Poster presentations, session II

Biochemistry

"Evaluating HDAC11 Inhibitor in RNA Splicing and Liver Cancer Cell Biology"
Presented by Mitchell Galyen
Project advisors: Ed Seto and Jenna Clements

Histone deacetylase 11 (HDAC11) is a lysine defatty-acylase that is prognostic, indicating poor outcomes, for liver cancer patients. Although it is an understudied enzyme, HDAC11 is known to drive protein localization through de-fatty acylation, and HDAC11 interacts with RNA machinery and impacts RNA splicing*. RNA splicing is dysregulated in cancers and could be the mechanism through which HDAC11 mediates liver cancer progression. Thus, the study of HDAC11 and its interactions with RNA splicing and processing in liver cancer cells could enhance the understanding of liver cancer and expand treatment avenues. This research aimed to define whether an HDAC11 inhibitor' regulated the nuclear/cytoplasmic localization of RNA-associated proteins and whether HDAC11 TD034 (HDAC 11i) inhibition and RNA splicing inhibition could cooperate to inhibit cancer progression. GFP-tagged proteins–IQGAP1, SF2, YTHDF3, and NOP56–were obtained from Addgene. HEK-293T cells were transfected with five different splicing-associated GFP-tagged proteins and then treated with 10 µM HDAC11 inhibitor (HDAC11i) for 24 to 48 hours. Images captured GFP-tagged proteins and nuclei stained with DAPI. GFP-Flag was used as a negative control. By microscopy, the protein IQGAP1 increased at the plasma membrane after 24 hours of HDAC11 inhibitor treatment. IQGAP1 is tied to both RNA splicing and cancer cell biology, and could be the missing link between HDAC11 and these processes. Future studies will include expanded sample sizes and computational analysis of localization. By scratch assay, the HDAC11 inhibitor and the spliceosome inhibitor both decreased migration of the cell line Hepa1-6, although there was not a combinatory effect.

Biology

"Sixth Year Summary of Muskrat Population Studies at Two Audubon Society Nature Preserves in North Central Illinois"
Presented by Dr. Bohdan Dziadyk, Professor Emeritus, Augustana College

In 2023, the sixth consecutive year of this project, I studied selected characteristics of muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus, Cricetidae) populations at the Illinois Audubon Society's 160 ha Gremel Nature Preserve and the adjacent 119 ha Amboy Marsh Nature Preserve both in Lee County, north central Illinois.  The direct observation method (with binoculars) was used to estimate muskrat numbers and to record  behavior. Unlike the previous years when the counting of leaf nests and bank dens from the frozen ponds was conducted, the deep snow of this winter made that  impossible. Nevertheless, I did estimate leaf nests at the Main Pond at the Gremel preserve.  At Main Pond the number of muskrats counted during visits on alternate weekends from spring to early fall averaged (consecutively from 2018 to 2023)  4.08, 4.57, 3.18, 5.27, 2.36, 5.87 (df = 5, @ = 0.95, X2 = 2.13). Due to a combination of drought and water level manipulation in some ponds, virtually no muskrats were observed in other wetlands of the two preserves, nor were leaf nests observed from shore of any ponds other than Main Pond. There, only nine leaf nests were observable and only in the cat-tail zones against the north berm of the pond. In a continuation of this study  I hope to restore the crucial bank den and leaf nest data that were missed in 2023. 

Environmental Studies

"Ubiquitous Microplastics in Fluvial Sediments of Urban Stream Systems in Davenport and Bettendorf, Iowa"
Presented by Eulle Stann Casaquite
Project advisors: Dr. Michael Reisner and Dr. Jeff Strasser

This research delves into the pervasive issue of microplastic pollution, aiming to provide a more comprehensive understanding of its occurrence in urban stream sediments. Microplastics are generally defined as plastic particles less than 5 mm in diameter. Microplastics can be derived from diverse sources, and once released in the environment they can persist for years, posing potential threats to the ecosystems. Study sites are located within three small urban watersheds in Davenport and Bettendorf, IA: Goose, Pheasant, and Silver Creeks, all tributaries of Duck Creek and the Mississippi River. All sites are close to urban communities and are home to a diverse assemblage of aquatic organisms. 50 grams of sediment were collected for each sample from sedimentary banks, which were generally sandy and non-vegetated. Samples were processed by sieving, density separation, organic digestion, and vacuum filtration. Nile Red Dye was added to each sample to facilitate the identification and quantification of microplastics. All study sites contained microplastics in the sediments, with microplastic concentrations generally increasing downstream in each system. These findings underscore the need for continued efforts to monitor microplastic pollution in bed load and suspended load sediments and to investigate their potential impacts on ecosystems.

Environmental Studies; Geology

"Evaluation of Indoor Radon Concentrations for the Quad Cities (Rock Island County, IL, and Scott County, IA)"
Presented by Emily Martin
Project advisor: Dr. Michael Wolf

Radon is an invisible, tasteless, and odorless gas that decays naturally from rocks within the Earth. The gas also happens to be the second leading cause of lung cancer in the US. It has been theorized that radon is problematic within the United States Midwest because of the abundance of homes with basements. Previous research has shown that radon levels are highly variable within homes, but there has been no conclusive result as to what is influencing them. In addition to the unknown factors, there has been little research done in the Midwest. Through RadonEye© data collection around the Quad Cities and statistical analysis, this study aimed to spread awareness of the radon’s potential effects, as well as begin to fill the research gap in Midwestern radon data. The results of this project argue that sump pumps play a role in a household indoor radon concentration but that the levels are still highly impacted by many other factors, not one alone. 

"Earthquake Relocation in Southeastern New Mexico to Better Understand Induced Seismicity"
Presented by Niah Tyler
Project advisors: Mairi Litherland and Amy Record

Between June 28th to June 30th of 2020, a swarm of 603 earthquakes occurred in southeastern New Mexico within the Permian Basin. Seismometers in the area were able to record basic seismic information and standard location quality, but these locations needed to be clearer to understand subsurface faults and possible paths of fluid injection. To obtain more precise locations of this swarm, we used GrowClust, a relative relocation algorithm that relocates earthquake hypocenters based on the double-difference technique and waveform cross-correlation. GrowClust produced relocation data in the form of coordinates that we translated into maps in order to see the progression of the swarm in time and space. We successfully relocated 380 seismic events, which when mapped shows cleaner, linear features indicating possible subsurface faults which have not been previously mapped. This study therefore enables us to piece together a more complete understanding of local subsurface faults which may be influenced by nearby oil and wastewater injection operations within the Permian Basin. Future research could focus on similar reprocessing of events recorded in New Mexico’s earthquake catalog, implementing the GrowClust relocation technique in other areas.

Environmental Studies; UMC

"Analysis of Microplastics in Freshwater Urban Watersheds"
Presented by Briana Reagan
Project advisors: Brittany L. McCall and Dr. Michael Reisner

Microplastics (MP) are defined as particles <5 mm in diameter and can accumulate in urban water streams, potentially causing harm to the ecosystems they reside in. With microplastics being an ongoing concern for our environment, the impact that they have on organisms needs to also be analyzed. We collected and dissected Semotilus atromaculatus (Creek Chub; N = 15), an opportunistic feeder and top predator, from three urbanized tributaries in the Duck Creek watershed in Davenport, IA. Specimens were weighed, measured for standard length, and assessed for MP presence and abundance in their gills, gut, and muscle. Triplicate water and sediment samples were taken from the same sites to assess for the presence and abundance of MPs. Preliminarily, a total of 5274 MPs were collected from the Duck Creek watershed (average ± SD; 1758 ± 192/tributary). A total of 7535 MPs were extracted from S. atromaculatus specimens (2512 ± 116/tributary). There was no significant difference in where MP accumulated in S. atromaculatus. More samples are still needed and identifying the potential accumulation of MP within tissues and water systems will help create a better understanding of MPs role within freshwater systems and the potential hazards they can create within ecosystems. It is also important to acknowledge how MPs can impact freshwater fish health and potentially pose a threat for human consumption.

Geography

"Mapping Bike Safety in the Quad Cities"
Presented by Dr. Chris Strunk, Carter Thompson and Ally Magsombol

Even as many U.S. cities have implemented more bike and pedestrian infrastructure in recent decades, walking and cycling have become less safe. In order to assess the safety of cyclists in the Quad Cities, we conducted a spatial analysis of crashes involving cyclists and pedestrians. We also an analyzed the results of an online survey to better understand the experiences of cyclists and to develop recommendations for new bike infrastructure and safer roadways in the Quad Cities. 

Geology

"Ultramafic Rocks in North Carolina: Using Spinel-group Mineral Chemistry to Understand their Tectonic Significance"
Presented by Jack Hughes
Project advisors: George Guice and Celine Martin

The Appalachian and Caledonian mountains extend from Norway to Alabama. Mountain growth occurred on two separated continental masses separated by the Iapetus Ocean, which closed because of subduction, and created Pangea. Low silica bearing rocks (ultramafic) can be found withing the Appalachian-Caledonian system are a major constituent of ophiolites, which are fragments of oceanic lithosphere. Ophiolites were obducted onto the continent because multiple orogenic events throughout Paleozoic. Understanding the origin of ultramafic rocks in the Appalachian Caledonian mountains can provide insight into the mechanisms of plate tectonics. My research examined three ultramafic sites: the Leka Ophiolite Complex (LOC) Norway, Buck Creek, and Webster-Addie, North Carolina. By comparing geochemical data across samples, North Carolina, samples can be interpreted as either an ophiolite or a fossilized magma chamber. Petrography for all samples is described and 6 samples were chemically analyzed utilizing the electron microprobe at the American Museum of Natural History. Leka samples showed variation in Fe2+ and Fe3+ with ratios ranging from 0.99 Fe2+/0.98 Fe3+ to 0.49 Fe2+/0.05 Fe3+ producing a clear trend of alteration. North Carolina samples had low Fe3+ plotting primary and secondary data along the Fe2+/Fe3+ plot at similar points indicating the samples have undergone heavy metamorphism, however, no primary mineral phases were clear. Comparison of resulting chemical data and use of Cr # (molar Cr/([Cr+Al]) and TiO2 (wt. %) yield two possible conclusions: (1) The North Carolina samples resemble an ancient, fossilized magma chamber; and (2) the North Carolina samples indicate a trend of alteration undergone by ophiolites. 

"Analysis and Description of the Iridescent Thin-Film on Calcites in Eastern Iowa"
Presented by Cavit Schempp
Project advisor: Dr. Michael Wolf

During the Devonian Period, eastern to central Iowa experienced multiple transgressive and regressive intervals.  This study focuses on the Cou Falls and Gizzard Creek Members of the Coralville Formation, deposited during the Eifelian Stage. Sometime after the formation of the limestone, the interiors of various brachiopods, gastropods, and other fauna began to weather out, creating vugs within the limestone, which gave rise to the first of three growth phases of calcite in the form of rhombohedrons and scalenohedrons.  After these primary calcites were formed, new fluids flowed through these vugs, depositing an iridescent film of previously unknown composition on the calcite crystals, observed in multiple locations in the region. After the thin-film formed, two more phases of calcites grew: a secondary growth of large, white rhombohedrons and a tertiary growth of large scalenohedrons. These differences in morphologies are probably related to progressive changes in elemental concentrations of the groundwater. The focus of this research is to determine the thin-film composition and identify geochemical conditions of precipitation on the primary crystals. Based on SEM analysis, the film’s composition is a mix of aluminum, calcium, nitrogen, silicon, and sulfur.  When vugs are exposed to the natural elements, the film begins to disappear.   Through experiments to simulate the natural environments of sunlight, rain, and groundwater for 100 days, it is evident that the film does not deteriorate within that time frame.

"Experimental Growth of MVT Sulfide Mineralization"
Presented by Kacey Plambeck
Project advisor: Dr. Michael Wolf

Mississippi Valley Type (MVT) deposits are a major Pb-Zn ore system. These deposits exist globally and as such are extremely important economically and for access to mineral resources. MVT deposits are formed by saline ore brine solutions that precipitate the sulfide minerals that make up these deposits. One of the leading hypotheses for precipitation is a model of “fluid mixing” where metal-rich, sulfide-poor fluids mix with sulfide-rich, metal-poor fluids. In studying MVT deposits, and the fluid mixing model extensive analysis and modeling of MVT deposits has been done; however very little work has been done experimentally recreating the mechanisms of MVT mineralization. This study aims to recreate the conditions of MVT mineralization by following a fluid mixing model to drive precipitation. 

"Ecological Evolution Throughout Time – Comparing the Diversity of the Jurassic Morrison Formation and Modern Analog Serengeti Fauna"
Presented by Makayla Palm
Project advisor: Dr. Kelsey Arkle 

The Morrison Formation has one of the most diverse ecosystems in the Mesozoic fossil record, with a diverse predator population and equally abundant herbivore population. There are several top predators in the Morrison Formation ecosystem, including Allosaurus, Torvosaurus, Ceratosaurus and Saurophaganax. To better understand how these predators were able to coexist without exclusive competition, the Morrison Formation was compared to a modern-day analog to test if predator-prey dynamics in a Jurassic-age ecosystem promote diversity. The modern-day analog chosen was the Serengeti of Tanzania, as it is recorded to have the largest concentration of apex predators in one ecosystem. The Serengeti also has the world’s largest population of ungulates, which means the Serengeti has a diverse set of herbivores within the ecosystem. Both the Morrison Formation and the Serengeti show evidence of ecosystems dependent on meandering stream systems with annual migratory patterns, further painting the illustration of similarity between them. To quantitatively compare the ecosystems, they were partitioned into weight classes and statistically analyzed to measure species evenness, richness, and rank abundance. Body mass estimates for the Morrison Formation fossil material were calculated from femur and humerus circumferences, and estimated circumference measurements constructed from a linear model. Using the Kmolgorov-Smirnoff test, these ecosystems have been found to not be statistically different.

"Using Modern Analog Technique of Foraminifera to Track the Neogene Migration of the Orinoco River in Trinidad"
Presented by Alex Wandrey
Project advisors: Dr. Kelsey Arkle and Dr. Jenny Arkle

Major fluvial discharge significantly impacts the characteristics of the offshore environment. South America’s Orinoco River - while not as well-known as the nearby Amazon - boasts the fourth-highest average discharge of any river globally. Following the uplift of the Andes in the middle Eocene, the Orinoco River is believed to have migrated eastward along the northern edge of South America to reach its current position about 10 Mya. It’s unclear, however, exactly when the Orinoco River first reached the area just south of Trinidad off the northeast corner of South America. This research aims to clarify the timing of the shift to the Orinoco River’s modern flow and determine its ecological impacts by examining changing community structures of Neogene benthic foraminifera – and their modern analogs - from the Southern Basin of Trinidad.

The biodiversity of foraminiferal assemblages from a drill core in the Southern Basin of Trinidad was analyzed through time to determine what changes were imparted by the onset of mid-Miocene Orinoco deposition. Then, information on modern foraminiferal distributions was gathered from the online global database OBIS. Based on modern distributions and abundances of conspecifics from the core, we predicted the likely depths, temperatures, and salinities for each section in the core. Using these methods, we found a significant change in foraminifera biodiversity at the Miocene-Pliocene boundary, marking the hypothesized establishment of modern Orinoco flow. Work is still underway to establish probable ranges based on the modern-analog technique, but we anticipate a trend of shallowing depths and a decrease in salinity associated with increased sediment deposition and influx of freshwater from the modern Orinoco River.

Neuroscience

"EEG Synchrony Across Different Social Interaction Modalities"
Presented by Megan Markiewicz, Manuela Chavez, Josie Hathaway, Anna Killilea, Mariola Tesoro Ricote and Dr. Rupa Gordon

The neural activity of communication partners tends to synchronize, which can enhance social connection and comprehension (Stephens et al., 2010). This has been shown using multiple methods, including EEG, and across different types of interactions: audio-only, video-only, and face-to-face interactions (Kuhlen et al., 2012; Kinreich et al., 2017). However, there has been limited research comparing synchrony levels across these different types of interactions. Moreover, the richness of these different interactions can impact social connection and comprehension. There was a linear relationship such that face-to-face interactions were rated the highest in closeness and responsiveness, video and audio were intermediate, and text interactions were the lowest (Sprecher, 2014). Therefore, we hypothesize that there will be a linear relationship between richness of interaction modality, EEG synchrony, social connection, and comprehension during communication. Speakers were video recorded as they retold two short stories in their own words while EEG was recorded. Listeners were randomly assigned to hear audio or video recordings of the speakers retelling the two stories while their EEG was recorded. In the final condition, participants were face-to-face as a speaker retold the stories while EEG was concurrently recorded from both participants. Listeners answered questions about story comprehension, familiarity and social connection with the speaker. EEG synchrony was analyzed by calculating the running correlation of the percentage of total beta power of the pairs compared across the three conditions. This research has important implications for understanding factors that can impact neural synchrony and their relationship to language comprehension and social connection.

"Sex Differences in Language Lateralization"
Presented by Genevieve Berryman
Project advisors: Dr. Rupa Gordon and Dr. Daniel Corts

In order to examine sex differences in lateralization and language processing, males and females (19M, 20F) completed a semantic-based task while alpha and beta asymmetry was recorded using EEG. Consistent with recent meta analyses, no significant differences were found in male and female lateralization. However, no difference was observed in task performance despite females being hypothesized to outperform males in linguistic tasks. 

"Investigating DVOCS, Activity, and Cognitive Bias in the Chick Anxiety-Depression Model"
Presented by Anna Killilea and Sierra White
Project advisor: Dr. Shara Stough

Anxiety and depression disorders are among the most prevalent lifetime disorders, occurring within 16.6% and 28.8% of the United States population, respectively (Kessler et al., 2005). Over half of those diagnosed with a mood disorder also meet criteria for a comorbid anxiety disorder within 12 months. In fact, generalized anxiety disorder shares a higher comorbidity with major depressive disorder than with other anxiety disorders, and greater genetic similarity in twin studies. Furthermore, antidepressant medications are often used to treat anxiety (reviewed in Watson, 2005). The Anxiety-Depression model in chicks was developed to explore these symptoms as potential expression of a single disorder along a continuum. In this model, chicks are exposed to a prolonged stressor (social isolation) and distress vocalizations (DVocs) vary consistently across three phases: an initial high rate of vocalization (anxiety-like phase), a transition phase, and a persistent phase of low rate vocalizations (depression-like phase, thought to mimic despair or learned helplessness). We explored this model to characterize additional relevant behaviors, including activity levels and measures of cognitive bias resulting from the stressor. Furthermore, we tested the impact of an enriched environment during early development on the anxiety-depression chick model since it is known to improve hippocampal function (Cortese et al., 2018) and early life experiences can serve as risk or protective factors, and many of these also impact hippocampal development and function (Bredy, et al., 1997). Research that explores the validity of the chick anxiety-depression model can increase the utility of this model to shed light on potential mechanisms and treatments that can be applied to human disease.

"On Storytelling, or There and Back Again"
Presented by Lucas Fahnoe
Project advisors: Dr. Ian Harrington and Dr. Heidi Storl

The objective of this study is to investigate the influence of gesture, and thereby the body, as a distinctive mode of language, particularly within the storytelling process. Previous research has already suggested that gesture plays a predominant role in our everyday sense of language (Goldin-Meadow, 1999), having been shown to occur synchronously with speech in a variety of settings, ranging from giving a lecture to retelling a story (McNeill, 2005). Related research has conducted intriguing yet scant work on what I call inconsistent gesture, occurring when that which is spoken fails to align with that which is gestured (McNeill, Cassell, & McCullough, 1994; Cassell, McNeill, & McCullough, 1998). In the present project, this aspect will be deliberately manipulated to observe the effect of inconsistent gesture on the listening-to and retelling-of a short story. While trials are still being run and thus data is still being collected, my expectation is that, as a result of being exposed to inconsistent gesture in the listening-to portion, participants will alter their retelling-of the story in a significant way. Eye-tracking technology and skin conductance responses measures will also be implemented to further understand how relevant gesture is within the storytelling process.

"Fear and Social Motivation in Young Chicks"
Presented by Eilis Hannon, Jack McCurdy and Fernando Munguia
Project advisor: Dr. Shara Stough

We were interested in exploring sex differences in fear and social motivation in young chickens. Previous published research demonstrated that female chicks have higher social motivation than male chicks and that males have higher baseline fear. However, most studies use a live chick (usually a cagemate) as the social stimulus and a different stimulus (often a form of food) as the non-social stimulus. Chicks are neophobic (afraid of new stimuli), so there is a fear confound present in these social stimuli. Cagemates are more familiar - and less fear-inducing - than nonfamiliar food stimuli. We wanted to further explore sex differences in fear and social motivation by using non-alive social stimuli to gain a more complete picture of whether sex differences exist in these chick behaviors.

In Experiment 1, chicks preferred to spend significantly more time in the half of the test apparatus that contained a mirror (reflecting their image), rather than a 2-dimensional color image of a chick. Thus, we used the mirror as the social stimulus in Experiment 2. In this experiment, each chick was habituated to the dark start box for 2 minutes before a trap door raised and they were allowed to explore the runway apparatus for 5 minutes. The mirror served as the social goal at the end of the runway. Variables used to measure fear and social motivation included: latency to emerge from the start box, total distance traveled in the runway and in the goal box (the final 10cm of the runway nearest the social stimulus), linear distance traveled toward the social stimulus, latency to reach the goal box, and time spent in the goal box. We hypothesized that females would have higher levels of social motivation in comparison to males who are likely to experience higher levels of baseline fear.

Physics

"Automating Data Acquisition for Entangled Photon Measurement"
Presented by Viet M. Bui
Project advisor: Dr. Jim van Howe

This research project focuses on the development (design, build, and test) of an entangled photon source and interferometer to examine nonlocality, a phenomenon described by Albert Einstein as “spooky action at a distance”, in the optics lab at Augustana. A key component of this project is the automation of data acquisition since complete data collection can take more than 100 hours and requires a room that is free from temperature fluctuations and vibrations -something difficult to achieve with a human experimenter in the lab. Therefore an automated system is not only necessary to streamline the data collection process, but also required to show signatures of nonlocality. The acquisition system entails connecting a motor, photon detectors, and a coincidence counter to collect entangled photon counts over a duration of time and repeat the process for different motor positions. The data collected from this project will provide valuable insights into quantum nonlocality and contribute to the quantum education curriculum at Augustana.

Psychology

"What Really Counts: Comparing Sources of Math Talk in Childhood"
Presented by Rachel Jocson, Courtney Thames and Samuel Vasich
Project advisor: Dr. Megan Lorenz

Previous research has shown that proficient math skills are highly predictive of children’s academic success (Duncan et al., 2007). As a result, understanding where children learn these math skills and how to support their development is crucial. One way that children’s math skills may be supported is through daily interactions and hearing math talk. Studies have found that consistent counting of object sets with children during play, and shared-storybook reading that incorporates math talk (particularly with picture number books) help children comprehend early counting principles (Gibson et al., 2020; Gunderson & Levine, 2011). 

Although these studies highlight great sources for math talk at home, less is known if other sources of input (e.g., children’s television shows) provide effective math talk. To investigate this, we constructed a corpus of 10 popular children’s television shows and randomly selected seven episodes from each to transcribe. We now plan to examine how often math talk occurs in this corpus and compare it to the frequency of math talk in two other established corpora: one of commercially-available storybooks (Montag et al., 2015) and one of child-directed speech (CHILDES; MacWhinney, 2000). We defined “math talk” as the numbers 1-100, numerical action words (e.g., add), and words about quantity (e.g., more). 

We are in the final stages of cleaning the data for analysis and will have it complete by mid-April. By comparing how frequently math talk appears across corpora, we can determine which sources are best for encouraging math talk. This will help develop strategies to increase math talk and enhance math learning to support children’s academic success in primary school and beyond.

"Calling All Caregivers: Examining 'Technoference' in Children's Museums"
Presented by Sam Vasich
Project advisor: Dr. Megan Lorenz

Children’s museums provide a space for meaningful caregiver-child interactions, which have been shown to promote the development of cognitive skills–including language and self-regulation. Despite their importance, previous research has demonstrated that caregiver-child interactions are negatively impacted by ‘technoference’ - when personal digital devices disrupt communication. The present study examined if the frequency of ‘technoference’ differs in exhibits designed to elicit different types of caregiver-child interaction and how the frequency compared to other caregiver behaviors. We observed 77 caregiver-child dyads in an exploratory exhibit (n=43) and a roleplaying exhibit (n=34) and recorded what each member of the dyad did every 20 seconds. Caregiver behaviors were collapsed into four categories: phone usage, observing, teaching, or other. A mixed-effects ANOVA revealed no significant main effect of exhibit type on ‘technoference’, but highlighted that observing occurred more frequently than teaching and phone usage, and teaching occurred more often than phone usage. The results suggest that ‘technoference’ was a noticeable but minor interruption to the caregiver-child interactions and emphasize the importance of having well-designed museum exhibits that further engage families in play to continue to minimize these distractions.

"'Look, a doff!': Word Learning from Books and Screens  through Socially Contingent Interactions"
Presented by Ocean Akau, Averie Taylor and Kara West
Project advisors: Dr. Megan Lorenz and Sarah Kucker

Shared book reading promotes language development in young children (Sénéchal, 1997), most notably when caregivers are socially contingent - attuned to the child and provide well-timed responses and direction. These interactions have also been shown to foster young children’s learning through digital media, including video (Roseberry et al., 2014) and e-books (Dore et al., 2018). We aim to understand how language learning is impacted by the interaction of social contingency levels and various media types.

The current study measures how well children learn from media through shared reading or co-viewing with a caregiver. 86 children aged 30-36 months were exposed to four novel nouns in a lab-created story across one of three modalities (print book, e-book, video). Caregivers were randomly assigned to a condition guiding responsiveness (socially contingent or not socially contingent). Socially contingent caregivers were encouraged to ask questions, repeat words, and react to the story with their child while reading or watching the video. Caregivers in the non-socially contingent condition were told to refrain from additional engagement. Children’s word learning was tested using a referent selection (‘Point-to-X’) task. Finally, parents completed the MCDI-III (Fenson et al., 2006) as a measure of children’s productive vocabulary.

We will conduct a factorial ANCOVA to examine group differences and interactions from responsiveness condition and media type, controlling for children’s vocabulary. We anticipate social contingency will promote language acquisition across modalities. Findings will inform the efficacy of various media forms in young children’s language development, as well as the role of shared reading and viewing on learning outcomes.