Student Research & Publications: Recent submissions

Now showing items 1-20 of 366

    • Evaluation of the Paris Agreement from a realist and liberalist perspective
      Roth, Kevin
      One of the greatest questions in international relations is how states can work together towards common goals despite having competing interests. This issue is central to the international effort to mitigate climate change. To this date, 185 parties have ratified the Paris Agreement to limit the rise in global temperatures to 1.5 to 2 degrees Celsius. Although this agreement has so far received widespread international support, implementation has proven difficult.

    • Evaluating eribulin's ability to produce a cytokine immune response in lung cancer
      Hinkle, Wyatt A.; Hinz, Trista K.; Gurulé, Natalia J.; Heasley, Lynn E.
      This study aims to examine the ability of Eribulin, a non-taxane microtubule inhibitor, to induce a cytokine immune response similar to that of targeted TKI's in lung cancer cell lines, and furthermore to characterize the cytokine response to general growth arrest therapies compared to specific targeted protein kinase inhibitors such as TKI's.

    • Exploring fractional derivatives and trig functions
      Reeder, Leah; Ahrendt, Kevin
      The objective of this research is to become familiar with fractional discrete calculus to the extent that fractional derivatives of discrete trigonometric functions can be taken and understood.

    • Meet the editors
      The editors are Tyler Pritchard, Editor in Chief, Wyatt Hinkle, Graphic Design Editor, Taylor Self, Technical Sciences Article Editor, James Talbot, Social Sciences Article Editor, McKenna Larson, Content Editor, and Austin Monaghan, Language Editor.

    • Laboratory spotlight CFCC
      The Colorado Fuel Cell Center (CFCC) is a laboratory on the Colorado School of Mines campus that specializes in the analysis and development of fuel cell systems.

    • The demons of Los Alamos
      Marchando, Sydney
      The story of Louis Slotin and the Demon Core, for example, is one narrative from the Manhattan Project that has only just reemerged. Recently, enough information from a variety of sources has allowed a more detailed picture of Louis Slotin to develop, highlighting not only his contributions to the Manhattan Project but also his character and the human faults that led to his fatal accident.

    • Laboratory spotlight Carreon lab
      Here at the Carreon lab in Chemical Engineering, our research is focused on the development and application of functional porous materials on the nanoscale.

    • Preliminary modeling evaluation of water ice extraction from lunar permanently shadowed craters by direct heating of icy regolith
      Machnik, Daniela; Zerpa, Luis
      This work sets the foundation for preliminary modeling of water ice extraction from lunar permanently shadowed craters. Analysis of the research results indicates that (1) favorable phase changes at low temperatures and pressures (though not in-situ conditions) occur and lead to the upward migration of water vapor through the regolith and out of the crater surface, (2) the appearance of the liquid phase significantly reduces the timesteps in the simulation and limits predictive modeling capabilities, (3) adjusting the reservoir model to true lunar conditions requires specific modification of the Fortran base code of TOUGH+, (4) the lack of a void-like phase prevents realistic modeling of mass and energy balance in lunar permanently shadowed craters, (5) a stepwise heat source may yield greater water production for deeper ice reservoirs than a single heat element. The reservoir simulation investigated phase saturation changes of water iced buried in lunar regolith over a three-day period from a 25 W continuous heat source.

    • Three years in the CFCC: the story of Marcos Hernandez
      Hernandez, Marcos
      While the promise of flow batteries continues to grow, they, as with all types of batteries, exhibit issues with performance degradation. I am working to understand and solve these degradation problems.

    • Faculty spotlight Dr. Jeffrey King
      Dr. Jeffrey King, of the Materials and Metallurgical Engineering (MME) department, is currently working on research with undergraduates and graduate students in the Nuclear Program at Mines.

    • Welcome to the Toberer lab
      If you've ever used computers, instruments, or any electronics, you have probably benefited from the research of Dr. Eric Toberer and his colleagues. Located on the first floor of the General Research Laboratory (GRL), the Toberer Lab has been advancing the frontier of thermoelectrics since 2013.

    • A game of telephone: voice multicast in low-power, low-bandwidth mobile wireless networks
      Perry, Ethan
      We don't always realize it, but the devices in our pockets carry much more significance than we often give them credit. Yes, I am talking about cell phones and their flashy graphics, impressive processing power, and stunning cameras. But these features are not the only thing that make cell phones special. Have you ever wondered where all of the information you surf, stream, and download actually comes from? Much of this data is stationed thousands of miles away and makes its way to your phone by means of copper wire, fiber optic cable, and microwaves emitted by cell towers.

    • Role of undergraduates in research-an interview with Professor Sullivan, The
      With his optimistic, high-level vision of science and research, Professor Neal Sullivan has successfully led the Colorado Fuel Cell Center (CFCC) for over a decade. From high-profile publications in Science on the characterization of SOFC efficiency to the development groundbreaking electricity storage technologies, the CFCC prevails as one of the premiere research laboratories on campus and in the nation. And, even with all of that success, Sullivan still spends much of his time considering how best to get undergraduates involved with scientific research.

    • Welcome to the MIRRORLab
      Each day, as robotics, AI, and augmented reality become more and more advanced, ever greater challenges arise regarding the interaction between human beings and the technology they create. With this in mind, the purpose of the MIRRORLab is to help make these interactions as natural and productive as possible.

    • Research opportunities at Mines
      Harford, Keegan
      For the prospective student researcher, it can be intimidating to find a project to work on. Students, regardless of where they are in their education, are likely to have worries about if they are qualified to work directly with faculty. When first reading about a project that looks interesting, you will inevitably come across words you don't understand. While you may feel underqualified and want to postpone applying for the position, you really shouldn't. In doing so, you would be overlooking your most important qualification: passion. Passion is the quality that makes faculty want to work with you. Even if you don't get a position the first time you apply, you will have demonstrated your desire and commitment, which will make it easier for you to get a position later. Ultimately, I believe that finding the project you are passionate about is the most important step to becoming a researcher. To help with this, I have outlined some of the ways undergraduate students can discover research projects at Mines.

    • Machine learning to investigate the relationship between nutrition and gut biome
      Baker, Lauren
      Machine learning uses automated statistical models and algorithms to investigate patterns and form inferences from data. As a part of the Machine Learning, Informatics, and Data Science team at Mines (MInDS@Mines), one of our core focuses is the development and application of machine learning algorithms to human health conditions whose mechanisms are not well understood. Thus, our interest in the human microbiome is centrally motivated by the microbiome's connection to health conditions.

    • Crowdsourcing as a tool for research
      Kleeman, Hanzelle
      Crowdsourcing platforms are becoming a common tool for researchers around the world. Advocates of these platforms boast that the virtual data collection has many strengths when compared to old-school methods of surveying. Such proponents focus on aspects of convenience and diversity. Unfortunately, serious concerns identified by critical computing scholars remain unaddressed. To better understand these concerns, the research team has completed a comprehensive literature review on the ethics of crowdsourcing, an analysis of published research papers that utilized crowdsourced data, and inter- views with crowd workers.

    • Overcoming challenges as an undergraduate researcher
      Monaghan, Austin
      The Tuesday/Thursday slots on my schedule are reserved for something special, and it's not skiing. No, those days are blocked out for research at the High Altitude Observatory (HAO) in Boulder. Although research is technically work, my enthusiasm for it makes it feel like recreation. I almost felt guilty collecting a check this past summer because I knew that, if it really came down to it, I would work for free. That being said, I must confess that many aspects of undergraduate research, from getting a position to managing goals, can prove to be a nuisance for the prospective undergraduate researcher. While I am no expert, I've been lucky enough to spend about three of my undergraduate years conducting research, and I've stepped in enough puddles to give the reader some measure of advice. These "tips and tricks" are based not only on my experiences, but those of my peers. With any luck, the collective knowledge of many undergraduate researchers, socks soaked through with puddle water, can help you avoid some of the common pitfalls of research.

    • Experimental platform for thermal conductivity measurements
      Allen, Portia; Blagg, Kirsten; Singh, Meenakshi
      Thermal conductivity measurement techniques are extremely well established at room temperature, but become more challenging at cryogenic temperatures. The development of a dedicated thin film measurement platform for sub-Kelvin temperatures is explored here. Delicately suspended Si-N platforms ensure thermal isolation of the sample, while lithographically patterned Joule heaters provide a controllable temperature gradient across the platforms. A carbon-platinum (C-Pt) composite, fabricated using focused ion beam (FIB) assisted deposition, was patterned on the platforms as a local, resistive thermometer. These C-Pt thermometers are highly sensitive below 1K, and comparable to commercially available cryogenic thermometers. While suspended platforms have been used for thermal conductivity measurements before, the integration of highly sensitive, locally deposited cryogenic thermometers allows for more precise measurements over a wider temperature range.

    • Optimizing genetic algorithm parameters for atmospheric carbon monoxide modeling
      Duggal, Meera; Hammerling, Dorit
      Climate indices can measure the variability in the climate such as changes in sea surface temperature and wind. With this knowledge a predictive CO model was developed (Buchholz et al., 2018). This model uses climate indices to predict future CO emissions which are directly linked to large burn events that will occur in the southern hemisphere. We use four different climate indices in our model: the El Nino Southern Oscillation in the central tropical Pacific region 3.4, Indian Ocean Dipole/Dipole Mode Index (IOD/DMI), Tropical South Atlantic Index (TSA), and the Antartic [sic] Oscillation Index (AAO).