Fostering Global Citizens: Using Technology to Improve Intercultural Competence Among Study Abroad Students

The UMontana app is one of the current marketing strategies that the University of Montana is using to make information more easily accessible to students. Our team designed a tile for the UMontana app that would provide specific local information about UM’s twenty-one partner universities. This information will be used to help UM and international students better prepare for their study abroad experiences at these host universities. Our research shows that students studying abroad struggle to gain intercultural competence during their experience abroad because of factors like culture shock, language barriers, or sociocultural differences. The goal of this project is to increase the intercultural competence of UM students and international students coming to study at UM so that students can spend less time adjusting to their host university, and more time enjoying their study abroad experience and becoming competent global citizens. This app tile will answer practical questions like Where can I find feminine hygiene products? and What is the best bank to use in my host city? but also culturally specific questions like What are some important social customs? and What are the attitudes towards gender identity? The app is populated with survey information gathered from students that have already completed their study abroad experiences, but the page is now self-sustaining with a social media platform embedded in the tile. As students complete their experiences abroad, they can add their input into the tile, filling in the gaps from another student’s answers, and even posting pictures of their trip. Eventually, the project will expand to encompass more than the partner universities. With the help of the Global Engagement and Information Technology offices, this project became a reality

Mismatch Repair Proteins Initiate Epigenetic Alterations during Inflammation-Driven Tumorigenesis

Aberrant silencing of genes by DNA methylation contributes to cancer, yet how this process is initiated remains unclear. Using a murine model of inflammation-induced tumorigenesis, we tested the hypothesis that inflammation promotes recruitment of epigenetic proteins to chromatin, initiating methylation and gene silencing in tumors. Compared with normal epithelium and noninflammation-induced tumors, inflammation-induced tumors gained DNA methylation at CpG islands, some of which are associated with putative tumor suppressor genes. Hypermethylated genes exhibited enrichment of repressive chromatin marks and reduced expression prior to tumorigenesis, at a time point coinciding with peak levels of inflammation-associated DNA damage. Loss of MutS homolog 2 (MSH2), a mismatch repair (MMR) protein, abrogated early inflammation-induced epigenetic alterations and DNA hypermethylation alterations observed in inflammation-induced tumors. These results indicate that early epigenetic alterations initiated by inflammation and MMR proteins lead to gene silencing during tumorigenesis, revealing a novel mechanism of epigenetic alterations in inflammation-driven cancer. Understanding such mechanisms will inform development of pharmacotherapies to reduce carcinogenesis

Dynamic covalent polymers based upon carbene dimerization

Thermally-reversible covalent polymers featuring dynamic carbon - carbon double bonds and tunable molecular weights were prepared from difunctional carbenes; addition of transition metal complexes to these materials afforded the respective main-chain organometallic polymers

Novel N-heterocyclic carbene architectures for use in carbene based polymers and redox switchable catalysis

textThe central focus of this dissertation pertains to the synthesis and study of novel N-Heterocyclic carbene architectures. This pursuit has led to advances in carbine structure and bonding, and application of NHCs in materials chemistry in the role of monomer and catalystChemistr

Oxidation of poly(enetetramine)s: a new strategy for the synthesis of conjugated polyelectrolytes

Chemical oxidation of poly(enetetramine)s was demonstrated as a new synthetic route to prepare conjugated polyelectrolytes

Quinone-annulated N-heterocyclic carbene-transition-metal complexes: Observation of pi-backbonding using FT-IR spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry

A new N-heterocyclic carbene architecture comprising a 1,4-naphthoquinone annulated to 1,3-dimesitylimidazolylidene (NpQ???NHC) was synthesized in two high yielding steps from commercially available starting materials. The free NpQ???NHC was characterized (solution and solid-state) and was used to synthesize various Rh and Ag complexes that ranged in ??-electron density. Enabled by the quinone moiety, the ??-systems of these complexes were analyzed using infrared spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry. In contrast to previous reports, ??-backbonding was found to be non-negligible and was directly influenced by the metal's electronic character

A New Water-Soluble Phosphine Derived from 1,3,5-Triaza-7-phosphaadamantane (PTA),^† 3,7-Diacetyl-1,3,7-triaza-5-phosphabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane. Structural, Bonding, and Solubility Properties

The phosphine 3,7-diacetyl-1,3,7-triaza-5-phosphabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane, which we will condense to DAPTA, and its oxide have been fully characterized both in solution and in the solid state. These compounds were prepared by acylation of 1,3,5-triaza-7-phosphaadamantane (PTA) and its oxide with acetic anhydride. The nonionic compounds were found to be soluble in most common organic solvents, in addition to possessing extremely large molar solubilities in water. Indeed, the molar solubility of DAPTA was shown to be 7.4 M, which is 4 time more soluble than the commonly utilized water-soluble phosphine, triply meta-sulfonated triphenylphosphine (TPPTS). In the case of DAPTA this enhanced water solubility is attributed to a strong interaction of water with the amide nitrogen−CO bond dipole as revealed by a large red shift of the νCO vibration on going from a weakly interacting solvent such as CH2Cl2 to water. This latter observation is supported by the short average amide nitrogen−carbonyl carbon bond distance of 1.375 Å as determined via X-ray crystallography, indicative of a strong Coulombic interaction between the nitrogen and carbon atoms. To assess the metal to phosphorus binding characteristics of DAPTA, several group 10 and group 6 complexes were prepared and their M−P bond distances were shown to be quite similar with those of their PTA analogues. For examples, the W−P bond distance in W(CO)5DAPTA of 2.492(3) Å is comparable to that previously reported for W(CO)5PTA of 2.4976(15) Å and slighter shorter than that found in W(CO)5PMe3 (2.516(2) Å). Accordingly, the PTA ligand has generally been characterized as possessing donor properties similar to that of PMe3. Consistent with these bonding parameters determined in the solid state, all three tungsten pentacarbonyl complexes have nearly identical ν(CO) frequencies in solution

A New Water-Soluble Phosphine Derived from 1,3,5-Triaza-7-phosphaadamantane (PTA),^† 3,7-Diacetyl-1,3,7-triaza-5-phosphabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane. Structural, Bonding, and Solubility Properties

The phosphine 3,7-diacetyl-1,3,7-triaza-5-phosphabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane, which we will condense to DAPTA, and its oxide have been fully characterized both in solution and in the solid state. These compounds were prepared by acylation of 1,3,5-triaza-7-phosphaadamantane (PTA) and its oxide with acetic anhydride. The nonionic compounds were found to be soluble in most common organic solvents, in addition to possessing extremely large molar solubilities in water. Indeed, the molar solubility of DAPTA was shown to be 7.4 M, which is 4 time more soluble than the commonly utilized water-soluble phosphine, triply meta-sulfonated triphenylphosphine (TPPTS). In the case of DAPTA this enhanced water solubility is attributed to a strong interaction of water with the amide nitrogen−CO bond dipole as revealed by a large red shift of the νCO vibration on going from a weakly interacting solvent such as CH2Cl2 to water. This latter observation is supported by the short average amide nitrogen−carbonyl carbon bond distance of 1.375 Å as determined via X-ray crystallography, indicative of a strong Coulombic interaction between the nitrogen and carbon atoms. To assess the metal to phosphorus binding characteristics of DAPTA, several group 10 and group 6 complexes were prepared and their M−P bond distances were shown to be quite similar with those of their PTA analogues. For examples, the W−P bond distance in W(CO)5DAPTA of 2.492(3) Å is comparable to that previously reported for W(CO)5PTA of 2.4976(15) Å and slighter shorter than that found in W(CO)5PMe3 (2.516(2) Å). Accordingly, the PTA ligand has generally been characterized as possessing donor properties similar to that of PMe3. Consistent with these bonding parameters determined in the solid state, all three tungsten pentacarbonyl complexes have nearly identical ν(CO) frequencies in solution

A New Water-Soluble Phosphine Derived from 1,3,5-Triaza-7-phosphaadamantane (PTA),^† 3,7-Diacetyl-1,3,7-triaza-5-phosphabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane. Structural, Bonding, and Solubility Properties

The phosphine 3,7-diacetyl-1,3,7-triaza-5-phosphabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane, which we will condense to DAPTA, and its oxide have been fully characterized both in solution and in the solid state. These compounds were prepared by acylation of 1,3,5-triaza-7-phosphaadamantane (PTA) and its oxide with acetic anhydride. The nonionic compounds were found to be soluble in most common organic solvents, in addition to possessing extremely large molar solubilities in water. Indeed, the molar solubility of DAPTA was shown to be 7.4 M, which is 4 time more soluble than the commonly utilized water-soluble phosphine, triply meta-sulfonated triphenylphosphine (TPPTS). In the case of DAPTA this enhanced water solubility is attributed to a strong interaction of water with the amide nitrogen−CO bond dipole as revealed by a large red shift of the νCO vibration on going from a weakly interacting solvent such as CH2Cl2 to water. This latter observation is supported by the short average amide nitrogen−carbonyl carbon bond distance of 1.375 Å as determined via X-ray crystallography, indicative of a strong Coulombic interaction between the nitrogen and carbon atoms. To assess the metal to phosphorus binding characteristics of DAPTA, several group 10 and group 6 complexes were prepared and their M−P bond distances were shown to be quite similar with those of their PTA analogues. For examples, the W−P bond distance in W(CO)5DAPTA of 2.492(3) Å is comparable to that previously reported for W(CO)5PTA of 2.4976(15) Å and slighter shorter than that found in W(CO)5PMe3 (2.516(2) Å). Accordingly, the PTA ligand has generally been characterized as possessing donor properties similar to that of PMe3. Consistent with these bonding parameters determined in the solid state, all three tungsten pentacarbonyl complexes have nearly identical ν(CO) frequencies in solution