SPS 2024 Winners

Biochemistry, Cell & Molecular Biology (BCMB)

First Place

2024-BCMB-113

Examining the Effects of Stress on Epigenetic Aging and Health Outcomes by Race/Ethnicity: The Health and Retirement Study

Authors: Ninette Westendorff, Bathsheba Aklilu

Faculty Supervisor: Cathy Samayoa

Department: Biology

Second Place

2024-BCMB-111

The Function of CLS-2 in Segregation Dynamics of Male Sperm Meiosis in Caenorhabditis elegans

Author: Emma Harms

Faculty Supervisor: Diana Chu

Department: Biology

Third Place

2024-BCMB-123

A Novel Method to Measure Rotational Diffusion of Proteins in Whole Cells

Authors: Patra Holmes, Michelle Chong, Maureen Montes, Lika Chhit, Ericka Gonzales

Faculty Supervisor: Raymond M. Esquerra

Department: Chemistry & Biochemistry

Civil & Mechanical Engineering (CME)

First Place

2024-CME-208

AscendTech

Authors: Devin Munoz, Pavan Kalla, Leonardo Vigil Ruiz, Haval Kotrush, Steven Jones

Faculty Supervisor: George Anwar

Department: Engineering

Second Place

2024-CME-218

Shape Chaser

Authors: Alvaro Ramirez, Cameron Tuttle, Mutaz Albazian

Faculty Supervisor: David Quintero

Department: Engineering

Third Place

2024-CME-209

Lego Educational Shake Table

Author: Connor Galvin

Faculty Supervisor: Zhaoshuo Jiang

Department: Engineering

Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering (CSEE)

First Place

2024-CSEE-309

AirWatch

Authors: Michael Decker Jr., George Lebbos, Oscar Orozco, Marco Anguiano

Faculty Supervisor: Hao Jiang

Department: Engineering

Second Place

2024-CSEE-324

Satellite Image Segmentation for Environmental Sustainability

Authors: Lubat Asadova, William Watson, Aidan Bayer-Calvert, Ashley Raymond

Faculty Supervisor: Ilmi Yoon

Department: Computer Science

Third Place

2024-CSEE-322

Autonomous RC Car Using CAN Bus

Authors: Parth Sharma, Piyush Sharma

Faculty Supervisor: Hamid Shahnasser

Department: Engineering

Environment (ENV)

First Place

2024-ENV-401

A Statistical Analysis of Wildland and Prescribed Fires in the Changing California Climate

Author: Sequoia Andrade

Faculty Supervisor: Alexandra Piryatinska

Department: Mathematics

Second Place

2024-ENV-421

Prevalence of Microplastics in Influent and Effluent Wastewater

Author: Benjamin-Rafael Mingoa

Faculty Supervisor: Archana Anand

Department: Biology

Third Place

2024-ENV-427

The Fate of Mosses Under a Changing Climate: Evolution of Stress Tolerance in Syntrichia

Author: Ashley Meinke

Faculty Supervisor: Jenna Ekwealor

Department: Biology

Mathematics & Physical Science (MPS)

First Place

2024-MPS-512

Operando Electrochemical Raman Spectroscopy Studies of Working Electrodes in (Photo)electrocatalytic Water Splitting

Author: Timothy Lin

Faculty Supervisor: Jingjing Qiu

Department: Chemistry & Biochemistry

Second Place

2024-MPS-502

The r-Process Enhancement of Stars from Chemodynamically Tagged Groups in the Milky Way Halo

Author: Jessica Merritt Agnos

Faculty Supervisor: Charli Sakari

Department: Physics & Astronomy

Third Place

2024-MPS-504

Generalized Frobenius Numbers: Asymptotics and Two Product Families

Author: Anika O'Donnell

Faculty Supervisor: Matthias Beck

Department: Mathematics

Microbiology, Biomedical Science (MBS)

First Place

2024-MBS-624

RoboCam: A Flexible High-Throughput Platform for Biological Research

Authors: Sergio Gonzalez, Jr., Alexandria Nesbeth, Keith Curry, Jacob Vazquez, Diana Carolina Ceron, Kimi Lee, Peter Chudinov

Faculty Supervisor: Raymond Esquerra

Department: Chemistry & Biochemistry

Second Place

2024-MBS-611

Mostly Dead, Slightly Alive: Glimpses into the Proteomes of Dead Sea Halophilic Archaea

Author: Richard Baker-Strader

Faculty Supervisor: Jason Cantley

Department: Biology

Third Place

2024-MBS-601

Investigating the Impact of Host Blood Meal Identity on Ixodes pacificus Microbiome Composition Using a Multi-Species Analysis of Small Mammals and Reptiles

Author: Mariah Angel Cuyson

Faculty Supervisor: Andrea Swei

Department: Biology

Physiology, Zoology, Marine Science (PZMS)

First Place

2024-PZMS-721

Investigating Feeding by Naupliar Copepods in Resurrection Bay Gulf of Alaska

Author: Jennifer Staat

Faculty Supervisor: Michelle Jungbluth

Department: Biology

Second Place

2024-PZMS-704

Prevalence and Diversity of Avian Haemosporidian Parasites in Mixed-Species Flocking Birds of Peru

Author: Aileen Lopez

Faculty Supervisor: Ravinder Sehgal

Department: Biology

Third Place

2024-PZMS-726

Comparing the Contributions of Cutaneous and Respiratory Evaporative Water Loss to Cooling in Anna’s Hummingbirds (Calypte anna) Under Fasted and Fed Conditions

Author: Cecilia Doan

Faculty Supervisor: Derrick Groom

Department: Biology

Psychology, Human Geography, Science Education (SOC)

First Place

2024-SOC-814

“Go back to where you came from”: A Qualitative Investigation of Immigration Discrimination Among Adolescents

Author: Manuel Abundis-Morales

Faculty Supervisor: Zena Mello

Department: Psychology

Second Place

2024-SOC-805

TACCTI: Deep Learning-Based Cultural Capital Theme Identification in STEM Education using Reflective Journals

Author: Gian Carlo Baldonado

Faculty Supervisor: Anagha Kulkarni

Department: Computer Science

Third Place

2024-SOC-815

Health Status and Relationship Closeness: Associations Among Adolescents with Chronic Health Conditions

Author: Fernanda Amaya

Faculty Supervisor: Jeff Cookston

Department: Psychology