REU Site: Radioecology

University Of Georgia Research Foundation Inc, Athens GA

Investigators

Abstract

This REU Site award to the University of Georgia's Savannah River Ecology Laboratory (SREL), located near Aiken, SC, will support the training of 10 students for 10 weeks during the summers of 2015- 2017. The award will provide a unique training opportunity for training undergraduates in radioecology. Students will engage in field and laboratory studies aimed at describing, understanding and predicting i) the fate of radionuclides in environmental systems; ii) the impact of radionuclides on the environment; and iii) biogeochemical and physiological processes by means of tracer studies. SREL's history of radioecology research in national and international arenas (e.g., Chernobyl and Fukushima) will be leveraged with current analytical capabilities, access to natural and industrial field sites with a variety of contaminant histories, and custodianship of the only chronic low-dose experimental facility in the world. REU students, selected by mentors based on student interest, will gain insight into ethical and responsible research conduct from faculty and scientists at SREL, University of South Carolina Upstate, University of South Carolina Aiken, and University of South Carolina Columbia while pursuing research in ecotoxicology, ecophysiology, environmental restoration, remediation, risk assessment, ecosystem ecology, and radioecology. This multi-university collaboration will allow for recruitment of a diverse group of undergraduate participants, facilitate continued mentorship of participants, and encourage regional partnerships. It is anticipated that a total of 30 students, primarily from schools with limited research opportunities and from regional HBCUs, will be trained in the program each summer. Students will actively learn the process of science and many will present their research at scientific conferences and symposia. A common web-based assessment tool used by all REU programs funded by the Division of Biological Infrastructure (Directorate for Biological Sciences) will be used to determine the effectiveness of the training program. Students are required to be tracked after the program and must respond to an automatic email sent via the NSF reporting system. More information is available by visiting http://www.srel.uga.edu/education/ugrad.html, or by contacting the PI (Dr. J Vaun McArthur at mcarthur@srel.uga.edu) or the co-PI (Dr. Melissa Pilgrim at mpilgrim@uscupstate.edu).