REU Site: Interactive Biomaterials

非技术描述：锡拉丘兹大学互动生物材料REU网站的教育目标是：在多学科、协作和开放的实验室环境中，通过独立的生物材料研究项目培训学生前沿研究技术；提供多方面的指导机会和网络建设经验，最终增加参与者在所选学科继续研究生教育的可能性；并培训学生成为他们的研究与同行和科学界的有效沟通者。这些目标是通过参与学院实验室的独立、互动的生物材料研究项目、教师顾问和研究生导师的一对一指导、创新的职业指导计划、学生研究报告、团队建设活动和社交活动来实现的。REU网站旨在让本科生参与有意义和有启发性的研究以及教育和社会体验，以此来提高他们的热情，并为未来生物材料、科学和工程领域的研究生水平的学习和职业生涯做准备。技术描述：REU的学生可以使用的研究项目将促进在形状记忆聚合物、刺激反应聚合物、药物输送、细菌生物膜控制、细胞-生物材料相互作用、组织工程和交互生物材料的分子建模等领域的基础科学知识的发展。这些假设驱动的多学科研究项目利用了锡拉丘兹生物材料研究所教员的集体专业知识，在许多情况下，促进了教员实验室、学术部门和机构之间的协作研究。互动生物材料REU网站的显著特点和贡献包括：从高效和有效的团队建设开始，然后以适合本科生但具有足够挑战性的研究项目为中心的教育体验，允许学生做出有意义的贡献，他们接受的培训是为了与不同的技术或非专业观众和读者清楚地交流；研究环境提供世界级的多学科实验室设施和来自三个参与机构的不同项目和导师，他们在整个项目期间接受REU网站领导层的培训和持续支持；学生招生和选拔过程产生与项目和教师导师仔细匹配的不同群体，以最大限度地提高学生的教育体验；以及丰富多样的综合专业发展活动，旨在支持和启动学生的职业目标，而不会分散对基础研究经验的注意力。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

NON-TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION: The educational objectives of the Interactive Biomaterials REU Site at Syracuse University are: to train students in leading-edge research techniques through independent biomaterials research projects in a multidisciplinary, collaborative, and open laboratory environment; to provide multifaceted mentoring opportunities and network-building experiences that ultimately increase the likelihood that participants will pursue graduate education in their chosen discipline; and to train students to be effective communicators of their research to their peers and the scientific community. These objectives are accomplished through participation in independent, interactive biomaterials research projects in faculty laboratories, one-on-one mentoring from faculty advisors and graduate student mentors, an innovative career mentoring program, student research presentations, team building activities, and social events. The REU Site aims to engage undergraduate students in meaningful and stimulating research and educational and social experiences as a means of increasing their enthusiasm and preparation for future graduate level study and careers in biomaterials science and engineering. TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION: The research projects available to students in the REU will advance fundamental scientific knowledge in areas that include shape memory polymers, stimulus-responsive polymers, drug delivery, control of bacterial biofilms, cell-biomaterial interactions, tissue engineering, and molecular modeling of interactive biomaterials. These hypothesis-driven, multidisciplinary research projects draw upon the collective expertise of the faculty of the Syracuse Biomaterials Institute, and, in many cases, foster collaborative research across faculty laboratories, academic departments, and institutions. Distinguishing characteristics and contributions of the Interactive Biomaterials REU Site include: an educational experience that starts with efficient and effective team building and then centers on research projects appropriate to the undergraduate but sufficiently challenging to allow for students to make meaningful contributions for which they are trained to clearly communicate to diverse technical or lay audiences and readerships; a research environment that provides world class multidisciplinary laboratory facilities and diverse projects and mentors from across three participating institutions who are trained and continually supported by the REU Site leadership throughout the program; a student recruitment and selection process that yields diverse cohorts carefully matched to projects and faculty mentors to maximize the educational experience of the students; and rich and diverse integrated professional development activities designed to support and launch the students' professional goals without distracting from the fundamental research experience.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.