Samford University student researcher Aaron Carr took delight in describing his participation in the excavation of a large building in the first century CE town of Sepphoris for a group of campus guests Wednesday, July 21.
Sepphoris, a hilly metropolitan spot located not far from where Jesus grew up in Nazareth, “May have been the site Jesus referenced when he said ‘A city set on a hill cannot be hidden,’” said Carr, who recently returned from a five-week trip to Israel with Samford religion professor Dr. James Strange.
“You can see its influence on Jesus Christ,” said Carr, who feels called to the ministry but hopes to one day combine archaeological research with his chosen field.
Carr is one of 21 Samford Undergraduate Research Scholars whose work was highlighted during a luncheon honoring them, their faculty mentors and donors.
Their research topics range from Carr’s archaeological dig to one titled “Machine Consciousness and the Advent of Narcissistic Computers.”
Since its start in 2004 with one student/mentor pairing, the Samford Undergraduate Research Program (SURP) has grown to include support from a variety of businesses, foundations and other funding sources.
The benefits to students, explains Howard College of Arts and Sciences dean Dr. David Chapman, are many.
A research setting differs from the classroom model, where a faculty member knows the answer, but will not tell the student. In research, faculty may not know all the answers.
“It’s a journey together as students and faculty seek to find the answers,” said Chapman, adding that along the way, there will be pitfalls, frustrations and challenges.
“And that is where the greatest learning takes place, in learning how to work through the rough spots,” said Chapman.
Besides helping students determine what they want to do, or not do, with their lives, research offers a great boost to graduate school, to which some former Samford undergraduate researchers have received significant grants.
For those who choose to move directly into a career, Chapman said, the skills of being a good researcher become priceless, lifelong skills.
Guests at the luncheon included representatives of some entities, such as Birmingham’s Red Mountain Park, that provide a stipend for students and mentors to pursue a project on their behalf. The oral history of Red Mountain Park will provide valuable documentation of the mines and people that existed on the property in years past.
Chapman and associate Arts and Sciences dean Dr. George Keller, who oversees the research program, would like more such partnerships.
History major Tara White is working with her faculty mentor, historian Dr. Jonathan Bass, to compile the history of Balch & Bingham law firm.
The work, says White, has introduced her to contacts in libraries and the state archives, and to fascinating court cases and pieces of legal history involving one of Alabama’s oldest and largest law firms.
But just as important, says White, is the enthusiasm that such work generates. “When just studying in the classroom, one can forget the passion that we have for our field,” said White, who relishes her contributions as a student historian helping to preserve stories and knowledge for the future.
To learn more about SURP, watch the video.
2010 SURP Students and Mentors
Laura Bedsole
Use of White Rot Fungi to Remove Pharmaceutical Compounds from Waste Water
Mentors: Dr. Denise Gregory and Dr. Lisa Nagy
Scott Buess
Synthetic Studies Toward CNS-Permeable Prodrug Scaffolds
Mentor: Dr. Andrew Lampkins
Aaron Carr
Determining the Date and Extent of Byzantine Glass Industry at Sepphoris
Mentor: Dr. James Strange
Scott Cope
Simulating the Evolution of Neural Architectures
Mentor: Dr. Steve Donaldson
Zach Evans
Synthesis of Iodo-N,O-acetide Aminals
Mentor: Dr. Andrew Lampkins
Ryan Fee
Mapping a Small Caribbean Island from Mountaintop to Coral Reef
Mentor: Dr. Jennifer Rahn
Callie Gibson
The Need for Acceptance and the Cost of Social Rejection
Mentor: Dr. Stephen Chew
Jesse Kawell
Machine Consciousness and the Advent of Narcissistic Computers
Mentor: Dr. Steve Donaldson
Cedrick Kousok
Quantitative Determination of Binary Mixed Alkanesulfonates Having Different Endgroups by Electrospray Ionization Mass Spectrometry
Mentor: Dr. Brian Gregory
Larry McCutcheon
The Languages of Jesus
Mentor: Dr. Stephen Todd
Casey Moore
Does Diversity Matter in Reforestation?
Mentor: Dr. Malia Fincher
Josh Moore
Defining, Mapping and Visualizing the Health of a Community
Mentor: Dr. Brian Toone
Tessa Pitts
Gender, Religion and Public Policy
Mentor: Dr. Theresa Davidson
Drew Pomeroy
Oral History of Red Mountain Park
Mentor: Dr. Marlene Rikard
Will Ricks
Electrospray Ionization Mass Spectrometric Studies of Self-Assembled Monolayers Using a Thin-Layer Flow Cell
Mentor: Dr. Brian Gregory
Walter Turner
Computational Studies of Potential Drugs to Treat Alzheimer’s Disease
Mentor: Dr. Morgan Ponder
Jessica Van Ausdall
An Investigation of Endosymbiotic Bacteria in Local Freshwater Ciliates
Mentor: Dr. David Johnson
Richard Wakefield
Pharmacophore Synthesis of Novel ß-Secretase Inhibitors
Mentor: Dr. Andrew Lampkins
Chris Walling
Machine Consciousness and the Advent of Narcissistic Computers
Mentor: Dr. Steve Donaldson
Tara White
History of Balch & Bingham Law Firm
Mentor: Dr. Jonathan Bass
Jon Zeiger
Simulating the Evolution of Neural Architectures
Mentor: Dr. Steve Donaldson
