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Research Prizes and Honors
[Have you or a colleague won a research-related prize or honor? Let the Research Alert know.]
Engineering Professor Receives Research Award
 Danny Reible, professor in environmental and water resources engineering, has been selected to receive the 2011 Malcolm Pirnie/AEESP (Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors) Frontier in Research Award.
The award goes to "an individual who has advanced the environmental engineering and science field through recognized research leadership and pioneering efforts in a new and innovative research area." Reible was recognized for his outstanding impact on and contributions to the field of environmental engineering and science.
News and Information
Shell Partners with UT Austin to Pursue New Solutions to Unlock Gas Resources
 Shell and The University of Texas at Austin today signed a five-year agreement to invest $7.5 million to address short- and long-term challenges facing the growing worldwide unconventional oil and gas industry.
"This agreement marks an important milestone in Shell's commitment to continually research and develop innovative technology that will help to meet global demands by bringing more energy resources to market," said Marvin Odum, president of Shell Oil Co. "We chose to collaborate with UT because it brings together an extraordinary amount of talent from both organizations that will push the technological envelope in the field of developing even the most challenging hydrocarbons safely and responsibly."
Annual Sea Grant Conference Coming Up
The 10th annual Sea Grant Researcher and Extension Conference will be held Oct. 17 and 18 in College Station.
Faculty, staff and students with interests in marine science from universities throughout the state, as well as other interested parties are welcome to attend.
For more information, go to 10th Annual Sea Grant Researcher Conference.
Quoted-UT Researchers in the News
 (The Austin American-Statesman wrote about a company working with University of Texas at Austin researchers on a project to grow algae efficiently so the algae can be converted into fuel. Jerry Brand, a biology professor and director of the UTEX Culture Collection of Algae, talked about the company's idea.)
"Light energy from the sun is relatively dilute, so it is important to capture it as efficiently as possible, in order for algae to grow rapidly in as small an area as possible," Brand said. "The AlgEternal system allows bioreactors to be very compact and also makes harvesting the algae much easier than in most kinds of bioreactors. The system is modular, so it can be scaled up to large volumes without sacrificing efficiency or risking contaminating the entire system when one module fails."
Research Opportunities
Important University Research Deadlines
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act
The University of Texas at Austin Stimulus Package Web page is online.
Funding Sources
Department of Defense
Fiscal Year 2012 Office of Naval Research Young Investigator Program
Deadline: Dec. 22, 2011
Department of Energy
High Energy Density Laboratory Plasmas (PDF)
Deadline: Letter of Intent, Sept. 30, 2011; Proposal, Nov. 3, 2011
Department of the Interior
Mineral Resources External Research Program
Deadline: Oct. 6, 2011
National Institutes of Health
mHealth Tools to Promote Effective Patient–Provider Communication, Adherence to Treatment and Self Management of Chronic Diseases In Underserved Populations
Deadline: Oct. 5, 2011 and Feb. 5, 2012
Understanding Mechanisms of Terminal Erythroid Maturation
Deadline: Letter of Intent, Jan. 3, 2012; Application, Feb. 1, 2012
Silvio O. Conte Digestive Diseases Research Core Centers
Deadline: Letter of Intent, March 2, 2012; Application, March 30, 2012
Research Supplements to Promote Diversity in Health-Related Research
Deadline: Continuous; FOA expires Sept. 12, 2012
National Science Foundation
International Collaboration in Chemistry between US Investigators and their Counterparts Abroad
Deadlines: Preliminary Proposal, Nov. 4, 2011; Proposal, Jan. 11, 2012
Interface between Computer Science and Economics & Social Sciences
Deadline: Dec. 6, 2011
Arts, Humanities and Culture
Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection
Fellowships
Deadline: Nov. 1, 2011
International Center for Jefferson Studies at Monticello
Short-term Fellowships for Jefferson-related projects
Deadline: Nov. 1, 2011
National Geographic All Roads Film Project
All Roads Seed Grant (second item on page)
Deadline: Dec. 15, 2011
National Geographic All Roads Film Project
Autry Institute 2012 Research Fellowships (study of the American west)
Deadline: Dec. 31, 2011
Other Funding Opportunities
Aspen Institute
William Randolph Hearst Endowed Fellowship (for Minority Students)
Deadline: Dec. 16, 2011
Research Project
Collaborative Research: Information Technology, Remote Socialization, and the Development of Occupational Identity
 RESEARCHERS: Diane Bailey, assistant professor in the School of Information, The University of Texas at Austin; Paul Leonardi, assistant professor in the Department of Communication Studies at Northwestern University; and Bonnie Nardi, professor in the Department of Informatics at University of California, Irvine.
AGENCY: National Science Foundation
AMOUNT: $1.4 million
The project will explore how working in highly digitized, often remote locations, might transform future definitions of various occupations.
The researchers hope to unveil how information and communication technologies (ICTs) can help individuals transcend traditional geographical boundaries in the course of learning an occupation and, in doing so, transform our ideas of occupations for a new era, with broad social, cultural and economic implications.
Occupational skills are critical to economic success, social progress and individual well-being, yet scholars argue that many occupations are failing to adapt quickly to changes in science, technology and policy. The failure of occupations to change and refashion themselves to meet new social and technological pressures portends reduced job skills and possible job loss for American citizens.
Individuals are increasingly entering occupations that have no physical interaction with colleagues who can teach, provide information or model behavior for them. At the same time, advances in ICTs are allowing growing numbers of individuals to work independently, physically separated from established offices or communities in their field.
The study is intended to provide insight into how technology-enabled remote socialization may be able to contribute to faster occupational transformation and how advances in ICTs present the very real possibility that occupational identities will be reinvented, crafting altogether new ideas of what it means to work in a certain field.
The research focuses on how remote socialization enabled by ICTs are transforming four distinct occupations: graphic design, automotive engineering, banking and Internet entrepreneurship.
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