Amy Wu

This research project examines the rich history and future of midwives of color in the Bay Area through the novel implementation of Science, Technology and Society (STS) frameworks. By defining the midwifery model of care conceived by Bay Area midwives of color as a complex sociotechnical system, the process by which midwives of color have created their models of care can be explored at the intersection of the nation’s capitalistic healthcare system, historic attempts to destroy the knowledge produced by grand midwives in the antebellum period and broader African diaspora, […]

Divij Sharma

Strong gravitational lenses (deflection of light into multiple images by gravitational field of mass concentrations like galaxies) have been used as cosmological probes. These techniques involve ratios of distances between the observers, lens, and source. DSPL systems involve two sources lensed by the same foreground mass concentration. They provide a unique cosmological geometric probe through distance ratios involving the source and lens. Cosmic acceleration has been described using a form of energy called dark energy. Previous work by my advisor has shown that the DSPL key distance ratio is nearly […]

Alexander Richardson

Geometric flows, such as the Ricci flow, Yang-Mills flow, and harmonic map flow, are natural ways to smooth out geometric objects (metric, connection and maps, respectively). In this research project, we will explore the idea of using geometric flows to develop new analytic tools for studying geometric objects. A possible goal of this project is to use geometric flows to solve problems in dispersive PDEs that involve geometric objects.

Tannya Tang

In arthropods and vertebrates, Hox genes determine how an organism develops along the axis running from its head to its tail. Little is known of Hox function outside of these standard animal models, but studies in annelids (segmented worms) suggest that Hox genes not only play a conserved role in embryonic patterning, but are also deployed in ways specific to annelids. For example, hox3 is expressed around the posterior growth zone (PGZ), from which all new segments arise. I hypothesize that hox3 is a stem cell marker in annelids that […]

Alexander Toller

Suppose that we have a (finite or infinite) series of independent, identically distributed real-valued random variables (increments of time). From this series, we can form a random walk. We can consider the partial sums of this series and analyze the average value of the walk the partial sum divided by the number of increments up to that point at each of its time increments. This project is focused on studying the distribution of the maximum average value of a random walk through a variety of computational algorithms. While there already […]

Jiayi Tan

People with high level of nearsightedness will have a 5- to 10-fold chance of developing glaucoma, cataract, and sight-threatening diseases such as retinal detachment later in life. Atropine eye drop is one of the most effective therapies for nearsightedness control. I will conduct a small-scaled randomized controlled trial to understand the impact of eye color on the effectiveness of atropine eye drop. Many studies on atropine have focused on Asian populations, and few studies have compared the effect of atropine between Asians and Europeans, who tend to have much lighter […]

Tiffany Tian

Up to half of Wilsons disease patients suffer from sleep disorders, including poor sleep quality, REM behavioral disorders (RBD), and cataplexy. However, the neural basis of these symptoms is poorly understood. My project this summer is to determine whether the ATP7B-/- knockout mouse is a good model system for studying the sleep disorders manifested in Wilsons disease, especially in the context of neural pathways involving copper homeostasis. Using automated sleep scoring methods, we will quantify sleep signatures in ATP7B-/- knockout and wildtype control mice. The brain copper changes in recorded […]

Duyi (Tina) Kuang

The ability to reliably leap and land on unfamiliar and unstable surfaces is instrumental to squirrels’ survival and navigation of arboreal environments. In previous studies, squirrels quickly learned to modify impulse generation upon repeated leaps from unfamiliar, compliant beams and rapidly adjusted foot placement to compensate for rotating rods. Understanding how squirrels adjust to unexpected landing conditions could not only help us better understand their morphological adaptations but could also provide innovative solutions in developing bio-inspired robots. Current jumping robots, such as UC Berkeley’s SALTO, are only capable of using […]

Ria Khera

Memories in the brain are encoded in specialized neurons called “engram cells,” which are active during an initial event and the recall of that event. Little is known about how these cells form, but exposure to traumatic stress has previously been linked to an increase in the number of engram cells. The goal of my research is to examine the formation of engram cells in multiple areas of the brain after exposure to stress and determine if the increased presence of these cells results in PTSD-like behavior in mice. Understanding […]

Erin Lee

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) and strokes are ongoing public health crises, taking millions of lives annually and leaving survivors chronically disabled. They commonly affect the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), an integrative center for the brain’s reward and decision-making circuit. Thus, damage to the OFC can cause behavioral deficits, including impulsivity and impaired decision-making. My research examines the brain’s capacity for compensatory and functional reorganization in intact tissue following injury or lesion, which is crucial to furthering the clinical potential of neurorehabilitation. Previous analyses done by the D’Esposito Lab have found that […]