26th Student Academic Conference Schedule

 Hitchhiker’s Guide to Differential Equations 
Rollin Lasseter – ID: 15593080, Email: dx4507jw@go.minnstate.edu 
In terms of mathematical modeling of the physical world around us, no field is more prominent than that of differential equations. These types of equations arise in many diverse fields of study, from physics, to biology, and even investments and economy. The goal of this presentation will be to allow an intuitive walk through the land of differential equations, giving visualizations to help people to understand what they are, what they say, and what they do. The hope is that those who have seen them before will walk away with a better intuition about them, and that those who haven’t will walk away with a new, but not overwhelming, idea. To facilitate this, graphs and animations showing the differential equations nature will be presented alongside the equations themselves to give a fuller understanding of the underlying principles that guide each situation. The plan is to have examples from very different areas of study such as finance, physics, ecology, and more.  At the end of it all, we’ll take a step back and see where we came from and where we could go for the future. 

Absolutely Not, a video podcast created by Michael Claymore (alias) and Scott Guy, hired MSUM Flypaper Creative Services, a student-run agency, to create an awareness campaign. What began as a COVID-era project between Michael and Scott, Absolutely Not has grown into a widely viewed YouTube channel due to promotions on TikTok and Instagram. 
 
Research: This project began spring 2023 with a three-member team of students enrolled in COMM 379: Ad Agency Practicum, commonly known as MSUM Flypaper Creative Services. The client continued to use our services fall 2023 with Kyle Schmidt (team lead), Morgan Bachelor, Noah Swegarden, and Sheyenne Norberg.  
 
Audience research conducted spring 2023 indicated viewers appreciate “dry humor” and “dark and sarcastic humor”. The research was conducted via an online survey that was promoted on social media and news releases. A majority of the respondents were female (60%) and students of MSUM. The objective for the campaign was to raise awareness about Absolutely Not, in particular on our campus. 
 
Planning: Resources available to the Absolutely Not team include Canva Pro to develop posts and thumbnails, Sprout Social for analytics, Microsoft Teams for sharing, and Zoom for client meetings. Team members met with the clients twice each month. The focus for September 2023 was creating the brand assets, such as the thumbnail template for YouTube and creating the general workflow of getting content posted on a weekly basis. Each team member was given specific tasks that best support their pre-established set of skills.  
 
Execution: At the start of the campaign, the main focus was putting a steady stream of weekly content on YouTube. Once we had enough content released and analyzed video performance, we were able to boost YouTube videos in addition to distributing print flyers on campus. Absolutely Not paid a flat fee of $300 to MSUM Flypaper Creative Services each semester. Using the 80/20 rule, 20% ($60) of the fee was available for advertising. The printing cost for fliers was $15 and we boosted YouTube videos for $20. We are in the process of analyzing the boosted videos and will determine how best to proceed based on the results. 
 
Evaluation: The campaign, which began September 2023, was to reach 500 total views on YouTube by February 15, 2023. This goal was reached with over 1,750 views total. All content was organic and shared by MSUM Flypaper via TikTok and Instagram, directing viewers to follow Absolutely Not on YouTube. As of February 15, 2024, the client had 43 followers on YouTube and is gaining substantial growth on TikTok, garnering over 1,700 views.  

Ocean literacy among the public is generally low, especially for inland populations. In this presentation we report ocean literacy of youth aged 9-14 located in the center of North America, before and after a 4-day program on ocean literacy hosted at the Minnesota State University Moorhead Oceanarium. The pre-test administered before the workshop showed average pre-knowledge across the seven principles of ocean literacy of 32.1%, which increased to 45.1% by the end of the workshop. The principles of ocean literacy (One big ocean, Ocean influences climate and Ocean is largely unexplored) had the highest rates of pre-knowledge and also the highest rates of learning. This upcoming summer of 2024, we will be conducting another research-based education program that will further strengthen youth's bonds with the ocean.  Over this next workshop, our focus will be to teach our youth about the seven principles of ocean literacy by applying three different question techniques, rote memorization, synthesis, and real world applications. Our goal is to enhance youth engagement in the understanding of ocean-based education and change the youth’s attitude and their resulting behaviours for the future of our oceans.  

Bacteriophages are microscopic viruses that infect and replicate among different strains of bacteria and are one of the most abundant biological organisms. Marine phages are a large part of the ocean biomass and have an important role in circulating carbon from the atmosphere. The main goal of this project is to gain a more in-depth knowledge of virus-host relationships using bacteriophages. It aims to learn more about how changing DNA can affect the total outcome of a single-celled organism. The marine bacteria, Ruegeria pomeroyi (R. pom), is the host for newly found marine phages. There is minimal information about the relationship between R pom. and phages. This project investigates if bacteriophages can infect R. pom, the phage Mar, and its effects on the mutant strain of R. pom, as well as other phages found in Fall of 2023 and the mutant R. pom’s resistance to them. In addition, it also focuses on collecting and analyzing the DNA structure of both the mutant R. pom and phages to determine a possible cause of phage resistance. 

With this project, we hope to bring light to the current state of Uganda’s film industry and share its history within world cinema. Through our research, we found that the film industry has not had a chance to thrive before 2005, and it is still in its infancy. With the industry still blossoming, we chose to focus our study on student works from the Maisha Film Lab, a Ugandan film production school, both made within the workshop setting and afterward in the industry. Particularly, we will be textually analyzing the similarities and differences of the cinematography and editing styles between the filmmakers, and making connections to Ugandan history and culture. We will be displaying our findings through a website format and talking our audience through each page. In analyzing our findings in this study, we have found that Ugandan Cinema is still using many Classical Hollywood Cinema stylistic elements in their cinematography and editing. The majority of films the Maisha Film Lab produces are documentaries that contain many of the same Western film elements that were taught to them by the British before their independence in 1962. Despite this, the films display various Ugandan-specific narratives that are very popular with the people, even with only a few films being produced each year due to the limited resources the country has to make them. To combat this, the Maisha Film Lab, Uganda Film Festival, and Pearl Magic Prime are serving as foundational pillars in Uganda’s film industry, trying their best to teach and encourage the production of Ugandan films using techniques taught to them in the past and allowing students to experiment with them to create their filmic expressions.

   With an increasing threat of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria on the rise, the development of novel antimicrobial compounds is needed to combat this risk. This research is looking to identify an unknown antimicrobial compound from an environmentally isolated bacterial species (B1). This will be done by purifying the environmental bacteria, testing for the presence of antimicrobial compounds, and extracting them using organic solvents. Once the antimicrobial is extracted, testing for bioactivity will be done. After the extracts are shown to be bioactive then purification and identification of the isolated antimicrobial compound will be needed for future research. Our results showed that an antimicrobial compound is extractable from B1 cultures using organic solvents. The results show that the environmentally isolated bacteria does produce an antimicrobial compound that can reduce the growth of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. Since the antimicrobial is extractable, the identification of this unknown compound is needed. If the identity is known, then further research can be done to possibly develop this antimicrobial into a medication that can be used against antimicrobial-resistant bacterial infections.  

The topic of this poster is how play is seen within the art center. Learning through play means teaching children while they play, and how the art center can enhance the students learning.  In the art center, we as teachers focus on the profound impact of art in early childhood education and its influence on shaping students' futures. By having play in this center we as teachers enhance their thinking skills, problem-solving skills, and so much more that helps to make them better citizens. Our poster discusses strategies for teachers to incorporate art into their lessons in a playful and enjoyable way, fostering creativity and encouraging students to take risks. The research that we have gathered highlights the incorporation of expressive art and its positive impact on students' confidence, social skills, and mood regulation. This applies to both students with disabilities and those without. This poster also discusses how to establish and prepare an art center in an early childhood classroom.

Rubrics are a good tool for helping students and educators outline learning targets and obtain feedback in higher education. Here we aimed to formulate an aseptic technique rubric and instructional video specific to cell culture in undergraduate labs. The resulting rubric will be added to a larger body of work through the ImmunoReach Research Coordination Network, to be used as a resource for other undergraduate institutions. The rubric and instructional video were assessed by students for accuracy and clarity and aggregated data will be presented. Students will benefit from a more in-depth education that provides them with skills and experiences that prepare them for a future career in biotechnology or pharmaceutical settings. 

Cleft palate and cleft lip with palate occur in every 1,700 and 1,600 births (ASHA, n.d.). Speech-language pathology intervention is often needed by individuals who have had a cleft palate; about 50% of individuals who have had a repaired cleft palate are referred to speech pathology services (Sand et al., 2022). According to Alighieri et al. (2021), there is a lack of clear procedures when administering treatment to individuals with repaired cleft palates. The purpose of this project is to identify best practice for speech therapy interventions for individuals with repaired cleft palates. This project reviews the traditional articulation approach, the linguistic approach, and the use of biofeedback. The research suggests that the traditional articulation and linguistic approaches with biofeedback is considered best practice as they are supported by current level III and IV research (Bessell et al., 2013; Alighieri et al., 2021; Kummer, 2020).

This project involved the design and development of a website intended to allow users to create a personal inventory of their purchased media with a primary focus on books. The goal of the project was to create a website that is both user-friendly, convenient, and both personally and professionally useful. The project began with an analysis of existing personal inventory websites and apps which identified many different aspects that are included in the finished website, as well as aspects that fell short. Utilizing Python and Flask, the design includes a number of easy-to-use features, such as the ability to create an account to save a personal library and the ability to use the search engine by manually typing or using a barcode scanner. Through this project, users can expect enhanced organization, tracking, and accessibility of their media collections, promising an enjoyable experience for both casual and avid collectors alike.

Social isolation poses a significant threat to both physical and mental health across diverse age groups, with particular concern for the elderly and young children. This project outlines policy recommendations to eradicate social isolation specifically in the Fargo-Moorhead area, emphasizing the importance of quality childcare and age-friendly communities.  

Recommendations include boosting access to quality childcare to foster early social bonds and creating communities that support social connections for older adults. Insights from Community Living Services and the Anne Carlsen Center highlight the importance of inclusive community engagement. Secondary research findings compare approaches across states, noting Hawaii’s successful programs for the elderly and challenges in childcare affordability in Montana and North Dakota. These recommendations aim to foster a more connected and resilient community in Fargo-Moorhead, promoting well-being and social cohesion for all residents. 

The designer fashion houses we know today would not be the same without Charles Worth’s (1825-1895) influence on fashion, branding, and quality. The fashion house was established in Paris in 1858, but his career in textiles began in London. He was a pioneer in fashion and developed the blueprint of what would become fast fashion in the 20th century. He innovated new silhouettes for the rich, including Empress Eugenie, wife of Napoleon III. This would later impact the silhouette of the commoner, perpetuating fashion trends throughout the mid to late 19th century. These new silhouettes included the lobster tail bustle, “princess line” construction of dresses, and the walking skirt, which had an ankle length hem instead of floor length.  
This paper will look at how the “House of Worth” became one of the most well-known fashion houses at the cusp of modernity. I will be focusing on his influence on contemporary fashion designers, the styles of dress he invented or popularized, and his relationship with the high society of the late 19th century. HIs legacy as the father of “Haute Couture” will also be analyzed as many of his designs and visions became a reality in the 21st century.