RESEARCH ACCESS
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Expanding the Capacity for
Research & Innovation
February 11, 2009
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Lab Profile: Natural Products, Medicinal and Aromatic Plants Laboratory
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 Prof. Lyle Craker, Plant, Soil, and Insect Sciences, opened the Natural Products, Medicinal and Aromatic Plants Laboratory about 25 years ago after seeing the need for information on growing, processing, and using these plant materials. Craker and colleagues, including post-doctorates, graduate students, and undergraduates working in the laboratory, focus on environmental stresses that can affect the yield and phytochemical profile of medicinal and aromatic plants. [READ MORE]
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| UMass Conflict of Interest Policy Frequently Asked Questions |
Staff in the Office of Research and Engagement often get questions about what constitutes conflict of interest with respect to externally funded activities. This article answers frequently asked questions about conflict of interest as it applies to research and consulting at UMass Amherst. The forms referenced in this article are in the final stages of being updated and will be available for download on Feb. 18. What is a Conflict of Interest (COI)?The Federal financial disclosure policy provides that a conflict of interest exists when it can be reasonably determined that an investigator's personal financial concerns could directly and significantly influence the design, conduct, or reporting of government-funded research. UMass conflicts policies also govern issues such as UMass conduct of corporate sponsored research for companies in which faculty may have a financial interest. A COI includes not only an actual or potential conflict, but also the appearance of such a conflict to the taxpayers of the Commonwealth. [ READ MORE] | |
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Faculty Profile: Kalidas Shetty
When discussing issues of food security and sustainability, many
people mention the phrase "think globally, act locally." This may be a good
place to start, but it's more complicated than that, says Kalidas Shetty, UMass Amherst Professor of Food
Science. In order to create more sustainable food systems, we need to take an
integrative approach. As Shetty explains, "What we're seeing already is that
food, health, energy, environment, and of course water and sanitation - they
all connect. If we don't understand that, we cannot address the issue."
[READ MORE]
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Funding Opportunities
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4-H National Youth Science Day Experiment
Application deadline: March 4
Award: $10,000
The focus of 4-H National Youth Science Day activities is a single science experiment designed to engage young people across the nation. The Land Grant University (LGU) that submits the winning proposal will receive a $10,000 award to be used to support the creation, leadership and implementation of the experiment. LGUs must submit proposals by 4 p.m. EST on March 5. For the full Request for Proposals, or to submit a proposal, contact Karen Barshefsky at 577-0758. Proposals must be submitted through UMass.
INTERNAL FUNDING
Science and Technology / Creative Economy Funds
Amount: TBA
Application deadline: Feb. 25
UMass President Jack Wilson has released solicitations for two funds: the Science and Technology Fund and the Creative Economy Fund. Wilson's cover letter is here. Funds are available to researchers who apply by the deadline and are approved.
For Best Use of Primary Sources by Undergraduates
Amount: Up to $750
Application deadline: Feb. 13
The Friends of the Library and the Library's Department of Special
Collections and University Archives (SCUA) have initiated a new award
for undergraduates at UMass Amherst. The Friends of the Library
Undergraduate Research Award will recognize excellence in the use of
primary sources. Students are invited to submit papers or projects they
have completed at UMass Amherst during the 18 months prior to the
submission deadline of Feb. 13, 2009. Winners will be announced in
mid-March; the first place award is $750, with two honorable mention
awards of $250 each. For more information about the award and to
apply, click here. For
questions contact Danielle Kovacs 545-2784.
Research on Water Supply and Water Availability
Amount: up to $250,000 in matching funds
Application deadline: Feb. 20
The U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the National Institutes for Water Resources (NIWR) is requesting proposals for matching grants to support research on the topics of water supply and water availability, including investigations of possible new sources of supply, improvement of impaired waters to usable quality, conservation of existing sources, and limiting growth in demand. Proposals may be for projects of 1 to 3 years in duration. Successful applicants must match each dollar of the federal grant with one dollar from non-federal sources. Proposals must be filed on the NIWR web site and must be approved by the Institute (in Massachusetts that is the Water Resources Research Center) through which they were submitted. More information is here.
FOUNDATION FUNDING
Faculty interested in applying for the following foundation-sponsored opportunities are encouraged to contact Susan Worgaftik (413-547-2956) for assistance or more information. The application deadline is listed before each funding opportunity.
Feb. 13: Cancer Mary Kay Ash Charitable Foundation
Feb. 15: Teacher training Motorola Foundation
Feb. 27: Global financial crisis intellectual exchange Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership; Bone marrow failure Aplastic Anemia and MDS International Foundation
March 2: Epilepsy Epilepsy Foundation
March 15: Psychology to solve social problems American Psychological Foundation
March 17: Complex systems and brain cancer James S. McDonnell Foundation
March 25: Health and health care policy Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
March 26: Child health Charles H. Hood Foundation
March 30: Undergraduate technology education HP Global Social Investment
April 2: Eating disorders Hilda and Preston Davis Foundation
Open deadline: Investor education Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Investor Education Foundation
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| Announcements |
Prof. Susan Leschine Wins Award for Innovation
Ten women who excel in technological innovation, entrepreneurship and community involvement were honored as leaders in their field through the 6th Annual "Women to Watch" Awards, announced last month by Mass High Tech: The Journal of New England Technology. Susan Leschine, founder and chief scientist at Qteros Inc. in Marlborough, and professor, Department of Microbiology at UMass Amherst, was one of the winners. The awards will be presented March 12 at an evening gala at the Charles Hotel in Cambridge. Read more here.
Water Research Call for Abstracts
The Massachusetts Water Resources Research Center has extended the Call for Abstracts to Feb. 13 for the Sixth Annual Water Resources Research Conference, "Water Dependencies in New England: Systems, Stresses and Responses," to be held at UMass Amherst April 7. Details are here.
Training Program for Clean Energy EntrepreneursThe Clean Energy Fellowship Program (CEFP) offers experienced entrepreneurs and executives from sectors such as telecom, IT, and life sciences an intensive, half-time, semester-length program to accelerate their transition into the clean energy sector. CEFP combines seminars, lectures, case studies, lab visits, and capstone projects. These business planning projects are based on leading-edge emerging technologies for corporate, university and DOE labs. Classes are held in the Boston area on Tuesdays and Wednesdays each week. UMass is a participant. The Economist magazine and the Boston Globe published articles about CEFP. The next session runs May 5 - July 29. The application deadline is March 2 at 5 p.m. Details are here.
Space, Services Available for New Business Start-upsSpace and services for new business start-ups are available from Springfield Technical Community College's Springfield Business Incubator (SBI). SBI provides comprehensive support services and a professional office environment for new business initiatives, enhancing and accelerating their growth and stimulating economic development in Western Massachusetts. It provides affordable, customized leases from 400 to 2,500 square feet; free advisory services; T-3 connectivity; free parking, security and 24/7 access for clients to offices; shared services including: attractive and professional reception area, conference rooms, computer training rooms, copying and faxing equipment; free, on-site business consulting services; training opportunities through the Springfield Technical Community College (STCC) Center for Business and Technology; opportunities to network with other entrepreneurs, organizations and community business leaders; and access to local lenders interested in working with small business clients. A videoconferencing facility also is available to incubator tenants. SBI has several suites available for lease. To apply for tenancy, call SBI Director Deborah King at (413) 755-6112.
New Editon of "Passport UMass" Available
A new issue of the e-mail newsletter "Passport UMass" is here. The UMass Amherst International Programs Office works with incoming international students and scholars, and manages study abroad and exchange programs and processes for students, faculty and staff. At the UMass Amherst office of Research Liaison & Development, Rick Taupier is Assistant Director for International Relations.
Library Offers RefWorks Training
UMass Amherst librarians will offer several workshops in the use of RefWorks this spring. RefWorks is a web-based citation management program used to organize and generate bibliographies, manage citations, and retrieve references. It is available to all UMass Amherst students, faculty, and staff via the Library's web site. RefWorks greatly enhances the research process as it collects, stores, and organizes citations from catalogs, databases, web sites, and other sources. The workshops are open to all, pre-registration is required as space is limited. To register, email refworks@library.umass.edu.
Council for Chemical Research Awards Deadline Extended UMass Amherst is a member of the Council for Chemical Research (CCR). The deadlines for nominations for several CCR awards (the Malcolm Pruitt Award, the Research Collaboration Award, and the Diversity Award) have been extended to Feb. 15. Details are here.
Biosafety Lab To Be Available to Researchers SoonThe New England Regional Biosafety Laboratory (NE-RBL) at Tufts University in North Grafton, Mass. will soon be complete with final commissioning and certification by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the National Institute of Health (NIH) expected in early April 2009. The NE-RBL has a dual mission to support research for the development of drugs, vaccines and diagnostics for emerging infections and biological threats, and to provide surge capacity in support of public emergency response to acts of bioterrorism and outbreaks of infectious disease. This new facility is available to all regional investigators who conduct research on pathogens that require biosafety level 3. This includes scientists from academia, research institutes, profit and non-profit organizations and the private sector. For more information, contact Director, Dr. Saul Tzipori at 508-839-7955 or visit the lab web site.
Opportunity for Undergrads in Geography and Related Fields
The Clark University Human-Environment Regional Observatory (HERO) undergraduate research program was recently awarded a major NSF grant to take HERO to the national level. The award requires HERO to recruit students from outside Clark. This summer HERO will be conducting a set of projects that will use remote sensing to examine either Massachusetts forests or suburban Boston lawns and associated water management concerns. Students will be paid $4,000 for eight weeks, $300/wk for room/board, transportation costs to/from Worcester, and, if their research productivity is good, an expenses-paid trip to the March 2010 annual meeting of the Association of American Geographers (in D.C.) to present their research results. The application deadline is March 1. Some background in urban studies, landscape ecology, and/or remote sensing is helpful. Students must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident. HERO is especially seeking women and persons from other underrepresented groups.
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| Events |
Feb. 11: The UMass Amherst Genomics Resource Lab (GRL) launches a program that will provide freshly stocked Promega reagents to the campus research community through the PromegaExpress program. Promega and GRL will hold a launch party in room B1, Fernald Hall, 11 a.m. - 1 p.m. Lunch and light refreshments will be provided (compliments of Promega), for all those who sign-up. With a PromegaExpress pass you'll have on-campus access to all reagents during GRL office hours. Because UMass Amherst is a Fisher Scientific account, Promega Express users will receive Fisher contract pricing for all other Promega items inside the freezer and cabinet. Onsite ordering also eliminates shipping costs. The Launch party flyer is here. One-time Online Registration is here.
Feb. 11, 18, 25; March 4, 12: noon - 1 p.m., OGCA Brown Bag Lunch Series, Research Administration Building, Room 104, 70 Butterfield Terrace, UMass Amherst; Feb. 11: Conflict of Interest; Feb. 18: NIH Minority/Diversity Supplement Submission: Q & A Session; Feb. 25: Props & Awards; March 4: Querying the OGCA database for sponsored activities information - How to use Jordan On-Line (JOL); March 12: Post-Award Changes (Sabbatical, No-Cost Extension Procedure, Change of institution, Dealing with cost changes that occur after funding is secured). To confirm attendance or for further information, please contact Helen Bishop by e-mail or at 545-0698. Feb. 20: UMass Amherst INFORMS (Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences) Interdisciplinary Speaker Series, 11 a.m. - noon, Isenberg School of Management, room 112. Open to the public. Feb. 20: Prof. Ellis Johnson, the Coca-Cola Chaired Professor of the School of Industrial and Systems Engineering of the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta on "Major Airline Challenges and Operations Research." March 6: Prof. Hari Balasubramanian of the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at UMass Amherst on "Healthcare Operations Research: Examples from the Mayo Clinic." Details on the talks are here. March 2: Univ. of Michigan Prof. James Jackson on "The Self-Regulation of Health Behaviors: The Environmental Affordances Framework." 4 p.m., Cape Cod Lounge, Student Union, UMass Amherst. Sponsored by the Psychology and Sociology departments and the Center for Research on Families. Details are here. March 4: Advanced Biofuels: Industry Perspectives. Washington, D.C. Lunch and evening reception to learn about recent advances in the fast-changing biofuels industry. This forum will outline the steps we must take now to help move the country toward energy independence, national security, green job creation, and climate change mitigation. Presentations by four of today's leading biofuels companies, followed by a brief Q&A with each company. An opportunity to learn more and network with leaders of today's biofuels industry. Co-sponsored by Qteros. Details are here. March 30: The Fifth Early-Stage Life Sciences Technology Conference, 1-7 p.m., Boston. To be a conference presenter, researchers must complete an application form and submit it to jgoldberg@umassp.edu by Feb. 27. Details are here. April 16-17: YouTube and the 2008 Election Cycle in the United States -- an interdisciplinary conference. UMass Amherst. Details are here.
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| OGCA Histograms |
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Jan. Grants & Contracts Snapshot |
Each month ACCESS includes a selection of grants and contracts awarded to faculty from across campus to provide a sense of what's going on in research at UMass Amherst. These listings reflect only a small fraction of the total sponsored activity for any given month. Since this is just a snapshot in time and grant/contract terms vary, actual award totals may be higher than the amounts listed.
James M. Allan
Computer Science
Sponsor: IBM Corp
Title: 2008 IBM Open Collaborative Faculty Award
Total Award: $75,000
Samuel J. Black
Veterinary and Animal Sciences
Sponsor: Morris Animal Foundation
Title: Origin, Distribution and Activity of ADAMTS - 4 in the Digital Laminae of Laminitic Horses
Total Award: $207,380
Ryan C. Hayward
Polymer Science and Engineering
Sponsor: American Chemical Society
Title: Supramolecular Assembly of Polymers at Interfaces
Total Award: $100,000
Robert Hyers
Mechanical and Industrial Engineering
Sponsor: Jacobs ESTS Group
Title: Development of Magnetic Rotation Device for ESL Innovative Partnerships Program on High Temperature Materials for Aerospace
Total Award: $17,801
Joseph D. Jerry
Veterinary and Animal Sciences
Sponsor: US Department of Defense
Title: Regulation of Mammary Progenitor Cells by p53 and Parity
Total Award: $95,494
Kevin McGarigal
Natural Resources Conservation
Sponsor: Forest Service
Title: Landscape Ecology Short Course-Revised Budget for Second Course Offering in Year 1
Total Award: $29,520
Jacqueline R. Mosselson
Educational Policy Research & Administration
Sponsor: Framingham State College
Title: Global Horizons
Total Award: $20,000
Mitchell T. Mulholland
Anthropology - Archeological Services
Sponsor: Burns and McDonnell Inc.
Title: West Springfield-Agawam - Archaeological Survey
Total Award: $166,580
Lisa Olstein
English
Sponsor: Massachusetts Cultural Council
Title: Juniper Initiative Organizational Support
Total Award: $6,700
Rebecca Ready
Psychology
Sponsor: University of Iowa Health Care
Title: Development of a QOL Measure for HD
Total Award: $49,686
Lisa M. Wexler
Public Health
Sponsor: Maniilaq Association
Title: Using Digital Stories to Collaboratively Understand the Lives of Pre, Early, and Late Adolescents in the 12 Northwest Alaskan Villages
Total Award: $26,000
Dara Wier
English
Sponsor: Massachusetts Cultural Council
Title: Jubilat MCC Organizational Support Grant '08
Total Award: $2,600
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