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Sussex Research funds 11 new projects

Sussex Research has made 11 awards in the fifth round of the Research Development Fund, which aims to develop activities that will lead to the submission of substantive external research proposals.

A researcher in a lab, surrounded by scientific equipmentSussex Centre for Drug Discovery

The fourth round of the competition received 29 bids from faculty in eleven schools. There was a 38% success rate with the successful bids coming from the following schools: BMEc, BSMS, Engineering and Informatics, Global Studies, HAHP, Life Sciences, MPS and Psychology.

Professor Alan Lester, Director of Interdisciplinary Research, said: “The panel was very impressed with the continued quality of proposals submitted to the RDF. The scheme is designed to enable those with specific ideas for externally funded projects, where necessary, to conduct the pilot studies or proof of concept research that will make the difference between funded and unfunded external applications."

Research Development Fund awards were made to:

Dr Maurizio Marinelli, HAHP
Gentrification and ‘Living Heritage’ in Hong Kong: Stories of Survival, Resistance and Metamorphosis
This project focused on the stories of survival, resistance and metamorphosis of street markets and street hawkers in Hong Kong will contribute both to fill a gap in the socio-political and cultural history of Hong Kong, and offer an innovative and original approach which could contribute to the pioneering field of 'Hong Kong identity studies' (香港学).

Dr Gideon Reunveni (PI), HAHP, Dr Fae Dussart (Co-I), Global Studies
The Economics of Sexual Exploitation: Jewish sex trafficking syndicates in the German-Speaking World, 1880-1940
In the 1880s, amid mass migration from Continental Europe, sex trafficking became a global phenomenon.  East European Jews operated particularly organized and profitable trafficking syndicates.  The archive of the Austrian Foreign Service (HHSTA) in Vienna houses untapped files on such syndicates between 1880 and 1918.  RDF funding will help us scope and transcribe these files, develop an interpretation strategy for the material therein, and prepare a pilot study ahead of a major funding application on Jewish trafficking syndicates in the German-speaking world.

Dr Lisa Mullen, BSMS
Safety testing of a novel drug delivery system to underpin therapeutic applications
Research into a novel drug delivery system is ongoing. Queries have been raised about the safety of a by-product of this system which needs to be addressed so that the next phase of funding to explore novel therapies for multiple sclerosis and other inflammatory conditions can be secured.

Dr MariaClara Castellanos, Life Sciences
Plant resilience and floral adaptation to pollinator change: field estimates in polyploid plants
The response of wild plant populations to human-induced changes in pollinators depends on their resilience and potential for evolutionary change. This pilot study will develop statistical tools to use a novel combination of field studies and population genomics to measure plant evolutionary potential directly in field populations where pollinators vary.  

Professor Gordon Ferns (PI), BSMS, Dr Lamia Heikel (Co-I), BSMS
The development of a novel platform for local, targeted treatment of cardiovascular disease
The proposed pilot study is essential to provide proof of concept and demonstrate the feasibility of a novel local regenerative medical system based on polymeric hydrogels as a promising therapeutic approach for the treatment of cardiovascular disease. This will enable us to register a patent and apply for external funding.

Professor Martin Rose (PI), EngInf, Harry Kovisto (Co-I), EngInf
Investigation of the unsteady time resolved 3-dimensional nature of the flow in rotating disc systems
The capability to measure high frequency time resolved 3-dimensional unsteady flow fields will be developed through an experimental programme. The results from this study will support two external research grant applications, which, if successful, place Sussex at the forefront of modern gas turbine research.

Dr John Drury (PI), Psychology, Professor David Weir (Co-I), EngInf
Mapping mobilization: The role of identity processes in the spread of solidarity across society through social media
This study develops a methodology for mapping the diffusion of expressions of solidarity across social media, and investigates the relationship between social media activity, identity and social influence. Findings will be relevant to social scientists and practitioners interested in promoting solidarity and positive intergroup relations.

Dr Ryan Scott (PI), Psychology, Professor Martin Yeomans (Co-I), Psychology
Unconscious reward associations driven by sweet tastes
The conscious association of cues, e.g. logos, with experienced reward, such as sweet taste, is known to influence consumption in the context of those cues. This project will use a new unconscious conditioning paradigm to provide proof in principle that such conditioning can be achieved unconsciously.  If successful, the work will both challenge the current public health model for modifying consumer behaviour and open a new avenue for therapeutic treatment.

Professor Mariana Mazzucato (BMEc)
The Next Economy Project
The Next Economy Project is a pilot project on how to allow policy makers to feed into high level economic research (funded by the European Commission), through ‘co-creation’ mechanisms, and to foster dissemination through policy briefs discussed in UK Parliament (achieved through the steering group). Three themes around the public debt, investment in innovation, and the smarter state, have been chosen as points of focus. The project will lead to the submission of a Co-Creation bid to the Horizon 2020 programme in 2017.

Dr Clark Griffith (PI), MPS, Professor Philip Harris (Co-I), MPS
Demonstration of a He3 absolute magnetometry system for neutron EDM measurements
Measurement of a neutron electric dipole moment (EDM) would give key insights to the basic symmetries underlying our universe. EDM measurements rely crucially on exquisite knowledge of magnetic fields in the apparatus, which will be greatly enhanced by the addition of a new high precision He3 magnetometer.

Professor Filippo Osella (PI), Global Studies, Professor Andrea Cornwall (Co-I), Global Studies
Expectations of Masculinity: A Comparative Study of India and Nigeria
This project is intended as a proof of concept for a major ESRC grant that will explore the changing contours of masculine identities under neoliberalism in two significant “emerging economies”: India, where globalisation and a rapidly changing labour market has opened up new opportunities for women and reconfigured both the possibilities and the realities of men’s realisation of traditional identities as providers; and Nigeria, where economic growth and political instability have contributed to the continuing decline of the breadwinner identity created in the wake of colonial proletarianisation, alongside the continued expansion of female opportunities for economic empowerment in the informal sector. As part of this preliminary study, we will also investigate the feasibility of expanding the project to encompass other emerging economies in the global south, such as Brazil and China.

£767k has been awarded to 49 projects under the first five rounds of the RDF.  For more information on the scheme and details of all 49 awards made in first five rounds, visit the Sussex Research website.

A sixth call for proposals will be launched in February 2016.