Lydia Rockers and Chetanjot Romana, graduate students in food science, claimed first and second place, respectively, in presentation competitions in June sponsored by the Institute of Food Technologists.

Rockers is a master's degree student, and Romana a doctoral student, both in the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences.

Rockers won the Sensory and Consumer Science Graduate Student Division oral contest while Romana was second in the Nutrition Division.

Both Rockers and Romana were invited to give their presentations at the IFT FIRST Annual Event & Expo in Chicago on July 18 on the Showcase Research Stage. IFT FIRST stands for Food Improved by Research, Science and Technology.

Rockers presentation was "Variations in emotional responses to food images as a function of the type of scale or response condition."

"The University of Arkansas Sensory Science Program has already given me so many valuable opportunities and skills," Rockers said. "The Sensory Science Center has connected me with organizations like IFT and supported me in all my endeavors. I look forward to continuing to grow academically and professionally."

Rockers is advised by sensory and consumer science professor Han-Seok Seo, and Romana, by associate professor of nutrition Jamie Baum. Seo and Baum are faculty members of Bumpers College and researchers and scientists with the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, the research arm of the U of A System Division of Agriculture. Seo also serves as director of the Sensory Science Center, and Baum, as director of the Center for Human Nutrition.

"Lydia is an exceptional student, showcasing remarkable talent in critical thinking and communication skills," Seo said. "Despite being involved in three different research projects over the past year, Lydia has consistently outperformed all expectations. I couldn't be prouder of her and the excellent progress she has made in such a short period of time."

Rockers is from Carthage, Missouri, and earned her bachelor's degree in food science at Oklahoma State University in 2022. She received an internationally competitive scholarship ($2,000) from the Sensory and Consumer Sciences Division (SCSD) of IFT in 2022 and has been serving as a student representative at the SCSD of the IFT.

Rockers also recently placed second in the Terry Siebenmorgen Graduate Student Poster Presentation Competition at the 2023 Rice Industry Alliance Meeting hosted by the U of A Rice Processing Program.

IFT is a forum for science of food professionals and technologists to collaborate, learn and contribute with the goal of inspiring and transforming collective scientific knowledge into innovative solutions for the benefit people around the world.

About the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences: Bumpers College provides life-changing opportunities to position and prepare graduates who will be leaders in the businesses associated with foods, family, the environment, agriculture, sustainability and human quality of life; and who will be first-choice candidates of employers looking for leaders, innovators, policy makers and entrepreneurs. The college is named for Dale Bumpers, former Arkansas governor and longtime U.S. senator who made the state prominent in national and international agriculture. For more information about Bumpers College, visit our website, and follow us on Twitter at @BumpersCollege and Instagram at BumpersCollege.

About the University of Arkansas: As Arkansas' flagship institution, the U of A provides an internationally competitive education in more than 200 academic programs. Founded in 1871, the U of A contributes more than $2.2 billion to Arkansas' economy through the teaching of new knowledge and skills, entrepreneurship and job development, discovery through research and creative activity while also providing training for professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the U of A among the few U.S. colleges and universities with the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the U of A among the top public universities in the nation. See how the U of A works to build a better world at Arkansas Research and Economic Development News.