Three U of A graduate students won awards at the final round of the 3-Minute Thesis competition, which challenges graduate students to present a simple and compelling speech about their research and its significance in just three minutes.

Andrew Maust won first place for his thesis, "Improving Non-Alcoholic Beer Quality Through Investigation of Production Methods, Flavor, and Safety," and Alejandro Vasquez Marcano won second place for her thesis, "Controlling a Destructive Pest, Fall Armyworm, Using a Novel Plant Technique." Additionally, Chetanjot Kaur Romana won the People's Choice Award for a presentation on, "Byte-sized Bites: Will 3D Food Printing Revolutionize Elderly Meals?"

Maust's faculty adviser is Scott Lafontaine, while Vasquez Marcano's adviser is Rupesh Kariyat. Kaur Romana's faculty adviser is Jamie I. Baum.

For winning, Maust won a $1,000 cash prize and a trip to Greenville, South Carolina, to compete in the regional competition, while Marcano won $750.

"The 3MT competition was an impressive display of research and practical application to solve challenging problems," said Umer Rahman, associate director of graduate student support. "Our students are the greatest assets for the University of Arkansas and its R1 mission to provide real world solutions to world's greatest problems that can be implemented locally, nationally and internationally."

The competition on the U of A campus began in October with 47 students competing in the first round, with Josette Cline, Trevor Francis, Kathryn Zawisza and Deirdre Slavik serving as judges. Eighteen students moved on as semi-finalists to compete in the second round, with Kim McComas, Bill McComas and Lora Lennertz serving as judges. Judges of the final round were Cynthia Sides, Nithin Nanchari and Jason Battles.

"Having representatives from our state's leading companies serve as judges for this competition demonstrates their investment in our students and the essential role the University of Arkansas plays in educating and preparing their future talent pool," said Donna Katherine Graham, director of central Arkansas industry and community engagement. "Companies also understand that deepening their involvement on campus gives them a first look at some of our most promising students."

The competition, which was created by The University of Queensland in Australia, helps students learn how to communicate clearly their academic and research endeavors in language appropriate to an intelligent but non-specialist audience. Graduate students are tasked with presenting their research in a tight timeframe with only one presentation image.