Exploration of Audible Sound, Time-Delay Spectroscopy in Assessing Bone Health

Osteoporosis is a progressive skeletal disorder characterized by decreased bone density (BD) and structural deterioration of bone tissue, leading to increased fracture risk. It affects over 200 million individuals globally and contributes to approximately 8.9 million fractures each year. High-risk populations include postmenopausal women, individuals with diabetes, and the elderly, demographics prevalent in rural regions such as Maine, where access to diagnostic imaging is limited. Current BD assessment modalities, quantitative computed tomography (QCT), dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), and quantitative ultrasound (QUS), are clinically effective but have notable drawbacks. QCT and DXA expose patients to ionizing radiation and require costly, specialized equipment, while QUS suffers from measurement variability due to sensitivity to soft tissue composition and reliance on external coupling mediums. This project explores the development of a portable, radiation-free, and cost-effective diagnostic device using audible sound and time-delay spectroscopy (TDS) for assessing calcaneal BD. The proposed system employs a dual-path configuration to improve sensitivity to internal bone morphology while eliminating the need for external coupling media, enhancing ease of use and measurement consistency. Preliminary testing of iterative prototypes included evaluation of signal phase and frequency detection, interface coupling force measurement, and material geometry analysis. Results demonstrated that audible sound attenuation is responsive to variations in bone-like materials and that the device reliably captures acoustic parameters and structural geometries. If validated against established QUS and DXA techniques, this technology could offer a clinically viable solution for routine osteoporosis screening, particularly in underserved and resource-constrained healthcare settings

Investigating Vascularization to Accelerate Mycelial Materials Growth

The use of harsh formaldehyde-based chemicals in some wood composite adhesives has prompted exploration of mycelial materials as a more eco-friendly friendly alternative binder. However, a key challenge in using mycelium as an adhesive is its slow growth, which typically spans several days or weeks. Here, we investigate whether vascular-inspired channels could enhance mycelial growth by improving access to oxygen and moisture. Mimicking leaf vein structures, we embedded parallel channels into mycelial substrates using 3D-printed molds to facilitate internal transport. Growth rates were tracked over time using image analysis methods to compare outcomes across experimental conditions. The results showed that increased air and moisture access significantly increased growth rates. However, when air and moisture were introduced via active flow through embedded channels, drying became an issue that slowed growth. These findings highlight the importance of controlled moisture and oxygen delivery in optimizing mycelial growth, offering valuable insights for improving the feasibility and performance of mycelium-based adhesive and materials. However, care must be taken when using active flow, as excessive airflow can lead to drying of the substrate and inhibit growth

General Behavior of Brick Tiling Billiards

This paper studies tiling billiard trajectories on brick tilings using folding and interval map techniques. Inspired by triangle tiling billiards, where researchers used folding to understand reflections and dynamics, we first review how folding works in the triangle case and how trajectories can be represented as chords on a circle. Then we move to square and brick tiling. In brick tiling with rational offset p/q, we define a folding map and prove that every nonsingular trajectory is either periodic or drift periodic, with period at most 4|2q-1|. In the special case where the offset is 1/q}, we use an interval map that tracks how the trajectory moves along the edges of the squares, and we prove a sharper upper bound of 4q on the period

UMaine Athletics News, October 2025

UMaine Athletics News releases dated between October 1 and October 31, 2025

Design and Synthesis of Peptoids for the Development of Biomimetic Hydrogels

In recent decades, the development of biomimetic hydrogels has gained significant attention in the field of regenerative medicine and tissue engineering. Hydrogels are three-dimensional polymeric networks that possess the ability to retain substantial quantities of water. Their structural composition closely resembles the one of the extracellular matrix, which plays a crucial role in supporting cellular functions such as communication, growth, and motility. This project focuses on the design and synthesis of peptoids, N-substituted glycine oligomers, as building blocks towards the fabrication of novel biomimetic hydrogels. Peptoids offer several advantages over peptides, their natural counterparts, including enhanced proteolytic stability, ease of synthesis, and tunable properties. We developed a library of peptoids, each consisting of 16 monomers, featuring a modular backbone that includes both hydrophilic and hydrophobic monomers in specific sequences to encourage amphiphilicity and self-assembly. These peptoid sequences contain functional side chains like amines, carboxyls, alkynes, and azides, allowing for chemical conjugation and crosslinking through click chemistry. We synthesized the peptoids following the submonomer solid-phase synthesis protocol, then purified them using flash chromatography. Their purity and molecular weights were then confirmed by analytical HPLC (high-performance liquid chromatography) and MALDI-TOF (Matrix-assisted Laser Desorption/Ionisation Time-of-flight). We investigated the ability of our peptoids to self-assemble into nanostructures, i.e. nanoparticles, to promote gelation and modulate hydrogel mechanical properties. We studied the self-assembly properties of the nanoparticles by performing DLS (dynamic light scattering) and SEM (scanning electron microscopy). The purified peptoids were designed to form hydrogels through either covalent or non-covalent crosslinking mechanisms. Our HPLC and MALDI-TOF results confirmed that we were able to successfully synthesize and purify our designed peptoid building blocks. The DLS and SEM also confirmed the successful formation of the peptoid nanoparticles. Finally, we started investigating how structural variations in peptoid design influence the mechanical and physicochemical properties of the resulting hydrogels formed using click chemistry. We further investigated the swelling behavior of these hydrogels as well. These findings offer valuable insights into how the deliberate selection of specific sequences can significantly impact the formation of hydrogels. By comparing peptoid-based hydrogels with traditional polymer-based systems, we showed the unique advantages of peptoids as building block in the synthesis of biomimetic scaffolds

Harbin And Other Stories

As we get older, we often lose the wonder, imagination and curiosity of our childhoods. Life experiences make us cynical and jaded. But does it have to be this way? Might there be benefits to embracing childlike wonder in adulthood? Harbin and Other Stories portray deeply flawed characters who are struggling against the forces of patriarchy, modernity, and capitalism; characters who are exploring their perceptions of reality and fantasy; questioning what matters and rediscovering child-like wonder. The thirteen stories in this collection are set in a variety of domestic and international locations; often have a young, educated female protagonist; and borrow conventions from the genres of folklore and fairy tale, realism and fabulism, absurdism and satire. The collection as a whole moves from cynicism to wonder. A burnt-out American girl studying abroad in Harbin enters into a surreal sexual relationship with the ghost of a Chinese boy who jumped from a window after failing the gāokǎo. A go-go dancer in Las Vegas struggles to reconcile her current occupation with the feminist principles of her college days and her anthropological research on matriarchies. A shaky substitute teacher discovers, with the help of her orchestra class, the true nature of the universe. Harbin and Other Stories is for those who want to sharpen their perceptions; those who want to see the filigrees, the complex gray areas, the beauties and uglies hiding in plain sight

Witnessing Genocide from a Distance

As Palestinians in the occupied territories of Gaza and the West Bank appeal to the global community to respond to Israel’s genocidal actions and speak against its blatant crimes against humanity, the role of distanced, global witnesses and the ethical implications of such witnessing are thrown into sharp relief. My thesis stems from questions about the experience of witnessing such a widely and graphically documented genocide from afar and the psychological, ethical, and ideological implications that accompany it. In contextualizing distanced witnessing, I also aim to focus on the complicated media environment, as well as the scholasticidal tendencies that the scholarly community of global witnesses is navigating. My research is informed by interviews with individuals residing in United States whose ethical engagement and action against the Palestinian genocide is impacted by a range positionalities, including but limited to, them being a scholar, retired professor, student activist on F1 visa, non-profit employee on an H1B visa, poet, political artist, mental health worker, photographer, former political candidate, Israeli-American, American Jew, Palestinian-American, and Pakistani. My analysis of interviews found four determining factors that dictate how the interviewee’s positionality and the psychological, ethical and ideological implications of distanced witnessing impacted their engagement with the Palestinian conflict. The four determining factors include 1) how they handle the “calculus” of being an activist by navigating the complicated media environment 2) how they identify the range of affective responses generated by such witnessing; 3) how they confront their disillusionment with America’s freedom and morality and Israel’s intentions; and 4) how they experience and resist the ideological scholasticide through activism

UMaine Athletics News, June 2025

UMaine Athletics News releases dated between June 4 and June 30, 2025

Maine EPSCoR eNews, October 2025

Maine\u27s EPSCoR (Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research)