May 26, 2009  

MEDIA CONTACT: Michelle Sherrard
202-994-1423; mcs1@gwu.edu

NINE GW STUDENTS NAMED 2009 - 2010 GAMOW FELLOWS

WASHINGTON - Nine GW students have been selected as 2009 - 2010 George Gamow Undergraduate Research Fellows. Students from the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences and the Elliott School of International Affairs will receive either summer or academic year funding to conduct research under the guidance of a faculty mentor.

The program--named in honor of George Gamow, a noted theoretical nuclear physicist and former GW faculty member--is co-sponsored by the Office of Graduate Studies and Academic Affairs and the Center for Undergraduate Fellowships and Research. A committee of faculty from diverse fields evaluated joint student-faculty proposals to conduct research, scholarship or creative activity in the humanities, creative arts, social sciences, mathematics, natural sciences, engineering and professional fields.

Barun Aryal, a junior from Silver Spring, Md., is pursuing a degree in biology from the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences. He will complete research for his project, "Tricyclic Drugs and Their Effects on Lipid Vesicles," over the summer of 2009 with Susan Gillmor, assistant professor of chemistry, as his mentor.

John Capone, a junior from Trenton, N.J., is majoring in physics in the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences. During the summer of 2009, he will undertake the project, "Photon Scattering of Carbon," with Gerald Feldman, associate professor of physics. 

Jacob Jones, a sophomore from Huntington Station, N.Y., is a double-major in biology and religion. He will spend the 2009 - 2010 academic year working on the project, "Analysis of a Single Infected Cell," with his mentor Akos Vertes, professor of chemistry and of biochemistry and molecular biology.

Jillian Mallis, a sophomore from Scarsdale, N.Y., is majoring in archaeology and geosciences. With the help of her mentor Eric Cline, associate professor of classics. Ms. Mallis will complete her project, "Shake, Rattle, and Roll: Identifying Earthquakes and Seismic Activity in Ancient Israel," during the summer of 2009.

Rajiv Menon, a junior from Kingwood, Texas, is a double-major in international affairs and English. Working with Judith Plotz, professor of English, he will spend the summer of 2009 completing research for the project: "Imagined Dravidistans: Regionalism and South Indian Literature in English."

Caroline O'Grady, a junior from Sedgwick, Maine, is a theater major in the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences.  She will complete her "Bokamosa Theater of Healing Project" this summer with the assistance of Leslie Jacobson, professor of theatre.

Edward O'Neil, a junior from Weston, Conn., is majoring in international affairs in the Elliott School of International Affairs. He will be spending the summer of 2009 working on his project, "Henry James and the City of Boston," with the help of Katharine Lawrence, assistant professor of English.

Zoe Petkanas, a junior from Putnam Valley, N.Y., is pursuing a degree in international affairs with a concentration in the Middle East and a minor in political science. During the summer of 2009, she will complete her project "Rhetoric and Reality: An Analysis of Microcredit's Capacity to Empower Palestinian Women in Jordan," with mentor Ilana Feldman, assistant professor of anthropology and of international affairs.

Meredith Zoltick, a sophomore from Cooperstown, N.Y., is pursing a degree in international affairs in the Elliott School of International Affairs. With the help of Barbara Miller, professor of anthropology and of international affairs, Ms. Zoltick will complete her project, "A Study of HIV/AIDS Knowledge in Pune, India," during the summer of 2009.

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