I2CAM - International Institute for Complex Adaptive Matter

University Of California-Davis, Davis CA

Investigators

Abstract

This award continues support for the International Institute for Complex Adaptive Matter (I2CAM) that was founded in 2004. This Institute is based at the University of California and includes senior researchers from several universities within the USA and partners from Brazil, France, Germany, India, Switzerland, Ukraine, and United Kingdom. This International Materials Institute (IMI) is funded by NSF's Division of Materials Research. The IMI's research focus is to identify organizing principles behind the emergence of new, complex, collective phenomena and behavior in soft condensed matter, strongly correlated electron and biological systems. The Institute organizes exploratory workshops and schools on cutting edge research topics in emergent phenomena in complex adaptive matter, including human brain, bringing together materials scientists, biologists and neuroscientists. I2CAM also offers travel grants to junior scientists and graduate students to attend conferences, workshops, or schools as well as provides support for short international exchange visits to start and develop collaborative projects. Furthermore, postdoctoral research fellowship awards are also supported by I2CAM for collaborative research at two (or more) international institutions. Over 70 institutions in US, Canada, Europe, Asia, Australia, and South America participate in I2CAM activities. Outreach efforts of I2CAM include: Emergent Universe project with a goal to develop an online science museum devoted to explaining the concept of emergent phenomena in matter to general public; a series of videos called Great Explanations on quantum criticality, amyloid matter, protein folding and biological motors to be posted on YouTube and SciVee; ICAMIPEDIA is an effort to develop a base of articles on emergent phenomena in matter which go beyond Wikipedia in detail without being excessively technical. The IMI's management consists of Co-directors, Board of Governors, Executive, Steering, Coordinating, and Fellowship committees as well as an External Advisory Committee that provides an annual review and council. This award is jointly funded by DMR-OSP, PHY-PoLS, PHY-AMO, BIO-IOS, BIO-MCB and OISE.