REU Site: Nebraska REU in Applied Math

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The Nebraska REU in Applied Mathematics will offer summer research projects for undergraduates in 2010, 2011 and 2012. We will host ten undergraduates for eight weeks starting in early June. Each project is supervised by a faculty mentor or pair of mentors, and each project will have a graduate student assistant. The faculty serving as mentors have extensive experience mentoring undergraduate research. We intent to give the students as full a research experience as possible, including how to define a good problem, how to solve the problem and (in most projects) give rigorous proofs, how to write mathematics, and how to give a talk and present a poster. All of the projects are in Applied Mathematics, and more than half of the projects have an interdisciplinary component. Many emphasize the role of computer exploration in gaining insight into mathematical problems. The students will meet with their faculty and graduate student mentors almost every weekday. We have planned research, educational and social activities which will cultivate an environment which emphasizes interaction and collaboration. Our goal is to make sure that the students leave the Nebraska REU Site with an appreciation for the methods of mathematical discovery, have a meaningful, enjoyable and rigorous educational experience, and increase the likelihood that the students will continue with their mathematical and scientific studies.Detailed project descriptions, including prerequisites, are posted on the web by the preceding November. The students choose those projects they wish to apply for, and order them according to preference. The application deadline is March 1. We intend to continue to have an approximately even gender balance among the students, and to target students from non-Ph.D. granting institutions. The University of Nebraska Office of Graduate Studies will assist us with recruiting, since they have extensive experience and infrastructure for recruitment of students from underrepresented groups.