Opportunity Information: Apply for 08 566
Apply for 08 566
- The National Science Foundation in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Instrument Development for Biological Research" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 47.074 Biological Sciences.
- This funding opportunity was created on May 10, 2010 and posted on Mar 4, 2009.
- Applicants must submit their applications by May 9, 2010 See updated opportunity, 10 563 Full Proposal Target Date August 27, 2010 Last Friday in August, Annually Thereafter. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- The funding agency has allocated a total of $4,000,000.00 to eligible and selected applicants.
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $750,000.00 in funding.
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 15 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).
- Organization Limit Proposals may only be submitted by the following Proposals may only be submitted by U.S. academic institutions, U.S. non profit research organizations including museums, research laboratories, professional societies and similar organizations in the U.S. that are directly associated with educational or research activities, and consortia of only the eligible organizations listed here. Separately submitted collaborative proposals from the eligible organizations will also be accepted. Organizations ineligible to submit to this program solicitation may not receive subawards.
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Opportunity Summary:
The National Science Foundation (NSF) Instrument Development for Biological Research (IDBR) Program is a discretionary grant opportunity aimed at creating entirely new scientific instruments or producing major, order-of-magnitude improvements to existing instrumentation used in biological research. The core idea is that the instrument itself should represent a substantial leap forward in capability, such as dramatically better sensitivity, resolution, speed, throughput, accuracy, or other fundamental performance attributes. NSF expects the resulting tools to meaningfully change what biologists can measure or observe, and to expand the kinds of questions that can be addressed across biological systems, from molecules and cells to organisms, populations, and ecosystems.
A central requirement of IDBR is that instrument development must be driven by a clearly articulated biological research need, rather than engineering for its own sake. Proposals are expected to show how the new or substantially improved instrument will enable new experiments, new data types, or new scales of observation that are not practical with existing approaches. NSF also emphasizes broad utility: the instrument should meet a need shared by a wider segment of the biology community in areas supported by NSF Biology programs, not just serve a narrow, single-lab niche. The solicitation encourages proof-of-concept projects, especially for high-risk, high-reward ideas where a working prototype does not yet exist. In other words, proposals can be early-stage as long as they convincingly demonstrate a path toward a transformative instrument and explain why it matters for biological discovery.
Software can be part of an IDBR project, but only in a supporting role tied directly to the instrument being developed. The program will support software for operating the instrument when that software is necessary to make the instrument function as intended. Data acquisition and data analysis software are eligible only to the extent that, when paired with the new instrumentation, they clearly advance biological research. Standalone software development or general-purpose analysis tools are not the focus; the software component needs to be integral to the instrument innovation and its research impact.
An important limitation is that IDBR is not intended for clinical or biomedical instrumentation. Even if an instrument could be useful in medical settings, proposals centered on clinical diagnostics, patient-oriented applications, or biomedical product development fall outside the program scope. The emphasis is on enabling fundamental biological research rather than healthcare translation.
From the published opportunity details, this solicitation (NSF Publication/Funding Opportunity Number 08-566) anticipated roughly 15 awards with an estimated total funding level of about $4,000,000 and an award ceiling of $750,000 per project. There was no cost-sharing or matching requirement. The funding activity category is research and development under science and technology, and the CFDA listing is 47.074 (Biological Sciences). Proposal timing was organized around an annual target date on the last Friday in August (for example, August 28, 2009 and August 27, 2010), with later updates pointing applicants to a newer solicitation (10-563). The archived record shows posting on March 4, 2009 and an archive date of May 10, 2010.
Eligibility is restricted to U.S.-based organizations with direct education or research missions: U.S. academic institutions and U.S. nonprofit research organizations, including entities such as museums, research laboratories, professional societies, and similar organizations. Consortia are allowed, but only if all participating organizations meet the eligibility rules. Separately submitted collaborative proposals among eligible organizations may also be accepted. A key restriction is that organizations that are ineligible to submit cannot participate through subawards, meaning all subrecipients must themselves be eligible under the solicitation.
For administrative help, the listing directs applicants who cannot access the announcement electronically to NSF Grants.gov support at grantsgovsupport@nsf.gov, and it references NSF Publication 08-566 as the main source document for the full program announcement and requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) - NSF Instrument Development for Biological Research (IDBR)
What is the NSF Instrument Development for Biological Research (IDBR) program?
The NSF IDBR program is a discretionary grant opportunity that supports the creation of entirely new scientific instruments or major, order-of-magnitude improvements to existing instruments used in biological research. The program focuses on tools that represent a substantial leap forward in capability and that can meaningfully change what biologists can measure or observe.
What kind of instrument advances does IDBR expect?
IDBR emphasizes transformative performance improvements, such as dramatically better sensitivity, resolution, speed, throughput, accuracy, or other fundamental performance attributes. The goal is for the resulting instrument to expand the kinds of biological questions that can be addressed across scales ranging from molecules and cells to organisms, populations, and ecosystems.
Does the instrument development need to be motivated by biology, or can it be engineering-driven?
Instrument development must be driven by a clearly articulated biological research need. Proposals are expected to show how the instrument will enable new experiments, new data types, or new scales of observation that are not practical with existing approaches. Engineering for its own sake is not the program focus.
How important is community-wide utility in an IDBR proposal?
NSF emphasizes broad utility. The instrument should meet a need shared by a wider segment of the biology community in areas supported by NSF Biology programs, rather than serving a narrow, single-lab niche.
Are proof-of-concept or early-stage instrument projects allowed?
Yes. The solicitation encourages proof-of-concept projects, particularly for high-risk, high-reward ideas where a working prototype does not yet exist. Early-stage proposals are acceptable as long as they convincingly demonstrate a path toward a transformative instrument and explain why it matters for biological discovery.
Can software development be included in an IDBR project?
Software can be included, but only in a supporting role tied directly to the instrument being developed. The program supports software for operating the instrument when it is necessary for the instrument to function as intended.
Is data acquisition or data analysis software eligible for support under IDBR?
Data acquisition and data analysis software are eligible only to the extent that, when paired with the new instrumentation, they clearly advance biological research. The software component must be integral to the instrument innovation and its research impact.
Does IDBR fund standalone software or general-purpose analysis tools?
No. Standalone software development or general-purpose analysis tools are not the focus of IDBR. Any software elements need to be directly connected to making the instrument function and delivering the intended instrument-enabled research impact.
Is clinical or biomedical instrumentation within the scope of IDBR?
No. IDBR is not intended for clinical or biomedical instrumentation. Proposals centered on clinical diagnostics, patient-oriented applications, or biomedical product development fall outside the program scope, even if the instrument could be useful in medical settings.
What is the program trying to enable, if not clinical or biomedical outcomes?
The emphasis is on enabling fundamental biological research rather than healthcare translation. IDBR aims to support instrumentation that advances biological discovery and expands research capability across biological systems.
What is the funding opportunity number and publication reference for this solicitation?
The solicitation is identified as NSF Publication/Funding Opportunity Number 08-566, which is referenced as the main source document for the full program announcement and requirements.
About how many awards and how much total funding were anticipated?
The published opportunity details anticipated roughly 15 awards, with an estimated total funding level of about $4,000,000.
What was the maximum award size (award ceiling) per project?
The award ceiling listed for this solicitation was $750,000 per project.
Is cost-sharing or matching required?
No. The solicitation indicated there was no cost-sharing or matching requirement.
What is the funding category and CFDA listing?
The funding activity category is research and development under science and technology. The CFDA listing provided is 47.074 (Biological Sciences).
When were proposals due?
Proposal timing was organized around an annual target date on the last Friday in August (for example, August 28, 2009 and August 27, 2010). Later updates pointed applicants to a newer solicitation (10-563).
Is this solicitation current or archived?
The record described here is an archived opportunity. The archived record shows a posting date of March 4, 2009 and an archive date of May 10, 2010, and it also notes later updates directing applicants to a newer solicitation (10-563).
Who is eligible to apply?
Eligibility is restricted to U.S.-based organizations with direct education or research missions. Eligible applicants include U.S. academic institutions and U.S. nonprofit research organizations, including entities such as museums, research laboratories, professional societies, and similar organizations.
Are consortia allowed?
Yes. Consortia are allowed, but only if all participating organizations meet the eligibility rules described in the solicitation.
Are collaborative proposals allowed if organizations apply separately?
Yes. Separately submitted collaborative proposals among eligible organizations may be accepted, according to the solicitation summary provided.
Can an ineligible organization participate as a subrecipient or through a subaward?
No. A key restriction is that organizations that are ineligible to submit cannot participate through subawards. All subrecipients must themselves be eligible under the solicitation.
What should applicants do if they cannot access the announcement electronically?
The listing directs applicants who cannot access the announcement electronically to contact NSF Grants.gov support at grantsgovsupport@nsf.gov.
Where can applicants find the full program announcement and requirements?
The opportunity references NSF Publication 08-566 as the main source document for the full program announcement and requirements.
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Applicants also applied for:
Applicants who have applied for this opportunity (08 566) also looked into and applied for these:
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|---|
| Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program Apply for 08 557 Funding Number: 08 557 Agency: National Science Foundation Category: Science and Technology and other Research and Development Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
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| Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Talent Expansion Program Apply for 08 569 Funding Number: 08 569 Agency: National Science Foundation Category: Science and Technology and other Research and Development Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Computing and Communication Foundations (CCF) Core Programs Apply for 08 577 Funding Number: 08 577 Agency: National Science Foundation Category: Science and Technology and other Research and Development Funding Amount: $3,000,000 |
| Computer and Network Systems (CNS) Core Programs Apply for 08 576 Funding Number: 08 576 Agency: National Science Foundation Category: Science and Technology and other Research and Development Funding Amount: $3,000,000 |
| NSF Astronomy and Astrophysics Postdoctoral Fellowships Apply for 08 581 Funding Number: 08 581 Agency: National Science Foundation Category: Science and Technology and other Research and Development Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
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| Partnerships for Innovation Apply for 08 583 Funding Number: 08 583 Agency: National Science Foundation Category: Science and Technology and other Research and Development Funding Amount: $600,000 |
| Discovery Research K 12 Apply for 08 609 Funding Number: 08 609 Agency: National Science Foundation Category: Science and Technology and other Research and Development Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Science of Science and Innovation Policy Apply for 08 586 Funding Number: 08 586 Agency: National Science Foundation Category: Science and Technology and other Research and Development Funding Amount: $750,000 |
| Ecology of Infectious Diseases Apply for 08 601 Funding Number: 08 601 Agency: National Science Foundation Category: Science and Technology and other Research and Development Funding Amount: $2,500,000 |
| Cyber Physical Systems Apply for 08 611 Funding Number: 08 611 Agency: National Science Foundation Category: Science and Technology and other Research and Development Funding Amount: $5,000,000 |
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| Math and Science Partnership Apply for 09 507 Funding Number: 09 507 Agency: National Science Foundation Category: Science and Technology and other Research and Development Funding Amount: $1,250,000 |
| ADVANCE Increasing the Participation and Advancement of Women in Academic Science and Engineering Careers Apply for 09 504 Funding Number: 09 504 Agency: National Science Foundation Category: Science and Technology and other Research and Development Funding Amount: $4,000,000 |
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