NIH https://www.nih.gov is going to award twelve awards for $9 million to be used to launch the NIH Data Commons Pilot Phase consisting of a shared virtual space where scientists will be able to test ways to store, access, and share biomedical data and analytical tools.
The goal of the Data Commons pilot is to accelerate new biomedical discoveries providing a public cloud-based platform where researchers can store, share, access, and digitally provide data generated from biomedical research.
The twelve recipients receiving the awards will form the NIH Data Commons Pilot Phase Consortium where researchers will work to make NIH Data Commons a reality. The NIH Data Commons Pilot Phase will be implemented in a four year phase with funds anticipated to be $95.5 million. External consultants recruited from industry and academia will be able to volunteer their time and expertise to ensure that the project is useful to all users.
NIH will be supported in the pilot by the MITRE Corporation www.mitre.org. MITRE will provide a broad range of support that will include innovative approaches to assure cost effective cloud-based computing and storage for scientific data.
The MITRE Corporation in their Communications and Networking program are developing and applying technology to improve communication capabilities which includes assisting first responder organizations.