Researchers hypothesized that students felt less motivated to complete their academic work during the online learning period and that it resulted in an increase in the prevalence and severity of academic dishonesty. Participants of 18 years or older completed a survey pertaining to their engagement in academic dishonesty and the factors that contributed. Our results showed a significant relationship between academic dishonesty in online courses and a lack of motivation.

Although metal casting is one of the world's oldest manufacturing technologies, there have been significant challenges in visual observation of liquid metal. This research project presents a solution in the form of machined transparent acrylic molds and novel integration of digital tools (smartphone velocimetry and open-source computational models) to visualize metal flow and understand its fundamental behavior. Outcomes of this research includes both new scientific and manufacturing education tools to benefit the society. 

New trans-translation inhibitors alter the conformation of ribosomal protein L27, suggesting a novel mechanism for specific trans-translation inhibition. Deletions were made at the N-terminus of L27 to see how the protein interacts with the inhibitors after these deletions. Findings suggest changes in inhibitory concentrations among inhibitors, indicating different interactions with the L27 protein. 

Programmed Cell Death-1 (PD-1) blockade inhibits the interaction between PD-1 and its receptors PD-L1/L2. PD-L1 blockade fails to address the engagement between PD-L2 and PD-1. Bispecific antibodies (BsAbs) provide dual ligand specificity, allowing blockade of PDL1/2. I compared the efficacy and specificity of BsAbs with clinical anti-PD-L1 antibodies, and their in vivo efficacy. PD-L1/L2 BsAbs promote ADCC activity against target cells expressing PDL1/2.  BsAbs possess higher in vivo efficacy in a mouse colon cancer model.

Continental rifting is a tectonic process that creates oceans and influences the arrangement of continents on Earth’s surface. By analyzing xenoliths (samples of the lithosphere from ~100 km depth) in lavas from southeastern Uganda, we suggest localized melting of metasomatic lithosphere is sufficient to encourage continental rift formation and propagation. The xenoliths contain evidence for C-rich fluid metasomatism and extensive infiltration by silicate liquids (magmas), suggesting a key link between fluid movement and crustal weakening.

Over the past two decades, the number of emigrants fleeing the Northern Triangle (El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala) has increased dramatically. These migrants are often categorized as economic migrants, but this thesis argues political instability is a causal factor of emigration out of the Northern Triangle. In order to determine the effect political instability has on emigration, this analysis investigates three aspects of political instability: ungoverned spaces, gang involvement in politics, and corruption.

Police interactions with the public have gained considerable media attention. Prior research has examined the impact of news media and television drama series consumption on perceptions of police effectiveness. However, there is little empirical research on the relationship between categories of news and perceptions of police. Using self-report survey data collected from a representative sample of more than 1,000 Americans, this study examined the relationship between mass media consumption and perceptions of police.

Wetlands play an essential role in regulating the Earth's hydrologic and biogeochemical cycles. Amounts of soil carbon and manganese are hypothesized to influence soil carbon oxidation and manganese reduction. Four soils with differing amounts of soil carbon and manganese were saturated and manganese oxidation was assessed following a saturation period. These interactions may be valuable when using manganese oxide as an indicator of wetland reduction potential and biogeochemistry dynamics related to manganese and carbon.

College student drinking impacts academic success and planning. Positive self-efficacy has been associated with less negative drinking outcomes. Longitudinal associations were examined between self-efficacy, drinking, and academic consequences among college students during their first two semesters (N=2024; M(SD)age=18.18(.39); 56% female). First semester self-efficacy was associated with significantly less second semester drinking and academic consequences (p < .05). Drinking interventions that emphasize self-efficacy could reduce risky drinking behaviors and increase academic success among college students.

Lipoproteins are abundant proteins found on the surface of cell membranes. Lipoproteins are very important ligands for detection by the innate immune system. The main goal of this research is to identify how any structural changes to lipoproteins may affect Toll-like Receptor detection. Detergent partitioning is used to extract and analyze lipoprotein structure in Bifidobactrerium angulatum. We are currently optimizing liporptein extraction protocols to improve yields from Bifido species.

Benefit Corporations are changing the global economy as well as addressing issues that pertain to the planet and communities. The purpose of this research was to learn more about B Corps and how the B Lab certification process for companies looking to become B Corps occurs. A literature review was conducted to analyze different companies that are B Corps, evaluate the certification process, and to perform two key informant interviews. 

The present study examines how Dutch native language listeners (L1) with English as their second language (L2) comprehend English sentences produced in Dutch-accented English, Southern-American English, Chinese-accented English, and unmarked American English. These sentences were presented in noisy and in quiet conditions, as previous studies suggest that noisy environments can exacerbate one’s difficulty in comprehending unfamiliar accents. So far, 25 Dutch-English bilingual listeners have completed the experiment, and findings will be available shortly and presented.

Few efficient and reliable methods currently exist to identify and quantify microplastics in complex matrices. In our current study, we developed a method to identify microplastics in water and sediment samples sourced locally from four locations in Spring Creek in State College, PA. After completing digestion/density separation procedures, the particles were filtered according to size fraction and subsequently identified via FT-IR in reflectance or ATR-mode.

Bacillus subtilis contains N-acetylated lipoproteins that are involved in sporulation, however, the specific enzymes involved in the acetylation process are unknown. This research aims to identify the impact of genes associated with lipoprotein synthesis on B. subtilis spore germination through the use of germination assays and the determination of sporulation efficiency. 

Political scientists have hypothesized that empathy can be a key tool towards reducing affective polarization by encouraging cross-party understanding, but studies have shown that empathy can intensify both positive or negative emotions towards political out-groups. I propose that diversity of news readership nuances the power of empathy to reduce overall affective polarization. However, my regression suggests that the interaction between empathy and news readership actually increases affective polarization.

For the first few million years of their lives, young stars accrete surrounding material. This process creates unique features in the stellar spectrum, the strengths of which can be used to estimate the accretion rate; knowing such accretion rates consequently helps astronomers constrain models for planet formation. This project focuses on measuring accretion rates of stars observed with the VIRUS spectrograph aboard the Hobby Eberly Telescope, using a new powerful approach built off Bayesian statistics.

Prior research has not adequately identified variations in nostalgia valence across cultures. In my study, I will recruit participants from collectivistic and individualistic cultures, create a baseline condition, and follow it with an experimental condition in which they write about a nostalgia experience, and rate their emotions along two unipolar valence dimensions using the Evaluative Space Model. My expected findings include a higher negative valence when experiencing nostalgia in collectivistic cultures compared to individualistic cultures.

Sigma 54 dependent transcription and transcription factors are important to study in the squid vibrio system because they play a vital role in symbiosis of the Hawaiian Bobtail Squid, Euprymna scolopes. Sigma 54 dependent transcription is important to study outside of the squid vibrio system because it controls important bacterial stress response genes in pathogenicity and in agriculture5. Here we show that sigma54 dependent transcription is not necessary for growth and bioluminescence in rich media.

This project aims to provide a more nuanced view of how environmental manipulation, such as the destruction of crops, natural resources, or water, enhances territorial control, which in turn facilitates the centralization of state power and the building of institutional capacity. I argue that by engaging in these acts of environmental manipulations these state-makers are engaging in the four functions of statemaking to increase their extraction capabilities which fuel their statemaking, warmaking, and protection capabilities.

Varroa mites are a major pest that have been negatively impacting honey bee colonies for decades. In this experiment, I test whether manipulating the amount of brood within a colony would be a valid pest management strategy for honey bee colonies. I predicted that colonies with removed brood frames would have a lower mite level. The results showed no significant difference between colonies with added, removed, or controlled brood frames.

The squid-vibrio symbiosis exists naturally as a multi-strain symbiosis. High-throughput growth assays have been used to characterized the growth of individual strains of V. fischeri using optical density. A modified assay tracking differential fluorescence over time in mixed culture allows for the growth of individual strains to be tracked. This assay can be utilized to determine how individual strains grow in mixed culture and to identify potential synergistic or antagonistic effects of strains on growth. 

Diarylethenes (DAEs) have gained popularity among photochromic compounds as they can switch between two isomeric states with each having unique properties.  In this study we explore Suzuki methodology for the synthesis of halogen terminated quinone based DAEs that exhibit halogen bonding in single crystals.  Future work is aimed at exploring the utility of these quinone DAEs for the construction of framework type compounds.

Late Embryogenesis Abundant (LEA) proteins are most commonly known for their tolerance of desiccation and high salt concentrations in living organisms due to their hydrophilic properties and formation of amphipathic alpha helices. Provided this functionality and challenges in the vitrification process of cryo-EM, incorporation of LEA proteins in the freezing of samples could potentially allow it to act as a cryo-protective agent to reduce crystalline ice formation and prevent sample degradation through molecular shielding.

The Crab Pulsar emits radio waves from its magnetic poles. Using data from a radio telescope I attempted to answer: Is there a correlation between the number of giant pulses and the giant pulse intensity? We concluded that the giant pulse count decreases with the signal to noise ratio and the time between giant pulses is either a multiple of a period, or a multiple the time between the main pulse and interpulse.