2024 Grad Slam Showcase Finalists

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Austin DuBose

Austin DuBose

Chemistry

Pathways to neurodegenerative diseases: Unfolding the mini-mechanism
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Nakoa Farrant

Nākoa Farrant

Environmental Science & Management

The Lāhainā Fire: A Disaster 100 Years in the Making
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Royce Olarte

Royce Olarte

Education

Becoming A Math Professor: Graduate Students' Professional Identity Development
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Kacie Ring

Kacie Ring

Ecology, Evolution, & Marine Biology

Healthy Forests, Healthy Humans
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Abdullah Salehuddin

Abdullah Salehuddin

Communication

When Hurt Continues: The Relationship between Family History and Communal Coping
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Tiffany Ta

Tiffany Ta

Music

Pretty Savage: Blackpink is the (Feminist) Revolution
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Daniella Walter

Daniella Walter

Mechanical Engineering

The Missing Puzzle Piece: The Role of Mechanics in Tissue Development

2024 Grad Slam Showcase Preliminary Rounds Runners-Up

Cooper Bedin

Linguistics

Perception and Queer Speech: Beyond the "Gay Accent"

Zachary Maches

Mechanical Engineering

Settling Down: Building New Models of Marine Aggregate Dynamics

Ana Delia Parejo Vidal

Chemistry

Shining light on our origins

Gwen Petro

Communication

Hands Off Our Data: Thinking About Online Privacy Post-Dobbs

Fabio Ricci

Mathematics

Earth is (Locally) Flat

Abhayjit Saini

Molecular, Cellular, & Developmental Biology

Slowing Down the Aging Clock From Within

hui zhang

Education

Factors that Impact Immigrant Parents' Services Choices for Their Children with Autism

2024 Grad Slam Showcase Presenters

Evan Andersson

History

The Amulet: An Ancient Medical Technology

Claudia Ankrah

History

Sometimes the Dead Go Unburied

Joshua Baldelomar

Film & Media Studies

Brainwaves Turned Signals: Cybernetic Brains and Robotic Tortoises

Nadezhda Barbashova

Psychological & Brain Sciences

Fear Factor: The Science of Anticipatory Anxiety

Joaquin Becerra

Education

Hispanic Serving Institution: Servingness & Campus Climate

Cooper Bedin

Linguistics

Perception and Queer Speech: Beyond the "Gay Accent"

Miram Burnett

Education

A Cause for Concern: Historical Implication of Legacies of Racism and Intersectionality on Concepts of Sense of Belonging at Predominately Non-Black Institutions in Higher Education in the U.S.

Karen Cepeda

Theater & Dance

Trauma and Memory as Collective Mobilizer

Asish Ninan Chacko

Chemistry

Dead mice tell few tales

Jaber Daneshamooz

Computer Science

ISP in the Box

Marian de Orla-Barile

Geography

Observing Downslope Wind Storms in Santa Barbara County

Jake Dean

Anthropology

Wandering with Whales: A Social Ecology of Pacific Gray Whale Conservation-as-Development

Sean Denny

Environmental Science & Management

Where the Wild Things Were

Viraj Dharod

Physics

Defect centers in diamond: The road to a scalable quantum computer

Austin DuBose

Chemistry

Pathways to neurodegenerative diseases: Unfolding the mini-mechanism

Sarah Dunne

History

How The Queer Bookstore Movement Changed LGBTQ+ History

Chris Everett

Earth Science

Curious Carnassials

Nākoa Farrant

Environmental Science & Management

The Lāhainā Fire: A Disaster 100 Years in the Making

Janna Haider

History

Grifters, Killers, Freedom Fighters: The Ghadar Party and the Hindu-German Conspiracy Trials

Qing Huang

Communication

No response? Response latency in texting

Makoto Hunter

History

Punishing Polygamy by Policing Women: Sex Crimes in Gilded Age America

Satish Kumar

Electrical & Computer Engineering

The Invisible Menace: Methane Emissions

Alexander Luckmann

"God's Office Building on Broadway": Skyscraper Churches and Religious Advertising

Zachary Maches

Mechanical Engineering

Settling Down: Building New Models of Marine Aggregate Dynamics

Haarika Manda

Computer Science

Assessing the Efficacy of the Connect America Fund in Addressing Internet Access Inequities in the US

Soodeh Mansouri

Religious Studies

The Middle East & Women's Socio-Political Role

Emile Morin

Chemistry

Harnessing inflammation for Personalized Medicine

Faryal Nadeem

Condemned to Death, Prison, or Exile

Misa Nguyen

History

Baby! Get Back! - Late Antique Pregnancy and Power

Sarah Noe

Anthropology

Ancient Llamas, Modern Insights: Sustainable Lessons from the Andes

Royce Olarte

Education

Becoming A Math Professor: Graduate Students' Professional Identity Development

Hannah Overbye-Thompson

Communication

Confronting Algorithm Bias

Ana Delia Parejo Vidal

Chemistry

Shining light on our origins

Qiyao Peng

Communication

The Battle for Your Thoughts: News vs. Comment

Gwen Petro

Communication

Hands Off Our Data: Thinking About Online Privacy Post-Dobbs

Vidisha Rai

Why are environmental groups ignoring the bullshit?

Fabio Ricci

Mathematics

Earth is (Locally) Flat

Kacie Ring

Ecology, Evolution, & Marine Biology

Healthy Forests, Healthy Humans

Arnold Rodriguez Robles

Counseling, Clinical & School Psychology

Exploring the Intricacies of Language and Executive Functioning

Abhayjit Saini

Molecular, Cellular, & Developmental Biology

Slowing Down the Aging Clock From Within

Abdullah Salehuddin

Communication

When Hurt Continues: The Relationship between Family History and Communal Coping

Michael Saxon

Multicultural Knowledge and Bias in Text-to-Image Generating AI

Elizabeth Schauer

Chemical Engineering

Turning Off the Biological Clock

Saurabh Sharma

Computer Science

Electioneering The Network: Dynamic Multi-Step Adversarial Attacks for Community Canvassing

Leila Stegemoeller

English

The Genres and Genealogies of Wellness Culture

Tiffany Ta

Music

Pretty Savage: Blackpink is the (Feminist) Revolution

Joanna Tang

Ecology, Evolution, & Marine Biology

A Recipe for Restoration: People + Plants + Persistence

Ian Tayler

Molecular, Cellular, & Developmental Biology

Stem Cells Sense the Force: Extracellular Matrix Mechanics Regulate Stem Cell Differentiation

Dario Trujano-Ochoa

Economics

Strategic Beliefs in Decision-Making: Understanding the Impact on Information Valuation and Choice

Albert Ventayol-Boada

Linguistics

Decoding linguistic diversity with machine learning

Daniella Walter

Mechanical Engineering

The Missing Puzzle Piece: The Role of Mechanics in Tissue Development

Kaden Wheeler

Chemistry

Dissecting Degradation : How Crystal Faceting Affects Oxide Catalyst Stability

Molly Wolfson

Physics

Cosmic Lighthouses: Navigating the Early Universe with Quasars

Kylie Woodman

Communication

Digital Development: Navigating the Impact of Digital Media on Developing Minds

hui zhang

Education

Factors that Impact Immigrant Parents' Services Choices for Their Children with Autism

Yanlu Zhong

Linguistics

Brain and Language

2024 Grad Slam Showcase Final Round Judges

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Arnie Brier

Arnie Brier

Senior Vice President and General Counsel, Yardi Systems
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Amr El Abbadi

Amr El Abbadi

Professor of Computer Science, UC Santa Barbara
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Annette Hilton, 2023 Grad Slam Winner

Annette Hilton

Graduate Student in Environmental Science & Management, 2023 Grad Slam Winner
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Archie Holmes

Archie Holmes '97

Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, University of Texas System
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Peter Mage

Peter Mage '16

Principal Engineer, BD Biosciences and 2013 Grad Slam Winner
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Lisa Park

Lisa Park

Professor of Asian American Studies, UC Santa Barbara
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Joe Sabado

Joe Sabado '97

Deputy Chief Information Officer, UC Santa Barbara
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Carrie Towbes

Carrie Towbes

Licensed Clinical Psychologist, President of the Towbes Foundation
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Ashley Yeh

Ashley Yeh

Undergraduate Student in Biology and Neuroscience, 2023 Undergrad Slam Winner

2024 Grad Slam Showcase Preliminary Round Judges

Lina Kim

Director of Academic Programs at Summer Sessions

Josh Kuntzman

Assessment Coordinator in the Office of Budget & Planning

Anna Alvarez

Graduate Student in Mechanical Engineering and 2023 Grad Slam Finalist

William Below

Retired General Contractor

Lisa Berry

Senior Instructional Consultant in Instructional Development

Julie Bianchini

Professor of Education

Jeff Bischoff

Senior Director of Sales for Public Housing Authority Systems at Yardi

Linda Burrows

Community Organizer and Child Advocate

Michael Coppersmith

Department Administrator for Education

Aurora de Tagyos

Undergraduate Student in Chemistry & Biochemistry and Former Intern at the Center for Science & Engineering Partnerships

Shasta Delp

Executive Director of the Academic Senate

Beth Digeser

Professor and Director of Graduate Studies in History

Colby Fagan

Undergraduate Student in Molecular, Cellular, & Developmental Biology and UC LEADS Scholars

Samantha Fiallo

Graduate Student in Molecular, Cellular, & Developmental Biology and 2023 Grad Slam Runner Up

Ruth Finklestein

Professor in Molecular, Cellular, & Developmental Biology

Maritza Fuljencio

Student Affairs Manager for Computer Science

Jessy Gonzales

Undergraduate Student in Chemical Engineering and Former Intern at the Center for Science & Engineering Partnerships

Darryl Heller

Former Vice President of Operations & Engineering at RIVIERA BRONZE MFG

Hsiu-Zu Ho

Retired Associate Dean at the UC Education Abroad Program

Kseniia Karnaukh

Graduate Student in Chemistry & Biochemistry and 2023 Grad Slam Finalist

Claudia Kashin

Senior Academic Personnel Analyst for the Division of Humanities & Fine Arts

Victoria Kline

Retired Librarian

Jim Lyons

Manager of Sales at Yardi

Karen Myers

Professor of Communication

Robin Nabi

Professor of Communication

Jazz Elaiza Nario

Undergraduate Student in Molecular, Cellular, & Developmental Biology and Intern with the Center for Science & Engineering Partnerships

Bedlam Oak

Graduate Student in Communication and Graduate Student Association Co-President of Internal Affairs

John Park

Professor of Asian American Studies

Eric Pressly

Founder of Epres

Conor Pugsley

Undergraduate Student in Chemistry & Biochemistry, Former Intern with the Center for Science & Engineering Partnerships

Geoffrey Raymond

Professor in Sociology

Kyle Richards

Analyst for the Academic Senate

Laura Romo

Professor of Education

Laura Sacks

Manager, Investment Management, Yardi

Genessis Salcedo

Undergraduate in Molecular, Cellular, & Developmental Biology and Women's Center Student Programmer

David Sherman

Professor of Psychological & Brain Sciences

Esther Showalter

Graduate Student in Computer Science and 2022 Grad Slam Finalist

Gil Marc Sia

Undergraduate Student in Electrical & Computer Engineering and UCSB Promise Scholar

Vaishali Surianarayanan

Graduate Student in Computer Science and 2023 Grad Slam Finalist

Geri Urgel

Undergraduate Student in Marine Science and UCSB Promise Scholar

Annjulie Vester

Graduate Student in Political Science and Graduate Student Association Co-President of External Affairs

Gil Vitro

Graduate Student in English and 2023 Grad Slam Finalist