Undergraduate Research Fellows Symposium 2022

Welcome

The College of the Environmental and Life Sciences (CELS), the College of Engineering, (COE), and the Cooperative Extension at the University of Rhode Island are pleased to invite you to this year’s Annual Undergraduate Research Fellows Symposium, on Wednesday, December 14th, from 12-4:30pm!

This event has been a fantastic opportunity for the Coastal and Environmental, Science and Engineering, and Energy Fellows to showcase their work, and the work of the university community, to their peers, faculty and staff.

Within the information provided, you will find the following:

Thank you for your interest in attending this event and we hope to see you there.  If you have any questions prior to the event, please feel free to contact Sarah Puckett at:  sarah_puckett@uri.edu.

Agenda

Location:  College of the Environmental and Life Sciences (CBLS), 120 Flagg Road, Kingston, RI  02881

12:00-3:20pm:  Energy Fellows Oral Presentations, CBLS #010

2:00-3:30pm:  Coastal & Environmental and Science & Engineering Fellows Poster Viewing Session, CBLS First Floor

3:30-4:30pm:  Certificate and Award Presentations, CBLS #100

student presenter’s and their research topics

Energy Fellows Oral Presentation Schedule: 12:00-3:15 PM

TimeStudent Name & MajorPresentation TitlePlacement
12:10:00Noah Cloutier,
Environmental & Natural Resource Economics
Facilitating Behavior Change: The Green Thinker ProgramURI Office of Sustainability
12:22:00Connor Allamby,
Computer Science
Implementing an Intrusion Detection System for a Smart GridURI Smart Grid Security Research Group
12:34:00Emily Ferrara,
Environmental & Natural Resource Economics
Rhode Island Solar Siting and Town CodeGreen Development LLC
12:46:00Erik Carlson,
PhD Astrophysics
Distribution Network Defense - Protecting Tomorrow's Smart Homes TodayURI Smart Grid Security Research Group
12:58:00John Biller,
Environmental & Natural Resource Economics
Setting an Energy Efficiency Standard: The First Step to Meeting Providence's Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reductions GoalsProvidence Sustainability Office
01:10:00Gage Blanchflower,
Mechanical Engineering
Incentivizing Change: A look at the power of cash rebates to reach energy reduction goalsRISE Engineering
01:22:00Katie Hampston,
Mechanical Engineering
How Smart Grids Can Keep Us SafeURI Smart Grid Security Research Group
01:34:00Kurta Beyan,
Environmental & Natural Resource Economics
Increasing Energy Literacy in Rhode Island through Research and outreachURI Cooperative Extension
01:55:00Serena Russell,
Environmental & Natural Resource Economics
Renewable Energy Fund: Support and Growth of Clean Energy in RIRI Commerce Corp. - Renewable Energy Fund
02:05:00Caitlyn Rodriguez,
Business / Environmental & Natural Resource Economics
Incentives for Change: Energy Efficiency for MunicipalitiesRhode Island Energy
02:20:00Alyssa Bailey,
Biology
RIAgEP: Agricultural Programs and Support for Farmers in RIRI Office of Energy Resources
02:30:00Josh Fishbein,
Industrial & Systems Engineering
100% Renewable Energy in Rhode Island by 2033: What's the plan?RI Office of Energy Resources
02:45:00Pumee Rojchanaborworn,
MS Ocean Engineering
A Path to Overcoming Energy Efficiency Challenges in Rhode IslandRhode Island Energy
02:55:00Natalie Bishop,
Marine Affairs / Environmental & Natural Resource Economics
The Importance of Communications on Energy Policy ImplementationRI Office of Energy Resources
03:05:00Andrew Masciotti,
Finance
Supply Chain Analysis: The Future of Offshore WindXodus Consulting

Coastal & Environmental and Science & Engineering Fellows Poster Presentations: 2:00 – 3:30 PM

Poster NumberStudent Name & MajorFellowship ProgramPoster TitleMentor
1Molly Ahern, Environmental Science and ManagementCoastal and EnvironmentalMapping young forest in Rhode Island: Using GIS to assess change in early successional habitat since 2011Dr. Jason Parent
2Oliver Allamby, Geology and Geological OceanographyCoastal and EnvironmentalUnderstanding distribution of blue carbon in Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Massachusetts tidal marsh soilsDr. Mark Stolt, Joseph Manetta
3Aren Antranik, BiologyScience and EngineeringDetermining phosphate levels in the septic tankDr. Alissa Cox, Owen Placido
4Sarah Barry, Environmental and Natural Resource EconomicsCoastal and EnvironmentalAssessing water quality in Southern New EnglandElizabeth Herron
5Jacqueline Brabants, Environmental Science and ManagementCoastal and EnvironmentalAssessing the spatial relationship between onsite wastewater treatment systems (OWTS) and nitrogen pollution of southern Rhode Island’s coastal pondsDr. Alissa Cox,
Owen Placido
6Jacob Bross, Biotechnology and Chemical EngineeringCoastal and EnvironmentalNew England Cottontail Conservation:
A sequencing and genetics approach
Dr. T.J. McGreevy, Diana Beltran
7Isabella Caldwell, Animal Science and TechnologyCoastal and EnvironmentalAnthelmintic Activity of Bacillus thuringiensis Crystal Protein X Against Haemonchus contortus in LambsDr. Katherine Petersson
8Hailee Carlson, Biological SciencesCoastal and EnvironmentalTesting the survival rates of Crassostrea virginica when exposed to coastal stressorsDr. Jonathan Puritz,
Dr. Alexandra Hooks
9Sydney Charette, Animal Science & Technology, Pre-VetCoastal and EnvironmentalExploring the importance of Tropodithietic acid (TDA) production in marine probiotic Phaeobacter inhibens S4 when in competition with pathogenic bacteria Vibrio coralliilyticus RE22Dr. Marta Gomez-Chiarri, Jessica Coppersmith
10Taya Clements, Marine BiologyCoastal and EnvironmentalThe impact of temperature and land-use on the distribution of Brook trout in Rhode Island streamsDr. Graham Forrester
11Lillian Collyer, Wildlife Conservation BiologyCoastal and EnvironmentalAnalyzing macrohabitat to assess abundance of threatened Sacramento Mountain salamanderDr. Nancy Karraker
12Ryan Corvese, Environmental Science and ManagementCoastal and EnvironmentalMapping plant communities and rare plants on South Kingstown Land Trust propertiesTyler Maikath
13Lydia Cross, Marine BiologyScience and EngineeringTesting larval oyster survival in natural and artificial seawaterDr. Jonathan Puritz,
Dr. Alexandra Hooks
14Eva Davet, Civil EngineeringScience and EngineeringOptimizing street sweeping to reduce water runoff pollution in urban areasAndrew Sheerin
15Jessica Devlin, Biological SciencesScience and EngineeringInvestigation of potential protein biomarkers for Cerebral Amyloid Angiopathy in different disease stages of rTg-DI
Rat Model
Dr. William Van Nostrand
Dr. Joseph Schrader
16Justin DiGennaro, Environmental Science and ManagementCoastal and EnvironmentalMapping Cyanobacteria in Rhode Island lakes and pondsElizabeth Herron
17Emily Drappeau, Marine Biology and Marine AffairsHollings ScholarAnthropogenic Sound Sources in Expanded Southern Resident Killer Whale Critical Habitat: Understanding and identifying potential threats to Southern Resident Killer WhalesCandice Emmons, M. Bradley Hanson
18Willow Dunster, Marine Biology and Marine AffairsCoastal and EnvironmentalMorphometric adaptations to different life histories in three Atlantic Shark speciesDr. Bradley Wetherbee
19Hana-lei Evans, Marine BiologyCoastal and EnvironmentalHow light availability affects Coral Calice morphologyDr. Carlos Prada, Taylor Lindsay
20Noah Goldthwait, Wildlife Conservation BiologyCoastal and EnvironmentalAssessing the relationship between Sacramento Mountain Salamander (Aneides hardii) snout-vent length and microhabitat conditionsDr. Nancy Karraker
21Megan Graff, Wildlife and Conservation BiologyCoastal and EnvironmentalEffect of site quality on home range size of American Woodcock (Scoloplax minor) and Eastern Whip-poor-will (Antrostomus vociferus)Dr. Scott McWilliams, Liam Corcoran
22Sara Hamada Mohamed, Biomedical EngineeringScience and EngineeringDevelopment of NeoTex an Advanced Neonatal Monitoring System for the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU)Dr. Kunal Mankodiya,
Dr. Dhaval Solanki
23Maris Harty, Plant ScienceCoastal and EnvironmentalDoes fertilizer type matter?Dr. Rebecca Brown
24Brett Holden, Wildlife and Conservation BiologyCoastal and EnvironmentalComparison of Nesting Phenology of Eastern Towhees at sites managed for American WoodcockDr. Scott McWilliams, Megan Grey
25Piper Hunt, GeosciencesCoastal and EnvironmentalPaleoenvironment Reconstruction Post Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg) Mass ExtinctionDr. David Fastovsky, Rebecca Naprstek
26Sloan Keller, Environmental Science and ManagementCoastal and EnvironmentalThe effects of land use change over time on wood turtle (Glyptemys insculpta) occurrence in Rhode IslandDr. Nancy Karraker,
Chloe Johnson
27Maureen Kennedy, Biological SciencesCoastal and EnvironmentalPlastic shore litter as a source of microplastic pollution in bodies of freshwaterDr. Andrew Davies, Dr. Coleen Suckling, Sarah Davis
28Emma Lokey, Biomedical EngineeringScience and EngineeringRehabilitation Bike for Motor-Impaired PatientsDr. Kunal Mankodiya, Dr. Dhaval Solanki
29Latsany Lopez, BiotechnologyScience and EngineeringArtisanal fishers and food security in Rhode IslandDr. Melva Treviño Peña,
Jami Miller
30Ellie Madigan, Marine Biology and Wildlife and Conservation BiologyCoastal and EnvironmentalThe impact of Hurricane Irma on the mortality and morphology of restored and wild Elkhorn coral (Acropora palmata) in the British Virgin IslandsDr. Graham Forrester
31Jayden R. Messier, Wildlife and Conservation BiologyCoastal and EnvironmentalThe effects of landscape composition on wood turtle (Glyptemys insculpta) occurrence in Rhode IslandDr. Nancy Karraker,
Chloe Johnson
32Sophia Motta, Geological OceanographyCoastal and EnvironmentalIs saltwater in your drinking water?
Seasonal impacts on electrical conductivity
Dr. Thomas Boving, Jeeban Panthi
33Alexandra Moura, Marine AffairsCoastal and EnvironmentalGrowth and survival of wild and selectively bred oysters in Rhode IslandDr. Marta Gomez-Chiarri, Rob Hudson
34Angela Nolan, BiotechnologyCoastal and EnvironmentalMonitoring the genetic distribution of the Eastearn Cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus)Dr. Thomas McGreevy,
Dr. Diana Beltrán
35Arianne Parvaresh-Rizi, Biomedical EngineeringScience and EngineeringEnhanced Macrophage Uptake via DPPS-Loaded Spray Dried MicroparticlesDr. Samantha Meenach
36Alberto Paz, Cell and Molecular BiologyScience and EngineeringSimulating cryopreservation strategies for increasing the rate of genetic gain in aquaculture selective breeding programsDr. Thomas Delomas
37Halle Peterlin, Geological OceanographyCoastal and EnvironmentalOysters, not just a delicacy:
Understanding the reproductive biology of oysters
Dr. Jonathan Puritz,
Dr. Alexandra Hooks
38Benjamin Poepsel, Marine BiologyCoastal and EnvironmentalThe effects of sewage effluent on oyster larval populationsDr. Jonathan Puritz
39Hazelynn Rios, Animal Science and Wildlife and Conservation BiologyScience and EngineeringEvaluation of sampling methods for Hypena opulenta, a biocontrol agent released for management of invasive swallow-wortsDr. Lisa Tewksbury,
Alexandra Johnson
40Naomy Robalo Moreno, Wildlife and Conservation BiologyScience and EngineeringField surveys and rearing of native hoppers to be used in host range testing for biological control of spotted lanternflyDr. Lisa Tewksbury
41Hector Santiago, BiotechnologyScience and EngineeringComparing extracted DNA/RNA concentrations from oyster gill and mantle tissues utilized in EecSeq For exome surveyingDr. Jonathan Puritz, Jacob Green
42Maricarmen Serna, Marine Biology and Environmental EconomicsScience and EngineeringTemporal trends in the composition and social network of Southern Stingrays at Stingray City, Cayman IslandsDr. Bradley Wetherbee
43Zoe Scipioni, Marine Biology and Wildlife Conservation BiologyCoastal and EnvironmentalThe effects of abiotic and biotic factors on the New England cottontail (Sylvilagus transitionalis)Dr. Thomas McGreevy, Andrea Petrullo
44Vivian Stansell, Wildlife Biology and Marine BiologyCoastal and EnvironmentalBreeding behavior of the New England cottontail rabbitDr. Justin Richard
45Deanna Torres, Marine BiologyScience and EngineeringCOVID-19 Pandemic forces Southern Stingrays (Hypanus americanus) to social distanceDr. Bradley Wetherbee, Colby Kresge
46Kali Vanderlaan, Ocean EngineeringScience and EngineeringInvestigation of the vertical stress thresholds of helical anchorsDr. Christopher Baxter, Dr. Aaron Bradshaw, Hannah Miller
47Ashley Velzis, Marine BiologyCoastal and EnvironmentalIngestion and accumulation of microplastics by the Blue Crab (Callinectes sapidus)Dr. Andrew Davies, Dr. Coleen Suckling, Sarah Davis
48Ashley Volk, Environmental Science and ManagementCoastal and EnvironmentalGeographic Information System (GIS) mapping of long-term well data in Rhode IslandDr. Soni M. Pradhanang, Mamoon Ismail, Jeeban Panthi
Think Big We Do

Copyright © 2023 University of Rhode Island.