INCLUDE (INvestigation of Co-occurring conditions across the Lifespan to Understand Down syndromE) Project

Your stories in motion. Your health in focus.

Learn about the INCLUDE Voices Challenge and hear from Dr. Michael S. Rafii about Alzheimer’s disease research in people with Down syndrome and emerging clinical trials. We’ll also cover Challenge requirements, judging criteria, and resources to help you create your video. Bring your questions!

INCLUDE Voices Webinar 1: What’s Happening in Down Syndrome Research

Join the challenge team for live office hours to ask any challenge-related questions!

INCLUDE Voices Office Hours Nov 16

Learn how to turn your ideas and experiences into a compelling video about why Down syndrome research matters.

INCLUDE Voices Webinar 2: Your Voice in Research

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To what extent does the submission fulfill all requirements outlined in the submission requirements section?

Completeness

How compellingly does the entry convey why Down syndrome research matters — not only for individuals with Down syndrome, but potentially for a broader audience? How well does the entry explain how Down syndrome research improves health, informs care, expands opportunity, and supports individuals with Down syndrome? To what extent does the entry encourage informed participation in research within the Down syndrome community?

Importance of Down syndrome Research

To what degree does the entry demonstrate creative thinking in addressing the challenge? How engaging and memorable is the entry as a communication piece? How fresh or unexpected is the perspective the entry brings to the subject matter?

Creativity and Originality

How authentically does the entry reflect the perspectives and experiences of individuals with Down syndrome and their communities?
How likely is it that the entry could serve as an effective communication vehicle that appeals to a broad audience and is easy to share and disseminate across platforms?
How clear and accessible is the language used, including adherence to person-first language?

Reach and Dissemination Potential

I certify that I have the authority to register for this Challenge on behalf of the entity named in this registration; that the entity meets the eligibility criteria stated in the Announcement of Requirements and Registration for this Challenge; and that the entity agrees to comply with the official rules and requirements of the Challenge and that participation in this Challenge constitutes full and unconditional agreement to abide by them.

I have read and understand the official eligibility criteria, rules, and requirements of the Challenge as stated in the Participation Agreement. I agree that to participate in the Challenge, I must comply with the official eligibility criteria, rules, and requirements and that my participation in this Challenge constitutes my full and unconditional agreement to abide by them.

Participation Agreement

Participants must provide a PDF copy of their cover letter as part of the submission package. Narratives must be no longer than 1 page, with one-inch margins. Font size must be no smaller than 11-point Calibri. All submissions must be in English. Entries must not use the HHS logo or official seal or logo of NIH and must not claim federal government endorsement.  The Cover Letter must address the following:  Include affiliation, and contact information for the Individual, Team Captain, or Entity POC submitting the entry. Describe how the submission addresses the Challenge; specifically, how the entry communicates the value and impact of Down syndrome research and encourages informed participation in research. Describe the target audience and propose a dissemination plan for the entry to reach as many people as possible. Explain why the selected communication vehicle (video format) was chosen and how it is suited to the intended audience. Describe any collaborations, including with people with Down syndrome, that contributed to producing the final entry and the nature of those collaborations.

Cover Letter (1 page)

Participants must submit a short video, no longer than 3 minutes in duration, that communicates the value and impact of Down syndrome research. Videos must be submitted as a digital file or via a private streaming link (e.g., YouTube, Vimeo) not accessible to the public. Appropriate video formats include, but are not limited to:  Documentary-style short film Animation or motion graphics Dramatic reading or spoken word including use of Augmentative and Alternative Communication (such as sign language) to convey the message Interview or personal testimony Explainer video Music video or song with visual accompaniment

Video

INCLUDE Voices: Research in Action Challenge

National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Empower biomedical knowledge graphs with temporal reasoning!

Join the challenge team for live office hours to ask questions, clarify challenge requirements, and get guidance on the submission process.

It's About Time Office Hours Sept 24, 2026

Join the challenge team and Subject Matter Expert, Mathias Brochhausen, for live office hours to ask questions, clarify challenge requirements, and get guidance on the submission process.

It's About Time Office Hours Oct 6, 2026

In Webinar 1 we will discuss the challenge background, overview, phases, eligibility, submission requirements, and evaluation criteria. Subject Matter Expert Mathias Brochhausen, PhD, will present on ontologies & reasoning.

It's About Time Webinar: Informational and Ontology & Reasoning

Join the challenge team and Subject Matter Experts, Dr. Jundong Li, Dr. Mathias Brochhausen, and Dr Kai Zheng, for live office hours to ask any challenge-related or technical questions. 

It's About Time Office Hours Nov 5, 2026

Join the challenge team and Subject Matter Experts, Dr. Jundong Li, Dr. Mathias Brochhausen, and Dr Kai Zheng, for live office hours to ask any challenge-related or technical questions.

It's About Time Office Hours Nov 24, 2026

In Webinar 2 we will review the challenge information detailed in webinar 1. Subject Matter Expert Kai Zheng will present on clinical relevance, and Subject Matter Expert Jundong Li will present on temporal knowledge graphs.

It's About Time Webinar: Informational, Clinical Relevance, and Temporal Knowledge Graphs

Join the challenge team and Subject Matter Experts, Dr. Jundong Li and Dr Kai Zheng, for live office hours to ask any challenge-related or technical questions.

It's About Time Office Hours Dec 17, 2026

It's About Time Office Hours Jan 7, 2027

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Phase 1 aims to identify promising concepts and approaches for enabling temporal reasoning in KGs.

Phase 1 submissions are expected to include:

* Temporal Reasoning Frameworks/Designs: Conceptual frameworks or algorithmic designs for representing and reasoning over temporal aspects of biomedical knowledge
* Innovative Temporal Modeling Approaches: Clearly-articulated approaches for modeling temporal constructs such as events, sequences, durations, validity periods, and evolving evidence
* Use Case and Potential Impact: Identification of one or more relevant biomedical, clinical, or public health use cases that motivate the proposed approach
* Feasibility and Integration: Discussion of how the proposed approach could integrate with existing KG standards, ontologies, or infrastructures

Innovation in temporal representation of events, sequences, durations, validity intervals, evidence evolution, and uncertainty, including temporal embeddings. Soundness of temporal representation (event ordering, durations, validity intervals) and technical rigor of the temporal/dynamic-graph modeling. 

Temporal Modeling Innovation

Reasoning correctness, including temporal consistency. Inference uses only information available up to the query time (no temporal leakage) and respects event ordering and validity intervals.

Reasoning Correctness & Temporal Consistency 

Submission of ontology in a format that allows for logical inference (e.g., OWL, other description-logic or First Order Logic based language). Semantic modeling consistent with the Biolink Model and use existent ontologies (e.g., from the NLM or OBO); and existence of machine-verifiable axioms beyond the class hierarchy.

Ontology Rigor & Interoperability 

Feasibility of the approach to generate a semantically-rich integrated knowledge graph and the feasibility of integration with existing biomedical ontologies, standards and infrastructures where possible.

Feasibility & Integration 

Addresses a real-world problem in a specific clinical or public-health workflow. Execution of the solution can lead to meaningful alteration of decision making, Execution of the solution has the potential of producing measurable and positive impact on outcomes.

Clinical or Public-Health Workflow Relevance & Impact 

Phase 1: Conceptual Design and Feasibility

Phase 2 focuses on implementation, evaluation, and demonstration of the proposed approaches.

Only Phase 1 winners are eligible to submit to Phase 2.

Phase 2 submissions are expected to demonstrate:

* Implemented Temporal KG Methods: Working prototypes or tools that implement temporal representations, embeddings, and reasoning capabilities in a KG
* Demonstrated Temporal Reasoning: Evidence that the approach enables realistic or real-world scenario time-respecting inference, longitudinal reasoning, or evolving evidence interpretation
* Applied Use Cases: Demonstrations using realistic biomedical data or scenarios
* Evaluation and Analysis: Quantitative or qualitative evaluation showing improvements over static KG approaches (e.g., correctness of inference, temporal consistency, interpretability), including discussion of strengths, limitations, and assumptions
* Reusability and Extensibility: Documentation and artifacts showing that the approach can be adapted to other biomedical domains or datasets beyond the demonstrated use case

Demonstrated temporal reasoning on realistic biomedical data, including time-respecting and longitudinal inference; effectiveness is measured by performance on the shared benchmark tasks and test data, not by presentation quality.

Demonstrated Temporal Reasoning 

Correctness of inference verified on the test data, including temporal consistency and avoidance of temporally implausible inference (e.g., asserting a fact at a time before its supporting evidence holds, or violating a known validity interval).

Correctness of Inference 

A head-to-head comparison against a defined static-KG baseline, reported as qualitative or quantified improvement on the metrics listed below with clear documented methods, assumptions, and limitations. “Clear advantage over static KG approaches” means a material, quantified improvement over the baseline. Metrics required: Logical Inconsistencies/Unsatisfiable classes, Amount of Data (number of triples), Relationship Richness, Attribute Richness, Class/Property Instantiation Ratio, and Interlinking Completeness.

Evaluation Rigor 

Reusability of the approach for other biomedical domains or datasets beyond the demonstrated use case, evidenced by documentation and reusable artifacts.

Extensibility

Phase 2: Prototype Implementation and Demonstration

ItsAboutTime.owl

10-page limit PDF file with text following the minimum requirements detailed in the Submission Requirements tab. 

10-page limit PDF file

In addition, we require the submission of an ontology file in a machine-readable format (e.g., OWL/RDF in Turtle or RDF/XML, or OBO Format). The file you submit should be the ontology you plan to use or an excerpt from that ontology that illustrates how your approach represents and reasons over temporal biomedical knowledge. Teams may use existing vocabularies or extensions (e.g., OWL-Time) or their own representations. The file size shall not exceed 3 MB. An illustrative OWL-coded example can be found on the Resources tab. The example is provided for reference only and is not a required template or approach.

Ontology file in a machine-readable format

It’s About Time: Temporal Reasoning in Biomedical Knowledge Graphs Challenge

Transforming Menopause Education. Advancing Women’s Health.

In Webinar 1 we will discuss the challenge overview, background, eligibility, submission requirements, tracks, and evaluation criteria.

COMMIT Challenge Informational Webinar

Register to submit your evidence-based menopause curriculum. Entries may be submitted as a PDF, Word document, or slide deck unless a phase states otherwise.

Home

Rules

Judging

Timeline

To register, Participants will need to provide the name, role, and contact information of a Point of Contact (described below) and all individuals competing in this Challenge on behalf of an eligible institution. Two or more eligible institutions submitting an entry as a partnership should indicate this and provide Points of Contact for each institution. All Participants must certify they have read, understand, and agree to abide by the official eligibility rules, participation rules, and requirements for the Challenge as stated in this announcement.

How to Enter

Prizes

Review the full [eligibility and participation rules](#rules), see what a competitive submission includes on the [How to Enter](#how-to-enter) page, or explore the [prizes](#prizes) on offer.

Register

Terms & Conditions

Q&A Forum

Phase 1

To what extent does the submission provide a curriculum overview, describe its menopause focus, outline curricular placement with competency alignment, and demonstrate scalability.? To what extent does the submission describe the education or training goals, the educational content being conveyed, the education or training approaches and modalities being used, and the participants being reached?

To what extent does the curriculum meaningfully strengthen competency in menopause-related care across settings? To what extent does the program equip learners to recognize, assess, and manage menopause-related conditions?

Menopause Focus

To what extent does the content support accurate diagnosis, individualized treatment planning, and risk–beneﬁt counseling? To what extent does the curriculum promote collaborative care and reﬂect interdisciplinary roles in menopause management?

Diagnostic, Treatment Planning and Coordination of Care

To what extent does the curriculum aligned with established clinical guidelines, professional society recommendations, or other recognized frameworks?

Alignment with Evidence-Based Guidelines

To what extent does the curriculum convey comprehensive, evidence-based menopause content across physiological, psychosocial, and long-term health domains?

Curriculum Design

Is content thoughtfully integrated (e.g. preclinical vs clinical)? Are competencies and learning objectives clearly deﬁned and mapped to accreditation or professional standards? To what extent does the placement support staged skill development appropriate to learner level?

Curricular Placement

Is the intended learner population clearly deﬁned, and does the curriculum appropriately address their scope of practice and training level? To what extent does the opportunity leverage education and training approaches and modalities that are tailored to effectively deliver educational content to the target audience(s)? Are the instructional strategies (e.g., didactic, case-based, simulation, clinical training, online modules) appropriate, well-designed, and suited to the learner population?

Engaging Diverse Audiences of Learners

To what extent does the submission document effective implementation of the opportunity to date? To what extent does the opportunity have the potential to be disseminated effectively to reach broader audiences? Are there resources, interest, or need to suggest the opportunity has the potential for dissemination and uptake?

Potential for Broader Dissemination and Uptake

How innovative is this educational or training opportunity, in educational content, teaching approaches and modalities, and participants? To what extent do innovations in this opportunity deliver unique content, enhance uptake of educational content, or increase access to the opportunity for larger or more varied audiences?

Innovativeness

Track 2 - Specialty-Speciﬁc Competencies

This track will include all criteria listed in Track 1 – Core Curriculum and:

Specialty based care: To what extent does the submission convey impact of menopause within the specialty? To what extent does the submission detail the unique interplay of menopause within the specialty? Are the unique care, treatment plans or education discussed for that specialty?

Specialty Based Care

All submissions must follow the format and instructions described below. Consist of a single PDF ﬁle with page size set to 8.5” x 11” and at least 1-inch margins Use a font no smaller than 11-point Arial and line spacing no less than 1.0 Be written in English Title and Executive Summary not to exceed one page and included as the ﬁrst page of the PDF ﬁle Not use the HHS logo or official seal or the logo of NIH in the entries and must not claim federal government endorsement. The Curricula Description and Executive Summary are limited to 20 pages, the toolkit is limited to 5 pages, and the appendix is limited to 10 pages. An appendix is optional.

COMpetency in Menopause & Integrated Therapy (COMMIT) Challenge

This track supports evidence-based menopause curriculum applicable across all health professions. The objective is to establish foundational competencies for providers in all ﬁelds who encounter patients in midlife and beyond. Curricula must be competency-based, aligned where possible with accreditation standards, and of sufficient depth and duration to ensure measurable proﬁciency. Interprofessional models and demonstrated implementation with learner assessment are strongly encouraged. The emphasis is on scalable modules that can be adopted nationally.

***Core content should include:***

* Physiology of the menopausal transition
* Common symptoms
* Cardiometabolic and bone health
* Cancer survivorship considerations or treatment induced menopause
* Principles of menopause hormone therapy and non-hormonal management
* Risk assessment and contraindications
* Communication and shared decision-making

Core Curriculum

This track supports advanced or role-speciﬁc curricula tailored to particular disciplines. While Track 1 establishes foundational knowledge, Track 2 deﬁnes the additional competencies required within speciﬁc scopes of practice. Submissions should articulate clear specialty-aligned competencies and corresponding assessment strategies. Competitive entries will demonstrate alignment with relevant professional standards and show how specialty content builds on the core curriculum to support coordinated, team-based care.

***Examples of specialty speciﬁc competencies include:***

* Complex hormone therapy management in obstetrics and gynecology
* Gastrointestinal health
* Longitudinal risk management in primary care
* Mental health, alcohol use and substance use
* Menopause considerations in cardiology, endocrinology, oncology, and psychiatry
* Metabolic health and weight management
* Musculoskeletal health and physical ﬁtness; exercise
* Nutrition
* Pharmacologic management
* Symptom management and care coordination in nursing and allied health ﬁelds
* Pelvic ﬂoor dysfunction
* Ocular health and vision
* Dental, craniofacial, and oral health

Specialty-Specific Competencies

NASA Tournament Lab

Protect the Astronaut. Control the Discharge.

Webinar 1: Lunar Grounding Challenge

Webinar 2: Lunar Grounding Challenge

To what extent does the concept provide a safe, controlled electrostatic discharge of a suited crew member at -100 kV to an approximately +100 V lander (110 kV differential, 200 pF capacitance model) within 30 seconds or less? Does the solution hold peak current at the suit interface below 1.0 mA with a design target of 0.2 mA while preventing any electrical arc from contacting the suit assembly or the astronaut? Evaluation will score charge dissipation rate, maximum residual voltage, and discharge path control. 

Electrical Discharge Performance and Arc Containment

To what extent do the CAD model or dimensioned drawings, Bill of Materials (BOM), engineering calculations, and electrical or thermal simulation results describe a buildable flight concept? Submissions will be evaluated against total system mass under 20 kg, vehicle power draw under 40 W max across both quiescent and active operating states, multi-EVA lifecycle support for 4 EVAs over 10 days, physical interface bonding, and BOM maturity including the percentage of components with fully defined materials, tolerances, and sourcing. 

Design Feasibility and Completeness 

To what extent does the concept perform reliably under lunar dust, thermal, and gravity conditions at the South Pole? Environmental performance will be evaluated using metrics such as percentage reduction in dust adhesion, effective thermal operating range from -361F to -31F, mass and volume penalties, and dust mitigation controls such as regolith sealing and dust-induced arc-length prevention. Where applicable, proposed concepts will also be evaluated for abrasion wear lifetime across the planned 10-day surface mission. 

Environmental Performance Under Lunar Dust and Temperature Conditions 

To what extent is the concept practical for lunar surface operations, crew usability, and EVA integration? Submissions will be evaluated on the operational simplicity of the design, including pressurized EVA glove operability, ease of tactile and visual alignment during low light operations, total crew workload and operational overhead, and physical mobility and dexterity impacts. Where applicable, proposed concepts will also be assessed on their consumables management, such as secondary mass usage, power demands, or single-use components. 

Concept of Operations, Human Factors & Consumables Management 

To what extent does the submission provide a structured risk matrix identifying key technical, operational, and environmental risks with credible mitigations? Specific evaluation metrics including types of failure modes mapped to backups or redundant safety pathways, TRL advancement plan maturity and verification matrix. 

Risk Assessment 

I have read, understand, and agree to the official eligibility criteria, rules, and requirements of the Challenge as stated on the challenge website.&#x20;

Phase 1: Primary Submission Window

Only open to five selected finalists from the primary submission window.

Phase 2: Refinement

A thorough technical description of the system concept, supplemented by submitted engineering drawings, renderings, or sketches of the solution to help communicate the ideas.   Maximum 5-page PDF following the PDF formatting rules.   Optional: Supplemental files compressed as a .ZIP file. 

Description of the Concept: Maximum 5-page PDF following the PDF formatting rules.

Description of the Concept: Optional supplemental files compressed as a .ZIP file. 

A preliminary Design CAD Model or a set of detailed, fully dimensioned 2D engineering drawings/schematics to understand the scale, interfaces, and Bill of Materials (Part Name, Part Number, Manufacturer, and assembly method).   CAD model (.STEP or .STP) OR;   Drawings/schematics (PDF), AND;   Bill of Materials (.PDF, .XLSX or .CSV) 

Technical Representation Deliverable: CAD model (.STEP or .STP)

Technical Representation Deliverable: Drawings/schematics (PDF)

Technical Representation Deliverable: Bill of Materials (.PDF, .XLSX or .CSV)

A preliminary concept of operations, including lunar surface transport, deployment, operation, and environmental performance.   Maximum 2-page PDF following the PDF formatting rules.

Concept of Operations: Maximum 2-page PDF following the PDF formatting rules

An engineering breakdown of expected physical and structural properties, including total mass (<20kg). Maximum 1-page PDF following the PDF formatting rules

Physical Properties Estimate: Maximum 1-page PDF following the PDF formatting rules

Data demonstrating expected electrical discharge performance, verifying that current remains <1.0 mA under a +100kV differential over the suit interface.   Analysis: Maximum 5-page PDF overview following the PDF formatting rules, AND;   Data (.PDF, .XLSX or .CSV) 

Electrical Performance Analysis: Analysis maximum 5-page PDF overview following the PDF formatting rules

Electrical Performance Analysis: Data (.PDF, .XLSX or .CSV) 

A structured matrix and discussion identifying key technical operational and environmental risks associated with the proposed concept alongside potential mitigations.   Overview: Maximum 1-page PDF overview following the PDF formatting rules, AND;   Risk matrix (.PDF, .XLSX or .CSV) 

Risk Assessment: Overview maximum 1-page PDF overview following the PDF formatting rules

A structured matrix and discussion identifying key technical operational and environmental risks associated with the proposed concept alongside potential mitigations.   Overview: Maximum 1-page PDF overview following the PDF formatting rules, AND; Risk matrix (.PDF, .XLSX or .CSV)

Discover your next freelance opportunity

INCLUDE Voices: Research in Action Challenge

It’s About Time: Temporal Reasoning in Biomedical Knowledge Graphs Challenge

COMpetency in Menopause & Integrated Therapy (COMMIT) Challenge

Lunar Grounding Challenge