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CSREES' Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) Solicits Research on Microbial Biology: Microbial Associations with Plants

This program supports (1) fundamental hypothesis-driven research on the interactions between microorganisms and plants with which they are associated and (2) characterization of and communication in plant-associated microbial communities in agriculturally relevant environments. The program encourages application of knowledge gained to systems of economic importance to U.S. agriculture or of importance to agricultural sustainability. This program makes single function research awards. Eligible applicants for the grant program implemented under this subpart include state agricultural experiment stations; colleges and universities; university research foundations; other research institutions and organizations; federal agencies, national laboratories; private organizations or corporations; individuals who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents; and any group consisting of two or more entities identified above. Eligible institutions do not include foreign and international organizations, unless otherwise provided in the RFA. A total of approximately $7.4 Million is available to support this program. A required letter of intent is due by February 16, 2009. (more info)

Society of Women Engineers Upward Mobility Award Celebrate's Individual Contributions in Engineering or Technical Management

The Upward Mobility Award celebrates an individual's rise to success and contribution to the decision-making process within her organization. This award is sponsored by Northrop Grumman Corporation. The ideal candidate will be a woman who has made an outstanding contribution in the field of engineering and/or technical management such that the nominee has, as a minimum, achieved the level of general manager or equivalent upper management position within her current organization. The ideal candidate will have a minimum of 11 years of increasingly important engineering experience indicating outstanding competency and achievement. Nominations are due March 31, 2009. (more info)

African Studies Association to Present Herskovits Award

The ASA presents this award to the author of the most important scholarly work in African studies published in English during the preceding year. Nominations must be original nonfiction scholarly works published in English and distributed in the United States. Only books with a 2008 copyright are eligible for the 2009 award. The subject matter must significantly deal with Africa and/or related areas (Cape Verde, Madagascar, or Indian Ocean Islands off the East African coast). Works that are not eligible include collections and compilations, proceedings of symposia, new editions of previously published books, bibliographies, and dictionaries. Nominations are made directly by publishers who may nominate as many separate titles in a given year as they desire. The winner is announced at the ASA Annual Meeting, and the formal presentation of the award with an honorarium of $500 is made at the Annual Meeting Awards Ceremony. Nominations are due May 1, 2009. (more info)

BMA Board of Science Offers Insole and Clegg Grant

The British Medical Association (BMA), through its Board of Science, is offering the Insole and Clegg grant to assist research into suicide and men. Applications should be for proposed or current work on suicide and men. Applicants must be registered medical practitioners in the UK. The applicant applying for the grant must be the main researcher for the research project. The grant may be held concurrently with another grant. The applicant is not required to be engaged in full-time research work. Grant applicants must however (as part of the application process) submit a letter from their organization (NHS Trust, PCT, university) for where the research will be undertaken, clearly stating that they have permission to carry out the proposed research. All research involving the collaboration of the NHS or social care services is required to have an identified sponsor for research governance purposes. Applicants may apply for any amount up to, but not exceeding, the total amount available from the grant (GBP 35,000). The grant is renewable. Funding will be available to start from September 1, 2009, and the grant will be available for a period of three years. Proposals are due March 6, 2009. (more info)

NIH Accepting R21 Research Applications for Optimization of Small Molecule Probes for the Nervous System

The aim of this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is to facilitate the discovery of new small molecule probes for investigating biological function in the nervous system by providing funding for advanced medicinal chemistry and the biological testing of compounds. Eligible investigators will have identified probe candidates via screening of small molecule collections, using in vitro assays of biological activity developed to interrogate these collections, and be able to show that the structural features of these small molecules are related to their biological activity. Project proposals should nominate small molecule probe candidates from distinct structural series for the further, iterative design and testing of analogues in structure-activity relationship studies, using in vitro assays of biological function adapted to the medium throughput screening requirements of this work. These studies should have the goal of developing a small molecule probe possessing the attributes (e.g., affinity, selectivity, activity) required for its use in future pharmacological studies proposed by the investigator. Applicants are strongly encouraged to utilize publicly available cheminformatic capabilities for the acquisition of compounds, and semi-custom synthesis of analogues, which is required of these studies. The following organizations and institutions are eligible to apply: domestic and foreign, public and private institutions of higher education, including Hispanic-serving institutions and Historically Black Colleges and Universities, tribally controlled colleges and universities, and Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian-serving institutions; nonprofits with and without 501(c)(3) IRS status; small businesses and for-profit organizations; federal, state, and local governments; Indian and Native American tribal governments and tribally designated organizations; independent school districts; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; U.S. territory or possession; and faith-based or community-based organizations. This FOA will utilize the R21 grant mechanism. The total project period for an application submitted in response to this funding opportunity may not exceed two years. Direct costs are limited to $150,000 per year. Cost sharing is not required. Although not required, prospective applicants are asked to submit a letter of intent by February 3, 2009. Applications are due by March 3, 2009. (more info)