Office of Naval Research, 800 North Quincy St., Arlington, VA 22217-5660

A -- CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE PROTECTION AND HIGH CONFIDENCE, ADAPTABLE SOFTWARE(CIP/SW)RESEARCH PROGRAM OF THE UNIVERSITY RESEARCH INITIATIVE (URI) SOL 00-015 DUE 113000 POC Point of Contact Negotiator: Vera M. Duberry, ONR 253, (703) 696-2610, duberrv@onr.navy.mil; Technical Point of Contract: Dr. Clifford G. Lau, ONR 363, (703) 696-0431, lauc@onr.navy.mil The Department of Defense (DoD) announces the Fiscal Year 2001 competition for the Critical Infrastructure Protection and High Confidence, Adaptable Software (CIP/SW) Research Program of the University Research Initiative (URI),sponsored by the Office of the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Science and Technology (ODUSD(S&T)) to enhance universities' capabilities to perform basic science and engineering research and related education in science and engineering areas critical to national defense. The CIP/SW program will support university team efforts to accelerate research progress in areas particularly suited to this approach and to hasten the transition of basic research findings to practical applications. The DoD expects the CIP/SW program will promote basic science and engineering research to protect the nation's critical infrastructures, primarily for defense but also for civilian applications. Proposals may be submitted only by U.S. institutions of higher education (hereafter referred toas universities), other than federal government, with degree granting programs in science and/or engineering. Eligible universities may submit proposals either individually or collectively, as consortia. This CIP/SW competition is specifically for the following thirteen research topics: Topic #1 Network Surveillance Topic #2 Information Assurance for Wireless Networks Topic #3 CIP Performance Assessment Topic #4 Assured Development Technology for High-Confidence Embedded Systems Topic #5 Understanding Mobile Code Topic #6 Protecting COTS from the Inside Topic #7 Heterogeneous Distributed Computing Systems Topic #8 Digital Libraries for Constructive Mathematical Knowledge Topic #9 Assuring Software Quality Topic #10 Dynamic Network Management Topic #11 Understanding and Countering Deception Topic #12 Novel Network Architectures Topic #13 Protecting Infrastructures from Themselves This notice constitutes a Broad Agency Announcement as contemplated in FAR 6:102(d)(2)(i). The DoD expects that typically each award will be: (1) for a period of three years (funded incrementally or as options) with two additional years possible as options to bring the total award to five years, subject to the availability of appropriations; and (2) at a funding level commensurate with the fields and breadth of research included in the details of each specific proposal, ranging from about half a million dollars to a million dollars per year. More than one award, or no award, may be made for an individual topic. A full description of the program is accessible on the World Wide Web at http://www.onr.navy.mil/ in "URI/Education/HBCU/MI Programs". The DoD will not issue paper copies of this program announcement. The program announcement on the Web provides: general information; eligibility; relevant dates; instructions for submitting white papers and proposals; detailed description of each of the thirteen research topics; technical points of contact for each of the thirteen research topics; and evaluation criteria. The intent of a request for white papers is to minimize the labor and costs associated with the production of detailed proposals. All interested proposers, therefore, are encouraged to submit white papers. However, all proposals submitted under the terms and conditions cited herein will be reviewed, regardless of the disposition (or lack) of white papers. The primary evaluation criteria, of equal weight, are: (1) Scientific and technical merits of the proposed basic science and/or engineering research; (2) Relevance and potential contributions of the research to defense missions; and, (3) Impact of plans to enhance the institution's ability to perform defense-relevant research and to train, through the proposed research, students in science and/or engineering (for example, by acquiring or refurbishing equipment that can support DoD research and research-related educational objectives). Other evaluation criteria, of lesser importance than (l), (2), and (3) but equal to each other, are: (4) The qualifications of the principal investigator and other key research personnel; (5) The adequacy of current or planned facilities and equipment to accomplish the research objectives; (6) The impact of interactions with other organizations engaged in related research and development, in particular industrial organizations, DoD laboratories and other organizations that perform research and development for defense applications; and (7) The realism and reasonableness of cost. Criteria (1), (2), (3), and (7) will be used to evaluate white papers. All seven criteria will be used to evaluate final proposals. The awards will be made on behalf of ODUSD(S&T) in these thirteen specific research topics under the supervision of the Research Topic Chiefs in the following three agencies: the Army Research Office (ARO), the Office of Naval Research (ONR), and the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR). White papers and proposals addressing topics numbered 1 -- 4 should be sent to the ARO; topics numbered 5 -- 9 to the ONR; and topics numbered 10 -- 13 to the AFOSR at the addresses provided in the program announcement on the Web. Due dates are as follows: (1) White papers -- 4:00 p.m. local time on Thursday, 17 August 2000. (2) Proposals -- 4:00 p.m. local time on Thursday, 30 November 2000. Sponsor: Office of Naval Research, 800 North Quincy Street, Arlington, VA 22217-5660 Posted 06/15/00 (W-SN465204). (0167)

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