BME Faculty Guide Research for REAL Work Sophomores

In an April poster session, six College of Engineering sophomores presented their research on how to build stronger bridges, enhance cybersecurity in radio communications, and improve human beings’ quality of life. The students were part of the Research, Engineering, Advocacy and Leadership (REAL) Work initiative, part of the ENGineering Access, Greater Equity, and Diversity program, or ENGAGED program. The program matches students up with research groups conducting work they are most interested in. 

“We want to help students develop a sense of engineering identity in order to encourage them to persist in the engineering disciplines,” said ENGAGED director Noel Hennessey.

Kayma Konecny, an optical sciences and engineering student, is working in BME assistant professor DK Kang's lab on a blood testing device. The device is more affordable, smaller, and easier to use; it pulls apart the samples so that anomalies in small amounts of blood are more easily detectable. Konecny is helping make the device easier to use mechanically.

“DK has been an amazing mentor for me,” said Konecny. “I really think that this research, as well as the [ENGAGED] peer mentorship program, has kind of put me ahead.”

Mechanical engineering major Patrick Pinder-Newton is conducting research with associate professor of BME and orthopaedic surgery Daniel Latt. The team is researching flatfoot, a condition where the ligaments of the foot don’t support its arch. It can cause foot pain, ankle pain and swelling so severe that some patients lose the ability to walk.

Pinder-Newton is working to improve a robotic gait simulator, which researchers can use to study how different movements and weights affect human feet.

“I think it’s valuable for an engineer to know how to do research and understand how it works,” he said. “I would definitely recommend the REAL Work program to other students. I honestly wouldn’t be in engineering if I hadn’t done it. It gives you an experience that you really wouldn’t get while you’re in college. Everything and everyone in REAL Work kind of helps you through the process.”