Author: Young Investigators Review

The Young Investigators Review is Stony Brook University's undergraduate-oriented, all-inclusive science journal. Founded in 2008, our mission is to provide the student community with a way to learn more about the research currently being done on-campus by their faculty and fellow peers. We feature articles that span all fields, from Physics to Neuroscience, as well as original student research reports straight from the campus laboratories. Our journal offers aspiring talented future researchers and physicians a way to hone their science writing skills and spread word of their experiences to inspire incoming students to think about devoting their futures to the various fields of science.
General, Uncategorized

The Truth Behind the Marie Antoinette Syndrome

Yukta Kulkarni ’22 Before her execution in 1793, French queen Marie Antoinette noticed that her hair was suddenly turning white. Although this story is just folklore, there may be some truth to it in regards to the Marie Antoinette Syndrome, a condition in which one’s hair abruptly turns white. To further explore this syndrome, Zhang et al. designed an experiment measuring the rate of hair … Continue reading The Truth Behind the Marie Antoinette Syndrome

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Neuroscience

Circadian rhythm directly influences muscle performance in Olympic swimmers

Joyce Chen ’23 Organisms have a specialized inner clock known as the circadian rhythm, which is regulated by the Suprachiasmatic Nucleus (SCN) in the hypothalamus of the brain. Throughout the day, circadian rhythms in the body have direct control over physiological functions, including muscle strength and flexibility. Despite its relevance, there is a lack of research on the effects of circadian rhythms on Olympic athletes. … Continue reading Circadian rhythm directly influences muscle performance in Olympic swimmers

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Biology

Napping appears to have significant beneficial effects on long-term memory-retention over cramming

Priyanshi Patel ’22 Currently, there is extensive research on the cognitive effects of daytime naps, but not whether naps are a practical way to assist learning. Naps can reduce the likelihood of forgetting episodic memory consisting of life events and experiences. Prior research surrounding memory improvements have led to the idea that naps may be used as a pedagogical tool.  However, there is little evidence … Continue reading Napping appears to have significant beneficial effects on long-term memory-retention over cramming

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Cognition

Monkey Behavior Aids In Understanding Human Cognition

Yukta Kulkarni ’22 The human brain’s prefrontal cortex plays an important role in cognitive behavior. It contains several sections including the lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC), which is associated with working memory, reasoning, and planning; and the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), which directs reversal and reinforcement learning, reward evaluation, and alternative option evaluation.  These structures are also present in animals and have similar functions. To learn more … Continue reading Monkey Behavior Aids In Understanding Human Cognition

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General Neuroscience

Music to One’s Ears: Familiarity and Music Engagement in People With Parkinson’s Disease

Thumyat Noe ’23 Parkinson’s disease is a brain disorder characterized by loss of dopamine and reduced innervation of neural structures that are responsible for coordination of motor movements. Affected individuals often have difficulty walking and maintaining balance. However, music has been shown to be a helpful external cue that reduces these symptoms. Research shows that exposure to music activates brain regions that are closely related … Continue reading Music to One’s Ears: Familiarity and Music Engagement in People With Parkinson’s Disease

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General Psychology

Literacy Training of Kindergarten Children With Pencil, Keyboard or Tablet Stylus: The Influence of the Writing Tool on Reading and Writing Performance at the Letter and Word Level

Thumyat Noe ’23 Handwriting has always been an important mode of writing, but recently type-writing on digital devices is becoming more common than handwriting.  Nowadays, children are able to write for the first time by typing on a digital device before they learn how to handwrite. Some elementary schools have implemented initial literacy training using digital devices to facilitate literacy skills in students. As literacy … Continue reading Literacy Training of Kindergarten Children With Pencil, Keyboard or Tablet Stylus: The Influence of the Writing Tool on Reading and Writing Performance at the Letter and Word Level

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General Neuroscience

Compartmental function and modulation of the striatum

Sabah Bari ‘24 The striatum is one of the main input areas of the basal ganglia, a neuronal circuit necessary for voluntary movement control. It is a critical component of motor control, action selection and reward systems within the brain. Almost all elements of the brain’s reward circuit are modulated during social behavior. The striatum has two main efferent pathways. There are 2 main efferent … Continue reading Compartmental function and modulation of the striatum

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Health and Medicine

The association between digital screen time and myopia: A systematic review

Sabah Bari ‘24 With the advancement of technology and the creation of new digital platforms, many individuals have experienced an increase in screen time, which may heighten the risk for many health-related issues, especially in the eyes. Myopia, also known as nearsightedness and shortsightedness, is a condition in which parallel rays are focused in front of the retina. Light rays converge to a focal point … Continue reading The association between digital screen time and myopia: A systematic review

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Biology

Discovering the Role of the Neuropilin Pain Pathway in Asymptomatic COVID-19 Cases

Aditi Kaveti ’23 In the United States, there have been more than 7 million documented cases of COVID-19, leading to over 200,000 deaths nationwide. This high number of cases is due to the rapid spread of the deadly disease, which is caused by a virus called SARS-CoV-2. Many researchers believe that the rapid spread can be in part attributed to a high number of asymptomatic … Continue reading Discovering the Role of the Neuropilin Pain Pathway in Asymptomatic COVID-19 Cases

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Health and Medicine

Terahertz Spectroscopy to Improve Burn Injury Assessment

Aditi Kaveti ‘23 Burn injuries are painful, potentially life-threatening, and can often require long and complex treatment. Early and accurate assessment of burn injuries is important to determining the correct path of treatment. However, the severity of burns can be difficult to visually diagnose accurately, and clinical evaluations of burns only have about a 50 to 70 percent accuracy. This complexity allows for a significant … Continue reading Terahertz Spectroscopy to Improve Burn Injury Assessment

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General Neuroscience

Going to College Can Delay Alzheimer’s Disease Onset

Ayesha Azeem ‘23 Alzheimer’s disease is an irreversible brain disorder that progresses to destroy memory and thinking skills until one fails to complete basic tasks. Alzheimer’s most commonly begins to affect people in their mid-60s, and is currently the third leading cause of death for the elderly in the United States (NIH). A recent study conducted by Stony Brook University researchers revealed that attending college … Continue reading Going to College Can Delay Alzheimer’s Disease Onset

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General Psychology

Psychological Effects

Ayesha Azeem ‘23 While COVID-19 has definitely affected our physical health, primarily targeting the very young, the elderly, and those with long-term illnesses, the virus has also taken a severe toll on people’s psychological health. Because of the high risk to human health and the heavy economic burden resulting from national lockdowns and unemployment across the world, the public has been severely impacted mentally by … Continue reading Psychological Effects

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