Public Comment: NSF is not accepting proposals under the Information and Intelligent Systems solicitation, NSF 05-551 in 2006 or future years. A new solicitation is currently under development that will clarify and better define the mapping of our program areas to the IIS organizational structure. We expect the new solicitation will have Fall 2006 deadline dates. The new solicitation will be posted at least 90 days prior to the deadline dates.
Title: Information and Intelligent Systems:
Date: 02/01/05
Information and Intelligent Systems:
Advancing Collaborative and Intelligent Systems and their Societal
Implications
Program Solicitation
NSF 05-551
[NSF Logo]   National Science Foundation
             Directorate for Computer and Information Science and
             Engineering
                   Division of Information and Intelligent Systems
Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p.m. proposer's local time):
     May 03, 2005
          Collaborative Systems, Universal Access
     May 05, 2005
          Robust Intelligence, Digital Government, Digital Libraries and
          Archives
     Third Tuesday in April
          Beginning in 2006 for Collaborative Systems, Universal Access
     Third Thursday in April
          Beginning in 2006 for Robust Intelligence, Digital Government,
          Digital Libraries and Archives
REVISIONS AND UPDATES
The following solicitations are replaced by this solicitation:
   * Artificial Intelligence & Cognitive Science (NSF 03-600)
   * Computer Vision (NSF 03-602)
   * Human Language and Communication (NSF 03-613)
   * Information and Data Management (NSF 04-500)
   * International Digital Libraries Collaborative Research and
     Applications Testbeds (NSF 02-085)
   * Digital Government (NSF 04-521)
   * Digital Society and Technologies (NSF 03-611)
   * Human-Computer Interaction (NSF 03-610)
   * Robotics (NSF 03-601)
   * Universal Access (NSF 03-612)
SUMMARY OF PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS
General Information
Program Title:
     Information and Intelligent Systems:
     Advancing Collaborative and Intelligent Systems and their
     Societal Implications.
Synopsis of Program:
     NSF&rsquo;s Division of Information and Intelligent Systems is
     seeking proposals that describe ambitious research and/or
     education projects that will extend the state-of-the-art in:
        * Collaborative Systems: systems that enable collaboration
          between a person and either machines or other people in
          acquiring, representing, organizing, archiving, protecting,
          accessing and communicating information, and
        * Robust Intelligence: systems with robust and flexible
          intelligence, capable of perceiving, reasoning, learning,
          and interacting with their environment.
     Additionally, the Division is seeking research and/or education
     proposals that use or extend Collaborative Systems and Robust
     Intelligence theories or methods and apply them in three
     application areas:
        * Universal Access: to increase access to information and
          systems by users, such as the vision-impaired or the
          elderly, whose needs are often not met in traditional
          systems.
        * Digital Government: to improve access to information and
          services provided by governmental entities; as well as the
          workings of governments.
        * Digital Libraries and Archives: to represent, store and
          access information from curated digital libraries and
          archives.
     Single or multidisciplinary research and/or education projects
     will be supported that explore innovative ideas, theories and
     experiments that move beyond incremental advances to enable
     fundamentally different intelligent or collaborative systems
     approaches or paradigms. The development of curricular materials
     that have the potential to greatly improve higher education in
     Collaborative Systems and Robust Intelligence and their
     applications will also be supported. Curriculum development
     projects may be submitted as stand-alone proposals or may be
     included as part of broader research and education proposals
     under the categories above.
Cognizant Program Officer(s):
   * Lawrence E. Brandt, Program Director, Digital Government, Directorate
     for Computer & Information Science & Engineering, Division of
     Information and Intelligent Systems, 1125 S, telephone: (703)
     292-8930, fax: (703) 292-9073, email: lbrandt@nsf.gov
   * Ephraim P. Glinert, Program Director, Universal Access and
     Collaborative Systems, Directorate for Computer & Information Science
     & Engineering, Division of Information and Intelligent Systems, 1125
     S, telephone: (703) 292-8930, fax: (703) 292-9073, email:
     eglinert@nsf.gov
   * Stephen M. Griffin, Program Director, Digital Libraries and Archives,
     Directorate for Computer & Information Science & Engineering, Division
     of Information and Intelligent Systems, 1125 S, telephone: (703)
     292-8930, fax: (703) 292-9073, email: sgriffin@nsf.gov
   * Mary P. Harper, Program Director, Collaborative Systems, Directorate
     for Computer & Information Science & Engineering, Division of
     Information and Intelligent Systems, 1125 S, telephone: (703)
     292-8930, fax: (703) 292-9073, email: mharper@nsf.gov
   * C. Suzanne Iacono, Program Director, Collaborative Systems,
     Directorate for Computer & Information Science & Engineering, Division
     of Information and Intelligent Systems, 1125 S, telephone: (703)
     292-8930, fax: (703) 292-9073, email: siacono@nsf.gov
   * Edwina L. Rissland, Program Director, Robust Intelligence, Directorate
     for Computer & Information Science & Engineering, Division of
     Information and Intelligent Systems, 1125 S, telephone: (703)
     292-8930, fax: (703) 292-9073, email: erisslan@nsf.gov
   * Junku Yuh, Program Director, Robust Intelligence, Directorate for
     Computer & Information Science & Engineering, Division of Information
     and Intelligent Systems, 1125 S, telephone: (703) 292-8930, fax: (703)
     292-9073, email: jyuh@nsf.gov
   * Maria Zemankova, Program Director, Collaborative Systems, Directorate
     for Computer & Information Science & Engineering, Division of
     Information and Intelligent Systems, 1125 S, telephone: (703)
     292-8930, fax: (703) 292-9073, email: mzemanko@nsf.gov
Applicable Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number(s):
   * 47.070 --- Computer and Information Science and Engineering
Eligibility Information
   * Organization Limit: Proposals will only be accepted from 1) US
     colleges, universities, and organizations of higher education; 2) US
     independent nonprofit research organizations; and 3) US independent
     research museums.
   * PI Eligibility Limit: None Specified.
   * Limit on Number of Proposals: In response to this solicitation, an
     investigator may participate as PI, Co-PI or senior personnel in no
     more than TWO proposals annually. There is no limit on the number of
     proposals an organization may submit.
Award Information
   * Anticipated Type of Award: Standard or Continuing Grant
   * Estimated Number of Awards: 150 awards, with up to 125 awards
     averaging $100,000 per year for 3 years; up to 25 awards averaging
     $250,000 per year for 3 years; and up to 2 awards averaging $500,000
     per year for 3 years
   * Anticipated Funding Amount: $60,000,000 in FY 2006 pending
     availability of funds ($48,000,000 total for Collaborative Systems and
     Robust Intelligence awards, and $12,000,000 total for Digital
     Government, Universal Access and Digital Library and Archives awards.)
Proposal Preparation and Submission Instructions
A. Proposal Preparation Instructions
   * Full Proposal Preparation Instructions: Standard GPG Guidelines apply.
B. Budgetary Information
   * Cost Sharing Requirements: Cost Sharing is not required.
   * Indirect Cost (F&A) Limitations: Not Applicable.
   * Other Budgetary Limitations: Not Applicable.
C. Due Dates
   * Full Proposal Deadline Date(s) (due by 5 p.m. proposer's local time):
          May 03, 2005
               Collaborative Systems, Universal Access
          May 05, 2005
               Robust Intelligence, Digital Government, Digital Libraries
               and Archives
          Third Tuesday in April
               Beginning in 2006 for Collaborative Systems, Universal
               Access
          Third Thursday in April
               Beginning in 2006 for Robust Intelligence, Digital
               Government, Digital Libraries and Archives
Proposal Review Information
   * Merit Review Criteria: National Science Board approved criteria apply.
Award Administration Information
   * Award Conditions: Standard NSF award conditions apply.
   * Reporting Requirements: Standard NSF reporting requirements apply.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
     Summary of Program Requirements
  I. Introduction
 II. Program Description
III. Eligibility Information
 IV. Award Information
  V. Proposal Preparation and Submission Instructions
       A. Proposal Preparation Instructions
       B. Budgetary Information
       C. Due Dates
       D. FastLane Requirements
 VI. Proposal Review Information
       A. NSF Proposal Review Process
       B. Review Protocol and Associated Customer Service Standard
VII. Award Administration Information
       A. Notification of the Award
       B. Award Conditions
       C. Reporting Requirements
VIII.Contacts for Additional Information
 IX. Other Programs of Interest
I. INTRODUCTION
The Division of Information and Intelligent Systems (IIS) supports research
and education projects that (1) increase the capabilities of individuals
via interaction with information systems or via machine-mediated
interactions with other people, and (2) advance the understanding and
development of the foundations of robust intelligent systems. Research
activities supported will result in discoveries in the field of Information
and Intelligent Systems and the preparation of future generations of IT
professionals with expertise in Information and Intelligent Systems.
Curriculum development activities funded will result in the development and
dissemination of curricular materials that have the potential to greatly
improve higher education in Information and Intelligent Systems.
II. PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
Through this solicitation, the Division is seeking ambitious research
and/or education proposals focused in two core research areas:
   * Collaborative Systems: research fundamental to designing, extending,
     or evaluating the use or consequences of systems that facilitate
     collaboration between individuals and other people or machines.
     Collaborative Systems subsume topics from the prior IIS program areas
     of Digital Society and Technologies, Human Computer Interaction, and
     Information and Data Management.
   * Robust Intelligence: research fundamental to the development of
     computer systems capable of performing intelligent tasks robustly and
     flexibly. Robust Intelligence subsumes topics from the prior IIS
     program areas of Artificial Intelligence and Cognitive Science,
     Computer Vision, Human Language and Communication, and Robotics.
In addition, the Division is also seeking research and/or education
proposals that apply fundamental knowledge in Collaborative Systems and
Robust Intelligence to one or more of the following three application
areas:
   * Digital Government (DG): research outcomes will improve access to:
     information and services provided by government; and, the workings of
     government. Research challenges are most often effectively addressed
     through interactions between the computing research community, the
     social, political, and behavioral science research community, and
     government agencies.
   * Digital Libraries and Archives (DLA): research outcomes will lead to
     advances in both technical and policy issues concerned with the design
     and use of curated digital libraries and archives.
   * Universal Access (UA): research will lead to advances in computer
     systems technology so that all people can interact effectively with
     and leverage the full power of computing.
All proposals focused on making contributions in Universal Access, Digital
Government or Digital Libraries and Archives application areas must
indicate which of the two core research areas they are using or extending
theories or methods from - Collaborative Systems and/or Robust
Intelligence.
For proposals submitted in response to this solicitation, all research
activities proposed must promise impact beyond the scientific community in
which the work is normally published. Revolutionary research approaches
that extend beyond existing paradigms, and integrative research that spans
multiple existing fields, are strongly encouraged. Research activities
should focus on advancing the state of the art in the development of
Collaborative and/or Intelligent systems and their applications, and may
include novel modeling and integration approaches and evaluation
methodologies. Because research in Collaborative Systems and Robust
Intelligence is often interdisciplinary in nature, proposals that bring
together collaborators and new ideas from related disciplines are
encouraged. Proposals may involve teams of investigators as needed to
fulfill project objectives.
Research is encouraged that promotes development of modular, sharable,
extensible code, tools, data resources, knowledge representation schemes
and repositories, annotation formats, and evaluation methods and metrics.
Proposals should request support for necessary items including equipment
and other infrastructure to carry out the proposed activities.
Proposals that include curriculum development activities may be submitted
to either of the two core research areas and/or to the three application
areas. When a proposed project focuses ONLY on curriculum development, the
proposal title must begin with &ldquo;Curriculum Development:&rdquo;. All
curriculum development activities proposed must include strong
justification of the need for the new materials and must include plans for
disseminating them to the community and for evaluating their effectiveness.
A more complete description of the Division&rsquo;s interests in the two
core research areas and three application areas is provided below:
Collaborative Systems research will develop principles for designing,
optimizing and updating information flow to most effectively support
problem solving and use of information technology in highly distributed and
rapidly changing environments in the support of long-term goals of
individuals and/or organizations. Problems addressed by the Collaborative
Systems area include storing, accessing and organizing, interpreting,
protecting, summarizing, managing and using vast and growing quantities of
IT-based data, information and knowledge that may be uncertain and
incomplete. The Collaborative Systems of the future will be
knowledge-intensive, dynamic and capable of supporting individuals, teams,
enterprises and societies in a variety of tasks including, for example,
electronic publishing, e-commerce, business, entertainment, government,
health care, open source software development, national security or
disaster management. Collaborative Systems of the future will provide
seamless access to a variety of information in different environments
spanning high-performance grids to wireless mobile personal information
appliances, so that people and machines can effectively exchange
information needed for collaborative problem solving.
Research in collaborative systems involves analysis of the problems
addressed by collaborations, the context in which the problems arise and
information technology is deployed, the development of new theories and
approaches to solving problems, the interaction between users and machines,
and IT-mediated collaboration among people to solve problems. Collaborative
Systems research will develop principles for designing, optimizing and
updating information flow to most effectively support problem solving and
use of information technology in highly distributed and rapidly changing
environments in the support of long-term goals of individuals and/or
organizations.
Collaborative Systems topics include, but are not limited to:
   * Data, text, speech, and multimedia storage, organization retrieval,
     and mining. Extraction of structured information from unstructured
     sources. Information discovery, fusion, summarization, and
     visualization.
   * Algorithms for personalizing, organizing, navigating, searching,
     interpreting, and presenting information of different types, using
     various modalities.
   * Designing, managing, and governing information infrastructures.
   * Knowledge environments for science and engineering.
   * Physical and cognitive interaction between a person and a robotics
     system and robots to project and extend human capabilities into
     unknown and hazardous environments.
   * Policy and technical issues, including security and privacy issues,
     that relate to sharing information across boundaries.
   * Innovation and learning in distributed systems.
   * Multimedia and multi-modal interfaces in which combinations of speech,
     text, graphics, gesture, movement, touch, sound, etc. are used by
     people and machines to communicate with one another.
   * Intelligent interfaces and user modeling. Information visualization.
     Adaptation of content to accommodate different display capabilities,
     modalities, bandwidth and latency.
   * Information privacy research that explores policies and technologies
     that permit collaboration across organization boundaries, and the
     ability to draw conclusions from data while still maintaining the
     privacy of individuals, including definitions of privacy other than
     confidentiality-security, for example conceiving of privacy as the
     reciprocal of intimacy in online contexts.
   * Problem solving in distributed environments, ranging across
     Internet-based information systems, grids, sensor-based information
     networks, and mobile and wearable information appliances.
   * Models for effective mediated human-human interactions under a variety
     of constraints, (e.g., video conferences, collaboration across high
     and low bandwidth networks, etc.).
Robust Intelligence involves the theory, design, and implementation of
general, integrated, intelligent perception and reasoning capabilities that
are not constrained to address only a single problem in isolation or in one
particular context. Systems exhibiting Robust Intelligence will be able to
respond intelligently in novel situations, and to gaps, conflicts, and
ambiguities in their knowledge and capabilities. Inspired by the
flexibility and generality of intelligence in people and animals, Robust
Intelligent systems will be able to autonomously assess their environment,
construct plans to achieve general goals, learn transferable lessons from
their experiences, and communicate their knowledge, conclusions and
reasoning to others.
Robust Intelligence is resourceful, innovative and flexible in reasoning
and in representing knowledge and experiences. Systems exhibiting Robust
Intelligence are capable of harnessing past experiences to solve new
problems and to meet new expectations. They are able to use a variety of
reasoning approaches, such as analogical, statistical and logical
inference, to deal with open-ended and changing concepts and environments
and to integrate possibly heterogeneous knowledge and reasoning
methodologies in complementary and supplementary ways. They are able to
learn new representations. Not only are they able to improve things they
are currently tasked with, but they are also, and perhaps even more
importantly, able to anticipate and propose new ones. They are able to
reason, act, and learn about their tasks, users, environments, and
themselves so that they can evolve and grow in capability and robustness.
While not every project funded will develop complete integrated solutions,
projects that focus on advancing a single aspect of intelligence (e.g.,
representation, learning, reasoning, perception, understanding,
communication) must lead towards the more general goal of Robust
Intelligence.
Robust Intelligence topics include, but are not limited to:
   * Integrated or hybrid architectures that integrate learning, memory and
     problem solving or combine deductive, probabilistic, analogical,
     symbolic or sub-symbolic reasoning.
   * Emergence of complex intelligence from simple components including
     multi-agent systems and cooperation among multiple robots.
   * Computational models of human cognition, perception, and communication
     for commonsense or specialized domains such as medicine or
     mathematics, or for specialized tasks such as spatial cognition or
     decision-making.
   * Knowledge representation for common sense or scientific domains,
     including distributed representation of knowledge (e.g., semantic
     web).
   * Robotics for unstructured environments with novel approaches to
     sensing, perception, and actuation, including autonomous manipulation.
   * Scene understanding and the recognition, classification, and
     identification of objects, people, events, and activities from 2D and
     3D images or video.
   * Models of image formation and of the statistics of natural images.
   * Understanding text, speech, and other communicative forms, as well as
     their underlying meaning, intent, and realization, including semantic
     interpretation, cognitively and neuro-linguistically informed
     approaches.
   * Generating text, speech or multi-modal communication to convey meaning
     and intent.
Digital Government research involves inquiry at the intersections of
computing research, social, political, and behavioral science research, and
the problems and missions of government agencies. Digital Government
projects proposed must clearly draw upon research in Collaborative Systems
(e.g., information organization and sociotechnical analysis of problems) or
Robust Intelligence (e.g., semantic web). As appropriate, proposed projects
will demonstrate a strong academic/government partnership in their design
and execution.
Two classes of proposals are sought in the Digital Government area:
   * Partnerships of computer science researchers and government agencies
     with the goal of building advanced technology that addresses
     challenges at the participating agencies.
   * Social, political, and behavioral research on the effect of IT on
     forms, processes, impact and outcomes within government, both from the
     standpoint of government agencies and from the standpoint of the
     public. Relevant topics include, but are not limited to: government
     organizational forms, learning, and adaptation; new forms of
     government-government and government-citizen interactions; and digital
     democracy.
Proposals containing well-integrated elements of both classes are
particularly welcome. Proposals must address the unique role that IT plays
in government.
Digital Government research topics include the special issues that arise in
government contexts, including: providing citizens with access to the
enormous breadth, complexity and scale of information and services while
maintaining citizens trust ensuring integrity of systems and information
and respecting privacy. Similarly, citizens have expectations that
government decision-making is participatory and transparent and is based on
societal mores as expressed in law, regulation and administrative
procedures.
Digital Libraries and Archives research involves the investigation of both
technical and policy issues concerned with the construction and use of
large digital libraries and archives. Digital Library and Archive projects
must draw upon research in Collaborative Systems (e.g., information
retrieval or human-computer interaction) or Robust Intelligence (e.g.,
computer vision).
Digital Libraries and Archives topics include, but are not limited to:
   * Deriving improved means for representing, indexing, and accessing
     digital content, particularly non-text content such as 2-D or 3-D
     images, audio, video, and relational structures such as graphs,
     molecules, etc. This representation often includes extracting features
     from multi-media content or extraction of structured information.
   * Understanding the needs of the users of digital libraries and
     archives, the tasks that they perform, and how a digital library or
     archive may use information about the user&rsquo;s goals to tailor the
     presentation of information to the user.
   * Locating digital content in large, distributed knowledge environments,
     searching across specialized corpora, and combining results sets from
     searches.
   * Conducting research on providing contextual information on digital
     content that allows machine-understandable translation and semantic
     manipulation, including translation between formats, standards and
     formalisms.
Research providing a better understanding of policy issues in digital
libraries and archives will also accelerate the deployment of digital
resources. Projects exploring alternatives or leading to consensus on
important policy issues such as economic and organizational models for
collecting, curating, storing, and preserving digital content are
encouraged.
Universal Access (UA) involves research in computer science that advances
computer systems technology so that all people can interact effectively
with and leverage the full power of computing. Universal Access projects
must draw upon research in Collaborative Systems (e.g., human-computer
interaction) or Robust Intelligence (e.g., language or image processing).
UA research outcomes will empower people with disabilities, young children,
seniors, and members of other traditionally under-represented groups to
participate fully in the new information society. UA research topics derive
from all aspects of human-computer interaction and include, but are not
limited to:
   * Development of new models, architectures, and programming languages
     that emphasize interface speed and usability by all.
   * Definition of semantic structures for multimedia information to
     support cross-modal I/O.
   * Development of specific solutions to address the special needs of
     particular communities.
   * Experimental studies to evaluate the success of attempts to provide
     access in all its varied forms.
III. ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION
Organization Limit: Proposals will only be accepted from 1) US colleges,
universities and organizations of higher education; 2) US independent
nonprofit research organizations; and 3) US independent research museums.
Limit on the Number of Proposals: In response to this solicitation, an
investigator may participate as PI, Co-PI or senior personnel in no more
than TWO proposals annually. There is no limit on the number of proposals
an organization may submit.
IV. AWARD INFORMATION
NSF expects to make the following type of award(s): Standard or Continuing
Grant . The estimated number of awards is approximately 150, with up to 125
awards averaging $100,000 per year for 3 years; up to 25 awards averaging
$250,000 per year for 3 years; and up to 2 awards averaging $500,000 per
year for 3 years. It is anticipated that approximately $60,000,000 will be
available for new awards ($48,000,000 total for Collaborative Systems and
Robust Intelligence awards, and $12,000,000 total for Digital Government,
Universal Access and Digital Libraries and Archives awards).
Estimated funds available, number of awards and average award size/duration
are subject to the availability of funds.
V. PROPOSAL PREPARATION AND SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS
A. Proposal Preparation Instructions
Full Proposal Instructions:
Proposals submitted in response to this program announcement/solicitation
should be prepared and submitted in accordance with the general guidelines
contained in the NSF Grant Proposal Guide (GPG). The complete text of the
GPG is available electronically on the NSF Website at:
http://www.nsf.gov/cgi-bin/getpub?gpg. Paper copies of the GPG may be
obtained from the NSF Publications Clearinghouse, telephone (703) 292-7827
or by e-mail from pubs@nsf.gov.
Proposers are reminded to identify the program announcement/solicitation
number (05-551) in the program announcement/solicitation block on the NSF
Cover Sheet For Proposal to the National Science Foundation. Compliance
with this requirement is critical to determining the relevant proposal
processing guidelines. Failure to submit this information may delay
processing.
B. Budgetary Information
Cost Sharing:
Cost sharing is not required in proposals submitted under this Program
Solicitation.
C. Due Dates
Proposals must be submitted by the following date(s):
Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p.m. proposer's local time):
     May 03, 2005
          Collaborative Systems, Universal Access
     May 05, 2005
          Robust Intelligence, Digital Government, Digital Libraries and
          Archives
     Third Tuesday in April
          Beginning in 2006 for Collaborative Systems, Universal Access
     Third Thursday in April
          Beginning in 2006 for Robust Intelligence, Digital Government,
          Digital Libraries and Archives
D. FastLane Requirements
Proposers are required to prepare and submit all proposals for this
announcement/solicitation through the FastLane system. Detailed
instructions for proposal preparation and submission via FastLane are
available at: https://www.fastlane.nsf.gov/a1/newstan.htm. For FastLane
user support, call the FastLane Help Desk at 1-800-673-6188 or e-mail
fastlane@nsf.gov. The FastLane Help Desk answers general technical
questions related to the use of the FastLane system. Specific questions
related to this program announcement/solicitation should be referred to the
NSF program staff contact(s) listed in Section VIII of this
announcement/solicitation.
Submission of Electronically Signed Cover Sheets. The Authorized
Organizational Representative (AOR) must electronically sign the proposal
Cover Sheet to submit the required proposal certifications (see Chapter II,
Section C of the Grant Proposal Guide for a listing of the certifications).
The AOR must provide the required electronic certifications within five
working days following the electronic submission of the proposal. Proposers
are no longer required to provide a paper copy of the signed Proposal Cover
Sheet to NSF. Further instructions regarding this process are available on
the FastLane Website at: http://www.fastlane.nsf.gov
VI. PROPOSAL REVIEW INFORMATION
A. NSF Proposal Review Process
Reviews of proposals submitted to NSF are solicited from peers with
expertise in the substantive area of the proposed research or education
project. These reviewers are selected by Program Officers charged with the
oversight of the review process. NSF invites the proposer to suggest, at
the time of submission, the names of appropriate or inappropriate
reviewers. Care is taken to ensure that reviewers have no conflicts with
the proposer. Special efforts are made to recruit reviewers from
non-academic institutions, minority-serving institutions, or adjacent
disciplines to that principally addressed in the proposal.
The National Science Board approved revised criteria for evaluating
proposals at its meeting on March 28, 1997 (NSB 97-72). All NSF proposals
are evaluated through use of the two merit review criteria. In some
instances, however, NSF will employ additional criteria as required to
highlight the specific objectives of certain programs and activities.
On July 8, 2002, the NSF Director issued Important Notice 127,
Implementation of new Grant Proposal Guide Requirements Related to the
Broader Impacts Criterion. This Important Notice reinforces the importance
of addressing both criteria in the preparation and review of all proposals
submitted to NSF. NSF continues to strengthen its internal processes to
ensure that both of the merit review criteria are addressed when making
funding decisions.
In an effort to increase compliance with these requirements, the January
2002 issuance of the GPG incorporated revised proposal preparation
guidelines relating to the development of the Project Summary and Project
Description. Chapter II of the GPG specifies that Principal Investigators
(PIs) must address both merit review criteria in separate statements within
the one-page Project Summary. This chapter also reiterates that broader
impacts resulting from the proposed project must be addressed in the
Project Description and described as an integral part of the narrative.
Effective October 1, 2002, NSF will return without review proposals that do
not separately address both merit review criteria within the Project
Summary. It is believed that these changes to NSF proposal preparation and
processing guidelines will more clearly articulate the importance of
broader impacts to NSF-funded projects.
The two National Science Board approved merit review criteria are listed
below (see the Grant Proposal Guide Chapter III.A for further information).
The criteria include considerations that help define them. These
considerations are suggestions and not all will apply to any given
proposal. While proposers must address both merit review criteria,
reviewers will be asked to address only those considerations that are
relevant to the proposal being considered and for which he/she is qualified
to make judgments.
     What is the intellectual merit of the proposed activity?
     How important is the proposed activity to advancing knowledge and
     understanding within its own field or across different fields? How
     well qualified is the proposer (individual or team) to conduct the
     project? (If appropriate, the reviewer will comment on the quality of
     the prior work.) To what extent does the proposed activity suggest and
     explore creative and original concepts? How well conceived and
     organized is the proposed activity? Is there sufficient access to
     resources?
     What are the broader impacts of the proposed activity?
     How well does the activity advance discovery and understanding while
     promoting teaching, training, and learning? How well does the proposed
     activity broaden the participation of underrepresented groups (e.g.,
     gender, ethnicity, disability, geographic, etc.)? To what extent will
     it enhance the infrastructure for research and education, such as
     facilities, instrumentation, networks, and partnerships? Will the
     results be disseminated broadly to enhance scientific and
     technological understanding? What may be the benefits of the proposed
     activity to society?
NSF staff will give careful consideration to the following in making
funding decisions:
     Integration of Research and Education
     One of the principal strategies in support of NSF's goals is to foster
     integration of research and education through the programs, projects,
     and activities it supports at academic and research institutions.
     These institutions provide abundant opportunities where individuals
     may concurrently assume responsibilities as researchers, educators,
     and students and where all can engage in joint efforts that infuse
     education with the excitement of discovery and enrich research through
     the diversity of learning perspectives.
     Integrating Diversity into NSF Programs, Projects, and Activities
     Broadening opportunities and enabling the participation of all
     citizens -- women and men, underrepresented minorities, and persons
     with disabilities -- is essential to the health and vitality of
     science and engineering. NSF is committed to this principle of
     diversity and deems it central to the programs, projects, and
     activities it considers and supports.
B. Review Protocol and Associated Customer Service Standard
All proposals are carefully reviewed by at least three other persons
outside NSF who are experts in the particular field represented by the
proposal. Proposals submitted in response to this announcement/solicitation
will be reviewed by Ad Hoc and/or panel review.
Reviewers will be asked to formulate a recommendation to either support or
decline each proposal. The Program Officer assigned to manage the
proposal's review will consider the advice of reviewers and will formulate
a recommendation.
A summary rating and accompanying narrative will be completed and submitted
by each reviewer. In all cases, reviews are treated as confidential
documents. Verbatim copies of reviews, excluding the names of the
reviewers, are sent to the Principal Investigator/Project Director by the
Program Director. In addition, the proposer will receive an explanation of
the decision to award or decline funding.
NSF is striving to be able to tell proposers whether their proposals have
been declined or recommended for funding within six months. The time
interval begins on the closing date of an announcement/solicitation, or the
date of proposal receipt, whichever is later. The interval ends when the
Division Director accepts the Program Officer's recommendation.
In all cases, after programmatic approval has been obtained, the proposals
recommended for funding will be forwarded to the Division of Grants and
Agreements for review of business, financial, and policy implications and
the processing and issuance of a grant or other agreement. Proposers are
cautioned that only a Grants and Agreements Officer may make commitments,
obligations or awards on behalf of NSF or authorize the expenditure of
funds. No commitment on the part of NSF should be inferred from technical
or budgetary discussions with a NSF Program Officer. A Principal
Investigator or organization that makes financial or personnel commitments
in the absence of a grant or cooperative agreement signed by the NSF Grants
and Agreements Officer does so at their own risk.
VII. AWARD ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION
A. Notification of the Award
Notification of the award is made to the submitting organization by a
Grants Officer in the Division of Grants and Agreements. Organizations
whose proposals are declined will be advised as promptly as possible by the
cognizant NSF Program Division administering the program. Verbatim copies
of reviews, not including the identity of the reviewer, will be provided
automatically to the Principal Investigator. (See section VI.A. for
additional information on the review process.)
B. Award Conditions
An NSF award consists of: (1) the award letter, which includes any special
provisions applicable to the award and any numbered amendments thereto; (2)
the budget, which indicates the amounts, by categories of expense, on which
NSF has based its support (or otherwise communicates any specific approvals
or disapprovals of proposed expenditures); (3) the proposal referenced in
the award letter; (4) the applicable award conditions, such as Grant
General Conditions (NSF-GC-1); * or Federal Demonstration Partnership (FDP)
Terms and Conditions * and (5) any announcement or other NSF issuance that
may be incorporated by reference in the award letter. Cooperative agreement
awards also are administered in accordance with NSF Cooperative Agreement
Terms and Conditions (CA-1). Electronic mail notification is the preferred
way to transmit NSF awards to organizations that have electronic mail
capabilities and have requested such notification from the Division of
Grants and Agreements.
*These documents may be accessed electronically on NSF's Website at
http://www.nsf.gov/home/grants/grants_gac.htm. Paper copies may be obtained
from the NSF Publications Clearinghouse, telephone (703) 292-7827 or by
e-mail from pubs@nsf.gov.
More comprehensive information on NSF Award Conditions is contained in the
NSF Grant Policy Manual (GPM) Chapter II, available electronically on the
NSF Website at http://www.nsf.gov/cgi-bin/getpub?gpm. The GPM is also for
sale through the Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing Office
(GPO), Washington, DC 20402. The telephone number at GPO for subscription
information is (202) 512-1800. The GPM may be ordered through the GPO
Website at http://www.gpo.gov.
C. Reporting Requirements
For all multi-year grants (including both standard and continuing grants),
the PI must submit an annual project report to the cognizant Program
Officer at least 90 days before the end of the current budget period.
Within 90 days after the expiration of an award, the PI also is required to
submit a final project report. Failure to provide final technical reports
delays NSF review and processing of pending proposals for the PI and all
Co-PIs. PIs should examine the formats of the required reports in advance
to assure availability of required data.
PIs are required to use NSF's electronic project reporting system,
available through FastLane, for preparation and submission of annual and
final project reports. This system permits electronic submission and
updating of project reports, including information on project participants
(individual and organizational), activities and findings, publications, and
other specific products and contributions. PIs will not be required to
re-enter information previously provided, either with a proposal or in
earlier updates using the electronic system.
VIII. CONTACTS FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
General inquiries regarding this program should be made to:
   * Lawrence E. Brandt, Program Director, Digital Government, Directorate
     for Computer & Information Science & Engineering, Division of
     Information and Intelligent Systems, 1125 S, telephone: (703)
     292-8930, fax: (703) 292-9073, email: lbrandt@nsf.gov
   * Ephraim P. Glinert, Program Director, Universal Access and
     Collaborative Systems, Directorate for Computer & Information Science
     & Engineering, Division of Information and Intelligent Systems, 1125
     S, telephone: (703) 292-8930, fax: (703) 292-9073, email:
     eglinert@nsf.gov
   * Stephen M. Griffin, Program Director, Digital Libraries and Archives,
     Directorate for Computer & Information Science & Engineering, Division
     of Information and Intelligent Systems, 1125 S, telephone: (703)
     292-8930, fax: (703) 292-9073, email: sgriffin@nsf.gov
   * Mary P. Harper, Program Director, Collaborative Systems, Directorate
     for Computer & Information Science & Engineering, Division of
     Information and Intelligent Systems, 1125 S, telephone: (703)
     292-8930, fax: (703) 292-9073, email: mharper@nsf.gov
   * C. Suzanne Iacono, Program Director, Collaborative Systems,
     Directorate for Computer & Information Science & Engineering, Division
     of Information and Intelligent Systems, 1125 S, telephone: (703)
     292-8930, fax: (703) 292-9073, email: siacono@nsf.gov
   * Edwina L. Rissland, Program Director, Robust Intelligence, Directorate
     for Computer & Information Science & Engineering, Division of
     Information and Intelligent Systems, 1125 S, telephone: (703)
     292-8930, fax: (703) 292-9073, email: erisslan@nsf.gov
   * Junku Yuh, Program Director, Robust Intelligence, Directorate for
     Computer & Information Science & Engineering, Division of Information
     and Intelligent Systems, 1125 S, telephone: (703) 292-8930, fax: (703)
     292-9073, email: jyuh@nsf.gov
   * Maria Zemankova, Program Director, Collaborative Systems, Directorate
     for Computer & Information Science & Engineering, Division of
     Information and Intelligent Systems, 1125 S, telephone: (703)
     292-8930, fax: (703) 292-9073, email: mzemanko@nsf.gov
For administrative process questions related to the solicitation please
contact:
   * Lisa R. Wilson, Integrative Activities Specialist, Directorate for
     Computer & Information Science & Engineering, Division Information &
     Intelligent Systems, 1125 S, telephone: (703) 292-8463, fax: (703)
     292-9073, email: lwilson@nsf.gov
For questions related to the use of FastLane, contact:
   * FastLane Helpdesk, telephone: 800-673-6188, email: fastlane@nsf.gov
IX. OTHER PROGRAMS OF INTEREST
The NSF Guide to Programs is a compilation of funding for research and
education in science, mathematics, and engineering. The NSF Guide to
Programs is available electronically at
http://www.nsf.gov/cgi-bin/getpub?gp. General descriptions of NSF programs,
research areas, and eligibility information for proposal submission are
provided in each chapter.
Many NSF programs offer announcements or solicitations concerning specific
proposal requirements. To obtain additional information about these
requirements, contact the appropriate NSF program offices. Any changes in
NSF's fiscal year programs occurring after press time for the Guide to
Programs will be announced in the NSF E-Bulletin, which is updated daily on
the NSF Website at http://www.nsf.gov/home/ebulletin, and in individual
program announcements/solicitations. Subscribers can also sign up for NSF's
Custom News Service (http://www.nsf.gov/home/cns/start.htm) to be notified
of new funding opportunities that become available.
ABOUT THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
The National Science Foundation (NSF) funds research and education in most
fields of science and engineering. Awardees are wholly responsible for
conducting their project activities and preparing the results for
publication. Thus, the Foundation does not assume responsibility for such
findings or their interpretation.
NSF welcomes proposals from all qualified scientists, engineers and
educators. The Foundation strongly encourages women, minorities and persons
with disabilities to compete fully in its programs. In accordance with
Federal statutes, regulations and NSF policies, no person on grounds of
race, color, age, sex, national origin or disability shall be excluded from
participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to
discrimination under any program or activity receiving financial assistance
from NSF, although some programs may have special requirements that limit
eligibility.
Facilitation Awards for Scientists and Engineers with Disabilities (FASED)
provide funding for special assistance or equipment to enable persons with
disabilities (investigators and other staff, including student research
assistants) to work on NSF-supported projects. See the GPG Chapter II,
Section D.2 for instructions regarding preparation of these types of
proposals.
 The National Science Foundation promotes and advances scientific
 progress in the United States by competitively awarding grants and
 cooperative agreements for research and education in the sciences,
 mathematics, and engineering.
 To get the latest information about program deadlines, to download
 copies of NSF publications, and to access abstracts of awards, visit the
 NSF Website at http://www.nsf.gov
        * Location:                        4201 Wilson Blvd.
                                           Arlington, VA 22230
        * For General Information          (703) 292-5111
          (NSF Information Center):
        * TDD (for the hearing-impaired):  (703) 292-5090
        * To Order Publications or Forms:
               Send an e-mail to:          pubs@nsf.gov
                 or telephone:             (703) 292-7827
        * To Locate NSF Employees:         (703) 292-5111
PRIVACY ACT AND PUBLIC BURDEN STATEMENTS
The information requested on proposal forms and project reports is
solicited under the authority of the National Science Foundation Act of
1950, as amended. The information on proposal forms will be used in
connection with the selection of qualified proposals; project reports
submitted by awardees will be used for program evaluation and reporting
within the Executive Branch and to Congress. The information requested may
be disclosed to qualified reviewers and staff assistants as part of the
proposal review process; to applicant institutions/grantees to provide or
obtain data regarding the proposal review process, award decisions, or the
administration of awards; to government contractors, experts, volunteers
and researchers and educators as necessary to complete assigned work; to
other government agencies needing information as part of the review process
or in order to coordinate programs; and to another Federal agency, court or
party in a court or Federal administrative proceeding if the government is
a party. Information about Principal Investigators may be added to the
Reviewer file and used to select potential candidates to serve as peer
reviewers or advisory committee members. See Systems of Records, NSF-50,
"Principal Investigator/Proposal File and Associated Records," 63 Federal
Register 267 (January 5, 1998), and NSF-51, "Reviewer/Proposal File and
Associated Records," 63 Federal Register 268 (January 5, 1998). Submission
of the information is voluntary. Failure to provide full and complete
information, however, may reduce the possibility of receiving an award.
An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to
respond to an information collection unless it displays a valid OMB control
number. The OMB control number for this collection is 3145-0058. Public
reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average
120 hours per response, including the time for reviewing instructions. Send
comments regarding this burden estimate and any other aspect of this
collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden,
to: Suzanne Plimpton, Reports Clearance Officer, Division of Administrative
Services, National Science Foundation, Arlington, VA 22230.
OMB control number: 3145-0058.