REU Site: Basic and Environmental Soil Science Training (BESST)

土壤在无数全球过程中扮演着重要的角色。了解元素、能量和水在土壤中流动的需要是巨大的，并在整个地球科学界得到广泛接受。然而，受过特定土壤专业知识培训的科学家数量正在迅速减少。BESST REU网站利用一个多样化的、多学科的科学家团队，通过统一的主题和团队培训机会，提供最先进的土壤科学主题的个性化学生研究体验。具体目标是：i)招收以前在土壤科学方面没有广泛经验的优秀学生，重点是那些来自代表性不足的群体；ii)通过提供实质性的研究经验和接触基础和环境土壤科学方面的广泛机会来培训这些学生；iii)培养一批未来的专业人员，使他们能够在地球科学界增进对土壤的了解。活动由一所拥有完善的本科生研究基础设施的大学支持，并由一个具有悠久的国际优秀传统的系主办。通过部门和大学与本科生服务机构、HBCU和国家本科生研究组织的合作来进行招生。该计划由外部专家进行评估，以确保其经过严格评估，并最大限度地发挥教学效果。REU场地的学术价值在于为下一代地球科学研究人员建造了一条新的急需的管道，配备了解决广泛的土壤基础和环境研究问题的设备。更广泛的影响来自于培训不同的学生群体，让他们在整个职业生涯中参与解决重要的社会和生态问题。REU网站寻求开发一种新的土壤科学范例，将招生和培训扩展到传统的农业基础之上，并将土壤科学转变为地球科学研究社区不可或缺的一部分。学生的研究机会突出了人类活动与陆地环境之间的关系，这是现代土壤科学的中心课题，广泛适用于地球和环境科学的许多其他分支学科。

Soils play a fundamental role in myriad global processes. The need to understand the flow of elements, energy, and water through soils is immense and widely accepted across the geosciences community. Yet, the number of scientists trained with specific soils expertise is rapidly declining. The BESST REU Site utilizes a diverse, multi-disciplinary team of scientists to deliver individualized student research experiences in state-of-the art soil science topics, synergized through unifying themes and team training opportunities. Specific objectives are to: i) recruit outstanding students without extensive previous experience in soil science, with an emphasis on those from under-represented groups; ii) train these students by providing a substantive research experience and exposure to broad opportunities in basic and environmental soil science; and iii) develop a pool of future professionals empowered to advance understanding of soils in the geoscience community. Activities are supported by a university with well-developed infrastructure for undergraduate student research, and hosted by a department with a long-standing tradition of international excellence. Student recruitment is pursued through departmental and university collaboration with undergraduate-serving institutions, HBCUs, and national undergraduate research organizations. The program is assessed by external experts to ensure that it is rigorously evaluated and didactic impact maximized. The intellectual merit of the REU Site lies in constructing a new and critically needed pipeline for the next generation of geoscience researchers, equipped to address wide-ranging basic and environmental research problems in soils. Broader impacts are derived from training a diverse group of students to engage in addressing important societal and ecological issues throughout their careers. The REU site seeks to develop a new paradigm for soil science, extending student recruitment and training beyond traditional foundations in agriculture, and transforming soil science into an integral part of the geoscience research community. Student research opportunities highlight relationships between human activities and terrestrial environments, which are central topics in modern soil science that are broadly applicable to many other sub-disciplines of the Earth and environmental sciences.