- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Students of UC Davis Distinguished Professor James R. Carey of the Department of Entomology and Nematology recently swept all three awards in the 2023 Norma J. Lang Prize for Undergraduate Information Research in the category of Science, Engineering and Mathematics (SEM).
Carey, praised for his innovative teaching and writing approaches, each year encourages his students to submit their term papers, work accomplished in his classes, in the Lang Prize competition. Carey students are frequent winners, but this is the first year his students swept all three awards in the SEM category. Since 2020, a Carey student has won eight of the 13 awards, including four consecutive first-place SEM awards.
The Lang Prize, launched in 2017 to encourage the use of library resources and to reward the best research papers, memorializes Norma J. Lang (1931-2015), professor emerita of botany, who taught at UC Davis from 1963 to 1991.
This year's SEM winners are Jenna Schafer, first place with a $1000 prize; Sarah Shores, second, $750; and Neha Gondra, third, $500. Maram Saada, a former student in Carey's longevity class who won the 2022 first-place SEM award, also won this year's Arts, Humanity and Social Sciences (AHSS) category.
Jenna Schafer, First Place
Schafer's winning SEM category paper, “Timeout with Torpor: History, Biology and Future Medical Applications of a Survival Strategy,” was a research project for the Entomology 199 course (Special Study): Hibernation Writing Project. Her 19-page paper included a summary, introduction, background, history, synthetic torpor induction, medical applications, discussion and literature cited.
In her summary, Schafer wrote: “As human lifespans increase, technological advances push forward to continue this trend, and human torpor has entered the discussion as a mode to improve longevity, especially by reducing patient mortality. The purpose of this paper is to synthesize literature regarding humanity's history with hibernation, to discuss potential methods to induce torpor in humans, and to determine if there may be an ethical future for this historical survival mechanism in modern medicine to increase patient longevity.”
Reflecting on the project, Schafer noted: “When I joined Dr. Carey's Hibernation Writing Project, I was assigned the topic ‘Human Torpor: Historical, Accidental, and Medical.' I started the research process under the false pretense that I could simply skip over the background-gathering phase since I already had a topic. While I have written research papers in the past, none have been quite as robust as this project, and it turned into an extremely rewarding learning experience, but I soon realized how important background information is to understand what terms to use and how to piece them together for effective searching. Suffice it to say, my search strategies evolved continuously throughout this project as I gained more skills and a deeper understanding of the search tools I am privileged to have at my disposal as a UC Davis student.”
Shores submitted her paper on “Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome: Differences of Sex Development.”
“The development of biological sex is a complex process involving the interaction of chromosomes, gonads, and hormones,” Shores wrote in her summary. “Within these processes, differences/disorders of sex development can occur, which can result in an individual's chromosomes not aligning with their external/internal genitalia and/or gonads. One of these disorders is androgen insensitivity syndrome, an XY disorder of sex development that occurs during fetal development where the androgens required to develop the male internal and external genitalia goes undetected or partially undetected, resulting in and individual having XY sex chromosomes and female, ambiguous, or male external genitalia, depending on the severity of androgen insensitivity. This condition is not always identified at birth, but individuals with this condition are expected to have a normal lifespan.”
Reflecting on the paper, Shores said she wrote it in the fall quarter of 2022 as a term paper for Carey's longevity class. “The term paper was assigned in the beginning of the quarter to provide students the opportunity to practice skills related to researching and writing scientific research papers. The topic could be of the student's choosing so as long it was related to longevity and/or health. Immediately I knew that I wanted to write about an intersex condition since as a congenital disorder, it can encompass both health and life span.” She said she consulted Carey about the “relevance of my topic…as well as the general structure.”
Neha Gondra's third-place paper, Evaluating the Influence of the Mediterranean Diet on Reducing Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors in Obese Individuals, dealt with obesity.
“Obesity affects a significant proportion of the United States adult population,” she wrote in defining the purpose of the paper. “With the condition of obesity comes an increased risk of developing cardiovascular diseases (CVD) such as atherosclerosis and myocardial infarction, among others. Adherence to healthy diets is recommended by healthcare providers to reduce weight loss and CVD risk through the consumption of essential nutrients. The Mediterranean Diet and reduced caloric intake of the Standard American Diet (SAD) are often followed by those who are overweight or obese to reduce weight and promote health.”
Gondra reflected that she wanted “to evaluate the influence of the Mediterranean diet on reducing cardiovascular disease risk factors in obese individuals. But I had neither conducted a literature review before nor knew the guidelines for doing so. I greatly utilized a guidebook from the UC Davis Library by Helen Aveyaard titled ‘Doing a Literature Review in Health and Social Care.' I crafted a basic skeleton for my review from this book's advice. But to start with, I needed to begin reviewing primary and secondary research to create a research matrix and annotated bibliography, synthesizing information from multiple sources.”
In summarizing her work, Gondra said: “…seemed to be no significant difference between reduction of CVD risk due to the Mediterranean Diet and due to calorie restriction in SAD. Both methods seemed to reduce low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglyceride levels in the blood but quantitatively, the reduction of such levels was low. Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet was found to be inversely associated with CVD risk factor occurrence. Further clinical research needs to be conducted with larger sample sizes and effectively evaluating whether obese patients originally consuming SAD are better off with adhering in higher level to the Mediterranean Diet or reducing caloric intake in their existing diet.”
Arts, Humanity and Social Sciences
In the Arts, Humanity and Social Sciences category, Maram Saada won with her paper, “Beyond One-Course Competency for Addressing the Challenges of Multicultural Education and Advocacy in CSUs.” Second place went to Mikayli Moore, for her “Female Weightlifters' Presentation of Gender on Instagram.” Kiara Kunnes scored third with her paper, “Does the Nigerian Government's Response to Violent Conflict Exacerbate Civilians' Fear?”
UC Davis Distinguished Professor James R. Carey, a member of the UC Davis faculty since 1980 and an international award-winning teacher, instructs his students how to research topics, use style sheets, and structure documents.
His peers have singled him out for numerous awards, including the 2015 Distinguished Achievement in Teaching Award from the Entomological Society of America; and the 2014 Distinguished Teaching Award from the UC Davis Academic Senate, given to internationally recognized professors who excel at teaching. Carey is globally recognized for his research in insect demography, mortality dynamics, and insect invasion biology.
Carey tells his students that they need to consider their research term paper requirement, not as merely "a writing assignment," but as "a production concept" involving a number of writing concepts and components:
- Writing video series. Carey \mandates that all his students view the 13-part video playlist he produced titled “How to Write a Research Term Paper.” The playlist—viewing time totals about an hour--covers technical aspects of term paper production, including best practices in word processing and typography as well as ethical writing (no plagiarism), researching, framing, drafting, editing, proofing and finalizing (Writing Instruction Playlist).
- Model papers. Just as all researchers can view example papers in journals, students also need models, too, Carey believes. He posts a term paper example, mocked up from his own writing, as well as links to all the award-winning student papers in the Lang Prize competition and such UC Davis student publications as Prized Writing and Aggie Transcripts.
- Technical fluency. Carey requires all students to learn best practices in both typography and word processing. Students must use exact 15-point spacing (not single or double), 11-point California FB typeface (not Times Roman), 1.5-inch page margins (for shorter lines) and, using style sheet tools, must create four formatting codes that cover 98 percent of the formatting—heading level 1, subheading level 2, body text and hanging paragraph. Submitted papers are not only technically uniform, but also possess an aesthetic beauty that Carey feels either consciously or sub-consciously inspires students to take pride of ownership that carries over to their efforts in other aspects of their paper. Carey requires his students to read and follow Butterick's Practical Typography.
Storytelling. Carey stresses storytelling as the overarching, unifying concept for writing a term paper, the basics of which are that the story must have structure (a beginning, a middle and an end), a voice (the student's) and character development (main theme or thread). The process of story development is inextricably linked to their paper development; once the story begins to form in a student's head and then on paper, the narrative flows more clearly, succinctly and with much less effort than a paper containing information “dumps.” - Writing and editing. Although Carey emphasizes the importance of producing clear, succinct and technically correct prose, he tells his students that this is only a part of the larger process concerned with a paper's structure and congruency.
Here are the first-place SEM winners from the Carey classrooms since 2020:
- 2020: Jessica Macaluso “The Biological Basis for Alzheimer's Disease.”
- 2021: Barry Nguyen, “Allostasis: The Fundamental Biology and Implications for Social Standing and Longevity.”
- 2022: Maram Saada, “Huntington's Disease: Etiology, Research Models and Treatment.”
- 2023: Jenna Schafer, "Timeout with Torpor: History, Biology and Future Medical Applications of a Survival Strategy."
Resources:
- How to Apply for Lang Prize
- Lang Prize Website by Kristin Burns, digital communications manager, UC Davis Library
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
The students, along with the three winners in the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences category, received their awards at a recent ceremony in the UC Davis Shields Library Courtyard.
A paper written by Maram Saada, a student in a longevity class taught by UC Davis distinguished professor James R. Carey, won first place in the SEM category and a $1000 prize. Saada's research paper, “Huntington's Disease: Etiology, Research Models and Treatment,” is now online. It will be published in eScholarship, an open-access scholarly publishing service affiliated with the University of California.
Second place in the SEM category went to Jocelyn Chu, a student in a medical entomology class taught by assistant professor Geoffrey Attardo, for her paper, “Vector-borne Disease Control Plan for West Nile Virus in California.” She received $750.
Two of Carey's students, Jessica Hevener and David Vo, tied for third place in the SEM category. Hevener, of Carey's longevity class, submitted her paper on “The Impact of Maternal Obesity on Maternal and Offspring Health,” while Vo, enrolled in a special study class for advanced undergraduates, entered his paper on “Surviving the Cold: How Circumpolar Peoples Have Adapted to the Extreme Conditions of the Arctic Entomology." They shared the third-prize award of $500.
The Lang Prize competition recognizes students who make exceptional use of library resources and services — such as primary source materials and special collections, online databases and journal articles; inter-library loan services, or consulting with a librarian, according to Alesia McManus, chair of the Lang Prize for Undergraduate Information Research and head of student services, UC Davis Shields Library.
In a earlier news release, McManus announced that “It was a strong pool of applications, with 17 out of the 21 applications meeting the average 39.99 score threshold for being considered for an award." The Lang Prize honors the legacy of professor emeritus and plant biologist Norma Lang, 1931-2015, a member of the faculty from 1963 to 1991.
UC Davis Distinguished Professor James R. Carey. Carey, a member of the UC Davis entomology faculty since 1980, instructs undergraduates in his classes--which usually exceed 200 students--how to research topics, use style sheets, and structure their papers. He has produced 13 videos on how to research and write a research paper, along with a new video on the use of style sheets.
Highly honored by his peers for his teaching expertise, Carey received the Entomological Society of America's 2015 Distinguished Teaching Award; a 2018 Robert Foster Cherry Award from Baylor University, which presents international teaching awards; and the UC Davis Academic Senate's 2014 Distinguished Teaching Award, an honor given to internationally recognized professors who excel at teaching.
Carey is considered the preeminent global authority on arthropod demography. He directed the multidisciplinary, 11-institution, 20-scientist program, “Biodemographic Determinants of Lifespan,” which garnered more than $10 million in funding from the National Institute on Aging from 2003 to 2013.
Assistant Professor Geoffrey Attardo. UC Davis medical entomologist-geneticist Geoffrey Attardo, who joined the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology in 2017 from the Yale School of Public Health's Department of Epidemiology of Microbial Diseases, is a global expert on vectorborne diseases, and renowned for his groundbreaking work on tsetse flies. The Attardo lab monitors the dynamics of vector insects at the levels of physiology, population genetics and environmental interactions.
Attardo, who won the 2022 Medical, Urban, and Veterinary Entomology (MUVE) Award from the Pacific Branch, Entomological Society of America, “excels not only as a researcher, but as a teacher, mentor, scientific illustrator, macro photographer,videographer and science communicator,” said UC Davis distinguished professor Bruce Hammock in his letter of nomination for the MUVE Award. Attardo drew praise for his "highly effective teaching style in helping students build critical thinking skills and confidence."
The 2022 winners of the Lang Prizes in the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences category are Joyce Do, Annie Miyadi, and Sarah Grimes. (See more on Shields Library website.)
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Nguyen received $1000 in the competition, which recognizes undergraduate students whose research projects entail extensive use of library resources, services and expertise. Another student in Carey's longevity class, La Rissa Vasquez, a neurology, physiology and behavior major, won the third prize of $500 in the SEM category for her paper, “Surviving COVID-19: Variables of Immune Response.”
This is the second consecutive year that a student in Carey's longevity class has won the top prize in the SEM category. The awards program, launched in 2017, memorializes Norma J. Lang (1931-2015), professor emerita of botany.
In his longevity classes, Carey requires a term paper and teaches his students how to research topics, use style sheets, and structure the document.
Barry Nguyen
Said Nguyen: “My paper discusses the biological process of allostasis, a stress response much like homeostasis, but instead of maintaining the body's internal conditions within narrow ranges, allostasis makes changes to the body's internal parameters to appropriately meet external demands. In other words, homeostasis revolves around a set mean value while allostasis deviates from it. Repeatedly activating this process over time can actually damage the associated physiological systems itself and lead to brain damage. This malfunctioning state is a characteristic of Allostatic Load, a state that describes the negative effects caused by a damaged Allostatic process.”
Allostatic Load (AL) can be utilized in the discussion of mortality across social classes, Nguyen related. “For example, by using educational years as a means to measure social class, scientists found a relationship between social classes and AL. Specifically, higher AL measurements were prominent in lower social classes. In the same study, mortality rates were also seen much higher in lower social classes. Taken together, a higher AL measurement may confer a higher risk of death.”
Nguyen, who grew up in San Rafael, expects to graduate from UC Davis in 2023. He describes himself as a “a student exploring interests in the biological sciences and seeking opportunities in the medical setting.” In March, he joined the John Morrison laboratory at the UC Davis California National Primate Research Center as an undergraduate research assistant with the Advancing Diversity in Aging Research (ADAR) program, funded by the National Institutes of Health. Nguyen is currently investigating HIV associated neurocognitive disorders.
Nguyen is active in the UC Davis Biology and Undergraduate Scholars Program (BUSP), and is the founder/president/CEO of VN Give, a non-profit organization that assists underserved communities in Hue, Vietnam. He is also a junior editor of The Aggie Transcript, an undergraduate life science journal; and a trustee of Aggies Helping Aggies.
La Rissa Vasquez
In her paper, Vasquez provides an in-depth synopsis of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), focusing on its innate and adaptive immune responses. She analyzed diverse sources, ranging from autopsy reports and data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to peer-reviewed journals.
“In the beginning of the (longevity) course, I was asked to address any topic related to aging, survival, health span or longevity,” Vasquez wrote. “I chose to discuss COVID-19 because it is currently one of the most prevalent threats to our global survival and remains at the start of every conversation. I learned to think about longevity as not a conversation about aging and death (but as) discrete occurrences that happen at certain stages in a person's life. Death is not a single grim reaper but more like a pack of devils constantly at work to hinder and eventually terminate function.”
Vasquez sought to touch on innate and adaptive immunity “because they are the pack of devils contributing to death. I then looked for sources that actively discussed causes of death in the form of autopsy reviews of COVID victims.”
“The way I pursued the topic was genuine because of family members I lost to COVID. Writing about the virus became less desensitizing and more personal.”
Vasquez, who is from Stockton, expects to receive her bachelor's degree from UC Davis in 2023. At UC Davis, she is an undergraduate research assistant in the Bliss-Moreau laboratory of the California National Primate Research Center; a member of the Biology Undergraduate Scholars Program; and a junior editor of The Aggie Transcript. She also volunteers for the Brain Exercise Initiative, a non-profit organization that uses simple math, writing and reading loud exercises as an intervention to improve cognitive functions in Alzheimer's patients.
UC Davis Distinguished Professor James R. Carey
Carey, a member of the UC Davis faculty since 1980, is an internationally recognized teacher. He won a 2018 global award in the Robert Foster Cherry Award for Great Teaching Program, an academic competition sponsored every two years by Baylor University, Waco, Texas. He won the 2015 Distinguished Achievement in Teaching Award from the Entomological Society of America (ESA) and the 2014 Distinguished Teaching Award from the Pacific Branch of ESA.
The UC Davis Academic Senate honored him as the recipient of its 2014 Distinguished Teaching Award, given to internationally recognized professors who excel at teaching. Carey is globally recognized for his research in insect demography, mortality dynamics, and insect invasion biology.
In 2020, Carey's student, Jessica Macaluso, swept the top award in the SEM category with her paper, “The Biological Basis for Alzheimer's Disease.” She received $1000.
Another 2020 prize winner, Vincent Pan, a student researcher in the lab of ecologist Rick Karban, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, won the $750 second-place award in the SEM category for his paper: "Recent Advances in Elucidating the Function of Zebra Stripes: Parasite Avoidance and Thermoregulation Do Not Resolve the Mystery." At the time, Pan was enrolled in the University Writing Program.
Resources: