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Assessing Students’ Attitudes and Self-Efficacy in Introductory Statistics Courses
Get PDFThis study investigates the cognitive factors that shape students’ experiences in introductory statistics courses, with particular emphasis on the role of self-efficacy sources on student attitudes (mastery experiences, verbal persuasion, vicarious experiences, and physiological and emotional states) measured across multiple time points. Using linear multilevel models and qualitative interview data, the research examines patterns in students’ perceptions of interest, difficulty, effort, value, cognitive competence, and affect throughout an academic quarter. Findings indicate that higher levels of mastery experiences consistently predict more positive outcomes across all attitude dimensions, underscoring the importance of early and ongoing opportunities for success in fostering engagement and confidence. Verbal persuasion, particularly through instructor and peer feedback, also emerges as an important factor in supporting students. Vicarious experiences did not result in a significant predictor in the components of the SATS except for a negative association with difficulty. Emotional and physiological states, particularly stress and anxiety, are positively associated with affect and difficulty, suggesting decreases in anxiety are associated with increased affect and decreased perceived difficulty. Notably, students’ attitudes generally declined over the quarter, reflecting the cumulative cognitive and emotional demands of the course. Gender differences also emerged, with male students reporting higher interest, competence, and affect. Academic performance, as measured by midterm and final exam grades, were positively linked to students’ evolving competence, difficulty, and value. These findings highlight the need for instructional strategies that foster mastery, provide authentic and supportive feedback, normalize struggle, and attend to students’ emotional well-being
Saksham: Designing Inclusive Educational Tools for Children with Learning Disabilities in India
No full textSaksham is a mission-driven educational app created to support neurodivergent children in India, specifically those with dyslexia, ADHD, and autism, by delivering accessible, personalized, and culturally relevant learning experiences. The project was inspired by the lack of inclusive educational infrastructure in India and personally motivated by Jasmine’s cousin Bilal, a nationally ranked cricketer who was forced to abandon academics due to the absence of proper learning support.
Designed with empathy and accessibility in mind, Saksham offers foundational literacy and numeracy lessons through dyslexia-friendly fonts, high-contrast visuals, voiceovers, audio cues, gamified modules, and multi-language support. Customizable learning paths and progress tracking adapt to different needs and learning styles, helping reduce stigma and encourage independence.
Saksham is more than an app—it’s a scalable model for inclusive education. The long-term goal is to partner with NGOs and government bodies to integrate it into public systems and bring equitable learning opportunities to neurodivergent children across India
OpenSim Analysis of the Aymara Indigenous People Performing Ancestral Tasks: Exploring Trends of Muscle Activity with Tiwanaku Skeletal Indicators
Get PDFThe Tiwanaku civilization (AD 500-1100) of the Andean highlands exhibited occupational specialization in communities, with archeological evidence suggesting the existence of labor- and residential-communities, or “taskscapes”, based on an individual’s livelihood. Prior bioarcheological studies have examined Tiwanaku skeletal remains for musculoskeletal stress markers, osteoarthritis, and cross-sectional geometry to infer activity patterns. Their descendants, the Aymara Indigenous people, currently live in the same highlands and until recently lived a lifestyle like their ancestors. Over the past 20 years, the global quinoa demand has risen, thrusting the Aymara into globalization and moving them away from the traditional tasks previously performed. This study integrates biomechanics with archeological discovery by combining analysis of motion capture data from modern Aymara individuals performing traditional ancestral tasks (ceramic pottery, grain grinding, farming, chuño preparation) with skeletal indicators of activity from the Tiwanaku remains at entheses locations.
Motion capture data were analyzed in OpenSim to estimate muscle activation and forces in an upper-body model of the Aymara performing traditional tasks. Resulting muscle usage patterns were compared to documented entheseal changes in Tiwanaku skeletal remains, particularly from a site called Ch’iji Jawira, a presumed ceramicist taskscape. Results showed high activation in shoulder muscles (e.g. teres minor, infraspinatus) across multiple tasks, suggesting some of these muscles may be highly used in many traditional tasks. Muscles with more task-specific activation, such as the anconeus being only highly activated with high force for grain grinding, may offer better comparison with documented entheses. Muscle RMS activation and RMS % MVC had similar results when they were compared to entheseal alterations. The two muscles with the highest activity in the model, the teres minor and infraspinatus, did not have entheseal changes in any of the three remains of the Ch’iji Jawira individuals, but many muscles with medium or low activation did have changes. The muscle with the highest RMS force, the triceps did not have an available entheses site on any of the three individuals, but many of the muscles with the highest RMS forces did see entheseal alterations. This seeming variability in results found between the muscles with highest activity and the entheseal changes in examined individuals may be possibly due to social status differences or variations in task execution among the Tiwanaku individuals.
This proof-of-concept approach demonstrates the utility of combining biomechanics musculoskeletal modeling with archaeological indicators of activity from skeletal remains to refine interpretations of ancient labor patterns. This study also contributes to the cultural preservation of the Aymara Indigenous people by digitally documenting their traditional labor movements. Future work utilizing this framework could incorporate external load data, increased marker numbers, a full-body model, and further research into the best biomechanical output for comparison with indicators on skeletal remains to further analyze traditional Aymara movement
Babies, Babes, and Bayes: Modeling Mother-Infant Feedings with Bayesian Multilevel Hidden Markov Models
Get PDFUnderstanding the interaction between mother and baby during feeding is critical for the long-term development health of the baby. Overfeeding can lead to later obesity, while underfeeding can lead to malnutrition. In a recent study, the behaviors exhibited by mother-infant dyads across multiple ages of infants have been observed and coded according to the Baby Behaviors when Satiated (BABES) coding scheme. However, creating models using the data obtained from this coding is no simple task since the data coding is continuous, multivariate, and longitudinal in nature. The specific model utilized for these data is a hidden Markov model, since there are multiple behaviors for the mother-infant dyads that are either happening or not at a given time. Identifying hidden states in the model enables a form of dimension reduction; rather than enumerating all possible combinations of behaviors as observed states, analysis can instead focus on the smaller set of identifiable hidden states. Hidden Markov models were fit to the data at six different ages by using the mHMMbayes package. It utilizes Bayesian estimation and accounts for multilevel framework and categorical multivariate data. Using these model results, hidden states can be described by viewing the posterior transition matrices and emission distributions. These model results will help understand the feeding behavior in mother-infant dyads on a deeper level
Structural Color Pigments for Waterborne Coatings
Get PDFStructural colors offer unique alternatives to conventional pigments, utilizing their microstructures to produce vibrant colors. These pigments offer an alternative source for colorants without the need for less environmentally friendly conventional pigments. In keeping with the sustainability approach, the use of waterborne coatings was chosen over solvent-based coatings. Here we report the synthesis of brushite platelet, silica supraball, and inverse opal pigments. Brushite platelets were produced through a condensation reaction, while silica supraballs were synthesized via the Stöber process and assembly was attempted using an oil-in-water emulsion. Inverse opal was produced through the templating of silica on poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) incorporated into a waterborne latex coating. Thermogravimetric analysis was performed in order to monitor the degradation of the PMMA template, providing insight into the pyrolysis/calcination process. Utilizing scanning electron microscopy, honeycomb-like microstructures were observed. Dynamic light scattering was used to characterize the size of constituent particles, while zeta potential was measured on the inverse opal to show its potential stability within a waterborne system. Finally, the inverse opal was successfully incorporated within a waterborne latex film, potentially providing a tunable, more environmentally friendly pigment for latex coatings
Cryogenic Fuel Delivery System
Get PDFThis project presents the design and validation of a cryogenic fuel delivery system aimed at enabling sustainable aviation through hydrogen fuel vaporization. Developed by a team of senior mechanical engineering students at Cal Poly and sponsored by Boeing, the system utilizes atmospheric air to vaporize liquid nitrogen, used as a stand-in for hydrogen, via forced convection heat exchangers, eliminating the need for engine-supplied heat and reducing parasitic loads. A feedback loop and turbine component are integrated to regulate pressure and recover energy, respectively. A benchtop prototype was built and tested to evaluate system performance, with results closely aligning with analytical models developed using Engineering Equation Solver. The prototype demonstrated successful fuel vaporization and delivery, supporting the concept’s viability for future aircraft application
SciTechatorium
Get PDFBellevue Santa-Fe Charter School (Bellevue) is a K6th grade public charter elementary school in Avila Beach, California. The primary focus at Bellevue is fostering unique learning experiences, empowering students through project-based learning, and engaging students in creative endeavors. Following these themes, the school has allocated space and funding for an on-campus science and technology museum known as the SciTechatorium. The museum is currently open during students’ lunch period, providing interactive displays on concepts in human biology, nature and wildlife, physics, and electronics. Bellevue’s K-6th grade science teacher, Christian Strauli, and Bellevue parent volunteers are primarily responsible for the museum’s upkeep and ability to enrich student learning. While the museum is aimed at free-play for students of all ages and STEM interest ranges, Strauli also uses the museum with entire classes to align with his California Common Core curriculum. The museum is ever-evolving and relies on donations and volunteers for its continuation; Strauli is always looking for new exhibits to keep the museum enticing to students. Bellevue Santa-Fe Charter School’s SciTechatorium needs a way to present an educational science or engineering-based exhibit to K-6th grade students because the school values interactive, engaging approaches to student learning. Reference the boundary sketch in Figure 2 for a clearer understanding of the system being acted upon by this project team
Kinetic, Wind-Driven Metal Sculpture
Get PDFThe Interdisciplinary Senior Design Team “Flying Flora” from Cal Poly’s College of Engineering has been tasked with designing and building a wind-driven dynamic metal sculpture for the San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden. The botanical garden wants to fill a large, centrally located vacant space with a kinetic sculpture to attract and welcome visitors. The final design, as approved by the garden’s directors, features a large metal California poppy below a stained-glass and metal butterfly. The flower rotates smoothly in typical wind conditions, drawing the attention of visitors to the sculpture. The butterfly is stationary, positioned at an angle from the sculpture’s center, to juxtapose the flower. The sculpture is designed to withstand exposure to the elements, is made of locally sourced and scrap materials, and it was installed at the botanical garden on June 5th, 2025
Digital Drone Arrays: Two-Tone Communication
Get PDFOver the last few years, there has been great interest in distributed antenna arrays. These arrays require each element to be precisely located and synchronized with each other in time, phase, and frequency. To this end, a drone-mounted, two-tone communication system was developed. It uses a transmit-retransmit-receive architecture, which obtains all of the necessary data required to compute and correct the phase, frequency, and time differences between each element while estimating distance. When integrated into a distributed array of drones, this two-tone communication system will be essential for reliable operation