Recent events involving police, including the death of George Floyd, have led to an intense dispute among Americans over police conduct. Feelings that individuals have towards law enforcement may be shaped through interactions that they have with police. Others maybe influenced by interactions that others have experienced, whether that be their friends, what they have witnessed, or what they have seen on television. Studies such as the Brunson and Pegram, Etkins, Smith and Hawkins, Weitzer and Tuch, and Worden and McLean all share similar results, which can be expected in this research involving college students. The studies have shown the impact that negative interactions (directly or indirectly) have on negative feelings towards police. Specifically, Brunson and Pegram demonstrated that “study participants who reported positive police experiences were more likely to rate officers favorably, compared to those who described their interactions as negative” (Brunson and Pegram). All of these studies provide excellent information, but they were all conducted prior to the events that occurred in 2020 and none were found to show an interest in college students. The data in this new study were obtained through a short survey that was sent out to Winona State students. The survey included questions regarding individual interactions with police and the feelings, attitudes, and comfort levels that resulted, along with questions regarding what students would like to see changed with law enforcement. Based on the findings of the Brunson and Pegram, Etkins, Smith and Hawkins, Weitzer and Tuch, and Worden and McLean, it is expected that college students will yield similar results including things such as relation between experiences and how an individual perceives law enforcement.

The purpose of this study was to determine if there were molecular differences between Dictyocaulus species found in cattle (Bos taurus), white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), and red deer (Cervus elaphus). Dictyocaulus is a genus of nematode parasites found in the bronchial tree of different organisms including cattle and deer. This lungworm has been found to cause disease, specifically pneumonia and bronchitis in infected animals.1 Molecular differences were determined by looking at the second internal transcribed spacer (ITS2) of ribosomal DNA. The second internal transcribed spacer (ITS2) is a region of the nuclear rDNA gene that is commonly used for phylogenetic analyses at both the genus and species levels. This region of DNA has been proven valuable in determining phylogenetic relationships using comparisons of primary sequences.2 In this study the ITS2 was used to determine phylogenetic relationships and genetic differences between different strains of Dictyocaulus that were found in cattle, white-tailed deer, and red deer from different geographical locations. The DNA samples were extracted using the chelex DNA extraction technique and then amplified using PCR followed by gel electrophoresis to determine if the ITS2 gene region were present in the samples. Amplified products were then cloned to create a large pool of the DNA region. The clones were then analyzed using PCR and gel electrophoresis to visualize and determine if the ITS2 gene was present. If the gene was present, the samples were sequenced and analyzed to determine any genetic similarities or differences between DNA samples within the different host animals. To date, DNA sequences isolated from white-tailed deer harvested in Minnesota were identified as D. eckerti and DNA sequences from cattle in Wisconsin have been identified as D. viviparus. Future research will analyze worms isolated from cattle in Missouri, white-tailed deer from another region in Minnesota and red deer from New Zealand.

Copper-based trifluoromethylation has been previously accomplished using triphenylphosphine and, separately, 1,10-phenanthroline (phen) as stabilizing ligands. While both have been applied successfully, only phen has proven efficient in catalytic testing, owing to the bidentate nature of the ligand. To date, no examples of copper-based trifluoromethylating agents utilizing bisphosphines as stabilizing ligands has been reported. We are currently exploring bisphosphine complexes of the form (PP)CuCF3 (PP = bisphosphine ligand) both in catalytic tests as well as by synthesizing the presumed catalytic complexes. Monitoring of catalytic reactions is accomplished by 19F NMR. Copper complexes are characterized by NMR (31P{1H}, 19F, 13C{1H}, and 1H) and UV-vis spectroscopies.

The serine/threonine protein kinases Mst2 and Mst1 are key members of the Hippo pathway, a signaling pathway that regulates apoptosis by inhibiting the transcriptional cofactor yes-associated protein (YAP).1 Mst2 is activated by phosphorylation at threonine-180, allowing it to phosphorylate large tumor suppressor kinases 1/2 (LATS1/2) which can then inhibit YAP.1,2 The conformation of Mst2, particularly at the activation loop, is predicted to change when it is activated by phosphorylation. We believe that the stability and relatively small size of Mst2 may allow us to farther study its conformation using fluorescence-based techniques. Proteins can be labeled for these techniques using cysteine-maleimide crosslinking, where a "Cys-lite" background is prepared, and cysteine residues are inserted at specific positions that can be labeled under typical lab conditions. Using a Quikchange Lightning site-directed mutagenesis kit, we have made constructs of the His-tagged Mst2 kinase domain with a cysteine labeling position in a Cys-lite background to direct a fluorescent donor or acceptor tag. We have validated a high-yield purification protocol and checked the folding of our construct using circular dichroism (CD), and the nucleotide binding of our construct using fluorescence-based thermal denaturation. We have also prepared this construct with and without co-expression with lambda phosphatase.

Antidepressants are common prescription medications used to treat depression and anxiety. Most drugs are metabolized in the liver by enzymes that modify drugs to become more polar (i.e., through hydroxylation or demethylation). This modification allows for prescription medications to be excreted out of the body through urine or bile. As a future physician, I am interested in understanding how antidepressants are metabolized in the body. This study was done to determine the outcome of metabolism within three different antidepressants: Nortriptyline, Clomipramine, and Imipramine. These three drugs were mixed with rat liver microsomes and NADPH-generating system in phosphate buffer at pH 7.4. All samples were incubated for two hours at 37°C. Each sample was subjected to the compact mass spectrometer fitted with a C18 reverse-phase column. Neither of the three drugs showed a presence of metabolites. The future goal is to repeat these experiments using HPLC/CMS to separate the metabolites further. Using different drugs would also explain the outcome of metabolism a little further, such as if other drugs are both demethylated and hydroxylated.

Design and Fabrication of a BMW Downforcer

Zach Alboreo, Sean Coleman, Casey Cooper, Trevor Oberg, and Zach Oberg Faculty Mentor: Keith Dennehy

The Downforcer is a splitter made for any E36 generation BMW. The E36 is a popular platform with both track day and amateur racing enthusiasts. Hobby racing has increased in popularity in recent years. Many of the clubs are based on a specific car manufacturer. One of the more popular car styles is the E36 BMW. The goal of this project is to design and fabricate a front splitter increasing downforce thereby improving the handling and track mobility of the car. The splitter is a sandwich construction consisting of carbon fiber fabric and epoxy resin outer layers and a honeycomb core. This allows for a lightweight product with exceptional mechanical properties. The product has a dual plane design which honors previous classic BMW’s. The design process allowed for a highly engineered part and some aesthetic flare.

For the last decade continuous fiber reinforced thermoplastic composites (CFRTPC) have been inching their way into the composites’ marketplace as viable materials worthy of attention and respect. Known as thermoplastic tapes, organo-sheets and CFRTP, they are finding application in various industries ranging from sporting goods to aerospace. Their appeal is in their light weight, corrosion resistance, low-energy transportation and storage, and recyclability. Their mechanical properties along the fibers rival those of thermoset reinforced polymers. In addition, the advent of imidized materials and advanced engineering thermoplastics makes CFRTP true competitors in lightweight and high temperature applications.

The goal of this project is to expand on previous studies on optimization of CFRTP in terms the effect of fiber content and type of matrix material on impact, tensile and compressive properties. The focus of the proposed study will be on three major areas: drop weight impact properties, compression after impact properties and open-hole tensile and compression properties. All three areas are of interest in aerospace and other applications. Materials to be investigated include GF/PET, GF/PPS, CF/PPS, GF/PA6, CF/PA6 and CF/PA12 from Celanese and GF/PP from Avient. Samples are fabricated at WSU and tested at WSU using the Instron fatigue, impact, and static test equipment.

Fatigue is progressive damage resulting from repetitive fluctuations in material stresses and strains. It is the most common method of failure for engineering systems and is, therefore, the subject of extensive study in this field. The characterization of fatigue performance in materials is a vital part of product design, particularly in the automotive and aerospace industries where parts are subjected to demanding applications and high lifetime expectations. Traditional fatigue testing is expensive, time-consuming, and requires stable laboratory conditions – disturbances such as power outages or earthquakes can instantaneously invalidate data from a weeks long test. The concept of additive fatigue damage is well-known and states that the same percentage of cycling to failure generates the same amount of internal damage, regardless of the applied loading. This offers an interesting opportunity to significantly reduce the testing time required to characterize a material’s fatigue performance. This is done by consuming a high percentage of the material’s lifetime at high loading (low cycles) before transferring to a lower loading and extrapolating the data to calculate the total number of cycles to failure at this reduced load. In this study, the results of accelerated fatigue testing of reinforced thermoplastic composites are compared to a traditional fatigue background curve in order to evaluate the validity of fatigue testing methods engendered by cumulative damage theory.

The KyPack is a solution to a problem faced by many adventurous apartment dwellers, small car owners, and frequent travelers: they would like to purchase a kayak but have no space to store or haul it. Manufactured from fiberglass, carbon fiber, and waterproof silicone-coated polyester fabric, the KyPack is a lightweight, foldable watercraft which can be quickly assembled and disassembled for easy storage and transport. The kayak folds down into a thin rectangle that is fitted with carrying straps. It can then be unfolded and assembled on any beach or shoreline and used as a typical kayak. At the end of the day the user can simply break it down, fold it back into the packed shape, and carry it off like a backpack. The design of the KyPack allows for a variety of people to be able to use it while not having to worry about the hassle that comes with the use of bulky traditional kayaks. The goal of this project was to create a consumer product that reaches millions while highlighting the remarkable properties of composite materials. This was done by designing a kayak from scratch, tailored to the performance goals of people in this market. Currently, the design is being fabricated for testing and qualification. The next benchmark will be refining the design based on the test results and preparing for market.

This paper reviews the state of technology in recycling coal fly ash, metal, glass, plastic, and composite materials. Recent estimates indicate that more than 33 million tons of plastic are discarded each year, of which 6.5% are recycled and 7.7% are burned. Similar amounts of materials are discarded every year, including glass, metal, and fly ash. Due to the negative impact of landfill and combustion technologies on the environment, these two methods have gradually been abandoned. The current requirements for recycling are not to pollute the environment, not to sacrifice the properties of materials obtained from recycling, but rather harness materials that can be widely used in various industries and consumer goods. Reusing discarded metals, glass, plastics, fly ash, and composite materials into building materials not only helps to treat wastes that are nowhere to be placed, but also allows the materials to play multiple roles after their initial design application. This article focuses on the basic characteristics of raw materials, the technical methods of recycling, the applications, properties, and prices after recycling these five materials.

The Carbon Ultralight Basket (The CUB) is a composite portable disc golf basket used for everyday disc golfing. The CUB is unique due to its carbon fiber reinforced polymer matrix, making it lighter and more durable than its metal counterparts. The CUB has a great strength to weight ratio. In turn this improves the portability of the basket when compared to other market options. The product is durable and easy to use which makes it a solid choice for beginner to professional disc golfers. The carbon fiber also provides a unique appearance that is unlike anything on the market. This carbon fiber finish is also not as susceptible to weathering as traditional disc golf baskets.

The purpose of the Carbon Ascensus project is to create an ultra-light, high performance tree climbing stick. Hunters will be able to hike further and climb higher with this product. The design is simple to use and incorporates high performance materials well suited for the high -performance hunter. The Carbon Ascensus achieves this by being constructed of 70% composite materials by weight. This makes the design stronger and lighter, with features never before seen in a tree climbing stick. The steps are constructed from carbon fiber using an epoxy system along with PVC core and the shaft is made with several layers of carbon fiber braid and epoxy resin. The only metallic parts are the three fasteners and bolts and the aluminum standoffs. Testing will confirm the mechanical properties of the part meet the requirements of the Treestand Manufacturing Standard.

Automatic Polyp Detection in Gastroscopy Using Deep Learning

Himanshu Bhushan, Ming Ma

Department of Computer Science, Winona State University, 225 W King St, Winona, MN 55987, USA

Polyp detection in gastroscopy has attracted much researchers’ attention over the past few decades. Early detection and removal of polyps plays a crucial role in gastric cancer prevention. However, it is a challenging task for physicians to detect various types of polyps. To facilitate this process, we propose to use a deep learning based method for automatic polyp detection. The proposed method employs the YOLO model that is based on the convolutional neural network (CNN). The model is trained and tested in a dataset of 758 images obtained during gastroscopy. Out of these 758 images, 606 images were used for training and 152 were used for testing. Experimental results show that the proposed method achieved 85%-95% image precision on the testing dataset. With the Intersection Over Union (IoU) being 0.5, the mean area precision (mAP) ranged from 81%-92%. The trained model can detect the polyps on 10 testing images in 0.226 seconds. This demonstrates that the proposed method can help physicians efficiently detect the gastric polyp and has the potential to be applicable in clinical practice.

This research focuses on the comparison of BioPython and BioConductor, two open-source software packages for bioinformatics analysis in Python and R programming languages, respectively. A review of both packages is presented that includes the execution style, dependencies, and a subset of optimal tasks for each package. The primary contribution of this research is to determine whether any significant differences exist in each of Memory and Run-time performance between these packages when executing analysis pipelines that are as equivalent as possible within each package. A Variant Call Format (VCF) data set is used as input into each analysis pipeline and consists of Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) data for six populations of Keeled Treehopper (Entylia carinata), totaling 100 organisms and across 18,318 loci. The resulting measurements of Memory and Run-time performance are visualized and examined. A conclusion provides available evidence-based recommendations with regard to using either or both packages for specific use-cases.

This study analyzes how primary school teachers can integrate a classroom environment in which fosters positive mental health growth. This project collected teacher, administrative member, and parental insight on current mental health integration in the classroom in one school district. The findings indicate that society as a whole is not educated to the degree necessary in mental health. Implications of this study, including varieties of approaches toward creating the best potential environment toward promoting positive mental health growth, are discussed.

Obesity is a paramount contributor to disease in the United States. Current recommendations for weight loss or weight management are effective with unyielding implementation, although many struggle with adherence. In frustration with traditional methods to lose weight, individuals often turn to unreliable, expensive, and gimmicky methods and products. While some methods work, many are ineffective, unsustainable, and unsafe. Intermittent fasting (IF) has been a topic of interest in popular media as well as research, with new data published incessantly. The purpose of this literature review was to explore the efficacy of IF for weight loss. Four databases were searched using keywords. Twenty-nine articles met inclusion criteria for this literature review. The results of the literature review grossly indicated IF is effective for weight loss but no more effective than calorie restriction (CR). However, data suggests IF may generate greater fat loss than muscle loss in comparison to CR, which may produce health benefits beyond weight loss. In addition, data indicated IF may be useful for glycemic control, which could increase the applicability of IF to the care of those who struggle with glycemic control and insulin sensitivity. IF may be an advantageous tool to offer patients who have difficulty maintaining an appropriate body mass index (BMI) and for whom CR was not efficacious. IF presents a viable alternative to CR for weight loss with promising potential for disease prevention and management; however, close monitoring may be required for those at risk for hypoglycemia. More research is needed with larger participant numbers and long-term analysis to fully appreciate the health benefits of IF.

Ethnic minorities are already at an increased risk of contracting COVID-19 due to the numerous disparities within the system as a whole, their mental health should not be suffering too. How could their mental health not suffer though when there is a 0.7-1.9 greater chance of them contracting COVID- 19, a 1.1-3.7 greater chance of being hospitalized, and a 1-2.4 greater chance of them dying compared to white, non-Hispanic people, according to the CDC. On top of this, they have to deal with the disparities within the health care system. This causes ethnic minorities to be provided with less and worse health care if they did need it during the pandemic at which they are at a heightened risk of morbidity and mortality. How are they supposed to truly trust their access to health care services while also facing the challenges of trying to merely receive equal treatment among the less than adequate health care services that they are provided? How are they truly supposed to trust this system at all when stacked with disparities within occupation, education, income, wealth gaps, and housing? A system that modern ethnic minorities must be at a constant battle with in order to try a merely receive basic human rights. With all of this stacked against them it is no wonder the mental health of ethnic minority groups are deteriorating during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

In classical conditioning, sign-tracking is a near ubiquitous tendency of organisms to approach/contact of a conditioned stimulus (CS) signal for an appetitive unconditioned stimulus (US), whereas goal-tracking is the approach/contact of the location where the unconditioned stimulus is to be delivered. In a previous study, we hypothesized that amphetamine administration would increase sign-tracking and decrease goal tracking, but instead amphetamine administration decreased sign tracking and increased goal tracking. We performed this study on to see if the antidepressant bupropion (which has similar effects) would decrease sign-tracking in a similar way. With this we predicted that the sign-tracking would decrease, and goal tracking will increase under bupropion. Across a number of measures, we found that bupropion administration decreased sign-tracking and increased goal-tracking in a manner similar to amphetamine. In future studies we hope to explain the paradox of why administration of a dopminergic drug seems to reduce sign-tracking (a dopminergically-driven behavior) so dramatically

Background. Success is a goal that many people strive for. It is important to understand which factors such as personality traits lead to success and if success in an academic setting can predict success in a career setting. This is because being a successful individual can lead to both physical and psychological benefits. If someone can learn about how to become more successful, they can acknowledge their strengths and weakness and implement changes into their life. Therefore, it was hypothesized that greater academic success will predict greater career success. Furthermore, there will be a significant positive correlation between academic success and conscientiousness and there will be a significant positive correlation between career success and conscientiousness, and extraversion. Lastly, there will be a significant decrease in career success during COVID-19 than before COVID-19.

Methods. Participants (N = 353, MAge = 45.69, SD = 15.98) completed an online survey, answering questions about academic success, career success (before and during COVID), and personality. A linear regression and correlations were computed to understand the relationship between these variables. A paired samples t-test was performed to determine career success before and during COVID.

Results. A positive and significant correlation was found between academic success and extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, open mindedness, and career success (both before and during COVID). A negative and significant correlation was found between academic success and negative emotionality. A positive and significant correlation was found between career success (before and during COVID) and extraversion, agreeableness, and conscientiousness. A negative relationship was found with negative emotionality. Career success during COVID (but not before COVID) was positively associated with open mindedness. Career success was significantly lower during COVID (M = 3.80, SD = 0.83) compared to before COVID (M = 3.93, SD = 0.80, t(218) = 2.50, p = .01).

Discussion. The data suggests that academic success can predict career success. The results also build on previous research and supports the hypothesis that different personality traits are correlated with both academic success and career success. This information contributes to a clearer understanding of the predictive qualities of success. Personality factors such as being outgoing, compliant, and responsible are associated with more academic success and career success. This could be due to the social aspect of success and what other people value. Individuals who are more extroverted and agreeable may be more likely to build social connections and do what is expected of them. By acknowledging how one’s success in school and one’s personality can influence success in the workforce, people may be able to put effort into developing successful skills and traits that will lead them to success in the future. The affect that a pandemic has on career success should be taken into account as well. The results show that during COVID, career success was reported to be significantly lower than before COVID, possible due to the stress of a massive change in society and lifestyle.

Keywords: academic success, career success, personality

The COVID-19 pandemic has created economic instability for people across the United States, including college students. A study of job loss in New England in May 2020 found that young adults ages 16-24 experienced an employment loss of 27% from Mid-March to Mid-April 2020 (Fogg and Harrington). Much of the research conducted regarding college students and COVID-19 focuses on the psychological impacts with finances and the economy as contributing factors (Cohen et al.). Sparse research has been undertaken regarding the employment levels of young adults. Limited attention focuses on studying the financial impact that COVID-19 has had on college students, leaving room to examine the changes in personal income felt by college students. This study determines how negatively COVID-19 and the restrictions have impacted students' income at Winona State University. A survey, distributed in Winona State University official Facebook groups, asks questions about changes to employment, income, and assistance from the federal government and university. This study’s findings are essential to groups that advocate for more significant aid for college students throughout the pandemic and after. These findings are also important in the context of the economic downturns and how college students are adversely affected.