Stem Page 3

S31

All of us are made up genes. It is what makes each and one of us unique. What if I was to tell you that you may have some genes that could cause disease, or you may have some that may prevent them? Would you be able to sleep at night if you had the gene that could cause breast cancer or prostate cancer? My project involves identifying these genes by creating a neural network in order to identify these genes and either classify them as “good” or “bad” depending on the description that is given by NCBI.

S32

My name is Brittany Taylor, and I am completing a BS in biomedical informatics at City Tech this semester. My project focused on genetic variants in the COMT gene between diverse populations. This gene has an effect on pain perception, and there is a stereotype that people of color feel less pain than white people. The aim was to find differences in genetic variants of the COMT that could possibly be linked to pain perception. However, the analysis showed no significant differences between the populations. I concluded that it is important for clinicians not to base their decisions on racial stereotypes and to treat each patient as an individual.

S33

What I am doing for my research is developing a low-cost drone that will be using a simple gyroscope design in order to maintain air stability. Because of the high cost of
professional drones, many cannot afford them, and the cheaper drones do not provide the benefits that high cost drones bring. Using Autodesk Inventor, I was able to design a 12-inch drone with a gyroscopic wheel attached to it. After designing it, I placed the designed parts into a splicer and was able to determine the costs of 3D printing the parts. The price of the parts came out to be around 2 dollars USD. For the future I would like to actually print the drone and test if it can maintain stability in the air.

S34

This project is to establish a framework which can be used to study the efficiency of a training program and determine the more influential factors for that training program. We use Lasso Regression to study this problem. This fitting method can yield better prediction accuracy, model interpretability, and variable selection compared to usual linear regression. We use Lasso regression to select the more influential variables from the model. By using influential variables, we can obtain a better model since weak-related variables are removed by making their coefficients shrink towards zero. We test our method by using data that contains 500 observations and 6 variables. Our actual Y value is an approximation of Y = 5V1 + 3V3 + 0.05*V6. Our result shows that V1 and V3 are the most influential and positive factors to the training program. To test the validity of our method, we run Linear regression and compare it with our Lasso regression model.

S35

I choose this research topic “Optimization of Faculty Office Hours” to explore more. It has been a pleasure to work with Ms. Pamela Brown and Professor Li. In this research project, I work on the data that was derived from a survey. The survey was conducted from CHEM 1110 student in which some questions were asked about office hours at the beginning of the semester and post survey for both years Fall 2018 and Spring 2019. In the pre-survey the greater number of students answered yes about the convenient time, convenient location, willingness to go to another instructor for the office hours, instructor provide useful feedback about the questions asked in class, quizzes and tests, review sheet and practice exam. Greater number of students said No about the reasons why they would not attend the office hours. Averagely 76% said about the experience of office hours useful to.

S36

Hydroponics is an alternative farming technique used for plant production which relies on plant roots being suspended in a nutrient solution for growth.  It allows vegetation to grow indoors with highly reduced water usage and minimal maintenance.  We conducted a feasibility study to determine the financial viability of using hydroponics to grow produce for use in NYCCT’s hospitality management department and determined that sourcing a portion of the department’s produce to hydroponically grown methods resulted in immediate cost savings. We also found that modifying our growing techniques and practices next time would serve to lower the costs to even more economical levels.

S37

Many individuals need prostheses such as an ear. It can be either supported by an implant and clip or held on by using medical grade adhesive. I researched the differences between them I found they each have pros and cons. It’s really up to the patient themselves and what they are looking for. If they want the cheap and fast way, they would go for the medical grade adhesive type, if they want something more reliable but a little more expensive then implant supported is the way to go. This can lead to a more targeted research based on gender and age

S38

My name is Astrid Frank. My team and I are designing a robotic lift prototype, used to collect and carry objects that are less than 30lb, from one location to the next. Research has shown that employees in U.S. spend a large amount of time transferring small office supplies. A robot lift with automotive navigation system will release human beings from this job. In the project, the base of the lift is made up of a four-wheel car and a scissor lift that reaches about 1.5 foot, allowing the robot to collect objects from shelfs and tables. We have completed CAD models, kinematic analysis and static analysis this semester. I believe the robotic lift will help employees be more productive at work.

S39

Today, we all have a busy life, and we want everything to be controlled from our fingertips. The purpose of this project is to give people the comfort they want by making everything available from their mobile device instead of using a mechanical switch. In this Advanced Smart House, people will have the comfort they need after a long day at work or school. This Advanced Smart House has sensors, servo motor 4×4 keypad for security, and LCD to prompt welcome message, which makes the Advanced Smart House a dream and comfortable house for everyone seeking for the small pleasers of life.

S40

Fiber optics is a technology that uses glass or plastic threads (fibers) to transmit data. A fiber optic cable consists of a bundle of glass threads, each of which is capable of transmitting messages modulated onto light waves. A fiber laser is a laser where the active medium being used is an optical fiber that has been doped in rare elements, typically erbium. This research proposes a bidirectional tunable fiber ring laser structure based on number of fiber amplifiers, that has a great potential for achieving a high power laser source that uses low power optical components.