As you may have noticed, Insidan has acquired a new look. The newsletter is now sent out using a programme that will facilitate its production and evaluation.
Welcome back from your summer holidays, and happy reading! |
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| Peter Jönsson, associate senior lecturer at the Department of Chemistry, has been awarded an ERC Starting Grant of around EUR 1.5 million over five years. He will use the money in his research into the body’s immune system. On the occasion of this major grant, Jönsson will hold a lecture in English tomorrow 25 August from 12:15 to 12:45 in Lundmarksalen, Astronomihuset, Sölvegatan 27. All those who are interested are most welcome. |
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| Bertram Bitsch, researcher at the Department of Astronomy and Theoretical Physics, has been awarded an ERC Starting Grant of around EUR 1.5 million over five years. The funding will be used in the PAMDORA project which aims to understand how planets form and migrate around young stars. Heidelberg University is hosting the project. |
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| The Department of Chemistry has been awarded a grant in the LU call for applications on thematic cooperation initiatives. The project is entitled “Circular Biobased Economy” and is coordinated by Eva Nordberg Karlsson (professor at the Department of Chemistry) and Josefine Ahlqvist (project manager at the University’s Research, External Engagement and Innovation Office). |
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| Emil Rofors, doctoral student at the Department of Physics, won the Science Slam in Almedalen. Rofors spoke about his research on finding new alternatives to Helium-3. The news item was picked up by several media outlets. |
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Now you can apply for funding, within the framework of the strategic partnership with the University of Nottingham, for research cooperation in the form of contact-establishing workshops. The application deadline is 30 September.
Read more and apply |
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The current calls for applications from STINT are:
- Initiation Grants (apply by 5 September)
- Joint Japan-Sweden Research Collaboration (apply by 6 September)
- South Africa-Sweden Bilateral Scientific Research Cooperation (apply by 15 September)
- Joint Brazilian-Swedish Research Collaboration (apply by 15 September)
- Teaching Sabbatical - It's too late to apply since Lund University's internal deadline was 20 August.
- Joint China-Sweden Mobility (apply by 26 September)
- Postdoctoral Transition Grants for Internationalisation (apply by 28 September)
- Korea-Sweden Research Cooperation (apply by 29 September)
Read more about the calls for applications |
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Now you can nominate candidates for the Heineken Prizes for outstanding research in subjects such as biochemistry, biophysics and environmental sciences. The deadline for nominations is 15 October.
Read more and nominate |
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During the autumn, the Faculty of Medicine will be offering a series of seminars in which you can learn more about the work opportunities within the pharmaceutical industry. Register by email to heiko.herwald@med.lu.se.
See the whole programme |
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| LU’s Welcome Day event for new employees will be held in English on 18 October from 08:30 to 14:00 at Skissernas museum – Museum of Artistic Process and Public Art. Read more and sign up for the event by 4 October on Kompetensportalen. |
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| Charlotte Sparrenbom, senior lecturer at the Department of Geology, was interviewed by many media outlets on the subject of the high levels of pesticides found in sources of drinking water used by municipalities in Skåne. “Above all, there should be more severe restrictions with regard to the approval of pesticides. We also need to ensure that all our water resources are in protected areas”, she says. |
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| Marcus Stensmyr, senior lecturer at the Department of Biology, was interviewed in many media outlets on the subject of new research showing how flies and other insects perceive changes in both temperature and air humidity. “If we manage to disable certain nerve cells in their brains, it could open new doors for mosquito control”, he says. |
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| Sofia Feltzing, professor at the Department of Astronomy and Theoretical Physics, was interviewed in many media outlets about the Milky Way being most visible now during the late summer and early autumn. “You should get as far away as possible from civilisation, to a place where you don’t see a lot of yellow light from motorway junctions and cities”, she says. |
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| Markku Rummukainen, professor of climatology, was interviewed in many media outlets about new research showing that Europeans risk dying as a result of heatwaves in the future. “The study shows an important example of the major consequences climate change will have if we don’t limit the global increase in temperatures”, he says. Rummukainen was also interviewed on Radio Sweden about this summer’s heatwaves in southern Europe. |
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| Anders Hedenström, professor at the Department of Biology, was interviewed in many media outlets on the subject of new research showing that birds that fly actively and flap their wings save energy. “Purely from an energy perspective, the cost goes down. Separate, slotted feathers on wingtips probably evolved because they facilitated flapping”, he says. |
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| Emma Kritzberg, senior lecturer at the Department of Biology, was interviewed about new research indicating that coniferous forest is the cause of the brownification of Swedish lakes. “I am not saying that we should remove all the conifers in the landscape, but perhaps start to replace conifers with deciduous trees close to streams and rivers. That would probably have a very positive effect on the brownification”, she says. |
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| Joakim Stenhammar, associate senior lecturer at the Department of Chemistry, was interviewed about new research showing that bacteria form flocks at very low concentrations of individuals. “From a biological perspective, this is usable to examine the evolutionary basis of flock behaviour in bacteria, as the connections can increase our understanding of the course of infectious diseases”, he says. |
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| Max Lundberg, researcher, and Staffan Bensch, professor, both from the Department of Biology, were interviewed about new research showing that the migration genes of the willow warbler differ depending on where they breed in the summertime. “Our findings constitute an important addition to the understanding of the genetics of migration and will guide future studies in the subject”, says Bensch. |
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| Ullrika Sahlin, researcher at the Centre for Environmental and Climate Research, was interviewed in the newspaper Kristianstadsbladet on the subject of a risk analysis she has produced on the spread of the signal crayfish in Sweden. The analysis is to be handed over to the Swedish Board of Agriculture and the Swedish Agency for Marine and Water Management, who in turn will produce a management programme to be approved by the EU Commission. |
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| Sylvain Richoz, senior lecturer at the Department of Geology, was interviewed in several media outlets about his participation in the project “Science Sets Sail” in which researchers from various disciplines sailed together in the Baltic Sea. “The aim is to reinforce expertise and create new research projects around the Baltic. The idea is to do something out of the ordinary”, he says. |
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| Neus Latorre-Margalef, researcher at the Department of Biology, was interviewed in several media outlets about new research showing that mallards infected with influenza develop protection against other variants of the influenza virus. “This can help us to understand how the system works, in order to develop better vaccines”, she says. |
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| Markku Rummukainen, professor of climatology, was interviewed in many media outlets about new research showing that climate change has led to bad harvests in the central USA and Canada. “Vegetation and agriculture are sensitive to colder and later springs and less precipitation – plants don’t get going as usual and their growth is reduced”, he says. |
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| Marie Dacke, senior lecturer at the Department of Biology, was interviewed in Svenska Dagbladet about how research into insects can lead to new technical solutions to problems that we humans are struggling with. Among other things, Dacke explained that there is work underway to develop a small robot which, like the dung beetle, can orientate itself using the night sky. The article also mentions Emily Baird, researcher at the same department. |
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| Torbjörn Fagerström, professor emeritus at the Department of Biology, wrote two opinion pieces in Svenska Dagbladet about the Patent and Market Court finding Coop guilty in its advertising of organic food. “Scientific research is not a playpen in which anybody can design experiments, interpret results and choose which results are to be highlighted on the basis of their own ideological or commercial agenda”, he wrote. |
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| Maria Mostadius, curator at the Biology Museum, was interviewed in many media outlets on the subject of her dissection of the swordfish found dead in the Falsterbo canal. “I suspect that it starved to death”, she says. |
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| Markku Rummukainen, professor of climatology, was interviewed in many media outlets about new research showing that millions of people in South Asia risk suffering from deadly heatwaves unless global warming is limited. Those who have little opportunity to adapt can suffer particularly badly. “We are talking about areas where there are many poor people, who cannot afford to install air conditioning and who work out in the fields even when it is hot”, says Rummukainen. |
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| Marcus Stensmyr, senior lecturer at the Department of Biology, was interviewed on Radio Sweden and TV4 Nyhetsmorgon about why some people get bitten by mosquitoes more than others. Stensmyr also explained how to avoid getting bitten. |
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| Vivi Vajda (professor at the Department of Geology) and Per Uvdal (professor at the Department of Chemistry) were interviewed in many media outlets about how they have succeeded in mapping the relationships between plant species that are 200 million years old. |
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| Almut Kelber, professor at the Department of Biology, was interviewed about how colours are perceived and function in the animal world. In the future, increased knowledge in this area could contribute to the development of fields as far apart as medicine, safety and clothing. |
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| Charlotte Sparrenbom, senior lecturer at the Department of Geology, was interviewed on Radio Sweden about the shortage of groundwater in Sweden. Sparrenbom says that one of the solutions to the problem could be to increase the price of water. |
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| Per Henningsson, researcher at the Department of Biology, was interviewed in many media outlets on the subject of researchers studying for the first time how bats out-manoeuver their prey when hunting in flight. Henningsson explained the how a wind-tunnel is used to study the bats’ flying technique. |
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| David O’Carroll, professor at the Department of Biology, was interviewed in many media outlets on new research showing that dragonflies can predict where moving objects, such as prey, will be within the immediate future. Among other things, the research can be used for the development of driverless vehicles. |
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| Emily Baird, researcher, and Pierre Tichit, doctoral student, at the Department of Biology, were interviewed on the subject of their investigation into how bumble-bees navigate in various environments. Among other things, their research could contribute to the development of small robots. |
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| Klas Flärdh, professor at the Department of Biology, was interviewed in several media outlets on the subject of his discovery of two proteins which contribute to enabling bacterial cells to divide and thereby reproduce. In the long term, the discovery could facilitate the development of new antibiotics which must be produced as resistance to existing antibiotics increases. |
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| Torbjörn Tyler, curator at the Biology Museum, was interviewed about the increase in the occurrence of a poisonous plant, common ragwort, in southern Sweden. “Ragwort is really only a problem for horse-owners. It is apparently also dangerous for cows, but they don’t eat it. It is completely harmless for humans and not a problem for nature conservation” he says. |
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| Anders Scherstén, senior lecturer at the Department of Geology, was interviewed on SVT News on the subject of gold found on the beach below the Ravlunda firing range in Österlen. “This is of course very exciting and also rather unusual. And as far as I know, this is unique to Skåne”, he says. |
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| Anna Persson, researcher at the Centre for Environmental and Climate Research, was interviewed on Radio Sweden about her investigation into how pollination in Malmö works. |
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| Dennis Hasselquist, professor at the Department of Biology, was interviewed on TV4 News about new findings showing that older great reed warbler mothers, who stay healthy, have better conditions to have offspring that live longer. Hasselquist says that similar mechanisms may exist in humans. |
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| Torbjörn Tyler, curator of the Biology Museum, was interviewed in Expressen on the subject of a dandelion leaf found in Skåne that is 68 centimetres long. “I have never seen such large dandelion leaves, but they can become large and in that case it could be due to the fact that they have received a great deal of nutrition”, he says. |
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| Raphael Gollnisch, doctoral student at the Department of Biology, was interviewed in Skånska Dagbladet about the freshwater microalgal species, gonyostomum semen, which is increasing rapidly in European lakes. By studying whether there are differences in the genome of the algae in different areas, he hopes to find out how the species has spread and why. |
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| Henrik Smith, professor at the Department of Biology, was interviewed in the daily Dagens Nyheter about the project “The Birds and the Bees” which creates flowering field borders for bees, bumble-bees and other pollinators. “Compared with not doing anything, the effects of flowering field edges are very positive. Besides the pollinators, there can also be other positive effects such as benefiting the natural enemies of pests, such as parasitoids which lay eggs in aphids”, he says. |
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| Ullrika Sahlin, researcher at the Centre for Environmental and Climate Research, was interviewed about the connection between risk-taking and innovations. Sahlin says that there is a clear correlation and that the whole of evolution has been driven by risk-taking. |
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| Anders Lindroth, professor emeritus at the Department of Physical Geography and Ecosystem Science, was interviewed in Dagens ETC about why the amount of carbon in the atmosphere is increasing, despite the fact that human emissions of carbon dioxide have been stabilised. “There are many uncertain factors”, he says. |
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| Henrik Smith, professor at the Department of Biology, was interviewed in Ystads Allehanda on the subject of around a hundred bumble-bees found dead in Sjöbo. Smith says that the bumble-bees may have died of natural causes or been subjected to attack by birds. |
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| Thomas Alerstam, professor emeritus at the Department of Biology, was interviewed in many media outlets about an inventory showing that there is a shortage of nesting places for the country’s sand martins. Alerstam explains that many sand martins have their nests in natural scree slopes, but that sand and gravel pits are also important nesting places for them. |
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| Kaj Hultén, postdoc, and Anders Nilsson, professor, both at the Department of Biology, were interviewed about new research showing that hybrids (cross-breeds of two species) get eaten by predators to a larger extent than their parents. “Predators maintain the boundaries between species and contribute to preventing the appearance of a whole range of new hybrids”, says Nilsson. |
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| Erik Svensson, professor at the Department of Biology, was interviewed on SVT News about new research showing that female odonates, which mimic the appearance of males in order to avoid sexual harassment, are most common in northern Europe. Svensson says that the need for females that look like males is greater here because the mating season is very short. |
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| Markku Rummukainen, professor of climatology, was interviewed on Radio Sweden about the forest fires in Greece. “When it gets warmer because of climate change, we get a longer season for fires. With less precipitation, which is one of the consequences in the area, the risk of fires increases. We are facing increasingly difficult times”, he says. |
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| Marcus Stensmyr, senior lecturer at the Department of Biology, was interviewed on SVT News about fruit flies and how to avoid having them at home. |
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| Henrik Smith, professor at the Department of Biology, was interviewed on Radio Sweden about a new study showing that the pesticide neonicotinoids has a negative impact on bumble-bee egg-laying. “Previously, we have seen effects on their search for food and the development of their colonies, for example. But now, it was possible to see that the queen bees, when they are to establish themselves in the spring, are negatively affected by neonicotinoids”, he says. |
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| Maj Rundlöf, researcher at the Department of Biology, was mentioned in Dagens Nyheter in connection with two new studies showing that insecticide containing neonicotinoids has a negative impact on bees. |
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| Katrin Ros, doctoral student at the Department of Astronomy and Theoretical Physics, was interviewed for a personal feature published in Sydsvenskan. Among other things, Ros talks about her research into how planets are formed. |
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| Anders Lindroth, professor emeritus at the Department of Physical Geography and Ecosystem Science, was interviewed in Dagens ETC about the effect of forests on the climate. “In principle, it would be best for the climate simply not to cut down any forest for the immediate future, if we want to achieve results quickly”, he says. |
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| Ola Olsson, senior lecturer at the Department of Biology, was interviewed on Radio Sweden on the subject of there being more endangered plant and animal species in Skåne. Olsson says that Skåne is particularly vulnerable because of its biodiversity. |
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| Christer Hansson, curator at the Biology Museum, helped to identify insects in an illustrated insert published in Sydsvenskan, among other media outlets. |
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| Pål Axel Olsson, professor at the Department of Biology, was interviewed in Frilagt about how he led a guided tour through the Vinslöv flower meadow nature reserve. |
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| Lars Olof Björn, professor emeritus at the Department of Biology, answered questions about blueberries in Fokus. |
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| Lars Pettersson, researcher at the Department of Biology, was mentioned in Ystads Allehanda in connection with a guided butterfly tour he led in the Ystad area. |
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SciLifeLab is offering an opportunity for researchers to develop recombinant antibodies against new target proteins. The application deadline is close: 1 September. A second call for applications is planned for November.
Read more and apply |
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