Research

Undergraduate Researchers Receive Research and Creativity Awards

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Dec. 9, 2019) ­— The University of Kentucky Office of Undergraduate Research recently recognized and awarded 19 students with the Oswald Research and Creativity awards. 

The Oswald Research and Creativity Competition was established in 1964 by then President John Oswald as part of the university’s Centennial Celebration. The program is intended to promote creativity in all fields of study and provides annual awards in seven categories. The competition accepts reports, of all forms of creativity, and scholarship by undergraduate students.

Categories include Biological Sciences; Design, including architecture, landscape architecture, and interior design; Fine Arts, including film, music, photography, painting, and sculpture; Humanities, from creative and critical-research approaches; Physical and Engineering Sciences; and Social Sciences. All submissions are sent anonymously to faculty reviewers in related fields and are judged based on a rubric.

Awards in each category are: First Place: $350; Second Place: $200; and Honorable Mention, if applicable. Entries are judged on originality, clarity of expression, scholarly or artistic contribution, and the validity, scope and depth of the project or investigation. 

This year's Oswald student award winners are:

Biological Sciences 

Claire Scott, First Place 

Mentor: Jeremiah Smith

Effects of SUV39H1 and SUV420H1/H2 on Programmed Genome Rearrangement in Petromyzon marinus

Lydia Pack, Second Place 

Mentor: Emily Croteau

A Not-So Beautiful Mind: A Review of the Genetics of Schizophrenia

 

Design

Emily Andreasson, First Place

Mentor: Lindsey Fay

Remembering Wonder

Grace Butler, Second Place 

Mentor: Brent Sturlaugson

WonderEdge

 

Fine Arts 

Hannah Johnston, First Place

Mentor: Julie Hobbs

Translation in Color, Tone, and Form

Katelyn Cox, Second Place 

Mentor: Susie Thiel

"Differentiate": Using Dance to Explore Analogies Between the Life Sciences and Philosophy

Meredith Coffey, Honorable Mention

Mentor: Crystal Gregory

Microfibers Are Not Delicious

 

Humanities: Creative

Alexis Hogsten, First Place

Mentor: Julia Johnson

I Hide My Skin For Society's Purpose

Lindsey SmartSecond Place

Mentor: Julia Johnson

In our two orbits

Lauren Myfelt, Honorable Mention

Mentor: Julia Johnson

Salmon Run

 

Humanities: Critical Research 

Hannah Thomas, First Place

Mentor: Rebecca Yarrison

Who’s Running (in) the Show? : Exploring the Ethics of Transgender Athletics

Sydney Mullins, Second Place

Mentor: Miriam Kienle

A Portrait of Myself: Gaze Through the Eyes of Florine Stettheimer

Daniela Gamez Salgado, Honorable Mention

Mentor: Ruth Brown

The History of Latino Students at the University of Kentucky, 1865-2019

 

Physical & Engineering Sciences 

Binit Singh, First Place

Mentor: Nelson Akafuah

Spatial Positioning and Operating Parameters of a Rotary Bell Sprayer: 3D Mapping of Droplet Size Distributions

Tom Shelton, Second Place

Mentor: Chris Crawford

Simulating particle interaction in silicon detectors for the Nab experiment

Rosemary Alden, Honorable Mention

Mentor: Dan Ionel

Smart Plug and Circuit Breaker Technologies for Residencies

 

Social Sciences 

Daniela Gamez Salgado, First Place

Mentor: Ruth Brown

The History of Latino Students at the University of Kentucky, 1865-2019

Jenna Jodts, Second Place

Mentor: Elizabeth Lorch

Comprehension Self-efficacy and Understanding of Goal Structure in Children with ADHD Following a Narrative Structure Intervention

Hannah Thomas, Honorable Mention

Mentor: Katherine Rogers-Carpenter

The Social Determinants of Health: A Path to Better Care in the Emergency Department

As the state’s flagship, land-grant institution, the University of Kentucky exists to advance the Commonwealth. We do that by preparing the next generation of leaders — placing students at the heart of everything we do — and transforming the lives of Kentuckians through education, research and creative work, service and health care. We pride ourselves on being a catalyst for breakthroughs and a force for healing, a place where ingenuity unfolds. It's all made possible by our people — visionaries, disruptors and pioneers — who make up 200 academic programs, a $476.5 million research and development enterprise and a world-class medical center, all on one campus.