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Caste and the Classroom: A Review of Wilkerson\u27s Work
Get PDFIsabel Wilkerson’s (2020) Caste is a useful book to integrate into introductory courses in education training programs to discuss the sociological context of where the education system in the United States of America is situated. This book review suggests how preservice teacher programs may use Wilkerson’s work to bolster theoretical understanding in the inequitable structures education is built on, and what actionable steps can be taken both in and outside of the classroom
La Negra Tiene Tumbao: Multimodal Resistance Strategies of Afro-Latinxs and Other Queer Constructions
Get PDFThe importance of sound in Afro- diasporic communities hearkens back to the slave cry on the plantation field, a sound that showed there is social life within social death. These survival and resistance strategies still exist today, and are not limited to music; they can also be traced through aesthetics, as well as routes and history that connect Afro-Latinxs to the diaspora. The deployment of diasporic resistance through what Juan Flores calls “baggage,” show the possibility and radical potential for survival in white spaces. Recognizing the necessity to dismantle white heteronormative spaces, my research will analyze how Afro-Latinxs—especially those who identify with marginalized gender identities—survive using tools of resistance that can be traced back to the Afro-diaspora. I will contextualize this method beyond survival mechanisms to their influence of queer Afro-Latinx spaces. Through understanding Latinx communities in a diasporic context, I will reveal how an aural politic of resistance, which is tied to the sound and aesthetic of the diaspora, disrupts a legacy of antiblackness. My analysis will be framed through the genealogy of the Afro- diaspora and will explain how our understandings of Afro-diasporic communities transcend into current interpersonal relationships and black performance
Designing a Work-Life Balance Learning Module for Cal Poly Construction Management Department
Get PDFThe construction industry is known to create a highly stressful work environment given its unpredictability and mental/time demanding nature, which creates challenges for professionals to maintain a healthy work-life balance. This senior project aims to research and identify the key areas that foster this stress and propose a learning module for the Cal Poly Construction Management Department to implement into class curriculum. Having this learning module taught to students will raise awareness of the topic for future industry professionals and equip them with the tools to maintain a healthy equilibrium between their work demands and personal life. The learning module encompasses understanding and identifying stress within the construction industry, communication strategies and effective time management, mental and physical wellness, support networks and career changes, and lastly how to create a work-life balance plan. This learning module will provide theoretical knowledge along with practical tools and techniques, preparing students for navigation through their careers in the demanding industry of construction
Development of an Angiogenic Tissue-on-a-chip Microenvironment
Get PDFPreclinical testing is necessary to investigate the safety and efficacy of novel therapeutics before moving to clinical trials, yet approximately 90% of these therapies fail once tested in humans. This has led to increased interest in developing robust preclinical models that accurately mimic the complex human in vivo physiology. Microfluidic devices that can introduce dynamic conditions to 3D cell/organoid cultures, also known as tissue-on-a-chip, have emerged as physiologically relevant in vitro preclinical models that can achieve high throughput screening of therapeutics. The research presented here aimed to develop an angiogenic environment within a novel microfluidic device to stimulate formation of endothelial networks that will eventually be integrated into a vascularized tumor model for screening chemotherapeutics. The novel microfluidic devices were fabricated using photolithography to create a patterned mold, casting polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) over the mold, and bonding patterned PDMS to a glass slide. Three sets of experiments were then conducted, with each introducing different angiogenic stimuli to human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) co-cultured with human dermal fibroblasts (HDFs) within the devices. The first set of experiments sought to develop a standard protocol for plating human cells in the novel microfluidic device and to investigate if the mechanism of nutrient transport and interstitial flow would induce an angiogenic response resulting in endothelial network formation. A working protocol was developed but it was determined that further development of an angiogenic environment within the device was necessary to stimulate endothelial network formation. The second set of experiments investigated if seeding HUVECs in a peripheral channel of the device and introducing a concentration gradient of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) would stimulate endothelial network formation directed by a growth factor gradient, similar to angiogenesis in vivo. This was repeated under hypoxic conditions to more accurately mimic the in vivo angiogenic environment, but significant endothelial network formation was not observed and seeding of HUVECs in the peripheral channel presented no perceptible improvements. The final set of experiments investigated if v returning HUVECs to the center chamber in local co-culture with HDFs and exposing devices to hypoxic conditions would provide the necessary angiogenic environment to stimulate endothelial network formation within the microfluidic device. Lack of quantifiable endothelial network formation in the final set of experiments led to an analysis of 3D HUVEC colony formation, however, no statistically significant trends were discovered. Even though no significant differences were found, these experiments succeeded in developing a protocol for plating human cells in the novel microfluidic device that can be translated to the tumor side of the Microphysiological Systems lab. From these experiments we can also conclude that co-cultures of HUVECs and HDFs can survive and form into colonies within the novel microfluidic device but additional angiogenic stimuli are necessary to develop robust endothelial networks. Based on the current literature and knowledge gained throughout the experiments presented here, several suggestions are presented to potentially stimulate angiogenesis and develop endothelial networks in the device such as increasing cell densities, varying length of incubation, introducing mediators of angiogenesis like nitric oxide, and addition of tumor cells
Driscoll’s Water-Use Efficiency (WUE) Strawberry Breeding Trial
Get PDFCalifornia’s water supply is seeing stress and growers are increasingly under pressure to lower their water use. While reducing irrigation to strawberry plants can be used to raise sugars (°bx), research on the impact of deficit irrigation on plant growth, fruit yield and quality are not yet quantified. The purpose of this experiment is to observe the effects of a ~50% deficit irrigation treatment on tabletop strawberry plants where drainage measurements and plant absorption can be recorded. Results indicate that plant vigor and total marketable yield are predominantly treatment dependent whereas fruit characteristics, including culls and berry size are reliant on a variety’s genetics. Despite this trial including only advanced selections, these Driscoll’s varieties revealed a wide range of responses to deficit irrigation in terms of water-use efficiency (WUE) and vigor. Variety E (Var_E) has a similar yield to the much larger Var_M, yet the former’s higher WUE suggests a more favorable allocation of water to fruit development rather than auxiliary plant growth. Unlocking the genetic component of water allocation in strawberry plants may allow breeders to select for varieties that prioritize fruit growth over excessive shoot development, increasing the grams of berry yield per liter of water applied
Effects Of Mature Recombinant GDF9 And BMP15 On In-Vitro Maturation Of Bovine Oocytes And Subsequent Embryo Development And Effects Of Antioxidants On Blastocyst Re-Expansion Rates
No full textIn-vitro produced embryos (IVP) differ greatly from in-vivo derived embryos (IVD) in gene expression, metabolism, development, and cryotolerance which limit the widespread use of this technology. In-vitro maturation (IVM) is one of the most important components for successful in-vitro embryo development. Growth differentiation factor 9 (GDF9) and bone morphogenetic protein 15 (BMP15) have been found to be essential during oocyte maturation and thus female fertility. These proteins are oocyte secreted factors (OSFs) and are produced with pro- and mature protein regions where the pro-regions are thought to aid in protein folding and dimerization where heterodimerization the two proteins has been termed cumulin (Motterhead et al., 2015). Cumulin was found to have significant effects on oocyte maturation, blastocyst rate and hatching rates. However, only recombinant mature forms of these proteins are available commercially and making pro-mature GDF9 and BMP15 as well as pro- and mature cumulin is problematic. A few studies have evaluated the mature versions finding slight, although non-significant effects on oocyte maturation and blastocyst rates. However, none have studied the effects of using both mature GDF9 and BMP15 on bovine oocytes; thus, it was tested in this thesis. For the first experiment we hypothesized cumulus–oocyte complexes (COCs) matured for 23 h in maturation media supplemented with the mature proteins would increase blastocyst development, decreased lipid levels, and increased mitochondrial activity. Additionally, cryopreservation of embryos induces oxidative damage. However, studies have shown adding individual antioxidants to cryopreservation medium help alleviate post-thaw oxidative stress by reducing the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and detoxifying lipid peroxidation (Tarin and Trounson, 1993; Lane et al., 2002; Takahashi et al., 2013). Few studies have evaluated effects using combinations of antioxidants supplemented in slow-freezing media. For the second experiment we further hypothesized blastocysts slow frozen with antioxidants would have increased cryotolerance compared to controls. For the first experiment, bovine embryos were IVP in three treatment groups, J: a commercial IVM media, T: control (TCM 199 supplemented with gonadotrophins), and TGB: control supplemented with GDF9 (200 ng/µL) and BMP15 (100 ng/µL). For experiment 2, only IVM groups T and TGB were used. Embryos were produced in five then four replicates, respectively, from abattoir ovaries, oocytes were matured, fertilized with frozen-thawed semen from one of three bulls, and presumptive zygotes were cultured for 7-8 days. For experiment 1, stage 6–9 blastocysts were stained with Nile Red or Mitotracker Red CMX-Rosamine to evaluate lipid content and mitochondrial polarity, respectively, utilizing confocal microscopy at ×40. Five slices per embryo were evaluated and averaged for fluorescence. Blastocyst rates, Nile Red (sqrt transformed, outliers removed), and Mitotracker data were analyzed by an ANOVA and means separated by Tukey HSD. For experiment 2 stage 6–9 blastocysts were slow frozen then thawed in a 2x2 factorial and evaluated for re-expansion 24 hours post-thaw. Results indicate that there was no difference for blastocyst rates for experiment 1 and 2 (J: 26.7 0.02%, T: 26.9 0.02%, TGB: 24.2 0.031%, P \u3e 0.1; and T: 22.0 0.020%, TGB: 21.8 0.024%, P \u3e 0.1; respectively). TGB’s Nile Red fluorescence intensity was significantly lower (5.09 2.16 AFU, P \u3c 0.0001) than T (12.0 2.11) and J (11.05 2.18). MitoTracker fluorescence was similar among all treatments (P \u3e 0.05). There was no significant interactions or main effects seen between cryopreservation groups; however, T/AO (52.9 0.05%, n = 37) and T/C (39.8 0.05%, n =38) having on average a 13.1% higher re-expansion rate and AO overall had on average 6.2% higher re-expansion rates. There was no difference seen between TGB/AO and TGB/C. These results suggest that the mature forms of GDF9 and BMP15 supplemented during oocyte maturation can lower lipid content of resulting embryos, however they do not increase blastocyst rates, mitochondrial activity, or re-expansion rates after cryopreservation
Marine Protected Areas And Oceanographic Variability: Impacts On Blue Rockfish (Sebastes Mystinus) And The Human Dimensions Of Collaborative Fisheries Research
Get PDFFishing pressure and environmental variability are two of the most impactful drivers of fish populations worldwide. It is critical to effective management to understand the intersection between the two and how each may affect fish population dynamics, especially for exploited nearshore species like rockfishes (Sebastes spp.). This is especially true as models indicate that global climate change will dramatically increase the frequency and severity of large-scale oceanographic perturbations. We were interested in whether we could detect changes in relative abundance of nearshore rockfishes relative to large-scale oceanographic events using a broad-scale index like the Multivariate Ocean Climate Indicator (MOCI), if detectable changes were different based on the life-stage of the fishes, and whether fishing pressure had an impact on the relationship between environmental variability and fish abundance. To investigate this, we calculated cross correlations between catch per unit effort (CPUE) of Blue Rockfish (Sebastes mystinus) and the MOCI. We used data collected by the California Collaborative Fisheries Research Program (CCFRP) inside of marine protected areas (MPAs) and in paired reference sites to account for fishing effort. We also incorporated data collected before, during, and after the North Pacific Marine Heatwave (NPMHW) into cross correlation analyses. Based on these cross correlations, our findings suggest that oceanographic variability impact juvenile S. mystinus population dynamics with a two-year time lag. Our findings also suggest that fishing pressure impacts adult S. mystinus population dynamics more strongly than juveniles, but that temporal shifts in regional oceanographic conditions appear to alter this relationship. These findings may help to inform groundfish management along the West Coast of the United States and has broader implication for predicting species responses to the combined effects of fishing pressure and oceanographic variability.
In addition to collecting necessary data on the status of fisheries populations, collaborative fisheries research programs engage stakeholders in data collection efforts, often with the benefit of increasing transparency about the status and management of natural resources. These programs are particularly important in marine systems, where management of recreational and commercial fisheries have historically been contentious. One such program is the CCFRP, which was designed in 2006 with two main goals: (1) to evaluate the efficacy of California’s newly implemented network of MPAs while providing information for stock assessments, and (2) to engage anglers in all aspects of the research, including study design, data collection, analysis, and dissemination of scientifically robust data. CCFRP began on the Central Coast of California and expanded in 2017 to include six partner institutions spanning the entire state. To date, over 2,000 volunteer anglers have participated in the program, with many anglers volunteering for multiple years. A previous study that surveyed CCFRP anglers from the Central Coast demonstrated the importance of long-term participation in changing angler opinions of MPAs. Here, we extend that research four years after the expansion of CCFRP by surveying the statewide pool of volunteer anglers to assess the degree that participation in CCFRP has influenced their perceptions of MPAs, fisheries management, and conservation. We received 259 completed surveys, equating to an 18.7% response rate. Participation in CCFRP resulted in a significant, positive impact on the attitudes of anglers across all regions towards MPAs in California. Anglers that participated in six or more CCFRP fishing trips had a more positive perception of MPAs than those that participated in fewer trips. Volunteer anglers across all regions perceived that they caught larger fishes, a higher abundance of fishes, and a greater diversity of species inside MPAs, consistent with the ecological findings of the program. These results highlight the benefits of involving community members in collaborative scientific research. Collaboration between researchers and the broader community increases transparency and trust between stakeholders, results in greater understanding of natural resources, and ultimately produces better management outcomes