Sul Ross State University’s biology, chemistry and mathematics programs participated in the Texas Academy of Science meeting at the University of Texas Permian Basin in Odessa March 1-3.
Four faculty and two undergraduate students in attendance made five presentations at the event.
Dr. Chris Ritzi and Ben Thomas presented “Grey Oak mortality and an updated flora of Sul Ross’s Hancock Hill.”
Dr. Angela Brown and Dr. Jennifer Miller-ray together presented “Outreach in Southwest Texas for increasing STEM education interest.”
“Thermal and structural analysis on Strandberg-type polyoxometalates (POMs)” was presented by Christopher Wright and Dr. Hong Young Chang.
Sarah Jane Gilbert and Dr. Thornton Larson presented “Abundance and diversity of anurans between two anthropogenic wetland habitats on Sul Ross property.”
“Investigation of bond valence sum (BVS), local dipole moment (LDM), bond stability index (BSI), global instability index (GII), and first-principle calculations on inorganic molybdate crystal structure, A2MoO4 (A=Li, Na, K, Rb, Cs, or Tl)” was presented by Daniel Clifton, Zachary Frazier and Dr. Chang.
The presentations represented work conducted by students and faculty in the Natural Sciences Department and the Computer, Mathematical, and Physical Sciences Department, covering a variety of different research areas and topic sections.
Not only did Sul Ross make a number of oral and poster presentations, it is also represented on the Board of Directors in the academy. Dr. Ritzi served as Executive Secretary and continues to help advocate for smaller universities and West Texas. Dr. Brown served as the Mathematics and Computer Sciences Section Chair, and Dr. Larson was the Co-Chair for the Systematics and Evolutionary Biology Section.
Next year’s annual meeting will be held at Baylor University. The Texas Academy of Science’s mission is to promote scientific research in Texas colleges and universities, encourage research as a part of student learning, and to enhance the professional development of its members.
For more information, contact Dr. Chris Ritzi at 432-837-8112.
