Sreedhar places at college research forum
“I’ve been involved with research at the Injury Biomechanics Research Center (IBRC) for a little over a year now,” Sreedhar said. “This year I had the amazing opportunity to present at the Undergraduate Research Forum as well as the Denman Undergraduate Research Forum.”
The goal of Sreedhar’s research was to determine the relationship between peak strain and global displacement in anteroposterior loading of human ribs.
“Thorax injuries and rib fractures are some of the most common injuries in car crashes and can lead to high rates of morbidity and mortality,” said Sreedhar, of Naperville, IL. She and her colleagues at IBRC simulated a frontal impact in a bending scenario to 262 mid-level ribs to try and understand the properties of human ribs and how they respond to this kind of trauma.
With this research and follow-up studies, scientists will be able to better understand the structural and material properties of ribs and improve motor vehicles to reduce the risk of thoracic injuries from crashes.
“The interdisciplinary research that’s conducted at Ohio State was one of the biggest aspects that brought me here to the College of Engineering,” Sreedhar said. “I love being able to study materials science and engineering and apply its principles to real-life testing scenarios and the human body, and to be able to improve safety in motor vehicles a little step at a time.”
She’s grateful to Dr. Amanda Agnew, Dr. Yun Seok Kang, Michelle Murach, and all of the students and staff at IBRC who “have been amazing mentors to me. I’m excited to see what we can explore together in the upcoming year and beyond along with the materials science and engineering department!”
Hosted by the College of Engineering, Knowlton School of Architecture and Tau Beta Pi, the College’s Undergraduate Research Forum welcomed students from all engineering and architectural fields of research to share their projects, regardless of the stage of progress. Projects ranging from the beginning planning stages to nearly completed senior theses were accepted at the forum.
Faculty members and graduate students judged the forum, providing feedback on the undergraduates’ posters and presentations. The judges recognized eight students for their exemplary research and presentation skills.