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August 13, 2003

Media Contact: Michael Dabney, (858) 822-3432

FROM ONE-LEGGED ROBOTS TO RAP AND HIP-HOP: UNDERGRAD SCHOLARS CONVENE AT UCSD TO PRESENT RESEARCH FINDINGS

More than 180 undergraduates from the University of California, San Diego and other campuses from across the county will gather at UCSD this week to present findings on a wide range of research studies conducted individually this summer under faculty mentors from UCSD, San Diego State University, the Salk Institute, Scripps Research Institute and other institutions.

Undergraduates representing an interesting cross-section of academic disciplines – from physics and medicine to humanities and ethnic studies – will share their results with peers and university faculty members on Thursday, August 14 at the Annual UCSD Summer Research Conference sponsored by the university’s Academic Enrichment Programs (AEP). The event, the 15th such conference sponsored by AEP in as many years, will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the university’s Price Center, located on campus near the corner of Gilman Drive & Myers Drive.

Research topics presented will range from anthrax, the Argentine ant invasion and the student manufacturing of a one-legged jumping robot, to the influence of rap and hip-hop music on Caucasian American culture. The conference represents a growing national trend among higher education institutions to offer undergraduates challenging research experiences outside the classroom to prepare them for graduate school, and to enhance their critical thinking skills and overall education.

More specifically, the UCSD Summer Research Conference serves as a forum to recognize participating students’ scholarly works, and to allow students to gain experience in what every successful scholar should master for graduate school: how to present, clarify and defend scientific work before peers and other professionals in a public forum, and to learn the rudiments of preparing findings for scientific publication.

Besides UCSD, participating students hail from such colleges and universities as Harvard University, San Diego State University, Vassar College, Princeton University, Stanford University, San Francisco State University, Pennsylvania State University, University of San Diego, Swarthmore College, University of Texas at Austin, Brooklyn College, Kent State University, Spelman College, University of Chicago, Howard University, Brigham Young University, Delaware State University, Cal Polytechnic State University, Point Loma Nazarene College, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, University of Arizona, University of Hawaii, University of Puerto Rico, UC Berkeley, and UC Irvine.

“We are extremely proud of the research achievements of these students this summer, and of their commitment in time and effort with their mentors to gain important insight into what it takes to be a successful scholar,” says David Artis, Ph.D., director of AEP, a unit of UCSD Student Affairs under Vice Chancellor Joseph Watson. “From their background and the level of excellence displayed in their work, we believe these students will be leaders in the next generations of scientists, scholars, professional and government leaders, and university faculty.”

The conference also serves to encourage more ethnically underrepresented and low-income student participants at UCSD and other institutions to actively pursue doctoral degrees and careers in research and college teaching.

“Many of these students are already contemplating attending Ph.D. programs, medical school, or other professional schools following graduation,” says Artis.

This year’s students represent a diverse community of young scholars from a variety of outreach programs sponsored at UCSD and elsewhere which are supported by more than a dozen local, state, and national funding sources. “This support includes fellowships from the UC Office of the President, U.S. Department of Education, the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute,” Artis says, “and we are also grateful for support from UCSD Student Affairs, UCSD’s Office of Graduate Studies and Research, our faculty mentors from all participating institutions, and San Diego State’s Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program.”

Students will present their research in one of 26 roundtable discussion groups during morning and afternoon conference sessions, with one or more faculty members moderating each group, says Darlene Salmon, conference coordinator. Each student will have 15 minutes to discuss his or her paper, and then answer questions from faculty members and peers, she adds.

Here is a sampling of research topics to be presented in various conference categories during morning and afternoon hours. Morning presentations will be held from 9 a.m. to 11:45 a.m., and afternoon sessions from 1 p.m. to 3:45 p.m. (For a complete listing, please contact the media representative above.)

Ethnic Studies (Morning)

• A Socio-Linguistic Analyses of Cuban, Dominican, and Puerto Rican Discourse in New York City: Identities in Transformation (Paul Edward Roberts, UCSD).
• A New Breed of Ghetto: The Effect of Rap and Hip-Hop on White America (Michelle LaJoy Jackson, UCSD).
• Conflicting Liberation Theology and the Arab-Israeli Conflict (Yael Schwarz, UCSD)

Chemistry (Morning)

• Targeting Anthrax (Monica Netherly, San Diego State University)

Contemporary Issues in Education (Morning)

• Influence of Computer-Based Reading Intervention on Students’ Reading Motivation and Performance (Veleshia Hilliard, San Diego State University)
• Drop-Outs in East L.A. (Juan Roman, UCSD)
• Gender Characteristics and Parental Correlates of Indirect/Direct Bullying Behaviors in Middle School (Zenia Palmeno, San Diego State University)

Psychology of Gender & Race (Morning)

• Acute Effects of Alcohol on Spatial Working Memory in Asian Americans (Amanda Brown, UCSD)
• Prosecutorial Discretion in Sexual Assault Cases: The Extent of Rape Case-Specific Biases (Stephanie Guaman, UCSD).
• Fear of Success, Cooperation/Competition, Acculturation, and Locus of Control in High Achieving Women (Connie Maria Meza, San Diego State University).

Physics (Morning)

• Weighing a Black Hole (Thomas Fishman, University of Chicago)
• Neutrino Degeneracy in Big Bang Nucleosynthesis (Thomas Topel, Colorado State University).
• Measuring the Nature and Amount of Absorption in High-Resolution Quasar Spectra (Angela Chapman, Point Loma Nazarene University)
• One-Dimensional Electron System (Jason Ma, California Polytechnic University)

Medicine (Morning)

• The Genetic Basis of Hypertension (Omar Halawa, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill).
• Aeromedical Transport of Severely Head-Injured Patients Following Paramedic Rapid Sequence Intubation (Jennifer Poste, UCSD)
• Gene Therapy for Heart Failure in Mice (Brian Rebolledo, University of San Diego)

Pharmacology (Morning)

• The Effects of Heparin on Cancer Metastasis (Sharon Choi, UCSD)

Electrical Engineering (Morning)

• Laser Communication Interface Using Labview (Stanley Calixte, UCSD)
• For Linearization of Power Amplifiers (Freddy Mendoza, San Francisco State University).

Trends in Public Health (Afternoon)

• Breast Cancer in the Hispanic Community: Clinical Trials Accrual Strategies (Alma Rosario Santana, UCSD).
• Minority Participation in HIV Clinical Trials (Estela Blanco, UCSD).

Molecular Biology and Biochemistry (Afternoon)

• Introduction and Expression of Anthrax Toxins Ef and LF Genes Into Transgenic Flies (Daniel Martinez, Arizona State University).

Current Research in Biology (Afternoon)

• The Effect of Argentine Ant Invasions on Ant Lions in Coastal San Diego (Cassandra Comacho, UCSD).

Math and Physics (Afternoon)

• Developing a Nondestructive Technique for Measuring the Energy Level of an Electron Suspended Over Liquid Helium (Iona Stoica, University of Maryland).

Mechanical and Structural Engineering (Afternoon)

• Analysis and Manufacturing of a Light One-Legged Jumping Robot (Sylvester Bravo, UCSD).