Barrett, The Honors College Thesis/Creative Project Collection
Barrett, The Honors College at Arizona State University proudly showcases the work of undergraduate honors students by sharing this collection exclusively with the ASU community.
Barrett accepts high performing, academically engaged undergraduate students and works with them in collaboration with all of the other academic units at Arizona State University. All Barrett students complete a thesis or creative project which is an opportunity to explore an intellectual interest and produce an original piece of scholarly research. The thesis or creative project is supervised and defended in front of a faculty committee. Students are able to engage with professors who are nationally recognized in their fields and committed to working with honors students. Completing a Barrett thesis or creative project is an opportunity for undergraduate honors students to contribute to the ASU academic community in a meaningful way.
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- All Subjects: Diabetes
Description
This research looks at a group of students from Tumaini Children's Home in Nyeri, Kenya. The purpose of this paper is to explore why this particular group of students is so academically successful. Quantitative research was taken from the average 2013 test scores of Tumaini students who took the Kenyan Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) exam in comparison to the scores of students who are not residing in the orphanage. Qualitative research involves interviews from those students who live in Tumaini and interviews from adults who are closely connected to the orphanage. The purpose is to understand why the students are performing so well academically and what support they have created for themselves that allows them to do so.
ContributorsTooker, Amy Elizabeth (Author) / Puckett, Kathleen (Thesis director) / Cocchiarella, Martha (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Division of Teacher Preparation (Contributor)
Created2014-12
Description
The Latino population is the fastest growing minority group in the United States (U.S Census Bureau, 2003). Such a rapidly changing demographic stresses the importance of implementing strategies into the community social framework to accommodate for cultural and language differences. This research paper seeks to answer: what factors influence the sense of community among Latino families in Phoenix? The following questions will help to assess the dynamic relationship between sense of community and literacy 1) what is the perceived importance of literacy among Latino families living in Phoenix? 2) How is language development reflected among the family dynamics within a predominantly collectivist culture? It is hypothesized that both collectivism and literacy are the main influences on sense of community among this population.
ContributorsBennett, Julie (Author) / Glenberg, Arthur (Thesis director) / Restrepo, Laida (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
The development of the Diabetic Physiological state is influenced by the Receptor for Advanced Glycation End Products (RAGE). This receptor was discovered in 1992, and the accumulation of research on this subject has been extensive. Structural characterization studies of the RAGE protein have shown that it is a transmembrane protein that binds a number of different motile ligands. The diversity of ligands that can attach to the binding domain is the primary factor that allows for RAGE to exhibit its wide-range effects on host cells. Two different studies were completed: one study dealt with the role of IAPP in beta cell death, and the second study was related to RAGE influence on cardiomyocytes and, more specifically, it was related to cardiac cell death. After the completion of the two studies, a comprehensive report was written for each topic. The two papers were merged into a single document. Molecular studies are important for understanding the underlying mechanisms that motivate pathophysiological presentation. In addition to a molecular understanding of the development of diabetes, a clinical research study was completed through the examination of appropriate literature sources. This clinical aspect allowed for the progression of different phases in the research process. A relationship between vinegar and lower plasma glucose was found. The exact mechanism behind this relationship will be studied in the future.
ContributorsGonzalez, Matthew Joseph (Author) / Johnston, Carol (Thesis director) / Collins, Michael (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Nutrition and Health Promotion (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
Background: The prevalence of childhood obesity has disproportionately affected Latino youth. This increase in obesity is seen with an increased incidence of Type 2 Diabetes. Objective/Hypothesis: The objective of this study was to determine the effects of a community based lifestyle intervention, which encompassed nutrition education and physical activity, on diabetes risk in pre-diabetic Latino adolescents. Diabetes risk was assessed using pancreatic beta cell function as measured by proinsulin: insulin ratio. It was hypothesized that reductions in added sugar intake and reductions in saturated fat intake will be associated with improved beta cell function as measured by proinsulin: insulin ratio. Study Design/Participants: In this quasi-experimental study design, n=17 pre-diabetic Latino adolescents between the ages of 14-16 participated in a lifestyle intervention. Methods: Anthropometric measurements (weight, height, waist circumference, BMI) and body composition (body %) were determined for all participants at baseline and post intervention. Fasting proinsulin (PI), fasting insulin (I) and 2hr-OGTT were also determined. Dietary intake was measured using the Block Kids Food Screener for kids ages 2-17y (2007). The intervention consisted of nutrition education classes and physical activity sessions for 12 weeks. Results: We found significant decreases in body fat % following the intervention. There were no significant decreases in fasting insulin. Proinsulin significantly decreased. However we did no see a significant change in PI/I (p= 0.003). Dietary behaviors of added sugar (p=0.03) and saturated fat (p=0.04) showed significant decreases. No significant associations were found between changes in added sugar to improvements in beta cell function, r=0.072, p-value= 0.7. We also did not observe significant associations between reductions in saturated fat intake and improvements in beta cell function, r=0.152, p-value =0.6. Conclusions: We concluded that a 12-week lifestyle intervention resulted in significant changes in dietary behaviors. These changes were not however associated with improvements in beta cell function.
ContributorsKaur, Manroop (Author) / Shaibi, Gabriel (Thesis director) / Bruening, Meredith (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Nutrition and Health Promotion (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
There has been an alarming rise in the prevalence of obesity which has been attributed to the paralleled rise in consumption of high-fat foods. It’s commonly accepted that high-fat diets can lead to increased weight gain, however not all fats have the same physiological action. This study primarily focuses on the effect of canola oil, a monounsaturated fat, on energy homeostasis and body composition when it’s given as a supplement to a high-fat diet composed of saturated fatty acid. Rodent models were divided into three dietary groups: 1) low-fat diet (LFD), 2) high-fat diet (HFD) and 3) canola oils supplemented HFD (HF+CAN). After 4 weeks of dietary intervention, samples of epididymal fat, perinephric fat, and liver were analyzed across the three groups to see if the changes in energy homeostasis could be explained by the cellular behavior and composition of these tissues. Interestingly, the supplement of canola oil appeared to reverse the deleterious effects of a saturated fat diet, reverting energy intake, body weight gain and adipose tissue sizes to that (if not lower than that) of the LFD group. The only exception to this effect was the liver: the livers remained larger and fattier than those of the HFD. This occurrence is possibly due to a decrease in free fatty acid uptake in the adipose tissues—resulting in smaller adipose tissue sizes—and increased fatty acid uptake in the liver. The mechanism by which this occurs has yet to be elucidated and will be the primary focus of upcoming studies on the effect of monounsaturated fat on other diets.
ContributorsZuo, Connie Wanda (Author) / Washo-Krupps, Delon (Thesis director) / Deviche, Pierre (Committee member) / Herman, Richard (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry (Contributor) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
Western diets, high in dietary fat and red meat, are associated with hyperglycemia and weight gain, symptoms that promote insulin resistance and diabetes. Previous studies have shown that elevated glucose promotes glycation of circulating proteins such as albumin, which is thought to lead to hyperglycemia complications. It was hypothesized that diets with no meat consumption (pesco-vegetarian and lacto-vegetarian) would reduce protein glycation, in comparison to a diet with meat. Forty six healthy adult omnivorous subjects were randomized into one of three groups and instructed to either consume red meat (i.e. meat) or poultry twice per day (control), eliminate meat and increase fish consumption (pesco-vegetarian), or adopt a vegetarian diet devoid of fish, meat or poultry (lacto-vegetarian) for four weeks. Fasting plasma samples were collected from participants at baseline and after 4 weeks of the dietary intervention. Plasma glucose concentrations were measured using a commercially available kit. Percent glycated albumin was measured on a separate aliquot of plasma by mass spectrometry. Plasma glucose concentrations were significantly increased following 4-weeks of pesco-vegetarian diet (P=0.002, paired t-test). Neither the lacto-vegetarian (P=0.898) or the control diet (P=0.233) affected plasma glucose concentrations. Despite the significant increase in plasma glucose following a pesco-vegetarian diet, no change in percent glycated albumin was observed (P>0.50, ANOVA). These findings may indicate a protective effect of the pesco-vegetarian diet on protein glycation in the presence of elevated plasma glucose and suggest the need for additional studies to examine the link between increased fish consumption and glucose regulation.
ContributorsRaad, Noor (Author) / Sweazea, Karen (Thesis director, Committee member) / Borges, Chad (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor)
Created2015-05
Description
Introduction/Purpose: This paper describes the process of the community needs assessment phase of program implementation for the Student Health Outreach for Wellness (SHOW) clinic. Homeless individuals are more likely (than non homeless individuals) to experience serious illness, depression and mental illness. Access to health care has been identified as a barrier to receiving appropriate health care to manage the diseases and conditions clients may have. SHOW's vision is to operate on Saturdays utilizing Health Care for the Homeless (HCH) to offer extended primary health care hours, along with offering health promotion programming to address the biopsychosocial components of their health. Ultimately, this aims to reduce the homeless population's need to visit emergency room departments for non- urgent, primary care visits. Methods: To validate the need for this clinic's operation of programming and health services, a community needs assessment was conducted to collect data about the population's current health status. Forty-three people (n=43) ages 20-76 (M = 44.87) were surveyed by a trained research team using interview questionnaires. Results: The results show a prevalence of self\u2014reported physical and behavioral conditions, and support that this population would benefit from extended hours of care. Mental and behavioral health conditions are the most prevalent conditions (with the highest rates of depression (41.86%) and anxiety disorder (32.56%)), followed by the common cold (23.36%) and back pain (16.28%). The average reported emergency department (ED) visits within the past six months was 1.18 times. Almost everyone surveyed would visit a free medical clinic on the Human Services Campus (HSC) staffed by health staff and health professional students on the weekends (93.18%). Conclusion: Overall, the community needs assessment conducted for SHOW supports the need for weekend access to health care facilities and an interest in health programming for this population.
ContributorsShqalsi, Eneida Agustin (Author) / Hoffner, Kristin (Thesis director) / Harrell, Susan (Committee member) / Harper, Erin (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Nutrition and Health Promotion (Contributor)
Created2015-05