15133 research outputs found
Sort by
Comparison of soil builder product, artificial root exudates, and fertilizer on brownfield soil
No full textSoil is a non-renewable resource, and the production of brownfield sites reduces its availability for agricultural and ecological functions. Healthy soils have a high enzyme activity, while unhealthy soils have low to no microbial activity. Environmental contamination and climate change contribute to the reduction of enzyme health, which leads to the production of barren soil. Thus, it is crucial to find quick, effective, and cheap solutions to revitalize the enzymatic functions of soil. This project focuses on comparing different techniques of revitalizing the microbial function of brownfield soils. Here, we focus on treating a highly contaminated soil with 4 different treatments: water, artificial root exudates (AREs), soil builder product (C20, from Precision Organics), and ammonium nitrate fertilizer. A total of 28 soil samples, with 7 replicates for each treatment, are held in a soil chamber. On day 0, the soils are treated once, and watered every third day for an entirety of 30 days. Soil analyses, such as phosphatase enzyme assay, CO2 respiration, pH, and microbial community are performed twice; once pre- and another, post treatment. Based on these analyses, the data will reveal the most effective treatment for revitalizing soil health. The results from this experiment will help scientists make further conclusions on how to effectively revitalize the health of a barren, contaminated soil, ensuring bountiful soil for future generations
Transgender students\u27 sense of safety and belonging at Montclair State
No full textTransgender bathroom access has increasingly been an issue in legislation and people’s everyday lives across the United States. Within the past three decades, the influx of anti-discrimination laws that protect transgender people have turned public bathrooms into a space for political crossfire. However, bathroom panic is nothing new, as similarly restrictive, segregated laws have previously targeted Black Americans and disabled Americans. State governments have steadily enacted detrimental bills to restrict bathroom access for transgender Americans today, in what’s termed as “bathroom policing.” The purpose of this research is to observe perceptions of safety and belonging for transgender students at Montclair State University and how policing bathroom access on campus facilitates inclusion or exclusion. This research involved in-depth qualitative interviews with transgender students at MSU of any age (n=18), visual data collection of bathrooms on campus, and participant observation of trans students’ lived experiences. Additionally, as a member of the transgender community at MSU, I was able to access this community and build trust with participants, enabling them to disclose very personal experiences and contribute to highly valid findings. In conclusion, participants felt uncomfortable, unsafe, anxious or paranoid, and/or wished to be alone when using a public bathroom on campus. Overall, the participants believed there should be more gender neutral bathrooms on campus, and they were able to easily describe how it would directly benefit students. This project also identified additional questions for future research related to the diverse experiences and identities of the trans community
Key components for a community-wide compost program in Montclair Township
No full textThe township of Montclair, New Jersey is seeking to implement a region-wide composting program to improve their sustainable practices further. This community initiative aims to divert tons of food waste from landfills, creating nutrient-dense compost in the process. Through outreach programs and in-school workshops, residents and students will learn about what to compost, where drop-off locations are, and the importance of compost for environmental sustainability. The primary research question is: What are the economic and environmental implications of installing a community-based composting program in Montclair, New Jersey? This research will study the immediate and long-term costs of implementing and maintaining an in-vessel composting machine alongside the benefits of lowering food waste sent to the landfill and tipping fees for the community. Environmental benefit analysis of greenhouse gas emissions and nutritional compost for farms and gardens will be coupled with the financial evaluation. By compiling this data, this project will provide a blueprint for communities like Montclair to implement a long-term composting program. It will identify key factors that contribute to a successful system, such as community involvement, program design, and economic incentives, offering feasible recommendations for improving the sustainability of composting programs
Perceptions of Chatgpt in a college classroom
No full textThe use of AI tools has begun to reshape academia (Chu et al., 2022). Concerns about AI misuse highlight challenges in ensuring responsible and effective use (Kiryakova & Angelova, 2023; Kasneci et al., 2023). Our study explores undergraduate students’ perceptions of ChatGPT after using ChatGPT as a required component of several course assignments. Data were collected in the fall of 2023 and included surveys from twenty-eight students from two sections of an undergraduate course. Students were aged 19–35 years (M = 20.48, SD = 3.49); 93% identified as female, 56% identified as White, and 54% reported prior use of AI tools. Students completed a survey with questions about their experience using ChatGPT for class assignments, concerns about AI use, and future use. Students reported positive views of ChatGPT (M = 2.15, SD = 0.47) and saw it as useful for assignments and learning (M = 2.04, SD = 0.56). They also expressed moderate concern about improper use and over-reliance on ChatGPT (M = 1.61, SD = 0.63). Despite these concerns, students felt confident in using ChatGPT (M = 2.00, SD = 0.70). Write-in responses revealed that the course helped students use ChatGPT in more advanced ways, such as to create detailed outlines. Students also reported feeling weary of over-reliance on ChatGPT, plagiarism, inaccurate output, and potential reduction of deep learning. Our findings highlight the educational potential of AI tools in structured academic environments while also emphasizing students\u27 concerns about AI use and their need for guidance and clear messaging from instructors
Reclaiming strength: Voices of women who survived firearm intimate partner violence
No full textIntroduction: Intimate partner violence (IPV) involving firearms is among the most lethal forms of abuse, disproportionately affecting women. Historically, IPV research often framed survivors as battered women, reinforcing narratives of victimization and weakness. This study challenges such deficit-based perspectives by adopting a feminist, strength-based approach to highlight the resilience and positive self-perceptions of women who have survived near-fatal firearm violence. By amplifying survivor voices, the research seeks to reshape public discourse and advocate for survivor-informed strategies that honor their agency and dignity. Methods: The study utilized qualitative interviews with 29 women who survived firearm-related IPV incidents. Participants were recruited through domestic violence shelters and advocacy organizations. To foster rapport, participants were asked to describe themselves in three words, encouraging self-reflection and emotional expression. The interviews explored their experiences of violence, survival strategies, and self-perceptions post-trauma. Data were analyzed thematically using a feminist framework to identify patterns of resilience, empowerment, and positive identity formation. Results: A striking pattern emerged from the interviews: survivors consistently described themselves using positive terms such as Strong, Beautiful, Caring, and Confident. These descriptors challenge the misconception that IPV survivors internalize negative identities. Instead, they reflect inner fortitude and self-worth despite enduring severe trauma. The findings underscore the transformative power of language and identity in shaping survivor narratives and advocate for abandoning frameworks that pathologize survivors. This study calls for systemic change in IPV research and policy by prioritizing survivor-led solutions that honor their strength while addressing structural drivers of abuse
Effects of E47D amino acid on the catalytic activity and substrate binding affinity in
No full textThermotoga maritima indole-3-glycerol phosphate synthase (TmIGPS) is a monomeric thermostable enzyme. Indole-3-glycerol phosphate synthase (IGPS) from Thermotoga maritima catalyzes the fifth step in the tryptophan biosynthesis pathway which function in the conversion of 1-(o-carboxyphenylamino)-1-deoxyribulose-5-phosphate (CdRP) to indole-3-glycerol phosphate (IGP). This research investigates the temperature-dependent catalytic activity and substrate binding of a thermophilic enzyme TmIGPS, to understand its unique adaptations to environments such as hot springs and as a potential novel target. Enzyme kinetic assays, Kinetic solvent viscosity effects (KSVE) and Arrhenius plots were used to analyze the catalytic activity and substrate binding of wildtype and E47D TmIGPS at temperatures ranging from 25 °C to 80 °C. We proposed that the kinetic parameters governing these processes have different temperature dependencies. Previous studies reported that TmIGPS have a kcat value of 0.11 s-1 and Km value of 0.006 µM at 25 °C. Here we report the wildtype TmIGPS have a kcat value of 0.08 ± 0.002 s-1 and Km value of 0.057 ± 0.008 µM which suggests a 9.5-fold increase in substrate binding affinity. However, KSVE experiments revealed high catalytic activity at higher temperatures. E47D TmIGPS resulted in an increased Km value of 0.2 ± 0.06 µM at 25 °C, indicating lower substrate affinity. These results demonstrate that E47D mutation in the active site residues of IGPS drastically reduce its catalytic activity but contribute significantly to its thermostability. These findings into the mechanism of TmIGPS highlights its potential as an inhibitor
Participation-focused intervention in stuttering: Perspectives of stakeholders
No full textPurpose: This study analyzed stakeholder perspectives of what is important for stuttering intervention through the lens of a participation-focused framework. Method: The authors conducted a narrative review of scientific articles focused on important elements of stuttering therapy from the perspectives of people who stutter and speech-language pathologists. Content in those papers was organized according to a new participation-focused framework of therapy by Baylor & Darling-White (2020). This framework prioritizes communicative participation as the primary outcome variable in all speech-language pathology services, and includes three domains in service of that goal. These domains include communication skills, environmental factors, and personal perspectives. Content from articles was categorized into one of those three domains and meaning units were identified and coded to support generation of themes and subthemes within each domain. Results: Themes and subthemes were identified for the communication skill domain, the environmental factors domain, and the personal perspectives domain. Specific themes and subthemes will be presented and discussed, but include characteristics of therapy and therapist, increased community belongingness; noticing and modifying speech production; and changes to emotions and attitudes about the self, stuttering, and management of stuttering. Conclusions: Clinicians have a variety of options for enhancing communicative outcomes for clients who stutter that go beyond traditional speech modification. This participation-focused framework applied to people who stutter will help clinicians understand the potential needs of their clients and help them to plan therapy accordingly with more options available
Personality and effective leadership: The relationship between openness and theory of mind
No full textPersonality traits play a crucial role in shaping leadership effectiveness, with research linking key dimensions of the Big Five Inventory (BFI; John, Donahue, & Kentle, 1991) to effective leadership (Ali, 2022). Among these traits, openness to experience is a key personality trait that includes being receptive to novel ideas. (McCrae & Greenberg, 2014). The current study expands prior research by testing whether openness to experience is also related to one’s Theory of Mind (ToM) - a cognitive ability that includes being able to understand another’s thoughts and emotions. ToM may also be related to effective leadership, and by hypothesis openness to others. We hypothesize that openness to experience will be positively related to ToM. We tested leaders across different organizational contexts (N = 109) on the BFI and three established ToM measures: Movie for the Assessment of Social Cognition (MASC; Dziobek et al., 2006), Reading the Mind in the Eyes (RME) task (Baron-Cohen et al., 2001), and the Yoni task (Baron-Cohen, 1995). The results showed a positive, significant relationship between openness to experience and the Yoni (r = 0.230, p \u3c .05); the correlations with the MASC and RME were not significant. Thus, openness to experience may be related to ToM in leaders. Future research could explore the link between openness to experience and other ToM measures
Navigating bilingual horizons: English speakers\u27 journey to Spanish fluency
No full textThis study explores the journey of English speakers learning Spanish as a second language, focusing on their progression from initial acquisition to pursuing Spanish as an academic major. The research investigates the challenges, strategies, and reflections of learners as they navigate the complexities of bilingualism. Our findings reveal that while Spanish is considered one of the easier languages for English speakers to learn, learners face unique obstacles in areas such as stress perception and language interference. The research also highlights the impact of instructional methods. Additionally, we explore learners\u27 reflections on their experiences and identify potential improvements in Spanish language education. This study contributes to our understanding of second language acquisition and provides insights for enhancing Spanish language instruction for English speakers
The mechanisms of paid memberships: Customer entitlement, status, and power
No full textThe current study aimed to explore how paid memberships in the Warehouse Club Industry (e.g., Costco, BJ\u27s, Sam\u27s Club) influences customer entitlement, power, and status, which have been linked to customer aggression in retail settings. Prior research suggests that loyalty and reward programs can increase perceptions of entitlement and power, with membership identification (e.g., gold vs. silver) affecting status. Drawing on social exchange theory, I hypothesized that warehouse members, who are in social exchange with the warehouse by purchasing a membership, would (1) experience higher levels of entitlement and power, compared to status, (2) tier 1 members would have higher levels than tier 2 members, and (3) main account holders and add-on account holders who help pay for the membership would have higher levels than those who are added onto the account and do not pay. Data was collected from 92 warehouse members through a cross-sectional survey, in which they completed measures of entitlement, power, and status, as well as demographic questions related to their membership experiences. Data was analyzed using multiple MANOVAs; the analyses did not support the three (3) hypotheses. However, status was found to not only be significantly higher for tier 1 members compared to tier 2 members but experienced at higher levels across warehouse members compared to entitlement and power. These findings can be introduced to Warehouse Club management to identify how to better manage membership status perceptions in hopes to reduce the antecedent of customer aggression and provide a healthier workplace environment to employees