THE DIMACS REU PROGRAM :AN INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH

EXPERIENCE

A Partnership between two Research Centers

DIMACS – the Center for Discrete Mathematics and Theoretical Computer Science - Based at Rutgers University

A Partnership between two Research Centers

DIMATIA – the Center for Discrete Mathematics, Theoretical Informatics, and

Applications - Based at Charles University in Prague, Czech Republic

A 3-Part Program

•Domestic Program: US students (recruited nationally), 8 weeks at DIMACS (5 students)

•International Program: US students, 8 weeks at DIMACS, 3 weeks at DIMATIA (5 students)

•International Program: Czech students, 8 weeks at DIMACS, then act as hosts at DIMATIA (5 students)

Goals

• Have an exciting research experience.

• Prepare for decisions about future educational and career paths.

• Get a taste of the international scientific enterprise.

The Domestic Research Experience

Students work one-on-one with a mentor

The Domestic Research Experience

Variety of topics in Computer Science, Math, Operations Research, and Related Fields.

• Planarity algorithms

• Algorithms for machine learning

• Generalized cuts and spanning subgraphs

• Distributed cryptography and computer security

Data Mining

Patterns in the Logical Analysis of Data

Text Categorization

Computational Molecular Biology

Protein-Induced DNA Looping

Combinatorial Auctions

Modeling bid preparation

The Stable Marriage Problem

Extensions to Three Types of Marriages:Men, Women, and Cats

Advantages of an REU in a Center

• Exposure to Visiting Scientists, foreign and domestic

• Visits to industrial partner labs: AT&T Labs, Bell Labs

• Participation in Center conferences and tutorials– Data mining for Homeland Security– Computational Epidemiology– Graph Labelings

Advantages of an REU in a Center

• Interaction with partner programs: Nucleic Acids Database

• Interaction with Educational Programs: Lectures at High School Teachers Research Experiences Program (RET)

• Joint Activities with Math Dept. REU program: Makes for a total of 22 students in all

Student “Deliverables”

• Presentations mid-way and at end of domestic program

• Web-sites

• Some wrote papers with their advisors

• Some gave talks at scientific meetings after the program

• Presentations at Prague Midsummer Combinatorics Conference

The Prague Program

The Prague Program

• 3 Weeks• No time for mentored research• Emphasis on introducing students to open

problems, appropriate problem-solving strategies

The Prague Program

• Prior to Leaving: – Prague students introduce domestic students

to culture;– Prague faculty/graduate students introduce

domestic students to the mathematics/computer science research at DIMATIA

The Prague Program

• Czech REU students act as hosts

• Introductory lectures

• Participation in Prague Midsummer Conference on Combinatorics

• Problem solving sessions

• Presentations of their work by US students

• Some solutions of open problems

Program Outcomes

• Published research papers • Conference presentations• Student awards:

– Alice Schafer Prize for Excellence in Research from Association for Women in Mathematics (1999)

– Best Student Paper award at Mathematical Association of America Meeting (2000)

– First Place in SVOC contest for Czech undergraduate student research (2001)

Program Outcomes

Surveyed students who went through our program from 1993 to 2000:

100% had achieved an M.S., Ph.D., or M.D. or were currently in graduate school or were planning to attend graduate school in the near future.

Program Outcomes

US graduate students served as student program coordinators and as leaders of the Prague trip.

• Important research experiences for them

• Joint papers with undergraduates

• Opened their eyes to undergraduate teaching and mentoring.

Comments from Participants

“I’ve never attended a different REU, but I’ve heard about quite a few, and there is a big difference in the ‘realness’ of the work at the DIMACS REU. Our mentors give us problems that might not lead anywhere and are definitely not routine. It’s really exciting.”

Comments from Participants

“Working with Jaroslav Nesetril [Prague Program Director] on some open problems was very exciting. Open problems appear everywhere in mathematics study, but working on one very seriously, and developing ideas in collaboration with your colleagues, is a very exciting experience that doesn’t happen very much during the academic year as an undergraduate.”

Comments from Participants

“The REU was great for me because I come from a state university with limited opportunities for research. It introduced me to a community of intelligent researchers, including one of my best friends. It gave me an idea what graduate school would be like and it was a lot of fun.”

Comments from Participants

“The REU was the first time I did research, and being at such as active research center lets you see all the best (and exciting) qualities of a career in research. In fact, I had a few choices of REU programs. My advisors at the time encouraged me to seriously consider the DIMACS program because of these qualities. They felt, and I have come to agree with them, that DIMACS gives you the best chance to become part of a real research project, not a falsely constructed one specifically for undergraduates.”

“Prague is a wonderful place and it was fun just to be there. Also, it was exciting meeting mathematicians from all over Eastern Europe and hearing what they were involved in. The research community is a global one and it is important to be involved in it.”