In the United States, eating disorders affect nearly 10% of the population and have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness. Among at-risk populations, female athletes involved in aesthetic sports, including dance, are the most likely to develop an eating disorder. High incidence and widespread prevalence of eating disorders among dancers is often interpreted as a desire to craft a body required to achieve peak artistic and athletic performance. Previously conducted studies on numerous populations of dancers reveal that body dissatisfaction, heightened sensory awareness, and trained perfectionism are contributing factors to eating disorder development. Despite commonalities between varying explanatory models of illness, the spectrum of theories pertaining to eating disorder etiology does not adequately represent the lived experiences of the primary investigators and insufficiently addresses the relationship between embodied identity and aesthetic sport. This pilot research project seeks to challenge the assumption that eating disorders among dancers manifest to maintain a performance-enhancing physique and aims to identify when and how dance can destabilize the identity of certain dancers. Drawing from data generated through an analysis of autobiographical narratives, this research seeks to generate a new theory to comprehensively explain the high prevalence of eating disorders among dancers. This theory will serve as the grounding framework for an extension of this project in which each primary investigator continues research to develop and answer a more pointed question that bridges gaps in existing literature. 

The amino acid tryptophan can participate in biological reactions as a reducing agent, in which it as converted to a radical. Tryptophan radicals embedded in proteins can participate in electron transfer chemistry, such as in DNA photolyase and cryptochrome enzymes, or catalytic chemistry, such as in peroxidases enzymes. The properties of tryptophan radicals are heavily dependent on the microenvironment within the protein. The objective of my research is to study how the protein environment can control the properties of tryptophan radicals. For this, I utilize the beta hairpin peptide as a model protein. This system allows for controlled changes to be made near the tryptophan, altering its microenvironment. The effect of these changes are monitored using electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), a spectroscopy that is sensitive to electron radicals and can help elucidate the specific effects that the protein microenvironment has on the radical.

 Organic thin-film solar cells have received considerable attention on account of their flexibility, ease of production, and light weight. Recently, modifications of these solar cells’ nanoscale structures has yielded efficiencies higher than 10%. To further improve device efficiency and durability, detailed understanding of the pathways of charge generation and loss (through recombination of opposing charges) is essential. Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy, which directly observes radicals and unpaired electrons, including the charge carriers in these solar cells, is a useful tool for the characterization of these pathways. EPR analysis of relevant materials such as P3HT:PCBM blends indicate aspects of charge carrier lifetime and recombination rate that are temperature-dependent. Also, analysis of the variation of EPR spectra with modulation frequency allows us to directly determine the lifetime of excited charge carriers. Combination of this data alongside theoretical modeling of charge generation and recombination allows us to determine parameters such as charge recombination rates. For this purpose, a new method for simulation of an EPR spectrum that allows for computationally-efficient incorporation of radical life times, relaxation times and saturation has been created.