Undergraduate Research at UNL

Project READERS

Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools

Program Coordinator: Michelle Howell Smith

Start Date: Summer and/or Fall

Hours Per Week: 14 - 20

Project READERS is a large-scale experimental design response-to-intervention study that explores various forms of professional development for teachers in rural schools.

Undergraduate Research Assistants in the Project READERS lab will gain experience in coding video data, los and other documents for quantitative analysis. There is also an opportunity to code transcripts of interviews for qualitative analysis. This experience would be ideal for any education or social science major, especially someone interested in going to graduate school.

Biomedical Research in Neuronal Cell Death

School of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences

Faculty Advisor: Rodrigo Franco

Start Date: June or September

Paid or Volunteer: Either

Hours Per Week: 10 hrs per week in Academic year, 20 hrs per week in summer

The laboratory of Dr. Rodrigo Franco at the School of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences is looking for a UCARE student with an interest in Biomedical Research.

The laboratory uses advanced cell biology, biochemistry and molecular biology approaches to understand the molecular mechanism involved in the etiology of diseases associated with neuronal cell death in the Central Nervous System.

Improving Classroom Management: The Boys Town Well-Managed Schools Project

Center for Child and Family Well-Being

Program Coordinator: Lori Synhorst

Faculty Advisor: Regina Oliver

Participate in on-going pilot studies and new research examining the outcomes of a universal classroom management program to improve student academic and behavioral outcomes.

The Center for Child and Family Well-being conducts research aimed at understanding and improving outcomes for youth with and at-risk for emotional and behavioral disorders served in educational and out-of home care settings.

In-Home Family Services

Center for Child and Family Well-Being

Program Coordinator: Lori Synhorst

Faculty Advisor: Kristin Duppong-Hurley

Get involved in an ongoing randomized clinical trial examining the effectiveness of a new intervention to improve family functioning, parenting skills, and child behavior via services delivered in the families home over 12-16 weeks.

The Center for Child and Family Well-being conducts research aimed at understanding and improving outcomes for youth with and at-risk for emotional and behavioral disorders served in educational and out-of home care settings.

On the Way Home

Center for Child and Family Well-Being

Program Coordinator: Lori Synhorst

Faculty Advisor: Alex Trout

Participate in an ongoing study evaluating the transition needs of youth with disabilities and their families as they transition into the home and community school settings following a stay in out-of-home care.

The Center for Child and Family Well-being conducts research aimed at understanding and improving outcomes for youth with and at-risk for emotional and behavioral disorders served in educational and out-of home care settings.

Mapping Nebraska: Sheldon Statewide

Art & Art History

Faculty Advisor: Elizabeth Ingraham

Start Date: June 1 for Summer 2013; September 1 for Fall and Spring Academic Year, 2013-2104

Paid or Volunteer: Paid

Hours Per Week: 20 hrs/week Summer; 10 hrs/week Fall and Spring Semesters

I’m a sculptor and textile artist working on a multi-media project called Mapping Nebraska. Part of my project will travel to a number of communities all over Nebraska in 2013-2014 as part of the Sheldon Museum’s Statewide program. I am producing site-specific textile constructions for each of these Sheldon Statewide venues and conducting community outreach.

Soybean stem borer biology and management

Entomology

Faculty Advisor: Robert Wright

Start Date: May 20

Hours Per Week: 40

Assist in studies to monitor soybean stem borer in soybean to determine their seasonal occurrence. Will require travel to commercial soybean fields in south central Nebraska, and work outdoors during the summer. Work with M. S. student in Entomology on their thesis research project. Vehicle provided for work travel. There will be opportunity for student to develop studies which support the overall project. Variable work schedule, some work after 5 p.m. possible. Usually 40 hours per work, but schedule is negotiable.

Active, Healthy, Walkable Community

Community and Regional Planning

Faculty Advisor: Yunwoo Nam

Paid or Volunteer: Paid

We are interested in students who are interested in Active, Livable, Sustainable Community. The physical and social environment of a neighborhood significantly affects the quality of life of a resident. In order to make Lincoln’s communities healthier and more active by improving opportunities, this project provides the creative approaches to identify community needs and problems. This project also attempts to improve and strengthen communities by directly engaging citizens in a community assessment process that helps them set appropriate neighborhood improvement goals.

Biomedical Device Design

Mechanical & Materials Engineering

Faculty Advisor: Jeff Hawks

Start Date: June or September (depending on applicant)

Paid or Volunteer: Paid

Hours Per Week: 10 during academic year, more during summer

Work on NASA related projects for the Human Exploration Group. Projects include automated chest tube insertion and non-invasive intracranial pressure monitoring.

Work includes data collection on lab experiments and prototype design, development and testing.

Food Process Automation

Mechanical & Materials Engineering

Faculty Advisor: Jeff Hawks

Start Date: September 2013

Paid or Volunteer: Paid

Hours Per Week: 10 during Academic year

Working on the design and analysis of various food manufacturing processes. Research on the automation of various process. Computational fluid dynamics will be used to analyze prototype design and performance as well as laboratory testing.

Systems Biology of Mercury Metabolism

School of Biological Sciences

Faculty Advisor: Hideaki Moriyama

Paid or Volunteer: Volunteer

Hours Per Week: 10

Specific aims include: 1) identifying mechanisms of metal capturing in biological macromolecules at the atomic level using the Protein Data Bank; 2) developing methods for classifying metabolic metal proteins using genomic information from the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI); and 3) reconstructing symbiotic systems to introduce interactive and non-interactive metabolism.

Why can bats fly when mice can’t?

School of Biological Sciences

Faculty Advisor: Hideaki Moriyama

Start Date: Fall 2013

Hours Per Week: 10

We do structural biology and bioinformatics approach to generate our working hypothesis and move to test that. This is a new study in the lab, you take the lead.

Ancient Carbon Isotope Records and Climate Change

Earth & Atmospheric Sciences

Faculty Advisor: Ross Secord

Start Date: Mid March - early April

Paid or Volunteer: Paid

Hours Per Week: Up to 20

Prepare samples for stable carbon isotope analysis in labs at UNL. Samples are from ancient soils collected in Wyoming and New Mexico. The goal is to identify intervals of carbon cycle disturbance, which often coincide with climate change. Applicants should be geoscience majors or have a strong interest in geology.

Civil War Washington: Hospitals and Medical Care

History

Faculty Advisor: Susan C. Lawrence

Start Date: May 15 or August 19 (depending on agreement)

Paid or Volunteer: Paid

Hours Per Week: 20 during the summer, 10 during the academic year

Civil War Washington is an interdisciplinary project hosted in the Center for Research in the Digital Humanities. I work specifically on the medical history of the Civil War in the city. Students will transcribe data from photographed pages of hospital registers held in the National Archives and Records Administration. The data must be transcribed into Excel spreadsheets with dedicated attention to accuracy. This will be the first time that transcribed data from Civil War hospitals will be made available to the public.

The New Munich Group of German Filmmaking

English

Faculty Advisor: Marco Abel

Start Date: Fall 2013

Paid or Volunteer: Paid

Hours Per Week: 10

I am beginning a new research project that focuses on the so-called New Munich Group (NMG) of German filmmaking, which emerged in the mid-1960s. It is a group of filmmakers that made films reminiscent of the early films of the French New Wave, by whom the NMG was influenced. For a host of cultural, political, and film historical reasons, these filmmakers have been forgotten by (German) film history.

Organic Solar Cell and Light Sensor

Mechanical and Materials Engineering/Electric Engineering

Faculty Advisor: Jinsong Huang

Start Date: ASAP

Paid or Volunteer: Paid

Hours Per Week: 10

Our project focuses on the application of plastic materials/organic dyes to generate efficient energy harvesting devices such as solar cells, thermal energy harvester, and sensitive sensors such as photodetectors.

We seek one to two undergraduate student researchers to help with all aspects of the research. Students with background in condensed matter physics, electric engineering or material chemistry are welcome to contact me to discuss your interest.

Missionary Activities in the Ottoman Empire

History

Faculty Advisor: Bedross Der Matossian

Paid or Volunteer: Paid

Hours Per Week: 8

The student will transcribe missionary documents from the early 20th century. These documents are taken from The American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM)- Country-Turkey- The student should be able to read handwritten letters and diaries in English.

Refugees During the Armenian Genocide 1915-1923

History

Faculty Advisor: Bedross Der Matossian

Paid or Volunteer: Volunteer

The task of the student will be to scan hundreds of documents from the Aram Andonian archives pertaining to the eyewitness accounts during the Armenian genocide. In addition, the student will transcribe archival documents in English from the Armenian Genocide Archives of the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem that is under my disposal.

Physicochemical Properties of Food Ingredients

The Food Processing Center

Faculty Advisor: Wajira Ratnayake

Start Date: July 22, 2013 or Fall Semester

Paid or Volunteer: Paid

Hours Per Week: Up to 12

The project would involve establishing the relationships between material density and processing functionalities of selected, plant based, food ingredients. Thermal properties of ingredients will be analyzed using a variety of analytical techniques, including instrumental and wet chemistry analyses. Prior laboratory experience, especially handling analytical instruments, is preferred but not essential. A very good knowledge in chemistry and physics is required.

Wind Energy Impacts on Soil Invertebrates

School of Natural Resources

Faculty Advisor: Craig R Allen

Start Date: Summer 2013

Paid or Volunteer: Paid

Hours Per Week: 10-20

This project will focus on assessing the effects of wind turbines on ground-dwelling and subterranean insects. The student will be involved in literature review and in field-based experiments in Southeastern Nebraska. Travel is required, as is a valid drivers license. We are primarily interested in the effects of low frequency vibration on soil-dwelling invertebrates.

Heart CAMP: Promoting Adherence to Exercise in Patients with Heart Failure

College of Nursing-Lincoln Campus

Faculty Advisor: Kathleen Duncan, PhD, RN

Start Date: Summer 2013 or Fall 2013

Paid or Volunteer: Paid

Hours Per Week: 20 during Summer, 10 during Academic Year

This project will involve working with the research team on a national study to help patients with heart failure adhere to an exercise program. We are seeking a current, undergraduate UNL nursing student with an interest in research. Activities will include assessing patients’ exercise behavior, assisting with education classes for patients and families, preparing materials for use by exercise coaches, and assisting the research team in delivery of the intervention. Occasional travel to the exercise facility in south Lincoln may be required.

Care Transitions for Patients with Chronic Illness

Nursing

Faculty Advisor: Lani Zimmerman, PhD

Start Date: Summer and/or Fall 2013

Paid or Volunteer: Paid

Hours Per Week: 20 in Summer, 10 in Academic Year

This project will study patients with chronic illnesses and their care transition from hospital to home. This study will primarily focus on self-management skills for patients categorized by cognition and patient activation level. Students chosen will be actively involved in the research process to improve patient outcomes in this population. Duties may include literature synthesis, data collection, data entry, and attending team meetings. The research may lead to manuscript publication as co-author.

Physical Activity Telehealth Intervention in Rural Patients after Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

College of Nursing

Faculty Advisor: Janet Nieveen

Start Date: June 2013

Paid or Volunteer: Paid

Hours Per Week: 20

This is a project that is testing the feasibility of delivering a behavior change intervention in the area of physical activity via a cell phone. Outcome measures include both objective and subjective physical activity measures. Data collection is currently in progress. The student would have experience in all research areas, including literature review, working with EXCEL files, data entry, creative development of presentations etc.

Toddler Sleep Project

Child, Youth and Family Studies

Faculty Advisor: Victoria Molfese

Start Date: June 1

Paid or Volunteer: Volunteer

Hours Per Week: 10

The Toddler Sleep Project studies sleep and self-regulation behaviors in children 2 ½ - 3 ½ years of age. Research teams visit the children's homes and the children and parents come into the lab to engage in several tasks. Students helping in the lab have opportunities to observe children's and parents behaviors, assist with data collection, date reduction and data entry, and to work with the research team on interpretation of study findings, collection of research literature, and manuscript writing.

Responsive Patterned Polymer Surfaces

Mechanical and Materials Engineering

Faculty Advisor: Lucia Fernandez-Ballester

Start Date: Summer or Fall 2013 (depending on type of application)

Paid or Volunteer: Paid

Hours Per Week: 10-20 (depending on type of application)

The objective of our project is to control the confinement and micro/nano-morphology of polymeric materials by using dynamic patterned surfaces of an elastic substrate. This research has potential applications in preparation of hierarchical micro/nano-structured materials and in the manufacture of responsive surfaces.

Fungi and Plant Disease Projects - Lab and/or Field

Plant Pathology

Faculty Advisor: Gerry Adams

Start Date: Summer or Fall

Paid or Volunteer: Paid

Hours Per Week: Flexible

Several projects are available and can be individually modified for interest and opportunity.

Plant Diseases - Fungal Pathogens and Crop Resistance

Plant Pathology

Faculty Advisor: James Steadman

Start Date: Summer or Academic Year

Paid or Volunteer: Paid

Hours Per Week: 20 during Summer, 10 during Academic Year

Research will involve using molecular and classical methods to characterize isolates of fungal pathogens (biotrophs & necrotrophs)to determine diversity in the populations. Using appropriate isolates to screen crop plant lines for resistance to the specific pathogen isolates. Molecular tools will be used to trace the movement of fungal pathogen isolates across states/countries. The lab has state, national and international goals to improve food security. Students, visiting scientists & technologists are from Brazil, Africa, Caribbean and the Americas.

Development of Microfluidic Devices for Cell Mechanics Research

Mechanical and Materials Engineering

Faculty Advisor: Sangjin Ryu

Start Date: Summer or Fall

Paid or Volunteer: Paid

Hours Per Week: 10-20 (depending on application type)

The objective of our project is to develop microfluidic devices for cell mechanics research. This research includes fundamental experimental research on droplet-based channel devices and microfluidic device development for fabrication of hydrogel substrates with stiffness gradient.

Assessing the Impact of 4-H Youth Development on Post-Secondary Decisions

4-H Youth Development

Faculty Advisor: Jill Walahoski

Start Date: Summer or Fall

Paid or Volunteer: Paid

This project will explore the connection between participation in 4-H and recruitment to post-secondary education. A student will provide leadership to the development, facilitation and analysis of mixed methods assessment that will include a study of former 4-H participants at varying points in their post-secondary education experience, including measuring the impact of 4-H on their initial selection and the retained influence of their 4-H experience as they enter the work force.

Decolonization: The Decline and Fall of Empires since WWII

History

Faculty Advisor: James Le Sueur

Start Date: Summer or Fall 2013

Paid or Volunteer: Paid

Hours Per Week: 15

Student will conduct research in Congressional Record and British Parliamentary debates, plus research in library and/or Eisenhower and Truman Library.

Exploring Below-Ground Biodiversity

Plant Pathology

Faculty Advisor: Thomas Powers

Start Date: Summer or Fall 2013

Paid or Volunteer: Paid

Hours Per Week: 10 hours/week during school year; 20 hours/week during summer

This research project explores the identity and diversity of soil organisms in native and agricultural plant communities across North America. We use light and scanning electron microscopy combined with DNA barcoding to characterize plant- parasitic nematodes.