Scholarworks

ScholarWorks is an open access repository for the capture of the intellectual work of Montana State University (MSU) in support of its teaching, research and service missions. MSU ScholarWorks is a central point of discovery for accessing, collecting, sharing, preserving, and distributing knowledge to the Montana State University community and the world.

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ResilienceMT: Partnering with Rural and Tribal Communities to Cultivate Youth Climate Resilience Engagement
(Informa UK Limited, 2025-07) Covitt, Beth A.; Frank, Nicollette; Bestor, Amanda G.; DeBiasio, Stephanie G.; Edmo, Termaine; Kaiser, Jan Christian; Lachpelle, Paul; Longknife, Dennis Charles; Wethington, Nicholas; Saha, Robin
ResilienceMT is a NOAA-funded education effort to cultivate Montana communities’ resilience to drought, wildfire and smoke, extreme heat, and flooding. Led by the University of Montana, the project partners include several Montana rural and tribal communities as well as Montana State University. With current and predicted impacts of the changing climate on the rise, Montana communities need to prepare for more extreme future conditions. This article describes the project co-design process used to envision and create climate resilience education activities and products, including a traveling climate resilience science exhibition, with and for Montana communities. Descriptions of exhibition elements and how they scaffold student voice and empowerment are provided, along with lessons learned for effective collaborations to support youth engagement in community-driven climate resilience learning and action.
Robust D-Optimal Mixture Designs Under Manufacturing Tolerances via Multi-Objective NSGA-II
(MDPI AG, 2025-09) Limmun, Wanida; Chomtee, Boonorm; Borkowski, John
This study proposes a multi-objective optimization framework for generating statistically efficient and operationally robust designs in constrained mixture experiments with irregular experimental regions. In industrial settings, manufacturing variability from batching inaccuracies, raw material inconsistencies, or process drift can degrade nominally optimal designs. Traditional methods focus on nominal efficiency but neglect robustness, and few explicitly incorporate percentile-based criteria. To address this limitation, the Non-Dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm II (NSGA-II) was employed to simultaneously maximize nominal D-efficiency and the 10th-percentile D-efficiency (R-D10), a conservative robustness metric representing the efficiency level exceeded by 90% of perturbed implementations. Six design generation methods were evaluated across seven statistical criteria using two case studies: a constrained concrete formulation and a glass chemical durability study. NSGA-II designs consistently achieved top rankings for D-efficiency, R-D10, A-efficiency, and G-efficiency, while maintaining competitive IV-efficiency and scaled prediction variance (SPV) values. Robustness improvements were notable, with R-D10 by 1.5–5.1% higher than the best alternative. Fraction of design space plots further confirmed its resilience, demonstrating low variance and stable performance across the design space.
Disease Ecology Camp: A Model for Engaging Undergraduates in Outreach with Underserved Youth
(Vanderbilt University Library, 2025-02) Davis, Hilarie; Davey, Bradford T.; Cornish, Jamie; Smith, Nora; Boz, Tuğba; Hammack, Rebekah
Disease ecology classes were conducted at two residential middle school summer camps held at a university-a camp for local youth who paid tuition and a free camp for youth from statewide underserved communities including Native, low-income, and rural. Disease ecology is defined as the ecological study of host-pathogen interactions within the context of their environment and evolution. The classes were created by a grant-funded program for disease ecology designed to increase middle school youths' interest, confidence, and identity in STEM, and their understanding of disease ecology. Undergraduate researchers were recruited to develop and teach lessons in disease ecology. This paper outlines the project's elements, effects on undergraduate students and middle school youth, and lessons learned. This study has three key findings: 1) Undergraduate participants increased their confidence and interest in science outreach and their understanding of disease ecology, 2) STEM identity increased in both underserved middle school youth and a comparison youth group, 3) Both underserved and comparison group middle school youth increased their understanding of disease ecology, Native culture, traditional knowledge about food, how to be healthy where they live, and how science can help their communities.
Effects of a heat wave event on the chemical ecology of species interactions in the potato agroecosystem
(Oxford University Press, 2025-10) Carvajal Acosta, A. Nalleli; Snook, Joshua S.; Szendrei, Zsofia; Wetzel, William C.
Heat waves, brief periods of unusually high temperatures, are increasing in frequency and intensity globally. Such extreme weather events can alter plant chemistry, disrupting species interactions that contribute to pest suppression or increase their performance. Yet, most heat wave studies focus on pairwise interactions, leaving us with a poor understanding of how complex agroecosystems respond to temperature extremes. We addressed this knowledge gap by simulating an experimental heat wave in the field on potato plants (Solanum tuberosum L.) and the Colorado potato beetle, Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Say) (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae), in the presence or absence of their mutualistic microbial symbionts and another pest, the potato aphid (Macrosiphum euphorbiae (Thomas)). We assessed beetle performance alongside changes in volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and glycoalkaloids from host plants. Beetle performance declined in the absence of their microbial symbionts and under aphid competition, but this effect was reversed under heat wave conditions. These results corresponded with a downregulation in glycoalkaloids, suggesting that potato prioritizes heat stress response over herbivore attack by divesting resources from the production of defensive compounds. The heat wave strongly affected VOCs composition, reducing emissions of multiple compounds while increasing others, but these changes were not directly linked with CPB performance. Overall, our results demonstrate that heat wave effects on crop–pest dynamics are dependent on the agroecological context and mediated by specialized metabolites. Importantly, under dual herbivore pressure, potato crops appear to prioritize coping with heat over defending against pests, underscoring the urgent need for pest management strategies that account for extreme climate events.
School Nurses: An Upstream Investment for Achieving Menstrual Equity
(American Public Health Association, 2025-08) Bergen, Sadie; Maughan, Erin D.; Secor, Molly; Johnson, Karen E.; Cogan, Robin; Sommer, Marni
Menstrual equity has emerged as an important public health issue, with a growing political coalition advocating improved access to menstrual products. In the September 2024 issue of AJPH, we described and analyzed the history of the role of school nurses in the US education system in relation to menstruation and its intersection with population health.1 In recognition of School Nurse Day and Menstrual Hygiene Day—both of which took place in the month of May—we build on this work and make the case for honoring both occasions through investments in school nurse staffing and training as essential public health investments toward menstrual equity. Adequately staffed and trained, school nurses—who are often the only health care providers in the school setting—can fulfill the full scope of their role in menstrual health education and care, from identifying potential menstrual health disorders to dispelling the stigma still attached to menstruation.