Students present research in D.C.
Two Utah State University students, Richard Datwyler and Paul Simonson, were selected to present their research project at the national Posters On The Hill event in Washington, D.C., last Thursday.
The event was sponsored by the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR). The event brought 65 students from around the nation to Capitol Hill to present their own scientific research and visit for several hours with their senators and congressional representatives. Later, students participated in a two-hour poster session and reception in the Rayburn House Office Building to display and discuss their research.
Datwyler, a junior majoring in physics, said he definitely felt lucky to have been a part of the project.
“It seems like a college degree isn’t enough anymore,” he said. “Being involved with undergraduate research gives you an edge that makes you competitive for graduate school or in the workplace. Graduate schools really look to see if you’ve been involved in undergraduate research,” he said.
Simonson, also a junior majoring in physics, said, “It’s been a good experience to get involved with research here on campus because it really helps you figure out what career path you want to follow.”
Their project was nominated by David Peak, assistant head of the physics department, who played a significant role in the development of the project in general.
“I guess you could say I was their spiritual mentor,” Peak said. “I played a central role in determining what questions to ask and what methods to try.”
Peak said the project was determined when the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL) called him with a problem of interest and a possible research project. INEEL became their federal agency sponsoring the research.
About a year ago Peak asked Datwyler and Simonson to join the project. Peak said the INEEL has a waste storage site in the Idaho desert that has been storing radioactive waste material since the 1950s. Peak said the INEEL is concerned as to whether or not they are facing failure in their storage capabilities. The project to study the migration of contaminant material and understand how such materials gets into ground water.
“It was really great dealing with Dr. Peak and getting to see how he thinks through things,” Datwyler said. “He’s so smart.”
Simonson said it was interesting to see how research is run on a government level.
“It was neat to see how many different minds can be working on one thing,” he said.
Peak said undergraduate research is definitely supported at USU. He said Joyce Kinkead, vice provost for Undergraduate Studies and Research, has done a fantastic job encouraging undergraduate research.
“She has become a convert to undergraduate research by seeing that it is a good thing for the university to do,” Peak said. “I am so pleased with her efforts.”
Peak said undergraduate research is the best way of teaching.
“Students learn things from being involved in undergraduate research that they could never learn from a textbook,” he said.
Datwyler and Simonson will be joined by more USU students in attending a conference sponsored by the National Council on Undergraduate Research (NCUR) held in White Water, Wis., later this week.