Category: Academics

NSU Researchers Explore AI Use in Alzheimer’s Diagnosis

In a recent paper published in “Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience,” two Nova Southeastern University researchers compared traditional methods to diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease with the use of artificial intelligence with those methods. The paper — titled “Should artificial intelligence be used in conjunction with Neuroimaging in the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease?” — is coauthored by NSU student Sophia Mirkin, from the Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of Osteopathic Medicine, and Dr. Benedict C. Albensi, Ph.D., BCMAS, CRQM, chair and professor of NSU’s Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences in the Barry and Judy Silverman College of Pharmacy.

Among the pros of using artificial intelligence in diagnosing Alzheimer’s were an improvement of diagnostic accuracy, efficient data analysis, and a reduction in physician burnout. Among the cons were generalization and data shortage, skepticism by the medical community, and patient privacy concerns.

Get more details here.

Posted 04/09/23

University School Students Work on Innovation Challenges

First grade students have been working on various innovation challenges to prepare for Engineer It!, an annual engineering design competition for students in grades 1-12. As part of their innovation studies, students designed an egg drop container, built a bottle rocket, and used aluminum foil to make a boat that can float holding as many pennies as possible.

After finalizing their prototypes, students took their learning outdoors to put their designs to the test and enjoyed seeing all their hard work come to fruition.

Learn more about NSU University School’s college preparatory program for students in Preschool – Grade 12 at www.uschool.nova.edu.

Posted 04/09/23

University School Students Visit NSU’s Neuroscience Lab

Students in our Psychology Internship visited Nova Southeastern University‘s Neuroscience Laboratory in the Center for Collaborative Research where they dissected a sheep brain. Led by NSU neuroscience faculty member Dr. James Muñoz, students learned how remarkably similar the anatomy of a sheep brain is to the human brain.

Using their knowledge gained in our AP psychology course, students were able to identify brain structures and functions in real time during the dissection. Students also learned about Dr. Muñoz’s exciting research on gene therapy and neural stem cells and their potential applications to cognitive disorders like Alzheimer’s disease.

Learn more about NSU University School’s college preparatory program for students in Preschool – Grade 12 at www.uschool.nova.edu.

Posted 03/27/23

Honors Student Spreads Autism Awareness at Conference

Farquhar Honors College student Varun Kota presented his research spreading awareness of autism in black and brown communities at the 2023 Florida Undergraduate Research Conference (FURC). Completed as part of his honors thesis, the research focuses on the reasons for the underdiagnoses of autism in African American communities in South Florida and methods for increasing proper diagnoses.

Kota, a senior biology major, became interested in this research after learning about delayed diagnoses of autism and its impact on children and their families in the honors course Autism Today: The Individual and the Family. His research highlights how the lack of accessible resources and understanding plays a significant role in delayed diagnoses of autism and how education and advocacy are possible solutions.

“Heading a project such as the honors thesis was an opportunity to expand and hone my leadership and management skills,” said Kota. “My overall knowledge of ASD, the diagnostic process, services surrounding Autism, and its overall impact on African American families has grown tremendously. I have used this education to improve my professional writing, [research], and public speaking skills. Disseminating and presenting information regarding the project [also] enabled me to understand the publication process.”

Upon graduation, Kota plans on pursuing work in psychology and computational artificial intelligence to create a system to help people suffering from mental health issues receive the help they need.

Posted 03/27/23

USchool Students Take Top Awards at Fair

Science Fair Finalists

Science Fair FinalistsCongratulations to the following Middle School students who won 1st place and other top awards in the Broward Regional Science and Engineering Fair. All five 1st place winners will go on to compete in states in April.

1st place:

  • Adam Ginsburg: How Does Temperature Affect the Viability and Effectiveness of Sutures When Closing Wounds
  • Liliana Novak: How Moisturizers Affect a Swimmer’s Dry Skin
  • Samuel Mays: inSPECTRO Gadget
  • Nina Anderson: Building an Electromagnetic Model Mass Driver to Launch a Projectile
  • Brody Baum: Robot Insect Exterminator

2nd place:

  • Tomas Palacio: How Blue is Your Sports Drink?

3rd place:

  • Jayden Slingbaum: VEX Sensing Robot

Participant awards:

  • Nolan Arias: Photosynthesis to the Rescue: Using Biology to Repair the Ozone Layer
  • Anna Leffin: Does the Temperature Influence How Quickly Monarch Caterpillars Develop into Butterflies
  • Zachary Kopelman: Building and Playing a Theremin Instrument

Learn more about NSU University School’s college preparatory program for students in Preschool – Grade 12 at www.uschool.nova.edu.

Posted 03/26/23

Fischler Professor Publishes Paper on Special Needs Patients

Maria Levi-Minzi, Ph.D.

Fischler College of Education and School of Criminal Justice Professor Maria Levi-Minzi, Ph.D., has recently published a paper focusing on the dental treatment of children with autism spectrum disorder and other special needs.

The paper, called “Parent Perception of Child’s Behavior during the Initial Dental Visit among Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Cross Sectional Study,” came out of a study that was done by two pediatric dental residents.

“Children with special needs have different sensitivities and it can be hard to get any child to sit in a chair,” Levi-Minzi said. She gave some examples of the things these patients may struggle with, including sensitivities to tastes, smells, and sounds, as well as the tools shoved in their faces.

Levi-Minzi serves as a program evaluator for grants funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration. The grants supported the study which examined if parents knew how to best manage their child during the first dental visit. Researchers looked at two different outcome measures and an analysis score. They would then try to complete a certain number of tasks during every dentist visit, such as cleaning, and would look at those scores to see if a certain patient or parental characteristic was associated with a higher or lower score.

“We’re really just trying to understand if there were certain types of patient or parental characteristics that contributed to doing better at a dental appointment,” Levi-Minzi said. “If we could find out more information about that, then maybe we could try to help providers to better understand how to prep people for the appointment.”

According to the research, it was revealed that Hispanic individuals completed fewer tasks during dental appointments, something that made researchers question whether it was part of a language barrier or cultural aspect. Something else researchers picked up on was that the older the child is, the better the child did in the dental appointment. With information like this, the hope is to train dentists for more successful visits.

Currently, Levi-Minzi is working on two other papers related to special needs children.

To read the full paper, click here.

Posted 03/14/23

USchool Students Celebrate Black History Month

Throughout the month of February, students across various grade levels celebrated Black History Month through a range of insightful activities. Below are just a few of the activities that took place:

  • In the Upper School, students had the opportunity to hear from several influential guests, including Marquise Francis, senior national reporter and producer for Yahoo News, and RaShauna Hamilton, Miami Dolphins senior director of community relations and youth programs, who shared their career journey and expertise. The Black Student Alliance hosted an event to unify the school and celebrate Black music and culture.
  • Both Middle and Upper School students visited the Black Wings: American Dreams of Flight exhibit in the Alvin Sherman Library at NSU where they connected the stories of African American achievements, overcoming adversity, and challenges to their classroom discussions.
  • Middle School students researched different Black figures and designed infographics highlighting each individual’s impact. QR codes were also displayed in the hallway to introduce students to Black biographies and music.
  • In the Lower School, students made posters highlighting impactful, historical Black figures as part of an interactive Black History Month display, learned about African culture, observed artifacts, and enjoyed a performance by Positivity Africa, an African fusion band.

Posted 03/12/23

Student Dietitians Explore Grow2Heal Garden in Homestead

For the graduate student dietitian, a culminating experience in the “Culinary lab” course included a visit to Baptist Hospitals’ Grow2Heal Garden in Homestead, FL. The KPCOM, Department of Nutrition established a relationship with Baptist Health and Garden Manager, Thi Squire four years ago. The garden opened in 2014 with the goal to reach members of the community, improve their health, and prevent future disease. You can read more about the garden at https://baptisthealth.net/baptist-health-news/grow2heal-homestead-hospitals-community-garden .

The nutrition students were given a list of vegetables, herbs, and spices that were currently growing in the garden and would be available for their use. On the list was green papaya, rainbow chard, kale, yellow cauliflower, and tomatoes. Upon arrival, items such as ramen noodles, couscous, chickpeas, and chicken were added to the list. The students were challenged with creating a “Farm to Table” experience and then serving this meal to the Garden Manager, her assistants, their professor, and each other.

Quickly the students divided into three groups, devised their menu, and went to work. This challenge brought together the various concepts that they had learned from Food Service Management, Culinary Nutrition, Medical Nutrition Therapy, World Culture, Wellness, and other courses. The items created were: Green Papaya Slaw with a homemade Chili-Garlic dressing, Fresh Garden Vegetable Stir Fry, and Crispy Chickpea, Cauliflower, & Couscous salad with a Lemon-turmeric Herb dressing. The meal was enjoyed by all. Following lunch, students toured the garden, identifying various vegetables and herbs that grow well in the South Florida climate.

Student Dietitian, Sarah Jarrett commented that the garden was “a space to learn, nourish, and heal both yourself and others.” Cara Gonnello added, “Spending time at the Grow2Heal garden in Homestead was a fantastic hands-on experience for our cohort.”

Posted 03/12/23

Students Design Campaign for Ice Cream Business

Communication students in the Department of Communication, Media, and the Arts had a “sweet” semester collaborating with Sweet Aloha Ice Cream in Davie, Florida. The B.A. in Communication course, COMM 4300: Social Media Theory and Practice, is offered every other winter semester and provides students hands-on experience designing a social media campaign for a client. The course previously partnered with NSU’s Guy Harvey Research Institute.

“I am so proud of the professionalism and creativity that the 25 students in this course demonstrated while working with Sweet Aloha Ice Cream to deliver a strategic and successful social media campaign,” said Associate Professor of Communication Whitney Lehmann, Ph.D., APR, who teaches the course. “Sweet Aloha Ice Cream was such a fun client and community partner to work with and we enjoyed learning about its ‘Aloha’ organizational culture.”

Students worked with Sweet Aloha’s owner, Jimmy Anderson, to complete a social media audit, propose campaign objectives and complete deliverables, which included a social media channel strategy, a manual, a blog, a media relations toolbox, social media branding, professional imagery, audience-driven content, marketing materials and SWAG, and more.

The students presented the deliverables during a final showcase on Monday, Feb. 20, in the Teaching and Learning Studio in the Writing and Communication Center.

“My thanks to Jimmy and Sweet Aloha Ice Cream for providing this outstanding experiential learning opportunity for our communication students,” said Professor and Chair of the Department of Communication, Media, and the Arts Shanti Bruce, Ph.D., “I was so impressed with the students’ presentations and creative efforts.”

For more information about DCMA’s community partners, click here.

Posted 03/12/23

Educators Publish Article in Southern Discourse in the Center

Nikki Chasteen, M.A., NSU Writing & Communication Center (WCC) Assistant Director; Kevin Dvorak, Ph.D. NSU WCC Executive Director; and Kelly Concannon, Ph.D., Eric Mason, Ph.D., and Janine Morris, Ph.D, NSU WCC Faculty Coordinators, published “From Crisis to Habit: Re-Shaping Academic Conferences for Remote Communities” in the Fall 2022 issue of Southern Discourse in the Center. Dvorak, Concannon, Mason, and Morris are all faculty members in the Department of Communication, Media, and the Arts (DCMA) in the Halmos College of Arts and Sciences (HCAS). Chasteen is an alumna of the DCMA Composition, Rhetoric, and Digital Media master’s program.

“From Crisis to Habit” focuses on lessons learned while hosting the virtual 2022 Southeastern Writing Center Association (SWCA) conference, February 2022. Chasteen et al. co-hosted the conference, with support from DCMA and the SWCA board. Of the experience, Chasteen et al. reflect, “Almost two years into the pandemic, and with all of this uncertainty in mind, we wondered what we could do to engage conference participants in needed conversations, how we could understand this period as an opportunity to maximize our most productive habits, and what lessons we had learned in the process” (11). The article provides advice for educators interested in hosting remote conferences.

To access “From Crisis to Habit: Re-Shaping Academic Conferences for Remote Communities,” click here.

To learn more about the WCC, visit www.nova.edu/wcc

Posted 03/12/23

1 … 10 11 12 13 14 … 55