November 7, 2018
Funding Connection

Compliance Check:
IACUC post-approval monitoring
The University Research Compliance Office Institutional Animal Care and Use Compliance Coordinator is working to implement a post-approval monitoring program in early 2019. Our goal is to work with and support each research team to confirm accurate and consistent protocol performance.

The main purpose of the post-approval monitoring, or PAM, process is to confirm that the manner in which the IACUC committee understood and approved a protocol is consistent with the way the experimental procedures are being performed. The process is as follows.

  • All active protocols are eligible for PAM.
  • Protocols will be selected randomly, for cause, or as a result of a request.
  • The compliance coordinator will then contact the designated principle investigator to set up an appointment to review the protocol.
  • Depending on the manner in which the protocol was selected, the review process could include document review only, specific procedural review, or a combination of both.
  • Compliance personnel will go over any findings or concerns with the protocol personnel present at the end of the review.
  • A written report will be sent detailing any findings and corrective action plans with deadlines. A follow-up visit will be scheduled if needed.

We understand the importance of research and the value of having consistent, high-quality results. We strive to maintain an open educational partnership with all investigators and their respective research teams. 

If you have questions, please contact Megan Trapp, K-State IACUC Compliance Coordinator, at 785-532-3233 or  moore5@ksu.edu .

— Cheryl Doerr, associate vice president for research compliance
Events and announcements
  • The Laboratory Safety Renovation Program is accepting proposals through November 16. The program will award $500,000 from deferred maintenance support funds; proposals require a one-to-one department match and will be reviewed by the Laboratory Renovation Working Group. Find more information.

  • The Office of Research Development will offer two training sessions in November.
  • An Early Career Funding Opportunities Information Session on November 13, 3:30 to 5:00 p.m. in Union 207 will give an overview of young faculty programs (more than NSF CAREER!) and include a panel of faculty members who have received awards from NSF and DoD. Please register.
  • A Fulbright Information Session on November 29, 3:30 to 5:00 p.m. in Union 207 will give a brief overview of submission requirements and include a panel of K-State Fulbright Scholar awardees who will discuss their experience. Please register.

  • The National Postdoc Association is seeking someone to serve as the next co-chair of the Meetings Committee that plans and coordinates the Annual Conference. The application deadline is November 12. Find more information.

  • The Office of the Vice President for Research invites individuals or teams to have a prospective proposal vetted by our consultants, McAllister & Quinn.
  • Teams with promising concepts can receive guidance from M&Q on additional potential funding, and high-priority concepts/teams will be selected to work directly with M&Q on a full proposal.
  • Concept papers are due November 30 and will be pre-reviewed by OVPR. Criteria include:
  • Alignment with unit, college, and university 2025 research goals
  • Lead PI is at K-State (collaborators can be elsewhere)
  • PIs or PI teams have not been previously funded
  • Proposals are to the Department of Defense, including CDMRP and MURI, or the Department of Energy
  • All concept papers should be routed through the Associate Dean for Research of the PI's home college.
  • Find more information and the concept paper template.
  • Questions? Contact the Office of Research Development at ord@k-state.edu or 785-532-6195.

  • The 17th Annual K-INBRE Symposium is January 19 and 20 in Overland Park, Kansas. Abstracts for the symposium are due November 30. Find more information.

  • The 4th Annual Midwest Bioinformatics Conference will be April 11-12, 2019 at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. The conference brings together bioinformatics-minded researchers from academia and industry to discover capabilities, share tactical approaches to problem solving, explore synergies, and launch potential collaborations. Find more information and register. 
Find the latest issue of Seek
The fall 2018 issue of Seek, K-State's flagship research magazine, is now available both in print, as a PDF from New Prairie Press , or via a newly redesigned website .

The magazine highlights a variety of K-State research, scholarly, and creative activity and discovery, including:

  • How K-State research improves America's favorite meal;
  • Why scientists study wildlife;
  • How university green roofs enrich city life;
  • How zoonotic disease research targets animal and human maladies;
  • Where innovative child development research resides at K-State;
  • How a program helps first-generation students graduate;
  • The emerging sense of place in the North Campus Corridor neighborhood;
  • and more!

If you don't receive a copy of Seek in the mail, you can pick up a copy from the Office of the Vice President for Research (hurry — they're going fast!) or subscribe on the website.
Agency news and trending topics
The National Science Foundation (NSF) said ... it is “currently reviewing possible future directions” for the Graduate Research Opportunities Worldwide (GROW). Amanda Greenwell, head of NSF’s Office Of Legislative and Public Affairs, said the agency “expects to make an announcement within the coming weeks” but that it “will not be publicly discussing the topic during the decision making process.” Greenwell also said the number of GROW recipients has declined over the past 3 years, from 158 in 2016 to 88 this year.

NIH Updates Management of Genomic Summary Results Under GDS Policy
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced that it will allow unrestricted access to genomic summary results from most NIH-supported studies for health or research purposes, while continuing to limit access to summary results from research studies with particular privacy concerns. This data management procedures update regarding the NIH Genomic Data Sharing (GDS) Policy is in response to NIH’s extended consultations with stakeholders regarding the risks and benefits of access to genomic summary results. As part of that engagement, NIH issued a  Request for Comments for a proposed update in September 2017. The comments NIH received can be viewed  here . More information about this policy update can be found on the  OSP Website  and in the latest  “ Under the Poliscope ” blog co-authored by Dr. Carrie D. Wolinetz and Dr. Eric D. Green. Questions may be sent to  SciencePolicy@od.nih.gov.

The largest-ever database of retracted articles suggests the burgeoning numbers reflect better oversight, not a crisis in science.

Here are four of the most creative data collection methods used by experts at the leading annual conference on natural-language processing.

Pinpointing where and how the human genome is evolving can be like hunting for a needle in a haystack. Each person’s genome contains three billion building blocks called nucleotides, and researchers must compile data from thousands of people to discover patterns that signal how genes have been shaped by evolutionary pressures. To find these patterns, a growing number of geneticists are turning to a form of machine learning called deep learning. Proponents of the approach say that deep-learning algorithms incorporate fewer explicit assumptions about what the genetic signatures of natural selection should look like than do conventional statistical methods.

Although my undergraduate professors certainly trained me as a budding historian, and I had carefully researched my graduate school of choice, I still arrived at the university unsure of the ins and outs of grad school beyond the expectations listed on the syllabus. So if you're at the start of your first semester, or contemplating going to grad school in the near future, I hope you'll find these tips helpful.
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