Monitoring the Gonadal Maturation of Steelhead and Cutthroat Trout using Ultrasonic Imaging

College of Natural Resources & Sciences

Ultrasonography is a versatile and noninvasive method that can be used to examine the internal anatomy, gonadal maturation, and the reproductive status of various freshwater and marine fishes. The goal of our study is to examine the feasibility of using ultrasound images to sex and determine oocyte maturation for Steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) and Cutthroat Trout (O. clarkii) at the Humboldt State University Fish Hatchery. The objectives were to: (1) determine the most applicable control setting, (2) differentiate between a male and female, and (3) monitor oocyte maturation using ultrasound images. We were able to successfully identify the sex and determine gonadal maturation of fish.

More Than a Store: Culture and Food in Hoopa Valley

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

The purpose of this research is to attempt to enhance the sense of culture and place in the interior design of the Hoopa Grocery Store that is currently in the planning process and is to be completed by this summer in Hoopa, CA. This is part of my senior capstone service learning project in support of Greenway Partners, a local project management firm, and their work with the Hoopa Valley Tribe. I am using a combination of historical imagery, Google Earth imagery, contemporary photos, Hupa tribal patterns and language, and maps to incorporate the unique and authentic sense of place of Hoopa Valley into the store as a symbol of the culture revitalization and survivance of the Hupa people.

Motivation Strategies to Facilitate Transfer in Community College Students

College of Professional Studies

There is a growing disconnect between youth’s expectations to attend and graduate from college on the one hand and their ability to follow through on these plans on the other. This discrepancy is pronounced at the community college, especially among low-income, first-generation, and underrepresented students. This study examined motivational and self-regulatory strategies in community college students aspiring to transfer to a university. The results suggest that goal engagement strategies, such as persisting when encountering obstacles, avoiding distractions, and seeking outside support, are useful in understanding transfer-related behaviors and outcomes in community college students.

Music and Mindfulness

College of Professional Studies

Music and Mindfulness is a project created in partnership with Trinidad Elementary School to assess the efficacy of using therapeutic drumming and mindfulness for substance abuse prevention. This project combines research from Trauma-Informed practices, Relational Theory, and emotional awareness to assist students in building healthy relationships and increasing self-esteem.

Nanodiscs Stabilize Anabaena Sensory Rhodopsin for Transcriptional Regulation Studies

College of Natural Resources & Sciences

Anabaena Sensory Rhodopsin (ASR) is a retinal containing membrane protein from Anabaena nostoc. ASR undergoes an orange-light induced conformational change from an all trans form to a 13-cis form, which is associated with the release of a bound transducer protein ASRT. It is proposed that the ASR/ASRT complex directly controls the transcription of phycocyanin (cpc-gene) and phycoerythrocyanin (pec-gene). In order to study this protein complex, ASR nanolipoprotein particles (nanodiscs) were assembled, which allows both ends of the ASR protein to be studied. These particles will enable, the main goal of this research, which is to identify the mechanism of the ASR/ASRT control of transcription.

Nanoscale Modifications to the RsaA S-Layer Protein Enhance Lead Binding in Whole Cells

College of Natural Resources & Sciences

Due to the many industrial processes of modern America, heavy metal contamination of our waterways, specifically in densely populated areas, has become a major issue. The Prokaryotic species Caulobacter vibrioides exhibits a surface layer protein, RsaA, forming a 2-D crystallin array above the cell membrane. RsaA can be modified to exhibit a high binding potential with many of the charged ions, such as heavy metals, which are found in waterways. Here we show through an quantitative fluorescence assay that upon exposure to 39.063nM Pb solution, engineered C. vibrioides strains Hcm 027, and 028 remediated approximately 10% more Pb than the wildtype, Hcm 009.

Native American Schools

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

The focus on my project will be in education in Native American schools. I will research about the structure of the schools such as Albuquerque Indian School, Chemawa Indian School and Carlisle Indian School and then talk about what happened in the past and forward each of the schools. Reason(s) why the topic being researched: The reason why I am planning to do research on education in Native American schools is because my family is mixed racially and I want to learn more about what occurred at the following Native American schools.

New Petrology and SEM imagery of the West China Peak Complex of the Ironside Mountain Batholith, Klamath Mountains, Trinity County, CA

College of Natural Resources & Sciences

The Ironside Mountain Batholith located in the Western Hayfork terrane in the Klamath Mountains province represents crustal derived plutonism that pre-dates the Nevadan Orogeny by 20Ma. Redating the Ironside Mountain Batholith will be done via U-Pb laser ablation of accessory zircons, this will yield an age of crystallization thus providing an age of emplacement, and constrain the pre-Nevadan orogeny. Barnes and Petersen dated the Ironside Mountain Batholith in 1992 using U-Pb, Pb-Pb, and K-Ar dating methods, and yielded a date in the Mid Jurassic from 169 Ma (K-Ar) to 174 Ma (U-Pb), with an accepted age of 170Ma.

Northcoast Environmental Center

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

Social Media platform assistant. Taking photos of local landscapes around Humboldt County as well as events and strategically placing them onto the organization's social media platforms.

Novel Tests of Gravity Below Fifty Microns

College of Natural Resources & Sciences

Theories attempting to unify the Standard Model and General Relativity often include features that violate the Weak Equivalence Principle and gravitational Inverse-Square Law. Motivated by these considerations, undergraduates and faculty at Humboldt State University are operating an experiment to probe gravitational interactions below the 50-micron length scale. The experiment employs a torsion pendulum whose twist is measured as an attractor mass is oscillated nearby. The size and distance dependence of the torque variation provides a means to determine the existence of deviations from expected behavior at untested scales.