Utah State ADVANCE Program Seed Grants Promote Collaborative Research

As part of the effort to promote collaborative research on the Utah State University campus, the ADVANCE-Utah State (ADVANCE-US) project, funded by the National Science Foundation, recently awarded 12 collaborative seed grants for research proposals that were innovative, unique and had promise for future national funding.

The Collaborative Seed Grant Awards are part of the ADVANCE-US program, awarding seed monies to support new collaborative research directions involving Utah State female faculty.

“The goal of the Collaborative Seed Grant Awards is to support inter-disciplinary/collaborative research involving women faculty scientists and/or engineers and to enhance the research networking involving women faculty,” said Anne Anderson, professor of biology who leads the seed grant program for ADVANCE-US.

Anderson said ADVANCE-US awarded the money to support research by these interdisciplinary teams with hopes that initial research results will enable submission of proposals for external national awards.

“As more and more external funding opportunities shift toward collaborative research, ADVANCE-US hopes to stimulate more collaborative research at Utah State and with other universities,” said Anderson.

The following faculty members are 2004 recipients for their collaborative, interdisciplinary research involving aspects of science and/or engineering.

Karen Beard (FRWS), Richard Cutler (Math) and outside collaborator Daniel Sarr. Predicting Invasive Plant Species Occurrences: A Process for Prioritizing Prevention in our National Parks.

Susanne Janecke (Geology) and outside collaborators Rebecca J. Dorsey, Victoria E. Langenheim and Stephanie Carney. Assessment of Major Changes within the Pacific-North American Plate Boundary in South California.

Ann Aust (Chem), Joan Hevel (Chem), and Adele Cutler (Math). Differential Gene Expression in Human Lung Epithelial Cells Exposed to Asbestos.

Kelly Kopp (PSB) and Nancy Mesner (AWER). Gray Water Irrigation: Constituent Uptake, Leaching, and Persistence.

Karen Mock (FRWS), Mike Pfrender (Biology), Ron Ryel (FRWS) and outside collaborators Carol Rowe, Megan Kanaga, Dale Bartos, Thomas Whitham and Richard Lindroth. Aspen in Western Ecosystems: Landscape-Scale Genetic Patterns and Ecological Implications. An emerging collaboration between Utah State, the USDA Forest Service, Northern Arizona University and the University of Wisconsin.

Ilka Nemere (Nutrition Food Science) and outside collaborators Kelly Meckling and Cindy Farach-Carson. Role of the 1,25D3-MARRS Protein in Nuclear Function.

Kytai Nguyen (Biological & Irrigation Engineering) and Tim Gilbertson (Biology). Development of Nanoparticle Technology to Reduce Dietary-Induced Obesity.

Jeanette Norton (PSB), Ryan Dupont (CEE), Darwin Sorenson (CEE), Joan McLean (BIE) and outside collaborators Jing Zhou and Paul Richardson. Dehalogenation and the Role of Competitive, Alternative Electron Acceptors in the Bioremediation of Contaminated Aquifers.

Bonnie Pitblado (Sociology, Social Work & Anthropology) and Carol Dehler (Geology). Sourcing the Origin of Stone Raw Materials from the 8,000 Year-Old Chance Gulch Archaeological Site, Gunnison Basin, Colo.

Keri Ryan (CEE) and outside collaborators Stephen A. Mahin and Eduardo Miranda. Performance-Based Design of Base-Isolated Buildings.

Paul Schreuders (ETE), Kytai Nguyen (BIE), David Britt (BIE), Joanne Bentley (Instr. Tech.), Tim Taylor (BIE) and Laurie McNeill (CEE). The Development of Biomedical and Environmental Engineering Curricular Materials for Use in High School Biology Courses.

Helga Van Miegroet (AWER), Janis Boettinger (PSB) and Michelle Baker (Biology). Differences in soil organic carbon chemistry in seasonally dry forest-rangeland ecosystems in Utah.

The ADVANCE-US program aims to improve recruitment, promotion and retention of female scientists and engineers at Utah State by transforming department climates, updating policies and procedures and improving the faculty support infrastructure.

For more information on ADVANCE at Utah State, visit its Web site.