Eight undergraduate students selected to present at the 2013 ACC Meeting of the Minds conference
Instead of competition, collaboration is the goal for this Atlantic Coast Conference event.
Eight Virginia Tech students will present their undergraduate research and scholarship at the eighth annual ACC Meeting of the Minds Conference, hosted this year at Wake Forest University April 4-6, 2013.
Each of the 12 ACC member schools will send student representatives. Selection to represent Virginia Tech was competitive. Students from each college submitted an application to the Office of Undergraduate Research and the associate academic dean and/or designated committee in each college.
The selected students and projects include
- Kathryn Battle of Richmond, Va., a junior majoring in wildlife science in the College of Natural Resources and Environment. Her research is titled, “Effects of landscape characteristics on activity of Myotis lucifugus within Fort Pickett.” Her mentors are Michael St. Germain, project supervisor in the Conservation Management Institute in the College of Natural Resources and Environment; Jane Argentina, Beatriz Mogollon, and Peter Laver, all graduate students in fish and wildlife conservation in the College of Natural Resources and Environment.
- Kenneth Black of Virginia Beach, Va., a senior majoring in architecture in the College of Architecture and Urban Studies. His research is titled, “Palletecture: Reuse of materials and construction with a new bus stop structure.” His mentor is Elizabeth Grant, assistant professor of architecture and design in the College of Architecture and Urban Studies.
- Katlyn Griffin of Poquoson, Va., a senior majoring in English in the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences. Her research is titled, “Restoration House restored: Dickens’ 'Great Expectations' and the creation of Miss Havisham’s haunted mansion.” Her mentor is Nancy Metz, professor of English in the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences.
- Carolyn Hughes, a sophomore majoring in biochemistry and chemistry in the College of Science. Her research is titled, “Comparative cellular behavior of malignant and normal breast epithelial cells on migratory force and cellular shape index.” Her mentor is Amrinder Nain, assistant professor of mechanical engineering in the College of Engineering.
- William Klima of Fredericksburg, Va., a senior majoring in electrical engineering in the College of Engineering. His research is titled, “An introduction to tech transfer: Assessment, protection, and licensing of inventions through Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties.” His mentor is John Geikler, senior licensing associate at Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties.
- Andrea Ledesma of McLean, Va., a junior majoring in history in the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences. Her research is titled, “The recommended dose: Diagnosing social anxiety in the 1960s.” Her mentor is Marian Mollin, associate professor of history in the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences.
- Huanqing (Quinn) Liu of Amarillo, Texas, a sophomore majoring in computer science in the College of Engineering. His research is titled, “Hierarchical neural network brain simulation of visual object recognition (human brain simulation using computer science techniques).” His mentor is Anthony Cate, assistant professor of psychology in the College of Science.
- Lauren Withers of Leesburg, Va., a junior majoring in biochemistry in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Her research is titled, “Electroporation of Chinese hamster ovary cells using microfluidic devices.” Her mentors are Chang Lu, associate professor of chemical engineering; and Despina Nelie Loufakis, graduate student in chemical engineering, in the College of Engineering.
The annual ACC Meetings of the Minds Conference is an opportunity for universities in the conference to highlight the diversity of research work being completed by undergraduates and for students to share their work with peers. Students present their work in one of three formats: oral presentations, posters, or models and exhibits. The conference is funded, in part, by revenue from athletic events.
Dedicated to its motto, Ut Prosim (That I May Serve), Virginia Tech takes a hands-on, engaging approach to education, preparing scholars to be leaders in their fields and communities. As the commonwealth’s most comprehensive university and its leading research institution, Virginia Tech offers 240 undergraduate and graduate degree programs to more than 31,000 students and manages a research portfolio of $513 million. The university fulfills its land-grant mission of transforming knowledge to practice through technological leadership and by fueling economic growth and job creation locally, regionally, and across Virginia.
