European Research Day 2018

Our society is approaching an ultra-modern-era based on complex systems driven by artificial intelligence, internet of things, and electrification of transportation all of which demand huge electrical energy consumption. Concomitantly there is a stringent need to reduce the C02 emissions through the use of a more efficient energy management of the power systems adopted. My research focuses on the design and fabrication of power transistors that can boost the energy efficiency up to 99% in power systems such as renewable energy converters (e.g photovoltaic, wind), wireless chargers, and inverters in electric vehicles. The technology I work on is based on a revolutionary design of a transistor based on a new material, Gallium Nitride. The unique properties of this material combined together with the novel design of my device enable the fabrication of ultra-light and reliable power circuits with energy efficiencies as high as 99%, thus reducing power consumption and C02 emission.

In 2010 I started my Phd at Cambridge University in collaboration with NXP semiconductor (Belgium). In 2014 I received a grant from the UK government to further investigate the outcome of my research for possible commercial exploitation. In 2015 I was awarded a 4 year Research fellowship from Gonville &Caius College in Cambridge. In 2016 I have span out my own company based on my research and continued at the same time my academic path. IN 2017 I have spent 2 months in LAAS Toulouse (France) for establishing possible collaborative projects between Cambridge and LAAS. In 2018 I was awarded a JSPS fellowship to spend 1 year in Japan. I plan to continue with an academic career in Europe focusing on on exploitable research. The main challenge is obtaining funds to manage projects/students and establish my independence without a permanent position. It is much more difficult to obtain independence in Japan and also there is not the culture of exploiting research via a spin out route.

In November 2018 I plan to come back to Europe for pursuing my academic career. At the moment I am involved with Uk government funds but I would like to know more details on the opportunities of European fund for UK Universities. I have in the past applied for a H2020 project but although it received high score it was not funded so a better understanding of the evaluation process for European proposal would be very useful. I am also interested in ERC funds. Obtaining a permanent position in University will be strongly advantaged if I receive any grants from Europe.

Investigation of the Hydration of the H channel in Bovine Heart Cytochrome c Oxidase.
I am currently studying the possibility of proton transport through a novel water channel in the membrane protein Bovine Heart Cytochrome c Oxidase (CcO). CcO, also known as complex IV of the respiratory chain. The protein is found in the inner mitochondrial membrane, where it pumps protons across the membrane through a mechanism coupled to reduction of oxygen. Several channels for the proton transport have been proposed and studied, one of these is the H channel which is proposed for the Bovine Heart CcO variant of the protein. The H channel is however still controversial as a proton transfer pathway due to the limited amount of crystal water found in the crystal structures of the protein. In my research I investigate the feasibility of adding more water to the H channel by performing molecular dynamics simulations with a constant pulling force applied to water outside the H pathway.

Career Path: From Ph.D. in Denmark to Special Postdoctoral Researcher in Japan

I did my bachelors, masters and Ph.D. of Chemistry at Aarhus University studying molecular vibrations of medium sized molecules using quantum mechanical methods. In accordance with my Ph.D. program I went for an environment change to the laboratory I am currently working at.

At the time of my graduation I was suggested either doing a two-year postdoc position in Germany within my field, or a generous five-year postdoc in the lab I visited in Japan working within an unfamiliar field. I chose to go to Japan, and this allowed me to transfer through a two-year project on understanding water dynamics in polymer membranes to my current work in theoretical bioenergetics of Bovine Heart CcO.

I am currently contemplating my next career move. I will therefore give an account on why I chose the path I walked to far, and use that experience to suggest the next steps in my academic career.

Relation to Europe: It is complicated!

On collaborations: Currently my only active collaboration within the EU is with the group I studied at during my time in Denmark. I am seeking to expand my network in Europe through conferences and connecting with researchers in my network, so far without great success.

On relocating to EU in the future: Relocating to another European country is a possibility, and with the favorable funding opportunities offered by the EU. Relocation back to Denmark, even outside of academia, however, seems increasingly difficult the longer I stay in Japan.

In the end: A strong connection with Europe is desirable for any researcher with an EU citizenship, however going back, or even maintaining connections, is difficult without good funding and a lot of effort. I will rely on lessons learned from my network in Japan, and experience with the Danish situation in particular, to explain the possible pitfalls when returning to the EU.

My research topic was focused at the beginning on superconducting materials, and then was expanded to thermoelectrics and materials for sustainable development. In detail, my research activity is related to the fabrication and characterization of nanostructured oxide superconductor and thermoelectric thin films with enhanced properties for efficient transport and conversion of energy. Essentially, the introduction and control of artificial defects on the nanoscale superconducting thin films like YBa2Cu3Ox allowed to transport huge amount of current (in the order of 10^6 A/cm2 at 77K, versus 10^2 of conventional copper wires), which is quite promising for practical applications also in presence of external magnetic field [1]. The thermoelectric thin films of nanostructured oxides like ZnO are, on the contrary, at preliminary development stages but first results are quite promising in terms of direct and efficient conversion of waste heat to electricity [2].

I started my path in Japan in 2003 as JSPS post-doctoral fellow (Tokyo), and then I became research associate in JST project (Kyoto), fellow of a “cluster” project (Kyushu), tenure-track lecturer (Hiroshima), associate professor (Muroran) and finally full professor (Tokyo again). Personally, I can say that the main difficulty is not “enter” in Japan as science or engineering researcher, since many fellowships are offered to foreigners and are in general attractive from any point of view. The level of difficulty to “keep staying” in Japan increases, but is still manageable. At least is my experience: growing my research network during the years, it was almost natural to find opportunities to extend my stay in Japan. The most difficult point for foreign researcher is “the language”: I found that the amount of documents in Japanese (especially in the application for research funding) dramatically increased with time of my stay.

My current postdoctoral research project addresses the design and evaluation of technology support systems (e.g., electronic clinical procedure library, ECPL) in medicine and healthcare to ensure quality. Clinical procedures require a continuous update and dissemination to optimize current practice with evidence-based procedures, because these tools are used for decision-making. The usability and procedure learnability of evidence-based interactive clinical systems are considered fundamental to design usable electronic support systems that allow health professionals to search, understand and execute updated clinical procedures in their daily practice and enhance clinical outcomes and patient safety. Goals include enhancing the usability and establish a framework for the ECPL co-design including user experience, contextual and cultural factors.

My current position is a postdoctoral fellowship at Osaka University, Japan, (in cooperation with the University of Agder, Norway) financed by JSPS with a focus on usable interactive systems for eHealth.

I hold a PhD on User-centred Design for mobile learning in higher education with a use case in sports education (skiing and snowboarding) at UiA (2014-2018), Norway. During this time, I was an exchange PhD student at Osaka University and had the opportunity to learn more about Japanese culture and work. For instance, I learned from the differences in the culture and the society how to keep a good balance between structure and flexibility, which is, by all means, not always easy to maintain.

After finishing my PhD, I worked as Assistant Professor for the University of Agder (UiA). I taught and developed courses in interaction design and gamification for eLearning. My background is in media computer science (M.Sc.) and scientific programming (B.Sc.) from Germany.

The "Usability and Procedure Learnability of Evidence-based Interactive Clinical Systems" is a postdoctoral research project hosted by Osaka University (Japan) and University of Agder (Norway). It combines competences in eHealth, human-centred design (HCD), learning theories and big data to improve clinical outcomes through enhanced usability in decision support systems and workflow for health professionals in their practice and education. The funding call was announced by the Norwegian Research Council and the project is funded by JSPS.

In addition, having studied in Germany and Norway gave me an insight into different European education and research systems. In the future, I would like to continue to work in a highly interdisciplinary and international environment, since I believe that we all learn from each other and grow together.

My research investigated multiple aspects of “archaeological areas”, which in the Mediterranean context constitute the primitive form of an “open air museum”.These studies have ranged from the analysis and graphical reconstruction of the ancient buildings, to possible restorations of structures today preserved in ruins, through to museographic and design solutions involving the entire site. A comparative analysis of Mediterranean archaeological areas and the most ancient Japanese monumental sites, although not significant in chronological terms, is instead extremely interesting in terms of the conservation, restoration and integration works carried out on the architectures and, above all, on a theoretical level, for what concerns the “Culture of Protection”. This comparison takes on a fundamental role in the context of an increasing globalization of the protection of cultural heritage, now notoriously heritage of humanity and not only of the countries that physically host these assets.

Graduated with honors in Architecture at Polytechnic of Bari (IT), I obtained with honors the title of Specialized Architect in Cultural Heritage and Landscape at Post Graduated School in “Restoration of Monuments” of Sapienza University of Rome (IT, 2 years, with Scholarship). Then I obtained my Ph. D in History of Architecture at Polytechnic of Bari. In the period November 2017-April 2018 I was a Post-Doctoral Fellow in the JSPS Standard Program at Hosei University in Tokyo, with the research theme "Cultural Contexts" such as "Open-air Museums", comparative study between Mediterranean and Japanese area. The fellowship finished in advance, because after winning a National Competition (at 6th position) I am actually permanent-employed at Italian Ministry of Cultural Heritage (MIBAC). However, I am pursuing my scientific activity research on this topic and I hope that there may be renewed opportunities for future long-term or permanent periods of research in Japan.

My major in History and Restoration of Ancient Architecture carried me all around the Mediterranean Area (Italy, Greece, Albania, Turkey), for numerous archaeological campaigns. Historically, Italy retained a primacy in the field of the Conservation of Monuments. My Ph.D. gave me the opportunity to compare the Italian theories with the different ones applied in all the Mediterranean, from Europe to western Asia. The JSPS Fellowship was the opportunity to extend the research to the Japanese context. To date, the Japanese culture of protection of cultural heritage has not been given much attention in the panorama of Italian academic studies, since these are heavily focused on Western contexts. The research hoped to strengthen the relationship, already successfully started, of scientific cooperation between Italy and Japan relating to the cultural heritage of the two nations and to encourage the Italian academic interest towards the Japanese cultural panorama and vice versa.

My research lies at the intersection of International Political Economy and Sociology. I am interested in the everyday practices of the global economy. I look at the social consequences of global competitiveness discourses and the promotional politics of states. I am currently writing a monograph on the everyday politics of economic competitiveness in the Republic of Korea. I show that Korea’s infamously competitive society is not a cultural peculiarity but rather the outcome of a political project that dates back to the 1960s and is linked to Korea’s rapid industrialization. Competitiveness was reinforced as a hegemonic national imaginary with Korea’s integration in the global economy in the early 1990s and has served as an instrument to resolve the national crisis of accumulation experienced with the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis. I plan to expand this research on narratives of national competitiveness by looking at several case studies in crisis-stricken European states.

My employment conditions in Japan are satisfactory: I am a lecturer (equivalent to assistant professor) with a tenure-track contract. While tenure conditions are not transparent, the university seems to grant tenure easily. I receive an annual research fund. My teaching load is heavy (7 courses/year). But research-wise I feel very isolated. The university clearly discourages, through bureaucratic hurdles, the organisation of research events. The research funding opportunities are limited by this isolation. I haven’t been able to meet colleagues working on similar projects in other institutions in Japan. I plan to move to an academic position in Europe. The main difficulties are the limited availability of positions (in particular with stable employment conditions), the transdisciplinary and Asia-focused character of my research. These could be resolved by an ERC grant, and possibilities to rebuild my network in Europe (through visiting fellowships etc.).

I have completed a short-term project with the University of Warwick. I am currently building a research project with a colleague at Stockholm University. I am part of a research network on labour and development that mostly connects researchers based in EU/UK institutions. I have long-term relocation plans to Europe. I am currently applying for positions as assistant professor in Political Science/International Relations/Sociology in various European institutions. I cannot apply for an ERG grant yet (I completed my PhD in 2017), but I participated to EURAXESS Japan’s ERC grant proposal writing workshop. Europe would be attractive as it would provide me with a more stimulating research environment (research in my field in Asia being dominated by American methodologies and theories) and easy access to research events and networking opportunities (conferences/workshops). In addition, I would like to conduct anthropological field research in Europe.

The ultimate goal of synthetic organic chemistry is to synthesise complex molecules with a defined chirality in high yields and as few steps as possible. The synthetic reactions we use should ideally use non-toxic and inexpensive catalysts and reagents. Unfortunately, the currently most used reaction methods rely on the very expensive and non-benign catalytic metal palladium.

I am working on the development of novel reaction methods that make use of iron as a catalytic metal. Being an abundant, thus inexpensive, environmentally benign and virtually non-toxic metal, iron shows great potential as a novel, greener catalytic metal for the future of synthetic organic chemistry. In detail, my project concerns the carbometalation of C – C double bonds in an enantioselective manner. This provides rapid and convenient access to natural products such as epibatidine, a powerful analgesic agent isolated from E. anthonyi.

I studied chemistry and biochemistry at the Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich and the University of Helsinki. In 2012, I joined the group of M. Kalesse at the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research in Braunschweig where I received my PhD in 2017 from the Leibniz-University Hannover working on the total synthesis of the natural product chondrochloren. From 2017, I joined the Nakamura group at Kyoto University’s Institute for Chemical Research as a postdoctoral fellow.

I very much enjoy working in this group as I have good relations to my coworkers and seniors. However, funding is a consistent problem as my position is renegotiated every February. I have applied for a JSPS fellowship to hopefully ease that pressure.

I intend to remain in academic research. I am aware that obtaining a position is difficult everywhere; however, I also know of a number of grants aiming at researchers beginning their independent career while returning to Europe.

Much more than German, I consider myself European. I received education in three different EU countries and have friends all over the continent thanks to the EU’s initiatives such as Free Movement, the Schengen open borders system and Erasmus university exchanges. Scientifically, my connections are much less strong, mainly because I am still at a very early phase of my career. However, my group has an ongoing collaboration including the regular exchange of PhD students with the Bedford lab at Bristol University.

As hinted above, I would like to pursue my independent career in Europe after gaining postdoctoral experience in Japan; mainly because I love the continent, consider it home and welcome its variety and opportunities. Europe is much more attractive than Japan in the long run as I perceive Japanese academia to be a very closed, hierarchical and traditional environment while European academia is open to new ideas, people and concepts.

I have followed a rather unorthodox career path. I graduated in Japanese studies (Bachelor’s degree) and then in law (Bachelor and Master’s degree) while working as a Japanese comic books translator. In my last year as a Master student I started working as a legal consultant for an international law firm, but I decided to move to Japan for a few years after graduation when my application to become a lecturer of European Union law and comparative law for an innovative European studies programme in Kobe University was accepted. In Japan, I was hired as a full-time lecturer, so I received all the support that I needed (by the university and my colleagues) for my academic career in terms of training and financing, although I sometimes felt overwhelmed by the weight of paperwork. Moreover, I believe in the importance of a professional life outside the university (which is not possible in Japan). I am therefore planning to return to Italy and have a double career (lawyer and professor).

In Kobe University, I received a specific training on EU funding (I was personally involved in the drafting of the proposal that made Kobe University a Jean Monnet Center of Excellence) and I was regularly consulted during the negotiations of new exchange agreements with Italian Universities. I have also visited EU institutions on behalf of Kobe University. I have therefore kept a strong connection to Europe and I now have a mid-term relocation plan to Italy that will hopefully be facilitated by specific Italian legislation and Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions funding. In my opinion, Europe is attractive, but there are some issues when trying to apply for this kind of EU funding from abroad, which I will explain better in my presentation. Moreover, a great deal of flexibility is required (which might however be considered intrinsic to the academic career), since future career prospects are not always clear.