Research

Kusek Shares Stories of Immigrant Professionals in the U.P.

Northern Michigan University Provost Fellow and Associate Professor Weronika Kusek wrote a recently published book titled “Moving UP North: Immigrant Experiences of Professionals in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.” Each chapter is based on an oral history interview with an international professional who lives and works in the region, sharing the individual's migratory journey and personal experience. Some of the subjects have been here for a couple of decades; others are newcomers.
NMU Provost Fellow and Associate Professor Weronika Kusek

Improv Training Can Ease Social Anxiety

Some people are apprehensive about participating in improv comedy because of its unscripted format that requires quick thinking to play off unpredictable ideas presented by others on stage or in the audience. But Northern Michigan University assistant professor Peter Felsman is the lead author of a published study providing the first evidence that improv training can significantly reduce a common trait of social anxiety and depression: discomfort with uncertainty.
Felsman (left) doing improv with a house team called Brenda at Pointless Brewery & Theatre in Ann Arbor, which is now closed.

Researchers Assess Animal Model of Mental Illness

A chance discovery of unexpected behavioral changes in genetically modified mice prompted two Northern Michigan University researchers to embark on an interdisciplinary project. If their collaboration reveals the mice more closely replicate mental illness in humans than existing animal models, it could lead to increased understanding of human psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia and more effective drug treatments. Erich Ottem of Biology and Adam Prus of Psychological Science received a Northern PRIME grant to support their research.

Ottem and Prus

New Research Sheds Light on Wolves' Diet

After GPS clusters light up the map at the Voyageurs Wolf Project housing site in Minnesota, technician Alex Gross, a Northern Michigan Biology graduate student, arrives at the coordinates wondering what evidence the wolves might have left. Some days, it’s a few small remnants of a deer fawn or beaver left after a hunt, or perhaps he is taking a trek out to the mouth of a den where pups are sleeping; but in the middle of a hot Minnesota summer, those coordinates often lead him to a foraged patch of wild blueberries.
A wolf eats blueberries

NMU Biology Student Investigates Effects of Aquatic Pollutants

Northern Michigan University biology student Lars Anderson spent the summer conducting undergraduate research at the University of California, Davis, investigating how persistent aquatic pollutants affect fish development and behavior.

Working with researchers in the Whitehead Lab, Anderson studied Atlantic killifish and their responses to noncoplanar polychlorinated biphenyls, or ncPCBs, a class of industrial pollutants commonly found in estuaries along the eastern United States.

Lars Anderson stands next a presentation on his research.

Visitors to America's National Parks and Wildlife Refuges Want to Learn About Climate Change

A national study led by researchers at Northern Michigan University (NMU) and Slippery Rock University (SRU) finds that visitors to America's national parks and wildlife refuges are more concerned about climate change than the general public, eager to learn more about it during their visit, and largely not getting the chance.
NMU researchers take a photo at Grand Teton National Park

New Tool Could Shed Light on Brain Cancer

An interdisciplinary team of Northern faculty and student researchers is developing a new test that shows promise in diagnosing certain brain cancers quickly, affordably and non-invasively. Their work revolves around a novel biosensor called D2HGlo. When mixed with bodily fluids such as urine, plasma and serum, the tool lights up like a fluorescent beacon when it detects the presence of an abnormal molecule that plays a key role in tumor development. This “liquid biopsy” method could improve outcomes and reduce the physical and emotional toll on brain cancer patients.
A student with the fluorescent tool in the lab.

Celebration of Student Scholarship April 16

Northern Michigan University will host its 30th annual Celebration of Student Scholarship from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday, April 16, in Jamrich Hall. The event highlights scholarly and creative work by undergraduate and graduate students across all disciplines. Presentations include posters, oral presentations, artistic performances and visual art displays. This follows another celebration of student scholarly activity: the inaugural Winter Research Day held earlier this semester.  
Pictured from left: Zoe Moreno, runnerup in the Winter Research Day 3MT competition; Sarah Amidon and Dr. Susy Ziegler of NMU Graduate Studies and Research; and Sarah O’Neill, winner of the 3MT first place and People's Choice awards.