REU Site: Interactive Systems

University Of California-Los Angeles, Los Angeles CA

Investigators

Abstract

The Interactive Systems Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) Site focuses on the fact that as intelligent systems become increasingly pervasive as wearables (e.g., smart watches and phones, medical devices) or in the environment (e.g., smart homes, on-line educational systems), they will interact more intimately with people. The process of designing cyber-physical and data-assisted educational systems for humans-in-the-loop is often an afterthought, but the reality of future intelligent systems in that their value will be reduced if they are not easy to use. As human behavior can be difficult to model, much of the focus is on how to easily guide people to interact in productive ways with the system. The REU addressed these important research issues and is designed based on our expertise working with undergraduates in a novel cycle of research, teaching, and mentoring together with a body of literature that examines undergraduates’ experiences in science and engineering. Our approach facilitates development of a tight-knit cohort of undergraduate researchers engaging in forefront research, allowing them to become more independent as their competence increases. Our established mentoring community is vital to increasing student competence, developing collegial relationships, and improving collaborative interactions. Participants also participate in the southern California “meeting of minds” conference. It provides a venue for students to be exposed to a much broader range of research than can be seen in a single program. This REU Site will impact both the scientific and educational research communities. The intellectual focus of this proposal is on the development of interactive systems in domains such as cyber-physical systems and data-assisted education. As systems integrate more sensing and signal processing, tighter interactions with people are enabled. Tools and procedures produced in the summer REU site will be further extended in regular courses, including senior design, to harden the designs through exposure to larger populations. In this way a much larger of group of undergraduate students will participate in research, with tools that are refreshed in each academic year. This research will have multiple benefits: increasing students’ skills, knowledge base, and preparation for future study; and contributing to research breakthroughs with scientific and social relevance. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.