3 minutes + thesis = 3MT

The finals of Youngstown State University’s Three Minute Thesis competition is 6 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 16, in the Presidential Suites of Kilcawley Center on campus.

3MT, founded by the University of Queensland in Australia, is a competition that requires graduate students to explain their research in three minutes. The competition develops academic, presentation, and research communication skills and supports the development of research students' capacity to effectively explain their research in three minutes in a language appropriate to an intelligent but non-specialist audience.

Competing at the YSU event are:

• Solita Wilson, Chemistry. Faculty Advisor: Dr. Clovis Linkous. “Carbon Dioxide Capturing and Recycling, to Protect the World from Natural Disasters.”
• Marissa Gorvet, Biological Sciences. Faculty Advisor: Dr. Michael Butcher. “EMG Activation in the Forelimb of Three-Toed Sloths.”
• Romit Thapa, Civil Engineering. Faculty Advisor: Dr. Richard Deschenes Jr. “Effect of Multiaxial Stress in Alkali Silica Reaction.”
• Leanna Hartsough, Professional Communication. Faculty Advisor: Dr. Rebecca Curnalia. “Recruitment, Communication Competence, Motivation, Leadership, and Support in College Coach-Athlete Relationships.”
• Kyle Spainhower, Biological Sciences. Faculty Advisor: Dr. Michael Butcher. “Cheap Labor: Fiber Type Distribution and Metabolic Characteristics in Sloth Limb Muscles”
• Sanjana Sama, Computer Science and Information Systems. Faculty Advisor: Dr. Bonita Sharif. “Towards the Automatic Summarization of Source Code via Empirical Studies.”

Winners will receive a travel grant to be used on travel expenses to present at a professional conference: $500 for first place, $200 for second place and $200 for People’s Choice. The competition is sponsored by the YSU College of Graduate Studies.