Best and brightest at ANU awarded $5 million in grants

Ways to improve new medicines, the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on human migration, and new methods to unlock quantum technologies and computing are among research projects at The Australian National University (ANU) to receive federal funding announced yesterday.

The projects, led by six mid-career researchers at ANU, have been awarded more than $5 million as part of the latest round of Australian Research Council (ARC) Future Fellowships.

The ARC Future Fellowships scheme provides funding for four-year fellowships and aims to retain the best and brightest mid-career researchers working in areas of national significance.

ANU Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Innovation) Professor Keith Nugent said it was wonderful to see the breath of talent being harnessed for areas of national importance.

“From environment to medicine, these outstanding researchers are working towards solving some of our biggest problems and improving our understanding for the benefit of the community.

“I congratulate all the funding recipients and I wish them great success in their projects.”

ANU mid-career researchers to receive Future Fellowships:

• Associate Professor Daoyi Dong: Control and learning for enhancing capabilities of quantum sensors.
• Associate Professor Catherine Frieman: Kin and connection: Ancient DNA between the science and the social.
• Professor Alan Gamlen: Mobility Shocks: Understanding disruptions to Australian migration.
• Dr Sean Hodgman: Quantum entanglement with atoms: from individual pairs to many-body systems.
• Dr Christoph Nitsche: Time to shine for constrained peptides as next-generation pharmaceuticals.
• Dr Daniel Noble: Quantifying the impact of phenotypic plasticity on population persistence.

More details are available at the ARC website.