Students, Diversity Events, and a Systems Workshop at the 2022 Summer Biomechanics, Bioengineering, and Biotransport Conference (SB3C); Cambridge, Maryland; 20-23 June 2022

University Of Maryland, College Park, College Park MD

Investigators

Abstract

This award will provide support for Students, Diversity Events, and a Systems Workshop at the annual Summer Biomechanics, Bioengineering, and Biotransport Conference (SB3C). The conference will take place in Cambridge, Maryland, June 20-23, 2022. The goal of the conference is to promote research collaboration in bioengineering, specifically the impact of forces and flows on biology and disease. The conference also showcases student research and provides opportunities for students to network with experienced researchers. Funding will be used to offset registration costs for students from groups traditionally underrepresented in biomechanics (including women) to attend the conference. Funding will also be used to pay the full registration cost for students who are selected to participate in a research competition. Finally, funding will be used to support a mentoring event for the aforementioned students, an educational event about African Americans in STEM fields, and a professional writer to disseminate conference outcomes with the larger community. This will be in addition to the publicly-available conference proceedings. The primary objective of the 2022 SB3C is to promote state-of-the-art research, collaboration, and scientific discourse in bioengineering with a focus on biomechanics, fluid mechanics, biotransport, mechanobiology, tissue engineering, and rehabilitation and design. The second objective of SB3C is to showcase research from students and trainees, as well as provide essential networking and mentoring opportunities. The third objective of SB3C is to broaden participation in biomechanics, bioengineering, and biotransport research. The intellectual merit of the 2022 SB3C lies in advancing knowledge in how to apply concepts from systems biology to biomechanics and mechanobiology. This will be achieved through the plenary talk, research sessions, and workshops. This knowledge will then be disseminated to the larger biomechanics community by publishing a paper in the Journal of Biomechanical Engineering. 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.