core-program

pods

pathfinders

programs

about-us

program

team

careers

projects

mentors

project-ideas

blog

mentor-faq

scholars

reviews

symposium

research-archive

research-opportunities-for-high-school-students

showcasing-research-projects-why-is-it-important

research-for-college-applications-how-to-frame

true-meaning-of-test-optional-and-test-blind-admissions

publishing-vs-showcasing-your-research

research-paper-how-to

science-experiments-for-high-school-students-how-to-do-at-home

how-to-get-into-college

college-admissions-edge

how-to-stand-out-to-colleges

white-paper

passion-projects-examples

top-internships

Our next fall deadline is October 15, 2023 11:59pm PT. Apply today to lock in your spot!

10-session deep dive into a research topic of your choice

6-week research project with an expert and peers who share your passion

A career discovery experience with 3 expert mentors in your chosen fields

research-ideas-for-high-school-students

research-opportunity-guides

showcasing-opportunities

student-faq

for-mentors

for-educators

for-parents

resources

about

outcomes

Rhea is working on the definition and design of a social housing project. We are looking at the history of affordable housing, what makes them more or less succesful, and how they impact the community. Based on this research and analysis, we are proposing our own design, situated somewhere between a utopic vision and a grounded proposal. The idea is to fabricate an architectural project that answers all the constraints of affordable housing while proposing a new alternative to their existing form. 

Architecture, Design, Fabrication, Digital Modeling and Drawing.

Affordable Housing

Rhea is looking into the Minneapolis City Hall building as a focus of architectural study.  She is interested in examining the geometry, patterns, and scales deployed in the utilization of windows, and in understanding how each part contributes to how we perceive the whole.  She is interested in structuring the paper as a comparison of City Hall to another building, probably one from the renaissance or one that's more modern.  She will approach the topic through research and writing as well as drawings.

architecture, art history, resilient design, preservation

Geometric Strategies in Minneapolis City Hall

Tumor formation requires rapid proliferation of malignant cells, which consume large amounts of oxygen from the microenvironment to meet metabolic demands. The resulting tumor microenvironment (TME) is usually low in oxygen compared to healthy tissue and left in a hypoxic state. Immune cells in the tissue rely on oxygen for energy production, therefore immune function is often inhibited in the TME. Novel immunotherapy treatments aim to reinvigorate the immune system, thus making hypoxia a concrete barrier against immunotherapeutics targeting solid tumors. Furthermore, oxygen levels are highly variable depending on the tissue, raising the question of the influence of physoxia on immune cell survival in hypoxic counterparts. This review aims to provide insight into the mechanisms that influence this question, using an in-silico approach, in order to understand how the field can improve immunotherapy treatments for patients.

Immunology, virology, genetic engineering, CRISPR, design gene therapy using CRISPR, create business model to start a biotech, create pitch deck to raise money for a biotech

Effect of Hypoxia on Resistance to Immunotherapy

The project will be to develop a RISC-V processor that supports efficient neural network operations. Using ISA extensions and/or a co-processor design, we will support vector/matrix operations and activation functions natively. Low-precision operations may be a goal as well. We would like to emulate the processor on Amazon Web Services, using F1 FPGA instances. Along the way, we hope to develop skills on writing good RTL and understand the basics of computer architecture, deep neural networks, and logic design/synthesis. The final goal will be to demonstrate our processor running a complete neural network end-to-end natively and efficiently.

circuits, electronics, nanotechnology, nanoscience, material science, computer networks, internet security, internet privacy, physics, quantum mechanics, computer architecture

Developing a Custom Processor for Efficient Neural Network Operation

Introduction - Energy drinks are common in the diets of teenagers. Despite the increase in consumption in American teenagers, little has been done to study its effects on the anxiety and depressive behaviors of teenagers.

Methods - 25 participants were selected including a majority of Asians and Caucasians between the ages of 12 to 22 with an average age of 16.04 years old. The participants filled out a survey that recorded a baseline for a week, and then drank increasing dosages of energy drinks the following week while continuing to fill out a survey. They filled out a survey that was designed with SIG E CAPS indicators on each day, and the results were compared using a student’s t-test. 

Results - The results were not statistically significant, but this supports that the caffeine limit set by the Food and Drug Administration does indeed prevent negative effects of caffeine on adolescents. One participant, with a pre-existing psychiatric condition, withdrew from the study after his markers of anxiety were significantly higher in the week that he took the energy drinks. 

Discussion - While the study was limited in both scale and dosage, it did fall in alignment with the body of literature that preceded it. To formulate a statistically significant study with results that have a higher confidence level, the dosage of caffeine and the number of participants who consume it would need to be increased.

Conclusion - The study, while not being statistically significant, reinforced the pediatric limit of caffeine and opened the door to further studies that involve a higher dosage or more participants.

Biology, Virology, Medicine, Health, Infectious Disease, Covid-19, Immunology, Anatomy, Addiction, Opioid Epidemic, Neuroscience, Animal Behavior, Psychiatry, any additional topic within health/medicine.

Analysis of Anxiety and Depression in the Context of Commercially-Available Energy Beverage Consumption

Primordial gravitational waves could hold significant information about the conditions of the early formation of the universe up to 300,000 years after the Big Bang and possibly further. More specifically, it would hold information and possible evidence for Inflation, a theorized period of exponential expansion after the Big Bang. Some of this information may be imprinted on the CMB, the relic radiation from the Recombination period 300,000 years after the Big Bang. These imprints would be in the form of b-mode polarization. However, the imprints of the primordial gravitational waves on the CMB are obscured by other perturbations to the CMB in the form of both current day and primordial signals. Thus it is necessary to find a way to separate b-mode polarization from other noise in the CMB.



Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. Sed ut perspiciatis unde omnis iste natus error sit voluptatem accusantium doloremque laudantium, totam rem aperiam, eaque ipsa quae ab illo inventore veritatis et quasi architecto beatae vitae dicta sunt explicabo. Nemo enim ipsam voluptatem quia voluptas sit aspernatur aut odit aut fugit, sed quia consequuntur magni dolores eos qui ratione voluptatem sequi nesciunt. Neque porro quisquam est, qui dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet, consectetur, adipisci velit, sed quia non numquam eius modi tempora incidunt ut labore et dolore magnam aliquam quaerat voluptatem.

Astrophysics Theory, Astrophysics Experiment, Particle Physics Theory

How can we find imprints of primordial gravitational waves on the CMB?

Neurodegeneration is the progressive decline of neurons in the brain and spinal cord. Motor neuron diseases are groups of neurological disorders destroying muscle activity by killing motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord. Alongside diseases like Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Multiple Sclerosis, Spinal Muscular Atrophy is an inherited autosomal recessive disease affecting lower motor neurons. This paper will review different Spinal Muscular Atrophy in detail including causes, effects, and potential clinical treatments. The paper will begin with a brief overview of Spinal Muscular Atrophy and its medical classifications, which are based on physical milestones and age of diagnosis. The paper will further dive into the genetic causes of Spinal Muscular Atrophy, which is caused by a mutation in the Survival Motor Neuron genes. The Survival Motor Neuron genes create proteins essential to the functionality of motor neurons, and when this gene mutates, motor neurons die which leads to muscle weakness and other symptoms. The paper continues to discuss the specific effects the lack of the Survival Motor Neuron gene has on neurons and the body. The SMN gene is involved in many pathways of the body, including ribonucleoprotein assembly, mRNA trafficking and translation, and cytoskeletal structure. A mutated SMN gene can disrupt neural growth and development in many different ways. Furthermore, this paper will review the many therapies that have been developed to treat Spinal Muscular Atrophy, including both symptomatic treatments as well as advanced gene therapies. Zolgensma and Spinraza are both different gene therapies used to treat Spinal Muscular Atrophy by editing the Survival Motor Neuron genes to produce stable protein so neural growth and development can be ensured.


Glia biology, neuroscience/neurodevelopment, CRISPR, image analysis, -omics

A Deep Dive Into Spinal Muscular Atrophy


Medical Imaging, Medical Physics, Machine Learning, Medical Image Analysis/Processing, Artificial Intelligence

Navya will be writing a literature review, exploring the following research Question: Is music therapy effective in reducing emotional distress and improving sleep quality in PTSD patients? She is hypothesizing that music therapy can help reduce emotional distress and improve sleep quality in PTSD patients.

Clinical Psychology, Psychoanalysis, Psychotherapy, Academic Writing

Is music therapy effective in improving the quality of life in PTSD diagnosed war veterans and victims of sexual abuse.

Abstract: [Title]
Introduction
The US led-Global War on Terror has yet to be truly historicized. The recent withdrawal from Afghanistan after 17 years and the return to power of the Taliban demand a critical look at what happened. This paper is a reflection of a ‘history of the present,’ a way to look at pasts, narratives and voices that have traditionally been excluded as a result of warfare in the 21st century.
Methodology
Specifically, I will rely on secondary sources on Afghanistan. How was the war on terror sold? What were its goals and were those goals achieved? (historiography of 17 years / summarize major events and change of goals in the war over this period).
In particular, this last question will take into account the very recent history of the withdrawal and will look at the position of President Bush to Obama to Trump versus Biden. 
Delineation of the specific problem areas
Conclusion 
Debate in the upcoming presidential election

Journalism (reporting, multimedia, publishing, editing), French, Arabic, contemporary Arabic culture, international relations, international political economy, creative writing (novella, short story, haiku), photography, history of post-world war Europe and Middle East

Research Question:
How was the war on terror sold? What were its goals and were those goals achieved?

COVID- 19, also known as the SARS- CoV- 2 identified in 2019/ 2020 as a disease that caused a case of pandemic and panic throughout the world. As of currently, the world is still under the effect of COVID- 19 and its aftermath. The notable and common symptoms recognized by the CDC include fever, cough, shortness of breath, congestion, etc... However, current research shows that there could be a new possible symptom that could help better diagnose and recognize the signs of COVID- 19. Delirium is a common consequence of COVID- 19 but it is rapidly developing into psychosis. Psychosis is a mental disorder that can cause a patient into mental disarry, confusion, and distraught along with disconnection from reality. Symptoms of psychosis include hallucinations, allusions, agitation, difficultly thinking and understanding, and disorientation. There have been countless case reports of patients with no medical or family history of psychosis or any mental health problems who were later diagnosed with psychosis. Suspicions have been raised of the virus causing inflammation in the brain which directly impacts the kynurenine pathway through activation. In this conceptual review, we will be analyzing multiple case reports of being diagnosed with psychosis after contracting the COVID- 19 virus, the possible reasons why behind this phenomenon, possible changes in the brain during COVID- 19 virus caused by psychosis, and possible solutions. It is to be noted that most, if not all, patients in the cited studies and cases have no previous records of any sorts of mental illness or any family/genetical history of mental illness that could have caused the psychosis.

Clinical Psychology, Psychology, Neuropsychology, Cognitive Neuroscience, Neuroscience, Neuropsychological Assessment, Neuroimaging, Dementia, Alzheimer's Disease, Primary Progressive Aphasia, Traumatic Brain Injury, Epilepsy

Relationship between COVID-19 and Psychosis: a Conceptual Review

Comp Sci - AI/ML, Law, Software Engineering

Research Question: How do {Tesla’s, Waymo’s} autonomous systems work and how safe are they compared to human driven cars?

Abstract:
Autonomous vehicles are vehicles which leverage the artificial intelligence systems of the future to automate the act of driving. In recent years, many automotive companies have started to incorporate AI systems in their cars to reduce driving workload with an emphasis of increasing safety. In recent years however, automotive companies have done a poor job explaining how their systems work, especially when it comes to creating an understanding with their consumers. If AI systems are really the future, the people who are going to be using these systems and even those who are going to encounter them on the road should understand how they work. In my study, I looked at the safety of driverless cars including severity of injuries, rate of car accidents, as well as other safety metrics. I found that autonomous vehicles have helped to reduce the severity of car crashes in comparison to those driven by humans, however, driverless cars still have a long way to go before they can help reduce the rate of car accidents that occur on streets. Additionally, we sought to explore how autonomous systems are developed and in what ways their safety can be improved. Using AWS Deep Racer, we were able to create and train a CNN to classify and localize objects. This system was then tested using AWS SageMaker to evaluate and compare the safety of our model to the likes of a human driven vehicle. As AI and technology as a whole begin to improve, the safety of autonomous vehicles will improve as a result.


Aerospace controls, robotics, computer vision, unmanned aerial vehicles

Autonomous Vehicle Safety

In this paper, I will talk about the nature of discrimination and the many struggles it has caused through the years. The first question to be asked is about how far back discrimination goes. When did it begin? Then, after we find its historical origin, the next question is to understand all of the different forms, variants, and manifestations of discrimination - including racism between races, as well as racism within a race, sexism, religious discrimination, and so on. Third, after identifying different forms of racism, I will look at various arguments or justifications people have provided in favor of discrimination. Finally, I will show why those arguments are wrong, demonstrating why discrimination has always been unjust.

Philosophy, Law, Social Sciences

The Origins of Discrimination Pertaining to All Kinds

Political polarization may well be one of the most dangerous forces in our government, and as a country, the US is experiencing unique levels of polarization. So we endeavored to explore, what has been the trajectory of elite polarization in American politics since the 1970s, and what does that indicate about our current situation? We hypothesize from the literature that there would be low legislative productivity and high inflation in periods of heightened polarization and vice versa for low polarization. This is due to the inability of legislators to cooperate to find solutions that will work for the American people in polarized times. To answer our question, we consider elite polarization in Congress from four perspectives: aggregate polarization, Congressional cooperation, the state of the economy, and overall legislative effectiveness. The aggregate polarization and Congressional cooperation dimensions provide a model to identify ideological differences and levels of bipartisan legislative cooperation, respectively and act as a benchmark to identify how polarized Congress was at any given time. In contrast, the overall effectiveness and state of the economy analyses will provide an external measure to determine effects. The analyses suggest that polarization has broadly increased since 1970, with few exceptions, regardless of the state of the economy, indicating that economics is not a strong predictor of polarization, nor is polarization a strong predictor of economics. Furthermore, although not definitive, predictive analysis suggests that polarization will only increase. 


*Keywords***:** Polarization, Legislative Effectiveness, Inflation, Congressional Representation, Time Series Analysis

Political psychology, Political behavior, Public opinion, Political Science, American Politics, Survey research, Social networks, GIS in R, R programming, Text as data, Machine Learning, Data visualization, Data science

Four Perspectives on Elite Polarization in Congress Since 1970

Fragile X syndrome is a severe autism spectrum disorder (ASD) caused by the mutation of a single gene. Many researchers have tried to treat Fragile X syndrome. With the explosion of gene editing as a precise way to induce genetic changes, severe single-gene disorders like Fragile X syndrome are particularly attractive genetic targets. This project will review gene editing approaches to treat Fragile X syndrome and speculate on the future of gene editing in treating this disorder. 

Genetics, genome editing, molecular biology, neuroscience, bioethics, science policy, genetics in human health/medicine

Examining Gene Editing for Fragile X Syndrome

Bioprinting is the use of 3D printing technology to produce constructs using living cells and bioinks. Bioprinting is a powerful tool that can help regenerate tissue in the body or print organs to be used in transplants. This could potentially eliminate the problems of complicated reconstructive tissue surgeries and organ shortages. In recent years, 3D bioprinting has been used to print *in vitro* organs, create models for clinical trials and test new drug formulas. Although these small steps have helped the scientific community learn more about the challenges that have to be overcome during the bioprinting process, *in vivo* bioprinting, bioprinting that takes place directly in the body, is a common goal that many researchers are striving to achieve. This paper will review the most successful bioprinting processes that have been used, different bioinks that have emerged, the current research that has been conducted for *in vivo* bioprinting and how *in vivo* bioprinting combined with robot assisted surgery could improve the outcomes of musculoskeletal surgery. Also, we will offer new perspectives on how robot-assisted surgery could be combined with *in vivo* bioprinting to create new surgical technology. The musculoskeletal system requires long and invasive procedures to fix problems that occur. Most musculoskeletal injuries are caused by strains on muscles that lead to tears in ligaments and the need for soft tissue replacement, like ACL tears, or the deterioration of joints from overuse. Through *in vivo* bioprinting, the reconstruction and regeneration of skeletal tissue can be possible without long and invasive procedures. Utilization of bioprinting could bring the elimination of complicated surgeries and the implementation of newer surgical techniques, specifically surgical robots to print inside the body with greater precision than humanly possible at reduced cost.

Bioengineering, Bioprinting, Cancer Biology, Cell Biology, Epigenetics, Biophysics

Applications of In Vivo Bioprinting in Coordination with Robot Assisted Surgery for Musculoskeletal Tissue Repair

Glioma is a malignant and poorly understood cancer that occurs in the glial cells of the brain. Subtypes are divided into Proneural, Neural, Mesenchymal, and Classical subtypes based on the mutational signature, which all have varying responses to intense treatment. The complement system, a branch of the innate immune system, has shown to have various pro-tumor effects, including immunosuppression and maintenance of glial stem cells, and has been shown to be mutated in various cancers. We analyzed the expression of complement system genes across the 4 transcriptional subtypes and 2 mutational subtypes of gliomas in order to determine whether the genes were differentially expressed.

Biology, Cancer biology, Genetics, Epigenetics, Genomics

An Analysis of Complement System Gene Expression and Outcome across the Transcriptional and Mutational Subtypes of Low-Grade Glioma and Glioblastoma

The goal of the project is to improve upon loop detection for SLAM using novel methods created for solving the same problems used for bag of words and feature-based image clustering. Loop detection is a method in simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) that is used to detect when a robot's pose has reached a previously known location and close the path. The current state of the art methods are bag of words and feature image clustering which both use a symbolic representation of landmarks to determine when a location has been reached for a second time. The paper will compare both prior methods as well as improvements to the methods, and alternatives to those methods developed by Shuhul. The comparison will be done on publicly available datasets using a common baseline SLAM algorithm. In this paper, we present a method of loop closure detection that relies on both
geometric and human salient features. Our algorithm is built on SuperPoint, which identifies a set of interest points based on geometric features, and SalientDSO that creates a saliency map from which features are extracted. The SuperPoint model is inherently prone to rotations, so we retrained it on rotated images to make it more resistant. Both the point and semantic features are then fed into ORB SLAM to return a set of features. Finally a bag of words model is used to detect loop closure. A more detailed version is as follows. Keyframes are extracted from the video from the monocular camera. Keyframes are fed separately into SuperPoint feature extractor and SalGan feature extractor. Salgan returns a heatmap which is then processed such that the maximum gradient points are selected. These are then combined into a custom feature with a custom feature descriptor based off of ORB. These then are used in only the loop closure part of ORB SLAM by being added to ORB SLAMs built in bag of words model. Along with a custom vocabulary this then is compared against a threshold, which determines whether there was a loop closure. The algorithm is then tested with the New College and Tum Mono datasets. Overall this is a much more reliable solution to loop closures as the number of false positives is drastically lower than ORB SLAMs built in loop closure. The number of false negatives is also low, comparable to the built- in loop closure.

Meet Polygence Scholars and explore their projects