Browse Exhibits (109 total)

This project allows for students to be able to use their knowledge in other subjects as well as be able to argue their point by using facts which will always be helpful. The objective of this project is for students to be able to figure out new perspectives historically through methods not used before by looking at literature at the time nd how food is being portrayed. Students after reading will then research their character that they were assigned and determine whether their interaction of food portrayed in the book is accurate. This is great for students to be able to practice multiple skills in one lesson as well as be able to use their skills in multiple subjects being taught.

Faculty Mentor: Alexander Kaufman

Department of History

Undergraduate

Honors College

As technology pushes computer processors to become smaller and denser, processor chip manufacturers are trying to find ways to make transistors smaller and smaller. However, current transistor designs are becoming increasingly difficult to squeeze into smaller and smaller areas without compromising the integrity of the transistors. As a result, a new candidate has gained attention for its potential uses in many areas, especially nanotechnology: Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA).

DNA has many properties that make it a potential candidate for nanotechnology including its ability to self-assemble, which can allow easier fabrication on the nano-scale. However, studies have also shown DNA to have insulating, conducting, semi-conducting, and superconducting properties given different conditions. 

These findings, as well as other known factors about DNA, are leading researchers to study DNA's potential in different aspects of nanotechnology, such as potentially being a semiconductor within a nanoscale, self-assembling transistor. This project will investigate electron transport and conductivity in DNA molecules. 

Faculty Mentor: Dr. Yong Joe

Department of Physics and Astronomy

Undergraduate

Previous research has found that reading fictional stories can increase empathy in individuals who read it (Bal & Vetkamp, 2013; Dodell-Feder & Tamir, 2018; Kaufman & Libby, 2012; Stansfield & Bune, 2014). One important factor that contributes to fiction’s potential empathy-teaching effect is the concept of transportation; transportation is the reader’s ability to “transport” themselves into the story, particularly in the shoes of the protagonist, to better understand how they themselves would react in the character’s situations (Bal & Vetkamp, 2012). The current study analyzed the effect transportation into a story in which the protagonist engaged in a criminal act (e.g., substance abuse and theft) could have on the reader. Participants were asked to read two texts each; one arranged as a list of facts and the second being an emotionally-charged, third-person perspective of either the protagonist’s engagement in substance abuse or theft. One group received one compilation of facts regarding the protagonist’s engagement in either substance abuse or theft and one emotionally-charged account of the protagonist’s engagement in the offense not represented in the first story. 

Faculty Mentor: Dr. Kristin Ritchey and Dr. Thomas Holtgraves

Department of Psychological Sciences and Criminal Justice/Criminology

Undergraduate

Honors College

There is precedent that nurses and students have unhealthy sleep patterns and sleep hygiene. The purpose of current research is to determine if a student’s year in school (i.e., first year, second year, etc.) is related to any unhealthy sleep patterns or hygiene they may present. A survey including the PSQI, the Sleep Hygiene Knowledge subsection of the SHAPS, and a survey of demographics screening out those with disordered sleep will be used to determine sleep quantity, quality, and hygiene knowledge patterns across cohorts. If there is evidence of poor sleep quality, quantity, or hygiene knowledge in this population, it indicates that more research should be done on how severe these variables may impact performance of nursing students. Highlighting specific years or times where these unhealthy practices may be more prevalent could help determine when sleep education should be utilized to help the population build healthy sleep habits before going into the nursing field. It will also provide data for future studies on what patterns of sleep to expect in this population. 

Faculty Mentor: Dr. Thomas Holtgraves

Psychological Science

Graduate

Attachment styles in adulthood describe individual approaches to interacting and behaving interpersonally, or patterns of secure and insecure attachment orientations in romantic relationships (Bowlby, 1969). While previous research has demonstrated that insecure attachment styles are related to difficulties with regulating emotions (Gross & John, 2003; Owens et al., 2018; Winterheld, 2016), present literature has not addressed these associations in both members of relationship dyads using counterbalanced self-report measures. The current study will examine the associations between insecure attachment styles and emotion dysregulation among couples in romantic relationships. This study will employ a cross-sectional survey design with a sample of approximately 84 dyads of college students to obtain a medium effect size (r = .30) and a power level of 80% (Faul et al., 2007). It is hypothesized that individuals with lower levels of anxious and avoidant attachment tendencies will also report fewer difficulties with emotion regulation strategies, and couples are expected to report a high degree of similarity on both measures relative to each other. These anticipated findings would align with the similarity hypothesis that individuals choose dating partners with the same attachment style as themselves (Strauss et al., 2012) and the concept of assortative mating, that individuals seek partners with similar traits to their own (Macrae et al., 2008). Results will be analyzed with a series of Pearson’s correlation coefficient (r) tests to examine associations between variables at the individual level and to determine the degree of nonindependence, or the extent of similarity between the two members of the dyadic unit.

Faculty Mentor: Thomas Holtgraves

Psychological Sciences

Graduate