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Erin Bosch
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Erin Bosch was an Agriscience & Biology Teacher at Jonesville High School, in Jonesville, MI.
Year 1: studied the use of bioluminescence as a biosensor for detecting pesticides in food in Dr. Alocilja’s Nano-Biosensors Lab.
Year 2: continued her study in using bioluminescence as a biosensor for detecting pesticides in food in Dr. Evangelyn Alocilja’s Nano-Biosensors Lab. Last year, she used the insecticide carbaryl, and confirmed that the chemical did decrease the luminescence of the bacteria.
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Adam Ford
Microfluidic channels
created by Adam Ford
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Adam Ford was an elementary school teacher in the Lansing School District, specializing in computer and broadcasting technology and robotics.
Year 1: worked in the Digital Evolution Lab headed by Dr. Charles Ofria. He learned the general principle of evolutionary robotics, the software Avida for performing digital evolution experiments, and the software Webots for programming and simulating robot behavior.
Year 2: worked with Dr. Philip McKinley and was involved in the Biolume project. The project concerns creating approximately 150 sculptural robotic units mounted on walls. The finished installation will have the feeling of a cave with synthetic bioluminescent life forms.
Year 3: worked with Dr. Wen Li and he was involved in a project on developing a microfluidic valve for reliving intraocular pressure for glaucoma patients. Through this experience, he gained significant understanding of the field of MEMS (micro-electromechanical systems) and especially microfluidics and bioMEMS. In particular, he had a chance to learn about and practice with MEMS processes such as photolithography as well as interesting polymeric materials such as parylene and PDMS. Furthermore, he was able to see the clear link between technology and application, and put the research experience in a biomedical engineering context.
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Randall Heck
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Randall Heck was a teacher at J.W. Sexton High School in the Lansing School District, and he specializes in social studies, computers, and engineering.
Year 1: worked with Drs. Wei Liao and Susie Liu on research related to future bio-refinery for dairy farms. One component of the envisioned bio-refinery was to use algae to reduce the dangerous levels of nitrogen and phosphorus in the liquid waste stream and to produce additional value-added products.
Year 2: continued to work with Dr. Wei Liao on research related to future bio-refinery for dairy farms.
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Jason Hill
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Jason Hill was a seventh-grade science teacher at Holt Junior Hiigh School in Holt, Michigan
Year 1: worked in Dr. Tonghun Lee’s lab and gained first-hand experiences on plasma-enhanced combustion and laser/optical diagnostics of the combustion process.
Year 2: continued to work with Dr. Tonghun Lee’s lab and was involved in the optimization of a small-scale engine using plasma-enhanced ignition. In particular, he was involved in the design and construction of a test rig capable of measuring speed, torque, and other performance characteristics of a small engine.
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Alex Robinson
Robotic boat developed by Alex Robinson
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Alex Robinson was a teacher from Lansing Catholic High School, Lansing, MI.
Year 2: worked with Dr. Jongeun Choi and was involved in the design of an energy-management system for a robotic boat. Such robotic robots are expected to be deployed to take water samples by implementing a self-contained charging system.
Year 3: continued to work with Dr. Choi on the development of aquatic mobile sensor robot. The purpose of the project was to develop a mobile sensor which can be used to measure and track water pollution. The sensor will implement SLAM (Simultaneous Localization and Mapping) which will allow it to more efficiently keep track of pollutants by mapping data about them as a scalar field then using this field in tern to aide in localization. Robinson optimized the design from the previous year and repackaged various components. This included modification of the hull with fiberglass and resin to safely accommodate the solar array and necessary electronics, the redesign of the solar array and battery routing system, and the implementation of the communication protocol and remote control functions in the microcontroller. He also worked on the development of a curriculum module on optimization of alternative energy solutions.
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 Jefferey Farell
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Jefferey Farell was a teacher from Sexton High School, Lansing, MI.
Year 2: worked with Dr. Charles Ofria and was involved in research on education using digital evolution. Digital organisms have been a useful tool in research for years, but as an educational tool, their role in high schools has been minimal.
Year 3: worked with Dr. Walton on bacteria transformation. Bacterial transformation refers to the uptake and expression of genetic material from the environment. An interesting example of DNA that can be used for this purpose is the gene that codes for GFP, a Green Fluorescent Protein that will glow in the presence of UV light. When this gene is added to the genome of a bacterium (or a variety of other organism) the bacterium will produce the protein. One could use this gene in studies along with one that code for resistance to a common class of antibiotics and another that functions as an on/off switch by regulating GFP production based on the presence of the inducer arabinose, a sugar first identified in gum arabic. Farell investigated the question: could high school students use this plasmid as a biosensor to detect arabinoise in the environment? He examined various experimental protocols for realizing the bacteria transformation, and found that the latter does not happen as easily as kit instructions would make it seem. He also explored the feasibility of planned activities for high school students.
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Angela Kolonich
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Angela Kolonich was a teacher from Sexton High School, Lansing, MI.
Year 2: worked with Dr. Seungik Baek and observed interactions between the aorta, lumbar vertebrae, and intra-luminal thrombus (ILT) during the progression of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA).
Year 3: continued to work with Dr. Baek and she examined the role of osteopontin (OPN) in the body as it relates to Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm (AAA) enlargement. OPN is a protein synthesized in many cell types that has been associated with AAA. This protein is known to be responsible for bone remodeling, and a relationship might exist between high osteopontin levels in AAA and lumbar osteophyte growth. The aim of the research was to examine the relationship between osteopontin, AAA, and lumbar osteophyte growth in a variety of patients and utilize that information to further individual research projects. The initial observations by Kolonich and others in Dr. Baek’s lab were of patients with AAAs exhibiting contact between the aneurysm and the lumbar vertebrae. This contact may lead to eventual remodeling of the vessel wall and the lumbar vertebrae. Research showed that osteopontin levels are high in early, aggressive abdominal aneurysms, and is also a requirement for bone remodeling. Kolonich also developed an idea for a lesson plan focusing on biomedical engineering.
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Jennifer Lovell
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Jennifer Lovell was a teacher from Union High School, Grand Rapids, MI.
Year 2: worked with Dr. Wen Li and was involved in the development of immuno-assay sensors for implementation in the high school physics classroom.
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Sharlene Kroneck
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Sharlene Kroneck was a teacher at De La Salle Collegiate High School, in Warren, MI, where she taught classes on mechanical drawing and computer programming, and served as the coordinator of the co-op program and the mentor of the Robotics Club.
Year 1: worked with Dr. Seungik Baek and graduate student S. Chris Hunley in the Cardiovascular and Tissue Mechanics Research Laboratory.
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Bukola Ojumoola
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Bukola Ojumoola was a math teacher in the Detroit area.
Year 1: worked with Dr. Jongeun Choi to examine the use of solar energy in powering autonomous robotic boats.
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John Thon
John Thon working on the gliding robotic fish in Tan’s lab.
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John Thon was a teacher at the Holt Junior High School, in Holt, MI, specializing in art and engineering instruction.
Year 1: worked with Dr. Xiaobo Tan and his graduate students on the development of robotic fish. He was responsible for servo motor-based driven mechanism design for the robotic fish, and for waterproof packaging.
Year 2: created a curriculum unit on circuit building, including the fundamentals on circuit components and hands-on experiences (such as soldering) on assembling circuits.
Year 3: worked with Dr. Tan to develop a novel class of underwater robot, called gliding robotic fish. This robot combined the advantages of an underwater glider (energy-efficiency) and a robotic fish (high maneuverability). The robot presented unique challenges in its design and assembly because of the large number of electrical and mechanical components involved and the stringent requirements for underwater operation. Thon worked on a number of subsystems of the robot, including designing the mechanical configurations and fabricating the parts. He also had to conduct a lot of calculations for balancing the robot. Furthermore, he provided guidance to several undergrad students in Tan’s lab in their design and fabrication of the servo-actuated tail. The robot was successfully completed recently, and Thon played an important role in its field testing.
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Megan Shaw
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Megan Shaw was a teacher from Union High School, Grand Rapids, MI.
Year 2: worked with Dr. S. Patrick Walton and was involved in RNA interference (RNAi) research. RNAi is the natural process by which cells “turn off” or silence certain genes via blocking translation from mRNA into protein.
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Wendy Johnson
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Wendy Johnson was a teacher from Lansing Catholic High School, Lansing, MI.
Year 2: worked with Dr. Robert Pennock to investigate how to effectively teach evolutionary principles.
Year 3: worked with Dr. McKinley and explored ways of teaching evolution in action in the classroom setting. Public understanding and acceptance of evolution is not commensurate with its status in the scientific community, and new educational strategies are needed to address these issues. Research has uncovered many misconceptions and cognitive biases that make learning about evolution by traditional methods challenging and suggests that involving students in scientific investigation of evolution may lead to deeper understanding and higher acceptance of evolutionary theory. The timescales for evolution and practical considerations such as availability of equipment and use of living organisms are challenges to observational and experimental approaches in the classroom. Johnson explored activities that would be classroom-friendly and involve students in the practices of science to address questions about the process of evolution in biological and computational systems while introducing the concepts and applications of evolutionary computation. These activities exploited Avida-Ed digital evolution software and quorum sensing computational models.
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Felix N. Ngassa
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Dr. Ngassa was a faculty member with Lansing Community College, in Lansing, MI, and a faculty member of Chemistry at the Grand Valley State University.
Year 1: worked with Dr. S. Patrick Walton and his graduate student Amanda Portis to examine the use of novel polymeric nanoparticles as delivery vehicles for short interfering RNA (siRNA), which could be used to develop new therapies by silencing select genes.
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Dean Buggia
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Dean Buggia was a technology teacher from Okemos High School, Okemos, MI.
Year 3: Dean Buggia worked with Dr. Lixin Dong on nanorobotics research. Specifically, he looked into using biomimicry for movement at the micro and nanoscale. Nanotechnologists are looking at using nanorobots for medical applications such as cell and tissue repair, detection of ailments and direct delivery of medication to affected areas like cancer cells and hemophilia, treatment of arteriosclerosis (stiffening of arteries), break up blood clots and kidney stones, remove parasites and treat gout. One will have to understand the forces at the microscale and nanoscale to develop propulsion systems for nanorobotic movement. Buggia investigated the propulsion inspired by the flagella of bacteria, and learned the impact of Reynolds number on the movement in liquid. He also developed ideas for creating classroom curriculum and activities for teaching related concepts. For example, he was planning to have students building rubber band powered swimmers that would include helical (bacteria), flexible tail (protist) and a single hinged flapper (fish) and test them in water and corn syrup.
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Marsha Crawford (right)
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Marsha Crawford was a science teacher from Perry Middle School, Perry, MI.
Year 3: Marsha Crawford worked with Dr. Wei Liao on the evaluation of the biological recalcitrance of GMO corn stover using dilute alkali pretreatment. Recent concern over the ability of genetically modified corn to bio-degrade in a no-till environment prompted an investigation of the effects of chemical pretreatment on stover degradation through measurements of cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin and residual fiber in two versions of a genetically stacked isoline of corn developed by Pioneer. The first, dubbed 9910AM1 (AcreMax1), was genetically modified (Herculex Xtra trait) and insect resistant, specifically to several varieties of corn borer. The second, 9910R, was similarly genetically modified (Herculex1 trait) but was intended for use as a nearby refuge to prevent the development of pesticide-resistant corn borers. Samples were taken from two sites, one in Brown City and the other in Wheeler, Michigan. Crawford was involved in the analysis of various components in refuge and stacked corn stover, such as cellulose, hemicelluloses, and lignin.
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Lisa Wininger
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Lisa Wininger was a science teacher from Plainwell Middle School, Plainwell, MI.
Year 3: Lisa Wininger worked with Dr. Alocilja to investigate nano biosensors for food safety. Throughout the entire food supply chain, opportunities exist for pathogens to contaminate foods and create epidemics of food-borne illnesses. In the United States, 76 million cases of foodborne illnesses are reported annually, even though the U.S. has the most secure food supply in the world. It is estimated that the U.S. economy loses $5-6 billion dollars per year in direct medical costs and lost productivity because of contaminated food. Additionally, bacteria mutate over time into new and more virulent strains that may be resistant to antibiotics. Given the scale of this issue, the development of methods for rapid detection and identification of food-borne pathogens is critical. To accurately detect a pathogen in an electrode system, the pathogen must first be separated and concentrated to above the detection level. Electrically active polyaniline coated magnetic (EAPM) nanoparticles can be used to bind the pathogen and extract it from the food matrix through magnetic separation to allow testing without interference from the food sample. Wininger characterized the results of EAPM capture tests. She also developed a curriculum module on food safety.
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