Megan Leigh Matthews, ECE doctoral student under Dr. Cranos Williams, assistant professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at NC State University, has been awarded a National Physical Science Consortium (NPSC) Fellowship by the NPSC and the National Security Agency (NSA).

The NPSC Fellowship seeks to increase the number of American citizens with graduate degrees in the physical sciences and related engineering fields. This fellowship begins Fall 2013 and will last for up to 6 years.

"The NPSC fellowship will allow me the freedom to pursue the research project that I proposed, which involves using computational techniques to evaluate how environmental stress can alter biological systems," says Ms. Matthews.

Ms. Matthews’s research will focus on using mathematical modeling, nonlinear systems analysis, and control systems theory to determine how environmental stressors impact biochemical pathways associated with lignin biosynthesis, cellulose biosynthesis, and other useful compounds in plant systems. This work has the potential to impact a wide range of policies that attempt to limit the adverse effects of impending climate and environmental changes on plant systems. This multi-disciplinary topic combines the fields of electrical / systems engineering, plant biology, and mathematics.

"I had been working with Dr. Williams developing and fine-tuning my proposed research project for a year before I applied to the NPSC fellowship. In addition to the broader impacts and intellectual merit of my project, I think that my plans to pursue a multidisciplinary course program and collaborate with other research labs helped to make my application stand
out," explains Ms. Matthews.  "I look forward to the new opportunities and relationships that I will gain as a result of this fellowship and fully plan on utilizing these experiences as I build my career as a researcher."