Limited Competition: NSF Building the Prototype Open Knowledge Network

This limited competition invites two-page concept papers responding to the NSF call for
“Building the Prototype Open Knowledge Network.” UMaine is eligible to serve as a lead institution on a single application. For complete details, please refer to the full solicitation.

Concept Paper Deadline: April 19, 2023

Sponsor Synopsis:

This program supports the creation of a prototype Open Knowledge Network — an interconnected network of knowledge graphs supporting a very broad range of application domains. Open access to shared information is essential for the development and evolution of artificial intelligence (AI) and AI-powered solutions needed to address the complex challenges facing the nation and the world. Knowledge graphs, which represent relationships among real-world entities, provide a powerful approach for organizing, representing, integrating, reusing, and accessing data from multiple structured and unstructured sources using ontologies and ontology alignment. Currently, private-sector investments in knowledge graphs power numerous consumer applications including web search, e-commerce, banking, drug discovery, advertising, etc. Undertaking a similar but inclusive, open, and community-driven effort and making use of publicly available data holds the potential to create a platform that would empower government and non-government users — fueling evidence-based policymaking, continued strong economic growth, game-changing scientific breakthroughs, while addressing complex societal challenges from climate change to social equity.

Projects funded by this program will provide an essential public-data infrastructure to power the next information revolution similar to the Internet — transforming our ability to unlock actionable insights from data by semantically linking information about related entities.

To Participate: The solicitation identifies three potential themes: “Proto-OKN Use Cases;” “Proto-OKN Fabric;” and “Proto-OKN Education and Public Engagement.” Two-page concept papers addressing one of these themes, in the format of a project summary, should be submitted by the end of the day on Wednesday, April 19, 2023 to the InfoReady Platform: https://umaine.infoready4.com/. Project summaries should include an overview, an explanation of the intellectual merit of the proposed work, and a discussion of broader impacts.