The purpose of the Focused Research Group activity is to support collaborative groups employing innovative methods to solve specific, major research challenges in the mathematical sciences. A major challenge is an outstanding problem of significant importance that requires the focused and synergistic efforts of a collaborative group to solve, and whose solution will have wide impacts in the mathematical sciences and potentially in other areas. Groups may include, in addition to statisticians and mathematicians, researchers from other science and engineering disciplines appropriate for the proposed research. Risky projects are welcome. Interdisciplinary projects are welcome. Projects should be timely, limited in duration to up to three years, and substantial in their scope and impact for the mathematical sciences. Funded projects that show substantial progress in their first two years may be recommended for a creativity extension for up to an additional two years.