Digital Commons @ the Georgia Academy of Science
Not a member yet
1290 research outputs found
Sort by
EXPLORING VETERAN IDENTITY USING THE PHOTOVOICE TECHNIQUE**
No full textVeteran identity has been operationalized to be a Veteran’s self-concept deriving from their shared military experiences. After separation from service, many Veterans experience “reverse culture shock,” which can negatively impact interpersonal relationships and results in negative feelings such as helplessness, isolation, and emotional disconnection. Understanding how Veterans define themselves in their civilian lives can give us insight that could bridge the gaps between them and their available support systems. We utilized a qualitative, community-based participatory action research (CbPAR) model which empowers Veterans to use their personal voices to tell their stories and help researchers communicate those stories to the community. In this framework, we employed the Photovoice technique where Veterans take pictures that represent the answer to the following prompt: What does being a Veteran mean to you? This study was part of a larger project using photovoice and lyric analysis to help define the “sights and sounds” of Veteran identity. Veterans were asked questions individually and as a group to help the researchers understand the meaning of the images relating to the prompt. Transcripts of the interviews were analyzed to uncover common themes and elements that represent a definition of Veteran identity. Results of these analyses will be discussed. Identity themes such as honor, integrity, pride, isolation/loneliness, duty, sacrifice, humanity, and identity conflict have emerged in preliminary thematic analyses. To allow Veterans’ stories to be told to the public, our next step is to create an immersive, interactive gallery reflecting their experiences through their photos. We argue that without more emphasis on qualitative, CbPAR methodologies, research with special and/or marginalized populations, like Veterans, will continue to be more exploitative than beneficial for them. CbPAR methods help eliminate the distrust in scientists and clinicians already experienced by many in these populations
CONTESTED VALUES AND SUSTAINABLE LIVELIHOODS OF ARTISANAL ALCOHOL IN CABO VERDE**
No full textGrogue, an artisanal alcohol distilled in Cabo Verde West Africa for centuries, serves as a quintessential and enduring example of a contested cultural artefact. While artisanal alcohols make up at least half of total alcohol consumption worldwide, there remains a paucity of information about its place in society, including its production, dispersion, and valuation. Combined with its roles in vernacular as related to economics, health, location, and social characteristics, artisanal alcohol research is a pressing priority as an understudied foodstuff with tremendous societal implications around pleasure and plain as both a food and psychoactive drug. This study considers how artisanal alcohol serves as an ongoing and contested symbol of place. How is this craft defined, and who proclaims, listens to, and defends its cultural value and protects against associated harms including its colonial origins and associated health risks? How do home-based operations fashion sustainable lifeways and navigate moral, political, and physiological impacts of artisanal alcohol within shifting capitalist systems? Interdisciplinary ethnographic collaboration with artisanal grogue producers and their social networks uncovers grogue’s tangible and intangible social lives. This study explores the shifting nature of artisanal alcohol as a valued yet contested cultural asset with the potential to both empower and imperil reciprocal rural livelihoods within capitalist-oriented systems. Understanding how markets and communities frequently grow into or apart from one another due to shifting policies and neoliberal futures is paramount to this study. The COVID-19 pandemic intensified localized production demands, reliance on social supply networks, alcohol consumption and associated risks, and exposed alcohol policy shortfalls, supply chain issues, and contracting economies. Cabo Verde’s grogue producers are now embattled by shifting cosmopolitan preferences and newly articulated national alcohol policy. And yet, these artisanal alcohol-scapes remain resilient, well-integrated, institutionalized, and culturally meaningful
CHARACTERIZATION OF SUBAERIAL ALGAE IN SOUTHERN GEORGIA**
No full textSubaerial algae are photosynthetic microalgae inhabiting terrestrial ecosystems. They are typically seen growing on rocky surfaces, walls, tree bark, and other exposed surfaces. While the potential of these algae for the energy and food industries is promising, they remain poorly characterized in southern Georgia. To address this situation, we have isolated and begun to characterize a number of strains of subaerial algae from the region. In our previous studies, two isolates, one from the side of an aluminium shed, the other from a brick wall in Waycross, Georgia, were identified as members of Coelastrella multistriata (Chlorophyta, Chlorophyceae) on the basis of morphology. Analysis of the 18s rRNA sequence, however, suggested that the two strains are actually cryptic species in Coelastrella. The current research seeks to clarify this issue. DNA will be extracted from both strains using a modification of the CTAB procedure. This time, in addition to the gene for 18s rRNA gene, the ITS and rbcL regions will be amplified and sequenced; the latter two sequences are thought to provide better resolution at the species level than 18s sequences alone. The resultant sequences will be compared with sequences associated with the genus Coelastrella available in the NCBI database, which should clarify the position of these two strains
FACTORS INFLUENCING MINNOW TRAP CAPTURES
No full textFreshwater fish diversity nationwide is diminishing rapidly due to increasing threats. In the last 50 years, freshwater populations have declined by 76%. Therefore, frequent and minimally invasive sampling of habitats is vital to monitor these declines and evaluate management effectiveness. Minnow traps are relatively inexpensive, easy to operate, and have potential to produce valuable data via citizen science monitoring projects. Unfortunately, minnow trap design biases are poorly understood and have the potential to significantly impact capture rates, perceived diversity, and relative abundance. Our overarching objective was to better understand factors that influence minnow trap captures via a series of small undergraduate projects to evaluate the influence of 1) minnow trap construction, 2) trap color, and 3) incorporation of light bait as an attractant on captures. In our initial study, approximately 77% of 1159 total captures were obtained in galvanized G-40 traps, 18% in vinyl coated Frabill 1271 traps, and 5% were captured in plastic traps. Based on subsequent sampling, we determined this difference is most likely related to design/construction difference and not the color difference between the two trap brands as conjectured by previous researchers, with the vast majority of captures again coming from G-40 traps (81%) regardless of color manipulation. We found no influence of phototaxis; therefore, we do not believe using lights as an attractant has potential to increase minnow trap captures (t-test; t(160) = -0.4058, p = 0.6854). Our data obtained from these projects can be used to refine minnow sampling methods and improve trapping performance overall
THE EVOLUTION OF GENOME SIZE IN ARTHROBACTER BACTERIOPHAGES
No full textBacteriophage genome size evolution is understudied, with conflicting hypotheses about whether genomes gain or lose DNA content over time. We here attempt to address this conflict using in silico methods to build a phylogeny of Arthrobacter viruses whose genome sizes are known. Amino acid sequences of three, widely-occurring genes (holin, terminase, portal protein) were collected from 53 Arthrobacter phages (from 16 clusters) and four outgroup viruses (two clusters) using common bioinformatics approaches. Genome sizes amongst these viruses span from ~15kb to ~175kb and were gap-coded into nine categories to ignore most small size shifts. Phylogenetic analysis of the aligned, concatenated sequences (2,639 aa) resulted in three, most-parsimonious trees of length 12,726. All phage clusters (and subclusters) were recovered as monophyletic in these trees but there was some variation within clusters among them. While cluster membership is highly predictive of genome size, the relationships among clusters revealed a complex, size change pattern—Genome size increased seven times and decreased five times in the ingroup. Our topology also suggests that ingroup taxa lost the portal protein gene twice and the holin gene at least four times, but these losses themselves do not explain reconstructed genome size changes. Our results therefore demonstrate a complexity and heterogeneity to viral genome dynamics and document the absence of a consistent pattern of genome size evolution in Arthrobacter bacteriophages, contrary to the prevailing, unimodal hypotheses for viral genome evolution
LEUCOTHOIDAE (CRUSTACEA: AMPHIPODA) OF BOCAS DEL TORO, PANAMA**
No full textAmphipod crustaceans are ecologically important in marine habitats worldwide. They are an important food source and play valuable roles in nutrient cycling. Amphipods belonging to parvorder Amphilochidira comprise greater than 1135 species in 24 families worldwide. Some live among algae or in close proximity to sessile invertebrate hosts. Amphipods of the family Leucothoidae are known to be endocommensals in sponges, which help to provide nutrition, protection, and reproductive spaces. They play an important role in various food webs, as a food source and acting as deposit or suspension feeders or even predators. Many amphipods act as intermediate hosts for parasites, and they may later target a definitive host that is a species of economic importance. Despite these important roles, the diversity of amphipods is poorly documented, prompting this biodiversity study in Bocas del Toro, Panama, where only 11 species of Amphilochidira have been documented.Amphipods were collected via snorkeling and SCUBA in 2005, 2021, and 2023. Various substrates, such as coral rubble, sponges, and ascidians were collected, and amphipods were removed from the substrates to reveal 20 species in the parvorder. Amphipods belonging to the family Leucothoidae are described and comparisons are made to reports of species from other Caribbean locations
DROUGHT EFFECTS ON SOIL CARBON OF NORTH GEORGIA**
No full textA global increase of carbon dioxide leads to climate change including droughts and other severe weather. Studies have reviewed the effects that drought has on soil carbon and concluded uncertain effects dependent upon factors such as ecosystem type and both drought intensity and duration. This experiment was conducted in order to examine the effects of drought on soil carbon, a key component of soil fertility. Three locations of different soil texture (clay, loam, and sand dominant) adjacent to Young Harris College (Georgia) property were manipulated with reduced precipitation. Rain-out shelters were installed at locations with polyvinyl shower curtains tucked into shallow trenches. After one month of simulated drought, soil carbon dioxide flux and both total soil organic matter and mineral associated organic matter were measured. The assessment of these factors will help determine the movement of carbon and begin to understand how this will have long term impacts on soil fertility. This work is ongoing and will be completed in early 2024
KOMBUCHA\u27S EFFECTS ON THE GUT MICROBIOTA IN HUMANS
No full textThe gut microbiome is a complex ecosystem full of microbial communities. Probiotics, such as kombucha (a fermented tea beverage), may help to diversify our gut microbiome and in turn promote overall health. To determine the effects kombucha has on the gut microbiome, three participants (all females between the ages of 18-22) provided fecal samples before and after drinking 8 oz of kombucha biweekly for one month. Participants also filled out a survey about their overall health and diet and received their fecal sample kit from Biomesight. After defecating, the sample was swabbed, placed in the tube provided by the manufacturer, and stirred in saline solution for 30 seconds. After sealing the tube, it was shaken vigorously for 10 seconds. To analyze the microbes present, samples were sent to the lab where Biomesight sequenced the v4 region of the 16S rRNA of the bacteria using PCR. These DNA sequences were then compared to their curated bacterial database for genus identification. Scores were assigned based on ideal numbers of probiotic organisms, diversity (Shannon-Wiener Diversity Index), ideal numbers of commensals, pathobionts, and overall gut wellness (a combination of the other 4 scores). We predicted an increase in probiotic, diversity, and gut wellness scores, a decrease in pathobionts, and no changes in commensals. A comparison of these categories in the “before” and “after” samples supported our hypothesis for the diversity and commensal categories. Average diversity scores increased from 82.67 to 86 (p-value=0.009) and commensal averages were 80 and 85.02 before and after kombucha treatment (p-value=0.3686). Probiotic scores decreased from 70 to 68.9 (p-value=0.915). Pathobiont averages were 98.33 and 100 before and after kombucha (p-value=0.1997). Gut wellness scores increased from 83.12 to 84.86 (p[1]value=0.6392). Kombucha has potential to increase health and wellness as a probiotic
STRESS-INDUCED CHANGES IN THE 5\u27 END REGULATORY STRUCTURES OF THE TP53 mRNA
No full textTumor suppressor TP53 is responsible for multiple regulatory functions including DNA repair, apoptosis, and cell cycle control. Loss-of-function mutations of the TP53 gene have been found in about 50% of all cases of human cancer. Expression of TP53 is regulated using highly diverse mechanisms resulting in 13 known isoforms. Interestingly, TP53 mRNA has been reported to use IRES-mediated translation, especially under cellular stress. Previous studies have implicated the role of structurally stable motifs in the 5’UTR region of TP53 among other genes for mediating cap-independent translation. We present a secondary structure model of the regulatory region spanning 142 nucleotides upstream and 356 nucleotides downstream of the start codon for full-length TP53. The target region includes an alternate downstream start codon. Our model, based on selective 2¢ hydroxyl acylation analyzed by primer extension and mutational profiling (SHAPE-MaP) data from gently extracted total RNA from A549 human lung carcinoma cell line using 5NIA, confirms previously observed secondary structure motifs such as stem-loops from differing techniques. We then apply the in-cell probing reagent 5NIA to detect changes in SHAPE reactivity in live A549 cells and compare reactivities with the cell-free model. We observe that the IRES-related motifs remain stable in unstressed live cells. Next, we treat cells with etoposide, an oncogenic stress inducer. Our initial studies detect measurable changes in SHAPE reactivity in a short hairpin motif downstream of the standard AUG start codon. Furthermore, base-pairing probabilities of this motif region drop from \u3e80% to \u3c30% under etoposide stress. Prior reports implicate the role of IRES-transacting factors (ITAFs) including Hdm2 interacting with this mRNA region, and in certain cases correlating with the translation of an N-terminal truncated TP53. We outline future directions investigating the TP53 mRNA structure under different stress conditions and also aim to identify changes in ITAF-interaction sites using RNP-MaP
DIGITAL TEXTBOOK FOR PRINCIPLES OF CHEMISTRY II**
No full textThe objective of this project is to prepare an open-source free resource for the science major students who are taking college level Principles of Chemistry II. It is the 2nd course in a two-semester sequence covering the fundamental principles and applications of general chemistry for science majors. This eBook is created from Open Educational Resources (OER) and original materials. It is free, digital and focused on students’ success at Perimeter College. PowerPoint Presentations for each chapter with accessible, interactive Playposit quizzes and multiple choice interactive practice quizzes are created by the team. Concepts are explained using various simulations and walkthrough videos. This ebook pays special attention to areas where students need extra help, such as challenging acid-base equilibria problems or abstract concepts like entropy. This project is funded by ALG (Affordable learning Georgia) and expected to end by spring 2024. Currently, standalone web version: https://gsuprincipleschemistry.org/ and LMS version of the eBook are available on the D2L (iCollege) system. Students using this ebook are assessed on nationally standardized comparable exam and complete three-survey questionnaire sets to provide feedback. This ebook was developed in Spring and summer 2023 and currently is being implemented in classroom in fall 2023. So far positive responses have been obtained from students. Survey Results show most students are determined to succeed, no major issues with eBook usage or studying it. BENEFITS of this ebook include three major concerns: cost effectiveness, accessibility and LMS integration. Both LMS and Web version of the ebook contain accessible text to help with functionally diverse students and always updated. Due to the digital media technologies available to the educators, an opportunity has been created for librarians, instructional designers, and faculty to work together to build a well-crafted and pedagogically sound resources, thereby meeting a critical need in higher education