Host: Mia MaltzLocation: YNG 132Webex: s.uconn.edu/psla_seminars (http://s.uconn.edu/psla_seminars)Carbon and Nitrogen in Working Soils: From Mechanisms to Management   Dr. Avishesh Neupane is an Assistant Extension Professor of Soil Science at UConn and Director of the Soil Nutrient Analysis Laboratory. He studies how carbon and nitrogen cycle through soils, what controls their storage and loss, and how those processes shape crop nutrition, water quality, soil health, and greenhouse gases. His work tests fertilizer strategies that reduce reactive nitrogen losses, evaluates how biochar alters N availability and emissions, and examines how biodegradable plastics affect soil carbon persistence. His work blends incubations, isotopic tracing, molecular assays, and routine soil testing to turn mechanisms into recommendations. Dr. Neupane holds a Ph.D. in Geography from UCLA and a Master of Environmental Science from Yale University. He is passionate about translating science into actionable strategies that support resilient agriculture, environmental stewardship, and food security.

Dr. Byron Chaves is an Associate Professor Food Science & Technology at University of Nebraska - Lincoln with expertise in food safety microbiology, product and process validations, and food safety management systems. His research program focuses on (1) developing, evaluating, and optimizing physical and chemical antimicrobial interventions to mitigate contamination of foods animal origin, including pet food, and (2) characterizing bacterial and viral persistence and survival in food matrices, food contact surfaces, and food packaging materials. He uses a variety of tools such as microbial challenge studies and predictive microbiology to generate information with direct application to the food industry. His Extension efforts focus on providing onsite and virtual training and technical assistance to the food manufacturing industry in Nebraska and beyond. These activities revolve around regulatory compliance with the hazard analysis and critical control points system (HACCP) and the US FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) regulations including good manufacturing practices and pathogen environmental monitoring. His Extension activities reach hundreds of food processors and manufactures via remote delivery, and he actively collaborates with colleagues across the U.S. to deliver up-to-date food safety and sanitation programming. He is the USDA FSIS Nebraska HACCP Coordinator, the North Central Region FSMA Center Nebraska State Lead, and a member of the USDA FSIS National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection.

Josh BerthiaumeHeaslip Lab (https://heaslip.lab.uconn.edu/) Investigating the Role of an Uncharacterized Actin-Associated Protein in Toxoplasma gondiiMullein FrancisAlder Lab (https://alderlab.mcb.uconn.edu/)Elucidating the Molecular Mechanism by Which Urolithin A Promotes Mitophagy Through p62 Activity

In a typical undergraduate linear algebra course, perhaps the main computational technique introduced for solving systems of linear equations is that of Gaussian elimination, a process that takes any matrix and converts it into its reduced row echelon form (RREF). One obtains the RREF of a matrix \(M\) by performing a sequence of invertible elementary row operations in such a way that row \(i\) of RREF(\(M\)) only depends on rows \(1,2,\dotsc,i\) of \(M\); equivalently, one multiplies \(M\) on the left by a particular invertible lower triangular matrix. In this way, the orbits of the left action of the group of invertible lower triangular \(k\) by \(k\) matrices on the space of \(k\) by \(n\) matrices are in natural bijection with the set of \(k\) by \(n\) matrices in reduced row echelon form. One can then take a coarser decomposition than this by looking at the subspaces of matrices whose RREFs share the same pivot entries and study this decomposition through the lens of algebraic geometry. This basic theme has an endless number of interesting variations, which collectively form one entry point to the very rich combinatorial and algebro-geometric theory of Schubert calculus and the Bruhat decomposition. Over the course of this Halloween algebraic combinatorics escapade, we will first define and examine the classical Schubert calculus and Bruhat decomposition in the general linear group \(\mathrm{GL}_n(C)\) and the corresponding flag variety \(\mathrm{Fl}_n\). Our investigation will then naturally lead us to one of the many equivalent definitions of the Bruhat order on the symmetric group \(S_n\), a poset structure with fascinating combinatorics and a powerful tool for analyzing the relevant geometry. From here, we will take a scenic detour into the land of Coxeter systems and diagrams, aspiring toward some purely combinatorial descriptions of the Bruhat order on \(S_n\). Lastly, we will reinterpret the general theory of Bruhat orders for finite Coxeter systems in a geometric dialect, discussing how the Bruhat decomposition manifests in reductive complex algebraic groups \(G\) beyond the type A case of \(G=\mathrm{GL}_n\).

Students who may benefit from attending a Let's Talk: Mental Health Office Hours session include:Students who want help connecting to resources but are unsure where to begin Students who are looking for advice on a non-clinical issue Students who are unsure about therapy and are curious about what it is like to talk to a therapist Students who may have concerns about the mental health of a friend and seek advice on how to support their friend If a student is not an imminent risk, and is refusing your support in contacting our office, you may also consider contacting the UConn Student CARE Team (https://studentcareteam.uconn.edu/). This session is held by Graciela Quinones-Rodriguez, LCSW (https://studenthealth.uconn.edu/person/graciela-quinones-rodriguez/)