News & Updates

Dr. Gary Zank will speak on three current space missions of scientific discovery as a distinguished speaker at the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Distinguished Lecture Series in Mathematical and Physical Sciences. Dr. Zank is Alabama’s NSF EPSCoR Director, Director of the Center for Space and Plasma (CSPAR) and chair of the Department of Space Science at the University of Alabama Huntsville. Dr. Zank’s speech is titled “From the Sun’s Atmosphere to the Galactic Edge: Exploring Exotic Plasmas."

NIH’s High-Risk, High-Reward Research Program funds highly innovative biomedical or behavioral research proposed by extraordinarily creative scientists. The program supports discovery by supporting potentially transformative research proposals that may struggle in the traditional review process due to their inherent risk. Researchers are encouraged to use out of the box thinking to pursue trailblazing ideas in any area of research relevant to NIH’s mission.

The EPSCoR/IDeA Coalition has released its new fall EPSCoR/IDeA newsletter. In this issue, the Coalition provides an update on the FY2020 funding status of the EPSCoR/IDeA programs, a summary of basic research funding for next year and re-caps the second “Take Your IDeA Science to Capitol Hill” that Coalition co-sponsored along with NAIPI and the EPSCoR/IDeA Foundation.

In a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, surgery for stress urinary incontinence also improved symptoms of urgency incontinence in women who suffer from both types. The findings counter the current treatment guidelines that suggest the surgery may worsen urgency incontinence in women with both forms.

Brown University, Rhode Island - Harnessing the Data Revolution for the Quantum Leap: From Quantum Control to Quantum Materials

Brown University will be partnering with Hebrew SeniorLife to lead the Imbedded Pragmatic Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia (AD/ADRD) Clinical Trials (IMPACT) Collaboratory. The IMPACT Collaboratory are funded by NIH’s National Institute on Aging (NIA) at a level expected to total $53.4 million over five years. Impact Collaboratory researchers will work with scientists from other universities to develop novel ways to care for those with AD/ADRD.

NSF EPSCoR CPU2AL, Connecting the Plasma Universe to Plasma Technology in Alabama, is a partnership of nine universities and a research corporation in Alabama. The project seeks to understand, predict, and control plasma processes and interactions in low-temperature plasma (LTP) environments. This knowledge has applications fortechnologies in aerospace, manufacturing, medicine, agriculture, and food safety.

In 2015, NASA needed a reliable ultraviolet imager to study the environment on Venus. To address this need, Ozark Integrated Circuits proposed the designs for a microcontroller and an ultraviolet imager. Both of Ozark’s proposals were awarded at a total of $245,000 from NASA’s Small Business Innovation Research Program to test the feasibility of each of its products. Following the feasibility study, Ozark’s ultraviolet imager was chosen for an additional $750,000 in funding and is currently be tested.

Last year, NuShores Biosciences received a Fast Track Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) award and has recently received additional funding of $1.5 million to build on the successes from the previous award. The new funding will support NuShores’ Years 2 and 3 Phase II studies. In the Phase I SBIR studies, NuShores demonstrated the feasibility of its NuCress™ bone filler scaffolds in craniofacial tissues. The NuCress^TM scaffold has resulted in significantly earlier bone formation and significantly more graft being incorporated into the bone. The positive results spurred the additional funding.

On September 4, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine and Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) toured the University of North Dakota’s (UND) space related facilities. They also joined UND’s students, faculty, and staff in a town hall discussion.