Research Experience for Undergraduates-2003

The genre of the research report was discussed with emphasis on the introduction and the importance of citing what might be taken as “shared knowledge”. Students received a technical communication textbook, packet of sample reports, and handouts. A web page was established to supplement the print materials. The web site points to a variety of online support materials that they can use as references as they continue to develop their papers and presentations.

A one-on-one consultation was held with each student to talk about their research report. Group discussions about effective Power Point presentations were held with a short presentation being videotaped. Students may elect to receive further support from the communication facilitators by posting their papers/queries on the Interactive Papers website.

The tri-center Earthquake Engineering Symposium for Young Researchers was the final activity for the ten-week summer Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program. The symposium was held at Sunriver Resort, Bend, Oregon on August 8-10, 2003 and supplied a forum for the REU students to introduce the results of their research. PEER was the host for this year’s symposium.

Six students from the MAE Center Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) and Undergraduate Research Assistants (URA) programs joined two students from MCEER and seven students from PEER to give their presentations. Each student provided an abstract of his or her paper. Professor Ed Harris from the Department of Philosophy and Humanities at Texas A&M University offered the ethics component of the REU experience with concurrent breakout sessions to discuss ethical dilemma problems.

Symposium participants toured the Newberry National Volcanic Monument. Within the monument were cinder cones, pumice cones, lava flows, including obsidian flows, lakes, streams, and waterfalls. At 6,300 feet, students were guided on a trial atop a mountain of black glass and hiked the shores of Paulina Lake.

Students were also treated to a visit from the High Desert Museum. Museum personnel from the Bird of Prey Interpretive Program presented a Golden Eagle to the group. This was followed by a discussion of eagle habitat, nesting, parenting, and foraging.