Students Borroni ‘25, Powers ‘25, Torres ‘25 Present Research at American Physical Society Conference
November 05, 2024MARIETTA, Ohio — From October 18-19, Dr. Julie Butler, assistant professor of physics accompanied nine Mount Union students to the American Physical Society (APS) Eastern Great Lakes Section (EGLS) conference at Marietta College. The conference gathered physicists, engineers and scientists from industry, government, and academia to discuss and present current topics in the field. Out of the nine students who attended, three students presented research: Emily Borroni '25 biomedical engineering major; Shawn Powers '25 mathematics and physics major and Leonel Sanchez Torres '25 physics major.
Borroni’s presentation titled “The Effect of Gravitational, Drag, Magnus, and Coriolis Forces on a Roundball Bullet,” was an extension of the final project she completed for Dr. Colin Campbell’s DSC 250 class. Her research was computational, with results derived from a Python simulation consisting of over 400 lines of code. She had the opportunity to connect with graduate students, professors, and industry professionals. Her most memorable interaction was with a physicist from the Air Force, with whom she was able to discuss her project and potential applications and benefits to the military.
“The conference was an amazing experience,” said Borroni. “I wouldn't have been able to do this without the assistance of Dr. Butler, Dr. Campbell and Dr. Bob Ekey. Dr. Campbell taught the DSC 250 course that this project originated from and assisted me on my poster, and Dr. Ekey provided me with the tough love I needed to be ready for the conference and any questions that would come my way.”
Dr. Julie Butler (left) poses with students at the American Physical Society (APS) Eastern Great Lakes Section (EGLS) conference.
Emily Borroni '25 poses with her research presented at the conference.
Shawn Powers '25 presents his research to conference attendees.
Leonel Sanchez Torres '25 poses with his research posterboard at the conference.
Dr. Julie Butler presented her own research alongside her students at the American Physical Society (APS) Eastern Great Lakes Section (EGLS) conference.
Powers presented a poster titled "Fabrication of Ferroelectric Tunnel Junctions for Applications in Non-Volatile Memory,” based on his work as a Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) student at Pennsylvania State University under Dr. Qi Li in the summer of 2024.
Torres presented research titled “Advancing Atomic Modeling: Integration of Computational Clusters and Neural Network Techniques,” which he completed over the summer of 2023 and 2024 as a National Science Foundation REU student at the University of Toledo under Dr. Richard Irving. His research focused on building a supercomputer using recycled CPUs and applying machine learning techniques, specifically Neural Networks, to make complex atomic calculations faster and more efficient while maintaining accuracy. Torres described the conference as a valuable experience that allowed him to interact with graduate students working on similar research. One graduate student shared their approach to dealing with similar difficulties Torres had faced, which provided insight into approaches he should take in the future.
“I believe this experience was extremely helpful," Torres said of the conference. "This was my second time attending and both times I have made new connections and learned about possible paths I can take after I graduate. Attending conferences should be something more students should do.”
To learn more about the engineering and science programs Mount Union offers visit the School of Engineering page or Department of Biochemistry, Chemistry, and Physics page.