Concordia College

Centennial Scholars Research

Chemistry
“The Effect of Surface Pretreatments on the Mediated Electrodeposition of Polypro on Al-2024”
Dr. Mark Jensen, chemistry associate professor
Christopher Aakre ’07 and Audrey Guerard ’08
October 2006

Aluminum alloys are important materials in the aerospace industry, but require anti-corrosion coatings. Current coatings are under increasing scrutiny because they contain a human carcinogen, and conducting polymers are seen as a potential replacement for these coatings. Jensen and the students prepared polymer-coated alloy surfaces using a variety of pretreatment methods to determine which methods result in the most effective anti-corrosion films.

Computer Science
“Pre-Introductory Programming Course with Alice World”
Vijayakumar Shanmugasundaram, computer science instructor
Dustin Weege ’08 and Nicholas Jones ’09
September 2007

The three identified options to eliminate or decrease the frustrations associated with learning programming while broadening the scope of learning programming at the high school level. Their goal was to increase enrollments in college computer science programs and thus decrease the current demand for outsourcing of programming.

“Learning Object Oriented Programming in C# By Creating Visualizations”
Vijayakumar Shanmugasundaram, computer science instructor
Daniel Aalderks ’05 and Matthew Dimich ’05
January 2005

Learning the semantics of a computer programming language can be difficult, especially for object-oriented languages. Shanmugasundaram and his students developed a system of visualization for such a language, C#. Because creating visualizations is an expensive project in terms of time, money and effort, Shanmugasundaram encouraged his students to develop their own system with the help of the research grant. These visualizations will be used in future classes to help students understand object-oriented programming.

Mathematics
“Nash Equilibria, Basins of Attraction, and Chaos in Economics”
Dr. Douglas Anderson, mathematics and computer science chair and associate professor
Nicholas Myran ’05 and Dustin White ’05
October 2004

Anderson and his two student co-inquirers, analyzed a nonlinear Cournot duopoly model developed by Austrian economist Michael Kopel, using techniques from the theory of discrete dynamical systems, mathematical analysis, and linear algebra. In particular, they completely determined the nature and extent of the basins of attraction in the case of three co-existent Nash equilibrium points.

Physics
“Probing the Structure of Exotic Nuclei”
Dr. Bryan Luther, physics chair and associate professor
Dr. Nathan Frank, former physics assistant professor
Christopher Olson ’09 and Robert Jenson ’10
March 2008

Many of the current questions in nuclear physics involve the properties of nuclei at the limits of stability. These exotic nuclei exhibit behaviors and structures markedly different from more stable nuclei. The Nuclear Research Group at Concordia is part of the collaboration that utilizes the MoNA/Sweeper facility located at the National Superconducting Cyclotron laboratory. This facility provides a powerful tool to probe neutron-rich nuclei. The current state of this project and recent results will be presented.

Psychology
“A Study Guide for Learning: The Development and Effect of Supplemental Study Materials for Psychology 320: Principles of Learning and Behavior”
Dr. Susan J. Larson, psychology chair and associate professor
Dera Benson ’05 and Johanna Skoog ’06
March 2005

The lecture is based on the project conducted by Larson and her student co-inquirers to develop a set of student supplemental materials for “Principles of Learning and Behavior”; a challenging, fast-paced course required for all psychology majors. Larson will discuss the creation of these materials and possible benefits for student’s classroom performance and understanding of the course materials.

About the Program

The Centennial Scholars Lecture Series addresses the value of collaborative faculty-student research, and continues the tradition that began in 1983 with a faculty development grant from the Bush Foundation of St. Paul, Minn. There are three components to this valuable faculty-student development program: Centennial Scholars Research Grants support research partnerships; Centennial Scholars Classroom Research Grants support investigations in which teaching strategies are studied by faculty and student partners in order to maximize student learning; and the Centennial Scholars Independent Research Grants that assist faculty working independently at various stages of research projects.

Faculty participating in the Centennial Scholars program have been selected by the Professional Growth Committee in a competitive process.