ABSTRACT
Public interest in where food comes from and how it is produced, processed, and distributed has increased over the last few decades, with even greater focus emerging during the COVID-19 pandemic. Mounting evidence and experience point to disturbing weaknesses in our food systems' abilities to support human livelihoods and wellbeing, and alarming long-term trends regarding both the environmental footprint of food systems and mounting vulnerabilities to shocks and stressors. How can we tackle the "wicked problems” embedded in a food system? More specifically, how can convergent research programs be designed and resulting knowledge implemented to increase inclusion, sustainability, and resilience within these complex systems, support widespread contributions to and acceptance of solutions to these challenges, and provide concrete benchmarks to measure progress and understand tradeoffs among strategies along multiple dimensions? This article introduces and defines food systems informatics (FSI) as a tool to enhance equity, sustainability, and resilience of food systems through collaborative, user-driven interaction, negotiation, experimentation, and innovation within food systems. Specific benefits we foresee in further development of FSI platforms include the creation of capacity-enabling verifiable claims of sustainability, food safety, and human health benefits relevant to particular locations and products;the creation of better incentives for the adoption of more sustainable land use practices and for the creation of more diverse agro-ecosystems;the wide-spread use of improved and verifiable metrics of sustainability, resilience, and health benefits;and improved human health through better diets.
ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought chaos on education systems worldwide, affecting several billion students all over the world. This had far-reaching consequences in every part of our life. Traditional educational techniques have been considerably disrupted because of social alienation and restricting mobility policies. Innovation, implementation of alternative educational systems and evaluation methodologies are in demand. The COVID-19 outbreak has given us a chance to lay the groundwork for digital learning. The Army Educational Research Program (AEOP) is a summer internship program that allows students to do research in a real laboratory environment with the help of a professional STEM mentor and researcher. For the past 12 years, this program has been delivered as an in-person apprenticeship at Texas Tech University (TTU). Face-to-face apprenticeships were canceled and shifted online because of the pandemic, resulting in the emergence of online learning, which has allowed learners to complete their study. Students, instructors, administrators, and education leaders faced several issues because of the abrupt shift from face-to-face to online learning. This article aims to provide a comprehensive assessment on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the transition of the AEOP program from face-to-face to an online teaching mode at TTU. © 2022 IEEE.
ABSTRACT
International research programs for students offer an important opportunity to support students in developing skills in both research and intercultural competence. During the COVID-19 pandemic, many of these programs made the shift to operating virtually, with likely impacts on program outcomes. The purpose of this study was to identify the approaches that program leaders used in adapting international research programs to the virtual environment and explore how these innovations could inform the design of these programs going forward. We conducted eight focus groups with over 40 U.S.-based faculty who had experience running these programs to understand the benefits, challenges, and future potential of incorporating virtual elements into international research programs for students. This paper reports the results of these focus groups and provides suggestions for future program design based on best practices and innovations identified through the development of virtual programs. © 2022 IEEE.
ABSTRACT
This evidence-based paper will review the outcomes of a recently developed summer research program for undergraduate students. The Center of Transportation Research & Implementation (CTRI) at Minnesota State University, Mankato (MSUM) created a remote research program for Summer 2020. Along with others across the United States, MSUM went under COVID-19 lockdown for the unforeseen future during the Spring 2020 semester. The university cancelled access to most campus laboratories and brought a halt to all experimental research conducted in these facilities. Moreover, a significant number of undergraduate students lost their internships for Summer 2020. With these two substantial changes, CTRI created the Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) program. CTRI contacted a donor who donated a funding for a single undergraduate research project (pre-COVID) and asked to make changes in the funding process to benefit multiple students. With the adaptation approved by the donor, the research center asked the faculty to submit proposals for undergraduate research projects that the researchers can conduct at their homes. The proposals requested projects to employ 1 - 4 undergraduate students with a limited, supplies-only budget (<$500). The supplies of the approved proposals were mailed to the students mid-May. The students worked on their projects throughout the summer at their homes with online guidance from their project advisor. In Summer 2020, five research projects that were related to transportation, utility, and energy infrastructure were funded. Each project had a unique theoretical background. An important selection criterion was the potential for the project to be expanded upon into a full undergraduate research project in the 2020-21 Academic Year and that may lead students presenting at the virtual National Conference on Undergraduate Research (NCUR) 2021. The initial findings of the project were presented to the research center via a Zoom conference call at the end of Summer 2020. Moreover, the groups that concluded their projects on time also presented in national platforms, including NCUR. The impact of the SURE program on undergraduate researchers were assessed via follow-up survey and meetings. This paper focusses on the impact of the SURE program on the students' technical ability, communication skills, educational experience, and future professional experiences. Additionally, the advisors provided positive feedback on their experience with the projects and undergraduate researchers. The initial success of the first SURE program caught the attention of the Undergraduate Research Center (URC) of the MSUM. URC adopted SURE as a permanent program and funds summer research projects, especially from disciplines that typically receive limited financial support. © American Society for Engineering Education, 2022.
ABSTRACT
This Work-in-Progress paper presents an alternative approach to use social media not only to engage students but also to motivate them academically by showcasing success stories of graduating senior students. The U.S. Department of Education sponsored the Yes She Can program at The University of Texas at El Paso to contribute to the education of women students in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) disciplines. The use of social media became a key component of the Yes She Can program, especially during the COVID 19 pandemic. The Yes She Can program has published four types of social media posts, namely: 1) Quote of the week, 2) Announcements of events and opportunities, 3) Stories of famous people, and 4) Student success stories. While the content of the first three social media posts is self-explained, the 'student success stories' posts were generated from information provided by senior students through an online survey, specifically graduating women students. By showcasing 'student success stories' posts during the spring of 2021, our social media disseminated information of 14 internships, 20 scholarships, 23 conferences, 34 student organizations, 16 research programs, and 27 community service opportunities that are available at our university. From this study, the 'student success stories' posts were identified as a promising strategy to not only increase students' engagement but to inspire and motivate younger students to succeed academically in STEM education. © American Society for Engineering Education, 2022
ABSTRACT
The amount of air traffic is rapidly recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic and beginning to rise above previous levels. As a result, the VHF band is expected to become saturated in the near future, harmfully affecting air traffic management. As one solution for the increased need for aeronautical connectivity, the terrestrial LDACS data link has been designed and is in the process of ICAO standardization. However, LDACS development has been primarily focused on data communication and digital voice protocols have not been fully defined yet. This paper presents the proposed LDACS digital voice architecture developed in the framework of the Single European Sky ATM Research (SESAR) program. The LDACS digital voice air-ground communication protocol is validated and evaluated in computer simulations. It is shown that the SESAR-specified functional and performance requirements are satisfied. © 2022 IEEE.
ABSTRACT
Research internships provide students with invaluable experience conducting independent research, contributing to larger research programs, and embedding in a professional scientific setting. These experiences increase student persistence in ecology and other science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields and promote the inclusion of students who lack opportunities at their home institutions and/or are from groups that are underrepresented in STEM. While many ecology internship programs were canceled during the 2020 COVID‐19 pandemic, others successfully adapted to offer virtual internships for the first time. Though different from what many researchers and students envision when they think of internships, virtual ecology internship programs can create more accessible opportunities and be just as valuable as in‐person opportunities when research programs and advisors develop virtual internships with intention and planning. Here, we highlight six ways to structure a virtual intern project, spanning a spectrum from purely computer‐based opportunities (e.g., digital data gathering, data analysis, or synthesis) to fully hands‐on research (e.g., sample processing or home‐based experiments). We illustrate examples of these virtual projects through a case study of the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center's 2020 Virtual Internship Program. Next, we provide 10 recommendations for effectively developing a virtual internship program. Finally, we end with ways that virtual internships can avoid the limitations of in‐person internships, as well as possible solutions to perceived pitfalls of virtual internships. While virtual internships became a necessity in 2020 due to COVID‐19, the development and continuation of virtual internships in future can be a valuable tool to add to the suite of existing internship opportunities, possibly further promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion in ecology and STEM.
ABSTRACT
The Transfer-to-Excellence Summer Research Program is an exciting opportunity for community college students to conduct hands-on research in the labs of faculty at the University of California, Berkeley. Funded by the National Science Foundation and a private foundation, the program seeks to inspire students to transfer and complete a bachelor's degree in science or engineering. Typically, a nine-week residential program, the 2020 Transfer-to-Excellence program was greatly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and a state-wide Shelter-in-Place order. This paper details the successful transition of the Transfer-to-Excellence program to an online format, including remote research projects, mentoring, boot camp, professional development, and community building events. Analysis of quantitative evaluation data demonstrates that, despite the remote format, interns had a very positive internship experience and highly satisfying mentoring relationships with graduate students. Most notably, the internship significantly enhanced students' confidence to succeed as a student in science and engineering, and self-efficacy in their research skills. This paper and poster presentation will provide a model for similar NSF funded programs pursuing an online format. The administrative team expects such transitions to become increasingly common for various reasons, including the need to adapt to unexpected health and environmental barriers, reducing cost, and expanding access to nontraditional students unable to participate in residential programs. © American Society for Engineering Education, 2021
ABSTRACT
During the fall 2020 semester, nine students were recruited to participate in a UAS cybersecurity-focused undergraduate research experience. Three faculty members each identified a small topic area for undergraduate students to pursue. The three areas are: 1. Small UAS (sUAS) Vulnerability and Threat Assessment and Mitigation 2. Effects of Cyber Attacks on Communication in UAS Swarms with Distributed Swarm Control 3. Enhancing Security of Cloud-Connected UAS Services Students were placed onto teams based on their prior course experiences and the project requirements. Common resources were provided for all students to train them in conducting research. Teams were then tasked with developing a more comprehensive research plan for their specific project and carrying out that plan throughout the 2020-2021 academic year. Students completed a pre-survey at the start of the project and a mid-project survey shortly after the winter break. The surveys combined project specific skills questions as well as relevant questions from the Undergraduate Research Student Self-Assessment (URSSA), an NSF-funded assessment tool to measure student gains in research skills. This work-in-progress paper will describe the broader project, the individual student team projects, the research training materials, and some of the results from the pre- and mid-project surveys. Additional discussion will be had regarding the COVID-related precautions implemented by both the institution and the project teams. The purpose of this paper is to provide an example approach for future undergraduate research programs looking for practical approaches to implementing undergraduate research programs, particularly those in the cybersecurity area. © American Society for Engineering Education, 2021
ABSTRACT
With this short essay, we aim to raise awareness of the NTU Institute of Science and Technology for Humanity (NISTH) initiative and to invite our colleagues to partake in the research programs we hope to see initiated at NISTH in years to come. In particular, building on the launch of the Institute, supplemented by the extraordinary global experience of COVID-19, we suggest ways in which STS scholars from around the world might contribute to the public conversation regarding the 4IR and thereby also to the ways in which the relationships between technology, states, and citizens might be imagined with specific reference to Asia’s future.
ABSTRACT
The dramatic change in various spheres of daily life caused by the COVID-19 virus epidemic has had many ambiguous effects on the Latvian fisheries sector. As part of a national research program project reCOVery-LV to study the virus’s effect on the supply chain, LLU researchers concluded that Latvian fish processing demonstrates a multidirectional effect. The interpretation of statistics and the interviews conducted confirmed the hypothesis that the virus has had negative and positive effects within one sector of the economy. This industry heterogeneity places high demands on support criteria, making them more targeted for successful risk management. The research aims to analyze the fishery sector and identify the COVID-19 pandemic effect on Latvia’s fish sector. As part of the study, all stages of the fish food chain were studied, risks were identified, their relative relevance was determined, and measures were proposed to neutralize these risks. This article summarizes the results of the study, prioritizes the implementation of countermeasures that reduce risks and are recommended by the results of the risk assessment, and complement the results of the study, identifies measures aimed at the long-term and sustainable development of the industry, based on the lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic. © 2021, Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies. All rights reserved.