Request fr Prject Prpsals Perspectives n Life, Persns and the Csms Science, Philsphy and Thelgy in Latin America The Ian Ramsey Centre (IRC) fr Science and Religin University f Oxfrd Request fr Research Prpsal Aim and summary The Ian Ramsey Centre fr Science and Religin (IRC) at Oxfrd University is pleased t ffer fur grants f up t U$S30,000 and six grants f up t U$S15,000 each t individuals r research grups based at recgnised Latin American institutins f higher educatin t cnduct interdisciplinary research n ne r mre fcused questins with the themes f life, persns, and the csms. Grant award winners will have up t twelve mnths t cmplete their wrk and the IRC will pay an additinal allwance t enable ne representative f the team t attend and present their wrk at a final internatinal cnference in Santiag de Chile in July 2017. Grants will be awarded by cmpetitive evaluatin n the basis f prject prpsals. These prpsals will need t be sent t the IRC n later than 30 September 2015. Yu may dwnlad the frms at http://www.cyral.rg/funding. Eligibility Individual schlars r existing r new interdisciplinary research teams based at recgnised Latin American universities may apply fr these grants, prviding that the research prpsal engages with issues at the interplay between science, philsphy and/r thelgy and the themes are bradly included in the IRC prject theme Perspectives n Life, Persns and the Csms. Individual schlars shuld be tp-level researchers in their cuntries and at their institutins, with a prven strng research and publicatin recrd. Interdisciplinary teams shuld be led by a tenured prfessr r full time faculty member, shuld invlve at least ne mre junir schlar, and have institutinal supprt. Tpics Research prjects can fcus n tpics acrss a brad range f pssibilities at the intersectin f science, philsphy and thelgy, and the IRC encurages creative applicatins. The fllwing questins are intended t help stimulate ideas and guide chices, but applicants are welcme t raise and address ther questins within these general themes. If yu have any dubt abut whether an idea fr a prject wuld be suitable, please cntact the IRC: The Origin and Cncept f Life: What is natural, human, and divine life, hw d we recgnize life, and what d we knw r culd we knw f the rigins f life? What are the merits and demerits f the mst influential paradigms (e.g. thermdynamics) fr answering Schrödinger s questin, What is life? Might mathematical life be pssible, implemented n sme suitable hardware, r interchangeable between different hardware platfrms? Can a nature be distinguished adequately frm a machine? Is sme frm f telelgy required t distinguish a nature adequately frm a machine? Des matter have a prpensity fr life? Is matter necessary fr any being that culd be described as alive, in the bradest sense f the term? 1
Is there mre than ne tree f life n earth and hw might we test this? Are there philsphical and thelgical implicatins fr mre than ne tree f life? The Brain, the Mind, and the Human Persn: Are persns their brains and, if nt, hw can cntemprary science, philsphy and thelgy prmte a mre adequate understanding? What am I? Am I t be identified with part f my physical being and, if s, which part? What are my bundaries, fr example, can artefacts becme extensins f me in sme limited sense? Are advances in neurscience helping t clarify the relatin between the brain and the mind, and are there als grwing surces f cnfusin regarding this relatin? Is the cncept f free will redundant in the light f Libet-like experiments and ther cntemprary wrk in neurscience? Is there r might there be a thelgy as well as a philsphy f the brain? Des the cgnitive science f religin have implicatins fr the ratinality f theism, atheism, r mre specific religius cmmitments? The Place f the Persn in the Csms: Are persns irreducible in the csms, and are persns irreducibly imprtant? Amng the pssible meanings f the term creatin by a persnal Gd, which, if any, are mst apprpriate fr understanding the rigin f the csms tday? Des the philsphy f the persn, especially in relatinal r secnd-persnal terms, have relevance t understanding physical theries, e.g. quantum mechanics? Yu are nt a beautiful r unique snwflake. Yu re the same decaying rganic matter as everything else (cf. film Fight Cub: 1999). Can this claim be validated r invalidated, and, if s, hw in the light f what is knwn tday? Hw might the investigatin f the csms prmte persnal happiness, cnsidering such fulfilment frm a thelgical, materialistic r ther perspective? Can a persnal theistic perspective be detrimental r beneficial fr the study and mtivatin t study the csms, and ultimate questins regarding the csms? Prspective applicants are strngly encuraged t visit the prject s website fr a mre detailed list f pssible research questins. Favurable cnsideratin will be given t clear, fcused research tpics and questins, with the ptential fr brader implicatins. Mnetary amunt and timescale f the grants The prject awards will be divided int fur larger awards f up t U$S30,000, with the balance in terms f smaller awards f up t U$S15,000. The prjects themselves will run fr up t twelve mnths thrugh February 2016 and June 2017. Prjects are expected t last fr up t twelve mnths. All prjects must be finished by 30 June 2017. Prpsal submissin instructins Prspective applicants shuld send Letters f Inquiry (a letter r email stating an applicant s intentin t apply, the prpsed title f the subprject, and the name and institutin f the Principal Investigatr) t Dr Silva n later than July 31, 2015. Fr the final prpsal, which must be received n later than September 30, 2015, applicants are required t submit, in English, Spanish r Prtuguese, the fllwing dcuments: A prpsal frm, with all the fllwing fields cmpleted: prject title; summary (if yur applicatin is either in Spanish r Prtuguese, the summary shuld be in English); 2
questins t be addressed; hyptheses fr these questins (if it is a science prject) r a summary f the main idea r argument (if the prject is mre philsphical r thelgical in nature) relatin t the prject themes (life, persns, and the csms); descriptin f activities; utputs (what will be prduced); academic impact; public impact; team members; request amunt; a budget narrative explaining the details f the budget; evidence f supprt frm the hst institutin; a full curriculum vitae f the principal investigatr (PI) r team leader; shrt curricula vitae f the rest f the team (if applicable); a budget, stating csts f planned utputs and prducts (e.g. papers submitted fr publicatin, presentatins at cnferences, seminars, lectures, mngraph manuscripts, etc.), prjected audi-visual utputs, and ther utputs. Applicatin materials are available at http://www.cyral.rg/funding, and shuld be submitted via email t Dr Ignaci Silva at latin.america@thelgy.x.ac.uk stating in the subject line: RFP - Perspectives n Life, Persns and the Csms. Prspective applicants are strngly encuraged t cntact Dr Ignaci Silva well in advance f the submissin deadline fr infrmal queries abut pssible research prjects. The IRC will annunce the results f the applicatins by 30 Nvember, 2015. Shuld yu require further infrmatin abut the applicatin prcess, please refer t the Frequently Asked Questins belw. If yur questin is nt answered, please cntact Dr Silva. Selectin criteria Prpsals will be rated by a panel f IRC members and external assessrs in the United States and Eurpe accrding t the fllwing criteria: quality f the prpsed research prject and utputs (prducts); quality f planning f prpsed prject utputs; engagement with cntemprary scientific develpments, linked t philsphical and/r thelgical perspectives; prspects fr dialgue acrss disciplines, institutins, and cnfessins; academic achievement and prmise f the individual applicant r team members; quality and pprtunities prvided by the hst institutin; prspects fr effective academic utputs and utcmes. The assessment will als lk favurably n prjects that have demnstrable ptential fr lnger-term success which will maximise the benefit f investment. This ptential will be assessed principally by the integratin f the prpsed prject within lnger-term plans fr the persnal develpment f the applicants, and brader prspects fr their hme institutin. In additin, the IRC encurages the prspects fr effective public cmmunicatin f results thrugh the media. Applicants shuld explain in the prject descriptin hw their prpsed prjects meet these criteria. 3
Successful applicants bligatins Successful individuals r research teams will be required t: carry ut the research and activities described in the prject descriptin; prepare a brief autbigraphical statement r grup descriptin in English and Spanish/Prtuguese fr the IRC prject website; submit a half-term reprt; submit a final reprt; attend the 2017 final cnference f the IRC s prject. Applicatin prcess milestnes 1. Applicant must prepare and request dcuments fr applicatin (infrmal cntact with the IRC team well in advance is strngly encuraged) 2. Applicants must send a Letter f Inquiry by July 31, 2015 3. Applicant must submit dcuments befre deadline: 30 September, 2015 4. Assessment f applicatins 5. Annuncement f successful applicatins: 30 Nvember, 2015 6. Grants are held anytime, fr up t twelve mnths, between February 2016 and June 2017 4
Frequently Asked Questins 1. Wh can apply? Individual schlars r existing r new interdisciplinary research teams based at recgnised Latin American universities. 2. Can the prject last lnger than twelve mnths? Large grants (f up t U$S30,000) are expected t last n mre than twelve mnths, while smaller grants (f up t U$S15,000) are encuraged t last n mre than ten mnths. In exceptinal cases, larger grant culd request fr a mre extended grant perid in their applicatin. The IRC will cnsider this n a particular basis. Please let Dr Silva knw if yu are cnsidering applying fr a lnger grant perid in yur Letter f Intent. Once awarded, grants cannt be extended. 3. Is there a minimum duratin fr the prject? There is n set minimum duratin fr the prject, but grant awards cannt be used t fund prjects with just ne meeting r event, such as a single cnference n its wn. The expectatin is that the prject will be carried ut ver an extended perid. 4. Can the budget fr my prject be less than U$S15,000? Yes, althugh we encurage prjects t benefit frm the full amunt available. In any case, yu shuld prepare a grant budget which is apprpriate t the length and prpsed prducts and activities f the prject. 5. When is the deadline? The deadline fr submissins is 30 September, 2015. 6. Wh shuld prvide the institutinal supprt? The prpsal frm shuld be signed by an authrity f the Faculty where the hst individual r research grup is based, r by any apprpriate authrity f the hst university that is able t prvide evidence f institutinal supprt. 7. Which tpics are acceptable? Research prjects can fcus n tpics acrss a brad range f pssibilities at the intersectin f science, philsphy and thelgy, and the IRC encurages creative applicatins. Prjects fcusing n fine-tuning, theistic evlutin and the like are welcme, althugh the IRC will nt cnsider prjects n creatinism and/r intelligent design, in the anti-evlutinary sense in which these terms are usually understd. It is imprtant t remark, hwever, that the IRC is interested in prjects falling under the general theme f life, persns, and csms. Prspective applicants shuld visit the prject s website fr a detailed list f pssible research questins. Favurable cnsideratin will be given t clear, fcused research tpics and questins, with the ptential fr brader implicatins. 8. Can I submit a prject prpsal if I have received ther grants frm the IRC r I have participated in ther activities f the IRC prject? Yes. There are n restrictins arising frm participatin in ther activities f the IRC prject. 5
9. When shuld the prject begin? Prjects can begin and finish any time between Nvember 2015 and April 2017. We suggest yu make early arrangements t allw sufficient time fr mney allcatin and rganisatin f events. 10. Hw will the grant be disbursed? It is expected that the hst institutin will receive half the amunt f the grant arund a mnth befre the cmmencement f the prject, and the balance halfway t the end, upn receptin f a shrt research and financial reprt. 11. Shuld my university cntribute t the prject in any way? Hst universities are nt expected t incur in any extra expense t run the prject besides prviding wrk space and facilities t the prject team members. Hwever, we encurage universities t cllabrate in any ther ways they find fit, and applicants shuld express this cllabratin in the budget narrative. 12.Where can I find mre infrmatin and dwnlad the frms fr the prpsal? Mre infrmatin can be fund at the prject's website http://www.cyral.rg, where yu can find all the necessary frms fr the prpsal: the Prject Prpsal Frm, the Institutinal Supprt Frm, and the Budget Template. 6