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Archaeometry Awards
Target date: October 31
The Archaeology Program recognizes three broad classes of archaeometric proposals: (1) proposals to support laboratories which provide archaeometric services; (2) proposals to develop and refine archaeometric techniques; (3) proposals to apply existing analytic techniques to specific bodies of archaeological materials. "Laboratory support" and "technique development" projects are included within the Archaeometry competition. "Technique application" proposals are best evaluated in a more strictly archaeological context and therefore should be submitted to the "senior" research competition.
Archaeometry proposals are evaluated by outside reviewers selected for specific expertise in the applicant’s subject area and also by a panel composed of both archaeologists to determine potential anthropological contribution and physical scientists to assess technical feasibility. The panel meets annually in either March or April and applicants are invited to contact the Program Director to obtain the panel date and then to inquire about application outcome. During government fiscal years 1998-2000, 12 of 30 applications (40%) received support. The distribution of award size and duration is presented below.
Laboratory support awards provide "core" funding that permits laboratories to increase analytical capacity through the addition and/or replacement of equipment and retention of key personnel. The goal of the awards is to increase the contribution of these laboratories to anthropologically oriented archaeology. Proposals should contain:
- A discussion of the laboratory’s specific commitment to solving problems of recognized archaeological significance.
- An explicit statement which describes how the laboratory will increase productivity measured in terms of reduced turnaround times and/or increase in the number of samples to be analyzed each year. The applicant should discuss the characteristics of the samples to be processed, the specific technical problems relating to these types of samples and specific techniques utilized to deal with these problems. Past performance should be discussed and quantitative data on output provided.
- An explanation of the laboratory’s plan to ensure that it will attract samples of high archaeological interest and quality and a discussion of the criteria employed to select and assign priorities.
- A discussion of the current standards of accuracy and precision maintained by the laboratory and how these standards will be continued or augmented.
- A statement of existing resources available to the laboratory including current institutional support and projected income, and a discussion of how Foundation support will be used in addition to (rather than in lieu of) presently available funds. Policies and practices with respect to fees should be described. Please note that NSF Important Notice 122 states that "it is contrary to the NSF’s intent for grantees to use NSF-supported research instrumentation or facilities to provide service for a fee in direct competition with private companies that provide equivalent services. "
- A listing of all personnel (when known) included in the project and a discussion of the professional training, experience and suitability of each. If personnel are yet to be hired, the requirements for the position should be described.
- A justification of the budget for personnel and equipment needed to achieve these basic goals.
Awards are not intended to provide full operational support for a laboratory or to replace funding for ongoing laboratory personnel. Therefore, they will not include such items as the regular salary of a laboratory director. Budget items may include: 12 month salary for a full-time professional laboratory associate at the postdoctoral level, student support, funding for the acquisition of laboratory equipment and expendable supplies, and up to 2 months of full time equivalent salary during the year for the laboratory director to support active collaboration with archaeologists. Laboratories receiving awards will also be permitted to submit "senior" research applications for the support of focused research projects. Applicants may request up to five years of support.
Technique development proposals should follow standard guidelines. In addition to descriptions of the technique and methodology to be employed, the potential significance of the technique to anthropologically oriented archaeological research should be specifically addressed.
Under NSF's data sharing policy, the Foundation expects investigators to share with other researchers, at no more than incremental cost and within a reasonable time, the data, samples, physical collections, and other supporting materials created or gathered in the course of the work. To implement that policy in ways appropriate to Physical Anthropology and Archaeology, beginning July 1, 2005 these Programs will require that all proposals include a one-page detailed description of the applicant's data access plan in the "Supplementary Documents" section. This page will be in addition to the standard 15-page project description. Applications lacking this statement will not be reviewed. The Programs realize that individual cases may differ widely and recognize that any absolute timeline or rigid set of rules is not possible. They also recognize that revision and adjustment may often be required as the work proceeds. The data access plan, however, will be considered an integral part of the project and therefore subject to reviewer and panel evaluation. Major departure from it will constitute a significant project change and require NSF approval. Successful applicants will be required to address this issue in every progress and final report. PIs on all awards made under these guidelines will be expected to discuss implementation of their plans in the "Results of Prior Research" section when they submit subsequent applications.
For both types of proposals, applications should be prepared in accordance with the Grant Proposal Guide and submitted electronically through the NSF Fastlane system.
Fiscal years 1998-2000 award data
Award Duration (months) |
Number of Awards |
12 |
1 |
|
24 |
3 |
|
36 |
8 |
Award Amount |
Number of Awards |
$0 - $50,000 |
0 |
|
$50,000 - $100,000 |
2 |
|
$100,000 - $150,000 |
0 |
|
$150,000 - $200,000 |
1 |
|
$200,000 - $250,000 |
6 |
|
$250,000 - $300,000 |
0 |
|
$300,000 - $350,000 |
2 |
|
$350,000 - $400,000 |
1 |
|
