Brussels, 05/12/2005 (Agence Europe) - In London on 2 December, Commissioner Janez Potoènik, awarded the prestigious Descartes Prize to teams of European researchers for outstanding work in the fields of genetics, climate change, astronomy, social sciences and disease management, and to innovative science communicators. The 1,000,000 euro Descartes Research Prize was shared this year among five pan-European teams who achieved major scientific breakthroughs in key European research areas. The 250,000 euro Descartes Prize for Science Communication was shared among five science communicators “for their success in bringing science and technology to wider audiences in Europe”. The five runners-up also each received a 5,000 euro prize. The Grand Jury, chaired by Ene Ergma, Vice-President of the Academy of Sciences of Estonia and President of the Estonian Parliament, chose five laureates from a highly competitive field of 85 entries. The teams which will each receive 200,000 euro are: the EXCEL team for developing a new class of artificial meta-materials, called Left-Handed Materials or Negative Index Materials, which have the ability to overturn many familiar properties of light; the CECA team for breakthrough findings on climate and environmental change in the Arctic; the PULSE team for demonstrating the impact of European pulsar science on modern physics; the ESS (European Social Survey) project for radical innovations in cross-national surveys; and the EURO-PID project for cutting edge research on primary immunodeficiencies. The five finalists who each received a prize of 300,000 euro were: the H.E.S.S. team (for enhancing the understanding of the extreme universe); the PITCID project (for new understanding of and development of new treatments for chronic inflammatory disease); the TANNIN team (for development of tannin-based adhesives); the HIDEMAR project (for new nanoparticles and nanopatterned arrays for high-density data storage); the PATHFINDER project (for demonstrating the effects of nuclear receptors in health and disease).
The Descartes Prize for Science Communication was awarded to: Carl Johan Sundberg, from Sweden, for his lifelong enthusiasm for explaining science in a clear, understandable way, Anja C. Andersen, the young astrophysicist from the Dark Cosmology Centre, Copenhagen University, for her exceptional gift for presenting the complexities of science to a popular audience; Jos Van Hemelrijck, from VRT Television, Belgium, for producing “Overleven”, an innovative science TV series following the work and personalities of scientists; author, Bill Bryson, for his highly inspiring, innovative and entertaining book, “A Short History of Nearly Everything”; Michael Seifert from Tübingen University, for the “Children's University”, a highly successful series of lectures designed to stimulate young people's interest in studying science.
Five other finalists each received 5,000 euro: Raphaël Girardot, for a documentary film on the history of BSE; Frances Balkwill, for her children's books helping children to understand some of today's most complex scientific issues; Colin T. Pillinger, for raising public awareness of space research; Catherine Peix, for her documentary, “Les origines du Sida”, on the origins of HIV/AIDS; George Szpiro, for his series of stories “Maths for Sunday Morning - 50 stories on mathematics and science”.