Today, SpectrumX, the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) Spectrum Innovation Center, released a set of introductory videos as part of its Radio Frequency Systems and Applications courseware. All video content can be accessed on the NSF SpectrumX website and YouTube channel.
Created in collaboration with industry and government partners as well as Notre Dame Learning, these videos raise awareness of the amazing technologies and critical frequency bands that people rely upon every day to support weather forecasting, transportation safety, and mobile communication networks.
“The purpose of these videos is to help a wide audience learn how fascinating, challenging, and important radio systems are to our modern society,” said Nick Laneman, professor of electrical engineering at the University of Notre Dame and Center Director of NSF SpectrumX. “The hope is these videos will pique learners’ curiosity and motivate them to explore further.”
The newly released videos feature experts from representative governmental agencies and companies discussing the unique ways in which their organizations utilize the radio spectrum to pursue their missions and provide value to their customers, respectively. Although the videos are brief, each under 15 minutes, they provide insights beyond the frequency bands each organization utilizes and the systems and technologies they deploy. The experts also delve into common challenges and opportunities, ongoing organizational collaborations, and the practical applications and impact of their work.
“There are a lot of interesting people in the field developing radio systems and supporting their societal applications. They have deep expertise but also broad perspectives, which means they can articulate why their work is important in addition to explaining its technical aspects,” said Laneman. “We invited this wide array of experts to help tell this story because it is hard to understand how big and collaborative the radio spectrum ecosystem is until you consider multiple points of view.”
All are encouraged to watch these videos to learn more about radio technologies and spectrum policy and their vital role in society today. The full Radio Frequency Systems and Applications courseware will be undergraduate-level classes intended for students with an educational background in STEM, economics, or political science and an interest in spectrum-related careers. The full-length courses will expand upon common topics identified in the videos, including radio wave propagation, transmitter and receiver technology, and interference mitigation.
“We did not set out to create another lecture course on electromagnetics or spectrum management. We want this courseware to focus on why spectrum and spectrum-dependent systems are important to get learners interested, creating a pathway that encourages them to get more involved and take more advanced courses in the future,” said Laneman.
Curriculum development is a top priority for NSF SpectrumX because education and workforce development are integral to the center’s mission to help maximize the societal benefits of the radio spectrum. The center is actively working with its expert researchers to produce engaging, relevant course material that will empower the next generation of spectrum professionals to continue advancing radio frequency research, technology, education, and policy. “These introductory videos are the first output from our higher education curriculum development plan. Now that we have developed our courseware model, we are excited to build on this model and continue to release additional courses in the future,” said Laneman. The first full course is expected to be launched at the end of this year, and up to three other courses will be developed to cover economic, regulatory, and artificial intelligence aspects of spectrum management
To start getting acquainted with radio frequency systems and how they impact the wireless devices, applications, and services we depend on, start from the beginning of the playlist. Short introductory and transitional videos featuring Laneman weave together dynamic vignettes and full-length interviews with spectrum experts from government and industry.
NSF SpectrumX’s previously developed curriculum includes spectrum-related lesson plans suitable for K-12 learners. These materials are also available on the SpectrumX website.
More information on the release of full-length courses is forthcoming and will be announced in a future news story on spectrumx.org, as well as on the NSF SpectrumX LinkedIn page.
About NSF SpectrumX
NSF SpectrumX is funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) as part of its Spectrum Innovation Initiative, under grant number AST 21-32700. NSF SpectrumX is the world’s largest academic hub where all radio spectrum stakeholders can innovate, collaborate, and contribute to maximizing social welfare of this precious resource.
To learn more about NSF SpectrumX, please visit spectrumx.org.
Contact:
Stephanie Loney, Research Communications Specialist
NSF SpectrumX / Notre Dame Research / University of Notre Dame
sloney@nd.edu / 574.631.7804
spectrumx.org
