward the addition of boardwalks at FBP. This study will help inform BIMPRD and WSG on infrastructure decisions and the development of educational signage. More broadly, this work contributes to the larger body of information concerning appropriate public parkland management that maximizes value to visitors without compromising the health of park ecosystems.

It has been hypothesized that effective treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, such as Huntington’s Disease and Alzheimer’s, may be possible through the manipulation of neural stem cells to divide and replenish afflicted neuronal cell populations. A crucial component of this treatment would be the creation of a vehicle for the efficient delivery of stimulating genetic material into target cells. Prospective virus-based vectors accomplish this by making use of a recombinant virus and its natural ability for gene transfer. These viral vectors, while inherently effective, have significant safety issues with the possibility of eliciting harmful immune responses. Peptide-based copolymers are a promising non-viral alternative for delivery systems. While safer, these synthetic vectors have thus far proven less efficient. One problem is lack of consistent cell membrane penetration, preventing the therapeutics from reaching areas within the cell where they would come into effect. Our laboratory has recently incorporating the membrane-lytic peptide melittin (a molecule derived from bee venom) into our base DNA-binding peptide-based polymers. The melittin-functionalized materials were shown to increase gene delivery efficiency by at least 10-fold compared to control materials both in vitro and by injection into mouse brain. This current study seeks to develop a multifunctional delivery system by incorporating the neuronal-targeting peptide “Tet1,” for specialized treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. Previous work showed that conjugation of Tet1 to control polymers results in increased transfer specificity to neuronal cells in vivo. Potentially, Tet1 and melittin can synergize to further improve gene delivery to the central nervous system.

Alternative energy sources have been becoming a greater necessity as fossil fuels become higher in demand and pollution endangers the world. Dye-sensitized solar cells have been of increasing interest in the last twenty years as a possible low-cost and efficient alternative to conventional fuel sources. Porphyrins are synthetic analogs of chlorophyll, the molecule responsible for molecular oxygen. Our group has synthesized a number of porphyrins and constructed solar cells using these compounds as the light harvesting pigments necessary to produce energy. Our goal is to determine the change in energy gathering potential and binding capability of the porphyrins to the cells based on the substituent groups bound to the parent molecule. These results will be presented as well as our progress toward optimizing a working dye-sensitized solar cell.

The evolution of multicellularity is one of the most important yet least understood biological phenomena. What selective pressures drive this major evolutionary transition? To address this question, we use a theoretical approach to model the spatial properties of cell groups in a simulation entitled Tree-Multicellularity (TreeMu). In TreeMu a simple multicellular organism is represented as a graph, with nodes representing cells, and edges representing physical connections between cells. Like cells, nodes carry intrinsic attributes, such as reproduction, mutation and death rates; these dictate life processes and define an individual's fitness. Like multicellular groups, graphs have similar properties that emerge from individual contributions. When a node dies it splits the graph in two, analogous to group level reproduction. We explore how the evolution of a node's death rate affects multicellular growth. In the simulation we implement an evolutionary algorithm that selects for 'multicellular' graphs of large sizes by removing small groups from the population. Preliminary data supports a tradeoff between group size and reproduction. TreeMu provides a computational framework to explore the dynamics of multicellular evolution.

The export of signals is a vital aspect of bacterial communication with its environment and it was recently found that Gram-negative bacteria can send signals directly to neighboring bacteria via the type VI secretion system (T6SS). The bacterial T6SS translocates antibacterial toxins into neighboring bacterial cells and provides a means for bacteria to compete in their environment. Bacteria can also target their own cells with the T6SS but are protected against self-intoxication by cognate immunity proteins that inactivate their partner toxins. For example, one T6-exported toxin found in Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Tse1, degrades the cell wall of the recipient cell. The cell wall provides structural support for bacteria, and degradation of this protective layer by Tse1 causes the target cell to lyse. P. aeruginosa is immune to this toxicity, however, because an immunity protein, Tsi1, in the cell wall layer of P. aeruginosa binds and inhibits T6-exported Tse1. Our lab has found that Tse1 and Tsi1 are members of a large superfamily of type VI amidase effector-immunity widely found in Gram-negative bacteria, suggesting that these T6 toxin-immunity pairs may play a major role in influencing the structure of polymicrobial communities in general. Because of the large influence the T6SS can have on polymicrobial environments, I predict the T6-toxin-immunity system could also be utilized as an antimicrobial strategy. My aim is to engineer a novel Tse1–Tsi1 toxin–immunity pair that escapes rescue by immunity proteins in naturally occurring bacteria, thus giving the engineered P. aeruginosa strain the ability to outcompete the natural wild-type strain. To do this I will use a structure-based approach in conjunction with a genetic directed evolution strategy to identify and mutate Tse1 and Tsi1 residues that play an important role in Tsi1–Tse1 recognition and inhibition.

We are using an animal model to explore the possibility that fetal ultrasound exposure in utero can be a contributing factor of autism. The Williams and Casanova Triple Hit Hypothesis suggests that autism is caused by a combination of genetic predisposition, a specific period of developmental vulnerability, and exposure to environmental factors during that time of vulnerability. We hypothesize that ultrasound is an environmental factor contributing to autism in those who are genetically predisposed. A previous study found that prenatal ultrasound exposure affects neuronal migration, indicating that ultrasound is not completely harmless to the developing brain. Our experiment will use an animal model of three strains of mice with varying degrees of predisposition to autistic-like behavior. Some pregnant mice will be anesthetized and exposed to a clinically relevant dose of ultrasound while control mice will be subjected to the same procedure with the ultrasound turned off. When the mice pups are 3 and 6 weeks of age, we will use a variety of behavioral tests to assay for autistic-like characteristics. Examples of autistic-like behaviors include reduced play, anxiety in open areas, little curiosity for a novel mouse, and affinity for darkness. Results of our study may relate ultrasound exposure to autism, which would lead to further animal studies and, eventually, recommendations on the use of ultrasound on pregnant women. A positive correlation between ultrasound and autism would suggest that pregnant women should be exposed to ultrasound only long enough to assay the fetus' health.

Palladium is a part of the Platinum Group Metals (PGM), and is highly used as a catalyst in many applications such as in an automobile’s catalytic converter. It has also been successfully used for hydrogen gas sensing devices. Employing low-cost, efficient means to synthesize palladium nanowhiskers in the lab has been the focus of my research thus far. Hydrothermal synthesis and dislocation mechanisms have been used for the growth of palladium nanowhiskers using a palladium (II) chloride charge. The hydrothermal synthesis involved chemical reactions as well as thermal reactions in the growth of the nanowhiskers. In the dislocation mechanism, the growth of the whiskers is the result of the thermal decomposition of palladium chloride to palladium plus chlorine gas. Scanning electron micrographs from the first four runs of the hydrothermal synthesis showed little to no nanowhiskers. The first run of the dislocation mechanism grown samples is currently awaiting characterization. Future work for my research involves many more dislocation mechanism growths of the palladium nanowhiskers, as well as an attempt to use electrochemical deposition as a third technique in producing these whiskers. The application of these nanowhiskers in hydrogen gas sensing is based on the change in the conductance of the whiskers upon absorption of hydrogen. This allows for highly sensitive sensors to be made.

One of the most vital roles of mitochondria is to provide the cell with energy through oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS). Mutations within the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) can affect gene products that function in OXPHOS. While maternally inherited mtDNA mutations often affect the nervous system and musculature, and somatic mtDNA mutations are associated with aging and age related diseases, the cellular mechanisms that influence the frequency of mtDNA mutations are poorly understood. We are using the fruit fly Drosophila to address this matter because our recent work indicates that the mtDNA mutational patterns in flies share many features with vertebrates, including a similar somatic mtDNA mutation frequency, a prevalence of transition mutations, and an accumulation of mutations with age. A high prevalence of mtDNA mutations can lead to dysfunctional mitochondria, and previous work in Drosophila has shown that a mitochondrial quality control mechanism exists to degrade dysfunctional mitochondria. Although it is clear that this mitochondrial quality control mechanism can detect and degrade damaged mitochondria, whether it can influence the mtDNA mutation frequency by detecting and degrading mitochondria with a mtDNA mutation is unknown. To address this matter we will use a high-fidelity Duplex Sequencing approach to detect rare mtDNA variants. Genetic manipulations in mitochondrial quality control factors will be used to probe their effect on mtDNA mutation frequency. We predict that loss of these quality control factors will cause an increase in mtDNA mutations and that overexpression of these factors will cause a decrease in mtDNA mutations. The results from these studies will lead to improved understanding about factors that influence mtDNA mutation frequency and also diseases caused by mtDNA mutations.

Annually, an estimation of 1.7 million people in the U.S suffer from traumatic brain injury (TBI), in which 50,000 people dies and another 85,000 people survive with long term disabilities. Moreover, TBI is reported to be the most common combat-related injury and accounts for 25% of combat casualties. CT and MRI are the current diagnostic tools for TBI, but due to their bulky size and complicated interpretation procedures, prevalent implementation of the devices is limited in undeveloped areas and near the battle field. Consequently, a size deployable diagnostic tool that is able to present quantitative evaluation of TBI is needed. The purpose of the project is to optimize an ultrasound elastography machine for detection and classification of mild and moderate TBI based on the theory that abnormal brain elasticity will be observed in presence of hemorrhage and edema. The goal was achieved in three steps: post-processing and stiffness maps were first generated in MATLAB for breast phantom to test and ensure the feasibility of coding, then data collected from moderate TBI rat brains were fed into the code with modified parameters to generate brain elasticity maps highlighting areas of damage, finally elasticity maps were be constructed for mild TBI rats. All the brains were imaged in alginate of same impedance. The quantified elasticity values in moderate and mild TBI brains allow classification of injury levels; the accuracy of constructed images will be ensured by comparisons between TBI, control and histology results. Successfully optimized ultrasound elastography machine displays quantitative analysis of brain elasticity which simplifies diagnostic procedures. Furthermore, implementation of the device in hospitals and battle fields enables early TBI detection, which will potentially reduce TBI-related deaths, lower TBI-related treatment costs and greatly enhance residents’ life quality.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a common injury sustained by soldiers and requires immediate and sensitive brain imaging in order to diagnose the extent of damage. Currently, conventional methods of brain imaging such as computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging are not field-deployable and immediately available on the battlefield. Tissue pulsatility imaging (TPI) is a technique that measures the natural pulsatile motion of tissue as a result of blood flow. Preliminary brain tissue samples of mice with TBI observed under widefield microscopy have shown increased mitochondrial accumulation at the site of injury relative to comparable sites in the hemisphere contralateral to injury, suggesting that TBI disrupts normal mitochondrial migration patterns. It is hypothesized that biological responses such as this, as well as the development of hemorrhage and edema, cause a change in brain tissue pulsatilities of TBI animals that can be detected by TPI. In this project, TPI by ultrasound will be used to image the brains of mice with acute and chronic (24-hour) TBI to determine whether this method of ultrasound imaging has the potential to be used for initial detection of TBI. Animal trials with both bilateral and hemispheric cranial windows will be used to study TPI patterns in the brains of these mice. Among the issues we will address include the effects of the skull on image resolution. Subsequent data analysis and device parameter adjustment should increase the resolution of images in order to optimize a design for an ultrasound device based on imaging tissue pulsatility that can accurately detect TBI and may eventually serve as a field-deployable brain imaging device. 

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is injury to the brain caused by external trauma. Approximately 1.7 million cases of traumatic brain injury are reported every year in the US, and contributing to an estimated 30.5% of injury related deaths. TBI is currently treated by managing symptoms, present treatment methods are incapable of reversing the damage done by the initial trauma. Gene therapy is a promising method of treatment for TBI; by transfecting cells such as neural stem or progenitor cells (NSCs and NPCs respectively) in the brain with plasmids which induce differentiation and migration damage to neurons can be alleviated or even reversed. This projects aims to develop and optimize a protocol which utilizes non-viral transfection vectors in conjunction with ultrasound to efficaciously target and transfect neural progenitor cells (NPC), i.e. cells capable of differentiation into neurons. By transfecting NPCs with plasmids which cause differentiation and/ or migration NPCs can be induced to become new neurons and migrate to areas of neuronal injury caused by traumatic brain injury. In this manner some of the dead and dying neurons might be replaced and the initial trauma mitigated. This is a novel method of treatment both in its use of non-viral vectors capable of targeting NPCs in conjunction with ultrasound mediated increase in transfection efficiency and in its potential for reversing the initial damage seen in TBI; something that no current method of treatment is capable of.

Ultrasonic neuromodulation is the process of stimulating different neural pathways in the brain through the use of transcranially delivered ultrasound in order to induce clinically relevant emotional, cognitive, physical or behavioral reactions. My research goal is to find out if it is possible to add anatomical specificity to current neuromodulation practice through the use of modulated focused ultrasound (mFU), where 'modulated' refers to adding complex temporal structure to the waveform to optimize neuromodulation. Since mFU has a small focus relative to the brain, the acoustic power from the ultrasound can be moved within the brain; previous experiments have used unfocused ultrasound which sends ultrasound through the entire brain. We hypothesize that we can map varying physical reactions through stimulation of different parts of the brain, with initial emphasis on the motor cortex because stimulation there produces readily observable results. With lightly anesthetized mice as our subjects, and always delivering ultrasound through the skin and skull, we began neuromodulation with unfocused transducers to transmit our ultrasound. This critical step was done to determine the optimal intensity, waveform shape and carrier frequency of ultrasound that created robust, observable effects. Next we translated these ultrasound parameters to our mFU transducer. The current stage of the process includes moving through different parts of each hemisphere and recording the associated motor response such as leg movements and tail flicks. We have already seen a change in activity between activating the front, middle, and rear regions of the brain, as well as dosing effects. Going forward, we intend to see if we could produce varied motor movements with greater spatial resolution using our focused ultrasound across a predefined grid atop the brain. Further studies will also change the applied stimulation intensity. Clinical implications for neuromodulation research include retraining brain function after injury and improving current therapeutics.

The purpose of this study is to determine fundamental structure-solvent-property relationships in organic photovoltaic polymers (OPV’s), with the overarching goal of increasing the efficiency of OPV’s. A typical silicon-based photovoltaic plant outputs approximately 88,000 m2 of photovoltaic cells each year- about the size of 16 football fields. On the other hand, an organic photovoltaic printer will produce the same area in up to 10 hours. OPV’s are incredibly fast, cheap, and easy to produce relative to their inorganic counterparts, but fall short within the realm of efficiency; the 10% efficiency of OPV’s can hardly rival the ~40% efficiency of inorganic photovoltaic technology. If the efficiency of OPV’s can be increased, this will have a drastic impact on the competitive marketability of photovoltaic technology. This project aims at developing computational models to study the role of solvents in the self-assembly of polythiophenes during the printing process. These models are generated in GROMACS, a program that uses classical forces such as Coulombic or Van Der Waals forces, to predict how molecules will behave with time. This is problematic, however, for OPV’s, as key interactions occur on the quantum level, and new classical force fields, which are computationally very efficient, need to be altered in order to accurately calculate these interactions. A force field is being developed and refined by comparing our computational results with experimental results from the Pozzo Research Group within the Department of Chemical Engineering. Once these results are reliably consistent with each other, we can begin running simulations and gathering data regarding how OPV’s assemble in various environments. In particular, this poster explains a systematic methodology I have developed to use the GROMACS program to perform molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of single chain OPV’s in various solvents as well as simulations of bulk OPV’s in the melt state.

Stroke is one of the leading causes of death in the United States; however, due to the apoptotic death of neuronal cells from lack of oxygenated blood, prognosis and recovery is not always favorable even if the event is survived. Our laboratory focuses on finding therapeutic agents that show neuroprotective qualities in cerebral ischemic events. The compounds we have focused on in this study are progesterone and its metabolite allopregnanolone. Previous studies have shown that both compounds have neuroprotective qualities in vitro and that progesterone administration in vivo suppresses inflammatory response and subsequent edema. Our hypothesis is that both progesterone and allopregnanolone would show neuroprotective, as well as neurogenic, qualities in vivo. This is tested through a mouse stroke model using progesterone receptor knockout mice and wild type mice, both being subjected to a middle cerebral artery occlusion. Groups are treated with different compounds or control. The brains are then perfused after 11 or 28 days, fixed, and sliced to be put through immunohistochemistry, where cells are identified by certain neurogenic markers (bromodeoxyuridine incorporation and doublecortin labeling). Slides are finally analyzed through confocal microscopy to look for these markers in certain areas such as the hippocampus, striatum, and lateral cortex. Finally, positively labeled cells are counted in both the ipsilateral (stroked) and contralateral hemispheres. Data are currently being analyzed for 11 day post-ischemic mice. We anticipate an increase in the number of bromodeoxyuridine and doublecortin labeled cells in mice subjected to progesterone and allopregnanolone, and we also expect this to be more dramatic in the ipsilateral side due to new cell migration to the injury site. Hopefully, these results will allow for a greater push in implementing progesterone and allopregnanolone in clinical use for the recovery of ischemic stroke.

A major obstacle in the efficient delivery of genes using non-viral vectors is sequestration and subsequent degradation of the vector in the endosomal/lysosomal trafficking pathway. While incorporation of membrane-lytic peptides into gene delivery vectors has been shown to increase transgene expression by disrupting the endosomal vesicles, non-specific membrane-disruption caused by these modified vectors leads to significantly increased toxicity. One approach to mitigating this increased toxicity is to mask the membrane-lytic peptides inside a pH-responsive micellar core that destabilizes during vesicle acidification in the endosomal/lysosomal pathway, revealing the membrane-lytic segments only when internalized. Incorporating pH-responsive imidazole elements in the hydrophobic micelle core which become charged under acidifying conditions can disrupt the micellar structure by electrostatic repulsion, leading to display of the active peptide, membrane lysis, and increased DNA delivery to the cytoplasm. After synthesis of the pH-responsive motif a panel of representative DNA delivery polymers will be evaluated for pH-responsiveness, transfection efficiency, and cytotoxicity.

One of the major intracellular barriers to non-viral gene delivery is degradation through the endosomal/lysosomal pathway. To overcome this barrier, pH-sensitive polymers that swell in acidic pH and ultimately disrupt the endosome can be designed to escape these compartments. Previously, the Pun lab developed HPMA-oligolysine copolymers that have transfection efficiencies approaching that of polyethylenimine (PEI), the gold standard for transfection. In order to increase the copolymers’ transfection efficiency, oligohistidines were incorporated into the copolymer in both statistical and block architectures to impart pH-sensitivity. Transfection studies with these two copolymers showed that statistical incorporation of oligohistidine increased transfection efficiency, while block incorporation did not increase transfection efficiency. To determine if structure-function differences affected cellular uptake and endosomal buffering, we performed uptake inhibitor and endocytic buffering inhibitor studies. Through these studies, we found that both copolymer geometries preferred non-clathrin coated caveolae uptake pathways, and that they differed in endosomal buffering capabilities. The statistical copolymer showed increased endosomal buffering capacity, which was consistent with the overall higher transfection efficiency of the statistical copolymers over the block copolymers. From these two studies, we are better able to understand the relationship between structure and function in gene delivery using polymers.

Being the target of a positive stereotype (e.g., “women are nurturing”) can elicit many negative effects. The current study investigates the influence of positive stereotypes on women’s math performance and their identification with science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields. In the present study, some women were the target of a positive stereotype before being asked to take a math test. Women who were positively stereotyped did not differ in their math performance compared to women who were not the target of a positive stereotype. However, positively stereotyped women felt that it was less important for them to do well in math than women who were not the target of a positive stereotype. These results suggest that positive stereotypes may lead women to identify less with STEM fields, an important predictor of success or retention in a field, and may be a factor in perpetuating gender disparities.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by broad social and cognitive impairments and the presence of stereotyped, repetitive behaviors. Our research examined the hypothesis that impairments in neural signal routing in ASD underpin behavioral symptoms. Specifically, we investigated structural and functional differences in the basal ganglia (BG), a group of subcortical nuclei that regulate signals to frontal cortex. The BG is known to regulate movements, balance, and posture and their abnormal development has been related to motor impairments in ASD. It is necessary to extend these investigations, as previous research did not account for the relation between BG structure and function, or the role of the BG in complex cognitive tasks. In the current experiment, anatomical tracings of two of the key input stations of the BG (the caudate and putamen) were generated for 31 individuals, including 14 with ASD and 17 controls. To determine whether the size of the BG nuclei correlated with their functional influence over cortical regions, we correlated our volumetric measures with indices of effective connectivity, measured using dynamic causal modeling analyses of an fMRI data set. Our results indicated that across all individuals, there were reliable negative correlations between the size of the BG and its modulation of synchronization between several cortical regions. This finding was particularly evident in the individuals with ASD. However, inconsistent with previous investigations, between groups t-tests showed that there were no significant differences in absolute BG volume between groups. Future analyses will account for total brain volume to see whether absolute value or relative value of the BG account for differences in network-level signal routing properties in individuals with ASD. We will also correlate these findings with behavioral measures to establish its relevance for the symptoms of ASD.

Merkel Cell Carcinoma (MCC) is a rare, aggressive, neuroendocrine cancer of the skin. The disease is associated with a virus and is strongly linked to immune system function. Disease-specific mortality is >40% and few effective treatments are available for advanced disease. MCC metastases are typically treated by chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy (RT) delivered over >20 sessions. These options are usually successful at shrinking the targeted lesions, but these effects are often short-lived and/or associated with significant side effects. Mouse model data suggest that RT delivered in a single dose is more effective in promoting tumor immunity and that subsequent RT fractions suppress the function of lymphocytes that are recruited to the tumor. Therefore, we explored the use of single dose RT for MCC metastases. 28 patients with a total of 78 tumors were treated with a single dose of RT between 2010-2013. 86% of treated tumors showed a response that persisted for over 6 months. Overall, 45% of treated tumors had a complete radiological/clinical response and an additional 41% had partial responses (>50% reduction in size). These results are encouraging and show that single-dose RT is an effective palliative strategy with minimal side effects.

Archaeological excavations at the Rimrock Draw Rockshelter site (35HA3855), located in southeastern Oregon, revealed a three-part stratigraphic series of eolian deposits underlain by silty clays, and orange sandy clay sediments. These are found in nearly all excavated units of the rockshelter. Excavation units contained Western Stemmed points that date between 8,000 to 12,000 years in age, frequently in sediments that lack a uniform stratigraphy due to post-depositional alteration and sediment mixing from burrowing animals. However; Unit 11 is the exception, revealing a thick tephra lens underlain by distinct layers of banded black and gray prismatic clay, then by bone fragments of a large mammal that may be megafauna. These features mark a significant change in stratigraphic clarity, offering researchers the most clearly defined stratified deposits in the site thus far. The goal of this research is to establish a stratigraphic framework using geoarchaeological methods including particle size analysis for grain size distributions; geochemical analysis of collected sediment samples to test soil pH levels; electrical conductivity; and organic loss on ignition to determine the nature of the paleoenvironment. Also, this project offers an interdisciplinary collaboration to chronologically date this unique sequence of deposits using electron microprobe analysis on two collected tephra samples, and radiometric dating on bone fragments found near the bottom of the Unit 11. I expect the results of these methods to show strong andic-type soil properties, give a statistically meaningful stratigraphic division of depositional units, and provide several chronological dates to be used as marker horizons. Together, these results will demonstrate the strong associative context between excavated archaeological material and the stratigraphic record.

The behavior of polymer/protein mixtures has been widely studied within the framework of depletion forces, a colloidal phenomenon driving the attraction of like-particles due to osmotic pressure. However, the behavior of dilute polymer/protein mixtures is still not fully understood. Ordered protein structures, such as crystals and colloidal clusters, could be achieved by tuning excluded volume interactions through the modification of polymer conformation. The temperature-dependent morphology of block copolymers allows us to fine-tune these depletion interactions. To assess phase behavior in a model system, aqueous mixtures of protein (bovine serum albumin) and block copolymer (PEO_x-PPO_y-PEO_x) have been created. Electrostatic interactions between proteins were screened by adding salt to the mixtures. The dependence of phase behavior on these parameters was determined using UV-Vis spectroscopy to measure turbidity. The morphology and size of protein structures was also evaluated using optical microscopy and dynamic light scattering. Mixtures with higher polymer concentrations displayed an increased propensity to develop turbidity at low temperatures. This effect was mitigated upon reaching the polymer micellization temperature, whereupon the decreased osmotic pressure reversed protein aggregation, resulting in a clear solution. Defining the conditions required for the formation of ordered protein aggregates in polymer media has valuable implications for biology and medicine. This work represents a step towards determination of the optimum conditions for creating protein crystals suitable for structural proteomics and colloidal clusters for drug-delivery.

Currently, the United States faces an impending energy crisis. To ensure energy security, conversion of biomass to small molecules for use in fuels or chemical processes must become more energy efficient. However, a major hurdle to raising productivity is the robust structure of biomass and subsequent resistance to breakdown. In the past ten years, experiments have shown “ionic liquids,” a special group of solvents, dissolve biomass. Unfortunately, these experiments are not guided by molecular scale design principles hindering this promising research. This project focuses on providing the fundamental knowledge to guide and explain the phenomenon by using molecular dynamics (MD) to study the interaction of cellulose and other parts of biomass as a function of solvent environment. This new perspective requires simulated MD in combination with an enhanced sampling method. Enhanced sampling, in this case umbrella sampling, involves applying artificial forces on atoms to cause rare events that would not normally occur on the time scale of molecular scale simulations. Examples of rare events that are challenging to directly observe in MD simulation include chemical reactions, protein folding and unfolding and binding and unbinding of polymers. This work focuses on binding and unbinding events of biomass polymers. To cause the binding and unbinding events, umbrella sampling uses a force similar to a spring to hold a variable like dihedral angles and number of hydrogen bonds constant. Umbrella sampling is a versatile technique and is used on a wide variety of variables but this work uses it to vary the position of the dimer with respect to the cellulose surface. By varying position, the interaction energy is calculated. The interaction energy will give a deeper insight into the mechanism of dissolving biomass while providing a profounder understanding of the fairly new materials, ionic liquids.

Poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and 6,6-phenyl-C60 butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) are model materials used to study and understand the performance of polymer solar cells. A critical design parameter in improving device performance is the structural morphology of the active layer. Traditional processing of organic solar cells involves the deposition of a P3HT/PCBM composite film from a common solvent and then post-processing treatments (i.e. annealing) to influence the extent of phase segregation and improve the percolation of electron and hole transport pathways throughout the film volume. Therefore, the electronic properties of the resulting solar cells are inherently tied to how the film is processed (e.g. choice of solvent, annealing temperature, film thickness). While process optimization has led to improvements in laboratory performance, it is challenging to extend the same principles to improve the performance of large scale roll-to-roll processes because deposition conditions vary significantly. Increasingly, researchers recognize the need for methods that decouple film processing from active layer structure and device performance. My research involves the synthesis of P3HT/PCBM composite nanoparticles (CNPs) in aqueous dispersion as a means to circumvent the dependence of active layer structure on the specific mode of deposition of the P3HT/PCBM film. I have synthesized CNPs with variable content of P3HT/PCBM and different preparation procedures while also controlling particle size. The characterization of these particles focuses on spectroscopy, small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), dynamic light scattering and the performance evaluation of devices produced with CNP active layers. This project will tie device performance to CNP structure regardless of active layer processing, and assist in identifying CNPs with optimized morphology without the need for annealing or post-processing.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a major issue in warzones and it is often misdiagnosed and therefore mistreated in the field due to unavailability of accurate imaging technologies and subjectivity of motor response tests. Soldiers who experience TBI and are not properly treated often deal with severe mental, physical, and emotional consequences for their remaining lifetime. As such, there is a need for a field-deployable modality for the detection of TBI. Proposed here is the use of ultrasound vibro-acoustography for detection, which has been shown to measure differences in mechanical properties of materials using intense focused ultrasound (iFU) to vibrate the material and record the acoustic emissions. I am working to quantify the emission differences of healthy and damaged tissue through in vivo rat testing.  By optimizing ultrasound parameters and experimental protocol, my work will support the end-goal design an affordable and portable device for TBI detection away from modern medical centers.

The infamous dictator Augusto Pinochet came to power through a bloody coup on September 11, 1973 and drastically changed the face of the Chilean government. His regime instituted strict policies of neoliberalism that led to the privatization of the university system. Forty years after the coup, many of these policies remain in place, untouched and accepted as the reasons behind Chile as the ‘economic miracle’ of South America. However, tensions under these neoliberal policies, specifically in the university system, fomented a recent eruption of political activism in May of 2011. Why is it that Chile, one of the most economically ‘successful’ countries in South America and the ‘pride’ of the IMF and World Bank models, is seeing the rise of a powerful student movement against neoliberal legacies? My research juxtaposes the master narrative of Chile as a ‘model country’, in terms of hegemonic modernity, against the experiences of the Chilean university students who have fought to challenge it. I argue that the catalyst behind the student movement can be in part explained by the legacies of Pinochet’s repression and the political struggles of past generations. This contradictory temporal space forms a ‘generational borderland’. These generational ruptures combined with the legacies of repression, have led to the emergence of new forms of innovative and marketable protest, cultivated longevity for the movement through the mistrust of politicians, and inspired a reinvigoration of the Communist Party of Chile.

Colonization in the 16th century permitted the creation of borderlands of indigenous groups in Mexico. As Mestizos became the majority in the country, indigenous groups rested in a borderland of injustice and inequality. To this day, indigenous groups still live in the struggle for justice. My aim is to research Los Triquis from San Juan Copala, Oaxaca and explore the realities surrounding the conflict that is taking place there; especially the implications in shaping Triqui identities around this conflict. Though various scholars have examined the paramilitary conflict in San Juan Copala, Triquis along with a study of their identify formation have been left out of the picture of the conflict. I intend to focus on the direct consequences on the individual rather than on the nature of the conflict itself through analyzing interviews with experts on the conflict and videos with first-hand accounts by Triquis who have escaped such violence. Since 1988, rising Triqui paramilitary groups allegedly helping Triqui people in San Juan Copala against injustices from the government, have created a paramilitary conflict. The resulting violence has led to the displacement of thousands of Triquis, who find it impossible to return home as they are attacked by their own people once they try. The particularity of this conflict is the government’s hidden involvement and it has affected every age and gender group in San Juan Copala thus changing the dynamics of interaction.

This research will illuminate shared discourse between the Chicano Movement and the Undocumented Youth Movement to highlight the intersectionality of identities. The Chicano Movement has been studied extensively by scholars and much has been said about the machista exclusions of women and Queer Chicana/os. My research seeks to examine the Undocumented Youth Movement and how this group has changed the typical exclusionary elements of its predecessor by making active efforts for inclusion. Through theoretical framework surrounding Queer and Chicano identity and my own personal experience, I will compare cultural production created during the Chicano Movement by Gloria Anzaldua, Cherrie Moraga y otras compañeras and the Undocumented Youth artivismo of Yosimar Reyes and Julio Salgado, who identify as “Undocu-Queer” artists. Their work contributes to an inclusive social movement crossing borders of sexuality, gender, citizenship, and race. Artivistas are providing new narratives and integrating it in U.S. society by claiming agency and demanding change in a country where anti-immigration laws are becoming more restrictive. The contributions of artists like Salgado and Reyes add to the strength of this movement. This research will add to a broader understanding of social movements, immigration policies in the U.S., and allow for a deeper understanding of the way culture fuels and defines social movements and politics. Additionally, through my own journey of understanding my Self and learning to survive through learning, creating and producing art I seek to queer the discourse that is occurring ahora in the Undocumented Youth Movement.

Governments can manipulate reports of the inflation rate to hide economic problems, and to generate revenues from the hidden depreciation of their liabilities valued in domestic currency. However, such practices are unpopular and generally short-lived because citizens soon recognize the loss in their purchasing power. Previously, I constructed an alternative price index for 2006 to 2008 and found that the National Statistics and Censuses Institute underreported the official inflation rate since February 2007. My data, used in conjunction with other alternative indexes, showed that the reported Consumer Price Index (CPI) only accounted for between a half and a third of the real inflation rate. This project explores effects of underreporting inflation in Argentina, and provides further evidence to support the existence of manipulation in the official statistics reports. Using the alternative price indexes, I estimated government gains from domestic bonds and the social security system due to the misreported inflation rates since the manipulation began. By reporting a CPI that is lower than the real one, the government was able to finance its expenditures at a decreasing real cost, at the expense of private investors and citizens. My preliminary results show that the Argentinian government profited in real terms from issuing bonds, and maintained a moderately low budget deficit despite increasing the number of social security beneficiaries. I also studied the national accounts and central bank publications of the last decade and observed a surprisingly high rate of nominal growth beginning in 2007. I will demonstrate that this unexpected rise can be explained by the discrepancy between the reported and the real inflation rate. Since 2009, the Argentinian government has actively censored independent domestic studies on the official CPI, so for the time being, it is essential for foreign scholars to research and keep track of Argentina’s deteriorating statistics.

Like their Victorian forebears, Modernist authors have always placed keen emphasis on women’s hair, often presenting their luscious locks in vivid and scrupulous detail. Aldous Huxley's Crome Yellow (1920) uses hair as a tool of social commentary and trope of the fairytale epic to challenge and even reverse traditional Victorian gender roles and sexuality norms. The tension between the private and public self is also explored; what Modernist women could not say aloud, they expressed through the style, color and length of their hair. Crome Yellow constantly alludes to the hair of the female protagonists Jenny Mullion and Mary Bracegirdle, yet the intentions behind the loaded descriptions of their physical appearance are left up in the air. The characterization of an infamous Fallen Woman and modern flapper girl allows distinctions to be made between the Victorian and Modernist eras that determine the emergence of new gender ideals. This paper will use a close reading of Crome Yellow and Freudian theories on sexuality to explore the multifaceted significance of hair in the Victorian era so we may fully appreciate the past’s influence on modernist eras. A woman’s hair became a phallic image used to engender fear in men, which posits a move towards gender equality and the emergence of the suffragette. Hair was no longer just a physical attribute but a body politic that reflected changes taking place in modernist British society of the entre deux guerres period.

The fear of being unimportant, being erased, and of being finite, grips humans and motivates us to prove that we matter, that we exist. In an attempt to create truth and authentic understandings, our society seeks evidence, proof, and facts, even while acknowledging (and often ignoring) that these “facts” may be hard to establish. In my paper I explore how post-modern novels, Everything is Illuminated and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer and Austerlitz by W.G. Sebald, utilize multi-modal textual souvenirs to function as lodestones and guide readers through fictionalized versions of real historical traumas. These novels can be read as scrapbooks of memory which investigate the social importance and definition of “truth” in the face of traumatic events. My project questions whether or not truth can be found in fiction, non-fiction or even photographs as it looks at the way modern technologies have impacted how authors choose to create historical fiction. The multi-modal nature of these novels forces readers to reflect upon authorial intent and authority in the construction of memory and post memory. Furthermore, by looking at the narratives the authors create about traumatic events such as the Holocaust, the bombing of Dresden, Hiroshima, and the attacks of 9-11, my paper reveals the ways in which collective memories and national narratives can arise from trauma and how these events in turn create social identity for individuals within and across groups. An analysis of the postmodern methods the authors use in an attempt to create this authenticity, along with the expectations society holds concerning their construction, and the impact of individual and cultural desires on the creation of these narratives, uncovers the many fallacies and complexities that come with testimony and the social construction of authentic truth.

Gas sensors are widely used in daily life and industry. An important application of gas sensing is the monitoring of environmental factors affecting health, such as the concentration of carbon monoxide, in populated areas. However, most conventional gas sensors are powered by batteries, which need periodic replacement. The goal of this project is to integrate a Wireless Ambient Radio Power (WARP) energy harvesting platform with a new class of amperometric electrochemical gas sensors, provided by KWJ Engineering, Inc, to create novel battery-free gas sensor nodes. The WARP sensing platform, developed in Dr. Joshua Smith’s group, utilizes ambient radio frequency (RF) energy from common sources such as cellular towers and TV broadcast stations, which provide a reliable and pervasive 24-hour power source. The gas sensors manufactured by KWJ Engineering possess the advantages of low power, low cost, high sensitivity, and high selectivity. Particularly, the low power requirements of the gas sensors make it possible for them to be powered by the RF energy harvested by the WARP platform. Currently the potentiostat circuit needed to properly bias the gas sensor and acquire the gas concentration is being developed. The gas sensor circuitry will be integrated with the WARP platform to produce the battery-free RF-powered gas sensor nodes, followed by system optimization for reliable and efficient operations. With such gas sensor nodes, long-lived wireless sensor networks with zero maintenance cost could be deployed in continuous toxic gas monitoring applications, including air quality monitoring in cities and process control in industry.

The use of a fluorometer as a proxy for cell counting is a common method to track phytoplankton culture growth. A fluorometer works by emitting a beam of light, which excites the electrons in chlorophyll a, causing it to emit residual light. The fluorometer then measures the intensity and wavelength of that light. This information helps identify the relative abundance of cells present without giving a direct cell count. When conducting experiments involving the growth rate of photosynthetic cells it would be more beneficial to know the direct cell count as opposed to relative chlorophyll abundance because it is possible they may not correlate exactly as cells have the ability to adjust the ratio of chlorophyll in response to differences in light used in culturing. The marine picocyanobacteria, comprised of the genera Prochlorococcus and Synechococcus, are the most abundant photosynthetic organisms on Earth. I will culture five strains of picocyanobacteria in batch cultures using artificial seawater media in varying light and temperature conditions. I will measure the relative fluorescence of the chlorophyll a in the cultures at regular intervals throughout the growth cycle of the batch cultures. At the same time I will also measure the cell abundance using the flow cytometer. The flow cytometer will individually count and characterize the cells by chlorophyll fluorescence, accessory pigments, and cell size. My hypothesis is that the fluorescence based proxy of cell abundance measured by the fluorometer will highly correlate with the cell count from the flow cytometer, but that exact cell counts will vary under different culturing conditions. My results will be able to provide scientists who use the fluorometer as a proxy for growth a better understanding of the actual number of photosynthetic cells growing in each tube.

Diatoms are unicellular photosynthetic algae, or phytoplankton, and account for approximately 20% of global primary production. The pennate diatom Pseudo-nitzschia can produce a neurotoxin called domoic acid (DA) that bio-accumulates in the tissues of shellfish when this diatom blooms. DA poisoning causes life-threatening conditions in mammals and humans when these shellfish are ingested. Parameters such as shellfish exposure length and bloom toxicity can be found by understanding what regulates these diatom communities. One mechanism of bloom regulation that we know little about is that of viral infection, despite viruses being the most abundant predator in the ocean. After a toxic Pseudo-nitzschia bloom at Sunset Beach, Oregon was sampled in 2009, the first Pseudo-nitzschia infecting virus (PmDNAV) was isolated by infecting the host P. multiseries Clnn-16. I hypothesize that there are many different viruses that can infect the genus Pseudo-nitzschia in addition to the PmDNAV. Over the past year, I worked to isolate additional Pseudo-nitzschia viruses from three blooms collected in the Pacific Northwest: Penn Cove, Friday Harbor, and Sunset Beach, Oregon. I have identified potential viruses in 12 of 48 infection experiments using these bloom samples. Three strains of Pseudo-nitzschia: GGA2, GGA3, and GGB1, which represent the species P. multiseries and P. cingulata, were infected by putative viruses from two blooms, while many others were only infected by one or none. The data suggests that independent of species, certain strains of Pseudo-nitzschia are more permissive to viral infection than others. As well, in June 2012 I isolated seven new strains of Pseudo-nitzschia from Golden Gardens, WA. I genetically identified these strains by extracting DNA, running PCR, and sequencing the Internal Transcribed Spacer region. I will test these strains to determine how permissive they are, and how effective they will be to use as hosts when working to isolate new viruses.

Pseudo-nitzschia is a genus of phytoplankton widely dispersed throughout the world known for its production of a neurotoxin called domoic acid. As there is not a lot known about which species of Pseudo-nitzschia are associated with the neurotoxin, research on domoic acid is very limited. Little is known about the evolutionary relationships within the genus, but in 2002, the genus was broken into two clades (Lundholm, et al. 2002). Recently, the validity of these clades was tested by the sequencing of the Ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase oxygenase (RuBisCO) gene in 14 species of Pseudo-nitzschia (Guannel, unpublished data). As there are currently 37 known species, the goal of this project is to sequence DNA, using the RuBisCO gene, from more species in order to fill out more of the phylogenetic tree. Cultures of 6 strains of species lacking known RuBisCO sequences were grown to mid-exponential phase and then had their DNA extracted. After the DNA was isolated, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was conducted in order to amplify the gene. Before the DNA was sent for sequencing, the PCR products were run on an agarose gel confirming that the RuBisCO gene had in fact been successfully isolated and amplified. After the DNA is sequenced and placed on the phylogenetic tree, the physical characteristics (cell size, photopigments, etc.) of species making up each clade are then compared. This provides additional support as closely related organisms are likely to have similar traits. For example, we predicted that species with a larger cell size ( > 3 µm), would fall into Clade I, while smaller cells ( ≤ 3 µm) would be placed in Clade II. Through the addition of these species to the phylogenetic tree, further research can be conducted to pinpoint where the production of domoic acid lies in the evolutionary history of Pseudo-nitzschia.

My project explores the stereoscopic technique to express Mt. Rainier in 3D images for the first time.  By extending the camera distances to fabricate the vision of a giant, the mountain and its surrounding terrian is experienced disembodied, yet familiar. This effort represents a 3-year culmination of art-practice with the stereoscopic-3D video medium. Experiments with projection surfaces, short film, video-installation art, and computing have placed me as a leader in the field at the University. Stereo-3D's rise and fall in popularity and its function in popular culture is easily visible, but my research places it in the Fine Arts context in an attempt to embed 3D video in a tradition of visual poetics and technique.

Ai WeiWei, a contemporary Chinese artist and self-described "dissident," is the first to admit that political activism forms the basis of his aesthetic. In an artist’s statement, from a recent exhibition at the Hirshhorn Museum in Washington, DC, Ai plainly stated: “I’ve always believed it is essential for contemporary artists to question established assumptions and challenge beliefs.” The majority of Ai’s installations at the Hirshhorn function as a platform for his renegade agenda, and his piece He Xie is no exception. The striking collection of ceramic river crabs, in various shades of red and brown, is invested with manifest symbolism. However, a deeper investigation of the work reveals a latent significance, not readily gleaned from a limited investigation of its formal elements. In order to adequately engage with Ai’s work, one must look beyond the surface and trace the installation back to its historical origins and cultural conditions. To draw out his strategic use of symbolism, I analyze Ai’s installation according to German art historian Erwin Panofsky's iconographical approach. Panofsky begins with the simplest translation of visual forms and works his way toward a more nuanced historical and culturally relevant perspective. In short, Panofsky’s three-pronged methodological approach allows me to demonstrate the complexity of Ai’s He Xie. In this presentation, I discuss the conceptual stimulus behind Ai's sprawling display of porcelain delicacies, exploring its political significance and identifying a larger metaphysical trend in the artist's career.

When looked at in chronological order, it is impossible to deny that the work of Francisco Goya (1746-1828) underwent a major shift in style, palette, medium and content in the middle of his life. Past scholars have pointed out that there are multiple reasons for this shift, including Goya's increased involvement in the turbulent politics of eighteenth century Spain and his fascincation with the aging process that only increased with his own age. Another frequently cited cause is the onset of deafness that the artist suffered after a near fatal illness in 1792 at the age of forty six. The relationship between his deafness and his new found forms of expression has been explored by scholars in a variety of fields. In my research on the topic, I have gathered information from otology and neuroscience periodicals and placed them alongside art history and biographical information, blurring the line between the art and science of Goya. Along with these unusual sources, I will be taking a different approach in terms of my visual analysis of Goya's work. Most scholars resort to analyzing his most famous paintings to point out the differences between his early and late style, such as his royal portraits and "Saturn Devouring his Children" (1819-1823). I have decided to use three of his seven known self-portraits instead: "Self Portrait 1" (1773), the frontispiece for "Los Caprichos" (1798), and "Self-Portrait with Dr. Arrietta" (1820). I chose to examine these self-portraits because Goya created them at three pivotal points in his life and they reflect the artist's self-image at the time. Goya was very self-aware of his position in the universe and his extraordinary knack for creating truthful depictions allow his self-portraits to freeze him in time for us to dissect hundreds of years later.

 The field of kinetic and interactive sculpture has been the focus of my research. Capturing the subtleties of movement in structures, experimenting with materials, and creating a slow, organic shifting of materials that functions as an open system in a modular kinetic sculpture which coexists with other elements in a space as an installation is the focus for my investigation of movement, fluidity, and flux as it relates to memory, shared experience and secrets. The central sculptural element in this installation uses modularity as a metaphor for this. Incorporating bones on the floor of the gallery along with a sound element tie together this experience as I explore the creation process of a whole and integrated installation. The next part of my research will incorporate the movement mechanisms more seamlessly as I will replace visible motors with nitinol muscle wire.

Cancer genomic analyses performed by our team have allowed us to identify frequently mutated genes in Small Cell Lung Cancer (SCLC). Among these genes, MLL2 was found to undergo loss of function mutations suggesting it could act as a tumor suppressor. MLL2 is a histone methyl transferase that transfers a methyl group to a histone on a DNA strand. This process regulates chromatin state and transcription. More specifically, MLL2 methylates the lysine 4 of histone H3 leading to the activation of gene expression. Interestingly, MLL2 was also recently found mutated in squamous cell lung carcinoma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, medulloblastoma and cell renal carcinoma pointing out that it could be a novel major tumor suppressor. To investigate this hypothesis, both in vivo (mouse models) and in vitro (cell based assays) will be used. The mouse model consists of a conditional, tissue specific inactivation of two prototype tumor suppressors namely p53 and Rb, which are found highly mutated in SCLC. The role of MLL2 will be studied in this mouse model by generating triple mutants (Rb, p53, and MLL2) mice. The survival of control SCLC mice (p53 and Rb inactivated) will be compared to the survival of the triple mutant (MLL2, Rb, and p53) mice. This critical experiment should enlighten us on the functional role of MLL2 during SCLC development. Molecular and histopathological analyses will also be performed. Additionally, in vitro approaches with human and mouse cells will be used to identify and understand the biological processes and pathways regulated by MLL2. Altogether, it should help us decipher the role of MLL2 in SCLC and it might ultimately lead to the identification of novel treatments and/or preventive options for SCLC.

Earmark spending has proven to be a popular political tool for members of Congress because it allows them to claim credit for a concrete economic benefit for their districts. I ask whether expectations of political benefits similarly influence large-scale stimulus spending allocations and, more importantly, whether these allocations have political benefits for the incumbent president. This research project examines the link between federal spending and shifts in election outcomes. It asks whether spending in the stimulus package of 2009 substantively influenced President Obama’s share of the popular vote in 2012. Other things equal, did competitive regions of the nation receive disproportionately more spending, and was that spending associated with increased vote shares for the incumbent president between 2008 and 2012? To answer these questions I examine government spending and popular vote shares in over 3,000 counties from 2008 to 2012. I also control for underlying social and economic issues by county, such as foreclosure and unemployment rates. Finally, I control for other political influences on stimulus spending, including whether certain counties had representatives in powerful congressional roles. Overall, this study will promote understanding of the political implications of large-scale federal spending. It will also shed light on the political dynamics of “swing counties” and whether stimulus spending is a useful political tool for winning these counties.

Epilepsy is a neurological disease characterized by recurring seizures and it affects millions. We hypothesize that modulation of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38 MAPK) will influence hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated (HCN) channel activity, affecting the frequency of seizures in an animal model of epilepsy. p38 MAPK is a kinase activated by conditions of cellular stress. It strongly stimulates the HCN channels, which are voltage gated ion channels that are highly expressed in the cortex and hippocampus, brain regions where seizure onset occurs. A decrease in HCN channel expression or function has previously been observed in epileptic animals associated with a loss of p38 MAPK activity, which produced neuronal hyperexcitability. We hypothesized that increasing p38 MAPK activity might decrease neuronal activity and decrease seizure frequency. In this experiment, Epilepsy was induced in Sprague Dawley rats through treatment with pilocarpine, a convulsant drug. Recurrent, unprovoked seizures were seen after three weeks of treatment. An osmotic pump was placed in the rats, delivering drugs that modulate p38 MAPK. The drug SB203580 (SB), a specific inhibitor of p38 MAPK, was administered, as was anisomycin, a non-specific activator of p38 MAPK. Animal brain activity was analyzed with video electroencephalography through electrode implants in the skulls of the rats. Inhibition of p38 MAPK by SB increased seizure frequency by 179 % as predicted, however, anisomycin also increased seizures by 236%. We hypothesize that this may be due to non-specific actions on other signaling pathways like the Jun N-terminal kinase pathway (JNK). We’re investigating the role of JNK in modulating seizure frequency, and this may point us to some new therapies. The implications of this study may indicate a new approach to the control of epilepsy via anti-epileptic drugs targeting p38 MAPK.

Perineuronal nets (PNNs) are a matrix of proteins that surround nerve cells and reinforce the most often used synaptic connections between neurons, essentially hard-wiring neural connections made as a child into permanent pathways that respond to specific stimuli. By dissolving these PNNs, we recreate the plasticity characteristic of a young developing brain, granting us the ability to rewire the brain with respect to any stimulus. In this study, we are looking at PNNs within the vestibular system – the sensory system that, under natural conditions, is primarily responsible for maintaining images on the fovea during movement. Hair cells within the semicircular canals of the vestibular system register head accelerations and then send reflex signals through vestibular afferent nerve endings to extra-ocular eye muscles that drive eye movements. This vestibular ocular reflex aids the maintenance of stability of images on the retina. As a therapy for vestibular loss, our lab has developed a vestibular prosthesis that electrically stimulates the afferent nerve endings of the vestibular system, thereby simulating natural vestibular response to movement. This electrical stimulation, however, spreads to untargeted as well as targeted vestibular afferents and cause inaccurate eye movements as a result. By dissolving the PNNs in the vestibular nuclei and then allowing them to regrow during a period of adaptation, we hope to suppress inappropriate eye movements in response to our prosthesis’ electrical stimulation. If our lab can prove that electrically elicited eye-movements become more accurate after the dissolving and guided re-growing of PNNs, we can show that it is possible to restore plasticity to the brain and shape its neural connections through controlled electrical stimulation to the target system. By extension, such results will ascertain if it is possible to use this method to re-wire a physiological system to accept prosthetic stimulation in place of a non-functioning system.

The vestibular system is responsible for maintaining stable vision and posture by interpreting accelerations of the head in various planes. Impaired function of this system can cause debilitating vertigo, as seen in Meniere ’s disease. Our lab has developed a prosthesis that aims to counteract these deleterious pathologies through electrical stimulation, and our research is directed towards improving the effectiveness of this device. In order to stabilize gaze, the vestibular system must incorporate demands from several neural inputs, many of which are dependent on direction of the line of sight. Additionally, the effectiveness of electrical stimulation may be altered by the background activity of the activated neural pathways, which vary with orbital eye positions. Therefore, in this study, I am focusing on the dependency of stimulation-evoked eye velocities on initial position of the eye. I have collected data from two Rhesus Macaques by stimulating the right lateral, posterior, and superior semicircular canals at different eye positions. My data shows linearly graded velocities depending on stimulus amplitude, so it is clear that eye position must be taken into account when evaluating eye velocities. Speculation into the cause of this phenomenon will help to better customize our implant’s effectiveness according to the physiology of the patient in consideration.

Lucha libre, or Mexican Free Wrestling, is both sport and entertainment with strong connections to the history of Mexican cultural production. Employing ethnography, historical research, and media documentation, that includes a film and an interactive art exhibition, my research produced a complex examination of the mind, soul and body of a gendered and transnational identity formation within lucha libre. My earlier ethnographic study of Lucha Libre Volcánica, a local school and performance group, found that male and female performers use physical embodiment and characterization to achieve a fluid gender boundary. Now my focus centers on a specifically female gendered standpoint and the cultural implications on women’s roles in US and Mexican society as a result of the sport’s transnational migration. Ethnographic research of Princesa Quetzal in Ciudad Victoria, Mexico, Las Poubelles in Los Angeles and La Avispa in Seattle illustrates how their involvement in lucha libre parallels a metaphorical struggle of “la lucha” (the fight) for three possibilities – visibility, empowerment, and a new identity or transnational cultural hybrid. Framing their performances within the historical context of post-revolutionary Mexico and the migratory movement of Mexican culture to Los Angeles and Seattle sheds light on how the perfect climate was created for the development of both lucha libre and female empowerment as evidenced in studies of cultural production by Heather Levi, Jose Muñoz, Laura Gutierrez, Eric Zolov, and Laura Pérez. It will not only open your eyes to the experience of being a female wrestler within a masculine world but also emphasize the important implications beyond the wrestling ring into the social fabric we all share.

Among the library of plays known as “classics” within Japanese theatre, few compare in longevity, versatility, and uniqueness to Kanadehon Chushingura. This work weaves the tale of 47 loyal retainers enacting revenge on behalf of their deceased leader by murdering the man responsible for his death. The play draws on themes of loyalty, trust, and righteousness. First debuted in 1748, this story has been adapted hundreds of times into multiple artistic mediums, including kabuki and bunraku theater, woodblock prints, and film. However, unlike most literary classics of the Western World, Chushingura’s compelling plot was drawn directly from current events. Through the examination of primary and secondary sources, as well as through close reading of Kanadehon Chushingura, I have traced the transition of Chushingura from fact to folktale. This research begins with the actual bloody events that inspired the story. I later explore the event’s changes and adaptations for the purpose of both suiting its consumption by the merchant class in Edo period Japan, and to evade censorship by the shoganate government. My research concludes by following Chushingura into its role within contemporary entertainment. I hope to accurately chronicle the metamorphosis from historical event to contemporary folktale and thus invite others to examine the origins of what they may consider familiar. Doing so will result in a more accurate catalog of our cultural origins for both current and future generations.

In the urban centers of Senegal, graffiti artists work to deconstruct the memories of the former French colonial apparatus by refurbishing public spaces with new and sacred meaning.  These artists belong to the Muridiyya Sufi tariqa, an order of Islamic mystics, and the basis of their art is reimagining the only known photograph of the order's enigmatic founder, Cheikh Bamba.  This photograph, taken by French authorities while Bamba was under house arrest in 1913, has been used as the matrix image for subsequent representations of the Cheikh.  This paper will explore the efforts of those contemporary Murid artists who adorn the city walls of Senegal with Bamba's likeness, relating their endeavors to the writings of social critic Walter Benjamin and cultural theorist Stuart Hall.  For the Muridiyya, images of Bamba function as transmitters of his baraka, his divine blessings.  As a receptacle of this baraka, public space is transformed in a process that I will compare to the Muridiyya's appropriation of land controlled by the French during the tariqa's formative years: members of the order, the Murids, had initially emigrated into certain areas based upon the proximity to Bamba, and his presence invested the space with new meaning.  The settled land became part of the larger Daar-al-Murid, or the House of the Muridiyya, considered sacred and conceptually separate from other spaces in which Bamba's baraka could not be felt.  Around this space, a communal identity for the Muridiyya was formed, an identity culturally and religiously autonomic.  Drawing on the theoretical bases of Benjamin and Hall, concerning respectively the dissemination of images and the circulation of culture, this research will examine the development of a distinct visual culture, highlighting how imagery can reshape and invest public space with new meaning.

Though one of the tensest times in recent history, the Cold War was also an era of cultural exchange between East and West. Amidst the chaos, American dance companies performed on Russian stages while Russian dance companies toured the United States. After the fall of the Iron Curtain, the State Department began sending dance companies to the Soviet Union on cultural diplomacy missions. That practice continued after the establishment of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) in 1965. As the Cold War subsided, the allocation of government funds to send dance companies abroad for diplomatic purposes ended, effectively ceasing government funded dance tours. However, the idea of employing dance as a means of diplomacy has experienced a recent resurgence. In 2010, the US State Department collaborated with the Brooklyn Academy of Music, creating a program called DanceMotion USA. Similar to the Soviet Union tours, DanceMotion USA sends American dance companies to a variety of countries on many continents with the same mission as the Cold War tours: promoting cultural exchange through dance, with dancers serving as diplomats. My research involves giving a historical background of the Cold War tours and comparing those tours with the DanceMotion USA tours currently underway. Using accounts from dancers and dance companies from the Cold War and interviewing company directors with past or future involvement in DanceMotion USA programs, I will investigate the origins of the new interest in sending dancers to other countries with government funding, as well as the implications of using dancers as diplomats. If an art form is able to convey a society’s core beliefs and values, can that ability be misused or abused? In other words, if cultural diplomacy through dance becomes a part of the regular government agenda, will it change the art of dance, and its purposes?

A vast amount of research exists in the field of education psychology concerning topics such as brain-based learning, teacher-directed versus student-centered learning, the impact of social and individual factors on the learning experience, and more. Despite this wealth of information, there is often a striking disconnection between the current educational research and the actual experience of students in the classroom. Undergraduate classes, modeled on teaching practices that have been the norm for decades, are often out of sync with contemporary research addressing the scientific and social realities of the learning process. An exception to this phenomenon is observable in dance technique classes in the University of Washington Dance Program. Dance instructors at the UW implement many education theories successfully in their classes, and students reap the positive benefits of these teaching techniques. In order to better understand the teaching methods at work in these learning environments, I conducted observations of UW dance classes and interviewed dance students. Through my research, I have identified key factors that combine to create a classroom environment conducive to learning theory application in everyday teaching. Although the physicality of dance sets it apart from most academic classes, I argue that these same factors could be replicated and utilized in academic classes with similar success. This research is a critical step towards closing the gap between what we know to be effective education theories (and related teaching techniques) and the reality of student experience in many academic classrooms.

Darwinian natural selection produces an organism that is adapted to its environment, an organism whose traits (phenotype) are tuned in critical ways to its habitat. If organisms and their phenotypes are so finely tuned to their environment, how can they deal with changes to that environment? One strategy is to evolve the ability to change phenotype in response to a change in the environment, or phenotypic plasticity. Theory predicts phenotypic plasticity to be adaptive when (1) organisms experience different environments either spatially or temporally and (2) different environments favor different phenotypes. In some cases, changes may be accompanied by cues that provide reliable information about future selection. Previous studies modeling adaptive plasticity suggest plasticity to be favored when the environmental cue always predicts the correct selection and not when the environmental cue is unreliable. We experimentally tested theoretical predictions about the de novo evolution of adaptive phenotypic plasticity with a clustering phenotype of baker's yeast by selecting alternately for large or small clusters. Selection for size was cued by alternate forms of growth media and this cue was either a reliable predictor of future selection or an unreliable predictor. After a preliminary run of the experiment, we have found indications of an emergent plastic response in one of our replicates from the reliable cue treatment. This provides a biological example that is consistent with accepted theoretical predictions.

Research on galaxy dynamics indicates that visible matter cannot account for all of a galaxy's mass; the prevailing theory is that each galaxy is surrounded by a halo of dark matter. Dark matter can be studied by observing its gravitational influence on luminous matter, a technique known as dynamical tracing. We measure the orbital velocities of dwarf satellite galaxies as dynamical tracers for a central galaxy. Using data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) DR8 and HyperLeda databases we have identified massive, isolated galaxies as potential targets and selected NGC 2841, a nearby large spiral galaxy. We also used SDSS to identify potential satellite galaxies and prioritize them for observation. Using the DIS spectrograph on the Apache Point Observatory 3.5m telescope, we have performed optical spectrosopy on a number of satellites to determine their line-of-sight velocities. We will use these results and a Jeans equation approximation to infer the mass of NGC 2841, and by comparing this value to the amount of visible mass, we will estimate the mass of its dark matter halo.

 The diatoms are a prolific and productive group of phytoplankton belonging to the phylum Heterokontophyta. They are responsible for ~30% of oceanic primary production and their high photosynthetic capacity depends on their abilities to synthesize chlorophyll. The penultimate step in the biosynthesis of chlorophyll is catalyzed by the enzyme ‘light-dependent protochlorophyllide oxidoreductase’. To understand the evolutionary history of the gene (por) encoding this enzyme (POR) we have constructed an algal por gene tree using diatom por genes as well as those from sister taxa and distantly related taxa. This process involved the cultivation of various strains of algae, DNA extraction, PCR, gene sequencing, data mining from public databases, and bioinformatic analysis. We found two distinct por genes (por1 and por2) within the diatoms and a single haptophyte alga. We propose three hypotheses as to the origin of dual por genes in diatoms: (1) a por gene duplication event occurred before the divergence of the Heterokonts and Haptophytes; (2) a por gene was laterally transferred to a common ancestor of these two algal taxa; or (3) reciprocal lateral gene transfers occurred between these two algal taxa. Whereas the first two hypotheses are more parsimonious, we are unable to determine which scenario is correct with the current dataset. Nonetheless, these data provide evidence for a shared common ancestor between the heterokonts and haptophytes, a hypothesis that is currently hotly debated. Furthermore, the presence of these two por genes in various algal taxa presents a rich opportunity to study the evolutionary forces that either modify or maintain cellular gene function after gene duplication or lateral gene transfer. Thus, the results of this study will soon be complemented with research regarding the enzymatic function and regulation of the two por genes in diatoms.

Phylogenetics is the study of evolutionary relationships and in order to infer these relationships in plants, various loci that are phylogenetically useful in nuclear as well as chloroplast DNAs should be utilized. Presently, the use of chloroplast loci is widespread in phylogenetic studies whereas the nuclear genome is still somewhat under-utilized. The pentatricopeptide repeat (PPR) gene family is a large group of protein coding nuclear genes that has been shown to be highly informative in the inference of evolutionary relationships among closely related species. There are multiple reasons that make these genes useful to these types of studies. The PPR gene family is very large which offers researchers multiple loci that are available for phylogenetic analyses. This is important because having multiple loci is imperative to answering important phylogenetic questions. A large portion of PPR genes are intronless making it possible to sequence and align data with little or no difficulty. They also have a high rate of evolution, and are single-copy in most plant genomes. 127 of these loci have been identified as phylogenetically useful but of these only 5 have been developed. This research looks to develop 10 more loci that will specifically target the Lamiales. To do this, 10 primer sets were tested using a sampling of species across the Lamiales. The primers were used to amplify these loci in order to ascertain their usefulness for a wide range of species and to obtain sequence data for each species. The sequences obtained were aligned and the alignments were used to design new primers. These new primer sets will allow for new data to be more easily collected that has been either difficult to obtain or previously unavailable and will increase the number of nuclear loci available for phylogenetic studies.

Lipid bodies are cellular organelles involved in lipid production and storage within cells. Until recently, lipid bodies were thought of as inert storage units rather than complex organelles that play a large role in lipid biogenesis. The freshwater haptophyte Chrysochromulina sp. has served as an excellent model organism for research on lipid bodies because of its high growth rate, fully sequenced genome and two large, distinct lipid bodies. In algae and other eukaryotes, heat shock proteins can be investigated to detect when the cell is stressed. In many species of algae, when the cell population is placed under stress, the cells produce large lipid bodies. A classic stress response has also been detected in Chrysochromulina sp. after discovering genes coding for heat shock proteins (HSP 70 and HSP 90). Previous studies show that HSPs appear to be induced under high salinity stress in Chrysochromulina sp. The current study examines two important aspects of the correlation between salinity stress and lipid body production: what concentration of salt and what time frame is needed to cause haptophyte cells to become stressed enough to produce large lipid bodies. Previous experiments show that adding salt to algal media during log phase of growth fails to produce large lipid bodies while adding salt initially to media does not produce significant biomass to allow protein assays. Since HSPs are induced under high salinity concentrations, the second part of this study aims to determine a correlation between lipid body size, lipid production and how/when HSP proteins are induced. This study uses flow cytometry, the neutral lipid stain BODIPY 505/515 and Western Blotting to examine the relationship between lipid bodies and HSPs. Future research projects may include manipulation of stress response pathways that are relevant for biofuel applications.

Asian Americans respond negatively to being the target of a positive stereotype (e.g., Asians are smart) even though these stereotypes are often attempts at praising their group. The current work focuses on how targets’ responses to positive stereotypes depend on the race of the stereotyper. Asian and Asian American participants imagined an interaction with a White classmate or an Asian classmate who stated a positive stereotype of their group or stated no stereotype. Results showed that participants responded more positively when the stereotyper was Asian compared to when the stereotype was White. Participants did not respond differently to White and Asian classmates who stated no stereotype, suggesting that it is positive stereotypes which lead to different responses based on who says them. These results show that group membership is an important consideration when thinking about stereotypes.

It is well-established that women are underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields; however, the variability in women’s participation among STEM fields is often underreported. Women received 60% of bachelor’s degrees in biology but only 18% of computer science degrees in 2009. One explanation for this variation may be the differing social stereotypes of the fields. Male-dominated STEM fields are typically stereotyped as asocial, which may lead women to think that these fields will not fulfill their communal goals; that is, these fields will not give them opportunities to work with and help others. Three studies examined how communal goals relate to interest in six STEM fields. Study 1 (N = 120) found that women were more likely than men to endorse communal goals. Additionally, women were more interested in STEM classes they thought would fulfill their communal goals. Participants’ personal communal goal endorsement was negatively correlated with their interest in male-dominated STEM fields like computer science. Study 2 (N = 296) examined group work as a potential factor that could affect perceptions of communal fulfillment in science classes. We found that classes with group work were perceived to be higher in communal fulfillment. Classes low in female representation, engineering and computer science, were perceived to have less group work than classes with higher female representation, biology and psychology. Additionally, preference for group work was positively correlated with communal goals. In Study 3 (ongoing) we experimentally manipulated group work in an introductory computer science syllabus, to see whether adding group work to a class would increase women’s interest by appealing to their communal goals. These findings suggest that emphasizing the potential for communal interactions may be effective in recruiting women into STEM fields where they are currently underrepresented.

Early medical philosophers describe psychiatric illnesses as natural, biologically bound entities with clear definitions. However, other thinkers have begun to trace the source of these definitions to a more political root. I argue that the very language we use to diagnosis, define, and treat mental illnesses is influenced by the social and political climate, and that this language has been creating an increasing number of borders within the spectrum of human experience since the introduction of the DSM (the primary mental health diagnostic tool in the U.S.) in 1952. Using discourse analysis as a tool to examine the four editions of the DSM, I will discuss how the change in language of the last 60 years has followed political and social movements of the times. In particular, an investigation into the changing language describing and defining gender and sexuality disorders will uncover these changes. Psychiatry has been using particular language to create and negotiate the line between “normal” and “abnormal” since the origin of the field. Individuals labeled using this fluctuating language have to negotiate all the legal, social, political and cultural consequences of this line, and understanding the origins of these borders will shed some light on the human experience behind them.

Organizations are increasingly expected to publish policies communicating their perspectives on diversity, but how do these diversity messages affect the racial minorities who work there? The current research examines whether the two most common ideologies in diversity messages, colorblindness, which focuses on individual qualities and minimizes the importance of group differences, and multiculturalism, which emphasizes acknowledging and appreciating group differences, influence whether racial minorities interpret their experiences as due to discrimination. Asian American participants will imagine a scenario in which they work at a company that endorses either a colorblind or a multicultural ideology and are passed over for a promotion in favor of a less qualified White candidate. We expect that participants who are passed over for a promotion in an organization that promotes colorblindness, and therefore deemphasizes the importance of group memberships, will be less likely to interpret this treatment as discrimination those who are passed over in an organization that promotes multiculturalism, and therefore emphasizes the importance of group membership. This research demonstrates that the perspectives organizations take on diversity have implications beyond recruiting minorities and reducing bias; they can actually shape whether racial minorities perceive the same treatment as discriminatory.

Approximately 54 million Americans have some form of cognitive or physical disability. This minority status crosses lines of age, gender, race, ethnicity, sexuality, and socioeconomic status. We are all subject to becoming disabled, should we experience illness, an accident, genetic difference, or the effects of aging. Despite such large prevalence, we are faced with limited and stereotypical images of disability as a problem that should ideally be fixed or eliminated. Such a view is the medical model, which contrasts with a more inclusive view of disability, the social model. The social model holds that being disabled is a neutral form of human difference. Problems come from the lack of accessibility for disabled individuals in a society built predominantly for people without disabilities. My project uses the social model framework; first, I will analyze representations of disability in contemporary media. This uncovers marginalizing portrayals of disability that manifest in television today, such as pitying attitudes, “supercrip” depictions, and disability as a burden. Second, I will use focus group methods to examine perceptions of disability among UW students with and without disabilities. I will ask students to interpret various media portrayals of disability and examine salient patterns among their responses. I hypothesize that students will tend toward stereotypical generalizations consistent with the medical model of disability. I predict these results will demonstrate a need for students to develop skills for critical media consumption. With the results of this project, we can identify points for intervention and reframing of harmful stereotypes about disability.

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a cancer characterized by the accumulation of abnormal immature white blood cells in the bone marrow. This proliferation impairs normal blood production and leads to suppression of normal blood counts, increasing susceptibility to infection and bleeding. Adhesion of leukemia cells within the bone marrow confers resistance to chemotherapy drugs. E-selectin is a molecule on the surface of endothelial cells lining blood vessels; it mediates the adhesion of white blood cells to vessels within bone, and may play a role in the residence of leukemia in the bone marrow “vascular niche.” Interaction of cancer cells with E selectin has been shown to activate survival pathways such as PI3K-NFκB, making cells less susceptible to apoptosis (programmed cell death). Using an assay for E-selectin and analysis via RT-PCR, we have preliminary data suggesting that binding of cells from a specific patient sample to E-selectin up-regulated genes in the TGF-beta, Wnt and Hedgehog signaling pathways, the latter of which may play a role in drug resistance in CD34+ leukemia cells. Further work aims to demonstrate that the activation of these survival pathways is consistent across a range of cell samples, and to investigate whether up-regulation extends to other pathways known to inhibit apoptosis in cancer cells. Knowledge of the mechanisms by which leukemia cells increase their survival upon binding ligands in their environment such as E-selectin could aid the design of therapies aimed at treating AML, and potentially help overcome the persistent problem of resistance to chemotherapeutic agents.

Cooperation occurs in the natural world between molecules, cells, individuals, and communities. In cooperative systems, both cooperating partners benefit from each other. To discover how cooperative systems evolved from its incipient state, we utilized an engineered system called CoSMO (Cooperation that is Synthetic and Mutually Obligatory) as a model for incipient cooperation. CoSMO consists of two non-mating yeast strains that are reliant on the other’s metabolite. CoSMO requires a minimum total cell density in order to be viable, i.e. able to grow from low to high cell density in the absence of supplemented metabolites. Evolved CoSMO cocultures are viable at significantly lower starting cell densities compared to their ancestors. What changes facilitated this increase in the system’s viability? We hypothesize that there will be changes in the yeast’s genome that accounts for this change in viability. To address this, we will perform genome-wide re-sequencing on evolved isolates to identify relevant mutations that contribute to increased system viability in evolved CoSMO. Specifically, we will extract genomic DNA of evolved cooperators at early and late time points during their evolution. We anticipate that there will be mutations in the genomic sequences of these strains. We will then compare these genomic sequences to their ancestral sequence and couple the identified mutations with phenotypic changes such as increased affinity for metabolite and starvation tolerance. We will perform similar analysis on replicate lines to elucidate the diversity in evolutionary trajectories of incipient cooperative systems. Through this, we hope to learn how an incipient cooperative system could evolve to an improved state.

Studies using electroencephalography (EEG) have supported the theory that mu rhythms, oscillating bands in the 8-13 Hz range, are related to sensorimotor processing. At rest, EEG mu rhythms are continuous but become suppressed during the observation and execution of biological motion. Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), a disorder characterized by social and communication impairments, display atypical mu activity. Individuals with ASD exhibit typical mu suppression when executing self-made movements but significantly less suppression when observing the same movements. Individuals with ASD also show consistent impairments in imitative ability. One theory is that dysfunction in the observation/execution system contributes to this impaired imitation ability. To this point, studies have primarily focused on mu attenuation during the observation of hand or body movements, but few have focused on mu in response to facial movement. Since facial processing is integral to social learning, understanding perception deficits for facial movements may be important for understanding social impairment in individuals with ASD. This study will investigate whether sensorimotor processing of faces correlates to imitative ability by analyzing the relationship between mu attenuation of facial movement and facial imitation in children with ASD. For our study EEG was recorded while children and adolescents with and without ASD observed computer generated faces performing biologically possible and impossible movements. Participants then completed a battery of imitation tasks which included imitation of facial gestures using the mouth, eyes, or tongue. We hypothesize that the level of mu attenuation during observation of biologically possible facial movements will correlate with facial imitation ability in children with autism. Furthermore, decreased mu attenuation to biologically possible faces will be related to an increased number of imitation errors. Results of this study may help to improve understanding of social impairments of ASD children as related to deficits in sensorimotor perception of biological motion.

The pupil is an important component of the visual system, changing in size to regulate the amount of light entering the eye and affecting vision quality. Light is the primary determinant of pupil size (the pupil constricts with light increments, a response known as the Pupillary light reflex or PLR), but there are also well known effects of internal states such as cognitive effort and arousal. Recently, our lab discovered an interaction between light and cognitive factors at the level of the pupil: selectively paying attention to brighter areas in the visual field, without looking at them, enhances the PLR. This finding prompts a revision to the neural substrates of the PLR, suggesting that cortical attentional influences modulate the subcortical PLR circuit. To better characterize this Attention-PLR interaction, we tested whether the effect is limited to spatially-directed attention to bright regions, or if it generalizes to cases where attention is directed to bright features from a single localized stimulus. Preliminary data using a psychophysics setup of overlapping dark and bright surfaces shows an effect of feature based attention. Specifically, two overlapping surfaces defined by white and black moving dots were presented at fixation and subjects were cued to attend to either surface. Attending to the bright surface induced a relative pupillary constriction compared to attending to the dark surface. Moreover, ongoing work attempts to quantify the magnitude of the attention effect at different levels of brightness and contrast of the stimuli, and for different spatial extents of the attended regions. In this way we investigate the characteristics, dynamics, and anatomical substrates of the Attentional-PLR effect, while establishing the pupil as a convenient marker of the direction of attention.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) is a ubiquitous species of pathogenic bacteria and a major cause of hospital-acquired pneumonia. Immune responses to P. aeruginosa infection in mice are mediated by a cytosolic multiprotein complex called the NLRC4 inflammasome. The NLRC4 inflammasome assembles upon ligand recognition leading to the release of the pro-inflammatory cytokine interleukin (IL)-1β and culminating in cell death. P. aeruginosa elicits a flagellin-dependent release of IL-1β and cell death in mouse macrophages, but research has not found human macrophages to recognize flagellin. This immune response is evoked in human macrophages by needle protein, an element of the type three secretion system (T3SS) infection apparatus used by P. aeruginosa. The mechanisms human macrophages use to regulate immune response to P. aeruginosa have not been fully established. We hypothesize that NLRC4 regulates immune response to P. aeruginosa in humans and therefore, NLRC4 deficient macrophages infected with P. aeruginosa will have impaired cell death and IL-1β production compared to normal NLRC4 expressing cells. Small interfering RNA (siRNA) will be used to knock down mRNA and protein expression of NLRC4. Macrophages treated with non-specific siRNA and NLRC4 targeted siRNA will be infected with live P. aeruginosa. We will then assay for IL-1β with ELISA and cell death using a lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release assay. We expect NLRC4 knockdown cells to release less IL-1β and LDH compared to cells treated with non-specific siRNA thus indicating that in humans, the NLRC4 inflammasome is associated with defense against P. aeruginosa infection. Upon establishing the function of human NLRC4 during P. aeruginosa infection, we will proceed to investigate the roles of NLRC4 inflammasome subunits in ligand recognition and initiation of an immune response. Defining these roles could further our understanding of mechanisms behind immunity or susceptibility to P. aeruginosa and potentially lead to novel treatments for infection.

According to recent estimates from the PEW Research Hispanic Center in 2006, more than half (6-7 million) of all the unauthorized migrants living in the United States entered the country clandestinely by evading customs and immigration inspectors at ports of entry by hiding in vehicles, trekking through Arizona desert, wading across the Rio Grande or otherwise eluding the Border Patrol. However, the Mexican border experience encompasses more than crossing a physical barrier in dangerous conditions. This experience begins from the time individuals decide to make the treacherous crossing to the time they settle in their US communities. While previous research has examined the border-crossing experience (Durand, J., Massey, D. S, 2004), few have offered a comprehensive understanding that considers the context of preparation, crossing and consequently the context of arrival. This research attempts to make such a contribution. In addition, this work considers the critical role that gender plays in households and social networks that shape distinct border-crossing and settlement experiences for Mexican men and women. By interviewing Mexican immigrants and engaging in literature review, interviews with members of one community in the lower Yakima Valley in Eastern Washington will provide an in-depth exploration of migration to the Pacific Northwest; helping us understand the cultural, social, and economic context for the harrowing journey and include their accounts in the broader research of area studies in Eastern Washington.

Wildlife suffer from many ecological and biological consequences after an oil spill. The use of chemical surfactants to convert oil spills to small droplets has been the source of ongoing debate since little is known about the impacts they have on plants and animals in the ocean. Surfactants are a natural byproduct of many bacteria that are uniquely adapted to the marine environment. Our research assessed surfactant activity of cell free supernatants (CFS) from several cold-adapted bacteria using crude oil. We cultured various bacterial isolates under optimal growth conditions to ensure surfactant production was not missed. Exudates, the chemically benign “leftovers” containing the extracellular surfactants from the bacteria, were extracted from the cultures by gentle centrifugation before filtration of the supernatant through a membrane filter. The oil-spread assay was then used to determine surfactant activity from the exudates of several organisms. CFS was pipetted to the center of a small oil slick and surfactant strength was indicated by the amount of oil displaced. Some organisms with high surfactant ability were identified for further examination as candidates for environmentally viable alternatives to chemical dispersants.

Scaphoid fractures are a common wrist injury. Percutaneous fixation with cannulated compression screws is the most frequently used method for the repair of non-displaced transverse scaphoid fractures. In this operation, surgeons manually drill K-wires into the central axis of the bone with visual guidance from fluoroscopic imaging; compression screws are then placed over the wire and drilled into the bone for stabilization. Major complications in this procedure resulting from inaccurate K-wire placements are common. The surgical platform that our group is developing will couple pre-operative CT imaging with an intra-operative vision system and robotic arm to improve accuracy in scaphoid fixations by directing K-wires to optimized surface entry points and trajectories. Briefly, pre-operative CT imaging data will be used to calculate an optimized entry point and trajectory for K-wire drilling into a scaphoid. This information will then be converted to the surgical field reference frame through a series of matrix operations, and the robot will move to a correct alignment based on this data. Vision system integration allows the robot to move dynamically with the hand during the operation (if necessary) and maintain the correct entry point and trajectory at all times. Thus far in the project, we have developed a LabVIEW VI that allows a robotic arm and drill guide to move dynamically in space with a splint-mounted vision system probe. We have also created MATLAB algorithms for scaphoid data processing. These algorithms first use a nonlinear constrained optimization scheme to calculate an ideal entry point and trajectory for K-wire drilling into the scaphoid; next, this data is registered in the surgical field reference frame. Taken together, this control software drives a fully integrated system from CT processing to compression screw placement in order to achieve scaphoid fixation. Current work focuses on testing the system in cadaver scaphoid fixation trials.

Mobility is a sensitive indicator of overall health in older adults. Objective mobility data can provide insight into patterns of function including sleep, behavior, and activity, which is valuable information for both individuals and their healthcare providers. By visualizing objective mobility data, providers can assess for trends that could indicate a shift in overall health in order to intervene earlier, whereas older individuals with mobility goals may benefit from feedback in order to better meet goals or sustain behavior change. The purpose of this project is to perform a secondary data analysis and determine methods for visualizing objective mobility data for both individual users and healthcare providers. Participants of the original study were older adults with a recent history of mild traumatic brain injury. Data was collected with an active sensor system requiring participants to wear a sensor device during waking hours. Working through an interface designed by the University of Washington Ubicomp Lab I aim to create a composite profile of a single participants mobility and movement within their life-space. I am using Excel to sort and create visual representations of data. Key factors to include in visualizing these data are total amounts of active versus passive time spent per participant and the participant’s mobility within his or her life-space. Data analysis is in process and prototypes for visualization are under development. With any visualization effort, it is important to address the different stakeholders’ needs and expectations. Visualizing mobility data for individuals to better understand their own activity levels requires an approach that may be different from visualization targeting clinicians to support clinical decision making. Differences include preferences for granularity of data, level of abstraction, and annotation of context specific details that complement the visualization data. This study demonstrates that visualization can maximize the utility of health monitoring data.

Colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer in the United States; and is also the third for highest mortality rate. About 90% of all Colorectal Cancer (CRC) cases are in people 50 years of age or older. For that reason, colorectal cancer screening tests such as the FOBT and colonoscopy are recommended for everyone over 50. Colorectal Cancer death rates in Washington State go up by age but differ by ethnicity. They are highest in African Americans (27.5 per 100,000), Native Americans (14.8 per 100,000), Whites (14.8 per 100,000), and Hispanics (13.4 per 100,000). CRC has a high chance of being treated successfully if caught at an early stage, with up to 90% of early cancers being successfully treated and/or prevented. In this study, we will ascertain if Hispanics and Native Americans are more likely to complete a colorectal cancer screening test after getting a tour of the large inflatable colon (CASPER). The colossal colon is a walk-through inflatable replica of the human colon. It illustrates examples of healthy colon tissue, as well as polyps and colon cancer. The study uses a pre/post-test design. Each participant will be asked to complete a brief test. Pre-test questions ask basic questions to assess knowledge about colorectal cancer and attitudes about colorectal cancer screening. A pre-test is completed before walking through CASPER. Post-test questions will ask the same basic colorectal cancer knowledge and attitude questions to see if there is a change after walking through the inflatable colon. Data analysis was done using paired t-tests to assess changes, if any, using Excel. The results show significant changes in participant likelihood to have a CRC screening, CRC knowledge, perceived knowledge, and likelihood to talk to acquaintances about CRC screening. They also show that CASPER is an effective way to educate participant about CRC.

Food Deserts are most commonly described as just that – deserts, empty, void and lacking. The newer term, Food Swamp, implies there is too much of a bad thing. Food Deserts are a community defined by barriers restricting the opportunity for healthy food including a lack of access to food retailers, availability of nutritious foods, or affordability of foods. The dominant academic and public policy discourse has primarily aligned with the environmental rather than social justice movement, the consequences of which can be seen in a local, sustainable, fresh food movement that treats the symptoms of a broken food system by simply introducing more healthy food, failing to acknowledge its responsibility in addressing the root causes of hunger, poverty and racial oppression. The dominant, deficit-based view of food deserts misrepresents and silences the experiences of these communities, misshaping how they are made visible and understood. Approaches that use language focusing on the deficits of a community while ignoring the role that race has played in their current environment lead to blaming, “othering” and only serve to reinforce borders of power and race. Communities that have focused on their strengths, existing assets and are working with their racialized environment (as opposed to ignoring it) towards food justice have experienced higher rates of sustained community involvement. Through a comparative discourse analysis, I examine and report upon the consequences of deficit-based language focusing on problems and deficits and look into the importance of strength-based approaches towards more environmentally just policies.

How did the Indian English novel function within the Indian independence movement? Literature illuminates unique narratives not necessarily communicated by other forms of print media like newspapers and history books, and these stories exert a very different kind of influence. In the particular instance of Indian English novels around the time that India gained independence from Britain, literature established power through its inherent cultural capital, its role in imagining nations, and its critical abilities. These novels embodied traits of both the colonized and the colonizer, allowing them to occupy a position of notable political and cultural influence. Drawing on theories on literature and nationalism, this study employs close readings of novels by Rabindranath Tagore and Mulk Raj Anand within the context of historically evident politics and cultural phenomena of the time period to explain the role Indian English novels played in revolutionizing India. An understanding of the factors enabling the novel’s influence will illuminate how India’s independence was imagined and realized. Situating Indian English novels of the Indian independence movement in their historical and social context may yield further understanding to the way historical events played out and reveal more of literature’s effect on the societies in which it is produced.

South Korea is my home country, and I benefited greatly by getting my K-12 education there and from receiving my higher education in the United States. According to the National Association for the Education of Young Children, “a key component of quality program is the quality of teacher (NAEYC, 2012. p. 2).” As a student who is dreaming of being a professional in the U.S. education field, I am interested in how policy makers, teachers,  and professionals can improve k-12 education. This study analyzes teachers in elementary education systems in the U.S., South Korea, and Finland. I chose Finland as a third case study since it has one of the top k-12 education systems in the world. In particular, this study looks at teachers’ salaries, education requirement, workload, and professional status. I will compare teachers’ salaries through government website and journal articles. For example, in South Korea, people who want to be elementary school teachers must go to specialized four-year colleges that are just as competitive as law or medical school and take teaching certificate exams after they graduate. Furthermore, teachers in South Korea are highly respected professionals. Finland also has a unique education system and has been successful in students’ outcome and teachers’ satisfaction as professionals. U.S. has a variety of teacher preparation and one of the most diverse populations in the world. This study can contribute towards current self-evaluating systems in the United States and keep moving forward to be a frontier in education.

Chemical modifications to histones, such as acetylation, phosphorylation, methylation and SUMOlyation, play a major role in dictating gene expression by changing the structure of chromatin. In particular, the modification of histone H4 by SUMO (called SUMOylation) was reported to be associated with gene repression. However, preliminary results from our lab show that the structure of SUMOylated chromatin resembles transcriptionally active, rather than silent chromatin. In order to comprehend how SUMO achieves gene silencing, biochemical studies with nucleosomes containing uniformly and site-specifically SUMOylated histones are necessary. Here we present a synthetic strategy to produce histone H4 modified by SUMO at Lysine 12. This strategy requires two native chemical ligation reactions. The first is between two fragments of H4- one synthetic and one recombinant. The second is a ligation between the SUMO-3 isoform and H4. In order to achieve the ligation of SUMO-3 to the side-chain of Lys in H4, we have developed a new ligation auxiliary. The synthesis of this auxiliary will be presented along with its application toward the total synthesis of SUMOylated histone H4. By understanding how SUMO-H4 controls gene function we hope to identify novel means to change cellular processes that result in diseases such as cancer.

American students regularly get advised to “follow your passion” in choosing a career. However, people's passions are often shaped by what is considered appropriate for their gender. Could encouraging students to follow their passion inadvertently perpetuate gendered career choices? The present work examines how the cultural ideal to follow your passion may maintain gender imbalance in stereotypically masculine or feminine careers. In the current study, some participants were randomly assigned to write about what it means to “follow one’s passion” before writing about their career plans. We hypothesized that women who wrote about following their passions would report more feminine career plans compared to women who did not. Similarly, we predicted that men who wrote about following their passions would report more masculine career plans compared to men who did not. The American cultural ideal to “follow one’s passion” may help reinforce the gender makeup of career fields, contributing to the underrepresentation of women in certain fields like science.

Organic photochromic compounds (OPC) undergo reversible chemical and physical changes when irradiated with the appropriate wavelength of light. These changes are manifested both at the molecular and bulk material level and include photo-induced shifts in color, refractive index, molecular length, and polarity. Such photo-controllable properties are of interest for bio-orthogonal control of biological processes, as well as in the fields of optical computing and data storage. A thorough understanding of molecular and material level structure-property relationships is imperative to enable effective design and optimization of organic photochrome structures for each specific application. Our lab is trying to create a azobenzene dye that isomerizes at about 120 hrz, within milliseconds, in the visual range of wavelength, and can be tethered to proteins. The focus was placed on physical and photophysical properties, such as isomerization wavelength, quantum yield, and decay rate to create such an azobenzene. If a usable azobenzene were created, it could be tethered to the sodium or potassium channels in the eye to initiate an action potential similar to the innate response in the eye’s photoreceptors that causes a release of neurotransmitters that, in turn, affect sodium and potassium channels causing an action potential. Used in this fashion, it can help treat the most common eye disease causing blindness, retinitis pigmentosa. In lab, I used time-resolved laser spectroscopy, fluorescence, and fluorescence lifetime analysis to analyze the three photochromic Azobenzene dyes: PheNAQ, TVI, TVI acid, and MeNAQ created by my mentor, Phillip Sullivan. 

Mosquitoes are the principle disease vector of malaria, yellow fever, and dengue fever, which are responsible for more than a million deaths worldwide annually. This makes controlling transmission a global health priority, and underscores the importance of understanding their behavior. Although it is known that olfaction is the main sensory modality mosquitoes use to select prey, many behavioral patterns, such as changing prey preferences, suggest that associative learning has a role in mosquito behavior. Previous research has established mosquito’s affinity for human scent and characterized their olfactory receptors, but little is known about the neural substrates and molecular underpinnings that modulate olfactory learning. To gain insight into the importance of olfactory learning, I have been introducing controlled perturbations into the larval mosquito nervous system and assaying their behavior using a classical conditioning model. This is achieved through genetic manipulation and injection of drugs with known targets. Initially, I have focused on the role of dopaminergic neurons, because they are known regulators of associative learning in other species. To this end, I have developed microinjection techniques that allow for delivery of silencing RNAs (siRNAs) to knockdown dopamine receptor expression. Using this approach, I have found that Dopamine receptor deficient animals, as well as those injected with Dopamine antagonists, are unable to learn like their untreated counterparts. Knockdown animals suffer a much higher mortality rate in survival experiments that test their ability to avoid predation, underscoring the importance of these receptors in vivo. Currently, we are using cell biological approaches to visualize the relevant neurons. Together these data show that larval mosquitoes are able to learn within days of hatching, and that dopamine plays a crucial role in facilitating aversive learning. In addition to clarifying the mechanistic basis for olfactory learning, these findings may ultimately enhance the development of vector control strategies.

In recent years, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields have made strides towards reducing gender disparities. However, in the field of computer science, women continue to receive less than 20% of bachelor’s degrees awarded. In the current research we explore if this continuing disparity is partly due to a perceived lack of group work in computer science. Previous research has shown that women tend to endorse communal goals (e.g., working with and helping others) more than men do, and that the perception that an academic field fulfills communal goals predicts women’s interest in those fields. In the current research, 293 undergraduate students (184 female, 109 male) answered questions measuring preference for group work, perceptions of goal fulfillment in classes where students work individually and classes where students work in groups, perceptions of group work in different science classes, and personal goal endorsement. Consistent with our prediction, results indicated that classes with group work were perceived as having more communal goal fulfillment than classes with individual work, and male-dominated STEM fields (i.e., computer science and engineering) were perceived as having less group work than female-dominated STEM fields (i.e., biology and psychology). These results show that group work is related to communal goal fulfillment. Because communal goal fulfillment predicts women’s interest in academic fields, we expect that women would be less interested in academic fields that are perceived to have less group work, such as male-dominated STEM fields. Based on our results, we predict that increasing perceptions of group work in computer science may increase women’s interest by boosting perceptions that computer science is able to fulfill communal goals.

French films about World War II tend to fall into either the category of heritage film, which promotes a narrative of reconciliation in relation to the collaboration, or another group of films that serves to implicitly or explicitly question that narrative of reconciliation. Films of the latter category have probed the memory of the Vichy collaboration since the end of the war despite Charles de Gaulle’s efforts to repress narratives that challenged the idea of a country united against Germany. In the 1980’s, however, heritage film became the prevalent genre and offered a Gaullist view of World War II in France. This thesis asks, why, given the plethora of films dealing with the realities of the French role in World War II dating from the late 1940’s, a rubric of heritage film emerged as one way of classifying filmic discourse on the Vichy collaboration. I hypothesize that the heritage cinema rubric, specifically the Vichy cinema rubric, asserts a legibility of French identity, which was compromised by France’s collaboration with Nazi Germany, and attempts to thwart filmic narratives of identity loss. Through tropes of the uncanny and characters that experience repressed trauma and blocked mourning, films such as Le Silence de la Mer (1949), Lacombe, Lucien (1974), Mr. Klein (1976), and Le Dernier Metro (1980) reflect the French collective experience of loss during and in the aftermath of the collaboration. WWII films produced in the decades leading up to the emergence of this genre in essence dramatize a troubling disappearance of French cultural identity, which the heritage rubric sought to control.

Asian Americans are not only seen as less American than White Americans, but are also subject to the pervasive ‘perpetual foreigner’ stereotype. Is weight a factor that affects how American Asian Americans are perceived to be? In study 1, participants were randomly assigned to evaluate one of three pictures of Asian American women on perceptions of American identity. Between conditions, the photos were edited to create a heavier and a lower weight version of each woman, thereby controlling for other cues to American identity, such as hair and clothing. Results showed that heavier Asian American women were perceived as more American than their lower weight counterparts. In study 2, using the same methods, we tested whether weight would affect perceptions of the legal status of Asian American men. Results revealed that the heavier versions of the Asian American men were perceived as more American and as less likely to be in the US illegally than the lower weight versions of the same men. Taken together, these studies provide evidence that being overweight can increase recognition of Asian Americans’ American identity and may help protect against discrimination based on racial stereotypes.

Jaw joint dysfunction resulting in TMJ has been associated with the development of movement disorders. Displacement of the condylar head (long bony process of the mandible) from the 4/7 Gelb position has been frequently documented in these patients. The use of an oral orthotic creates a vertical distraction that realigns the jaw into proper Gelb position resulting in therapeutic effects. With increasing vertical distraction of the orthotics the distance between the articular eminence and the condylar head was shortened and the angular change of the condyle from its origin was increased. This jaw alignment repositioned the condyle to come forward and down away from the posterior glenoid process. This realignment of the jaw has the potential to restore normal muscular control by the releasing of entrapped branches of the trigeminal nerves. The orthotic may also produce a “sensory trick” that restores normal neural firing, producing both transient and long-term therapeutic effects. This research along with continued investigation of neural mechanism may reveal how oral orthotics are able to suppress debilitating movement disorders.

Mussels attach themselves to hard substrates by extruding thin, strong, and flexible hair-like attachments known as byssal threads, which are anchored in place with small adhesive plaques. While many studies have examined how multiple abiotic variables affect mussel attachment strength, few have performed extensive single variable tests within a controlled lab setting. In this study, we investigated the effects of temperature on byssus production in the native Northern Pacific intertidal blue mussel, Mytilus trossulus, and expected to see a decline in production with increasing temperatures (specifically, between 18°C-25°C). We also hypothesized that threads produced in warmer temperatures would show a visual decline in quality, either through thinning, degradation, or tearing. Mussels were placed in a temperature controlled flume for 24 hours. Six different trials were run at 10°C, 14°C, 18°C, 20°C, 22°C, and 25°C. Byssal threads were counted for the duration of each trial to determine production and rate of attachment. Threads produced under these different temperature regimes were analyzed using scanning electron microscopy to visually compare differences in quality. Overall, there was a significantly negative correlation between thread production and increases in temperature, with the highest amount occurring at 18°C (11.25 threads +2.0 s.e.m.) and the lowest at 25°C (0 threads). Acclimatization and rate of thread production was also negatively affected by temperature increases. In addition, we saw a significant difference in percentage of mussel attachment between temperatures, with up to 93% attached in the 10°C and 18°C treatments and 50-0% in the 20°C-25°C treatments. However, visual analyses of thread quality differences were inconclusive. Our findings indicate that climatic temperature increases may negatively affect both the range of M. trossulus within Northern Pacific rocky intertidal zones as well as potentially setback the aquaculture of the species.

With efforts being made to remove human impact on the ecosystems surrounding us, underwater ambient noise is a topic of interest. Understanding and even mitigating this ambient noise has come to be of foremost importance in various fields. To understand underwater noise, it is best to first have a well-developed understanding of noise in general and what it is about noise that we should concern ourselves with. Starting first with sources of sound, such as that of a person singing, can provide an introduction into how to process sound measurements underwater. By working with recordings in “.wav” form I was able to convert to a spectrum, or spread of frequencies, that can be read in terms of the frequency and underwater pressure, two important aspects when studying underwater ambient noise. Using a numerical computation language (GNU Octave) to analyze sound data, I was then able to see plots of these spectra as well as to generate Pressure Spectral Density plots. I was then provided guidance regarding how to interpret these plots and apply this knowledge to various locations, a necessary introductory step in the overall process. Understanding ambient noise in general, as I was able to start doing this summer, and then taking it further to understand ambient noise in our area, is the first step towards curbing disturbances to our marine ecosystems.

Falls are the leading cause of injury among older adults in the United States, with the institutionalized elderly at elevated risk for injury and death. Physical weakness and mental frailty, prevalent in institutionalized elderly, are major risk factors for falls. The purpose of our study was to evaluate a program that addresses both the physical and mental aspects of exercise to reduce falls in institutionalized elderly. Twenty-seven volunteer subjects residing in an assisted living facility participated in the 24 week randomized crossover study. After we collected demographic information and fall history, and conducted mental status examinations, subjects were randomly first assigned to ten weeks of either exercise class or a control group, followed by a four week “washout period” of no activity, then cross assigned to ten weeks as either a control group or exercise class, respectively. We monitored falls as well as mental status changes during the study. A statistically significant (P=0.025) reduction in falls was found during treatment compared to the control periods. No change in mental status was seen. This small, pilot study shows that exercise programs, which emphasize mental strengthening as well as physical fitness, have the potential to reduce falls among mentally impaired, institutionalized seniors.

Video games represent a powerful educational paradigm; nevertheless, strong devotion to convention as well as the highly stigmatized reputation of games as a purely recreational medium, have led to an overarching reluctance to implement them within high-level course curricula. Emerging research on the use of real-time interactive simulations as educational tools consistently shows marked improvement in learning outcomes, however, a rigorous means of quantitative analysis is lacking. To date, all studies correlating learning outcomes with the intrinsic components of video games rely on one of three different methods of data acquisition: surveys, pre-gameplay versus post-gameplay evaluations, or recorded observation of play activity. Each of these methods has its own inherent limitations on the amount and quality of data obtainable. In addition, these methods prohibit researchers from being able to dynamically alter any of the key control variables such as: challenge, contextual motivation, or narrative. This study proposes an alternative model, capable of quantitatively evaluating the educational efficacy of implementing each variable. This is accomplished by embedding the data collection methods and algorithms directly into the framework of the game itself. This would further allow for dynamic alterations of each variable according to the parameter requirements of the inherent statistical methods. We expect the result to be a direct and measurable correlation between student learning outcomes and the modified variables. Also central to this study is the imbedding of real-time data collection functions and processing algorithms, which can automatically save and upload data to a server. This would drastically increase the possible number of participants—thereby increasing the sample size—while simultaneously allowing for greater modularity of data analysis. The primary long-term goal of this research is to develop a model and educational game that implements this framework and affords future studies the tools to overcome the aforementioned limitations in data acquisition.

MicroRNAs are a class of post-transcriptional regulators that silence messenger RNAs. MicroRNAs are interesting molecules to study because they are stable at room temperature and are long lived unlike messenger RNA. These characteristics make them useful molecular biomarkers to monitor disease and exposure status. For example, urine microRNAs have been used clinically as potential diagnostic markers of bladder cancer. However, their utility in non-clinical settings has yet to be elucidated. The goal of this study is to compare total RNA isolated from fresh and archived urine field samples to investigate their quality and quantity over time. RNA will be isolated from both whole urine and urine sediments and will be analyzed using multiple techniques. To date we have optimized the methodology required to isolate total RNA from the whole urine sample and the sediment. In a preliminary study, we isolated total RNA from samples under various conditions (fresh vs. field; whole urine vs. sediment) and compared them using the Nanodrop and Bioanalyzer. Our results demonstrate that RNA can be isolated from both fractions under both conditions. The molecular profiling of the RNA suggests that the urine samples contain only small RNAs because they lack ribosomal RNA peaks. Interestingly, the profiles look similar for all urine samples examined. In light of this, we performed an additional microarray experiment to characterize and identify the small RNAs present in the whole urine and sediment samples. These results are currently in progress. Using the information obtained from the preliminary microarray study, we will select the 3 most abundant microRNAs present in the urine for further analysis using RT PCR techniques to determine whether archival duration has an effect on their stability. The results of this experiment will provide valuable insight on the utility of archived field samples for the future development of urine biomarkers.

The goal of our research is to understand mechanisms of the earthworm immune system responsible for distinguishing symbionts from potential pathogens. The Hygiene hypothesis, proposed by David Strachan and published in British Medical Journal in 1989, fundamentally expanded our view on microorganisms and natural development of immune system. The hypothesis states that early childhood exposure to microorganisms is essential for acquiring healthy immunity. Studies in mice showing that host-specific bacteria in the gut are required for full maturation and function of the immune system support this hypothesis. Although numerous symbioses of beneficial bacteria with animals have been studied, the role of symbionts in the development of host immunity remains uncertain. Additional models are needed to study the roles and regulation of the immune responses to host-specific beneficial bacteria. The earthworm offers a tractable system in which to study immune system development and responses to both beneficial symbionts and potential pathogens. Eisenia fetida, a common composting worm, has an effective immune system that eliminates bacteria from the coelom. E. fetida also harbors specific bacterial symbionts in the excretory organs (nephridia) that process coelomic fluid, thus potentially exposing the bacteria to immune elements in the fluid. We hypothesize that the immune system adapts to the symbiotic bacteria in order to avoid eliminating them, or cause unnecessary inflammation in the nephridial tissue. Therefore, we investigated the contribution of the bacterial symbiont Verminephrobacter eiseniae to the development of immune system responses in E. fetida. Coelomocytes were extracted from symbiont-containing earthworms and symbiont-free earthworms, and were examined for differences in their binding and engulfment responses to V. eiseniae and non-symbionts. We believe further studies of the role of immunity in symbiont recruitment mechanisms in the earthworm would help us understand more about the co-evolution of beneficial microbiota and the host organisms in other species. 

 Spinal cord injury accounts for 29% of paralysis patients in the US, and the recovery of hand and arm function is the highest treatment priority in individuals with tetraplegia.  Induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells can be directed toward specific cell fates, such as functioning neurons or astrocytes, making them an exciting new tool in regenerative medicine for those that suffer from spinal cord injury paralysis.  We investigated the effect of neurally-fated iPS cells on recovery of forelimb function after a cervical spinal cord contusion injury in a rat model.  Neurally-fated iPS cells were injected above and below the lesion in an attempt to replace cells lost to injury.  We transplanted cells four weeks after injury to mimic a chronic spinal cord injury model.  Forelimb function was quantified before and after the injury for 15 weeks using three forelimb behavior tasks.  Tasks included a forelimb reaching task (FRT), a cylinder-rearing task, and a cereal-eating task (IBB).  Results from these tasks will be analyzed to quantify any improvement in the experimental animals that received iPS cells versus the controls.  If treatment provides a significant difference in recovery rate, then the introduction of iPS cells in damaged spinal cords could provide a possible regenerative treatment for paralysis patients.

The enemy release hypothesis proposes that introduced species can become invasive by leaving behind natural enemies (predators, competitors and parasites) when they are introduced to a non-native habitat. Indo-Pacific red lionfish, Pterois volitans, are one of the most devastating species invasions to occur in the tropical Atlantic Ocean. I hypothesize that one reason the lionfish may be such a successful invader in the Caribbean is that it has escaped some of its parasites from its native range and is not susceptible to parasites in the introduced range. The goal of my project was to test the susceptibility of red lionfish to a common Caribbean parasite, Neobenedenia melleni, (Monogenea: Capsalidea). I placed Lionfish in the overflow of an oceanarium containing large numbers of N. melleni larvae. Despite exposure to high concentrations of the parasite, I only recovered a single parasite from one lionfish. My findings thus far suggest that P. volitans is highly resistant to infection by N.melleni.

Pyroclastic density currents (PDCs) are ground-hugging currents of hot gas and particles that travel at velocities up to 300 m/s. Because of the inherent danger of observing PDCs in real time, we rely on the deposits for insight into the dynamics of these dangerous currents. Our research uses the well-exposed PDC deposits from the May 18, 1980 eruption of Mt St Helens (WA) to explore how PDCs are influenced by surface roughness. The PDCs produced during the eruption flowed through areas of low and high surface roughness. We mapped and sampled deposits from a single PDC proximal, medial, and distal distances from the source, focusing on changes with distance from source and a comparison between deposits in areas of low and high surface roughness. In general the PDC deposits display poor-sorting and are massive in nature, suggesting deposition from a concentrated current with rapid sedimentation. Grain size and componentry data of deposits downstream from preexisting debris avalanche hummock, which provided high surface roughness, contain a threefold-increase in hummock components relative to PDC deposits in areas of low surface roughness. This suggests that high surface roughness promotes the erosive capacity of PDCs. The main driving force for PDCs is their great density relative to the air, thus increasing the density at the base of the current through substrate erosion could potentially increase the run-out distance, thereby increasing the destructive radius. The results from this research substantiate previous research that erosion by PDCs is a common occurrence, but also demonstrate that surface roughness is a primary contributor to the potential for erosion. Future work should explore the consequences of erosion on downstream dynamics. This will impact the ability of hazard mapping models to more accurately determine areas that are at risk for PDC interaction in the vicinity of volcanoes throughout the world.

Throughout their lives, children in the United States public education system are bombarded with messages of equality and the promise of the American dream (i.e., no matter who you are, you can succeed through merit and hard work). Yet, the field of science is still dominated by White men in both number and power. Young girls of color are thus faced with two conflicting narratives: "You can achieve anything you set your mind to," and, "There are few people like you in the field of science." My research asks how middle school girls of color process this dichotomy. Based on my past experience as a female minority pursuing a career in science, it is my hypothesis that these girls will consciously believe and express the first narrative, while internalizing and acting according to the latter. One of my research methods is the Draw-a-Scientist Test, a tool used to gauge a student's perceptions of scientists by asking her to make a drawing of one. I expect the girls to express their belief that anyone can become a scientist, while drawing stereotypical images of scientists (i.e., people unlike themselves). I will also analyze and look for themes in observations, recorded interviews, and interactions of girls participating in an after-school program called Chemical Oceanography After School Time (COAST). I believe that as the girls gain firsthand experience with science in the COAST program, they will begin to interact in ways that show growing confidence in their own potential to become scientists. These findings indicate a need for more science intervention programs, like COAST, for girls of color. My research aims to open up dialogue about how the prevailing ideologies and realities of race and gender in the United States impact the potential in science for girls of color.

The pro-apoptotic (cell death inducing) peptide (KLAKLAK)2 (“KLA”) has been recently investigated for tumor killing applications. To increase the efficacy of the peptide, our group has added additional charged amino acids to increase cellular uptake (Gly-Lys-Arg-Lys-(KLAKLAK)2) (“GKRK-KLA”) and synthesized a polymeric construct of this peptide and HPMA (N-(2-hydroxypropyl)methacrylamide) (“p(HPMA-co-GKRK/KLA”). Preliminary studies have shown an increase in cell death per KLA unit in the modified constructs over the unmodified KLA construct. However, the mechanisms of cellular internalization and subcellular distribution of the peptide is unknown. Recently, we showed using fluorescence microscopy that the KLA constructs do not colocalize with mitochondria, the organelle that was believed to be affected. In this work, we applied radiolabeling and organelle separation techniques to investigate the mechanisms behind cellular uptake and subcellular trafficking over time of both the KLA peptide and our modified designs. These insights will allow us to design better materials to increase the efficacy of KLA peptide delivery.

Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) currently affects more than 250,000 people in the US alone, and approximately 11,000 new injuries are reported annually. SCI is most commonly caused by trauma, such as vehicular accidents, and often results in devastating paraplegia or tetraplegia. Among many points of interest in treating SCI is what happens to myelin post injury. In terms of electrical conduction, myelin sheaths are the insulation to the wire that is the neuron’s axon, and proper myelination is crucial for effective signaling in the nervous system. Previous findings in SCI research show abnormally thin and short myelin near injury site, supporting the current research dogma that oligodendrocytes (OLs), the glial cells that myelinate the central nervous system, undergo complete cell death following initial injury. Due to lack of methodology, little research has been done to support the idea of partial myelin degeneration. My current study seeks to shed light on the question of where the abnormally thin myelin is derived, if it is indeed newly developed, and explores the possibility that thin myelin found by previous researchers is intact degenerating myelin. Pre-labeled myelin in transgenic mice was injected with a Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP)-labeled virus vector, allowing clear visualization of which myelin sheaths are mature and which are newly generated. By histology and confocal microscopy, I will analyze morphology of neural processes and characteristics of myelinating OLs, such as distances between axon internodes and the axon g-ratio (the relationship of axonal diameter to total fiber diameter, a common measure of myelin thickness). If the prevailing research dogma is supported, I expect to find shortened internode lengths and smaller g-ratios in the green myelin. The findings help determine the significance of myelin change post-SCI and is hoped to contribute more effective therapies to improve axon conduction via pharmacological or cell-based approaches.

We present the results of a linear regression of exam scores for students in general chemistry versus performance in two online learning systems: WebAssign, which presents problems in a traditional manner, and ALEKS (Assessment and LEarning in Knowledge Spaces), which is an adaptive, tutorial-based system. Comparisons are made for students taking the same general chemistry course, taught by the same instructor, in the same quarter in subsequent years, where WebAssign was used one year, and ALEKS the next. We find that in WebAssign, a 1 point difference in homework score corresponded, on average, to a 0.46 point difference in final exam score (95% C I: 0.36, 0.56). In ALEKS, a 1 point difference in homework score corresponded, on average, to a 1.06 point difference in final exam score (95% C I: 0.98, 1.15). Controlling for gender and SAT scores did not change the overall conclusion. For a student, ALEKS homework scores provide a better predictor of exam performance, allowing them to focus their efforts where they are needed. For an educator, earlier signs of knowledge gaps arise in the lower homework scores, which can be addressed well before an assessment. 

Youth with mental health problems face many challenges not faced by youth that do not have mental health difficulties. Many of these young people drop out of school, do not have stable housing, have lower rates of access to employment and there are few services that address their needs. As part of the Pathways Transition Training Collaborative of the Pathways to Positive Futures Research and Training Center, we wanted to know what services are available for young people aged 14-30 with mental health needs within the Portland metropolitan area. We conducted face to face interviews with seven targeted key informants who provided information about mental health programs for young people in the transition years, and we also did internet research on the programs and emailed/called the programs with questions. Of the 38 programs researched, only fourteen reported that they accepted Oregon Health Plan (OLP). There were few programs that provided employment services (n = 4), healthcare (n = 2), and food (n = 1). There were not many programs that were culturally specific (n = 5). The data showed that there are few programs in the Portland area that meet the needs of young people in the transition years that have mental health difficulties. Through the process of research it became very apparent that there needs to be a network of communication between the programs, so they may better serve this population.

This research examines the cultural climate that existed in Seattle’s Central District and on Jackson St. in the 1940’s-1960’s and the music produced at the time, jazz music. I examine Seattle’s changing laws (like racial restrictive housing covenants and prohibition), newer freedoms in the Black community (like desegregation), the influence of the Great Migration, and changing national attitudes toward racism and equality. I parallel those changes with evolutions in the styles of jazz produced throughout this period, and the social, political and economic landscape becomes evident in the music, to the extent that the way jazz sounded at a certain time reflected the social, political and economic atmosphere. I look at these issues through the lens of Floyd Standifer, a well-known Seattle trumpet player, who began his career in the 1940’s and was active in the Seattle jazz community until his death in 2007. Standifer witnessed some of the most radical changes in the socio-political landscape of Seattle throughout the ‘40’s through ‘60’s that I examine. The malleability he demonstrated in his music is testament to the changing social climate, population increases in the Black community, new freedoms, and the changing desires of community members and music venue patrons. In the shift from “rags” to jazz to rock ‘n’ roll, I demonstrate how jazz can be seen as political and reflects how music lies at the heart of the African American resistance to oppression during this period.

Digital planetariums and their software are revolutionizing what can be visualized and hence raising the educational impact to K-12 students and the general public. The ability planetariums offer to present and visualize cutting-edge research of star, planet, and galaxy formation and evolution, in 3-dimensions, has unlocked new discovery space in educators’ ability to communicate and teach science. In order to improve the UW Astronomy department's public outreach programs as well as lay out a model for other Universities and astronomy outreach groups to follow, we assembled a mobile planetarium using new cost-saving methods and have begun designing an innovative curriculum to best implement digital planetariums in high school classrooms. To accomplish this, we used an HST education and public outreach grant (EO-12512) to build the planetarium as well as offset transportation costs to the UW planetarium. The UW mobile Planetarium was developed for less than $18,000, and allows us to increase the number of underserved elementary and high school students the UW Astronomy department reaches. We are beginning to test and evaluate the efficacy of teaching using the mobile planetarium in a high school setting. The mobile nature of the planetarium allows us to develop interesting inquiry-based lessons that incorporate WWT tours.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a degenerative joint disease present in most older individuals. The macaque, a New World monkey (genus Macaca), is an excellent proxy of the human condition in the study of the progression of osteoarthritis in humans, as the disease exhibits similar development in both. The key covariates of OA are age and body mass, but a longitudinal study of the development and severity of osteoarthritis in diet-restricted (n=259) and control monkeys (n=310) is ongoing (total data n=569) to establish whether or not diet plays a role in OA. The average development and severity of osteophytes (OST) and the level of disc space narrowing (DSN) from the thoracic and lumbar vertebrae were scored using previously-established methods. Based on averages of OST and DSN, it appears that diet-restricted monkeys do not show significantly different levels of severity from controls. Age and mass combine to explain 31% of the variation in spinal osteoarthritis (R2=.3091, p<0.001 and p<0.001, respectively for OST). Age, mass, and species explain 32% of variation in DSN (R2=.32, p<0.001, p=.001, p<0.001, respectively). Diet does not have a significant role in the development of osteophytes (p=0.16).

Observations suggest that the intracluster medium in galaxy clusters is strongly influenced by supermassive black holes residing in cluster centers. We investigate the consequences a black hole can have on the thermodynamics of the gas in galaxy clusters by comparing the properties of a simulated galaxy cluster without black holes to X-ray observations of real clusters, which have black holes. For our data we used Python to manipulate a cosmological simulation made with ChaNGa, a code capable of simulating gravity, thermodynamics, and other things. Our cluster simulation includes gravity, hydrodynamics, gas cooling, star formation, and stellar feedback in a fully cosmological setting. However, this simulation lacks black hole formation, growth, and feedback, allowing us to pinpoint the effects of these processes on the cluster by comparing to observations. In our investigation, we found only minor differences in the density, temperature, and pressures of the gas between the observed and simulated galaxy clusters in the cluster outskirts. However, we found significant deviations between the simulation and observations near the cluster centers, where a large spike in star formation is present in the simulated cluster, not seen in the observations. Our results suggest that black hole formation and feedback in galaxy clusters most strongly affect the cluster in the central regions, where it can significantly decrease star formation by heating the gas.

 This study attempts to help resolve our lack of knowledge concerning the effects of velocity and load-carrying on footprints and gait. Several archaeological sites worldwide have preserved footprints, and in the case of some sites, such as the Laetoli footprint trails in Kenya, proper analysis of the footprints could yield crucial information about hominids. We will examine how gait and footprints change, if at all, with changes in speed and carried weight. Twelve individuals, six male and six female undergraduate students, moved across 9.2 meters of tiled surface with and without an additional load on their back equal to 20% of their body weight, and at three different speeds – self-selected walking, jogging, and running velocities. As they walked this distance, they stepped across an RSscan mat that dynamically records pressure, generating a digital image of their footprint, while also being filmed in order to record gait. While foot, midfoot, and heel contact length and the contact width of the ball of the foot all varied without any clear pattern over the 216 tests, for almost all volunteers the width of midfoot contact increased significantly with speed. There was a significant increase in midfoot contact width from walking to a higher speed, and also overall from jogging to running. Carrying loads equal to or less than 20% of one’s bodymass has no significant affect upon midfooth width or other footprint dimensions. The average angle between the heel and trochanterion (the tip of the greater trochanter, a feature of the femur)  changed significantly with movement speed for most volunteers, but not in response to carried loads of equal to or less than 20% of one's bodymass. 

AL 288-1, better known as Lucy, is a 3.2 million-year-old Australopithecus afarensis partial skeleton. KSD-VP-1/1 is a recently described 3.6 million-year-old hominin partial skeleton that has been assigned to A. afarensis. Recent analysis, however, indicates that the estimated lower limb length (eLLL) for KSD-VP-1/1 (0.763 – 0.791m) is substantially longer than that of AL-288-1 (0.525m). The ratio of shorter to longer eLLL for these specimens ranges from 1.44 to 1.51, which raises the question of whether or not these two are likely to belong to the same paleospecies (Australopithecus afarensis). In order to determine the probability of randomly selecting two members of the same group with an eLLL ratio ≥ 1.44, 66 primate groups were examined: 19 non-human primates, 46 modern human populations, and a combined sample that represents species-level human variation. Virtual populations of 10,000 individuals were created using the descriptive statistics of the groups because only 11 out of the 66 groups included two individuals who could generate a ratio ≥ 1.44. The virtual populations allowed for the existence of individuals that can produce the sought ratio for all groups. 1,000 sets of two individuals were drawn from each virtual population. The probability of two randomly selected individuals generating an eLLL ratio ≥ 1.44 ranges from 0 (Hylobates, Presbytis, Trachypithecus, Andaman Islanders) to 0.0076 (Macaca mulatta). If the distribution and variability of early hominin lower limb lengths is adequately represented by extant primates, these results indicate that it is unlikely that two individuals as different in their eLLL’s as KSD-VP-1/1 and AL-288-1 could have come from the same paleospecies. More work is needed, however, to understand the morphological variability of paleospecies, particularly that introduced by time.

Even though many women engage in subsistence activities that require movement in varied terrains, little is known about the effects of burden and gradient on the energy expenditure of women. Additionally, it remains unclear which anthropometric characteristics predict variability among women in these situations. To begin to understand this better, 10 women walked on a treadmill for 14 randomized trials, divided into 2 or 3 testing sessions. Each trial consisted of different combinations of three variables. The women walked at self-selected slow, medium, and fast velocities; at gradients of 0, 5%, and 10%; and with and without a 10 kg burden carried in a backpack. Walking trials lasted 5 minutes, with 4 minutes of resting between each trial. VO₂ and VCO₂ were accessed (using a Sensormedics Vmax 29c metabolic cart) and cadence was determined during each trial. Standard anthropometrics (such as body mass, stature, limb segment lengths) were measured. Cost of transport (CoT) was calculated as the average VO₂ of the last 2 minutes of the 5-minute trial divided by velocity. Gradient (p<0.001), burden (p=0.004), mass (p<0.001), and burden/mass (0.019) were positively correlated with CoT (r²=0.71), while cadence (p<0.001) was negatively correlated. Our analysis shows that these variables predict variability within individuals (r²=0.72) better than among individuals (r²=0.64). Stature (p=0.52) and lower limb length (p=0.28) were not predictive. Future work should investigate how additional anthropometric measurements (such as crural index) interact with gait and terrain characteristics (burden, gradient, etc).

The mountain pine beetle (MPB) infestation in British Columbia (BC) forests ranks among the largest scale ecological disturbances recorded to date and thus presents a unique testbed for understanding forest dynamics and associated climatic feedbacks. Previous work has shown that BC MPB infestation affects the local surface energy balance, decreasing evapotranspiration and increasing surface temperature. Based on this study and related physics, we hypothesized that there may be greater cloud cover over affected areas of BC post-disturbance relative to pre-disturbance. To explore this hypothesis, we used forest inventory data together with data from the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) imager to quantify the impact of the devastation on summertime cloud development. Using published calibrations, we transformed raw counts at visible and infrared wavelengths to reflectance and temperature, respectively. We then made cloud maps by applying threshold criteria to the derived reflectance and temperature. Visual inspection of the cloud maps compared to the forest mortality map suggests no obvious difference between the pre- and post-disturbance cloud scenes. Ongoing work is attempting to verify and quantify this qualitative result. Because cloud development processes can have an important influence on the local climate, our research will show whether climatic effects of this ecological disturbance could raise additional concerns about the MPB issue in BC.

Using the lens of contemporary Egyptian archaeology, this research examines how the roles of Egyptian archaeology and archaeologists have changed since George Reisner first excavated the Menkaure Valley Temple over a hundred years ago in 1910. By examining the changes in archaeological practices, and the profession of archaeology in Egypt, this study seeks to explore a new perspective on how the application of archaeology has changed within the last century. There are many different ways of excavation, and methodologies have advanced dramatically over the past century. By comparing and contrasting old archaeological practices used by George Reisner in 1910 while excavating the Menkarure Valley Temple, Ancient Egypt Research Associates (AERA) is re-excavating the same structure and using Reisner’s old work combined with new archaeological practices to develop a new understanding of the temple and its many modifications, and changes of use throughout the history of Ancient Egypt. By using myself as an archaeologist and Reisner’s work along with the research conducted by the AERA team members as the investigative perspective, I will present a story that is relatively unknown, as well as introduce a new perspective on how the methods and practice of archaeology in Egypt have evolved. The project has the following steps:1. Compare Reisner’s methods of excavation strategy, artifact analysis, dating (etc.—focus on methods) to 21st century AERA methods. 2. Discuss how contemporary archaeologists in AERA use old data collected by Reisner—problems, challenges, and solutions 3. How does all of this change the way we interpret the Menkarure Valley Temple?

In the 20th century, mathematicians attempted to reduce mathematics to a set of axioms. One of the properties that David Hilbert, a famous mathematician, postulated was decidability. This refers to an algorithm that can determine whether or not another algorithm in the same system is actually computable. In his 1939 paper, Alan Turing proves decidability cannot occur in formal mathematical systems. Turing used an unconventional way to prove his argument—the Turing Machine. The machine is a theoretical computational device. This abstract device has revolutionized the way we think of computing and computers among other fields. It consists of four parts: a head that reads symbols, an infinite tape that stores inputs and outputs, a state register that holds the current state (or state of mind if you prefer), and a table that describes how the machine transitions from state to state. Turing machines can compute anything that is computable. Computability equates to being able to describe how to obtain the solution of some function with an algorithm. This abstract idea is interdisciplinary; which makes it a great educational tool. We have built a working Turing machine out of LEGOS. To both extend and improve functionality, we have added various components. These components cross over to other fields of study making the project great for students of various education paths to reproduce in a team setting. Our hope is that others can use our work and further devolop it. Besides providing a concrete example of an abstract idea,  building the Turing machine allows us to reaffirm findings.  It is in the spirit of scientific descovery to reproduce work. This research project allows us to follow in the foot steps of intellectual giants.

 In Perlmutter lab’s ongoing study, a combination of activity-based motor training and EMG-triggered electrical spinal stimulation is used as therapeutic intervention for rats with spinal cord injuries (SCI). In addition to the reach training being a form of physical therapy, electromyogram (EMG) electrodes are implemented into rat’s impaired arm and on the spinal cord area that receives related motor commands from the brain. By detecting electrical potentials produced by the skeletal muscle, the electrodes then carry out electrical stimulation on the spinal cord. In response to repetitive and consistent transmission from a presynaptic neuron to a postsynaptic neuron, the connection between two neurons is reinforced as a result of Hebbian “plasticity” or the ability to strengthen or create new synaptic connections with the associated neurons. Although preliminary data suggested greater functional recovery in this novel intervention, many rats did not recover fully. This may be due to discrepancies in the timing between the EMG and the descending command arrival in the spinal cord, preventing optimal timing of the electrical spinal stimulation. In my proposed experiment, I hypothesize that triggering the electrical stimulation from the source of the descending motor commands, the brain, rather than from residual muscle activity will enable better synchronization of the stimulation, hence optimizing the intervention. Instead of EMG electrodes, electrocorticographic (ECoG) electrodes that are designed to detect brain electrical activity will be implanted on the surface of the brain. During the 12-week intervention along with the reaching exercise, a device called the Neurochip will record and trigger the stimulation of spinal cord. The ECoG technique may provide a less noisy signal by recording directly from the brain and enable a better estimate of the occurrence of spinal stimulation, thus maximizing the therapeutic potential of the intervention.

Pre-erythrocytic malaria vaccines may need to target numerous sporozoite and/or liver-stage proteins to be effective. If the protective antigens could be identified, multi-component vaccines could be produced. Using a high-throughput T cell screening, our lab recently identified a CD8⁺ response against the Plasmodium yoelii L3 ribosomal protein in sporozoite-immunized BALB/c mice. Unlike the CD8⁺ T cell response against the circumsporozoite protein (CSP) that increases with each parasite exposure in our system, the L3-specific response is not boosted by repeated exposures to attenuated P. yoelii sporozoites. Our lab has also shown that L3-specific cells have no cell intrinsic defects that counteract their re-expansion or function but rather that broad antisporozoite immune responses in secondary or later exposures eliminate expression of L3, thereby preventing any opportunity for activation of memory L3-specific CD8⁺ T cells. This T cell outcome following immunization may be emblematic of other T cells with liver-stage targets as well. In my project, we are studying the L3-specific T cell response in other murine parasite species (P. berghei) and other mouse strains (C57BL/6) by immunizing BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice with both species of Plasmodium and monitoring L3-specific CD8⁺ T cell responses via IFNγ ELISPOT to determine if this phenomenon is conserved in related models. Further, we are testing whether or not heterologous immunization of BALB/c mice with radio-attenuated P. berghei and P. yoelii followed by genetically-attenuated P. yoelii sporozoites bypasses the anti-CSP response and allows for boosting of late liver-stage antigens. If this occurs, such approaches could potentially yield more protective outcomes in human challenge studies and lead to more effective malaria vaccines in the future.

The Vera Member of the Sarmiento Formation in Southern Argentina contains the only continuous fossil record across the Eocene-Oligocene Transition (EOT) in the Southern Hemisphere. Marine records indicate that the EOT was a time of dramatic climate change; plant fossils also suggest cooler environments with a transition from subtropical to temperate forests at middle latitudes during this interval. Phytoliths from the Vera Member, however, indicate a wetter climate and relatively stable plant communities, and oxygen isotope data from tooth enamel also suggests minimal climate change across the EOT. The goal of this research project is to use clay mineralogy to examine the environment and local climate conditions in which the Vera Member was deposited, giving a context for plant and animal evolution. Common clay minerals such as montmorillonite, illite, chlorite, kaolinite, as well as cristobalite and tridymite were found to at least partially explain the x-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns produced from the Vera Member <2µm fraction. Kaolinite in particular is often formed within a much more humid environment than what conditions are currently present in Southern Argentina. If present, kaolinite would indicate that the climate may have been more humid during the EOT. Although the various clay mineral XRD data were a good match, it is difficult to ascertain exact mineral matches with the patterns that were produced. The results of this research project are inconclusive about the various climate proxies, but suggest that more detailed clay work could lead to a clearer understanding of the Vera Member and its unique geological timeline.

The Learn and Serve Environmental Anthropology Field (LEAF) School at Edmonds Community College has partnered with Nikkei Manor and the Wing Luke Museum to develop the Nikkei Concerns Oral History Project. Through this project, students have the opportunity to serve as both mentors and mentees. Eight students have undergone training, interviewed and recorded the experiences of Japanese Americans who were interned during World War II. From these survivors we are learning more than the easy to record factual history, we are learning about experience, about the diversity of coping strategies, adaptive solutions, and emotional struggles these Americans lived. We found unexpected stories relating to aspects of control and freedom within the camps, as well as humor, acceptance, bitterness and forgiveness. The hope in a project such as this is to develop a greater understanding of the experience of these people, to record their stories and create awareness of what they faced. This is a unique opportunity for students to hear firsthand accounts from internment survivors and participating students will continue to learn about the internment era while transcribing the stories shared by Nikkei residents, and mentoring their classmates in the transcription process. While there has been much research elsewhere, the story of internment in the Northwest has received less attention. This project has allowed for student engagement and development as well meeting the needs of the Nikkei residents who wished to share their stories. Recordings will be kept both by the Wing Luke museum and Edmonds community college.

Glioblastoma Multiforme, the most prevalent form of primary brain tumors, is characterized by its aggressive, invasive nature and short patient lifespan post-diagnosis - approximately 12 months. Through gene analysis of RNA sequencing data, we have found two miRNAs, miR-149 and miR-181, that target gene products whose increased expression has been shown to promote invasion and migration of U-87 human glioblastoma cells. miRNAs are short, non-coding RNAs that bind to messenger RNAs (mRNAs) - the body’s method of transferring genetic information, and target them to be degraded or prevent them from being translated into protein. As the miRNAs and the genes are inversely related, treatment of U-87 cells with the miRNAs would cause a decrease in migration, and blocking the miRNAs would cause an increase in migration. To quantify migration, we have employed a scratch test or wound healing assay, in which glioblastoma cells are grown on a dish and the middle of the plate is scratched, leaving space for the cells to migrate. The cells are treated with the miRNAs, and the percent of the gap filled after 24 hours is measured. We expect changes in miRNAs to affect the amount of migration in the gap compared to control - providing evidence that these miRNAs inhibit migration. miRNAs have been investigated as markers for disease, and the presence or absence of this miRNA in a patient’s glioblastoma may have implications as to the severity of their case. Additionally, characterizing these miRNAs adds to the database of knowledge concerning glioblastoma. The more that is known about this disease, the closer scientists are to finding a practical treatment.

Chitin is the second most abundant polysaccharide extracted from the cuticles of insects and crustaceans. Chitin is known for its biocompatibility and superior mechanical strength. Silk fibroin is produced by the Bombyx mori silkworm and is known for its biocompatibility and superior toughness. Composites of chitin and silk fibroin would possess each biomaterial's unmatched mechanical strength and toughness, making them ideal candidates for biomedical applications requiring such mechanical properties. Here, squid pen β-chitin and Bombyx mori silkworm cocoon silk were blended in Hexafluoroisopropanol (HFIP) solution in specified ratios to synthesize the nanocomposites. As a result, chitin/silk hybrid nanocomposite thin films were produced to test the mechanical properties. Studies of both X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) and Fourier Transform-Infrared (FTIR) Spectroscopy revealed a successful effective interaction between the chitin nanofibers and the silk proteins matrix, which was most likely caused by hydrogen bonding. Results of the self-assembled chitin nanofibers embedded in the silk matrix showed a noticeable enhancement in mechanical properties. The tensile strength, flexibility, and toughness of the biomaterial nanocomposites were enhanced compared to just pure chitin or pure silk fibroin. Due to the improvement in mechanical properties, these chitin/silk engineered nanocomposites can be utilized in biomedical applications such as hybrid scaffolds for bone tissue engineering or microneedles to serve as a new methodology for drug delivery systems.

This action-research project describes a particular student-lead model created to foster community and awareness of global health across campus. We, the student leaders, who form the Global Health Undergraduate Leadership Committee (GHULC), have shaped this model to best respond to an ongoing challenge of engaging all undergraduates in awareness and community building around global health issues. The model for this approach involves bimonthly meetings with the committee and two advisors in addition to attending events planned by the GHULC and the Department of Global Health. Methods we have taken to increase undergraduate involvement in the minor include regular information sessions about the minor, monthly student-planned Community Connections events on critical issues, a joint student- and faculty-run journal club, peer advising, walking tours of Global Health organizations in Seattle, and a GHULC blog. Preliminary quantitative data suggests that there has already been an increase in the number of students enrolled in the minor this year as well as an increase in the academic diversity of participating students. Our next step will be to develop a qualitative assessment of the GHULC’s impact by administering a feedback form to all Global Health minor students regarding their perception of and involvement in the minor. We intend to gather this information on a yearly basis in order to improve the minor as well as the GHULC’s role with the goal of continuing to increase diversity, engagement, and mentorship.

During the last ice age the Missoula Floods – huge cataclysmic floods caused by failure of the glacier dam that impounded Lake Missoula, a massive ephemeral meltwater lake – spilled across eastern Washington in periods of a few days. Repeated floods transformed the Eastern Washington landscape, eroding coulees and re-working the resulting sediment into extensive sand, gravel, and boulder deposits. Although widely studied, debate persists over the number and timing of the floods. Flooding is known to have spanned a period of several thousand years; this is constrained by several areas of research including radiocarbon dates, dated volcanic ashes, and examination of the interbedding of Missoula Flood deposits with those of the 18,000 yr BP Bonneville Flood on the Snake River. To further constrain the chronology of flooding, we plan to measure the cosmic ray produced isotope Beryllium-10 in granitic quartz from boulder deposits near Ephrata, and at Priest Rapids on the Columbia River. Concentrations of Be-10, accumulated since the boulders were deposited, will allow us to determine their exposure ages. So far, we have collected several samples from the Ephrata boulder fan and from the Priest Rapids deposit. We have sampled high-standing, water-polished boulders to avoid the effects of past sediment cover and post-depositional erosion, both of which can lead to erroneous age estimates. We have crushed the samples and separated quartz in preparation for Be-10 analysis. After further purification, the quartz will be dissolved for extraction and isotopic analysis of Beryllium. We expect results of this work to better constrain the relative timing of the deposits at Ephrata and Priest Rapids, and the age of the floods that produced them, the last to pass through the Grand Coulee and Sentinel Gap, respectively.  

Does climate change affect food security and health in Indonesia? In this project I studied the history of food security and health in Indonesia and analyzed how climate change phenomena, such as floods, droughts, increase in temperature, and rising sea levels, affect food security and health in Indonesia. Furthermore, I applied theories of structural inequality, risk society, and globalization to analyzing the impact of climate change on food security and health in Indonesia. I investigated the hypothesis that climate change phenomena drastically reduce the Indonesian food production, ultimately having a negative effect on the Indonesian economy and the health of the Indonesian people. My method was to look at current research of climate change phenomena in Indonesia and speak with Indonesian institutions, such as the secretary of health and environment, to learn the situation of food security and health in Indonesia and the various impacts of climate change. The research that I have done so far on this project suggests that climate change is having a negative effect on availability of food, cost of food, and access to adequate nutrition.

The immune system has evolved to achieve a fine balance between recognizing and attacking foreign pathogens and preserving unresponsiveness to self-antigens. T cells that are unresponsive to self-antigens are called self-tolerant T cells and a hallmark of such tolerant T cells is their inability to attack cells expressing self-antigens in order to prevent autoimmunity. However, tolerance to these proteins impedes anti-tumor T cell immune responses because many cancer antigens that are targeted in immunotherapy are in fact self-antigens. Thus, a critical challenge in tumor immunology is to develop strategies that break T cell tolerance to tumor antigens without causing unacceptable autoimmune injury. It has been shown that tolerant T cells lack important proteins normally required for T cell effector functions, including two master transcription factors, Tbet and Eomes, which have been found to be critical for T cell function by repressing the expression of inhibitory molecules and mediating the expression of effector molecules. Therefore, the decreased expression of Tbet and Eomes in tolerant T cells might cause their functional unresponsiveness. Using a transgenic tumor mouse model, my research project investigates if enforced over-expression of Tbet and/or Eomes in tolerant tumor-specific T cells can re-program such tolerant T cells and restore effector functions, allowing re-programmed T cells to recognize and attack cancer cells. Tolerant T cells will be isolated from spleens of transgenic mice, retrovirally transduced in vitro to over-express Tbet and Eomes, and subsequently transferred into tumor-bearing mice. The main focus of my research will then be to analyze Tbet-, Eomes-, and/or control-transduced donor T cells for anti-tumor effector function in vivo to understand if and by what mechanism(s) T cells can be re-programmed via the over-expression of the master transcription factors and whether such re-programming could possibly become an effective strategy for the treatment of cancers in humans.

Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia, is overcoming over twenty years of violence, political chaos, and lack of economic growth. Now, for the first time in twenty years, with a recognized government and renewed international investment, Mogadishu has a chance to escape the cyclical patterns of poverty and hunger. However, this cannot be simply done through a top to bottom format of political changes; the political inequalities ingrained in the population need to be alleviated. The people who are most vulnerable, women, particularly young women, and minorities have to be given economic opportunities. I went to Mogadishu to find out more about the economic situation of the city, particularly, the economic situation of young women in Mogadishu through observation and conversations with this population. I visited busy market places and very small kiosks. I spoke with women who graduated from Universities and women who were illiterate about their situation and perspective of Mogadishu's economy. I found out that the Mogadishu economy is alive, changing rapidly, and there are many people who are living decent lives. However, there are many more women who are poor, illiterate or with little education, and/or come from tribes that are politically marginalized. If these women, and others in similar economic situation, are not systematically given beneficial economic opportunities, the cycle of poverty, violence, and disease will continue.

Huntington’s disease (HD) is a devastating hereditary neurodegenerative disease characterized by motor and cognitive dysfunction. One of the earliest molecular events in HD pathogenesis is the down-regulation of the cannabinoid 1 receptor (CB₁) in medium spiny neurons (MSNs), cells that play a key role in movement and degenerate in HD patients. Our goal is to rescue the specific loss of CB₁ in striatal MSNs to understand the role of this event in HD pathology. To do this, we inserted flox-stop CB₁ (fsCB₁) into striatal MSNs of R6/2 mice, the best characterized HD mouse model, and confirmed its localization. To validate the functionality of the knock-in fsCB₁ protein, we crossed fsCB₁ mice into a CB₁-/- background, so that the resulting mice lacked endogenous CB₁ receptors, and crossed them with globally-expressed Cre, so that fsCB₁ receptors became globally-expressed. We then demonstrated that replacing endogenous CB₁ with fsCB₁ did not alter responses in four classic cannabinoid behaviors (analgesia, hypolocomotion, catalepsy, and hypothermia) by injecting these mice with cannabinoid agonists. Once the knocked-in mice were validated, we measured changes in motor phenotype and synaptic integrity between R6/2 and fsCB₁-R6/2 mice. Motor phenotype was measured using rotarod, open field, clasping behavior, and Catwalk assay biweekly from 4 to 12 weeks of age. Synaptic loss was measured in the striatum, globus pallidus and substantia nigra reticulata by costaining with synaptophysin and either PSD95 or neuroligin 2 to resolve excitatory and inhibitory synapses, respectively. Preliminary results indicate that CB₁ rescue did not improve motor phenotype, but did reverse loss of excitatory synapses in the dorsal-medial striatum. Our future goals are to identify the specific subset of excitatory synapses being lost. By understanding which synapses are lost and how CB₁ rescue improves this loss, we hope to obtain greater insight into the pathophysiology of HD.

In order to elicit an effective immunological response against diseases such as HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria, vaccines aimed at combating these diseases need to induce a potent CD8+ cytotoxic T cell response (CTL). CTL activation typically requires antigen delivery to the cytoplasm of antigen presenting cells. Current vaccine delivery vehicles generally lack the ability to elicit such responses, as they cannot efficiently mediate the delivery of antigenic payloads into the cytosol. To address this shortcoming, the Stayton lab has developed a novel micellar, pH-responsive protein-polymer carrier capable of endosomal escape that enables protein delivery to the cytosol. When the carrier is in the low pH environment of the endosomal compartments, the polymer is able to undergo a conformational change that disrupts the endosomal membrane and allows the protein to escape into the cytosol. In order to confirm endosomal escape and cytosolic delivery, this project aims to establish methods to study the intracellular trafficking of the protein-polymer conjugate in a murine dendritic cell line. The project employs two approaches: i) the conjugate’s location in either cytosolic or vesicular compartments is identified via subcellular and differential fractionation, and ii) the conjugate’s location is identified based on compartmental pH by fluorescently labeling the conjugate with pH sensitive and pH in-sensitive dyes, and imaging via live cell fluorescent microscopy. Finally, the project uses the developed methods to characterize the intracellular trafficking of a non-pH responsive and a glycosylated micellar carrier. Results from these intracellular trafficking studies will help identify potential areas for future improvements and optimization of the delivery vehicle.

Motivated by current interest in one-dimensional materials for their ideality and potential in the next generation of electronics, a device consisting of a microscopic four-point probe was developed with electron beam lithography (EBL) to investigate the conductance and resistivity of manganese-doped copper oxide (Mn:CuO) nanowires. Mn:CuO nanowires were chosen because they are known to be ferromagnetic and conductive below a critical temperature of 80K, while maintaining semiconductor properties and low resistance at room temperature. Nanowire samples were obtained from the Yang Group in Nanjing, China, and were deposited with ethanol onto silicon dioxide wafers to obtain a rough monolayer for easy isolation of individual nanowires. A pattern consisting of four contact lines was created with DesignCAD and conditions were optimized to obtain an adequate dose (charge/unit area). A subsequent process of precise alignment was performed to ensure complete overlap between the nanowire and pattern on a nanometer scale. With accurate alignment, the pattern was then etched onto a single nanowire, developed, and coated in a 50 nm thin film of gold to enable conduction between the nanowire and the four-point pattern. From this point, the current and voltage can be measured through the nanowire macroscopically. Consequently, the anisotropic resistivity of the material as well as gate voltage effects can be studied to verify the material’s applicability to future spintronics devices such as field-effect transistors.

Lily blooming has recently been suggested to result from differential growth of the petals. The tissue expands along the edges, making them longer than the midrib. To accommodate for this excess length, the petal reverses its curvature, causing the bud to open. This is the growth driven mechanism for lily blooming. We inquired into the shape of the ripples resulting from edge growth and if we could observe direct evidence of the growth. We first investigated rippling, another consequence of edge growth. When the growth rate is high enough, lily petals ripple and their edges adopt their characteristic wavy shape. Using time-lapse imaging, we observed lily petals' edges rippling. We monitored the formation of several generations of ripples, with a fractal-like pattern of smaller waves superimposed onto larger ones. We also measured the temporal evolution of the ripples' wavelength, amplitude and arc length. We found that these quantities could be related using a geometric argument. Agreement between our prediction and observations is excellent. This indicates that in addition to biology, physics plays a significant role in determining the shape of lily petals. Second, we sought to quantify edge growth. We took quantitative measurements of the different growth rates, by tracking the positions of marks along the edge and along the midrib. We found that the growth rate is 35% larger along the edge than along the midrib, supporting the edge growth driven blooming model. We now want to measure the growth rates of different lily species, and investigate whether smaller growth rates can correlate to the absence of ripples. The purpose was to understand the 3D shape resulting from growth in a 2D sheet to supply knowledge leading to understanding plant development. It will also lead to applications in the packaging industry where flat shapes are made into 3D objects.

During the postembryonic transformation from larva to adult, zebrafish undergo a dramatic metamorphosis in pigment pattern. New pigment cells differentiate, interact, and migrate to form stripes of black cells (melanophores) and the interstripe regions of yellow cells (xanthophores); this pigment pattern characterizes adult zebrafish. My project investigates the roles of thyroid hormone (TH) in this dramatic transformation. We have produced a stable transgenic line expressing a transgene for nitroreductase exclusively in the thyroid gland. When I expose these transgenic fish to the drug metronidazole, toxic byproducts are produced in the thyroid gland, causing cell death and ablating the gland and preventing the fish from producing any TH. Using these thyroid ablated fish, I have characterized pigment cell differentiation and pattern formation in the absence of TH. I find that these thyroid ablated individuals do not develop xanthophores and show resulting disruptions in stripe boundary formation. Our lab has also found a zebrafish pigment mutant (opallus), which produces an excess of xanthophores. Mapping data from this mutant leads us to hypothesize that the phenotype is caused by a gain-of-function mutation in the receptor that stimulates TH production in the thyroid gland. I test the prediction that the excess xanthophore phenotype is caused by overproduction of TH by blocking TH synthesis using the drug methimazole, and show that these treatments rescue the opallus pigment phenotype, returning them to a wild-type pigment pattern. Moreover, I test the prediction that exposing wild-type zebrafish to exogenous TH produces an opallus-like pigment pattern. Thus, by quantifying the number of melanophores and xanthophores and their distribution across the flank in these hypothyroid and hyperthyroid backgrounds, I show that TH is both necessary and sufficient for xanthophore differentiation, and that both too much and too little thyroid hormone during the adult transformation grossly disrupts the formation of adult stripes.

It is well documented that low levels of antibiotics are present in both surface water sources and in soil near industrial, large-scale farms. However, very little work has been done exploring the selective pressure for the evolution of resistance at these sub-inhibitory antibiotic concentrations. It is our concern that mutations acquired in a low antibiotic environment may be “potentiating:” that is, the presence of these first mutations opens more mutational paths after a shift to a high antibiotic environment. The converse may also be true in terms of “dooming” mutations that close off evolutionary paths in the new environment. Here we aim to investigate the prevalence of potentiating and dooming mutations and to understand their role in adaptive evolution. We study these phenomena by performing evolution experiments with Escherichia coli grown in a permissive environment (low drug concentration) followed later by a sudden shift to a new environment that imposes a strong selective pressure (high drug concentration). Here the permissive environment serves to generate mutational diversity and the harsh selective environment serves to assess the evolutionary potential of mutant isolates relative to their wild type ancestor. This will increase our knowledge of the evolution of antibiotic resistance and as well as the unintended but potentially dangerous effects of long term selection in the presence of low levels of antibiotics.

Past research has shown that figures of authority, media representation, emotionality, and perceived outcome of an event can all play a role in confounding eyewitness recall. The current research tested the effects of post event information and encouraging/leading statements on eyewitness event recall. Participants watched a short video clip, after which they filled out a questionnaire to assess their recall of the event. Results confirmed that leading questions and post event information confound eyewitness recall. These results have implications for both the ethical use of eyewitness questioning methods and the validity of using eyewitness testimony in the courtroom.

Diatoms are major players in Earth’s biogeochemical cycling, accounting for approximately 20% of global primary production. Their dominance in several aquatic ecosystems is a testament to adaptations that provide an advantage in nutrient acquisition and growth. Ocean fertilization experiments have demonstrated that iron is the primary limiting nutrient in many open ocean ecosystems. This metal is critical to the functioning of numerous important proteins, particularly in photoautotrophs such as diatoms. An excess of intracellular iron, however, can cause oxidative damage to the cell. This project investigates genes related to iron metabolism in the recently sequenced transcriptomes of 21 diatoms and select outgroup species. Of particular interest are genes coding for ferritin subunits. Ferritin is a multimeric protein that serves as an iron storage unit, safely sequestering iron atoms in an oxidized state and releasing them back into the cytoplasm when iron supply is low. Ferritin in diatoms was previously thought to exist only in pennate diatoms. Here we show that ferritin-coding genes are expressed in members of every major diatom group. 13 out of 21 diatom transcriptomes contain full-length sequences, forming a clear monophyletic clade most closely related to cyanobacterial ferritins. Additionally, 7 of the 21 transcriptomes surveyed reveal two distinct ferritin genes, possibly due to an ancient duplication event. The presence of ferritin helps to explain the success of some diatom species in iron-poor waters, and our expanded understanding of which diatoms possess ferritin genes will help to predict the responses of this important group to a dynamic ocean environment.

The Kiss1 gene encodes a neurotransmitter whose expression in the brain is essential for reproduction. Previous studies with in situ hybridization and immunocytochemistry have identified Kiss1 expression in several hypothalamic nuclei, including the arcuate. To determine whether Kiss1 expression is limited to the hypothalamus, we developed a transgenic mouse that expresses a marker gene (tdTomato) if and only if Kiss1 expression is turned on. tdTomato encodes a red marker protein that is constitutively expressed, labeling the cell forever as having once expressed Kiss1. We looked for tdTomato labeling in brain sections to identify areas that reveal expression of Kiss1 at some time during development. Surprisingly, we found tdTomato labeling outside of the hypothalamus. Possible causes include Kiss1 expression early in development or low-level Kiss1 expression in adulthood. Distinguishing between these possibilities has important implications for developing tools to genetically manipulate Kiss1 neurons in adult animals. We will test the hypothesis that Kiss1 is widely expressed at low levels in the adult brain. Kiss1 transcription will be mapped in two ways. First, brain sections will be examined for the presence of green fluorescent protein (GFP). GFP is expressed under the Kiss1 promoter, but it may not mark low levels of Kiss1 transcription. Therefore, Kiss1 expression in adulthood will also be tested by in situ hybridization. In situ hybridization radioactively marks Kiss1 mRNA, illuminating even low levels of transcription. Comparing in situ hybridization between wild-type and Kiss1 knockout mice may reveal low levels of Kiss1 mRNA outside the adult hypothalamus— and open new possibilities for a physiological role of Kiss1 signaling that extends beyond reproduction.

Seabird distribution and abundance can be used as indicators of the health of the coastal ecosystem. In the Gulf of Alaska over the last four decades there has been growing evidence of climate change and ocean acidification. The largest oil spill in the United States, the Exxon Valdez, occurred here. We used data from the Coastal Observation and Seabird Survey Team (COASST), a citizen science, beached bird survey program with 14 years of surveys from beaches in the Pacific Northwest, and eight years of data from Alaska. We seek to compare U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) data from historical surveys in the Gulf of Alaska (1970-1989), to the current beached bird data collected through the COASST program (2005-present). Historic data include monthly surveys of sites from the Kenai Peninsula to Yakutat Bay, and one offshore island, Middleton (n>250 surveys). Current COASST data cover this same range, include additional surveys from Kodiak Island, but exclude Middleton (n>1200 surveys). These data will be analyzed to examine the differences in monthly encounter rate (carcasses/km) averaged over this region, cumulative species diversity, and oiling rate (percent of recorded carcasses that are oiled). This comparison will provide insight into possible changes in the encounter rate index in the Gulf of Alaska over the past 40 years.

Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) has been successfully used to map 3D brain structure due to its ability to characterize water diffusion rate, anisotropy, and direction. However, DTI-based 3D fiber tracking has not yet been done in human breast. The objective of this study is to develop an approach for 3D fiber tracking of the breast ductal network. In the study, an optimized DTI pulse sequence has been determined by testing on different parameter combinations. Intra-subject reproducibility has also been characterized to assess the reliability of the DTI data and post-processing methods. Lastly, 3D fiber tracking of the breast ductal network is under development using DTI measures obtained from scanning the breast of healthy volunteers. The resulting information on 3D trajectory of breast ducts can benefit the study of the anatomy and development of the breast. It may also help detect early malignancy within the ducts because of the disruption of the ductal system.

One of the functions of the vestibular system is to engage neural reflexes, which ensures the stabilization of a visual image during head movements. This is accomplished through the stimulation of vestibular hair cells, which respond to accelerations, and then produce compensatory eye movements opposing head motion. This called the vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR). Hair cell loss results in vestibular deficits, and for these individuals, this loss of function is debilitating and results in vertigo and decreased visual acuity. To address these deficits, the Phillips lab has developed a vestibular prosthesis, which aims to use electrical stimulation to restore function by artificially activating individual branches of the vestibular nerve. However, it is not known precisely how the system changes after hair cell loss; this may have implications for the effectiveness of the prosthesis in treating vestibular loss. To explore this, we examined the interaction between the electrical activity and residual vestibular activity after vestibular loss. We first introduced a vestibular deficit in a rhesus macaque through successive gentamicin injections into the middle ear to destroy vestibular hair cells, and measured VOR responses to verify the progressive vestibular loss. Next, we recorded eye velocities in response to electrical stimulation to characterize changes in the efficacy of stimulation, thus providing insight into the prosthetic mechanism. Finally, modulated electrical stimulation was provided during rotation of the rhesus macaque to test the efficacy of the prosthesis in restoring VOR in conjunction with residual vestibular activity. Characterizing prosthetic function during increasing vestibular deficit is important in determining the mechanism of stimulation, the physiological responses succeeding hair cell loss, and ultimately a model for the prosthetic efficacy for human patients.

While corporations provide essential goods and services, they also create externalities with negative, sometimes lasting (e.g. climate change), impacts on stakeholders. Freeman (1984) defines a “stakeholder” as anyone who affects or is affected by a business. Since its inception, stakeholder theory has broadened to include as stakeholders other biotic entities such as ecosystems and the entire living system of earth, i.e. Gaia. Neither government regulation nor consumer purchasing selectivity can eliminate all negative externalities on the planet and society, so market-based and financial incentives are key to encouraging quicker, broader corporate actions for the greater good. This research investigates potential correlations among social responsibility performance (SP), environmental performance (EP), and financial performance (FP). The hypotheses, based on Freeman’s stakeholder theory, are: H1: Higher social responsibility performance will lead to higher financial performance. H2: Higher environmental performance will lead to higher financial performance. The sample includes publically traded corporations from around the world in multiple industries. Measures of SP and EP are derived using Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) indicators while FP is based on Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP). Data is extracted from annual financial and sustainability reports and analyzed using a variety of statistical tests. This research may contribute to the academic literature and managerial practices through revealing which environmental and social responsibility practices are most correlated with higher profitability.

Stress can have a major impact on the cognitive functions of the brain in both humans and animals. One of the possible areas affected is the hippocampus, a structure known to be important in consolidation of short and long-term declarative memory and spatial memory. Previous studies have shown that stress can reduce long-term potentiation, impair spatial memory, and affect the firing rate of location-specific place cells in rats. This study aims to investigate the effects of temporary hippocampus impairment during stress on risky foraging behaviors in rats using APV, an NMDA receptor antagonist that inhibits the synaptic plasticity of local neurons at the site of injection. Rats were trained to retrieve food pellets from a simulated foraging environment and return to a safe nest, and APV infusions were then made via implanted cannulas into the rats’ hippocampus 30 min prior to stress. Foraging behavior in the presence of a robot predator was assessed in comparison to control rats infused with artificial cerebrospinal fluid. Hippocampal dysfunction is hypothesized to contribute to faulty contextual fear conditioning and memory formation, thus rats with an impaired hippocampus may exhibit excessive, contextually-inappropriate fear behavior in the presence of an artificial predator. The results of this study may help us understand the affects of stress and its role in the behaviors of individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Over the past year, I have conducted ethnographic and oral history research here in the Puget Sound-area to understand the role of urban parks and organic farming in the development of a bioregional concept of sustainability. Throughout the research process I have maintained a focus on the study of sense of place, as this is one important aspect of bioregional ethics and design principles. This study was completed using collaborative ethnographic methods including participant observation, talking circles, surveys, and interviews with forest stewards at Seattle’s Carkeek Park, and farmers at Viva Farms in Skagit Valley. Through this I discovered the role of autotopography, the expression of self through place shaping practices, a process that contributes to a developing sense of place and is often overlooked. Some members of the Carkeek Park forest stewards, or WEWO as they call themselves, and some of the farmers used the act of shaping landscapes to express themselves in ways unique to the individual, and my data supports that this act was, and is, important to their developing a sense of place.

My research focuses on the ethnobotanical uses of plants by the Monte Salvado native community of the Las Piedras River in the Amazon Rainforest of Peru. One-fourth of all Western pharmaceuticals, including very common drugs such as aspirin, have their origin in rainforests. Much of the knowledge surrounding the use of these plants comes from indigenous communities living in the Amazon. Many of these communities, such as the Monte Salvado, use plants as both medicine for anything from stomach aches to snack bites, as well as a spiritual agent.  My research centers on the medicinal and spiritual purposes of plants such as Curare, Suma, and Clavillia. My research questions include, “What are the main purposes of and beliefs about plants in this community? How are these plants used and what are their effects? How do women use plants to aid in maternal and menstrual health? The prepatory work leading up to my community immersion this summer is creating a research proposal, as well as learning and practicing Anthropological research methods. 

Does a genetic predisposition towards excessive alcohol consumption influence the acquisition of habits? The study of alcohol dependency and its effects on learning and behavior continues to be a subject of growing importance. With an animal model of alcoholism, we sought to uncover some of these potential behavioral consequences. We focused on the development of both flexible and habitual spatial behaviors in rats selectively bred for High Alcohol Drinking (HAD) and Low Alcohol Drinking (LAD). Using a standard plus-maze task, rats were trained to run to an unchanging reward arm. We hypothesized that HAD rats would rely more on response learning strategies than spatial strategies, and would develop a habit more quickly than LAD rats. Initially, visual cues were placed around the room, and two probes were conducted to assess the progress of habitual behaviors in each animal. Later, cues were removed and one last probe was conducted. Preliminary data analysis revealed some unexpected findings, the most striking of which was seen in the LAD rats’ behavior. We expected both groups of animals to form a habitual response by the end of testing, however the percentage of LAD rats using spatial strategies increased with each successive probe. HAD rats, on the other hand, did appear to increasingly rely on response strategies over time, suggesting that they may be more prone towards developing a habitual behavior under these conditions. Additionally, a large number of HAD rats consistently omitted trials and demonstrated increased latencies when compared to LAD rats, possibly indicating that receiving a reward was not enough of an incentive to run the task. These preliminary findings may suggest that genetic preferences for alcohol consumption could influence the learning strategies employed in solving simple behavioral tasks.

My research uses ethnographic methods to examine personal histories and subsistence strategies of health workers in Sierra Leone. The project is designed to ‘study up’ (Nadar 1969), that is, to use ethnography as a tool to understand the macro- political, social, and economic context of people’s day-to-day experiences. I look to understand the impacts of Sierra Leone’s post-conflict economic restructurings on the quality of life, employment distribution, and clinical practices of healthcare providers. My project includes a preparatory stage at the University of Washington and, subsequently, six weeks field research in Sierra Leone. My work particularly considers Sierra Leone’s debt-relationship to International Financial Institutions (IFIs), such as the International Monetary Foundation (IMF) and World Bank. Loans issued by IFIs stipulate shifts in governmental spending and regulation that, in terms of healthcare services, translate to reduced funding for governmental healthcare services, the development of a private healthcare sector, and use of NGOs to funnel aid money into the nation. These shifts, inspired by neoliberal market fundamentalism, result in fewer jobs and lower wages for health workers, as well as a discordant healthcare system fractured between NGO, private, and government services. Globally, anthropologists have worked to document the collateral damage to health from neoliberal economics. However, there is a dearth of ethnographic work explicitly considering economic restructuring’s effects on health in Sierra Leone. Health workers are integral to health services and their stories incisively reflect the toll of neoliberal economic agendas on health. My research adds to the anthropological evidence that these agendas are systematically denying people health services and undermining health in developing countries.

On Mars, the properties of CO₂ radiation frost formed in a CO₂ atmosphere are basically unknown, but are important to understanding the polar caps, atmosphere, and climate of Mars. The broad-band solar albedo and infrared emissivity of Martian seasonal frost deposits dominate the annual polar heat balance, which controls a significant amount of seasonal variation in atmospheric mass as well as the potential for atmospheric collapse at the extremes of Mars epochal obliquity variations. Our goal is to perform realistic laboratory simulations of the thermal and radiative environment on the surface of Mars and produce the first-ever samples of carbon dioxide frost formed the same way it does on Mars, by radiative cooling in a nearly-pure CO₂ atmosphere. To create and analyze simulated Mars CO₂ frost, we have been constructing a Radiation Frost Chamber (RFC). The outer shell of the chamber has already been constructed so my specific role in the research and development process is to help acquire, design, build, and test components to be used for measurements and experiments in the RFC; specifically, a fiberscope, a calibration cup, quartz beads, and other Martian soil analog materials. The fiberscope will be used to view and record the physical morphology and texture of the CO₂ frost. Also, its output light will help measure the broadband and spectral albedo of the frost. The quartz beads are being used for testing a theoretical model for thermal conductivity of planetary soils and the calibration cup is going to be used for testing techniques to measure ice content of soil. The base will contain the Mars analog soil at about 600 Pa of pressure of CO₂ in order to simulate the Martian environment. Once the RFC has been built it is our goal to finally simulate the Martian environment in a lab setting accurately.