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A U TO MATI N G D ATA Aaron Kurtz ’13 (right) developed a software program that combined standard well log practices with Dual Water Theory. The program will be used in the fall by Associate Professor Ben Ebenhack.
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esearch and creative projects at Marietta College are nothing new. Almost every major requires a capstone project reflective of the knowledge students have gained in a particular subject during their undergraduate education at Marietta. From individual musical or theatrical performances, to reflections on education abroad experiences, to in-depth scientific research projects, students spent countless hours coming up with, researching and developing projects that illustrate what they’ve learned in classrooms and labs. All Scholars Day is a way for students to showcase this effort, which was Doerflinger’s goal when establishing the campus-wide event. “The second factor was that there were limited opportunities for faculty and staff to support students across disciplines,” she says. “Generally when there are capstone presentations or Honors thesis defenses, only the faculty in the student’s department attend. All Scholars Day provides the opportunity for faculty and staff to celebrate academic endeavors across campus, not just within departments.” Stonier appreciates the opportunity to put his artistic talents, and the talents of other art majors involved in the Hermann Fine Arts exhibit, to the test and share his work with the balance of campus. Doerflinger
says the presentation aspect of All Scholars Day is very important because it enables students to practice discussing their work in an educational and public setting. “This show is the first time that students get to actually run through something like this,” he says. “For designers, we execute the idea from start to finish. From ideation, implementation, sourcing vendors, working with deadlines, and doing all the physical labor, we must manage the whole process ourselves. For many of us, this is the first time we have had to do this alone. We have had many of the elements in different classes, but during capstone, we put all of that knowledge into a single project. Having that experience is essential to the success of future endeavors like this.” Some students opt to pursue a Research Honors thesis, which is a major academic project by the student that a faculty member or committee of faculty members oversees. Aaron Kurtz ’13 is one of two petroleum engineering majors to complete a Research Honors project this year. His project, “Determining Mineralogy from Traditional Well Log Data,” combined standard well logging practices with Dual Water Theory, and automated that information into a software program he developed.
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