25 Students Invited to Present at National Conference on Undergraduate Research

Brian Peacock ’12 is researching to role bacteria plays in improving the water quality.

A total of 25 students have been invited to present their research at the 26th National Conference on Undergraduate Research (NCUR) March 29-31 at Weber State University.

NCUR is the largest conference of its kind in the country with approximately 2,200 undergraduates from more than 250 colleges and universities in attendance. This is Lafayette’s 25th year of participation. In that time, more than 675 students have been accepted to present their research.

Students invited to the conference represent majors in all four of the College’s academic divisions. Some project topics include a novel, turning plastic waste into fuel, China’s household registration system, water pollution, memory recall, taxation and economic growth, redevelopment in New Orleans, and sports violence.

Alison Finn '12 is exploring the religious impact of Lafayette missionaries in Iran.

All of the students have worked with a faculty member through the College’s honors thesis, independent study, or EXCEL Scholars programs. Lafayette’s focus on close student-faculty interaction has made it a national leader in undergraduate research. Many of the hundreds of students who participate in these programs each year publish their work in academic journals and present at regional and national conferences.

The following is the list of students invited to this year’s conference along with their proposed project titles and faculty research advisers.

• Clarissa Brown ’12 (Lewisburg, Pa.), biology
  “Factors that Contribute to a Child’s BMI; the Role of Food, Family, and Exercise”
  Susan Averett, Dana Professor of Economics
   
  
• Ankit Chandra ’12 (Gaborone, Botswana), chemical engineering
  “Developing Reaction Kinetics for the Catalytic Conversion of Waste Plastics to Fuels”
  Javad Tavakoli, professor of chemical and bimolecular engineering
   
  
• Ericka Chehi ’12 (Greenville, Del.), double major in economics and Asian studies
  “China’s Household Registration System: The Effects of Hukou on China’s Current Generation”
  Robin Rinehart, professor and head of religious studies and chair of Asian studies
   
  
• Andrew Chun ’12 (Monroe, N.Y.), government and law
  “Assessing the Quality, Availability, and Compliance of Geographic Information System (GIS) Data for Point and Non-Point Sources of Nutrients and Pollutants in the Raritan River Basin”
  Megan Rothenberger, assistant professor of biology
   
  
• Karalyn Enz ’13 (Milford, N.J.), psychology
  “Bittersweet Memories: Recalling Mixed Emotional Experiences”
  Jennifer Talarico, assistant professor of psychology
   
  
• Carly Feiro ’12 (Mount Vernon, Wash.), biology
  “Status and Trends of Macroinvertebrate Communities as Indicators of Water Quality: a Tool for Assessing Dam Removal”
  Megan Rothenberger, assistant professor of biology
   
  
• Alison Finn ’12 (Oswego, N.Y.), double major in history and religious studies
  “The Impact of Lafayette Missionaries in Iran on the Ideas of Religion, the Middle East, and the West”
  Asma Sayeed, assistant professor of religious studies
   
  
• Matthew Foy ’12 (Morristown, N.J.), mathematics-economics, and Andrew Brady ’13 (Reading, Pa.), mathematics
  “Are Index Put Options Mispriced in the Marketplace?”
  Qin Lu, associate professor of mathematics
   
  
• Jessica Frey ’12 (Pittsburgh, Pa.), double major in English and chemistry
  “Operation Hippocrates, a Novel”
  Lee Upton, professor of English and writer-in-residence
   
  
• Alexander Hendin ’12 (Nyack, N.Y.), mathematics-economics
  “Macroeconomic Performance and Poverty: Is this time different?”
  Ed Gamber, professor and head of economics
   
  
• Alexander Imel ’12 (Millersville, Pa.), double major in philosophy and history
  “The Role of Admiralty Law in Shaping Early American National Identity: 1776-1830”
  Deborah Rosen, professor and head of history
   
  
• Joel Lefever ’12 (Lancaster, Pa.), mechanical engineering
  “The Biomechanics of Hydrocephalus”
  Joshua Smith, assistant professor of mechanical engineering
   
  
• Nan Li ’12 (Shanghai, China), double major in economics and international affairs
  “Examining the Impact of Taxation on Economic Growth in the U.S. and BRIC Nations”
  Christopher Ruebeck, associate professor of economics
   
  
• Janka Lovering ’13 (Exeter, N.H.), civil engineering
  “Lower 9th Ward Carbon Model Progress Report”
  David Veshosky, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering
   
  
• Peter Lowe ’12 (Camp Hill, Pa.), mechanical engineering
  “Micro Solid Oxide Fuel Cells: Solving Heat Loss and Efficiency Problems with a Modified Swiss Roll Heat Exchanger Design
  Erol Ulucakli, associate professor of mechanical engineering
   
  
• Julie Martin ’12 (Riverton, N.J.), psychology
  “Impression Formation: The Impact of Interpersonal Factors on First Impressions”
  John Shaw, associate professor of psychology
   
  
• Catherine Martin ’12 (Honesdale, Pa.), history
  “Scalawags and Sorcerers: Nonconformity in 17th Century Puritan New England”
  Deborah Rosen, professor and head of history
   
  
• Rebecca Martini ’12 (Long Valley, N.J.), double major in psychology and English
  “Memory for Concrete and Abstract Poetic Metaphor”
  Jennifer Talarico, assistant professor of psychology
   
  
• Phuong Anh Nguyen ’12 (Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam), international economics and commerce
  “Performance Efficiency of Spanish Banks: an Agent-Based Model of Market Concentration and Competition”
  Rosie Bukics, Jones Professor of Economics
   
  
• Brian Peacock ’12 (Haddonfield, N.J.), civil engineering
  “The Growth Kinetics of Denitrifying Bacteria”
  Arthur Kney, associate professor and head of civil and environmental engineering
   
  
• Morgan Reibman ’12 (Easton, Pa.), double major in policy studies and economics
  “The Impact of U.S. News and World Report Rankings on Patient Choice of Hospital”
  Susan Averett, Dana Professor of Economics
   
  
• Richard Rice ’12 (Mercersburg, Pa.), American studies
  “Big Hits and Cowardice: The Construction of Racialized Masculinity in Sports Violence Commentary”
  Caroline Lee, assistant professor of anthropology and sociology
   
  
• Samantha Schwarz ’12 (New Providence, N.J.), English
  “Crossing Borders: Depictions of Transgression in Post-9/11 Films”
  Andy Smith, associate professor of English and chair of film and media studies
   
  
• Samuel Strong ’12 (Coplay, Pa.), double major in art and English
  “The Comic’s Heartbeat: Applying Prosody to Graphic Storytelling”
  Suzanne Westfall, professor of English