A senior thesis is a report on a significant research project conducted by a student under the supervision of an advisor in ESP. The thesis will present the results of this study, including the analysis of data, and a discussion on the significance of the results. An oral presentation of the results is also usually made by the researcher. In developing the thesis the advisor will work with the student in reviewing the work in progress, and approving corrections to early drafts.

Choosing a Research Project
The major stumbling block facing students contemplating a thesis project is finding a project. In the Environmental Science Program, there are a several different possibilities. They include:

• Field or laboratory related research. The environmental faculty are all engaged in field and/or laboratory research projects. Links to the research of each of the faculty are lower on this page.
  Library-based research. A student can do research in the library and on-line on a topic of their choice.
• Ecological survey. The goal for a project of this type would be to do a site and ecological survey of a natural area. This would normally involve doing a plant and animal (depending on the site the survey may emphasize tree, insect or other invertebrate inventories). These data along with GPS data and perhaps an aerial photo, would be used to create a GIS database for the site, incorporating all of the data.

Normally, ESP majors in their junior year will take the Introduction to Research Method course, ENV 360 (2 credit hours) to learn the general techniques for doing research. Before, during or after this course, they should pick a thesis topic. This will normally involve discussions with one or more faculty members, but not necessarily only Environmental Science faculty. The student will choose to work with a particular faculty member on a field or laboratory research project, or choose a faculty adviser for a library or ecological survey project.

The student needs to obtain the permission of the ESP Chair for the project, and will then work with her/his adviser on doing the necessary research, and in writing-up the results.

The student may register for a total of up to 8 credit hours of Senior Research (ENV 362; 0, 2, or 4 cr per quarter) while doing their research project. Registration in 362, at least for zero credits for one quarter, is required for a thesis project- -to get it on your transcript.

The completed thesis will be submitted during the student’s senior year. A presentation of the project results will be given during the Annual Student Research Symposium, or in another forum. Approval by the majority of the ESP faculty involved in the evaluation of the thesis will constitute acceptance.

• Soil Decomposer Fauna Abundance and Diversity Reduced by the Presence of an Invasive Shrub, Rhamnus Cathartica, in a Chicago Woodland by Bradley Bernau with Dr. Liam Heneghan
• An Ab Initio Study of Intermolecular Interactions of X-Formaldehyde Dimers: Energetics and Structural Conformations. Jillian Foley with Dr. Ruben Parra, Chemistry
• Remote Sensing and its Applications in Environmental Science by Jessica Myers, with Dr. Thomas Murphy
• Forests and Air Pollution in the Modern Era by Valorie Michna with Dr. Liam Heneghan.
• Faunally Generated Nutrient Hotspots in Soil - their Significance for Plant Communities by Angela Opiola with Dr. Liam Heneghan
• Farrah Fatemi with Dr. Liam Heneghan
• Jaclyn Palermo with Dr. Nancy Clum

• Jamie Smith with Dr. Nancy Clum
• Melissa Hargreaves, with Dr. James Montgomery
• Anna Dabrowski with Dr. Dennis Meritt, Biology
• Kathryn Engel
• Ogonnaya Dotson-Newman

Supervisor: James Montgomery

• Nutrient dynamics along a forest-wetland hydrologic gradient
• Computing the hydrologic budget of a restored marsh
• Land-use water quality relationships in the Chicago or Des Plaines River watersheds
• Impacts of wetland restoration on hydric soil properties
• Urban soil properties and management

Supervisor: Liam Heneghan

• Buckthorn dispersal: How does it spread?
• Using nest censuses to estimate species diversity and species abundance
• Taxonomic survey of Chironomidae (Diptera) in the Chicago area.

Supervisor: Marshall Eames

• Ambient Temperature and stream water quality
• Stream corridor restoration project
• Developing a GIS-based model for selecting wetland restorations sites
• Reduction of nitrate-nitrogen using used newspapers
• Assessing the functional performance of mature wetland mitigation sites

Supervisor: Kenshu Shimada

• Extraction of fossils from a rock slab that is "loaded" with Cretaceous fish bones and teeth

Supervisor:

• Living on the heat island: urban climate in Chicago and implications for public health
• Ecological mapping in Chicago using remote sensing and GIS techniques
• Ecological mapping in the Great Lakes region using remote sensing and GIS techniques
• Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs) in the Himalayas: natural hazards and public risks
• Surging glaciers: complications in global climate change research
• Monitoring of glaciers in the Himalayas using remote sensing and GIS techniques
• Natural hazards mapping in the Venezuelan Andes using remote sensing and GIS techniques
• Vegetation mapping in the high mountains of Northern Pakistan using using remote sensing and GIS techniques
• National park management in the Drakensberge (Lesotho and South Africa) using remote sensing and GIS techniques