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In the U.S, buildings account for about 40% of primary energy use and 40% of C02 emissions. Improving energy conservation and efficiency is important for individuals today, but more so, for future generations. One way to increase efficiency is through accessible information for individual homeowners. This summer, physics and environmental studies double major Anna Mowat ’18 is tackling this issue by studying the heating efficiency of residential buildings. Her goal is to develop an accurate model that helps understand and improve the efficiency of residential houses. The research is supervised by Professor of Physics Seth Major.

When Assistant Professor of Biology Cynthia Downs was awarded a Christian A. Johnson Teaching Enhancement award in November 2015, she used the grant to upgrade and expand the vertebrate physiology-teaching lab and offer students high-tech approaches to study aerobic fitness.

 In Germany, the rapeseed honey produced in the spring is known to have an exceptionally sweet taste, and draws a great demand in the honey market. As a beekeeper for eight years, Olivia Box ’17 did not want to miss the opportunity to learn about rapeseed honey and work with bees. This summer, she joined the research group of Sina Alizadeh and Hermann Behling at University of Göttingen in Germany. The goal of the research is to determine the efficiency of pollination at various hive placements.

Alexander Baradari ’17, a neuroscience major, said that he wants to help improve the lives of individuals affected by debilitating diseases. This summer as a research intern, he is studying Multiple Sclerosis (MS) at the Rocco Ortenzio Neuroimaging Lab, part of the Select Medical Research Hospital in West Orange, N.J., in order to increase the understanding of the disease. His summer research advisor is Dr. Brian Yao.

Biology majors Abbas Khan’18, Suxian (Suzy) Lin’18, and Angel Pichardo’17, along with biochemistry major Katherine (Katie) Guzzetta’18 spent the summer exploring the application of nanoparticles in biotechnology at the National Tsing Hua University (NTHU) in Taiwan. The research is under the supervision of Associate Professor of Biology Wei-Jen Chang and in collaboration with Professor Zung-Hang Wei’s mechanical engineering lab at NTHU. In addition to the academic challenge, the research group has described the experience as a cultural adventure.

Petra Elfström ’18 combined her interests in archaeology, art and archaeology to make a film on the archaeological practices of the Slocan Narrows Archaeological Project.

This summer, psychology majors Barbara Singhakiat ’17, Leah Pranschke ’17 and Jaclyn Zingman ’18 are conducting social psychology research under the supervision of Professor of Psychology Jennifer Borton. Their work examines reductions in working memory following ego threat in people with defensive self-esteem.

Mariah Walzer ’17, an archaeology major, spent this summer analyzing the lithic artifacts recovered from 2015 field school at the Slocan Narrows Pithouse Village in British Columbia.

This summer Anna Arnn ’17, an archaeology concentrator, took her research from last year a step further. Under the advisement of Nathan-Goodale, Arnn studied faunal remains and animal bones that were collected during a previous field trip.

This summer, computer science concentrators Sindy Liu’18, Eseosa Asiruwa’18, Mitchel Herman’19 and Matthew Goon’18 are doing research with machine learning on outputs from various sensors. The research project is directed by Stephen Harper Kirner Chair of Computer Science Stuart Hirshfield.