Student & Early Career Researcher Support for the 2022 U.S. Semantic Technologies Symposium (US2TS)

Wright State University, Dayton OH

Investigators

Abstract

This award provides travel support to ten students and five early career researchers (e.g., postdoctoral researchers) at U.S. institutions, enabling them to participle during the 4th U.S. Semantic Technologies Symposium (US2TS), held March 9-11, 2022 in East Lansing, Michigan (http://www.us2ts.org). The Semantic Web is an inherently multi-disciplinary field. Yet, the division between computer science, natural science and social science limits the formation of a coherent research agenda for exploring emerging trends in Semantic Technologies. There is a need to sustain the U.S. Semantic Web community and maintain the research network among Semantic Web practitioners in different domains, which has only become more important since this series' inception. The increasing demand of data-intensive research and the multidisciplinary characteristics of Semantic Web applications make it crucial to maintain and expand the existing workforce through outreach to students to foster future scientific innovation across disciplines. Several activities will be organized for the student participants during the symposium. The students, including underrepresented groups (women and minorities) and undergraduates will have the opportunity to network with each other and the experienced researchers attending the symposium, gaining valuable experience that will enable them to foster long-lasting interdisciplinary and national-wide collaborations among a new generation of Semantic Web practitioners who will ultimately shape the future of Semantic Web research and applications at all levels. Early career researchers will be supported to enable travel to this important networking event in order to drive scientific innovation, but as well grow possible networks of collaborators. Cross-disciplinary and cross-sectoral communication and networking among Semantic Web researchers, students and practitioners is the core of the US2TS. With an ever-growing dependence on the web, and the continuously increasing importance of large-scale data sharing, integration, and reuse, researchers in various disciplines, there is a need to strengthen these efforts. US2TS has goal to stimulate community consolidation and the building of a U.S.-based community research network. The symposium provides a forum by which participants can share information and ideas, coordinate ongoing or planned research activities, foster synthesis and new collaborations, develop community standards, and advance science and education through communication and the sharing of ideas. Student participation in US2TS is expected to improve understanding and skills of open data and open science among the next generation scientists, as Semantic Web technologies are closely relevant to those topics. 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.