Jeffrey Wang

Cyclic di-AMP (c-di-amp) is a nucleotide second messenger molecule with an integral role in the pathogenesis of many bacteria; however the physiological roles of this molecule in bacteria have only recently begun to be understood. Bacteria are known to undergo physiological and regulatory changes in response to nutrient starvation. Starvation induces the stringent response, which is controlled by the key alarmone molecule (p)ppGpp and is involved in mediating downstream biological processes including antibiotic tolerance, ribosome hibernation, and activating virulence genes. While depletion of c-di-amp and consequent elevation of intracellular (p)ppGpp […]

Ryan Shih

Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) are sub-millimeter structures that combine electrical and mechanical principles to produce novel sensors, actuators, and transducers for complicated tasks at the microscale. While most MEMS research focuses on devices operating in air, biomedical applications and the parallel growth of microfluidics have stimulated efforts towards MEMS operation in fluid, especially biological media. Previous work under this program examined devices in deionized water and demonstrated successful operation of an electrostatic actuator capable of generating high force density. This work extends upon those findings and focuses on designing more intricate […]

Kayla Maanum

Direction-selective ganglion cells (DSGCs) are characterized from other retinal ganglion cells because they generate a higher rate of action potentials when a moving light stimulus passes over the cell in its preferred direction than when the stimulus moves in the opposite or null direction. Four subtypes of DSGCs have been elucidated, each of which prefer one of the four cardinal directions of visual motion: dorsal, ventral, temporal, and nasal. Although asymmetric synaptic circuitry is a common property of these DSGCs in the mouse retina, asymmetric dendritic morphology is not. However, […]

Keren Lev

We propose to conduct research exploring potential cognitive adaptations in children who come from less wealthy and/or educated homes (low socioeconomic status, SES). Previous research indicates that lower-SES environments expose children to stressors including neighborhood crime and loud, crowded home environments. Such stress has been associated with academic struggles and poor health. We explore whether children coming from low SES households may, in fact, have particular strengths; specifically, adaptive auditory abilities allowing them to learn from multiple stimuli at once. In the study, we will have both low- and high-SES […]

Jiahan Du

The rich theory of algebraic computational complexity aims to study the complexity of objects with an intrinsic mathematical structure. In particular, for each n, matrix multiplication of two n n matrices can be expressed as a bilinear map, which corresponds to a tensor via a well-known isomorphism. The rank of this tensor controls the asymptotic complexity of matrix multiplication of a particular dimensionality. Despite this powerful relationship, much is still unsettled; for instance, the rank of the tensor corresponding to n = 3 is not even known. But to date, […]

Jonathan Qu

While speciation (the formation of new species) is often thought of as occurring through the splitting of one species into two, species can arise through other mechanisms, such as allopolyploidy. Allopolyploidy occurs through the formation of a hybrid between two species, followed by genome duplication. This mechanism of speciation is common in plants, including in crop plants. While artificial allopolyploid plants have been studied in the laboratory, allopolyploidy remains understudied in natural populations. Polystichum californicum is a fern species thought to have originated via multiple independent allopolyploidization events throughout its […]

Elliot Lewis

In recent years, there has been a proliferation of speculation concerning the significance of new digital technologies on social relations, culture, and political economy. French philosopher and social theorist Bernard Stiegler is one of the more prominent of such New Media theorists, who aims at a philosophical transformation in our understanding of the technological mediation of social processes of individuation, production, and consumption. For my research, I am carrying out a critical study of Stieglers work, as it concentrates several pressing contemporary problematics within critical social theory into an exemplary […]

Jacqueline Dang

I am working with my SURF mentor on optimizing binding of mannose conjugated nanosheets to E. Coli bacteria by controlling expression of pili. Loop are created on the nanosheet surface in an air-water interface by a rocking mechanism. These loops protrude from the nanosheet bilayer, mimicking glycoproteins and glycolipids that protrude from cell membrane surfaces.Type 1 pili, which are the structures that project from bacterial cell surfaces that govern binding, are primarily controlled by the fim operon. The fim operon has a multitude of constituent elements that code for fimbrae […]

Zisu Dong

Reconstructing dense models of real-world 3D scenes is important for autonomous driving tasks. However, motion estimation for an agile single camera moving through general, unknown scenes has proved to be a challenging problem. The task becomes much more challenging in autonomous driving when real-time performance is required under disturbance of transient change of moving objects (e.g. vehicles, pedestrians) and surrounding environments (e.g. lighting conditions). The goal of this project is to build a pipeline for processing driving videos gathered by on-dash car camera on top of existing Structure from Motion […]

Ryan Lee

Some of the biggest technological hurdles come from the existence of electrical resistance in everyday materials, causing a waste of energy. High-temperature superconductivity is a great solution to this problem. High-temperature superconductors can conduct electricity without dissipating any energy and possess many special magnetic properties, making them useful for long distance power transmission, power storage, transportation, and magnetic medical imaging. However, the currently best high-temperature superconductors still require cryogenic temperatures to be superconducting, making them cost inefficient. Explaining the cause for their behavior has perplexed scientists for many decades, and […]