|
|
Resources
Funding Opportunities
- ASTEP (Astrobiology Science and Technology for Exploring Planets)
- ASTEP (Astrobiology Science and Technology for Exploring Planets) combines the science and technology communities in order to enable future space missions to determine whether life exists or has existed outside Earth. Through a detailed, collaborative analysis of Earth's extreme environments, we can better prepare to understand analogous systems elsewhere. The focus of upcoming ASTEP projects, for which we are currently soliciting proposals, is to validate and improve existing technology, preparing it for future flight missions to test for life in our solar system and beyond.
- Biogeosciences at NSF
- Geomicrobial processes (the dynamic interaction of microbes with earth
materials) lie at the heart of the Biogeoscience program solicitation
for FY 2004. The Directorate for Geosciences invites the scientific community
to submit proposals to conduct innovative research into fundamental geomicrobial
processes, which constitute the foundation of the biogeosciences. Microbial
communities exist within a broad spectrum of environmental conditions
including those found at the Earth's surface, deep in the crust, in freshwater
environments, within the oceans and possibly the atmosphere. These communities
are involved in a broad array of geological and biological processes involving
the evolution of the Earth, ecology, geochemical cycling, biomineralization,
mineral ore formation, lithification and energy production. Geoscientists
and bioscientists alike have discovered that microorganisms influence
the Earth's environment through an astonishing array of chemical processes.
Indeed, at lower temperatures and with geological time thermodynamic processes
may be less important than kinetic processes mediated by microbes. The
presence of certain trace gases in the atmosphere, the acidification of
mine-waste waters, and metal distributions in soils and sediments are
all products of these micro-scale chemical reactors. Microbes form the
foundation for all ecosystems known, both terrestrial and marine. Despite
their importance and omnipresence, more than 99% of microbes on Earth
remain uncharacterized, many from unique or incompletely explored environments.
- Proposals are due by April 1, 2004 5pm local time.
Contact: Rachael Craig, Program Director Biogeosciences and Carbon Cycle, 703-292-8233, rcraig@nsf.gov
- NSF Research Coordination Networks in Biological Sciences
- The goal of this program is to encourage and foster interactions among scientists to create new research directions or advance a field. Innovative ideas for implementing novel networking strategies are especially encouraged. Groups of investigators will be supported to communicate and coordinate their research, training and educational activities across disciplinary, organizational, institutional, and geographical boundaries. The proposed networking activities should have a theme as a focus of its collaboration. The focus could be on a broad research question, a specific group of organisms, or particular technologies or approaches.
- Dr.Chris L Greer, Chair, Research Coordination Networks Working Group, Division of Biological Infrastructure, Room 615, telephone: (703) 292-8470, fax: (703) 292-9063, email: biorcn@nsf.gov
- Call for START proposals
- START, through funding from the United States Climate Change Science
Program, are pleased to announce a Call for Proposals related to
Environmental Change. Proposals are being solicited from scientists
based at African institutions for research projects related to:
Climate Variability and Climate Change in Africa, Impacts/Adaptations/Vulnerability
to Global Change, Land Use and Ecosystem Change, Bio-geochemical
Fluxes, and Biodiversity.
|
|
