Alexandra Earl showcasing her research at the annual 'Posters in Parliament' event.

Daniel Hajas showcasing his research in Parliament

Winners of the JRA poster competition

The UK’s best undergraduate research has been on show to top politicians in Westminster - with two Sussex students among them.

The annual Posters in Parliament exhibition, run by the British Conference of Undergraduate Research (BCUR), saw 53 students from 27 universities display their research to a range of MPs and higher education policymakers – including MP’s Barry Sheerman and John Redwood.

BSc Psychology with Cognitive Science student Alexandra Earl and MPhys Theoretical Physics student, Daniel Hajas were both in attendance after winning first and second prize respectively in the JRA poster competition back in October.

Daniel, who is blind, aimed to highlight the challenges he and other visually impaired people face in learning science and maths.

His work specifically looks at enhancing the accessibility of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) education for visually impaired students using focused information mapping and a cross-modality platform.

Essentially, what this means is that Daniel and colleagues are designing a system that converts a visual image into touch, sound and verbal feedback. This can then be displayed on a specially designed screen.

To showcase his work, the MPhys Theoretical Physics student took his audience through a complicated equation, referring to imaginary information on his poster to help them.

Speaking after the event, he said: “I had many interested people come to see me asking me to explain my ‘question mark’ on the poster.

“I received really positive feedback from academics from a number of universities across the UK both on the research and the style of presentation chosen. Some seemed to be interested and offered to get in touch with a view to potential partnership in research. It was very encouraging.

“I am very proud. The fact that I had a chance to be there at such a prestigious event is a great honour.”

Also representing the University was BSc Psychology with Cognitive Science student, Alexandra Earl. Winning the JRA poster competition back in October, her work examines the extent to which fathers treat their children as individuals with their own personalities.

She said: “We were delighted that the importance of our findings was recognised by us winning the Sussex JRA poster competition, and being given the opportunity to present the work to MPs at Posters in Parliament.”

Alex’s study suggests that there may be striking differences between mothers and fathers in terms of the factors associated with mind-mindedness – in short, parents who treat their children as individuals with minds.

Her research suggests that fathers of sons tended to be warmer and more mind-minded towards their children than those with daughters.

“The next step is continuing the research for my third year project, where I am looking to directly compare mothers and fathers from two-parent families,” she said.

“I hope to involve elements of this project in my post-graduate research, particularly continuing to unpack the role of the father in relation to interventions for children with pervasive and distressing disorders,”

The University of Sussex JRA scheme provides talented and ambitious undergraduates with a £2,000 bursary, allowing them to participate in original research with academic staff and other members of the University community.

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