Defense bill would fund research projects.

Byline: GREG BOLT The Register-Guard

The University of Oregon would get $3 million for research into the workings of the human brain if an appropriation in the House version of the federal defense department funding bill is signed into law.

The bill, approved Thursday, also includes $3 million for a computer software program developed by a UO researcher that could help the U.S. Navy save hundreds of millions of dollars on major shipbuilding projects. The computer system would be purchased from On Time Systems Inc., a private company founded by computer researcher Matt Ginsberg and headquartered in the Riverfront Research Park.

The Senate has not yet passed a Defense Department appropriation bill. If both projects are included in the Senate's legislation, they still must survive a conference committee before being sent to President Bush for his signature.

It's unclear at this stage whether the projects will survive. Last year, the House approved $3 million for brain research at the UO, and the Senate provided $4 million, but when the final bill emerged from the conference committee the funding was reduced to $1.8 million.

The appropriations were pushed by Oregon's congressional delegation, including Rep. Peter DeFazio, whose 4th District includes the UO.

The university has received research funding from the defense department for the past two years for its Brain, Biology and Machine initiative. The interdisciplinary program combines neuroscience, biology, genetics and computer science to better understand how the brain works and acquires knowledge. The heart of the program is a new research-grade magnetic resonance imaging device, known as a functional MRI or fMRI.

Recently installed in an addition to Straub Hall, the $3 million device is more powerful than the MRI devices commonly used in hospitals. It allows researchers to look at different parts of the brain and see how they respond to stimuli as well as which areas of the brain are involved in thinking, learning and remembering.

Ray Nunnally, director of the UO's new Center for Neuroimaging, said the federal appropriation would help the center experiment with higher-strength magnetic fields, shorten the time it takes to acquire images and look at larger portions of the brain. It could also help improve the powerful computers needed to process the huge amount of data collected by the imager.

Researchers have just begun using the device, and Nunnally said that results so far have been very encouraging. The UO is one of the few universities in the country to have an fMRI.

"We're getting really good results," he said. "It's exciting. The quality of the data is excellent."

The other appropriation would be a boost for the local high-tech company founded by Ginsberg.

The UO researcher said the goal is to use the scheduling software to manage the production of a large naval vessel as a test of its effectiveness.

A successful trial run could lead to use of the system, known as ARGOS, on other Navy projects.

Ginsberg said the program could reduce labor costs by 10 percent to 20 percent, saving the Navy $200 million to $500 million a year.

The program handles the complex scheduling of work and materials delivery with the aim of reducing the amount of overtime and idle time workers spend.

By precisely scheduling work, the program reduces bottlenecks that result in overtime or leave workers waiting to begin the next step.

Ginsberg said the program recognizes the difference between building one big product, such as a submarine, and trying to build as many products as possible in a given amount of time, the way cars are built on a production line.

"The potential is clearly there to save the Navy hundreds of millions of dollars a year without affecting anything but cost," Ginsberg said. "They'll get the same vessels, but much cheaper."

Ginsberg said On Time Systems has been doing better than many high-tech firms during the current recession and has recently hired several new software engineers.

Ginsberg said employment will increase if the Navy project takes off, although he expects the company will remain a relatively small employer.

"It's a very tough time to be a high-tech company," he said. "But for us, at least, things are going well."