Arun Ganesan received a UROP (Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program) Award of Excellence for his research poster which describes the design and evaluation of a system to help first responders rapidly identify toxic chemicals during emergencies. Co-authors are Prof. Suresh Bhavnani (Center for Computational Medicine and Biology, Medical School), Prof. Clayton Scott (EECS/ECE), Dr. Chris Weber (Deputy Director, Washtenaw County Hazardous Materials Department), and Paul Saxman (Michigan Institute of Clinical and Health Research, Medical School).

Ganesan just completed his first year at Michigan, and intends to declare his major in the EECS Computer Science/ENG program. “My main task in this research project,” stated Ganesan, “was to create systems that implemented various algorithms and visualized data. We focused on first responders in emergency situations specifically, but the programs and theory can be generalized to various other applications.”

Students in the UROP program work closely with their faculty mentors throughout the course of their research. The guidance provided by Dr. Bhavnani was invaluable to Ganesan, who stated, “He [Dr. Bhavnani] not only clearly explained to me the process of research, but also allowed me to be part of the research group and considered my ideas. I feel that this is a great introduction to the research process and that I have learned many lessons about research that will be useful for future years.”

For his assistance throughout the academic year, Bhavnani received a UROP Outstanding Research Mentorship Honorable Mention Award. He said Ganesan was great to work with, and an asset to the team.

*****

Undergraduate students in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science can become involved in research through the following programs:

U-M Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program
Center for Wireless Integrated MicroSystems (WIMS) Undergraduate Research Program

In addition, the EECS Department often offers its own summer programs. Students are encouraged to approach their faculty advisor if they are interested in pursuing research.