Biology and Chemistry Students Present Research
November 12, 2018
On Saturday, Nov. 10, St. John Fisher College students and their research mentors traveled to SUNY Geneseo for the Rochester Academy of Science (RAS) 45th Annual Scientific Paper Session.
The 10 students were invited to attend the RAS meeting to present their research through an oral presentation or poster session. The Center for Student Research and Creative Work funded their registration fees through the Student Scholar Travel Fund.
The Fisher students are all engaged in advanced level courses where, in collaboration with a faculty advisor, they designed and executed a research plan that addressed a scientific question. At the end, students present their project results in the form of a written report and/or a scientific poster at a scientific meeting. In order to participate in the course, students had to submit a project proposal and completed safety training.
“The RAS event provides Fisher students the chance to share their research with peers from area institutions in a comfortable environment. We especially like to have our students attend and present because of the thoughtful feedback from other students and professors and the deep engagement with students at their posters and talks,” said Dr. Kristin Picardo, associate professor of biology and director of the Center for Student Research and Creative Work. “Students who present gain experience in communicating their findings, and learn to listen to questions and feedback with an eye toward improving their work going forward.”
This past summer, Picardo worked with biology major and Science Scholar, John Miller ’19 through Fisher’s Summer Fellows Research program. They have continued to investigate the role of Acinetobacter baylyi Tssm, a T6SS component, in bacterial cell-cell interactions.
“I think it’s important to be able to share research at conferences like this because it allows us to learn from each other and think in new ways. Also, this conference helped prepare me for my research presentation in the spring for the Science Scholars program,” Miller said.
Daniel Kaplan ’19, also studying biology, has taken advantage of several opportunities to present research.
“This was a great opportunity to further develop my presentation and public speaking skills,” he said. “I have enjoyed getting the chance to see what other people are interested in researching.”
Kaplan collaborated this semester with Dr. Maryann Herman, associate professor of biology, to research the effectiveness of peppermint oil on human and plant pathogenic bacteria.
“The event provides a great opportunity for students to present their scholarly scientific work to a broader community and they come back with new ideas and questions or potential collaborators,” Herman said, noting that Fisher hosted the meeting most recently in 2017 and 2012.
In the Feature Photo: Front row, left to right: Samantha Tardugno, Miranda Williamson, Maggie Lesch, Katie Lowry and Erin Tiede. Back row, left to right: John Miller, Daniel Kaplan, Nate Halsteter, Thomas Pasquale and Allen Murphy