Vocabulary acquisition in children involves many cognitive processes, with semantic descriptions playing a potentially crucial role in word learning. Broader literature points to a positive impact of metacognitive strategies early in children’s learning. Additionally, studies have highlighted semantic descriptors in facilitating word acquisition. However, there is a lack of literature regarding the direct correlation between children's productions of semantic descriptions and success in word learning, which is the current focus. We examined the number of semantic descriptions produced by children alongside their corresponding word-learning performance to determine whether a relationship exists. We analyzed data from 33 participants ages 2.7 - 6.7 years (mean = 4.6 years, SD = 1.2) with an average Expressive Vocabulary Test-3 standard score of 120. Our team coded a total of 165 word-learning assessments from videos of participants engaging in a storybook listening activity where participants were exposed to novel words paired with objects, assessing their receptive and expressive word learning. Participants were asked to look at the objects, imitate the novel words in real-time, and both point to and label the associated objects after a delay. We recorded the number of times children made semantic descriptions (ex. “The gek is spiky”), total correct identifications (receptive performance), and total phonemes correctly imitated and labeled (expressive performance). For analysis, we tested the correlation between semantic descriptions and both receptive and expressive word learning scores. I hypothesize that a positive correlation between these scores will indicate that children who produce semantic descriptions find more success in word learning. I anticipate that our study will contribute to a better understanding of how semantic descriptions play a role in receptive and expressive word learning outcomes. Also, study findings could serve as a foundation for future research on how parents and educators might better support children’s vocabulary acquisition.

Implicit bias, rooted in unconscious attitudes, fuels discrimination based on race, gender, or sexual orientation, disproportionately impacting marginalized groups. Despite the development of interventions addressing provider awareness of implicit bias, the advancement of clinical education through technology has been slow. In the UnBIASED research project, we investigated the usability of ConverSense, a personalized communication assessment tool to raise healthcare providers' awareness of bias in their communication with patients. This web-based tool measures social dimensions such as warmth, interactivity, engagement, and assertiveness from recorded patient-provider visits, and visualizes these patterns through graphs and embedded clips. In this study, we (PT, NE) examined whether ConverSense meets usability standards through heuristic evaluations conducted by design experts. Six healthcare technology experts participated in the evaluation of ConverSense using Nielsen's 10 usability heuristics. Experts documented usability issues for each heuristic and rated their severity on a scale from 0 (not a problem) to 4 (catastrophic problem). Through our analysis, we (PT, NE) identified three cross-cutting themes: 1) Poor design, where experts noted the absence of undo or delete buttons, making navigation challenging, and the distracting color scheme on graphs; 2) Data visualization issues, with experts expressing difficulty interpreting charts and uncertainty about what is considered ideal or good communication. One expert said “It's unclear what is considered ideal/good…for each gauge chart, high interactivity, engagement, and warmth I would assume are ideal/good. But how the charts are displayed in the system I cannot know for certain”; 3) Ambiguity in information presentation, where experts sought more definitions for measured social dimensions and recommended training links to help them identify personal actions they can take to improve their communication. This study underscores the value of incorporating expert feedback and addressing usability issues to improve tools like ConverSense to address implicit bias and promote equitable patient-provider interactions.

Damage to the spinal cord causes one of the most debilitating injuries to the human body. The challenge of promoting the regeneration of this dense network of neurons and glia after spinal cord injury has been seen as insurmountable. However, new techniques emerging from the field of regenerative medicine have illustrated the possibility of encouraging the body to repair these injuries on its own. In the Wills Lab, we study the model organism Xenopus tropicalis, or the Western clawed frog, which has the ability to regenerate its spinal cord and associated tissue following amputation. My project focuses on how X. tropicalis uses the developmental morphogen Sonic Hedgehog (Shh) to re-establish the dorsal-ventral (DV) patterning of the spinal cord during regeneration. I have used cyclopamine, a Shh inhibitor, and SAG, an agonist, in order to perturb Shh signaling during regeneration. I then monitored the effect on DV patterning via immunohistochemical labeling of dorsal and ventral markers. Work so far has shown that Shh signaling is in fact necessary to the establishment of proper DV domains in the regenerate spinal cord. However, my research has also hinted that this specification is complex. Shh appears to have a more proliferative role early on, with patterning effects coming later. In addition, there appears to be an interaction between Shh and other signals that specify anterior-posterior polarity. Overall, my research so far has generated new evidence for how developmental signals are repurposed in the context of regeneration. 

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is a psychiatric treatment which has shown promise for experimental treatment of memory loss in Alzheimer’s Disease. rTMS uses a coil and electric current which is able to create a magnetic field that can depolarize neurons noninvasively and induce synchronized activity of large populations of neurons, ultimately inducing, lasting changes through synaptic plasticity. Alzheimer’s disease patients show disruptions in the Default Mode Network (DMN), a network of brain regions which is typically active at rest. The DMN has an important role in memory consolidation and is disrupted in Alzheimer's Disease. We hypothesize that strengthening the default mode network through rTMS applied to area left 8AV of the frontal cortex will create improvements in patient memory. To answer this question, we are performing a single-blind, single-arm, randomized cross-over trial of rTMS on early-stage Alzheimer's disease patients. Region 8AV is located by using MRI scans obtained before patients receive either the sham or experimental procedure. This region was chosen due to its connection to the default mode network and previous promising TMS research. Our primary outcome measure is the speed of forgetting, a new, reliable index of memory function obtained by fitting a computational model of episodic memory to behavioral data from an adaptive memory test. Due to the frequent use of rTMS in mood disorder treatment, we are using depression and anxiety scales to track possible mood improvements as a secondary outcome measure. MRI scans will also be analyzed to see if the experimental treatment caused any structural differences in patient brains. Should our hypothesis be correct, we expect to see improvements in memory or cessation of memory decline in patients. Successful treatment would provide a novel target for Alzheimer’s Disease treatment using rTMS, and additional evidence for the continued investigation of rTMS for Alzheimer’s Disease.

Mind-wandering, characterized by the inward direction of attention towards thoughts, represents a widespread cognitive phenomenon that can disrupt task-related attention. Evidence indicates that the frequency of mind-wandering increases during sustained attention tasks, and previous research has proposed several hypotheses, such as resource-depletion, control-failure, and resource-control hypothesis, to explain the increases as well as the declines in task performance from their perspective. This study first aims to investigate the impact of incorporating a strategy of break on the frequency of mind-wandering during a Sustained Attention to Response Task (SART). It seeks to determine whether a break strategy can mitigate the frequency of mind-wandering and to identify which of the aforementioned hypotheses best fit the experiment outcome. Specifically, it examines whether a rest break or a task-switching intervention can reduce the frequency of mind-wandering, comparing these effects to a no-break condition. Forty students from the University of Washington will participate in a four-part experiment that includes two 480-trial SART tasks, an intervening break condition (rest break, task-switch, or no break), and a concluding questionnaire. Mind-wandering will be measured through thought-probe methodology, and task performance will be assessed using error rates and response times. Additionally, subjective workload and fatigue level will be assessed using NASA Task Load Index (NASA-TLX) questionnaire. Based on the three existing hypotheses and behavioral data, the second aim of the study is to construct three cognitive architecture ACT-R models, and by comparing different models to reflect potential mechanisms of the role of breaks in mind-wandering.

Kathak is a classical dance form which originated in Uttar Pradesh, North India. Kathak loosely translates to “story-teller,” and has become a symbol of Indian culture and national identity. Additionally, this dance form is very physically demanding, with skills that challenge the biomechanics of human anatomy. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to explore the cultural context of Kathak, as well as examine Kathak from a medical perspective. Specifically, I sought to examine the injuries which are common to Kathak dancers, particularly focusing on the risk factors, prevalence, and mechanisms of these injuries. The methods to investigate this research question were primarily through literature review. Kathak dancers experience injuries in the lower extremities due to high rates of twisting, jumping, and stomping in the dance form. These repetitive and compressive motions may lead to hyperpronated feet, flattened arches, and extreme dorsiflexion and plantarflexion. These foot injuries overall produce a lack of alignment in the dancer’s anatomy and can decrease proprioceptive orientation and neuromuscular function and control of the lower extremities. The outcome of this research has the potential to bridge the gap between dance and medicine. Education is powerful for dancers so that they can be aware of high-risk injuries and perform exercises as preventative efforts. Preventative efforts may include reducing static stretches and instead incorporating more dynamic stretches into their daily warm-up routine. Additionally, dancers should be empowered to take initiative of their health and seek professional guidance when necessary, and dance schools should play an active role in encouraging this.

The potential cognitive benefits of mindfulness meditation, such as its effects on memory processes, are gaining increasing attention. The growing interest in mindfulness meditation as a technique to improve cognitive functions, particularly long-term memory, motivates this investigation. The purpose of this study is to determine how mindfulness meditation affects the individual’s rate of forgetting in long-term memory as practice days increase. Using a computational model of episodic memory fitted to data obtained from an adaptive memory test, the study is able to monitor and predict the rate of forgetting for each individual and acquire a deeper understanding of how mindfulness meditation influences individual differences in memory retention and retrieval. The study will recruit thirty healthy participants through the Psychology Subject Pool of the University of Washington. The participants will be randomly assigned to either a group that practices mindfulness meditation or a control group that engages in podcast listening. For six days, participants will complete online memory tasks before and after each mindfulness meditation session or podcast listening session, while their performance data will be analyzed to model the rate of forgetting. To assess the principal effects of mindfulness meditation on the rate of forgetting, statistical analyses, such as linear mixed models, will be employed. We hypothesized that participants who participate in mindfulness meditation will have a lower rate of forgetting than those in the control group who engage in podcast listening after six days. Moreover, the study also hypothesizes that participants engaging in mindfulness meditation will demonstrate a decreasing rate of forgetting as the number of practice days increases. The finding of this study may inform interventions using mindfulness to enhance memory retention, benefiting those with age-related cognitive decline or stress-related memory challenges. It contributes to understanding the potential of mindfulness in cognitive function and memory-related disorders.

The purpose of this study is to understand recent developments regarding curriculum standards for teaching Indigenous histories and contemporary matters, specifically within Michigan’s K-12 Public Schools(MPS). This presentation draws from interviews with a range of stakeholders, including: current and former students and educators within MPS; politicians and government officials involved in relevant legislation; university professors concentrating their work in Native Studies at universities in Michigan; and representatives of Tribal Nations located in Michigan. This project also integrates relational discussions with Washington-based educators involved in the teaching and implementation of Washington’s Since Time Immemorial (STI) Curriculum. This presentation will share research analyses of relevant pieces of legislation and academic sources pertaining to Indigenous-centered curriculum. The objective of this research is to inform a written piece addressing current efforts to expand education on Indigenous histories and contemporary matters in MPS including efforts made in the past, actions currently in progress, suggested plans for the future, and what Michigan may learn from Washington’s efforts to fully implement STI through examining shortcomings in the implementation of STI curriculum and how these failures may serve to inform Michigan’s protocol for introducing revised standards. Given that one of the major proposals to the expansion of Indigenous-related curriculum involves teaching Indian Boarding School histories, the long-term implications of this research contribute to ensuring youth are educated about the devastating consequences of residential schools, which in turn aims to assure similar policies are not introduced in the future. Discussion of these findings will emphasize institutions which allow(ed) destructive policies like that of boarding schools to be implemented, reframing the common narrative perpetuated in schooling systems that such policies are the result of a few “bad actors.” This research is interested in exploring how curricula contribute to the latter perspective, and whether newly implemented standards effectively convey the former viewpoint.

Located in the Southern Pacific Ocean, American Samoa was formed nearly 400 thousand years ago due to hotspot volcanism. As these eruptions occur, ash and volcanic rock fragments settle and leave behind texture, roughness, and clast sizes that are identifiable using mapping techniques such as backscatter analysis. The 2024 Oceanography Senior Thesis cruise aboard the R/V Thomas G. Thompson, produced bathymetric and backscatter maps utilizing the Multibeam Kongsberg EA302 to identify the boundary of such deposits and the thickness of sediment that has been deposited on it, indicating relative age and formation of volcanic features on the seafloor. This study focused on the islands Ofu-Olosega and Ta’u, and we located several intact and exploded cinder cone. Sediment cores were collected to quantify the grain size of the basalt that erupted violently out of these hot spots. We hypothesized that the grain size would correlate with distance from the caldera, with larger clasts sinking closer to the eruption site, and fine sediment carried farther. This was found true, but there were also large grain sizes radiating away from the initial cinder cone site, indicating the presence of other eruptions on the seabed. Multiple landslides were documented on the southern and northeastern slopes of Olosega Island. These landslides display key features such as steep amphitheater headwalls, blocky ridges, and hummock aprons. The landslides were classified as either slumps or debris avalanches based on these characteristics and compared to other volcanic hotspot landslides within the Pacific region. We hypothesized failure deposits would be identifiable in the seabed up to 30 km away from the caldera, and found them to be graphically obvious for about 21 km.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by difficulties in social communication and interaction, and restricted or repetitive patterns of behavior or interests. ASD is associated with features beyond its core characteristics, including alexithymia and anxiety. Alexithymia is characterized by difficulty recognizing and describing one’s own emotions, it influences physical and mental health, and it is associated with symptoms of anxiety. Despite current research demonstrating the correlation between alexithymia and anxiety in both ASD and the general population, there remains a significant research gap in how alexithymia and autism traits individually and collectively influence anxiety levels among the participants. This study has two aims: 1) To explore the relationship between alexithymia and anxiety in participants with ASD and TD. 2) To analyze the role of alexithymia as a mediator of the relationship between autism traits and anxiety in adolescents and young adults. This sample includes 149 participants (93 ASD) ages 15-34, from the NIH funded study on sex differences in autism. Measures included alexithymia via the 20-Item Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20), anxiety via the Screen for Adult Anxiety Related Disorders (SCAARED), and autism traits via the Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS-2). We will first conduct regression analyses to examine the relationships between alexithymia, anxiety, and autism traits. Then, we will employ Preacher and Hayes’ INDIRECT Method to investigate the mediating role of alexithymia in the relationship between autism traits and anxiety. We expect to see a significant relationship between alexithymia and anxiety in both groups and the relationship between alexithymia and anxiety in the ASD group to be significantly different than TD group. Understanding the relationship between anxiety and alexithymia could aid in the development or improvement of interventions for anxiety in people with ASD.

The COVID-19 pandemic heavily affected individuals’ lives, not only through disease transmission but downstream effects such as unemployment and worsening mental health. People living with HIV (PLWH)—as a marginalized and vulnerable population—experience greater mental health risk and life challenges than the general population, which the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated. Studies that investigate PLWH’s wellbeing during the pandemic are few. In this study, I conducted a mixed-methods study in Qingdao, China using interviews and surveys to explore the effects of COVID-19 and associated policies on the wellbeing of PLWH. My overarching aim was to understand personal experiences of wellbeing, mental health, and factors specific to PLWH before, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Collaborating with Qingtong, an NGO working with PLWH in Qingdao, China, I conducted 15-minute semi-structured interviews with a total of 17 HIV+ individuals whose median time had been living with HIV was 6 years (+/- 2.32). I asked questions about life and wellbeing changes due to the pandemic and challenges they faced. I qualitatively coded the interview transcripts, and found three themes, including (1) Social embodiment, support, and stigma of living with HIV, (2) COVID’s physical and mental effects on PLWH, and (3) Medication access changes over the pandemic. Overall, I suggest that mental health issues experienced by PLWH were not caused by their HIV status solely but by systemic factors such as COVID-19 policies and geographic disparities in accessing medication. Therefore, I advocated that the management of PLWH and relative policies need to be further strengthened in order to respond to any future public health emergencies and to ensure the wellbeing of this population.

Since their introduction to clean energy applications, organic-inorganic lead halide perovskites have received great attention for their potential to create highly efficient, manufacturable and cheap solar cell devices. To make effective perovskite solar cells, charge transport layers are used to remove electrons and holes from the bulk perovskite semiconductor, increasing current, voltage and power conversion efficiency. Phosphonic acid self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) are a common hole transport layer. The phosphonic acid binds to the transparent conductive oxide electrode while an organic head group forms the SAM/perovskite interface. This head group is key for charge transfer and voltage characteristics, but the structure-function relationship is still poorly understood. My project investigates the role that deposition techniques and electronic structure play in the optimization of this SAM/perovskite interface. Expanding from the standard two step spincoating SAM/perovskite deposition method, I explored whether the codeposition of the two layers or the addition of a SAM solvent wash step produced an improved interface. I also fabricated films using several different SAM compositions to test for performance trends and improvements compared to the current field standard SAM, Me-4PACz. I collected photoluminescence lifetimes, quantum yields and solar simulation measurements to evaluate film performance. Preliminary data shows that neither the washing step nor codeposition add any performance benefit, but the single step codeposition achieves a more streamlined manufacturing method. Two of the new experimental SAMs performed comparably to Me-4PACz. These results encourage codeposition of the SAM/perovskite interface as the most efficient method to create high quality devices and show promising alternatives to the industry standard Me-4PACz SAM.

One of the most prevalent issues in regenerative medicine is the impact of spinal cord injuries, as it can lead to an irreparable buildup of inhibitory scar tissue and, thus, paralysis. However, organisms such as Xenopus tropicalis tadpoles are able to regenerate their tails as soon as one week post-injury. By studying how they successfully regenerate, we can start to generate effective therapies for spinal cord medicine. I specifically want to know how quickly neurons populate the regenerating spinal cord and how this repopulation leads to functional motor recovery. To do this, I used the process of immunohistochemistry, where a fluorescent marker antibody binds to specific cells to create a fluorescent image for visualization purposes. First, I amputated around â…“ of their tail and created clutches of tadpoles stained for a neuron-specific protein. From my imaging, I noticed that the neurons populated the regenerating spinal cord by five days post-amputation (dpa). I became curious about how this regeneration rate impacted their ability to swim. To test this question, we set up a camera with a lightbox to set up Petri dishes of tadpoles. Then, I uploaded recordings of their swimming into a platform called ImageJ to use particle tracking to quantify the paths of each tadpole into measures such as distance, displacement, and velocity. Currently, we are trying to find other antibody markers that can provide more specific staining of neurons so the program can count them. With more specific staining, I hope to count the number of neurons over a set of zero, three, five, and seven dpa tadpoles. This project will help us answer foundational questions about how Xenopus tropicalis tadpoles regenerate functional neurons after injury.

Computational protein design has successfully designed nanoparticle cages that self-assemble and effectively deliver encapsulated therapeutics to cells. These nanoparticle cages are readily taken up by the cell via receptor-mediated endocytosis. Despite the promise of these cages, one of the greatest challenges that remain is the successful endosomal escape of the encapsulated biologics and their precise delivery to the cytosol. To address this, we have engineered a high throughput complementation assay, based on split green fluorescent protein (GFP) construct, that helps screen and quantify cytoplasmic delivery of therapeutics through fluorescence intensity. Split-GFP is a protein complementation assay in which the normally monomeric GFP is made of two fragments: the larger non-fluorescent beta barrel and a 15 amino acid (a.a) peptide. When these two components unite, the GFP fluoresces. In this project, I created a stable HeLa cell line expressing the beta barrel of split GFP using lentiviral transduction under antibiotic selection. The cell line has been further validated, through transient transfection of the complementary 15 a.a peptide to test the assay performance. I propose to test endosomal escape, through introduction of endolytic peptides (EEPs) into model proteins, which force early endosomal membrane fusion and destabilization. Future research will explore adapted designs of nanoparticle cages, incorporating the EEPs and the split-GFP complementary strand in the HeLa cell line, to quantify the endosomal escape of our designs. The outlook of this project has transformative implications for targeted therapeutic delivery. By creating a screening assay that can quantify targeted delivery into cytosol, we can expedite refinement of protein designs for therapeutic delivery, thus accelerating the timeline for developing novel protein-based therapeutics.