Advanced Undergraduate Research Award winners named

The North Dakota Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (ND EPSCoR) announces the 2015 Advanced Undergraduate Research Award (AURA) winners at the University of North Dakota. The goal of AURA is to encourage undergraduate students to consider a career that involves research in science, engineering, or mathematics.

AURA provides undergraduate students with an opportunity to participate in faculty-mentored research projects at the state’s two research Universities. Participants are awarded up to $6,500 for full-time research activities during the summer session and for part-time research activities during the fall and spring semesters. Awardees are expected to apply for a nationally competitive undergraduate scholarship during their AURA experience. ND EPSCoR is supported by the National Science Foundation and the State of North Dakota at both the University of North Dakota and North Dakota State University.

UND AURA winners, their home towns, their faculty mentors, and the research projects in which they will participate are:

• Joseph Aymond, Grand Forks, Dr. Naima Kaabouch, PI, Department of Electrical Engineering, “Nano- and Microsatellites: A Miniature Imaging Payload For Remote Sensing Applications.”
• Nathan Carlson, Park Rapids, Minn., Dr. Wayne Barkhouse, PI, Physics and Astrophysics, “Measuring the Specific Frequency of Globular Clusters Around Spiral Galaxies.”
• Jessica Fairley, Grand Forks, Dr. Lucia Carvelli, PI, Basic Sciences, “Epigenomic patterning associated with trans-generational inheritance of drug addiction.”
• Jeffrey Gendreau, Bismarck, Dr. Reza Fazel-Rezai, PI; Dr. Kouhyar Tavakolian, Co-PI, Electrical Engineering, “Real-Time Heart Signal Monitoring.”
• Ejazul Haque, Grand Forks,Dr. Manu Manu, PI, Biology, “Deciphering hematopoietic gene regulation using high-throughput data and a mathematical model.”
• Jasmine Kreft, West Fargo,Dr. Alena Kubatova, PI; Evgunii Kozliak, Co-PI, Chemistry, “Valuable Renewable Chemicals from Thermal Hydrotreatment of Lignin.”
• Tristian Plante, Maple Grove, Minn., Dr. Cai Xia Yang, PI, Mechanical Engineering, “Fault detection and failure prediction using vibration analysis.”
• Alexandra Ptacek, Oakes, N.D., Dr. Brian Darby, PI, Biology, “Non-invasive Behavioral Ecology of Polar Bears by Genotyping Shed Hairs.”

For additional information concerning ND EPSCoR or the AURA program, please contact Mark R. Hoffmann, Associate Vice President for Research Capacity Building and ND EPSCoR Associate Project Director, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, ND 58202-7093, 701.777.2492.