New KSU Internal Grant Focuses On University’s Signature Research Themes

Press release from Kennesaw State University:

Aug 25, 2020

New KSU internal grant focuses on university’s signature research themes

KENNESAW, Ga.
(Aug 25, 2020) — Five research teams will have the opportunity to pursue new interdisciplinary projects
over the next two years as grant recipients of the Interdisciplinary Innovation Initiative
(I3) sponsored by the Kennesaw State University Research and Service Foundation (KSURSF).

Spearheaded by Kennesaw State University’s Office of Research, the I3 grants program was created to stimulate innovation, capacity-building and sustainability
of interdisciplinary research and scholarly activity around four broad research themes – Biomedical and Health Services, Computing and Technology, Human Development and
Well-Being, and Sustainable and Safe Communities.

Each of the five interdisciplinary teams received between $50,000 and $75,000 to address
key aspects within these broad themes with the expectation to later seek external
funding on their initial work. Undergraduate and graduate students will have the opportunity
to engage with faculty as part of the research teams.

“This type of university-wide support demonstrates that Kennesaw State is committed
to creating the appropriate infrastructure and culture that facilitates the success
of faculty and student scholars in their individual and collaborative work,” KSU President
Pamela S. Whitten said.

As the new academic year begins, the I3 scholarly teams will start multi-faceted research inquiries in postpartum health
and well-being; microplastics and the environment; preparedness of military trainees;
machine learning; and Omega-3 fatty acids for disease prevention.

“Kennesaw State is on an upward trajectory as we have experienced an incredible year
of research growth and productivity,” KSU Vice President for Research Phaedra Corso
said. “The Office of Research has developed interdisciplinary-focused programming,
such as the I3 grants competition, to build a sustainable internal infrastructure to help faculty
as they launch collaborative work with the potential to make immediate and impactful
discoveries.”

The five teams, made up of KSU faculty, will also include collaboration with external
partners. The I3 recipients and projects are:

• Team 1: Awatef Ergai, industrial and systems engineering; Ebony Glover, neuroscience; Mary
  Ukuku, public health; Joyce Adams, nursing (recently joined the University of Notre
  Dame)

Georgia has the second highest maternal mortality rate in the U.S., with the postpartum
period as the time of highest risk when often unpredictable life-threatening complications
can occur. Mothers usually receive information on the warning signs of postpartum
complications right after childbirth during the hospital discharge process. The team
will measure women’s state of mind associated with stress, arousal and high mental
effort during this time to understand how these factors may contribute to the women’s
comprehension and long-term retention of this critical postpartum knowledge.

• Team 2: Amy Gruss, civil engineering; Marina Koether, chemistry; Daniel Ferreira, environmental
  science; Bharat Baruah, chemistry and biochemistry

Water and wastewater treatment plants return concentrated amounts of microplastics
associated with potential health risks to water bodies and croplands. However, there
is no standardized method of analysis for detecting microplastics that may vary in
concentrations at different sites, making it impossible to predict the risks of exposure.
The team will focus on improving and developing separation mechanisms to better characterize
microplastic concentrations and look at how microplastics affect the environment once
they are discharged from water treatment plants.

• Team 3: Paul Story and Brian Moore, psychology; Yuri Feito, exercise science

In recent years, military branches have faced an issue in the recruitment and retention
of quality personnel, many not finishing initial entry training due to injuries or
poor performance. As a result, there are extensive monetary and other factors related
to costs associated with training military personnel who do not finish. The primary
goal of the study is to examine the fitness, injuries, motivation, and resilience
of military base trainees so that appropriate injury prevention strategies can be
developed to help military personnel at risk for physical and psychological injuries.

• Team 4: Ying Xie, information systems; Linh Le, information technology; Sumit Chakravarty,
  electrical engineering; John David Johnson, sport management; Michael Hales, health
  promotion and physical education; Pablo Ordonez, computer science

Cyber Physical Social System (CPSS) is a novel paradigm incorporating the physical,
cyber and social systems, extending from the Cyber Physical System in which networks
and controls were the key components of design such as vehicle collision avoidance.
CPSS brings the social dimension to this interaction with machine learning acting
as the glue so they all work together. The team plans to develop a prototype of a
CPSS that will provide a platform, with the most recent advances in analytics and
intelligence technologies, for researchers in non-computing fields to easily integrate
into their research activities such as healthcare, exercise science and online education.

• Team 5: Trisha VanDusseldorp, Gerald Mangine and Brian Klisczewicz, exercise science; Carol
  Chrestensen, chemistry

Omega-3 fatty acids are long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids that can be consumed
via an oral supplement or eating oily fish such as salmon. Studies in recent decades
have identified docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) as the
particular omega-3 fatty acids responsible in helping prevent cardiovascular disease,
stroke, cancer, as well as have the potential to reduce inflammation induced by diseases
and exercise. Since many of these studies have examined the combined effects of DHA
and EPA, the research team will conduct a comprehensive assessment of the independent
effects of DHA and EPA on human health and well-being, including metabolic and cardiovascular
health, as well as exercise responses.

—Joëlle Walls

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A leader in innovative teaching and learning, Kennesaw State University offers more than 150 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees to its approximately 38,000 students. With 13 colleges on two metro Atlanta campuses, Kennesaw State is a member of the University System of Georgia and the third-largest university in the state. The university’s vibrant campus culture, diverse population, strong global ties and entrepreneurial spirit draw students from throughout the region and from 92 countries across the globe. Kennesaw State is a Carnegie-designated doctoral research institution (R2), placing it among an elite group of only 6 percent of U.S. colleges and universities with an R1 or R2 status, and one of the 50 largest public institutions in the country. For more information, visit kennesaw.edu.

This press release was produced by Kennesaw State University. The views expressed here are the author’s own.