Several USC Aiken students shared their research recently in Columbia as part of Discover USC, and many brought home honors.

More than 1,000 presenters shared their scholarly efforts as part of the event. Pacers made a total of 44 presentations and received 16 awards: four first place, eight second place and four honorable mentions.

USC Aiken students represented our campus very well, said Dr. Bill Pirkle, who leads USCAs sponsored research program.

Discover USC showcases research, scholarship, leadership and creative projects by undergraduate and graduate students, postdoctoral scholars and medical scholars representing the entire USC System, from the Upstate to the Lowcountry.

Rebecca Beaudry, biology. Mentor, Dr. William Jackson, biology/geology. Development of a bicistronic vector system to test anti-HIV 1 siRNAs that target the accessory protein VIF. Biology and Biomedical Sciences Poster Session F.

Christian Fay, biology. Mentor, Dr. William Jackson, biology/geology. siRNA mediated downregulation of HIV-Tat in anti-Tat siRNA protected Lymphocyte populations. Biology and Biomedical Sciences Poster Session G.

as-050617-ne-training-track-2, psychology, Magellan Scholar. Mentor, Dr. Keri Weed, psychology. The Influence of Perceived Control over Task Difficulty on Coping with Math Anxiety. Psychology and Neurosciences Poster Session E.

Davont Jenkins, communication. Mentor, Dr. William Harpine, communication. The Effects of Speaker Credibility in Race Relations: A Study of Two Speeches. Social Sciences Oral Session H.

Erin McLaughlin, biology, Magellan Scholar, Honors Program graduate. Mentor, Dr. William Jackson, biology/geology. Expression of Vif-resistant ApoBEC3G from a HIV-1-dependent lentiviral vector. Biology and Biomedical Sciences Poster Session H.

Natalie Arthur, biology. Mentor, Dr. William Jackson, biology/geology. Generating a HIV-1-dependent chimeric vector to deliver a pro-apoptotic gene. Biology and Biomedical Sciences Poster Session H.

Jazmine Benjamin, biology. Mentor, Dr. Nathan Hancock, biology/geology. Determining the Sequences Involved in mPing Transposition. STEM Oral Session C.

Tiana Chandler, biology, Honors Program graduate. Mentor, Dr. Nathan Hancock, biology/geology. Development of an mPing-based Activation Tag for Zebrafish Mutagenesis. STEM Oral Session E.

Harli Eggenberger, exercise and sports science, Magellan Scholar, and Brooke Clark, communication, Magellan Scholar, Honors Program graduate. Mentor, Dr. Brian Parr, exercise and sports science. Candy and Soda for Breakfast: Developing visual communication tools to promote healthy eating. Public Health Poster Session D.

Lianna Epstein, exercise and sports science. Mentor, Dr. Andrew Hatchett, exercise and sports science. A comparison of energy expenditure between motorized and non-motorized treadmills. Public Health Poster Session H.

Kenneth Glenn, biology, Magellan Scholar. Mentor, Dr. April DeLaurier, biology/geology. Generating mef2ca and mef2cb transgenic zebrafish lines using BAC-mediated recombination. STEM Oral Session Session A.

Meredith Hawcroft, English, Magellan Scholar, Honors Program graduate. Mentor, Dr. Todd Hagstette, English. The Battle of Bachelorhood and Domesticity in William Gilmore Simms Castle Dismal. Social Sciences and Humanities Poster Session.

Lisete Payero, biology, Magellan Scholar. Mentor, Dr. Nathan Hancock, biology/geology. Determining the role of homologous recombination in replicative transposition of mPing. Biology and Biomedical Sciences Poster Session E.

Johnny Carroll, biology. Mentor, Dr. William Jackson, biology/geology. T-Bid expression in ptBidTNG(INS2)R to induce Apoptosis in a HIV infected Cell. Biology and Biomedical Sciences Poster Session F.

Emma Nettles, psychology, Magellan Scholar. Mentor, Dr. Adam Pazda, psychology. Perspective Taking and Self-Other Overlap: How Self-Compassion Mitigates the Negative Effect of Blame on Helping Behavior. Psychology and Neuroscience Poster Session E.

Sara Puckett, psychology, and Matthew Haslinger, psychology. Mentors, Drs. Elaine Clanton Harpine, education; Adam Pazda, psychology; and William Harpine, Communication. Teaching Phonemic Awareness Improved Reading, Spelling, and Comprehension. Social Sciences Poster Session I.

Lauren Spires, biology. Mentor, Dr. William Jackson, biology/geology. Developing a HIV-1 Dependent Lentiviral Vector that Expresses an Innate Human Anti-Retroviral Gene. Biology and Biomedical Sciences Poster Session F.

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USCA students earn research awards at Discover USC - Aiken Standard