This funding renews a CISE Research Experience for Undergraduates site focused on experimental research in wireless networks at Notre Dame. The site provides students with opportunities to explore and study state-of-the-art solutions to many open challenges in wireless networking. Students receive hands-on experience in the design, implementation, deployment, evaluation, and measurement of wireless and mobile networks. The project focuses on recruiting students from diverse institutions with limited research environments. Undergraduate students participate in a ten-week summer research program at the host institution. The project includes mentorship by experienced computer science faculty members, experience with research and graduate life, and professional development opportunities for the participating students.
The intellectual merit of this project lies in strong research basis and the expertise of the faculty. The projects are in major current research areas that are of interest to the community at large and that have clear practical applications. The research in wireless networking, mobile computing, and pervasive systems may lead to technologies that provide for public safety and ubiquitous municipal wireless access, thus advancing the current research in these important areas.
The broader impacts of the project include providing a quality research experience to undergraduate students, particularly students from underrepresented groups. The relationships developed during the project could lead to future collaborations among the institutions of the participating students that may enable the students to continue their research and professional growth after the summer experience. Thus this project has the potential to produce new computer science graduate students and faculty members and to advance discovery and understanding while promoting learning.
Over 40 undergraduate students, more than half of them from institutions other than the University of Notre Dame, participated in various research projects during Summers 2011-2014. About 80% of the participants came from underrepresented groups in Computer Science. The projects focused on various challenges in mobile computing, wireless networking, and the use of these technologies for various application domains, primarily in the area of healthcare. Concrete examples of projects include the development of novel diagnostic tools, healthcare systems, portable and wearable sensors for healthcare and fitness, environmental sensing devices, and vehicular network applications. A primary focus of the REU Site was that students participated in experimental research, i.e., they were involved in designing, setting up, performing, and interpreting a variety of experiments, both on actual systems and devices and using simulators. Several REU participants contributed to publications in leading journals and conferences and each participant prepared a poster presentation summarizing the key activities and findings. In addition to the publications, several participants in this REU program also contributed to a patent application for a novel speech-based diagnostic tool, which has also lead to a startup company that is further pursuing the commercialization of this technology. Finally, many of the participants went on to pursue advanced academic degrees and received prestigious fellowships.
