Eighth Annual Undergraduate Research and Discovery Symposium


CONFERENCE PROGRAM


Keynote Speaker
Dr. Laurence C. Smith
Keynote Address: Thursday, April 12, 7:00 PM, ARTS 150
The World in 2050: Four Forces Shaping Civilization's Northern Future

Laurence C. Smith is Professor and Vice Chair of Geography and Professor of Earth and Space Sciences at UCLA. His research interests include topics of northern hydrology, climate change, carbon cycles, and satellite remote sensing. He has published over sixty peer-reviewed articles including articles in the journals Science and Nature, and has won more than $6M in research funding from NSF and NASA. In 2011 he won the Walter P. Kistler Book Award for The World in 2050: Four Forces Shaping Civilization's Northern Future.

Dr. Smith will present cross-cutting themes of population demographics, economic globalization, natural resource demand, and climate change with particular emphasis on north countries. A book signing will follow the lecture.





UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH PRESENTATIONS

Friday, April 13, 2011
Gorsuch Commons
University of Alaska Anchorage

The Office of Undergraduate Research and Scholarship (OURS) promotes undergraduate scholarship and academic accomplishments through inquiry, discovery, and creativity. OURS fosters undergraduate research opportunities and presentations, encourages the integration of teaching and research across the campus, and links students to both local faculty and the global community of scholars. Every April, recipients of Undergraduate Research Grants present their research to the public, creating opportunities for dialogue between UAA faculty, staff, students, and the community.

All Sessions Held in the Gorsuch Commons

Arts, Humanities, and SCUSA Session
Commons 106
Session Moderator: Susan Kalina, Bill Myers
Time Title Speaker Grant
8:45-9:15 Report from SCUSA 2011 Conference Ben Woodland (International Studies and Languages), Meneka Thiru (International Studies and Spanish)

Faculty Representative: Susan Kalina		 SCUSA Award
9:15-9:30 Our Bodies, Our Stories Nancy L. Stallings (Fine Arts)

Faculty Mentor: Garry Kaulitz		 Undergraduate Research Grant
9:30-9:45 Perpetrators of Genocide Alyssa Logan (History)

Faculty Mentor: William Myers		 Undergraduate Research Award
9:45-10:00 Break

Natural Sciences Session
Commons 106
Session Moderator: Page Brannon
Time Title Speaker Grant
10:00-10:15 Remediation of Metal Contamination Along Alaska's Roadways: A Hydroponic Feasibility Study Emily Secrest (Chemistry)

Faculty Mentor: John Kennish		 Fran Ulmer Award
10:15-10:30 Polychlorinated Biphenyls and Trace Metals in Matanuska and Exit Glaciers, Alaska Rebecca Jordan (Chemistry)

Faculty Mentor: John Kennish		 Undergraduate Research Award
10:30-11:00 What do plants do with polyglutamine proteins Jasmine Hatton, David Phipps, Ann Jennings, David Nash, Nicholas Markadakis

Faculty: Benjamin Harrison		 FLEUR Award
11:00-11:15 Break

Natural Sciences Session
Commons 106
Session Moderator: Cindy Knall
Time Title Speaker Grant
11:15-11:30 The effects of iqmik derived metals on ROS generation and cytokine response in human gingival epithelial cells Gaelen Dwyer (Biological Sciences)

Faculty Mentor: Cindy Knall		 INBRE, Discovery Grant
11:30-11:45 Role of Williams Syndrome Transcription Factor in heart development in Xenopus Audrey Rutz (Biological Sciences)

Faculty Mentor: Jocelyn Krebs		 Alaska Heart Insitute Fellowship
11:45-12:00 Non-organic membrane research Vitaliy Kaminker (Mathematical Sciences)

Faculty Mentor: Jim Pantaleone		 Fran Ulmer Award
12:00-12:15 Archaeobotany of the Central Aleutian Islands Holly Thorssin (Anthropology)

Faculty Mentor: Diane Hanson		 Undergraduate Research Award
12:15-12:30 Break

Social Sciences and Community-Based Research Session
Commons 106
Session Moderator: Troy Payne
Time Title Speaker Grant
12:30-12:45 Cultural Experiences of Poverty and Food Insecurity Krista Howard (Social Work)

Faculty Mentor: Tracey Burke		 Research in the Community Grant
12:45-1:00 The Change in Amount of Recovered Recyclables: Standard vs. Novelty Bins Theresa Cho

Faculty Mentor: Gwen Lupfer-Johnson		 Research in the Community Grant
1:00-1:15 Demographic Differences in Computer Anxiety and Self-Efficacy: The Evolution of the Digital Divide Mikaela Mulder (Psychology)

Faculty Mentor: Claudia Lampman		 Undergraduate Research Award
1:15-1:45 UAA Student Preparation for College-level English: A Study of Student Perceptions Kent Spiers, Ashley McKibbon, Ian Miller, Taylor Mitchell, Oliver Petraitis, Jessica Slayer, Alexandra Weill

Faculty Mentor: Diane Hirshberg		 FLEUR Award
1:45-2:00 Kids Count: Who Gets the Cookie? A Report on the Well-Being of Alaska.s Children Kent Spiers, Lillian Sloth

Faculty Mentor: Virgene Hanna		 ISER Research Award



Reception 2:00 - 3:00 PM
Commons Lobby


UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH POSTER SESSION

2:00 - 3:00 PM, Friday, April 13, 2011
Gorsuch Commons
University of Alaska Anchorage

Students will be available from 2:00 - 3:00 PM on Friday, April 13, in the Gorsuch Commons Lobby and Commons 106 to discuss their posters. The posters will be on display (unmanned) earlier in the week in the Conoco Phillips Integrated Sciences Building and Rasmuson Hall.

Title Presenter Mentor
Soil Remediation of Metal Contamination in Alaska Emily Secrest (Chemistry) John Kennish
NMR Computation Michael Hamman (Mechanical Engineering) Dimitry Ostrovsky
Conducting Health Research Among Asian and Pacific Islanders in Anchorage, Kodiak and Barrow: The Feasibility and Preliminary Results Yesenia Camarena, Mu En Hu, Anastasia Khadjinova Gabriel Garcia, Joy Chavez Mapaye, EJ David
Unfrozen Water Characteristics in Antarctic Dry Valley Soils Tien Do (Biochemistry) Liliya Vugmeyster
Furthering Sustainability at UAA by Proposing a Minor John Forbes (Liberal Studies) Ann Jache
A Survey of Attitudes and Beliefs on Ethical Purchasing Louis Velasco (Journalism and Public Communications) Joy Mapaye
Just Brand It - In-Depth Interviews Examining the Promotion Taylor Hall (Journalism and Public Communications) Joy Mapaye
The 3-D Phenomenon: A survey of 2-D versus 3-D Film Preference Alexandra Craft (Journalism and Public Communications) Joy Mapaye
Investigations of Phenylalanine dynamics in the Hydrophobic Core of the Chicken Villin Headpiece Kirsten Penland (Natural Science) Liliya Vugmeyster
An Investigation of Mormon Modesty Norms Andrea Staats (Languages) Karl Pfeiffer
Addressing Disparities: Smoking Among Alaskan Young Adults Kelli Cassidy, Paree James, Kimberly Lamson, Megan Morse, Ashley Rymer, Amanda Skinner, Isabel Vesely (Nursing) Maria Sistrom
Following the Recipe: A Narrative Analysis of Branding Whitney Tillman (Journalism and Public Communication) Joy Mapaye
Making Out: Media Influence on LGBT Self-Identity in Alaska Heather Aronno (Journalism and Public Communication) Joy Mapaye


Award Ceremony Starts at 3:00 PM
Commons 107