REU Site: Wellman-HST Summer Institute for Biomedical Optics

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TECHNICAL SUMMARY:The Wellman-HST Summer Institute for Biomedical Optics, a new REU site supported by the NSF Division of Engineering Education and Centers, will admit ten undergraduate students to work on cutting-edge research on biomedical optics. Students will pursue full-time laboratory research for nine weeks from June to August at the Wellman Center for Photomedicine at Massachusetts General Hospital. It provides a highly multidisciplinary environment at the interface of laboratory innovations and real-world applications. The faculty with backgrounds in physics, chemistry, and engineering will serve as mentors. A variety of research projects are offered in diverse, yet cohesive, themes in the field of biomedical optics, with emphasis on multidisciplinary approaches that integrate optical physics and engineering with biological questions and medical problems. The research program will enhance the ability of students to undertake interdisciplinary research on a broad range of cutting-edge topics including optical coherence tomography, bio-integrated photonic devices, cell lasers, biomechanics, and photodynamic therapy. Students who produce significant results will be identified and encouraged to submit abstracts to annual conferences with full travel supports. In addition to research, students attend lectures, seminars, and professional development workshops on presentation, ethics, and intellectual properties. All student participants are accommodated in the dormitory at the MIT campus in close proximity to the labs and lecture sites, and they participate in various social activities. Stipends and travel supports will be provided. The vibrant summer program will make their summer experience go way beyond what could be provided by a typical research experience in a single lab. NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY:Biomedical optics is a rapidly growing field, well poised to impact biological sciences and human health. Students will witness how innovative research in the lab can help solve real-world problems and thus provide tangible benefits to the society we live in. This experience will help students gain a broader and deeper perspective on research and possibly further motivate the students to pursue a future in interdisciplinary science and engineering. Interactions with mentors provide role models to the students while helping them evaluate their own future career paths. The REU site will also have a positive impact on faculty mentors by fostering active interactions and collaborations. Students will interact with overseas summer students in other ongoing international programs, building global networks. In turn, by providing positive experiences, this interaction can increase the international recognition of science and engineering in the U.S. by attracting talented undergraduates from overseas to the U.S. for higher education. The REU site is well positioned to become a national and international model for highly interdisciplinary and intense summer research experiences for undergraduates.