Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Advancing Single-Cell Proteomics Through Innovations In Liquid Chromatography And Mass Spectrometry, Kei Grant Isaac Webber

Theses and Dissertations

Traditional proteomics studies can measure many protein biomarkers simultaneously from a single patient-derived sample, promising the possibility of syndromic diagnoses of multiple diseases sharing common symptoms. However, precious cellular-level information is lost in conventional bulk-scale studies that measure tissues comprising many types of cells. As single cells are the building blocks of organisms and are easier to biopsy than traditional bulk samples, performing proteomics on a single-cell level would benefit clinicians and patients. Single-cell proteomics, combined with mass spectrometry imaging, can be used to analyze cells in their microenvironment, preserving spatial information. We have previously used laser-capture microdissection to isolate …

Chiral Recognition Of Chiral (Hetero)Cyclic Derivatives Probed By Tetraaza Macrocyclic Chiral Solvating Agents Via ¹H Nmr Spectroscopy, Yu Wang, Hongmei Zhao, Chunxia Yang, Lixia Fang, Li Zheng, Hehua Lv, Pericles Stavropoulos, Lin Ai, Jiaxin Zhang

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

In the Field of Chiral Recognition, Chiral Cyclic Organic Compounds, Especially Heterocyclic Organic Compounds, Have Attracted Little Attention and Have Been Rarely Studied as Chiral Substrates by Means of 1H NMR Spectroscopy. in This Paper, Enantiomers of Thiohydantoin Derivatives, Representing Typical Five-Membered N,N-Heterocycles, Have Been Synthesized and Utilized for Assignment of Absolute Configuration and Analysis of Enantiomeric Excess. All Enantiomers Have Been Successfully Differentiated with the Assistance of Novel Tetraaza Macrocyclic Chiral Solvating Agents (TAMCSAs) by 1H NMR Spectroscopy. Surprisingly, Unprecedented Nonequivalent Chemical Shift Values (Up to 2.052 Ppm) of the NH Proton of Substrates Have Been Observed, a New …

How Generative Ai Models Such As Chatgpt Can Be (Mis)Used In Spc Practice, Education, And Research? An Exploratory Study, Fadel M. Megahed, Ying-Ju (Tessa) Chen, Joshua A. Ferris, Sven Knoth, L. Allison Jones-Farmer

Mathematics Faculty Publications

Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) models such as OpenAI's ChatGPT have the potential to revolutionize Statistical Process Control (SPC) practice, learning, and research. However, these tools are in the early stages of development and can be easily misused or misunderstood. In this paper, we give an overview of the development of Generative AI. Specifically, we explore ChatGPT's ability to provide code, explain basic concepts, and create knowledge related to SPC practice, learning, and research. By investigating responses to structured prompts, we highlight the benefits and limitations of the results. Our study indicates that the current version of ChatGPT performs well for …

Nowcasting Heavy Rainfall With Convolutional Long Short-Term Memory Networks: A Pixelwise Modeling Approach, Yi Victor Wang, Seung Hee Kim, Geunsu Lyu, Choeng-Lyong Lee, Soorok Ryu, Gyuwon Lee, Ki-Hong Min, Menas C. Kafatos

Institute for ECHO Articles and Research

The recent decades have seen an increasing academic interest in leveraging machine learning approaches to nowcast, or forecast in a highly short-term manner, precipitation at a high resolution, given the limitations of the traditional numerical weather prediction models on this task. To capture the spatiotemporal associations of data on input variables, a deep learning (DL) architecture with the combination of a convolutional neural network and a recurrent neural network can be an ideal design for nowcasting rainfall. In this study, a long short-term memory (LSTM) modeling structure is proposed with convolutional operations on input variables. To resolve the issue of …

Ai Is A Viable Alternative To High Throughput Screening: A 318-Target Study, Izhar Wallach, Denzil Bernard, Kong Nguyen, Gregory Ho, Adrian Morrison, Adrian Stecula, Andreana Rosnik, Ann Marie O’Sullivan, Aram Davtyan, Ben Samudio, Bill Thomas, Brad Worley, Brittany Butler, Christian Laggner, Desiree Thayer, Ehsan Moharreri, Greg Friedland, Ha Truong, Henry Van Den Bedem, Ho Leung Ng, Kate Stafford, Krishna Sarangapani, Kyle Giesler, Lien Ngo, Michael Mysinger, Mostafa Ahmed, Nicholas J. Anthis, Niel Henriksen, Arthur L. Haas, Et Al

School of Medicine Faculty Publications

High throughput screening (HTS) is routinely used to identify bioactive small molecules. This requires physical compounds, which limits coverage of accessible chemical space. Computational approaches combined with vast on-demand chemical libraries can access far greater chemical space, provided that the predictive accuracy is sufficient to identify useful molecules. Through the largest and most diverse virtual HTS campaign reported to date, comprising 318 individual projects, we demonstrate that our AtomNet® convolutional neural network successfully finds novel hits across every major therapeutic area and protein class. We address historical limitations of computational screening by demonstrating success for target proteins without known binders, …

Cardiogpt: An Ecg Interpretation Generation Model, Guohua Fu, Jianwei Zheng, Islam Abudayyeh, Chizobam Ani, Cyril Rakovski, Louis Ehwerhemuepha, Hongxia Lu, Yongjuan Guo, Shenglin Liu, Huimin Chu, Bing Yang

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Numerous supervised learning models aimed at classifying 12-lead electrocardiograms into different groups have shown impressive performance by utilizing deep learning algorithms. However, few studies are dedicated to applying the Generative Pre-trained Transformer (GPT) model in interpreting electrocardiogram (ECG) using natural language. Thus, we are pioneering the exploration of this uncharted territory by employing the CardioGPT model to tackle this challenge. We used a dataset of ECGs (standard 10s, 12-channel format) from adult patients, with 60 distinct rhythms or conduction abnormalities annotated by board-certified, actively practicing cardiologists. The ECGs were collected from The First Affiliated Hospital of Ningbo University and Shanghai …

Uncertainty Analysis In Machine Learning Models, Ayorinde E. Olatunde, Weiqi Yue, Pawan K. Tripathi, Roger H. French, Anirban Mondal

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit (Bpsou) Draft Final Unreclaimed Sites Field Sampling Plan (Fsp) Package #10: Ur-44, Ur-45, Ur-46, Ur-47, And Ur-48, Mike Mcanulty

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

Residential Metals Abatement Program Investigation Summary Report (Non-Residential Parcels – Indoor Dust) United Congregational Church (Crayon Academy Preschool), Environmental Resource Management (Erm)

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

A Systematic Review: Mirror Neurons & Schizophrenia, Yashesvi Sharma, Surajit Dey

Annual Research Symposium

This research project establishes a link between Mirror Neuron System (MNS) activity and this information's implications in treating and understanding schizophrenia, specifically, schizophrenic patients with negative symptoms.

Reflectance Spectroscopy Datasets For The Validation Of Tanager, Kristiana Lapo, Kathleen Hoza, Sammy Theuer, Melissa S. Rice

Geology Faculty Publications

The Three-Axis N-sample Automated Goniometer for Evaluating Reflectance (TANAGER) is a custom goniometer designed to rapidly acquire spectra of natural rock surfaces across the full scattering hemisphere. TANAGER interfaces with a Malvern Panalytical ASD Fieldspec 4 Hi-Res reflectance spectrometer to collect data from 350-2500 nm at a range of incidence, emission and azimuth angles. To validate the accuracy and repeatability of data collected with TANAGER - and to characterize any instrument noise, artifacts or sample heating effects - we collected spectra from three categories of targets: (1) powdered calcium sulfate (anhydrite), (2) naturally weathered basalt surfaces, and (3) color calibration …

Synthesis Of An Anti-Lysozyme Antibody Tagged With Gold Or Silver Nanoparticle For Faster Western Blot, Harunobu Kato

Chemistry Senior Theses

Western blot is an important protein analysis assay enabling protein detection by visualizing the antibody specific antigen-antibody interaction. As a commonly used assay, western blot is taught in upper-level biochemistry and molecular biology students. However, due to its exhaustive process and high cost of antibodies, a modification to western blot is proposed using gold or silver nanoparticles as a tag to the primary antibody for lysozyme. In this experiment, invisible anti-lysozyme antibodies were conjugated to colloidal gold and silver nanoparticles via photochemical immobilization technique, effectively facilitating a physically observable band on the western blot. To eliminate false positives by interactions …

Imaging Of The Shallow Crustal Structure Across The Region Of The 2013 Mw 7.5 Craig Earthquake With High-Resolution Seismic Streamer Tomography, Emma Martin, Andrew Gase, Emily Roland

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

The Queen Charlotte Fault (QCF), located offshore of southeastern Alaska and western British Columbia, accommodates ~5 cm/year of right-lateral strike-slip between the Pacific and North American plates. This fault has generated several magnitude (>7) earthquakes, the most recent being a magnitude 7.5 Craig earthquake in 2013. Analyzing characteristics of damage zones and tectonically influenced subsurface geology surrounding the QCF fault trace, we present a seismic velocity model of a 147 km transect that crosses the approximate epicenter of the Craig earthquake. Ultra-long offset seismic streamer-recorded refractions sample the upper crust and are compiled for first-arrival travel-time tomography. Relatively shallow …

Automating Employee Milestone Celebrations At Geoengineers – Building The Work Anniversary Report Tool, Natalie Keys

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

This project tackles the inefficiencies and potential errors in the current manual tracking of employee anniversaries within the human resources department of a geotechnical engineering firm. By developing a web-based tool, this approach aims to automate and streamline the process, integrating with existing HR processes to ensure accurate and timely recognition of service milestones. The report details the entire development process, encompassing initial planning, design, technology selection, implementation, and testing. This comprehensive development approach ensures that the tool is tailored to meet the specific needs of the company. The significance of this project lies in its potential to enhance operational …

Evaluating Automated Accessibility Checker Tools, Thai Nguyen

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

The internet has grown into a tool that is essential for communication, education, and commerce. However, for those with disabilities, web content can often have significant barriers if it is not designed with accessibility in mind. Digital accessibility ensures that websites and applications are usable by everyone, regardless of ability. In order to make sure web content complies with accessibility standards, automated accessibility evaluation tools have grown in significance. This paper investigates the effectiveness of automated accessibility evaluation tools (AAETs) for identifying web accessibility issues. The research analyzed five prominent AAETs: Accessibility Insights, aXe DevTools, Lighthouse, SiteImprove, and WAVE and …

Evaluating How Well Open-Source Ai Models Interpret Written Prompts, Madeline Pysher

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

The purpose of this study was to take a cursory look into understanding how good “utopian” urban form is interpreted by AI. The importance of this study is that AI is now being used in every facet of society. Some examples of this include using AI to find cures for diseases (Heaven, 2023), integrating with geography to create digital-twins that control traffic lights (Digital-Twin, n.d.), and fabrication of news and profiles on social media (Mishra, 2024). All this exposure to AI feeds into people's expectations and desires for an ideal world- aka for a utopia. Some current examples of how …

Ashes To Algae: Phytoplankton Communities In Early Successional Ponds At The Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument, Lillie Tomlinson

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

Freshwater biodiversity is declining worldwide, and ponds have been found to be incredibly biodiverse freshwater habitats that provide important ecosystem services and create critical terrestrial-aquatic linkages. Phytoplankton are fundamental components of aquatic communities and provide ecosystems with oxygen, send energy throughout the food web, and are an important food source for organisms like zooplankton. The 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens led to the formation of over 100 diverse ponds in the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument. This study aims to shed light on phytoplankton community dynamics and assemblages as well as regional differences in community dynamics in previously …

The Dawn Of A New Era: Generative Ai And The Future Of Work, Saunder Vanwoerden

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

This article aims to provide a snapshot of the current capabilities and general sentiments towards generative artificial intelligence (AI) technology as of mid-2024. It offers an overview of how technologies like large language models work and summarizes some of AI's current abilities. The article also shares insights from interviews with tech industry professionals and students from Western Washington University, exploring how they use AI tools and perceive their impact on jobs now and in the future. These interviews revealed that generative AI is proving to be useful primarily in boosting productivity, eliminating some tedium from work, and aiding in the …

Death After: A Visualization Of Death In A Digital Medium, Cole Yamamura

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

NOTE: a free version of GameMaker is required to run this game and can be downloaded from https://gamemaker.io/en/download.

DEATH//AFTER is an original video game, generated by Cole Yamamura, in which a masked figure invites users to engage in one last encounter before their demise. Much like life, the figure chooses the game but the user chooses how to move through it. Depending on the user’s choices, the figure reveals additional challenges or one of several possible endings. A limited, unfamiliar deck of cards further complicates the matter, and the masked figure neither forgives nor undoes the user’s errors.

DEATH//AFTER seeks …

Evaluating The Efficiency Of Soil Amendments To Mitigate The Leaching Of Copper Nanopesticides, Brianna Benner

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

As pesticides are necessary to meet current and future agricultural needs, nanopesticides have seen increased use resulting from their more targeted application at lower doses. Copper-based nanopesticides have demonstrated efficacy but there are also concerns about their potential toxicity to aquatic species. This unintended toxic exposure resulting from agricultural runoff containing these nanopesticides can be mitigated through the use of soil amendments. In this study, biochar and chitosan were investigated as soil amendments, as they can bind metals and nutrients; however, there are still open questions about how their effective they are in different soil types and in relation to …

Food Systems Mapping And Goals At Western Washington University, Dylan Braund

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

In this project, I map food systems on the Western Washington University (WWU) campus with the intention of better understanding how different groups are working and collaborating to make food systems more accessible and sustainable on campus. By examining these connections, I also hope to reveal areas for potential future connections to form between groups engaging in similar work. In addition, I provide recommendations for new goals to be added to the existing WWU Sustainability Action Plan (SAP) related to food systems. As most of the goals currently listed in this plan relate directly to Dining Services, this research provides …

J.G.T., Joshua Dyeson

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

A 2D platformer video game focused around the player quickly switching between tools to help them jump, grapple, or teleport to progress and avoid obstacles, a la Doom Eternal, while uncovering the mystery of the strange facility they find themselves in.

From Threads To Treasures: The Resilient Journey Of The Western Worn Community Closet, Jessica Dietzman

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

Picture this - You are walking into a room filled with made-from-scratch clothing racks, hangers donated from the College of Business and Economics (CBE) Career Closet, clothes, shoes, and accessories filling up the shelves and racks all donated by your fellow students, professors, and faculty. You notice artwork decorating the walls designed from art students, and you have total access to any of these articles of clothing for free! This room is called the Western Worn Community Closet and written here is the resilient story of how it came to be.

Hydrophobicity Of Factor Viii On Membrane Binding, Mady Jacobs

WWU Honors College Senior Projects

Factor VIII (FVIII) plays a crucial role in our body’s ability to prevent blood loss. This function comes from its ability to bind membranes and enhance catalytic function of other proteins. Membrane binding of FVIII relies on hydrophobic residues located at the lower C2 domain in a region named the PS head group. This study looks at how the enhancement of the hydrophobicity of this site can impact the protein binding ability to membranes. Specifically mutating the residues leucine at residue 2251 in the PS head group to phenylalanine, the study uses BLI instrumentation to determine whether this mutation can …

Early Report Of A Microcosm Of The Fourth Major Global Bleaching Event: A Comprehensive Survey Of Coral Bleaching At Chumbe Island Coral Park, Zanzibar, Christian Boudreaux

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Coral reefs harbor a wealth of the biodiversity present in the ocean. They provide an array of ecological and economic services that make them crucial to the function of a healthy ocean and prosperous coastal communities. Due to an array of anthropogenic stressors, including an increase in ocean temperatures as a result of climate change, reefs have been devastated worldwide. This is, in large part, due to the process of coral bleaching, the expelling of symbiont algae which the coral needs to produce energy, for an extended period until death. This study surveyed bleaching and death at a deeper and …

Short-Term Larval Surveys Reveal Rainy Season Breeding Site Preferences Of Malaria Vector Anopheles Spp. In Zanzibar City, Kaeden K. Hill

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Malaria is a serious illness that causes over 500,000 deaths annually worldwide, with Tanzania alone contributing to approximately 4% of those deaths. Malaria is caused by Plasmodium spp. parasites, and it is vectored by mosquitoes in the Anopheles genus. In Zanzibar City, the incidence of malaria has decreased over the past few decades due to standardized treatment protocols and public health interventions targeting adult mosquitoes. However, the incidence remains between 1-2%, with an increasing trend observed over the past few years likely stemming from continued exchange of Plasmodium spp. from other malaria-endemic areas. Because larvicidal strategies can be useful in …

Structural Responses To Land Use In Pollination Networks: Effects Of Biodiversity And Alien Plants In The Ecuadorian Chocó, Eric Abrahams

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

As a globally recognized hotspot of biodiversity, the Ecuadorian Chocó Andino region is extremely important for research and conservation. However, little research has been done regarding the mutualistic networks that sustain this ecosystem. The analysis of plant-pollinator networks helps us understand how ecosystems respond to change and is vital to conserving ecological productivity across multiple spatial scales. This study establishes a baseline for pollinator network structure across a land use gradient near the western montane cloud forest in Ecuador. Plants and pollinators were sampled along 11 transects in farms, communities, roads in the Río Manduriacu valley. Weedy herbs dominated overall, …

Uncovering Chimborazo’S Catchments: Insights Into The Fluvial Network, Stream Characteristics, And Hydrological Patterns In Reserva De Producción De Fauna Chimborazo, Ecuador, Julia L. Schwartz

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Andean headwater streams play a crucial role in the provisioning of ecosystem services and supplying water to downstream communities. This study sought to analyze trends in hydrological patterns in the páramo of the southwestern aspect of Volcán Chimborazo in central Ecuador, as well as to provide a more complete survey of the fluvial network given the lack of existing data and its importance in water resource management. Measurements of stream elevation, grade of slope, water temperature, pH, width, depth, turbidity, velocity, and discharge, as well as geomorphological characteristics of catchments such as slope and permeability, were taken at 19 sites …

Coastal And Marine Fish Ecology Lab Intern, Rhiannon Michelle Holmes

College of the Environment Internship Reports

gained first-hand experience with seeing undisturbed estuary at Heron Point in comparison to the emergent marsh at Qwuloolt, increasing my knowledge about the effect dikes have on estuarine ecology and teaching me about the restoration projects in the Snohomish estuary. I also learned how to use a YSI probe and record field measurements. I also was able to observe some isopods and other salmonoid food sources.

Administrative And Field Intern - Coastal Watershed Institute, Amelia Kalagher

College of the Environment Internship Reports

Due to CWI’s uniquely small and agile nature as an organization, interns represent a core part of the staff and are involved in a variety of projects. Long-term data collection for Salish Sea nearshore ecology is the overarching goal. Projects I have been involved in within that sphere include monthly seining to monitor fish use of the nearshore, forage fish spawn surveys along several Strait of Juan de Fuca beaches, and snorkel surveys of herring spawn events and salmon use of nearshore kelp forests.