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The Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) will provide Federal assistance to support innovative projects seeking to promote and ensure the inclusion and use of minority enterprises. This Announcement is a mechanism to encourage new activities, education, outreach, innovative projects or sponsorships that are not addressed through other MBDA programs. MBDA has established key priorities designed to overcome the unique challenges faced by minority business enterprises (MBEs). MBDA is now initiating new approaches to serve MBEs that compliment Presidential priorities and U.S. Department of Commerce goals. These program priorities are separated according to the following 14 initiatives: Access to Capital American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian Project Aquaculture Disaster Readiness Disaster Recovery Entrepreneurship Education Program for Formerly Incarcerated Persons Global Minority Women Economic Empowerment Initiative Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) Initiative Inclusive Infrastructure Initiative Research Space Commerce Sustainable Business Model Technology Transfer and Commercialization Virtual Business Center

The Divisions of Chemical, Bioengineering and Environmental Transport (CBET) and Civil, Mechanical, and Manufacturing Infrastructure (CMMI) in the Engineering Directorate of the National Science Foundation (NSF) are partnering with The Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS) to solicit research projects in the general fields of tissue engineering and mechanobiology that can utilize the International Space Station (ISS) National Lab to conduct research that will benefit life on Earth. Only U.S. entities including academic investigators, non-profit independent research laboratories and academic-commercial teams are eligible to apply.

In 2016, the National Science Foundation (NSF) unveiled a set of "Big Ideas," 10 bold, long-term research and process ideas that identify areas for future investment at the frontiers of science and engineering (see https://www.nsf.gov/news/special_reports/big_ideas/index.jsp). One of these ideas, "The Quantum Leap: Leading the Next Quantum Revolution," advances quantum technologies of the future: quantum computing, quantum communication, quantum simulations and quantum sensors. Recent advances in understanding and exploiting quantum mechanics are laying the foundation for generations of new discoveries that can benefit society in unforeseen ways. This "quantum revolution" requires a highly-trained workforce that can advance the envelope of what is possible, through research and development of practical solutions for quantum technologies. Academic faculty serve a vital role in the development of this workforce, by training the next generation of students while performing vital research. The disciplines of computer science (CS), information science (IS), and computer engineering (CE) are at the nexus of the interdisciplinary breakthroughs needed to design advanced quantum computing, modeling, communication and sensing technologies. NSF recognizes that there is inadequate research capacity in the CS/CE disciplines in the realm of Quantum Computing & Information Science (QCIS).

The Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program supports active research participation by undergraduate students in any of the areas of research funded by the National Science Foundation. REU projects involve students in meaningful ways in ongoing research programs or in research projects specifically designed for the REU program. This solicitation features two mechanisms for support of student research: (1) REU Sites are based on independent proposals to initiate and conduct projects that engage a number of students in research. REU Sites may be based in a single discipline or academic department or may offer interdisciplinary or multi-department research opportunities with a coherent intellectual theme. Proposals with an international dimension are welcome. (2) REU Supplements may be included as a component of proposals for new or renewal NSF grants or cooperative agreements or may be requested for ongoing NSF-funded research projects.

TheDisability and Rehabilitation Engineeringprogram is part of the Engineering Biology and Health cluster, which also includes: 1) the Biophotonics program; 2) the Biosensing program; 3) the Cellular and Biochemical Engineering program; and 4) the Engineering of Biomedical Systems program. TheDisability andRehabilitation Engineeringprogram supports fundamental engineering research that will improve the quality of life of persons with disabilities through: development of new technologies, devices, or software; advancement of knowledge regarding healthy or pathological human motion; or understanding of injury mechanisms. Research may be supported that is directed toward the characterization, restoration, rehabilitation, and/or substitution of human functional ability or cognition, or to the interaction between persons with disabilities and their environment. Areas of particular interest are neuroengineering and rehabilitation robotics. The program will also consider research in the areas of: new engineering approaches to understand healthy or pathological motion, both as a target for rehabilitation and as a means to characterize motion related to disability or injury; understanding injury at the tissue- or system-level such that interventions may be developed to reduce the impact of trauma and subsequent disability; or understanding the role of gut microbiota in modulating disability in the context of rehabilitation. Emphasis is placed on significant advancement of fundamental engineering knowledge that facilitates transformative outcomes.

The Process Systems, Reaction Engineering and Molecular Thermodynamics program is part of the Chemical Process Systems cluster, which also includes: 1) the Catalysis program; 2) the Electrochemical Systems program; and 3) the Interfacial Engineering program. The goal of the Process Systems, Reaction Engineering and Molecular Thermodynamics program is to advance fundamental engineering research on the rates and mechanisms of chemical reactions, systems engineering and molecular thermodynamics as they relate to the design and optimization of chemical reactors and the production of specialized materials that have important impacts on society. The program supports the development of advanced optimization and control algorithms for chemical processes, molecular and multi-scale modeling of complex chemical systems, fundamental studies on molecular thermodynamics, and the integration of this information into the design of complex chemical reactors. An important area supported by the program focuses on the development of energy-efficient and environmentally-friendly chemical processes and materials. Proposals should focus on: · Chemical reaction engineering: This area encompasses the interaction of transport phenomena and kinetics in reactive systems and the use of this knowledge in the design of complex chemical reactors. Focus areas include novel reactor designs, such as catalytic and membrane reactors, micro-reactors, and atomic layer deposition systems; studies of reactions in supercritical fluids; novel activation techniques, such as plasmas, acoustics, and microwaves; design of multifunctional systems, such as "chemical-factory/lab-on-a-chip" concepts; and biomass conversion to fuels and chemicals. The program also supports new approaches that enable the design of modular chemical manufacturing systems.

The Fluid Dynamics program is part of the Transport Phenomena cluster, which also includes 1) the Combustion and Fire Systems program; 2) the Particulate and Multiphase Processes program; and 3) the Thermal Transport Processes program. The Fluid Dynamics program supports fundamental research toward gaining an understanding of the physics of various fluid dynamics phenomena. Proposed research should contribute to basic scientific understanding via experiments, theoretical developments, and computational discovery. Major areas of interest and activity in the program include: Turbulence and transition: High Reynolds number experiments; large eddy simulation; direct numerical simulation; transition to turbulence; 3-D boundary layers; separated flows; multi-phase turbulent flows; flow control and drag reduction. A new area of emphasis is high speed boundary layer transition and turbulence; the focus would be for flows at Mach numbers greater than 5 to understand cross-mode interactions leading to boundary layer transition and the ensuing developing and fully developed turbulent boundary layer flows. Combined experiments and simulations are encouraged. Bio-fluid physics: Bio-inspired flows; biological flows with emphasis on flow physics. Non-Newtonian fluid mechanics: Viscoelastic flows; solutions of macro-molecules. Microfluidics and nanofluidics: Micro-and nano-scale flow physics.

In light of the emergence and spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the United States and abroad, the National Science Foundation (NSF) is accepting proposals to conduct non-medical, non-clinical-care research that can be used immediately to explore how to model and understand the spread of COVID-19, to inform and educate about the science of virus transmission and prevention, and to encourage the development of processes and actions to address this global challenge. NSF encourages the research community to respond to this challenge through existing funding opportunities. In addition, we invite researchers to use the Rapid Response Research (RAPID) funding mechanism, which allows NSF to receive and review proposals having a severe urgency with regard to availability of or access to data, facilities or specialized equipment as well as quick-response research on natural or anthropogenic disasters and similar unanticipated events. Requests for RAPID proposals may be for up to $200K and up to one year in duration. Well-justified proposals that exceed these limits may be entertained.

The Cyberinfrastructure for Emerging Science and Engineering Research (CESER) program aims to catalyze new science and engineering discovery pathways through early-stage collaborative activities between disciplinary scientists and engineers as well as developers/implementers of innovative cyberinfrastructure (CI) capabilities, services, and approaches. Beginning in FY 2017, the CESER program replaced the Strategic Technologies for Cyberinfrastructure (STCI) program. CESER has retained STCI's focus on supporting innovation across the CI ecosystem with increased emphasis on addressing and enabling emerging areas of potentially transformative research, including NSF priority areas, national strategic directions, and international collaborative research. CESER accepts proposals pursuant to this Program Description year-round. From time to time, NSF may also issue Dear Colleague Letters pursuant to CESER to signal special thematic interests and opportunities. CESER employs existing NSF funding mechanisms to accomplish the program's goals.

Demands for engineering plastics that replace metal parts are increasing in recent years in order to reduce the weight without reducing mechanical properties. NineSigma's client, a leading automotive parts manufacturer develops high-performance plastic composites, with a particular focus on glass and carbon fiber reinforced polyamide and polypropylene based composite materials. Shorter production times for high stressed components are key to realize the goal of minimizing metal usage.

The goal of the Research in the Formation of Engineers (RFE) program is to advance our understanding of professional formation. It seeks to both deepen our fundamental understanding of the underlying processes and mechanisms that support professional formation and to demonstrate how professional formation is or can be accomplished. Ultimately, RFE aims to transform the engineering formation system. Therefore, the impact of proposed projects on this system must be described in the proposal. Proposers should provide a roadmap detailing how they envision the proposed research will eventually broadly impact practice within the engineering formation system, even if these activities are not within the scope of the submitted proposal.

The primary objective is to support scholarships for nuclear science, engineering, technology and related disciplines to develop a workforce capable of supporting the design, construction, operation, and regulation of nuclear facilities and the safe handling of nuclear materials. The primary objective is to support fellowships for nuclear science, engineering, technology and related disciplines to develop a workforce capable of supporting the design, construction, operation, and regulation of nuclear facilities and the safe handling of nuclear materials. The primary objective is to support faculty development for nuclear science, engineering, technology and related disciplines to develop a workforce capable of supporting the design, construction, operation, and regulation of nuclear facilities and the safe handling of nuclear materials. The grants specifically target probationary, tenure-track faculty during the first 6 years of their career and new faculty hires in the following academic areas: Nuclear, Mechanical, Civil, Environmental, Electrical, Fire Protection, Geotechnical, Structural and Materials Sciences Engineering as well as Health Physics. The program provides support to enable newer faculty to enhance their careers as professors and researchers in the university department where employed.

This funding opportunity supports projects that test whether modifying electrophysiological patterns during behavior can improve cognitive, affective, or social processing. Applications must use experimental designs that incorporate active manipulations to address at least one, and ideally more, of the following topics: (1) in animals or humans, determine which parameters of neural coordination, when manipulated in isolation, improve particular aspects of cognitive, affective, or social processing; (2) in animals or humans, determine how particular abnormalities at the genomic, molecular, or cellular levels affect the systems-level coordination of electrophysiological patterns during behavior; (3) determine whether in vivo, systems-level electrophysiological changes in behaving animals predict analogous electrophysiological and cognitive improvements in healthy persons or clinical populations; and (4) use biologically-realistic computational models that include systems-level aspects to understand the function and mechanisms by which oscillatory and other electrophysiological patterns unfold across the brain to impact cognitive, affective, or social processing.

The purpose of this funding opportunity announcement (FOA) is twofold: 1. to accelerate translational and clinical Phase I and II a/b safety and efficacy studies for substantiating measurable functional benefits of probiotic/prebiotic components and/or their combinations; and; 2. to understand the underlying mechanisms of their action(s), and variability in responses to these interventions. This FOA calls for interdisciplinary collaborations across scientific disciplines engaged in microbiome and pro/prebiotic research including, but not limited to: nutritional science, microbiology, virology, microecology and microbiome, genomics, immunology, computational biology, chemistry, bioengineering, as well as integration of omics and computational approaches in DNA technologies.

The goal of research funded under the interdisciplinary P2C2 solicitation is to utilize key geological, chemical, atmospheric (gas in ice cores), and biological records of climate system variability to provide insights into the mechanisms and rate of change that characterized Earth's past climate variability, the sensitivity of Earth's climate system to changes in forcing, and the response of key components of the Earth system to these changes.

The Nano-Biosensing program is part of the Engineering Biology and Health cluster, which includes also 1) Cellular and Biochemical Engineering; 2) Engineering of Biomedical Systems; 3) Biophotonics; and 4) Disability and Rehabilitation Engineering. The Nano-Biosensing program supports fundamental engineering research on devices and methods for measurement and quantification of biological analytes. Proposals that incorporate emerging nanotechnology methods are especially encouraged. Areas of interest include: Multi-purpose sensor platforms that exceed the performance of current state-of-the-art devices. Novel transduction principles, mechanisms and sensor designs suitable for measurement in practical matrix and sample-preparation-free approaches. These include error-free detection of pathogens and toxins in food matrices, waterborne pathogens, parasites, toxins, biomarkers in body fluids, and others that improve human condition. Nano-biosensors that enable measurement of biomolecular interactions in their native states, transmembrane transport, intracellular transport and reactions, and other biological phenomena. Studies that examine intracellular measurements must include discussion on the significance of the measurement.

The Thermal Transport Processes program is part of the Transport Phenomena cluster, which includes also 1) Combustion and Fire Systems; 2) Fluid Dynamics; and 3) Particulate and Multiphase Processes. The Thermal Transport Processes (TTP) program supports engineering research projects that lay the foundation for new discoveries in thermal transport phenomena. These projects should either develop new fundamental knowledge or combine existing knowledge in thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and heat and mass transfer to probe new areas of innovation. The program seeks transformative projects with the potential for improving our basic understanding, predictability and application of thermal transport processes. Projects should articulate the contribution(s) to the fundamental knowledge supporting thermal transport processes and state clearly the potential application(s) impact when appropriate. Projects that combine analytical, experimental and numerical efforts, geared toward understanding, modeling and predicting thermal phenomena, are of great interest. Collaborative and interdisciplinary proposals for which the main contribution is in thermal transport processes fundamentals are also encouraged.

The purpose of this funding opportunity announcement (FOA) is to stimulate clinical research that applies a social genomics approach to chronic wound risk, presence, progression, and healing. The field of social genomics focuses on how the social environment influences gene expression, and how this gene expression may in turn impact health outcomes. Chronic wounds (e.g., diabetic ulcers, venous or arterial ulcers) are multidimensional and, as such, there is benefit to a holistic approach that goes beyond a focus on the wound (i.e., repairing the skin and underlying tissue) to include an approach that focuses on the person with the wound. A better understanding of social environmental factors (positive and negative) and associated molecular mechanisms is needed to advance therapeutic strategies aimed at reducing chronic wound risk in addition to improving healing outcomes and quality of life.

The Engineering Design and Systems Engineering (EDSE) program supports fundamental research into the basic processes and phenomena of engineering design and systems engineering. The program seeks proposals leading to improved understanding about how processes, organizational structure, social interactions, strategic decision making, and other factors impact success in the planning and execution of engineering design and systems engineering projects. It also supports advances pertaining to engineering design and systems engineering in areas that include, but are not limited to, decision making under uncertainty, including preference and demand modeling; problem decomposition and decision delegation; applications of reverse game theory (mechanism design); computer-aided design; design representation; system performance modeling and prediction; design optimization; uncertainty quantification; domain- or concern-specific design methods; and advanced computational techniques for supporting effective human cognition, decision making, and collaboration. Competitive proposals for novel methods will include a plan to evaluate rigorously the effectiveness and performance of the proposed approach. The EDSE program encourages multidisciplinary collaborations of experts in design and systems engineering with experts in other domains. Of particular interest is research on the design of engineering material systems that leverages the unique aspects of a particular material system to realize advanced design methods that are driven by performance metrics and incorporate processing/manufacturing considerations.

roposals are solicited that show a path for increased current density (at high-efficiency), die size, switching frequency, and blocking voltage (>10 kV) for both low- and high-duty-cycle switches. SiC is an emerging power semiconductor material that has electrical, thermal, and mechanical properties that allow it to far surpass the performance of conventional silicon (Si) power technology, and makes it the prime candidate for next-generation high-voltage switching devices for military, as well as commercial, applications. SiC power devices have been demonstrated to provide greater than twice the power density of Si power devices and at greater efficiency. This program, which endeavors to advance the United States' capability to provide SiC high-voltage high-power semiconductor switches and to identify limitations that must be overcome, builds on the success of previous high-voltage high-power SiC device programs supported by ARL, including HEPS and HVPT, which advanced the previous state-of-the-art and demonstrated performance and robustness at 10-kV and above. Technology limitations/gaps identified by this program may in turn be the focus of more sustained development efforts in the future. Solutions are sought for the development of SiC HV (> 10 kV) semiconductor power switches and diodes.