A new development in the European framework programs for research and innovation is catching attention: the lump sum pilot. First implementations are in progress already in Horizon 2020 and intensified for the next framework program Horizon Europe. What does it mean for the research community and which changes do we expect?

The modern business world is using a new buzzword: “Open innovation”. What does it mean? How “open” do we need to be? What could be the benefit? And what does it look like in reality?

Research funding is a highly competitive process and only a small fraction of applicants get the grant in the end. EU-Horizon 2020, with almost 80 billion Euros the largest research program worldwide, has an average success rate of only 14%. What is the secret of success of those, who have made it? 

In our previous article Insights into crowdfunding the concept of crowdfunding was explained while the following article focuses on investment. Crowdinvesting is not a miracle. However, there are a few myths due to misinformation about some basic principles and due to still changing legal provisions of this new financial instrument. Some of these myths are related to the expectations about the parties involved.  The following facts are supposed to dismantle the myths of crowdinvesting.

Crowdfunding became known around 2005/06 in the creative industries. To cope with illegal downloads in the music industries, money was raised before publishing. However, the concept of crowdfunding is much older. In 1885 the Statute of Liberty would not have been completed without a newspaper-led campaign (by Joseph Pulitzer of the New York World) that attracted 160,000 donors.

Conference season has already started and scientists begin to mingle and present their latest achievements. The lecture rooms are flooded with an overwhelming number of data sets and graphs and crowded PowerPoint slides are the norm. What makes the difference between a good and an excellent presentation is not only the content and the speaker, but also the design of the presentation itself. But, do scientist really have time for that?

The last conference I attended had 455 poster presentations divided into 3 designated poster sessions (2 hours each). If we do the math, this would leave one with less than a minute for reading each and every poster. Of course, this is not how poster sessions work; however, it nicely illustrates how much competition you face as a poster presenter. Designing your poster well can give you an edge when it comes to getting recognition for your work.

Co-author: Sabrina Mayer-Maschl

On Friday, April 13th 2018, it was time to experience the world of science and research! Despite the not very promising date, the organizers expected a large number of visitors to come. During the 8th Long Night of Research, Austria’s largest nationwide research event, current science projects, new findings and technologies were presented in understandable and entertaining ways. With 228.000 visitors a new record was achieved. This shows the steadily growing interest in the research topics of the future.

It’s already been a year since the acib science blog was officially launched. Birthdays are a good time to reflect, and the last year have given us much to reflect on! When the acib blog was still in its infancy, Katrin Weinhandl, former chief editor and one of the initiators of this project, played a decisive role by setting up a well thought-through editorial plan to transform scientific content into understandable posts. After she left the company, she introduced us (Olivia Laggner and Sabrina Mayer-Maschl) to become the new chief editors.

This is the first article in a row of articles about entrepreneurship and financing in life science. They are supposed to spot issues that may come up with starting up a business and structuring the financing and can be used as a hands-on guide through the challenges that may emerge when switching from science to business.