REU Site: Indigenous America to Indigenous Mekong - Adventures in Biology and Biodiversity

该REU网站奖（由国际科学与工程办公室共同资助）授予位于阿肯色州费耶特维尔的阿肯色大学，将在2018-2020年夏季支持8名学生的10周培训。研究将在东南亚湄公河下游的两个国家进行，特别是越南和泰国（每年交替进行）。学生将参与气候科学、微生物学、民族植物学、水生生物学（鱼类、微藻和水生植物）、生物燃料科学和小型哺乳动物生态学等方面的研究项目。总体主题涉及食品、能源和水系统。学生将在研究、实验室和现场安全以及科学写作方面接受负责任行为的培训。美国公民、美国国民或永久居民都有资格申请。虽然GPA和学习成绩将是选择的一个考虑因素，但强烈鼓励任何高潜力的本科生，特别是那些来自经济弱势社区和那些来自历史上在科学领域代表性不足的群体的学生，无论GPA如何，都可以申请。预计总共将有24名学生，主要来自研究机会有限的学校，将在该项目中接受培训。学生将学习如何进行研究，许多人将在科学会议上展示他们的工作成果。目标是利用该网站计划作为提高学生理论和技术技能的一种方法，以促进成功完成STEM学士课程，并进入研究生课程或进入各自研究领域的成功职业生涯。由生物基础设施部资助的所有REU站点计划使用的通用网络评估工具将用于确定培训计划的有效性。课程结束后，将对学生进行跟踪，以确定他们的职业道路。学生将被要求回复通过NSF报告系统自动发送的电子邮件。关于这方面的更多信息可访问http://fulbright.uark.edu/departments/biology/undergraduate/mekong-reu或直接联系PI （Ruben Michael Ceballos博士ceballos@uark.edu）。

This REU Site award (co-funded by the Office of International Science and Engineering) to the University of Arkansas, located in Fayetteville, AR, will support the training of 8 students for 10 weeks during the summers of 2018-2020. Research will be conducted in two countries of the Lower Mekong Basin in Southeast Asia, specifically, Vietnam and Thailand (in alternating years). Students will engage in projects focused on research in climate science, microbiology, ethnobotany, aquatic biology (fish, microalgae, and aquatic plants), biofuels sciences, and small mammal ecology. The overarching theme relates to Food, Energy, and Water systems. Students will receive training in responsible conduct in research, lab and field safety, and scientific writing. Students who are U.S. citizens, US nationals, or permanent residents are eligible to apply. Although GPA and academic performance will be one factor considered in selection, any high-potential undergraduates especially those from economically-disadvantaged communities and those from groups which have been historically underrepresented in the sciences are strongly encouraged to apply regardless of GPA. It is anticipated that a total of 24 students, primarily from schools with limited research opportunities, will be trained in the program. Students will learn how research is conducted, and many will present the results of their work at scientific conferences. The goal is to use this Site program as a method of enhancing the theoretical and technical skills of the students to facilitate successful completion of bachelor's programs in STEM and either admissions into graduate programs or entry into successful careers in their respective fields of study.A common web-based assessment tool used by all REU Site programs funded by the Division of Biological Infrastructure will be used to determine the effectiveness of the training program. Students will be tracked after the program in order to determine their career paths. Students will be asked to respond to an automatic email sent via the NSF reporting system. More information about this is available by visiting http://fulbright.uark.edu/departments/biology/undergraduate/mekong-reu or by directly contacting the PI (Dr. Ruben Michael Ceballos at ceballos@uark.edu).