PROGRAM OF RESEARCH EXPERIENCES FOR UNDERGRADUATES & GRADUATES AT ALABAMA A&M UNIVERSITY AND NANJING FORESTRY UNIVERSITY Proceedings of the Student Research & Trip Reports May-July 2014 Center for Forest Ecosystem Assessment Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences College of Agricultural, Life, and Natural Sciences This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under REU Grant No. DBI-1063101 and CREST Grant No. HRD-1036600, and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture under Grant No. 2009-51160-05462 and No. 2013- 38821-21250 Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views neither of the National Science Foundation nor of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Research Experiences for Undergraduates and Graduates in China funded by the National Science Foundation & the National Institute of Food and Agriculture & proudly co-hosted by Alabama A&M University and Nanjing Forestry University 2014 Students (from left to right) Andrew Lawhorn, Michael Kennedy, Linzi Thompson, Nicole Mihelich, Hollis Dahn, Morgan Dean, Rosie Long, and Angelica Durrah (missing is Mercedes Bartkovich, who arrived at a later date), along the Huangpu River in Shanghai, China, on our first day in the country after a long flight from the U.S., May 2014. Table of Contents Preface …………………………………………………………………………………………………… vii Acknowledgements ……………………………………………………………………………………… xi List of participating REUG students Undergraduate students…………………………………………………………………………. xii Graduate students ………………………………………………………………………………. xiv List of participating REU mentors Alabama A&M University mentors ……………………………………………………………. xv Nanjing Forestry University mentors ……………………………………................................... xvii Other participants and institutions..…………………………………………………………………….. xix SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH PAPERS Undergraduates Rosie Long ………….………………………………………………………………………….. 3 Hollis Dahn …………………………………………………………………………………….. 17 Andrew Lawhorn .………………………………………………………………………………. 31 Michael Kennedy .………………………………………………………………………………. 48 Nicole Mihelich ………………………………………………………………………………… 63 Morgan Dean …………………………………………………………………………………… 84 Linzi Thompson ……………………………………………………………………………….. 104 Graduates Angelica Durrah ……………………………………………………………………………….. 141 Mercedes Bartkovich ………………………………………………………………………….. 156 CULTURAL TRIP EXPERIENCES: ESSAYS Undergraduates Rosie Long ………….…………………………………………………………………………. 184 Hollis Dahn ……………………………………………………………………………………. 190 Andrew Lawhorn .…………………………………………………………….......................... 197 Michael Kennedy .…………………………………………………………………………….. 203 Nicole Mihelich ……………………………………………………………………………….. 208 Morgan Dean ………………………………………………………………………………….. 217 Linzi Thompson ………………………………………………………………………………… 225 Graduates Angelica Durrah ……………………………………………………………………………….. 235 Mercedes Bartkovich ………………………………………………………………………….. 242 Preface Background Citing the strategic importance of the U.S.-China relationship, in November 2009 President Barack Obama announced the “100,000 Strong” initiative, a national effort designed to dramatically increase the number and diversity of the composition of American students studying in China. In May 2010, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton officially launched the initiative in Beijing (Clinton 2010). The “100,000 Strong” initiative seeks to prepare the next generation of American experts on China who will be charged with managing the growing political, economic and cultural ties between the U.S. and China. The initiative also seeks to develop specific opportunities and funding sources for under-represented students to study in China. The need for Americans to gain greater exposure to and understanding of China is clear: there is perhaps no more important or complex relationship in the world than that between the U.S. and China in terms of securing global peace and security. Virtually no major international issue, whether global economic recovery or climate change or nuclear non-proliferation, can be solved effectively without the active engagement of both the U.S. and China. However, American knowledge of Chinese society and customs is inadequate. Ten times more Chinese students come to the U.S. for educational programs than Americans who study in China, and 600 times more Chinese study the English language than Americans study Mandarin (Clinton 2013). This imbalance in knowledge can undermine trust, and thus the relationship, between the two countries. Redressing this imbalance is essential in ensuring that Americans have the cultural understanding and language skills that underpin effective diplomacy and foreign policy, which will also enhance our students’ ability to succeed academically and professionally in the global environment. Through the efforts of the Center of Forest Ecosystem Assessment, funded by National Science Foundation’s CREST program (Grant number HRD-1036600) , Alabama A&M University (AAMU) was awarded a three-year grant by the USDA-National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) International Science and Education Program (ISE) in 2009 (Grant number: 2009-51160-05462) to develop an international exchange program with China. The program was designed to strengthen AAMU's ability to develop globally competent students and faculty through collaborative partnerships with higher education institutions and research organizations in China. The program focuses on the fields of agricultural and environmental sciences. The exchange program also aims to enhance courses with international contexts to prepare and mentor students for international opportunities in agricultural and environmental sciences, as well as to add new dimensions to scientific research and teaching capabilities of AAMU faculty via exposure to international resources and technologies. Our primary Chinese partner for this vii program is Nanjing Forestry University (NFU), a comprehensive university with a tradition of forestry programs. The development and the opportunities created by this program led to a new three-year program: Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) in China, funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) in 2011 (Grant number: DBI-106310). The primary goal of the NSF REU program is to expose undergraduate students with an interest in pursuing a graduate research degree in science to hands-on research experiences. In 2013, we were funded through the National Institute of Food and Agriculture’s Capacity Grant (No. 2013-38821-21250) to further enhance our program by establishing the collaboration and involvement of students and faculty from another minority institution in Alabama: Tuskegee University (TU). This multi- institutional and multi-agency joint project have created great opportunities for many faculty and students, particularly those from minority serving or small institutions with limited research and international programs, to gain valuable research experience under a challenging, but enjoyable, international setting. In the summer of 2010 and 2011, a total of twenty-five students and faculty from AAMU participated in this program and travelled to China. In the summer of 2012, a total of twelve students from six different institutions across USA and five faculty/staff members joined the program; and in the summer of 2013, a total of thirteen students and six faculty/staff participated in the program. This Year’s Program In the summer of 2014, eight undergraduate students from seven different institutions across the U.S. (including AAMU), three AAMU graduate students, and eight faculty/staff participated in the REUG program. These numbers also included one undergraduate student and two faculty members from Tuskegee University. The program started with a three day orientation at AAMU to prepare for international travel. Once we arrived in China, students and faculty engaged in a variety of courses including Chinese language, culture, and history classes taught by NFU faculty, as well as scientific writing, statistics, and how to create PowerPoint presentations and posters by AAMU faculty and graduate students. All students were paired with a primary mentor in the U.S. prior to travel. Mentors included graduate students and faculty from both AAMU and TU. Upon arrival at NFU, students were then paired with a second mentor from NFU, with similar research interests. Students then met with mentors to devise and conduct a research project. Research topics included a diversity of subjects such as "Songbird Species in China: Evaluation of DNA Extraction Kits, Primers, and Feather Age", "Occurrence of Typical Antibiotics in Huai River and Hongze Lake, Eastern China," "Bat Forage and Insect Communities in Three Habitat Types in Nanjing, China," and "The Adsorption Behavior of Black Carbon in Urban Forest and Traffic District Soils Toward Heavy Metal Ions (Cu, Zn)," “Establishment of a Riparian Buffer Strip for Alleviating Lake Eutrophication,” among others. viii Students learned how to design a research project, collect data, operate research equipment, analyze data, and communicate their research results to their peers. The team took two extended educational/cultural trips in Jiangsu Province during the program. The first trip (2 days) brought them to Wuxi, Yixing, and the Tai Lake (Tài Hú) area. This trip was designed to help students and faculty understand bamboo ecology, the applications of bamboo in daily life, and bamboo as a biomass potential. During this trip,