Undergraduate Research Scholars

We recognize research excellence by designating Undergraduate Research Scholars from each of our schools. Congratulations to all of our scholars!

Students are nominated by our five schools to be recognized for their research achievements in the spring of their final undergraduate year. Each school has its own process of selecting its Undergraduate Research Scholars due to the unique demands and competencies needed from each field. Students who receive this designation are given a certificate and a medallion to recognize their accomplishments.

The additional honor of the College of Science Research Scholar Award is awarded at the college level by the College of Science Undergraduate Research Council. This high honor is presented to the Undergraduate Research Scholars who have been involved in long-term mentored research and have had their work peer-reviewed and published before graduation.

2023 College of Science Research Scholars

headshot of Megan Borek
Megan Borek
Imaging Science BS

headshot of Morgan Holland
Morgan Holland
Applied Mathematics BS/MS

headshot of Anna Kasper
Anna Kasper
Biology BS

headshot of Natalie Labbe
Natalie Labbe
Chemistry BS

headshot of Zoe LaLena
Zoë LaLena
Imaging Science BS

headshot of Isabelle Pilo
Isabelle Pilo
Biochemistry BS

headshot of Emily Reilly
Emily Reilly
Biotechnology and Molecular Biology BS

headshot of Hannah Sheets
Hannah Sheets
Applied Statistics BS

2023 Undergraduate Research Scholars

Meg Borek

Project Title: Implementation of EMVA 1288 Standard Release 4.0 for Characterization of Image Sensors
Mentor: Dr. James Ferwerda

Zoë LaLena

Project Title: Recovery of Damaged Text in Cultural Heritage Imaging
Mentors: Dr. David Messinger, Dr. Roger Easton

Imergen Rosario

Project Title: Comparison of the Success of Collision Avoidance in Two Driving Scenarios
Mentor: Dr. Gabriel Diaz

Kathryn Aumick

Project Title: Synthesis and Characterization of Gallium Complexes for Monolayer Doping of Silicon
Mentor: Dr. Scott Williams

Yasmeen Cartwright

Project Title: Using Circular Dichroism to probe small molecule binding to Peptidoglycan Associated Lipoprotein
Mentor: Dr. Lea Michel

Julia Crandall

Project Title: FRET-Based Targeted Molecular Imaging Agent for the Photoacoustic Imaging of Breast Cancer
Mentor: Dr. Hans Schmitthenner

Jamie Crawford

Project Title: Enhanced vesiculation of E. coli in the presence of beta-lactam antibiotics
Mentor: Dr. Lea Michel

Sreya Antonia Gomes

Project Title: Composition of Volatile Compounds from Rare and Endangered Illicium species, Endemic to Hispaniola
Mentor: Dr. Todd Pagano

Ann Carolyn Jahn

Project Title: Characterization of materials used in clear face masks and of sustainable polymers
Mentor: Dr. Matt Miri

Nathan Johnson

Project Title: 
Mentor: Dr. Michael Coleman

Mary Elizabeth Kane

Project Title: Synthesis of Bismuth Nanoparticles for Applications in Oncology
Mentor: Dr. Ken Reed

Anna Kasper

Project Title: Utilizing biomarkers to differentiate E. coli apoptotic bodies (ABs) from outer membrane vesicles (OMVs)
Mentor: Dr. Lea Michel

Alyssa Kingston

Project Title: Probing E. coli Pal’s Interactions using Site Directed-Mutagenesis
Mentor: Dr. Lea Michel

Natalie Labbe

Project Title: The Effect of Gamma-B Crystallin Inter-Protein Interactions on Cataract Formation
Mentor: Dr. Lea Michel

Andrew O’Brien

Project Title: Synthesis of Self-Assembling High-Relaxivity Cancer-Targeted MRI Contrast Agents
Mentor: Dr. Hans Schmitthenner

Isabelle Pilo

Project Title: Inhibiting the Peptidoglycan-Associated Lipoprotein and TolB Interaction in E. coli
Mentor: Dr. Lea Michel

Adam Robinson

Project Title: Towards the X-ray Crystal Structure of an Iridium Complex Bound to a DNA G–Quadruplex
Mentor: Dr. Michael Gleghorn

Molly Roesch

Project Title: Synthesis of Bismuth Nanoparticles for Applications in Oncology
Mentor: Dr. Ken Reed

Jewel Samonte

Project Title: Synthesis of Various Renewable and Biodegradable Polyesters
Mentor: Dr. Matt Miri

Elaina Stafford

Project Title: Targeted Dual Dye FRET System for the Photoacoustic Imaging of Cancer
Mentor: Dr. Hans Schmitthenner

Lauren Stewart

Project Title: Hydrolytic Degradation of Polyesters
Mentor: Dr. Matt Miri

Brian Strohm

Project Title: Characterization of sustainable polymers and materials used in clear face masks
Mentor: Dr. Matt Miri

Madeline Szwed

Project Title: Metal-Doped Hematite Nanoparticles for Enhanced Diesel Combustion Efficiency
Mentor: Dr. Ken Reed

Alec Vent

Project Title: Blood Bag Gamma Irradiation Detector
Mentor: Dr. Scott Williams

Morgan Holland

Project Title: Analytic Solution to the Susceptible-Infected-Recovered Compartmental Model of Epidemiology
Mentor: Dr. Nate Barlow

Hannah Sheets

Project Title: Estimates of the Social Cost of CO2
Mentor: Dr. Tony Wong

Yutong Wu

Project Title: Analyses the Los Angeles Fire Department’s (LAFD’s) Response Times
Mentor: Dr. Nishant Malik

Charles Arnold

Project Title: Developing a model for Torso Energy Flow of a Collegiate Baseball Pitcher using a Damped Torsion Spring Oscillator
Mentors: Dr. William Brewer, Dr. Dawn Hollenbeck

Patrick Cooper

Project Title: Impact of Polymer Additives on Sedimentation of Granular Materials
Mentor: Dr. Shima Parsa

Anna Dignan

Project Title: Identifying Galaxy Mergers in JWST Images using Stellar Mass Maps
Mentor: Dr. Jeyhan Kartaltepe

Evan Donohue

Project Title: Stabilized Fiber Mach-Zehnder Interferometry
Mentor: Dr. Greg Howland

Will Ebmeyer

Project Title: Developing Kinetic Monte Carlo Methods to Examine Ionic Conductivity in Oxide Heterostructures
Mentor: Dr. Pratik Dholabhai

Kamryn Griffith

Project Title: Predicting the Emission Line Spectrum of Quasars with Hyper-Massive Black Holes
Mentor: Dr. Andrew Robinson

Jak Knefel

Project Title: Development of an Advanced Lab Experiment to Measure the Coincidence Spectrum from Na-22 Positron Annihilation
Mentor: Dr. Aaron McGowan

Ashley Lasko

Project Title: Growth Regulation of Microvilli in Cells
Mentor: Dr. Lishibanya Mohapatra

Lily McKenna

Project Title: Integrated Photonic Imaging with Phased Arrays
Mentor: Dr. Greg Howland

Pete Miller

Project Title: Examining Coupled Photonic Correlations in Quantum Harmonic Oscillators within Optical Tweezers
Mentor: Dr. Mishkat Bhattacharya

Ben Russel

Project Title: Role of Disassembly Mechanisms in Controlling Size of Structures Within Cells
Mentor: Dr. Lishibanya Mohapatra

Matthew Siege

Project Title: Help-Seeking Behaviors and Metacognition in Student Research
Mentors: Dr. Benjamin Zwickl and Dr. Dina Zohrabi Alaee

Abi Von Plinsky

Project Title: Observation and Analysis of RR Lyrae Variable Type XX Andromeda
Mentor: Dr. Michael Richmond

Lexi Anderson

Project Title: Skeletogenesis during abbreviated brittle star development of Ophioplocus esmarki; Ectodermal morphogenesis and coelomic stacking during brittle star development.
Mentor: Dr. Hyla Sweet

Paige Arieno

Project Title: Sources of Anthropogenic Debris in the Lake Ontario Watershed
Mentor: Dr. Christy Tyler

Vanessa Baker

Project Title: Impacts of Water Lily Invasion and Removal on Wetland Ecosystem Function
Mentor: Dr. Christy Tyler

Evan Batte

Project Title: The Accumulation and Degradation of Anthropogenic Debris in the Lake Ontario Watershed
Mentor: Dr. Christy Tyler

Samantha Conflitti

Project Title: Analogies: Tools for Promoting Students' Critical Thinking and Evaluating Effective Teamwork
Mentors: Dr. Dina Newman and Dr. Kate Wright

Rachael Hoh

Project Title: Physiological Condition of Passerines During Fall Migration Stopover Near Lake Ontario
Mentor: Dr. Susan Pagano

Mukul Kandwall

Project Title: NF-κB dependent antiviral mechanisms in prostate cancer cells resistant to oncolytic vesicular stomatitis virus
Mentor: Dr. Maureen Ferran

Emily Kearney

Project Title: Whole Genome Sequences and Cell-Cell Signaling Mechanism in Bacteria Isolated from a Pristine Cave Aquifer Lake
Mentor: Dr. Michael Savka

Jayson Kucharek

Project Title: New York Sea Grant and Marine Debris Project
Mentor: Dr. Christy Tyler

Gabriella Orfanides

Project Title: Evaluating Physiological Condition of Songbirds During Migration Stopover
Mentor: Dr. Susan Pagano

Emily Reilly

Project Title: The genetic basis of penicillin resistance in Neisseria Gonorrhoea
Mentor: Dr. Crista Wadsworth

Zachary Thierman

Project Title: In vitro Investigation of Highly Selective Chemotherapeutic Dyes
Mentor: Dr. Gary Skuse

Liza Ward

Project Title: Identification of Candidate Genes Responsible for Germ-line Development in Ophiuroidea
Mentor: Dr. Hyla Sweet

Past Scholars

Chester F. Carlson Center for Imaging Science

Charles Brinsfield

Project Title: Phantoview - Intuitive Interactions with Digital Objects, RIT
Mentor: Dr. Jim Ferwerda

Project Title: Fluorescent Plant Imaging System, Cornell AgriTech
Mentors: Dr. Yu Jiang, Dr. Alan Taylor

Project Title: Analyzing Angular Broadening through Scattering of Interstellar Sources
Mentor: Dr. Michael Lam

Lily Gaffney

Project Title: Multimodal Visuo-Haptic Interactions in Semi-Immersive Environments
Mentor: Dr. Elena Fedorovskaya

Max Lipitz

Project Title: Development of Next Generation Wildfire Camera
Mentor: Dr. Robert Kremens

Erin Percy

Project Title: Determining the Mass of Pre-Main Sequence Stars from Radio Imaging of their Orbiting, Planet-forming Disks
Mentor: Dr. Joel Kastner

Ethan Poole

Project Title: Towards Radiometrically calibrating Landsat 9 TIRS-2 imagery
Mentors: Aaron Gerace, Eon Rehman

Matthew Pupko

Project Title: Low-Frequency Electron Paramagnetic Resonance to Non-Destructively Analyze Sub-Paintings
Mentor: Dr. Joseph Hornak

Ethan Snell

Project Title: Wildfire Detection Via the Atomic Emission of Potassium
Mentor: Dr. Anthony Vodacek

Emma Wilson

Project Title: Data Analysis for Multispectral Imaging System for Historical Artifacts (MISHA)
Mentor: Dr. Tania Kleynhans

School of Chemistry and Materials Science

Luiza Bastos Bianco

Project Title: Phenotypic Studies of Nudix Hydrolases
Mentor: Dr. Suzanne O'Handley

Darren Chee

Project Title: Studies Toward the Total Synthesis of Novel Cross-Membrane Fluorometric Probes
Mentor: Dr. Tina Goudreau Collison

Shao Demyttenaere

Project Title: Characterization of Sustainable Polymers
Mentor: Dr. Matt Miri

Mariam Dzamukashvili

Project Title: Surveying the Effects of Barium Replacement with an Alternative Group 2 Cation on the Host Crystallinity of a Magnesium Silicate
Mentor: Dr. Scott Williams

Eugene Ham

Project Title: Reformed Experimental Activities (REActivities): Studying the Effects of Student Confidence in the Organic Laboratory Using the Meaningful Learning in the Lab Instrument
Mentor: Dr. Tina Goudreau Collison

Seth Jones

Project Title: Not Making the Cut; Techniques to Prevent RNA Cleavage in Structural Studies of RNase-RNA Complexes
Mentor: Dr. Michael Gleghorn

Matthew Law

Project Title: Solid Phase Synthesis of Molecularly Targeted Peptide-based Agents for Breast Cancer Imaging
Mentor: Dr. Hans Schmitthenner

Elizabeth Lucas

Project Title: Discovery and Characterization of Nudix Hydrolases as Part of the BASIL Project
Mentor: Dr. Suzanne O'Handley

Katherine O’Neill-Knasick

Project Title: Probing Pal-TolB Interactions Using Site-Directed Mutagenesis
Mentor: Dr. Lea Michel

Janai Perdue

Project Title: Analysis of Protein D Antibody Suppression in Otitis Media Vaccines
Mentor: Dr. Lea Michel

Alex Taylor

Project Title: N- and P-type Molecular Monolayer Doping of Silicon for Photovoltaic and Semiconductor Devices
Mentor: Dr. Scott Williams

Zach Williams

Project Title: Elucidating the Intermolecular Interactions of a Cataract-Causing Protein: Gamma-B Crystallin
Mentor: Dr. Lea Michel

Tommy Wu

Project Title: Comparative Oligo(dT) and Oligo(LNA-A)-based Poly(A)-tailed mRNA Purifications
Mentor: Dr. Michael Gleghorn

Learn more about the Chemistry Research Scholars Program.

Thomas H. Gosnell School of Life Sciences

Alexandra Bros

Project Title: Plasma Metabolite and Leukocyte Profiles in Migratory Birds During Stopover near Lake Ontario
Mentor: Dr. Susan Smith Pagano

Deanna Abid

Project Title: The DNA Landscape applied to Genomics and Molecular Biology
Mentors: Dr. Dina Newman, Dr. Kate Wright

Hannah Spector

Project Title: Using a Card Sorting Task to Capture Student Thinking about Molecular Biology Concepts
Mentors: Dr. Dina Newman, Dr. Kate Wright

Ian Freezman

Project Title: Isolation and identification of natural products that possess antimicrobial properties
Mentor: Dr. André Hudson

Marissa Schroeter

Project Title: Analysis of Antibiotic-Compound Producing Bacteria Isolated from Lake Ontario, NY
Mentor: Dr. André Hudson

Safiya Gazali

Project Title: Identification and characterization of antibiotic lead compounds
Mentor: Dr. André Hudson

Thomas Murphy

Project Title: The Search for Factor X: Characterization of Penicillin Resistance in Neisseria gonorrhoea 
Mentor: Dr. Crista Wadsworth

Victoria Kwasinski

Project Title: Impact of Invasive Fruits on Migratory Birds
Mentor: Dr. Susan Smith Pagano

Wesley Wong

Project Title: Examining activation and expression of NFkB and NFkB-dependent antiviral genes in VSV-infected human prostate cancer cells
Mentor: Dr. Maureen Ferran

School of Mathematical Sciences

Tiana Hose

Project Title: Measuring the downstream impact of Learning Assistants with Markov chains
Mentor: Dr. Tony Wong

Quinn Kolt

Project Title: An Equation Error Approach for Identifying a Random Parameter in a Stochastic Partial Differential Equation with Ahktar Khan, Basca Jadamba, and Miguel Sama
Mentors: Dr. Akhtar Khan, Dr. Basca Jadamba, and Dr. Miguel Sama

Project Title: An upper bound for a cyclic sum of probabilities with James Marengo and David Farnsworth
Mentors: Dr. James Marengo, Dr. David Farnsworth

Project Title: Direct methods for shear modulus inversion in the time-harmonic viscoelastic scalar wave model with Olalekan Babaniyi
Mentor: Dr. Olalekan Babaniyi

Keegan Kresge

Project Title: Analyzing Epidemic Thresholds on Dynamic Network Structures
Mentors: Drs. Eben Kenah, Greg Rempala

Project Title: WiFi-based Contactless Gesture Recognition Using Lightweight CNN
Mentor: Dr. Yan Wang

Project Title: Cyber & Crypto Economics
Mentor: Dr. Mary Lynn Reed

School of Physics and Astronomy

Nolan Ames

Project Title: Quantum Dynamics of Ions Trapped On a Ring
Mentor: Dr. Mishkat Bhattacharya

Ridge Bennett

Project Title: An Analysis of Physics Majors’ Subfield Decision-Making
Mentor: Dr. Ben Zwickl

Nicholas Cisco

Project Title: Metal Depositions on Metal Oxide Surfaces
Mentor: Dr. Michael Pierce

Michaela Cohen

Project Title: Simulating Dynamics of Filamentous Structures in Cells
Mentor: Dr. Lishibanya Mohapatra

John Colt

Project Title: Multi-scale structure and Dynamics in Dispersions of Super-ellipsoidal Sector Particles
Mentor: Dr. Scott Franklin

John Fernandes

Project Title: Femtosecond pulsed laser interactions with semiconductors
Mentor: Dr. Jie Qiao

Muhammad Akif Qadeer

Project Title: Pulse propagation modelling for femtosecond laser ablation of Silicon
Mentor: Dr. Jie Qiao

Peter Letendre

Project Title: Characterization of Snap Beans for Disease Risk and Yield Prediction Modeling
Mentor: Dr. Jan van Aardt

Abby Lupi

Project Title: Developing a Test Environment to Study Radiation Pressure for Three Degrees of Freedom
Mentor: Dr. Grover Swartzlander

Ashley Martsen

Project Title: Pulsar Mode Changes and Nulling
Mentor: Dr. Michael Lam

Anthony Mazur

Project Title: Strain Balanced Quantum Well Solar Cells
Mentor: Dr. Seth Hubbard

Luke Nearhood

Project Title: Cooperative Mobilization of Emulsion Droplets in Porous Media
Mentor: Dr. Shima Parsa

Danny Proctor

Project Title: Tripartite Entanglement of Ions Trapped on a Ring
Mentor: Dr. Mishkat Bhattacharya

Max Robbins

Project Title: Analysis of underpaintings using Low-Frequency EPR spectroscopy
Mentor: Dr. Joseph Hornak

Latavia Thompson

Project Title: Mapping Morphology to Electrophysiological Properties in a Synthetic Neuron
Mentor: Dr. Moumita Das

Renzo Vizarreta

Project Title: Characterizing Reconstruction Resolution Using Monte Carlo Simulated Neutral-Current Elastic Scattering of Protons at the MINERvA Experiment Modeling of Phase Separation in Bacterial Cytoplasm
Mentors: Dr. Aaron McGowan and Dr. Moumita Das

Alex Zades

Project Title: Performing Discrete Fourier Transforms Using Star Couplers
Mentor: Dr. Gregory Howland

Chester F. Carlson Center for Imaging Science

Student Name Mentor Project Title
Mackenzie Carr Dr. Tania Kleynhans Characterization of Multispectral Imaging System for Historical Artifacts (MISHA)
Jared Gregor Dr. Gabriel Diaz Blink Modeling Pipeline for RIT-Eyes
Aidan Herbert Dr. Carl Salvaggio Analysis of Atmospheric of Dehazing
Wade Pines Dr. Carl Salvaggio Automated calibration pipeline for agricultural sUAS based remote sensing

School of Chemistry and Materials Science

Student Name Mentor Project Title
Nana Aikins Dr. Suzanne O'Handley Nudix Hydrolases as Potential Novel Antibiotic Targets in Pathogenic Bacteria
Kristen Atkinson Dr. Gerald A. Takacs Surface Modification of Materials with UV Photo-oxidation
Julia Biehler Dr. Christina Goudreau Collison Development and Assessment of the Evaluation of Lab Instructor Time and Engagement (ELITE) Tool as it relates to Fidelity of Implementation
Ricardo Carrion Dr. Hans Schmitthenner Design and Synthesis of High-Relaxivity Targeted Contrast Agents for MRI of Prostate Cancer
Paige Daly Dr. Christina Goudreau Collison Measuring Meaningful Learning in a Reformed Undergraduate Organic Chemistry Laboratory Using Reformed Experimental Activities (REActivities)
Danielle Farmer Drs. Scott Williams and Thomas Trabold Developing Sustainable Printing Ink Using Coal as a Substitute for Carbon Black
Niaya Jackson Dr. Lea Michel Probing the Inter-protein Interactions Between Two Leading Protein Vaccine Candidates from Nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae
Maha Khokhar Dr. Lea Michel E. coli Outer Membrane Vesicles Discovered to Contain a Diagnostic Marker for Sepsis, Peptidoglycan-Associated Lipoprotein
Emily Mahoney Dr. Hans Schmitthenner FRET Dye Pairs for Enhanced Photoacoustic Imaging of Cancer
Jacey Phillips Dr. Lea Michel Sputtered Nanometric Films as an Antimicrobial Surface
Maddie Tebrugge Dr. Christina Goudreau Collison REActivities: Reformed Experimental Activities: designing an observational tool for fidelity of implementation

Learn more about the Chemistry Research Scholars Program.

Thomas H. Gosnell School of Life Sciences

Student Name Mentor Project Title
Jonathan Chu Dr. André Hudson Isolation and Identification of Novel Antimicrobials
Raquel Diaz Dr. Christy Tyler Freshwater Benthic Organisms' Impact on Plastic Fate and Transport in Sediment
Nasreen Jaff Dr. Hyla Sweet TBD
Andrew Rosato Dr. Feng Cui Identifying TP53 associated Transposable Elements
Lauren Trumpore Drs. Kate Wright and Dina Newman Utilizing Biology Textbooks to Create a DNA Landscape and Gene Cards
Peter Wengert Dr. Michael Savka Genomic characterization of bacteria from the ultra-oligotrophic Madison aquifer: Insight into the archetypical LuxI / LuxR and identification of novel LuxR solos
Emalee Wrightstone 1. Drs. Gary Skuse and Kenneth Reed 1. In-vitro Investigation of a Highly Selective Chemotherapeutic Dye
  2. Drs. Dina Newman and Kate Wright 2. Visual Representations of DNA in College Biology Textbooks
  3. Dr. Eli Borrego 3. Oxylipin and Ethylene Impact on Maize Rhizosphere Microbiome

School of Mathematical Sciences

Student Name Mentor Project Title
Adam Giammarese Dr. Nishant Malik Sensitivity of the Global Climate Against Perturbations in the Amazon: A Network Perspective
Nicholas John Dr. Nishant Malik Modeling Spread of Invasive Species Using Network Analysis
Jason LaRuez Dr. Michael Cromer The Roles of Elastic and Inertial Forces in the Formation of Vortices
Jennie McIntosh Dr. Niels Otani Effects of Alternans on a Proposed Low-Energy Heart Defibrillation Method
Justin Sostre Dr. Niels Otani The Behavior of U-Shaped Filaments with the Introduction of Rotational Anisotropy in the Cardiac Region
Vignesh Venkataramani Dr. Niels Otani Noise Reduction in the Inverse Solution for Cardiac Active Stress Reconstruction
Gabriella Wolf Dr. Nishant Malik Coevolving Network Model for the Diffusion of Opioid Dependence in a Population

School of Physics and Astronomy

Student Name Mentor Project Title
Lucas Berens Drs. George Thurston and Aaron McGowan Estimation of intermolecular Van der Waals force interactions in eye proteins using ultraviolet absorbance spectroscopy and Characterization of neutron-proton and neutrino-proton neutral current elastic scattering in MINERvA
Brandon Bogner Dr. Moumita Das Dynamics of Mitochondrial DNA populations in mammalian cells
Julia Bourdeau Dr. Moumita Das Modeling Liquid-Liquid Phase Separation in Bacterial DNA
Nash Flint Dr. Parsian K. Mohseni Metal-Assisted Chemical Etching of Gallium Antimonide
Zachary Gazzillo Dr. Edwin Hach Investigating the Use of Nanophotonic Microring Resonators as High-Fidelity NOON State Generators
Violet Hart Dr. Moumita Das Modeling the Generation of Action Potential in Biological and Synthetic Neurons
Jonathan Kroth Dr. Gregory Trayling A Clifford Algebraic Approach to CPT Symmetries in the Standard Model
Jonathan Leonard Dr. Vivek Narayanan The Effect of Climate-Caused Ice Melt on Earth’s Rotation and Precession
Daniel Matos Dr. Shima Parsa Dynamics of Emulsions in Porous Media
Shane McCarthy Dr. Joseph Hornak Low Frequency Electron Paramagnetic Resonance Spectroscopy
Celia Merkovich Dr. Michael Pierce Greenhouse Gas Catalysis on MgO (111) on Rutile TiO2 (100) Films
Dan Sabrsula Dr. Pratik Dholabhai Determining the Surface Energies and Surface Stabilities of Low-Index Surfaces of SrTiO3
Benjamin Vaughan Dr. Michael Zemcov Measuring the Sunyaev-Zeldovich effect with Fourier Transform Spectrometry

Chester F. Carlson Center for Imaging Science

Student Name Mentor Project Title
Gregory Nero Dr. Roger Easton Optical Matched Filtering with Computer-Generated Holography
Adam Reitz Dr. Derek Walvoord, L3Harris Efforts toward the total synthesis of trocheliophorolide A: Construction of the unsaturated side chain via stable intermediates
Lenny Wilkinson Mr. Richard Hailstone Low-Voltage Scanning Electron Microscope Image Restoration Using Interpolated PSF Deconvolution
Haley Wiskoski Dr. Joseph Hornak Using a Low-Frequency EPR Mobile Universal Surface Explorer (MOUSE) to Image Nonuniform Paramagnetic Samples on Canvas

School of Chemistry and Materials Science

Student Name Mentor Project Title
Morgan Bauer Dr. Lea Vacca Michel Elucidating the effect of antibiotics on Pal's release from Escherichia coli
Diksha Biswa Dr. Tina Goudreau Collison No Reference Relative Edge Response (RER) Predictor
Kaitlyn Clark Dr. Tina Goudreau Collison Studies Toward the Total Synthesis ofTrocheliophorolide A
Julia Faraone Dr. Lea Vacca Michel Elucidating the Intermolecular Interactions of a Cataract-Causing Protein: Gamma B Crystallin
Tullio Geraci Dr. Matt Miri Characterization of Renewable Aliphatic-Aromatic Polyesters
LauraAnne Hirschler Dr. Tina Goudreau Collison Studies Toward the Synthesis of Novel Difluorophores as Cross­Membrane Probes
Nicolette Kulakowski Dr. Suzanne O'Handley Phenotypes of Nudix Hydrolases and Complementation Studie
Peyton Kunselman Dr. Michael Coleman Catalytic Asymmetric Cyclopropanation of Unactivated and Sterically Bulky Olefinic Substrates Using Novel C2-symmetric Chiral Group 11 Transition Metal/N Heterocyclic Carbene Complexes
Sean Lewis Dr. Lea Vacca Michel Investigating Pal's Interaction with Peptidoglycan
Micaela Nelson Dr. Tina Goudreau Collison Development and Assessment of the Evaluation of Lab Instructor Time and Engagement (ELITE) Tool as it relates to Fidelity of Implementation
Liam T. Reilly Dr. Matt Miri Synthesis of Sustainable Polymers via Click Chemistry
Spencer Richman Dr. Suzanne O'Handley Computational Studies of the Nudix Hydrolase Superfamily
Shreen Sachdev Dr. Geral Takacs Surface Modification of Polymer Materials Often Used in Packaging Industries
Dana Murphy Soika Dr. Hans Schmitthenner Targeted High Relaxivity Agents for MRI of Cancer
Red Smith-Sweetster Dr. Matt Miri Synthesis of Renewable Polymers
Wasim Zatar Dr. Tina Goudreau Collison Synthesis of Trocheliophorolide: An Unsaturated Side Chain

Thomas H. Gosnell School of Life Sciences

Student Name Mentor Project Title
Alaa Ahmed Dr. Maureen Ferran NF-kB Activation in VSV-sensitive verses VSV-Resistant Human Prostate Cancer Cell Lines
Nicole Cavanaugh Dr. André Hudson The quest to combat antibiotic resistance: Isolation, sequencing, and antibiotic properties of Exiguobacterium sp. RIT452
Erica Delles Dr. Susan Smith Pagano Physiological condition in relation to molecular sex of thrushes during migration stopover
Joshua Evans Dr. Irene Evans and Dr. Michael Savka 1. Targeting Triple Negative Breast Cancer: A New Molecular Agent AND 2. Investigating quorum sensing in bacteria isolated from Lechuguilla Cave, AZ
Zein Haidar Dr. Julie Thomas Investigation of a virus that infects Salmonella, including studies of the receptors on the bacterial cell that are needed for it to initiate infection
Trevor Penix Dr. Michael Savka Investigating quorum-sensing genes in poison ivy endophytes
Patrick Rynkiewicz Dr. Dina Newman and Dr. Kate Wright Development of an R-based tool for Analysis of Complex Educational Assessment Data
KayLee Steiner Dr. André Hudson Isolation, Whole-Genome Sequencing, and Antibiotic Production of RIT 623 and various bacterial strains
Zachary Ward Dr. Lea Michel Probing the interaction between Pal and peptidoglycan and Sputtering of nanometric films as a tool to enhance antimicrobial properties

School of Physics and Astronomy

Student Name Mentor Project Title
Baizar Alamiri Dr. Sukanya Chakrabarti Hunting for a Lensed Supernovae to Determine the Hubble's Constant
Liam Brodie Dr. Manuela Campanelli Constructing an Approximate Spacetime Using the Superpositio of Two Kerr Black Holes
Jessica Chellino Dr. Jeyhan Kartaltepe Analysis of High Redshift Galaxies Through Image Stacking
Isabella Cox Dr. Jeyhan Kartaltepe Correlating Regions of Clumpiness to Physical Properties in Resolved CANDELS Galaxies
Grace Fiacco Dr. Joshua Faber Generating Physically Realistic Binary Neutron Star Initial Data
Christina Magagnoli Dr. David Dr. Michael Pierce Lubricating ability of two phosphonium-based ionic liquids as additives of a bio-oil for use in wind turbines gearboxes
Evan Manfreda-Schulz Dr. Parsian Mohseni Modulating Composition of Intrawafer Composite Semiconductor Nanowire Arrays
Timothy McNutt Dr. George Thurston Investigation of Light Scattering from Eye Lens Beta Crystallin Protein and its Mixtures With Other Crystallins
Dale Mercado Dr. Michael Zemcov Principal Design and Assembly of an Infrared Fourier Transform Spectrometer with Automated Control Software
Natasha Nigam Dr. Andrew Robinson Morphological Properties and Star Formation Rates of Active and Starburst Galaxies
Vignesh Venkataramani Dr. George Thurston Investigation of Aqueous Protamine and Polyphosphate Systems
William Wainwright Dr. Michael Richmond Data Mining the Gaia Archive to Uncover the Secrets of Stellar Clusters
Ryan Wills Dr. Andrew Robinson The Kinematics and Physical Conditions of Ionized Gas in OH Megamaser Galaxies