Focus on Creative Inquiry poster symposium highlights undergraduate research

Hundreds of Clemson students gathered at the Watt Family Innovation Center to share their research at the 19^th annual Focus on Creative Inquiry (FoCI) Poster Forum April 3-5. Projects from every college were presented on a variety of topics such as rocketry engineering, DNA repair, designing medical devices for developing countries, AI and contemporary art.

Creative Inquiry is Clemson’s nationally recognized cross-disciplinary undergraduate research and experiential learning program, that gives students the opportunity to work in small groups with a faculty mentor to answer challenging questions and solve real-world problems. 

The event allows students to showcase their work, reflect on their experiences and to gain skills that will help them communicate their work to the general public. The three-day event featured more than 265 student projects, making it the largest FoCI event to date.

Ten projects received awards.

FoCI Digital Poster Award

1^st place: “Developing Math Identity Through Math Puzzles”
Mentors: Neil Calkin, School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences, and Eliza Gallagher, Engineering and Science Education
Students: Alyssa Williams, Christina Foley and Christian Scott, computer science

2^nd place: “Coral Bleaching Yields Mysterious Relationship in Reef Fish Abundance”
Mentor: Michael Childress, Biological Sciences
Students: Alexandra Cymbal, biological sciences; Neil Parikh, biochemistry; and Adelaide Thomas, environmental and natural resources

3^rd place: “Dog Go: Community Partnership for Dog Adoptability in the Tri-County Area”
Mentors: Claire Dancz, Engineering and Science Education, and Susan Reeves, Watt Family Innovation Center
Students: Hannah Veracka, general engineering; Parker Harrington, bioengineering; Katherine Jackson, biochemistry; Jacob Bittinger and Karlee Kesler, electrical engineering; Angelina Cotto, psychology; Alayshia Mack, food science and human nutrition; and Sydney Phipps, mechanical engineering

FoCI Printed Poster Award

1^st place: “Single Cell Measurement of DUB Activity in Multiple Myeloma to Identify Subpopulations Based on Enzyme Activity”
Mentors: Adam Melvin and Anna Chadwick, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Students: James Marturano, biochemistry, and Riley Debock, biological sciences

2^nd place: “Transcript Characterization of IncRNAs in Triple Negative Breast Cancer”
Mentors: Madison Sexton, Mya Beasley and Congyue Peng, Bioengineering
Students: Marissa Beighley and Kennedy Madden, bioengineering; Allison LoRusso and Christina Sims, biological sciences

3^rd place: “Wild Hogs on the Clemson Experimental Forest”
Mentors: Erin Buchholtz, Greg Yarrow and Andrew Jamison, Forestry and Environmental Conservation
Students: Mason Bacot, Tucker Cribb, Maya Fink, Drake Powell and Hannah Sealy, wildlife and fisheries biology; Shannon Casey, environmental and natural resources

Popular Vote Award

“Exploration of Diet and Parasitism of American Alligators in Louisiana”
Mentors: James Anderson and Miriam Boucher, Forestry and Environmental Conservation
Students: Colin Baker, Kelsey Bradford, Sophia Corey, Sabrina Drescher, Rowan Luksic and Brianna Taylor wildlife and fisheries biology; Julia Creswell, general engineering; John Enderlin, Addison Foster, Virginia Kackley and Jenny Keglovits, environmental and natural resources; Audrey Fleming, biological sciences

Clemson Student Research Forum

The Clemson Student Research Forum is an annual poster forum held concurrently with FoCI. It is open to all graduate and undergraduate students who participate in mentored research. The winners of the Clemson Student Research Forum Awards were:

1^st place: “Energy Metabolism in C2C12 Myoblast Cells Exposed to Marginal to Severe Iron Depletion is Influenced by Substrate Availability”
Mentor: Joanna Fiddler, Food, Nutrition and Packaging Sciences
Students: Abigail Zirbel, food science and human nutrition; Makenzie Tharpe, biological sciences; Julia Bertarelli and Aidan Sievers, biochemistry; Sophie Waugh, microbiology

2^nd place: “Fictitious Online Victimization”
Mentor: Robin Kowalski, Psychology
Students: Hannah Korson, Emma Aurilio, Camelia William, Grace Drolet, Ansley Minor, Raquel Bunche and Lydia Pierce, psychology

3^rd place: “Alexa, Turn Up the Serotonin: The Effect of 5-Hydroxytryptophan (HTP) Treatments in Sheep on Circulating Serotonin Levels and Resulting Behavioral Changes”
Mentors: Susan Duckett and Ahmed Ali, Animal and Veterinary Sciences
Student: Ashlee Romp, animal and veterinary sciences

For more information about any of the projects presented at FoCI and the Clemson Student Research Forum, visit the digital program.