Title of your research project: Characterizing the effects of ferritin on ovarian cell migration in Drosophila melanogaster. 

Describe your project:

My research focuses on the roles of  Ferritin  in cell migration of migratory cells known as border cells in drosophila melanogaster. Ferritin helps to store iron in a non-toxic form in cells and my project focuses on investigating how the ferritin protein complex affects cell migration as well as exploring what transcription factor binding sites are present within the ferritin genes locus to understand how it may be regulated in fruit flies. 

Who is your mentor(s) for your project?

My mentor is Dr. Michelle Starz-Gaiano from the Biological sciences department. I found my mentor while I was taking her class (cell biology) and I chose to work with her because I was fascinated and interested in cell and developmental biology processes and I believed I would be able to learn a lot by working in her lab which I am.  

How did you become interested in this project?

I became interested in this project because I was curious about cell migration and underlying biological processes that regulate it, and the role of ferritin was unique and fascinating to me and to  learn about in cell migration. 

What has been the hardest part of your research/what was the most unexpected thing about being a researcher? 

The most unexpected thing about being a researcher would be being able to think  and work independently. The hardest part of my research would be being able to interpret and expand on results that were not expected and also to be able to improve the way I come up with questions to explore. 

What has been the most rewarding part?

The most rewarding part is when everything comes together nicely and I understand how it relates to the bigger picture. There is a sense of accomplishment that  motivates me to take on more tasks with my project. 

How will you disseminate your research?

I will be presenting at URCAD in April. I will also be presenting at the USM conference as well as ABRCMS this year. 

What is your advice to other students about getting involved in research? 

Be open, passionate, and actively involved in your project. Also if you have difficulties finding a mentor, keep trying, and stay open to opportunities. 

What are your career goals?

My career goal is to become a biomedical scientist. 

Are you planning to apply to the Goldwater Scholarship for STEM researchers?

Come learn about how to be nominated, and what makes a competitive application and details on how to write it.

This Friday, October 16, 2020

12-12:50pm

Webex link below

Sponsored by the Office of Undergraduate Research and Prestigious Scholarships and the Meyerhoff Scholars Program.

To be eligible for nomination for a Goldwater Scholarship, a student must:

1. Be a full-time1 matriculated sophomore or junior pursuing a degree at an accredited 2- or 4-year institution of higher education during the 2020-2021 academic year,
2. Intend to pursue a research career in a natural science, mathematics or engineering,2
3. Have a college grade point average of at least a 3.00 on a 4.00 scale 3, and
4. Be a U.S. citizen from the 50 states or the District of Columbia; a U.S. national for those students nominated by institutions in Puerto Rico, Guam, Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands; or a permanent resident. A permanent resident must submit a photocopy of their Permanent Resident Card, also known as the Green Card.

AMOUNT OF THE SCHOLARSHIP

Each Goldwater Scholar annually receives an amount equal to the cost of tuition, mandatory fees, books, and room and board minus the amount of support provided for by other sources, up to a maximum of $7.500. Scholars who receive the award as sophomores can expect to receive support for a maximum of two years (4 semesters) or until graduation, if sooner. Scholars who receive the award as juniors can expect to receive support for a maximum of one year (2 semesters) or until graduation, if sooner.

For more information about the Goldwater Scholarship:

https://goldwater.scholarsapply.org

Questions? email Dr. April Householder at aprilh@umbc.edu

Come hear about how to become a research-entrepreneur, and how to commercialize and patent your research.

For more  information contact:

Gretta Zinski is a junior majoring in Dance, with an Information Systems minor, and Entrepreneurship and Innovation minor with a Web Development Certification. She is President of the Dance Council of Majors, and a URA Scholar.

Research Title: "The Obedient Body: Investigating Trained and Culturally Informed Movement Biases"

Describe your project: As we grow up we learn how to behave and what to believe in. This may vary from one person to another simply depending on how we are raised. My question is, in what ways do an individual's upbringing influence the way they move or dance? For example, as a woman, I have been taught to be unoffensive which could translate to my natural tendency to move with fluidity as opposed to moving through fixed shapes (A.K.A. aggressive movement).

To take it a step further, are there identifiable patterns of movement among similar demographic groups of people that could speak to a larger social phenomenon or ideal? This movement research is intended to discover if our biases, in this case our learned ideas and beliefs, inform the way we move as dancers and behave as human beings in society.

Who is your mentor for your project? Ann Sofie Clemmensen, assistant professor of dance, is my mentor for this project. As a mentor she has been an encouraging figure who supports and ideas and assists me in shaping realistic and achievable goals in this project and otherwise.

How did you become interested in this project? While taking GWST 210: "Intro to Critical Sexuality Studies" I learned about sociologist Michelle Foucault's theory of the Docile Body and how, in reality, that conditioned body is highly gendered. The text I read focused on the physical behaviors each of us act out every day and how this is different depending on how we may have been raised or socialized as men and women. Soon after reading this text I attended the American College Dance Associations 2020 regional conference at the University of Maryland, College Park where I met a UMD dance professor, Crystal Davis, who has done research into how our biases affect our choices within dance. Serendipitously, these events came together to connect and inform what has become my own independent research into how biases, or other social conditioning, inform our movement choices.

 

What has been the hardest part about your research/what was the most unexpected thing about being a researcher? One of the most difficult obstacles has been finding literature about movement research, dance research or otherwise related texts. There is not much dance literature available so adapting to this space where answers are not as readily available has been different. This has also been what I have learned. Of course, entering the research I knew I would be looking for answers to questions that may or may not have been asked before. Though the realization that the answers to my questions have not in fact been written down and are going to be found through my own investigation was unexpected.

What has been the most rewarding part? Learning to trust myself. 

How will you disseminate your research? This year I will create a dance work, most likely a creative dance film, to share through a live stream. I plan to share the work and present my observations independently through social media, through the Dance Department, as well as share recordings during the 2021 virtual URCAD event.

What is your advice to other students about getting involved in research? Be forgiving with yourself and take advantage of having a productive relationship with your mentor. They believe in you and they are there to help! If you have a question, go out and find the answer.

What are your career goals? After graduating, I will pursue a professional career in dance performance. This will most likely include more opportunities for conducting movement research and engaging in activism through dance. 

Monday, September 21, 2020

12-1pm

via WEBEX

AMOUNT OF THE SCHOLARSHIP

Scholarships of up to $7,500 a year are provided to help cover costs associated with tuition, mandatory fees, books, room and board. A sophomore who receives a Goldwater Scholarship will receive up to $7,500 in each of his/her junior and senior years. A junior who receives a Goldwater Scholarship will receive up to $7,500 in his/her senior year.

To be eligible for nomination for a Goldwater Scholarship, a student must:

1. Be a full-time matriculated sophomore or junior pursuing a degree at an accredited 2- or 4-year institution of higher education during the 2020-2021 academic year,
2. Intend to pursue a research career in a natural science, mathematics or engineering,*
3. Have a college grade point average of at least a 3.00 on a 4.00 scale, and
4. Be a U.S. citizen from the 50 states or the District of Columbia; a U.S. national for those students nominated by institutions in Puerto Rico, Guam, Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands; or a permanent resident. A permanent resident nominated for the scholarship must include a letter stating his/her intent to become a U.S. citizen. A photocopy of the nominee’s Permanent Resident Card, also known as the Alien Registration Card or Green Card, must also be submitted.

There will be a follow-up workshop on October 16, for writing a winning application for Goldwater.

Internal deadline for UMBC students to apply: November 30, 2020.

Presenter: April Householder, Director of Prestigious Scholarships

For more info, contact aprilh@umbc.edu

How has research changed due to the campus closure and the COVID pandemic? Join us for a discussion featuring undergraduate researchers.

Instead of doing bench work in a lab, researchers are switching gears to do an extended literature review. Instead of interviewing people in person, they are using the internet. Maybe they are working with data sets provided by a mentor rather than collecting data. Artists are setting up studios in their homes. Summer internships were cancelled or modified- how did researchers respond? Researchers are adapting to new methodologies, approaches, and technologies.

Joshua Slaughter, Theodore Addo, Maryam Elhabashy, Camille Blackford, Keren Herran, Camille Ollivierre, and Elle Kreiner.

Email aprilh@umbc.edu with any questions.

Alumna Casey Haines, former URA Scholar and researcher in the Omland Lab, publishes as first author in the journal, Science Direct. Her article, "The Role of Diversity in Science: A Case Study of Women Advancing Female Birdsong Research", demonstrates the importance of diversity in faculty and student research. 

"Researchers of different genders and backgrounds contribute greatly to the diversity of questions and approaches in science. Historically birdsong was studied primarily as a male trait. However, as researchers in the field of animal behaviour have become more diverse, women have made substantial contributions to the birdsong literature, including through the study of female birdsong. We investigated the influence of gender on research topic and asked: are research articles on female birdsong disproportionately authored by women?" 

Read her paper here:

Link to the UMBC New story:

https://news.umbc.edu/umbc-study-reveals-gender-bias-in-bird-song-research-and-impact-of-women-on-science/

 

Casey's undergraduate research:
Response of Eastern Bluebirds (Salias salias) to Playbacks of Male and Female Vocalizations
Biological Sciences
Dr. Kevin Omland

Response Of Eastern Bluebirds (Sialia Sialis) To Playbacks Of Male And Female Vocalizations

Casey Haines
Kevin Omland, Biological Sciences

Until recently, function and presence of female bird song has been underrepresented in research. We know, based on research from our lab, that female song in Eastern Bluebirds functions in mate communication yet is statistically indistinguishable from male song. Our lab strives to fill in the gaps of our understanding of female song. We tested if male and female Eastern Bluebirds are able to distinguish between male and female vocalizations. We created a set of playback presentations to test bluebird song sex-discrimination in the field. We recorded response behaviors as well as distances of each focal individual from the playback speaker, nest box, and mate using pairs of Eastern Bluebirds from a field site in Howard County, MD. While studies on playback recordings of male Eastern Bluebirds have been conducted, this is the first time behavioral responses will be used to determine if Eastern Bluebirds can discern sex based on song alone. Studying the distinctiveness of female song will further our understanding of the evolution of complex communication by demonstrating the ability of female song to convey unique information.

Aaleyah Lewis is a senior Computer Science major with a minor in Psychology.

What else are you involved in on campus? 

I am a McNair Scholar, Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation (LSAMP) Scholar, and Center for Women in Technology (CWIT) Affiliate. I am also a member of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) and a Resident Assistant. 

What research experiences have you had?  

This past summer, I was a research fellow for the Stanford Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF). The previous summer, I participated in a REU at Cornell University where I worked on a project titled Conflict Mediation at Scale: Leveraging Big Data to Mediate Online Conflict.

Virtual Reality in Environmental Education: Investigating the Efficacy of VR as an Educational Tool for Ocean Acidification. 

Climate change is a defining issue of our time and poses many detrimental impacts to the world. Ocean Acidification, a consequence of climate change, is a reduction in pH levels of the Earth’s surface water as a result of rising Carbon Dioxide (CO2) levels in the atmosphere, primarily due to human combustion of fossil fuels. Recent research has emphasized the urgency to increase awareness and take actions to reduce the human impact leading to ocean acidification before it is too late. For this project we wanted to investigate the efficacy of Virtual Reality (VR) as an educational tool for teaching the precipitous consequences of climate change, particularly ocean acidification. Furthermore, we wanted to assess if the design of the VR experience influences participants movement during their time in the immersive environment and evaluate if the participants movement impacts (i.e. enhances, prevents, or shows no effect) the outcomes of their attitude, behavior and how much they learn, trust and display self-efficacy.

Who is your mentor for your research? 

Dr. Jeremy Bailenson, Department of Communication, Stanford University

The summer of my junior year I conducted research at Cornell University where the goal of our project was to detect and mediate online conflicts between Reddit users early on by developing a data-driven application. For this particular project, I did a significant amount of data analysis in order to label the comments in the discussions on Reddit with running averages and map the trajectories of the discussion. This experience allowed me to utilize the skills and techniques I acquired from my time at Cornell at my REU this past summer.

What is your advice to other students about getting involved in research?  

Be open to research opportunities. That is, don’t limit yourself and avoid having a closed mind when exploring the world of research. There may be times in your academic journey when you’re not conducting the exact research you had hoped. However, don’t let that discourage you from continuing your path in research. Instead, let it be a learning experience and take it as an opportunity to acquire a new set of skills that you can add to your academic toolbox. In addition, I believe it’s important to accept and normalize failure in lab environments.

I will pursue a Ph.D. in Computer Science and conduct research in Human Computer Interaction (HCI) or Human Robot Interaction (HRI) in order to create assistive technology to improve the quality of life and wellbeing for individuals with disabilities and/or diseases. I hope to use the skills I have acquired throughout my academic career to produce more inclusive and accessible technology in industry research.

It’s Just a Jump to the Right: The Tea Party’s Influence on Conservative Discourse, Mentor: Kathy Bryan