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Cruelty and Racism in Missouri\u27s Death Penalty
Get PDFFour short years after declaring capital punishment unconstitutional in Furman v. Georgia (1972), the US Supreme Court revived the death penalty, affirming its constitutionality in Gregg v. Georgia. Debates over capital punishment typically revolve around its usefulness as a deterrent. However, these debates ignore the human rights violations intrinsic to capital cases in the U.S. This research focuses on the violations that take place in the ways capital punishment convictions are obtained in Missouri and how they are disproportionately sought for defendants of color, inhibiting the right to life, the right to due process, and the prohibition against cruel and unusual treatment. I will also analyze the extent to which the victim\u27s race influences convictions and sentences in St. Louis County and St. Louis City/County, the two Missouri areas with the most capital punishment cases, as well as how the defendant’s race affects time spent on death row.https://orb.binghamton.edu/research_days_posters_2023/1058/thumbnail.jp
Associative interference and nonreinforcement in human contingency learning
Get PDFThe main file is the ReadMe file, with four dataset files added in the additional file section
Data to accompany Altered heat-avoidance behavior following damage to the extended architecture of Mexican jumping bean moth larvae (Cydia saltitans)
No full textIn response to physical damage, organisms must balance physical recovery with adaptive responses to other environmental stressors. Understanding how damage and repair influence adaptive responses to high environmental temperatures is of particular interest in light of global climate change. We investigate the impact of damage and subsequent repair on heat-avoidance behaviors in Cydia saltitans larvae inhabiting host seeds (Sebastiana pavoniana) as protective structures (together colloquially known as “Mexican jumping beans”). These larvae perform temperature-dependent “jumping” or “rolling” behaviors to escape extreme heat, which are crucial for larval survival in their native arid and hot subtropical dry forests. Due to possible energetic costs of repair, we hypothesized that experiencing sequential damage (and repair) prior to heat would reduce larval movement away from extreme heat when compared to the simultaneous damage and heat group or the undamaged control group. Results show that larvae in control conditions exhibited greater displacement from heat compared to those in the sequential or simultaneous damage groups. Contrary to predictions, sequential damage and repair compromised heat avoidance similarly to the group experiencing damage alone. Reduced movement in both groups experiencing damage may be linked to energy allocation, damage-dependent thermal preference, or an adaptive antipredator response. These findings contribute to our understanding of how environmental stressors interact to shape behavioral responses in insects with “extended architecture.” As global temperatures rise, insights into adaptive behaviors are increasingly crucial
Steamed broccoli sprouts alleviate DSS-induced inflammation and retain gut microbial biogeography in mice
Get PDFInflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs) are devastating conditions of the gastrointestinal tract with limited treatments, and dietary intervention may be effective and affordable for managing symptoms. Glucosinolate compounds are highly concentrated in broccoli sprouts, especially glucoraphanin (GLR), and can be metabolized by certain mammalian gut bacteria into antiinflammatory isothiocyanates, such as sulforaphane. Gut microbiota exhibit biogeographic patterns, but it is unknown if colitis alters these or whether the location of glucoraphanin-metabolizing bacteria affects antiinflammatory benefits. We fed specific pathogen-free C57BL/6 mice either a control diet or a 10% steamed broccoli sprout diet and gave a three-cycle regimen of 2.5% dextran sodium sulfate (DSS) in drinking water over a 34-day experiment to simulate chronic, relapsing ulcerative colitis (UC). We monitored body weight, fecal characteristics, lipocalin, serum cytokines, and bacterial communities from the luminal- and mucosal-associated populations in the jejunum, cecum, and colon. Mice fed the broccoli sprout diet with DSS treatment performed better than mice fed the control diet with DSS, and had significantly more weight gain, lower Disease Activity Index scores, lower plasma lipocalin and proinflammatory cytokines, and higher bacterial richness in all gut locations. Bacterial communities were assorted by gut location but were more homogenous across locations in the control diet + DSS mice. Importantly, our results showed that broccoli sprout feeding abrogated the effects of DSS on gut microbiota, as bacterial richness and biogeography were similar between mice receiving broccoli sprouts with and without DSS. Collectively, these results support the protective effect of steamed broccoli sprouts against dysbiosis and colitis induced by DSS
Event-driven MEMS vibration sensor: Integration of triboelectric nanogenerator and low-frequency switch
Get PDFTriboelectric-nano-generator (TENG) is able to produce a very small current and a large voltage compared to piezoelectric or electromagnetic generators. The large voltages from the TENGs are suitable for operating MEMS devices without external AC or DC generators. Producing micro-sized TENG using MEMS fabrication process enables integration of them with MEMS sensors and actuators. This combination is useful because the required voltage for driving MEMS is obtained from the motion of the event that is being measured. In this work, an event-driven vibration sensor is introduced which actuates a switch as the frequency or amplitude of the vibration exceeds a desired threshold. Using CMOS micromachining, a 1.5 mm × 1.5 mm TENG in contact-separation (CS) mode is fabricated to convert ambient vibrations to a voltage generated between a conductive aluminum layer and a dielectric Polyimide layer. The large generated voltage between the electrodes can operate a low-frequency electrostatic MEMS switch. Two events are able to produce the resonant dynamic pull-in needed to close the switch. Event one is when the input amplitude exceeds the dynamic pull-in threshold which is called acceleration sensitive mode. Event two is when the frequency of the vibration exceeds a specified threshold. An electromechanical model for the MEMS switch part of the vibration sensor is also presented. Results show that MEMS-TENG is able to supply the MEMS switch in the frequency sensitive and acceleration sensitive modes with a good signal-to-noise-ratio, sensitivity, and accuracy
Sustainability Hub Newsletter - Summer 2023
Get PDFIn our summer issue of the Sustainability Hub Newsletter, get inspired to plant a garden in June, put sustainability books on your summer reading list, and learn how you can participate in Plastic Free July! At the end, check out some local summer events and other announcements
Episode 5: Equity in the Classroom with Sarah Marcus
No full textSarah Marcus is an Instructor in the Biological Sciences Department and is speaking with us about equity in the classroom
Creators for the Earth: The Academic Library’s Role in Supporting Sustainability Creators and Practitioners Across All Disciplines
Get PDFThe image of a creator often brings to mind individuals that can take an abstract or unique idea and transform it into an impressive, tangible creation. Whether it’s an architect crafting a new building design, an artist painting on canvas, or an interior designer mapping out a new room layout, creators are generally seen as those who can formulate conceptual ideas that are then realized to showcase amazing ingenuity. In the world of higher education, this type of work is often first associated with disciplines like art, design, architecture, and engineering—fields where acts of “making,” “creating,” or “building” are integral to their purposes. However, this chapter invites readers to think beyond these more well-established creator fields to consider another field where creators are equally needed, supported, and produced: the field of sustainability and sustainable development
Chronic Wasting Disease: Crossing the Species Barrier into Human Populations
Get PDFChronic Wasting Disease (CWD) is a prion disease causing degeneration of the centralnervous system within various species of deer, elk, moose and caribou, collectively known as cervids. CWD originated in Colorado in the 1960s and has spread to 29 states, four Canadian provinces, three Scandinavian countries and South Korea. Prions are excreted through bodily fluids, waste, and decomposing carcasses that remain inthe environment, posing a potential threat to other species. A significant number of people are directly exposed to CWD prions through handling and consumption of contaminated cervid carcasses and using cervid brains for tanning. Similar exposure, through incorporation of sheep prions into the food chain, has resulted in a prion disease called Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (Mad Cow Disease) and subsequent transmission of cow prions to humans, resulting in variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease. This study aims to address the risks of CWD transmission to humans and cervids globally.https://orb.binghamton.edu/research_days_posters_2023/1010/thumbnail.jp
What are the Effects of Implementing a Rewards System on Individuals with Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviors?
Get PDFBody-focused repetitive behaviors (BFRBs) are self-destructive habits that individuals perform to feel satisfaction. Some common examples include hair twirling, nail biting, and teeth grinding. The limited information surrounding BFRBs as well as the physical harm and stress they can cause makes the disorder an important one to address. I analyze cases of individuals with BFRBs within the health and behavioral sciences, as well as studies on the impact of a rewards system on habitual actions, to determine whether implementing a “rewards system” would produce success in minimizing the frequency of BFRB engagement. The rewards system approach entails giving individuals with BFRBs some intrinsic or extrinsic reward for going a certain amount of time without engaging in their behavior. The overall findings suggest that the rewards system approach with modifications could see finite success in the treatment of BFRBs; however, more research is necessary to determine the long-term effects of this method.https://orb.binghamton.edu/research_days_posters_2023/1016/thumbnail.jp