Theshorthorn

Page 8A

THE SHORTHORN

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Spring break sensations Students spend the break from school doing various activities.

Courtesy: Spanish language senior Efrain Silos

Courtesy: Nursing sophomore Astrid Mendez

Courtesy: Geology junior Justin Heath

Top right: UTA Baptist Student Ministry went to Galveston on a mission trip during the 2013 spring break.

ONLINE

Top left: Nursing sophomore Astrid Mendez crowd surfs at the South by So What Music Festival during spring break in Grand Prairie.

Click through our Spring Break Snapshot Gallery for more photos at www.theshorthorn. com and submit your own to mavpics@ shorthorn.uta.edu.

Bottom left: The UTA Women’s Ultimate Frisbee team traveled to Georgia over spring break from March 10-15 to compete in a tournament in which they won 2nd out of 32 teams.

Courtesy: Advertising junior Ashley Pena

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Bottom right: Geology junior Justin Heath begins to enter an underwater cave during spring break in High Springs, Fla. Heath was the spring break trip leader for the University Scuba Group.

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Wednesday, March 27, 2013

THE SHORTHORN

SCIENCE

Students explode into preventative research Engineering students work to understand explosions.

ONLINE Read related articles about student research online at www.theshorthorn.com.

BY DRAKE LENHAN The Shorthorn staff

Mysterious nuclear reactor explosions and mining explosions are just some examples of instances that two Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation researchers hope to better understand and predict.

The Louis Stokes program is a science and engineering undergraduate research program in which participants who are accepted receive a $3,000 stipend to conduct research under a faculty mentor in the summer.

Much like the 2011 nuclear reactor explosion in Fukushima or the 2010 underground explosions in the West Virginia mine shafts, accidental catastrophes happen around the world without any known reason. It is the goal of aerospace engineering junior Lizzy Blaiszik and aerospace engineering senior Sarah Hussein to find out why.

Hussein and Blaiszik will compete Wednesday in the Annual Celebration of Excellence

by Students poster contest, which they hope will win them additional awards and stipends for their research.

Blaiszik and Hussein have been researching various gas flows to monitor and analyze simulated detonations that have occurred in real life.

“We generate these events to better understand why these detonations happen,” Hussein said.

Hussein and Blaiszik work together on the same research but monitor different things.

Blaiszik monitors nonturbulent gas flows, which she says are easier to analyze than turbulent gas flows.

She compares the two different flows to a cigarette in an ashtray — if left alone, the smoke will rise in a straight

The Shorthorn: Adrian Gandara

Aerospace engineering senior Sarah Hussein, right, and aerospace engineering junior Lizzy Blaiszik study detonations and combustion reactions through a grant from the National Science Foundation. Possible applications for their research include studying and preventing accidents such as the 2011 Fukushima nuclear event.

happening,” Hussein said.

Other researchers’ experiments have revealed the same shape, best described as diamond shaped, but none have classified it, Hussein said.

The way Hussein and Blaiszik conduct their research is a process that involves another aerospace engineer as well, Ezgihan Baydar, aerospace engineering graduate student.

Baydar is the student who picks the different gasses to use for the detonation simulations, Hussein said. After the decision is made, Hussein and Blaiszik begin their research, she said.

“The simulations are run in a big box, similar to a wind tunnel, like a control volume,” Blaiszik said. “Then we generate videos and snapshots of what’s happening and where.”

The experimental gas is run through this box, which measures 100-by-100-by-500 units of measurement, designated by the Taylor Microscale. This is a scale that measures units of space from which data will be

line, but if turbulence is introduced, the smoke will start waving and will become more difficult to analyze.

“I found the detonation cells because it was easier to see,” Blaiszik said.

Hussein deals with the turbulent gas flows, which are still very difficult to recognize any shapes or detonations, even with instant snap shots captured by the computer monitoring the flow. However, Hussein and Blaiszik’s research has unveiled a peculiar shape formed from these detonations.

“I call it a 3-D diamond,” Hussein said.

Both Hussein and Blaiszik said they can’t identify the shape. Even after numerous hours discussing it with their faculty mentor Frank Lu, Aerodynamics Research Center director, they couldn’t agree on one particular shape that completely described it.

“Initially, all we were looking for were fluctuations, or little disturbances that were

PRESENTS

2013

collected.

After the gas is passed through the box, there is a combustion and shock wave that occurs; this is the detonation that Hussein and Blaiszik are looking for.

As these simulated detonations happen, the computers conducting the simulation take hundreds of instant frames and compile them into simpler, more readable data for Hussein and Blaiszik to later reference.

After compiling the data, the researchers then analyze it to try to find any patterns that the flows might have had.

These patterns would help them better understand and predict why these detonations occur, Blaiszik said.

Rather than following others’ data and experiments, Hussein and Blaiszik modified theirs and first measured the changes in flow of velocity of the gasses, instead of measuring the change in densities, which others have done in the past, they said.

“When looking for detonation cells, we first look for density changes of gas flow,” Blaiszik said. “We are starting to do the densities now.”

After analyzing the velocity changes repeatedly, Hussein and Blaiszik turned their research to analyzing the density changes. These analyses then reveal similar shapes, but potentially shed more light on potential patterns, which again would help explain and predict these natural detonations, Blaiszik said.

Tuncay Aktosun, Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation director and graduate studies director for doctoral and Master of Science programs, said women at UTA are often underrepresented in the engineering field and what Hussein and Blaiszik are will inspire other talented people, especially women of science.

“Sarah and Lizzy have been working under Dr. Lu’s supervision for some time now, and they are developing into excellent researchers,” Aktosun said.

“Dr. Lu’s dedication in mentoring over the years has resulted in talented women like Sarah and Lizzy and others before them to do well in research and move onto doctoral studies in their fields. We are all very proud of such accomplishments.”

Aktosun said he could see Hussein and Blaiszik doing an array of things in the field of engineering and science.

“They will become professors or industrial researchers in their fields, not only contributing to scientific knowledge and technological advances but also mentoring the next generation of future scientists and engineers,” Aktosun said.

Though Hussein is graduating this summer, she intends to further her education at UTA through graduate school and a doctoral program, a step Aktosun foresees for Blaiszik as well.

“I became involved with LSAMP because of Sarah, volunteering under Dr. Lu,” Blaiszik said.

When Blaiszik and Hussein became involved, there was no funding. They had to volunteer for these research positions.

Hussein applied for many funded programs through several deans and other organizations and finally getting accepted into a National Science Foundation funded Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation program.

“I have seen them develop professionally,” Lu said. “Both Lizzy and Sarah show great enthusiasm in their project. They have the right stuff to succeed, being capable of independent work and yet are team players.

They grasp difficult concepts and, when stumped, are quick to seek help.”

Lu said their project is challenging, but he has purposely paced their work to fit their busy school schedules. Lu said both Hussein and Blaiszik have risen to every challenge and have been successful.

Lu said he picked the project because of his own interests in detonation. One of his colleagues, Luca Massa, mechanical and aerospace engineering assistant professor, initiated this study on detonation and turbulence interactions through large-scale computing.

The huge amount of data from the computations drew Lu into finding ways to make sense of them, he said.

Hussein and Blaiszik continue their research at Nedderman Hall and are anticipating their next steps as they prepare to begin their research on the changes in gas densities. @DRAKELENHAN drake.lenhan@mavs.uta.edu

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The Shorthorn

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The Shorthorn: Richard Hoang

Candidate forum Finance junior Varun Mallipaddi recites his platform at the Student Congress Candidate forum Monday on the University Center mall. Candidates ranged from Student Congress president, vice president and Mr. and Miss UTA. Go online to www.theshorthorn.com/multimedia/videos to watch the forum.

Science

Engineering student wins $10,000 award is awarded to 35 women annually worldwide. The award for $10,000 is awarded to students who demonstrate a superior acBy Johnathan Silver ademic record, according The Shorthorn staff to Zonta International’s Space exploration has website.

Henderson, originally been in Laura Suarez Henderson’s sights since she from Columbia, described her father as a major influwas 5 years old.

Today, Henderson, an ence.

“My dad grew up watchaerospace engineering doctoral student, researches ing all the Apollo missions better ways of identify- and he was very passionate ing and tracking man- about it,” she said. “And made space objects orbit- I guess he passed on that ing Earth. The objects she passion to me.”

After being researches can awarded a fellowrange in sizes ship the first time, from that of a Henderson vischair or table to ited two local high a bus. Many obschools to encourage jects are a result young girls to give of space objects science, technology, colliding, which engineering and is a current issue mathematics fields because more a look. countries are “That’s part of sending satellites Laura Suarez the problem,” she into space, join- Henderson, said. “Some of them ing other objects aerospace haven’t even considthat have been in engineering ered to go and get an space since the doctoral student engineering degree 1950s, Henderjust because it comes from son explains.

Her research has been when you’re growing up. recognized by Zonta In- Your parents will buy you ternational, an organiza- a Barbie instead of buying tion dedicated to advanc- you a LEGO set. It starts ing the status of women very young and, fortunately, worldwide. She received, I had parents that encourfor the second time, the aged me and bought me organization’s 2013 Amelia very many LEGO sets and Earhart Fellowship, which many, many science-y toys, is awarded to women pur- but I think that was a big suing a doctoral degree in deal, having parents that an aerospace-related sci- encouraged my curiosity for ence or engineering field. science.”

Henderson’s being recWomen are traditionally underrepresented in the ognized for her work in the science, technology, engi- field will help make a difneering and mathematics ference in diversifying the fields. The fellowship, a industry, said Kamesh Subway to address the trend, barao, Henderson’s adviser

Laura Suarez Henderson’s research earned her this award once before.

and mechanical and aerospace engineering associate professor.

“She will be a very positive role model for a lot of women who are probably just on a tight line thinking that they will pursue a career in aerospace engineering,” he said, calling Henderson a brilliant and diligent student.

The College of Engineering enrolled 731 female students — 17.1 percent of the engineering student body — in fall 2012, according to the UTA Fact Book.

Henderson’s recognition signifies the quality of the people in the College of Engineering, Engineering Dean Jean-Pierre Bardet said.

“That she achieved such a success and was recognized, it somewhat is a testimony that here at UT Arlington we are doing better than others,” he said.

“Everyone can contribute.

There is no one left behind because of bias reasons. Everybody has a chance.”

It’s been a long road, Henderson said.

“Being born in a Third World country and having a passion for space, I never really had an opportunity to have a career in that field because it just doesn’t exist,” Henderson said. “There is no aerospace engineering in Columbia, and my chances of actually moving to the United States and having the opportunity to attend a university that has that program. It was truly a blessing, and it was a coincidence.” @JohnathanSilver olu.silver@mavs.uta.edu