REU Site: Interdisciplinary Program in Multi-scale Biological Networks

该REU网站奖授予位于德克萨斯州休斯顿的莱斯大学，将在2019 - 2021年夏季为12名学生提供为期10周的培训。本课程将让学生了解不同科学、技术、工程和数学（STEM）学科对生命系统作为综合网络的详细理解所做出的贡献。学生们将在实验室工作，从经典的生物化学和遗传学到复杂的理论建模。研究领域包括：(i)生物分子结构、功能和进化；（ii）自然发生的遗传网络；（iii）合成生物学和代谢网络；（iv）生态网络。参与的教师导师来自一系列部门，包括生物科学，生物工程，化学与生物分子工程，化学和计算机科学。该项目旨在招收在类似学科范围内接受培训的学生。学生还将参加以伦理和负责任的研究行为、专业交流和研究生院申请程序为重点的讲习班。申请该项目需要成绩单、简历、研究报告和两封推荐信。参与者将由一个教师委员会选出，该委员会将根据学生在STEM课程中表现出的卓越表现来评估学生与该项目的契合度。预计将有36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。学生将在全国范围内招生，重点招收附近的少数民族服务机构的学生，包括社区大学和四年制大学。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。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。有关该计划的更多信息，请访问https://ibb.rice.edu/nsf-reu-bionetworks，或联系PI （Joff Silberg博士joff@rice.edu）或联合PI （Natasha Kirienko博士kirienko@rice.edu）。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行了评估，认为值得支持。

This REU Site award to Rice University, located in Houston, TX, will support the training of 12 students for 10 weeks during the summers of 2019 - 2021. This program will expose students to the contributions made by different science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) disciplines toward the detailed understanding of living systems as integrated networks. Students will work in laboratories that draw from an array of approaches - from classical biochemistry and genetics to complex theoretical modeling. Research areas include: (i) biomolecular structure, function, and evolution, (ii) naturally-occurring genetic networks, (iii) synthetic biology and metabolic networks, and (iv) ecological networks. Participating faculty mentors come from a range of departments including Biosciences, Bioengineering, Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, Chemistry, and Computer Science. This program seeks to recruit students who are training across a similar spectrum of disciplines. Students will also participate in workshops focusing on ethics and responsible conduct of research, professional communication, and the graduate school application process. Application to the program requires a transcript, resume, research statement, and two letters of recommendation. Participants will be selected by a faculty committee, which will assess student alignment with the program based on demonstrated excellence in STEM coursework. It is anticipated that a total of 36 students, primarily from schools with limited research opportunities, will be trained in the program. Students will be recruited nationwide, with an emphasis on students enrolled at proximal minority-serving institutions, including community colleges and four-year institutions. Students will learn how research is conducted, and many will present the results of their work at scientific conferences. 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 the program is available by visiting https://ibb.rice.edu/nsf-reu-bionetworks, or by contacting the PI (Dr. Joff Silberg at joff@rice.edu) or the co-PI (Dr. Natasha Kirienko at kirienko@rice.edu).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.