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NOTE: All program proposal due dates that fall on a weekend are due the following working day by 5:00PM your local time

SCOPE

Computer and communication networks are among society's most important infrastructures. They are vital to the operation of many sectors of our society — from financial and manufacturing to education and healthcare — and they are engines for economic growth. However, with the existing network architecture stressed and reaching the limits of its capabilities, significant innovations are necessary to realize new applications and to meet current and future demands.

The Networking Technology and Systems (NeTS) program envisions a future in which communication networks are available anywhere and any time, are accessible from a variety of devices, require minimal management overhead, can survive faults and attacks, and can be entrusted with all types of communication traffic.  To realize this vision, the NeTS program seeks to develop and sustain science and technology advances needed to: create next-generation networks; increase our fundamental understanding of large, complex, heterogeneous networks; and, continue the evolution of existing networks.  The NeTS program also seeks to develop innovative curricular and educational materials that will help prepare the next generation of networking professionals.

Proposers are encouraged to make bold assumptions about the future of networking; proposals should describe high impact projects that address novel network architectures, protocols and/or technologies. Proposals are solicited in networking broadly as well as in two targeted focus areas:

I. Networking Broadly Defined (NBD). Funded projects will include a balance of theoretical and experimental research and/or education projects that target next-generation networks, expand our understanding of large, complex, heterogeneous networks, and continue the evolution of existing networks.

II. Programmable Wireless Networks (ProWiN).  Funded projects will seek to exploit the capabilities of programmable radios to make more effective use of the frequency spectrum and to improve wireless network connectivity.

III. Networking of Sensor Systems (NOSS). Funded projects will seek to create architectures, tools, algorithms and systems that make it easy to assemble and configure networks of sensor systems.

A range of project types will be supported:

• Individual and Small Group projects.
• Large Group projects.
• Planning grants.
• Workshops in new and emerging areas.
• Infrastructure projects.

More information on award types can be found in Section IV. of this solicitation; proposers are encouraged to fully consider this information prior to submission of their proposals.

NSF Document: NSF 05-505

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