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Message from the Assistant Director for Biological Sciences: Help Us in Broadening Participation in the Biological Sciences
Dear Colleagues,
As with each issue of this newsletter, below you'll find events of interest, some news from and for the biological sciences community (like the announcement of our new open environmental data synthesis center), new funding opportunities and those with upcoming deadlines. Several of the funding opportunities have a focus on broadening participation, whether in biology specifically or STEM broadly. As you have heard in past issues, broadening participation is a priority for BIO and for NSF and in the past year BIO has taken steps to analyze our portfolio of broadening participation and education programs and ensure they meet the community's needs and the goal of preparing the next generation of the biological sciences workforce.
That is where you come in!
We can't broaden participation by only reaching those who are already aware of NSF. Within the Directorate and across NSF we conduct outreach -- including our Virtual Office Hours, information on which is below -- and use all forms of communication to make the community aware of our programs and priorities, but we know we still aren't reaching as many people as we can.
I encourage you to share this newsletter and other emails you get from NSF with your colleagues, your students, your trainees, and others. Encourage them to sign up so they get up-to-date information about what we are funding and the outcomes of that funding.
If nothing below seems to cover your area of research, or that of individuals you share this message with, I encourage you to check out NSF's updated Funding Search tool. You can sort by Directorate, by education level, and by whether or not the program has a focus on advancing diversity. You can also view new opportunities and those with upcoming deadlines.
There are also resources to learn about NSF programs, including the NSF 101 series, and we always encourage you to reach out to a program officer if you have questions about specific programs.
Finally, one other thing to share with your networks: As some of you may know, I will be retiring at the end of September after 23 years at NSF. The agency has begun a search for the next Assistant Director for Biological Sciences. The Dear Colleague Letter includes information on BIO, review criteria, and how to submit recommendations. Please share and recommend those you think would be a visionary candidate. Recommendations are requested by Friday, August 12.
Sincerely,
 Joanne Tornow
NSF Assistant Director for Biological Sciences
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Division of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences-funded researchers conducted the largest functional genomic study of a photosynthetic organism (Chlamydomonas reinhardtii), which could inform strategies for improving agricultural yields and mitigating climate change.
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Seed production is not constrained by seed size and trees in the wet tropics produce more seeds than those in dry boreal forests, according to research supported by the Division of Environmental Biology. The information can help guide replanting and management of Western forests scorched by wildfires.
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Switching off one duplicate of a gene that produces tiny muscle switches in muscle cells but turning it on in other cells allowed electric fish to turn the switches into electric signals, researchers supported by the Division of Integrative Organismal Systems have found.
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Research supported by a Biology Integration Institutes design award predicts that relocations of animals due to a changing climate will dramatically increase the risk of a viral jump to humans and become the biggest upstream risk factor for disease emergence.
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Reminder: Share your highlights and outcomes with your Program Officer as soon as possible. We also encourage you to illustrate how an NSF award enabled your work when discussing it publicly and promoting it.
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BIO Core Programs
As a reminder, the core programs in all BIO Divisions accept proposal submissions at any time and have no deadlines. Submissions to these programs must now be made through Research.gov or Grants.gov.
Division of Biological Infrastructure (DBI)
Division of Environmental Biology (DEB)
Division of Integrative Organismal Systems (IOS)
Division of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences (MCB)
Newly released
Upcoming Deadlines
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Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER) (Full proposal deadline: July 27, 2022)
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Historically Black Colleges and Universities - Excellence in Research (HBCU-EiR) (Letter of intent deadline: July 28, 2022)
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Research Experiences for Teachers Sites in Biological Sciences (BIORETS) (Full proposal deadline: July 31, 2022)
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ADVANCE: Organizational Change for Gender Equity in STEM Academic Professions (ADVANCE) (Letter of intent deadline: August 1, 2022)
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Science and Technology Centers: Integrative Partnerships (Full proposal deadline: August 29, 2022)
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Dark Dimensions of the RNA Regulome (D2R2) (Full proposal deadline: August 31, 2022)
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National Science Foundation Research Traineeship Program (Full proposal deadline: September 6, 2022)
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Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) (Full proposal deadline: September 6, 2022)
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Emerging Frontiers in Research and Innovation (EFRI): Engineered Living Systems (ELiS) and Brain-Inspired Dynamics for Engineering Energy-Efficient Circuits and Artificial Intelligence (BRAID) (Letter of intent deadline: September 12, 2022)
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Accelerating Research through International Network-to-Network Collaborations (AccelNet) (Full proposal deadline: October 10, 2022)
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Pathways to Enable Open-Source Ecosystems (POSE) (Full proposal deadline: October 21, 2022)
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From broader impacts to innovative ways to explain biological science, NSF and the community are communicating the value of fundamental research. Check out these recent stories!
To support the analysis and integration of environmental data sets that provide information at varying scales and advance the use of data-intensive approaches and training in environmental science, the U.S. National Science Foundation has announced the creation of the Environmental Data Science Innovation and Inclusion Lab, or ESIIL (pronounced "easel").
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Research supported by a CAREER award from the Division of Integrative Organismal Systems found the brain might process smell like a camera, capturing a snapshot of the essence of smell, or a symphony, with diverse brain cells working together to capture the scent. Using computer simulations, researchers developed a model to replicate the workings of the brain's early olfactory system, the network it uses to smell.
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Drawing on 50 years of data on the infection rate of wild monarch butterflies by the protozoan Ophryocystis elektrosirrha, or O.E., Division of Environmental Biology-funded researchers found the rate increased from less than 1% of the eastern monarch population in 1968 to as much as 10% today.
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Researchers supported by the Directorate for Integrative Organismal Systems have sequenced the genomes of three cephalopods and gained insight into how some of the unique traits of squid and octopi evolved.
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Each division hosts regular office hours on topics of relevance to the community that provide investigators the opportunity to communicate with and ask questions of program officers. Notices are posted on NSF.gov, and more information is available on each division's blog.
To get the latest on what’s happening in BIO and learn about announcements, opportunities, upcoming deadlines and more, visit our directorate page.
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Emerging Frontiers (EF)
EF supports multidisciplinary research opportunities and networking activities that arise from advances in disciplinary research.
Division of Integrative Organismal Systems (IOS)
IOS supports fundamental research aimed at understanding organisms as units of biological organization, encouraging the use of integrative, interdisciplinary approaches to solving complex problems in organismal biology
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