| Message from the Research Staff Office |
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Hello Everyone
Welcome to the first issue of the Sussex Researcher for 2017, we hope you have had a good start to the year so far. In the Research Staff Office we are looking forward to another busy year. We will once again be asking for your opinions on your experiences as research staff via the nationwide Careers in Research Online Survey which will launch later in the spring. We are also busily preparing our strategy and plans for supporting Sussex researchers from 2017-2021 and you will be invited to provide feedback and comments on those plans shortly.
We are also very excited about some events that will be happening this summer that will be brilliant opportunities to celebrate the research you are all involved in. The first is our very own Spotlight session that will form part of Sussex Impact Day 2017 on 13th June (article below). Following this, Soapbox Science will be coming to Brighton seafront at the end of July (applications for speakers open now, see article below). Of course some of you will also be involved in the British Science Festival that is taking place in Brighton in September. So 2017 looks set to be a great year for taking research to broader audiences. We are looking forward to it and encourage you to get involved in whatever ways you can.
Best wishes,
Natalie James (Research Staff Officer) and Kirsty Bridger (Researcher Development Coordinator)
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| Boosting your Productivity: Prioritisation, Communication and Collaboration |
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Wednesday 15th February - 11.30am-5.00pm Book a place
Presenters: Dr Catherine Pope, Researcher Development Officer and Dr Natalie James, Research Staff Officer
Researchers often face competing time pressures from multiple research projects and responsibilities. The responsibilities can be diverse and demanding, such as supervisory roles and managing collaborative research.
This interactive workshop will provide opportunities to explore techniques to enhance your professional effectiveness. We will focus on the two broad themes of boosting your personal productivity and working more effectively with others.
The programme includes the opportunity to:
- Consider motivations for doing research
- Acknowledge the challenges of being a researcher
- Learn some task and time prioritisation methods
- Recognise personal working preferences and those of others
- Identify how to work more effectively with others
- Consider the impact of culture on working more effectively
- Understand how to have more effective conversations and collaborations
- Create a personal action plan.
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| Spotlight on...Dr Elizabeth Rendon Morales |
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 Research Fellow in Engineering and Design
I am an engineer, not a biologist or cardiologist, but biologists and cardiologists need engineers to develop tools
My current work is based on the development and testing of sensor technology for monitoring long-term cardiac activity during embryonic stages.
This technology, will help us to understand more about how the heart develops.
It would be possible to learn more about how heart abnormalities develop, for example, Congenital Cardiac Arrhythmia, which is costing the European economy almost £1.96 million per year.
Read Elizabeth's Spotlight Profile here.
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| Spotlight at Sussex Impact Day |
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We are excited to announce that on Tuesday 13th June 2017 we will be celebrating Sussex postdoctoral research in a special Spotlight session, which will form part of the programme for Sussex Impact Day 2017.
The Spotlight session will showcase the impact and achievements of Sussex researchers though a series of short talks from postdoctoral research fellows spanning the variety of disciplines at Sussex. 
A call for speakers will be issued later in the spring.
All applicants will be considered for:
- A talk at the Sussex Impact Day Spotlight session on 13th June
- A future Spotlight profile
- A profile poster which will be displayed in the exhibition space during Sussex Impact Day
More information will be available in the coming weeks on the Spotlight webpage.
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| News |
Soapbox Science is coming to Brighton!
Imagine yourself stood upon Brighton Seafront, the Pier behind you, talking about science with passers-by and inspiring them to find out more about your research...sound inviting?
This summer you may have your chance as SoapBox Science comes to Brighton for the first time! SoapBox Science host events across the UK and the world that celebrate women in STEMM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths, Medicine), breaking down barriers and challenging stereotypes about who a researcher is.
Speaker applications for Soapbox Brighton are now open to any female researchers (PhD students to Professors) from STEMM subjects to apply - deadline 24th Feb 2017.
Apply here.
"Soapbox is a brilliant initiative for raising the profile of women in science. What started out in 2011 as a single event in London has now gone global, with 21 events planned for 2017 in locations across the UK, Australia, Canada, Germany and Italy" Beth Nicholls, Brighton Event Co-Organiser.
Soapbox Science Brighton will take place on Saturday 29th July 2017, 1-4pm, on Brighton Seafront.
Photo: Dr Kayleigh Wardell, Research Fellow in Genome Damage and Stability, University of Sussex (Soapbox Science London, 2016).
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| Sussex Data Analysis Forum |
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Over the last three months, Research Fellows, Dr Peter Hurley and Dr Philip Rooney co-founded the Sussex Data Analysis Forum (SDAF), a fortnightly meet-up of researchers (Doctoral researchers up to Professors) across the University who are interested in data intensive or machine learning techniques.
Meetings are led by different researchers each fortnight, and are a mix of informal presentations and discussions about methods, problems and how they are approached in different contexts. Members come from a wide range of departments, including Astronomy, Particle Physics, Maths, Informatics, the Clinical Imaging Science Centre and Brighton Medical School.
If you are interested in attending the Forum please email Peter Hurley (P.D.Hurley@sussex.ac.uk) or Philip Rooney (P.Rooney@sussex.ac.uk).
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| Research Led Initiative Fund - Spring call opening 30th January 2017 |
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The Researcher-Led Initiative (RLI) Fund is accepting applications from 30th January - 31st March 2017. The RLI Fund is available to support early career research staff and doctoral researchers to organise activities that will enhance their professional and research skills.
In the last funding round, Research Fellows were awarded funding for:
- A symposium on 'The Diversity of Career Pathways in Science' - Project Lead: Dr Leanne Harris, School of Life Sciences
- A workshop to bring together 'Postdocs and PhDs in Neuroimaging at Sussex (POPINS)' - Project Lead: Dr Charlotte Rae, Brighton and Sussex Medical School
- 'The Postdoctoral Network' - Project Lead: Dr Ronald Grau, School of Engineering and Informatics
For further information visit the Researcher Led Initiative Fund web page.
Call for applications open: Monday 30th January - Friday 31st March 2017
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| Speakezee: a searchable database of academic expert speakers |
Speakezee helps academic speakers engage with new audiences and makes it easier for event organisers to find relevant experts to talk at their event. If you are interested in finding new speaking opportunities and engaging with different audiences you can register a profile on Speakezee.
The online tool also allows speakers to showcase talks, share materials and collect evidence of impact from the audiences in the form of comments and discussion.
The primary users are schools who to seek academics to augment the learning experience and inspire pupils towards higher education.
How does it work?
Speakers create a simple profile which focuses on subject expertise and speaking experience. The more complete the speaker profile, the more likely you will be contacted by an organiser.
Browse the Speakezee site and register here.
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| Opportunities |
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If applying for funding, remember to check funders' eligibility criteria carefully and discuss the opportunity with your host institution/department prior to preparing any applications.
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| Royal Academy of Engineering Industrial Fellowships |
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 This scheme aims to strengthen the strategic relationship between the university and the industry host by providing an opportunity to establish or enhance collaborative research between the two parties.
The Fellowship will facilitate knowledge transfer between industry and academia and will enable the awardee to gain first-hand experience of working in an industrial environment and knowledge of current industry practices, thereby enabling the secondee to improve the quality and industrial relevance of their teaching.
More information.
Application deadline: 3rd February 2017
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| Global Food Security - Policy Lab for Early Career Researchers on Multi-functional Landscapes |
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 The Global Food Security programme invites expressions of interest from early career researchers to take part in a Policy Lab on multi-functional landscapes. Policy Labs bring together early career researchers from different disciplines to scope a policy-relevant issue, with teams forming at the workshop and then competing to write a report for the GFS programme. The successful team from the Policy Lab workshop will be awarded a prize of up to £5k.
Researchers working in any relevant discipline from across the food system are welcome to apply (including biological, environmental and social sciences).
The Policy Lab workshop will take place on 27-29 March 2017. More details on the workshop will be provided to successful applicants.
More information.
Application deadline: 10th February 2017
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| The PRoF 2017 Award |
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The PRoF 2017 award organised by the University of Ghent (Belgium) recognises innovative projects in healthcare applications. The competition accepts all innovations created in the healthcare domain (medical, care, ageing society, etc.) and more specifically one of the following areas:
- New concepts or theories in healthcare models (medical, care, ageing society)
- new insights regarding healthcare infrastructure (architecture and/or equipment)
- innovating healthcare processes and/or procedures
- innovating healthcare products and/or services
More information.
Application deadline: 1st March 2017
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| JSPS Postdoctoral Fellowship |
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 Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) is the leading research funding agency in Japan. The Postdoctoral Fellowship for Foreign Researchers (Long Term) provides the opportunity for researchers based outside of Japan to conduct collaborative research activities with leading research groups at Japanese universities and research institutions for visits of between 12 to 24 months.
More information.
Application deadline: 7th March 2017
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| Sir Henry Dale Fellowships |
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 The Wellcome Trust and the Royal Society invite applications for the Sir Henry Dale fellowships. These support postdoctoral researchers who aim to become independent scientists leading their own groups.
Applicants must have a PhD and significant research experience. They must be driving their research and be ready to lead an independent research programme. They must have sponsorship from a head of department at an eligible host organisation in the UK who must guarantee the fellow with support to lead their own independent research, space and resources during the award period, and the status and benefits of other academic staff of similar seniority. Applicants must have an eligible research project, ranging from molecules and cells to clinical and public health research.
More information.
Application deadline: 5th April 2017
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| Wellcome Trust Secondment Fellowships |
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The Wellcome Trust invites applications for its secondment fellowships. These support early-career humanities and social science researchers whom the trust already fund. They spend three to six months at one of the following organisations: Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology in London, Science Museum in London or the World Health Organisation in Copenhagen.
More information.
Application deadline: April 2017
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| New Investigator Research Grant - Molecular and Cellular Medicine |
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 The Medical Research Council invites proposals for its new investigator research grant in molecular and cellular medicine. This supports researchers who are capable of becoming independent principal investigators and who are ready to take the next step towards that goal within the areas of molecular and cellular medicine. Applicants are expected to combine their time with a portfolio of other activities, such as other research grants or clinical duties, teaching, administration duties, or other time spent in faculty.
Applicants should hold a PhD or a medical degree and they may hold a lecturer appointment, a junior fellowship or be in a research staff position. In addition, those who hold or have held early-career training fellowships may apply. Co-investigators are welcomed too.
More information.
Deadline for expressions of interest: 3rd May 2017
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| Wellcome Trust Public Engagement funding |
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There has been a recent refresh of Wellcome's Public Engagement funding: the multiple individual streams that existed previously have been condensed into one- the Public Engagement Fund.
The fund is open to 'anyone with a great idea for engaging the public in conversations about health-related science and research', and is directed towards teams rather than individuals.
There are no deadlines for application. Decisions are made on a rolling basis and will take between 10-12 weeks. Applications are being accepted from this month.
More information.
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Vitae's current 'focus on' topic is designed to help you think through your career options, understand yourself, and connect with other researchers at varying stages of their career in order to be focused and efficient in your approach to your professional development and career planning.