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How to fund eInfrastructure for research in the years to come?
A working group appointed by NTNU, UiB, UiO and UiT has proposed a new model for the future funding of Norwegian e-infrastructure (high-performance computing and data storage facilities as well as advanced user support) for research in order to be able to meet the ever increasing demand for e-infrastructure services. The backdrop is the strongly increasing cost of this infrastructure, which at the same time has become completely indispensable in itself and as a prerequisite for much of the other advanced infrastructure that science relies on. The group has now released a draft report for which they seek input from the community. The report makes several recommendations: Norway should aim to have e-infrastructure services on level with the best of a set of international reference countries; The level of base funding for e-infrastructure services should be increased significantly, by as much as 130-190 MNOK annually; The four universities and the Research Council of Norway should significantly increase their contribution to the base funding of the e-infrastructure services; A wider range of research and higher-education institutions should contribute to the base funding of the e-infrastructure services; A more trans-disciplinary funding must be put in place for e-infrastructure services as they are used by an ever increasing number of research domains. For further information, see the commentary made by the rectors of the four universities (in Norwegian).
MAX IV opens for general users
Opportunity: Check out what MAX IV («Max four») can do for your research — attend the lecture by Stephen Molloy this Friday (May 24), Auditorium B (Allegaten 66) at 14.15!
MAX IV Laboratory is a Swedish national laboratory providing scientists with the most brilliant X-rays for research, located in Lund and easily accessible from Bergen via Copenhagen. As indicated by the name, this is the fourth generation of synchrotron radiation facilities in Lund, Sweden, and it also represents the fourth generation of technology for producing extremely brilliant, collimated and coherent X-rays by way of electron storage rings.
Researchers from all over the world come to MAX IV to perform experiments using synchrotron x-rays at various beamline experimental stations that operate 24 hours a day, six days a week. Each experimental station is designed and specialized for a certain type of experiment. A “user” is someone who has been granted access (“beamtime”) to use a beamline at a synchrotron facility through a peer-reviewed proposal system. Access is granted based on academic merits and free of charge, under the condition that all results are timely disseminated into the academic public. The first upcoming deadline for general users to apply for beam time is 17 September 2019. There are at present 16 beamlines funded for research covering a wide range of scientific areas and photon energy ranges. An overview of beamlines and techniques that are available to general users may be found here. The beamline portfolio is expected to continue to grow up to around 30 beamlines in 2026.
When completed, it is expected that MAX IV Laboratory will receive more than 2000 individual researchers annually to carry out experiments in a variety of disciplines including surface science, semiconductor physics, materials science, atomic and molecular physics, chemistry, biology, cultural heritage, and medicine. Their research will be offered world-class performance beamlines at the MAX IV Laboratory. The synchrotron radiation from the two storage rings covers the wavelength range from the far infrared through the UV, VUV, soft x-ray up to the hard x-ray range using radiation from bending magnets or insertion devices. Among the techniques used at these beamlines are: VUV and soft x-ray electron spectroscopy and microscopy, soft x-ray magnetic circular dichroism, x-ray fluorescence, x-ray absorption spectroscopy and different x-ray diffraction and scattering techniques.
Sandwich Course: Experimental Techniques in Drug Discovery
Would you like to expand your experimental vocabulary, cross borders into neighbouring disciplines, or gain some experimental experience to complement your computational skills? We invite PhD candidates and postdocs from the life sciences to take part in a one-week hands-on course featuring a blend of experimental techniques from multiple disciplines in the life sciences, that are particularly relevant for drug discovery projects.
What makes this course special is not necessarily the nature of the experimental tasks themselves, but the context in which you will perform them; accompanied by colleagues from other areas of the life sciences than your own, you will get a chance to solve relevant tasks in teams with other young researchers with a variety of backgrounds, within a course context where we focus on how we can best communicate between disciplines and how we can develop transdisciplinary skills – skills that we believe are essential for the success of the biochemists, molecular biologists, computational biologists and organic- and medicinal chemists of tomorrow.
We will teach you how to make peptides, how to biophysically evaluate their interaction with proteins or enzymes, as well as how to analyze and visualize these interactions with molecular modelling tools.
Homepage/Registration (Travel and accomodation expenses are reimbursed for DLN members). Deadline June 10.
This 2-ECTS course is taught in English, runs over 5 days (17th-21st of June, 2019) at the University of Bergen, and is limited to 15 participants.
Organizers/teachers: Christoph Bauer – christoph.bauer@uib.no, Fahimeh Khorsand – fahimeh.khorsand@uib.no, Zeeshan Muhammad – muhammad.zeeshan@uib.no, and Åsmund Kaupang – asmund.kaupang@uib.no.
Invitation to Master’s Ceremony 2019
Foto: Thor Brødreskift
The Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences invites students who have completed or will complete a master’s degree in the academic year 2018/19 to the Master’s Ceremony, on the 6th of June, 2:30-4:00 PM, in the University Aula, Muséplass 3. The Master’s Ceremony is a celebration of all candidates, with speeches and music and a reception afterwards. Each candidate can invite two guests. In addition, and most noteworthy, the supervisors are also warmly invited to attend the ceremony, subject to their own registration.
The registration deadline is May 24, using this link. For more information, go here.
Coastal collaboration in PET research
Trond Mohn foundation and Tromsø research foundation, both of which are based on generous donations from Trond Mohn, have granted 80 MNOK to fund half of a novel research collaboration between the universities and university hospitals in Tromsø, Trondheim and Bergen. The other half of the funding comes as own funding from the participating institutions. This so-called Coastal collaboration in PET (positron emission tomography) consists of three pilars: (i) development of new PET tracers, (ii) preclinical testing of both new and established tracers in animal models, and (iii) use of PET in clinical investigations, and the first of these is led from Bergen and coordinated by principal radiochemist at the PET center, also førsteamanuensis-II at our department, Tom Chr. Holm Adamsen. The primary objective of this proposal is to increase the number of clinically relevant radiotracers and make these available through strengthening the overall radiochemistry competence within the Coastal Consortium. This objective will be met by establishing a consortium-wide tracer implementation framework based on the experience already gained in Bergen (HUS). Tracers primarily needed for the clinical multi-center studies will be made locally available throughout the consortium. Novel tracers will be multi-center validated, drawing on the combined consortium wide expertise, competence and resources. Erwan Le Roux, Hans-Rene Bjørsvik and Bengt Erik Haug also hold central roles in the project. More information may be found in På Høyden and at the web pages of the Trond Mohn foundation.
Greetings from Lars – our new VIS contact person
Hi everyone,
My name is Lars Grønnestad, and I’ll be one of the VIS employees helping you at the Department of chemistry with your innovative ideas!
My formal scientific background is within environmental and analytical chemistry from NTNU, with courses within advanced inorganic chemistry and toxicology. My masters degree is within commercialization of technology from NTNUs School of entrepreneurship, and I have experience from several internships in industry. I now work as an innovation manager at VIS, assisting scientists with different kinds of applications (NFR, EU, etc) and leading commercialization projects with VIS’ owners and partners.
I am looking forward to working with the Department of chemistry! Do not hesitate with contacting me if you have ideas that you suspect could have commercial or societal value.
Doctor Degree Award Ceremony
Twice a year, the achievements of the newly educated doctores at the University of Bergen are highlighted and celebrated at the Doctoral degree award ceremony taking place in the Aula. For the Spring semester, this ceremony took place on Friday, with one graduate from the Chemistry department receiving her diploma: Alette Løbø Viken.
Photo: Thor Brødreskift
Her former supervisor (Doctor parent) and Leader of PhD-education at our department, Kristine Spildo, was present to add significance and share the fruition of their collaboration. If you missed the ceremony yet are curious about it, you may want to take a look at the video (you’ll find Alette some 43 minutes into the movie).
Great Fun at the Bergen City Marathon Relay
Team Chemistry had great fun and represented the department and the faculty in the best of manners in the half-marathon relay competition during the Bergen City Marathon last Saturday. Those rising to the challenge and earning the credit for founding the relay tradition at the Chemistry department may be identified here:
In terms of statistics, Kjemisk placed 137 (193) among the 276 (383) teams competing in the Mixed class (Men, Women and Mixed classes), at 1h 45′ 21″. More importantly, after the race the team members enjoyed refreshments at Casa Grung. While still benefiting from runners high (cf the molecule decorating the team jersey) the team was unanimous that one relay per year is too little! Our minds are set on the relay associated with Knarvikmila, scheduled to Saturday August 31. Anybody who wishes to join, please tell Inger Johanne.
Special thanks to Kristine for door-knocking and helping out, to Bjørn for catering & opening his home & coming up with a working communication plan, and to Giovanni for making the graphics for the team jersey.
Fornybarkonferansen 25. april 2019
Fornybarkonferansen er tilbake som regionens største og viktigste møteplass for alle som er opptatt av fornybar energi og bærekraftige løsninger. I år kan du også bidra aktivt med innspill til regjeringens arbeid med nytt «Veikart for grønn konkurransekraft».
Årets tema: Grønn verdiskaping innen områder som maritim, havvind, eksport og mye mer.
Konferansen er gratis! Meld deg på her!
Partnerene bak Fornybarkonferansen: Bergen Næringsråd, BKK, DNB, Norsk Klimastiftelse, UiB og Klimapartnere Vestland. Konferansen arrangeres i samarbeid med Høgskulen på Vestlandet og Miljødirektoratet.
Vi gratulerer Lisbeth som KM!
Mange ved Kjemisk institutt vil gjette at KM betyr KjemiMester, men dette er, i det aktuelle tilfellet, kun delvis riktig. Mens Lisbeth ofte er kjemimester eller iallfall HMS-mester på Kjemisk (som betyr mye det samme), bør vi nå også titulere henne som nybakt KretsMester i bridge!! 
Hun oppnådde denne meget høythengende utnevnelsen sammen med sin faste makker — begge kan betraktes og resultatlistene studeres her — og de skal nå kjempe seg videre mot Norgesmester-status i par-bridge! Vi gratulerer og ønsker masse lykke til! En eventuell videre suksess vil rapporteres her.