Research and Study Abroad Opportunities
Students are encouraged to seek research opportunities on campus with our faculty. In addition to the on-campus research opportunities available at Hiram, our students and faculty participate in numerous off-campus field programs to locations such as the secluded Himalayan Buddhist country of Bhutan, Costa Rica, Malaysia, the Smoky Mountains, and the Missouri Botanical Gardens in St. Louis. Hiram biology students are also encouraged to pursue internship and field research opportunities with external organizations. These internships are as diverse as our students' interests and have ranged from a study of dominance in all-male gorilla groups at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo to a study of florescent bacteria in marine organisms at the University of Hawaii.
Hiram students with an interest in marine science have the opportunity to study at the Shoals Marine Laboratory in Maine. Located on Appledore Island in the Gulf of Maine, students at Shoals conduct research on numerous aspects of inter-tidal and sub-tidal ecology. In addition to the laboratory facilities, Shoals also maintains two ocean-going research vessels to conduct research at sea. Shoals is operated by Cornell University's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences in cooperation with the University of New Hampshire.
Seniors share their internship experiences to the Hiram community at the semi-annual APEX presentations.
Current Student Research Projects
Audrey Andzelik (Biomedical Humanities, '11) and Claire McCarthy (Biochemistry, '11) presented their 2009 summer biochemistry research projects this past May at the 58th Annual ASMS Conference on Mass Spectrometry and Allied Science in Salt Lake City, Utah. Approximately 3,000 posters were presented at the conference, of those only twenty-four were by undergraduate research students. Both Audrey and Claire completed summer internships in Biochemistry with Professor Jody Modarelli.
Audrey's poster titled, "Identification of the human-like immunoglobulin IgG in the plasma of the endangered White-Winged Wood Duck (WWWD)", looked at the role immunoglobulins (Igs) play in mounting an inflammatory response in ducks exposed to mycobacterium avium through the soil-water interface. Mycobacterium avium is the causative agent of tuberculosis (TB).
Claire's poster titled, "Identification of lipid metabolites in the plasma of the endangered White-Winged Wood Duck infected with mycobacterium avium", focused on identifying lipid metabolites in ducks living in a soil-water environment that are absent in ducks living in a water-only environment at the James H. Barrow Field Station.
The research is conducted in collaboration with the Akron Zoo and the Sylvan Heights Waterfowl Park in South Carolina and aims to preserve a species of duck native to Southeast Asia that has been listed on the endangered species register since 2002. It is estimated that their current population in the wild is 800. The students' research is funded by the Paul and Maxine Frohring Foundation and is part of the Center of Distinction for the Study of Nature and Society.
Biology faculty have led trips all over the world. For up-to-date study abroad courses, please visit the Study Abroad website.