Abstract
We request $10,000 to be distributed over three years ($5,000 the first year, $2,500 each the second and third) as start-up funding for a broad activity using a new "cartoon" character, Paul Lemur, to reach out to elementary level students. This effort will be matched by other funding (being requested over the next six months) that will allow us to develop a "Paul's Polymer Place" web site to introduce young people to polymers and provide them with hands-on activities, offer one game and one contest on-line and printed form, and result in two children's books, at least one of which is a story book and the other a coloring book. Two very talented graphics artists will be hired on a part-time basis to carry out this work: Virginia Smith (who designed and implemented most of what is shown on-line currently involving Paul) and Jason Montgomery (who is beginning to incorporate Paul pictures into our Macrogalleria polymer web site). The larger first year funds are needed to implement enough of the above to show other funding agencies what we can and will do; this will virtually guarantee additional funding.