Peer Research Ambassadors

Different Lenses: The Value of Multidisciplinary Research

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By Alex Clonan, Peer Research Ambassador

Different Lenses: The Value of Multidisciplinary Research. By PRA Alex.Research is all about asking questions, each one viewed through a different lens and perspective. Our academic background, experiences, passions, and interests shape these different lenses. Together, a diverse community of investigators can work to ask questions and strive towards understanding.

I’ll tell you a little bit about my lens. As a first-year Electrical Engineering student, I applied to the Health Research Program and ended up having the opportunity to work at the Center for Quantitative Medicine at UConn Health. To be honest, leading up to my first day in the lab, I was terrified, having little to no experience in whatever ‘systems biology’ was, but I was eager to learn. I wasn’t quite sure how my engineering background would fit in, or what I would be able to contribute. Continue reading →

Meet the PRAs: Claire Fresher

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Meet Claire Fresher ’22, an OUR Peer Research Ambassador (PRA) majoring in Mechanical Engineering and minoring in Mathematics.

Meet the PRAs - Claire.What is the focus of your research?

I conduct research as part of the Tarakanova Research Group, a biomedical/mechanical engineering lab, where I analyze metabolites that undergo aggregation in the body which is linked to the development of various diseases.

Another research team I am a part of is the Neurobiology of Individual Differences in Language Lab where I administer neuropsychological assessments to families to test the effects of environmental and genetic factors on cognitive development skills including language, math, and reading comprehension. Continue reading →

It’s Okay to Change Directions

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By Elisa Shaholli, Peer Research Ambassador

It's Okay to Change Directions. By PRA Elisa.When synthesizing ideas  – whether it be for a research project, a plan for a class paper, or even just an idea for something personal like a DIY project –  I fall into the line of thinking of ‘this idea needs to be completely thought out and perfect.’ The more fool-proof the plan, the better the idea, because if it changes directions, that means my project wasn’t great to begin with and I’m doing it all wrong, right?

Well….. It’s actually the opposite! Continue reading →

Shifting Gears: The Importance of Questioning Your Research Interests

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Shifting Gears: The Importance of Questioning Your Research Interests. By PRA Kynza.By Kynza Khimani, Peer Research Ambassador

When people talk about their research experiences, they often focus on the positives. But what do you do when your research experience is not what you expected it to be? What if your academic interests and career goals have shifted?

If you find yourself asking one of these questions, then you may be able to relate to my research journey. Continue reading →

Meet the PRAs: Elisa Shaholli

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Meet Elisa Shaholli ’23, an OUR Peer Research Ambassador (PRA) majoring in Economics and minoring in English and Global Studies.

Meet the PRAs - Elisa Shaholli.What is the focus of your research?

I do research in the field of Disability Studies! It’s a field that’s interdisciplinary and can span from Economics to English to Psychology and more. I’ve done a research project concerning the analysis of disability in film (a project that was primarily rooted in the English discipline), a project about the social experience of diabetes and disability “passing” (a project rooted in social sciences), and am planning on making Economics and disability a focus for my thesis!

Why did you get involved in research?

In high school, whenever I learned about disability or disease in any context, it was always biomedical or scientific. I never was really exposed to disability in regards to history or sociology or even in literary texts, even though a very large portion of the world population has a disability of some kind. I wanted to work on research concerning disability in social contexts, and Disability Studies was the perfect field for that. Hopefully through my research, people can at least learn a bit more than they originally did! Continue reading →

Let Your PI Know: The Importance of Communicating Your Needs

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Let Your PI Know: The Importance of Communicating Your Needs. By PRA Lauren.By Lauren Rudin, Peer Research Ambassador

It’s the second month of school, midterms are coming up quickly and alongside studying you have your weekly research tasks. Everything seems to be a top priority, but you know that something will eventually have to give. Sound familiar? I’ve been in this position several times, and from my own experience I can tell you that (1) everything will be ok, and (2) you need to let your PI know. Continue reading →

Meet the PRAs: Stephanie Schofield

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Meet Stephanie Schofield ’23, an OUR Peer Research Ambassador (PRA) majoring in Molecular & Cell Biology and minoring in Psychological Sciences and Chemistry.

Meet the PRAs - Stephanie.What is the focus of your research?

I currently do research in Dr. Wendy Mok’s lab at UConn Health where I am focusing on microbial interactions and their impacts on antibiotic treatment response.

Why did you get involved in research?

To start, I have really enjoyed my major-related courses so far at UConn and from the start of my college career, I always knew I wanted to get involved in research. I am super passionate about my education and I enjoy learning, so I wanted to take it to the next level. I am also a big hands-on learner, so furthering my education through research was a rewarding idea to me. Continue reading →

I Don’t Understand Anything in These Papers!

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By Michelle Antony, Peer Research AmbassadorI Don't Understand Anything in These Papers! By PRA Michelle.

Imagine this scenario: you’re eager to participate in undergraduate research and find a professor whose work interests you. You come across one of their papers and once you open it up, it’s in an alien language. This situation is all too familiar to many undergraduates (including myself). Hopefully, this how-to guide with some tips that have helped me in my research journey will be of use to you. Continue reading →

Meet the PRAs: Mahima Mehta

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Meet Mahima Mehta ’22, an OUR Peer Research Ambassador (PRA) majoring in Molecular & Cell Biology and minoring in Spanish.

Meet the PRAs: Mahima.What is the focus of your research?

I have been working in Dr. Sarah Knutie’s lab since January 2020 as a member of the Nest Parasite Community Science Study. In this project, I quantify parasite abundance in the nests of eastern bluebirds and tree swallows to understand the effects of local ecology on the evolution of hosts and their nest parasites.

As someone who has always been interested in climate change and DNA, the focus of my UConn IDEA Grant project is to understand how elevated nest temperatures impact the DNA methylation of eastern bluebirds. We often see the physical effects of climate change: unusual snowstorms, devastating fires, and destruction of habitats- but what genotypic impact does this have? In my project, I will be investigating why it is adaptive for these birds to have changes in methylation in response to temperature and if this is helping them over their lifetime. Continue reading →

Meet the PRAs: Chloe Zampetti

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Meet Chloe Zampetti ’22, an OUR Peer Research Ambassador (PRA) majoring in Natural Resources.

Meet the PRAs - Chloe.What is the focus of your research?

My research is focused on interactions between elements mercury and selenium in fish. There is a theory that when there is more selenium present than mercury within a fish, the selenium can cancel out mercury toxicity by binding up all of the mercury, making it safe for human consumers. This is a really cool concept and would have lots of implications for human health, but there are some aspects to the research that could use updating and further attention.

With my research, I want to see how measures of human health risk based on selenium and mercury concentrations compare to metrics based on mercury concentrations alone. This way, I can emphasize the importance of understanding selenium’s potential ability to mitigate mercury toxicity before it is considered an official metric of human health risk via fish consumption. Continue reading →