Strategic Directions of the National Science Foundation and the CISE Directorate

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Strategic Directionsof the National Science
Foundationand theCISE Directorate

• Peter A. Freeman
• Assistant Director U.S. National Science
  Foundation
• for Computer and Information Science and
  Engineering (CISE)
• August 2004

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Agenda

• NSF context
• The CISE Directorate
• Focus for Computing Research in 2004
• Long-term Challenges for Computing Research

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The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF)

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NSF Mission

• National Science Foundation Act of 1950 (Public
  Law 810507)
• To promote the progress of science
• to advance the national health, prosperity, and
  welfare
• to secure the national defense
• and for other purposes.

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NSF Organization
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NSF OrganizationDirectorates

• Office of the Director
• Acting Director Arden Bement
• Deputy Director Joe Bordogna
• Office of Integrative Activities Nathaniel
  Pitts
• Office of Polar Programs Karl Erb
• Biological Sciences Mary Clutter
• Computer and Information Science and Engineering
  (CISE) Peter Freeman
• Education Human Resources Judith Ramaley
• Engineering John Brighton
• Geosciences Margaret Leinen
• Mathematics Physical Sciences Michael Turner
• Social, Behavioral, Economic Sciences Wanda
  Ward (acting)

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NSF Activities

• basic scientific research research fundamental
  to the engineering process
• programs to strengthen scientific and engineering
  research potential
• science and engineering education programs at all
  levels and in all the various fields of science
  and engineering and
• an information base for science and engineering
  appropriate for development of national and
  international policy.

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NSF Strategic Focus

• People to develop a diverse, internationally
  competitive and globally-engaged workforce of
  scientists, engineers, and well-prepared citizens
• Ideas to provide a deep and broad fundamental
  science and engineering knowledge base
• Tools to provide widely accessible,
  state-of-the-art science and engineering
  infrastructure
• Organization to develop an agile, innovative
  organization that fulfills its mission through
  leadership in state-of the-art business practices

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NSF Crosscutting Initiatives for 2005

• Biocomplexity in the Environment
• Nanoscale Science and Engineering
• Mathematical Sciences
• Human and Social Dynamics
• Information Technology Research - ended as an
  initiative in 2004

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The NSF Directorate for Computer Information
Science Engineering (CISE)

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CISE Mission

•  
• to enable the United States to remain competitive
  in computing, communications, and information
  science and engineering
• to promote understanding of the principles and
  uses of advanced computing, communications, and
  information systems in service to society and
• to contribute to universal, transparent, and
  affordable participation in an information-based
  society.

CISE has three goals
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CISE Responsibilities

• Support basic computer and information science
  and engineering research education
• Support a shared cyberinfrastructure for all of
  science and engineering

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The New CISE

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New CISE Organization
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Key Concept Clusters

• Comprehensive activity in a coherent area of
  research and education
• Teams of Program Officers and Staff working
  closely with the community
• Initially groups of existing programs
• Eventually one program per cluster

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Key Concept Emphasis Areas

• Focused areas of research that cut across
  clusters and divisions
• Address scientific and national priorities
• Have program announcements and funds
• Examples
• Cybertrust
• Education and workforce
• Information Integration
• Science of design

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Computing and Communication Foundations (CCF)

• Formal and Mathematical Foundations
• Computer science theory numerical computing
  computational algebra and geometry signal
  processing and communication
• Foundations of Computing Processes and Artifacts
• Software engineering software tools for HPC
  programming languages compilers computer
  architecture graphics and visualization
• Emerging Models for Technology and Computation
• Computational biology quantum computing
  nano-scale computing biologically inspired
  computing

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CCF Competitions

• FY 2004
• Responsible for about 2030 proposals
• Heavy mortgages and commitments
• Decent success rates for CAREER (15) but
  terrible success rates for clusters (5)
• FY 2005 and FY 2006
• CAREER competitions both years
• Formal and Mathematical Foundations, and Emerging
  Models for Technology and Computation November
  2004 but no competition in FY 2006
• Foundations of Computing Processes and Artifacts
  May 2005 with funds from FY 2006 budget
• FY 2007 Fall deadlines for all three clusters

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Computer and Network Systems (CNS)

• Computer Systems
• Distributed systems embedded and hybrid systems
  next-generation software parallel systems
• Network Systems
• Networking research broadly defined plus focus
  areas in programmable wireless networks and
  networks of sensor systems
• Computing Research Infrastructure
• Research infrastructure minority institutional
  infrastructure research resources
• Education and Workforce
• Curriculum development/educational innovation IT
  workforce special projects cross-directorate
  activities (e.g., REU sites)

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CNS Competitions

• FY 2004
• Responsible for about 2035 proposals
• Good success rates on CAREER and infrastructure
  (30)
• Fair success rates on most other programs
  (10-15)
• FY 2005 One solicitation per cluster
• CAREER July deadline as usual
• Computer systems November 2004
• Network systems December 2004
• Computing Research Infrastructure late August
  deadline (late July for letters of intent for
  large proposals)
• Education and Workforce January 2005
• FY 2006 Same deadlines as in FY 2005

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Information and Intelligent Systems (IIS)

• Systems in Context
• Human computer interaction educational
  technology robotics computer-supported
  cooperative work digital government
• Understanding, Inference, and Data
• Databases artificial intelligence text, image,
  speech, and video analysis information
  retrieval knowledge systems
• Science Engineering Informatics/Information
  Integration
• Bioinformatics geoinformatics cognitive
  neuroscience

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IIS Competitions

• FY 2004
• Responsible for about 2590 proposals
• Success rates 17 CAREER, 5 regular.
• FY 2005
• Raise acceptance rate of 2004 to 12-15
• CAREER in July as normal
• Science Engineering Informatics/Information
  Integration and Universal Access December 2004
• Data, Inference, and Understanding and Systems in
  Context May 2005 with most funding from FY 2006
• FY 2006 Same deadlines as in FY 2005

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Shared Cyberinfrastructure (SCI)

• Infrastructure Development
• Creating, testing, and hardening next-generation
  deployed systems
• Infrastructure Deployment
• Planning, construction, commissioning, and
  operations

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SCI Competitions

• FY 2004
• NSF Middleware Initiative (NMI) 140 proposals
  expected success rate of 10-15
• International Network Connections in panels
• FY 2005
• Continuing support for centers (PACI, ETF)
• Cyberinfrastructure Teaching, Education,
  Advancement, and Mentoring (CI-TEAM) early 2005
• NSF Middleware Initiative (NMI) spring 2005
• Leveraging and coordinating shared and
  domain-specific cyberinfrastructure contact a
  program director if you have ideas for leveraging
  CISE research
• Some programs with other agencies/directorates

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Cross-Cutting Emphasis Areas

• Characteristics
• cuts across clusters and divisions
• addresses scientific or national priority
• FY04 Emphasis Areas
• Cyber Trust 488 proposals
• Science of Design 182 proposals
• Information Integration 250 proposals
• FY 2005 Emphasis Areas
• Cyber Trust January 2005
• Science of Design spring 2005
• Information Integration December 2004
• Broadening Participation late winter/early
  spring 2005
• Possibly one more

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CISE BudgetFY05 Request (M)
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Cyber Trust
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National Cyber Security Context
Homeland Security Critical Infrastructure
ProtectionCyber Security Cyber Trust
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Cyber Trust Theme

• Vision A society in which
• Computing systems operate securely and reliably
• Computing systems protect sensitive information
• Systems are developed and operated by a
  well-trained and diverse workforce
• Research on foundations, network security,
  systems software, and information systems
• Integrated education and workforce activities

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NSFs Cyber Trust Emphasis

• Coordinated effort for research and education in
  
• Security
• Reliability
• Privacy, etc.
• Essentially, all the attributes so that a
  computing, communication, or information system
  can be trusted
• First awards to be announced soon

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Cyberinfrastructure

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Guiding Principles for Shared Cyberinfrastructure
(SCI) at NSF

• Serve all of science engineering
• Firm and continuing commitment to providing the
  most advanced cyberinfrastructure (CI), with
  high-end computing (HEC) at the core
• Encourage emerging CI while maintaining and
  transitioning extant CI
• Provide balance in CI equipment
• Strong links to ongoing fundamental research to
  create future generations of CI

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History of NSF CI Investments
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Looking to the Future

• Science frontiers as the drivers
• Balance capability and capacity
• the Extensible Terascale Facility (ETF)
• Emerging importance of data-intensive paradigms

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Cyberinfrastructure consists of

• Computational engines (supercomputers, clusters,
  workstations capability and capacity)
• Mass storage (disk drives, tapes, ) and
  persistence
• Networking (including optical, wireless,
  ubiquitous)
• Digital libraries/data bases
• Sensors/effectors
• Software (operating systems, middleware, domain
  specific tools/platforms for building
  applications)
• Services (education, training, consulting, user
  assistance)

All working together in an integrated fashion.
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Integrated Cyberinfrastructure
Applications
Domain Specific Cybertools
DevelopmentTools Libraries
Education Training
Discovery Innovation
Grid Services Middleware
Shared CI
Hardware
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Broadening Participation
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Vision

• A discipline in which
• Graduates are well-prepared relative to a
  well-defined core of knowledge and are prepared
  for life-long learning
• There are no under-represented groups
• There is a strong and productive mix of domestic
  and foreign students
• There is balance between demand and supply
• Educational institutions, government
  organizations, and private industry work together
  to achieve the vision
• NSFs role is seed efforts, model programs,
  dissemination, and research into success factors

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Moving Forward

• Increased staff and dollars in CISE focused on
  EWF action
• Build on research results and encourage action
• Help successful efforts mature
• Focus new efforts on selected areas sequentially
• Encourage computing community to participate in
  NSF-wide programs (ADVANCE, LS-AMP, etc.)

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Conclusion

• NSFs role is fundamental to all areas of our
  society - the most basic future investment
• Computer science and related disciplines are
  hugely important in their own right and essential
  to advancement in all areas of SE
• NSF and our field are facing unprecedented
  pressures that can only be overcome by concerted,
  cooperative action

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Contact Information

• Dr. Peter A. Freeman
• NSF Assistant Director for CISE
• Phone [phone]
• Email pfreeman_at_nsf.gov
• Visit the NSF Web site at
• www.nsf.gov

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Former CISE Organization
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CISE ReorganizationDrivers

• Scientific changes to the field
• Current organization is essentially the same as
  in 1985
• Administrative proposal pressure
• Up 125 since 1997 (vs. 16 for NSF)
• Financial end of ITR
• How to invest those funds

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CISE ReorganizationStrategic Objectives

• Realign divisions for coherence and to mirror the
  field
• Cluster similar programs
• Support cross-cutting themes
• Build on success of ITR to invigorate the CISE
  core

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CISE ReorganizationGoals

• Increase productivity and efficiency for
  investigators and program officers
• Increase grant size and duration
• Sharpen focus of CISE programs
• Increase agility in the CISE organization
• Integrate education and research
• Broaden participation in CISE activities