A Strong Finish

Unbelievably, 10 weeks have flown by. The SURES students have officially completed their respective summer research experiences. Each budding scientist finished the marathon successfully! To ensure that the SURES students finished strong, the marathon had several built-in pits for ‘refueling’. Weekly, students met with University of Kentucky Faculty to learn more about environmental health sciences career paths and research areas. Additionally, students participated in many activities to demonstrate the practicality of science and the importance of bench work in everyday life. To wrap up the marathon, a poster presentation was held. Students did not just describe their research findings; they also detailed the significance of their work via eloquent dissemination. Poster topics varied - the audience learned about the dangers of abdominal aortic aneurism, the effects of arsenic on the immune system, antibiotic resistance in canines, how liver zonal regulation in zebrafish better helps us understand liver cancer, and much more. Poster presentations were judged by overall presentation, visual presentation, documentation of sources, quality of sources, and spelling and grammar. A good ‘problem’ arose at the conclusion of the presentations. Each SURES students displayed such expertise, confidence, and passion about their topic – which made it hard to determine the ‘winner’ of the 10-week scientific marathon. Luckily, enough we had enough ‘medals’ for each student.  We congratulate each of the 2019 SURES student researchers for the completion of their journeys and encourage them to have continued success!

By Brittany Rice
PhD Candidate, Department of Pharmacology and Nutritional Sciences
2019 Near Peer Mentor