List of Announcements (details below):
* VSE in the News
o A major story this past week was that Harry Van Trees, founding
director of VSE's Center of Excellence in C3I
<http://c4i.gmu.edu/>, was elected to the National Academy of
Engineering. For more information, see the links below.
* Photo of the Week
* Computer Science Seminar (Wed Feb 18, 3pm)
* L’Oréal Women in Science (& Engineering) Fellowship Program
* Funding Opportunity (limited submission): NSF Research Traineeship
Program
* Funding Opportunity: Robotics Outreach Competition (NASA)
* Funding Opportunity:Science & Engineering Research (Keck Foundation)
* Funding Opportunity: National Strategy for Trusted Identities in
Cyberspace (NIST)
* Yotam Gingold Receives CAREER Award from NSF
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*VSE in the News*
Here is a list of news stories about VSE that have been posted:
Beyond Mason:
* Philadelphia Business Journal
<http://www.bizjournals.com/philadelphia/news/2015/02/10/drexel-u-s-army-reserve-team-up-to-train-cyber.html>:
Mason, Drexel and four other universities team up with the Army to
create a center for enhanced cybersecurity training
* Forbes
<http://www.forbes.com/sites/dougnewcomb/2015/02/09/60-minutes-joins-car-hacking-hype/>:Volgenau
School of Engineering professor and car security researcher Damon
McCoy tells a panel at South by Southwest Interactive that
electronic carjacking won't be epidemic until there's more profit
At the Mason News Desk (http://newsdesk.gmu.edu):
* Van Trees Elected to National Academy of Engineering
<http://newsdesk.gmu.edu/2015/02/van-trees-elected-national-academy-engineering/>
* The Next Battleground Is in the Cloud: Mason Partnership with Army
Reserve Creates Pathways for Cyber Warriors
<http://newsdesk.gmu.edu/2015/02/next-battleground-cloud-mason-partnership-army-reserve-creates-pathways-cyber-warriors/>
At the Volgenau website (http://volgenau.gmu.edu/):
* The Next Battleground Is in the Cloud: Mason Partnership with Army
Reserve Creates Pathways for Cyber Warriors
<http://volgenau.gmu.edu/home/-/asset_publisher/HNSOWRmBcc5U/content/the-next-battleground-is-in-the-cloud-mason-partnership-with-army-reserve-creates-pathways-for-cyber-warriors?redirect=http%3A%2F%2Fvolgenau.gmu.edu%2Fhome%3Fp_p_id%3D101_INSTANCE_HNSOWRmBcc5U%26p_p_lifecycle%3D0%26p_p_state%3Dnormal%26p_p_mode%3Dview%26p_p_col_id%3Dcolumn-3%26p_p_col_count%3D1>
* Van Trees Elected to National Academy of Engineering
<http://volgenau.gmu.edu/home/-/asset_publisher/HNSOWRmBcc5U/content/van-trees-elected-to-national-academy-of-engineering?redirect=http%3A%2F%2Fvolgenau.gmu.edu%2Fhome%3Fp_p_id%3D101_INSTANCE_HNSOWRmBcc5U%26p_p_lifecycle%3D0%26p_p_state%3Dnormal%26p_p_mode%3Dview%26p_p_col_id%3Dcolumn-3%26p_p_col_count%3D1>
If you have suggestions for other stories, please submit them to Martha
Bushong, [log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]>.
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*Photo of the Week*
On Feb. 10, the Army Reserve Cyber Private Public Partnership Program
brought together leaders of industry and academia with lawmakers on
Capitol Hill to address a critical need for expertise in the cyber
domain and to formally sign the Memorandum of Understanding that creates
this partnership. (U.S. Army Photo by Staff Sgt. Shejal Pulivarti.)
--------------------------------------------------------------
*Computer Science Seminar (Wed Feb 18, 3pm)*
/Title:/Player Perception of Responsiveness and Naturalness for Virtual
Characters inDigital Games
/Date:/Wednesday, February 18th, 3 pm,
/Location: /Room 4201/
Speaker: /Sophie Joerg, Assistant Professor, Computer Science, Clemson
University/
Abstract
/
Real-time animation controllers are fundamental for animating characters
in response to player input. However, the design of such controllers
requires making trade-offs between the naturalness of the character's
motions and the promptness of the character's response. Furthermore, lag
is typically unavoidable, particularly in networked multiplayer games.
In this talk, Dr. Joerg will present the results of multiple
experiments, in which she investigates the effects of response lag and
trade-offs between responsiveness and naturalness on players' enjoyment,
control, satisfaction, and opinion of the character in a simple platform
game./
Biosketch
/Sophie Joerg is an Assistant Professor of Computer Science at Clemson
University. Her research is in computer graphics, centering around
character animation, motion perception, and digital games. She holds a
Ph.D. from Trinity College Dublin and was a visiting researcher at
Carnegie Mellon University and Disney Research, Pittsburgh. Her recent
work, which is supported by agencies including the National Science
Foundation, focuses on creating new algorithms in data-driven character
animation, investigating how we perceive virtual characters, and using
digital games in education./
--------------------------------------------------------------/
*L’Oréal Women in Science (& Engineering) Fellowship Program*
[This is an edited version of a message that was forwarded to me.The
title only mentions “science” but the message includes computer science
and engineering are relevant fields.]
Dear Colleague:
Applications for the 2015 L’Oréal USA For Women in Science fellowship
program are now open.
The L’Oréal For Women in Science program recognizes and rewards the
contributions women make in STEM fields and identifies exceptional women
researchers committed to serving as role models for younger
generations.More than 2,000 women scientists in over 100 countries have
been recognized since the program began in 1998.
The L’Oréal USA For Women In Science fellowship program will award five
post-doctoral women scientists in the United States this year with
grants of up to $60,000 each. Applicants are welcome from a variety of
fields, including the life and physical/material sciences, technology
(including computer science), engineering, and mathematics.
I invite you to collaborate with us and spread the word to your
community about this special fellowship program for exceptional female
post‐doctoral researchers who are also committed to supporting women and
girls in STEM.
The application and more information on the L’Oréal USA For Women in
Science program can be found at www.lorealusa.com/forwomeninscience
<http://www.lorealusa.com/forwomeninscience>. Applications are due on
Friday, March 20, 2015.
Should you have any questions or require additional information, please
e‐mail me at [log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]>.
Rachel Pacifico
--------------------------------------------------------------
*Funding Opportunity (limited submission): NSF Research Traineeship Program*
(This is a limited-submission opportunity.The internal deadline for
applications is 3/6/2015.Max of 3 applications (2 for Trainee track and
1 for IGE (Innovation Grad Ed) track).For instructions on submitting an
internal application to be considered for this program, see
http://research.gmu.edu/ResearchDev/limitedsubmissionreview.html.)
Title:National Science Foundation Research Traineeship (NRT) Program
Sponsor:Directorate for Education and Human Resources/NSF
The NSF Research Traineeship (NRT) program is designed to encourage the
development and implementation of bold, new, potentially transformative,
and scalable models for STEM graduate education training. The NRT
program seeks proposals that ensure that graduate students in
research-based master?s and doctoral degree programs develop the skills,
knowledge, and competencies needed to pursue a range of STEM careers.
The NRT program includes two tracks: the Traineeship Track and the
Innovations in Graduate Education (IGE) Track. The Traineeship Track is
dedicated to effective training of STEM graduate students in high
priority interdisciplinary research areas, through the use of a
comprehensive traineeship model that is innovative, evidence-based,
aligned with changing workforce and research needs, and scalable. For
this solicitation the Traineeship Track has one priority
interdisciplinary research theme ? Data-Enabled Science and Engineering
(DESE); proposals are encouraged also on any non-DESE interdisciplinary
research theme that is a national priority. The IGE Track is dedicated
solely to piloting, testing, and evaluating novel, innovative, and
potentially transformative approaches to graduate education, both
disciplinary and interdisciplinary, to generate the knowledge required
for their customization, implementation, and broader adoption. Whereas
the Traineeship Track promotes building on the current knowledge base to
more effectively train STEM graduate students, the IGE Track supports
test-bed projects with high potential to enrich, improve, and extend the
knowledge base with attention to transferability and innovation. For
both tracks, strategic collaborations with the private sector,
non-governmental organizations (NGOs), government agencies, national
laboratories, field stations, teaching and learning centers, museums,
and academic partners are encouraged.
Deadline(s):05/06/2015
Program URL: http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2015/nsf15542/nsf15542.htm
Optional (but recommended) letters of intent are due March 25, 2015.
--------------------------------------------------------------
*Funding Opportunity: Robotics Outreach Competition (NASA)*
Title:RFP--Robotics Outreach Competition II
Sponsor:National Aeronautics & Space Administration
NASA Ames Research Center (ARC) Robotics Alliance Project (RAP) intends
to issue a Cooperative Agreement Notice (CAN) soliciting proposals to
design and administer two distinct robotics competition programs,
referred to collectively as the NASA Ames Robotics Outreach Competition
(ROC-II). Eligible organizations may submit proposals that provide
evidence of the capability and proven experience necessary to provide
both the technical and administrative framework required to implement a
national, high caliber outreach program, including a high-quality
national level robotics competition experience that leverages hands-on
experiences in a technical environment. The ROC II addresses the
critical shortage in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
(STEM) fields that the Nation is facing by providing hands-on robotics
competition events while working with engineers and talented faculty
from universities and high schools in the U.S.It is the strategic intent
of this program that students will be inspired and motivated to pursue
degrees that meet NASA's robotics competency requirements. The final CAN
is expected to be released on or around February 13, 2015, and will be
available electronically through http://nspires.nasaprs.com.
Electronically submitted Notices of Intent to propose are requested by
March 18, 2014. The proposal due date is expected to be April 22, 2015.
The electronic submission of each proposal in its entirety is required
by the due date. Please note that these dates are estimates only and
subject to change.
Deadline(s):04/22/2015
Program URL:
https://www.fbo.gov/index?s=opportunity&mode=form&id=034e0ca28a108907cc02491
--------------------------------------------------------------
*Funding Opportunity:Science & Engineering Research (Keck Foundation)*
The Science and Engineering Research Program seeks to benefit humanity
by supporting projects that are distinctive and novel in their approach,
question the prevailing paradigm, or have potential to break open new
territory in their field. Past grants have been awarded to major
universities and independent research institutions to support pioneering
science and engineering research and the development of promising new
technologies, and to facilitate the purchase of advanced instruments
where such instruments would further specific research ventures.
Deadline(s):05/01/2015
Program URL: http://www.wmkeck.org/grant-programs/research
DEADLINE NOTE
Applicants are strongly urged to contact Foundation staff during the
pre-application counseling period, which takes place between January 1
and February 15 leading up to a May 1 submittal, or between July 1 and
August 15 leading up to a November 1 submittal. Potential applicants are
encouraged to submit their ideas for grants in the form of single-page
concept papers during the pre-application counseling period.
OBJECTIVES:
The Foundation strives to fund endeavors that are distinctive and novel
in their approach. It encourages projects that are high-risk with the
potential for transformative impact. "High-risk" comprises a number of
factors, including questions that push the edge of the field, present
unconventional approaches to intractable problems, or challenge the
prevailing paradigm. In all our programs, "transformative" may mean
creation of a new field of research, development of new instrumentation
enabling observations not previously possible, or discovery of knowledge
that challenges prevailing perspectives.
FUNDING
Historically, grants range from $500,000 to $5 million and are typically
$2 million or less.
--------------------------------------------------------------
*Funding Opportunity: National Strategy for Trusted Identities in
Cyberspace (NIST)*
Title:National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cyberspace (NSTIC)
Pilots Cooperative Agreement Program
Sponsor: National Institute of Standards & Technology/Technology
Administration/DOC
NIST invites applications from eligible applicants to pilot online
identity solutions that embrace and advance the NSTIC vision: that
individuals and organizations utilize secure, efficient, easy-to-use,
and interoperable identity credentials to access online services in a
manner that promotes confidence, privacy, choice, and innovation.
Specifically, the Federal government seeks to initiate and support
pilots that address the needs of individuals, private sector
organizations, and all levels of government in accordance with the NSTIC
Guiding Principles that identity solutions will be (1) privacy-enhancing
and voluntary, (2) secure and resilient, (3) interoperable, and (4)
cost-effective and easy-to-use. NIST will fund projects that are
intended to test or demonstrate new solutions, models, and frameworks
that either do not exist or are not widely adopted in the marketplace today.
Deadline(s):03/17/2015, 04/17/2015, 05/21/2015
Program URL: http://www.nist.gov/nstic/NSTIC-Pilot-FFO-01-2015.pdf
DEADLINE NOTE
Abbreviated Applications must be received electronically through
Grants.gov no later than 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time, Tuesday, March 17,
2015. Abbreviated Applications received after this deadline will not be
reviewed or considered. Review of Abbreviated Applications and selection
of finalists is expected to be completed by Friday, April 17, 2015. The
selected finalists will then be invited to submit a Full Application
including a Technical Proposal shortly following their selection as a
finalist. Full Applications must be received electronically through
Grants.gov no later than 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time, Tuesday, May 21, 2015.
FUNDING
NIST anticipates that awards will be in the range of approximately
$1,250,000 to $2,000,000 per year per project for up to two (2) years,
consistent with the multi-year funding policy described in Section II.2
of this FFO. Proposed funding levels must be consistent with project
scope. NIST will consider applications with lower funding amounts.
--------------------------------------------------------------
*Yotam Gingold Receives CAREER Award from NSF*
Yotam Gingold of the Computer Science Department received $550K from the
National Science Foundation for his project, “CAREER: Direct
Manipulation of Numerical Optimization for Structured Geometry Creation.”
--
===============================================================
Stephen G. Nash
Senior Associate Dean
Volgenau School of Engineering
George Mason University
Nguyen Engineering Building, Room 2500
Mailstop 5C8
Fairfax, VA 22030
[log in to unmask]
Phone: (703) 993-1505
Fax: (703) 993-1633
http://volgenau.gmu.edu/web/volgenau/senior-associate-dean
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