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Press Release:   2009

 

 

Symposium on Undergraduate Nano-Education: "Addressing the Challenges of Nanoscale Science & Engineering Education"


Co-sponsored by the National Center for Learning & Teaching (NCLT) and the College of Nanoscale Science & Engineering (CNSE) University at Albany, Albany, New York, August 5-8, 2009

A Symposium on Undergraduate Nano-Education, "Addressing the Challenges of Nanoscale Science & Engineering Education," was hosted in partnership with the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE) at the University at Albany in Albany, New York from August 5th through 8th, 2009. This symposium was devoted to the discussion of recent advances and remaining challenges in nanoscale science and engineering (NSE) education at the post-secondary level.

Among featured speakers were the Congressman Paul Tonko of the 21st district of New York, who addressed the critical importance of building strong nanotechnology educational curricula and outreach programs, and Tom Sonderman of Global Foundries, who gave a plenary talk on "The Global Playing Field: Preparing Students to Compete in a Knowledge-Driven Industry."

The symposium was a dynamic event, which brought together 44 faculty/future faculty from 18 universities and 5 community colleges, 30% of them women. The participants were from a balanced mix of backgrounds, e.g, chemistry, physics, biology, materials science, and engineering.

The symposium provided an opportunity for the participants to hear from more than 17 experts in nanoscience/nanotechnology, nano-educators, degree program developers, experts in simulation and modeling, and learning scientists regarding:

  1. Student learning outcomes in NSE
  2. NSE learning science research
  3. Advances in classroom NSE instruction
  4. Advances in NSE simulations, instrumentation, labs
  5. Strategies for assessment of NSE learning outcomes
  6. Degree program development in NSE
  7. Future directions in NSE education

Participants interacted in small breakout groups to answer targeted questions dealing with various sub-topics in NSE education. The presentations and discussions provide an important and highly visible benchmark and resource for ongoing and future course and degree program development activities in nanoscience and nanoengineering.

An archive of the August 2009 faculty symposium, including the program, presentations, participant bios, and event photographs has been created under the "Workshops" heading on the NCLT Operations site at: http://www.nclt.us/workshop/ws-faculty-aug09.shtml

About the NCLT

The NSF-supported National Center for Learning and Teaching in Nanoscale Science and Engineering (NCLT) is designed to build capacity in Nanoscale Science and Engineering Education (NSEE), and aims to equip future generations by advancing science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education. The NCLT was established in October 2004 as a national center for learning and teaching of nanoscale science and engineering. The mission of NCLT is to develop the next generation of leaders in nanoscale science and engineering teaching and learning, with an emphasis on NSEE capacity building, providing a strong impact on national science, technology, engineering and mathematics education. The guiding theme of the NCLT is learning and teaching through inquiry and design of nanoscale materials and applications. For more information, visit http://www.nclt.us/.

About the CNSE

The UAlbany CNSE is the first college in the world dedicated to education, research, development, and deployment in the emerging disciplines of nanoscience, nanoengineering, nanobioscience, and nanoeconomics. CNSE's Albany NanoTech Complex is the most advanced research enterprise of its kind at any university in the world. With over $5 billion in high-tech investments, the 800,000-square-foot complex attracts corporate partners from around the world and offers students a one-of-a-kind academic experience. The UAlbany NanoCollege houses the only fully-integrated, 300mm wafer, computer chip pilot prototyping and demonstration line within 80,000 square feet of Class 1-capable cleanrooms. More than 2,500 scientists, researchers, engineers, students, and faculty work on site at CNSE's Albany NanoTech, from companies including IBM, AMD, GlobalFoundries, SEMATECH, Toshiba, Applied Materials, Tokyo Electron, ASML, Vistec Lithography and Atotech. For more information, visit http://www.cnse.albany.edu/.

 

 

The College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE) of the University at Albany - State University of New York (SUNY) to Host National Conference on Nanoscale Science and Engineering Education
July 29, 2009, Steve Janack, Vice President for Marketing and Communications, University at Albany

Albany, NY – The College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering ("CNSE") of the University at Albany, in partnership with the National Center for Learning and Teaching in Nanoscale Science & Engineering (NCLT) headquartered at Northwestern University, will host a national conference next month to assess the current state of nanoscale science and engineering education and chart a course for the future...

Read Full Article

 

 

The Fourth Annual NCLT Workshop for Science Teachers at Fisk University
June 25, 2009, by Weijie Lu, Fisk University

Seventeen science teachers from Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools (MNPS) have participated in the Fourth Annual NCLT Nanoscience Workshop at Fisk University from June 8 to June 19, 2009. Associate Provost, Prof. S. Aboh and the MNPS Science Coordinator, Ms Sarah Baker, gave the welcome notes to the teachers. The Division Director, Dr. W. E. Collins, gave a brief closing mark.

The workshop is a part of the National Center for Learning and Teaching in Nanoscale Science and Engineering (NCLT) program headquartered at Northwestern University . The NCLT program has successfully impacted the local school district with strong support from the MNPS administration. Teamed together by Northwestern University , MNPS and Fisk University , have received approval from the State Education Board to administer a nano-science course at MNPS this year. Hume-Fogg Magnet School in Nashville will be the first high school in Tennessee to offer this nano-science course. The workshop introduces various hands-on NCLT nano modules to the science teachers. The workshop is organized by Prof. Weijie Lu at Fisk University each year.

The NCLT workshop at Fisk University has been very welcomed by MNPS science teachers. For more information on the program, contact the coordinator Prof. Weijie Lu at wlu@fisk.edu or visit http://www.nclt.us.


17 teachers participated in the 4th NCLT workshop at Fisk University

Ms. Sarah Baker, Coordinator of Science, at Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools (MNPS) gave a welcome note to the teachers

Teachers learned to use Raman spectrometer

Teachers performed hands-on nano-activities

 

"Science of the Small" Course Introduces South African Chemical Technology Students to the Nanoworld
Wednesday, June 4, 2009

PIETERMARTIZBURG, SOUTH AFRICA. Thirty third-year chemical technology students in the School of Chemistry at the University of KwaZulu-Natal spent the last three months learning about life at the nanoscale through lectures and laboratory experiences in a new course entitled, "The Science of the Small: An Introduction to the Nanoworld".

The nanoscience course was taught by U.S. Fulbright Scholar, Brian Augustine, from the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at James Madison University in Virginia. Augustine modified a course that he developed along with two colleagues at JMU to be appropriate in a South African context. The nanoscience portion of the course represented two-thirds of a materials chemistry module that is part of the required curriculum in the third-year Chemical Technology program at UKZN.


Brian Augustine

Four laboratory courses were introduced to the South African students including two NCLT experiments. In the NCLT experiments, students synthesized Au nanoparticles using the "Color My Nanoworld" experiment developed by Prof. Mirkin and students learned replica molding and microcontact printing of Au archive grade CDs developed by Prof. Odom. Students also learned how to use microscopy techniques of AFM and SEM including a portable AFM nanomanipulator instrument developed by Augustine at JMU and brought over to South Africa. Students also synthesized amphiphilic molecules which self-assemble into worm-like micelles. After the synthesis, students measured the critical micelle concentration using fluorescence and conductivity studies in an experiment developed by Dr. Kevin Caran at JMU.

KwaZulu-Natal is a province in southeastern South Africa and is the traditional ancestral land of the Zulu people. ("KwaZulu" means "place of the Zulu"). The University of KwaZulu-Natal was created through a merger of four universities five years ago. UKZN in Pietermartizburg was formerly known as the University of Natal. The School of Chemistry offers BSc, MSc and PhD degrees and has maintained a reputation as being one of the premier chemistry programs in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Since the end of apartheid in South Africa in 1994, the nation has been working to integrate underrepresented students into the educational system and in particular in tertiary studies in science, engineering and mathematics. Nanoscience has recently been targeted by the South African government as a key technology for future economic growth, and there are several centers focusing on nanoscience and nanotechnology around South Africa. Nanoscience education in South Africa is in its infancy with only a few isolated offerings.

Contact: Brian Augustine ( augustbh@jmu.edu, skype address: brian.augustine)

 

NanoDays at Northwestern University
April 10, 2009, by Megan O'Sullivan, MWM

Materials World Modules (MWM) and the National Center for Learning and Teaching in Nanoscale Science and Engineering (NCLT) sponsored NanoDays™ 2009 on Saturday, April 4 at Northwestern University. NanoDays is a nationwide festival of educational programs about nanoscale science and engineering and its potential impact on the future. NanoDays activities created unique learning experiences for both children and adults to explore the miniscule world of atoms, molecules, and nanoscale forces. Current Northwestern students volunteered to run the activities where almost 50 local teachers, students and parents participated. Mark Hersam, Professor of Materials Science and Engineering and Professor of Chemistry, provided the keynote lecture: Introduction to the Nanoscale.

working group
Christina Sweeney shows NanoDays participants a simple way she makes her own nanoparticles.
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Liuchuan Tong poses in front of the NanoDays activity he ran during Northwestern University's NanoDays.

 

First Alexandria International Tissue Engineering Congress, Alexandria, Egypt, February 13-16, 2009
Nanobiomaterials and Technology Workshop
March 30, 2009, NCLT

Prof. Teri W. Odom and NCLT-supported graduate student Christina M. Sweeney led a "Nanobiomaterials and Technology Workshop" for tissue engineering professionals and students at the First Alexandria International Tissue Engineering Congress in Alexandria, Egypt. Co-sponsored by the NCLT, this six-hour workshop included an introduction to how nanomaterials have been used in biological applications as well as several hands-on activities to grow nanomaterials and to nanopattern surfaces.

The hands-on nanoscale techniques were designed to use materials that were cheap and relatively easy to obtain; moreover, the characterization methods were also simple. The first activity was bench-top soft lithography, where PDMS stamps generated from the nanoscale patterns on compact disks were used to print self-assembled monolayers on gold substrates. Replicas of the CD patterns were also created by molding a 5-minute epoxy against the PDMS stamp. The second activity was the synthesis of Ni nanowires by electrodeposition into anodized aluminum oxide membranes. The final activity highlighted the importance of microfluidics in biology, where laminar flow and microcrystal formation inside the PDMS microchannels were demonstrated using a new fabrication technique developed by Matthew Chia (NU '09), an undergraduate in the Odom group.

working group working group
working group

 

 

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