The CUR Speakers Bureau features nearly 30 speakers and over 60 topics. The Bureau provides an opportunity for institutions to host speakers who can talk first-hand about the high caliber research in several disciplines being conducted at primarily undergraduate research programs. CUR speakers can share insights and excitement with a broad audience, and they provide CUR with yet another way of strengthening science, science education, and other academic disciplines at primarily undergraduate colleges and universities.

Invitations should be extended directly to the individual speakers, and all travel arrangements are to be worked out in advance between the host institution and the invited speaker. Each speaker requires full reimbursement of travel expenses and subsistence. We ask the host institution to confirm arrangements with the speaker in writing, with a copy sent to the CUR National Office.

Faculty interested in participating in CUR’s Speakers Bureau should submit their vita, their e-mail address, and a short biography suitable for use in our Speakers Bureau listing and seminar abstracts.

Any questions should be directed to the CUR National Office at cur@cur.org.

CUR is pleased to provide these names of CUR members who have volunteered to participate in its Speaker's Bureau. The CUR National Office has reviewed the basic credentials of the speakers and titles of their talks for appropriateness. However, CUR does not endorse the content of the talks nor do the speakers necessarily represent the views of CUR. Their views are their own.

Mary Mennes Allen
Department of Biological Sciences
Wellesley College
Phone: (781)-283-3068
E-mail: mallen@wellesley.edu

The Joys of Undergraduate Research

Undergraduate Research as the Best Way to Learn Microbiology

Ancient Microbes Through 21st Century Eyes

Dr. Allen, a past president and one of the first two Fellows of CUR, carries out research on cyanobacterial biochemistry with her undergraduate colleagues. She has been a department chair and serves now as Director of Biological Chemistry, an interdepartmental major. She received the Carski Award for excellence in undergraduate teaching from the American Society for Microbiology and her research has been supported by NSF, NIH and Research Corporation.

Jeff Bader
President
Bader Associates, Higher Education Consultants
Phone: (610) 252-4962
Email: baderj@fast.net

Effective Grant Writing: Learning the Art of the Game

Establishing and Supporting Successful Undergraduate Research Programs

Preserving Faculty Vitality

Dr. Bader has over twenty years of experience in higher education. He has lectured widely on undergraduate research issues and has served as a consultant for schools interested in establishing or enhancing undergraduate research programs. Jeff also specializes in strategic planning, faculty development, and fiscal management.

George T. Barthalmus
Director, Office of Undergraduate Research
North Carolina State University 146A Leazar Hall, Box 7105 Raleigh, NC 27695-7105
Phone: (919) 513-4187
Email: gbarthal@gw.fis.ncsu.edu

A Comprehensive Website for Undergraduate Research

A campus website can be comprehensive for: 1) detailing opportunities on- and off-campus, 2) establishing databases for students to find mentors and visa versa, 3) presenting best practices, and 4) including links to supportive tools/short courses, career positioning for graduate and professional schools, program assessment, and much more.

Developing an Undergraduate Research Office and Program at a Large Research University

Undergraduate research has occurred for decades across the campuses of large research universities, however, most campuses had developed neither a coordinated, comprehensive program, detailed website, nor faculty support initiatives until the last 10 years. The issues unique to both large and small institutions will be discussed.

George T. Barthalmus received a B.S. in Biology at Bloomsburg University (Pa) and both his M.S. and Ph.D. in Zoology at the Pennsylvania State University. He joined the Zoology Department at NC State in 1970 and worked through the ranks to Full Professor. In 1994 he joined the Academic Programs Office of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences as Assistant Director of Academic Programs. In 1998 he became Associate Dean and Director of Academic Programs. Dr. Barthalmus retired after 31 years in June 2001 to become Professor Emeritus of Zoology. In 2002-03 he was invited to serve as Interim Director of the University Honors Program. Currently he is Director of the new Office of Undergraduate Research within the Division of Undergraduate Affairs. He taught over 16,000 NC State students during his 33 years at NC State. In that time he won three University Outstanding Teaching Awards, the Distinguished Alumni Undergraduate Professor Award, and the Outstanding Academic Adviser Award. He served as the campus President of Phi Kappa Phi in 2000-2001, and as Chair of the Academy of Outstanding Teachers. His research focused on behavioral toxicology and pharmacology.

Michael Brown
Associate Professor of Physics
Dept. of Physics and Astronomy
Swarthmore College
500 College Ave.
Swarthmore, PA 19081
Office Phone: (610) 328-8648
Lab Phone: (610) 328-8645
Email: doc@swarthmore.edu Website: http://plasma.physics.swarthmore.edu/

Self Organization in Magnetized Plasma

This is an APS Sanctioned Talk from the APS Distinguished Lecture Program.

Dr. Brown is an Associate Professor of Physics at Swarthmore College. He has taught undergraduate physics at all levels and undergraduates play an important role in his research laboratory. His research interests include plasma physics, self-organization in turbulent systems, particle acceleration and soft x-ray production from merging magnetofluids, and magnetic confinement fusion. His work is supported by both the Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation.

Michelle M. Bushey
Professor of Chemistry
Trinity University
715 Stadium Drive
San Antonio, TX 78212
Phone: (210) 999-7318
Email: mbushey@trinity.edu

Faculty Careers at Undergraduate Institutions and How to Apply for Them

Integrating Capillary Electrophoresis and HPLC Throughout the Undergraduate Chemistry Curriculum – A NSF-CCLI A&I Project

Porous Polymer Monoliths for Use in Capillary Electrochromatography

Dr. Bushey’s undergraduate research program revolves around biochemical applications of capillary electrophoretic separation methods. She has supervised 57 students working on research projects. Her research has been supported by Research Corporation, Petroleum Research Fund, NIH, Dreyfus Foundation, and Dow.

Barbara J. Byrne
Vice President of Academic Affairs
University of the Sciences in Philadelphia
Phone: (215) 596-8866
Email: b.byrne@usip.edu

Habits of Mind: On Being a Scientist (student-oriented)

The Obstacle Course To Research (faculty-oriented)

Talking Research Funding with your Dean or Provost (faculty-oriented)

The Evolution of an Academic Career (faculty-oriented focusing on changing roles and responsibilities over time)

Dr. Bryne was a faculty member in the Biology Department at Wells College, Aurora, New York before becoming an academic administrator. She has been a department chair and dean, and now is the chief academic officer at a university with a focus on pharmacy, health professions, and science. She has worked fairly extensively in both public and private institutions. She has had externally funded research and facilities grants and has been involved in developing innovative pedagogies, some with external funding. She has been a Biology councilor for CUR for a number of years. She was an editor of the CUR Quarterly in the early years of its transition from the CUR Newsletter to a more comprehensive journal.

James J. Carroll
Professor of Physics
Director, Center for Photon-Induced Processes and
X-Ray Effects Laboratory
Youngstown State University
Phone: 330-742-3617
E-mail: jjcarroll@cc.ysu.edu

Nuclear Isomers and X-ray Driven Gamma Emissions

The Quest for the Gamma-ray Laser

Dr. Carroll is one of the world’s leading researchers into the application of low-energy photonuclear reactions to the production clean nuclear energy from isomers, isotopes that are in effect ‘nuclear batteries.’ With over a decade of experience and more than forty refereed publications, he has given invited presentations to the National Academy of Sciences, the Defense community, and the Undersecretary for Science of the Department of Energy, as well as numerous conference talks. Since arriving at Youngstown State University in 1995, Dr. Carroll has successfully involved undergraduate students from several disciplines in all aspects of this research, including experiments conducted at the University of Stuttgart and Brookhaven National Laboratory. Most recently, students have been involved in the design, construction and testing of a nuclear multi-detector system to study x-ray driven gamma emission.

James F. P. Cotter
Department of Geology
University of Minnesota, Morris
Phone: (320) 589-6300
Email: cotterjf@mrs.umn.edu

Undergraduate Research and Mentoring: Seizing a Wonderful Opportunity!

Dr. Cotter has established an undergraduate research program designed to encourage underrepresented individuals to continue on in Geology beyond the bachelor's degree. His efforts have focused on the development of: challenging and exciting research projects; a supportive and encouraging environment; and a web of collegial and peer interaction. In 2000 Dr. Cotter was awarded the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mentoring (PAESMEM).

Mary Coussons-Read
Department of Psychology
University of Colorado at Denver
Phone: (303) 556-2687
Email: mcousson@carbon.cudenver.edu

Strategies for successful wet laboratory research with undergraduates

Designing and implementing interdisciplinary research programs utilizing undergraduates

Who's the boss? Integrating graduate and undergraduate education in the laboratory

Knowing when to say when: Selection of viable student-initiated research projects

Dr. Mary Coussons-Read is an Assistant Professor of Psychology and Health and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Colorado at Denver. She has expertise in developmental psychobiology, neuroscience, animal and human learning and memory, psychoneuroimmunology. Her current research focuses on the impact of stress and behavior on immunity and health in humans and animals.

Julio C. de Paula
Professor
Department of Chemistry
Haverford College
Phone: (610) 896-1217
Email: jdepaula@haverford.edu

Laser Spectroscopy of Novel Porphyrins with Applications in Tumor Therapy and Molecular Electronics

Planning and Designing Science Facilities: An Example from Haverford College

New Approaches to Teaching Physical Chemistry to Undergraduates

Dr. de Paula specializes in the study of the photophysics of a number of novel porphyrins that are capable of efficient triplet-triplet energy transfer and ultrafast intramolecular charge separation

Gary Felder
Physics Department
Smith College
Phone: (413)585-4489
Email: gfelder@email.smith.edu

Dr. Felder does computer simulations of the universe in the first fraction of a second after the big bang. This work involves many aspects of physics – cosmology, relativity, field theory, numerical computation, and more – but it has proven to be accessible to many undergraduate students who have worked with Dr. Felder over the years. Dr. Felder received his undergraduate degree from Oberlin College and his Ph.D. from Stanford University. He currently teaches in the physics department at Smith College.

Joseph R. Ferrari
Department of Psychology
DePaul University
Phone: (773) 325-4244
Email: jferrari@depaul.edu

Understanding Procrastination: Its NOT About Time

Dr. Ferrari provides a current overview of the research on procrastination, noting the antecedents and consequences. He notes that this is not a time management problem but a maladaptive lifestyle that has affective, behavioral, and cognitive components.

Academic Procrastination: Who, When, and Why Students Delay Tasks

In this presentation, Dr. Ferrari provides a review of the tendency of over 70% of US college students to delay the start of completion of academic tasks by deadlines. He will present data on academic excuses, the affective responses student experience when procrastinating, and suggest approaches educators and administrators may follow to reduce this tendency.

Decisional Procrastination: Correlational and Experimental Aspects of Indecision

Decisional procrastination, or indecision, is an individual difference strategy some persons use to avoid making decisions. Dr. Ferrari will present correlational and experimental data collected on the strategies indecisives use to avoid making decisions.

Volunteerism in Australia: In the Service of the Elderly of Tasmania

Dr. Ferrari has returned from a large scale community based program evaluation of the caregivers, paid vs. volunteers, affiliated with Southern Cross Care – the largest nursing care program in Australia. A comparison of both groups, in terms of their motives, experiences, and consequences, as caregivers will be presented. The psychological sense of community will be highlighted.

Volunteerism & Values: Community Service for Community Building

Dr. Ferrari assesses the psychological sense of community, need to belong, and motives and effects of volunteer community service, as well as the stress and satisfaction from the experience.

Oxford House: Making a House a Home for Men and Women in Substance Abuse Recovery

Today, there are over 850 Oxford Houses in the US, Canada, and Australia. Each House is a communal-living, self-governed, democratic setting with no trained counselors such that mutual help among residents help maintain and support abstinence from drugs and alcohol. Dr. Ferrari will report the history and program evaluation on Oxford House conducted by a team of DePaul researchers over the past 12 years, as well as two NIH grants obtained to assess this unique aftercare program.

Ms Patricia E. Kirkwood

Science Librarian
Mortvedt Library
Pacific Lutheran University
Tacoma WA 98466
Phone: 253-565-3225
E-mail: kirkwope@plu.edu

Science information resources that support undergraduate research

Working with your librarian to create an undergraduate research collection

Finding chemistry and physics information

Chemical structure searching

Preparing the undergraduate researcher for the graduate school library

Information resources in the sciences are expensive and need to be used wisely and well. With over 15 years experience working with students and faculty at both graduate and undergraduate institution libraries, Patricia Kirkwood can offer a unique perspective on the undergraduate research process. Her search skills in major science databases and knowledge of science information resources help her provide excellent training and guidance in the area of information literacy.

Arthur J. Lidsky

, AICP, President
Dober, Lidsky, Craig and Associates, Inc.
E-mail:ajl@dlca.com
Home Page: www.dlca.com

Planning Science Facilities-New and Renovated: Process, Guidelines, Checklists, Suggestions, and Cautions

Dober, Lidsky, Craig and Associates, Inc., is a professional firm that specializes in college and university campus planning, facility planning, and facility programming, and has worked with over 450 educational institutions world-wide. Prior to his consulting assignments, Arthur Lidsky was Assistant Director of Long-Range Planning for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He has served on facility review panels for the National Science Foundation, and has given lectures, presentations, and invited papers at such organizations as the Society for College and University Planning (SCUP), Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR), International Association for College Unions, No Name Facility Conference, Quality Education for Minorities Network, and the Municipal Art Society of New York.

He is an active leader and faculty member with the Project Kaleidoscope (PKAL) Workshops on Facilities. He has given lectures and papers on campus planning and science facility planning and programming as part of Project Kaleidoscope. He has also been a science facility consultant for the PKAL/Keck reviews. Over the past decade, he has planned and programmed over 60 science, technology, engineering, and math related facilities.

Robert P. Marande
Dean, College of Arts & Sciences
Bloomsburg University
Ben Franklin 13
400 East 2^nd Street
Bloomsburg, PA 17815
Phone: (570) 389-5333
Email: rmarande@bloomu.edu

Use of the Moessbauer Effect on Liquid Crystalline and Polymeric Materials

How Undergraduate Research Can Influence Academic Programs

Establishing Administrator Support for Undergraduate Research

The Industrial Connection

Dr. Marande and his research group use the Moessbauer Effect to investigate the glassy phases of liquid crystalline and polymeric materials. As dean he has worked with different department chairpersons in integrating undergraduate research into the curriculum based on his past experience as a faculty member and department chairperson. He has engaged in research in the private sector resulting in the establishment of several patents.

Kristi Multhaup
Associate Professor
Department of Psychology
Davidson College
Phone: (704) 894-2008
Email:krmulthaup@davidson.edu

Exploring the wane of childhood amnesia with adult recollections of childhood

This talk is most appropriate for college/university Psychology Departments.

The effects of source monitoring on memory illusions: Evidence from older and younger adults

This talk is most appropriate for college/university Psychology Departments.

Myths of aging

This talk is most appropriate for community groups.

Kristi received her B.A. from Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, MN, and her M.A. and Ph.D. in cognitive psychology from Princeton University. She studied aging on a 3-year post-doc at Washington University in St. Louis and for another year on a post-doc at Duke University.

Kristi started at Davidson College in the fall of 1996 where she teaches and does research in the areas of aging and cognition. She has authored or co-authored 14 publications in scholarly journals and one book chapter, has made 30 presentations at professional conferences, and reviews manuscripts for 14 scholarly journals. She is also a member of Phi Beta Kappa and 11 professional societies.

Her research interest is in cognitive aging, particularly the mechanisms that are responsible for memory changes and, in some cases, the lack of memory changes in healthy older adults. Specialty areas include source memory (where did you learn information--a friend, the TV?) and inhibitory control (e.g., what we use to name the color of ink for the word RED "black"). She also enjoys helping students develop research projects in aging that are not necessarily linked to cognition (e.g., social partner choices made by younger and older adults) and projects in cognition that are not necessarily linked to aging (e.g., determining the childhood age at which we begin to have personal memories of our experiences that we can recall as adults).

James F. O’Brien
Chemistry Department
Southwest Missouri State University
Phone: (417) 883-3821
Email: jimobrien@missouristate.edu

Famous Mad Hatters

The Scientific Sherlock Holmes

Absinthe: A Chemical and Artistic History

Dr. O’ Brien’s research interests are molecular orbital calculations on inorganic and organometallic species, and the history of chemistry.

Jeffrey M. Osborn
Department of Biology
Division of Science
Truman State University
Phone: (660) 785-4017
Email: josborn@truman.edu

Pollen: More Than Something to Sneeze At

Getting Started in Undergraduate Research: Advice for New Faculty and Administrators

The Undergraduate Research Program at Truman State University

Dr. Osborn and his students are interested in paleobotany and the functional morphology and evolution of vascular plants.

Terry Oswalt
Associate Dean of Research
Dept of Physics/Space Sciences
Florida Institute of Technology
Phone: (321) 674-7325
Email: oswalt@luyten.astro.fit.edu

Prospecting in the Stellar Graveyard

The Southeastern Association for Research in Astronomy (SARA) Observatory at Kitt Peak and the Future of Small Telescopes at National Sites

In the Asteroid's Shadow

Star Bright, Sky Brighter: The Problem of Light Pollution

Opportunities for Astronomers and Physicists at the National Science Foundation (faculty and students)

Getting Started in Undergraduate Research: Advice for New Faculty and Administrators

Dr. Terry D. Oswalt, an astronomer, is Professor of Physics and Space Sciences and Associate Dean for Research at Florida Institute of Technology. He recently served two years at the National Science Foundation as program officer for Stellar Astronomy and Astrophysics. He earned his Ph.D. in Astronomy at The Ohio State University specializing in photoelectric and spectroscopic studies of binary star systems, late stages of stellar evolution, minor planets, and comets.

Since coming to Florida Tech in 1982, Dr. Oswalt has taught astronomy and physics, while continuing his primary research interest in studies of collapsed stars called white dwarfs. Because such objects are very faint, this work often takes him to Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona, Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile, and Mauna Kea Observatory in Hawaii, where telescopes as large as 4-meters (156-inches) are available on a competitive basis to scientists. This project was also awarded observing time on the Hubble Space Telescope in collaboration with a dozen other scientists specializing in white dwarfs.

Oswalt established an asteroid occultation program at Florida Tech which involved several dozen students in expeditions to various parts of the southeastern U.S. and the Caribbean. A collaborative expedition involving scientists and students at Florida Tech and M.I.T. produced the first and currently most accurate measurements of Ceres, the largest known asteroid.

Oswalt serves as the founding Chairman of the Southeast Association for Research in Astronomy, a consortium of universities which operates an automated 1-meter telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory near Tucson, Arizona. He also has been director of the SARA summer internship program, which brings undergraduate students from around the U.S. to the SARA faciltiy at Kitt Peak each summer to do research in astronomy. Dr. Oswalt has written numerous scientific articles and edits the I.A.P.P.P. Communications, an international journal for advanced amateurs, students, teachers and professionals who collaborate on research and educational projects in astronomy.

Jo Paoletti
University of Maryland
American Studies
1102 Holzapfel Hall
College Park, MD 20742
Phone: 301-405-6646
Email: jpaol@umd.edu

First Steps in Interdisciplinary Research for Undergraduate Students

Interrogating the Question: How Undergraduates Approach Research

Dr. Paoletti has been a teacher, researcher and administrator at a large research university for over 25 years. Although her research training is in the history of clothing and fashion, for the last ten years her focus has been innovative practitioner research in humanities teaching, including new technologies, service learning, living-learning programs and undergraduate research.

Richard W. Peterson
Department of Physics
Bethel College
Phone: (612) 638-6465
Email: petric@bethel.edu

Stroboscopic Holography Measurements in Acoustics

Stroboscopic techniques have been incorporated with Michelson interferometers, holographic interferometry, and optical schlieren to allow the imaging and measurement of a variety of periodic acoustical phenomena. Interesting applications include shock waves in air, standing waves in gases, flame tube diagnostics, and sonoluminescence.

Dr. Peterson has taught optics in both academic and industrial settings for many years while working with undergraduates. In 1998 he received the APS prize for research with undergraduates.

Julio J. Ramirez, Ph.D.
R. Stuart Dickson Professor
Laboratory of Behavioral Neuroscience
Department of Psychology
Davidson College
Phone: (704)-894-2888
juramirez@davidson.edu

Developing an Interdisciplinary Program in Neuroscience: Four Blueprints

Neuroscience as a Component of an Undergraduate Psychology Curriculum

Are Broken Brains Doomed to Dysfunction?

Dr. Ramirez, one of the first two fellows of CUR, has involved his student colleagues in research on recovery from central nervous system injury since 1981. He has been an active participant, over the last ten years, in national dialogues aimed at the development of undergraduate curricula in neuroscience.

Gary Reiness
Biology Department
Lewis & Clark College
Phone: (503) 768-7513
Email: reiness@lclark.edu

The Road Less Taken: Non-classical Secretion of a Neurotrophic Factor

Building a Research-Active Science Department

Dr. Reiness and his students study the mechanism by which cells export ciliary neurotrophic factor (CNTF), a protein essential for proper formation of synapses in the developing nervous system. They have shown that CNTF is secreted by a novel mechanism, distinct from the customary pathway traversed by most secretory proteins. A former CUR Councilor, Dr. Reiness has served as Chair of Biology and Associate Dean of Faculty at Pomona College, and as Chair of Biology at Lewis & Clark College, where he is currently Dean of the Mathematical and Natural Sciences.

Jorge A. Santiago-Blay
Department of Paleobiology
National Museum of Natural History
Smithsonian Institution
10th and Constitution Avenue
Washington, D.C. 20560
Phone: (202)786-2876
Email: blayj@nmnh.si.edu
http://www.geocities.com/suzportfolio/jblay/jblay.htm

New insights into primitive hexapodan evolution, arthropod paleodiversity, biogeography, and evolution

Plant exudates or the gooey stuff that plants ooze: history, uses, and chemistry

The wonderful world of plants

The flora and community ecology of two Jurassic lithographic limestone formations in North America

The wonders of amber

Coevolution or the adaptationist paradigm? The case of the antennal pockets in Rhopalotria mollis weevils

New insights into the process of speciation

Dr. Jorge A. Santiago-Blay is an Assistant Professor in the Biology Department at Roanoke College. He is also a Research Collaborator/Associate in the Departments of Paleobiology and Entomology, respectively, with the National Museum of Natural History at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., United States as well as an Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Crop Protection Department of the University of Puerto Rico in Mayagüez.

Dr. Santiago-Blay holds a Master of Arts in Botany and a Ph.D. in Entomological Sciences both from the University of California at Berkeley. He is the author of 50 research papers on refereed journals, over 20 abstracts and posters, some involving undergraduates. Dr. Santiago-Blay frequently lectures on topics related to evolution, ecology, entomology, botany, and paleobiology, to all sorts of audiences, from the very young to the not so young.

Beheruz N. Sethna
Professor of Business Administration, President
The State University of West Georgia
Phone: (770) 836-6442
Email: BSethna@WestGA.edu

Review of Tom Friedman's "The World is Flat" -- Implications for Higher Education

The Ugly American in Comparative Education Systems

The Dearth of an Academic Culture in American Lives and Messages

Early Entrance Opportunities in Gifted Education

Electric / Hybrid Vehicles -- The Time is Now

Beheruz N. Sethna is a Professor of Business Administration, and President of the University of West Georgia.  He is the first person of Indian origin to become President of an U.S. University, and the first of any ethnic minority to become President of an IHE (non-HBCU) in Georgia. Remaining active in teaching and scholarship, he considers among his highest honors, being elected Honors Professor of the Year (1999) and being the faculty advisor for the student research team winner at Big Night and at the National Social Sciences Association (2003). His research areas include gifted education and business. He was associated with the start of the Texas Academy for Leadership in the Humanities, and later started the Advanced Academy of Georgia, a full-time residential program for gifted youth of high-school age. He is the author or coauthor of over 55 papers and a book entitled, Research Methods in Marketing and Management.  View his full biography.

Donald W. Slocum

Professor of Chemistry
Western Kentucky University
1 Big Red Way
Bowling Green, KY 42101-3576
Phone: (502) 745-5361
Email: donald.slocum@wku.edu

Directed ortho-Metalation; The Medium is the Message!

Dr. Slocum’s research and publications revolve around ortho-Metalation. His research has been supported by the Petroleum Research Fund, FMC Corp., Sterling-Winthrop, Inc., Research Corporation, NSF, Parke-Davis, and Faculty Research Grants.

Gabe Spalding

Department of Physics
Wesleyan University
Phone: (309) 556-3004
Email: gspalding@titan.iwu.edu

Holographic Optical Trapping and Manipulation of Large Numbers of Particles

Manipulating Micro- and Nano-scale Structures

The Trouble with Miniaturization

Prof. Spalding teaches at Illinois Wesleyan, a small, selective undergraduate-only institution, where his research has evolved so as to offer more opportunities for undergraduate participation, beginning with the first semester of the first year. At the same time, the goal is to help students to develop significant senior research thesis projects (and to encourage life-long engagement).

George Spilich
Psychology Department
Dunning Science Center
Washington College
Phone: (410) 778-7734
Email: gspilich2@washcoll.edu
http://george.spilich.washcoll.edu

Does Nicotine Affect Cognitive Performance? Evidence from the Laboratory and the Real World

Drinking and Driving: What the Laboratory Tells Us About How Alcohol Affects Skilled Performance

Lights, Camera, Learn! Using Multimedia and the Web to Enhance the Classroom Experience

Using Research as a Catalyst for Enhancing Undergraduate Science Education

Dr. Spilich researches diseases and drugs that affect skilled performance.

Brad Stith
Biology
University of Colorado at Denver
Phone: (303)-556 3371
E-mail: brad.stith@cudenver.edu
Web site: http://carbon.cudenver.edu/~bstith/

Justification and Development of Faculty Research Programs at Primarily Undergraduate Institutions

Having been an external reviewer of departments at various universities, Dr. Stith has found that increased research expectations at many primarily undergraduate institutions (PUI) can lead to friction among faculty who are skeptical of this change and worried about a negative impact upon teaching.  Dr. Stith addresses these concerns with increased research demands in a three part presentation: (1) defining various types of undergraduate research, (2) new data supporting the idea that undergraduate research may be the best form of teaching, and (3) specific ideas on how to develop a successful undergraduate-based research program.  Dr. Stith has successfully given this program to PUI faculty facing increased research expectations.

John J. Tudor
Department of Biology
Saint Joseph’s University
Phone: (610) 660-1820
Email: jtudor@sju.edu
WebPage: http://www.sju.edu/biology/tudorweb/tudorresearch/html

Bdellovibrio bacteriovirus: The Littlest Predator

Dr. Tudor’s research has focused on understanding the developmental cycle of the bacterium Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus. He has mentored fifty-five undergraduates, many of whom have presented at national meetings and/or published in peer-reviewed microbiology journals.

Julio Turrens
Department of Biomedical Sciences
University of South Alabama
Phone: (251) 380-2714
Email: jturrens@usouthal.edu

Biochemical targets for the treatment of parasitic diseases

Mitochondria: from energy production to cell suicide

Oxidative metabolism in biological systems

Teaching bioethics and research integrity to undergraduates

Julio's research is focused in two fields: a) free radical metabolism in mammalian cells, and b) basic metabolism of trypanosomatids (parasitic protozoa). His studies in this area of free radical metabolism have been focused on identifying both sources and methods to detect their formation. The second area of interest focuses on the intermediate metabolism of Trypanosoma cruzi, the parasites responsible for Chagas disease, an incurable disease that affects 18 million people through the Americas. They have identified various metabolic differences with mammalian cells including: a) organization and substrate preference in the electron transport chain, and b) an enzyme (NADH-fumarate reductase), not found in mammalian cells, which may in the future become targets for an effective anti-parasitic chemotherapy.

In 1998, Julio designed a campus-wide program for undergraduate research and has directed this program since then. For more information, please visit the web page at: http://www.southalabama.edu/biomedical/ucur/.

Quinn Vega
Assistant Professor
Deptartment of Biology and Molecular Biology
Montclair University
Phone: (973) 655-7178
Email: vegaq@mail.montclair.edu

Molecular Research in an Undergraduate Teaching Laboratory

In this project, students complete a research project while learning molecular biology laboratory techniques. Specifically, students are asked to create and analyze a chimeric construct. This project is funded through an NIH AREA grant.

The function of RET with respect to ligand binding and co-receptor activation, downstream signaling and transcriptional regulation.

William E. Watson
Associate Professor of History
Immaculata University
Phone: 610) 647-4400, ex. 3491
Email: wwatson@immaculata.edu

France and the Islamic World

The West and Islam

Duffy's Cut Mass Grave in Malvern , Pa.: An Irish Tragedy from the Dawn of the Industrial Revolution in Pennsylvania

This is a Power Point presentation done in conjunction with Prof. John Ahtes, a colleague of William's at Immaculata University . The links below are to versions of our Duffy's Cut research which have appeared in a number of venues:

The West Chester Daily Local News: http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=10935925&BRD=1671&PAG=461&dept_id=17782&rfi=8 KYW-CBS: http://kyw.com/Local%20News/local_story_039211035.html

William Watson received his Ph.D. in History from University of Pennsylvania , having studied under both Edward Peters and Alexander Riasanovsky . He has an Ongoing interest in cross-cultural contact and conflict, especially between the West, the Islamic world, and Russia

His Current projects include:

1.) Italy and Islam (monograph in progress)

2.) Medieval Arabic authors and Early Russia (series of articles- Ibn al-Athir in print; Ibn Rustah accepted for publication;

Al-Mas'udi in progress 3.) Duffy's Cut mass grave in Malvern , PA (archival and archaeological

research on Irish immigrant railroad workers from 1832)

Watson's colleague, John H. Ahtes received his ABD in History from University of Pennsylvania , studied under Edward Peters and Nancy Farris. His ongoing interests in modern and early modern Europe , Irish and Irish-American history, history of Catholicism. His Current projects include: 1.) Historical Maryology 2.) Currently developing new interdisciplinary course involving historical and theological perspectives of papacy in the Modern world 3.) Duffy's Cut mass grave in Malvern , PA (archival and archaeological research on Irish immigrant railroad workers from 1832)