A Computer Science and Engineering REU Site for Florida, Puerto Rico and Latin America

University Of South Florida, Tampa FL

Investigators

Abstract

The primary goal of this NSF REU site proposal is to systematically increase the graduation rate of undergraduate students and the enrollment in graduate school by involving undergraduate students in state-of-the-art Computer Science and Engineering research activities. This project emphasizes the participation of minority students belonging to groups with significant growth rates, in particular, Hispanic students from the University of Puerto Rico Mayaguez, students from USF and other minority universities in Florida, and students from Latin American countries. During a 10-week summer session, participating students will learn to use tools and techniques to solve current research problems in Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, Computer Networks, and Digital Image Processing, as well as work on other research projects in collaboration with the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute, the Center for Urban Transportation and Research, and the Center for Robot-Assisted Search and Rescue. After an initial week of formal orientation on the topics of research methodology, literature searching, research writing and presentation skills, participating students will spend nine continuous weeks with a faculty mentor working to solve a well defined problem in a selected area of interest. Formal and informal interactions with other students, faculty members and industry members will also be included in as students work on projects and attend social events.