2019 Midwest Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics Conference (MTSM)

这笔赠款将为2019年6月2-4日在伊利诺伊大学厄巴纳-香槟分校校园举行的2019年中西部热力学和统计力学(MTSM)大会提供部分支持。从历史上看，MTSM会议为从事热力学和统计力学理论和实验方面工作的研究人员提供了一个论坛，让他们走到一起，介绍他们的工作和交流想法。大多数与会者将来自化学工程和化学系，尽管过去也有来自物理、材料科学、机械工程和计算机科学系的学生和教职员工参加过这次会议。MTSM会议的一个显著特点是它关注处于学术生涯早期阶段的研究人员，如本科生和研究生、博士后和初级教员。由于会议是地区性的，组织成本保持在最低水平，教职员工通常能够与他们的整个团队一起前往参加会议。热力学和统计力学是一个重要的研究领域，在化学、生物和自然系统中有广泛的应用。MTSM系列会议始于1988年，吸引了来自学术机构、工业和国家实验室的与会者。大多数与会者来自美国中西部地区的机构，那里聚集了大量在热力学和统计力学领域工作的研究人员。MTSM会议的特点是聚焦于学生、博士后研究人员和初级教师，提供了一个在非正式但有重点的环境中讨论结果的机会。实验、理论和计算工作都得到了很好的体现，应用范围从能量转换和储存、环境保护、聚合物和纳米结构的材料设计和合成，以及用于药物输送的生物分子的研究。由这笔赠款资助的会议参与者将是大约120名本科生、研究生和博士后助理，其中包括STEM领域中代表性不足的少数群体成员。参与者将有机会与其他机构的同行建立联系，就热力学和统计力学领域研究和教育的现状和未来方向交换意见。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 grant is to provide partial support for the 2019 Midwest Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics (MTSM) Conference to be held on the campus of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign on June 2-4, 2019. The MTSM Conference has historically provided a forum for researchers working on theoretical and experimental aspects of Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics to come together, present their work and exchange ideas. Most participants will be from chemical engineering and chemistry departments, although students and faculty from physics, materials science, mechanical engineering, and computer science departments have also participated in this conference in the past. A distinctive feature of The MTSM Conference is its focus on researchers in the early stages of their academic careers, such as undergraduate and graduate students, postdocs, and junior faculty. Because the meetings are regional and organization costs are kept to a minimum, faculty members are often able to travel with their entire group to the meeting.Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics are an important area of research that has a wide spectrum of applications in chemical, biological and natural systems. The MTSM Conference series was started in 1988 and attracts participants from academic institutions, industry and national laboratories. Most attendees are from institutions located in the Midwest region of the US, which has a large concentration of researchers working in the field of Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics. The MTSM Conference is distinguished by a focus on students, postdoctoral researchers, and junior faculty, providing an opportunity to discuss results in an informal yet focused setting. Experimental, theoretical, and computational work is all well represented, with applications ranging from energy conversion and storage, environmental protection, materials design and synthesis of polymers and nanostructures, and investigation of biomolecules for drug delivery. The conference participants supported by this grant will be about 120 undergraduate students, graduate students, and postdoctoral associates including members of underrepresented minorities in STEM fields. The participants will have the opportunity to network with peers from other institutions and exchange ideas about the current status and future directions in research and education in the field of Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics.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.