REU SITE: IDEA Incubator for Porous Materials: Integrating Discovery, Engineering and Art

这个本科生研究经验（REU）网站将通过整合发现、工程和艺术，在堪萨斯大学（KU）创建一个IDEA孵化器。主要目标是让REU的学生在实验室内外获得各种体验，这将培养21世纪劳动力的创造力、沟通能力和其他重要技能。美国未来在全球经济中的竞争力取决于创新者创造对社会有价值的产品和过程，因此强调创新思维尤为重要。REU的学生将通过参与以团队为基础的学习项目来成长为研究人员，这些项目专注于多孔材料，这些材料具有广泛的生物医学和化学应用。由于有许多变量可以改变和测试，这一研究领域是修修补补的理想场所，发现和创新的时机已经成熟。培训活动还将帮助学生建立对大小和规模的牢固理解，这两个概念往往未得到充分发展，但对科学素养和发现至关重要。在为期10周的暑期项目中，这个REU网站为本科生提供了从基础到应用的多孔材料相关主题的研究机会。例如，参与者将沉浸在如何设计稳定的疫苗递送系统、化学分离吸附剂、组织工程纳米纤维支架以及制氢和生物质转化催化剂等方面。此外，学生将获得最先进的生物物理和分析技术的实践经验，以表征多孔材料以及这些材料如何与其他分子相互作用。REU的学生？将在实验室由受过专门训练的教师和研究生导师提供支持。学生们还将参观附近的公司，参加无聊的讲座、互动讲习班、社交活动和团队建设活动。与九家公司和一家艺术博物馆的广泛合作，以及主动学习的教室和高科技实验室，使这个REU网站具有独特的定位，为所有学生创造一个成功和包容的学习体验。此外，与堪萨斯大学教师研究经验（RET）网站合作将产生协同效益，对高中教育工作者和学生产生更广泛的影响。该项目由工程局（ENG）、工程教育和中心部（EEC）以及促进竞争研究的既定计划（EPSCoR）共同资助。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值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 will create an IDEA Incubator at the University of Kansas (KU) by integrating discovery, engineering and art. The primary goal is to engage a diverse cohort of REU students in a variety of experiences, both in and out of the laboratory, that will nurture creativity, communication and other important skills for the 21st Century workforce. Emphasizing innovative thinking in particular is essential since the future competitiveness of the U.S. in the global economy depends on innovators to create products and processes of value to society. REU students will grow as researchers by engaging in team-based learning on projects focused on porous materials, which have a wide-variety of biomedical and chemical applications. With a host of variables that can be altered and tested, this field of research is ideal for tinkering and ripe for discovery and innovation. Training activities will also help students build a solid understanding of size and scale, two concepts that tend to be under-developed but essential for scientific literacy and discovery. During the 10-week summer program, this REU Site offers opportunities for undergraduate students to engage in research on topics relating to porous materials that range from fundamental to applied. For example, participants will be immersed in how to design stable delivery systems for vaccines, adsorbents for chemical separations, nanofiber scaffolds for tissue engineering, and catalysts for hydrogen generation and biomass conversion. In addition, students will gain hands-on experience with state-of-the-art biophysical and analytical techniques for characterizing porous materials and how these materials interact with other molecules. The REU students? will be supported in the laboratory by specially trained faculty and graduate student mentors. The students will also engage in tours of nearby companies, boredom-busting unseminars, interactive workshops, social mixers and team-building activities. The extensive partnerships with nine companies and an art museum, as well as active-learning classrooms and high-tech labs make this REU Site uniquely positioned to create a successful and inclusive learning experience for all students. Furthermore, synergistic benefits will arise from partnering with a KU Research Experiences for Teachers (RET) Site, leading to broader impacts for high school level educators and students.This project is jointly funded by the Directorate for Engineering (ENG), Division of Engineering Education and Centers (EEC) and the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR).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.