There's nothing like wrapping your mind around a good problem, and getting your hands on it too. This requires a certain amount of trial and error. Take, for instance, wheelbarrow racing - which can be tricky. Jon Schneider, an aerospace engineering graduate, says participating in a wheelbarrow race during St. Pat's Games was one of his most memorable experiences at UMR.
It inspired Matthew Gann, ECE’05, to pursue graduate school, and instilled in Michael Ellebrecht, ECE’05, a newfound love for writing. It could save the lives of firefighters, preserve countless acres of natural resources and cut the huge annual costs of firefighting.
UMR’s mascot, Joe Miner, recently swapped his traditional stubble for a more modern five o’clock shadow. The new Joe would have fit in with the freshman class of MSM’s early years, when upperclassmen forbid freshmen to wear beards.
The no-beard rule was one of many restrictions upperclassmen imposed on all male freshmen, according to Stephen Foster, a senior history major who is investigating the rituals surrounding MSM’s infamous “freshman fights,” an annual event during the first half of the 20th century.
As materials for orthopedic implants, titanium-based alloys have given millions of people the opportunity to live fuller lives. But patients’ lives could be even better if the materials used to bond the implants to bone could be strengthened. Stronger bonds could mean fewer problems with the implants later in life. Trini King, BioSci’05, a naval medic for six years prior to attending UMR, has been testing materials in hopes of finding a method to improve the longevity of implants.
Paving the road for less U.S. dependence on foreign oil are Kylee Hyzer and Kyle Anderson, Chem’05, whose research at UMR could lead to a soybean-based replacement for the petroleum used in roadway paint.
As the nation’s nuclear reactors approach middle age, they’re starting to show their age, and that means maintenance is becoming more of a chore. But monitoring the infrastructure near the core of a reactor can become quite dangerous due to the high levels of radiation there. This is where Dave Brown’s research comes in.
If NASA selects a miniature satellite designed by UMR students for a launch in 2007, Adam Grelck’s research project will really take off. That’s because Grelck is researching various options for the onboard computer of the Missouri-Rolla Satellite (MR SAT), a miniature orbiter designed by a team of students as part of NASA’s Nanosat IV competition.
UMR senior Katherine Downs has a thing for blueberries, but not the kind that grow on plants. Downs’ blueberries are of a more celestial makeup.
Called “martian blueberries,” these marble-sized rocks, found on Mars, are actually “concretions,” or formations of the iron oxide mineral hematite. They are called martian blueberries because they give the soil and rocks of the red planet a blueberry muffin-like appearance, and they could have huge implications about the existence of water – and possibly even life – on Mars.
UMR titles:
Unofficial UMR title: Champion of the Opportunities for Undergraduate Research Experiences program
Rodrick McDonald, a senior in mechanical engineering, has loved the thrill of competition since his Deer Park High School days in Pasadena, Texas, where he competed in multiple sports. Returning to Texas for football’s Whataburger Cactus Bowl in January and the NCAA Division II Track and Field Championships last spring only managed to increase his competitive fever.
“Entrepreneurs need to stay focused on what is important,” says entrepreneur John Haake, EE’86, MS EE’88, co-founder of Nuvonyx Inc., the United States’ only manufacturer of high-power industrial laser systems. And Haake has stayed focused on his business goals with laser-like precision.
