April 11, 2016

Eve Lowenstein ’17 Wins Goldwater Scholarship

Eve Lowenstein BA ’17 is one of just 252 scholars selected from a field of 1,150 students nominated by 415 institutions nationwide. Barry M. Goldwater Scholarships are widely considered the preeminent awards for undergraduates preparing for science careers. Irene Duba BA ’17 garnered an honorable mention. 

Pamplin Scholar Eve Lowenstein BA ’17 is the recipient of a Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship, the preeminent award for undergraduates in the sciences, engineering, and mathematics. The win brings the total number to 15 of Goldwater scholarships won by Lewis & Clark students in the past decade. Senior Irene Duba BA ’17, a physics major, garnered an honorable mention.

A native of Portland, Oregon whose older sister Sarah also won a Goldwater, Eve is majoring in biochemistry and molecular biology and mathematics with the intent of pursuing a career in biomedical engineering research.

“Working with Assistant Professor of Biology Norma Velazquez Ulloa on my Goldwater Scholarship application was incredibly rewarding as she helped me narrow my extended experimental plan to a targeted hypothesis. I am immensely grateful for the opportunity to work and discover in Dr. Velazquez Ulloa’s lab.”

Lowenstein’s specific area of study is an astrocytic secreted protein involved in neuronal dendritic spine maturation. Lowenstein’s protein of interest has been linked to disorders ranging from Alzheimer’s disease to neuropathic pain, and astrocytes (star-shaped glial cells in the brain and spinal cord) have been implicated in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. Currently a volunteer for the ALS Association, Lowenstein hopes to study the mechanism of ALS as well as engineer new technology to help patients maintain independence.

“I started participating in FIRST robotics as a fifth grader and continued through my senior year of high school due to my fascination with how machines work,” explains Lowenstein. “As I built machines to accomplish tasks like throwing a frisbee, I saw how the technology I was employing could be used to alleviate symptoms of diseases. My academic and professional interests lie in connecting biology and math to alleviate the struggles of neurological disease through neural engineering.”

Lowenstein has shared her research in presentations to peer students and Lewis & Clark faculty during The John S. Rogers Science Research Program, in a Science Without Limits Symposium poster session, and at the Murdock College Science Research Program Conference. In the fall, Lowenstein hopes to present at the Society for Neuroscience conference.

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

Mathematical Sciences

John S. Rogers Science Research Program

Opportunities in Science at Lewis & Clark