UCD Science Research Showcase

UCD Science Research Showcase - Science everyone can understand

On Tuesday 20 November 2012 the UCD College of Science welcomed academics, funding agency representatives and members of the public to the launch of the UCD Science Research Showcase. This publication aims to engage with a wider audience by sharing some highlights of work undertaken in the College. (Posted: 21 November 2012)

Nanoscale Magnetism and Spintronics

Professor Hans-Benjamin Braun and his Nanomagnetism group at UCD aim at using the electron's spin rather than its charge for information processing, a novel technology termed "Spintronics". (Posted: 18 October 2012)

Worming out answers about cilia and disease

Dr Blacque, a Principal Investigator and College Lecturer at the UCD School of Biomedical and Biomolecular Science talks to Dr Claire O'Connell about his research in the field of cilia biology.(Posted: 5 October 2012)

The Hunt for the Higgs

In July, CERN in Geneva announced a landmark scientific discovery: evidence for a particle consistent with the long-sought Higgs boson. Claire O'Connell (BSc, PhD) finds out more from Dr Ronan McNulty about UCD's role in the hunt for the Higgs. (Posted 14 September 2012)

Catching the prelude to an eruption

Being able to better predict volcanic eruptions in advance could bring enormous benefits to society, cutting down on false alarms and getting people out of harm’s way when it matters. That’s why Prof Chris Bean and his lab spend quite a bit of their time listening to what volcanoes have to say... (posted 01 September 2012)

A sweet trick for fighting infection
Sugar structures, or carbohydrates, play important roles in how bacteria, fungi and viruses interact with our bodies and cause infection. Professor Stefan Oscarson is looking at ways to harness those interactions in our favour - whether to design new antibiotics or improve vaccines. (Posted 16 August 2012)

New protein signature of breast cancer progression identified
A protein signature that predicts overall survival in breast cancer patients has been uncovered in the most comprehensive survey of protein expression patterns in breast cancer progression to date. The findings of the collaborative study led by the Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, Germany and involving researchers in University College Dublin and the National Institute of Cellular Biotechnology, Dublin City University are published in the current issue of Cancer Research.(Posted 22 May 2012)

In tune with the hipsters
Think of a hipster city, one that latches on to music trends early and throws them off before they become stale. Seattle? New York? London? Try again: Oslo, Dublin and Atlanta top the charts in a study by UCD researchers Prof Pádraig Cunningham and Conrad Lee, published on the online scientific forum Physics arXiv at http://arxiv.org/pdf/1204.2677v1.pdf (Posted 16 May 2012)

Keeping an eye on kidneys
Dr Tara McMorrow, a UCD Conway Institute Investigator, Lecturer in Pharmacology in the UCD School of Biomolecular and Biomedical Science and a group leader of the Renal Disease Research Group, is working on several angles to better understand what happens to cells as kidneys get damaged and fail...( Posted: 4 May 2012)

MRSA tailors virulence mechanisms to the hospital setting
Findings of new research by UCD scientists led by Conway Fellow, Dr Jim O’Gara from UCD School of Biomolecular & Biomedical Science indicate that the so-called ‘super-bug’, MRSA sacrifices virulence potential for antibiotic resistance. Image: Colonies of meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) isolated from a post-operative wound in a dog. Image by Ms Yvonne Abbott. © UCD Research Images. (Posted: 4 May 2012)

New clues about a mysterious bat-killing disease
New research findings have pinpointed the cause of a deadly disease in bats, but mysteries remain about why animals in the US are more vulnerable to it than their European counterparts. The disease, called White-Nose Syndrome, was first spotted in a cave in New York State in 2006, explains UCD’s Dr Sébastien Puechmaille, a post-doctoral researcher at the UCD School of Biological and Environmental Science...Image created by Dr Sebastien Puechmaille, UCD School of Biology & Environmental Science (Posted: 4 May 2012)

Ambitious UCD Research project aims to solve the mystery behind freak ocean waves
A new project jointly led by UCD researcher Professor Frédéric Dias aims to unravel the mysteries of the origin of rogue waves in the ocean by looking at analogies between ocean wave and optical wave physics... (Posted: 19 April 2012)

Kerry red deer ancestry traced to population introduced to Ireland by ancient peoples over 5,000 years ago
Research findings recently published in the journal Quaternary Science Reviews show that red deer populations were introduced to Ireland by ancient peoples from Britain during the Neolithic period over 5,000 years ago... (Posted: 19 April 2012)

An infection that is hard to stomach
widespread bacterial infection is linked to an increased risk of stomach cancer. Dr Claire O'Connell hears how UCD researchers are helping to figure out why particular strains of H. pylori can cause serious problems, and to identify patients at high risk who need treatment for the infection... (Posted: 19 April 2012)

Toxin tricks could help deliver drugs
Drawing up lists of genes associated with the movement of toxins and nanoparticles in cells could help in the design of targeted delivery systems for such agents so they can avoid the lysosome, explains Professor Simpson from the UCD School of BIology and Environmental Science. (Posted 4 April 2012)

Probing mysteries of the Universe with Einstein
Professor Peter Hogan's most recent book, Equations of Motion in General Relativity (International Series of Monographs on Physics), is co-authored with Hideki Asada and Toshifumi Futamase and published by Oxford University Press. Professor Hogan, who is Associate Professor of Relativity Theory at the UCD School of Physics, has worked with some of the world’s leading relativists and has long-standing collaborations with colleagues in France, Japan, South Africa and the United States. (Posted 21 March 2012)

Making light work of solar cells

How do you harvest light in a solar cell? It’s a question that has prompted decades of research, and some valiant records have been set. Now by redesigning the architecture of third-generation solar cells at the nano-level, a team in UCD has come up with an approach that could ultimately allow useful levels of light to be harvested in everyday applications. (Posted 23 February 2012)

Shedding new light on eye disease

Being able to image tiny structures and cells in the eye can potentially identify the early stages of degenerative blindness, and it may also help eye surgeons carry out corrective procedures. Dr Brian Vohnsen and his team at the Advanced Optical Imaging Group in UCD are developing ways to image the eye both closely and rapidly. (Posted 1 February 2012)

Bringing maths to a new generation of minds

For many of us, our experience of learning maths ends when we leave school. Yet studying maths at college can open up whole new worlds of understanding. Dr Maria Meehan is intent on finding out more how students make that leap to advanced mathematical thinking. She also spearheads an initiative that places UCD undergraduates into schools to help develop their communication skills and encourage young minds to study maths at third level.... (Posted: 19 January 2012)

There is no 16-clue Sudoku, mathematician shows

As all Sudoku enthusiasts know, a proper Sudoku puzzle must have only one correct answer. But until now, it has been mere conjecture that the minimum number of clues needed to complete the puzzle, with only one unique solution, is 17, and puzzles with 16 clues or fewer must have multiple solutions. Photo Credit: Fergal Phillips/Sunday Times.(Posted: 10 January 2012)

Personalising the the use of chemotherapy in breast cancer treatment

UCD researchers have identified a novel biomarker that can identify those women with breast cancer who will have a poor response to tamoxifen, one of the principle anti-hormone drugs used to treat the disease. This may allow clinicians to tailor the treatment of early stage breast cancer patients appropriately... (Posted: 5 January 2012)

Evolution solutions, computer style

How can you harness the powerful force of evolution to help crack down on money laundering? Or to come up with better buildings, communications networks and animations? Taking tricks from the natural world and using them in computer software is opening up new opportunities to tackle problems and boost design processes, and Dr Michael O’Neill at Complex & Adaptive Systems Laboratory in UCD is forging ahead... (Posted: 15 December 2011)

Physicists focus in on Higgs boson – the so called ‘God particle’

Two experimental physics groups at CERN, the European Organisation for Nuclear Research - the world's leading laboratory for particle physics - have reported significant progress in the search for the Higgs boson - referred to as the ‘God particle’ in popular culture. Both the ATLAS and CMS experiments caught tantalising hints... (Posted: 14 December 2011)

New insights into nanoparticles and dividing cells

A new study from researchers at UCD has tracked the progress of nanoparticles as cells divide, and their findings - which were published recently in Nature Nanotechnology - will help us better understand how different tissues in the body process a dose of nanoparticles... Image: A nanoparticle with encapsulated active ingredient is penetrating a cell membrane. Image and copyright of Nanobotmodels Company info@nanobotmodels.com. (Posted: 14 December 2011)

Clever computing for better wind forecasts

UCD researcher Dr Conor Sweeney is looking at how fine-tuning the weather forecast could help local wind-farms manage their resources. In a project funded by Science Foundation Ireland, Dr Sweeney is part of a team at UCD that has been figuring out how to scale down the wind forecast for specific sites using relatively little computing power - so a solution could be run on a desktop computer.....(Posted: 01 December 2011)

Light from Gamma-Ray burst afterglow reveals composition of galaxies in the early Universe

An international team of astronomers, including Dr. Sheila McBreen from UCD School of Physics, has used the brief but bright light from a distant gamma-ray burst source to study the composition of very distant galaxies. The new observations, made with the European Southern Observatory's (ESO) Very Large Telescope, have revealed two galaxies in the young Universe that are richer in heavy chemical elements than the Sun...(Posted: 24 November 2011)

Getting ahead of the curve in online security

If you have ever paid for something online with your credit card, you have probably wondered whether prying eyes could view your precious account information as you sent it into the ether. Of course, protecting valuable communications is not new: wars have been turned on the efforts of code-crackers deciphering details of intercepted enemy plans... (Posted: 22 November 2011)

Ancient fossils reveal moth’s true colours

Scientists have determined the original colours of an ancient moth which lived more than 47 million years ago in Germany. The scientific methods which led to the discovery could help scientists identify the colours of many other long-extinct creatures including birds, fish, and insects, and shed light on the function and evolution... (Posted: 21 November 2011)

Going to extremes to find greener chemicals

Next time you watch a TV programme that cracks a crime using DNA evidence, tip your hat to the microbe that makes it all possible. iDr Francesca Paradisi was interviewed by freelance journalist Dr Claire O’Connell based on the paper at http://www.springerlink.com/content/r437h62053g172q1/ (Posted: 27 October 2011)

Cod Mislabelling Four Times More Prevalent in Ireland than UK, study shows

28% of cod products in Ireland are mislabelled, as compared to 7% in the UK, according to research published in the journal Fish and Fisheries. This is the first time that researchers have compared the labelling of cod products sold in Ireland and the UK...

Fewer verbs and nouns in financial reporting could predict stock market bubble, study show

Professor Mark Keane, School of Computer Science and Informatics, University College Dublin, who was involved in the research, explains...

Drugs being developed to tackle CJD could also help block Alzheimer's, research shows

Scientists funded by the Medical Research Council UK (MRC) and Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) have identified two antibodies which could help block the onset of Alzheimer's disease in the brain.

Freak waves – using maths to understand weather conditions

When German cargo vessel, the MS München, disappeared beneath the ocean waves on a voyage to the US in 1978 not much was known about rogue waves. Investigations into the sinking of the ship theorised that it was caused by...

Shark conservation – preserving Ireland’s unique species

Irish scientists are lobbying the EU to protect a unique species of shark in Irish waters following eye-opening research on the relatively unknown predator. Juno McEnroe (BA 2000) learns from Dr Stefano Mariani how researchers spent several years...

The sum of all parts - Systems biology at UCD

It’s usually easier to understand a situation when you get a wider perspective on it. A bit like stepping back and seeing the entire wood rather than an individual tree: the workings of the entire forest can seem vast, but they make more sense...

Ancient fossils build picture of life on earth

We all know about fossils that catch the eye - dinosaur skeletons that make the headlines, intricate shells entombed in polished slices of rock and even scatterings of petrified ancient teeth. Dr Paddy Orr and his team use modern technology...

Forging ahead with metals to boost green energy

Loss of biodiversity in Ireland

The number and variety of many kinds of plants and animals have been declining in the Irish countryside for many decades. Dr Gordon Purvis and his colleagues at UCD School of Biology and Environmental Science have received funding to find out...