Glossary

A B C D E F G H I K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X

S

sacs

A vesicle or pouch within or outside a cell that typically contains fluid. Synaptic vesicles are sacs that carry chemicals called neurotransmitters from the end of an axon (presynaptic cell) to a neighboring cell (postsynaptic cell).

Salary Cap

A legislatively-mandated provision limiting the direct salary for individuals working on NIH grants, cooperative agreement awards, and extramural research and development contracts.

SBIR

Small Business Innovation Research: A program designed to support small business concerns conducting innovative research

Scientific Overlap

Overlap of support occurs when substantially similar research is proposed in more than one concurrent PHS grant application.

Scientific Review Group

A peer review committee group of primarily non-government experts (peer reviewers), qualified by training or experience in particular scientific or technical fields, or as authorities knowledgeable in the various disciplines and fields related to the applications under review, to evaluate and give expert advice on the scientific and technical merit of the applications. No more than one-fourth of the members of any SRG may be Federal employees, as noted in 42 CFR 52(h).

Scientific Rigor

The strict application of the scientific method to ensure robust and unbiased experimental design, methodology, analysis, interpretation and reporting of results.

Scope of Work

The aims, objectives, and purposes of a grant; as well as the methodology, approach, analyses or other activities; and the tools, technologies, and timeframes needed to meet the grant's objectives.

Scored Review Criteria

For research grant applications, and most other types of applications, reviewers judge the overall impact to reflect their assessment of the likelihood for the project to exert a sustained, powerful influence on the research field(s) involved, taking into account five criteria, among other pertinent factors: Significance, Investigator(s), Innovation, Approach, and Environment. These scored review criteria may not be applicable for some types of applications. When these criteria are not applicable, the FOA will include the specific review criteria. Reviewers will consider each of the five criteria in the determination of scientific and technical merit, and give a separate score for each. An application does not need to be strong in all categories to be judged likely to have a major scientific impact. See Peer Review Process/Scoring for additional information.

secrete

To form and release a substance. In the body, cells secrete substances, such as sweat that cools the body or hormones that act in other parts of the body.

Selective Pay

The funding of a small number of programmatically important applications at the margin of the payline as recommended by Council.

Service Provider

A Service Provider is a commercial company that assists applicants, for a fee, in submitting grant applications electronically through Grants.gov to NIH and other federal agencies.

Set-Aside

Money taken out of the budget for a specific purpose, for example, to fund a congressionally mandated program.

Significant Differences

For purposes of NIH policy, a "significant difference" is a difference that is of clinical or public health importance, based on substantial scientific data. This definition differs from the commonly used "statistically significant difference," which refers to the event that, for a given set of data, the statistical test for a difference between the effects in two groups achieves statistical significance. Statistical significance depends upon the amount of information in the data set. With a very large amount of information, one could find a statistically significant, but clinically small difference that is of very little clinical importance. Conversely, with less information one could find a large difference of potential importance that is not statistically significant.

Significant Rebudgeting

A threshold that is reached when expenditures in a single direct cost budget category deviate (increase or decrease) from the categorical commitment level established for the budget period by more than 25 percent of the total costs awarded.

Signing Official

A Signing Official (SO) has institutional authority to legally bind the institution in grants administration matters. The individual fulfilling this role may have any number of titles in the grantee organization. The label, "Signing Official," is used in conjunction with the NIH eRA Commons. The SO can register the institution, and create and modify the institutional profile and user accounts. The SO also can view all grants within the institution, including status and award information. An SO can create additional SO accounts as well as accounts with any other role or combination of roles. For most institutions, the Signing Official (SO) is located in its Office of Sponsored Research or equivalent.

Simplified Acquisition Threshold

The dollar amount below which a non-Federal entity may purchase property or services using small purchase methods. Non-Federal entities adopt small purchase procedures in order to expedite the purchase of items costing less than the simplified acquisition threshold. The simplified acquisition threshold is set by the Federal Acquisition Regulation at 48 CFR Subpart 2.1 and in accordance with 41 USC § 1908.

SNAP

Streamlined process that includes a number of provisions that modify annual progress reports, NoAs, and financial reports. Funds are automatically carried over and are available for expenditure during the entire project period. All NIH award notices identify whether the grant is subject to or excluded from SNAP.

Routinely applied to:

all 'K' awards and 'R; awards, except R35s. Awards excluded from SNAP are those that do not having the authority to automatically carry over un-obligated balances (centers, cooperative agreements, Kirschstein-NRSA institutional training grants, non-Fast Track Phase I SBIR and STTR awards, clinical trials (regardless of activity code),

Program Project Grants (P01s), R35s and awards to individuals. See section 8.4.1.2 Streamlined Non-Competing Award Process in the NIHGPS for additional information.

SNAP instructions for submitting the progress report appear in the PHS 2590 Non-Competing Continuation Progress Report. When SNAP applies, the progress report must be submitted electronically using the eSNAP module in eRA Commons.

Source Selection

A contracting term denoting the review process by which a contractor is selected.

Special Emphasis Panel (SEP)

Scientific Review Groups formed on an ad hoc basis to review applications requiring special expertise or when a conflict of interest situation occurs.Scientific Review Groups formed on an ad hoc basis to review applications requiring special expertise or when a conflict of interest situation occurs.

Special Purpose Equipment

Equipment which is used only for research, medical, scientific, or other technical activities. Examples of special purpose equipment include microscopes, x-ray machines, surgical instruments, and spectrometers. See also Equipment and General purpose equipment.

Specific Aims

A component of an application's Research Plan which describes concisely the goals of the proposed research and summarizes the expected outcome(s), including the impact that the results of the proposed research will exert on the research field(s) involved.. Includes the specific objectives of the research proposed (e.g., to test a stated hypothesis, create a novel design, solve a specific problem, challenge an existing paradigm or clinical practice, address a critical barrier to progress in the field, or develop new technology).

spinal cord

A column of nerve tissue that runs from the base of the skull down the center of the back. It is covered by three thin layers of protective tissue called membranes. The spinal cord and membranes are surrounded by the vertebrae (back bones). The spinal cord and the brain make up the central nervous system (CNS). Spinal cord nerves carry messages between the brain and the rest of the body.

Streamlined Review

In the peer review process, applications not considered by the Scientific Review Group to be in the more meritorious half are 'streamlined' and designated Not Discussed. Streamlined applications are not discussed at the review meeting and will not be assigned a numerical overall impact/priority score, but the applicants do receive the reviewers' critiques. Streamlined applications will receive criterion scores from the assigned reviewers in addition to the reviewers' critiques to help applicants assess whether or not they should submit a resubmission application.

stroke

In medicine, a loss of blood flow to part of the brain, which damages brain tissue. Strokes are caused by blood clots and broken blood vessels in the brain. Symptoms include dizziness, numbness, weakness on one side of the body, and problems with talking, writing, or understanding language. The risk of stroke is increased by high blood pressure, older age, smoking, diabetes, high cholesterol, heart disease, atherosclerosis (a buildup of fatty material and plaque inside the coronary arteries), and a family history of stroke. Also called cerebrovascular accident and CVA.

STTR

Small Business Technology Transfer

STTR

Small Business Technology Transfer

Study Record

A set of data elements about a research investigation involving human subjects that describes a proposed or on-going study, most commonly used in the context of the PHS Human Subjects and Clinical Trials Information form.

Note that for the purposes of initial application, NIH supports grouping studies that use the same human subjects population and same research protocols , the same research procedures, and the same human subjects population into a single study record, to the extent that the information provided is accurate and understandable to NIH staff and reviewers.

Success Rate Base

The basis for computing the Research Project Grant (RPG) success rate. It includes the total number of competing applications reviewed (the number of applications subjected to a streamlined review process).

Successor-in-Interest

Process whereby the rights to and obligations under an NIH grant(s) are acquired incidental to the transfer of all of the assets of the grantee or the transfer of that part of the assets involved in the performance of the grant(s).

Summary Statement

A combination of the reviewers' written comments and summary of the members' discussion during the study section meeting. It includes the recommendations of the study section, a recommended budget, and administrative notes of special considerations.

Suspension of Award Activities

An action by the NIH awarding IC requiring the recipient to cease all activities on the award pending corrective action by the recipient. It is a separate action from suspension under HHS regulations (2 CFR 376) implementing Executive Orders 12549 and 12689. (See Public Policy Requirements and Objectives-Debarment and Suspension and Administrative Requirements-Enforcement Actions).