Synergy Soars throughout Annual Research Day at Trent Durham
Researchers unite to celebrate knowledge from many areas on campus
“I really like that shiver you get when you see research from one discipline speaking directly to another in ways that you never could have anticipated,” stated English Literature professor Amanda Paxton at the annual Research Day held at Trent University Durham on April 6.
Prof. Paxton’s presentation Victorian Vampires and the Clone Age kicked off an encompassing showcase of the social sciences and humanities research conducted by world-class faculty, graduate students, and undergraduates at the Durham campus.
Organized by Dr. Rita Bode and Dr. James Connelly of the English Literature and Philosophy departments, Research Day provided a rare opportunity to unite campus researchers in open discussion about their published works, findings, and processes.
“Durham seems particularly well-suited to interdisciplinary studies,” said Dr. Neil Emery, vice-president of Research and Innovation at Trent University, during his opening remarks at the event. “Excellence has no address. We have great professors all across Trent. It’s a terrific opportunity for everyone to get together and learn about what is going on at Trent University Durham.”
Fourth-year Psychology student Emily Walker presented her undergraduate thesis which examined cognitive predictors of how children solve multiplication problems.
“It’s interesting to see what everyone else is doing outside of your departmental bubble,” she revealed. “I’m so used to seeing how we research in Psychology so it is interesting to see a different perspective.”
“It’s a great opportunity for the graduates and undergraduates to showcase the hard work they put into their research projects,” added Nancy I’m-Bolter, an associate professor of Psychology and a veteran researcher who oversees many graduate students.
Interested in doing a research practicum with Dr. Im-Bolter, second-year Psychology student Daniel McAdam-Wong said, “I found her presentation very interesting because when it comes to theory of mind there are lots of implications.”
From Literary Studies and Philosophy to several social science disciplines, students and faculty alike represented the multi-disciplinary campus landscape. Under the umbrella theme of Culture and Communication, the presentations sparked invigorating discussions within the categories of Historical Perspectives, Complicated Understandings, Capitalism and Culture and Mind and Society.
Whether learning about PXRF testing on ancient Obsidian artefacts from Belize or the theatrical perspective on Canadian involvement in the conflict in Afghanistan, the crowd was appreciative from beginning through the Q&A sessions. Other topics of interest included personal medical testing, urban sprawl and contemporary Canadian mystery writing.
Leah Kindree, a research project officer with Trent University, came to the public event to check out the end results of the research she helps facilitate. “This is fascinating,” she said, “It’s a supportive environment. I like the dynamics.”