Background
Feline injection-site sarcoma (FISS) is a rare and aggressive tumor associated with vaccines, drug injections, and skin trauma in cats. The understanding of FISS remains limited, posing challenges in its diagnosis, treatment, and prevention. In this study, we analyzed the differential expression of miRNAs and their target genes in...
Crystals are solid materials with periodic and symmetric molecular patterns. The structure of a crystalline solid determines its properties, making it essential to study its structures. From the principle of minimum energy, a crystal will choose a structure with the lowest free energy F = U – TS. At low...
Onion thrips (Thrips tabaci) are pests found in onion fields of the Treasure Valley, which is located in Eastern Oregon and Western Idaho. Thrips cause damage to this high value crop by feeding on the onion’s extracellular fluid, making photosynthesis more difficult to occur. The feeding from the thrips can...
Semiconductors serve an integral role in our technologies today. However, with new advancements in ultra-fast electronics, we are approaching the fundamental speed limits of traditional silicon-based semiconductors. Silicon-based semiconductors typically exhibit photocarrier dynamics in nanosecond timescales. Transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) are 2D materials shown to exhibit photocarrier dynamics in picosecond...
The North American Nanohertz Observatory for Gravitational Waves (NANOGrav) is an international collaboration that seeks to use perturbations in the time of arrivals of pulsar signals to detect gravitational waves in the nanohertz range of frequencies. The 15-year data set will be released as of June 2023. It is a...
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...
There is a growing need to establish alternative approaches for assessing hazard from chemical exposure compared to the traditional method of animal testing. Approaches that relate chemical structure to biological activity are gaining acceptance in the field as in silico methods for characterizing and predicting chemical toxicity. In this study,...
Transparent conductive oxides (TCO) are at the forefront of technology with their uses in
touch screen phones and televisions, solar cells and more. Titanium dioxide and tin dioxide are two TCOs that have been studied in depth on their own, so to further explore these TCOs, this project focuses on...
Cascadia is the physiographic region defined by the active tectonics and attendant geo-hazards of the Cascadia Subduction Zone. In contrast to many other coastal environments in the U.S., geo-hazards along the Cascadia coast are dominated by a tectonic context on the Pacific rim “ring of fire.” Washington, Oregon, and California...
Organic semiconductors are a promising alternative to the traditional inorganic semiconductors, such as silicon. Organics are solution-processable, low-cost, sustainable, and have interesting optoelectronic properties. One such property is the formation of exciton-polaritons, quantum quasi-particles formed by an electron-hole pair in the semiconductor and a photon. This process can be induced...
Naturally, we may assume that group rapport is critical for producing high-quality group performance (such as among work groups, sports teams, or even research collaborators). With this in mind, the purpose of this investigation was to test this assumption by exploring the relationship between self-reported group rapport and group-level social...
Phytophthora ramorum is the causal agent of Sudden Oak Death (SOD), which is an economically and environmentally important disease causing up to 80% mortality of tanoaks in Pacific Northwest coastal forests (LeBoldus et al., 2022). There are currently four clonal lineages in the United States and Europe, named North America...
Brownian motion is the movement of a particle in a fluid resulting from collisions with surrounding molecules. It has modern applications in simulating fluid dynamics and the motion of proteins in biophysics. Brownian motion simulations generally evolve the initial state by applying Newton’s second law to every particle. These simulations...
Farewell-to-spring (Clarkia amoena) is native to the Pacific Northwest and commonly found in gardens, due to its aesthetic value and purported benefits to pollinators. Oregon and Washington are home to five subspecies of C. amoena, yet commercially available seed is limited to C. amoena ssp. lindleyi and C. amoena cultivars....
Sweetpotatoes are a highly nutritious staple crop, playing an important role in global nutritional security. Although the majority of research in the United States (U.S.) focuses on the cultivation of the storage roots, both the leaves and roots are edible. Sweetpotatoes are indigenous to the Andes Region of South America;...
Objective: In 2018, suicide was the leading cause of death for individuals between the ages of 10-24 in Oregon (OHA, 2019) and was the second leading cause of death for this age range in 2020 (OHA, 2021). In 2019, 12% of Black high school students reported a suicide attempt in...
Female dairy cattle are particularly prone to infertility/subfertility with pregnancy rates ranging as low as 27% to a high 40%. On average it takes more than one breeding/insemination event for dairy cattle to become pregnant. This results in a loss of the number of calves a female would have per...
Infertility is an issue affecting millions of women across the globe, yet the causes are not fully understood, and treatment options are often ineffective. The evaluation of reproductive hormones has been a common tool used by fertility clinics as a way to predict the ovarian response to treatment and gain...
Giardia and Cryptosporidium protozoans are resilient, zoonotic waterborne pathogens that can bypass water treatment and kill millions of people and animals annually. Giardia and Cryptosporidium cysts and oocysts, respectively, can spread through feces; poor sanitation and poverty can increase the risk for giardiasis and cryptosporidiosis diarrheal diseases. We are currently...
To evaluate and monitor insecticide resistance in onion thrips Thrips tabaci on onion (Allium cepa), we conducted a study using three field populations in the Treasure Valley of eastern Oregon and southwestern Idaho using the insecticides Lannate (methomyl) and Exirel (cyantraniliprole). To evaluate these two insecticides, biological assays were conducted...
Eccentric rate of force development (ECC RFD) is a measure of the rate at which muscles can generate decelerative forces. However, it has traditionally been measured while jumping on force plates, which are not easily accessible or easy to use in a practical setting. With technology advancements it may be...
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are a known class of chemicals that are linked to a multitude of adverse health outcomes. There are over 1,500 of these chemicals across various families and subgroups. 16 of these PAHs, known as parent PAHs, are identified by the EPA for focused risk assessment within...
Computational statistical mechanics leans heavily on the class of Markov Chain Monte Carlo Algorithms. Many such algorithms exist, and simulations can run for several weeks, making the selection of algorithms a difficult, but critical task. In this work, we introduce a benchmark system of two quadratic wells with an analytical...
With the unique conceptual and mathematical backgrounds of every introductory physics student, there is no way to design a rigid curriculum that anticipates and meets every student’s needs. We can employ machine learning to explore the correlations that exist in the voluminous data from educational settings. That is, institutional, gradebook,...
Freshwater flux from the Greenland Ice Sheet has the capacity to affect regional and global circulation as well as contribute to sea level rise. Outlet glaciers are an important part of this process. They provide pathways for inland glaciers and ice sheets to melt and drain into the surrounding oceans....
This paper is a literature review and analysis of the housing policy known as Housing First. Under said policy, homeless individuals are housed prior to requisite addiction and mental health services. The literature encompasses multiple randomized controlled trials, as well as broader observational studies on Permanent Supportive Housing. The studies...
This paper presents a brief discussion on the phenomenon of exercise-induced insulin sensitization, including the effects of exercise on insulin-stimulated glucose uptake and potential mechanisms mediating these effects. Originally created for KIN 481 (Writing Intensive Curriculum course).
Pacific Northwest temperate rainforests are anticipated to experience increasingly frequent and severe wildfires in the foreseeable future due to climate change, increased fuel loads, and deforestation. Soil, underlying these forests, is the largest terrestrial carbon (“C”) reservoir. Fire disturbance influences soil C persistence, the timeframe and magnitude of which remain...
Research paper for GEOG323 (Climatology) class describing the effects of physiographic setting, climate elements related to energy, moisture, and pressure and corresponding results on New Zealand's North Island Climate. The paper analyzes major circulation modes, weather patterns and extremes, climate change, and the overall climate type of the region.
The purpose of this inventory is to detail the state of environmental justice in the Mid- Willamette Valley in an up-to-date, centralized format. The inventory is based on information from various government sources, and a survey to gather first-person perspective to take a pulse of the wellbeing of our community....
Testing the many potential chemoprevention agents from dietary sources in animal or human models is expensive and takes a long time. In vitro models can be useful for screening the right compounds to use in larger studies. We tested the MatTek™ EpiIntestinal™ small intestine epithelial 3D cell culture model for...
Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) play an integral role in climate change and as a carbon source for organisms living in a marine environment. These compounds have many sources, but the impacts of biogenically produced VOCs is not fully known. Phaeodactylum tricornutum was studied under axenic ideal growth conditions to determine...
This is the final version of an essay on a student's connection to the land as part of their Writing Intensive Course, Forest Engineering FE460 Forest Operations Regulations and Policy Issues. The theme for the essay is the student's choice, but must include the history of the piece of land,...
Background: The immune response to microbial infections is compromised in beef cattle at parturition. Innate and adaptive immunoglobulin M (IgM) serve as initial antibodies during microbial infection before the generation of adaptive immunoglobulin G (IgG). Selenium (Se) is an essential micronutrient required by all mammals, which can improve immune responses...
Microplastics (<5mm) are a ubiquitous environmental pollutant that have the potential to cause significant harm in many fish species. Therefore, understanding the quantities at which they are being consumed by living organisms is crucial for characterizing risk. There are currently gaps in the microplastic literature regarding microplastic data from finfish...
Soil contains approximately 75% of the carbon pool on land - three times more than the amount stored in living plants and animals (Schlesinger 1999). Therefore, soils play a major role in maintaining a balanced global carbon cycle. Models of the soil carbon ecosystem assume a strong relationship between organic...
Microplastics (<5mm) are a ubiquitous environmental pollutant that have the potential to cause significant harm in many fish species. Therefore, understanding the quantities at which they are being consumed by living organisms is crucial for characterizing risk. There are currently gaps in the microplastic literature regarding microplastic data from finfish...
The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted disparities in land access and food security. Research has shown that access to gardening reduces financial burdens on low-income households. Compared to homeowners, individuals and families in rental housing face added barriers to vegetable gardening and growing food. These barriers include rental housing regulations and the...
This report provides an overview of selected findings from the 2019 NSSE survey completed at OSU. It focuses on two particular subsets of the survey results: Engagement Indicators and High-Impact Practices. The report outlines the insights drawn from the survey to look at the undergraduate student experience at OSU.
The decline of the Chinook Salmon has been a mystery of recent years due to their decline. It has been speculated that wild origin salmon have more vigor and survivability than hatchery reared fish. This is thought to be due to rearing conditions, possibly affecting sensory organ development. The sensory...
The decline of the Chinook Salmon has been a mystery of recent years due to their decline. It has been speculated that wild origin salmon have more vigor and survivability than hatchery reared fish. This is thought to be due to rearing conditions, possibly affecting sensory organ development. The sensory...
STEM education is delivered to K12 audiences by Pre-college Programs across the nation, many of which serve underrepresented and underserved students as part of their core missions. While there is robust attention to STEM curriculum development and college connection events in such programs, few have social-cultural aspects of learning as...
Background: Uterine inflammation (e.g., endometritis) causes negative economic effects in the beef industry by reducing reproductive performance. Current treatments for endometritis in beef cattle involve hormones and antibiotics, which can be expensive and are often ineffective. The endometrial immune response regulates the release of cytokines and chemokines in response to...
STEM education is delivered to K12 audiences by Pre-college Programs across the nation, many of which serve underrepresented and underserved students as part of their core missions. While there is robust attention to STEM curriculum development and college connection events in such programs, few have social-cultural aspects of learning as...
The following text is a consolidated version of the Cakrasaṃvara Samādhi, along with the Guru Maṇḍala, Sūryārgha, Pañcagavya, Guru Pādārgha, Kāybhaḥ Pūjā, Rahasya Pūjā, Kalaśa Pūjā, Vāruṇī Pūjā, Bali Pūjā, Kīgaḥ Tine, and a Pātra Jñāna. The Cakrasaṃvara Samādhi, as has been discussed above, is the primary pūjā and sādhanā...
Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) is an idiopathic disorder prevalent in ~5-10% of reproductive-aged women. In PCOS women who become pregnant, many experience complications including increased susceptibility of having a miscarriage, high blood pressure, and gestational diabetes, among others. Additionally, exposure to PCOS may have transgenerational impacts: offspring may be at...
This study used SCOUT optical modelling software to create models of the reflectance and transmittance spectra generated by mixtures of titanium dioxide (TiO2) and tin oxide (SnO2). These models enabled identification of how altering the ratio of a mixture changes the optical response. By being able to identify how altering...
Gravitational wave (GW) astronomy is a key ingredient in confirming Einstein’s theory of General Relativity and showing how the universe sends ripples through spacetime, distorting distances between two points. The confirmation of high-frequency GWs observed by The Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) in 2015 was a breakthrough in our understanding...
Hatcheries are used to produce salmon to augment the number of fish available for harvest, and to supplement wild populations that may be threatened with extinction. Although traditional hatchery rearing methods can produce many fish, they can pose risk to wild populations because they tend to produce salmon with lower...
Solutions to Einstein's equations are usually found by considering ideal, simplified models. However, if the real world always matched ideal physics models, then farmers would milk black and white spheres. To combat this, Regge calculus was developed as a numerical approximation scheme for general relativity. In Regge calculus curved manifolds...
The purpose of this project is to verify scattering mechanisms in semiconductors by measuring transport properties and producing data that reflects existing research. The Hall effect is utilized to measure the resistivity, mobility and charge carrier concentration of the semiconductors: indium tin oxide (ITO), p-type silicon, and n-type silicon. By...
Different models show the effects of environmental decoherence on a quantum system
due to various environments of interest. One important quantity within these models is
the decoherence time, which tells us how quickly environments wash away the coherence of
local measurements. We can describe this effect as the quantum system...
A new class at Oregon State, PH 317: Experimental Physics, is designed to simulate a traditional laboratory research experience for undergraduate students. Several weeks of the class is devoted to Brownian motion experiments. Although this is a common topic for undergraduate lab classes, the experiment still needed some basic exploration...
Type I collagen fibers, the connective tissue that makes up the human breast, can be easily manipulated by cells or other outside factors. In previous studies, the alignment of collagen has been associated with the beginning of metastatic cancer, possibly influencing cancerous cells to migrate from the tumor. In this...
Detecting gravitational waves is a topic at the forefront of physics. The first gravitational wave was detected by LIGO in 2015. This wave had a frequency in the 10s of Hz. This project is focused on detecting gravitational waves on the nanohertz spectrum using a pulsar timing array. This array...
The motor protein dynein is responsible for cellular processes such as axonal transport and cell division by delivering vital information along the microtubule track. A failed delivery can cause severe damage to the cell’s functionality and lead to neurological diseases. Despite dynein’s rich history in cellular research, the mechanism of...
Organic semiconducting materials have emerged in the last few decades as viable alternatives to inorganics in broad applications from field effect transistors to LEDs to solar cells. Organics provide many benefits over inorganics such as flexibility, sustainability, and reduced cost. However, these materials are more susceptible to degradation in the...
Terahertz (THz) frequencies of the electromagnetic spectrum have been underutilized when compared to neighboring microwave and infrared frequencies, largely due to the difficulties controlling and detecting these fields. In a step toward gaining control over THz frequencies, my advisor Dr. Yun-Shik Lee’s group experimentally demonstrated optical-pulse THz-control over a plasmonic...
Presented via Zoom at the OSU Religious Studies 2021 Spring Conference.
This paper takes an analytical look at the 2014 Supreme Court Case Burwell v Hobby Lobbly. This case is an example of the intersection of religion with capitalism, healthcare, feminism, and public policy. This case looks to answer the...
This paper was written for GEOG 323 Climatology in the Spring of 2021, and was awarded the Writing in Culture Award within the College of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences.
The forebody wake effect (FWE) is important to consider when designing parachute systems because it can affect parachute performance. Parachutes work by altering the aerodynamic properties of an attached forebody to control a descent. The FWE can reduce parachute drag, causing the system to descend faster than desired. This drag...
Hatcheries are used to produce salmon to augment the number of fish available for harvest, and to supplement wild populations that may be threatened with extinction. Although traditional hatchery rearing methods can produce many fish, they can pose risk to wild populations because they tend to produce salmon with lower...
Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) is an idiopathic disorder prevalent in ~5-10% of reproductive-aged women. In PCOS women who become pregnant, many experience complications including increased susceptibility of having a miscarriage, high blood pressure, and gestational diabetes, among others. Additionally, exposure to PCOS may have transgenerational impacts: offspring may be at...
BioResource Research thesis defense presentation for Tyler Sato Spofford.
The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted disparities in land access and food security. Research has shown that access to gardening reduces financial burdens on low-income households. Compared to homeowners, individuals and families in rental housing face added barriers to vegetable gardening and growing...
We are constantly updating our research in the growing field of Environmental Health, yet we do not always translate this information in a way which is understood by the general public. This has resulted in tools which gauge the public’s understanding of health information, such as the eHEALS tool. This...
Nutrients play a large role in sustaining the symbiotic relationship between the algae and host sea anemone. The endosymbiotic algae provides the host with fixed nitrogen, sugars, and inorganic food sources, while the host provides the algae with shelter and nitrogenous waste. If the anemone does not receive the proper...
This research was an attempt at gaining insight into the nature of the incompressibility conditions of the Navier-Stokes Equations on the Unit Circle. We realized the Riesz transformation is given in R^3 after taking the Fourier Transform of the Neumann Boundary Value problem, but this is not well defined on...
Vitiligo is a disease characterized by depigmented patches of skin. The disease is known to involve the loss of melanocytes in the basal layer of the skin in affected areas, but the underlying mechanisms are unknown. Recent evidence suggests oxidative stress and disruptions to antioxidant pathways contribute to an autoimmune...
Anaerobic digestion is a common terminal step in wastewater treatment systems and produces valuable by-products such as biogas, a combination of carbon dioxide and methane. Biogas can be used to off-set energy costs, and along with the anaerobic co-digestion of fats, oils, and greases (FOG) has been found to increase...
The rocky shores of the US West Coast are home to diverse ecological communities made up of species that are uniquely adapted for survival at the harsh boundary between land and sea. Even so, physical or environmental stressors regularly kill swaths of animals on the rocks. This is called disturbance....
My work in the Harper Nanotoxicology Lab focuses on science communication. The Harper Lab conducts research to address data gaps regarding the toxicity of micro and nanoplastic in the environment, specifically in aquatic habitats. It is important for the public to understand what the lab does, and how they can...
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in the State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2018, has observed that the trend of the world’s marine fish stocks has been overexploited, depleted, and has exhibited decreasing trend within the fraction of biologically sustainable levels. While these situations are an alarming...
Foreign occupation and extraction have arguably existed since the very emergence of interstate conflict millennia ago. Yet despite humanity’s vast experience on the topic, we know surprisingly little about its long-term economic consequences. It is generally accepted by most that the extraction of resources by a foreign power tends to...
Acetaminophen (APAP) is a commonly used analgesic and antipyretic drug that can cause liver injury, liver necrosis, and liver failure. APAP-induced liver failure (AILF) is associated with depletion of glutathione and the increased formation of APAP protein adducts from the toxic NAPQI metabolite. There is a hypothesized detoxifying pathway where...
Blueberry stem galls in Pacific Northwest are often attributed to Agrobacterium tumefaciens. The disease also is associated with indole-3-acetic-acid (IAA) producing bacteria, as described on cranberry stem gall. Lack of studies makes it difficult to conclude whether these two types of bacteria could be the causal agent of stem gall...
Top predators play important roles in regulating communities and ecosystem processes in freshwater ecosystems. In the headwater stream network, it is crucial to understand the interspecific interaction between multiple predators. In Oregon forested ecosystems, Coastal Giant Salamander (Dicamptodon tenebrosus) and cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii) are the top predators in many...
A feature of large continental magmatic systems is voluminous dacite ignimbrites erupted from upper crustal magma reservoirs. In the Altiplano Puna Volcanic Complex (APVC) of the Central Andes, a major ignimbrite and caldera plateau, magma systems are found to be long-lived and remarkably homogeneous requiring that they be maintained by...
Benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P) is a common environmental pollutant produced from the incomplete combustion of organic matter, such as fossil fuel emissions. In vertebrates, B[a]P exposure is associated with hyperactivity, though the underlying mechanisms driving this effect are undescribed. Mounting evidence indicates that the gut microbiome, which is the diverse community of...
The 4.59-4.18 Ma Caspana ignimbrite, found within the Altiplano-Puna Volcanic Complex (APVC), is the result of an ~8km3 eruption that took place during the Neogene Ignimbrite Flare-up in the N. Chilean Andes. While most of the eruptions during this flare up are large, monogenetic eruptions, the Caspana that is characterized...
The variability of heavy metal concentrations (Pb, Cd, Zn, and Cu) of the terrestrial moss Orthotrichum lyellii on single trees was evaluated at two sites in the Pacific Northwest, one relatively unpolluted and the other polluted. In addition, a reciprocal transplant of O. lyellii between the unpolluted and polluted sites...
Spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE) is used to characterize amorphous and crystalline thin films of TiO2. Amorphous precursor films of TiO2 are deposited by radio frequency magnetron sputtering on fused silica and silicon substrates. Annealing the amorphous precursor films induces them to crystallize into either pure or mixed phases of the three...
We explore the interactions between charge transfer exciton states (CTEs) and an optical microcavity by testing the effects that cavity resonance has on the CTEs and if CTEs can be coupled with a photon to create quasiparticles known as polaritons. Exciton polaritonics is becoming a booming area of research mainly...
The spalting fungus Scytalidium cuboideum secretes a red pigment that produces naphthoquinonic crystals that are a photonic material candidate. The molecule can pack together in different configurations resulting in amazingly different optical properties. I developed a procedure (slowly evaporating the solvent) to preferentially grow two of these configurations, which have...
I construct and examine the properties of Lie and Clifford algebras which are used to describe certain types of particles. These algebras are then related to the traditional theory of division algebras. Quaternions are applied to these algebras and their properties are exploited to model physical properties of particles. The...
The electrical properties of amorphous and crystalline titanium dioxide polymorphs are reported. Titanium dioxide is a widely used transparent semiconductor and it is a useful oxide model. Using variable temperature transport measurements of thin films, it was possible to establish the activation energy barrier for conduction. This was accomplished using...
Terahertz (THz) time-domain spectroscopy provides insight into electron dynamics in semiconductor heterostructures. High-field THz spectroscopy probes the excitonic nonlinear response of GaAs quantum well (QW) systems and enables the measurement of its coherent dynamics in the time-domain. Consequently, THz spectroscopy allows one to explore the fundamental properties of many-body interactions...
Widespread mercury contamination threatens aquatic ecosystem functions due to its capacity to bioaccumulate, biomagnify, and induce toxicity in food webs. Methylmercury (MeHg), the organic form of mercury, bioaccumulates more efficiently and tends to be more toxic than the inorganic form. One important impact of mercury exposure is inhibition of effective...
The symbiotic relationship between cnidarians and algae is important to the marine ecosystem due to the photosynthesis produced by the algae and the coral reefs that cnidarians provide. Corals provide their algal partner with a safe home and the algae supply the cnidarians with inorganic materials as a food source....
Monte Carlo methods are used to explore vapor-liquid phase transitions. However, current models are computationally expensive when identifying these phase transitions. Traditionally, Monte Carlo simulations are run across a range of temperatures at a fixed number of atoms/molecules. The Number Monte Carlo method (NMC), our proposed Monte Carlo method, runs...
Exciton-polaritons are a form of light-matter coupling that have potential applications as photonic transistors and logic gates. In order for a photonic transistor or logic gate to be integrated with room temperature fiber-optic technology, excitons-polaritons need to be stable at room temperature and compatible with the red and near-infrared wavelengths...
Units and dimensions are seldom addressed formally in science classrooms, despite being one of the most fundamental and ubiquitous tools available to scientists. Even worse, science and engineering graduates are often moving into careers without fundamentally understanding units and their importance, leading to struggles in developing scientific literacy and to...
A research project looking into the feasibility and impact of adding a mentorship program to improve the academic and professional success of international students in the Oregon State University College of Business.