Faculty Mentor: Kathleen Winter
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Abstract

"How to Govern a Good City" is a parable examining the nature of goodness and morality in governance. Drawing from the works of classic moral and political philosophers including Aristotle, Kant, and Plato, the central questions posed in this piece ask: What defines goodness in the exercise of power over a community, and can true moral virtue thrive under enforced authority? By embedding these ethical dilemmas within a narrative framework, the story provides readers who have not yet explored these concepts with a grounded and accessible way to engage with relevant philosophical issues.
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Aisha Mendonca, a Philosophy major from Pleasanton, California, is passionate about exploring and sharing her curiosity about subjective morality through art and creative fiction. After graduating in December, she plans to pursue a Master's degree in Philosophy, focusing on the social and ethical implications of AI in today's world.

Faculty Mentor: Emilee J. Howland
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Abstract

I investigate how different genres tell ghost stories by exploring ghosts across five genres: mystery, science fiction, horror, comedy, and urban fantasy/romance, demonstrating that the ghost is a versatile element of storytelling. Several themes follow ghosts across genres, including haunted settings, unfinished business, explorations of the afterlife, and rationalizing the supernatural. Each genre presents its ghost stories differently. In mysteries, the question of whether the ghost is real plays throughout the story. In science fiction, the ghost needs to be scientifically defined. In horror, ghosts are inverted images of humanity. In comedies, parodies of the ghost story place the classically-scary ghost into comedic situations. In urban fantasy/romance, ghosts are incorporeal manifestations of lost opportunities. Ghost stories aren’t just rattling chains, flickering lights, and spirits from beyond the grave; they’re also multi-genre modes of human expression and exploration.
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Annie lives in Janesville, Wisconsin with her family. She's majoring in Writing and plans to enter the publishing industry after graduation.

Faculty Mentor: Sarah Buchanan
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Abstract

I looked into western historians' views on African orality then using Sundiata: an epic of Old Mali and La Maitre de la Parole to go against the historians' claims to revalidate African orality within academic conversations. My methodology: I read and analyzed Sundiata: an epic of Old Mali and La Maitre de la Parole. I read books on western historical views on African orality, a few on spirituality and griots speicifically, then I spent two weeks in Senegal on a Study Abroad Trip with my supervising professor Dr. Sarah Buchanan. Conclusions: African Orality is historic and contests views that ancient African history does not exist.
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Christian Diederich is from Murdock, Minnesota, is a History major and French minor, and hopes to go to Graduate school and eventually do Historical Preservation work within national parks.

Faculty Mentor: Juheon Lee
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Abstract

International environmental agreements (IEA) have been an important part of solving transnational environmental problems and conflicts. While there are numerous case studies on the formation and the effectiveness of IEAs, large-scale studies, especially on the rise and fall of certain types of agreements, are still rare despite the recent development of database. This study analyzed the International Environmental Agreements Database to demonstrate such trends and patterns. Thus far, we’ve found that IEAs have been declining since the early 2000s, and the decline is largely due to the decreasing number of bilateral IEAs, which suggest that more states are trying to solve environmental problems through multilateral agreements. We also found that states have been working on amending existing agreements than on negotiating completely new agreements. Third, the subjects of these IEAs varied and should be studied further to better understand how these trends reflect interactions in the international community.
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Abid Ali is from Wichita Falls Texas and is majoring in Biology, pre-med track in order to attend medical school and become a doctor. Ali's dream is to serve their community and use their time and resources to make a difference in other fields of interest.

Saleigh Berry, from Joliet, Illinois, is a Political Science Major. After graduation, Berry plans to attend law school to pursue a dream of becoming a civil rights attorney and then later having their own law firm.

Dylan Munguia was born and raised in Wichita Falls, Texas. Munguia is a Political Science major, with hopefully another major in Spanish down the road, with a minor in Economics, and plans to attend law school after graduating university.Ma'kyra Spencer is from Dallas, Texas. Spencer is majoring in Political Science and plans to attend law school after graduation.

Faculty Mentor: Barbara Burke
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Abstract

Parasocial relationships (PSR) are one-sided relationships that people can form with content creators and mass media figures. In my research, employing a detailed, descriptive case study, I explore examples of public postings to test the assertion that many fans of BTS, a K-pop band, have created PSR with the group. By applying content analysis upon 292 TikTok comments, as well as 290 YouTube comments, I find that fans use their communication skills to establish and maintain strong ties to BTS. They use the comments to state their dependability as real fans, in literal and creative ways, including using several emojis strategically. By applying the uses and gratifications theory (UGT), these comments show ways people use comments to realize interpersonal connection, enhance their social interactions, and experience companionship. This research may apply to understanding reasons why people use the comment section of media as an interactive and creative space.

Samara Walker is from Nevis, Minnesota and majors in both CMR and History. Walker plans on working in the CMR field after graduation.

Faculty Mentor: Farid Farahmand
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Abstract

The battery is vital for wearable medical devices, ensuring continuous operation for health monitoring. Current voltage monitoring systems are expensive and complex. The goal of this project was to design VoltLog, a low-cost, user-friendly device for precise battery voltage monitoring during charging or discharging. VoltLog uses a 12-bit ADC and records data with ±0.1V accuracy. Results showed consistent accuracy across various battery types and no data loss over 50 tests. Future work includes upgrading VoltLog to handle higher voltages and adding wireless capabilities for remote monitoring.

Antonio Kassis is from Petaluma, and is studying to become an Electrical Engineer. Currently as a sophomore, Kassis is considering going to graduate school a get a Master's degree, as well as working at a tech company with the newly acquired Bachelor's degree.

Emanuel Barajas is studying Electric Engineering at Sonoma State University and is originally from Vallejo, California. Barajas' goal is to secure a tech job after graduation and later start a business around a self-designed project.

Faculty Mentor: Khalil (Haji) Dokhanchi
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Abstract

The researcher analyzed a small number of school districts within Wisconsin to better understand the menstruation topics addressed within classrooms as well as existing gaps within education. With the information collected the researcher hopes to close gaps of menstruation education within the classroom and beyond. This ensures that students who menstruate have the same opportunities as their peers. This project allowed for the further study and implementation of work completed within Trio McNair research programs. It is vital students understand their own bodies, as well as what their peers are experiencing. This ensures students understand their own body, and how to navigate any challenges that may be present throughout their menstruation. This project has developed lessons plans that can be adopted within the existing class curriculum as well as a website to aid educators, families, and students with the topic of menstruation.

Zoe is a Broad Field Social Studies Education major with a focus in History originally from Wausau, Wisconsin. She hopes to attend law school this coming fall.

Faculty Mentor: Lisa Hua
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Abstract

Chromosomes are essential for carrying genetic information and ensure accurate DNA distribution during cell division. Homologous chromosomes are pairs inherited from each parent. Our lab’s preliminary findings show homologous chromosomes lose spatial segregation in human adult endothelial cells as compared to neonatal cells. We will test whether these adult endothelial cells maintain their endothelial identity using an endothelial cell junction marker, CD31/PECAM. We hypothesize this endothelial marker will localize to the outer membrane of the adult human endothelial cells. We will perform immunofluorescence staining for CD31/PECAM in our cells. We will use human epithelial cells as a negative control and human umbilical vein endothelial cells as our positive control. We predict the endothelial markers will localize to the outer membrane of the neonatal and adult endothelial cells, and absent in the epithelial cells. Our results will provide a better understanding of chromosome organization during aging.

Sarah Sanchez is from Sonoma County, California. She is currently an undergraduate biology student in Dr. Lisa Hua’s lab. Her plan is to pursue medicine and go to medical school.

Patrick Swallow is from Marin County, California. He is an undergraduate student in Dr. Lisa Hua’s lab. He plans to go directly to graduate school or get a few years of industry experience before pursuing higher education.

Faculty Mentor: Lisa Hua
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Abstract

In normal human cells, homologous chromosomes are spatially separated along an axis defined by subcellular structures, the centrosomes. This spatial segregation is proposed to reduce abnormal pairing between homologs, which has been linked to gene misregulation in renal cancer cells. In a renal carcinoma cell line, Caki-1, loss of homologous chromosome segregation and abnormal pairing of chromosome 19 has been previously reported. To determine if abnormal centrosome number is correlated for pairing of chromosome 19 in Caki-1 cells, we performed immunofluorescence to γ-tubulin to visualize centrosomes and a DNA counterstain. High resolution confocal microscopy and 3D image analysis showed an 18.2% occurrence of Caki-1 cells with abnormal centrosome number. Thus, centrosomes may be implicated in abnormal pairing of chromosome 19, and may be involved in maintaining spatial segregation of homologous chromosomes. Our study provides new insight in chromosome organization and its implication in cancer cell biology.
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Born and raised in Santa Rosa, Kieran Chiddix is a Sonoma County native majoring in Biology. Currently, he plans on pursuing a PhD in Cellular Biology and going into teaching at a college level after completing his undergraduate degree at Sonoma State.

Faculty Mentor: Kashif Mahmud
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Abstract

Cave drip water response to surface meteorological conditions is complex due to the heterogeneous nature of water movement in the karst unsaturated zone. Therefore, we aim to understand infiltration water hydrology in the Cretaceous karst formation of south-central Texas. This project utilizes the spatial survey of 20 automated cave drip loggers installed in Natural Bridge Caverns. Drip loggers were set up in approximate transects throughout the cavern from higher to lower elevations and have been monitored since May 2023. We analyzed drip time series for one hydrological year from all sites taking advantage of an ensemble of drip loggers to extract common properties by clustering. A combination of multidimensional scaling and clustering by k means is utilized to classify similar drip types based on time series analysis. This clustering reveals four unique drip regimes for better characterization of the limestone environment where flow occurs via both fractures and storage.
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Jarette Greene is an international student from the Islands of St.Kitts and Nevis in the Caribbean. Greene is currently studying Computer Science at Midwestern State University, and after graduation hopes to work in geoinformatics or geospatial technology.

Faculty Mentor: Barbara Burke & Nadezhda Sotirova
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Abstract

The Pat McAfee Show over the last few years has been the topic of conversation whenever anyone asks about the recent shift and change to sports journalism since the pandemic. The show is hosted by a former NFL punter named Pat McAfee and alongside him, Pat has a group of friends with him who aren’t former players but die hard sports fans. In this study, we rhetorically analyzed the ‘Pat McAfee Show’ using Fisher's Narrative theory as well as the Auteur theory during his shows where Pat and his show recently took on live crowds during the college football season. What this analysis aims to do is to look in depth into the way Pat and his crew use storytelling and experience to help create new narratives around the sports media world.
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From a small town called Kingston, Washington, Logan Jacobs is a CMR major with a Sports Management minor. Jacobs eventually wants to work within the sports media world, whether that's being a broadcaster for a network or working as a Director of Athletic Communications for a sports program at the collegiate level or professional.

Faculty Mentor: Mohamed Salem
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Abstract

Current methods for wireless clock synchronization over long distances face limitations, especially when GPS signals are unavailable, as is the case with indoor settings. This is critical for cases such as long-range wireless measurements and large-scale S-parameter measurements in buildings. A promising method is utilizing the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) 10 MHz radio signal and pairing it with Phase-Lock Loop (PLL) modules, offering a stable synchronization source without expensive wired setups. Traditional high-end instruments like Vector Network Analyzers (VNAs) rely on optical fibers and short-range triggers, which limit range and increase complexity. While Extended Range Transmission Analysis (ERTA) protocols provide some synchronization, they still depend on wired infrastructure. This research explores using the NIST 10 MHz signal for long-range wireless clock synchronization and pairing it with PLLs and Software Defined Radios, enabling more flexible, scalable, and cost-effective measurement systems.
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Max Bernstein is a Senior Electrical Engineering student from Napa, California. He plans on working with E Tech Group post-graduation.

Grant Goodwin is a Senior Electrical Engineering student from Santa Rosa, California. He plans on working with Keysight post-graduation.

Tony Rochman is a Senior Electrical Engineering student from Santa Rosa, California. He plans on working with Keysight post-graduation.