snsf info w w w. s n s f . c h
editorial Towards multilingual sciences Science is produced and disseminated through communication. The choice between different Anne-Claude Berthoud forms of commuVice-president of the Foundation Council nication therefore of the SNSF needs to be carefully examined. An increasing share of scientific communication is monolingual, English as a lingua franca being regarded as a condition for the universality of science. This principle, however, rests on the assumption that language is transparent, functioning as a neutral vehicle to express ideas and share discoveries. While the use of English has undoubtedly facilitated scientific exchange, it could also impoverish science if its use leads to scientific monoculture and standardised patterns of thinking. Multilingualism is the obvious antidote to this erosion of scientific cultures. It affords a plurality of perspectives and ensures that objects and phenomena are seen through different prisms. The SNSF aims to compete in the global arena and to foster different scientific cultures at the same time. By combining these two objectives, the SNSF has committed itself to promoting English without neglecting other languages.
N° 12 > march 2011
I n f o r m a t i o n f o r r e s e a r c h e r s f r o m t h e S w i s s N a t i o n a l S c i e n c e Fo u n d a t i o n
Language policy at the SNSF Switzerland thrives on linguistic diversity. But English is now the dominant language in academia. The Swiss research community must find a balance between regional identity and internationalisation. Philippe Trinchan, Press and Information Office
The SNSF has developed a rich linguistic practice. Members of the Research Council generally speak English when discussing proposals, while also using German and French for institutional and political matters. This “Swiss equilibrium” stands in contrast to the current trend towards globalisation. At the same time, English is also increasingly being used by the SNSF’s “clientele”. It is in this context that the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) adopted its own language policy which is not intended as a dogmatic set of rules but rather as a pragmatic framework.
Diversity as an asset The principles of the SNSF underscore the advantages that linguistic diversity lends to Swiss research. This diversity has enabled Switzerland to become a European and global hub. It is important to cultivate this asset and expand international research at the same time. English, the “lingua franca” of science, is indispensable, but it is not sufficient on its own. The SNSF encourages the use of English while ensuring that scientific and academic practice in Switzerland do not become standardised under the influence of globalisation. Language is an important element in the construction and circulation of knowledge (see editorial). Internally, the SNSF enjoys a balanced representation of languages in its bodies even though scientific debates on the evaluation of proposals and scientific communication with researchers
© Keystone
Multilingualism is a strong antidote to scientific monoculture and standardised ways of thinking.
are generally held in English (except in some disciplines of the humanities and social sciences). The institutional communication of the SNSF is conducted in German and French. In international contexts, English and occasionally Italian are used. The SNSF is expanding the use of English to make services more accessible to researchers who have recently arrived in Switzerland. Hence, the periodical SNSFinfo print and the electronic newsletter will be available in English as of now. www.snsf.ch > Current > Dossiers Language policy
Page 2 > New tool against plagiarism • Page 2 > Declining success rates at the SNSF Page 5 > Agora: bringing science to the public • Page 5 > Lead Agency Procedure: initial results
CURRENT ISSUES
New tool against plagiarism Plagiarism constitutes a breach of scientific integrity. After discovering plagiarism in several recently submitted proposals, the SNSF has acquired a plagiarism detection software. In recent times plagiarism has often been an issue of concern in both literature and education. This trend has been in evidence at the SNSF as well, where plagiarism has been detected in several recently submitted applications. Information technology has introduced the possibility of copying and pasting from other sources, but it also offers means of detecting such offences. For this reason, the SNSF acquired a plagiarism detection software in 2010. The software compares text not only with the internet, but also disposes of a database of articles taken from all major science publications.
Definition of plagiarism © Keystone
To prevent plagiarism, the SNSF makes applicants aware of the code of conduct applied at their university.
It is difficult to provide an exhaustive and universal definition of plagiarism. However, in research circles it is recognised as an act that contravenes good scientific practice and constitutes a
breach of scientific integrity. The SNSF condemns plagiarism and defines it as “the appropriation of someone else’s results or insights as one’s own” (Regulations of the National Research Council on handling scientific misconduct by applicants and grantees). Thus an act of plagiarism constitutes the use of someone else’s ideas or text as published in an article, manuscript or application without clearly mentioning the author and publication to the reader. In this context, applicants are advised to make reference to the code of conduct of their university or the document published by the Swiss Academies of Arts and Sciences “Integrity in scientific research” (available in German and French), published in 2008. JPO www.snsf.ch > Current > Dossiers Dossiers > Scientific integrity
IN FOCUS
Declining success rates at the SNSF: the downside of successful research
Dieter Imboden President of the National Research Council of the SNSF
What do Swiss public transport and the SNSF have in common? Both are in high demand and both have partially become victims of their own success. In both areas, demand is growing more rapidly than the available funds, and clients are suffering the consequences: on the one hand, a lack of seats, on the other hand, rejected applications in spite of positive reviews. In concrete terms: As compared to the 2,383 applications submitted to the SNSF in 2009, the number of applications in project funding was 17% higher at 2,784, of which 1,556 (56%) were approved. In the previous year, the approval
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called “funding line” ran straight through the fourth highest of the six quality levels applied by the SNSF; today it generally comes to lie at the third highest level. While Switzerland’s potential for The “funding line” has shifted qualified research is still not fully exploited, subsifrom the fourth to the dies are fiercely contested third highest quality level. and in short supply. The SNSF is tirelessly pushin 2010. With growth of merely 9% ing for an appropriate growth in in available funds, the approval funds before the relevant political bodies. We must be perseverrate fell from 45% to 42%. A higher number of applica- ant: you, the researchers, by subtions does not imply lower qual- mitting outstanding projects, we, ity. The SNSF increasingly finds the SNSF, by placing well-argued itself forced to reject highly rated demands for the funds needed to projects. A few years ago, the so- finance them! rate had been 61%. A comparison of the funds requested reveals a similar picture: a 15% increase from 977 million Swiss francs in 2009 to 1,123 million Swiss francs
www.snsf.ch Current issues SNSFinfo Applications & evaluation Funding policy International/Swisscore National Research Programmes National Centres of Competence in Research Communication & Transfer
Current issues SNSFinfo Applications & evaluation Funding policy International/Swisscore National Research Programmes National Centres of Competence in Research Communication & Transfer
02.03.2011
New SNSF professorships
In conclusion to its twelfth call for proposals, the SNSF awarded 41 SNSF professorships to outstanding junior researchers in February 2011. The highly-qualified young researchers will be taking up their new SNSF professorships at seven Swiss Universities, both Federal Institutes of Technology and a University for Applied Sciences. The average funding they will receive is 1.4 million Swiss francs per person over a four-year period, which is sufficient for them to recruit teams and set up their own projects. In accordance with the new regulation introduced in 2009, the SNSF has awarded four grants in clinically oriented areas. The grantees will benefit from suitable working conditions that will help them in advancing their careers as clinical researchers. The SNSF has approved a total of 443 SNSF professorships since 1999. Of the grantees from the first eight rounds of funding (2000-2007), 72% have already gone on to become full professors. SNSF professorships have thus proven a very useful tool for promoting junior scientists and strengthening research capabilities in Switzerland.
18.01.2011 Active promotion of women in research: 37 new MHV subsidies awarded 2010 was another record year for submissions to the Marie Heim-Vögtlin (MHV) Programme of the SNSF with a total of 101 new applications. After a two-stage selection procedure involving the evaluation of proposals and personal interviews, around six million Swiss francs were awarded for 37 new MHV subsidies, which represents a success rate of 36.6%. This shows that the MHV Programme remains a competitive SNSF funding instrument and that only the best applicants can be funded. The new MHV subsidies are distributed across the disciplines as follows: Humanities and Social Sciences: 15 MHV subsidies; Mathematics, Natural and Engineering Sciences: 8 MHV subsidies; Biology and Medicine: 14 MHV subsidies. The distribution of subsidy recipients over the host universities shows that almost all universities have received at least one MHV subsidy recipient. The University of Zurich topped the list with 9 new MHV subsidy recipients, followed by the University of Bern with 6.
24.01.2011 Launch of NRP 60 “Gender Equality” Real equality between women and men has not yet been achieved. The National Research Programme “Gender Equality” (NRP 60), which is now under way, aims to analyse existing policies and measures with regard to gender equality. Some projects focus on areas that influence gender equality indirectly, i.e. taxation and reforms of social security systems. The knowledge gained is expected to form the basis for gender equality policies of the future.
16.02.2011
© Camela Odoni
The NRP 67 “End of Life” is launched
The SNSF has launched a call for proposals for the National Research Programme “End of Life” (NRP 67). A total budget of CHF 15 million has been made available for the NRP. Perceptions and frameworks regarding the end of life are currently in a state of flux. The purpose of the NRP 67 is to gain new insights into the last phase of life of people of all ages who in all likelihood do not have long to live. The practical knowledge resulting from the NRP is to be passed on to decision-makers in the health care system and in politics as well as to professional caregivers. It will help to ensure that persons going through the end of life may do so with dignity. Interested researchers are requested to submit pre-proposals till 20 May 2011 via the mySNF platform.
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www.snsf.ch Current issues SNSFinfo Applications & evaluation Funding policy International/Swisscore National Research Programmes National Centres of Competence in Research Communication & Transfer
24.02.2011 NCCR “QSIT”: From particles to new information technologies
11.02.2011 NCCR “LIVES”: 25,000 life trajectories analysed in the long term
The National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR) “QSIT – Quantum Science and Technology” started work earlier this year. The scientists of this network are studying the principles of quantum physics in order to develop applications for quantum computing together with industrial firms. The NCCR network features not only researchers from numerous Swiss universities, but also basic researchers from the industrial sector.
The National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR) “LIVES – Overcoming Vulnerability: Life Course Perspectives” began its research activities at the end of last year. The NCCR examines how postindustrial economies and societies contribute to the development of social exclusion and precariousness. In the next 12 years, the 67 researchers involved will study the life courses of approximately 25,000 persons, covering different aspects of life, such as health, family, work and the relevance of institutions.
07.02.2011
NCCR “Chemical Biology”: New tools for chemists and biologists
The National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR) “Chemical Biology – Visualisation and Control of Biological Processes Using Chemistry” has got underway. It uses chemistry tools to obtain a better understanding of life at the molecular level and is engaged in establishing a platform for chemical screening aimed at developing a new generation of molecules with biological effects. “In our NCCR, interdisciplinary collaboration is not only necessary and logical,” says NCCR director Howard Riezman, “it also serves training purposes.” NCCR “Chemical Biology” will establish a combined Master and doctoral programme which will allow students to gain experience in more than one discipline.
11.02.2011
“NCCR Robotics”: People-friendly robots for a better life
The National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR) “Robotics – Intelligent robots for improving the quality of life” aims to develop robot technologies for the benefit of human beings. The programme has recently got underway, with the ETH Lausanne as its headquarters. “The potential for knowledge and technology transfer in robotics is huge,” the NCCR director Dario Floreano states, “we are in a strategic situation that is comparable to that of the nascent PC industry thirty years ago.”
Current issues SNSFinfo Applications & evaluation Funding policy International/Swisscore National Research Programmes National Centres of Competence in Research Communication & Transfer
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23.02.2011 in English
New: “SNSFinfo print”
The SNSF publishes the 6-page “SNSFinfo print” with the latest institutional information three times a year. As of this edition, it is also published in English. It can be ordered free of charge on the SNSF website. The main focal points are research and funding policy as well as the SNSF’s funding schemes and organisation.
© SNF/Andri Pol
21.03.2011 Research Day: the SNSF visits St. Gallen On 1 June 2011 as part of the Research Day, the SNSF will be visiting the University of St. Gallen to present the SNSF’s funding schemes with information stands and lectures. Participants will have the opportunity to ask questions and to participate in workshops where individual funding schemes will be discussed in more detail. Researchers from all universities are welcome.
CURRENT ISSUES
Agora: bringing science to the people With its new funding scheme Agora, the SNSF wishes to intensify the dialogue between science and society. Agora is open to researchers from all disciplines for communication projects. The first call for proposals will be launched in mid-May 2011. One of the strategic objectives of the SNSF is to have more and better communication between science and society. This does not imply merely spreading scientific knowledge among members of the public, rather the aim is to offer insights into scientific working methods and discuss the societal significance of research. Which is why the SNSF encourages researchers from all disciplines to venture forth into the marketplace of Greek antiquity: Agora is the SNSF’s new funding scheme for public science communication projects. It has been allocated a budget of one million Swiss francs for the 2011 call for proposals, which must be submitted between mid-May and mid-August 2011.
ing campaigns or institutional communication and media relations. Projects must refer to research of high quality and provide an impetus for true dialogue with the public, in which the researchers are
expected to participate actively. As far as possible, the project should be recyclable, generate sustainable interest and form part of a wider regional, national or international framework. ORI
Creative freedom for projects Researchers can plan and conduct projects in collaboration with the public relations offices of universities or with museums, journalists and artists. Agora does not set any limits on the form and content of projects: whether exhibitions, books, films, discussions or art/multimedia projects, anything is conceivable as long as it brings science to life. This does not include projects comprising market-
© Philippe Wagneur
For young and old: science explained and discussed through Agora. The SNSF’s new funding scheme supports public science communication projects by researchers.
Lead Agency Procedure: gratifying initial results Nearly 150 Lead Agency applications with Swiss collaboration have been filed since the introduction of the procedure in 2008 – and the trend is rising. The Lead Agency Procedure (LAV) makes it easier for researchers to submit transnational applications. The Lead Agency Agreement was signed by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF), the German Research Foundation (DFG) and the Austrian Science Fund (FWF) in May 2008. Under the agreement, cross-border applications submitted by researchers from two or all three of these countries need only be evaluated by a single organisation (the Lead Agency). Positive funding decisions from the Lead Agency are accepted by the partner organisations, who then finance the sub-project conducted in their country.
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The Lead Agency Procedure is applicable to investigator-driven basic research projects, whose sub-projects in different countries are interrelated and must therefore be carried out collaboratively. Participation in coordinated programmes (e.g. national research programmes, research groups and special research fields) has to be approved by the relevant partner organisations. Researchers from Switzerland are therefore requested to contact the SNSF before drafting and submitting a Lead Agency application.
In 2010, the SNSF allocated approximately 7 million Swiss francs to the Swiss sub-projects of 29 LAV applications.Since 2010, a bilateral agreement has also been in place with the Fonds National de la Recherche (FNR) in Luxembourg and the possibility of agreements with other countries is being examined. The LAV is an important instrument of the European Grant Union, which is being expedited by EUROHORCs (European Heads of Research Councils) for the purpose of facilitating cross-border cooperation. EG
PICTURE FROM RESEARCH
Increasing dryness and warmer climate: future belongs to oaks and ashes Switzerland’s future climate is likely to be warmer with longer dry spells during the summer months. How well can the different kinds of trees in Swiss forests cope with this change? Christian Körner from the Botanical Institute of the University of Basel and his research group have looked into this question. Sessile oak trees and – somewhat surprisingly – ash trees grow deeper roots than all the other leaf trees. At the same time, they are pretty frugal trees that can cope with water shortages better than others. Copper beeches and wild cherry trees are slightly more vulnerable to dryness, while sycamore maples and broad-leaved limes find patches of dry weather the most challenging. www.snsf.ch > Media > Picture from research © Daniel Scherrer, Martin Bader and Christian Körner, Botanical Inst., University of Basel/SNSF
A snapshot from a helicopter: different species of leaf trees in Swiss forests (at left an ordinary and at right an infrared image) heat up in unequal measure on summers days and show differing degrees of vulnerability to heat.
SNSF Internal Conclusion of the reform programme “SNF futuro”: measures successfully implemented The SNSF officially completed the reform programme “SNF Futuro” in December 2010 and initiated the relevant measures. Most of the reforms in the package are now implemented. They include changes to application management, the evaluation process and research policy. The positive impacts of these changes are already being felt. The reform programme “SNF futuro” was launched by the SNSF in 2006 with the aim of revamping its organisation and processes so that it is fit to master the upcoming challenges and rapidly increasing volumes in research funding. The measures implemented under “SNF futuro” by the end of 2010 included: • setup of research commissions for “Interdisciplinary Research” (formerly the KID Commission),
“Individual Funding” und “International Co-operation”, which will serve as experts and evaluation bodies. • systematic use of assessment panels for specific programmes and evaluation commissions in individual funding. • professionalised support in the search for external experts • identical assessment scales for applications in all divisions and specialised committees • enhanced electronic support for application management and the evaluation procedure (in particular via the web platform mySNF) • enhanced role and visibility of the SNSF via measures such as: formation of a steering group for communication composed of members of the Foundation Council, the Research Council
SNSFinfo print is published three times a year. • Edition: 14,350 (9,400 German, 4,150 French, 800 English) Published by Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) Wildhainweg 3, P.O. Box, 3001 Berne Tel. ++41 (0)31 308 22 22 • Fax ++41 (0)31 301 30 09 • E-mail pri@snf.ch • Site web www.snsf.ch Produced by Press and Information Office of the SNSF, Philippe Trinchan (Head of Department)
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and the administrative offices; more room for discussions on science policy in the Presiding Board of the Research Council; contributions by the specialised committees to the science policy discussions held by the Presiding Board of the Research Council. The dynamic generated by “SNF futuro” has shown that an isolated assessment of the impacts of the reform programme or the individual measures cannot lead to meaningful insights. For this reason, the SNSF has decided to evaluate its services in the areas of “Evaluation procedures” and “Operational support by the administrative offices” comprehensively in 2012. www.snsf.ch > Current > Dossiers > SNF futuro
Editorial Board Alan Knaus (editor-in-chief ) Corinne Ammann, Evelyne Glättli (EG), Xavier Pilloud, Juliette Pont (JPO), Ori Schipper (ORI), Omar Solanki Design Agence Symbol, Granges-Paccot (FR) Printing Imprimerie St-Paul, Fribourg