Project Grant FA95502310622

This $661,152 federal Project Grant awarded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) Biological Sciences program (CFDA 47.074) will support research on the aeroacoustics and biomechanics of owl flight. The primary objectives are to: 1) investigate whether owls employ "stealth mode" behaviors to minimize sound production during hunting, 2) experimentally test how owl wing features reduce flight noise, and 3) measure the acoustic signatures of flapping flight across a diverse array of...

This Project Grant award of $382,681 from the National Science Foundation (NSF) Biological Sciences program (CFDA 47.074) supports research at California State University, Dominguez Hills to investigate the taxonomic and geographic distribution of near-infrared (NIR) reflectivity in birds and insects. The project aims to develop a macroecological understanding of how NIR reflectivity, which is critical for thermal adaptation, varies across different animal species and environments. This research...

This Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation (CFDA 47.074 - Biological Sciences) to Cornell University totals $421,321 and runs from January 15, 2024 to December 31, 2026. The grant funds research to investigate the function of acoustic fine structure (AFS) in natural zebra finch communication, with the goal of better understanding the perceptual abilities and communicative behaviors of birds compared to humans. Key research activities include: (1) determining whether perception...

This National Science Foundation (NSF) Biological Sciences program award of $365,966 to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the evolution and development of shark skin denticles, the tooth-like scales that create a hydrodynamic exterior. The project will investigate how denticle shape has changed over millions of years to optimize drag-reduction during aquatic locomotion. Key goals include determining the genetic and developmental...

This federal Project Grant award, funded by the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE) program (CFDA 47.070), aims to understand how echolocating bats adapt their vocalizations and flight paths in real-time based on auditory feedback. The $250,000 award to Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University (Virginia Tech) will integrate neurophysiological methods, deep learning, and biomimetic robotics to investigate the neural circuits...

The National Science Foundation (NSF) Engineering Directorate awarded a $147,827 EAGER/Collaborative Research grant to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-CH) to investigate the extraordinary stability and rapid recovery capabilities of flying insects, specifically the hawkmoth. This Early-Concept Grant for Exploratory Research (EAGER) project will use mathematical analyses and high-fidelity computer simulations to fully explore and explain how certain insects can tolerate large...

This Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation (NSF) Biological Sciences program (CFDA 47.074) provides $535,465 to Trustees of Tufts College (Tufts University) for a collaborative research project titled "Biodesign: A Deep Dive into Dynamic Damping in Extreme Underwater Maneuvering". The primary goal is to investigate how fish achieve rapid maneuvers that exceed the capabilities of advanced robotic systems, focusing on the hypothesis that fish can dynamically modulate...

The National Science Foundation (NSF) Division of Integrative Organismal Systems awarded a $1,533,393 Project Grant to the University of California, Berkeley under the Biological Sciences (CFDA 47.074) program. The project will study the impact of road traffic noise, particularly substrate-borne vibrations, on spider behavior and ecology. Key activities include: Measuring air- and substrate-borne noise levels in the field to map noise impacts in national parks. Conducting laboratory...

This National Science Foundation (NSF) Division of Environmental Biology Project Grant for $146,066 awarded to Furman University will leverage machine learning techniques to better understand biodiversity patterns measured through passive acoustic sampling. The key activities and deliverables include: Advancing the analysis of acoustic data from diverse ecosystems to address three lines of inquiry: i) how noise affects bird vocalizations and communications, ii) quantification of acoustic indices...

This Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation (NSF) Integrative Activities program (CFDA 47.083) provides $400,000 to Auburn University to conduct research on the mechanisms by which plants detect and respond to acoustic signals from pollinators, such as the buzzing of bees. The goal is to uncover the physical and molecular processes that allow plants to adjust their nectar production in response to these sound vibrations, which is critical for supporting pollinator populations...