APS Lewis and Clark Fund for Exploration and Field Work

Tue Jan 8 18:27:38 UTC 2008

Oops, sorry, This is APS in Philadelphia, not some govt. program in DC.

Bob

________________________________

From: owner-siouan at lists.colorado.edu on behalf of Rankin, Robert L
Sent: Tue 1/8/2008 12:08 PM
To: siouan at lists.colorado.edu
Subject: RE: APS Lewis and Clark Fund for Exploration and Field Work

I didn't check out the site before forwarding the info.  I assumed that plain vanilla "Linguistics" was covered and that some idiot in DC put the "astrobiology" there for some reason known only to him or the committee he represents.  My Star Trek education tells me that the study of life elsewhere in the universe is Exo-biology.  Who knew that Geo. Bush  had already decided otherwise?  I just figured that many of the languages we study would be covered in any program with the name "Lewis and Clark" in it.  

The linguist, Charles Hockett, once published an article with the approximate title of "How to Learn Martian" in a sci-fi book edited (if memory serves) by one Martin Greenberg.  It was actually an elementary descriptive linguistics course (find the phonemes, then the morphemes, word boundaries, etc.).  Maybe it needs updating so we can all understand how Martian manupulates "spec of IQ".    ;-)

Bob

________________________________

From: owner-siouan at lists.colorado.edu on behalf of Justin McBride
Sent: Tue 1/8/2008 10:02 AM
To: siouan at lists.colorado.edu
Subject: Re: APS Lewis and Clark Fund for Exploration and Field Work

Bob,

Thanks for thinking of me.  I performed a Google search that confirmed my
guess: Astrobiology really is the study of life in the universe.  With that
in mind, I'm not real sure how I'd relate to the grant.

I assume the linguistics connection would be something along the lines of
speculation regarding the nature of alien communication (assuming that alien
life is complex enough to have a capacity for communication), in hopes that
one day we may be called upon to attempt to communicate with one or more
alien species.  This is interesting, I guess, but it's pretty far removed
from what I feel are the real functions of linguistics right now:
Documentation and analysis (including theorization) of human languages.

But then again, if hostile aliens land tomorrow, I'm going to be banking on
the fact that someone's made a little more progress than Spielberg's
music-and-blinking-lights approach.  :)

-Justin

----- Original Message -----
From: "Rankin, Robert L" <rankin at ku.edu>
To: <siouan at lists.colorado.edu>
Sent: Monday, January 07, 2008 4:16 PM
Subject: APS Lewis and Clark Fund for Exploration and Field Work

I'm not sure what astrobiology is, but I thought some of you might be
interested in this.

Bob

The Lewis and Clark Fund for Exploration and Field Research
American Philosophical Association (APS)
URL: http://www.amphilsoc.org/grants/lewisandclark.htm
Deadline: February 15

Scope
The Lewis and Clark Fund (initially supported by the Stanford
Ascherman/Baruch Blumberg Fund for Basic Science, established by a
benefaction from the late Stanford Ascherman, MD, of San Francisco)
encourages exploratory field studies for the collection of specimens and
data and to provide the imaginative stimulus that accompanies direct
observation. Applications are invited from disciplines with a large
dependence on field studies, such as archeology, anthropology, biology,
ecology, geography, geology, linguistics, and paleontology, but grants will
not be restricted to these fields.

Graduate students and postdoctoral and junior scientists wishing to pursue
projects in astrobiological field studies should consult the program
description and forms for the Lewis and Clark Fund in Exploration and Field
Research in Astrobiology.

Eligibility
Grants will be available to doctoral students. Postdoctoral fellows,
master's degree candidates, and undergraduates are not eligible. Applicants
who have received Lewis and Clark Fund grants may reapply after an interval
of two years.

Applicants should ask their academic advisor to write one of the two letters
of recommendation, specifying the student's qualifications to carry out the
proposed work and the educational content of the trip. Budgets should be
limited to travel and related expenses, including personal field equipment.

The competition is open to U.S. residents wishing to carry out research
anywhere in the world. Foreign applicants must either be based at a U.S.
institution or plan to carry out their work in the United States.

When appropriate, the applicant should provide assurances that safety
measures will be taken for potentially hazardous projects. When necessary,
the applicant and his or her supervisor should discuss the field training
that will be provided and the provisions for experienced supervision.

Awards
Amounts will depend on travel costs, but will ordinarily be in the range of
several hundred dollars up to about $5,000. Grants are payable to the
individual applicant. Lewis and Clark Fund grants are taxable income, but
the Society is not required to report payments. It is recommended that grant
recipients discuss their reporting obligations with their tax advisors.

Deadline
February 15, 2008, with notification in May, for work in June 2008 and
beyond.

It is the applicant's responsibility to verify that all materials and
letters of support have reached the Society; call 215-440-3429 or send an
e-mail to LMusumeci at amphilsoc.org.

Requirements
Each Lewis and Clark Field Scholar will submit a brief report on his or her
trip for archiving in the APS Library. Instructions will be provided with
notification of an award.

How to Apply
Retrieve the 4-page application form. Questions concerning the eligibility
of a project, applicant, or use of funds should be sent to Linda Musumeci,
Research Administrator of the APS, at LMusumeci at amphilsoc.org.

Maintain the specified 4-page format; do not add extra pages. Use nothing
smaller than 11 pt, and respond to every section in the space provided. The
completed application should be submitted as an e-mail attachment to
applications at amphilsoc.org.

Download the referee letter, forward it to your letter writers, notify them
of the deadline, and instruct them to send the completed form to
lettersofsupport at amphilsoc.org; confirm with them that the letters have been
sent in time.