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Session 1793

An Undergraduate Research Experience in New Developments for Aseismic Building Design

Anant R. Kukreti

University of Cincinnati

Abstract

This paper describes a two-month research experience for undergraduate engineering students specifically designed to conduct three “pilot” projects investigating new strategies to mitigate earthquake damage. The project was part of a Research for Undergraduates (REU) Site grant sponsored by the National Science Foundation, and administered in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Cincinnati during the summer of 2003. This opportunity helps in attracting and retaining the brightest undergraduate students by providing special programs that capture their interests and challenge their scholastic potential. Nine undergraduate students from six different institutions participated, and included three women and six men students. The students’ scholastic standing ranged from sophomore to senior level. Each group was supervised by a Faculty Mentor, one Graduate Student Mentor, and a Lab Technician during the complete duration of the REU Site. The paper presents how the whole research program was planned and conducted, the details of the projects selected for the students, and procedures used to evaluate the impact of the project. This paper will help others in planning similar experiences for engineering undergraduate students.

1. Introduction

This paper describes the experiences provided in a Site for undergraduate research in "Structural Engineering" in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Cincinnati (UC), Cincinnati, Ohio. This Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Site was funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF). The purpose of this REU Site was to encourage talented undergraduates to enroll in graduate school by exposing them to research, and to increase their interest in graduate research. In this paper, first the basic approach adopted to plan the REU Site and associated activities are presented in this section, followed by a detailed description of the projects selected and executed. In the end, evaluation procedures used, and the outcomes from the whole experience are summarized. Hopefully, this documentation will help others in planning similar experiences for engineering undergraduate students.

Proceedings of the 2004 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition Copyright © 2004, American Society for Engineering Education

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Kukreti, A. (2004, June), An Undergraduate Research Experience In New Developments For Aseismic Building Design Paper presented at 2004 Annual Conference, Salt Lake City, Utah. 10.18260/1-2--12840