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When Assistant Professor of Biology Cynthia Downs was awarded a Christian A. Johnson Teaching Enhancement award in November 2015, she used the grant to upgrade and expand the vertebrate physiology-teaching lab and offer students high-tech approaches to study aerobic fitness.

Alexander Baradari ’17, a neuroscience major, said that he wants to help improve the lives of individuals affected by debilitating diseases. This summer as a research intern, he is studying Multiple Sclerosis (MS) at the Rocco Ortenzio Neuroimaging Lab, part of the Select Medical Research Hospital in West Orange, N.J., in order to increase the understanding of the disease. His summer research advisor is Dr. Brian Yao.

 In Germany, the rapeseed honey produced in the spring is known to have an exceptionally sweet taste, and draws a great demand in the honey market. As a beekeeper for eight years, Olivia Box ’17 did not want to miss the opportunity to learn about rapeseed honey and work with bees. This summer, she joined the research group of Sina Alizadeh and Hermann Behling at University of Göttingen in Germany. The goal of the research is to determine the efficiency of pollination at various hive placements.

Zaila showcased her senior thesis findings in an oral presentation called, “Diversities of endosymbiotic Rickettsia in the fish parasite Ichthyophthirius multifiliis.”

This summer, Kaia Miller ’18 is working in the Silverman lab at the University of Massachusetts Medical School in the Division of Infectious Disease, studying the immune responses and pathways in Drosophila melanogaster (fruit flies). Her internship is supported by the Sandra Solomon Internship Fund, managed by the Career Center.

Sophia Gaulkin ’17 used an Emerson Grant to research the current state of the ethics of geological sampling and propose a new code of conduct.

Biology majors Abbas Khan’18, Suxian (Suzy) Lin’18, and Angel Pichardo’17, along with biochemistry major Katherine (Katie) Guzzetta’18 spent the summer exploring the application of nanoparticles in biotechnology at the National Tsing Hua University (NTHU) in Taiwan. The research is under the supervision of Associate Professor of Biology Wei-Jen Chang and in collaboration with Professor Zung-Hang Wei’s mechanical engineering lab at NTHU. In addition to the academic challenge, the research group has described the experience as a cultural adventure.

Petra Elfström ’18 combined her interests in archaeology, art and archaeology to make a film on the archaeological practices of the Slocan Narrows Archaeological Project.

This summer, psychology majors Barbara Singhakiat ’17, Leah Pranschke ’17 and Jaclyn Zingman ’18 are conducting social psychology research under the supervision of Professor of Psychology Jennifer Borton. Their work examines reductions in working memory following ego threat in people with defensive self-esteem.

Mariah Walzer ’17, an archaeology major, spent this summer analyzing the lithic artifacts recovered from 2015 field school at the Slocan Narrows Pithouse Village in British Columbia.