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BIDDEFORD, Maine

Students make animal humanities presentations at NURDS

Five students presented research projects from the Animal Humanities Seminar at the seventh annual Northeast Undergraduate Research and Development Symposium (NURDS). Moderated by course instructor Susan McHugh, Ph.D., professor and chair of the English Department, the students formed a panel of data-blitz-style oral presentations on their research for submissions to ZooScope: The Animals in Film Archive.

The students immediately recognized the value of bringing classroom knowledge to real-world applications.  "It was a great experience, and because we practiced so much in class I gave one of my best presentations ever," said Alanna Sachse ‘17, a marine science major with an English minor like Irene Bloomer ‘15, who added, "NURDS was a lot less intimidating than I had feared, and I found that what I learned in class made it so that I could understand and learn a lot from the other presenters, too."

"I will definitely do NURDS again," said Sarah Fleischmann (Animal Behavior/ Environmental Science and Studies ‘16), noting how practice with presenting scholarship to strangers helps with her future presentations already scheduled as part of major and internship requirements. 

The presenters also appreciated the opportunity to network with students from other colleges and universities. Anne Goodall -- who came to UNE with a B.S. from Wake Forest University specifically to take courses like Animal Humanities in order to prepare applications for master’s programs in animal welfare and behavior -- added, "I spent a half hour after our panel talking to another presenter about research that I didn’t even know you could do as an undergraduate."

Fellow session presenter Alfred Kyrollos of Northeastern University reflected the sentiment: "I had no idea that you could study animals from a humanities perspective, and now I just want to bring you all back to my internship at the New England Aquarium, so that we can keep on sharing ideas!"

"It was so laid back and so good to see other models of research that I can follow," said Jazmyn Ireland (Biological Sciences ‘17), whose experiences with applied research at UNE includes co-creating the "Write Again Soon" exhibit presently on display in the Ketchum Gallery. 

All presenters confirmed that the experience gave them confidence for submitting the Full Archive Entries that they have been drafting as Animal Humanities class projects to the ZooScope Archive.

A unique online encyclopedia focused on representations of animals and human-animal relationships in cinema, ZooScope began as a collaborative research project in an undergraduate course taught by Sheffield University professor Robert McKay, Ph.D., who, along with McHugh, co-edits the book series Palgrave Studies in Animals and Literature. It is now maintained by graduate students, who have opened it to everyone for peer-reviewed submission. 

About the University of New England

The University of New England is Maine’s largest independent university, with two beautiful coastal campuses in Maine, a one-of-a-kind study abroad campus in Tangier, Morocco, and an array of flexible, accredited online degrees. In an uncommonly welcoming and supportive community, we offer hands-on learning, empowering students to make a positive impact in a world full of challenges. The state’s top provider of health professionals, we are home to Maine’s only medical college, Maine’s only dental college, a variety of other interprofessionally aligned health care degree programs, as well as nationally recognized programs for marine science degrees, natural and social sciences degrees, arts and humanities degrees, and business degrees.