The Academic Showcase 2022 | Program

Dear Honors College Students and Friends, We are delighted that you’ve joined us for the annual Honors College Academic Showcase!

The Showcase features projects from our graduating Honors College Scholars as well as our first-year students. The graduating students are sharing their capstone projects while the first-year students are presenting their projects from our new Cross-Cultural Competency Course.

The capstone is the culminating academic experience for all Honors College students. Throughout April, our students present their capstones across the University, at departmental honors colloquia and senior theses defenses, in performances and exhibitions, and through the Aresty Research Symposium.

The Honors College is pleased to showcase a selection of those projects. Collectively, they highlight the quality, richness, diversity, and interdisciplinary nature of the Honors College community itself, which draws students from across the liberal arts and professional schools here at Rutgers University–New Brunswick.

Today, you’ll see capstones that reflect each student’s deep engagement with a specific discipline, question, or problem in a multiplicity of formats, including TED-style talks, mediadocumented work, academic panels, and research posters. They are as diverse as our students themselves, ranging from business to history, and from engineering and the life sciences to the visual arts. We thank the many people who have supported the Honors College Scholars during their time here at Rutgers, including their capstone advisors who helped guide them through a substantial, sustained, and original scholarly and creative effort to arrive at this moment. And, we congratulate our Honors College Scholars for their exemplary work.

In addition, we have two groups presenting their projects from our Cross-Cultural Competency Course. This class, which will be required of all first-year Honors College students beginning in fall, 2022, asks students to think deeply about themselves and about the different people in their community, with a focus on the Honors College, Rutgers, and New Brunswick. The students’ projects seek to create ways of making those communities more inclusive and equitable, key components of the missions of Rutgers and the Honors College. We are excited to see these and future contributions from our students in the coming years.

We thank you for joining us today and for supporting our students.

Best,

Paul Gilmore Administrative Dean

Schedule | 12 - 2PM Druskin Lounge & Fireside Lounge ACADEMIC PANELS | ROOM S120, 12 – 1PM Julia Durugo | Advisor: Cassandra Nelson (Dept. of Cell Biology and Neuroscience) The Relationship between the Gut-Brain Axis and Mental Health and Probiotics

JJ Johnson | Advisors: Anette Freytag (Dept. of Landscape Architecture), Kathe Newman (Urban Planning and Policy Development Program) & Kristin O’Brassil-Kulfan (Dept. of History) Garfield, NJ: Exploring How a City Becomes Walkable, the Benefits of that Walkability, and Who Benefits the Most Fiona Kniaz | Advisors: Jan Kubik (Dept. of Political Science) & Jefferson Decker (Dept. of American Studies) The Economic Populist Zeitgeist: Manifestations in Congressional Policy Statements

TED-STYLE TALKS | FIRESIDE LOUNGE, 12 – 2PM 12 – 12:12PM Justin Alexander | Advisor: Barbara Faga (Urban Planning and Policy Development Program) COMMUNITY & ARTS

Planning Across Communities Using Digital Placemaking

12:12 – 12:24PM Devin Busono | Advisor: Sunita Kramer (Office of the Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs)

EMS: An Essential Municipal Service

12:24 – 12:36PM Jessica Birk | Advisors: Madhavi Chakrabarty (Dept. of Marketing) & Steven Kemper (Dept. of Music) Manufacturing “Hits”: A Data-Driven Machine Learning Approach to Releasing a Pop Song in 2022

12:36 – 12:48PM Lauren Krasnoff | Advisors: Young Sun Han & Brian Edgerton (Dept. of Art and Design)

Sorry 4 Oversharing

12:48 – 1PM Sofia Lake | Advisors: Julie Langsam (Dept. of Art and Design) & Brendon Votipka (Dept. of English) Chandani Ki: A Visual Story of Childhood, Family History, and Imagination

1 – 1:12PM Harshita Jain, Sameer Shah, Matthew Aliberto, Ariella Savitz | Advisor: Kristen Labazzo (Dept. of Biomedical Engineering) Tray To-Go: Improving the Caregiver Experience at the Matheny Medical and Educational Center

1:12 – 1:24PM Michael Rangel | Advisors: Jessie Guo (The Cancer Institute of New Jersey) & STEM

Shu Chan Hsu (Dept. of Cell Biology and Neuroscience) The Role of Host Autophagy and Tumor-Intrinsic Autophagy on KL Lung Tumorigenesis

1:24– 1:36PM Diana Stachula | Advisor: Amrik Sahota (Dept. of Genetics)

The Application of Graduate Studies in Human and Microbial Genetics to Undergraduate Research on Human Kidney Disease

1:36 – 1:48PM Morgan Mark | Advisor: Brooke Maslo (Dept. of Ecology Evolution and Natural Resources)

Investigating the Seasonality in Prevalence of Snake Fungal Disease in Eastern Copperheads

1:48 – 2PM Jacqueline Mehr | Advisors: Morgan James (RWJ, Dept. of Psychiatry) & Nicholas Bello (Dept. of Animal Science) The Orexin System: At the Intersection of Eating and Motivation

MEDIA PRESENTATION | DRUSKIN LOUNGE, 12 – 2PM Vaughn Battista (MGSA), Ravi Shah (SEBS) | Instructor: Darnell Thompson (Cross-Cultural Competency Course) Black History at Rutgers: An Interactive Mural

RESEARCH POSTERS | DRUSKIN LOUNGE, 12 – 2PM Laila Ahmed | Advisor: Francis Barchi (Dept. of Public Health) The Weaknesses and Adjustments Necessary to the Egyptian Legal System in Relation to Female Genital Mutilation Research Poster 1 Tanvi Banota | Advisor: Debra Laskin (Dept. of Pharmacology and Toxicology)

Characterization of Liver & Lung Injury and Inflammation in a High Fat Diet Mouse Model of Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis Research Poster 2

Archita Padmanabhan | Advisors: Monica Driscoll (Dept. of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry) & Shu Chan Hsu (Dept. of Cell Biology and Neuroscience) Validation of a High Throughput RNAi Screen Method to Dissect Mechanisms of the Cysl-2 Hydrogen Cyanide Pathway in C. elegans Research Poster 3 Ankit Patel | Advisor: Kemal Gursoy (Dept. of Management Science and Information Systems) Does Relative Strength Produce Returns?

Research Poster 4 Jake Rattigan | Advisors: Richard Contrada (Dept. of Psychology) & Patrick Barnwell (Dept. of Psychology) Modeling the Role of Personality in Cognitive and Affective Responses to Conflicting COVID-19 Information Research Poster 5 Robert Reisler | Advisors: Mimi Phan (Dept. of Psychology) & Benjamin Samuels (Dept. of Psychology)

Comparing Engrailed2 and 16p11.2 Neurodevelopmental Mouse Models of ASD Through Positive Valence Operant Conditioning Tests Research Poster 6

Alan Santhosh | Advisors: David Barker (Dept. of Psychology) & Mark Robson (Dept. of Plant Biology)

The Effect of Cocaine on the Lateral Preoptic Area to Determine Conditioned Place Preference Reward and Aversive Behaviors Research Poster 7

Shiv Sreekanth (SAS), Arielle Ravett (SAS) | Instructor: Darnell Thompson (Cross-Cultural Competency Course) More Than Just International – Inclusion Starts with Understanding Research Poster 8

Nicholas Sweeney | Advisors: Cassandra Nelson (Dept. of Cell Biology and Neuroscience) & Heather Moulton (Dept. of Sociology) Trans Inclusive Primary Care: An Evaluation of Physician Attitudes and Knowledge Research Poster 9

Nila Uthirasamy | Advisors: Manuel Jimenez (RWJ, Dept. of Pediatrics and Family Medicine and Community Health) & Jennifer Hemler (RWJ, Dept. of Family Medicine and Community Health) Clinician Perspectives on Barriers and Facilitators to Reach Out and Read Implementation Research Poster 10

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Index

Laila Ahmed | Advisor: Francis Barchi (Dept. of Public Health) The Weaknesses and Adjustments Necessary to the Egyptian Legal System in Relation to Female Genital Mutilation Capstone project: Research Poster 1 | Druskin Lounge,12 – 2PM Justin Alexander | Advisor: Barbara Faga (Urban Planning and Policy Development Program) Planning Across Communities Using Digital Placemaking Capstone project: TED-style talk | Fireside Lounge, 12 – 12:12PM

Matthew Aliberto | Advisor: Kristen Labazzo (Dept. of Biomedical Engineering) Tray To-Go: Improving the Caregiver Experience at the Matheny Medical and Educational Center Capstone group project: TED-style talk | Fireside Lounge, 1 – 1:12PM Tanvi Banota | Advisor: Debra Laskin (Dept. of Pharmacology and Toxicology)

Characterization of Liver & Lung Injury and Inflammation in a High Fat Diet Mouse Model of Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis Capstone project: Research Poster 2 | Druskin Lounge, 12 – 2PM

Vaughn Battista (MGSA) | Instructor: Darnell Thompson (Cross-Cultural Competency Course) Black History at Rutgers: An Interactive Mural Cross-Cultural Competency project: Media presentation | Druskin Lounge, 12 – 2PM Jessica Birk | Advisors: Madhavi Chakrabarty (Dept. of Marketing) & Steven Kemper (Dept. of Music) Manufacturing “Hits”: A Data-Driven Machine Learning Approach to Releasing a Pop Song in 2022 Capstone project: TED-style talk | Fireside Lounge, 12:24 – 12:36PM

Devin Busono | Advisor: Sunita Kramer (Office of the Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs) EMS: An Essential Municipal Service Capstone project: TED-style talk | Fireside Lounge, 12:12 – 12:24PM Julia Durugo | Advisor: Cassandra Nelson (Dept. of Cell Biology and Neuroscience) The Relationship between the Gut-Brain Axis and Mental Health and Probiotics Capstone project: Academic panel | Room S120, 12 – 1PM

Harshita Jain | Advisor: Kristen Labazzo (Dept. of Biomedical Engineering)

Tray To-Go: Improving the Caregiver Experience at the Matheny Medical and Educational Center Capstone group project: TED-style talk | Fireside Lounge, 1 – 1:12PM

JJ Johnson | Advisors: Anette Freytag (Dept. of Landscape Architecture), Kathe Newman (Urban Planning and Policy Development Program) & Kristin O’Brassil-Kulfan (Dept. of History) Garfield, NJ: Exploring How a City Becomes Walkable, the Benefits of that Walkability, and Who Benefits the Most Capstone project: Academic panel | Room S120, 12 – 1PM Fiona Kniaz | Advisors: Jan Kubik (Dept. of Political Science) & Jefferson Decker (Dept. of American Studies) The Economic Populist Zeitgeist: Manifestations in Congressional Policy Statements Capstone project: Academic panel | Room S120, 12 – 1PM

Lauren Krasnoff | Advisors: Young Sun Han & Brian Edgerton (Dept. of Art and Design) Sorry 4 Oversharing Capstone project: TED-style talk | Fireside Lounge, 12:36 – 12:48PM Sofia Lake | Advisors: Julie Langsam (Dept. of Art and Design) & Brendon Votipka (Dept. of English) Chandani Ki: A Visual Story of Childhood, Family History, and Imagination Capstone project: TED-style talk | Fireside Lounge, 12:48 – 1PM

Morgan Mark | Advisor: Brooke Maslo (Dept. of Ecology Evolution and Natural Resources) Investigating the Seasonality in Prevalence of Snake Fungal Disease in Eastern Copperheads Capstone project: TED-style talk | Fireside Lounge, 1:36 – 1:48PM Jacqueline Mehr | Advisors: Morgan James (RWJ, Dept. of Psychiatry) & Nicholas Bello (Dept. of Animal Science) The Orexin System: At the Intersection of Eating and Motivation Capstone project: TED-style talk | Fireside Lounge, 1:48 – 2PM

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Archita Padmanabhan | Advisors: Monica Driscoll (Dept. of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry) & Shu Chan Hsu (Dept. of Cell Biology and Neuroscience) Validation of a High Throughput RNAi Screen Method to Dissect Mechanisms of the Cysl-2 Hydrogen Cyanide Pathway in C. elegans Capstone project: Research Poster 3 | Druskin Lounge, 12 – 2PM Ankit Patel | Advisor: Kemal Gursoy (Dept. of Management Science and Information Systems) Does Relative Strength Produce Returns?

Capstone project: Research Poster 4 | Druskin Lounge, 12 – 2PM Michael Rangel | Advisors: Jessie Guo (The Cancer Institute of New Jersey) &

Shu Chan Hsu (Dept. of Cell Biology and Neuroscience) The Role of Host Autophagy and Tumor-Intrinsic Autophagy on KL Lung Tumorigenesis Capstone project: TED-style talk | Fireside Lounge, 1:12 – 1:24PM

Jake Rattigan | Advisors: Richard Contrada (Dept. of Psychology) & Patrick Barnwell (Dept. of Psychology) Modeling the Role of Personality in Cognitive and Affective Responses to Conflicting COVID-19 Information Capstone project: Research Poster 5 | Druskin Lounge, 12 – 2PM Arielle Ravett (SAS) | Instructor: Darnell Thompson (Cross-Cultural Competency Course) More Than Just International – Inclusion Starts with Understanding Cross-Cultural Competency project: Research Poster 8 | Druskin Lounge, 12 – 2PM Robert Reisler | Advisors: Mimi Phan (Dept. of Psychology) & Benjamin Samuels (Dept. of Psychology)

Comparing Engrailed2 and 16p11.2 Neurodevelopmental Mouse Models of ASD Through Positive Valence Operant Conditioning Tests Capstone project: Research Poster 6 | Druskin Lounge, 12 – 2PM

Alan Santhosh | Advisors: David Barker (Dept. of Psychology) & Mark Robson (Dept. of Plant Biology)

The Effect of Cocaine on the Lateral Preoptic Area to Determine Conditioned Place Preference Reward and Aversive Behaviors Capstone project: Research Poster 7 | Druskin Lounge, 12 – 2PM

Ariella Savitz | Advisor: Kristen Labazzo (Dept. of Biomedical Engineering)

Tray To-Go: Improving the Caregiver Experience at the Matheny Medical and Educational Center Capstone group project: TED-style talk | Fireside Lounge, 1 – 1:12PM

Ravi Shah (SEBS) | Instructor: Darnell Thompson (Cross-Cultural Competency Course) Black History at Rutgers: An Interactive Mural Cross-Cultural Competency project: Media presentation | Druskin Lounge, 12 – 2PM

Sameer Shah | Advisor: Kristen Labazzo (Dept. of Biomedical Engineering) Tray To-Go: Improving the Caregiver Experience at the Matheny Medical and Educational Center Capstone group project: TED-style talk | Fireside Lounge, 1 – 1:12PM Shiv Sreekanth (SAS) | Instructor: Darnell Thompson (Cross-Cultural Competency Course) More Than Just International – Inclusion Starts with Understanding Cross-Cultural Competency project: Research Poster 8 | Druskin Lounge, 12 – 2PM

Diana Stachula | Advisor: Amrik Sahota (Dept. of Genetics)

The Application of Graduate Studies in Human and Microbial Genetics to Undergraduate Research on Human Kidney Disease Capstone project: TED-style talk | Fireside Lounge, 1:24 – 1:36PM

Nicholas Sweeney | Advisors: Cassandra Nelson (Dept. of Cell Biology and Neuroscience) & Heather Moulton (Dept. of Sociology) Trans Inclusive Primary Care: An Evaluation of Physician Attitudes and Knowledge Capstone project: Research Poster 9 | Druskin Lounge, 12 – 2PM

Nila Uthirasamy | Advisors: Manuel Jimenez (RWJ, Dept. of Pediatrics and Family Medicine and Community Health) & Jennifer Hemler (RWJ, Dept. of Family Medicine and Community Health) Clinician Perspectives on Barriers and Facilitators to Reach Out and Read Implementation Capstone project: Research Poster 10 | Druskin Lounge, 12 – 2PM

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