REU Site: Enhancing Knowledge Integration Through Undergraduate Research -- Particle-based Functional Materials for Energy, Sustainability, and Biomedicine

University Of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh PA

Investigators

Abstract

This program acknowledges the support of Division of Engineering Education and Centers of the National Science Foundation, under grant number EEC-1359308. TECHNICAL SUMMARY: While the NSF's rationale for funding research experiences for undergraduates largely lies in the belief that it is "one of the most effective avenues for attracting students to and retaining them in science and engineering", an equally important factor is a need to "prepare them for careers in these fields". The University of Pittsburgh, has fostered a strong educational focus both in research and in teaching - on facilitating a student's ability to engage in knowledge integration. This is timely as recent technological advances have altered the landscape of engineering training in the US, prompting students to eschew simply mastering one distinct area and instead focus more at the intersections of two or more technologies. This is especially true in the area of biotechnology/biomedicine, nanotechnology, and energy, where future challenges necessitate that research scientists and engineers be trained in a diverse range of emerging technologies and are able to seamlessly traverse the boundary between these seemingly disparate technology areas. This is accomplished by combining the traditional research of an REU site with a tailored workshop series, a (product) translation exercise, and an innovating cross-training internship. Workshop topics include: product innovation, particle production - inorganic and organic, microscopy techniques, suspension/rheology measurements, particle-based simulation, information literacy, ethics, communication skills. Project evaluation consists of both assessment of the various goals associated with the project objective as well as an overall evaluation of the students who have participated in the program. In monitoring the students who participate, the proportion of students from underrepresented groups will be tracked (i.e. gender, ethnicity) and compared to the overall proportion of students studying engineering. To address the larger, overall success of the project, tracking of the number of students who participate in the program and matriculate into either a graduate program or the workforce will be performed via continuing to build a LinkedIn.com community. Finally, in addition to the direct statistical measures and fellow tracking outlined above, qualitative and quantitative measures of the degree to which the program attains its goals will be performed using a comprehensive assessment plan that includes, surveys, concept mapping, and process map development. NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY: Today's advances don't happen in isolation, but instead occur at the intersections of two or more technologies. This is especially true in biomedicine, sustainability, and energy. This Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program focuses on Particle-based Functional Materials (PFM). This research focus is studying particulate materials that fulfill a specific function, either because of their discrete nature or due to the influence of particles on macroscopic structure. Such systems include: material self-healing, controlled delivery of therapeutics, "smart" catalysis, and particle separations, to name a few. This program is based on the premise that the successful engineer of the future will need to be able to seamlessly traverse the boundary between these seemingly disparate technology areas. In order to equip the participating students to become the "nimble thinkers" necessary in the changing economy, the PFM-REU program explicitly focuses on enhancing students' knowledge integration skills as well as their ability to engage in product innovation, while building their base of knowledge in a specific area. This program will educate 12 undergraduate research fellows in each of its three years. These students will be recruited from primarily undergraduate institutions and students from under-represented groups.