Selected NFS grant application documents

Every year, the US National Science Foundation funds research for projects that it didn't specify. These are called Investigator-Initiated Research Projects. Coulomb Labs applied for such a grant late in 2021. Here are some of the most relevant documents.

The Project Summary is a one-page document that is required to have three specific sections: An "Overview" of the work to be done, an "Intellectual Merit" section about how the project will advance knowledge, and a "Broader Impacts" section that explains how the proposed activity may benefit society.

The Project Description is a narrative with drawings and photographs. It explains this application's unusual approach of identifying and questioning previously-unquestioned assumptions, and how an alternative theory leads to profound consequences that are easily testable. It introduces the work that has been done and the work that is to be done. It is limited to 15 pages, not counting the bibliography, which is provided in a separate file.

The Budget Justification also has some incidental details in the context of what specifically needs funding.

The application process is quite complex and lengthy. Many other forms and documents were required for the application but are not required to understand the proposed research, so they are not included here.