NSF Grant Supports 10-Week Research Experience for Undergraduates
Ten undergraduate students from universities across the country recently had the opportunity to participate in a 10-week Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi (TAMU-CC). This program, funded by the National Science Foundation and running from June 3 to August 9 saw students hone their computing research knowledge using unmanned aerial systems (UAS) to survey the coastal environment of the Gulf of Mexico.
Led by Dr. Dulal Chandra Kar, Professor of Computer Science at TAMU-CC, students worked in pairs to conduct research aimed at solving real-world problems, with the support of six members of TAMU-CC faculty serving as mentors. One group worked on a project titled, “UAV Obstacle Avoidance Using 3D Point Cloud”, which saw them program a drone to autonomously detect and avoid obstacles using the Crazyfly application programming interface, as well as developing their own script to measure the distance and speed of an object to the drone. Ryan Seidel ’24, a computer science major at TAMU-CC and one of the team members, reflected on his experience.
“Working alongside my team member to solve problems gave me a lot of confidence,” said Ryan Seidel ’24, a computer science major at the Island University. “The program was impactful in that it helped me deal with challenges and solve them quickly, which is what often needs to happen in the workforce.”
Helen Lei, a computer science major at Cornell University, also shared her insights from the program.
“I learned a lot about what it is to be an effective researcher, and it inspired me to pursue more research opportunities,” Lei said. “It was also good to meet a bunch of new people and learn how to collaborate with them.”
Armed with the newfound knowledge, skills and experiences gained on the Island, the students returned to their respective universities better prepared for future research opportunities and careers as STEM professionals.
To learn more about the REU program at TAMU-CC, please visit: https://www.tamucc.edu/engineering/research/csreu