An organic photovoltaic (OPV) is a polymeric or small molecule device that accepts photons and generates a current. Donor-acceptor molecules are used to create a heterojunction where an electronic environment dissociates excitons, which are bound excited electron-hole pairs. Charge dissociation is facilitated at the heterojunction by the interaction of an exciton on the donor molecule with the electronic configuration of the acceptor molecule. Thiophene derivatives have proven to be promising candidates for high efficiency donor molecules. Rational design and attempted synthesis of bis(diaryl)-thienothiadiazole compounds with pyridyl and pyrimidyl groups are reported.

The presence of Sea Star Wasting Disease (SSWD) has caused fluctuations in the abundance of sea stars in the intertidal. Pisaster ochraceus is a keystone predator of the intertidal (Bates, et al., 2009) and has an increased potential to alter the food web now that SSWD has manifested itself within the population. It is a consumer of several species of chiton, snails, and limpets (Paine, et al.,1980) found in our coast’s intertidal communities. Due to the fluctuation in populations of the Pisaster ochraceus, fluctuations of predation should occur as well. Like most predator prey population models predator population size should inversely affect prey population size.

In collaboration with HSU's P.E.E.R.S program and Lausanne, Swizterland's HEP school of education. Three HSU students collaborated with three Swiss students in order to create a lesson for highschool aged students from scratch as well as teach the lesson in in the United States and Switzerland. Our goal was to increase learning retention of the subject through research of effective methods and pedagogical strategies which we then utilize to regularly change and improve our lesson. Another goal included intercultural awareness and creating relevance for the students in a collaborative way with our peers that would translate into the individual classrooms in relation to the specific class.

An investigation into the distribution of suitable habitat for the northern Pacific rattlesnake at multiple spatial scales. Niche modeling techniques were used to determine where suitable habitat for this species actually exists within its known range. Additionally, I examined geological, thermal, and other differences in habitat characteristics between the rocky outcrops rattlesnakes use as hibernacula (i.e., dens) and unoccupied outcrops.

From Tibetan monks to college students in the U.S., meditation is a practice that has transcended cultural barriers and has been in existence for thousands of years. In addition to waking, dreaming, and non-dreaming, Davidson (1976) describes the practice of transcendental meditation (TM) as a fourth state of consciousness (as cited in Kanellakos & Lukas, 1974). This is due to the studies with brain wave lengths and EEGs that show what areas of the mind are being activated during meditation. My study will be a literature review of: the physiological changes during meditation, brain activity during meditation, and current clinical applications.

Quasars are supermassive black holes that, through accretion, emit large amounts of radiation and eject large amounts of matter. Spectral emissions from quasars have proven to be highly variable, that is, quasar spectra change dramatically over time. The physical mechanism behind this variability in the accretion disk is not yet completely understood. High velocity outflows of matter have been observed in many quasars and could serve as a mechanism for changing the radiating matter in the accretion disk around the black hole, thus changing the quasar's spectra. Our team has analyzed quasar spectra to search for possible trends between radio properties and outflows.

Anabaena Sensory Rhodopsin (ASR) is a retinal containing photoactive membrane protein from the cyanobacterium Anabaena. ASR is part of a protein complex which has been proposed, but never demonstrated, to control the transcription of the cpc-genes involved in chromatic adaption. We isolated and characterized ASR from engineered E. coli for construction of protein lipid nanodiscs. Our ASR nanodiscs were soluble and allow for protein access from the top and bottom of the bilayer. Our next steps will involve examination of the lipid environment and to investigate DNA binding. Results of these studies may allow for future use of these proteins as photo-active transcriptional regulators.

Hesperocyparis bakeri, better known as Baker cypress, is a serotinous species which suffers from low seed viability. Previous research has shown that Baker cypress seed viability begins to decline with cone age and thus the low overall viability of Baker cypress cones is not unexpected (Milich et al., 2012). However, little is known about the cone age at which seed viability begins to decrease. We investigated seed viability in relation to cone age by sampling twenty branches from five Baker cypress trees located in Burney, Shasta County in north-eastern California. Seeds were scarified and placed in a 1% tetrazolium red solution for 18 hours, cut longitudinally to determine viability.

Active Galactic Nuclei are still somewhat of an enigma; young, bright galaxies with a large range of redshifts. Our current research is focused on gas outflows from the active galactic nucleus (AGN). These outflows are identified by broad absorption lines in the spectra of AGN. Current multi-epoch observations of many active galactic nuclei (AGN) have resulted in broad absorption lines that appear and disappear over time. Current observations show that these outflows have speeds up to 0.2c. Our team’s ultimate goal is to understand the mechanism that drives quasar outflows and characterize the broad spectral absorption lines, as well as why the outflows are variable

Research was conducted in an effort to date the glacial moraines of this area using the degree of etching caused by weathering over time. It was determined that etching of hornblende grains can be used to quantify the age of glacial moraines. Samples were collected from five different glacial moraines from Frazier Falls in the Mohawk Valley of the northeastern Sierra Nevada Mountains. Fine sand samples were cleaned, sorted and analyzed; using soil science techniques. Thirty hornblende grains from each location were individually chosen and mounted for analysis. Backscatter electrons and secondary electrons in the scanning electron microscope were used to analyze the etching of the hornbl