{"id":21827,"date":"2025-11-25T12:38:30","date_gmt":"2025-11-25T17:38:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/khc\/?page_id=21827"},"modified":"2026-03-05T16:26:42","modified_gmt":"2026-03-05T21:26:42","slug":"keystone-on-tap-2025","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/khc\/academics-community\/co-curriculars\/past-co-curricular-events\/keystone-on-tap-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"Keystone on Tap 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Date & Time:\u00a0<\/strong>Friday, December 5, 2025
4:30-6 pm<\/p>\n

Location<\/strong>: Kilachand Hall Common Room, 101
91 Bay State Rd, Boston, MA 02215<\/span><\/p>\n

Event Description: <\/strong><\/span>Join selected Kilachand seniors as they highlight their Keystone projects-in-progress.<\/span> <\/span>Support your peers, and learn about the ways in which you can explore your interests through the Keystone process.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Directly following Keystone on Tap, stick around for Kilachand Cafe!<\/span><\/p>\n

Attendance<\/strong>: (For Kilachand Honors College Students)<\/em> At the event, a QR will be posted for you to check-in. This QR will expire so please complete the check-in form immediately. You must check-in to earn co-curricular attendance credit for this event. <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>

Student Presentations<\/h4>
<\/p>\n

Lauren Bell <\/strong>
Activating Innate Immunity through cGAS-STING Agonist Nanostructures <\/em>
I am developing DNA nanostructures that activate the cGAS-STING pathway, an important controller of the body\u2019s immune response. By delivering potent, patient-specific immune signals, these nanoscale designs aim to help the body better recognize and attack cancer, offering a new avenue for immunotherapy.<\/p>\n

Dylan Gozdziewski<\/span>
<\/strong>Lola
<\/em>A short film following a young man who discovers his late uncle was a drag performer during the height of the AIDS epidemic. He is drawn into the world of drag, while forced to confront his mother\u2019s silence, his own identity, and the legacy of queer resilience.
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

Catherine Knox <\/strong>
19th Century Fiction Revisited: A Deep Dive Into My Manuscript <\/em>
My project is to revise my manuscript, The Heartbeats We Cannot Hear<\/em>, a YA historical fiction novel set in 19th century England. During the course of the year, my goal is to finalize the manuscript as the deliverable. This includes condensing my 217,000 word draft into a concise version by strengthening my plot, characters, and historical accuracy of the settings. My future plans would be to seek publication and share my story with a larger audience.<\/p>\n

Dylan List<\/strong>
The Potential for an Urban Wind Turbine on Boston University\u2019s Campus <\/em>
Typical weather conditions in Boston, combined with Boston University\u2019s campus architecture, create a unique wind environment where fast moving air gets funneled into tight corridor, noticeably amplifying its speed. My project explores this potential for extracting energy from this higher-speed wind to generate usable power on campus.<\/p>\n

Venessa Odera
<\/strong>What Happens in Texas Shapes the Vote: How State Election Laws Affect Student Voter Engagement<\/em>
\n<\/strong>My project examines how Texas election laws and administrative practices shape both the ability and willingness of eligible citizens, specifically university students, to participate in elections. Using a mixed-methods approach that includes interviews, surveys, archival research, and analysis of electoral data, the study investigates not only structural barriers students encounter but also the emotions and perceptions that arise when they try to exercise their voting rights.<\/p>\n

Olivia Scappa <\/strong>
Micropollutants, Macroconsequences <\/em>
My research is an analysis of resistance genes (AMR) in bacteria, studying how microplastics act as mediums that worsen AMR spread, and examining how wastewater treatment plants influence microbial communities and patterns of genetic resistance. All together, it maps how environmental pollution shapes the emergence and movement of resistance pathogens.<\/p>\n

Berit Schaus <\/strong>
Advancing Maternal Health: A Portable Diagnostic Device for Malaria, Chlamydia, and Trichomoniasis Detection <\/em>
Our project aims to detect three common pathogens, Plasmodium falciparum, Chlamydia trachomatis, <\/em>and Trichomonas vaginalis<\/em>, that cause poor maternal health outcomes in resource-limited settings. Our device uses a non-invasive sample and sensitive isothermal DNA amplification with a simple visual readout for fast, easy and accurate detection.<\/p>\n

Ishtiyaq Shajahan <\/strong>
Reimagining Urban Sustainability Through Community-Led Food Justice <\/em>
My project examines how resident-led food access initiatives, such as community gardens, co-ops and urban agricultural sites, can reduce food insecurity and advance environmental justice in Boston. Using interviews, spatial data, and participatory research, I analyze existing programs and prototype Community Roots Hub, a model transforming underused urban spaces into neighborhood food, education, and climate resilience centers.<\/p>\n

Prerna Shankaar <\/strong>
Personally Motivated Interests Modulate Attention Similarly in Autistic and Nonautistic Children During a Shared Storybook Reading Task <\/em>
Personally motivated interests (PMIs) shape attention in Autism-Spectrum Disorder, yet findings conflict on how they affect engagement. In naturalistic contexts, this remains unclear. This project examines how PMIs affect attention during shared storybook reading. We predict that embedding PMIs in stories will increase attention to social stimuli and text in autistic and nonautistic children.<\/p>\n

Kaylin Torres <\/strong>
Sensory Overload vs. Structured Learning: The Role of Children\u2019s TV in Speech Development <\/em>
What if I told you that supporting speech development versus overwhelming a child could be as simple as choosing Franklin over Cocomelon? This presentation explores how the sensory design of children\u2019s television shapes speech. I examine how overstimulating media can hinder speech processing, while structured programs can support meaningful learning.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/p>\n

Join the Event Online<\/h4>
<\/p>\n

We are happy to offer digital streaming of our event for those family, friends, and advisors who are unable to make the event in person. The event will be hosted on Zoom Webinar. Download the Keystone on Tap program. <\/a><\/p>\n

<\/a><\/span><\/span>Please click the link below to join the webinar:<\/strong>
Keystone on Tap Zoom Event<\/a>
\nPasscode: 573271<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Date & Time:\u00a0Friday, December 5, 20254:30-6 pm Location: Kilachand Hall Common Room, 101 91 Bay State Rd, Boston, MA 02215 Event Description: Join selected Kilachand seniors as they highlight their Keystone projects-in-progress. Support your peers, and learn about the ways in which you can explore your interests through the Keystone process. Directly following Keystone on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16931,"featured_media":0,"parent":17570,"menu_order":6,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/khc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/21827"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/khc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/khc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/khc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16931"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/khc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21827"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/khc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/21827\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21895,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/khc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/21827\/revisions\/21895"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/khc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/17570"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/khc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21827"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}