REU Site: Passionate on Parallel-A Summer Research Program for Women in STEM

计算环境正在发生变化--并行计算将成为未来编程的“默认”方法。向并行过渡的一个核心挑战是缺乏具有并行编程专业知识的劳动力。在这个REU，我们将培训学生并行编程的基础知识，为他们提供证明并行计算在各自领域的重要性的研究经验，并帮助他们培养在研究生院取得成功所需的信心。为了使本科生能够参与到由并行计算提供的革命性的新能力，伊利诺伊大学的REU-POP计划(面向本科生的研究体验-对并行充满热情)将招募十(10)名科学、技术、工程和数学(STEM)学科的低年级和高年级本科生参加与他们自己学习的领域相关的并行计算和编程的暑期研究体验。认识到女性在学术和专业计算机科学领域的代表性严重不足，合格的学生将在研究或研究生院选择有限的女性和少数族裔服务的大学特别受到欢迎。符合条件的学生将完成指定的计算机科学课程，但不需要具有并行编程经验，而这在本科水平很少。REU的学生将在小组中结对工作(目前的文献表明，这对编程女性来说是一个成功的学习策略)，其中包括一名各自学科的教员和一名受过专门培训的研究生导师。透过暑假前的网上预备课程、暑期开始时为期四天的沉浸课程、在大学实验室的实践学习、每周的技术课程，以及专题研讨会，例如现行科技中的并行计算、研究道德、技术商品化，以及研究生院的好处，学生将发展并行编程的基本技能，并探讨在他们自己的STEM学科中的研究选择。学生们还将与著名的专业和学术研究人员互动，形成一个由不同的榜样和导师组成的网络，提供关于职业和研究生院选择的建议。我们相信，通过让本科生参与研究，通过使用多种指导方案，并通过为他们提供机会，让他们在“编程对”中工作，我们可以鼓励本科生坚持工程专业，特别是计算机科学。伊利诺伊州的REU-POP计划将在REU的背景下探索这些方法，我们将在公开文献中报告它们的成功，以帮助其他人进行这一努力。本网站由国防部与NSF REU计划合作支持。

The computing landscape is changing - parallel computing will be the "default" approach to programming in the future. A central challenge in the transition to parallelism is shortage of workforce with expertise in parallel programming. In this REU, we will train students in the basics of parallel programming, provide them with research experience that demonstrates the importance of parallel computing in their own fields, and help them develop the confidence that they need to be successful in graduate school.To enable undergraduates to participate in the revolutionary new capabilities afforded by parallel computing, the REU-POP program (Research Experience for Undergraduates-Passionate on Parallel) at the University of Illinois will recruit ten (10) junior- and senior-level undergraduates majoring in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines to participate in a summer research experience in parallel computing and programming relevant to their own fields of study. Recognizing that women are critically underrepresented in academic and professional computer science, qualified students will be especially sought at women's and minority-serving colleges with limited research or graduate-school options. Eligible students will have completed specified computer science courses, but will not be required to have experience in parallel programming, which is rarely available at the undergraduate level.REU students will work in pairs (current literature suggests this is a successful learning strategy for women in programming) in small teams that will include a faculty member in their own discipline and a specially trained graduate mentor. Through preparatory online sessions before the POP summer, a four-day immersion session at the start of the POP summer, hands-on learning in their university laboratory, weekly technical sessions, and special seminars on topics such as parallel computing in current technology; research ethics; technology commercialization; and the benefits of graduate school, students will develop essential skills in parallel programming and explore the research options in their own STEM disciplines. Students will also interact with prominent professional and academic researchers to form a network of diverse role models and mentors to provide advice on careers and graduate school options.We believe undergraduates can be encouraged to persist in engineering programs, particularly computer science, by engaging them in research, by employing multiple mentoring options, and by providing opportunities for them to work in "programming pairs." The REU-POP program at Illinois will explore these methods within the REU context, and we will report on their success in the open literature to assist others in this effort.This site is supported by the Department of Defense in partnership with the NSF REU program.