The MiraCosta OMNI Research Showcase

Conference Date: Friday, May 19, 2017

Conference Location: MiraCosta’s San Elijo Campus

Application Submission Deadline: Monday, March 27

OMNI website:

Presentation Categories:

  • Individual oral presentation: one presenter, 15-minute presentation, supported by PowerPoint or similar, followed by 5 minutes of Q&A
  • Group oral presentation: two or three presenters, 20- to 30-minute presentation, supported by PowerPoint or similar, followed by 5 minutes of Q&A
  • Poster presentation: visual presentation supported by oral summary and Q&A
  • Please see judging rubrics for oral and poster presentations.

Note: Students may make no more than one oral and one poster presentation; if making two presentations, they must address different topics.

Application Guidelines:

  • Each application must include:
  • the student’s name, contact information (phone and email address), type of presentation, and academic discipline of the research
  • the mentor’s name and contact information (email address)
  • a title that clearly expresses the goal and content of the presentation
  • a one-sentence description of the research thesis and findings – no more than 25 words
  • an abstract (summary) of the research, including goals (thesis), methods (as appropriate), conclusions, and significance – no more than 250 words
  • a list of five key sources of information in discipline-appropriate format (e.g., MLA)
  • All applications must be submitted to the mentor no later than 5:00 pm on March 27.

Application Recommendations:

  • Applications often require multiple revisions based upon feedback from the mentor. A first draft of the application should be submitted to the mentor no later than Monday, March 20 or earlier as the mentor requests.
  • Note that applications may present research that is already complete or research that is still in progress – see sample abstracts on the back of this handout.
  • Additional tips and examples can be found here:

Please note: All MiraCosta students are encouraged to participate in the OMNI research showcase!

Sample Description and Abstract (work completed):

Description: Psychopathy has strong biological foundations and,under certain circumstances, providesfitness benefits, but those benefits are negated by the selective pressures of American society. (24 words)

Abstract: Psychopathy is a biological trait associated with neuroanatomical and genetic irregularity. Under certain environmental pressures, traits seen in psychopaths may provide a fitness advantage, but are disadvantageous in current American society. Psychopathy, estimated in .6% of the population of the United States, is measured by the Psychopathy Check List- Revised (PCL-R) and includes behaviors such as callousness, violence, aggression, and lack of empathy. Psychopathy correlates with an altered amygdala which is responsible for emotions and empathy. MRIs of a population of incarcerated men showed a strong negative correlation between the size of the amygdala and the Psychopathy Check List score. In another study, callous children were placed in an fMRI to record amygdaloidal activity while viewing emotionally stressful images. Those with high “callous” scores were correlated with decreased function in the amygdala as compared to the control group. These studies suggest that psychopathy has a neurological foundation. Different allelic combinations also increase the genetic risk of psychopathy. The monoamine oxidase-A (MAOA) gene codes for the MAOA protein that degrades monoamines. The functioning of this gene correlates with a high propensity to violence. Studies also demonstrate higher parity between monozygotic than dizygotic twins in psychopathic traits, further indicating the biological foundation of psychopathy. Psychopathic traits can be used to suppress competitors and enhance an individual’s fitness. However, American society’s rigid social norms and strict law enforcement system disadvantages psychopaths, by increasing the likelihood of identification and incarceration. Thus society plays an important role in regulating the prevalence of psychopathy in populations. (250 words)

Sample Description and Abstract (work in progress):

Description: Stem cell therapy may one day be used to help patients with spinal cord injuries through increased proliferation of damaged nerve tissue. (22 words)

Abstract: This project explores the extent to which stem cell therapy (SCT) is a viable approach for treating spinal cord injuries. Spinal cord injuries are especially problematic because, once neural tissue is damaged, cell regeneration is very slow. Enzymes released at the injury site may actually inhibit cell proliferation, thus limiting healing. Stem cells are cells that can be manipulated to become any type of bodily tissue. They can be harvested from adipose tissue or bone marrow, both of which are high in stem cells. Stem cells may be especially important to patients with spinal cord injury because the therapy can enhance cell proliferation which would therefore help to heal damaged neural tissue. This research will explore further detail about the process of harvesting stem cells and using them to produce needed tissues. Much of this information will come from academic websites that present these complex processes in a straightforward way. Then, this project will seek out published research on programs that have used SCT to treat spinal cord injuries. The project will investigate programs using both animal and human subjects, and will evaluate methodologies that have led to greater and lesser success. This information will come largely from clinical trials published in medical journals. Current estimates suggest that some 300,000 Americans are living with spinal cord injuries, including many veterans returning from overseas. Stem cell therapy offers the single greatest hope that these individuals may one day walk again. (239 words)