NRT-HDR: Advancing Materials Frontiers with Creativity and Data Science

新材料的发现和开发目前是一项长达数十年的奋进，使用的方法在世纪内基本保持不变。材料设计的参数空间是巨大的和多维的，并且经常由人的直觉和经验指导。需要一种全新的研究方法来满足半导体，能源，生物和制造应用的社会需求。未来的研究将在实验的设计、分析和执行中越来越依赖机器学习（ML）和人工智能（AI），从而改变人类在研究过程中的角色。虽然机器学习和人工智能工具可以加速研究，但它们本身并不能产生理解或创建新的应用程序。这些独特的人类角色必须通过创造力培训来培养和鼓励-这是大多数研究生STEM课程中缺乏的主题。这项授予密苏里州-哥伦比亚大学的NRT奖项将通过整合数据科学和分析（DSA），基于证据的创造力和尖端材料培训为学员做好准备。该计划将培养60名博士生，其中包括36名NRT资助的实习生。NRT计划的实习生将完成由密苏里州大学提供的严格的DSA研究生证书。作为NRT的一部分，DSA计划将增加一个材料重点领域，强调材料数据的管理、分析和评估。学员的主要研究领域包括自主研究系统，以绘制复杂的合成-结构-属性关系，考古学研究古代世界的材料，光学超颖表面和使用先进的结构重建技术的非晶界面工程。学员还将学习创造性地思考，创新，并使用基于证据的创造力培训课程扩大材料研究的社会影响。创造力的训练将被正式纳入每个学员的研究计划和论文。NRT的学员和教师将通过促进新思想，接受失败和鼓励冒险来促进尊重和信任的文化。每两周一次的咖啡时间、年度郊游和外联活动将在建立实践社区的同时营造一个热情和非正式的环境。每个受训者和导师将使用个人发展计划来定制培训活动，以适应每个受训者的职业道路。NSF研究培训（NRT）计划旨在鼓励为STEM研究生教育培训开发和实施大胆的，新的潜在变革模式。该计划致力于通过创新的、基于证据的、与不断变化的劳动力和研究需求相一致的综合培训模式，在高优先级的跨学科或融合研究领域对STEM研究生进行有效培训。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The discovery and development of new materials is currently a decades-long endeavor, using approaches that have remained largely unchanged for over a century. The parameter space for materials design is vast and multidimensional and is frequently guided by human intuition and experience. A fundamentally new research methodology is needed to meet societal needs in semiconductor, energy, biological, and manufacturing applications. The future of research will incorporate an increased reliance on machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) in the design, analysis, and execution of experiments, thereby changing the role of humans in the research process. While the ML and AI tools may accelerate research, they do not inherently generate understanding or create new applications. These uniquely human roles must be fostered and encouraged via creativity training – a topic absent in most graduate STEM curricula. This NRT award to University of Missouri- Columbia will prepare trainees for this future by integrating data science and analytics (DSA), evidence-based creativity, and cutting-edge materials training. The program will train sixty doctoral students, including thirty-six NRT-funded trainees.Trainees in the NRT program will complete a rigorous DSA graduate certificate offered by the University of Missouri. As part of the NRT, a materials emphasis area will be added to the DSA program that emphasizes materials data curation, analysis, and evaluation. Major research areas for trainees include autonomous research systems to map complex synthesis-structure-property relationships, archeometry to investigate materials of the ancient world, optical metasurfaces, and amorphous interface engineering using advanced structural reconstruction techniques. Trainees will also learn to think creatively, to innovate, and to expand the societal impact of materials research using an evidence-based creativity training curriculum. The creativity training will be formally integrated into the research plan and dissertation of each trainee. The NRT trainees and faculty will facilitate a culture of respect and trust by promoting new ideas, accepting failures, and encouraging risk taking. Biweekly Café Hours, annual outings, and outreach activities will foster a welcoming and informal environment while building a community of practice. Each trainee and mentor will use an individual development plan to customize training activities to suit the career path of each trainee. The NSF Research Traineeship (NRT) Program is designed to encourage the development and implementation of bold, new potentially transformative models for STEM graduate education training. The program is dedicated to effective training of STEM graduate students in high priority interdisciplinary or convergent research areas through comprehensive traineeship models that are innovative, evidence-based, and aligned with changing workforce and research needs.  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.