Funding Application

[kdgosik]

This issues is to get feedback on the idea of a funding application for a grant. A few target grants that have been identified were,

• SBIR (https://sbir.nih.gov/ and https://seedfund.nsf.gov/)
• Big Data to Knowledge (BD2K) program (https://commonfund.nih.gov/bd2k)
• R21, Exploratory/Developmental Research (https://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/r21.htm)
• Breakout Labs (https://www.breakoutlabs.org/)

Getting a grant, mainly through the NIH, would not only give a funding source for the project but could open other opportunities as well. Having a grant could show to the scientific community that we have went through some scrutiny as an organization/idea from the funding source. This would hopefully produce more initial faith and buy in to use the platform in general. It could also help with identification of institutes and organizations. We could initially leverage the NIH process that already has grant applicants identified and verified. It can then later be improved upon with the URI concept. Funding could also eventually be moved under the OSO blockchain to ensure a more equitable distribution of funds.

Leveraging the infrastructure of the NIH could be a double edge sword. It could open up avenues faster but it could also force the OSO into the same box. I would enjoy feed back on the different parts of the idea. I think funding through a grant is ideal for the project but the other parts of using current NIH processes should be carefully considered before moving forward with them.