Additive manufacturing (AM) is the process of creating an object by building it one layer at a time typically referred to as 3D printing. The AM process enables fabrication of complex geometries and provides many advantages compared to the traditional manufacturing methods. A wide variety of factors (e.g., build direction, cooling rate, feed rate etc.) significantly influence structural quality of components made of AM process. This project uses commercially available tools to virtually fabricate an AM part the same way as design engineers design and produce 3d-printed parts and investigate residual stresses of the 3D-printed part.

Communication and expression, as can be seen in video games, can be used to inspire interaction between humans and robots. Our study aims to define these interactions to provide a closer look at interactions in video games and their applicability to the future design of robots. Cues collected will be analyzed and sorted into categories to determine the commonality and importance from the cues in comparison to other cues. Understanding how artificial intelligence communicates, such as warnings, will hopefully provide a means for better discernment of cues from robots with humans.

In today’s high-bypass jet engines, the low-pressure turbine (LPT) drives the fan which produces up to 80% of the thrust. For my research, two-dimensional simulations of a 50% reaction stage with two L2F airfoils are performed for a Reynolds number of 100,000. The effect of the wake passing frequency on the laminar separation from the suction side of the rotor blade will be investigated for different wake passing frequencies. Results show that for the two-dimensional instantaneous flow field, the wakes appear to suppress laminar separation from the suction side of the blade, whereas for the flow analysis, the shape factor approaches 1.4 indicating that the boundary layer is fully turbulent at the outflow.

The vocal learning regions of avian brains are very similar to those of humans, and comparison of genes within one system can help to further our understanding of the other. Gene expression levels in five different vocal learning regions of the budgerigar were profiled using RNA sequencing, and patterns of specialized regulation were examined across different gene groups. Using a variety of bioinformatics approaches, we found clusters of differentially expressed genes related to different diseases and neurological disorders. These results will guide future experiments that manipulate gene expression within these regions and examine the resulting impacts on budgerigar vocal learning.

DNA double stranded breaks (DSBs) are detrimental DNA lesions as their defective repair causes chromosomal instability which can lead to diseases in humans and antibiotic resistance in bacteria. The bacterial RecN protein is essential in the DSB repair pathway as it stimulates RecA-dependent homologous recombination. This study is aimed to investigate the role of single point mutations of conserved RecN motifs in deinococcus radiodurans that render the cells sensitive to ionizing radiation. Repair activity assays using purified proteins indicate that both mutants have a higher ATP hydrolysis rate and DNA does not stimulate ATPase activity as seen in wild-type RecN.

Flaviviruses, such as dengue virus, pose a growing threat to human health, with few vaccines to prevent infections and no drugs to treat them. We have previously shown that ciprofloxacin suppresses flavivirus replication in cultured cells and that ciprofloxacin-resistant dengue virus exhibits greatly increased virion stability, but these experiments did not determine the full time period of virion stability. Thus, we quantified the stability of ciprofloxacin-resistant dengue virus as well as a directly transmitted flavivirus, Modoc, over five days. Resistant dengue virus was stable for the entire 5-day window whereas Modoc virions decayed to undetectable levels after 4 days.

The Pax6 protein is essential for eye development in organisms ranging from fruit flies to humans. To identify targets of the Drosophila melanogaster Pax6 ortholog Eyeless, we compared two lists of genes that are expressed in response to ectopic expression of Eyeless, and are bound by Eyeless during eye development. One gene present on both lists is CG46385. We hypothesize that CG46385 functions during eye development. We use molecular and genetic techniques to evaluate the location and function of CG46385 in the eye. This will offer insight into the role of CG46385, and human orthologs during eye development and disease.

Cannabidiol (CBD) may mitigate aggression. We tested effects of CBD on aggression of Betta fish (Betta splendens). Fish were exposed to CBD infused water (0, 8, 40, 80 mg CBD L-1) for 30 minutes. Fish were then returned to their home tanks and played a video of an aggressive male Betta for 5 minutes. Fish were observed and recorded for their behavior towards the video. We found that CBD significantly impacted fish behavior and reduced aggression in several response variables measured. We believe that CBD might be an effective tool to reduce aggression in Betta fish and potentially other pets.

Sexual dimorphism may have implications for using data from captured individuals to understand population demography. In this study, we examined whether rosy-faced lovebirds, Agapornis roseicollis, show evidence of sexual dimorphism in morphology and behavior. We hypothesize that sexual dimorphism in this species leads to the differential capture of each sex during the breeding season. To test this, lovebirds were trapped throughout two breeding seasons. Physical measurements and blood samples were collected, then sex was determined using PCR. Our results indicate that the sexes do not vary significantly in morphology, but the proportion of males captured increased significantly during the breeding season. We conclude that demographic measurements could be biased if trapping efforts do not consider sexual dimorphism in behavior.

While the effects of alkali chloride salt solutions on clay colloidal systems are well-characterized, few studies exist which probe these salt’s effects on the macroscopic structure and mechanical properties associated with clay ‘pelletization’, especially following high temperature dehydroxylation. To analyze these effects, alkali chloride salts (LiCl, NaCl, and KCl) were introduced to a smectite clay and an illite-smectite clay in specific weight ratios. These clays were then pelletized and analyzed by means of unconfined compression testing. The smectite clay exhibited increased strength when exposed to KCl and LiCl, while the illite-smectite clay exhibited reduced strength when exposed to KCl.

Uranium water contamination is detrimental in the Four Corners Region. However, clays sorb uranium, and sorption is dependent on the surface area. Furthermore, clay pellets were fabricated from powder for manageability. Three different clays were analyzed in pellet and powder forms by sorbing nitrogen and argon to study porosity as well as surface area. We hypothesized that surface area of the fabricated pellets would decrease, relative to powder by using Brauner Emmett Teller measurements for nitrogen and argon. The reduction of surface area on fabricated pellets supported the hypothesis.

Sensor technologies provide potential to detect abnormal behavior associated with health and welfare. The aim of this study was to investigate sheep behavior before and after illness caused by mold-contaminated feed using tri-axial accelerometers. Data were evaluated 4 days prior; on day of ration change; and 4 days post exposure. Symptomatic ewes demonstrated decrease in activity (P≤0.03) for 2d after exposure compared to 4d before. Three days after exposure and 2d after treatment, no difference in activity was detected (P>0.05) between pre- and post-activity. Results suggest that real-time accelerometers, have potential to detect illness in ewes in a pen setting.

Microscale acoustofluidic resonators have been adapted for various applications in medicine and engineering. The goal of this project is to use ultrasound and characterize a novel version of polymeric resonator for medical implants application. The main objective of the project is to evaluate acoustic quality factors of the sensor.

Landscape genetics is an interdisciplinary field that aims to address the interactions between the microevolutionary processes including gene flow and selection with landscape features that impact these processes. However, current methods of evaluation only focus on genetic variation and geographic distance. The method we have developed examines how landscape features explicitly affect microevolutionary processes and can create barriers to genetic movement that leads to isolated populations. Isolated populations are at greater risk of loss of genetic variation and by understanding the barriers that prevent movement, resource managers are better able to preserve and strengthen species.