Undergraduate Research celebrates 9th annual UAH Research Horizons Poster Session

On March 7, undergraduates at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) participated in the ninth annual UAH Research Horizons Poster Session at the Charger Union. A total of 34 projects were presented by the students who conducted the work, with selected projects recognized for excellence in research and creative scholarship.

Each year the poster session highlights the wide variety of research activities underway at UAH, as well as giving students a chance to practice their presentation skills and gain constructive feedback from faculty, staff and fellow students. "Visitors to the event, besides being able to learn more about undergraduate research, were able to support this valuable learning experience, by providing our undergraduate researchers with feedback and advice!" says Dave Cook, director of undergraduate research at UAH, a part of The University of Alabama System.

This year, organizers welcomed 17 seniors from the Alabama School of Cyber Technology and Engineering as visitors to the event. "Dissemination events like the Research Horizons Poster Session are an excellent opportunity to show potential students the unique opportunities that await them if they attend UAH," Cook says. "We’re really excited to continue this tradition of creating a campus-wide opportunity to give undergraduates a chance to share their research and creative projects with the local and campus community."

The event is intended primarily to be a learning experience for the participants rather than a competition, though visitors were able to show their appreciation for the researchers by voting for their three favorite poster presentations.

This year's People’s Choice awardees were:

First Place

Ella James (Physics)
"Polarization Properties of Optical Elements with Azimuthally Varying Phase Retardance"
Mentor: Don Gregory

Second Place

Macie Morgan (Communication Arts)
"Mnemonicide: The Killing of American Public Memory"
Mentor: John Saunders

Third Place

Claire Bergner (Economics)
"2019 SBIR/STTR Economic Impacts"
Mentor: Brinda Mahalingam

"Sharing your research with others in the community is an important part of inquiry-based learning, and it’s the reason that Research Horizons was launched nine years ago," Cook notes. "As usual, the presenters did a fantastic job! I’d like to thank all of the participating students and their mentors for making the event a great success."

UAH Research Horizons Poster Session