UGA Creative Research Awards Banquet

Robert C. Anderson Memorial Award
This award is given to recent doctoral graduates for outstanding research at the University or immediately thereafter. It is named for the late Robert C. Anderson, who served as UGA’s vice president for research and as president of the University of Georgia Research Foundation, Inc.

Gino D’Angelo, a doctoral graduate in wildlife ecology, spearheaded a high-profile research project, funded by the Georgia Department of Transportation, to evaluate strategies for reducing deer-vehicle collisions. To establish a basic knowledge of deer’s sensory responses, D’Angelo first conducted a series of unprecedented laboratory studies of the animals’ hearing and vision capabilities. He then completed a field evaluation of roadside deer-warning reflectors, at Berry College in Northwest Georgia, that were based on these capabilities. The project, which required creative experimental design innovations, yielded a large amount of statistically valid data. As a result of this work, D’Angelo was invited to present his findings at several major national and international scientific conferences. The project’s overwhelming success prompted the Georgia DOT to award an additional $300K for follow-up research based on D’Angelo’s proposal.

James L. Carmon Honorarium
These awards are given to University of Georgia graduate students who have used computers in an innovative way. Control Data Corporation established the awards, named for the late James L. Carmon, a UGA faculty member for 36 years, who helped make the university a leader in computer research and development.

Andrew K. Davis, a doctoral candidate in wildlife ecology, studies the health of amphibians in wetlands. Traditional methods for assessing animal population health can be difficult, time-consuming, and for fragile subjects, even fatal. Instead, Davis uses a new approach in wildlife ecology: computer-based image analysis to measure and record subtle variations in coloration and pattern asymmetry. The technique, already proven to be valuable in the lab, has the potential to greatly improve scientists’ ability to track and sample wildlife populations—and to better understand the relationships between environments and animal health. Davis’ work has already resulted in 13 peer-reviewed journal articles, with five more currently under review.