Katrina Lyon thought she might end up just cleaning test tubes when she signed up as an undergraduate to work in a scientific research lab at Montana State University.

Instead, she’s been working on real research to find out if black raspberries can help fight stomach cancer.

While two lines of experimentation haven’t shown benefit so far, Lyon said, a third did show promise that black raspberry extract can greatly reduce microbes that cause gastric cancer.

“It’s pretty great,” said Lyon, a 23-year-old senior from Illinois. Now, instead of her original goal of medical school, she wants to earn a Ph.D. so she can teach and keep doing research.

“I do love research,” she said Friday. “It’s inspiring. There’s a worldwide team of talented researchers working to end human suffering.”

Lyon is one of eight talented MSU undergraduates whose research work was showcased this past January at the Museum of the Rockies. MSU hosted its first “8×8 Student Innovation Road Show” on Jan. 30 at the Museum of the Rockies. 

Each student spoke for eight minutes to explain their work and what they’re discovering. The event is patterned after MSU’s 10×10 Innovation Road Shows that feature faculty members talking about their research and creative projects.

MSU prides itself as a leader in getting undergraduates opportunities to learn, not just passively from textbooks and lectures, but actively though doing hands-on research.

The Bozeman campus is ramping up to host the 2020 National Conference on Undergraduate Research this spring. It is expected to bring 4,000 students and faculty mentors to MSU March 26 to 28 to share and promote undergraduate research.

Lyon never planned to try research, assuming it was only for super, A-plus students.

“I never saw myself in a lab coat,” she said. “I thought, ‘Oh no, they won’t want me.’”

But her adviser urged her to try, and she spotted a poster about professor Diane Bimczok’s research using “organoids,” three-dimensional cell cultures created in glass lab dishes to mimic human lungs, hearts or stomach tissue.

“I thought it was the coolest thing,” Lyon said. She emailed the professor asking for the chance to work in her lab and was accepted. For more than a year Lyon has been working with organoids to test the effects of berry extracts on pre-cancerous cells.

Lyon is so excited about it, she’ll sometimes go back to do more in the lab after working past midnight at Rosauers Supermarket, where she has a full-time job as a floor manager.

The difference between learning through research and textbooks, Lyon said, is that sometimes a student can be “book smart” but when they try research and lab results don’t turn out as expected, they feel they’ve failed.

“With research, you have to see it as ‘This didn’t work, but something else might,’” she said.

Also speaking at the museum event will be Lilianna Bento, 21, who grew up on a California dairy farm and is pursuing two degrees in crop science and sustainable food & bioenergy systems crop production.

Bento said she has been working to discover the source of herbicide contamination in organic grains. When glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, turns up in organic crops, it’s a big problem because that crop can no longer be sold as organic at a premium price, she said.

The lab she’s working in has been trying to determine whether contamination comes from herbicide drifting from a neighboring farmer’s field, or from rain and snow, or happens during shipping. So far, Bento said, they’ve been able to rule out shipping.

Bento said she may want to go into the field of weed ecology and herbicide resistance after graduation. “It’s nice to have some research experience,” she said, “before you go out and find a job.”

Natalie Sturm will give her eight-minute talk about research at the Food and Health Lab. Sturm has been working on growing food that is so full of nutrients that it can improve people’s health. She has been growing spinach under different conditions to find differences in nutritional quality.

“Research has played an immensely powerful and positive role in my undergraduate education,” Sturm wrote in an email. It has given her real world context for what she learns in class and made her a better problem solver and thinker.

“Undergraduate research has given me more opportunities, both during my time at MSU and into the future,” she said, “than I ever could have imagined.”

Other students presenting at the museum event will be Keith Fuge, Brianna Bull Shows, Miles Maxcer, Brenden Pelkie and Rachel Dunlap.

By Gail Schontzler 

Please visit https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/research-opens-doors-for-msu-undergraduates​/article_7cc8e79b-ff26-5c6b-be10-3c1d0fe167f4.html to view the original article. 

Most college students have apps on their phones. You might see Snapchat, Instagram or TikTok on a typical student’s phone. Three biology sophomores at Delaware Valley University are using something a little different. They’re sharing plant science data with a global network of scientists using an app.

In Student Research, a course offered through the University’s Experience360 Program, students are collecting data on plants using a small, handheld device that connects to an app on their phones. PhotosynQ, the app they’re using, immediately uploads their data to share with users all over the world. 

Researchers, educators, farmers and citizen scientists use PhotosynQ to collect photosynthesis-related data using a small handheld device that connects to the mobile and desktop apps. The PhotosynQ online platform allows over 4,900 users in 25 countries to share and discuss data. Using this wireless technology, plants can be studied in the field, non-invasively, and the information can be used to identify genotypes of interest.

Photosynthesis is the process by which plants convert energy from the sun into chemical energy in the form of sugars. In the process, water and carbon dioxide are taken in and oxygen is released.

Students in the Student Research course work on independent research under the guidance of a faculty mentor. The semester-long course allows undergraduate students to get a taste for independent research. The course is used to prepare students for graduate-level research and their careers. Students choose topics that are of interest to them to pursue for a whole semester. Dr. Cynthia Keler, a professor of biology, coordinates Student Research, which brought together 20 students and their advisors this semester.

Dr. Elizabeth Skendzic, an associate professor of biology, is advising the students who are using PhotosynQ. Two of the students in the course, Ashlynn Masters ’22 and Brandon James ’22, studied three different pathways for photosynthesis (C₃,C₄ and CAM).

They measured plants to see what time of day photosynthesis activity was highest for the different types. Through the project, they learned about why certain plants respond better to dry and hot conditions. 

“I think it’s important that we are getting to do hands-on research instead of just reading a book,” said Masters, who wants to be a biologist. “This project opens the door for many research projects I could do in the future.”

James enjoyed being able to see the variety of projects people were doing around the world using PhotosynQ. 

“PhotosynQ allows you to look at all the different projects that are using the device worldwide,” said James. “This project allowed me to learn about plants and photosynthesis in a way that I wouldn’t be able to in class.”

After DelVal, James plans to attend graduate school and pursue a career in research. 

“The Experience360 Program allows you to develop skills as an individual that you wouldn’t get to practice in a whole class of people,” said James. 

Colton Nester ’22 worked with hydroponic lettuce to find out if photosynthesis continues once the lettuce is harvested, packed and refrigerated. 

Nester said he enjoyed doing a project instead of just reading a textbook. 

“This project will help me build research skills as an undergraduate,” said Nester.

Being able to run research projects in the greenhouse is helping to get the students excited about research and is providing valuable experience for their futures. At the end of the semester, students present their research to the University and community guests. 

Student Research is one of the activities students have to choose from to fulfill their experiential-learning requirements. To graduate, students are required to complete and, reflect on multiple experiential-learning activities. Required activities are tailored based on the student’s major and desired career path. While junior and senior students often conduct research, the participation of freshmen and sophomores is on the rise.

The Student Research course is supported through the generous contributions of Bristol-Myers Squibb. Grant funding from Bristol-Myers Squibb allows students to do higher-level work by covering the costs of the equipment and supplies required for their individual projects. 

Text courtesy of Delaware Valley University

Please visit https://www.delval.edu/news/students-use-a-mobile-app-for-undergraduate-research to view the original article.

Discussions in the humanities – from philosophy and religion, to history and politics – guide our most crucial decisions, on a global scale and in very personal ways. They determine our understanding of ourselves and others, and how our communities build relationships and make progress. They shape our worlds.

But over recent decades, false narratives have accumulated around the humanities. Many, for example, perceive the study of humanities as a side item, an afterthought, or a luxury in undergraduate education.

However, studies of career readiness tell a different story. The National Association of Colleges and Employers has found that critical reasoning, collaboration, and communication – skills developed in humanities classrooms – are the skills that are the most sought after by employers.

With that knowledge, UNC Greensboro is on the road to changing how the humanities are perceived, in a big way. The University is re-envisioning the role of humanities in undergraduate education and, in the process, doubling down on its commitment to student outcomes.

Currently at UNCG, undergraduate research experiences are being integrated into a multitude of humanities courses and projects, along with career preparation and professional development components. The University has received a $200,000 grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to support those activities.

Opportunities for research with a faculty mentor strongly correlate to undergraduate academic achievement and positive post-graduate outcomes, such as advancing to graduate school or entering a satisfying career, says Dr. Joanne Murphy, associate professor of classical studies and principal investigator for the Mellon-funded Transforming the Humanities initiative.

“There are so many impacts of undergraduate research,” she says, “but what I love the most is the confidence. Students become an authority on a thing, and they are more confident when they speak to you, and more articulate in the way they speak. They also have the confidence to know where they can find answers – they can pull arguments together and present their material.”

Since 2009, Murphy has guided UNCG students through six-week professional internships at an archaeological field school on the Greek island of Kea. She also scaffolds research skill development into her classes on the ancient world at UNCG.

She finds that students who have opportunities to engage in research develop the confidence not only to share what they know but also to ask questions about what they don’t know – and to seek knowledge on their own.

“That’s what employers want,” she says. “People who are self-motivated and look for their own answers.”

Senior classical archaeology major Michael Bell has traveled to Greece three times to conduct research. Using data collected by the Kea Archaeological Research Survey, Bell is analyzing the use of apicultural goods, like honey and beeswax, and metallurgical material on the Cycladic island of Kea – the earliest known site for metal production in the Aegean. He’s exploring prestige goods production and how they relate to social organization and economic priorities. 

Bell has presented his work at the Southern Conference Undergraduate Research Forum, as well as at UNCG’s Thomas Undergraduate Research and Creativity Expo.

“The experience I gained in field work, research methods, experimental design, data collection and analysis, and presenting results has been instrumental in preparing me for my future academic endeavors – and in helping me to build confidence in my personal life,” says Bell.

“The opportunities undergraduate research has afforded me have allowed me to develop skills that go far outside the bounds of standard coursework.”

This post is part of a larger story that originally appeared in UNCG Research Magazine. To read more and to view additional images, visit the magazine website.

Story by Susan Kirby-Smith, University Communications at UNCG

Please visit https://newsandfeatures.uncg.edu/new-vision-for-humanities/ for the origninal article.

Through more than 7,000 miles of travel together, Sophie Partington ’21 and Laura DeMassa ’21 have gone from friends in French class to roommates in Italy and research partners in France.

Partington, a sociology and French double major, and DeMassa, a government and English double major, are European studies minors who spent last summer exploring the evolution and impact of national immigration policy in France. Their in-depth research – conducted in French and including field interviews at NGOs serving the immigrant population – assessed whether obligatory French language training is beneficial to migrants.

This undergraduate research collaboration was a first for the Institute for European Studies (IES), part of the Mario Einaudi Center for International Studies.

The IES funded both students as fellows to work on an ambitious joint research project. The pair received a total of $8,000 in funding; Partington received IES’s Susan Tarrow Summer Research Fellowship, DeMassa the Frederic Conger Wood Fellowship.

“I think the reasoning behind wanting to work jointly embodies what research ideally looks like,” DeMassa said. “It’s a conversation.”

Inspired by a European history class in her freshman year, Partington found herself searching for more classes on Europe. DeMassa wound up taking classes on Europe, as well, and they took part in the Cornell Summer Program in Turin, a course in Italy for students interested in European politics and policy.

“After the Cornell in Turin program our freshman summer, my interest in European studies really solidified,” DeMassa said.

When their paths crossed again in a French class during their sophomore year, Partington and DeMassa would often spend time discussing class material and their own interests.

“It was during those conversations that we realized how much we have in common,” Partington said. “That’s when the idea for a research collaboration was born.”

In search of common ground between Partington’s interest in sociology and DeMassa’s interest in law and policy, they landed on a topic that reflects their shared interest in French language and personal experiences as language learners: the role of obligatory language training in French integration policy.

Their research concluded that while France’s policy aims to bolster migrants and help them to assimilate, visible inequalities arise through the policy’s practical implementation – as immigrants’ language-learning results suggest. They presented their work at an IES student research symposium in November.

“This is the first time that IES hosted a symposium where undergraduate and graduate recipients of the institute’s grants showcased their research,” said Maria Goula, director of IES and associate professor of landscape architecture. “Explicitly asked to reflect on their process and findings, their presentations were extraordinary.”

DeMassa and Partington are currently writing a paper for future publication.

“IES has provided a space for my questions and helped me work toward finding answers,” DeMassa said. “It’s a place where I’ve been able to put what we’re learning into practice in a way that is both valuable and relevant.”

The Einaudi Center’s undergraduate minors – including international relations, East Asian studies, Southeast Asian studies and the new migration studies – help students understand and engage with international places and people.

In addition to the fellowships awarded to DeMassa and Partington, IES offers a range of undergraduate funding opportunities to promote and support research in Europe. Grants and fellowships also include graduate level funding opportunities, including the Luigi Einaudi Fellowship for students in modern European government, history, economics and related social science fields.

By: Priya Pradhan 

Please visit https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2019/12/einaudi-minor-sets-students-in​ternational-research-path to view the original article.