ABSTRACTS
2019 National McNair Scholars Conference at UCLA
Researcher: Sebastian Arceo
Title: Electricity Providers: Their Modernization’s Effect on Angelino Opinions
Research Focus: Social Welfare
School: Loyola Marymount University
Presentation Type: Poster Presentation
Los Angeles’ electricity providers are constantly modernizing customer services, a trend likely to increase usability and security concerns amongst their consumer bases. This project examines how Angelenos have opinionated on their electricity services and how their opinions may have been affected by modernization. This project examines data collected by the Public Opinion Survey, an annual 20- minute mixed mode survey conducted by the Center for the Study of Los Angeles at Loyola Marymount University. The mass survey project collects opinions from Angelenos on a variety of relevant issues including their electricity services. Angeleno opinions are measured using a good-fair-poor scale and analyzed by race using Chi-square test of independence and p < 0.05 as a cutoff for statistical significance.
Results find a general and overall increase in negative opinions amongst Angelenos toward their electricity services (since 2014). The largest proportion of Angelenos (12.9%) believing their electricity services were “poor” is recorded in 2019. Opinions have also negatively increased along race lines. Since 2014, over 5% of Latinos and Asians changed their opinions from “good” or “fair”, to “poor” ratings.
Whites and Blacks have held relatively consistent opinions (>2% change) towards their electricity services since 2014. These findings infer how modernization amongst Los Angeles electricity providers may impact Angeleno opinions toward the electricity services they receive. This project’s findings also suggests the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, Southern Californian Edison, and other electrical providers consider Latino and Asian customer bases when seeking to provide accessible and secure electricity.
Researcher: Titania Davis
Presentation Title: Her Safety Matters: How the Hygiene Center Impacts Women
Research Focus: Female safety at the ReFresh Spot
School: Loyola Marymount University
Presentation Type: Poster Presentation
Skid Row, an area in Downtown Los Angeles, CA, lies at the epicenter for addressing issues of homelessness. According to the Los Angeles Homeless Service Authority, the population in Skid Row is 4,294 persons (34% women). In 2017, The Los Angeles Central Providers Collaborative conducted an audit of Skid Row. According to the audit, Los Angeles city officials failed to meet the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) standards for accessibility of public restrooms (1 toilet for every 20 persons) in Skid Row (1 toilet for every 164 persons). The report also noted that the available restrooms were in substandard conditions and they lacked privacy and security. The purpose of this study is to measure the impact of safety on Skid Row guests who access the ReFresh Spot. The ReFresh Spot is a hygiene center in Skid Row that provides 24/7 access to toilets, showers and laundry. Pre/Post, surveys were conducted at the ReFresh Spot. Out of 212 Participants 79 women answered questions after using the facility that address their overall feelings of satisfaction of the ReFresh Spot. A one sample T test will be used to measure the feelings of safety of females who access the ReFresh Spot and a cross tabulation focusing on gender and age. The findings in this research can be used to advocate for a woman only hygiene center to increase women’s safety in Skid Row.
Researcher: Noemi Fernandez Luna
Presentation Title: Older Adult Latinx Immigrants’ Experiences of Aging
Research Focus: Sociology, Chicano/a Latino/a Studies, Immigration, Aging
School: Loyola Marymount University
Presentation Type: Poster Presentation
According to the United States Census, the foreign-born population age 65 and older increased significantly between the years of 1990 and 2010. Research on the aging experiences of one particular group within this growing population, Latinx immigrants, is limited.
This study examines the aging experiences of older Latinx adults, age 65 and older, who migrated to the U.S. after age 18, in order to understand how migration, family, work, and other factors have influenced their experiences of aging. Using a qualitative research approach, this study is based on interviews with older Latinx adults in the City of Los Angeles, where there is a substantial population of older Latinx immigrants. Socioeconomic status and familial relationships are anticipated to be the most impactful factors on the aging process and late life experiences of our Latinx sample. This study will help fill a gap in our knowledge about aging and Latinx immigration in the United States. The findings of the study will also provide a better understanding of the growing population and will help improve their quality of life if policy makers and service providers take the findings into consideration.
Researcher: Demarko Flanagan
Title: The Refresh Spot: Emotional Impact on the African-American Homeless Community
Research Focus: Community Psychology
School: Loyola Marymount University
Presentation Type: Poster Presentation
The current study examines how the African-American homeless community on Skid Row is impacted by the recent creation of the Refresh Spot, a 24-hour hygiene center that provides free laundry, showers, restrooms, and support services. Skid Row, located in the heart of Downtown Los Angeles, has a pronounced homeless problem dominated by African- American people. A major drawback in this particular area are inadequate hygiene-related amenities. Maslow (1954) asserts that basic physical needs such as food, water, and shelter must be satisfied before a person can attain higher order psychological fulfillment such as emotional well-being. Furthermore, the objective of this study is to address if the Refresh Spot’s appeasement of another physical requisite, hygiene, impacts the emotional state of a highly represented demographic in the Skid Row homeless community. African-American Refresh Spot users (N = 123) completed a pre and post-test survey that inquired about their emotional state before and after the use of the facilities. Using SPSS statistical software, inferential analysis and cross tabulations are being conducted to test differences in reported emotional wellbeing between pre and post-test. Preliminary results demonstrate a statistically significant improvement in emotional wellbeing after use of the Refresh Spot. Findings from this research will be utilized to improve the Refresh Spot and provide a comprehensive understanding of the needs and demands of homeless communities.
Researcher: Isabelle Marín
Presentation Title: The Influence of the Spanish Language on Latinx Voter Turnout in Presidential Campaigns
Research Focus: Latina/o/x Politics
School: Loyola Marymount University
Presentation Type: Poster Presentation
Voter turnout of the Latinx population is recorded to be one of the lowest within the United States. For the purpose of advancing political participation in the form of voting, it is important to analyze the lack of outreach to this community, especially during presidential campaigns. A major component to this is that presidential candidates in the United States tend to give less focus towards implementing the Spanish language into their campaigning tactics. For this reason, this study examines both the current use of the Spanish language in campaigning for the presidency but also potential results, should candidates decide to utilize the language more often. This research aims to explore the impact that the implementation of the Spanish language can have on the voter turnout of the Latinx community during elections. Through looking at existing survey data of Latinx voting trends and conducting a new relevant survey, it is expected that there will be a positive correlation between the use of Spanish language by candidates and an increased voter turnout. This project aims to add to the limited field of research surrounding this topic and expand on the literature that is within the field of Latina/o/x politics.
Researcher: Elena Martinez
Title: Simulating Low Density Parity Check Codes
Research Focus: Computer science and mathematics, coding theory
School: Loyola Marymount University
Presentation Type: Poster Presentation
All communication channels are subject to corruption as a result of noise. In any communication channel, a message is encoded, possibly corrupted by noise during transmission, and then received. It is on the receiver’s end where decoding occurs in order to retrieve the original message. Corruption can have implications on how high performance technology transmits data. The need for efficient and accurate encoding and decoding schemes has inspired many researchers to formulate stronger methods. Low-density parity check codes (LDPC) group message bits and parity check bits, creating groups that are large enough to recover each bit well while ensuring that they are not so large that the transmission rate of message bits becomes too slow. We seek to further improve the efficacy of low-density parity check codes by modeling binary symmetric and binary erasure communication channels in python 3. We simulate communication over the binary symmetric channel (BSC) and the binary erasure channel (BEC), and then compare well-known classes of LDPCs (Gallager and MacKay Neal schemes) to our own deterministic methods of constructing LDPCs. The LDPCs are analyzed for accuracy, the relative frequency at which the original message is reproduced, and efficiency, how quickly the corrupted message is decoded.
Researcher: Mark Powers
Presentation Title: Utilizing Near-field Communications for Vehicle-to-Vehicle Collision
Research Focus: Electrical Engineering
School: Loyola Marymount University
Presentation Type: Poster Presentation
Near-field Communication (NFC) is a form of wireless communication that can take place between NFC devices separated up to 10 cm. This research project focuses on the application of NFC to enable electronic exchange of insurance information between drivers in the events of vehicle-to-vehicle collisions. This provides an ease-of-mind to drivers against the risk of becoming a victim of a hit-and-run accident or the physical danger incurred from pulling up to the side of the freeway and exiting the vehicle. The system involves an Arduino microcontroller and an NFC attachment unit, programmed to interface together to implement the desired functionality. Reliability and security of the communications are considered. The current results show that exchanging data between NFC devices installed on two mock vehicles is very reliable, and the data shared amongst the person’s will not cause any odds of stolen information or identity theft. This proof-of-concept project offers a strategy and mechanism that automobile makers and insurance companies could adopt in industry.
Researcher: Ariel Pruyser
Research Title: Validating the Multicultural Neuropsychological Scale
Research Focus: Cross-Cultural Neuropsychology Test
School: Loyola Marymount University
Presentation Type: Poster Presentation
Most fundamental theories of psychology were developed in a western context. Therefore, the majority of psychological instruments are westernized, including neuropsychological assessments. These tests are not always appropriate to assess individuals who have been raised or educated in a non-Western society since the stimuli being used can be culturally bias. This emphasizes the need for a cross-cultural test that is able to be applied in a variety of cultural settings. The Multicultural Neuropsychological scale (MUNS), created by Dr. Alberto Fernandez, is a concise measure of five domains of cognitive functions. The MUNS uses universal stimuli that can be smoothly translated into multiple languages and easily adapted for different education levels for the adult population. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the validity of the MUNS by comparing the scores of native English speaking participants with native Spanish speaking participants. Participants completed the following in the prescribed order: (1) consent form, (2) background questionnaire, (3) a reading assessment, (4) the Multicultural Neuropsychological Scale. The Multicultural Neuropsychological Scale (MUNS) is a 30 – 40 minute paper-and-pencil test for memory, attention, executive functions, constructional praxis, and language. Because the MUNS is designed to be universal, preliminary results demonstrated that performance was equivalent across the two samples. This suggests that the MUNS can be used as a tool for assessing culturally diverse populations.
Researcher: David Ramirez
Presentation Title: Avian Population and Habitat Use in the Ballona Wetlands
Research Focus: What birds are present and in what habitats, and which birds are exhibiting breeding behavior?
School: Loyola Marymount University
Presentation Type: Poster Presentation
The Ballona Wetlands Reserve (BWR), a diverse matrix of habitats including fresh and salt marshes, was reduced to about a quarter of its original size and is highly degraded. Currently, some portions of the BWR have been restored. Much of the reserve is dominated by invasive weeds and plants like mustard, iceplant, and castor bean. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Army Corps of Engineers are in the process of finalizing a restoration plan for the Reserve. Friends of Ballona Wetlands are assisting with quarterly data collection surveys of avian species, in an effort to track presence and habitat use prior to, during, and after restoration. Data collection is performed using repeatable area searches to cover the entire System using a total of eight surveys. The number of each species seen, and their locations are recorded. This information will be used to see where birds are most active and abundant across different parts of the System, which species are breeding, and how the habitat is being used. The first set of surveys took place in April and May, and the second set will take place in July and August. By comparing the survey results of each quarter, we will be able to understand which areas of the Ballona Wetlands System need the most attention and which areas are successful breeding stations for various avian species. The hypothesis of seeing if vegetation could be a primary factor that birds consider when selecting nesting locations will be tested.
Researcher: Barbara Velasco
Presentation Title: Coyotes in Long Beach: Interviews and Public Opinion Survey
Research Focus: Urban Wildlife
School: Loyola Marymount University
Presentation Type: Poster Presentation
It is important to understand public opinion on urban wildlife in order to effectively manage it. Coyotes have adapted to survive in urban environments and do not have a favorable presence in Long Beach, California due to their predatory nature. This research project seeks to provide a clearer understanding of how the residents of Long Beach feel about the coyote population and how they interact with it. The data obtained from this project will fill knowledge gaps about the types of encounters residents have with coyotes and help create management plans to effectively deal with local safety concerns. Residents were randomly mailed a survey (n=332) where they were asked about their feelings towards coyotes in the City and their satisfaction with the City’s coyote management. Interviews were conducted with six different urban wildlife experts and transcripts were coded for the presence of the following themes: (1) Overall Public concern with coyotes, (2) Coyote and Human interaction, (3) The effect of the presence of pets/children, (4) Importance of Public Education, (5) Individual Anecdotes. Common themes among the interviews include (1) a need for public education and understanding of coyotes and (2) higher concern among residents with pets and small children. It is anticipated that survey data will show that residents who own pets are likely to be concerned about the coyote population and that they have limited knowledge about the city’s management plans and/or coyote behavior. Increasing public awareness is necessary in order to promote the coexistence of wildlife with human life in an urban environment.