REU Site: Interdisciplinary Research Experience in Computational Sciences

Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge LA

Investigators

Abstract

Non-technical: This award funds a Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Site at the Center for Computation and Technology (CCT) at Louisiana State University (LSU). The recent, rapid development of high performance computer platforms, together with a similar emergence of highly accurate algorithms, allow the treatment and modeling of complex systems which were intractable just a few years ago. However, Computational Science (CSci) will only fulfill its full potential if early exposure of undergraduate students to CSci accompany the advances in hardware. Currently, the majority of students learn little CSci in the classroom and are not prepared for CSci research. This REU site targets these issues and prepares the next generation of students for CSci research. A multi-disciplinary team of Computational Science faculty from several LSU departments will collaborate to provide participating students with research-learning experiences in the computational aspects of multiple scientific disciplines, including Chemistry, Computer Science, Digital Media, Mathematics, Physics, Astronomy, Biological Sciences, and Civil, Environmental, Petroleum, Electrical, and Computer Engineering. This project serves the national interest and NSF's mission by promoting early engagement of undergraduate students in research, exposing students to high-performance computing and other scientific cyberinfrastructure resources, fostering active learning through hands-on experiences in a collaborative research environment, and inspiring students to pursue advanced STEM education and STEM research careers. Technical: The goals of this project are to engage students in a set of carefully and extensively planned research projects that pose a wide range of scientific and technological challenges. With research groups working on problems such as gravitational waves, complex emergent phenomena in material science, and computational arts, the participants will be working on cutting edge research in CSci. An extensive training component will remedy the weak preparation of most students in CSci, providing knowledge on how to leverage state-of-the-art cyberinfrastructure tools. The program offers a variety of activities designed to improve students' computing, reasoning, problem-solving, research, and communication skills. The 30 undergraduate students participating in this REU, as well as the 6 high school students supported by IBM, will be engaged with authentic computational science projects, learn how to use state-of-the-art cyberinfrastructure tools, experience activities that characterize research careers, and work in interdisciplinary research teams. This participating faculty have found that the combination of individual training with student immersion in a multidisciplinary research group has been successful in engaging a diverse body of students to explore CSci. Faculty mentors provide activities that help students appreciate the nature of multidisciplinary research and the value of working as a team. These skills have the potential to be transformative in both the students' education as well as their future careers.