Research Seed Program for EMPAC-Related Projects

The Office of Research is soliciting proposals for Research Seed Projects at the interface of the arts, sciences, engineering and technology. These projects should support preliminary and cross-disciplinary work that aims at leveraging the research potential of the upcoming Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center as well as the programmatic and intellectual resources of Schools, Departments and Centers at Rensselaer. For example, research projects may focus on content-based interactions between the arts, sciences and/or engineering, on the integration of large-scale visualization, multi-channel audification or auralization, on sensor networks for man-machine interfaces, or on multi-user immersive environments. It is expected that these seed projects will lead to the submission of grant proposals to external funding agencies.

Eligibility Criteria

All faculty are eligible who can be principal investigators on externally funded grants and are currently not supported by a seed grant either as principal investigator or co-investigator. (Research staff are not eligible).

Program Guidelines

• Proposals are due Friday November 17, 2006 - submitted electronically to Mindy Sorbo at
• Decisions on funding will be announced by December 18, 2006.
• Projects begin January 1, 2007 and may last up to one and a half years.
• Projects must focus on interdisciplinary collaborations with EMPAC.
• Proposals need to list specific sources and amounts of anticipated future funding.
• Each project may not exceed $40,000.
• Proposals may not exceed five single-spaced pages in length, excluding references and CVs.

Application Instructions:

Proposals are limited to five single-spaced pages using a 12-point font (excluding references and CVs). Each proposal should contain the following:

1. Summary (half a page).
2. Description of the research project including a section on background, significance, methods, role of each investigator, and the proposed interaction among team members.
3. Description of how this project will lead to funding from an external sponsor.
4. Abstract, specific aims, funding amount and duration of the proposal you plan to submit based on this project. Include the funding agency, program announcement, and program officer (if applicable). This section will have high priority in the evaluation process.
5. Budget (include fringe benefits, no indirect costs, use graduate tuition waiver of 35%).
6. Appendix materials:

   a) cited references
   b) NSF-style (two page) CV for each investigator.

Evaluation Criteria

1. Technical and scientific merit - Each proposal must be scientifically sound and ideas must be related to existing scientific understanding, gaps in knowledge, and national needs.
2. Interdisciplinary and strategic - Does the proposal address issues at the interface of the arts and technology? How do the investigators work together as a research team? The interdisciplinary cooperation can be internal to Rensselaer or involve external partners, though no funding will be allocated for external partners.
3. Impact - If successful, will the research project lead to major external funding?

Proposal Review Process

The proposals will be reviewed by a research review panel set up by the Office of Research. The panel consists of several faculty, the Director of EMPAC, Deans, the Provost, and the Acting VP for Research. External reviews may also be solicited if required for technical or procedural purposes.

Thank you for your interest and participation in this important program. If you have questions or need assistance in identifying a funding agency appropriate for your research ideas please contact Wolf von Maltzahn at (276-4825).