NSF Support of Socio-Technical Research

University of Maryland - College Park, December 3, 2013

Heng XuProgram Director

Division of Social and Economic SciencesDirectorate for Social, Behavioral and

Economic Sciences

NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION

Information & Resource

Management

Social, Behavioral, & Economic

Sciences

Office of Inspector General

National Science Board

Offices• International &

Integrative Activities• Legislative & Public

Affairs• General Counsel• Diversity & Inclusion

Computer & Info. Science

& Engineering Engineering Geosciences

Mathematical & Physical Sciences

Education & Human

Resources

Budget,Finance &

Award Management

Biological Sciences

Office of the Director

SBE BUDGET TRENDS

• FY SBE 2014 request is $272.35 Million

• Increase of 10.9% over FY 2013 Enacted

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 Enacted

2014 Request

254247255 243 272

AARA

85

241

Approximately 5,000 proposals and 1,000 awards in a typical year

NSF SBE OVERVIEW

Division of Social and Economic Sciences

(SES)

Division of Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences

(BCS)

National Center for Science and

Engineering Statistics

Directorate for Social,

Behavioral & Economic SciencesDr. Joanne Tornow, Acting Assistant Director

Dr. Fae Korsmo, Acting Deputy Assistant Director SBE Office of

Multidisciplinary Activities (Virtual)

• Archaeology and Archaeometry

• Cognitive Neuroscience

• Cultural Anthropology

• Developmental and Learning Sciences

• Documenting Endangered Languages

• Geography and Spatial Sciences

• Linguistics• Perception, Action,

and Cognition• Biological

Anthropology • Social Psychology

BCS STANDING PROGRAMS

SES STANDING PROGRAMS

• Decision, Risk and

Management Sciences

• Economics

• Ethics Education in

Science and Engineering

• Science of Organizations

• Law and Social Sciences

• Methodology, Measurement and Statistics

• Political Science • Science, Technology

and Society• Sociology

NATIONAL CENTER FOR SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING STATISTICS (NCSES)

• Nation’s primary source of data and analysis on

the science and engineering enterprise

• Designs, supports and directs about 11 periodic

surveys, other data collections and research

projects

• 30 publications yearly

• Congressionally-mandated publications:– Science and Engineering Indicators

– Women, Minorities and Persons with Disabilities in

Science and Engineering

NSF SBE OVERVIEW

Division of Social and Economic Sciences

(SES)

Division of Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences

(BCS)

National Center for Science and

Engineering Statistics

Directorate for Social,

Behavioral & Economic SciencesDr. Joanne Tornow, Acting Assistant Director

Dr. Fae Korsmo, Acting Deputy Assistant Director SBE Office of

Multidisciplinary Activities (Virtual)

PATHS TO SBE SUPPORT

• Standing Program Proposals

• Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Proposals

• Student Support (DDRIGs, REU Supplements and Sites)

• Early-Concept Grants for Exploratory Research (EAGER)

• Grants for Rapid Response Research (RAPID)

PATHS TO SBE SUPPORT:CAREER• Available in all NSF programs

• Untenured faculty (or comparable)

• Single scholar award

• $400,000, 5-years minimum award

• Three proposals lifetime limit

• Mid to late July deadline

• High Prestige/High Expectations

– the most prestigious award in support of junior faculty who exemplify the role of teacher-scholars through outstanding research, excellent education, and the integration of education and research

PATHS TO SBE SUPPORT:STUDENT OPPORTUNITIES• Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement

Grants (DDRIG)– Available in some SBE programs– Small grant to support (and extend) dissertation

researchBCS• Archaeology• Cultural Anthropology• Geography & Spatial

Sciences• Linguistics• Physical Anthropology

SES• Decision, Risk, & Management

Science• Economics• Law and Social Sciences• Political Science • Science, Technology & Society• Sociology

SMA• Science of Science &

Innovation Policy

PATHS TO SBE SUPPORT:STUDENT OPPORTUNITIES

• Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU)– Available in all programs

– Two types of awards

- REU Supplements: Awards added onto existing

awards to sponsor undergraduate student research

- REU Sites: training programs, often in the summer

months, for teaching research methods to

undergrads

PATHS TO SBE SUPPORT:EAGER (Early-Concept Grants for Exploratory Research)

• Exploratory work on untested, potentially transformative ideas

• High-risk, high-potential payoff

• $300,000 maximum; 2 years

• Eight page description

• Internal review required; external optional

• Contact Program Director first

– EAGERs are exceptions, not the rule!

PATHS TO SBE SUPPORT:RAPID (Grants for Rapid Response Research)

• Research when data are ephemeral

• $200,000 maximum; 1 year

• 5 page project description

• Internal review required; external optional

• Available in all programs

• Contact Program Director first – For proposals having a severe urgency with regard to

availability of, or access to data, facilities or specialized equipment, including quick-response research on natural or anthropogenic disasters and similar unanticipated events

PATHS TO SBE SUPPORT (Summary)

• Standing Program Proposals

• Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Proposals

• Student Support (DDRIGs, REU Supplements and Sites)

• Early-Concept Grants for Exploratory Research (EAGER)

• Grants for Rapid Response Research (RAPID)

FY 2014 SBE 2020 INVESTMENTS

• SBE Postdoctoral Research Fellowships

• Interdisciplinary Behavioral and Social Science Research

• Building Community and Capacity for Data-Intensive Research in the Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences and in Education and Human Resources

http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2011/nsf11086/nsf11086.pdf

Interdisciplinary Behavioral and Social Science Research (IBSS)• Full proposal submission deadline:

– December 03, 2013 – December 02, 2014

• Two types of projects:– Large Interdisciplinary Research Projects (with

maximum award sizes of $1,000,000)– Interdisciplinary Team Exploratory Projects (with

maximum award sizes of $250,000)

• Awarded projects last year:– http://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/advancedSearchResult?ProgEleCode=821

3&BooleanElement=ANY&BooleanRef=ANY&ActiveAwards=true&#results

SBE Support of Socio-Technical

Research and EducationExample Programs: 1. Secure and Trustworthy Cyberspace (SaTC) 2. Partnerships for Innovation: Building Innovation

Capacity (PFI: BIC) 3. Building Community and Capacity for Data-Intensive

Research in the Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences and in Education and Human Resources (BCC-SBE/EHR)

Secure and Trustworthy Cyberspace (SaTC)  

• Three Perspectives along with a Transition to Practice (TTP) supplemental option:– Trustworthy Computing (TWC)– Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences (SBE)– Cybersecurity Education

• Types of Projects:– Small (1/14/2013): up to $500,000 in total budget, with

durations of up to three years – Medium (11/12/2013): $500,001 to $1,200,000 in total

budget, up to four years – Frontier (11/19/2013): $1,200,001 to $10,000,000 in total

budget, up to five years

• Awarded projects:– http://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/advancedSearchResult?ProgEleCode

=8060&BooleanElement=ANY&BooleanRef=ANY&ActiveAwards=true&#results

SaTC EAGERs Enabling New Collaborations Between

Computer and Social Scientists 

• New Collaboration:– Proposals should clarify how the proposed

collaboration will take place– Budget: around $200,000

• Two rounds of submissions:– Two-page summary: March 1 & May 1, 2014– Invited proposal: May 1 & July 1, 2014

• Awarded projects:– 1343141, 1343528, 1343430, 1343433, 1343453,

1343766, 1347075, 1347113, 1347151, 1347186– http://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch

SaTC Research Coordination Network Addressing Experimental and Evaluation Methods & Techniques 

• SaTC Research Coordination Network (RCN):– RCN supports the means by which investigators can share

information, develop community standards, and advance science and education through communication and sharing of ideas

– Up to $500,000 for up to three years– Deadline: December 15, 2013

• Types of Projects:– Methodologies and analysis techniques from the CISE / SBE

sciences that can be applied toward cybersecurity but are not currently widely used by SBE / CISE researchers

– Limitations and hidden assumptions in analysis techniques– Methodologies and techniques that are best suited for particular

classes of cybersecurity problems– Threats to internal and external validity of research studies

caused by technological and social changes

http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2013/nsf13131/nsf13131.jsp

Partnerships for Innovation: Building Innovation Capacity (PFI: BIC) 

• "Smart" Service Systems– Seeking proposals with a focus on platform technologies to

enable "smart" service systems– A minimum of one (1) industry partner of any size is required– Demonstrate understanding of potential commercial

applications and markets– Awards may be up to $800,000 with a duration of three years

• Limit on Number of Proposals per Organization: 2• Due Dates:

– Letter of Intent (required): November 18, 2013– Full Proposal Deadline: January 27, 2014

• Awarded projects:– http://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/advancedSearchResult?ProgEle

Code=1662&BooleanElement=ANY&BooleanRef=ANY&ActiveAwards=true&#results

Building Community and Capacity for Data-Intensive Research in the Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences and in Education and Human Resources (BCC-SBE/EHR)  

• Enable communities to develop visions for data-intensive SBE and EHR areas of research:– Infrastructure such as tools and communities to utilize

the large scale databases – Design of large scale databases and/or associated

analytic tools– Support wide scale deployment and use

• Types of Awards:– Awards are expected to be one, two or three years in

duration. – Range from $100,000 to $500,000 in size.

• Awarded projects:– https://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=504747

PROPOSAL PROCESS & TIMELINE

Research & Education

Communities

NSF Proposal

GeneratingDocument

Program OfficerAnalysis &

Recommendation

DivisionDirectorConcur

Organization submits

viaFastLane

Minimum of three reviews

required

Ad hoc

Panel

BothProposal

ProcessingUnit

NSF Program Officer Returned as

Inappropriate/ Withdrawn Organization

Award via DGA

Decline

Div. Dir. Concur Award

DGA Review & Processing of Award

6 months 30 days

Proposal Preparation Time

Proposal received by NSF

Review of Proposal PO Recommend

WHERE TO START WITH WRITING A PROPOSAL?• A basic science idea

– Research questions/ hypotheses

• Check awards by program, keyword, etc. (www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/)

• Read solicitation carefully!

• Ensure alignment of the project’s content, scale and budget to the targeted NSF program

• Become familiar with the NSF Grant Proposal Guide (GPG) http://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=gpg

PROPOSAL TIPS

• Make project titles short and simple (declarative statement; avoid cute)

• Consider theoretical foundations and prospective theoretical contributions

• Learn how proposals will be evaluated; think like those who will review and make decisions

• Volunteer to review proposals

• Provide suggested reviewers (‘single copy documents’)

MERIT REVIEW ELEMENTS

1. Potential for the proposed activity to: a. Advance knowledge and understanding (Intellectual Merit);

b. Benefit society or advance desired societal outcomes (Broader Impacts)

2. Creative, original, or potentially transformative concepts

3. Well-reasoned, well-organized plan; mechanism to assess success

4. Qualifications of the individual, team, or organization

5. Adequate resources available

BE SURE TO BE PAY ATTENTION TO…• Data Management Plan

– All proposals must describe plans for data management and sharing

– Plan is reviewed as part of the intellectual merit or broader impacts

• Postdoctoral Mentoring Plan– If requesting money for a postdoc, must have plan as

supplementary document

• IRB (human subjects) or IACUC (vertebrate animals) Clearance– No award involving human subjects can be made without IRB

approval or exemption; studies involving vertebrate animals require IACUC approval prior to award

– This approval is not needed at the time of proposal submission; may be “pending”

ADVICE

• Sign up for “NSF Updates by Email” on NSF homepage

• Email Program Director with specific questions, one-page prospectus

• What to Say—and Not Say—to Program Officers: http://chronicle.com/article/What-to-Say-and-Not-Say-to/131282/

CONTACTING PROGRAM DIRECTORS

• Communicate with appropriate Program Director about your ideas

• How Program Directors can help:– We can identify potential fit– We can offer advice on proposal preparation

QUESTIONS?

Email: hxu@nsf.gov

Phone: (703) 292-8643

Room: 995.21

Division of Social and Economic Sciences