REU Site: EcoInformatics Summer Institute

Oregon State University, Corvallis OR

Investigators

Abstract

Non-Technical: This REU site will help support NSF's mission to promote the progress of science in two key ways, by 1) providing mentored, high-quality research experience to a diverse group of undergraduates who will become the next generation of scientists and managers, and 2) making incremental advancements in the field of EcoInformatics (EI). EcoInformatics unites theory and methods of informatics (e.g. computer science, mathematics, statistics, and engineering) with disciplines involving ecosystems and their management (e.g. ecology, geomorphology, botany). A central objective of the program is to increase the diversity in the STEM fields, and thus the project aims to attract students from a broad range of ethnicities, cultures, and life experiences. Students will spend 8 weeks at the HJ Andrews Experimental Forest, an NSF-funded LTER site and "cyberforest," working in interdisciplinary teams. As part of the program, participants will engage in professional development activities on topics including effectively communicating science, ethics in research, and career alternatives following graduate school. Research under this REU program will focus on informational and ecological networks, applying network analysis tools from computer science, mathematics, and statistics to better understand ecosystem networks and their resilience to disturbance. Broadly, research on the resiliency of networked informational systems and ecosystems following disturbances is relevant across society, informing everything from the management of cyber attacks to pollinators to flow releases from dams. The nation needs a workforce of scientists, engineers, mathematicians, and computer scientists trained to work in this area, and more generally to succeed in a society transformed by the information technology revolution. This REU program will engage and help retain students in field of STEM and develop skills to solve contemporary environmental problems in a mentored and interdisciplinary setting. Technical: The overarching goal of this REU site is to provide mentored, high-quality research experience to a diverse group of undergraduates, while making incremental advancements in the field of EcoInformatics (EI). EI unites theory and methods of informatics (e.g. computer science, mathematics, statistics, and engineering) with disciplines involving ecosystems and their management (e.g. ecology, geomorphology, botany). The objectives of the proposed REU Site are to: a) Advance the disciplinary and synthetic, interdisciplinary skills of participants, b) Develop professionals to lead and communicate science, c) Enhance diversity in the STEM fields, and d) Develop novel research on networked systems. Research under this proposed renewal will focus on informational and ecological networks, applying network analysis tools from computer science, mathematics, and statistics to better understand ecosystem networks and their resilience to disturbance. Example projects will focus on how plant-pollinator network structures achieve resilience in the face of climatic variability, natural selection, and loss and fragmentation of meadow habitats, or how statistical, mathematical, and computer science models of entropy can be advanced and applied in investigations of how stream network functions (flow of water, sediment, drift of aquatic insects) respond to perturbations. Students will spend 8 weeks at the HJ Andrews Experimental Forest, an NSF-funded LTER site and "cyberforest," with mentoring from an interdisciplinary group of collaborating STEM researchers. In addition, professional development activities will be delivered throughout the summer on a variety of topics that include effectively communicating science, ethics in research, and career alternatives following graduate school. This program will target qualified students who originate from: 1) non-traditional backgrounds (first generation college, older students), 2) under-represented minority groups (Native American, Hispanic, and women students), and 3) academic institutions with limited research opportunities in STEM. The integrated measurement and modeling research that REU students conduct in this program will generate new, fundamental knowledge on the stability and resilience of networks to perturbations, which can be relevant to other networked systems in society. Furthermore, this REU program will help develop the workforce of scientists, engineers, mathematicians, and computer scientists trained to succeed in a society transformed by the information technology revolution.