Four URI students awarded mini-grants for quantum computing research

KINGSTON, R.I. – May 22, 2026 – A quartet of University of Rhode Island students and their faculty mentors have each been awarded mini-grants to help support their research into quantum computing.

Christina Chakar, Ali Ghaderi, Jack Kenneweg and Calder Puckett received the monetary awards as part of a new grant program that was announced during URI’s World Quantum Day festivities on April 10. The grants are supported by Amazon Web Services and the URI Institute for AI and Computational Research.

Undergraduate student researchers and their faculty mentors will use funding to explore the intersection of quantum computing with the arts, social sciences or humanities. Graduate students and their mentors will conduct research on the societal impact of quantum computing. The annual program is open to all University undergraduate and graduate students.

“We are excited about the proposals that were awarded funding and look forward to the results of the students’ research,” URI Department of Physics chair Leonard Kahn said. “It is critical that the community outside of the sciences plays a significant role determining how quantum computing will be implemented for the benefit of society.”

URI graduate student Ali Ghaderi received $2,000 to research how future technologies could change how archives and cultural history are organized. (Courtesy Ali Ghaderi)

Ghaderi, a graduate student majoring in English from Kamyaran, Iran, received $2,000 for his project, “Superposition and Story: Theorizing the Societal Impact of Quantum Computing on Cultural Heritage, Narrative Transmission, and the Adaptation Industry.” His mentor, Department of English and Creative Writing chair Carolyn Betensky, received $1,000.

Ghaderi will examine how future technologies such as quantum computing could change how archives and cultural history are organized. He is investigating whether quantum computing could become a new way of designing and thinking about archives in the future, as well as possibly improve how archives represent context, interconnected ideas and changing interpretations.

Christina Chakar, a junior at URI, was granted $1,000 to examine how competition between the United States and China influences public attitudes about artificial intelligence and quantum computing. (Courtesy Christina Chakar)

Chakar, a junior from Bethel, New York, pursuing degrees in criminal justice and political science, was awarded $1,000 for her project, “Does Great Power Competition Transform Public Attitudes Toward Strategic Technologies?” Chakar’s mentors, College of Arts and Sciences Associate Dean Brian Krueger and Ashlea Rundlett, associate professor and director of the Master’s in International Relations program, received a $250 grant to assist in Chakar’s project.

Chakar’s research will examine how competition between the United States and China influences public attitudes about artificial intelligence and quantum computing. She and her mentors will study whether Americans become more supportive of fast-tracking AI and quantum computing developments when they hear that China may soon lead in developing these technologies, even if concerns about risks and underregulation exist. They will conduct survey experiments focused on technological risk, government oversight, and international competition to better understand how public opinion changes when framed as a great power competition versus standard technological development.

URI sophomore Jack Kenneweg received $1,000 to create an interactive art piece with two monitors linked together in a custom-built frame, showing how the two mechanics act in the same way. (Courtesy Jack Kenneweg)

Kenneweg, a sophomore majoring in computer science and art—with a minor in cybersecurity—from Morris Plains, New Jersey, was granted $1,000 for his work, “Superpositions Acceding to the Linguistic and Logical Implication of Entanglement,” or S.A.L.L.I.E. His mentor, Travess Smalley, assistant professor of print media, received $250 for this work.rk.

Kenneweg will create an interactive art piece with two monitors linked together in a custom-built frame. One monitor will show visuals and the other having audio, and the soundwaves will note how the two mechanics are acting in the same way.

Puckett, a senior from Fountain, North Carolina, who is majoring in professional and public writing, received $1,000 for his project, “Rhetoric and Linguistic Justice in Quantum Natural Language Processing.” His mentor, Associate Professor Jeremiah Dyehouse, was granted $250 for this project.

Calder Puckett, a senior at URI, was granted $1,000 to research how quantum computers might make natural language processing faster and better at understanding different languages and accents while minimizing bias. (Courtesy Calder Puckett)

Puckett is researching how quantum computers might make natural language processing (NLP) faster and better at understanding different languages and accents while minimizing bias. He will interview scholars and developers specializing in natural language processing, linguistic justice, artificial intelligence bias, and quantum natural language processing, with the goal of exploring what new paths quantum holds in creating a fairer, more just NLP.

Amazon Web Services will support mini-grant recipients’ use of Amazon Braket—which helps researchers and developers use quantum computers and simulators to build quantum algorithms on AWS—for their submission-related research. The students will present their completed research work during URI’s World Quantum Day event in April 2027.

For additional information about the mini-grant program and how to apply, contact URI Department of Physics chair Leonard Kahn at lenkahn@uri.edu.