IGERT: Optical techniques for actuation, sensing, and imaging of biological systems

生物科学和医学的进步越来越依赖于从与物理科学和工程的协同作用中衍生出来的方法、途径和战略。其中一个值得注意的例子是使用光学方法进行生物传感和生物成像。此外，微电子和光子学领域建立的巨大纳米级器件制造能力为利用高度集成的平台构建片上生物传感器系统提供了无与伦比的机会。就其性质而言，这些应用跨越多个学科，需要一支在基本光/组织相互作用、复杂的光学仪器和成像工具以及相关生物系统方面拥有不同专业知识的团队。在这一综合性研究生教育和研究培训(IGERT)计划中，新一代科学家和工程师将通过一套五个研究项目接受培训，这些研究项目涉及三个基本核心能力领域：光学、光子学和传感器电子学；生物分子检测和细胞水平分析；以及医学和公共卫生应用。每一名IGERT受训人员都将有能力在学科之间的边界上工作，并将具有独特的能力，为这一重要新兴领域的进步做出贡献。IGERT实习生拥有19名教职员工，分别来自哥伦比亚大学工程与应用科学学院、艺术与科学学院、梅尔曼公共卫生学院、内科与外科医生学院和师范学院，并与纽约市的城市学院、皇后学院和库珀联盟进行了强有力的互动，他们将在综合教育和研究活动中体验真正多样化的社区共享，并将接触到广泛的尖端应用程序。一个由工业和政府实验室组成的外部咨询委员会将在IGERT与外部合作伙伴之间提供更多的联系。在教育方面，这一IGERT项目满足了培养多样化的美国科学家和工程师队伍的迫切需要，这些科学家和工程师在一个对美国具有越来越大的竞争重要性的大领域接受过培训。拟议的丰富计划通过在行业和政府实验室的经验、关于职业发展、职业指导、创业和道德问题讨论的研讨会，为IGERT研究员提供加强的培训。已承诺提供大量资源，以确保征聘和留住任职人数偏低群体的研究员。IGERT是一个NSF范围内的项目，旨在应对培养具有跨学科背景、所选学科的深厚知识以及满足未来职业需求所需的技术、专业和个人技能的美国博士科学家和工程师的挑战。该项目旨在通过建立创新的研究生教育和培训新模式，在超越传统学科界限的合作研究的肥沃环境中，催化研究生教育的文化变革。

Progress in the biological sciences and medicine relies increasingly on methods, approaches, and strategies derived from synergistic interactions with the physical sciences and engineering. One notable example of this is the use of optical methods for biosensing and bioimaging. Furthermore, the tremendous nanoscale device fabrication capabilities built up in microelectronics and photonics furnish unparalleled opportunities for leveraging highly integrated platforms for on-chip biological sensor systems. By their nature, these applications cross through multiple disciplines and require a team with diverse expertise in the fundamental light/tissue interaction, complex optical instrumentation and imaging tools, and relevant biological systems. In this Integrative Graduate Education and Research Training (IGERT) program a new generation of scientists and engineers will be trained through a set of five research thrusts that cross three fundamental core competency areas: optics, photonics, and sensor electronics; biomolecular detection and cellular-level analysis; and applications to medicine and public health. Each IGERT trainee will be empowered to work at the boundaries between the disciplines and will be uniquely capable of contributing to advancements in this important emerging field. With 19 faculty members representing academic departments across Columbia University's School of Engineering and Applied Science, School of Arts and Sciences, Mailman School of Public Health, College of Physicians and Surgeons, and Teachers College, and incorporating strong interaction with City College, Queens College, and The Cooper Union in New York City, the IGERT trainees will experience a truly diverse community sharing in the integrated educational and research activities and will be exposed to a wide spectrum of cutting-edge applications. An external advisory board including industrial and government labs will provide additional connections between the IGERT and outside partners. Educationally, this IGERT program fulfills a compelling need to train a diverse workforce of U. S. scientists and engineers trained in an area of large and growing competitive importance to the United States. The proposed enrichment program provides IGERT fellows with enhanced training through experience in industry and government laboratories, seminars on professional development, career guidance, entrepreneurship, and discussion of ethical issues. Significant resources are committed to ensuring recruitment and retention of fellows from underrepresented groups. IGERT is an NSF-wide program intended to meet the challenges of educating U.S. Ph.D. scientists and engineers with the interdisciplinary background, deep knowledge in a chosen discipline, and the technical, professional, and personal skills needed for the career demands of the future. The program is intended to catalyze a cultural change in graduate education by establishing innovative new models for graduate education and training in a fertile environment for collaborative research that transcends traditional disciplinary boundaries.