As part of its annual research reporting and funding allocation review the Research Management Committee is accepting a limited number of proposals for new projects within the GRAND NCE. The process will have two phases.
A successful proposal will address problems of significant relevance to the GRAND research program and must meet all of the guidelines for projects within GRAND, including the following mandatory requirements:
• The project must address significant research issues relevant to multiple themes within GRAND.
• The project leader and co-leader must work at different universities; often they will represent multiple disciplinary approaches, appropriate to the project.
• There must be at least three researchers (including the project leader and co-leader) who are or are eligible to be Principal Network Investigators within the GRAND NCE.
• There must be at least one Project Champion personally involved in planning and carrying out the project who is affiliated with a current or potential GRAND Partner drawn from the receptor community.
• One or more Partners from the receptor community must commit to making significant cash or in-kind contributions to the project.
Letters of intent should provide a descriptive title, the names and affiliations of the project leader, project co-leader, one or more project champions, other proposed researchers, a list of up to six anticipated milestones for the first two years of the project, and a two-page summary of the proposed research. Also required are half-page summaries for each of the following: how students and postdoctoral fellows (HQP) will be engaged in the project, how the project will pursue technology and knowledge exchange and exploitation activities within the context of GRAND, how the project will network with other projects within GRAND, and how one or more current or potential GRAND partners will be engaged in and benefit from the proposed research. A current NSERC Form 100, SSHRC CV, or CIHR Common CV for both the project leader and co-leader should be submitted attachments to the LOI.
Send an email to [email protected] to request a Call for New Projects LOI template or additional information about proposals for new projects. Those considering LOIs are strongly encouraged to take advantage of this mechanism to ask for clarification and advice during the LOI preparation period. Completed LOIs should be sent as email attachments to [email protected] no later than November 7, 2011.
There are six target areas in which LOIs are solicited. Submissions will be considered for topics in other areas, but priority will be given to these target areas.
Digital technology is now pervasive throughout the creation, distribution, and exhibition phases of the film industry and location-based entertainment. Numerous technical challenges exist related to stereo 3D (S3D) formats, high frame rate and high dynamic range display systems, mixed-reality presentations, and opportunities to augment single-view audience experiences with personal viewing devices and personalized viewpoints. Corresponding artistic and business challenges are becoming evident for content creation and capture, narrative structure, and delivery models. Proposals that address some or all of these issues in partnership with the receptor community are solicited to complement existing research within the GRAND NCE.
Inevitably novel technologies bring new problems even as they solve old ones. Short attention spans in “multi-taskers” are often blamed on just-in-time digital media; repetitive stress injury formerly associated with manual labor is now associated with desk jobs using keyboards and mice; addictive behavior within computer gaming communities is being reported in the media; and social networking tools are having to deal with “cyberbullying” and issues of privacy. Research to identify mechanisms through which these and other problems might be better predicted before new technologies are introduced, methods for assessing the impact on society, and techniques for treating, reducing or even eliminating one or more of these or other problems are all topics of interest.
The rapid rate of change in the field of digital media has meant that public policy has not always kept pace with the need to adapt the legal, regulatory, and taxation frameworks within which these technologies are deployed. Conversely, the civic discourse and social and political processes through which public policies are created have often not embraced digital media. The role of digital media within the arena of public policy discussion and decision-making and the need for new or modified public policies in areas affected by advances in digital media offer a rich set of research topics appropriate for consideration by GRAND.
Digital media already plays a significant role in advancing knowledge related to health-based research, diagnosis, and treatment. It is also used to deliver and manage health care, often with a goal to improve the quality, reduce the cost, or increase the accessibility of health services for Canadians. Proposals involving multidisciplinary teams that cross the boundaries between natural science and engineering, social science and humanities, art and design, and the health care disciplines are invited to address novel problems in these and related areas.
Despite the long history of computers and digital media being used as delivery mechanisms within education, a clear and lasting impact has been elusive. Proposals that target specific problems related to the use of digital media to support learning and training, especially those that focus on areas of concern such as mathematics and science education or learning opportunities for at-risk and special needs populations, will be considered. All proposals in this target area must have clear and well-focused evaluative components and must demonstrate from the outset strong connections with the receptor community.
Use of digital media to understand, promote, and enable sustainable practices in all aspects of daily life provides many opportunities for research partnerships. Topics such as environmental sensor networks, visual analytics, computational sustainability, and social collaboration technology for stakeholders can provide new tools for such research. Reducing the environmental impact of the manufacture, use, and decommissioning of computer and information technology equipment and infrastructures, including issues such as parasitic power, are appropriate for study.
Up to four (4) new projects will be funded starting April 1, 2012. At most eight (8) LOIs will be invited to submit Full Proposals. Multiple LOIs that are deemed to have significant overlap may be asked to prepare a single, coordinated proposal that incorporates selected aspects of the individual LOIs.
Every Full Proposal must identify sources of external funding that will contribute to the overall project budget. Each project budget will have three components:
• Partner funds – At least 25% of the project budget must come from sources external to GRAND (public or private project partners, government agencies, universities, NGOs, funding agencies).
• Current funds – Some of the project budget will usually comprise funds currently allocated to Network Investigators in GRAND that are re-targeted to new activities within the proposed project if the project is approved.
• Requested funds – Additional funds from the New Initiative fund within GRAND will be allocated based on the quality of the proposal.
The total annual contribution from GRAND is expected to be within the range $75,000 to $150,000 for each new project. This includes both the current and requested funds for the project. Existing Network Investigators should expect that most of the funds they receive for a new project will be the result of a reallocation of their current funds from existing projects to the new project. New Initiative funds are only available for the first year of a new project. Funding for subsequent years will be determined by the normal allocation process for GRAND projects. Partner involvement and cash and in-kind contributions are expected to continue and in most cases increase over time; letters of support with commitments for the first year of a project and indications of contributions for subsequent years will be required in the second phase of the application process.
Full Proposals for LOIs that are invited will be submitted as part of the normal project reporting process that begins approximately on November 17, 2011.
Project proposals must complement the existing set of projects within GRAND and contribute to the overall goals and objectives of the network. Proposals that have significant overlap with existing projects will not be considered. Researchers interested in contributing to an existing project are invited to contact the project leader and co-leader to discuss opportunities for collaboration.
The GRAND Researcher Guide has additional information about GRAND, including definitions for acronyms, a summary of the research management structure and the roles of the various participants within the network. Potential applicants are advised to review this document when preparing to apply for funding from GRAND.
