Three Minute Thesis Winner announced

Julia Scully, a master’s student in coatings and polymeric materials, was named this year’s Three Minute Thesis champion during the final round of NDSU Graduate School’s Three Minute Thesis competition on Thursday, Feb. 12.

Scully’s presentation “Giving Tires a Second Spin,” focused on how end-of-life tires pose significant environmental and economic challenges due to their durability, large-scale disposal and slow degradation.

Scully is advised by Eugene Caldona, an assistant professor in coatings and polymeric materials.

To conclude the competition, Scully was presented with a $1,000 check and is invited to represent NDSU at the Western Association of Graduate Schools regional competition in March.

“I was really honored to compete against everyone in the finals. They're all amazing and talented women,” Scully said. “The competition was so good. It was anyone's game, so I was very shocked, but really proud of the work I did.”

While breaking down her research in a way that was understandable to the general public was challenging, Scully said it’s an important skill to have.

“I think in industry, there's a lot of communication with a lot of different people. You have your sales team, customers, tech service reps and more,” Scully said. “Being able to take your results and explain it succinctly in a way that makes sense to them is vital to business and making sure things are flowing right and everybody has the right information.”

In the Three Minute Thesis competition, students are given three minutes to present their research clearly and concisely.

In addition to the selection of the Three Minute Thesis champion, the NDSU Center for Entrepreneurship and Family Business presented three students with Innovation Commendations.

The award recognizes thesis works that focus on developing innovative technology and/or developing a creative solution to a major problem. It was established to further the Center's desire to spark creative problem-solving in economic, social, institutional and cultural environments. The award is accompanied with a $500 check.

Winners are:

• Matheus Belin, a doctoral student in pharmaceutical sciences from Avaré, São Paulo, Brazil, for his project titled “A Trojan Horse Nasal Spray Against Alzheimer’s Disease.”
• Aditya Goyal, a doctoral student in materials and nanotechnology from Dehradun, India, on his project titled “Beyond Plastic: Turning Waste into Packaging.”
• Scully for her project titled “Giving Tires a Second Spin.”

Australia's University of Queensland developed the first Three Minute Thesis competition in 2008 and the concept has spread to institutions around the world. NDSU held its first Three Minute Thesis event in 2015.