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AMO 2010 Queries to Federal Funding Agencies
Eight federal agencies (Air Force Office of Scientific Research, Army Research Office, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Office of Naval Research, Department of Energy, National Science Foundation, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology) that fund atomic, molecular, and optical (AMO) research were asked to provide the following information:
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Data showing the evolution of the size of your agency’s AMO program for the past 10 years, in as-spent dollars and 2005 dollars.
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The number of grantees supported each year for the last 10 years.
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The number of applicants, and the ratio of successful proposals, each year over the past 10 years.
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Please provide an estimate of how much turnover there has been in your program over the last few years. In particular, how many new starts have you been able to provide?
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Please provide a percentage breakdown of how your funds are distributed across the major segments of AMO science today. How much goes to theoretical work, and how much to experiment?
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What is the average grant size for an award in experimental AMO and in theoretical AMO?
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Has the number of grants of the same quality level as the ones you have been funding in recent years dropped due to budget shortfalls? How much
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would the AMO budget at your agency have to expand to maintain the previous levels of grant numbers?
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What would be the ideal size of a grant in experimental AMO? In theoretical AMO? How much would it cost to raise all grants to these levels?
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If you track demographics, what has been the age distribution of the grantees in your program in 2004 and how has that distribution shifted in the last decade?
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The committee is particularly interested in the percentage participation by women and underrepresented minorities each year for the last 10 years and whether there have been any substantial shifts in the last decade.
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The number of students supported and Ph.D.s granted each year for the last 10 years.
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Has your agency begun supporting any special centers or larger group efforts in AMO science? If so, please provide us with a short paragraph or two describing their intellectual thrusts and the size of the award(s).
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Please describe how the intellectual balance of the support for AMO science has shifted over the last decade. What are the major areas of interest today?
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Please describe the extent to which your agency supports interdisciplinary activities that include AMO science.