Engineering news
The beneficiaries of the first UK Intelligence Community Postdoctoral Research Fellowships include James Robinson at University College London, who will research environmentally stable rechargeable batteries for flexible wearables, and Jonathan Silver, whose work on quantum sensors could be used to detect gases at airport security.
Another project by Fabio Alessio Vittoria, also at UCL, will improve airport scanning. It will combine two different types of X-rays with machine learning algorithms to create better forms of non-destructive scanning that can provide more detailed information on the physical, chemical and structural properties of a sample.
The final project, by David Haynes at City, University of London, will investigate how individuals reveal personal information while using the internet.
Each awardee will receive two years of funding for their project, and mentoring from a fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering and an adviser from the intelligence community.
“Engineering innovation is vital to the development and success of many sectors in the UK, including the intelligence, security and defence communities,” said Dame Ann Dowling, president of the Royal Academy of Engineering. “These four awardees reflect the very best of what the UK’s excellent researchers have to offer and recognise the crucial role engineering plays in shaping the UK’s security future.”
Anthony Finkelstein, chief scientific adviser for national security, said the work would help the UK remain “at the forefront of intelligence and security research in science, technology, engineering and mathematics”.
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