One of the major goals of CISS is to foster and encourage interdisciplinary research focusing on the social issues that arise in a technological society, particularly one infused with information technology. We can help to identify and build interdisciplinary research teams, support proposal development for sponsored research, and manage research contracts. The following sponsored projects have been developed and managed in whole or in part through CISS.

North Carolina Citizens’ Technology Forums
LabWrite
Gender, Communication, and Engineering Teamwork

NORTH CAROLINA CITIZENS’ TECHNOLOGY FORUM
(2 NSF grants)

"Citizen Learning, Deliberation, and Reasoning in Internet-Mediated Technology Policy Forums,” NSF SES 0242994, continues support for the online Citizens’ Technology Forum, to explore ways of improving public involvement in discussions of technology policy. This two-year grant of $325,068 is to Jane Macoubrie, PI (Communication), Patrick Hamlett co-PI (Multidisciplinary Studies), Carolyn Miller, co-PI (English), and Mike Cobb, Sr. Personnel (PSPA). The Citizens’ Technology Forum received a two-year grant of $325,068 on January 24, 2003. This was the largest grant ever given by the Societal Dimensions of Engineering, Science, and Technology division of NSF.

This grant will support six online and two mixed-mode (partly online and partly face-to-face) technology forums on the subject of global warming. Researchers will develop efficient methods to enhance deliberation and consensus development.

Project website (link to come)
NSF abstract

The one-year pilot grant for this project was "A Quasi-Experimental Comparison of Face-to-Face and Internet Delivery in Citizens' Consensus Conferences," NSF SES 0080810 for $144,899 to Patrick Hamlett, PI (Multidisciplinary Studies), Jane Macoubrie (co-PI, Communication), and Carolyn R. Miller (co-PI, English). This grant supported two conferences on the subject of genetically modified foods in which citizens learned about biotechnology, interviewed experts, and developed policy recommendations about the use of genetic modification in food production. One conference took place face-to-face and the other was entirely online.

Project website
NSF Abstract
Citizen reports(face to face forum or internet forum) on genetically modified foods
Final report, (pdf)
Adapting the Internet to Citizen Deliberations: Lessons Learned;
Patrick Hamlett, ISTAS '02, June 2002 (pdf)
Policy Debate on the Internet: Panelists Evaluate the Process;
Kathleen Prosseda, ISTAS '02, June 2002 (pdf)