Student Kacie Jacques
More than a dozen SMCC students had their science projects showcased at two online science symposiums in late April that featured high-quality research on a variety of scientific subjects.
Nine students shared their capstone science projects at the April 30 Thinking Matters symposium hosted by the University of Southern Maine. Five SMCC students had their work presented at the annual MDI Biological Laboratory Maine Biological and Medical Sciences Symposium, held April 28-30.
Daniel Moore, chair of SMCC’s Biological Sciences Department, said the conferences provide valuable experience for the students.
“Faculty in the Biological Sciences Department strongly believe that students should learn to give professional presentations, such as a poster at a meeting,” he said. “We also want to provide them with lots of opportunities to interact with scientists at other institutions in Maine.”
For the MDI Biological Laboratory symposium, student Ben Clifford’s work was included in a project conducted with other students from the University of Maine at Farmington and Bates College. Another project featured research from students Kai Watkins, Clay Liu, Maria Orellana Rosales and Jillian Williams.
The students’ Thinking Matters projects explored subjects ranging from avian migration, bone marrow and schizophrenia to genetic predisposition and pain. The students conducted their research for Moore’s Genetics class.
To view all of the SMCC poster presentations at Thinking Matters, please visit the SMCC Thinking Matters photo album on Flickr.
SMCC students who took part in Thinking Matters were:
- Tyler Bauersfeld — How Genetics Plays a Role in Avian Migration
- Andrew Carter — Importance of Understanding Genetic Predisposition
- Aisha Hill — The Evolution of Mimicry; The Doublesex Gene
- Kacie Jacques — Changes in Gene Sequence that Cause Discordances Involving Disease in Monozygotic Twins
- James Joseph — Inherited Bone Marrow Failure Syndromes
- Masen Pelletier — Genetically Modified Organisms Are Important But Also Controversial
- Maria Orellana Rosales — Genetic Links Between Archaic and Modern Humans
- Alina Seminova — The Genes of Pain
- Matthew Toohey — Understanding the Genetic Cause of Schizophrenia