NSF's "broader impacts" criterion

Many scientists are still unsure how to address the "broader impacts" criterion in their NSF grant applications. The agency has issued a "Dear Colleague" as a reminder of the importance of including this in all proposals. Click on the "Representative Activities" link in the letter for some specific examples of activities that satisfy the "broader impacts" criterion. Please note that although the letter is from the Division of Chemistry, the criterion applies to all applications in all programs. This means you.

Study: NIH peer review process biased

If you've ever had a grant rejected by NIH (or any other agency, for that matter), you likely thought the process was biased against you. Sometimes it is, according to an article in the Proceedings of the National Academies of Sciences. The article presents a statistical study to document this claim.

Those Troublesome Grant Clauses

Universities are dealing more often with troublesome clauses in their federal grants and contracts. COGR and AAU have taken a new look at the issue and find that publication restrictions, export controls and the use of foreign nationals on federally funded projects top the list. The report makes several recommendations on how to improve matters. The DOD is deemed the most difficult agency with which to do business. Click the subhead to link to the COGR website and report.