Digitizing the Lumberjack Newspaper at Humboldt State University

Library

The Lumberjack is the award-winning, student-run newspaper of Humboldt State University and has published continuously since 1929. In spring 2019, the HSU Library hired students to digitize editions of the newspaper and make the papers available online. These students scanned microfilm reels, applied Optical Character Recognition (OCR) to the scans, and uploaded the papers to the library’s Digital Commons website. This project will provide greater access to the history of HSU to researchers across the globe, creating opportunities for new and exploratory research.

Dissolved Trace Metal Depletion Anomalies and Hydrothermal Interaction in South Pacific Deep Water

College of Natural Resources & Sciences

The array of metals obtained from the GEOTRACES cruise in 2013 provides evidence for anomalous metal behavior. Trace metals in the ocean can act as indicators of hydrothermal vents, providing evidence for iron and magnesium sources to the ocean. However, anomalies of other dissolved trace metals (DTM) have been observed at theoretical hydrothermal vent sites, specifically depletions of cerium, lanthanum, nickel, and yttrium. Initially, these depletions were thought to be the result of redox reactions, but this only partially explained the DTM deficiencies. Particulate scavenging through the formation of metal oxides from DTM is also a possible cause for anomalous depletion.

Distribution of Microplastics at the Surface and Within the Water Column in Humboldt Bay, Northern California

College of Natural Resources & Sciences

This study focused on microplastic concentrations in and around Humboldt Bay, CA. Microplastics do not have a universal size class, but for the purpose of this study, microplastics were categorized as any plastic piece from 0.335 mm to 4.75 mm. Samples were taken on Humboldt State's research vessel "Coral Sea", and by foot on surrounding mudflats. Both water and sediment samples were collected and analyzed to find the amount of microplastic particles per mass sampled. Visual microscopy was utilized to create counts for each station.

Distribution of Western Thatching Ant Mounds and Their Effects on Soil Conditions in a Coastal Dune Ecosystem

College of Natural Resources & Sciences

Western thatching ant (Formica obscuripes) mounds are a conspicuous feature in the coastal beach pine forests of the local Lanphere and Ma-le’l Dunes. We explored the mounds’ size and spatial distributions, and tested whether their mound-forming behaviors could impact soil nutrient conditions. In a 3-km segment, we found 346 mounds generally situated along the sand–forest interface. Furthermore, from soil samples of seven of the mounds, we found that the ants significantly concentrated the soils with nutrients necessary for plant growth. These findings suggest that the ants could have important implications for supporting plant populations in this nutrient-poor environment.

Does Women’s Interpersonal Anxiety Track Changes in Steroid Hormone Levels?

College of Professional Studies

Previous studies have suggested that women’s interpersonal anxiety will track changes in progesterone during the menstrual cycle. There have been few direct tests of this hypothesis. The present study used a longitudinal design to investigate whether interpersonal anxiety tracked changes in steroid hormones during the menstrual cycle. Women reported greater interpersonal sensitivity and anxiety in the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle compared to the follicular phase. More recent work did not replicate this effect of cycle phase on anxiety. Given results for attachment anxiety and progesterone, we predicted that women would report greater anxious jealousy when progesterone was high.

Dog World Dog Memes

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

Memes, photographs or videos that are edited to be satirical and that makes fun of cultural ideologies, are passed rapidly through the internet and phone applications and can end up on hundreds of websites within hours. Methods employed included participant observation, literature review, and screenshot analysis from Facebook and Instagram. Patterns in the types of posts indicate that people of all ages actively seek out dog memes to reduce anxiety and that dog memes are more popular when they are humanized. Dog memes are an artifact of our generation that transcends age groups and allows us to research meme culture that reflects a virtual population.

Dragon Ecology

College of Natural Resources & Sciences

Research focus is the resources and abiotic requirements 3 dragons ( from TV series Game of Thrones) need in order to survive different environments around the world.

Eat to Live: An analysis on Human Adaptation to Our Own Actions

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

Food is a fundamental life struggle, and just like any other species, humans have developed ways to meet our nutritional needs. Using scholarly peer reviewed texts, I investigated if there was any change to our nutritional needs as we have genetically modified the corn plant. Trends in the data analysed suggest that while the nutritional needs of humans hasn’t changed, the amounts in which we consume certain foods has profound effects on the human body. In the case of corn, too much sugar, such as high fructose corn syrup gives us an stored energy with out any extra nutrients. If we then do not burn off this stored energy it will accumulate and cause health problems.

Ecocentrism vs. Individualism

College of Natural Resources & Sciences

Congress okays reducing sea lion populations to help out Chinook Salmon. Salmon are a cultural importance to Indigenous populations and play a key role in the ecosystems it lives in. The idea of killing a natural predator to save another that is used in many ways. The declining salmon populations are being affected by many different pressures and many others are being affected by it such as killer whales.

Effects of a Race Timer on the 3 Minute All Out Test for Critical Power

College of Professional Studies

The 3 Minute all-out Test (3MT) provides a lens with which to gain insight on an individual's performance capabilities by measuring both anaerobic capacity and maximal aerobic capacity in one short test. The 3MT measures maximal performance based on the assumption that the subject is giving the test maximal effort. However due to the design of the 3MT, test participants may not be able to accurately gauge their perceived exertion, which could potentially affect performance outcomes during testing. The aim of this study is to examine the effects of introducing a race timer to the 3MT on performance outcomes in healthy active males, and also carries the potential to refine the 3MT.