Grad Slam Finalists 2017
Congratulations to John Felts, second place winner at the 2017 UC System-Wide Grad Slam!
The Division of Graduate Studies is proud to announce our 2017 Grad Slam winners. Check out the 2017 UC Santa Cruz Grad Slam finalists’ presentations on the Division of Graduate Studies’ YouTube channel!
Winners
Champion, Winning $3000
2nd Place, UC System-Wide Grad Slam, Winning $3000
John Felts
Electrical Engineering
2nd year, PhD
Cruz Foam: Transforming shrimp shells into surfboards
Hometown Pleasanton, CA
What excites you most about your research? The opportunity to make impactful worldwide change toward a more sustainable planet by revolutionizing plastic foams.
Why did you choose to attend UCSC for graduate study? To work with Prof. Marco Rolandi on groundbreaking projects alongside an incredible research group.
Tell us a bit more about yourself! I love the English Premier League soccer team Arsenal FC.
2nd Place, Winning $1500
People’s Choice, Winning $750
Sam Mansfield
Computer Engineering
3rd year, PhD
The Bed Sore Detection Project (BSDP)
Hometown Berkeley, CA
What excites you most about your research? I want to convey the benefits of new technology. There is too much fear around technological innovations because they are treated like magic.
Why did you choose to attend UCSC for graduate study? UCSC was my first acceptance letter. On orientation day, everything fell into place, and I decided to attend.
Tell us a bit more about yourself! I am a professional tea bartender.
Other Finalists
Sarah Baganskas
Earth Sciences
5th year, PhD
From Soil to Faucet: How Soil Microbes Can Help Improve Water Quality
Hometown East Meadow, NY
What excites you most about your research? I am excited to use science to address a relevant issue about which I am passionate: the sustainability of our water resources.
Why did you choose to attend UCSC for graduate study? For the opportunity to work with my wonderful adviser, Dr. Andy Fisher, on an impactful science research project.
Tell us a bit more about yourself! In my spare time I serve on the Education Committee for the Groundwater Resources Association of California.
Jared Duval
Computer Science
1st year, PhD
Spokelt: An Interactive Game for Cleft Speech Therapy
Hometown Dudley, MA
What excites you most about your research? My reserach combines my passions for technology, art, and medicine in a way that can make a positive difference in people’s lives.
Why did you choose to attend UCSC for graduate study? The Interactive Systems Lab for individuals with Special Needs in UCSC’s Computational Media Department is truly interdisciplinary. It’s also set in one of the most beautiful places in the world.
Tell us a bit more about yourself! I have flown a biplane.
Zhichao Hu
Computer Science
6th year, PhD
Linguistic and Gestural Adaptation in Virtual Agents
Hometown Fushun, Liaoning, China
What excites you most about your research? The possibility to make future virtual agents more intelligent and natural so that they can help us achieve more in our lives.
Why did you choose to attend UCSC for graduate study? Because I’m really interested in my adviser Prof. Marilyn Walker’s research. I also enjoy the beautiful scenery of the campus.
Tell us a bit more about yourself! I have three cats, one dog, and twelve orchids.
Christian Johnson
Physics
3rd year, PhD
Searching for Primordial Black Holes
Hometown Chapel Hill, NC
What excites you most about your research? The versatility of the Fermi Large Area Telescope. I use its data to observe astrophysical sources like supernova remnants and pulsars and look for new and exotic physics like primordial black holes and dark matter. The breadth and depth of research coming from a single experiment is astounding.
Why did you choose to attend UCSC for graduate study? I learned the Physics Department is very strong in a wide variety of high-energy physics, both experiment and theory, so it seemed like a good fit.
Tell us a bit more about yourself! In my spare time, I play Ultimate Frisbee. I’ve been fortunate enough to win two world championships and one national championship over the past several years.
Zeka Kuspa
Microbiology and Environmental Toxicology
5th year, PhD
Lead ammunition kills twice: the lesser known impacts of lead on wild scavengers
Hometown Santa Cruz, CA
What excites you most about your research? Revealing hidden impacts of environmental contaminants on wildlife and the potential for my work to effect policy and inform consumers for the protection of vulnerable species.
Why did you choose to attend UCSC for graduate study? I applied to the Smith/Finkelstein Lab because they’re leading scientists in condor lead toxicology, have strong working relationships with field biologists, and would introduce me to California condor recovery.
Tell us a bit more about yourself! I am an amateur naturalist and organize nature walks around the UCSC campus.
Jenny Lovell
Environmental Studies
5th year, PhD
The Masculinization of Agriculture in the Vietnamese Mekong River Delta
Hometown Pacific Grove, CA
What excites you most about your research? Uncovering assumptions about gender performance, gender identities, and gender roles in natural resource governance.
Why did you choose to attend UCSC for graduate study? The Environmental Studies Department has a uniquely interdisciplinary approach, which I embrace in my research and teaching.
Tell us a bit more about yourself! I do a lot of impersonations, including most Will Ferrell characters.
Andrew Marsh
Physics
7th year, PhD
The Search for Nanoflares: What Makes the Sun's Atmosphere So Hot?
Hometown Ellicott City, MD
What excites you most about your research? I really enjoy learning how much complexity there is to the sun’s behavior and how it can help and harm modern society.
Why did you choose to attend UCSC for graduate study? Its great astrophysics program and because I fell in love with the town and campus the first time I visited.
Tell us a bit more about yourself! I play several string instruments (guitar, violin, mandolin, bass).
Scott Tooby
Digital Arts and New Media
2nd year, MFA
Embedded Soundscaping
Hometown Cardiff-by-the-Sea, CA
What excites you most about your research? Having the opportunity to collaborate with engineers and scientists. Being able to transition between the fields of art, music, and engineering on a daily basis is an incredibly humbling and rewarding experience.
Why did you choose to attend UCSC for graduate study? To study with composer and bioacoustic researcher David Dunn, and also because the Digital Arts and New Media program affords its students the freedom and resources we need to realize our project and research goals.
Tell us a bit more about yourself! I’m also a composer who plays piano and djembe and makes electronic instruments. When away from my instruments, I whistle for 3 to 4 hours every day. I love whistling.
Brandt Warecki
Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology
4th year, PhD
How do living cells deal with broken chromosomes?
Hometown Campbell, CA
What excites you most about your research? I am constantly awed by the ability to visualize processes fundamental to life.
Why did you choose to attend UCSC for graduate study? The experience of working in a department dedicated to the success of its members and for the opportunity to be part of a lab that is driven by curiosity and discovery.
Tell us a bit more about yourself! In high school, I helped teach a biology class in the Galápagos.
kerrie welsh
Film and Digital Media
5th year, PhD
Saphic Cinemania! Female Authorship, Queer Desires, and the Birth of Cinema
Hometown Wilmington, DE
What excites you most about your research? The possibility that we might understand our past and each other in ways that foster empathy, understanding, and new possibilities. There is nothing I love more than the thrill of discovering something unexpected in the archive!
Why did you choose to attend UCSC for graduate study? To work with renowned film scholar Shelley Stamp and other cutting-edge faculty in the innovative Film and Digital Media, integrating theory and practice. I stayed for the sea otters, monarchs, and movie theaters.
Tell us a bit more about yourself! I am also a filmmaker and collect old home movies cameras.
