Read full interview at U-M Public Engagement and Impact

One of this year’s Road Scholars is David Gerdes, Arthur Thurnau Professor, professor of physics and astronomy, and chair of the physics department. He studies objects in the outer solar system such as the Kuiper Belt and Oort Cloud. His research has also looked at the origins and evolution of the universe.

Arthur F. Thurnau Professor of Physics; Chair of Physics Department

What interested you in the Road Scholar tour?

I’ve lived in Michigan for more than 20 years and been to many parts of the state, including the U.P., but it’s usually been as a tourist. I know much less about the state as a place where people live, work, struggle with problems, and try to grow communities and businesses. So I really want to know about the forces that shape Michigan such as government, manufacturing, and people working to bring Detroit back. I am looking forward to going out and not talking for once and just listening and absorbing.
– David Gerdes

The Michigan Road Scholars Tour — an annual five-day traveling seminar that takes U-M faculty through the state — increases mutual knowledge and understanding between the university and the people and communities of Michigan.

You can keep up with the happenings on the tour May 6–10 by following #MIRoadScholars on Twitter.

Read full interview at U-M Public Engagement and Impact

Read full interview at U-M Public Engagement and Impact

One of this year’s Road Scholars is Line van Nieuwstadt, professor of engineering practice at UM-Dearborn’s College of Engineering and Computer Science. She has done extensive work with NASA, including on the Sojourner Mars Rover, and is helping to develop the best methods for teaching the next generation of engineers.

Line Van Nieuwstadt Ph.D., Associate Professor of Engineering Practice

What interested you in the Road Scholar tour?

I envision the Road Scholar tour will show me parts of Michigan still unknown to me. I would like to meet Michiganders from all walks of life, learn about their daily ecosystem, about their stressors and successes. I am also looking forward to learn about my fellow Road Scholars to exchange ideas and experiences with them.
– Van Nieuwstadt

The Michigan Road Scholars Tour — an annual five-day traveling seminar that takes U-M faculty through the state — increases mutual knowledge and understanding between the university and the people and communities of Michigan.

You can keep up with the happenings on the tour May 6–10 by following #MIRoadScholars on Twitter.

Read full interview at U-M Public Engagement and Impact

Read full interview at U-M Public Engagement and Impact

One of this year’s Road Scholars is Kamran Diba, associate professor of anesthesiology and principal investigator of the Neural Circuits and Memory Lab. Diba studies neural activity in the brain related to learning, memory, and sleep. His research also has implications for aging and Alzheimer’s disease.

In this Q&A, Kattari reveals her motivation for joining the Road Scholars, and what she hopes to learn.

Principal investigator of the Neural Circuits and Memory Lab at the Department of Anesthesiology in the University of Michigan Medical School

What interested you in the Road Scholar tour?

I first heard about Road Scholars when I was doing a Wolverine Express trip (run by the Center for Educational Outreach). One of the other participants had been a Road Scholar and recommended it as a great program.

I’m new to the state of Michigan, having just started here at U-M in August 2017. It seems like a great way to get grounded in the state. I’m not sure whether people in Michigan feel that the faculty at U-M represents them, but I would like to work toward increasing that sense of representation. The work we do in our teaching, research, and dissemination can directly benefit the state, so I think it’s also important for me to gain a better sense of the different places, people, economics, and overall concerns in Michigan. Through the Road Scholars program we can have these interactions and two-way learning about what we all do.

Before coming here I was at the University of Wisconsin for six years, and I regret not developing a stronger connection to that state. U-M has provided this unique opportunity to bridge that issue.
– Kamran Diba

The Michigan Road Scholars Tour — an annual five-day traveling seminar that takes U-M faculty through the state — increases mutual knowledge and understanding between the university and the people and communities of Michigan.

You can keep up with the happenings on the tour May 6–10 by following #MIRoadScholars on Twitter.

Read full interview at U-M Public Engagement and Impact