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�鶹ӰԺ at Salem held its fall Undergraduate Research Conference, an event that recognizes students for their research and allows them to share what they learned through discussions with the academic staff.

The conference is open to all undergraduates in any discipline and any for-credit course on any �鶹ӰԺ State campus. Faculty judges evaluate the presentations based on originality, significance, evidence of learning about the research and information-gathering process, and overall quality.

Ernie Freeman, Ph.D., director of the School of Biomedical Science on the �鶹ӰԺ Campus, was the keynote speaker. He shared information about his ongoing research with multiple sclerosis and his fascination with learning and science. Prior to his move to the �鶹ӰԺ Campus, Freeman was a biology professor on the Salem Campus. He encouraged students to never stop wanting to learn and to embrace research in all subject matters.

A new twist to this year’s conference was a performance of the late medieval morality play Everyman by students from the Salem Campus Honors Program, English Club and Undergraduate Student Government.

The winners of the 2016 Undergraduate Research Conference are:

Oral presentations – First place: Troy Kotsch for “Effects of Ultrasound Exposure on Reproduction and Movement in Caenorhabditis Elegans”; second place: Lindsey Rice for “The Fear of Failure”; and third place: Holly DeLucia for “Improving Adolescent Well-being Through Mentoring.”

Poster presentations – First place Donald Larabee and Steven Baker for "Monocular Depth Perception"; second place: Amber Biser for "The Evolution of Computed Tomography"; and third place: Melinda Mayer and Renee Burnett for "Adolescent Children of Alcoholics."