Undergraduate Research Conference

About the Undergraduate Research Conference

University at Albany's annual Undergraduate Research Conference began in 2004 to highlight the research and creative work of undergraduates at UAlbany. Since then, undergraduates have shared their research and creative work each year with their peers, the university faculty, and the community.

All undergraduates at the University at Albany are encouraged to participate in the Undergraduate Research Conference. The conference is held every spring, and is free and open to the public. Family members, friends, and faculty mentors are invited to come in support of students presenting their research and creative work.

There are several ways for students to present their research.

Posters:  Posters provide an opportunity for students to present their research and have extended, informal discussions about their research with those interested in learning more about it.  Students create a large poster on which their research is described.  About a dozen students display their posters during an hour-long session (we provide the board for posting the poster).  Guests circulate, read the posters, and talk with students about their research.  Poster presenters can also see the research of the others presenting during their session - which provides a good environment for the exchange of information and ideas with other student researchers. More information about preparing and presenting a poster is available.

Papers:  Three or four students present a paper during a paper session.  Each student has about 15 minutes to make a presentation.  Information can be displayed using PowerPoint or other technologies.  There is a question & answer period following all the students' presentations.  More information about preparing and presenting a paper is available.  Each paper session is moderated by a student, and information on how to moderate a session is available.

The 2012 Conference

The 2012 Undergraduate Research Conference was held on Friday afternoon, April 27 and Saturday, April 28 in the UAlbany Lecture Center. For the first time, we held one day of the conference on a Friday - which allowed many more students and professors to attend. As in the past, the conference included poster presentations and paper presentations.  Dr. Susan Phillips, the Provost of the University, presented the Provost Award for 2012 to three students and an  Honorable Mention to ten students.

Provost Awards were presented to:

Elizabeth Akua Apraku Activity-Dependent Sharpening of the Retinotectal Map in Zebrafish: The Role of Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinase

Katelyn DiBenedetto Analyzing Tophets: Did the Phoenicians Practice Child Sacrifice?

Michael Johnson Reduction of attention and escape maintained high rate verbal threats and aggression in an adult male with autism through a multi-element applied behavior analytic therapy program in a group home setting.

Honorable Mentions were presented to:

Laura Colaneri “Tened cuidado: Lo que ahi habita, no es humano”; Human and Inhuman Monsters in Pan’s Labyrinth as Expressions of a Collective Heritage of Fears

Joseph Fanti The Role of Lim Kinase in Salivary Gland Development and Morphogenesis

Katiana Hebbert Duke Ellington - I am Not a Jazz Artist

Thomas Postiglione The Structural Characterization of Insulin Fibril Oligomers Using Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS)

Rastislav Rar The Impact of Terrorist Attacks on Sovereign Bond Yields of Targeted Countries

Luis Gabriel Sanchez Reversing the forces of Liberticide in Haiti: Reconstructing a failed Haitian state after the disasters of 2010

Ariana Schechter How the evolution of hip hop as a culture transformed and transgressed the physical environment of New York City by innovative usage of public space

Kevin Smith Experiencing Kaqchikel Tikonela’

Samantha Testa Inhibition of Bacterial Biofilm Formation by Natural Product Inspired Organic Compounds
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Cuauhtémoc Vidal-Guzmán Animal Consumption Patterns at the Mayapan Periphery: Assessing Diversity on Public Structures

The 2011 Conference

The 2011 Undergraduate Research Conference was held on Saturday, April 2 and Sunday, April 3 in the UAlbany Lecture Center. As in the past, the conference included poster presentations and paper presentations. You can view the complete program for the conference.

Professor James Dias, the Vice President for Research,opened the Undergraduate Research Conference by presenting this year's Provost Awards - presented to the best research projects at the conference. This years recipients were:

Nicholas Cantales, Major in Finance, "Is the use of Arbitrage an Effective Strategy in Institutional Portfolios?" Project Advisor: Professor David Smith

Ali Chaudry, Major in Physics, "Robust and Economical Autonomous Navigation via Advanced Bayesian Methods." Project Advisor: Professor Kevin Knuth

Kathryn Swimm, Major in History, "The Ascension and Deterioration of the Rights of Dutch Women in Albany: 1650-1750." Project Advisor: Professor Richard Hamm

Eight additional students received an Honorable Mention for their research presentations:

Alicia Bentley, Major in Atmospheric Science "A Preliminary Climatology of Tropical Moisture Exports in the Southern Hemisphere." Project Advisor: Professor Lance Bosart

Lauren Berchoff, Major in English " The Role of Rosalind in William Shakespeare’s Play As You Like It." Project Advisor: Professor Langdon Brown

Jillian Caramanna, Major in English " The Backwards Making of a Heroine: Mary Cowden Clarke’s Girlhoods and Their Importance in the Shakespearean Conversation." Project Advisor: Professor Martha Rozett

Gregg Castellucci, Major in Linguistics " A description of the Plattsburgh, New York dialect of North American French and an analysis of its liaison retention and innovation." Project Advisor: Professor Cynthia Fox

Meredith Dedopoulos, Major in Criminal Justice " An Assessment of a Batterer Intervention Program." Project Advisor: Professors Alissa Worden

Andrew Orayfig, Major in Psychology " Cultivation of Mindfulness and Acceptance Processes in ACT and CBT: A Randomized Clinical Trial in a Pure Self Help Context."
Project Advisor: Professor John Forsyth

Daniel Sellers, Major in Biology "Further Studies on DNA Coordination with Hafnium Oxide." Project Advisor: Professor Nathaniel Cady

Cuauhtémoc Vidal-Guzman, Major in Anthropology "Signs of Violence at Mayapán: A comparison between the Taphonomy of human and animal remain." Project Advisor: Professor Marilyn Masson

The 2010 Conference

The 2010 Undergraduate Research Conference, held on April 17 and 18, was much larger than the conferences held in recent years - reflecting the greater involvement of undergraduates at UAlbany in the research process in all majors. More than 80 students presented their research and scholarly work. Two poster sessions were held on Saturday, and a series of concurrent paper sessions took place both afternoons.

The Provost of the University, Susan Phillips, opened the Undergraduate Research Conference by presenting this year's Provost Awards - presented to the best research projects at the conference. This years recipients were:

Dylan Depice: “Cooperation and Altruism: Intrinsic Mechanisms of Self-Interest.” Project Advisor: Dr. Morton Schoolman

Karen Torrejon: “Synthesis Optimization and Characterization of T3 Encapsulated Chitosan-PLGA Nanoparticles and Their Effect on Angiogenesis.” Project Advisor: Dr. Shaker Mousa

Stacey Farmer:“Alternative Treatment Delivery Systems: A Randomized Clinical Trial Evaluating the Effectiveness of ACT in the Treatment of Generalized Anxiety Disorder.” Project Advisor: Dr. John Forsyth

Honorable Mentions were received by:

Jason Behnke “Bacterial Growth Inhibition of Nanomaterial-Modified Fabrics.” Project Advisor: Dr. Nathaniel Cady. Collaborator: Aaron Strickland.

Nicole Cappuccitti “Imaginary Attachments and Wonderful Expressions: Misguided Purposes of Marriage in 19th Century British Literature.” Project Advisor: Dr. Randall Craig

Steven DeBraccio “The Legality of Solitary Confinement.”

Neelam Gera “Analysis of Internal Tension of DNA Kissing Complexes through Florescent Resonance Spectroscopy.” Project Advisor: Dr. Pan Li

Barbara Graham “Bioengineering Tissue Constructs Using Elastic Alginate Hydrogels.” Project Advisor: Dr. Melinda Larsen. Interdisciplinary mentors: Dr. Yubing Xie and Dr. Magnus Bergkvist.

Erika Kneeland “Respiratory Sinus Arrythmia Functions as a Buffer Against Effects of Harsh Parenting.” Project Advisor: Dr. Elana Gordis

Laura Mariconda “The Role of Par Complex in the Development of the Retinotectal Map in Zebrafish.” Project Advisor: Dr. John Schmidt

Kaitlin McGrath “Ridiculed Diminished Oppressors: The Portrayal of Colonial Period Japanese in Korean Films.” Project Advisor: Dr. David Eason

Jonathan Nardi “The Effect of Mutual Fund Size on Index-Adjusted Returns.” Project Advisor: Dr. David M. Smith

Thomas J. Rivera “Tax Policy Implications for Inter-State Migration.” Project Advisor: Dr. Laurence Kranich

Michelle Stiles “Neuropsychological Performance in Cannabis Users and Non-Users Following Motivation Manipulation.” Project Advisor: Dr. Mitch Earleywine

A full copy of the conference program is available. The program includes the schedule of poster and paper sessions in the front and descriptions of each student's project after the schedule. Professors who mentored each student's research project are listed in the descriptions.

A full copy of the 2009 conference program is also available.