FARMINGTON - Eighteen undergraduate research student scholars at University of Maine at Farmington have recently been honored as spring and summer 2009 Michael D. Wilson Scholars for their outstanding original scholarship and innovation by the UMF Undergraduate Research Council.

This selective academic award has become increasingly sought after by students at UMF as it underwrites research project expenses and helps promote expanded opportunities for pre-professional academic investigation.

“We are so proud of these students and their commitment to the pursuit of academic excellence,” said Theodora J. Kalikow, UMF president. “They exemplify the creative student and faculty collaboration that takes place in all corners of UMF.”

According to David Heroux, assistant professor of chemistry and chairman of the UMF Undergraduate Research Council, applications for the spring 2009 award increased by over 50 percent compared to previous semesters.

“Students are excited about the opportunity the Wilson Scholars program offers them to explore what they find fascinating and share it with the campus on UMF Symposium Day,” said Heroux. “We have students developing low-cost software for radio stations, writing original literature while backpacking cross country, and using a new method of chemical analysis to determine the sources of prehistoric stone artifacts in Maine. Developing the ability to do serious academic research and communicate it to others prepares our students as creative thinkers and leaders for the future.”

The annual Michael D. Wilson Research Scholar Program has been supporting single-semester research, scholarship and creative projects at UMF since the fall of 2006 and was expanded in the fall of 2007 to include two full-year Wilson Fellow awards. The students are nominated by a UMF faculty sponsor and, after a competitive selection process, awardees are selected by the UMF Undergraduate Research Council. The awards are funded by a generous gift from Michael and Susan Angelides, Stonington, Conn., in honor of their good friend and UMF alumnus Michael D. Wilson, class of 1976, who died shortly after graduating.

The spring 2009 Michael D. Wilson Research Scholars and their hometowns include:

Emily Baer – Brunswick

A senior with a double major in English and art, Baer is looking at the history of art as activism and the role women have played in it. Her faculty sponsor is Kate Randall, UMF assistant professor of art.

Amy Blankenship – Naples

A junior majoring in creative writing, Blankenship will be backpacking cross country and creating a chapbook of short fictional pieces about her experience. Her faculty sponsor is Patricia O’Donnell, UMF professor of English.

Michael Camacho – Chelmsford, Mass.

A senior majoring in environmental science, Camacho is researching the effect excessive rainfall has on lake transparency. His faculty sponsor is Daniel Buckley, UMF professor of biology.

Adam Case – New Vineyard

A senior with a double major in computer science and mathematics, Case is designing a computer program using algorithms and heuristics to discover optimal solutions to the coin-moving puzzle. His faculty sponsor is Christopher Bennett, UMF assistant professor of computer science.

Danielle Cerone – Winslow

A junior majoring in rehabilitation services, Cerone is sharing a Wilson Scholars award with Carla Powers. They are conducting a student based photography exploration and reflection regarding transition issues of the upward bound college student. Their faculty sponsor is Chad Duncan, UMF assistant professor of rehabilitation services.

Derek Gilbert – Augusta

A senior majoring in computer science, Gilbert is developing and designing a low-cost radio automation package for low-budget radio stations using existing open source and self-created software. His faculty sponsor is Gail Lange, UMF professor of mathematics and computer science.

Anthony Greenlaw – Thorndike

A junior majoring in geology with a minor in geography, Greenlaw is using field relations, petrographic features and geochemical data to determine the history of igneous plutons in the Farmington area. His faculty sponsor is David Gibson, UMF professor of geology.

Sara Groves – Brooksville

A junior majoring in English with a minor in history, Groves is exploring how the Algerian War has been represented in French cinema. Her faculty sponsor is Daniel Becker, UMF visiting instructor of history.

Adeline Harris – Falmouth

A senior with a double major in biology and English, Harris is sequencing the DNA of larval male damselflies to use as a template in identifying females. Her faculty sponsors are Ronald Butler, UMF professor of biology; and Jean Doty, UMF associate professor of biology.

Gillian Laidlaw – Eustis

A junior with an individualized major in anthropology with an emphasis on socio-cultural and archaeological studies, Laidlaw is conducting an ethnographic study of the New England lumberyard culture. Her faculty sponsor is Julianna Acheson, UMF associate professor of anthropology.

Kenneth Masloski – Monroe, Conn.

A senior majoring in biology, Masloski is researching grasshopper diversity by surveying its population in central Maine. His faculty sponsor is Ronald Butler, UMF professor of biology.

Oreva Olakpe – Idheze-Delta State, Nigeria

A senior majoring in international studies with a minor in French, Olakpe is examining the participation of community organizations in the conflict resolution process in Liberia from 1997-2003, during and after their Civil War. Her faculty sponsor is Linda Beck, UMF assistant professor of political science.

Carla Powers – Buckfield

A sophomore majoring in rehabilitation services, Powers is sharing a Wilson Scholars award with Danielle Cerone. They are conducting a student based photography exploration and reflection regarding transition issues of the upward bound college student. Their faculty sponsor is Chad Duncan, UMF assistant professor of rehabilitation services.

Ian Putnam – Presque Isle

A senior majoring in geology, Putnam is using a new, non-destructive method of chemical analysis to determine the sources of prehistoric stone artifacts in Maine. This will aid in the reconstruction of prehistoric trade routes. His faculty sponsor is David Gibson, UMF professor of geology.

Christopher Stevens – Bedford, Mass.

A senior majoring in biology, Stevens is sequencing the DNA of larval male damselflies to use as a template in identifying females. His faculty sponsors are Ronald Butler, UMF professor of biology, and Jean Doty, UMF associate professor of biology.

Andrew Thompson – Plymouth, Mass.

A senior with a double major in art and music/arts, Thompson is researching Missa Ukulele, the combination of the rich traditions of the Catholic mass and Hawaiian folk music to create a unique composition that joins history and community. His faculty sponsor is Philip Carlsen, UMF professor of music.

Ty Thurlow – Lee

A senior majoring in English, Thurlow is studying how three unique sources—Hollywood films, the thoughts & feelings of family members of soldiers killed in action, and the observations of the author who has lost two friends in the Iraq War—can produce an overarching narrative of our country’s attitudes towards the Iraq War. His faculty sponsors are Michael Johnson, UMF associate professor of American literature; and Kristina Wolff UMF assistant professor of sociology.

Christian Tuttle – Cape Cod, Mass.

A senior majoring in secondary education with a concentration in English, Tuttle is researching the cultural symbolism and significance of the Oliphant, an iconic war horn carried by Roland, the namesake of La Chanson de Roland. His faculty sponsor is Eric Brown, UMF associate professor of English.