Hands-On Research Experiences Sets Undergraduates Up for Success

In the CAT Vehicle REU, students learned about the many technologies and research areas behind autonomous ground vehicles, such as self-driving cars. Though the students typically pair their research in areas like machine learning and neural networks with the department’s full-size robotic car, the program was held remotely in both 2020 and 2021. That didn’t stop students from walking away with an abundance of new knowledge at the close of the program.

"I learned so much from this REU — new programming languages, technical writing skills, and how to better research challenging topics," said Anna Vander Kamp, a student at Lipscomb University.

Students were split into groups to focus on different projects, on areas such as object detection frameworks and vehicle localization. They worked closely with graduate students to learn about not only new technical areas, but about whether they’d like to pursue graduate school themselves.

"I would recommend this program for its outstanding ability to give students a well-rounded research experience from beginning to end," said Kent State University student Sara Roman. "I learned about each part, from reading research papers, to decoding others work and troubleshooting my project with teammates. I can confidently say this REU prepared me for future research projects and even grad school. I would recommend this to aspiring graduates without question."

Professor Jonathan Sprinkle and associate professor Gregory Ditzler led the CAT Vehicle REU program. Graduate student mentors included Safwan Elmadani, Arminda Estrada and David Schwartz.

High-Frequency Wireless Communications

HF REU students conducted research on high-frequency long-range wireless communications, which allow wireless communication over thousands of kilometers without the need for satellites. They are of immeasurable importance in applications such as military and government communications and public safety and civil service distress communications.

"I can happily say that, after coming in with absolutely no knowledge of communications or artificial intelligence, I now have a firm understanding of how to develop, describe and implement complex systems involving neural networks, reinforcement learning and equalization," said UA ECE undergraduate Celyn Jacobs.

Beyond learning about the technical aspects of wireless communications, students also learned about their multitude of applications, allowing them to gain a new perspective on the field’s importance.

"It hadn’t occurred to me how often the technology in this field is used in our current society," said Emily Huynh, a student at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. "This experience has taught me how to better understand research papers, read mathematical notations, communicate with my teammates, orient myself when my work is more open ended, and think more flexibly. I believe these skills will have a positive impact on my academic and professional career."

In addition, students honed skills that are important in any career path, such as teamwork and effective communication.

"My favorite part of the HF REU was definitely the moments where a bunch of us – students, mentors, and faculty – might be huddled around a table or whiteboard bouncing ideas off each other nonstop," said Stony Brook University student Christopher Smith. "Being in an environment where people’s ideas interact earnestly and at such a high level was something I’m not sure I’ve ever been a part of, and I really enjoyed it."

Professors Tamal Bose and Loukas Lazos and associate professor Michael Marefat led the HF REU program. Graduate student mentors included Jingcheng Li, Noel Teku and Ziqi Xu.

Partnership for Proactive Cybersecurity Training

The UA PACT REU program partnered with Navajo Technical University, Howard University and the Argonne National Laboratory to address current and future cybersecurity research challenges. Undergraduate students learned how to read technical papers and understand current research, but also conducted their own experiments, finding and solving problems related to machine learning and cybersecurity.

"I thought I was going to learn about traditional cybersecurity, but it was way beyond what I expected," said Kelly Morgan, a Navajo Technical University student. "We learned how to perform an adversarial attack on a neural network model, and it was amazing."

The students also learned skills that can be broadly applied, such as how to use Python, GitHub and Microsoft Azure.

"I recommend this program for all students who have a love for learning, especially in programming, machine learning, and cybersecurity," said UA ECE student Joe Liang.

Even the graduate student mentors, who were there to guide the students as they got their feet wet in the world of research, found the experience to be enlightening.

"I have always been on a receiving end of education, and being on the other side was definitely refreshing and interesting," said Srishti Gupta, an ECE graduate student who acted as a mentor in the REU. "We collaborated on the research and, from the generated results, we're planning on submitting a journal paper."

Professors Tamal Bose and Salim Hariri and associate professor Gregory Ditzler led the PACT REU program. Their graduate student mentors included Alex Berian, Srishti Gupta and Shalaka Satam.

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