The impact of undergraduate research experiences on students' academic development and retention in STEM fields is significant. Students' success in STEM fields is based on developing strong research and critical thinking skills that make it essential for students to engage in research activities throughout their academic programs. This work evaluates the effectiveness of undergraduate research experiences with respect to its influence on student retention and academic development. The cases presented are based on years of experience implementing undergraduate research programs in various STEM fields at Colorado State University Pueblo (CSU Pueblo) funded by HSI STEM Grants. The study seeks to establish a correlation between students' retention rates and academic development and students' involvement in undergraduate research experiences and programs during their academic journey. The work also delves into different mentoring approaches, including group-based and mentoring by individual faculty. This study provides the engineering and STEM education community with a deeper understanding of the advantages of undergraduate research experiences in enriching STEM and mentoring practices that can increase students' participation and mold their academic and professional character.
Background: The potential use of zinc oxide and other metal oxide nanoparticles in biomedical are gaining interest in the scientific and medical communities, largely due to the physical and chemical properties of these nanomaterials. The present work revealed the effect of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnONPs) on the total salivary peroxidase enzyme activity of human saliva in comparison to de-ionized water. Materials and methods: Forty eight unstimulated saliva samples were collected from dental students/University of Baghdad 18-22 years. Then measure the total salivary peroxidase activity first without any addition to human saliva as a control, second with dilution the saliva with de-ionized water, and third with zinc oxide nanoparticles in c
... Show MoreBackground: With the increased in the demands of adult orthodontics, the challenge of direct bonding to non-enamel surface (zirconium) had been increased. The present study was carried out to compare the shear bond strength of three different brackets (stainless steel, sapphire and composite) bonded to zirconium surface and study the mode of bond failure. Materials and methods: The sample was comprised of 30 models (8mm *6mm*1.5mm) of full contour zirconium veneers. They were divided into three groups according to the brackets type; all samples were treated first by sandblast with aluminum oxide particle 50 µm then coated by z-prime plus primer. A central incisor bracket of each group was bonded to the prepared zirconium surface with lig
... Show MoreThe present study was conducted in the Tigris River within Baghdad (University of Baghdad campus). The study included some physicochemical parameters and qualitative of epiphytic algae on the host plant (Ceratophyllum demersum) during summer season 2013. The results revealed that the study area was alkaline, hard and oxygenated water. A total of 105 taxa of epiphytic algae was identified. Bacillariophyceae diatoms composed 44.7% of the total and were represented by 42.4% of the order Pennales and 1.9 %of the order Centrales. Chlorophyceae composed 32.3%, followed by Cyanophyceae composed 22.8 % of the total. The total number of epiphytic algae was fluctuated among the study period. Most of the identified algae were benthos type and a few
... Show MoreOne of the most popular causes for implant infection is dental plaque bacteria. Previous studies have shown the bactericidal effect of CO2 laser irradiation on bacteria associated with soft tissue surrounding the implant materials. No published studies have examined the effect of irradiation by CO2 laser on Streptococcus oralis and Staphylococcus aureus.The aim of this study was to evaluate the bactericidal effect of CO2 laser on bacteria that are causing dental implant infections. This study was carried out on two isolates of bacterial species out of 25 samples, isolated from patients having soft tissue infections around the dental implant. These two pure isolates including Streptococcus oralis and Staphylococcus aureus were identified
... Show MoreBackground: Considering the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial properties of green tea, this study aimed to evaluate the histopathological effect of the sulcular irrigation of green tea extract in the treatment of experimental gingivitis in rabbit.
Materials and methods: For this experimental study, 45 male rabbits, separated in two groups, control non- irrigated group (5rabbits) and study group (40 rabbits), gingivitis induced by ligatures was packed subgingivally in the lower right central incisors of the experimental group for seven days. Then, the animals were randomly designated to two irrigated groups (20 rabbits
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