Search by tag «ITMO Fellowship & Professorship» 58 results

• Explore the Universe or Deliver Memes: ITMO Fellow Alisa Chaikovskaya Talks Particle Physics

  Physics of elementary particles explores the tiniest building blocks of the universe to explain how it developed and came into being. One recent discovery in the field was the Higgs boson, which contributed to our understanding of what happened in the universe after the Big Bang. In order to solve the many remaining mysteries of particle physics, scientists develop theoretical models. ITMO Fellow Alisa Chaikovskaya is one such scientist – in this interview, we asked her about her work, spin particles, and their applications.

  28.03.2023

• Natural Waste to Slow Down Climate Change: ITMO Fellow Randa Ghonim on Cleaning Oil Spills With Green Technologies

  Oil spills produce billions’ worth of damage every year, as well as irredeemably damage marine ecosystems. The existing methods used to clean up oil spills are expensive, ineffective, and sometimes produce harmful byproducts for the environment. Randa Ghonim, a researcher at the City of Scientific Research and Technological Applications (SRTA-City), Egypt, believes that biodegradable natural waste could be used effectively to clean up oil spills. She conducted part of the work on this project at ITMO University as an ITMO Fellow. How can we use rice straw to get rid of oil spills? Read on to find out.

  06.02.2023

• ITMO Fellow Eugene Smirnov On Colloid Chemistry Applications: From Space Telescopes to FoodTech

  Remember the James Webb Telescope? The one that’s recently discovered its first exoplanet? It’s an impressive machine that has 18 mirrors covered with an ultrathin layer of gold. It takes 3.5 years of polishing to produce one such mirror, which then has to be linked to the others and delivered to the orbit. Wouldn’t it be great if we could just make a liquid mirror out of nanoparticles? Sounds like a dream, but colloid chemistry can get us closer to it. What other possibilities does it open? We asked ITMO Fellow Eugene Smirnov, a scientist with international experience from Switzerland, Germany, and China, who now heads a research group at ITMO.

  30.01.2023

• ITMO Fellow Ahmed Eldeeb on Working in Russia and Becoming a PI at 28

  Ahmed Eldeeb decided to become a scientist when he was still at school. Though his family wanted him to pursue a career in engineering, medicine, or programming, the future researcher was so passionate about biotechnology and DNA/RNA technologies that, eventually, his dream brought him to ITMO University. Now the head of a frontier laboratory at the university’s SCAMT Institute, he develops DNA robots for cancer gene therapy and viral diagnostics. In this interview, Ahmed Eldeeb gives an insight into what it's like to build a lab from scratch and lead a team of 23 as a young PI.

  29.12.2022

• ITMO Fellow Tamer Abdelrazik on Novel Antimicrobial Polymers

  In 2022, the World Health Organization (WHO) described antimicrobial resistance as one of the top ten global health threats currently faced by humanity. Some bacteria, Escherichia coli or Staphylococcus aureus, can spread a variety of infections, which are typically treated with antibiotics, yet over time they can develop resistance to the drugs, thus complicating the treatment and increasing the risk of further spreading. This problem is being addressed by Tamer Abdelrazik, a scientist from the City of Scientific Research and Technological Applications (SRTA-City) who worked at ITMO as part of the ITMO Fellowship program.

  26.12.2022

• Academic Coach Christoph Sprung on the Importance of Soft Skills for Scientists

  Christoph Sprung, a participant of the ITMO Fellowship and Professorship program, has a rather unusual profession – he’s a freelance coach who works with scientists, lecturers, research teams, and students. Having worked as a scientist, he knows very well how important soft skills are for researchers. That’s why he decided to teach them leadership, presentation, project management, and teamwork skills. For the past three years he’s been also training ITMO students. We interviewed him to learn more about his coaching career and his experience of working at a Russian university.

  28.11.2022

• ITMO Fellow Balamuralithara Balakrishnan on Creativity and Developing Products Using Design Thinking

  According to a recent study by LinkedIn, creative thinking is still among the most sought-after skills in business. However, it is no longer enough to “simply” come up with creative ideas – now they have to be developed with ethical norms in mind, as well as benefit the society, economy, and environment. Can we measure creativity? What is design thinking and how can we use it to make truly necessary products? In this article, we turn to an ITMO Fellow, the Malaysian researcher Balamuralithara Balakrishnan, for answers.

  24.11.2022

• PI + Team: ITMO Announces Project Competition for Future Lab Founders

  ITMO University is launching an open call for research teams wishing to run their own laboratories at the university. The winners will receive grants of up to 30 million rubles that can be spent on the development of a lab at ITMO. Read on to learn how to apply and what to expect from the PI + Team competition. 

  29.06.2022

• ITMO Researchers Zoom in on Spatial Ability

  Scientists from ITMO University together with their colleagues from the UK, Italy, and Russia examined the structure of human spatial abilities. These are the skills people use to navigate from point A to point B and solve a wide range of math problems. The study showed that these abilities structurally resemble a giant network with compass navigation being its core element. The researchers suggest that the improvement of navigation skills using cardinal directions may lead to the improvement of other spatial abilities, as well. Their work can potentially help create recommendations on how to enhance the learning process.

  22.06.2022

• ITMO’s Monday Science Roundup #5

  We’re back again with the key science news from the past couple weeks. This time, we’ve got: a rankings success, insights into the art of science communication, exciting nanoscience research, and summer schools for fledgling scientists.

  09.05.2022