2002
Graduate Student Awards
ROBERT C. ANDERSON MEMORIAL AWARDS
for outstanding
research by recent UGA graduates
Jason M. Brown, a recent doctoral graduate from the Department
of Cellular Biology, studies the assembly and maintenance of
cilia, hair-like organelles that function in cell motility
and sensation. Dr. Brown’s findings will not only fill gaps
in cell biology, but also may help lead to a better understanding
of diseases caused by dysfunction of cilia, including respiratory
distress, retinal degeneration disorders, and infertility.
By knocking out two genes that produce specific proteins involved
in motility, he discovered that cells lacking these proteins
could not build or maintain cilia and failed to complete normal
cell division. He described a new type of movement vital to
cell separation during division, which he named rotokinesis.
He also discovered an unexpected mechanism of cell density-dependent
control over the assembly of cilia. Dr. Brown’s dissertation
research culminated in an original hypothesis describing the
means by which a soluble secreted factor controls the synthesis
and uniformity of cilia.
Ernest S. Croot III received his doctorate in 2000 from the
Department of Mathematics, one of the nation’s top 10 graduate
math programs according to recent U.S. News and World Report ratings.
He “is undoubtedly the most creative mathematician we have
yet seen amongst our number theory students,” wrote Andrew
Granville, D. C. Barrow Professor of Mathematics. Dr. Croot
has a flair for solving old problems by using fresh ideas,
including linking unit fractions to cyclotomic number fields
and twin primes. Frequently in mathematics, especially in the
field of number theory, a problem will be posed and will remain
unsolved for decades. The Coloring Conjecture for Unit Fractions
(½, ⅓, ¼, …) problem is a well-known mathematical mystery
that Dr. Croot resolved while still a graduate student. The
question revolves around whether there can be a monochromatic
sum of unit fractions that equals 1, if the unit fractions
are painted with more than two colors. Dr. Croot discovered
that this was possible with a breathtakingly original approach.
Recently he has made an important contribution to the analysis
of algorithms used in cryptographic systems that protect the
security of electronic communication.
JAMES L. CARMON AWARD
for innovative use
of computers by a UGA graduate student
Travis S. Barman, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Physics and Astronomy,
is gaining worldwide recognition for his work in modeling planetary atmospheres.
In recent years, many planets have been discovered outside our solar system
that orbit stars similar to our sun. The close proximity of these planets to
their parent stars makes it difficult to detect them directly. Mr. Barman is
developing a computer code that will help astrophysicists search for these
elusive planets. This project is demanding, as these simulations are exceedingly
complex and require the use of massive computing resources. Mr. Barman’s work
is significant both for the magnitude of computation involved and the contribution
it makes to the field.
GRADUATE STUDENT EXCELLENCE IN RESEARCH AWARDS
for significant
graduate student scholarship
Excellence
in professional & applied studies
Dominic
J. Parrott, a doctoral student in the Department of Psychology, studies
factors that influence aggression, such as nicotine deprivation in smokers,
personality
traits, homophobia, consumption of alcohol, and gender. Mr. Parrott’s
studies seek to accurately predict conditions that will result in violence.
Results
from his numerous experiments show that personality has a significant
influence on aggressive behavior and that the combination of the enduring
personality
trait of irritability and nicotine deprivation in male smokers significantly
influences physical aggression. Another study on factors that influence
aggression revealed a possible connection between the proneness to anger
and alcohol-enhanced
aggression. Additionally, his research has demonstrated a link between
males who feel threatened by individuals who exhibit feminine characteristics
and
physical aggression toward those individuals. In November 2001, Mr. Parrott
received the Ramos Research Award for his broad study of aggression from
the Association for the Advancement of Behavior Therapy, a major national
clinical psychology organization.
Excellence in fine arts
Jennifer
K. Graff, a master’s candidate in the Lamar Dodd School of Art, creates figurative
ceramic sculptures that are distinctive for their complex surfaces and colors,
large size, and humorous depiction of the human figure. Ms. Graff’s approach
to glazed surfaces is unparalleled in modern ceramic sculpture, according
to Andy Nasisse, graduate coordinator for the Lamar Dodd School of Art. She
combines layered slips, glazes, and stains with multi-layered surfaces to
create “edgy, whimsical human forms” that “radiate light and bristle with
energy.” Ms. Graff incorporates influences from early Chinese, Egyptian,
and Pre-Columbian ceramics as well as from contemporary artists such as Picasso,
Henry Moore, and Francis Bacon. For a piece titled “Big Hair Family,” which
was influenced by ancient Egyptian sculpture, she crafted three larger-than-life
figures that range from four to more than six feet tall. Fabricating ceramic
pieces of this size is technically difficult and rarely accomplished, Professor
Nasisse said. Her work has been described as “mature, cohesive and spirited” and
her experimentation with scale, color, and texture as “vital and ambitious
research.”
Excellence in life sciences
Ning Jiang, a doctoral student in the Plant Biology Department,
is making exciting contributions to understanding transposable elements – the mobile pieces of genetic
material that make up the bulk of plant and animal genomes and contribute to
evolution. Ms. Jiang discovered that the most abundant plant transposable element
(also called a transposon) tends to insert inside itself instead of into genes,
which explains how plants tolerate large amounts of “junk DNA” and escape mutations.
She also described a new transposable element and is the first to find an active
transposon family in rice. This newly discovered transposon family arose since
rice domestication and appears to play a role in adaptation of rice varieties
to temperate regions. “Ning has made the most important discovery in my lab in
the [past] 20 years” and “in the field of
transposable elements in the past decade,” wrote Dr. Susan Wessler, Distinguished
Research Professor of Plant Biology and Genetics and member of the National Academy
of Sciences. Ms. Jiang’s results
have been published in top journals including
The
Plant Cell and
Genetics (in
press).
Excellence
in humanities & letters
Robin O. Warren, a doctoral student in the Department of English,
delves into archives and merges diverse subjects into unique literary essays.
Her subject
material encompasses Southern, Appalachian, Georgian, women’s, and Renaissance
literature. Six of Ms. Warren’s essays have been published and all are single-authored.
Published in Southern Cultures, “Hamlet rides among the
Seminoles” is just one of her skillfully rendered compositions. The essay is
based on the theft of Shakespearean stage costumes by Seminole Indians and the
Seminoles’ subsequent display of those costumes in battle. She weaves Shakespeare,
Southern literature, and American history into this essay, which is a work that
recognizes cultural differences between European settlers and Seminole Indians
in the 1840s. She also has published her work in major journals such as Renaissance
Papers. The invitation to write encyclopedia articles on Poet Laureate of Georgia
Bettie Sellers is an indication of Ms.
Warren’s growing reputation in the field of Southern literature.
Excellence
in mathematical and physical science
Nathaniel J. Cosper, a doctoral student in the Department of Chemistry, is gaining
recognition for both the sophistication and scope of his research. He has a broad
range of research interests. In one project he used X-ray absorption spectroscopy
to investigate the active site of enzymes that are targets for anti-cancer drugs.
Another area of his research involves the study of biochemical pathways in pathogenic
bacteria as a source for new antibiotic drugs. During his time in the Department
of Chemistry, he has published 15 papers in refereed journals, made presentations
at national scientific meetings, and gained funding for his
research.
Source:
23rd Annual Research Awards Program (2002)
