Newsmakers at KTH

Caring Services Professor a sounding board for minister

Britt Östlund , Professor of Technology in Health Care, has been appointed a member of the government’s elderly care research council. The council is one way the government is looking to make better use of research that can improve quality of life for the elderly. The new council consists of 15 researchers altogether, who should act as a sounding board for Lena Hallengren, Minister for Health and Social Affairs. The council will address issues such as how elderly care of the future should be developed, the prevention of diseases, and how to help more people stay in good health.

Focus on researchers within sustainability

In total, 15 researchers from KTH are included on the R0yal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (IVA) 100 list  of current projects and researchers with big potential within sustainability. The aim is to raise the profile of research with commercial potential and to highlight the need for cooperation concerning the social challenges we are facing. The research is applicable within some of the following areas: smart industry, resource and energy efficiency, society and welfare, infrastructure, smart products and services, plus business models and the circular economy. KTH has most researchers represented on the IVA list.

Three young leaders for the future

This year, three researchers from KTH have been named as Research Leaders of the Future by the Foundation for Strategic Research (SSF). The researchers, Klaus Jöns  (Quantum Repeaters), Iolanda Leite  (Interactive learning for robots), and Marina Petrova  (Intelligent and robust ultra-high speed wireless networks) will receive SEK 12 million over a five-year period and join a leadership programme. In total, 20 researchers will receive funding from the SSF programme that is now in its seventh year. The financing aims to give young researchers the opportunity to develop into leaders of the future in academic and/or industrial research in Sweden.

Modern design for energy efficient aviation

KTH researchers within Fluid Mechanics have been involved in developing methods to modernise the design of aircraft as part of SSEMID (Stability and Sensitivity Methods for Industrial Design), funded by Horizon 2020, the EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation. The researchers, Guillaume Chauvat , Dan Henningson  and Ardeshir Hanifi , have studied how the effects of small surface deformations and extensions to wings affect air flow, with the aim of reducing friction and thereby improve fuel efficiency. In another part of the project, what happens when a jet blast is used for cooling or flow control is being investigated, such as in turbo engines. The results have been published in an article in the Journal of Fluid Mechanics .

Road experts provide help in Colombia

KTH will play a key role in a newly established Colombian research centre on infrastructure for roads. The Technological Development Center for Road Infrastructure Innovation, at the University of Cauca, is going to research into issues concerning the road network in Colombia, such as the maintenance and development of non-asphalted roads. One of the KTH researchers involved, Alvaro Guarin Cobo , will contribute with knowledge about the Swedish innovation model, such as Triple Helix, the international innovation model where the university works closely with the enterprise sector and public authorities. The centre will receive SEK 26.4 million in funding from the Colombian government.

IT professor wins design research award

Kristina Höök , a Professor at KTH has received the SIGCHI Academy Award. SIGCHI (the Special Interest Group on Computer–Human Interaction) is an international network of academics, students and professionals within computer-human interaction. Höök is the first Swede to receive the award. As part of her research, she has gained fame for the so-called Soma design: a process that enables designers to investigate and improve connections between experiences, feelings, subjective understanding and values.

Environment historian joins financing fund board

Sverker Sörlin , Professor of the History of Science, Technology and Environment, has been appointed as a director of the Riksbank Jubilee Fund Board. The fund has been established to promote and support Swedish humanitarian and social science research with the aim of achieving a leading international position.

Text: Christer Gummeson