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NASA NTRS2005

Mission leverage education: NSU/NASA innovative undergraduate model

The BEST Lab (Center for Excellence in Science Education), the Center for Materials Research (CMR), and the Chemistry, Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science (CS) Departments at Norfolk State University (NSU) joined forces to implement MiLEN(2) IUM - an innovative approach tu integrate current and emerging research into the undergraduate curricula and train students on NASA-related fields. An Earth Observing System (EOS) mission was simulated where students are educated and trained in many aspects of Remote Sensing: detector physics and spectroscopy; signal processing; data conditioning, analysis, visualization; and atmospheric science. This model and its continued impact is expected to significantly enhance the quality of the Mathematics, Science, Engineering and Technology (MSET or SMET) educational experience and to inspire students from historically underrepresented groups to pursue careers in NASA-related fields. MiLEN(2) IUM will be applicable to other higher education institutions that are willing to make the commitment to this endeavor in terms of faculty interest and space.

Chaudhury, S. Raj↗

NASA NTRS1975

University research in aeronautics

The contributions which universities can make to aeronautical research projects are discussed. The activities of several facilities are presented to show the effectiveness of the educational and research programs. Reference is made to the Intergovernmental Personnel Act of 1970 which permits an exchange of federal agency personnel with state and local governments and with public and private higher education schools.

Duberg, J. E.↗

NASA NTRS2010

Project ELaNa and NASA's CubeSat Initiative

Skrobot, Garrett Lee↗

NASA NTRS2010

NASA Launch Services Program - Project ELaNa and Educational CubeSat Initiative

This slide presentation reviews the NASA program to use expendable lift vehicles (ELVs) to launch nanosatellites for the purpose of enhancing educational research. The Education Launch of Nanosatellite (ELaNa) project, run out of the Launch Services Program is requesting proposals for CubeSat type payload to provide information that will aid or verify NASA Projects designs while providing higher educational research opportunities. Information is included about the launch vehicles, launch sites that are available to support the Poly Picosatellite Orbital Developer System (PPOD) that could be used on the available ELVs. There is an overview of the services that are provided for a launch.

Skrobot, Garrett Lee↗

NASA NTRS2010

Project ELaNa and NASA's CubeSat Initiative

This slide presentation reviews the NASA program to use expendable lift vehicles (ELVs) to launch nanosatellites for the purpose of enhancing educational research. The Education Launch of Nanosatellite (ELaNa) project, run out of the Launch Services Program is requesting proposals for CubeSat type payload to provide information that will aid or verify NASA Projects designs while providing opportunities for higher educational research. Some of the challenges involved with the program are discussed, and there is brief discussion about requirements for participation in the program, and the number of flight opportunities available for the launch of the Poly Picosatellite Orbital Deployer (PPOD).

Skrobot, Garrett Lee↗

DOE OSTI2021

Plutonium workers get a new level of education in the actinide mission

The Associate Laboratory Directorate for Weapons Production (ALDWP) and the National Security Education Center (NSEC) have teamed to develop a new Nuclear Enterprise Science and Technology (NEST) Academic Certificate program offered through the University of New Mexico – Los Alamos (UNM-LA). The pilot program, which virtually kicked off on January 19 even amidst snow closures, received accreditation by the State Higher Education Department (HED) in FY20 and is designed for LANL’s existing fissile material handler technician and technologist employee workforce. It will provide essential science, operations, and business education on all aspects of working in modern nuclear materials handling and processing facilities. The first course for the certificate program is called “Nuclear Facility Fundamentals.” A call for nominations went out to the directorate and a cohort of 15 individuals has been established to start the program.

61 RADIATION PROTECTION AND DOSIMETRY↗

DOE OSTI2020

Investing in STEM Benefits Community, Company, and Industry - 20243

Like many organizations and groups, the Department of Energy Environmental Management program and the nuclear industry are facing an aging employee population and record numbers of employee retirements. This 'silver tsunami' of retirees means the industry as a whole is recruiting graduates at a fast pace. So, how do we ensure the nuclear industry has a robust pipeline of graduates with the necessary background? Fluor Idaho's investment in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education programs helps promote the next generation of technical professionals, benefiting both the company and the industry. Through community outreach initiatives and student mentoring programs, Fluor Idaho promotes kids' interest in STEM. The programs are designed to spark STEM interest in grade school and then foster and grow that interest through high school and higher education. After igniting student excitement about STEM topics in school, Fluor Idaho focuses on providing work-specific opportunities including mentoring and intern programs. These programs give students a better look at real-world job opportunities while still stimulating their interest in STEM. These programs ultimately provide career opportunities for the students and a pipeline of workers. Fluor Idaho's strategy for its summer interns has been to place students in a wide variety of projects - from the commissioning of a first-of-a-kind nuclear processing facility, to operating nuclear waste management facilities, to developing computer programs and applications - and give them responsibilities that make them feel like valued contributors. This approach has created a positive and rewarding summer-intern program experience for the students. Fluor Idaho's investment in its future today is reducing the knowledge gap - or cliff - that many contractors in the nuclear industry are facing. It's a worthwhile investment that is readily visible within its many cleanup projects. The next generation of technical professionals is making an impact now - benefiting both the company and the nuclear industry. This paper will review Fluor Idaho's programs, including STEM community outreach and education and mentoring programs. It will also present statistics about the reach of those programs and their successes. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

NASA NTRS2003

Aeronautics Education, Research, and Industry Alliance (AERIAL) Year 2 Report and Year 3 Proposal

The Aeronautics Education, Research, and Industry Alliance (AERIAL): a comprehensive, multi-faceted NASA EPSCoR 2000 initiative, contributes to the strategic research and technology priorities of NASA while intensifying Nebraska s rapidly growing aeronautics research and development endeavors. AERIAL enables Nebraska researchers to: (a) continue strengthening their collaborative relationships with NASA Field Centers, Codes, and Enterprises; (b) increase the capacity of higher education throughout Nebraska to invigorate and expand aeronautics research; and (c) expedite the development of aeronautics-related research infrastructure and industry in the state. This report contains a summary of AERIAL's activities and accomplishments during the second year of implementation. The AERIAL Year 3 proposal is also included.

Bowen, Brent D.↗

NASA NTRS2004

Aeronautics Education, Research, and Industry Alliance (AERIAL) Progress Report and Proposal for Funding Continuation NASA Nebraska EPSCoR

The Aeronautics Education, Research, and Industry Alliance (AERIAL), which began as a comprehensive, multi-faceted NASA EPSCoR 2000 initiative, has contributed substantially to the strategic research and technology priorities of NASA, while intensifying Nebraska's rapidly growing aeronautics research and development endeavors. AERIAL has enabled Nebraska researchers to: (a) continue strengthening their collaborative relationships with NASA Field Centers, Codes, and Enterprises; (b) increase the capacity of higher education throughout Nebraska to invigorate and expand aeronautics research; and (c) expedite the development of aeronautics-related research infrastructure and industry in the state. Nebraska has placed emphasis on successfully securing additional funds from non-EPSCoR and non-NASA sources. AERIAL researchers have aggressively pursued additional funding opportunities offered by NASA, industry, and other agencies. This report contains a summary of AERIAL's activities and accomplishments during its first three years of implementation.

Bowen, Brent↗

DOE OSTI2022

NNSA Minority Serving Institute Partnership Program (MSIPP)— Advanced Synergistic Program for Indigenous Research in Engineering (ASPIRE) (FY22 Q1 Progress Report)

In 2016, the National Nuclear Security Agency (NNSA) initiated the Minority Serving Institution Partnership Plan (MSIPP) targeting Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs) to offer programs that will prepare students for technical careers in NNSA’s laboratories and production plants. The MSIPP consortium’s approach is as follows: 1) align investments at the college and university level to develop a curriculum and workforce needed to support NNSA’s nuclear weapon enterprise mission, and 2) to enhance research and education at under-represented colleges and universities. The first TCU consortium that MSIPP launched was known as the Advanced Manufacturing Network Initiative (AMNI) whose purpose was to develop additive manufacturing (AM) learning opportunities. The AMNI consortium consisted of Bay Mills Community College, Cankdeska Cikana Community College, Navajo Tech University, Salish Kootenai Community College, Turtle Mountain Community College, and United Tribes Technical College. In 2016, the American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC), the AMNI consortium and the Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute (SIPI), in collaboration with Sandia National Labs, using a grant by NNSA hosted the first TCU Advanced Manufacturing Technology Summer Institute (TCU AMTSI). The AMNI consortium will officially end Sept. 2022. However, building on the successes of AMNI, in FY22 NNSA’s MSIPP launched three additional consortiums: (1) the Indigenous Mutual Partnership to Advanced Cybersecurity Technology (IMPACT), which focuses on STEM and cybersecurity, (2) the Advanced Synergistic Program for Indigenous Research in Engineering (ASPIRE), which focuses on STEM and the electrical and mechanical engineering skills set needed for renewable and distributed energy systems, and (3) the Partnership for Advanced Manufacturing Education and Research (PAMER), which focuses on developing and maintaining a sustainable pathway for a highly trained, next-generation additive manufacturing workforce and a corresponding community of subject matter experts for NNSA enterprises. The following report summarizes the status update during this quarter for the ASPIRE program.

42 ENGINEERING↗

DOE OSTI2020

Assessment of Demographic, Genetic, and Imaging Variables Associated With Brain Resilience and Cognitive Resilience to Pathological Tau in Patients With Alzheimer Disease

Importance: Better understanding is needed of the degree to which individuals tolerate Alzheimer disease (AD)-like pathological tau with respect to brain structure (brain resilience) and cognition (cognitive resilience). Objective: To examine the demographic (age, sex, and educational level), genetic (APOE-ε4 status), and neuroimaging (white matter hyperintensities and cortical thickness) factors associated with interindividual differences in brain and cognitive resilience to tau positron emission tomography (PET) load and to changes in global cognition over time. Design, setting, an participants: In this cross-sectional, longitudinal study, tau PET was performed from June 1, 2014, to November 30, 2017, and global cognition monitored for a mean [SD] interval of 2.0 [1.8] years at 3 dementia centers in South Korea, Sweden, and the United States. The study included amyloid-β-positive participants with mild cognitive impairment or AD dementia. Data analysis was performed from October 26, 2018, to December 11, 2019. Exposures: Standard dementia screening, cognitive testing, brain magnetic resonance imaging, amyloid-β PET and cerebrospinal fluid analysis, and flortaucipir (tau) labeled with fluor-18 (18F) PET. Main outcomes and measures: Separate linear regression models were performed between whole cortex [18F]flortaucipir uptake and cortical thickness, and standardized residuals were used to obtain a measure of brain resilience. The same procedure was performed for whole cortex [18F]flortaucipir uptake vs Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) as a measure of cognitive resilience. Bivariate and multivariable linear regression models were conducted with age, sex, educational level, APOE-ε4 status, white matter hyperintensity volumes, and cortical thickness as independent variables and brain and cognitive resilience measures as dependent variables. Linear mixed models were performed to examine whether changes in MMSE scores over time differed as a function of a combined brain and cognitive resilience variable. Results: A total of 260 participants (145 [55.8%] female; mean [SD] age, 69.2 [9.5] years; mean [SD] MMSE score, 21.9 [5.5]) were included in the study. In multivariable models, women (standardized β = -0.15, P = .02) and young patients (standardized β = -0.20, P = .006) had greater brain resilience to pathological tau. Higher educational level (standardized β = 0.23, P < .001) and global cortical thickness (standardized β = 0.23, P < .001) were associated with greater cognitive resilience to pathological tau. Linear mixed models indicated a significant interaction of brain resilience × cognitive resilience × time on MMSE (β [SE] = -0.235 [0.111], P = .03), with steepest slopes for individuals with both low brain and cognitive resilience. Conclusions and relevance: Results of this study suggest that women and young patients with AD have relative preservation of brain structure when exposed to neocortical pathological tau. Interindividual differences in resilience to pathological tau may be important to disease progression because participants with both low brain and cognitive resilience had the most rapid cognitive decline over time.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

NASA NTRS1990

Intelligent Tutor

NASA also seeks to advance American education by employing the technology utilization process to develop a computerized, artificial intelligence-based Intelligent Tutoring System (ITS) to help high school and college physics students. The tutoring system is designed for use with the lecture and laboratory portions of a typical physics instructional program. Its importance lies in its ability to observe continually as a student develops problem solutions and to intervene when appropriate with assistance specifically directed at the student's difficulty and tailored to his skill level and learning style. ITS originated as a project of the Johnson Space Center (JSC). It is being developed by JSC's Software Technology Branch in cooperation with Dr. R. Bowen Loftin at the University of Houston-Downtown. Program is jointly sponsored by NASA and ACOT (Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow). Other organizations providing support include Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, the National Research Council, Pennzoil Products Company and the George R. Brown Foundation. The Physics I class of Clear Creek High School, League City, Texas are providing the classroom environment for test and evaluation of the system. The ITS is a spinoff product developed earlier to integrate artificial intelligence into training/tutoring systems for NASA astronauts flight controllers and engineers.

Source record↗

DOE OSTI2024

Developing Smart Building Technology Modules to Enhance Workforce Preparedness: A Case for AI-Driven Academic and Professional Education

Smart building technologies are resources that improve building energy efficiency and resilience, reduce carbon emissions, and provide load flexibility to the grid. However, in both academic curricula and building professionals’ continuing education, there is a lack of systematic instruction on methods to integrate multiple energy systems including distributed energy resources (DER), smart building technologies, AI (Artificial Intelligence) tools and key concepts, components, and controls, including “Internet of Things” (IoT) devices. In today’s dynamic workforce, this major gap in smart building technology education prevents stakeholders from being able to attract talent with an understanding and preparation to adopt smart building technologies in building design and operations. A federally funded project included a partnership between Slipstream and Texas A&M University (TAMU) to develop a semester-long smart building curriculum for engineering college students with the ability to adapt the contents for workforce development of professionals in building services. The final product consists of 16 training videos adapted for building professionals and the public. The educational content and training materials cover the benefits of building energy systems, the latest sensor technologies and IoT devices, all with a focus on smart building technologies. The key drivers are on topics related to smart building controls (i.e., energy management information systems), smart building control platforms, cybersecurity, grid-interactive-efficient buildings (GEBs), smart building control methods, and occupant-centric control. Although not explicitly included the technologies nod to the need for AI driven technologies to prepare engineers and industry professionals to be future ready. This paper describes the project approach, provides outlines of the training materials, and identifies lessons learned in creating the content for this course. The authors suggest ways to scale the instruction of smart building concepts to empower the workforce to accelerate the adoption of smart building technologies and AI-based teaching and learning in higher education and building sector.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗

DOE OSTI2020

Razorback – A reactor transient analysis code for large rapid reactivity additions in a natural circulation research reactor

Research reactors play an important role in higher education, scientific research, and medical radioisotope production around the world. It is thus important to ensure the safety of facility workers and the public. This work presents a new reactor transient analysis code referred to as Razorback. The code has been developed for the evaluation of large rapid reactivity addition in research reactors. Its initial focus is the Annular Core Research Reactor (ACRR) at Sandia National Laboratories. Results have been validated against ACRR pulse operations. Razorback models the reactor kinetics, fuel element heat transfer, fuel element thermal expansion, and natural circulation coolant channel thermal-hydraulic response. Simulation results for ACRR pulse operations are shown to agree very well with operational data obtained from the ACRR. Finally, Razorback is expected to be a valuable tool for ACRR pulse performance prediction and ACRR reactor safety analyses.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗

DOE OSTI2024

Understanding electric vehicle ownership using data fusion and spatial modeling

The global shift toward electric vehicles (EVs) for climate sustainability lacks comprehensive insights into the impact of the built environment on EV ownership, especially in varying spatial contexts. This study, focusing on New York State, integrates data fusion techniques across diverse datasets to examine the influence of socioeconomic and built environmental factors on EV ownership. The utilization of spatial regression models reveals consistent coefficient values, highlighting the robustness of the results, with the Spatial Lag model better at capturing spatial autocorrelation. Further, results underscore the significance of charging stations within a 10-mile radius, indicative of a preference for convenient charging options influencing EV ownership decisions. Factors like higher education levels, lower rental populations, and concentrations of older population align with increased EV ownership. Utilizing publicly available data offers a more accessible avenue for understanding EV ownership across regions, complementing traditional survey approaches.

33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗

DOE OSTI2023

CORE: A Global Aggregation Service for Open Access Papers

This paper introduces CORE, a widely used scholarly service, which provides access to the world’s largest collection of open access research publications, acquired from a global network of repositories and journals. CORE was created with the goal of enabling text and data mining of scientific literature and thus supporting scientific discovery, but it is now used in a wide range of use cases within higher education, industry, not-for-profit organisations, as well as by the general public. Through the provided services, CORE powers innovative use cases, such as plagiarism detection, in market-leading third-party organisations. CORE has played a pivotal role in the global move towards universal open access by making scientific knowledge more easily and freely discoverable. In this paper, we describe CORE’s continuously growing dataset and the motivation behind its creation, present the challenges associated with systematically gathering research papers from thousands of data providers worldwide at scale, and introduce the novel solutions that were developed to overcome these challenges. The paper then provides an in-depth discussion of the services and tools built on top of the aggregated data and finally examines several use cases that have leveraged the CORE dataset and services.

96 KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT AND PRESERVATION↗

DOE OSTI2021

A Father’s Day Tribute Father-son Nobel Prize-winning physicists worked together at the Lab

Partners in physics during the World War II years, father and son Niels and Aage Bohr worked side by side on the Lab’s top-secret effort to create the first atomic bombs. Arriving in Los Alamos in late 1943, Aage was just 21 years old. He had been studying physics to follow in the footsteps of his father, who had won a Nobel Prize in 1922. Aage’s higher education, however, had been interrupted by the rapid spread of Nazism in Europe. The Bohrs, who had Jewish heritage, fled their native Denmark to escape persecution, eventually arriving in Los Alamos to aid in the creation of weapons that would help end the war. Their story is part of the collections at the National Security Research Center, which is the Lab’s classified library and also houses unclassified historic materials. While at Los Alamos, Niels and Aage were accorded VIP status because of the family’s scientific renown and given new names to protect their identities: Aage was James Baker, while his father was Nicholas Baker, but the scientific community called him Uncle Nick. Whether called Niels and Aage or Nick and Jim, father and son were inseparable.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

DOE OSTI2022

South Texas Industrial Assessment Center (Final Report)

The South Texas Industrial Assessment Center (ST-IAC) provides small to mid-size manufacturing companies and water treatment plants in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas, free energy assessments to help them reduce costs and stay competitive for sustainable development. The ST-IAC operates within the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV), and is the largest Hispanic-serving IAC in the U.S. Created in 2016, the ST-IAC, situated in the most economically disadvantaged region in the country, has been successful in training students and assessing local industries served by a predominantly Hispanic population. UTRGV, now the second largest Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) of higher education in the U.S., has a student population of 32,000, of which 90% is Hispanic. While Covid-19 had a negative impact to our program during Budget Periods (BP) 4 and 5, the center still managed to provide opportunities for individuals, manufacturing and water industries in the local region. The program developed an energy engineering program in the region and further advanced national priorities. Those include resilience and sustainability of operations by implementing energy efficiency processes, renewable energy sources, decarbonization, battery storage, and cybersecurity in south Texas.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗