NSF Big Ideas Announcements: Webinars, Deadline Changes
Richard Green University of Arizona
Please see below for updates from Richard Green, NSF Astronomy and Astrophysics (AST) Division Director, on two NSF Big Ideas: Mid-Scale Research Infrastructure (deadline remains the same; two webinars coming this week) and Harnessing the Data Revolution (deadlines extended; one webinar next week).
— Ashlee Wilkins, AAS John N. Bahcall Public Policy Fellow
NSF Big Ideas: Mid-Scale Research Infrastructure
With its Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) program and Major Research Equipment and Facilities Construction (MREFC) projects, NSF supports infrastructure projects at the lower and higher ends of infrastructure scales across science and engineering research disciplines. The Mid-scale Research Infrastructure (MSRI) Big Idea is intended to provide NSF with an agile, Foundation-wide process to fund experimental research capabilities in the mid-scale range between the MRI and MREFC thresholds. The Mid-Scale RI-1 solicitation covers the range from $6 to $20M, including Design and Development activities, while the Mid-Scale RI-2 solicitation covers $20 to $70M major projects, for which operations costs are available from other sources.
MSRI Webinars
On Wednesday, 6 February, and Thursday, 7 February, NSF will host two WebEx webinars about the Mid-Scale RI funding opportunities. Each webinar will begin at 1:00 pm (EST) and have two parts: Mid-scale RI-1 (1:00 to 2:15 pm) and Mid-scale RI-2 (2:15 to 3:30 pm).
To access the webinars:
Event: Mid-Scale Research Infrastructure (MSRI) Solicitation Webinar 1
Date/Time: Wednesday, 6 February 2019, from 1:00 pm to 3:30 pm Eastern time
- Event website: Click here
- Event Number: 905 736 409
- Event Password: MSRi2019!
- Audio Options: USA/Canada dial toll-free 1-888-810-8157 or toll 1-517-308-9111 and enter passcode 2257298 or connect to computer streaming audio at this website.
- Captions: View real-time captions at www.fedrcc.us by clicking “Join Now” and entering event ID no. 3913943.
- Questions: Please submit questions via WebEx Q&A during the webinar.
Event: Mid-Scale Research Infrastructure (MSRI) Solicitation Webinar 2
Date/Time: Thursday, 7 February 2019, from 1:00 pm to 3:30 pm Eastern time
- Event website: Click here
- Event Number: 909 040 994
- Event Password: MSRi2019!
- Audio Options: USA/Canada dial toll-free 1-888-810-8157 or toll 1-517-308-9111 and enter passcode 2257298 or connect to computer streaming audio at this website.
- Captions: View real-time captions at www.fedrcc.us by clicking “Join Now” and entering event ID no. 3913943.
- Questions: Please submit questions via WebEx Q&A during the webinar.
NSF Big Ideas: Data Science Opportunity
As mentioned in the AAS 233 NSF Virtual Town Hall, one of the multidisciplinary NSF Big Ideas is Harnessing the Data Revolution (HDR). HDR is a national-scale activity to enable new modes of data-driven discovery that will allow fundamental questions to be asked and answered at the frontiers of science and engineering. The HDR vision is realized through an interrelated set of activities and funding opportunities. Each of these efforts is designed to amplify the intrinsically multidisciplinary nature of the emerging field of data science. The natural collaborations for our discipline are among astronomy and computer and information science, with participants from universities and NSF’s national observatories eligible to apply.
Deadline Updates for HDR Solicitations
Due to the recent 35-day lapse in appropriations and shutdown of the agency, NSF will be extending the deadline dates for the HDR solicitations noted below:
| Pub ID | Title | Original Deadline | Submission Type | New Deadline |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19-543 | HDR: Institutes for Data-Intensive Research in Science and Engineering — Ideas Labs (I-DIRSE-IL) | 28 January 2019 | Preliminary proposals | 4 March 2019 |
| 19-518 | HDR: Data Science Corps (DSC) | 4 February 2019 | Full proposals | 14 February 2019 |
HDR Webinar
NSF has scheduled a webinar providing an overview of the current HDR funding opportunities:
Event: Harnessing the Data Revolution (HDR) Information Webinar
Date/Time: Friday, 15 February 2019, from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm Eastern time
- Registration/Website: Register in Advance at this link.
- Accommodations: Notify the event organizer no later than 6 Feb. 2019, if you require reasonable/accessibility accommodations to participate in the webinar.
- Audio Options: Connect using computer audio. Alternatively, choose call-me and enter your phone number to receive a call back, or call-in using USA/Canada toll 1-510-210-8882 or toll-free 1-844-700-9959 and event number/access code 900 748 538.
- Captions: View real-time captions at www.fedrcc.us by clicking “Join Now” and entering event ID no. 3912679.