Open Research Oklahoma (Oklahoma State Univ.)
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Black women in STEM: Gendered racial microaggressions, mental health, and coping
No full textThe current study utilizes an intersectionality framework to quantitatively explore the psychological impact of gendered racial microaggressions and the moderating role of collective coping among 96 Black women in STEM, who are currently enrolled or who recently graduated from (within past 2 years) STEM undergraduate and graduate programs at predominately white institutions in the United States. Results indicated that (1) there is no difference in the mean frequency of gendered racial microaggressions between STEM fields with higher number of STEM degrees awarded to Black women and those with a lower number of STEM degrees awarded to Black women, (2) the frequency of gendered racial microaggressions predicts depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms, and (3) collective coping does not moderate the relationship between gendered racial microaggressions and depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms. The findings support previous literature that demonstrate the link between microaggressions and mental health concerns and identify chilly STEM cultures as a barrier to STEM persistence and/or student well-being. Contrary to previous findings, collective coping did not serve as a moderator. Future research is encouraged to investigate how other within group differences (i.e., demographic variables) may impact the varying frequencies of gendered racial microaggressions reported and degree to which mental health concerns are endorsed. may be used to increase awareness, strengthen support, and call for intentional change toward inclusive STEM cultures. Study implications highlight the need for faculty, staff, and administrators to engage in action-oriented initiatives to cultivate inclusive STEM cultures that challenge intersectional stereotypes of Black women, and ways mental health professionals at colleges and universities can support the holistic well-being of Black women in STEM
Typical and atypical mapks in Dictyostelium discoideum defining their regulation and functional specificity
No full textMitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) are conserved throughout eukaryotes and are crucial in controlling cellular processes, thereby, contributing to diseases such as cancer. One subgroup of MAPKs has been referred to as atypical because they are not activated by conventional upstream MAPK kinases (MAP2Ks). In mammals, MAPK15, also called ERK8, is an atypical MAPK. Considerable progress has been made by characterizing atypical MAPK function and regulation in the soil amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum, a model organism for studying cell movement and differentiation. The Dictyostelium atypical MAPK homolog, Erk2, plays an important role in Dictyostelium chemotaxis and the regulation of Erk1, a more typical MAPK. It has been proposed that Erk2, like other atypical homologs of MAPK, is activated by autophosphorylation rather than by an upstream MAP2K. Erk2 is rapidly phosphorylated and activated in response to chemoattractants; folate and cAMP. To assess the functional and regulation specificity of atypical MAPKs we characterized chimeric MAPKs in Dictyostelium. Chimeric MAPKs, combining sequences from both Erk1 and Erk2, failed to rescue MAPK function in erk1- and erk2-deficient strains. The Erk2/1C chimera, in which the C-terminal portion of Erk2 has been replaced by Erk1 C-terminal region, was weakly phosphorylated in response to folate indicating that this region is important but not essential for activation. The Erk1/2M chimera, which contains Erk1 N-terminal region upstream of the MAPK activation loop but Erk2 sequences for the remaining regions, is robustly phosphorylated and leads to subsequent Erk1 phosphorylation when cells are stimulated with folate. These results suggest the N-terminal regions of Erk2 are not critical for the phosphorylation. We also investigated the possibility that Erk2 might be phosphorylated by an upstream protein kinase. We created a kinase-dead mutant, by mutating a conserved lysine, required for kinase activity, and tested it for phosphorylation after chemoattractant stimulation. Immunoblot analysis shows that the Erk2 kinase-dead mutant protein is phosphorylated at the activation motif in response to folate and cAMP, suggesting the participation of another protein kinase in the regulation of Erk2. These findings suggest that Erk2 is phosphorylated and regulated by an upstream protein kinase and that the C-terminal, but not N-terminal, region is important for this regulation
Interaction with forest structure differences associated with 18 different species and economic-spatial analysis in Oklahoma
No full textDrought impacts on forest productivity vary based on structural attributes like tree size, basal area, and structural diversity. Using data from the USDA Forest Service Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program, I studied 18 dominant species in south-central U.S. forests affected by a 2010-2015 drought. My analysis showed that the interaction between drought and forest structure on tree growth ranges from amplifying to mitigating effects. Larger tree size and greater structural diversity mitigated drought impacts more effectively in slower-growing species, which have traits like lower maximum heights, higher leaf dry mass, lower specific leaf areas, lower leaf nitrogen content, and deeper roots. These findings suggest that growth strategies influence drought responses and can inform forest management practices. Because forestry is economically vital in Oklahoma, particularly in its eastern and southeastern timberland regions, drought-induced productivity losses, such as increased tree mortality, pose significant challenges for the forest sector. I estimated timberland lost from 2010 to 2015 and assessed the economic impact using an input-output model. The results showed that drought affected both direct and total economic impacts on Oklahoma's forest sector. This highlights the need for adaptive forest management strategies to mitigate drought impacts and sustain Oklahoma's forestry economy. Combining ecological and economic perspectives, this research underscores the importance of understanding species-specific drought responses and the economic consequences of drought-driven tree mortality
4-H Safety and Fire manual
No full textThe Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service periodically issues revisions to its publications. The most current edition is made available. For access to an earlier edition, if available for this title, please contact the Oklahoma State University Library Archives by email at [email protected] or by phone at 405-744-6311
Adult clothing demonstration: Second year demonstration no. 2; Remodeling
No full textThe Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service periodically issues revisions to its publications. The most current edition is made available. For access to an earlier edition, if available for this title, please contact the Oklahoma State University Library Archives by email at [email protected] or by phone at 405-744-6311
Stinking smut of wheat
No full textThe Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service periodically issues revisions to its publications. The most current edition is made available. For access to an earlier edition, if available for this title, please contact the Oklahoma State University Library Archives by email at [email protected] or by phone at 405-744-6311
Pheromone binding to pest control: investigating olfaction mechanisms in Ostrinia furnacalis
No full textUnderstanding the molecular intricacies of pheromone binding and release in insects is paramount for developing innovative and eco-friendly pest control strategies. Pheromones are hydrophobic and volatile chemicals that are secreted by female insects to attract the male insects for mating. Pheromone-binding proteins (PBPs) in the antennae of male insects serve a crucial role in transporting hydrophobic pheromone molecules to olfactory receptor neurons (ORN). This process enables male insects to locate a mate. Unraveling this mechanism opens the door to designing synthetic ligands that can compete with natural pheromones, confusing male pests and impeding their mating. Such an approach offers an effective pest mitigation strategy without the reliance on traditional pesticides.The invasive agricultural pest, Ostrinia furnacalis, inflicts substantial damage to crops globally. The highly sensitive olfactory system in male O. furnacalis moths depends on pheromone detection facilitated by PBP. However, the intricate details of pheromone recognition, binding, and release by O. furnacalis PBP2 (OfurPBP2) remain largely unexplored. The current study focuses on the production of recombinant OfurPBP2 and its mutants through bacterial expression, laying the groundwork for future in-depth mechanistic analyses.Chemistr
Species’ movement influences responses to habitat fragmentation
No full textHabitat fragmentation is considered a prevalent threat to biodiversity. Many species experience negative impacts in fragmented environments, however, there have been studies showing species benefiting from these changes. This has led to ongoing debate regarding what is causing these different impacts. Some examples include the amount of resources, the movement capabilities of the species in the habitat and external factors such as advection. A growing problem in field research, however, is that it is difficult to control these various factors, and these studies generally take a large amount of time and resources to complete. To overcome these challenges, in my research, I used C. elegans as a model organism to explore the impacts of habitat fragmentation in different scenarios. By using C. elegans we were able to grow strains of worms with different characteristics such as movement speed to see how well low dispersers did compared to high dispersers. Also, we were able to avoid some of the issues with field work, such as controlling the amount of resources and collecting data in a timely fashion. In my first chapter, we explored the habitat amount hypothesis by covering 83% vs 33% of the environment with resources and then splitting the environment to simulate habitat fragmentation while maintaining the same amount of resources. We found that low dispersers were more impacted by the fragmentation than the high dispersers, especially when the amount of resources was lower. For my following chapter, I sought to how external factors such as advection could impact the success of species in fragmented environments. I used 2 columns of resources that were fragmented along a gradient. I then used deionized water to push the C. elegans towards their starting position (left), away from their starting position (right), and along their starting position (down) and compared those results to trials with no advection. We saw that high dispersers saw a wide range of changes in the various environments with different directions of drift, while low dispersers stayed relatively constant. This research highlights the importance of dispersal in fragmented environments and offers a promising alternative to habitat fragmentation research
Troubleshooting blackbox SDN control software with minimal causal sequences
No full textSoftware bugs are inevitable in software-defined networking control software, and troubleshooting is a tedious, time-consuming task. In this paper we discuss how to improve control software troubleshooting by presenting a technique for automatically identifying a minimal sequence of inputs responsible for triggering a given bug, without making assumptions about the language or instrumentation of the software under test. We apply our technique to five open source SDN control platforms — Floodlight, NOX, POX, Pyretic, ONOS — and illustrate how the minimal causal sequences our system found aided the troubleshooting process.Computer Science
Sound the alarm: Exploring the effects of anthropogenic noise on attention, learning, and memory in Tursiops truncatus
No full textAnthropogenic noise has become an increased concern amidst the continually rising levels as human activities expand across the globe. Cetaceans are particularly susceptible to the impacts of anthropogenic noise due to the sensitive hearing structures, acoustically focused communication, and their reliance on complex cognition (attention, learning, and memory). Disruptions in these cognitive systems are implicated as potential welfare concerns that are not well explored in both wild and professional care environments. Anthropogenic noise affects dolphin attention through a sensitization response to anthropogenic noise across facilities that hear noise normally. Dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) housed across pool, lagoon, and ocean exposed facility types responded with significantly different look duration responses to anthropogenic noise playbacks. Those housed in pool facilities investigated the sound source less than those that live in an environment with frequent anthropogenic noise events indicating an overall sensitization response to noise. Further, when anthropogenic noise types were compared across all facilities the dolphins did not respond differently to individual playback types. This indicates there is no overall habituation or sensitization profile by anthropogenic noise source. However, when tested individually by facility there was a difference in response to anthropogenic noise types. Additionally, the anthropause resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic allowed for testing of attentional responses after a long cessation of sound produced by human activity. During the anthropause, dolphins spent more time responding to anthropogenic noise but less time vocally responding to the same noises. Attentional deficits from human noise affect task learning in dolphins, but only significantly more complex tasks were affected. Dolphins trained on novel behaviors in the presence of anthropogenic noise took longer to learn the more difficult novel behaviors learned without additional noise stimuli. When tested after a one-year training pause, dolphins recalled the easier match-to-sample task significantly better than the object-as-signal task. Further, dolphins recalled their task better when exposed to noise. However, this may be due to an order effect. Additionally, they exhibited the largest change in percentage correct between the end of their learning test and memory test when exposed to noise indicating a large variability in response. These studies are some of the first to look at the effects of anthropogenic noise on dolphin cognition and the dual process of sensitization and habituation in dolphins. Dolphins rely on complex cognition to navigate almost all aspects of their lives from social hierarchies to hunting techniques. Therefore, any cognitive deficits from attentional draw by sensitization threatens the welfare and health of populations in areas with increased presence of anthropogenic noise activities. These studies present the first granular look into the effects of anthropogenic noise on multiple facets of dolphin cognition and will aid in conservation and welfare efforts