International Workshop on Bio-Inspired Geotechnics; Pacific Grove, California; May 19-22, 2019

该奖项为岩土工程一般领域的生物启发技术研讨会提供资金。研讨会将于2019年5月19日至22日在加利福尼亚州太平洋格罗夫举行。生物遗传技术这一迅速崛起的学科由生物中介技术和生物启发技术组成。生物介体技术，如微生物诱导方解石沉淀(MICP)固结砂，在过去十年中一直是主要关注的焦点，并出现了指数级的增长。目前，该领域的研究活跃在15个以上的国家，成立了公司，并建立了国家研究中心。已经创造了一支新的劳动力队伍，毕业生在生物地质技术领域和工业领域工作。然而，生物启发的土工技术，生物土工技术的免费方面，还处于初级阶段。这一领域正处于关键的形成阶段。正在确定该领域的基本定义和范围。目前正在确定具有特殊研究前景的具体领域。对生物灵感工程和设计(或生物仿生)这一更广泛的领域的理解和过滤正在进行中，这一领域本身在过去十年才基本上建立起来。与岩土行业就实际可能发生的事情进行的对话才刚刚开始。受生物启发的岩土技术领域正处于一个国际性、跨学科的研讨会可以加速增长并确定未来方向的时候。因此，研讨会的目标是开始建立跨学科合作，确定研究优先事项和可能的资金来源，与业界就可实施性进行接触，并确定和满足进入该领域的研究人员和进入劳动力市场的工程师的教育需求。这次研讨会将汇集来自学术界和工业界的大约55名个人专家，他们在技术和人口结构上都是不同的，他们共同涵盖了从岩土工程到生物学再到软机器人等领域的专业知识。讲习班的参加者将包括资深调查人员、助理教授和任职人数不足的研究生。讲习班将在一个包容各方的会议设施举行，为期三天，将促进持续规划的正式讲习班活动以及非正式互动。研讨会经过精心设计，从建立或逐步建立学科理解的共同基础，到分享当前的研究和集思广益的新机会，再到确定成熟这一领域所需的必要“行动项目”或发展步骤，都是经过精心设计的。一个促进讨论、集思广益、自由分享想法和发展合作关系的非正式环境已被纳入研讨会议程。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。

This award funds a workshop on Bio-inspired technologies in the general field of geotechnical engineering. The workshop will be held in Pacific Grove, California, on May 19-22, 2019. The rapidly emerging discipline of biogeotechnics is comprised of both bio-mediated and bio-inspired technologies. Bio-mediated technologies, such as microbially induced calcite precipitation (MICP) to cement sands, have been the primary focus over the past decade and have seen exponential growth. Active research in the field now exists in more than 15 countries, companies have been founded, and national research centers have been established. A new workforce has been created, with graduates working in the biogeotechnics field in both and industry. Bio-inspired geotechnics, the complimentary aspect of biogeotechnics, however, is in its infancy. This field is at a critical, formative stage. The basal definition and scope of the field is being defined. Specific areas that hold exceptional promise for research are being identified. Understanding and filtering through the broader field of bio-inspired engineering and design (or biomimicry), which itself has largely become established in only the last decade, is underway. Conversations with the geotechnical industry regarding what might be practically possible are just beginning. The bio-inspired geotechnics field is at a time when an international, interdisciplinary workshop could accelerate growth and define future directions. Therefore, the objectives of the workshop are to begin building interdisciplinary collaborations, identify research priorities and possible funding sources, engage with industry regarding implementability, and identify and address the educational needs of researchers entering the field and engineers entering the workforce. This workshop will bring together approximately 55 individual experts from academia and industry who are technically and demographically diverse, and collectively cover expertise in fields from geotechnical engineering to biology to soft robotics. The workshop participants will include established senior investigators through assistant professors and underrepresented graduate students. The workshop will be held over a period of three days at an inclusive meeting facility that will facilitate continuous planned formal workshop activities as well as informal interactions. The workshop has been carefully designed in a structure that will scaffold, or gradually build, from developing a mutual foundation of discipline understanding, to sharing current research and brainstorming new opportunities, to identifying the necessary "action items" or developmental steps required to mature this field. An informal environment that fosters discussion, brainstorming, free sharing of ideas, and development of collaboration relationships has been incorporated into the workshop agenda.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.