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Detail of a thin slice cut of ice with glowing colours revealed through polarising camera lenses. Read more about ice research starting on page 22.
Water diplomacy 22 The hottest thing in ice 32 Making textiles smart
5 Openings Kristiina Mäkelä on the heart of Aalto.
6 Now _ Small news, big issues.
10 Oops! Raili Pönni and problematic signs.
OUR THEME Makers of the impossible
12 Theme Finland is a powerhouse in water diplomacy.
18 Who _ Kuan Tan is at the forefront of quantum computing.
22 On the go Jukka Tuhkuri and the hot spot for ice research.
28 On science _ Metsähovi radio observatory unravels the mysteries of space.
31 Wow! Students developed shoe insoles from wood foam.
32 Dialogue Jaana Vapaavuori and Anne Louise Bang study smart textiles.
35 Collaboration _ Science education from Otaniemi to Ukraine.
36 Partnership Researchers advance the circular economy with fashion giants.
38 On science _ Urban greening is a climate action.
41 On science Cutting-edge news in brief.
42 Entrepreneurship Juho Uzkurt Kaljunen’s startup recovers nutrients from wastewater.
46 In-house Join us at Aalto’s new Marsio building.
48 Wow! _ Art on campus is a public secret.
54 Doctoral theses Seppo Borenius and electricity grids for the future; Jaana Brinck and early childhood education pedagogy; Gazi Illahi and remote rendering.
56 Everyday choices Kristjana Adalgeirsdóttir on architecture in war zones.E
For the cover, we photographed some members of the Aalto community who have participated in the projects or exhibitions presented in this magazine.
ON THE JOB
KATRI HEINÄMÄKI, MA STUDENT OF PHOTOGRAPHY
What is the most impossible thing you’ve done? The question is impossible to answer because everything I’ve achieved (so far) has been possible. While the feeling that something is impossible is familiar to me, that thinking stems from a wrong approach. If you don’t lose hope or give up after an unsuccessful attempt, the impossible is always possible.
PUBLISHER Aalto University, Communications
MANAGING EDITOR Paula Haikarainen
LAYOUT/PHOTO EDITOR Dog Design
COVER Katri Heinämäki and Nanako Ueda
NANAKO UEDA, MA STUDENT OF VISUAL COMMUNICATION DESIGN
Moving to Finland from Japan with my family, becoming a graphic designer of the Designs for a Cooler Planet exhibition and an illustrator of Aalto University Magazine – all these things seemed completely impossible not so long ago. I bet my life on Aalto and Finland, and I’m continuing my journey of making the impossible possible.
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Head of Content and Media Katrina Jurva
CONTRIBUTORS IN THIS ISSUE Amanda Alvarez, Frédéric Bassemayousse, Michael Damsgaard, Ihar Faniayeu, Tiina Forsberg, Otso Haavisto, Heidi Hammarsten, Ranja Hautamäki, Katri Heinämäki, Esther Horvath, Sarah Hudson, Minna Hölttä, Jaakko Kahilaniemi, Esa Kapila, Kalle Kataila, Krista Kinnunen, Katja Lahti, Hayley Lê, Annika Linna, Diana Luganski, Ira Matilainen, Nicoletta Michieletto, Caroline Moinel, Adela Navratilova, Anitta Pirnes, Aleksi Poutanen, Gavin Pugh, Marjukka Puolakka, Jukka Pylväs, Taha Qureshi, Mikko Raskinen, Eeva Räisänen, Noora Sandgren, Bryan Saragosa, Francine Schaepper, Sedeer el-Showk, Heidi Simppala, Joanna Sinclair, Noora Stapleton, Minna Tiainen, Tiina Toivola, Jenni Tuominen, Outi Turpeinen, Annamari Typpö, Nanako Ueda, Maria Uusitalo, Nita Vera, Enni Äijälä
PRINT RUN 5,000 (English edition), 31,000 (Finnish edition)
SOURCE OF ADDRESSES Aalto University CRM Partnership and alumni data management
PRIVACY NOTICES aalto.fi/services/privacy-notices
ISSN 1799-9324 print ISSN 2323-4571 online
Nanako
Ueda
Katri Heinämäki
When you face the impossible, take the plunge
Part of this culture is learning by doing, even through failure, and the courage to do new things.
Working at a university is a constant journey of discovery into the unknown and learning to face the impossible. Producing knowledge isn’t enough – we have to solve challenges and create new things together with others. Aalto’s purpose is to build Finland’s innovation capacity through research and teaching but also through doing – through concrete solutions.
We will soon celebrate Aalto’s 15-year milestone, a shared achievement of the entire university community. The merging of our three diverse fields –technology, arts, business – on one campus, a project that seemed impossible, has happened. Our university is now one of the most international in Europe, with a world-class ecosystem of innovation and entrepreneurship. All this has been achieved through something that is essential to the idea of Aalto: a culture of experimentation, which I think we could have even more of. Part of this culture is learning by doing, even through failure, and the courage to do new things.
There is no shortage of impossible-seeming problems in the world, from climate change to geopolitical challenges. I am convinced that answers to these issues can be found through cooperation across fields and a common will. Aalto doesn’t function in a vacuum; our partners in Finland and around the world, societal interaction, and an operating environment propelled by political decision-making enable the journey towards these answers.
The spirit of working together is materialising in the new focal point of campus, the Marsio building. Marsio is a place for meeting, experiencing and creating something new. It also embodies the Aalto vision: when you take the plunge, nothing is impossible.
From Slush to satellites, makers and doers from Aalto have gone towards the unrealised. I dare say that in these and other cases, Aalto has created the grounds and provided the resources that enabled success. With a proactive spark, the impossible can appear in a new light, as potential.
Kristiina Mäkelä Provost Aalto University
Kalle
Kataila
Embrace the new
Do you ever dream of approaching your daily tasks and responsibilities in a fresh and innovative way?
Creativity is the ability to generate something new and valuable, as well as to perceive things from different perspectives.
Creativity is a vital skill for humanity, one that everyone should cultivate, because groundbreaking, radical changes often evolve from small actions and experiments that challenge established structures and traditional approaches.
In November 2024, Aalto University will introduce an open and free online course, Diving into Radical Creativity, worth three credits (3 ECTS). The course is based on Aalto University’s creative pedagogy and exemplifies radical creativity.
The course will be in English but will later also be available in Finnish.
Are you interested in participating as a pre-evaluator for the course? Apply online at bit.ly/aalto-creativity
Hayley Lê
New wave of doctoral education: 178 positions, three-year challenge!
The Ministry of Education and Culture provided 225 million euros of funding to universities for piloting new practices in doctoral education. The funding is earmarked for the recruitment of a thousand new doctoral researchers for threeyear contracts to complete their PhDs.
Aalto University was granted 178 positions in the pilot. Most of the positions are in the flagship programme areas of the Research Council of Finland.
At Aalto, flagships in the areas of quantum technology, materials bioeconomy and artificial intelligence received the largest number of positions.
‘The result is excellent for us, and the number of positions is large relative to our size. Now, we’re rolling up our sleeves to face this exciting challenge,’ says Jyri Hämäläinen, Aalto’s vice president for research.
The new positions will be a significant increase in the number of doctorates at the university: the goal is around 400 degrees per year. The first new doctoral researchers started at the beginning of August 2024.
The cover is by Aalto University alum, graphic designer Pekka Piippo.
Stories from the birth of Aalto University
Aalto University was founded in 2010 when the University of Art and Design Helsinki, the Helsinki University of Technology and the Helsinki School of Economics merged to form a multidisciplinary autonomous university.
The Finnish book ‘Aalto. Yliopiston synty’ (Aalto. The Birth of the University) describes how the new university came to life. It features interviews with ministers, business leaders, professors, alumni, students, and even fierce opponents of the project, shedding light on the unique social process.
The book was written by Merina Salminen, nonfiction writer and journalist, and published by Teos.
Millions for the development of AI
The Technology Industries of Finland Centennial Foundation has granted Aalto University a donation of EUR 3.2 million to strengthen its AI expertise. With the donation, Aalto will establish the House of AI research cluster to produce scientific research and practical applications in the field of artificial intelligence.
At the heart of the House of AI is high-quality scientific research and close collaboration between researchers and businesses. For example, a collaborative project on the future of electrical energy systems is being launched involving electrical engineering, economics and artificial intelligence research. The House of AI will also support the training of developers and practitioners of multidisciplinary AI methods.
Aalto University already has very strong expertise and networks in AI research. Aalto coordinates the extensive activities of the Finnish Center for Artificial Intelligence (FCAI) and plays an important role in the European Laboratory for Learning and Intelligent Systems (ELLIS) network.
Nicoletta Michieletto
The Magnificent Materials exhibition promotes material literacy. The prototypes are examples of the new book’s instructions, which can be used to make transparent, coloured biodegradable films at home, for example.
Take a peek at our research
The Designs for a Cooler Planet festival is open from 6 September to 3 October 2024. It highlights research-based, experimental and creative projects: materials of the future, health technology, solutions that support biodiversity, space technology, and cyber security.
In the Bubbles with Benefits project, designers Satu Paavonsalo and Valentin Schwarz have developed a cellulose-based material that can replace bubble wrap.
The exhibitions and events are open to everyone and free of charge. See the programme online.
The festival is an official event of Helsinki Design Week and part of the EU Commission’s New European Bauhaus initiative.
Esa
Kapila
Bryan Saragosa
The textile industry uses more than 10,000 oil-based synthetic dyes that damage the environment and can cause cancer. The share of organic dyes is only one percent because they’re considered too variable in quality for mass production. The BioColour collection, designed by Sofia Ilmonen, dyed with bio-dyes, stands for the diversity of colours.
Diana Luganski
When all signs point to ‘Oops!’
Raili Pönni was appointed as the development director of Aalto University in early April 2024. In 2016, she was tasked with improving signage for the School of Chemical Engineering.
‘Our building had multiple entrances. It was confusing; one door led straight to the dean’s office, while another might’ve been just for deliveries. But none of them were labeled. So we decided to order visible outdoor signs for the entrances. Several people were involved in the project, and we carefully planned the signs.
Aalto has strict guidelines for signage, detailing what it should look like and where signs can be placed. Naturally, we went through the drafts multiple times before placing the order.
Then came the morning I drove into the parking lot after the signs had been installed the previous night. I froze in my car seat. My first thought was that my grandfather was turning in his grave.
Back in the day, my grandfather was very particular about using the right word in the right context. For example, using the term “school” or “koulu” for a “korkeakoulu”, which is a university or college, was a huge no for him. In English, it works. In Finnish, it most definitely doesn’t.
And here was the incorrect word, repeated on multiple signs, right before my eyes:
“School of Chemical Engineering – Kemian tekniikan koulu”.
Once I got to my desk, there were already several emails asking when the Finnish name had been changed and why. The day was spent answering questions and ordering new signs.
Even though in my work I often look at the big picture and plan far ahead, this incident was a good reminder of the importance of details. If nobody pays attention to them, mistakes can happen, and they can even mess up the big picture.
In Finnish spoken language, the word koulu or school is often used for all kinds of education, which always gives me a little pang in my heart. When I was studying at one of Aalto’s predecessor institutions, the Helsinki University of Technology TKK, my grandfather always emphasised that – even just in the mornings – I should always say I’m going to university, not to school.
He himself had studied at the Helsinki University of Technology in the late 1940s and early 1950s and was very proud of it. My mother, his daughter, is also a TKK alum. Now, my oldest son is turning 18 soon and is considering applying to university. Maybe soon I will be the one giving him a daily lecture about not going to school.’
Text Paula Haikarainen
Portrait Nita Vera
Illustration Studio Jenni & Jukka
THEME
12 Theme Finland is a powerhouse in water diplomacy.
18 Who Kuan Tan is at the forefront of quantum computing.
22 On the go Jukka Tuhkuri and the hot spot for ice research.
28 On science _ Metsähovi radio observatory unravels the mysteries of space.
31 Wow! _ Students developed shoe insoles from wood foam.
32 Dialogue Jaana Vapaavuori and Anne Louise Bang study smart textiles.
MAKERS OF THE IMPOSSIBLE
How do seemingly impossible challenges turn into opportunities?
Makers of the impossible
Experts explain how the scarcity of water impacts both global politics and the economy – and how Finland’s water diplomacy is making the impossible possible.
THE WEIGHT OF WATER
All living things, from microscopic cyanobacteria to giant blue whales, need water to survive. In many ancient mythologies, water existed even before creation, and humanity has built its civilisations on water for thousands of years – on the Nile, the Ganges or the twin rivers Tigris and Euphrates.
Yet, while water is the giver of life, it’s also a source of conflict: some have too much, while others have too little. The amount of water around the globe is constant, but human activity has altered its natural cycles. The effects of climate change, such as worsening droughts, will further increase conflicts and misery related to water.
Marko Keskinen, professor of water resources management and policy at Aalto University, sums it up: ‘water is politicised and water leaks into politics.’ All around the world, issues related to
water are becoming increasingly political. At the same time, water is being used as a political tool to weaken relationships between countries.
While we need technical water expertise and research, we also can use water diplomacy to tackle these tensions — and Finland is a world leader in the field. In fact, both the 1992 and 1997 UN Conventions on the use of transboundary watercourses were initiated by Finland.
The work of researchers such as Keskinen has had a notable impact. Originally, he had hoped to save the world through an international career working for the UN and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, rather than the academic track.
‘But then water just swept me away. With his very dry British humour, Pertti Vakkilainen, nowadays a professor emeritus, was able to explain the importance of water both in Finland and around the world. And that’s when I realised that water really is a big issue globally,’ Keskinen says.
Text Tiina Forsberg Illustration Nanako Ueda
THEME Makers of the impossible
Water is politicised
Water knows no borders, and water-related disputes are often the result of three interconnected factors, Keskinen explains. First, shared water resources are important for countries’ livelihoods, such as agriculture. Second, water scarcity — meaning the use exceeds the amount available — and climate change are increasing uncertainty. And finally, the politicisation of water adds another layer of complexity — for example, if a dam is built upstream of a shared waterway, water can become politicised because of uncertainties around the technical process.
‘It’s like having someone’s hand on your throat. Even if they’re not squeezing, it’s a bad feeling,’ Keskinen says.
Keskinen also talks about how water leaks into politics: when countries that share a common body of water have difficult or nonexistent political relationships, water can be used as a political tool.
This is very familiar to Bota Sharipova, a researcher from Kazakhstan who is working on her doctoral thesis at the IHE Delft Institute for Water Education in the Netherlands. She has studied trust-building in water diplomacy in collaboration with Keskinen.
‘Experience has shown how important it is to have trust and to have an expectation of goodwill and cooperation from other countries with whom you share transboundary water bodies. But that often isn’t the case in my home region, the Aral Sea basin. So much is dependent on the governance, the regime of the countries — and a lot also depends on the people behind the policies,’ says Sharipova.
In the Aral Sea basin, water’s scarcity has long made it a political tool. This was reflected for decades in the relations between long-time rivals Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. There was little room for trust or cooperation, but when Uzbekistan’s autocratic head of state was replaced by a new leader in 2016, his first visit was to neighbouring Tajikistan.
‘That’s when the countries really started to discuss water issues and cooperation. In certain contexts, so much is dependent on just one person, so I think it’s also important to understand what and who informs decisions. Even after so many years of studying trust, this is still a big question for me. I think I’ve only discovered the tip of the iceberg,’ Sharipova says.
Building trust may be slow and difficult, but losing trust can be quick and easy, as the war in Ukraine has shown in relations between Finland and Russia. But water still flows between the countries, and transboundary water cooperation is one of the very few areas where Finland and Russia still have some sort of connection, Keskinen points out. When wielded skillfully, the necessity of effective water diplomacy can make even unlikely international collaborations possible.
Livelihoods at stake
Water’s crucial role as a natural resource is what ultimately makes it strategically and economically valuable. Water disputes are about so much more than water: they’re about political influence, food, energy — the survival of states, communities and people.
It follows that extreme water-related phenomena also impact the global economy, and countries and companies alike are struggling with supply problems caused by water scarcity, among other things.
In the summer of 2023, shipping in Europe was hampered by the drying up of key river routes such as the Rhine; early this year, water shortages in the Panama Canal were pushing cargo ships 13,000 kilometres off route. Consumers have noticed the knock-on effects in the form of empty store shelves and higher prices.
In addition to these clearly visible phenomena, water scarcity also affects the production of goods. Droughts force communities around the world to limit water consumption, which may lead to factory closures or reduced agricultural production, says Professor Katri Kauppi of Aalto’s School of Business, who studies the impact of climate change on logistics and supply chains.
‘Water scarcity affects not only the availability of raw materials and products but also their quality and price — for example through altered growing conditions in agriculture. Climate change is already affecting coffee production in this way. There are also many manufacturing industries, such as electronics or clothing, which use a lot of water in their processes. And the less water they have, the higher the price is going to be,’ Kauppi explains.
Certain drought-stricken regions already have water restrictions, such as Spain, famous for its tomatoes. Kauppi says it may only be a matter of time before climate change hits global business even harder. For example, data centres providing cloud services require huge amounts of water for cooling.
How will political stability be impacted by these economic disruptions? That’s a question the global water community will have to address in due course.
‘It’s like having someone’s hand on your throat.’
THEME Makers of the impossible
At the heart of water diplomacy
Water resources are generally in the hands of the public sector, so water-related disputes usually involve states. The challenges in resolving these disputes are multiplying as population growth and growing water consumption also increase the risk of conflict.
‘Unfortunately, we live in a world where multilateral agreements — the desire to stick to what has been agreed on — are being eaten away from many corners at the same time. And that brings us to the question of why we’ve moved from border water cooperation to water diplomacy,’ says Keskinen.
In many ways, Finland is in a unique position in water diplomacy, according to Keskinen and Antti Rautavaara, special envoy for water at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who works closely together to ensure that research is put into practice.
Water diplomacy combines two of Finland’s strengths: technical expertise in water and the political diplomacy process. Rautavaara sees that Finland, as a small country under pressure from superpowers, has benefited from effective regional cooperation.
‘Transboundary cooperation is part of the same equation. After the Second World War we had to find a way to live with the Soviet Union, and the 19 waterways between the countries flow regardless of what kind of relations we have with our neighbour. This has forced us to think about how to agree on these issues — together,’ Rautavaara says.
Keskinen also mentions Finland’s long-standing work in mediation and the nation’s development of a strong international profile. Among the extensive list of influential people and organisations in this regard are the CMI–Martti Ahtisaari Peace Foun dation, former politician and diplomat Elisabeth Rehn, former President of Finland Tarja Halonen and international NGO Finn Church Aid.
With Finland ‘playing in the big leagues’ in global water diplomacy, Aalto University has an essential role. ‘Aalto’s role in the launch of Finland’s water diplomacy has been absolutely instrumental,’ Rautavaara says.
diplomacy; it’s also largely dependent on the actors involved — especially the individuals.
‘This makes each case unique, and that’s also why it’s very difficult to have general results that will be applicable everywhere,’ says Sharipova.
Both Keskinen and Sharipova mention the Sava River in the former Yugoslavia as an excellent example of successful water diplomacy. Relations between Croatia and Serbia were very tense in the 1990s, but the Sava River Commission has helped to build a functional and also non-political cooperation in the region.
While water scarcity will continue to threaten peace and security, Antti Rautavaara points out that water also offers opportunities for cooperation and stability. Keskinen mentions the Middle East, and in particular the disputes between Israel, Palestine and Jordan over the waters of the Jordan River. The war in Gaza may now have dashed hopes for peace, but there too, water, food and energy cooperation have helped improve collaboration and reduce tensions in the past .
‘Water flows from one country to another and tangibly binds them together. When you build technical cooperation around water, you also build different forms of trust — which, at best, will then positively radiate to other kinds of cooperation and create long-term, workable solutions,’ Keskinen concludes.
‘We would hardly have made the same progress without the pioneering work of Marko and Professors Olli Varis and Matti Kummu. We’ve also managed to create very positive momentum, including with different ministries and state leadership,’ Rautavaara continues.
However, the seemingly impossible task of trust-building and creating stability through water diplomacy also requires reliable international partners, and Finland collaborates closely with the Swedish International Water Institute SIWI, the Geneva Water Hub in Switzerland and its offshoot, the Dakar Water Hub in Senegal.
Bound by water
Marko Keskinen Professor of Water Resources Management and Policy, School of Engineering, Aalto University
As water scarcity grows as a global challenge, international cooperation and trust are key to addressing it. But Keskinen and Sharipova’s research has shown that trust isn’t just very elusive in water
Katri Kauppi
Professor of Logistics and Supply Chain Management, School of Business, Aalto University
Bota Sharipova PhD Candidate, IHE-Delft Institute for Water Education
Antti Rautavaara Special Envoy for Water, Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland
The future of computing is cold – very cold
A leap of faith brought researcher Kuan Tan to Finland, resulting in one of the world’s leading quantum computer companies.
Text Gavin Pugh
Photos Francine Schaepper
It was the winter of 2018 when Kuan Tan’s phone began buzzing ominously halfway through a showing at a local cinema in Sydney, Australia. Checking the name on the screen, he hurried out of the theatre to take a call from an old friend and colleague.
On the other end was Mikko Möttönen, a professor of quantum technology at Aalto University and VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, and the subject was a serendipitous business proposal: building and selling quantum computers.
‘No one was doing this,’ Kuan says. ‘I had to take a leap of faith and leave my job at Microsoft to get this thing off the ground. I wasn’t sure at first how everything would unfold, but then it all just happened so quickly.’
An intensive round of seeking seed funding and an intercontinental move back to Finland ensued. Kuan Tan’s leap of faith would result in one of Finland’s great startup success stories and a world-leading manufacturer of quantum computers.
But that wasn’t the first time Kuan Tan had received a phone call from Mikko beckoning him to Finland.
Sydney-Helsinki hopscotch
Kuan Tan’s introduction to Aalto University was back in the early 2010s, when Möttönen served as one of Kuan’s PhD supervisors during
a stint in Sydney. The working relationship that emerged paved the path toward Kuan’s first move to Finland.
Once Kuan completed his PhD, Mikko invited him to join his Quantum Computing and Devices (QCD) research group in Aalto’s Department of Applied Physics as one of their first experimentalists.
It was a stark contrast from warm, coastal Sydney. Flicking the lights on to an empty lab in chilly Otaniemi, a younger Kuan set out on the first task of his postdoctoral position in the QCD group. Between locating the lab space, sourcing the equipment, and scaling up the research operations, Kuan attributes the buildout of the lab as a major influence in his path to co-founding IQM.
‘It was a moment that was immensely challenging but equally rewarding,’ Kuan says.
‘Learning how to juggle scientific output while simultaneously building up the lab was a big feat. It was like completing a second PhD, but that’s really the time when I learned what I needed to later scale up IQM.’
But before IQM would become a reality, Kuan would get pulled back to Australia again to continue collaborative research with his former group at the University of New South Wales in Sydney. Not long after, Kuan scored another notch in his belt and a reason to extend his stay in Australia when Microsoft came knocking at his door.
WHO Makers of the impossible
‘It was one of those situations where they made me an offer I couldn’t refuse,’ Kuan says. ‘Microsoft was just launching its own quantum computing team, and they were throwing a lot of money at the project. I was put in charge of setting up their labs and cleanrooms, which turned out to be another bit of invaluable experience on the path to IQM.’
And then came that fateful call in the cinema from Möttönen.
Launching IQM
The early days of IQM were long and hard. While continuing his day job at Microsoft for over a year, Kuan would compile data for the pitch deck at night.
Finally in 2019, the budding group comprising Kuan, Mikko, IQM Co-CEO Jan Goetz, and IQM Global Affairs Officer Juha Vartiainen had secured enough seed funding to launch.
Kuan recalls some of the first major milestones once the team of four had set up shop in Otaniemi. Like so many startups, it began in a completely empty room with nothing but a printer, the box it came in, and a case of beer.
‘The interview for our first hire was actually conducted over that printer box,’ Kuan says.
‘That person is still with the company today, but the whole team is now over 300 people.’
IQM currently markets two classes of quantum computers: the 5-qubit, full-stack Spark computer; and Radiance, which offers 20-, 54-, and 150-qubit variations for high-performance computing systems.
Although research and development of bigger and better computers is the core business operation at IQM, Kuan says their Resonance quantum cloud network is gathering momentum. This service allows researchers and businesses to connect to IQM’s computers from anywhere in the world to work on quantum algorithm development.
Finland’s unique expertise
Having been IQM’s Chief Technology Officer for its first five years, Kuan Tan left his position in March this year.
While weighing the accomplishments of IQM in one hand and the prospects of quantum advantage in the other, Kuan says the intersection of quantum computation and artificial intelligence is what gets him the most excited.
‘That’s what keeps me awake at night. We humans are confined to our narrow five senses, but modern multimodal AI transcends these limitations—we can allow them to sense in infrared, for example,’ Kuan explains. ‘This ability of AI, combined with the power of quantum computers, could enable the discovery of new physics altogether.’
He notes that Finland’s unique expertise in low-temperature physics was crucial for
his work with superconducting qubit technology – the technology used in the qubits in IQM’s computers at temperatures near absolute zero (–273.15 degrees Celsius). He says that the collaborative nature of the Finnish quantum ecosystem excels in aligning the efforts of different players, from universities and research institutions to government agencies and industrial partners.
‘There are other experts out there who know more than me about cryocoolers and the physics behind them. I’ve learned a lot about how to calculate how much energy we use to cool our computers, and I’m actually using this to plan the technology roadmap for IQM, since quantum computers should reduce energy consumption by orders of magnitude versus conventional computers,’ Kuan says. ‘This cross pollination of knowledge here in Finland enables the innovations we need to continue our growth.’
CORRECTION on 9 September 2024:
The original version of the article, as seen in the print magazine, incorrectly stated that the Finnish government had allocated €70 million to IQM and VTT to scale up quantum computing infrastructure. In fact, the funding was allocated only to VTT.
As of the magazine’s publication in September 2024, VTT is still looking for an innovation partner to scale up the country’s most powerful quantum computer towards 300 qubits.
The paragraph containing the incorrect information has been removed from the digital version of the magazine, along with the reference to the construction of a 300-qubit quantum computer within this decade, which was mentioned earlier in the article.
The original article also stated that Kuan Tan is currently an advisor at IQM, but he has not been employed at the company since March 2024.
The editorial team apologizes for the errors and will publish a correction in the next issue of Aalto University Magazine.
Kuan Tan spent the spring of 2024 on a sabbatical in Australia. He was photographed on the iconic beach of Adelaide.
Kuan Tan
• Co-founder of IQM, one of the world’s leading quantum computer manufacturers.
• Served as a senior research scientist at Microsoft during the launching of the company’s quantum technology team.
• He first came to Aalto University in 2014 as a postdoctoral researcher in the Quantum Computing and Devices research group at the Department of Applied Physics.
Also
• A former semi-pro badminton player, he still plays the sport in his spare time.
• A father to a growing family, with his third child born in spring 2024.
• Can be found in a popular YouTube video participating in avantouinti (Finnish ice swimming) to demonstrate the findings of a paper on quantumcircuit refrigerators.
Professor Jukka Tuhkuri studies ice in Otaniemi and around the world. Ice has fundamentally changed – we’ve messed up, he says. Now we need to understand what that means for humanity.
The ice whisperers
Text Minna Hölttä Photos Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust, Jukka Tuhkuri, Jaakko Kahilaniemi, Mikko Raskinen
Emperor penguins are a curious bunch.
As Jukka Tuhkuri, an ice scientist and professor at Aalto University, drilled into the ice on the Weddell Sea, a group of the metre-tall birds calmly observed what he and the other scientists were up to.
Adjacent to Antarctica, the Wendell Sea is about as big as all the Nordic countries combined. In early 2022, Tuhkuri spent seven weeks aboard the research vessel S.A. Agulhas II as a member of the 65-person international expedition Endurance22. Most of those on the voyage were tasked with searching for the wreck of the Endurance, Ernest Shackleton’s ship that famously sank in 1915, but 15 ice scientists had also joined the team.
As a robotic submersible scanned the sea floor three kilometres down, a crane dropped the scientists onto the surface of the ice to gather samples and take measurements.
Tuhkuri’s tool of choice was an ice auger, a 120-centimetre-long tube that can drill up to three meters into ice with the help of extra handles. He could use it to measure the temperature, density and salinity of the ice. Why? These properties determine the strength of ice and how it breaks when colliding with a ship, a bridge or a wind farm at sea.
The temperature throughout the ice core was about –1.8 degrees Celsius, the same as the freezing point of seawater. ‘Very, very warm,’ says Tuhkuri, whose research group specialises in the fracture mechanics of ice.
Found in Antarctica, the emperor penguin is the tallest and heaviest of all living penguin species.
Missing pancakes
Normally around Antarctica, at the outer edge of the sea ice, there are small ice floes rounded by the waves – a type of ice called pancake ice. ‘There were no proper waves or pancake ice on this trip,’ Tuhkuri says with regret.
At the beginning of the expedition, Tuhkuri put an automated camera system developed by doctoral researcher Andrei Sandru into the ship’s crow’s nest. It snapped pictures of the ice in front of the ship every five seconds in order to analyse the size of ice floes and the amount of ice cover – the ratio between open water and ice – with the help of computer vision. At the same time, sensors on the ship’s hull recorded the forces from ice impacts.
Unlike the rest of those onboard, Tuhkuri was hoping for high winds and waves so they’d be able to observe the combined effects of storms and ice.
Jukka Tuhkuri (in the red jacket) and James-John Matthee drill the ice for a sample.
There was no storm, but one morning Tuhkuri saw that a sensor had registered a whopping 775 kilonewtons of force overnight. That was just four kilonewtons shy of the load the ship’s hull had been designed to withstand –a little too close for comfort.
‘I rushed to the bridge to ask the captain what had happened overnight. He said, “Nothing,” and we couldn’t find an explanation in the photos either.’
The reason for the impact remained a mystery during the voyage, but now Tuhkuri thinks he knows what happened: in the early spring, ice thaws, becoming softer and messier. It’s called rotten ice in English and brittle ice in Tuhkuri’s native Finnish.
But the brittleness is an illusion, says Tuhkuri.
‘Force is the pressure times the area. When very cold, hard ice hits a ship, the pressure is large, but the contact area is small. With warm ice, the pressure is smaller, but the contact area is much larger, so the force may go up.’
Rewriting the textbooks
The temperature of ice varies in nature, but in the lab, it’s been studied and modelled for decades at –10 degrees C. So scientists’ common understanding of ice is based on models that don’t always match the great outdoors.
In 2021, Tuhkuri’s group was the first in the world to demonstrate that warm and cold ice fracture differently.
Textbooks say that ice deforms in three different ways in response to a force. An elastic deformation means the ice recovers its shape immediately when the force is removed. A viscoelastic deformation increases with time if the force holds but also recovers with time when the load is removed. A plastic deformation is permanent.
When Tuhkuri and colleagues loaded ice at –0.3 degrees C, they didn’t see any viscoelastic deformation – only elastic and plastic.
What does that mean in practice? ‘We don’t know yet,’ says Tuhkuri. ‘That’s what we have to find out next. Textbooks and computational models need to be updated.’
Warm and cold ice fracture differently.
The hot cold place
Thanks to new methods, studies of ice mechanics have progressed quickly during Tuhkuri’s career. The growth of cracks can be observed with digital image correlation methods developed by Professor Sven Bossuyt and postdoctoral researcher Waqas Ahmad. Professor Arttu Polojärvi uses simulations to study the effects of ice movement on offshore wind farms with world-class accuracy.
Experimental ice research that couldn’t be done anywhere else is possible in the Aalto Ice and Wave Tank. Visitors come from all around the world and there is collaboration in every direction, says Tuhkuri.
‘We’ve become a hot place – or at least a hot cold place. Climate change has made this research area even more critical.’
Changes in the material properties of ice are mirrored by the changes in Arctic ice conditions. There is normally a zone between pack ice and the open ocean where ice floes move with the waves. This zone is called the marginal ice zone. Now, the area of the pack ice is decreasing, and the marginal ice zones are expanding. Tuhkuri fears that ships that aren’t designed to withstand the loads from ice will venture into arctic waters.
‘We don’t know enough about the conditions in these marginal ice zones. But even Shackleton understood that it’s dangerous amid the ice and waves.’
What would Tuhkuri like everyone to understand about his work? ‘We’ve messed up, and the ice has already changed. Now we need to figure out what this means for the environment and for society. Studying and stopping climate change is important, but we also have to use science to find ways to adapt to the new conditions.’
Professor Jukka Tuhkuri kept an expedition blog (in Finnish) during his journey to Antarctica. The blog was received so well that he decided to write a book about the voyage, which will be published in September 2024 by Siltala Publishing.
Every five seconds, a camera system captured and stored an image of the ice in the front of the ship.
Jukka Tuhkuri examines what the camera tells him about the ice.
The world’s largest indoor ice tank
To an ice scientist, ice is never just ice – it’s a complex and enormously variable material. Glacier ice, made of compacted snow, is completely different in crystal structure from floating ice made of frozen water. Saltier ice is more porous than ice made of fresh water and, as a result, weaker.
In Otaniemi, Jukka Tuhkuri and colleagues study ice at Aalto’s two ice tanks. The Aalto Ice and Wave tank measures 40 by 40 metres and is 2.8 metres deep, making it the world’s largest indoor ice tank by area. In its icy waters, scientists can test ships and other marine structures, and Tuhkuri and colleagues use it to closely study the properties of ice and how it breaks.
The water in the tank isn’t salty like sea water, but more like regular tap water with a bit of ethanol. ‘We would need several trucks full of salt to mimic the saltwater of the oceans, and it would corrode more or less everything in the tank,’ Tuhkuri explains.
For this reason, tests on sea ice are conducted in a smaller two-by-four metre tank in a well-isolated cold chamber shielded by a heavy specialised door. The tank
and machinery needed to grow sea ice was designed and built by doctoral researcher Sid Oksala.
The crystal structure of the ice is revealed through thin cross-sections produced using a special plane or a router. Tuhkuri commonly drops the room’s temperature to –18 degrees C to cut the thin sections. Working with saline ice in warmer conditions is challenging, but any colder and things start falling out of scientists hands –it’s just too chilly.
When floating ice develops naturally, it crystallises into columns that grow from the surface downwards. Each crystal is about the thickness of a finger and as long as the ice is deep.
The crystal columns in freshwater ice have clear boundaries and appear to be very similar to each other. In saltwater, the crystals are more irregular, making for a larger variety in any batch.
‘Saltwater’s impurities and air bubbles get inside the crystals,’ says Tuhkuri. ‘That’s why fresh and saltwater ice are so different.’
The crystalline structure of ice is revealed in a microsection,
a very thin sample cut from the ice. Photographer Jaakko Kahilaniemi placed the thin slices between polarising lenses, giving the ice crystals their glowing colours.
Aalto Ice and Wave Tank is a 40 m × 40 m water basin with a depth of 2.8 metres.
ON SCIENCE Makers of the impossible Unravelling the mysteries of space
Located in Kirkkonummi, southern Finland, Metsähovi Radio Observatory collects information on the Sun, quasars, and black holes, while training space scientists of the future.
Text Ira Matilainen
Photos Mikko Raskinen
At the end of a winding country road is a fenced area which you can’t enter unless you turn off your phone, data, wireless, and Bluetooth from your devices – it’s full radio silence.
The Metsähovi Radio Observatory in Kirkkonummi is the only one of its kind in Finland, with its researchers often working with colleagues around the world on major international space projects. The landmark feature of the radio observatory is a giant golf ball-shaped dome that conceals Metsähovi’s crown jewel, a 14-metre radio telescope that’s been dutifully observing space for half a century.
Black hole imaging
The research at Metsähovi focuses mainly on millimetre and microwave radiation from the Sun, variable quasars – the active nuclei of distant galaxies – and very-long-baseline interferometry (VLBI).
With VLBI, radio telescopes around the world act as a single, globe-sized telescope. This is the technique behind the very first images of a black hole, which Metsähovi helped produce.
In the coming years, Metsähovi will undergo many changes, including the installation of a new receiver for the 14-metre radio telescope next year. The receiver is the heart of the telescope, so this state-of-the-art device will revolutionise the way Metsähovi makes observations and enable new types of research, both as part of international networks and on its own.
The radio telescope project provides practical know-how Recently, smaller, 5.5-metre telescopic booms have started to rise in the Metsähovi yard. The MCA, or Metsähovi Compact Array, is a set of radio telescopes that has involved students from different disciplines in its design and construction. The project is unique in its multidisciplinary approach and practical teaching, and similar examples are hard to find in Europe.
Jere Raassina, a student of space science and technology at Aalto University, programmed the control software for the individual telescopes used in the MCA project. With Raassina’s software, a set of multiple antennas can be controlled to perform measurements automatically or be given individual commands, such as pointing the antenna at a specific target or turning on data recording.
The best thing about the project for Raassina was that he was able to use his own expertise in a concrete way. ‘The moments that stand out in my mind are when I got something new to work. For example, when I could move the antennas on my laptop or when I saw the data from the first measurements,’ he says.
Smaller telescopes can also use interferometry technology, meaning they can be combined to form one giant telescope. Two of the four radio telescopes in the MCA project are already operational.
‘Once the radio telescopes are connected and more telescopes are completed, a whole new
ON SCIENCE Makers of the impossible
world of research opportunities will open. Even before that, the equipment will be in active use, with students from different disciplines involved in its construction and development, who will be able to work with the radio telescopes,’ says Director of Metsähovi Joni Tammi
Young people’s enthusiasm is contagious Metsähovi is actively working to ensure that Finland has enough space scientists and astronomers for the future. The MCA telescopes have opened up more opportunities for cooperation with schools.
Joni Tammi’s own career choice was greatly influenced by meeting space scientists as a teenager. He wants to encourage young people to enter the field by telling them about research and the work of a scientist. Their enthusiasm also reminds him of what drove him into the field in the first place.
‘In the midst of funding applications and quality assurance projects, you need occasional reminders that you get to be one of the first to hear about or discover extremely interesting things,’ says Tammi.
One of these enthusiastic young people is Anna Casella, a ninth-grader at Jokirinne School, who completed her TET period of work experience at Metsähovi.
Casella, who lives in Kirkkonummi, has been interested in space since primary school, but until her school and Metsähovi collaborated, she had no idea that her hometown had the only radio observatory in the country.
Casella’s internship allowed her to learn about the observatory, demonstrate remote observing at a technology event for high school students, and help build a 3D model of the telescope. The model will be on display at Aalto University’s Designs for a Cooler Planet exhibition in the autumn.
‘I already had the idea that I wanted to study something related to space or technology. The internship confirmed that this is what I like,’ says Casella.
And what has it been like to spend your days in radio silence without a phone?
‘It hasn’t been difficult at all! It’s been wonderful.’
Metsähovi Radio Observatory
• Started its operations on 11 April 1974 and celebrates its 50th anniversary this year.
• Initially a radio research station, it now operates as an observatory, also teaching radio astronomy and space radio technology.
• Has three main areas of research: active galaxy research, radio monitoring of the Sun, and joint observations by international radio telescopes networks.
• Is one of the only places in the world to focus on long-term monitoring of active galaxies and solar variability at high radio frequencies – without these long-term observations, it would not be possible to say, for example, whether a single observation is normal behaviour or an anomaly.
• In the past, 24/7 observations required staff to be present around the clock, but remote communication and automation now allow scientists to sometimes sleep during their week-long observing shifts.
WOW! Makers of the impossible
Walking on wood foam
Kengänpohjallisia puuvaahdosta
Opiskelijat kehittivät sisäpohjan prototyypin, joka taipuu, kestää kosteutta ja tuntuu pehmeältä ihoa vasten. Suomalainen ken käyritys VIBAe otti materiaalin testikäyttöön.
Teksti Minna Tiainen
Aalto-yliopiston opiskelijat ovat kehittäneet puupohjaisen materiaalin, joka soveltuu kenkien sisäpohjaksi. Uudenlaisen pohjal lisen erityinen ansio on sen kyky sietää toistuvaa kuormitusta, mikä on aiemmin ollut haaste vaahtomaisille biomateriaaleille.
Materiaali syntyi yhdeksän kuukauden mittaisella tuotekehityksen PDP-kurssilla, jossa insinööri- ja taideopiskelijat työskente livät yhdessä.
Projektipäällikkö, insinööritieteiden opiskelija Taha Qureshi kertoo, että pohjalliset valmistetaan kuumapuristusprosessilla, ja niitä on testattu käytössä. Pohjallisten kerroksellinen rakenne yhdistää kovan, biohajoavan materiaalin ja pehmeän täytemate riaalin, mikä tekee niistä mukavia ja kestäviä.
Innovaatio perustuu teknillisen fysiikan laitoksella tehtyyn vaahtomaisten aineiden perustutkimukseen, joka on viime vuosina keskittynyt korvaamaan muovia puupohjaisilla materiaaleilla. Niiden solumainen rakenne tekee materiaalista lujan ja lämpöä eristävän, mutta haasteena on ollut toistuvan rasituksen kestävyys. Nyt opiskelijat ovat onnistuneet luomaan öljypohjaisille muoveille toimivan puuvaihtoehdon. Pohjalliselle on haettu patenttia Suomessa.
Suomalainen kenkäyritys VIBAe testaa nyt uusia pohjallisia, ja tavoitteena on saada ne myyntiin reilun vuoden kuluttua. Yrityk sen edustaja Kalle Gummerus toivoo, että uusi materiaali korvaa polyuretaanin, joka on heidän valmistamiensa kenkien ainoa epäekologinen osa.
Projekti on jatkoa aiemmalle FoamWood-projektille, jonka myötä syntyi Woamy Oy. Uusi pohjallinen esiteltiin Aalto-yliopiston PDP-gaalassa toukokuussa, jossa se keräsi positiivista huomiota.
Pohjallisessa on useita kerroksia. Violetti kerros on paranneltua Woamy-vaahtoa, sinisessä kerroksessa vaahtoon on lisätty puuvillaa ja alimmaisessa hamppua. Kuva: Taha Qureshi / Aalto-yliopisto
Pohjalliset olivat näytteillä Aalto-yliopiston PDP-gaalassa. Kuva: Adela Navratilova / Aalto-yliopisto
Aalto students developed a prototype of a durable wood-based insole that is elastic, moisture resistant and feels soft against the skin. Finnish shoe brand VIBAe is now testing the material.
Students at Aalto University have developed a wood-based material that can be used to make insoles for shoes because it can withstand repetitive loading. The material was created in a product development project course (PDP), where engineering students and art and design students worked together for nine months.
‘The sample insoles we developed are made through a heat press die process, and they nicely take the shape of the mold,’ says mechanical engineering student Taha Qureshi, who was the project manager. The insoles are layered, with a hard, biodegradable material forming a thin mesh inside a soft filling material. The result is durable but still feels soft and supple against the skin.
The innovation builds on fundamental research on foams at Aalto’s Department of Applied Physics, which in recent years has focused on replacing plastics with wood-based materials. A major advantage of such materials is their closed-cell structure, which makes them strong and heat-insulating, but it’s been challenging to get them to withstand repeti-
tive loading. The material developed by the students is a wood-based alternative for oil-based polyurethane, and a patent has been applied for in Finland for the new type of insole.
Finnish shoe brand VIBAe is piloting the soles. They plan to have shoes with the new sole material on sale in just over a year. Kalle Gummerus, a founding member of the company, hopes that the new material will replace polyurethane, which is the only non-ecological part of their shoes.
The project carries on work from the earlier FoamWood project and its spin-off company Woamy.
The insoles were featured at the Aalto University PDP Gala in May, where they received a lot of praise.
Adela Navratilova
The insole has several layers. The purple layer consists of the improved Woamy-foam, while the blue adds cotton to the mix, and the bottom layer adds hemp.
Image: Taha Qureshi
Text Minna Tiainen
Threads of tomorrow
A joint Nordic project is developing light- and heat-reactive textiles. In the future, curtains will regulate room temperature, clothing will help monitor blood pressure, and cotton will clean itself in sunlight.
Text Joanna Sinclair
Photo Michael Damsgaard
What are e-textiles and smart textiles –and how do they differ?
Jaana Vapaavuori and Anne Louise Bang say the answer depends entirely on who you ask. The professors are behind the NordForsk-funded Beyond E-textiles research project, which brings together researchers from such diverse disciplines that peers have referred to their work as ‘radical interdisciplinarity’.
In practice, the team works on yarns embedded with photoresponsive molecules and nanoparticles, as well as yarns capable of undergoing a shape memory effect. They can be used to create textiles that, for example, convert light into heat or movement.
‘Our work builds on envisioning what could be,’ explains Vapaavuori, who leads the project group from the Department of Chemistry and Materials Science at Aalto University.
‘E-textiles include electronics. We aim to bypass the need for electric circuits,’ adds Bang, professor in design & sustainability at VIA University College in Denmark.
E-textiles often refer to clothing like heated gloves with integrated electronics, while smart textiles are fabrics that react to environmental conditions. But in practice, these terms are often used interchangeably. ‘There’s no consensus in the academic community,’ Bang says.
‘Our research group once had a very heated debate about this during a bus trip. Even close collaborators can wholeheartedly disagree,’ adds Vapaavuori with a laugh.
‘I think it’s alright to use the terms as synonyms. Or simply speak about functional textiles – it’s a good umbrella term for all fabrics that
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR JAANA VAPAAVUORI leads the Multifunctional Materials Design research group (MMD) at the Aalto University School of Chemical Engineering, which focuses on experimental studies of soft materials, as well as inorganicorganic hybrids. Her current research involves the creation of bio-based solar cells and multifunctional materials and surfaces.
have functions beyond protection and self-expression,’ Vapaavuori says.
Inventions for everyday life
Many existing e-textiles have been developed solely from the technological perspective. As a result, they can be challenging to clean and reuse – and their aesthetic appeal is often debatable.
With expertise ranging from chemical engineering to design to fine arts, the researchers are working to create solutions that can weave their way into everyday life to have a major societal impact.
‘We are developing yarns that enable new functionalities – for example in fabrics for curtains, carpets, and wall coverings. These might be useful for regulating indoor temperature. They could cool buildings during the summer and provide more sustainable heating in the winter, for instance,’ Vapaavuori says.
‘There’s also a lot of potential in having new yarns for functional wearables, such as compression socks that can exert pressure in a dynamic and a more precise way,’ she adds. ‘But currently our main contribution is in creating
speculative use cases for the new materials. We want to remain open to completely new kinds of applications.’
Bang mentions that the group is also working on static electricity. ‘Jaana’s team – together with computer scientists from the physics department – are creating an algorithm that will enable our team in Denmark to knit fabrics that generate different amounts of
static electricity. Then, we’ll try and figure out if we can use the electricity for something more than just producing a crackling or popping noise,’ she says.
‘Most of our work revolves around fabrics powered directly by solar or ambient light or temperature gradients. Our colleagues in Turku are developing self-cleaning cotton using a photo-responsive coating, and we have
SENIOR ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR IN DESIGN & SUSTAINABILITY AT THE CENTRE FOR CREATIVE INDUSTRIES AT VIA UNIVERSITY COLLEGE IN DENMARK ANNE LOUISE BANG has a background as a textile designer and weaver. Her research interests include innovative textile design, materials, technology and sustainability. She is also Professor II at the University of South-Eastern Norway.
researchers exploring UV-powered water purification nets. But we also have project members focusing mainly on aesthetics or sustainability, exploring methods such as dyeing and printing fabrics with food waste,’ she adds.
Trust is key
The Beyond E-textiles project emphasises the importance of working collaboratively instead of exploring issues in silos defined by research and expertise areas. ‘We have project deliverables of course, but we don’t have work packages. We research and develop prototypes in parallel. It helps us learn from each other and encourages innovation,’ Bang says.
‘We don’t wait for Jaana’s group to perfect yarns that react to light and heat before we start weaving fabrics. We use existing smart yarns for prototyping and provide Jaana’s team insights for further refinement. Likewise, our colleagues in Iceland don’t wait for our finished smart fabrics before they start building future scenarios,’ Bang explains.
The researchers from different fields have formed a very tight-knit group, meeting online every other week and face-to-face at least twice a year.
‘You need a lot of trust to work smoothly in such a diverse group. We have it, because Jaana is a very skilled project manager. Our working methods have become something of a gold standard among many of my colleagues. They’ve already suggested adopting them in several other projects,’ Bang says.
‘One of our key takeaways from this project has been understanding how important trust is,’ says Vapaavuori.
There are also many ethical questions that must be taken into account. ‘Consider clothing that monitors your movement, for instance. While it could provide peace of mind in elderly care, it also sparks concerns about data privacy,’ Vapaavuori notes.
‘The same goes for smart textiles for children,’ Bang adds. ‘UV-reactive shirts that alert parents about their toddler’s sun exposure are becoming quite popular. We could develop various types of functional clothing to monitor our offspring – but where do we draw the line on parental surveillance?’
‘Most of our work revolves around fabrics powered directly by solar or ambient light or temperature gradients.’
In addition to dealing with ethical questions, the researchers have an essential underlying goal: reduction.
‘Many textiles have a huge impact on the environment. Ultimately, we want to help reduce useless consumption by developing textiles that people get attached to, so they use them as long as possible,’ Vapaavuori says.
The project’s interdisciplinary work will be on display at the Entangled – Reimagining Textile Functionalities exhibition. You can visit it in Marsio in Otaniemi as part of the Designs for a Cooler Planet festival from 6 September to 3 October 2024.
Beyond E-textiles research project
• Develops smart textiles that don’t require electric circuits but convert heat, sunlight or other ambient light directly into useful action, such as solar-based dry cleaning, clothing disinfection, light-collecting tents, or adaptable curtains.
• Includes researchers from Aalto University, the University of Turku, VIA University College, University of Borås and Iceland University of the Arts.
• Funded by the joint Nordic research funding organisation NordForsk.
Science education from Otaniemi to Ukraine
Aalto University Junior organised a series of remote workshops for schools in Kryvyi Rih.
Text Heidi Simppala
Photo Students of Kryvyi Rih Schools
Aalto University Junior’s interdisciplinary workshops cross the boundaries of subjects daily, and now they also cross international borders. The idea for this collaboration was born when Ukrainian science educators visited Otaniemi and were impressed by Junior’s activities. They wanted to offer their students similar hands-on science workshops.
Due to the state of war, a significant portion of the teaching in Kryvyi Rih, a city in central Ukraine, takes place online. Although Junior’s workshops were also conducted remotely, the students gathered at their schools to participate together.
Inna Kazantseva, a chemistry teacher at Kryvyi Rih Lyceum No. 81, says the students enjoyed the workshops because they got to work together with their classmates. Some of the workshops were interrupted by air raid alarms. At such times, they moved to bomb shelters where the studies continued.
‘If the siren sounds, the children move to the bomb shelter, but the teaching process does not stop,’ says literature teacher Bogomanova Iryna Vitalyivna from Kryvyi Rih Lyceum No. 24. The teachers have learned to work in exceptional circumstances. It is challenging but not impossible.
Encouraging interest in science
The Ukrainian teachers’ visit to Otaniemi and the collaboration were part of the Stem & School Day project of the State University of Economics and Technology in Ukraine. The goal is to increase school students’ interest in the natural sciences and develop their research skills.
According to Associate Professor Dmytro Popolov, there is a shortage of applicants in technical fields because school students are
not interested in mathematics, physics, and chemistry. Aalto Junior’s activities address this challenge.
The development of STEM education in Ukrainian schools is in its early stages, and the war has slowed down the progress. STEM stands for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Education is developed through projects that combine different scientific disciplines, applying theory to practice. Schools collaborate with universities and utilise university laboratory facilities.
In Junior’s remote workshops, topics such as the circular economy were discussed, and the students were introduced to the Ioncell technology developed at Aalto University. The students made biodegradable plastic, as it can be made without special equipment and chemicals. The workshops were guided by Aalto University students.
In Finland, the LUMA Centre Finland network promotes STEM education and learning for children and young people, and Aalto University Junior is part of this network.
Aalto University Junior operates between the university and the school world, inspiring and promoting the learning and teaching of business, arts, technology, and science. Activities include study visits, camps, events, courses, and competitions aimed at children, young people, teachers, school groups, and families.
Good riddance, fast fashion
Professor Kirsi Niinimäki doesn’t mince words when discussing fast fashion.
‘It’s not designed to last. Not only are clothes overconsumed, but they are also overproduced. According to various estimates, up to 20–30% of manufactured garments never even reach consumers. An absurd amount of clothing ends up as textile waste. The current situation is completely unsustainable.’
Fortunately, a change is on the horizon. The European Union has introduced a new textile strategy to encourage clothing design that lasts longer, reducing production and consumption, and to ensure that all textile waste is collected and recycled.
The shift of the EU’s textile ecosystem towards a circular economy is supported by Horizon Europe projects in which well-known brands, manufacturers, suppliers, and research institutions team up to tackle the sustainability challenges of the clothing industry. Aalto University has collaborated closely with sportswear brand Adidas in these projects.
Driving change with Horizon projects
The problem is complex and requires a variety of efforts to address its different aspects. The New Cotton Project, which wrapped up in spring 2024, created a model of how the circular economy could work in commercial clothing design and production. The CELLFIL project, which just started and will run through 2028, investigates whether new bio-based and recyclable fibres could replace polyester or cotton fibres in various textile sectors. The raw materials for the fibres would come from side streams from food production or other sources.
‘All of the projects aim to expedite sustainable development processes and facilitate the rapid commercialisation of new innovations,’ Niinimäki explains.
Aalto University is doing its part to advance the circular economy, collaborating with well-known consumer brands such as Adidas on EU projects.
Through the T-REX project, work is underway on an EU-level plan to sort and recycle household textile waste. The project is led by Adidas, and Aalto is responsible for citizen engagement, knowledge transfer, and communications. Aalto is also carrying out the social life cycle assessment of the project’s chemical recycling processes.
‘T-REX stands for Textile Recycling Excellence. We have an important role in the project, as there is an urgent need for life cycle assessments of chemical recycling processes alone. The EU is preparing a directive to reduce greenwashing and prevent the use of misleading environmental claims in marketing. The requirements of the directive can be met with reliable life cycle assessments and other tools,’ Niinimäki points out.
‘We are also developing guidelines for designers on how to consider textile waste recycling during the design phase of a garment. Clothes must be durable and repairable, and the textiles used in them should be fully recyclable at the end of the garments’ lifecycle. This sets high demands on the fiber blends that can be used.’
Knowledge that benefits the industry at large
The aim is to share the information produced in the initiatives as quickly as possible. ‘Adidas and H&M Group obviously gain valuable practical experience on how to produce clothes using circular economy methods – but we have absolutely no intention of keeping even a single important insight from other companies. On the contrary, we’re generating knowledge that benefits the entire field,’ says Niinimäki.
Text Joanna Sinclair Illustration Studio Jenni & Jukka
‘We’ve also created a freely accessible MOOC on textile industry circularity. After finishing the online course, you will know a fair bit. You can access the course at circulartextiles.aalto.fi.’
The researchers have been also consulted on numerous occasions throughout the development of the EU’s textile strategy. ‘We’ve shared our views, for example, on how regulations should be written to ensure that small- and medium-sized enterprises don’t fall behind in development while only large players can adapt.’
Necessity is the mother of invention In linear production, it was easy for many companies to forget that waste is part of the industrial process.
‘Whether companies want it or not, the circular economy will become the norm in every industry. The “takemake-dispose” model will become history – and rightly so. The EU will increasingly shift responsibility for making use of waste to the players who benefit from waste-producing businesses,’ says Niinimäki.
The EU aims to ensure that almost all materials currently considered waste can be used as raw materials. The separate collection obligation for textile waste will come into force throughout the EU from 2025 onwards. After then, textile waste may no longer be incinerated or disposed of in landfills. In Finland, separate collection of textiles started in 2023.
‘I believe that within five years, the garment and textile industry will be much more sustainable throughout the EU,’ Niinimäki says.
‘In the future, all garments will come with a digital product passport, providing consumers with information about the product’s sustainability, quality, and repairability. Consumers will see what fibres the garment contains and whether it should be chemically or mechanically recycled. Fast fashion will become nothing more than a bad memory.’
In addition to forests, parks and yards are also important lifelines for cities.
Carbon sinks have received lots of attention in agriculture and forestry, but they’re also important in urban environments. Aalto University is involved in the multidisciplinary Co-Carbon research project which investigates the capacity of urban vegetation to sequester atmospheric carbon and store it in plant biomass and soil. The research will provide evidence-based solutions for designing and building more climate-smart cities.
The project is unique internationally, because carbon sequestration by urban greenery has gotten much less research attention than forests or agricultural areas. But the carbon cycle of urban greenery is actually more complex than in natural forests because of its small scale, its mosaic structure, and the influence of human activities.
The key message of Co-Carbon is that urban greenery matters for carbon sequestration. According to a study by the University of Helsinki, just under half of Helsinki’s carbon sequestration comes from urban forests, with the rest coming from other types of green spaces. That means parks, meadows, yards, and street plantings – all of these absorb carbon, not just the forests.
The findings create new opportunities for urban planning, showing how urban carbon sinks could be used efficiently and contribute to reaching our carbon neutrality goals.
Hidden aspects of the climate debate
We want to highlight important but overlooked aspects of the climate debate. The first is the many benefits of urban greening.
In addition to sequestering carbon, urban greenery mitigates heatwaves and urban flooding, supports human well-being, and provides habitats for many other species. In other words, urban greening offers solutions to both the climate crisis and the loss of biodiversity.
Another important issue is the role soil plays in carbon storage. For example, a carbon sink study carried out in Greater Helsinki shows that the soil holds about twice as much carbon stock as the vegetation. Existing soils should be preserved, vegetated areas should be increased, and paving and asphalt should be reduced.
A third aspect that deserves more attention is the ability of different types of vegetation, such as shrubs, meadows, and grasslands, to sequester carbon. Trees are the most common carbon sink that people think of, but other vegetation also plays a role.
Three guidelines for climate wisdom
Urban greening’s role as a carbon sink and its other benefits aren’t taken into account enough in urban planning. Researchers at the Department of Architecture have tackled this problem and put into practice the findings of atmospheric and soil scientists. We’ve been
Multi-species and layered vegetation in the built environment can act as a carbon sink, similar to a forest. The photo is from the courtyard of the Scandic Grand Central Hotel, next to Helsinki’s main railway station. Designer: Varpu Mikola, Nomaji Landscape Architects Ltd.
The landscape architecture firm Nomaji was awarded the 2023 State Prize for Architecture in recognition of its work integrating science and art. Nomaji partner Mari Ariluoma and landscape architect Caroline Moinel are researchers in the Co-Carbon project at Aalto.
considering how urban planning and landscaping practices should be changed to provide solutions that offer multiple benefits, simultaneously supporting carbon sinks and biodiversity.
Our recommendations are summed up in three guidelines: preserve carbon stocks, increase sinks, and reduce emissions. These are keys to designing and building more climate- and nature-smart cities.
1
Preserve the existing green structure and carbon stocks. The existing vegetation and soil are the most important carbon stores in the urban environment. Preserving them is the most effective way for urban planning to support urban greening and its climate goals – and biodiversity is promoted at the same time.
2
Add green cover and build new carbon sinks.
Build new green spaces and ensure good growing conditions for plants. As a rule of thumb, the healthier the tree, the better it can absorb and sequester carbon dioxide from the air. Promote a new kind of urban green wilderness: multi-species and multi-layered vegetation areas that enhance both carbon sequestration and biodiversity.
3 Adopt low-emission landscaping methods.
In the building sector, life cycle assessment is already an established part of the planning process, but the methods are still evolving in the landscaping sector. The goal of keeping emissions low should apply to materials and work practices in landscape construction and maintenance just as it does for other building products. For example, using recycled soil, biochar, and circular economy solutions can keep down the emissions of the planting substrate.
Strengthen the role of urban greening
The importance of greenery in urban planning has increased: it’s seen not only as a recreational element that enhances the space but also as a strategic element for climate resilient, nature positive cities. But there’s still work to be done in areas such as legislation and urban planning, which don’t yet recognise the potential of greenery in responding to the climate and biodiversity crises.
There’s also lots of room for improvement in the general attitude and in construction processes and practices. The change starts with the understanding that urban greening is a critical, indispensable part of infrastructure and the built environment. It’s a useful and vital means of mitigating the effects of climate change, preventing biodiversity loss, and increasing the well-being of people, other species and the planet.
When we take care of the urban greenery, it takes care of us.
Ranja Hautamäki
The author is Associate Professor in Landscape Architecture at Aalto University.
Co-Carbon
• A multidisciplinary research project to measure and model the carbon sequestration capacity of different vegetation types and find climate-smart solutions for urban design and construction.
• The partners include the University of Helsinki, Aalto University, the Finnish Meteorological Institute, Häme University of Applied Sciences, and the University of Copenhagen.
• Solutions will also be co-created together with cities, businesses, expert organisations, and residents.
• Funded by the Strategic Research Council of the Academy of Finland.
• cocarbon.fi/en
ON SCIENCE
Blind trust in AI
A new study shows that people perform better on tasks if they believe AI is assisting them, even when told the AI system is unreliable. Researchers tested this effect by having two groups of participants perform a task where they paired letters appearing on a screen. One group was told they were assisted by a proven AI, while the other group was told the AI was unreliable and would hinder their performance. Both groups also completed the task without AI assistance.
In reality, neither AI system existed; participants were merely led to believe that AI was helping them. Surprisingly, both groups performed better when they believed AI was involved.
Researchers repeated the experiment online and asked participants to describe their attitudes towards AI. Most were positive about AI, and even skeptical participants expected AI to improve their performance. The results highlight how difficult it is to assess the true benefits of AI systems. Drawing conclusions without controlling for the placebo effect can be misleading.
‘Because of the placebo effect, it is challenging to determine whether AI programs genuinely help us,’ says Assistant Professor Robin Welsch. ‘Many studies in the field may have been biased in favor of AI systems.’
A new material for the development of one-way glass
Researchers at Aalto University have developed an optical metamaterial that opens new application possibilities for industry. Metamaterials differ from natural materials in that their electromagnetic properties can be engineered, enabling innovations such as truly one-way glass.
Currently, so-called one-way glass is actually only semi-transparent, allowing light to pass through in both directions. It functions one-way under different brightness conditions on either side of the glass – such as when it is dark inside and bright outside.
One-way glass based on the researchers’ metamaterial would not require a brightness difference to function, as it would allow light to pass through in only one direction. Additionally, one-way glass could improve the efficiency of solar panels by blocking thermal radiation, which currently reduces the amount of energy they collect.
The new material leverages the unique NME (nonreciprocal magnetoelectric) effect of metamaterials, which is negligible in natural materials. It can be manufactured using conventional materials and nanofabrication techniques available with current technology.
Participants were told they were being assisted by either a reliable or unreliable AI in the task.
Otso Haavisto
Ihar
The material’s magnetic properties can influence its interaction with light.
When Juho Uzkurt Kaljunen started studying environmental management at Aalto University in 2012, he wasn’t interested in entrepreneurship at all.
‘I was a bit of a hippie. I arrived at the university barefoot, wearing loose clothes. I wanted to do something technical, and solving environmental problems through technology was an ethically appealing idea,’ recalls Kaljunen.
Now, with a PhD in engineering, he is the CEO and a partner in the newly founded NPHarvest, which is developing technology to recover nutrients from wastewater.
An Aalto spin-off, the company has just raised an impressive €2.2 million in funding from venture capitalists and the Ministry of the Environment.
A prelude to a career change Kaljunen’s change in direction arose from a change in his original curriculum. In 2016, he ended up writing his thesis for the NPHarvest project, supported by the Ministry of the Environment, on the topic of nutrient recovery. When the thesis was done, the project had a vacancy for a doctoral researcher. Uzkurt Kaljunen applied for the position and got it.
‘The further the thesis and technology progressed, the more obvious it became that this had commercial potential. But I had to psych myself up because I thought being an entrepreneur would be terribly boring. For me, the startup is a tool to improve the nutrient cycle.’
NPHarvest’s innovation uses a two-step process to recover nitrogen and phosphorus from wastewater, replacing mineral fertilizers.
‘The technology we’re developing is different
from what’s currently available. It’s tailored for wastewater treatment in locations where waste heat isn’t available, which is often the case in Finland. The process is passive and more cost-effective than existing approaches.’
During Kaljunen’s dissertation, the technology was developed under laboratory conditions using ‘equipment the size of a milk carton’. The lab is located in Otaniemi, Espoo, in the same building as the Fat Lizard restaurant, and the research made use of urine collected from the restaurant’s urinals.
‘Urine is almost too suitable for nutrient recovery because it is much cleaner than the water going to sewage treatment plants, which is available on a much larger scale.’
On the path to commercialisation
The realisation that if he didn’t do it himself, the innovation would remain at the academic level was a factor in Kaljunen’s decision to become an entrepreneur. Another factor was the support from Aalto University.
‘The Aalto Ventures Program, an entrepreneurship education programme at Aalto University, guides you through the process of founding a startup and also gives you a concrete idea of what startup life is like. And the Aalto Startup Center business incubator and innovation services have helped with practical matters, like when I needed to submit a patent application.’
Aalto was also involved in supporting NPHarvest when it applied for Research-toBusiness (R2B) funding from Business Finland to commercialise its innovation. The second round of applications, in 2022, was successful.
Text Heidi Hammarsten
Photos Jaakko Kahilaniemi
RUNNING A BUSINESS ISN’T SO BAD AFTER ALL
Juho Uzkurt Kaljunen founded NPHarvest Oy based on his PhD thesis with the aim of improving the nutrient cycle by recovering minerals from wastewater. The company’s first round of funding was a success.
The IPR transfer from the university to the company went smoothly.
The commercial model is based on the fact that the customer, such as a biogas plant producing biogas from waste, has to pay a treatment plant to treat the wastewater. Pretreatment with NPHarvest significantly reduces this cost by lowering the nutrient load. In addition, part of the revenue is generated from the nutrients recovered in the recycling process.
‘Nutrient recycling reduces the environmental footprint and replaces mineral fertilisers. Our product also seems to be better at absorbing nutrients and reducing leaching into water bodies.’
Along the way, the team has grown to three people. The new members are Federico Varalta and Burak Yirmibesoglu
‘We're not all from Aalto, but we’re all engineers. Fede is the oldest of us and has the most experience in the startup world. Burak has ten years of experience in biogas and a lot of contacts.’
Challenges and success stories
The R2B funding ran out in September 2023 when the company was set up, and the team had to look for external funding. Kaljunen was under the impression that raising finance was the most challenging part of starting a business.
‘It was difficult, but apparently not as difficult as for some others. It took us 6–8 months. In addition to the capital investment, we received a grant from the Ministry of the Environment, with the condition that we secure the same amount of funding from elsewhere.’
Kaljunen suspected that the transfer of intellectual property rights from Aalto University to the company would also be a difficult task. But that, too, went better than expected. ‘Aalto clearly wants to speed things up.’
In the end, the biggest challenge has been the constant time pressure. With only three team members, time is at a premium, and everyone’s hands are full. The aim is to recruit more people.
Aalto University Innovation Services
• manages the commercialisation of inventions, intellectual property and technology transfer
• 136 invention disclosures and 71 patent applications in 2023
• 100+ companies are founded every year in Aalto’s innovation ecosystem
With the funding, NPHarvest will build pilot installations for potential customers and demonstrate that the technology works outside the laboratory. It remains to be seen whether the company will sell the equipment to customers or keep the equipment and sell the service.
‘Customers won’t believe our devices work and are scalable based on scientific publications alone. We are now designing a plant that is about ten times larger than the first pilot plant. Even that was quite big for academia.’
University accelerates the path from research to business
Aalto University has invested in a smoother process to promote technology transfer and commercialisation of innovations by research-based spin-off companies.
NPHarvest is the first company to test the new commercialisation model, says Anu Honkalinna, the university's head of spinoff asset management.
‘Companies based on technological innovation are usually backed by years of research. When it starts to look like an innovation has commercial potential, a Research-to-Business project is often set up with support from Business Finland.’
R2B projects take around 18 months to get the technology ready for commercialisation and test whether there’s a market for it. This is the stage where the team's readiness to run the business is examined, and the elements of entrepreneurship are reviewed.
‘We have coaches who train the teams. We require plans for business, cap table, and financing. We also need information on intellectual property rights and a description of the team and its roles. The team needs to be technologically and commercially capable and financially secure,’ says Honkalinna.
If the situation looks favourable, the next step is to set up a company and transfer the technology from the university to the company. The law requires that public assets, such as university innovations, aren’t given away for free. This could give the start-up company an unjustified competitive advantage.
The new practice is that Aalto University will receive a 10.0%–19.9% stake in the start-up before other investors get involved.
‘Typically, it’s closer to 10 than 20 percent. When we negotiate the share, we look at what kind of patent portfolio the company has and compare the situation with other teams. We have created a basic contractual framework that allows us to complete the technology transfer in 30 days.’
Aalto’s profits from the shares will be shared with those who have been involved in creating the innovation. Professors, researchers, and the department in question can choose whether to keep a slice of the spin-off company’s shares or take an immediate reward.
‘We have different options for getting involved in a business. For example, a professor can participate as an inventor only, or as both an inventor and a part-time advisor to a company. Working full-time in a company requires a leave of absence.’
The new, more efficient commercialisation model has been designed to increase the number of spin-off companies, and it seems to be working. In the past, there were around five technology spin-offs per year. ‘Now it looks like more than 15 companies could spin off this year.’
Join us at Marsio
Text Anitta Pirnes
Photo Mikko Raskinen
Just a hop, skip and a jump away: these days, Aalto University’s campus can be reached by metro from Helsinki’s Central Railway Station in 12 minutes, and the light rail runs through the campus’ central square.
The newest addition to campus, opening in September, is right at the centre of things. The Marsio building will host events, exhibitions and open lectures, with its ground floor being open to all. Visitors can enjoy delicious meals at the restaurant and browse the Aalto University Shop. On the upper floors, there’s space for teaching and research and the Aalto Studios media centre.
Marsio’s autumn season will kick off with two exhibitions. The Designs for a Cooler Planet festival from 6 September to 3 October 2024 showcases projects from the Aalto community that combine research and design for a more sustainable future. The Makers of the Impossible exhibition is a cross-section of Aalto’s research achievements over 15 years of activity. The exhibition will be open until the end of 2025.
Learn more about what’s coming up by visiting Marsio’s event calendar: aalto.fi/marsio
Marsio is named after the architect and Aalto University alum Aino Marsio-Aalto (1894–1949), a creative pioneer of her time.
Noora Sandgren
13.11.2015, Dialogue series (2015)
This series of photographic works located in Marsio speaks of presence. The artist lay on photographic paper and allowed sunlight to draw poetic images on her, inviting viewers on a journey to imagine the process and life of the artwork.
Maija Luutonen Enta (2024)
The artwork consists of fibre concrete plate paintings from which viewers form an individual wholeness, much like detached memory images. The work draws inspiration from an exploration of the university’s brain research. Located in Marsio, the paintings have many seemingly recognisable elements, as well as others that aren’t as easy to identify. Enta is seen differently by those who encounter it for the first time and those who frequent the building daily.
In her work, visual artist Maija Luutonen has long explored the relationship of memory/forgetting and view, recognition, and repetition. She mainly works with paint on paper, moving between two and three dimensions. Her works have appeared in several solo and group exhibitions in Finland, the Baltics and the Nordics and are in several Finnish collections.
Texts Noora Stapleton & Outi Turpeinen
Photos Mikko Raskinen, Noora Sandgren
Since 2017, Aalto University has applied the ‘percent for art’ principle, a funding model where about one percent of a construction project’s budget is used for art. We present a selection from the university’s art collection, the acquisitions of which reflect the university’s interdisciplinary approach and societal role.
Art on campus
Art on campus
Sanna Hellikki Suova
Red, grey, blue & rose (2021), Stripes series
The idea for the four serigraph works located in Kide originated from the mood created by the textile’s indentations on skin and how the textile forms different surfaces on the body.
Kari Laitinen
Dimension VII (2017)
Five works by Kari Laitinen in Kide have intertwining colours that echo waves in natural bodies of water. The woodcuts encourage viewers to ponder what lies between the waves. The artist calls his works objects of silence to counter today’s busy and materialistic lifestyle.
Baptiste Debombourg
In Motion (2024)
This artwork in Kide is designed to engage with the speeds of people and vehicles passing by. The piece is located on the building’s façade and main lobby. The mirror-like artwork, made of stainless steel, creates a strong interaction between the building’s exterior and interior spaces. The reflection on the wavy surface is always unique, interpreting different seasons and times of day. The artist challenges viewers to ponder where the artwork begins and ends.
Works by the French artist Baptiste Debombourg are widely exhibited around the world, delving into relationships, mistakes and hopes. This is his first permanent piece in Finland. His approach investigates our relationship with objects and the connection between reality and ideals.
Pasi Rauhala
Mycelium
of the Future (2023)
The light sculpture is a data visualisation that weaves ribbon-like around various parts of Viima, from the main lobby via the skylights to the workshop spaces. Sentences shaped by artificial intelligence run through the LED panels that make up the artwork. The sentences are based on the abstracts of the theses from all six Aalto schools, and they are colour-coded to represent the different schools.
Pasi Rauhala is a media artist who focuses on interactivity, spatiality and public space. Throughout his career, he has taught in all the major Finnish art schools and participated in dozens of art productions as an artist, curator, producer or coordinator. For Rauhala, art is an endless adventure that can take one anywhere.
Kari Soinio
Beautiful City (2006), series
The series of photographs in the meeting room of Dipoli interprets dreamlike natural experiences in a cityscape familiar to the artist.
Grönlund - Nisunen Insight (2018)
This site-specific artwork by artist duo Tommi Grönlund and Petteri Nisunen is located in one of Väre’s lobbies. The revolving, reflective surfaces of the artwork offer the viewer changing perspectives, emphasising how our environment can be seen in different ways and that no view is inherently better than another.
Art on campus
Read more about the university’s art collection
Buildings on campus (addresses)
Outi Turpeinen (ed.): Unfolding the Public Art at Aalto University
DOCTORAL THESES
Texts Marjukka Puolakka
Photo Nita Vera
Automation is at the core of future power grids
Traditional power grids will have trouble responding to the challenges of the energy transition. The reliable operation of grids requires new automation and communications solutions that can come with a large price tag.
The operation of a power grid is based on a power balance, where consumption and production are always equal. In the future, maintaining this balance will be considerably more challenging as the use of electricity is likely to increase, and more of it will be produced with wind and solar energy that are dependent on weather conditions. Due to carbon neutrality targets, there will also be fewer large controllable generators that can be used to even out production fluctuations.
‘In future distribution grids, maintaining the power balance requires automation and, as a result, better connectivity,’ says Seppo Borenius, whose doctoral thesis focused on the evolution of power grids until 2035.
In his research, Borenius analysed several scenarios that consider the technical and economic trends affecting electric energy systems. The results could help actors in the energy and information and communication technology (ICT) sectors, as well as regulators and politicians, assess future options as they make business and investment decisions.
New services for distribution grid management
The goal is that Finnish power grids will be as reliable and cost-effective as possible by the 2030s.
‘In the most challenging scenarios, distribution grids require large-scale automation and communication solutions, which in turn require extensive investment. The operational running costs could be even higher, because the lifespan of automation and ICT solutions is often 3–5 years, whereas distribution substations may last for 50 years, for example,’ says Borenius.
The increasing use of automation and communications technology in power grids, as well as their complexity,
opens the door for new actors to provide grid management services to distribution system operators. ‘In the future, we might also see system integrators that provide holistic design, construction, maintenance and management of the distribution grid.’
Eyes on cybersecurity
Power grids are critical infrastructure, which makes cybersecurity an important consideration. ‘The more extensive use of information and communications technology in distribution grids increases the attack surface, which obviously makes them more vulnerable. Lessons can be learned from other industries that have faced attacks through the supply chain and from academic research on AI-based attack techniques,’ says Borenius.
The role of mobile networks as a communication path for distribution grids will continue to grow. However, 4G and 5G technologies don’t seem to be reliable enough for the most critical applications, such as relay-based fault protection.
‘So far, 5G networks haven't delivered on their promise in industrial applications. It remains to be seen whether the industrial features of 5G will gain a foothold in distribution grids or whether 5G will be treated more as a higher-bandwidth and faster 4G network.’
Seppo Borenius 25.3.2024: Connectivity for smart grids: Novel communications solutions in evolving electrical grids
In his thesis, Seppo Borenius examines how communications solutions can support the creation of sustainable resilient power grids by the 2030s.
Approximately 200 doctors of technology, business, arts and philosophy graduate from Aalto University each year. The largest number of doctorates is completed in the technological fields, especially in computer science, engineering physics, and bioproduct technology.
Aalto University doctoral programmes are designed to be completed in four years when studying full time or in eight years if studying part time.
Doctoral theses can be interdisciplinary: they can include parts from other fields of research, for example, on art in a technology thesis or vice versa.
There are 3,200 doctoral students representing 95 different nationalities. Approximately 1/3 of them are doctoral researchers working at Aalto.
Aalto University doctoral theses online: aaltodoc.aalto.fi shop.aalto.fi
Designing ways to teach kids with digital tools
Learning should be more active and interdisciplinary, and it should focus on studying real-life situations and problems. At the same time, rapidly advancing digitalisation creates pressure to reform pedagogy. In her doctoral dissertation in the field of new media, Jaana Brinck used participatory design to develop pedagogy that supports the use of digital tools in early childhood education.
The research focused on a kindergarten where 22 workshops were held throughout the year. The participants included kindergarten teachers, daycare assistants, a teacher student, 4–6-year old children and pedagogical experts. One of the workshops included a trip to Aalto Fablab, where the children took photos and videos. With the help of digital devices, the pictures were used to create toys that became a versatile part of playing in the kindergarten.
Another experiment focused on designing, building and testing a prototype augmented reality sandbox for early childhood learning called +Andscape. It provides a digital playground where children can colour, build and create sounds together.
In her work, Brinck presents grounded principles for open design pedagogy that guide the inclusion of digital tools in teaching. The results can be used to develop teaching and learning to meet today’s needs. They can be applied not only in early childhood education but also in the fields of education and teacher education.
Jaana Brinck 22.3.2024:
Grounded principles for open design pedagogy: Design perspectives on early years pedagogy with digital technologies
Better user experience for cloud gaming
Video games and extended reality applications rely on real-time rendering of relatively complex graphical scenes. Powerful computers can handle the rendering remotely, but it takes lots of bandwidth to send high-quality graphics from the remote rendering service to the user’s device. The latency also has to be low so the controls respond smoothly, especially in interactive cloud gaming and immersive cloud XR applications.
In his dissertation, Gazi Illahi developed techniques that can reduce the bandwidth requirements and mask the latency of remote rendering to improve the experience. He used the latest developments in computer graphics, psychophysics and machine learning, concentrating particularly on eye-tracking-based rendering and video compression.
To compress downstream video from a remote rendering server, Illahi studied methods that are based on human vision. The work also uses methods from machine learning to predict the user’s gaze and head pose. The gaze and pose are taken into account in the rendering process, and predicting them accurately can compensate for the latency.
Illahi’s methods work in realtime, and they can be directly used to improve the quality of experience of cloud game and XR application users in remote rendering services.
Gazi Illahi 7.6.2024: On improving QoE of remote rendered graphics
Kristjana Adalgeirsdóttir, what does an architect do in a war zone?
This doctoral researcher responds to the need for a home, not just a shelter –amid the most complex humanitarian crises.
Text Sarah Hudson Photo Aleksi Poutanen
What is an architect’s role in supporting people forced to leave their homes, whether by natural disasters or conflict?
At the beginning of 2024 there were 114 million displaced people around the world – but it’s important not to get lost in the numbers or the scale of the crisis. Behind every one of those people there is a story and hope for a future, and the need for a place to stay.
As an architect, you’re part of a multisectoral team working to find solutions to a complex set of problems that are changing all the time. Sometimes thousands of people are coming into an area, and you have to find a way to solve settlement problems, or you’re supporting recovery or reconstruction. The work is often quite far from the traditional work of an architect, which is usually designing a product, a house. The mantra for humanitarian settings is that it’s not the product, it’s the process.
What special skills do architects need in the humanitarian context?
Architects are trained to see and understand complex situations, connecting various physical and socio-cultural elements into a concrete form. In emergency settings, you need a very rapid response for shelter needs but you also have to understand the unique cultural and physical context of each crisis. What is
the climate? How do people prepare food? How do they sleep – on the floor or in hammocks? There are lots of projects around the world in emergency response and recovery that are abandoned by people because they don’t respond to their needs.
The displaced person must always be at the centre. Everything should be about supporting them in their process. Most of all, the work requires a humble approach, respect for the affected communities and skill in teamwork.
How can losing our home affect our sense of identity?
Our roots are important to us as human beings – our very identity is linked to the places or spaces that we live in. Not being able to have that feeling of actually belonging somewhere has a huge effect on your health and well-being, and this sense of needing to feel rooted doesn’t disappear when people are displaced. People still seek a way to make a home in whatever place they’re staying.
I remember one case in Thessalonica, where refugees were living in identical containers. Out the front of one were Christmas lights and fake Christmas trees. It made the statement: This is my place. This is where we are rooted…at least for a while.
How did you get into this line of research?
I always wanted to work with architecture and our built environment, but preferably for the global majority who live in challenging settings. I feel very happy that I can combine my academic journey with work in the humanitarian field. Both give invaluable insights that mutually enrich each other.
Two years ago, I was cleaning out my mother’s house after she died, and I discovered a letter from the Icelandic Red Cross in 1988. It said: “Dear Kristjana, thank you for your interest in the international work of the Red Cross. We suggest that you get yourself an education and some life experience and then come back to us.”
I would love to find the person who wrote it and update them!
Key figures from Aalto 2023
230 doctoral degrees,
2,136
master’s degrees (including architects and landscape architects), and
1,614
bachelor’s degrees were completed.
With
71
patent applications filed, Aalto ranked third in the number of patent applications in Finland.
55%
of Finland’s venture capital investments (2022) were directed to companies founded by our alumni.
80%
of our students are considering starting a business in the future.
Over
31,000
children, young people, teachers and parents from all over Finland participated in Aalto University Junior’s activities.
1 6,300
people participated in our lifewide learning and open university courses.
aalto.fi/en/ lifewide-learning
372
We produced artistic creations (including publications, exhibitions, and performances).
54,000 m2
115
With over nationalities in our community, we are among the most international universities in Europe.
Over of our scientific publications are among the top
15% 10%
of most cited in their field worldwide.
Want to work with quantum computer, clean water and air, radical creativity, artificial intelligence, wood-based materials, future of education, beautiful natural environment, photonics, climate change, diverse community, inspiring colleagues, bioeconomy, microelectronics,
Get a doctoral degree – still time to apply aalto.fi/doctoralpilot
freedom to research, energy, sustainability transformation, bold thinkers, software, global networks, prototype, coding, entrepreneurial mindset, mathematical modelling, encouraging supervision, deep learning, corporate partners, imaging, physics, natural resources, simulation, courage to develop, on an iconic campus in Finland
