The National Science Foundation Human and Social Dynamics (HSD) priority area fosters breakthroughs in understanding the dynamics of human action and development, as well as knowledge about organizational, cultural, and societal adaptation and change. HSD aims to increase our collective ability to anticipate the complex consequences of change; understand the dynamics of human and social behavior at all levels, including that of the human mind; understand the cognitive and social structures that define, create, and result from change; and manage profound or rapid change, and make decisions in the face of changing risks and uncertainty.

The fiscal year 2005 HSD competition includes three emphasis areas; each proposal submitted must indicate one of these areas as primary:

1. Agents of Change - focuses on the dynamics that underlie, are part of, or result from large-scale transformational changes. Examples include globalization, population migration, infectious diseases, democratization, economic transformations, scientific and technological advances, and the development of human societies over time. Agents of Change projects may also focus on processes and outcomes associated with such phenomena as human evolution and the evolution of culture; the interaction of culture with climate, geography, and environment; the implications of social differences for conflict, cooperation, and assimilation; the implications of large-scale transformational changes for diversity and equality; and adaptation and resistance to technological change and new knowledge.
2. Dynamics of Human Behavior - focuses on multidisciplinary examinations of dynamics - change in human behavior over time. Examples include the dynamics through which individuals and organization create, grow, learn, change, and act under the impetus of internal and external stimuli; the influence organizational, community, and environmental structures and processes have on these dynamics; the interplay of evolutionary forces and human behavioral change; and individual cognitive, computational, linguistic, developmental, social, biological, and other processes as dynamic and evolving systems.
3. Decision Making, Risk and Uncertainty - concerned with the dynamics of conscious human and societal attempts to identify, characterize, evaluate, and manage situations that call for choices and decisions, and involving changing perceptions of uncertainty and risk.

• Full Research Project grants - support multidisciplinary teams of three or more investigators from at least two different fields in projects that use interdisciplinary approaches to advance fundamental understanding about human and social dynamics. Projects should have significant educational or other broader impacts in addition to advancing fundamental knowledge. Typical Full Research projects will be three years in duration and have total maximum award sizes ranging from $250,000 to $750,000.
• Exploratory Research Project grants - enable teams of three more investigators from at least two different fields to perform preliminary activities that provide the basis for more elaborate work. These projects must be novel and innovative. Support will typically be for one or two years, with a total award size of up to $125,000 including facilities and administrative costs.
• Research Community Development Project grants - support interdisciplinary educational activities and other broad-ranging efforts, including research workshops and training activities, that aim to increase awareness, capabilities, and networks within and across scholarly communities, with an eye to enabling interdisciplinary collaborations and increasing the quality of human social dynamics research.

The National Science Foundation Cyber Trust program will, to improve national security and achieve the Cyber trust vision of a society in which networked computer systems are:

• more predictable, more accountable, and less vulnerable to attack and abuse;
• developed, configured, operated and evaluated by a well-trained and diverse workforce; and
• used by a public educated in their secure and ethical operation,

The Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation (MAAF) Tour Planning Program is designed to support planning for quality engagements of performing artists in underserved communities in the mid-Atlantic region under the MAAF ArtsConnect program. Funds awarded may be used for planning purposes only. Awards ranging from $3,000 to $5,000 support the costs involved with planning a tour project, including costs to develop interest with more presenters in the project; meeting expenses; travel expenses to the meeting; and artist honoraria for the meeting. Applications are accepted from consortia only, comprised of an artist/company and at least three presenting organizations based in the jurisdictions served by MAAF. MAAF encourages planning for tours that will incorporate public performance and residency activities which will enable the presenters to reach new audiences not served by their other programs. Prospective applicants must call MAAF (410-539-6656) before submitting an application. Recent awardee consortia, which include colleges and universities, are listed at www.midatlanticarts.org/grantsfunding_history_performingarts.html.