Researcher of the Week: Ariel Poirier
Getting Her Hands Dirty: Assessing Traits in Plant Species
Ariel Poirier is a Geography and Environmental Studies
major, graduating in December, 2018. She is the Treasurer for the GES Council of Majors, and a Newcombe Scholar for Returning Women through the Women’s Center.
Research Topic: Assessing functional traits (define how species interact in
their environment and with each other- i.e. water requirements, height, seed
dispersal) in plant species varying in low and high diversity communities.
There are a total of 36 communities and also monocultures (controls) in both
top soil (soil commonly used in gardens, rich and full of nutrients) and fill
soil (used in vacant lots, not nutrient rich, contains glass, metal, brick
etc).
How did you find the
research opportunity? It was offered to me by my advisor, Dr. Christopher Swan,
Geography and Environmental Systems, after I expressed having an interest in
working with plants.
Do you get course
credit for this work? I got research credit and was paid through the Cary
Institute of Ecosystem Studies based out of New York. I have put a great deal
of time into my research because I encountered a few setbacks along the way. It
has continued through the school year, but I have followed through with my
research regardless.
What was the hardest
part about your research? Learning the hard way that nature has its own plan and might
set things back despite best laid plans!
What was the most
unexpected thing? My plants did not grow after the first seeding.
How does this
research experience relate to your work in other classes? This REU position gave me a hands-on experience that I could
not get in the classroom. Being able to have the chance to apply textbook
education to real world experiments was rewarding and continued to build on the
knowledge I already had.
What is your advice
to other students about getting involved in research? Ask about research opportunities! And ask many professors
what they have available.
Photo: I am pictured collecting aboveground biomass for the topsoil monocultures. This involves cutting the species from the soil line and then placing them in the drying oven. After the biomass is dry, it is weighed and recorded. This species is Gypsophila Elegans, commonly known as Baby’s Breath.
Become an undergraduate researcher and get up to $1500 to support your research or creative work! Go to: ur.umbc.edu.ura Application deadline: Feb. 16.
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Ariel Poirier is a Geography and Environmental Studies major, graduating in December, 2018. She is the Treasurer for the GES Council of Majors, and a Newcombe Scholar for Returning Women through...
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Undergraduate Research
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Undergraduate Research
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Networked Cyber Physical Systems (NetCPS) Internship
Conduct cutting-edge research on networked CPS
What are Networked Cyber Physical Systems? Cyber-physical systems (CPS) are engineered systems that are built from, and depend upon, the seamless integration of computational algorithms and physical components.
Wichita State University's (WSU) Research Experiences for Undergraduates in NetCPS program is an opportunity for undergraduate students to spend a summer working with faculty researchers renowned in areas such as computer networks, mobile computing, wireless communications, and information security and privacy. A number of projects are available in diverse areas. Accepted students will work closely with WSU faculty and researchers on research problems with the potential for publications and significant impact on the future practice of various networked CPS.
Students will:
- Conduct cutting-edge research on networked CPS.
- Spend 9 weeks in the Department of EECS at WSU, home to one of the very few M.S. programs in Computer Networking in the country.
- Receive mentoring from renowned faculty in their fields.
- Learn research skills through seminars and presentations throughout the summer and work with graduate students from around the world.
Benefits include:
- A stipend of $500 a week (total $4500 for 9 weeks).
- Furnished on-campus housing.
- A meal allowance (worth $1080).
- A travel allowance to come to and return from the site.
- Social and professional development events throughout the site duration.
Suggested Majors include:
*Note: These are merely suggestions. If you feel this opportunity is right for you then we encourage you to apply.
- Computer Science,
- Electrical Engineering,
- Computer/Software Engineering,
- Telecommunications Engineering, or any other related disciplines
Application Deadline: MARCH 14, 2018
If you have any questions about finding summer research or you need assistance with you application, please contact Dr. April Householder, aprilh@umbc.edu.
Since 2008, Dr. John McWhorter has taught linguistics, American Studies, and in the Core Curriculum program at Columbia University.
McWhorter has published a number of books on linguistics and on race relations, of which the better known are Power of Babel: A Natural History of Language, Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue: The Untold History of English, Doing Our Own Thing: The Degradation of Language and Music and Why You Should, Like, Care, and Losing the Race: Self-Sabotage in Black America. He makes regular public radio and television appearances on related subjects.
Want to conduct research and create something innovative?
Become a URA Scholar!
Undergraduate Research Awards provide up to $1,500 to undergraduate students to support their research or creative work with a UMBC faculty mentor on an original project. UMBC students of all years and disciplines are invited to apply, as long as they will remain enrolled at UMBC long enough to complete the proposed work.
Apply by Feb. 16: https://ur.umbc.edu/ura/
Contact Dr. April Householder at aprilh@umbc.edu for more information.
David Duchovny, who later went on to fame in The X-Files and Californication was an award-winning researcher and poet at Princeton University? He graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1982 with an A.B. in English literature and won an honorable mention from the Academy of American Poets! The title of his senior thesis was The Schizophrenic Critique of Pure Reason in Beckett's Early Novels.
Want to conduct research and create something innovative?
Become a URA Scholar!
Undergraduate Research Awards provide up to $1,500 to undergraduate students to support their research or creative work with a UMBC faculty mentor on an original project. UMBC students of all years and disciplines are invited to apply, as long as they will remain enrolled at UMBC long enough to complete the proposed work.
Apply by Feb. 16: https://ur.umbc.edu/ura/
Contact Dr. April Householder at aprilh@umbc.edu for more information.