Conference: Developing US Leaders and US Leadership in the Mechanics of Materials and Structures; St. Louis, Missouri; 13-15 October 2019

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The mechanics of materials and structures has been an area of US leadership for nearly a century. Leaders like the late Paul Paris, who developed the fracture mechanics framework to design with metals against failure from repeated loading, enabled US dominance in the aircraft industry that continues to this day. Thus, the mechanics of materials and structures, more than any other field, has enabled the great prosperity and welfare that we enjoy today, and the continuance of US leadership in this area is crucial for our continued prosperity and welfare. This conference will help develop future leaders in this area and support current researchers in this area by providing them with mentoring and guidance, by enabling cross-disciplinary seeding of new research, and by enabling communication of key results both within the field and in the broader community of engineering science. The grant will enable the entire engineering science community to enjoy the benefits of a National Science Foundation grantees meeting. The event will enable young researchers from diverse backgrounds to connect with established, funded researchers in the area, and also with NSF funding directors, and will allow MOMS researchers to showcase their work to attendees of the SES conference. The broader impacts of this conference lie in the historical economic impact of developing the field of mechanics of structures and materials as a whole, and in the development of young researchers from diverse backgrounds.The grant will fund a series of grantee meetings, networking events, and outreach events at the 56th Annual Meeting of the Society of Engineering Science (SES) at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, from October 13-15, 2019. A grantee meeting of PIs from the NSF Mechanics of Materials and Structures (MOMS) program will be held that will enable MOMS researchers to expand their impact by disseminating their work to a high-level, broad audience. The conference will afford ample opportunity for students to interact with internationally leading professors both scientifically and socially. A mentoring lunch and opportunities for one-on-one meetings with NSF program managers will enable investigators across career stages to gain insight into pathways to success in these areas. A specific aim is to help young investigators maximize career development opportunities at this conference by providing them comfortable foundations of both scientific background and networking. Careful evaluation of the event will be performed to optimize offerings and program structure for future years.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.