University Times

Three Pitt juniors have been awarded 2016 Barry M. Goldwater Scholarships.

Patrick A. Asinger, Natalie R. Dall and Charles J. Hansen were honored for their research endeavors in the areas of chemical engineering and molecular biology.

Another Pitt junior, Ethan A. Garcia-Baker, received an honorable mention in the 2016 scholarship competition.

Asinger is majoring in chemical engineering in the Swanson School of Engineering. He plans to pursue a doctoral degree in chemical engineering. His goal is to conduct research in advanced nanomaterials for improved energy conversion and storage.

Asinger’s undergraduate research pursuits have been performed in the laboratory of Swanson School professor Götz Veser. This summer, he will be conducting research through the Mascaro Center for Sustainable Innovation. Asinger is the son of Pitt-Bradford faculty member Kristin Asinger. His father, Timothy J. Asinger, and grandparents Ann and Richard Kessel are members of the UPB advisory board.

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Dall is the Student Government Board’s incoming president. She is majoring in molecular biology in the Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences. She intends to pursue a doctoral degree in biology.

Dall plans to focus her professional research in the fields of evolutionary and developmental biology. She hopes to explore the causes underlying such human developmental disorders as neural tube closure and spina bifida with the intent of developing innovative treatment methods. She also hopes to teach at the undergraduate level.

As an undergraduate, Dall has been performing research in the lab of biological sciences professor Mark Rebeiz. Her work there has been published in the peer-reviewed journal Developmental Cell.

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Hansen is majoring in chemical engineering in the Swanson school. He plans to pursue a doctoral degree in chemical engineering.

Hansen intends to focus his professional research pursuits on clean energy production and energy storage. He plans to conduct interdisciplinary research in heterogeneous catalysis and teach at the undergraduate level.

During his undergraduate career, Hansen has worked closely with Swanson school faculty members Daniel Cole and Götz Veser. He will continue his energy research this summer through the Amgen scholars program at the California Institute of Technology.

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Honorable mention designee Garcia-Baker is majoring in neuroscience as well as history and philosophy of science in the Dietrich School. He plans to pursue a doctoral degree in computational biology and genomics.

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The Goldwater Scholarship is designed to support students who are pursuing careers in the fields of engineering, mathematics and the natural sciences. The scholarships provide up to $7,500 per year to cover the cost of tuition, fees, books and room and board for each student’s remaining period of study.

Since its first award in 1989, the Goldwater Foundation has bestowed 7,680 scholarships worth approximately $48 million.

Pitt’s 2016 Goldwater Scholarship applicants were nominated with assistance from the University Honors College.

Institutions can nominate up to four students per year for the Goldwater Scholarship. This is the fourth consecutive year that all of Pitt’s nominees have received either the scholarship or an honorable mention.

Pitt students have won a total of 47 Goldwater Scholarships since 1996.