21st Annual SOURCE Showcases Student Research

Pictured from left: College of Osteopathic Medicine students Iya Agha and Aleksandra Ratkiewicz each presented their scholarly work at this year’s SOURCE.

More than 100 abstracts were accepted for oral or poster presentations at this year’s Symposium of University Research and Creative Expression (SOURCE) held on April 26 on the New York City campus. Instituted in 2004, this year marks SOURCE’s 21st celebration of students’ scholarly research.

This year’s event featured the work of approximately 155 graduate and undergraduate students across New York Tech’s schools and colleges and included participants from the New York City, Long Island, and Vancouver campuses. The annual tradition convenes students to showcase the outcomes of their academic research in collaboration with their peers and faculty mentors.

The day’s excitement began with opening remarks from SOURCE Chair Roger Yu, Ph.D., who reminded students that while they are on campus to present their work, they should “most importantly, have fun.”

SOURCE attendees then dispersed to explore the morning poster exhibition on the 11th floor of 16 W. 61st St. Topics on display included an investigation of whether specific dietary counseling from a perinatologist will affect gestational weight gain and which patient populations benefit most from such intervention, a student who created DRMISSIONSNY to team up with physicians and provide free medical care to those in need, and an AI chatbot that, through a series of questions and a database of clothing, can help users pick their outfits for professional events.

New York Tech students presented a variety of research topics at the 21st annual SOURCE.

Next came the first round of oral presentations, where students spread out across the sixth and seventh floors to speak about their research. Presenters discussed subjects like the comparative advantages of using lined paper versus plain paper and the potential impacts on memory, how specific search cues impact physicians’ viewing of medical imagery, and proposed solutions to reduce noise pollution in on-campus and local study spaces.

During lunch, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences Daniel Quigley, Ph.D., President Hank Foley, Ph.D., and Provost and Executive Vice President Jerry Balentine, D.O., took to the stage to formally welcome the crowd.

“We are doing our best at New York Tech to make the student and faculty experiences the best they can possibly be, and there is probably no better place for the two experiences to come together than through research and creative works,” President Foley said. “I couldn’t be more thrilled every time I come to SOURCE. The work that is going on here is just phenomenal.”

Afterward, students assembled for the second poster session, followed by the afternoon hour of oral presentations. Before the event concluded, visitors could listen to or view research topics, including the influence of racial name bias on decision-making, the economic and environmental consequences of food waste in the United States, and how marketing tactics downplay the dangers of using vape devices.

“SOURCE provides a platform for students to present their research and inspire others with the possibilities of what they can do,” says osteopathic medicine student Madison Salvitti, who presented “Association of Substance Use with Trauma Outcomes During and After the COVID-19 Pandemic at a NYC Level II Trauma Center,” with fellow College of Osteopathic Medicine students Kaylee Bressler, Risa Kiernan, and Dennis Lysov. “Student research events like this are so important.”

View all the projects at this year’s SOURCE.