Only two things in life are certain – death and taxes; or so the saying goes. We say there’s three – there’s also our bi-weekly science new digest! In today’s installment: the tenth anniversary of ITMO Fellowship, a novel way to keep foods safe and sound, and mind-blowing AR solutions.

Research

We’ve got some great news for fans of spiral molecules – researchers from ITMO and their colleagues in Russia and China have devised a great new tool for detecting and “sorting” between leftward- and rightward-oriented rotations of polarized light with a near-100% accuracy.

And for those not yet in the know what spiral molecules are: these are the molecules you might find in DNA, sugar, or medicine, among others. Even that should be enough to tell you that knowing how to work with them can be pretty crucial! The new nanostructure’s creators say it should prove a great help in accelerating a variety of chemical and biological tests.

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Medical specialists and food safety researchers aren’t too different, says ITMO Fellow Amin Mousavi Khaneghah – after all, both are determined to save our health and even lives. Dr. Khaneghah’s current research at ITMO could be described as “fighting fire with fire”: His team plans on using bacteria, molds, and yeasts to detect food contaminants that aren’t immediately evident to the consumer. Recently, ITMO.NEWS sat down with Dr. Khaneghah for a deeply insightful interview about his research, work philosophy, and future plans at ITMO.

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Speaking of the ITMO Fellowship program: this year, the international initiative has celebrated its tenth anniversary! In the past two years alone, nearly 40 researchers from across the globe have come to St. Petersburg to leave their mark and become a part of the university’s scientific community. To mark the occasion, current laureates of the program met up to get to know one another, exchange advice, and chat with ITMO.NEWS about their work. More – in our write-up.

University

Since its establishment a little over two years ago, ITMO’s Advanced Engineering School has consistently remained one of the forerunners of the eponymous national program. Starting this fall, it’s moving into a new home on ITMO’s Lomonosova St. campus. The new space features a half-dozen labs, coworking spaces, and office space for the department’s numerous students and staff. At the same time, the AES is launching its own endowment fund – a first among its many counterparts across Russia.

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Making your first steps into the wider world of research can be a daunting task. Luckily, students at ITMO can avail of the services of the Student Research Association (SRA), where they’ll receive assistance with finding a supervisor, applying for scholarships and grants, and much more, as well as enjoy access to various special offers and discounts. All about the SRA and how to join – in the article below.

Technology

When it comes to the oil and gas industry, time really is money. When something goes wrong at a remote site, every minute of downtime can result in massive losses. A new bit of wearable tech by developers from ITMO aims to solve that by connecting on-site staff with remote experts and allowing them to work in tandem to quickly resolve issues. The augmented reality headset, which recently earned top marks at the Sber500 accelerator, even uses a transparent, sci-fi-style visor to highlight items in the user’s field of vision. The team already has an MVP and is planning to branch out into other fields, such as medicine.

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Job-hunting can be a headache, especially if you’ve got something more specific in mind. But modern problems require modern solutions – so, one of our writers recently stepped up to the task and tested out a job-hunting bot. Unethical or practical? Find out for yourself in the linked article below.

ITMO’s Monday Science Roundup #68

Research

University

Technology

Vadim Galimov

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