NSF Awards a Kansas And South Carolina Research Collaboration Four Million Dollars

Credit: University of Kansas Center for Research Inc.

     An interstate research partnership between Kansas and South Carolina has received a four million dollar NSF EPSCoR Research Infrastructure Improvement RII Track-2 Award. The research project, titled Catalysis for Renewables: Applications, Fundamentals and Technologies (CRAFT), was one of the eight interstate grants that NSF funded this fall.
     The project's interdisciplinary focus is to develop novel catalysts by combining materials synthesis with structure property relationships. Researchers will explore the fundamental catalytic mechanisms that impact the controlled reconstruction of biomass feedstocks to make renewable chemicals, fuels, plastics and other targeted products.  Specifically, they will address the challenge, "How do you reconstruct naturally occurring liginin, [a complex organic polymer found in plants], to make petrochemical-equivalent chemicals instead of burning it?”
     Bala Subramaniam, the director of the University of Kansas Center for Environmentally Beneficial Catalysis (CEBC) and the Dan F. Servey Distinguished Professor in the Department of Chemical & Petroleum Engineering is the lead researcher from Kansas, and John Regalbuto, a professor in the University of South Carolina's Department of Chemical Engineering, is the lead research from South Carolina.
     In addition to the cutting edge science, the grant provides unique educational and collaborative initiatives such as a mentoring program for young, early career professors; the development of a student engaging curriculum at both universities; and, the establishment of across-disciplines and industry partnerships.

To read more about this NSF EPSCoR Award go to:  New NSF grant gives early-career faculty competitive edge 

"Fun in the Sun" with KU and Project CREATE

Project CREATE facilitator Kathy Bowen and Professor Kevin Leonard address the campers

          The Kansas NSF EPSCoR Education and Diversity Grants are designed to enhance science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education in Kansas by supporting activities that will prepare a new generation for STEM careers in the areas of climate or energy research or atomic, molecular and optical science. Last August, Kevin Leonard, assistant professor in chemical and petroleum engineering, was awarded one of five Kansas NSF EPSCoR Education, Outreach and Diversity grants to develop a 3D printer-based solar energy camp for children.  The program titled  Fun in the Sun: Using Solar Fuel Research to Educate, Challenge and Inspire Future Scientists! involves a partnership with Project CREATE, a local non-profit community group.  Project CREATE focuses on "Cultivating Responsible, Enriched, Artistic, Tech-Savvy Enthusiasts," in STEM camps for gifted students in grades 4 - 7. The camp was held June 15 -19 and hosted 43 elementary and middle school students.

        Leonard and his colleague Claudia Bode, Education Director for the Center for Environmentally Beneficial Catalysis at KU, worked with Project CREATE educators to develop activities for the camp.  Their main goals were to inspire students, in particular girls, to see themselves as scientists and engineers; to encourage student exploration of the potential uses of 3D scanners and printers; and 3) to expose the students to STEM related careers. 

The 3D printed add-ons and solar car

       All hands-on activities were energy-themed and addressed the conversion of solar energy to chemical energy through the use of custom-built devices, robotics and 3D technologies. The first task for the students was to build solar cars from preprinted 3D pieces and commercial kits. Then, they designed and 3D printed their own add-on items using an online modeling program. Once the cars were complete, the students tested the variations of engineering designs for efficiency.
        A unique feature of the camp was a new 3D printed miniature dynamometer apparatus that was created with the help of Ed Atchison, engineering technician at CBEC.  The children used the “mini dyno” to measure the speed, temperature, voltage and current of their creations, and then used the results to brainstorm ideas for modifying the cars to improve performance.

        Students reported that they enjoyed building the solar cars, visiting labs, using the modeling program and going on field trips. One participant stated “I liked the freedom you have (in free time); They (leaders) embraced our ideas and we got to do a lot of cool things….” The 3D printing was also a major program highlight expressed by all of the students. Overall, the camp was deemed a fun and educational success and the organizers hope to offer it again next summer.

KANSAS NSF EPSCoR Phase VI - First Awards - A Research Program for Tenure Track Faculty Early in their Careers

Kansas NSF EPSCoR has announced a request for proposals for First Awards.

Download and read the full RFP at : http://www.nsfepscor.ku.edu/pdf/RFP-FirstAwards_2016.pdf

The First Award Research Program is designed to help early career faculty become competitive for funding from the research directorates at the National Science Foundation (NSF) by: 1) encouraging early career faculty to submit proposals to the NSF (or other federal funding agency) as soon as possible after their first faculty appointment, and 2) by accelerating the pace of their research and the quality of their subsequent proposals.  Kansas NSF EPSCoR helps Kansas build its research capacity and competitiveness in science and technology.

Only projects with research in areas that are related to the current Kansas NSF EPSCoR initiatives of Climate or Energy Research (http://www.nsfepscor.ku.edu/ph6.html) or Atomic, Molecular and Optical Science (http://www.nsfepscor.ku.edu/rii_t2_2014.html) are eligible for First Awards. Other eligibility requirements apply so please read the RFP carefully.

Submission Deadlines:

• Letters of Intent Due by 5:00 pm on TUESDAY, September 8, 2015.        
• Proposals Due by 5:00 pm on MONDAY, October 26, 2015. 

New series of videos address growing water issues in Kansas

 http://knrc.weebly.com/the-waters-of-kansas.html

     Kansas Natural Resource Council (KNRC) and the Biofuels and Climate Change: Farmer’s Land Use Decisions (BACC-FLUD) project have teamed up to produce a series of videos telling the story of water in Kansas from border to border.  Each film discusses the history of how the various water sources have been utilized in the past; how the present day competing interests are affecting water supplies and how community efforts or failures to manage water sources will impact the future. The videos are unique because they feature interviews with people from across Kansas. The Kansans featured in the film tell their personal accounts of how they are directly effected by groundwater, surface water, reservoirs or rivers.  

     The intention of the series is to facilitate a community conversation about Kansans' relationship with water using personal narratives. While the initial project has only produced three videos so far, the ultimate goal is to produce multiple short films, ten to twenty minutes long, that continue to address how water has been used to build and sustain Kansas and what needs to be done to preserve it for the future.  

     The completed films and detailed descriptions can be found on the Kansas Natural Resource Council’s website and are titled Cheyenne Bottoms, Farming over the Ogallala, and Our Shrinking Reservoirs.  The videos were produced by Christie Scanlin Dobson of StormDoor Productions.

The BACC: FLUD (Biofuels and Climate Change: Farmer’s Land Use Decisions) project is embedded within a much larger research project examining climate change and renewable energy, which represents Phase VI of the Kansas NSF EPSCoR (KNE) program. The National Science Foundation (NSF) established the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) as a way to promote scientific progress in states that have traditionally received lesser amounts of NSF research and development funding.

Fort Hays State University student explores Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics at Kansas State University

     Brett Chrisler found his way to a summer Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) by first exploring the aspects of computer science and graphic design.  He tried these two majors before he discovered the Physics Department “and fell in love with the field.”

Brett Chrisler

     Brett is from Hays, Kansas where he has lived his entire life.  He completed his sophomore year at Fort Hays State University last spring; serves as the secretary for the Fort Hays State University's Physics Club; and has just completed a summer REU in Atomic, Molecular and Optical (AMO) Physics at Kansas State University (KSU).
     His interest in pursuing an AMO Physics REU began when the Physics Department at Fort Hayes State distributed information from the KSU AMO Physics group about summer REUs to their students. Brett had never done any research in physics prior to this summer's REU, so he thought this program would be the best mechanism for “discovering what part of the wide field of physics he would be most interested in.”
     Brett worked with Dr. Vinod Kumarappan, Associate Professor of Physics at KSU and a researcher involved with the Nebraska and Kansas NSF EPSCoR Track 2 grant titled "Collaborative Research: Imaging and Controlling Ultrafast Dynamics of Atoms, Molecules, and Nanostructures." Brett's project, funded by the educational initiatives embedded in the collaborative grant, involved stabilizing "the carrier-envelope phase from a laser oscillator.” Basically, the experiment “involved the alignment of a laser through optics.”

Brett Chrisler and Dr.Vinod Kumarappan conducting experiments in the James R. Macdonald AMO Physics Lab at Kansas State University

    Two valuable lessons Brett stated he learned from his AMO REU were: first, "research doesn't always go the way you want it to"; and second, “you have to be creative when it comes to solving difficult problems that may arise.”  In addition, to these lessons learned, Brett said he also developed some “amazing friendships that I know will last beyond this program.”  When asked to sum up his summer AMO Physics REU, Brett indicated that he has “gained so much knowledge from Dr. Kumarappan's group and the program’s physics lectures as well as made great social connections that “have bettered me not only as a student, but also as a person."
      As for his future, Brett says he has two more years of undergraduate work to complete and hopes to continue to participate in physics related summer internships at other institutions as well as additional research experiences at his home campus.  Following graduation, he may attend graduate school to study medical physics and then possibly go on to medical school to study radiation oncology.

REU student explores the Chemistry associated with Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics at The University of Kansas

Ryan Hamelin

     Ryan Hamelin, an undergraduate student from Fitchburg State University in Massachusetts, traveled to the University of Kansas (KU) this summer to work with Dr. Chris Elles and his team on a Chemistry REU project titled “Non-Resonant Excitation of Photochromic Molecules in the Plasmonic Field of Gold Nanoparticles.” This KU REU summer project is part of a larger educational initiative sponsored by the Kansas and Nebraska NSF ESPSCoR AMO collaborative grant titled “Collaborative Research: Imaging and Controlling Ultrafast Dynamics of Atoms, Molecules, and Nanostructures.” The purpose of Ryan’s project was to study “how the plasmonic field of gold nanoparticles can be used to induce a non-resonant excitation of photochromic molecules."
     Ryan's research journey began the first semester of his sophomore year.  After completing a lab, his general Chemistry professor saw potential in Ryan and invited him to participate in a research project outside of the classroom.  Ryan was quick to accept this opportunity because becoming a scientific researcher was something he has always aspired to do.  The following semester, Ryan continued to work with Dr. Steven Fiedler at Fitchburg State University in Massachusetts on a research project titled “The Permeation of Nanoparticles Through a Lipid Bilayer"
     Dr. Fiedler recognized Ryan’s passion for conducting scientific research so he recommended he apply for Summer Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Programs.  Ryan began his search for an REU on Google and the Kansas opportunity “just caught his eye.”  Ryan applied for five different opportunities across the United States, but Kansas was the first to make him an offer, "so naturally he accepted."

Dr. Elles and his Summer REU Team; Ryan conducting his research

     Ryan commented that this “REU program has just been great for me, … I've made a lot of friends…. and I learned a lot about "photochromic" molecules and surface "plasmons".  He also mentioned the experience provided him with a more in depth opportunity to expand his skills conducting Chemistry experiments, to learn about graduate school and to explore possible careers that are available to students with Chemistry degrees.  However, the best part of the experience for Ryan was, “coming to a new place, that I've never been to before and participating in new research.”
    As for his future, Ryan plans to continue his research with his mentor, Dr. Fiedler, possibly pursue another REU next summer involving either Chemistry or Math and eventually become a lab technician or mathematician.  As for graduate school, Ryan said he "isn't all that interested right now," but he has plenty of time to reconsider its prospects.

Kansas Physics Teachers Convene at Kansas State University to Connect Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics with the Next Generation Science Standards

 

Presenters:  Dr. Chris Elles, Mr. Matt Krehbiel, Dr. Bret Flanders, Dr. Charles Fehrenbach, Dr. Anh Thu Le, Dr. Dean Zollman

     On June 8, 2015, a group of five physics teachers from across the state of Kansas and three UKanTeach students from the University of Kansas (KU) met at Kansas State University (KSU) to attend the Kansas NSF EPSCoR teacher workshop titled "Connecting the Physics of Waves and Electromagnetic Radiation with the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)."  This three day workshop was developed by Dr. Chris Elles, KU Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Kansas NSF EPSCoR AMO research team member, Dr. Jackie Spears, Director of the Science Education Center and Professor of Curriculum and Instruction at KSU, and Dr. Paul Adams, Dean of the College of Education and Technology, Anschutz Professor of Education and Professor of Physics at Fort Hays State University (FHSU) to address physics teachers concerns related to wave and electromagnetic radiation curriculum gaps.  In addition to addressing the curricular issues, this workshop facilitated the opportunity for teachers to interact with KU and KSU Atomic, Molecular and Optical (AMO) physics team members to discuss the Kansas/Nebraska NSF EPSCoR AMO research project.

     Special guest, Mr. Matt Krehbiel, Science Program Consultant for the Kansas Department of Education, served as the keynote speaker. Mr. Krehbiel modeled and facilitated activities that demonstrated the overarching Next Generation Science Standards teaching and learning expectations. In addition, he provided the framework and emphasized the teaching strategies necessary for developing high school physics lessons related to the Wave and Electromagnetic Radiation Next Generation Science Standard.

     Dr. Bret Flanders, provided some fun, hands-on demonstrations and activities designed to introduce the basic concepts of waves as well as explore wave behavior using several sound waves experiments.

    On day two, Dr. Charles Fehrenbach introduced light wave concepts. He then led the teachers on a tour through the KSU James R. Macdonald AMO Physics Laboratory. While on the tour, the teachers observed the mechanics of the laser designs and interacted with both undergraduate and graduate students conducting AMO experiments.

     Dr. Anh Thu Le introduced the theoretical aspects of the AMO research project and shared some very useful diagrams and illustrations that the teachers could easily incorporate into their lessons.
     In the afternoon, Dr. Chris Elles along with the KU UKanTeach students presented early drafts of spectroscopy lessons associated with Dr. Elles' NSF Career Award and asked the current physics teachers for their experienced feedback. These lessons served as a foundation for the following day's lesson planning session and provided the teachers with some creative examples for how to directly connect the AMO research to the Next Generation Science Standards.

     On the third day of the workshop Dr. Dean Zollman  introduce a unique online physics resource he created titled Visual Quantum Mechanics.  The teachers surveyed the website and recognized it could enhance a lesson related to the AMO research as well as seamlessly align with the Wave and Electromagnetic Radiation Next Generation Science Standard. As the teachers began to formulate their ideas for lessons, some of them met with the AMO graduate students and professors in small groups to solidify their understanding of the AMO physics, wave and electromagnetic radiation concepts.

     Following these informal meetings, the teachers began the task of writing some model physics lessons addressing the "Waves and Electromagnetic Radiation" Next Generation Science Standard. Their goal was to design lessons that demonstrated how to construct student performance assessments; discuss disciplinary core ideas; incorporate cross cutting concepts; and create opportunities to develop science and engineering practices. Upon completion, these new lesson plans will ultimately serve as exemplary lessons for teachers across the state to utilize in their classrooms. 

     As a result of their participation in this Kansas EPSCoR teacher workshop, the teachers stated they now have a better understanding for how to connect the AMO Physics research with the Next Generation Science Standards as well as write lessons that reflect the state of Kansas' science education initiatives.  They also appreciated acquiring a new set of activities and resources related to waves, electromagnetic radiation and AMO physics to share with their colleagues and to assist them with the implementation of the Next Generation Science Standards.

The workshop was deemed very informative, very useful and very productive by the participants.  

Special thanks to all KSU, KU and FHSU faculty and staff 

who made the event a great success.