Aperiodic structures cause significant challenges to subtractive manufacturing methods due to the common features such as inaccessible voids within the structure. Additive man- ufacturing presents an appealing alternative for this purpose. The aim of this research is to test analysis heuristics for validity through application to periodic structures. First, a...
The gut microbiome of all mammals is composed of a diverse commune of microorganisms including bacteria, fungi, archaea, protozoa and viruses 1. Studies have shown a symbiotic relationship between the gut microbiome and host physiology, with there being implications in health and disease progression 2. In captive animals, there has...
Hydrogels have been attractive for use as a medium in porous flow studies,
but have always been limited in this role because of their poor mechanical properties.
This project analyzes and tests two recently developed hydrogels,
poly(methacrylamide-co-methacrylic acid) (PMM), and a heat-treated long chain
PVA hydrogel. Particle image velocimetry (PIV)...
Mechanisms of aging and age-related diseases are not completely understood in humans. Studying model organisms like Drosophila melanogaster, also known as the common fruit fly, can help humans better understand the aging process and diseases related to aging. From previous studies demonstrated in Drosophila, an accelerated aging model has been...
Wildfires can create alternative pathways for forest development, and wildfires have expanded in size, frequency, intensity, and severity across the western United States. The purpose of this paper is to compare forest development of a mature Douglas-fir forest in western Oregon across fire severities. Postburn field measurements were collected in...
Scientists have long recognized that bees and other insects respond to floral color, including ultraviolet (UV) floral patterns that are invisible to the human eye. While previous research has focused on isolating and capturing these UV markings in laboratory settings, methods that could be used in natural settings needed to...
The Pacific Islander diaspora in the Pacific Northwest United States is a unique community characterized by diverse cultures, experiences, and motivations for migration. This study aimed to explore the narratives of individuals from different Pacific Islander backgrounds residing in Oregon, shedding light on their reasons for migration and the impact...
This thesis presents innovative pedagogical approaches to teach fundamental Computer Science (CS) concepts, such as abstraction, representation, algorithms, and computation utilizing manipulatives, which are physical objects that students interact with to teach or reinforce a concept. Teaching and learning with manipulatives has a long history in science and mathematics education,...
Cannabis production has gained popularity over the last 10 years. There is a growing demand for true-to-type grain, fiber, and resin crops. Breeding for homozygous trait development with traditional methods can take as long as 8 years. With dihaploid breeding, homozygosity can be achieved in 2 generations saving breeders time...
College students today have a lot to contend with in their journey as young adults. The college years are often a transitional time for students, and as such there is a vulnerability to mental health declines. Financial, academic, and social strain are some of the factors that can contribute to...
The foraging distance of bees has been intensely studied. In contrast, little is known about the factors that determine bee dispersal distance, especially on large spatial scales. Eucera (Peponapis) pruinosa is a wild ground nesting bee that exclusively collects pollen from squash in the genus Cucurbita. Although the bee occurs...
The meaning of life is an enduring philosophical question. This paper seeks to explore the thought of Albert Camus and Robert Nozick on the meaning of life and critically examine their contributions to philosophy. Camus begins with contemplating whether life is worth ending or worth living and concludes that only...
The objectification of women is a scourge of society, related to a host of negative mental and physical health implications for women. Objectification is largely influenced by the types of clothing worn. How much is objectification modified by contextual features (e.g., the situations the clothes are worn in)? In two...
People are increasingly staring at device screens which emit predominantly blue light. Because LED technology is relatively new, we do not know what effects blue light has on our long-term health. Blue light exposure leads to a dramatic decrease in longevity in Drosophila, thus this study aims to explore possible...
The aerospace industry uses chemical kinetic models when designing propulsion systems to acquire specific details about the rate of chemical reactions, heat release, and combustion stability. These models, however, are too large and stiff to be useful as they can take weeks to run computations on. The pyMARS python package...
The development of a continuous and reliable cooling method for computer chips is an evolving subject requiring continuous research in both computer science and thermal management. Two-dye laser induced fluorescence (LIF) provides a minimally invasive way to investigate electronics cooling fluid behavior. Dielectric fluids are of particular interest as they...
The purpose of this research is to provide a simple fabrication method for zinc oxide and antimony sulfide based thin film solar cells. Both a ZnO nanorod electron conducting structure and a stibnite absorber show promise in a solar cell. Initial attempts at using only ZnO and Sb2S3, however, resulted...
On a global scale, illicit economies have dramatic impacts on the physical environment. Cocaine trafficking has been recognized as a major driver of deforestation inside Central American protected areas. A key problem in studying and managing the environmental impacts of illicit economic activity is the difficulty in obtaining reliable data....
The data retrieved from gt;momic sequencing techniques provides the raw information required to infer the basis of mutations and their resulting phenotypes, wherein plant ontologies can be utilized in annotating said phenotypes using a common, shared vocabulary. By relating mutant genes of similar phenotypes both within and between plant species,...
This thesis examines food insecurity in Oregon among food bank users over the course of The Great Recession. Analyzing data from the Oregon Food Bank, this thesis tells the story of the change that the recession brought upon low-income families. In examining the regional differences in food insecurity, the local...
This paper explores the use of sonification, the conversion of data into sound, to convey the significance of SARS-COV-2 and its global impact. It emphasizes sonification as a valuable tool for making complex data accessible, particularly in high school education. Sonification, an interdisciplinary field, leverages the human auditory system's pattern...