Gaming in Computer Science - Request for Proposals 2006
Topic: Enhancing CS1/CS2 with Gaming Concepts and Technologies

This RFP has been awarded. To view the award recipients, see Gaming Computer Science 2006 RFP Awards.

Note: Please read this document carefully. Microsoft Research External Research & Programs (ER&P) has endeavored to provide the fullest and most complete information possible regarding this request. We hope to have made a compelling Request for Proposals (RFP) and look forward to your participation.

Background & Objectives
Facing a broad decline in interest in computer science, universities have expressed a desire to make the Computer Science major more compelling and enjoyable. Some early results suggest that the introduction of game-oriented themes and assignments could help reinvigorate the computer science curriculum while fostering teamwork and multi-disciplinary efforts within that structure. Microsoft recognizes that exposing students to game development concepts in the context of a rigorous program of computer science study can provide an important foundation for tomorrow’s computer scientists, game engineers, and game designers.

In 2005, Microsoft Research ER&P funded six projects as part of the first Gaming in Computer Science RFP. This year, the second Gaming in Computer Science RFP builds upon the assets and experience of the first. While the first Gaming in Computer Science RFP focused on game engine or curriculum development and modest assessment, the current Gaming in Computer Science RFP focuses on the creation of laboratory assignments for use in CS1/CS2 classes and robust assessment. Assessment is essential because many schools are changing their computer science curricula, and without careful assessment, it would be possible to dilute the core computer science curriculum or to alienate a specific type of computer science student. For instance, women studying computer science may not be as enthusiastic about computer games as male students.

This year’s Gaming in Computer Science RFP seeks proposals which address the creation and assessment of laboratory exercises using a game theme or motif, and which are suitable for use in introductory computer science courses that teach fundamental programming concepts and techniques. The exercises must be accompanied by a plan to assess the impact of those lab exercises upon the attraction and retention of students, particularly students with no previous programming experience. Though it is expected that lab exercises embracing a game motif will require the use of a game engine or other platform technology, Microsoft is not looking to fund the development of additional game engines. Rather than design yet another game engine, we encourage RFP applicants to consider one the following available game engines.

Academic Resources:
DXframework (University of Michigan)
http://dxframework.org/

MUPPETS (Rochester Institute of Technology)
http://muppets.rit.edu/muppetsweb/about/index.php

SAGE (University of North Texas)
http://larc.csci.unt.edu/sage/

OR

Microsoft Corporation Resources:
XNA
http://msdn.microsoft.com/directx/XNA/default.aspx

GarageGames Torque X
http://www.garagegames.com/products/torque/x/

Flight Simulator X
http://www.microsoft.com/games/flightsimulatorx/

This year, we are especially enthusiastic about the game-related resources available from Microsoft, XNA (with Garage Games' Torque game engine) and Flight Simulator X (with SimConnect API). XNA is already quite popular in academia. Flight Simulator’s SimConnect API is expected have a very positive impact on post-secondary computer science education.

The RFP winners will be asked to attend the February Academic Days cruise for a “deep dive” into instruction. Funding for travel to the Academic Days event, and other related conferences throughout the duration of the RFP are expected to come from the RFP funds.

Awards
The total amount available under this request for proposals (RFP) is $480,000. Microsoft Research anticipates making approximately 4-6 awards between $40,000 and $100,000. All awards will be made in $US. Awards are generally made as unrestricted gifts to the institution. Outside the United States other local restrictions may apply to the terms of the award. For current policy regarding non-US. countries, please refer to http://research.microsoft.com/ur/us/fundingopps/faq.aspx. For all awards, payment of indirect costs (“overhead”) is not permitted.

Because local costs vary widely across geographies, Microsoft will take into account the reasonableness of the amount requested in any proposal in light of local costs, and reserves the right to fund proposals at an amount lower than requested if appropriate.

Awards under this program are for one year only, but may be renewable at the sole discretion of Microsoft Research.

Eligibility
Conditions of eligibility listed below will be strictly adhered to, so please read them carefully. Proposals not meeting all these criteria will not be considered.

1. The proposing institution must be an accredited baccalaureate-granting college or university (or international equivalent) with non-profit status. All qualifying institutions are eligible without regard for geographic location.

2. An institution will be awarded a maximum of one gift per RFP, regardless of the number of proposals submitted from the institution. However, collaborative proposals embracing multiple groups across the organization are encouraged.

3. Proposals that are incomplete, inaccurate, request funds in excess of the maximum award available, or are otherwise not responsive to the terms and conditions of this RFP will, at the sole discretion of Microsoft Research, be excluded from consideration.

4. Proposals from or on behalf of persons participating in the evaluation process for this RFP will not be considered.

5. Proposals should evidence a commitment to make all results arising from a funded project (including all intellectual property in those results) broadly available by either: (i) dedicating such results to the public domain; or (ii) making the results available under a non-restrictive license that allows modification and redistribution without any significant restrictions or conditions, such as the BSD license available at http://www.opensource.org/licenses/bsd-license.html. Proposals should further evidence willingness to contribute any resulting curriculum material to the MSDN Academic Alliance Repository at http://www.msdnaacr.net/curriculum/facetmain.aspx.

6. Proposals should use one of the game engines suggested.

7. All conference travel funds including the Academic Days cruise and SIGSCE is expected to come from the RFP funds.

Submission Process
Proposals will be accepted in electronic form only at http://microsoft.redwhale.com. Proposals submitted to Microsoft will not be returned. Microsoft cannot assume responsibility for the confidentiality of information in submitted proposals. Therefore, proposals should not contain information that is confidential, restricted, or sensitive. Microsoft reserves the right to make public proposals that receive awards, except those portions containing budgetary or personally identifiable information. Questions concerning this RFP should be sent to John Nordlinger (johnnord@microsoft.com). Please include the phrase “Gaming in CS” in the subject line of all e-mails to ensure prompt attention.

The submission process includes two parts.

1. Brief summary and contact information. Applicants must provide full contact information for principal investigators, amount requested, and a brief abstract. This information will be submitted through a web form as part of the submission process.
2. Complete proposal containing full details on the proposed project. 7 pages maximum, 10pt. font or larger, double-spaced, in either Microsoft Word or PDF format.

Proposals should address each of the items listed below under separate numbered headings.

1. Problem Statement: What is the problem or curriculum area addressed by the proposal and why is it important? What is the potential contribution to the field of the project if successful? Cite relevant work in the field as appropriate.
2. Expected outcomes: What tangible assets, if any, will be created or produced as a result of the proposed project? How will the results of this project be disseminated to others?
3. Schedule:When is the project to be completed? What milestones will be used to measure progress of the project and when will they be completed? (If the project described is part of a larger ongoing research program, estimate the time for completion of this project only).
4. Use of Funds: Provide a high-level budget ($US) describing how the award will be used, including purchases of hardware or software, salaries, and other costs. Please note that, because awards are made as unrestricted gifts, Microsoft policy prohibits the payment of indirect cost (“overhead”).
• No indirect costs will be allowed.
• No more than 10% of the requested funds can be used for hardware.
5. Dissemination and Evaluation: How will the results of this project be evaluated (if appropriate), and how will they be disseminated to others? Under what general license terms will the results be made available?
6. Other Support: Including other contributions to this project (cash, goods or services), if any, but not including such things as use of university facilities otherwise provided on an ongoing basis. Please note: authors of winning proposals will be required to submit an original letter on department letterhead certifying the commitment of any additional or matching support described in the proposal.
7. Qualifications of Principal Investigator: Include a brief description of any relevant prior research, teaching, publication or other professional experience. A detailed vita or list of publications is not required.
8. Methods of Assessment: Please include details on how the project will be assessed.

Selection Process and Criteria
All proposals received will be reviewed by Microsoft Research and eligible proposals will be evaluated by a panel of subject-matter experts chosen by Microsoft Research. Based on evaluations by the review panel, Microsoft Research will select the most worthy proposals for funding. Microsoft Research reserves the right to fund winning proposals at an amount greater or less than the amount requested, up to the stated maximum amount for individual awards. Due to the volume of submissions, Microsoft Research cannot provide individual feedback on proposals that are not funded.

Authors (including co-investigators) of winning proposals will be required to grant Microsoft permission for the use of their name, image, institutional affiliation and related professional information in press releases or other forums for publication of their award.

All proposals will be evaluated based upon the following criteria:

1. Well-defined goals and objectives that, if achieved, have the potential to have a significant impact on computer science curriculum directly and indirectly the computing industry.
2. Potential for wide dissemination and use of intellectual property created, including specific plans for publications, conference presentations, distance learning, etc., as well as plans to distribute content in multiple formats or languages.
3. Ability to complete the project, including the adequacy of resources available, reasonableness of timelines, and number and qualifications of identified contributors.
4. Qualifications of principal investigator, including previous history of work in the area, successful completion of previous funded projects, teaching awards, books and papers published, etc.

Schedule and Deadlines

Questions concerning this RFP should be sent to John Nordlinger, Program Manager, at johnnord@microsoft.com. Please include the phrase “Gaming in CS” in the subject line of all e-mails to ensure prompt attention.

Additional Resources

Academic Resources:
DXframework (UMICH) http://dxframework.org/
MUPPETS (RIT) http://muppets.rit.edu/muppetsweb/about/index.php
SAGE (UNT) http://larc.csci.unt.edu/sage/

Microsoft Corporation Resources:
XNA http://msdn.microsoft.com/directx/XNA/default.aspx
(& GarageGames) http://www.garagegames.com/products/torque/x/
Flight Simulator X http://www.microsoft.com/games/flightsimulatorx/
Microsoft Academic Alliance Curriculum Repository http://www.msdnaacr.net/curriculum/facetmain.aspx

Garage Games’ Torque X is the latest game engine technology from GarageGames, producers of the popular Torque Game Engine, Torque Game Builder, and Torque Shader Engine. Torque X is a stand-alone engine which features key technologies from these existing engines for use in conjunction with Microsoft's XNA Game Studio Express, making it easier to design and build a full-featured game in managed C# and the XNA Framework. The first iteration of Torque X will consist primarily of the 2D technology found in Torque Game Builder, but GarageGames plans to migrate much of their 3D technology over to XNA throughout fall 2006. Torque X and XNA Game Studio Express allow you to painlessly create games on the PC and run them in either Windows or on the Xbox 360, representing a major breakthrough for Game Design and Computer Science courses at all levels of education. Not only are educators able to teach their students game development lessons and methodologies more efficiently using the managed C# coding language, but students will also be learning cutting-edge console game development in addition to more traditional PC game development, which will better prepare them for jobs in the console-driven gaming industry.

Microsoft ® Flight Simulator X (FSX) is the latest release of a 25 year-old franchise, whose roots go deep into simulating the world of flight as accurately as possible. Incorporating a full 6 Degree Of Freedom (6DOF) full fidelity simulation engine, a world-wide navigation database including over 24,000 airports, a terrain engine supporting real-time data caching at a resolution down to 3 cm/pixel, and the most advanced use of the DirectX graphics technology of any PC application, FSX is also the foundation for the transformation of this application from a product to a platform. The history of the Flight Simulator franchise is rich with the extensibility continually built in to the underlying framework, and the opportunities have been exponentially increased over any other previous release of this product line. The foundation of this transformation is the Software Development Kit (SDK).

The Microsoft ® Flight Simulator X (FSX) SDK can be used to create add-on components for Microsoft ® Flight Simulator X. These components can be new or replacement aircraft, instrumentation, missions, scenery, terrain, ground vehicles, airport runways and buildings, special effects, camera views, and many other elements of a simulated world. The creation of a new aircraft can involve the creation of new instruments, special effects, camera views, and appropriate missions that can all be completed and tested individually before being added to the new aircraft.

The most prolific advancement of the Flight Simulator platform is that of a new, supported, programmatic interface that provides a clear and easy to understand set of functions that allow direct access to the internals of the code: SimConnect. This Application Program Interface (API) is a client-server based architecture, supporting both native and managed coding styles, leveraging an asynchronous model to achieve the stability and power that come with multi-core processors. Major components of the platform that are supported include:

- User and Artificial Intelligent (AI) Simulated Object State Variables
- Internal Event and Input Event Control and Processing
- Application State (i.e., pause)
- Artificial Intelligence Object Manipulation and Control
- User Interface Menu and Modal Dialog Control
- Direct Weather System Access and Control
- Local-Host, LAN or Internet Scope Networking (including Cluster processing)
- Mission System Custom Triggers and Actions
- Camera Manipulation and Control

Periodic updates of this API will also be provided in an effort to continue the expansion and capability of the platform between major product releases. The functionality provided by these updates will be prioritized based on the feedback of the development community's needs, including those who are selected as part of the Microsoft Research Gaming RFP process.

By utilizing the power of the SimConnect API with the extensive world-wide simulation platform of FSX, the opportunity exists to develop a curriculum combining the elements of Computer Science with the advantages of an out-of-box, real-time world-wide simulation platform.

The proposal should include the use of the SimConnect Managed API. Ideally, the proposal will include:

• A real-time interactive component
• A non-real-time, modal dialog component
• Network capability

The overall areas of interest are:

• Aerospace Sciences
• Training and Familiarization
• Physics, Math and/or Geography
   

Microsoft Word version of this document