Thomas, Ann2016-03-072016-03-072005http://hdl.handle.net/11603/2440Ann Thomas is a senior majoring in Physics with concentration in Computer Science. She is also a president of Goucher Physics Club and a first female student to major in physics in almost thirty years. Ann spent summer and fall of 2004 in the research laboratory of Professor David Baum investigating strategies for effectively detecting and quickly identifying bacteriological spores, thus enabling the spores to be easily distinguished from materials with similar appearances. Ann Thomas presented her research at the National Conference on the Undergraduate Research (NCUR) in Lexington, Virginia as well as published her results in the NCUR proceedings. This research was supported by funds from the United States Army.Concern about biological terror has increased greatly in the 21st century, and correspondingly, so has the need for accurate detection and identification of biological hazards, such as B. anthracis. Optical techniques have been shown to be useful for this purpose1,2,3,4. Use of fluorescence lifetimes as a function of emission wavelength for different materials using point detection methods appears to be an additional viable option. Although the lifetimes range only between 2 and 6 nanoseconds, most materials that were tested were distinguishable. A preliminary database has been compiled for use in a possible future detection system; single-blind tests of unknown materials confirmed the usefulness of the database.4 p.en-USCollection may be protected under Title 17 of the U.S. Copyright Law. To obtain information or permission to publish or reproduce, please contact the Goucher Special Collections & Archives at 410-337-6347 or email archives@goucher.edu.Research -- Periodicals.Humanities -- Research -- Periodicals.Social sciences -- Research -- Periodicals.Text