Research Portfolio 

Undergraduate 

Research at UNLV At UNLV I have engaged in a few research projects. This page displays just about all of them.If interested here is my Curriculum Vitae.

Curriculum Vitae
UNLV 3

Physics 

2019 – Current

condensed matter

Condensed Matter Physics 

At UNLV one of the main focuses in the physics department is in the field of condensed matter physics. In this field, materials are studied at the most fundamental level. From here we asses how they behave subjected to extreme conditions. i.g varying temperatures, pressures, irradiation, etc. 

Purpose

I currently work alongside professor and physicist Dr. Micheal Pravica, and in his work, he has been developing new means of studying materials via hard x-ray irradiation. As a consequence, new materials, which we believe have never existed before, have been synthesized. 

Experiments

Instead of irradiation, I am currently investigating metal oxalates under pressure. This involves using a mechanism called a diamond anvil cells. Future experiments will involve investigating these materials in different environmental parameters. 

Presentations

OUR Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium

The Center’s 20th Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium

UNLV’s Honor’s + Research Symposium

UNLV’s Fall 2019 Undergraduate Research Symposium 

Publications

For more information about my current project, here is my recent non-peer reviewed summer 2019 publication.

CAEO SRI paper

Research funding

My research is/was gratefully supported by the following 
 

2019-2020 CSUN Research Stipend

2019 Office of Undergraduate Research Summer Scholarship

2019 CAEO Summer Research Institute 

Biology

2017 – 2019 

Twilley phages 1

Bacteriophages 

Throughout my second year at UNLV, I was in a research group that investigated viruses called bacteriophages. They are responsible for killing the majority of bacteria in our world and they are incredibly abundant. You can find them in seawater, soil, and even in yourself! As research advances in this field, these viruses will probably one day replace our weakening antibiotics, so we should be hopeful for them!

Purpose

Wet Lab 
The first portion of the research was conducted in a wet lab. We captured these viruses from local environments, then categorized them using an advanced microscope, and finally, we took the viruses DNA and multiplied it. 
 
 
Computations

In the second portion of the year, we assembled, annotated, and published the phage’s genome in a peer-reviewed journal. This portion of the research involved using computational methods to organize the virus’s genome. 

Publications

For more information about my current project, here is my recent non-peer reviewed summer 2019 publication.

Publication 1
Publication 2

Biology Gallery

  • phage 1
    The phage I found and investigated.
  • phage 2
  • phage 3
  • phage plate 1 5
    Plate used to amplify virus.

Experiments

Various experiments were conducted throughout the year. 
The full documentation for the wet lab portion of the research is linked below. 
2017 Phage wet lab notebook

Sociology

2019

bret-kavanaugh-MIfUp3FA5ek-unsplash-2

Medical Sociology

Medical Sociology is the study and analysis of medical institutions and organizations. A few topics of study include the organization of medical knowledge, interaction of doctor v.s patient, and social/cultural effects of medical practices.

 

Purpose

In Spring 2019, I ended up taking a course in medical sociology. For this course, I was able to embark on a research project involving a medical issue relevant to our society. I chose hospices. 
 
This course was set up in such a way that the students could research on a specific topic of choice.  At the end of the semester, they were allowed to present it. 
 

Project

I ended up merging my project with a heartbreaking book titled When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi, I was intrigued by how medical professionals often have to distance themselves to cope with the reality of death. At the same time, I thought about how this social environment might affect the patients and their families during these harsh moments. 

Research Questions

My research questions were the following: How is it that we can approach death in a more meaningful way with respect to the medical environment? & What kind of sociological findings are there in academic literature to aid me in this question?

Book 1

Final Result

If you are interested, the final result is formatted on a Tumblr page and linked down below. 
A Graceful Approach to Death