Undergraduate Symposium presents achievements

From research on pinwheel-shaped galaxies to a study of landscape change in an Iowa County watershed, the Undergraduate Symposium on Thursday, April 15, will spotlight the creative work of UW–Madison students in the arts, sciences and service learning projects.

Now in its sixth year, the symposium provides undergraduates with a venue to publicly present their achievements in original research or creative project work.

“First and foremost, it provides the opportunity for the university community to celebrate the phenomenal creativity and intelligence of the original work of our students,” says Virginia Sapiro, associate vice chancellor for teaching and learning.

Among the 196 projects to be presented by 227 students at the Memorial Union from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. are studies of semantic change in the Spanish language, the genetics of bone strength in mice, nutritional health of homebound elderly people, effectiveness of embryonic stem cell transplantation as a treatment for Parkinson’s disease and a look at Hmong writing systems.

“The breadth of the projects is amazing, and it’s an upshot of having undergraduates at a quality research institution,” she says. “You can’t help but be impressed by someone investigating a major literary figure, or standing next to someone who has done biochemical research, or talking with someone who has worked to help stop the spread of AIDS.”

Sophomore Kelsey Vidaillet, who is double majoring in Spanish and in Latin American, Caribbean and Iberian studies, analyzed repression of human rights in Cuba and the imprisonment of 75 dissidents there in March 2003.

Vidaillet, a Cuban-American from Marshfield, used a number of sources to compile a database that analyzed dissidents by gender, race, profession, prison sentence, conviction, hometown and location of imprisonment.

Vidaillet says that the Undergraduate Symposium allows students to share their knowledge and gain an appreciation for the wide spectrum of learning that takes place on campus.

“We’re fortunate to be going to such an important research school,” she says. “The symposium is a good way to find out what projects other students are working on. For me, the project was one way I could learn about my culture and heritage.”

Sapiro says faculty and academic staff mentors oversee projects, which include presentations, poster displays and performances. The event, she says, has grown in popularity.

“Research is about learning, and when you’re learning, you need to teach others,” Sapiro says. “These are marvelous young scholars, artists and students involved in service learning projects. The atmosphere is very electric.”