The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of understanding indirect routes of transmission for infectious microorganisms and how we can implement barriers to prevent it. As we have observed with SARS-CoV-2, a virus’s ability to survive on surfaces plays a significant role in its ability to spread via fomites and surfaces. Surrogate viruses such as pseudomonas bacteriophages phi-6 and MS2 coliphages are common surrogate viruses for enveloped and non-enveloped viral pathogens such as coronaviruses and norovirus, respectively. Our objective was to determine 1) how long phi-6 and MS 2 are viable on surfaces as a result of different temperatures and relative humidity and 2) the efficacy of HOBr and HOCl disinfection to inactive these viruses on surfaces. Phage dried on stainless steel were incubated at various temperature and relative humidity conditions and sampled over time to determine the viral die-off rate. Separately, dried phages were treated with various concentrations of HOCl or HOBr to evaluate the disinfection capabilities of these solutions. Viral viability and quantification were determined using plaque assays. We found that phi-6 and MS2 die-off at much higher rates with increasing humidity and temperature. HOBr and HOCl treated phages are reduced over 6-logs at 50ppm and 5 minutes contact time with HOCl and HOBr. These results indicate that these surrogate phages and their respective pathogens are viable long enough to be a public health concern and that hypohalous agents are promising compounds for future surface disinfection.

Sikhism is one of the largest religions in the world. The followers of the religion, Sikhs, have stretched beyond the borders of Punjab, India, and into countries like the United States. However, oftentimes they are greeted with bigotry and racism, especially in the workforce, largely due to the 'non-Anglo' physical characteristics of their religion. Since their migration, Sikhs have been fighting for equal employment protection under the law, sadly with little success in the U.S. courts. The purpose of this study is to understand how the U.S. Supreme Court has impeded the workplace rights of Sikh Americans. I examine the Court's judicial opinions on religion-based employment discrimination cases and scrutinize applicable legal journals to deduce how Title VII protections have been redefined and manipulated to corner Sikh Americans into abandoning the physical tenants of their religion or face the risk of losing their livelihoods. I also evaluate the rhetoric in these judicial opinions to hypothesize how the social and political environment at the time influenced the Court's ruling in an attempt to create solutions on how to fairly assist Sikh Americans and other religious minorities in legal cases.