A Celebration of Research and Creativity by College of Arts & Sciences Undergraduates
When: March 31, 2026
Time: 8:45 a.m. – 4:45 p.m.
Where: Student Union Room 270, Student Union Room 360, and Student Union Rooms 362 A, B, and C
Program
Block 1
Time: 8:45–10:00 a.m.
Session 1-1: Mathematical Structures and Computational Frontiers, Student Union 360
Time: 8:45–10:00 a.m.
Location: Student Union 360
The Search for Butson-Hadamard Matrices
Presenter: Nicolette Abate (Mathematics and Hispanic Studies)
Co-Presenter: Lucas Hinds (Undecided)
Faculty Advisor: Remus Nicoara
Optimizing Electron Reconstruction for a 10 TeV Muon Collider
Presenter: Jullian Watts (Physics)
Faculty Advisor: Tova Holmes
Evaluating the Practical Efficiency and Robustness of the Microsoft SBOM Tool in Supply-Chain Defense
Presenter: Leon Hoang (Computer Science)
Faculty Advisor: Doowon Kim
On ABP Estimates for a Class of Quasi-linear Elliptic Equations in Divergence Form and Applications
Presenter: Jack Peltier (Physics, Mathematics)
Faculty Advisor: Tuoc Phan
Loewner Hulls Driven by Two Complex Constants
Presenter: Megan Meece (Mathematics)
Co-Presenter: Daniel Primka (Undecided)
Faculty Advisor: Joan Lind
Session 1-2: Microbial Survival and Host–Pathogen Interactions, Student Union 362A
Time: 8:45–10:00 a.m.
Location: Student Union 362A
Persisting in the Saltiest Pond on Earth – Strategies for Extremophile Survival
Presenter: William Armstrong (Microbiology)
Faculty Advisor: Jill Mikucki
Evaluating the Role of Pga6 in Caspofungin-Mediated Unmasking in Candida albicans
Presenter: Lily Harper (Microbiology)
Faculty Advisor: Todd Reynolds
The Role of Lactobacillus spp. in Modulating Group B Streptococcus Colonization
Presenter: Natalie Heaton (Microbiology)
Faculty Advisor: Lindsey Burcham
Investigating the Role of Superoxide Dismutase in Group B Streptococcus Vaginal Colonization
Presenter: Ryan Mesler (Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology)
Faculty Advisor: Lindsey Burcham
Characterizing PhyR in the General Stress Response Pathway of Azospirillum Brasilense
Presenter: Om Patel (Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology)
Faculty Advisor: Gladys Alexandre
Session 1-3: Historical Memory, Identity, and Social Change, Student Union 362B
Time: 8:45–10:00 a.m.
Location: Student Union 362B
Handcrafting Heritage: Women’s Reform Work and the Construction of an Idealized American Past at the Pi Beta Phi Settlement School of Gatlinburg, Tennessee
Presenter: Margaret Martz (History, Women, Gender, and Sexuality)
Faculty Advisor: Jessica Wilkerson
Neutrality Under Fire: The ICRC, the Holocaust, and Postwar Moral Reckoning
Presenter: Tori McCall (History)
Faculty Advisor: Margaret Andersen
Punk Culture as a Tool of Resistance in Socialist Yugoslavia
Presenter: Bethany Moore (History)
Faculty Advisor: Victor Petrov
Women’s Work and Mountain Missions: Helen Dingman’s Missionary Theory in Appalachia
Presenter: Emma Patterson (History)
Faculty Advisor: Luke Harlow
Soul Food and the Civil Rights Movement
Presenter: Niev Strawn (Psychology)
Faculty Advisor: Jessica Freeman
Session 1-4: Creative Inquiry and Visual Expression, Student Union 362C
Time: 8:45–10:00 a.m.
Location: Student Union 362C
The Body Tells a Tale
Presenter: Kyndal Hazen (Art)
Faculty Advisor: Cole Hancock
Emotional Narratives
Presenter: Angelica Ruhbusch (Studio Art)
Faculty Advisor: Koichi Yamamoto
(Re)Building New(?) Green Chapel(s)
Presenter: Grace Sutt (Studio Art, Art History)
Faculty Advisor: Mary Laube
BFA Capstone: Research-based creative practice
Presenter: Emma Toledo (Studio Art)
Faculty Advisors: Sally Brogden, Amanda Evans
UT Girls Go to War
Presenter: Lily Beall (Political Science)
Faculty Advisor: Christopher Magra
Block 2
Time: 10:10–11:25 a.m.
Session 2-1: Molecular Architecture of Life: Genes, Cells, and Signaling, Student Union 360
Time: 10:10–11:25 a.m.
Location: Student Union 360
Analysis of RNA Targets of MCT TEL Proteins in the Arabidopsis Meristem
Presenter: Natalie Aldrich (Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology)
Faculty Advisor: Elena Shpak
The Role of PKM2 in Pancreatic β-Cell Function
Presenter: Aline Botelho Kobayashi (Nutrition)
Faculty Advisor: Ahmed Bettaieb
Admission Pathways Matter: Cesarean Outcomes Among Nulliparous, Term, Singleton, and Vertex Pregnancies at an Academic Medical Center
Presenter: Aastha Bhatt (Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology)
Faculty Advisor: Ryan McCormack
Membrane Regulation of the Intracellular Region of EphA2
Presenter: Henry Humble (Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology)
Faculty Advisor: Francisco Barrera
Recombination Contributes to Diversification of the Tailocin Locus in Xenorhabdus
Presenter: Matthew Traywick (Microbiology, Psychology, Neuroscience)
Faculty Advisor: Heidi Goodrich-Blair
Session 2-2: Ecology, Biodiversity, and Environmental Networks, Student Union 362A
Time: 10:10–11:25 a.m.
Location: Student Union 362A
Bean Beetle Oviposition: Analyzing the Effect of Bean Size on Female Bean Beetle Oviposition Preferences and Host Selectivity
Presenter: Elizabeth Brown (Neuroscience)
Faculty Advisor: Jessie Tanner
How Enrichment Aesthetic Shapes Zoo Visitor Perceptions of Chimpanzee Behavior and Conservation
Presenter: John Humphrey (Ecology and Evolutionary Biology)
Faculty Advisor: Elizabeth Derryberry
Density-Dependent Disruption of Plant–Mycorrhizal Networks by an Allelopathic Invader
Presenter: Sean O’Gorman (Ecology and Evolutionary Biology)
Faculty Advisor: Stephanie Kivlin
Moth Pollinator Abundances in Response to High and Low Fire Severity Burn Sites
Presenter: Orchid Bingham (Ecology and Evolutionary Biology)
Faculty Advisor: Mona Papes
Scaling Thermal Behavioral Ecology: DeepLabCut Machine Learning Models for Detecting Avian Thermoregulatory Responses
Presenter: Shomari Taylor (Computer Science)
Faculty Advisor: Elizabeth Derryberry
Session 2-3: Language, Media, and Cultural Representation, Student Union 362B
Time: 10:10–11:25 a.m.
Location: Student Union 362B
Students’ Perceptions of GenAI: The Case of the IMRaD Genre
Presenter: Elena Faust (English)
Co-Presenter: Natalie Gardner (English)
Faculty Advisor: Hooman Saeli
Exploration of Social Perception and Language Attitudes Towards Russian Accented-English at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Presenter: Aiyana Hamlin (Linguistics, Russian Studies)
Co-Presenter: Andrew Lee (Linguistics)
Faculty Advisor: Hooman Saeli
College Students’ Attitudes Towards Professors with Non-Standard English Accents
Presenter: Micaela Primeaux (Linguistics)
Co-Presenter: Roberto Alamillo Banuelos (Linguistics)
Faculty Advisor: Hooman Saeli
Exploring How Voice-to-Text Writing Support Benefits Students in the Brainstorming Process
Presenter: Hannah Buchanan (English)
Faculty Advisor: Kirsten Benson
Stereotyping Minority Women for Food Advertising in America
Presenter: Jayla McNeill (Social Work)
Faculty Advisor: Jessica Freeman
Session 2-4: Politics, Policy, and Public Institutions, Student Union 362C
Time: 10:10–11:25 a.m.
Location: Student Union 362C
Ideology vs. Innovation: The Structural Constraints of Russian Military Adaptation and the Rise of the ‘Axis of Convenience’ (2022-2026)
Presenter: Anabelle Ballard (Political Science, Russian Studies, Hispanic Studies)
Faculty Advisor: Eric Keels
The Impact of Online Renter Education on Eviction
Presenter: Sydnie Kingman (Economics)
Faculty Advisor: Stephanie Casey Pierce
The Implications of the New Covenant Health Park Baseball Stadium on Surrounding Communities
Presenter: Layla Moore (Political Science)
Faculty Advisor: Stephanie Casey Pierce
Federal Policy’s Effect on Primary Care: An East Tennessee Provider’s Perspective
Presenter: Andrew Ohsiek (Biology of Global Health)
Faculty Advisor: Tami Wyatt
Race, Class, and the Carceral System: An Analysis of Franklin County, Ohio Court Records and Alternatives to Bail and Incarceration
Presenter: Ellie Smith (Sociology)
Faculty Advisor: Stephanie Casey Pierce
Block 3
Time: 11:35 a.m.–12:50 p.m.
Session 3-1: Chemical Innovation and Biomedical Discovery, Student Union 362A
Time: 11:35 a.m.–12:50 p.m.
Location: Student Union 362A
HPLC-HRMS based Quantification of Nicotine Impacted Metabolism in Salt Sensitive Rats
Presenter: Sydney Doak (Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology)
Co-Presenter: Doreen Parit (Chemistry)
Faculty Advisor: Shawn Campagna
Quantifying Polyamine Metabolism in the Kidney via HPLC-HRMS
Presenter: Doreen Parit (Chemistry)
Co-Presenter: Sydney Doak (Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology)
Faculty Advisor: Shawn Campagna
Optimization of DOPC/DOPE in siRNA Lipid Nanoparticles for Stability, Cytotoxicity, and Cellular Uptake
Presenter: Graham Goforth (Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology)
Faculty Advisor: Deidra Mountain
Cysteine-Responsive Lipid Switches for Enhanced Liposomal Delivery
Presenter: Vu Nguyen (Chemistry)
Faculty Advisor: Michael Best
Low Dose Vitamin B12-Derived Radiochemotherapy for Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma (PDAC) Treatment
Presenter: Kevan Mehta (Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology)
Faculty Advisor: Jennifer Shell
Session 3-2: Cultural Narratives and Global Histories, Student Union 362B
Time: 11:35 a.m.–12:50 p.m.
Location: Student Union 362B
Framing Chinese Gold Miners in the Daily Alta California (1852-1855): A News Framing Analysis
Presenter: Weiqi Li (Public Relations)
Faculty Advisor: Heather Coker Hawkins
Two Waves: The Story of Lebanese Americans
Presenter: Anthony Nakhoul (History, Political Science)
Faculty Advisor: Marina Maccari Clayton
Sounds of Fear: The Evolving Role of Music in Horror Films of the Last 100 Years
Presenter: Ashley Melvin (Music)
Faculty Advisor: Ryan Lindveit
Piety, Power, and Paranoia: Religious Anxiety from Pliny the Younger to Cold War America
Presenter: Taylor Goodin (Classics)
Faculty Advisor: Aleydis Van de Moortel
“Passion, Fate, and an Encomium of Medea: Applying Gorgias’ Encomium of Helen to Euripides’ Medea”
Presenter: Amanda Hubbard (Classics, Medieval & Renaissance Studies)
Faculty Advisor: Charles Kuper
Session 3-3: Plant Biology and Photosynthetic Systems, Student Union 362C
Time: 11:35 a.m.–12:50 p.m.
Location: Student Union 362C
GenAI Methods for Applications in Plant Morphology
Presenter: Andrew Kukkapalli (Mechanical Engineering)
Co-Presenters: Sally Hoyt (Mathematics), Ella Kendall (Data Science), Rondi Quass (Mathematics, Statistics)
Faculty Advisor: Ioannis Sgouralis
High-Light Induction of a Carotenoid-Binding Lipoprotein Coupled to Photosystem I Dimer → Tetramer Oligomerization
Presenter: Kush Patel (Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology)
Faculty Advisor: Barry Bruce
Understanding Genetic Variations in Programmed DNA Elimination
Presenter: Nathan Fawver (Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology)
Faculty Advisor: Jianbin Wang
How Stem Cell Signaling Shapes Leaf Development in Arabidopsis thaliana
Presenter: Rylee Colleary (Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology)
Faculty Advisor: Elena Shpak
Physical Stress on the Genome: Characterizing DNA Damage Caused by Varied Levels of Constriction in Migrated Melanoma Cells
Presenter: Samantha Gross (Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology)
Faculty Advisor: Rachel McCord
Block 4
Time: 2:05–3:20 p.m.
Session 4-1: Probing the Universe: Physics, Astrophysics, and Instrumentation, Student Union 360
ime: 2:05–3:20 p.m.
Location: Student Union 360
Searching for Instability in Core Collapse Supernovae
Presenter: Cassidy Fleenor (Astronomy)
Faculty Advisor: Anthony Mezzacappa
Additive Manufacturing and Geant4 Simulations for Background Reduction in LEGEND-1000
Presenter: Dinesh Gangavarapu (Physics)
Faculty Advisor: Yuri Efremenko
Developing a Solid Polarized Target with Dynamic Nuclear Polarization
Presenter: Evan Toon (Physics)
Faculty Advisor: Nadia Fomin
Molecular Dynamics Simulations of E. Coli Chromosome Segregation Across Cell Diameters and Replication Fractions
Presenter: Abigail Larson (Physics)
Faculty Advisor: Jaan Mannik
Cryo-EM Image Analysis of a Glycan-Targeting Peptide-Antibody Fusion
Presenter: Hamza Ranjha (Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology)
Faculty Advisor: Elias Fernandez
Session 4-2: Landscapes, Watersheds, and Environmental Change, Student Union 362A
Time: 2:05–3:20 p.m.
Location: Student Union 362A
Geochemical Fingerprinting: Using Portable XRF to Solve a Rock Mapping Mystery
Presenter: Sarah Grace Cook (Geology and Environmental Studies)
Faculty Advisor: Jacob Benner
Investigation of Hydrologic and Geochemical Variability in an Impaired Urban Waterway
Presenter: Hannah Rich (Geology and Environmental Studies)
Co-Presenter: Jonathan Kitchen (Geology and Environmental Studies)
Faculty Advisor: Amy Robinson
Assessing Tributary Contributions to Downstream Water Quality at Third Creek in Knoxville, Tennessee
Presenter: Ian Scott (Geography)
Faculty Advisor: Amy Robinson
Mapping Haemaphysalis longicornis and Theileria Orientalis Ikeda
Presenter: Elizabeth Short (Sustainability)
Co-Presenter: Gwyneth McClelland (Geographic Informational Science and Technology)
Faculty Advisor: Becky Trout Fryxell
An Actualistic Study of Crocodylian Decomposition: Preliminary Observations and Implications for Archosaurian Decomposition
Presenter: Owen Singleton (Geology and Environmental Studies)
Faculty Advisor: Stephanie Drumheller
Session 4-3: Mind, Cognition, and Human Development, Student Union 362B
Time: 2:05–3:20 p.m.
Location: Student Union 362B
The Effect of Screen Time on Language Development in Toddlers
Presenter: Greta Goss (College Scholars Program)
Faculty Advisor: Jessica Hay
The Effect of Self-Affirmation on Introspection and Reporting of Racial Prejudice
Presenter: Cooper Henson (Psychology)
Faculty Advisor: Michael Olson
The Association Between Psychological Distress and Wound Severity of Diabetic Foot Ulcers
Presenter: Diana Richards (Psychology)
Faculty Advisor: Patricia Roberson
A Picture is Worth a Thousand Stereotypes: Examining the Spatial Location of Characters in Popular Children’s Picture Books
Presenter: Wilson Welchons (Psychology)
Faculty Advisor: Sarah Lamer
Feature-Based Scaffolding: How Dimensional Features Influence Spatial Memory Precision
Presenter: Samuel Besh (Psychology)
Faculty Advisor: Aaron Buss
Session 4-4: Art History and Visual/Media Culture, Student Union 362C
Time: 2:05–3:20 p.m.
Location: Student Union 362C
The Getty Kouros: A Problematic Piece Whether Authentic or Not
Presenter: Harley Diamond (Art, Classics)
IV-Faculty Advisor: Charles Kuper
Beauford Delaney and Cosmic Abstraction: Constructing New Worlds
Presenter: Bella Thomas-Wilson (College Scholars Program)
Faculty Advisor: Mary Campbell
The Legacy Collection of Kheleifeh, Understanding the ASOR Archives
Presenter: Gabrielle Puckett (Anthropology, Religious Studies)
Faculty Advisor: Erin Darby
Anatomy of Expulsion
Presenter: Nathaniel Boring (History)
Faculty Advisor: Jacob Latham
A Content Analysis of How Bisexual Characters are Portrayed on TV
Presenter: Margaret Dobson (Psychology)
Faculty Advisor: Sarah Lamer
Block 5
Time: 3:30–4:45 p.m.
Session 5-1: Neural Circuits and Brain Function, Student Union 362A
Time: 3:30–4:45 p.m.
Location: Student Union 362A
Maternal Choline May Prevent Prenatal Stress-Induced Cognitive and Emotional Dysfunction via Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor Modulation
Presenter: Lindsay Leblanc (Psychology, Neuroscience)
Faculty Advisor: Kalynn Schulz
Repeated Reproductive Experience Alters cFos Counts and Neuronal Activity in the Medial Prefrontal Cortex of Male Syrian Hamsters
Presenter: Dylan Smith (Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology)
Faculty Advisor: Kalynn Schulz
Estrogen Receptors in the Posterior Medial Amygdala Mediate Sex-Differences in Stress Resilience
Presenter: Olivia Yochim (Neuroscience)
Faculty Advisor: Matthew Cooper
Effects of MECP2 Deficiency on Estrus Cycle in Mice
Presenter: Mariam Ceesay (Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology)
Faculty Advisor: Billy Lau
Determining Neural Mechanisms Underlying Fine Motor Behavior in a Mouse Model of Rett Syndrome
Presenter: Faith Webb (Biomedical Engineering)
Faculty Advisor: Billy Lau
Session 5-2: Chemical and Interdisciplinary Systems, Student Union 362B
Time: 3:30–4:45 p.m.
Location: Student Union 362B
Influence of Molecular Structure, Contact Chemistry, and Electrode Composition in Polyacene Single Molecular Junctions
Presenter: Shelby Belt (Chemistry)
Faculty Advisor: Sharani Roy
Understanding Aminoglycoside Antibiotic Resistance Through pH-Dependent Catalysis in AAC Enzymes
Presenter: Daniella Martin (Biology of Global Health)
Co-Presenter: Cooper White (Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology)
Faculty Advisor: Olena Korotych
Clinical Judgment Under Threat: A Qualitative Study of OB/GYNs Navigating Ethics and Law in Post-Dobbs Tennessee.
Presenter: Perri Mahfouz (College Scholars Program)
Faculty Advisor: De Ann Pendry
Isolation of Intact, Functional Mitochondrial Respirasomes from Mammalian Heart Using Styrene-Maleic Acid Copolymers
Presenter: Ainslee Brown (Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology)
Faculty Advisor: Barry Bruce
Reformation of Patient-Physician Relationships
Presenter: Ashlyn Sutton (Biology of Global Health)
Faculty Advisor: Judith Carlisle