2019 Engaged Scholarship Symposium
The 2019 Engaged Scholar Symposium (ES2) took place on April 16th and 17th across the Brownsville and Edinburg campuses. Over 1,000 attendees joined us in celebrating hundreds of ground-breaking research initiatives and creative works from our undergraduate students.
The following are our awarded 2019 Distinguished Scholars' projects:
For Exemplary Applied Science Oral Presentation
Myriad Sense by Angela Fernandez, Derek Duron
This device will be able to read and display the heart rate and body temperature of the user. It will be self-powered by the user's own body temperature.
For an Exemplary Applied Science Poster Presentation
CubeSat Powered by Smartphone by Joseph Schmidt, Marisol Villarreal
With the high expense of conducting space missions and scientific research in space, it has become useful to shrink down equipment and missions to fit inside a small 10x10x10cm cube called a CubeSat. However, with this miniaturization, many problems arise. Our team aims to employ methods to tackle these issues.
For an Exemplary Creative Works Art Piece
City of Gloom by Jose Suarez
The "City of Gloom" is a dramatization of current events that strike fear in me.
For an Exemplary Creative Works Oral Presentation
The Disease by Naissa Janeth Acosta
I wanted to express one of the most difficult hardships I've experienced in my life, and truly it was therapeutic, making me realize who I identify now, versus the then, perhaps the lowest point in my life.
For an Exemplary Creative Works Performance
Selections from Acts 1 & 2 of MALINALLI: An Original Musical Drama by Sandra Barba
This performance of selections from the original musical MALINALLI will follow up with an application of my vocal music education skills as I guide the performer through vocal exercises and voice building activities for the public to see. It's also a way to showcase my team member's musical orchestration.
For an Exemplary Health Science Oral Presentation
The Evaluation of Osteogenic Inducing MiRNAs for Bone Tissue Engineering by Astrid S. Gutierrez
Bone defects can regenerate with time, however, when the damage is extensive, medical intervention is needed. In this work, we evaluate and compare the overexpression of different microRNAs that have the ability to induce osteogenesis for bone tissue engineering.
For an Exemplary Health Science Poster Presentation
Assessing the gray short-tailed opossum (Monodelphis Domestica) as a Potential Animal Model for Clinical Depression: Description fo Individual Differences in Social Subordination. by Diana Duran, Leticia Contreras, Alejandro Fierro-Cabo, Carlos Cintra Buenrostro
Using the Monodelphis Domestica to test whether this species can be used to study social subordination, a pattern of behaviors known to inflict depression-like symptoms in rodents.
For an Exemplary Humanities & Social Science Poster
Association Between Outness, heterosexism, Emotion Dysregulation, and Alcohol Use in LGB individuals by Lillianne Villarreal, and Ruby Charak, PhD
Studies indicate that gay, lesbian and bisexual individuals (GLB) are at a heightened risk of mental disorders attributable to minority stress (Meyer et al., 2008) than their heterosexual counterparts. The present study assessed the relation between outness about one’s sexual orientation and alcohol use in a sample of GLB people. The mediating roles of minority stress in sexual minorities, operationalized as daily heterosexist experiences (DHE; e.g., discrimination, victimization), and emotion dysregulation (ER) in the association between outness and alcohol use were investigated via standardized measures. It was hypothesized that a greater degree of outness would be associated with decreased alcohol-use via decreased exposure to DHE and lower ER. Participants were 288 emerging adults in the age range of 18-29 years (M = 25.35, SD = 2.76; 41.7% gay/lesbian). Results indicated that 8.7% of people scored higher than the cut-off score of 8 on alcohol-use, indicative of problematic use of alcohol. Findings suggested a serial mediation between outness and alcohol-use via DHE and DERS, in that the serial indirect effect was significant (B = -.01, CI = -.02 — -.001). The two indirect effects via DHE (B = -.001, CI = -.006 – -.002) and DERS (B = -.05, CI = -.08 – -.03) were also significant. The results of this study indicate that a greater degree of outness was associated with decreased perceived stress from experiences of heterosexism, as well as with fewer symptoms of emotion dysregulation. It has been shown that higher levels of outness are correlated with higher self-esteem and more perceived social support (Legate, Ryan, & Weinstein, 2012; Beals, Peplau, & Gable, 2009), indicating that the positive social and mental benefits of being ‘out’ may reduce the likelihood of negative health outcomes, such as alcohol abuse. Continued research on the unique stressors affecting GLB people can help curb the resulting negative psychological consequences. Awareness programs directed at reducing heterosexism toward GLB should be carried out. Clinical interventions should be directed toward imparting emotion regulation skills to those at increased risk of abusing alcohol via exposure to heterosexism.
For an Exemplary Humanities Oral Presentation
Eradicating Computer Illiteracy in Ghana by Yaw Sam
This research question is relevant because the lack of resources can create a big problem of illiteracy because it discourages kids from learning and teachers from teaching. From the results acquired from the research, it was evident that in schools where there are limited or no computer resources for effective studying, the students underperformed in their final exam on both the middle school and high school stage. With the funding, I was able to attend the Clinton Global Initiative Conference in Chicago where I learned a lot of problem-solving skills for my research. I started a non-profit organization called SPREAD IT GH to help spread and educate kids about computer literacy and also inspire them to keep pursuing higher education. With the help of the research grant, we were able to reach about 120 kids in Odumase Nyamebekyere School in Ghana, West Africa. We provided 5 computers for the school. As part of this initiative, I believe more schools can be reached and more kids can get more interested in Information Technology. Ghana, as a developing country has a lot of potentials to raise a generation of leaders in various fields especially in IT. With our program, we expect to reach and impact at least 500 students in Ghana each year.
For an Exemplary Life Science Oral Presentation
Alternative Creative Sustainable Solutions or Recycling in the RGV? by Lupita Herrera
Alternative Creative Sustainable Solutions requires the gathered information about what is being done today and how and why it is not progressing our current waste disposal and recycling systems. The research will be done on which methods are sustainable and beneficial to the community and the environment.
For an Exemplary Life Science Poster Presentation
Interactive 2-D Model of the postnatal Monodelphis Domestica brain by Ivan Morado, Immanuel Edinbarough, David Lopez
Using nissl-stained sections of a postnatal day 1 monodelphis domestica pup, we construct a computational 2-D brain atlas that tags areas of the developing brain. Giving us a glimpse into important brain regions linked with diseases such as Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, and Schizophrenia.
For an Exemplary Physical, Earth & Space Science Oral Presentation
Low-pressure synthesis of Multiferroic Material BiFe03 via a Microfluidic PEEK System by Carlos Trevino De Leo, Samir M. Iqbal
Multiferroic materials have potential applications for next-generation logic and memory devices. Via a microfluidic system, Bismuth Ferrite, a material capable of producing the strongest spontaneous polarization among known magnetoelectrics, has been synthesized.
For an Exemplary Physical, Earth & Space Science Poster Presentation
Search Methods for Optical Transients in Galaxies by Alejandro Francisco Hinojosa Lee, Andrea Elizabeth Hinojosa Lee, Matthew R. Briseno, Lucia Carreon Martinez
A kilonova is an astronomical event which occurs when two neutron stars or a neutron star and a black hole merger. They are the optical counterpart of a gravitational wave (GW). These events are very short-lived. Observing galaxies is the best way of improving the chances of finding such events.
For an Exemplary Service-Learning Poster Presentation
Transforming Trash into Treasure by Armida Rivera
Turning trash into treasures is a project where my classmates, mentor, and I help the San Carlos community to reach the goal of sustainability by introducing them to our recycling projects. In addition, we will also educate on how we can improve one’s health and the environment.
For an Exemplary Social Science Oral Presentation
Biomedical Freshman Research Initiative (BFRI): A Study of the Benefits of a Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experience by Sachin George, Aracely Esparza, Isabel Vasquez, Veronica Galaviz, Ana Garcia, Oralia De La Cruz
The Biomedical Freshman Research Initiative, a course-based undergraduate research experience, is a promising opportunity for more minority students to be exposed to research at a low cost and manpower, retain them in the scientific discipline academic pipeline, and better prepare them for future careers in healthcare and STEM.