The Undergraduate Scholars Program Acknowledges the Following Sponsors and Partners for Their Ongoing Support of Student Research
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The Undergraduate Scholars Program Acknowledges the Following Sponsors and Partners for their Ongoing Support of Student Research: American Indian Research Opportunities (AIRO) Center for Biofilm Engineering McNair Scholars Program Montana INBRE Program Montana Space Grant Consortium College of Agriculture College of Arts & Architecture College of Business College of Education, Health & Human Development College of Engineering College of Letters & Science College of Nursing Honors College Office of the Provost The Graduate School Vice President for Research & Economic Development 1 Table of Contents Map ............................................................................................................................ 3 Topical Sessions Messengers for Health Báa nnilah Program ...........................................................................4 McNair Scholars .................................................................................................................................4 Macroevolution: The Fellowship of the Tree .........................................................................5 Biomedical Engineering Research Session .............................................................................6 Math & Statistics Interdisciplinary Research .........................................................................7 The Territory’s Best .........................................................................................................................7 Morning Poster Presentations ......................................................................... 8 Afternoon Poster Presentations...................................................................... 14 Graduate Abstracts College of Engineering ....................................................................................................................25 College of Education, Health & Human Development .........................................................26 College of Letters & Science ..........................................................................................................28 Undergraduate Abstracts College of Agriculture ......................................................................................................................33 College of Arts & Architecture ......................................................................................................39 College of Business ...........................................................................................................................41 College of Education, Health & Human Development .........................................................42 College of Engineering ....................................................................................................................50 College of Letters & Science ..........................................................................................................72 University Studies/Interdisciplinary Studies ........................................................................106 INBRE Statewide Symposium Presenters ....................................................................107 Alphabetical Listing of Students ...................................................................... 110 2 Conference Map Poster Numbers 3 Topical Sessions – SUB Ballroom C April 13, 2018 MESSENERS FOR HEALTH BAA NNILAH PROGRAM 9:00 am- 10:30 pm Messengers for Health uses a community-based participatory research approach and involves members of the Apsáalooke (Crow) Nation and Montana State University faculty and students. In 2013, project partners decided to focus on helping community members with chronic illness (CI) improve their self-care. In 2016, we received a grant from the National Institutes of Health to develop and implement a randomized controlled intervention trial of a program with 200 members of the Apsáalooke community. The resulting program is titled Báa nnilah, which translates to advice or instructions for life that are received from others. The program method is centered on Crow cultural strengths and includes 7 group meetings (gatherings) led by community members (mentors) who are doing well managing their CI. The program encourages and supports Apsáalooke people with CIs to take positive steps to manage their illness, to support each other, and to be an advocate for themselves to improve their health while staying true to Apsáalooke traditions and values. The different panel presenters will provide an overview of the Báa nnilah program and describe the specific parts of the program for which they are responsible including participant recruitment and retention into the program, development of program content such as working in a positive manner with healthcare providers, mentor training and support, and program evaluation. Moderators: Shannen Keene, Rae Howe Birdhat – Health & Human Development Mentor: Suzanne Held Panel Members: • Coleen Trottier: Pre-Medical Certificate • Laurel Fimbel: Community Health • Mikayla Pitts: Community Health • Shannen Keene: Community Health • Rae Birdhat-Howe: Community Health • Brianna Bull Shows: Microbiology MCNAIR SCHOLARS PROGRAM 11:00 am- 12:30 pm The essence of the McNair Scholars Program (MSP) at MSU is to successfully combine faculty mentoring, undergraduate research, and academic support services for students who are preparing themselves for success in graduate school and whose families have not traditionally participated in post-secondary education. One important preparatory aspect of the program is to provide opportunities for scholars to share their research and creative projects at regional & national conferences such as today. The collection of projects previews the diversity of interests, as students in the MSP range from art history to environmental science. * Acknowledgement: This research is funded in part by the US Dept. of Education McNair Scholars Program, grant #P21A130148. 11:00 – Amber Yates, Elementary Education (Mentors – Megan Wickstrom) Title: Mathematical Modelling: Analyzing Students’ Notions of Mathematics in Primary Education 11:15 – Lauren Dupuis, Chemistry (Mentor – Matthew Cook) Title: A Convergent Synthesis of Diazonamide A 11:30 – Nicolette (Alex) Green, Psychology (Mentor – Matthew Vess) Title: True Self Alienation and Mind Wandering: The Relationship 11:45 – Savanah Leidholt, Biological Sciences (Mentor – David Willey, Tom Shultz) Title: Variation in Genetic Composition of O. annularis and O. franksi and their Symbionts by Depth 12:00 – Betheny “Birdie” Kushner, Philosophy (Mentor – Kristen Intemann) Title: Alleviating the Suffering Incurred by Causal Determinism and Other Disorders 12:15 – Uriel Menalled, Sustainable Food and Bioenergy Systems (Mentor – Timothy Seipel) Title: Understaidnign the Interaction of Crop Management System and Crop Identity on Biologically Mediated Plant – Soil Feedbacks 4 MACROEVOLUTION: THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE TREE 1:00 pm- 2:30 pm “Nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution.” This 1973 quote from evolutionary biologist, Theodosius Dobzhansky, is truer than ever before. Researchers since have taken evolutionary theory to new realms of understanding, explaining everything from the vast diversity of organismal forms to how cancer develops and spreads within the human body. The MSU Macroevolution Lab aims to carry the torch of evolutionary theory to better understand our world. Our research applies computational methods to test hypotheses concerning cellular, genomic, organismal, and cultural evolution. Given that this theme is interdisciplinary – consisting of a wide variety of subjects, including cellular and organismal biology, genomics, paleontology, and anthropology – it opens the door for new ideas and collaborations from the MSU community. Moderators: Christopher Organ, Kevin Surya, Jacob Gardner – Honors College, Earth Sciences 1:00 – Gia Fisher, Cell Biology & Neuroscience (Mentors – Christopher Organ) Title: How is Cancer Incidence Driven by Stem Cell Division Rate? 11:15 – Jacob Gardner, Earth Sciences (Mentor – Christopher Organ) Title: The Evolutionary Dynamics of Vertebrate Genome Size 1:30 – Rudy Hummel, Earth Sciences (Mentor – Christopher Organ) Title: The Evolution and Biogeography of the Carnivorous Mammal Predecessors, Gorgonopsia 1:45 – Kevin Surya, Interdisciplinary Studies (Mentor – Christopher Organ) Title: Which Phylogeny Better Fits Species Trait Data: Time or Molecular Tree? 2:00 – Jacob Gardner– Earth Sciences (Mentor – Christopher Organ) Title: The Evolution of Culture and the Rise of Civilizations in Eurasia 5 BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING RESEARCH AT THE MT BENCH AND BEYOND 3:00 pm- 5:00 pm The goal for this session is to describe Biomedical Engineering Research at MSU, including opportunities for students and applications to human health. This work spans multiple departments and includes students from multiple colleges. Biomedical Engineering brings together multiple disciplines including mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, and many types of engineering to develop novel solutions that improve human health and treatment for diseases. Research topics will include neuro-engineering, microfluidics, novel genetic testing technology, and biomechanics. Moderators: Anja Kunze, Ron June, Connie Chang, Stephanie McCalla – Engineering 3:00 – Joseph Cary (Reijo-Pera Lab) Title: Stem Cell Therapy for Multiple Sclerosis 3:15 – Burcu Ozay (McCalla Lab) Title: Ultrasensitive MicroRNA Detection for Disease Diagnosis 3:30