"I am working in the Heliophysics Department at NASA Goddard and we are developing a compact coronagraph. It is essentially a telescope that is pointed to the Sun. As the target is extremely bright, the concept, invented by the French astronomer Bernard Lyot, is to use an occulter to actually block the Sun, completely blocking direct sunlight, in order to allow us to study the outermost part of the Sun’s atmosphere (called corona). We are trying to prove that it is possible to build a compact coronagraph that will give us similar data as the traditional ones there are already in space, some actually launched by NASA. We hope to be able to send it to the International Space Station (ISS) someday. This academic training has been a fulfilling experience because I am developing mechanical design skills, learning new physical concepts and having an even greater hands on experience."
– Trenton Roncato Juraszek, Universidade Federal Do Paraná, Brazil, June 2013 Student of the Month.
"My major is Civil Engineering, and, since construction in Brazil (in general) is still outdated in regards to technologies and optimization, learning how construction works here is maybe one of the most important things I will carry to my professional life. I think is really important to have other parameters to compare and to form an opinion about. Now I am in a research project with a master's student, at the University of Nevada Las Vegas, about the ability of pervious concrete to remove pollutants of runoff water."
– Mariane De Pieri, Universidade Tecnológica Federal Do Paraná, Brazil, June 2013 Student of the Month.
"I feel very prepared to start my Academic Training which is going to take place at Vanderbilt University, in Nashville, Tennessee.I am going to work under the supervision of Dr. John Cleator in an in silico research project that will be looking for the association of single-nucleotide polymorphisms and the adverse effect of bleeding in patients which have undergone coronary stenting. I am very excited to start this project, since I will be working with very qualified professionals. The process of getting an internship was tough, and at last I learned that we have to be persistent in order to achieve our goals."
– Luisa Coutinho Teixeira, Universidade Federal De Ouro Preto, Brazil, May 2013 Student of the Month.
"Here, at Cornell, I’ve joined the “CUAir” project team as member of the subteam in charge of designing the autopilot system for an unmanned autonomous aircraft. I also had the chance of studying and working with robots in the Robot Learning class. On top of all that, I was accepted to work at NVidia during my summer academic training. I’ll work on the development and testing of a product that is going to be sold worldwide to millions of customers, and I’ll have the opportunity to experience the workflow of a multinational company and world leader in Visual Computer Technologies."
– Adao Henrique Ribeiro Justo Filho, Universidade Federal Do Ceará, Brazil, May 2013 Student of the Month.
Lucas said, “It was a freezing experience, but all worth the cause. I would do it all over again.” Cristiano said of his experience, “The moment you hit the water you ask yourself what were you thinking when you decided to do such a thing. However, after the first shock, adrenaline pumps in as you dash from the pond to the hot tub. It was great, I felt really relaxed the whole day after it.” Roger has noted that, “It's not about just helping others. It's about doing things that you will remember for the rest of your life."
– Cristiano Novack Amaral Pereira, Universidade Estadual De Campinas, Brazil, April 2013 Student of the Month.
– Lucas Arrigoni Iervolino, Universidade Federal De Santa Catarina, Brazil, April 2013 Student of the Month.
– Roger Oliveira Coelho Andrade, Universidade Federal De Uberlândia, Brazil, April 2013 Student of the Month.