Sustainability is a growing priority for many cities, but there is only so much a city planner can improve without the help and participation of residents and their homes. In Palo Alto, a big gap surrounding sustainable housing is the lack of awareness and education about actionable steps people can take to improve their own homes. “Sustainability for Existing Homes: Increasing Awareness Through Advocacy and Community Events” is a project that combines in-person workshops and presentations with an online informational campaign. Members of a Bay Area high school’s Green Team will collaborate with the project to develop informational content and presentations, with employees of Acterra, an environmental organization based in Palo Alto, advising and mentoring each step. Meanwhile, plans to volunteer with Acterra to give Electric Home Tours seek to spread publicity for workshops and increase knowledge about sustainable housing. The workshops will consist of a presentation that aims to educate people on sustainable solutions, and a hands-on activity to apply the learning.

This project aims to propose updates to the existing emergency preparedness plan, specifically by identifying and recommending the addition of new evacuation points on campus. The primary objective is to alleviate congestion during evacuations triggered by fire alarms, improving safety and efficiency. It will identify suitable evacuation points through analysis of publicly available data sources, including topographic maps and satellite imagery, supplemented by site surveys and logical evaluations. These findings will be consolidated into a formal proposal for consideration by the School Safety Planning Committee. The goal is to incorporate additional evacuation points into the existing plan, addressing current challenges and ensuring a safer evacuation process for all students and staff.

Badminton, defined by its speed and unique projectile known as a shuttlecock, is a fast paced sport especially popular in Asia. Unlike most sports, the shuttlecock's relatively low weight to high drag (air resistance) makes its motion very susceptible to this force. It is the deceleration due to drag that causes the badminton shuttlecock to fall in a distinctive parachute motion–a trajectory in which the fall angle is sharper than the rise angle. For this reason, this alteration in trajectory is directly related to the drag. The repeated use of these shuttlecocks in amateur settings can cause deformations, changing the drag force. This study aims to examine the magnitude and types of deformities of shuttlecocks that occur due to overuse, through the collection of shuttlecocks at a local Bay Area high school badminton team. This study will also investigate how deformities affect drag through measuring drag using a simple homemade wind tunnel and measuring terminal velocities to calculate drag coefficient. Lastly, this study will analyze how deformities could affect the game of badminton through surveys and the analysis of the previous results.

As many as five in every 100,000 deaths in people that are 20 years or older are affected by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, commonly known as ALS (ALS News Today). There are multiple gene mutations, changes in the DNA sequence of a gene, that can cause the development of ALS. The SOD1 gene mutation is one of the most common, leading to the protein aggregation process, in which mutated or misfolded proteins accumulate and clump together, ultimately leading to neuron degeneration. There are not a lot of clinical trials of gene therapies for ALS genes, even though the first genetic analysis of the disease was back in 1993, and ALS patients have to deal with large financial costs to treat the disease (Siddique and Ajroud-Driss, 2011). By learning more about the key mechanisms by which ALS is caused, patients’ health can be improved and the costs needed for the treatments can be minimized. Through a content analysis inquiry, the data collected will be analyzed by summarizing the key findings and main ideas of research journals on different aspects of ALS with SOD1 protein aggregations and mechanisms. The studies in the meta-analysis are selected if they discuss background information on SOD1, the toxicity of mutant and misfolded SOD1 in ALS, the disease's signaling pathways, data to expand on research uncertainties, specificity of mutant and misfolded SOD1, mechanisms of aggregation propagation, purpose of protein aggregation, or therapeutic implications.

The purpose of this study is to gather data on the different types and levels of indoor lighting and how they affect the performance and health of teachers and students. Different classrooms receive varying amounts of natural, fluorescent, and LED light, leading to changes in circadian rhythms, energy levels, and productivity. Circadian rhythm disruptions caused by flaws in indoor lighting are a major concern, as the circadian rhythm—our body’s instinctive 24-hour clock—regulates hormone release, metabolism, and body temperature. These rhythms are primarily controlled by the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), which responds to changes in brightness, spectral distribution, and the timing of light. Adolescents are particularly susceptible to circadian rhythm disruptions, often experiencing irregular sleep-wake cycles that harm their overall health. Prolonged disruptions can lead to issues such as obesity, high blood pressure, and cancer. This study will help identify patterns between school lighting conditions and their effect on the performance and health of students and teachers, providing insights to minimize circadian disruptions and improve well-being in educational settings.

The COVID-19 pandemic taking the lives of an estimated 18.2 million revealed gaps in worldwide public health systems and pandemic preparedness. Many developed nations started incorporating the One Health approach into their public health systems and recognizing its advantages (Sinclair, 2019). One Health is an inclusive approach for healthcare systems that recognizes the interconnectedness of human, animal, and environmental health (WHO, 2021). Low and middle-income countries, mostly in Southeast Asia, South Asia, and Africa fail to recognize the holistic approach of One Health (Yopa et al., 2023). Zoonotic diseases have a higher impact in LMICs due to rapid population growth, a lack of infrastructure, weak immune systems, and lifestyles that depend on animals for food (Wondwossen et al, 2014). This begs the question: How implementation of the One Health approach into the public health systems of low and middle-income countries (LMICs) influence the success of addressing zoonotic diseases? Evaluation research will be used to evaluate the effectiveness of One Health approach implementations. Databases will be used to find graphics, reports, scripts, and tables of public health systems. Coding will be utilized to condense data into 5-7 themes that integrate categories, subcategories, and themes into an argument.

Understanding the physiological factors that influence performance is paramount in elite sports where fractions of a second can determine careers. For female athletes, hormonal oral contraceptive pills (OCPs) represent a common medical intervention, yet their impact on athletic performance, including strength, endurance, and recovery, remains inadequately understood (Hruby, 2022). This lack of evidence leaves athletes, coaches, and medical professionals with insufficient information to make informed decisions about OCP use. Drawing on existing research and a case study of one elite high school female swimmer, this project explores whether OCPs contribute to performance stagnation or decline, including changes in physical sensation, mood, motivation, and reported declines in competitive results. This research analyzes swim times and anecdotal observations of an elite high school swimmer during a six-month period while on OCPs. By shining a light on this underexplored issue, the study aims to spark meaningful conversations and further scientific inquiry into the nuanced interplay between hormonal contraception and athletic performance. The findings aim to highlight the urgent need for more rigorous, gender-inclusive research to equip female athletes with the knowledge necessary to make informed decisions about their health and athletic careers.

Imagine a world where everyone was born “perfect” in other words, lacking in all genetic predispositions to sickle cell disease, cystic fibrosis, cancers, HIV, etc. This world is becoming more and more possible with the development of genetic editing, specifically because of CRISPR technology, also known as clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic responses. Using an enzyme called Cas 9 this technology can cut certain DNA sequences and modify the way the body will function. Initially, this topic does not seem very ethically complex, fixing all genetic mutations on the surface seems to be an inherently positive thing. However, research and studies have shown that it may not be that simple. For example, the premature experiment done by Jian-Kui HE on two female embryos to immunize the babies to HIV (Chen, 2022). This experiment was concerning because there is not enough research to be conducting this kind of medical treatment yet. In order to move towards the safe implementation of CRISPR it is crucial to consider what regulations can be put in place to allow for CRISPR technology to be developed safely and ethically?

Climate change is continuing to worsen over time even though it's a known growing issue. Before solving an issue action has to start being taken. Latane and Darley's five stage model displays why commitment lacks when it comes to solving climate change issues,¨ We identify the factors that make climate change difficult to notice and ambiguous as an emergency; we explore barriers to taking responsibility for action; and we discuss the issues of efficacy and costs versus benefits that make action unlikely.¨(Frantz, & Mayer, F. S , 2009) Although all these factors really slow down the action we have to take, one of the biggest issue is people that have to rely on unsustainable industries to survive, ¨ Nonetheless, 80% of the global economy continues to rely on fossil energy sources, meaning that the worlds activities exploit past carbon stores and will torment the future.¨(Hultman, Bonnedahl, & O'Neill, 2016) This Article talks about how climate change is affecting the economy positively, however the rest of this paper is going to talk about how climate change specifically affects impoverished communities and how we can target it towards these people.

My research explores the dual nature of surf tourism, highlighting both its benefits and detriments. On the positive side, surf tourism can stimulate local economies and provide healthier lifestyle alternatives for impoverished communities, as seen in regions like Nicaragua and El Salvador. However, it often displaces locals, fosters environmental harm, and exacerbates gentrification, with unchecked market growth marginalizing host communities. Localism and territorial disputes among surfers further contribute to tensions, leading to aggression and violence. In the end some surfers advocate for sustainable practices and collaboration among stakeholders to combat these problems. I on the other hand would like to use data as a resource to find whether the financial impacts are positive or negative towards both the environment and communities.