With appreciation, Associate Vice President for Research, Dr. Haley Ye, commends the following students for participating in the Student Research Symposium at Cal State LA on February 28, 2025:
First Overall
Samuel Groysman
B.S. Biochemistry
Sensitive Imaging of Electroactive Species in Plasmonic Electrochemical Microscopy Enabled by Electrostatic Nanoconfinement
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Yixian Wang
Second Overall
Isuru Rajapakshe
M.S. Electrical Engineering
Spectral Changes in sEEG as a Biomarker for rTMS Efficacy in Major Depressive Disorder
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Deborah Won
Third Overall
Hannah Calistri
M.A. Anthropology
Preservation and Contamination: Identifying Pesticides on Ethnographic Woven Materials using Portable X-Ray Fluorescence
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Amira Ainis
Cal State LA Delegates
Congratulations to the students who will represent Cal State LA at the
39th CSU Student Research Competition at Cal Poly Humboldt
Behavioral and Social Sciences
- Drusilla Szakto
B.A. Psychology
Examining Eyewitness Decision Making Under Real World Conditions Using the Field Simulation Paradigm
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Mitchell Eisen
Humanities and Political Science
- Isaac Collins
Master of Social Work
Black Americans Attitudes and Perceptions of Mental Health Services
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Margarita Villagrana - Marjorie Hunt
M.A. History
The Wild and Unfree: Geographies of Nature and Slavery in Mid-Nineteenth Century Rio de Janeiro
Faculty Mentors: Dr. Kittya Lee - Hannah Calistri
M.A. Anthropology
Preservation and Contamination: Identifying Pesticides on Ethnographic Woven Materials using Portable X-Ray Fluorescence
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Amira Ainis - Arwa Hammad
B.A. Philosophy, Option in Pre-Law; B.S. Political Science, Option in Pre-Law
Stretching Democracy: Third Parties and the Necessity of Democratic Elasticity
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Amira Ainis
Biological and Health Sciences
- Yahan Lin
B.S. Biochemistry
Investigating the roles of TlyA and FtsZ in circadian control of cell division in cyanobacteria
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Susan Cohen
Engineering and Computer Sciences
- Isuru Rajapakshe
M.S. Electrical Engineering
Spectral Changes in sEEG as a Biomarker for rTMS Efficacy in Major Depressive Disorder
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Deborah Won - Alejandro Sanchez
B.S. Mechanical Engineering
Improving the performance of lithium-ion batteries at high temperatures for space applications
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Chris Bachman
Physical Sciences
- Samuel Groysman
B.S. Biochemistry
Sensitive Imaging of Electroactive Species in Plasmonic Electrochemical Microscopy Enabled by Electrostatic Nanoconfinement
Faculty Mentor: Yixian Wang - Evelyn Scott
M.S. Physics
Protostar Disk Dynamics of Oph IRS 63
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Susan Terebey
Outstanding Presentation Awards
Congratulations to the following students for receiving an Outstanding Presentation Award.
Behavioral and Social Sciences
| Name(s) | Program | Title | Faculty Mentor(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mei Ku | M.A. Psychology | The Contributions of Rumination, Catastrophizing, and Depression in the Associations Between Adverse Childhood Events and Gastrointestinal Symptoms in a Predominantly Hispanic/Latino Sample | Dr. Yvette Szabo |
| Sarena Eworonsky | B.A. Psychology | Exploring the Role of Juror Bias on Decision-Making in a Civil Case | Dr. Alma Olaguez |
Humanities I: Humanities and Communities
| Name(s) | Program | Tile | Faculty Mentor(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marjorie Hunt | M.A. History | The Wild and Unfree: Geographies of Nature and Slavery in Mid-Nineteenth Century Rio de Janeiro | Dr. Kittiya Lee |
| Humberto Hernandez Mendez | B.A. Sociology, Women’s Gender & Sexualities Studies | Tranifesting Community Transition: On the Binary Structures of ICE, Gender-Based Violence, and the Impacts on Undocumented Gender-Variant People of Color | Dr. Molly Talcott |
Humanities II: Anthropology and Archeology
| Name(s) | Program | Title | Faculty Mentor(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hannah Calistri | M.A. Anthropology | Preservation and Contamination: Identifying Pesticides on Ethnographic Woven Materials using Portable X-Ray Fluorescence | Dr. Amira Ainis |
Political Science
| Name(s) | Program | Title | Faculty Mentor(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arwa Hammad | B.A. Philosophy; B.S. Political Science | Stretching Democracy: Third Parties and the Necessity of Democratic Elasticity | Dr. Michael McLendon |
Biological and Health Sciences
| Name(s) | Program | Title | Faculty Mentor(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Teegan Boyd | M.S. Kinesiology | Neck Muscle Functional Characteristics in Individuals with Forward Head Posture | Dr. Leila Rahnama |
| Yahan Lin | B.S. Biochemistry | Investigating the roles of TlyA and FtsZ in circadian control of cell division in cyanobacteria | Dr. Susan Cohen |
Computer Science
| Name(s) | Program | Title | Faculty Mentor(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Isuru Rajapakshe | M.S. Electrical Engineering | Spectral Changes in sEEG as a Biomarker for rTMS Efficacy in Major Depressive Disorder | Dr. Deborah Won |
| Rajkin Chakrobarty | B.S. Biochemistry | Post transcriptional modifications: thermodynamic insights on the enzymatic amination reaction of Uracil to Cytosine | Dr. Olaseni Sode |
Engineering
| Name(s) | Program | Title | Faculty Mentor(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Andy Damas | M.S. Mechanical Engineering | Circulation Patterns in Horizontal Rectangular Enclosures due to Humidity in Air | Dr. Arturo Pacheco-Vega |
| Alejandro Sanchez | B.S. Mechanical Engineering | Improving the performance of lithium-ion batteries at high temperatures for space applications | Dr. Chris Bachman |
Physical Sciences
| Name(s) | Progam | Title | Faculty Mentor(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Evelyn Scott | M.S. Physics | Protostar Disk Dynamics of Oph IRS 63 | Dr. Susan Terebey |
| Samuel Groysman | B.S. Biochemistry | Sensitive Imaging of Electroactive Species in Plasmonic Electrochemical Microscopy Enabled by Electrostatic Nanoconfinement | Dr. Yixian Wang |
Behavioral and Social Sciences
| Name(s) | Program | Title | Faculty Mentor(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Angel Chen and Beth Santana | M.S. Nutritional Science; B.S. Nutritional Science | The Role of Food Pantries in Los Angeles in Promoting Fruits and Vegetables Consumption | Dr. Kathryn Amanda Hillstrom |
| Noemi Alanis | B.A. Psychology | Parental Perceptions of Math Language and Learning Skills in Educational YouTube Videos | Dr. Corinne Bower |
| C. Kenobi Donart, Zarife Agin, and Mei Ku | M.S. Psychology; B.A. Psychology; M.A. Psychology | Stressful life events and mental health: Emotion dysregulation accounts for depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms | Dr. Yvette Z. Szabo |
| Lisette G. Bailey and Evelyn Mojarro-Pedroza | M.A. Psychology; B.A. Psychology | Voting Trends Among Hispanic Americans: A Comparative Study of 2016 through 2022 Was “Latinos for Trump” a real change in voting behavior or media sensationalism? | Dr. Heidi Riggio |
Biological Sciences
| Name(s) | Program | Title | Faculty Mentor(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tshering Y. Bhutia | B.A. Psychology | Optimizing tissue clearing protocols to investigate three- dimensional circuits in rodent spinal cord following injury | Dr. Michael Selvan Joseph |
| Alfredo Gonzalez, Aidan Reyes, and Jaelyn Asamoah | M.S. Chemistry; B.S. Biological Sciences; B.S. Biochemistry | Investigating the Relationship Between Thermal Hysteresis and Ice Recrystallization Inhibition Activity in Hyperactive Insect Antifreeze Protein Mutants | Dr. Xin Wen |
| Parker Saikley | B.S. Microbiology | Investigating the Role for Rbp2 in the regulation of the circadian clock in cyanobacteria | Dr. Susan Cohen |
Education
| Name(s) | Program | Title | Faculty Mentor(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Qiong Wu | M.A. Child Development | Examining Challenges of Chinese Immigrant Male Early Childhood Educators through Acculturation and Cultural Capitals | Dr. Yafen Lo |
Engineering and Computer Science
| Name(s) | Program | Title | Faculty Mentor(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| William Pasillas, Derreck Soriano, and Isuru Rajapakshe | B.S. Electrical Engineering | Changes in neural network associations with RTMS for depression | Dr. Deborah Won |
| Nathan Brieu | B.S. Mechanical Engineering | Experimental simulation and optimization study of the hydrogen-rich gas production via a methanol steam reforming reactor | Dr. Petr Vozka |
| Jordan Doose | M.S. Computer Science | Computer-Vision Based Landing Guidance for Autonomous Marine Exploration | Dr. Salvador Rojas |
Physical and Mathematical Sciences
| Name(s) | Program | Title | Faculty Mentor(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Damian Salas | B.A. Geography | All Burnt Up: Changes in California Wildfires and their Consequences on Air Quality | Dr. Jingjing Li and Dr. Alireza Farahmand |
| Tommy Taing | B.S. Chemistry | Utilization of Titanium and Indium-based Porphyrin Metal-Organic Frameworks for Fabrication of Photovoltaic Solar Cells | Dr. Yangyang Liu |
| Jonathan Davidson | M.S. Mathematics | Monochromatic Rectangles in Grids | Dr. Jason O’Neill |