UROP Research Mentor Project Submission Portal: Submission #821

Research Mentor Information
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Primary Research Mentor Name: Santiago Lazarte
Research Mentor Preferred Pronouns: He/him/his
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Contact Email (FSU Email if affiliated): s.lazarte@fsu.edu
Position Title: Graduate Student
Faculty Advisor Name: Dr. Brandon Krick
Faculty Advisor's FSU Email: bkrick@eng.famu.fsu.edu
FSU College (if applicable): FAMU-FSU College of Engineering
FSU Department or Non-FSU Organization Affiliation: Materials Science and Engineering
Headshot (optional): https://cre.fsu.edu/system/files/webform/urop_project_proposal_portal/14731/Updated%20headshot2.png

Additional Research Mentor(s)
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Research Assistant Supervisor Preferred Honorific?: {Empty}
Contact Email (FSU Email if affiliated): {Empty}
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Overall Project Details
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Title of the Project: Mechanical Characterization of scaffolds for cartilage regeneration
Project Keywords: biomedical, engineering, mechanical testing, healthcare, materials science
Are you currently looking for research assistants?: No
Number of Research Assistants Needed : 1
Relevant Research Assistant Major(s):
Mechanical Engineering 
Computer Science 
Biomedical Engineering
Electrical Engineering
Chemical Engineering
Industrial and manufacturing engineering
Chemistry
Physics

Project Location:: AME building (Engineering Campus) - 2003 Levy Ave Tallahassee, FL 32310
If the project location is off campus, does the research assistant(s) need to provide their own transportation?: Innovation bus route
Please select the choice that most accurately describes your expectations for the research assistant(s):: In-person
Approximately how many hours a week would the research assistant(s) need to work?: 10
Roughly what time frame do you expect research assistant(s) to work?: During business hours
Overall Research Project Description:
Scaffolds aim to support tissue growth and help repair damaged tissue. Three-dimensional (3D) printing is a method that has gained popularity throughout the years as a way of producing and designing scaffolds for tissue engineering. The main benefit of this technique is the ability to control multiple properties of the printed structures at the macroscale (i.e., complex architectures, material properties) and microscale (i.e., pore size, biochemical properties). This is important because these properties influence the response of different cells, such as human mesenchymal stromal cell (hMSC) differentiation. For this project, we use a custom-built tool to characterize the mechanical properties of polymeric 3D-printed scaffolds.

Research Tasks:
Literature review
experiment planning
data collection
MATLAB coding
data processing


Skills that research assistant(s) may need::
Recommended: 
-MATLAB/coding
-Calculus
-Physics
*Nothing is required. The right person will be taught the necessary skills for the project.*


Mentoring Philosophy:
-	By facilitating the skills and probing the understanding of the mentee throughout the research process I will create an environment where the mentee feels safe communicating their ideas and helping out with the research projects. My ultimate goal is to teach the mentee how to conduct high-quality research and prepare them to the extent where they can operate as an independent unit where I will be accessible for guidance and validation. The way I use to achieve this is with hands-on experience in the lab with graduate students and the professor. I also strongly believe in work-life boundaries. I use an open communication method where I can be reached by phone, email, or in person (office drop-in). This allows me to normalize communication between us and use the same channel to inform unavailability rather than have no communication at all. Expectations of each other will be talked during our initial meetings.

Please provide a link to your publications, a video clip, or a website for your research project (if applicable):: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772950823002212
Please add any additional information here (if applicable)::
Our lab group submitted multiple projects with different graduate students. Feel free to search them as well. Working here would also give you an opportunity to get involved/exposed to the following projects:
Catherine Fidd - Microparticle filled PTFE for tribological applications 
Adam Delong - Characterization of protective coatings for extreme environments
Craig Barbour - Tribological Studies of Hydrogen Resistant Materials
Santiago Lazarte - Characterization of wear properties of ultra-thin coatings


Are you interested in participating in the UROP Research Mentor Roundtable?: Yes
Roundtable times and Zoom links:
September 3 @3:30 PM - 4:00 PM (https://fsu.zoom.us/j/96356396663)
September 4 @3 PM - 3:30 PM (https://fsu.zoom.us/j/96356396663)
September 5 @3:30 PM - 4:00 PM (https://fsu.zoom.us/j/96356396663)

Roundtable Info:
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UROP Program Elements
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Mentor Handbook, FAQs, and Communication: Yes
UROP Performance Evaluation: Yes
Materials Grant: Yes
UROP Poster Presentation: Yes
Faculty Advisor Confirmation: Yes

Are you interested in attending in a UROP Research Mentor Workshop Series?: Yes
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Year: 2024
update url: https://cre.fsu.edu/urop-research-mentor-project-submission-portal?element_parents=elements/research_mentor_information/headshot_optional_&ajax_form=1&_wrapper_format=drupal_ajax&token=KD_bqw7yLZzYSBeA7QlSK2ZG4I_TyEQfodBiiFLFAv8