For each LOI and full proposal, the reviewers will consider the following evaluation criteria:
1. Significance: Does the study address an important problem or question in research on enhancing life? Does it build upon prior findings? How does it advance understanding of enhancing life? What will be the impact of this project on future research on enhancing life? Can we expect that the research will result in a major contribution to the field of Enhancing Life Studies?
2. Approach and methods: Is the design adequately developed and sufficiently rigorous for the purpose of the study and commensurate with the research question(s) addressed? Does the study seek to identify deep and essential factors and driving impulses that foster or impede the development of enhancing life?
3. Creativity: Does the project employ novel and innovative ideas or methods? Would it be considered leading-edge research?
4. Potential influence: Will the results be publishable in the form of a monograph? Will the results enhance public awareness of the importance of enhancing life or increase knowledge about how it can be successfully promoted and seen in its many dimensions?
5. Capacity for success: What are the qualifications of the applicant? Can he/she carry out the project in a timely manner? Can she/he effectively communicate findings to both academic and nonacademic audiences?
It is estimated that most research projects will fall into one or more of four broad fields of inquiry: 1) religious studies/theology/philosophy, 2) philosophy of biology/of science/of technology, 3) social sciences (e.g., anthropology/law/political science/sociology), and 4) communications and media studies. The Project will fund the applications with the greatest intellectual merit and capacity for success.