Award Abstract #0215809
MRI/RUI Proposal for Instrumentation of Environmental Research Laboratories
NSF Org: |
CMMI
Division of Civil, Mechanical, and Manufacturing Innovation
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Initial Amendment Date: |
July 29, 2002 |
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Latest Amendment Date: |
July 29, 2002 |
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Award Number: |
0215809 |
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Award Instrument: |
Standard Grant |
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Program Manager: |
Richard J. Fragaszy
CMMI Division of Civil, Mechanical, and Manufacturing Innovation
ENG Directorate for Engineering
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Start Date: |
August 1, 2002 |
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Expires: |
July 31, 2004 (Estimated) |
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Awarded Amount to Date: |
$366364 |
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Investigator(s): |
Roger Ruggles rugglesr@lafayette.edu (Principal Investigator)
Mary Roth (Co-Principal Investigator) David Brandes (Co-Principal Investigator) Arthur Kney (Co-Principal Investigator) Javad Tavakoli (Co-Principal Investigator)
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Sponsor: |
Lafayette College
High Street
Easton, PA 18042 610/330-5029
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NSF Program(s): |
MAJOR RESEARCH INSTRUMENTATION
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Field Application(s): |
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Program Reference Code(s): |
CVIS, 1057
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Program Element Code(s): |
1189
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ABSTRACT
Through the Major Research Instrumentation Program, 18 instruments will be purchased to provide an instrumentation framework for an integrated environmental research program at Lafayette College. The acquisition of these instruments, when coupled with the existing equipment and the recently initiated renovation of the laboratory space within the department, will produce a laboratory environment in which faculty can conduct high quality research related to the environment and provide advanced undergraduate students the opportunity to explore the underlying scientific and technical principals for a wide range of environmental measurement techniques.
The project provides the advanced instrumentation required to adequately address the research needs of the sophisticated environmental problems facing the world today and provides training opportunities to undergraduates in research related to the environment. Faculty members will use the proposed equipment to expand their current environmental research programs of which most are conducted with undergraduates. In addition, the proposed equipment would benefit up to 21 courses offered by 7 faculty at Lafayette College. Approximately 200 undergraduate students per year are enrolled in these courses and will use the equipment to develop valuable laboratory and research skills. Typically 12 to 18 of these students will carry these skills into Independent Study courses, Thesis projects or sponsored research with faculty during their junior or senior years. A majority of these research students will continue their research in graduate programs.
The intellectual merits of this project are threefold: the enhancement of the research opportunities for both faculty and advanced undergraduate students; the improvement of student learning; and development of new pedagogical methods of laboratory instruction.
The broader impacts of this project include the development of outreach programs directed primarily towards underrepresented groups encouraging participants to explore environmental studies, the dissemination of pedagogical developments through conference presentations and journal articles, the development of multi- and interdisciplinary courses within the environmental programs offered institution wide and the training of undergraduate researchers who will carry their experience on to various industries or graduate programs.
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