In the fall of 2005, I studied abroad in Athens, Greece for one term. This is retelling of experiences that I had, written in the style of my memories. While I was in Greece, I kept an electronic diary, a picture diary, and a scrapbook to keep my memories vivid...
Un Paseo Encantado, an enchanted walk, is a collection of my observations and experiences in a study abroad program in Oviedo, Spain. My commentary on Spanish culture is based on reading I did prior my departure, in combination with my observations while in Spain. In six chapters, I explore the...
Otoferlin is a protein that is essential in the process of hearing. Mutations in otoferlin are associated with profound recessive deafness. The long-term goal of the Johnson lab is to understand how otoferlin contributes to hearing and why certain mutations result in deafness. This project sought to characterize the difference...
Perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) hay is an important source of forage for a variety of livestock species, and is most common in cool, coastal climates such as the Pacific Northwest. An endophyte fungus called Neotyphodium lolii frequently colonizes this grass to promote insect resistance, drought tolerance, and growth enhancement without...
Over 76 cities throughout the United States have already adopted policies to limit the expansion of natural gas, mainly through updates to city codes that ban natural gas infrastructure in new construction. Rising concern over the environmental and public health impacts of methane - a greenhouse gas with a much...
Sablefish is a highly sought after seafood delicacy for which aquaculture of this species has recently been developed. By understanding the immunological functions in sablefish, our goal was to develop a mammalian fluorescent bioparticle assay that can viably analyze the efficiency of phagocytosis, an important function of the immune system....
The majority of people suffer from back pain at some point in their lives. Back pain is the leading cause of disability globally, ahead of 290 other conditions1. Over one million people in the United States receive spine surgery annually2. This thesis looked at five standard surgical procedures performed on...
Genetic code expansion (GCE) is a technology that allows us to incorporate noncanonical amino acids (ncAAs) site-specifically into recombinant proteins using engineered translational machinery. Typically, an orthogonal aaRS/tRNA pair is engineered by directed evolution to recognize the ncAA and incorporate it at a reassigned codon while not interacting with the...
An apparatus and method for calibrating planar laser induced fluorescence using a two-dye, two-color method was developed. A laser sheet was expanded from a 473 nm laser to excite dye solutions into higher energy states then fluoresced through spontaneous emission. The two fluorescent dyes selected for research and development were...
Background:
There are over four billion YouTube views per day with “music” the most searched topic. Among US internet users, 8.3 million YouTube users are under 18 years old. Incorporation of substance use imagery in YouTube videos has a considerable potential influence on young viewing audience behavior. This study identifies...