RECAP Program Activities Choosing a Research Topic All applicants will choose an area of physics/astronomy or chemistry for their project based on their interests, background, availability of a mentor and necessary equipment, and availability of time for the project. Applicants may propose their own independent research project or contribute to an ongoing research project being carried out at NCSSM or UNC-CH. Students admitted to the program will be assigned to work with a UNC-CH chemistry or physics faculty member or an NCSSM chemistry or physics instructor. UNC-CH faculty with ongoing research projects may work with one or two students. Students who propose research projects that do not fit into an already existing project will work with the NCSSM instructors. Click here for a current listing of UNC-CH faculty-sponsored projects. Conducting Background Research Once admitted to RECAP and assigned a mentor, students will conduct a literature review and write a background literature review paper to prepare for the summer program. To conduct the review, students (with guidance from their research advisors) will use internet and library resources to identify suitable research papers and textbooks. For students without access to a local research library, if a needed reference can not be found in an electronic version, a hardcopy will be located or purchased and mailed to the student. Students will then write a literature review demonstrating their knowledge of the area of physics/astronomy and chemistry relevant to their project. This literature review will serve as the foundation for the project to be carried out during the summer program and for the more extensive research paper to be written afterwards. Creating Research Proposals Students who are designing their own project “from scratch” and whose project does not fit into an existing research program will submit to their NCSSM research advisor a research proposal for the advisor’s approval, prior to the students’ arrival at NCSSM for the summer program. Building the Experiments Students will begin the three-week summer component of the program by assembling and learning to use the research equipment needed for their project. This could include laboratory materials and apparatus, computer hardware and software, tools and equipment manuals. Collecting and Analyzing Data Students will work closely with research advisors to run their experiments, collect, and analyze data. Students will maintain laboratory journals containing daily records of their work. Students will also learn to keep careful records of their experiments, analyze their data using appropriate mathematical models and techniques, and interpret their data using their knowledge gained from previous phases of the project. Reporting the Results Publicly All students will formally present their work at a symposium held during the last week of the summer program. In addition, all students will begin drafting a research paper detailing all phases of their project during the summer and will continue to refine their paper during the fall so that a finished research paper is ready by October 1. Students may choose to submit their paper to local, state and/or national research competitions such as the Siemens-Westinghouse Competition for high school student researchers. Additionally, as the capstone experience, students will then travel, along with their teachers or other adult scientist chaperones, to professional conferences to present their work, meet physicists or chemists from other institutions, and experience the excitement of participating in the professional life of the larger community of scientists.