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NSF 05-627: Scientific Computing Research Environments for the Mathematical Sciences (SCREMS)

Program Solicitation

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Scientific Computing Research Environments for the Mathematical Sciences (SCREMS)


Program Solicitation

NSF 05-627

Replaces Document
NSF 05-538

NSF Logo

National Science Foundation
Directorate for Mathematical and Physical Sciences
      Division of Mathematical Sciences



Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p.m. submitter's local time):

    January 26, 2006

    Fourth Thursday in January

    annually thereafter

Revisions And Updates

In furtherance of the President's Management Agenda, in Fiscal Year 2006, NSF has identified programs that will offer proposers the option to utilize Grants.gov to prepare and submit proposals, or will require that proposers utilize Grants.gov to prepare and submit proposals. Grants.gov provides a single Government-wide portal for finding and applying for Federal grants online.

In response to this program solicitation, proposers may opt to submit proposals via Grants.gov or via the NSF FastLane system. In determining which method to utilize in the electronic preparation and submission of the proposal, please note the following:

Collaborative Proposals. All collaborative proposals submitted as separate submissions from multiple organizations must be submitted via the NSF FastLane system. Chapter II, Section D.3 of the Grant Proposal Guide provides additional information on collaborative proposals.

Summary Of Program Requirements

General Information

Program Title:

Scientific Computing Research Environments for the Mathematical Sciences (SCREMS)

Synopsis of Program:

The Division of Mathematical Sciences (DMS) of the National Science Foundation plans a limited number of awards for the support of computing environments for research in the mathematical sciences. Scientific Computing Research Environments for the Mathematical Sciences (SCREMS) proposals are for computing environments dedicated to research in the mathematical sciences. Proposals may request support for the purchase of computing equipment and limited support for professional systems administrators or programmer personnel for research computing needs. These grants are intended to support research projects of high quality that require access to advanced computing resources. Requests for routine upgrades of standard desk-environment workstations or laptop computers are not appropriate for this program. Awards are made to provide support for specific research projects rather than to provide general computing capacity. Proposers are encouraged to include projects involving symbolic and algebraic computations, numerical computations and simulations, and graphical representations (visualization) in aid of the research.

Cost sharing is not required for proposals submitted under this solicitation beginning with the January 26, 2006 deadline. Therefore, cost sharing will not be considered in the evaluation of SCREMS proposals.

Cognizant Program Officer(s):

  • Dean M Evasius, Associate Program Director, Directorate for Mathematical & Physical Sciences, Division of Mathematical Sciences, 1025 N, telephone: (703) 292-8132, email: devasius@nsf.gov

  • Alvin I. Thaler, Program Director, Directorate for Mathematical & Physical Sciences, Division of Mathematical Sciences, 1025 S, telephone: (703) 292-8039, fax: (703) 292-9032, email: athaler@nsf.gov

Applicable Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number(s):

  • 47.049 --- Mathematical and Physical Sciences

Eligibility Information

  • Organization Limit:

    Proposals may be submitted by U.S. educational institutions with ongoing research programs in mathematics, applied mathematics, or statistics. Proposals involving inter-institutional or inter-departmental sharing arrangements are welcome.

  • PI Eligibility Limit: None Specified.
  • Limit on Number of Proposals: Identical proposals may not be submitted to both the SCREMS and MRI solicitations. If possible, within the context of institutional limit requirements of the MRI program, equipment proposals from mathematics and/or statistics groups should be submitted as MRI proposals by the MRI proposal deadline of January 26, 2006.

Award Information

  • Anticipated Type of Award: Standard Grant
  • Estimated Number of Awards: 8 to 12
  • Anticipated Funding Amount: $1,000,000 in FY 2006 subject to availability of funds.

Proposal Preparation and Submission Instructions

A. Proposal Preparation Instructions
  • Full proposals submitted via FastLane:

    • Grant Proposal Guide (GPG) Guidelines apply.

    Full proposals submitted via Grants.gov:

    • NSF Grants.gov Application Guide: A Guide for the Preparation and Submission of NSF Applications via Grants.gov Guidelines apply (Note: The NSF Grants.gov Application Guide is available on the Grants.gov website and on the NSF website at: https://www.nsf.gov/bfa/dias/policy/docs/grantsgovguide.pdf) To obtain copies of the Application Guide and Application Forms Package: click on the Apply tab on the Grants.gov website, then click on the Apply Step 1: Download a Grant Application Package and Application Instructions link and enter the funding opportunity number, (the program solicitation number without the NSF prefix) and press the Download Package button.

    This solicitation contains information that supplements the standard Grant Proposal Guide (GPG) proposal preparation guidelines and the NSF Grants.gov Application Guide. Please see the full text of this solicitation for further information.

B. Budgetary Information
  • Cost Sharing Requirements: Cost Sharing is not required by NSF.
  • 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. submitter's local time):

    January 26, 2006

    Fourth Thursday in January

    annually thereafter

Proposal Review Information

  • Merit Review Criteria: National Science Board approved criteria. Additional merit review considerations apply. Please see the full text of this solicitation for further information.

Award Administration Information

  • Award Conditions: Standard NSF award conditions apply.
  • Reporting Requirements: Standard NSF reporting requirements apply.

I. Introduction

The Division of Mathematical Sciences of the National Science Foundation plans a limited number of grants for the support of computing environments for research in the mathematical sciences. This solicitation provides guidance for the preparation of eligible proposals.

Who may submit: Proposals may be submitted by U.S. educational institutions with ongoing research programs in mathematics, applied mathematics, or statistics. Proposals involving inter-institutional or inter-departmental sharing arrangements are welcome.

Purpose: SCREMS proposals are for computing environments dedicated to research in the mathematical sciences. Proposals may request support for purchase of computing equipment and limited support for professional systems administrators or programmer personnel for research computing needs. These grants are intended to support research projects of high quality that require access to advanced computational resources. Requests for routine upgrades of standard desk-environment workstations or laptop computers are not appropriate for this program. Awards are made to provide support for specific research projects rather than to provide general computing capacity. Proposers are encouraged to include projects involving symbolic and algebraic computations, numerical computations and simulations, and graphical representations (visualization) in aid of the research.

Proposers and institutions may find appropriate other NSF sources of support for instrumentation, including the Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) program. The current MRI program solicitation is NSF 05-515. The SCREMS program is compatible with the MRI program except that the MRI program has limits on the number of proposals that an institution may submit in any year. The proposal deadline for SCREMS and MRI is the fourth Thursday in January. Identical proposals should NOT be sent to both SCREMS and MRI. If possible, within the context of institutional limit requirements of the MRI program, equipment proposals from mathematics and/or statistics groups should be submitted as MRI proposals. A proposal submitted to the MRI program will automatically be considered for SCREMS, but proposals submitted to the SCREMS program will not be considered for MRI.

II. Program Description

Principal Investigator: PIs and co-PIs are faculty members or researchers from the submitting institution who are participating in the project and/or are administratively responsible for the acquisition planning, use, and maintenance of the equipment. For convenience, the Department Head may be designated, but this is not required.

Character of requests: This Program is intended to provide for needs that cannot be met by other research programs of NSF's Division of Mathematical Sciences. Requests are expected to be for support that is required jointly by several (two or more) research projects or difficult to justify for a single project. Amalgamations of small requests that could be submitted to NSF disciplinary research programs are discouraged.

SCREMS proposals are primarily for funding for equipment. If appropriate justification is made, a limited amount of funding may be requested for certain personnel costs. When appropriate and cost-effective, requests for group or departmental servers may be suitable for the SCREMS program.

It is especially important that the proposers make a strong case for the proposed computing environment as a coherent "computer system" and be able to describe thoroughly and in detail the impact of the proposed equipment on the proposed research activities. If this is intended to be the main computer system for a collection of research projects, describe the minimum computing requirements and explain, if appropriate, why a more-than-minimum system is proposed. If the proposed equipment includes a cluster of several nodes working in parallel, justify the rationale for the chosen computer and network architecture in relation to the research projects.

Budget Request Size: The net costs (after discounts) of the equipment portion should be at least $50,000. Requests to SCREMS may be as high as $200,000, provided a case is made for substantial impact and cost-effectiveness.

III. Eligibility Information

Proposals may be submitted by U.S. educational institutions with ongoing research programs in mathematics, applied mathematics, or statistics. Proposals involving inter-institutional or inter-departmental sharing arrangements are welcome.

Identical proposals may not be submitted to both the SCREMS and MRI solicitations. If possible, within the context of institutional limit requirements of the MRI program, equipment proposals from mathematics and/or statistics groups should be submitted as MRI proposals by the MRI proposal deadline of January 26, 2006.

IV. Award Information

The total number of awards is estimated between 8 and 12, and the total funding amount in FY 2006 is approximately $1,000,000. Estimated program budget, 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:

Proposers may opt to submit proposals in response to this Program Solicitation via Grants.gov or via the NSF FastLane system.

  • Full proposals submitted via FastLane:

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:     https://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=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 (05-627) in the program announcement/solicitation block on the proposal Cover Sheet. Compliance with this requirement is critical to determining the relevant proposal processing guidelines. Failure to submit this information may delay processing.

  • Full proposals submitted via Grants.gov:

Proposals submitted in response to this program solicitation via Grants.gov should be prepared and submitted in accordance with the NSF Grants.gov Application Guide: A Guide for the Preparation and Submission of NSF Applications via Grants.gov. The complete text of the NSF Grants.gov Application Guide is available on the Grants.gov website and on the NSF website at: (https://www.nsf.gov/bfa/dias/policy/docs/grantsgovguide.pdf). To obtain copies of the Application Guide and Application Forms Package, click on the Apply tab on the Grants.gov site, then click on the Apply Step 1:  Download a Grant Application Package and Application Instructions link and enter the funding opportunity number, (the program solicitation  number without the NSF prefix) and press the Download Package button. Paper copies of the Grants.gov Application Guide also may be obtained from the NSF Publications Clearinghouse, telephone (703) 292-7827 or by e-mail from pubs@nsf.gov .

In determining which method to utilize in the electronic preparation and submission of the proposal, please note the following:

Collaborative Proposals. All collaborative proposals submitted as separate submissions from multiple organizations must be submitted via the NSF FastLane system. Chapter II, Section D.3 of the Grant Proposal Guide provides additional information on collaborative proposals.

Proposals submitted should include the following information that supplements the GPG and the Grants.gov Application Guide, and, unless otherwise noted, applies to both types of submissions:

Proposers should include a description of all computing equipment available to them, whether from individual, departmental, college, university, or regional facilities. Proposers should also describe carefully and quantitatively what computing power they are presently using and what improvement would be gained by acquisition of the proposed hardware.

B. Budgetary Information

Cost Sharing:

Cost sharing is not required by NSF 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. submitter's local time):

    January 26, 2006

    Fourth Thursday in January

      annually thereafter

D. FastLane/Grants.gov Requirements

  • For Proposals Submitted Via FastLane:

Detailed technical 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 solicitation should be referred to the NSF program staff contact(s) listed in Section VIII of this 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/

  • For Proposals Submitted Via Grants.gov:

Before using Grants.gov for the first time, each organization must register to create an institutional profile. Once registered, the applicant’s organization can then apply for any federal grant on the Grants.gov website.

The Grants.gov’s Grant Community User Guide is a comprehensive reference document that provides technical information about Grants.gov. Proposers can download the User Guide as a Microsoft Word document or as a PDF document. The Grants.gov User Guide is available at: http://www.grants.gov/CustomerSupport. In addition, the NSF Grants.gov Application Guide provides additional technical guidance regarding preparation of proposals via Grants.gov. For Grants.gov user support, contact the Grants.gov Contact Center at 1-800-518-4726 or by email: support@grants.gov. The Grants.gov Contact Center answers general technical questions related to the use of Grants.gov. Specific questions related to this program solicitation should be referred to the NSF program staff contact(s) listed in Section VIII of this solicitation.

Submitting the Proposal: Once all documents have been completed, the Authorized Organizational Representative (AOR) must submit the application to Grants.gov and verify the desired funding opportunity and agency to which the application is submitted. The AOR must then sign and submit the application to Grants.gov. The completed application will be transferred to the NSF FastLane system for further processing.

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.

    Additional Review Criteria:

    The scientific merit of the research made possible by the requested equipment and the impact of the proposed equipment on the research activity are the most important selection criteria. Proposals will be judged by a panel of mathematical scientists chosen to provide a wide range of expertise across the mathematical sciences. Some particular areas may not be represented by specialists. Therefore, all proposals must contain descriptions of the research projects in sufficient detail so that the scientific merit of each project can be evaluated by qualified reviewers who may or may not be specialists in the proposed research areas. Particular emphasis should be given to those unique or new scientific capabilities which will ensue from the proposed acquisition.

    In addition, proposals will be evaluated on the following criteria:

    • Scientific merit of the research made possible by the requested equipment

    • Impact of the proposed equipment on the research activity

    • Justification of need for proposed equipment

    • Choice and appropriateness of equipment

    • Appropriateness of personnel support, if requested

    • Plan for maintenance and operation

    • Impact of the proposed equipment and environment on the department and institution

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 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 are administered in accordance with NSF Cooperative Agreement Financial and Administrative Terms and Conditions (CA-FATC). 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 https://www.nsf.gov/awards/managing/. Paper copies of these documents 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 https://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=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:

  • Dean M Evasius, Associate Program Director, Directorate for Mathematical & Physical Sciences, Division of Mathematical Sciences, 1025 N, telephone: (703) 292-8132, email: devasius@nsf.gov

  • Alvin I. Thaler, Program Director, Directorate for Mathematical & Physical Sciences, Division of Mathematical Sciences, 1025 S, telephone: (703) 292-8039, fax: (703) 292-9032, email: athaler@nsf.gov

  • The MPS FastLane contact is Florence Rabanal , Electronic Business Coordinator, Directorate for Mathematical & Physical Sciences, 1005 N, telephone: (703) 292-8808

For questions concerning Grants.gov contact:

  • Grants.gov Contact Center: If the Authorized Organizational Representative (AOR) has not received a confirmation message from Grants.gov within 48 hours of submission of the application, please contact via telephone: 1-800-518-4726; e-mail: support@grants.gov.

For questions related to the use of FastLane, contact:

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 https://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 https://www.nsf.gov/home/ebulletin, and in individual program announcements/solicitations. Subscribers can also sign up for NSF's MyNSF News Service (https://www.nsf.gov/mynsf/) to be notified of new funding opportunities that become available.

Proposers and institutions may find appropriate other NSF sources of support for instrumentation, including the Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) program.

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.

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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.