FPDS Query Library
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First Name

First name of the principal investigator named in the NASA-specific award elements. This is a text label identifying the individual, not a coded value.

Family: Award
Category: General
Data Type: string
Semantic Type: label
Mapping: flattened_fpds_xml_field
AI Confidence: high

Variable Overview

FPDS Query Variable
content__award__agencySpecificAwardElements__NASASpecificAwardElements__principalInvestigator__firstName
Title
First Name
FPDS Path
award/agencySpecificAwardElements/NASASpecificAwardElements/principalInvestigator/firstName
Description
First name of the principal investigator named in the NASA-specific award elements. This is a text label identifying the individual, not a coded value.
Business Meaning
This field helps analysts identify the specific principal investigator associated with NASA-related awards, supporting researcher-level review, matching to internal records, and attribution of award activity. It can also help distinguish between similarly structured records when multiple awards are linked to the same program or institution.
Example Value
jeff
Observed Non-Null Count
246,660

FPDS Compare

FPDS Query Variable
content__award__agencySpecificAwardElements__NASASpecificAwardElements__principalInvestigator__firstName
FPDS XML Path
award/agencySpecificAwardElements/NASASpecificAwardElements/principalInvestigator/firstName
Mapping Type
flattened_fpds_xml_field
Comparison Summary
FPDS Query flattens the original nested FPDS XML path 'award/agencySpecificAwardElements/NASASpecificAwardElements/principalInvestigator/firstName' into the SQL-ready variable 'content__award__agencySpecificAwardElements__NASASpecificAwardElements__principalInvestigator__firstName'.

Use Cases

  • Dictionary lookup and field explanation
  • SQL filtering and grouping
  • Analytical reporting and reusable query building

Common Usage

  • Identifying the principal investigator on NASA awards
  • Joining to other name fields for person-level review
  • Spot-checking award records for completeness and consistency

Common Mistakes

  • Using first name alone to identify a unique person
  • Assuming the value is standardized or always fully spelled out

Query Guidance

Use as a string field for filtering, display, or approximate matching. In SQL, compare case-insensitively when needed and pair with last name or an identifier for reliable grouping, for example in WHERE clauses or CONCAT-based name construction.

SQL Examples

Preview values

SELECT
    content__award__agencySpecificAwardElements__NASASpecificAwardElements__principalInvestigator__firstName AS first_name
FROM fpds.data
WHERE content__award__agencySpecificAwardElements__NASASpecificAwardElements__principalInvestigator__firstName IS NOT NULL
LIMIT 25

Top values

SELECT
    content__award__agencySpecificAwardElements__NASASpecificAwardElements__principalInvestigator__firstName AS value,
    count() AS record_count
FROM fpds.data
WHERE content__award__agencySpecificAwardElements__NASASpecificAwardElements__principalInvestigator__firstName IS NOT NULL
GROUP BY value
ORDER BY record_count DESC
LIMIT 25

Each dictionary item includes SQL-ready examples generated alongside the variable metadata, allowing immediate use in FPDS Query for filtering, aggregation, and analysis.