BRAIN Initiative: Research Grants for Technology Integration & Dissemination

BRAIN Initiative: Research Grants for Technology Integration & Dissemination is sponsored by National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) / NIH. This opportunity supports mission-aligned projects and measurable outcomes.

Expired RFA-NS-18-005: BRAIN Initiative: Research Resource Grants for Technology Integration and Dissemination (U24) This notice has expired. Check the NIH Guide for active opportunities and notices. Department of Health and Human Services Part 1.

Overview Information Participating Organization(s) National Institutes of Health ( NIH ) of Participating Organizations National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke ( NINDS ) National Eye Institute ( NEI ) National Institute on Aging ( NIA ) National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism ( NIAAA ) National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering ( NIBIB ) Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders ( NIDCD ) National Institute on Drug Abuse ( NIDA ) National Institute of Mental Health ( NIMH ) National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health ( NCCIH ) Funding Opportunity Title BRAIN Initiative: Research Resource Grants for Technology Integration and Dissemination (U24) - Clinical Trial U24 Resource-Related Research Projects Cooperative Agreements October 22, 2018 - This RFA has been reissued as RFA-NS-19-006 .

Reminder: FORMS-E Grant Application Forms and Instructions Must be Used for Due Dates On or After January 25, 2018. Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) Number Companion Funding Opportunity Additional Information on Eligibility . Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number(s) 93.

853, 93. 867, 93. 866, 93.

273, 93. 286, 93. 865, 93.

173, 93. 279, Funding Opportunity Purpose This funding opportunity announcement (FOA) supports efforts to disseminate resources and to integrate them into neuroscience research practice. Projects should be highly relevant to specific goals of the BRAIN Initiative, goals that are described in the planning document 2025: A Scientific Vision ."

They should engage in one or more of the following activities: distribution of tools and reagents; user training on the usage of new technologies or techniques; providing access to existing technology platforms and specialized facilities; minor improvements to increase the scale/efficiency of resource production and delivery; minor adaptations to meet the needs of a user community.

Applications strictly focused on technology or software development, rather than dissemination of an existing resource, are not responsive to this FOA. Refinements to microscopes or tools necessary to customize them to the experimental needs of the end users are allowed.

Projects should address compelling needs of neuroscience researchers working toward the goals of the BRAIN 2025 report that are otherwise unavailable or impractical in their current form. Open Date (Earliest Submission Date) Letter of Intent Due Date(s) 30 days prior to the application due date February 9, 2018 , by 5:00 PM local time of applicant organization.

All types of non-AIDS applications allowed for this funding opportunity announcement are due on this date. Applicants are encouraged to apply early to allow adequate time to make any corrections to errors found in the application during the submission process by the due date.

AIDS Application Due Date(s) It is critical that applicants follow the Research (R) Instructions (R&R) Application Guide , except where instructed to do otherwise (in this FOA or in a Notice from the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts ). Conformance to all requirements (both in the Application Guide and the FOA) is required and strictly enforced.

Applicants must read and follow all application instructions in the Application Guide as well as any program-specific instructions noted in Section IV . When the program-specific instructions deviate from those in the Application Guide, follow the program-specific instructions. Applications that do not comply with these instructions may be delayed or not accepted for review.

Part 1. Overview Information Part 2. Full Text of the Announcement I.

Funding Opportunity Description Section II. Award Information Section III. Eligibility Information Section IV.

Application and Submission Section V. Application Review Information Section VI. Award Administration Information Section VII.

Agency Contacts Section VIII. Other Information Full Text of Announcement Section I. Funding Opportunity Description The BRAIN Initiative: The Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative is aimed at revolutionizing our understanding of the human brain.

By accelerating the development and application of innovative technologies, researchers will be able to produce a new dynamic picture of the brain that, for the first time, will show how individual cells and complex neural circuits interact in both time and space. It is expected that the application of these new tools and technologies will ultimately lead to new ways to treat and prevent brain disorders.

NIH is one of several federal agencies involved in the BRAIN Initiative. Planning for the NIH component of the BRAIN initiative is guided by the long-term scientific plan, " BRAIN 2025: A Scientific Vision ," which details seven high-priority research areas and calls for a sustained federal commitment of $4. 5 billion over 12 years.

This FOA and other FOAs issued in Fiscal Year 2018 are based on careful consideration by the NIH of the recommendations of the BRAIN 2025 Report, and input from the NIH BRAIN Multi-Council Working Group. Videocasts of the NIH BRAIN Multi-Council Working Group are available at http://www. braininitiative.

nih. gov/about/mcwg. htm .

To enable rapid progress in development of new technologies as well as in theory and data analysis, the BRAIN Initiative encourages collaborations between neurobiologists and scientists from statistics, physics, mathematics, engineering, and computer and information sciences; and NIH welcomes applications from investigators in these disciplines.

NIH encourages BRAIN Initiative applications from investigators who are underrepresented in the biomedical, behavioral, or clinical research workforce (see data at http://www. nsf. gov/statistics/showpub.

cfm? TopID=2&SubID=27 and the most recent report on Women, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering ). Such individuals include those from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups as well as individuals with disabilities.

NIH also encourages businesses to participate in the BRAIN Initiative. It is possible for companies to submit applications directly to BRAIN Initiative program announcements or to collaborate with academic researchers in joint submissions. Small businesses should consider applying to one of the BRAIN Initiative small business FOAs ( http://braininitiative.

nih. gov/funding/index. htm ).

In addition to the National BRAIN initiative, the NIH continues to have a substantial annual investment in neuroscience research. The Institutes and Centers contributing to the NIH BRAIN Initiative ( http://braininitiative. nih.

gov/ ) support those research efforts through investigator-initiated applications as well as through specific FOAs. Potential applicants to this FOA are strongly encouraged to contact Scientific/Program staff if they have any questions about the best FOA for their research. The BRAIN Initiative will require a high level of coordination and sharing between investigators.

It is expected that BRAIN Initiative awardees will cooperate and coordinate their activities after awards are made by participating in Program Director/Principal Investigator (PD/PI) meetings This FOA is related to the recommendations in Section III of the BRAIN 2025 Report.

Specifically, this FOA solicits applications that will address the recommendations on "Dissemination and training in new technologies" (Section III, Part 8b) from "Section III> Supporting the Core Principles of the BRAIN Initiative" of the Final Report.

The overall goal of this FOA is to accelerate the scientific impact of the BRAIN Initiative through rapid dissemination of developed and validated technologies and resources broadly to the neuroscience research Projects may accomplish this goal by engaging in one or more of the following types of activities: Production and distribution of reagents (e.g., viral vectors or transgenic lines) using quality control manufacturing processes.

Services providing customized instrumentation based on end user Provision of state-of-art components, devices, or integrated systems (e.g., for assaying neural activity and/or connectivity) either distributed to end users or operated as specialized core facilities with user Maintenance, minor enhancements, and distribution of open source computational models and software packages User facilities that enable scientists from outside institutions to utilize specialized tools or techniques Training in usage of the resource The following are examples of projects responsive to this FOA.

These are representative, but not exhaustive, examples.

Consortium that provides screening services for voltage sensors and other probes for identifying changes in membrane potential or network Resource that provides reliable multichannel microelectrodes to the neuroscience community that are compatible with other recording technologies, such as optical imaging and stimulation or MRI Imaging services for large-scale recording of neural activity from multiple brain areas or for large-scale sampling/manipulation of cellular activity with simultaneous whole-brain activity measurements Maintenance, propagation, and distribution of viral vectors or other genetic tools for neural circuit identification Dissemination of novel miniaturized wireless imaging systems and serving as a core resource for researchers A resource that gathers, standardizes and streamlines the distribution of transgenic mouse models for neuroscience research Projects must address one or more of the specific goals of the BRAIN Initiative, as described in the planning document " BRAIN 2025: A Scientific Vision ."

Applications are not limited to existing BRAIN Initiative investigators or to technologies previously developed using BRAIN Initiative or NIH funds. Projects should address compelling needs of broad communities of investigators, or should offer justify the impact and unmet opportunity of providing the services at smaller scales.

Proposed techniques, resources or approaches must be at a stage wherein the potential value for research is well established, through publications or other demonstration methods. Projects focused on developing novel and unproven technologies are not responsive to this FOA.

Integration of proven techniques to produce new experimental systems, or application of existing technologies to produce new reagents such as genetic lines or constructs with an existing technology, are appropriate, but need to be described clearly with timelines for completion of development and testing. However, clear value to the intended user group must be demonstrated in the application.

For projects proposing the development of novel technologies/resources with commercial potential, potential applicants should consider funding through the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program or the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program. Please see: https://sbir. nih.

gov/ for more details about these technology development programs. The following types of activities are not responsive to this Projects focused on developing novel and unproven technologies. Projects focused solely on technology development.

Applicants considering such efforts are encouraged to explore alternative funding mechanisms. Use of existing technologies to develop new reagents, such as genetic lines or constructs, may be appropriate for this FOA, but clear value to the intended user group must be demonstrated in the application. Projects that support clinical trials or provide patient services.

Applicants considering such efforts are encouraged to explore alternative funding mechanisms. Projects proposing repositories of brain and related Resources are expected to be free from any patent or licensing constraints that would unduly restrict academic research use and impede achieving the goals of this funding program.

For resources requiring material from human subjects (e.g. DNA, fibroblasts, blood, tissue), broad sharing of the resource and any derivatives with academic and industry investigators is expected, consistent with achieving the goals of this program and consistent with applicable laws, regulations, and informed consents.

Applicants are strongly encouraged to consult Contact listed below to discuss the alignment of their proposed work with the goals of this FOA, and the BRAIN Initiative Program. VIII. Other Information for award authorities and regulations.

Cooperative Agreement: A support mechanism used when there will be substantial Federal scientific or programmatic involvement. Substantial involvement means that, after award, NIH scientific or program staff will assist, guide, coordinate, or participate in project activities. See Section VI.

2 for additional information about the substantial involvement for Application Types Allowed Glossary and the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide provide details on Not Allowed: Only accepting applications that do not help determining whether you are doing a clinical trial? Funds Available and Anticipated Number of Awards The NIH anticipates providing $10M per year to fund an estimated 10 to 20 awards.

Application budgets are not limited but need to reflect the actual needs of the proposed project. Support may be requested for up to 5 years. Grants Policy Statement will apply to the applications submitted and awards made in response to this FOA.

Higher Education Institutions Public/State Controlled Institutions of Higher Education Private Institutions of Higher Education The following types of Higher Education Institutions are always encouraged to apply for NIH support as Public or Private Institutions Hispanic-serving Institutions Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs) Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Nonprofits Other Than Institutions of Higher Education Nonprofits with 501(c)(3) IRS Status (Other than Institutions of Nonprofits without 501(c)(3) IRS Status (Other than Institutions For-Profit Organizations (Other than Small Businesses) City or Township Governments Special District Governments Indian/Native American Tribal Governments (Federally Recognized) Indian/Native American Tribal Governments (Other than Federally Eligible Agencies of the Federal Government U.S. Territory or Possession Independent School Districts Public Housing Authorities/Indian Housing Authorities Native American Tribal Organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments) Faith-based or Community-based Organizations Non-domestic (non-U.S.) Entities (Foreign Institutions) are eligible to apply.

Non-domestic (non-U.S.) components of U.S. Organizations are eligible Foreign components, as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement , are allowed. Applicant organizations must complete and maintain the following registrations as described in the SF 424 (R&R) Application Guide to be eligible to apply for or receive an award. All registrations must be completed prior to the application being submitted.

Registration can take 6 weeks or more, so applicants should begin the registration process as soon as Policy on Late Submission of Grant Applications states that failure to complete registrations in advance of a due date is not a valid reason for a Universal Numbering System (DUNS) - All registrations require that applicants be issued a DUNS number.

After obtaining a DUNS number, applicants can begin both SAM and eRA Commons registrations. The same DUNS number must be used for all registrations, as well as on the grant application. System for Award Management (SAM) (formerly CCR) Applicants must complete and maintain an active registration, which requires renewal at least annually .

The renewal process may require as much time as the initial registration. SAM registration includes the assignment of a Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) Code for domestic organizations which have not already been assigned a CAGE Code. Commercial and Government Entity (NCAGE) Code Foreign organizations must obtain an NCAGE code (in lieu of a CAGE code) in order to register in SAM.

must have an active DUNS number and SAM registration in order to complete the eRA Commons registration. Organizations can register with the eRA Commons as they are working through their SAM or Grants. gov registration.

eRA Commons requires organizations to identify at least one Signing Official (SO) and at least one Program Director/Principal Investigator (PD/PI) account in order to must have an active DUNS number and SAM registration in order to complete the Directors/Principal Investigators (PD(s)/PI(s)) All PD(s)/PI(s) must have an eRA Commons account.

PD(s)/PI(s) should work with their organizational officials to either create a new account or to affiliate their existing account with the applicant organization in eRA Commons. If the PD/PI is also the organizational Signing Official, they must have two distinct eRA Commons accounts, one for each role. Obtaining an eRA Commons account can take up to 2 weeks.

Eligible Individuals (Program Director/Principal Any individual(s) with the skills, knowledge, and resources necessary to carry out the proposed research as the Program Director(s)/Principal Investigator(s) (PD(s)/PI(s)) is invited to work with his/her organization to develop an application for support.

Individuals from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups as well as individuals with disabilities are always encouraged to apply for NIH support.

For institutions/organizations proposing multiple PDs/PIs, visit the Multiple Program Director/Principal Investigator Policy and submission details in the Senior/Key Person Profile (Expanded) Component of the SF424 This FOA does not require cost sharing as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement . 3.

Additional Information on Eligibility Applicant organizations may submit more than one application, provided that each application is scientifically distinct. The NIH will not accept duplicate or highly overlapping applications under review at the same time.

This means that the NIH will A new (A0) application that is submitted before issuance of the summary statement from the review of an overlapping new (A0) or resubmission A resubmission (A1) application that is submitted before issuance of the summary statement from the review of the previous new (A0) application.

An application that has substantial overlap with another application pending appeal of initial peer review (see NOT-OD-11-101 ). Section IV. Application and Submission Information Buttons to access the online ASSIST system or to download application forms are available in Part 1 of this FOA.

See your administrative office for instructions if you plan to use an institutional system-to-system solution. 2. Content and Form of Application Submission It is critical that applicants follow the Research (R) Instructions (R&R) Application Guide , including Supplemental Grant Application Instructions except where instructed in this funding opportunity announcement to do otherwise.

Conformance to the requirements in the Application Guide is required and strictly enforced. Applications that are out of compliance with these instructions may be delayed or not accepted for For information on Application Submission and Receipt, visit Frequently Asked Questions Application Guide, Electronic Submission of Grant Applications .

Although a letter of intent is not required, is not binding, and does not enter into the review of a subsequent application, the information that it contains allows IC staff to estimate the potential review workload and By the date listed in Part 1.

Overview Information , prospective applicants are asked to submit a letter of intent that includes the following information: Descriptive title of proposed activity Name(s), address(es), and telephone number(s) of the PD(s)/PI(s) Names of other key personnel Participating institution(s) Number and title of this funding opportunity The letter of intent should be sent to: All page limitations described in the SF424 Application Guide and the Table of Page Instructions for Application Submission The following section supplements the instructions found in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide and should be used for preparing an All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide SF424(R&R) Project/Performance Site Locations All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide SF424(R&R) Other Project Information All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide SF424(R&R) Senior/Key Person Profile All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.

The budget should include funds necessary for travel for up to two key personnel to participate in a BRAIN investigator meeting, lasting not more than two days and including up to two overnight stays, for each year All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide PHS 398 Cover Page Supplement All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed, with the following additional instructions: Strategy : The Research Strategy section must include the following required information.

Applications missing any of this information will be considered not responsive. of Relevance to the BRAIN Initiative : Within the Significance section, describe the relevance of the project to the goals of the BRAIN Initiative, as in the planning document " BRAIN 2025: A Committee (in Approach) : A proposed Steering Committee is required to provide guidance and feedback on strategic priorities and on user access and prioritization.

The steering committee should also ensure that the project is well integrated, and not redundant, with related efforts on an international scale. The committee should include established researchers with relevant technical and scientific expertise.

The composition of this committee depends on the nature and scope of the project, and the committee may include, as appropriate to the project, individuals employed by the PD/PI's institution.

Specific committee members do not need to be named to avoid potential conflicts and membership can be negotiated with program staff at the time of award however information on the proposed number of members, their scientific expertise, committee operations and frequency of meetings should be included. Scale-up Plan (in Approach): Projects should describe how scale-up will be accomplished to facilitate broad sharing of resources.

and Project Prioritization Plan (in Approach) : Projects should describe planned mechanisms for thorough advertisement and dissemination of available resources broadly to the community of relevant investigators. A concrete Project Prioritization Plan should detail how the capacity of the proposed resource will be evaluated and allocated.

Prioritization may be facilitated by a fee structure, by formal project evaluation mechanisms, or by other appropriate considerations. Cost offsets via user fees are not required, but they should be considered as part of the project plan, because they provide potential mechanisms for efficient resource allocation and for resource sustainability.

Access should be as broad as possible for the technology, including national and international users Assurance and Control Plan (in Approach) : Projects should describe the planned strategy and mechanisms for quality control / assurance for the disseminated resource. and Logistics Plan (in Approach) : Investigators should describe the planned strategy for managing the personnel and resources on the team.

The plans should highlight expertise and prior experience in managing any efforts outside the needs of their own research programs. (in Approach) : Applications must describe quantitative milestones, at least annually, that will serve as reliable indicators for objective evaluation of progress over the course of the project.

The milestones should include realistic quantitative goals for resource usage, which will be reported at the end of a given annual funding period. NIH Program staff will use the project milestones for evaluation of the funded award, and to determine whether to modify or continue the award in subsequent budget of Support : Letters of support from potential resource users are strongly advised.

In their letters, users should describe their research plans with a level of detail sufficient for reviewers to assess the potential impact of the proposed resource. Please include no more than 10 letters from planned or potential end users. The Letters of Support attachment of the application should include a cover page listing the name, institution, and proposed role for each individual providing a letter of support.

Sharing Plan : Individuals are required to comply with the instructions for the Resource Sharing Plans as provided in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide, with the following modification: All applications, regardless of the amount of direct costs requested for any one year, should address a Data Sharing Plan. Do not use the Appendix to circumvent page limits.

Follow all instructions for the Appendix as described in the SF424 (R&R) PHS Human Subjects and Clinical Trials Information Use only for applications with due dates on or after January 25, 2018.

When involving NIH-defined human subjects research, clinical research, and/or clinical trials (and when applicable, clinical trials research experience) follow all instructions for the PHS Human Subjects and Clinical Trials Information form in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide, with the following additional instructions: If you answered "Yes" to the question "Are Human Subjects Involved?"

on the R&R Other Project Information form, you must include at least one human subjects study record using the Study Record: PHS Human Subjects and Clinical Trials Information form or a Delayed Record: PHS Human Subjects and Clinical Trials Information All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide PHS Assignment Request Form All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide 3.

Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management (SAM) See Part 1. Section III. 1 for information regarding the requirement for obtaining a unique entity identifier and for completing and maintaining active registrations in System for Award Management (SAM), NATO Commercial and Government Entity (NCAGE) Code (if applicable), eRA Commons, and Part I.

Overview Information contains information about Key Dates and times. Applicants are encouraged to submit applications before the due date to ensure they have time to make any application corrections that might be necessary for successful submission. When a submission date falls on a weekend or Federal holiday , the application deadline is automatically extended to the next Organizations must submit applications to Grants.

gov (the online portal to find and apply for grants across all Federal agencies). Applicants must then complete the submission process by tracking the status of the application in the eRA Commons , NIH's electronic system for grants administration. NIH and Grants.

gov systems check the application against many of the application instructions upon submission. Errors must be corrected and a changed/corrected application must be submitted to Grants. gov on or before the application due date and time.

If a Changed/Corrected application is submitted after the deadline, the application will be considered late. Applications that miss the due date and time are subjected to the NIH Policy on Late Application are responsible for viewing their application before the due date in the eRA Commons to ensure accurate and successful submission.

Information on the submission process and a definition of on-time submission are provided in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide. 5. Intergovernmental Review This initiative is not subject to intergovernmental All NIH awards are subject to the terms and conditions, cost principles, and other considerations described in the NIH Grants Policy Statement .

Pre-award costs are allowable only as described in the NIH Grants Policy Statement . Requirements and Information Applications must be submitted electronically following the instructions described in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide. Paper applications will not be accepted.

Applicants must complete all required registrations before the application due date. Section III. Eligibility Information contains information about registration.

For assistance with your electronic application or for more information on the electronic submission Electronically . If you encounter a system issue beyond your control that threatens your ability to complete the submission process on-time, you must for Applicants Experiencing System Issues . For assistance with application submission, contact the Application Submission Contacts in Section VII .

All PD(s)/PI(s) must include their eRA Commons ID in the Credential field of the Senior/Key Person Profile Component of the SF424(R&R) Application Package . Failure to register in the Commons and to include a valid PD/PI Commons ID in the credential field will prevent the successful submission of an electronic application to NIH. See Section III of this FOA for information on registration requirements.

The applicant organization must ensure that the DUNS number it provides on the application is the same number used in the organization's profile in the eRA Commons and for the System for Award Management. Additional information may be found in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide. See more tips for avoiding common errors.

Upon receipt, applications will be evaluated for completeness and compliance with application instructions by the Center for Scientific Review and responsiveness by components of participating organizations , NIH. Applications that are incomplete, non-compliant and/or nonresponsive will not be reviewed.

Involving the NIH Intramural Research Program The requests by NIH Intramural Scientists will be limited to the incremental costs required for participation.

As such, these requests will not include any salary and related fringe benefits for career, career conditional or other Federal employees (civilian or uniformed service) with permanent appointments under existing position ceilings or any costs related to administrative or facilities support (equivalent to Facilities and Administrative or F&A costs).

These costs may include salary for staff to be specifically hired under a temporary appointment for the project, consultant costs, equipment, supplies, travel, and other items typically listed under Other Expenses. Applicants should indicate the number of person-months devoted to the project, even if no funds are requested for salary and fringe benefits. If selected, appropriate funding will be provided by the NIH Intramural Program.

NIH intramural scientists will participate in this program as PDs/PIs in accord with the Terms and Conditions provided in this FOA.

Intellectual property will be managed in accord with established policy of the NIH in compliance with Executive Order 10096, as amended, 45 CFR Part 7; patent rights for inventions developed in NIH facilities are NIH property unless NIH Should an extramural application include the collaboration with an intramural scientist, no funds for the support of the intramural scientist may be requested in the application.

The intramural scientist may submit a separate request for intramural funding as described above. Post Submission Materials Applicants are required to follow the instructions for post-submission materials, as described in the policy . Section V.

Application Review Information Only the review criteria described below will be considered in the review process.

As part of the NIH mission , all applications submitted to the NIH in support of biomedical and behavioral research are evaluated for scientific and technical merit through the NIH peer Reviewers will provide an overall impact score to reflect their assessment of the likelihood for the project to exert a sustained, powerful influence on the research field(s) involved, in consideration of the following review criteria and additional review criteria (as applicable for the Reviewers will consider each of the review criteria below in the determination of scientific merit, and give a separate score for each.

An application does not need to be strong in all categories to be judged likely to have major scientific impact. For example, a project that by its nature is not innovative may be essential to advance a field. Does the project address an important problem or a critical barrier to progress in the field?

Is there a strong scientific premise for the project? If the aims of the project are achieved, how will scientific knowledge, technical capability, and/or clinical practice be improved? How will successful completion of the aims change the concepts, methods, technologies, treatments, services, or preventative interventions that drive this field?

Will the proposed resource contribute substantially to the quality of neuroscience research and, to the goals of the BRAIN Initiative? Will the resource support research projects of the highest quality and significance in their respective fields? Is the technical resource developed to an appropriate stage (has validation been performed?)

that the technology is ready for broad dissemination and not further development and beta testing? Are the PD(s)/PI(s), collaborators, and other researchers well suited to the project? If Early Stage Investigators those in the early stages of independent careers, do they have appropriate experience and training?

If established, have they demonstrated an ongoing record of accomplishments that have advanced their field(s)? If the project is collaborative or multi-PD/PI, do the investigators have complementary and integrated expertise; are their leadership approach, governance and organizational structure appropriate for the project? the PD(s)/PI(s) have a