Recipient Organization
LINCOLN UNIVERSITY
820 CHESTNUT ST
JEFFERSON CITY,MO 651023537
Performing Department
Agriculture
Non Technical Summary
There have been significant advances in nanoscience research during recent years and, in the not too distant future, multiple nanodevices will become part of daily life. Medicine, materials, and electronics are the technologies that are beginning to benefit from nanotechnology applications. Researchers from other disciplines, including agriculture, are beginning to explore the potential applications of nano-science. The potential use of nanotechnology in agriculture and food systems clearly is an indication for this enabling technology. Delivery systems, nanomaterial, nanosensors, etc., are the targets to be incorporated into agriculture and food systems. New devices such as tools for the rapid detection and treatment of diseases, for the enhancement of the ability of plants to absorb nutrients, for the delivery of specific substances to specific sites and for water treatment are some examples of developments. This impact creates a challenge for the academic community to educate students with the necessary knowledge, understanding, and skills to interact and provide leadership in the emerging world of nanotechnology. Therefore incorporating cutting-edge science in agriculture and food sciences into classrooms is important for engaging students in advanced science and for maintaining their interest. Students are likely to feel closer to the research process, show more general interest in science, and learn more effectively when their instructional materials are up-to-date, based on current research, and are relevant to their lives. Nanotechnology is a fairly new technique and only used on a limited basis in Agricultural research. Nevertheless, experts foresee opportunities in agriculture and the food industry. Novel agricultural and food security systems, disease-treatment, delivery methods, sensors for pathogen detection, ecological protection, and educating of the public and future workforce on this topic are examples of the important impact that nanotechnology could have on the science of agriculture and food systems. Our proposed studies have realistic possibilities to produce major advances toward integrating appropriate teaching modules with focus on nanotechnology into the LU educational process. Instructors will be encouraged, trained and provided required instructional materials to educate themselves on advances of nanotechnology in their own field. PI and other experienced collaborators will be directly involved in the project and help the participant faculty to develop and design new lecture materials based on the application of nanotechnology in the area of expertise. Ranging from 2 to 4 lectures will be designed for each targeted course depending on the subject to be taught. Graduate students will be provided with the opportunity to participate in a 4-week educational training at the existing nanotechnology labs at LU. They will be paired with the researchers in the lab under supervision of the PI to conduct small nanotechnology-related projects and get hands on experience in nano-field.
Animal Health Component
30%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
40%
Applied
30%
Developmental
30%
Goals / Objectives
This proposal supports integration of new lecture materials and laboratory experiments in undergraduate and graduate curricula of Agriculture and Environmental Science at LU with the focus on materials related to current nanotechnology research that is applicable to agriculture and food technology and what the future will bring to the newly emerging field of Agrifood Nanotechnology. The goal is to prepare the students for participation in the scientific community and to provide possible scientific experiences at a formative time in their educational lives. The embedded stimulants for instructors in this project will also encourage them to participate in this program, expand their knowledge, and include related nanotechnology material in their lecture materials. During the course of this project the newly designed nanotechnology related lectures and laboratory experiments will be integrated into undergraduate and graduate courses already existing in Agriculture and Environmental Science curricula. The integration is designed such that students majoring in agriculture with emphasis on any of the three emphasis areas (Animal Science, Plant and Soil Science, Natural Resource Management), Agribusiness, and Environmental Science are introduced to the recent advances and application of nanotechnology in their field. The main Objectives of this proposal include: 1- Motivate faculty to gain experience in recent developments in nano-technological advances relevant to their area of expertise 2- Curricular enhancement by developing new teaching modules relevant to application of nanotechnology in Agriculture and Environmental Sciences education that can be used in existing undergraduate and graduate courses 3- Introducing application of nanotechnology to existing graduate students in order to motivate their future participation in agricultural related nano-science research. The most important audience will be LU campus. Outcomes of the project will be shared with other LU faculties, which will mainly include assessment and evaluation results, best practices, lessons learned, and faculty developed materials. Articles about this project will be written for the local campus publications. We will prepare presentations on the outcome of the project and present at state/regional/national conferences. During evaluation process of the project we will collect student surveys on effectiveness of integrating new nanotechnology-related materials in the curricula.
Project Methods
The following tools will be developed to provide an opportunity for nanotechnology to serve in the agricultural arena: (i) encourage the faculty members to expand their knowledge on this emerging field (ii) provide necessary training and instructional material to the participant faculty (iii) design new lecture materials and laboratory experiments and integrate them in the curriculum of already existing undergraduate and graduate courses of Agriculture and Environmental Science. These topics include the most significant and cutting-edge nanotechnological products as well as research that are being conducted in the agricultural, food and environmental sectors. The new lecture materials will include the following topics: a) Nanobiosensors in Agriculture and Environmental Sciences b) Nanoscience and Crop Improvement c) Plant Disease Diagnostics using Nanotechnology d) Nanobiotechnology for Animal health (Nano Vaccines, Nano-apoptosis, Animal Breeding) e) Preventing Environmental Damage Using Nanoscience In addition to nanotechnology-related lecture materials the following basic experiments will be integrated into the Agriculture and Environmental Science curriculua. a) Use of enzymatic growth of nanoparticles to create a biosensor b) Synthesis of silver nanoparticles using a green approach c) Use of palladium nanoparticles in removing organic contaminants from water The goal of this project is to educate students with the necessary knowledge, understanding, and skills to interact and provide leadership in the emerging world of nanotechnology. Hence the objectives of the project will establish the direction of project evaluation. The project participants will meet regularly to evaluate the outcomes of the program. PI will meet with the faculty responsible for teaching the targeted courses on a regular basis during the semester to evaluate the ongoing progress and plan for any modifications needed. At the end of each semester student's evaluation will be analyzed on the impact of introducing new nanotechnology-related lecture materials. Result of the project will be presented in teaching conferences and meetings where they will be critically evaluated by other teachers in this field. The educational success will be evaluated by the number of undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in the relative classes, trained and benefited from the newly designed lectures and labs during the course of this project as well as the number of faculty participated.