Analyzing Preparedness for Compliance with the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) Across Member States of the European Union

The European Union’s implementation of the CBAM is a climate change-driven initiative aimed at preventing carbon leakages. This thesis aims to investigate the underlying reasons for the variation in preparedness to comply with CBAM. Exposure to CBAM-covered Extra-EU imports serves as a proxy for preparedness, a measure of the economic constraints EU countries face. The research employs a mixed-methods approach, including Regression Analysis, Bayesian model averaging, and comparative case studies of EU countries. The results show a strong association between preparedness levels and institutional factors, particularly regulatory capacity. In contrast, political, financial, and geographical factors exhibit limited influence on a state’s preparedness level. The findings highlight the critical role of domestic regulatory capacity in shaping conditions for compliance, thereby strengthening collective action. The effectiveness of the CBAM will shape the trajectory of the EU’s primary objective to achieve decarbonization by 2050 as outlined by the European Green Deal

Determining Enzymatic Function of Protein 3DS8

Understanding protein function gives insight to disease, cell development, metabolism, cellular regulation, and many other processes. The protein with protein database identification (PDB ID) of 3DS8 had previously described structure with unknown function. Here we describe a variety of methods that allowed for the characterization of protein 3DS8 function

Anti-French Sentiment as a Factor in the Coup Belt

This thesis examines if anti-French sentiment is a significant factor influencing individuals\u27 support for coups d\u27état in former French colonies in Africa, mostly in the sub-Saharan Sahel region which has earned the term Coup Belt

Determining the Enzymatic Function of a SaCD00432683 Vector-Derived Protein

Protein characterization is a fundamental aspect of biochemical research, including but not limited to the study of genetic expression, biochemical processes, and medicine development. The protein that is expressed by the SaCD00432683 vector insert sequence has a known structure, but the enzymatic function is yet to be known. Here, we seek to characterize this protein expressed from SaCD00432683 to determine its enzymatic function through vector transformation and protein expression, purification techniques including affinity chromatography and SDS-PAGE, database exploration, and DNA sequencing.  The agarose gel electrophoresis showed that the purified PCR product, which corresponds to the ampicillin-resistant gene, had a band at ~1000 bp. The SDS-PAGE results showed that the protein of interest had a band at ~70 kDa, as expected. The in-silico research using the Protein Data Bank, BLAST, and Interpro helped us predict that our protein is in the alpha/beta hydrolase superfamily. The two relevant domains are alpha/beta hydrolase and BD-FAE-like domain, which cleave ester bonds. This helped us predict our protein has a hydrolytic function. We were able to successfully grow and purify our protein which will be used in our next steps, which are to conduct enzyme kinetic and activity assays to confirm that our protein has hydrolytic activity

When Wedding Bells Stop Ringing: An Economic Analysis of the U.S. Fertility Crisis

Fertility in the U.S. has been in steady decline since the Great Recession. Surveyed opinions suggest this trend stems less from changing attitudes in ideal family size, and more from tangible barriers preventing people from having as many children as they desire. This paper explores several economic and social pressures that may have contributed to this discrepancy, with an emphasis on marriage. Marriage is considered to be the infrastructure that enables childbearing by minimizing both monetary and time costs. Using fixed effects and random forest regression, we estimate the impact of these measures and their relative importance on fertility decisions. We find that religiosity and female median wages are the two most influential predictors of TFR. These results imply that policies focusing on public assistance programs, or expanding IVF measures may not be appropriate to resolve the fertility crisis in comparison to tax restructures that incentivize marriage, and other initiatives promoting the increase of female wages

Speaking of Language: The Relationship Between Language as Capital and Minority Language Education

The future of minority languages not only depends on intergenerational transmission but also on support for immersive instruction in minority languages within the educational system. This paper examines the factors that influence support for minority language education, arguing that language policy is shaped by societal attitudes, which in turn reflect dynamics of power. The paper draws upon Pierre Bourdieu’s conceptualization of different types of capital, including his theory on the relationship between economic, social, cultural and symbolic capital. Within this framework, language functions as a form of capital, reflecting and reinforcing social and economic stratification by conveying status or stigma. The paper also incorporates Richard Ruiz’s analysis of different orientations that shape language policy, distinguishing among language as problem, language as right, and language as resource. Based on these theoretical arguments, the paper analyzes the effectiveness of minority education policy in increasing the number of learners studying through the medium of minority languages. The research is based on a detailed comparative analysis of eight case studies of minority language education: Swedish in Finland, German in northern Italy, Quechua in Peru, Kurdish in Turkey, Cajun French in Louisiana, Irish Gaelic in Ireland, Welsh in Wales and Swedish in Australia. The paper concludes that minority communities will support minority language education when they perceive it to convey economic, social and/or cultural capital

Red-backed Salamander Color Polymorphism and Responses to Changing Environmental Conditions

Red-backed salamanders (Plethodon cinereus) are a terrestrial salamander serving as a potential model organism for amphibian ecology, evolution, and behavior. This species exhibits a genetically based color polymorphism. The two morphs, unstriped and striped, have shown to occupy different environmental niches, with the unstriped morph associated with warmer temperatures and dryer conditions while the striped are associated with cooler temperatures and wetter conditions. We studied a P. cinereus population located in Collegeville, Pennsylvania to explore these niche differences and further investigate the environmental variables that underly the color morphs’ niche differences. We explored the influence of moisture and temperature on microhabitat selection in the field and laboratory and created statistical models exploring the relationship between temperature, precipitation, and color morph frequencies among populations in Northeast USA. In the field study, we found that unstriped color morphs were associated with cooler and wetter microhabitats, while striped morphs showed little response to moisture but were associated with warmer microhabitats. These results are consistent with previous findings for this population but are inconsistent with the more common geographical findings that unstriped morphs are associated with warmer and drier conditions than striped morphs.  Soil temperature and moisture were highly correlated in the field, so we attempted to disentangle these factors in the laboratory study. We found no evidence that the color morphs differ in their thermal preferences when moisture is not a limiting resource. Finally, our field results indicated that striped morphs can tolerate a broader range of temperature and moisture than unstriped morphs, so we hypothesized that geographic locations with greater variation in these conditions would support populations with a higher frequency of striped morphs. Our analyses show that mean temperature and temperature variation are valid predictors of striped morph frequency, but precipitation mean and variation are not significant predictors. We conclude that, in our study population, the striped morph tolerates a broader range of soil temperature and moisture than the unstriped morph, including warmer and drier conditions, but more studies are needed to confirm if this niche difference exists across populations. Future inter-population studies with better data on surface microclimates are needed to better test the hypothesis that striped morphs tolerate greater climate variation

Cortisol Awakening Response: Cognitive and Physiological Manifestations in Young Adults With and Without Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

Recent research has highlighted the need for a more comprehensive understanding of how attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) manifests physiologically in young adults, beyond traditional behavioral observations. While frequently diagnosed in childhood, the physiological and neurological manifestations of ADHD in young adults remain under researched. Understanding these biological markers is essential for improving diagnostic accuracy and treatment strategies in collegiate populations. This study investigates the multidimensional associations between symptoms often experienced in those with ADHD, executive function, and the Cortisol Awakening Response (CAR). Participants were evaluated using the Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS v1.1), the Test of Variables of Attention (T.O.V.A.), and visuomotor reaction time tasks using BlazePods. Physiological stress profiles were assessed by measuring salivary cortisol at 0, 30, and 60 minutes post-awakening to map the CAR. We hypothesized that individuals meeting clinical criteria for ADHD would exhibit significant dysregulation in diurnal cortisol patterns and increased response time variability compared to neurotypical controls. The results indicated a significant relationship between elevated ADHD symptom scores and altered cortisol dynamics. Specifically, participants who demonstrated higher levels of inattention on the T.O.V.A. and ASRS displayed a blunted cortisol awakening response compared to their peers. Furthermore, increased response time variability during the BlazePod tasks was positively correlated with these dysregulated physiological markers, suggesting that the cognitive drift often associated with ADHD is mirrored by a blunted endocrine stress response. By integrating objective neuropsychological performance with endocrine biomarkers, this research clarifies the biological underpinnings of ADHD in young adults. The findings highlight the importance of considering physiological stress signatures, such as the CAR, as a measurable marker of the internal state and executive challenges faced by adult patients

Optimization of the Synthesis of Wintergreen Oil

The Fischer esterification chemical reaction, which converts a carboxylic acid to an ester under acidic conditions, was first developed in 1895 by German chemists Emil Fischer and Arthur Speier. Today, it is one of the most prominent in all of organic synthesis. Ester compounds appear in major industrial products including biofuels, solvents, paints, pharmaceuticals, herbicides, and plastics. They are also used for their scent in soaps and fragrances such as wintergreen oil. Some limitations to the Fischer esterification include a slow reaction rate and low conversion due to the generation of thermodynamic equilibrium. A common strategy employed to bypass this is to perform the reaction under reflux conditions or with large equivalents of alcohol reagent

The Grizzly, February 19, 2026

Ursinus Faculty Cuts: What You Need to Know • Ursinus\u27 MLK Interfaith Ceremony • APEX and Budget Concerns Mount, Profs Examine CIE • What Does Black History Month Mean to Ursinus Professors? • Is Anyone Reading This? • Two Ursinus Guards Reach 1,000 Career Points in Historic Season • Bears\u27 Track Races Towards Strong Finishhttps://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/grizzlynews/2064/thumbnail.jp