Marlene Vasquez '11 and Psychology professor Madeline Rhodes are observing rats for signs of depression and anxiety - possible effects of the anti-epileptic drugs their mothers were given during their 21-day gestation.

So how do they sort out which rats were depressed or anxiety-ridden? Normally excellent swimmers, depressed rats just float instead of paddling around the makeshift pond in the lab. Rats with higher levels of anxiety cower in the corner of an open square, constantly on the lookout for danger.

A neuroscientist, Rhodes says that there are some clinical reports on the behavioral effects of prenatal exposure to anti-epileptic drugs, but there is more work to be done in order to determine all of the neuroendocrine and behavioral effects.

"I'm learning so much," says Vasquez, a Psychology major. "And I find it fascinating."

Long after his death in 1849, one of America's best-known writers of mystery and the macabre, Edgar Allan Poe, is still revealing secrets.

Seniors Kim Williams and Danny Hughes think they're on to something in one of Poe's short stories. With their professor, Robert Kachur, they are researching critical analyses related to queer theory as well as Poe's other works to support a new argument that "William Wilson" contains homosexual references and themes. They plan to write an article about their research and will submit it as co-authors for publication in an academic journal.

"It's really interesting to realize that we're still discovering new things about somebody who was writing over 100 years ago," said Hughes during a visit to Poe's grave in Baltimore.

Seniors Kristen Nuckles and Abigail Vickers spent the summer working with their Chemistry professor Peter Craig on his antibiotics research. "This research is perfect for me because I want to go to pharmacy school," said Nuckles, a Biochemistry major.

Theirs was just one of 14 summer research projects that received significant funding from McDaniel toward expenses, from materials to stipends to room and board, that helped 28 McDaniel students pursue hands-on research opportunities.