University of Maine at Presque Isle: 2022 Research Abstracts
Welcome to the University of Maine at Presque Isle’s (UMPI) 2022 Research Abstracts. This compilation highlights the diverse and innovative research conducted by our students, reflecting UMPI’s commitment to academic excellence and community engagement.
Posters
Presenter(s): Dr. Chunzeng Wang
Faculty Mentor(s): James Dobbs
Reed cemetery is located in Whytopitlock, southern Aroostook County. The town only has hand-drawn map in poor quality and hard to read. In this project, a drone was used to obtain high-resolution aerial image and the image was used to create a cemetery lot map with a GIS on-the-screen digitizing method. GPS was used to collect coordinates of control points for georeferencing the aerial image. The lot map, either in digital format or hard copy, can be used to manage the cemetery for planning and maintenance. The project is a great community service project.
Presenter(s): Stephen Cochrane, Chelsey Trombley
Faculty Mentor(s): Dr. Chunzeng Wang
The project is to use GIS tools to analyze and map the lobster catch data (pounds and values) for 7 fishing zones along the Atlantic coast of Maine. The catch data range from the year 2004 to 2020. The analysis includes average percent change in total pounds caught per year for each zone. The data can be used for a variety of purposes, but the most beneficial is to compare it with different trends. One example is comparing the average rate of change of a certain zone with the average number of licensed fishermen.
Presenter(s): Kailee Sprague
Faculty Mentor(s): Dr. Judy Roe
The large milkweed bug Oncopeltus fasciatus is capable of regenerating damaged appendages, along with several other hemimetabolous insects such as the cricket and cockroach, over the course of their incomplete metamorphosis. By documenting the phenotypic stages of molting, and collecting regeneration data and genetic information, we hope to add a new model system for organ regeneration into the arsenal for biological research. We isolated and photographed individuals from each nymphal stage, and focused on the tarsal segments of the legs in order to compare with preliminary experiments in which we amputated at the mid-tibia on the right anterior leg of individuals in various stages to observe their regenerative ability into adulthood. We found that the second tarsal segment does not emerge until the final molt, and amputated nymphs are able to regenerate the distal pre-tarsal segment including the claws and pads, but it is the N2 stage that shows the best regenerative abilities.
Presenter(s): Karoline Dillenbeck
Faculty Mentor(s): Dr. Judy Roe
A California blackworm can be cut in half: one end grows a new head and the other, a new tail; this is how it naturally reproduces by fission. Adding copper sulfate or well water with high arsenic levels shows a decrease in overall health, survival, and regeneration of the blackworm. The color(s) of the worms shows variation and may also correlate with survival and regeneration ability.
Presenter(s): Stephen Grierson
Faculty Mentor(s): Dr. Judy Roe
Environmental DNA (eDNA) is genetic material found in the environment. This eDNA can be collected by a multitude of sampling methods. In this experiment conducted by the Genetics students, eDNA was extracted from 2 Liter samples of water collected in nearby and regional streams and rivers. The purpose of this research was to find which fish were detectable using eDNA. The 12S rDNA gene region was amplified by PCR and species were identified by BLAST. Of those fish expected in Maine, we found matches for many of the large game fish and a majority of the smaller non-game fish species such as minnows. Surprisingly, other vertebrates including mammals, amphibians and birds were also detected, suggesting that eDNA can be used to take a snapshot in time of the vertebrate community passing through a stream or river on a particular date from a single water sample.
Presenter(s): Caleb Ames
Faculty Mentor(s): Dr. Rafiul Hassan
Developing game engine graphics from 2D surface transforming to 3D (virtually) is always a challenge. The popular engine that is the basis for it in the industry and research was first introduced by John Carmack, in his pioneering creation of the FPS (First Person Shooter) genre, Wolfenstein. In my work, I have designed and developed a virtual 3D view by using the traditional 2D view generated by OpenGL using a Python environment. Through this engine, one can move his location in a 2D simulated environment while the simulation tool produces a 3D view. One such application may have many uses in the game and movie industry. We plan the extend this initial attempt by combining artificial intelligence techniques to make it intelligent.
Presenter(s): Wyatt Braun
Faculty Mentor(s): Dr. Larry Feinstein
This presentation will be about how the addition of Mycorrhizae to greenhouse crops effects their output.
Presenter(s): Gideon Osei Bonsu, Jimmy Joseph Ocaya
Faculty Mentor(s): Dr. Rafiul Hassan
There are hundreds of cocoa diseases that threaten to damage the crops and to rob us of all the benefits we gain from cocoa usage and the many products that come about as a means of cocoa processing. The Black pod disease and Witches’ broom disease of cocoa are two of the commonest of such diseases, and by far, are the two most devastating cocoa diseases. The Black pod disease is caused mainly by the Phytophthora palmivora fungus, as well as by other closely related species, like the Phytophthora megakarya in West and Central Africa and the Phytophthora capsici and South and Central America. It can infect not only the cocoa pods, but also the stem and the roots. These disease-causing oomycetes need water to grow and reproduce and thus, the Black pod disease is prevalent during the raining seasons. It begins by forming brown-to-dark spots on the cocoa pods, which develop to cover the entire surface area of a pod, giving it a dark, necrotic look. The Witches broom disease on the other hand, is caused by a fungus called Moniliophthora perniciosa. It causes numerous broom-like shoots to sprout and hence, its name “the Witches’ broom”. The fungus that causes the Witches’ broom disease is hemibiotrophic; it initially lives within host cocoa living tissues and feeds off them (the biotrophic phase) before going on to also feed on dead tissue matter (necrotrophic phase). Due to the fact that these two diseases sometimes affect cocoa trees in the same farm or region, our aim is to make it easier for farmers to decipher which of these diseases (if any) is hampering a particular cocoa tree. The dataset consists of 105 photo samples of cocoa pods with symptoms of Moniliophthora perniciosa infection and 107 photo samples of pods with symptoms of Phytophthora infection. Using these samples, we designed a deep learning tool to identify which of the two diseases could be present in a cocoa pod based on the signs of disease infection – mostly dark or white patches, which in a few instances, completely cover the pod – present on the cocoa pod. We made use of software libraries like TensorFlow to first train our deep learning tool with the photo samples and afterwards, our algorithm currently has a 70% accuracy.
Session 1
Presenter(s): Abigail Davis
Faculty Mentor(s): Dr. Jacqui Lowman
Last semester, one intrepid young woman, a strong-willed leader and two service dogs started the ultimate project: planning a 9994.9-mile road trip. Now in the second semester of planning, what was once just an idea is now close to reality. Gathering information for a trip of this nature requires a keen attention to detail. Additionally, how do factors of accessibility come into play when researching? With the departure date quickly approaching, join Abi Davis as she shares what has been done so far and is left to do before hitting the Road to Alaska.
Presenter(s): Caragan Haney, Monique Nadeau, Erin Jandreau, Taylor Cowan
Faculty Mentor(s): Dr. Wendi Malenfant
Elementary Education majors will demonstrate discrepant events and illustrate how much fun science can be. Discrepant events put students’ minds in a state of disequilibrium as they try to figure out what is happening right before their eyes; this makes them wonder “Why?” and creates the perfect conditions for learning about the wonder of science. Join us!
Presenter(s): Belen Dougherly, Jacob Swain, Eleanor Goheen, Kacie Chapman
Faculty Mentor(s): Dr. Tomasz Herzog
The ongoing global Pandemic has proven to challenge societies and their educational institutions. The mission of this project is to explain the value of higher education and find ways to renew this within our community.
Session 2
Presenter(s): Gideon Osei Bonsu
Faculty Mentor(s): Dr. Jacqui Lowman
A quick look at the Ashanti empire and a brief history of Ghana from pre-colonial times to the present. Despite present-day Ghana being only 65 years old, the geographical area has been occupied for thousands of years. This will be a concise presentation on the history of the Ghanaian people – the factions that existed before they became one country and the major events that led to Ghana becoming the first Sub-Saharan African country to gain independence in 1957. I will also touch on the Ashanti empire (which had been the dominant force in the region before British colonization), as well as the 5 Anglo-Ashanti wars.
Presenter(s): Abigail Davis
Faculty Mentor(s): Dr. Jacqui Lowman
The last semester of college often is a chaotic time for students. For one UMPI student Leaving the Nest, it has been a little chaotic, but also the perfect time to reflect. Over the course of her last semester, Abi Davis has been reflecting on her time in the Professional Communication and Journalism program and creating a portfolio. As Davis prepares to leave the nest, join her as she shares why she believes she is ready to earn her wings.
Session 3
Presenter(s): Bailey Corey, Megan Waceken, Bethany Tabb
Faculty Mentor(s): Dr. Jacqui Lowman
Canines for Disabled Kids (CDK) is a unique organization that advocates for children with disabilities and their families. But who will advocate for them? That’s where the advocacy team of PCJ 316 stepped in to advocate for an organization that needs it! We did this by spending the time doing our research, being persistent and not giving up. We also did this by having a bias for yes, meaning we truly believe in what we are talking about, which is a key point to advocacy. The last point, which may be the most important of all, is to think big!
Session 4
Presenter(s): Abigail Davis, Ricky Goupillle
Faculty Mentor(s):
For the last semester, three students have learned the Secrets of the JEDI. Along the way, they have had the chance to walk in other people’s shoes. Faced with challenging scenarios, the group has stretched and learned many things. A JEDI must maintain an open mind, be willing to explore the unknown, and prepared to free themselves from stereotypes. Working with groups they do not identify with themselves, these JEDI have become fierce advocates. “The sin is not in not knowing, but in not wanting to know.”
Presenter(s): Emma Edgecomb, Davis Levesque, Jessica Shaw, Emma Edgecomb, Dakota Morrow, Christopher Parent, Nate Pitre
Faculty Mentor(s): Dr. Lisa Leduc
Students from Honors Women & Crime (CRJ/SOC 378) will present their Service Learning works in progress to develop resource and self-care activity books for women at the Houlton Regional Jail and the Hope Haven for Women sober house in Caribou. Connections between course content and the service project will be discussed.
Session 5
Presenter(s): Megan Waceken
Faculty Mentor(s): Dr. Jacqui Lowman
Introducing the process that the PCJ 315 class has used to find qualitative data about our school. We will share how we planned and fulfilled important roles to set up multiple Focus Group events and get down to the bottom of student life on campus and commuting to the University of Maine at Presque Isle. We find out things such as, what made students choose UMPI? And why do they continue to stay? What can be done better in the future and what should continue to stay the same? These are the important questions that we can answer.