The View From Carnegie 210

For pictures from the WPUPC, please follow the link at the end of the entry.

At 7:00 in the morning, on Saturday, April 26, a sleepy, but excited group of Allegheny students pulled out of the Carnegie Hall parking lot with the goal of presenting their senior comprehenisvie projects at the Western Pennslyvania Undergraduate Psychology Conference. For the last three decades, the WPUPC has hosted students from around the area and has fostered the scientific process of peer review and collaboration. Attendance at the event has continued to grow and this year was no exception. At least 84 students presented posters at the conference and another 36 students gave paper presentations to standing-room-only audiences.

Among the group were 11 students who ran their projects in the Cognitive Lab with Professor Knupsky (2 of our lab mates could not join us due to prior commitments). The consensus among the group was that the conference was a worthwhile experience and that attending the event seemed to bring home the sense of being connected to the scientific community. For example, senior Katie Cross shared that, " Presenting at the conference really brought the comp process to life. I now see my research as a piece of work that fits in with previous research, not just a project I did to graduate. It is rewarding to see others genuinely interested in my research questions and results."

Other students were proud of the quality and independence of the projects presented by the Allegheny contingent. For example, senior Rachel Learned observed that, "[other] projects did not always seem to have the same passion and knowledge behind them as we do with our senior projects. Allegheny gives us the opportunity of an independent project. And, psychology professors allow us to do OUR research. They help us along and give us support, but it is truly our research question, method...being able to design and run your own research is very valuable, and such a unique opportunity. Learning and conducting research is a much more positive and memorable experience when it is enjoyable and interesting to you."

To learn more about the posters and papers presented by our lab, please continue reading for links to their projects as well as pictures from the event...