{"id":8616,"date":"2025-12-15T12:05:01","date_gmt":"2025-12-15T17:05:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/alumni\/?p=8616"},"modified":"2025-12-15T12:05:01","modified_gmt":"2025-12-15T17:05:01","slug":"biology-undergraduates-shine-at-international-art-conference","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/alumni\/2025\/12\/15\/biology-undergraduates-shine-at-international-art-conference\/","title":{"rendered":"Biology\u00a0undergraduates\u00a0shine at\u00a0international\u00a0art\u00a0conference\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"AThree University of Detroit Mercy\u00a0(UDM)\u00a0students\u00a0captivated international artists, professional\u00a0medalists\u00a0and mint engravers at\u00a0a global\u00a0art medal convention\u00a0in Munich, Germany,\u00a0in\u00a0October, where they stood out as the only undergraduate presenters in attendance.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In two standing-room-only talks\u00a0at\u00a0this\u00a0prestigious\u00a0art\u00a0medal\u00a0gathering,\u00a0Roxana Nistor \u201925,\u00a0Hazel Song\u00a0and\u00a0Jewels Haisha\u00a0explained how curiosity and a little imagination in a\u00a0UDM\u00a0chemistry lab\u00a0led to\u00a0new ideas.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

F\u00e9d\u00e9ration\u00a0Internationale\u00a0de la M\u00e9daille\u00a0d’Art, more commonly known as\u00a0International Art Medal Federation (FIDEM),\u00a0is an organization founded in 1937 that seeks to\u00a0promote\u00a0the art of medals\u00a0and make\u00a0the\u00a0work of medal artists\u00a0known\u00a0globally\u00a0through publications,\u00a0exhibitions\u00a0and\u00a0biennial\u00a0congresses.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This year\u2019s FIDEM\u00a0Congress\u00a0coincided with the World\u00a0Exhibition of Modern Medal Art, which displayed more than\u00a0500 art medals\u00a0by more than 350 artists hailing\u00a0from\u00a0more than\u00a030 countries.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"MarkFor the three\u00a0UDM Biology majors\u00a0on pre-dental paths, sharing the stage with\u00a0world-renowned\u00a0artists\u00a0wasn\u2019t\u00a0just an unexpected turn in their academic journeys. It\u00a0was proof that\u00a0remarkable breakthroughs happen\u00a0at the crossroads of\u00a0science and art.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The\u00a0three\u00a0students\u00a0met in a\u00a0freshman\u00a0general chemistry lab, where\u00a0they\u00a0later\u00a0joined\u00a0Professor of Chemistry Mark Benvenuto\u2019s\u00a0long-running\u00a0research\u00a0on low-temperature metal casting. This research focuses on\u00a0a\u00a0process where molten metal\u00a0is poured into a mold to create a solid shape as the metal cools and solidifies.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Student research at UDM<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

One big advantage for these students,\u00a0and\u00a0others\u00a0at UDM,\u00a0is they have a chance\u00a0to\u00a0work\u00a0with\u00a0faculty mentors\u00a0on\u00a0hands-on\u00a0research projects\u00a0as part of the College of Engineering & Science\u2019s undergraduate research program.\u00a0Benvenuto\u2019s metal casting research\u00a0not only taught the\u00a0students\u00a0to\u00a0think critically\u00a0and\u00a0solve problems\u00a0but also\u00a0to use their imagination. The experience\u00a0demonstrated\u00a0how curiosity,\u00a0creativity\u00a0and\u00a0teamwork\u00a0drive innovation.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"ABenvenuto, who has taught introductory chemistry for\u00a0years, said the project began with a simple idea:\u00a0Expose\u00a0students to metal chemistry using only the heat of a hot plate.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cYoung scientists, who want to be doctors, dentists, engineers, all of them,\u00a0need to understand\u00a0a bit about metal chemistry because sometimes you put metal teeth into people, sometimes you put metal hip joints into people,\u201d he explained.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cBut when you give students a graphite block and\u00a0say,\u00a0\u2018Use your imagination,\u2019\u00a0they\u00a0come up with\u00a0some amazing stuff and\u00a0shock themselves with what they can create.\u00a0They\u2019ve\u00a0seen everything online, but they\u00a0haven\u2019t\u00a0<\/span>done<\/span><\/i>\u00a0everything,\u201d he continued.\u00a0\u201cAnd doing the work,\u00a0melting,\u00a0pouring, carving, making mistakes, that\u2019s where the learning happens.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

His philosophy has become\u00a0something of a guiding principle in the lab where he wants students to explore,\u00a0fail\u00a0and try again. \u201cI\u00a0tell students, if\u00a0you do something\u00a0\u2018wrong,\u2019\u00a0it\u2019s not wrong\u00a0if we learn from it,\u201d he\u00a0said.\u00a0\u201cMake a mistake. Have some fun. Screw it up. Throw it on the floor.\u00a0We’ll\u00a0scrape it up and use it again.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Learning by doing<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Detroit Mercy\u00a0students\u2019 research explored\u00a0new\u00a0methods for creating\u00a0art\u00a0medals\u00a0from molds\u00a0by combining different metals\u00a0and\u00a0alloys in varying ratios\u00a0and noting the\u00a0eutectic\u00a0(melting)\u00a0point\u00a0of these mixtures.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

They experimented with\u00a0mixing\u00a0low-melting alloys such as bismuth,\u00a0tin\u00a0and Wood\u2019s\u00a0metal, which in combination\u00a0have low\u00a0eutectic\u00a0points.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The goal was to\u00a0observe\u00a0how these combinations affect properties such as shine,\u00a0texture\u00a0and\u00a0eutectic\u00a0point, all\u00a0below the\u00a0500-degrees-Celsius\u00a0limit\u00a0of\u00a0a\u00a0hot plate.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Building on\u00a0previous\u00a0work with graphite molds,\u00a0which\u00a0the students\u00a0carved with hand tools\u00a0or drills\u00a0for\u00a0fine detail\u00a0before pouring\u00a0in\u00a0the molten metal,\u00a0the team\u00a0explored\u00a0new\u00a0techniques\u00a0with\u00a0different types\u00a0of molds:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n