unt edu! untresearch
Saying "triangle" when see-
ing the shape of a triangle is a
simple kind of relation many
young children learn quickly.
But for people with autism or
a developmental disability,
learning such responses
imaging to measure changes in
brain activity that occur during
the learning process - from
the first try to a completely
learned skill.
In a typical intervention,
children are presented with a
picture (for example, a triangle
shape) and two response
choices ("triangle" or "dog").
A correct choice is followed by
a reward such as music or
praise. With practice, the child
eventually learns that a triangle
shape is a triangle and with
further training learns to say
"triangle." Increases in neural
activity are noted throughout
the learning process, providing
information about the
particular regions of the brain
involved in interventions
for individuals with cognitive
dysfunction. That information
will help researchers and
clinicians design more effective
interventions and drug regi-
mens to enhance learning.
often requires special types of
interventions. To understand
how those interventions alter
brain activity is the focus of
research in the Beatrice Barrett
Laboratory on Neuro-Operant
Relations at UNT, the only
research program of its kind
at a U.S. college or university.
Michael Schlund, research
scientist, Manish Vaidya, assis-
tant professor, and Jesus
Rosales-Ruiz, associate profes-
sor, all in the Department of
Behavior Analysis, are using
functional magnetic resonance
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jlneering technology prograr
n test light-gauge steel in th<
Nuconsteel Structural Testin
he UNT Research Parl,
'heng Yu (center) is th
Light-gauge, cold-formed
steel - a noncombustible
building material stronger than
wood and impermeable to ter-
mites, rot and shrinking - is
the cornerstone of UNT's
new construction engineering
technology bachelor's degree
program. Students in the pro-
gram have the opportunity to
work in designing and testing
light-gauge steel at a new
laboratory, the Nuconsteel
Structural Testing Lab, in the
College of Engineering at the
UNT Research Park. Funding
for the lab was provided by
Nuconsteel, a Denton-based
company owned by Nucor,
America's largest steel producer.
O
Scott Bauer
The testing lab has a reac-
tion frame 12 feet high and
16 feet wide for structural
testing of steel, including
compression, bending and
shear wall tests.
In addition to the frame, a
22-foot-high, two-ton bridge
crane was installed in the test-
ing lab, and a 60- by 20-foot
truss testing fixture is being
built.
The goal is to grow the lab
into a major research center
for cold-formed, light-gauge
steel structures as well as envi-
ronmentally friendly "green"
building systems. Cheng Yu,
assistant professor of engi-
neering technology, is the
coordinator of the construc-
tion engineering technology
program.
UNT RESEARCH 2006 S
