2026 Project Proposals

Lipids are essential components of all cells, providing structure, signaling molecules, and energy storage. Their integral role in cellular functions also makes them prime targets of viral infection. As extreme cell biologists, viruses must take the healthy host cell and extensively remodel it into a virus production factory; often creating membranous structures to support viral replication and assembly. However, viruses are genetically limited, expressing as few as 7 proteins to perform the hostile takeover. Understanding the molecular mechanisms of viral takeover has led the very successful treatment regiments used against Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) and HIV. The overall interest of my lab is in how viruses change lipids and membranes to generate more viruses, because breaking this relationship can ultimately stop a viral infection. We will use molecular biology and fluorescence microscopy to study how Zika virus targets cellular membranes by identifying the Zika virus proteins responsible for changes in membrane lipid content.

Please email me to describe your interest in the project.

8-week URSI: May 26–July 17

Vassar College campus is home to managed areas of Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) designed to improve the health and ecological functions of water and ecological resources on the campus, as defined in the Vassar College Green Building Guidelines. While these sites certainly have well-documented benefits to local ecosystems, their role in insect biodiversity is not as well-understood. We will sample stormwater infrastructure sites as well as managed lawns and wildflower meadows on the Vassar Preserve to compare insect family assemblages between these unique ecosystems. We will perform regular sweep net samples, and will utilize specialized traps to capture subterranean and soil-dwelling insects to better understand these communities.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Initiation is the most regulated step of translation and is mediated by a host of protein initiation factors. We focus on an initiation factor called eukaryotic translation initiation factor 3, or eIF3. eIF3 is the largest and most complex of the initiation factors and has recently emerged as an important player in the regulation of translation. And yet, its precise molecular roles are not well-understood. Our research is focused around three principle avenues of inquiry. First, we are leveraging next- and third-generation sequencing technologies to explore the role that eIF3 plays in the translation of mRNA transcripts across the genome in living cells. Second, we are employing biochemical tools to interrogate the molecular workings of eIF3 and its interaction with the ribosome. Finally, because eIF3 is in fact not one protein but a larger complex of several proteins, we are dissecting the specific contribution of each of these constituent proteins to the molecular roles of eIF3. Students working in my lab gain experience with a variety of approaches, including molecular biology techniques, protein expression and purification, in vitro biochemical assays, next- and third-generation sequencing approaches, and the computational analysis of large datasets.

All applicants will be interviewed.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Animals in urban and suburban environments are exposed to a diverse array of anthropogenic stressors including salts, heavy metals, artificial light, and noise. Although these environmental changes are often correlated with one another, investigations of their effects on organisms are often considered in isolation. Frogs have long been considered indicator species of environmental changes and it is important to understand how their development and behavior are affected by man-made stressors. Tadpoles in particular are known to be sensitive to aquatic pollutants. As adults, noise and light increase levels of stress hormones. However, the potential interactions of these various anthropogenic stressors on development have not been studied. We propose an experiment to study the interacting effects of salinity, heavy metals, light and noise on grey treefrog eggs, tadpoles and juveniles. In addition to monitoring growth and survival, we will preserve tadpoles and juveniles to examine stress hormones and gut microbiome diversity to understand how stressors combine to affect amphibian development.

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10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

The Pater lab is conducting research to understand the physiology of woody vines on the Preserve, including two native species and two non-native species. Data collection will take place across sites on the Preserve, including experimental plots at the field station. Students will sample plant material and measure photosynthesis and water potential in the field, and will also conduct microscopy and experiments in the lab.

Previous research experience is not required. Students should enjoy working outdoors and collaborating as part of a team to investigate ecological issues occurring on campus. The work can be physical and includes plant maintenance and transporting equipment on the Preserve.

All applicants will be interviewed.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Humans and microbes have a complex relationship. The advent of antibiotics allowed humans to fight pathogenic bacterial infections that threatened our livelihood. However, microbiome dysbiosis, the imbalance of symbiotic microbial populations in the body, can be caused by lifesaving antibiotics. We will use biochemical and biophysical techniques to characterize proteins from various pathogenic or symbiotic microbes, for example ones that aid in the spread of antibiotic-resistant genes. These studies help to provide further understanding of essential microbial processes at the molecular level. Students working in the lab will gain experience with gel electrophoresis, protein expression and purification, in vitro enzyme assays, and protein crystallization.

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8-week URSI: May 26–July 17

The Alliance for Diversity in Science and Engineering (ADSE) is a student group originally founded in 2018 at Vassar College as the first of only two undergraduate ADSE chapters in the country. Most chapters of ADSE are for graduate students. The mission of ADSE is to support Vassar students in STEM, particularly students who are from historically excluded groups. In previous active years, ADSE has brought several Vassar STEM alumni back on campus to talk with students and partnered with the Vassar After School Tutoring Program (VAST) to create a science outreach initiative. This proposed Summer Catalyst project aims to revive ADSE, and will involve innovating, designing, and implementing a year-long series of new/updated activities under ADSE that builds our scientific community based on Vassar student interests. The anticipated project will create regular opportunities for connection, professional development, and visibility of underrepresented voices in STEM. Importantly, it will establish a model for sustaining ADSE as a vibrant, inclusive hub that amplifies and supports diverse students’ scientific ambitions at Vassar.

Please email me to describe your interest in the project.

8-week URSI: May 26–July 17

Boronic acids have emerged as promising anchoring groups for dye molecules on TiO₂ surfaces in dye-sensitized solar cells. To further explore their potential, we evaluate the adsorption strengths of boronic acids on the TiO₂ rutile (110) surface. In our previous computational studies, we examined how functionalization with different substituents (methyl, phenyl, and 2-, 3-, 4-fluorophenyl) influences adsorption stability. These studies revealed that, on the clean rutile (110) surface, boronic acids preferentially adopt a dissociated bidentate binding mode, and adsorption is strengthened by phenyl and fluorophenyl substitution. However, adsorption was weakened in the presence of surface hydration. Building on this work, the proposed study will examine the role of surface oxygen vacancies, a common feature of the TiO₂ rutile (110) surface that can significantly alter adsorption behavior. This study is entirely computational and will use density functional theory to optimize structures and calculate binding energies. We will investigate boronic acid adsorption at multiple sites, including directly on the vacancy and on neighboring Ti rows. Both monodentate and bidentate binding modes, as well as molecular and dissociative configurations, will be considered to provide a comprehensive picture of adsorption mechanisms in defect-rich environments.

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8-week URSI: May 26–July 17

With this project we will synthesize a series of 1,2,3,4-tetrahydrocarbazoles (THC's) formed via a Borsche-Drechsel cyclization. The method consists of a one pot synthesis of a substituted phenylhydrazine hydrochloride and a substituted cyclohexanone in the presence of antimony trioxide as a catalyst in methanol solvent at reflux temperatures. Products will be isolated, purified and characterized by 1-H NMR, 13-C NMR, GC/MS, IR, elemental analysis and X-ray crystallography. The THC's will then be employed to synthesize metal coordination complexes with early transition metals to investigate and tune the binding mode of the THC ligand to the metal center.

Please email me to describe your interest in the project.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Our group recently discovered and has been developing a new organic reaction which allows for the efficient synthesis of β-naphthols from easily accessible epoxy alcohols. The mechanism by which this process occurs has not yet been studied; neither have a number of potentially interesting physical properties nor potential biological applications. Using various techniques spanning synthetic and analytical chemistry, this project aims to begin answering these important and fundamental questions, as well as to explore potential modifications to our existing reaction that may improve its current efficacy. Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, selective isotopic labelling, crystallization, and preparative-scale organic synthesis will be the main techniques employed over the course of the summer, very likely culminating in a publication in an academic journal.

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10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Highly substituted phenolic ethers are common structural motifs in a number of natural products, medicinal agents, and synthetic compounds. Many contain quaternary carbon atoms or chiral centers, or both. The Mitsunobu reaction is famously robust for synthetically establishing chiral centers, but it fails when any of the substrates are tertiary. This is a well-known drawback to the traditional version of this reaction, but when concentrated reaction mixtures are exposed to high-frequency (40 KHz) sound waves, they proceed cleanly in a matter of hours. The resulting highly substituted ethers can be demonstrated as synthetic intermediates towards natural products, studied as medicinal agents themselves, or probed for compatibility with minor structural changes. NMR Spectroscopy, infrared spectroscopy, and proper synthesis technique will be emphasized, potentially resulting in publication in an academic journal.

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10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Semiconductors are the foundation of modern technology due to their bulk material properties, but it is often the quality and composition of their surface that dictates device performance and functionality. Molecular modification of a semiconductor surface can passivate defects to enhance photovoltage, install co-catalysts that facilitate reactions of interest, or impart hydrophobicity that protects against corrosion. Multifunctional surfaces that contain two or more different molecules can allow finer tuning of surface properties than their homogenous counterparts or enable multiple parallel surface processes. The goal of this project is to leverage the light-absorbing properties of semiconductor materials to drive simultaneous photoreductive and photooxidative electrografting reactions and achieve tunable dual-functionalized surfaces. Students involved in this project will gain skills in thin-film fabrication, spectroscopy, and electroanalytical chemistry.

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10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

This project seeks to design and synthesize a new class of catalysts based on group 13 metals in the +1 formal oxidation state. These novel compounds are predicted to have unusual electronic structures, which will enable a variety of chemical bond activations that are typically mediated by more expensive, and oftentimes toxic, transition metals. The inherent differences between main group (p-block) and transition (d-block) metals may also lead to the discovery of unknown complementary reactivity. Successful efforts will open up new fields of chemical research in catalysis using nontoxic, earth-abundant metals. Group members will be trained to handle highly reactive molecules using Schlenk techniques and a nitrogen-filled glovebox to avoid oxygen and water. Compounds synthesized in lab will be analyzed using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), UV-Visible, and infrared (IR) spectroscopies, as well as by X-ray diffractometry. Computational methods such as density functional theory (DFT) will also be used to help us gain a deeper understanding of the electronic structures and reactivities of these new chemical compounds.

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10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

The proposed research describes the development of iron complexes for regioselective and catalytic C(sp3)-H bond activation. This will be achieved by synthesizing a novel tridentate CNC-pincer ligand containing a central pyridyl moiety and two strongly donating cyclic (alkyl)(amino)carbene arms to yield reactive iron complexes. The strong field carbenes of this ligand platform will stabilize low spin electronic configurations for iron across multiple oxidation states, providing access to two-electron reactivity more commonly associated with expensive second- and third-row transition metals. These complexes will be tested in stoichiometric bond activations, which will be followed by the discovery of iron-catalyzed dehydrogenations of alkanes. Moreover, it is proposed that these C-H bond activations will be further elaborated to include the direct functionalization of petroleum-derived feedstocks. Primary alkylsilanes and alkylboranes will be synthesized from simple alkanes using new methodologies based on iron, the most abundant and least expensive transition metal.

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10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

The human gut microbiota is required for degradation of otherwise indigestible dietary polysaccharides, often known as fiber. The Bacteroides are prominent contributors to polysaccharide degradation in the gut and the model organism for understanding this process is the bacteria Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron (B. theta). All polysaccharides enter B. theta through TonB-dependent transporters. This transport is energized via pairing to a protein complex made up of the proteins TonB, ExbB, and ExbD. This project focuses on characterizing the eleven TonB proteins found in B. theta. Using fundamental biochemical techniques, students will express and purify 1-2 TonB proteins and then use techniques such as x-ray protein crystallography and circular dichroism to characterize the structure of these proteins. This understanding of the structure of various TonB proteins will allow us to better understand the role of these different proteins and why some seem to be more important for polysaccharide degradation than others. This is an ideal project for a student interested in biochemistry and protein structure. Students may also have limited opportunities to work directly with B. theta during this project.

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10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

The human gut microbiota is required for degradation of otherwise indigestible dietary polysaccharides, often known as fiber. The Bacteroidetes are prominent contributors to polysaccharide degradation in the gut and the model organism for understanding this process is the bacteria Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron (B. theta). Each type of fiber is targeted by a distinct protein complex encoded by a polysaccharide utilization locus (PUL). Each PUL is regulated by a transcriptional regulator that allows the protein complex to be expressed only in the presence of the target polysaccharide. This project focuses on characterizing one type of transcriptional regulator called an anti-sigma factor that is hypothesized to interact with the transporter of the corresponding PUL. Using fundamental biochemical techniques, students will express and purify an anti-sigma factor and transporter pair. Students will then use techniques such as native PAGE and isothermal titration calorimetry to measure the interaction between the pair of proteins. This understanding of the interaction between key PUL proteins will allow us to better understand how to manipulate expression of polysaccharide targeting proteins. This is an ideal project for a student interested in biochemistry and protein function.

Submit the form and I will contact applicants.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Tau is a neuronal protein essential for microtubule stabilization and organization. In its pathogenic state, tau assembles into insoluble aggregates and filaments characteristic of neurodegenerative tauopathies, including Alzheimer’s disease, chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), and frontotemporal dementia. Although recent work shows that distinct tauopathies produce structurally different filaments, the mechanisms driving their formation and functional consequences remain unclear.

This project will use atomic force microscopy to examine tau filaments in vitro, focusing on differences in mechanical properties and intermolecular interactions. By characterizing these biophysical features, the research contributes to the lab’s broader goal of understanding tau aggregation and its role in brain pathology.

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10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

If you looked at the data from 100 different behavioral experiments, chances are that you'd encounter about 100 different ways of recording that data. Researchers have their own preferences about file formats, naming conventions, folder organization, and documentation. This adds a lot of friction to data sharing, a core component of the open science movement. In this project, we will work on refining and implementing a data standard called Psych-OS (https://github.com/psych-DS/psych-DS) for experiments conducted with jsPsych (https://www.jspsych.org). jsPsych is a widely used platform for conducting behavioral research, and adding Psych-OS support will help advance the goal of creating a shared data standard across behavioral research. This is a continuation of existing work and our goal this summer is to finalize the tools and make a public release. Work is likely to focus on a combination of technical development and community outreach through writing technical documentation and tutorials. One exciting consequence of implementing a data standard is that data becomes machine-readable, enabling new technologies to be built on top of the standard. Depending on the student's interests and project timeline, we may explore this facet of the overall project as well.

Qualifications: This project will involve a combination of conceptual work related to experimental methods and programming work to implement the data standard in jsPsych. jsPsych is written in JavaScript. While previous experience with JavaScript is not required, students should be comfortable with programming in at least one language. Experience with research methods, collaborative code development (e.g., GitHub), and JavaScript are all benefits.

Submit the form and I will contact applicants.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

When we design a new behavioral experiment, we typically follow in the footsteps of researchers who have done related work. We might use the same or very similar kinds of measures, tasks, and manipulations. This means there is a lot of opportunity for shared experiment building, where researchers, in theory, don't need to reimplement (e.g., program from scratch) experiments that have already been done. But the reality is that this is challenging to do for a variety of reasons, and most experimenters either build experiments from scratch or try to find an existing implementation that is very close and modify it. In this project, we'll continue working on tools that my lab has developed to make it easy for researchers to create shareable, open-source modules for assembling experiments. Our primary focus will be development related to https://www.github.com/jspsych/jspsych and https://www.github.com/jspsych/jspsych-timelines. Depending on the interests of the students, we may also explore other facets of the broader jsPsych project, such as AI-augmented experimental design and mobile app compatibility.

This project can support up to three students for the summer. I have always enjoyed working with rising sophomores through Grand Challenges, and I would be happy to add one if there is a good match.

Qualifications: This project will involve a combination of conceptual work related to experimental methods and programming work to implement the data standard in jsPsych. jsPsych is written in JavaScript. While previous experience with JavaScript is not required, students should be comfortable with programming in at least one language. Experience with research methods, collaborative code development (e.g., GitHub), and JavaScript are all benefits.

Submit the form and I will contact applicants.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Assessment of learning is a challenging and often frustrating endeavor. Learning is multifaceted, and assessments like exams and quizzes rarely capture the whole picture of what a student has learned. As a simple example, an answer to a multiple choice question usually doesn't reveal why the student got it wrong — or why they got it right! Since any one approach to assessment rarely grants a complete picture of learning, educators make use of a variety of assessment strategies in hopes of getting a fuller picture of what a student has learned. In this URSI project, we will explore the capabilities of large language models (LLMs) for assessing student learning in ways that complement existing approaches. In particular, we will be working with the team at CourseKata (https://www.coursekata.org) to create a LLM-powered assessment for portions of the introduction to statistics curriculum that are heavily focused on conceptual understanding. During the summer, we will build and pilot test assessments that engage students in conversation about course topics and deliver individualized questions based on responses. Our end goal is to design and implement an experiment that will run on their platform during the Fall 2026 semester in participating instructor courses.

Qualifications: This project will require a combination of experimental methods, user experience design, and technical implementation. Strong programming skills are not required, but willingness to work on technical problems independently is essential.

Submit the form and I will contact applicants.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Last summer (2025) the HARPER project continued work begun in the summer of '22 aimed at constructing a humanoid robot capable of perceiving and acting effectively in the world, including in interaction with humans. Last summer we completed work on version 3.0 of a robot arm, from shoulder to fingertips. Unlike previous versions, this version is robust, powerful, and has remarkable dexterity, and we are ready to further develop the software systems for controlling the robot, beginning with the arm (if funding permits, other students will be continuing work to develop the rest of the body). Last summer we consolidated design of a software framework that can be adapted, refined, and tuned to control the full robot. We were able to do some very preliminary testing of low-level elements of the framework once we had the full arm assembled at the very end of URSI. This summer the task will be to begin the full development of an autonomous control system for the arm and hand, which are by far the most complex parts of the body to control. Previous URSI groups have created a basic vision system with limited object recognition and a speech-to-text, text-to-speech package that allows local, small-language-model interaction with the robot. These systems are not integrated at present; the vision system and language system cannot share information. There are thus two distinct sub-problems to be solved on the software side this summer: (1) integrating sensory information with language information for establishing control, and (2) developing the perception-action-world closed-loop control software for directing the arm's movements in a useful way (reaching to grab objects, using tools, etc.). Prior expertise in either kind of software development is not required (these are specialized skills), but a foundation for learning based in core concepts in cognitive science and computer science will be important for success. Students working on this project are also required to attend periodic lunch meetings to discuss the ethical and moral issues that builders of artificial intelligence systems, especially robots, should be aware of as they make decisions about system capabilities.

All applicants will be interviewed.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

This project is a continuation of work begun in the summer of '22 when we built a full-scale humanoid robot (torso only) to be used in student and faculty research projects and in classroom demonstrations. Our ultimate goal is to create a GitHub repository containing the full specifications for both hardware and software of a humanoid robot that can be built by a small robotics lab or even a hobbyist for far less than a comparable commercial robot. Our 2022 effort was the first humanoid robot project at Vassar, and, although it was used to complete a senior thesis, the robot had only the simplest of control systems, none of them autonomous. It also proved to be fragile and difficult to repair. In the summer of 2023 we began a completely new version 2.0, taking advantage of what we had learned from building the first version, and by the middle of the summer of '24, it became clear that version 2.0 was also sub-optimal. Last summer, 2025, we finally found engineering solutions to the most difficult problems (the lower arm, especially the hand), and we completed a full arm, from shoulder to fingertips, that is robust, powerful, and has remarkable dexterity. This summer the goal is to complete the full torso that can later be attached to a mobile platform (that is a complex set of problems in its own right and is unlikely to happen this summer). This will require (1) replicating the arm for the other side of the body, (2) completing the design of a torso to which the arms will attach (some preliminary work was done on this problem last summer), (3) developing a system for tactile and proprioceptive sensing in critical areas of the body, and (4) if time permits, developing a neck and head design for later implementation. This work will focus primarily on the mechanical and electrical engineering of the body but will at times require some simple coding during performance testing. Students working on this project will be expected to collaborate with students working on software development as part of the overall systems integration task. Students working on this project are also required to attend several lunch meetings during the summer to discuss the ethical and moral issues that builders of artificial intelligence systems, especially robots, should be aware of as they make decisions about system capabilities.

All applicants will be interviewed.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has seen significantly increased funding under the presidency of Donald Trump. This, along with deportation quotas and changes in attitudes about immigration, have further pushed ICE into more aggressive and potentially violent enforcement tactics. Impacted communities and activist groups have been increasingly working to understand changing ICE operations and organizing to oppose them. Our URSI project aims to use DHS data collected by the Deportation Data Project and other groups to better understand the changes in ICE practices and impacts on people and communities across the U.S. To frame our work as supportive of immigrant communities and impacted populations, we will engage with community organizations, legal advocacy groups, and policy advocacy groups. Finally, we will investigate the historical and current uses of data and data-driven technologies by ICE and immigration law enforcement agencies. Particularly, we aim to understand specifically how ICE practices have changed under the current administration, as well as the ways they have stayed the same as in the past. Our goal is to help inform ongoing legal and community responses to ICE violence.

8-week URSI: May 26–July 17

The last major volcanic eruption in California occurred on May 22, 1915, when Lassen Peak exploded. While currently listed as very high-threat volcano by the USGS, The Lassen Volcanic Complex (LVC) remains an understudied system, particularly with respect to the architecture of the present and fossil magmatic plumbing system and the initiation mechanisms that lead to explosive eruptions. A challenge to overcome in studying these processes at LVC is that activity over the past ~ 800,000 years occurred in three epochs: the Rockland Caldera Complex (~800 – 600 ka), Brokeoff Volcano (~600 – 350 ka), and the modern Lassen domefield (~300 ka – present). This project will begin with 2 weeks of field work in the active landscapes surrounding the LVC to map and sample tephra from explosive eruptions of all three epochs. The remaining 8 weeks will be spent at Vassar, conducting textural analysis and analyzing the geochemistry of crystals, glasses, and trapped volatiles. Field work will involve hiking at altitude and carrying supplies and samples in a variety of weather conditions. Lodging will be a mixture of hotel stays with multi-day stretches tent camping. Roundtrip airfare, travel, and food and lodging while in the field will be provided.

Submit the form and I will contact applicants.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Deltas route water through complex channel networks, distinct ecogeomorphic zones, and transitory storage areas, thereby altering water chemistry before discharge. Obtaining accurate flux estimates to the ocean are troublesome, especially where deltas intercept much of the flow, such as in the Arctic. Applying nutrient spiraling concepts to channel networks extracted from remotely sensed imagery provides a useful approach to estimating flux in complicated deltaic systems. However, it is uncertain how the spatial resolution associated with different satellite imagery affects the quality of the extracted channel networks and flux calculations. We aim to find out how spatial resolution affects estimates of nutrient flux through deltas. We will create binary masks of river deltas using different products with unique spatial resolution. Specifically, we will obtain Landsat, Sentinel and Planet images to test the role of satellite resolution on resolving small river delta channels. We hypothesize that the sensitivity of flux estimates to spatial resolution decreases with increasing delta size because larger deltas retain a greater proportion of total discharge in channels wider than a given sensor’s minimum resolvable width.

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10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Governments and companies are exploring new Ocean-Based Climate Solutions that aim to engineer the ocean's natural systems to store more carbon. One proposed solution is Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement (OAE), where alkaline minerals, effectively "antacids", are added to the ocean to facilitate CO2 uptake. Key questions remain: Would it work? And how would marine organisms respond? Of particular interest are organisms that make shells; if shell growth increases when alkalinity is added, then OAE would be less effective and fundamental changes to the ocean's carbon cycle may result. In this project, we will grow foraminifera in the laboratory under different OAE scenarios. Foraminifera are small, shell-building marine protists that live in the plankton. In addition to testing how foraminifera calcification changes, we will determine how the addition of mineral particles to the ocean would affect foraminifera survival and sinking rates. This is a key question for the future functioning of the carbon cycle, and the future of atmospheric CO2. This project will involve 4 weeks of laboratory work and training at Vassar and 6 weeks of laboratory and field work at the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences (BIOS). Field activities will include regular plankton collection excursions with nets on a small 26' boat. We will conduct a wide range of laboratory tasks including manipulation of seawater chemistry, seawater chemistry measurements, various microscopy techniques, processing of plankton tows, and tasks associated with culturing foraminifera, which involves using small paintbrushes and pipettes to feed, manipulate, and photograph individuals of 0.1-0.5 mm in size. All expenses associated with field work will be paid for, including travel, housing, and food. We will also do science communication and community engagement work in the field. Students will work on a team of ~8 researchers from Vassar, NOAA, BIOS, and Oregon State University, including other undergraduates, graduate students, and professors, all of whom will be passionate about ocean critters and creating a safe and inclusive environment in the field.

Submit the form and I will contact applicants.

10 weeks: June 1–August 8 (Travel to Bermuda June 28–August 8)

We interact with slender flexible structures every day, from phone charging cables and shoelaces to spaghetti noodles and dental floss. Similar structures appear throughout nature, medicine, and engineering at almost every length scale. Examples in nature include DNA strands and plant tendrils, while medical examples include surgical sutures and soft snake-like surgical robots. In engineering, slender carbon nanotubes have a variety of uses in microelectronics and materials science, and the mathematical models used to analyze these nanoscale structures can also describe the shapes of long deep-sea fiber optic cables. In this project, we will analyze the stability of these slender structures using a combination of mathematical modeling, differential equations, and computational tools. Students will investigate how bending, twisting, stretching, and external forces influence whether a structure maintains its shape or suddenly buckles, coils, or snaps into a new configuration. Although this is a classical problem in mathematics, with roots tracing back to work done by Euler in 1744, we will take a modern approach using ideas from a branch of engineering known as optimal control theory. Optimal control is typically used to guide systems that evolve in time—for example, computing the flight path of an airplane that minimizes fuel consumption or heating a building while minimizing energy use. In this project, we will adapt these methods to determine if a given shape of a slender structure minimizes elastic potential energy. Along the way, students will gain experience connecting mathematical analysis with physical intuition and will contribute to developing new tools for studying stability in systems that are both mathematically rich and practically important.

Submit the form and I will contact applicants.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Statistical, mathematical, and computational methods have become increasingly important for evaluating the properties of proposed redistricting maps and for supporting broader voting rights analysis. In particular, Markov chain methods for creating ensembles of plans are a very effective tool for both detecting and combating gerrymandering and advances in ballot generating models allow these analyses to be extended to investigate multi-member districts and ranked choice ballots. This project will focus on applying state-of-the-art sampling methods to analyze tradeoffs between districting criteria and evaluate policy proposals. Interested students will also have opportunities to explore the theoretical properties of the Markov chains and relevant graph-theoretic questions.

Please email me to describe your interest in the project.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Designing optimal tournament, league, and recreational play systems for doubles events in racket sports is a complex problem that requires balancing several competing fairness criteria, as well as satisfying practical constraints including time and facility limits. For example, one possible desirable feature is that given a ranking of the strengths of the players, the final standings should be close to that ranking in expectation, but this conflicts with another commonly desired feature that the individual matches should be as competitive as possible. Students working on this project will use simulations, Markov chains, and other quantitative methods to evaluate different competitive structures with respect to these criteria, with a goal of determining optimal systems and developing an algorithm to help organizers and players select appropriate options. Students with an interest in probability will also have the opportunity to prove theoretical results about these models, including giving exact characterizations of win percentages and expected final rankings.

Please email me to describe your interest in the project.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

During this URSI project, I will mentor participants as they learn mathematical and programming techniques for modeling natural phenomena such as disease spread, ecological systems, behavioral response, and optimal control of such systems. Split into two, this project starts with daily lessons, problem sets, and conversations where we explore potential applications, techniques, and theory. The second half will involve participants coming up with their OWN project ideas, and then spending the rest of the program seeking answers to key research questions related to the students' interests. In the past, we've modeled addiction behavior, vector-borne and water-borne diseases, coral reef populations, and colony collapse disorder of honey bees to name a few. 

Please email me to describe your interest in the project.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

In collaboration with Bucknell University and Macalester College (1 faculty and 2 students from each institution), this research team will explore the landscape of statistics & data science education at liberal arts colleges in the U.S., and will compare these findings to a 2003 analysis. They will also compile and create an open access dataset to share with the statistics & data science education community. A primary goal of this work is to give faculty at colleges across the country useful data stories that will help them advocate for greater support of their statistics and data science programs.

Submit the form and I will contact applicants.

8-week URSI: May 26–July 31

Maternal immune activation (MIA) occurs when a pregnant mammal’s immune system is activated by various triggers, including infection. While this immune response is beneficial and protective for the mother, it is a form of early life stress for offspring and can have prolonged effects on the structure and function of offspring brains. For example, MIA can result in impaired spatial learning and memory and is associated with an increased risk of neurodevelopmental disorders. Whether the lasting effects of MIA contribute to age-related neurodegeneration remains unclear. In this project, we will use a rodent model of MIA to explore the effects of developmental immune challenge on the neurodegenerative disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). MIA and control offspring with and without genetic predisposition for ALS will be assessed for ALS-like changes to motor ability and neurodegenerative changes to the brain across aging. These analyses will reveal the effects of MIA on neurodegenerative inflammation and pathology and how genetic factors might contribute to these effects. The proposed project has important implications for the treatment of infectious, inflammatory, and neurodegenerative diseases and provides a unique opportunity for multidisciplinary training in biology, neuroscience, and immunology.

Submit the form and I will contact applicants.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

During this project, we will implement a series of experiments for use in the newly approved laboratory section of Modern Physics (PHYS 200). The student working on this project will be responsible for two main activities: (1) building a set of new experiments, including a Michelson interferometer, a photoelectric-effect demonstration, a particle-in-a-box experiment, and atomic spectra; and (2) writing the handouts that explain the activities and objectives of each experiment.

All applicants will be interviewed.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Topological insulators are a special kind of material that show topological phases when excited at the correct frequencies. In the last few years, my research group has focused on the one-dimensional mechanical topological insulators. In this project, we will explore the properties of two-dimensional topological insulators. The devices will be fabricated by using 3D printing after a careful numerical design. The ideal candidate is a rising senior with a double major in physics and math.

All applicants will be interviewed.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Whenever a physical system possesses symmetry, clever use of the symmetry can greatly simplify computations. This is true even when the symmetry is approximate rather than exact; in such cases, the broken symmetry provides a powerful framework for computing corrections to the symmetric answer. In this project, we will examine a set of simple particle physics models which have a large underlying symmetry called supersymmetry. The particles we observe in our real world are not supersymmetric, and so if this underlying structure exists in nature it must be broken---only measurable at tiny distance scales that are out of current reach of experiment. Nonetheless, broken supersymmetry provides a powerful theoretical framework for simplifying computations; in particular, aiding us in making predictions about the behavior of the particles even when they are strongly interacting, and so difficult to analyze with other methods. Our goal is to classify and study the different possible behaviors (phases) of particles and forces which can arise from a specific set of models with N=2 supersymmetry. Students will examine which methods of supersymmetry-breaking lead to particle interactions that resemble those we see in nature.

Please email me to describe your interest in the project.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Our theoretical description of particles and their interactions depends heavily on the typical energy of the system. These descriptions are expressed in the language of `Quantum Field Theory' (QFT); the QFT for a given system at low energies can look very different from that of the same system at high energies. In particular, some of the particles in the high energy theory can stop interacting with the rest at low energies, in a process known as decoupling. When this happens, the low-energy QFT acquires new `accidental' symmetries. Symmetries provide powerful constraints, so the appearance of more symmetry means we have a better theoretical handle on the particle dynamics. This motivates the goal of this project: to gain a deeper and more systematic understanding of when and why these new symmetries appear. We will focus on examples where geometric tools can be used to address this problem: cases in which the high- and low-energy QFTs have a different number of spatial directions, so that their symmetries can be accounted for in terms of geometry and topology. The student will apply these tools to examples where decoupling and accidental symmetries are known to occur.

Please email me to describe your interest in the project.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Over the last ten years, astronomers have gotten a lot better at observing real-world black holes. But what exactly are these objects? Unfortunately our theoretical understanding has a long way to go. Perhaps the greatest challenge is finding a detailed mathematical description which is consistent with both observation and a quantum theory of gravity. The goal of this project is to help bridge that gap, by improving methods to build black hole and black hole-like solutions in theories consistent with quantum gravity. We will focus on a particular method for generating solutions to differential equations, called the dressing method. The dressing method was originally applied to General Relativity in four-dimensional spacetime, to study rotating black holes. But in principle it also works in higher-dimensional theories of gravity, including leading candidates for unifying gravity with quantum theory, though the method has not been as widely used in these settings. We will be developing the dressing method into a more systematic tool, starting by reproducing known black hole and black hole-like solutions arising in low-energy limits of quantum gravity. In the process, the student will learn about General Relativity, black holes, and applications of subjects like linear algebra and group theory.

Please email me to describe your interest in the project.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

This project will have a student analyze simulated halos of gas surrounding galaxies of a similar mass as our Milky Way Galaxy. This halo plays a vital role in regulating the evolution of the central galaxy by facilitating various energetic inflow and outflow processes. Only recently are direct observations of these halos possible, thus much of our understanding results from modeling these environments. The model used to create this simulated data is able to capture the ever-evolving chemistry that develops within this chaotic environment. The analysis will investigate the role of magnetic fields and turbulent feedback in this gaseous halo and how they influence its properties, something that remains unknown for these masses of galaxies. The student will work on modifying current and creating new Python code to plot various properties such as the magnetic field strengths, gas motions, and its temperature. Upon completing this project, the student will become more proficient in the Python programming language, learn how to navigate command line interfaces, learn about galaxy characteristics, and how they are influenced by the physics considered in the model.

All applicants will be interviewed.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Ultrafast lasers produce pulses of light that are less than 1 picosecond (A millionth of a millionth of a second) in duration. These remarkable light sources allow for investigations of extremely short-lived phenomena in solid materials. Of particular interest to my research group are the conduction of heat and the propagation of ultrasound in novel nanostructures. In some cases we can generate and detect ultrasonic vibrations that are roughly 1000 times higher frequency than traditional medical or industrial ultrasound. Students that work on the project will get experience with techniques such as laser experiments, fabrication of thin metal films, atomic force microscopy, and computational modeling of vibrational and electromagnetic waves.

Submit the form and I will contact applicants.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Mice, like humans, are a social species which engages in various social behaviors. Our lab has shown that FVB mice lacking the Fmr1 gene, a model of the human Fragile X Syndrome, however, are hypersocial. This is coupled with enhanced learning of a task for a social reward, raising the possibility that enhanced valuation and/or motivation for social interaction could underlie their hypersocial phenotype. Our lab has tested the hypothesis that hypersocial mice find social interaction more rewarding, but negative data from that experiment shows that this may not be a factor. Furthermore, data from last year’s URSI project suggests that manipulating motivational drive for social interaction modifies male, but not female task acquisition rates, and more interestingly, fails to alter those rates in hypersocial mice altogether. This URSI project is a continuation of the work testing this hypothesis and will continue to assess whether manipulating motivational drive for social interaction impacts acquisition of the instrumental task in Fmr1-deficient mice. This project involves animal handling, behavioral testing, data processing, and preparation of a manuscript for publication.

Submit the form and I will contact applicants.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

With the increased use of GLP1 medications it is necessary to understand the effects these drugs might be happening on all functions in the body. Astrocytes are known to have GLP1 receptors, however little is known about their function. Astrocytes play a critical role in bringing metabolic resources into the brain that are particularly important for attention, learning and memory. The current project will explore the expression patterns of GLP1 receptors throughout the brain and understand if these receptors change with chemogenetic astrocyte activation. Astrocyte activity has been shown to greatly increase anerobic glycolysis in astrocytes leading to lactate production which we have previously shown can improve learning and memory. This work will explore whether the GLP1 pathway could play a role in regulating these metabolic astrocyte changes.

Submit the form and I will contact applicants.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Astrocytes are star shaped cells in the brain that control blood flow, move resources into the brain and waste out of the brain, and provide other forms of support to make sure neuron activity is regulated and maintained. In particular, astrocytes provide support at synapses, or the point of connection in between neurons that are modified with learning, memory and attention. We have seen that glycogen in astrocytes is a ready source of energy during learning and memory. The current studies will examine whether glycogen is also critical for attention. We will specifically target glycogen breakdown in the astrocytes and assess the effects on sustained attention. This basic science will help us find the potential function of astrocytes in attention which can help us understand attentional deficits in neuropsychological disorders such as ADHD, schizophrenia, and Alzheimer's disease.

Submit the form and I will contact applicants.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

Internalizing mental health disorders (e.g., depression and anxiety) have increased among college students, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time, demand for services at college counseling centers has risen, limiting access to care. Given the high comorbidity between depression and anxiety and the constrained capacity of counseling services, interventions that target transdiagnostic processes – such as emotion dysregulation – may reduce symptoms across both conditions with fewer psychotherapy sessions. Moreover, because digital programs can be delivered at scale, a digital skills-based intervention focused on improving emotion regulation may not only expand access to care for college students who are unable to obtain services, but also provide preventative care. The established, evidence-based treatment, dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), was developed to target emotion dysregulation by teaching patients several adaptive skills to practice in relevant contexts. The present project will involve developing a digital, DBT-informed skills program for college students, with the goal of reducing symptoms of depression and anxiety.

Submit the form and I will contact applicants.

10-week URSI: May 26 – July 31

This project investigates mindful movement strategies as a means of building resilience, with a focus on their long-term effects and broader implications for well-being among women. Stress levels among U.S. college students have increased substantially in recent years, with young women experiencing a disproportionate burden. This trend represents a significant public health concern. Data from the National Institute of Mental Health (2024) indicate that young women are more likely than their male peers to experience anxiety and depression. Addressing these disparities requires targeted research on effective resilience-building interventions.

Resilience is commonly defined as the capacity for effective coping, emotional regulation, and adaptation in response to stress (Bonanno, 2004; Masten, 2007; Skodol, 2010; Steinhardt & Dolbier, 2008; Tugade, 2011). Building on prior findings from The Resilience Laboratory, this study aims to extend evidence that participation in structured mind-body programs (yoga, mindfulness, breathwork) can enhance women’s resilience by reducing anxiety, depression, and loneliness while increasing self-confidence, self-awareness, and empowerment. This project will investigate the mechanisms of such practices for enhancing well-being. By advancing the scientific study of embodied learning, this research will generate new insights and expand access to resilience-building practices within the broader community.

Please email me to describe your interest in the project.

10-week URSI: May 27 – August 1

The Preserve's Conservation Action Plan establishes conservation targets, outlines monitoring plans, and identifies threats that our ecological communities are facing in a changing climate. By tracking important indicators we are able to evaluate the health of ecological communities and understand how they are changing over time. We implement management interventions to ensure that the indicators of ecological health for these communities is moving in a positive trajectory. This URSI project will focus on resurveying the vegetation and soils at permanent plots in our forested communities. We will work to link our findings to management interventions that will improve the resiliency of the Preserve's forests. Students will also have the opportunity to assist with monitoring of other ongoing restoration projects on the Preserve Students will have the opportunity to learn a wide range of field sampling techniques and restoration strategies. This position will provide an excellent opportunity for any student interested in pursuing conservation biology, restoration ecology, botany, natural resource management and/or ecology as a career.

Submit the form and I will contact applicants.

10-week URSI: May 27 – July 31