Scholarship and Practice of Undergraduate Research

Undergraduate research, scholarship, and creative inquiry (URSCI) experiences are found to enhance student growth in skill development. Previous research has not established what literature exists on intentionally preparing students for work through URSCI experiences in the United States. A scoping review was conducted to systematically map what the literature reveals that faculty, programs, and institutions are intentionally providing with URSCI experiences. Five databases and Google Scholar were searched. Data were charted by characteristics tied to the research question. The results demonstrated a need for research on URSCI to intentionally and directly assess how undergraduate research can be used as a tool for career readiness. The current reliance on the implicit aspects of the URSCI experience to develop career readiness competencies is not a sufficient approach.Accepted versio

Effects of Heat Treatment on the Tribological Behavior of Ni-SiOC Nanocomposite Coatings

Amorphous-ceramic-reinforced-metals (ACRMs) have excellent mechanical properties across a wide temperature range, which holds great promise as wear-resistant coatings under complex service conditions. Recent studies show that proper annealing results in enhanced tensile strength and ductility of ACRMs due to microstructure evolution that promotes co-deformation between the amorphous and crystalline nanograins. The goal of this research is to understand how annealing affects the wear behavior of ACRMs, by linking the wear-induced deformation mechanisms to subsurface microstructural evolution. Specifically, co-sputtering of Ni, SiC and SiO2 targets with further post annealing at 600 ℃ and 800 ℃ was employed in the synthesis of Ni-SiOC ACRMs, comprising of submicron Ni matrix containing amorphous SiOC ceramic particles. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) characterization revealed that annealing led to the growth of both the Ni and SiOC phases. Room temperature reciprocal wear test of both the as-deposited and annealed ACRM samples was performed under 1 N constant load using a 4 mm diameter alumina ball as counterbody, at 1 Hz frequency, 5 mm stroke distance for 10 mins. Wear rate decreased with increase in annealing temperature up to 600 ℃ before increasing with increase in annealing temperature. Post wear characterization revealed the refinement of the Ni and SiOC reinforcing phases, which serves as the basis for the discussion on the effects of annealing temperature on the wear-induced deformation mechanisms occurring in the nanocomposite.Master of ScienceAmorphous-ceramic-reinforced metals (ACRMs) are special classes of materials that are made up of a combination of metals and ceramic particles (usually in smaller sizes) to form a composite material. These materials have high strength and toughness, even when used in applications that require high temperatures, making them an excellent choice for protective coatings for use in harsh and extreme conditions. Recent studies and research show that heat treatment of such materials at an optimal temperature can improve their strength, toughness and overall mechanical properties. This is as a result of changes in the microstructure of the composite material which aids in improving its mechanical properties and efficient use in various applications including high temperature applications. The goal of this research was to explore the effect heat treatment has on the microstructural alteration of the nanocomposite material and eventually the effect on its mechanical properties (particularly its wear behaviour). This was achieved by co-sputtering nickel (Ni), silicon carbide (SiC), and silicon dioxide (SiO₂) to form a Ni-SiOC nanocomposite coating material. Subsequent heat treatment at 600 °C and 800 °C was performed, which led to an increase in the grain sizes with increase in annealing temperature. Reciprocating wear tests using an alumina ball was performed with a load of 1 N, 1 Hz frequency, over a 5 mm distance for 10 minutes. The results showed that the nanocomposite became more resistant to wear when heated to 600 °C, but less wear resistant after being heat treated to 800 °C. After the wear tests, various microstructural characterization tests were performed to clearly analyze the microstructural changes occurring and link it to the observed wear test results obtained. Heat treatment, grain refinement, interplay between hardness and modulus of elasticity were a major contributory factor to the observed wear behaviour of the nanocomposite coating

Reducing Picky Eating in Children: A Nutrition Education Seminar for Parents and Caregivers of Head Start Participants

Northern Virginia Family Service (NVFS) is a Head Start program that aims to empower families with nutrition education in support of early childhood development. A child's growth and development are strongly influenced by foundational elements such as nutrition. Adequate intake of essential nutrients during early childhood is critical for promoting physical health and cognitive development. This project focuses on identifying strategies that help parents of children ages three to five years old in the Northern Virginia Family Service Head Start program who struggle with picky eating. Parents of enrolled children were surveyed to gather insights into the nutritional challenges they face at home. The seminar was tailored to address picky eating strategies that could be implemented at home while building confidence among parents to foster a positive meal environment. Following the session, a survey was disseminated to evaluate the effectiveness of the seminar. Although turnout was low, the outcomes were encouraging and suggest the potential for supporting other parents who face challenges with picky eating. Expanding this effort to additional Head Start parents could yield valuable insights and practical support for families dealing with picky eating behaviors.MAL

Open Educational Resources: Tailor Your Textbook, Not Your Course Design

Instructors often design course content around commercial textbooks, which dictate the sequence of topics and impose financial burdens on students. This poster presentation explores an alternative: using existing open educational resources (OER) to create custom textbooks that align with your course structure. By adapting OER, instructors can organize topics in the order that best suits their teaching, providing students with free, accessible materials. Additionally, many institutions offer grants and technical assistance to support the development of these tailored resources, offering a flexible, cost-effective solution that prioritizes course objectives over predesigned textbooks. In higher education, the traditional textbook regularly serves as the cornerstone of course design, yet the widespread reliance on commercial textbooks has long been a point of contention. These textbooks often dictate the sequence and depth of topics covered in a course, forcing educators to adapt their course design to the textbook rather than designing a course that best matches the instructor's pedagogical approach. Additionally, the high cost of these textbooks places a financial strain on students, sometimes hindering their academic success. However, there is an alternative approach: adapting existing open educational resources (OER) to develop textbooks or other course materials tailored to the instructor's pedagogical approach and course objectives. OER are freely available, openly-licensed educational materials that can be reused, revised, and redistributed. They are most commonly released under a Creative Commons license which allows adaptation with attribution to the original author. These licenses enable educators to legally modify and share educational content, which is essential for freely creating customized textbooks that meet specific course needs. Adapting existing OER to generate customized textbooks represents a significant advancement in higher education pedagogy. Educators can break free from the constraints of commercial textbooks by adopting and adapting OER, allowing them to customize content, reduce student costs, and enhance pedagogical flexibility. This presentation draws on the examples of co-author Dr. Laura Neser’s adapted open textbooks, Introduction to Earth Science (2022) and Introduction to Earth Science, second edition (2025). Since its publication in 2022, Dr. Neser’s textbook has been downloaded over 170,000 times, not including additional views of the HTML version of the book at https://pressbooks.lib.vt.edu/introearthscience/. Moreover, at least 54 colleges and universities worldwide have adopted all or part of the textbook, which has been viewed in 100 countries. The poster presentation aims to equip educators with the knowledge and tools needed to identify, adapt, and integrate OER into their courses. This process includes: (1) identifying suitable OER materials that align with course objectives; (2) adapting these materials to fit the desired course structure and sequence; and (3) utilizing grants and institutional resources to support the adaptation of OER-based textbooks. The grants presented on this poster are specific to Virginia Tech faculty; however, similar resources may be available at your own institution to support the adaptation of OER materials in your courses. By adapting OER, instructors can create customized textbooks that are free, flexible, and aligned with their pedagogical goals. This strategy offers a practical solution to the limitations of commercial textbooks, fostering a more student-centered and flexible approach to course design

Investigating Private Drinking Water Quality and Biomarkers of Associated Health Outcomes in Southwest Virginia

Approximately 1.8 million Americans living in rural communities do not have access to safely managed household drinking water. Recent research has demonstrated high rates of the US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) violations in rural areas and heavy dependence on private systems that are not subject to SDWA monitoring and treatment requirements. Few studies concurrently examine both the quality of private drinking water and associated biomarkers of disease. This relative lack of data is particularly acute in Central Appalachia, a region defined by high poverty, aging public infrastructure, and high rates of private water supply. This study aims to measure the prevalence of health outcomes associated with drinking water from a private or environmental source in a rural, Central Appalachian region in Virginia. To accomplish this goal, participating households with drinking water supplied by a private well, spring, or environmental source (e.g. roadside springs) participated in a three-step process: surveys administered by trained teams, drinking water samples collected at the point of use, and health outcome measurements. Water samples were collected from the point of use without flushing, after sanitization and a 5-minute flush, and from any non-bottled, alternative drinking water sources. These samples were analyzed for fecal indicator bacteria, specific enteric pathogens, metals, nutrients, and other inorganic ions. Though private sources are not subject to EPA regulations, water quality results were compared to US EPA maximum contaminant levels (MCLs), secondary maximum contaminant levels (SMCLs), and health reference levels as benchmarks. Measurements of health outcomes included immunoassays of saliva samples and blood pressure measurements. At least one sample from ~73% (n = 11) of eligible households contained detectable total coliforms and ~27% (n = 4) contained detectable E. coli. One quarter of eligible households (n = 3) had water containing specific enteric pathogens, all of which were supplied by a private spring. No samples exceeded health-based standards (MCLs) for inorganic constituents. Only one individual reported experiencing symptoms of enteric waterborne disease, which coincided with detection of Aeromonas in their primary drinking water source. However, the participant also noted a change in medication as a confounding factor for their symptoms. Blood pressure measurements revealed high prevalence (~69%, n = 11) of hypertension despite fewer participants (25%, n = 4) reporting the condition, reinforcing the need for measured health outcomes. Due to recent changes in federal funding and hiring practices, saliva samples were unable to be analyzed and strong epidemiological associations between private drinking water use and enteric disease remain out of reach. Despite this, biological contamination of private and environmental drinking water sources remains prevalent in Central Appalachia.Master of ScienceApproximately 1.8 million Americans living in rural communities do not have access to safely managed household drinking water. Recent research has found frequent violations of federal drinking water regulations in rural areas and heavy dependence on private wells or springs that are not subject to Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) monitoring and treatment requirements. This issue is particularly notable in Central Appalachia, where this topic is under researched. This study aims to investigate how consuming water from a private source impacts the health of rural, Central Appalachians. To accomplish this goal, participating households with drinking water supplied by a private well, spring, or environmental source (e.g. roadside springs) participated in surveys, water sampling, and health outcome measurements. Water samples were collected at the point of use in each household. These samples were analyzed for infectious diseases, metals, nutrients, and other inorganic ions. Measurements of health outcomes included saliva sampling to identify cases of waterborne disease and blood pressure measurements to identify cases of hypertension (high blood pressure). At least one water sample from ~27% (n = 4) households contained an indicator of fecal contamination and one quarter (n = 3) contained a specific infectious pathogen. No samples exceeded health-based standards for inorganic contaminants. Only one individual reported experiencing symptoms of waterborne disease, which coincided with detection of bacteria in their drinking water. However, the participant also noted a change in medication may have been the cause of their symptoms. Blood pressure measurements revealed that high blood pressure was common, even though few participants reported having hypertension, illustrating the need for measured health outcomes. However, due to recent changes in federal funding and hiring practices, saliva samples were unable to be analyzed, making associations between privately sourced drinking water and waterborne disease difficult to achieve. Despite this, biological contamination of private and environmental drinking water sources is still prevalent in Central Appalachia

DiaryQuest: A Web-Based Learning System Utilizing Diary Study

DiaryQuest is a web-based learning management system designed to address challenges in utilizing diary studies in education, particularly in large classroom settings. Diary studies promote student reflection and a deeper understanding of topics like Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), but traditional methods of analyzing diary entries are labor-intensive. DiaryQuest simplifies this process by offering educators tools for creating diary assignments, tracking student submissions, and analyzing entries using methods like Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) and sentiment analysis. For students, it provides an intuitive interface with progress tracking to ensure timely entries. The system also includes interactive visualizations, such as word clouds and dynamic tables, enabling educators to explore student insights more deeply. DiaryQuest enhances the management of diary studies, promotes engagement, and fosters a more personalized and reflective learning experience.Published versio

Decoding Leadership Signals: Intersectional Perceptions of Agency, Communion, and Transformational Leadership Behaviors

This research contributes to ongoing debates about whether transformational leadership behaviors (TLBs) are evaluated equitably across leader race and gender by examining the social signals these behaviors convey. Specifically, the studies explore whether TLBs are interpreted as agentic or communal signals, and whether these interpretations confer a leadership advantage or disadvantage for women and racial minorities through agency and/or communion. Across two studies, this research investigated how followers describe, interpret, and evaluate TLBs enacted by leaders varying in race and gender, through the lens of agency and communion. In Study 1 (N = 308), Structural Topic Modeling was utilized to analyze open-ended follower descriptions of leader behavior and identified seven distinct topics (i.e., behaviors). Most topics aligned with Stock et al.'s (2023) existing TLB taxonomy. Dictionary analysis revealed that overall TLBs were described in more agentic rather than communal terms, and that male leaders were described in more agentic terms than female leaders. Topic prevalence also varied by leader race and gender, suggesting that certain behaviors are more salient for different leader groups. Drawing from signaling theory, leadership categorization theory, and intersectionality, Study 2 proposed that the effectiveness of TLBs would be mediated by how they are interpreted as signals of agency or communion, and that these interpretations would be moderated by the leader's demographic characteristics. In Study 2 (N = 268), TLBs were experimentally manipulated in scripted speeches in a 2 (TLBs Present or Absent) x 2 (Race: White or Black) x 2(Gender: Male or Female) experimental design. Results revealed that TLBs increased transformational leadership (TFL) evaluations across all groups (Cohen's d= 0.71). However, mediation analysis showed that this effect was driven by perceived communion and not agency, and that the strength of this pathway varied by leader race. Specifically, White leaders experienced a stronger "communal boost" than Black leaders when enacting TLBs, which increased their TFL evaluations. This effect was strongest for White women, and did not occur for Black women. White women also experienced a competence penalty when enacting TLBs. Together, these findings highlight the role of leader characteristics (i.e., race and gender) in social perception and interpretations of leadership behaviors.Doctor of PhilosophyThis research explores how people describe, interpret, and evaluate observable transformational leadership behaviors (TLBs), such as motivating others or encouraging new ideas, and whether these behaviors are perceived and evaluated differently depending on a leader's race or gender. It also explores whether people see these behaviors as signals of confidence (agency) or warmth (communion) depending on who enacts them. In Study 1, open-ended follower responses were analyzed to examine how people described behaviors associated with transformational leadership. The study also explored whether these descriptions varied in language use (e.g., confident and assertive "agentic" language versus warm and supportive "communal" language) and whether they differed by the leader's race or gender. Results showed that most behaviors were described in more agentic terms than communal terms. Moreover, male leaders were described in more agentic terms than female leaders. Descriptions also varied based on the race and gender of the leader, with certain behaviors standing out more for some groups than others. Study 2 tested how people evaluated leaders who enacted the same behaviors but differed in race and gender. Leaders who enacted TLBs were consistently rated as more transformational. However, this effect was primarily explained by increased perceptions of communion, not agency. This pathway was stronger for White leaders, suggesting that race shapes how leadership behaviors are interpreted. Overall, these findings suggest that leadership ratings are not just about what leaders do, they're also shaped by how others perceive them based on who they are. This research offers new insight into why some leaders may be judged more favorably than others, even when they act the same, and highlights the need for more inclusive approaches to leadership development and evaluation in diverse workplaces

Fermentation

This study evaluated the effects of different doses of limonene essential oil (LEO) and a blend of cinnamaldehyde and carvacrol (BCC) on the fermentative quality and chemical–bromatological composition of total mixed ration (TMR) silages. Two independent trials were conducted, each focused on one additive, using a completely randomized design with four treatments (0, 200, 400, and 600 mg/kg of dry matter), replicated across two seasons (summer and autumn), with five replicates per treatment per season. The silages were assessed for their chemical composition, fermentation profile, aerobic stability (AS), and storage losses. In the LEO trial, the dry matter (DM) content increased significantly by 0.047% for each mg/kg added. Dry matter recovery (DMR) peaked at 97.9% at 473 mg/kg (p < 0.01), while lactic acid (LA) production reached 5.87% DM at 456 mg/kg. Ethanol concentrations decreased to 0.13% DM at 392 mg/kg (p = 0.04). The highest AS value (114 h) was observed at 203.7 mg/kg, but AS declined slightly at the highest LEO dose (600 mg/kg). No significant effects were observed for the pH, neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), crude protein (CP), or non-fiber carbohydrates (NFCs). In the BCC trial, DMR reached 98.2% at 548 mg/kg (p < 0.001), and effluent losses decreased by approximately 20 kg/ton DM. LA production peaked at 6.41% DM at 412 mg/kg (p < 0.001), and AS reached 131 h at 359 mg/kg. BCC increased NDF (from 23.27% to 27.73%) and ADF (from 35.13% to 41.20%) linearly, while NFCs and the total digestible nutrients (TDN) decreased by 0.0007% and 0.039% per mg of BCC, respectively. In conclusion, both additives improved the fermentation efficiency by increasing LA and reducing losses. LEO was more effective for DM retention and ethanol reduction, while BCC improved DMR and AS, with distinct effects on fiber and energy fractions.Published versio

Deploying Reinforcement Learning in the Real World: A Case Study on Apptronik Apollo

Master of ScienceDeep reinforcement learning (RL) has gained increasing popularity as an approach to achieving dynamic behaviors on legged robots. However, transferring RL behaviors from simulation to reality is a challenging process: imperfect sensors, simulation models, control architecture, and latency all present obstacles to successfully deploying such approaches in the real world. In this thesis, we present an end-to-end overview of our approach to bridging the sim-to-real gap, leveraging domain randomization and careful choices in control architecture in order to successfully deploy RL policies for teleoperation in simulation and on hardware

A Qualitative Exploration of the Perceptions of Cellular Grown Meat and Seafood with Virginia Tech Students

The emergence of cultivated meat and seafood has the potential to transform the food science industry, particularly in the context of shifting consumption patterns influenced by health, ethical, and environmental concerns. This qualitative study explored the socio-ethical factors that shape college students' perceptions of cultivated meat, utilizing Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) to examine how cognitive processes shape social interaction and how environmental factors influence behavior. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with Virginia Tech students from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Natural Resources and Environment, and Science. Findings revealed a dominant preference for traditional meat, shaped by sensory expectations, cultural traditions, and distrust of unfamiliar technology. Limited exposure, lack of trusted role models, and unclear information reduced students' confidence and outcome expectations. Despite this, many expressed conditional openness, highlighting the importance of transparent communication, institutional trust, and social modeling. The study recommends targeted education, clear labeling, and visible endorsement by trusted figures to improve acceptance. These insights can inform marketing, policy, and educational strategies aimed at fostering sustainable food choices.Master of Science in Life SciencesCultivated meat and seafood, grown from animal cells rather than harvested from live animals, are emerging as an innovative alternative to traditional meat. While these products could help address health, ethical, and environmental concerns, many people are still unsure about them. This study looks at what influences how college students feel about cultivated meat, focusing on Virginia Tech students studying agriculture, natural resources, and science. Using interviews the research explored students' beliefs, social environment, and outside influences shaped their opinions. Many students preferred traditional meat, often due to cultural traditions, expectations around taste and texture, and hesitations about unfamiliar food technologies. Most had little exposure to cultivated meat and lacked trusted sources to guide their understanding. Still, many were open to trying it, especially if information was clear, labeling was honest, and trusted figures or institutions supported it. The study recommends that cultivated meat can be introduced better to the public through education, marketing, and outreach. These suggestions are designed to help researchers, educators, and companies to encourage informed and sustainable food choices in the future