homenews | College of Science

Getting miners home safe at night

April 15, 2025

Geoffrey King

“I’ve always had a wide range of interests,” he says. “It’s a blessing and a curse.”

At 43, King is not your typical graduate student. He’s worked in oil fields and mines, taught high school science, flipped houses, run a rental business, and even planned a year-long move to Spain. Now, he’s a student in the first-ever cohort of a master’s program at the University of Utah focused on mining safety. The interdisciplinary program is a collaboration between the U’s Department of Mining Engineering at the Rocky Mountain Center for Occupational and Environmental Health.

King’s path to mining safety was a circuitous one. After earning a geology degree from Weber State, he jumped into the industry, taking a job as a mine operations geologist with US Oil Sands. The company was trying to extract crude oil from Utah’s sandstone — an environmentally friendlier process than the Alberta tar sands operations — but like many before them, they struggled to make it profitable.

“They failed,” Geoffrey says matter-of-factly. “The price of oil wasn’t high enough, and the costs were too steep.”

Next came a six-month contract at the Kennecott Copper Mine, analyzing rock cores to predict slope stability — a crucial task in preventing catastrophic landslides. After that, a pivot: teaching high school earth sciences.

Then came Spain. Or at least, the idea of it. King and his wife had planned to move their family overseas for a year. She, ever the pragmatist, suggested he use the time to figure out what he wanted to do “when he grew up.” So, he did what everyone seems to do these days; he turned to ChatGPT.

“I asked it to give me five career ideas based on my background,” he recalls. “First one? Occupational and environmental safety and health.”

The more King looked into it, the more it made sense. He’d always been drawn to safety, having started his industrial career in the oil fields, where he’d seen firsthand the consequences of cutting corners. “I chopped off a big chunk of my finger,” he says. “And I’ve seen guys in the field with hooks for hands. Safety’s no joke.”

Spain, however, would have to wait. Advisors told him that if he wanted a career in occupational safety, the U.S. was the place to train — home to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and the highest industry standards. So, he made a call to the U.

“I got lucky,” he admits. “Normally, I would’ve missed the application deadline by months. But this program had just launched. I interviewed, got accepted, and they offered to pay for the whole thing. At that point, I had to really consider it.”

Now, King is deep into coursework that surprised him with its emphasis on health science. “I thought I’d be learning mostly about safety — hard hats, harnesses, protocols,” he says. “Turns out, I’m taking classes with medical residents and postdocs, studying how toxic exposures affect the body.”

His studies will take him to South America this summer, where he’ll do an internship in Colombia. “I’ve got some Spanish,” he says, “but I want a lot more.” More importantly, he wants to bridge the gap between academia and the workers who need this knowledge the most.

“There’s this massive machine of occupational safety research happening in universities,” he says, “but I see a disconnect between that and the guy working next to an asphalt paver on the freeway. That’s who I want to help.”

King’s passion for connecting people to knowledge isn’t new. He credits his own education to his mother, who, despite severe

Geoffrey King and his children.

financial struggles and mental health challenges, made sure he had exposure to science. “We were poor,” he says, “but she always brought us to the Utah Museum of Natural History [NHMU] on free Mondays. That’s what set me on this path.”

This excursion into graduate school at the U is not his first rodeo — or perhaps more appropriately, not his first hard rock lesson. In addition to his youthful visits to the NHMU in what is now the Crocker Science Center, he "went to preschool right here on 2nd South. Kindergarten just down the road. Our neighbor had alligators in their backyard,” he adds with a laugh. “I’ve known where Presidents Circle is for a long time.”

As for what’s next, King — who when he’s not “digging” into his pastimes of coaching basketball, hiking and traveling — keeps his options and one more circuitous route open. “I might go into consulting, or mining safety or construction. Maybe I’ll start my own business.” He pauses, then grins. “That drives my wife nuts.”

Whatever he chooses, Geoffrey King knows one thing: he wants to make a real impact. “In this field, you can be the person making sure workers get home safe at night. That’s powerful.”

2025 College of Science Awards

April 15, 2025

From Stars to Stories: Making Science Accessible

April 14, 2025

Ethan Hood

"It wasn't until my last semester at SLCC that I made the decision to major in physics," Hood explains. This decision led him to the U, where the robust conveyer between institutions made his transition seamless.

"I'd say it's probably one of the most streamlined pipelines between two institutions in the country," Hood reflects on the SLCC-to-Utah pathway. "It felt very harmonious, and especially now where we have the SLCC-U campus... . It’s really blossomed as a true partnership."

The mutually beneficial arrangement has allowed Hood to transition from community college to a major research university without missing a beat, demonstrating how strategic investment in higher education creates continuous pathways for student success.

Goff Institute Trailblazer

This semester, Hood is participating in the U’s Goff Institute's Trailblazers program, where he's applying his scientific training to real-world challenges. Working with a diverse team, Hood is helping the Leonardo Museum in Salt Lake City to better engage with the public.

"The problem that we've been given is to help the museum tell their story more effectively," Hood says. His team is focusing on both visitor acquisition and retention—skills that translate directly to economic impact for cultural institutions.

As the only science major in a program, primarily made up of business majors, Hood brings a unique approach to his consulting work. "It's similar to a problem-solving process in a scientific or physics sense, somewhat related to the scientific method," he notes, demonstrating how education in STEM creates versatile problem-solvers across sectors.

Science Research Initiative

Simultaneously, Hood participates in the Science Research Initiative (SRI) with Dr. Carsten Rott, chair of the U's Physics & Astronomy Department. SRI, which typically targets freshmen, also welcomes transfer students, recognizing the potential of students like Hood despite non-traditional paths.

“We study neutrino particles using data from the IceCube Observatory down in Antarctica. Neutrinos are my favorite little subatomic friends. Very much a 'go with the flow’ feel as they’re so weakly interacting.”

This opportunity exemplifies how university research initiatives can be structured to include students from diverse backgrounds, including community college transfers. It also showcases how public funding for research programs directly benefits students by creating hands-on learning experiences that classroom instruction alone cannot provide.

‘Scicomm’ as Presidential Intern

Additionally, throughout the current academic year, Hood has served as a Presidential Intern with the U's University Marketing and Communications team, where he's found his niche in what’s called “scicomm,” short for science communication, as a science writer. This prestigious appointment has allowed him to meet with leading researchers, discuss cutting-edge discoveries and craft stories that translate complex concepts for public understanding.

Hood describes his approach to science writing using an archaeological metaphor: "Figuring out who to interview and what to talk to them about is doing your site research. That gets you there, and then you start digging — that's the interview. You probably uncover some fragments of artifacts, and then you need to figure out how to piece them back together — drafting and editing the article. Once that's all touched up and polished, then presented in the museum, that's when it's published."

This internship represents the university's investment in developing not just technical experts, but skilled communicators who can bridge the gap between specialized knowledge and the lay reader— a critical need in today's information ecosystem.

Public impact

Looking ahead, Hood is developing a service project through the U's Bennion Center focused on STEM outreach and science literacy. "That's shaping up to … doing a lot of tutoring whether for children or adults and helping them develop math skills and build an interest in science."

Formalizing his service work ambitions is likely in the offing. "Maybe there's the potential out there for me to develop an outreach program or maybe a curriculum that could be used, not necessarily [for] research specifically, but science literacy."

With a strategically formulated and accessible curriculum, this program would directly address critical needs in science education, elevating public understanding and acceptance of STEM. It’s part of the suite of essential services, or outreach, to the broader community that is sometime unfulfilled, changing the preposition in the University of Utah to the University for Utah.

ROI of a physics education

While Hood dreams of becoming a professional astronomer, his physics education has prepared him for numerous career paths. "In case things don’t pan out, I have a variety of professional employment opportunities, whether it's in engineering or maybe in something far off, like finance or banking," he says.

This pliability is recognized among his peers, such as his classmate Sylver, who refers to physics as “the Swiss Army knife of degrees.” "That was one of the big appeals for me to get involved in physics — just that versatility and that knowledge that at the end of the day, when I graduate, I will have definite worth that I can provide."

The joke about physicists becoming bankers isn't just humor — it reflects the real economic value of STEM education. "There's a popular story that I love to share about a physicist who went into banking with one of those big companies," Hood says. "He's doing high-level financial analysis as a physics graduate."

This adaptability represents a significant return on investment for both students and the state, as graduates like Hood develop transferable skills that contribute to economic growth across multiple sectors.

Higher Ed's purpose and promise

Whether Hood's future lies in science communication, research, education, or even finance, his multifaceted university experience exemplifies how public investment in higher education yields dividends far beyond individual career preparation. Through his involvement with the Goff Institute, SRI, presidential internship, and the Bennion Center, Hood demonstrates how universities serve as engines of opportunity, innovation and community engagement.

"One of my values is STEM outreach and being able to inspire people to take an interest and passion in science, and ideally even go on and become scientists themselves," Hood says at a high level, but always determined to face outwards. "Hopefully there's some small changes or influences that we can make in our positions ... that we can make a positive impact, not just for ourselves, but for the future generations as well."

In Ethan Hood's journey from community college to Utah’s flagship research university, we see the full promise of higher education realized — creating not just graduates, but engaged citizens equipped to address complex challenges and inspire others along the way.

ACCESS Scholar: Nia Brooks

April 14, 2025

Photo by Kayla McKay. Yale SURF/AMGEN Scholars Closing Symposium (2023)
Project: Detection of DNA Strand Breaks in Ichthyosis with Confetti, Choate Lab, Dermatology/Pathology, Yale University School of Medicine

But many programs have recognized the value of building a passion in a subject first to then fuel an obligation. ACCESS Scholars is one of them, providing students like Nia Brooks an initial spark to fuel a successful journey into their future careers.

Peaks and precipices

Brooks traveled all the way from northern Virginia to pursue studies in biology and pre-medicine. It was her first experience in a college setting several thousand miles away from home, and coming off the online classes of the Covid pandemic. Suffice to say, the culture shock was immense, but thanks to a welcoming community she was able to quickly adapt and thrive. She joined the Honors College, took on a role as a TA, and through the ACCESS program dove straight into research.

“I didn’t know I’d want this when I first started,” Brooks explains. “I had always looked at research as something too hard, too complicated. I’d be stuck doing a science project for months and get burnt out! But since I started so early I had time to realize that it was way more dynamic and fun! I loved it!”

With Principal Investigator Tracey Lamb and graduate student Marshall Roedel, Brooks has been working to study cerebral malaria, a subset or complication of malaria that can easily lead to childhood fatalities. Instead of the typical “months-long science project” her research rapidly evolved from studying the prominent cellular interactions in response to gene editing, to investigating cellular signaling pathways and then working with mice models to understand the mechanisms of this condition.

Any initial hesitancy in Brooks was given the perfect environment to grow into healthy motivation, the intimidating precipice of earning an MD/PhD appearing more scalable to her with each passing day. And it’s not because that career peak is any less difficult to climb. If anything, the deeper exposure showcases how steep it really is. But by showing students like Nia Brooks the tools they’ll need and giving them space to learn if they enjoy using them, programs like ACCESS create a spark that can help supersede any obligation.

Because at the end of the day, an obligation is something we stop pursuing once it is met. A passion is something we pursue for the rest of our lives.

The West’s latest air quality threats

April 14, 2025

Kevin Perry

Both are associated with climate change, which is making the West drier and warmer. Neither can be controlled through traditional emission-reduction programs that have helped reduce smog all over the West, especially in Los Angeles.

The symposium’s keynote speaker Nsedu Obot Witherspoon, executive director of the Children’s Environmental Health Network, explored the need for greater equity in how we protect children from air pollution. The other featured speaker, UCLA law professor Ann Carlson, discussed the progress Los Angeles has made in recent decades to rein in emissions responsible for its once-notorious air pollution and what lessons it offers for other cities struggling with bad air.

Reducing vehicle and industrial emissions alleviates particulate and ozone pollution, but such measures make little difference for smoke and dust.

A new Dust Bowl?

Salt Lake City is affected by countless dust sources—gravel quarries, the long-dried Sevier Lake, roads and lands disturbed by cattle grazing and off-roading. But the most troubling could be the shrinking Great Salt Lake, yet the state of Utah has yet to deploy the monitoring equipment to know for sure, said Kevin Perry, a professor in the Department of Atmospheric Sciences. His tireless sampling forays by bike have earned him the moniker of Dr. Dust.

Derek Mallia

According to Perry’s research, there are four major “hotspots” on the 750 square miles of exposed playa where winds can lift dust into the air and potentially push it into populated areas and nearby mountains, Perry said on a panel devoted to the dust issue. These spots occur where the lakebed crusts have been disturbed, exposing the underlying sediments to the influence of the wind.

Hotspots closest to residential areas are in Farmington Bay, as well as in Bear River Bay, where most of the dust sources are located at elevations above 4,202 feet, nearly 10 feet above where the lake level stands, Perry said. The Farmington Bay spots tend to be at lower elevations.

“You can cover up a significant quantity of these dust hotspots at a lake elevation of 4,200 feet and get 70% coverage at 4,202,” he said. The lake’s ever-fluctuating level is currently at 4,193, a good 5 feet below what officials say is needed to restore Great Salt Lake’s ecological health.

“All of these dust hotspots that I’ve measured are currently exposed. They’re too wet to blow right now, but that’ll change as we move into the drier season,” Perry said. “Even if you bring that lake up to 4,198 feet, that will only cover up about 40% of the dust hotspots.”

Wind events, especially in spring, drive a big share of the Wasatch Front’s dust problem, pushing particulate pollution from the lake and other sources into the cities of Salt Lake, Davis and Weber counties and into the mountains where it settles onto the snowpack. Research shows this dust contains elevated levels of cadmium, arsenic, lead and other hazardous metals, depending on its source.

“Before a cold front hits our valley, we have really strong winds from the south that scream 25 mph or more for up to 18 hours. As that front passes, the winds change and move from the west to the northwest and stay strong for a few hours. So if you look at the data from the airport at Salt Lake International Airport, when we have these strong wind events that create these big dust storms, 75% of the time the dust is moving north to communities of Layton and Syracuse and Ogden.”

Perry and his colleagues, including Derek Mallia, are eager to quantify the impact of lake playa dust on Wasatch Front cities, but there is currently not sufficient data being collected along the lake’s populated eastern shore, he said.

Read the full article by Brian Maffly in @ The U.

Danger is her business

April 7, 2025

Emily O'Hagan

Busy with processing waste pickups from University of Utah labs for disposal, shipping dangerous goods worldwide and inspecting lab spaces for proper chemical handling and storage, O’Hagan has seen it all. You will find the gloved and masked O’Hagan, who is employed by the Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) department at the U, regularly suited up in fire-resistant long-sleeved khaki shirt and navy blue pants moving a wide variety of hazardous materials out of labs and other university facilities to a holding and sorting station before dispatching them to an off-campus facility for incineration. For O’Hagan dealing with dangerous materials is her business.

Mysterious campus corner

A typical day involves arriving at her office, checking email queries about how to dispose of materials as well as how to navigate the Safety Administrative Management System, software for waste submissions. Armed with an overview of the day’s requests, she checks in with the technicians who will do the pickups, what they should pay attention to and what they will be packing into the truck to transfer to the mysterious, hidden Building 590, “our own little corner of campus” near Red Butte Garden.

At the secured and armed 590, many kinds of hazardous wastes, including radioactive materials are stored.

Entering a clean room for an inspection in full PPE

The process of managing hazardous waste is more complicated than you might first imagine. “I can’t follow any regulations until I know what’s in the container,” she says, whether flammable solvents like ethanol, methanol or dichloromethane. “Bleach can’t be mixed with ammonia,” she reminds us of just one example of how volatile unintended chemical reactions can be. This process of “bulking” or consolidating similar materials into 55-gallon metal drums is a big part of her work before the U team contacts Clean Harbors or other third parties to ship out the waste to be incinerated or otherwise safely discarded.

“Once the techs are gone,” she says, "I go through the retaining section, checking dates on the materials that have been dropped off: which is hazardous and which are not, all within four days of their arrival.” In fact, hazardous waste management is highly regulated by local and federal agencies (Environmental Protection Agency — EPA , Occupational and Safety and Health Administration — OSHA, to name just two), and the paperwork and reporting is, naturally, voluminous. In her steel-toed boots, O’Hagan is adept at all of it, largely because of her background in chemistry.

Making research safe

A native of Sandy, O’Hagan’s first choice for a job growing up was to be an astronaut. Her second choice was something related to chemistry. “I always had an affinity for math and science,” she says, and her parents encouraged her to pursue STEM. “So it wasn’t exactly out of the blue — hey guys, guess what I’m going to do: hazardous waste!”

But following graduation with a BS in chemistry in 2022 and an internship working with other chemists to identify, segregate, and pack hazardous waste at Clean Harbors in Tooele, she saw her future, and that future was making science research at the U less dangerous for students and faculty as well as the public.

Emily O'Hagan and College of Science Safety Director working on cleaning out an old glove box. Credit: Jim Muller.

Besides flammable liquids that are bulked, O’Hagan deals with other categories of hazardous waste, including cylinders of flammable and non-flammable gases and flammable solids like metal dust or naphthalene (mothballs). Other discarded materials can become dangerous when wet or spontaneously combustible. Finally, there is a miscellaneous category like used gloves and weigh boats. Most of these items get incinerated. If non-regulated they go to a landfill. Other items like acidic solutions can be neutralized then solidified and landfilled in a secure place.

Since O’Hagan and her team at EHS are into transporting waste, she has to be up to date not only with the EPA and OSHA but with the Department of Transportation and the International Air Transport Associate which regulates shipping and the workers involved with shipping from point-to-point via ground or air. Though too young, perhaps, to have hefted them at home when a youth, O’Hagan refers to the highly detailed manuals she keeps at her desk as “phonebook-sized.”

Label, label, label

Keeping us all safe at the U and beyond, O’Hagan is at-the-ready when asked how we can all help with the safe disposal and transportation of hazardous wastes: “The biggest ‘PSA’ I have is to graduate students to tell us what’s in those containers, in those vials and flasks. Some graduate students [and retiring faculty when they exit their labs] will leave a note for us to ‘check notebook’ and we don’t have that notebook.”

That uncertainty is not the kind of variety, or “spice” that makes Emily O’Hagan’s job gratifying. So, the message is clear: safety first and always whether you’re required at work to wear those steel-toed boots and full-face respirators or not.

Dust in the Wind: How cities alter natural airborne particles

April 5, 2025

Map of the study area in the southwestern United States. Dust collectors are marked by stars corresponding to their position. The background image is an atmospheric footprint map derived from HYSPLIT-STILT backward trajectory simulations denoting the frequency with which air masses crossed different landscape positions en route to the Salt Lake City/Provo urban area during the two-year duration of this study. Warmer colors (higher values) correspond to areas more likely to have served as a regional source for dust reaching the urban collectors.

Airborne dust pollution has been a concern for Utahns for several years, especially with the exposed lakebed of Great Salt Lake potentially becoming more hazardous as the lake dries. Natural dust blows from the Great Basin and settles along the western edge of the Wasatch Front, Utah’s major population center, and the surrounding mountains. While airborne, the dust mixes with local human-made materials, potentially contaminating the nearby watershed and resulting in other negative consequences, according to new research from the University of Utah that investigates the influence of urban environments on transient dust.

A study team led by U atmospheric scientist Kevin Perry and Jeff Munroe, a geology professor at Middlebury College, considered Earth’s “Critical Zone,” a near-surface layer where organisms interact with rock, air, soils and water. Dust processes such as deposition, erosion and transport influence the Critical Zone.

Dust particles are typically diverse in their composition, as they are influenced by natural environments. However, agriculture, grazing, off-roading, construction, mining and other human activities alter the dust composition, with important implications for places like Utah’s populated Salt Lake Valley.

“The problem is that there are lots of dust sources in the urban area, and when it’s windy and it’s picking up dust from Great Salt Lake and other places upstream, it gets mixed in with this local dust that has a lot more junk in it,” Perry said. “So if we think about the contaminants of concern in Great Salt Lake dust, and then you add in additional contaminants from the local dust, it just makes it that much more potent, and not in a good way.”

Home to 2.5 million people, or three-fourths of Utah’s population, the Wasatch Front is particularly susceptible to dust pollution, so it provides an ideal laboratory for investigating interactions between natural and urban dust, according to the study, which was funded by the National Science Foundation.

“Our dust comes from various sources. We have natural sources like the West Desert, the Bonneville Salt Flats, Sevier Lake, but then we also have a lot of dust from Great Salt Lake and anthropogenic dust sources, quarries at Point of the Mountain, the Staker quarry in North Salt Lake,” said co-author Derek Mallia, a research assistant professor of atmospheric sciences. “This can be locally sourced, but you can also get dust impacts from sources on the other side of the Great Basin. An artifact of being on the eastern side of the Great Basin is we’re just downwind of a ton of dust sources.”

Read the full article by Ethan Hood in @The U.

Beyond Volcanoes and Baking Soda

April 2, 2025

The diversity of participants in the University of Utah Science and Engineering Fair is impressive — from public to private schools, and from charter schools to home schools — but also daunting for the judges of the annual event, now held at the Crocker Science Center. Even so, they were up to the challenge this year.

What’s more is that the 169 judges seemed to get as much out of the experience as did the 722 students, representing grades 5-12. These dedicated volunteers are looking far beyond the stereotypical Play-Doh volcano (not that there’s anything wrong with witnessing a propulsive reaction between vinegar and baking soda . . . which is very cool . . . or is that “hot”?)

We asked four of the judges who participated this year in the three-day event to tell us what it’s like to weave through rooms full of smiling, nervous, well-dressed students and their posters and displays on the University of Utah campus. While the finalists who qualified for the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair to be staged in Columbus, Ohio this May were few, every solitary participant, whether age ten or getting ready to vote in the next election, came away from the fair enriched by the experience and maybe even ready to become a scientist or engineer someday.

The judges were there to help facilitate that.

Sydney Brooksby

Credit: Cindy Nordstrom

"As a new USEF judge, I was truly amazed by the intelligence and creativity of the young competitors. The level of innovation stemming from these young minds was nothing short of inspiring. I experienced a variety of projects with precise data collection/analysis, deep critical thinking, and techniques beyond what I even knew existed, when I was their ages! Not only did I have the honor of witnessing youthful genius, but I was in the midst of truly passionate kids and young adults.

"My favorite project was a young girl in the elementary division studying heritable traits in genetics. As I am studying genetic engineering, I asked her what she wanted to grow up to be. She excitedly replied, "I love genetics so much! I want to be a geneticist so I can save lives!"

"I have no doubt that this young girl, as well as her fellow competitors, will dig their hands deeper into the wonderous inquiry that science offers us. I cannot wait for next year's USEF competition, to continue to experience these amazing competitors' contributions to the STEM field!"

Sally Russell

Credit: Cindy Nordstrom

"Judging at the Utah Science and Engineering Fair has been so rewarding — although sometimes intimidating. I have talked to some students that just blow me away with how much work they have put into their project and how incredibly knowledgeable and prepared they are. Some are so much smarter than I am at that moment. It fills me with hope for our future.

I started judging at USEF six years ago. I am challenged at times to give positive feedback but always try to leave all of those I talk with knowing that I appreciate the work they did, and for some of them, that I learned more from them than they realize.

"But mostly I want to leave them knowing that they should be proud of the work they did. Of course, not all projects are high caliber, but I always ask the student, 'what did you learn doing this?' And I often get 'I learned how to do research' or 'found out that I could have a hypothesis that was totally wrong and still learn something!' I think that’s one of the points of this whole experience.

"My first year at USEF I met a young lady, a high school senior who had become interested in working on a cure for breast cancer because of personal family health issues and had heard about plants in the Far East that were being used as a treatment. her knowledge of these plants and what she needed to do with them was so deep that I could not think of suggestions on how to improve her project or steps she could take that would be of help to her. Since then I have seen other young men and women like her a — fully immersed in the learning process and working so hard to prove (or disprove) their hypothesis. A study this year that was so impressive was done by a young man who designed a study focused on whether using moral foundations as a basis would be a way to combat the spread of misinformation. This was so well done, and so well researched that I once again could only offer encouragement and suggestions on process but certainly none on content or presentation.

"For many young people, doing a project doesn’t always turn out the way they thought but learning happens anyway. They won’t all end up being scientists, but hopefully they will appreciate the scientific process and be better able to look at research they hear about in the future and determine to some degree whether there was validity and meaning in that study.

"When I go home from USEF I have the feeling that at least parts of our world will be better in the future because of these young people and the experience of being at the fair."

Rajeev Balasubramonian

Credit: Todd Anderson

"I have judged at USEF for over 15 years, and I have found that the 5^th and 6^th graders are especially mind-blowing in their curiosity and innocence. They often use the opportunity to delve into things that are genuinely interesting to them — speed of race-cars, impact of phone use and music. This year, in the waning minutes of judging, I ran into a kid that assessed the impact of yarn type on a Spiderman web-shooter, which is a device he made with his parents. It was a simple spring-loaded magnet gun with yarn attached (use your imagination to fill in the details ). He envisions that with the right suction cups, this will help people with mobility issues. (I think every cool grandparent is going to need a Spiderman web shooter!)

"A number of students/projects receive mentoring from teachers/researchers and are more polished. I love it when students use science fair to go in depth on an extra-curricular topic for months – those end up being the best projects and the most fun interviews. Some of the high school projects are impressive enough to be fledgling undergraduate theses. Many students write their first meaningful computer programs as part of their USEF experience. A couple of students in 2023 wrote an impressive computer system to interpret American Sign Language — one of them studies at the U and the other is at Yale.

"Many projects do not receive mentoring from experts, but are equally impressive in their ingenuity. Last year, a student developed a custom-made football helmet that could accommodate his hearing aid — the kid saw a legitimate problem in his life and he solved it, epitomizing the spirit of science and engineering fairs!"

Paul Stach

Credit: Todd Anderson

"I have judged USEF during most years since 2015, and it’s challenging for me to distinguish the science fair from Christmas! As a science and tech generalist, I keep up with the hot topics and discoveries in all fields, and I’m very interested to take a sample look through the lens of what topics the kids are finding to be interesting, worthwhile and having potential for exciting innovation.

I’ve seen many naturally-talented kids from disadvantaged families who were sincerely applying themselves in trying to solve humanity’s problems — such as how to recapture excess carbon from the atmosphere — for the good of all people in the world. These students didn’t always have all the resources they needed, and sometimes the exact best resources would not be safe for kids and would require specialized careful expert handling — but the kids fully understood their reference research papers which they were attempting to build from — and that understanding will serve to carry them still further when they are ready.

"As the old song said, 'your dreams were your ticket out' — but I would change that 'out' to something else like 'up' or 'to the next big thing.' The science fair can be 'the thing that gets you to the thing.

"Interacting with the talent and potential of the students is so uplifting, and having the chance to inspire them and see their own recognition of their learning — it’s such an uplift that you can’t feel your feet touching the ground afterward.

"As the late American astronomer, planetary scientist and science communicator Carl Sagan once said, 'All the science and technology we have today is the result of a long, slow struggle, at great personal cost to the participants. This is an important reflection, and it's a communal activity that has yielded so many benefits and understanding to humankind.'

"I think USEF is a part of that great 'communal activity.'”

The College of Science thanks all of the judges who participated in this year's USEF under the direction of Brenda Mann and the management, planning and event deployment of Jody Oostema. Thanks too for the 2025 planning committee and the many sponsors of the event whose monetary support helps Utah's students learn to love science and to continue their scientific discoveries. You can see more photos from the event and read about the winners here. Would you like to volunteer as a judge? Contact USEF at jody.oostema@utah.edu

Diagnosing TB globally

March 28, 2025

He shared some of his most recent research on March 19 at the College of Science’s Science @ Breakfast lecture series.

“A lot of what I do is really driven by things that I believe shouldn’t be a problem anymore,” he explains. “So, for example, if we look at a disease like tuberculosis, which affects 10 million people annually. That’s a disease that’s completely curable… . it’s 2025; why is that still a problem?”

Tuberculosis (TB) is one of the most common diseases worldwide, and despite being curable, there are extreme barriers to screening and diagnosis that disproportionately affect socioeconomically marginalized populations. Current diagnostic methods can take over a month to yield results and are difficult to implement in areas with limited healthcare resources.

Recognizing the severity of this issue on a global scale, Mohanty has been making strides in TB diagnostic methods. In a creative collaboration between his areas of expertise in materials science and chemistry, Mohanty is developing nanotubes using materials like titanium dioxide which bind to volatile biomarkers in a patient’s breath, allowing for the detection of tuberculosis with extreme accuracy.

The method utilizes breath samples which are incredibly efficient to collect when compared to sputum samples required for current diagnostics tests. Most importantly, these nanotube sensors are portable, low-cost and can provide patients with results in under 20 minutes.

In developing this technology, Mohanty emphasized the importance of understanding stakeholder needs and working with them to develop effective solutions. “When you talk about stakeholders, it's everybody. It's your physician, patient, nurse, healthcare consultant — even your lab technician who has to process all the samples. How do they feel about it? What do they need to make it successful? This needs to inform your design or product.”

By creating a diagnostic method that is accessible, affordable and efficient, Mohantry hopes to make a dent in the striking number of global TB cases that remain undiagnosed and untreated. But he emphasizes that innovation is only one piece of the puzzle. More important than developing the revolutionary diagnostic tool is ensuring that it can be produced and implemented at a global scale and can reach the communities who need it most.

“This problem is not going to be solved by some guy with a cool widget that is a great diagnostic tool that can be distributed. It's going to be solved by a partnership with healthcare managers and hospitals, your stakeholders. This is not going to be solved by a single person.”

In his lecture, hosted by the Natural History Museum of Utah, Mohanty stressed that the widespread nature of TB and similar diseases demands more than just clever designs. Instead, lasting change will be accomplished through systemic changes, moral leadership and interdisciplinary collaboration between healthcare, governmental and scientific sectors.

By Julia St. Andre

It’s about experiences and the people

March 26, 2025

Bennion Center Alternative Break: Hunger & Food at Tilth Alliance Farm in Seattle

One of Annabelle’s most fulfilling roles has been serving as a College of Science Ambassador. “As someone who didn’t get an in-person orientation, seeing students build those relationships, beginning on day one of their college experience, has been incredibly meaningful,” she reflects. College of Science Ambassadors, like Annabelle, play a vital role in welcoming prospective students and their families to campus, guiding first-year students toward success, and organizing events that help students thrive throughout their undergraduate science journey.

Beyond her ambassadorial duties, Annabelle’s academic experiences have also shaped her growth. When asked to pick her favorite biology class, she did not hesitate. She shared that Mycology (BIOL5425) with Professor Bryn Dentinger began as a casual interest in mushrooms but quickly transformed into an immersive experience, complete with foraging trips and hands-on research. “Honestly, this class had absolutely nothing to do with what I want to do with my career, but I loved the opportunity to just learn about something. It’s rare to just learn for the sake of learning while studying at a university, and I really appreciated that opportunity,” she shares.

A desire for new learning experiences soon extended into research. Initially uncertain about pursuing an undergraduate research opportunity, Annabelle was inspired to apply when the Olivera/McIntosh lab posted an opening on the Biology Instagram (@uofubiology). Two years later, she is on the verge of publishing an honors thesis on protein folding, focusing on two peptides derived from cone snail venom that are being evaluated for their potential therapeutic applications. Her unwavering commitment to community, combined with her passion for data, attention to detail, and applying science to solve complex problems, will continue to guide her as she pursues a Master’s in Community-Oriented Public Health at the University of Washington this fall.

Knute Rockne

A senior honors student from West Jordan, Utah, Annabelle is majoring in biology with an emphasis in anatomy and physiology, alongside minors in disability studies and chemistry. A bonus fun fact about her is that her great-great grandpa was football legend Knute Rockne (ESPN #3 college coach of all time). Unbeknownst to many, Knute Rockne, who was the coach at Notre Dame, had a degree in chemistry. “I like to think he was helping me out during my hardest OChem exams!” Annabelle jokes, but she's quite serious when she gives advice to other students: “You belong in STEM! I was intimidated at first, thinking everyone else just ‘got it.’ But a passion for science matters more than grades. If you love it, you belong here."

Getting miners home safe at night

Characterized by relentless curiosity and beholden to the nature of life itself, Geoffrey King has always been a bit of a wanderer, opting for the scenic byway over the direct route.

2025 College of Science AWARDS

Student Recognition

Faculty Recognition

Postdoc Recognition

Staff Recognition

Safety Recognition

Outstanding Undergraduate Research Award

Outstanding Undergraduate Research Mentor Award

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From Stars to Stories: Making Science Accessible

A junior in physics and astronomy, Ethan Hood's path to the University of Utah wasn't direct. After graduating from Salt Lake Community College (SLCC) with an associate's degree in general studies, he discovered his passion for the cosmos.

Goff Institute Trailblazer

Science Research Initiative

‘Scicomm’ as Presidential Intern

Public impact

ROI of a physics education

Higher Ed's purpose and promise

Passion vs Obligation

When pursuing a degree, the large list of requirements to earn that designation can sometimes feel like an obligation. Some pursue research experience just to check a box, while many others take certain classes solely to fill an elective.

Peaks and precipices

the West’s latest air quality threats

A new Dust Bowl?

Danger is her BUsiness

If variety is the spice of life than Hazardous Waste Manager Emily O’Hagan leads a pretty exciting life.

Mysterious campus corner

Making research safe

Label, label, label

Dust in the Wind: How cities alter natural airborne particles

Salt Lake's locally sourced dust pollution carries far more hazardous elements than natural dust blown in from Great Basin.

Beyond Volcanoes and Baking Soda

Sydney Brooksby

Sally Russell

Rajeev Balasubramonian

Paul Stach

Diagnosing TB Globally

A University of Utah associate professor in both chemical and metallurgical engineering, Swomitra Mohanty has research interests that are driven by a desire to tackle pressing social issues around the globe through strategic scientific innovations and partnerships with stakeholders.

Annabelle Rockne – It’s about experiences and the people

“I’ve met so many different people interested in so many things. I have been able to make the most of my experience because of the people surrounding me,” says Annabelle Rockne, a senior in the School of Biological Sciences.