Researcher Profiles: URS 2024

Hometown: Emmett, Idaho

The Big Picture

Our paper presents a framework for understanding and studying the development of political skill in organizations.

One thing to know about my project

This project was a significant learning experience for me. Three incredibly intelligent and accomplished individuals gave me an opportunity to contribute to something that has allowed me to hone my skills in a variety of different aspects.

Who or what inspired your interest in research?

Another professor introduced us after I had expressed interest in exploring PhD options. Professor Maher was happy to answer all my questions and even asked if I would be interested in exploring research topics under his guidance.

Hometown: Rupert, Idaho

The Big Picture

My research will help my communities understand their realities from a more critical perspective. I will be taking my article and discussing it with my communities and get their feedback on the thoughts I have regarding sociopolitical state of our reality. 

One thing to know about my project

I want people to understand the impacts and damages that the United States causes to other countries through economic policies. 

Who or what inspired your interest in research?

The McNair scholars program at BSU 

Hometown: Boise, Idaho

The Big Picture

Realizing a deeper understanding of the materials used in semiconductors can simultaneously reduce waste while increasing performance of devices like cell phones or computers. This is because it broadens the range of materials we can use, allowing manufacturers to focus on broader impact.

One thing to know about my project

My research is being used to help graduate students at universities across the country, and is a collaborative effort to understand and utilize new types of semiconductor materials.

Who or what inspired your interest in research?

My mentor, Paul Davis has played a major role in enabling/encouraging me to do research. My grandfather was also very supportive of my scientific endeavors growing up, and helped guide me to where I am now.

Hometown: Stockton, CA

The Big Picture

There is currently no information or regulation on the materials used in infant products in regards to their effect on breathing capabilities for infants. We hope that our research will break ground and inform policy regarding the regulation of infant products and help get unsafe products off the market.

One thing to know about my project

Children are inherently the most vulnerable population on the planet. Our research aims to inform people about the potential dangers associated with common items they may have used with children or family members of their own. As there is currently no research that has been done to understand the effects of these products and their materials on the mechanics of breathing, the hope is that this study will serve as a basis for other research to be conducted in various clinical settings, both for adults and for children.

Who or what inspired your interest in research?

I have always been interested in coming up with new questions that have never been asked but it wasn’t until I was a student in Dr. Mannen’s class that I was encouraged to pursue this interest in biomechanics research.

Hometown: Meridian, Idaho

The Big Picture

Whether or not we like it, Taylor Swift and her fans have an expansive cultural impact. Understanding how the academic world counteracts the obsession of her fandom to create a critical space gives us a better understanding of how we can be critical of the idols we may admire. 

One thing to know about my project

Even the most powerful people are subject to academic critique.

Who or what inspired your interest in research?

Being a Taylor Swift fan has been awesome the past couple of years with all the content she’s been putting out – like the Taylor’s Versions, the Midnights album, and the Eras Tour. All of this has meant she has become more and more famous – and had more influence over the world, making this specific research necessary.

Hometown: Twin Falls, Idaho

The Big Picture

Additive manufacturing in the nuclear industry would decrease the time for prototyping new concepts and technologies. My work would bridge the knowledge gap of how different printing parameters affect the strength and microstructure of the printed part. 

One thing to know about my project

I am studying 3D printed metals! If we can solve some of the challenges of additive manufacturing (AM) of metals, imagine the objects that we could print. We could transform multiple industries because AM allows for new complex shapes that are impossible to create with traditional manufacturing methods. 

Hometown: Modesto, California

The Big Picture

My research will help to inform environmental scientists in creating better climate change modeling and formula new remediation strategies to remove these compounds by unconventional means. This research can also be used by politicians in the fight to ban these compounds from continued manufacturing.

One thing to know about my project

I want others to know that it is possible to combine multiple interests into a unique interdisciplinary research project. My project started with my passionate to help the environment in the fight against climate change and now I am proficient at spectroscopy and other surface specific techniques.

Who or what inspired your interest in research?

I was inspired to do research by all of the amazing women in STEM who have mentored me throughout my high school and college years. I have always been encouraged to follow my passion for the environment, science, and education.

Hometown: Cleveland, Ohio

The Big Picture

As a student of four years now, sometimes it has felt like what I do is separate from the outside world. I go to class, I complete my assignments, and at the end of the semester I get a grade that supposedly represents my learning. But what I have found when I am off campus or free from the messy corner of my room where my desk lives – those classes, assignments, and grades seem to fade into some alternative knowing. How does my time at Boise State emerge in the “real world”?

While it can sometimes feel like it, education is not some severed entity from the rest of the world. Today, there are a number of socio-political pressures that are knocking on the doors of our institutions asking for change. The most pervasive component of that are us students that are questioning the value of our education alongside the ever growing demands of the job market. Not to mention, the looming political conversations, on all levels, existentially questioning what we want higher education to be. 

The “real world” is already present with us. The School of Public Service at Boise State is responding to this with a growing push to promote experiential learning. Connecting our curriculum with our community, and bridging some gaps we have with the material world. This one research paper is not going to radically change much of anything on its own. However I do believe it can help us maybe step into a direction of understanding the role of discomfort as an anecdote to our society and education. Through this, perhaps this perceived severance of the “real world” and learning can embody itself in students more harmoniously. 

One thing to know about my project

Be comfortable with being uncomfortable! 

Who or what inspired your interest in research?

Researching was something I sort of fell into, it was never something I imagined for myself – and I certainly was never told that it was for me. Theoretical research, or writing philosophy, was something I fought along the way to. It is challenging and gritty to get into, and I hated it, but I think that is why I fell for it. Really, I think I have two mentors of mine to thank, Dr. Jared Talley and Dr. Stewart Gardner, for pushing me to see that my protest and criticism was actually passion. 

Hometown: Coeur d’Alene, Idaho

The Big Picture

This research will show the rest of the medical world how a large hospital system such as St. Luke’s can tailor their primary care serviced to rural communities such as Nampa, Idaho to better serve their patients where they need it most. 

One thing to know about my project

If there is one thing I would like people to know about this project, it would be that there are research opportunities out there where you get to make an impact on your community and build connections with individuals around you. Having an attainable and impactful purpose of your research is something so very inspiring. The time I have spent conversing with individuals in the Nampa community and within St. Luke’s has been monumental in my desires to pursue a medical school with values rooted in rural care and bringing physicians back to Idaho after their formal education is completed. 

Who or what inspired your interest in research?

I was looking for an opportunity to participate in a health or medical related VIP when I ran into the Designing Healthy Communities VIP on the VIP website. Since then, I have fallen in love with qualitative research and working with the St. Luke’s Research team on a project that directly impacts a community close to me. I have always been interested in rural healthcare as I grew up in North Idaho and have spent time volunteering abroad in Guatemala. This project is the perfect intersection of my passion for rural care and research!

Hometown: Eagle, Idaho

The Big Picture

The end goal of our research group is to create a material that can be used in room temperature quantum computers. 

One thing to know about my project

Quantum computers will help improve encryption, investment strategies, and create complex physical simulations. This project, and the many others taking place in the qDNA group, are working to design and characterize the materials that could one day make these computers work. 

Hometown: Kentfield, California

The Big Picture

Models that describe human influence on the environment are necessary to describe natural phenomena. In the case of modeling rivers, contaminant flow is complex because they are not only moving in the water and the sediments, but also reacting. We must better understand how the assumptions made in these models affect their predictions of contaminant fate and transport, as these predictions directly affect how rivers are managed. My research comparing models that describe how contaminants move and interact within rivers and their sediments will help the world better understand the impact of model assumptions. 

One thing to know about my project

I want people to know we need models to address environmentally relevant problems derived from fundamental physical and mathematical principles. 

Who or what inspired your interest in research?

Growing up with both parents working for the Environmental Protection Agency, my dinner conversations usually involved the current environmental problem. This exposure instilled a strong desire to do research in a field with environmental impact. 

Hometown: Merced, California

The Big Picture

By working to reduce cheatgrass, an invasive alien species, in Idaho we hope to restore native ecosystems and reduce fire risk. Reduction in cheatgrass in turn affects the resilience of landscapes and their ecology, ability to recreate enjoyably, increases the quality of public health, and provides economic success.

One thing to know about my project

As a scientist and musician I have realized the importance of integrating the arts with science. In doing so my research seeks to engage broader, diverse audiences curating an experience that completely encompasses our “human-ness”. This includes appealing to emotion and the curious mind, which both science and art seek to do. Why not include them both?

Hometown: Boise, Idaho

The Big Picture

By relating acoustical physics to compositional practices in art music, I hope to provide a bridge for students of either discipline to explore the other subject. Physics can be an incredibly challenging subject, but acoustical physics is incredibly important to musical performance as its advancements provided new avenues for composers to better convey human emotion. Many musicians would like to learn more about the practical physics behind their art form, and many physicists are curious about the artistic applications and cultural impact of their equations. My research helps bridge that gap to provide a gateway for musicians and physicists to explore other disciplines while honoring their guided interests. 

One thing to know about my project

Although everyone knows that physics and music are inherently related, specific examples of their connection are seldom explored. Development of acoustical physics has allowed composers to create new instruments and musical forms that would previously not have been feasible. 

Who or what inspired your interest in research?

As a dual major in Music and Physics, I had no lack of support from the faculty from both departments. Although my research is largely in biophysics, I am personally very interested in acoustical physics and the connection between music and physics. Research with Dr. Becker has given me guidance to exploring the clear historical connection between acoustical physics and compositional tendencies in art music.

Hometown: Salt Lake City, Utah

The Big Picture

Our research works to inform health care professionals and individuals, particularly older adults, on how the lower limb of the body responds to challenges seen in daily life in an effort to prevent falls and injury.

One thing to know about my project

The negative effects of aging might not be inevitable, as maintaining physical activity throughout our lives could act as a deterrent against age-related functional decline.

Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky

The Big Picture

These materials can be used to make solar panels that are much more affordable and efficient than typical solar panels used you see today. 

One thing to know about my project

It could help slow down the negative effects of climate change!