Symposium Organizers
BarbaraM. Olds National Science Foundation
Daniel Steinberg Princeton University
Aditi Risbud Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Symposium Support
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Department of Energy Office of Science
Princeton Center for Complex Materials
Renewable Energy Materials Research Science and Engineering Center-Colorado School of Mines/NREL
SS3: Poster Session: Technology
Session Chairs
Barbara Olds
Aditi Risbud
Daniel Steinberg
Tuesday PM, April 26, 2011
Exhibition Hall (Moscone West)
1:00 AM - SS3: Poster: Tec
SS3.8 Transferred to SS1.4
Show AbstractSS1: K-12 Curriculum Development and Teacher Professional Development
Session Chairs
Tuesday PM, April 26, 2011
Golden Gate C2 (Marriott)
9:30 AM - **SS1.1
Nanoscience for High School Students.
Sarah Tolbert 1
1 Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, UCLA, Los Angeles, California, United States
Show AbstractThe UCLA High School Nanoscience Program, which is sponsored by the California NanoSystems Institute (CNSI) and two NSF-IGERT programs, aims to foster excitement about science and engineering in high-school students from across greater Los Angeles. In the program, we strive to integrate nanoscience experiments into the prescribed high school curriculum. To that end we developed nanoscience or nanoenginnering experiments that demonstrate fundamental concepts about chemistry, physics, and biology. The experiments give students hands-on experience with materials, methods, and devices, including self-assembly, magnetic fluids, chemical sensors, solar cells, photolithography, superhydrophobic surfaces, water filtration, and the toxicity of nanoscale systems compared to similar materials in bulk form. In the program, UCLA graduate students and postdoctoral scholars train teachers to do the experiments during monthly workshops held on the UCLA campus. Afterwards teachers are given experimental kits to bring to their classrooms. To date, we have partnered with more than 100 LA area schools that encompass the entire southern California region, including Los Angeles, Orange and Riverside Counties. We have provided instruction to well over 200 teachers and through them, we have engaged many thousands of students. In this talk, we will describe our program, the experiments in our current workshops, and the basic science and nanoscience concepts that can be taught using those experiments. We will discuss the successes and failures of our program, and we will provide some advice for people looking to start a similar program at their university. Overall, the feedback from teachers about our program has been very positive and they tell us that the nanoscience experiments engage their students. In some cases, teachers have permanently modified their curriculum to teach fundamental concepts using nanoscience rather than by more traditional means. At the university level, the program also connects graduate students and post docs to a real need within our schools and allows them to be part of the solution.
10:00 AM - SS1.2
Teaching Nanoscience with Technology: Nanoscience Webquests for Middle and High School Students.
Andrew Greenberg 1 2 3 , Jeanne Nye 4 2 3
1 Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States, 2 Nanoscale Science and Engineering Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States, 3 Institute for Chemical Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States, 4 , Lake Mills Middle School, Lake Mills, Wisconsin, United States
Show AbstractThe University of Wisconsin-Madison Nanoscale Science and Engineering Center (NSEC) has authored a series of web-browser based lessons to help K-12 teachers to integrate nanoscience and engineering into their classroom curricula. The four web-based lessons cover topics such as nanoscience in nature, societal implications of nanotechnology, and positive and negative environmental impacts of nanoscience and engineering. The webquests include detailed information for easy integration into K-12 classrooms. Included with each webquest is student assessment materials and state and national science education standards for easy implementation. The authors will discuss best practices in lesson development and classroom implementation.
10:15 AM - SS1.3
An Elective Materials Science Course for High School Seniors.
Schuyler Patton 1 , Russell Composto 2 3 , Karen Winey 2 3 , Andrew McGhie 3
1 Science, Central High School, Philadelphia , Pennsylvania, United States, 2 M.S.E., University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia , Pennsylvania, United States, 3 L.R.S.M., University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Show AbstractWe will describe a year-long, introductory materials science course for high school students created and developed by Schulyer Patton with input from faculty and staff associated with Penn MRSEC. This course was started in 2008 with one section of 34 students and today has expanded to two sections accommodating 66 students. This innovative course includes lectures and reverse engineering laboratories that explore materials in applications like toasters and iPods. The course objectives are to 1) Apply principles from natural science to explore the chemical and physical properties of materials using real-world examples (e.g., food, iPod, Challenger, LCDs, glass blowing, silly putty) and 2) Demonstrate processing, structure, properties, and performance relationships for all materials. Characterization of materials was greatly aided by the donation of a new testing machine by Instron. The complete course outline will be presented. Based on the success of this course, workshops on materials labs for teachers have also been introduced in summer, 2010 at the Penn MRSEC.
10:30 AM - SS1.4
Identification of New and Emerging Trends Using Advanced Science Convergence Based Curriculum.
Ashok Vaseashta 1 2 3 , Eric Braman 1 2 , Philip Susmann 1 2 , James Giordano 3 , Yuri Dekhtyar 1 4
1 Institute for Advanced Sciences Convergence, NUARI, Herndon, Virginia, United States, 2 , NUARI, Northfield, Vermont, United States, 3 Center for Neurotechnology Studies, Potomac Institute for Policy Studies, Arlington, Virginia, United States, 4 Institute of Biomedical Engineering and Microtechnologies, Riga Technical University, Riga Latvia
Show AbstractParadigmatically, advanced sciences convergence (ASC) conjoins discrete scientific fields (e.g. - biochemistry, genetics, nanoscience neuro- and cognitive science, cyberscience) to address and attempt to resolve complex (and often seemingly intractable) problems by developing systems’-based multi-dimensional and disciplinary approach(es). The convergence process requires monitoring domestic and international developments in multiple disciplines to understand how different scientific fields can be coalesced to achieve far-reaching goals that may be as yet only ambiguously defined, but can be described in terms of desired actions, qualities or ends. Critical to this paradigm and process is the early identification and ongoing monitoring of emerging advances across multiple scientific disciplines that create revolutionary, integrated and cross-cutting technologies to break through existing barriers, constraints and limitations in the decisional methodologies required to yield novel solutions. Toward this objective, we have developed a new methodological approach, Technology Foresight and Road Mapping (TechFARM) - a multi-disciplinary integrative process to identify, analyze and engage emerging trends, solution paths, and guidance that is necessary for high-level, scientific and technological (S&T) decision-making, as required and articulated by industries, government agencies, and non-government organizations working in the healthcare, public and national defense sectors. TechFARM is a multi-dimensional, multi-path mapping technique that entails several different scientific fields to extract solution paths for specific problem sets. These data mining operations are focused upon areas that have been identified through the strategic planning process as having high potential for meeting some desired characteristics of the solution system. Constant cross-pollination among multiple disciplines is required to identify emerging patterns within the scientific community. These operations are the basis for the application(s) of a comprehensive and systematic approach for identifying innovative solution paths. In this presentation, we provide for the first time, a basic curriculum of advanced sciences convergence that has been developed by our team. The fundamental courses describe, detail, and follow proposed methodologies that are unique and designed to enable broadly applicable guidance, recommendations, and investment strategy development that can be employed and utilized in a variety of problem sets, As well, the outcome(s) of these ASC-based courses can be tailored to specific scenarios, applications and more particular problems, as required. This presentation will provide details on the novel paradigm of sciences convergence and will elucidate the potential benefits and challenges that arise in and from such an approach.
11:15 AM - SS1.5
Inquiry Based Learning in Materials Science at the Micro/Nano Scale in Arkansas Middle Schools
Clayton Schenk 1 , Morgan Roddy 1 , Rob Sleezer 1 , Ronna Turner 1 , Morgan Ware 1 , Greg Salamo 1
1 , The University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas, United States
Show AbstractThere is significant need to encourage the development of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education at all grade levels. Recognizing the power of an investigative approach in teaching STEM, the goal of the University of Arkansas, National Science Foundation, GK-12 program, is to seize this opportunity and transition the current education approach to one that emphasizes student learning through their wonder of how things work. Our program called “K-12, I Do Science” or KIDS, is based on the learning through doing paradigm, and is presented to middle school teachers and to their students by graduate students in science, mathematics, and engineering. For this program, we will present our research findings for a study designed to teach and evaluate learning of micro/nano scale materials, properties and phenomenon, as well as general materials science concepts. The study examines the effectiveness of our approach and demonstrates that middle school students can grasp advanced materials concepts when taught through inquiry. Students were evaluated with a pre and post test that examines basic material science concepts, specific knowledge, and grasp of the scientific process. The lessons are divided into two parts; 1) Some Things Are Small and 2) Small Things Are Different. Each lesson incorporates inquiry based learning as well as the use of advanced technology such as a Portable Scanning Electron Microscope. One lesson that will be discussed develops student’s understanding and conceptualization of the macro/micro scale through a student lead, teacher facilitated, scientific inquiry of the properties of a lotus leaf. The lotus leaf has unique water repelling properties that result from a micro/nano hierarchical surface texture and serves as a poignant and practical example of a material property that is derived from morphology and composition. Another lesson to be discussed builds on the first lesson and introduces natural and synthetic composites. For example, carbon fiber and wood have properties that are derived from the physical arrangement of their constituent elements rather than composition alone. Our study will include results that evaluate the level of inquiry based instruction and the degree to which our students are engaged in material science experiences beyond typical classroom instruction including the scientific method, scientific inquiry, and advanced technology.
11:30 AM - SS1.6
Incorporating Authentic Scientific Research and The Nature of Science Into the High School Classroom.
Amber Strunk 1 , Kelli Gamez Warble 2 , Robert Nemanich 3 , Robert Culbertson 3
1 , Paradise Valley High School, Phoenix, Arizona, United States, 2 , Arizona School for the Arts, Phoenix, Arizona, United States, 3 Physics, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, United States
Show AbstractThe true nature of scientific research, often neglected in science education and pre-service teacher training, is critical to student conceptual understanding of how science works. Many education students leave school with the naive view that science is a collection of facts rather than a dynamic process of inquiring into nature. The ASU Math and Science Teaching Fellows (MSTF) program gives in-service math and science teachers an opportunity to experience scientific research by immersion in active research groups in state-of-the-art laboratories. With a better understanding of what science looks like in actual research laboratories, these teachers implement direct instruction in the Nature of Science in their classrooms. Research that was conducted by teachers in a nanoscience laboratory and how they plan to implement their experiences into their high school classes will be presented.Supported by Science Foundation Arizona and the National Science Foundation, DMR-0805353.
11:45 AM - SS1.7
The Impact of Summer Research Experience for Science Teachers on Classroom Instruction.
Tapati Sen 1 , Dale Baker 1 , Robert Culbertson 2
1 Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, United States, 2 Physics Department, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, United States
Show AbstractMore than 100 science and mathematics teachers have participated in the ASU Math and Science Teaching Fellows program for summers in 2007-2010 at Arizona State University. Teachers spent five weeks (2008, 2009) or four weeks (2007, 2010) on the Arizona State University campus during the summers. During these summer sessions, groups of 1-4 teachers spent mornings immersed in active scientific research groups. Some of the research projects that the teachers participated in were: Service Oriented Programming, Bio-Nanotechnology Design, Membrane Proteins, Disease Models, Fuel Cells, Ecology CAP_LTER, Telomerase RNP enzyme, Nanobiophysics, Pd Nanoparticles, Nanosurfaces, Protein Film Voltametry, and NMR Spider Lab. The teachers spent their afternoons in a workshop that focused on curriculum development, the nature of science, and technology. During the afternoon sessions the teachers worked on developing a poster on the research topic and developing a classroom unit on integrating the research topic into the high school curriculum. The present study focuses on the impact of the research experiences on the teachers' classrooms and the differences between a larger and longer program (37 teachers for 5 weeks in 2009) and a smaller and shorter program (8 teachers for 4 weeks in 2010). The teachers of the 2009 cohort worked in their research groups whereas the 2010 cohort worked individually to put together a poster on the research topic during the summer program, which they presented at the end of the summer program. The teachers have shown to emphasize a lot more on procedural knowledge and working of the scientific instruments in their posters. A lesson plan template was provided and discussed during the summer program and a completed draft lesson plan was collected at the end of the summer session. Teachers were required to implement the planned lesson during the school year. Teachers were also interviewed after the lesson implementation. The lesson plans were coded based on a rubric. Twenty teachers submitted a lesson plan in 2009, and four lesson plans had a score above 80%. All eight teachers in 2010 submitted a lesson plan, and four had a score above 80%. Only seven teachers in 2009 invited the observers to observe their lessons and so far only two teachers of 2010 cohort have invited observers. The teachers are reluctant to be observed and in most case multiple follow-ups have to be made before they allow to be observed. Out of the 10 lessons that have been observed during the two years, eight teachers implemented well-planned lessons. Seven of these eight lessons, however, were designed with ideas taken from preexisting lessons. Only one teacher has so far implemented a lesson that was developed from scratch based on ideas taken from the research experience. The interpretations and implications of the study will be discussed.
12:00 PM - SS1.8
Glenn Commission….This is High School Science ….We Have Liftoff!
Michael Ireland 1 2 , Daniel Steinberg 2
1 Science, Perkiomen School, Pennsburg, Pennsylvania, United States, 2 Materials Science, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, United States
Show AbstractBeing a dedicated and enthusiastic high school science teacher is not enough to successfully prepare our children to take on the challenges of the 21st century and live up to its potential. We need high quality professional development opportunities in order to enrich our subject knowledge and teaching skills and reflect these skills in our craft. I have had the excellent fortune to experience a top quality professional development program at the Princeton Center for Complex Materials (PCCM), a National Science Foundation funded Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC). My experience with the PCCM programs has demonstrated to me how a truly effective program can change lives. Over the past six consecutive summers I have gained invaluable experience starting with the Research Experience for Teachers (RET) program and subsequent involvement with the Princeton University Materials Academy (PUMA) and other PCCM programs that have provided me with the necessary resources to improve my teaching skills, depth of knowledge in my discipline and enable me to sustain a higher quality science program at my school. Through the RET program, I engaged directly with materials science professors for two consecutive summers who were enthusiastic about helping improve my teaching skills and supportive of my pursuit to improve the science program at my school. This experience has led to the development of two new courses I have been able to offer for the past four years in Chemistry and Materials Science designed to engage students through hands on experiences and inquiry learning. It was this experience that became the catalyst for me to further collaborate with local industry professionals who joined my cause and also helped in the development of one of the two new courses. Through this presentation I will expand on my experience and demonstrate how others can maximize opportunities provided by MRSEC educational outreach programs and develop their own materials science courses.The Glenn Commission report, released ten years ago, detailed goals and associated action strategies to deliver high-quality teaching, including professional development and providing opportunities for teachers to engage in common study. This presentation will address these goals and strategies to overcome obstacles. The best value-added programs that I have experienced are those where professional relationships can be forged through a significant and meaningful experience such as those I experienced with the MRSEC. Through these relationships, support networks can be established to help sustain knowledge and initiatives to provide a world-class education for our children.
12:15 PM - SS1.9
Teeny Tiny Science: A Nanoscience Teacher Workshop.
Michael Rathbun 4 , Andrew Greenberg 1 2 3
4 , Discovery Center Museum, Rockford, Illinois, United States, 1 Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States, 2 Nanoscale Science and Engineering Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States, 3 Institute for Chemical Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States
Show AbstractThe Discovery Center Museum in Rockford, IL in collaboration with the University of Wisconsin-Madison Nanoscale Science and Engineering Center host an annual teacher workshop to help K-12 teachers to integrate nanoscale science and engineering topics across their curriculum. The two day interactive workshops lets teachers explore the wonders of nanoscale science and engineering through a series of hands-on lessons that are easily integrated into a middle and high school classroom. Topics covered in the workshop include; size and scale, forms of carbon, sensing at the nanoscale, and societal implications of nanoscience. At the end of the workshop teachers are given a complete set of lessons for easy classroom implementation. This talk will give a basic overview of the workshop structure along with basic evaluation data collected about the program.
12:30 PM - SS1.10
Integrating Outreach, Assessment, Technology with Teacher and Student Activities.
Jennifer Strong 1 , Joseph Schneiderwind 1 , Megan Yoder 1 , Barbara Moskal 1
1 Department of Mathematical and Computer Sciences, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, Colorado, United States
Show AbstractThe NSF funded Renewable Energy Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (NSF, DMR-0820518) at the Colorado School of Mines (CSM) is involved in kindergarten through eighth grade (K-8) outreach directed at maintaining student interest in science and engineering through hands-on activities in their classrooms. The partnership is a collaboration with the Center for Assessment in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) at the Colorado School of Mines, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, the National Science Foundation (NSF) funded GK-12 Learning Partnerships (NSF, DGE-0638719) and the Bechtel K-5 Educational Excellence Initiative. The partnership has programs designed for students and their teachers. The partnership focuses on teacher training beginning with a two-week summer workshop for the participating teachers. During these summer workshops, teachers are presented with information and activities drawn from energy, energy-efficient materials, and alternative and renewable energy concepts. The goal is to use energy concepts, which are of current interest, to generate enthusiasm among the teachers and their students for STEM activities. Teachers engage in activities on electricity and magnetism, circuits, conductors, insulators, batteries, solar cells, fuel cells, wind energy, geothermal energy, and hydro energy, as examples. Teachers are then assisted throughout the academic year by scientists, researchers and graduate students who provide direct classroom support for a variety of activities which evolve from the summer workshop. Activities which have been translated to the classroom include measuring the power consumption of household appliances, learning about states of matter with corn starch and water, exploring how materials behave at different temperatures with liquid nitrogen, and learning about properties of gases, heat, and air pressure by sucking an egg into a bottle. Summer programs and after school clubs are also taught by graduate students and offered to students attending the participating schools. To support remote communication with a rural district, Meeker County, ExxonMobil has funded an interactive video link between the district and CSM. Through this link, faculty are able to visit the classroom without leaving the campus. Formative and summative assessment plans for each of these activities have been developed and implemented to measure cognitive, affective and behavioral domains of student and teacher learning.
SS3: Poster Session: Technology
Session Chairs
Barbara Olds
Aditi Risbud
Daniel Steinberg
Tuesday PM, April 26, 2011
Exhibition Hall (Moscone West)
6:00 PM - SS3.1
Observing Progressive Color Change through the Growth of Silver Nanoprisms: An Undergraduate Laboratory Experiment.
Kyle McElhinny 1 , Sheyla Benitez 1 , Katie Cadwell 1 , Greta Zenner Petersen 1 , George Lisensky 1 2 , Jamie Eversage 2
1 MRSEC , University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States, 2 Chemistry, Beloit College, Beloit, Wisconsin, United States
Show AbstractThis newly developed experiment for a general chemistry or physics laboratory course introduces undergraduate students to nanoscale science early in their careers. In particular, it explores the phenomenon of surface plasmon resonance, while reinforcing ideas such as redox chemistry, particle size, colloids, and spectroscopy. Students synthesize increasingly larger colloidal silver nanoprisms and estimate particle size using visible spectroscopy. The synthesis reaction reduces silver nitrate to produce “seed” particles approximately 5-10nm in size that show a plasmon absorbance in the range of 400-420nm. Subsequent reduction of silver nitrate by L-ascorbic acid results in an easily controllable growth of the seed particles to approximately 50-60 nm particles. As particle size increases, the color of the colloid changes from yellow to orange, to red, to purple, to turquoise and blue. Students estimate particle size based on an empirical model developed by comparing TEM and UV-Vis spectroscopy data. Then, students are asked compare nanoscale properties to macroscale properties and rationalize their results. Previous silver nanoparticle laboratories have synthesized solutions of single-size particles. In contrast, this laboratory synthesizes a range of particle sizes, which allows students to correlate the color of the solution to the particle size and to explain the relationship between a material’s visible, macroscale properties and its nanoscale structure and composition. Students gain valuable experience with materials characterization, as well as a useful analogue for future encounters with nanoscale science and other nanoscale properties.
6:00 PM - SS3.3
Material Science Internet Remote Experiments: Solid State Photovoltaic Inorganic and Organic/Inorganic Nanoheterostructural Cell Characterization in Teaching.
Franz Schauer 1 2 , Miroslava Ozvoldova 2 1 , Frantisek Lustig 3
1 Applied Informatics, Tomas Bata University, Zlin Czech Republic, 2 Faculty of Education, Trnava University in Trnava, Trnava Slovakia, 3 Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University in Prague, Prague Czech Republic
Show AbstractE-learning is developing along the lines combining multiple approaches in teaching, but till now, it has not included virtual or remote experiments to form a unified body of information, denoted by Integrated e-learning ( INTe-L) [1]. The paper describes how the scientifically exact and problem-solving oriented remote experiments across the Internet for Material Science may be built using the hardware ISES and the server-client approach and generally available software ISES WEB CONTROL. Specifically we deal with a solid-state photovoltaic cell characterization with all the features of the exact scientific experiment. We use two photovoltaic systems, one standard bulk p-i-n Si photovoltaic solar cell, the other the thin film organic-inorganic nanoheterostructural cell composed of PPV(polymer)–CdS(nanoparticles)[2].The materials, delivered to the client, using only web browser, are given in Introduction, necessary physics is in Physical Background and the experiment arrangement in Experiment (part of the experiment is already visible on http://www.ises.info/index.php/en/laboratory/experiment/solar-energy-conversion). Besides, the experiments are used in the course Physical basis of Informatics elements delivered by LMS system MOODLE with the strategy of INTe-L. The first pedagogical experience gained in Tomas Bata University in Zlin, Czech Republic, with this remote experimentation and INTe-L strategy of Material Science in teaching and examinations is presented.[1] F. Schauer, M.Ozvoldova and F. Lustig: Integrated e-Learning – New Strategy of Cognition of Real World in Teaching Physics, in Innovations 2009 (USA), World Innovations in Engineering Education and Research iNEER Special Volume 2009, chapter 11 pages 119-135, ISBN 978-0-9741252-9-9, [2] J. Rohovec, J. Touskova, J. Tousek, F. Schauer, I.Kuritka: New cadmium sulfide nanomaterial for heterogenic organic photovoltaic cells, World Renewable Energy Congress (WREC 2011) , Linkoping, Sweden, May 2011.
6:00 PM - SS3.5
Low-Cost 3D Virtual Reality Environments and their Effectiveness on Nanoscience Learning.
Lilian Davila 1 , Teenie Matlock 2 , Claudia Flores 2
1 School of Engineering, University of California Merced, Merced, California, United States, 2 School of Social Sciences, Humanities, and Arts, University of California Merced, Merced, California, United States
Show AbstractIn nanoscience the mind must rely on the visual ability to perceive nanoscale structures in three dimensions. Hence, it is important to facilitate visualization pathways in this field to better understand structure-property relationships in these unique materials. Spatial intelligence has proven to be a determining factor in the success of nanoscience students. Students rely heavily on internal visualization in order to understand possible structure-property associations in the control of matter on an atomic and molecular scale. Therefore, it is imperative to develop instruction and training materials to help students with complex spatial tasks, i.e. imaging technologies dedicated to facilitating spatial thinking. Our research focused on assessing the impact of a low-cost 3D Virtual Reality environment on visualization and observing the interactions of undergraduate interns with different types of teaching materials in an attempt to evaluate the effectiveness of this environment established at UC Merced for nanoscience research. This visualization system involves the use of a specialized display, sensors, computers and equipment based on immersive environment technology. Our investigation consisted of three stages where students learned about carbon nanotubes (CNTs) via traditional methods, using physical models and virtual models. Traditional methods of learning nanoscience were found not appealing to the students and did not facilitate depth perception. Physical models motivated students by allowing interactivity, but success depended on an individual’s reasoning, planning and executing of motor actions. Virtual models emulated the structure of realistic CNTs, while offering complete manipulation in 3D, real-time measurements and the capability of mimicking attractive/repulsive forces, giving the user a better understanding of CNTs compared to traditional methods.
6:00 PM - SS3.6
Immersive Environments as an Interactive Learning Tool in Materials Science Education.
Lilian Davila 1 , Benjamin Doblack 1 , Maribel Gallardo 1
1 School of Engineering, University of California Merced, Merced, California, United States
Show AbstractMaterials science is an interdisciplinary field that examines the structure-property relationships in matter for applications in many areas of science and engineering. Providing a means for instinctual development of understanding of these relationships to young learners and university undergraduates alike is critical. The effectiveness of an immersive low-cost 3D virtual reality environment was evaluated during a pilot study sponsored by the Center of Integrated Nanomechanical Systems program. Our 3D VR environment consists of a specialized display, sensors, computers, and immersive technology equipment. In collaboration with Cognitive Science investigators, our research focused on understanding the impact of the 3D VR environment on the visual ability to perceive structures in three dimensions and on quantifying the learning of student participants. The premise of the research study was to measure the learning of several undergraduate participants in order to evaluate the quality of the learning environment. In this work, we present specifics on setting up a low-cost 3D VR environment for nanoscience materials science projects and show how we use this system to model nanostructures in undergraduate learning activities. While immersive environments offer virtual models with some similar benefits to using physical models, it is the extended features (e.g. accurate distance representation, computer simulations capability and analysis tools for further investigations) that make these environments an effective learning tool for material science learning. Research suggests that highly accurate perception of a molecular structure is facilitated by the use of immersive environments in which the operator may manipulate and measure important intrinsic information about the structure. Moreover, computer simulations of materials are of great scientific interest for technological progress. The immersive 3D VR environment is presently being developed to perform atomistic simulations via the compute unified device architecture, enabling scientists to perform highly accelerated calculations to solve problems with performance enhancements in the range of 150x over conventional methods. Another important value in the immersive 3D VR environment is its potential use for multi-disciplinary research, influencing fields such as materials science, chemistry, nanotechnology, cognitive science and computer science.
Symposium Organizers
BarbaraM. Olds National Science Foundation
Daniel Steinberg Princeton University
Aditi Risbud Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Symposium Support
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Department of Energy Office of Science
Princeton Center for Complex Materials
Renewable Energy Materials Research Science and Engineering Center-Colorado School of Mines/NREL
SS5: Undergraduate and Graduate Education
Session Chairs
Wednesday PM, April 27, 2011
Golden Gate C2 (Marriott)
2:30 PM - **SS5.1
Guided Inquiry Learning in the Materials Engineering Classroom.
Elliot Douglas 1
1 Materials Science and Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, United States
Show AbstractRecently there has been an increasing awareness of the effectiveness of various types of active learning approaches. The literature shows that, while there may be differences depending on the type of method chosen, the experience of the instructor, and the characteristics of the students, in general active learning techniques result in improved student outcomes, particularly when deep learning is the goal. In addition to the empirical research showing improvement on various learning outcomes, the use of active learning is also supported by cognitive models of learning. This paper discusses the implementation of one type of active learning, Process-Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL), in the Introduction to Materials course. In a POGIL class, the instructor does not lecture. Rather students work in teams, typically of four students, to complete worksheets. The worksheets contain three components: 1) Data or information as background material; 2) Critical thinking questions, which are designed to lead the students to understanding the fundamental concepts represented by the data, and 3) Application exercises, which provide the students with practice in solving problems using the concepts they have derived. The instructor’s role is to guide the students, walking around the room and probing them with questions to check their understanding. Worksheets have been developed that cover the typical topics of a one semester Introduction to Materials course. The first part of this paper will focus on how POGIL was implemented, as well as results from qualitative interviews used for formative assessment.Despite several studies that show the effectiveness of POGIL, there is little known about how student learning occurs in a POGIL classroom. Therefore, a parallel study was undertaken to answer the following research question: How do students construct knowledge in a POGIL classroom? Interviews were conducted with eleven students in the second semester general chemistry course at a small liberal arts college in the Rocky Mountain region. These interviews are being analyzed using constructivist grounded theory to develop a description of how learning occurs in the POGIL classroom. To date the following main themes have been identified: time to adapt; conceptual understanding; developing concepts for themselves; working in groups; opportunities to practice; and ownership of learning. This paper will describe these themes in detail as well as the overall theory that emerges from the data.
3:00 PM - SS5.2
Research Experiences for Undergraduates in Renewable Energy.
Chuck Stone 1
1 Department of Physics, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, Colorado, United States
Show AbstractIn September 2008 the National Science Foundation awarded the Colorado School of Mines (CSM) a six-year grant [1] to establish the Renewable Energy Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (REMRSEC). REMRSEC consists of an interdisciplinary team of 38 CSM faculty from the Departments of Chemical Engineering, Chemistry and Geochemistry, Liberal Arts and International Studies, Mathematical and Computer Sciences, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, and Physics, in addition to faculty from Academic Computing and Networking; Center for Assessment of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics; Center for Engineering Education; and the Division of Engineering. REMRSEC faculty collaborate closely with 18 scientific staff at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) [2]. NREL, located less than five miles from CSM, is the nation's primary laboratory for renewable energy and energy efficiency research and development. REMRSEC faculty also partner with scientists in the Center for Revolutionary Solar Photoconversion [3], a research center of the Colorado Renewable Energy Collaboratory [4], and approximately 20 other local alternative energy companies. Through these associations, REMRSEC has two fundamental research goals: (1)To harness unique properties of nanostructured materials to significantly enhance the performance of next-generation photovoltaic devices, and (2)To develop advanced membranes for energy applications, particularly ion-conducting composite membrane materials that can be used in fuel cells. This presentation will describe REMRSEC’s Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program offered during the 2009 and 2010 summers that has nurtured and inspired 37 students to explore materials-related research in the field of renewable energy. Topics of discussion include the program’s fundamental goals, the student recruitment and selection process, demographic profiles of student applicants and participants, the nature of student activities, descriptions of student research projects, the research environment, weekly seminars and field trips, and our project evaluation and reporting strategies. Student accomplishments indicate that this REU experience has led students from dependence to independence in the research process. The successful implementation of these two summer programs encourages us to continue offering this opportunity over the next four years of REMRSEC activity.[1] National Science Foundation award number DMR-0820518, Renewable Energy Materials Research Science and Engineering Center.[2] http://www.nrel.gov[3] http://www.coloradocollaboratory.org/crsp/index.html[4] http://www.coloradocollaboratory.org
3:15 PM - SS5.3
Efforts in Improving the Visual Literacy of Nanotechnology Students.
Marco Rolandi 1 , Karen Cheng 2 , Sarah Perez-Kriz 3 , Yeechi Cheng 3
1 Materials Science and Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States, 2 Visual Communication Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States, 3 Human Centered Design and Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States
Show AbstractIn the fast growing field of nanotechnology, graphics are playing an increasingly important role in efficiently conveying large amounts of information in a small amount of space. In striking contrast, scientists are taught very little regarding the function of science graphics, theories of visual communication, and graphic design. Here, I will present our recent efforts in improving the visual literacy of both undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in STEM programs at the University of Washington. Our interdisciplinary team from the departments of Materials Science and Engineering, Visual Communication Design, and Human Centered Design and Engineering has developed materials to teach nanotechnology students how to better design their research graphics. At the same time, these efforts are matched with our ongoing research on the cognitive aspects of comprehending and producing graphics. Particular attention is given to the role of disciplinary expertise in interpreting science graphics. Preliminary data from these studies with regard to developing educational materials for STEM students will also be presented.
3:30 PM - SS5.4
A Materials Science Bachelor’s Degree at a Liberal Education Institution.
Marcus McEllistrem 1 , Douglas Dunham 1
1 Materials Science, UW-Eau Claire, Eau Claire, Wisconsin, United States
Show AbstractThe Materials Science program at the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire has developed a comprehensive (120 credit) major that emphasizes the scientific foundations of materials science and nanoscience, within the context of a liberal education degree. The university, one of the 13 four-year University of Wisconsin institutions, provides students with a liberal arts education that emphasizes critical thinking, excellent oral and written communication skills, and the need for individual and social responsibility. The university has long valued experiences that transform students to become active life-long learners. Collaborative research between faculty and undergraduate students has been a key transformative experience in the sciences for more than 50 years. In this context, the new Materials Science major builds on a strong foundation in math and the physical sciences and then directs student study into six upper-division courses and labwork in materials science and nanoscience, as well as providing students an opportunity to develop a preferred emphasis in one of six areas near the completion of their degree. A capstone materials research course challenges students to conduct a novel materials fabrication and characterization in toto. Courses in materials characterization are offered on-campus through the Materials Science Center, while course and labwork (including cleanroom experience) are offered at the Chippewa Valley Technical College (which offers an Associates degree in Nanotechnology). This talk outlines the structure of the new major and discusses some of the challenges encountered in developing this non-traditional major.
3:45 PM - SS5.5
Sustainable Development in a Nano Perspective - Teaching Engineering Students Sustainable Development.
Johanna Loenngren 1 , Andreas Ahrens 1 , Knut Deppert 1 , Greger Hammarin 1 , Elisabeth Nilsson 1
1 Solid State Physics, Lund University, Lund Sweden
Show AbstractWith sustainable development being one of the most important and most discussed topics of the time, education for sustainable development (ESD) is a fast growing discipline, recently supported by the UNESCO's declaration of the 2005-2014 Decade of ESD. In Europe, the restructuring of higher education programs in the wake of the Bologna reform has offered valuable opportunities for higher education institutions to introduce ESD into program curricula. However, ambitions vary greatly among the different universities. This paper focuses on an innovative class developed through a student-led initiative at the Faculty of Engineering at Lund University in Sweden (LTH). The class is part of the compulsory course work for third-year students within the program Engineering Nanoscience at LTH.Recognizing the special challenge (and importance) of introducing ESD into engineering education , the authors have developed a class based on nontraditional teaching methodologies. The class “Sustainable Development in Nano-Perspectives” is based on a case study in combination with role play activities. Students represent a variety of societal stakeholder groups while trying to create a roadmap for sustainable development for a given case project, this year's case being the planned construction of ESS (European Spallation Source), a €1.5 billion scientific complex in Lund, Sweden. The class is structured according to a “matrix” approach with stakeholder groups and interdisciplinary groups. This approach is reported elsewhere to facilitate intensive group interactions with cooperation, communication and compromise, while also ensuring individual activity and commitment. Furthermore, by interaction within the different groups, students are forced to shift perspectives. In an iterative process, culminating in a 24-hour general meeting, the groups negotiate a common roadmap for sustainable development in relation to the case they were given to study. Directly thereafter, the students defend their work at a simulated press-conference which is rendered possible through collaboration with the Department of Journalism at Lund University. All activities are mandatory.This paper describes and discusses this novel class for sustainable development. Based on personal experience and student questionnaires, the study discusses applied pedagogical approaches (case study, role play, matrix approach) and suggests improvements to the structure of the class. The project is a student initiative, making student involvement and its effects on learning for sustainable development central topics of this paper, thereby challenging the notion of engineering students as passive receivers of education for sustainable development.
4:30 PM - SS5.6
Teaching Materials Science and Engineering (MSE): New Areas and a New Instructor Role.
Witold Brostow 1 6 , Victor Castano 2 6 , James Clum 3 6 , Tea Datashvili 1 6 , Theodore Davidson 4 6 , Haley Hagg Lobland 1 6 , John Baglin 5 6
1 , University of North Texas, Denton, Texas, United States, 6 , International Council on Materials Education, Denton, Texas, United States, 2 , Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, Queretaro Mexico, 3 , University of Wisconsin - Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States, 4 , Polymer Processing Institute, Newark, New Jersey, United States, 5 , IBM Almaden Research Center, San Jose, California, United States
Show AbstractTraditionally, an instructor had to master - and deliver - the knowledge presented in a textbook. However, now the situation is different – in MSE as well as in other disciplines. Firstly, the content of MSE is changing fast. Secondly, the instructor is less and less a dispenser of knowledge, since practically unlimited amounts of information are available on the internet. We shall discuss consequences of these two facts for teaching strategies. MSE has components with a large variety of ages. For example, Metallurgy has existed for thousands of years. Thermodynamics is nearly 200 years old [1]. At the end of the XXth century MSE appropriated large parts of Solid State Physics and of Physical Chemistry for its purposes. Now in the XXIst century a material little appreciated before is becoming terribly important: wa-ter. "Global water consumption increased sixfold in the last century - more than twice the rate of population growth - and will continue growing rapidly in coming decades. Yet readily available fresh water is a finite resource, equivalent to less than one percent of the water on Earth"; "providing adequate water resources for agriculture, industry and human consumption poses one of the greatest challenges of the 21st century" [2]. We now need to teach about water, about its resources, conservation, and methods of recovering industrial water. Purified industrial water cannot readily be converted into potable water, but it can be used in agriculture or recycled for industrial uses [3]. Nanomaterials are another area of MSE with growing importance [4], The list is by no means limited to these two. Given the huge amounts of information available on internet, plus that in publications, textbooks and handbooks, an instructor needs to become a guide and mentor. Not all information avail-able is true and even less is pertinent. The instructor has above all to instill in his/her students the capability to evaluate critically the information available.References:1. N. L. S. Carnot, Reflexions sur la puissance motrice du feu, Bachelier, Paris 1824.2. http://www.timeforchange.org/water-scarcity-and-global-warming 3. W. Brostow, H.E. Hagg Lobland, S. Pal & R.P. Singh, J. Mater. Ed. 31, 157 (2009), . 4. L.C. Klein, J. Mater. Ed. 28, 7 (2006).
4:45 PM - SS5.7
The Energy IGERTs at Rutgers University: Graduate Education in Energy Materials across Disciplines, Programs and Universities.
Johanna Bernstein 1 , Linda Anthony 4 , Alan Goldman 3 , Frank Felder 4 , Leonard Feldman 1 , Alexander Glaser 2 , Eric Garfunkel 3 , Craig Arnold 2 , Eric Lam 4 , Manish Chhowalla 3
1 Institute for Advanced Materials, Devices and Nanotechnology, Rutgers University, Piscataway, New Jersey, United States, 4 , Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey, United States, 3 , Rutgers University, Piscataway, New Jersey, United States, 2 , Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, United States
Show Abstract Economic, environmental, strategic and societal issues have placed energy-related topics at the forefront of research in a broad and diverse range of areas. These issues encompass everything from fundamental technological advances in electronic, photonic, and photovoltaic materials and devices, to improved methods of fossil fuel extraction and development of renewable bioenergy. For materials education, which has always been interdisciplinary, addressing all of these topics presents a set of new and unprecedented challenges. The broad and disparate nature of the subject makes development of a coherent and comprehensive curriculum particularly challenging. Further compounding the subject is the fact that energy is an international issue which affects every country and continent so that ecological, economic and policy must also be considered. This is, however, a unique opportunity to develop a truly integrative framework for education and teaching that is fundamentally different to that typically experienced by graduate students. This presentation will show how taking advantage of a unique combination of resources from multiple disciplines and geographically dispersed universities and institutes has enabled curricula to be designed specifically for graduate level energy education. Examples from three new graduate courses developed under the auspices of the “Nanotechnology for Clean Energy”, and “Sustainable and Renewable Fuels” IGERT projects led by Rutgers University faculty will be used.
5:00 PM - SS5.8
Preparation of Future Faculty in Materials Science and Engineering at Penn State.
Suzanne Mohney 1 , Susan Trolier-McKinstry 1 , Christopher Muhlstein 1 , Coray Colina 1
1 , Penn State, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States
Show AbstractTo prepare graduate students and post-docs who have an interest in careers in academia, the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Penn State recently introduced a comprehensive future faculty program. The program is run by a four-member committee, and it includes three main components: mentoring of participants, training and experience in teaching, and a for-credit course with a strong emphasis on preparing to lead a research program. To provide mentoring, the committee invites program participants to a panel discussion each semester. The most recent discussions were about landing a first research grant and work-life balance. The panel discussion format has proven particularly beneficial for getting to graduate students and post-docs to describe their interest as well as fears about careers in academia. The mentors for the program also provide individual guidance to students and post-docs preparing application materials for faculty positions. To help students prepare to teach, the program takes advantage of an extended orientation for new instructors that is already established at Penn State, combined with a meaningful for-credit supervised experience for college teaching and an opportunity to mentor an undergraduate researcher. Finally, a one-credit seminar course was offered for the first time in 2009 and will be offered again in 2011. Two course periods were devoted to seeking research funding, and each student prepared a short research proposal that was reviewed by local experts in their area of expertise. Students were introduced to professors from neighboring four-year colleges so that they could appreciate differences and similarities in positions at various types of institutions, and a guest speaker described opportunities for obtaining funding from NSF for curriculum development and research in pedagogy. Finally, students were walked step-by-step through the interview process by an outgoing Penn State student who had just joined the faculty at another university, and they learned about negotiating start-up packages and other aspects of getting a running start as an assistant professor. This presentation will reflect on aspects of the future faculty program that have been successful as well as plans for improvements based on student feedback.
5:15 PM - SS5.9
Boulder School for Materials Physics.
Christine Jones 1 , Leo Radzihovsky 1
1 Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado, United States
Show AbstractSupported by the National Science Foundation and held each July on the University of Colorado campus, the Boulder School in Condensed Matter and Materials Physics provides education for advanced graduate students and postdoctoral fellows working in condensed matter physics, materials science and related fields. It enables students to work at the frontiers of science and technology by providing expert training through lectures and interactions with international scientific leaders that are not easily available within the traditional education. This creates opportunities for students to establish professional collaborations and lasting scientific relations, leading to career advancement in broad range of scientific fields.
5:30 PM - SS5.10
Sustainable Materials Issues: A Graduate Course.
Mary Anne White 1
1 Chemistry/Physics, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
Show AbstractAs part of our new graduate training program called Dalhousie Research in Energy, Advanced Materials and Sustainability (DREAMS), a nationally funded NSERC Collaborative Research and Training Experience program, we have started a new graduate class called "Sustainable Materials Issues". This course offers an introduction to the sustainable use of materials with emphasis on advanced materials for consumer products. Topics include a quantitative overview of global energy issues, resource consumption and its drivers, eco-audits and eco-audit tools, life-cycle analysis, eco-informed materials selection and sustainable approaches to development of advanced materials. This course, which is being offered for the first time in the fall of 2010 and taken by graduate students in Chemistry, Physics, Mechanical Engineering and Materials Engineering, will be described.