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Marktplatz of Bremen, picture from Abigail’s travel blog

Abigail Asper took her research interests to Germany this summer. The psychology major was granted a research internship at the University of Bremen, where she assisted the head of the University’s Institute of Psychology and Cognition Research with data analysis and various laboratory tasks. The project she assisted with focused on developmental changes in brain wave patterns through adolescence. The experiment — with participants ranging from 13 to 23 years old– allowed measurement of brain waves during a multi-process task (sensory and cognitive) and thus allowed the researcher to study how different brain regions interact with each other. “Adolescence is a period of rapid neurobiological and behavior change,” psychology prof. Mike Ruscio says. “Understanding how brain waves change during this period, aims to elucidate these changes.”

The School of Humanities and Social Sciences (HSS) Dean’s Fund recipient notes that the internship furthered her personal goals of exploring multiple fields of psychology and experiencing foreign culture. “It’s humbling to come to a foreign country and have to re-learn everything,” she writes in her blog post.  

Read Abigail’s travel blog here: https://abigailasper.wordpress.com 

Constance Johnson, a history major, didn’t have to go far this summer to gain valuable experiences. As an intern with the College’s Avery Research Center for African American History and Culture, Constance assisted with transcribing archival documents.  The HSS Dean’s Excellence Fund recipient writes, “This scholarship gave me the opportunity to gain the experience of becoming a well-learned historian. I know that everything comes at a cost and as a young single mother of two, I am accustomed to lacking the funds necessary to supplement my ambition.” Constance hopes to tie her love for academia and history together once she graduates from the College of Charleston by going on to earn a PhD.

The Avery Center Building Photo: http://avery.cofc.edu/

The Avery Center building
Photo: http://avery.cofc.edu/