Undergraduate and graduate students alike presented their research at the annual Showcase of Osprey Advancements in Research and Scholarship on Friday, April 11.
SOARS is an annual interdisciplinary conference at the University of North Florida in which students showcase their research or creative projects during Research Week. Students presented their projects through posters, oral presentations and even multimedia formats.
Dozens of students gathered in the Student Union to show off their work and explain their findings to attendees. Adiba Hoque, a biomedical sciences major, presented her studies on performance in collegiate cheerleading at UNF.
Hoque said her research used inertial measurement unit technology to assess the tumbling performance of the tibial load. When cheerleaders tumble, the amount of force on the tibia can cause serious injury if adequate care isn’t taken.
“I wanted to go out of the box and look at something from a different perspective,” said Hoque. “I was interested in AI and how it can and will help health.”
“We’re assessing the tumble performance of the tibial load using inertial measurement unit technology of our UNF cheerleaders,” said Hoque.
The technology used is able to help the cheerleaders improve their health and performance. By offering feedback on actions that would be invisible to the naked eye, AI allows the cheerleaders to avoid injury and improve their performance.
“AI is able to help these cheerleaders better tumble,” said Hoque. “This AI technology on their FitBit is helping them improve their sleep, improve their diet, improve their lifestyle.”
Fedir Tikhonov, a freshman political science major, was able to delve into conservation efforts in Florida.
“I’m interested in urban planning, so conservation and climate results are the most important topics, especially in Florida,” said Tikhonov.
Tikhonov reflected on the different experiences involved in researching and writing about his topic.
“I traveled to different counties where I learned different parts of conservation efforts,” said Tikhonov. “I also worked with universities like UF and JU, along with UNF.”
Addie Corn, a freshman English and psychology major, studied the role of women in Greek mythology.
“I’ve always been fascinated by Greek mythology, specifically how it is male-centered,” said Corn. “Female characters are just not discussed; how do they impact their stories, how do they impact their narratives?”
Corn enjoyed the opportunity to share her passion with others through SOARS.
“It’s really cool to get these opportunities to present and to share something that I’m so interested in with everybody else,” said Corn. “UNF is great for doing this. I’ve never heard of any other college doing undergraduate research like this.”
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