This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).
The award supports summer research experiences in Taiwan in the area of membrane science for seven Western Kentucky University students each year for three years. The students will travel with PI Conte to the National Chung Hsing University (NCHU) in Taichung, Taiwan to conduct ten weeks of research on the electrical control of surfactants on conductive membranes. Five of the WKU students will be undergraduates majoring in Chemistry and two will be WKU Gatton Academy Math and Science High School students. These WKU students will be working in the Department of Chemical Engineering at NCHU in the laboratory of Professor Shing-Yi Suen and her students. The students will gain an appreciation for chemical research at an overseas Ph.D. granting institution. In turn, two of Professor Suen?s students will visit the PI?s laboratory at WKU during the academic year through funding provided by Taiwan?s National Research Council. Results of this collaborative research will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications and at presentations at meetings such as the Pittsburgh Conference and The National Meeting of the American Chemical Society. Qualified WKU students participating in this project will be minorities and/or those students originating from counties that have low numbers of college graduates. As a part of this experience, WKU students will visit cultural areas in Taiwan such as Taipei city and Tarako National Park and be enrolled in a Chinese Culture and Language class sponsored by NCHU.
