Multidisciplinary Research Opportunities for Women

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The Multidisciplinary Research Opportunities for Women (MRO-W) demonstration project seeks to train individuals traditionally underrepresented in computer science to create and use cyberinfrastructure in other areas of science and engineering. Each team funded under our program will contain both computer scientists and non-computer scientists at both the undergraduate level and the researchers leading the project who will be providing mentorship in the use of enabling cyberinfrastructure. For example, a project for using sensor arrays to construct an artificial nose might consist of a computer science major, a chemistry major, a computer science professor and a chemistry professor.This demonstration project has two goals:1.) To prepare individuals who are traditionally underrepresented in computer science activities to use, support, deploy, develop and design cyberinfrastructure, and2.) To engage new communities in science and engineering to participate in cyberinfrastructure activities by serving as a catalyst for forming new multidisciplinary partnerships.This program will provide funding for ten such teams of undergraduates and will run from Fall 2007 through December 2008. This will ensure enough time in Spring/Summer of 2007 to advertise and collect applications. Then in the Fall of 2007, students on the team can start research and begin the necessary coursework for the multidisciplinary project. They will then spend Spring and Summer of 2008 as active participants on the project. During the fall of 2008 we will evaluate the project's success.Intellectual Merit: These activities will 1) Increase the participation of women in cyberinfrastructure activities in the research enterprise; 2) Engage women in other areas of science and engineering toparticipate, use, develop and deploy cyberinfrastructure in their research; and 3) Encourage multidisciplinary research and education that better integrates the use of cyberinfrastructure into the application area, and serves as a catalyst for new research.Broader Impact: In addition to addressing the specific issues of training researchers in multidisciplinary research involving the cyberinfrastructure, this project addresses a larger goal. It seeks to increase the number of women not just in cyberinfrastructure and computer science, but in other sciences, to become actively engaged in research.