Jan. 26, 2009 — More than two dozen University of Utah undergraduate students will join counterparts from Utah State University in presenting “Research Posters on the Hill: A Celebration of Undergraduate Research” to Utah State Legislators on Thursday, Jan. 29, from 8 a.m. until 1 p.m., in the rotunda of the State Capitol.

The event, now in its ninth year, gives lawmakers the opportunity to see the high-caliber research projects coming from undergraduate students at the state’s two public research institutions, in addition to the continued necessity for funding from the state of Utah to support higher education.

Student’s visual representations will present overviews of individual research in disciplines ranging from neurosurgery to dance education, bioengineering to sociology and geography.

“Research is an important and enriching component of the undergraduate experience,” says Kim Wirthlin, vice president of government relations at the U. “By engaging in research projects with faculty mentors, students develop critical skills in inquiry, design of research projects, analyzing data, presenting research results and becoming scholars.”

Students selected to participate represent a diverse range of research topics. A sampling of this year’s subjects include research on the treatment for and recurrence of brain tumors, using dance and movement for emotional and intellectual learning in public schools, the development of an artificial eye, community-based research offering students of color access to higher education and disaster management in the event of an earthquake in Salt Lake City, namely losses in the Sugarhouse area.

“These posters illustrate the broad range of interesting and diverse research opportunities available to undergraduate students at the U,” Wirthlin adds.

High resolution images of student research posters are available with this release at www.unews.utah.edu. For more information, contact Jill Baeder at 801-581-8070 or by email at j.baeder@ugs.utah.edu.