STUDENT RESEARCH SHOWCASE 2019 PRESENTATIONS

Human Behavioral and Social Sciences

Equine Therapy Benefits for Autism Spectrum Disorders
Esha Aneja, University of California, Berkeley

Equine therapy has shown benefits for improving muscle coordination, balance and movement in developmental disorders. However, the outcomes have varied in studies with Equine therapy (ET) among children with ASD (autism spectrum disorder). I investigated the effectiveness of Equine Therapy for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders.

Gender Based Body Image Perceptions
Aleka Arredondo, California State University, San Bernardino

This presentation dresses body image perceptions and focuses on the role gender has on the entire body image perception.

Development of Smartphone Application to Reduce Habit Cough
Benjamin Barron, American Heritage School Boca/Delray

I developed a smartphone application to help people get rid of their habit cough. This involves a sensor that senses the cough and sends a mindfulness message to help them stop coughing.

Intense Brain to Irritable Bowel
Maya El-Sharif, Pine Crest School

My presentation identifies the neurological response to stress, and how those distinct stress mediators accentuate symptoms of irritable bowel.

The Effect of Biological Sex on Heuristic Compared to Systematic Processing
Mandy Feuerman, American Heritage School Boca/Delray

The concept of dividing processing into either being heuristic (more efficient but more surface-level thinking) and systematic (less efficient but more in-depth thinking) was developed by Dr. Shelly Chaiken. This project tested if the biological sex of a person who participated in this study had an effect on whether the person tended toward processing heuristically or processing systematically. This was determined through a questionnaire that was later analyzed to calculate the average number of heuristic responses and the average number of systematic responses for males and for females. The results revealed that both males and females are equally likely to process in the same way and prefer systematic processing.

Acculturation as a Protective Measure Against Disordered Eating Behaviors.
Alannis Jáquez, Bronx High School of Science

Eating disorders are widely known to be related to income, race, self esteem, stress and access to food. However, there is very little research on how the stress of feeling out of place from a dominant culture can affect eating habits. I hypothesized that as the level of acculturation increased in participants, there would be fewer reported disordered eating symptoms. We found that there was no significant association between level of assimilation and eating behaviors, however, we attribute these results to our small sample size.

The Effects of Social Media Using Data Analysis and the Effects of Data Analysis Tools on Marketing Growth
Rhea Jain, Pine Crest School

Using data analysis softwares, I have researched the impact it has on social media marketing. Over the span of 12 months, I recorded data about effects data analysis has on social media marketing and how it can impact business growth through setting up a business Instagram page. I measured differences in follower increases and measured how big of an impact social media marketing/influencer marketing has on companies.

Up-regulating the GABA and PKG Pathways to Treat Epilepsy
Eniya Krishnaraj, American Heritage School Plantation

My project investigated the effect of up-regulating the GABA and PKG pathways as a potential therapy for epilepsy using C. elegans as a model organism.

“You Do It Without Their Knowledge”: Is Nonconsensual Condom Removal the Next Public Health Emergency?
Marwa Mohamed, California State University, San Bernardino

Sexual consent is often defined as the voluntary agreement to participate in a sexual act, though the differing definitions across and within countries make legal consensus difficult. In recent years, due to popularization through social media, nonconsensual condom removal, termed stealthing, is becoming common, especially among young adults. Yet, little to no empirical evidence exists on this sexual behavior.

Evaluating Health Consequences of Nail Salon Work in Vietnamese-Americans
Clara Nguyen, Pine Crest School

Although previous studies have analyzed the concentrations of volatile organic compounds in nail salons, few have focused on the workers themselves. The goal of my research was to gather self-reported responses from Vietnamese-American nail salon workers across the country in order to evaluate health consequences of salon work.

Game-Based Learning: Determining the Effectiveness of Video Games in Cybersecurity Education
Pranav Patil, Del Norte High School

I developed the educational video game Cyber Champion to help kids learn how to stay safe online. By giving lessons at elementary schools, I explored what features of a video game made it more effective at teaching cybersecurity and ultimately used these learnings to improve the game.

Molecular Evidence of the Ability of Adenosine Receptor Agonists CGS21680/CPA to Attenuate Repetitive Behavior through Indirect Basal Ganglia Pathway Activation
Hemangi Rajpal, American Heritage School Plantation

The goal of my project was to prove the efficiency and characterize the mechanism of action of the drug cocktail CGS21680/CPA to reduce repetitive behavior, providing molecular evidence of indirect pathway activation that can support behavioral studies and push this drug candidate to become the first FDA-approved treatment for repetitive behavior.

Developing a Novel Multi-Targeted Therapy to treat Parkinsonian Neurodegeneration by simultaneously targeting Lewy Body Aggregation and Dopaminergic Neuronal Degradation in Drosophila Melanogaster
Snigdha Reddy Sama, American Heritage School Plantation

I developed a novel drug therapy for Parkinson's disease targeting two of its presentations, the death of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra and the aggregation of mutant alpha-synuclein and tested it in sporadic and familial versions of the disease in fruit flies. The results indicate the beneficial effect it has on preventing disease progression and points toward the therapy's viability in treating Parkinson's in humans.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) Educational Effects on ASD Children in India
Tanmay Vijaywargiya, American Heritage School Boca/Delray

The presentation is about my work with the special needs school 'Arunabh' in India and the providing of Autism Spectrum Disorder therapies, trainings, and technologies to the benefit of special needs children.

Developing Materials to Increase Knowledge on and Access to Care for Developmental Disabilities
Faren White, Tougaloo College

In 2017, the Center for Learning and Childhood-Development-Ghana (CLCD) conducted a formative study to identify gaps in the diagnosis, treatment and care of children living with developmental disabilities in Ghana. Key findings of the study were that caregivers and health workers do not know where to find available services, interventions, and resources for children living with some developmental disorders. CLCD aims to increase knowledge on developmental disabilities and increase access to related services. The goal is to develop referral materials for health care workers and for caregivers who have children with developmental disabilities.

STUDENT RESEARCH SHOWCASE 2019 PRESENTATIONS

Human Behavioral and Social Sciences

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