Re:action Summer 2022 by University of Southampton

Summer 2022 | Issue 21 Research and Enterprise Magazine

Routes to success

Inspiring journeys through education, research and enterprise at Southampton QUANTUM LEAP The innovative spinout on the brink of revolution

IN BLOOM A love of the sea led to pioneering research

UNDERGRAD TO CBE Spotlight on Professor Philip Nelson’s distinguished career

CRAFTING CULTURE CHANGE Recognising the ‘invisible’ research enablers

Introduction

WELCOME TO RE:ACTION In May of this year, we received the outcome of our Research Excellence Framework (REF) submission from Research England. We were delighted to find that we had strengthened our position as one of the strongest and most research-intensive universities in the UK. In particular, we performed particularly strongly on ‘impact’, which is the translation of our research to make a difference in the wider world. In reflecting on our REF performance, we should be reminded that University strategies and plans are all very well, but the highest quality research and its translation into impact requires people with the passion for what they are doing, who are willing to take the extra steps, and to think differently, in order to create new knowledge and make a difference in the world. This edition of Re:action celebrates some of those people who have found their own, unique paths, in order to contribute to our research excellence and its impact. As always, we celebrate the marvellous diversity of activities and subject areas, including our Centre for Global Englishes,

several spinout companies and vital enabling activities such as software engineering and the coordination of clinical trials. It is also wonderful to showcase the diversity of people and career paths, including technicians, software engineers, administrators, doctoral students and researchers. It is an important reminder that achieving excellence and impact requires people with different talents working effectively together. For us to continue to succeed as a University, it is vital that we continue to place people at the heart of our strategy and ensure that we have an inclusive community in which everyone can realise their potential. I very much hope that you enjoy the articles in this edition. As always, comments and feedback are very welcome. Best wishes

Professor Mark Spearing Vice-President (Research and Enterprise)

PLEASE SEND US YOUR FEEDBACK We are keen to receive your feedback about Re:action. If you have any ideas, comments or suggestions, please send them to reaction@southampton.ac.uk Re:action is created by Louise Payne and Lucy Collie, Research and Innovation Services

A career that has bloomed

IN THIS ISSUE 8

Enhancing the research endeavour

From undergrad to CBE – and beyond

Going global

From disrupter to leader

Crafting culture change

From undergraduate to spinout in six years

Taking a quantum leap

From students to staff

Technically speaking

Research award highlights

Feature

A CAREER THAT HAS BLOOMED

From North Wales to Kent to Florida to Southampton, Dr Cathy Lucas’ love of the sea and the wildlife within it has dictated her impressive career from the get-go. Dr Cathy Lucas has been with the University of Southampton for over 32 years. In that time, she has become an Associate Professor in Marine Biology and is dedicated to the University community. Cathy has always been drawn to the sea and and has always lived in a coastal town or city. Explaining her research, she said: “My primary interest is the study of jellyfish blooms, which is quite a specialised area. I didn’t start out like that though, my undergraduate degree was in Zoology at Swansea University because I had interests in so many areas of the animal kingdom. It was when I travelled to Australia and New Zealand after my degree and spent some time working at the Australian Institute of Marine Science in Townsville, that my path into marine wildlife and biology was secured.”

Jellyfish expert That trip Down Under led to Cathy applying to study for a PhD at the University of Southampton in the then Department of Oceanography. Her thesis was on ‘Gelatinous predators and their impact on the zooplankton community of Southampton Water’. “It felt like fate when the PhD supervisor I was allocated revealed he came from the same town in Wales as me and did his undergraduate degree at Swansea as I had,” said Cathy. “With my PhD under my belt, I headed to Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution in Florida to undertake a oneyear post-doctoral fellowship studying deep-sea jellyfish. “The fellowship was fascinating and studying in America was a real experience, but I was keen to get back to Southampton having enjoyed the University and the city so much during my PhD.”

“ My primary interest is the study of jellyfish blooms, which is quite a specialised area.” Dr Cathy Lucas Associate Professor in Marine Biology

A career that has bloomed

Cathy returned in 1995 and undertook a three-year post-doc in the newly-created Southampton Oceanography Centre (renamed the National Oceanography Centre, or NOC, in 2005) on an EU-funded multidisciplinary project called ‘Eco-metabolism of an intertidal mudflat’. It involved working with colleagues in the Netherlands to model the physical, chemical and biological processes in sediment dynamics of estuarine tidal flats. “This project was a significant departure from the jellyfish focus of my earlier research, and a steep but exciting learning curve,” said Cathy. “It was an opportunity to expand my breadth of knowledge in marine science. It led me on to another post-doc on an EPSRC-funded project in collaboration with Associated British Ports in Southampton investigating the effects of dredging on intertidal mudflats in the estuary.” This change in focus was refreshing for Cathy but her heart was always with the jellyfish,

and in 2002 she joined the University staff as a temporary Lecturer in Marine Biology. After 12 years of lecturing and raising her young children, Cathy became an Associate Professor in 2014. Associate Professor “My dad was a Professor at Bangor University, and my late older brother was a marine scientist who lectured for over 30 years at the University of Cape Town, so perhaps I was always destined to work in academia,” said Cathy. “But I am sure the reason I have had, and continue to have, such a successful and interesting career in it is down in no small part to the University of Southampton, my colleagues and the departments here I have worked with over the last 30 years. “Southampton University is connected and collaborative so from a PhD student through post-doc to staff member I have always had opportunities to work across

teams, institutions and countries because Southampton is such a powerhouse in so many areas, particularly marine biology.” Alongside being an Associate Professor, Cathy has also been Director of Undergraduate Recruitment in the School of Ocean and Earth Science for last six years, as well as undertaking other support roles across the institution including University open days, outreach events and sitting on various Faculty and University-level working groups. “My research career and my specialism in jellyfish blooms coincided over several years with an international upturn in interest in this area, which has meant many opportunities for collaboration across the University and externally,” added Cathy. “I have had the opportunity to work with scientists in Australia, the USA, South Africa, Japan and across Europe – many of whom have become lifelong friends.”

UNDERSTANDING JELLYFISH BLOOMS

The primary area of Cathy’s research in recent years has been on understanding the causes and consequences of jellyfish blooms. “Using a combination of field sampling of coastal and estuarine jellyfish and laboratory experiments, I explore the effects of various physicochemical parameters on reproduction and life histories to determine what drives jellyfish population dynamics,” said Cathy. “In addition, I am interested in the impact of jellyfish blooms, both socioeconomically on industries such as coastal tourism in the Mediterranean and UK, and on the structure of marine food webs, in collaboration with colleagues with expertise in carbon cycling in the marine environment, or oceans.”

RESEARCH AND COLLABORATION HIGHLIGHTS • Cathy’s article Invasion of the strange sailor jellyfish for The Conversation in 2014 received more than 500,000 reads. https://theconversation.com/ invasion-of-the-strange-sailorjellyfish-what-are-they-and-willthey-sting-us-31131 • Cathy wrote the scientist’s perspective on the Big Blue episode of Blue Planet 2, Jellyfish and Plastic in the Big Blue, for the Nature Ecology & Evolution journal in 2017. https://ecoevocommunity.nature. com/posts/23851-plankton-andplastic-in-the-big-blue • Pre-recorded and live interviews with Cathy have featured on the BBC’s Blue Planet UK series, The One Show, the BBC News Channel, radio stations (BBC R4’s Today

programme, BBC Radio Solent, USA national public radio), and the BBC’s Naked Oceans online programme, on jellyfish-related topics. • Cathy was the scientific advisor on jellyfish for the BBC’s Blue Planet 2 series. • She is a key member of the NCEASfunded Global Jellyfish Blooms Working Group and a leading co-author, with Dr Robert Condon, of the Jellyfish Blooms Database Initiative (JeDI), the first global database of in situ jellyfish presence and abundance data. • Cathy attended the first International Jellyfish Blooms Symposium in Alabama in 2000. Since that first meeting, she has chaired sessions at the second (Australia), fourth (Japan), fifth (Spain) and sixth (South Africa) conferences.

1 Cathy at work early in her career 2 Cathy and two Australian colleagues snorkelling in the Red Sea

Find out more www.southampton.ac.uk/oes 7

Feature

ENHANCING THE RESEARCH ENDEAVOUR From the labs of Southampton and the USA to university management, Dr Lorna Colquhoun’s career has enabled her to experience research from all angles. A neuroscientist by training, Lorna has gone from researcher to research manager and enabler.

“This job is rewarding in many ways, especially being able to contribute to a successful application or collaboration. I am aware we can be seen as putting up barriers sometimes, but I really try to bring a philosophy of enablement to all that we do in RIS – where possible of course, which sometimes it isn’t if we are trying to comply with external regulatory requirements.”

Now Director of Research and Innovation Services (RIS) at the University of Southampton, it is contributing to the success of University research, knowledge exchange and enterprise that inspires Lorna every day. Of RIS, she said: “As a professional service, we aim to work in partnership with our University colleagues. We can make a material difference to people or bids getting funded – by building ideas and collaborative relationships through facilitation, or contributing expertise on how to prepare and write a bid for a particular call or funder, or prepping early career researchers for fellowship interviews. “During my time as a research manager, particularly in previous institutions, I have had the freedom to be creative in the ways we can support research applications, from interesting ways to develop new interdisciplinary collaborations to using an acting company to help early career researchers – and more experienced researchers – to perform well at interview. It is something that’s critical in many funding competitions and we can help give our people the edge.

“ This job is rewarding in many ways, especially being able to contribute to a successful application or collaboration.” Dr Lorna Colquhoun Director of Research and Innovation Services (RIS)

In the labs Lorna’s career in Higher Education began when she studied pharmacology at Portsmouth Polytechnic and then came to Southampton for her PhD in neuroscience, examining nicotinic receptors in nematodes (microscopic roundworms). She worked with Professor Lindy Holden-Dye, who was a Research Fellow at the time, and was supervised by Robert Walker, now Emeritus Professor of Neurophysiology. Lorna then went to the USA for two postdoctoral fellowships, the first at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, and the second at Tufts University School of Medicine, in Boston, Massachusetts. “The opportunity to go and live and work in another country was given to me through science, through being a researcher,” she said. “That’s one of the huge opportunities that often comes with a research career.”

The Microbicides Development team in Zambia

Back on home ground Returning to the UK in 1999, Lorna joined the Medical Research Council (MRC) as Programme Manager for the International Health Portfolio. She managed the portfolio that funded research into diseases that affected what we would call ODA (Official Development Assistance) countries now, such as malaria, tuberculosis, HIV and parasitic diseases. As well as advising on research grant funding, Lorna worked with other funders including Gates Foundation, and looked after two of the MRC’s overseas research units in The Gambia and Uganda. “Becoming a research manager was a really good opportunity to stay close to and contribute to science, but not stay in the lab,” she recalled. “It let me look at the bigger picture more than my days at the bench.” As part of this role, Lorna helped to set up a multimillion-pound HIV prevention programme in six sites across sub-Saharan Africa, involving partnerships working with universities in the UK, with educational, health and voluntary organisations across Africa, and Government departments including the then Department for International Development.

The programme ran a large phase three trial in sub-Saharan Africa, trialling vaginal gels to prevent HIV transmission. Imperial College London won the funding to deliver this programme – the Microbicides Development Programme – and Lorna joined Imperial in 2003 as Senior Programme Manager to support it. “The gel sadly did not provide the protection from HIV that initial trials had suggested it would, but the programme was hugely successful in delivering health education and capacity building in health services and research in the sites that participated,” said Lorna. University management Lorna joined the University of Bristol in 2007 as Head of Research Development. Under Lorna, the Research Development team grew from five to 21, which contributed to the growth in both the size of the University’s research portfolio and the success rate with funders. She also had the opportunity to work as Director of Enterprise, and did two stints as acting Director of RED, the RIS equivalent at Bristol. One of Lorna’s final projects in Bristol was a part-time secondment to the newlyestablished West of England Combined Authority (WECA), supporting strategy

“ Throughout my career in university management, I have had a lot of opportunities to work on really interesting projects, with lots of travelling and building collaborations around the world.” development and putting in place some of the groundwork for WECA winning two UKRI Strength in Places bids, which are worth multimillions of pounds to the region. “It’s great to be able to look back and know how relationships were built and to have influenced WECA’s strategy,” she said. Lorna returned to Southampton as Director of RIS in 2018. “Throughout my career in university management, I have had a lot of opportunities to work on really interesting projects, with lots of travelling and building collaborations around the world,” she concluded. “Being able to facilitate new collaborations and support funding bids is very rewarding.”

Find out more www.southampton.ac.uk/ris 9

Feature

FROM UNDERGRAD TO CBE – AND BEYOND Since joining the University of Southampton in the early ‘70s as a mechanical engineering undergraduate, Professor Philip Nelson’s long and distinguished career features major milestones in both academia and industry.

From Director of the Institute of Sound and Vibration Research (ISVR), to Pro ViceChancellor for Research and Enterprise, to CEO of EPSRC, and even lunch with the Queen – Professor Philip Nelson has a wealth of career highlights. Being made a CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) by the Queen in 2018 for his services to UK Engineering and Science – and meeting Sir Paul McCartney in the process – is also up there with the top moments. “Sir Paul McCartney was honoured at the same time as me,” he said. “It was listening to his music that first got me interested in sound, so it was great to talk to him about his own career.”

Studying sound Engineering – acoustics, in particular – has been Philip’s passion since he came to Southampton in 1971. He had a job with a small company in Colchester called Sound Attenuators Ltd, which made silencers for fans. The company sponsored Philip to study at Southampton due to the University’s renowned expertise in sound and vibration at the ISVR, which was founded in 1963. Philip studied aerodynamic sound for his PhD, whilst simultaneously working for Sound Attenuators Ltd. He then worked for the company for four years before returning to Southampton as a lecturer.

It wasn’t the first time Philip, Professor of Acoustics, met the Queen. In 2017, when he was CEO and Deputy Chair of EPSRC, he was invited to dine with the Queen and and Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, at Buckingham Palace.

“Professor Stephen Elliott and I really benefitted from a new SERC – now EPSRC – Special Replacement Scheme,” said Philip. “I got into an academic career a lot more easily than perhaps it is these days, I was very lucky.

“My office took a call and said, ‘I’m not sure if this is for real, but you’re invited to lunch at the palace’,” he recalled. “It was great fun. I sat next to the Duke, who was one of the main proponents of the Royal Academy of Engineering, and it was fantastic talking to him about the discipline.”

“Steve and I worked together on an idea to cancel out sound with sound – using one noise to cancel out another – on propeller aircraft, which proved successful. Nowadays there are a couple of thousand aircraft with sound cancellers on, largely thanks to Steve’s efforts.”

The pair authored a book, Active Control of Sound, in 1992 and, in the same year, they jointly won the Tyndall Medal for achievement and services in the field of acoustics from the Institute of Acoustics. In 1999, the Rolls-Royce University Technology Centre opened, and Philip was its first Director. He was also Director of the ISVR from 2000 to 2005. From Southampton to national Philip was Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research and Enterprise from 2005 to 2013, leading Southampton’s submission to the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise and the 2014 Research Excellence Framework (REF), and chaired the General Engineering sub-panel for REF 2014. “I was hugely proud of what we achieved at Southampton with each REF – it’s a huge job,” he said. As Pro Vice-Chancellor, he promoted interdisciplinary working by forming University Strategic Research Groups, and then led the formation of the Institute for Life Sciences, the Southampton Marine and Maritime Institute and the Web Science Institute. He also helped to set up the Science and Engineering South Consortium, with a

Professor Philip Nelson with two former PhD students, Yuvi Kahana and Takashi Takeuchi, in the University’s anechoic chamber when the department first began work on 3D sound, circa 2000

mission to improve both knowledge and equipment sharing. In 2014, Philip was seconded to EPSRC. “I was at EPSRC for four-and-a-half years, during the forming of UKRI, which was an interesting period,” he said. “I was also chair of Research Councils UK, which was the body being replaced by UKRI. I think we have yet to see the full benefit of UKRI, and I think the potential is huge. Forming UKRI has already helped to convince the Government to invest more in science and technology.”

“ I came to realise just how good we are in the UK, especially in terms of converting quite modest investment in research into spectacular outputs.” Professor Philip Nelson

At EPSRC, he led the launch of the Turing Institute, the Henry Royce Institute and the Rosalind Franklin Institute. Philip said: “The great thing about the job was visiting some of the leading universities in the UK and meeting everyone involved, from ViceChancellors to research students. I really enjoyed the interaction with colleagues across the sector.” He added: “I regularly sat in front of select committees in the House of Commons and House of Lords. These were certainly mindconcentrating experiences. I came to realise just how good we are in the UK, especially in terms of converting quite modest investment in research into spectacular outputs.”

Future looking Philip is now semi-retired but remains active and involved in Southampton research and enterprise, as well as director of several spinout companies. One of these is Opsodis Ltd, a joint venture with Kajima Corporation in Japan, set up to exploit some of the work on 3D sound that Philip did with former student Dr Takashi Takeuchi. This has successfully licensed technology to some leading audio manufacturers. “I really want to do a bit more research now,” he said. “It goes back to my love of the subject. My former student Professor Filippo Fazi has set up the Huawei Audio Innovation Lab, so I continue to contribute to that.” Philip also chairs the Royal Academy of Engineering Research Fellowships scheme, and he sits on the MacRobert Committee, which identifies finalists and winners of the MacRobert Award, the UK’s longest-running and most prestigious prize for engineering innovation. He has also been a member of the search committee for the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering and chairs several advisory boards for major research projects. Philip is a Chartered Engineer, a Fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, and a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering. 11

From undergrad to CBE – and beyond

“ There is potential for the use of acoustics and vibrations for condition monitoring and energy harvesting, and some interesting possibilities with the bottom-up design of new forms of structures and materials.” Professor Philip Nelson

Three directors of ISVR: Professor Jeremy Astley, Professor Philip Nelson and Professor Stephen Elliott, with a Roll-Royce fan blade. Stephen succeeded Philip as director, and Jeremy succeeded Stephen as director. Photo taken circa 2008

WHAT’S NEXT FOR ACOUSTICS? Acoustics remains a vitally important discipline, according to Philip. “Problems in communication acoustics range from hearing and deafness, through to speech intelligibility, to immersive audio and robot hearing,” he said. “There are still difficult problems in dynamics and the noise radiated by vibrating structures. There is potential for the use of acoustics and vibrations for condition monitoring and energy harvesting, and some interesting possibilities with the bottomup design of new forms of structures and materials.” There are also huge challenges to be addressed in aeroacoustics.

Philip explained: “Air transport is changing so much, with the future looking towards urban aircraft. Noise is about the biggest barrier to that sort of aeronautical activity – light electric aircraft and noise is a huge issue. Similarly, as cars electrify, internal noise at high speed is a problem that still needs to be addressed, whilst at low speeds electric vehicles don’t make enough noise and we have to worry about warning sounds.” He added: “Underwater acoustics is also still a very important issue, for traditional defence reasons but also due to the effect of sound on marine life. And ultrasound in medicine is a huge area with exciting developments happening all the time.”

This year is the 10th anniversary of the Research Software Engineers’ community. It’s a milestone for the group – but also a huge milestone for the UK research environment. Turn the page to read more about …

CRAFTING CULTURE CHANGE The first RSE Conference in 2016

Crafting culture change

Software is integral to almost every single research project and research ambition. The critical importance of code came into stark reality in March 2020 when the UK went into lockdown based on the results of COVID-19 modelling code developed by Professor Neil Ferguson from Imperial College London. But historically, software has been treated as dispensable – simply a means to an end. It is this ‘invisible’ work that Professor Simon Hettrick has been fighting for the past decade to get seen – a mission he started by helping to set up the Society of Research Software Engineering and the Software Sustainability Institute. After completing his PhD in tapered waveguide lasers at the Optoelectronics Research Centre, Simon worked in patent law for three years, before returning to academia and working for the OMII-UK (the Open Middleware Infrastructure Institute), which made Grid software.

“ As we started looking into software sustainability, we realised we were dealing with an issue of culture change in academia. A huge number of researchers are expected to write code, but there were no incentives for spending time on this.” Professor Simon Hettrick

“My role was to do technical writing for the software, but I also got involved in project management,” he said. “This was during RCUK’s e-science Programme, focusing on

The third RSE Conference in 2018. The 2022 conference will be the seventh

bringing computational techniques into research. At the end of the programme, we could see there were lots of problems – a lot of software was being used in research, but it was being treated as a totally disposable tool. It was the publication that was important, the software was just a means to an end. People would write a bit of code, it would sit on a laptop somewhere, and it would become lost.” Setting up the institute Along with colleagues from the universities of Edinburgh, Manchester and Oxford, Simon set up the Software Sustainability Institute in 2010, backed by EPSRC. The institute was an eight-person team supporting 210,000 researchers across the UK. “At first we thought it would be a case of getting software experts working on researchers’ code so they could demonstrate best practice,” explained Simon. “But, as we started looking into software sustainability, we realised we were dealing with an issue of culture change in academia. A huge number of researchers are expected to write code, but there were no incentives for spending time on this. Researchers are incentivised by grant money and publications.

“Nobody knew how much software was out there. One of the first big challenges I faced with the institute was working out how much research relies on software.”

numbers about 10,000 around the world. Nine different countries have national associations for research software engineers. “The growth has been phenomenal,” said Simon. “The aim is to support research software engineers and give them a career path – they are equally as important as the researchers, and should be seen as so by universities and funding bodies.”

The institute surveyed 15 Russell Group universities in 2014 and received 500 responses from researchers across all disciplines. They found that 92 per cent of researchers were using research software, and 69 per cent said software was fundamental to their research. “That allowed us to go back to research councils and say ’70 per cent of your budget is underpinned by research software’,” added Simon. Today, the institute is funded by all seven research councils. Simon became its Deputy Director in 2013. A decade of RSE Alongside the institute sits the Research Software Engineers (RSE) Association, today renamed the Society of Research Software Engineers. Simon, who was the founding Chair of the RSE Association from 2014 to 2016 and a Trustee until 2019, recalled: “Ten years ago, there was no career path for someone who developed

When the RSE Association was born, funding bodies began writing research software engineers into their funding policies, and the EPSRC and STFC introduced an RSE Fellowship. Professor Simon Hettrick

software in research, yet there was, and still is, a huge demand for software. PIs were turning to post-docs for support with software development. These post-docs were spending time writing software, but their careers were based on papers that they didn’t write and research funding they couldn’t apply for. They were locked into this position.” The RSE Association was conceived to address this. Today, the RSE community

There are now RSE groups in 31 research organisations across the UK, including the Southampton Research Software Group led by Simon and Senior Software Consultant John Robinson, which was established in 2015. The group has 11 full-time RSEs and works with researchers from all faculties, as well as running training. The group’s Software Carpentry course has, so far, trained 500 researchers at Southampton in basic software engineering, enabling them to write better software and to follow a reliable, reproducible research approach.

THE HIDDEN REF In 2021, the first Hidden REF – chaired by Professor Simon Hettrick – took place. It was an awards ceremony to recognise the ‘hidden’ roles in research and to celebrate everything except publications. Simon explained: “The Hidden REF came about because there are so many people in research roles, including research software engineers but also data stewards, research managers, librarians, technicians, whose contribution to research is not recognised.”

A total of 61 research organisations, and 120 research outputs, were submitted. “If we recognise every single person who is involved in research, we will increase access to valuable skills and this will advance research,” said Simon. “We have a real opportunity to improve the UK’s research reputation by the simple act of valuing all the people who contribute to it.” Research England has since announced that elements of the Hidden REF will be carried forward into the next national research assessment exercise.

Find out more rsgsoton.net and hidden-ref.org

Feature

FROM UNDERGRADUATE TO SPINOUT IN SIX YEARS Dr Joshua Steer is revolutionising the way patients are fitted for prosthetic limbs – using biomechanical simulations software he developed during his PhD at Southampton.

Joshua has always had an interest in prosthetics and the science behind ‘the fit’. An undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering may not seem like the typical route into this area of biomedicine, but in fact ‘the fit’ was perfect here too. “Right from the start of my degree at the University of Southampton I became interested in how engineering can be used within healthcare to improve people’s quality of life, such as those who use prosthetic limbs,” explained Joshua. “As part of my

final year of study, I worked as a Research Assistant on an internship for Statistical Shape Modelling of Residual Limb Shape for Transtibial Amputees, funded with a grant from FortisNet within the Institute for Life Sciences. It involved researching how to make prostheses fit better by scanning plaster casts of limbs from patients at a clinic in Portsmouth, building a statistical model-based software tool and analysing the data to understand how prosthetic fit varied depending on limb shape.

“The ultimate aim of the project was for these techniques to be used by prosthetists to assist them to design sockets leading to a more comfortable fit. I wrote up the results for my third-year individual project and was awarded the Institute for Mechanical Engineering Vicon Award for the best individual project.” Those award-winning results were a workflow for analysis of surface scans of the residual limb for people with below-knee amputation. This workflow has since been released as AmpScan, an open-source software package built in Python that is currently being used by research groups in the UK, USA, Italy, Singapore, Canada and Australia. Postgraduate study Joshua continued his multidisciplinary project at postgraduate level and undertook a PhD in the Bioengineering Sciences Research Group, investigating how to further improve the fit and comfort of artificial limbs. He said: “I progressed my research by developing software which uses biomechanical simulations to provide clinicians with a realtime prediction of fit between the residual limb of a person with a lower limb amputation and their bespoke prosthetic socket.” The software was developed throughout his PhD, under the supervision of Dr Alex Dickinson, Dr Peter Worsley and Professor Martin Browne. Joshua used techniques from the cutting-edge of engineering and design and adapted them to be used in a clinical setting. This involved using finite element

“ Right from the start of my degree at the University of Southampton I became interested in how engineering can be used within healthcare to improve people’s quality of life.” Dr Joshua Steer

analysis, statistical shape modelling and design optimisation to predict the complex biomechanical interaction between the prosthetic limb user and their device. The aim was to reduce the number of required fitting sessions and improve outcomes through the introduction of these methods to a clinical setting. Radii Devices “We took the technology and spun-out Radii Devices in 2020, supported by the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Enterprise Fellowship and Future Worlds, the University’s start-up accelerator,” explained Joshua. “At Radii we believe that everyone should have access to the best fitting prosthetic or orthotic, and our mission is to enable people who use prosthetics and orthotics to achieve their goals, sooner.”

Two years later, and Radii is now a team of five employees, including two University of Southampton PhD graduates and one Southampton undergraduate. The company is about to embark on clinical trials of its software to improve prosthetic limb fitting in collaboration with the University and multiple NHS prosthetic clinics, supported by an Innovate UK grant. The results of this trial will be used to evidence the clinical improvements in fitting and support Radii’s aim for its software to be used across the NHS and beyond. “The support that I’ve had throughout my development at Southampton since my undergraduate degree has been critical to the development of Radii,” said Joshua. “Not just from colleagues and mentors but also from programmes such as the Future Worlds Accelerator and the Bioengineering Sciences Research Group.” Alongside his work at Radii, Joshua continues to be an active science and engineering communicator in the University of Southampton community, giving guest lectures to engineers, health scientists, and those studying entrepreneurship.

Find out more www.radiidevices.com Joshua can be contacted via Twitter @JoshuaWSteer

Feature

Dr Alex Jantzen holding Aquark’s current cold atom system and the tiny vacuum chamber the company is ultimately striving for

From optical sensors to cold atom systems, quantum physicist Dr Alex Jantzen has steered his academic research towards a pioneering spinout that is on the brink of revolutionising our future.

TAKING A QUANTUM LEAP Alex and the small team at Aquark Technologies are onto something impressive. They are developing a miniaturised cold atom system – no bigger than a matchbox – vastly reducing the size of a core component of quantum technology. It is Alex and Aquark co-founder Dr Andrei Draomir’s vision for the systems to be in everyday devices everywhere. Alex explained: “Our long-term goal is to mass fabricate cold atom traps. One day, these quantum sensors will be in devices everywhere, and we want devices to be ‘Aquark Augmented’.” The systems could be used for detecting gravity, monitoring carbon storage, looking for underground resources, and operating timing clocks and GPS systems.

Practical use could be in timing financial transactions, timings for transport systems, telecommunications, oil and gas, and semiconductors. The possibilities are endless.

An assessment by London Economics in 2017 estimated the economic impact to the UK of a five-day disruption to GPS to be £5.2 billion, as it would disrupt ports, emergency services, supermarkets, construction, the financial sector, and the military, amongst many other day-to-day services. Alex said: “Our mobile phones and navigation systems all rely on GPS. Through Aquark, we are enabling a more resilient infrastructure. The technology can be used in so many different ways and absolutely all of us will benefit from what it’s able to do.”

Taking a quantum leap

Dr Alex Jantzen working with glass lathes in a University clean room

Starting at Southampton Alex joined the University of Southampton – from Denmark, via Norwich – in 2011, when he embarked on his Master’s in Physics. He chose Southampton for both its strong reputation for physics and its geographical proximity to the coast, which, coming from near Copenhagen, is close to his heart. His Master’s research focused on making a prototype terahertz detector. “Terahertz is the awkward region where things like radio waves and Wi-Fi stop, but just before light that we can see,” he explained. “It’s really hard to make and to detect, but it’s very interesting because a lot of biological interactions happen in that region – our bodies emit terahertz radiation. In the airport, when you stand in a body scanning machine, it sees through your clothes, but does not see through your body – that’s terahertz – the in-between.” 20

Following his Master’s, Alex joined the Optical Engineering and Quantum Photonics Group in the Optoelectronics Research Centre. His PhD involved designing, manufacturing, and testing integrated optical sensors for aeroplanes. “Like the chips in your phone, I was trying to make similar sized chips but using light rather than electronics,” he said. “Based on how the light moves across the chip, it will tell you about the environment, such as how much pressure is inside. I was looking to use them inside fuel tanks so you can see how much fuel is in the wing of an aircraft.” It was during his PhD that Alex and Andrei’s paths first crossed. They were both investigating processing thick silicon – Andrei for integrated atomic chips and Alex in order to keep a chip stable in a harsh environment.

It was also during his PhD, in 2016, that Alex was named one of the Zepler Institute’s Future Photonics Leaders. He won the Professor Sir David Payne Scholar Award for best performing first year PhD student. Spinning out In 2019, Alex joined University spinout Lumenisity as its first Process Engineer. The company, which had formed two years earlier, develops ground-breaking hollowcore fibre optics. “I spent most of my time making the initial core of the fibre – working on the processes, defining them and writing the instructions,” he explained. “We had the challenge of how to make it work reliably – how do we keep delivering the same quality again and again? That became the new challenge, and that’s where things transition from being more academic to more industrial.”

That early spinout experience was invaluable when Alex left Lumenisity in 2021 to launch Aquark Technologies with Andrei. The company was officially launched – aptly on the International Day of Light – on 16 May 2021. They have set up their business premises at the Abbey Park Industrial Estate in Romsey, Hampshire, and have employed two additional members of the Aquark team – physicists Dr Jonathan Woods and Dr Chester Camm. Now the focus for Aquark is to reduce the size, lower the weight, and cut the cost of the cold atom system. “Some of that will come through scientific advancement, but a lot will come from making something that’s scalable,” said Alex. “Right now, we’re building some key demonstrators to show the technology.

“As an academic, you want to think through everything and ensure it’s right, but from the business side of things you have to go with your gut and make faster decisions and take risks – that is a tricky balance.”

1 The Aquark Technologies team: Dr Alex Jantzen, Dr Jonathan Woods, Dr Andrei Dragomir and Dr Chester Camm 2 Dr Alex Jantzen working at the bonding machine used in the assembly of micro-components

On top of developing Aquark’s pioneering technology, the focus is also on day-to-day business priorities such as managing the office and lab space, sourcing equipment, achieving patent approvals, and winning funding and investment. Coinciding with Aquark’s first anniversary, Alex was appointed an ambassador for global optics and photonics society Optica (formerly the known as OSA). Alex is only the third Southampton alumnus to be chosen as an ambassador, and the only ambassador from the UK this year. Find out more aquarktechnologies.com 21

Feature

GOING GLOBAL From making discoveries about chronic lung disorders to managing a research programme to improve health around the world, Dr Sarah Puddicombe has taken her career from lab to office – and beyond. Joining the University of Southampton in the early ‘90s, Sarah was part of a team of scientists who discovered ground-breaking potential for interferon beta, paving the way for pioneering COVID-19 treatment. Interferon beta is a naturally occurring medication in a class called ‘immunomodulators’. The team found a defective interferon beta response to virus infections in the airways of those with chronic respiratory disorders. This novel discovery indicated a use for interferon beta to help protect airways against viral infections – and it is now being used to help improve the outcomes of COVID patients.

“ In February 2020, I visited teams in South Africa. It was a privilege to visit the research sites and meet the local communities and teams who are directly benefitting from these research activities.” Dr Sarah Puddicombe

Today, Sarah is Assistant Director of Global Health based within the University’s largest enterprise unit, NETSCC (the National Institute of Health and Care Research (NIHR) Evaluation, Trials and Studies Coordinating Centre), based at the University of Southampton Science Park.

Following her PhD, she worked with Professor Donna Davies and Professor Sir Stephen Holgate, initially looking at these growth factors and signalling pathways in the repair of asthmatic airways in responses to different environmental insults. Her research involved taking cells from airways and growing these at an air-liquid interface. “I was able to grow miniature models of the airways to replicate the lung lining – layers of cells with specialised mucus producing cells, and cells with beating cilia which help clear mucus and irritants from the airways,” she said. ‘’My work using these models and biopsies compared healthy and diseased airways’ responses to external insults and looked at factors involved in the underlying disease changes observed in the airways.”

Early days Sarah arrived in Southampton in 1992 as a research assistant and also studied part-time for her PhD.

It was around this point that the team discovered a weakness in the protective barrier of the airway to various insults in asthma. They also found impaired antiviral responses to respiratory infections and identified the potentially game-changing influence of interferon beta, capable of improving antiviral responses.

“My PhD was focused on epidermal growth factors and their receptors whose signalling can go wrong and drive uncontrolled cell growth, leading to breast cancer,” she explained. “I made modified versions of these growth factors to find agents to alter this signalling and to help prevent cancer.”

“Levels of interferon beta produced in asthma and in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, or COPD, were lower in response to virus infections and, by adding interferon beta back in, you could help protect the airways from these viral infections,” explained Sarah.

1 Sarah visiting a maternity unit team that is developing tools and training staff to support at risk women to access psychological support services 2 Sarah and the team that is researching lung diseases and tuberculosis in Africa, based at Tygerberg Hospital in Cape Town, South Africa

Spinning out Synairgen In 2003, capitalising on the opportunity to use models of airways disease to identify other protective agents – in addition to interferon beta – able to improve the barrier function chronic airways diseases, Synairgen was spun out by Donna, Stephen and Professor Ratko Djukanovic. Sarah set up the early discovery programme. She said: “In the early days of Synairgen, we were looking at the integrity of the intercellular connections. We found there were specific weaknesses in some of those connections in asthma. This was making the epithelium [airway tissue] susceptible to triggers such as air pollution, cigarette smoke and dust mite allergen agents. This defective airways barrier appeared to contribute to the increased susceptibility to disease exacerbations in response to environmental agents. “We wanted to work out what could reverse that, and found that certain growth factors improved the integrity of the intercellular connections and restored barrier function. In parallel, interferon beta became a lead candidate given its ability to restore asthmatic airway responses to viral infections. This resulted in various studies in patients with asthma and COPD using interferon beta delivered by a specialist inhaler.” When COVID hit in late 2019, interferon beta was an obvious candidate. “The minute I heard about COVID, I thought that interferon beta may really help COVID patients with existing

airways disease,” said Sarah. “I am proud to have had a part in the early discovery work and have followed Synairgen’s progress over the years with its studies. It is so brilliant to learn of the latest trials helping to treat COVID patients.” Tackling global challenges In 2008, Sarah left Synairgen to join NETSCC to manage NIHR research programmes providing evidence to inform policy and practice in the NHS, public health and social care. “I was keen to apply my research knowledge to another side of research, this time as a research funder – identifying priorities for NIHR applied health research and funding calls, and helping to stimulate the research community to respond to these needs,” she said.

Joining the University of Southampton in the early ‘90s, Sarah was part of a team of scientists who discovered groundbreaking potential for interferon beta, paving the way for pioneering COVID-19 treatment.

Most recently, Sarah has set up NIHR Global Health Research programme awards, using UK Aid funding to support research and training partnerships in developing countries to address major health challenges. The portfolio now includes 100 awards with partnerships in over 50 developing countries. She said: “These partnerships are identifying and tackling major research gaps and endemic issues that disproportionately affect the health burden on those living in developing contexts.” Projects include improving anti-venom treatments for snake bites in Africa; avoiding preventable deaths through better treatment of chronic respiratory diseases; preventing injuries and improving trauma care in Nepal; and developing global genomic surveillance for antimicrobial resistance. “In February 2020, I visited teams based in South Africa,” added Sarah. “It was a privilege to visit the research sites and meet the local communities and teams who are directly benefitting from these research activities, and to understand the positive impact of research and training towards improving health outcomes in these developing contexts.”

Find out more nihr.ac.uk/explore-nihr/fundingprogrammes/global-health.htm

Feature

FROM STUDENTS TO STAFF

There are as many as two billion speakers of English as a lingua franca – a common language between speakers whose native languages are different – worldwide.

The Centre for Global Englishes (CGE) is a hub for the study of the lingua franca phenomenon and is headed by an international team – many of whom are themselves University of Southampton alumni. Dr Will Baker, Associate Professor and Director of CGE, explained: “At CGE our main research focus is on English as a lingua franca, which is where it is used as a contact language among speakers from different first languages. The use of English in this way forces us to reconsider the links between languages, cultures, communities, nations, and identities. In our research, we explore these issues and the implications for how we think about communication and teaching languages.”

Although it is now recognised that the majority of English use is for intercultural and transcultural communication among multilingual speakers of the language, rather than Anglophone ‘native speakers’, the full significance of this is only just beginning to be understood. In particular, the decentring of the Anglophone world for teaching in and through English is still regarded as controversial.

medium instruction that recognise users’ full multilingual and multicultural communicative repertories. Furthermore, promoted by CGE research, the CGE team and colleagues in Modern Languages and Linguistics and the Academic Centre for International Students have been rethinking the role and assessment of (English) language in our own English medium courses.

Much current language teaching is based on simplistic monolingual and monocultural views of communication that fail to match the multilingual and transcultural experiences of most English language users. CGE explores alternative locally relevant approaches to English language teaching and English

Alongside Will at the helm of the CGE are Dr Sonia Morán Panero and Dr Ying Wang. All three of the team studied at Southampton and have gone on to undertake various roles within the institution leading them to CGE.

“ Our main research focus is on English as a lingua franca, which is where it is used as a contact language among speakers from different first languages.” Dr Will Baker Associate Professor and Director of CGE

From students to staff

DR WILL BAKER

DR YING WANG

Having completed an undergraduate degree and a Master’s at the University of Bristol and the University of Leicester respectively, Will came to Southampton in 2005 and undertook a PhD in Applied Linguistics. Immediately prior to this, he taught at Silpakorn University in Thailand for four years.

Having completed an English degree at Beijing Foreign Studies University, Ying came to the UK and undertook a Master’s at King’s College London.

“My time teaching in Thailand set me in perfect stead for my PhD, examining intercultural communication and English as a lingua franca among university students in Thailand,” he said. “Alongside studying for my PhD, I worked at the University as a language tutor. I then joined the staff in Modern Languages and Linguistics in 2009 as a teaching fellow. This felt like a natural progression and was the next step towards my goal of becoming a lecturer.” Will achieved that goal in 2011 and began lecturing in Applied Linguistics. “In 2019 when the founding director of the CGE, Professor Jennifer Jenkins, retired I was honoured to take up the directorship,” he said. “The Centre is a national and international focal point for intercultural research, and as such we spearhead many innovative research projects and programmes. “We are a hub for PhD students wanting to study in this area, and this is an element to our work which I am particularly proud of and involved in as I myself was a Southampton PhD student.”

She said: “While at King’s I worked with Professor Jennifer Jenkins. I found her an inspirational colleague and when she moved to the University of Southampton, I went with her and undertook a PhD here in Modern Languages. “On completion of that I decided to return to China to take up the role of Lecturer in Applied Linguistics at China Three Gorges University. I was keen to put my PhD studies to use and very much enjoyed teaching and researching. I went on to establish the Centre for Global Englishes at Three Gorges University, to collaborate with CGE at Southampton.” In 2015 an opportunity arose for Ying to return to Southampton as a Lecturer in Applied Linguistics and Global Englishes within the CGE. “I decided to come back to Southampton because the department offers a resourceful research environment, and the Centre provides inspirations that have kept broadening my research horizons,” she added.

“ The Centre is a national and international focal point for intercultural research, and as such we spearhead many innovative research projects and programmes.” Dr Will Baker

“ I decided to come back to Southampton because the department offers a resourceful research environment, and the Centre provides inspirations that have kept broadening my research horizons.” Dr Ying Wang

“ The great thing about the team at CGE is that we come from all over the world and bring diverse first-hand experience and perspectives to our study of the use of English as a lingua franca.” Dr Sonia Morán Panero

DR SONIA MORÁN PANERO Hailing from Spain and having obtained an undergraduate degree at the Universidad de Salamanca, Sonia came to the University of Southampton in 2009 to complete a Master’s in Applied Linguistics.

“The great thing about the team at CGE is that we come from all over the world and bring diverse first-hand experience and perspectives to our study of the use of English as a lingua franca,” she said.

She said: “The reason I chose to come to Southampton was because of the strong Master’s offer in the Modern Languages and Linguistics department, their reputation in Applied Linguistics, and my previous positive learning experience as an Erasmus student in the UK.

Whilst working for the Centre, Sonia co-led an Impact Case Study (ICS) for REF2021 with Emeritus Professor Jennifer Jenkins, which traced evidence of international impact emerging from CGE research.

“My Master’s led on to my PhD, and during my studies I was very fortunate to be a research assistant on several projects at the University. For instance, I collaborated in a study on ‘English as a lingua franca in the international university’. Another project was one known as LANG-SNAP that explored ‘Languages and social networks abroad’. I was also a teaching assistant during this period. “Being a research and teaching assistant whilst studying for my PhD was so important because it meant I obtained valuable collaborative skills and a wealth of knowledge on research methodologies and pedagogical strategies.” On completing her studies, Sonia secured a role at the University first as a teaching fellow and then as a lecturer and key member of the CGE team.

“This was a wonderful opportunity to learn about how our work is transcending academic circles, reaching ‘real world’ English users and educators, and leading to change in English-medium-instruction institutions around the world,” added Sonia. “For instance, after engaging with CGE research, many educators reported to have shifted their views on diverse English uses they used to dismiss as erroneous before. Some told us they even transformed their assessment criteria and learning objectives to prioritise successful content expression and communicative competence over narrowly defined linguistic correctness. “Others changed their own language use to be more intelligible, and some institutions developed Global Englishes informed English-medium-instruction training for their staff. Participants in the ICS also reported direct benefits such as increased student participation and selfconfidence”.

THE MAIN AIMS AND FOCUS OF THE CENTRE FOR GLOBAL ENGLISHES • To produce, support and disseminate research on the linguistic and sociocultural dimensions of global uses, usages, and users of English (i.e., Global Englishes), and on English as a lingua franca in particular. • To explore the implications of such research and develop new conceptualisations of English language and communication. • To investigate, evaluate, promote, and influence conceptions and applications of English in academic settings, including a strong focus on internationalisation in Higher Education. • To provide a forum for knowledgesharing and collaboration with other interested researchers and research centres around the world, as well as with those not directly involved in researching the field but interested in learning more about it.

Find out more southampton.ac.uk/cge

Feature

After coming to the UK from Iran in 2000 – and joining the University in 2001 – Dr Mehdi Banakar is now a key player in the University’s silicon photonics rapid prototyping foundry CORNERSTONE.

TECHNICALLY SPEAKING CORNERSTONE is a facility offering a prototyping service to researchers, both academic and industrial, fabricating silicon photonics circuits for a wide range of applications including data centres for the internet, lab-on-a-chip medical sensors and LiDAR technology for driverless cars. The Optoelectronics Research Centre, which hosts CORNERSTONE, is one of the best of its kind in the UK – and it is this claim to fame, along with the expertise honed at Southampton, that has kept Mehdi at the University. He said: “I like the technical side, and I like the fact that the applications for photonics are helping in a wide range of areas, such as highperformance computing, sensors, and data

1 An example of lithography (a method of printing) provided by CORNERSTONE

centres. What we’re doing and developing is helping to bring good to society and making a difference.” Arriving in Southampton Just 12 months after arriving in the UK to study at Weymouth College, Mehdi joined the University of Southampton. He embarked on a foundation year in 2001 and continued at the University to complete his Bachelor’s degree and then his Master’s in Microsystem Design, in the School of Electronics and Computer Science, in 2008. He began to hone his fabrication skills during his part-time Master’s studies when he also worked as a research assistant, helping to fabricate designs for PhD students and researchers.

2 & 3 Examples of spiral waveguide design 4 Inside the clean rooms at the University 5 Stacking wafers, which CORNERSTONE fabricates in the clean room

The power of light Mehdi’s PhD focused on harnessing solar power. He explained: “I was looking at submicron texturing for photovoltaic antireflection and light trapping. I was working on solar panels, trying to increase their efficiency. One way to do that is through light trapping, or absorbing more light through the surface by texturing the surface of the panel. Some of the ideas I worked with came from nature, such as butterflies’ wings, which are naturally designed to absorb light.” In 2015, Mehdi joined the Silicon Photonics Group where he made the most of his fabrication skills.

“I enjoy silicon photonics and working with light,” he said. “There are lots of applications for silicon photonics, but the dominant one at the moment is transceivers used in data centres – transferring data day-to-day as part of the world wide web. The beauty of it is that it makes things so much faster – you can send messages, pictures and data so much faster – and, perhaps even more importantly given the climate crisis, whilst consuming far less energy than electronics counterparts.” Since 2019, Mehdi has been a Technical Manager within CORNERSTONE, where he is helping researchers to bring the future closer with silicon photonics.

“ There are lots of applications for silicon photonics, but the dominant one at the moment is transceivers used in data centres – transferring data day-today as part of the world wide web.” Dr Mehdi Banakar

Find out more www.cornerstone.sotonfab.co.uk 29

Feature

FROM DISRUPTER TO LEADER Back in the ‘90s, fibre lasers were a disruptive technology of which engineers were just beginning to discover the potential. Fastforward 25 years and they have become totally indispensable.

“ I think there will be an increasing use of fibre laser technology in other fields, such as medicine and also general surgery. There are also strong prospects for fibre lasers in defence and LiDAR [Light Detection and Ranging, a remote sensing method]. The future, I think, will be about bringing the advantages of fibre lasers that have been demonstrated in industry into these and other fields.” Dr Mike Durkin

Life without fibre lasers would be almost impossible today. They are used in manufacturing consumer electronics, and for cutting and welding in the car industry. They are used in medical procedures such as laser eye surgery. More recently, they are being used in battery manufacturing for electric vehicles. And, not least, they enable the internet. Things were very different when Dr Mike Durkin studied for his Master’s in Physics with Laser Science, followed by his PhD, in the Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC) at Southampton in the late ‘90s. “Telecommunications was a very hot topic back then,” he said. “It was a really exciting time to be working in telecommunications and fibre-related technology. Southampton and the ORC had already been pivotal in developing the Erbium Doped Fibre Amplifier – an optical amplifier – which allowed the transatlantic propagation of signals in optical fibres without converting them to electric signals in the middle. This, and the optical fibre roll out of telecommunications, was starting to facilitate the internet.

“The challenges were in addressing the amount of data that can go down one fibre, in particular by multiplexing different wavelengths of light. A lot of the research and breakthroughs were related to controlling and filtering and amplifying light to support the development of the internet. My PhD was looking at a small part of that.” When Mike completed his PhD in 1999, Southampton Photonics was in pre-startup mode, looking to commercialise the fibre laser research being developed at the ORC. It was the perfect timing, as Mike joined Southampton Photonics, bringing his expertise on Fibre Bragg Gratings (FBGs) with him. FBGs are components that are written into optical fibres using ultraviolet lasers that allow you to reflect certain wavelengths, or colours of light, in a very specific way. “I was responsible for transferring FBG technology from the University into Southampton Photonics, which later became SPI – Southampton Photonics Incorporated – Lasers,” he said.

1 An example of a fibre laser cutting through metal 2 The exterior of the New Mountbatten building, which houses the Optoelectronics Research Centre and the clean rooms at the University today

Future thinking Laser research is, and always has been, about enabling more power and better costs. As those fundamentals continue to be improved, the future for fibre laser technology looks as disruptive as its past. SPI Lasers starts up SPI Lasers spun out in 2000. Mike was the company’s first full-time employee, and he has worked for them on research collaboration and commercialisation ever since. He began by working on product development and then went on to lead the team that developed the optical technology of the first continuous-wave lasers that the company produced for industry. From 2006 to 2016, Mike led the technology and product of SPI Lasers’ pulsed laser production line, before becoming Head of Technology. In 2008, SPI Lasers was acquired by the world’s biggest laser manufacturer, TRUMPF GmbH, for £27.8 million. The University has a long-term strategic partnership with TRUMPF. Mike has been Head of Laser Technology at TRUMPF since 2020.

“With the incorporation into TRUMPF, which happened in 2019, there is a bigger collaborative research and development effort around fibre lasers,” explained Mike. “We work with people in Germany, the USA and China.” Reflecting on his time at SPI Lasers, Mike said: “At the beginning of my time at SPI, fibre lasers were a disruptive, challenger technology. It took a while for people to be convinced that they were suitable for deployment in industry. But now, they are the absolute de facto standard.

“I think there will be an increasing use of fibre laser technology in other fields, such as medicine for treatments such as laser eye surgery and also general surgery,” said Mike. “There are also strong prospects for fibre lasers in defence and LiDAR [Light Detection and Ranging, a remote sensing method]. The future, I think, will be about bringing the advantages of fibre lasers that have been demonstrated in industry into these and other fields.”

“They have also increased in their power capability by a factor of at least 1,000 since the late ‘90s – going from 10 watts of power to tens of kilowatts of power.”

Research award highlights

RESEARCH AWARD HIGHLIGHTS FACULTY OF ARTS AND HUMANITIES

FACULTY OF ENVIRONMENTAL AND LIFE SCIENCES

Prof Denis McManus; School of Humanities The Self-Expressive Imperative: Heidegger, Antiquity and Authenticity Leverhulme Trust; £33,130 over 12 months

Mr Christopher Hill; GeoData Institute, School of Geography & Environmental Science Natural Capital and Ecosystem Assessment (NCEA): Priority Habitat Natural England, DFSSD; £19,898 over 5 months

Dr Kai Yang; Winchester School of Art with Co-Is: John Tudor, Elaine Dennison, Martin Warner, David Scott, Issy Reading Wearable Textile with Integrated Electrotherapy and Sensing for Joint Pain Management MRC; £1,437,964 over 39 months Dr Pritipuspa Mishra; School of Humanities MY-HOME: Make yourself at home (MY-HOME): Co-curating the South Asian community experience at Southampton AHRC; £20,088 over 6 months Dr Louise Palmour; School of Humanities Assessing Academic Oral Presentations in English Medium Education: Navigating the Linguistic and Social Justice Implications of Decision Making ESRC; £90,789 over 12 months Dr Craig Lambert; School of Humanities Maritime Kent: Ports, Shipping and Communities, 1300-1670 The Janus Foundation; £53,674 over 12 months Dr Crystal El Safadi; School of Humanities Settlement Geography of the Iranian coastal plain: Analysis and dissemination of the Williamson dataset The British Institute of Persian Studies; £5,000 over 9 months Dr Alireza Fakhrkonandeh; School of Humanities Burning Worlds, Drowning Worlds: The Oil-Water Complex in Iran, Iraq, and Turkey British Academy; £9,876 over 12 months Dr Matthew Kerr; School of Humanities A Scholarly Edition of Captain Frederick Marryat’s Mr Midshipman Easy British Academy; £5,013 over 20 months

Mr Christopher Hill; GeoData Institute, School of Geography & Environmental Science Natural Capital and Ecosystem Assessment (NCEA): Priority Habitat Inventory Natural England, DFSSD; £12,498 over 4 months Mr Christopher Hill; GeoData Institute, School of Geography & Environmental Science Support the development of standardised risk datasets for Pacific Small Island Developing States and their extension to other Small Island States to support the conceptualisation and formulation of projects to address agricultural vulnerability and risk reduction Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; £73,300 over 10 months Mr Christopher Hill; GeoData Institute, School of Geography & Environmental Science Support the development of standardised risk datasets for Pacific Small Island Developing States and their extension to other Small Island States to support the conceptualisation and formulation of projects to address agricultural vulnerability and risk reduction Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; £72,816 over 10 months Mr Christopher Hill; GeoData Institute, School of Geography & Environmental Science Maritime Cliff and Slope – research review of use of remote sensing for status monitoring Natural England, DFSSD; £5,000 over 2 months Mr Christopher Hill; GeoData Institute, School of Geography & Environmental Science Floodplain wetland moasic Natural England, DFSSD; £12,500 over 4 months Mr Christopher Hill; GeoData Institute, School of Geography & Environmental Science Maritime Cliff and Slope – Survey of cliff habitats Research England; £20,385 over 4 months Mr Christopher Hill; GeoData Institute, School of Geography & Environmental Science Spatial Audit of Local Planning Authorities Habitat Creation/Restoration via Planning Applications Research England; £19,813 over 4 months Mr Christopher Hill; GeoData Institute, School of Geography & Environmental Science Maritime Cliff and Slope – Flamborough Research England; £2,453 over 1 month

Prof Chris Hauton; School of Ocean and Earth Science Adaption of the brackishwater aquaculture in India for climate resilience through diversification of crop species Natural Environment Research Council; £72,280 over 6 months

Dr Diego Gomez-Nicola; School of Biological Sciences Unveiling and mapping the complexity of the immune compartment in AD Alzheimer’s Association; £96,055 over 36 months

Prof Peter Langdon; School of Geography & Environmental Science Rethinking Palaeoclimatology for Society UK Research and Innovation; £314,177 over 48 months

Prof Peter Griffiths; School of Health Sciences Evaluation of the framework for safe nurse staffing and skill-mix (extension) The Health Research Board, Ireland; £28,846 over 36 months

Prof Damon Teagle; School of Ocean and Earth Science Data mining the Deep Natural Environment Research Council; £166,138 over 36 months

Prof Peter Griffiths; School of Health Sciences Analytical specification development for a safe staffing tool Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists; £3,483 over 1 month

Prof Damon Teagle; School of Ocean and Earth Science NERC UK-IODP Moritorium Award support for Dr Tom Belgrano for IODP Expedition 393 – South Atlantic Tranverse 2 Natural Environment Research Council; £55,450 over 7 months Prof Amritpal Mudher; School of Biological Sciences Tau pathology propagation: Mechanisms and Consequences Alzheimers Society; £261,472 over 36 months Dr David Wright; School of Health Sciences Developing and testing a tool to support stratified care for people diagnosed with cancer – extension NHS England; £32,642 over 6 months Prof Jadunandan Dash and Dr Booker Ogutu; School of Geography & Environmental Science SENTINELS4CARBON European Space Agency; £106,999 over 24 months Prof Alberto Naveira Garabato; School of Ocean and Earth Science Antarctic Salinity European Space Agency; £90,000 over 24 months Dr Ben Ward; School of Ocean and Earth Science Scaling up from Diatom Physiology to Southern Ocean Biogeochemistry Royal Society; £83,960 over 11 months Dr Peter Worsley; School of Health Sciences Intelligent Sensing to Promote Self-management of Posture and Mobility in Community dwelling Individuals EPSRC; £626,191 over 36 months Prof Martin Solan; School of Ocean and Earth Science Scientific partnership on the consequences of climate change in Arctic coastal ecosystems Foreign & Commonwealth Office; £30,500 over 4 months Prof Felix Eigenbrod; School of Geography & Environmental Science NERC Agile sprint Natural Environment Research Council; £7,078 over 12 months

Dr Ruth Bartlett; School of Health Sciences Scoping an idea to investigate farm-based care for people with dementia in collaboration with key stakeholders National Institute of Health Research; £12,026 over 5 months Prof Andrew Tatem; School of Geography & Environmental Science Geospatial Population Estimation in Papua New Guinea UNFPA; £332,501 over 12 months Dr Kelvin Peh; School of Biological Sciences Scaling up the East Asian-Australasian Flyway Initiative BirdLife International; £60,369 over 18 months Dr Rosalind Coggon; Royal Society University Research Fellow, School of Ocean and Earth Science UK-IODP Moratorium Award for Rosalind Coggon – Co-chief scientist IODP Exp 390/393 Natural Environment Research Council; £79,143 over 24 months Dr Thomas Richardson; School of Psychology An examination of the prevalence of suicidality and uptake in signposting to support in those presenting for debt advice Southampton City Council; £1,937 over 9 months Dr Brian Hracs; School of Geography & Environmental Science African Hub for Sustainable Creative Economies AHRC; £13,172 over 15 months Dr Catherine Murphy, Principal Research Fellow, School of Health Sciences Primary and community care intervention to support the selfmanagement of continence problems for people with dementia and their carers (DemCon) National Institute of Health Research; £255,570 over 21 months Dr Salah Elias; School of Biological Sciences Investigating the role of oriented cell divisions in mammary epithelial morphogenesis and homeostasis using human organoids Royal Society; £10,600 over 24 months

Research award highlights

Dr Tina Seabrooke; School of Psychology Embracing errors: Learning from deliberate failure Experimental Psychology Society; £9,862 over 12 months Dr Franklin Luzia De Nobrega; School of Biological Sciences Investigating the role of mucus-interacting bacteriophages in inflammatory bowel disease BOWEL RESEARCH UK; £48,950 over 24 months Dr Franklin Luzia De Nobrega; School of Biological Sciences Using phages to give new life to old antibiotics against superbugs Wessex Medical Research; £20,000 over 24 months

FACULTY OF ENGINEERING AND PHYSICAL SCIENCES Dame Wendy Hall; School of Electronics and Computer Science Towards Robust and Interpretable Heterogeneity Learning Systems Co-driven by Data and Knowledge Royal Society; £6,390 over 24 months Prof Jeremy Frey; School of Chemistry Network plus-Future blood testing – Healthcare technologies new challenges EPSRC; £117,847 over 36 months Prof Paul White; School of Engineering Greensands Phase 2 Danish Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation; £480,240 over 18 months Prof Michalis N. Zervas; Zepler Institute for Photonics and Nanoelectronics Smart Fibre-Optic High Power Photonics (HiPPo) EPSRC; £6,249,535 over 60 months Dr Peter Birkin; School of Chemistry In Situ High-Speed Electrochemical Sensing of Surface Cleaning EPSRC; £437,408 over 30 months Prof William Powrie; School of Engineering Infrastructure for Port And Coastal cities and Towns (iPACT) UK Research and Innovation; £938,915 over 24 months Prof Michael Wald; School of Electronics and Computer Science DeepPrism Innovate UK; £96,057 over 12 months Prof Neil Sandham; School of Engineering EXCALIBUR high-priority use cases EPSRC; £326,844 over 36 months Prof Simon Coles; School of Chemistry The UK National Crystallography Service 2022-2027 EPSRC; £3,930,002 over 60 months Prof Simon Coles; School of Chemistry QuantumBox: an integrated software environment for Quantum Crystallography EPSRC; £400,526 over 36 months Prof Bruno Linclau; School of Chemistry Expanding Capability and Capacity in High-Throughput Multinuclear NMR Spectroscopy EPSRC; £476,316 over 60 months Prof Michael Boniface; School of Electronics and Computer Science Wessex Trusted Research Environment NHS England; £55,000 over 6 months

Prof Cornelis De Groot; School of Electronics and Computer Science Electrodeposited 2D Transition Metal Dichalcogenides on graphene: a novel route towards scalable flexible electronics EPSRC; £1,023,916 over 30 months Prof Ling Wang; School of Engineering 25 KN PUMP BEARING TRIBOLOGY STUDY UK Research and Innovation; £49,533 over 6 months Dr Marina Carravetta; School of Chemistry Understanding structure-property relationships in defect-free nanosized zeolites using advanced solid-state NMR spectroscopy Royal Society; £6,000 over 12 months Dr Yue Zhang; School of Engineering Sludge dewaterability: improved tools for the emerging biotech industries BBSRC; £7,996 + Industry £7,996 over 6 months Prof m.c. schraefel; School of Electronics and Computer Science Elder Athletes: building incidental interaction at home for thriving at home, in home and on the go EPSRC; £403,666 over 18 months Prof Hywel Morgan; School of Electronics and Computer Science Development of Multimodal Rumen Monitoring for Cattle to Improve Productivity and Sustainability through improved resource and feed efficiency (RUMP) Innovate UK; £67,827 over 24 months School of Engineering Institutional Sponsorship-International Partnerships-University of Southampton EPSRC; £47,791 over 7 months Yannis Leropoulos; School of Engineering Safe Use of Wastewater in Agriculture (SUWA) Royal Academy of Engineering; £3,000 over 12 months Prof Chris-Kriton Skylaris; School of Chemistry Particles At Exascale on HPC (PAX-HPC) EPSRC; £19,493 over 36 months Prof Chris-Kriton Skylaris; School of Chemistry Supporting research communities with large-scale DFT in the next decade and beyond EPSRC; £260,230 over 36 months Dr Sebastian Stein; School of Electronics and Computer Science Turing AI Fellowship: Citizen-Centric AI Systems – Supplement EPSRC; £37,179 over 6 months

Prof Hendrik Ulbricht; School of Physics and Astronomy Amplification of electromagnetic waves by a rotating body EPSRC; £554,797 over 36 months Prof Hendrik Ulbricht; School of Physics and Astronomy Constraining Modified Newtonian Dynamics via Magnetically Levitated Particles Leverhulme Trust; £467,597 over 48 months Dr Simon Blainey; School of Engineering An Open Source Rail Network Dataset for Africa Foreign & Commonwealth Office; £8,141 over 1 month Prof Otto Muskens; School of Physics and Astronomy Non-contact scanning probe station for advanced wafer scale testing of photonic integrated circuits EPSRC; £727,695 over 36 months Dr Luke Blunden, Energy and Climate Change Division; School of Engineering Testing the UoS-ECCD tidal turbine in the Boldrewood towing tank EPSRC; £4,000 over 1 month Dr Katherine Plant and Dr Katie Parnell; School of Engineering Guidance for gender Equitable electric Micro-mobility (GEM) UK Research and Innovation; £9,431 over 3 months Dr Nina Podoliak; School of Physics and Astronomy OXISOL: Oxide nanoparticles dispersed in liquid crystals for solar light conversion British Council; £4,480 over 24 months Prof Bharathram Ganapathisubramani; School of Engineering Streamwise pressure gradient effects on turbulent flows over rough walls EPSRC; £861,713 over 36 months Prof Bharathram Ganapathisubramani and Dea Daniella Wangsawijaya; School of Engineering Flow and noise control using non-equilibrium turbulent boundary layers Leverhulme Trust; £118,000 over 36 months Prof Frederic Gardes; Zepler Institute for Photonics and Nanoelectronics Horizon Europe – Octapus European Commission; £691,443 over 42 months Dr Mohammed El-Hajjar; School of Electronics and Computer Science DNA – Drones Navigating Anywhere UK Space Agency; £6,567 over 2 months

Research award highlights

Prof Andrew Cruden (PI); Associate Dean (Academic Infrastructure), FEPS, School of Engineering Future Electric Vehicle Energy networks supporting Renewables (FEVER) EPSRC; £3,648,869 over 60 months to Southampton Total grant award: £6.6m (including the Universities of Sheffield, Surrey and Portsmouth) Prof Marcel Utz; School of Chemistry paraQchip – Parahydrogen-Induced Hyperpolarisation On A Chip For Microfluidic Perfusion Culture EPSRC; £1,213,199 over 42 months Prof Simone De Liberato; School of Physics and Astronomy Weaving light into quantum materials Leverhulme Trust; £241,924 over 36 months Dr Ali Mosayyebi; Department of Mechanical Engineering, School of Engineering Can novel ureteric stents offer a better patient outcome compared to existing standard ureteric stent (CASSETTE) National Institute of Health and Care Research; £1,375,896.00 over 36 months Dr Milos Nedeljkovic, Senior Research Fellow; Zepler Institute for Photonics and Nanoelectronics Silicon photonic thermal photodetectors for mid-infrared sensing EPSRC; £346,228 over 24 months Dr Chaitanya Paruchuri; School of Engineering Aerodynamics and aeroacoustics of closely coupled rotors EPSRC; £1,253,131 over 48 months Prof Stephen Goldup; School of Chemistry New applications for interlocked molecules: materials synthesis and MRI imaging Royal Society; £5,000 over 60 months Dr Alexander Wittig, Associate Professor in Astronautics; School of Engineering Mega-constellation deployment with high-temperature resistojets SPRINT (Research England); £6,994 over 1 month Dr Georgios Konstantinidis; School of Electronics and Computer Science Horizon Europe – RAISE: Research Analysis Identifier SystEm European Commission; €5m over 36 months Dr Imogen Gingell; School of Physics and Astronomy The impact of magnetic reconnection on the dynamics and energetics of collisionless shockwaves (enhanced research expenses) Royal Society; £170,000 over 24 months Prof Matthew Turner; School of Electronics and Computer Science Enhanced Anti-windup Compensation Design Methods for Nonlinear Rigid Body Dynamics with Constrained Inputs EPSRC; £244,356 over 36 months

Prof Matthew Turner; School of Electronics and Computer Science Structured adaptive estimation: reliable ‘greybox’ adaptation EPSRC; £315,220 over 36 months Dr Christine Evers; School of Electronics and Computer Science ActivATOR – Active AudiTiOn for Robots EPSRC; £443,262 over 36 months Dr Tristan Rees-White; School of Engineering Measurement of methane and hydrogen sulphide plumes from the Walleys Quarry Landfill, Staffordshire Environment Agency; £12,500 over 1 month

FACULTY OF MEDICINE Dr Stephen Wootton; Human Development and Health COVID-NURSE – The development, testing and evaluation of a COVID-19 fundamental nursing care protocol: a randomised controlled trial MRC; Total award £430,470 for 18 months + £98,000 6 month extension Prof Paul Little; Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education PPIE activities National Institute of Health Research; £25,000 over 60 months Prof Paul Little; Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education Supporting Targeting Of antibiotics in Primary careto combat AMR using decision aids (STOP AMR – decision aids) National Institute of Health Research; £3,670 over 6 months Prof Paul Little; Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education Phase IV Admin Support National Institute of Health Research; £244,999 over 60 months Prof Paul Little; Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education GRoup Alexander lessons for Chronic musculoskeletal pain in Everyday practice (GRACE): preliminary development National Institute of Health Research; £8,435 over 12 months Prof Paul Little; Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education Top up for CANDID National Institute of Health Research; £15,081 over 4 months Prof Paul Little; Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education Top up for GRACE (GRoup Alexander lessons for Chronic musculoskeletal pain in Everyday practice (GRACE): preliminary development) National Institute of Health Research; £15,824 over 4 months Prof Paul Little; Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education SPCR Tranche IV 2021-2026 costing for Deputy ACDL National Institute of Health Research; £85,163 over 60 months Prof Paul Little; Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education Seed-corn / Bridging Award National Institute of Health Research; £19,716 over 8 months Prof Philip Calder; Human Development and Health effective nutritional targeting of age-related immune decline and intestinal microbial dysbiosis – extension MRC; £18,085 over 12 months

CI Dr Catherine Hill; Clinical and Experimental Sciences, joint CI Prof Samuele Cortese; Dept of Psychology Digital Sleep Support for Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (The DISCA study) National Institute of Health Research (PGfAR); £2,284,425.00 over 66 months Prof Christopher Kipps; Clinical and Experimental Sciences Cortical Disarray Measurement (CDM) in the early diagnosis of dementia National Institute of Health Research; £156,243 over 36 months Prof Hazel Everitt; Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education Dr Ian Bennett-Britton – Wellcome Trust clinical PhD fellowship Wellcome Trust; £345,209 over 60 months Prof Hazel Everitt; Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education co-PI with Dr Flis Bishop, Psychology Tip Study 2: Talking in Primary Care National Institute of Health Research, SPCR ; £791,153 over 30 months Prof Karen Walker-Bone; Human Development and Health D-MAPP: Developing a digital intervention for distal upper limb pain National Institute of Health Research; £42,828 over 72 months Associate Professor Rami Salib; Clinical and Experimental Sciences Repurposing Simvastatin to treat Intracellular and biofilm associated S.aureus in chronic rhinosinusitis Royal College of Surgeons Edinburgh; £9,216 over 12 months Prof Tim Underwood; Cancer Sciences Investigating the cellular microenvironment of lymph node metastasis in oesophageal adenocarcinoma Guts UK; £14,649 over 12 months Dr Simon Fraser; Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education People’s Experiences of Multimorbidity – The POEM study National Institute of Health Research; £18,129 over 24 months Dr Simon Fraser; Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education Multidisciplinary Ecosystem to study Lifecourse Determinants and Prevention of Early-onset Burdensome Multimorbidity (MELD-B) National Institute of Health Research; Full amount awarded: £2,208,466 over 33 months Dr Simon Fraser; Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education Determinants, trajectory and impact of health related quality of life in adults with CKD; the NURTuRE (National Unified Renal Translational Research Enterprise)-CKD HRQoL Study Kidney Research UK; £123,857 over 36 months

Research award highlights

Dr Ingrid Muller; Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education Parental experiences of infant crying National Institute of Health Research; £43,324 over 12 months Dr Sean Lim; Cancer Sciences Supplement award for PROSECO (A UK Multicentre Prospective Observational Study Evaluating COVID-19 Vaccine Immune Responses in Lymphoid Cancer) Blood Cancer UK; £137,638 over 12 months Dr Christina Vogel; Human Development and Health (MRC Lifecourse Epidemiology Centre) Evaluation and co-creation to optimise use and benefits of the Healthy Start scheme National Institute of Health Research; £863,787 over 30 months Dr Adam Geraghty; Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education Exploring experiences of self-management interventions for Chronic Widespread Pain including Fibromyalgia: A systematic review and qualitative synthesis National Institute of Health Research; £27,074 over 6 months Dr Ali Roghanian; Cancer Sciences Therapeutic targeting of a novel myeloid immune-checkpoint to overcome chemoresistance in breast cancer Breast Cancer Now; £221,073 over 36 months Dr Nigel Hall; Human Development and Health CONservative TReatment of Appendicitis in Children – a randomised controlled Trial – CONTRACT 2 National Institute of Health Research; £1,074,742 over 48 months Prof Paul Elkington, Prof Hywel Morgan and Dr Liku Tezera; Clinical and Experimental Sciences Investigating local determinants of outcome in human tuberculosis MRC; £777,561 over 36 months Prof Gareth Griffiths; Cancer Sciences AGILE: Seamless Phase I/Iia Platform for the Rapid Evaluation of Candidates for COVID-19 treatment Wellcome Trust; £239,621 over 24 months Prof Gareth Griffiths; Cancer Sciences Optimizing MATrix as remission induction treatment for newly diagnosed primary CNS Lymphoma – a randomized phase III trial (OPTIMATE trial) Cancer Research UK; £577,528 over 94 months Prof Gareth Griffiths; Cancer Sciences CRAIN: A phase 1b clinical trial with dose escalation and dose expansion phases of ASTX660 in combination with standard radical radiotherapy in cervical cancer with chemoradiation Cancer Research UK; £579,027 over 48 months Prof Gareth Griffiths; Cancer Sciences AGILE: CST3b Nitazoxanide World Health Organization; £48,297 over 9 months

Dr Jay Amin; Clinical and Experimental Sciences COmBining memantine And cholinesterase inhibitors in Lewy body dementia treatment Trial (COBALT) National Institute of Health Research; £1,624,827.87 over 54 months Mr Christopher Hanley; Cancer Sciences Investigating the role of fibroblast subpopulations in lung adenocarcinoma disease progression and response to treatment Rosetrees Trust; £29,886 over 18 months Dr Nisreen Alwan, PI in Southampton and co-I on the overall study led by UCL; Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education STIMULATE-ICP: Symptoms, Trajectory, Inequalities and Management: Understanding Long-COVID to Address and Transform Existing Integrated Care Pathways National Institute of Health Research; £6.9m over 24 months Dr Joseph Bell, NC3Rs Training Fellow; Clinical and Experimental Sciences Driving fibrosis-associated fibroblast generation in a 3D spheroid model of IPF fibroblastic foci AAIR Charity; £10,000 over 12 months Prof Nicholas Francis; Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education Developing a new approach to managing care home residents with possible urinary tract infection National Institute of Health Research; £35,431 over 12 months Prof Nicholas Francis; Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education IPD meta-analysis of microbiology data National Institute of Health Research; £47,502 over 24 months Prof Nicholas Francis; Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education Cellulitis antibiotic treatment duration National Institute of Health Research; £1,326,898 over 48 months Dr Adnan Khan; Clinical and Experimental Sciences A clinical study evaluating biomarkers of immunosenescence in the progression of Age-Related Macular Degeneration Wessex Medical Research; £19,933 over 18 months Dr Ganesh Vigneswaran and Co-Investigator Prof Mahesan Niranja; Electronics and Computer Science Machine learning to identify predictors of outcome and survival in the treatment of mUM (metastatic uveal melanoma) with M-PHP (melphalan percutaneous hepatic perfusion) The Academy of Medical Sciences; £25,446 over 24 months Prof Ian Clarke; Clinical and Experimental Sciences Construction and characterisation of Chlamydia transposon knock-out libraries Wellcome Trust; £237,623 over 36 months

FACULTY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES Prof Jean-Yves Pitarakis; School of Economic, Social and Political Sciences Novel approaches to comparing the predictive accuracy of nested models in data rich and heterogeneous predictor environments ESRC; £315,420 over 36 months

This list encompasses a selection of awards logged with University of Southampton Finance from March to May 2022 that are not considered commercially sensitive.

Prof Rosalind Edwards; School of Economic, Social and Political Sciences Between the community and the sociologist: Wives diaries, classic studies, and digital archival resources British Academy; £6,716 over 24 months Prof Marika Taylor; School of Mathematical Sciences Chaos and black hole interiors Science And Technology Facilities Council; £500,930 over 60 months Dr Carlos Mafra; School of Mathematical Sciences Additional Research Expenses Royal Society; £5,000 over 36 months Dr Kristine Nilsen; School of Economic, Social and Political Sciences Countdown to 2030: Strengthening Global, Regional and Country Analytic Capacity US Fund for UNICEF; £91,644 over 12 months Dr Alaa Zalata; Southampton Business School Debt covenants British Academy; £9,883 over 24 months Dr David Turton; School of Mathematical Sciences Supplement to URF ‘Black Holes in String Theory and Holography’ Royal Society; £5,000 over 5 months Dr Sien Van Der Plank; School of Economic, Social and Political Sciences Fostering Household Motivation and Capacity for Transformational Adaptation to Coastal Flooding ESRC; £90,829 over 12 months Dr Brian Moss; School of Economic, Social and Political Sciences In a bind: UK public libraries as contested spaces of crime, care, and culture British Academy and Leverhulme Trust Small Research Grant; £4,800 over 12 months Prof Lisa Whitehouse; Southampton Law School Tackling Housing Debt and Eviction Abrdn Financial Fairness Trust; £90,830 over 18 months Dr Eleonora Gandolfi; Library and Arts Capability for Collection Engagement Project: Reimagining knitting: a community perspective AHRC; £28,143 over 7 months

Find out more: www.southampton.ac.uk/ris reaction@southampton.ac.uk +44 (0)23 8052 3095 Research and Innovation Services (RIS) facilitates academic collaborations, research funding bids, industrial interactions and knowledge exchange activities, including commercialisation and business acceleration. RIS also supports research ethics and integrity, research contracting and the REF.

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