Perception of taste differences among various spring waters

This study was addressed to show the need for a standard water carrier and/or rinse in sensory research. There were five objectives: to survey the Journal of Sensory Studies to determine what types of waters sensory scientists use as rinses and carriers, to determine if experienced but untrained panelists could detect flavor/taste differences among five spring waters, to determine if experienced but untrained panelists detected differences between sucrose solutions of the same concentration made with selected spring waters that differ in flavor/taste, to determine if the likelihood of experienced but untrained panelists detecting the sweet taste in a sucrose solution of the same concentration is affected by the spring water used as the carrier and to chemically characterize the selected spring waters. The literature survey was done by tabulation. Sensory scientists used various waters including distilled, deionized, tap, spring and other types of waters. Triangle tests were conducted to determine if panelists could detect differences in spring waters with and without added substances. Panelists were able to distinguish among both plain samples and sucrose solutions of Evian®/Crystal Springs (p=0.00003), Evian®/Crystal Geyser® (P=0.0099), Crystal Geyser®/Crystal Springs (p=0.0179) and Naya®/Crystal Springs (p=0.0179). Composition of triangles made a difference, but was controlled for by balancing the combination of waters. Panelists were able to detect the sweet taste more easily when Naya® was the carrier than when the other four waters were used. Chemical characterization of the waters was done using pH, acidity/basicity, organic and inorganic solid content. Acidity/basicity was determined by the amount of 0.005N NaOH or HCl required to bring the water to a neutral pH. Organics were determined using gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. Inorganics were determined using inductively coupled argon plasma spectrometry. Waters ranged in mean pH from 7.05 (Crystal Springs) to 8.37 (Crystal Geyser®). Crystal Springs was the only water that required titration with base. The amount of acid required to reach neutrality ranged from 137.5 pL (Crystal Springs) to 3366.67 pL (Evian®). Each water contained a unique combination of aliphatic hydrocarbons, aldehydes and other organic compounds. Each water also contained chloride, nitrate, sulfate, aluminum, calcium, cadmium, chromium, copper, iron, potassium, magnesium, manganese, sodium, nickel, phosphorus, lead, sulfur, silica, strontium and zinc. Panelists can detect differences in spring waters which may or may not be due to inherent chemical differences. Further sensory research with other types of waters should be done. Water characteristics are not uniform in sensory research and should therefore be controlled

Geographic distribution, habitat association, and the importance of host quality for one of the rarest butterflies in North America: Thorne's hairstreak (Mitoura thornei)

Mitoura thornei, Thorne’s hairstreak butterfly, is endemic to a single mountain in south-western North America. The extremely small geographic range of this species coupled with threats to its host plant, Hesperocyparis forbesii, motivated a study of habitat association and fine-scale mapping of both butterfly and host distributions. Often the study of habitat associations for rare or threatened species is complicated by habitat loss. In the case of M. thornei, the range is naturally small, which provides an opportunity to investigate small scale variation in vegetation and geographic features as they may affect larval and adult butterflies. Specifically, the following questions were posed: How much of the range of the host plant is occupied by M. thornei within the focal geographic area? What biotic and abiotic features predict the presence and abundance of M. thornei? How does tree age affect larval performance? These questions were addressed with a combination of field observations and laboratory experiments involving caterpillars. H. forbesii size (diameter at breast height) was found to have a significant association with the presence and absence of larval M. thornei, while slope, density of herbaceous plants and density of H. forbesii were found to be the factors most strongly associated with adult M. thornei. Laboratory experiments with larvae showed no effect of tree age on larval survival, but a slight reduction in adult size for individuals reared on foliage from the oldest trees. From a conservation perspective, the most important result is the widespread occurrence (greater than previously reported) of M. thornei throughout the study area. However, I caution that spatial factors (such as fragmentation, isolation and perimeter to ii interior ratios) could be important for M. thornei, though these factors were not addressed directly in this study. In other words, while the presence of the host plant is essential, we do not yet understand how the spatial arrangement of this resource might affect the butterflies. In general, results illustrate the challenges of understanding habitat association for a geographically-restricted species, and the utility of studying larval and adult life history stages, both in the field and in the laboratory

Amphibian Habitat Usage of Two Restored Bogs in Shady Valley, Johnson County, Tennessee.

Adjacent terrestrial habitat surrounding wetlands are critical for the survival and success of many species that use them. The primary purpose of this study was to determine amphibian movement from adjacent habitats into Orchard Bog, a restored bog located in Shady Valley, Johnson County, Tennessee. In addition, a secondary bog, Quarry Bog, was also studied determining baseline presence/absence data A total of 16 species from six families were observed throughout the study sites. Seven species of anurans, Bufonidae, Hylidae, and Ranidae and nine species of caudates in the families Plethodontidae, Ambystomatidae and Salamandridae were identified. Fourteen of the 16 species were found within Orchard Bog. Data collected can be used to help determine more beneficial land acquisitions and management strategies. Survey methods included pitfall traps, funnel traps, coverboard arrays, and opportunistic surveys

Amy Jeanette Martin in a Sophomore Recital

This is the program for the sophomore voice recital of mezzo-soprano Amy Jeanette Martin, accompanied by Terri Lucas on the piano. The recital was held on November 19, 1993, in the Mabee Fine Arts Center\u27s Recital Hall

Exploring relationships during the transition to adulthood: how the past influences the present

In this study, I advance knowledge on our understanding of romantic relationship quality and parenting through three interrelated substantive chapters. Analyses use longitudinal, nationally representative data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health). In Chapter 2, I seek to better understand how relationship quality, parenting levels, and parenting behaviors may differ by immigrant generation and race/ethnicity. I find that romantic relationship quality does not vary by immigrant generation, but it does by race/ethnicity. In particular, Blacks report lower levels of romantic relationship quality, compared to whites. With regard to parenting levels, I do not find any differences by immigrant generation or race/ethnicity. There are differences, however, in language usage. Members of the first and second generation are less likely to speak English only at home to their children. In addition, Latinos are less likely than Asians to speak English only at home. In the third chapter of my dissertation, I examine the role that both socialization and personality have in the development of romantic relationship quality in young adulthood. Findings suggest that socialization operates independently of personality, and that both factors should be accounted for when trying to understand romantic relationship quality in young adulthood. Finally, in the fourth chapter of my dissertation, I seek to better understand romantic relationships in adolescence. In particular, I use latent class analysis to identify an adolescent's romantic relationship type and examine whether different types have a bearing on subsequent romantic relationship quality in adulthood. Results suggest that there are five types of adolescents: intense, affectionate, casual, multi-intense, and multi-varied. Furthermore, the results indicate that the membership in the affectionate class is the most positive with regard to romantic relationship quality in young adulthood, and that compared to membership in the affectionate class, membership in the multi-intense and multi-varied classes are the most negative with regard to romantic relationship quality

Are Attitudes Predictive of Non-Marital Childbearing? Teenagers' Attitudes toward Motherhood Before Marriage and Their Relationship to Non-Marital Childbearing

This study makes a unique contribution to the literature on single motherhood by assessing whether favorable attitudes toward single motherhood in adolescence are associated with subsequent childbearing behavior with the use of national data from Add Health. This study employs a longitudinal design, which allows it to link attitudes to behavior over time. Findings indicate important differences in single motherhood attitudes by race and ethnicity, family SES, family structure, religiosity, and future educational expectations. Controlling for theoretical mechanisms known to be associated with single motherhood, including culture (race and religiosity), opportunity costs (educational expectations and SES), and socialization and supervision (family structure), favorable attitudes toward teenage motherhood remain significantly related to the probability of becoming a single mother in early adulthood. Attitudes, therefore, have an impact beyond the theoretical and commonly measured influences upon single motherhood. This independent effect of attitudes is discussed in the paper

Why Domain-Specific Science Knowledge Matters in Teacher Certification: Focusing on Evidence for Effective Science Teaching (Revised Version)

The landscape of teacher preparation is complex. From a research perspective, how to prepare teachers presents as a multilevel, multivariable puzzle. For decades, federal and state policymakers, educational researchers, and administrators, along with teacher education institutions, school districts, and other stakeholders have tried to determine and measure the key malleable factors that result in effective teaching (NRC, 2010). Periodically, state departments of education review secondary science teaching endorsement policy guidelines. As revisions occur, teacher educators in higher education and district administrators need to engage in a multidisciplinary discussion about: 1. the ways in which strong domain-specific science content knowledge contributes to better opportunities for students to learn science, 2. why robust secondary teacher certification standards are vital for achieving not only K-12 scientific literacy, but also better preparation of career and college-ready students, and 3. the problems caused by underprepared secondary science teachers who have only minimal, introductory-level college science coursework via general science endorsements. A recent study by Nixon et al. (2017) showed that only about one-third of science teachers in their first five years are assigned to teach in-field. They also reported that about 20% of teaching assignments were entirely out-of-field and about 43% of assignments were some combination of in-field and out-of-field. Informational brochure on science teacher certification and subject matter knowledge expertise produced for school administrators, teacher educators, and other stakeholders

One Month, One Class, No Bags

According to the website, theworldcounts.com, we consume about 5 trillion plastic bags per year. This translates to roughly 160,000 bags per second. This rapidly increasing consumption of plastics has led to the harming of natural ecosystems and the endangerment of many species. At the College of DuPage, our Honors English Composition class decided to address this issue and propose a solution at the local level. As a class, we broke up into several research groups, each tackling a different section of research related to plastic bags: its history, nationwide legislation, counterarguments, and connection to Illinois’ plastic bag legislation. The groups gathered news articles and legislative documents, as well as conducted interviews and surveys to understand plastic bag consumption and its impacts on the environment. We also participated in what we called the “Plastic Bag Challenge”, where we refrained from using plastic bags for one month. Each student recorded video diaries to recount their experiences, as well as conflicts and obstacles that surfaced. Once the research component of our project was complete, we brainstormed ways to present our findings to the public. Our goal was to persuade the State of Illinois to enact legislation banning the use of plastic bags. During our course, we studied the history of rhetoric, its persuasive appeals and the effectiveness of the classical argument. We knew our argument would use rhetoric and follow the structure of the “classical argument” to persuade our audience. However, the presentation of this structural argument was something we had to discuss as a class; we wanted something that would be able to reach a large audience. We decided to create a video and a website that would present our research and advocate for the ban of plastic bags in Illinois. We formed two main groups to finish this part of the project -- one to make the video and the other to make the website. Once we were finished, we critiqued the projects before releasing them to the public. However, our work was not done when we published the video and website. We analyzed the public feedback (or lack thereof), and the results were somewhat disappointing. Our video received about 100 views, with 14 likes and 1 dislike. The video analytics also showed that we lost most viewers one minute into the video. While the results themselves were not very promising, we gained a favorable learning experience. The results led to a class discussion on why our project was not as successful as we wanted and ways we could have improved it. Now, we hope to inform our audience at the HCIR Student Symposium about our experience with trying to develop a rhetorical argument in modern-day society

Beginning Science Teachers\u27 Subject Matter Knowledge, Misconceptions, and Emerging Inquiry-based Teaching Practices (Poster)

When we investigated the relationship of science subject matter knowledge with subsequent inquiry-based instruction, we found on average that over the induction period the MAT teachers taught lessons using more inquiry-based instruction at twice the rate of the average teacher prepared in the undergraduate program without an undergraduate degree in science. Specifically, new science teachers from the MAT program with an undergraduate degree in chemistry were better prepared to use an inquiry-based approach to teaching chemistry. Our research of our two teacher preparation programs contribute a reliable design for producing highly-qualified teachers who can provide active, engaging, constructivist learning opportunities for diverse students while addressing rigorous national science education standards. Our work has provided evidence that factors such as science content area credit hours, science GPA, and test scores are indicative of teachers’ content knowledge and possible misconceptions. Policy makers can look at these and other findings to refine state guidelines for teacher certification to ensure that teachers are strongly prepared. State departments of education that set teacher certification policy should consider making a careful distinction among specific science disciplines, as all sciences are not the same in their learning progressions, degree of linear accumulation of knowledge, and diversity of topics. The project has informed other teacher preparation designs and the findings have been presented at various stages at NARST and ASTE conferences along with a new book chapter in press (2018)