Research NewsletterIssue: ORN-2023-49

AIM-AHEAD and NCATS Training Program

Traineeship in Advanced Data Analysis using NCATS Data and the N3C Data Enclave

The AIM-AHEAD Consortium (Data Science Training Core and Communications Hub) is partnering with the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) to offer AIM-AHEAD stakeholders, trainees, mentees, and consortium partners a training opportunity designed to increase researcher diversity in artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML) by leveraging the NCATS N3C Data Enclave. The N3C Data Enclave can be used to study COVID-19 and identify potential treatments, clinical best practices, novel patient cohorts, and interventions as the pandemic continues to evolve. Two cohorts of diverse professionals committed to applying AI/ML to benefit underrepresented communities will complete an intensive 8-month program in advanced data analysis developed by NCATS and utilizing the resources of the NCATS N3C Data Enclave and AIM-AHEAD’s Data Science Training Core. Completing the training will equip the motivated professional to conduct the in-depth analysis of large datasets essential for cutting-edge biomedical and socioeconomic research. Applications are due by Dec. 8, 2023 at 11:59 p.m. EST. Training will begin on Jan. 8, 2024 More information and application on website https://www.aim-ahead.net/data-science-training-core/aim-ahead-and-ncats-training-program/

NSF: Formal Methods in the Field (FMitF); National Discovery Cloud for Climate Opportunities; Emerging Frontiers in Research and Innovation (EFRI-2024/25); Incorporating Human Behavior in Epidemiological Models (IHBEM); International Research Experiences for Students (IRES)

NIH: BRAIN Initiative: Brain-Behavior Quantification and Synchronization – Transformative and Integrative Models of Behavior at the Organismal Level (R34); Modules for Enhancing Biomedical Research Workforce Training (R25); Miniaturization and Automation of Tissue Chip Systems (MATChS) (U43/U44)

Department of Defense/US Army/DARPA/ONR: DEVCOM ARL HBCU/MI Research Partnerships; Young Faculty Award (YFA) 2024; The Department of Defense (DOD) Fiscal Year 2025 Defense University Research Instrumentation Program (DURIP)

Department of Energy: High-Energy-Density Laboratory Plasma Science; NOI: Distribution Communication and Control Technologies Research, Development, and Demonstration

NASA: ROSES 2023: A.58 Advanced Information Systems Technology; MUREP Institutional Research Opportunity (MIRO); ROSES 2023: F.5 Future Investigators in NASA Earth and Space Science and Technology

National Endowment of Humanities: Humanities Research Centers on Artificial Intelligence; Digital Humanities Advancement Grants; Humanities Initiatives

House committee unanimously approves quantum reauthorization bill: A major piece of legislation dedicated to growing the U.S.’s domestic quantum sciences and technology industry passed a House of Representatives committee vote, with the inclusion of 19 new amendments.  The House Science, Space and Technology Committee held a final markup hearing for the legislation on Wednesday, which saw the National Quantum Initiative Act reauthorization pass unanimously out of the committee and advance towards the House floor. The legislation "will harness the accomplishments of the Committee’s 2018 National Quantum Initiative Act to conduct breakthrough research, drive new quantum applications, bolster industry partnerships and invigorate the quantum ecosystem,” said committee Chairman Frank Lucas, R-Okla. “As China and Russia are actively making notable investments in quantum systems, we must maintain our momentum to secure our leadership position in this revolutionary field, and this bill does just that.”

The first National Quantum Initiative Act was signed into law in 2018 by former President Donald Trump. Major changes included in the bill’s reauthorization expand the research frontiers and goals provisioned by the bill. One amendment allows for the study of quantum information research and how it intersects with artificial intelligence, while another prioritizes quantum information sciences research specifically within the healthcare industry. Another amendment added the Post Quantum Cybersecurity Standards Act to the bill text. Introduced by Reps. Jeff Jackson, D-N.C., and Claudia Tenney, R-N.Y., in September, that bill calls for stronger preparations to implement post-quantum cryptographic algorithms ahead of the onset of a fault-tolerant quantum computer. 

Industry experts voiced support for the bill’s passage. Allison Schwartz, the vice president of Global Government Relations & Public Affairs for D-Wave, told Nextgov/FCW that some of the most important provisions in the reauthorization will support advancing near-term quantum technologies, namely annealers and hybrid computing models. More information is posted on the NextGov website.

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NIST is prioritizing creating a dictionary of AI development: Leadership at the National Institute of Standards and Technology reiterated the need for a common lexicon of terms relevant to artificial intelligence systems and machine learning models as the technologies continue to advance and be used globally. Speaking during an Athens Roundtable event on Friday, NIST’s associate director for emerging technologies at the Information Technology Laboratory Elham Tabassi discussed both the need for and challenges of gathering a broad, diverse community response to standardizing technical language. Officials including Tabassi have been working on developing federal policy that looks to measure and account for a broad range of societal risks posed by emerging technologies like AI. Part of that work is developing standards and metrics for risks like bias, discrimination and other hazards. She noted that marrying recommendations from scientific, quantitative professionals with those that have more social sciences backgrounds is challenging –– but necessary –– to do for democratically-developed standards for AI. More information is posted on the NextGov website.

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Congress takes up software supply chain security: Under proposed acquisition guidelines, contractors will be required to develop and maintain software bills of materials — essentially an ingredients list covering all software used as part of a federal contract.The purpose behind software bills of materials — or SBOMs — is to offer transparency in the event of a cybersecurity incident targeting a contractor system. The Office of Management and Budget is collecting comments on the proposed revision to the Federal Acquisition Regulation, and on Wednesday, the technology subcommittee of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability heard from experts on the risks presented by the current software supply chain and opportunities for improvement. Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va., the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Information Technology and Government Innovation, said that federal tech officials need metrics and goals built into their day-to-day operations to support improvements that work across the entire government, not individual agency, department or program silos. More information is posted on the NextGov website.