Image Eckardt Scholars Light Sheet Generation for a Multi-Region Optical Trap for Ultracold Atomic Gases By cooling down lithium-6 atoms to nano-Kelvin temperatures and tuning the magnetic field to Feshbach resonance, we can effectively create a strongly correlated quantum degenerate Fermi gas system that is then trapped in our multi-region optical trap. As the atoms are loaded into the trap, we separate the spin states and shine light sheets to divide the different regions so we can study the thermodynamic and spin transport evolution once the light sheet is removed. View Item
Image Eckardt Scholars The Oxidative Coupling of Methane: a Kinetic Model The oxidative coupling of methane creates valuable hydrocarbons from natural gas, a low-carbon solution. Details about this reaction network are vital to the future utilization of natural gas in new areas of chemical production. A python tool was developed to model chemical reaction networks based on kinetics. Reaction rates, concentrations, and paths can be determined through this script. Further application will reveal the optimal conditions for the oxidative coupling of methane. View Item
Image Eckardt Scholars Respect the Locals: Integrating Sociocultural Dynamics for Effective Marine Conservation in Coastal Indonesia Power dynamics between sovereign entities and local communities are a determinant component of conservation policy in terms of meeting ecological protection goals and ensuring the well-being of local people. There is high pressure for marine conservation programs to generate successful ecological outcomes in the face of our current environmental crisis. However, natural science should not be the only information guiding conservation policy; it is equally - if not more - crucial to consider the social aspect of conservation initiatives to develop effective long-term solutions. View Item
Image Eckardt Scholars Personalized Algorithms: AI's Role in Information Overload In today's always-connected society, AI-driven recommendations in social media have become a staple of internet usage, significantly shaping users' consumption experiences. This research investigates the extent to which such personalized algorithms may induce information overload and anxiety in regular users, contrary to their intended purpose. Drawing on prior literature exploring the potential negative effects of personalized algorithms, this paper presents findings from a controlled lab experiment conducted using the TikTok platform. View Item
Image Eckardt Scholars Et in Macedonia Ego: The Global Arms Trade and Violence as Catalysts for Independence Movements and Nation Building in Ottoman Macedonia, 1878-1913 The international arms trade at the end of the 19th Century benefited from several technological advances that fomented an arms race among the Great Powers. A surge in the effectiveness of insurgencies and nationalist movements across the globe, due to increased access to contemporary small arms and ammunition, saw agitation for autonomy and national recognition become real concerns for peoples subjected to imperial rule. View Item
Image Eckardt Scholars Enhanced delivery of antibiotics using outer membrane vesicles Antibiotic resistance poses an immense global threat to human health, contributing to more than 2.8 million antimicrobial-resistant infections annually in the United States alone. This accounts for over 35,000 annual fatalities and an economic burden exceeding $4.6 billion for treatment. A formidable challenge in combating this issue lies in the intrinsic resistance of bacterial membranes, which restricts antibiotic uptake, thus diminishing their effectiveness. View Item
Image Eckardt Scholars Exploring Human Emotion & Vulnerability through Indian Classical Dance What does it mean to be human? Given the rise of Artificial Intelligence and conversations about machines replacing humans, it got me to reflect on what exactly it means to be human. For me, it means being flawed, emotional and vulnerable beings. In our fast paced lives, we often forget to pause and actually feel and experience whatever emotions we're feeling – whether thats anger, sadness, beauty, love or gratitude and through my project, I want to explore these emotions through the medium of dance. View Item
Image Eckardt Scholars Unraveling the Early Universe: an exploration of science and theology Cosmology is the scientific study and examination of the origin of the universe and its nature. Current astronomy is dominated by the Big Band theory, the idea that the universe was initially a small, infinitely hot and dense point that stretched out over the course of 13.7 billion years to become the current, still expanding collection of galaxies. Most Christian creationists reject this theory. The foundation of Christian teaching is the doctrine of Creatio ex nihilo, the idea that a divine being brought about all matter from nothing in a single creation event, or series of events. View Item
Image Eckardt Scholars Social Connections, Social Media, and Social Distance: Coming Together in a Pandemic This paper serves to provide background on the importance of social interactions in the lives of individuals by showing reports of increased happiness when exposed to positive connections, and likewise decreased happiness when lacking positive connections. Background is also provided on the usefulness of social media when it comes to staying connected with friends and family. Social media creates an opportunity for an individual to create a portrayal of life, so the ability to characterize social media as good or bad is very individualized. View Item
Image Eckardt Scholars Developing a tumor-selective antibody Fc region to redirect the immune system to attack cancer cells Cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide and rates of cancer are increasing over time. Immunotherapeutics are a growing field of anti-cancer treatments that use the immune system to target tumor cells. Many immunotherapies use biomarker targeting, however biomarkers are present on healthy tissues which can lead to off-tumor effects and mutations in biomarkers can cause patients to become non-responsive to targeted immunotherapies. Most tumors exhibit acidosis due to the Warburg effect so low pH provides a potential target for immunotherapy. View Item
Image Eckardt Scholars The New British Invasion: The Departure, Transformation, and Return of Drill Music to the United States View Item
Image Eckardt Scholars Memories of Battle: Past and Current Perceptions of the Russo-Japanese War View Item
Image Eckardt Scholars Apathy, Despair, or Opportunism? Analyzing Russian Geopolitics in the Arctic in the Face of Climate Change View Item
Image Eckardt Scholars Partisanship and Polarization in the 21st Century: How Local News Might Offer Important Solutions, A Case Study of the Lehigh Valley View Item
Image Eckardt Scholars Researching Anorexia Nervosa Prevalence in College Students: Establishing Correlations for Maladaptive Perfectionist Ideals Across Relationships and Sport </p>Literature Review for Researching Anorexia Nervosa Prevalence in College Students: Establishing Correlations for Maladaptive Perfectionist Ideals Across Relationships and Sport.</p> View Item
Image Eckardt Scholars The lynx1 gene and Alzheimer's Disease: A Potential Neuroprotective Mechanism </p>The sociological impact of neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's Disease (AD), places a heavy burden on the healthcare industry, patients and families, not only from a medical and financial impact, but also in terms of quality of life. The consequences to the patient, family and caregivers can be life-changing, yet quantitative studies have been sparse. Our understanding of ways to improve cognition in these patients would be highly beneficial. One such potential tool to improve cognition in these patients, the lynx1 gene, has been identified. View Item
Image Eckardt Scholars Impact on Creativity and Anxiety on Lynx Gene Polymorphisms </p>Studying lynx proteins in mammalian species may lead to a greater understanding of the variable expression of anxiety and creativity in the human brain. Based on in vivo experiments on mice, a few hypotheses were generated that can be projected to humans. These hypotheses are the central theories for the Human SNP Study. The SNP study looks at the implications of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the lynx genes and their effect on fear/anxiety, learning, memory, and creativity. View Item
Image Eckardt Scholars Age and environmental change information encoded in middle- Pleistocene paleosols exposed in buried valleys of Schuylkill Co, Pennsylvania </p>Pleistocene deposits of unclear origin and age are preserved in the floors of deep, narrow valleys among the anthracite coal fields of eastern Pennsylvania. We collect stratigraphic, soil texture, soil iron chemistry, paleomagnetic, and infrared stimulated luminescene (IRSL) data from a paleosol exposed in the former valley bottom of the middle branch of Shamokin Creek near Mount Carmel, PA. The deposit and its paleosol are consistent with middle Pleistocene glacio- fluvial deposition, and subsequent chemical alteration in excess of the Holocene weathering environment. View Item
Image Eckardt Scholars Estimating Location and Abundance of Odocoileus virginianus at the Seneca Army Depot using UAS (Unmanned Aerial System) Technology </p>The former Seneca Army Depot, located in Romulus, New York is home to a population of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus). This population consists of both brown deer that carry the dominant gene(s) for brown coloration and white deer that carry the recessive gene(s) for white coloration (or lack of pigmentation). This population of white deer is leucistic, which is why they lack pigmentation and have brown colored eyes, as opposed to albino deer, which lack pigmentation in their fur coat and eyes. View Item
Image Eckardt Scholars Integrating a Medical Screening Device into the Healthcare System of Sierra Leone </p>Information on Lehigh Ukweli Test Strips team: We produce low-cost test strips that screen for Preeclampsia and Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs) by identifying biomarkers in urine. We distribute our product to communities in developing nations by partnering with networks of Community Health Workers (CHWs) and established on-the-ground NGOs, thereby helping to bridge the gap between patients and healthcare.</p> View Item
Image Eckardt Scholars Geminate Triplet Exciton Dynamics in Rubrene Single Crystals </p>We present a series of investigations on the intermediate timescale dynamics of geminate triplet exciton pairs in rubrene single crystals. In particular, we report the observation of quantum beats — GHz-timescale oscillations produced by energy splittings — in the photoluminescence of rubrene crystals [7], indicating coherence between triplet pairs which lasts at least 40 ns at room temperature. Additionally, we present long-timescale (up to 10 ? View Item
