Troubled Human Brain Project changes course
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Updated daily at www.ResearchResearch.com
19 February 2015
Scientists aim to engage
as social media calls – p4
Teaming Germany dominates – p5
Horizon 2020 When great science
is scuppered by bad planning – p8
Troubled Human Brain
Project changes course
Commission responds to critics with idea of permanent facility
The European Commission is considering changing the
by Cristina Gallardo cgnews@ResearchResearch.com
Human Brain Project into an infrastructure facility, fol-
lowing criticism from researchers that it is not working. A less drastic option would be to reclassify the
The project could morph from a 10-year scientific project as a European Research Infrastructure Cons-
investigation into a permanent European facility for ortium, says Gillet—a legal entity that could then
human brain research. This is likely to centre on an IT receive funding from Horizon 2020.
platform that would pool and analyse large volumes of Any change will have implications for the organisa-
data from both neural and cognitive studies. tion of the project, which until now has been centred
It appears that the facility would either be an inter- at the EPFL. “We are moving towards an organisation
governmental organisation, similar in form to Cern, that is shared by different partners,” Gillet says. “We
the European particle physics laboratory near Geneva, will not have a single coordinator but a joint entity,
or be given the status of an official EU infrastructure with formal rules.”
consortium. It would provide a supercomputing base Alexandre Pouget, a neuroscience researcher at the
for researchers to use in the long term. University of Geneva, says this may counter one of the
The idea follows an acknowledgement by the complaints outlined in the July letter, which was that
Commission that the original aim of the project—to three of the project’s 21 co-directors had too much
build a model to understand the human brain in a dec- control over its direction.
ade—was too challenging. The Commission has said that it will not confirm any
“The project is moving on to a solid track to become changes until March, when it will publish the results
a European research infrastructure. That is now a of its first review of the project. However, in a blog
clear target, although it will take time,” said Henry post on 9 February, Thierry Van Der Pyl, the director
Markram, a co-director of the project and a neu- for excellence in science at the Directorate-General
roscientist at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de for Communication, said that “building a world-class
Lausanne (EPFL), Switzerland, in an email. experimental ICT infrastructure” would be one of three
Details of the plan have emerged after a Commission challenges to be tackled in the coming months.
review of the project and during a mediation process The other priorities are to strengthen the project’s
triggered by a letter of complaint from more than organisation to generate more concrete results, and
650 cognitive scientists in July 2014. Project leaders to improve the integration of cognitive researchers,
say the Commission is coming around to the idea that a who study the human mind and its processes, said
facility could be more effective than a science project. Van Der Pyl. Cognitive researchers who were unhappy
“The core of the project relies on very large infor- with the project’s original direction now say that the
matics and computational platforms, and the idea is Commission appears to be listening to their demands—
to offer them as a European tool,” says Philippe Gillet, although it remains to be seen how the promise of
the president of the project’s board of directors. better integration will play out.
The project has so far been funded as a flagship “The project’s objectives cannot be
scientific consortium by the Commission, which fulfilled without better coordination Every new opportunity
pledged €500 million to it from Horizon 2020 in 2013. with neuroscientists,” says Frédéric for research funding
According to Gillet, one option being considered Chavane, a researcher at the Institute from every sponsor in
the EU, US & beyond
is for the project to become an intergovernmental des Neurosciences de la Timone in
organisation similar to Cern or the European Southern Marseille, France. “The Commission Independent news
Observatory, which are based on a members’ treaty is choosing its words carefully, but I Direct from Brussels
that sets annual contributions. think it is going in the right direction.”
Issue No . 4032 editorial Research Europe, 19 February 2015
Edited by Colin Macilwain
Europe@ResearchResearch.com
Tel: +44 20 7216 6500
Fax: +44 20 7216 6501
Unit 111, 134-146 Curtain Road, London EC2A 3AR
elsewhere
In whose opinion “If you start by giving the impression that
you have already given up, that is the way
to lose an argument in Europe.”
The UK’s shadow chancellor Ed Balls says the
government shouldn’t bring forward its plans
Problems lurk behind ‘independent scientific advice’ for a referendum on EU membership to 2016,
because it will make it harder to negotiate
reform. The Guardian, 10/2/15.
The Commission and the European Parliament are both rearranging their “In my view the NWO should really be
ways of obtaining reliable, independent advice on science and technology. abolished and integrated within the
Carlos Moedas, the research and innovation commissioner, is con- European Research Council.”
Luc Soete, the rector magnificus of
ducting a review of the options available for providing such advice to Maastricht University, suggests a radical
the office of the president of the Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker. This alternative to the Dutch government’s plan
follows the noisy departure of Anne Glover, the chief scientific adviser to to give more power to the national public
funding agency. Science Business, 27/1/15.
the previous Commission president, José Manuel Barroso.
At the same time, the Parliament is revamping its Science and “Do the people in the trilogue have any
Technology Options Assessment unit, Stoa, partly to make its existence idea of the consequences...or what these
changes mean, in terms of cost?”
more visible to parliamentarians. Its preferred solution is for the office to Germany’s anti-bureaucracy chief Johannes
concentrate more on foresight, the sometimes black art of identifying like- Ludewig argues that the discussions between
ly, medium-term trends in science and technology (see Insider, page 13). the European Commission, the European
Council and the European Parliament to
Both reviews represent laudable efforts to fix hard problems. Moedas’s decide preliminary legislation result in costly
review acknowledges that the role of chief scientific adviser is well estab- and ineffective laws. EU Observer, 10/2/15.
lished in London and Washington but does not exist in Paris, Berlin or
“In a European context, where the states
any other major global capital. Despite the UK’s cheerleading for such have autonomous regions, establishing
a position in Brussels, it is by no means clear that the appointment of a a hierarchy between official languages is
single individual is appropriate for EU institutions. not a very inclusive approach.”
Patxi Baztarrika, the Basque government’s
One of Glover’s goals was to assemble a committee of national chief sci- vice-councillor for linguistic policy, sug-
entific advisers, or equivalents, from every EU member state. The fact that gests that the EU should give the minority
neither France nor Germany felt able to send someone to sit on this commit- languages of Welsh, Frisian and Basque
the same status as its official languages.
tee speaks volumes: neither country is culturally attuned to the idea that a EurActiv, 11/2/15.
single individual could put themselves forward as representing the diverse
branches of knowledge that make up science and technology. “The euro is fragile. It’s like building a
castle of cards. If you take out the Greek
Moedas must therefore consider alternative arrangements to provide card, the others will collapse.”
his boss with reliable, useful and timely advice on science and technol- Greece’s finance minister Yanis Varoufakis
ogy issues. Stoa, meanwhile, has a long-term problem, common to similar tells officials that Italy and Portugal will be
the next to depart if negotiations with the EU
outfits around the world, including the Office of Technology Assessment mean that Greece is forced to leave the
in the United States, which inspired Stoa’s establishment but was abol- eurozone. EU Observer, 9/2/15.
ished by Congress back in 1995. While Stoa would like to be noticed by
a larger number of the 751 MEPs, it cannot afford to make enemies by
appearing to take sides on contentious issues. Stoa has therefore con- decade
fined itself to producing reports that take a studiously neutral stance,
charting out the consequences of the different policy options that might “It’s as if I have three
be available to the Parliament on different issues. children. Like any modern
The trouble with this approach is that politicians are usually in a great
father, if one of my children
hurry and don’t really want options: they want solutions. Perhaps that
is where Glover, a former chief scientific adviser to the government of is sick, I am ready to drop
Scotland, went too far. In the end, politicians don’t want their advisers everything and focus on him
to have a public profile of their own. Worse, too many lawmakers would until he is back to health.”
like their advisers to produce technical reports that will provide cover for
European Commission president José
whichever course of action they have already decided to embark upon. Manuel Barroso justifies his plan to
It is wrong for anyone to suggest that a silver bullet, such as a well- prioritise the economy over social and
funded Stoa or the appointment of a chief scientific adviser, will alone environmental policies in the revamped
Lisbon strategy.
make it easy for the Commission or the Parliament to address such com-
plex issues. The best we can hope for is that both bodies will continue to Research Europe, 17 February 2005
obtain genuinely independent advice from inside and outside the EU.Research Europe, 19 February 2015 news 3
what’s going on
Barroso takes university post
José Manuel Barroso, the former president of the European Commission, is to return to
academia at the Catholic University of Portugal. Barroso will instruct law students about EU
institutions, and teach governance and international affairs. He will also be a visiting professor
for international economic policy at Princeton University in the United States, where he will
focus on the relationships between China, the EU, Russia and the US.
Switzerland drafts immigration bill
The Swiss government has proposed a law that would impose quotas on immigration, following
a referendum last year that led to the country’s involvement in Horizon 2020 being limited.
The government suggests that there should be quotas on workers from abroad who are in
Switzerland for more than four months, and that Swiss people should be given priority when
applying for jobs. The aim is to find a solution that meets the terms of the 2014 referendum but
also allows the country to participate fully in Horizon 2020.
Head of Iter’s EU branch resigns
The head of Fusion for Energy, which manages the EU’s contribution to the Iter nuclear
fusion facility in France, has stepped down. Henrik Bindslev, director since 2012, will leave
the company before the end of his tenure to become dean of the faculty of engineering at the
University of Southern Denmark. Pietro Barabaschi, an electrical engineer who joined Iter in
1992, will lead F4E from 1 March until the governing board appoints a permanent successor.
Netherlands leads the way in ERC commercialisation scheme
Researchers from the Netherlands have won the most grants in the latest round of Proof of Concept
funding from the European Research Council. Of the 59 winners announced on 5 February, 11 are
from the Netherlands, nine from the UK, eight from Spain and six each from France and Israel. The
grants, worth up to €150,000, are provided to help researchers commercialise their work.
EMA acknowledges mistakes in data disclosure
The European Medicines Agency has acknowledged that some data in three clinical-trials reports
should have been released rather than being kept private because of commercial concerns. The
agency said that the “massive amount of documents reviewed and the time pressure to release
them” led to the error. The European ombudsman Emily O’Reilly had questioned the EMA’s actions.
Survey reports rising cybersecurity fears
EU citizens are becoming increasingly concerned about their online security, a European
Commission survey has found. The Special Eurobarometer on cybersecurity surveyed
1,000 people and found that the misuse of personal data and the security of online payments
were the most common cybersecurity concerns. Fears of identity theft also increased
significantly between 2013 and 2014, the survey found.
Ranking puts France ahead in internationalisation
French institutions have come top for internationalisation in the latest assessment by the
European Commission’s university ranking U-Multirank. The exercise assessed 237 institutions
according to their international perspective. Of the 27 universities that achieved the top score,
six were located in France. Four were in Austria, three in Belgium and three in the Netherlands.4 news Research Europe, 19 February 2015
europe
US survey finds scientists active in
policy and public engagement
Most scientists are interested in being involved in sci-
by Colin Macilwain at the AAAS meeting in San Jose
ence policy and many are turning to social media to
discuss their work, a study of researchers in the United watching what they are doing. It is going on in all areas
States has found. that we study.”
The study, performed by the not-for-profit Pew The survey revealed that scientists were more likely to
Research Center, found that 87 per cent of scientists engage with the press and on social media if they worked
believe they should take an “active role” in policy dis- in disciplines that were subject to public media debates,
cussions. Only 13 per cent said it would be better to stay such as Earth sciences. Engineers and chemists, who
away and “focus on establishing sound scientific facts”. considered their disciplines to be less in the public eye,
About half of the respondents said they talked to the were not as inclined to engage.
press about their work, with 47 per cent describing it on The proportion of scientists who felt that now was a
social media and 24 per cent blogging about it. good time to start a career in their particular discipline
“Science as an enterprise is changing,” said Dominique was 59 per cent, down from the 67 per cent recorded in a
Brossard, a science communications specialist at the similar Pew study five years ago.
University of Wisconsin at Madison, commenting on the At a discussion at the AAAS meeting, some attendees
findings. “It had to happen. The younger generation is questioned whether the survey was representative of sci-
eager to be part of a more open environment.” entists in the lab, given that the participants were those
Pew’s Internet, Science and Tech project surveyed who had chosen to join the AAAS, which publishes the
almost 4,000 members of the American Association for magazine Science.
the Advancement of Science, and the study’s findings However, Brossard said that separate work surveying
were released at the annual meeting of the AAAS in San scientists at all levels and disciplines at the University of
Jose, California, on 15 February. Wisconsin had mirrored the main findings. This work had
Lee Rainie, the director of the project, said the find- found that the most important social media outlet for
ings reflected a general tendency for society to be scientists at the university was Wikipedia, leading the
subject to greater online scrutiny. “This isn’t just sci- university to consider the role of researchers in shaping
ence,” he said. “Everyone finds they have more people Wikipedia entries when appointing staff.
Cancer groups collaborate on European database
The European Commission’s Joint Research Centre is
by Safya Khan-Ruf sknews@ResearchResearch.com
working with cancer registries and organisations on a
centralised database for cancer research. The JRC says it intends to work to improve data collec-
The database, to be launched in March, is intended tion across Europe, as not all registries collect the range
to make it easier for researchers and organisations to of data required by the database and some countries lack
access harmonised information in a standardised for- sufficient registries. “It’s a very heterogeneous picture
mat, so that they no longer have to approach individual and we need to move towards a more systematic way of
registries for information. operating,” says Nicholson.
“The current system is rather hit and miss as to which According to Michel Coleman, a professor of epide-
database has the most up-to-date information,” says miology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical
Nicholas Nicholson, who is leading the cancer infor- Medicine, other fields of disease research could also
mation project at the JRC. “It’s important we have one benefit from harmonised data sets. However, he says
definitive set of data.” that undertaking such a task would likely require the
Plans for the European cancer information system involvement of an EU body such as the JRC, to get organ-
began in 2010, and the European Network of Cancer isations across Europe on board. For cancer, population
Registries, the International Agency for Research on data sets have been recorded for 50 to 100 years, so
Cancer and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical there is a lot to collate and harmonise, he adds.
Medicine’s Concord programme have been involved in According to Nicholson, having the European
its development. As well as helping researchers, the database in place will help policymakers to use the infor-
database is intended to reduce the burden of analysis on mation in developing health policy. “Cancer data are still
registries, which spend a lot of time formatting data to mainly used as a research tool, and should be driving
send to individual cancer organisations. policy intervention much more,” he says.Research Europe, 19 February 2015 news 5 Germany’s Teaming success attributed to eastern ties Strong links to eastern Europe and a push from the gov- by Jenny Maukola jemnews@ResearchResearch.com ernment are behind the overwhelming German presence in Horizon 2020’s Teaming initiative, observers have said. vided to support up to 10 of the centres’ implementation. The European Commission published the results of The German government pushed hard for the coun- the first round of Teaming calls on 30 January, revealing try’s success, organising several conferences on the the 31 projects that will receive a total of €14.5 million. subject with ministries in the east. “Since the fall of Germany is involved in 21 of them, in partnership with communism, there’s been a tradition of cooperation researchers in Bulgaria, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, with eastern Europe,” says Nils Wörner, the deputy head Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia. of the Brussels office of the HRK, Germany’s association “German success is probably a reflection of the pres- of rectors. “It’s always easier to build on existing coop- ence of a large number of researchers with eastern eration than to start something out of the blue.” European backgrounds in German research institutes,” And according to one representative of German says Luc Soete, the rector of Maastricht University in research organisations, the government may also be the Netherlands and chairman of the Commission’s concerned that a failure to close Europe’s excellence gap Research, Innovation and Science Policy Experts group. could lead to more EU funding being reallocated from Other observers say that the German government is successful countries to poorer performers. keen to ensure the success of the initiative to prevent According to Claire Nauwelaers, a science and inno- the widening-participation agenda from affecting its vation policy consultant, the success of the programme future EU research funding. will ultimately depend on whether partnerships are Under the Teaming initiative, which aims to reduce able to create much-needed structural changes in the disparities in Europe, the 31 project teams will develop target countries. “Partnering a good institution in a business plans for specialised R&D centres in the low-per- less-advanced country with a good institution in an forming countries. These will be aided by partners in the advanced member state is fairly superficial—it doesn’t advanced countries, and a further €87m may then be pro- solve the problem,” she says. Smart specialisation stalled by insufficient plans More than half of the operational plans for smart spe- by Jenny Maukola at the Latvian presidency’s conference in Riga cialisation submitted by regions have been deemed unsatisfactory because they did not provide enough in innovation policy”, and had made regions look more detail about monitoring. closely at their potential to innovate. Speaking at a conference in Riga, Charlina Vitcheva, the However, she noted that many submitted plans lacked director of smart and sustainable growth at the European a “real vision for transformation” and were simply old, Commission’s Directorate-General for Regional Policy, tired innovation strategies that had been repackaged. said the Commission had found that 59 of the 110 plans As in the past, she said, many regional governments failed to meet monitoring and evaluation criteria. are still proposing to use ERDF money to build infra- The plans indicate how regions will spend their share structure. Others remain preoccupied with the interests of €186 billion for regional research and innovation from of large companies with a stronghold in the region, the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)—and instead of small, fast-growing businesses. According to regions will be required by the Commission to prove that Vitcheva: “That cannot translate into economic results.” they have spent the funds effectively. The 59 plans must John Bensted-Smith, the director of the Institute for have a monitoring part added before 2016 or face further Prospective Technological Studies at the Commission’s delays in accessing their share of the funds, the confer- Joint Research Centre, said that regions must prepare ence heard. for failure as well as success, to allow them to take more Vitcheva was speaking on 12 February at a confer- risks in drafting their plans. “If you simply follow the ence on the progress of smart specialisation, held at previous path, you’ll continue doing what was done the National Library of Latvia in Riga. At the event, the before and you will get neither a better result nor a worse Commission representative maintained that the con- result,” he told participants. “It simply won’t change cept of smart specialisation had been a “paradigm shift much at all.”
6 news Research Europe, 19 February 2015
i n t e r v i e w h e l e n e h e l l m a r k k n u t s s o n
One step ahead
Marta Paterlini met Sweden’s research minister Helene Hellmark Knutsson to
ask her how she plans to keep the country at the forefront of European research.
In October, the former Stockholm county councillor funding for basic research and block grants for univer-
Helene Hellmark Knutsson was given one of the most sities as well,” she says. “But we have to have special
important tasks in the Swedish government. The coun- money to allocate to infrastructure.”
try’s reputation for research means there is always Fears that the ESS might absorb money from Vetens-
pressure on the research and higher education minister, kapsrådet, the national research council, are misplaced,
and Hellmark Knutsson was attacked, in some quar- she says, and investment in a life sciences facility was
ters, for her lack of a university degree. Two months much needed after AstraZeneca moved most of its R&D
later, the fragile government coalition between the SAP activities to the UK. “The injection of money into the
social-democratic party and the Green Party nearly col- SciLifeLab was the right thing to do,” she says.
lapsed because of a budget stalemate. All in all, Hellmark AstraZeneca’s departure was hard to take for Sweden.
Knutsson’s term didn’t get off to the easiest of starts. Perhaps in response, Hellmark Knutsson says that
She says, however, that this hasn’t distracted her from encouraging industry will be a priority during her four-
the tasks ahead, the most important of which are to set a year term. “Sweden needs to coordinate its research
long-term agenda for research and provide better, more priorities with the needs of industry, and provide better
equal opportunities for young researchers. incentives for corporate R&D,” she says.
On the first point, she says: “The government is plan- She will also focus on training for researchers—not
ning to present a research bill in 2016 for the following least to make sure the ESS and Max IV have enough staff.
10 years.” In 2013, Sweden allocated 3.4 per cent of The government has said it will create 14,000 extra plac-
its GDP to R&D, and the budget then grew to 63.6 bil- es at universities by 2018, to ensure that students are
lion Swedish kronor (€6.7bn) in 2015. This cemented trained in the sciences and subjects in which there are
Sweden’s reputation as one of the strongest countries for not enough graduates, such as teaching and healthcare.
research in Europe. “I intend to keep it that way,” says It has also said it will cut down on its grants to attract
Hellmark Knutsson. leading researchers from abroad. “We appreciate this has
But despite these budget successes, one issue that been important to build the quality of the research envi-
has emerged is whether Sweden has allocated too ronment in Sweden,” says Hellmark Knutsson. “But we
much to ‘big science’ infrastructure—at the expense of want to invest in younger researchers.”
its researchers. In 2010, the government announced Gender equality is another priority: “We still do not
that it would commit $75 million (€66m) to a national judge men and women equally,” she says. “We are not
SciLifeLab involving Uppsala University, Stockholm the gender-equal country that Sweden would like to
University, the Karolinska be.” She will encourage improvements in recruitment
Helene Hellmark Knutsson Institute and the Royal and grant assessment processes so that more women are
Institute of Technology. By selected, and bonuses will be offered to universities that
* 2014-present Minister for higher
education and research
2016, the country will also hire female researchers.
spend $95.8m on building the Overall, the minister seems to have a clear vision for
* 2013-2014 Chairwoman, Stockholm
County Social Democratic Party European Spallation Source Sweden. But on one EU-wide problem—how to provide a
(SAP) (ESS) neutron facility and more secure career path for researchers—she has little to
* 2013-2014 Member, SAP national
board
$15.3m on the Max IV syn-
chrotron, both in Lund.
say. Some have suggested that Sweden should extend its
four-year Meriteringstjänster qualification to six years,
* 2011-2014 Board member, Swedish
Association of Local Authorities and
Some researchers say that
the money poured into these
to help give young researchers some stability. On this,
Hellmark Knutsson acknowledges, “There is certainly a
Regions
facilities should instead be need for longer-term financing.”
* 2010-2014 Commissioner and
group leader, Stockholm County SAP distributed through com- But in the absence of a concrete plan, Swedish
petitive grants, but Hellmark researchers will have to wait a little longer to see wheth-
* 2011-2013 Chairwoman, Mälardal
Council Knutsson disagrees. “There er the minister tries to tackle this problem head on—and
* 2001-2010 Commissioner and
chairwoman, Municipal Executive
will always be discussions
about research spending—
whether she can turn it into another research issue on
which Sweden leads the way for the rest of Europe.
Board, Sundbyberg and it’s important to have More to say? Email comment@ResearchResearch.comResearch Europe, 19 February 2015 comment 7
f e d d e r k e & g o l d s c h m i d t v i e w f r o m t h e t o p
South African scheme shows
flaws in superstar funding
The South African Research Chairs Initiative, launched been rated most highly before the funding award. By
in 2008 by the country’s National Research Foundation, contrast, chair holders with relatively weak prior records
concentrates funding on a small number of researchers performed worse than those in the control groups.
judged by peer review to be world class. Chair holders Strikingly, more than half of the chair holders in
receive between $150,000 (€133,000) and $300,000 a our sample were ranked below the A and B categories,
year for five years, renewable for up to 15 years. In con- indicating a lack of international peer recognition.
trast, researchers outside the scheme receive, at most, Symmetrically, the researchers in our sample with the
about $10,000 a year from the NRF. lowest performance on bibliometric measures were more
The initiative grew from 32 chairs in 2007 to 150 in likely to be chair holders. The peer-based selection of
2014. In a 2012 review, the NRF declared the scheme research chairs thus appears to have been biased away
to be “an imaginative and largely successful innova- from its stated goal of rewarding research excellence.
tion”. It reported that there was “good evidence that The effect of funding varied across disciplines. Only
chair holders and their colleagues are contributing to chair holders in the biological, medical and physical sci-
an increase in the flow of publications, including those ences showed a statistically significant improvement in
to prestigious journals”, but did not provide any data on output. There was a weak effect in the chemical sciences
this point. It also noted that more than 90 per cent of and engineering, and none at all in business, econom-
the chairs reviewed had been renewed. ics, the social sciences and the humanities.
The initiative offers an opportunity to measure the This analysis was not designed to reveal other pos-
effect of funding allocation on research output. We sible impacts of the chairs, such as economic and social
recently compared the productivity of 80 chair holders impact, a rise in graduate student numbers or capacity
with that of equivalent researchers without such funding, building. But there are immediate policy inferences to
from 2009 to 2012. We found that, in bibliometric terms, be made: our results show that selective funding yields
chair holders were scarcely, if at all, more productive. the greatest returns the more responsive it is to prior
We used two types of control group in our comparison. research performance. Funding needs to go to the
First, we used bibliometric measures such as publica- strongest researchers.
tion counts, citation counts and h-index scores to create Even then, the marginal returns from raised funding
groups of researchers who were comparable based on seem to be steeply diminishing. In South Africa, even
similar past performance. for the most productive recipients, an additional pub-
Second, the NRF ranks researchers in a number of lication by a chair holder costs 22 times as much as one
categories, based on peer review. This ranking is inde- by a comparable researcher outside the scheme. Each
pendent of the selection mechanism for research chairs, additional citation costs 32 times as much.
although research chairs are also ranked. Categories A If funding is intended to raise the output and impact
and B are held to indicate world-class research—mak- of an entire research system, a more broad-based,
ing these researchers an obvious control group against inclusive approach that gives smaller awards to more
which to compare chair holders. researchers may carry more promise. The differential
We found that despite a funding advantage of at least rates of return across disciplines also suggest that
15:1, chair holders did not show a statistically observ- adjusting funding to reflect these differences could
able superiority in their performance. On average, they raise aggregate levels of output and impact.
authored no more articles and were cited no more than Finally, if funding allocation is to fol-
the researchers in either the A-rated group or the biblio- low revealed productivity, productivity has
metrically defined groups. to be monitored transparently and objec- ‘The marginal
The chair holders showing the greatest superiority in
performance were those who had performed best and
tively. An obvious step would be to use the
growing number of bibliometric measures
returns
alongside peer review in reaching deci- from raised
Johannes Fedderke and Marcela Goldschmidt work in sions about allocations. All the more so as
the school of international affairs at Pennsylvania State peer review is itself not immune from bias— funding
University in the United States. Their study of the South
African Research Chairs Initiative is published in Research
as this South African case demonstrates.
Something to add? Email comment@
seem to be
Policy vol 44, p467-482 (2015). ResearchResearch.com diminishing.’8 comment Research Europe, 19 February 2015
v i e w f r o m t h e t o p d a v i d t a l b o t
Don’t blame the Commission for
Horizon 2020’s low success rate
Even the briefest of glances at online discussions about rates are broadly similar to those in Framework 7 and
EU research programmes will reveal a host of complaints many national funding programmes.
about the poor success rate of bids. The effort required Researchers really need to take on board what
to put in an application, and the slim chance of it paying Horizon 2020 is designed to do. It provides big money—
off, it is argued, will lead researchers to turn their backs and 100 per cent funding—to tackle big questions. The
on EU research funding. Commission wants to fund big projects and it expects big
This is despite the fact that changes have been results. Such work is likely to be beyond the capacity of
made for Horizon 2020 in response to widespread dis- national research programmes.
content with the slowness and complexity of previous Most proposals have little problem addressing the sci-
Framework programmes. Many of these changes have entific and technical aspects of these big questions, but
been designed to simplify bidding, speed up contract that is only part of the story. To be successful, a proposal
awards and encourage small and medium-sized busi- needs to score as highly for its management as it does
nesses and organisations in the most recent member for the science. Almost every evaluator will tell you how
states to participate. heartbreaking it is to see brilliant science scuppered by
The changes have indeed sped things up, but with inadequate management planning.
significant consequences for both individual submis- Previously, this could have been addressed in the
sions and the overall success rate. negotiation phase, but no longer. You can call this
One of the main simplifications has been the removal bureaucracy, but Horizon 2020 collaborations are, by
of the negotiation phase that came between evaluation their very nature, massive projects. They need a high
and contracting in Framework 7. This has taken weeks level of management input and skill to fulfil their poten-
out of the time between a bid’s acceptance and the sign- tial and allow researchers to do what they do best.
ing of the contract; the flipside is that applicants only Similarly, exploitation of results is as important as
get one shot at specifying a project. management and scientific excellence. The Commission
This means that bids that would have passed the eval- was rightly criticised for allowing the results of past
uation stage in Framework 7 with recommendations for Framework projects to disappear into a black hole when
things to be sorted out in negotiation are now rejected. funding ended. As a result, it is determined to ensure
The message is that bid writers need to focus more on that Horizon 2020 projects have a real impact. Just say-
their submission, rather than blaming the European ing that you will set up a website or host a conference
Commission for rejecting a poorly specified bid. isn’t going to score well.
Another change has been to make calls under Horizon The rules of the game are unlikely to change during
2020 much less specific than those under the previous Horizon 2020. There won’t be much more money, and
Framework programmes. As a result, far more teams the calls aren’t going to become tighter. No doubt there
have found opportunities to put in bids—vastly outstrip- will still be more excellent projects than the Commission
ping any increase in available funding and inevitably can afford to fund, but if your proposal is truly excellent,
leading to a lower success rate. my sense from the first round of evaluation is that your
But from my experience as an evalua- chances are as good as they were in Framework 7.
‘It is tor and rapporteur in Horizon 2020, it is
clear that the people putting in bids are
Simpler contracting and wider calls mean that bid
writers need to be at the top of their game. Small busi-
heartbreaking just as much to blame for the low success nesses and new entrants should consider forming
rate as the Commission is. The purpose partnerships with established players to build their track
to see brilliant of Horizon 2020 is to fund multina- record, and don’t forget management and exploitation.
science tional, multiyear and multimillion-euro
projects. Many bids lack the required
Combine all this with an excellent idea, and your chanc-
es will be as good as ever.
scuppered by scale or vision, even though they have More to say? Email comment@ResearchResearch.com
no doubt allowed a research funding
inadequate specialist somewhere to tick the box for David Talbot (david@dkt-consulting.com) is a specialist
management a bid submitted. My feeling is that, for
the programmes I have worked on, if you
in EU research funding and management. He has served
as an evaluator and rapporteur in Framework 7 and
planning.’ take out the time-wasting bids, success Horizon 2020.funding opportunities
Research Europe
19 February 2015
every new opportunity every discipline
highlights deadlines chanics promising scientist award
1182978 europe
Opportunities from previous issues FR PhosAgro/UNESCO/Interna- Antarctic research
tional Union for Pure and Applied
Aerial fire fighting of Research Europe, listed by closing Chemistry research grants in green The Scientific Committee on Antarctic
date. European Commission and Research and the Council of Managers
The Directorate-General for associated funders marked EU.
chemistry 1177485
of National Antarctic Programs invite
UK Sainsbury Institute for the Study
Humanitarian Aid and Civil Each entry is followed by a Web id of Japanese Arts and Cultures Rob- applications for their antarctic research
ert and Lisa Sainsbury fellowships fellowships. These aim to encourage
Protection invites propos-
als on buffer capacities February 209367
FR Solar Facilities for the Euro-
the active involvement of early-career
Antarctic researchers and to strengthen
for addressing temporary 27 UK All Saints Educational Trust
corporate awards 1171897
pean Research Area call for access
1172225
international capacity and cooperation
in Antarctic research. One to two awards,
shortcomings in extraordi- UK Gen Foundation grants 208697 JP United Nations University worth up to US$15,000 (€13,200) each,
UK University of Oxford Byrne-Bus- Japan Society for the Promotion of are available.
nary disasters. The budget sey Marconi fellowships 1176712 Science-UNU fellowships 197704 Web id: 1162323
is €3.8 million [4]. UK University of Oxford Humfrey JP United Nations University PhD Email: sec@comnap.aq
Wanley fellowships 1176708 fellowships 197693 Deadline: 3 June 2015 [1]
Civil protection grants UK University of Oxford Sassoon JP United Nations University post-
Bone research prize
visiting fellowships 1176352 doctoral fellowships 197701
The Directorate-General for UK Wellcome international engage- CH World Health Organization social The Austrian Society for Bone and Mineral
Humanitarian Aid and Civil ment awards 211201 innovation projects 1183458 Research invites applications for its inter-
national research prize. This is awarded
Protection invites propos- 28 DE Association of European Opera-
tional Research Societies doctoral
FI World Institute for Development
Economics Research discrimination to an individual whose recent work in
als for projects on civil dissertation award 205717 and affirmative action 1183463 the fields of molecular, cellular, patho-
physiological or clinical aspects of bone
DE Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds CA York University visiting scholars
protection and marine pol- Heinrich Wieland prize 209564 1181929 and mineral metabolism has resulted in
a novel finding or concept. The prize is
lution. The total budget is CH European Organisation for
Nuclear Research openlab summer March worth €7,500.
€8.5 million and grants are Web id: 193670
worth up to €800,000 [7].
student programme 1162212
CH European Respiratory Society
award for lifetime achievement in
1 UK Dystropic Epidermolysis Bullosa
Research Association International
epidermolysis bullosa research
Email: klaus.klaushofer@osteologie.at
Deadline: 19 March 2015 [2]
pulmonary arterial hypertension grants 199894
Sustainable development 261084 NL ESF conservation genomics: EU materials science
The Northern Periphery and CH European Respiratory Society amalgamation of conservation ERA-Net M-ERA.NET invites proposals for
Maurizio Vignola asthma gold medal genetics and ecological and evolu- its transnational joint call. This supports
Arctic Programme invites 1182399 tionary genomics – short visit and transnational high risk R&D projects
exchange grants 1163579
proposals for its main CH European Respiratory Society addressing materials science and engi-
research award in idiopathic pulmo- UK European Association for the neering, including micro- and nano-
project grants. The total nary fibrosis 1165878 History of Medicine and Health book technologies, production processes and
award 1170096
budget is €56 million [14]. CH European Respiratory Society
DE European Federation of Im-
technologies. The project duration may
Romain Pauwels research award not exceed 36 months.
209561 munological Societies Ita Askonas Web id: 1173688
Data management CH European Society of Biome- prize 1177168 Email: office@m-era.net
The European Food chanics SM Perren research award DE European Molecular Biology Deadline: 9 June 2015 [3]
206894 Organisation conferences and
Safety Authority invites DE Institute of Development conference series 212934
EU aerial fire fighting
tenders for assistance Research and Development DE European Molecular Biology
Organisation global exchange The Directorate-General for Humanitarian
Policy Erasmus Mundus scholarships
to the assessment 1182899 lecture courses 1158877 Aid and Civil Protection invites propos-
als on buffer capacities for addressing
methodology unit for UK Institute of Historical Research DE European Molecular Biology
Organisation Federation of Euro- temporary shortcomings in extraordinary
Jacobite studies trust fellowships
statistical analyses, data 1160615 pean Biochemical Societies joint disasters. Proposals should provide two
lecture courses 259675 modules of aerial forest fire fighting,
management and ad hoc UK International Headache Society using planes stationed on, or on standby
cephalalgia award lecture 1170491 DE European Molecular Biology
in, different locations in southern Europe.
consultation. The contract UK International Psychoanalytical Organisation practical courses
The budget is €3.8 million.
Association Elise M Hayman award 212930
is worth an estimated for the study of the Holocaust and DE European Molecular Biology Web id: 1183606
Email: echo-a5@ec.europa.eu
€2.5 million [25]. genocide 165086 Organisation workshops 212932
Deadline: 9 March 2015 [4]
UK International Psychoanalyti- UK European Society for Paediatric
Researcher incentives cal Association Hayman prize for
published work pertaining to trau-
Endocrinology fellowships 174830
EU public health
NL European Society for Paediatric
The Netherlands matised children and adults 165091 Infectious Diseases training courses The Directorate-General for Health and
DE International Society of Biome- and workshop awards 254898 Consumers invites tenders for a pilot
Organisation for project. The tenderer will support the
Scientific Research
Online Funding Search
development of actions to address the
health needs of people living in isolated
invites applications for and vulnerable situations in the EU. The
its innovational research For full details of every funding opportunity, visit
estimated value of the contract ranges
from €800,000 to €1 million.
incentives scheme Vici www.ResearchProfessional.com Web id: 1183589
awards. Grants are worth Online subscribers can view full details of any funding opportunity by Email: sante-procurement@ec.europa.
simply searching for the Web id number as free text in a funding search. eu
up to €1.5 million [32]. Deadline: 13 March 2015 [5]
not to be Funding search Global ozone monitoring
The European Organisation for the Exploi-
photocopieD Free text: 1234567 x Search
tation of Meteorological Satellites invites
For subscriptions call +44 20 7216 6500 tenders for a study on impact mitigation10 funding opportunities Research Europe, 19 February 2015
of the loss of solar visibility on the global or institution for higher education. Grants sive networking opportunities, as well Web id: 1183726
ozone monitoring experiment-2 reflec- are worth at least €7,860 each. as other financial and practical support. Email: rasa.procurement@efsa.europa.
tance data quality. The tenderer will carry Web id: 252513 Young investigators receive a financial eu
out an evaluation study and propose miti- Email: bof@ugent.be award worth €15,000 in their second Deadline: 17 April 2015 [25]
gating actions with respect to the GOME-2 Deadline: 7 May 2015 [11] year. All current investigators may also
on Metop-A reflectance data quality. The apply for small grants of up to €10,000 Gender economics
work will be divided in four work packages Surgical oncology training from the EMBO council. The UniCredit Foundation, in cooperation
of a total of eight man-months. The European Society of Surgical Oncol- Web id: 206990 with UniCredit Women's International
Web id: 1183653 ogy invites applications for its training Email: yip@embo.org Network, invites submissions for the best
Deadline: 23 March 2015 [6] fellowships. These enable young surgeons Deadline: 1 April 2015 [18] paper on women topics in Europe awards.
to visit a specialist centre outside their These will be awarded for the two best
EU civil protection grants own country, in order to expand their EU FP7 electron laser papers on gender economics. Prizes are
The Directorate-General for Humanitarian experience and learn new techniques. Up Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf worth €5,000 each.
Aid and Civil Protection invites propos- to 10 standard training fellowships, worth invites applications for use of its free- Web id: 1161987
als for projects on civil protection and €2,000 each, are available as well as one electron laser facility at the Electron Lin- Email: unicreditanduniversities@uni-
marine pollution. These aim to promote major training fellowship of €10,000. ear accelerator with high Brilliance and credit.eu
cooperation in prevention, preparedness Web id: 189865 Low Emittance. This hosts various high Deadline: 30 April 2015 [26]
and awareness-raising. The total budget Deadline: 31 October 2015 [12] power radiation sources which enable
is €8.5 million and grants are worth up user groups from all over the world to EU ecotoxicology
to €800,000. Operational research carry out experiments in a variety of sub- The European Food Safety Authority
Web id: 213189 jects including electromagnetic radiation, invites proposals for data collection for
The Association of European Operational
Email: ECHO-CP-P&P@ec.europa.eu nuclear physics and radiation physics. the estimation of ecological data, residue
Research Societies invites applications for
Deadline: 8 April 2015 [7] Web id: 253943 level and residue decline of pesticides on
its general support funds. These support
Email: b.schramm@hzdr.de food items to be used in risk assessment
activities related to EURO, which cannot
EU equality data collection be covered by other means. The budget
Deadline: 20 April 2015 [19] for birds and mammals. This call aims
The Directorate-General for Justice is €10,000. to collect and harmonise the available
invites tenders for analysis and com- Web id: 1167699 Natural heritage awards ecological data, diet composition data
parative review. The tenderer will map Email: secretary@euro-online.org The Europarc Foundation and the Alfred obtained in the treated areas, and data
the existing legal framework and practices Deadline: 1 April 2015 [13] Toepfer Foundation invite applications from residues trials including both resi-
with regards to equality data collection in for the Alfred Toepfer natural heritage due levels and residue decline to be used
the EU, update the publication 'European EU sustainable development scholarships. These enable young con- for risk assessment of birds and mammals.
handbook on equality data', and produce servationists with practical experience in EFSA intends to fund one proposal over
The Northern Periphery and Arctic Pro-
a report on comparative review of equality the field of conservation and in the work nine months. The grant co-financing rate
gramme invites proposals for its main
data collection in EU member states. The of protected areas to undertake a study will equal up to 90 per cent of the project
contract has a duration of 12 months. project grants. These aim to help gener- visit to one or more protected areas in costs to a maximum of €300,000.
Web id: 1183709 ate vibrant, competitive and sustainable another European country. Three awards, Web id: 1182601
Email: just-a4-cft@ec.europa.eu communities by harnessing innovation, worth €3,000 each, are available. Email: repro.grants.and.procurements@
Deadline: 15 April 2015 [8] expanding the capacity for entrepreneur- Web id: 192399 efsa.europa.eu
ship and seizing the unique growth initia- Email: n.courant@europarc.org Deadline: 18 May 2015 [27]
tives and opportunities of the northern
EU vocational education and Arctic regions in a resource efficient
Deadline: 8 May 2015 [20]
The Education, Audiovisual and Culture way. During the period 2014 to 2020, the
Political science fellowships
Executive Agency, under its Erasmus programme will allocate approximately
Security and the state The European University Institute and
Plus programme, invites applications €56 million to projects with a maximum The Gerda Henkel Foundation invites the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced
for comprehensive policy frameworks total budget of €2m. proposals for its programme on security, Studies invite applications for their one
for continuing vocational education and Web id: 1166079 society and the state. This targets new year Jean Monnet fellowships. These are
training. Grants support national authori- Email: christopher.parker@northern- security-related issues that are prime available for researchers, tenure track
ties' efforts to plan for or implement periphery.eu examples of the post-Cold-War era but academics and those wishing to spend
policy intervention in continuing voca- Deadline: 10 April 2015 [14] have been neglected in mainstream their sabbatical at the Robert Schuman
tional education and training with the research. The funding period is generally Centre. The fellowships include a monthly
aim to secure coherence and relevance of between one and 24 months. Scholarships stipend of €2,000.
supply and significantly increase adults'
Genetic diseases include a monthly stipend of up to €2,700 Web id: 192263
participation in learning. The total budget The Jérôme Lejeune Foundation invites and travel- and material expenses. Email: applyres@eui.eu
amounts up to €4.2 million. Each grant is applications for its research grants. These Web id: 1174534 Deadline: 25 October 2015 [28]
worth up to €150,000 for one year and up support research projects on intellectual Email: podranski@gerda-henkel-stif-
to €300,000 for two years. 15 proposals disability from genetic origin appearing tung.de Plastic surgery scholarship
are expected to be funded. in early childhood. Grants are worth Deadline: 4 December 2015 [21] The European Association of Plastic
Web id: 1183563 up to €20,000 per year for one or two
Surgeons, together with the American
Email: eacea-eplus-vet@ec.europa.eu years. Clinical projects may be awarded Scholarships in Hungary Association of Plastic Surgeons, invites
Deadline: 30 April 2015 [9] larger grants.
The Hungarian Scholarship Board Office applications for their academic scholar-
Web id: 213435
invites applications for its Hungarian ship. This aims to assist the recipient in
Cancer research awards Email: conseilscientifique@fondation-
state scholarships. These provide stu- the establishment of a new combined
lejeune.org
The European CanCer Organisation and dents and researchers with the oppor- research programme between Europe
Deadline: 9 March 2015 [16]
the European Journal of Cancer invite tunity to conduct studies or research in and the US. The scholarship is worth up
applications for their young investiga- Hungarian education institutions and to US$60,000 (€52,800).
tor's award. This recognises recent origi- Fellowships in Germany research institutes in the academic year Web id: 1171018
nal work in cancer research, treatment The German Academic Exchange Ser- 2015-16 and for participation in sum- Email: office@euraps.org
or care by a young scientist or doctor in vice (DAAD) and the Leibniz Association mer university courses in the summer Deadline: 1 January 2016 [29]
the field of basic, translational or clinical invite applications for their research of 2015. Funding includes a monthly
oncology. The award includes €4,000, fellowships. These enable international stipend and may include an accommoda- Radio telescope access
free registration for this year's European postdoctoral investigators to conduct tion allowance. The Netherlands Institute for Radio
cancer congress, free accommodation research at Leibniz institutes in Germany. Web id: 1165188 Astronomy invites proposals for its call.
and a contribution towards travel costs. Grants provide a monthly instalment of Deadline: 8 April 2015 [24] This provides scientists with a limited
Web id: 251287 €2,000, insurance and a research allow- but diverse set of standard observing
Email: anne.blondeel@ecco-org.eu ance of €460 over 12 months EU data management capabilities on the international LOFAR
Deadline: 5 May 2015 [10] Web id: 1162261 The European Food Safety Author- telescope, a powerful radio telescope
Email: behrsing@daad.de ity invites tenders for assistance to the for frequencies below 240 MHz. For this
Ghent University doctorates Deadline: 16 March 2015 [17] assessment methodology unit for sta- cycle 1,600 hours of observing time will
Ghent University invites applications, tistical analyses, data management and be allocated, of which about 750 hours
under its special research fund, for its Molecular biology ad hoc consultation upon request. The can be observed at night. There will be
joint doctoral grants. These support PhD The European Molecular Biology Organi- tenderer will conduct specific tasks and 2,400 hours of processing time available.
students who wish to take a doctorate sation invites applications for its young training courses upon request. The con- Web id: 1179445
under joint supervision of Ghent Univer- investigator programme. This gives young tract is worth an estimated €2.5 million Email: sciencesupport@astron.nl
sity and a non-Flemish partner university independent researchers in Europe exten- over four years. Deadline: 11 March 2015 [31]You can also read
