{"id":69586,"date":"2025-07-28T07:50:35","date_gmt":"2025-07-28T11:50:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/?p=69586"},"modified":"2025-08-07T08:09:12","modified_gmt":"2025-08-07T12:09:12","slug":"the-best-summer-ive-had-utc-students-reflect-on-research-at-oak-ridge-national-laboratory","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogarchive.utc.edu\/news\/2025\/07\/the-best-summer-ive-had-utc-students-reflect-on-research-at-oak-ridge-national-laboratory\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018The best summer I\u2019ve had\u2019: UTC students reflect on research at Oak Ridge National Laboratory\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Electrical

Electrical engineering student Nelson Karnowski works on a project at his Oak Ridge National Laboratory internship. Photo by Angela Foster.<\/p><\/div>\n

Working at one of the most prestigious science labs in the country can be intimidating, especially when you\u2019re surrounded by some of the top researchers in the field.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For Nelson Karnowski, <\/span>a junior in the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga College of Engineering and Computer Science,<\/span> interning at Oak Ridge National Laboratory over the summer gave him a touch of impostor syndrome.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m the type of person that gets motivated by that,\u201d explained Karnowski, an electrical engineering major from Knoxville, Tennessee. \u201cI have to work the hardest. I have no other choice.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Megan Black, a senior chemistry major, had a similar reaction when she arrived <\/span>at ORNL<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cYou never know who you\u2019re sitting down at lunch with,\u201d said Black, a Chattanooga native. \u201cThere have been times when I will be talking about something and realize a very established researcher is sitting next to me.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Laurel Washburn, who received a bachelor\u2019s degree in chemistry from UTC in May,<\/span> was blown away by Oak Ridge\u2019s high-tech resources.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThey have a supercomputer here which I have access to,\u201d Washburn said. \u201cI\u2019m going to be able to actually run a calculation or multiple calculations for my research on it, which is one of the fastest in the world.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Regardless of their experience level, each student is contributing to real research projects in a national lab.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cExperience is the best way to learn,\u201d said Washburn, who didn\u2019t expect to end up in chemistry, let alone Oak Ridge.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

She earned a degree in apparel merchandising from Indiana University in 2015 before deciding to switch fields.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cGoing back, I have a stronger drive and understanding of what I want to do and what I want to accomplish,\u201d she said. \u201cI went in with the mindset of what I was going to be doing after and what I can do to make sure I have a good career.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Washburn is working in a biochemistry group running simulations of adenine, one of the four components of RNA and DNA. Using computer models, she studies how these molecules interact when stacked together, which helps researchers understand the behavior of RNA strands in different environments.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

She\u2019s also learning to automate her workflow, writing scripts that allow her to run hundreds of calculations with the click of a button.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Her classes at UTC helped lay the foundation, and she thanked her faculty mentor, Dr. Luis Sanchez Diaz, an assistant professor in <\/span>the Department of<\/span> Chemistry and Physics.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI think that my ability to do research at UTC in the chemistry department is what really made it possible because I\u2019d already had some experience,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s pretty cool to be able to get research experience as an undergraduate and have a full project that you worked on.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Laurel

Laurel Washburn<\/p><\/div>\n

Black is getting her second ORNL research experience.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

She previously worked with Diaz for a different <\/span>undergraduate research<\/span> program that <\/span>led her to Oak Ridge for the first time,<\/span> where she spent a few days a week using equipment and meeting researchers.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThey told me to apply for the Science Undergraduate Laboratory Internships (SULI) program,\u201d Black said. \u201cI actually got accepted into a different group, which turned out to be a really cool thing.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Black is now working in the carbon fiber composites group, where she\u2019s helping turn biomass\u2014plant-based material\u2014into carbon-rich samples that could eventually be used in battery technology.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

On a typical day, she prepares samples, monitors their transformation inside a furnace that reaches 1,000 degrees Celsius, or uses x-ray scattering to analyze how their structure changes during the process. She\u2019s also learning how to interpret the data.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe biggest portion of my time is spent trying to read more about the project and understand as we\u2019re getting data on where things are going,\u201d she said. \u201cSomething that was kind of unique to me with this project is that it didn\u2019t have a developed methodology already.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

With all of the knowledge she\u2019s gained, she said she can see how her coursework applies in ways she didn\u2019t expect.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cYou are taking the class and you can say, \u2018I\u2019ve learned this instrument and that instrument,\u2019\u201d Black said, \u201cbut then you\u2019re doing a project and getting data … you can see the utility in knowing how to use all of these techniques.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Megan

Megan Black<\/p><\/div>\n

Karnowski\u2019s path to Oak Ridge was a little different. He didn\u2019t find out about the internship through a professor or a research program, but rather through his dad\u2014who works at the lab as an electrical engineer.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Initially<\/span>, he planned to work somewhere else over the summer, but when a hiring freeze shut down his other options, his dad suggested he apply to the SULI program.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a great decision, I\u2019ll tell you that,\u201d Karnowski said.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

As part of a hardware cybersecurity team, he <\/span>has<\/span> been testing the vulnerabilities of <\/span>standard<\/span> Internet of Things<\/span> devices\u2014<\/span>such as smart lighting systems<\/span>\u2014to better understand how they could be used for <\/span>purposes<\/span> like<\/span> energy grids or military equipment.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

With a busy 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. schedule, Karnowski said he is getting valuable time with mentors in the field. He <\/span>said he<\/span> has also been able to use his skills from his classes at <\/span>UTC and his experience in the University\u2019s Institute<\/span> of Electrical and Electronics Engineers club.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIf I didn\u2019t take circuits class or even digital electronics with those two professors, then I don\u2019t think I would be able to do what I did,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Even though his dad works <\/span>at ORNL<\/span>, stepping into the lab came with a wave of self-<\/span>doubt, Karnowski said. But over time, that started to shift.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like I\u2019m finally doing something for my future,\u201d he said. \u201cThis is the best summer I\u2019ve had.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Learn more<\/h4>\n

Visit UTC<\/a><\/p>\n

UTC Undergraduate Research and Creative Endeavor<\/a><\/p>\n

How to apply<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Working at one of the most prestigious science labs in the country can be intimidating, especially when you\u2019re surrounded by some of the top researchers in the field.\u00a0For three UTC students doing internships at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, they got to experience that challenge firsthand.<\/p>\n

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