Interdisciplinary – Page 19 – UROP Spring Symposium 2021

Interdisciplinary

Scoping review on the impact of type 2 diabetes self management programs in Asian-Americans

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is among the top reasons for deaths in Asian-Americans (AA). While this group consists of people from over 20 different countries, existing research often does not reflect the diversity and differences among AA, including many existing diabetes self-management programs (DSMP). No previous studies have compared existing DSMPs targeting AA. This scoping review includes adult AA participants and T2 DSMPs. DSMPs were defined as managing an individual’s condition, including self-care, symptom management, family management, medical-management, emotional management, or resource utilization. Keywords used to search for relevant articles included type 2 diabetes, Asian Americans (and its different subpopulations), and self-management. We searched for relevant articles with no data range in six databases, yielding 2581 results. DistillerSR was used to screen and extract data. After screening for titles and abstracts, 311 articles were included in the full-text screening. After screening the full-text articles, 31 articles were included in the final analysis. Articles were excluded if they were non-primary research studies, did not focus on T2D or AA adults, and did not include DSMPs. Data on different interventions and outcomes were extracted and analyzed using a charting form. We hypothesized that there is a need for more research focusing on minority subgroups. We also hypothesized that there is a need for more specialization of DSMPs to overcome many barriers AA face in healthcare, so that specific cultural and ethnic needs are addressed. Improved understanding of existing research may improve and guide future research in developing T2D self-management interventions for AA.

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Studying the Role of Feedback and Assessment in Teacher Preparation

While student-teachers are regularly observed and evaluated by their mentor teachers and university field supervisors, there is little data about how feedback differs across field placement schools, where student-teachers complete their in-classroom experiences, and how these differences may contribute to their development. Schools with poor working conditions may provide less infrastructure and support for teachers in their mentorship which we expect to be reflected in the quality of their feedback to student-teachers. This study considers the content and quality of feedback given to student-teachers and evaluates how the quality of feedback varies depending on the location of their field placement. By considering the open ended component of evaluations provided to student-teachers from Tennessee Technical University at their field placement schools, we were able to qualitatively code for factors of quality and content. Analysis has not yet been completed so there are currently no results to evaluate, but we expect to see that feedback will be of higher quality in schools with lower teacher turnover rates, which is representative of better working conditions. The results of this study will inform standards of written feedback for evaluators and will be used to aid in the preparation of more effective teachers in Tennessee.

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Creative Writing & Publishing

There are a wide variety of literary journals today, from college-owned to ones that revolve around a specific interest such as feminist ideas or geographic regions. In this project, I aimed to identify trends among literary journals both structurally in regard to format as well as thematically. These results helped me to select journals that best match my own writing and broadened my understanding of the world of journals. To find these results, I compiled a database of journals with several categories such as types of writing, digital access, editors, and themes in Google Sheets. I also spoke to editors and staff of several literary journals to better understand the behind-the-scenes operations as well as their thought processes when deciding what to include in their issues. I learned that while many journals have different production processes, many have made the switch from print to partly or fully online. I also learned that at the end of the day, the staff makes the journal. From a group of young experimental MFA students to a woman who has been editor-in-chief for years, the staff is ultimately the driving force behind style and form. This research is valuable to writers as it shows that by reading journals, you can identify themes within each that symbolize the style of the journal as whole.

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Stories from the Galveston Immigration Project

In the late 1800s and early 1900s, the United States saw a large influx of Eastern European, Jewish immigrants to its major cities. Because of widespread antisemetic views among Americans at the time, the Galveston Immigration Project was established to disperse Jewish arrivals to cities across the United States in an effort to prevent the growth of the Jewish populations in east coast cities like New York. Due to their purposefully designated destinations across midwestern states, immigrants who arrived to the U.S. via the Galveston Project had very different experiences in the U.S. than their counterparts in eastern states. In order to investigate the lives of Jewish immigrants who immigrated through the Galveston Project, this research project utilized resources like ancestry.com and various newspaper databases. Information was also collected from the living descendants of the immigrants via qualitative email interviews that aimed at uncovering more intimate stories about the lives of the immigrants of the Galveston Project. Through these methods, information was gathered pertaining to the personal lives of several Galveston Project immigrants. Data regarding their U.S. citizenship, employment, family life, education, travel, and residence was obtained and will be used to reconstruct their personal narratives and used as anecdotal examples in a book on the Galveston Project and its creator. The nature of the information gathered allows for a window to be opened into the lives of Jewish immigrants whose lives were shaped by the Galveston Immigration Project. This intimate approach allows one to see the impact of the project on an individual level and compare it to the impacts of immigrating to a major city during the same era. Because this study investigates lived experiences, the personal data collected creates room for better understanding of the Galveston Immigrant experience and the Galveston Project as a whole.

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Activity of squirrels and rabbits to domestic cats in Detroit, MI

Domestic cats are known invasive predators on small mammals and birds in urban areas. Due to domestic cats’ presence, concerns have raisen given the detrimental impact these pets can have on the local wildlife of metropolitan cities. In this study, we analyzed the temporal avoidance of squirrels (Sciurus niger, Sciurus carolinensis) and cottontail rabbits (Sylvilagus floridanus) to the presence of domestic cats (Felis catus) in Detroit Michigan.

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The Resilience Project: Measuring, Modeling, and Resilience to Hurricanes along the Eastern Seaboard

Hurricanes are massive storm systems that have major impacts on the human environment, especially infrastructure and the economy. It is imperative that we assess and measure recent patterns toward greater resilience to these powerful events, by minimizing the destructive potential that hurricanes will continue to bring in the near future. This undergraduate research study analyzes historic hurricane data, including their recurrence and magnitudes, as well as resilience measurement models that assess levels of impact to occurrences. Special focus is on southeast Florida which will continue to experience major impacts of storm patterns, especially coastal flooding from winds and storm surge. Five main results are found. First, Florida has the highest yearly frequency of hurricane strikes of any state on the U.S. Mainland. Second, the average frequency of mainland US hurricanes strikes since 1850 is 2 per year, and has not increased; however, the frequency of Atlantic hurricanes from 1985-2020 has nearly doubled. Next, the storm intensity of these strikes has slightly increased since 1850 (category 4 and 5 storms). Lastly, hurricane damage cost has increased by 100-1000 times; these rapidly growing costs reflect damage-prone societal infrastructure. It is also found that hurricane damage costs make up the significant majority of all weather event damage costs. The study offers strategies on a community level and on a regional level for increasing resilience, based on recent patterns of activity and the potential of enhanced storm activity in the near future.

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Bioinformatics study on genetic diseases

Missense single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are single point mutations that alter the amino acid produced. By changing the amino acid, protein stability, pathogenicity, or chemical properties of the protein can change. These mutations can also cause various diseases, specifically diabetes, intellectual disability, and speech-language disorder. However, not all mutations are pathogenic. This study’s objective is to research the properties of these mutations by looking at the change in free energy, amino acid change, and pathogenicity and to determine whether or not it’s harmful to humans. The study specifically focused on the forkhead transcription factors, a set of DNA-binding proteins involved in regulating gene expression. Data was gathered from the Uniprot database, and PyMOL was used to determine protein to DNA contact. EvoEF was used to calculate the change in free energy, and SIFT and Polyphen-2 were used to predict pathogenicity. The results showed common trends among most pathogenic mutations such as high ??G values, no DNA contact, and a high damaging score. Therefore, the data collected is useful for making predictions about mutations.

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The Seasonality of Infectious Diseases Across the Globe

Dysentery is an infection causing inflammation of the intestines and bloody diarrhea. It is often spread via contaminated food and water and was a prevalent public health concern throughout the twentieth century and still today to an extent. Data provided by the World Health Organization from 1944-1977 categorizes dysentery as either amoebic or bacillary. Amoebic dysentery is caused by the parasite, amoeba Entamoeba histolytica, and bacillary dysentery is caused by the Shigella bacteria. Dysentery cases were examined in a variety of countries around the world from 1944-1977. This data was first scanned from World Health Organization record books, and PDFs were converted into Excel files using optical character recognition (OCR) software. The cumulative data over the entire timespan was then graphed and visualized using the R programming language using time series to determine if any trends in seasonality existed for either or both forms of dysentery. These visualizations will help doctors and public health professionals better understand the seasonality of dysentery as well as where and when it is most prevalent. This will provide vital information that can improve timing and delivery of treatment in parts of the world with high incidences of dysentery.

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The Historical Seasonality of Paratyphoid Across the Globe

Paratyphoid fever is one of many bacterial infectious diseases shown to exhibit seasonal dynamics, likely influenced by environmental conditions. However, a complete understanding of the seasonal patterns and identification of environmental factors which drive disease transmission have not been fully studied. We compiled and analyzed global data from the World Health Organization spanning from 1932-1957 and provincial level Thailand data from 1980-2020. Both of these datasets report monthly clinical cases and deaths of paratyphoid that occur in the given area. We used optical character recognition software to transform the data from pdf format to a format conducive to statistical analysis with R. Based on previous studies and initial findings, it appears that paratyphoid cases spike during hot weather months which vary depending on hemisphere. Other environmental factors, such as rainfall and variation in temperature have also been shown to influence paratyphoid spread and seasonality. Understanding the transmission dynamics of infectious diseases such as paratyphoid fever is imperative for public health officials to develop comprehensive guidelines and policies. The nuances of infectious disease transmission are also important to understand to reduce the size of epidemics and prevent the inundation of healthcare systems that would stop an otherwise treatable condition from being treated.

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Civic Resilience and Neighborhood Resilience Projects and Hubs

As the climate crisis accelerates, emergency and civil services increasingly are overstretched. Resilience-based programming provides relief by empowering individual citizens, neighborhood organizations, and local institutions to share the planning and preparation on behalf of their communities. Settlements become more resilient to the impacts of climate change when they develop the capacity of neighborhoods to endure, quickly recover from, and renew after extreme events. To aid these processes, we developed “A Pattern Language for Neighborhood Resilience” as a starting point. This book contains a number of guides – or patterns – on how to invest in skills, small-scale infrastructure, relationships, and supplies that increase a neighborhood’s resilience. The book is currently in draft form and soon will be pre-tested before being released. As a living document, it will undoubtedly be modified and expanded throughout its adoption.

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