UOIT students share their summer research exploits

Oshawa, Ont. - How did you spend your summer vacation? For some students this year, the holidays involved a little more than going to the beach. Twenty UOIT students recently shared some fascinating details about their summer exploits during the university's inaugural Summer Research Student Workshop, held on August 13.

Organized by professors Anatoli Chkrebtii and Greg Lewis in the Faculty of Science, the event mimicked a typical research conference by inviting students to make a 15-minute, PowerPoint presentation about their research and to answer questions from the audience. About 30 faculty members attended the daylong workshop, as well as some parents and fellow students. Many of the professors have acted as the students' research supervisors this summer.

The presentations covered an eclectic range of research areas. Sarah Rowe, a student going into the second year of UOIT's concurrent Education/Science degree program, summarized her research with Dean of Science William Smith on the use of computer technology in education, while Physics student Tim Teatro covered the work he's done with Dr. Chkrebtii on the physics of semiconductor devices.

Tenehta Gjaltema, Helen Bagley and Lisa-Marie Forcier, three students in the Collaborative Nursing program, offered information on their role in research by Carolyn Byrne, the Dean of Health Sciences, on a telemedicine or video-conferencing system that would link frail elderly patients in rural Durham Region with physicians in the region's urban centres.

Some presentations sounded distinctly academic. David Zekveld, a Nuclear Engineering student working with Dr. Chkrebtii, discussed "the theory of temperature dependence of electron band structure and optical absorption." Other sessions sounded as fresh as today's headlines. Kirk Magna, a student working with Dr. Edward Waller in the School of Energy Systems and Nuclear Science, gave a presentation on "Radiological dispersal devices used in terrorism."

Dr. Lewis said the experience was more valuable for the students than a class presentation because the audience was more sophisticated, as it would be at regular research conference. "The students were incredible," he remarked. "Everyone was really impressed. They were working on projects that some third-year undergraduates would have trouble with."

Dr. Chkrebtii said that first-year students rarely have the opportunity to get involved in research at more established universities. "I got a lot of comments from different colleagues," he added, "that it would be nice to do this every year."

Dr. Kamiel Gabriel, the Associate Provost for Research and Graduate Programs, said that early exposure of undergraduate students to research under the supervision of capable faculty could be a career-changing experience, and voiced his support for organizing the same kind of event in future years.

About Ontario Tech University
A modern, forwarding-thinking university, Ontario Tech advances the discovery and application of knowledge to accelerate economic growth, regional development and social innovation. We inspire and equip our students and our graduates to make a positive impact in a tech-focused world. For us, it’s not only about developing the next tech breakthrough. Understanding and integrating the social and ethical implications of technology differentiates us as university. Learn more at ontariotechu.ca.