CSE students honored at regional undergraduate research symposium
MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (05/01/2015)—Five students from the College of Science & Engineering were among 104 students accepted to present research at the 2015 Winchell Undergraduate Research Symposium. Three of those students received awards from the Minnesota Academy of Science recognizing their research accomplishments.
Chris Phenicie received the Jay W. Buchta Award for Excellence in Physics, Brent Vizanko received the Curtis D. Motchenbacher Award for Excellence in Engineering, and Matthew Henley received the Lee I. Smith Award for Excellence in Chemistry and the American Chemical Society Award. Kesha Hietala and Azira Rivera also presented research at the symposium. The students were joined by 7 other University of Minnesota students from CBS, CFANS, and CEHD.
Phenicie, advised by Dr. Danny Dale and supported by the National Science Foundation, conducted a study of two galaxies, UGC8303 and UGC8320. Phenicie coupled data from the Wyoming Infrared Observatory with deep GALEX ultraviolet and Spitzer infrared imaging to study the radial variations in the spectral energy distributions of the galaxies. Phenicie also presented a second project on the effects of surface energy on rubrene crystallization, a project that was advised by Dr. Russell Holmes.
Vizanko worked with Dr. Steven Sternberg from the University of Minnesota – Duluth on a study of the reaction between sodium borohydride and ethylene glycol. Repeated tests were used to determine the optimal amount of ethylene glycol for the reaction. Results of Vizanko’s study will be used as part of Sternberg’s larger project to develop a battery alternative using a hydrogen fuel cell.
Henley’s research, advised by Dr. George Barany in the Department of Chemistry, explored mechanistics of the Zumach-Weiss-Kuhle synthesis of dithiasuccinoyl-protected amines. By using a substrate with a carbamate substituent, Henley demonstrated that the Dts-protected carbamate did not form and the reaction arrested at one of two acyclic species whose structures could be characterized by X-ray crystallography. “The fully characterized structures suggest a mechanism for the ZQK reaction and give a rationale for the formation of commonly observed by-products,” said Henley.
The 28th Winchell Undergraduate Research Symposium was held in conjunction with the 82nd Annual Meeting of the Minnesota Academy of Science on April 25 at the University of Northwestern in St. Paul. At the symposium, students presented research on topics ranging from cellular and molecular biology to physics and computer science.
In addition to the presentations, students attended a keynote lecture on “Building Cell Simulators” by Dr. David Odde, Professor of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Minnesota. Students also participated in breakout sessions including an interactive talk on “Salaries in the Sciences,” a panel discussion on “What to Expect in Graduate School,” and conversations with job recruiters.
Students interested in participating in the 2016 Winchell Undergraduate Research Symposium should visit www.mnmas.org for more information.