Brynn Delatte - “Social Media: How It Makes Us See Ourself” (Poster Session III) Social media has become one of the biggest influences on how people see themselves, especially when it comes to body image and sexuality. Platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat constantly show edited photos, filters, and highlight reels of other people’s lives. This often leads to comparison, where individuals judge themselves based on unrealistic beauty standards. As a result, many people experience lowered self-esteem, body dissatisfaction, and pressure to look a certain way to feel accepted or attractive. Social media also affects how we view sexuality by promoting certain body types, trends, and behaviors as “normal,” “desirable,” or more valuable. While this can create pressure to fit in or act a certain way, social media can also be empowering. It gives people space to express themselves, find supportive communities, and celebrate different body types, genders, and sexual identities. This project aims to explore both the positive and negative effects of social media on self-image, body confidence, and sexual identity, and to encourage healthier and more realistic ways of interacting with online content. Estefano Delgado - “Chasing Flying Squirrels: Lessons From my Internship at Lassen” (Session 21) Gaining early field experience is essential for aspiring wildlife biologists to develop practical skills and professional foundations. During Summer 2025, I worked as a Field Technician in Lassen Volcanic National Park supporting a graduate research project from the Oregon Institute of Technology. The study aims to evaluate the ecological effects of forest-management interventions — including mechanical thinning and prescribed fire — on small mammal communities. Our fieldwork involved live-trapping small mammals across treated and untreated forest plots, collecting morphological data, tagging individuals for mark-recapture analyses, and deploying camera traps to detect species that are more difficult to capture. This presentation will highlight the methods, challenges, and major takeaways from this experience while offering a perspective on how undergraduate field opportunities can shape career pathways in wildlife biology. Estefano Delgado - “Seasonal Demography and Microhabitat Selection of Snakes at Marshall Junction Conservation Area, Saline County, MO” (Session 11) This study examines seasonal demographic patterns and microhabitat selection of snakes at Marshall Junction Conservation Area on two slopes (south-facing vs west-facing) across three field seasons. Using size-based life stages (juvenile, subadult, adult) from standardized visual encounter surveys and coverboard sampling, we quantify how age-structure and species composition vary with slope aspect, season, and weather. Fall 2024 showed greater abundance and diversity on the south slope, while spring 2025 reversed that pattern with higher abundance on the west slope, coincident with reduced canopy and increased afternoon warming. Heavy spring rainfall reduced surface detections, and snakes avoided rocks occupied by ants or termites. Shifts in life-stage proportions between seasons suggest differences in recruitment and habitat suitability tied to seasonal microclimate dynamics. These demographic patterns provide insight into local population health and indicate the importance of seasonal microhabitat assessments for snake conservation. Ongoing sampling will refine these findings.
Taylor Dominger - “Body Image in Adolescents” (Session 2) Adolescents tend to use social media frequently, seeing a variety of people from across the world. Body image is becoming an increasing issue as teenagers struggle with perceived idealized body types and filters. This project created multiple one-minute TikTok videos discussing the dangers of social media and its impact on body image, specifically directed toward adolescents. A survey was created that will link to the TikTok videos to evaluate the effectiveness of the project. It is hoped that the video series will help prevent body image dysmorphia when compared to adolescents who do not view the TikTok videos. Alexis Duenas - “Detecting Microplastics in Water: A Review” (Poster Session I) Microplastics (MPs) are an emerging environmental concern because of their widespread contamination in ecosystems and drinking water. The ability to detect and characterize these molecules is important for understanding their ecological and toxicological impacts. Current studies show inconsistent data due to the lack of standardized methodologies. This research focuses on a consensus study of twelve analytical laboratories that developed systematic guidelines for identifying and quantifying microplastics in clean water using spectroscopic techniques such as Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) and Raman microscopy. FTIR spectroscopy uses infrared light to identify materials by measuring the absorption of infrared radiation. Raman spectroscopy is a nondestructive method of analysis based on the scattering of inelastic light of a molecule using a laser. These methods allow for the determination of polymer type, particle size, and morphology. Both of these techniques provide an understanding of microplastic contamination at the molecular level. Being able to establish standardized spectroscopic protocols ensures accurate reproducibility, comparability, and confidence in reported data across global studies. Developing a standardized analytical approach is crucial for ensuring reliable environmental monitoring and shaping effective policies. Abigail Dunn - “EITC Made Simple: Who Qualifies, How It Helps, and How to Claim It” (Poster Session II) The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) is a powerful tax benefit that helps boost the income of low- to moderate-income workers, often resulting in larger refunds and extra financial support for families. It’s designed to reward work and ease financial strain—but what many people don’t realize is that the amount you can receive can change dramatically based on just a few key factors. Understanding how it works could mean thousands of dollars back… if you know where to look. Tori Evans - “Barriers to Healthcare Upon Incarcerated Individuals” (Session 5) Incarcerated individuals face many different barriers to healthcare - one such barrier is the increase in medication/ treatment errors that occur due to a lack of training. One likely rationale for these errors is the lack of education for the guards/ staff administering medications. To help decrease these barriers, a pamphlet was designed to educate administration and staff members on the importance of medication administration along with treatment adherence. With this pamphlet, the goal is to gain a more well-trained staff on the administration of medication and treatments when the nurse is not available to ultimately decrease the amount of medication and treatment errors.
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