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The 21st annual Karen E. Wetterhahn Science Symposium, Dartmouth's annual celebration of undergraduate research, took place on Thursday, May 24 where 167 undergraduate students presented 146 research posters to the Dartmouth community. For the first time the Symposium took place on two floors of the new 1978 Life Sciences Center. Faculty, students and members of the public came to view posters created by a record number of participants including first and second year WISP research interns, sophomore scholars, Presidential scholars and Senior Honors students competing in the Sigma Xi Christopher Reed competition. Research on display represented all college science division departments plus Anthropology, Education, Environmental Studies, Psychology and Brain Sciences, the Cold Regions Research and Engineering Lab (CRREL), and many departments from the Geisel School of Medicine and Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center.
Dartmouth Professor of Biological Sciences Mary Lou Guerinot {http://www.dartmouth.edu/~wisp/wetterhahn/symposium21st.html] kicked off the Symposium with her wonderful keynote address, "Metals, Mutants and Mayhem", which described her "not so linear" career path in the sciences, from marine biologist to her current cutting edge work as a molecular geneticist whose principal expertise and research interests are in the area of metal transport and regulation of gene expression by metals. For most of the world plants are the major point of entry for essential metals into the food chain, so her work is laying the foundation for crops that offer solutions for malnutrition.
The Dartmouth Chapter of Sigma Xi, the Scientific Honor Society, once again organized the annual Christopher Reed Senior Honors Thesis Competition. Congratulations to the following 2012 winners:
1st prize: Hannah Baranes, Earth Sciences Advisor: Meredith Kelly
2nd prize: Elise Wilkes, Chemistry Advisor: Ivan Aprahamiam
3rd prize: Michael Funaro, DHMC/Geisel School of Medicine Advisors: Barjor Gimi and F. Jon Kull
3rd prize: Suzanne Kelson, Environmental Studies Advisors: William Ardren, Anne Kapuscinski, Matt Ayres
and F. Jon Kull
Our thanks to the dedicated Sigma Xi faculty judges: Chuck Daghlian, Ripple Microscope Facility; Rebecca Irwin, Biological Sciences; Tim Smith, Physics and Astronomy; Susan Taylor, Earth Sciences and CRREL; and Dean Wilcox, Chemistry.
We are deeply grateful to all the faculty sponsors, assistant sponsors and other research advisors who guide, coach and mentor these young emerging scientists. This year, we were pleased to honor the following individuals for their commitment and dedication as long time WISP sponsors:
For 5 years:
Elsa Garmire, Sydney E. Junkins 1887 Professor of Engineering
G. Eric Schaller, Professor of Biological Sciences
For 20 years:
Mary Lou Guerinot, Ronald and Deborarh Harris Professor ofo Biological Sciences
Robert Z. Norman, Professor Emeritus of Mathematics
Samuel J. Velez, Associate Professor of Biological Sciences
Below WISP's Assistant Director, Kathy Scott Weaver, presents Bob Norman (Mathematics - emeritus faculty) a certificate for his 20 years of mentoring WISP students. Bob holds the record for the number of WISP students mentored - 54.
