IRES: US-Denmark Collaboration to Create Next Generation Biosensors

Michigan Technological University, Houghton MI

Investigators

Abstract

IRES: US-Denmark Collaboration to Create Next Generation Biosensors There is a great need for the development of fast and simple detection devices for diseases ranging from cancer to malaria. Not only will this assist in diagnosing diseases, it will also help to monitor treatments and allow for a quick change in treatment options if required. A better way to tackle these challenges is to work with an interdisciplinary team of scientists and engineers. The team will likely develop better solutions if they are not only diverse in training, but also diverse in culture. For this reason, we will take a diverse group of students, ranging from Michigan Tech graduate students, undergraduates from Michigan Tech and other universities, and community college students, and have them work for the summer in Denmark. Aarhus University is a world-class research institution working on health diagnostics for the future. The science and engineering students will be joined in this experience by a communications student. This student will assist the technical students in the creation of videos that describes their experience in the lab and the projects they contributed to. This is a shift is how scientific education is often taught. This project will break the cycle of engineers and scientists only speaking to one another and help open the lines of communication to show the public what is happening behind the laboratory doors. The technical students will greatly benefit from the exposure to technical communication while the communication student will learn more about working with technical researchers. The end product will be 18 highly trained students who will have increased opportunity to explore technical careers while producing videos that explain to the public the importance of the research they conducted. The technical students will also create and present posters at a local technical conference that highlight the research conducted. Today?s global health challenges require interdisciplinary knowledge, international research collaboration, and intercultural communication competencies. This project will provide international research experiences for an interdisciplinary cohort of students focused on early detection of malaria and cancer though an established collaboration with Michigan Tech and Aarhus University in Denmark. The goal is to create scientists and engineers who can creatively and collaboratively solve future problems in health diagnostics and beyond, and we strive to increase the students? perspective through this international experience. Our team consists of a biologist, pathologist, mechanical engineer and chemical engineers. This project will explore new disease biomarkers, determine the clinical relevance of the biomarkers and design new microdevices that will improve clinical adoption of the new technology. Over a three-year period, the proposed summer international research experiences will prepare, annually, a cohort of five diverse science and engineering students to engage in an eight-week global biosensor research experience and one technical communications student to document and disseminate the research efforts. A unique aspect of this project is the inclusion of a technical communications student. This will provide student researchers with an education in scientific communication, which is often lacking in current scientific education, but is extremely important for the future of scientific funding and public rapport in the U.S. The incorporation of a technical communications student will synergistically teach the scientific students the difficulties and importance of scientific communication to the public. It is expected that all the participants will return as more engaged students with an increased propensity for new ideas and collaboration. In addition, the students will engage other students through poster sessions of their experience and professionally produced online videos that will provide the motivation for others to seek out international research opportunities.