Read the research blog Further Findings.
Research Prizes and Honors
[Have you or a colleague won a research-related prize or honor? Let the Research Alert know.]
CHEMISTRY PROFESSOR WINS DOD FELLOWSHIP
Andy Ellington, a professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, has been awarded a National Security Science and Engineering Faculty Fellowship (NSSEFF), one of 11 in the country. The award is the Department of Defense’s equivalent of the National Institutes of Health Pioneer award and comes with a five-year grant of more than $500,000 per year.
NSSEFF provides grants to top-tier researchers from U.S. universities to conduct unclassified, basic research that may transform the DOD’s capabilities in the long term.
News and Information
EVALUATE SCIVAL, A RESEARCH OPPORTUNITY DATABASE
The university is in the process of evaluating a new research database called SciVal, which provides a service similar to that of the Community of Science. The system will remain open to UT free of charge through April 30, 2010. The information is live and current. Send feedback about SciVal to vp-research-sr@mail.utexas.edu.
CHANGE IN VISITING RESEARCHER/SCHOLAR PROGRAM
The Visiting Researcher/Scholar program is now managed through the Human Resource Management System (HRMS), under the Affiliated Worker Module. The HRMS document serves as the nominating instrument, with a curriculum vitae, Agreement and HRMS Addendum required as backup documentation. Find more information about the Visiting Researcher/Scholar program and download recently updated forms online.
QuotedUT Researchers in the News
[A sampling of recent quotes by university faculty members and researchers. To be included in this section, let the Research Alert know when you or a colleague have been quoted.]
The New York Times
February 12, 2010 Sunday
HEADLINE: Let Your Heart or Coach Guide You
(From a Valentine’s Day-related article on flirting.)
David M. Buss, a professor of psychology at the University of Texas at Austin, and the author of ”The Evolution of Desire,” wrote in an e-mail message that eye contact and a steady gaze signal self-confidence, ”which is one of the personality traits women find most sexually attractive.”
Dr. Buss cited a study that he said ”brought women and men into the lab, and instructed these total strangers to lock eyes for two minutes without breaking eye contact and without speaking or doing anything else. Many women reported actually falling in love with the person.”
Research Opportunities
Important university research deadlines:
Awards and Grants
Limited Submissions
AMERICAN RECOVERY AND REINVESTMENT ACT
The University of Texas at Austin Stimulus Package Web page is online.
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
DoD Breast Cancer Era of Hope Scholar Award
Deadlines: Pre-application, March 24, 2010; Application, April 7, 2010
Breast Cancer Innovator Award
Deadlines: Pre-application, March 24, 2010; Application, April 7, 2010
Electronic Technology
Deadlines: White Paper, March 25, 2010; Full Proposal, June 18, 2010
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Theoretical Research in Magnetic Fusion Energy Science
Deadline: April 5, 2010
High-Capacity Optical Networking and Deeply Integrated Middleware Services for Distributed Petascale Science
Deadline: April 23, 2010
NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH
Technology Development for Protein Modeling
Deadline: May 25, 2010
Resource Program Grants in Bioformatics
Deadline: May 25, 2010
Women’s Mental Health and Sex/Gender Differences Research
Deadline: June 5, 2010
Technology and Methods Development for Genomics, Population Genomics and ELSI
Deadline: June 5, 2010
Structural Analyses of the Ligand-Binding Properties of Taste and Smell Receptors
Deadline: June 5, 2010
NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
Cyber-Physical Systems
Deadline: March 11, 2010
Innovations in Biological Imaging and Visualization
Deadlines: Preliminary Proposal, April 12, 2010; Proposal, July 15, 2010
ARTS, HUMANITIES AND CULTURE
National Film Preservation Foundation
Avant-Garde Masters Grants
Deadlines: Registration, March 19, 2010; Application, April 23, 2010
NEH Digital Humanities Start-Up Grants
Deadline: March 23, 2010
NEH Fellowships for Advanced Social Science Research on Japan
Deadline: May 4, 2010
NEH Fellowships (for advanced research in the humanities)
Deadline: May 4, 2010
OTHER FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES
International Mental Health Research Organization
Rising Star Awards for Schizophrenia Research, Bipolar Research and Depression Research
Deadline: March 15, 2010
American Cancer Society
Research Scholar Grants in Cancer Control: Health Services and Health Policy Research
Deadline: April 1, 2010
American Cancer Society
Institutional Research Grants
Deadline: April 1, 2010
William T. Grant Foundation
Investigator Initiated Grants (for research on youth settings)
Deadline: Letter of Inquiry, April 6, 2010
Research Project
[Let the Research Alert know about your research projects.]
Collaborative Research: Wings to Flippers–Phylogenetics, Character Acquisition, and Feather Biomechanics in the Evolution of Wing-Propelled Diving
RESEARCHER: Julia Clarke, associate professor, Department of Geological Sciences
AGENCY: National Science Foundation
AMOUNT: $241,279
While transformations to an aquatic lifestyle have been intensely studied in organisms ranging from insects to whales, basic questions remain unanswered for birds: e.g., how many times has ‘aquatic flight’ been gained and aerial flight lost? A large collaborative team will focus on resolving the controversial evolutionary relationships of wing-propelled diving birds (including new fossils). Phylogenetic comparative methods will be used to investigate musculoskeletal, neurosensory, and feather microstructure changes across aerial to aquatic flight transitions. Techniques such as X-ray computed tomography, histology and computer modeling will also be used.
