REU Site: Leveraging Computational Tools for Enhancing Engineering Innovation

University Of Alabama Tuscaloosa, Tuscaloosa AL

Investigators

Abstract

TECHNICAL SUMMARY: This award from the Division of Engineering Education and Centers supports a Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) Site program at The University of Alabama. The program is intended to engage nine undergraduate students per summer for ten weeks in engineering research projects that have a strong computational thrust. Most of the research projects also have an experimental component, either directly or through collaboration, and by tightly coupling the computational research with the experiments, the pace of engineering innovation can be enhanced. By introducing undergraduate researchers to computational tools early in their research careers, they will gain a broader knowledge of available research techniques, their problem solving approaches will be expanded, and they will develop a deeper appreciation of the length-scales and time-scales relevant to different natural phenomena. Faculty mentors from three different academic departments will be participating in the program, so students will learn about the techniques and approaches relevant to a wide range of engineering challenges. Through weekly group meetings, invited seminar speakers, and visits to local facilities, the students will begin to understand the information-passing that can be made amongst different modeling techniques, and they will become familiar with national high-performance computing resources and rapid prototype techniques. Ultimately, this experience will engage students in challenging and meaningful computations-based research experiences, providing a rich pipeline of talented engineers that can contribute to current and emerging engineering challenges. NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY: This award from the Division of Engineering Education and Centers supports a Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) Site program at The University of Alabama. The program will engage nine undergraduate students per summer for ten weeks in computational engineering research projects. The program theme resonates with many of the national thrusts, ranging from the Materials Genome Initiative to new frontiers in neuroscience and computational ecology. Furthermore, these hands-on experiences will allow the REU students to make more informed decisions about their preferred balance of experiments/simulations in future graduate research projects and careers. The summer program is designed to help the REU make real-world impacts in science and engineering, by educating students about technology-transfer issues, computer-based research applications in the private sector, and the leadership skills needed for long-term success. To this end, there will be regular interactions with the newly-created National Water Center on The University of Alabama campus, Oak Ridge National Lab, and the students will benefit from a one-on-one leadership coaching program. Post-program sustainability will be enhanced with big-brother/big-sister pairing between REU students and current graduate students, as well as return visits to campus for completing manuscripts or for conducting critical experiments.