FY 2013 R&D REPORT January 6 2014 - National Science Foundation

FederalFundingforEnvironmentalResearchandDevelopment2013
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An Exclusive service for Affiliates of the National Council For Science and the Environment
1. NationalScienceFoundation($1,604million)
he National Science Foundation (NSF) provides about one fifth of all federally support for basic
research conducted by America’s colleges and universities; and approximately half of non-
biomedical basic research. Approximately 77 percent of NSF funding goes to colleges and
universities. AllNSF R&D is classified as research and93 percentas “basic” research.
Source:OMB R&Ddata,Budgetofthe United StatesGovernment,agencybudgetjustification,agencybudgetdocuments,andhistoricaldata. Yearlyvaluesareadjustedfor
inflationusing OMB’sGDPdeflators.Nominalvaluesareunadjusted.
NSF awarded about 11,200 limited-term grants in 2011 to 1,875 universities, colleges and other
institutions. Grants have an average duration of three years. Most awards go to individuals or small
groups of investigators. Others provide funding for research centers, instruments and facilities. NSF
also supports science and engineering education, which is often connected to research grants.
NSF is organized around Directorates, each with a number of more specialized Divisions. The
NSF supports environmental research through all of its disciplinary Directorates, the Office of Polar
Programs, and a variety of integrative mechanisms. Some entire programs and Divisions fall within the
environmental research category.
An increasing number of NSF programs are collaborations between Divisions within and across
Directorates, across NSF as a whole (e.g. Global Change), and between parts of NSF and other federal
agencies (e.g., EPA, NOAA) and other entities within the U.S. and internationally. This is particularly
true of its efforts to promote interdisciplinary research necessary for improved understanding of
complex environmental and global change processes.

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Environmental R&D at the National Science Foundation (budget authority in millions of dollars)
FY 2011 FY 2012 FY 2013 FY 12-13
Actual Actual Estimate Percent
Biological Sciences 446 439 419 -4.7%
Environmental Biology 143 143 134 -6.3%
Integrative Organismal Systems
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213 212 205 -3.6%
Biological Infrastructure 90 84 81 -4.7%
Engineering 159 172 167 -2.6%
Chem, Bioeng, and Trans Sys 159 172 167 -2.6%
Geosciences 885 885 845 -4.5%
Atmospheric Sciences 258 259 245 -5.3%
Earth Sciences 184 183 174 -5.3%
Ocean Sciences 352 352 343 -2.5%
Integr & Collab Res & Edu 92 91 84 -8.1%
Polar Programs 177 179 172 -3.6%
Research & Education - - 132 127 -3.6%
Arctic Research Support - - 42 41
Antarctic Neutrino Observatory - - 3 3
Arctic Sciences 106 - - - - - -
Arctic Research Commission 2 1 1 -4.1%
Antarctic Sciences 69 - - - - - -
TOTAL 1,666 1,675 1,604 -4.3%
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Figures include formerly separate Plant Genome Research beginning in FY 2011.
Source: AAAS estimates of R&D from OMB R&D data, Budget of the U.S. Government, and agency budget documents.
Figures are rounded to the nearest million. Changes calculated from unrounded figures. FY 2013 are estimates adjusted for
the full-year continuing resolution and sequestration
Biological Sciences ($419 million)
BIO’s mission is to enable discoveries for understanding life. The FY 2014 Request includes projects
on understanding the changing dynamics of the biosphere, research on the fundamental characteristics of
biological energy systems, and efforts to broaden participation and develop the next generation of biological
researchers. BIO continues support for Research at the interface of Biological, Mathematical and Physical
Sciences, and Engineering (BioMaPS). BIO also participates in several NSF-wide investment portfolios,
including advanced manufacturing through the Cyber-enabled Materials and Manufacturing and Smart
Systems (CEMMSS) activity; Cyberinfrastructure Framework for 21st Century Science, Engineering, and
Education (CIF21); Clean Energy investments; and Science, Engineering, and Education for Sustainability
(SEES).
Environmental Biology ($134 million)
DEB supports catalytic and transformative research to inventory and document life on earth, to
discover life’s origins and evolutionary history, and to understand the dynamics of ecological and
evolutionary systems, in four clusters:
The Ecosystem Science Cluster backs projects through the Ecosystem Studies Program, which
supports investigations of whole-system ecological processes and relationships across a diversity of
spatial and temporal (including paleo) scales in order to advance understanding of:
1. material and energy fluxes and transformations within and among ecosystems;
2. roles and relationships of ecosystem components in whole-system structure and function;
3. ecosystem dynamics, resilience, and trajectories of ecosystem change through time; and
4. linkages among ecosystems in space, time, and across spatial and temporal scales.

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The Evolutionary Processes Cluster supports research on microevolutionary processes and their
macroevolutionary consequences. Topics include mutation, gene flow, recombination, natural
selection, genetic drift, assortative mating acting within species, speciation, and long-term features of
evolution. These investigations attempt to explain causes and consequences of genetically-based
change in the properties of groups of organisms (at the population level or higher) over the course of
generations as well as large-scale patterns of evolutionary change, phylogeography, origin and
maintenance of genetic variation, and molecular signatures of evolution at the population or species
level. The cluster seeks to fund projects that are transformative -- that is, those that will change the
conceptual bases of evolutionary biology and have broad implications for future research. Both
empirical and theoretical approaches are encouraged. The Cluster is comprised of two programs,
Evolutionary Genetics and Evolutionary Ecology (described below); proposals should be submitted to
one of these programs. The Cluster comprises two programs:
• The Evolutionary Genetics Program, which supports research that investigates the
genetic bases of micro- and macroevolutionary processes and their effects on
the evolution of genotypes and phenotypes.
• The Evolutionary Ecology Program supports research on the evolutionary causes
and consequences of ecological interactions (intra-specific, interspecific, and with
the abiotic environment).
The Population and Community Ecology Cluster supports research that advances the conceptual
or theoretical understanding of population ecology, species interactions and community dynamics in
terrestrial, wetland and freshwater habitats. This is done through the Population and Community
Ecology Program, which supports fundamental studies in the broadly defined areas of population and
community ecology. Topics include the population dynamics of individual species, demography, and
fundamental ecological interactions affecting populations, communities, and their environments.
Themes include, but are not limited to: population regulation; food-web structure and trophic
dynamics; competition, predation, mutualism and parasitism; mechanisms of coexistence and the
maintenance of species diversity; community assembly; paleoecology; landscape ecology;
conservation and restoration biology; behavioral ecology; and macroecology. The Program particularly
encourages studies that can be applied to a wide range of habitats and taxa across multiple spatial and
temporal scales.
The Systematics and Biodiversity Science Cluster supports research that advances our
understanding of the diversity, systematics, and evolutionary history of organisms in natural systems.
The Cluster comprises two core programs:
• The Biodiversity: Discovery & Analysis program supports all aspects of Biodiversity
Science, including expeditionary and exploratory research in natural environments to
advance the discovery, identification, description, classification and cataloguing of the
world’s biodiversity. These investigations should be focused at the organismal level and within
an evolutionary context.
• The Phylogenetic Systematics program supports research that addresses significant questions
about organismal evolution using phylogenetic approaches. The primary foci of this program
are to investigate the origins of biodiversity and to resolve the relationships among species
across the hierarchy of life.
In general, 51 percent of the DEB portfolio is available for new research grants. The remaining 49
percent funds continuing grants made in previous years.

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IntegrativeOrganismalServices($205million)
IOS supports research and education aimed at understanding the diversity of plants, animals, and
microorganisms as complex systems interacting with their environments. Reaching a systems level
understanding of organisms will require a new emphasis on interdisciplinary approaches and
development of new tools. These approaches span computational, molecular, cellular, individual
organism and population levels of inquiry. Many activities supported by IOS focus on biological
processes that affect organismal development, structure, performance, and interactions under varying
environmental conditions. IOS-supported research focuses on investigating organismal performance
in an environmental context, which is significant for understanding reciprocal interactions between
living systems and the environment.
 The Behavioral Systems Cluster consists of the Animal Behavior Program which
supports research in the area of integrative animal behavior to understand how and
why individuals and groups of animals do what they do in nature. Research in this area
occurs in field, laboratory and captive environments and covers a wide range of
scientific fields and levels of analysis to study the development, mechanisms, adaptive
value, and evolutionary history of behavior. The Cluster encourages species specific
and comparative studies as well as modeling and theoretical approaches that use
animal systems to discover and explore overarching principles of the biology of
behavior and to advance a fully integrated understanding of the behavioral phenotype
from genes to ecosystems.
 The Developmental Systems Cluster supports research aimed at understanding how
interacting developmental processes give rise to the emergent properties of organisms.
Systems level approaches to understanding these processes at the molecular, cellular,
and organismal levels of organization, combining the use of molecular, genetic,
biochemical, and physiological techniques as well as techniques from outside biology
are encouraged. The Developmental Systems Cluster is also particularly interested in
understanding how emergent properties result in the development of complex
phenotypes and lead to the evolution of developmental mechanisms.
o The Plant, Fungal and Microbial Developmental Mechanisms Program
supports research that addresses developmental processes in plants from algae
to angiosperms, microbes and fungi.
o The Animal Developmental Mechanisms Program supports research that
seeks to understand the processes that result in the complex phenotypes of
animals.
o The Evolution of Developmental Mechanisms Program supports research
to discover the developmental processes that are shared by all organisms, and
also those processes that produce diversity (phenotypic variation within a
species and/or between species).
 The Neural Systems Cluster focuses on the basic functions of the nervous system
and its interactions with the physical and social environments. The neuronal
mechanisms underlying organismal responses and adaptation to an ever-changing
biosphere are also of interest. The Cluster encourages the use of comparative species
approaches to better understand how organisms perceive their environment, transduce
that information in the nervous system and respond appropriately. Projects supported
by the Neural Systems Cluster span multiple levels of analysis ranging from the
molecular and cellular to the complex behavioral aspects of organisms functioning in

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their natural environments.
o The Organization Program supports research focused on how the nervous
system is organized along developmental, genetic, molecular and cellular
lines; exploring developmental mechanisms and determining how
experiential/environmental interactions affect the basic structural and
functional characteristics of the nervous system.
o The Activation Program supports research focused on how signals from the
external environment activate the nervous system to produce motor responses;
investigating how the internal state of the organism reaches a decision
threshold, integrates sensorimotor responses, and triggers an action.
o The Modulation Program supports research focused on how various factors
modulate the nervous system to produce complex behavior, and how that
complex behavior, in turn, feeds back to have an impact on the nervous
system; examining basic neural mechanisms underlying neuroendocrine and
neuroimmune function, learning and memory, biological rhythms, and other
complex behavior.
 The Physiological and Structural Systems Cluster (PSS) supports research to
advance understanding of physiological mechanisms and functional morphology. PSS
supports hypothesis- and discovery-based research encompassing a wide range of
approaches at levels of organization from molecules to populations. The Cluster
encourages submission of proposals aimed at identifying fundamental design
principles of physiological and structural systems and at understanding why particular
patterns of morphology and physiological mechanisms have evolved and how they are
integrated at the level of the whole organism.
o The Symbiosis, Defense and Self-recognition Program (SDS) supports
research on processes mediating both antagonistic and beneficial symbiotic
interactions, as well as mechanisms of self/non-self recognition within and
between species.
o The Physiological Mechanisms and Biomechanics Program (PMB)
supports research on the physiological and structural features that contribute
to life processes in plants, animals, microbes, and other organisms.
o The Integrative Ecological Physiology Program (IEP) supports research on
the structural and physiological traits of organisms that underlie their
capacities to live in various ecological settings.
 This program is a continuation of the Plant Genome Research Program (PGRP) that
began in FY 1998 as part of the National Plant Genome Initiative (NPGI). Since the
inception of the NPGI and the PGRP, there has been a tremendous increase in the
availability of functional genomics tools and sequence resources for use in the study
of key crop plants and their models.
In general, 43 percent of the IOS portfolio is available for new research grants and 57 percent is
available for continuing grants.
BiologicalInfrastructure ($81 million)
DBI empowers biological discovery by supporting the development and enhancement of biological
research resources, human capital, and centers. In particular, DBI supports the development of, or
improvements to: research infrastructure, including instruments, software, and databases; and
improvements to biological research collections, living stock collections, and field stations and marine

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labs. In addition, DBI funds the development of human capital through support of undergraduate,
graduate, and postdoctoral research experiences. Support of center and center-like activities creates
opportunities to address targeted but deep biological questions that have major societal impact. DBI
supports varied activities that provide the infrastructure for contemporary research in biology.
These include human resources and research resources.
 The Human Resources Cluster includes research experiences for undergraduates
(sites), undergraduate mentoring in environmental biology, cross-disciplinary research
at undergraduate institutions, and, in selected disciplines, postdoctoral research
fellowships.
 The Research Resources Cluster includes databases, the curatorial improvement and
computerization of research collections, living stock collections, the purchase of major
items of multi-user instrumentation, development of new instrumentation, and
improvement of research facilities at biological field stations and marine laboratories.
In general, 28 percent of the DBI portfolio is available for new research grants and 72 percent funds
continuing grants made in previous years.
Engineering ($167 million)
ENG provides about 32 percent of the federal funding for basic research in engineering at academic
institutions.
ENG is a global leader in identifying and catalyzing fundamental engineering research, innovation,
and education. To achieve this vision, the directorate leads in frontier engineering research, cultivates
an innovation ecosystem, develops the next-generation engineer, and demonstrates organizational
excellence. Since its inception, ENG has provided substantial support for frontier research and
education across all fields of engineering. ENG-funded basic and use-inspired research, combined with
the creativity of well-educated engineers and the resources of state-of-the-art facilities, have fueled
many important innovations that in turn have stimulated economic growth and improved the health and
quality of life for all Americans.
Many ENG programs and activities support national priorities and contribute to solutions to grand
challenges. ENG is central to several cross-Foundation investments designed to create the knowledge
and innovations required for these areas. These investments include Cyber-Enabled Materials,
Manufacturing, and Smart-Systems (CEMMSS); Innovation Corps (I-Corps); Science, Engineering,
and Education for Sustainability (SEES); and the Cyberinfrastructure Framework for 21st Century
Science, Engineering, and Education (CIF21).
 ENG will be a major contributor in the CEMMSS investment through interdisciplinary research
in breakthrough materials and materials design, advanced manufacturing techniques and
processes, and smart systems research, including robotics.
 The ENG role in SEES will continue with significant emphasis on Sustainable Research
Networks and Sustainable Energy Pathways, in addition to engineering research related to
sustainable synthesis, use, and reuse of chemicals and materials as part of the Sustainable
Chemistry, Engineering, and Materials (SusChEM) component.
 ENG will build on its significant contributions to innovation programs in growing the evolving
I-Corps program to the next phase of establishing a platform for innovation, thus joining other
established innovation programs such as Partnerships for Innovation (PFI), Engineering
Research Centers (ERC), Industry/University Cooperative Research Centers (I/UCRC), and
others that are managed by ENG.

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 ENG leads the Foundation in strategic research investments focusing on research and education
in manufacturing in all its dimensions (advanced manufacturing, nanomanufacturing, and
transformative technologies for traditional manufacturing).
 The ENG investment in CIF21 will build upon the directorate’s support of groundbreaking
work in cyber–physical systems, engineering modeling and simulation, smart networks, and
sensors.
The Division of Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmental, and Transport Systems (CBET)
($167 million) supports research to enhance and protect U.S. national health, energy, environment,
process manufacturing, and security. Research is conducted in biotechnology and the chemical,
environmental, biomedical, mechanical, civil, and aerospace engineering disciplines. To serve these
communities and achieve its goals, CBET has been organized into four thematic clusters: Chemical,
Biochemical, and Biotechnology Systems; Biomedical Engineering and Engineering Healthcare;
Environmental Engineering and Sustainability; and Transport and Thermal Fluids Phenomena. In
general, 67 percent of the CBET portfolio is available for new research grants and 33 percent supports
continuing increments for grants made in previous years.
The Civil, Mechanical and Manufacturing Innovation (CMMI) Division promotes cross-
disciplinary research partnerships at the intersections of traditional research disciplines to advance
transformative research results that promote innovative manufacturing technology; enable the design
and analysis of complex engineering systems; enhance the sustainability and resiliency of U.S.
infrastructure (for example, buildings, transportation, and communication networks); help protect the
Nation from extreme events; and apply engineering principles to improve the Nation’s service enterprise
systems, such as healthcare. In general, 76 percent of the CMMI portfolio is available for new research
grants and 24 percent supports continuing increments for grants made in previous years.
The Electrical, Communications and Cyber Systems (ECCS) area supports fundamental
research of novel electronic and photonic devices, the integration of these devices into circuit and
system environments, and the networking of intelligent systems at multiple scales for applications
in energy, healthcare, disaster mitigation, telecommunications, environment, manufacturing, and
other systems-related areas. ECCS research and education investments emphasize interdisciplinary
collaboration and the convergence of technologies to take on major technological challenges for
the next generation of innovative devices and systems. In general, 67 percent of the ECCS
portfolio is available for new research grants and 33 percent supports continuing increments for
grants made in previous years.
Emerging Frontiers in Research and Innovation (EFRI) funds interdisciplinary topics at the
frontiers of engineering research and education that have the potential for transformative impacts on
national needs and/or grand challenges. Recent EFRI topics have included areas such as: sustainable
energy sources; integrated systems designed to make U.S. infrastructures more resilient to disasters;
advances in robotics; manufacturing healthcare; and regeneration of some of the body’s most complex
tissues. In general, 92 percent of the EFRI portfolio is available for new research grants and 8 percent
supports continuing increments for grants made in previous years.
Engineering Education and Centers (EEC) programs are administratively managed within three
categories: (1) Major Centers and Facilities; (2) Engineering Education Research; and (3) Engineering
Career Development. The Major Centers and Facilities category is comprised of the signature ERC
program, NSECs, and a Science of Learning Center (SLC). They provide the framework for
interdisciplinary research and education, development, and technology transfer in partnership with
academia, industry, and government.

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Geosciences ($845 million)
GEO supports basic research that advances the frontiers of knowledge and drives
technological innovation while improving our understanding of the many processes that affect
the global environment. These processes include the role of the atmosphere and oceans in
climate, the planetary water cycle, and ocean acidification. Support is provided for
interdisciplinary studies that contribute directly to national research priorities such as:
understanding, adapting to, and mitigating the impacts of global change; developing and
deploying integrated ocean observing capabilities to support ecosystem-based management; and
understanding future availability of fresh water. GEO provides about 61 percent of the federal
funding for basic research at academic institutions in the geosciences.
Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences ($245 million)
The mission of AGS is to extend the intellectual frontiers in atmospheric and geospace sciences by
making investments in fundamental research, technology development, and education that enable
discoveries, nurture a vibrant, diverse scientific workforce, and help attain a prosperous and sustainable
future. AGS supports activities to further our understanding of the physics, chemistry, and dynamics of
Earth’s atmosphere, from the Earth’s surface to the Sun, on timescales ranging from minutes to millennia.
AGS provides support for: 1) basic science projects and 2) the acquisition, maintenance, and operation of
observational and cyberinfrastructure facilities and services that enable modern-day atmospheric and
geospace science research activities.
Although the majority of AGS support is through individual investigator merit-reviewed
multi-year grants, the division also supports small-scale, limited-duration exploratory research
projects; collaborative or multi-investigator group projects focusing on a particular problem,
subject, or activity; large center or center-like projects; and funding for the research conducted at
facilities provided by the NSF-supported National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR),
which extends and enhances research at universities. More information on NCAR is available in
the Facilities chapter. The division will increase support in key areas of fundamental atmospheric
and geospace science, including dynamics and predictability of high-impact atmospheric and
space weather hazards, and support for research concerning the complex and dynamic
interactions among natural and human-driven processes in coastal areas through its contributions
to NSF’s Science, Engineering, and Education for Sustainability (SEES) activities of Hazards
SEES and Coastal SEES.
The main programs within AGS include:
 The Atmospheric Chemistry program supports research to measure and model the
concentration and distribution of gases and aerosols in the lower and middle atmosphere. Also
supports research on the chemical reactions among atmospheric species; the sources and sinks
of important trace gases and aerosols; the aqueous-phase atmospheric chemistry; the transport
of gases and aerosols throughout the atmosphere; and the improved methods for measuring the
concentrations of trace species and their fluxes into and out of the atmosphere.
 The Climate and Large-Scale Dynamics program aims to: (i) advance knowledge about the
processes that force and regulate the atmosphere’s synoptic and planetary circulation, weather
and climate, and (ii) sustain the pool of human resources required for excellence in synoptic and
global atmospheric dynamics and climate research.
 Paleoclimate research on the natural evolution of Earth's climate with the goal of providing a
baseline for present variability and future trends through improved understanding of the

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physical, chemical, and biological processes that influence climate over the long-term.
 Physical and Dynamic Meteorology supports research involving studies of cloud physics;
atmospheric electricity; radiation; boundary layer and turbulence; the initiation, growth, and
propagation of gravity waves; all aspects of mesoscale meteorological phenomena, including
their morphological, ther- modynamic, and kinematic structure; development of mesoscale
systems and precipitation processes; and transfer of energy between scales. The program also
sponsors the development of new techniques and devices for atmospheric measurements.
 The Aeronomy program supports research on upper and middle atmosphere phenomena of
ionization, recombination, chemical reaction, photo emission, and transport; the transport of
energy, and momentum. This program also supports research into mass in the mesosphere-
thermosphere-ionosphere system including the processes involved and the coupling of this
global system to the stratosphere below and magnetosphere above and the plasma physics of
phenomena manifested in the coupled ionosphere-magnetosphere system, including the effects
of high-power radio wave modification.
 The Coupling, Energetics, and Dynamics of Atmospheric Regions (CEDAR) program
is a broad-based, community-initiated, upper atmospheric research program. The goal is to
understand the behavior of atmospheric regions from the middle atmosphere upward through
the thermosphere and ionosphere into the exosphere in terms of coupling, energetics, chemistry,
and dynamics on regional and global scales. These processes are related to the sources of
perturbations that propagate upward from the lower atmosphere as well as to solar radiation and
particle inputs from above. The activities within this program combine observations, theory and
modeling.
 Geospace Environment Modeling (GEM) is a broad-based, community-initiated research
program on the physics of the Earth's magnetosphere and the coupling of the magnetosphere to
the atmosphere and to the solar wind. The purpose of the GEM program is to support basic
research into the dynamical and structural properties of geospace, leading to the construction of
a global Geospace General Circulation Model (GGCM) with predictive capability.
 Magnetospheric Physics supports research on the magnetized plasma envelope of the outer
atmosphere, including energization by the solar wind; the origin of geomagnetic storms and
substorms; the population by solar and ionospheric sources; the origin of electric fields; the
coupling among the magnetosphere, ionosphere, and atmosphere; and waves and instabilities in the
natural plasma. Also supported are ground-based observational programs at high latitudes and
laboratory experiments applicable to the geospace environment. Theoretical research programs
may include numerical simulations using a variety of MHD, hybrid and particle codes. The
analysis of data from all sources, whether ground-based or from spacecraft, is also supported.
 The Lower Atmospheric Observing Facilities (LAOF) Program consists of planning,
budgeting, coordination, and oversight of multi-user national facilities that are sponsored by
NSF for the geosciences research community. Program Management resides within ATM in the
UCAR and Lower Atmospheric Facilities Oversight Section (ULAFOS) which provides a
single point for coordination.
 The Solar Terrestrial program supports research on the processes by which energy in diverse
forms is generated by the Sun, transported to the Earth, and ultimately deposited in the terrestrial
environment. Major topics include space weather impacts, helioseismology, the solar dynamo, the
solar activity cycle, magnetic flux emergence, solar flares and eruptive activity, coronal mass
ejections, solar wind heating, solar energetic particles, interactions with cosmic rays, and solar

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wind/magnetosphere boundary problems.
EarthSciences($174million)
EAR supports fundamental research into the structure, composition, and evolution of the Earth, and
the life it has sustained over the four and a half billion years of Earth history. The results of this
research will lead to a better understanding of Earth's changing environment (past, present, and future);
the natural distribution of its mineral, water, biota, and energy resources; and provide methods for
predicting and mitigating the effects of geologic hazards, such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions,
floods, and landslides. EAR operates through two sections:
Deep Earth Processes Section (DEP)
• The Instrumentation and Facilities Program in the Division of Earth Sciences (EAR/IF)
supports meritorious requests for infrastructure that promotes research and education in areas
supported by the Division. AR/IF will consider proposals for: 1) acquisition or upgrade of
research equipment; 2) development of new instrumentation, analytical techniques or
software; 3) support of national or regional multiuser facilities; 4) support for early career
investigators.
• The EarthScope Program provides a framework for broad, integrated studies across the
Earth sciences, including research on fault properties and the earthquake process, strain
transfer, magmatic and hydrous fluids in the crust and mantle, plate boundary processes,
large-scale continental deformation, continental structure and evolution, and composition and
structure of the deep Earth.
• The Geophysics Program supports basic research in the physics of the solid earth to explore its
composition, structure, and processes from the Earth's surface to its deepest interior. Laboratory,
field, theoretical, and computational studies are supported. Topics include seismicity, seismic
wave propagation, and the nature and occurrence of geophysical hazards; the Earth's magnetic,
gravity, and electrical fields; the Earth's thermal structure; and geodynamics.
• The Petrology and Geochemistry Program supports basic research on the formation of
planet Earth, including its accretion, early differentiation, and subsequent petrologic and
geochemical modification via igneous and metamorphic processes. Proposals in this program
generally address the petrology and high-temperature geochemistry of igneous and
metamorphic rocks (including mantle samples), mineral physics, economic geology, and
volcanology.
Surface Earth Processes Section (SEP)
• The Human Resources Program (E&HR) facilitates activities that engage a wide range of
audiences in Earth Sciences research efforts, which are research experiences for
undergraduates and teachers; faculty early career development (CAREER); and EAR
Postdoctoral Fellowships.
• The Geobiology and Low-Temperature Geochemistry Program supports research on 1) the
interactions between biological and geological systems at all scales of space and time; 2)
geomicrobiology and biomineralization processes; 3) the role of life in the transformation and
evolution of the Earth's geochemical cycles; 4) inorganic and organic geochemical processes
occurring at or near the Earth's surface now and in the past, and at the broad spectrum of
interfaces ranging in scale from planetary and regional to mineral-surface and supramolecular;
5) mineralogy and chemistry of soils and sediments; 6) surficial chemical and biogeochemical
systems and cycles and their modification through natural and anthropogenic change; and 7)

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development of tools, methods, and models for low-temperature geochemistry and
geobiological research - such as those emerging from molecular biology - in the study of the
terrestrial environment.
• The Geomorphology and Land-Use Dynamics Program supports innovative research into
processes that shape and modify landscapes over a variety of length and time scales. The
program encourages research that investigates quantitatively the coupling and feedback among
such processes, their rates, and their relative roles, especially in the contexts of variation in
climatic and tectonic influences and in light of changes due to human impact.
• The Hydrologic Sciences Program focuses on the fluxes of water in the environment that constitute
the water cycle as well as the mass and energy transport function of the water cycle in the
environment. The Program supports studying processes from rainfall to runoff to infiltration and
streamflow; evaporation and transpiration; as well as the flow of water in soils and aquifers and the
transport of suspended, dissolved and colloidal components. Water is seen as the mode of coupling
among various components of the environment and emphasis is placed on how the coupling is
enabled by the water cycle and how it functions as a process.
• The Sedimentary Geology and Paleobiology Program (SGP) supports research in a wide variety
of areas in sedimentary geology and paleobiology in order to comprehend the full range of physical,
biological, and chemical processes of Earth's dynamic system. The program supports the study of
deep-time records of these processes archived in the Earth's sedimentary carapace (crust) at all
spatial and temporal scales. These records are fingerprints of the processes that produced them and
continue to shape the Earth.
Ocean Sciences ($343 million)
The Division of Ocean Sciences (OCE) address the central role of the oceans in a changing Earth
and as a national strategic resource, as recognized in the President’s 2010 Executive Order establishing
a National Ocean Policy (NOP) and creating a National Ocean Council (NOC) to implement the
policy. OCE supports interdisciplinary research to better understand changing ocean circulation and
other physical parameters, biodiversity and the dynamics of marine organisms and ecosystems, and
changing ocean chemistry as exemplified by ocean acidification. OCE also supports research on the
geology of the ocean margins and sub-seafloor to investigate past ocean and climate conditions,
stability of methane hydrates, natural hazards associated with earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, and
microbial life deep below the seafloor.
Ocean Section
• The Biological Oceanography Program supports research in marine ecology broadly
defined: relationships among aquatic organisms and their interactions with the environments
of the oceans or Great Lakes. Projects submitted to the program for consideration are often
interdisciplinary efforts that may include participation by other OCE Programs.
• The Chemical Oceanography Program supports research into the chemical components,
reaction mechanisms, and geochemical pathways within the ocean and at its interfaces with
the solid earth and the atmosphere. Major emphases include: studies of material inputs to and
outputs from marine waters; orthochemical and biological production and transformation of
chemical compounds and phases within the marine system; and the determination of reaction
rates and study of equilibria. The Program encourages research into the chemistry,
distribution, and fate of inorganic and organic substances introduced into or produced within
marine environments including those from estuarine waters to the deep sea.
• The Physical Oceanography Program supports research on a wide range of topics

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associated with the structure and movement of the ocean, with the way in which it transports
various quantities, with the way the ocean's physical structure interacts with the biological
and chemical processes within it, and with interactions between the ocean and the
atmosphere, solid earth and ice that surround it.
Marine Geosciences Section
• The Marine Geology and Geophysics program supports research on all aspects of geology
and geophysics of the ocean basins and margins, as well as the Great Lakes. The Program
includes:
• Structure, tectonic evolution and volcanic activity of the ocean basins, the
continental margins, the mid-ocean ridges, and island arc systems
• Processes controlling exchange of heat and chemical species between seawater and
ocean rocks
• Genesis, chemistry, and mineralogic evolution of marine sediments
• Processes controlling deposition, erosion and transport of marine sediments
• Past ocean circulation patterns and climates and
• Interactions of continental and marine geologic processes
• The Ocean Drilling program supports the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP),
an international scientific research program supported by 24 countries, advances
scientific understanding of the Earth by monitoring, drilling, sampling, and analyzing
subseafloor environments. IODP scientific objectives require a heavy vessel for drilling
deep sedimentary and crustal holes, a lighter vessel to provide widely distributed arrays
of high resolution cores to address climate, environmental, and observatory objectives,
and use of other drilling platforms, called Mission Specific Platforms (MSP's), for the
Arctic and shallow water projects which can't be undertaken from the two primary
IODP vessels.
Integrative Programs Section
• OCE Education supports efforts to integrate ocean research and education via three main
program areas, which are: 1) Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Site Program.
This program provides funding to Universities and Marine Laboratories that allows them to
offer summer internships to undergraduate students who would like to participate in ocean-
related research efforts. Proposals may be submitted annually (August deadline). 2) Faculty
Early Career Development (CAREER). This program supports pre-tenure researchers who
would like to combine their research efforts with excellent educational programs. Proposals
may be submitted annually (July deadline). 3) Centers for Ocean Education Excellence
(COSEE), supports partnerships between ocean science researchers, educators, and informal
science organizations, providing the public a deeper understanding of the ocean and its
influence on each person's quality of life and our national prosperity.
• The Oceanographic Technology and Interdisciplinary Coordination (OTIC) Program
supports a broad range of research and technology development activities. Unsolicited
proposals are accepted for instrumentation development that has broad applicability to ocean
science research projects and that enhance observational, experimental or analytical
capabilities of the ocean science research community. Specific announcements for funding
opportunities are made for additional projects involving Improvements in Facilities,
Communications, and Equipment at Biological Field Stations and Marine Laboratories
(FSML) and the National Ocean Partnership Program.
• The Oceanographic Technology and Interdisciplinary Coordination (OTIC) Program
supports a broad range of research and technology development activities. Unsolicited

13
proposals are accepted for instrumentation development that has broad applicability to ocean
science research projects and that enhance observational, experimental or analytical
capabilities of the ocean science research community. Specific announcements for funding
opportunities are made for additional projects involving Improvements in Facilities,
Communications, and Equipment at Biological Field Stations and Marine Laboratories
(FSML) and the National Ocean Partnership Program.
Other OCE special funding opportunities include:
• Improvements in Facilities, Communications, and Equipment at Biological Field Stations and
Marine Laboratories (FSML). Biological Field Stations and Marine Laboratories (FSMLs) are
off-campus facilities for research and education conducted in the natural habitats of terrestrial,
freshwater, and marine ecosystems. FSMLs support environmental and basic biological research
and education by preserving access to study areas and organisms, by providing facilities and
equipment in close proximity to those study areas, and by fostering an atmosphere of mutual
scientific interest and collaboration in research and education. To fulfill these roles, FSMLs must
offer modern research and educational facilities, equipment, communications and data
management systems for a broad array of users. In recognition of the importance of FSMLs in
modern biology, NSF invites proposals that address these general goals of FSML improvement.
• Paleo Perspectives on Climate Change (P2C2). 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.
• To address ecological questions that cannot be resolved with short-term observations or
experiments, NSF established the Long Term Ecological Research Program (LTER) in 1980.
Three components differentiate LTER research from projects supported by other NSF
programs: 1) the research is located at specific sites chosen to represent major ecosystem
types or natural biomes; 2) it emphasizes the study of ecological phenomena over long
periods of time based on data collected in five core areas; and 3) projects include integrative,
cross-site, network-wide research.
InnovativeandCollaborativeResearchandEducation($84million)
ICER supports novel, complex, or partnership projects in both research and education. These
investments cut across traditional boundaries within the geosciences, encouraging interdisciplinary
activities and responding directly to critical needs of the entire geoscience community. ICER’s
principal goals are to develop innovative means to initiate and support geoscience education,
attract underrepresented groups to careers in the geosciences, foster the interchange of scientific
information nationally and internationally, and to join with other parts of NSF in major integrative
research and education efforts. In FY 2014, the division will make strategic investments in climate
research, international activities, education, diversity, and human resource development.
In general, 38 percent of the ICER portfolio is available for new research grants. The
remaining 62 percent funds continuing grants made in previous years.
ICER will support SEES activities totaling $17.25 million in FY 2014. Supported activities
will lay the foundation for technologies to mitigate, and adapt to, environmental change that
threatens sustainability, with an emphasis in FY 2014 on vulnerable regions in the Arctic and

14
along coasts. ICER will participate in activities to establish a robust suite of Sustainability
Research Networks, and in a program to identify clean energy sources and the impact of using
those sources on the environment and society.
ICER supports a varied portfolio of international collaborative activities. In FY 2014, this will
total $6.50 million, and emphasize collaborative research across the Americas and specific
research activities sponsored by the International Group of Funding Agencies for Global Change
Research.
In FY 2014, GEO is consolidating geoscience education and diversity support into the NSF-
wide CAUSE initiative. ICER houses GEO’s support for the CAUSE activity, which totals
$10.90 million in FY 2014. No other education efforts are supported by ICER in FY 2014.
ICER provides GEO’s contribution to the National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network. In
FY 2014, this support decreases by $300,000, to a total of $300,000, as a previously supported
center refocuses its emphasis upon renewal.
Polar Programs ($172 million)
The Division of Polar Programs (PLR) is the primary U.S. supporter of, and serves NSF interagency
leadership responsibilities for, fundamental research in the polar regions. The Arctic Sciences section
supports research in social, earth systems, and a broad range of natural sciences; its Research Support &
Logistics program is driven by and responds to research by assisting researchers with access to the
Arctic and for engagement in planning and sharing of results with local Arctic communities. Antarctic
Sciences funds research for which access to Antarctica is essential to advancing the scientific frontiers,
including research in a broad array of geo- and bio-sciences, such as earth system science, as well as
space and astrophysical sciences that can only be achieved or are best achieved with work performed in
Antarctica and the Southern Ocean. Antarctic Infrastructure and Logistics enables research in Antarctica
on behalf of the U.S. Government through a network of stations, labs, equipment, and logistical
resources. The Environment, Safety, and Health section provides oversight for the environmental,
safety, and health aspects of research and operations conducted in polar regions.
The Antarctic Sciences area ($70 million) includes:
• The Antarctic Astrophysics and Geospace Sciences Program supports studies of three
major domains: Middle and upper atmosphere — mesosphere and thermosphere; near-Earth
solar wind, magnetosphere, and ionosphere; astronomy and astrophysical studies of the
Universe, including cosmic ray and solar physics.
• The Antarctic Earth Sciences Program supports research to provide insights into Antarctica's rich
history and lead to increased understanding of the processes that shape it today. AES encourages and
supports field, laboratory, and theoretical work in both terrestrial and marine settings in the fields of
geology, geophysics, and other areas of earth sciences.
• The Antarctic Glaciology program is concerned with the study of the history and dynamics of
all naturally occurring forms of snow and ice, including floating ice shelves, glaciers, and
continental and marine ice sheets. Program emphases include paleoenvironments from ice
cores, ice dynamics, numerical modeling, glacial geology, and remote sensing of ice sheets.
• The Antarctic Integrated System Science (AISS) program supports projects that transcend
disciplinary boundaries, are highly integrated and address the need for integrative

15
approaches to forge new understanding of the complex interactions that govern Antarctica
and its past, present and future roles in the earth system.
• The Antarctic Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences program is intended to improve
understanding of the oceanic environment at high latitudes, including global exchange of
heat, salt, water, and trace elements, sea-ice dynamics, and tropospheric chemistry and
dynamics.
• The Antarctic Organisms and Ecosystems Program aims to improve understanding of
organisms and their interactions within the biosphere and geosphere. The program
supports projects directed at all levels of biological organization from molecular,
cellular, and organismal, to communities and ecosystems up to regional and global
scales. Investigators are encouraged to develop and apply theory and innovative
technologies to understand how organisms adapt to and live in high-latitude
environments and how populations and ecosystems may respond to global change.
• The Arctic Natural Sciences (ANS) Program supports disciplinary and
interdisciplinary research on arctic processes and phenomena, with particular emphasis
on understanding the changing arctic environment. The Program encourages proposals
that test hypotheses leading to new understanding of the Arctic and the development of
predictive tools. Although proposals to perform monitoring per se are discouraged, the
program welcomes proposals that use the data generated by the Arctic Observing
Network to advance scientific understanding of the Arctic.
• The Arctic Observing Network (AON) enables the environmental observing
infrastructure required for the scientific investigation of Arctic environmental system
change and its global connections. AON encompasses physical, biological, social,
cultural, and economic observations, including indigenous knowledge, of the land,
ocean, atmosphere (troposphere and stratosphere) and social systems
• The Arctic Research Support and Logistics (RSL) Program supports the field
component of research projects funded through science programs in the Arctic Sciences
Section of the Division of Polar Programs and through other programs at National
Science Foundation (NSF).
• The Arctic Social Sciences Program (ASSP) encompasses all social sciences
supported by NSF. These include, but are not limited to anthropology, archaeology,
economics, geography, linguistics, political science, psychology, science and technology
studies, sociology, traditional knowledge and related subjects.
• The Arctic System Science Program (ARCSS) funds proposals or groups of proposals
that advance our understanding of the Arctic as a system. ARCSS projects are often
interdisciplinary and focus on the relationships among the physical, biological, chemical,
and human processes that govern the cycling of energy and matter in the arctic system.
The cycles of carbon, water, and energy are important to consider in investigating the
functioning of the arctic system.
Science, Engineering and Education for Sustainability (SEES)
Note: Funding for SEES initiatives comes through the directorates.

16
NSF’s Science, Engineering, and Education for Sustainability (SEES) activities aim to “advance
science, engineering, and education to inform the societal actions needed for environmental and eco-
nomic sustainability and sustainable human well-being” through support for interdisciplinary research
and education.
Fundamental to all sustainability research is the simultaneous consideration of social, economic, and
environmental systems and the long-term viability of those systems. Concepts that underlie the science
of sustainability include complex adaptive systems theory, emergent behavior, multi-scale processes, as
well as the vulnerability, adaptive capacity, and resilience of coupled human-environment systems. An
important research goal is to understand how patterns and processes at the local and regional scales are
shaped by-and feed into-processes and patterns that manifest at the global scale over the long term.
These topics guide research to explore alternate ways of managing the environment, migrating from
finite resources to renewable or inexhaustible resources, and applying technology to improve human
well-being. Conceptual frameworks for sustainability, including general theories and models, are criti-
cally needed for such informed decision-making.
SEES activities span the entire range of scientific domains at NSF and aim to: 1) support interdis-
ciplinary research and education that can facilitate the move towards global sustainability; 2) build
linkages among existing projects and partners and add new participants in the sustainability research
enterprise; and 3) develop a workforce trained in the interdisciplinary scholarship needed to under-
stand and address the complex issues of sustainability.
SEES Portfolio of Programs:
• Dimensions of Biodiversity. This campaign seeks to transform how we describe and under-
stand the scope and role of life on Earth; it promotes novel, integrated approaches to identify
and understand the evolutionary and ecological significance of biodiversity amidst the
changing environment of the present day and in the geologic past. This campaign takes a broad
view of biodiversity, and currently focuses on the integration of genetic,
taxonomic/phylogenetic, and functional dimensions of biodiversity. While this focus
complements several core NSF programs, it differs by requiring that multiple dimensions of
biodiversity be addressed simultaneously, in innovative or novel ways, to understand their
synergistic roles in critical ecological and evolutionary processes. (NSF 12-528)
• Climate Change Education (CCE): Climate Change Education Partnership (CCEP) Pro-
gram, Phase II (CCEP-II). The CCEP Program seeks to establish a coordinated national net-
work of regionally- or thematically-based partnerships devoted to increasing the adoption of
effective, high quality educational programs and resources related to the science of climate
change and its impacts. This solicitation is for proposals for (CCEP-II). CCEP-II awardees will
receive up to 5 years of funding to support full-scale implementation of mature and robust
strategic plans already developed by regional or thematic partnerships to improve climate
change education activities at a significant scale and meet the goals of the CCE program. (NSF
12-523)
• Ocean Acidification (OA). The goal of this solicitation is to understand a) the
geochemistry and biogeochemistry of ocean acidification; b) how ocean acidification
interacts with biological and physical processes at the organismal level, and how such
interactions impact the structure and function of ecosystems; and c) how the earth system
history informs our understanding of the effects of ocean acidification on the present day and
future ocean. (Most recent solicitation: NSF 12-500)
• Sustainable Energy Pathways (SEP). SEP calls for innovative, interdisciplinary basic research
in SEES by teams of researchers for developing systems approaches to sustainable energy

17
pathways based on a comprehensive understanding of the scientific, technical, environmental,
economic, and societal issues. The SEP solicitation considers scalable approaches for sustain-
able energy conversion to useful forms, as well as its storage, transmission, distribution, and
use. (NSF 11-590)
• Science, Engineering and Education for Sustainability Fellows (SEES Fellows). Through
SEES Fellows, NSF seeks to enable the discoveries needed to inform actions that lead to
environmental, energy and societal sustainability while creating the necessary workforce to
address these challenges. (Most recent solicitation: NSF 11-575)
• Sustainability Research Networks. The goal of the Sustainability Research Networks (SRN)
competition is to support the development and coalescence of entities to advance
collaborative research that addresses questions and challenges in sustainability science,
engineering, and education. (Most recent solicitation: NSF 11-574)
• Partnerships for International Research and Education (PIRE). The primary goal of PIRE
is to support high quality projects in which advances in research and education could not
occur without international collaboration. The FY 2012 PIRE competition will be focused
exclusively on the NSF-wide SEES investment area. (Most recent solicitation: NSF 11-564)
• Water Sustainability and Climate. The goal of the WSC program is to enable new
interdisciplinary paradigms in water research, which broadly integrate across the biological
sciences, geosciences, engineering, and social sciences to address water systems in their
entirety. (Most recent solicitation: NSF 11-551)
• Research Coordination Networks (RCN). The goal of the RCN program is to advance a field
or create new directions in research or education. Groups of investigators will be supported
to communicate and coordinate their research, training and educational activities across
disciplinary, organizational, geographic and international boundaries. The program has a
SEES track. (NSF 11-531)
• Dynamics of Coupled Natural and Human Systems (CNH). This program promotes
interdisciplinary analyses of relevant human and natural system processes and complex
interactions among human and natural systems at diverse scales. The most recent revision
of the solicitation included special emphasis on SEES related proposals. (Most recent
solicitation: NSF 10-612)
Programs that have approaching deadlines include:
• Arctic SEES (ArcSees). ArcSEES is a multi-year, interdisciplinary program which seeks both
fundamental research that improves our ability to evaluate the sustainability of the Arctic
human-environmental system as well as integrated efforts which will provide community-
relevant sustainability pathways and engineering solutions. For this competition, interdisci-
plinary research will be focused in four thematic areas: the natural and living environment, the
built environment, natural resource development, and governance. (NSF 12-553) Deadline:
September 14, 2012
• Decadal and Regional Climate Prediction Using Earth System Models (EaSM). This in-
terdisciplinary grand challenge calls for the development of next-generation Earth System
Models that include coupled and interactive representations of ecosystems, agricultural work-
ing lands and forests, urban environments, biogeochemistry, atmospheric chemistry, ocean
and atmospheric currents, the water cycle, land ice, and human activities. (NSF 12-522)
Deadline: May 12, 2012

18
In FY 2013, there will be an official solicitation on Oceans and Coastal Environments.
FurtherReading
• National Science Foundation, FY 2014 Budget Request to Congress
http://www.nsf.gov/about/budget/fy2014/pdf/EntireDocument_fy2014.pdf
• Directorate for Biological Sciences (BIO) http://www.nsf.gov/dir/index.jsp?org=BIO
• Directorate for Geosciences (GEO) http://www.nsf.gov/dir/index.jsp?org=GEO
• Directorate for Engineering (ENG) http://www.nsf.gov/dir/index.jsp?org=ENG
• Office of Polar Programs (OPP) http://www.nsf.gov/dir/index.jsp?org=OPP
• Science, Engineering and Education for Sustainability (SEES) http://www.nsf.gov/funding/
pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=504707

FY 2013 R&D REPORT January 6 2014 - National Science Foundation

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FY 2013 R&D REPORT January 6 2014 - National Science Foundation