The Dare to Discover campaign showcases researchers, scholars, and creators from across the University of Iowa on banners throughout downtown Iowa City. The campaign is sponsored by the Office of the Vice President for Research.
Click on the student profiles to learn more about the personal stories behind the faces of discovery and creativity.

Karim Abdel-Malek

Karim Abdel-Malek

Dare to
Safeguard Soldiers

On the battlefield, every second and every ounce of energy counts. It can mean the difference between success and failure, life and death.

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E. Dale Abel

E. Dale Abel

Dare to
Fight Diabetes

E. Dale Abel is committed to help improve the health of the millions of people in the United States and the world with diabetes.

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Nancy Andreasen

Nancy Andreasen

Dare to
Explore Creativity

Nancy Andreasan has spent decades studying where creative genius comes from, and why it is often accompanied by mental illness.

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Timothy Barrett

Timothy Barrett

Dare to
Preserve Texts

Timothy Barrett’s research has helped determine how some of the longest-lasting historical papers were made.

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Joyce E. Berg

Joyce E. Berg

Dare to
Predict Behavior

The Iowa Electronic Markets (IEM) has a history of accurately forecasting election results.

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Chris Buresh

Chris Buresh

Dare to
Diagnose Faster

Emergency room staff need as much information as they can get as they prepare for incoming accident victims.

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Colleen Campbell

Colleen Campbell

Dare to
Decode DNA

Colleen Campbell works to educate all Iowans on human genetics and bring precision medicine, along with more genetic tests, to Iowa.

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Robert Cargill

Robert Cargill

Dare to
Unearth History

Robert Cargill doesn’t just play an archaeologist on TV; he’s the real thing.

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Lucas Carr

Lucas Carr

Dare to
Reimagine the Workplace

Lucas Carr wants to inspire people to reimagine their office space as a place that they can improve their health.

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Dan Ceynar

Dan Ceynar

Dare to
Monitor Waterways

Dan Ceynar is working to improve the state’s ability to monitor waterways for flooding across Iowa.

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Russell Ciochon

Russell Ciochon

Dare to
Uncover Species

The new species, discovered by Russell Ciochon, was one of the largest of its kind living in the jungles of Southeast Asia.

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Meenakshi  Gigi Durham

Meenakshi Gigi Durham

Dare to
Question Media

Durham’s work in the School Journalism & Mass Communication, centers on media and the politics of the body.

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Jennifer Fiegel

Jennifer Fiegel

Dare to
Ease Breathing

Jennifer Fiegel is researching ways to develop more effective, inhalable treatments for respiratory infections.

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David Frisvold

David Frisvold

Dare to
Help Schoolkids

Frisvold studies the economic effectiveness of public policy initiatives aimed at reducing obesity.

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Jeffrey Gillett

Jeffrey Gillett

Dare to
Share Knowledge

Jeffrey “J.C.” Gillett spends his days aboard a 38-foot RV custom-built for the University of Iowa by Winnebago Industries in Forest City, Iowa.

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Colin Gordon

Colin Gordon

Dare to
Record the Past

When racial tensions boiled over in a flurry of violence, looting, vandalism, and arrests in Ferguson, Mo., in 2014, the public sought to understand why.

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Brian Hand

Brian Hand

Dare to
Teach Science

Brian Hand’s research delves into the use of language as a learning tool to improve students’ understanding of science.

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Keela Herr

Keela Herr

Dare to
Care for Elders

Keela Herr has been conducting research to improve the way pain in elderly patients is assessed and treated.

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Michael Hill

Michael Hill

Dare to
Deconstruct Literature

Hill explores how black creative styles reveal the challenges of creating a multiracial democracy.

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Nathan Holton

Nathan Holton

Dare to
Trace Evolution

Nathan Holton studies human evolution, and in particular, changes that have occurred to the nasal region.

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Rebekah Kowal

Rebekah Kowal

Dare to
Know Dance

Rebekah Kowal’s research in dance studies investigates how moving bodies functioned as agents of social change in postwar America.

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Cornelia Lang

Cornelia Lang

Dare to
Examine Galaxies

Lang uses satellites such as the Hubble Space Telescope to make multi-wavelength observations.

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Teresa Mangum

Teresa Mangum

Dare to
Bridge Boundaries

The contribution to society and culture of humanities scholarship can be overlooked—something Teresa Mangum is committed to preventing.

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Miesha Marzell

Miesha Marzell

Dare to
Understand Addiction

Well-crafted policies on substance abuse prevention can improve the health of ethnic minority youth and help at-risk communities truly thrive.

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Ann Marie McCarthy

Ann Marie McCarthy

Dare to
Ease Pain

During painful medical procedures, effective distraction can help ease children’s pain and distress.

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Jose Morcuende

Jose Morcuende

Dare to
End Clubfoot

Jose Morcuende, one of the founders of Clubfoot Solutions, helped develop the Iowa Ponseti Brace, an inexpensive brace to treat clubfoot.

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Angela Onwuachi-Willig

Angela Onwuachi-Willig

Dare to
Interpret Law

Little discussion of the effects of slavery and segregation on the legal system in the United States occurred until the 1980s.

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Gustavo Avila Ortiz

Gustavo Avila Ortiz

Dare to
Brighten Smiles

Dental implants are sometimes necessary for patients interested in replacing missing natural teeth.

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Michael O’Hara

Michael O’Hara

Dare to
Aid Veterans

One in eight new mothers may suffer from postpartum depression, which in turn can negatively affect the lives of their babies and families.

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Ernest Pascarella

Ernest Pascarella

Dare to
Assess Colleges

Ernest Pascarella’s research focuses on college’s impact on students.

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Corinne Peek-Asa

Corinne Peek-Asa

Dare to
Prevent Trauma

Corinne Peek-Asa is the director of the University of Iowa Injury Prevention Research Center.

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Todd Pettys

Todd Pettys

Dare to
Tell Law’s Story

Todd Pettys is writing a book on the Iowa Constitution, under contract with Oxford University Press.

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Marizen Ramirez

Marizen Ramirez

Dare to
Stop Cyberbullying

Cyberbullying is the fastest-growing form of youth violence, which is why Marizen Ramirez researches ways to stop it.

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Deborah Reed

Deborah Reed

Dare to
Develop Reading

As the director of the Iowa Reading Research Center, Deborah Reed researches best practices so that schools provide the most effective reading instruction.

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Marilynne Robinson

Marilynne Robinson

Dare to
Illuminate Life

Marilynne Robinson’s prose is known for its luminous portrayals of ordinary life.

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Sara Rynes-Weller

Sara Rynes-Weller

Dare to
Locate Locavores

Sara Rynes researches the locavore movement, studying what it is that motivates people to buy locally produced food.

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Aliasger Salem

Aliasger Salem

Dare to
Regenerate Bones

Aliasger Salem and his research team have developed a bio patch to help generate and grow damaged bone.

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Tom “Mach” Schnell

Tom “Mach” Schnell

Dare to
Advance Aviation

Tom Schnell specializes in human factors / ergonomics.

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Marianne Smith

Marianne Smith

Dare to
Treat Depression

Marianne Smith studies late life depression, which affects an estimated 24 percent of assisted living (AL) residents.

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Betsy Stone

Betsy Stone

Dare to
Go Renewable

Biomass burning is usually associated with human-caused fires and the clearing of land that releases unhealthy particles and gases that spur global warming.

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Nick Street

Nick Street

Dare to
Mine Insight

Data is everywhere, and everyone wants to use it—in marketing strategies, hiring practices, health care, and basic decision-making in a wide range of industries.

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Kristina Thiel

Kristina Thiel

Dare to
Treat Cancer

How do you outsmart cancer?

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Gabriele Villarini

Gabriele Villarini

Dare to
Predict Floods

Extreme hydrometeorological events frequently affect the continental United States and can have extensive, negative social and economic impact.

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Yatin Vyas

Yatin Vyas

Dare to
Heal Children

Radiation and chemotherapy can damage any patient’s body, but those of young children are especially vulnerable.

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Sherry Watt

Sherry Watt

Dare to
Research Identity

Sherry Watt’s research on privileged identity exploration has expanded understanding of the ways people react to difficult dialogue related to social issues.

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