Month: February 2023

Green Infrastructure for Sustainable Urban Environments (GI4SUrE) Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) is a 10-week summer program designed to expose and immerse 10 undergraduate students to unique green infrastructure (GI) research.

Green infrastructure is a way to build better infrastructure, as a part of the National Academy of Engineering’s Grand Challenge, to restore and improve urban infrastructure. This program lets students perform field, laboratory, or modeling studies to explore how GI can mitigate the effects of urban runoff on surface water quality and hydrology. This research will affect not only eastern Tennessee, but any area that deals with urban stormwater runoff. Students will also dive into a professional and social atmosphere that will develop their fundamental research methodologies and critical thinking skills.

When does this program happen?

May 27 through August 6, 2023. This includes move-in/move-out days.

What does the program provide?

• Financial Package
  • Stipend: $6,000
  • Round Trip Travel Assistance to and from Knoxville TN
  • On-Campus, suite-style housing
• Research Experience
  • Students will engage in research that may include field work, lab work, and modelling while being immersed in social development with both this cohort and other summer programs at the University of Tennessee

Who can apply?

We are accepting applications now, and the application deadline is March 1st. You are responsible for ensuring that your application is complete prior to the application deadline. We will use a rolling admissions process (exceptional applicants may be accepted before the deadline) so you should submit your application early.

Students must meet these conditions:

• Be a citizen, a permanent resident of the United States, or an eligible non-citizen.
• Be enrolled in college for Fall 2023. Students graduating by May 23, 2023 are not eligible.
• Have successfully completed an introductory course in a STEM major. Applicants must be at least a rising sophomore and have taken a course in biology, chemistry, physics, ecology, environmental science, social sciences, or engineering.
• Be eligible to participate in the entire program, possibly including research that requires work on the weekends and performing field work and lab work.

We especially encourage applications from students who are from groups underrepresented in STEM, are veterans, disabled, or early in their undergraduate coursework.

Contact

Dr. Jon Hathaway
hathaway@utk.edu
865-974-6058
851 Neyland Dr.
415 John D. Tickle Building
Knoxville, TN 37996

Dr. Jon Hathaway received his PhD from North Carolina State University in 2010, where he studied the fate, transport, and removal of indicator bacteria in urban stormwater runoff. After a brief research fellowship at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia, and nearly two and half years at one of the nation’s leading ecological design and consulting firms, he joined the faculty of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

Are you an SC undergraduate student interested in working on a NASA related research project this summer?  Please consider applying for our SC Space Grant Palmetto Academy program!

We are re-opening the application portal to apply for Palmetto Academy student researchers!  We still have spaces to fill and want to encourage any student who are interested to apply. As a student researcher, you will work with a faculty at one of our SC Space Grant member institutions on a NASA-related project (see project/mentor list below).

New student applications are due by Midnight, February 27, 2027.

For more information and a detailed project summary blurb, please visit our Palmetto Academy page on our website:

https://scspacegrant.cofc.edu/palmettoacademyresearch

Summer 2023 Palmetto Academy Research Programs:

1. Qiushi Chen, Clemson University: Toward bio-inspired energy-efficient drilling into lunar regolith
2. Kaelyn Leake, The Citadel: Sub-millimeter sized patterning via laser modification of layer-by-layer ionic self-assembly Process
3. Sorinel Oprisan, College of Charleston: Altered time perception under stress. The role of (micro)gravity stressor in time perception
4. Ana Oprisan, College of Charleston: Universality laws in pure fluids and critical point experiments under density gradient
5. Ramakrishna Podila, Clemson University: Energy storage devices for operation in extended temperature range -60 to 60^oC
6. Laura Redmond, Clemson University: Dynamic Topology Optimization for Robust, Lightweight Origami Rovers
7. Kasra Sardashti, Clemson University: Quantum Sensing of Solar Flares using Superconducting Detectors
8. Ya-Ping Sun, Clemson University: Student Participation in Developing Nanomaterials-Derived Technologies for Space Applications
9. Ralph White, University of South Carolina: Structural Batteries Demonstrators for Aerospace Applications
10. Ming Yang, Clemson University: Electrochemical Recovery and Conversion of Captured In-Space CO2 to Methane Fuel

NASA DEVELOP projects focus on helping local, national, and international communities address their environmental concerns by utilizing data collected by NASA’s Earth observing fleet of satellites. NASA DEVELOP operates at eleven locations across the country at NASA Centers and other regional locations. This is a great opportunity for participants who are interested in practical applications of remote sensing and GIS, specifically in the field of Earth Science. Participants will work with NASA scientists, partner organizations, and science advisors to learn about the use of NASA Earth science data for use in water resources, disaster management, ecological conservation, and other applications to address environmental community concerns.

Responsibilities for participants include literature review, data processing and analysis, and producing deliverables such as a technical report, presentation, and video. Although previous GIS or remote sensing knowledge is beneficial, no previous experience in Earth science research is required to apply to NASA DEVELOP. This is a multi-disciplinary opportunity for all those interested in Earth science, and applicants from a diversity of backgrounds are encouraged to apply.

Applicants must have excellent verbal and written communication skills and be able to work in a fast-paced, highly collaborative environment. Days of the week are flexible, but applicants should be able to commit to 20 – 29 hours per week during the term. The position is paid on an hourly basis that is determined by education level and geographic location.

 
Details about this opportunity and how to apply can be found online at https://appliedsciences.nasa.gov/what-we-do/capacity-building/develop. Applications for the summer 2023 term (June 5th – August 11st) are due on February 24th, with recommendations due March 10th.

We are hosting virtual “About DEVELOP” webinars on February 8th at 3 pm ET and February 9th at 11 am ET with more information about DEVELOP and applying to the program. Please see the attached flyer for details on joining these events.