The National Science Foundation announced grant funding for two Maine projects totaling $2.5 million on Sept. 5. The largest funding, $1.8 million has been awarded to Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences in East Boothbay to fund genetic research.

The University of New England in Biddeford is receiving over $636,000 to study the best ways to engage STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) students by using innovative research projects on the Saco River.

Project summaries and funding

Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences — $1,836,781

“Collaborative Research: Untangling the Deep Genealogy of Microbial Dark Matter,” under the direction of senior scientist Ramunas Stepanauskas.

This project will use breakthrough technologies to unlock secrets of life’s early evolution and genealogy. Many new genomes, encoding the blueprints for disparate organisms, will be analyzed to illuminate the genealogy of ancient microbial species, the relative timing of their origins, and the role that horizontal gene transfer among distant relatives may have played in the origin of new species. Samples of the ancient “microbial dark matter” to be analyzed will come from several unexplored subterranean environments around the world.

University of New England — $639,246

“TURBO: The Undergraduate Saco River Biodiversity Observatory: A Long-Term Ecological Research-Style Research Experience to Enhance STEM Education,” under the direction of Markus Frederich.

This project is aimed at helping more students complete STEM courses of study by making them more engaging. Investigators will create project-oriented experiences in the Saco River estuary for STEM students at UNE, implementing undergraduate research projects on a number of scientific topics and an interdisciplinary conference to discuss the findings. Researchers will also examine how the hands-on curriculum affects student retention and persistence.