REU Site: Educating a New Generation of Astronomers in the Golden Age of Astronomy

该奖项将支持一个新的本科生天文学研究体验(REU)网站，为加州大学河滨分校(UCR)的8名学生实习生提供为期8周的支持，目的是帮助本科生获得利用从最新一代天文台获得的数据进行研究所需的技能。参与者将从一系列观测、理论、计算和数据密集型研究项目中进行选择，以解决现代天文学中最基本的问题。在为期8周的课程中，学生将学习到Python编程和数据可视化技能、职业发展、口头陈述和研究道德，并将被鼓励发表他们的结果。天文学正进入“黄金时代”，显然需要培养新一代天文学家来处理来自新的开创性望远镜的数据。团队已经建立了由当地学校、社区和图书馆组成的网络，并与河滨联合学区合作，将外展活动扩展到少数民族及其家庭。REU Site计划将让实习生参与包括科学新闻在内的外联活动，并将向更广泛的学生和教育工作者提供Python和可视化课程。该小组将进一步开发该领域研究人员在天文主题方面的在线公开演示。最后，公共科学场馆将用西班牙语开发，面向未被充分代表的少数群体及其家庭。这一奖项反映了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 award will support a new Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) Site in astronomy supporting 8 student interns for 8-weeks at the University of California, Riverside (UCR) with the goal of helping undergraduate students acquire skills needed to conduct research using data acquired from the newest generation of observatories. The participants will choose from a range of observational, theoretical, computational, and data intensive research programs addressing the most fundamental questions in modern astronomy. During the 8-weeks students will be instructed Python programming and data visualization skills, career development, oral presentations, and research ethics, and will be encouraged to publish their results. Astronomy is entering a "golden age" and there is a clear need to train a new generation of astronomers to deal with data from new ground-breaking telescopes.The team has built a network of local schools, communities, and libraries, and have partnered with the Riverside Unified School District to extend outreach activities to minorities and their families. The REU Site program will involve interns in outreach activities including scientific journalism, and the Python and visualization courses will be made available to a wider community of students and educators. The group will further develop online public presentations in astronomical topics given by researchers in the field. Finally, public science venues will be developed in Spanish, and aimed towards underrepresented minorities and their families.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.