SUMMER RESEARCH STUDENT PRESENTATIONS #1

“Factors that Influence Pioneer Plant Survival in Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve”  By Valen Feldmann, Mentor Brian Yurk

We used logistic regression to explore the influence of the light environment and on the survival rates of six different pioneer plant species in the cloud forest of Monteverde, Costa Rica. We used data from annual censuses of canopy gaps and plants that began in 1983 and 2000, respectively. We explored predictors of survival related to the characteristics of the plants (e.g., height, diameter, age) or to the canopy gaps they were growing in (e.g., gap area). We found that for most species, taller plants had a higher probability of survival.  However, in Phytolacca rivinoides shorter individuals had a higher survival probability. For larger plants, a smaller gap led to higher survival probability, and the opposite was true for smaller plants.

“The impact of non-pharmaceutical interventions and environmental factors on dengue fever incidence in Singapore” By Colin Kalkman and Eli Edwards-Parker, Mentor Yew-Meng Koh

Dengue fever is a serious and potentially fatal disease, endemic in many tropical countries around the world. Due to the covid-19 pandemic, unprecedented non- pharmaceutical mitigation measures were implemented in Singapore. This study attempts to identify the statistical significance of the effect of those measures on dengue fever incidence. We will also propose prediction models for dengue fever incidence which incorporate the implementation of measures for covid-19 mitigation as well as environmental factors like total rainfall.