During the 8th summer of ACRoSS, 49 students from 19 different departments or programs (including Art, Biochemistry, Biology, Chemistry, Communication Arts, Computer Science, Education Studies, English, Environmental Studies, Global Health Studies, International Studies, Mathematics, Neuroscience, Philosophy, Physics, Political Science, Psychology, Religious Studies, and Spanish), presented their summer research projects to an audience of faculty, students, administrators, and campus visitors. The average audience size was 110 for the ten weeks of ACRoSS presentations. In addition, more than 30 students presented at the Summer Research Symposium poster session, sharing work conducted both on and off campus. Overall, approximately 110 students conducted research on campus during the summer of 2015.
ACRoSS 2015 Schedule
Tues, June 2, 2015
Nia Shuler (English ’18) and Professor Aline Lo (English) The Price of Freedom: Film Portrayals of the Refugee Experience in Retreat and Return
Benjamin Bloom (Chemistry ’18) and Professor Mark R. Ams (Chemistry) Uncovering the Strengths of the Molecular Attractions that Govern Nature
Winona Vaitekunas (International Studies ’16) and Professor Younus Mirza (Philosophy and Religious Studies) There’s More to “Abrahamic” than Abraham: Bridging Religions through Scriptural Dissonance
Tues, June 9, 2015
Ryan Sayko (Physics ’16), Tim Daly (Biochemistry ’16), and Professor Adele Poynor (Physics) Surface Plasmon Investigations of Self Assembled Monolayers
Kelly Frantz (International Studies, Spanish ’16) and Professor Rehenuma Asmi (Education and Religious Studies) The Struggle for Higher Education in Qatar: The Pendulum Swings from English to Arabic at Qatar University
Claire Porterfield (Biochemistry ’16), Nathan Allen (Biochemistry ’16), and Marty Serra (Chemistry and Biochemistry) RNA Structure and Stability
Tues, June 16, 2015
Darby Rupp (English ’18) and Professor Valerie Sweeney Prince (English) Bridging the Gaps Between Fields: Metaphorical Thinking and Expression in Computer Science
Garrett Devenney (Biology/Global Health Studies ’16) and Professor Becky Dawson (Global Health Studies and Biology) Knowledge and Perceptions of the 2014 Ebola Outbreak among Undergraduate Students
Molly Shelton (Physics ’16) and Professor Ian Carbone (Environmental Science) Flexible Materials for Light Concentration and Solar Power Production.
Tues, June 23, 2015
Bryn Philibert (International Studies ’16), Heather Bosau (English ’17) and Professor Shanna Kirschner (Political Science and International Studies) Do Massacres Work? Understanding Strategic Violence in Civil War
Allie Condon (’16) and Professor Michael Mehler (Communication Arts) Community-Based Arts
Tues, June 30, 2015
Conner Bardine (Chemistry ’17), Yueting Xu (Biochemistry ’17), and Professor Ivy Garcia (Chemistry and Biochemistry) What happens when you heat up the DEAD?
Belle Mazurik (English major ’16), Manuel Marquez (English and Math ’16), and Professor Soledad Caballero (English) Imagining Revolutions: Routes of travel between South America and Britain
Erin Yates (English ’16) and Professor Ben Slote (English) We Don’t Know Boo: Disability and Self-Congratulation in “To Kill a Mockingbird”
Tues, July 7, 2015
Kathryn Denning (Psychology ’16), Annie Utterback (Psychology ’16), and Professor Aimee Knupsky (Psychology) Getting Inside Your Head: Cognitive Humanities at Work
Michael Camara (Computer Science ’17) and Professor Janyl Jumadinova (Computer Science) Insightful Combinations: An Intelligent System to Find, Analyze, and Correlate Data.
Tues, July 14, 2015
Nathanael Downes (Chemistry ’17) and Professor Tim Chapp (Chemistry) Towards Synthesis of Molecular Electrocatalysts for Hydrogen Production
Tori Rollin (Biology ’17), Kevin Simpson (Biochemistry ’17), and Professor Brad Hersh (Biology and Biochemistry) Arrival of the Fittest: Finding the Genes Responsible for Evolution of Animal Shape
Madeleine Zimmermann (Environmental Science and Studio Art ’18) and Professor Richard Schindler (Art History) Framing Anarchism: The Mutual Relationship between Artists and Anarchists
Tues, July 21, 2015
Ian Dempsey (Biology’16), Noelle Lemons(Biochemistry ’17), and Professor Monali Chowdhury (Psychology) The Next Chapter Book Club: A Community Project with Members with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
Blake Johnson (Biology ’16), Michael Arcieri (Biology ’17), and Professor Kristen Webb (Biology) DNA Tells The Story – Examples from Veterinary Forensics and The Roles of Pheromone Detection and Color Vision in Carnivores
Tues, July 28, 2015
Katherine Furl (Psychology ’16), Nadiya Wahl, (Psychology ’17), and Professor Lauren Paulson (Psychology) Eating Disorders in Males
Logan Billet (Biology, ’17) and Professor Matt Venesky (Biology) Spatiotemporal Distribution of the Amphibian Chytrid Fungus in Northwestern PA
Paige Hickman (’17), Erica Moretti (’17), and Professor Beth Choate (Environmental Science) Native Pollinators and Landuse throughout Meadville, PA
Tues, Aug 4, 2015
Yukihide Nakada (Mathematics ’16), Kelly Pohland (Mathematics ’16), and Professor Craig Dodge (Mathematics) Simple Modules of Centralizer Algebras
Brigit Stack (Communication Arts ’17) and Professor Julie Wilson (Communication Arts) Unpacking Neoliberal Culture
Timothy Cornet (Environmental Science ’16) and Professor Ian Carbone (Environmental Science) Environmentally Friendly Greenhouse Design for Allegheny College Food Production.