May 3, 2024 | Digital Showcase | Humboldt Library
All Presenters & Abstracts
Provenance Analysis of the Plio-Pleistocene Prairie Creek Formation, Humboldt County, CA
Presentation Year: 2018
The Pio-Pleistocene Prairie Creek Formation (PCF) is located within Prairie Creek State Park on the forearc of the Cascadia subduction zone. The PCF was deposited in late Pliocene to Pleistocene time during a time of mostly forearc subsidence, which resulted in an ancestral Klamath River to deposit fluvial sand and conglomerate in a braided river environment. By looking at the composition of the sand and gravels we can determine the provenance of the formation, which can then intern be used to constrain the paleogeography of the nearby coast range and Klamath Mountains during the time of deposition.
Providing Wheelchair Access to the Beach
Presentation Year: 2018
Providing further accessibility to handicapped individuals, I have teamed up with Friends of the Dunes to widen the Wildberries trail, from the Humboldt Coastal Nature Center in Manila out to the beach, for wheelchair use. Currently there are no other trails in which leave from the Nature Center that are wide enough for a wheelchair to pass through. There currently is a wheelchair at the Nature Center in which is designed to be pushed through the sand, but no trail to easily take it on. The dunes are for everyone in the community to cherish and access should therefore be given to all; which is why I am using my experience of trail construction to provide that experience to all who wish.
Psychedelic Harm Reduction
Presentation Year: 2018
The Institute of Harm Reduction Research, Policy and Practice (IHRRPP) seeks to reduce harms associated with alcohol and other drugs (AOD). Such harms affect individuals, families, and the local community. Harm may be the result of problematic substance use, or the laws and policies which pertain to substance consumption. The Zendo Project is an offshoot of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS), and seeks to provide education on the nature of psychedelic harm reduction. By providing best-practice training for attending to psychedelic crises, Zendo Project reduces harms that can arise from erratic behavior, penal responses, and other negative experiences.
Psychometric Characteristics of the Demoralization Scale in College Students
Presentation Year: 2018
There is limited research on demoralization in college students. Most research in this domain has focused on medical populations, such as persons with cancer (Mehnert et al, 2011; Mullane et al, 2009) or other health-related problems. The most used measure of this construct is the Demoralization Scale (DS; Kissane et al, 2004). The 24-item DS includes components of dysphoria, feelings of incompetence and loss of meaning, with good reliability and validity in clinical samples (Kissane et al., 2004; Pei-Ling et al., 2015). The current study examined the reliability and validity of the DS in college students.
Public Lands Bill- Drafting of Environmental Bills in the United States' Current Contemporary Political Arena.
Presentation Year: 2018
This project focuses on my work with Congressman Jared Huffman's office and their efforts regarding the upcoming Public Lands Bill. They are working on restoring and revitalizing forests and watersheds, conserving ecologically significant areas, and expanding recreation opportunities in the North Coast. My internship has allowed me to see the American political system in action and witness local community participation in drafting of bills and has provided a window into the political feasibility of bills around environmental issues in the current contemporary political arena.
Quality Control Methods for Analyzing Metals in Seawater: Blanks
Presentation Year: 2018
Many metals in seawater are key micronutrients, essential in small quantities for the growth of phytoplankton. Analysis of these metals can be challenging due to their low concentration and the complex seawater matrix. Properly quantifying the blanks of the analytical method is critical to obtaining excellent results. In this work, we present preliminary data on accurately and precisely quantifying the blanks due to the analytical process of measuring metals in seawater. Once the blanks are properly quantified and minimized, the method can be used with seawater samples.
Rare Plants of Redwood National Park
Presentation Year: 2018
My task was to use GIS - Cartographic design to create a clear reference map for trail maintenance workers at Redwood National Nark (Orick, CA). The map will act as an education tool to promote conservation of rare native plants unique to the ecosystem found only in the Pacific Northwest coastal redwoods.
RCEA ZEV Enthusiast Group
Presentation Year: 2018
Interning with RCEA to fulfill a grant requirement by creating and managing a ZEV Enthusiast Group
Relapse Prevention/Substance Use Disorder Group
Presentation Year: 2018
This project concists of my participation as a co-facilitator in a substance abuse relapse prevention group through the Redwood Community Action Agency (RCAA) located at Waterfront Recovery Services in Eureka. This group meets once a week with participants who are in the early stages of recovery and who are ready to learn new coping skills that will enhance the rate of success and minimize relapse incidents. Evidence-based practice methods as they pertain to the five models of group therapy used in substance abuse treatment is being utilized in addition to traditional cultural elements congruent with the Native American worldview.
Relational Aesthetics
Presentation Year: 2018
I am interested in adjusting the paradigm of art in public schools. I want to learn more about how art can affect change in people in regards to themselves and their relationship to the world. I want to move beyond pen and paper sketches of three dimensional shapes in space to strengthen our view of ourselves as agents of our own destiny in the world, as I believe this is arts purpose. My research consisted of fifteen participatory instructional performance art pieces done on or near HSU. I did not always provide services and spaces that were enticing enough to draw many people, but I enlivened a new art form on campus, I gave people an authentic and original experience, and I learned a lot.
Resiliency of Homeless College Students in Humboldt County
Presentation Year: 2018
The prevalent issue of students experiencing homelessness at Humboldt State University is addressed in our project. We found that students have the resiliency to stay in school and continue pursuing a higher education despite the insecurities of homelessness. We interviewed ten amazing students who gave testimony to the housing crisis affecting Humboldt County. These students found resiliency in their families, their community, their friends, and other effective resources. Their dedication to school was met with integrity, overcoming the barriers preventing them from housing all while pursuing a degree .
Responses to infant facial cues in parents and non-parents
Presentation Year: 2018
Infant facial features elicit perceptions of cuteness and capture attention in adults. It is believed that this attunement to infant cues may enhance motivation to engage in caretaking behavior. A number of recent studies have investigated liking and wanting responses to infant faces using perceptual ratings of cuteness as a measure of liking and an effort-based key-press task as a behavioral measure of wanting. It has been speculated that these two measures are likely to be important components in parental behavior, but this link has not yet been explicitly tested. To address this issue, we measured liking and wanting responses to infant facial cuteness in parents and non-parents.
River Otter Citizen Science Project
Presentation Year: 2018
River otter sightings from watercourses and coastlines in Humboldt, Del Norte, and adjacent counties are sought by citizens in order for population status to be assessed and monitored. The project is run by Professor Jeff Black and students of Humboldt State University's Wildlife Department.
Role of p38 in glioma
Presentation Year: 2018
Gliomas are highly malignant intracranial tumors that result in a low survival rate due to an invasive phenotype and its diffuse nature. As a result, tumorigenic stem-like glioma cells are poorly targeted by conventional therapies. MAPK kinase 3 (MKK3) has been found to be a key upstream activator of the p38 MAPK protein and is upregulated in invasive glioma cells. Recent evidence suggests that interfering with MKK3 signaling through the inhibition of p38 can inhibit tumor cell invasion in vitro (Demuth et al. 2007). We are interested in examining the role of p38 in glioma through the ability of these cells to form tumor-like colonies in soft agar with modifications in Lgl1 gene expression
Rooftop farming in Hong Kong
Presentation Year: 2018
The idea of this study is to conduct more research on farming in the city, to be specific, Hong Kong. As I grew up in Hong Kong, space is one of the biggest challenges in the city. While citizens are looking for ways to implement their lifestyle, rooftop farming can be one of the great opportunities to build up a community around the neighborhood, provide fruits and vegetables for the residents, and promote a healthy living lifestyle. While promoting the idea of rooftop farming, there are obstacles that the residents need to be overcome. Therefore, I will be analyzing the ecosystem, finance, and government policy that might help the city farmers in Hong Kong.
Rural Food Insecurity in Humboldt County
Presentation Year: 2018
A wide range of environmental, social, and economic factors contribute to the issue of food insecurity. Despite being overwhelmingly agriculturally based economies, rural communities are some of the areas most at risk for high levels of food insecurity. This work addresses why the unequal distribution of food within an area of relative food abundance cannot be understood through the same lens as urban food deserts, but must be analyzed from the bottom up: following the supply chain of food throughout the social, environmental, and economic structures of the rural community.
Saudi Women Enforce Freedom of Expression
Presentation Year: 2018
This project promotes freedom of expression in today’s world by demonstrating advocates in a hostile society creating a movement to show women can be just as competent as men. It is important to acknowledge women are still fighting to receive the benefits of equality in other countries. Women in all parts of the world should be able to engage and contribute within any given community to enhance the quality of society. I find it amazing that women advocates in Saudi Arabia risked their lives, ruined their reputation, and even lost their jobs in order to support the movement by demonstrating their freedom of expression.
Searching for Trends in Atmospheric Compositional of Extrasolar Planets
Presentation Year: 2018
In recent years, there has been a growing interest in planets outside of our solar system, also known as exoplanets. Our research involves looking for trends in these planets’ potential habitability, through archival information about the planet’s radius, its distance from its parent star, and its atmospheric composition. The latter is obtained using transmission spectroscopy, which shows absorption on different regions of the planet’s spectrum depending on the composition of the atmosphere. We are working in collaboration with Dr. Stephen Kane, the creator of the Habitable Zone Gallery, to include the spectroscopic information in this database, which will allow the community to access it.
Seeking Safety Fidelity Assessment
Presentation Year: 2018
The community need I addressed is part of the Department of Health and Human Services Mental Health branch of Hum WORKS. I evaluated the fidelity of Seeking Safety group facilitation compared to the specifics of the book. I collected data on how well the Seeking Safety group is facilitated through an assessment tool with a scale from 0 to 3. Addressing mental health needs for PTSD and substance use co-occurring disorders in Humboldt County. There are two rating scales one is the quality the facilitator is providing to the Seeking Safety group. The second is helpfulness of the facilitators quality of mental health services provided overall for the clients last twelfth classes.
Sequoia Park Zoo Youth Assistant Keepers
Presentation Year: 2018
I have partnered with the Sequoia Park Zoo to revise their Youth Assistant Keeper Program to create a sustainable, impactful program that can be implemented with the use of a binder. Local, 11-15 year-olds will be guided through various aspects of zoos and animal husbandry while being asked to observe, critique, and explore the work of the Zoo and related work for best practices in animal care, equity, and accessibility. This unique opportunity for personal and academic development encourages autonomy and ownership over individual work, promotes leadership and diversity, cultivates a cooperative, team-centered environment, and inspires connection with and conservation of the natural world.