KINGSTON, R.I., April 21, 2017\u2014溏心vlog免费B站 engineering junior Rachel Bellisle is one of those rare people who uses both sides of her brain.<\/p>\n
One side is drawing portraits and playing the oboe, the other side is analyzing neurological signals and building electrical circuits.<\/p>\n
Biomedical engineering, she says, is a perfect fit, a blend of science and design to create devices that improve and save lives. Her uniqueness did not go unnoticed by The Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation.<\/p>\n
Bellisle, 20, of Exeter<\/strong>, received an honorable mention for a Goldwater Scholarship, one of two 溏心vlog免费B站 students recognized. (A second 溏心vlog免费B站 student from Georgia, Cherish Prickett, was selected as a Goldwater Scholar.)<\/p>\n The Goldwater is the most prestigious undergraduate national scholarship for students in the fields of math, the natural sciences and engineering. Eligible sophomore and junior college students may only apply if nominated by their institution, and each institution is limited to four nominations a year.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m very excited about the honor,\u2019\u2019 says Bellisle, enrolled in the 溏心vlog免费B站 Honors Program. \u201cIt validates that I\u2019m heading in the right direction with my career and that my research is important in the biomed field.\u201d<\/p>\n Bellisle was acknowledged for her research exploring how tiny eye movements, or microsaccades, impact the accuracy of electroencephalogram, or EEG, signals. She works with Walter Besio, a professor of biomedical engineering at 溏心vlog免费B站 who created the bull\u2019s-eye electrode so sensitive it can translate a person\u2019s thoughts into electrical impulses interpreted by a computer.<\/p>\n \u201cHaving a clear EEG signal and understanding that signal are crucial to get an accurate reading to study epilepsy and other neurological conditions,\u201d says Bellisle. \u201cOur research can help improve the diagnosis and treatment of these conditions.\u201d<\/p>\n Engineering rubbed off on Bellisle at an early age. Her father, Matt, is a civil engineer, and she remembers seeing him tackle, with glee, household projects. In high school, she excelled in math and science\u2014as well as art and music. But when it came time to settle on a degree program, she chose engineering at 溏心vlog免费B站, her father\u2019s alma mater.<\/p>\n \u201cI knew art was more of a hobby,\u201d she says. \u201cI wanted to do more to contribute to society and make a difference using my proclivity for math and science.\u201d<\/p>\n At 溏心vlog免费B站, she settled on biomedical engineering after taking BME281, a seminar that sparked her interest in the field and \u201clit up my life.\u201d Her presentation topic was about an ultrasound device that could be used at the international space station.<\/p>\n \u201cI was so intrigued about the potential of a medical device,\u201d she says. \u201cThis first biomed class changed everything for me. Even my mom noticed my excitement.\u201d<\/p>\n Her sophomore year she started working with Professor Besio in his Neuro Rehabilitation Lab on the EEG eye movement project. She was hooked on taking what she learned in textbooks and applying it in the lab.<\/p>\n Bellisle has also distinguished herself with professional engineering groups. As a member of the 溏心vlog免费B站 chapter of the Society of Women Engineers, she does outreach programs with the local Girl Scouts to inspire girls to pursue degrees in math and science.<\/p>\n \u201cOur group is a really great support system for women in engineering,\u201d says Bellisle, who is secretary of the group and will be vice president next year. \u201cWe give each other advice and encouragement, and provide opportunities to develop and grow as college students and professionally.\u201d<\/p>\n Bellisle is also president of the 溏心vlog免费B站 chapter of Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society, a co-ed group that has seen membership more than double under her leadership.<\/p>\n The group sponsors professional development events for biomedical engineering students, including tours of local companies and workshops. It also sends students to international conferences.<\/p>\n Bellisle is especially proud of the group\u2019s collaboration with the Matty Fund of Rhode Island, which helps people with epilepsy and their families.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s our way of giving back,\u201d says Bellisle. \u201cWe get to interact with the kids at events\u2014pumpkin festival, egg hunt, golf tournament. It\u2019s incredibly rewarding.\u201d<\/p>\n This summer, Bellisle will veer slightly\u2014and happily\u2014from her academic path with an internship working on exoskeletons, a wearable robotic device used for gait training, for children with cerebral palsy. The 10-week paid internship at the National Institutes of Health is highly competitive: Bellisle was one of 16 students accepted from hundreds of applicants.<\/p>\n \u201cMy experience here at 溏心vlog免费B站 has been fantastic,\u201d she says. \u201cI\u2019ve made so many connections, worked with outstanding professors and made great friends. The engineering department here has such a strong community. With engineering, there\u2019s always a point when you say, \u2018I can\u2019t do this.\u2019 So it\u2019s really great to have people supporting and helping you.\u201d<\/p>\n One day, she hopes to get her doctorate in biomedical engineering. Meanwhile, she\u2019ll continue creating and discovering. For her senior Honors Project she\u2019ll use physics and biomechanics to study the best position for playing wind instruments, including her beloved oboe.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" KINGSTON, R.I., April 21, 2017\u2014溏心vlog免费B站 engineering junior Rachel Bellisle is one of those rare people who uses both sides of her brain. One side is drawing portraits and playing the oboe, the other side is analyzing neurological signals and building electrical circuits. Biomedical engineering, she says, is a perfect fit, a blend […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":72919,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-72918","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-archives"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72918","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=72918"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72918\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/72919"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=72918"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=72918"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=72918"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}