The National Security Science and Engineering Faculty Fellowship (NSSEFF) Program

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The National Security Science and Engineering Faculty Fellowship (NSSEFF) program is sponsored by the Basic Research Office, Office of Assistant Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (ASD (R&E)). NSSEFF supports innovative basic research within academia, as well as education initiatives that seek to create and develop the next generation of scientists and engineers for the defense and national security workforce. The Office of Naval Research (ONR) manages the NSSEFF program for ASD (R&E). To accomplish this task, ONR is soliciting proposals for the NSSEFF program through this FOA. This FOA seeks outstanding and distinguished researchers for the purpose of conducting innovative basic research in areas of interest to the Department of Defense (DoD) and fostering long-term relationships between the NSSEFF Fellows and the DoD. As defined by the DoD, basic research is “systematic study directed toward greater knowledge or understanding of the fundamental aspects of phenomena and of observable facts without specific applications towards processes or products in mind. It includes all scientific study and experimentation directed toward increasing fundamental knowledge and understanding in those fields of the physical, engineering, environmental, and life sciences related to long-term national security needs. It is farsighted high payoff research that provides the basis for technological progress.” (http://comptroller.defense.gov/Portals/45/documents/fmr/Volume_02b.pdf) The DoD’s basic research program invests broadly in many scientific fields to ensure that it has early cognizance of new scientific knowledge. DoD’s basic research investment in this program will also contribute to the development of the next generation of high performing scientists and engineers, who will be educated and trained as a part of the NSSEFF Fellows’ research. The NSSEFF program helps to ensure that our Nation has an active, long-term and aggressive research portfolio that attracts the foremost creative, innovative and productive university researchers and their students. Objectives of the program are to:• Support scientific research that may lead to extraordinary outcomes• Educate and train outstanding student and post-doctoral researchers for the defense and national security workforce• Foster long-term relationships between outstanding university researchers and the DoD• Familiarize select university researchers and their students with DoD’s current and future challenges• Increase the number of exceptionally talented technical experts that are contributing to DoD’s mission and are able to actively participate in its accomplishment as part of the administration of grants issued under this FOA.The NSSEFF program will focus its funding on innovative basic research projects that have the potential for significant long-term impact and support the development of the next generation of scientists and engineers for the defense and national security workforce. Risk-taking is encouraged; however, all proposals must demonstrate solid judgment and rationale. This FOA is for single investigator grant proposals for basic research in one or more of the following technical subject categories of interest to the DoD: 1. Engineering Biology including e.g.a. Mammalian platforms/chassis/systemsb. Microbial consortia engineering c. Genome instability 2. Quantum Information Science including e.g.a. Quantum metrologyb. Quantum algorithms3. Cognitive Neuroscience including e.g.a. Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axisb. Cognitive training and controlc. Neural computation4. Novel Engineered Materials including e.g.a. Functional materials b. Structural materials c. Nanomaterials and nanoscienced. Dynamic supramolecular systems5. Applied Mathematics (theory and experiments) and Statistics including e.g.a. Risk optimizationb. Dimensionality reductionc. Scalable algorithmsd. Non-linear dynamicse. Complex systems6. Manufacturing Science including e.g.a. Programmable surfacesb. Reversible assembly7. Other fields of research with high potentialAll proposers should ensure that they propose to conduct basic research as previously defined in this section. NSSEFF is oriented towards research that may lead to extraordinary outcomes such as: revolutionizing entire disciplines, creating entirely new fields, or disrupting accepted theories and perspectives.

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