URECA Bulletin Board / Postings | Undergraduate Research & Creative Activities

URECA Bulletin Board

* Note: The list below is only a small sampling of the opportunities available at Stony Brook. Many students find opportunities by contacting faculty directly by email.

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Posted 01/19/23- New opportunity!

Mechanical Engineering - The Soft Flyers Group is seeking an undergraduate researcher for a summer project on self-healing aerial robots (UAVs). UAVs often fly fast and high, which puts them at risk for severe damage when failures occur. This project will look from a practical perspective at how to respond to damage that could limit the robots capability to complete its mission. Although damage can come in a variety of forms and severities, this project will investigate mild to moderate structural damage. Students will learn how to develop new engineering ideas and critically analyze their feasibility. Students will also participate in lab activities and have the opportunity to help with designing and conducting experiments as well as the follow up data analysis.

This project can be taken for course credit. It is possible for the position to be paid, however this is contingent on successful application to the URECA summer program. Students should expect to spend 6-8 hours a week working on the project unless being sponsored by the summer program. The project lasts from the end of May through the beginning of August.

Required experience is minimal, however an interest and curiosity in robotics and mechatronics is a must. Students should be of U3 or U4 standing in August 2023. Some experience working with hands-on projects and computer programming (any language) is a plus. These can be within the scope of scholastic studies or as hobbies.

Further information on the soft flyers group can be found here: stonybrook.edu/soft-flyers
Interested students should reach out to William Stewart: william.stewart@stonybrook.edu

Posted 09/01/22
The Moore Lab in the Department of Anatomical Sciences is seeking an undergraduate
researcher for a project on the evolution of neck length in sauropods and other extinct
dinosaurs. Previous research has suggested that the long necks of sauropod dinosaurs evolved
as part of a common scaling pattern shared with other dinosaurs, such that the relatively and
absolutely long necks of sauropods are an allometric consequence of their large body size. The
proposed research project will robustly test this hypothesis by producing a large dataset of neck
and trunk lengths for non-avian dinosaurs, to which we will apply cutting-edge statistical
methods that allow for comparative testing of alternative hypotheses. The undergraduate
researcher will comb the existing scientific literature for skeletal measurements; this project
may also entail research visit(s) to the American Museum of Natural History in New York City
with Dr. Moore to take direct measurements of fossil specimens. The undergraduate researcher
will receive basic training in the use of the R statistical analysis platform.
Position requirements.
–Interested undergraduates must be diligent and detail-oriented, with excellent record-keeping
skills.
–Some experience with vertebrate anatomy or statistics is a bonus, but not required.
–Undergraduates should commit to working 3–4 hours per week, and have the option of
working remotely or in person in the Moore Lab (located in the Health Sciences Center on East
Campus).
–One volunteer or zero credit semester is required before research will be offered for credit.
Interested students should send a CV and cover letter to Dr. Moore at: andrew.j.moore@stonybrook.edu.

Posted 08/03/22 - updated!

Description: World Trade Center (WTC) responders were exposed to a mixture of tiny dust particles as they participated in rescue and recovery efforts in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks that occurred on 9/11/2001. While all responders were exposed, the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY) responders were more intensely exposed to a larger array of inhaled particles. Given prior reports of neuropsychiatric impairments among the Police Department of the City of New York (NYPD) and volunteer responders, the present study will examine the presence of these impairments and blood-based biomarkers for ATN neuropathology in a cohort of FDNY responders who reside in the greater NYC metropolitan area. This study complements ongoing work in the NYPD and Volunteer responders at SBU as part of an existing NIA-funded study of brain aging by enabling comparison of different responder cohorts on biomarkers and neuropsychiatric deficits indicative of ADRD.
Hours needed: 6-8 hr/week minimum
Length of Commitment: 6 month minimum
Preferred Method of Contact: Alison.Pellecchia@stonybrookmedicine.edu
Note: This is a paid opportunity

Interested students should contact Alison Pellecchia by email.

Posted 11/9/21
World Trade Center Health Program - recruiting Stony Brook undergraduates (minimum GPA: 3.25)

Description: World Trade Center (WTC) responders were exposed to a mixture of tiny dust particles as they participated in rescue and recovery efforts in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks that occurred on 9/11/2001. While all responders were exposed, the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY) responders were more intensely exposed to a larger array of inhaled particles. Given prior reports of neuropsychiatric impairments among the Police Department of the City of New York (NYPD) and volunteer responders, the present study will examine the presence of these impairments and blood-based biomarkers for ATN neuropathology in a cohort of FDNY responders who reside in the greater NYC metropolitan area. This study complements ongoing work in the NYPD and Volunteer responders at SBU as part of an existing NIA-funded study of brain aging by enabling comparison of different responder cohorts on biomarkers and neuropsychiatric deficits indicative of ADRD.
Hours needed: 6-8 hr/week minimum
Length of Commitment: 6 month minimum
Preferred Method of Contact: Alison.Pellecchia@stonybrookmedicine.edu
Note: This is a paid opportunity

Interested students should contact Alison Pellecchia by email.

Posted 6/14/21

The Turner Lab in the Department of Anatomical Sciences is seeking undergraduate researchers for a project examining the evolution of skeletal morphology of living and fossil reptiles across major ecological transitions. This paleontological and comparative anatomy research relies on a growing dataset of conventional CT and microCT scans of skeletons of living lizards and crocodylians, as well as fossil crocodylians. Undergraduate researchers will be responsible for digital segmentation of these CT scans to create 3D models of individual vertebrae.

Reptiles are an extremely diverse group of vertebrate animals and have an evolutionary history that spans more than 300 million years. Lizards and crocodylians presently inhabit a wide range of habitats, which makes them excellent groups for answering questions about how vertebrates have evolved adaptations to novel ecologies. Our research centers on quantifying the morphologies of skeletons from a wide range of species in order to understand how the shapes of some bones, such as vertebrae, vary depending on a reptile’s ecology and primary mode of locomotion. We use cutting edge methods called geometric morphometrics to quantify the shapes of 3D digital models of vertebrae created from CT segmentation. Because the vertebral column is the central axis of the vertebrate body, with connections to the skull, limbs, and many muscles, vertebral morphology is expected to track with ecological shifts.

Position Requirements. Ability to work in the lab (currently socially distanced) at least 6-10 hours a week; however, more lab time can be accommodated if interested. No prior lab experience is necessary, but experience in comparative anatomy or vertebrate biology is a plus. Student researchers will be trained by the PI in Avizo (medical imaging software for segmentation). We are looking for motivated undergraduates with strong communication, organization, time management, and data analysis skills. This project requires a minimum of a one semester commitment but can be extended on a semester-by-semester basis.

Interested students should send a CV and cover letter to Candice Stefanic at candice.stefanic@stonybrook.edu.

Have you considered joining a Vertically Integrated Projects team?

Posted 8/24/20 - POSITION FILLED

Computational analysis of cancer genomes at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory

The Sheltzer Lab at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory is seeking undergraduate researchers for a
computational project analyzing the genomic aberrations found in cancer. The position can pay
hourly or provide course credit, depending on the student’s preference.
Human tumors exhibit an exceptionally wide range of clinical behaviors. Some cancers remain
dormant for years, never threatening a patient’s life or wellbeing, while other cancers rapidly grow
and metastasize despite systematic treatment. The Sheltzer Lab is interested in discovering and
characterizing the genomic changes in cancer cells associated with patient outcome. By studying
clinical genomic data, we seek to identify aberrations found specifically in patients with lethal
tumors. These aberrations may serve as targets for therapeutic development, or as biomarkers
to identify the patients most likely to benefit from aggressive treatment. More information on this
project can be found in one of our previous publications:
Smith, J.C., and Sheltzer, J.M. (2018). Systematic identification of mutations and copy number
alterations associated with cancer patient prognosis. eLife, e39217.
The student will develop and implement software to analyze genomic and transcriptomic data
from human cancers. These projects involve creating new software systems for analysis, as well
as running and expanding upon existing systems for novel experiments.

Position Requirements

 Ability to work at least 12 hours a week (which could include evenings and weekends).
 Experience in Python.
 Familiarity with Linux and command line tools.
 Experience with git (or other VCSs), pandas, or software engineering best practices are
preferred but not mandatory.
It is possible to work on this project remotely – living on Long Island for the 2020-21 academic
year is not a requirement.

More information can be found on the Sheltzer lab website: http://www.sheltzerlab.org. Interested
students should send a CV and cover letter to Dr. Sheltzer at sheltzer@cshl.edu.

Posted 12/20/19

Abigail Nishimura is a PhD candidate in the Functional Morphology Laboratory (Department of Anthropology). She is looking for undergraduate researchers to assist with a project exploring human and primate evolution. The research focuses on neck and spine evolution in primates and other mammals. The ultimate goal of the project is to learn about how the neck relates to the evolution of bipedalism in the human lineage. Abigail has gathered a large comparative sample of animal skeleton micro-CT scans. Undergraduate researchers will be trained to use Amira software to process these three-dimensional CT scans in order to isolate and examine individual bones in the scans. Undergraduate researchers are also invited to join Functional Morphology Lab meetings led by Dr. Gabrielle Russo.

Position requirements:

-Interested undergraduates must be detail-oriented, patient, and eager to work in a collaborative environment. Some experience with anatomy or osteology is a bonus but is not required. Non-senior applicants are preferred, as it is hoped that the researchers will be interested in working for two or more semesters.

-Undergraduates should be prepared to work for at least 3-4 hours per week, but more time can be accommodated if requested.

-One volunteer semester is required before positions will be offered for course credit.

Interested undergraduates should submit application materials to abigail.nishimura@stonybrook.edu. Application instructions can be found here: https://abigailnishimura.weebly.com/undergraduate-researchers.html.

Posted 2/26/19 - POSITION FILLED

The Lynch Lab for Quantitative Ecology (Ecology & Evolution Dept.) is looking for two undergraduate researchers to assist with a project using photo-identification to track Weddell seals around Antarctica. Our field team has collected hundreds of photos of Weddell seals and we have recently begun scraping the web for more photographs. We use the unique markings on each seal to identify individuals when they show up in different locations. The research assistant will assist primarily in our matching program - looking through our catalog of individuals to determine whether a seal has been previously sighted or is new to our database.

Interested undergrads should have an interest in ecology and a fine attention to visual detail, as this work relies on visual pattern matching between seals that are in different positions, lighting conditions, etc. Some experience with statistics and/or GIS a plus if interested in developing an independent student project out of the work. Students should be prepared to work 6-10 hrs per week during the term and are welcome to join our weekly lab meetings as well.

Have a look at www.lynchlab.com for information about the lab and our research. If interested please submit a cover letter describing your academic interests and any research experience (or interest in research if no prior experience!) and a CV (including relevant coursework).