NYU MRSEC: Semantophoretic Assemblies

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The Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC) at New York University (NYU) focused on Semantophoretic Assemblies (semantophoretic = carrying information) unites four NYU Departments, Princeton University, the Polytechnic Institute of New York University, and collaborators from key institutions, in an interdisciplinary program that addresses Colloidal Architecture, merging investigators with expertise in experimental and theoretical condensed matter physics, colloid science, synthetic chemistry, polymer chemistry, solid-state chemistry, and biomaterials to develop principles for the fabrication of innovative materials - from the colloidal to macroscopic scale - based on colloidal particles equipped with self-contained information that directs assembly, either through shape or chemical interactions. The Center operates an ambitious program aimed at creating unique K-12 and post-secondary education activities while broadening the participation of groups underrepresented in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. These efforts include the award-winning Scientific Frontiers Program, which introduces competency-matched curriculum content to elementary, middle and high schools and communities in New York City, reaching substantial numbers of minority students. The Center also supports REU students, integrating them with an existing REU operated jointly with the City College of New York, a minority-serving institution in Harlem. The summer research program sponsors faculty-student research teams from four-year colleges, and through the NYU-centered Faculty Resource Network, numerous minority-serving institutions. The Center also hosts Science Writers-in-Residence workshops, led by prominent science writers, which are open to Center participants at all levels as well as the community beyond the MRSEC. The Center's research and education efforts benefit from materials synthesis, characterization and computational facilities, which are shared by MRSEC faculty, students, postdoctoral research associates, industrial partners and outreach participants. The Center operates an Industrial Partners Program with dual-level membership aimed at encouraging pre-competitive collaborative research as well as more directed research. Industrial interactions are reinforced by annual meetings as well as symposia operated in conjunction with the New York Academy of Sciences. International collaborations through student and faculty exchanges as well as International Partner Workshops significantly expand the impact of the MRSEC beyond NYU.