Selected students from the University of Missouri-Rolla will participate in Undergraduate Research Day at the Capitol on April 17 in Jefferson City, Mo.

The annual event demonstrates how undergraduates are participating in research that is meaningful to residents of the state. In Jefferson City, the students will be introduced on the House and Senate floors.         

Students from all four UM campuses will display research posters in the Capitol rotunda. Additionally, the students will have opportunities to tell legislators how their research addresses the needs of society.         

UMR students will show legislators how glass is being used to strengthen bone tissue, how breakthroughs in chemistry might lead to a new method of removing lead from the bloodstream, how nutrients in streams can be monitored more efficiently and why flood plains need to be checked for high levels of salt.          

Lucas Carr, a senior in geological engineering, is conducting the research on dry flood plains. “Some plants do OK in salty soils, some don’t,” Carr says. “But too much will prevent growth of just about any common crop.”         

Fresh water can be used to cleanse soil containing harmful levels of saline. Carr has proposed using sensors that can monitor salt levels and also trigger irrigation systems.         

The following UMR students will be showcasing various research projects, as individuals or in groups, during Undergraduate Research Day at the Capitol:         

Ashlee Abbott — a sophomore in ceramic engineering from Rolla

Tara Banaszek — a senior in biological sciences from Imperial, Mo.

Brandon Brinkmeyer — a senior in metallurgical engineering from Kansas City, Mo.

Lucas Carr — a senior in geological engineering from Willow Springs, Mo.

Kenneth Doering — a senior in metallurgical engineering from Wildwood, Mo.

Agatha Dwilewicz — a junior in biological sciences from Rolla

Will Granich — a senior in environmental engineering from Russellville, Mo.

Ryan Craig Hupe — a junior in physics from Troy, Mo.

Tracie Kost — a senior in chemistry from Rolla

Kristen Loesch — a senior in computer science from St. Louis

Lane Martin — a junior in physics from Rogersville, Mo.

Travis McDowell — a senior in chemistry from Fredericktown, Mo.

Megan McGrath — a junior in metallurgical engineering from St. Louis

Tamala Morris — a sophomore in chemical engineering from St. Louis

Lauren Elizabeth Rich — a junior in physics from St. Louis

Stuart Salvador — a senior in mechanical engineering from St. Louis

Laura Woodard — a senior in computer science from Rolla.