Title : NSF 94-102 Research Instrumentation: Enabling the Discovery Process Type : General Publication NSF Org: OD / STI Date : March 16, 1995 File : nsf94102 Research Instrumentation: Enabling the Discovery Process About the NSF NSF is an independent federal agency created by the National Science Foundation Act of 1950 (P.L. 81-507). Its aim is to promote and advance scientific progress in the United States. The idea of such a foundation was an outgrowth of the important contributions made by science and technology during World War II. From those first days, NSF has had a unique place in the federal government: It is responsible for the overall health of science and engineering across all disciplines. In contrast, other federal agencies support research focused on specific missions, such as health or defense. The Foundation is also committed to ensuring the nationþs supply of scientists, engineers, and science educators. NSF funds research and education in science and engineering. It does this through grants and contracts to more than 2,000 colleges, universities, and other research institutions in all parts of the United States. The Foundation accounts for about 25 percent of federal support to academic institutions for basic research. NSF receives approximately 30,000 new proposals each year and processes a total of 60,000 proposal actions for research, graduate and postdoctoral fellowships, and math/science/engineering education projects; it makes approximately 20,000 awards. These typically go to universities, colleges, academic consortia, nonprofit institutions, and small businesses. The agency operates no laboratories itself but does support National Research Centers, certain oceanographic vessels, and Antarctic research stations. The Foundation also supports cooperative research between universities and industry and U.S. participation in international scientific efforts. The Foundation is led by a presidentially appointed director and a National Science Board composed of 24 outstanding scientists, engineers, and educators from universities, colleges, industries, and other organizations involved in research and education. NSF is structured much like a university, with grants-making divisions for the various disciplines and fields of science and engineering and science education. NSF also uses a formal management process to coordinate research in strategic areas that cross traditional disciplinary boundaries. The Foundation is helped by advisors from the scientific and engineering community and from industry who serve on formal committees or as ad hoc reviewers of proposals. This advisory system, which focuses on both program direction and specific proposals, involves more than 59,000 scientists and engineers a year. NSF staff members who are experts in a certain field or area make award recommendations; applicants get anonymous verbatim copies of peer reviews. Awardees are wholly responsible for doing their research and preparing the results for publication; the Foundation does not assume responsibility for such findings or their interpretation. NSF welcomes proposals on behalf of all qualified scientists and engineers and strongly encourages women, minorities, and people with disabilities to compete fully in its programs. In accordance with federal statutes and 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 subject to discrimination under any program or activity receiving financial assistance from NSF. Facilitation Awards for Scientists and Engineers with Disabilities (FASED) provide funding for special assistance or equipment to enable people with disabilities (investigators and other staff, including student research assistants) to work on an NSF project. See the FASED announcement (NSF 91-54) or the Division of Human Resource Developmentþs Guidelines for Activities in Science, Engineering, and Mathematics for Persons with Disabilities (NSF 94- 44) or contact the FASED Coordinator in the Directorate for Education and Human Resources. NSF has TDD (Telephonic Device for the Deaf) capability, which enables individuals with hearing impairment to communicate with the Division of Personnel and Management about NSF programs and employment, or to obtain general information concerning NSF. This number is (703) 306-0090. Introduction 1 Expanding the Capacity for Discovery 4 An Overview of NSF Support for Instrumentation 4 Instrumentation Support Within Disciplinary Areas 5 The Academic Research Infrastructure Program 5 Supporting Research in Strategic Areas of National Importance 9 High Performance Computing and Communications 9 Environment 10 Advanced Manufacturing Technology 12 Global Change 12 Biotechnology 13 Advanced Materials and Processing 14 Civil Infrastructure Systems 15 Developing Human Resources 16 Research Training 16 Undergraduate Research Experiences 16 Enabling the Discovery Process at Minority Institutions 18 Establishing Partnerships 20 Table 1: NSF Instrumentation Programs 1994 22 Table 2: ARI Instrumentation Awards 1992-93 24 Introduction Introduction The National Science Foundation has a broad mission: contribute to the prosperity, health, and security of the nation through fundamental research and education in science and engineering. NSFþs chief partners in this mission are the universities and colleges of the United States -- partners that, without question, constitute the worldþs leaders in basic scientific research. NSF is responsible for enabling the pursuit of excellence by U.S. universities and colleges, for expanding their capacity to benefit the nation through research and education, and for helping to maintain our nationþs position of world leadership in science and engineering. One critical part of this stewardship role is ensuring that the nationþs research and education communities have state-of-the-art scientific instrumentation. Scientific instruments are the tools used to discover new knowledge. Throughout the history of science, bold ideas would have faded and disappeared if someone hadnþt created an instrument that could collect the critical facts or observations that fueled a revolutionary breakthrough. Without a telescope, Galileo could only guess at the nature of the solar system. Without a microscope, van Leeuwenhoek could only speculate on the nature of microbial life. U.S. scientists and engineers need access to instruments that will allow them to maintain world leadership and continue to make bold progress along the broad frontier of knowledge -- as well as in strategic areas: high performance computing and communication (including the þinformation superhighwayþ), the environment, manufacturing, global change, biotechnology, advanced materials and processing, civil infrastructure, and human resource development in science and engineering. NSF is responsive to the need among U.S. researchers and educators for scientific instruments. NSF will invest approximately $250 million in instrumentation in fiscal year 1994, including more than $50 million from the interdisciplinary Academic Research Infrastructure Program. Many of these instruments are currently available from manufacturers, but many more must be specially developed by teams of scientists and engineers from academia and industry. By supporting these development efforts, NSF is helping to create the tools on which 21st century science will depend -- science that will sustain our environment, improve our health care, develop our individual potential, and challenge our imagination. At the same time, NSF is helping to build university-industry research partnerships that can lead to new products, new industries, and new jobs for Americaþs economic future. Stewardship for Excellence, Leadership for the Nationþs Benefit NSF has been the federal steward for fundamental research and education in science and engineering since 1950. It has supported science education and research training and has fostered excellence in research that has led to discoveries all along the frontier of knowledge. The Foundation has provided leadership by focusing research support on areas of strategic importance to the nation. By supporting the discovery process in these areas, new knowledge becomes available for applications that can lead to tangible benefits for society and the economy. During the past four decades, the United States has become the worldþs leader in science and engineering research, and has enjoyed an extraordinary rise in its standard of living. Academic research and education can continue to contribute to the long-term success of the American enterprise if: o The nationþs researchers and educators have the tools to pursue their goals; o Support is focused on strategic areas of national need with the potential for social and economic benefit; o The curiosity, creativity, and energy of all segments of our diverse population are developed and directed; and o Strong working partnerships are established among academia, industry, K-12 educational systems, state and local governments, federal agencies, and other sectors of American society. NSF will continue to invest in science and engineering in ways that will pay tangible dividends to the nation. One essential investment is in the basic equipment needed to make new discoveries -- the tools of science and engineering. Scientific Instrumentation: Tools for the Discovery Process The research and education community depends on sophisticated scientific instruments in the search for new knowledge. Providing researchers, teachers, and students with access to these instruments is integral to addressing the four issues alluded to above: o Expanding the capacity for discovery: The nationþs colleges and universities are equipped to make yesterdayþs discoveries. Making the discoveries of the 21st century will require a new generation of scientific instruments. In 1992, an NSF survey asked the heads of 300 science departments and facilities in U.S. research colleges and universities for their single highest priority need for instrumentation. Computers, spectrometers, and microscopes were the most frequently cited needs, and the 300 items requested cost a total of more than $1.2 billion. The growing need for instruments extends far beyond these research-intensive institutions into the teaching-intensive four-year colleges, community colleges, and K-12 school systems. o Supporting research in strategic areas of national importance: State-of-the-art instruments are vital to research in strategic areas of national need. Some of these instruments are available as commercial products, but many new and specialized instruments are being developed as important byproducts of the discovery process. o Developing human resources: Science and engineering education at all levels involves hands-on experience. Developing the human potential in all segments of our society means nurturing curiosity and developing skills for inquiry. From grade school to graduate school, interest is awakened and learning is enhanced through experience with real instruments. Each participant in a learning community benefits from sharing experiences and data over computer networks such as the National Information Infrastructure -- the þinformation superhighway.þ o Establishing partnerships: Industry, state and local governments, and other sectors of society all have a stake in the design, development, and manufacture of new instruments. These new instruments open promising areas of research, lead to new products and companies, and create high-quality jobs. Expanding the Capacity for Discovery The discovery of new knowledge is a rewarding event. For the student engaged in a hands-on learning experience, the reward can be personal growth and new confidence in his or her ability to reason scientifically. For the researchers exploring the frontier of knowledge, the reward can be the first glimpse at a new, unforeseen set of mysteries. For the nation that supports the discovery process, the reward can be a competitive edge in the global marketplace and the resulting increase in its standard of living. NSF support for scientific instrumentation helps bring these and other rewards within reach. Until recently, scientists believed that light microscopes could not distinguish features that were separated in depth by less than one-half a micron (1/2,000th of a millimeter). The study of living cells and their behavior has always been limited by our ability to see the fine structures on their surfaces and inside them because these structures were beyond the resolution power of microscopes. Within the last 2 years, however, researchers at Carnegie Mellon Universityþs Center for Light Microscope Imaging and Biotechnology have developed a new instrument called the standing wave fluorescence microscope. This new microscope design breaks through this barrier and provides 10 times the depth resolution previously thought possible. NSFþs support for instrument development at this Science and Technology Center has enabled not only the initial development of the new microscope but all the discoveries that investigators will make using the microscope. An Overview of NSF Support for Instrumentation Each year NSF receives in excess of 30,000 competitive proposals for support of research and education activities. Many of these proposals include requests for instrumentation, and NSF has a history of commitment to addressing these needs. Over the past decade, the Foundation has annually invested approximately 10 percent of its research and education funds in instrument development and acquisition. In fiscal year 1993, this investment totaled nearly $220 million. There are different levels of instrument need within the research community. In order to support these opportunities proactively, the Foundation has developed three different funding mechanisms. Small requests of up to $20,000 are typically funded within a research project award. Higher cost items ranging between $20,000 and $100,000 are funded through dedicated instrumentation programs within each disciplinary area. The most expensive instrumentation, costing between $200,000 and $4 million, is funded through the Academic Research Infrastructure (ARI) Program, which encompasses all research-related activities that NSF supports. Instrumentation Support Within Disciplinary Areas In fiscal year 1993, a little less than one-half of the Foundationþs $220 million support for instrumentation was handled through the individual research project mechanism. Nearly $107 million was awarded to researchers for small scientific instruments to enable their NSF-funded research activity. However, many instruments are more sophisticated -- and therefore more costly -- or are for use by a group of investigators who have a common need. NSFþs disciplinary areas recognized this next level of need in the early 1980s and developed dedicated instrumentation programs in response. There are now 15 such programs, representing virtually all of the disciplines supported by the agency. Given NSFþs emphasis on interdisciplinary research, these programs have the flexibility to support instrument requests that cross traditional disciplinary boundaries. These programs are an important source of funds for the development or acquisition of instruments valued between $20,000 and $100,000, and they provided approximately $99 million to researchers in fiscal year 1993. (Program information is listed on Table 1, p. 22.) Recent experience has demonstrated that the cost of many of the instruments required for the conduct of modern science has accelerated beyond the resources of these disciplinary programs. In recognition of this need, the Foundation developed the Academic Research Infrastructure Program in 1992 for instruments costing in excess of $200,000. The Academic Research Infrastructure Program The Academic Research Infrastructure Program has a unique role in supporting instrumentation needs of researchers and educators. The effort was developed to help the research community acquire, through purchase or development, major state-of-the-art instrumentation. þMajorþ instruments, as defined by the program, fall within the $200,000 to $4 million range. The Foundation promotes institutional commitment to these projects in the form of cost sharing. Most host institutions match NSFþs investment in instrumentation with dollar- for-dollar partnership. The program encourages proposals from all types of institutions of higher education, independent nonprofit research institutions, research museums, and consortia of these entities. The science and engineering community has responded enthusiastically to ARIþs instrumentation program. Although institutions may submit only two proposals to the program each year, more than 220 proposals were received in the first competition, which was held in 1992. Sixty-six awards were made following this competition. (See Table 2, p. 24, for a complete listing of these awards.) The number of proposals submitted to the second competition, held in 1994, doubled, reflecting total requests for $175 million in instrumentation. In reviewing ARI instrumentation proposals, NSF seeks to support projects with the highest level of technical excellence and the greatest potential for enhancing and expanding research and training opportunities. NSF staff also consider the degree to which the proposed instrument will address research areas of strategic importance to the nation, the instrumentþs potential for shared use, and the geographic distribution of ARI Program funds. The selection of proposals for support also reflects the commitment of the host institutions and other partners to operating and maintaining the instrument, an appropriate representation of non-Ph.D.-granting institutions, and special efforts to increase the capabilities of colleges and universities with high minority enrollments. The ARI Program targets a minimum of 10 percent of its funds to minority institutions and non-Ph.D.-granting institutions. Instrument Acquisition Private industry has responded to the needs of the science and engineering community by manufacturing and marketing a wide array of scientific instruments. Thus, many of the instruments needed for research and research training are available as commercial products. These off-the-shelf instruments can be single items or large systems of instruments configured to address a family of projects. The majority of proposals submitted to the ARI Program request support for acquisition of instruments that are commercially available. These instruments allow research and research training to make progress efficiently, eliminating the need for every investigator to þreinvent the wheel.þ Instrument Development Researchers and educators rely on commercially available instruments, but their projects often explore an area to the point that new instrument capabilities are needed if research progress is to continue. To maximize these opportunities, NSF has designed the ARI Program to encourage partnerships that lead to new commercial products. Specifically, the ARI Program solicits joint proposals from academic institutions and private industry aimed at designing, developing, and testing new instruments that can potentially be marketed and sold to other scientists. By taking this initiative, NSF seeks to stimulate development of the next generation of scientific instruments -- and, in the process, helps create new companies, new products, and new high-quality jobs. Institutional Commitment As the primary steward for the health and vitality of science and engineering in the United States, NSF relies on the active partnership of the nationþs colleges and universities. The commitment of each host institution is essential if NSFþs support for instrumentation is to have the greatest possible impact. This institutional commitment comes in many forms, and the Foundation takes a flexible approach to encouraging active partnership with host institutions. Commitment can be expressed through matching funds; support for instrument installation and supplies; and underwriting the ongoing costs of operations, staffing, and maintenance. Supporting Research in Strategic Areas of National Importance Part of NSFþs leadership role is identifying and supporting those areas of research and education with the potential for contributing to national needs. NSF has a long tradition of supporting research in areas with intrinsic scientific interest, and the Foundation has a renewed commitment to supporting areas with the potential for social and economic benefits for the nation. Like other federal agencies involved in science and engineering, NSF interacts with its partners in academia, industry, state and local governments, private foundations, and other sectors of society to determine issues of national importance that would benefit from investments in research and education. These agencies work together through the Presidentþs National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) to identify these areas and coordinate their support through federal programs. NSFþs internal process for setting priorities operates within the NSTC framework to provide an appropriate balance of support among research areas of strategic national importance, science and engineering education, and research along the frontier of knowledge. High Performance Computing and Communications The Federal High Performance Computing and Communications Program, begun in 1991, is an interagency program coordinated through the Presidentþs National Science and Technology Council. The programþs intent is to increase the nationþs capacity for computing and computer networking in order to spur productivity, build economic competitiveness, support research that requires high levels of computing power, promote innovation in software design, and create education and training opportunities for individuals of all ages. An award from NSFþs Academic Research Infrastructure Program to the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in Troy, New York, supported RPIþs acquisition of a parallel supercomputer system as a centralized campus resource. Modern research is increasingly dependent on computer systems that can assist in the visualization, modeling, simulation, and analysis of complex technical phenomena. RPIþs Scientific Computation Research Center now provides campus-wide access to an IBM parallel computer and servers, several very high performance visualization systems, and 20 advanced desktop graphics workstations. These instruments are being used by scientists, engineers, and their students in a number of university departments for research in manufacturing, materials and design, the environment, and other areas of strategic importance. Environment Maintaining the quality of our environment while sustaining economic growth is a global dilemma. This interdisciplinary NSF research initiative encompasses projects involving the geochemistry of near-surface environments, the role of biodiversity in maintaining the health of the environment, and the development of technologies for preventing and remedying environmental damage, among others. The University of Alaska-Fairbanks has received support from NSFþs Academic Research Infrastructure Program for the purchase of a bench-top mass spectrometer. This instrument measures stable isotopes which provide important information for a variety of environmental research problems. Isotopes are useful in studying the mechanisms used by plants to take up nutrients, particularly carbon and nitrogen. Tracing the movement of these nutrients through nature yields important information on plant productivity, the biological and geological cycling of these nutrients, and the impact of these cycles on the environment. These impacts include the effects of variations in carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, on other aspects of the environment. The new spectrometer is portable and has been used for shipboard aquatic studies by undergraduate student interns drawn from Alaskaþs diverse population. Advanced Manufacturing Technology U.S. factories are changing dramatically, and research in manufacturing will provide new knowledge and develop advanced technologies that can significantly improve many U.S. industries. This NSF initiative supports the development of intelligent (sensor- based) manufacturing systems, the integration of computer-based tools for design, and the development of environmentally conscious technologies. Research in these areas can lead to faster production, lower production costs, decreased environmental impact, and greater economic competitiveness. NSFþs Academic Research Infrastructure Program has provided instrumentation support to the Microelectronics Facility of Brown Universityþs Center for Advanced Materials Research. Researchers at the facility need access to sophisticated instruments that provide extremely fine control over the deposition of layers for the growth of compounds in microelectronic and optical devices. Investigators rely on these instruments to develop and test new approaches to fabricating ever-smaller semiconductors, as well as optoelectronic devices (such as solar cells) with greater capabilities. The research performed on these new instruments has potential industrial applications and could increase the nationþs competitiveness in the manufacturing domain. Global Change The U.S. Global Change Research Program, begun in 1987, is an interagency effort coordinated through the Presidentþs National Science and Technology Council. The program is designed to increase our understanding of the earthþs intricately interwoven physical, geological, chemical, biological, and social processes. Climate change, ozone depletion, greenhouse warming, the impact of human behavior on earth processes, and other global change research topics represent issues of national and international importance. Progress on these pressing issues would be impossible without advanced instrumentation. An award from the Academic Research Infrastructure Program to Purdue University will create a unique and specialized research facility that advances global change research. The Purdue Rare Isotope Measurement Laboratory (PRIME Lab), using accelerator mass spectrometry, will be able to analyze radioisotopes in very small samples of earth materials with unprecedented accuracy. Researchers from a variety of disciplines in the earth sciences will use the NSF- funded instruments in the PRIME Lab to increase our understanding of important processes involving the biosphere, geosphere, and climate. Biotechnology The rapidly emerging field of biotechnology enlists living organisms to make or modify a product, improves particular aspects or functions of plants or animals, or develops microorganisms for specific use. Biotechnology is already producing benefits in the form of new pharmaceuticals, better crop species, and new ways to remove hazardous waste such as oil spills. Biotechnology also includes computationally intensive research in areas such as neuroscience and molecular biology. The NSF biotechnology initiative focuses support on areas of opportunity for U.S. economic development and competitiveness. For example, research in environmental, marine, and agricultural biotechnology, and the social and economic implications of biotechnology, are all topics of national importance. The Academic Research Infrastructure Program has provided support to the Mellon-Pitt-Carnegie Corporation, a nonprofit organization facilitating joint research activity between the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University, for the acquisition of a massively parallel computer for research in biotechnology. Using sophisticated and computation-intensive hardware and software resources, researchers at Pitt and Carnegie Mellon are developing and testing highly complex computer simulations of neuron activity in the human brain. These models help test and refine our understanding of human cognition, which includes such processes as reading and learning. Advanced Materials and Processing This NSF research initiative is committed to improving the manufacture and performance of advanced materials and to bridging the gap between research and the application of that research. Materials are classified as þadvancedþ due to their strategic importance and their wide range of potential applications. Biomaterials, ceramics, composites, electronic and magnetic materials, metals and alloys, polymers, and superconductors are examples of advanced materials that are important in our society. NSF support for research on advanced materials can help decrease the time needed to move an experimental material from the laboratory to the marketplace. NSFþs Academic Research Infrastructure Program has provided support to the University of California-Berkeley for expansion of the molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) chamber located in the universityþs Microfabrication Facility. MBE chambers are used to fabricate material structures on the scale of hundreds of nanometers (less than 1/1,000th of a millimeter) that improve control over the flow of electrons in semiconductors. Three new vacuum chambers will enable research on fabrication and processing of small-scale materials structures and research training of students using a wider variety of microelectronic structures. Many industries depend on ever-smaller electronic devices to remain competitive, and the expansion of this research instrument will help create and test new materials and processes with potential commercial application. Civil Infrastructure Systems The management of the nationþs civil infrastructure -- its roads, bridges, buildings, and tunnels -- will dramatically benefit from science and engineering research. Research investments that produce new designs, more reliable and long-lasting materials, and better testing and maintenance protocols will yield social and economic dividends for a long time to come. This NSF initiative supports research on how materials break down and wear out; techniques for monitoring, evaluating, and replacing structures; decision-making processes related to public infrastructure; and a variety of interdisciplinary topics. The Academic Research Infrastructure Program has provided support for testing instruments used for civil infrastructure research to the Constructed Facilities Center at the University of West Virginia. These instruments will increase our understanding of how construction materials behave in roads and bridges and will test the utility of new materials -- especially composite materials -- for infrastructure projects. For example, a new thermal chamber will allow research on materials during freeze-thaw cycles and at high temperatures. New instruments will allow materials to be monitored and tested in the field under normal use conditions. Research using these instruments has the potential for increasing the safety and decreasing the cost of our nationþs infrastructure. Developing Human Resources Research Training In its stewardship role, NSF is responsible for ensuring the nationþs supply of well-trained scientists and engineers. Until recently, graduate education and postdoctoral training have focused on developing technical excellence. Although excellence continues to be a requirement, it is no longer the only benchmark for successful professional development. If the scientists and engineers of the future are to meet the nationþs changing needs, they must have a broader view of their professional opportunities, which extend to academia, industry, government, and the education sector. The next generation of U.S. scientists and engineers must be flexible and broadly trained if they are to be successful as professionals and as contributors to societyþs interests. To create this new approach to professional research training, NSF is working with Ph.D.-granting universities to create and promote new traditions of interdisciplinary teamwork. NSF provides support not only for the instruments used to develop technical excellence in graduate students and postdoctoral fellows, but also for tools that will create new standards in research training. As part of its support for the Science and Technology Center for Computer Graphics and Scientific Visualization, NSF provided funding for high-speed multimedia networking among the five universities involved in the Center (Cornell University, the University of Utah, Brown University, the California Institute of Technology, and the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill). Dedicated T1 lines (1.5 million bits/second) support simultaneous audio- and videoconferencing, remote control of interactive software demonstrations, and data and graphics sharing. These network links are used heavily for courses, seminars, workshops, and other interactions that allow students and faculty at each site to enjoy the benefits of activities at all sites. Each participating university contributes a different area of expertise, such as three-dimensional computer modeling, software-controlled machining, virtual reality, and computer graphics and rendering. The NSF-funded network provides graduate students and postdoctoral fellows with a training experience that is truly more than the sum of its parts and creates a model for distance learning at all educational levels. Undergraduate Research Experiences Scientific instruments can be catalysts for combining research and education. In many cases, the first chance that students get to actually do scientific research is during their undergraduate years. For most students, this research will take place in a library, but an increasing number of forward-looking colleges and universities are enlisting undergraduates into research teams traditionally limited to faculty, postdoctoral fellows, and graduate students. Meaningful research involvement adds depth and impact to the undergraduate experience, regardless of whether the student goes on to a career in science or engineering. Genuine research experience makes learning an active pursuit that combines instruction and inquiry. It helps create a citizenry that is scientifically and technologically literate and provides opportunities to advance to higher levels of scientific training. Research experiences can also validate an individualþs curiosity and promote the habit of lifelong learning. The Instrumentation and Laboratory Improvement Program in the Foundationþs Education and Human Resources Directorate supports the acquisition of smaller instruments ($10,000 to $200,000) for use in instruction. NSF also enables undergraduate research involvement by providing, through the ARI Program, more costly state-of-the-art research instruments to faculty who involve undergraduates in their research efforts or incorporate research into their undergraduate courses. NSFþs Academic Research Infrastructure Program has provided support to upgrade the infrared telescope facility at the University of Wyomingþs Infrared Observatory (WIRO). Infrared radiation provides important data concerning the structure and composition of other galaxies, because it penetrates the gas and dust that block the visible light emanating from parts of these galaxies. With modern instruments, infrared radiation can be analyzed to reveal the chemical composition and physical conditions in these galaxies and similarities and differences from our own. WIRO is used for innovative undergraduate educational programs that have brought many students into contact with research in astronomy and astrophysics. Enabling the Discovery Process at Minority Institutions NSF is active in its support of projects that will ensure the full participation of all groups in the science and engineering enterprise. Institutions with high minority enrollments are the leaders in promoting excellence in science and engineering within groups that have been underrepresented in these disciplines. These institutions have struggled with the lack of sophisticated facilities and instrumentation that would attract outstanding faculty and students. By providing modern instrumentation to minority institutions, NSF is developing the potential for excellence in all segments of our diverse population. The Academic Research Infrastructure Program has supported the acquisition of a state-of-the-art confocal microscope by the Department of Physiology at Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM). Confocal microscopes use laser light to remove out-of-focus light from images. The microscope creates optical cross-sections at different levels of a sample, and computer image processing integrates these sections into a complete three-dimensional image. Confocal microscopy is being used at MSM to probe the structure of cells and the organization of biological tissue in a way that is impossible using conventional microscopes. This instrument has significantly increased MSMþs research capabilities, allowing minority students and their faculty to probe basic biological questions and their implications for biomedical problems, including the processes of cellular breakdown and immunological response. Establishing Partnerships NSF works with many partners that share the goal of advancing U.S. science and engineering. The Foundationþs primary partners are the nationþs colleges and universities, but the Foundationþs interactions with industry, state and local governments, other federal agencies, school districts, private foundations, and other sectors of our society are critical -- and growing. Investing in scientific instrumentation is one of many activities in which NSFþs partners are essential to the Foundationþs success. NSF, AT&T Bell Laboratories, Howard University, and the University of Michigan are jointly supporting a sophisticated instrument for research at Argonne National Laboratoryþs Advanced Photon Source (APS) in Illinois. Scheduled for completion in 1995, APS will be the largest user facility for materials research in the United States and will be capable of generating the most intense beams of high-energy X-rays ever produced. Researchers from the University of Michigan, Howard University, and AT&T Bell Laboratories have come together to form one of the first research groups chosen to use this facility. They have designed an undulator beam line that will connect to APS and will function like a high- speed strobe light. The instrument will let scientists see changes occurring at molecular and atomic levels in an array of materials from semiconductors to living cells. The costs of the beam line instrument and the experiments will be shared by NSFþs Academic Research Infrastructure Program, the University of Michigan, and AT&T. This collaboration among academic and industrial researchers and government agencies is a model for research partnerships. NSF and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have joined together to support an environmental monitoring program at the University of Texas-Arlington. NSF funds supported acquisition of two state-of-the-art air pollution monitoring systems that can simultaneously analyze carbon monoxide as well as the chemicals that lead to ozone formation. Because some of these ozone precursors are considered major health hazards, this remote-sensing capability will be very useful to industry and government agencies as they work together to control pollutants. Furthermore, university faculty and EPA leadership have demonstrated their long-term commitment to the monitoring program by developing curricula for training professionals in the field and by providing research training to undergraduate and graduate students. NSF Instrumentation Programs 1994 Table 1: Directorate Instrumentation Program Name Pub. # Deadline Telephone Range 1 Cost Sharing Biological Sciences Instrument Development for Biological Research 92-126 June 15 703-306-1472 None specified None Multi-User Biological Equipment & Instrumentation Resources 92-126 June 15 703-306-1472 $20 - $400 30% - 50% Bio/Geosciences Biological Field Stations and Marine Labs 91- 8 Mar. 1 703-306-1480 $15 - $500 20% - 50% Computer Information Science & Engineering CISE Instrumentation Grants for Research in Computer 94-56 1st Mon. in Aug. 703-306-1980 $30 - $200 33% minimum and Information Sciences and Engineering CISE Institutional Infrastructure-Research Infrastructure 93-107 3rd Mon. in Oct. 703-306-1980 $800-$2,000/5 yrs. 25% minimum Education & Human Resources Instrumentation and Laboratory Improvement 93-164 Nov. 14 703-306-1667 $10 - $200 50% Engineering Research Equipment Grant Program 93- 155 Oct. 1 703-306-1384 $20 - $200 33% minimum Geosciences Shipboard Scientific Support Equipment 93- 163 Sept. 1 703-306-1578 $10 - $500 None required Ocean Technology and Interdisciplinary Coordination Program 93-163 Nov. 1 & May 1 703-306-1584 $20 - $450 None required Ocean Drilling 93-163 Nov. 1 & May 1 703- 306-1581 None specified Negotiated Earth Sciences: Instrumentation and Facilities 93- 66 None 703-306-1558 $10 - $2,000 Negotiated Mathematical & Physical Sciences Astronomy: Advanced Technology and Instrumentation None None 703-306-1828 $20 - $1,000 Negotiated Chemistry Research Instrumentation and Facilities 93- 94 None 703-306-1849 $200 - $400+ 33% - 50% Instrumentation for Materials Research Program Pending Nov. 1 703-306-1817 $50 minimum Required Grants for Scientific Computing Research Environments 92-95 1st Mon. in Dec. 703-306-1880 $20 minimum 33% minimum for the Mathematical Sciences Foundation-Wide Academic Research Infrastructure Program: 93-172 Mar. 15 703-306-1040 $200 - $4,000 30% - 50% Instrumentation Development and Acquisition In fiscal year 1993, NSF invested a total of $112 million in instrumentation through disciplinary instrumentation programs and the Academic Research Infrastructure Instrumentation Program. Proposers are encouraged to consult the relevant NSF publications for each program as well as the NSF-wide Grant Proposal Guide (NSF 94-2). Participation in the Research at Undergraduate Institutions (RUI) activity is encouraged in all programs. Note: 1 Proposal range numbers are expressed in thousands. ARI Instrumentation Awards 1992-93 The Academic Research Infrastructure Program provided support to the following projects submitted to the first competition, held in 1992. State Institution $ Amount Proposal Title AK U of Alaska 100,000 Facilities Upgrade for Mass Spectrometry AK U of Alaska, Geophysical Inst. 120,000 Acquisition of a High-Sensitivity 40Ar/39Ar Dating System AR U of Arizona 110,000 Development of Automated Sample Preparation Facilities AR U of Arizona 173,000 Upgrade and Acquisition of NMR Instrumentation CA Cal. Tech. 145,100 Upgrade of Near Infrared Camera Array for Palomar Observatory CA SRI International 100,000 Development of a D- Region Measurement Capability for the SRI Frequency-Agile Radar (ESU 92-16) CA Stanford U 180,250 Instruments and Renovations for an Atom-Interferometer Accelerometer CA U of CA, Scripps Inst. 235,000 Renovation and Replacement of Analytical Facility Equipment CA U of California, Berkeley 1,607,560 Acquisition of Instrumentation to Fabricate Low-Dimensional Artificial Materials CA U of California, Davis 200,000 Acquisition of Computer Graphics Instrumentation for Computational Biology CA U of Southern California 250,000 Table-Top Source of Coherent Radiation Tunable from 200 nm to 4,000 nm CO Colorado School of Mines 225,000 Acquisition of Networked Imaging Technology for Characterization & Visualization CO Colorado State U 400,000 Backbone Gateway Upgrade for Westnet FL Florida State U 125,000 Acquisition of an Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometer FL U of Florida 450,000 Replacement of Helium Liquefaction and Research Support System FL U of South Florida 150,000 Acquisition of a Transmission Electron Microscope and Elemental Microanalysis Science Building GA Georgia State U 469,687 Acquisition of a 500 MHz NMR Spectrometer GA Georgia Tech. Res. Corp. 704,655 Acquisition of a 200keV Analytical Field Emission Transmission Electron Microscope State Institution $ Amount Proposal Title GA Morehouse School of Medicine 170,042 Image Analysis Facility Expansion: Acquisition of Confocal Microscope System GA U of Georgia Res. Foundation 134,013 Acquisition of a Zeiss CEM 902 Spectroscopic TEM to Replace a Zeiss EM 10A TEM HI CA Assoc. for Res. Astronomy 1,790,000 Development of the Keck Telescope DEEP Extragalactic IL U of Chicago 1,395,052 Development of Strongly Focussing Hard X-Ray Optics for Brilliant Synchrotron Radiation Sources IN Purdue Res. Center 1,499,000 Development of the Accelerator Mass Spectrometry Instrument IN U of Notre Dame 250,000 Acquisition of an Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometer IN U of Notre Dame 227,967 Upgrading Equipment and Instrumentation for Nuclear Structure Research KS U of Kansas 150,000 Rapid Scan EPR Spectrometer and Eximer Laser MA U of Massachusetts, Amherst 155,625 Development of Microwave and Millimeter-Wave Instrumentation for Atmospheric Science Research MA Woods Hole Ocean Institute 1,090,000 Acquisition of New-Generation Ion Microprobe Facility (NERIMF) MD U of Maryland, College Park 150,000 Acquisition of a UHV Sputtering System for Superconductor Research MI U of Michigan, Ann Arbor 2,000,000 Undulator Beam Line Instrumentation for Real-Time X-Ray Studies MI U of Michigan, Ann Arbor 2,000,000 Acquisition of Massively Parallel Processor for Science Computing Apps. & Computer Sci. Engineering MN U of Minnesota, St. Paul 125,480 Replacement of Transmission Electron Microscope and X-Ray Microanalysis Unit MO U of Missouri, Columbia 285,110 Development of an Advanced Neutron Stress Instrument MO Washington U 250,000 Multimedia ATM Network for Computer and Communications Research MS Mississippi State U 480,500 Acquisition of a 500 MHz NMR Spectrometer and Establishment of the Mississippi Resonance Facility MS U of Southern Mississippi 160,655 Acquisition of Instrumentation for Organelle Molecular Biology Research NC U of N. Carolina, Chapel Hill 230,625 Acquisition of a Gas Chromatograph-Combustion-Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometer System State Institution $ Amount Proposal Title ND North Dakota State U 130,637 Acquisition of a Scanning Electron Microscope NE U of Nebraska, Lincoln 342,785 Acquisition of X-Ray Instrumentation NJ Inst. of Advanced Study 120,000 Advanced Computing Resources - Mathematics NJ NJ Institute of Technology 307,131 Development of State-of-the-Art Geo-Environmental Engineering Research Facilities (Part 1) NJ NJ Institute of Technology 651,479 Development of State-of-the-Art Geo-Environmental Engineering Research Facilities (Part 2) NJ Stevens Inst. of Technology 115,000 Replacement of X-Ray Diffraction Equipment NM U of New Mexico 229,000 Acquisition of a High- Resolution TEM NY Cornell U 223,912 Acquisition of a Field Emission SEM with a Cryostage System and an X-Ray Microanalyzer NY CUNY, Staten Island 320,565 Acquisition of High-Field Spectrometers for Solution and Solid NMR NY Rensselaer Polytech Inst.625,000 Acquisition of Scientific Computer Infrastructure for Strategic Initiatives (Part 1) NY Rensselaer Polytech Inst.1,175,000 Acquisition of Scientific Computer Infrastructure for Strategic Initiatives (Part 2) NV U of Nevada, Reno 368,060 Acquisition of a 500 MHz NMR Spectrometer and Spectrometer Facility OR Oregon State U 212,500 Acquisition of Electrospray Tandem Quadrupole Mass Spectrometer PA Lehigh U 170,000 Acquisition of Atomic Force Microscope and Surface Forces Apparatus for Studies of Polymer Interface PA Mellon-Pitt-Carnegie Corp. 1,257,754 Acquisition of a Flexible, Massively Parallel Computing Platform RI Brown U 320,872 Renovation and Enhancement of the Microelectronics Facility SC Clemson U 187,000 Acquisition of Electrical Discharge Equipment for Machining Advanced Materials and Hardened Metal TX Texas A&M 150,007 Acquisition of Environmental Scanning Microscope TX U of Houston 200,000 Replacement of the Chemistry Computer System TX U of Texas, Arlington 407,760 Development of a Synergistic Millimeter-Wave/Optical Pollution Monitoring Facility State Institution $ Amount Proposal Title TX U of Texas, Austin 299,920 Acquisition of a High- Resolution TEM UT U of Utah 319,000 Acquisition of 95 GHz Doppler Polarimeter Radar for FARS VA U of Virginia 250,000 Development of Research Instrumentation Laboratory VA VA Polytech Inst. 106,000 Acquisition of a Solid- State, High-Resolution X-Ray Powder Diffraction System WA U of Washington 360,000 Acquisition of a Tunable CW Laser Facility WI U of Wisconsin, Madison 1,500,000 Development of 750 MHz Spectroscopy at the National Magnetic Resonance Facility WY U of Wyoming 177,000 Renovation and Modernization of the Wyoming Infrared Observatory Telescopes and Support Facilities WV WV U Res. Corp. 150,000 Acquisition of Test Equipment to Characterize Structural Composites WV WV U Res. Corp. 300,000 Acquisition of Equipment for the Study of Defects in II-VI Semiconductor Materials Electronic Dissemination If you are a user of electronic mail and have access to either BITNET or Internet, you may order NSF publications electronically. BITNET users should address requests to PUBS@NSF. Internet users should send requests to pubs@nsf.gov. In your request, include the NSF publication number and title, number of copies, your name, and a complete mailing address. Publications should be received within three weeks after placement of an order. You can get fast information about all NSF programs through STIS (Science and Technology Information System), NSFþs on-line publishing system, described in NSF 94-4, the þSTIS Flyer.þ To get a paper copy of the flyer, call the NSF Publications Section at (703) 306-1129. For an electronic copy, send an e-mail message to STISFLY@NSF (BITNET) or stisfly@nsf.gov (Internet). CAPTIONS FOR PHOTOS (NOT A PART OF THIS ELECTRONIC VERSION) 1: This image of the Orion Nebula, approximately 1,500 light-years away, was taken with an NSF-funded infrared camera on the NASA Infrared Telescope located at the 14,000þ summit of Mauna Kea, Hawaii. The majority of these stars have never been detected before, and many are thought to contain discs out of which solar systems may eventually form. 2: A confocal microscopic image of a sheet of lens tissue stained to highlight the relationship between cells and the cytoskeleton that connects them. The dark areas in the image represent the cells of the tissue. The light areas around the cells represent areas where the staining reveals protein concentration in connective actin filaments. Scientists and students at Morehouse School of Medicine use the confocal microscope to study intracellular activity and the relationship between cells. 3: These fibers from rabbit muscle appear extraordinarily distinct through the standing wave fluorescence microscope developed at Carnegie Mellon University. The fibers are pressed between two parallel glass plates, separated by the yellow microbeads that are 1/5,000th of a millimeter in diameter. All the fibers would appear in focus using a conventional microscope, but the standing wave fluorescence microscope can focus on fibers at different levels even within this very thin interval. Photo courtesy of Nature magazine. 4: Academic Research Infrastructure Program: Geographical Distribution of Awards 1992 - 93. Numbers reflect awards made to institutions in each state. States without numbers submitted proposals but did not receive awards. 5: The standing wave fluorescence microscope at Carnegie Mellon University provides more than a tenfold improvement over the depth resolution on living cells of other light microscopes. What began as a research project has led to a new and potentially marketable instrument with broad application in biology and biomedicine. 6: This reconstruction of a human skull, based on data from computerized tomography, shows some of the capabilities of Rensselaer Polytechnic Instituteþs sophisticated visualization workstations. 7: The Visualization Laboratory for Scientific Computation at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute provides a centralized resource for state-of-the-art three-dimensional modeling and simulation. 8: The accelerator mass spectrometer at Purdue Universityþs Rare Isotope Measurement Laboratory separates isotopes of elements that differ only slightly in atomic mass and electric charge, and measures their very small concentrations in a sample. Particles are accelerated in the red chamber and sent along the tube toward the instrumentation at the lower left portion of the photograph. Different isotopes behave differently as the beam travels along the tube and is bent. Isotopic data help establish the age of rocks and rates of geological processes critical to global change research. 9: Computer modeling of complex structures is a rapidly emerging tool in engineering, design, and manufacturing. This computer model of a Comanche helicopter demonstrates the use of the NSF-funded modeling systems at Rensselaer Polytechnic Instituteþs Visualization Laboratory 10: Simulation of the dynamics of large biological molecules is only possible with extraordinarily powerful computers. This simulation of a red enzyme (Eco RI endonuclease) wrapped around a double-strand of gold DNA was created on the NSF-supported massively parallel CRAY T3D computer at the University of Pittsburgh. Simulations allow researchers to predict the dynamic behavior of complex molecules, and test these predictions against experimental results. 11: The Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center acquired a CRAY T3D in September 1993. The new massively parallel supercomputer is capable of creating highly complex computer models that simulate neuron activity in the brain. Biologists are using this information to increase our understanding of the cognitive processes involved in reading and learning. 12: This schematic of a jet engine turbine blade was created from computerized tomography data at Rensselaer Polytechnic Instituteþs Visualization Laboratory. NSF support has equipped students and faculty with state-of-the-art capabilities for research on design and manufacturing. 13: Computer Simulation of Virtual Reality - Architectural Walkthrough. This computer model of the hallway of a house in Scotland designed by architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh was created at the Cornell site of the Science and Technology Center for Computer Graphics and Scientific Visualization. The model dynamically displays lighting and textures in this complex environment as the viewer þwalksþ through the virtual reality setting. This research project was presented in a multi-site research seminar conducted over high-speed network lines. Participants at all sites could conduct a remotely steered walkthrough in real time. 14: The Molecular Dynamics Multiprobe 2001 Confocal Laser Scanning Microscope at Morehouse School of Medicine was funded by the Academic Research Infrastructure Instrumentation Program to enrich the research and research training activities of faculty and students. 15: Faculty and students at the Morehouse School of Medicine are using the Molecular Dynamics Multiprobe 2001 Confocal Laser Scanning Microscope for fundamental research in cell biology. This new technology offers scientists a way to capture three-dimensional images of cells, enhancing the researcherþs ability to probe individual cells or explore the relationship between cells. Research on these phenomena can lead to new knowledge of how cells protect themselves from tumors and viral infections. 16: Cell images acquired through use of the confocal microscope at Morehouse School of Medicine. The top left cell in the photo on the opposite page is infected with a parasite. The same cell in the photo on this page has been stained with a fluorescent marker, revealing the way in which the parasitic infection has resulted in a rearrangement of the cellþs cytoskeleton. 17: Computer Simulation - Architectural Modeling. Undergraduates designed, built, and rendered this three-dimensional computer model of a proposed Imaging Center at Cornell University. Their undergraduate architecture course was taught by the director of the Science and Technology Center for Computer Graphics and Scientific Visualization, who made the Centerþs advanced computing environments available for undergraduate research training. 18: Project directors of a collaborative project involving the University of Michigan, Howard University, and AT&T Bell Laboratories explain to students how high-speed array detectors will be used to perform research on advanced materials. NSF is supporting this partnership effort to develop an undulator beam line - - one of two X-Ray beams at the Argonne National Laboratoryþs Advanced Photon Source in Illinois. Using X-Ray beams of unprecedented brightness, scientists will be able to observe atomic- level chemical reactions and biological processes as they occur. Photo courtesy of AT&T News and Chris Usher, photographer. 19: Using infrared and ultraviolet light beams from two new spectrometers, scientists at the University of Texas-Arlington are developing a unique remote sensing system for the measurement of airborne pollutants. During field measurements, monitors direct beams of IR and UV light through airborne pollutants toward retromirrors that return each beam to its receiver. Absorption of the beams by pollutants will provide data readings in 1- to 5-minute intervals, 24 hours a day, allowing industries and monitoring agencies to regulate activities. 20: Computer Simulation of Coronary Arteries Intravascular ultrasound imaging is a relatively new technique for viewing the interior structure of arteries. This image shows a three-dimensional reconstruction of an artery from two-dimensional ultrasound cross- sections sampled at different places along the artery. Reconstructions can show the arteryþs behavior throughout the heartbeat cycle from a variety of viewing points -- even from inside the artery itself. The Science and Technology Center for Computer Graphics and Scientific Visualization uses images such as these in multi-site seminars conducted over high-speed computer network lines.