索科罗,N.M. – A cutting-edge 植物基因组学 research project underway at the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology is garnering national recognition for its potential to understand 生命的多样性以及对早期职业科学家的启发. 全国 美国科学基金会(NSF)最近授予NMT进化生物学奖 助理教授Joel Sharbrough博士.D., a $1.获得200万美元的CAREER奖，在未来五年内领导该项目. 

NSF selected his project for one of its largest-ever grants, Sharbrough 说, because of its dual goals of understanding energy 生产 in 植物s and the valuable experience 它固有的动手研究参与提供给年轻科学家. 

该项目名为“全基因组的基因组、细胞和生理效应” “有机能源生产的复制”旨在: 

• Study evolutionary history of selected 植物 species, how they survive under stressful conditions, and the applicability of that knowledge gained to agriculture and food 生产. 
• Provide opportunities for NMT undergraduate and graduate students to gain credit for being involved in the lab-based research, as well as ventures into two high school classrooms to teach students about DNA sequencing, inspiring future scientific careers. 

Sharbrough 说 his project’s goal of integrating education and real-world research 未来五年的工作最让他兴奋的是什么. 

“Helping young scientists to find their own path in 科学 at the same time contributing 接近我们对植物生物学的基本理解，这是真正的底部 行，”他说.  

根据Sharbrough的说法，NMT具有独特的资格——作为一个小型的、以科学为重点的项目 university and research institution -- to lead this type of project because of its 有能力并承诺为双方提供有意义的研究实验室机会 graduate and undergraduate students and to its mission of serving a key demographic ——西班牙裔学生. 

“One of the centerpieces of the grant is being able to do these types of research-based 当然，”他说. “大型大学真的没有能力做到这一点. 这在很大程度上是我来到Tech的原因——强调研究.”  

Another key aspect of the project is capturing the interest of young scientists at a critical point in their lives, when many high school students are determining their 学术和职业道路. Sharbrough说他的团队计划花时间在教室里 at both Socorro High School in Socorro, New Mexico, and at North Tahoe High School 在他的家乡加州太浩市. 从2022年夏天开始，一所高中 student will be hired as a paid intern to participate in 植物基因组学 research on-site 在核磁测井仪. 

A key motivation behind getting out into classrooms and connecting high school students 有意义的研究是激发未来的科学事业，Sharbrough说. 

“I can show them that I sat in that seat and I am now a professional scientist and 这就是你要做的，”他说. 

该研究项目侧重于特定种类的植物-杂酚油，雪花 and wild wheat – offering students the opportunity to investigate how the 植物s produce biological energy via photosynthesis and respiration across multiple scales of biological 组织，从DNA到人口. 了解遗传基础 of how 植物 cells produce energy represents a central goal in 植物 biology, especially in the context of crop improvement efforts, in an effort to ensure the global food supply throughout the 21st century, with drought and other climate-related conditions 影响农业生产. 

“This is really a massive investment both from the government and from industry to sequence all these different organisms in all these different ways to understand the 生活的多样性和改善社会，”沙布罗说. 

In addition to learning about the DNA sequencing revolution, students also will gain knowledge of the technical aspects of being a scientist – making observations, creating 假设，验证假设，并得出结论. 

“While this [project] is focused on 植物基因组学 research, we employ a lot of the same techniques that are done in translational biomedical applications,” Sharbrough 说. “所有这些技能都可以在不同的学科之间转换.” 

从该项目中获得的知识将传播给学生和科学家 through the 生产 of national and international conference presentations, publications 在学术期刊和手稿中. 

Sharbrough joined the NMT 生物学教师 in 2021 to teach bioinformatics and evolution 并领导基于课程的本科生研究经验(CURE)项目—— . 他赢得了 a bachelor’s degree in biological 科学s from the University of Notre Dame and a secondary school teaching certificate from Saint Mary’s College, both in Notre Dame, Indiana, and a doctorate in biology from the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa. Sharbrough was a postdoctoral research fellow at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado, from 2016 to 2020, where he studied cytonuclear interactions of 异源多倍体.  

The 教师 Early Career Development (CAREER) Program is a foundation-wide activity that offers the National Science Foundation's most prestigious awards in support of early career faculty who have the potential to serve as academic role models in research and education and to lead advances in the mission of their department or organization. Activities pursued by early career faculty should build a firm foundation for a lifetime 在整合教育和研究方面发挥领导作用. 美国国家科学基金会 is an Alexandria, Virginia-based independent federal agency that supports fundamental 科学和工程的所有非医学领域的研究和教育.  

ag亚游集团App下载, based in Socorro, in New Mexico’s Rio Grande Valley, is one of the 全国排名第一的理工科大学. NMT在…领域处于世界领先地位 many areas of research, including hydrology, astrophysics, atmospheric physics, geophysics, homeland security, information technology, geo科学s, energetic materials engineering, 石油开采. 以其本科和研究生教育机会而闻名， NMT offers over 30 bachelor of 科学 degrees in mathematics, the 科学s, engineering, management, and technical communication, as well as graduate degrees in areas of specialization 通过博士阶段. 它被广泛认为是最好的小型技术之一 科学、工程和计算机等许多领域的美国学校 科学.

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