Outstanding student researchers recognized at UAH Research Horizons Day

Twenty-two projects received awards at the fourth-annual Research Horizons Day poster session, which was held in the Charger Union at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) on April 11, 2018.

The student awardees, co-authors, mentors, and project titles were as follows:

College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences

Undergraduate

First: Rebekah Frederick, Andrew Creech, Madhu K. Sridhar, Dr. Ryan T. Conners, Dr. Chang-kwon Kang, Dr. Shannon L. Mathis, Dr. Brian Landrum; mentor: Dr. Shannon Mathis

"Measuring the Effect of the Alexander Technique on Posture in Violinists and Violists Using Motion Capture Technology"

Second: Mia Milne; mentor: Dr. Richard Simon

"Relationship Preferences and Experiences of College Students by Sexuality"

Third: Sara Lenahan, Emma Huber, Hillary Erwin, Olivia de La Paz, Mariah Eacrett, Linda Myers, Jodi Price; mentor: Dr. Jodi Price

"The Impact of Sequencing of Math Problems on Math Anxiety and Performance"

Graduate

First: Jennifer Wright; mentor: Dr. Lillian Joyce

"The Bronze Boy: Donatello’s Ideal Lover"

College of Business Administration

Undergraduate

First: Emily Sexton; mentor: Dr. Brinda Mahalingam

"Economic Indices: An Analysis of the Space Industry"

Second: Jason Kidd; mentor: Dr. Brinda Mahalingam

"Trade Openness and Economic Growth"

Third: Anton Derbes, Jared Janeway; mentor: Dr. Brinda Mahalingam

"Applying Crone Modified State Coincidence Index to the Huntsville MSA"

College of Education

Undergraduate

First: Kristina Shearod, Alexa Convers, Tjahane Holmes; mentor: Dr. Shannon Mathis

"Effects of boxing training on cognitive and physical function in patients with Parkinson's disease"

Second: Narges Shirazi, Grant Ragan, Amy Shepherd, Kaitlin Smith; mentor: Dr. Ryan Conners

"Health-related fitness differences amongst allied and non-allied undergraduate health majors"

Third: James Anderson, Cameron Chisenall, Justin Ruffner, Blake Tolbert; mentor: Dr. Ryan Conners

"Validating the commercially available Garmin Fenix 5 wrist-worn sensor for aerobic capacity"

College of Engineering

Undergraduate

First: Darnisha Crane; mentor: Dr. Chang-kwon Kang

"Measurement of Forces on a Flapping Wing Micro Aerial Vehicle"

Second: Jalyn Gariepy, mentor: Dr. Dale Thomas

"Diagnosing Failures in Complex Engineered Systems"

Graduate

First: Behzad Bahramibabamiri, Hesam Askari, Dr. Kavan Hazel; mentor: Dr. Kavan Hazeli

"Predicting Mechanical Properties of Lattice Structures"

Second: Amit Patel; mentor: Dr. Robert Frederick

"Experimentation of Warm Gas Generator Emerging Technologies"

College of Nursing

First: Lawren Murray; mentor: Dr. Rita Ferguson

"Self-Care Management Strategies of Nursing Students"

College of Science

Undergraduate

First: Jared Fuchs, Lucas Capps, Jeren Suzuki, Sam Johnson, Julia Yaske; mentor: Dr. Francis Wessling

"Development of a Gamma-Ray Scattering Polarimetry Detector for CubeSats"

Second: Nicholas Schragal, Faith Gonzalez, Nicholas Schragal, Emma Leiser, Allison Raney, Lorraine Rosello, Tyrell Jemison, Caleb Miles, Marcus Shelton, Jennifer Miller, Christopher Helmerich, Sean Widmier, Everett Cavanaugh, Sarah Dangelo, Cory Wolfe, Ian Slamen; mentor: Dr. Francis Wessling

"Rainbow Horizons"

Third: Zeina Sleiman, Corrine Peacher, Joy Garcia; mentor: Dr. Bruce Stallsmith

"Observations on the reproductive biology of the darter fish Etheostoma kennicotti in response to gill parasite infections"

Graduate

First: Nikhil Mettupally; mentor: Dr. Vineetha Menon

"Comprehensive Parking Study at the University of Alabama in Huntsville using Airborne sensors"

Second: Charles Collins, John Beck, Susan Bridges, John Rushing, Sara Graves; mentor: Dr. Sara Graves

"Deep Learning for Multisensor Image Resolution Enhancement"

Third: Kelsey Herndon, Rebekke Muench, Emil Cherrington, and Robert Griffin; mentor: Dr. Robert Griffin

"Applications of NASA Earth Observations for Monitoring Surface Water Availability for Pastoralists in Remote Regions of Tahoua, Niger"

“So You Think You Can Research” Presentation Winners

Niharika Botcha, H. McFeeters; mentor: Dr. Anusree Mukherjee

"Environmentally Benign Catalysts by Design: Functional Mimics of Metalloenzymes"

Jennifer Wright; mentor: Dr. Lillian Joyce

"The Bronze Boy: Donatello’s Ideal Lover"

“Now in their fourth year, the Research Horizons Poster Session and Research Week have become a permanent part of the research culture at UAH, celebrating the high-impact practice of student-faculty collaborative research and creative projects,” says David Cook, coordinator of student research programs for UAH’s Office of Academic Affairs. “Interest in participating in these events continues to grow, with this year having the highest number of posters displayed to date.”

As for those who helped make the event possible – students, faculty members, and researchers alike – Cook has nothing but praise. “I would like to congratulate and thank all of the students who participated in the research week events, and especially those that won special recognition for their work from their home colleges,” he says. “We are also indebted to our faculty and research staff, who are the drivers of student research and make all this possible.

---