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Transforming Matter: Incarnation, Sacraments, and Saints in Catholic Art and Devotion
Full text linkA poster for the exhibition Transforming Matter: Incarnation, Sacraments, and Saints in Catholic Art and Devotion held January 12–May 18, 2024.https://digitalcommons.hope.edu/kam_poster/1063/thumbnail.jp
Hope College Abstracts: 23rd Annual Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity
Full text linkThe 23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity was held on April 12, 2024 in the Richard and Helen DeVos Fieldhouse at Hope College and featured student-faculty collaborative research projects. This program is a record reflective of those projects between the 2023-2024 academic year
A Comprehensive Musical Model for Stroke Recovery
Full text linkThe ways in which music therapy impacts healing have been studied and observed in many ways in the past. However, most do not go the step further to consider how music therapy can be used to specifically help stroke patients recover lost function. In this paper, a video game design is proposed in which a combination of music therapies is integrated into a multi-level activity that incorporates repetition, reward, and strengthening of both physical and cognitive abilities. The game consists of five worlds each containing ten levels that all function to use the power of play and repetition to improve the outcome of stroke patients. Each world touches on various aspects of the body that a stroke has damaged and uses therapeutic musical techniques to rebuild neural networks in the brain in hopes that each patient is able to regain full function following their accident. The game seeks to serve as a comprehensive model that patients and therapists alike can utilize during treatment
Influence of Nanoparticle Chemical Composition on In Situ Hydrogel Friction
Full text linkThe prevalence of osteoarthritis, alongside the associated pain and limited mobility, has resulted in numerous treatment strategies including the use of nanoparticles as drug-delivery systems in joints. However, the concerted mechanical-chemical effects from joint sliding in the presence of nanoparticle additives are not well understood. This work aims to understand chemically controlled sliding behavior of a soft material like cartilage in the presence of nanoparticles. To mimic cartilage-like features, well-studied polyacrylamide hydrogels were used as a model platform. Focusing on the interactions between nanoparticles that might be used for drug delivery and the hydrogel surfaces, in situ sliding tests were conducted with the hydrogels immersed in an aqueous solution of nanoparticles, comparing carbon-based, metal oxide, and metal nanoparticles. Surface chemistry was seen to have the strongest influence on friction, relative to nanoparticle concentration, size, or aggregation. This research helps understand mechanochemical relationships, contributing to the development of treatments for osteoarthritis
Unveiling Sensory Gaps: A Study on Zebrafish Alanine Taste Blindness and the Consequential Neurotoxic Impact on Dopaminergic Neurons in Motor Regions
Full text linkParkinson’s Disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by deficits in motor functions including loss of coordination and hypertonia. Dopaminergic (DA) neuronal death is found in the substantia nigra and reward centers of the brain in PD patients. Smell loss is also associated with patients with PD as DA neurons are found in the Olfactory Bulb (OB), the brain structure that processes odor signals. We use zebrafish as a model to study neurodegenerative diseases, including PD, as they can regenerate neurons throughout their lifespan. We have established a model to study DA loss in the zebrafish olfactory system. To do this, a dopaminergic neurotoxin, 6-Hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) is injected into the third ventricle. Using this model, we found no differences in the ability to detect alanine in 6-OHDA groups. This finding prompted the question of whether fish may taste the odorant, alanine that is used in the behavioral chamber to assess olfactory function. To test this, we rendered the fish anosmic by occluding the nostrils with adhesive to assess the gustatory response to alanine. We observed no significant response to alanine, implying that zebrafish behavioral responses to alanine are not dependent on taste. Notably, 6-OHDA-injected fish exhibited a substantial increase in swimming speed, prompting an investigation into potential damage to other brain structures. Counting DA neuronal populations in motor centers using immunohistochemistry on a confocal microscope revealed a trend in DA neuron damage after 6-OHDA lesion, which could explain swimming abnormalities. Future research should further explore the effects of neuronal degeneration to offer insights into therapeutic remedies for PD
Examining the Use of Two Novel Recovery Techniques on Reaction Time
Full text linkBox Breathing is a breathing technique in which a person inhales, holds, exhales, and holds, in four-second increments. It is believed to help improve an individual\u27s focus. Purpose: This study was conducted to determine if Box Breathing would improve reaction time in lacrosse players after an exhaustive bout of exercise, compared to active recovery and passive recovery. Methods: Participants were familiarized with the components of the study, and then they returned on three separate days, approximately 2-10 days apart for three additional testing visits. Participants performed a 10-minute exhaustive bout of exercise on a cycle ergometer, then performed one of three recovery methods—passive recovery, active recovery, and Box Breathing—on separate days. Following the recovery bout, participants performed the ruler drop test to measure their reaction time. Nine participants (male n=6, female n=3) completed the study. Results: There were no significant differences in reaction time across conditions, passive recovery (359.6 ± 118.9 mm), active recovery (351.1 ± 111.0 mm), and Box Breathing (364.9 ± 92.8 mm). However, there were differences in the percentages of times the participants failed to catch the ruler (counted as drops ). Specifically, Box Breathing resulted in the highest (28.9%) number of drops whereas active recovery resulted in the fewest (10%). Conclusions: Box Breathing does not appear to improve reaction time following an exhaustive bout of exercise when compared to traditional recovery techniques
Material Characterization for Industrial Processes of Thin Titanium Nanotube Films
Full text linkMaterial characterization is an important step in the experimental processes. This step ensures that the samples\u27 processing yields the intended results. This work outlines the process taken to analyze and characterize a set of industrial thin films. Our characterization starts with an elemental baseline from scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The composition is verified by SimNRA (Simulation Nuclear Reaction Analysis) calculations fitting Rutherford Backscattering (RBS) data collected from a silicon surface barrier (particle) detector
Determining the Step Count Accuracy of Four Commercially Available Smart Watches
Full text linkThe purpose of this study was to determine the step counting accuracy of four commercial smart watches. Methods: Twelve adults (mean ± SD, 24.8 ± 8.4 years) completed this two-trial study. Trial 1(T1) occurred indoors and Trial 2 (T2) took place outdoors. During T1 participants were outfitted with four smart watches, two on each arm (Apple Watch Ultra, Coros Vertix 2, Garmin Fenix 6, Polar Grit X) and completed both a treadmill and activities of daily living (ADL) protocol. During T2 they completed a 3.2 kilometer trail run. During TW participants wore a chest harness outfitted with a GoPro camera pointed down at their feet. The GoPro continuously recorded video of all steps taken throughout the run. Steps during both study trials were counted by investigators using a hand tally device, which served as the criterion measure. Both trials were repeated to assess device reliability. We used a Repeated Measures ANOVA and Paired T-Tests for between device comparisons with a post hoc Bonferroni correction. Results: There was an overall statically significant difference in total steps between devices and the criterion measure (p\u3c0.01). There were statistical differences between devices across all trials. Conclusion: Our findings suggest these devices are most accurate during trail running but struggle to capture non-running activities
Investigating Auditory and Visual Seasonality in House Finches
Full text linkMany birds receive both visual and auditory signals in mate selection, such as plumage color and song differences within conspecifics, which has implications for behavioral and communication processes. This processing of stimuli from different systems as a combined signal is also known as multimodal sensory processing. Sex hormone levels correlating with reproduction efforts vary seasonally in temperate animals, leading to changes in sensory processing as well. As the seasons progress, sex hormones (i.e. estrogen and testosterone) fluctuate, and an increase or decrease in these hormones has shown an impact on hearing in songbird species, however, less is known about the mechanism of hormone influence on visual processing. Songbirds demonstrate differences in both auditory communications (i.e., songs) and visual displays (e.g. plumage) across seasons. Our study focuses on the house finch (Haemorhous mexicanus), a sexually dimorphic songbird residing across an urbanization gradient. House finches are sexually dimorphic songbirds, meaning there is a phenotypic difference in the appearance of the sexes, such that male house finches have red plumage while females have brown plumage. The combination of visual plumage displays and auditory song communication influencing mate choice makes house finches an ideal model organism to examine the effects of seasonality on multimodal sensory processing. To explore seasonal differences we will be measuring auditory brainstem responses (ABRs) to test hearing, electroretinograms (ERGs) to test vision, and sex hormone levels in the blood. We hypothesize that seasonality will significantly affect auditory and visual processing in house finches, such that we will see increased levels of hearing and vision during the breeding season, allowing for increased communication and ease of finding mates. These results will contribute to a further understanding of seasonality and its effects on multimodal sensory processing in a novel species
Comparative Analysis of British & American Schools
Full text linkThis study was designed to discover how students in an immersive educational experience in Liverpool, UK, made sense of and learned from a comparative analysis of British and American schools. Our first goal was to determine education students\u27 beliefs about American and British schooling at the beginning of the experience. The second goal was to collect data from various sources, including surveys, observations, journals, and recorded conversations during the two-week clinical experience. Students used their lived experiences in the schools to construct a comparative analysis Google chart. The third goal was to analyze students\u27 understanding at the Liverpool experience’s conclusion. Findings indicate that students knew a bit about British education prior to the trip, although those beliefs were superficial and contained misconceptions. Analysis of the Google chart revealed that students\u27 daily journals produced new levels of understanding about British schools and allowed them to compare and contrast the two educational systems