TCU Magazine

Walk into any Pier 1 Imports store this summer and you will find the dinnerware graphic design senior Jaimi Kessel designed last summer as an intern in the trend packaging and product development department of the Fort Worth-based home d?cor store. The summer before, her professors helped her land an internship at a prestigious ad agency in Dallas, whose clients include Home Depot and Linens-N-Things.

"TCU professors are really connected and will help you get a great internship wherever you want," Kessel said. "Companies that have TCU people working for them find they do really well, so they want to find more TCU students to hire. And alumni don't forget about their school. They also want to hire Horned Frogs."

Comment at tcumagazine@tcu.edu

Student Research Symposium

The campus was awash in knowledge in April when three colleges celebrated the research students conducted during the school year. Ranging from geologic strata in Big Bend National Park to the effect of immigration on the economy to treating hypertension, the studies represent the value of research to the individual and the world. Here is sampling of the nearly 160 projects:

The West Fork Trinity River Changes: A Response to Urban Growth
Type: Undergraduate (geology) (Funded through TCU's Vision in Action)
Author: James Stevens, Ranjan Muttiah
Advisor: Ranjan Muttiah (Geology)
Abstract: The City of Fort Worth is revitalizing the West Fork of the Trinity River and its surrounding environments in the Central Business District to attract new visitors and businesses. The revitalization will eventually enhance the tax base for the city. In addition, as part of the flood mitigation, the Army Corps of Engineers with support from the city and water authorities will re-route the West Fork of the Trinity River through Fort Worth. Though this project spotlights how urban development, rainfall, and geology impact stream flow immediately downstream and upstream of Fort Worth, and will uniquely apply modern Geographic Information Systems technology to document the historical response of the West Fork of the Trinity River to urban development and growth by mapping out the influence of previous flooding.

Adaptive Learning Image and Signal Analysis
Computer Science Undergraduate
Author: Ryan Gibbons
Advisor: Charles Hannon (computer Science)
Abstract: This research supports inhabitant and robot tracking within Crescent Research Lab's smart environment and builds on a past prototype of the Cerberus 3D tracking system. After training an existing Adaptive Learning Image and Signal Analysis (ALISA) system, it was able to identify the Pioneer robot and other objects in the room from real-time images from each camera. Results demonstrate that the improved detection sub-system can greatly improve image detection and support integration with the rest of the existing system.

Development of Ballistic Shock Measurement and Simulation Capabilities
Type: Undergraduate (engineering)
Authors: Jamie Smith, Michael Conrad, Lorena Leon, James Davis, Jonathan Weldon, Lori Shannon.
Advisor: Patrick Walter (engineering)
Abstract: The US Army Aberdeen Test Center (ATC) contracted with a TCU Engineering Senior Design class to design, develop, and fabricate two devices needed to evaluate ballistic shock events in armored combat vehicles: 1. A miniature electronic data recorder to measure ballistic shock response from various transducers mounted in an armored vehicle; and 2. A laboratory shock machine that produces realistic ballistic shock levels within a specified envelope for evaluating performance of transducers and small test items during ballistic shock events.

Differences in Serving Sizes of Commonly Ordered Foods At Popular Causal Dining Restaurants in Tarrant County
Type: Undergraduate (nutritional sciences)
Authors: Marsha Hakim, Shelley Sledge, Emily Henderson
Advisors: Mary Ann Gorman, Anne VanBeber
Abstract: The serving sizes of commonly consumed foods have increased since the 1970s. Researchers propose that the continuous increase in serving sizes may lead to increased body weight and obesity as well as distorting ideas of what serving sizes in restaurants should be. Conclusions: The serving size of all food samples from casual dining restaurants was greater than the USDA recommended serving. Consumption of typical servings of foods from casual dining restaurants may contribute to weight gain and to the rise of obesity observed in the United States.

Dislocations and Planar Defects in Silicon Carbide after High Pressure and High Temperature Sintering
Type: Graduate (physics and astronomy)
Author: Stephen Nauyoks
Advisor: Waldek Zerda
Abstract: SiC is a very hard material of high melting point and high thermal conductivity, and because of these properties it has many industrial uses, including bearing and furnace parts, semiconductors and cutting tools. Diamond-silicon carbide composites are also of interest because of their unique mechanical properties. The goal of this research is to find a correlation between the temperature and pressures used and the population and types of defects found in the SiC crystals.

Biodegradable Porous Silicon/Polymer Composites for Bone Tissue Engineering Applications
Type: Graduate (chemistry)
Authors: Dongmei Fan, Ernest Couch, Giridhar Akkaraju (biology)
Advisor: Jeffery Coffer (chemistry)
Abstract: Tissue Engineering is a relatively new technique that has the potential to create replacements for damaged tissues and organs. It involves the in vitro seeding and attachment of human cells onto a scaffold. Results indicate that BioSi-containing PCL-based scaffolds mediate the proliferation of human kidney fibroblast cells at a level comparable to that of cell-only controls. Overall, these results have implications for the eventual use of these materials in living systems.

Pinpointing the Protean
Type: Undergraduate (biology)
Authors: Dani McRaney, Giridhar Akkaraju
Advisor: Giridhar Akkaraju
Abstract: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) affects more than 170 million people worldwide with approximately 4 million more infected every year. The focus of this project is to isolate a nonstructural proteins that has already been correlated with the antiviral response, NS5A, and engineer a cell line that will make experimentation with NS5A more efficient and conclusive. Current research is revealing that NS5A halts the cell's normal apoptosis mechanisms. A cell line that inducibly expresses NS5A will help in unraveling the role this protein plays in cancer formation and could also allow us to test drugs that block NS5A and control HCV infection.

The Effects of Therapeutic Horseback Riding on Gait Pattern in Children with Down Syndrome
Authors: Carol Kipp, Lori Humphrey
(Kinesiology)
Abstract: While there is limited research on the effectiveness of therapeutic horseback riding (THR) as a treatment for abnormal gait pattern, there is anecdotal evidence to suggest that it has potential for improving gait in persons with Down Syndrome. It is hypothesized that there will be improvement in gait pattern in THR participants after a 10-week THR program.

Adaptive Learning Image and Signal Analysis
Computer Science Undergraduate
Author: Ryan Gibbons
Advisor: Charles Hannon (computer Science)
Abstract: This research supports inhabitant and robot tracking within Crescent Research Lab's smart environment and builds on a past prototype of the Cerberus 3D tracking system. After training an existing Adaptive Learning Image and Signal Analysis (ALISA) system, it was able to identify the Pioneer robot and other objects in the room from real-time images from each camera. Results demonstrate that the improved detection sub-system can greatly improve image detection and support integration with the rest of the existing system.

Music and the Relationship with Aggression
Author: Darryn Rosenberg (Kinesiology)
Abstract: Because music has been found to influence mood in athletes (Stevens & Lane, 2001), there might be a difference in perceived aggression while listening to certain types of music before performance. The purpose of this study is to determine if female Division I and Division II soccer players will perceive themselves as being more aggressive during practice when they listen to rock music during their warm-up (i.e., stretching) compared to listening to no music at all during warm-ups.

Vision and Revision in King Lear
Author: Matthew Freedman (English)
Abstract: The use of the names Cornwall and Albany in Shakespeare's King Lear has long perplexed scholars. New research reveals that King James's sons, Henry and Charles, were the Dukes of Cornwall and Albany at the time of composition, indicating that King Lear is more of a personal message to King James than originally thought.

Accessing the Right to Vote:
Field Study and Analysis of Polling Place Quality in Fort Worth, Texas
Author: Heather Creek (Political Science)
Abstract: The study revealed that although Fort Worth has little problem with voter disenfranchisement based on race or socioeconomic status, there are issues facing every polling place that must be changed before voters in this region will have full efficacy at the polls.

The Devil and the Democrat
Author: Stephanie Haynes (History)
Abstract: Maximilien Fran?ois Marie Isidore de Robespierre remains one of the most elusive characters studied by historians. Either hailed as a ¡¥revolutionary democrat' or an authoritarian tyrant, few if any historians have viewed Robespierre on neutral grounds. Investigation of primary sources reveals that understanding the true nature of the man remains elusive.

Comment at tcumagazine@tcu.edu

Good Eats

Nutrition students hone skills through service

By Rachel Stowe Master '91

Seniors in the Coordinated Program in Dietetics in TCU¡¦s Department of Nutritional Sciences put their dietary dexterity into action this year through a community outreach program with Lockheed Martin employees.

During the semester-long internship, students conducted research and provided weekly services to patrons of the Lockheed Martin Recreational Association in Fort Worth. Services included dietary analysis and nutritional assessments, articles in the LMRA monthly newsletter, dietary-related Q&As in a weekly ¡§Ask-a-Student Dietitian¡¨ section of the LMRA e-newsletter, and on-site information on healthy eating habits. The students also launched six-week ¡§Weigh To Go¡¨ nutrition and wellness classes both at the recreation center and Lockheed Martin plant sites.

"This has proved to be a rewarding relationship for both my students and LMRA employees ¡X an outstanding opportunity for students to contribute and to know that what they are doing is making a difference in the community," said TCU nutritional sciences Professor Lyn Dart, noting that plans are already in the works to continue the community-campus partnership for future semesters.

Students in the Coordinated Program in Dietetics must apply for selection into the two-year internship, which also enjoys longtime ties with the Birdville ISD, Tarrant Area Food Bank and Senior Citizen Services.

"I've definitely been able to apply everything I¡¦ve learned in the coordinated program during these last couple of years," said Mary Grinnan, a senior nutrition major who worked on the Lockheed Martin program this spring. "We have wellness classes and nutrition education classes. So by getting up in front of these people and talking to them about how nutrition and diet contribute to overall wellness, I¡¦ve also benefited by being able to practice what I¡¦ve learned."

Through their one-on-one consultations, the students address questions ranging from bodybuilder myths to weight loss solutions to how to mesh healthy eating patterns with the schedule of a high-stress job. ¡§We get a variety of questions, so it¡¦s neat that we¡¦re able to use all the nutrition knowledge we have to answer questions and help them out,¡¨ Grinnan said.

Comment at tcumagazine@tcu.edu.

Healthy Tips

"Everything in moderation is key," says senior nutrition major Marsha Hakim. While Hakim and Grinnan cover the gamut of nutritional issues for Lockheed Martin employees, following are some of the words of wisdom they share to common questions.

How can I manage my blood cholesterol?
Foods that can affect blood cholesterol come from animal sources and include eggs, cheese, poultry, meat and dairy. ¡§These foods are higher in dietary cholesterol, saturated fats and trans fats ¡X all of which increase risk for heart disease, hypertension and diabetes,¡¨ Hakim said. ¡§That doesn¡¦t mean you have to avoid these foods completely. Just eat in moderation by cutting back on portion sizes and how often you include these foods in your diet.¡¨

I have high blood pressure. How can I lower my sodium intake?
There are a number of simple ways.
¡E Avoid canned or prepackaged foods ¡X which are high in sodium ¡X or buy the reduced-sodium versions.
¡E Choose fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables, which are naturally low in sodium.
¡E Don¡¦t add table salt when cooking, and keep the salt shaker off the table.
¡E Try Mrs. DASH salt-free products for seasoning.

What should I eat after a workout?
Glycogen ¡X or energy ¡X stores are depleted after a strenuous workout. Based on the American Dietetic Association¡¦s Sports Nutrition handbook, Hakim recommends that athletes consume 1.5 grams of carbohydrate per kilogram/body weight immediately following exercise of more than 90 minutes and an additional 1.5 grams of carbohydrate per kilogram/body weight two hours later. So an athlete who weighs 60 kilograms (130 pounds), for example, would eat a snack with 90 grams of carbohydrates, such as a sports or energy bar or fruit. In addition, a small amount of protein ¡X a sandwich with lean meat or chicken, whole-wheat crackers with peanut butter ¡X may stimulate muscle protein synthesis. ¡§If you¡¦re not hungry right after exercising, then you may prefer a high-carbohydrate drink immediately after exercise. High-carbohydrate drinks such as Gatorade and other sports drinks or fruit juice will also promote rehydration,¡¨ she said.

Comment at tcumagazine@tcu.edu

Still Relevant

Conference attendees search for the ¡§real¡¨ Thomas Jefferson

By Nancy Allison

Thomas Jefferson got a good workout at the Thomas Jefferson for Today Conference in April. Annette Gordon-Reed, who sees grave contradictions between Jefferson¡¦s status as a slave owner and his high-flown talk of the rights of man, got in some good jabs. As did Jon Kukla, who connected with several uppercuts to Jefferson¡¦s attitudes toward women.

"Few politicians reconcile their R and R (reality and rhetoric)," said history Professor Gene Smith, who coordinated the conference. And each generation passes judgment on historical figures according to their own take on reality. ¡§Jefferson is the founding father people love to critique.¡¨ While George Washington seems beyond our reach and John Adams is too irascible to reproach, Mr. Jefferson, it seems, is an icon who can take it squarely on the chin.

What other president could speak with relevance to as many topics as Jefferson does today? As Peter Onuf¡¦s keynote address on Jefferson and war, Frank Shuffleton¡¦s paper on Jeffersonian architecture, and Doug Bradburn¡¦s discussion of Jefferson¡¦s problems with immigration revealed ¡X in subjects as varied as education, diplomacy, border control and aesthetics ¡X Jefferson rules. Sure, he gets a few scholarly knocks. But like his most famous declaration, he still comes out fighting.

Comment at tcumagazine@tcu.edu

What's in a Name?

Male or female attributes, says researcher

By Mark Wright

Parents aren¡¦t likely to name their son Jessica or their daughter David. Likewise, when naming a product, companies must keep its gender in mind, says marketing Assistant Professor Eric Yorkston.

Depending on whether the brand name is masculine or feminine, it may clash with a product¡¦s perceived sex. In a recent study published in the Journal of Consumer Research with co-author Gustavo E. de Mello, Yorkston found that when the gender of the brand name and the product clash, consumers are more likely to evaluate the brand negatively.

"Consumers know our brand name is supposed to tell us stuff; they know that a name is one of the tools a company is using to talk to them,¡¨ said Yorkston, who specializes in consumer psychology and linguistics. "Our language is set up to give us cues."

The English language has a semantic gender system rather than a formal gender system ¡X gender is assigned to an object based on meanings associated with it, as opposed to languages with a formal system, which assign gender based solely on the structural properties of the word signifying the object.

However, Yorkston found that English-speakers judge the masculinity or femininity of a brand name based on formal gender cues like those found in Spanish, Italian and other Romance languages.

In the study, fictitious brand names were assigned to alcoholic beverages and men¡¦s and women¡¦s footwear. Participants were asked to rate the products based solely on the brand names.

When beer, which is semantically a masculine object, had a feminine brand name like Aiza (the "a" ending is feminine in Spanish), the participants were less likely to remember the brand name or to rate it positively than when the beer had a masculine name like Aizo.

Considering the millions of dollars companies spend in developing or changing brand names, gender is nothing to scoff at. When a company wants to market a product to women, for instance, it tends to give that product a feminine name, Yorkston said. So Mizuno¡¦s line of golf clubs for women is called Tava, and PowerBar calls its energy bar for women Pria.

But a gender match is just one of a multitude of factors that determine if a brand succeeds or fails, Yorkston said. If Toyota, for example, where having trouble marketing its Tacoma pickup, the feminine associations of the word ¡§Tacoma¡¨ may be far less important than whether consumers associate Toyota with small, economical cars rather than big trucks.

Comment at tcumagazine@tcu.edu

Back to Nature

New summer course immerses students in biodiversity

By Rachel Stowe Master '91

Field-intensive instruction at the Fort Worth Nature Center and Refuge is the the focus of a new six-week minicourse called "Biodiversity: Inquiry & Methods."

Worth six hours of credit, the course will train students to identify the biodiversity of an area. It offers practice in describing and inventorying plants, insects, freshwater invertebrates, fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals, and it also emphasizes conservation biodiversity, including threats and policies on local and global scales.

At a sprawling 3,600-plus acres, the Fort Worth Nature Center and Refuge is the largest city-owned nature center in the nation. But as subdivisions sprout up around it, the preserve¡¦s ecological communities surely will feel the squeeze. While students are gaining valuable experience evaluating local biodiversity, they also will be compiling data and presenting recommendations at the end of the course.

Tony Burgess, TCU professor of professional practice who is teaching the course, and whose previous experience includes work on Columbia University¡¦s Biosphere 2 project, said the class schedule will be intense. "It will be six days a week. And some days if we¡¦re doing birds, we¡¦ll be up early. And the day we try to spotlight the alligators, we¡¦ll be up really late," he said.

The course is supported by a Vision in Action grant, which covers hiring several experts to plan and test the instructional modules, as well as equipment such as snake-handling tongs, portable dissecting microscopes, live traps for small mammals, drawers for insect specimens and poison ivy medicine.

"Monitoring biodiversity in its various aspects takes a lot of time," Burgess said. "The work done by our students in creating baseline information and subsequently recording changes should be very useful both for managing the landscape and teaching people."

As the course ends, a week long trip to the Big Thicket National Preserve near Beaumont will test student skills at examining a new habitat.

"The intent is to make students more aware of the consequences of their lifestyle choices and prepare them for some role in stewardship of this living heritage," Burgess said. "Basically I want students to understand that it¡¦s OK to be a 'naturalist nerd' and to coach them in ways of knowing and celebrating the diversity of living things in ways that other people may value."

Comment at tcumagazine@tcu.edu
Contact Burgess at t.burgess@tcu.edu

Life is a Soap Opera

Like all good dramas, this years¡¦ student-produced soap opera, "Southern Comforts," has a behind-the-scenes story.

By Nancy Allison

Every two years, radio-TV-film students produce a 10-episode soap opera or some other major television project. Department Chair Richard Allen, a veteran of Hollywood who has won two Emmys for daytime scriptwriting, says while the project might look like it¡¦s about a soap opera, the main goal is to train students for real life.

You mean the idea isn¡¦t to make a great product to sell to a network?
RA: It¡¦s nice to be asked. In 2000 and 2002, TCU student-written soaps were snapped up by Burly Bear Network and aired on college cable TV nationwide, but that¡¦s not the reason for the class. We¡¦re not a TV studio. The students are not professionals. They¡¦re a group of individuals at a small liberal arts school, trying to learn professionalism.

Is that difficult to teach?
RA: I want the students to rise to a level where the project comes before everything else, where something becomes more important than the grade or themselves. We¡¦re teaching something intangible here, something not ordinarily taught in the college classroom. Students who take this course must learn how to deal with the frustrations, rigors and demands of being on a team.

What is your best advice to students?
RA: I tell my students that their two worst enemies are blame and excuses. In a professional situation you must answer for yourself. Learn to rise above any situation and contribute; you must make the project the best it can be.

What does that mean in practice?
RA: An alumnus of the department, who is now a writer on one of the popular soaps and who works with our student-interns, had good advice: Be prepared to do the most menial thing with a positive attitude. Accept that you¡¦re not going to start at the top, or even the middle. If it¡¦s your job to get the coffee, be the best coffee getter possible. Don¡¦t complain; do your best. You never know who might be watching.

That¡¦s hard for students to accept?
RA: Most college students don¡¦t know about the real world until they get out into it. They¡¦re used to being encouraged, mollycoddled and understood by parents and teachers. They can make excuses or get extensions when they haven¡¦t done their work. They have to learn in the real world that excuses won¡¦t wash. They¡¦ll have to be their own teachers and give their best, no matter what. Most people don¡¦t see this until they are out of school.

So you¡¦re the hammer?
RA: Yes, in a way. Still, it¡¦s not boot camp. The course is full of mentoring, not just by me but also by all professors involved. I thought that project-teaching would be a good idea when I was still working in Hollywood. If they screw up here, they won¡¦t lose their job, die or fail to meet the mortgage. Teamwork and selflessness are always an issue. It¡¦s part of growing up. Most adults successfully forego their own needs for sake of the group.

What does TCU¡¦s RTVF department offer that other schools don¡¦t?
RA: At the University of Southern California, one of the country¡¦s most prestigious film schools, each student gets a film kit to keep semester-long. Here, each

Comment at tcumagazine@tcu.edu