REU Site: Cross-disciplinary Research Experience for Undergraduates on Big Data Analytics in Smart Cities

本科生研究体验(REU)网站旨在为未来智慧城市发展提供独特的、全面的关于大数据前沿话题的跨学科研究体验。随着大数据和智能城市领域正在重塑我们的社会，改变我们的日常生活，并为经济增长提供新的机会，总体目标是通过智能城市中的大数据分析跨学科研究、教育和培训，激励和准备本科生研究人员在STEM从事学术研究和职业生涯。该项目将为每年夏天的10名本科生提供与教师导师合作进行重要研究项目的机会。参与者还将参与各种专业发展活动，这些活动不仅将帮助他们建立重要的研究技能，还将帮助他们建立在智能城市的大数据研究生教育方面的自信。该REU网站利用内华达大学雷诺分校独特的基础设施(例如AlertTahoe火灾摄像头网络和智能移动设施)，提供真实的数据和实验环境，以增强本科生的跨学科研究体验。本科生将与教师导师合作，解决大数据理论和大数据计算领域的众多开放挑战，并提供基于大数据分析的解决方案，以增强智慧城市应用中的情景感知和决策。这项跨学科的研究工作将通过促进具有不同专业知识的研究人员之间的合作，探索研究问题的新框架和解决方案，重点是智能城市中的大数据分析。这些研究项目将把大数据分析整合到各种智慧城市应用中，推进每个领域的尖端技术，最终形成新的数据分析框架，以应对科学和社会挑战和机遇。为了产生一场真正的数据革命，REU网站将在本科生的跨学科教育和培训方面做出重大努力，特别是针对代表性不足的学生。研究和培训活动将为这些学生在大数据和智能城市的研究生项目做好准备，从而满足国家对大数据和智能城市跨学科领域训练有素的劳动力的需求。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 Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Site aims to deliver a unique and holistic cross-disciplinary research experience on the cutting edge topics of big data for future smart cities development. As the fields of big data and smart cities are reshaping our societies, changing our everyday life, and providing new opportunities for economic growth, the overarching goal is to inspire and prepare undergraduate researchers to pursue academic studies and careers in STEM via cross-disciplinary research, education, and training on big data analytics in smart cities. The project will provide 10 undergraduates per summer the opportunity to work with faculty mentors on important research projects. The participants will also be involved in various professional development activities that will help them to build not only important research skills but also self-confidence to pursue graduate education in big data for smart cities.This REU Site leverages the unique infrastructures at University of Nevada-Reno (e.g., AlertTahoe Fire Camera Network and the intelligent mobility facilities) that provide real data and experimental environments to enhance undergraduates' cross-disciplinary research experience. Undergraduates will work with faculty mentors to address the multitude of open challenges in big data theory and big data computing, and provide big data analytics based solutions to enhance the situational awareness and decision making in smart city applications. The cross-disciplinary research work will explore novel framings and solutions for research problems with the focus on big data analytics in smart cities, by fostering the collaborations among researchers with diverse expertise. The research projects will integrate big data analytics into various smart city applications, advance the state-of-the-art in each domain, and ultimately form novel data analytics frameworks for addressing scientific and societal challenges and opportunities. In order to generate a true data revolution, the REU Site will make significant efforts on the cross-disciplinary education and training for undergraduate students, with a particular focus on underrepresented students. The research and training activities will prepare these students for graduate programs in big data and smart cities, and thereby meet the national need for trained workforce in cross-disciplinary fields of big data and smart cities.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.