Sparrows and More

GAMBIER, Ohio (March 28, 2008) Science students at Kenyon don't simply read textbooks and take classes. They "do" science, hands-on, in the lab and in the field. And among the most intensive "doers" are the Summer Science Scholars, who tackle ambitious research projects in close collaboration with faculty members during the summer months.

The thirty-six participants in the 2008 Summer Science Scholars program have just been selected. Their projects include topics in biology, chemistry, mathematics, psychology, anthropology, and physics. A fellowship award of $3,000 supports each of the students, who take their projects from the planning stage, through experimentation, to the preparation of results for publication or presentation.

"I have been looking forward to doing summer science since I first visited Kenyon; it is such a special program and a great opportunity for students," said molecular biology major Priscilla Erickson, Class of 2009, who comes from Zionsville, Indiana.

This summer, Erickson will travel to Kent Island, New Brunswick, to work with Robert Mauck, associate professor of biology, and Mark Haussman, visiting assistant professor of biology. At Kent Island, the team will study "physiological responses to environmental stressors in Savannah sparrows by manipulating brood size." Haussman and Mauck have been studying the molecular causes of aging in storm-petrels, and this project will allow them to expand their study to the sparrow. Erickson will use the samples that she collects for her honors thesis in biology.

According to Mauck, Erickson's advisor, the Summer Science program provides "complete immersion in the scientific process" and allows students "to confront challenges of research and to think about it everyday." Mauck stresses that the Summer Science program, whether with a focus in field work or lab work, enables students to pursue a research "question in ways that you cannot do during the academic year."

Summer Science projects may be funded by the College or through research grants obtained by science faculty members. Students may also apply for funding for supplies used in experiments.

Anthropology
Rebecca Warren, Class of 2009, Stoneham, Massachusetts, "Seeking Evidence for Pre-Oldowan Tools in the Koobi for a Formation Using Microscopic Analysis."

Biology
Ryan Bash, Class of 2010, Wallingford, Pennsylvania, "Scaling of Nitrogen Assimilation in Manduca sexta."

Matt Bright, Class of 2011, Fairfax, Virginia, "How pH Regulation of Multidrug Resistant Genes in Escherichia coli Effects Antibiotic Efficacy Under Different pH Environment."

Elizabeth Carlton, Class of 2009, Cheyenne, Wyoming, "Examining the Trade-offs Between Immune Function, Oxidative Stress, and reproductive effort in the Eastern Bluebird, Sialia sialis."

Rebecca Cleeton, Class of 2009, Oberlin, Ohio, "Acid-induced and Base-induced Gene Expression in Bacillus subtilis."

Priscilla Erickson, Class of 2009, Zionsville, Indiana, "The Relationship Between Early Life History and Oxidative Stress in the Savannah Sparrow, Passerculus sanwichensis."

Devon Fitzgerald, Class of 2009, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, "An Examination of Higher-Order Structure in the E. coli Acid Tolerance-Related Gene Product YagU Using In Vivo Cross Linking."

Anna Frutiger, Class of 2009, Alma, Michigan, "The Relationship Between Body Surface Area and Morphological Midgut Growth of the Tobacco Hawkmoth, Manduca sexta."

Kelissa Geffrard, Class of 2011, Miramar, Florida, "The Effect of pH on Hydrogen Production in Escherichia coli."

Lisa Harn, Class of 2009, Bethesda, Maryland, "Don't Count Your Chicks Before They Hatch: An Experimental Manipulation of Parental Effort in Leach's Storm-petrel (Oceanodroma Leucorhoa) During Incubation."

Jenny Howard, Class of 2009, Cumberland Foreside, Maine, "Mapping Eastern Bluebird (Sialia sialis) Land Use in the Face of Anthropogenic Activity."

Basil Kahwash, Class of 2010, New Albany, Ohio, "Sporophyte Induction in Response to Photoperiod in Physcomitrella patens."

Sasha Minium, Class of 2009, Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania, "Biological Implications of Metabolic Scaling: Nitrogen Assimilation and Reproductive Success."

Katie Schlosser, Class of 2009, San Jose, California, "Expression of the Calcium Handling Protein SCP in Cold-Exposed and Molting Crayfish."

Pratima Shanbhag, Class of 2010, Cincinnati, Ohio, "Nitrogen Assimilation in Manduca Sexta on Natural and Artificial Diets."

Chemistry
James Beckett, Class of 2011, Mount Vernon, Ohio, "The Concise Synthesis of Two Novel Cationic Steroid Antibiotics."

Dean Cooley, Class of 2009, Montpelier, Ohio, "Controlling the Shape of ZnO Crystals in Aqueous solution: Does pH Alter the Effects of Growth Modifiers?"

Allison Goldsmith, Class of 2009, Plymouth, Michigan, "Expression and the Characterization of LmaPBP from the Cockroach, Rhypharobia (Leucophaea maderae)."

Benjamin Kester, Class of 2010, Lancaster, Ohio, "Tandem Enamine/Enal Cycloaddition-Pyridine Formation Methodology Development."

Kathryn Meagley, Class of 2011, Mercer Island, Washington, "Modifying Zinc Oxide Nanocrystal Structures as They Grow."

Emily Staudenmaier, Class of 2010, Centerville, Ohio, "The Effect of Growth Modifiers and Relative Density on Zinc Oxide Films."

Cathy Ulman, Class of 2009, Columbus, Ohio, "Modifying the Piperidine and Benzyl Rings of Aricept to Achieve More Favorable Binding to Acetylcholinesterase."

Yinan Yu, Class of 2011, Guangzhou, China, "An Experimental Investigation on Thermal Lens: The Photochemical Effect, Thermochromic Effect and its Application on Quantum Yield."

Mathematics
Ziyue Guo, Class of 2010, Zhengzhou, China, "Abundancy Spiral--Exploring Diagonal Patterns."

Kaitlin Rafferty, Class of 2009, Xenia, Ohio, "The Form of Multiply Perfect Numbers."

Dustin Schneider, Class of 2009, Janesville, Wisconsin, "The Effect of Weather on Parental Feeding Habits in Oceanodroma leucorhoa."

Kathleen Woods, Class of 2009, Marietta, Georgia, "Design and Analysis of Crayfish During Molting and Cold Acclimation."

Physics
Robert Long, Class of 2010, State College, Pennsylvania, "Studying Crystallization of Biological Molecules with Laser Tweezers."

Nirajan Mandal, Class of 2010, Rajbiraj, Nepal, "Measuring IR-Dielectric Functions of ZnBeTe."

Psychology
Arianna Herman, Class of 2009, Silver Spring, Maryland, "Receptivity Towards Newborn Developmentally Supportive Care Among Mothers with Low-Risk Pregnancies: The Development of a New Research Tool."

Daniel Lakin, Class of 2010, Tualatin, Ohio, "An Examination of Social Anxiety and Taijin Kyofusho Symptomatology Through Meta-Analysis."

Daniel Prager, Class of 2009, Los Angeles, California, "Conformity to Masculine Norms and Body Image Pressures in Adolescent Boys."

Paul Reed, Class of 2010, Hopkinsville, Kentucky, "Media Literacy, Critical Processing, and Prevention of the Negative Effects of Thin-Ideal Media on Body Satisfaction."

Rita Seabrook, Class of 2009, Lakewood, Ohio, "Gender Role and Anxiety Disorders: A Meta-Analysis."

Emma Wampler, Class of 2009, Timonium, Maryland, "The Relationship Between Perceptual Speed and Reasoning."

Lauren Zurbrugg, Class of 2009, Culver, Indiana, "Issues of Identity Development Addressed in Women's Magazines and their Teen Equivalent Magazines."