Students from Missouri University of Science and Technology recently participated in the 2012 Undergraduate Research Conference at Missouri S&T. The conference gives undergraduates opportunities to showcase their research efforts to the campus community and general public.

The following were judged first-place winners:

Engineering oral presentation – Samuel Pomeroy, a senior in aerospace engineering from Branson, Mo., “Electromagnetism surrounding plasmoid formation in an FRC test article,” advised by Dr. Joshua Rovey, assistant professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering

Sciences oral presentation – Kristin Kelly, a senior in biological sciences from St. Louis, “Computational identification and analysis of the PLA2 gene family in Glycine max,” advised by Dr. Ronald Frank, associate professor of biological sciences

Social sciences oral presentation – Amanda Foster, a senior in biological sciences from Jefferson City, and Erica Shannon, a senior in biological sciences from Wildwood, Mo., “The effect of education on the public opinion of synthetic biology,” advised by Dr. David Westenberg, associate professor of biological sciences

Arts and humanities oral presentation – Nathan Jarus, a junior in computer science from Wildwood, Mo., “Old ideas in a new age: Descartes’ influence on modern animal farming,” advised by Lindgren Johnson, assistant visiting professor of English and technical communication

Science poster presentation – Tiffany Edwards, a junior in biological sciences from Rolla, “The therapeutic effects of the novel thiol antioxidant N-acetylcystein amide on treating rats with grade I and grade II cataracts,” advised by Dr. Nuran Ercal, professor of chemistry

Research proposal poster presentation – Tavia Hall, a sophomore in biological sciences from Poplar Bluff, Mo., “Exploring Asia: Preventing of Malaria,” advised by Dr. David Westenberg, associate professor of biological sciences

Engineering poster presentation – Amanda Holmes, a sophomore in environmental engineering from Rolla, “Seasonal variation of contaminant concentrations in planta,” advised by Dr. Joel Burken, professor of civil, architectural and environmental engineering

Social sciences poster presentation – Amber Julien, “S&T male and female STEM majors: Experiences with discrimination and adjustment,” advised by Dr. Dee Haemmerlie Montgomery, Curators’ Teaching Professor of psychology

2012 fellows and special award recipients – Clayton Buback, a senior in chemical engineering from St. Charles, Mo., and Patrick McCarver, a senior in chemical engineering from Farmington, Mo., “Assembly of polymeric nanoparticles into fibers versus clusters: experiment and simulation,” advised by Dr. Nicholas Leventis, Curators’ Professor of chemistry, and Dr. Chariklia Sotiriou-Leventis, professor of chemistry.