Celebration shows off CSUMB research

By Mark Muckenfuss

A crowd of about 40 researchers and their supporters gathered on Thursday, Feb. 19, for the annual Celebration of Research on the third floor of the Tanimura & Antle Family Memorial Library. Seven Cal State Monterey Bay researchers presented short talks, while about a dozen research papers and two books were on display. There was also a video from the cinematic arts and technology program. 

“Research is about community,” Andrew Lawson, provost and vice president for academic affairs, told the group as he opened the event. “Behind every article is a collaborator who pushed the thinking further.”

Cindy Juntunen, associate provost and dean of graduate studies and research, who oversaw the event, said this year’s research shows the variety of work that’s being done at CSUMB.

“We’ve got presentations representing a real breadth of topics,” Juntunen said. “We’ve got something from almost every cluster of disciplines on campus. Whatever category of information you like, we’ve got you covered.”

The talks included such topics as social media and mental health, water management, Ai performance, exercise and weight loss, and physical response to video games. 

On this last subject, Steven Macheck, an assistant professor of kinesiology, looked at, among other things, heart-rate response in competitive video gamers. He found levels of activity comparable to those of physical athletes, with some subjects registering heart rates of nearly 200 beats per minute at peak moments of activity. 

“What we’ve seen is that these players consistently top 150 (BPM),” Mancheck said. 

As if to echo Lawson’s notion of community in research, Mancheck told the crowd, “One of the reasons I wanted to do this is to open this up for collaboration.”

Zurine De Miguel’s study already involved collaboration. The associate professor of psychology worked with the marine science department to look at neuronal activity in speckled sandabs in Elkhorn Slough. De Miguel, whose past research has looked at neurodegeneration in relation to Parkinson’s disease, investigated the impact of hypoxia on brain growth in the fish. The water in Elkhorn Slough has periodic episodes of low dissolved-oxygen levels.

De Miguel said she and her team looked at specific types of stem cells. 

“We found hypoxia increases the proliferation of these cells, but decreases their survival,” she said. 

She said more study needs to be done, and she acknowledged the benefit of working with students through the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Center. 

“I feel this university supported us,” she said. 

Lawson called the event “an important moment to recognize the accomplishments of our faculty and student researchers. Research really strengthens our mission. It provides a high-quality experiential learning opportunity for our students.”