The NSF funds research and education in science and engineering through grants, contracts and cooperative agreements, generally helping more than 2,000 colleges, universities and other research institutions across the country, according to a College press release.
Director of Information Technology Philip Fitz will work with staff from the information technology department and collaborate with faculty to put a second type of Internet, Internet2, into the College's labs.
"Amherst prides itself on hiring faculty who are among the top researchers in the country and so are engaged in cutting-edge research similar to the work being done at large research universities," stated the proposal to the NSF. The proposal noted that as College science faculty increase their amount of collaboration with other academic institutions, the amount of bandwidth they need also increases.
"This is a great addition for people involved with research at the College," said Assistant Professor of Computer Science Scott Kaplan. "Internet2 is completely seperate from the regular Internet system and because the heavy load of faculty and student research will be transfered to the new system, it should free up a lot of space on the current Internet."
According to its website, Internet2 is a non-profit consortium led by over 200 U.S. universities. Its goals include developing and deploying advanced network applications and technology and fostering the creation of a second Internet.
The grant, which was awarded by the Advanced Networking Division of the Computers, Information Science and Engineering Directorate division of the NSF, will offer tremendous support for the establishment of a high quality networking system and access to Internet2.
"Amherst is seeking to create a cost-effective fiber network connection to Springfield, Mass., the closest point on the main telecommunications corridors. This NSF grant will be used to establish such high-performance connectivity," according to the College's press release. In the past, the College's ability to create this connectivity has been limited by its rural location.
Internet2 recreates the partnership between academia, industry and government that helped give birth to the Internet used today, according to its website.
The company hopes to deliver faster Web use and email and also hopes that the new technologies the project has spawned will enable new applications including such as digital libraries, virtual laboratories, distance-independent learning and tele-immersion, according to its website.
On the academic level, the primary goal of Internet2 is to ensure the transfer of new network technology and applications to the broader education and networking communities.
Although this technology is primarily concentrated on the scientific field, its effects will be felt across the academic spectrum.
"I believe that faculty in the social sciences, humanities and arts will find it useful as well," said Fitz. "Internet2 will provide very high speed access to other Internet2 schools to facilitate things such as video, music and very large images."
The grant proposal that the College submitted to the NSF expressed the College's need to connect with other institutions in the five-college consortium.
"The grant will allow faculty at Amherst College to participate as a sponsored member in Internet2, as well as to have direct very high-performance connections immediately with the University of Massachusetts and Mount Holyoke College, and with Smith College once they have completed their own high-performance connection to ... UMass," the proposal stated.
Each year, the NSF receives approximately 30,000 new or renewal support grant proposals.
The NSF has previously recognized the excellence of the College's science program in the form of a grant. In 1995, the NSF awarded a grant to the College through the foundation's Collaborative Research at Undergraduate Institutions program, according to the College's grant proposal.