3 TO BE INCLUDED IN OUR NEXT ISSUE, SEND ALL YOUR RESEARCH AND EVENTS NEWS STORIES TO HEATHER@INTLABMATE.COM


Dundee Student Team takes Biotechnology Gong The team behind the BioVita company idea won the prizes for:


• Best food sponsored by Leatherhead Food Research – BioVita, University of Dundee


and


• Best presenter sponsored by University of Nottingham Institute for Enterprise and Innovation – Alistair Davies from BioVita, University of Dundee


Dundee University biotech entrepreneurs


A team of aspiring biotechnology entrepreneurs from the University of Dundee have scooped two prizes at the Biotechnology Young Entrepreneurs Scheme (YES) 2012 in London.


The Dundee team designed and produced a specialised plastic film which prevents the over-ripening of fruit on the supermarket shelf. The film functions by scavenging the plant hormone ethylene which is responsible for the fruit ripening process. Effective removal of ethylene from fruit packaging can successfully extend the shelf-life of fruit in the supermarket.


“The BioYes competition has been a fantastic experience to be involved with and has seen us nurture our initial idea and come up with a defendable and very strong business model throughout the competition,” said Alistair Davies, who was joined in the


team by Dun Jack Fu, Anna Kelner, Eleni Karinou and Alexander von Wilamowitz-Moellendorf. All are PhD students at Dundee.


Alistair added, “I think I speak for all members of the team when I say that the experience has been highly rewarding and has really opened up our eyes to a career outside of academic research.”


The annual contest is co-organised by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and the University of Nottingham Institute for Enterprise and Innovation (UNIEI).


Minister for Universities and Science David Willetts said, “The participants in this competition have shown that there is a bright future ahead for biological science. This is one of the most vibrant and increasingly important sectors of the UK. They are developing the skills needed to translate world class research into wider economic and social benefits."


The main prize was won by a team from the University of Cambridge for their `Calvitium Solutions’ project.


Find out more info. 510 30% More Visitors to Vacuum Expo & Conference 2012


Vacuum Expo 2012, recently held in Coventry proved a big draw for both European and international visitors and also attracted 12 new exhibitors according to organisers Xmark Media. Reports from the show floor indicated increased visitor numbers, who were mainly there to do business. Many exhibitors also said they had an excellent event with increased prospect numbers and plenty of high quality discussions taking place on their stands. Post show analysis has confirmed the visitor growth to be 30%.


The programme included a 'Thin Films' meeting led by Hayley Brown of Plasma Quest and the University of Surrey. It focused on metal oxides and optical thin films.


The one-day ‘Vacuum and Plasmas for Industry’ meeting drew a sizable audience. Niall Macgearailt from Intel, Ireland, opened the meeting with a talk on the "Plasma Process Control in the Semiconductor Industry. He described the challenges of volume production worldwide and keeping control of the plasma processes to keep the yield high and the production line moving. Niall commented after the meeting "The combination of the Vacuum Expo and technical sessions provide an excellent networking opportunity. The large number of UK and European based suppliers offering innovative products and solutions are extremely encouraging."


More details about Vacuum Expo can be viewed at www.vacuum-expo.com. Dates for next year's show will be 16 and 17 October 2013, at Ricoh Arena Coventry.


Study Paves the way for Quantum-Enhanced


Computation Despite the widespread research in quantum computers, no-one has built a machine that uses quantum-mechanics to solve computational problems faster than a classical computer. Quantum computers harness the power of atoms and molecules to perform memory and processing tasks and have the potential to perform certain calculations significantly faster than any silicon- based computer.


Now scientists from the Universities of Southampton and Oxford have worked together to develop the first experimental demonstration of the boson sampling model of computation, which could pave the way to larger devices that could offer the first definitive quantum-enhanced computation. The University of Southampton team, led by Professor Peter Smith and Dr James Gates from the Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC), developed the photonic chip on which the experiment was performed.


Dr Gates said: “The chip offers a scalable route, perhaps the only scalable route, to build large linear systems required for larger boson sampling machines. If one is going to eventually need to move ‘on chip’ with more complex boson sampling machines, there is obvious benefit in building the proof-of-principle devices ‘on chip’ as well. The move to optical processing on a chip format can be likened to the shift to integrated silicon chips in electronics.”


The work is part of a long term collaboration with Professor Ian Walmsley’s group at the Clarendon Lab, University of Oxford. Supported by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), this latest output involved fabrication and optical characterisation at the University of Southampton and the quantum measurements being made in Oxford.


Lead author Justin Spring from the University of Oxford described the significance as: “Boson sampling provides a model of quantum- enhanced computation that is experimentally feasible with existing photonic technology. Future generations of boson sampling machines (BSMs) will benefit from ongoing advances in integrated photonics.”


The research has been published recently in Science. Find out more info. 512 Plenty of conversation during the 2012 Vacuum Expo event Find out more info. 511


IFST Spring Conference 2013 - Securing the Future Supply of Food: Challenges and Opportunities


The Institute of Food Science and Technology ‘s 2013 Spring conference, being held jointly with the Institute of Food Research will take place on 17-18 April 2013 in Norwich. Marks and Spencer is the prime sponsor for the conference, which will highlight some of the key agricultural challenges facing the food chain and explore the most up-to-date food science and technology thinking to determine solutions.


The Programme will include: Sustainable production: the foundation of secure food supply by Professor Ian Crute, Chief Scientist, Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board. Preventing waste from farm to fork, Andy Dawe, Head of Food and Drink, WRAP; and also ‘The positive impact on the food chain of a high standard of animal welfare’, Professor Harry Blokhuis, Dept of Animal Environment and Health Section Ethiology and Animal Welfare.


Aside from the programme, there will be a poster competition for post-graduate students. For undergraduates, the Ralph Blanchfield award will cover the cost of attendance for one lucky student. The winner and runner-ups will also receive free IFST membership for a year. Visit the IFST website to see more of the programme and for details on registration at www.ifst.org


Find out more info. 513 Registration for Mercury 2013 is now open


The organisers of the International Conference on Mercury as a Global Pollutant (Mercury 2013) have announced that online visitor registration for the conference is now available at www.mercury2013.com. Mercury 2013 taking place from 28th July – 2nd August 2013 in Edinburgh, Scotland is the pre- eminent international forum for formal presentation and discussion of scientific advances concerning environmental Mercury. The event has been themed ‘Science Informing Global Policy’ and will be the first event to be held after the United Nations Environment Program’s (UNEP) binding


agreement on Mercury for which the objective is to protect human health and the environment from anthropogenic releases of mercury and its compounds. Conference sessions will include themes such as monitoring, environmental biogeochemistry, atmospheric transport and human exposure. Mercury is a potential hazard for a wide variety of industries and delegates will include regulators, laboratory analysts, and visitors from sectors such as mining, coal, petrochemicals, cement, food, dentistry, waste incineration, environmental protection and contaminated land.


Find out more info. 514


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36