Third annual EMS undergraduate poster exhibition showcases research

The third annual College of Earth and Mineral Sciences (EMS) Undergraduate Poster Exhibition was held Wednesday, Dec. 3 in the Deike Building on the University Park campus of Penn State. Organized by the Ryan Family Student Center, the poster exhibition provides an opportunity for undergraduate students in EMS to showcase their research, and connect and share their work with other students, faculty and staff.

From ozone models to water treatment to coral reefs to solar panels, this year’s exhibition included entries from all five EMS departments and put a spotlight on the wide-ranging research being done by EMS undergraduate students.

Freshman Kyle Smith and Alex Cortellessa presented a poster on using gold nanoparticles to fight cancer cells. Their research was conducted as part of a first-year seminar class and both found their research experience to be rewarding.

“It was a good experience talking to different professors and I will definitely participate again,” said Cortellessa, freshman in petroleum and natural gas engineering.

Smith said, “I am now thinking about going into the materials science field and perhaps specializing in nanotechnology to treat cancer.”

Kahindo Kamau, senior in petroleum and natural gas engineering, presented his poster “Leasing of Onshore Federal Oil and Gas Resources,” which detailed his summer internship research with the Bureau of Land Management in Washington D.C. Kamau found the experience valuable because “it allowed him to practice and improve his presentation skills.”

Posters could focus on the student’s research experience, experiential learning, creative activity, or educational experience relevant to the study of earth and mineral sciences and were judged based on display, content and oral presentation. Cash prizes were awarded to the top three posters at the awards presentation held on Dec. 4.

Matthew Flournoy, senior in meteorology, won first place for his poster "Simulated Thunderstorm Grid Spacing Sensitivities.” He partnered with the Storm Center Prediction Center and the National Severe Storms Laboratory, both in Norman OK, on his simulation experiments.

Jennafer Hakun, freshman in energy engineering, won second place for her poster “OVIRS Primary Mirror Characterization.” OSIRIS-Rex Visible and Infrared Spectrometer (OVIRS) is an optical instrument on the Origins Spectral Interpretation Resource Identification Security Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-Rex). The instrument is used in NASA’s asteroid studies. A mission slated for a September 2016 launch will carry the instrument. Hakun worked with NASA engineers who calibrated the optical system in preparation to more efficiently and accurately place the mirror in its optics box during integration and testing.

Nathan Kistler, senior in materials science and engineering, won third place for his poster “Mechanical Properties of Ti-6Al-4V AM Samples Using DIC.” Ti-6Al-4V is the most popular titanium alloy in use today and is of particular importance to the aerospace industry because of the alloy’s excellent weight to strength ratio. Kisler’s research used digital image correlation (DIC) to examine the mechanical properties of components produced by additive manufacturing and compared to them to traditionally cast components.

The Freshman Award, sponsored by The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, was awarded to Victoria Christensen and Tanner Mengle for their poster “Providing Access to Clean Water with Materials Science.”

Students and passers-by also had an opportunity to vote for the Student Choice Award by casting votes with money for their favorite poster.  All of the funds were donated to the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life.

Winning this year’s Student Choice Award was Lori O’Neil, a Penn State World Campus student who researched energy savings for low-income households. O’Neil was the first online student to enter and participate in the EMS undergraduate poster competition. She also presented her poster remotely using Adobe Connect. Additionally, O’Neil will be the college’s student marshal at the fall 2014 graduation ceremony.