The National Science Foundation has awarded Clarkson Mathematics Professor James Greene and Biology Professor Susan Bailey a $324,104 grant to run a new math-bio research experience for undergraduate students at Clarkson University, starting this summer. The Mathematical Biology Team Science Research Experience for Undergraduates (MBioTS REU) program will bring eight undergraduates to Clarkson each summer for three years to work with faculty mentors on research at the intersection of biology and mathematics. Research projects will cover a broad range of topics including ecology, evolution, cell biology, and public health.
“Interdisciplinary research combining math and biology can be challenging, requiring researchers with very different backgrounds to communicate and collaborate effectively. This is something that our Biology and Math faculty do really well at Clarkson and so we’re leveraging that expertise to build an undergraduate research experience focused on developing those skills,” said Bailey.
Students participating in the program will work in pairs on research projects, with one focused on data collection in a laboratory or field setting, and the other focused on related computational and mathematical analysis. Each team will be mentored by faculty from both the Biology and Mathematics Departments at Clarkson. A key component of the MBioTS REU will be the close interaction between student team members across disciplines, as they collaboratively design both experiments and models to address important biological questions.
Students in the program will develop versatile and broadly applicable skills in collaborative science, effective science communication aimed at diverse audiences, publishing and presenting their results, and preparing those students for success in future graduate studies and careers in STEM.
“It’s an exciting opportunity to be able to work with students from a broad range of academic backgrounds and to introduce them to the benefits of collaborative research in mathematics and biology. We’re really looking forward to all of the great research that will come out of this program,” said Greene.
For more information on the MBioTS REU and how to apply, see the program website: https://www.clarkson.edu/mbiots-research-experience-undergraduates-reu
