REU Site: CNS: Sensing and Smart Systems

This project sponsored under the NSF Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) offers a summer research program on sensors and smart systems at the Florida Atlantic University, Institute for Sensing and Embedded Network Systems Engineering (I-SENSE). Smart systems are computer systems that incorporate sensing, actuation and control in order to make intelligent decisions about its operations that ensure its essential mission and purpose. Smart systems provide an excellent pathway to introduce undergraduates to the major principles and practices in computer science through their applications that undergraduates have experienced and the research challenges to ensure these smart systems are, e.g., dependable, resilient, and trustworthy. Students in this project are mentored by faculty from I-SENSE, participate in professional development activities, receive career guidance on preparing for graduate school and a career in science and technology. The REU site is led by I-SENSE faculty mentors with significant research expertise, and the I-SENSE institute provides state-of-the-art facilities to support undergraduate researchers. Students will be integrated into existing research groups and projects focused on real-world applications. The research will concentrate on three areas of application expertise: infrastructure systems; marine and environmental systems; and health and behavior. These projects span different contexts of exploration and application, unified by their emphasis on sensing and smart systems. The exploration space presents myriad challenges at the intersection of sensing, computing, signal processing, artificial intelligence, and cyber-physical control. The site’s focus and research projects offer an exceptional opportunity to catalyze interdisciplinary discovery and to engage students in high-level scientific exploration. 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.