News from the Rector's Office No. 16/2010
Aarhus University off to a great start at the Festival of Research
The Festival of Research opened with the presentation of two prestigious awards at the Experimentarium in Copenhagen, both of which went to researchers from Aarhus University.
-
The Research Communication Prize 2010
Associate Professor Dr Søren Hein Rasmussen and Project Manager Dr Anne Sørensen (HUM) accepted the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation's Research Communication Prize 2010 on behalf of the group of researchers behind the groundbreaking internet portal, danmarkshistorien.dk. The DKK 100,000 prize was awarded by Crown Princess Mary at the Festival of Research opening ceremony.
The award committee justified its choice in the following terms: "Danmarkshistorien.dk is a groundbreaking innovation in the area of web-based research communication. It exploits the possibilities offered by the internet and can be used as a traditional chronological history of Denmark, a reference work, or as a platform for constructing individual versions of Denmark's history across chronology, themes and media".
To celebrate the prize, there will be an extraordinary presentation of danmarkshistorien.dk in the Lakeside Lecture Theatres on Friday 23 April at 1 pm and 3:15 pm.
-
The X Factor for researchers
The 26-year-old iNANO PhD student Kasper Jahn was the winner of this year's Forsker Grand Prix ('Researcher Grand Prix') - also known as The X Factor for researchers, because participants are given just a few minutes to get their message across. The competition takes place in connection with the Festival of Research, and Kasper Jahn made his winning presentation at the official opening ceremony on Thursday.
Kasper Jahn's presentation was about possible medical applications for nanotechnology. Nanomedicine may someday allow us to treat cancer without side effects, because it will be possible to locate and destroy sick cells without killing healthy cells simultaneously, as chemotherapy does.
- Experience Kasper Jahn's prize-winning presentation (Danish - external link)
The Rector's Office congratulates the winners on these fantastic results.
Staff meeting at NERI
Rector Lauritz B. Holm-Nielsen and Pro-Rector Søren E. Frandsen responded to questions on a wide range of topics when they met with staff members at NERI in Roskilde, including the state of Danish research anno 2030, the campus in Emdrup and the balance between permanent positions and project funding. The meeting, which was held on 20 April, was transmitted to NERI's research facilities in Silkeborg.
Inauguration of the Merete Barker Lecture Theatre
The inauguration of the Merete Barker Lecture Theatre in building 1250-1253 (Bartholins Allé 3) will take place on Thursday 29 April from 11 am to 1 pm. Merete Barker's work Labyrinten og Bjerget ('The Labyrinth and the Mountain'), which has been in the university’s possession since 1995, will be hung in the lecture theatre during the inauguration.
Merete Barker will attend the inauguration herself. Ms Barker has received numerous grants for artistic achievement as well as Eckersberg Medaillen ('the Eckersberg Medal') and the Danish government’s lifetime artists' grant. Her works are included in the collections of major Danish art museums as well as the University of Copenhagen and the Danish Parliament.
Rector Lauritz B. Holm-Nielsen will perform the official inauguration of the Merete Barker Lecture Theatre. Everyone is invited to attend.
NERI bid for environmental consultancy contracts rejected
NERI failed to win the consultancy contracts tendered by the Ministry of the Environment in December last year.
The ministry's rejection of 20 April states that the NERI tenders were not "the most financially favourable, cf. tender award criteria" and that "the tenderer's financial and economic qualifications" were insufficiently documented. The ministry's rejection will now be examined more closely by NERI to determine what lessons can be drawn from the experience.
The new practice of tendering research-based public-sector consultancy contracts, which has affected several consulting contracts formerly held by NERI, was implemented last year with reference to the new EU Public Procurement Directive. Aarhus University has pointed out the potential pitfalls of this new approach to public-sector consultancy contracts on several occasions. In the opinion of the university, the present tendering process fails to ensure that the consultancy work performed in the service of the public sector is based on the necessary foundation of independent research and recognized scientific methods.
The Queen of Denmark accepts birthday gift from AU
Queen Margrethe has accepted the creation of a travel grant in her name as gift on the occasion of her 70th birthday, 'The Queen Margrethe II travel grant for students at Aarhus University '.
The travel grant is earmarked for students at the Department of Political Science and the Department of Archaeology, where Queen Margrethe studied in 1961-62.
Two travel grants with a value of DKK 25,000 will be awarded to students from the two departments. The purpose of the grants is to enable students to include a period of study abroad during their studies at AU. According to plan, the travel grants will be awarded on the occasion of the university's annual celebration in September, by agreement with Her Majesty the Queen.
Calendar
- 24 April: Festival of Research
- 26 April: Staff meeting on the academic development process at the Danish School of Education, Emdrup
- 26 April: Minister for the Environment Ms Karen Ellemann to visit the National Environmental Research Institute, Aarhus University (NERI), Silkeborg
- 28 April: University Board meeting
- 29 April: Inauguration of the Merete Barker Lecture Theatre
- 29 April: Annual boat race in University Park
- 10 May: University management meeting
- 12 May: University management meeting
- 25-26 May: Two-day seminar on the academic development process for senior management team and department heads at Sandbjerg Gods
- 28 May: Rigmor og Carl Holst-Knudsens Videnskabspris award ceremony
- 7 June: University management meeting
- 10 June: Main Liaison Committee meeting
- 17 June: University Board meeting
- 17 June: Rector’s summer speech
- 30 June: University management meeting
Kind regards
The Rector’s Office
23 April 2010