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Finalists for the 2014 Australian Museum Eureka Prizes have been announced!
Presented annually by the Australian Museum, the Australian Museum Eureka Prizes rewards excellence in four categories - Research & Innovation, Leadership, Science Communication & Journalism and School Science. This year the Australian Museum Eureka Prizes culminates in a gala Award Dinner where 15 awards will be announced in celebration of Australian science.
Presented annually by the Australian Museum, the Australian Museum Eureka Prizes rewards excellence in four categories - Research & Innovation, Leadership, Science Communication & Journalism and School Science. This year the Australian Museum Eureka Prizes culminates in a gala Award Dinner where 15 awards will be announced in celebration of Australian science.
Each prize is judged by a panel of eminent and qualified individuals, whose contribution of expertise and time helps support the credibility of the Eureka Prizes.
The 15 prize winners are to be announced September 10. ANSTO's Eureka Prize for Innovative Use of Technology is one of the prizes and is awarded to an Australian individual, team or organisation that has used new or existing technology in an innovative way to significantly improve the outcome of their research.
Technology has the potential to significantly improve our daily lives, increase our standard of living and help solve today's key challenges in energy, health, information and communication, materials and our environment. The innovative application of technology facilitates new insights and a new way of viewing a problem that can lead to significant scientific breakthroughs.
The ANSTO Eureka Prize for Innovative Use of Technology rewards the innovative application of technology in Australia and here are the nominees for 2014:
- DIY Droplet Lens, Garvan Institute of Medical Research and Australian National University The traditional light microscope is bulky and expensive. Dr Tri Phan and Dr Steve Lee used gravity to manufacture high-performance polymer lenses. These can be seamlessly integrated with 3D printing and mini-LEDs to produce a cheap, portable microscope device that is digital and web-enabled to transform smartphones into mobile laboratories, all for just for $2 each.
- FREO2, University of Melbourne and DETECT Australia Globally, pneumonia kills more children than any other illness. Oxygen treatment could save many lives, but a lack of reliable electricity means that small clinics rarely have it. To meet this challenge the FREO2 (Fully Renewable Oxygen) team is developing a low-cost, electricity-free oxygen concentrator for developing countries.
- Monash Engineering, Monash University Stimuli-responsive polymer hydrogels have been developed by the Monash Engineering team as a new class of osmotic agent for extracting fresh water from saline water and wastewaters using sunlight or low-grade heat sources. They provide a low-cost, environmentally friendly technology for producing clean water with important economic, environmental and social benefits.
To see the full list of finalists visit the Australian Museum website.
Published: 08/08/2014