REU Site: Research Projects in Data-Enabled Industrial Mathematics

This REU site at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University provides ten undergraduate students each year with opportunities to participate in authentic research projects in data-enabled industrial mathematics during the summers 2021-2023. The objectives of this unique research experience are to prepare students for challenges in data-driven mathematics and to provide them with skills to navigate capably in today’s data-rich world.

Students will learn to transform technical, organizational, and data-enabled problems posed by business, industry, or government into solvable mathematical questions. The program will recruit talented students from diverse groups, including females, underrepresented minorities, financially disadvantaged students, and first-generation college students.

Participation will equip students interested in industrial mathematics research with a strong understanding of data analytics, mathematical modeling and problem-solving abilities, and effective communication skills. Video documentaries of the progress and results of each research project will be used to promote undergraduate research and data literacy for a broader audience.

The ultimate idea of this site is to model real-world industrial research experiences, focusing on student growth and encouraging students to interact with the educational material at a level that goes beyond a classroom setting. The students will work collaboratively on problems provided directly by business, government, and industry. The two perspectives of the faculty mentor and of the industrial partners are keys to this unique experience: the faculty mentor maintains a clear focus on the mathematics and data science aspects at the core of the project, while industrial partners provide an incentive of relevant industrial needs and contexts.

Students will learn through examples how data science skills can be critical for practical applications, and the experience will foster informed career decisions and promote professional development.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.