Whitney Davis assisted by Dr. Steven Alston
Transmission Spectroscopy During Gel Formation

Chapter: Alpha Beta
Campbellsville University

Gels are interesting materials as they lie between the liquid and solid phases. Sols consist of submicron size particles dispersed randomly and uniformly throughout a supporting liquid, where the particles act mostly independently. If the particles are polymers (long chains), then under the right environmental conditions or with the addition of a gelling agent, a complex formation of a semi-rigid matrix-like material that is structurally resilient, that is, to a springy or spongy substance. Two common examples of gels are the widely used cooking material gelatin and the fun children's "toy" slime. Collagen is the main chain structure in gelatin, which forms on cooling; polyvinyl alcohol provides the chains in the latter, which then cross links when a borax solution is added. The light transmitted through or scattered by a material sample provides a means of studying the gel formation process. The scattering of light has been considered elsewhere. Transmission is considered in this work. Green and red lasers are used as the light source. The variation in the transmission spectrum of a sample, that is, the variation in the transmitted intensity versus wavelength, is investigated during the formation of the gel from the sol for the two cases mentioned above. The sols are mixed and heated then allowed to cool to room temperature. While gelation is a process occurring over one to several hours, a relatively narrower window exists during which the cross-linking is more accelerated. Changes in the spectra of gelatin and slime are analyzed and compared. In particular, the gelation window and the influence of the cross-linking on the spectra are studied.

Amy Etherington
Observations on the Natural History of Barbicambarus cornutus, a Proposed Study

Chapter: Alpha Beta
Campbellsville University

I propose to investigate the life history traits of Barbicambarus cornutus (Bottlebrush Crayfish). Barbicambarus cornutus is a freshwater crayfish endemic to the upper Green River in Kentucky. The Nature Conservancy has listed B. cornutus as an aquatic species of concern and as an aquatic conservation target. There is little known regarding the life history of this species. I plan to investigate population density, size, and sex-specific differences. In addition, habitat use, including behavior of B. cornutus will be recorded. The focal areas in this study will be upper Green River, Little Barren River, and Russell Creek. I am confident that data collected during this study will lead to a better understanding of the life history of this unique aquatic species.

Jami Johnson, Sarah Kaiser, Dr. Chad Hoyt
External Cavity Laser Diodes for Lithium Spectroscopy

Chapter: Beta Iota
Bethel University

This project involved the design and construction of an apparatus for laser cooling and trapping of lithium atoms. Trapped atoms with speeds of only several centimeters per second allow long interaction times and high precision tests such as frequency measurements and photo-association spectroscopy (the formation of molecules using light). Sample densities of ~10^11 atoms per cubic centimeter are routinely achieved in cold atom traps. These samples are the pathway to Bose-Einstein condensation and Fermi gases, relatively recent experimental phenomena in the field of atomic, molecular and optical physics. An external cavity diode laser (ECDL) system was built to be used for spectroscopy of neutral lithium atoms. By changing the angle of an intracavity grating the ECDL coarsely tunes over 6 nm around the center lasing wavelength of 671 nm. By using a Fabry-Perot optical cavity we also demonstrate over 7.5 GHz mode-hop-free fine tuning that is generated by precisely scanning the laser cavity length.

Rafat Siddiqui, Kevin Harvey, Zhidong Xu, Josh Korte
Endothelial cells incorporate fatty acids common in two parenteral lipid emulsions that induce similar responses in endothelial viability and CD54 expression, both of which can be indicators of atherosclerosis

Chapter: Rho
University of Indianapolis

Parenteral nutrition is a vital source of sustenance in cases of digestive dysfunction or nutritional deficiencies. Lipid emulsions (LEs) act as a source of essential fatty acids (FA) and offer higher energy content in smaller doses as compared to carbohydrate-based emulsions. Dietary studies show benefits associated with intake of unsaturated FAs over saturated FAs. With this in mind, LEs have been formulated based on oils from soybeans, coconuts, olives, and fish all with high concentrations of unsaturated FAs. Epidemiological studies indicate -6 poly-unsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), such as linoleic acid (LA) found in soybean oil, have pro-inflammatory effects and increase incidence of oxidative stress. Further studies involving -3 mono-unsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs), such as oleic acid (OA) found in olive oil, showed diminished risk of atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease. More recent data have suggested that diets rich in -3 PUFAs also exhibit anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties causing recent emulsion mixtures to include fish oils rich in DHA and EPA. As a result there are many, varied LE formulas on the market today. This study serves as part of the initial investigation into how HAEC respond to various LEs and seeks to determine optimal emulsion properties with respect to HAEC. It examines the earliest 100% soybean oil based LE (Intralipid/Fresenius Kabi) and an olive oil/soybean oil (80:20) based LE (ClinOleic/Baxter). The full lipid profile of HAEC was analyzed to determine FA incorporation while factors such as cytotoxicty and adhesion molecule expression on HAEC were examined.

Kyle Kruse
Computational Modeling of Borosulfide and Borate Structural Units Found in Glass

Chapter: Beta
McKendree University

Ab-initio and semi-empirical methods were used to obtain optimized geometries and vibrational frequencies for BO3, B3O3, B3O6, BS3, BS4, B3S6, and B4S9 structural units. These units have been observed in borate and borosulfide glasses using techniques such as time of flight, NMR, Raman, and FTIR. Results from calculations performed using various basis sets and levels of theory were compared to experimental IR and Raman data. Calculations upon similar borate and borosulfide units were compared to examine the effect of replacing oxygen atoms for sulfur atoms. The computed vibrational frequencies agree well with experimental IR values.

Hugo Nieto
A Congeneric Comparison between Lespedeza leptostachya and L. capitata and the Effect of Reduced Competition

Chapter: Beta
Mckendree University

The conservation of rare and endangered species has long proven to be an immensely complex and often near impossible task to undertake. Much of the challenge associated with the preservation of these species stems from our limited understanding of the mechanisms that lead to and maintain rarity. Congeneric comparisons between common and rare species is one method that allows for closer examination of factors that may play major roles in the rarity of plants. In the following study we used data from a long term study site to compare a population of the rare plant Lespedeza leptostachya with a population of the co-occurring and closely related common plant Lespedeza capitata. Because both of these closely related plants are subject to the same environmental conditions we were able to examine how a single factor,competition, might influence the difference in success seen in these species. We compared the relative stage class distributions of these species in both ambient and reduced competition conditions. Our results suggest that the reduction of competitors has a more significant impact on the L. leptostachya population than on the L. capitata population. This comparison allowed us to closely investigate factors with the potential to greatly influence the population dynamics of a rare species. We suggest that subsequent conservation efforts make use of such comparisons in the future as they provide better understanding of the factors co

Kamara Owens, Dr. Michele Schutzenhofer
The Effect Human Foot Traffic Has On Pollinator Plant Visits On The Flower, Lantana (Lantana camara)

Chapter: Beta
McKendree University

Human disturbances have been known to affect plant-pollinator relationships. This experiment investigated the effect human foot traffic has on pollinator plant visits on the flower, lantana (Lantana camara). Various site locations containing lantanas (Lantana camara) were chosen on the campus of McKendree University in Lebanon, IL. Sites were designated as either high or low human interaction areas (based on preliminary observations). For each observation period at a single site, three random flowers were monitored for pollinator activity. During observation periods, the identity of pollinators that visited and the abundance of each species was recorded. In addition, the number of human disturbances was recorded. High variability in visits showed no relation between human interactions and pollinator visits. Differences in the number of pollinator visits between high and low human interaction sites suggest there is a strong correlation between number of pollinator visits and human interaction sites.

Ramona E. Puskar Faculty Mentor: Dr. Michele Schutzenhofer
The Effect of Environmental Enrichment on the Foraging Behavior of Garter Snakes

Chapter: Alpha Beta
Campbellsville University

Enrichment may affect the foraging behavior of Garter Snakes (Thamnophis sirtalis). In this study, I investigated the effects of environmentally enriched and standard laboratory housing on foraging behavior in garter snakes (Thanmophis sirtalis). The snakes were put into a test aquarium once a week and timed to see how long it took them to find their prey in this new enriched environment. There were no significant differences between the enriched snakes and the control snakes revealed through this task. Therefore this study demonstrated that the differences in housing for garter snakes do not affect their foraging behavior.

John K. Sanders and Joseph C. Whittaker
Small Mammal Community Response to Reclamation following Mountaintop Removal in Eastern Kentucky

Chapter: Beta Xi
Pikeville College

Abstract: Although mountaintop removal is a common, and controversial, practice in Eastern Kentucky, there have been few studies on the impact of such techniques, especially concerning small mammal communities. In the Midwest United States, small mammal community compositions have shown change due to strip-mining. It is possible that the process of disturbance and reclamation could create new habitat for rare grassland species. The purpose of this study was to document small mammal communities in reclaimed mountaintop removal and valley-fill sites and to compare with small mammal communities in natural, unmined areas as well. We used a total of four different trap types per station in an attempt to maximize trapping success for different species. Mark-recapture methodology was used to estimate populations. Results were standardized per 100 trap-nights for comparison between sites. In comparing densities and community diversity, there were more individuals captured in natural areas, but the reclaimed sites had higher diversity. However, this result is slightly misleading because two of the three sampled mountaintop sites had only Peromyscus present.

Renee E. Seager and Thomas E. McQuistion
Strain Resistance to Eimeria falciformis in Mice

Chapter: Pi
Millikin University

Four strains of twelve-week old mice were inoculated with 1,000 oocysts of Eimeria falciformis to compare host resistance to the parasite. Their resistance was monitored by oocyst production and mortality over a 13 day period post-inoculation. The ICR outbred control group had the lowest mortality (27%) and the second lowest oocyst production. The C57BL/6 and CBA/J groups had moderately high oocyst production and high mortality (45% and 54% respectively). However, the DBA/101 group had a high mortality (54%) but the lowest oocyst production. Although oocyst production has been used as an indicator of strain resistance in hosts infected with coccidian parasites, the data in this study suggests that mortality may be a better indicator of host resistance to coccidian infections. In turn, mortality and morbidity can have a considerable affect on oocyst production, especially in highly pathogenic strains of coccidia.

Rachelle Arnold and Dr. Lindell Ward
Synthesis of bis(6-buckminsterfullerene)iron(II) hexafluorophosphate and (5-cyclopentadienyl)(6-buckminsterfullerene) iron(II) hexafluorophosphate

Chapter: Rho
University of Indianapolis

A study of the synthesis of various bis(arene)iron(II) hexafluorophosphate and (5-cyclopentadienyl)(arene)iron(II) hexaphosphate molecules, including bis(6-buckminsterfullerene)iron(II) hexafluorophosphate and (5-cyclopentadienyl)(6-buckminsterfullerene)iron(II) hexafluorophosphate was completed using a microwave dielectric heating technique. A standard microwave oven with a solid CO2 cold finger apparatus was used to perform the experiment. The desired products were then characterized through Infrared spectroscopy and NMR spectroscopy.