The Three Minute Thesis (3MT) final competition took place Thursday in the Memorial Union South Ballroom. 

Eight graduate students, who earned their spot in the final after competing in a preliminary round, were asked to put on a three-minute long thesis about their research. 

The first-place winner of this year’s 3MT competition was David Hall in genetics and genomics.

Hall said his thesis was about the mosquito. 

“The deadliest animal in the world, the mosquito, causes about a million deaths every year,” Hall said.

Hall also said that it was a challenge to condense it down to three minutes. 

“You have to take a very complicated project and condense it down to three minutes,” Hall said. “You also have to explain it to a bunch of people who have no idea what you are talking about.”

His winning award is a $500 scholarship, and he will be asked to present at the midwest level in Indianapolis. 

The second-place winner was graduate student Derek Ten Pas in civil engineering. 

The competition awarded a People’s Choice Award, in which members in the audience were able to vote for the presenter they thought did best. The winner of the People’s Choice Award was Timilehin Ayanlade.

Ayanlade and Ten Pas will receive a $250 scholarship each. 

Sarah Huffman, assistant director of operations at the Center for Communication Excellence, said that the judges look for multiple criteria.

“The criteria was passed down from the University of Queensland, which was the originator of 3MT,” Huffman said. “The judges look for comprehension, content, audience engagement, and the clarity of the message.”

Devanshi Mistry, chemical engineering, said that the longest part of the process was the research. 

“It takes a lot of research; we present our research in a very easy language,” Mistry said. “However, it takes a lot of thinking and brainstorming to find the problems and then brainstorm the solution.”For more information about the 3MT, visit their website.