AdvanceVT 2004-05 Seed Grant Recipients
Julie Dunsmore, Psychology, "Biobehavioral Correlates of Parents' Beliefs about Children's Emotions"
Dr. Dunsmore will examine biobehavioral correlates of parental beliefs about children's emotions, and in particular how parents' emotional arousal is connected to parental beliefs and their parenting behaviors in emotion-laden situations. Understanding these relationships is important in shaping further understanding of how parents influence children's development, and in developing intervention and prevention strategies to optimize children's development. AdvanceVT funding will support purchase of equipment, materials, and a graduate assistant for this project with the goal of submitting a proposal to the NSF.
Naira Hovakimyan, Aero and Ocean Engineering, "Active Vision Control Systems"
AdvanceVT funding will support the purchase of equipment, undergraduate students, and travel for the PI to develop collaborations and increase the understanding of image processing and active vision control systems for autonomous vehicles.
Linsey Marr, Civil and Environmental Engineering, "Measurement of Urban Air Pollutant Emissions"
The lack of an accurate understanding of emissions of pollutants to the atmosphere remains the largest barrier to effective air quality management. The objective of this research is to design a method capable of directly measuring emissions of pollutants in urban areas and ultimately, to foster cost-effective strategies for improvement in air quality. AdvanceVT funding will support the PI and her students to visit collaborators and fields sites and review existing data and literature with the goal of submitting a proposal to the NSF.
Kathleen Meehan , Electrical and Computer Engineering, "Active Surface Plasmon Resonance Structures with Application in Biosensing and Optical Computing"
Dr. Meehan will integrate a modified spin valve structure with a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) structure, which will enable electronic tuning of the SPR phenomenon through the injection of spin-polarized electrons. The spin-SPR structure can be incorporated into the design of active optical devices, circuits for optical computing applications, and tunable biological and chemical sensors with improved detection accuracy. AdvanceVT funding will support a graduate student, materials, and travel for this project with the goal of preparing proposals for the NSF and the Semiconductor Research Corporation.
Corina Sandu, Mechanical Engineering, "Computational Tools for Advanced Modeling and Simulation of Off-Road Vehicles"
AdvanceVT funding will support a graduate assistant and travel to visit collaborators to develop new mathematical models of the contact between pneumatic tires and soft, deformable soil, with applications for the performance of all-terrain vehicles. The work will strengthen proposals for additional funding to NSF, the Department of Defense, and NASA.