California State University, Monterey Bay
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Examining The Effects of Externally Mounted Biologgers On At-Sea Behavior And Reproductive Success In Adult Female Northern Elephant Seals, Mirounga Angustirostris, Using Computational Fluid Dynamics
Get PDFOver the past five decades, biologgers have been used to study animal behavior, physiology, and ecology. Externally mounted biologgers may have unforeseen effects on behavior, habitat use, foraging success, and reproductive success. Although guidelines exist for the recommended mass of biologgers on terrestrial animals, these guidelines are inappropriate for marine animals, which are more affected by buoyancy and drag. However, drag is difficult to measure directly necessitating the use of proxies based on physical characteristics of biologgers like frontal area. Northern elephant seals are a model species for studying the impacts of biologgers due to an existing long-term dataset collected using numerous types of biologgers. I used Computational Fluid Dynamics to simulate drag from 26 multi-biologger configurations and evaluated biologger characteristics to identify a drag proxy. I determined that the frontal surface area of the head and back-mounted biologgers were the most predictive characteristics for added drag. Analysis of 18 years of data from northern elephant seals at Año Nuevo State Park using these proxies revealed negligible effects of biologger-associated drag on dive behavior during both foraging trips, with only a small amount of variation explained by the frontal area of the biologgers. Postmolt seals with larger biologgers performed marginally shallower dives with departure mass-dependent impacts to drift dive frequency. In contrast, post-breeding seals performed slightly shorter dives, resulting in shorter bottom times in response to increased drag. They also exhibited a small increase in foraging trip duration. However, these behavioral changes are within the normal range of behaviors for northern elephant seals, and no long-term effects were identified
Increasing College Students\u27 Awareness of Stress, Mental Health, and Well-Being
Get PDFCollege students face many stressors due to the transitions and responsibilities of young adulthood. According to Karyotaki et al. (2020), 93% of respondents in an international study of college students reported at least one type of mild stress, and 73% named stress in at least three life areas. The same study found that stress management interventions effectively reduce perceived stress, mood, and anxiety problems through a combination of problem-focused and appraisal-focused strategies. In order to address the issues of stress, mental health, and well-being among college students, I created an interactive two-day presentation for Human Development and Family Science students at California State University, Monterey Bay, on how to identify stressors and their impact on our physical, emotional, and mental well-being, and how to use effective mindful coping mechanisms and strategies to endure such stressors
The Effects of Multiple Acute Turkesterone Doses on Indirect Measures of Hypertrophy and Metabolic Measures: A Preliminary Investigation
Get PDFTurkesterone is a naturally occurring plant steroid touted for its medicinal, pharmacological, and biological properties with no reported adverse side effects compared with traditional anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS). However, this ostensible enhancement to increase muscle protein synthesis and facilitate augmented thermogenesis remains undescribed despite uninformed and potentially haphazard consumption. To investigate whether turkesterone enhances insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and resting metabolic rate (RMR), eleven apparently healthy males (23.3 ± 2.2) volunteered to participate in the present study with samples collected pre-, 3H post-, and 24H post-ingestion. Subsequent analyses failed to reveal any significant main condition, time, or interaction main effects for serum IGF-1, RMR, lipid, and carbohydrate metabolism (p \u3e 0.05). However, non-significant serum IGF-1 concentrations increased with both turkesterone conditions and remained elevated when compared with placebo. Similarly, RMR remained elevated above baseline across the 3 h assessed. Although these data fail to fully support turkesterone as a potent anabolic supplement, nevertheless, our findings are foundational to persistently tease apart this supplement’s purported ergogenic effects and underscore its favorable hemodynamic and gastrointestinal tolerability profile. Future investigations should, therein, aim to assess turkesterone-mediated IGF-1 increases on long-term whole-muscle growth across several training sessions to further substantiate its efficacy on anabolism
Improving Communication Between Providers and Patients During Pediatric Cancer Care
Get PDFThe Listen First Survivorship project explores the communication barriers faced by young adults and their families during cancer treatment. The project focuses on identifying communication gaps and developing strategies to better support Jacob’s Heart\u27s young adult cancer survivors. This project was implemented by Jacob’s Heart Children’s Cancer Support Services and Dr. Stephanie Smith of the Pediatric Oncology department at Stanford Children’s Hospital. The participants described feeling overwhelmed with too much information and not enough answers to their questions during their appointments. Through qualitative interviews and focus groups, key findings revealed that young adults experienced significant gaps in knowledge due to a lack of involvement in parent-clinician discussions, and that emotional distress, linguistic challenges, and cultural norms contributed to the avoidance of cancer-related conversations. As a result of the project, cancer survivors will be able to improve their quality of life after treatment and communicate more effectively during and post treatment. The project achieved its goal of identifying key communication barriers. However, it also highlighted the need for improved language support, cultural competency, and emotional support. Within the next year, Jacob\u27s Heart and Stanford will continue to work together to develop a new program that will provide more support for cancer survivors at Jacob\u27s Heart
Bridging the Gap: Fostering Open Dialogue on Resource Access and Service Needs
Get PDFThis project investigates whether there are additional resources desired by clients or are needed to better support said clients in their recovery at the Interim, Inc. organization. This agency is a nonprofit organization whose sole purpose is to build community connections through providing services to individuals facing mental health and substance use challenges. While there is a wide range of programs available, there may still be clients with unmet needs. The purpose of this project was to identify any service gaps by conducting separate surveys of clients and staff members. Through the use of open-ended questions, the expectation of receiving qualitative feedback on resources clients feel are unavailable or difficult to access, and to assess the staff members’ individual awareness of available services. The results do indicate some inconsistencies among staff and clients, alike, such as the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, suggesting that more thorough communication and staff training are needed. Recommendations include the agency’s prioritization in educating staff on available resources in order to have the necessary information to pass onto clients, as well as continuing to gather and communicate these needs of clients more frequently. This will help ensure that clients receive the support they need and the agency’s services remain responsive to those needs
Prolonged vase life by salicylic acid treatment and prediction of vase life using petal color senescence of cut lisianthus
Get PDFThis study investigated the effects of exogenous salicylic acid (SA) concentrations (0, 0.1, 0.3, or 0.5 mM), treatment timing (vegetative or reproductive period), and cultivation methods (soil or hydroponic cultivation) on the vase life of four lisianthus cultivars after flower cutting. A 0.5 mM concentration of the SA application during the reproductive period resulted in the longest average vase life of 15.3 d for the Blue Picote cultivar after flower cutting. A colorimeter and a chlorophyll meter were used to observe and quantify petal color changes after cutting, and the color changes during the senescence stages are visualized using a three-dimensional color space. The three-dimensional visualization demonstrated the color senescence for each measurement period. Based on these data, we used automated machine learning algorithms to predict the vase longevity, and the predictive model showed a good accuracy. This model is expected to be widely used in the floricultural industry
At the intersection of information literacy and written communication: Student perspectives and practices related to source-based writing
Get PDFSource-based writing exists at the intersection of information literacy and written communication, where information from sources is incorporated into writing to achieve a communicative purpose. This case study addresses how students in junior-level college writing classes use information from sources in their papers and how they think about these practices. Student papers from multiple disciplines were coded to document source-based writing practices, such as the use of direct quotes, paraphrasing, and summarizing, and the rhetorical purpose the cited information served in the paper. The papers exhibited high use of direct quotes, indirect citations, and information from sources used as background information. Student perspectives on these practices were gathered through focus groups, with prominent themes being a predilection for efficiency, negative associations with source-based writing, and desire for detailed assignment prompts. Implications for teaching are discussed
Interview with David Bonilla
No full textDavid Bonilla is president of Family First Car & Bike Club. He shares his experiences growing up in lowriding culture in Watsonville. He discusses lowriding mentors, and development of the club. David also reflects on lowriding as self expression and bonds forged through lowriding culture. He emphasizes community service through car clubs.https://digitalcommons.csumb.edu/ohcma_lowrider/1001/thumbnail.jp
Navigating Mental Wellness: Guide to Santa Clara County Resources
No full textThis project aimed to address the challenge of limited access to mental health resources in the Sunnyvale Community Services (SCS) community. SCS serves a diverse population facing housing and food insecurity, necessitating increased awareness of available mental health services. The project involved developing a comprehensive guide to local mental health services and distributing it through caseworkers and a resource wall in the waiting room. The guide was created in English and Spanish for broader accessibility. Monitoring guide distribution and collecting feedback from staff experiences revealed increased awareness of mental health services in the local community. Staff appreciated the bilingual format and user-friendly design and language, which led to improved access and engagement with available resources. The project achieved its goals of increasing accessibility and awareness of mental health services, providing a foundation for further community outreach and resource dissemination
The Need For Volunteer Engagement
Get PDFAlthough there are a large number of non-profit organizations and volunteer opportunities available, there is a lack of volunteer engagement within organizations making it difficult to complete mission goals. This project was implemented and completed by Community Builders for Monterey County executive director and intern. Community Builders for Monterey County is a 501c(3) non-profit organization that was created to connect volunteers to different non-profit organizations around Monterey County. This project was created with the purpose of assessing potential volunteer needs in a survey style form in order to better understand how to get volunteers more engaged. The project resulted in 15 people filling out the survey. Upon analysis of the responses it was discovered that individuals were ultimately not engaged due to lack of time and not knowing where to find volunteer opportunities. Some of the next steps the agency can take are to continue to distribute the survey with larger audiences to get a better idea on how to cater to volunteer needs and make themselves more accessible, whether it is via social media, at schools, in person or at volunteering tabling events. In turn organizations are able to get more volunteer engagement to help achieve mission goals