Abstract:

Mentor: Felipe Filomeno, Political Science

Greetings!

UMBC GSA is now soliciting nominations for executive council positions for AY 2020-2021. Nominations are open until April 30 @ noon. Elections will be held via Google Hangouts At 1:30 pm April 30 (access to link to follow).  All executive council positions include a stipend, and are open to any active graduate student at UMBC. See the link below for the position descriptions, and click on the nomination form to nominate yourself - or another - for a position. 

Any questions or concerns, please email GSA at gsa@umbc.edu

Sheridan Danquah is a Biological Sciences major. and an LRC tutor. He will be presenting his research, "Use of Radio Tracking to Study Territory Size of the Bahama Oriole," along with his research team, Gabriel Wilkins, Breanna Byrd, and Sierra Barkdoll at online URCAD 2020!

Abstract:

The Bahama Oriole (Icterus northropi) is a critically endangered bird found only in Andros, Bahamas. Previous literature on these orioles suggested they mostly nested in developed areas in Coconut Palms (Cocos nucifera). With new knowledge that the Bahama Oriole also nests in pine forests (Pinus caribaea), we hope to make more accurate population estimates. Determining the territory size of the Bahama Oriole is crucial to making reliable population estimates.

Using radio transmitters placed on three different orioles, we triangulated the positions of tagged birds. These positions were used to generate territory maps for the three radio tagged orioles. To assess the validity of our equipment, and ensure the transmitter was still on sampled birds, we also periodically set out to sight the tagged orioles. The resulting home range maps show that the Bahama Oriole has a larger territory size than was previously assumed.  These findings will be crucial in our ongoing efforts to estimate the total number of Bahama Orioles surviving.

Mentors: Kevin Omland, Biological Sciences, Colin Studds/Matthew Fagan, Geography & Environmental Systems, UMBC

Photo: Dr. Omland with the 2019 research group

Mentor: Steven McAlpine, Individualized Study

MC Hammerhead: A Kinetic Sculpture Redesign Project 

Originally planned as an interactive exhibit outside of the UC Ballroom, MC Hammerhead will go online for Virtual URCAD 2020! While we are disappointed that you won't be able to "touch this" kinetic sculpture, you will be able to see how the interdisciplinary team of researchers redesigned it to create a functional piece of art. This is the first URCAD kinetic sculpture exhibit in five years; previously the Kraken Upcycle was displayed at URCAD 2015.

Abstract:

UMBC kinetic sculpture team members will present an overview of their redesign efforts during the Fall semester of 2019: adding water propulsion, creating a more durable sharkskin out of recycled materials, and transforming pontoons into functional artwork. These design efforts were part of an interdisciplinary course, INDS 430 Kinetic Sculpture Project, which drew upon methods from sustainable design, project management, and biomimicry to build a new 20 foot shark sculpture named “MC Hammerhead.”

This work was funded, in part, by the Alex Brown Center for Entrepreneurship URA Award.  For information on how to apply for an Undergraduate Research Award (URA) and get up to $1500 to support your research or creative work, go to: ur.umbc.edu/ura

Join us for Virtual URCAD, April 22-29, 2020!

You will be able to view student presentations and interact with the presenters.

URCAD.umbc.edu

Nahum Arefeayne | Chemistry and Biochemistry

Characterization of HIV-1 Unmyrostolated Gag Polyprotein Interactions with the MAL HIV-1 Genome

Mentor: Michael Summers

 

Karis Barnett | Chemistry and Biochemistry

Optimizing the Detection of Praziquantel for Monitoring Aquarium Systems Using High-Pressure Liquid Chromatography(HPLC)

Mentor: William LaCourse

 

Keynon Bell| Chemistry and Biochemistry

Improving the Surface Adhesion of Lipid-Based Nano-Chambers

Mentor: Minjoung Kyoung

 

Emily Cannistraci| Chemistry and Biochemistry

Characterizing the Protein/RNA Interactions in the Initial Events Of HIV-1 Assembly

Mentor: Michael Summers

 

Tyler Carlyle| Chemistry and Biochemistry

Synthesis of Flex-Guanosine Analogues as Potential Antiviral Therapeutics

Mentor: Katherine Seley-Radtke

 

Nna-Emeka Ejimogu| Chemistry and Biochemistry

Expression and Purification of Caenorhabditis elegans ATE1 in Escherichia coli C43(DE3) Cells

Mentor: Aaron Smith

 

Adilia Espinoza-Jones| Chemistry and Biochemistry

Preparation for Structural Study of HIV RNA

Mentor: Michael Summers

 

Noel Getachew | Chemistry and Biochemistry

Characterizing Pulmonary Vessels InPreclinical Models Of Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension

Mentor: Guarav Choudhary

 

Oluwatomiwa Oladunni| Chemistry and Biochemistry

Gadolinium-Chelating Tag Synthesis for Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) of Dendronized Nanocarriers

Mentor: Marie-Christine Daniel

 

Jade Phan | Chemistry and Biochemistry

Towards Better Inhibitors of the Influenza Virus

Mentor: Paul Smith

 

Michelle Ramsahoye | Chemistry and Biochemistry

Determination of Glucosome Specificity Using Colocalization Analysis of 4-D Images of Metabolic Pathways

Mentor: Minjoung Kyoung

 

Lahari Saha| Chemistry and Biochemistry

Modeling of Metal-based Microwave Heating Arrays Using Finite-Difference Time-Domain Simulation and Thermal Imaging

Mentor: Chris Geddes

 

Madeline Schuch| Chemistry and Biochemistry

The Development of a Method For The Quantitation Of Carbohydrates In Aquatic Systems

Mentor: William LaCourse

 

Sahra Sharifi| Chemistry and Biochemistry

A 3D-Printed Microfluidic System for Automated and Near Real-Time Quantitation of Biofilm-Induced Indole

Mentor: Chengpeng Chen

 

Aren Vista| Chemistry and Biochemistry

A Novel Approach to the Synthesis of 7-deaza Nucleoside Analogues

Mentor: Katherine Seley-Radtke

 

 

Join us for Virtual URCAD, April 22-29, 2020!

You will be able to view student presentations and interact with the presenters.

URCAD.umbc.edu

Christopher Bain| Physics

X-Ray Luminous AGN And The Quenching Of The Main Sequence

Mentor: David Sanders

 

Reynold Bascal| Physics

Assessment of Ozone Soundings During the Summer of 2019 Air Quality Exceedances in Baltimore, MD

Mentor: Ruben Delgado

 

Jonathan Bolanos| Physics

Correlation of Ground-Based Aerosol Optical Depth to Particulate Pollution Over Baltimore

Mentor: Ruben Delgado

 

Gabrielle Davis| Physics

Cloud Climatology over Baltimore, Maryland

Mentor: Ruben Delgado

 

Amanze Ejiogu | Physics

Impact of Meteorology in Ozone Production During OWLETS-2

Mentor: Ruben Delgado

 

Omar French| Physics

A Deep Look at Jets From Black Holes With The Very Large Array

Mentor: Eileen Meyer

 

Ellen Gulian| Physics

Using Density Functional Theory (DFT) to Determine the Effects of Molecules on Top of Monolayer WS2

Mentor: Michael Hayden

 

Kassidy Kollmann| Physics

The Unexpected Turnover in the Spectral Energy Distributions of Active Galactic Nuclei

Mentor: Eileen Meyer

 

Manuel Miranda| Physics

Remote Sensing of Particle Pollution Over Baltimore

Mentor: Ruben Delgado

 

Rachel Morin| Physics

Charge Transfer from Semiconductor Nanorods

Mentor: Matthew Pelton

 

Alexander Russell| Physics

Ultra-Fast Time-Resolved Laser Spectroscopy on Artificial Analogues of Photosynthetic Molecules

Mentor: Matthew Pelton

 

Charmain Su| Physics

Chemical and Biological Sensing Using perovskite Materials

Mentor: N.B. Singh

 

Lasya Tallapragada| Physics

Trends Between Air Pollutants and Respiratory Illness

Mentor: Belay Demoz

 

Join us for Virtual URCAD, April 22-29, 2020!

You will be able to view student presentations and interact with the presenters.

URCAD.umbc.edu

Andrew Beck | Individualized Study

Organic Panic! An Interactive Role Playing Game Case Study

Mentor: Steven McAlpine

 

Keren Herran | Individualized Study

Children Raising Children: A Qualitative Study Of The Social Determinants Of Adolescent Pregnancy In Rural Ecuador

Mentor: Ivan Palacios

 

John Motavalli| Individualized Study

MC Hammerhead: A Kinetic Sculpture Redesign Project

Mentor: Steven McAlpine

 

Nishka Patel | Individualized Study

Examining the Cognitive and Psychosocial Profiles Of GD1 Versus GBA-PD Patients

Mentor: Grisel Lopez

 

Join us for Virtual URCAD, April 22-29, 2020!

You will be able to view student presentations and interact with the presenters.

URCAD.umbc.edu

Emily Godfrey | Dance

“terminal”: Contemporary Choreographic Perspectives

Mentor: Carol Hess-Vait

 

Joshua Gray| Dance

The Guardians of These Truths

Mentor: Ann Sofie Clemmensen

 

Kaitlin Magruther | Dance

Improving Student Performance of Choreography Using the Elements of Dance

 Mentor: Franki Graham

 

On Thin Ice is  focused on raising awareness of climate change in the arctic, and was one of three Interdisciplinary CoLab research experiences offered to students at UMBC over the summer. Throughout the four-week internship, each student brought their own variety of expertise to the table to create maps of temperature changes in the arctic, compile informational videos about melting ice caps, and write a compelling script for their 12-minute video illustrating the devastating effects of a warming northern hemisphere. The students also had to properly format the video onto a spherical structure which required learning new coding and video editing techniques. It will be presented  at Virtual URCAD 2020!

Presenters: Paul Ocone, Lauren Patel, Sangita Ramaswamy

Abstract:

On Thin Ice is a spherical film that explores the impacts of climate change in the Arctic, a vital region for the Earth’s future. An interdisciplinary team of students used a combination of maps, visualizations from NOAA, videos, and images, to produce an immersive presentation that depicts changes in our world in places not accessible to the public. The team researched the problem, created GIS maps, wrote a narrative, and brought all of these elements together into a documentary made for spherical projection systems. The story follows marine animals of the Arctic, from phytoplankton to polar bears. This exploration provides insight on how a changing climate affects Arctic wildlife and their habitats. On Thin Ice also introduces humans as a part of the Arctic ecosystem and as essential players in determining the fate of the Arctic. This short documentary showcases the use of spherical video for science communication, and it incorporates elements of all of the Polar Literacy Initiative’s Polar Literacy Principles. This makes this video a tool for teachers to use in their classrooms during lessons about the Arctic region, and science museums can showcase the film across the US.

Mentors: Donald Snyder, Media and Communication Studies; Nicole Trenholm, Geography & Environmental Systems, Graduate Student; Ben Daniels, Geography & Environmental Systems, Graduate Student